U.S. patent application number 17/098698 was filed with the patent office on 2021-03-04 for methods and apparatus for wireless device application having vehicle interaction.
The applicant listed for this patent is FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC. Invention is credited to David Anthony Hatton, Anthony Gerald King.
Application Number | 20210061204 17/098698 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005222357 |
Filed Date | 2021-03-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20210061204 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hatton; David Anthony ; et
al. |
March 4, 2021 |
Methods and Apparatus for Wireless Device Application Having
Vehicle Interaction
Abstract
A computer-implemented remote starting method includes
instructing the remote start of a vehicle using a wireless device.
The method also includes inputting, to the wireless device, a
desired vehicle interior temperature. The method further includes
sending a remote start instruction to a vehicle from the wireless
device, including at least the desired temperature and monitoring a
current temperature of the vehicle. The method additionally
includes outputting, on the wireless device, the current vehicle
temperature.
Inventors: |
Hatton; David Anthony;
(Berkley, MI) ; King; Anthony Gerald; (Ann Arbor,
MI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC |
Dearborn |
MI |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005222357 |
Appl. No.: |
17/098698 |
Filed: |
November 16, 2020 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15641948 |
Jul 5, 2017 |
10836333 |
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17098698 |
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13151729 |
Jun 2, 2011 |
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15641948 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60R 16/037 20130101;
G07C 5/0825 20130101; G07C 5/0833 20130101; B60K 2370/55 20190501;
B60K 2370/56 20190501 |
International
Class: |
B60R 16/037 20060101
B60R016/037 |
Claims
1. A system comprising: a portable-device processor configured to:
monitor a digital calendar until it is determined that there is a
scheduled appointment within a predetermined time period from a
current time; determine a route from a current vehicle location to
an appointment location; determine a projected travel time to the
appointment location from the current vehicle location; and present
a departure time recommendation sufficient to reach the appointment
location before an appointment time based on the projected travel
time.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further
configured to determine at least one travel-time-affecting
condition that is projected to be encountered along the route and
wherein the projected travel time accommodates the
travel-time-affecting condition.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the travel-time-affecting
condition includes traffic.
4. The system of claim 2, wherein the travel-time-affecting
condition includes weather.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to
determine the current vehicle location based on vehicle GPS
coordinates received from the vehicle.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to
determine the current vehicle location based on phone GPS
coordinates.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further
configured to determine if a user is currently located at a
vehicle, by comparing a current mobile device location to the
current vehicle location, obtained from the vehicle, wherein the
projected travel time includes projected travel time from the
current mobile device location to the current vehicle location and
wherein the departure time indicates a time at which the user
should depart from the current mobile device location for the
vehicle.
8. The system of claim 6, wherein the projected travel time from
the current mobile device location to the current vehicle location
is determined based on a predetermined walking speed of the
user.
9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, storing
instructions that, when executed by a portable-device processor,
cause the portable-device processor to perform a method comprising:
monitoring a digital calendar until it is determined that there is
a scheduled appointment within a predetermined time period from a
current time; determining a route from a current vehicle location
to an appointment location; determining a projected travel time to
the appointment location from the current vehicle location; and
presenting a departure time recommendation sufficient to reach the
appointment location before an appointment time based on the
projected travel time.
10. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the method further
comprises determining at least one travel-time-affecting condition
that is projected to be encountered along the route and wherein the
projected travel time accommodates the travel-time-affecting
condition.
11. The storage medium of claim 10, wherein the
travel-time-affecting condition includes traffic.
12. The storage medium of claim 10, wherein the
travel-time-affecting condition includes weather.
13. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the method further
comprises determining the current vehicle location based on vehicle
GPS coordinates received from the vehicle.
14. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the method further
comprises determining the current vehicle location based on phone
GPS coordinates.
15. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the method further
comprises determining if a user is currently located at a vehicle,
by comparing a current mobile device location to the current
vehicle location, obtained from the vehicle, wherein the projected
travel time includes projected travel time from the current mobile
device location to the current vehicle location and wherein the
departure time indicates a time at which the user should depart
from the current mobile device location for the vehicle.
16. The storage medium of claim 15, wherein the projected travel
time from the current mobile device location to the current vehicle
location is determined based on a predetermined walking speed of
the user.
17. A method comprising: monitoring, via a portable-device
processor, a digital calendar until it is determined that there is
a scheduled appointment within a predetermined time period from a
current time; determining, via the portable-device processor, a
route from a current vehicle location to an appointment location;
determining if a user is currently located at a vehicle, by
comparing a current mobile device location to the current vehicle
location, obtained from the vehicle determining, via the
portable-device processor, a projected travel time to the
appointment location from the current vehicle location, wherein the
projected travel time includes projected travel time from the
current mobile device location to the current vehicle location when
the user is not currently located at the vehicle, based at least in
part on a predetermined walking speed of the user; and presenting,
via the portable-device, a departure time recommendation sufficient
to reach the appointment location before an appointment time based
on the projected travel time, wherein the departure time indicates
a time at which the user should depart from the current mobile
device location for the vehicle when the user is not currently
located at the vehicle.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein the method further comprises
determining at least one travel-time-affecting condition that is
projected to be encountered along the route and wherein the
projected travel time accommodates the travel-time-affecting
condition.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the travel-time-affecting
condition includes traffic.
20. The method of claim 18, wherein the travel-time-affecting
condition includes weather.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser.
No. 15/641,948 filed Jul. 5, 2017, which is a continuation of U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 13/151,729 filed on Jun. 2, 2011, now
abandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated in its entirety
by reference herein.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The illustrative embodiments generally relate to methods and
apparatus for a wireless device application having vehicle
interaction
BACKGROUND
[0003] As full display enabled wireless devices become more common,
especially in the form of the phones that many people carry and use
on a daily basis, there is a growing demand for applications which
can run on these same platforms. Smartphone/PDA developers have
provided open, or relatively open, platforms on which users can
develop applications. Effectively, the phone has become a smaller
version of a laptop computer.
[0004] Since there are a variety of situations in which one is
likely to have a phone, but not a computer, there are a similar
variety of applications released which have functionality related
to that which one would desire in a phone-based environment. For
example, people can download mapping applications to track a route
through a park, shopping applications to check prices on items in
the store, etc.
[0005] But, since there are a virtually limitless number of
situations into which one may carry a phone, there are a similarly
virtually limitless number of applications which can address those
situations. Many applications are small in nature and are developed
to address a single or a limited set of circumstances.
SUMMARY
[0006] In a first illustrative embodiment, a computer-implemented
remote starting method includes instructing the remote start of a
vehicle using a wireless device. The exemplary method also includes
inputting, to the wireless device, a desired vehicle interior
temperature.
[0007] The illustrative method further includes sending a remote
start instruction to a vehicle from the wireless device, including
at least the desired temperature and monitoring a current
temperature of the vehicle.
[0008] The exemplary method additionally includes outputting, on
the wireless device, the current vehicle temperature.
[0009] In a second illustrative embodiment, a computer-implemented
method, executable by a vehicle associated computing system,
includes checking a digital calendar for at least one temporally
proximate appointment having an associated address. The exemplary
method further includes determining a current vehicle location.
[0010] The exemplary method additionally includes estimating a
travel time from the current vehicle location to the address
associated with the at least one appointment. Also, the exemplary
method includes outputting a recommended departure time, the
recommended departure time no later than an at least one
appointment start time less the estimated travel time.
[0011] In a third illustrative embodiment, a computer-implemented
method, executable by a vehicle associated computing system (VACS),
includes estimating a travel time to a destination and determining
if a vehicle is likely to reach the destination within a temporal
proximity to an appointment time, based at least in part on the
current time and the estimated travel time.
