Allocation of head unit resources to a portable device in an automotive environment

• US 10,225,392 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2017
• Issued: 03/05/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Pelly, Nicholas Julian, Foster, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Trinh, Sonny
• Application Number:
  US15/844,468
• Publication Number:
  US 20180124229A1
• Time in Patent Office: 445 Days
• Field of Search: 455 412, 4554561, 455457, 4554563
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3617 using user history, behaviour, conditions or preferences, e.g. predicted or inferred from previous use or current movement
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/362 received from an external device or application, e.g. PDA, mobile phone or calendar application
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096883 where input information is obtained using a mobile device, e.g. a mobile phone, a PDA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724098 Interfacing with an on-board device of a vehicle for hands-free speaking in vehicles H04M1/6075
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/025 using location based information parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

A portable device is configured to provide geographic information to a head unit of a vehicle equipped with a display device. One or more processors determine a user context related to a geographic location and detect that the portable device has been communicatively coupled to the head unit of a vehicle. The one or more processors transmit to the head unit, without an express user command, a request that the head unit accept data from the portable device for output via the display device. In response to receiving an indication that that the request has been granted, the one or more processors cause information related to the geographic location to be displayed via the display device, without an express user input at the portable device.

Claims

1. A method of managing access to output components in computing systems comprising portable devices head units of vehicles, the method comprising:

providing access to an output component of a head unit of a vehicle to a portable device, the output component including at least one of a screen or a speaker;

causing the portable device to provide geographic data via the output component of the head unit, via a short-range communication link;

in response to detecting a safety-related event, (i) notifying the portable device of loss of the access to the output component, and (ii) automatically providing access to the output component to an application implemented in the vehicle; and

in response to receiving an indication that the safety-related event has expired, automatically providing access to at least one of a screen or a speaker in the head unit of the vehicle to the portable device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting communicative coupling between the portable device and the head unit; and

automatically requesting the access to the output component of the head unit in response to the detected communicative coupling;

wherein providing the access to the output component of the head unit is in response to the automatically requesting the access to the output component of the head unit.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein providing the access to the output component of the head unit is further in response to determining that the vehicle is currently not providing safety-critical information via the at least one of the screen or the speaker in the head unit.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising displaying a dialogue to receive a confirmation from a user that the access should be provided.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the safety-related event includes detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into reverse.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the safety-related event includes detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into reverse.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the indication that the safety-related event has expired includes:

subsequently to detecting that the detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into reverse, detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into drive.

8. The method of claim 1, providing the access to the output component of the head unit includes providing video focus to the portable device for displaying the geographic data via the screen of the head unit.

9. The method of claim 1, providing the access to the output component of the head unit includes providing navigation focus to the portable device providing navigation instructions.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein providing the navigation focus includes implementing, at the head unit, a policy for allocating the navigation focus to one of the portable device or the head unit, wherein the policy prioritizes one of the portable device or the head unit relative to the other one of the portable device or the head unit.

11. A head unit of a vehicle, the head unit comprising:

one or more processors;

an interface configured to couple the head unit to a portable device;

a user interface including at least one of a screen or a speaker; and

a non-transitory computer-readable memory storing thereon instructions that, when executed on the one or more processors, cause the head unit to;

grant initial access to the user interface to the portable device,

receive geographic data from the portable device,

provide the geographic data via the user interface,

in response to detecting a safety-related event, notify the portable device of loss of the access to the user interface and present safety-related information via the user interface; and

in response to detecting expiration of the safety-related event, grant access to the user interface to the portable device.

12. The head unit of claim 11, wherein the instructions further cause the portable device to receive, from the portable device, a request for access to the user interface.

13. The head unit of claim 11, wherein to grant the initial access to the user interface to the portable device, the instructions cause the portable device to determine that the vehicle is currently not providing safety-critical information via the user interface.

14. The head unit of claim 11, wherein detecting the safety-related event includes detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into reverse.

15. The head unit of claim 11, wherein detecting the safety-related event includes detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into reverse.

16. The head unit of claim 11, wherein receiving the indication that the safety-related event has expired includes:

subsequently to detecting that the detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into reverse, detecting that the vehicle has been shifted into drive.

17. The head unit of claim 11, wherein the instructions cause the head unit to grant the initial access to the user interface in accordance with a policy that prioritizes one of the portable device or the head unit relative to the other one of the portable device or the head unit.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable memory storing thereon instructions that, when executed on one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:

detect, at a portable device, communicative coupling between the portable device and a head unit of a vehicle;

in response to detecting the communicative coupling, automatically request access of the portable device to an output component of the head unit, the output component including at least one of a screen or a speaker;

generate, at the portable device, navigation directions;

provide the navigation directions via the output component of the head unit;

receive, at the portable device from the head unit, an indication that the access of the portable device to the output component of the head unit has been lost, in response to the head unit detecting a safety-related event; and

stop providing the navigation directions via the output component of the head unit in response to the received indication.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable memory of claim 18, wherein the instructions further cause the one or more processors to lock out the portable device in response to determining detecting the communicative coupling, to prevent a user of the portable device from accessing at least some of the functionality of the portable while the portable device is communicatively coupled to the head unit.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable memory of claim 18, wherein the instructions cause the one or more processors to prevent access to a text messaging application.