Patent ID: 7933579

Claim:
A personal emergency response communications system, comprising: a portable communications unit intended to be carried by a user who may require emergency attention, including (1) a wireless transmitter and a wireless receiver for respectively transmitting and receiving communication signals, (2) a call button actuatable by the user to initiate a call request signal that will result in placing the user in voice communication with an emergency response provider, and (3) an acoustic transducer including a speaker for converting the user's speech into electrical signals, and for converting electrical signals received from the base unit into audible speech and for playing first and second voice messages to the user; a base communications unit coupled with a dial-up telephone system for establishing voice communication between the user and the emergency response provider, the base unit including (1) a wireless transmitter and a wireless receiver for respectively transmitting and receiving communication signals, and (2) a dialer for dialing a telephone number of the emergency response provider; memory for storing electrical signals convertible into the first and second voice messages, wherein the first voice message indicating that the emergency response provider number is being dialed, and the second voice message indicating that the call to the provider is being terminated; a controller responsive to the call request signal for controlling the dialer to dial the emergency response provider telephone number; and sound reproducing circuitry for reproducing the first and second voice messages.