U.S. patent application number 13/938673 was filed with the patent office on 2015-01-15 for opportunistic data connectivity.
The applicant listed for this patent is General Motors LLC. Invention is credited to John L. Dale, Andrew J. Macdonald, Dipankar Pal.
Application Number | 20150017997 13/938673 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 52247825 |
Filed Date | 2015-01-15 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150017997 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Pal; Dipankar ; et
al. |
January 15, 2015 |
OPPORTUNISTIC DATA CONNECTIVITY
Abstract
A method of controlling a vehicle telematics unit includes
placing the vehicle telematics unit in a data mode while camped on
a base station that does not use a simultaneous voice and data
(SVD) cellular standard; sensing an amount of time that has passed
since the vehicle telematics unit last received a request for data
while in the data mode; comparing the sensed amount of time with a
predetermined threshold using the vehicle telematics unit; and
commanding the vehicle telematics unit to maintain the data mode
and also to enter a voice mode when the sensed amount of time
exceeds the predetermined threshold.
Inventors: |
Pal; Dipankar; (Sylvania,
OH) ; Macdonald; Andrew J.; (Grosse Pointe Park,
MI) ; Dale; John L.; (Fenton, MI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
General Motors LLC |
Detroit |
MI |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
52247825 |
Appl. No.: |
13/938673 |
Filed: |
July 10, 2013 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
455/450 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 48/18 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
455/450 |
International
Class: |
H04W 72/04 20060101
H04W072/04 |
Claims
1. A method of controlling a vehicle telematics unit, comprising
the steps of: (a) placing the vehicle telematics unit in a data
mode while camped on a base station that does not use a
simultaneous voice and data (SVD) cellular standard; (b) sensing an
amount of time that has passed since the vehicle telematics unit
last received a request for data while in the data mode; (c)
comparing the sensed amount of time with a predetermined threshold
using the vehicle telematics unit; and (d) commanding the vehicle
telematics unit to maintain the data mode and also to enter a voice
mode when the sensed amount of time exceeds the predetermined
threshold.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data mode is used along with
a Wi-Fi hotspot provided by the vehicle telematics unit.
3. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of sensing
the amount of time that has passed since the vehicle telematics
unit last received a request for data via the Wi-Fi hotspot.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of ending the
voice mode when the vehicle telematics unit detects a request for
data.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the base station uses a 4G or a
long term evolution (LTE) cellular standard.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the base station uses a 3G
cellular standard.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the base station is a cell
tower.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle telematics unit is
unable to receive a voice page from the base station while in the
data mode.
9. A method of controlling a vehicle telematics unit, comprising
the steps of: (a) determining that a base station does not use a
simultaneous voice and data (SVD) cellular standard; (b) camping on
the base station that does not use the SVD cellular standard; (c)
establishing a voice mode for the vehicle telematics unit while
camped on the base station; (d) detecting a request for data
service at the vehicle telematics unit while in the voice mode; (e)
switching the voice mode to a data mode that accepts requests for
data; (f) determining that the vehicle telematics unit has not had
a data request via the data mode for a predetermined amount of
time; and (g) in response to the determination of step (f),
reactivating the voice mode and maintaining the data mode while
camped on the base station that does not use the SVD cellular
standard.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the data mode is used along with
a Wi-Fi hotspot provided by the vehicle telematics unit.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of
determining that the vehicle telematics unit has not had a data
request via the Wi-Fi hotspot for the predetermined amount of
time.
12. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of ending
the voice mode when the vehicle telematics unit detects a request
for data.
13. The method of claim 9, wherein the base station uses a 4G or a
long term evolution (LTE) cellular standard.
14. The method of claim 9, wherein the base station uses a 3G
cellular standard.
15. The method of claim 9, wherein the base station is a cell
tower.
16. The method of claim 9, wherein the vehicle telematics unit is
unable to receive a voice page from the base station while in the
data mode.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to wireless communications
involving a vehicle and more specifically to sending voice and data
over wireless communications using the vehicle.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Many vehicles presently carry a vehicle telematics unit that
can be used for communication with third-parties located away from
the vehicle. To carry out these communications, the vehicle
telematics units use a wireless communication system to send and
receive both voice and data communications to/from the vehicle. The
communication protocols used to send/receive the voice and data can
differ depending on the vehicle telematics unit and/or the wireless
communication system. For instance, some vehicle telematics units
and/or the wireless communication systems may communicate using a
3G cellular standard, while other units/systems may support a 4G or
LTE cellular standard. And depending on which cellular standard is
used, it can affect the ability of a vehicle to receive voice or
data communications. That is, depending on the cellular standard
used by the vehicle telematics unit, it may be able to communicate
data but not simultaneously receive voice communications.
SUMMARY
[0003] According to an embodiment of the invention, there is
provided a method of controlling a vehicle telematics unit. The
method includes placing the vehicle telematics unit in a data mode
while camped on a base station that does not use a simultaneous
voice and data (SVD) cellular standard; sensing an amount of time
that has passed since the vehicle telematics unit last received a
request for data while in the data mode; comparing the sensed
amount of time with a predetermined threshold using the vehicle
telematics unit; and commanding the vehicle telematics unit to
maintain the data mode and also to enter a voice mode when the
sensed amount of time exceeds the predetermined threshold.
[0004] According to another embodiment of the invention, there is
provided a method of controlling a vehicle telematics unit. The
method includes determining that a base station does not use a
simultaneous voice and data (SVD) cellular standard; camping on the
base station that does not use the SVD cellular standard;
establishing a voice mode for the vehicle telematics unit while
camped on the base station; detecting a request for data service at
the vehicle telematics unit while in the voice mode; switching the
voice mode to a data mode that accepts requests for data;
determining that the vehicle telematics unit has not had a data
request via the data mode for a predetermined amount of time; and
reactivating the voice mode and maintaining the data mode while
camped on the base station that does not use the SVD cellular
standard.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] One or more embodiments of the invention will hereinafter be
described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like
designations denote like elements, and wherein:
[0006] FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting an embodiment of a
communications system that is capable of utilizing the method
disclosed herein; and
[0007] FIG. 2 is a flow chart of an embodiment of a method of
controlling a vehicle telematics unit.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT(S)
[0008] The method described below involves vehicle telematics units
using wire wireless carrier systems that do not support
simultaneous voice and data (SVD) wireless communications. Under
those circumstances, the vehicle telematics unit can provide a data
connection (e.g., for itself or for a third party) via the wireless
carrier system but when voice communications to the vehicle
telematics unit are attempted (either sent or received) those
communications may not be successful. Put differently, the vehicle
telematics unit as part of providing the data connection may not be
listening for pages from the wireless carrier system that alert the
unit of a voice call or voice communications. Such circumstances
can exist when the wireless carrier system provides service using a
3G cellular standard or using an LTE standard that does not permit
SVD communications (e.g., circuit-switched fallback (CSFB) and
voice over LTE (VoLTE) features are not possible).
[0009] To permit the reception of voice calls during the data
connection despite the non-SVD environment, the vehicle telematics
unit can manage a cellular connection in the non-SVD environment by
normally establishing a voice mode even if the vehicle is currently
accepting data requests, such as may occur when the vehicle
telematics unit acts as a Wi-Fi "hotspot." The vehicle telematics
unit can use the method/system described herein with non-SVD
cellular service when it acts as a Wi-Fi "hotspot" that permits
other wireless devices within a limited geographical range of the
vehicle access to the Internet. When the vehicle telematics unit
detects a need for data over the Wi-Fi link, the vehicle telematics
unit can switch to a data mode in the non-SVD environment. After
the data mode has remained inactive for a predetermined amount of
time, the vehicle telematics unit can switch out of the data mode,
or leave the data mode dormant so that it can still receive data
requests, and return to the voice mode to monitor if any incoming
voice pages are present or have been missed. In this way, the
vehicle telematics unit can provide a data connection, such as the
one used for the Wi-Fi hotspot, but still remain ready to carry out
voice communications that are directed to the vehicle telematics
unit. Thus, the vehicle telematics unit can manage itself in the
non-SVD environment to provide both data and voice
communications.
