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How Siri could change the 911 emergency system
Right now, the 911 emergency call system is designed to accept one thing -- phone calls. However, the US is on the verge of moving to Next Generation 911, which is a dramatic upgrade to the system that allows communications to be made via voice, video, and text. GigaOM's John Wilson postulates in a recent post that Apple's Siri could revolutionize emergency calls and home health care. In his post, Wilson describes an all too common scenario -- an elderly woman having a cardiac event who is able to dial 911, but can't speak more than a few words. As a result, she can't let the responders know what's wrong or tell them anything about existing medical conditions or medications. With Siri, he believes that a key phrase could set off a video call to emergency personnel who could use their own eyes and ears to get a better picture of what's going on. As part of Next Generation 911, GPS location information is sent with the call, so responders are able to discern the exact location of a caller even when they can't tell the emergency center where they are. Wilson has the key phrase launching an app, sending either focused information or a patient's entire medical history to the responders. Finally, a Siri-based emergency calling system could even notify next of kin as to what is happening and what hospital the caller is being taken to. Wilson then focuses on home health care, noting that Siri's natural language capabilities could make life better for millions of elderly or homebound. As he notes, there are many specialty devices for this market right now, but they're all expensive and relatively difficult to use. Wilson sees Siri being used to set and vocalize reminders of when to take medications, initiate video checkups with care providers or family members, and "begin a smooth chain reaction of events that would otherwise require far more time and energy to do - two things our elderly, chronically ill population have the least of." This won't happen overnight, of course, but as Wilson notes, "Clearly it won't just be Siri alone in this revolution of health care. Many more services will be created, and many more similar innovations are on the horizon. But every revolution needs its leader, and Siri is undoubtedly it."
Sonim introduces trio of rugged phones, including one with NFC support
Sonim's established a rather solid reputation in the rugged phone genre, with its XP3300 Force claiming the Guinness World Record for surviving the longest freefall this past February. Now it's branching out by announcing three more mil-spec devices at this week's CTIA, two of which will be available in the US starting today. First at bat is the XP1301 Core NFC, a device that lives up to its name by supporting a tag reader optimized for the workforce. It was announced for European availability last month, and is now ready to be sold in the US. Next up is the XP1330 Core PTT, a Push-to-Talk device shipping to select areas in Latin America over the next two months. Finally, the XP3340 Sentinel offers an emergency panic button and a man-down sensor capable of monitoring your phone for any freefalls or impacts, and can make an emergency call in your behalf. All of the above devices include quadband GSM / EDGE radios -- don't expect to use them for hyperspeed browsing -- and have been drop-tested at least 24 times from over six feet. They may not do your laundry, but at least you won't freak out when it drops a story or two. Head to the press release for more specifics.
Help for the lost: a fabric antenna to keep you from being a castaway
Doesn't look like much, does it? But the next time you're lost at sea, you just might be thankful you've got it. That little square of fabric is actually a flexible antenna designed for the Cospas-Sarsat distress signal network, a Cold War-era system built to help pinpoint missing ships, planes and people. Designed to be sewn into a life vest, the antenna broadcasts an emergency beacon at a low frequency for greater range; in field tests, that helped rescuers find it within minutes. It's also tear- and water-resistant, which you'll be grateful for when you're being tossed around like a ragdoll in a sea of whitecaps. The technology was developed by the European Space Agency in partnership with a Finnish company. Next on their agenda? A round, floating companion for the marooned, codenamed Wilson.
CCP releases EVE's emergency CSM meeting minutes
There's no drama like internet spaceship drama, and the boohoos stemming from last summer's EVE Online Incarna expansion -- and the associated monoclegate controversy -- continue to make waves. CCP has finally gotten around to releasing the minutes from the "emergency" Council of Stellar Management meeting that took place in Iceland from June 30th through July 1st. According to CCP Xhagen, the lengthy delay was due to the fact that "it takes time to create a document that everyone can accept. It is important to keep in mind that CSM meeting minutes are not released unless both CCP and the CSM give their approval." The document summarizes the discussions and presents the brouhaha surrounding captain's quarters performance, the Noble Exchange, and CCP's future plans for virtual goods from the perspective of both devs and player representatives. The PDF ultimately serves as a useful summary of EVE's latest drama explosion, and you can read it in its entirety by following the link below.
