Electronic vehicle security system with remote control

• US 6,452,484 B1
• Filed: 02/22/2000
• Issued: 09/17/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Directed, LLC (VOXX International Corporation)
• Original Assignee: DEI Holdings Incorporated
• Inventors: Drori, Zeʼev
• Primary Examiner(s): TRIEU, VAN THANH
• Application Number:
  US09/510,876
• Time in Patent Office: 938 Days
• Field of Search: 340/425.5, 340/426, 340/428, 340/429, 340/825.32, 340/825.69, 340/825.72, 340/539, 307/10.2, 307/10.3, 307/10.4, 180/173, 180/287
• US Class Current: 340/426.13
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2225/00 Means indicating the functioning state of the alarm system, e.g. indicating arming, using leds
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/1004 Alarm systems characterised by the type of sensor, e.g. current sensing means using door lock sensors B60R25/1001

Abstract

An electronic remote control vehicle security system, includes a wireless remote control transmitter for transmitting signals to arm or disarm the system and a receiver is mounted within the vehicle. An audio generator generates audible sounds confirming a change of state of the system. A system controller arms or disarms the system in response to commands received from the remote transmitter. The controller further issues a control signal to the audio generator to generate an audio signal confirming arming or disarming of the system. A means is provided to disable said generation of said confirming audio signal during night conditions, which means includes a photodetector mounted on the vehicle for monitoring the ambient light conditions. The controller is responsive to the photodetector signal to disable said generation when said photodetector output indicates darkness.

Claims

1. An electronic remote control vehicle security system with user remote programmability of sensor sensitivity, comprising:

a sensor device responsive to a disturbance phenomenon to provide a sensor signal indicative of a disturbance event;

alarm apparatus for generating an alarm response in the event the sensor device is tripped by a disturbance event while the system is armed;

a wireless remote control transmitter for transmitting wireless remote signals to control functions of the security system, said transmitter including a circuit for transmitting a coded signal initiated by the user to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor to disturbance events;

a receiver mounted within the vehicle for receiving the wireless remote signals and generating receiver signals in response to said receipt;

a sensitivity adjustment circuit responsive to the receiver signals and receipt of the coded signal to incrementally adjust the sensitivity of the sensor to disturbance events according to user initiated coded signals.

2. The system of claim 1 further including apparatus for determining that the sensor has been tripped, said apparatus including means for comparing the sensor signal to an alarm threshold value, and wherein the sensitivity adjustment circuit includes apparatus for changing the alarm threshold value in response to adjustment commands.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said sensor generates an analog signal, said system further includes a system controller responsive to a digitized version of said analog signal for comparing the magnitude of the sensor signal to the stored alarm threshold value.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the system further includes apparatus for generating a confirming signal to the user confirming adjustment of the sensitivity.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the confirming signal is an audible signal, wherein increase in sensitivity is confirmed by an audible signal of high pitch and decrease in sensitivity is confirmed by an audible signal of low pitch.

6. An electronic remote control vehicle security system with remote programmability of sensor sensitivity, comprising:

a sensor device responsive to a disturbance phenomenon to provide a sensor signal indicative of a disturbance event;

alarm apparatus for generating an alarm response in the event the sensor device is tripped by a disturbance event while the system is armed;

a wireless remote control transmitter for transmitting wireless remote signals to control functions of the security system, said transmitter including a circuit for transmitting a coded signal to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor to disturbance events;

a receiver mounted within the vehicle for receiving the wireless remote signals and generating receiver signals in response to said receipt;

a sensitivity adjustment circuit responsive to the receiver signals and receipt of the coded signal to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor to disturbance events,

wherein the controller further compares the magnitude of the sensor signal to a stored warning threshold value, and actuates a warning signal if the sensor signal exceeds the warning threshold value but does not exceed an alarm threshold value, and said transmitter further includes means for generating a second coded signal to adjust the warning threshold value, said controller responsive to the receipt of the second coded signal to adjust the stored warning threshold value.

