Relationship management for vehicle-sharing systems

• US 9,807,547 B1
• Filed: 09/28/2016
• Issued: 10/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Oesterling, Christopher L., Pebbles, Paul H., Steyn, Julia
• Primary Examiner(s): Urban, Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): Justus, Ralph H
• Application Number:
  US15/278,238
• Time in Patent Office: 398 Days
• Field of Search: 455 412
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• 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: H04W 12/084 using delegated authorisation, e.g. open authorisation [OAuth] protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• 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 vehicle-share relationship management system is presented herein. The vehicle-share relationship management system includes a short-range wireless communication (SRWC) module, mobile computing device, vehicle communication platform (VCP), and remote entity. The SRWC is located in a vehicle and configured to communicate with the mobile computing device and at least one vehicle system. The VCP is located within the vehicle, the VCP configured to communicably couple with the SRWC module and configured to generate one or more data transmissions. The remote entity configured to receive the one or more VCP data transmissions. Moreover, the SRWC module collaborates with the vehicle system and mobile computing device to generate one or more notices, the SRWC module subsequently collaborates with the VCP to transmit the one or more notices to the remote entity. In response to the one or more notices, the remote entity communicates one or more notifications to the VCP.

Claims

1. A vehicle-share relationship management system comprising:

a short-range wireless communication (SRWC) module located in a vehicle and configured to communicate with a mobile computing device and at least one vehicle system, the SRWC module comprising a SRWC module memory;

a vehicle communication platform (VCP) located within the vehicle, the VCP configured to communicably couple with the SRWC module and configured to generate one or more data transmissions;

a remote entity configured to receive the one or more VCP data transmissions;

wherein the SRWC module collaborates with the vehicle system and mobile computing device to generate one or more notices, the SRWC module subsequently collaborates with the VCP to transmit the one or more notices to the remote entity, wherein the one or more notices is selected from a group comprising;

a door-lock-command notice, a reminder notice, a termination notice, a trip-information notice, mobile device-detection notice, or a combination thereof;

wherein, when the door-lock-command notice is generated, the SRWC module detects whether the mobile computing device remains located within the vehicle;

wherein, in response to the door-lock-command notice being transmitted, the SRWC module wipes an authorization key clean from the SRWC module memory and the SRWC module designates the authorization key as exhausted;

wherein, in response to the one or more notices, the remote entity communicates one or more notifications to the VCP, wherein the one or more notifications is selected from a group comprising;

an initiation notification, a completion notification, a reservation-termination notification, an expedition notification, a reminder notification, or a combination thereof; and

wherein, when the reservation-termination notification is communicated, the VCP displays a reminder to remove personal belongings from the vehicle on a display of the VCP, and wherein the reservation-termination notification further requests for interactive feedback through the display of the VCP.

2. The relationship management system of claim 1, the system further comprising:

the mobile computing device comprising a CarShare App; and

wherein the one or more notices may be generated via the mobile computing device and/or the CarShare App.

3. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the SRWC module communicates with the at least one vehicle system and VCP via a vehicle bus.

4. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the remote entity is a server located in a remote call center.

5. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the SRWC module implements a wireless protocol selected from a group comprising:

a Bluetooth low power protocol, a Bluetooth protocol, a ZigBee protocol, an iBeacon protocol, an Eddystone protocol, a near field communication protocol, a Wi-Fi protocol, or a combination thereof.

6. A method of relationship management in a vehicle-share system, the method comprising:

(a) providing a short-range wireless communication (SRWC) module located in a vehicle and configured to communicate with a mobile computing device and at least one vehicle system, the SRWC module comprising a SRWC module memory;

(b) providing a vehicle communication platform (VCP) located within the vehicle, the VCP configured to communicably couple with the SRWC module and configured to generate one or more data transmissions;

(c) providing a remote entity configured to receive the one or more VCP data transmissions;

(d) receiving, at the SRWC module, one or more communications from the mobile computing device;

(e) generating, via the SRWC module, one or more notices based on the one or more communications, wherein the one or more notices is selected from a group comprising;

a door-lock-command notice, a reminder notice, a termination notice, a trip-information notice, mobile device-detection notice, or a combination thereof;

(f) when the door-lock-command notice is generated, via the SRWC module, detecting whether the mobile computing device remains located within the vehicle;

