Abstract
If a person encounters an emergency situation while in a location with no network connectivity and with limited mobility, sending a SOS message is impossible. While some smartphones enable users to notify that they are in an emergency via satellite connection and some applications enable automatic location sharing with chosen contacts, such services are not available on all devices. This disclosure describes techniques that enable a user to configure automatic generation of an SOS alert without needing to rely on periodic manual checks by another person. The user’s mobile phone (or another device) can be configured to upload the user’s current location to a trusted Internet-based location-registration service on a periodic basis. If the location is not received for a user-specified period, the location-registration service can generate an automatic SOS alert that includes the user’s last known location as provided in the latest received location upload. With pre-configured user permissions, the alert can be relayed to appropriate parties such as emergency services, family members, trusted contacts, etc. Implementation of the techniques can facilitate earlier detection of emergencies, help optimize the use of assistive resources, and enhance user safety.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Nanek, Lance, "Automatically Generating SOS Alerts Based on Automated Periodic Location Uploads", Technical Disclosure Commons, (March 08, 2024)
https://www.tdcommons.org/dpubs_series/6759