Vehicle settings profile system

• US 8,977,408 B1
• Filed: 09/23/2011
• Issued: 03/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Cazanas, Carlos A., Khan, Azam, Sullivan, Terence John
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Dalena
• Application Number:
  US13/243,396
• Time in Patent Office: 1,264 Days
• Field of Search: 701/2, 701/36, 701/49, 701/451, 701/453, 340/531, 340/534, 340/539.1, 340/539.11, 34053916-53919, 340/5.2, 340 521- 525, 340 552- 554, 340/5.8, 340 581- 586, 455/3.03
• US Class Current: 701/2
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/037 for occupant comfort , e.g. for automatic adjustment of appliances according to personal settings, e.g. seats, mirrors, steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/082 the condition being updates or upgrades of network functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles

Abstract

A system for transferring driver profile settings has a communication interface, processor, storage device, and program in the storage device. The communication interface allows for network communications. The processor couples to the interface. Execution of the program from storage by the processor configures the system to perform functions. The system allows for transfer of a driver profile from the storage device to a vehicle for application on the vehicle. The driver profile specifies one or more preference settings for one or more configurable components of a vehicle.

Claims

1. A system for use in a vehicle comprising:

an interface for receiving signals from and sending signals to one or more input elements;

a mobile communication transceiver, for wireless communications through a mobile communication network;

a processor coupled to the interface and the wireless transceiver;

a memory coupled to the processor; and

a program stored in the memory, wherein execution of the program by the processor configures the system to perform functions, including functions to;

detect an identification associated with a user in response to the user coming into proximity of a vehicle;

when the identification associated with the user was not previously detected;

send a query via the mobile communication network for a server, the query including the identification associated with the user;

receive a response to the query from the server via the mobile communication network, the response including a driver profile for the user;

store the received driver profile for the user in the memory, the stored driver profile subsequently providing an indication that the identification associated with the user was previously detected; and

apply the received driver profile for the user within the vehicle; and

when the identification associated with the user was previously detected, as indicated by previous storage of the received driver profile for the user being disposed in the memory;

retrieve, from the memory, the received driver profile for the user previously stored in the memory when the identification associated with the user was not previously detected; and

apply the retrieved driver profile for the user within the vehicle,

wherein;

(a) the driver profile specifies a driver preference setting for one or more configurable components of the vehicle, and

(b) the one or more driver preference settings specified in the driver profile conform to one or more preferences of the user previously supplied to the server.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein based on the received driver profile, the system is adapted to provide control signals to the one or more components of the vehicle to configure the one or more components in a manner corresponding to the preferences of the user previously supplied to the server.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is configured as a telematics unit within the vehicle.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is configured as a navigation unit within the vehicle.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the driver profile specifies the driver preference settings for each of one or more configurable components of the vehicle including:

seat position, positions of mirrors, one or more pedal positions, radio station presets, heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) settings, or navigation screen configuration.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a key fob having a unique identification number, wherein the identification associated with the user is detected from the key fob.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the identification associated with the user includes a mobile directory number associated with the user.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein a predefined key fob mastership setting is applied when multiple key fobs are detected proximate to the vehicle.

9. A system for transferring driver profile settings, comprising:

a communication interface for network communications;

a processor coupled to the interface;

a storage device coupled to the processor; and

a program in the storage device, wherein execution of the program by the processor configures the system to perform functions, including functions to;

receive a query, from a unit in a vehicle and through a mobile communication network to the communication interface, sent from the unit upon a user being in proximity of the vehicle, the query including an identification associated with the user and information related to the vehicle;

based on the identification associated with the user, look up a record of the user in the storage to obtain a preference of the user for each of one or more configurable vehicle components;

identify, based on the information in the query related to the vehicle, a first vehicle type for the vehicle containing the unit;

identify a second vehicle type for a vehicle on which the one or more preferences of the user previously supplied to the server are based;

upon determining the first and second types of vehicle are different, transcode the previously supplied one or more preferences of the user to one or more preference settings corresponding to one or more configurable components of the first vehicle type, to obtain one or more driver preference settings for one or more configurable components of the vehicle containing the unit; and

transmit a response message from the interface back through the mobile communication network to the unit in the vehicle, the response message including a driver profile specifying a driver preference setting for each one or more configurable components of the vehicle containing the unit conforming to the one or more preferences of the user previously supplied to the server.

