84 results about "Vehicle builder" patented technology

This invention features a solution to use a pocket size pc, smartphone, or tablet or any other type of mobile personal computer as the main computer of a vehicle, in the highly computerized future vehicles. By connecting the smartphone/tablet/etc to the car interface, the phone/tablet/etc will become the brain of the machine, and acts as a vehicle computer system. By the use of the car manufacturer application software, or use of 3^rd party application software, It can be programmed for controlling/replacing many of the vehicle subsystems and accessories.

An update method for a wireless system of a security system for a vehicle is mainly applied for a vehicle security system to build a two-way connection with a remote host. After the remote host acquires a two-way connection with the security system, new system data is divided into a plurality of packets and sent to the security system sequentially. When the security system has received all of the packets, the complete new system data is taken out to process the system update of the vehicle security system. Therefore, a security system monitored by a remote host is installed in the vehicle. By the remote host processing the system update, the vehicle need not for recall by a vehicle manufacturer, as so to achieve an update objective rapidly and conveniently.

Disclosed herein are embodiments of a flexible, extensible, modular approach to electrical and communication system architecture in a vehicle. In accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention, standardized, high-volume housings and components referred to as Plug-In Modules (PIMs) are used in vehicle electrical centers. By carefully designing standardized PIMs, the same PIMs can be used (in differing quantities) on any vehicle in the range of vehicles manufactured. Furthermore, the same PIMs can even be used across different vehicle manufacturers. The use of standard modules and standard housings allows for very high-volume production, thereby dramatically reducing the cost of the electrical centers. At the same time, there can be virtually zero giveaway in vehicles with lower option content. Methods of power and signal distribution using the disclosed electrical and communication system are provided. Methods of manufacturing the electrical and communication system are further provided.

An online system presents remote users with static incentives, dynamic incentives and the ability to create and submit customizable incentives related to goods or services of interest to the user. By using the incentive delivery system, the user can research goods or services of interest and in an interactive fashion create an incentive package most desirable to the user and submit same to a central location. The systems performs decisioning routines on submitted incentive requests and makes such requests available for review. Ultimately, the submitted requests may be accepted or rejected or a counter-incentive may be issued to the user for consideration. A manufacturer, such as an automobile manufacturer, can offer incentives direct to its consumers and enter into an electronic dialogue with its customers to help drive profits and sales in the most efficient manner. For instance, where certain models of vehicles are in over-supply in a certain geographic region a manufacturer may in real-time tailor its incentive offerings to help account for seasonal or other demand events. Further, the manufacturer can in real-time see the response to its incentives offerings and make appropriate changes to insure the desired result of its marketing efforts is obtained. A graphical user interface enables the remote user to search products or services of interest and to selectively build desired incentives and submit same for acceptance.

A GSM-based wireless gateway device for facilitating of Telematics and Location-Based Services using GPS via a wireless communications network and a centralized management system. The GSM-based wireless device includes dynamically configurable Virtual SIM Card, a Telematics and Location-based Services virtual client, and event profiles which allow the wireless device to be dynamically reconfigured. The wireless device is a Telematics and Location-Based Services ASIC that will allow installation on the assembly lines of vehicle manufacturers.

The present invention provides a universal receiver (OTR) device which functions within a vehicle in the “under-the-hood” (UTH) environment such that various types of tire pressure management system (TPMS) device, located within, upon or near a vehicle's tires can transmit tire information, such as the transmitter identification number (TIN), the tire unique identifier (TUID), the vehicle identification number (VIN), tire pressure, tire temperature, tire rotation, and other tire relevant data, to the OTR for further processing regardless of frequency, data transfer speed, or data format of the TPMS device. The OTR device in sequence: identifies the TPMS device, receives the tire information from the TPMS device, and processes the tire information into date records for efficient and optimized transmission of such data records for future analysis both within and off a vehicle. The OTR also interfaces with various types of telematics devices, regardless of the type of transmission or protocol used, by identifying the type of telematics device. The OTR also stores or retrieves information related to various telematics and TPMS devices in order to identify these devices. For example, an automotive manufacturer, dealership, or tire distributor would be able to select various manufacturers' TPMS and telematics devices for installation within the vehicle and with the OTR collect previously captured TPMS data for further analysis.

