Controlling use of wireless communication devices
First Claim
1. A method of identifying a wireless communication device (WCD) in a motor vehicle,the motor vehicle containing a COM chip which has a unique ID and which can send a COM COMPARE signal which is characteristic of the motor vehicle;
- the WCD being a device which (i) can receive an incoming control signal from a WCD processing center and (ii) can send to the WCD processing center, after a predetermined delay, a WCD COMPARE signal in response to the incoming control signal, the WCD COMPARE signal being characteristic of the WCD;
the method comprising(A) receiving on the WCD an incoming control signal from the WCD processing center,(B) after step (A), sending, in response to the incoming control signal, a WCD COMPARE signal from the WCD, the WCD COMPARE signal including a WCD COMPARE starting time signal which is the time at which the WCD COMPARE signal was sent,(C) after step (B), and after a predetermined delay, sending a COM COMPARE signal from the COM chip to the WCD processing center, the COM COMPARE signal including a COM COMPARE starting time signal which is the time at which the COM COMPARE signal was sent,(D) comparing the COM COMPARE starting time and the WCD COMPARE starting time, thus identifying that the WCD is in the motor vehicle, and(E) storing the identification of the WCD in memory in the WCD processing center.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The use of a wireless control device (WCD) in a motor vehicle is detected by a local RF detector triggering (1) a COM COMPARE signal generated by a COM chip in the vehicle which is characteristic of that motor vehicle and which is transmitted almost simultaneously with (2) the WCD COMPARE signal which is also characteristic of the WCD then in that motor vehicle. The results of the time comparison of these two signals can be used by the WCD processing center to control the use of the WCD in the motor vehicle, for example, to prevent the WCD from sending and/or receiving text messages or limiting in certain ways the use of voice calls from a WCD in that vehicle at that time.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of identifying a wireless communication device (WCD) in a motor vehicle,
the motor vehicle containing a COM chip which has a unique ID and which can send a COM COMPARE signal which is characteristic of the motor vehicle; -
the WCD being a device which (i) can receive an incoming control signal from a WCD processing center and (ii) can send to the WCD processing center, after a predetermined delay, a WCD COMPARE signal in response to the incoming control signal, the WCD COMPARE signal being characteristic of the WCD; the method comprising (A) receiving on the WCD an incoming control signal from the WCD processing center, (B) after step (A), sending, in response to the incoming control signal, a WCD COMPARE signal from the WCD, the WCD COMPARE signal including a WCD COMPARE starting time signal which is the time at which the WCD COMPARE signal was sent, (C) after step (B), and after a predetermined delay, sending a COM COMPARE signal from the COM chip to the WCD processing center, the COM COMPARE signal including a COM COMPARE starting time signal which is the time at which the COM COMPARE signal was sent, (D) comparing the COM COMPARE starting time and the WCD COMPARE starting time, thus identifying that the WCD is in the motor vehicle, and (E) storing the identification of the WCD in memory in the WCD processing center. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A system which comprises
(1) a wireless communication device (WCD) which is in a motor vehicle and a which (i) can be switched on or switched off, (ii) when it is switched on, can be in a standby mode or a communication mode, and (iii) when it is in the standby mode and receives an incoming control signal from a WCD processing center, sends, in response to the incoming control signal, a WCD COMPARE signal which is characteristic of the WCD and which is sent to the WCD processing center, the WCD COMPARE signal including a WCD COMPARE starting time signal which is the time at which the WCD COMPARE signal was sent; (2) a COM chip which (i) has a unique ID, and (ii) is in the motor vehicle, and (iii) after the WCD in the vehicle has sent a WCD COMPARE signal, sends COM COMPARE signal, the COM COMPARE signal being characteristic of the motor vehicle and including a starting time signal which is the time at which the COM COMPARE signal was sent. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A system for preventing the delivery of text messages from a wireless communication device (WCD) which is in a motor vehicle,
wherein the WCD (i) is in the motor vehicle, (ii) can be switched on or switched off, (iii) when it is switched on, can be in a standby mode or a communication mode, and (iv) when it is switched on and is in the standby mode receives intermittent incoming control signals from a WCD processing center, and, after a predetermined delay after each time that it receives an incoming control signal, sends to the WCD processing center a WCD COMPARE signal which is characteristic of the WCD and which includes a WCD COMPARE starting time which is the time at which the WCD COMPARE signal was sent; -
wherein the vehicle contains a COM chip which (i) has a unique identity, (ii) senses when the WCD sends the WCD COMPARE signal, (iii) sends a COM COMPARE signal at a predetermined time after the WCD has sent a WCD COMPARE signal to the WCD processing center, the COM COMPARE signal (a) being characteristic of the vehicle which includes the COM chip and (b) including a COM COMPARE starting time which is the time at which the COM COMPARE signal was sent; the method comprising the steps of (A) comparing the WCD COMPARE starting time and the COM COMPARE starting time, thus identifying that the WCD is in the vehicle containing the COM chip, (B) after step (A), storing the identification of the WCD in memory in the WCD processing center, and (C) after step (B), using the WCD processing center to prevent the communication of text messages from and to the identified WCD. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification