A wearable device is a computer that is incorporated into items of clothing and/or accessories, e.g., bracelets, pendants, etc., and typically can comfortably be worn on the human body. Generally, wearable devices have some form of communications capability, e.g., Bluetooth or the like, and allow the wearer access to local and global computers via a wired or, usually, a wireless, network. Data input and output capabilities are also features of such devices. Examples of wearable devices include watches, glasses, contact lenses, e-textiles and smart fabrics, headbands, beanies and caps, jewelry such as rings, bracelets and hearing aid-like devices.
Wearable devices can include geolocation hardware circuitry and software to provide the wearable device location, such that the wearable device can output its location. For example, the smart watch 43 can have a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and/or a regional Navigation Satellite System (NSS) receiver that calculate the location coordinates of the user device 41 to send to a computing device located in or a physically attached to a first vehicle 53. NSS is the standard generic term for satellite navigation systems that provide autonomous geo-spatial positioning with possible global coverage. The USA NSS solution, known as NAVSTAR Global Positioning System, and the Russian NSS, known as GLONASS, are the only Global NSS solutions in use at this time. They have satellites covering the entire globe. The European Union's NSS solution, known as Galileo, will also be a Global system once fully deployed. The remaining systems are regional solutions such as the Indian NSS, known as IRNSS, the Japanese NSS, known as QZSS, and the Chinese NSS, known as Beidou. The term GNSS, as provided, will encompass all satellite navigation systems referenced throughout this specification whether global or regional. Further, the term GPS, which usually refers to the USA system, will also encompass all satellite navigation systems referenced throughout this specification whether global or regional.
Alternatively, the wearable device can have a radio frequency (RF) link with a smart phone within the first vehicle 53, which may or may not be functioning as a wearable device and provide the smart phone's location to the wearable device via a download. The RF link can be Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC) communications, etc., The location of the wearable device can then be inferred based on the cell phone's GNSS location.
The computing device is programmed to determine, based at least in part on a vehicle status of the first vehicle 53, a location of the first vehicle 53, and a location of the smart watch 43, a wearable device status; and to transmit the wearable device status to one or more designated recipients. In general, the wearable device status is a location (e.g., global positioning system coordinates or the like) of the smart watch 43 and/or a location of the smart watch 43 relative to the first vehicle 53, e.g., the wearable device status could be one of within the first vehicle 53 or not within the first vehicle 53, traveling at a same speed and direction as the first vehicle 53 and not traveling at a same speed and direction as the first vehicle 53, etc. Advantageously, therefore, dangerous scenarios, such as a person being lost or abducted, a vehicle being stolen, etc., may be detected.
Wearable devices are typically a device incorporated into items of clothing and accessories which can comfortably be worn on the body or carried. Wearable devices can be any one of a variety of computing devices which can include a processor, a memory, a set of one or more sensors such as are known, e.g., an acceleration sensor, a temperature sensor and a GNSS sensor. The wearable device can have communications capabilities such as are known, and can connect to a first laptop 50, a vehicle network of the first vehicle 53, the network 28 via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC) communications, etc. A mobile network 60 can also communicatively connect to the wearable devices and the first laptop 50 to a network 28, e.g., the Internet. Furthermore, the first laptop 50 can connect via a wire or wirelessly to a router 52 via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC) communications, etc. The router 52 can also be communicatively connected with the network 28.
The wearable device can be a passive device, for example, an unpowered device such as a RFID device that does not contain a battery and depends on the received radio frequency (RF) signal strength of a transmitted signal from a wearable device gateway to cause the passive wearable device to generate a response. The wearable device gateway is generally known for detecting RFID devices or the like. In general, the passive wearable device can contain a serial number, typically 96 to 128 bits in length, as is known. The serial number can be read and then used by a RFID computer, or the like, to establish a one to one relationship with the passive wearable device. Since passive wearable devices do not contain a battery and depend on the wearable device gateway transmitted signal strength to generate a response, a read range is typically short, ranging from a few centimeters to typically no more than 3 meters.
The wearable device can further be a semi-passive wearable device which operates similarly to the passive wearable device, using the signal of a wearable device gateway to cause the response from a semi-passive wearable device. However, the semi-passive wearable device does have a battery, but not for generating a response, but to power electronics that are used in conjunction with its sensors, for example, a thermal sensor, a communications circuit or a GNSS receiver. Sensor readings can be incorporated into the semi-passive wearable device response signal and can include a unique identifier, e.g., the serial number.