A brokering system and method for providing an incentive for use of more efficient internal combustion engines and hydrogen retrofit kits is disclosed. End users of retrofitted vehicles are provided with discounted fuel costs at authorized fueling stations. The vehicle owner's savings include: a) a reduction in fueling charges because of the vehicle's new reliance on 30% less fossil fuel (which is displaced by hydrogen in the engine), and b) by the purchase of methanol which can be set at a lower cost per calorific equivalent than a barrel of oil while also earning emission offsets to be sold for cash to the end users/creators of carbon credits. In this manner, retrofitted existing internal combustion engines linked to a trust for trading emission offsets will create a consumer-driven hydrogen economy which governments as well as the automotive and petroleum sectors will endorse. Hydrogen, which is substituted for fossil fuel in a retrofitted IC engine result in emission offsets (i.e., the quantum of emissions that are no longer there) which are converted by a regulated emissions trust into cash. This income, which is deposited into the vehicle owner's bank account via the telephone network by using a dedicated hydrogen fueling card and master engine sensor linked to a specific vehicle provided with an engine retrofit kit and an on board source of hydrogen gas. The present method provides a mapping and test kit that relies on OEM engine timing and control sensors to compare engine emissions produced by fossil fuel with emissions eliminated by substituting hydrogen. This method creates consumer demand for cleanly produced sources of hydrogen (beginning with green methanol) to fuel existing OEM engines, which will in turn, induce automobile manufacturers to build more efficient IC engines until, finally, they will all be fueled by 100% hydrogen.

The invention relates to a rack test method for accelerating service life and estimating the reliability of a vehicle motor driving system. By considering actual operation environments and work conditions of a vehicle motor system, a service life factor and a corresponding average service life can be calculated through specifically analyzing different failure mechanisms and influence factors of all key parts, so as to establish a service accelerating curve of al the key parts; and invalid data of all the key parts under a normal stress condition are obtained through extrapolating the curve. And then, a service life predicated value of the vehicle motor driving system is obtained according to the data, and determined replacing or maintaining time of the vehicle motor driving system is displayed to a user. By utilizing the rack test method to carry out rack service life examining test, the test time can be effectively reduced, the cost is reduced and the researching period is shortened; and the rack test method disclosed by the invention can help workers of electric vehicle manufacturers or vehicle 4S stores to conveniently know about the service life of the vehicle and the replacing or maintaining time of the vehicle.

The illuminator constituting an indirect illumination is provided on the driver side of the switch cover of the horn switch provided at the fixed portion. Specifically, the clear acryl plate is provided on the driver side of the switch cover. On the driver side of the acryl plate is provided the mask portion coated with black paint, while on its vehicle-front-side surface is provided the reflecting portion with coated white paint. The LEDs are provided behind the mask portion and inside the acryl plate. The mask portion constitutes the emblem of vehicle makers, and the emblem portion shines when the LEDs are tuned on. Thus, the visible function of the operational portion (switch cover), which is provided at the fixed portion can be improved.

A telescoping grab handle mounted on the side wall of the cargo box, adjacent the tailgate, in a pickup truck. The device has only one moving part which allows the telescoping grab handle to be easily raised vertically and locked into the extended position or easily lowered to the retracted or stowed position while standing on the ground outside the cargo box. The telescoping grab handle mounted on the side wall of the cargo box also overcomes many disadvantages of tailgate mounted grab handles which interfere with cargo handling and are rendered inoperable if the tailgate is damaged. The telescoping grab handle mounted on the side wall of the cargo box may be added as an aftermarket accessory, but the internal components of the device could also be incorporated directly into the side wall of the cargo box by the auto manufacturer during initial manufacture of the vehicle.

