Wireless piconet access to vehicle operational statistics

• US 6,408,232 B1
• Filed: 04/18/2000
• Issued: 06/18/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Carrum Technologies, LLC (Pratima Instruments, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Agere Systems Guardian Corp. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cannon, Joseph M., Johanson, James A., Mooney, Philip D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A
• Assistant Examiner(s): To, Tuan C
• Application Number:
  US09/551,553
• Time in Patent Office: 791 Days
• Field of Search: 701/29, 701/101, 701/115, 701/117, 701/102, 701/114, 701/33, 340/348, 340/825.34, 340/991, 340/933, 455/546, 370/328, 370/401, 123/493
• US Class Current: 701/29
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/017 identifying vehicles G08G1/015, G08G1/054 take precedence

Abstract

A wireless piconet transceiver is mounted in a vehicle, and a complementary fixed wireless piconet transceiver is mounted in a garage, service station, police squad car, etc., for communication with the vehicle when parked adjacent thereto. The vehicle establishes a temporary piconet network with the user'"'"'s home piconet. Vehicle operational statistics are tracked and maintained in a centralized vehicle computer database. This database can be manipulated to store the data desired by the vehicle owner. Via a wireless piconet connection, this database can transmitted to another piconet device such as the owner'"'"'s computer. This computer system can be part of a wireless piconet, such as Bluetooth, This provides the computer with the ability to communicate with external wireless devices such as a cell phone, PDA, computer, or a cordless telephone. This invention allows for the configuration, or selection of desired vehicle data to be tracked. This configuration can take place on the owner'"'"'s home computer (or laptop) and consequently transmitted to the vehicle computer using a wireless piconet protocol, e.g., the Bluetooth protocol. Additionally, this configuration can be manipulated by a direct interface to the vehicle provided by the manufacturer. Exemplary vehicle statistics which may be tracked include, but are not limited to, miles per gallon, average miles per hour, maximum MPH, miles driven per trip, driving statistics based on time of day and/or on identified driver, rotations of the engine per minute (RPM), temperature of engine, fuel gauge level, oil pressure, tires, brakes, engine coolant, wiper fluid, global positioning satellite (GPS) system, and/or even compressed voice from inside car cockpit during operation of vehicle.

Claims

1. A wireless piconet transceiver for mounting in a vehicle, comprising:

an RF piconet front end; and

memory adapted for storage of monitored statistics therein relating to at least one operational aspect of a vehicle;

wherein said monitored statistics are uploadable to another device on a piconet over said RF piconet front end.

2. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle statistics are at least one of:

miles per gallon of fuel; and

miles per trip.

3. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said monitored vehicle statistics comprise:

average miles per hour.

4. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said monitored vehicle statistics comprise:

maximum miles per hour.

5. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said monitored vehicle statistics comprise:

rotations of engine per minute;

temperature of engine; and

brake level.

7. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said monitored vehicle statistics comprise:

global positioning satellite (GPS) navigational information.

8. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said monitored vehicle statistics comprise:

said voice data from inside car cockpit during operation of vehicle.

9. The wireless piconet transceiver for mounting a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein:

said voice data is compressed using a suitable compression algorithm.

6. A wireless piconet transceiver for mounting in a vehicle, comprising:

an RF piconet front end; and

memory adapted for storage of monitored statistics therein relating to at least one operational aspect of a vehicle;

wherein said monitored statistics are uploadable to another device on a piconet over said RF piconet front end, and comprise engine coolant and

wiper fluid.

10. A vehicle statistics maintenance system, comprising:

a vehicle wireless piconet transceiver mounted in a vehicle; and

a fixed wireless piconet transceiver;

wherein a wireless piconet network is temporarily established between said vehicle wireless piconet transceiver and said fixed wireless piconet transceiver to allow upload of desired vehicle statistical information from said vehicle wireless piconet transceiver and said fixed wireless piconet transceiver.

11. The vehicle statistics maintenance system according to claim 10, wherein said fixed wireless piconet transceiver is one of:

mounted in a garage;

mounted in a public service station;

mounted in a police squad car; and

associated with a laptop computer.

12. A method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle, comprising:

maintaining a log of measurements relating to at least one operational aspect of said vehicle in memory mounted in said vehicle;

temporarily establishing a wireless piconet network between said vehicle and a fixed wireless piconet transceiver; and

uploading said log of measurements relating to at least one operational aspect of said vehicle to said fixed wireless piconet transceiver using said temporarily established wireless piconet network.

13. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein:

said fixed wireless piconet transceiver is mounted in a garage associated with said vehicle.

14. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

maximum speed.

15. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

global positioning system (GPS) navigational information.

16. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises at least one of:

miles per gallon of fuel; and

miles per trip.

17. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

average miles per hour.

18. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

maximum miles per hour.

19. The method of maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 12, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises at least one of:

rotations of engine per minute;

temperature of engine; and

brake level.

20. Apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle, comprising:

means for maintaining a log of measurements relating to at least one operational aspect of said vehicle in memory mounted in said vehicle;

means for temporarily establishing a wireless piconet network between said vehicle and a fixed wireless piconet transceiver; and

means for uploading said log of measurements relating to at least one operational aspect to said fixed wireless piconet transceiver using said temporarily established wireless piconet network.

21. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein:

said fixed wireless piconet transceiver is mounted in a garage associated with said vehicle.

22. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

maximum speed.

23. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

global positioning system (GPS) navigational information.

24. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises at least one of:

miles per gallon of fuel; and

miles per trip.

25. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

average miles per hour.

26. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises:

maximum miles per hour.

27. The apparatus for maintaining statistics relating to an operational aspect of a vehicle according to claim 20, wherein said at least one operational aspect of said vehicle comprises at least one of:

rotations of engine per minute;

temperature of engine; and

brake level.