Method and apparatus for animal presence alert through wireless signal detection

• US 9,975,481 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2016
• Issued: 05/22/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Hatton, David Anthony, Nelson, Thomas, Nasrallah, Hussein F., Kristinsson, Johannes Geir, Prasad, Krishnaswamy Venkatesh
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Hung T
• Application Number:
  US15/162,127
• Publication Number:
  US 20170334354A1
• Time in Patent Office: 729 Days
• Field of Search: 340435, 340436, 340438, 340901, 3405731, 3405733, 701300, 701301
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 5/006 indicating risk of collision between vehicles or with pedestrians
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 9/008 for anti-collision purposes
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/14 Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/58 Recognition of moving objects or obstacles, e.g. vehicles or pedestrians; Recognition of traffic objects, e.g. traffic signs, traffic lights or roads
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/59 inside of a vehicle, e.g. relating to seat occupancy, driver state or inner lighting conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/10 Recognition assisted with metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/103 Static body considered as a whole, e.g. static pedestrian or occupant recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/00 Traffic control systems for road vehicles arrangement of road signs or traffic signals E01F9/00 ; automatic vehicle control B62D
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/166 for active traffic, e.g. moving vehicles, pedestrians, bikes

Abstract

A system includes a processor configured to detect a wireless signature indicating an animal presence within a predefined proximity to a vehicle. The processor is also configured to issue an alert to vehicle occupants responsive to the wireless signature detection, the alert varying based on detected signal strength. The wireless signature may be transmitted from a BLE or RFID device provided to an animal affixed to a collar, for example, or from an RFID chip embedded in an animal.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a processor configured to;

detect a wireless signal indicating presence of an animal within a predefined proximity to a vehicle;

issue a vehicle-based alert responsive to the wireless signal detection, the alert varying based on detected signal strength; and

determine if the animal is related to the vehicle based on a stored association, and when the animal is not related to the vehicle, upload an animal identification, determined based on the wireless signal, and current vehicle GPS coordinates in conjunction with an owner-alert instruction to alert a registered animal owner.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine if the animal is located within the vehicle based on an interior vehicle sensor and responsively disable alerts for any animal determined to be inside the vehicle.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to determine an approximate animal location based on received signal strength at multiple receivers and include the approximate animal location with the alert.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the alert increases in intensity varying correspondingly with animal proximity to the vehicle.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the alert includes an exterior audible sound played through an exterior speaker.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to cease vehicle movement if the animal is determined to be within the predefined proximity to the vehicle.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to cease vehicle movement if the animal is determined to be detected in a particular location with respect to the vehicle and the vehicle is moving in a direction corresponding to encountering the location.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the detected location is forward of vehicle rear tires and the vehicle is moving forward.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the detected location is rearward of vehicle front tires and the vehicle is moving in reverse.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to provide the animal identification in conjunction with the alert.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the processor is configured to query a remote database to determine the animal identification based on the wireless signature.

12. A system comprising:

a processor configured to;

detect a wireless signal indicating presence of an animal within a predefined proximity to a vehicle;

contact a remote animal identification database;

determine if the animal, identifiable by the wireless signal, has been designated as missing; and

responsive to determining that the animal has been designated as missing, provide owner contact information received from the identification database to vehicle occupants.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to provide vehicle GPS coordinates to a remote reporting system for use in reporting an animal location.