U.S. patent application number 13/538511 was filed with the patent office on 2014-01-02 for response system with emergency response equipment locator.
This patent application is currently assigned to ZOLL MEDICAL CORPORATION. The applicant listed for this patent is Ziad F. Elghazzawi. Invention is credited to Ziad F. Elghazzawi.
Application Number | 20140002241 13/538511 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 49777536 |
Filed Date | 2014-01-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140002241 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Elghazzawi; Ziad F. |
January 2, 2014 |
RESPONSE SYSTEM WITH EMERGENCY RESPONSE EQUIPMENT LOCATOR
Abstract
This document relates to systems and techniques for providing
response to emergency situations, such as traffic accidents,
cardiac arrest, or other medical emergencies. The systems and
techniques include systems and techniques for identifying and
accessing emergency response equipment during a medical
emergency.
Inventors: |
Elghazzawi; Ziad F.;
(Newton, MA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Elghazzawi; Ziad F. |
Newton |
MA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
ZOLL MEDICAL CORPORATION
Chelmsford
MA
|
Family ID: |
49777536 |
Appl. No.: |
13/538511 |
Filed: |
June 29, 2012 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
340/8.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G16H 40/20 20180101;
G06Q 10/06 20130101; G06Q 10/08 20130101; H04W 4/023 20130101; H04W
76/50 20180201; H04W 4/90 20180201 |
Class at
Publication: |
340/8.1 |
International
Class: |
G08B 5/22 20060101
G08B005/22 |
Claims
1. A method, comprising: receiving a request for emergency services
and receiving information that identifies a location associated
with the request; identifying, from among a plurality of
individuals registered as potential responders, one or more
registered individuals who are currently nearest to the identified
location; identifying one or more pieces of emergency response
equipment nearest to the identified location; identifying
registered individuals associated with the identified emergency
response equipment; and transmitting, to one or more of the one or
more individuals registered as potential responders and one or more
of the registered individuals associated with the emergency
response equipment, information that identifies the location.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting to the
one or more individuals registered as potential responders an
invitation to respond to the request for emergency services;
determining whether a first of the one or more individuals
registered as potential responders has responded affirmatively to
the invitation; and transmitting information that identifies the
location to the first registered individual.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting to the
one or more registered individuals associated with the identified
emergency response equipment an invitation to respond to the
request for emergency services by providing the emergency response
equipment; determining whether a first of the one or more
individuals associated with the identified emergency response
equipment has responded affirmatively to the invitation; and
transmitting information that identifies the location to the first
individual associated with the identified emergency response
equipment.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising: registering a
plurality of individuals as potential responders; and registering a
plurality of individuals associated with emergency response
equipment.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein: registering the plurality of
potential responders and the plurality of individuals associated
with emergency response equipment comprises using a sign-up
software application that is internet accessible, and registering
volunteers using the sign-up application.
6. A method comprising: receiving a request for emergency services
and receiving information that identifies a location associated
with the request; identifying, from among a plurality of
individuals registered as potential responders, one or more
registered individuals who are currently nearest to the identified
location; identifying one or more pieces of registered emergency
response equipment nearest to the identified location; accessing
status information associated with the emergency response equipment
nearest to the identified location; filtering, based at least in
part on the status information, the identified registered emergency
response equipment to determine a subset of functional emergency
response equipment; and transmitting, to the one or more registered
individuals, information that identifies the location associated
with the request and identifies locations for the determined subset
of functional emergency response equipment.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: transmitting to the
one or more individuals registered as potential responders an
invitation to respond to the request for emergency services;
determining whether a first of the one or more individuals
registered as potential responders has responded affirmatively to
the invitation; and transmitting information that identifies the
location associated with the request to the first registered
individual.
8. The method of claim 6, further comprising registering a
plurality of individuals as potential responders by using a sign-up
software application that is internet accessible, and registering
volunteers using the sign-up application.
9. The method of claim 6, wherein the information that identifies
locations for the determined subset of functional emergency
response equipment comprises a map having icons identifying the
emergency response equipment.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the icons are configured to
provide status information for the emergency response equipment
nearest to the location associated with the request for emergency
services.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the icons are color-coded to
provide status information.
12. A method comprising: receiving a request for emergency services
and receiving information that identifies a location associated
with the request; identifying, from among a plurality of
individuals registered as potential responders, one or more
registered individuals who are currently nearest to the identified
location; identifying one or more pieces of registered emergency
response equipment nearest to the identified location; accessing
status information associated with the identified one or more
pieces of emergency response equipment; and transmitting, to the
one or more registered individuals, information that identifies the
location associated with the request and identifies locations and
status information for the identified one or more pieces of
emergency response equipment.
13. The method of claim 12, further comprising: transmitting to the
one or more individuals registered as potential responders an
invitation to respond to the request; determining whether a first
of the one or more individuals registered as potential responders
has responded affirmatively to the invitation; and transmitting
information that identifies the location to the first registered
individual.
14. The method of claim 12, further comprising registering a
plurality of individuals as potential responders by using a sign-up
software application that is internet accessible, and registering
volunteers using the sign-up application.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the information that identifies
locations for the determined subset of functional emergency
response equipment comprises a map having icons identifying the
emergency response equipment, the icons being configured to provide
the status information for the emergency response equipment.
16. The method of claim 14, wherein transmitting the information
that identifies locations and status information for the emergency
response equipment comprises transmitting information to provide
color-coded icons with the color of each icon being based on the
status of the associated emergency response equipment.
17. A computer program product comprising instructions to cause a
processor to: receive a request for emergency services and receive
information that identifies a location associated with the request;
identify, from among a plurality of individuals registered as
potential responders, one or more registered individuals who are
currently nearest to the identified location; identify one or more
pieces of emergency response equipment nearest to the identified
location; identify registered individuals associated with the
identified emergency response equipment; and transmit, to the one
or more individuals registered as potential responders and to the
registered individuals associated with the emergency response
equipment, information that identifies the location.
18. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising
instructions to cause the processor to: transmit to the one or more
individuals registered as potential responders an invitation to
respond to the request for emergency services; determine whether a
first of the one or more individuals registered as potential
responders has responded affirmatively to the invitation; and
transmit information that identifies the location to the first
registered individual.
19. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising
instructions to cause the processor to: transmit to the one or more
registered individuals associated with the identified emergency
response equipment an invitation to respond to the request for
emergency services by providing the emergency response equipment;
determine whether a first of the one or more individuals associated
with the identified emergency response equipment has responded
affirmatively to the invitation; and transmit information that
identifies the location to the first individual associated with the
identified emergency response equipment.
20. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising
instructions to cause the processor to: register a plurality of
individuals as potential responders; and register a plurality of
individuals associated with emergency response equipment.
21. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising
instructions to cause the processor to: access status information
associated with the identified one or more pieces of emergency
response equipment; and transmit, to the one or more registered
individuals, information that identifies the location associated
with the request for emergency services and identifies locations
and status information for the identified one or more pieces of
emergency response equipment.
22. A system for coordinating actions by responders to an emergency
event, the system comprising: an equipment database that includes
location information for emergency response equipment; a responder
database that includes information about a plurality of individuals
registered as potential responders; a computer configured to
receive a request for emergency services and receive information
that identifies a location associated with the request; access the
database that includes information about a plurality of individuals
registered as potential responders to identify, from among the
plurality of individuals registered as potential responders, one or
more registered individuals who are currently nearest to the
identified location; access the equipment database to identify one
or more pieces of emergency response equipment nearest to the
identified location and identify registered individuals associated
with the identified emergency response equipment; and transmit, to
the one or more individuals registered as potential responders and
to the registered individuals associated with the emergency
response equipment, information that identifies the location.
