INFORMATION-ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE AND METHOD FOR OPERATION THEREOF

Abstract

An information entertainment system for a motor vehicle, includes a display unit for displaying at least one function, which can be activated or is activated by a user, and/or a piece of content of the information entertainment system to an occupant of the motor vehicle. The system also includes a control unit, for controlling the display unit and the function, having an interface for the information technological coupling a portable additional device to the control unit. The control unit supplements the function displayed on the display unit with a switching function after the coupling of the additional device and, upon activation of the switching function, to display a function of the additional device using the display unit. At least the switching function can be represented as a superordinate function covering other pieces of content displayed on the display unit to simplify integration of a third-party information entertainment system into a motor vehicle.

Claims

1-9. (canceled)

10. An information entertainment system for a motor vehicle, the information entertainment system comprising: a display unit configured to display at least one function, of the information entertainment system that is activatable by a user, or a piece of content of the information entertainment system to an occupant of the motor vehicle; a control unit configured to control the display unit and the at least one function information entertainment system; an interface configured for communicatively coupling a portable additional device to the control unit, wherein the control unit is further configured to supplement the displayed at least one function of information entertainment system with a switching function after the coupling of the additional device and configured to display, upon activation of the switching function, a function of the additional device that is activatable by the user via the display unit, wherein at least the switching function is displayed as a superordinate function covering other pieces of content displayed on the display unit regardless of their nature.

11. The information entertainment system of claim 10, wherein the at least one function of the information entertainment system and the switching function are represented as superordinate functions covering other pieces of content displayed on the display unit regardless of their nature.

12. The information entertainment system of claim 10, wherein the control unit is further configured, when the switching function is activated, to no longer display a function of the information entertainment system corresponding to a displayed function of the additional device via the display unit.

13. The information entertainment system of claim 12, wherein the control unit is further configured to deactivate the at least one function of the information entertainment system corresponding to a displayed function if the at least one function of the information entertainment system corresponding to the displayed function is activated before the activation of the switching function.

14. The information entertainment system of claim 10, wherein the control unit is further configured, upon deactivation of the activated switching function, to no longer display the function of the additional device, and to deactivate the function of the additional device if it is activated.

15. The information entertainment system of claim 13, wherein the control unit is further configured, upon deactivation of the switching function, to reactivate the at least one function of the information entertainment system that was deactivated by the activation of the switching function.

16. The information entertainment system of claim 10, wherein the control unit is further configured, upon activation of the switching function, to replace a piece of display content provided by the information entertainment system and displayed by the display unit with a piece of display content provided by the additional device.

17. The information entertainment system of claim 16, wherein an entirety of the piece of display content provided by the information entertainment system is replaced by the display content provided by the additional device, and the display content provided by the additional device comprises a display of a back-replacement function activatable by the user, the triggering of which replaces the display content provided by the additional device on the display unit with the display content provided by the information entertainment system.

18. The information entertainment system of claim 10, wherein the portable additional device is a smartphone.

19. A method for operating an information entertainment system of a motor vehicle, the method comprising: displaying, to an occupant of the motor vehicle via a display, a function of the information entertainment system that is activatable by a user or a piece of content of the information entertainment system; controlling, via a control unit, the display and the activateable function; communicatively coupling a portable additional device to the control unit via an interface; supplementing the activateable function displayed on the display with a switching function after the coupling of the additional device; and displaying, upon activation of the switching function, a function of the additional device that is activatable by the user, wherein the switching function is represented as a superordinate function covering other pieces of content displayed on the display regardless of their nature.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein when the switching function is activated, the method further comprises: no longer displaying a function of the information entertainment system corresponding to a displayed function of the additional device via the display unit.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising: deactivating the at least one function of the information entertainment system corresponding to a displayed function if the at least one function of the information entertainment system corresponding to the displayed function is activated before the activation of the switching function.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein upon deactivation of the activated switching function the method further comprises: no longer displaying the function of the additional device and deactivating the function of the additional device if it is activated; and reactivating the at least one function of the information entertainment system that was deactivated by the activation of the switching function.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein upon activation of the switching function, the method further comprises: replacing a piece of display content provided by the information entertainment system and displayed by the display unit with a piece of display content provided by the additional device.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

[0017] Here are shown:

[0018] FIG. 1 an exemplary display unit of an exemplary embodiment of an information entertainment system at a first time point;

[0019] FIG. 2 the display unit from FIG. 1 at a second time point; and

[0020] FIG. 3 the display unit of FIG. 1 at a third time point.

[0021] The same or functionally identical elements are provided with the same reference numerals in the different figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] FIG. 1 shows an exemplary display unit of an exemplary embodiment of an information entertainment system at a first time point. In the present case, the display unit 1 is designed as a screen, for example as a touch screen. The pieces of content and functions are shown in FIG. 1 as they are shown to a user in a motor vehicle by the display unit 1. In the present case, a foreground is shown on the display unit 1 in a first partial region of the screen, and a background is shown in a second partial region of the screen. The foreground is formed here by a so-called overlay menu 2 that can be called-up in the depicted embodiment of the information entertainment system from all areas of the telematics software provided by the information entertainment system in this example by a single operating action, for example by one operating button, which is not shown here. In the example shown, the overlay menu 2 comprises a series of representations of functions 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 that can be activated or are activated by a user in the motor vehicle. In the present case, the representations are designed as operating tiles that can be selected, for example, by touching the touch screen. This allows the corresponding menu option or the corresponding function to be selected, i.e., activated or deactivated. The background is used to show other pieces of content, for example an illustration or a status of an activated function. In the present case, the background is used, for example, for visualizing a control of a massage function of the information entertainment system. The overlay menu 2 is fundamentally independent of the displayed pieces of content of the background in this example. It can be called up independently of the displayed pieces of content of the background and superimposes these.

