SE542177C2 - Method and control unit for vehicle service - Google Patents

Abstract

Method (500) and control unit (210), for providing service to a vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3). The method (500) comprise collecting (501) data from the vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3); detecting (502) a service need of the vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3), based on the collected (501) data; transmitting (503) an inquiry to a set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), concerning the detected (502) service need of the vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3); receiving (504) an offer from at least one service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), as a response to the transmitted (503) inquiry; selecting (505) one of the received (504) offers; and transmitting (506) information to the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) of the selected (505) offer, confirming the selection (505).

Description

METHOD AND CONTROL UNIT FOR VEHICLE SERVICE TECHNICAL FIELD This document discloses a control unit and a method in a control unit. More particularly, a method and a control unit is disclosed, for providing service to a vehicle.

BACKGROUND Efforts have been made in order to improve the performance of individual vehicles, not the least the development of autonomous vehicles, and inter-vehicle communication in order to coordinate vehicles, e.g. in platoons or vehicle trains in a mass transit system. However, infrastructure for service and maintenance has not developed in the same pace in order to fully support recently developed advanced vehicles/ coordinated vehicles and take advantage of the evolved wireless communication ability of such vehicles. This disclosure primarily addresses those issues.

Some decades ago gas stations typically had a service man who assisted the driver in filling up gas and also assisted in other maintenance issues such as changing a bulb or fuse; checking oil level; checking air pressure in the tires; cleaning windows, etc. However, due to cost reduction and price competition among gas stations, development has led to personal reduction to an extent that most gas stations today are unmanned.

In the case of autonomous vehicles, i.e. vehicles without any driver, this presents a severe problem as there may be no person present who can fill up fuel or perform other vehicle service issues. A defective lamp, for example, in an autonomous vehicle may cause a dangerous traffic incident, besides the illegality of driving with defective lights. To park the vehicle, alert the owner and send out a service technician will cause a transportation delay and also be rather costly, although the lamp per se may be exchanged in a matter of minutes.

In case the autonomous vehicle discovers and arrives at a fuel station having a service man to assist the vehicle, there is no mechanism for the owner of the autonomous vehicle to know if the service provided at the fuel station is professionally performed, or if the pricing is acceptable. There may e.g. be another fuel station some minutes later down the road providing better service to a lower price, beyond the knowledge of the owner of the autonomous vehicle.

Also a vehicle having a driver may run into similar problems when selecting service station for the vehicle. For example, in case a lamp is broken on the vehicle, the driver may stop at the first fuel station/ service station or similar establishment he/ she arrives at. However, that fuel station may not have the lamp required for that vehicle. The driver then has to repeatedly continue driving and visiting subsequent fuel stations until he/ she finally finds a fuel station Able to provide the required lamp. This is time consuming and leads to a transportation delay. Further, another fuel station next door may offer the required lamp for half the price, without the driver's knowledge.

Professional vehicle drivers in a platoon of coordinated vehicles are facing further challenges, as the comprised vehicles may have different fuel levels and different service needs. How is it to be determined where to stop the platoon for providing the service required by the respective vehicles? A possible solution may be to let one driver, e.g. the driver of the first vehicle in the platoon, to decide. However, this may lead to sub-optimisation for at least some vehicles in the platoon, e.g. vehicles having filled tanks and no service needs, as they have to stop and wait for the rest of the platoon vehicles. For such vehicles it may instead be advantageous to leave the current platoon and continue driving alone, or possibly join another platoon.

Further, when a platoon of vehicles is arriving at a service station, the limited capacity of the service station may unnecessary delay the transportation of the platoon. This problem may escalate even more, e.g. when a bus with passengers (or a platoon of such busses) stops for a lunch break. The sudden increase in number of customers may result in long queues for ordering, long waiting times for food, shortage of food/ ingredients for popular dishes, long queues for using rest room facilities etc., leading to transportation delay and displeased passengers. A similar situation appears when all vehicles in a platoon e.g. request a service measure simultaneously.

Professional drivers have legal restrictions on their allowed driving time/ resting time/ sleeping time per day, which is determined by a tachograph in the respective vehicle. Thus professional drivers are obliged to e.g. take a 45 minutes break after max 4.5 hours (depending on legislation). However, it would be desired from a traffic security perspective that the driver could use the break taken at a service station to resting and not to performing various vehicle service issues, inquiring service spare parts etc.

From the perspective of the service provider, it is difficult to predict the number of clients and their demands during a day, for preparing the kind of service that will be requested by the clients.

