ENHANCING VEHICLE INFOTAINMENT SYSTEMS BY ADDING REMOTE SENSORS FROM A PORTABLE DEVICE

• US 20120231738A1
• Filed: 03/10/2011
• Published: 09/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Khamharn, Oddy N.
• Granted Patent: US 8,818,275 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.2
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/55 Remote control arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/566 Mobile devices displaying vehicle information
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/573 Mobile devices controlling vehicle functions
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/10 Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/80 Arrangements for controlling instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/105 where the programme performs an input/output emulation function
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0383 Remote input, i.e. interface arrangements in which the signals generated by a pointing device are transmitted to a PC at a remote location, e.g. to a PC in a LAN
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry

Abstract

A vehicle display device is provided with a communications interface, which couples the vehicle display device to portable input devices inside the vehicle. The portable input devices are thus provided with the ability to control the display device and what is displayed thereon. The communications interface also enables the portable input device to control vehicle subsystems such as a climate control system, entertainment system and the like. Portable input devices equipped with sensors have sensor-generated information displayed on the vehicle display device.

Claims

1. An apparatus for a vehicle, the apparatus comprising:

a display device attached to the vehicle;

a computer operatively coupled to the display device;

a communications interface coupled to the computer, the communications interface configured to provide to the computer, information-bearing signals received from a portable input device; and

a memory device coupled to the computer and storing program instructions executable by the computer, the program instructions causing the computer to accept information-bearing signals from the communications interface.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is a radio frequency receiver configured to receive short-range radio frequency signals from the portable input device.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is at least one of:

a universal serial bus (USB) interface;

an Ethernet interface;

an optical media oriented systems transport MOST communications interface;

an RS-232 communications interface; and

a fire wire interface.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the radio frequency receiver is configured to receive radio frequency signals compliant with at least one of:

Bluetooth communications standard and derivatives thereof; and

I.E.E.E. 802.1xxx communications standards and derivatives thereof.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a vehicle bus network operatively coupled to the computer and to at least one vehicle component controlled by the computer, wherein control signals for a vehicle component coupled to the vehicle bus network, and which are received by the communications interface, are transmitted from the computer, onto the vehicle bus network and then sent to the vehicle component.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is configured to receive signals from a portable input device having a touch-sensitive input panel, the communications interface providing commands to the computer, responsive to a tactile input to the touch-sensitive input panel.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein program instructions in the memory device cause the computer to recognize hand writing as tactile input.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is configured to receive information from a sensor coupled to the input device, and wherein program instructions in the memory device cause the processor to process received sensor information.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the sensor information is comprised of information from at least one of:

a global positioning system (GPS) apparatus;

a text-to-speech converter;

a voice recognition engine;

a camera;

an accelerometer;

a gyroscope;

a microphone input;

a light sensor;

a compass; and

a near field communication sensor.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising an audio speaker coupled to the computer and wherein the communications interface is configured to receive signals that represent audio, the communications interface being additionally configured to provide a received audio signal to the computer, program instructions in the memory device causing the computer to generate audible audio signals from the speaker using the received audio signal.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communications interface is comprised of a cradle that is configured to couple a first smart phone to the computer. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a second cradle configured to couple information-bearing signals from a second smart phone to the computer, the memory device storing program instructions, which when executed cause the computer to display images on the display device responsive to information-bearing signals received from both the first smart phone and the second smart phone.

12. A method of controlling a vehicular information apparatus having a display device coupled to a computer, the computer being coupled to a memory device, the computer controlling the display of images on the display device responsive to program instructions in the memory device and responsive to a signal the computer receives from a first communications interface configured to be capable of receiving information-bearing signals from at least one portable input device inside the vehicle, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving an information-bearing signal at the first communications interface;

forwarding the information-bearing signal to the computer; and

processing the information-bearing signal responsive to program instructions stored in the memory device.

13. The method of claim 13, wherein processing information-bearing signal is comprised of transmitting control signals received from the first communications interface onto a vehicle control network operatively coupled between the computer and at least one vehicle component that is controlled by the computer.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of receiving an information-bearing signal at the first communications interface is comprised of receiving a signal representing an input to a touch-sensitive input panel and wherein the step of processing the information-bearing signal responsive to program instructions stored in the memory device is comprised of displaying on the display device a representation of the input to the touch-sensitive input panel.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of receiving an information-bearing signal is comprised of at least one of:

receiving navigation information;

receiving an MP3 file and generating audio signals from a speaker coupled to the computer using the received MP3 file;

receiving a signal from an accelerometer

receiving a signal from a near-field communications device;

receiving a signal from a compass;

receiving a signal from a camera;

receiving a signal from a text-to-speech converter.

receiving a signal from voice recognition engine

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of receiving an information-bearing signal is comprised of receiving a signal from a communications interface comprised of at least one of:

a universal serial bus (USB);

a universal serial bus (USB) interface;

an Ethernet interface;

a media oriented systems transport MOST communications interface;

an RS-232 communications interface;

a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI); and

a fire wire interface.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of receiving an information-bearing signal is comprised of receiving the signal from a portable computer device.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of receiving an information-bearing signal is comprised of receiving the signal from a portable radio frequency communications device in a cradle for the portable radio frequency communications device.

19. The method of claim 13 wherein the vehicular information apparatus is comprised of a second communications interface, the method further comprising the steps of:

receiving a second information-bearing signal at the second communications interface;

forwarding the second information-bearing signal to the computer; and

processing the first information-bearing signal by the computer and processing the second information-bearing signal by the computer.

20. An information apparatus for a vehicle, the information apparatus comprising:

a display device attached to the vehicle;

a computer coupled to the display device;

a communications interface for a smart phone having a capacitive touch screen and which is configured to output signals carrying information that represent an input to the capacitive touch screen, the communications interface being coupled to the computer and providing to the computer, information-bearing signals representing tactile inputs to a touch screen; and

a memory device coupled to the computer and storing program instructions executable by the computer, when executed, the program instructions causing the computer to accept information-bearing signals from the communications interface and displaying an image on the display device.