Method and wireless device for providing a maintenance notification for a maintenance activity

• US 20040203974A1
• Filed: 06/19/2002
• Published: 10/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Seibel, Michael A.
• Application Number:
  US10/175,371
• Publication Number:
  US 20040203974A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/517
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link

Abstract

A method (500) and a wireless device (110) for providing a maintenance notification associated with a vehicle (120) are described herein. The wireless device (110) may generate a notification request based on a user input or automatically generate the notification request. The notification request may include, but is not limited to, information associated with a trigger event for a maintenance activity associated with the vehicle (120). The wireless device (110) may transmit the notification request to the vehicle (120) via a first communication link (130). Based on detection of the trigger event by the vehicle (120), the wireless device (110) may receive a maintenance notification for the maintenance activity. Further, the wireless device (110) may store the maintenance notification in a date book stored within the wireless device (110).

Claims

1. In a wireless communication system, wherein a vehicle is operable to detect a trigger event, a method for providing a maintenance notification for a maintenance activity associated with the vehicle, the method comprising:

generating a notification request within a wireless device based on a user input, the notification request having information associated with the trigger event for the maintenance activity associated with the vehicle;

transmitting the notification request to the vehicle via a first communication link; and

receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link based on the trigger event.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of generating a notification request within a wireless device based on a user input comprises generating a notification request within one of a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a pager, and a laptop computer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of generating a notification request within a wireless device based on a user input comprises generating a notification request having information associated with a trigger event for one of an oil change, a coolant change, a brake adjustment, a tire pressure adjustment, a fluid replacement, a filter replacement, and a light replacement.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transmitting the notification request to the vehicle via a first communication link comprises transmitting the notification request to one of an automobile, a boat, and a motorcycle via a first communication link.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transmitting the notification request to the vehicle via a first communication link comprises transmitting the notification request to the vehicle via one of a wireless link, wherein the wireless link operates in accordance with one of a code division multiple access (CDMA) based communication protocol, a time division multiple access (TDMA) based communication protocol, a global system for mobile communication (GSM) based communication protocol, a Bluetooth communication protocol, a multimedia message service (MMS) communication protocol, and a short-message service (SMS) communication protocol, and an Infrared Data Association (IrDA) based communication protocol.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link based on the trigger event comprises receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link in response to detection of the trigger event by the vehicle.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link comprises receiving a maintenance notification based on one of a distance driven, a period of time, and a threshold level associated with a vehicle parameter.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless device is a first wireless device, and wherein the step of receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link based on the trigger event comprises receiving a maintenance notification within a second wireless device from the vehicle via a second communication link based on the trigger event.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a communication link comprises receiving a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a wireless link, the wireless link operates in accordance with one of a code division multiple access (CDMA) based communication protocol, a time division multiple access (TDMA) based communication protocol, a global system for mobile communication (GSM) based communication protocol, a Bluetooth communication protocol, a multimedia message service (MMS) communication protocol, a short-message service (SMS) communication protocol and an Infrared Data Association (IrDA) based communication protocol.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of storing the maintenance notification in a date book stored within the wireless device.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

retrieving information associated with detection capability of the vehicle within the wireless device; and

providing the information associated with detection capability of the vehicle within the wireless device to a user.

12. A wireless device for providing a maintenance notification for a maintenance activity associated with a vehicle, the wireless device comprising:

a user-input device;

a controller operatively coupled to the user-input device, the controller having a processor and a memory operatively coupled to the processor,

the controller being programmed to generate a notification request based on a user input via the user-input device, the notification request having information associated with a trigger event for a maintenance activity associated with the vehicle;

a transmitting unit operatively coupled to the controller, the transmitting unit being operable to transmit the notification request to the vehicle via a first communication link; and

a receiving unit operatively coupled to the controller, the receiving unit being operable to receive a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link based on the trigger event.

13. The wireless device of claim 12 is one of a cellular telephone, a pager, a personal digital assistant (PDA), and a laptop computer.