7. An electronic remote control vehicle security system with remote programmability of sensor sensitivity, comprising:

a sensor device responsive to a disturbance phenomenon to provide a sensor signal indicative of a disturbance event;

alarm apparatus for generating an alarm response in the event the sensor device is tripped by a disturbance event while the system is armed;

a wireless remote control transmitter for transmitting wireless remote signals to control functions of the security system, said transmitter including a circuit for transmitting a coded signal to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor to disturbance events;

a receiver mounted within the vehicle for receiving the wireless remote signals and generating receiver signals in response to said receipt;

a sensitivity adjustment circuit responsive to the receiver signals and receipt of the coded signal to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor to disturbance events,

wherein the sensitivity adjustment circuit is responsive to receipt of the coded signal only when the system is in a disarmed mode.

8. An electronic remote control vehicle security system, comprising:

a user programmable sensor device responsive to a disturbance phenomenon to provide a sensor signal indicative of a disturbance event, the sensor device including a sensitivity adjustment circuit responsive to sensor program signals initiated by the user to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor device to the disturbance phenomenon;

a wireless remote control transmitter for transmitting wireless remote signals initiated by the user to control functions of the security system, said transmitter including a circuit for transmitting a first code to arm or disarm the system and a second code to incrementally adjust the sensitivity of the sensor;

a receiver mounted within the vehicle for receiving the wireless remote signals and generating receiver signals in response to said receipt;

a system controller responsive to the sensor signal to generate an alarm when the system is armed, said controller further responsive to the receiver signals to control functions of the system, including apparatus responsive to the first code to arm or disarm the system and apparatus responsive to the second code to generate a sensor program control signal to incrementally adjust the sensitivity of the sensor in response to said user initiated second code.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising apparatus for generating an acknowledgement signal to indicate to the system user that the sensor sensitivity has been adjusted in response to the remote transmitter signals.

10. An electronic vehicle security system including a programmable controller for controlling a plurality of system functions, and for accepting user programming commands during a reset program mode to set a plurality of system functions to user-defined settings, the system including a memory in which is stored factory default settings to which the system functions are set until user programming of said user-defined settings, the system further including a one-step programming apparatus for resetting a predetermined set of said settings to the factory default settings, thereby avoiding sequential individual programming of each function to a known state.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein said controller is responsive to a switch setting while the system is disarmed to enter said reset program mode.

12. The system of claim 10 wherein said switch setting is an actuation of a system valet switch for a predetermined time interval.

13. The system of claim 10 wherein the system includes a remote control transmitter which generates a code to control functions of the system, the controller including a memory in which the code is programmed by the user for recognition of a received code as a valid code, and wherein the set of user-defined settings includes the remote control codes stored in the controller, the controller being operative in the reset programming mode to delete all remote control codes stored in memory.

14. The system of claim 10 wherein the system includes a remote control transmitter which generates a code to control functions of the system, the controller including a memory in which the code is programmed by the user for recognition of a received code as a valid code, and wherein the set of user-defined settings excludes the remote control codes stored in the controller, wherein said remote control codes are not reset or deleted during said reset programming mode.

15. An electronic remote control vehicle security system, comprising:

a wireless remote control transmitter for transmitting wireless remote signals to arm or disarm the system;

a receiver mounted within the vehicle for receiving the wireless remote signals and generating receiver signals in response to said receipt;

an audio generator for generating audible sounds confirming a change of state of the system;

a system controller responsive to the receiver signals to arm or disarm the system in response to commands received from the remote transmitter, said controller further responsive to the receiver signals to issue a control signal to said audio generator to generate an audio signal confirming arming or disarming of the system; and

means to disable said generation of said confirming audio signal during night conditions,

wherein the means to disable said generation includes a photodetector mounted on the vehicle for monitoring the ambient light conditions, and said controller is responsive to the photodetector signal to disable said generation when said photodetector output indicates darkness.

16. An electronic vehicle security system for a vehicle having a power door locking system, comprising:

an alarm;

apparatus for detecting intrusion attempts and generating intrusion signals in response to said detection;

a controller for arming the system so that said alarm is activated in response to detected intrusion attempts;

the controller further comprising means for issuing door lock and unlock commands to lock or unlock the doors under predetermined circumstances; and

polarity programming means for programming the controller to set the polarity of said door lock and unlock commands to match the polarity required by the power door locking system.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising circuitry responsive to said commands to generate door locking or unlocking signals to said power door locking system to lock or unlock the doors, said circuitry for generating a door locking or unlocking signal of a first polarity and for generating a door locking or unlocking signal of a second polarity.