23. The system of claim 22, wherein the computer is further
configured to: transmit to the one or more individuals registered
as potential responders an invitation to respond to the request for
emergency services; determine whether a first of the one or more
individuals registered as potential responders has responded
affirmatively to the invitation; and transmit information that
identifies the location to the first registered individual.
24. The system of claim 22, wherein the computer is further
configured to: transmit to the one or more registered individuals
associated with the identified emergency response equipment an
invitation to respond to the request for emergency services by
providing the emergency response equipment; determine whether a
first of the one or more individuals associated with the identified
emergency response equipment has responded affirmatively to the
invitation; and transmit information that identifies the location
to the first individual associated with the identified emergency
response equipment.
25. The system of claim 22, wherein the computer is further
configured to: access status information associated with the
identified one or more pieces of emergency response equipment; and
transmit, to the one or more registered individuals, information
that identifies the location associated with the request for
emergency services and identifies locations and status information
for the identified one or more pieces of emergency response
equipment.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] This document relates to computer-based systems and
techniques for providing response to emergency situations, such as
traffic accidents, cardiac arrest, or other medical
emergencies.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Sudden health problems such as sudden cardiac arrest and
injuries caused by accidents kill thousands of people and cause
permanent injury every year. Fast and competent care can be
essential to positive outcomes in such situations. For example, it
is said that the chance of surviving a sudden cardiac arrest falls
by ten percent for every minute in delaying effective
treatment.
[0003] Emergency events like sudden cardiac arrests and accidents
are generally responded to by organized emergency response units,
such as ambulance or fire crews, and by laypeople who are
immediately around the events so that they personally witness or
offer assistance for the events.
SUMMARY
[0004] This document describes systems and techniques that may be
used to alert responders about an emergency situation and assist
the responders in obtaining emergency response equipment such as
AEDs. In the systems and techniques described here, an emergency
call may come into a dispatch service and the dispatch service
(e.g., through an employed human dispatcher) may enter the address
for the call and may have a map of the area around the call brought
up on a video monitor. The map may be populated with icons that
represent the locations of registered responders (including lay
responders) in the geographic area around the call. The dispatcher
may then choose to notify one or more of the responders. Upon
receiving a notification, each candidate lay responder may reply
with an indication of whether they are willing and able to help
with the call. If they indicate that they are willing to help, the
system may automatically send to their mobile computing device a
map that shows their current location, the location for the call
(where the call is near the victim's location), a highlighted
navigation route between their location and the location of the
call, and possibly icons that indicate the locations of
publicly-accessible emergency response equipment (first aid kits
and automatic external defibrillators (AEDs)) that might be helpful
in responding to the call. The information about the
publicly-accessible emergency response equipment can include an
indication of the status of the equipment. By including the status
of the emergency response equipment, the rescuer will not waste
time locating and accessing equipment that is not fully functional
(e.g., equipment with a low battery).
[0005] In one or more of the systems and techniques described here,
emergency response equipment (e.g., publicly-accessible equipment
or non-publicly-accessible equipment) may be provided to the scene
of an emergency by someone associated with the equipment (e.g., an
owner or administrator). For example, upon receiving an emergency
call, the dispatcher can enter the address for the call and may
have a map of the area around the call brought up on a video
monitor. The map may be populated with icons that represent the
locations of registered emergency response equipment (e.g.,
registered AEDs), whose locations have been previously stored in a
database. The database also includes information (e.g., contact
information) with associated owners or administrators for the
equipment. The owner or administrator is any person associated with
the equipment that has agreed to be notified of an emergency in the
area and potentially provide the emergency response equipment to
the scene of the emergency upon request. The owner or administrator
is not required to be trained in providing emergency medical
assistance, but rather has agreed simply to bring the emergency
response equipment to the scene of the emergency. Thus, no special
training is needed for the owner or administrator of the equipment.
Based on equipment in the vicinity of the emergency, the dispatcher
may then choose to notify one or more of the owners or
administrators associated with a particular one or with particular
ones of the pieces of registered emergency response equipment and
request that the owner or administrator bring the equipment to the
scene of the emergency. Upon receiving a notification, each owners
or administrators may reply with an indication of whether they are
willing and able to provide the medical equipment. If they indicate
that they are willing to help, the system may automatically send to
their mobile computing device, a map that shows the location of the
emergency.
[0006] Such systems and techniques can, in certain implementations,
provide one or more advantages. For example, by identifying
equipment owners or administrators in addition to responders in the
vicinity of a victim or victims, the systems and techniques can
reduce response time for an emergency, which can be critically
important for cardiac arrest victims. For example, the equipment
owners or administrators can provide necessary emergency response
equipment (such as a defibrillator) while the responders can
provide initial treatment to the victim, for example by
administering CPR. In some examples, the responder can initiate
treatment to the victim sooner because they do not need to spend
time locating and obtaining the medical equipment. In some
additional examples, responders may be shown the location of known
publicly-accessible equipment and status of such equipment, so that
they can determine which equipment is fully functional and get it
on the way to tending to the victim. This can reduce the time
required to obtain functional emergency response equipment.
[0007] In some aspects, a method includes receiving a request for
emergency services and receiving information that identifies a
location associated with the request, identifying, from among a
plurality of individuals registered as potential responders, one or
more registered individuals who are currently nearest to the
identified location, identifying one or more pieces of emergency
response equipment nearest to the identified location, identifying
registered individuals associated with the identified emergency
response equipment, and transmitting, to the one or more
individuals registered as potential responders and to the
registered individuals associated with the emergency response
equipment, information that identifies the location.
[0008] Embodiments can include one or more of the following.
[0009] The method can also include transmitting to the one or more
individuals registered as potential responders an invitation to
respond to the request for emergency services, determining whether
a first of the one or more individuals registered as potential
responders has responded affirmatively to the invitation, and
transmitting information that identifies the location to the first
registered individual.
[0010] The method can also include transmitting to the one or more
registered individuals associated with the identified emergency
response equipment an invitation to respond to the request for
emergency services by providing the emergency response equipment,
determining whether a first of the one or more individuals
associated with the identified emergency response equipment has
responded affirmatively to the invitation, and transmitting
information that identifies the location to the first individual
associated with the identified emergency response equipment.
[0011] The method can also include registering a plurality of
individuals as potential responders and registering a plurality of
individuals associated with emergency response equipment.
[0012] The method can also include registering the plurality of
potential responders and the plurality of individuals associated
with emergency response equipment comprises posting a sign-up
software application that is internet accessible, and registering
volunteers from the public, for example, using the sign-up
application.
[0013] In some additional aspects, a method for communicating
information to medical responders can include receiving a request
for emergency services and receiving information that identifies a
location associated with the request, identifying, from among a
plurality of individuals registered as potential responders, one or
more registered individuals who are nearest to the identified
location, and identifying one or more pieces of registered
emergency response equipment nearest to the identified location,
accessing status information associated with the emergency response
equipment nearest to the identified location, filtering, based at
least in part on the status information, the identified registered
emergency response equipment to determine a subset of functional
emergency response equipment; and transmitting, to the one or more
registered individuals, information that identifies the location
and identifies locations for the determined subset of functional
emergency response equipment.