Best apps for tracking Hurricane Irene
If you're in the path of Hurricane Irene and you haven't gone through the App Store already looking for the best sources of info on the storm, there are others who have done it for you. Information Week, Appolicious, and MSNBC's Technolog have all made lists of apps for various flavors of smartphones. Virtually all the lists of apps include the free Weather Channel App for iOS, Android, Windows Phone 7, and Blackberry*. The application description doesn't clearly state if the free app (there's a paid version) has push notification for weather alerts, but the $3.99 Weather Channel Max app does include them. Aside from TWC's contributions, there's also the paid Hurricane for iPhone or Hurricane HD for iPad which shows up in multiple lists of suggested apps. You may want to try searching for an app for a TV station in your area; a lot of them have notifications for breaking news or weather alerts which you can set up. CNN has a few apps listed alongside Twitter feeds to watch and things like a multipurpose radio which includes weather band information, a flashlight, a USB port for charging, and a hand crank to make the whole thing go. Google has set up a crisis response map with a wide variety of layers including power outages, shelters, forecasts and loads more. Here are some basic tips for maximizing battery life on your smartphone/tablet/laptop/e-reader in case of power outages: Turn the screen brightness down as low as you can, turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and if you can run multiple apps at once, quit anything extraneous. That way you'll get the most out of your battery before you have to hook it to that Axis radio and work the hand crank till your arm gives out. If you do need this list of apps because you're in Irene's path, all of us at TUAW (who aren't battening down our own hatches) are thinking of you and wishing you well. *Irene doesn't care what smartphone you use.
Gemini-Scout robot can scope out mining accidents, may save lives (video)
We've seen robots capable of entering hazardous nuclear plants and dangerous buildings, but engineers at Sandia Labs have now unveiled a new rescue bot that's explicitly designed to enter and investigate collapsed mines, as well. Measuring just two feet tall and less than four feet in length, the Gemini-Scout Mine Rescue Robot packs a set of gas sensors, a thermal camera and a two-way radio, allowing it to detect dangerous underground materials and relay critical information to above-ground rescue workers. Its can also navigate across rocky terrain, tight quarters, or flooded tunnels, and is sturdy enough to carry food and other supplies to trapped miners. Operators, meanwhile, can manipulate the Gemini-Scout using only an Xbox 360 controller, which was incorporated into the system on the strength of its intuitive design and UI. Sandia's engineers demoed their bot last week in DC and are hoping to begin licensing it to rescue agencies by the end of next year. Crawl past the break for a video of their creation, along with a full press release.
iTriage 3.0 adds live wait times for acute care facilities, medicine information and more
When TUAW last talked with the folks behind iTriage, it was shortly before World Health Day in 2010, and the app had just updated to version 2.0 with a version for Android. A little more than 16 months later, iTriage has hit version 3.0 with a plethora of changes and new features such as: Expanded disease treatment support where people can select a symptom and find the right doctor based on the symptom, care facility or prescription. Mapped medications where you can select a problem, such as a cough or cold, find the cause, then peruse medications and possible treatments. More than 1,000 common prescriptions and over-the-counter medications are listed to date. Search for urgent care facilities and see live wait times for acute care. Pre-registration and appointments rolled out. Updated interface adding improved provider search and access to key nationwide emergency hotlines and 911. Dr. Peter Hudson, one of the app's creators, told me that more than 700 hospitals, 400 urgent care clinics and 14,000 doctors are providing data for iTriage, and the number is growing. While I was hard-pressed to find participating physicans and hospitals in the Harrisburg area, I got a good glimpse of the new features by switching the location to Denver. Several of the hospitals listed live wait times for both pediatric and regular emergency care. One had the appointment/pre-registration list deployed. Check out these new features in the gallery below. %Gallery-131117% The app is extremely well-regarded, and it's easy to see why. I'm still feeling my way around central Pennsylvania, and it's nice to see where a hospital or pharmacy is close to me should I need it. "We're trying to make it really simple for people," Hudson said. The app is closing in on 3 million downloads spanning both iOS and Android, Hudson said. What'e more, 60 percent of those who have downloaded the app keep it on their mobile device, which Hudson said is 18 times higher than the average app retention. Future plans include additional functionality for consumers to connect with health care providers and with people in the same area who have suffered like injuries. iTriage 3.0 is a free download in the App Store.
