IDENTIFICATION OF SAFETY EQUIPMENT IN A VEHICLE

Abstract

A method for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle wherein each one of the safety equipment includes an identification device. The method includes receiving a signal with information associated to the identification device at pre-determined events, determining if the at least one safety equipment complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal, and informing a vehicle occupant when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

Claims

1. A method for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein each one of the safety equipment comprises an identification device, the method comprising the following steps: receiving a signal with information associated to the identification device at pre-determined events, determining location of the vehicle, setting, in response to the determined location, the safety requirements to be complied with, determining if the at least one safety equipment complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal, and informing a vehicle occupant when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the identification device comprises a Radio Frequency Identification, RFID, device.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of: determining presence and condition of the detected safety equipment in response to the received signal.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the signal comprises information about the type of safety equipment present in the vehicle.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the signal further comprises information about the date of manufacture of the safety equipment present in the vehicle.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information of non-compliance comprises information about a missing type of safety equipment and/or if the age of the security equipment has exceeded a threshold value.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of: determining time of year, and setting, in response to the determined time of year, the safety requirements to be complied with.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the pre-determined events in the vehicle comprises any of at each start of the vehicle, after driving a certain distance, after driving a certain time, and when entering a new country.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of: providing points of interest wherein safety equipment is available for purchase or upgrade.

10. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium, having thereon a computer program comprising program instructions, the computer program being loadable into a data processing unit and configured to cause execution of the method according to claim 1 when the computer program is run by the data processing unit.

11. An arrangement for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein each one of the safety equipment comprises an identification device, the arrangement comprising: a memory comprising executable instructions, one or more processors configured to communicate with the memory wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the arrangement to: receive a signal with information associated to the identification device at pre-determined events, determine location of the vehicle, set, in response to the determined location, the safety requirements to be complied with, determine if the at least one safety equipment complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal, and inform a vehicle occupant when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

12. A vehicle comprising the arrangement according to claim 11.

13. A system for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein each one of the safety equipment comprises an identification device, the system comprising: a receiving module configured to receive a signal with information associated to the identification device at pre-determined events, a determining module configured to determine location of the vehicle, a setting module configured to set the safety requirements to be complied with in response to the determined location, a determining module configured to determine if the at least one safety equipment complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal, and an informing module configured to inform a vehicle occupant when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the system further comprises: a determining module configured to determine presence and condition of the detected safety equipment in response to the received signal.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0063] Further objects, features and advantages will appear from the following detailed description of embodiments, with reference being made to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the example embodiments.

[0064] FIG. 1 is flowchart illustrating example method steps according to some embodiments;

[0065] FIG. 2 is a schematic overview illustrating an example system according to some embodiments;

[0066] FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an example arrangement according to some embodiments; and

[0067] FIG. 4 is a schematic drawing illustrating an example computer readable medium according to some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0068] As already mentioned above, it should be emphasized that the term “comprises/comprising” when used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, or components, but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components, or groups thereof. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0069] Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described and exemplified more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. The solutions disclosed herein can, however, be realized in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

[0070] In the following, embodiments will be described where alternative approaches to identification of safety equipment in a vehicle are provided.

[0071] A vehicle may comprise a non-autonomous vehicle, a semi-autonomous vehicle, an autonomous vehicle, or any other type of vehicle capable of performing the method steps as described in FIG. 1, and/or suitable to comprise a system as described in FIG. 2 and/or an arrangement as described in FIG. 3 and/or a computer program product as described in FIG. 4.

[0072] Safety equipment may comprise equipment such as warning triangle, high visibility vest, flares or flash lights, safety cones, blankets, tools, fire extinguisher, spare fuel, food, or any other safety equipment which may be useful or necessary in emergency situations e.g. in a vehicle breakdown, an accident etc.

[0073] Safety requirements may comprise requirements regarding safety equipment required, i.e. required either by law or by practice or by prediction e.g. a prediction may be based on what types of safety equipment most vehicles in the area typically have, to be present in the vehicle.

[0074] FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating example method steps according to some embodiments. The method 100 is for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle. Thus, the method 100 may, for example, be performed by a system 200 of FIG. 2 and/or an arrangement 300 of FIG. 3 and/or a computer program 410 of FIG. 4.

[0075] The method 100 is for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein each one of the safety equipment comprises an identification device.

[0076] In step 101, a signal with information associated to the identification device is received at pre-determined events.

