Device and method for emergency call

• US 6,711,399 B1
• Filed: 09/18/2000
• Issued: 03/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Renault
• Original Assignee: Renault
• Inventors: Granier, Emmanuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Trost, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): D AGOSTA, STEPHEN M
• Application Number:
  US09/509,539
• Time in Patent Office: 1,282 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.1, 455/404.2, 455/403, 455/456.1, 455/521, 455/414.1, 379/45, 379/51, 370/316, 340/425.5, 340/426.16, 340/436, 342/357, 342/357.12
• US Class Current: 455/404.1
• 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

Abstract

A device and method for emergency calling of an assistance center by a vehicle provided with an on-board system that includes a location module for estimation and recording of the location of the vehicle and a sensor for estimation of the number of passengers in the vehicle. The last location and the estimated number of passengers are memorized in a memory of a central unit. The on-board system includes a second sensor interconnected with the central unit and adapted to detect the occurrence of an accident and an on-board communication module that is also interconnected with that central unit. When an accident is detected, the central unit is adapted to communicate to the assistance center a message that includes both the last location of the vehicle and the number of passengers on-board.

Claims

1. A device for emergency calling of an assistance center by a vehicle, the device comprising:

an on-board system in said vehicle including;

(a) a central unit including a microprocessor and a memory;

(b) a location module configured to estimate the location of said vehicle, said location module being interconnected with said central unit and a last location of said vehicle being memorized in said central unit memory;

(c) a first sensor including a vocal interface, interconnected with said central unit, and configured to estimate the number of passengers in said vehicle on the basis of audio signals detected in a passenger compartment of said vehicle, said estimate of said number of passengers being memorized in said central unit memory;

(d) a second sensor interconnected with said central unit and configured to detect the occurrence of an accident; and

(e) a communication module interconnected with said central unit and configured to communicate with said assistance center;

wherein, when an accident is detected, said central unit is configured to communicate to said assistance center a message that includes both said last location of said vehicle and said number of passengers.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein said first sensor further includes an electronic memory configured to make a recording of audio signals detected in said passenger compartment.

3. A device according to claim 2, wherein, in the event that the passengers do not communicate verbally with said assistance center at the time of said emergency call, said on-board system in response to a command signal retrieves the recording of audio signals from the electronic memory.

4. A device according to claim 1, wherein said first sensor further includes a voice recognition signal processing unit, said signal processing unit configured to evaluate, at the time of detection of a voice signal, an elementary identifier of the voice detected.

5. A device according to claim 4, wherein the number of said identifiers represents the number of passengers who expressed themselves verbally in said vehicle.

6. A device according to claim 1, wherein said vocal interface includes a hands-free-kit.

7. A device according to claim 1, wherein said first sensor includes door sensors configured to detect a door opening and the occurrence of a door opening is used by said first sensor in said estimate of said number of passengers.

8. A device according to claim 7, wherein the duration of a door opening is used in said estimate of said number of passengers.

9. A device according to claim 1, wherein said second sensor includes an impact sensor.

10. A device according to claim 9, wherein said impact sensor includes an inertia sensor.

11. A device according to claim 10, wherein said inertia sensor is configured to control the cutting off of intake of fuel into an engine of said vehicle.

12. A device according to claim 9, wherein said impact sensor includes an acceleration sensor and said message indicates to said assistance center the intensity of an impact derived therefrom.

13. A device according to claim 9, wherein said impact sensor is configured to detect an accident in the event that a seat belt pretensioner is triggered.

14. A device according to claim 1 further including a manual control means interconnected with said central unit for manual triggering of said message, said message including a variable that indicates whether the triggering was manual or automatic.

15. A device according to claim 1, wherein said message is transmitted in the form of a Short-Message-Service (SMS) message.

16. A process for emergency calling from a vehicle to a call center, including the steps of:

(a) estimating a location of said vehicle and memorizing in an on-board memory a last location of said vehicle;

(b) estimating a number of passengers in said vehicle using a vocal interface on-board said vehicle and memorizing in the on-board memory said estimated number;

(c) detecting the occurrence of an accident; and

(d) communicating to said assistance center, on the detection of said accident, a message including both said last location and said number of passengers.

17. A method according to claim 16, further including the steps of:

calling automatically or manually said assistance center to establish a vocal connection between said vehicle and said assistance center; and

including in said message a variable that indicates the type of triggering, manual or automatic.

18. A method according to claim 17, further including the step of identifying said vehicle or its driver to said assistance center by a telephone number of a mobile communication module that is on-board said vehicle and is used to establish said vocal connection.

19. A method according to claim 16, further including the steps of:

recording in a memory audio signals detected in a passenger compartment of said vehicle; and

transmitting from said assistance center, in the event that the passengers do not communicate verbally with said assistance center at the time of establishing of said emergency call, a command signal to the on-board system to retrieve the recording of audio signals.

20. A method according to claim 16, further including the step of estimating said number of passengers using door sensors of said vehicle.