Enhancing DNS availability
Granted: March 6, 2018
Patent Number:
9912634
A system and method for providing an address for a Domain Name System (DNS) server to a consumer device, wherein the consumer device connects to the Internet through a vehicle, includes providing an address for a default DNS server to the consumer device; receiving a request from the consumer device to convert a domain name to an Internet Protocol (IP) address using the default DNS server; forwarding the request to the default DNS server; determining if the request has been resolved by…
Establishing a local vehicle communication group
Granted: February 27, 2018
Patent Number:
9906924
A system and method of wirelessly communicating voice conversations between a plurality of vehicles includes: initiating at a host vehicle a voice communication group that facilitates voice communications between a plurality of vehicles; identifying one or more client vehicles for inclusion with the voice communication group; transmitting a broadcast identifier or a vehicle identifier for the host vehicle and each client vehicle to a vehicle telematics service provider via a wireless…
Systems and methods for monitoring a parking space
Granted: February 6, 2018
Patent Number:
9886855
Systems and methods are provided for monitoring a parking space with a sign. A sensor monitors the parking space and generate sensor data. A short-range transceiver receives a vehicle identification key and communicates over a short-range communication channel. A processor module is communicatively coupled with the sensor and the short-range transceiver. The processor module is configured to determine whether a vehicle in the parking space is an approved vehicle or an unapproved vehicle…
Regulating IMS use with non-VoLTE cellular communications systems
Granted: January 30, 2018
Patent Number:
9883476
A system and method of registering a voice over LTE (VoLTE) capable vehicle telematics unit with a wireless carrier system includes: detecting at the vehicle telematics unit a wireless signal broadcast by a cell tower; determining from the wireless signal whether the cell tower provides cellular service using a VoLTE cellular protocol; and when it is determined that the cell tower does not provide cellular service using the VoLTE protocol, then preventing the VoLTE-capable vehicle…
Gesture-based cues for an automatic speech recognition system
Granted: January 30, 2018
Patent Number:
9881609
A method of recognizing continuous digits uttered by a speaker using an automatic speech recognition (ASR) system includes receiving continuous digits via a microphone as speech from a user; detecting that recognition of one or more of the continuous digits falls below a predetermined confidence threshold; prompting the user to identify the continuous digits using a body gesture; detecting the body gesture made by the user; and identifying one or more of the continuous digits based on…
Systems and methods for delivering product information to a mobile device
Granted: January 16, 2018
Patent Number:
9872159
Methods and systems are provided for delivering product information to a mobile device. A beacon uses a transmitter to transmit a product identification key to the mobile device over a first communication channel. A remote server has a database of detailed product information corresponding to the product identification key. An application on the mobile device to requests the detailed product information from the remote server over a second communication channel. The remote server…
Ultrasonic audio transmission of wireless LAN information
Granted: January 9, 2018
Patent Number:
9867050
A system and method of regulating access to a short-range wireless communications network using an ultrasonic audible signal includes: receiving a handheld wireless device identifier at a short-range wireless network from a handheld wireless device that is within a communication range of the short-range wireless network; determining that the handheld wireless device is authorized to access the short-range wireless network using the handheld wireless device identifier; and broadcasting an…
Vehicle tire gauge systems
Granted: December 19, 2017
Patent Number:
9844984
An example of a vehicle tire gauge system includes a tire pressure monitoring system in a vehicle. A transceiver in the vehicle is for transmitting a tire pressure sensed by the tire pressure monitoring system to a paired wearable device. A tire pressure table is stored in a model of an application having a view on the wearable device. A haptic feedback generator in the wearable device is responsive to the tire pressure reaching a first value, wherein the first value is contained in the…
Packaged tours with turn-by-turn navigation
Granted: December 12, 2017
Patent Number:
9841288
An improved guidance system and method provide a packaged tour object having tour directions and media related to points of interest of a tour for playing via a telematics unit. A user is provided, via their telematics unit, with specific directions to access points of interest of the tour in a certain sequence, while the telematics unit optionally conveys media content to the user at appropriate points. The media content may be keyed to an upcoming site, and may comprise audio and/or…
Distributed database server network and maintenance process
Granted: December 12, 2017
Patent Number:
9843499
A scalable distributed server system and method to maintain the system, wherein the system comprises a top virtual layer that includes a fixed or variable number of virtual buckets, wherein a virtual bucket maps an input to a routing bucket in one or more middle routing layers; and a bottom server layer that includes a variable number of servers that each include a database that stores data and an application that recalls data from and stores data into the database, wherein the one or…
Ordering systems and method