[0014] Embodiments can include one or more of the following.
[0015] The method can also include transmitting to the one or more
individuals registered as potential responders an invitation to
respond to the request for emergency services, determining whether
a first of the one or more individuals registered as potential
responders has responded affirmatively to the invitation, and
transmitting information that identifies the location associated
with the request to the first registered individual.
[0016] The method can also include registering a plurality of
individuals as potential responders by posting a sign-up software
application that is internet accessible, and registering volunteers
from the public using the sign-up application.
[0017] The information that identifies locations for the determined
subset of functional emergency response equipment can include a map
having icons identifying the emergency response equipment.
[0018] The icons can be configured to provide status information
for the emergency response equipment nearest to the location
associated with the request for emergency services.
[0019] The icons can be color-coded to provide status
information.
[0020] In some aspects, a method can include receiving a request
for emergency services and receiving information that identifies a
location associated with the request, identifying, from among a
plurality of individuals registered as potential responders, one or
more registered individuals who are currently nearest to the
identified location, identifying one or more pieces of registered
emergency response equipment nearest to the identified location,
accessing status information associated with the identified one or
more pieces of emergency response equipment, and transmitting, to
the one or more registered individuals, information that identifies
the location and identifies locations and status information for
the identified one or more pieces of emergency response
equipment.
[0021] Embodiments can include one or more of the following.
[0022] The method can include transmitting to the one or more
individuals registered as potential responders an invitation to
respond to the request, determining whether a first of the one or
more individuals registered as potential responders has responded
affirmatively to the invitation, and transmitting information that
identifies the location to the first registered individual.
[0023] The method can also include registering a plurality of
individuals as potential responders by posting a sign-up software
application that is internet accessible, and registering
volunteers, from the public, for example using the sign-up
application.
[0024] The information that identifies locations for the determined
subset of functional emergency response equipment can include a map
having icons identifying the emergency response equipment, the
icons being configured to provide the status information for the
emergency response equipment.
[0025] Transmitting the information that identifies locations and
status information for the emergency response equipment can include
transmitting information to provide color-coded icons with the
color of each icon being based on the status of the associated
emergency response equipment.
[0026] In some aspects a computer program product includes
instructions to cause a processor to receive a request for
emergency services and receive information that identifies a
location associated with the request, identify, from among a
plurality of individuals registered as potential responders, one or
more registered individuals who are currently nearest to the
identified location,
[0027] identify one or more pieces of emergency response equipment
nearest to the identified location, identify registered individuals
associated with the identified emergency response equipment, and
transmit, to the one or more individuals registered as potential
responders and to the registered individuals associated with the
emergency response equipment, information that identifies the
location.
[0028] Embodiments can include one or more of the following.
[0029] The computer program product can include instructions to
cause the processor to transmit to the one or more individuals
registered as potential responders an invitation to respond to the
request for emergency services, determine whether a first of the
one or more individuals registered as potential responders has
responded affirmatively to the invitation, and transmit information
that identifies the location to the first registered
individual.
[0030] The computer program product can include instructions to
cause the processor to transmit to the one or more registered
individuals associated with the identified emergency response
equipment an invitation to respond to the request for emergency
services by providing the emergency response equipment, determine
whether a first of the one or more individuals associated with the
identified emergency response equipment has responded affirmatively
to the invitation, and transmit information that identifies the
location to the first individual associated with the identified
emergency response equipment.
[0031] The computer program product can include instructions to
cause the processor to register a plurality of individuals as
potential responders and register a plurality of individuals
associated with emergency response equipment.
[0032] The computer program product can include instructions to
cause the processor to access status information associated with
the identified one or more pieces of emergency response equipment;
and transmit, to the one or more registered individuals,
information that identifies the location associated with the
request for emergency services and identifies locations and status
information for the identified one or more pieces of emergency
response equipment.
[0033] In some aspects, a system can include an equipment database
that includes location information for emergency response
equipment; a responder database that includes information about a
plurality of individuals registered as potential responders; and a
computer. The computer can be configured to receive a request for
emergency services and receive information that identifies a
location associated with the request, access the database that
includes information about a plurality of individuals registered as
potential responders to identify, from among the plurality of
individuals registered as potential responders, one or more
registered individuals who are currently nearest to the identified
location, access the equipment database to identify one or more
pieces of emergency response equipment nearest to the identified
location and identify registered individuals associated with the
identified emergency response equipment, and transmit, to the one
or more individuals registered as potential responders and to the
registered individuals associated with the emergency response
equipment, information that identifies the location.
[0034] Embodiments can include one or more of the following.
[0035] The computer can be further configured to transmit to the
one or more individuals registered as potential responders an
invitation to respond to the request for emergency services,
determine whether a first of the one or more individuals registered
as potential responders has responded affirmatively to the
invitation, and transmit information that identifies the location
to the first registered individual.
[0036] The computer can be further configured to transmit to the
one or more registered individuals associated with the identified
emergency response equipment an invitation to respond to the
request for emergency services by providing the emergency response
equipment, determine whether a first of the one or more individuals
associated with the identified emergency response equipment has
responded affirmatively to the invitation, and transmit information
that identifies the location to the first individual associated
with the identified emergency response equipment.
[0037] The computer can be further configured to access status
information associated with the identified one or more pieces of
emergency response equipment; and transmit, to the one or more
registered individuals, information that identifies the location
associated with the request for emergency services and identifies
locations and status information for the identified one or more
pieces of emergency response equipment.
[0038] The details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the
accompa-nying drawings and the description below. Other features
and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings,
and from the claims.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0039] FIG. 1A is a conceptual diagram showing computer-guided
emergency response by responders according to an example embodiment
of the invention.
[0040] FIG. 1B is a conceptual diagram showing computer-guided
emergency response by responders including status information
emergency response equipment according to an example embodiment of
the invention.
[0041] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a system for coordinating lay
response to emergency events according to an example embodiment of
the invention.
[0042] FIGS. 3A and 3B are flow charts of processes for organizing
a response to an emergency call according to an example embodiment
of the invention.
[0043] FIGS. 4 and 5 show an exemplary screen shots for a
dispatcher according to an example embodiment of the invention.
[0044] FIG. 6 shows an example of a generic computer device and a
generic mobile computer device, which may be used with the
techniques described herein.
[0045] Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like
elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0046] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing computer-guided
emergency response by responders according to an example embodiment
of the invention. In general, the figure shows a conceptualized
version of a map for an area around a park in a metropolitan
geographic area. An emergency event has recently occurred in the
park, and various responders in the area of the event are shown
converging on the location of the event. The map is overlaid with
icons that represent various objects in the area, including a
victim 102, various responder's 104A-C, and pieces of emergency
response equipment 106A-C and 108. The figure also shows a
representation of a screen for a smart phone 110 to indicate an
example graphical user interface (GUI) that may be shown to a lay
responder 104A who has chosen to volunteer to respond to a call in
the area. The discussion with respect to this figure is intended to
indicate in general ways how responders may be organized and
notified, and how they may communicate with each other, in order to
improve response to an emergency condition, such as a call about a
person suffering from sudden cardiac arrest, or a mass emergency
having multiple victims for which responder coordination is
important. Examples of coordinating responders are described, for
example, in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/946,803, filed on
Nov. 15, 2010 and entitled "Community-Based Response System", the
contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in its
entirety. While FIG. 1 illustrates the use of a smart phone 110 for
communicating with responders, other mobile communication or
computing devices could be used such as a laptop, phone, tablet,
etc.
