Wireless Connectivity in a Radar Detector

• US 20100214149A1
• Filed: 10/13/2009
• Published: 08/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Escort Incorporated (Cedar Electronics Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Escort Incorporated (Cedar Electronics Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Kuhn, John
• Granted Patent: US 8,624,771 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 342/20
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/003 Transmission of data between radar, sonar or lidar systems and remote stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/022 Road traffic radar detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09675 where a selection from the received information takes place in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station

Abstract

Wireless and other external connectivity technology is used in various ways to enhance or improve upon existing radar detector and police activity detection systems. External memory interfaces, such as SD cards or USB, provide external storage. Wireless interfaces such as Bluetooth, Zigbee, 802.11, and wireless personal area network communication protocols, allow a detector processor to interact wirelessly with external devices, such as a Bluetooth headset, a cellular network device providing a server connection, or toggle buttons used to indicate the presence of police activity at a current position. Further, radar detectors are upgraded to provide GPS capabilities, using the existing power/data connector of the radar detector.

Claims

1. A police activity warning system, comprising:

(a) a police activity radar detector, comprising;

a global positioning receiver operable to provide coordinates for a first position;

a modem operable to wirelessly transmit at least the coordinates of the first position to a server external to the detector, wherein the modem is embedded within the detector;

at least one hardware based processor coupled to the global positioning receiver and coupled to the modem;

the processor operable to obtain the coordinates of the first position from the global position receiver, and wherein the processor is operable to control the modem to wirelessly transmit at least the coordinates obtained from the global positioning receiver to the server that is external to the detector; and

the processor of the detector operable to control the modem to wirelessly receive at least coordinates of a second position from the server, and wherein the processor is operable to determine whether a warning should be issued in response to at least the received coordinates for the second position; and

(b) the server external to the detector, comprising;

at least one hardware based processor operable to transmit at least coordinates for the second position to the modem of the detector; and

a database storing at least the coordinates of the second position.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the detector is operable to receive the first position from a user of the detector.

3. The system of claim 2, the detector further comprising:

a receiver for detecting electromagnetic signals generated in the context of police activity;

the processor of the detector coupled to said receiver, and wherein the processor is operable to evaluate electromagnetic signals received by said receiver to determine whether a warning is to be issued, the processor operating under control of software and/or data; and

the processor further operable to receive the first position from a user of the detector in response to the processor issuing a warning.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the detector is further operable to determine if there is data related to the coordinates of the first position from the global positioning receiver, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly transmit data related to the coordinates of the first position to the server that is external to the detector.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit the data related to the coordinates of the first position to the server external to the detector in real-time.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the processor of the detector is further operable to determine if the coordinates of the first position from the global positioning receiver are designated as a false alert, wherein the indication of the false alert designation is data related to the coordinates of the first position, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly transmit an indication of the false alert designation to the server that is external to the detector if the coordinates of the first position have been designated as a false alert.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor of the detector is further operable to receive the false alert designation from a user of the detector, and wherein the processor is further operable to determine that the coordinates of the first position are designated as a false alert based on the false alert designation received from the user.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit the indication of the false alert designation for the coordinates of the first position to the server external to the detector in real-time.

9. The system of claim 4, wherein the processor of the detector is further operable to determine if the coordinates of the first position from the global position receiver are designated as a threat, wherein the indication of the threat designation is data related to the coordinates of the first position, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly transmit an indication of the threat designation to the server that is external to the detector if the coordinates of the first position have been designated as a threat.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor of the detector is operable to receive the threat designation from a user of the detector, and wherein the processor is further operable to determine that the coordinates of the first position are designated as a threat based on the threat designation received from the user.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit the indication of the threat false alert designation for the coordinates of the first position to the server external to the detector in real-time.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit at least the coordinates of the first position to the server external to the detector in real-time.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the first position is that of the detector.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the detector is further operable to obtain at least heading data for the detector from the global positioning receiver, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly transmit the heading data obtained from the global positioning receiver to the server that is external to the detector.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit the heading data to the server external to the detector in real-time.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operable to obtain at least speed data for the detector from the global positioning receiver, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly transmit the speed data obtained from the global positioning receiver to the server that is external to the detector.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit the speed data to the server external to the detector in real-time.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the detector is further operable to obtain an identifier of the detector, the identifier identifying the detector from among a plurality of detectors, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly transmit the identifier of the detector to the server that is external to the detector.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly transmit the identifier of the detector to the server external to the detector in real-time.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the modem of the detector is a cellular data modem.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the modem of the detector is a GSM cellular data modem.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein the second position was selected by a user that did not select the first position, and wherein the second position was received by the server.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the second position is about the same as the first position, and wherein the coordinates of the second position are about the same as the coordinates of the first position.

24. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem of the detector to wirelessly receive data related to the coordinates of the second position from the server that is external to the detector, and wherein the processor is operable to determine whether a warning should be issued in response to the received data related to the coordinates for the second position.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the modem is further operable to wirelessly receive from the server external to the detector an indication of a false alert designation for the coordinates of the second position, wherein the indication of the false alert designation is data related to the coordinates of the second position, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem to wirelessly receive the indication.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the processor is operable to determine that a warning should not be issued for the coordinates of the second position in response to the received indication of the false alert designation.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly receive the indication of the false alert designation for the coordinates of the second position from the server external to the detector in real-time.

28. The system of claim 24, wherein the modem is further operable to wirelessly receive from the server external to the detector an indication of a threat designation for the coordinates of the second position, wherein the indication of the threat designation is data related to the coordinates of the second position, and wherein the processor is further operable to control the modem to wirelessly receive the indication.

29. The system of claim 28, wherein the processor is operable to determine that a warning should be issued for the coordinates of the second position in response to the received indication of the threat designation.

30. The system of claim 28, wherein the modem of the detector is operable to wirelessly receive the indication of the threat designation for the coordinates of the second position from the server external to the detector in real-time.

31. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the server is further operable to transmit to the modem of the detector the coordinates of the second position based upon a condition.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the processor of the server is operable to determine whether to if the coordinates of the second position if the second position are within a radius of the detector, and the processor is further operable to transmit to the modem of the detector the coordinates of the second position if the coordinates of the second position are within a radius of the detector.

33. The system of claim 31, wherein the processor is further operable to transmit to the modem of the detector the coordinates of the second position in response to a counter.

34. The system of claim 31, wherein the processor is further operable to transmit to the modem of the detector the coordinates of the second position based upon whether the detector previously transmitted the coordinates of the second position to the server.

35. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the server is operable to transmit to the modem of the detector a software update, and wherein the processor of the detector is operable to control the modem to receive from the server the software update.

36. The system of claim 35, wherein the processor of the detector is operable to implement the software update received by the modem from the server.

37. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of radar detectors, wherein each modem of each detector in the plurality of detectors is operable to transmit data to the server and operable to receive data from the server.

38. The system of claim 37, wherein the processor of the server is operable to transmit to each modem of each detector in the plurality of detectors a software update, and wherein each processor of each of detector in the plurality of the detectors is operable to control each modem to receive from the server the software update.

39. The system of claim 38, wherein each processor of each detector is operable to implement the software update received by the corresponding modem from the server.

40. A police activity radar detector, comprising

a global positioning receiver operable to provide coordinates for a position;

a modem operable to wirelessly transmit at least the coordinates of the position to a server external to the detector, wherein the modem is embedded within the detector;

at least one hardware based processor coupled to the global positioning receiver and coupled to the modem; and

the processor operable to obtain the coordinates of the position from the global position receiver, and wherein the processor is operable to control the modem to wirelessly transmit at least the coordinates obtained from the global positioning receiver to the server that is external to the detector.

41. A police activity radar detector, comprising

a modem operable to wirelessly receive at least coordinates of a position from a server external to the detector, wherein the modem is embedded within the detector;

at least one hardware based processor coupled to the modem; and

the processor operable to control the modem to wirelessly receive at least the coordinates from the server that is external to the detector, and wherein the processor is operable to determine whether a warning should be issued in response to at least the received coordinates.

42. The detector of claim 41, further comprising:

the modem operable to also wirelessly receive data related to the coordinates from the server external to the detector; and

the processor operable to control the modem to wirelessly receive the data related to the coordinates from the server that is external to the detector, and wherein the processor is operable to determine whether a warning should be issued in response to the received data related to the coordinates.