Keyless entry system for automotive vehicle devices with weak-battery alarm
First Claim
1. A keyless entry system for an automotive vehicle lock device for selectably actuating the lock device to either of a first locked position and a second unlocked position, comprising:
- an electrical actuator associated with said lock device and responsive to a control signal to reverse the position of said lock device;
a manual switch mounted on a vehicle body and manually operable;
a transmitter responsive to a first radio signal which is produced in response to operation of said manual switch to output a second radio signal indicative of a predetermined digit of a unique code which identifies the transmitter;
a battery mounted on said transmitter for supplying electric power to said transmitter;
a controller mounted on said vehicle body and electrically connected to said manual switch to detect manual operation of said manual switch for transmitting said first radio signal in response to operation of said manual switch for activating said transmitter, receiving said second radio signal from said transmitter, comparing the unique code indicated by said second radio signal with a preset code, and in response to said manual switch, producing said control signal when said unique code matches said preset code; and
a weak-battery alarm means for detecting when the voltage generated by said battery drops below a given voltage and producing an alarm in such cases, said weak-battery alarm means comprising a first means incorporated in said transmitter for monitoring supply voltage of said battery to produce a predetermined digit of a weak-battery indicative code to be contained in said second radio signal, and a second means incorporated in said controller and responsive to said weak-battery indicative code for producing said alarm.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A keyless entry system can lock and unlock an automotive vehicle door, a trunk lid, a glove box and/or a steering column without an ignition key. The system comprises a transmitter producing a radio signal indicative of a preset unique code, and a controller receiving the radio signal and performing desired locking or unlocking operation when the code from the transmitter matches a preset code. A manual switch is provided to order the transmitter to transmit the code-indicative radio signal to the controller. The transmitter encloses a battery acting as a power source. A battery checker is provided to produce an alarm when the battery voltage becomes lower than a predetermined voltage.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A keyless entry system for an automotive vehicle lock device for selectably actuating the lock device to either of a first locked position and a second unlocked position, comprising:
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an electrical actuator associated with said lock device and responsive to a control signal to reverse the position of said lock device; a manual switch mounted on a vehicle body and manually operable; a transmitter responsive to a first radio signal which is produced in response to operation of said manual switch to output a second radio signal indicative of a predetermined digit of a unique code which identifies the transmitter; a battery mounted on said transmitter for supplying electric power to said transmitter; a controller mounted on said vehicle body and electrically connected to said manual switch to detect manual operation of said manual switch for transmitting said first radio signal in response to operation of said manual switch for activating said transmitter, receiving said second radio signal from said transmitter, comparing the unique code indicated by said second radio signal with a preset code, and in response to said manual switch, producing said control signal when said unique code matches said preset code; and a weak-battery alarm means for detecting when the voltage generated by said battery drops below a given voltage and producing an alarm in such cases, said weak-battery alarm means comprising a first means incorporated in said transmitter for monitoring supply voltage of said battery to produce a predetermined digit of a weak-battery indicative code to be contained in said second radio signal, and a second means incorporated in said controller and responsive to said weak-battery indicative code for producing said alarm. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13)
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- 10. The keyless entry system as set forth in claim 10, wherein said transmitter is small enough to fit in a clothing pocket.
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14. A keyless entry system for an automotive vehicle for operating one of a plurality of vehicle devices including a door lock device which is selectively operable to either of a first locked position and a second unlocked position, comprising:
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a plurality of electrical actuators respectively associated with the corresponding vehicle devices and responsive to a control signal to operate said corresponding vehicle device to desired position; a plurality of manual switches mounted on the vehicle and manually operable, each switch adapted for enabling operating one of the corresponding electrical actuators; a transmitter responsive to a first radio signal which is produced in response to operation of one of said manual switches for outputting a second radio signal indicative of a unique code which identifies the transmitter; a battery mounted on said transmitter for supplying electric power to said transmitter; a controller mounted on said vehicle body and electrically connected to each of said manual switches so as to be triggered by manual operation of said manual switches for transmitting said first radio signal in response to operation of said manual switch for activating said transmitter, receiving said second radio signal from said transmitter, comparing the unique code indicated by said second radio signal with a preset code, and in response to one of said manual switches, producing said control signal when said unique code matches said preset code, said controller including means responsive to manual operation of said one of said manual switches for identifying one of said actuators to be operated and operating said identified actuator for operating one of the vehicle devices corresponding to the manual switch operated; and a weak-battery alarm means for detecting when the voltage generated by said battery drops below a given voltage and producing an alarm in such cases, said weak-battery alarm means comprising a first means incorporated in said transmitter for monitoring supply voltage of said battery to produce a weak-battery indicative code to be contained in said second radio signal, and a second means incorporated in said controller and responsive to said weak-battery indicative code for producing said alarm. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17)
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18. A keyless entry system for an automotive vehicle lock device for selectably actuating the lock device to either of a first locked position and a second unlocked position, comprising:
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an electrical actuator associated with said lock device and responsive to a control signal to reverse the position of said lock device; a manual switch mounted on a vehicle body and manually operable for initiating keyless entry operation; a transmitter including a detector and a radio signal transmitter circuit, said detector being normally in a stand-by state in which said transmitter is detective of a first radio signal which is produced in response to manual operation of said manual switch, said transmitter being responsive to detection of said first radio signal by said detector for activating said radio signal transmitter circuit for outputting a second radio signal indicative of a unique code which identifies the transmitter; a battery mounted on said transmitter for supplying electric power to said transmitter; a weak-battery checker incorporated in said transmitter and cooperative with said radio signal transmitter circuit for checking battery voltage upon transmission of said second radio signal, said battery checker being responsive to the battery voltage lower than a given value to modify said second radio signal to be transmitted so that said modified second radio signal indicates a weak battery alarming command; and a controller mounted on said vehicle body and electrically connected to said manual switch to detect manual operation of said manual switch for transmitting said first radio signal in response to operation of said manual switch for activating said transmitter, comparing the unique code indicated by said second radio signal with a preset code, and, in response to said manual switch, producing said control signal when said unique code matches said preset code, said controller being responsive to said modified second radio signal indicative of said weak battery alarming command to output an alarm signal; and an alarm electrically connected to said controller and responsive to said alarm signal to generate an alarm.
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Specification