[0047] In the figure, the victim 102, has suffered a sudden cardiac
arrest while running on a trail near a pond in the park. Upon
feeling chest pains, the victim 102 may have called 911 in order to
report an emergency, or may have activated an application installed
on his or her smart phone, where the application is programmed to
initiate a call to emergency services and to provide data that
indicates the victim's 102 geographic location (e.g., as determined
by the smartphone GPS or by using cell tower triangulation or
similar services). Alternatively, the call to the central service
may be made by telephone, either by the victim 102, or by a citizen
who has come upon the victim 102 and has recognized that the victim
102 is in trouble. The dispatcher may then choose, at the
dispatcher's discretion, to alert professional responders and
registered responders who are registered with the system and who
may be in the area around the park. As discussed in more detail
below, the dispatcher, upon pulling up the map around the area of
the victim 102, may choose to see an overlay, or layer, on the map
of all possible registered responders in the area. From such an
interface, the dispatcher can press on icons that represent certain
potential responders to choose them as candidate responders, and
may then make other selections to have notifications sent to each
of those candidate responders regarding the emergency. A
notification can then be sent to the candidate responders. For
example, a message may be sent to each smart phone of the candidate
responders.
[0048] Additionally, as discussed in more detail below, the
dispatcher, upon pulling up the map around the victim 102 may
choose to overlay or layer on the map all available emergency
response equipment such as automatic external defibrillation
devices (AEDs) in the area. The information about the available
emergency response equipment can include the status of the
emergency response equipment. For example, the map can be overlaid
with color-coded icons associated with each piece of medical
equipment where the color coding is indicative of the status. From
such an interface, the dispatcher can press on the icons that
represent certain potential emergency response equipment and then
make a selection to have notifications sent to owners or
administrators of the emergency response equipment to bring the
emergency response equipment to the scene of the emergency and/or
to provide information about the location and accessibility of the
emergency response equipment to the responders responding to the
emergency (e.g., by including the information in the notification
sent to the responders).
[0049] In more particularly, the map in FIG. 1 shows iconic
representation of equipment that is in the geographic area of the
victim 102, and that may be accessible to responders who agree to
help with the emergency situation. For example, icons having
thunderbolts on them represent AEDs that a responder may grab and
take to the victim 102 when the victim has suffered a sudden
cardiac arrest. Icons having a "+" on them may represent first aid
kits that responders could use to bandage or otherwise treat
victims of an accident. As described more fully below, the
existence and locations of the various pieces of equipment may
initially be enrolled by owners of the equipment who want to make
it available in emergency situations, and registered volunteers may
periodically survey various areas to locate the equipment and to
verify that it is still there, is operational, and is publicly
accessible. Also, the equipment may include wireless functionality
by which it reports itself in to a network, such as via a 3G
interface, WiFi interface, WhisperNet-type interface and the like.
An owner of such a device may then "open" the device to inspection
by a lifesaving system, which may then periodically seek and
receive reports on the current status of the device. In certain
instances, such a system (which could be operated by a non-profit
organization) may trade free monitoring of device status in
exchange for the device owner agreeing to open the device for
public use when it is needed.
[0050] The equipment may also be associated with a schedule during
which it is available, so that the system may filter the display of
equipment, so as not to show equipment that is not currently
available. As one example, a coffee shop near the park may keep an
AED near its counter where it cannot be stolen, but may be willing,
as a gesture of good will, to have responders run into the shop and
borrow the AED if it is needed in the area. Such an AED may be
shown to responders on their devices if an emergency arises during
the shop's hours of operation, but not shown after hours.
[0051] In some embodiments, for example as shown in FIG. 1B, the
iconic representations of the equipment can include information
about the status of the equipment. For example, the iconic
representation can be color-coded to indicate whether the equipment
is fully functional. In one particular example, a green color
coding of the icon could be representative of equipment that has
recently been tested and is fully functional, a red color coding
can be representative of equipment that is not fully functional,
and a yellow color coding could be representative of equipment that
has not recently been tested but was previously functional at the
time of the last test. In the particular example shown in FIG. 1B,
AED 106C is color-coded to indicate that the AED is not functional.
Thus, while AED 106C is the nearest AED to victim 102, upon seeing
the status information a rescuer would know that this AED is not
functional and locate the next nearest AED device (e.g., device
106B) rather than trying to use the nonfunctional AED 106C.
[0052] Referring now more specifically to the smart phone 110 of
responder 104A, the screen of the smart phone 110 shows an example
of what the responder 104A may see after she has been notified
about the victim's 102 problem and has affirmatively responded that
she would like to take part in the response--thus converting
herself from a candidate responder to a confirmed responder.
[0053] Upon the user 104A making such an indication, the dispatcher
and/or a related automated system may download to the smart phone
110 information to allow the responder 104A to locate the victim
102, to show any relevant equipment in the area on the way to the
victim 102, and to communicate to other responders who may be en
route to helping the victim 102. Such information may be provided
to the responder in a variety of manners, and in this example has
been provided in the form of a webpage document that includes
custom text about the victim 102, selectable controls by which the
responder 104A may interoperate with the system, and a map with a
navigational route to guide the responder 104A to the victim. The
map includes information about emergency response equipment and the
status of such equipment.
[0054] Referring now to the particular information displayed on the
smart phone 110, and starting from the top of the display on the
smart phone 110, there is shown a textual report 116 regarding the
problem with the victim. Below the report 116, are two selectable
controls 112 and 114. Selectable control 112, when selected by the
responder 104A, will create a voice connection between the
responder 104A and the victim 102. Selectable control 114, when
selected, connects the responder 104A to whatever professional
responders have been dispatched by the dispatch center and/or to
the dispatcher. The bottom of the display for smart phone 110 is
taken up by a map 118 which may be generated from a combination of
data sources using known techniques such as those for creating
mash-ups with GOOGLE MAPS. For example, the dispatch center may
provide a latitude and longitude for responder 104A and a latitude
and longitude for victim 102, to a navigation system that is
publicly available (via a published application programming
interface (API)), and a navigation system may respond by providing
data for drawing the map overlaid with a thick navigation route
line for an optimal path between the two points for the responder
104A. In addition, actual icons 120 and 122 are superimposed on the
map to show the responder 104A where relevant equipment is located
near their route between their current location and the victim 102.
These icons can include visual indicia, such as color coding, to
indicate the status of the medical equipment.
[0055] In some examples, the icons can include a selectable control
that when selected connects the responder to an individual (e.g., a
device owner or administrator) associated with the medical
equipment. By connecting the responder with the individual
associated with the medical equipment, the responder may be able to
more quickly locate the equipment. For example, if an AED device is
located behind the counter of a coffee shop, the icon on the
responders map may point to the responder to the coffee shop.
However, without further information it may be difficult for the
responder to locate the AED within the coffee shop. Thus, the voice
communication can be beneficial in coordinating access to the
emergency medical equipment.
[0056] In some additional examples, the emergency response
equipment icons can include selectable controls that, when
selected, provide additional information about the medical
equipment. For example, when the icon is selected additional
information such as details about the location of the medical
equipment, type and content of emergency response equipment
available, and/or contact information for an individual associated
with emergency response equipment can be displayed (e.g., as shown
in FIG. 5).