[0010] With reference to FIG. 1, there is shown an operating
environment that comprises a mobile vehicle communications system
10 and that can be used to implement the method disclosed herein.
Communications system 10 generally includes a vehicle 12, one or
more wireless carrier systems 14, a land communications network 16,
a computer 18, and a call center 20. It should be understood that
the disclosed method can be used with any number of different
systems and is not specifically limited to the operating
environment shown here. Also, the architecture, construction,
setup, and operation of the system 10 and its individual components
are generally known in the art. Thus, the following paragraphs
simply provide a brief overview of one such communications system
10; however, other systems not shown here could employ the
disclosed method as well.
[0011] Vehicle 12 is depicted in the illustrated embodiment as a
passenger car, but it should be appreciated that any other vehicle
including motorcycles, trucks, sports utility vehicles (SUVs),
recreational vehicles (RVs), marine vessels, aircraft, etc., can
also be used. Some of the vehicle electronics 28 is shown generally
in FIG. 1 and includes a telematics unit 30, a microphone 32, one
or more pushbuttons or other control inputs 34, an audio system 36,
a visual display 38, and a GPS module 40 as well as a number of
vehicle system modules (VSMs) 42. Some of these devices can be
connected directly to the telematics unit such as, for example, the
microphone 32 and pushbutton(s) 34, whereas others are indirectly
connected using one or more network connections, such as a
communications bus 44 or an entertainment bus 46. Examples of
suitable network connections include a controller area network
(CAN), a media oriented system transfer (MOST), a local
interconnection network (LIN), a local area network (LAN), and
other appropriate connections such as Ethernet or others that
conform with known ISO, SAE and IEEE standards and specifications,
to name but a few.
[0012] Telematics unit 30 can be an OEM-installed (embedded) or
aftermarket device that is installed in the vehicle and that
enables wireless voice and/or data communication over wireless
carrier system 14 and via wireless networking. This enables the
vehicle to communicate with call center 20, other
telematics-enabled vehicles, or some other entity or device. The
telematics unit preferably uses radio transmissions to establish a
communications channel (a voice channel and/or a data channel) with
wireless carrier system 14 so that voice and/or data transmissions
can be sent and received over the channel. By providing both voice
and data communication, telematics unit 30 enables the vehicle to
offer a number of different services including those related to
navigation, telephony, emergency assistance, diagnostics,
infotainment, etc. Data can be sent either via a data connection,
such as via packet data transmission over a data channel, or via a
voice channel using techniques known in the art. For combined
services that involve both voice communication (e.g., with a live
advisor or voice response unit at the call center 20) and data
communication (e.g., to provide GPS location data or vehicle
diagnostic data to the call center 20), the system can utilize a
single call over a voice channel and switch as needed between voice
and data transmission over the voice channel, and this can be done
using techniques known to those skilled in the art.
[0013] According to one embodiment, telematics unit 30 utilizes
cellular communication according to either GSM or CDMA standards
and thus includes a standard cellular chipset 50 for voice
communications like hands-free calling, a wireless modem for data
transmission, an electronic processing device 52, one or more
digital memory devices 54, and a dual antenna 56. It should be
appreciated that the modem can either be implemented through
software that is stored in the telematics unit and is executed by
processor 52, or it can be a separate hardware component located
internal or external to telematics unit 30. The modem can operate
using any number of different standards or protocols such as EVDO,
CDMA, GPRS, and EDGE. Wireless networking between the vehicle and
other networked devices can also be carried out using telematics
unit 30. For this purpose, telematics unit 30 can be configured to
communicate wirelessly according to one or more wireless protocols,
such as any of the IEEE 802.11 protocols, WiMAX, or Bluetooth. When
used for packet-switched data communication such as TCP/IP, the
telematics unit can be configured with a static IP address or can
set up to automatically receive an assigned IP address from another
device on the network such as a router or from a network address
server.