Document US 20150112543 presents a vehicle collecting data from various on-board sensors and also from vehicle external sensors via wireless communication. The collected data is transferred via wireless communication to a vehicle external computer having knowledge concerning habits and preferences of the driver in question. Based on the vehicle trail, collected sensor data and driver preferences, the computer selects relevant advertisements e.g. for a close service station or restaurant.

However, there is no communication between the vehicle and the service station. Thus the driver cannot know if the service station will be able to provide the required service. Further, the service station is not provided any hint that the vehicle is arriving. In addition, the selection of service station is made out of pre-stored static preferences, not rational decisions. There may be recently opened service station next doors offering half the price for the same service. In addition, the driver has no possibility to estimate if the service provided by the service station will be good or at least satisfying before having used it.

Documents US 20130338873 and WO 201275055 both discloses systems for compiling data from a vehicle, e.g. sensor data, which is provided to a unit requesting a tender from appropriate service providers. Their price offers are compiled upon reception and presented to the driver.

However, there is no communication between the vehicle and the service station. Thus the driver cannot know if the service station will be able to provide the required service. Further, the service station is not provided any hint that the vehicle is arriving. In addition, the driver has no possibility to estimate if the service provided by the service station will be good or at least satisfying before having used it.

Document US 2014302774 illustrates a group of vehicles driving in a platoon, which vehicles are communicating with each other via Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communication. The data may comprise sensor data, but also driver/passenger desires such as coffee break, restaurant visit, rest room stop etc. Thereby a driver in a first vehicle may receive information concerning desires of a driver in a second vehicle in the platoon.

However, nothing is stated in the document concerning how to select service provider for the platoon.

Document US 7668644 presents a vehicle communicating via wireless communication. A sensor in the vehicle may detect low gas level. A control device in the vehicle may then collect information concerning nearby gas stations concerning gas station position and gas prices. The control device may then select and recommend a gas station based on distance, preference and price.

However, there is no communication between the vehicle and the service station. Thus the driver cannot know if the service station will be able to provide the required service. Further, the service station is not provided any hint that the vehicle is arriving. In addition, the driver has no possibility to estimate if the service provided by the service station will be good or at least satisfying before having used it.

It appears that further development is required for providing vehicle service by utilising the possibilities of evolved vehicles with wireless communication abilities, perhaps in particular for coordinated vehicles in a platoon and / or autonomous vehicles.

SUMMARY It is therefore an object of this invention to solve at least some of the above problems and provide improved vehicle service.

According to a first aspect of the invention, this objective is achieved by a method for providing service to a vehicle. The method comprises collecting data from the vehicle. Further the method also comprises detecting a service need of the vehicle, based on the collected data. The method additionally comprises transmitting an inquiry to a set of service providers, concerning the detected service need of the vehicle. The method furthermore comprises receiving an offer from at least one service provider, as a response to the transmitted inquiry. In further addition the method also comprises selecting one of the received offers. Also, the method comprises transmitting information to the service provider of the selected offer, confirming the selection.

According to a second aspect of the invention, this objective is achieved by a control unit for providing service to a vehicle. The control unit is configured to collect data from the vehicle, via sensors or driver input. Further the control unit is configured to detect a service need of the vehicle, based on the collected data. In addition, the control unit is further configured to transmit an inquiry to a set of service providers, concerning the detected service need of the vehicle via a communication device. The control unit is also configured to receive an offer from at least one service provider, as a response to the transmitted inquiry, via the communication device. In further addition, the control unit is configured to select one of the received offers. Also, the control unit is configured to transmit information to the service provider of the selected offer, via the communication device, confirming the selection.

Thanks to the described aspects, by collecting needs of a vehicle, or a group of vehicles organised in a platoon, and/ or their drivers, and sending an inquiry to service providers, it may be avoided e.g. that the vehicle stops at a service provider which cannot provide the desired service. Also, it could be assured that the vehicle discovers and could get access to the most appropriate service provider (according to some appropriate criteria, such as the cheapest service, the best service etc.). Further, it is hereby possible to maintain the platoon formation for as long as possible, and thereby achieve the general advantages with driving in a platoon, such as saving fuel. From the perspective of the service provider, the reverse auction resulting from the disclosed method provides a possibility for a start-up service provider to market itself and attract new customers. Further, the client demands can be better planned, as a certain time margin in advance is provided. Thereby also the desired service may be faster and more effectively provided to the vehicle. Thus the provision of vehicle service may be provided.

Other advantages and additional novel features will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description.

