Patent Application
20220234446
The present invention relates generally to the field of vehicle customization systems and devices. More specifically, the invention relates to a vehicle exterior mounted digital display device and a system and method of temporarily customizing the exterior of the vehicle using the digital display device. The invention offers a simple way to customize the look of a vehicle without making excessive and permanent modifications. Accordingly, the present disclosure makes specific reference thereto. Nonetheless, it is to be appreciated that aspects of the present invention are also equally applicable to other like applications, devices and methods of manufacture.
By way of background, vehicle owners like to “customize” their vehicles in order to give each vehicle a unique appearance that reflects the personality and interests of the vehicle owner. One of the easiest ways to change the look of the vehicle is to change its exterior. However, current methods of customization require permanent changes to the exterior of the vehicle, such as change in the paint of the vehicle, replacing existing lamps and other vehicle body parts, or placing vinyl stickers on the vehicle, for example. The available methods are not just permanent but are also expensive and time consuming.
Moreover, current ways of customization provide a static and permanent look to the vehicle which may prohibit vehicle owners and drivers to pursue customization again in the near future. This leads to low performance of the vehicle and a decrease in resale value.
Metal fixed license plates, and even digital (i.e. digital screen) license plates, are static and do not allow any other image or video to be displayed on the plate or digital screen. Individuals desire enhanced screens that can display images, videos, and/or messages in addition to the license plate numbers.
Individuals desire a customization method and device for their vehicles that is not only temporary and efficient, but is also cost-effective. Further, individuals desire a do-it-yourself method for changing and customizing their vehicle, thereby eliminating the expensive process of going to a car customization service provider.
Therefore, there exists a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization method that is temporary, efficient and cost-effective. There is also a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization device that provides a unique and personalized look to the vehicle. Additionally, there is a long felt need in the art for a device that can be used in place of front license plates to give a more aesthetic look to the vehicle. Moreover, there is a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization method that enables users to independently customize the exterior of their vehicle. Further, there is a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization device that can display personalized videos, messages, and/or images on the exterior of the vehicle as per the preference of the vehicle owner or driver. Finally, there is a long felt need in the art for a customization device for the vehicle's exterior that offers a simple way to customize the look of a vehicle without necessitating excessive and permanent modifications.
The subject matter disclosed and claimed herein, in one embodiment thereof, comprises a digital display device for mounting to a vehicle's exterior. The digital display device is configured to display images, videos, and/or messages for customizing the look of the vehicle. The device is a part of a customization system and includes a digital screen for displaying one or more of an image, a video and a message. The device includes a mechanical fastener on a surface opposite to the digital screen for mounting the device to the exterior of the vehicle, a wireless module for establishing a wireless channel with a nearby handheld electronic device, a push button for activating or deactivating the device, a battery for providing power to the digital screen, and a USB port for receiving power for recharging the battery. The device is further configured to receive images, videos, and/or messages from the handheld electronic device with which the wireless connection is established for displaying on the digital screen wherein a smartphone application installed in the electronic device transmits and edits images, pictures, videos, and/or messages through the established wireless channel.
In this manner, the digital display device of the present invention accomplishes all of the forgoing objectives and provides users with a digital display device for installation on the vehicle's exterior that is capable of communicating wirelessly with a smartphone application for receiving images, videos and/or messages for display. The display device is a part of a customization system that involves the smartphone application. Users can subscribe to purchase images, videos and messages for displaying on the digital display device.
The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosed innovation. This summary is not an extensive overview, and it is not intended to identify key/critical elements or to delineate the scope thereof. Its sole purpose is to present some general concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.
The subject matter disclosed and claimed herein, in one embodiment thereof, comprises a digital display device for mounting to a vehicle's exterior. The digital display device is configured to display images, videos and messages for customizing the look of the vehicle. The device further comprising a digital screen for displaying one or more of an image, a video or a message, a mechanical fastener on a surface opposite to the digital screen for mounting the device to the exterior of the vehicle, a wireless module for establishing a wireless channel with a nearby handheld electronic device, a push button for activating or deactivating the device, a battery for providing power to the digital screen and a USB port for receiving power for recharging the battery. The device is further configured to receive images, videos, or messages from the handheld electronic device with which the wireless connection is established for displaying on the digital screen wherein a smartphone application installed in the electronic device transmits and edits images, videos, and/or messages through the established wireless channel.
In yet another embodiment, the digital display device includes a transparent protective cover for protecting the digital screen therebehind.
In yet another embodiment, the digital display device includes a built-in memory for storing one or more images, videos, and messages.
In yet another embodiment, the digital screen is one or more of LCD, LED, TFT and OLED.
In yet another embodiment, the digital display device includes a non-displaying bezel.
In yet another embodiment, the digital display device is bezel-less.
In yet another embodiment, a system for customizing an exterior of a vehicle is disclosed. The system includes a digital display device mounted on front of the vehicle, a computer implemented application installed in an electronic device and a storage server, the digital display device is configured to display at least one image, picture, video or message for customizing the exterior of the vehicle, the at least one image, picture, video, or message is received by the digital device from the computer implemented application wherein the application downloads the at least one image, picture, video, or message from the storage server.
In yet another embodiment of the present invention, a computer implemented method for customizing an exterior of a vehicle without any permanent and expensive customization is described. The method includes the steps of pairing, using a wireless communication channel, a digital device installed on the exterior of a vehicle and a computer implemented smartphone application, downloading on the smartphone application, a plurality of images, pictures, videos and/or messages from a storage server, receiving, by the smartphone application, a selection of at least one image, picture, video or message, then transmitting by the smartphone application to the digital device the selected image, picture, video or message and displaying, by the digital device, the selected image, picture, video or message for customizing the exterior of the vehicle.
In yet another embodiment, the method includes the step of receiving, by the smartphone application, a license plate number.
In yet another embodiment, the method includes the step of downloading the smartphone application from an application play store.
Numerous benefits and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which it pertains upon reading and understanding of the following detailed specification.
To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certain illustrative aspects of the disclosed innovation are described herein in connection with the following description and the annexed drawings. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles disclosed herein can be employed and are intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features will become apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the drawings.
The description refers to provided drawings in which similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the different views, and in which:
The innovation is now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding thereof. It may be evident, however, that the innovation can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate a description thereof. Various embodiments are discussed hereinafter. It should be noted that the figures are described only to facilitate the description of the embodiments. They are not intended as an exhaustive description of the invention and do not limit the scope of the invention. Additionally, an illustrated embodiment need not have all the aspects or advantages shown. Thus, in other embodiments, any of the features described herein from different embodiments may be combined.
As noted above, there exists a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization method that is temporary, efficient, and cost-effective. There is also a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization device that provides a unique and personalized look to the vehicle. Additionally, there is a long felt need in the art for a device that can be used in place of front license plates to give a more aesthetic look to the vehicle. Moreover, there is a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization method that enables users to independently customize the exterior of their vehicle. Further, there is a long felt need in the art for a vehicle customization device that can display personalized videos, messages, and/or images on the exterior of the vehicle as per the preference of the vehicle owner or driver. Finally, there is a long felt need in the art for a customization device for the vehicle's exterior that offers a simple way to customize the look of a vehicle without necessitating excessive and permanent modifications.
The present invention, in one exemplary embodiment, is a novel computer implemented method for customizing an exterior of a vehicle without any permanent and expensive customization. The method includes the steps of pairing, using a wireless communication channel, a digital device installed on the exterior of a vehicle and a computer implemented smartphone application, downloading on the smartphone application, a plurality of images, videos and messages from a storage server, receiving by the smartphone application, a selection of at least one image, picture, video or message, then transmitting by the smartphone application to the digital device the selected image, picture, video or message and displaying, by the digital device, the selected image, picture, video, or message for customizing exterior of the vehicle.
Referring initially to the drawings,
The digital screen 102 can be one of the LCD, LED, TFT, OLED or other display devices and can be a flexible display. The digital screen 102 can be a touch sensitive or touchless screen. The digital device 100 includes a protective transparent cover 110 made from plastic to protect the digital screen 102 from weather elements and physical damage. The device 100, including the screen 102, is designed to be weatherproof and capable of handling high temperatures up to 60 degrees C. and low temperatures down to −20 degrees C. The digital device 100 includes a power button 112 used for manually activating or deactivating the device 100. Further, the device 100 includes an integrated battery 114 that can be recharged using a USB power port 116. Any conventional USB charging cable can be used for recharging the integrated battery 114. The battery 114 is primarily used for providing electric power to the display screen 102. Alternatively, or in conjunction with the integrated battery 114, the display device 100 can be powered by the vehicle battery.
