In-vehicle entertainment method and system for executing the same

• US 7,834,758 B2
• Filed: 10/31/2007
• Issued: 11/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Lee, Richard M., Peterson, Michael J., Syed, Faizan
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman; Brian A
• Assistant Examiner(s): POINT, RUFUS C
• Application Number:
  US11/932,077
• Publication Number:
  US 20090109019A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,112 Days
• Field of Search: 340/7.22, 340/7.23, 340/539.11, 340/539.1, 340/539.14, 340/539.16, 455/556.2, 455/228, 455/186.1, 455/152.1, 725/108, 370/486, 370/487, 345/2.3, 715/717
• US Class Current: 340/539.11
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

An in-vehicle entertainment method includes playing through an in-vehicle audio component a received program content broadcast from a remote location; and receiving, during the playing of the received program content, a user input selecting an identifier. The selected identifier is associated with an electronic device remote from the vehicle. The method further includes transmitting, from the vehicle to the electronic device during the playing of the received program content, an alert identifying the received program content, a channel from which the received program content is playing, or combinations thereof.

Claims

1. An in-vehicle entertainment method, comprising:

playing through an in-vehicle audio component a received program content broadcast from a remote location;

receiving, at an in-vehicle telematics unit and during the playing of the received program content, a user input selecting an identifier, wherein the selected identifier is associated with an electronic device remote from the vehicle;

generating, via a processing device of the in-vehicle telematics unit, an alert consisting of i) an identification of the received program content, or ii) a channel from which the received program content is playing, or iii) combinations of i and ii, or iv) i, ii, or iii and a timestamp of when the alert is generated, or v) i, ii, iii, or iv and an identification of a sender of the alert;

transmitting the alert via a communication system from the vehicle to the electronic device during the playing of the received program content; and

at least one of displaying the alert on a screen of the electronic device or playing the alert via an audio component of the electronic device to inform a user of the electronic device of information contained in the alert.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

accessing a personalized account at an Internet-enabled program via an other electronic device configured to access the Internet;

creating, via the Internet-enabled program, the identifier; and

transmitting, via the communication system, the identifier to the vehicle for storage therein.

3. The method as defined in claim 2, further comprising storing the identifier via the Internet-enabled program.

4. The method as defined in claim 3, further comprising:

re-accessing the personalized account at the Internet-enabled program via the other electronic device configured to access the Internet; and

updating, via the Internet-enabled program, the identifier.

5. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein prior to transmitting the alert to the electronic device, the method further comprises:

transmitting, via the communication system, the alert from the vehicle to a centralized computer system; and

routing the alert to the electronic device from the centralized computer system via the communication system.

6. The method as defined in claim 5 wherein routing the alert to the electronic device includes sending the alert to the electronic device in a predetermined format.

7. The method as defined in claim 6 wherein the electronic device and the predetermined format are based on a preference selected for the identifier.

8. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the identifier includes a first name, a last name, a nickname, a name of a place, or combinations thereof.

9. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the vehicle is associated with one owner, and wherein the electronic device is associated with an other owner that is different from the vehicle owner.

10. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the alert is transmitted in text format when displayed on the screen, in audio format when played via the audio component, or in both text and audio formats when displayed and played.

11. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein selecting the identifier is accomplished via pressing a button or touch screen, and wherein generating and transmitting take place in response to the pressing.

12. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising displaying the identifier to a user via an in-vehicle display.

13. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the identifier is associated with a phone number, an email address, or combinations thereof

14. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the electronic device is a telematics unit of an other vehicle, an audio component of an other vehicle, a landline telephone, a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant, a computer, or combinations thereof

15. The method as defined in claim 1 wherein the identifier is one identifier in a list of identifiers stored in the vehicle and displayed to a user.

16. A system for executing an in-vehicle entertainment method, the system comprising:

an in-vehicle system configured to receive and store an identifier;

an other in-vehicle system configured to display the identifier to an in-vehicle user such that the user may select the identifier as a received program content is played through an in-vehicle audio component;

an in-vehicle telematics unit;

a text message or an audio message configured to be generated by the in-vehicle telematics unit in response to receiving the selected identifier and configured to be displayed or played via an electronic device configured to receive such message, the text or audio message including an alert which consists of the selected identifier and i) an identification of the received program content, or ii) a channel from which the received program content is playing, or iii) combinations of i and ii, or iv) i, ii, or iii and a timestamp of when the alert is generated, or v) i, ii, iii, or iv and an identification of a sender of the alert;

a central computer system in operative communication with the vehicle, and configured to receive the alert from the in-vehicle telematics unit; and

the electronic device located remote from the vehicle and associated with the selected identifier, the electronic device configured to receive, from the central computer system, the alert.

17. The system as defined in claim 16, further comprising an Internet-enabled program for creating the identifier, the Internet-enabled program in operative and selective communication with the vehicle.

18. The system as defined in claim 16 wherein the electronic device is selected from a telematics unit of an other vehicle, an audio component of an other vehicle, a landline telephone, a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant, a computer, or combinations thereof.

19. The system as defined in claim 16 wherein the text message is included when a preference set for the selected identifier is an email address, and wherein the audio message is included when the preference set for the selected identifier is a phone number.

20. An in-vehicle entertainment method, comprising:

transmitting a list of identifiers from an Internet-enabled program to the vehicle;

playing through an in-vehicle audio component a received program content broadcast from a remote location;

receiving, at an in-vehicle telematics unit and during the playing of the received program content, a user input selecting an identifier from the list of identifiers stored in the vehicle, wherein the selected identifier is associated with an electronic device remote from the vehicle;

generating, via a processing device of the in-vehicle telematics unit, an alert consisting of i) an identification of the received program content, or ii) a channel from which the received program content is playing, or iii) combinations of i and ii, or iv) i, ii, or iii and a timestamp of when the alert is generated, or v) i, ii, iii, or iv and an identification of a sender of the alert;

transmitting the alert from the vehicle to a centralized computer system;

routing the alert from the centralized computer system to the electronic device; and

at least one of displaying the alert on a screen of the electronic device or playing the alert via an audio component of the electronic device to inform a user of the electronic device of information contained in the alert.