Methods and systems for using cloud services to assign e-keys to access vehicles and sharing vehicle use via assigned e-keys

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9663067-B2
Application number	US-201615344566-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 6, 2016
Priority date	Apr 22, 2011
Publication date	May 30, 2017
Grant date	May 30, 2017

Abstract

Methods and systems for processing communication with electronics associated with a vehicle and with a portable device to provide access to the vehicle. One method includes receiving, at a server, a request from a user via the portable device to grant access to use the vehicle via an electronic key (e-key). The vehicle is pre-associated to a user account that defines use options of the vehicle. The server is configured to generate a unique access code for the request, and the unique access code is configured with privileges for use of the vehicle. The privileges are defined for the unique access code based on an identity of the user and the privileges being active for use of the vehicle. The server is configured to encrypt the unique access code. The encrypting is predefined for decryption by the electronics associated with of the vehicle. The unique access code is sent as an encrypted unique access code to the portable device over a wireless network. The encrypted unique access code is configured for local wireless transmission to the electronics associated with said vehicle. The electronics associated with said vehicle is configured to decrypt the encrypted access code and enable access to use said vehicle in accordance with the privileges for use defined by said unique access code. The privileges for use further defining a period of time during which the unique access code is to remain active for use of the vehicle. The unique access code when active operates as the e-key for the vehicle to enable one or more functions of unlocking of the vehicle, starting the vehicle, driving the vehicle, or locking the vehicle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for communicating with electronics associated with a vehicle and a portable device to provide access to a vehicle, comprising,
receiving, at a server, a request from a user via the portable device to grant access to use the vehicle via an electronic key (e-key), the vehicle being pre-associated to a user account that defines use options of the vehicle;
generating, at the server, a unique access code for the request, wherein the unique access code is configured with privileges for use of the vehicle, the privileges are defined for the unique access code based on an identity of the user, the privileges being active for use of the vehicle;
encrypting the unique access code, at the server, the encrypting being predefined for decryption by the electronics associated with of the vehicle; and
sending, by the server, the unique access code as an encrypted unique access code to the portable device over a wireless network, wherein the encrypted unique access code is configured for local wireless transmission to said electronics associated with said vehicle,
wherein said electronics associated with said vehicle is configured to decrypt the encrypted access code and enable access to use said vehicle in accordance with the privileges for use defined by said unique access code, the privileges for use further defining a period of time during which the unique access code is to remain active for use of the vehicle,
wherein the unique access code when active operates as the e-key for the vehicle to enable one or more functions of unlocking of the vehicle, starting the vehicle, driving the vehicle, or locking the vehicle;
wherein said enabled functions are accessed via an application executed on said portable device, said application configured to communicate with said server for sending the request to grant access to share use the vehicle and to enable use of said local wireless transmission with said electronics associated with said vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein said request from a user via the portable device to grant access to use the vehicle is a request to use said vehicle that is a shared vehicle, wherein the shared vehicle is identifiable as available via the application, the application receives information from said server regarding the vehicle being the shared vehicle that is available.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein said vehicle is identified as available via the application for a geographic location, wherein said vehicle is one or more of a plurality of vehicles identified as available for sharing use and available for receiving requests for use; wherein each one of said plurality of vehicles is identified for sharing use for a respective period of time, each of said plurality of vehicles has respective unique access codes that include information regarding the respective period of time in respective privileges.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein said vehicle is one of a plurality of vehicles having communication with said server, said server is configured to manage requests for use of each of said vehicles for shared use and each generated unique access code identifying a respective period of time for making the respective e-key active; wherein the use options are settable for the user account to enable sharing of the vehicle via e-keys, each e-key being assignable to respective users for use of the vehicle or use of a different vehicle having communication with the server.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the use options include identifying types of users that can access the vehicle during shared use, the types of users include one or more of friends of a user of the user account, or family members of the user account, or public users having access to a respective application that has access to the server.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising,
receiving interface data provided to the vehicle during use of the vehicle by the user via the e-key, the interface data being examined to determine learned patterns, the learned patterns used to identify recommendations for settings of the vehicle during the use or future uses of the vehicle or other vehicles.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein privileges associated with respective unique access codes define constraints for use of the vehicle, and the constraints include one or more of geographic restrictions, age restrictions, time of day restrictions, speed restrictions, or combinations thereof.

8. The method of claim 1 , the application provides access to geographic data for identifying a location where the user is able to request use in a form of shared use of the vehicle or other vehicles having communication with the server, the application enables reservation of the vehicle or another vehicle for shared use.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the server receives data during the use of the e-key on the vehicle, the data including at least use metrics of the vehicle, the use metrics being stored by the server as history of use for the e-key;
wherein the server, after receiving a request to cancel the e-key, sends deactivation instructions to one or both of the portable device and the vehicle.

10. A method for processing communications with electronics associated with a vehicle and with a portable device to provide access to the vehicle, comprising,
receiving, at a server, a request from a user via the portable device to grant access to use the vehicle via an electronic key (e-key), the vehicle being pre-associated to a user account that defines use options of the vehicle;
generating, at the server, a unique access code for the request, wherein the unique access code is configured with privileges for use of the vehicle, the privileges are defined for the unique access code based on a type of the user;
encrypting the unique access code, at the server, the encrypting being predefined for decryption by the electronics associated with of the vehicle; and
sending, by the server, the unique access code after being encrypted to the portable device over a wireless network, wherein the encrypted unique access code is configured for short range communication to said electronics associated with said vehicle when the portable device is within proximity of the vehicle;
wherein said electronics associated with said vehicle is configured to decrypt the encrypted access code and enable access to use said vehicle in accordance with the privileges for use, the privileges for use defining a period of time during which the unique access code is to remain active to enable use of the vehicle, wherein the unique access code when active operates as the e-key for the vehicle to enable one or more functions of unlocking of the vehicle, starting the vehicle, driving the vehicle, and/or locking the vehicle, wherein the use of the vehicle via the e-key is for shared use by the user requesting user of the vehicle.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein said enabled functions are accessed via an application executed on said portable device, said application configured to communicate with said server for sending the request to grant access to share use the vehicle.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein said request from the user via the portable device to grant access to use the vehicle is a request to use said vehicle that is a shared vehicle, wherein the shared vehicle is identifiable as available for the period of time via an application of the portable device, the application receives information from said server regarding the vehicle being the shared vehicle that is available or not available.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein user is provided with access to the application via an ac

Assignees

• Penilla Angel A
• Penilla Albert S

Inventors

• Penilla Angel A
• Penilla Albert S

Classifications

• G07C9/20

  involving the use of a pass · CPC title

• B60L2240/70

  Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres · CPC title

• G06Q50/06

  Energy or water supply · CPC title

• G07C9/00309

  operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks · CPC title

• B60L53/665

  Methods related to measuring, billing or payment · CPC title