The wearable device can be an active wearable device which contains a battery and does not depend on the signal strength of a wearable device gateway signal to generate a response. As a result, the active device can be read at much greater distances, with read distances up to 100 meters. The active wearable device may be either read-only or read/write, thus allowing data modification by the reader. Data storage is also available on active devices.
In addition to the radio frequency link, the wearable device can additionally have wireless as well as wired communication capabilities such as are known. A concern arising from use of wearable devices is the operating time or how long until its battery needs a recharge or replacement. Thus, battery size is an issue with wearable devices. For example, if the battery is large, the wearable device may be heavy, awkward to wear or unsightly. Therefore, to obtain a reasonable operational time, while incorporating a less obtrusive battery, wearable devices can utilize a low power processor, a low power memory and a low power communications circuit.
As discussed above, the wearable device may have a low power geolocation hardware and software circuitry to provide a wearer's location, such that the wearable device can output its location. For example, the smart watch 43 can provide the smart watch 43 location to the subject 41 and/or send the location information to other computing devices via cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC), wired and/or wireless packet networks, etc. Alternatively, the smart watch 43 may leverage a phone to which it is paired to gain NSS location if the wearable is not fitted with a GNSS receiver. The smart watch 43 can report its location independently from the vehicle's location, as determined from the vehicle 53 navigation system or a vehicle location determined, e.g., in a known manner. For example, the vehicle 53 can have a vehicle Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) as part of its navigation system which can supply the vehicle 53 geographical position. The smart watch 43 location can then be used to verify that the wearer of the smart watch 43 is within the first vehicle 53 and has not wandered away from the first vehicle 53. In one example after the smart watch 43 is not verified to be within, or within a predetermined distance of, the first vehicle 53, a location alert message can be sent to a concerned parent or adult child of the user device 43, e.g., to a family member or designate 57 via a user device, such as a second laptop 56. The alert can be, for example, an email addressed to the family member 57. Additionally, the alert can be sent via text or voice to the subject 41 (wearer of the device), a designated 59 user device, such as a smart phone 58.
The wearable device, as is known, can include an accelerometer, also known as an acceleration sensor, and can detect a magnitude and direction of acceleration (or g-force) as a vector quantity, and can be used to sense orientation and acceleration in a known manner. The wearable device's accelerometer can send acceleration information to other computing devices in much the same way as the aforementioned alert, which is via cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC), wired and/or wireless packet networks, etc. If the subject 41 of the smart watch 43 were to fall down or suddenly decelerate, which would occur in a vehicular accident, the acceleration sensor would detect such a change and report the acceleration sensor data to other computing devices in the manner as described above. For example, in addition to a collision detection and reporting system in the first vehicle 53, data indicating rapid decelerations followed by zero accelerations can be sent from the smart watch 43 to a computer 12 in the first vehicle 53. Programming in the first vehicle 53 computer 12 can detect the change in the acceleration sensor data and summon aide to the first vehicle 53 location, as determined by either the first vehicle 53 navigation system, a vehicle cellular tower triangulation device or the smart watch 43 GNSS sensors.
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The computer 12 is configured, i.e., includes programming and hardware such as is known, for communicating with one or more processing units 25 (computer) and typically including or being coupled to a data store 30 via a gateway 16 of the first vehicle 53. The gateway 16 can be a telematics unit or the like provided for sending and receiving information via the network 28, e.g., in a known manner. The wearable device 20, the user device 18, and the first vehicle 53 gateway 16 can communicate with each other, as described below, and may include various wired and/or wireless networking technologies, e.g., cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC), wired and/or wireless packet networks, etc. Further, the computer 12 generally includes instructions for exchanging data, e.g., from one or more wearable devices 20 and/or user devices 18 and/or the HMI 15, which may be one or more of an interactive voice response (IVR) system, a graphical user interface (GUI) including a touchscreen or the like, etc.
The first vehicle 53 can have various electronic control units (ECUs) 13 for monitoring and controlling various vehicle 10 electrical and electromechanical systems. The ECUs can be incorporated into the first vehicle 53 and provide and request information to and from the occupant via the HMI 15, the wearable device 20 or the user device 18. For example, ECUs 13 can include a navigation ECU with a vehicle cellular tower triangulation device, a vehicle dead reckoning device or a vehicle GNSS device to determine a vehicle location. Other ECUs can include a safety ECU, a powertrain ECU, and an entertainment ECU, just to name a few. Each ECU 13 can contain a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions to be executed on the processor to perform each particular ECU's operation(s), as well as instructions to communicate with other ECUs and devices and generate the vehicle status. For example, the vehicle status can include velocity, ambient temperature, direction of travel, fuel level, etc. Additionally, a designated vehicle 55 can be comparably equipped to the first vehicle 53. The designated vehicle 55 is a possible second vehicle in which the wearer 41 can be located.
The user device 18 can be a smart phone, a tablet or the like, and/or operations ascribed herein to the user device 18 can be performed by the wearable device 20. Some user devices 18, as is known, can have a telecommunications connection to an external cellular network, as well as local network capability. For example, the user device 18 can be connected to a cellular telephone network for voice communications as well as having a data connection to an external network, such as the Internet. The local network capability can be provided by Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC) communications, etc. The user device 18 can include geolocation hardware and software, as is known, which allows the user device 18 to obtain positional information and provide the user device 18 location.
The user device 18, typically a mobile device carried by a user, may be any one of a variety of computing devices with a processor, a memory, and a GNSS, as well as communications circuitry. For example, the user device 18 may be a portable computer, tablet computer, a smart phone, etc., that includes capabilities for wireless communications using IEEE 802.11, Bluetooth, and/or cellular communications protocols. Further, the user device 18 may use such communication capabilities to communicate via the network 28 with the vehicle computer 12 or to the processing unit 25.
The processing unit 25 may be a single computer and can be positioned throughout the wearable device journey informer system 100 or the processing unit 25 can be a cluster of computers, each generally including at least one processor and at least one memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor, including instructions for carrying out various steps and processes described herein. The processing unit 25 may include or be communicatively coupled to a data store 30 for storing data. In general, the processing unit 25 may be used for a variety of purposes, e.g., receive ongoing location data from the first vehicle 53 and the wearable device 20 and store the data in a data store 30 as vehicle tracking data for future routing, potential waypoints, weather and traffic information, etc. Thus, one possible operation of the processing unit 25 is to receive an indication from the first vehicle 53 computer 12 via the network 28 that the first vehicle 53 subject 41 is in the first vehicle 53, and that the first vehicle 53 ignition switch is on.
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The process 100 begins in a block 105, in which the wearable device 20 determines its location and reports the location information to a computer 12. The wearable device 20 can determine its location from GNSS, Wi-Fi or cellular, etc. The wearable device 20 can then send the location to the computer via Wi-Fi, landline, cellular, etc. The computer 12 can be located anywhere including within the vehicle 53.
Next, in a block 110, the vehicle 53 determines its location and reports the location information to the computer 12. The vehicle 53 can derive its location from GNSS, Wi-Fi or cellular, etc. The vehicle 53 can then send the location to the computer 12 via a cellular connection, for example.
Next, in a block 115, the designated vehicle 55 determines its location and reports the location information to the computer 12. The designated vehicle 55 can derive its location from GNSS, Wi-Fi or cellular, etc. The designated vehicle 55 can then send the location to the computer via a cellular connection, for example.
Next, in the block 120, the computer compares the locations of the wearable device 20, the vehicle 53 and the designated vehicle 55, and compares the locations to parameters in the journey informer location predictions tables. For example, referring to
Next, in the block 125, the computer 12 determines if an alert message is to be sent. For example, an alert message can be sent when subject 41 life or safety are at issue. For example, when a daily check fails and the system is unable to locate subject 41 wearable device 20. Alternatively, a status message can be sent indicating that the subject 41 is “Okay.” If the alert message is determined to be sent, the process 100 continues to next in a block 130, else the process 100 return to in the block 105.
Next, in a block 130, the alert message is sent. For example, the alert message can be sent to the family member 57, the designated 59 or the subject 41. The alert can be a text, a voice to a phone, an email, etc. The process 100 then ends.
The process 200 begins in a block 205, in which the wearable device 20 connects with the vehicle 55. The connection can be via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.