An interactive safe that can be permanently attached to a vehicle is any location; it is capable of holding different items, designed in various shapes and sizes, customizable to interact with car manufacturers, and can be placed in various locations in a vehicle; the built-in electronic system may be connected to the vehicle's computer system, alarm system, or power source.

A visual discovery tool for automotive manufacturing with network encryption, data conditioning, and prediction can include an extraction device configured to receive data records from application-specific file source databases. The tool can further include a vehicle alert database that receives the vehicle records from the plurality of extraction databases. The visual discovery tool can include at least one hardware processor in communication with the extraction device and the vehicle alert database. The tool can be configured to selectively restrict access to an interactive display based on whether a client device receives authorization credentials.

The invention provides a vehicle-mounted computer system. A vehicle-mounted computer of the vehicle-mounted computer system acquires vehicle parameter from a vehicle electronic control unit (ECU) through an on board diagnostic (OBD) interface unit, filters the vehicle parameter through a data processing unit and transmits the filtered data to a center server through a wireless communication unit. The center server utilizes received data to determine fault data, illegal driving data and maintenance data of a vehicle according to a preset rule and transmits determined data to the vehicle-mounted computer. Information interaction of the vehicle-mounted computer and the center server enable a user to obtain fault condition and other information of the vehicle through the vehicle-mounted computer. In addition, the vehicle-computer can further transmit a calling request to a telephone server. The telephone server determines a call link. After the call link is connected, the user can obtain wanted information and service. Simultaneously, the telephone server can record call data which can be provided for a vehicle manufacturer to enable the vehicle manufacturer to learn vehicle condition information.

A telescoping grab handle mounted on the side wall of the cargo box, adjacent the tailgate, in a pickup truck. The device has only one moving part which allows the telescoping grab handle to be easily raised vertically and locked into the extended position or easily lowered to the retracted or stowed position while standing on the ground outside the cargo box. The telescoping grab handle mounted on the side wall of the cargo box also overcomes many disadvantages of tailgate mounted grab handles which interfere with cargo handling and are rendered inoperable if the tailgate is damaged. The telescoping grab handle mounted on the side wall of the cargo box may be added as an aftermarket accessory, but the internal components of the device could also be incorporated directly into the side wall of the cargo box by the auto manufacturer during initial manufacture of the vehicle.

An unlocking device for automobiles that is able to be mounted on the interior of an automobile's rear window to facilitate reentry inside the automobile once a driver is locked out. The unlocking device is rectangular in shape and is mounted on the glass with suction cups. It is a stand alone module that is non evasive of the oem electronics of the automobile. The device is designed to receive dtmf tones from a cellphone operating in bluetooth mode. The device is universal in nature in that it is designed to enable unlocking for any automobile manufacturer's vehicle that uses an oem keyfob transmitter.

