Vehicle Occupant Detection Without Full Bluetooth Connections
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle computing systems require significant network resources for establishing Bluetooth connections with mobile devices, leading to computational inefficiencies and resource strain.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle occupant detection system that utilizes wireless beacon devices to determine driver status based on transmission metric values, such as signal strength and angle, without establishing a network connection, and generates a driver status data file for various applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If Bluetooth connections are established between vehicle computing devices and mobile devices, then data transmission between vehicle and mobile devices is enabled, but significant network resources and computational power are consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential information needed for occupant detection from wireless transmissions without establishing full Bluetooth connections. Instead of complete data exchange, the system extracts transmission metrics (signal strength, angle of arrival) directly from beacon advertisements, eliminating the computational overhead of full connection establishment while retaining the ability to detect and track occupants.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs partial action by using only the necessary portion of wireless communication capabilities - listening to beacon advertisements and extracting metrics - without completing the full Bluetooth connection process. This partial engagement provides sufficient information for occupant detection while avoiding the resource-intensive complete connection establishment.
2Measurement precision
If network connections are established for occupant detection, then driver status can be determined, but significant network resources are required
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by continuously monitoring wireless beacon transmissions and pre-calculating transmission metrics before any connection is needed. The vehicle computing device maintains a ready state by continuously receiving beacon advertisements and computing signal strength and angle of arrival metrics in advance, so that when occupant detection is needed, the data is already processed and available immediately without requiring resource-intensive connection establishment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical/connection-based approach of establishing Bluetooth connections with a signal-based approach. Instead of using the physical connection mechanism to determine occupant presence, the system substitutes wireless signal metric analysis (signal strength, angle of arrival) to infer occupant status, eliminating the need for actual connection establishment while maintaining detection accuracy.
3Adaptability or versatility
If Bluetooth connections are established, then data can be transmitted between vehicle and mobile devices, but hardware requirements and computational load increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies universality by using the same wireless beacon infrastructure for multiple purposes: the beacons serve both their original function of device discovery/connection establishment and the additional function of occupant detection through transmission metric analysis. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate dedicated detection hardware, as the existing wireless communication infrastructure is leveraged for dual purposes.
Data Source
AI summary
Implementations described herein provide systems, methods, and devices for vehicle occupant detection based on wireless transmission(s) from one or more wireless transmitter devices (e.g., beacons) located in the vehicle. The wireless transmitter devices can be standalone devices, such as portable low energy beacons, and/or the wireless transmitter devices can be integrated into other components of the vehicle, such as an on-board dash computer or a door handle. The systems disclosed herein receive the wireless transmission and determine transmission metrics associated with the transmission, such as a signal strength value or a transmission angle. A driver status determination and/or a passenger status determination is based on the transmission metrics. A data file converter generates a driver status data file representing the driver status determination and/or the passenger status determination. The driver status data file is sent to an application for which the driver status data file is configured.