[0057] The gathering of the information that is overlaid on the map
may be by a server system before sending such information to the
various client devices, or the server system may send information
to the client devices, which may in turn automatically contact
third-party mapping and navigation services (e.g., using their
on-board applications and/or JavaScript provided to them by the
server system) to generate the displays shown here.
[0058] In some examples, the potential responders may additionally
include the owners or administrators of emergency response
equipment such as AED units. In such examples, in addition to
notifying responders, the operator also notifies the owners or
administrators of the emergency response equipment. The owner or
administrator can respond (e.g., in a manner similar to the
responders) with whether he or she is available in willing to bring
the emergency response equipment to the vicinity of the emergency.
If so, information about the emergency, including a map to the
location is sent to the owner or administrator.
[0059] Also, though the lay responder's device 110 is shown and
described as a smart phone in this example, it may take a variety
of other forms. For example, the device could be a cellular
telephone having text messaging capabilities, so that the user can
receive direction via text message. The device could also be a
portable networked device that does not have direct telephony
capabilities such as an IPOD TOUCH media player or similar device.
Other devices such as tablet PC's and other portable communication
devices may also be used.
[0060] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a system 200 for coordinating
responders to emergency events. In general, the system 200 shows
various main sub-systems that can be used in an example to
implement functionality like that described for FIG. 1 and below.
The sub-systems are generally directed to receiving notification of
an event that needs human responders, identifying responders in the
area of the event, polling certain responders to see if they would
like to be involved, and providing the responders who reply
affirmatively with information to help them respond to the event.
The sub-systems may also help coordinate the efforts of the
responders or other individuals to coordinate the location and
delivery of emergency response equipment such as AEDs to the scene
of the emergency.
[0061] A central component of the system 200 is a dispatch center
202 such as a traditional emergency 911 dispatch center where
operators (human or automated) receive calls about emergency
events, take information on those calls, and notify appropriate
professional responders so that they can respond to the calls. In
this example, the dispatch center 202 is augmented with additional
sub-systems to provide for greater functionality, including the
dispatch of responders to emergency events and the coordination of
delivery of emergency response equipment to the emergency
event.
[0062] The dispatch center 202 can receive communications e.g.,
calls or data communications through telephone network 206 from
basic telephones such as cellular telephone 222 and/or through
network 204 from mobile computing devices 220. Calls may also come
into the dispatch center 202 via portable emergency response
equipment worn by potential victims. The dispatch center 202 may
also communicate with a notification system 208, which is designed
to provide notifications to responders (lay responders and/or
professional responders) about emergencies that may be occurring in
their area and for which their intervention may be requested. The
notification system 208, in performing these operations, may
initially serve as an interface between a dispatcher at the
dispatch center 202 and various candidate and confirmed responders
who are using devices such as mobile computing device 220.
[0063] The notification system 208 may also manage an enrollment
process by which responders register themselves with the system 208
and are managed by the system 208. The notification system 208, in
performing its functions, may depend on and manage a number of
sources of data. For example, location data 212 may be gathered
from devices used by various responders who are enrolled with the
system 208 to determine where the responders are located. Thus, for
example, the notification system 208 may receive a query from the
dispatch center 202 that identifies a location of an emergency and
then use that location to identify enrolled responders who are
currently in that same vicinity and whose devices are currently
turned on and reporting their location. Such information may be
made available voluntarily by the responders when they register
with the system, so that they permit tracking of their current
location for defined purposes and under defined conditions.
[0064] Map data 216 may also be stored by, or otherwise accessed
by, notification system 208. The map data 216 may take the form of
visual map tiles and data required to connect latitude/longitude
coordinates or other such information to locations on the map. The
map data 216 may also include data needed to generate navigational
routes on maps, and also to convert English language (or other
human language) addresses to more technical map identifiers such as
latitude/longitude coordinates. While the map data 216 and other
data are shown as being part of the notification system 208 in this
example, they may also be accessed from other locations, such as
from third-party services provided by companies like GOOGLE,
YAHOO!, MAPQUEST, and MICROSOFT using API's that are public and
generally familiar.
[0065] The notification system 208, in performing its functions,
may additionally depend on emergency response equipment data to 220
and emergency response equipment owner data 221. The emergency
response equipment data 220 can include information about the
location of the emergency response equipment (e.g., the latitude
and longitude, the physical location within a building, the common
name of the building, the address of the location), availability of
the emergency response equipment (e.g., if the equipment is only
available during business hours or with other restrictions), type
of equipment available (e.g., first aid supplies, portable
defibrillators, or other medical instrumentation and supplies),
and/or status information about the equipment. When a request for
emergency services is received by the dispatch center, in addition
to identifying available respondents, the dispatch center can
additionally locate and identify emergency response equipment that
may be useful for responding to the emergency. The location of the
emergency response equipment can be overlaid on the map generated
by the notification system 208.
[0066] The notification system 208 may additionally rely on
emergency response equipment owner or administrator data 221. For
example, similar to identifying respondents in the area, emergency
response equipment owners or administrators can additionally be
identified and contacted to provide emergency response equipment to
the scene of the emergency. Such information may be made available
voluntarily by the emergency response equipment owner or
administrator when they register with the system, so that they
permit such contact. Location of the equipment owners and
administrators does not need to be tracked. Rather, such
individuals can be people who are likely to be near the equipment.
For example, if the equipment is located in an office building, the
administrator or owner can be an employee having an office near the
equipment. Thus, a particular piece of emergency response equipment
can have multiple owners or administrators who are registered with
the system as being likely to be near the equipment and willing to
respond to an emergency.
[0067] An inter-responder communication system 210 may be provided
as an adjunct to the notification system 208. The inter-responder
communication system 210 may be provided to allow voice
communications between responders and each other, between
responders and a victim, and between other parties that may be
involved in an emergency response operation such as the equipment
owners and administrators.
[0068] As an example of the operation of system 200, a call may be
initially received at the dispatch center 202 from telephone 222,
such as through a 911 calling network. A dispatcher at the dispatch
center 202 may speak to a caller on telephone 222 to find out that
the caller is witnessing another person having a heart attack in
the 600 block of Main Street. The dispatcher may begin to type
information about the call into a computer terminal 203, including
the text "600 block of Main Street", and such text entry may cause
a map to be displayed on a computer display of the dispatcher,
centered around the typed address.
[0069] The computer display may also show icons that represent all
potential responders who are currently known to be in the area of
the 600 block of Main Street (i.e., whose devices are on and
reporting their locations) and to show all emergency response
equipment known to be in the area. A mapping module (e.g., a
mapping module in terminal 203) can obtain such information by
accessing information from the notification system 208, and then
plotting icons for potential responders and emergency response
equipment on the dispatcher's computer monitor. Each of the icons
for the potential responders may be supplemented with a small
indicator that shows the type of responder that each person in the
area is, such as a trained physician or a relatively inexperienced
giver of CPR. Additionally, each of the icons for the emergency
response equipment may be supplemented with an indicator of the
equipment's current status and the type of equipment available.
[0070] The dispatcher may then select some of the identified
responders in the area, such as by tapping their icons on a
touchscreen computer interface, and may then select a control
(e.g., click or tap an on-screen button) to have a notification
generated for each of the selected responders, making them
candidate responders. Similarly the dispatcher may then select some
of the identified emergency response equipment in the area, such as
by tapping the icons for the emergency response equipment on a
touch screen computer interface and may then select a control to
have a notification generated to each of the owners or
administrators of the medical equipment.
[0071] FIG. 3A is a flow chart of a process for organizing
responders and individuals able to provide emergency response
equipment such as AEDs to an emergency call according to an example
embodiment of the invention. In general, the process involves
identifying a number of lay respondents who have registered with a
system and are in the vicinity of an incoming emergency event,
identifying emergency response equipment in the vicinity of the
incoming emergency event and identifying equipment owners or
administrators associated with such equipment.
[0072] The process begins at box 302, where a system receives
information about an emergency call. In one instance, the call may
be a 911 call and the information may be entered into a computer
terminal by an operator who answered the call. In other instances,
the call may be a data transmission from a mobile computing device.
In either situation, a location for an emergency event may be
determined, such as by the operator typing in an address relayed by
the caller, or by location information received with a data
transmission (e.g., GPS data from a mobile computing device).
[0073] At box 304 a geographic determination component of a system
(e.g., mapping module 205 in FIG. 2) obtains location information
like that discussed above and converts it to a latitude/longitude
coordinate or area. For example, a dispatcher's terminal may
provide for parsing of text that the dispatcher types and any
addresses that are identified in the text may be passed to a
separate system that may turn the address into a latitude/longitude
coordinate. In response, another system may be caused to transmit
data to the dispatcher's terminal so that a map of the area around
the event is displayed to the dispatcher.
[0074] At box 306, active responders in a vicinity of the emergency
location are identified. For example, the same system that
transmitted the map data to the dispatchers terminal may also
access a tracking sub-system that is aware of or can poll the
locations of mobile computing devices for all people who are
registered as potential responders with the process, who are in the
vicinity of the emergency, and who have their devices turn on,
reporting their current location. The possible responders may be
determined using one or more of the methods described in U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 12/946,803, filed on Nov. 15, 2010 and
entitled "Community-Based Response System", the contents of which
are hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
[0075] At box 308, the process sends information and map data for
transmission to responders. In an embodiment, the processes sends
information and map data for transmission to other parties, for
example, equipment owners or administrators associated with such
equipment and/or caller. The information may include some basic
information about the emergency and also information needed to
generate an annotated map like that shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. At
box 310, the process coordinates communications among the
responders.
[0076] At box 312, the process identifies emergency response
equipment in the vicinity of the emergency location. For example,
the same system that transmitted the map data to the dispatchers
terminal may also access stored information about emergency
response equipment such as AEDs to determine which emergency
response equipment is the vicinity of the emergency location. The
operator can select one or more particular pieces of the emergency
response equipment based on the type of emergency response
equipment available, the distance from the emergency location, the
type of emergency and/or the status of the medical equipment. Once
the particular pieces of emergency response equipment have been
identified, at box 314, the process identifies individuals
associated with the identified medical equipment. For example,
information about one or more individuals that are likely to be in
the area of the emergency response equipment and have registered
with the system as being willing to respond to an emergency event
by providing the emergency response equipment to the scene of the
emergency can be accessed. Once the relevant individuals have been
identified, at box 316, the process sends a request to the
identified individuals to provide the emergency response equipment
to the emergency location. The information provided to the
identified individuals may include some basic information about the
emergency and also information needed to generate an annotated map
like that shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B.
[0077] FIG. 3B is a flow chart of a process for organizing
responders to an emergency call according to an example embodiment
of the invention. In general, the process involves identifying a
number of lay respondents who have registered with a system and are
in the vicinity of an incoming emergency event and providing them
with information about emergency medical equipment in the
vicinity.
[0078] As described above in relation to FIG. 3A, system such as
the dispatch center 202 in FIG. 2 receives information about an
emergency call (box 332), obtains location information like that
discussed and converts it to a latitude/longitude coordinate or
area (box 334), and identifies active responders in the vicinity of
the emergency location (box 336).
[0079] At box 338, the system identifies emergency response
equipment in the vicinity of the emergency location. For example,
the system that transmitted the map data to the dispatcher's
terminal may also access stored information about emergency
response equipment such as AEDs to determine which emergency
response equipment is the vicinity of the emergency location. The
operator can select one or more particular pieces of the emergency
response equipment based on the type of emergency response
equipment available, the distance from the emergency location, the
type of emergency and/or the status of the medical equipment.
[0080] In some additional embodiments, the system can automatically
select one or more pieces of emergency response equipment based on
a distance from the vicinity of the emergency location.
[0081] In some additional examples, the system can automatically
select a predetermined number of pieces of emergency response
equipment based on the type of emergency to locate the nearest
equipment to the emergency location regardless of the absolute
distance. At box 340, the process checks status information for the
identified medical equipment by accessing stored information about
the equipment. This status information can include items such as
the last date of servicing, the last known status of the equipment,
the battery life of the equipment, and/or the like. At box 340,
based on the status information for the medical equipment, the
process removes nonfunctional emergency response equipment from the
list of potential emergency response equipment for use in
responding to the emergency. Only the functional emergency response
equipment (e.g., based on the stored information) is identified as
being available to responders. Thus, responders will not waste
valuable time to obtain nonfunctional equipment. At box 344, the
process sends information, map data and/or emergency response
equipment location information for transmission to responders. In
an embodiment, emergency response equipment location information is
transmitted to a dispatch center such as dispatch center 202 of
FIG. 2. The emergency response equipment location information may
be present in a memory of the equipment, determined using GPS, or
provided using another method known in the art. In an embodiment,
the process sends information and map data for transmission to
other parties, for example, equipment owners or administrators
associated with such equipment and/or a caller. The information may
include some basic information about the emergency and also
information needed to generate an annotated map like that shown in
FIGS. 1A and 1B including the identification of the locations for
medical equipment.
[0082] FIG. 4 shows an example screen shot for a dispatcher. In
general, this screen shot provides an example of the type of data a
dispatcher may see as the dispatcher selects responders and
emergency medical equipment to respond to an emergency event that
has been called in by telephone.
[0083] The screen in this example is split mainly into a map area
and a data area. The map area is centered around a victim
represented by icon 504, and may have been retrieved automatically
when the dispatcher typed a location into their computer terminal.
A circle 506 may be shown around the icon for the victim, showing a
zone of uncertainty for the victim's location. A broader circle 502
indicates a candidate zone around the victim. This circle may
circumscribe the area within which the system will look for
potential responders and/or for emergency response equipment such
as AEDs. The size of the initial circle may be selected
automatically, such as to be a predetermined radius, or based on
estimated time for responders to arrive at the victim. If the
dispatcher does not see enough responders and/or emergency response
equipment in the circle, the dispatcher may provide an input to
change the size of the circle, such as by dragging the circle in or
out on a touch screen display. In some examples, this size of the
initial circle or the size of a revised circle can be different for
the area used to identify responders as compared to the area used
to locate emergency response equipment such as AEDs. For example,
if the responders are tasked with bringing the emergency response
equipment to the scene of the emergency, then the size of the area
used to locate emergency response equipment may be smaller than the
size of the area used to locate responders. In another example, if
emergency response equipment owners or administrators are tasked
with bringing the emergency response equipment the scene of the
emergency, then the size of the area used to locate emergency
response equipment may be larger than the size of the area used to
locate responders because the responders can begin medical
treatment such as CPR during the time used for the equipment owners
or administrators to provide the medical equipment.