A computerized control or autonomous driving system for automobiles comprises: one or more common electronic communication ports of autonomous driving, or simply communication ports, that are built-in on each of the automobiles; and one or more universal autonomous driving portable controllers, or simply portable controllers, that are to be plugged-in to each of the said automobiles that are equipped with the built-in communication ports. The interfaces of the communication ports and the portable controllers are both standardized such that the portable controllers can be plugged-in to all of the said automobiles universally. The communication ports comprise electronic communication of all relevant electronic control units (ECUs) and feedback information of the automobiles, dedicated for the said portable controllers to communicate with and to control the said automobiles. In addition to the portable controllers, the communication ports comprise a buffer that is designed to execute a short duration of controls to make emergency stops in case of lost connection with the portable controllers due to accidents or other failure conditions. The portable controllers comprise a central control unit (CCU), and a plurality of sensors and processors, and a plurality of data storages, and a plurality of data links, and a Global Positioning System (GPS). The portable controllers have standardized interfaces that match with that of the communication ports. The system approach disclosed herein enables all automobiles to be ready for computerized control or autonomous driving with minimal cost when the communication ports are adapted to the said automobiles. The portable controllers integrate all the hardware and software relevant to computerized control or autonomous driving as standalone devices which can share the components, simplify the systems, reduce parasitic material and components, and most importantly, will be safer when multiple sensors and processors that are based on different physics are grouped together to detect objects and environment conditions. A method of compound sensor clustering, or simply CSC, is introduced herein. The CSC method makes the sensors and processors to self-organize to address real-world driving conditions, as will be described in the Detailed Description section. The portable controllers can be mass-produced as standard consumer electronics at lower cost. The portable controllers can also be more easily updated with the latest technologies since that they are standalone devices, which would be otherwise hard to achieve when the hardware and software are built-in permanently as part of the automobiles. The usage of the system disclosed herein is more efficient, since that the portable controllers can be plugged-in to the automobiles when there are needs for autonomous driving, comparing with current methods of integrating autonomous driving control hardware and software in automobiles permanently, which may not be used for autonomous driving frequently. The system also decouples the liability from automotive manufactures in case of accidents. The portable controllers can be insured by insurance companies independently, much like insuring human drivers.

The present application is directed to methods and systems for improving the operation of transmissions for automotive vehicles, and in particular, the “factory installed” automotive transmission installed by an original automobile manufacturer. The methods and systems modify both the structural components and hydraulic circuitry of an original automotive transmission to adjust applied pressure and shifting patterns to improve the efficient operation of the automotive transmission.

An automotive leak detection system that includes means for forming a secure, leak-proof interconnection between a source of pressurized leak detection vapor and the automobile engine's air induction system ducting or hose. The system includes a sealing mechanism that is specially contoured and configured to matingly interconnect about the opening defined about the distal-most end of the air induction system ducting or hose such that the sealing device and hose form a secure, leak-proof interconnection. The sealing device may be provided with a customized periphery that is designed to correspond and matingly engage with the footprint or specific configuration of the distal end of the air induction system ducting or hose of a specific car manufacturer and/or specific make and model air induction system ducting or system.

A vehicle control system comprises a vehicle controller and an engine. The vehicle controller is connected with an engine controller on the engine through a CAN bus; the vehicle controller is connected with the signal output ends of a clutch switch, a gearbox high-low-gear switch, a gearbox half-gear switch, an auxiliary brake switch, a neutral gear switch, a parking brake switch, a driving brake switch and an accelerator pedal sensor; and the vehicle controller sends instructions of engine starting, engine shut-down, control over the rotating speed of the engine and control over the torque of the engine to the engine controller through the CAN bus. The engine controller becomes an actuator of the vehicle controller, the adaptation requirement of the engine controller is reduced, the design independence of vehicle manufacturers is improved, and the adaptation and development cost is reduced.

The invention discloses an electric automobile comprehensive management and controlling system and an electric automobile. The electric automobile comprehensive management and controlling system comprises a function selecting module, an automobile strategy processing controller and an automobile information distributing controller, wherein the function selecting module is used for generating corresponding selecting instruction according to the function module selected by users; the automobile strategy processing controller is integrated with a plurality of function modules which are applied to the different electric automobiles and is used for calling the corresponding function module according to the selecting instruction, and is further used for generating a first controlling instruction according to an automobile data; and the automobile information distributing controller is provided with collecting ports corresponding to the function modules of the different electric automobiles and is used for collecting the automobile data corresponding to the called function module, and is further used for carrying out the corresponding operation according to the first controlling instruction. The electric automobile comprehensive management and controlling system can realize rapid designing of automobile comprehensive management and controlling system of different vehicle models, and is suitable for most of the electric automobiles, developing cost for electric automobile manufacturers is effectively reduced, the developing speed is improved, and developing period is reduced.