Method and system for unlocking vehicle with use of morse code

• US 10,081,334 B1
• Filed: 05/17/2017
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/17/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Chen, Qijun, Cannon, Ben
• Primary Examiner(s): HOLLOWAY III, EDWIN C
• Application Number:
  US15/597,471
• Time in Patent Office: 496 Days
• Field of Search: 340 561, 340 572
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/205 Mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/241 whereby access privileges are related to the identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00388 code verification carried out according to the challenge/response method
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00785 by light
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00801 by acoustic waves
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00174 Electronically operated locks; Circuits therefor; Nonmechanical keys therefor, e.g. passive or active electrical keys or other data carriers without mechanical keys mechanical locks with electric permutation E05B49/00; arrangements for sensing or reading record carriers G06K7/00; electronic switching H03K17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00571 operated by interacting with a central unit
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00817 where the code of the lock can be programmed

Abstract

A method and system for unlocking a reserved vehicle designed to encode an access code assigned by a remote server to a Morse code or pattern by a control box or a head unit provided in the reserved vehicle. The Morse code or pattern is generated in a form of a sound signal or a light signal with use of a vehicle horn or headlight. The Morse code or pattern in sound or light is detected by a pre-existing mobile device, typically, a smartphone of a user without requiring any specific access card or reader. The detected Morse code or pattern is decoded back to the access code or converted an FFT signal by the mobile device and is sent to the server for verification. When successfully verified, the server sends an unlock command to the reserved vehicle so that the user can gain access to the reserved vehicle.

Claims

1. A method of unlocking a shared vehicle, comprising the following steps of:

making a reservation to use a vehicle through a communication between a user and a remote server, where the vehicle is installed with a control box or a head unit designed to conduct operations related to the method of unlocking a vehicle;

sending an unlock request to the server via a mobile device of the user when the user has reached a location of the reserved vehicle;

sending an access code from the server to the control box or head unit;

encoding the access code to a coded pattern by the control box or head unit;

generating the coded pattern in a form of sound signal or light signal with use of a sound source or a light source of the reserved vehicle;

detecting the coded pattern in the form of the sound signal or the light signal by the mobile device;

decoding the detected coded pattern to the access code by the mobile device and sending the access code to the server via the mobile device; and

sending an unlock command from the server to the control box or head unit when the access code from the mobile device matches with the original access code sent to the control box or head unit, thereby allowing the user to gain access to the reserved vehicle.

2. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1,

wherein the control box is installed in a shared vehicle in an after market situation;

and

wherein the head unit is an automobile entertainment system of the shared vehicle and additionally includes a configuration identical to that of the control box in an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) situation.

3. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein said step of sending the unlock request to the server via the mobile device includes a step of sending GPS data of the mobile device indicating a current position of the user to the server.

4. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein said step of sending the access code from the server includes a step of checking an identity of the user making the unlock request.

5. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein said step of sending the access code from the server includes steps of

comparing the GPS data from the mobile device and GPS data retrieved from the control box or head unit indicating a current position of the reserved vehicle;

and

proceeding to the step of sending the access code from the server only when the current position of the user and the current position of the reserved vehicle match with one another.

6. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein said step of generating the coded pattern in the form of sound signal or light signal includes a step of generating the coded pattern in the form of sound signal by a horn of the vehicle, or generating the coded pattern in the form of light signal by a headlight of the vehicle.

7. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein said step of generating the coded pattern in the form of sound signal or light signal includes a step of generating the coded pattern in the form of sound signal by a speaker provided in the control box or head unit, or generating the coded pattern in the form of light signal by an LED (Light Emitting Diode) provided in the control box or head unit.

8. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein said step of detecting the coded pattern by the mobile device includes a step of converting the coded pattern in the form of sound signal to an electric signal by a microphone of the mobile device, or a step of converting the coded pattern in the form of light signal to image data by an image sensor of the mobile device.

9. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein instead of said step of decoding the detected coded pattern to the access code and sending it to the server, further comprising a step of converting the detected coded pattern to an FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) signal by the mobile device and sending the FFT signal to the server.

10. The method of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 9, further comprising a step of analyzing, by the server, the FFT signal from the mobile device to determine whether the FFT signal sufficiently reflects the original access code sent to the control box or head unit for verification before sending the unlock command.

11. A system of unlocking a shared vehicle, comprising:

a server operated by a service provider of vehicle sharing service that receives a reservation made by a user to use a vehicle through a communication with the server;

a control box or a head unit installed in a reserved vehicle to conduct operations related to the process of unlocking the reserved vehicle; and

a mobile device of the user to communicate with the server regarding the process of unlocking the reserved vehicle and to detect signals from the reserved vehicle;

wherein the mobile device is configured to send an unlock request to the server when the user has reached a location of the reserved vehicle;

wherein the server is configured, upon receiving the unlock request from the mobile device, to send an access code to the control box or head unit;

wherein the control box or head unit is configured to encode the access code to a coded pattern, and to cause the reserved vehicle to generate the coded pattern in a form of sound signal or light signal with use of a sound source or a light source of the reserved vehicle;

wherein the mobile device is further configured to detect the coded pattern in the form of the sound signal or the light signal, to decode the detected coded pattern to the access code, and to send the access code to the server; and

wherein the server is further configured to send an unlock command to the control box or head unit when the access code from the mobile device matches with the original access code sent to the control box or head unit, thereby allowing the user to gain access to the reserved vehicle.

12. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11,

wherein the control box is installed in a shared vehicle in an after market situation;

and

wherein the head unit is an automobile entertainment system of the shared vehicle and additionally includes a configuration identical to that of the control box in an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) situation.

13. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, with respect to sending the unlock request to the server, the mobile device is further configured to send GPS data of the mobile device indicating a current position of the user to the server.

14. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, with respect to sending the access code, the server is further configured to check an identity of the user making the unlock request.

15. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, with respect to sending the access code, the server is further configured to compare the GPS data from the mobile device and GPS data retrieved from the control box or head unit indicating a current position of the reserved vehicle, and to proceed to send the access code from the server only when the current position of the user and the current position of the reserved vehicle match with one another.

16. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, with respect to generating the coded pattern in the form of sound signal or light signal, the control box or head unit is configured to cause a horn of the reserved vehicle to generate the coded pattern in the form of sound signal, or to cause a headlight of the reserved vehicle to generate the coded pattern in the form of light signal.

17. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, with respect to generating the coded pattern in the form of sound signal or light signal, the control box or head unit is further configured to include a speaker to generate the coded pattern in the form of sound signal, or an LED (Light Emitting Diode) to generate the coded pattern in the form of light signal.

18. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, with respect to detecting the coded pattern, the mobile device is configured to include a microphone to convert the coded pattern in the form of sound signal to an electric signal, or an image sensor to convert the coded pattern in the form of light signal to image data.

19. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 11, wherein, instead of decoding the detected coded pattern to the access code and sending it to the server, the mobile device is further configured to convert the detected coded pattern to an FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) signal and to send the FFT signal to the server.

20. The system of unlocking a shared vehicle as defined in claim 19, wherein the server is further configured to analyze the FFT signal from the mobile device to determine whether the FFT signal sufficiently reflects the original access code sent to the control box or head unit for verification before sending the unlock command.