A system managing vehicle operations based on thermal data. The system includes a thermal camera arranged in the vehicle to sense intra-vehicle thermal conditions. The system also includes a hardware-based storage device including a thermal-data analysis module that, when executed by a hardware-based processing unit, determines, based on the intra-vehicle thermal data, an activity or state of one or more vehicle occupants. The storage device may also include: an action module that, when executed, determines an output action based on the activity or state; and an output-interface module that, when executed, initiates performing the output action. The storage device may also include In various embodiments, the hardware-based storage device includes a database module that, when executed, obtains pre-stored occupant data corresponding to an occupant, and determining the output action is based on the pre-stored occupant data and occupant activity or state determined.

A system, for implementation with an autonomous vehicle, includes a hardware-based processing unit, a human-machine interface, and a non-transitory storage device including a registration module that, when executed by the hardware-based processing unit performs passenger-registration functions. The functions include obtaining passenger registration data indicating multiple identifications corresponding respectively to multiple passengers registered to use an autonomous-vehicle driving service, and determines whether each of multiple persons attempting to ride in the autonomous vehicle is one of the passengers registered for the autonomous-vehicle driving service, yielding respective authentications regarding persons determined to be one for the passengers registered for the service. The storage device also includes a vehicle-passenger communication module that, when executed, initiates intra-vehicle communication with passengers authenticated by way of the human-machine interface, and in some cases communicates with authenticated passengers at least intermittently from start to end of the autonomous ride, and in a personalized manner.

An environmental equipment control apparatus controls environmental equipment. The environmental equipment control apparatus includes a grasping unit that grasps physical-and-mental-state information about a physical and mental state of a user, a control unit that changes a control state of the environmental equipment in a case in which the physical-and-mental-state information satisfies a predetermined state condition, and a storage unit that stores correspondence information in which changes in the control state of the environmental equipment are associated with changes in the physical-and-mental-state information of the user grasped by the grasping unit in accordance with the changes in the control state of the environmental equipment.

The invention relates to a method for triggering a motor vehicle (100) function adapted to a living being (104; 201; 301; 304) located in an interior of the motor vehicle (100). The method includes emitting electromagnetic radiation (102; 305), reflecting the electromagnetic radiation (102; 305) by the living being (104; 201; 301; 304); receiving the reflected electromagnetic radiation (105; 200); detecting the living being (104; 201; 301; 304) based on the reflected electromagnetic radiation (205; 200); and triggering a motor vehicle (100) function adapted to the living being (104; 201; 301; 304).

The present invention comprises a system or method that collects data regarding the current and predicted weather in the proximity of a targeted vehicle and compares it with aspects of the targeted vehicle comprising the temperature in the passenger compartment, its geographical location, features, interior and exterior colors, size, whether its parked in a shaded area, etc. The system or method also comprises a regression function that may predict the time that a person, animal, or food product may remain in the vehicle in a safe condition. For example, under certain weather conditions, it may not be safe to keep a dog inside of a parked vehicle for more than four minutes. In addition, the system or method may collect and analyze additional factors based on previously collected data for the same vehicle models, and may comprise a prediction unit that may exchange information with other devices over communication protocols.

An improved climate control, safety, and communications system and method for a vehicle having a detecting means for detecting and transmitting the climate conditions inside a vehicle's passenger cabin as temperature data, and for detecting and transmitting the presence of an occupant inside the vehicle as occupancy data; a data collecting means for monitoring and evaluating the temperature data against a temperature threshold and the occupancy data against an occupant threshold, for notifying an operator of the temperature data and the occupancy data, and for sending a command to a controlling means to adjust the climate conditions, a controlling means for selectively activating a cooling mechanism or a heating mechanism to adjust the temperature inside the vehicle; and a charging means for charging the system when the vehicle engine is running and for powering the system when the engine is off. The system further includes a means for warming the undercarriage of the vehicle.

Methods, and systems including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for automated climate control. In one aspect, a monitoring system includes an indoor climate control device that is configured to adjust an indoor climate setting of a property, a sensor that is located at the property and configured to generate sensor data that reflects an attribute of the property, and a monitor control unit. The monitor control unit is configured to receive the sensor data, and receive, from an onboard control unit for a first vehicle associated with the property, data that reflects a status of the first vehicle. Based on the data that reflects the status of the first vehicle and the sensor data, the monitor control unit determines the indoor climate setting for the indoor climate control device, and provides instructions to adjust the indoor climate control device to the indoor climate setting.

An apparatus includes an interface and a processor. The interface may be configured to receive video frames corresponding to an interior of a vehicle. The processor may be configured to perform video operations on the video frames to detect objects in the video frames, detect a driver based on the objects detected in the video frames, detect a use of an electronic device by the driver and generate a notification signal. The notification signal may be configured to warn the driver about using the electronic device in the vehicle. The notification signal may be generated if the use of the electronic device is unauthorized. The processor may comprise a dedicated hardware module configured to perform feature detection to calculate descriptors for determining a likelihood that pixels of the video frames belong to the objects that correspond to the use of the electronic device by the driver.

A vehicle system includes: at least one of: a sensor configured to measure an amount of a chemical in air within a passenger cabin of a vehicle; and a camera configured to capture images within the passenger cabin of the vehicle; and a control module configured to: detect smoking within the passenger cabin based on the at least one of the amount of the chemical and at least one of the images; and in response to smoking being detected within the passenger cabin, adjust operation of at least one of a luxury feature of the vehicle and a comfort feature of the vehicle.

An information processing apparatus includes a controller. The controller acquires sunshine state information that specifies a sunshine state of at least one predetermined spot and repeated behavior information for a user that is associated with the at least one predetermined spot. The controller generates behavior proposal information related to performance of a repeated behavior of the user, based on the sunshine state information and on the repeated behavior information for the user, and outputs the behavior proposal information.