Emergency Alert System Wireless Feedback Mechanism

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional emergency alert systems lack a reliable method to determine whether intended recipients have successfully received emergency alert messages, particularly in wireless communication systems.

Innovation Solution

A method and apparatus for transmitting emergency alert system messages to wireless devices, which include receiving and acknowledging messages through multiple access channels, allowing for the storage of information on successful reception locations and channels, enabling feedback on message delivery success.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Area of stationary object

If emergency alert messages are transmitted to wireless devices over wide geographic areas, then the coverage and reach of the alert system is improved, but the ability to determine successful reception by recipients deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecoverage areaVSAvoidreception confirmation
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a feedback mechanism where wireless devices send acknowledgement messages back to the EAS message controller after successfully receiving emergency alert messages. This feedback loop allows the system to determine which devices and locations have successfully received alerts, resolving the contradiction between wide coverage and reliable reception confirmation. The acknowledgement messages contain location information and access channel identifiers that enable the controller to track message delivery success.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Reliability

If acknowledgement messages are collected from wireless devices to determine successful reception, then the reliability of message delivery confirmation is improved, but the system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvereception confirmationVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The wireless devices automatically generate and transmit acknowledgement messages without requiring manual intervention or complex processing. The devices use their existing location determination capabilities and communicate through standard access channels, allowing the system to gather reception confirmation data through simple, self-service mechanisms rather than complex centralized tracking.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Reliability

If multiple access channels are used to transmit emergency alert messages, then the reliability of message delivery is improved, but the complexity of tracking successful transmission deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemessage deliveryVSAvoidchannel tracking
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the transmission tracking by associating each acknowledgement message with specific access channel identifiers. The EAS message controller maintains separate tracking information for each access channel used, allowing it to determine which channels successfully delivered messages without requiring a complex monolithic tracking system. This segmentation simplifies the overall tracking complexity by breaking it into manageable channel-specific records.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP2260478B1Determining wireless system availability using emergency alert system messaging
Publication Date: 2013.07.17 MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS INC
  • EP2260478B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2260478B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2260478B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A method and information processing system transmit emergency alert system messages to wireless devices. An EAS alert message (302) is transmitted to at least one wireless device (106) using one or more access channels (306) associated with a coverage area. An acknowledgement message (200) is received from the wireless device (106). The acknowledgement message (200) includes at least one of a location associated with the wireless device (106) and an identifier associated with each access channel over which the wireless device (106) received the EAS alert message (302). At least one of a first set of information indicating locations within the coverage area that have successfully received the EAS alert message (302) and a second set of information indicating which access channels have successfully transmitted the EAS alert message (302) to the wireless devices (106) within the coverage area are stored based on receiving the acknowledgement message.