14. The wireless device of claim 12, wherein the vehicle is one of an automobile, a boat, and a motorcycle.

15. The wireless device of claim 12, wherein the maintenance activity associated with the vehicle is one of an oil change, a coolant change, a brake adjustment, a tire adjustment, a fluid replacement, a filter replacement, and a light replacement.

16. The wireless device of claim 12, wherein the trigger event is one of a distance driven, a period of time, and a threshold level associated with a vehicle parameter.

17. The wireless device of claim 12, wherein the notification request comprises information associated with one of a phone number and an e-mail address of a wireless device.

18. The wireless device of claim 12, wherein the maintenance notification is one of a graphical image, a sound indication, a visual indication, a text message, an audio message, and a video message, and a multimedia message.

19. The wireless device of claim 12, wherein the controller is operable to store the maintenance notification in a date book stored within the memory.

20. The wireless device of claim 12 operates in accordance with one of a code division multiple access (CDMA) based communication protocol, a time division multiple access (TDMA) based communication protocol, a global service for mobile communications (GSM) based communication protocol, a Bluetooth communication protocol, a multimedia message service (MMS) communication protocol, a short-message service (SMS) communication protocol, and an Infrared Data Association (IrDA) based communication protocol.

21. In a wireless communication system, wherein a processor operates in accordance with a computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for providing a maintenance notification for a maintenance activity associated with a vehicle, the computer program comprising:

a first routine that directs the processor to generate a notification request within a wireless device based on a user input, the notification request having information associated with a trigger event for a maintenance activity associated with the vehicle;

a second routine that directs the processor to transmit the notification request to the vehicle via a first communication link; and

a third routine that directs the processor to receive a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a second communication link based on the trigger event.

22. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the first routine comprises a routine that directs the processor to generate a notification request within one of a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a pager, and a laptop computer.

23. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the first routine comprises a routine that directs the processor to generate a notification request having information associated with a trigger event for one of an oil change, a coolant change, a brake adjustment, a tire pressure adjustment, a fluid replacement, a filter replacement, and a light replacement.

24. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the second routine comprises a routine that directs the processor to transmit the notification request to one of an automobile, a boat, and a motorcycle via a first communication link.

25. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the second routine comprises a routine that directs the processor to transmit the notification request to the vehicle via a wireless link, wherein the wireless link operates in accordance with one of a code division multiple access (CDMA) based communication protocol, a time division multiple access (TDMA) based communication protocol, a global system for mobile communication (GSM) based communication protocol, a Bluetooth communication protocol, a multimedia message service (MMS) communication protocol, a short-message service (SMS) communication protocol, and an Infrared Data Association (IrDA) based communication protocol.

26. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the third routine comprises a routine that directs the processor to receive a maintenance notification based on one of a distance driven, a period of time, and a threshold level associated with a vehicle parameter.

27. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the third routine comprises a routine that directs the processor to receive a maintenance notification from the vehicle via a wireless link, the wireless link operates in accordance with one of a code division multiple access (CDMA) based communication protocol, a time division multiple access (TDMA) based communication protocol, a global system for mobile communication (GSM) based communication protocol, a Bluetooth communication protocol, a multimedia message service (MMS) communication protocol, a short-message service (SMS) communication protocol, and an Infrared Data Association (IrDA) based communication protocol.

28. The computer program of claim 21 further comprising a fourth routine that directs the processor to store the maintenance notification in a date book stored within the wireless device.

29. The computer program of claim 21, wherein the medium is one of paper, a programmable gate array, application specific integrated circuit, erasable programmable read only memory, read only memory, random access memory, magnetic media, and optical media.

30. In a wireless communication system, wherein a vehicle is operable to detect a trigger event, a method for providing a maintenance notification for a maintenance activity associated with the vehicle, the method comprising:

retrieving information associated with detection capability of the vehicle within a first device;

providing the information associated with detection capability of the vehicle within the first device to a user;

generating a notification request within the first device based on a user input, the notification request having information associated with the trigger event for the maintenance activity associated with the vehicle and information associated with a second device, the second device being a wireless device;

transmitting the notification request to the vehicle via a first communication link so that the vehicle is operable to transmit a maintenance notification to one of the first device and the second device via a second communication link upon detection of the trigger event by the vehicle.