System and method for providing location information to a public safety answering point during an emergency 911 call from a WiFi handset

• US 8,290,470 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2007
• Issued: 10/16/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ray, Amar N., Chakravarthy, Cadathur V.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelin, Jean
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hua, Quan M
• Application Number:
  US11/891,784
• Publication Number:
  US 20090047924A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,891 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.1, 455/415, 455/456.1, 370/338, 379/207.15, 379/142.01, 379 37- 51
• US Class Current: 455/404.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/04 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5116 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• 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: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections

Abstract

A system and method for providing location information to a public safety answering point may include receiving, at a network access point, an emergency 911 call signal including GPS location information and mobile directory number of a wireless device. The GPS location information and mobile directory information may be communicated to a selective router associated with a public safety access point servicing an area including the network access point. The network access point may be a WiFi access point. The access point address information may be communicated using a type II caller ID data packet after the public safety answering point goes off-hook. By communicating both the access point address information and GPS location information, both PSAPs that are configured as E911 Phase I and E911 Phase II may display address location information of an emergency 911 caller.

Claims

1. A system for providing location information to a public-safety answering point during an Emergency 911 call, said system comprising:

a WiFi access point configured to;

store WiFi access point physical address information;

in response to receiving an emergency call from a WiFi enabled wireless device, generate a modified caller identification frequency shift keying (CIFSK) signal containing said physical address information of the Wifi access point, wherein said generating comprises;

retrieving the stored physical address information; and

modifying the CIFSK signal by replacing data in the call identification information data fields with the retrieved physical address information, said physical address information comprising street number and name; and

transmit the generated CIFSK signal to a controller;

the controller in communication with said WiFi access point and configured to;

receive information associated with the WiFi enabled wireless device from said WiFi access point in said CIFSK signal; and

communicate an identifier of the WiFi enabled wireless device and WiFi access point identification information, and the WiFi access point physical address information to a gateway;

a database in communication with said controller, said database including network address information of selective routers through which information is communicated to public safety answering points, and configured to;

identify, in response to receiving a selective router request, a selective router; and

communicate selective router information of the identified selective router in response to the request; and

a gateway in communication with said database and in communication with a network on which the selective routers are operating,

said controller being configured to request selective router information, from said database, of a selective router through which information is to be sent to a public safety answering point servicing an area including said WiFi access point during an emergency 911 call by communicating the WiFi access point identification information to said database;

said gateway further being configured to receive the selective router information and communicate the emergency 911 call including the WiFi access point physical address to the selective router identified by said database, to cause the public safety answering point receiving the emergency 911 call to display the physical address.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said WiFi access point is configured to receive GPS location information and mobile directory number from the WiFi enabled wireless device during the emergency 911 call.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein said WiFi access point is configured to communicate the mobile directory number, GPS location information, WiFi access point physical address information, and port ID information of said WiFi access point to said controller during the emergency 911 call.

4. The system according to claim 3, wherein said WiFi enabled wireless device is a phone.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said WiFi access point is configured to generate a caller identification frequency shift keying signal including a type II caller ID data packet that includes the physical address information of said WiFi access point.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the public safety answering point is E911 Phase I compliant and displays the physical address information of said WiFi access point using caller ID.

7. The system according to claim 5, wherein the public safety answering point is E911 Phase II and displays the physical address location of said WiFi access point and address location of the WiFi enabled wireless device based on the GPS location information.

17. The system according to claim 1, wherein said controller is further configured to register WiFi access point identification information associated with each WiFi access point in a mesh network in which said controller and WiFi access point operates.

18. The system according to claim 1, wherein said gateway is further configured to communicate WiFi access point physical address information to the selective router.

8. A method for providing location information to a public safety answering point, said method comprising:

storing, at a network access point, location information comprising physical address of said network access point;

receiving, at the network access point, an emergency 911 call signal from a wireless device, said emergency 911 call signal including GPS location information, mobile directory number of a wireless device and;

in response to said receiving, communicating, by the network access point, the emergency 911 call signal including the GPS location information, mobile directory number of the wireless device, and the network access point physical address to a network gateway in communication with a database and in communication with a network on which selective routers are operating, said communicating comprising;

generating a modified caller identification frequency shift keying (CIFSK) signal; and

retrieving the stored physical address information;

modifying the CIFSK signal by replacing data in the call identification information data fields with the retrieved physical address information, said physical address information comprising street number and name;

transmitting the generated CIFSK signal to a gateway;

determining at said database a destination selective router to which the call signal is destined;

at the gateway, receiving the determined selective router information from the database and communicating the GPS location information, the mobile directory information, and the network access point physical address to the selective router associated with a public safety answering point servicing an area including the network access point to cause the public safety answering point receiving the emergency 911 call signal to display the physical address.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising looking up selective router information associated with the selective router and communicating the GPS location information, mobile directory number, and network access point physical address information via the selective router to the public safety answering point using caller ID.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein communicating includes generating a caller identification frequency shift keying signal with a caller ID type II data packet that includes the network access point location information.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein receiving the emergency 911 call signal includes receiving a WiFi signal.

12. The method according to claim 8, further comprising displaying the mobile directory number, and network access point physical address information through caller ID if the public safety answering point is an E911 phase I configured public safety answering point.

13. The method according to claim 8, further comprising displaying the mobile directory number, network access point address information, and physical address location information associated with the GPS location information if the public safety answering point is an E911 phase II configured public safety answering point.

14. The method according to claim 8, further comprising communicating the GPS location information and mobile directory number information in separate data packets.

15. The method according to claim 8, further comprising communicating the network access point physical address location information in type II caller ID format after the public safety answering point goes off-hook.

16. The method according to claim 8, wherein communicating the GPS location information and mobile directory information is performed using caller ID type-I while the public safety answering point is on-hook.

19. The method according to claim 8, further comprising registering access point identification information associated with each WiFi access point in a mesh network in which said controller and WiFi access point operate.

20. The method according to claim 8, wherein receiving, at a network access point, an emergency 911 call signal includes receiving, at a WiFi network access point, an emergency 911 WiFi call signal.