Mobile Device Emergency Alert Filtering via GPS
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional weather disaster alert systems require stationary radios to be constantly powered and tuned to specific channels, wasting battery life in portable devices and relying on potentially disrupted cellular technology, with no efficient mechanism for receiving governmental emergency notifications on handheld mobile devices.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method and mobile device design that uses GPS/WAAS to filter and store emergency alerts based on user location, allowing for low-power, always-on operation and automatic audio recording, independent of specific cellular technologies, with visual and audio notifications for relevant alerts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional radios continuously monitor FM radio bands for emergency alerts, then emergency alert reception is ensured, but power consumption increases unnecessarily
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses periodic scanning of FM radio bands instead of continuous monitoring. The mobile device scans for emergency alerts at scheduled intervals while remaining in low-power mode between scans, thereby maintaining alert reception capability while significantly reducing power consumption compared to continuous monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically detects emergency alerts and determines their relevance to the user's location without requiring continuous user intervention or full system activation. The low-power mode enables the device to autonomously perform basic alert detection and filtering tasks, activating full processing only when necessary.
2Reliability
If conventional radios listen to every alert broadcasted over the FM radio band, then comprehensive alert coverage is achieved, but battery life is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary location-based filtering by comparing the user's GPS coordinates with the geographical regions specified in broadcast alerts. This preliminary check occurs in low-power mode before full alert processing, allowing the device to discard irrelevant alerts early and preserve battery life while maintaining comprehensive coverage for relevant alerts.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies different processing qualities to different alerts based on their relevance to the user's location. Alerts affecting the user's area receive full processing and notification, while alerts for other regions are quickly filtered and discarded, optimizing battery usage by applying high-quality processing only where necessary.
3Reliability
If stationary radios are constantly powered on and tuned to specific channels, then emergency alerts are reliably received, but portability and flexibility are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines multiple functions into a single portable device: FM radio reception, GPS location tracking, alert filtering, and notification delivery. This multi-functional approach enables the mobile device to replace traditional stationary radios while maintaining reliable alert reception and adding portability and location-based intelligence.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts its operation based on user movement and alert relevance. Unlike stationary radios fixed to specific locations, the mobile device can move with the user and dynamically determine which alerts are relevant based on real-time location data, providing both reliability and portability.
4Reliability
If mobile devices use high-power radio circuits for emergency alert reception, then reliable detection is achieved, but battery life is depleted during emergencies
Solution Approach 1:
The radio reception function is segmented into two operational modes: a low-power scanning mode for detecting emergency alert presence, and a high-power mode for full alert reception and processing. The system uses the low-power mode continuously and activates the high-power mode only when an alert is detected, ensuring reliable detection while preserving battery life during emergencies.
Data Source
AI summary
An efficient method and apparatus to receive broadcasted emergency alerts using portable handheld devices or mobile devices that are operable to provide a user with relevant alerts based on the user's relevant position, in a low-powered, always-on manner are presented. Using the always on partitions of both the receiver and the system on chip (SOC) of a mobile device, embodiments of the present invention are capable of determining whether or not the remainder of the circuits of a mobile device need to be powered on in order to record audio data associated with an alert, when the alert is received. Furthermore, embodiments of the present invention are operable for displaying these alerts in a manner such that a user is notified that a relevant alert has been received and placing the user in a position where the user must address the alert notification and take appropriate action.