[0012] In this exemplary method, if the vehicle is estimated to
arrive later than the temporal proximity to the appointment time,
the driver is notified that the driver may be late to an
appointment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] FIG. 1 shows an illustrative example of a vehicle associated
computing system;
[0014] FIG. 2 shows an illustrative example of a process for
application menu setup;
[0015] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative example of an application
display;
[0016] FIG. 4A shows an illustrative example of a process for
remote vehicle start;
[0017] FIG. 4B shows another illustrative example of a process for
remote vehicle start;
[0018] FIG. 5A shows an illustrative example of a process for
vehicle data tracking;
[0019] FIG. 5B shows another illustrative example of a process for
vehicle data tracking;
[0020] FIG. 6A shows an illustrative example of a process for a
personal assistant function;
[0021] FIG. 6B shows a further illustrative example of a process
for a personal assistant function;
[0022] FIG. 7 shows an illustrative example of a process for a
promptness determination; and
[0023] FIG. 8 shows an illustrative example of an emergency option
display.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention
are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the
disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that
may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The figures are
not necessarily to scale; some features may be exaggerated or
minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore,
specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not
to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis
for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present
invention.
[0025] Integration of various functions with a vehicle computing
system can provide for a seamless user in-vehicle experience. By
providing the user with automatic processing for a variety of
functions that normally may require a user to remove attention from
the road, the illustrative embodiments help provide a user
experience that allows a user to spend more time focused on
driving, and less time focused on using a wireless device.
[0026] Additionally, the illustrative embodiments allow adjustment
of settings for a vehicle computing system, which may be
particularly useful if the vehicle otherwise lacks a graphical
interface. In this situation, the wireless device running the
illustrative processes can serve as a proxy for an in-vehicle
display.
[0027] FIG. 1 illustrates an example block topology for a vehicle
based computing system 1 (VCS) for a vehicle 31. An example of such
a vehicle-based computing system 1 is the SYNC system manufactured
by THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY. A vehicle enabled with a vehicle-based
computing system may contain a visual front end interface 4 located
in the vehicle. The user may also be able to interact with the
interface if it is provided, for example, with a touch sensitive
screen. In another illustrative embodiment, the interaction occurs
through, button presses, audible speech and speech synthesis.
[0028] In the illustrative embodiment 1 shown in FIG. 1, a
processor 3 controls at least some portion of the operation of the
vehicle-based computing system. Provided within the vehicle, the
processor allows onboard processing of commands and routines.
Further, the processor is connected to both non-persistent 5 and
persistent storage 7. In this illustrative embodiment, the
non-persistent storage is random access memory (RAM) and the
persistent storage is a hard disk drive (HDD) or flash memory.
[0029] The processor is also provided with a number of different
inputs allowing the user to interface with the processor. In this
illustrative embodiment, a microphone 29, an auxiliary input 25
(for input 33), a USB input 23, a GPS input 24 and a BLUETOOTH
input 15 are all provided. An input selector 51 is also provided,
to allow a user to swap between various inputs. Input to both the
microphone and the auxiliary connector is converted from analog to
digital by a converter 27 before being passed to the processor.
Although not shown, numerous of the vehicle components and
auxiliary components in communication with the VCS may use a
vehicle network (such as, but not limited to, a CAN bus) to pass
data to and from the VCS (or components thereof).
[0030] Outputs to the system can include, but are not limited to, a
visual display 4 and a speaker 13 or stereo system output. The
speaker is connected to an amplifier 11 and receives its signal
from the processor 3 through a digital-to-analog converter 9.
Output can also be made to a remote BLUETOOTH device such as PND 54
or a USB device such as vehicle navigation device 60 along the
bi-directional data streams shown at 19 and 21 respectively.
