Post-drive summary with tutorial

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9244650-B2
Application number	US-201414156407-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 15, 2014
Priority date	Jan 15, 2014
Publication date	Jan 26, 2016
Grant date	Jan 26, 2016

Abstract

Aspects of the subject matter described herein relate to vehicle notifications. In aspects, while a vehicle is in motion, certain types of notifications are not presented to the driver. After the vehicle has stopped and a point appropriate for notification is occurring, a notification may be presented. The notification may assist a driver in, for example, learning features of the vehicle, improving efficiency, or in many other ways.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method implemented at least in part by a processor of a vehicle, the method comprising:
while the vehicle is in motion, refraining from presenting a notification, the notification based on an observed interaction between an individual and the vehicle;
obtaining an indication that the vehicle has stopped;
determining whether a point appropriate for presenting the notification is occurring, the point satisfying a condition in addition to the vehicle being stopped; and
if the point appropriate for presenting the notification is occurring, presenting the notification.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether a point appropriate for presenting the notification is occurring comprises determining that the vehicle has been stopped for at least a period of a pre-defined threshold.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether a point appropriate for presenting the notification is occurring comprises determining that the vehicle has been placed in park for at least a period of a pre-defined threshold.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether a point appropriate for presenting the notification is occurring comprises determining whether the point satisfies the condition by a processor executing instructions that include one or more of: how long the vehicle has been stopped, whether the vehicle has been turned off, whether the vehicle has been placed in park, how long the vehicle has been placed in park, where the vehicle is located, what time it is, proximity of the vehicle to a friend of the individual, data regarding receptivity of notifications for people who live in a region where the vehicle is located, historical data relating to how long vehicles remain stopped in a location at which the vehicle has stopped, what percentage of time the vehicle spends in a location at which the vehicle has stopped, or what type of vehicle the vehicle is.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising prioritizing presenting the notification based on observed previous receptivity of the individual to similar notifications.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein presenting the notification comprises providing gamification feedback to the user regarding safety, the gamification feedback based on the observed interaction between the individual and the vehicle, the gamification feedback indicating an action the individual is advised to take to improve the safety.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the notification provides information regarding a feature of the vehicle that is available via an interaction other than the observed interaction between the individual and the vehicle.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein presenting the notification comprises providing a speech command that has an equivalent result to a result obtained via the observed interaction between the individual and the vehicle.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising observing that the individual has been unsuccessful in pairing a cell phone with the vehicle, determining that an update of pairing software is available, and wherein presenting the notification comprises providing an indication of the update together with a user interface element that, if selected, initiates pairing of the cell phone using the pairing software as updated.

10. In a vehicle, a system, comprising:
a sensor for indicating that the vehicle has stopped;
an input device for receiving input from an individual who interacts with the vehicle;
an output device for providing output to the individual;
a processor coupled to the sensor, the input device, and the output device, the processor structured to respond to the sensor indicating that the vehicle has stopped by determining whether a point appropriate for presenting a notification is occurring, the point satisfying a condition in addition to the vehicle being stopped, the processor further structured to present the notification to the individual via the output device if the point appropriate for presenting the notification is occurring.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the input device comprises a touch screen that is structured to receive touch input from the individual, the touch screen further configured to act as the output device for providing output to the individual.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the input device comprises a microphone that is structured to receive audio input from the individual.

13. The system of claim 10 , wherein the input device comprises a jog dial that is structured to receive input from the individual.

14. The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor being structured to determine whether a point appropriate for presenting a notification is occurring comprises the processor being structured to evaluate whether the condition is satisfied, the condition including one or more of: how long the vehicle has been stopped, whether the vehicle has been turned off, whether the vehicle has been placed in park, how long the vehicle has been in park, where the vehicle is located, what time it is, proximity to a friend, data specific to people who live in a region in which the vehicle is, historical data relating to how long vehicles remain stopped in a location at which the vehicle has stopped, whether the vehicle spends a significant amount of time at a location at which the vehicle has stopped, or what type of vehicle the vehicle is.

15. The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further structured to receive data from another sensor or the input device and to determine therefrom a behavior of the individual, the processor further structured to generate the notification based on the behavior.

16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the processor being structured to generate the notification based on the behavior comprises the processor being structured to generate output that teaches the driver about a feature of the vehicle that the driver did not used as demonstrated by the behavior.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the processor being structured to generate output that teaches the driver about a feature of the vehicle that the driver did not use as demonstrated by the behavior comprises the processing being structured to provide a speech command equivalent to one or more actions taken by the driver.

18. The system of claim 15 , wherein the processor being structured to generate the notification based on the behavior comprises the processor being structured to generate the notification based on receptivity of the individual to previous notifications having a similar characteristic to the notification.

19. The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further structured to determine the notification based on a number of people in the vehicle and identities of the people.

20. A vehicle, comprising:
a display for displaying notifications to an individual;
a sensor for indicating that the vehicle has stopped;
a storage for storing executable instructions for generating the notifications; and
a processor coupled to the display, the sensor, and the storage, the processor structured to respond to the sensor indicating that the vehicle has stopped by being structured to determine whether the vehicle is at a point appropriate for presenting a notification to the individual, the point satisfying a condition in addition to the vehicle being stopped.

Assignees

• Microsoft Corp
• Microsoft Technology Licensing Llc

Inventors

• Platz Cheryl N
• Hendricks John P
• O'Hanlon Mark

Classifications

• G06F3/147 Primary

  using display panels · CPC title

• G08G1/0962

  having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages · CPC title

• B60R25/00

  Fittings or systems for preventing or indicating unauthorised use or theft of vehicles (locks for vehicles E05B77/00-E05B85/00) · CPC title

• G08G1/0129

  for creating historical data or processing based on historical data · CPC title

• B60L50/61

  by batteries charged by engine-driven generators, e.g. series hybrid electric vehicles · CPC title