[0014] Processor 52 can be any type of device capable of processing
electronic instructions including microprocessors,
microcontrollers, host processors, controllers, vehicle
communication processors, and application specific integrated
circuits (ASICs). It can be a dedicated processor used only for
telematics unit 30 or can be shared with other vehicle systems.
Processor 52 executes various types of digitally-stored
instructions, such as software or firmware programs stored in
memory 54, which enable the telematics unit to provide a wide
variety of services. For instance, processor 52 can execute
programs or process data to carry out at least a part of the method
discussed herein.
[0015] Telematics unit 30 can be used to provide a diverse range of
vehicle services that involve wireless communication to and/or from
the vehicle. Such services include: turn-by-turn directions and
other navigation-related services that are provided in conjunction
with the GPS-based vehicle navigation module 40; airbag deployment
notification and other emergency or roadside assistance-related
services that are provided in connection with one or more collision
sensor interface modules such as a body control module (not shown);
diagnostic reporting using one or more diagnostic modules; and
infotainment-related services where music, webpages, movies,
television programs, videogames and/or other information is
downloaded by an infotainment module (not shown) and is stored for
current or later playback. The above-listed services are by no
means an exhaustive list of all of the capabilities of telematics
unit 30, but are simply an enumeration of some of the services that
the telematics unit is capable of offering. Furthermore, it should
be understood that at least some of the aforementioned modules
could be implemented in the form of software instructions saved
internal or external to telematics unit 30, they could be hardware
components located internal or external to telematics unit 30, or
they could be integrated and/or shared with each other or with
other systems located throughout the vehicle, to cite but a few
possibilities. In the event that the modules are implemented as
VSMs 42 located external to telematics unit 30, they could utilize
vehicle bus 44 to exchange data and commands with the telematics
unit.
[0016] GPS module 40 receives radio signals from a constellation 60
of GPS satellites. From these signals, the module 40 can determine
vehicle position that is used for providing navigation and other
position-related services to the vehicle driver. Navigation
information can be presented on the display 38 (or other display
within the vehicle) or can be presented verbally such as is done
when supplying turn-by-turn navigation. The navigation services can
be provided using a dedicated in-vehicle navigation module (which
can be part of GPS module 40), or some or all navigation services
can be done via telematics unit 30, wherein the position
information is sent to a remote location for purposes of providing
the vehicle with navigation maps, map annotations (points of
interest, restaurants, etc.), route calculations, and the like. The
position information can be supplied to call center 20 or other
remote computer system, such as computer 18, for other purposes,
such as fleet management. Also, new or updated map data can be
downloaded to the GPS module 40 from the call center 20 via the
telematics unit 30.
[0017] Apart from the audio system 36 and GPS module 40, the
vehicle 12 can include other vehicle system modules (VSMs) 42 in
the form of electronic hardware components that are located
throughout the vehicle and typically receive input from one or more
sensors and use the sensed input to perform diagnostic, monitoring,
control, reporting and/or other functions. Each of the VSMs 42 is
preferably connected by communications bus 44 to the other VSMs, as
well as to the telematics unit 30, and can be programmed to run
vehicle system and subsystem diagnostic tests. As examples, one VSM
42 can be an engine control module (ECM) that controls various
aspects of engine operation such as fuel ignition and ignition
timing, another VSM 42 can be a powertrain control module that
regulates operation of one or more components of the vehicle
powertrain, and another VSM 42 can be a body control module that
governs various electrical components located throughout the
vehicle, like the vehicle's power door locks and headlights.
According to one embodiment, the engine control module is equipped
with on-board diagnostic (OBD) features that provide myriad
real-time data, such as that received from various sensors
including vehicle emissions sensors, and provide a standardized
series of diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) that allow a technician
to rapidly identify and remedy malfunctions within the vehicle. As
is appreciated by those skilled in the art, the above-mentioned
VSMs are only examples of some of the modules that may be used in
vehicle 12, as numerous others are also possible.