Granted: November 28, 2017
Patent Number:
9830641
In an example of an ordering method, an application receives an order for a product. The application may be an in-vehicle application resident on a memory of an in-vehicle infotainment unit of a vehicle or a mobile-device application resident on a memory of a mobile device. Without contacting a merchant of the product, the application determines a preparation time for the product. The application dynamically determines an estimated time of arrival of the vehicle or the mobile device at a…
Purging user data from vehicle memory
Granted: November 14, 2017
Patent Number:
9817838
A communication system and a method for purging user data stored in a vehicle. The method carried out by the system includes: (a) receiving an input associated with a future time for performing a purge of user data in a vehicle module; (b) determining a first expiration threshold associated with the input; (c) determining one or more additional expiration thresholds based on the first expiration threshold; (d) monitoring vehicle parameter values associated with the first and additional…
Re-activating a first access point name using a second access point name
Granted: October 17, 2017
Patent Number:
9794768
A communication system and methods of using the communication system to re-activate a previously used access point name (APN) in order to re-establish connectivity between an application service provider (ASP) and a telematics unit in a vehicle. The steps of the method include: receiving content data at the vehicle via the ASP using a first access point name (APN); experiencing a loss of connectivity between the vehicle and the ASP, wherein the loss of connectivity includes de-activation…
Managing remote provisioning at a wireless device
Granted: September 19, 2017
Patent Number:
9769647
A system and method of provisioning a wireless device that uses cellular communication protocols. The method carried out by the system includes: establishing a wireless communications session with the wireless device at a remote facility; transmitting provisioning information from the remote facility to the wireless device via the wireless communications session; and including a computer readable instruction with the provisioning information commanding the wireless device to contact the…
Methods and systems for facilitating communications between vehicles and service providers
Granted: September 19, 2017
Patent Number:
9768956
Methods and systems for facilitating communications between a vehicle and a service provider are provided. A first address of a vehicle communication device and a second address of a service provider communication device are obtained at a remote location that is remote to both the vehicle and the service provider. A set of keys, including a first key and a second key, is generated at the remote server. The first key is for use by the vehicle in establishing communications with the…
Automated enrollment and activation of telematics equipped vehicles
Granted: September 19, 2017
Patent Number:
9767697
A method for automated enrollment and activation of a mobile telematics system comprising receiving a customer data record of a customer at a communication services database, determining a command signal based on the customer data record, sending the command signal to a telematics unit of a vehicle, enrolling the customer in a telematics-unit access system based on the command signal and activating the telematics unit of the telematics-unit access system based on the command signal.
Connection key distribution
Granted: September 12, 2017
Patent Number:
9762559
A system and method for securely providing a mobile device with a cryptographic key in a vehicle. The method includes generating a cryptographic key pair that includes a first and second cryptographic keys. One of the keys is used to create a scannable image which is then incorporated into a label that is displayed in the vehicle, either as a physical label mounted in the vehicle or via a display screen within the vehicle. The label containing the scannable image can then be read by a…
Estimation of precise road grade using time-differenced satellite navigation system signals
Granted: September 12, 2017
Patent Number:
9759815
Implementations described herein contemplate measuring the carrier phase (CP) of carrier signals transmitted by constituent satellites of a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) to provide highly accurate calculations of a gradient of a road segment between different points at which the vehicle received carrier signals (from which CP measurements were made). The methods described herein are able to calculate the road grade with only an approximate estimate of the absolute altitude of…
Method of establishing a mobile-terminated packet data connection
Granted: September 5, 2017
Patent Number:
9756669
A method of establishing a packet data connection includes accessing a Domain Name Server (DNS) to obtain an Internet Protocol (IP) address of a vehicle telematics unit; initiating a mobile-terminated packet data connection with the vehicle telematics unit using the IP address of the vehicle telematics unit; and establishing the mobile-terminated packet data connection when the vehicle telematics unit determines that a hostname representing an IP address of a third party initiating the…
Interface device for providing vehicle services using a vehicle and a mobile communications device
Granted: August 15, 2017
Patent Number:
9736669
A method and system for providing vehicle services using a vehicle and a mobile communications device includes receiving at a vehicle a wireless communication sent from an interface device physically attached to the mobile communications device; linking the interface device with one or more vehicle modules; and communicating between one or more vehicle modules and the mobile communications device via the interface device.
