The present disclosure relates to a method, apparatus and computer-readable medium for event response, and more particularly to improved emergency response at an event.
Emergency responders are trained to respond to emergency situations including mass casualty events. This training includes the ability to treat medical injuries and to transport individuals that require medical attention to the proper medical treatment facility, such as a hospital or other trauma treatment center. Some of the types of emergency responders or first responders include EMTs, doctors, nurses, police officers, fire fighters, etc.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide a method, apparatus, and computer-readable medium for responding to an event.
A first exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method for event response. The method includes transmitting, by a processor, a profile questionnaire to a plurality of user equipments. The method further includes receiving, by the processor, a plurality of profiles from the plurality of user equipments, and receiving, by the processor, an indication that at least one of the plurality of user equipments are located within a predetermined geographic area. The method further includes receiving, by the processor, an alert, and determining, by the processor, a plurality of instructions for each one of the at least one of the plurality of user equipments based on the received plurality of profiles. The method still further includes transmitting, by the processor, a plurality of instructions to the at least one of the plurality of user equipments.
A second exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure provides an apparatus. The apparatus includes at least one processor and a memory storing computer program instructions executable by the at least one processor, wherein the memory and the computer program instructions and the processor are configured to cause the apparatus to at least transmit a profile questionnaire to a plurality of user equipments, and receive a plurality profiles from the plurality of user equipments. The apparatus is further caused to receive an indication that at least one of the plurality of user equipments are located within a predetermined geographic area, and receive an alert. The apparatus is still further caused to determine a plurality of instructions for each one of the at least one of the plurality of user equipments based the received plurality of profiles, and transmit a plurality of instructions to the at least one of the plurality of user equipments.
A third exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure provides a non-transitory computer-readable medium. A non-transitory computer-readable medium tangibly comprising computer program instructions, which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to at least transmit a profile questionnaire to a plurality of user equipments, and receive a plurality profiles from the plurality of user equipments. The processor is further caused to receive an indication that at least one of the plurality of user equipments are located within a predetermined geographic area, and receive an alert. The processor is still further caused to determine a plurality of instructions for each one of the at least one of the plurality of user equipments based the received plurality of profiles, and transmit a plurality of instructions to the at least one of the plurality of user equipments.
The following will describe embodiments of the present disclosure, but it should be appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited to the described embodiments and various modifications of the disclosure are possible without departing from the basic principle. The scope of the present disclosure is therefore to be determined solely by the appended claims.
Safety and security in particular locations or during events having large numbers of people in attendance is paramount to the prevention of mass casualty events. However, no security system nor precautions taken are able to prevent each and every mass casualty scenario. Accordingly, the existence of prepared plans can be invaluable during the circumstances in which an unforeseen mass casualty or emergency event occurs. Yet, even the best laid plans cannot predict all of the possible scenarios that can occur, which means that the prepared plans for responding to emergency events or mass casualty events may or may not provide the best means for responding to such an event.
There are a number of problems with most response plans to emergencies. First, each plan can only consider a finite number of possible emergencies. This means that there are a number of scenarios in which the response plan is not the proper or optimal response strategy for responding to that particular emergency. Some of the examples of the shortcomings of a given plan can involve (i) not having the right number (too many or too little) of emergency personnel to respond, (ii) not having the right emergency personnel in the right location to respond, (iii) not having the emergency personnel respond at the right time, and (iv) not being able to communicate with or communicating the wrong instructions to non-emergency personnel.
In addition to these inherent issues with any preset plan to respond to emergency situations, there are inherent untapped resources for responding in any given emergency situation. These untapped resources are the non-emergency individuals who have skills that may be useful in responding to the emergency. Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method, apparatus and computer-readable medium for aiding in responding to emergency events and/or mass casualty events.
Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method, apparatus and computer-readable medium for responding to emergency events and/or mass casualty situations. Embodiments provide the ability to receive the skills, abilities, disabilities, and locations of individuals such that those individual's skills, abilities, disabilities, and locations can be used to determine an optimal response strategy for responding to emergency situations and/or mass casualty events. Embodiments also provide the ability to provide instructions to individuals who are unofficial emergency personnel during or after an emergency situation such that those unofficial emergency personnel can help respond to the emergency situation or can be efficiently relocated from the site of the emergency situation.
