Inventory tracking system classification strategy

• US 9,836,717 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2014
• Issued: 12/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Van Wiemeersch, John Robert, Hrecznyj, Michael, Kaminski, David Paul, Kleve, Robert Bruce
• Primary Examiner(s): Do, Truc M
• Application Number:
  US14/151,398
• Publication Number:
  US 20150193729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,426 Days
• Field of Search: 701 36, 701 49, 701 2, 701 46, 701400, 340988, 340989, 340522, 340570
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

A vehicle may include a passive entry system that unlocks the vehicle upon authenticating a fob in a vicinity of the vehicle. The passive entry system further recognizes the vehicle is approaching a restrictive geographic location within which at least one proscribed item is prohibited, receives item data indicative of items located within the vehicle, and provides output indicating whether any of the items is a proscribed item for the restrictive geographic location.

Claims

1. A vehicle comprising:

a passive entry system including a controller configured to

recognize the vehicle is approaching a restrictive geographic location within which at least one proscribed item is prohibited according to a rule associated with the location and with a specific user,

receive item data indicative of items located within the vehicle, the item data acquired from frequency responses from tag devices associated with each item within the vehicle, and

provide output indicating whether any of the items is a proscribed item for the restrictive geographic location.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the restrictive geographic location is recognized in response to the vehicle coming within a predefined radius of the restrictive geographic location.

3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the restrictive geographic location is defined by a region about a location at which the at least one proscribed item is prohibited.

16. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the frequency responses are received in response to a tag challenge transmitted from an antenna of the passive entry system and wherein the frequency responses include an identification tag associated with the respective item to identify an object within the vehicle.

4. A vehicle comprising:

a passive entry system including a controller configured to

unlock the vehicle upon authenticating a fob in a vicinity of the vehicle,

receive item data indicative of items located within the vehicle, and

upon vehicle departure, recognize the vehicle is departing from a point of interest requiring a specified item, wherein the specified item should not be within the vehicle upon departure from the point of interest, and provide output indicating whether the specified item is in the vehicle.

5. The vehicle of claim 4, wherein the controller is further configured to receive at least one rule associated with the point of interest identifying the specified item, and compare the item data with the specified item.

6. A vehicle comprising:

a passive entry system including a controller configured to, in response to a rule event, receive item data indicative of items located within the vehicle, the item data based on frequency responses from tag devices associated with each item within the vehicle, receive at least one rule specific to the rule event, apply the rule to the item data, and generate output indicating whether the item data violates the rule.

7. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule specifies a required item or a forbidden item.

8. The vehicle of claim 7, wherein applying the rule includes comparing the item data with the required item or forbidden item specified by the rule.

9. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule event occurs when a fob associated with a user is authenticated and wherein the at least one rule is specific to the user.

10. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule event occurs when the vehicle is determined to be at a specific location and wherein the rule is specific to the location.

11. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule event occurs when a particular object is recognized to be within the vehicle and wherein the rule is associated with the particular object.

12. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule event occurs when a particular route is recognized and wherein the rule is specific to the route.

13. The vehicle of claim 9, wherein the at least one rule specifies a required item specific to the user.

14. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule is specific to at least one of a time of day and day of the week.

15. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the rule is specific to an ambient temperature.