TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING SYSTEM

• US 20160096402A1
• Filed: 10/01/2015
• Published: 04/07/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Tortured Genius Enterprises LLC
• Original Assignee: Tortured Genius Enterprises LLC
• Inventors: Carlin, Joseph, Martinez, Jose, Stockard, Kevin
• Application Number:
  US14/872,867
• Publication Number:
  US 20160096402A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0479 Communicating with external units being not part of the vehicle, e.g. tools for diagnostic, mobile phones, electronic keys or service stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]

Abstract

A vehicle tracking and identification system is provided. The system identifies a vehicle, determines its location, and retrieves information regarding the vehicle and/or its owner via transmissions received from a tire pressure monitoring system (“TPMS”). Law enforcement agencies may utilize the system and/or its data to conduct surveillance and commercial enterprises may utilize the system and/or its data to conduct marketing, among other users and uses.

Claims

1. A tire pressure monitoring system (“

TPMS”

) collection system comprising;

a collector whereby TPMS data is received;

a controller whereby an identity of a source of the TPMS data is determined; and

a user interface whereby the identity of the source is displayed to a user.

2. The TPMS collection system according to claim 1, wherein the user interface comprises a map displayable in response to a query associated with the source of the TPMS data.

3. The TPMS collection system according to claim 2,

wherein the map comprises one of a real-time map and a historical map, and

wherein the map indicates a subset of TPMS sources that have at least one of entered and exited an area during a time period.

4. The TPMS collection system according to claim 1,

wherein the controller is configured to receive a rule from the user, wherein the controller stores the rule in a collections repository database, and

whereby the rule directs the controller to transmit to the user interface a SMS message indicating that a specified event has occurred.

5. A collector comprising:

a radio in RF communication with a remote, mobile TPMS source, wherein TPMS data is received by the radio from the remote, mobile TPMS source; and

a network interface in logical communication with the radio, wherein the network interface provides at least a portion of the TPMS data to a network.

6. The collector according to claim 5, further comprising a processor whereby an unique identifier of the remote, mobile TPMS source is obtained from the TPMS data, wherein the remote, mobile TPMS source is identified.

7. The collector according to claim 6, the processor further comprising:

a TPMS data decoder configured to extract the at least a portion of the TPMS data;

an internal data/location correlator configured to access an address database containing records linking an unique identifier of the collector to a geographical location of the collector whereby the internal data/location correlator determines a location of the collector;

an internal data/external data correlator configured to access a third party data source to determine a correlation between the at least a portion of the TPMS data and the external data; and

an user interaction module configured to accept queries from a user.

8. The collector according to claim 7, wherein the external data comprises an identifying information comprising at least one of:

a vehicle make, a vehicle model, a vehicle identification number, and a personally identifying information of an owner of the vehicle.

9. The collector according to claim 7, wherein the internal data/location correlator is further configured to communicate with a collections repository database whereby historical data may be retrieved.

10. The collector according to claim 7, wherein the at least a portion of the TPMS data comprises the unique identifier of the remote, mobile TPMS source.

11. The collector according to claim 10, wherein the at least a portion of the TPMS data further comprises a temperature, and a pressure.

12. The collector according to claim 7, wherein the processor further comprises a multi-purpose module configured to access a collections repository database to retrieve the TPMS data collected by a remote collector remote from the collector.

13. The collector according to claim 7, wherein the processor further comprises a multi-purpose module configured to access the internal data/external data correlator to retrieve an identity of a person who owns a vehicle associated with the TPMS data.

14. The collector according to claim 7, wherein the processor further comprises a multi-purpose module configured to access the internal data/external data correlator to retrieve a targeted advertisement in response to the external data.

15. A method of using a TPMS collection system comprising:

receiving, by a collector, TPMS data;

conveying, by the collector, at least a portion of the TPMS data to a controller in logical communication with the collector;

retrieving records corresponding to a remote, mobile TPMS source by the controller in response to a query received from a user by a user interface in logical communication with the controller,

wherein the controller comprises a TPMS data decoder, an internal data/location correlator, an internal data/external data correlator, a user interaction module, and a multi-purpose module;

processing by the TPMS data decoder, the TPMS data and determining that the TPMS data originates from the remote, mobile TPMS source relevant to the query;

determining by the internal data/location correlator an identity of the collector; and

correlating by the internal data/location correlator the identity of the collector to a location of the collector.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising determining by the internal data/external data correlator at least one of a vehicle make, vehicle model, vehicle VIN number, and vehicle owner identity associated with the remote, mobile TPMS source in response to the TPMS data.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein the processing comprises determining that the remote, mobile TPMS source is associated with a vehicle having a VIN number comprising a user'"'"'s query.

18. The method according to claim 15, further comprising providing by the multi-purpose module a traffic density in an area surrounding the remote, mobile TPMS source.

19. The method according to claim 15, further comprising providing directions to law enforcement to intercept the remote, mobile TPMS source.

20. The method according to claim 15, further comprising:

providing by the user interaction module, a response to a user query in response to the determining; and

transmitting, by the user interaction module, the response to an interface device.