Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Vehicle control – guidance – operation – or indication – Vehicle subsystem or accessory control
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-26
2002-10-08
Zanelli, Michael J. (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Vehicle control, guidance, operation, or indication
Vehicle subsystem or accessory control
C705S051000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06463370
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a method for processing information, and a record medium on which a program for such method is recorded, and in particular this invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a method for processing information, and a record medium on which a program for such method is recorded that are made to be capable of transmitting data to a motor vehicle to be used within a licensed condition.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ordinary, a motor vehicle such as a car is equipped with an audio reproduction apparatus for reproducing a compact disc, a cassette tape and the like. A driver or a customer can listen to a piece of music recorded in, for example a compact disc or a cassette tape, which the driver purchased for himself at a store, in the car by reproducing it with the audio reproduction apparatus. On the other hand, the number of cars equipped with a navigation apparatus, too, has recently increased. In such a car, a driver can get road guidance by reproducing a purchased CD-ROM having recorded map information with the navigation apparatus.
However, in such a case, there is a problem that there exists a trouble for a driver to have to purchase a record medium such as a compact disc, a cassette tape or a CD-ROM in which desired information is recorded and have to bring it into a car as described above.
Then, Japanese Laid-open Patent, H 9-185798 and H 10-73440 disclose a system in which a connector for data communication is provided on, for example an outer edge portion of a refuel opening for gasoline on the side of a car. In this system, a connecting cable is provided on an refueling handle of an refueling apparatus of a gas station, and thereby the information that a driver desires (such as musical composition data or map data) is transmitted to a reproduction apparatus or a navigation apparatus equipped on the car while an refueling nozzle of the refueling apparatus is inserted into the refuel opening of the car for refueling.
However, there is a problem that there are not proposed variety of services concerning the utilization of the information to be transmitted, for example the discount of charge for providing information in proportion to the amount of refueling or the limitation of time for using the information.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, the present invention was made in consideration of such a situation. Then, a first object of the invention is to provide an information processing apparatus capable of supplying variety of services.
An information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: first reception means for receiving a signal corresponding to an amount of supply of power energy supplied to a vehicle, the signal being transmitted from a supply apparatus; second reception means for receiving a second data for discriminating the first data, the second data being transmitted from the supply apparatus; decision means for deciding a licensed condition limiting usage of the first data in the reproduction apparatus on a basis of the signal corresponding to the amount of supply received by the first reception means; acquisition means for acquiring the first data discriminated from the second data received by the second reception means; and transmission means for transmitting the licensed condition decided by the decision means and the first data acquired by the acquisition means to the supply apparatus.
In the information processing apparatus, the first data may be a musical composition data and the second data may be a musical composition ID for identifying the musical composition.
A method for processing information according to an embodiment the present invention comprises the steps of: receiving a signal corresponding to an amount of supply of power energy supplied to a vehicle, the signal being transmitted from a supply apparatus; receiving a second data for discriminating a first data, the second data being transmitted from the supply apparatus; deciding a licensed condition limiting usage of the first data in a reproduction apparatus on a basis of the signal corresponding to the amount of supply received at the step of receiving the signal; acquiring the first data discriminated from the second data received at the step of receiving the second data; and transmitting the licensed condition decided at the step of deciding the licensed condition and the first data acquired at the step of acquiring the first data to the supply apparatus.
In the method, the first data may be a musical composition data and the second data may be a musical composition ID for identifying the musical composition.
A record medium according to an embodiment of the present invention has a recorded program making a computer execute a process comprising the steps of: inputting a signal corresponding to an amount of supply of power energy supplied to a vehicle, the signal being transmitted from a supply apparatus; inputting a second data for discriminating a first data, the second data being transmitted from the supply apparatus; deciding a licensed condition limiting usage of the first data in the reproduction apparatus on a basis of the signal corresponding to the amount of supply inputted at the step of inputting the signal; acquiring the first data discriminated from the second data inputted at the step of inputting the second data; and outputting the licensed condition decided at the step of deciding the licensed condition and the first data acquired at the step of acquiring the first data to the supply apparatus.
In the record medium, the first data may be a musical composition data and the second data may be a musical composition ID for identifying the musical composition.
In the information processing apparatus, the method for processing information or the record medium according to an embodiment of the present invention, the signal transmitted from the supply apparatus and corresponding to the amount of supply of the power energy supplied to the vehicle is inputted, and the second data transmitted from the supply apparatus for discriminating the first data is inputted, and further the licensed condition limiting the usage of the first data in the reproduction apparatus is decided on the basis of the inputted signal corresponding to the amount of supply, and further the first data discriminated from the inputted second data is acquired, and further the decided licensed condition and the acquired first data are outputted to the supply apparatus. Consequently, variety of services can be provided.
An information processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention comprises: first transmission means for transmitting a signal corresponding to an amount of supply of the power energy supplied to a vehicle to a server; first reception means for receiving a second data for discriminating a first data, the second data being transmitted from a reproduction apparatus; second transmission means for transmitting the second data received by the first reception means to the server; second receiving means for receiving the first data, which is transmitted from the server and is discriminated from the second data transmitted from the second transmission means, and for receiving a licensed condition limiting usage of the first data in the reproduction apparatus, the licensed condition being decided on a basis of the signal corresponding to the amount of supply, the signal being transmitted from the first transmission means; and third transmission means for transmitting the first data and the licensed condition received by the second reception means to the reproduction apparatus.
In the information process means, the first reception means may receive the second data transmitted from the reproduction apparatus as an optical signal, and the third transmission means may transform the first data and the licensed condition received by the second reception means to other optical signals to output
Hirayama Tomoshi
Usami Takayuki
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