System and method for over the air programming

• US 7,623,853 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2006
• Issued: 11/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PeopleNet Communications Corporation (Trimble Inc.)
• Original Assignee: PeopleNet Communications Corporation (Trimble Inc.)
• Inventors: Vikse, Gordon Brent, Erickson, Kjell David, Terry, Edward D., Lowell, James Russell, Egle, Duvall D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Edouard; Patrick N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cai; Wayne
• Application Number:
  US11/425,326
• Publication Number:
  US 20070015499A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,253 Days
• Field of Search: 455/418, 455/419, 455/410
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/18 Comparators
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/052 software update
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42178 by downloading data to substation equipment

Abstract

A system and a method for performing over the air programming (“OTAP”) to update computer code in a remote computer. The method includes transmitting computer code over the air to the remote device and writing the computer code to at least one memory device located in the remote device. In one embodiment, the remote device is a cellular phone and the computer code is transmitted over a cellular phone network.

Claims

1. A method for programming computer code at a remote platform having a local computer, the local computer including a flash memory, the method comprising:

receiving a plurality of computer code packets by wireless transmission;

storing the plurality of computer code packets in a first memory of the local computer;

recognizing reception of a complete copy of the computer code at the local computer;

in response to such recognized reception, shutting down and rebooting the local computer;

in response to rebooting the local computer, checking the integrity of the received computer code and burning the successfully checked computer code into the flash memory; and

after burning the received computer code into the flash memory, erasing the stored computer code from the first memory; and

restarting the local computer.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the remote platform is a mobile platform.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the mobile platform is a vehicle.

4. A method for updating computer code in a remote computer, comprising:

downloading a plurality of messages, each of the plurality of messages comprising a segment of the computer code;

storing the downloaded computer code in non-volatile memory;

detecting when a

complete set of the computer code comprising a complete set of the plurality of messages have been downloaded;

in response to such detecting, rebooting the remote computer;

in response to rebooting starting a computer code bum in process, comprising;

assembling the complete set of the computer code into a continuous memory;

checking the integrity of the downloaded computer code and if valid, burning the computer code in the continuous memory into a flash memory of the remote computer; and

rebooting the remote computer.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the remote platform is a mobile platform.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the mobile platform is a vehicle.

7. A system for programming of computer code in a local computer having a flash memory, the system comprising:

a central location that distributes updated computer code to the local computer using a wireless transmission medium;

a receiver at the local computer that receives the updated computer code;

a non-volatile memory at the local computer that stores the updated computer code;

a detection module at the local computer that detects when a complete copy of the computer code has been stored, and initiates a reboot process;

a burner program initiated during such reboot process that bums the computer code into the flash memory, and erases the computer code from the stored updated computer code from the non-volatile memory; and

a reboot program that reboots the local computer after burning the computer code into the flash memory.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the local computer is located on mobile platform.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the mobile platform is a truck.

10. A method for programming a computer with computer code on a remote platform, the method comprising:

receiving wirelessly transmitted computer code;

storing the received computer code in a first memory of the local computer;

in response to storing a complete copy of the computer code, shutting down and rebooting the local computer;

detecting the presence of the received computer code in the first memory during such reboot;

in response to detecting the presence of the received computer code during the reboot, burning the received computer code into a second memory of the computer;

after the code has been burned into the second memory, restarting the local computer such that the burned in code is executable.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the remote platform is a mobile platform.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the mobile platform is a vehicle.

13. A method for updating computer code in a remote computer, comprising:

downloading a plurality of packets including computer code;

storing the downloaded computer code in a first non-volatile memory;

detecting when a complete set of the computer code has been downloaded;

upon such detecting, rebooting the remote computer;

during such rebooting, detecting the presence of the downloaded computer code in the first non-volatile memory;

in response to such detecting, starting a computer code burn in process, comprising;

checking the integrity of the computer code and burning the computer code into a second memory of the remote computer;

deleting the stored computer code from the first non-volatile memory; and

rebooting the remote computer to execute the code burned into the second memory.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the remote platform is a mobile platform.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the mobile platform is a vehicle.

16. A method for programming a remote computer, the method comprising:

receiving wirelessly transmitted computer code;

storing the received computer code in a first memory of the local computer;

in response to storing a complete copy of the computer code, shutting down and rebooting the local computer;

detecting the presence of the received computer code after starting to reboot the local computer and burning the received computer code into a second memory of the computer;

after the code has been burned into the second memory, restarting the local computer such that the burned in code is executable.