Sony intros 200-pound battery to power businesses, government agencies during a blackout
In the five months since a tsunami and 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit Japan, we've seen various technology companies struggle to get their manufacturing operations back in order, but Sony appears to be the first to introduce a product seemingly inspired by the disaster itself. The outfit's Japanese division just announced the ESSP-2000, a 90kg (198-pound)battery whose 2.4kWh of power should keep businesses and government agencies afloat for at least a few hours in the event of a blackout or natural disaster. All told, the battery can support a maximum load of 1000VA, and can recharge to 95 percent in about two hours -- not bad, considering the capacity of this thing. Sony also went with olivine-type lithium-ion iron phosphate batteries, which it says will last ten years. With a price of ¥2 million ($25,700), this battery's clearly not meant to be a savior for home users, though for businesses it could be a small price to pay for an uninterrupted power supply.
NHK's automated, animated sign language translator adds gestures to subtitles (video)
We've seen quite a few devices designed to help hearing impaired users communicate via phone or computer, but Japan's NHK Science & Technology Research Laboratories has just announced a new animated translation system to help get important news to deaf viewers . While televised subtitles may work for those who understand the language, people who were born deaf and learned sign language from an early age can have significantly more difficulty. NHK's system, unveiled at Technology Open House 2011, bypasses this problem by automatically comparing Japanese text to sign language, converting equivalent words into animated onscreen gestures, and replacing differing words with appropriate synonyms. There are, however, a few kinks to work out. While comprehensible, the translations aren't exactly fluent and researchers have been forced to manually adjust some awkward transitions between words. The ultimate goal is to create a system that could be used during emergencies or natural disasters, allowing deaf citizens to receive urgent broadcasts as instantly as their hearing compatriots. You can see it in action, after the break.
Australia trialing new emergency finder system with centimeter accuracy
This year has seen the evil doings of many powerful natural disasters around the world, and while the capable organisations are doing their best to provide relief, many lives could've been saved if the stranded victims were able to provide their precise positions for quicker rescue. Having seen the number of recent floods and cyclones in Queensland, Australia, Ergon Energy started trialing a new emergency tracking system earlier this year, which utilises pole-mounted mobile GPS stations to pinpoint cellphones equipped with special but cheap location-based chips -- Samsung and Nokia are said to be participants in this project. Over the next 12 to 18 months, said energy firm will be deploying 1,000 of these stations to cover 95 percent of the state, in order to let emergency services track down calling victims within centimeters -- that's a huge leap from conventional GPS devices' 10 to 20 meters, though an updated land database with matching accuracy is still required before the system reaches its full potential. Regardless, here's hoping that this brilliant project will be brought over to many more disaster-prone areas sooner rather than later. [Thanks, Justin]
AT&T's new cell tower can fit in a suitcase, help restore networks after natural disasters
Whenever a natural disaster strikes, phone companies are typically forced to patch up their own networks with fleets of trucks that serve as temporary cell towers. It's a process that involves plenty of manpower and, most importantly, plenty of time. AT&T has a more portable solution: a cell tower small enough to fit into a suitcase. The company's new Remote Mobility Zone is comprised of an antenna and accompanying satellite dish, both of which can handle up to 14 simultaneous calls placed within a half-mile radius. Any AT&T phone can connect to the makeshift system, which will sell for anywhere between $15,000 and $45,000 (plus some monthly fees), though emergency workers will need a generator to get it up and running. They'll also have to live without 3G data, which sounds like a reasonable compromise to us.
