Data services via receivers independent of navigation systems

• US 9,151,624 B2
• Filed: 05/03/2010
• Issued: 10/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sirius XM Radio Inc. (Liberty Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sirius XM Radio Inc. (Liberty Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Stumphauzer, William Carl II, Dombrowski, John, Finnis, Sven, French, Leslie, Correa, Craig, Coppisetti, Naresh
• Primary Examiner(s): Hu, Jinsong
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chang, Jean
• Application Number:
  US12/772,603
• Publication Number:
  US 20100317365A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,982 Days
• Field of Search: 455/414.3, 455/403, 455/456.1, 455/456.6, 370/338
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A system and method for providing a suite of data services in non-navigation based electronic devices such as head units, that can provide similar levels of functionality to navigation-based systems are presented. In exemplary embodiments of the present invention, a non-navigation data system for providing data services in a mobile environment can include a data decoder for decoding a digital data stream from a digital audio radio transmission source, a location determining means for determining a current location of a mobile receiver receiving the digital data stream, a display for displaying data corresponding to the current location, and a plurality of static maps wherein the data corresponding to the current location is overlaid at least over a portion of the static maps. In exemplary embodiments of the present invention, a method of providing a data service in a mobile environment without the need for a navigation system can include decoding a digital data stream from a digital audio radio transmission source, determining a current location of a mobile receiver receiving the digital data stream, displaying data corresponding to the current location, and overlaying the data corresponding to the current location over at least a portion of a plurality of static maps.

Claims

1. A non-navigation based system for providing data services in a mobile environment, comprising:

a Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (“

SDARS”

) receiver, said receiver arranged to receive one or more data feeds in addition to audio content via a broadcast;

a location determination mechanism for determining a current location of said SDARS receiver in said mobile environment;

and

a display integrated within a head unit of said SDARS receiver for graphically displaying data from said one or more received data feeds corresponding to the current location, said display also used to display textual or graphic data associated with an audio program of said SDARS;

wherein the data corresponding to the current location includes weather service data and at least one of fuel service data and movie listings data,

wherein, in operation, the SDARS receiver decodes data from said one or more data feeds and selectively displays said data corresponding to the current location on said display, without first storing said data in storage,

wherein upon signaling by a user, said data is sorted by at least one of proximity to the current location and provider name or affiliation, and redisplayed according to the chosen sorting criterion, and

wherein said weather service data is displayed as overlaid on one or more static maps.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the data corresponding to the current location further includes at least one of, weather service data, and sports score data.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the weather service data is super-imposed onto a predetermined number of static map tiles.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein a user can traverse locations or zoom-in or zoom-out using a number of tiles of static maps and wherein the weather service data is correspondingly overlaid over the tiles as they are traversed.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein a user can select alternate weather markets from a drop down menu, speech recognition, or other user friendly input method.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the location determination mechanism is a global positioning service receiver or a cellular receiver using one or more among time of arrival, phase of arrival, strength of arrival, frequency of arrival, time difference of arrival, and multiangulation.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the fuel service data provides data for a number of fueling stations within a predetermined vicinity of the current location and further provides heading information for the number of fueling stations within the predetermined vicinity.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the data corresponding to the current location includes at least two of:

weather service data, fuel data, movie listings data, and sports score data.

9. A method for providing data services in a mobile environment without a navigation system, comprising:

decoding a Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (“

SDARS”

) broadcast signal including one or more data feeds in addition to audio content using an SDARS receiver;

determining a current location of the SDARS receiver in said mobile environment;

decoding data from said one or more data feeds, including weather service data and at least one of fuel service and movie data listings;

selectively graphically displaying said decoded data corresponding to the current location on a display integrated in a head unit of said receiver without first storing said data in storage, said display also used to display textual or graphic data associated with an audio program of said SDARS, and

upon receipt of a user signal, sorting such data by at least one of proximity to the current location and provider name or affiliation, and redisplaying the data according to the chosen sorting criterion,

wherein said weather service data is displayed as overlaid on one or more static maps.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the data corresponding to the current location further includes at least one of weather service data, and sports score data.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the weather service data is super-imposed onto a predetermined number of static map tiles.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a user can traverse locations or zoom-in or zoom-out using a number of tiles of static maps and wherein the weather service data is correspondingly overlaid over the tiles as they are traversed.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein a user can select alternate weather markets from a drop down menu, speech recognition, or other user friendly input method.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the current location is determined using a global positioning service receiver or a cellular receiver using one or more among time of arrival, phase of arrival, strength of arrival, frequency of arrival, time difference of arrival, and multiangulation, or any combination thereof.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the fuel service data provides data for a number of fueling stations within a predetermined vicinity of the current location and further provides heading information for the number of fueling stations within the predetermined vicinity.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the data corresponding to the current location is at least two of weather service data, fuel data, movie listings data, and sports score data.

17. A system for providing data services in a mobile environment without a navigation system, comprising:

a Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (“

SDARS”

) receiver, said receiver arranged to receive one or more data feeds in addition to audio content via a broadcast;

a location determination mechanism for determining a current location of said SDARS receiver in said mobile environment; and

a presentation device integrated within a head unit of said SDARS receiver for graphically presenting data from said one or more data feeds corresponding to the current location, said presentation device also used to display textual or graphic data associated with an audio program of said SDARS; and

wherein the data corresponding to the current location includes weather service data and at least one of fuel service data and movie listings data,

wherein, in operation, the SDARS receiver decodes data from said one or more data feeds and selectively displays said data corresponding to the current location from said one or more data feeds on said display, without first storing said data in storage,

and wherein upon signaling by a user, said data is sorted by at least one of proximity to the current location and provider name or affiliation, and represented according to the chosen sorting criterion,

and wherein said weather service data is displayed as overlaid on one or more static maps.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the presentation device comprises an audio speaker or a screen display.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the data corresponding to the current location includes at least two of:

weather service data, fuel data, movie listings data, and sports score data.