FIGURES Embodiments of the invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying figures, in which: Figure 1 illustrates a side view of a vehicle of a vehicle platoon according to an embodiment; Figure 2 illustrates a scenario with a vehicle platoon according to an embodiment, seen from above; Figure 3A schematically illustrates a vehicle interior according to an embodiment; Figure 3B schematically illustrates a vehicle interior according to an embodiment; Figure 4 illustrates a scenario according to an embodiment; Figure 5 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of the method; Figure 6 is an illustration depicting a system according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Embodiments of the invention described herein are defined as a control unit and a method in a control unit, which may be put into practice in the embodiments described below. These embodiments may, however, be exemplified and realised in many different forms and are not to be limited to the examples set forth herein; rather, these illustrative examples of embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete.

Still other objects and features may become apparent from the following detailed description, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the herein disclosed embodiments, for which reference is to be made to the appended claims. Further, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein.

Figure 1 illustrates a vehicle 100-1, driving in a driving direction 105. The vehicle 100-1 may, or may not be part of a group of coordinated vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, coordinated and organised in a platoon 110 with an inter-vehicular distance ?t.

The platoon 110, or coordinated group of vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be described as a chain of coordinated, inter-communicating vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 travelling at given inter-vehicular distances At and velocity.

The inter-vehicular distance At may be fixed or variable in different embodiments. Thus the distances At may be e.g. some centimetres, some decimetres, some meters or some tenths of meters in different embodiments. Alternatively, each vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 may have a different distance At to the vehicle following, or leading, vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, than to other vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the coordinated group 110.

The vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may comprise e.g. a truck, a car, a motorcycle, a multipassenger vehicle such as a bus, a coach or any similar vehicle or other means of conveyance. The vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 may comprise vehicles of the same, or different types in different embodiments.

Any vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be driver controlled or autonomously controlled driverless vehicle in different embodiments. However, for enhanced clarity, the vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 are subsequently described as having a driver.

The vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, when organised in the platoon 110 may be coordinated via a wireless signal. Such wireless signal may comprise, or at least be inspired by wireless communication technology such as Wi-Fi, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Bluetooth (BT), Near Field Communication (NFC), Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID), optical communication such as Infrared Data Association (IrDA) or infrared transmission to name but a few possible examples of wireless communications in some embodiments.

In some embodiments, the communication between vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 may be performed via vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, e.g. based on Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) devices. DSRC works in 5.9 GHz band with bandwidth of 75 MHz and approximate range of 1000 m in some embodiments.

The wireless communication may be made according to any IEEE standard for wireless vehicular communication like e.g. a special mode of operation of IEEE 802.11 for vehicular networks called Wireless Access in Vehicular Environments (WAVE). IEEE 802.11 p is an extension to 802.11 Wireless LAN medium access layer (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) specification.

The communication may alternatively be made over a wireless interface comprising, or at least being inspired by radio access technologies such as e.g. 3GPP LTE, LTE-Advanced, E-UTRAN, UMTS, GSM, GSM/ EDGE, WCDMA, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) networks, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) networks, Orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) networks, Single-Carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) networks, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN), 3GPP2 CDMA technologies, e.g., CDMA2000 1x RTT and High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), or similar, just to mention some few options, via a wireless communication network.

According to different embodiments, the state and condition of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, or the vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 or the platoon 110, is investigated in order to diagnose the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110. The vehicle condition of the vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110 may be made by utilising information e.g. from the vehicle Controller Area Network (CAN) system, and various on-board sensors and transducers. The CAN bus is a vehicle bus standard designed to allow microcontrollers and devices to communicate with each other in applications without a host computer. It is a message-based protocol, designed originally for multiplex electrical wiring within vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

Thereby each vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 can, for example, inform the other vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 that it is soon reaching the limit for its driving time or running low on fuel, in some embodiments.

According to some embodiments, a control unit, which may be an on-board unit or a road side unit in different embodiments, receives and collects information regarding the vehicle health or state; for at least one vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

Then, the control unit can calculate for example if the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 needs to stop to rest/ eat/ sleep, or if it needs to re-fuel soon, or if it needs any other service and / or maintenance such as inflating the tyres; changing a lamp or fuse; cleaning the vehicle windscreen; filling up windscreen washer fluid, motor oil, urea and / or coolant; or exchange any broken or dysfunctional vehicle part, for example.

According to some embodiments, a survey may be performed on at least some resting places, fuel stations and / or service and maintenance places, which are situated close to the vehicle position, or along a route to a destination of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

Further, a message with an inquiry may be sent to at least some of the resting places, fuel stations and / or service and maintenance places, conveying that the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110 are approaching and an estimated arrival time may be sent.

The inquiry may comprise e.g. need to fuel, rest, eat, change oil, etc., based on the previously made vehicle condition check.

