Method and system for communicating vehicle diagnostic data to internet server via Bluetooth enabled cell phone for subsequent retrieval

• US 8,370,020 B2
• Filed: 06/22/2007
• Issued: 02/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lear Corporation
• Original Assignee: Lear Corporation
• Inventors: Bauman, Jason G., Harwood, Jody K., Rudnick, Kenan R., Mackey, Clayton
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shafi, Muhammad
• Application Number:
  US11/767,036
• Publication Number:
  US 20080316006A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,055 Days
• Field of Search: 701/29, 701/30, 701/33, 701/34, 701/43, 701/101, 340/825.54, 340/825.52, 340/426, 340/438, 340/425.5
• US Class Current: 701/33.2
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• 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

A method and system for communicating vehicle diagnostic data to a vehicle service provider employs sensors for generating sensor signals indicative of the status or condition of vehicle components. A diagnostics module in the vehicle generates diagnostic data based on the sensor signals and transfers the diagnostic data to a communications module of a hands-free phone system in the vehicle. The communications module wirelessly communicates the diagnostic data to a Bluetooth enabled cell phone in the vehicle using Bluetooth communications. The cell phone communicates the diagnostic data to an Internet server via the Internet. The provider accesses the diagnostic data from the Internet server using a computer connected to the Internet to determine if any of the vehicle components are in need of repair or maintenance. The provider notifies a user of the vehicle of any vehicle component that is in need of repair or maintenance.

Claims

1. A vehicle comprising:

a vehicle bus;

a plurality of sensors for monitoring the operational status or condition of components of the vehicle, each sensor generating a sensor signal indicative of the monitored vehicle component and providing the sensor signal to the vehicle bus;

a diagnostics module connected to the vehicle bus to receive the sensor signals, wherein the diagnostics module generates diagnostic data of the vehicle based on the sensor signals; and

a hands-free phone system having a communications module connected to the vehicle bus and operable for wirelessly communicating voice signals and the diagnostic data over a Bluetooth wireless path with a Bluetooth enabled cell phone in the vehicle using Bluetooth communications;

wherein during a call between a user using the cell phone and another party over a phone network, the communications module receives voice signals of the user via a microphone connected to the communications module and wirelessly transmits the voice signals of the user over the wireless path to the cell phone for transmission over the phone network for receipt by the other party and the communications module wirelessly receives voice signals of the other party over the wireless path from the cell phone and outputs the voice signals of the other party through speakers connected to the communications module for the user to hear;

wherein the diagnostics module transfers the diagnostic data to the communications module and the communications module wirelessly transmits the diagnostic data over the Bluetooth wireless path to the cell phone using Bluetooth communications for the cell phone to communicate the diagnostic data to an external destination.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the diagnostics module transfers the diagnostic data to the communications module over the vehicle bus.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the diagnostic data includes the sensor signals.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the diagnostic data includes an identifier of the vehicle.

5. A system for communicating diagnostic data of a vehicle from the vehicle to a vehicle service provider, the system comprising:

a plurality of sensors for monitoring the operational status or condition of components of the vehicle, each sensor generating a sensor signal indicative of the monitored vehicle component;

a diagnostics module operable for receiving the sensor signals from the sensors, wherein the diagnostics module generates diagnostic data based on the sensor signals;

a Bluetooth enabled cell phone in the vehicle;

a hands-free phone system in the vehicle, the hands-free phone system having a communications module operable for wirelessly communicating voice signals and the diagnostic data over a Bluetooth wireless path with the cell phone using Bluetooth communications; and

a computer of a vehicle service provider having access to an Internet server via the Internet;

wherein during a call between a user using the cell phone and another party over a phone network, the communications module receives voice signals of the user via a microphone connected to the communications module and wirelessly transmits the voice signals of the user over the wireless path to the cell phone for transmission over the phone network for receipt by the other party and the communications module wirelessly receives voice signals of the other party over the wireless path from the cell phone and outputs the voice signals of the other party through speakers connected to the communications module for the user to hear;

wherein the diagnostics module transfers the diagnostic data to the communications module, wherein the communications module wirelessly transmits the diagnostic data over the Bluetooth wireless path to the cell phone using Bluetooth communications, wherein the cell phone communicates the diagnostic data to the Internet server via the Internet.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the diagnostics module receives the sensor signals from the sensors over a vehicle bus.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the diagnostics module transfers the diagnostic data to the communications module over a vehicle bus.

8. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the diagnostic data includes the sensor signals.

9. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the diagnostic data includes an identifier of the vehicle.

10. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the cell phone communicates the diagnostic data to the Internet server via a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) communications line connected to the Internet.

11. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the cell phone communicates the diagnostic data to the Internet server via a cell phone telecommunications network connected to the Internet.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein:

the cell phone telecommunications network is connected to the Internet via an Internet service provider.

13. The system of claim 5 further comprising:

a computer of a user of the vehicle;

wherein the computer of the vehicle service provider has access to the computer of the vehicle user via the Internet, wherein the vehicle service provider transfers a notification regarding a vehicle component in need of repair of maintenance to the computer of the vehicle user via the computer of the vehicle service provider.

14. The system of claim 5 further comprising:

a computer of a user of the vehicle;

wherein the computer of the vehicle user accesses the diagnostic data stored on the Internet server for the vehicle user to analyze the diagnostic data to determine if any of the vehicle components are in need of repair or maintenance.

15. A method for communicating diagnostic data of a vehicle to a vehicle service provider, the method comprising:

monitoring components of a vehicle using sensors;

generating sensor signals indicative of the monitored vehicle components;

generating diagnostic data based on the sensor signals;

providing in the vehicle a hands-free phone system operable for wirelessly communicating voice signals and the diagnostic data over a Bluetooth wireless path with a Bluetooth enabled cell phone in the vehicle using Bluetooth communications;

during a call between a user using the cell phone and another party over a network, receiving by the phone system voice signals of the user via a microphone connected to the phone system and wirelessly transmitting from the phone system the voice signals of the user over the wireless path to the cell phone for transmission over the network for receipt by the other party and wirelessly receiving by the phone system voice signals of the other party over the wireless path from the cell phone and outputting from the phone system the voice signals of the other party through speakers connected to the phone system for the user to hear;

transferring the diagnostic data to the hands-free phone system of the vehicle;

wirelessly communicating the diagnostic data from the hands-free phone system over the Bluetooth wireless path to the Bluetooth enabled cell phone in the vehicle using Bluetooth communications;

communicating over a communications line having at least one wireless segment the diagnostic data from the cell phone to an Internet server via the Internet.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

receiving the sensor signals from the sensors over a vehicle bus prior to generating diagnostic data based on the sensor signals.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein:

transferring the diagnostic data to a hands-free phone system includes transferring the diagnostic data over a vehicle bus to the hands-free phone system.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein:

communicating over a communications line having at least one wireless segment the diagnostic data from the cell phone to an Internet server via the Internet includes communicating the diagnostic data to the Internet server via a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) communications line connected to the Internet.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein:

communicating over a communications line having at least one wireless segment the diagnostic data from the cell phone to an Internet server via the Internet includes communicating the diagnostic data to the Internet server via a cell phone telecommunications network connected to the Internet.

20. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

accessing the diagnostic data from the Internet server using a computer of a user of the vehicle.