America's 'panic button' to wipe phones of democracy activists, perturb repressive governments
So, here's the scene. You're out at [insert city center here], completely neglecting any and all work duties, throwing Molotov cocktails at the building of the State you've grown to hate. It's a protest in every sense of the word, and you're rallying the troops via Twitter and Facebook. It's actually not an uncommon painting these days, and while America's not into promoting violence, it is into keeping the personal information of democracy activists secure. According to a fresh Reuters report, the US State Department is currently developing a software-based "panic button" that would wipe a phone's address book and beam out emergency alerts to fellow protesters if they were apprehended. The goal here is to protect the privacy of those captured while promoting their best interests, and to let others know that trouble is brewing. There's no clear indication of the status here, but something tells us that it'd be useful yesterday for a certain region of the globe.
FCC going after cellphone jammers, could land users in the slammer
The FCC has put a bounty on the heads of all the cellphone-hating vigilantes out there. These GPS and signal jammers are particularly popular amongst theaters, quiet restaurants and in many school systems fighting the good fight against sexting during class. The FCC is calling on folks to stop and to report their neighbors for using these devices -- reason being that they pose serious health and safety risks by interfering with 911 calls and other emergencies in the vicinity. So if you know a so-called 'jammer,' don't hesitate to file a complaint about them to the FCC -- the info can be found at the source link below.
Verizon dropped 10,000 emergency calls during January snowstorm in Maryland, FCC finds it 'alarming'
Uh oh, Verizon's got itself into a bit of hot water with the old FCC. An outage during a snowstorm last month has reportedly resulted in a whopping 10,000 calls to 911 not being connected by the big red carrier. That would be bad enough in itself, but the less-than-pleased Communications Commission also notes that the emergency services that missed out on these calls were not alerted to the connectivity failure -- in fact, Maryland's Montgomery County officers were the ones to inform Verizon of the fault it was having, which was then promptly repaired within 15 minutes. The FCC is now curtly asking the network to check its entire footprint for similar vulnerabilities -- as the January events were apparently "not unique" -- and to propose remedial actions and monitoring systems to prevent it happening again.
ZTE 005Z emergency cellphone keeps your kid safe, cooler than other kids
Remember back in 2005 when kiddy phones were all the rage? Well, with the release of the single-button 005Z, Softbank and ZTE are giving toddler connectivity another try. Like the Firefly and the Migo before it, this little guy limits outbound calls, but unlike its predecessors, the 005Z only allows for one pre-programmed number -- so if baby's in danger, mommy better have her cellphone charged. While the one-button approach is limited, the phone also acts as an alert system: when the cord is pulled, a loud buzzer sounds (à la the rape whistle) and SMS and voice messages (both of which contain the kid's location) are sent to emergency contacts. As far as we're concerned, a child with a cellphone is a nightmare in the making, but if you're into that sort of thing (and live in Japan) the 005Z will be available this March for ¥490 ($5.90) a month.
Geolocation app appeals to your inner good samaritan, makes you an amateur EMT
When you go into cardiac arrest, you've got about ten minutes to live if you don't receive medical attention, and the average emergency response time is seven minutes after you dial 911. In an effort to get folks help more quickly and leverage the iPhone's life saving abilities, the San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District in California has created the FireDepartment app to enlist the help of the citizenry in fighting the (unfortunate) results of a lifetime of eating tacos. The iPhone app -- Android and BlackBerry versions are currently in the works -- allows emergency dispatchers to notify users via text of a nearby crisis. For those feeling heroic, the app displays a map with the victim's location and any nearby automatic electronic defibrillators, and provides "resuscitation reminders" in case you're the CPR teddy-toting type. For now, the service only works in San Ramon but there are plans to port it for use elsewhere. That means we can look forward to a nation of amateur EMTs, which makes us thankful that mouth-to-mouth is no longer a part of CPR. Check the video after the break to see the app in action.
