TI patents crash alarm for cellphones, PDAs

Next time you're in a car accident — or get knocked down violently in a barroom brawl — your cellphone or PDA might be able to automatically call 911 for you. A Texas Instruments patent application envisions a personal alarm with an accelerometer that can be built into portable devices. The unit would be able to create an acceleration profile and determine whether it has sustained a violent incident or has just been dropped (of course, depending on how much you've paid for your phone or PDA, that might constitute a violent incident). Coupled with GPS, the alarm could send an automated message to emergency officials,
alerting them to your location.