Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication – Vehicle subsystem or accessory control
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-17
2002-09-10
Nguyen, Tan (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
Vehicle subsystem or accessory control
C701S033000, C707S793000, C707S793000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06449541
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to computer systems for automobile vehicles. More particularly, this invention relates to software for such computer systems. More particularly still, this invention relates to software programming interfaces for such computer systems.
BACKGROUND
Modern automobile vehicles are typically equipped with several independent electronic systems. For example, many vehicles have the following systems: sound systems, security systems, vehicle diagnostic systems, global positioning system (GPS) navigational systems, and wireless communications systems.
Most late model automobiles are constructed with a diagnostic system that analyzes performance of the vehicle's engine, transmission and fuel system, and other vehicle peripheral devices. In particular, 1993-1995 model vehicles use a standard called OBD I, and 1996 model vehicles or later have OBD II. (OBD is On-Board Diagnostics).
The various vehicle electronics systems have proven useful to their users. However, these systems are typically unrelated and incompatible. This problem was solved by in-vehicle computers. A popular example of such an in-vehicle computer (“vehicle computer”) is a product known as “Auto PC” and its associated operating system. A vehicle computer, like the “Auto PC,” is described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,164 to Beckert et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.
FIG. 1
shows a vehicle computer system
20
. Vehicle computer system
20
has a centralized vehicle computer
22
, like the Auto PC, operatively coupled to peripheral electronic systems and devices in an automobile. Essentially, the vehicle computer
22
is small computer that controls and monitors these peripheral components. It also provides functions that are traditionally associated with personal computers, such as an address database.
FIG. 1
shows peripheral components in the vehicle computer system
20
. The components shown in
FIG. 1
include a monitor
23
, security sensors
25
, a CD player
27
, antenna(s)
29
, speakers
31
, a GPS receiver
33
, an engine diagnostic component
35
, other “built-in” vehicle component(s)
37
, and “add-on” vehicle
11
component(s)
39
. A “built-in” component is one with its definition built into the operating system of the vehicle computer. An “add-on” component is one that does not have its definition built into the operating system.
In general, a vehicle component is a part, device, or system that is capable of generating any vehicle-related data. In addition, a vehicle component is any part, device, or system that is capable of controlling any vehicle-related function. A vehicle component may also be called a peripheral or device.
Some additional examples of components include: switches, sensors, GPS receivers, MP
3
players, DVD players, microphones, security systems, sound systems, navigational systems, wireless communications systems, vehicle diagnostic systems, microphone, multimedia systems, storage systems, climate control systems, batteries, and ignition systems.
FIG. 1
shows the computer
22
coupled directly to each component. Alternatively, one or more vehicle buses may connect multiple components to the computer
22
via vehicle gateways. A gateway is a hardware device that physically connects a component to an in-vehicle communications pathway (like an internal vehicle bus). For example, a vehicle may include a vehicle bus that provides the pathway for in-vehicle communications. A gateway provides a physical bridge attaching the component to that bus. Such a bus may be a USB. Such a component may be the vehicle diagnostics system and its Onboard Diagnostic Bus (ODB II). A gateway may be an ODB-USB hardware bridge.
The vehicle computer
22
, like most computers, has an operating system and applications that execute there under. The applications can control or monitor the sound systems, security systems, vehicle diagnostic systems, global positioning system (GPS) navigational systems, wireless communications systems, and other systems. They may also provide an address database and provide a user interface.
The Auto PC uses a specially designed version of the “Windows CE” operating system by the Microsoft Corporation. The “Windows CE” operating system has a number of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) that are helpful to application program developers. These APIs are called by applications to perform a host of basic functions, so that the applications themselves need not implement such basic functions. Those who are skilled in the art are generally familiar with APIs and their use.
The following table shows examples of the APIs that the “Windows CE” version for the Auto PC supports:
TABLE 1
API
Description
Address Book
Enables access to the contact database.
Audio manager
Controls the audio system.
Forms Manager
Manages forms that comprise an Auto PC application.
Positioning &
Device interface for positioning, navigation, and GPS.
Navigation
Power
Supports power management.
Management
Speech API
Controls speech and text to speech.
(SAPI)
Tuner
Supports the AM/FM tuner.
Vehicle I/O
Enables access to vehicle maintenance and diagnostic
data, and allows an application to control vehicle
operations.
WAV-in
Handles audio sources.
WAV-out
Handles audio destinations.
Win32
Interface to the operating system.
As shown in the above table, one of API sets is for the vehicle input/output (“Vehicle I/O”) system. The Vehicle I/O APIs (“VIOAPIs”) enable access to vehicle maintenance and diagnostic data and allows an application to control vehicle operations. VIOAPIs are a specific implementation of a generic set of
APIs called Device Communication Application Programming Interfaces (DCAPIs). Generally, DCAPIs are used by applications to communicate with peripheral vehicle components to monitor, collect, diagnose vehicle data and to control vehicle functions.
FIG. 2
shows the conventional communication techniques for an application on the vehicle computer
22
to communicate with components
74
and
76
. An application
50
running on the vehicle computer may communicate with any component registered with operating system
52
of the computer. Operating system
52
includes APIs and their associated methods. More particularly, operating system
52
includes DCAPIs to facilitate communication between the application
50
and components.
The DCAPIs include interface methods to facilitate component communication and provide standard interfaces for the applications. The DCAPIs also provide access management and notification features. Herein, these methods are generically called “device-communication” methods or “device-com” methods. The definitions of “device-com” interfaces and methods are drawn from the DCAPIs. Specific instances of device-com interfaces are shown at
54
and
56
.
These interfaces and interface methods are defined and are implemented (at least in part) for each different type of peripheral component supported by the operating system. Specifically, in a system having a plurality of peripheral components and corresponding objects, each object has its own device-com methods that can be called by application programs. Although each of these device-com methods might communicate with a different type of component, the calling parameters of each device-com method are identical-the DCAPI of each object supports the same set of methods.
The following is a table of frequently used “device-com” methods of the Auto PC's implementation of DCAPI:
TABLE 2
Device-com Methods
Description
IVIO_Device::GetData
Retrieves the current data from the
requested component
IVIO_Device::
Returns the current access for a
get_AccessMode
requested mode
IVIO_Device::SetData
Sends control information to the
requested component
IVIO_Device::set_AccessMode
Sets the access mode for the component
IVIO_Device::SetNotify
Allows the addition of a notification
sink to a given component to allow
notification of the application by a
component on a timed basis
IVIO_Device::get_Status
Returns the current availability of the
component
Application
50
uses the “device-com
Cullen Timothy J.
Goldberg Jossef
Horenberger Paul A.
Moeller Mark M.
Paulus Owen W.
Lee & Hayes PLLC
Tran Dalena
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