[0084] In the particular example, the initial circle can include an
icon for responders and an icon for emergency medical equipment. An
operator can click and drag the associated icon to revise the
associated input area. For example, by clicking and dragging on an
icon for responder, the operator can modify the area used to locate
and identify responders, but will not modify the area used for
locating emergency medical equipment.
[0085] In the data portion of the screen 500, and at the top, there
is shown an emergency information area 508, where various data
about an event may be displayed, such as the location of the victim
(in plain English and lat/long), and a description of the event
that the dispatcher may have entered upon receiving a call. Such a
description may then be sent automatically to any responder that
becomes confirmed in the system, or even to potential responders in
an invitation. The area 508 also includes a selectable button that,
when the dispatcher presses it and holds it down, causes the
dispatchers speech to be broadcast to all responders (e.g., all
confirmed lay responders and all professional responders), such as
when the dispatcher wants to broadcast instructions to the team.
Other similar controls may also be provided as needed.
[0086] A messages area 516 at the bottom of the data area provides
a location in which a dispatcher can enter textual messages to be
sent to the responders. Other data input and output may also be
provided in one or more pop up boxes that may appear depending on
the context of the system that the dispatcher is controlling.
[0087] The three remaining areas of the data area indicate the
status of various responders in an area, coordinated with icons on
the map area that show those responders. For example, in this
display, candidate responders area 514 shows responders in the
relevant area who have not yet been acted on by the dispatcher.
Here, there is one such responder named Chris Hoff, who is
designated with a B2 subscript, indicating that he is the B
responder on the map and he is a level 2 skill level, which may be
a lay responder who is formally CPR certified. A "T" icon is shown
next to his name, and the dispatcher may select that icon in order
to talk by voice directly with him; the dispatcher could also push
the icon and then type a message, and that message would be sent
directly to Mr. Hoff.
[0088] The selected responder's area shows responders who have
received an invitation to respond. A dispatcher may move someone
from area 514 to area 512 by selecting their entry and then
dragging it upward from one area to the next. Here, the dispatcher
has selected a level 1 responder, which may be someone who has
shown proficiency for CPR with a downloaded application but is not
CPR certified. That user, Tony Oilo, has not yet responded.
Although not shown, the entry could also be accompanied by a
digital clock that shows the elapsed time since the responder has
been invited so that, after a time, the dispatcher can cancel the
invitation and invite a different candidate.
[0089] The confirmed responder's area 510 shows two responders who
were invited and responded affirmatively, and thus are
presumptively en route to the victim. These responders are again, a
level 1 responder and a level 4 responder, who may be a general
physician (where level 6 responders could be emergency room or
critical care physicians). Dr. Langhans in this example is
relatively close to the park where the victim is located, and thus
may be expected to arrive there soon.
[0090] The emergency response equipment location section 511
includes information about the location, status, and availability
of emergency response equipment such as AEDs in the vicinity of the
emergency. The status information is shown in column 513, can be
color-coded based on the status of the emergency response equipment
as described herein. Other indicators such as textual indicators or
symbolic indicators could be used to indicate the status of the
emergency response equipment. As shown in column 515, the distance
from the emergency location to the emergency response equipment can
additionally be displayed. As shown in column 517, the user
interface includes a selection mechanism that enables the operator
to notify individuals associated with the emergency response
equipment by selecting the notification button. For example, if the
operator wanted to notify the owners of all emergency response
equipment within one 10th of a mile from the emergency location,
the operator could do so by clicking on the selectable input icons
in column 517.
[0091] FIG. 5 shows an example screenshot for a dispatcher or
responder. In general, this screenshot provides an example of the
type of data a dispatcher or responder may see in relation to
emergency medical equipment in the vicinity of an emergency. The
information presented to the dispatcher or responder includes a map
area that is centered around the victim and may have been
automatically retrieved when the dispatcher typed a location into
their computer terminal. Emergency response equipment in the
vicinity of the emergency is identified by icons on the map. In
addition to identifying the equipment locations, status information
about the equipment is provided, for example, as shown in the
color-coded status indicators on the left of the user interface.
The status can additionally/alternatively be indicated with a
textual indicator or symbolic indicator. In FIG. 5, both a
color-coding and a textual indicator are shown. Additionally, when
an individual selects a particular piece of medical equipment,
additional information can be displayed to the user. For example,
by clicking on one of the icons in the map, the user can view
additional information such as more detailed location information,
availability, and contact information.
[0092] FIG. 6 shows an example of a generic computer device 600 and
a generic mobile computer device 650, which may be used with the
techniques described here. Computing device 600 is intended to
represent various forms of digital computers, such as laptops,
desktops, workstations, personal digital assistants, servers, blade
servers, mainframes, and other appropriate computers. Computing
device 650 is intended to represent various forms of mobile
devices, such as personal digital assistants, cellular telephones,
smartphones, and other similar computing devices. The components
shown here, their connections and relationships, and their
functions, are meant to be exemplary only, and are not meant to
limit implementations of the inventions described and/or claimed in
this document.
[0093] Computing device 600 includes a processor 602, memory 604, a
storage device 606, a high-speed interface 608 connecting to memory
604 and high-speed expansion ports 610, and a low speed interface
612 connecting to low speed bus 614 and storage device 606. Each of
the components 602, 604, 606, 608, 610, and 612, are interconnected
using various busses, and may be mounted on a common motherboard or
in other manners as appropriate. The processor 602 can process
instructions for execution within the computing device 600,
including instructions stored in the memory 604 or on the storage
device 606 to display graphical information for a GUI on an
external input/output device, such as display 616 coupled to high
speed interface 608. In other implementations, multiple processors
and/or multiple buses may be used, as appropriate, along with
multiple memories and types of memory. Also, multiple computing
devices 600 may be connected, with each device providing portions
of the necessary operations (e.g., as a server bank, a group of
blade servers, or a multi-processor system).
[0094] The memory 604 stores information within the computing
device 600. In one implementation, the memory 604 is a volatile
memory unit or units. In another implementation, the memory 604 is
a non-volatile memory unit or units. The memory 604 may also be
another form of computer-readable medium, such as a magnetic or
optical disk.
[0095] The storage device 606 is capable of providing mass storage
for the computing device 600. In one implementation, the storage
device 606 may be or contain a computer-readable medium, such as a
floppy disk device, a hard disk device, an optical disk device, or
a tape device, a flash memory or other similar solid state memory
device, or an array of devices, including devices in a storage area
network or other configurations. A computer program product can be
tangibly embodied in an information carrier. The computer program
product may also contain instructions that, when executed, perform
one or more methods, such as those described above. The information
carrier is a computer- or machine-readable medium, such as the
memory 604, the storage device 606, memory on processor 602, or a
propagated signal.
[0096] The high speed controller 608 manages bandwidth-intensive
operations for the computing device 600, while the low speed
controller 612 manages lower bandwidth-intensive operations. Such
allocation of functions is exemplary only. In one implementation,
the high-speed controller 608 is coupled to memory 604, display 616
(e.g., through a graphics processor or accelerator), and to
high-speed expansion ports 610, which may accept various expansion
cards (not shown). In the implementation, low-speed controller 612
is coupled to storage device 606 and low-speed expansion port 614.
The low-speed expansion port, which may include various
communication ports (e.g., USB, Bluetooth, Ethernet, wireless
Ethernet) may be coupled to one or more input/output devices, such
as a keyboard, a pointing device, a scanner, or a networking device
such as a switch or router, e.g., through a network adapter.
