With feature phones it was possible to dial <emergency> by feel, without removing the phone from my pocket (or making it obvious what I was doing). I'd love to be able to fire off an emergency SMS without having to expose my phone or having to use the touch screen.
In my head I'd love to be able to morse-code SOS on the volume keys as a trigger. Possibly once on the v-down, phone vibrates and then again on the up to stop accidents.
I wonder if the UK can accept SMS messages on it's 999 or 111 service... love the app though :)
No. On Android only System Apps have permissions to place a call to 911 or other Emergency Numbers (112 etc). We can definitely dial the emergency number, 911 in North America, for the user (they still need to unlock the phone to press the "Call Button" unfortunately.
Testing to 911 can be established by contacting them on the NON EMERGENCY NUMBER, and requesting to speak to whomever is in charge of test requests. They will tell you the policy and guidelines for that agency. This was NOT designed for general public testing of the Text service, and you could easily overload the center when an event is happening.
Don't guess, play it safe, but remember, if too many people start to test before a policy is set up, you are going to have a negative impact on the workload of the center, and they will discontinue the service. Not good for anyone.
They probably don't have to actually test it very much, the actual sms should be handled by the api which wouldn't be tested by them. Other than that they could just alert the 911 service that they are doing some testing during a certain period of time.
How does this app find a "specific address" to send, as the website describes it? What guarantee is there that it doesn't send the cops to my neighbor's address?
We use a reverse geocoding service. The goal is to provide an address that is close to you (within 50 or so metres) which is better than the alternative of what responders currently get when you call and do not know your location.
Within the app itself you can move the pin (a la Uber/Lyft style to update the address) you want to send.
Here is a bit on the current status of Wireless Enhanced 911
Cellular phones can use several technologies that can assist in providing and X,Y coordinate of the device. These can be extremely accurate, depending on the data available. Look on Wiki for 'SkyHook'. This information is NOT available to 911 on phone calls, nor dopes a data channel exist to even transmit the data from the device to the 911 center. This is why the App is useful, but the App, needs to talk to something on the 911 center side. Without that piece, there is no way to get the information from point A to point B.
Fletch, that's spot on. This is why the utility is gated to the areas where text to 911 is available (in upcoming update) and why 911 will send you a bounceback if the dispatchers aren't so equipped
This is based on a report by FindMe911.org and it is specifically talking about issues in the Washington DC area based on data obtained from a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) filing by that group. It is not to mean that this is the condition all over, while I will admit there is a problem with cellular phone location as the GPS signal is seriously disrupted inside of buildings due to the lack of Line of Site.
Yes, this is a problem, but this 90% error rate is based on statistical data from a particular area.
We certainly have though about accidental calls. That's why we implemented a double tap (with a timeout) as well as a countdown where the user is able to cancel. False alarms are definitely something we're keeping our eyes on.
It requires multiple actions, not a single press, and smartphones still have emergency-call-without-unlock functionality (at least, my Galaxy Note 3 does) like the emergency-text-without-unlock this system provides.
Sure, the old one-button emergency call feature is gone because of excessive accidental calls, but that's not what this is (even substituting "text" for "call".)
Readit News
Earlier this year we saw Text-to-911 launch in several areas around the country with the effort to improve public safety.
It works wherever text to 911 is available (predominantly Chicago, Dallas, Indiana, Maine, and Vermont).
We would love your feedback and thoughts.
In my head I'd love to be able to morse-code SOS on the volume keys as a trigger. Possibly once on the v-down, phone vibrates and then again on the up to stop accidents.
I wonder if the UK can accept SMS messages on it's 999 or 111 service... love the app though :)
Can you at that point have an option to initiate a call to 911 (through a locked screen)? I'm not familiar with android development.
Don't guess, play it safe, but remember, if too many people start to test before a policy is set up, you are going to have a negative impact on the workload of the center, and they will discontinue the service. Not good for anyone.
The FCC website has more information about TT911 here: http://www.fcc.gov/text-to-911
911 is not a trivial service that can be tested blindly.
Within the app itself you can move the pin (a la Uber/Lyft style to update the address) you want to send.
Here is a bit on the current status of Wireless Enhanced 911
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E911#Wireless_enhanced_911
Yes, this is a problem, but this 90% error rate is based on statistical data from a particular area.
Cellphones used to have similar emergency buttons. People sitting on their phones caused too many calls and these buttons have now disappeared. [1]
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocket_dialing
Sure, the old one-button emergency call feature is gone because of excessive accidental calls, but that's not what this is (even substituting "text" for "call".)