System and method for providing emergency service in an IP-based wireless network

1. A system for providing emergency communication services in a wireless network implementing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) architecture, the system comprising:

one or more processors; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that when executed by the one or more processors cause a first communication component to:

receive an emergency response center information request generated in response to a session initiation protocol (SIP) message originating from a calling device;

retrieve, from a capability determination component, information regarding one or more location determination methods supported by the calling device;

determine a location of the calling device using at least one of the location determination methods retrieved from the capability determination component;

determine a destination emergency response center proximate to the location of the calling device, and

transmit an identification of the destination emergency response center to a second communication component in response to the emergency response center information request.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second communication component includes an Emergency Call Session Control Function (E-CSCF).

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first communication component includes a gateway mobile location center (GMLC).

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second communication component is further configured to:

generate a modified SIP message containing routing information associated with the destination emergency response center; and

send the modified SIP message to the destination emergency response center.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the SIP message originating from the calling device includes a geographic location of the calling device.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the SIP message originating from the calling device does not include a geographic location of the calling device and the system further comprising a telephony application server (TAS) capable of identifying the geographic location of the calling device.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the SIP message originating from the calling device does not include a geographic location of the calling device, and wherein the calling device is a fixed device, and wherein the geographic location of the calling device is determined by accessing stored subscriber information specifying the geographic location of the fixed device.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the emergency communication services include a voice call.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the emergency communication services include a text-based messaging session.

10. A method for identifying emergency communication services in a wireless network implementing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) architecture, the method comprising:

receiving a session initiation protocol (SIP) message originating from a calling device;

wherein the SIP message includes a request to initiate an emergency communication session,

retrieving, from a capability determination component, information regarding one or more location determination methods supported by the calling device;

determining a location of the calling device using at least one of the location determination methods retrieved from the capability determination component;

identifying an emergency response center that can dispatch emergency services in a geographical coverage area encompassing the location of the calling device;

generating a modified SIP message by modifying the SIP message to include routing information to the emergency response center; and

transmitting the modified SIP message to the emergency response center to initiate the requested emergency communication session between the calling device and the emergency response center.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the emergency response center is a Public Safety Access Point (PSAP) and wherein generating the modified SIP message also includes:

extracting the location information from a response message originating from a location server,

wherein the response message includes a destination PSAP, and

modifying the received SIP message to include at least a portion of the location information.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein the emergency response center is a Public Safety Access Point (PSAP) and wherein generating the modified SIP message also includes:

extracting the location information from a response message from a location server,

wherein the response message including a destination PSAP; and

modifying the received SIP message to include at least a portion of the location information, and

wherein the modified SIP message is the response message received from the location server and is sent substantially unchanged.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the emergency response center is a Public Safety Access Point (PSAP).

14. The method of claim 10 , wherein the steps are performed on a location server or a communication session control server.

15. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

evaluating, in response to receiving the SIP message, one or more location techniques based upon the calling device; and

initiating an identified location technique supported by the calling device to determine a location of the calling device.

16. The method of claim 10 , further comprising initiating one or more location determination techniques regardless of capabilities of the calling device.

17. A system for providing E911 services in a wireless network implementing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) architecture, the system comprising:

a first communication component configured to receive a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) message from a calling device,

wherein the SIP message includes a request to initiate an emergency communication session;

a second communication component configured to:

forward the SIP message to a location server to determine a location of the calling device and to select an emergency response center having a geographical coverage area correlating to the location of the requesting device,

wherein the location server retrieves, from a capability determination database, information regarding one or more location determination methods supported by the requesting device; and

wherein the location of the requesting device is determined using at least one of the location determination methods retrieved from the capability determination database; and

receive the modified SIP message and indication of the emergency response center from the location server; and

a third communication component configured to send the modified SIP request to the emergency response center.

18. The system of claim 17 , wherein the emergency response center includes a Public Safety Access Point (PSAP).

19. The system of claim 17 , wherein the location server includes a capabilities component configured to evaluate capabilities of the calling device that identify one or more location techniques supported by the calling device.

20. The system of claim 17 , wherein the emergency response center includes a Public Safety Access Point (PSAP) and the location server includes a capabilities component configured to evaluate capabilities of the calling device that identify one or more location techniques supported by the calling device, and

wherein the device location component is further configured to determine an updated geographical location of the calling device and provide the updated geographical location to the destination PSAP during an emergency communication session between the calling device and the destination PSAP.