Communication system including a vehicle electronic key, electronic key for use in a communication system and method for communicating information from a vehicle to a portable telecommunication terminal

• US 8,686,830 B2
• Filed: 03/18/2008
• Issued: 04/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Johnson Controls Technology Company (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Original Assignee: Johnson Controls Technology Company (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Inventors: Lehomme, Francis
• Primary Examiner(s): Ghayour, Mohammad
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILSON, BRIAN P
• Application Number:
  US12/532,239
• Publication Number:
  US 20100090799A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,205 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 340/5.61
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2209/62 Comprising means for indicating the status of the lock
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00182 operated with unidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks

Abstract

The invention relates to a communication system that comprises a vehicle electronic key, a vehicle telecommunication device and a portable telecommunication terminal, the electronic key including a first transmitter and the vehicle including a first receiver, the first transmitter and the first receiver being provided for carrying out the transmission of at least one information request from the electronic key to the vehicle, the vehicle telecommunication device including at least a second transmitter, the portable telecommunication terminal including at least a second receiver, the second transmitter and the second receiver being provided for carrying out the transmission of information from the vehicle to the portable telecommunication terminal, the portable telecommunication terminal being provided for displaying at least a portion of the information on a display member of the portable telecommunication terminal. The invention also relates to an electronic key and to a method for communicating information from a vehicle to a portable telecommunication terminal.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising:

an electronic key of a vehicle including a first transmitter and an actuating element for transmitting at least one information request;

a telecommunication device of the vehicle including a first receiver configured to receive the at least one information request and at least one second transmitter configured to transmit information to a portable telecommunication terminal;

the portable telecommunication terminal including at least one second receiver configured to receive the information transmitted from the at least one second transmitter and a display configured to display the received information;

the first transmitter, the first receiver, the at least one second transmitter and the at least one second receiver are each configured for short-range wireless communication in a range less than 500 meters; and

the telecommunication device and the portable telecommunication terminal include a selection means for a user to determine the information received and displayed by the portable telecommunication terminal and for determining an order the received information is displayed by the portable telecommunication terminal, wherein the user can select between security information, technical information, and comfort information, wherein the security information comprises information concerning an interior and an exterior of the vehicle.

2. The communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the short-range wireless communication uses a WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) and WIGWAM (Wireless Gigabit With Advanced Multimedia Support) and Bluetooth standard.

3. The communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the comfort information comprises information concerning a temperature inside the vehicle and a temperature of the seats and a temperature of the steering wheel of the vehicle and wherein the technical information comprises information concerning a mileage of the vehicle and/or error messages from diagnostic units of the vehicle.

4. An electronic key for use in the communication system as claimed in claim 1.

5. The electronic key as aimed in claim 4, wherein the actuating element is a key.

6. A method for communicating information from a vehicle to a portable telecommunication terminal by using the communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

in a firsts step, the information request is transmitted form the electronic key to the telecommunication device of the vehicle via the first transmitter and the first receiver,

in a second step, the information is transmitted from the telecommunication device of the vehicle to the portable telecommunication terminal via the at least one second transmitter and the at least one second receiver,

in a third step, the received information is displayed by the portable telecommunication terminal,

in a fourth step which is situated in time before the first step, a selection for determining the information to be transmitted to the portable telecommunication terminal is made on the telecommunication device of the vehicle or the portable telecommunication terminal, and/or a determination of an order the received information is displayed by the portable telecommunication terminal is made on the telecommunication device of the vehicle or on the portable telecommunication terminal.

7. The method for communicating information as claimed in claim 6, wherein the information comprises comfort information concerning a temperature inside the vehicle and a temperature of the seats and a temperature of the steering wheel of the vehicle and the technical information comprises information concerning a mileage of the vehicle and error messages from diagnostic units of the vehicle.

8. The communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first transmitter and the first receiver are configured to communicate in a range less than 150 meters.

9. The communication system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the first transmitter and the first receiver are configured to communicate in a range less than 50 meters.

10. The communication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one second transmitter and the at least one second receiver are configured to communicate in a range less than 150 meters.

11. The communication system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the at least one second transmitter and the at least one second receiver are configured to communicate in a range less than 50 meters.

12. A communication system comprising:

an electronic key of a vehicle including a first transmitter and an actuating element for transmitting at least one information request;

a telecommunication device of the vehicle including a first receiver configured to receive the at least one information request and at least one second transmitter configured to transmit information to a portable telecommunication terminal;

the portable telecommunication terminal including at least one second receiver configured to receive the information transmitted from the at least one second transmitter and a display configured to display the received information;

the first transmitter, the first receiver, the at least one second transmitter and the at least one second receiver are each configured for short-range wireless communication in a range less than 500 meters; and

the telecommunication device and the portable telecommunication terminal include a selection means for a user to determine the information received and displayed by the portable telecommunication terminal and for determining an order the received information is displayed by the portable telecommunication terminal, wherein the user can select from security information comprising information concerning an interior and an exterior of the vehicle.