Patents Assigned to Global Tel?Link Corporation
  • Patent number: 12145070
    Abstract: In the present disclosure, systems and methods are described for video gaming in a controlled environment facility. A video game server allows tenants of a controlled environment facility to play video games that are served and monitored by the video game server. In embodiments, users may initiate a game session to play games in a single player mode, competitive multiplayer or cooperative multiplayer mode depending on the game being played. The video game server maintains block lists for each user such that those users may not initiate or engage in the same game sessions with each other. In game sessions with two or more users, the video game server allows users to communicate via audio or text communications. The video game server may monitor those communications for potential security concerns. Users may also view videos of previously completed or live game sessions, subject to similar security monitoring measures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen Hodge
  • Patent number: 12149569
    Abstract: A system is described herein that facilitates the monitoring of inmate communications. The system provides a remotely-accessible means for a reviewer to monitor a call between an inmate and another person. The system includes a monitoring server and a monitoring station. The monitoring server is configured to receive a call and call information from a communication center and process the call for monitoring, schedule a review of the call; and store the call, the call information, and scheduling data. The monitoring station is configured to receive the call and the call information from the monitoring server based on the scheduling data, and to display the identifying information and facilitate the review of the call.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen Lee Hodge
  • Patent number: 12137099
    Abstract: A generic wireless device management system and a method for operating the management system in a controlled environment is disclosed. The enterprise management system includes a generic wireless device and a generic provisioning server. The generic wireless device, which is initially in a generic blank state, coordinates with the generic provisioning server to authenticate an inmate and to load an inmate profile. After loading the inmate profile, the generic wireless device provides access to content specific to the inmate. After the inmate signs out of the generic wireless device, the generic wireless device is returned to a generic blank state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. Hodge
  • Patent number: 12127000
    Abstract: A wireless device enterprise management system and a method for operating the management system in a controlled environment is disclosed. The enterprise management system includes implementing a container-based file system on wireless devices within the controlled environment. Enterprise management system manages and controls the organization of files into one or more containers on each wireless device. Each container is associated with one or more execution rules that allow or restrict execution of files that are located in the container.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. Hodge
  • Publication number: 20240346908
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides details of a system for monitoring an offender during a correctional supervisory program. The system includes an offender communication device that transmit and receive communications via a communication and monitoring center. The offender communication device include a smart phone or tablet that obtains identity information including biometric information from an offender before a communication is transmitted or received. The offender communication device also stores data including metadata, metrics, or content of a communication and transmits the stored data to the communication and monitoring center. The communication and monitoring center transmits and receives communications from the offender communication device and another communication device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2024
    Publication date: October 17, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen Lee HODGE
  • Publication number: 20240344816
    Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to mobile correctional facility robots and systems and methods for coordinating mobile correctional facility robots to perform various tasks in a correctional facility. The mobile correctional facility robots can be used to perform many of the tasks traditionally assigned to correctional facility guards to help reduce the number of guards needed in any given correctional facility. When cooperation is employed among multiple mobile correctional facility robots to execute tasks, a central controller can be used to coordinate the efforts of the multiple robots to improve the performance of the overall system of robots as compared to the performance of the robots when working in uncoordinated effort to execute the tasks.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 19, 2024
    Publication date: October 17, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen HODGE
  • Publication number: 20240348881
    Abstract: Methods and systems for providing content creation and content publishing in a controlled environment are disclosed herein. A media management device receives an audio track including lyrical content. Further, the media management device performs speech recognition analysis on the audio track to determine lyrical text corresponding to the lyrical content. Additionally, the media management device determines whether the audio track contains prohibited content based on comparing the lyrical text to a blacklist of prohibited information. When the audio track does not include prohibited content, the media management device publishes the audio track to a media library accessible to devices within the controlled environment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 6, 2024
    Publication date: October 17, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Alex PETTY
  • Publication number: 20240314117
    Abstract: A variable-step authentication system and a method for operating for performing variable-step authentication for communications in a controlled environment is disclosed. The variable-step authentication system may include a communication device and a server. The variable-step method includes steps for determining an authentication process that involves a number of authentication steps. The number of authentication steps is variable and dependent on a trust level associated with each participant in the communication.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 21, 2024
    Publication date: September 19, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. HODGE
  • Patent number: 12095943
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes a monitoring environment that monitors an activity for activity that may be indicative of being prohibited by the local, the state, and/or the national governing authorities, namely suspicious activity, or activity that is prohibited by the local, the state, and/or the national governing authorities, namely prohibited activity. The monitoring environment verifies the activity is actually being monitored within the monitoring environment. The verification can require one or more monitoring persons monitoring the activity to perform one or more tasks to verify their attentiveness in monitoring the activity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2023
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen Lee Hodge
  • Publication number: 20240281916
    Abstract: A system and method for securely dispensing medication are described herein. The system includes a telemedicine center that communicates with medical assistant station and a medication distribution station located at a correctional facility and a physician center remote to the correctional facility. The medical assistant station transmits a request for medication to the telemedicine center. The telemedicine center verifies an identity of the medical assistant requesting the medication and transmits the request to the physician center. When the telemedicine center receives a confirmation to dispense medicine from the physician center, an identity of the physician transmitting the confirmation is verified. The telemedicine center then verifies an identity of an inmate to receive the medication, by way of the medication distribution station, and allows the medication distribution station to dispense the medication.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 1, 2024
    Publication date: August 22, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. HODGE
  • Patent number: 12067636
    Abstract: Methods and systems for providing location fencing within a controlled environment are disclosed herein. A location fencing server determines a location of a first inmate based on a first beacon device, and determines a location of a second inmate based on a second beacon device. Further, the location fencing server determines a proximity status based on the location of the first inmate and the location of the second inmate. Additionally, the location fencing server determines that the first inmate and the second inmate are in violation of a proximity policy based on the proximity status. In some embodiments, the location fencing server sends a notification to an employee device based on the violation of a proximity policy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2023
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen Lee Hodge
  • Publication number: 20240273997
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides details of a system and method for a communication device for guards in controlled environments. The communication device is established based on an indoor wireless infrastructure in the controlled environment, receiving wireless positioning signals to calculate and determine the real-time location of a user carrying the device. The indoor wireless positioning can be combined with other available positioning methods to provide highly accurate positioning information of the guard. The communication device detects, monitors, and records activities of the guard during a period of time, and is controlled by the control center. The control center and the communication device respond quickly to different abnormal situations. In addition, the communication device detects contraband electronic devices and monitor surroundings of the guard.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2024
    Publication date: August 15, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. HODGE
  • Patent number: 12052209
    Abstract: An forum facilitator device is provided that allows for a controlled environment to provide a secure forum for residents to provide communications to other registered users of the secure forum. The communications are provided through posts made in the secure forum and through other types of communications from the inmate such as but not limited to emails and text messages. The forum facilitator device operates the secure forum and implements rules to control what is posted on the secure forum, who is able to access the secure forum, and what entities are allowed to view and interact with residents of the controlled environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. Hodge
  • Patent number: 12051295
    Abstract: A check-in and tethering system for monitoring persons such as released in court-ordered supervised programs and a method for operating such a system is disclosed. The system includes a tethered mobile device that provides a check-in procedure that requires a response from a user of the tethered mobile device in the form of at least one of a device identifier from a monitored tethered device attached to the user, a biometric response, or a performed action by the user. The tethered mobile device determines whether the response is valid and transmits a notification to a monitoring center in response to the determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2023
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. Hodge
  • Publication number: 20240244111
    Abstract: A system and method for initiating a personalized virtual reality session via a virtual reality communication system in a controlled environment is disclosed. The system includes a profile subsystem configured to store an inmate profile of the inmate of the controlled environment. The system also includes a virtual reality subsystem that retrieves the inmate profile associated with the inmate from the profile subsystem, initiates the virtual reality session involving a first communication device used by the inmate of the controlled environment, and personalizes the virtual reality session based on the inmate profile. The system also includes a communication subsystem configured to transmit information related to the virtual reality session to a monitoring system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2023
    Publication date: July 18, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. HODGE
  • Publication number: 20240228034
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are system, method, and computer program product embodiments for locating, identifying, and tracking a known criminal, fugitive, missing person, and/or any other person of interest. An embodiment operates by deploying an unmanned aerial vehicle, determining the mode of operation of the UAV, operating the UAV in accordance with the mode of operation of the UAV, determining whether a subject has been detected, capturing a first voice sample associated with the subject, authenticating the identity of the subject, and transmitting the GPS location of the unmanned aerial vehicle to a computing device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 30, 2023
    Publication date: July 11, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Mitch VOLKART
  • Patent number: 12034723
    Abstract: A Controlled Environment Secure Media Streaming System manages the delivery of content to Secured Devices. Cloud Services provide content to Integration Hub. The Integration Hub interfaces with various cloud services providers and prepares content for consumption by a resident of a secured facility. Integration Hub utilizes Content Filter to inspect content received from cloud service providers for suitability for use in a secured environment. Once content is retrieved, filtered, formatted, and packaged by Integration Hub, the content is stored in Data Warehouse. Secured Devices request content from the Distribution Hub, the Distribution Hub retrieves the content from the Data Warehouse, and then Distribution Hub manages the transfer of content to the Secured Devices. In some embodiments, Distribution Hub utilizes Content Filter to determine whether or not a particular Secured Device can access particular content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen Lee Hodge
  • Patent number: 12022157
    Abstract: Methods and systems for providing content creation and content publishing in a controlled environment are disclosed herein. A media management device receives an audio track including lyrical content. Further, the media management device performs speech recognition analysis on the audio track to determine lyrical text corresponding to the lyrical content. Additionally, the media management device determines whether the audio track contains prohibited content based on comparing the lyrical text to a blacklist of prohibited information. When the audio track does not include prohibited content, the media management device publishes the audio track to a media library accessible to devices within the controlled environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 25, 2024
    Assignee: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Alex Petty
  • Publication number: 20240205209
    Abstract: A communication device and system are disclosed for providing communication and data services to residents of a controlled facility. The device can be restricted to communicating only using an internet protocol so as to restrict the device communication to an internal intranet. Wireless access points may be disposed throughout the environment to route calls and data between the device and a central processing center. By converting a protocol of the communications received from the device to a protocol used by the central processing center, minimal modifications to the central processing center are needed to support a wireless communication infrastructure. Many restrictions and safeguards may be implemented within the phone and system in order to prevent improper use.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2023
    Publication date: June 20, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventors: Stephen HODGE, Garth JOHNSON, Christopher McNITT
  • Publication number: 20240193378
    Abstract: A call translation system and a method for operating the management system in a controlled environment is disclosed. The call translation system includes a calling device and a call translation server. The calling device receives authorization from the call translation server to conduct call sessions within the controlled environment. The calling device further receives a call session application from the call translation server that enables the calling device to initiate and establish call sessions through the call translation server. The call session application allows a user of the calling device to select outside parties to add to the call session.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 23, 2023
    Publication date: June 13, 2024
    Applicant: Global Tel*Link Corporation
    Inventor: Stephen L. HODGE