Multimedia emergency services

• US 8,085,905 B2
• Filed: 10/15/2009
• Issued: 12/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Zellner, Samuel N., Enzmann, Mark J., Moton, Jr., Robert T.
• Primary Examiner(s): WOO, STELLA L
• Application Number:
  US12/579,611
• Publication Number:
  US 20100030399A1
• Time in Patent Office: 803 Days
• Field of Search: 379/45, 379/102.01, 379 37- 40, 379/102.02, 379/102.07, 379/106.01, 379/106.02
• US Class Current: 379/45
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/002 with telemetering systems telemetering in general G08C
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/007 with remote control systems remote control in general G08C
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/04 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1205 where the types of switching equipement comprises PSTN/ISDN equipment and switching equipment of networks other than PSTN/ISDN, e.g. Internet Protocol networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/43 using wireless personal area networks [WPAN], e.g. 802.15, 802.15.1, 802.15.4, Bluetooth or ZigBee
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/00 Systems for electrical power generation, transmission, distribution or end-user application management characterised by the use of communication or information technologies, or communication or information technology specific aspects supporting them
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

A system and method for remotely controlling one or more monitoring devices in a user'"'"'s household in the event of emergency so as to more productively monitor the emergency situation on a real-time basis. The monitoring devices may include a number of multimedia instruments such as a telephone with an answering machine, a computer with a built-in digital camera, a video recording device, a cellular phone with an integrated digital camera, etc. An emergency service provider may remotely activate the monitoring devices in the user'"'"'s vicinity upon receiving an emergency help request from the user, and receive the information sent by the monitoring devices to enable the service personnel to plan appropriate response to the emergency at hand. Such an arrangement allows for better monitoring of the user'"'"'s vicinity in an emergency situation without the need for prolonged user participation in narrating or describing the emergency situation.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring and controlling capabilities of a mobile device by an emergency service center, comprising:

receiving an emergency request at an emergency service center, the emergency service center communicating with a mobile device via a network;

forwarding, by the emergency service center, a query to the mobile device to retrieve capabilities associated with the mobile device, the capabilities comprising at least one of;

what parameters the mobile device can monitor, a type of monitored information generated by the mobile device, and a form in which the monitored information is available from the mobile device;

enabling, by the emergency service center, remote control of the mobile device; and

remotely controlling, by the emergency service center, the capabilities of the mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is a medical device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the medical device monitors biological functions of a user.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising remotely monitoring the medical device.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising remotely monitoring biological parameters of the medical device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is an automobile.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising remotely controlling the automobile.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein remotely controlling the automobile comprises controlling all monitoring devices in the automobile.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein remotely controlling the automobile comprises controlling safety features of the automobile.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein remotely controlling the automobile comprises controlling a throttle control of the automobile.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein remotely controlling the automobile comprises controlling a braking system of the automobile.

12. A system to monitor a vicinity of an alerting event, comprising;

an emergency service center, the emergency service center receiving a communication of an alerting event from a communication device over a network;

the emergency service center being operative to identify monitoring devices in an area of the alerting event; and

the emergency service center being operative to acquire capabilities associated with the monitoring devices, wherein the capabilities comprise at least one of;

what parameters the monitoring devices can monitor, a type of monitored information generated by the monitoring devices, and a form in which the monitored information is available from the monitoring devices.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the emergency service center is operative to remotely monitor the area of the alerting event via the monitoring devices.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the emergency service center is operative to remotely control which features of the monitoring devices are activated.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the alerting event is in an automobile emergency;

and

wherein the emergency service is operative to monitor the monitoring devices in an area of an automobile.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the monitoring devices are medical devices.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the emergency service center communicates with the monitoring devices via at least one of a telephone line cable, an ISDN line, an ADSL line, an optical fibre link, a radio link, and a cable modem link.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the emergency service center is operative to register the monitoring devices in advance.