[0031] In one illustrative embodiment, the system 1 uses the
BLUETOOTH transceiver 15 to communicate 17 with a user's nomadic
device 53 (e.g., cell phone, smart phone, PDA, or any other device
having wireless remote network connectivity). The nomadic device
can then be used to communicate 59 with a network 61 outside the
vehicle 31 through, for example, communication 55 with a cellular
tower 57. In some embodiments, tower 57 may be a WiFi access
point.
[0032] Exemplary communication between the nomadic device and the
BLUETOOTH transceiver is represented by signal 14.
[0033] Pairing a nomadic device 53 and the BLUETOOTH transceiver 15
can be instructed through a button 52 or similar input.
Accordingly, the CPU is instructed that the onboard BLUETOOTH
transceiver will be paired with a BLUETOOTH transceiver in a
nomadic device.
[0034] Data may be communicated between CPU 3 and network 61
utilizing, for example, a data-plan, data over voice, or DTMF tones
associated with nomadic device 53. Alternatively, it may be
desirable to include an onboard modem 63 having antenna 18 in order
to communicate 16 data between CPU 3 and network 61 over the voice
band. The nomadic device 53 can then be used to communicate 59 with
a network 61 outside the vehicle 31 through, for example,
communication 55 with a cellular tower 57. In some embodiments, the
modem 63 may establish communication 20 with the tower 57 for
communicating with network 61. As a non-limiting example, modem 63
may be a USB cellular modem and communication 20 may be cellular
communication.
[0035] In one illustrative embodiment, the processor is provided
with an operating system including an API to communicate with
modern application software. The modern application software may
access an embedded module or firmware on the BLUETOOTH transceiver
to complete wireless communication with a remote BLUETOOTH
transceiver (such as that found in a nomadic device).
[0036] In another embodiment, nomadic device 53 includes a modem
for voice band or broadband data communication. In the
data-over-voice embodiment, a technique known as frequency division
multiplexing may be implemented when the owner of the nomadic
device can talk over the device while data is being transferred. At
other times, when the owner is not using the device, the data
transfer can use the whole bandwidth (300 Hz to 3.4 kHz in one
example).
[0037] If the user has a data-plan associated with the nomadic
device, it is possible that the data-plan allows for broad-band
transmission and the system could use a much wider bandwidth
(speeding up data transfer). In still another embodiment, nomadic
device 53 is replaced with a cellular communication device (not
shown) that is installed to vehicle 31. In yet another embodiment,
the ND 53 may be a wireless local area network (LAN) device capable
of communication over, for example (and without limitation), an
802.11g network (i.e., WiFi) or a WiMax network.
[0038] In one embodiment, incoming data can be passed through the
nomadic device via a data-over-voice or data-plan, through the
onboard BLUETOOTH transceiver and into the vehicle's internal
processor 3. In the case of certain temporary data, for example,
the data can be stored on the HDD or other storage media 7 until
such time as the data is no longer needed.
[0039] Additional sources that may interface with the vehicle
include a personal navigation device 54, having, for example, a USB
connection 56 and/or an antenna 58, a vehicle navigation device 60
having a USB 62 or other connection, an onboard GPS device 24, or
remote navigation system (not shown) having connectivity to network
61.
[0040] Further, the CPU could be in communication with a variety of
other auxiliary devices 65. These devices can be connected through
a wireless 67 or wired 69 connection. Auxiliary device 65 may
include, but are not limited to, personal media players, wireless
health devices, portable computers, and the like.
[0041] Also, or alternatively, the CPU could be connected to a
vehicle based wireless router 73, using for example a WiFi 71
transceiver. This could allow the CPU to connect to remote networks
in range of the local router 73.
