Vehicle Positioning System

Abstract

The present invention is entitled a vehicle positioning system. Embodiments disclosed in the present invention include a vehicle positioning system and a vehicle that can be positioned by the vehicle positioning system. An exemplary vehicle positioning system includes a first Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon having a first position associated therewith and configured to receive a first radio frequency signal from a vehicle and encoded with vehicle identification information. The first BLE beacon may be further configured to calculate a first proximity between the vehicle and the first BLE beacon and send a first proximity signal indicating the first proximity to a server. A second BLE beacon has a second position associated therewith and is configured to receive a second radio frequency signal from the vehicle and encoded with the vehicle identification information. The second BLE beacon may be further configured to calculate a second proximity between the vehicle and the second BLE beacon and send a second proximity signal indicating the second proximity to the server.

Description

[0001] introduction

[0002] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle locating system for finding a vehicle in an area such as a parking facility. The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

[0003] Locating a vehicle, especially in large multi-story parking garages, has long been a problem if the driver forgets where he has parked the vehicle. One way to deal with this situation is to provide a paper ticket that tells the driver which level the driver has parked. Another approach is to simply mark each space with a tag so that the driver can commit it to memory, write it down, or take a photo of it. All of these methods have one major drawback—if the driver forgets to act in one of the available ways to remember or record the parking space, the driver often has difficulty locating the vehicle.

[0004] There are other electronic solutions for locating vehicles. However, most of those solutions require special beacons and receivers that are purchased and installed by the vehicle owner. In many cases, the vehicle may already have a transceiver that could help locate the vehicle. However, such transceivers are not typically used for this task. Summary of the invention

[0005] Disclosed embodiments of the present invention include a vehicle positioning system for finding a vehicle within an area, such as a parking facility, and a vehicle that can be located by the vehicle positioning system.

[0006] In an exemplary embodiment, a vehicle positioning system includes a first Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon having a first location associated therewith. The first BLE beacon may be configured to receive a first radio frequency signal from a vehicle, the first radio frequency signal being encoded with vehicle identification information. The first BLE beacon may be further configured to calculate a first proximity between the vehicle and the first BLE beacon and to send a first proximity signal indicating the first proximity to a server. The system also includes a second BLE beacon having a second location associated therewith. The second BLE beacon may be configured to receive a second radio frequency signal from a vehicle, the second radio frequency signal being encoded with the vehicle identification information. The second BLE beacon may be further configured to calculate a second proximity between the vehicle and the second BLE beacon and to send a second proximity signal indicating the second proximity to the server.

[0007] In another exemplary embodiment, the vehicle positioning system includes a first Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon having a first position associated therewith. The first BLE beacon may be configured to receive a first radio frequency signal from a vehicle, the first radio frequency signal being encoded with vehicle identification information. The first BLE beacon may be further configured to calculate a first proximity between the vehicle and the first BLE beacon and send a first proximity signal indicating the first proximity to a server. The system also includes a second BLE beacon having a second position associated therewith. The second BLE beacon may be configured to receive a second radio frequency signal from a vehicle, the second radio frequency signal being encoded with the vehicle identification information. The second BLE beacon may be further configured to calculate a second proximity between the vehicle and the second BLE beacon and send a second proximity signal indicating the second proximity to the server. In addition, the vehicle positioning system includes a server configured to receive the first proximity signal and the second proximity signal, the server further configured to select a BLE beacon with the smallest proximity.

[0008] In another exemplary embodiment, a vehicle has a body structure forming a compartment, and has a propulsion system, and at least one wheel coupled to the propulsion system and driven by the propulsion system. The at least one wheel is coupled to the body structure. The vehicle also includes a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) transceiver disposed in the vehicle. The BLE transceiver may be configured to receive a first BLE scan request from a first BLE beacon having a first position associated therewith, and transmit a first BLE signal encoded with vehicle identification information in response to the first BLE scan request. The BLE transceiver may further be configured to receive a second BLE scan request from a second BLE beacon having a second position associated therewith, and transmit a second BLE signal encoded with the vehicle identification information in response to the second BLE scan request.

[0009] The above summary of the invention is merely illustrative and is not intended to be limiting in any way. In addition to the above illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Illustrative embodiments are shown in the reference figures of the accompanying drawings.The embodiments and figures disclosed herein are intended to be considered illustrative rather than restrictive.

[0011] Figure 1 is a block diagram, in partially schematic form, of an exemplary vehicle positioning system.

