Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Navigation – Employing position determining equipment
Reexamination Certificate
2001-10-30
2003-05-13
Black, Thomas (Department: 3663)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Navigation
Employing position determining equipment
C701S207000, C340S903000, C340S905000, C340S988000, C340S870090, C342S357490
Reexamination Certificate
active
06564147
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a traveling control system and the method of the same, and especially to a GPS traveling control system and the method of the same, suitable to be used in a moving vehicle with a GPS global positioning system for automatically controlling the operation of the components of the vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
The vehicles with a prior GPS global positioning system receive signals from global positioning satellites per unit time (for example, one, two, or five seconds) and then calculate the longitude/latitude, velocity, altitude, etc. of the vehicle.
The vehicles with a prior GPS global positioning system also record the number of the global positioning satellites, time/date, unit ID, etc. of the vehicle to be as a GPS global positioning data so as to form a GPS traveling recorder (FIG.
1
).
In the prior art, information is provided to drivers by, for example, displaying electronic maps in a liquid crystal display, or dialing a GSM/hand free system or linking to an information provider so as to request information, such as traveling paths, stock prices, and other services.
The plurality of GPS global positioning data stored in the prior art GPS traveling recorder may only be used for record purposes. The data therein cannot be used in real-time. It is analyzed only after the vehicle is back to a base. The driver must check the GPS global positioning system manually for acquiring data. Furthermore, the components in a vehicle are controlled by the driver himself (or herself). The system has no ability of monitoring traveling information automatically, reporting the location and time of the vehicle, and controlling the components of the vehicle automatically. If a control center wants to track the vehicle actively, in the prior system the data is transferred periodically by the driver manually. If the time interval is short, the reporting cost is high, while if the interval is long, the timing cannot be captured accurately. Thus, the prior art is not an ideal design.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide an improved traveling control system to mitigate and/or obviate the aforementioned problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a GPS traveling control system and the method of the same for monitoring a vehicle moving information so as to control the components in the vehicle automatically.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a GPS traveling control system and the method of the same, wherein the system further comprises an input device for inputting data through wired or wireless transmission to change the control condition and/or instruction. Therefore, the components of a vehicle can be controlled flexibly.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a GPS traveling control system and the method of the same, wherein the track of the vehicle can be automatically reported to a control center so as to monitor the vehicle at any time.
To achieve the objects, the present invention provides a OPS traveling control system. The GPS traveling control system mainly includes a GPS global positioning device, a memory device, and a microprocessor. The GPS traveling control system is utilized in a moving vehicle for receiving signals from global positioning satellites and for automatically controlling the operation of at least one component in the vehicle. The GPS global positioning device serves for receiving signals from the global positioning satellites and then deriving global positioning data about longitude and latitude, date, and/or speed, and altitude of the vehicle. The memory device stores at least one control condition and at least one instruction corresponding to each control condition. The control condition defines a judgement condition to determine whether the corresponding instruction is to be executed; and the control condition contains at least one control parameter. The microprocessor is used for comparing the global positioning data from the GPS global positioning device with the control condition in the memory device, and determining whether the global positioning data is matched to the control condition If yes, the corresponding vehicle component is controlled to execute the corresponding instruction. Therefore, the present invention can monitor the vehicle moving information so as to control the corresponding component automatically.
The component of the vehicle according to the present invention is selected from any electronic device, such as head lamps, fog lamps, an audio device, a video device, radio, stereo, or other multimedia devices, GSM/hand free system, air conditioner, buzzer, warning lamp, or any other equivalent audio/video warning devices. The present invention can define a specific location, or a specific time/date in the control condition to activate a GSM/hand free system automatically reporting the location of the vehicle to a control center, so as to monitor the vehicle at any time.
Each control condition may include at least one of the following parameters, and Boolean logic operations thereof:
(a) Time/date parameter: defining a specific time/date, or a time interval for executing the corresponding instructions;
(b) Longitude/latitude parameter: defining a location having a specific longitude/latitude, or a geometric zone for executing the corresponding instruction;
(c) Speed parameter: defining a specific speed, or a speed range for executing the corresponding instruction; and
(d) Altitude parameter: defining a specific altitude, or an altitude range for executing the corresponding instruction.
The present invention further comprises an input device for inputting data through wired or wireless transmission to change the control condition and/or instruction. Therefore, the components of a vehicle can be controlled flexibly.
The present invention provides a GPS traveling control method comprising the following steps:
receiving signals from the global positioning satellites and then deriving global positioning data about longitude and latitude, date, and/or speed, and altitude of the vehicle;
comparing the global positioning data with the control condition, and determining whether the global positioning data is matched to the control condition;
reading the instruction corresponding to the control condition if the global positioning data matches the control condition; and
controlling the corresponding vehicle component to execute the corresponding instruction.
The GPS vehicle traveling control method may be programmed for execution. The program can be stored in any recording medium identified and read by a microprocessor or any object without being confined by any form. For example, the recording medium may be an IC chip, a CD, a CD-R, an MO, a hard disk, or a floppy disk, the object may contain any recording medium used by those skilled in the art. Preferably, the object is a random access memory (RAM) updated easily.
Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
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patent: 5485161 (1996-01-01), Vaughn
patent: 5854987 (1998-12-01), Sekine et al.
patent: 6205399 (2001-03-01), Ogino et al.
patent: 6246948 (2001-06-01), Thakker
patent: 6266614 (2001-07-01), Alumbaugh
patent: 6370475 (2002-04-01), Breed et al.
patent: 2001/0020202 (2001-09-01), Obradovich et al.
Chen Kuo-Rong
Huang Cheng-Hung
Lee Chun-Chung
Bacon & Thomas PLLC
Black Thomas
Sin Etke Technology Co., Ltd.
To Tuan C
LandOfFree
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