The available service providers on the planned route, or close to it, then have the possibility to make an offer to the driver, the owner or the fleet operator of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110.

According to some embodiments, the most appropriate, suitable or preferred offer may be selected (e.g. according to some predetermined or configurable criteria, or alternatively manual selection by the driver or vehicle owner). Further a confirmation may be sent to the selected provider that he/ she has won the auction by giving the best offer.

The provider may be given an opportunity to accept or reject the made offer and prepare for the service, by knowledge of an estimated arrival time and the requested services.

After the service has been received by the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110, the driver or owner gets to rate his or her satisfaction with the provider, such that it can be taken into consideration for the next time that provider is contacted for an auction, e.g. in terms of a rating between 1-5, as a non-limiting example.

Thanks to aspects of the described embodiments, operators in the platoon 110 or a single vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 with wireless connection are provided fast and cheap service, or e.g. the best service depending on selection criteria.

The presented method will help the upkeep of the platoons 110 and always find the most cost effective/ fast/ best (or whatever desired according to selection criteria) option that is available. Hence, an improved service provision is provided. Further, service providers such as e.g. service stations, gas stations, restaurants, etc. will be notified well in advance so that they can make all the necessary preparations to facilitate efficient and qualitative services. The platooning system will in other words become more “lean”, as waiting time will be reduced. It is also avoided that the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110 stops at a service provider which is not able to provide the desired service. Also, by announcing/ booking a service in advance, the service provider may recruit and / or allocate personnel for providing the requested service at the moment in time when the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110 arrives. Further, requested vehicle parts etc., to change at the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3/ platoon 110 may be ordered and delivered to the service provider, e.g. by a drone or be printed on a 3D printer at the service provider. In addition, a newly established service provider have the option of entering the market by offering a lower price than competitors, faster service than competitors, or offering additional value, e.g. by offering free coffee while the fuel is filled up in the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

Figure 2 illustrates an illustrative scenario wherein the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, which may be comprised in a platoon 110, driving in the driving direction 105, as seen from above.

A survey is performed at the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, or among vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 organised in a platoon 110. Such survey may comprise a status check on vehicle related items such as fuel, urea, oil, washer fluid, wiper blades, air pressure in the tyres, etc., but also driver related items (in case the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 has a driver) such as resting time according to the vehicle tachograph (for professional drivers), lunchbreak, coffee break, etc.

The input may be made from various on-board sensors, and the survey may be made over the vehicle bus system. Some examples of such sensors in the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be fuel level sensor, tyre air pressure sensors, broken lamp sensors, etc.

The driver related items may be extracted from the tachograph, or be based on a timing estimate of the passed time since the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 last stopped, time of the day, and / or an inquiry presented to the driver, e.g. via a human-machine communication interface. Driver related items may also be detected by sensors in some embodiments, such as e.g. driver alertness sensor, etc.

The requirements according to the survey may for example result in that the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 need to fill up 200 litres of fuel and taking a coffee break. Further, the wiper blades are in bad condition, but a change may be postponed.

An inquiry may then be transmitted to various service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3. The service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 may each have a respective communication device 205-1, 205-2, 205-3 for wireless communication. The wireless communication may be made e.g. via any of the previously mentioned wireless communication protocols, directly or indirectly via a vehicle external vehicle management centre 240. The vehicle external vehicle management centre 240 may comprise a communication device 230 for wireless communication, a control unit 210 and a database 220, in some embodiments, e.g. when the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 lacks a driver.

The respective service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 may then, upon reception of the inquiry, prepare and respond with an offer, such as e.g. “we offer you 200 litres for X Euros and a free coffee while you are waiting”.

In case the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 is comprised in a platoon 110, the survey may be made for all the vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 and the result may be compiled in the inquiry sent to the service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3. Thereby, by offering a larger amount of requested services, it is likely that a better price may be achieved.

An advantage from the point of view of the service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 is that the work may be better planned by knowing the requested services in advance. Thereby it is also possible to get required spare parts in time and/or recruit/allocate personnel in time.

The position of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be determined and the position of the service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 are known. Thereby also the distance between them are known. As the velocity may be estimated, also the time of arrival of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be estimated. In some embodiments, traffic conditions (queues) line of sight and other road conditions such as if the road is dry (weather conditions), the curvature etc., may be taken into consideration when estimating the arrival time.

Figure 3A illustrates an example of a scenario as illustrated in any of Figure 1 and/or Figure 2, as it may be perceived by the driver of the vehicle 100-2, driving behind another vehicle 100-1, organised in a platoon 110.