[0077] In some embodiments, the identification device comprises a Radio Frequency Identification, RFID, device.

[0078] Other identification devices comprising a transceiver chip e.g. a passive transceiver chip may also be used accordingly.

[0079] In some embodiments, the pre-determined events comprise any of at each start of the vehicle, after driving a certain distance, after driving a certain time, and when entering a new country.

[0080] Other pre-determined events occurring at different times or locations may also be used accordingly.

[0081] In step 102, in some embodiments, presence and condition of the detected safety equipment is determined in response to the received signal.

[0082] In some embodiments, the signal comprises information about the type of safety equipment present in the vehicle.

[0083] For example, the signal may comprise information that a certain type of tool e.g. a jack and/or a lug wrench is present in the vehicle. Furthermore, the signal may comprise information that a spare wheel is present in the vehicle.

[0084] In some embodiments, the signal further comprises information about the date of manufacture of the safety equipment present in the vehicle.

[0085] For example, if a safety equipment such as a fire extinguisher has a date of manufacture which indicates that the fire extinguisher is more than 10 years old it may be considered to be outdated and then the outdated fire extinguisher should be replaced with a new.

[0086] Additionally or alternatively, safety equipment such as spare fuel, flares or flash lights, or food may each have a date of manufacture of which indicates the age of the safety equipment. If the date of manufacture for a safety equipment indicates that the safety equipment is more than a set age threshold for the type of safety equipment it may be considered to be outdated and subject for replacement. Hence, different types of safety equipment may comprise different set age thresholds for considering the type of safety equipment to be outdated.

[0087] In step 103a, in some embodiments, location of the vehicle is determined.

[0088] The location of the vehicle is relevant in order to set the correct security requirements for the certain area i.e. a geographically limited area e.g. a city, a region, a state, a country etc. in which the vehicle is located in.

[0089] For example, if the certain area in which the vehicle is located in is determined to be Sweden then the security requirements may comprise a requirement to always have a warning triangle in the vehicle.

[0090] In step 103b, in some embodiments, time of year is determined.

[0091] The current time of the year, i.e. winter or summer, is relevant in order to set the correct security requirements for the typical weather of the time of the year.

[0092] For example, if the current time of year is determined to be winter then the security requirements may comprise a requirement to always have a snow shovel in the vehicle.

[0093] In step 103c, in some embodiments, the safety requirements to be complied with are set in response to the determined location and/or the determined time of the year.

[0094] For example, if the current location is determined to be Sweden and the current time of year is determined to be winter then the set security requirements may comprise having a warning triangle and a snow shovel in the vehicle.

[0095] In step 104, the at least one safety equipment is determined if it complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal.

[0096] For example, the safety equipment present in the vehicle is compared with the set safety requirements comprising, e.g. a list of equipment, in order to determine if the present safety equipment in the vehicle complies with the list of equipment of the set safety requirements.

[0097] In step 105, a vehicle occupant is informed when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

[0098] In some embodiments, the information of non-compliance comprises information about a missing type of safety equipment and/or if the age of the security equipment has exceeded a threshold value.

[0099] In step 106, points of interest are provided wherein safety equipment is available for purchase or upgrade.

[0100] For example, a point of interest may comprise a purchase location or service location wherein either safety equipment may be purchased or upgraded/repaired e.g. a service point.

[0101] FIG. 2 is a schematic overview illustrating an example system according to some embodiments. The system 200 is for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle. Thus, the system 200 may, for example, perform the methods steps of the method 100 of FIG. 1 and/or comprise an arrangement 300 of FIG. 3 and/or a computer program 410 of FIG. 4.

[0102] The system 200 comprises an arrangement for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein each one of the safety equipment comprises an identification device.

[0103] The arrangement comprises a memory comprising executable instructions, one or more processors configured to communicate with the memory wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the arrangement to receive a signal with information associated to the identification device at pre-determined events, determine if the at least one safety equipment complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal, and inform a vehicle occupant when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

[0104] In some embodiments, the one or more processors are configured to further cause the arrangement to determine presence and condition of the detected safety equipment in response to the received signal which enables the vehicle user to be informed if the safety equipment requirements are met or not.

[0105] In some embodiments, the one or more processors are configured to further cause the arrangement to determine location of the vehicle, and set, in response to the determined location, the safety requirements to be complied with which alleviates the vehicle user of the task of obtaining information about the safety requirements for a specific area and instead this is done automatically as the location of the vehicle is determined and the corresponding safety requirements to be complied with are set accordingly.