(g) receiving, at the VCP, the one or more notices;

(h) transmitting, via the VCP, the one or more notices to the remote entity;

(i) in response to the door-lock-command notice being transmitted, via the SRWC module, wiping an authorization key clean from the SRWC module memory and further designating the authorization key as exhausted;

(j) receiving, at the remote entity, the one or more notices;

(k) sending, via the remote entity, one or more notifications, wherein the one or more notifications is selected from a group comprising;

an initiation notification, a completion notification, a reservation-termination notification, an expedition notification, a reminder notification, or a combination thereof; and

(l) receiving, at the VCP, the one or more notifications from the remote entity, wherein, when the reservation-termination notification is communicated, the VCP displays a reminder to remove personal belongings from the vehicle, and wherein the reservation-termination notification further requests for interactive feedback, via the display of the VCP.

7. The method of relationship management of claim 6, the method further comprising:

(k) implementing one or more back-end functions, via the remote entity, to review and analyze the one or more notices.

8. The method of relationship management of claim 6, the method further comprising:

(k) receiving, at the SRWC module, one or more portions of vehicle dynamics information from one or more vehicle sensors; and

(l) compiling, via SRWC module, the vehicle dynamics information.

9. The method of relationship management of claim 6, the method further comprising:

(k) providing the mobile computing device comprising a CarShare App;

(l) generating, via the mobile computing device and/or the CarShare App, one or more notices; and

(m) sending, via the mobile computing device, the one or more notices to the remote entity.

10. The method of relationship management of claim 6, wherein the remote entity is a server located in a remote call center.

11. The method of relationship management of claim 6, wherein the SRWC module implements a wireless protocol selected from a group comprising:

a Bluetooth low power protocol, a Bluetooth protocol, a ZigBee protocol, an iBeacon protocol, an Eddystone protocol, a near field communication protocol, a Wi-Fi protocol, or a combination thereof.

12. A method of relationship management in a vehicle-share system, the method comprising:

(a) providing a short-range wireless communication (SRWC) module located in a vehicle and configured to communicate with a mobile computing device and at least one vehicle system, the SRWC module comprising a SRWC module memory;

(b) providing a vehicle communication platform (VCP) located within the vehicle, the VCP configured to communicably couple with the SRWC module and configured to generate one or data transmissions;

(c) providing a remote entity configured to receive the one or more VCP data transmissions;

(d) providing the mobile computing device comprising a CarShare App;

(e) receiving, at the SRWC module, one or more communications from the mobile computing device;

(f) generating, via the SRWC module and/or the mobile computing device and/or the CarShare App, one or more notices based on the one or more communications, wherein the one or more notices is selected from a group comprising;

a door-lock-command notice, a reminder notice, a termination notice, a trip-information notice, mobile device-detection notice, or a combination thereof;

(g) when the door-lock-command notice is generated, via the SRWC module, detecting whether the mobile computing device remains located within the vehicle;

(h) receiving, at the VCP, the one or more notices;

(i) transmitting, via the VCP, the one or more notices to the remote entity;

(j) in response to the door-lock-command notice being transmitted, via the SRWC module, wiping an authorization key clean from the SRWC module memory and further designating the authorization key as exhausted;

(k) receiving, at the remote entity, the one or more notices;

(l) implementing one or more back-end functions, via the remote entity, to review and analyze the one or more notices;

(m) sending, via the remote entity, one or more notifications to the VCP, wherein the one or more notifications is selected from a group comprising;

an initiation notification, a completion notification, a reservation-termination notification, an expedition notification, a reminder notification, or a combination thereof; and

(n) receiving, at the VCP, the one or more notifications from the remote entity, wherein, when the reservation-termination notification is communicated, the VCP displays a reminder to remove personal belongings from the vehicle, and wherein the reservation-termination notification further requests for interactive feedback, via the display of the VCP.

13. The method of relationship management of claim 12, the method further comprising:

(m) sending, via the mobile computing device, the one or more notices to the remote entity.

14. The method of relationship management of claim 12, the method further comprising:

(m) receiving, at the SRWC module, one or more portions of vehicle dynamics information from one or more vehicle sensors; and

(n) compiling, via the SRWC module, the vehicle dynamics information.