Vehicle Wheel Anti-Theft System And Method

• US 20180086306A1
• Filed: 09/27/2016
• Published: 03/29/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Schmotzer, John William, Sandhu, Harminder
• Granted Patent: US 10,131,320 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60B 2900/3318 by theft prevention
• CPC Class Codes: B60B 7/16 Anti-theft devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/04 mounted on the wheel or tyre
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/103 Near field communication [NFC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/1001 Alarm systems associated with another car fitting or mechanism, e.g. door lock or knob, pedals features related to the general power supply B60R25/1018
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/102 a signal being sent to a remote location, e.g. a radio signal being transmitted to a police station, a security company or the owner
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1427 with transmitter-receiver for distance detection
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0227 System arrangements with a plurality of child units
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0247 System arrangements wherein the alarm criteria uses signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0252 System arrangements wherein the child unit emits, i.e. the child unit incorporates the emitter
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0269 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect the exact location of child or item using a navigation satellite system, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0272 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect exact location of child or item using triangulation other than GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0277 Communication between units on a local network, e.g. Bluetooth, piconet, zigbee, Wireless Personal Area Networks [WPAN]
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/182 Level alarms, e.g. alarms responsive to variables exceeding a threshold
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 27/00 Alarm systems in which the alarm condition is signalled from a central station to a plurality of substations
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 21/00 Systems for transmitting the position of an object with respect to a predetermined reference system, e.g. tele-autographic system
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/40 using a wireless architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/82 where the sensing device takes the initiative of sending data

Abstract

Embodiments include a vehicle comprising a plurality of wheels, each wheel including a pressure sensor and a wireless transceiver; a central transceiver configured to obtain tire pressure and signal strength information from each of the wireless transceivers; and a processor communicatively coupled to the central transceiver and configured to detect removal of one of the wheels based on the signal strength information obtained from the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel. Other embodiments include a method comprising obtaining tire pressure and signal strength information from each of a plurality of wireless transceivers respectively coupled to a plurality of wheels included in a vehicle; and detecting, using one or more processors, removal of one of the wheels from the vehicle based on the signal strength information obtained from the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel.

Claims

1. A vehicle, comprising:

a plurality of wheels, each wheel including a pressure sensor and a wireless transceiver;

a central transceiver configured to obtain tire pressure and signal strength information from each of the wireless transceivers; and

a processor communicatively coupled to the central transceiver and configured to detect removal of one of the wheels based on the signal strength information obtained from the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel.

2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the wireless transceiver in each wheel receives the tire pressure information from the corresponding pressure sensor for that wheel.

3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein each wireless transceiver is configured to periodically transmit, to the central transceiver, a wireless signal comprising the tire pressure information, the signal strength information, and identification information associated with the wireless transceiver.

4. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising a telematics unit communicatively coupled to the processor, wherein

the processor is further configured to generate a removal notification comprising a request to track the wireless transceiver of the removed wheel;

and

the telematics unit is configured to transmit the removal notification to one or more nearby vehicles located within a wireless transmission range of the removed wireless transceiver.

5. The vehicle of claim 4, wherein the removal notification includes instructions to locate the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel and obtain current signal strength information from said transceiver.

6. The vehicle of claim 5, wherein the processor is further configured to determine an estimated location of the removed wheel based on the current signal strength information obtained by the one or more nearby vehicles from the wireless transceiver of the removed wheel.

7. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the telematics unit transmits the removal notification to a remote server for distribution to the one or more nearby vehicles and is further configured to receive, from the remote server, the current signal strength information obtained by the one or more nearby vehicles from the wireless transceiver of the removed wheel.

8. The vehicle of claim 6, wherein the telematics unit transmits the removal notification directly to the one or more nearby vehicles and is further configured to receive, from the one or more nearby vehicles, the current signal strength information obtained from the wireless transceiver of the removed wheel.

9. The vehicle of claim 5, wherein the telematics unit transmits the removal notification to a remote server for distribution to the one or more nearby vehicles and is further configured to receive, from the remote server, an estimated location of the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel based on the current signal strength information obtained by the one or more nearby vehicles.

10. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the wireless transceiver included in each of the plurality of wheels is a Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) transceiver.

11. The vehicle of claim 10, wherein the central transceiver is a LoRaWAN transceiver configured to communicate with the wireless transceiver in each of the plurality of wheels.

12. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein upon receiving a removal notification requesting the vehicle to track a wireless transceiver removed from another vehicle, the processor is further configured to instruct the central transceiver to locate a wireless signal transmitted by the wireless transceiver removed from the other vehicle and to obtain signal strength information from said wireless transceiver.

13. A method, comprising:

obtaining tire pressure and signal strength information from each of a plurality of wireless transceivers respectively coupled to a plurality of wheels included in a vehicle; and

detecting, using one or more processors, removal of one of the wheels from the vehicle based on the signal strength information obtained from the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein detecting removal of one of the wheels includes detecting a decrease in signal strength for the wireless transceiver of the removed wheel.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

generating, using one or more processors, a removal notification comprising a request to track the wireless transceiver of the removed wheel; and

transmitting the removal notification to one or more nearby vehicles located within a wireless transmission range of the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the removal notification includes instructions to locate the wireless transceiver included in the removed wheel and obtain current signal strength information therefrom.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising determining, using one or more processors, an estimated location of the removed wheel relative to the one or more nearby vehicles based on the current signal strength information obtained by the one or more nearby vehicles.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein determining the estimated location comprises:

receiving the current signal strength information for the removed wireless transceiver from at least three of the one or more nearby vehicles;

receiving geographical location information for each of the at least three nearby vehicles; and

triangulating a location of the removed wireless transceiver relative to the at least three nearby vehicles using the geographical locations of the at least three nearby vehicles and the current signal strength information obtained thereby.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein determining the estimated location further comprises calculating a distance between the removed wireless transceiver and each of the at least three nearby vehicles based on the current signal strength information obtained by the corresponding nearby vehicle.

20. The method of claim 13, further comprising, upon receiving a removal notification requesting the vehicle to track a wireless transceiver included in a wheel removed from another vehicle, instructing a central transceiver included in the vehicle to locate a wireless signal transmitted by the removed wireless transceiver and to obtain signal strength information from the removed wireless transceiver.