Vehicle passive alert system and method

• US 7,065,445 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2003
• Issued: 06/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Calamp Wireless Networks Inc. (CalAmp Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mobilearia (Wireless Matrix Corporation)
• Inventors: Thayer, Peter A., Shao, Victor, Mahesh, Subramanian
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gibson, Eric M.
• Application Number:
  US10/395,841
• Publication Number:
  US 20040102895A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,184 Days
• Field of Search: 701/200, 701/201, 701/207, 701/208, 701/211, 701/213, 340/988, 340/989, 340992-994, 340/995.13, 340/995.24
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/207 with respect to certain areas, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas with possible alerting when inside or outside boundaries

Abstract

A passive alert system is provided for vehicles traveling along a predetermined travel route. The vehicles are equipped with vehicle processing systems which are in communication with a remote server. The remote server acquires information pertaining to conditions along the travel route, such as weather and traffic conditions, and determines if these conditions are of a nature which warrants reporting them to the vehicle processing systems.

Claims

1. A passive alert system for a vehicle adapted to travel along a predetermined travel route, the passive alert system comprising:

a vehicle processing system disposed onboard the vehicle; and

a server remote from the vehicle, the server acquiring condition information relating to one or more prospective points along the travel route, generating one or more alerts based on the acquired condition information, and transmitting the one or more alerts wirelessly to the vehicle processing system,

wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions, and wherein each alert includes at least one alertable condition selected from one or more lists of alertable conditions one of the two lists associated with short-term prospective points, and the other of the two lists associated with long-term prospective points.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions about 1-4 hours ahead along the travel route from a closest known position of the vehicle.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions one or more days ahead along the travel route from a closest known position of the vehicle.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the vehicle processing system receives the alerts and provides visual indication thereof.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle processing system receives the alerts and provides an audible indication thereof.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle processing system receives the alerts and provides one or a combination of visual and audible indications thereof depending on whether a vehicle parking brake is engaged.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the server includes a weather broker in communication with a weather service provider through a network.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the network is the Internet, and the weather service provider is hosted in the World Wide Web.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more lists include severity assignments associated with each alertable condition, and wherein each alert further includes the severity assignment of the alertable condition included in the alert.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the server includes a traffic broker in communication with a traffic service provider through a network.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the network is the Internet, and the traffic service provider is hosted in the World Wide Web.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the condition information pertains to traffic conditions along a portion of the travel route between a closest known position of the vehicle and a first prospective point.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the first prospective point is about 15 minutes ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

14. A server for providing alerts to a remote processing systems onboard a vehicle which is adapted to travel along a predetermined travel route, the server comprising:

a vehicle location monitoring system for providing vehicle location information;

a condition information broker adapted to communicate with a service provider and acquire therefrom condition information along one or more prospective points along the travel route, the prospective points being based on a closest known position of the vehicle as indicated by the vehicle location information;

an alert generator for generating one or more alerts based on the condition information acquired from the service provider; and

a communication manager for establishing a communication link with the remote processing system through which the one or more alerts are sent, wherein the one or more alerts include at least one alertable condition selected from one or more lists of alertable conditions, and wherein one of the two lists is associated with short-term prospective points, and the other of the two lists is associated with long-term prospective points.

15. The server of claim 14, wherein the service provider is a weather service provider, and the condition information pertains to weather conditions about one or more days ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

16. The server of claim 14, wherein the service provider is a weather service provider, and the condition information pertains to weather conditions about 1-4 hours ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

17. The server of claim 14, wherein the one or more lists include severity assignments associated with each alertable condition, and wherein each alert further includes the severity assignment of the alertable condition included in the alert.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the service provider is a traffic service provider, and the condition information pertains to traffic conditions along a portion of the travel route between the closet known position of the vehicle and a first prospective point.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the first prospective point is about 15 minutes ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

20. The server of claim 14, wherein the condition information broker is adapted to communicate with the service provider through a network selected from one or more of the Internet, a LAN, or a WAN.

21. A method for communicating passive alerts from a server to a vehicle having a vehicle processing system and traveling along a predetermined travel route, the method comprising:

determining a closest known position of the vehicle;

acquiring condition information relating to one or more prospective points along the travel route;

generating one or more alerts based on the acquired condition information;

transmitting the one or more alerts wirelessly to the vehicle processing system; and

selecting at least one alertable condition from one or more lists of alertable conditions and including the selected alertable condition in the alert, the alertable condition being selected from one of two different lists of alertable conditions, one of the two lists being associated with short-term prospective points.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions about 1-4hours ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions one or more days ahead along the travel route from a closest known position of the vehicle.

