In-vehicle information delivery system and method

• US 8,816,837 B2
• Filed: 07/25/2012
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Achal Worldwide Enterprises AG
• Original Assignee: ITCiCo Spain, S.L.
• Inventors: Braden, Jude
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tai T
• Application Number:
  US13/557,997
• Publication Number:
  US 20130300554A1
• Time in Patent Office: 762 Days
• Field of Search: 340/441, 340/438, 340/439, 340/426.6, 340/936, 701/1, 701/35, 701/200
• US Class Current: 340/441
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09675 where a selection from the received information takes place in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station

Abstract

An in-vehicle information display system including a GPS receiver that determines the location of a vehicle, and a user interface for communicating information received over a wireless communication network. The information received over the wireless communications network is communicated to a user interface depending on the velocity of the vehicle. Further, the content of the information received over the wireless communications network and communicated to the user depends on the velocity of the vehicle. The system makes use of a head-up display so that content information is only directed to the user. A method communicates information over a wireless communications network to a vehicle.

Claims

1. An in-vehicle information delivery system, comprising:

a location and speed determination unit for determining location and speed of a vehicle;

a communication unit for transmitting information to a message server and receiving information from the message server over a wireless communication network, the communication unit transmitting speed data of the vehicle to the message server at a predetermined frequency of time based on average speed of the vehicle and/or preference of a user; and

a user interface for communicating information received over the wireless communication network to an occupant of the vehicle;

wherein the message server is adapted to receive location information and/or speed information of the vehicle and to communicate the location information and/or the speed information over the wireless communication network to the vehicle and/or to the user interface;

the message server comprising a filter unit configured to select messages stored on the message server and to select at least one message based on the speed and/or the location of the vehicle and/or the preference of the user;

the message server transmitting the at least one selected message to the vehicle and/or the user interface over the wireless communication network.

2. The information delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the message server is a cloud server.

3. The information delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the message server is adapted to receive from at least one client computer messages, to store the messages and to derive the information communicated over the wireless communication network from at least one of the messages.

4. The information delivery system according to claim 3, wherein the messages comprise point of interest messages and/or traffic flow disruption messages and/or emergency type messages from police agencies and/or social media messages and/or healthcare messages and/or synchronised diary and appointments messages and/or news messages and/or advertisements.

5. The information delivery system according to claim 3, wherein the message server is adapted to receive and store filter criteria, including a location, a region, a gender of a person, a time and/or a velocity, in particular in combination with the messages for the client computer.

6. The information delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the velocity of the vehicle is determined by the GPS receiver in the vehicle and/or by an on-board speed sensor using an on-board computer.

7. The information delivery system according to claim 6, wherein the on-board computer is adapted to communicate the velocity of the vehicle and/or the location of the vehicle to a message server.

8. The information delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the on-board computer is adapted to communicate the velocity and/or location of the vehicle in predefined time intervals.

9. The information delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the content of the information is predetermined or provided in substantially real-time and communicated to the user depending on the velocity of the vehicle.

10. The information delivery system according to claim 1, wherein the user interface comprises a Head-Up-Display and/or audio output and/or smartphone device.

11. A method for communicating information over wireless communication network from a vehicle to a message server and from the message server to the vehicle, by an information system according to claim 1, comprising the steps:

inputting messages;

inputting filter criteria for the messages;

storing the messages and the filter criteria;

receiving data, including a velocity and/or a location of a vehicle;

selecting at least one message based on the velocity and/or location;

transmitting information in accordance with the selected message from or to the vehicle.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer executable instructions for a computer system, the instructions being adapted to cause the computer system to perform the method of claim 11.