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US 2014/0368313 A1Published application
Vehicle keyfob with accelerometer to extend battery life
AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated
InventorKlaus Seiberts
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A keyfob is disclosed for use with a vehicle. The keyfob includes a microcontroller, a wake receiver, an antenna coupled to the wake receiver, and an accelerometer. The accelerometer is used to detect motion of the keyfob. The microcontroller disables the wake receiver based on signals from the accelerometer (e.g., when the keyfob is determined to be stationary and not close to the vehicle).
Claims17
A keyfob for use with a vehicle, comprising:
- a microcontroller;
- a wake receiver;
- an antenna coupled to the wake receiver;
- and
- an accelerometer to detect motion of the keyfob;
- wherein the microcontroller disables the wake receiver based on signals from the accelerometer.
3 more elements
An apparatus in a keyfob, comprising:
- a microcontroller;
- a wake receiver;
- an antenna coupled to the wake receiver;
- and
- an accelerometer to detect motion of the keyfob;
- wherein, based on a signal from the accelerometer, the microcontroller enables the wake receiver from a disabled state to receive a signal from a vehicle.
3 more elements
A method, comprising:
- determining whether a keyfob has received a signal from a vehicle;
- if the keyfob has not received the signal from the vehicle, determining whether the keyfob is moving or stationary based on a signal from an accelerometer included in the keyfob;
- and
- disabling a wireless receiver in the keyfob upon determining that the keyfob is stationary.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.