25. The method of claim 21, further including providing a visual indication of the alerts in the vehicle.

26. The method of claim 21, further including providing an audible indication of the alerts in the vehicle.

27. The method of claim 21, further comprising providing, in the vehicle, one or a combination of visual and audible indications of the alerts, depending on whether a vehicle parking brake is engaged.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein the condition information is acquired from a weather service provider over the Internet.

29. The method of claim 21, wherein the condition information is acquired from a traffic service provider over the Internet and pertains to traffic conditions along a portion of the travel route between the closest known position of the vehicle and a first prospective point.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the first prospective point is about ‥

minutes ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

31. The method of claim 21, wherein the one or more lists include severity assignments associated with each alertable condition, the method further comprising including the severity assignment of the alertable condition in the alert.

32. Computer-readable media containing one or more programs which execute the following procedure for communicating passive alerts from a server to a vehicle having a vehicle processing system and traveling along a predetermined travel route:

determining a closest known position of the vehicle;

acquiring condition information relating to one or more prospective points along the travel route;

generating one or more alerts based on the acquired condition information;

transmitting the one or more alerts wirelessly to the vehicle processing system; and

selecting at least one alertable condition from one or more lists of alertable conditions, and including the selected alertable condition in the alert wherein the alertable condition is selected from one of two different lists of alertable conditions, one of the two lists being associated with short-term prospective points, and the other of the two lists being associated with long-term prospective points.

33. The computer-readable media of claim 32, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions.

34. The computer-readable media of claim 33, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions about 1-4 hours ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

35. The computer-readable media of claim 33, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions one or more days ahead along the travel route from a closest known position of the vehicle.

36. The computer-readable media of claim 32, the procedure further comprising presenting a visual indication of the alerts in the vehicle.

37. The computer-readable media of claim 32, the procedure further comprising presenting an audible indication of the alerts in the vehicle.

38. The computer-readable media of claim 32, the procedure further comprising presenting, in the vehicle one or a combination of visual and audible indications of the alerts, depending on whether a vehicle parking brake is engaged.

39. The computer-readable media of claim 32, wherein the condition information is acquired from a weather service provider over the Internet.

40. The computer-readable media of claim 32, wherein the condition information is acquired from a traffic service provider over the Internet and pertains to traffic conditions along a portion of the travel route between the closest known position of the vehicle and a first prospective point.

41. The computer-readable mediate of claim 40, wherein the first prospective point is about 15 minutes ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.

42. The computer-readable media of claim 32, wherein the one or more lists include severity assignments associated with each alertable condition, the procedure further comprising including the severity assignment of the alertable condition in the alert.

43. A vehicle fleet management system comprising:

one or more fleet servers each managing a vehicle fleet;

a vehicle processing system disposed in each vehicle of a fleet; and

an alert server receiving vehicle-specific information from the fleet servers, the alert server obtaining, for each vehicle, condition information relating to one or more prospective points along a travel route of the vehicle, generating one or more alerts specific to the vehicle based on the condition information, and transmitting the one or more alerts wirelessly to the processing system in the vehicle,

wherein each alert includes at least one alertable condition selected from one or more lists of alertable conditions, and wherein the alertable condition is selected from one of two different lists of alertable conditions, wherein one of the two lists is associated with short-term prospective points, and the other of the two lists is associated with long-term prospective points.

44. The system of claim 43, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions.

45. The system of claim 44, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions about 1-4 hours ahead along the travel route from a closest known position of the vehicle.

46. The system of claim 44, wherein the condition information pertains to weather conditions one or more days ahead along the travel route from a closest known position of the vehicle.

47. The system of claim 43, wherein the server includes a weather broker in communication with a weather service provider through a network.

48. The system of claim 47, wherein the network is the Internet, and the weather service provider is hosted in the World Wide Web.

49. The system of claim 43, wherein the one or more lists include severity assignments associated with each alertable condition, and wherein each alert further includes the severity assignment of the alertable condition included in the alert.

50. The system of claim 43, wherein the server includes a traffic broker in communication with a traffic service provider through a network.

51. The system of claim 50, wherein the network is the Internet, and the traffic service provider is hosted in the World Wide Web.

52. The system of claim 43, wherein the condition information pertains to traffic conditions along a portion of the travel route between a closest known position of the vehicle and a first prospective point.

53. The system of claim 52, wherein the first prospective point is about 15 minutes ahead along the travel route from the closest known position of the vehicle.