[0042] In addition to having exemplary processes executed by a
vehicle computing system located in a vehicle, in certain
embodiments, the exemplary processes may be executed by a computing
system in communication with a vehicle computing system. Such a
system may include, but is not limited to, a cellular phone or
other wireless device or a remote server connected through a
wireless device. Collectively, such systems may be referred to as
vehicle associated computing systems (VACS), although in certain
embodiments only some of the VACS may perform a particular process,
depending on the steps of the process and the appropriateness of a
particular system for performing those steps. E.g., without
limitation, if a process has a step of sending or receiving
information with a paired wireless device, then it is likely that
the wireless device is not performing the process, since the
wireless device would not "send and receive" information with
itself. If two devices are present, however, then one wireless
device may be used. One of ordinary skill in the art will
understand when it is inappropriate to apply a particular VACS to a
given solution. In all solutions, it is contemplated that at least
the vehicle computing system (VCS) located within the vehicle
itself is capable of performing the exemplary processes.
[0043] FIG. 2 shows an illustrative example of a process for
application menu setup. In this illustrative example, a dashboard
application is launched 201. A dashboard application is an
application containing a variety of secondary functionality, and
one that pulls together numerous smaller applications into a
comprehensive package. Although this example provides the
functionality discussed herein as a dashboard application, each of
the illustrative processes, and their equivalents, could be
presented as individual applications.
[0044] Once the application has been launched, the application
connects to a vehicle associated computing system (VACS) 203. This
is the vehicle system that the application interfaces with, to the
extent that such interface is needed.
[0045] Vehicle information is retrieved from the VACS 205 and may
be used to customize or configure the application. For example,
without limitation, the information may be used to enable or
disable certain functions or features of the application. If, for
example, the application has an Electric Vehicle portion, and the
current vehicle is a pure gasoline powered vehicle, then the
electric vehicle tab may be disabled or not enabled.
[0046] Once the vehicle information has been obtained, the process
checks to see if any vehicle-specific functions need to be added
207. This could be the aforementioned electric vehicle functions,
or any other vehicle-specific functionality. If functions are
needed, the process adds the requisite functions 209, and then, in
either case, sets up an HMI for presentation to a user 211. Once
the HMI has been configured, the process displays a menu 213 for
user interaction.
[0047] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative example of an application
display. In this illustrative example, the display is of a "home
screen" 300, although this is just one non-limiting example of a
possible home screen display. This illustrative screen contains an
information portion 301, and various controls and menu options.
[0048] In the information portion, in this illustrative example,
the screen provides an updates section 303. In this example, this
portion contains information pertaining to the VACS in general,
vehicle specific updates (recalls, maintenance reminders, etc), and
other consumer-useful information.
[0049] This example also contains a "favorites" portion 305. This
portion may contain hot-links to functions and or other areas of
the application that the user has "favorited" or which the user
uses frequently.
[0050] In this example, the main screen also contains some
vehicle-fob type functions. An unlock 307, remote start 309, alarm
311 and lock 313 option are all provided. Additionally, a variety
of sub-menu options 315 may also be provided. Although this example
shows certain functionality for a main menu, any suitable options
may be displayed on this screen.
[0051] FIG. 4A shows an illustrative example of a process for
remote vehicle start. In this illustrative example, the application
process receives an instruction to remote start a vehicle 401.
Although a "normal" fob option to remote start a vehicle may be
binary (e.g., on/off), with the addition of a graphic interface,
additional functionality may be possible. Many times, when a driver
remote-starts a vehicle, it is done to obtain a desired vehicle
temperature (e.g., heat the vehicle up or cool the vehicle down).
In this illustrative example, the driver is given the option to
include a desired temperature when inputting the remote start
command 403. If no temperature is desired, then a simple "Start"
instruction can be sent to the vehicle 405.
[0052] If the driver desires a specific temperature, a temperature
setting is input 407 and a start instruction is sent in conjunction
with a climate control setting 409. Also, in this illustrative
example, the process monitors and displays the current vehicle
temperature 411, so the driver knows when the desired temperature
has been reached or is close to being reached.
[0053] FIG. 4B shows another illustrative example of a process for
remote vehicle start.
