Enhanced E911 network access for a call center using session initiation protocol (SIP) messaging

• US 8,682,286 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2013
• Issued: 03/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Original Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Inventors: Dickinson, Richard, Hines, John Gordon, Croy, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): RAMPURIA, SHARAD K
• Application Number:
  US13/758,721
• Publication Number:
  US 20130149988A1
• Time in Patent Office: 414 Days
• Field of Search: 455/426.1, 455/426.2, 455/445, 455/428, 4554041-4042, 370/338, 370/352, 379/37, 379/38, 379/45, 379/46
• US Class Current: 455/404.2
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/01 Satellite radio beacon positioning systems transmitting time-stamped messages, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System], GLONASS [Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System] or GALILEO
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/00 Telephonic communication systems specially adapted for combination with other electrical systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42059 Making use of the calling party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5116 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/58 Arrangements for transferring received calls from one subscriber to another; Arrangements affording interim conversations between either the calling or the called party and a third party substation line holding circuits H04M1/80
• 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: 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: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]

Abstract

A switched emergency call (e.g., a 911 call, an alarm company call) forwarded by a telematics call center is converted into a session initiation protocol (SIP) packetized phone call at the call center, and routed over an IP network, for presentation to an emergency services gateway, which connects to a selective router via dedicated circuits, gaining full access to the Enhanced 911 network. This provides a PSAP receiving a call from a telematics call center or other call center with all features available in an Enhanced 911 network, e.g., callback number of the 911 caller, and location of the 911 caller. Location of the caller is provided using a VoIP positioning center (VPC), queried from the call center. In this way, the switched emergency call is converted into a SIP packetized phone call and routed without further passage through the public switched telephone network (PSTN).

Claims

1. A method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP), comprising:

receiving, at a telematics call center, a switched telematics call center telephone call; and

converting said switched telematics call center telephone call into an Internet Protocol (IP) based packetized telematics call center telephone call;

wherein said converted IP based packetized telematics call center telephone call is routed directly from said telematics call center to a PSAP having jurisdictional responsibility for a physical location associated with a switched telephone device associated with said switched telematics call center telephone call.

2. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

providing a designated session initiation protocol (SIP) Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) not consisting of a 10-digit phone number.

3. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

querying a Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VolP) positioning center for call routing instructions for said converted IP based packetized telematics call center phone call.

4. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, wherein:

said telematics call center is a wireless telematics call center.

5. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, wherein:

said telematics call center is an alarm monitoring center.

6. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, wherein:

said converting is performed at said telematics call center.

7. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

querying a Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VolP) positioning center from said telematics call center.

8. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

providing a designated number for said PSAP, said designated number not consisting of a 10-digit phone number.

9. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting a call-back number and said physical location to said PSAP.

10. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

staging, via a Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) positioning center, a call-back number and said physical location in an automatic location identification (ALI) database.

11. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

providing said physical location to a Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) positioning center.

12. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 11, wherein:

providing said physical location to said VoIP positioning center via a non-call path data link to said telematics call center.

13. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 11, further comprising:

providing a callback number to said VoIP positioning center.

14. The method of providing a call center with access to a public safety answering point (PSAP) according to claim 1, further comprising:

providing a callback number associated with said telematics center via standard call set-up procedures across a public switched telephone network (PSTN), to a call server.