FR3085094A1 - METHOD FOR AUTOMATICALLY SHARING TELECOMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN A TELEMATIC BOX ON-BOARD IN A MOTOR VEHICLE AND AN EXTERNAL MOBILE TELEPHONE - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for automatically sharing incoming and outgoing telecommunications between a telematics box (1) on board a motor vehicle, a call center and an external mobile phone (2), characterized in that the pairing is carried out from the mobile phone with the telematics box and the connection between the call center and the telematics box is initialized by jointly launching a dedicated application previously downloaded to the mobile phone, then the audio sharing function is activated on the phone in order to switch to conference mode with the call center by means of a radio link between the box and the telephone.

Description

Method for automatically sharing telecommunications between a telematics box on board a motor vehicle and an external mobile phone The invention relates to a method for automatically sharing telecommunications between a telematics box on board a motor vehicle and an external mobile phone.

More particularly, the invention relates to the establishment of a conference call platform between the telematics unit of a motor vehicle, a call center and an external mobile telephone, belonging to the driver or to the one of the passengers in the vehicle.

STATE OF THE PRIOR ART The invention relates to the field of management and transmission of emergency and / or alarm messages by motor vehicles.

In certain critical situations, it becomes essential that a motor vehicle can immediately transmit a message sent by an assistance platform or a remote call center and received by the telematics unit on board the vehicle to an external terminal of communication such as the driver's mobile phone or that of one of the passengers, via a GSM type wireless communication network.

This is particularly the case when the vehicle is accidented or broken down and the driver and passengers have left the vehicle to go to safety or that the telematics box is itself damaged following the accident.

In this situation, a number of calls or reminders from the assistance tray sent to the vehicle cannot succeed because the driver, who is then outside and at a distance from the vehicle, can no longer access the message received by the telematics box. The emergency services, unable to reach the driver and therefore having no reliable information on the situation, will then be forced to send a team on site, late, inappropriate and sometimes even unnecessarily.

In general, systems and methods already exist for the management and transmission of emergency messages between a remote call center and a motor vehicle and / or a mobile phone.

Thus, document FR2891687 describes an emergency call system operating with a mobile phone activated by a device on board the vehicle and communicating with it. This system provides voice communication between the call center and the identified mobile phone.

Documents US20160272140 and US9674370 describe emergency call systems allowing, during an accident, the automatic connection of a mobile communication terminal to a server in order to be able to transmit information on the context of the incident.

Furthermore, document FR2926690 describes a method of redirecting transmissions from a vehicle to a wireless communication terminal located in its vicinity, this method being more particularly intended for alarm messages.

Documents EP2259496 and EP1850530 describe methods of postponing the transmission of an emergency call to a wireless mobile telephone in the vicinity of the vehicle.

Document EP 1 444 664 describes, for its part, a method for securing the sending of an emergency or alert call from sensors on board a motor vehicle to a call center via a mobile telephone. external.

The document US6073004 describes a method of sending an emergency call via an associated mobile phone using a "timer" intended to confirm the transmission of this emergency call.

Thus, there are many systems and methods ensuring the management and transmission of emergency messages between a call center of an assistance tray and a motor vehicle and allowing, if necessary, to pass these messages by an external mobile phone.

However, none of these systems and methods makes it possible to share telecommunications by ensuring the establishment of an audio conference between the call center, the on-board telematics unit and the driver's mobile telephone, or even using the driver's mobile phone as a second handset.

PRESENTATION OF THE INVENTION The aim of the present invention is to solve the technical problems raised by the prior art by proposing a method of sharing telecommunications, both incoming and outgoing, between a vehicle equipped with a telematic unit, a call center and an external GSM mobile phone belonging to the driver or, if applicable, to one of the passengers.

This object is achieved, according to the invention, by means of an automatic sharing method of incoming and outgoing telecommunications between a telematics unit on board a motor vehicle, a call center and an external mobile phone, characterized in what we do is pairing the mobile phone with the telematics box and initializing the link between the call center and the telematics box by jointly ensuring the launch of a dedicated application previously downloaded to the mobile phone, then we activate the audio sharing function on the phone in order to switch to conference mode with the call center by means of a radio link between the box and the phone.