Embodiments provide an application that can be downloaded onto a plurality of user equipments (e.g., UE 106, UE 108, UE 110, UE 112). Embodiments of the user equipment include any electronic device, mobile phone, smartphone, computer, and/or wearable device. The application will cause the UEs 106, 108, 110, 112 to ask the user to provide information/user profile regarding the user. Embodiments of the information can pertain to the profession of the user, the skills of the user (e.g., medical training, military training, law enforcement training), the physical abilities or physical limitations of the user, and known medical conditions of the user. The application will also cause the user equipments 106, 108, 110, 112 to ask the user to opt-in or opt-out to (1) sharing the information that the user provides with the server 102, and (2) receiving instructions, information and updates following or during an emergency event.
Referring to
In an embodiment, server 102 includes or has access to geographic map information, the location of hospitals, the location of first responders (e.g., firefighters, ambulance services), the location of police stations, the location of potential emergency command locations, and the location of buildings and other structures. Server 102 may maintain information regarding the user associated with UE 108, UE 110, and smartwatch 112 (e.g., location, skills, medical conditions, etc.) such that it can determine which user (if any) can be used or be helpful in responding to an emergency situation or mass casualty event, which user (if uninjured) has the physical mobility to reach certain emergency locations (e.g., hospitals, police stations, etc.), and which users (whether injured or not) will not have the physical mobility to reach certain emergency locations. Server 102 is also operable to communicate with first responder systems UE 106 (e.g., police systems, hospitals, hospital systems, firefighters and other first responders) such that it can deliver information of the users of UE 106, UE 108, UE 110, and smartwatch 112 to the first responders or so that it can deliver information regarding the first responders to UE 106, UE 108, UE 110, and smartwatch 112.
Internet/Server 104 includes the internet or it can include one or multiple public or private servers that are operable to send and receive data with each of the devices or elements illustrated in
Embodiments of UE 108, and UE 110 include smartphones, cell phones, tablets, laptop computers, desktop computer and the like. Embodiments of UE 108, and UE 110 each include at least one processor, at least one memory storing computer program instructions, a user interface which may include a display and the ability to transmit and receive data (either via wired or wireless connections) with server 102 or directly with any of the other elements depicted in
Also shown in
UAS 114 is operable to transmit any and all gathered information from capture device 126 to server 102. In one embodiment, UAS 114 is operable to transmit any and all gathered information from capture device 126 to server 102. Embodiments of capture device 126 include cameras, microphones, video cameras, gas sensors, and light and infrared sensors. Embodiments of capture device 126 are operable to obtain one or a plurality of photographs, video, audio, gas sensor information, infrared sensor information, and light sensor information. Shown in
In practice, each UE 108, 110, and 112 will download an application that will allow a user to provide information about the user of that particular UE. Shown in
Once the user provides their responses or allows the UE to transmit the user responses to the server 102 (include GPS information regarding the location of the particular UE), the server 102 will receive all of the information provided by UEs 108, 110, and 112. The server 102 will analyze the information including the location of each of the UEs 108, 110, and 112. When an emergency situation or mass casualty event occurs, the server 102 will receive information through 911 dispatch (e.g., from UE 106) and other emergency systems regarding the emergency situation or mass casualty event. The server 102 will then analyze the information and data it receives regarding the emergency situation or mass casualty event. The server 102 will then determine personalized instructions for each of the users of UEs 108, 110, and 112 based on (i) the received information from the UEs 108, 110, and 112, (ii) the analyzed data regarding the emergency situation, (iii) the location of the UEs 108, 110, and 112, (iv) the location and availability for local hospitals or other medical facilities to accommodate patients, and (v) the location, and medical skill sets of first responders and other official emergency personnel. The server 102 will then send the determined personalized instructions to one or more of the UEs 108, 110 and 112. Embodiments of instructions includes (i) instructions as to which hospital or medical facility to go to (shown in
In one embodiment server 102 is operable to transmit location information to UAS 114 such that UAS 114 can fly to the location of the emergency event or mass casualty event. UAS 114 will then travel to the location and transmit back to server 102 video, photographs, audio and other information captured by the capture device 126. Server 102 is operable to use the captured information in determining the instructions it provides to the users of UEs 108, 110, and 112. For example, the users of UEs 108, 110, and 112 may receive instructions initial to proceed to the nearest hospital following a mass casualty event. However, server 102 may provide updated information/instructions to the users of UEs 108, 110, and 112 if the captured information from UAS 114 indicates that there is an accident on the road leading the hospital or that one of the users of UEs 108, 110, and 112 is injured. In that instance, server 102 may provide instructions to that particular UE to proceed to a closer rally point where first responders can help get that user to the hospital.
