Vehicle Location Sharing via Server Intermediary
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for informing a vehicle's passenger or driver about their exact position during a drive are distracting and require manual updates, and existing systems often involve complex authentication processes or social network linkages.
Innovation Solution
A system where a motor vehicle's control device generates and transmits its current position data to a server, which makes it accessible via a URL, allowing users to define recipients and control when the data is shared, with automatic cessation based on predetermined criteria.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If the driver manually checks navigation device or mobile phone to provide location information, then the location can be communicated to someone outside the vehicle, but this causes distraction from driving and safety issues
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically transmits vehicle location information without requiring driver intervention. The control unit detects user actions, generates position data from the navigation device, and sends it to the server automatically, allowing the vehicle to serve itself in communicating location information.
Solution Approach 2:
A server acts as an intermediary between the vehicle and external recipients. The server receives position data from the vehicle's control unit and makes it accessible to authorized persons outside the vehicle, eliminating the need for direct driver involvement in location sharing.
2Reliability
If a tracking request system with authentication is implemented, then only authorized persons can track the vehicle location, but this requires complex exchange of identification data and authentication procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by having the control unit automatically generate and transmit position data before any external access is requested. The server pre-processes this data and makes it available to authorized persons, eliminating the need for complex real-time authentication during tracking.
Solution Approach 2:
The authentication and authorization logic is extracted from the vehicle's control unit and relocated to the server. This allows the vehicle system to remain simple while the server handles complex access control, separating concerns and reducing overall system complexity.
3Loss of information
If continuous location tracking is provided to multiple persons, then all recipients receive real-time location updates, but this consumes excessive energy and generates unnecessary data transmission
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit determines user actions at predetermined intervals and transmits position data periodically rather than continuously. This reduces energy consumption while still providing timely location updates to all authorized recipients based on actual changes in vehicle state or user actions.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables easy, distraction-free sharing of vehicle position data with complete user control over recipients and duration, reducing the need for manual updates and complex authentication, while ensuring data is only accessible as intended.
Implementation Method 1
For this purpose, a receiver for a position signal from a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System), such as a GPS (Global Positioning System), can be used in a known manner.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for transmitting a vehicle position (14) of a motor vehicle (11) to at least one person (13) outside the vehicle, wherein at least one contact address (22) of the at least one person (22) is received by a control device (15) of the motor vehicle (11) and/or a stationary server device (12), and a predetermined actuation action (18) of the user in the motor vehicle (11) is detected by the control device (15), and upon detection of the actuation action (18), position data (19) describing a respective current vehicle position (14) is generated and sent from the motor vehicle (11) to the stationary server device (12) via a communication connection (21), and the position data (19) is made available on the Internet via a retrieval address (25) by the server device (12), and the retrieval address (25) is sent to the at least one contact address (22).and then the server device (12) and/or the motor vehicle (11) checks whether a predetermined deletion criterion is met, and if the deletion criterion is met, the provision of the position data (19) is aborted.