[0106] For example, when the location of the vehicle is determined to be Sweden then the set safety requirements may comprise a warning triangle to be present in the vehicle of which warning triangle is determined to be present or not in the vehicle and thereby complying or not complying with the set safety requirements.

[0107] In some embodiments, the one or more processors are configured to further cause the arrangement to determine time of year, and set, in response to the determined time of year, the safety requirements to be complied with which alleviates the vehicle user of the task of obtaining information about the safety requirements for a specific time of the year and instead this is done automatically as the time of the year is determined and the corresponding safety requirements to be complied with are set accordingly.

[0108] For example, when the time of year is determined to be winter then the set safety requirements may comprise a snow shovel to be present in the vehicle of which snow shovel is determined to be present or not in the vehicle and thereby complying or not complying with the set safety requirements.

[0109] In some embodiments, the one or more processors are configured to further cause the arrangement to provide points of interest wherein safety equipment is available for purchase or upgrade.

[0110] For example, a service point wherein warning triangles and/or snow shovels are sold may be provided i.e. suggested to the vehicle user via a user interface or via a navigation system in the vehicle so that the vehicle user may take actions to correct any non-compliance with set safety requirements.

[0111] In addition, a service point may also be provided to the vehicle user accordingly if the safety equipment is determined to be outdated and service points wherein a replacement or an upgrade may be performed is suggested to the vehicle user but a lower urgency level than if the safety equipment was missing in the vehicle.

[0112] The system 200 comprising the arrangement for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle may be further comprised in the vehicle 201.

[0113] The vehicle 201 may comprise a set of safety equipment e.g. a warning triangle, a high visibility vest, a fire extinguisher, and tools for emergency situations wherein each piece of safety equipment comprises an identification device e.g. an embedded RFID device for automatic identification and data capture.

[0114] The system 200 may also comprise a transceiving unit 220 mounted in the vehicle compartment where the safety equipment is normally stored.

[0115] The system 200 may at pre-determined events e.g. at each start of the vehicle, send a signal from the transceiving unit 220 to each of the identification devices embedded in the safety equipment requesting information regarding the type of safety equipment and optionally the date of manufacture of the safety equipment.

[0116] The transceiving unit 220 receives a signal, in response to the request, comprising information regarding the present safety equipment in the vehicle and optionally the date of manufacture of the safety equipment from respective identification device.

[0117] The identification devices and the transceiving unit 220 are configured to communicate over any wireless signaling or short range communication technologies such as RFID, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or Near Field Communication (NFC) etc.

[0118] The transceiving unit 220 further communicates via signaling in the system 200 the information received from the identification devices to a control unit 203 in the system 200.

[0119] The control unit 203 determines based on the received information from the transceiving unit 220 and possibly from a Global Positioning System (GPS) unit 204 if the present safety equipment in the vehicle 201 complies with the set safety requirements or not.

[0120] The control unit further communicates via signaling in the system 200 the determination of compliance or non-compliance and the details thereof to a user interface (UI) unit 205 for display to a vehicle user.

[0121] FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an example arrangement according to some embodiments. The example arrangement is an arrangement 300 for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein the arrangement is configured to be associated with GPS arrangement GPS 330, e.g. GPS circuitry, configured to determine a location of the vehicle, a time arrangement TIME 340, e.g. time circuitry, configured to determine a time of the year, a security requirement arrangement SEC REQ 350, e.g. security requirement circuitry, configured to obtain and provide security requirements for a location and/or a time of year, and a transmitting/receiving arrangement TX/RX 320 e.g. transceiver circuitry, configured to transmit and receive radio signals in a vehicle.

[0122] The arrangement 300 is for analysing at least one safety equipment in a vehicle, wherein each one of the safety equipment comprises an identification device.

[0123] The arrangement 300 comprises at least one transceiver for receiving radio signals from embedded identification devices in security equipment present in the vehicle.

[0124] The arrangement 300 comprises a receiving module REC 301, e.g. receiving circuitry, configured to receive a signal with information associated to the identification device at pre-determined events, and a determining module COMPL 304, e.g. determining circuitry, configured to determine if the at least one safety equipment complies with set safety requirements in response to the received signal.

[0125] The arrangement 300 further comprises an informing module INFO 305, e.g. informing circuitry, configured to inform a vehicle occupant when there is a non-compliance with the set safety requirements.