According to an alternative implementation of the method of the invention, the pairing is carried out by automatic recognition of the profile of the mobile phone previously recorded in the telematics box.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the method, the launch of the dedicated application on the mobile phone is carried out by means of a radio link "Bluetooth" or wifi.

According to another variant implementation of the method, the initialization of the link between the call center and the telematics box, the launch of said dedicated application on the mobile phone and the activation of audio sharing on the phones are made by triggering an "xCall".

According to yet another variant of the method, the distance between the telematics box and the mobile phone is estimated by considering the quality of the radio link so as to avoid the appearance of feedback.

Another object of the invention is a motor vehicle equipped with a telematics box allowing the implementation of the method having the characteristics defined above for the automatic sharing of incoming and outgoing telecommunications with a call center and a mobile phone.

The method of the invention makes it possible to establish an audio link capable of carrying communications of the “full duplex audio” type between the on-board telematics unit and the mobile telephone and, by a GSM type system, of enabling a conference telephone between several stations or terminals including the GSM link between the telematics box and the call center.

These links are based on the wireless communication means of both the vehicle (Bluetooth / Wifi / GSM) and the mobile phone while ensuring communication of incoming and outgoing calls with the call center of the plateau d assistance both for emergency and rescue operations and for simple troubleshooting.

Thus, the method of the invention allows the driver / customer to get out of his vehicle safety while maintaining a link with it to allow the exchange of information with the call center for the rapid intervention of the services of the assistance platform.

The method of the invention satisfies a set of regulatory requirements laid down by the vehicle certification and approval authorities within the framework of "EuroNCap" standards.

Therefore, this process meets a real need for security in the risk situations described in these standards which provide for the presence, now mandatory in motor vehicles, of an on-board telematics unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge on reading the description which follows, with reference to the appended and detailed figure below.

Figure 1 is a single diagram illustrating a preferred mode of implementation of the method of the invention.

For the sake of clarity, identical or similar elements are identified by identical reference signs in all of the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Of course, the embodiments described below are given only by way of nonlimiting examples. It is explicitly provided that we can combine these different modes to offer others.

Today, most motor vehicles are fitted with telematics boxes intended to make emergency calls, via a GSM telephone link, to call centers associated with assistance platforms.

These calls are generated, either automatically by the unit during a crash detection, or at the request of the driver / client using manual triggering modes via an "SOS" button or a specific button specific to the make of the vehicle, if you need assistance.

Following an accident or breakdown, the vehicle may be overturned on the roof or stopped on the taxiways. In such circumstances, a large number of calls or reminders from the service tray to the vehicle are unsuccessful because the driver has left his vehicle to go to safety outside the passenger compartment and, often, away from the vehicle (for example, on the emergency lane or behind the safety railing).

In this case, the driver is isolated from the telematics box despite the carrying on him of a mobile phone and the emergency services, unable to reach him via the vehicle, are forced to send the emergency services on site, sometimes unnecessarily or with inappropriate means.

The invention provides a method of automatic sharing of telecommunications, both incoming and outgoing, between a telematics unit on board a motor vehicle and an external mobile phone allowing the driver to keep, outside his vehicle, a stable connection and a ability to exchange information directly with the call center.

More particularly, the invention allows the establishment of a conference call platform between the telematics unit of the motor vehicle, the call center associated with the assistance tray and an external mobile telephone belonging to the driver or to one of the passengers in the vehicle.