Reference is now made to
Following block 204, block 206 indicates wherein the plurality of user equipments comprise a plurality of smartphones, cellphones, and wearables. Next block 208 relates to wherein the alert is at least one of a 911 call, an emergency response alert, and a social media post. Block 210 specifies wherein the plurality of profiles comprise at least medical skill information, emergency response experience information, law enforcement information and military information.
The logic flow diagram of
Various embodiments of the computer-readable medium include any data storage technology type which is suitable to the local technical environment, including but not limited to semiconductor based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, removable memory, disc memory, flash memory, dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), static random-access memory (SRAM), electronically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) and the like. Various embodiments of the processor include but are not limited to general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors digital signal processors and multi-core processors.
Reference is now made to
Server 806 includes processing means such as a processing system and/or at least one data processor (DP) 806A, storing means such as at least one computer-readable memory (MEM) 806B storing at least one computer program (PROG) 806C, and communicating means such as a transmitter (TX) 806D and a receiver (RX) 806E for bidirectional wireless communications with other devices as known in the art.
UE 802 may include processing means such as a processing system or at least one data processor (DP) 802A, storing means such as at least one computer-readable medium or computer-readable memory (MEM) 802B storing at least one computer program (PROG) 802C, and also communicating means such as a transmitter (TX) 802D and receiver (RX) 402E for bidirectional wireless communications with server 806 and/or UE 804 and/or any other UE's (not shown) via one or more antennas 802F as known in the art.
Similarly, UE 804 includes processing means such as a processing system and/or at least one data processor (DP) 804A, storing means such as at least one computer-readable medium (MEM) 804B storing at least one computer program (PROG) 804C, and communicating means such as a transmitter (TX) 804D and a receiver (RX) 804E for bidirectional wireless communications (e.g., through cellular, WIFI, Bluetooth, etc.) with other devices via one or more antennas 804F as known in the art. Various embodiments of UE 802 and UE 804 can include, but are not limited to cellular telephones, mobile phones, smartphones, smart watches, laptop computers, personal portable digital devices having wireless communication capabilities including but not limited to laptop/palmtop/tablet computers, digital cameras and internet appliances.
At least one of the PROGs 802C or 804C in UEs 802, 804 includes program instructions that, when executed by the associated DP 802A, 804A, enable the device to operate in accordance with embodiments of the present invention, as detailed above. Server 806 may also have software stored in its MEM 806B to implement certain aspects of these teachings. Embodiments of this disclosure may be implemented at least in part by computer software stored in the MEM 802B, 804B, 806B which is executable by DP 802A of UE 802, DP 804A of UE 804, and/or DP 806A of server 806, or by hardware, or by a combination of tangibly stored software and hardware (and tangibly stored firmware). Electronic devices implementing these aspects of the disclosure need not be the entire devices as depicted in
Various embodiments of the computer readable MEMs 802B, 804B, and 8406B include any data storage technology which is suitable to the local technical environment, including but not limited to semiconductor based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, removable memory, disc memory, flash memory, DRAM, SRAM, EEPROM and the like. Various embodiments of the DPs 802A, 804A, and 806A include but are not limited to general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and multi-core processors.
It is to be understood that any feature described in relation to any one embodiment may be used alone, or in combination with other features described, and may also be used alone, or in combination with one or more features of any other of the embodiments, or any combination of any other of the embodiments. The presently disclosed embodiments are therefore considered in all respects to be illustrative. Furthermore, equivalents and modifications not described above may also be employed without departing from the scope of this disclosure, which is defined in the accompanying claims.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62952687 | Dec 2019 | US |