Apparatus and system for remotely updating and monitoring the status of a vehicle

• US 6,388,579 B1
• Filed: 12/22/1999
• Issued: 05/14/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intelligent Vehicle Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Intelligent Vehicle Systems, Inc.
• Inventors: Adcox, Thomas A., Adcox, William R.
• Primary Examiner(s): TONG, NINA C
• Application Number:
  US09/469,560
• Time in Patent Office: 874 Days
• Field of Search: 340/425.5, 340/426, 340/928, 340/902, 340/901, 340/904, 340/905, 340/988, 340/989, 340/990, 340/991, 340/992, 340/993, 340/994, 340/995, 340/996, 340/539, 340/540, 340/531, 340/534, 340/572.1, 340/825.33, 340/825.3, 340/825.34, 340/825.36, 340/825.44, 340/825.49, 340/10.1, 340/10.4, 340/10.41, 340/10.42, 340/10.6, 340/825.69, 340/825.7, 340/286.01
• US Class Current: 340/902
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles

Abstract

A vehicle status device and system for remotely updating and monitoring the status of a vehicle. The vehicle status device is located in a vehicle and reports status information for the vehicle and an owner to an interrogating unit. The device includes a database of status information for the vehicle and owner. An update receiver in the device receives updated information from a wide area paging network for storage in the database. An interrogation receiver receives an interrogation signal from the interrogating unit, and a response transmitter transmits encoded status information, including a vehicle identification (VID), to the interrogating unit in response. The updating and monitoring system also includes an interrogating unit which includes an interrogation transmitter for transmitting the interrogation signal to the vehicle status device, and a response receiver for receiving the encoded status information from the vehicle status device. A processor decodes the encoded status information and translates it into plain language for presentation to an operator. The system may be implemented as a ticket-less toll system by providing a database of subscribers in which VIDs are matched to subscriber identities, credit card information, and current status as valid subscribers.

Claims

1. A vehicle status device mounted in a vehicle for reporting status information for the vehicle to an external interrogating unit, said status device comprising:

a control processor;

a device memory interfaced with the processor that stores status information for the vehicle;

an update receiver that receives updated vehicle status information from an external central database and passes the information to the processor for storage in the device memory;

a radar receiver that receives a dataless radar signal from an external policeradar transmitter, and passes an indication of receiving the radar signal to the processor for retrieval of the status information from the device memory; and

a response transmitter that transmits the retrieved vehicle status information to the external interrogating unit in response to the radar receiver receiving the dataless radar signal.

2. A vehicle status device mounted in a vehicle for reporting status information for the vehicle to an external interrogating unit, said status device comprising:

a control processor;

a device memory interfaced with the processor that stores status information for the vehicle;

an update receiver that receives updated vehicle status information from an external central database and passes the information to the processor for storage in the device memory;

a laser detector that detects a dataless laser signal from an external police laser transmitter, and passes an indication of receiving the laser signal to the processor for retrieval of the status information from the device memory; and

a response transmitter that transmits the retrieved vehicle status information to the external interrogating unit in response to the laser detector receiving the dataless laser signal.

3. A vehicle status device mounted in a vehicle for reporting status information for the vehicle and an owner of the vehicle to an external interrogating unit, said status device comprising:

a control processor;

a device memory interfaced with the processor that stores status information for the vehicle and the owner;

a wide area pager receiver that receives encoded updated vehicle and owner information from an external central database through a wide area paging network, and passes the updated information to the processor for storage in the device memory;

a radar receiver that receives a dataless radar signal from an external police radar transmitter, and passes an indication of receiving the radar signal to the processor for retrieval of the status information from the device memory;

a response transmitter that receives retrieved encoded vehicle and owner information from the processor, and transmits the retrieved encoded vehicle and owner information to the external interrogating unit; and

a coder/decoder that decodes the updated information received from the wide area paging network and encodes the information retrieved from the device memory by the processor.

4. A vehicle status device mounted in a vehicle for reporting status information for the vehicle and an owner of the vehicle to an external interrogating unit, said status device comprising:

a control processor;

a device memory interfaced with the processor that stores status information for the vehicle and the owner;

a wide area pager receiver that receives encoded updated vehicle and owner information from an external central database through a wide area paging network, and passes the updated information to the processor for storage in the device memory;

a laser detector that detects a dataless laser signal from an external police laser transmitter, and passes an indication of receiving the laser signal to the processor for retrieval of the status information from the device memory;

a response transmitter that receives retrieved encoded vehicle and owner information from the processor, and transits the retrieved encoded vehicle and owner information to the external interrogating unit; and

a coder/decoder that decodes the updated information received from the wide area paging network and encodes the information retrieved from the device memory by the processor.