Vehicle Infotainment Preloading for Network Coverage Gaps

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Solution Overview

Problem

Automated transportation vehicles face disruptions in infotainment services when driving through areas with insufficient network coverage, leading to a poorer user experience due to the reliance on network connections for multimedia content and voice assistance.

Innovation Solution

A method that determines areas with insufficient network coverage along a vehicle's route, preloads relevant infotainment content based on user inputs, and ensures seamless playback by storing content locally within the vehicle before entering the coverage-depleted area, thereby maintaining a continuous user experience.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If infotainment content is streamed via network connection, then content variety and user experience are improved, but service interruption occurs in areas with insufficient network coverage

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinfotainment content availabilityVSAvoidservice continuity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by detecting areas with insufficient network coverage in advance and preloading infotainment content into local memory before the vehicle enters these areas. This ensures that content is available locally when network connection is unavailable, preventing service interruption while maintaining content variety.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If infotainment content is preloaded into vehicle memory, then service continuity is maintained in coverage-depleted areas, but memory storage capacity is consumed

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveservice continuityVSAvoidmemory storage capacity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies partial action by selectively preloading only the infotainment content that is likely to be requested by users in areas with insufficient network coverage, rather than loading all possible content. This approach maintains service continuity while consuming minimal memory storage capacity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Reliability

If network coverage detection and content preloading is implemented, then service continuity is improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinfotainment service continuityVSAvoidsystem architecture complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system introduces an intermediary component that acts as a bridge between the network connection and the infotainment content delivery. This intermediary detects network coverage conditions and manages content preloading automatically, improving service continuity while keeping the overall system architecture manageable through centralized control.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS11533385B2Transportation vehicle for providing infotainment content in areas of limited coverage

Publication Date: 2022.12.20 VOLKSWAGEN AG

AI summary

A method for providing a user of a transportation vehicle with infotainment content. An area of insufficient coverage of a network along a route ahead of the transportation vehicle is determined. Infotainment content to be made available to the user in the area of insufficient network coverage is determined based on at least one user input. This determined infotainment content to be provided is loaded into the transportation vehicle via the network and is finally made available to the user in the area of insufficient network coverage. A transportation vehicle to carry out the method and a system having a transportation vehicle and a network server.