The method of the invention is implemented, as illustrated in Figure 1, using existing electronic systems and, more generally, all the hardware means traditionally fitted to vehicles. These means include;

a stand-alone telematics box 1 (called "BTA" or "BSRF" or equivalent) equipped or connected to loudspeakers and microphones (pphons) mounted in the passenger compartment of the vehicle, wireless radio link capacities (" Bluetooth ”) BT, Wifi or GSM of the vehicle or the telematics box 1 depending on the desired range, a mobile phone 2 or an external and independent smartphone carried by the driver or one of the passengers in the vehicle (this can be already paired or "paired" with the vehicle's on-board system) equipped with speakers (HP) and microphones (pphon) and, a man-machine management interface (not shown) fitted to the vehicle and / or mobile phone 2 .

The driver's mobile phone 2 then acts as a "slave" of the telematics box 1 on board the vehicle or as a second handset, unlike so-called "hands-free" systems, where it is the driver's phone that is "master" of the link and which lends its audio components to the telematics box as is the case with external headphones.

However, the connection between the mobile phone and the box must not interfere with the vehicle's integrated audio system so as to avoid the "feedback" effect, in particular, if "xCall" call functions from the type "eCall" (emergency calls) or "bCall" (breakdown assistance calls from the make of the vehicle) do not use the same audio system. In the latter case, adaptation may be necessary.

The method of the invention is implemented as follows with the material means illustrated by the diagram in Figure 1.

First of all, the driver's mobile phone 2 is paired or paired with the vehicle's telematics unit 1. This operation can be carried out either manually or automatically by recognizing the profile of the mobile telephone 2 previously saved in the memory of the telematics box.

1.

Then, the connection between the call center and the telematics box 1 is initialized by jointly launching a dedicated application previously downloaded to the mobile phone 2 (or the smartphone).

The next step is to activate the audio sharing function on the phone 2 in order to switch to conference mode with the call center by means of a radio link, preferably "Bluetooth" (BT), between the telematics box 1 and mobile phone 2.

The initialization of the GSM link between the call center and the vehicle telematics unit as well as the activation of audio sharing by radio link can be carried out automatically on reception or on the issue of a call " xCall ”(nominal function of an“ xCall ”integrated in the telematics box).

When the dedicated application launches on the phone, an interface appears and offers to duplicate the conversation on it. Likewise, the launch of this application can be carried out by triggering a "xCall" call.

Thereafter and throughout the duration of the conversation or during the entire period of time or the telematics box is open to the reception of calls made by the call center (generally during the hour), the system allows a communication in conference mode.

To avoid any interference, for example, by the "feedback" effect (due to a sound loopback between the HP speakers and the pphon microphones), the method of the invention proposes to use the quality of the radio link to estimate the distance between the vehicle and the driver's telephone. If the distance is sufficient, you will authorize the phone's microphone to work or adjust its sensitivity.

By activating the sharing of the telecommunications audio signal on his mobile phone, the driver authorizes conference mode and duplicates the conversation. He can thus move away from his vehicle and put himself in safety while maintaining the connection with his vehicle and the call center. However, in the absence of activation by the driver, communication and the audio signal remain limited to the vehicle's internal audio system.

Claims (6)

1. Method for automatically sharing incoming and outgoing telecommunications between a telematics unit (1) on board a motor vehicle, a call center and an external mobile phone (2), characterized in that the mobile phone is paired (2) with the telematics box (1) and the connection between the call center and the telematics box is initialized by jointly launching a dedicated application previously downloaded to the mobile phone, then the audio sharing function is activated on the phone to switch to conference mode with the call center via a radio link between the box and the phone. 2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the pairing is carried out by automatic recognition of the profile of the mobile telephone previously recorded in the telematics box. 3. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the launch of the dedicated application on the mobile phone is carried out by means of a radio link (BT, Wifi, GSM). 4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the initialization of the link between the call center and the telematics box, the launch of said dedicated application on the mobile phone and the activation of audio sharing on the phone are made by triggering an "xCall". 5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the distance between the telematics box (1) and the mobile telephone (2) is estimated by considering the quality of the radio link so as to avoid the appearance of interference. 6. Motor vehicle equipped with a telematics box allowing the implementation of the method according to one of the preceding claims for the automatic sharing of incoming and outgoing telecommunications with a call center and a mobile telephone.