Wireless vehicle system for enhancing situational awareness

• US 10,204,517 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2017
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Varoglu, Devrim, Parupudi, Ravisastry
• Primary Examiner(s): Yang, James J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lau, Kevin
• Application Number:
  US15/445,839
• Publication Number:
  US 20170236420A1
• Time in Patent Office: 714 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/22 initiated by contact of vehicle, e.g. bumper, with an external object, e.g. another vehicle , or by means of contactless obstacle detectors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0289 of multiple transceivers, e.g. in ad hoc networks
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0965 responding to signals from another vehicle, e.g. emergency vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/167 Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

Electronic equipment in vehicles may transmit and receive wireless messages. Each wireless message that is transmitted by a transmitter may include information on the vehicle from which it is being transmitted, information on the location of the transmitter within the vehicle, and other vehicle status information. Receiving equipment in vehicles may be used to receive the transmitted messages. Received signal strength indicator information may be associated with the transmitted messages. Using the received signal strength indicator information and information on the locations of the transmitters within the vehicles in which the transmitters are installed, equipment in a receiving vehicle may determine locations for nearby vehicles. Alerts may be presented to a driver of a vehicle and other suitable actions may be taken based on the locations of nearby vehicles, vehicle type information, and other information regarding traffic in the vicinity of the driver.

Claims

1. A method for operating receiving electronic equipment in a moving vehicle on a road, the method comprising:

with the receiving electronic equipment of the moving vehicle, receiving first and second wireless messages that respectively specify first and second locations of a plurality of locations within another object on the road;

with the receiving electronic equipment of the moving vehicle, using the first and second locations specified in the first and second wireless messages to determine a location of the other object on the road relative to the moving vehicle; and

with control circuitry in the moving vehicle, intervening in driving activities of the moving vehicle based in part on the determined location of the other object on the road.

2. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising:

based at least partly on the location of the other object on the road relative to the moving vehicle, presenting an alert by using a display in the moving vehicle to display graphics.

3. The method defined in claim 2, wherein the other object on the road comprises an emergency services vehicle, and wherein presenting the alert comprises:

presenting information on the display in the moving vehicle alerting a driver of the moving vehicle to the emergency services vehicle.

4. The method defined in claim 2, wherein the other object on the road comprises a nearby vehicle that is passing the moving vehicle, and wherein presenting the alert comprises:

presenting information on the display alerting a driver of the vehicle to the passing of the nearby vehicle.

5. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the other object on the road comprises a nearby vehicle with a plurality of transmitters, wherein the nearby vehicle comprises a plurality of regions, wherein a first transmitter of the plurality of transmitters is located at a first region of the plurality of regions, wherein a second transmitter of the plurality of transmitters is located at a second region of the plurality of regions, and wherein the first and second wireless messages respectively specify the first and second regions within the nearby vehicle.

6. The method defined in claim 5, wherein determining the location of the other object on the road relative to the moving vehicle comprises:

determining a first distance from the first transmitter to the moving vehicle;

determining a second distance from the second transmitter to the moving vehicle; and

based on the first and second distances, determining the location of the other object on the road relative to the moving vehicle.

7. The method defined in claim 6, wherein determining the first and second distances comprises:

analyzing the received wireless messages to generate corresponding received signal strength indicator information.

8. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising:

based on the determined location of the other object on the road relative to the moving vehicle, intervening in driving activities of the moving vehicle.

9. The method defined in claim 8, wherein intervening in the driving activities of the moving vehicle comprises:

automatically applying brakes in the moving vehicle.

10. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising:

based at least partly on the determined location of the other object on the road relative to the moving vehicle, intervening in driving activities of the moving vehicle to avoid a collision.

11. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the other object on the road comprises a nearby vehicle having a rectangular outline with four corners, wherein a respective one of a plurality of transmitters is located at each of the four corners, and wherein determining the location of the other object on the road comprises processing received signal strength indicator information associated with the plurality of transmitters in the four corners.

12. The method defined in claim 1, wherein receiving the first and second wireless messages comprises receiving Bluetooth Low Energy messages.

13. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising:

extracting vehicle type information identifying the another object on the road from the first and second wireless messages.

14. The method defined in claim 1 further comprising:

with control circuitry in the receiving electronic equipment, automatically slowing the moving vehicle based at least partly on the determined location of the other object on the road.

15. Electronic equipment operable in a moving vehicle on a road, wherein the moving vehicle has a plurality of regions, the electronic equipment comprising:

a wireless receiver that receives wireless messages from objects on the road to identify where each of the objects on the road is located, wherein the wireless messages from a first object on the road of one of the objects on the road includes information specifying at least one of a plurality of regions within the first object on the road; and

control circuitry that intervenes in driving activities of the moving vehicle based in part on the identified locations of each of the objects on the road.

16. The electronic equipment defined in claim 15, further comprising:

a plurality of wireless transmitters each of which transmits wireless messages that include information specifying particular regions of a plurality of regions of the moving vehicle in which the plurality of wireless transmitters are respectively located.

17. Electronic equipment in a vehicle on a road, the electronic equipment comprising:

Bluetooth Low Energy equipment that receives Bluetooth Low Energy messages from Bluetooth Low Energy transmitters in nearby objects on the road, wherein the received Bluetooth Low Energy messages comprise information specifying particular regions of a plurality of regions of a first one of the nearby objects on the road in which the Bluetooth Low Energy transmitters are located; and

processing circuitry that uses the information in the received Bluetooth Low Energy messages to determine a location of the nearby object on the road.

18. The electronic equipment defined in claim 17, further comprising:

control circuitry that intervenes in driving activities of the vehicle based at least in part on the determined location of the nearby object on the road.

19. The electronic equipment defined in claim 17, wherein the processing circuitry uses received signal strength indicator information associated with the received Bluetooth Low Energy messages to determine the location of the nearby object on the road.