Method and system for monitoring a parameter of a vehicle tire

• US 5,473,938 A
• Filed: 08/03/1993
• Issued: 12/12/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: McLaughlin Electronics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: McLaughlin Electronics Incorporated
• Inventors: Handfield, Michael, Laliberte, Helene
• Primary Examiner(s): Chilcot, Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): Oen, William L.
• Application Number:
  US08/101,379
• Time in Patent Office: 861 Days
• Field of Search: 73/146.2, 73/146.3, 73/146.5, 73/146.8, 340/443, 340/444, 340/445, 340/448
• US Class Current: 73/146.5
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0401 characterised by the type of alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0411 Piezoelectric generators
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0422 characterised by the type of signal transmission means
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0452 Antenna structure, control or arrangement vehicle tyre mounted antennas H01Q1/2241
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0455 Transmission control of wireless signals
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0471 System initialisation, e.g. upload or calibration of operating parameters
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0483 Wireless routers between wheel mounted transmitters and chassis mounted receivers
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0498 for rim attachments B60C23/0494, B60C23/0496 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/1001 Alarm systems associated with another car fitting or mechanism, e.g. door lock or knob, pedals features related to the general power supply B60R25/1018

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and system for monitoring a parameter of a vehicle tire. In one embodiment, a detector unit disposed within the tire communicates with a central receiver unit over an electromagnetic path comprising one or more conductive components of the vehicle. Other embodiments of the invention include additional communications links for receiving information from and controlling the detector unit and the receiver.

Claims

1. A method for providing a user interface for a tire parameter monitoring system for a plurality of tires of a vehicle, the monitoring system having an alarm state triggerable by a parameter fault in any one of the tires, the method comprising the steps of:

displaying at least one alphanumeric character indicating the occurrence of an alarm state which identifies a particular tire as a source of the alarm state;

receiving a first signal indicative of a user request to terminate the alarm;

terminating the step of displaying in response to the first signal;

receiving a second signal indicative of a request from the user to provide information on the source in addition to identifying the source; and

displaying, in alphanumeric format, the tire parameter corresponding to the source in response to the second signal.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of displaying the tire parameter includes displaying the tire pressure.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of displaying at least one alphanumeric character includes flashing the at least one alphanumeric character.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing an audio alarm indicating the occurrence of the alarm state.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

pausing for a predetermined period of time after the step of displaying the tire parameter; and

prompting the user to enter information indicative of identity of the user.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising:

prompting the user to enter information indicative of a travel route.

7. A user interface for a tire parameter monitoring system which monitors a plurality of tires of a vehicle, the monitoring system having an alarm state triggerable by a parameter fault in any one of the tires, the interface comprising:

an alphanumeric display for displaying at least one alphanumeric character indicating occurrence of an alarm state which identifies a particular tire as a source of the alarm state;

a first button for generating a first signal indicative of a user request to terminate the alarm condition;

a second button for generating a second signal indicative of a request from the user to provide information relative to the source in addition to identifying the source; and

control logic for in communication with the alphanumeric display, the first button, and the second button for terminating display of the at least one alphanumeric character in response to the first signal, and prompting the user to enter user identification information in response to the second signal.

8. The user interface of claim 7 wherein the alphanumeric display comprises an LCD display.

9. The user interface of claim 8 wherein the interface provides an alphanumeric indication of orientational position of the vehicle.