Processing emergency alert system messages

• US 9,137,563 B2
• Filed: 08/24/2012
• Issued: 09/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Stein, Robert C.
• Primary Examiner(s): SHANG, ANNAN Q
• Application Number:
  US13/593,740
• Publication Number:
  US 20140059594A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,117 Days
• Field of Search: 725/33, 725/34, 725 87-118, 709217-232
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/436 Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6405 Multicasting data broadcast and multicast in packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/814 comprising emergency warnings arrangements specially adapted for emergency or urgency in broadcast systems H04H20/59; arrangements for providing alarms, notifications, alerts to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895

Abstract

Disclosed are methods and apparatus for processing an emergency alert message (e.g., a national warning system message e.g., an Emergency Alert System (EAS) message). The methods may comprise a digital media server receiving the message. The digital media server may notify client devices (that are connected to that server via a residential Local Area Network) that it has received such a message. The client devices notified may be those that have requested (e.g., to the digital media server) that they are notified if the digital media server receives such a message. The digital media server may convert the message from being in a first format to being in a second format. The digital media server may acquire, and provide for use by the client device, information that may be used a client device to ascertain whether the message is a new, an updated, or a duplicate message.

Claims

1. A method for configuring a home network for emergency messaging, the method comprising:

receiving, by a digital media server and from a client device, a discovery message in search of a device that supports an emergency message service;

transmitting, by the digital media server and to the client device, a response to the discovery message specifying that the digital media server supports an emergency message service, the response including a service address of the digital media server;

receiving, by the digital media server and from the client device, a request that the client device be notified that the digital media server has received an emergency alert message, wherein the request includes the service address of the digital media server;

in response to receiving the request, registering, by the digital media server, the client device as a device that will be transmitted notifications regarding emergency alert messages received by the digital media server;

receiving, by the digital media server and from an entity remote from the digital media server, a broadcast emergency alert message;

processing, by the digital media server, the emergency alert message such that the emergency alert message is in a format suitable for distribution via a residential Local Area Network, to the client device; and

transmitting, by the digital media server and to the client device, a notification indicating that the digital media server has received an emergency alert message based on the client device being registered to be transmitted the notifications, wherein the digital media server is part of the residential Local Area Network and the client device is part of the residential Local Area Network.

2. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, by the digital media server and to the client device, a query identifier challenge specifying one or more unique identifiers corresponding to successful requests;

receiving, by the digital media server and from the client device, a challenge response that includes the one or more unique identifiers, wherein;

registering the client device as a device that will be transmitted notifications regarding emergency alert messages received by the digital media server comprises registering the client in response to receiving the request and receiving the challenge response that includes the one or more unique identifiers that were transmitted by the digital media server;

the emergency alert message is received by the digital media server in a first format, the method further comprising;

converting, by the digital media server, the emergency alert message from being in the first format to being in a second format; and

providing, in the second format, by the digital media server, for distribution on the residential Local Area Network to the client device, the emergency alert message or information related to the emergency alert message, and wherein;

the second format is different to the first format; and

the second format is an Extensible Markup Language format.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein the first format is compliant with an SCTE-18 standard and the second format is compliant with an SCTE-162 standard.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the emergency alert message is a national warning system message.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the emergency alert message is an Emergency Alert System message.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the notification comprises information that may be used by the client device to ascertain whether the emergency alert message is a new emergency alert message, an updated emergency alert message, or a duplicate emergency alert message.

7. A method according to claim 1, the method further comprising providing, by the digital media server to the client device, the emergency alert message or a Universal Resource Locator enables the client device to retrieve the emergency alert message.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein:

the request is a Domain Name System Long Lived Query request; and

the Emergency alert message or information related to the emergency alert message is transmitted, by the digital media server to the client device, as a Domain Name System Long Lived Query result.