[0054] On the vehicle-side, a request to remote start the vehicle
is received 421. In at least one instance, this request will also
include a desired vehicle-temperature. The vehicle power (but not
necessarily the engine) may be activated in response to the request
423 and a current vehicle temperature may be checked 425.
[0055] If the current vehicle temperature matches the desired
temperature, then a message is sent to the instructing device with
the current temperature 427 and a monitoring process may continue
(in case the vehicle temperature changes). If the current vehicle
temperature is not the desired temperature, then the process may
first lock the vehicle (if the vehicle is not already locked) 429.
The process then activates the engine 431, so that an HVAC system
can be enabled. In some embodiments, engine activation may not be
required to enable an HVAC system, and this step may be skipped if
desired.
[0056] The vehicle climate control may then be set based on the
desired temperature 433, and the HVAC system may then be activated
to change the vehicle climate 435. Until the temperature is
correct, the process may continue with engine activation and return
the current temperature so the user can monitor the vehicle climate
439. Once the desired temperature has been reached, the engine may
be deactivated (to preserve fuel, for example) 441 and the process
may maintain an engine-off monitoring state in case a temperature
change again occurs before the user reaches the vehicle.
[0057] FIG. 5A shows an illustrative example of a process for
vehicle data tracking. In this illustrative example, the user
activates an app function 501 related to tracking data from one or
more vehicle systems (e.g., without limitation, vehicle cameras,
vehicle fuel usage monitors, etc). In this illustrative process,
the driver can also set what type of vehicle data is to be tracked
503.
[0058] The driver may further specify a recipient for the vehicle
data 505. For example, without limitation, the driver can specify
that the data be stored locally at the vehicle, on the wireless
device, emailed or otherwise sent to a remote location, etc.
Finally, in this example, the process sends an instruction to the
VACS to begin monitoring the selected data.
[0059] FIG. 5B shows another illustrative example of a process for
vehicle data tracking. In this illustrative example, the VACS
receives a tracking request 511. The requested data type(s) are
recorded 513, and transmission is made if needed 515. For example,
transmission may be desired once at the end, every X period of
time, every X miles, etc. If transmission is requested 515, the
process sends the relevant recorded data 517 to a specified
location and then determines whether or not the recording process
should continue 519.
[0060] FIG. 6A shows an illustrative example of a process for a
personal assistant function. In this illustrative example, a
personal assistant function has been activated by a user 601. The
function may check a current date and time 603, and then, based on
the date and/or time, determine if the user has any upcoming
appointments 605. If there are no upcoming appointments, the
process may simply spool until an appointment is within a proximity
to a current time such that additional action may be taken.
[0061] If there is at least one upcoming appointment (e.g., without
limitation, an appointment within a predetermined temporal
proximity to the current time), the system may check to see if
there is any location information associated with the appointment
607 (e.g., an address). If there is no location information, then
the process may simply notify the user that there is an upcoming
appointment 609. If there is location information, the process may
determine the current location of the vehicle by obtaining GPS
data, for example 611. This GPS data can come from the vehicle, a
mobile device running the process, or another suitable provider of
GPS data relating to the vehicle (e.g., a portable GPS navigation
device). Additional data relating to a route between the current
location and the destination may also be obtained 613.
[0062] Additional data includes, but is not limited to, data that
may affect a travel time along a route. This data, for example,
without limitation, can include traffic data, weather data,
personal driving habits, etc. Once sufficient additional data is
obtained, a departure time can be calculated, notifying the user
when they should depart for the meeting location, given an
estimated travel time.
[0063] FIG. 6B shows a further illustrative example of a process
for a personal assistant function. In this illustrative example,
the process determines if a user is currently located at a vehicle
621. This determination may be done, for example, by determining a
current location of a wireless device running the process, and then
determining a location of a vehicle with which the wireless device
is in communication. The vehicle location may come, for example,
from a VACS. If the two locations are not within a tolerance of
each other, then it is likely that the user is not located at the
vehicle. In a second example, if the device is not BLUETOOTH paired
with the vehicle, it is assumed the device is out of proximity for
such a pairing.
