Method for characterizing a portable device by way of an antenna on board a motor vehicle

• US 9,061,651 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2012
• Issued: 06/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive France (Continental AG), Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive France (Continental AG), Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Kessler, Sebastien, Cheikh, Mohamed, Takacs, Alexandru
• Primary Examiner(s): Edwards, Jerrah
• Assistant Examiner(s): WEBER, TAMARA L
• Application Number:
  US14/362,410
• Publication Number:
  US 20140324252A1
• Time in Patent Office: 923 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/103 Near field communication [NFC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/105 Radio frequency identification data [RFID]
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/205 Mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/24 using electronic identifiers containing a code not memorised by the user
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/245 where the antenna reception area plays a role
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10 by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation

Abstract

A method for characterizing, by way of at least one primary antenna (13, 31) on board a motor vehicle (10), a mobile device (20) of indeterminate type comprising a secondary antenna (21) of indeterminate size, approaching said motor vehicle (10) in an indeterminate approach mode, said primary antenna (13, 31) being intended to communicate with the secondary antenna (21) of the mobile device (20), and generating a voltage (V) across its terminals, the voltage being linked to an on-board system (11) of the motor vehicle (10), the invention proposes that the method of characterization comprises the following steps:

• • step 1: measurement by the on-board system (11) of the voltage across the terminals of the primary antenna (13, 31), over a series of predetermined time periods,
  • step 2: computation of a voltage difference for each predetermined time period,
  • step 3: comparison of the voltage difference with a value previously stored in the memory,
  • step 4: if the voltage difference is positive, then the mobile device (20) is of dielectric type, otherwise if it is negative, it is of metallic type,
  • step 5: if the voltage difference is zero over a predetermined time period above a threshold, then the mobile device (20) is in static approach mode, otherwise it is in dynamic approach mode.

Claims

1. A method for characterizing, by way of at least one primary antenna (13, 31) on board a motor vehicle (10), a mobile device (20) of indeterminate type comprising a secondary antenna (21) of indeterminate size, approaching said motor vehicle (10) in an indeterminate approach mode, said primary antenna (13, 31) being intended to communicate with the secondary antenna (21) of said mobile device (20), and generating a voltage (V) across its terminals, said voltage (V) being linked to an on-board system (11) of the motor vehicle (10), the method comprising the following steps:

step 1;

measuring by the on-board system (11) the voltage (V) across the terminals of the primary antenna (13, 31), over a series of predetermined time periods (Δ

t1, Δ

t2),

step 2;

computing by the on-board system (11) a voltage difference (Δ

V) for each predetermined time period (Δ

t1, Δ

t2),

step 3;

comparing by the on-board system (11), for each predetermined time period (Δ

t1, Δ

t2), the voltage difference (Δ

V) thus computed with a value previously stored in the memory and,

step 4;

determining whether the mobile device is of dielectric type or metallic type,

if the voltage difference (Δ

V) is positive, then the mobile device (20) is of dielectric type,

if the voltage difference (Δ

V) is negative, then the mobile device (20) is of metallic type,

step 5;

once the type of the mobile device has been characterized, determining whether the mobile device is in static approach mode or dynamic approach mode,

if the voltage difference (Δ

V) is zero over a predetermined time period (Δ

t2), which is above a time threshold (Δ

th1) then the mobile device (20) is in static approach mode,

otherwise the mobile device (20) is in dynamic approach mode.

2. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the following steps:

step 2a;

in step 2, computing, by the on-board system (11), the absolute value of a gradient (P) created by the voltage difference (Δ

V) for each predetermined time period (Δ

t1, Δ

t2),

step 3a;

in step 3, computing, by the on-board system (11), the absolute value of the gradient (P) thus computed with a value previously stored in the memory, previously referenced as a function of the size of the secondary antenna (21) of the mobile device (20) and,

step 4a;

in step 4, characterizing the size of the secondary antenna (21) of the mobile device (20) as a function of this comparison.

3. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the primary antenna (13, 31) is a communication antenna of NFC type.

4. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 1 wherein, mobile device (20) of dielectric type is a vehicle (10) access tag and/or the mobile device (20) of metallic type is a mobile phone.

5. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the dynamic approach mode consists in the approach of the mobile device toward the primary antenna (13, 31) and/or the static approach mode consists in a fixed distance between the mobile device (20) and the primary antenna (13, 31).

6. The method of characterization as claimed in claim 4 wherein, if the mobile device (20) is a mobile phone in static approach mode, then said method further comprises the following step:

step 6;

if the voltage (V) across the terminals of the primary antenna (13, 31) is below a threshold (V_3MIN), over a predetermined time period (Δ

ti), which is above a time threshold (Δ

th2), then the mobile phone is found in immediate proximity to the primary antenna (13, 31).

7. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 2 wherein, the primary antenna (13, 31) is a communication antenna of NFC type.

8. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 2 wherein, the mobile device (20) of dielectric type is a vehicle (10) access tag and/or the mobile device (20) of metallic type is a mobile phone.

9. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 3 wherein, the mobile device (20) of dielectric type is a vehicle (10) access tag and/or the mobile device (20) of metallic type is a mobile phone.

10. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 2 wherein, the dynamic approach mode consists in the approach of the mobile device toward the primary antenna (13, 31) and/or the static approach mode consists in a fixed distance between the mobile device (20) and the primary antenna (13, 31).

11. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 3 wherein, dynamic approach mode consists in the approach of the mobile device toward the primary antenna (13, 31) and/or the static approach mode consists in a fixed distance between the mobile device (20) and the primary antenna (13, 31).

12. The method for characterizing a mobile device (20) as claimed in claim 4 wherein, the dynamic approach mode consists in the approach of the mobile device toward the primary antenna (13, 31) and/or the static approach mode consists in a fixed distance between the mobile device (20) and the primary antenna (13, 31).