[0018] Vehicle electronics 28 also includes a number of vehicle
user interfaces that provide vehicle occupants with a means of
providing and/or receiving information, including microphone 32,
pushbuttons(s) 34, audio system 36, and visual display 38. As used
herein, the term `vehicle user interface` broadly includes any
suitable form of electronic device, including both hardware and
software components, which is located on the vehicle and enables a
vehicle user to communicate with or through a component of the
vehicle. Microphone 32 provides audio input to the telematics unit
to enable the driver or other occupant to provide voice commands
and carry out hands-free calling via the wireless carrier system
14. For this purpose, it can be connected to an on-board automated
voice processing unit utilizing human-machine interface (HMI)
technology known in the art. The pushbutton(s) 34 allow manual user
input into the telematics unit 30 to initiate wireless telephone
calls and provide other data, response, or control input. Separate
pushbuttons can be used for initiating emergency calls versus
regular service assistance calls to the call center 20. Audio
system 36 provides audio output to a vehicle occupant and can be a
dedicated, stand-alone system or part of the primary vehicle audio
system. According to the particular embodiment shown here, audio
system 36 is operatively coupled to both vehicle bus 44 and
entertainment bus 46 and can provide AM, FM and satellite radio,
CD, DVD and other multimedia functionality. This functionality can
be provided in conjunction with or independent of the infotainment
module described above. Visual display 38 is preferably a graphics
display, such as a touch screen on the instrument panel or a
heads-up display reflected off of the windshield, and can be used
to provide a multitude of input and output functions. Various other
vehicle user interfaces can also be utilized, as the interfaces of
FIG. 1 are only an example of one particular implementation.
[0019] Wireless carrier system 14 is preferably a cellular
telephone system that includes a plurality of cell towers 70 (only
one shown), one or more mobile switching centers (MSCs) 72, as well
as any other networking components required to connect wireless
carrier system 14 with land network 16. Each cell tower 70 includes
sending and receiving antennas and a base station, with the base
stations from different cell towers being connected to the MSC 72
either directly or via intermediary equipment such as a base
station controller. Cellular system 14 can implement any suitable
communications technology, including for example, analog
technologies such as AMPS, or the newer digital technologies such
as CDMA (e.g., CDMA2000, 1xEV, 1xDO) or GSM/GPRS. As will be
appreciated by those skilled in the art, various cell tower/base
station/MSC arrangements are possible and could be used with
wireless system 14. For instance, the base station and cell tower
could be co-located at the same site or they could be remotely
located from one another, each base station could be responsible
for a single cell tower or a single base station could service
various cell towers, and various base stations could be coupled to
a single MSC, to name but a few of the possible arrangements.
[0020] Apart from using wireless carrier system 14, a different
wireless carrier system in the form of satellite communication can
be used to provide uni-directional or bi-directional communication
with the vehicle. This can be done using one or more communication
satellites 62 and an uplink transmitting station 64.
Uni-directional communication can be, for example, satellite radio
services, wherein programming content (news, music, etc.) is
received by transmitting station 64, packaged for upload, and then
sent to the satellite 62, which broadcasts the programming to
subscribers. Bi-directional communication can be, for example,
satellite telephony services using satellite 62 to relay telephone
communications between the vehicle 12 and station 64. If used, this
satellite telephony can be utilized either in addition to or in
lieu of wireless carrier system 14.
[0021] Land network 16 may be a conventional land-based
telecommunications network that is connected to one or more
landline telephones and connects wireless carrier system 14 to call
center 20. For example, land network 16 may include a public
switched telephone network (PSTN) such as that used to provide
hardwired telephony, packet-switched data communications, and the
Internet infrastructure. One or more segments of land network 16
could be implemented through the use of a standard wired network, a
fiber or other optical network, a cable network, power lines, other
wireless networks such as wireless local area networks (WLANs), or
networks providing broadband wireless access (BWA), or any
combination thereof. Furthermore, call center 20 need not be
connected via land network 16, but could include wireless telephony
equipment so that it can communicate directly with a wireless
network, such as wireless carrier system 14.