[0064] If the user is located at the vehicle, the process subtracts
an estimated travel time from a known meeting time 623, and
provides a departure time that is no later than the result of the
subtraction. Additional time may be built in as well. For example,
a pre-determined "transit from vehicle to meeting" threshold may be
built in, such that the user doesn't arrive to park the vehicle
when the user should be at the meeting. The desired departure time
is then presented to the user 625.
[0065] If the user is not at the vehicle, the process may obtain
the vehicle coordinates (if it doesn't have the coordinate already)
627. The process may then determine how long it estimates the
vehicle will require to reach the destination point 629.
[0066] The process may then estimate a travel time from a location
to the vehicle 631. In one example, this is estimation simply
comprises determining, based on, for example, an average walking
speed, the walking travel-time to a vehicle. Due to variances in
walking speeds and multiple floors in buildings (requiring, for
example, elevator travel), this estimation may be fine-tuned with
additional data if required.
[0067] The two times may be aggregated to obtain a total travel
time, which may then be subtracted from an appointment time 633 and
the result presented to the user as a recommended departure time
625.
[0068] FIG. 7 shows an illustrative example of a process for a
promptness determination. In this illustrative example, an
application process called "running late" is enabled 701. This
exemplary process may check a current GPS location of the vehicle
703, and obtain any additional factors that may affect travel time
(e.g., without limitation, traffic, weather, etc.) 705. The process
may also estimate a time to a destination 707 and compare the
estimated time to a determined appointment time 709 (based, for
example, on a time set on a calendar, or a time set on a calendar
plus some additional walking-time threshold). If the determined
arrival time will cause the user to be late 711 (or late beyond a
certain tolerance), the process may notify the user that they are
running late for the appointment 713. If the user is not currently
projected to be late for the appointment, the monitoring may
continue in case conditions change along the route.
[0069] In addition to notifying the user of a possible late
arrival, the process may also check to see if there is any contact
information associated with the appointment (other attendees, an
organizer, etc) 715. This information can include, but is not
limited to, an email address, a phone number, a fax number,
etc.
[0070] If there is usable contact information (e.g., information
the process can use to send an arrival update), the process may ask
the user if notification to the contact is desired 717. If
notification is desired (or auto-notification is enabled, for
example), the process may use the detected contact information to
send an appropriate message to the contact 719. This message may
include, among other things, an estimated arrival time based on the
estimated arrival time determined by the process.
[0071] FIG. 8 shows an illustrative example of an emergency option
display. In this illustrative example, an emergency configuration
screen 800 includes a plurality of configurable emergency options.
This illustrative embodiment provides for an option to activate
mobile amber alerts 801 (to be delivered to a vehicle or wireless
device, possibly based on the current location of the wireless
device or vehicle).
[0072] The user also has an option to activate emergency vehicle
alerts 803. In this embodiment, this pertains to notifying a user
of any proximate emergency vehicles. This information may be useful
for avoiding accidents, moving to the shoulder if a vehicle is
approaching, etc.
[0073] The user further has an option to be notified of any local
emergencies (e.g., without limitation, severe weather, fires,
floods, etc) 805. Finally, in this embodiment, the user can elect
to enable relay of information to and from 911. For example,
without limitation, the user may have personal medical data stored
on the wireless device that can be relayed to 911. This data can
include, but is not limited to, medical conditions, allergies,
emergency contact information, current medication, etc.
[0074] While exemplary embodiments are described above, it is not
intended that these embodiments describe all possible forms of the
invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of
description rather than limitation, and it is understood that
various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and
scope of the invention. Additionally, the features of various
implementing embodiments may be combined to form further
embodiments of the invention.
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