The vehicle 100-2 comprises at least one sensor 310, such as e.g. a driver alertness sensor for monitoring the eye activities of the driver and detecting an eye moving pattern indicating sleepiness. This is merely one non-limiting example of a sensor 310 that may be used for collecting information concerning the status of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 and its driver, if any.

Further, the vehicle 100-2 comprises an information outputting device 320, such as e.g. a display, a projector, a loudspeaker, a tactile device, a mobile telephone, a computer, a computer tablet, etc. The information outputting device 320 may in some embodiments comprise an interactive communication device for receiving input from the driver.

The geographical position of the vehicle 100-2 may be determined by a positioning device 330, or navigator, in the vehicle 100-2, which may be based on a satellite navigation system such as the Navigation Signal Timing and Ranging (Navstar) Global Positioning System (GPS), Differential GPS (DGPS), Galileo, GLONASS, or the like.

The geographical position of the positioning device 330, (and thereby also of the vehicle 100-2) may be made continuously with a certain predetermined or configurable time intervals according to various embodiments.

Positioning by satellite navigation is based on distance measurement using triangulation from a number of satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4. In this example, four satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 are depicted, but this is merely an example. More than four satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 may be used for enhancing the precision, or for creating redundancy. The satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 continuously transmit information about time and date (for example, in coded form), identity (which satellite 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 that broadcasts), status, and where the satellite 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 are situated at any given time. The GPS satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 sends information encoded with different codes, for example, but not necessarily based on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA). This allows information from an individual satellite 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 distinguished from the others' information, based on a unique code for each respective satellite 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4. This information can then be transmitted to be received by the appropriately adapted positioning device comprised in the vehicle 100-2.

Distance measurement can according to some embodiments comprise measuring the difference in the time it takes for each respective satellite signal transmitted by the respective satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 to reach the positioning device 330. As the radio signals travel at the speed of light, the distance to the respective satellite 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 may be computed by measuring the signal propagation time.

The positions of the satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 are known, as they continuously are monitored by approximately 15-30 ground stations located mainly along and near the earth's equator. Thereby the geographical position, i.e. latitude and longitude, of the vehicle 100 may be calculated by determining the distance to at least three satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 through triangulation. For determination of altitude, signals from four satellites 340-1, 340-2, 340-3, 340-4 may be used according to some embodiments.

Having determined the geographical position of the vehicle 100-2 by the positioning device 330 (or in another way), it may be presented on a map, a screen or a display device where the position of the vehicle 100-2 may be marked in some optional, alternative embodiments.

In some embodiments, the current geographical position of the vehicle 100-2 and the computed predicted path of the vehicle 100-2 may in some embodiments be displayed on the information outputting device 320.

The vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 may communicate with each other over a wireless interface. Thus the first vehicle 100-1 may comprise a first transceiver 350-1 and the second vehicle 100-2 a second transceiver 350-2.

The wireless communication may be e.g. a Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) signal, or any other wireless signal based on, or at least inspired by wireless communication technology such as Wi-Fi, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Bluetooth (BT), the communication protocol IEEE 802.11 p, Wireless Access in Vehicular Environments (WAVE) or infrared transmission to name but a few possible examples of wireless communications; or any of the previously enumerated wireless communication technologies.

When the time is approaching lunch time, and/or it is time for the drivers of the vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 to take a break, an internal discussion and negotiation between the vehicle drivers may be made. Alternatively, the driver may pre-set a lunch meal desire, such as e.g. vegan, lactose-intolerant, only ecological ingredients, preferably meat, only accepting lunch offers lower than X Euros, only accepting lunch establishments recommended by other drivers, etc.

When the drivers of vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 have agreed on desires concerning lunch, an inquiry may be formulated and sent to various service providers 2001, 200-2, 200-3, via the vehicle external vehicle management centre 240.

In some embodiments, as illustrated in Figure 3B, the control unit 210 and the database 220 may be situated on-board the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 and the communication between the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 and the service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 may be made directly in some embodiments.

Also, a general check of respective vehicle status may be made, based on various sensor input values as previously discussed.

The inquiry may then comprise a number of food requirements and a request for a price.

Figure 4 illustrates the above described scenario according to an embodiment where an example of the communication is illustrated at three different points in time.

The inquiry sent by the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 is illustrated in the output device 320 at a first moment in time. Upon receiving the inquiry, the respective service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 send an offer. When receiving the responses, the drivers may select the most advantageous one according to some criteria such as price, recommendations, possibility to fulfil the food desires of the inquiry, or other. In different embodiments, the drivers may have a new internal discussion and negotiation for determining which offer to select; or one dedicated driver may select; or offer may be selected according to a predetermined algorithm such as e.g. always select the cheapest offer, etc.