[0126] In some embodiments, the arrangement further comprises a determining module DET 302, e.g. determining circuitry, configured to determine presence and condition of the detected safety equipment in response to the received signal.

[0127] In some embodiments, the arrangement 300 further comprises a determining module DET 303a, e.g. determining circuitry, configured to determine location of the vehicle.

[0128] In some embodiments, the arrangement 300 further comprises a determining module DET 303b, e.g. determining circuitry, configured to determine time of year.

[0129] In some embodiments, the arrangement 300 further comprises a setting module SET 303c, e.g. determining circuitry, configured to set the safety requirements to be complied with in response to the determined location and/or the determined time of the year.

[0130] In some embodiments, the arrangement 300 further comprises a provisioning module PROV 306, e.g. provisioning circuitry, configured to provision points of interest wherein safety equipment is available for purchase or upgrade.

[0131] The arrangement 300 may be comprised in the system 200 described in connection with FIG. 2 and/or the arrangement 300 may be configured to perform method steps of any of the methods described in connection with FIG. 1 or otherwise described herein.

[0132] FIG. 4 is a schematic drawing illustrating an example computer readable medium according to some embodiments. The computer program product comprises a non-transitory computer readable medium 400 having thereon a computer program 410 comprising program instructions, wherein the computer program being loadable into a data processing unit and configured to cause execution of the method steps of any of the methods described in connection with FIG. 1 or otherwise described herein.

[0133] Generally, when an arrangement is referred to herein, it is to be understood as a physical product; e.g., an apparatus. The physical product may comprise one or more parts, such as controlling circuitry in the form of one or more controllers, one or more processors, or the like.

[0134] The described embodiments and their equivalents may be realized in software or hardware or a combination thereof. The embodiments may be performed by general purpose circuitry. Examples of general purpose circuitry include digital signal processors (DSP), central processing units (CPU), co-processor units, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) and other programmable hardware. Alternatively or additionally, the embodiments may be performed by specialized circuitry, such as application specific integrated circuits (ASIC). The general purpose circuitry and/or the specialized circuitry may, for example, be associated with or comprised in an apparatus such as a vehicle.

[0135] Embodiments may appear within an electronic apparatus (associated with or comprised in a vehicle) comprising arrangements, circuitry, and/or logic according to any of the embodiments described herein. Alternatively or additionally, an electronic apparatus (associated with or comprised in a vehicle) may be configured to perform methods according to any of the embodiments described herein.

[0136] According to some embodiments, a computer program product comprises a computer readable medium such as, for example a universal serial bus (USB) memory, a plug-in card, an embedded drive or a read only memory (ROM). FIG. 4 illustrates an example computer readable medium in the form of a compact disc (CD) ROM 400. The computer readable medium has stored thereon a computer program comprising program instructions. The computer program is loadable into a data processor (PROC) 420, which may, for example, be comprised in a vehicle 410. When loaded into the data processing unit, the computer program may be stored in a memory (MEM) 430 associated with or comprised in the data-processing unit. According to some embodiments, the computer program may, when loaded into and run by the data processing unit, cause execution of method steps according to, for example, any of the methods illustrated in FIG. 1 or otherwise described herein.

[0137] Generally, all terms used herein are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the relevant technical field, unless a different meaning is clearly given and/or is implied from the context in which it is used.

[0138] Reference has been made herein to various embodiments. However, a person skilled in the art would recognize numerous variations to the described embodiments that would still fall within the scope of the claims.

[0139] For example, the method embodiments described herein discloses example methods through steps being performed in a certain order. However, it is recognized that these sequences of events may take place in another order without departing from the scope of the claims. Furthermore, some method steps may be performed in parallel even though they have been described as being performed in sequence. Thus, the steps of any methods disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless a step is explicitly described as following or preceding another step and/or where it is implicit that a step must follow or precede another step.

[0140] In the same manner, it should be noted that in the description of embodiments, the partition of functional blocks into particular units is by no means intended as limiting. Contrarily, these partitions are merely examples. Functional blocks described herein as one unit may be split into two or more units. Furthermore, functional blocks described herein as being implemented as two or more units may be merged into fewer (e.g. a single) unit.

[0141] Any feature of any of the embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to any other embodiment, wherever suitable. Likewise, any advantage of any of the embodiments may apply to any other embodiments, and vice versa.

[0142] Hence, it should be understood that the details of the described embodiments are merely examples brought forward for illustrative purposes, and that all variations that fall within the scope of the claims are intended to be embraced therein.