[0022] Computer 18 can be one of a number of computers accessible
via a private or public network such as the Internet. Each such
computer 18 can be used for one or more purposes, such as a web
server accessible by the vehicle via telematics unit 30 and
wireless carrier 14. Other such accessible computers 18 can be, for
example: a service center computer where diagnostic information and
other vehicle data can be uploaded from the vehicle via the
telematics unit 30; a client computer used by the vehicle owner or
other subscriber for such purposes as accessing or receiving
vehicle data or to setting up or configuring subscriber preferences
or controlling vehicle functions; or a third party repository to or
from which vehicle data or other information is provided, whether
by communicating with the vehicle 12 or call center 20, or both. A
computer 18 can also be used for providing Internet connectivity
such as DNS services or as a network address server that uses DHCP
or other suitable protocol to assign an IP address to the vehicle
12.
[0023] Call center 20 is designed to provide the vehicle
electronics 28 with a number of different system back-end functions
and, according to the exemplary embodiment shown here, generally
includes one or more switches 80, servers 82, databases 84, live
advisors 86, as well as an automated voice response system (VRS)
88, all of which are known in the art. These various call center
components are preferably coupled to one another via a wired or
wireless local area network 90. Switch 80, which can be a private
branch exchange (PBX) switch, routes incoming signals so that voice
transmissions are usually sent to either the live adviser 86 by
regular phone or to the automated voice response system 88 using
VoIP. The live advisor phone can also use VoIP as indicated by the
broken line in FIG. 1. VoIP and other data communication through
the switch 80 is implemented via a modem (not shown) connected
between the switch 80 and network 90. Data transmissions are passed
via the modem to server 82 and/or database 84. Database 84 can
store account information such as subscriber authentication
information, vehicle identifiers, profile records, behavioral
patterns, and other pertinent subscriber information. Data
transmissions may also be conducted by wireless systems, such as
802.11x, GPRS, and the like. Although the illustrated embodiment
has been described as it would be used in conjunction with a manned
call center 20 using live advisor 86, it will be appreciated that
the call center can instead utilize VRS 88 as an automated advisor
or, a combination of VRS 88 and the live advisor 86 can be
used.
[0024] Turning now to FIG. 2, there is shown a method 200 of
controlling the vehicle telematics unit 30. The method 200 begins
at step 210 by determining that a base station, such as cell tower
70, does not use a simultaneous voice and data (SVD) cellular
standard. The vehicle telematics unit 30 can camp on the cell tower
70 and as part of the wireless "handshake" or exchange of
information that is used to initially register the unit 30 with the
tower 70 and/or the wireless carrier system 14, the unit 30 can
identify the cellular standard available at the tower 70. For
example, the base station 70 can send the vehicle telematics unit
30 a signal indicating that the station 70 provides a 3G cellular
standard. The vehicle telematics unit 30 can then determine that
the cell tower 70 does not provide a SVD cellular standard because
it uses a particular 3G standard (e.g., 1xDO). While 3G is
described in this embodiment, it should be appreciated that other
cellular standards that do not use a SVD cellular standard are
possible. As discussed above, base stations and/or wireless carrier
systems 14 that do not use a SVD cellular standard can generally be
described as a cellular environment that is without features, such
as a circuit-switched fallback (CSFB) or voice over long term
evolution (VoLTE). That is, even if a cellular standard is labeled
4G or LTE it is still possible that such a standard may be one that
does not use SVD. The method 200 proceeds to step 220.
[0025] At step 220, a voice mode is established for the vehicle
telematics unit 30 while camped on the cell tower 70. When the
vehicle telematics unit 30 is camped on or registered with the cell
tower 70 (or wireless carrier system 14), the unit 30 can place
itself in the voice mode. Doing so can permit the vehicle
telematics unit 30 to receive pages from the cell tower 70 that
alert the unit 30 that voice calls and/or other voice
communications are directed to the unit 30. The vehicle telematics
unit 30 can remain in the voice mode as a default setting while the
unit 30 is camped on the base station using the non-SVD cellular
standard. The method 200 proceeds to step 230.
[0026] At step 230, a request is detected for data service at the
vehicle telematics unit 30 while in the voice mode. The voice mode
can then be switched to a data mode that accepts requests for data.