In this case, one of the service providers 200-1 offers diesel and food for a certain amount of money, as illustrated in the output device 320 at a second moment in time.

A confirmation is then sent to the selected service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, possibly together with an indication of current geographical position, or a timing estimate, i.e. the time when the platoon 110 is expected to arrive at the selected service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, as illustrated in the output device 320 at a third moment in time. Knowing this, the selected service provider 200-1 may prepare the food in time to have it ready and served when the drivers enter the restaurant, and possibly also (depending on length of the time period) buy ingredients for preparing special dishes etc., and perhaps recruit additional personnel, etc.

After the visit at the selected service provider 200-1, a rating may be made concerning general satisfaction, e.g. in a rating scale from 1 to 5, or other appropriate numbering, including binary rating (OK/ not OK). The made rating may be stored, associated with the particular service provider 200-1, possibly with a reference to the service and a timestamp (enabling ratings to become obsolete after a predetermined or configurable time limit). The rating may be stored locally in the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, or at the vehicle eternal structure 240, e.g. in the database 220. However, in some embodiments the rating may be stored separately at another location. The made rating may be publicly available in some embodiments.

A large number of ratings is likely to be more trustful and less exposed for manipulation from a single user.

Figure 5 illustrates an example of a method 500 according to an embodiment. The flow chart in Figure 5 shows the method 500 in a control unit 210. The control unit 210 may in some embodiments be comprised in a vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, and in other embodiments be comprised in a vehicle external structure.

The vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be driving independently, or may be comprised in a formation of coordinated vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, i.e. one vehicle after another in a queue sequence (vehicle platoon 110).

The method 500 aims at providing service to the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, according to some predetermined or configurable criteria, from a service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3.

The vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 may be any arbitrary kind of means for conveyance as previously enumerated and exemplified. However, in some particular embodiments, the vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be vehicles for public transportation of passengers such as busses, coaches or similar; or for transportation of goods such as a truck, trailer etc. The vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may communicate with each other via wireless signals transmitted on any of the previously mentioned wireless interfaces, or e.g. by infrared light.

In order to be able to facilitate exit of the vehicle platoon 110, the method 500 may comprise a number of steps 501-509. However, some of these steps 501-509 may be performed solely in some alternative embodiments, like e.g. steps 507-509. Further, the described steps 501 -509 may be performed in a somewhat different chronological order than the numbering suggests. The method 500 may comprise the subsequent steps: Step 501 comprises collecting data from the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3. The data may be collected from various on-board sensors 310 and other instrumentation such as a tachograph, or by input made by the driver over a human-machine communication interface.

In embodiments wherein the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 is comprised in a platoon 110, data may be collected from a plurality of vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110, possibly all vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110.

Step 502 comprises detecting a service need of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, based on the collected 501 data.

The service need detection may further comprise estimating a time interval when the detected service need of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 is required to be complied.

Such estimated time interval may be of any arbitrary length, from e.g. some seconds, to several hours or even days.

Step 503 comprises transmitting an inquiry to a set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, concerning the detected 502 service need of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

The set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 may comprise any arbitrary number of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 between 1 and infinity.

The set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 to receive the inquiry may be selected based on a determination of geographical position of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 and a destination of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

An estimated time interval may be transmitted together with the inquiry to the set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, in some embodiments.

Step 504 comprises receiving an offer from at least one service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, as a response to the transmitted 503 inquiry.

The offer may comprise a confirmation that the inquired service is available, or a suggestion for another alternative service. The offer may also comprise a price and possibly a timing estimate in some embodiments.

Step 505 comprises selecting one of the received 504 offers.

The selection of the received 504 offers may be based on ratings stored in the database 220, in some embodiments, or according to some other criteria such as price, distance to the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, or a compromise between these and possibly other criteria.

Step 506 comprises transmitting information to the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 of the selected 505 offer, confirming the made selection 505.

Thereby the selected service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 becomes aware of the order and can start preparing the ordered service.

Step 507, which only may be comprised in some embodiments, comprises providing information concerning the selected 505 offer and the corresponding service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 to the plurality of vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110.

Step 508, which only may be comprised in some embodiments, comprises rating the service provided by the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3.

Step 509, which only may be comprised in some embodiments wherein step 508 previously has been performed, comprises storing the made rating 508 in a database 220, associated with the provided service and the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3.

Figure 6 presents a system 600. The system 600 aims at facilitating provision of service to a vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3. The vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 may be comprised in a platoon 110.

