Method for communicating indoor location to an emergency service system

• US 8,442,483 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2012
• Issued: 05/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Gunasekara, Don
• Primary Examiner(s): Edouard, Patrick
• Assistant Examiner(s): Eisner, Ronald
• Application Number:
  US13/367,035
• Publication Number:
  US 20120135704A1
• Time in Patent Office: 463 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.1, 455/404.2, 4554561-457
• US Class Current: 455/404.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/026 using orientation information, e.g. compass
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/33 for indoor environments, e.g. buildings
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]

Abstract

A method for communicating location to an emergency service system. A wireless communication device (WCD) such as a cell phone attains a GPS location fix when outdoors and then uses dead reckoning to determine its direction(s) and distance(s) of travel reaching a position inside a building. When a user of the WCD places an emergency call, the WCD conveys an indication of its indoor location in a signaling message to an emergency service center, and an intermediation system such as an IMS system translates the indoor location indication to a textual description of a portion of the building (e.g., room, cubicle, zone, etc.) that encompasses the indicated location. An emergency service operator can thus receive the building portion description, to facilitate emergency service response. Further, a similar process can then be repeated during the call, to provide an updated building portion description to the operator.

Claims

1. A method of conveying location of a wireless communication device (WCD) to an emergency service system comprising a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the WCD including a GPS receiver and a wireless transceiver, the method comprising:

the WCD applying the GPS receiver to receive GPS satellite signals, and the WCD using the received signals to determine GPS location coordinates of the WCD;

the WCD using dead reckoning as a basis to update the GPS location coordinates in accordance with distance and direction of the WCD inside a building, thereby establishing indoor location coordinates of the WCD;

the WCD using the wireless transceiver to transmit the established indoor location coordinates in a signaling message seeking to set up a call to the emergency service system; and

at an intermediary in signaling communication with the WCD and the emergency service system, (i) receiving the signaling message, (ii) translating the indoor location coordinates to a building portion descriptor that describes a portion of the building where the indoor location coordinates reside so as to produce a modified signaling message that contains the building portion descriptor, and (iii) sending the modified signaling message along to the emergency service system,

wherein the signaling message invokes establishment of a session between the PSAP and the WCD,

whereby the building portion descriptor facilitates emergency response.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the WCD is a cellular telephone.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein applying the GPS receiver to receive the GPS satellite signals and using the received signals to determine GPS location coordinates of the WCD is an instance of the WCD periodically attaining of GPS location fix.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein using dead reckoning as a basis to update the GPS location coordinates in accordance with distance and direction of the WCD inside the building comprises:

using a compass to determine at least one direction of travel of the WCD;

using a pedometer to determine at least one distance of travel of the WCD; and

using the at least one direction of travel and the at least one distance of travel cooperatively to update the GPS location coordinates.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the GPS location coordinates comprise latitude and longitude coordinates, and wherein the indoor location coordinates comprise latitude and longitude coordinates.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the WCD generating the signaling message, including in the signaling message a specification of the established indoor location coordinates,

wherein using the wireless transceiver to transmit the established indoor location coordinates in the signaling message seeking to set up a call to the emergency service system comprises transmitting the signaling message, including the specification, via an air interface from the WCD to a radio access network serving the WCD,

wherein the signaling message passes from the radio access network via a packet-switched network to an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) Call Session Control Function (CSCF) and thereafter to the intermediary, and

wherein the intermediary transmits the modified signaling message, including the building portion descriptor provided by the intermediary, via the packet-switched network to the emergency service system, and the PSAP receives the building portion descriptor and presents the building portion descriptor to a human PSAP operator.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising, during the session:

the WCD using dead reckoning as a basis to update the indoor location coordinates in accordance with distance and direction of the WCD inside the building, thereby establishing updated indoor location coordinates of the WCD;

the WCD using the wireless transceiver to transmit the updated indoor location coordinates in an update message; and

at the intermediary, (i) receiving the update message, (ii) translating the updated indoor location coordinates to an updated building portion descriptor so as to produce a modified update message that contains the building portion descriptor, and (iii) sending the modified update message along to the emergency service system, wherein the PSAP receives the updated building portion descriptor and presents the updated building portion descriptor to the human PSAP operator,

whereby the updated building portion descriptor further facilitates emergency response.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining mapping data that correlates location coordinates with building portion descriptors,

wherein translating the indoor location coordinates to the building portion descriptor comprises referring to the mapping data to translate the indoor location coordinates to the building portion descriptor.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the intermediary comprises a computer, and wherein maintaining the mapping data comprises maintaining the mapping data at the computer.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the portion of the building comprises a portion selected from the group consisting of a room and an office-cubicle.

11. A method of conveying location of a wireless communication device (WCD) to an emergency service system comprising a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the method comprising:

the WCD applying a GPS receiver to receive GPS satellite signals, and the WCD using the received signals to periodically attain GPS location fixes each comprising location coordinates of the WCD, including a latest GPS location fix;

the WCD then entering a building where the WCD lacks a clear enough view of the sky to attain a next GPS location fix;

once in the building, the WCD applying dead reckoning to determine at least one direction of travel of the WCD within the building and at least one distance of travel of the WCD within the building, and the WCD using the at least one determined direction and the at least one determined distance cooperatively to update the location coordinates of the latest GPS location fix so as to establish indoor location coordinates of the WCD;

while in the building, the WCD receiving from a user of the WCD an emergency service call request, and the WCD responsively transmitting, via an air interface to a radio access network for transmission in turn to the emergency service system, a signaling message seeking to set up the emergency service call, including within the signaling message the established indoor location coordinates; and

at an intermediary in a communication path between the WCD and the emergency service system, (i) receiving the signaling message, (ii) translating the indoor location coordinates to a descriptor of a portion of the building, and (iii) sending the signaling message, including the descriptor of the portion of the building, along to the PSAP,

whereby the signaling message facilitates setup of the emergency service call, and whereby the descriptor of the portion of the building facilitates emergency response.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the WCD is a cellular telephone.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the GPS location coordinates comprise latitude and longitude coordinates, and wherein the indoor location coordinates comprise latitude and longitude coordinates.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the signaling message passes from the radio access network via a packet-switched network to an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) Call Session Control Function (CSCF) and thereafter to the intermediary.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising, during the emergency service call:

the WCD applying dead reckoning as a basis to update the indoor location coordinates in accordance with distance and direction of the WCD inside the building, thereby establishing updated indoor location coordinates of the WCD;

the WCD transmitting the updated indoor location coordinates in an update message; and

at the intermediary, (i) receiving the update message, (ii) translating the updated indoor location coordinates to an updated building portion descriptor, and (iii) sending the update message, including the updated building portion descriptor, along to the PSAP, wherein the PSAP receives the updated building portion descriptor and presents the updated building portion descriptor to the human PSAP operator,

whereby the updated building portion descriptor further facilitates emergency response.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the portion of the building comprises a portion selected from the group consisting of a room and an office-cubicle.