VALET MODE FOR RESTRICTED OPERATION OF A VEHICLE AND CLOUD ACCESS OF A HISTORY OF USE MADE DURING VALET MODE USE

• US 20150203125A1
• Filed: 03/27/2015
• Published: 07/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Emerging Automotive, LLC
• Original Assignee: Emerging Automotive, LLC
• Inventors: Penilla, Angel A., Penilla, Albert S.
• Granted Patent: US 10,286,919 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/08 Interaction between the driver and the control system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/445 by mutual authentication, e.g. between devices or programs
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2209/04 Access control involving a hierarchy in access rights
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00571 operated by interacting with a central unit
• 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: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• 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 vehicle having logic for processing a valet mode of the vehicle. An example of the vehicle includes a display screen of the vehicle. The display screen is configured to render information regarding operational modes of the vehicle, where one of the operational modes includes a valet mode. The vehicle includes an on-board computer including a processor for enabling the valet mode in response to input instructions received during a privileged access for a user account to enable the valet mode. The valet mode is configured to set restrictions upon systems and operation of the vehicle. The systems of the vehicle including functional inputs of the vehicle and the operation of the vehicle including at least a speed restriction. The processor is further configured to cause a notification to be rendered on the display screen to indicate that a recording of use of the vehicle will be made while the vehicle is in the valet mode. The recording produces a history of use of the vehicle for one or more sessions of being in the valet mode.

Claims

1. A vehicle, comprising,

a display screen of the vehicle, the display screen configured to render information regarding operational modes of the vehicle, the operational modes including a valet mode;

an on-board computer including a processor for enabling the valet mode in response to input instructions received during a privileged access for a user account to enable the valet mode, the valet mode is configured to set restrictions upon systems and operation of the vehicle, the systems of the vehicle including functional inputs of the vehicle and the operation of the vehicle including a speed restriction, the processor is further configured to cause a notification to be rendered on the display screen to indicate that a recording of use of the vehicle is being made while the vehicle is in the valet mode, the recording producing a history of use of the vehicle for one or more sessions of being in the valet mode;

wireless communication logic connected with the on-board computer of the vehicle, the processor of the on-board computer is configured to use the wireless communication logic to enable wireless access to the vehicle via an application of a device, the application of the device enables input of the privileged access for the user account associated with the vehicle to enable communication with a network for viewing or interacting with settings of the operational modes of the vehicle and the history of use of the vehicle for one or more sessions when the vehicle was in the valet mode; and

local storage of the vehicle for saving at least some data processed by the processor of the on-board computer, the local storage further including data associated with the user account so that the processor of the on-board computer enables login to the vehicle, the login providing access to a user profile for using the vehicle, the user profile defining settings for the operational modes including the valet mode, wherein login to the vehicle with an administrator login enables the privileged access for the user account;

wherein login to the vehicle is provided via one or more user interfaces of the vehicle or via one or more user interfaces of the application of the device;

wherein the administrator login to the vehicle provides access via an interface of the vehicle or via the application of the device to the settings of the operational modes of the user account, the settings of the operational modes are configured to be saved from time to time to cloud storage of a cloud server that manages the user account, the cloud server being remote from the vehicle.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein vehicle sensors and vehicle electronics produce data collected and represent at least some data that is part of the recording of use of the vehicle while in the valet mode.

3. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising,

a camera of the vehicle is used for at least part of the recording of use of the vehicle, the camera is configured to capture a video recording of inside of the vehicle.

4. The vehicle of claim 3, wherein the recording of use of the vehicle includes having the camera record a driver'"'"'s face and displaying the recording of the driver'"'"'s face on the display screen during a period of time while in the valet mode.

6. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the vehicle includes at least one microphone for capturing audio in and around the vehicle while in the valet mode.

7. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the process further enables the valet mode to set a travel distance restriction and assign alerts or notifications to be sent to the user account when the vehicle is detected to have traveled beyond the travel distance restriction which signals a violation, wherein data regarding the violation is saved to the history of use, and wherein the alerts or notifications are sent via one of an email, or a text, or mobile phone call, or a notification to the application of the device.

8. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the processor further enables the valet mode to set a restriction on trunk access of the vehicle and assign alerts or notifications to be sent to the user account upon detection of a violation, data regarding the violation being saved to the history of use, and wherein the alerts or notifications are sent via one of an email, or a text, or mobile phone call, or a notification to the application of the device.

9. The vehicle of claim 3, wherein a privacy setting provides for disabling the camera of the vehicle.

10. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the user profile of the vehicle is accessible upon verifying biometrics of at least one occupant of the vehicle.

11. The vehicle of claim 10, wherein the biometrics includes one of face recognition processing, or fingerprint recognition processing, or voice detection processing, or retina scan processing, or password processing, or login processing, or combinations of two or more thereof.

12. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the history of use is used to generated one or more learned settings to be made part of one or more operational modes of the vehicle.

13. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising,

notification logic processed by the on-board computer, the notification logic configured to output one or more alerts when a violation of at least one restriction set by the valet mode is detected, the alerts include one or more of audible alerts within the vehicle, sound alerts within the vehicle or text/icon alerts presented on the display screen of the vehicle.

14. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein at least one restriction is set based on a learned setting from previous uses of the valet mode via the user account.

5. The vehicle of 1, wherein the wireless communication logic includes electronics and software for communication with the network to connect wirelessly with the cloud server and cloud storage, the cloud storage configured to store data for the user account and data for the history of use of the vehicle for the user account.