Portable Electronic Device for Controlling and Managing Functions and/or Data of a Vehicle

• US 20080309451A1
• Filed: 10/20/2005
• Published: 12/18/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Swatch Group Research And Development Ltd
• Original Assignee: Asulab SA (The Swatch Group AG)
• Inventors: Zellweger, Emil, Etienne, Jean-Daniel, Urban, Volker, Bajahr, Frank
• Granted Patent: US 8,159,324 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/3.32
• CPC Class Codes: A45C 11/325 Spare-key holders
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 19/0082 Keys or shanks being removably stored in a larger object, e.g. a remote control or a key fob general constructional details of electronic keys G07C9/00944
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00309 operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks

Abstract

The portable electronic device (1) allows functions and/or data of a vehicle to be controlled and managed. In order to do this, the portable device comprises, in a casing having an upper part (10) fixed, for example, in a removable manner on a lower part (11), means for wirelessly transmitting and receiving signals for short range personalised communication with the vehicle. It further comprises a microprocessor unit for processing functions and/or data of the device and of the vehicle, at least one display screen (3) having a portion which is visible from outside the casing for displaying different menus or data of the device or of the vehicle, and manual control means (5, 6) for controlling the execution of functions of the microprocessor unit. A power source, such as a battery, is provided in the casing for supplying electric power to all the electronic components of the device. The manual control means comprise control keys (5) each having a touch-sensitive pad arranged on an inner face of the upper part (10) of the casing. Each control key may be individually activated by a finger of a user placed on the casing in a specified region of the touch-sensitive pad to be activated. The control means further comprise at least one control button (6) which can be pressed, in particular to make the control keys (5) and the display screen (3) switch from an idle mode to an operating mode.

Claims

1-10. -10. (canceled)

11. A portable electronic device for controlling and managing functions and/or data of a vehicle, the device comprising, in a casing having an upper part fixed on a lower part:

means for wirelessly transmitting and receiving signals for personalised communication with means for transmitting and receiving signals of the vehicle in a communication area surrounding the vehicle,

a microprocessor unit for processing the functions and/or data of the device and of the vehicle, and for checking the transmission and reception of signals from means for transmitting and receiving signals of the device,

at least one display screen having a portion which is visible from outside the casing, the screen being controlled by the microprocessor unit for displaying different menus or data of the device and/or data relating to the vehicle,

manual control means for controlling the execution of functions of the microprocessor unit, and

a power source for supplying electric power to all the electronic components of the device,

wherein the manual control means comprise at least one control key having a touch-sensitive pad which is arranged on an inner face of the upper part, which is made of insulating material, of the casing in the vicinity of the visible portion of the display screen so as to be activated in a capacitive manner in an operating mode by a finger of a user placed in a specified region of the sensitive pad whilst also allowing data displayed on the screen to be viewed when the finger is placed on said control key.

12. The portable device according to claim 11, wherein the control means comprise a plurality of manual control keys which each have a touch-sensitive pad arranged on the inner face of the upper part of the casing in the vicinity of the visible portion of the display screen, the touch-sensitive pads being of such a size and set apart from one another in such a way that they may be activated separately when a finger of a user is placed in a specified region of a sensitive pad of one of the keys to be activated.

13. The portable device according to claim 12, wherein the control keys are arranged on the inner face of an insulation plate of the upper part of the casing, and wherein the control keys are surrounded by a bevelled edge of the upper part in such a way that the finger is supportingly guided on the bevelled edge in the direction of one of the keys to be activated.

14. The portable device according to claim 12, wherein there are six control keys, wherein, in an operating mode, first and second control keys may be manually activated in an editing or amending mode of a specific menu selected by other control keys so as to set date and time data by increasing or decreasing or entering data viewed on the display screen, wherein a third control key may be manually activated for selecting a parking menu to be viewed on the display screen and/or for setting a vehicle parking time in a parking area, wherein a fourth control key may be manually activated for selecting a time menu to be viewed on the display screen and/or for setting the time and the date provided by a time base of the device and for setting an alarm clock, wherein a fifth control key may be manually activated for receiving data or measurements to be viewed on the screen which are sent by the vehicle, the data or measurements relating, in particular, to vehicle defects and being stored in a memory of the device, and wherein a sixth control key may be manually activated for receiving, viewing and/or storing vehicle data relating to mileage, daily mileage, fuel level, the number of miles possible to cover with the remaining fuel, the number of journeys made within a specified time frame, whether the doors are unlocked or locked, whether the windows are open or closed or whether the vehicle lights are on or off.

15. The portable device according to claim 11, wherein it comprises an element for generating vibrations and/or an element for generating acoustic sounds for signalling that vehicle data or measurements have been received, such as a silent alarm, the status of the vehicle or other data or measurements, or for signalling that the vehicle parking time programmed into the device has expired or for signalling an alarm time.

16. The portable device according to claim 11, wherein the manual control means comprise two first control buttons arranged in the lower part of the casing and which are to be manually pressed for controlling, in particular, the unlocking and locking of the vehicle doors and/or the opening and closing of the vehicle windows, or the activation of an air-conditioning unit.

17. The portable device according to claim 11, wherein the manual control means comprise a second control button arranged in the upper part of the casing, a manual pressure exerted on said second button allowing the control keys and the display screen to switch from an idle mode to an operating mode, and wherein the second manual control button is configured by the microprocessor unit in such a way that if said second manual control button is continuously pressed for longer than a first time limit, the display screen lights up, and if said second control button is continuously pressed for longer than a second time limit which is greater than the first time limit, a control signal is sent to the vehicle to activate an audible alarm or the horn, and/or the vehicle lights.

18. The portable device according to claim 11, wherein it comprises a time base which is connected to the microprocessor unit so as to allow time data to be displayed on the display screen, such as the time and date, and wherein the control keys are configured by the microprocessor unit in such a way that, in an operating mode, different stored menus or data of the device may be selected or viewed.

19. The portable device according to claim 18, wherein, in a menu selected by one of the control keys and displayed on the display screen, a second control button of the manual control means is configured by the microprocessor unit in such a way that data entered in a mode for editing or amending the measurements or data of the device can be validated, activation of specific control keys allowing said viewed measurements or data to be edited or amended.

20. The portable device according to claim 11, wherein the display screen is a matrix liquid crystal display or is a two-line segment display, different icons relating to the type of data or measurements viewed appearing selectively on the display screen, and in that the symbols are arranged on the outer face of the upper part of the casing on each corresponding sensitive pad of the control keys to represent the function(s) of each control key.