Broadcast alerting message aggregator/gateway system and method

• US 9,136,954 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2013
• Issued: 09/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Envisionit LLC A Delaware Limited Liability Company
• Original Assignee: Envision IT LLC
• Inventors: Wood, Mark Andrew, Preston, Kevin Russell, Weiser, Douglas
• Primary Examiner(s): Joo, Joshua
• Application Number:
  US13/887,940
• Publication Number:
  US 20130244565A1
• Time in Patent Office: 862 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/02 Arrangements for relaying broadcast information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1895 for short real-time information, e.g. alarms, notifications, alerts, updates
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/222 using geographical location information, e.g. messages transmitted or received in proximity of a certain spot or area
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• 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 76/40 for selective distribution or broadcast
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 Inter-networking arrangements

Abstract

A message broadcast system collecting broadcast messages from a plurality of broadcast message originators and providing a broadcast message to a plurality of broadcast message transmission systems for broadcasting to a plurality of user devices located within a geographically defined broadcast target area, the system communicatively coupled and receiving broadcast message requests from different coupled broadcast agent message origination systems, the broadcast requests including a broadcast agent identification, the geographical broadcast target area, and a broadcast message, the system receiving the broadcast message requests, verifying the broadcast request based on the broadcast agent identification, and an authority of the broadcast agent to send the broadcast message to the broadcast target area, and identifying a broadcast message transmission system serving at least a portion of the broadcast target area, and transmitting the broadcast message and the broadcast target area to the identified broadcast transmission system.

Claims

1. A message broadcast system for collecting broadcast messages from a plurality of broadcast message originators and providing a broadcast message to one or more of a plurality of broadcast message transmission systems for broadcasting to a plurality of user devices located within a geographically defined broadcast target area, the system comprising:

a broadcast message management system communicatively coupled for receiving broadcast message requests from a plurality of coupled broadcast agent message origination systems, the broadcast message management system storing a broadcast message jurisdiction authority for each broadcast agent of each coupled broadcast agent message origination system, each broadcast message request being from a different originating broadcast agent associated with one of the coupled broadcast agent message origination systems, each broadcast message request including a broadcast agent identification uniquely identifying the broadcast agent originating the broadcast message request, the geographically defined broadcast target area, and a broadcast message, for each received broadcast message request of the broadcast message management system, verifying the broadcast message request to provide a verified broadcast message, the verifying being a function of the broadcast agent identification of the broadcast message request, and an authority of the originating broadcast agent to send the broadcast message of the broadcast message request to the broadcast target area of the broadcast message request, the verifying ensuring the stored broadcast message jurisdiction of the originating broadcast agent includes the broadcast target area of each broadcast message request,

for each verified broadcast message request, the broadcast message management system further determining two or more of the broadcast message transmission systems serving at least a portion of the broadcast target area for the broadcast message request, and transmitting the broadcast message and the broadcast target area of the verified broadcast message request to the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the determined two or more message broadcast message transmission systems are selected from the group consisting of a wireless mobile carrier network;

a wireless Wi-Fi network;

a digital private radio systems operator network;

a private radio system network;

an internet provider;

an internet service provider network providing an internet service including a website and a website content provider providing text, graphical data, image and mapping content service via a website;

a wireline telecommunication network;

a satellite network;

a CATV network;

a radio system; and

a television system.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the broadcast message management system includes a distributor that performs for each verified broadcast message request, the determining of the two or more determined broadcast message transmission systems as a function of determining that each of the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems provides broadcast messaging service to at least a portion of the broadcast target area of the broadcast message request.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the broadcast message management system includes an output interface for coupling to one of the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems providing message broadcasting service to at least a portion of the broadcast target area for each verified broadcast message request to which the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems are determined.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein for each verified broadcast message request, the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems includes at least one determined wireless network providing wireless transmission to one or more wireless transmission devices serving the broadcast target area, and wherein the broadcast message management system transmits to a carrier broadcast center of the wireless network.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein for each verified broadcast message request, the at least one determined wireless network is a determined mobile carrier network and wherein the wireless transmission devices of the determined mobile carrier network are wireless cellular network transmitters and each of the wireless cellular network transmitters of the determined mobile carrier network has a cell id network address.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein for each verified broadcast message request, the at least one determined wireless network is a determined wireless Wi-Fi network and wherein the wireless transmission devices are Wi-Fi network transmitters, each of the Wi-Fi network transmitters of the determined wireless Wi-Fi network having a Wi-Fi id network address.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one received broadcast message request includes a message type identifier, and wherein for each verified broadcast message request having the message type identifier, the broadcast message management system transmits the broadcast message and the broadcast target area responsive to the message type identifier being an acceptable message type for each of the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the broadcast message management system receives each broadcast message request and for each received broadcast message request, determines a broadcast message type identifying the type of message of the broadcast message request from the broadcast agent identification of the broadcast message request and wherein for each verified broadcast message request the determined broadcast message type is transmitted to the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the received broadcast message requests includes a broadcast message that is a broadcast messaging system administrative message selected from the group consisting of:

message recall, language identifier, network selector, and request for message progress status.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein for at least one of the received broadcast message requests, the broadcast message of the broadcast message request is a first broadcast message, the first broadcast message being in a first language, and wherein the broadcast message request includes a second broadcast message in a second language, and wherein the transmitting by the broadcast message management system of the at least one received broadcast message having the first language and second language includes transmitting the broadcast message including at least one of the first broadcast message in the first language and the second broadcast message in the second language.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein for at least one of the received broadcast message requests, the broadcast message is a multimedia message.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the multimedia message includes at least one of a photograph and a map.

14. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one received broadcast message request includes a message type identifier, and wherein for each of the at least one received broadcast message request including the message type identifier, the broadcast message management system transmits a message type to at least one of the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems responsive to the message type identifier.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the broadcast message management system is coupled to a plurality of broadcast message transmission systems, and wherein for each verified broadcast message request, the determining includes selecting of at least one of the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems from among the plurality of coupled broadcast message transmission systems responsive to the message type and the broadcast target area of the verified broadcast message request.

16. The system of claim 9 wherein the determined message type is representative of a message type selected from the group consisting of a language, a governmental entity, a governmental authority defined message type, an originating organization, and an industry.

17. A method of collecting broadcast messages from a plurality of broadcast message originators and providing a broadcast message to two or more of a plurality of broadcast message transmission systems for broadcasting to a plurality of user devices located within a geographically defined broadcast target area, the method comprising:

receiving over an input interface a plurality of broadcast message requests, each broadcast message request including a broadcast agent identification uniquely identifying the broadcast agent originating the broadcast message request, a geographically defined broadcast target area, and a broadcast message from one of a plurality of coupled broadcast agent message origination systems;

storing a broadcast message jurisdiction authority for each broadcast message originator;

for each broadcast message request, verifying an authority of the broadcast agent identification including an authority of the originating broadcast agent to send the broadcast message to the broadcast target area, the verifying ensuring the stored broadcast message jurisdiction of the originating broadcast originator includes the broadcast target area of the broadcast message request, the verifying resulting in a verified broadcast message request; and

for each verified broadcast message request, determining two or more broadcast transmission systems providing broadcast messaging service to at least a portion of the broadcast target area and transmitting the broadcast message of each verified broadcast message request over an output interface to the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein each broadcast message request includes a message type, further comprising:

for each broadcast message request, wherein determining each of the two or more broadcast message transmission systems from among the plurality of coupled broadcast message transmission systems is responsive to the message type and the broadcast target area, each as defined in the broadcast message request.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising for each broadcast message request, determining a broadcast message type from the broadcast agent identification of the broadcast message request and wherein transmitting includes transmitting the determined broadcast message type to the two or more coupled broadcast message transmission systems with the broadcast message and the broadcast target area of the broadcast message request.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the transmitting of the determined broadcast message type is responsive to the determined broadcast message type being an acceptable message type for the determined two or more broadcast message transmission systems to which the broadcast message of each verified broadcast message request is transmitted.

21. The method of claim 18 wherein the message type is selected from the group consisting of a language, a governmental entity, a governmental authority defined message type, an originating organization, and an industry.

22. The method of claim 19 wherein the message type is selected from the group consisting of a language, a governmental entity, a governmental authority defined message type, an originating organization, and an industry.

23. The method of claim 17 wherein the determining and the transmitting includes two or more message broadcast message transmission systems selected from the group consisting of a wireless mobile carrier network;

a wireless Wi-Fi network;

a digital private radio systems operator network;

a private radio system network;

an internet provider;

an internet service provider network including an internet service provider providing a website and a website content provider providing text, graphical data, image and mapping content service via a website;

a wireline telecommunication network;

a satellite network;

a CATV network;

a radio system; and

a television system.