Given that the cell tower 70 does not provide a SVD cellular
standard, the vehicle telematics unit 30 may not provide both voice
and data simultaneously and therefore chooses to provide one over
the other. Once the request for data service is received, the
vehicle telematics unit 30 can place itself into a data mode during
which the unit 30 can send and receive data to/from the wireless
carrier system 14. In one example of how this can be carried out,
the vehicle telematics unit 30 can act as a Wi-Fi "hotspot" that
enables other wireless devices within the range of a short-range
wireless access network (WAN) to access the Internet through the
unit 30 and wireless carrier system 14. The area serviced by the
hotspot can be defined by the short-range wireless signal generated
by the vehicle telematics unit 30 and used to wirelessly send and
receive data between the unit 30 and one or more wireless devices
accessing the hotspot. When one of the wireless devices detects the
hotspot and begins exchanging data with the vehicle telematics unit
30, the unit 30 can then place itself into the data mode to
facilitate the data communications between the wireless device and
the cell tower 70/wireless carrier system 14. The method 200
proceeds to step 240.
[0027] At step 240, it is determined that the vehicle telematics
unit 30 has not had a data request via the data mode for a
predetermined amount of time. While the vehicle telematics unit 30
is camped on the base station/cell tower 70 that does not use an
SVD cellular standard and in the data mode, the unit 30 may not
receive pages from the base station/cell tower 70 that indicate
that a voice call is present. Thus, the vehicle telematics unit 30
can use an algorithm stored in the memory 54 and executed by the
processor 52 that governs when the unit 30 returns to the voice
mode. This can be carried out by sensing an amount of time that has
passed since the vehicle telematics unit 30 last received a request
for data while in the data mode. For instance, using the Wi-Fi
hotspot example above, the vehicle telematics unit 30 may have one
or more wireless devices accessing data through the hotspot but the
unit 30 has not received data or a request for data from the
wireless devices for more than a predetermined amount of time. The
vehicle telematics unit 30 can sense an amount of time that has
passed since the last data request or data transmission from one of
the wireless devices using the hotspot. This sensed amount of time
can be compared with a predetermined threshold time value using the
vehicle telematics unit 30. If the sensed amount of time is greater
than the predetermined threshold time value, then the voice mode is
reactivated and the data mode is maintained while camped on the
base station that does not use the SVD cellular standard. The data
mode can be designated as dormant in a way that the data mode will
be maintained so that one of the wireless devices can still place a
request for data using the hotspot.
[0028] When the vehicle telematics unit 30 then receives a data
request from one or more wireless devices at its WiFi hotspot, the
unit 30 can switch out of or end the voice mode and return to the
data mode for providing data service to the wireless devices via
the cell tower 70/wireless carrier system 14. And while in the data
mode, other inputs received at the vehicle telematics unit 30 can
end the data mode and return the unit 30 to the voice mode. For
example, the vehicle telematics unit 30 can receive a request from
a vehicle occupant for a voice call. In that case, the vehicle
telematics unit 30 can end the data mode and place itself in the
voice mode. The method 200 then ends.
[0029] It is to be understood that the foregoing is a description
of one or more embodiments of the invention. The invention is not
limited to the particular embodiment(s) disclosed herein, but
rather is defined solely by the claims below. Furthermore, the
statements contained in the foregoing description relate to
particular embodiments and are not to be construed as limitations
on the scope of the invention or on the definition of terms used in
the claims, except where a term or phrase is expressly defined
above. Various other embodiments and various changes and
modifications to the disclosed embodiment(s) will become apparent
to those skilled in the art. All such other embodiments, changes,
and modifications are intended to come within the scope of the
appended claims.
[0030] As used in this specification and claims, the terms "e.g.,"
"for example," "for instance," "such as," and "like," and the verbs
"comprising," "having," "including," and their other verb forms,
when used in conjunction with a listing of one or more components
or other items, are each to be construed as open-ended, meaning
that the listing is not to be considered as excluding other,
additional components or items. Other terms are to be construed
using their broadest reasonable meaning unless they are used in a
context that requires a different interpretation.
* * * * *