Advance notification system and method utilizing vehicle signaling
AssigneeArrivalStar, Inc.
InventorMartin Kelly Jones
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An advance notification system and method notifies passengers of the impending arrival of a transportation vehicle, for example, a school bus, at a particular vehicle stop. The system generally includes an on-board vehicle control unit for each vehicle and a base station control unit for making telephone calls to passengers in order to inform the passengers when the vehicle is a certain predefined time period and/or distance away from the vehicle stop. The VCU compares elapsed time and/or traveled distance to the programmed scheduled time and/or traveled distance to determine if the vehicle is on schedule. If the vehicle is behind or ahead of schedule, the VCU calls the BSCU, which then adjusts its calling schedule accordingly.
Claims26
A method, comprising the steps of:
- monitoring travel of a vehicle;
- contacting a user communications device associated with a user before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop;
- informing the user that the vehicle will be delayed in reaching the vehicle stop and informing the user of the vehicle proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop;
- making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop;
- and
- providing a report regarding travel status of the vehicle during the notification call.
A method, comprising the steps of:
- monitoring travel of the vehicle;
- comparing planned timing of the vehicle along a route to updated vehicle status information;
- contacting a user communications device before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop along the route;
- informing the user of the vehicle delay with respect to the vehicle stop and of updated impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop, based upon the updated vehicle status information and the planned timing;
- and
- making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop.
A system, comprising:
- means for monitoring travel of the vehicle;
- means for contacting a user communications device before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop;
- and
- means for informing the user that the vehicle will be delayed in reaching the vehicle stop and informing the user of the vehicle proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop;
- means for providing a report regarding travel status of the vehicle during the notification call;
- and
- means for making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop.
A system, comprising:
- means for monitoring travel of the vehicle;
- means for comparing planned timing of the vehicle along a route to updated vehicle status information;
- means for contacting a user communications device before the vehicle reaches a vehicle stop along the route;
- means for informing the user of the vehicle delay with respect to the vehicle stop and of updated impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop, based upon the updated vehicle status information and the planned timing;
- and
- means for making a notification call to the user when the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity from the vehicle stop to thereby further indicate impending arrival of the vehicle at the vehicle stop.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.