[0012] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Signal flow diagram of the vehicle positioning system.

[0013] Figure 3 is a side plan view in partially schematic form of an illustrative vehicle having vehicle locating hardware.

[0014] Figure 4 A flow chart of an illustrative method for locating a vehicle.

[0015] Figure 5 A schematic diagram showing how to determine the location of a key fob.

[0016] Like reference symbols in the various drawings generally indicate like elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of the detailed description. In the drawings, similar symbols generally identify similar components unless the context indicates otherwise. The illustrative embodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not intended to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented herein.

[0018] refer to Figure 1 , in various embodiments, an exemplary vehicle positioning system 100 is depicted. A parking garage area 105 is shown with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons 110, 112, 114, 116 installed at various locations. It should be understood that many newer vehicles are equipped with BLE sensors built into the vehicle (which are configured to communicate with the BLE beacons), and other vehicles can be easily equipped with such BLE sensors, thereby enabling many vehicles to use the system disclosed herein.

[0019] In various embodiments, the parking garage may be a multi-story parking garage, and the BLE beacons 110, 112, 114, and 116 may be installed at various locations on various (and, if desired, all) levels of the parking garage. The depicted BLE beacons 110, 112, 114, and 166 are shown as illustrative examples. The distribution and number of BLE beacons are not limited to those shown. Any number of beacons and various locations of BLE beacons may be used. The location of the BLE beacons is not limited to a parking garage, but may be any location as required for a particular application.

[0020] In various embodiments, a first Bluetooth low energy (BLE) beacon 110 has a first location associated therewith. The first BLE beacon 110 is configured to receive a first radio frequency signal from a vehicle 140. The first radio frequency signal may be encoded with vehicle 140 identification information and sent as an "advertisement" (adv). The first BLE beacon 110 is configured to calculate a first proximity of the vehicle to the first BLE beacon, and is configured to send a first proximity signal indicating the first proximity to the server 120.

[0021] Similarly, the second BLE beacon 112 has a second location associated therewith. The second BLE beacon 112 is configured to receive a second radio frequency signal from the vehicle. The second radio frequency signal may be encoded with vehicle 140 identification information. The second BLE beacon may be configured to calculate a second proximity of the vehicle 140 to the second BLE beacon 112 and send a second proximity signal representing the second proximity to the server 120. Other BLE beacons (including but not limited to BLE beacons 114 and BLE beacons 116) operate similarly to BLE beacons 112 and 114.

[0022] In various embodiments, the server 120 may be configured to select the BLE beacon with the smallest proximity. This information may be provided to the cloud and transmitted to the driver of the vehicle 140 via any of a variety of wireless networks. For example, if the driver is trying to locate where the driver parked the vehicle 140, the driver may check an application or other information source running on the driver's mobile phone or other mobile device that indicates the location of the vehicle transmitted by the server 120.

[0023] According to various embodiments, the vehicle may advertise any of a variety of vehicle identifiers including, but not limited to, a vehicle identification number (VIN), a license plate number, and a custom identifier, among others. There may be various methods for determining the proximity of the vehicle to the BLE beacon. For example, the proximity may be determined based on a received signal strength indicator (RSSI). This RSSI calculation may also be further improved by using the measured power in the calculation.

[0024] As is known, RSSI is the strength of the beacon signal as seen on a receiving device (e.g., a BLE receiver in a vehicle 140). Signal strength depends on distance and broadcast power value. At maximum broadcast power (e.g., +4dBm), RSSI is in the range of, for example, -26 (a few inches) to -100 (40m-50m distance).

[0025] RSSI is used to estimate the distance between the device and the beacon using another value defined by the smart beacon (iBeacon) standard, called measured power. In one example, the distance can be calculated as follows:

[0026] Distance = 10^((measured power - RSSI) / (10*N))

[0027] in,

[0028] N is a constant that depends on environmental factors and ranges from 2 to 4.

[0029] The measured power is also known as 1 meter RSSI.

[0030] For the illustrative example N=2, measured power≈-58dBm, RSSI=-70,

[0031] Its production

[0032] Distance = 10^0.6 = 4 meters.

[0033] This exemplary calculation is exemplary only and should not be considered limiting as any of a variety of methods and calculations may be used.