Further the system 600 comprises a control unit 210 for performing the method 500 according to any, some or all of the previously described steps 501-509 as described above and illustrated in Figure 5. Thus the control unit 210 aims at providing service to a vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3.

The control unit 210 is configured to collect data from the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, via sensors 310 or driver input. The control unit 210 is also configured to detect a service need of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, based on the collected data. Further the control unit 210 is additionally configured to transmit an inquiry to a set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, concerning the detected service need of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 via a communication device 350-1, 350-2, 350-3. The control unit 210 is furthermore configured to receive an offer from at least one service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, as a response to the transmitted inquiry, via the communication device 350-1, 350-2, 350-3. In addition, the control unit 210 is also configured to select one of the received offers, according to some criteria, and also configured to transmit information to the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 of the selected offer, via the communication device 350-1, 350-2, 350-3, confirming the selection.

The control unit 210 may in some embodiments wherein the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 is comprised in a platoon 110 and wherein data is collected from sensors 310 or driver input in a plurality of vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110, be further configured to provide information concerning the selected offer and the corresponding service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 to the plurality of vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 in some embodiments.

Also, the control unit 210 may be further configured to rate the service provided by the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 via driver input, and to store the made rating in a database 220, associated with the provided service and the service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3. Further, the control unit 210 may be configured to select among the received offers is based on ratings stored in the database 220.

The control unit 210 may in addition be further configured to estimate a time interval when the detected service need of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 is required to be complied. Furthermore, the control unit 210 may be configured to transmit the estimated time interval together with the inquiry, to the set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3.

Additionally, the control unit 210 may be further configured to select the set of service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 for receiving the inquiry, based on a determination of geographical position of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 and a destination of the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, or the platoon 110, as the case may be.

The system 600 may also comprise one or several sensors 310, arranged on any, some or all vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110.

The system 600 may further comprise a communication device 350-1, 350-2, 350-3 in the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, for wireless communication with a service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 according to any of the previously discussed wireless communication technologies.

The system 600 may furthermore comprise a communication device 205-1, 205-2, 205-3 at a service provider 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, for wireless communication.

Also, the system 600 may comprise an output device 320, configured to output information concerning the inquiry and / or made offer.

The control unit 210 may comprise a receiving unit 610 configured for receiving information via a communication device 230 for wireless communication, with other vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 and/ or service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3.

The control unit 210 further may comprise a processor 620 configured for performing various calculations for conducting the method 500 according to at least some of the previously described method steps 501 -509.

Such processor 620 may comprise one or more instances of a processing circuit, i.e. a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a processing unit, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a microprocessor, or other processing logic that may interpret and execute instructions. The herein utilised expression “processor” may thus represent a processing circuitry comprising a plurality of processing circuits, such as, e.g., any, some or all of the ones enumerated above.

Furthermore, the control unit 210 may comprise a memory 625 in some embodiments. The optional memory 625 may comprise a physical device utilised to store data or programs, i.e., sequences of instructions, on a temporary or permanent basis. According to some embodiments, the memory 625 may comprise integrated circuits comprising silicon-based transistors. The memory 625 may comprise e.g. a memory card, a flash memory, a USB memory, a hard disc, or another similar volatile or non-volatile storage unit for storing data such as e.g. ROM (Read-Only Memory), PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory), EPROM (Erasable PROM), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable PROM), etc. in different embodiments.

Further, the control unit 210 may comprise a signal transmitting unit 630. The signal transmitting unit 630 may be configured for transmitting a signal to be received by other vehicles 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 in the platoon 110 and/ or service providers 200-1, 200-2, 200-3 via the wireless communication device 230.

The previously described steps 501-509 to be performed in the control unit 210 may be implemented through the one or more processors 620 within the control unit 210, together with computer program product for performing at least some of the functions of the steps 501 -509. Thus a computer program product, comprising instructions for performing the steps 501 -509 in the control unit 210 may perform the method 500 comprising at least some of the steps 501-509 for providing service to the vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, when the computer program is loaded into the one or more processors 620 of the control unit 210.

The described steps 501-509 thus may be performed by a computer algorithm, a machine executable code, a non-transitory computer-readable medium, or a software instructions programmed into a suitable programmable logic such as the processor 620 in the control unit 210 in various embodiments.

The computer program product mentioned above may be provided for instance in the form of a data carrier carrying computer program code for performing at least some of the step 501-509 according to some embodiments when being loaded into the one or more processors 620 of the control unit 210. The data carrier may be, e.g., a hard disk, a CD ROM disc, a memory stick, an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device or any other appropriate medium such as a disk or tape that may hold machine readable data in a non-transitory manner. The computer program product may furthermore be provided as computer program code on a server and downloaded to the control unit 210 remotely, e.g., over an Internet or an intranet connection.