[0097] The computing device 600 may be implemented in a number of
different forms, as shown in the figure. For example, it may be
implemented as a standard server 620, or multiple times in a group
of such servers. It may also be implemented as part of a rack
server system 624. In addition, it may be implemented in a personal
computer such as a laptop computer 622. Alternatively, components
from computing device 600 may be combined with other components in
a mobile device (not shown), such as device 650. Each of such
devices may contain one or more of computing device 600, 650, and
an entire system may be made up of multiple computing devices 600,
650 communicating with each other.
[0098] Computing device 650 includes a processor 652, memory 664,
and an input/output device such as a display 654, a communication
interface 666, and a transceiver 668, among other components. The
device 650 may also be provided with a storage device, such as a
microdrive or other device, to provide additional storage. Each of
the components 650, 652, 664, 654, 666, and 668, are interconnected
using various buses, and several of the components may be mounted
on a common motherboard or in other manners as appropriate.
[0099] The processor 652 can execute instructions within the
computing device 650, including instructions stored in the memory
664. The processor may be implemented as a chipset of chips that
include separate and multiple analog and digital processors. The
processor may provide, for example, for coordination of the other
components of the device 650, such as control of user interfaces,
applications run by device 650, and wireless communication by
device 650.
[0100] Processor 652 may communicate with a user through control
interface 658 and display interface 656 coupled to a display 654.
The display 654 may be, for example, a TFT LCD
(Thin-Film-Transistor Liquid Crystal Display) or an OLED (Organic
Light Emitting Diode) display, or other appropriate display
technology. The display interface 656 may comprise appropriate
circuitry for driving the display 654 to present graphical and
other information to a user. The control interface 658 may receive
commands from a user and convert them for submission to the
processor 652. In addition, an external interface 662 may be
provide in communication with processor 652, so as to enable near
area communication of device 650 with other devices. External
interface 662 may provide, for example, for wired communication in
some implementations, or for wireless communication in other
implementations, and multiple interfaces may also be used.
[0101] The memory 664 stores information within the computing
device 650. The memory 664 can be implemented as one or more of a
computer-readable medium or media, a volatile memory unit or units,
or a non-volatile memory unit or units. Expansion memory 674 may
also be provided and connected to device 650 through expansion
interface 672, which may include, for example, a SIMM (Single In
Line Memory Module) card interface. Such expansion memory 674 may
provide extra storage space for device 650, or may also store
applications or other information for device 650. Specifically,
expansion memory 674 may include instructions to carry out or
supplement the processes described above, and may include secure
information also. Thus, for example, expansion memory 674 may be
provide as a security module for device 650, and may be programmed
with instructions that permit secure use of device 650. In
addition, secure applications may be provided via the SIMM cards,
along with additional information, such as placing identifying
information on the SIMM card in a non-hackable manner.
[0102] The memory may include, for example, flash memory and/or
NVRAM memory, as discussed below. In one implementation, a computer
program product is tangibly embodied in an information carrier. The
computer program product contains instructions that, when executed,
perform one or more methods, such as those described above. The
information carrier is a computer- or machine-readable medium, such
as the memory 664, expansion memory 674, memory on processor 652,
or a propagated signal that may be received, for example, over
transceiver 668 or external interface 662.
[0103] Device 650 may communicate wirelessly through communication
interface 666, which may include digital signal processing
circuitry where necessary. Communication interface 666 may provide
for communications under various modes or protocols, such as GSM
voice calls, SMS, EMS, or MMS messaging, CDMA, TDMA, PDC, WCDMA,
CDMA2000, or GPRS, among others. Such communication may occur, for
example, through radio-frequency transceiver 668. In addition,
short-range communication may occur, such as using a Bluetooth,
WiFi, or other such transceiver (not shown). In addition, GPS
(Global Positioning System) receiver module 670 may provide
additional navigation- and location-related wireless data to device
650, which may be used as appropriate by applications running on
device 650.
[0104] Device 650 may also communicate audibly using audio codec
660, which may receive spoken information from a user and convert
it to usable digital information. Audio codec 660 may likewise
generate audible sound for a user, such as through a speaker, e.g.,
in a handset of device 650. Such sound may include sound from voice
telephone calls, may include recorded sound (e.g., voice messages,
music files, etc.) and may also include sound generated by
applications operating on device 650.
[0105] The computing device 650 may be implemented in a number of
different forms, as shown in the figure. For example, it may be
implemented as a cellular telephone 680. It may also be implemented
as part of a smartphone 682, personal digital assistant, or other
similar mobile device.
[0106] Various implementations of the systems and techniques
described here can be realized in digital electronic circuitry,
integrated circuitry, specially designed ASICs (application
specific integrated circuits), computer hardware, firmware,
software, and/or combinations thereof. These various
implementations can include implementation in one or more computer
programs that are executable and/or interpretable on a programmable
system including at least one programmable processor, which may be
special or general purpose, coupled to receive data and
instructions from, and to transmit data and instructions to, a
storage system, at least one input device, and at least one output
device.
[0107] These computer programs (also known as programs, software,
software applications or code) include machine instructions for a
programmable processor, and can be implemented in a high-level
procedural and/or object-oriented programming language, and/or in
assembly/machine language. As used herein, the terms
"machine-readable medium" "computer-readable medium" refers to any
computer program product, apparatus and/or device (e.g., magnetic
discs, optical disks, memory, Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs))
used to provide machine instructions and/or data to a programmable
processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives
machine instructions as a machine-readable signal. The term
"machine-readable signal" refers to any signal used to provide
machine instructions and/or data to a programmable processor.
[0108] To provide for interaction with a user, the systems and
techniques described here can be implemented on a computer having a
display device (e.g., a CRT (cathode ray tube) or LCD (liquid
crystal display) monitor) for displaying information to the user
and a keyboard and a pointing device (e.g., a mouse or a trackball)
by which the user can provide input to the computer. Other kinds of
devices can be used to provide for interaction with a user as well;
for example, feedback provided to the user can be any form of
sensory feedback (e.g., visual feedback, auditory feedback, or
tactile feedback); and input from the user can be received in any
form, including acoustic, speech, or tactile input.
[0109] The systems and techniques described here can be implemented
in a computing system that includes a back end component (e.g., as
a data server), or that includes a middleware component (e.g., an
application server), or that includes a front end component (e.g.,
a client computer having a graphical user interface or a Web
browser through which a user can interact with an implementation of
the systems and techniques described here), or any combination of
such back end, middleware, or front end components. The components
of the system can be interconnected by any form or medium of
digital data communication (e.g., a communication network).
Examples of communication networks include a local area network
("LAN"), a wide area network ("WAN"), and the Internet.
[0110] The computing system can include clients and servers. A
client and server are generally remote from each other and
typically interact through a communication network. The
relationship of client and server arises by virtue of computer
programs running on the respective computers and having a
client-server relationship to each other.
[0111] A number of embodiments have been described. Nevertheless,
it will be understood that various modifications may be made
without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For
example, much of this document has been described with respect to
smartphones and similar client devices, but other forms of devices
may be employed, including jackets for portable devices where the
jackets have been provided with some or all of the functionality
just described. In some examples, the dispatch center could be
implemented on a mobile computer such as an iphone.
[0112] In addition, the logic flows depicted in the figures do not
require the particular order shown, or sequential order, to achieve
desirable results. In addition, other steps may be provided, or
steps may be eliminated, from the described flows, and other
components may be added to, or removed from, the described systems.
Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the
following claims.
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