[0034] Reference Figure 2 , depicts the signal flow of vehicle location detection. As can be seen, Beacon 1 provides a scan request. In response, the vehicle responds with a vehicle identification (such as but not limited to a license plate number). The proximity can then be calculated and reported to the server. Beacon 2 also provides a scan request. In response, the vehicle responds with a vehicle identification. The proximity can then be calculated and reported to the server. After receiving all reported proximities, the server determines the beacon with the closest location to the vehicle, and then reports that beacon to the driver's mobile phone or other device.

[0035] Reference Figure 3 , depicting an exemplary vehicle 300. In various embodiments, vehicle 300 includes a body structure 310 forming a vehicle compartment on chassis 210. Vehicle 300 also includes a propulsion system. In some embodiments, the propulsion system may include one or more electric motors, such as electric motors 320 and 325, configured to drive wheels of the vehicle, such as wheels 335. However, in some other embodiments, vehicle 300 may include a propulsion system that includes an engine that burns a fossil fuel, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, etc.

[0036] In various embodiments, the vehicle 300 may be equipped with a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) transceiver 340 and any associated electronic devices and control systems disposed in the vehicle. The BLE transceiver 340 may be configured to receive a first BLE scan request from a first BLE beacon having a first location associated therewith, and transmit a first BLE signal encoded with vehicle identification information in response to the first BLE scan request. The BLE transceiver 340 may be further configured to receive a second BLE scan request from a second BLE beacon having a second location associated therewith, and transmit a second BLE signal encoded with vehicle identification information in response to the second BLE scan request. This information may be sent to a server that collects information from a group of BLE beacons and transmits the location to a cloud server that notifies various devices of the vehicle's location.

[0037] Reference Figure 4 In various embodiments, the exemplary method 400 starts at block 405. The method 400 includes receiving, by a server, at block 410, a first proximity of a vehicle to a first Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon having a first location associated therewith from a first BLE beacon. The method 400 also includes receiving, by a server, at block 420, a second proximity of a vehicle to a second BLE beacon from a second BLE beacon having a second location associated therewith. In addition, the method 400 includes comparing the first proximity to the second proximity at block 430, and at block 440, sending the first location to a receiver via at least a partially wireless network in response to the first proximity being less than the second proximity. The method 400 may also include, at block 450, sending the second location to a receiver via at least a partially wireless network in response to the second proximity being less than the first proximity. The method 400 ends at stop block 455. This method is an example of various embodiments of a method that can be used to implement the system. Other steps and order of steps can be used to implement the system.

[0038] Reference Figure 5, an example of BLE beacons at relative positions 510 and 520 are able to detect the presence and location of a key fob 550 with BLE capabilities. Where sensor 1 has a relative position 510 and sensor 2 has a relative position 520 relative to the key fob 550, these distances from the key fob 550 are recorded as a fingerprint (relative position and time) of the key fob 550. Within an approximate radius as given by circle 555, as the key fob 550 moves relative to sensor 1 and sensor 2, sensor 1 and sensor 2 are at relative positions 530 and 540 relative to the key fob 550. Using the previously recorded fingerprints and the current side measurements from sensor 1 and sensor 2, the system can determine the actual location of the key fob 550 so that an application running on a mobile phone or other mobile device can guide the driver to the driver's vehicle based on the known location of the parked vehicle and based on the known location of the key fob 550. The embodiments described herein are presented as examples, and other methods of locating a key fob moving in a parking structure may be used in a similar manner without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0039] In some cases, one or more components may be referred to herein as being "configured to," "configured of," "configurable to," "operable / operating to," "suitable / adaptable to," "capable of," "conformable / conformable to," etc. Those skilled in the art will recognize that such terms (e.g., "configured to") generally encompass active state components and / or inactive state components and / or standby state components unless the context requires otherwise.

[0040] Although particular aspects of the subject matter described herein have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made based on the teachings herein without departing from the subject matter described herein and its broader aspects, and the appended claims are intended to encompass all such changes and modifications within their scope, as being within the true spirit and scope of the subject matter described herein. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that, in general, the terms used herein, especially in the appended claims (e.g., the bodies of the appended claims), are generally intended to be "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to", the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least", the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to", etc.). It should be further understood by those skilled in the art that if a specific number of introduced claim recitations are intended, such intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation, no such intent is present. For example, to aid understanding, the following appended claims may include the use of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be interpreted as implying that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite article "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to claims containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and an indefinite article such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and / or "an" should generally be interpreted as meaning "at least one" or "one or more"); the same applies to the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. Furthermore, even if a specific number of introduced claim recitations is explicitly stated, those skilled in the art will recognize that such a statement should generally be interpreted as meaning at least the number of the statements (e.g., the most basic statement of "two statements" without other modifiers generally means at least two statements, or two or more statements). Furthermore, in those cases where a convention similar to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, generally speaking, such construction is a convention in a sense that one skilled in the art would understand (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" would include, but is not limited to, systems having A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). One skilled in the art would further understand that, unless the context dictates otherwise, disjuncts and / or phrases generally presenting two or more alternative terms (whether in the specification, claims, or drawings) should be understood to contemplate the possibility of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both of the terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" would generally be understood to include the possibility of "A" or "B" or "A and B."