Further, some embodiments may comprise a vehicle 100-1, 100-2, 100-3, comprising the control unit 210, as described above, for performing the method according to at least some of the described steps 501 -509.

The terminology used in the description of the embodiments as illustrated in the accompanying drawings is not intended to be limiting of the described method 500, control unit 210; computer program, and / or system 600. Various changes, substitutions and / or alterations may be made, without departing from invention embodiments as defined by the appended claims.

As used herein, the term "and/ or" comprises any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. The term “or” as used herein, is to be interpreted as a mathematical OR, i.e., as an inclusive disjunction; not as a mathematical exclusive OR (XOR), unless expressly stated otherwise. In addition, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are to be interpreted as “at least one”, thus also possibly comprising a plurality of entities of the same kind, unless expressly stated otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "includes", "comprises", "including" and / or "comprising", specifies the presence of stated features, actions, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, actions, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof. A single unit such as e.g. a processor may fulfil the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. A computer program may be stored/ distributed on a suitable medium, such as an optical storage medium or a solid-state medium supplied together with or as part of other hardware, but may also be distributed in other forms such as via Internet or other wired or wireless communication system.

Claims (10)

PATENT CLAIMS

1. A computer implemented method (500) for providing service to a plurality of vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) comprised in a platoon (110), comprising: collecting (501 ) sensor data and tachograph data from the plurality of vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) in the platoon (110), via wireless communication; detecting (502) a service need of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3), based on the collected (501) sensor data and tachograph data; transmitting (503) an inquiry to a set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), concerning the detected (502) service need of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3); receiving (504) an offer from at least one service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), as a response to the transmitted (503) inquiry; selecting (505) one of the received (504) offers; transmitting (506) information to the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) of the selected (505) offer, confirming the selection (505); and providing (507) information concerning the selected (505) offer and the corresponding service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) to the plurality of vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) in the platoon (110).

2. The method (500) according to claim 1 further comprising: rating (508) the service provided by the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3); storing (509) the made rating (508) in a database (220), associated with the provided service and the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3); and wherein the selection (505) of the received (504) offers is based on ratings (508) stored (509) in the database (220).

3. The method (500) according to any of claims 1-2, wherein the service need detection (502) further comprises estimating a time interval when the detected service need of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) is required to be complied; and wherein the estimated time interval is transmitted (503) together with the inquiry to the set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3).

4. The method (500) according to any of claims 1 -3, wherein the set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) receiving the inquiry is selected based on a determination of geographical position of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) and a destination of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3).

5. A control unit (210) for providing service to a plurality of vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) comprised in a platoon (110), which control unit (210) is configured to: collect sensor data and tachograph data from the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) in the platoon (110), via wireless communication, from sensors (310) or driver input in each respective vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3); detect a service need of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3), based on the collected sensor data and tachograph data; transmit an inquiry to a set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), concerning the detected service need of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) via a communication device (350-1, 350-2, 350-3); receive an offer from at least one service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), as a response to the transmitted inquiry, via the communication device (350-1, 350-2, 350-3); select one of the received offers; transmit information to the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) of the selected offer, via the communication device (350-1, 350-2, 350-3), confirming the selection; and provide information concerning the selected offer and the corresponding service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) to the plurality of vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) in the platoon (110).

6. The control unit (210) according to claim 5, further configured to: rate the service provided by the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) via driver input; store the made rating in a database (220), associated with the provided service and the service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3); and wherein the selection of the received offers is based on ratings stored in the database (220).

7. The control unit (210) according to any of claims 5-6, further configured to estimate a time interval when the detected service need of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) is required to be complied; and further configured to transmit the estimated time interval together with the inquiry, to the set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3).

8. The control unit (210) according to any of claims 6-9, wherein the set of service providers (200-1, 200-2, 200-3) receiving the inquiry is selected based on a determination of geographical position of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) and a destination of the vehicles (100-1, 100-2, 100-3).

9. A computer program comprising program code for performing a method (500) according to any of claims 1-4 when the computer program is executed in a control unit (210), according to any of claims 5-8.

10. A system (600) for providing service to a vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3) comprised in a platoon (110), which system (600) comprises: a control unit (210), according to any of claims 5-8; a sensor (310), arranged on the vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3); a communication device (350-1, 350-2, 350-3) in the vehicle (100-1, 100-2, 100-3), for wireless communication with a service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3); and a communication device (205-1, 205-2, 205-3) at a service provider (200-1, 200-2, 200-3), for wireless communication.