Method and system for a head unit application host for a radar detector

• US 9,459,340 B2
• Filed: 01/06/2014
• Issued: 10/04/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Dickow, Justin, Grover, Joey Ray, Smereka, Scott, Sigal, Jacob
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAI T
• Application Number:
  US14/148,392
• Publication Number:
  US 20150192660A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,002 Days
• Field of Search: 340/902, 340/905, 340/438, 340/441, 342/20, 342/385, 701/441
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/92 for velocity measurement
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/003 Transmission of data between radar, sonar or lidar systems and remote stations
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/022 Road traffic radar detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/052 with provision for determining speed or overspeed speed measuring in general G01P
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096758 where no selection takes place on the transmitted or the received information
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096783 where the origin of the information is a roadside individual element
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096791 where the origin of the information is another vehicle

Abstract

A vehicle computer system comprises one or more transceivers in communication with a radar-detector and an off-board server. The vehicle computer system further comprises a processor in the vehicle computer system in communication with the one or more transceivers. The processor is configured to receive a message from the radar-detector that includes information related to an alert, send data to the off-board server utilizing the one or more transceivers, the data including information related to the alert, and output at the VCS a notification based upon the message received from the radar-detector.

Claims

1. A vehicle computer system (VCS) located in a vehicle, comprising:

at least one controller in communication with one or more wireless transceivers, the one or more wireless transceivers configured to communicate with a radar detector configured to detect signals from a radar gun, the at least one controller configured to;

establish communication with the radar detector;

receive a message from the radar-detector that includes information related to an alert from the radar detector and a priority utilized to determine whether to output a notification over an in-vehicle communication using the priority;

output a notification in the vehicle utilizing the VCS based upon the message received from the radar detector and the priority.

2. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the notification is output via a user interface of the VCS.

3. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the notification is output via one or more vehicle speakers of the VCS.

4. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the notification includes a manual switch between various modes of the radar detector.

5. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to automatically switch the radar detector between various modes.

6. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the notification includes a message priority, wherein the message-priority is utilized to determine if the notification is output or ignored.

7. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to send a request to the radar detector to change a setting of the radar detector based upon a selection from a user interface of the VCS.

8. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to mark an alert location on a navigation map of the VCS.

9. The vehicle computer system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to send the message from the radar detector to an off-board server.

10. A vehicle computer system (VCS), located in a vehicle comprising:

one or more wireless transceivers in communication with a radar detector configured to detect signals from a radar gun, an off-board server, and a mobile device;

a processor in the VCS in communication with the one or more transceivers, the processor configured to;

receive a message from the radar detector that includes information related to an alert and a priority utilized to determine whether to output a notification over an in-vehicle communication using the priority;

output multimedia information from the VCS;

send data to the off-board server utilizing the one or more transceivers, the data including information related to the alert;

determine whether to output at the VCS a radar notification based upon the message received from the radar detector, the priority, and the multimedia information,

output the radar notification at the VCS based upon the determination.

11. The vehicle computer system of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to output the notification based upon a setting of the radar detector.

12. The vehicle computer system of claim 11, wherein the setting of the radar detector is set via a user interface of the VCS.

13. The vehicle computer system of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to receive data from the off-board server utilizing the one or more transceivers.

14. The vehicle computer system of claim 13, wherein the data received from the off-board server is utilized in an application of the VCS.

15. A vehicle computer system (VCS) comprising:

a wireless transceiver in communication with a radar detector configured to detect signals from a radar gun;

a processor in the VCS configured to;

receive a message from the radar detector that includes information related to an alert from the radar detector and a priority utilized to determine whether to output the message over an in-vehicle communication;

output a notification based upon the message and the priority.

16. The vehicle computer system of claim 15, wherein the in-vehicle communication is a hands-free phone call, a guidance instruction from the VCS, or audio output from the VCS.

17. The vehicle computer system of claim 15, wherein settings of the radar detector are implemented into a user interface of the VCS.