A system for reducing traffic accidents caused by distraction from a mobile telecom device. The system detects when the device is near a driver's seat of a moving vehicle. While the system is carrying a voice call between a remote voice device and the mobile device, the system modifies voice signal transmission between the devices by periodically playing a beep or other signal to remind the parties that one of them is driving and suspends voice signal transmission from the remote device to the mobile device when the system detects that circumstances affecting level of attention required for driving merit the driver paying greater attention.

An interface device for connecting a portable electronic device to a vehicle includes a holding module for receiving a portable electronic device with a display, and an adaptor module for connecting the portable electronic device to a vehicle. The holding module has a slot into which the portable electronic device is inserted and a front opening exposing the display of the portable electronic device, and an edge portion of the display is covered by a front part of the holding module.

The present disclosure provides a control method of an Audio Video Navigation AVN system for vehicles. The control method may include: connecting the AVN system to a terminal through a wired connection based on a first protocol, transmitting an activation signal to the terminal through the wired connection, receiving address information and acceptance information of the terminal for wireless connection with the terminal based on a second protocol through a specific application in the terminal activated based on the activation signal, automatically executing wireless connection with the terminal based on the acceptance information, and automatically requesting specific information to the terminal and receiving the specific information through wireless connection based on the acceptance information.

An in-vehicle navigation apparatus with a handsfree function establishes a Bluetooth communication link with a cellular phone. When receiving from the cellular phone outgoing call history data and incoming call history data, which were stored in the cellular phone before establishing the Bluetooth communication link, the in-vehicle navigation apparatus stores, in a work memory, the received outgoing call history data and the received incoming call history data, equally to, of the navigation apparatus itself, outgoing call history data and incoming call history data. An outgoing call operation then becomes possible using outgoing call history data and incoming call history data, which are stored in the work memory.

Disclosed embodiments are directed an application program configured to run on a user's mobile device can allow voice-activated call pick-up to the user, without the user having to use his or her hands for picking up the call. For example, the application program can initially be trained to a user's voice command. When an incoming call is received at the mobile device, the user can pick up the call by issuing a voice command. In some embodiments, the application program can determine whether to allow voice-activated pick-up of calls based on data collected from multiple sensors associated with the vehicle, the mobile device, or a remote source.

A vehicle communication system facilitates hands-free interaction with a mobile device in a vehicle or elsewhere. Users interact with the system by speaking to it. The system processes text and processes commands. The system supports Bluetooth wireless technology for hands-free use. The system handles telephone calls, email, and SMS text messages. The user can customize the device via a user profile stored on an Internet web server.

In various embodiments, a computer-implemented method comprises receiving a set of two or more first media signals from two or more consoles included in a vehicle, where each of the two or more consoles are included in a common communication session, combining the set of two or more first media signals to generate a composite media signal, transmitting, via a communication link, the composite media signal to a remote destination, receiving, via the communication link, a remote media signal from the remote destination, and causing the two or more first media signals and the remote media signal to be reproduced at the two or more consoles.

A hands-free device enables a hands-free call by being wirelessly connected to a mobile phone. The hands-free device incudes a hardware processor configured to: perform a control related to data transfer using a transfer protocol for implementing transfer of history data including incoming call history data and outgoing call history data, and phone book data stored in the mobile phone when the mobile phone is in a wireless connection area; receive the history data and the phone book data from the mobile phone through communication using the transfer protocol; and store the history data and the phone book data that are received. The hardware processor is configured to perform the control to transfer the history data prior to the phone book data.

A system for increasing the safety of voice conversations between drivers and remote parties is shown. The system includes an in-vehicle subsystem and a remote subsystem. The system includes a plurality of sensors which are configured to generate monitoring data. The system includes a computing device, which may be distributed between the subsystems and is configured to calculate a risk level as a function of the monitoring data. The computing device may engage an automatic safety response as a function of the risk level, that may include suspension or termination of on-going conversations among the parties, together with notification about the status of the communication channel. The safety response may be communicated to the driver by generating an alert. The in-vehicle and the remote subsystems communicate using a wireless connection and collaborate in engaging the automatic safety response and communicating any alerts to the driver and remote party using notifications.

A vehicle infotainment system that adds background sounds to an outgoing call on a mobile device. The infotainment system comprises: i) a database of selectable augmenting audio signals; and ii) audio processing circuitry configured to receive at a first input an uplink signal from the infotainment system and receive at a second input a selected augmenting audio signal. The audio processing circuitry adapts a spectrum of the first selected augmenting audio signal to prevent the selected augmenting audio signal from masking the uplink signal and combines the adapted selected augmenting audio signal and the uplink signal to produce an augmented uplink signal at an output.