Advance notification system and method utilizing vehicle signaling
DCFirst Claim
1. A method, comprising the steps of:
- monitoring travel of a vehicle;
contacting a user communications device associated with a user before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop;
informing the user that the vehicle will be delayed in reaching the vehicle stop and informing the user of the vehicle proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop;
making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop; and
providing a report regarding travel status of the vehicle during the notification call.
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Abstract
An advance notification system and method notifies passengers of the impending arrival of a transportation vehicle, for example, a school bus, at a particular vehicle stop. The system generally includes an on-board vehicle control unit for each vehicle and a base station control unit for making telephone calls to passengers in order to inform the passengers when the vehicle is a certain predefined time period and/or distance away from the vehicle stop. The VCU compares elapsed time and/or traveled distance to the programmed scheduled time and/or traveled distance to determine if the vehicle is on schedule. If the vehicle is behind or ahead of schedule, the VCU calls the BSCU, which then adjusts its calling schedule accordingly.
175 Citations
26 Claims
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1. A method, comprising the steps of:
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monitoring travel of a vehicle;
contacting a user communications device associated with a user before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop;
informing the user that the vehicle will be delayed in reaching the vehicle stop and informing the user of the vehicle proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop;
making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop; and
providing a report regarding travel status of the vehicle during the notification call. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 17, 18)
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6. A method, comprising the steps of:
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monitoring travel of the vehicle;
comparing planned timing of the vehicle along a route to updated vehicle status information;
contacting a user communications device before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop along the route;
informing the user of the vehicle delay with respect to the vehicle stop and of updated impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop, based upon the updated vehicle status information and the planned timing; and
making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 19, 20)
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12. A system, comprising:
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means for monitoring travel of the vehicle;
means for contacting a user communications device before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop; and
means for informing the user that the vehicle will be delayed in reaching the vehicle stop and informing the user of the vehicle proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop;
means for providing a report regarding travel status of the vehicle during the notification call; and
means for making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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21. A system, comprising:
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means for monitoring travel of the vehicle;
means for comparing planned timing of the vehicle along a route to updated vehicle status information;
means for contacting a user communications device before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop along the route;
means for informing the user of the vehicle delay with respect to the vehicle stop and of updated impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop, based upon the updated vehicle status information and the planned timing; and
means for making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification