Cellport Systems, Inc.

Cell Port Labs, Inc.

Cybercar Inc.

Patrick J Kennedy

Charles W Spaur

Michael F Braitberg

Axel Fuchs

Lester B Hatcher

Hiroshi Sakurai

Gregory D Volan

Davide Andrea

Kenneth J Klingenstein

Lane W Lee

Marc Tim Jones

Ralph Charles Poplawsky

Michael Tibbetts

David Farrell

Michael B Durian

Mark Berman

Richard A Chandler

Nate Klingenstein

Mike Lewellen

Jay Plucienkowski

A telematics system that includes a security controller is provided. The security controller is responsible for ensuring secure access to and controlled use of resources in the vehicle. The security measures relied on by the security controller can be based on digital certificates that grant rights to certificate holders, e.g., application developers. In the case in which applications are to be used with vehicle resources, procedures are implemented to make sure that certified applications do not jeopardize vehicle resources' security and vehicle users' safety. Relationships among interested entities are established to promote and support secure vehicle resource access and usage. The entities can include vehicle makers, communication service providers, communication apparatus vendors, vehicle subsystem suppliers, application developers, as well as vehicle owners/users. At least some of the entities can be members of a federation established to enhance and facilitate secure access and usage of vehicle resources.

Secure telematics

Methods and systems for characterizing requests for individual items of information available from a target address as part of a request for content are provided. The characterization of requests for items of information is applied to select one of a plurality of communication channels for servicing the request. In addition, where different requests for items of information are assigned to different communication channels, those different communication channels can be used to obtain items of information from the target address simultaneously.

Communication channel selection and use

A telematics system that includes a security controller is provided. The security controller is responsible for ensuring secure access to and controlled use of resources in the vehicle. The security measures relied on by the security controller can be based on digital certificates that grant rights to certificate holders, e.g., application developers. In the case in which applications are to be used with vehicle resources, procedures are implemented to make sure that certified applications do not jeopardize vehicle resource'0 security and vehicle users' safety. Relationships among interested entities are established to promote and support secure vehicle resource access and usage. The entities can include vehicle makers, communication service providers, communication apparatus vendors, vehicle subsystem suppliers, application developers, as well as vehicle owners/users. At least some of the entities can be members of a federation established to enhance and facilitate secure access and usage of vehicle resources.

The present invention is directed to facilitating communications and interoperability between/among applications and services. Such applications and services may be running on or associated with disparate platforms. The apparatus of the present invention provides for a message set that can be used by services to advertise available services, and by applications to identify desired services. According to certain embodiments, applications may subscribe to available services. In a further aspect of some embodiments, applications executable on and services available from disparate platforms are not required by themselves to support communications between/among the platforms. Instead, such support may be obtained from facilities that are provided as part of the platform itself.

Enabling interoperability between distributed devices using different communication link technologies

A communications system is provided for sending and receiving information relative to a mobile unit in which a number of network channels are available through which the information can be transferred. The system includes a link selector for selecting an acceptable network channel using application requirements for the particular channel, together with channel operating parameter values. When such a channel does not become available, the link selector is also involved with recovery procedures. These network channel operating parameters include bandwidth, information transfer costs and information transfer packet loss, latency and jitter. Weighting vectors are also utilized with such channel operating parameters in determining suitability values associated with the available network channels. The link selector communicates with a link scheduler that has responsibility for determining when information should be transferred including when there should be a change in the timing of the information transfer. The link selector also receives data from a controller/monitor that obtains such dynamic data associated with selected network channel operation in connection with determining whether a switch should be made from the currently selected network channel to different network channel.

Communications channel selection

A communications apparatus for enabling communications among networks, buses, devices and other subsystems having different communication requirements is provided. The communications apparatus offers an open architecture for interoperability among diverse subsystems. The communications apparatus is particularly applicable in a vehicle. In one embodiment, a portal apparatus located remote from the vehicle facilitates communications with the communications apparatus, particularly where the vehicle is part of a vehicle fleet. The communications apparatus includes a common module that has at least one protocol by which disparate subsystems can communicate with each other. One or more managers can be defined as being part of the common module. The disparate subsystem managers provide the necessary interfacing to enable the disparate subsystems to communicate between and among each other using the common module. Each such manager has dedicated functionalities to facilitate communications. Managers associated with the common module may include managers for use in configuration and diagnostic tasks, encryption/decryption, compression/de-compression, controlling data flow, security regulation, and selecting an acceptable link for outside communications. The common module also includes a base manager for registering disparate subsystem managers including associating a name with each of them.

Communications involving disparate protocol network/bus and device subsystems

Wireless communications relative to a vehicle using a wireless communications device, a pocket for holding the wireless communication device and an interface module in communication with the pocket are provided. The pocket can include a processor for translating communications between the wireless communications device and the interface module. The interface module has processing capability and can communicate with different pockets and thereby different wireless communications devices. In at least one embodiment, the interface module manages voice recognition and text-to-speech commands to facilitate hands-free communications in the vehicle. The interface module can function as a communications hub involving a number of vehicle subsystems. In a preferred embodiment, the vehicle subsystems are separately addressable using the interface module and/or other processing hardware/software. However, in communicating over the Internet, a vehicle IP address is utilized.

Hands-free wireless communication in a vehicle

A cellular telephone is interconnected to a host assembly via a cable. The cable contains both appropriate interdisciplinary connections for attachment to the telephone at one end and to the host assembly at the other end via a universal connector. The identity of the particular cellular telephone can be provided to the host assembly by a number of different protocols including the downloading of function-related parameters to the host assembly that are unique to the particular telephone. Accordingly the host assembly can function with any one of a variety of cellular telephones having differently configured cable connections. In one embodiment, a pocket adapter holds the cellular telephone and includes the universal connector.

Battery charging for a plurality of different cellular telephone

Communication of information including data between a remote computer and a vehicle is managed and facilitated using an apparatus compatible with standardized network communication links. In one embodiment, the standardized network communication links include the Internet and a controller area network used in vehicles. The apparatus preferably includes a controller contained in the vehicle. The controller is comprised of a number of hardware and software elements including a processor. A TCP/IP stack is part of the controller for providing the necessary control in checking for communicating information, such as requests and data, over the Internet. A web server communicates with the TCP/IP stack for servicing information related requests in http format including obtaining or sending information in operative communication with the TCP/IP stack. A CGI-bin (common gateway interface-binary) communicates with the web server and acts as a link to executable software stored in program memory that is responsive to user requests. A data memory is also available for storing data in html that is accessible by the web server. A real time operating system (RTOS) is involved in task and memory management as part of the responding to requests for information. The controller is able to receive requests using a wireless device when it is in the vehicle and through a communications port when the wireless device is not in the vehicle. In another embodiment, each of the plurality of vehicle devices has an Internet address or designation associated with it.

Mobile portable wireless communication system

Universal connection for cellular telephone interface

A cellular telephone is interconnected to a control unit via a cable. The cable contains both appropriate interdisciplinary connections for attachment to the telephone at one end and to the control unit at the other end via a universal connector. At least one contact of the universal connector is capable of producing a signal coded to identify the type of cellular telephone attached to the connector at the other end. A decoder at the control unit identifies the type of phone as by table look-up and establishes appropriate interfacing operational functions at its universal connector to properly operate with the telephone. Accordingly, the control unit can function with any of a wide variety of cellular telephones having differently configured cable connections and cable connector disciplines of contact assignments. In addition, the control unit may include circuitry for controlling a number of peripheral devices which are operable to send and receive digital data through the cellular phone unit to and from remote devices via radio frequency signals.

Growing community of inventors

Boulder, CO, United States of America

Patrick J Kennedy