Vehicle accessory adjusting system and method of adjusting vehicle accessory

• US 7,415,339 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2006
• Issued: 08/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ikeda, Hirotane, Tanaka, Kimiaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Hellner; Mark
• Application Number:
  US11/484,738
• Publication Number:
  US 20070021893A1
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 701/49, 701/36, 340/426.34, 340/438
• US Class Current: 701/49
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/037 for occupant comfort , e.g. for automatic adjustment of appliances according to personal settings, e.g. seats, mirrors, steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/2081 combined with personal settings of other vehicle devices, e.g. mirrors, seats, steering wheels

Abstract

A vehicle accessory adjusting system that adjusts a variety of on-vehicle accessories of a vehicle to suit a driver or a passenger according to personal data stored in an IC card or other portable data storage medium. The vehicle accessory adjusting system includes a memory that stores standard setting data on the on-vehicle accessories, calculation circuit for calculating personal data based on specific setting data obtained when a driver or a passenger uses some on-vehicle accessories and corresponding standard setting data of the on-vehicle accessories, a rewriting unit to rewrite the personal data stored in the IC card with new personal data; and setting circuit to set the on-vehicle accessories according to the personal data stored in the IC card and the standard setting data stored in the memory.

Claims

1. A vehicle accessory adjusting system for adjusting a plurality of on-vehicle accessories of a vehicle of one type to suit an individual according to personal data stored in a portable data storage medium, said vehicle accessory adjusting system comprising:

memory means for storing standard setting data on the on-vehicle accessories of a plurality of different types of vehicles that includes the vehicle of one type and a specific vehicle;

setting means for setting the on-vehicle accessories of the vehicle of one type according to the personal data stored in the portable data storage medium and the standard setting data;

calculation means for calculating data based on specific setting data obtained when the individual uses at least one of the on-vehicle accessories of the vehicle of one type and one of the stored standard setting data that correspond to at least one of the on-vehicle accessories; and

rewriting means for rewriting the personal data stored in the portable data storage medium with the data that is calculated;

wherein;

said portable data storage medium stores specific offset values relative to the standard setting data of the specific vehicle from the standard setting data of the plurality of vehicles of different types as the personal data; and

said setting means sets the on-vehicle accessories of the vehicle of one type according to the standard setting data and the offset values of the vehicle of one type from the standard setting data of the specific vehicle.

2. The vehicle accessory adjusting system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plurality of on-vehicle accessories includes a vehicle seat operating unit.

3. The vehicle accessory adjusting system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plurality of on-vehicle accessories includes a vehicle mirror operating unit.

4. The vehicle accessory adjusting system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said portable data storage medium is a memory card.

5. The vehicle accessory adjusting system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising drive-condition-mode-sensing means for providing a plurality of drive condition modes, wherein:

said memory means stores standard setting data that correspond to the drive condition modes; and

said setting means sets the on-vehicle accessories according to the personal data stored in the portable storage medium, the standard setting data and the drive condition modes.

6. The vehicle accessory adjusting system as claimed in claim 5, further comprising:

history memory means for memorizing data on the drive condition modes and corresponding setting data in a chronological order; and

selection means for selecting setting data that correspond to one of the drive condition modes.

7. The vehicle accessory adjusting system as claimed in claim 6, wherein said selection means selects the most frequently applied setting data.

8. A vehicle accessory adjusting system for adjusting an on-vehicle accessory of a vehicle of one type comprising:

an IC card having a personal data memory for storing personal data;

a reader-writer controlled by said data processor to read personal data from or write the personal data into the personal data memory of said IC card;

setting data memory storing standard setting data on the on-vehicle accessory of a plurality of different types of vehicles that includes the vehicle of one type and a specific vehicle;

an accessory controller having a controller, a handle and a driver, said accessory controller setting the on-vehicle accessory according to the personal data stored in the portable storage medium and the standard setting data stored in the setting data memory;

a data processor for controlling said reader writer, said setting data memory and said accessory controller;

wherein;

said personal data memory of said IC card stores specific offset values relative to the standard setting data of said specific vehicle from the standard setting data of the plurality of vehicles of different types as the personal data; and

said data processor calculates data when the individual sets the on-vehicle accessories by the handle, thereby to control said reader-writer to renews the personal data stored in the portable data storage medium with the data that is calculated.

9. A method of adjusting a plurality of on-vehicle accessories of a vehicle of one type to suit an individual according to personal data stored in a portable data storage medium, said method comprising:

storing specific offset values relative to standard setting data of a specific vehicle from a plurality of vehicles of different types that include said vehicle of one type and said specific vehicle as the personal data in said portable data storage medium;

storing standard setting data on the on-vehicle accessories of the plurality of vehicles of different types into a memory disposed in a vehicle;

setting the on-vehicle accessories according to the offset values of the personal data stored in the portable storaae medium and the standard setting data;

calculating data based on specific setting data obtained when the individual uses at least one of the on-vehicle accessories and one of the stored standard setting data that correspond to at least one of the on-vehicle accessories of the vehicle of one type and;

rewriting the personal data stored in the portable data storage medium with the data that is calculated.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein said portable data storage medium is a memory card.

11. The method as claimed in claim 9, further comprising:

providing a drive-condition-mode-sensor for providing a plurality of drive condition modes,

wherein;

said storing comprises storing standard setting data that correspond to a plurality of vehicle drive condition modes.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

memorizing data on the drive condition modes and corresponding setting data in a chronological order; and

selecting most frequently applied setting data from the setting data that correspond to one of the drive condition modes.