Emergency Call Location Beacon Intermediary System
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in providing accurate and timely location information for mobile devices during emergency calls is more complex than for landlines, as mobile devices move, leading to potential delays and increased risk for users and emergency services.
Innovation Solution
A telecommunications network system that uses beacons with short-range communication protocols to append accurate location information to emergency calls, allowing user equipment to connect with nearby beacons to retrieve and transmit civic addresses to public safety answering points, ensuring efficient emergency service deployment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If mobile devices are used instead of landlines, then user mobility and convenience are improved, but location accuracy and reliability for emergency services deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces beacons as intermediary devices that are stationary and have known locations. These beacons act as mediators between the mobile user equipment and the emergency services, providing a reliable reference point for location determination. The UE connects to nearby beacons to obtain accurate location information, thus resolving the contradiction between mobile flexibility and location reliability.
2Loss of time
If real-time location tracking is implemented for mobile devices, then emergency response time is improved, but system complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by having beacons continuously broadcast their location information and having the UE maintain connections with nearby beacons before emergencies occur. When an emergency call is made, the location information is already available and can be immediately transmitted to emergency services, reducing response time without requiring complex real-time tracking systems.
3Loss of information
If continuous location updates are performed, then location freshness is improved, but energy consumption and network load increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of continuous location updates, the system uses periodic actions where the UE periodically connects to beacons to refresh location information. The location is updated when the UE moves to a new area with different beacons or at scheduled intervals, balancing location freshness with energy conservation. This periodic approach maintains accurate location information without the excessive energy consumption of continuous tracking.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for appending an emergency call (e.g., E911) with a location is described herein. The system appends the emergency call to a public safety answering point (PSAP) with a location from which the E911 call occurred. A user equipment (UE), which places the emergency call, connects to the beacon via short-range communication and acquires the location from a beacon. The UE transmits the location to the PSAP via a telecommunications network.