10. A method comprising:

detecting, by a vehicle unit within a vehicle, an identification associated with a user in response to the user coming into proximity of the vehicle;

when the identification associated with the user was not previously detected;

sending a query for a server, via a mobile communication network, the query including the identification associated with the user;

receiving a response to the query from the server, via the mobile communication network, the response including a vehicle user profile for the user;

storing, by the vehicle unit, the vehicle user profile for the user in a memory of the vehicle, the stored vehicle user profile subsequently providing an indication that the identification associated with the user was previously detected; and

configuring, based on the vehicle user profile, one or more configurable components of the vehicle; and

when the identification associated with the user was previously detected as indicated by previous storage of the received vehicle user profile for the user in the memory;

retrieving, by the vehicle unit and from the memory of the vehicle, the vehicle user profile previously stored in the memory when the identification associated with the user was not previously detected; and

configuring, based on the retrieved vehicle user profile, one or more configurable components of the vehicle,

wherein;

(a) the vehicle user profile specifies a user preference setting for one or more configurable components of the vehicle, and

(b) the one or more user preference settings specified in the vehicle user profile conform to one or more preferences of the user previously supplied by the user.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving the query from the vehicle unit at the server, the query including the user identification and information related to the vehicle;

locating a user'"'"'s account on the server based at least in part upon the user identification received in the query from the vehicle unit; and

transmitting a vehicle user profile from the user'"'"'s account on the server to the vehicle unit via the wireless communications network.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the locating a user'"'"'s account is based upon one of a user'"'"'s mobile directory number, a user'"'"'s email address, and a key fob identification number stored in association with the user'"'"'s account.

13. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

determining, based on the information in the query related to the vehicle, a type of vehicle having the vehicle unit;

comparing the type of vehicle having the vehicle unit to a type of vehicle the vehicle user profile on the user'"'"'s account was created in; and

transcoding dimensional properties of the user profile when the type of vehicle having the vehicle unit differs from the type of vehicle the vehicle user profile on the user'"'"'s account was created in.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one user adjustable setting is independent of the type of vehicle.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the transcoding dimensional properties is based on a relationship between a user adjustable setting of the vehicle and a fixed location of the vehicle.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving, from the vehicle unit, a revised vehicle user profile based on adjustments made by the user while in the vehicle; and

storing the revised vehicle user profile in association with the user'"'"'s account.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of detecting the identification comprises detecting the identification from a key fob having a unique identification number.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the user profile specifies the user preference settings for each of one or more configurable components of the vehicle including:

seat position, positions of mirrors, one or more pedal positions, radio station presets, heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) settings, or navigation screen configuration.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the identification associated with the user includes a mobile directory number associated with the user.

20. A system comprising:

a system for use in a vehicle comprising;

an interface for receiving signals from and sending signals to one or more input elements;

a mobile communication transceiver, for wireless communications through a mobile communication network;

a processor coupled to the interface and the wireless transceiver;

a memory coupled to the processor; and

a vehicle use system program stored in the memory; and

a system for transferring driver profile settings comprising;

a communication interface for network communications;

a processor coupled to the interface;

a storage device coupled to the processor; and

a driver profile settings transfer system program in the storage device, wherein;

execution of the vehicle use system program by the processor of the vehicle use system configures the vehicle use system to perform functions, including functions to;

detect an identification associated with a user in response to the user coming into proximity of a vehicle;

when the identification associated with the user was not previously detected;

send a query via the mobile communications network for the driver profile settings transfer system, the query including the identification associated with the user and information related to the vehicle;

receive a response to the query from the driver profile settings transfer system via the mobile communication network, the response including a driver profile for the user;

store the received driver profile for the user in the memory, the stored driver profile subsequently providing an indication that the identification associated with the user was previously detected; and

apply the received driver profile for the user within the vehicle; and

when the identification associated with the user was previously detected as indicated by previous storage of the received driver profile for the user in the memory;

retrieve, from the memory, the received driver profile for the user previously stored in the memory when the identification associated with the user was not previously detected; and

apply the retrieved driver profile for the user within the vehicle, wherein;

(a) the driver profile specifies a driver preference setting for one or more configurable components of the vehicle, and

(b) the one or more driver preference settings specified in the driver profile conform to one or more preferences of the user previously supplied to the driver profile settings transfer system; and

execution of the driver profile settings transfer system program by the processor of the driver profile settings transfer system configures the driver profile settings transfer system to perform functions, including functions to;

receive the query, from the vehicle use system through the mobile communication network to the interface;

based on the identification associated with the user, look up a record of the user in the storage to obtain a preference of the user for each of the one or more configurable vehicle components; and

transmit the response to the query from the interface back through the mobile communication network to the vehicle use system.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein execution of the driver profile settings transfer system program by the processor of the driver profile settings transfer system configures the driver profile settings transfer system to perform further functions, including functions to:

identify, based on the information in the query related to the vehicle, a first vehicle type for the vehicle containing the unit;

identify a second vehicle type for a vehicle on which the one or more preferences of the user previously supplied to the server are based; and

upon determining the first and second types of vehicle are different, transcode the previously supplied one or more preferences of the user to one or more preference settings corresponding to one or more configurable components of the first vehicle type, to obtain one or more driver preference settings for one or more configurable components of the vehicle containing the unit.