The digital display device 100 includes a built-in memory 118, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a flash memory or a ROM and is used for storing a default image, message, or video (collectively referred to as media). The stored media is displayed on the screen 102 when the device 100 is activated using the power button 112. The default media can be replaced by another media selected by a user on a handheld electronic device as best described in
The power button 112 is accessible to a user while the display device 100 is mounted to the front bumper 202 so that the user can manually activate/deactivate the display device 100.
The application 302 is connected to a storage server 308 which can be a cloud storage server or a distributed server, preferably of a service provider providing media for display on the display device 100. A user of the application 302 can subscribe to download media from the storage server to the application 302 and a media from the application 302 can be selected by the user to display on the display screen 102 for customization of the vehicle to which the display device 100 is mounted. The storage server 308 is configured to provide free images, videos and messages (media) to a user of the application 302 and also provides subscribed or paid media to the user.
The application 302 is also designed to communicate with a state agency 310 for monitoring purposes. This enables the application 302 to communicate license plate number of the vehicle to which the display device 100 is mounted to the state agency 310. Based on successful registration of the license plate number with the state agency 310, a user can also display the digital license plate number on the display screen 102 of the display device 100. It should be understood that displaying of the license plate on the screen 102 can be available in a subscription plan, rather than a free service plan (as shown in
The free media header 406 provides the free media provided to a user when the user downloads the application 302 from an application play store. The free media is limited in number as best shown in
One advantage of the display device 100 and the smartphone application 302 is that a user can record a video using a camera of the electronic device 304 upon clicking the record video header 410 and transmit same to the device 100 for displaying on the screen 102. Similarly, an image can be captured using the capture image header 412 and the image can be displayed on the screen 102. For displaying the license plate number on the digital display 414, the license plate header 414 can used by the user. The registered license plate number of the vehicle can be displayed on the screen 102 and a notification can be transmitted to a state agency for monitoring purposes.
The user can create a playlist having a mix of one or more of an image, a video and a message to display on the digital screen 102 in a rolling manner. The playlist can be transmitted continuously to the digital device 100 from the application 302.
The month-to-month plan 504 can include, for example, a monthly cost of $100 per month and a user can download up to a hundred HD images, twenty HD videos and two hundred messages as referred by numeral 5040. The month-to-month plan 504 can also provide the capability of displaying license number plate 5042 on the digital screen 102.
The annual plan 506 can include, for example an annual cost of $900 each year for providing savings to a user relative to the monthly plan. A user can download unlimited media 5060. The annual plan 506 can also provide the capability of displaying license number plate 5062 on the digital screen 102.
A per media plan 508 can include, for example a charging or cost method that enables a user to purchase a single media as per the preference of the user. In the per media plan 508, the user can purchase, for example, an image for five dollars, a video for ten dollars, and/or a single message for two dollars referred collectively as reference 5080.
The user interface 500 provides a payment header 510 that enables a user to subscribe to a desired plan by a specified payment plan.
The digital device 100 is configured to display video in MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, HTML5 or other formats. Further, the digital device 100 can be configured to display images in JPEG, PNG, SVG, GIF, TIFF and other formats.
Certain terms are used throughout the following description and claims to refer to particular features or components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, different persons may refer to the same feature or component by different names. This document does not intend to distinguish between components or features that differ in name but not structure or function. As used herein “digital display device”, “display device”, “device” and “digital device” are interchangeable and refer to the digital display device 100 of the present invention.
Notwithstanding the forgoing, the digital display device 100 of the present invention can be of any suitable size and configuration as is known in the art without affecting the overall concept of the invention, provided that it accomplishes the above-stated objectives. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the digital display device 100 as shown in the FIGS. are for illustrative purposes only, and that many other sizes and shapes of the digital display device 100 are well within the scope of the present disclosure. Although the dimensions of the digital display device 100 are important design parameters for user convenience, the digital display device 100 may be of any size that ensures optimal performance during use and/or that suits the user's needs and/or preferences.
Various modifications and additions can be made to the exemplary embodiments discussed without departing from the scope of the present invention. While the embodiments described above refer to particular features, the scope of this invention also includes embodiments having different combinations of features and embodiments that do not include all of the described features. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as fall within the scope of the claims, together with all equivalents thereof.
What has been described above includes examples of the claimed subject matter. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the claimed subject matter, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations of the claimed subject matter are possible. Accordingly, the claimed subject matter is intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes” is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as “comprising” is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim.
The present application claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/142,161, which was filed on Jan. 27, 2021 and is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63142161 | Jan 2021 | US |
