PERFORMING A VEHICLE UPDATE

• US 20160266886A1
• Filed: 03/10/2015
• Published: 09/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Sarkar, Susanta P., Turski, Karin L.
• Application Number:
  US14/643,403
• Publication Number:
  US 20160266886A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• 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 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

A mobile vehicle communications system and method for performing a software update at a vehicle. The method carried out by the system includes the steps of: providing a vehicle user of an update availability message associated with a vehicle electronic control unit (ECU); receiving a vehicle user consent to install the update; determining whether a vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE; when the vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE, then installing the update; and providing a notification to a mobile device associated with the vehicle user that the installation is complete.

Claims

1. A method of performing a software update at a vehicle, comprising the steps of:

providing a vehicle user of an update availability message associated with a vehicle electronic control unit (ECU);

receiving a vehicle user consent to install the update;

determining whether a vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE;

when the vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE, then installing the update; and

providing a notification to a mobile device associated with the vehicle user that the installation is complete.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether a vehicle parked condition is TRUE; and

installing the update only when both the vehicle parked condition is TRUE and the vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising during the installing step, inhibiting vehicle ignition.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising downloading the update prior to the installing step.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing the notification further comprises notifying the vehicle user using a vehicle multi-tainment unit (VMU).

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of providing the notification further comprises at least one of the following:

providing the notification from the VMU to a telematics unit in the vehicle (VTU), wherein the VTU provides the notification to the mobile device;

providing the notification from the VMU to the VTU, wherein the VTU provides the notification to a remote server, wherein the remote server provides the notification to the mobile device;

providing the notification from the VMU directly to the mobile device via short range wireless communication (SRWC);

providing the notification from the VMU to a local wireless access point (WAP), wherein the WAP provides the notification to the remote server, wherein the remote server provides the notification to the mobile device;

or

providing the notification from the VMU to the local WAP, wherein the local WAP is the mobile device, wherein the local WAP provides the notification via a software application on the mobile device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the remote server provides the notification using the software application on the mobile device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification is provided using short message service (SMS).

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the SMS notification is provided by a vehicle telematics unit (VTU) or a vehicle multi-tainment unit (VMU).

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising performing a verification process that includes:

receiving the update at a vehicle telematics unit (VTU) from a remote server;

comparing one or more ECU parameters with one or more update parameters; and

providing the update availability message only when the one or more ECU parameters correspond with the one or more update parameters.

11. A method of performing a software update at a vehicle, comprising the steps of:

receiving an update availability message associated with an update for a vehicle electronic control unit (ECU);

providing a vehicle user of the update availability message using a vehicle multi-tainment unit (VMU);

determining that a vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE;

prompting the user to install the update;

when an indication is received that the user wishes to install the update;

determining whether a vehicle parked condition is TRUE, and

when the vehicle ignition condition and the vehicle parked condition are TRUE, then installing the update; and

providing a notification from the VMU to a mobile device associated with the user that the installation is complete.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising during the installing step, inhibiting vehicle ignition.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising downloading the update prior to the installing step.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the notification is provided using short message service (SMS).

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the SMS notification is provided via the VTU or the VMU.

16. A method of performing a software update at a vehicle, comprising the steps of:

providing an update availability message after downloading the software update using a vehicle telematics unit or a vehicle multi-tainment unit (VMU);

determining whether a vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE;

when the vehicle ignition OFF condition is TRUE, then installing the update;

inhibiting vehicle ignition during the installing step; and

providing a notification from the VMU to a mobile device associated with a user of the vehicle that the installation is complete.