[0041] With respect to the appended claims, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the operations recited therein may generally be performed in any order. In addition, although the various operational flows are presented in sequence, it should be understood that the various operations may be performed in an order other than the order shown or may be performed simultaneously. Unless the context dictates otherwise, examples of such alternative orderings may include overlapping, interleaved, interrupted, reordered, incremental, preparatory, supplementary, simultaneous, reverse, or other variant orderings. In addition, unless the context dictates otherwise, terms such as "responsive to," "related to," or other past tense adjectives are generally not intended to exclude such variants.

[0042] While the presently disclosed subject matter has been described in terms of exemplary embodiments, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to the subject matter without departing from the scope of the claimed subject matter as set forth in the claims.

Claims

1. A vehicle positioning system, comprising: a first Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon, the first BLE beacon having a first location associated therewith, the first BLE beacon configured to receive a first radio frequency signal from a vehicle, the first radio frequency signal encoded with vehicle identification information, the first BLE beacon further configured to calculate a first proximity of the vehicle to the first BLE beacon and to send a first proximity signal indicating the first proximity to a server; and a second BLE beacon having a second location associated therewith, the second BLE beacon being configured to receive a second radio frequency signal from the vehicle, the second radio frequency signal being encoded with the vehicle identification information, the second BLE beacon being further configured to calculate a second proximity of the vehicle to the second BLE beacon and to transmit a second proximity signal indicating the second proximity to the server, The server is configured to select a BLE beacon with a minimum proximity and provide a location of the vehicle associated with the minimum proximity to a mobile device of a user disposed outside the vehicle.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein: At least one location selected from the first location and the second location is within a parking structure.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein: At least one radio frequency signal selected from the first radio frequency signal and the second radio frequency signal includes a BLE signal.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein: The vehicle identification information includes information selected from a vehicle identification number (VIN), a license plate number, and a custom identifier.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein: At least one proximity selected from the first proximity and the second proximity is calculated based on a received signal strength indicator (RSSI).

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein: At least one proximity selected from the first proximity and the second proximity is further calculated based on the measured power.

7. A vehicle positioning system, comprising: a first Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon, the first BLE beacon having a first location associated therewith, the first BLE beacon configured to receive a first radio frequency signal from a vehicle, the first radio frequency signal encoded with vehicle identification information, the first BLE beacon further configured to calculate a first proximity of the vehicle to the first BLE beacon and generate a first proximity signal indicative of the first proximity; a second BLE beacon having a second location associated therewith, the second BLE beacon configured to receive a second radio frequency signal from the vehicle, the second radio frequency signal encoded with the vehicle identification information, the second BLE beacon further configured to calculate a second proximity of the vehicle to the second BLE beacon and generate a second proximity signal representative of the second proximity; and A server is configured to receive the first proximity signal and the second proximity signal, and the server is further configured to select the BLE beacon with the minimum proximity and provide the location of the vehicle associated with the minimum proximity to a mobile device of a user disposed outside the vehicle.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein: The server is further configured to cause the location of the BLE beacon having the minimum proximity to be transmitted to a receiver over an at least partially wireless network.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein: At least one location selected from the first location and the second location is within a parking structure.

10. The system according to claim 7, wherein: At least one radio frequency signal selected from the first radio frequency signal and the second radio frequency signal includes a BLE signal.

11. The system according to claim 7, wherein: The vehicle identification information includes information selected from a vehicle identification number (VIN), a license plate number, and a custom identifier.

12. The system according to claim 7, wherein: At least one proximity selected from the first proximity and the second proximity is calculated based on a received signal strength indicator (RSSI).

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein: At least one proximity selected from the first proximity and the second proximity is further calculated based on the measured power.

14. The system according to claim 7, wherein: The minimum proximity is related to the position of the vehicle.

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