Short range wireless communication between a vehicle and a handheld communications device

• US 8,918,232 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2013
• Issued: 12/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Lavi, Nadav, Macdonald, Andrew J.
• Primary Examiner(s): MARC-COLEMAN, MARTHE Y
• Application Number:
  US13/739,111
• Publication Number:
  US 20140200740A1
• Time in Patent Office: 711 Days
• Field of Search: 701/2, 701/1, 701/36, 701/468, 455/421, 455/3.01, 455/556.1, 455/556.2, 726/6, 726/7, 713/151, 713/152, 307/338
• US Class Current: 701/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A method and system for establishing short range wireless communication (SRWC) between a handheld communications device (HCD) and a vehicle telematics unit. In some instances, the communication may be established following a disconnection event between the telematics unit and a wireless carrier network. The SRWC may include Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct as well as other suitable protocols or technologies. Once SRWC is established, the telematics unit may receive a vehicle command from the HCD and perform the command.

Claims

1. A method of establishing short range wireless communication (SRWC) between a handheld communications device (HCD) and a vehicle telematics unit, comprising the steps of:

receiving a special identifier (ID) at the HCD from a vehicle call center or a vehicle service center associated with the vehicle telematics unit (VTU), wherein the call center is configured to provide one or more backend functions to the VTU;

using the special ID, wirelessly linking the VTU and the HCD to one another according to at least one SRWC protocol;

then,

determining at the VTU the occurrence of a cellular disconnection event;

then,

automatically conducting communication between the telematics unit and the HCD according to the at least one SRWC protocol as a result of the disconnection event;

receiving from the HCD at the VTU via the established SRWC a command to perform at least one vehicle function; and

when, following the automatic establishing SRWC step the VTU determines that the cellular disconnection event has ceased, then automatically;

ceasing conducting communication via the at least one SRWC protocol; and

receiving any additional commands to perform vehicle functions via cellular communication.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the special identifier (ID) is randomly generated at the call center or the service center.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the randomly generated special ID is generated at the at the call center or the service center.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one SRWC protocol includes a Bluetooth protocol, a Wi-Fi Direct protocol, or a Wi-Fi protocol, wherein in the Wi-Fi protocol, the VTU is serves as a Wi-Fi access point (WAP) to the HCD operating as a client device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the cellular disconnection event is caused by one or more of the following:

an environmental interference;

an geographical interference;

an internet connection failure;

a connection or port failure;

a malfunction, corruption, or viral attack on an associated cellular network or cellular network hardware;

or excessive network traffic or latency issues.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving from the HCD at the VTU via the established SRWC the command to perform the at least one vehicle function includes:

receiving at the HCD data from the vehicle call center that authorizes the VTU to perform the at least one vehicle function.