Device for giving information to vehicle, vehicle and method for giving information to vehicle

• US 7,839,262 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2004
• Issued: 11/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Shinada, Akira
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman; Brian A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jiang; Yong Hang
• Application Number:
  US10/550,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20060192650A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,435 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 340/531, 340/5.2, 340/5.72, 340/425.5, 340/901, 340/5.1, 340/426.15, 340/5.6, 340/5.7, 340/5.61, 340/5.62, 455/41.2, 455/41.3, 455/575.9, 455/557, 455/345, 455/569.1
• US Class Current: 340/5.2
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/24 using electronic identifiers containing a code not memorised by the user
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00793 by Hertzian waves
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00309 operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks

Abstract

The present invention is particularly applied to a vehicle relating to a key-less entry system, and desired information is provided to a vehicle 5 corresponding to the information by monitoring a remote control signal from an electronic key 2 for the key-less entry system, and starting up operations in response to this remote control signal as a trigger.

Claims

1. An information providing apparatus for transmitting desired information to information equipment loaded on a vehicle, comprising:

communication means for sending and receiving desired information using radio communications; and

control means for monitoring a remote control signal from an electronic key corresponding to a key-less entry system for the vehicle via said communication means,

for identifying the vehicle based on vehicle identification information included in the remote control signal,

for controlling operations of an information output means for storing information and sending said information to said vehicle as well as operations of the communication means, wherein said control means starts up operations of said information output means by using the remote control signal from said electronic key as a trigger to select desired information based on said vehicle identification information and transmit said selected desired information to said vehicle when a door of said vehicle is detected to be locked by said remote control signal, and

for controlling, in response to the remote control signal from said electronic key triggering said information output means to transmit said selected desired information to said vehicle, operations of an information input means for transferring driving information from said vehicle and storing said driving information.

2. An information providing apparatus for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said information output means sends said information via said communication means to said vehicle.

10. An information providing apparatus for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said driving information includes at least one of a driving time, a driving distance, and a driving area.

16. The information providing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for determining a next driver to operate the vehicle identified in the vehicle identification information, wherein said desired information is selected based on the next driver.

17. The information providing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the selected desired information is transferred to said vehicle when a request to transfer the selected desired information is made from the control means to the vehicle within a predetermined amount of time of locking the door of said vehicle by said remote control signal.

3. A vehicle to download desired information from a prespecified information storage means, the vehicle comprising:

a key-less entry system to receive a remote control signal from an electronic key, the remote control signal including information identifying the vehicle;

communication means for receiving said remote control signal from said electronic key; and

control means for transferring desired data via said communication means, wherein said control means executes an operation for locking a door of the vehicle with said remote control signal from the electronic key received by said communication means, initiates a transfer of said desired information from said prespecified information storage means to be received by said communication means in response to said door of the vehicle locking by said remote control signal, said acquired desired information selected based on the information identifying the vehicle included with said remote control signal, and initiates a transfer of driving information, in response to said remote control signal triggering said transferring of said selected desired information, via said communication means, to said prespecified information storage means.

4. The vehicle according to claim 3, wherein said control means sends and receives prespecified information with a sender of said information based on information received by said communication means according to said remote control signal as a trigger to execute processing for mutual authentication, and then acquires said desired information using a result of processing for the mutual authentication.

11. The vehicle according to claim 3, wherein said driving information includes at least one of a driving time, a driving distance, and a driving area.

18. The vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the control means initiates said transfer of said desired information from said prespecified information storage means in response to a request to transfer the selected desired information from the prespecified information storage means within a predetermined amount of time of locking the door of said vehicle by said remote control signal.

5. A method of providing information to a vehicle by transmitting desired information stored in prespecified information storage means to the vehicle, comprising:

starting up operations of said information storage means in response to a remote control signal from an electronic key relating to a key-less entry system of the vehicle as a trigger;

identifying the vehicle based on vehicle identification information included in said remote control signal;

selecting desired information based on the vehicle identification information;

determining whether a door of the vehicle is locked by said remote control signal;

transferring said selected desired information to the vehicle identified in said remote control signal when the door of the vehicle is determined to be locked; and

transferring driving information from the vehicle to said information storage means in response to said remote control signal triggering said transferring said selected desired information.

6. A method of providing information to a vehicle according to claim 5 further comprising:

providing said selected desired information via communication means relating to said remote control signal stored in said corresponding vehicle.

7. A method of providing information to a vehicle according to claim 5 further comprising:

executing processing for mutual authentication with said corresponding vehicle to provide said selected desired information using a result of processing for the mutual authentication.

12. A method according to claim 5, wherein said driving information includes at least one of a driving time, a driving distance, and a driving area.

19. The method according to claim 5, further comprising:

requesting said transferring of said selected desired information from the prespecified information storage means to the vehicle within a predetermined amount of time of the door of the vehicle being locked by said remote control signal, wherein the transferring said selected desired information is performed in response to said requesting being performed within the predetermined amount of time.

8. An information providing apparatus for transmitting desired information to information equipment loaded on a vehicle, comprising:

a communication unit configured to send and receive desired information using radio communications; and

a control unit configured

to monitor a remote control signal from an electronic key corresponding to a key-less entry system for the vehicle via said communication unit,

to identify the vehicle based on vehicle identification information included in the remote control signal;

to control operations of an information output unit configured to store said information and send said information to said vehicle,

to control operations of said communication unit,

to select desired information based on the vehicle identification information;

to initiate operations of said information output unit using the remote control signal from said electronic key as a trigger to transmit said selected desired information to said vehicle identified in the remote control signal when a door of said vehicle is locked by said remote control signal, and

to control, in response to the remote control signal from said electronic key triggering said information output unit to transmit said selected desired information to said vehicle, operations of an information input unit for transferring driving information from said vehicle and storing said driving information.

9. An information providing apparatus for a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein said information output unit is further configured to send said information via said communication unit to said vehicle.

13. An information providing apparatus for a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein said driving information includes at least one of a driving time, a driving distance, and a driving area.

20. The information providing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the selected desired information is transferred to said vehicle when a request to transfer the selected desired information is made from the control unit to the vehicle within a predetermined amount of time of locking the door of said vehicle by said remote control signal.

14. A vehicle, comprising:

a communication unit configured to receive a remote control signal from a locking mechanism of a door of the vehicle, the locking mechanism being configured to transmit the remote control signal when a key is inserted into the locking mechanism so as to cause the locking mechanism to lock;

a storage unit configured to store driving information and desired information; and

a control unit configured to transmit the driving information from the storage unit via the communication unit when the communication unit receives the remote control signal from the locking mechanism, and configured to receive desired information from an information storage unit remote from the vehicle via the communication unit when the communication unit receives the remote control signal from the locking mechanism and store the received desired information in the storage unit.

15. The vehicle according to claim 14, wherein the driving information includes at least one of a driving time, a driving distance, and a driving area.