POSITION INFORMATION TRANSMISSION APPARATUS, POSITION INFORMATION TRANSMISSION SYSTEM, AND VEHICLE

• US 20150154870A1
• Filed: 06/06/2012
• Published: 06/04/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Endo, Masato, Sekiyama, Hiroaki, Sumiya, Takayuki, Todoroki, Chihaya
• Granted Patent: US 9,786,180 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]

Abstract

A navigation device serving as a position information transmission apparatus for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center includes a terminal ECU that is authorized to log in to the position information service center via networks. The terminal ECU is configured to, in a logged-in state to the position information service center, transmit the position information about the vehicle to the position information service center on condition that a predetermined operation has been performed.

Claims

1. A position information transmission apparatus for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center, the information service center enabling a user to check in to a predetermined location by the user submitting information relating to the predetermined location,

the position information transmission apparatus comprising a control unit that is authorized to log in to the position information service center via a network,

the control unit being configured to, in a logged-in state to the position information service center, submit the information relating to a predetermined location of the user that is based on the position information about the vehicle to the position information service center on condition that a predetermined operation has been performed by the user in the vehicle.

2. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit selectively acquires and outputs via the network a nearby check-in point that is near the vehicle and is available to be checked in to from among check-in points that are available to be checked in to and are stored in the position information service center.

3. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit derives the position information from movement information relating to movement of the vehicle and transmits the derived position information to the position information service center.

7. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the predetermined operation comprises a screen operation on a first screen for checking in to a location corresponding to the position information, and

wherein the control unit displays the first screen on the same display area as a second screen that fulfills a function other than check in.

8. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the control unit displays the first screen on the same display area as the second screen by superimposing the first screen on the second screen for display.

9. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the control unit displays the first screen on the same display area as the second screen by splitting one screen having a predetermined size into at least the first screen and the second screen for display.

4. A position information transmission apparatus for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center, the information service center enabling a user to check in to a predetermined location by the user submitting information relating to the predetermined location,

the position information transmission apparatus comprising a control unit connected via a network to an information processing center for storing the position information about the vehicle in cooperation with the position information service center,

the control unit being configured to output a control signal to the information processing center so that the information relating to a predetermined location of the user that is based on the position information is submitted from the information processing center to the position information service center on condition that a predetermined operation has been performed by the user in the vehicle.

5. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit acquires and outputs via the network from the information processing center a nearby check-in point that is near the vehicle and is available to be checked in to.

6. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit outputs a control signal to the information processing center so that the information processing center derives the position information from movement information relating to movement of the vehicle and transmits the derived position information to the position information service center.

10. A position information transmission apparatus for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center, the information service center enabling a user to check in to a predetermined location by the user submitting information relating to the predetermined location,

the position information transmission apparatus comprising a control unit connected via a network to an information processing center for storing a movement history of the vehicle in cooperation with the position information service center,

the control unit being configured to, when the movement history stored in the information processing center has been retrieved, acquire and output via the network a check-in point that is available to be checked in to and is included in the movement history and, on condition that an operation for designating the output check-in point has been performed by the user in the vehicle, output a control signal to the information processing center so that the information relating to a predetermined location of the user that is based on position information corresponding to the designated check-in point is submitted from the information processing center to the position information service center.

11. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the control unit outputs the acquired check-in point along with map information to a display unit.

12. A position information transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the control unit outputs information urging an operation for designating the output check-in point.

13. A position information transmission system for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center, the information service center enabling a user to check in to a predetermined location by the user submitting information relating to the predetermined location, the position information transmission system comprising:

a movement information detection apparatus for detecting movement information relating to movement of the vehicle;

a position information service center to which the movement information detection apparatus is connected via a network in a manner that enables the movement information detection apparatus to log in to the position information service center; and

a control unit for deriving, in a state in which the movement information detection apparatus is logged in to the position information service center, position information corresponding to the movement information from the movement information detected by the movement information detection apparatus on condition that a predetermined operation has been performed by the user in the vehicle, and submitting the information relating to a predetermined location of the user that is based on the derived position information to the position information service center.

14. A position information transmission system according to claim 13, wherein the control unit selectively acquires and outputs a nearby check-in point that is near the vehicle and is available to be checked in to from among check-in points that are available to be checked in to and are stored in the position information service center.

15. A position information transmission system according to claim 13, wherein the control unit is provided in the movement information detection apparatus, and derives, with the movement information detection apparatus, position information corresponding to the movement information from the movement information detected by the movement information detection apparatus and transmits the derived position information to the position information service center.

19. A position information transmission system according to claim 13,

wherein the predetermined operation comprises a screen operation on a first screen for checking in to a location corresponding to the position information, and

wherein the control unit displays the first screen on the same display area as a second screen that fulfills a function other than check in.

20. A position information transmission system according to claim 19, wherein the control unit displays the first screen on the same display area as the second screen by superimposing the first screen on the second screen for display.

21. A position information transmission system according to claim 19, wherein the control unit displays the first screen on the same display area as the second screen by splitting one screen having a predetermined size into at least the first screen and the second screen for display.

16. A position information transmission system for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center, the information service center enabling a user to check in to a predetermined location by the user submitting information relating to the predetermined location, the position information transmission system comprising:

an information processing center for storing the position information about the vehicle in cooperation with the position information service center; and

a control unit connected via a network to the information processing center,

the control unit being configured to output a control signal to the information processing center so that the information processing center submits the information relating to a predetermined location of the user that is based on the position information to the position information service center on condition that a predetermined operation has been performed by the user in the vehicle.

17. A position information transmission system according to claim 16, wherein the control unit acquires and outputs via the network from the information processing center a nearby check-in point that is near the vehicle and is available to be checked in to.

18. A position information transmission system according to claim 16, wherein the control unit outputs a control signal to the information processing center so that the information processing center derives the position information from movement information relating to movement of the vehicle and transmits the derived position information to the position information service center.

22. A position information transmission system for transmitting position information about a vehicle to a position information service center, the information service center enabling a user to check in to a predetermined location by the user submitting information relating to the predetermined location, the position information transmission system comprising:

an information processing center for storing a movement history of the vehicle in cooperation with the position information service center; and

a control unit connected via a network to the information processing center,

the control unit being configured to, when the movement history stored in the information processing center has been retrieved, acquire and output via the network a check-in point that is available to be checked in to and is included in the movement history and, on condition that an operation for designating the output check-in point has been performed by the user in the vehicle, output a control signal to the information processing center so that the information relating to a predetermined location of the user that is based on position information corresponding to the designated check-in point is submitted from the information processing center to the position information service center.

23. A position information transmission system according to claim 22, wherein the control unit outputs the acquired check-in point along with map information to a display unit.

24. A position information transmission system according to claim 22, wherein the control unit outputs information urging an operation for designating the output check-in point.

25-26. -26. (canceled)