Next, in a block 210, the vehicle 53 determines its location and reports the location information to the computer. The vehicle 53 can derive its location from GNSS, Wi-Fi or cellular, etc. The vehicle 53 can then send the location to the computer via a cellular connection, for example.
Next, in a block 215, the designated vehicle 55 determines its location and reports the location information to the computer. The designated vehicle 55 can derive its location from GNSS, Wi-Fi or cellular, etc. The designated vehicle 55 can then send the location to the computer via a cellular connection, for example.
Next, in a block 220, the computer confirms the location of the wearable device 20.
Next in a block 225, the computer compares the locations of the vehicle 53 and the designated vehicle 55, and then further compares the locations to parameters in the journey informer location predictions tables.
Next, in a block 230, the computer 12 determines if an alert message needs to be sent. For example, an alert message can be sent when subject 41 life or safety are at issue. For example, when a daily check fails and the system is unable to locate subject 41 wearable device 20. Alternatively, a status message can be sent indicating that the subject 41 is “Okay.” If the alert messages are determined to be sent, the process 200 continues to next in a block 235, else the process 200 returns to in the block 205.
Next, in the block 235, an alert message is sent. For example, the alert message can be sent to the family member 57 or to the designated 59. The alert can be a text, a voice to a phone, an email, etc. The process 200 then ends.
As used herein, the adverb “substantially” means that a shape, structure, measurement, quantity, time, etc. may deviate from an exact described geometry, distance, measurement, quantity, time, etc., because of imperfections in materials, machining, manufacturing, etc.
The term “exemplary” is used herein in the sense of signifying an example, e.g., a reference to an “exemplary widget” should be read as simply referring to an example of a widget.
Computing devices such as those discussed herein generally each include instructions executable by one or more computing devices such as those identified above, and for carrying out blocks or steps of processes described above. For example, process blocks discussed above are embodied as computer-executable instructions.
Computer-executable instructions may be compiled or interpreted from computer programs created using a variety of programming languages and/or technologies, including, without limitation, and either alone or in combination, Java™, C, C++, C#, Visual Basic, Java Script, Python, Perl, HTML, etc. In general, a processor (e.g., a microprocessor) receives instructions, e.g., from a memory, a computer-readable medium, etc., and executes these instructions, thereby performing one or more processes, including one or more of the processes described herein. Such instructions and other data may be stored and transmitted using a variety of computer-readable media. A file in a computing device is generally a collection of data stored on a computer readable medium, such as a storage medium, a random access memory, etc.
A computer-readable medium includes any medium that participates in providing data (e.g., instructions), which may be read by a computer. Such a medium may take many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, etc. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical or magnetic disks and other persistent memory. Volatile media include dynamic random access memory (DRAM), which typically constitutes a main memory. Common forms of computer-readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, DVD, any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, any other physical medium with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EEPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other medium from which a computer can read.
In the drawings, the same reference numbers indicate the same elements. Further, some or all of these elements could be changed. With regard to the media, processes, systems, methods, etc. described herein, it should be understood that, although the steps of such processes, etc. have been described as occurring according to a certain ordered sequence, such processes could be practiced with the described steps performed in an order other than the order described herein. It further should be understood that certain steps could be performed simultaneously, that other steps could be added, or that certain steps described herein could be omitted. In other words, the descriptions of processes herein are provided for the purpose of illustrating certain embodiments, and should in no way be construed so as to limit the claimed invention.
Accordingly, it is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided would be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reading the above description. The scope of the invention should be determined, not with reference to the above description, but should instead be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future developments will occur in the arts discussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into such future embodiments. In sum, it should be understood that the invention is capable of modification and variation and is limited only by the following claims.
All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their broadest reasonable constructions and their ordinary meanings as understood by those skilled in the art unless an explicit indication to the contrary in made herein. In particular, use of the singular articles such as “a,” “the,” “said,” etc. should be read to recite one or more of the indicated elements unless a claim recites an explicit limitation to the contrary.
This patent application is filed under 35 U.S.C. § 371 as a national stage of, and as such claims priority to, International Patent Application No. PCT/US2015/061905, filed on Nov. 20, 2015 the foregoing application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/US2015/061905 | 11/20/2015 | WO | 00 |