Mayor of Newark, New Jersey starts Twitter blizzard cleanup snowpocalypse revolution
Newark, New Jersey's popular Mayor, Cory Booker, has had a novel reaction to the problems the blizzard is causing for his people: he's listening to them, and trying to help. Shocking, we know. Even more interesting, of course, is the fact that he's using Twitter to do so. While phone lines all over the tri-state area remain a joke (try calling an airline or public hotline), Twitter has presented Newark's Mayor with a unique, and incredibly direct way of interacting with people who need help with everything from getting their streets plowed to delivering diapers -- personally in many situations. While it's not exactly enough to make us consider a move to Newark, it's certainly impressive.
FCC looking to accept 911 texting, MMS, and even streaming video
Texting has taken over mobile networks, and now it's destined to overwhelm our emergency responders as well. According to Wired Epicenter, the FCC is looking to follow in the footsteps of those trailblazing Iowans and expand its 911 services to allow emergencies to be reported via text message, and while at first glance that may sound silly, we can think of some times when it could make a lot of sense. Let's say there's someone in the house and you don't want them to know where you are -- texting is a lot quieter than talking. Or let's say the aliens are attacking and you don't have time to stop running -- a text is a lot quicker, too. The FCC is also apparently looking at receiving MMS and even streaming video so that you could send pictures and footage of their hugely advanced tactics. If these efforts are successful perhaps we can survive the coming trans-dimensional menace for just a little longer.
Israel to activate SMS-CB missile alert system next year
This one's been talked about since the middle of last year (at least), but it looks as if the time for contemplating is over and done with. It's bruited that the Israel Defense Forces will be moving forward on a plan to light up a new cellular system that will blast out SMS-CB alerts to citizens if and when a missile is fired in the direction of Israel. Just over $7 million will be invested, with the application itself being jointly designed by eVigilo and Ericsson. If all goes well, it'll be operational in June of 2011, and it's just one aspect of the country's effort to consolidate all emergency alerts into one centralized system. We're told that the blasts would be sent in a variety of languages, and there's even potential to send 'em to TVs, radios, websites and "billboards." And unlike various other SMS emergency alert systems that have been implemented, these would actually differ based on how the threat was forecasted to affect different geographic regions. Something tells us eVigilo's going to become a multinational company in no time. Update: eVigilo pinged us with a few extra details surrounding the service. For starters, it'll be using SMS-CB (read: not standard SMS) in order to circumvent core networks that tend to collapse during emergencies. This will enable the messages to bypass any congestion and hit all users at around the same time. The alerts would be delivered geographically, not to a specific number of users, with tests proving that "millions" could be reached within 20 seconds over 3G. Besides broadcast over mobile networks, the company will also connect to the national TV network using DVB and offer also DAB reaching digital radio subscribers. Additional capabilities will be given through multicast over IP (Billboards, Variable Message Signs and social networks).
Man traps himself in toilet trying to retrieve cellphone, has time to re-evaluate life priorities (video)
When we say this chap was trapped in the toilet, we don't mean he was stuck in the bathroom, he literally jammed his arm down the porcelain-encased pipe. The poor gentleman from Jiangsu Province in China was clearly in desperate need of his cellphone, as not even the typically repugnant idea of diving down for it was enough to prevent him from trying to chase the thing down. Good news is that emergency services rescued him with only minor cuts and bruises to his arm, though we suspect the injury to his ego will take a long, long time to heal. [Thanks, Adiwidya]