[0023] In the present case, a user has coupled a portable or mobile additional device or terminal, for example a smartphone, via cable or a wireless connection to the information entertainment system shortly before the first time point. Correspondingly, the overlay menu 2 which, prior to the coupling, only represented the original functions 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 without a switching function 3, is supplemented with the switching function 3. The supplementing occurs here in the form of an additional menu option or an additional operating tile in the overlay menu 2. After the information-technological coupling of the additional device to the information entertainment system, there is initially full functionality of the information entertainment system with the original functions 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. However, from the overlay menu 2, the user can now activate the switching function 3, for example by tapping or selecting the corresponding operating tile or the corresponding menu option by means of a control unit.

[0024] By activating the switching function 3, an initialization of the telematics software of a third-party manufacturer provided by the additional device takes place, for example a so-called Remote User Interface is provided. Upon activation of the switching function 3, the change to the Remote User Interface follows in the example shown. The display unit 1 is thus switched to a display of the user interface provided by the additional device, the Remote User Interface. The display unit 1 then shows functions or functionalities of the portable device, as shown in FIG. 2. In principle, functions of the information entertainment system of the motor vehicle that are active thus continue to run in the background. In the present case, however, functions that are also provided by the additional device are deactivated.

[0025] Provision may also be made for smooth switching, in which functions of the information entertainment system of the motor vehicle that are active initially continue to run, but are deactivated automatically at a later point in time. Thus, for example, a telephone function 7 can remain activated after coupling of an additional device designed as a smartphone when a telephone call is being carried out. The telephone call continues initially via the vehicle's own information entertainment system, even if a telephone function 7′ (FIG. 2) is also provided on the Remote User Interface. At the end of the telephone call, for example, the vehicle's own telephone function 7 is deactivated and telephone calls are only possible via the telephone function 7′ (FIG. 2) of the Remote User Interface.

[0026] FIG. 2 shows the display unit 1 of FIG. 1 at a second time point in another display state. Shown here is a piece of content, the Remote User Interface provided by the additional device, without the overlay menu 2 shown in FIG. 1. The appearance differs here significantly from the background shown in FIG. 1. However, a series of functions 4′, 6′, 7′, 11, 12, 13, 14 and another piece of content 15 are also displayed. One of the functions 13 here is a back-replacement function, via which the vehicle's own telematics software can be switched back. Since, in the present case, a navigation function 4′, a playback function 6′ and a telephone function 7′ are provided by the Remote User Interface, the navigation function 4 (FIG. 1), the playback function 6 (FIG. 1) and the telephone function 7 (FIG. 1) of the vehicle's own information entertainment system are correspondingly deactivated in the example shown and no longer displayed when the overlay menu 2 is called up. This is also shown in FIG. 3.

[0027] FIG. 3 shows the display unit of FIG. 1 at a further time point at which a user has called up the overlay menu 2 that is known from FIG. 1 in the display state of the display unit 1 shown in FIG. 2, i.e., when the switching function is activated and the Remote User Interface provided by the additional device is displayed. This can be done, for example, as described above by using a hardware button. As is known from FIG. 1, the overlay menu 2 is placed over the content formed in this case by the Remote User Interface in the background. Since functions 4′, 6′, 7′ corresponding to the navigation function 4, the playback function 6 and the telephone function 7 are provided by the activated additional device, only the remaining functions 5, 8, 9, 10 of the information entertainment system of the motor vehicle are represented in the overlay menu 2. Since the additional device is coupled to the information entertainment system, the switching function 3 is also represented in the overlay menu 2 as before. Added to this is a function 3′ that deactivates this as part of the switching function 3.

[0028] The user can now access functions or applications, such as seat adjustments for example, directly in the information entertainment system of the motor vehicle via the overlay menu 2 via the additional functions 5, 8, 9. In addition, the functions offered and provided by the additional device continue to run in the background.

[0029] The user can also switch back to the Remote User Interface via the switching function 3, after which the display unit 1 offers the functions of the additional device, as shown, for example, in FIG. 2. In this case, the vehicle's own information entertainment system continues to run in the background.

[0030] The user can also quickly terminate the Remote User Interface via the additional function 3′. As a result, the full range of functions of the vehicle's own information entertainment system is available again, as is shown, for example, in FIG. 1. From this state, it is of course possible to reinitialize the functions provided by the additional device by activating the switching function 3 again, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0031] By means of the overlay menu 2, the user can thus switch back and forth between the telematics software of the motor vehicle and the telematics software of the additional device, the Remote User Interface. Actuating the deactivation function 3′ via the corresponding menu tile in the overlay menu 2 allows a quick deactivation of the Remote User Interface. As a result, the entire telematics software of the motor vehicle is available to the user once again without limitations to functionality. If the user wishes to use the Remote User Interface of the additional device, he/she can activate it via the switching function 3. The user can thus quickly and easily switch a Remote User Interface of an additional device on and off in the motor vehicle and use the corresponding functions in an intuitive manner.

[0032] Although the present invention has been described above by means of embodiments with reference to the enclosed drawings, it is understood that various changes and developments can be implemented without leaving the scope of the present invention, as it is defined in the enclosed claims.