Receiver control using vehicle state conditions

• US 20030186662A1
• Filed: 03/28/2002
• Published: 10/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Himmel, Maria Azua, Spinac, Clifford Jay, Rodriguez, Herman, Smith, Newton James Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 6,961,536 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/185.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/2081 combined with personal settings of other vehicle devices, e.g. mirrors, seats, steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/24 using electronic identifiers containing a code not memorised by the user
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/082 to be used in vehicles H04B1/086 takes precedence; holding or mounting accessories B60R11/02

Abstract

A broadcast receiver which automatically tunes to a signal source depending on a set of rules and vehicle state conditions, such as seat occupancy, door sensors, time, day of the week, weather conditions, program content rating, vehicle location, user language preference, user identity and driver preferences. The user can configure a set of rules which causes the receiver to be automatically retuned in response to changes in conditions of the vehicle, such as favorites for the commute to work and favorites while driving with children. This eliminates the driver'"'"'s distraction while operating the vehicle of searching for stations and routinely changing the station setting, thereby enhancing the usefulness, convenience, and safety of the vehicle broadcast receiver.

Claims

1. A method for controlling a broadcast receiver, said method comprising the steps of:

providing a set of rules which specify a signal source to be received under a set of given state conditions;

evaluating said set of rules and given state conditions; and

retuning said receiver to a signal source which is specified in a rule that matches the given state conditions.

2. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of providing a set of rules comprises providing a user indication for which one or more rules apply, and wherein said step of evaluating said set of rules comprises evaluating only rules for which a certain user indication is matched.

3. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of providing a set of rules comprises providing one or more state conditions selected from the group of seat occupancy, time, day of the week, receiver location, door status, broadcast content indicators, weather conditions, air conditioning settings, heating settings, interior light status, exterior light status, rate of and change in the rate of speed, user language preference, and user identity.

4. The method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of retuning the receiver to a signal source comprises causing the receiver to select a signal source from the group of a radio broadcast, a television broadcast, an Internet audio content provider, an Internet content video provider, or a section of content from a computer readable media.

5. A computer readable medium encoded with software for controlling a broadcast receiver, said software causing a receiver control processor to perform the steps of:

providing a set of auto-tuning rules, each rule having a preferred signal source indication to be received under a set of given state conditions;

receiving one or more state conditions;

evaluating said set of auto-tuning rules and received state conditions; and

retuning said receiver to a signal source which is specified in a rule that matches the given state conditions.

6. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 5 wherein said software for providing a set of auto-tuning rules comprises software for providing a user indication for which one or more rules apply, and wherein said software for evaluating said set of auto-tuning rules comprises software for evaluating only rules for which a certain user indication is matched.

7. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 5 wherein said software for providing a set of auto-tuning rules comprises software for providing one or more state conditions selected from the group of seat occupancy, time, day of the week, receiver location, door status, broadcast content indicators, weather conditions, air conditioning settings, heating settings, interior light status, exterior light status, rate of and change in the rate of speed, user language preference, and user identity.

8. The computer readable medium as set forth in claim 5 wherein said software for retuning the receiver to a signal source comprises software for causing the receiver to select a signal source from the group of a radio broadcast, a television broadcast, an Internet audio content provider, an Internet video content provider, or a section of content from a computer readable media.

9. An enhanced vehicle broadcast receiver comprising:

a tuner capable of receiving broadcast signals from a plurality of signal sources;

a processor for controlling said tuner, said processor receiving a number of vehicle state conditions;

a set of automatic tuning rules accessible by said processor which specify a signal source to be received under a set of given state conditions; and

a control program for evaluating said set of automatic tuning rules and state conditions, and for retuning said receiver to receive a signal source specified by a rule which matches said vehicle state conditions.

10. The broadcast receiver as set forth in claim 9 wherein said set of automatic tuning rules comprises a user indication for which one or more rules apply, and wherein said control program is adapted to selectively evaluate only rules for which a certain user indication is matched.

11. The broadcast receiver as set forth in claim 9 wherein said set of automatic tuning rules comprises one or more state conditions selected from the group of seat occupancy, time, day of the week, receiver location, door status, broadcast content indicators, weather conditions, air conditioning settings, heating settings, interior light status, exterior light status, rate of and change in the rate of speed, user language preference, and user identity.

12. The broadcast receiver as set forth in claim 9 wherein said set of automatic tuning rules specifies a signal source selected from the group of a radio station, a television station, an Internet audio content provider, an Internet video content provider, or a section of content from a computer readable media.