111111
`
`1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
`US007917285B2
`
`c12) United States Patent
`Rothschild
`
`(10) Patent No.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 7,917,285 B2
`Mar.29,2011
`
`(54) DEVICE, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR
`REMOTELY ENTERING, STORING AND
`SHARING ADDRESSES FORA POSITIONAL
`INFORMATION DEVICE
`
`(75)
`
`Inventor: Leigh M. Rothschild, Plantation, FL
`(US)
`
`(73) Assignee: Reagan Inventions, LLC, Sunny Isle
`Beach, FL (US)
`
`( *) Notice:
`
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 1307 days.
`
`(21) Appl. No.: 11/413,890
`
`(22) Filed:
`
`Apr. 28, 2006
`
`(65)
`
`Prior Publication Data
`
`US 2007/0252689 AI
`
`Nov. 1, 2007
`
`(51)
`
`Int. Cl.
`(2006.01)
`GOJC 21100
`(2009.01)
`H04W 24/00
`(2006.01)
`GOJC 21/30
`(2006.01)
`G06G 7/70
`(52) U.S. Cl. ........ 7011207; 701/201; 701/200; 701/210;
`455/456; 455/17
`(58) Field of Classification Search .................. 701/207,
`701/201' 200; 455/456, 517
`See application file for complete search history.
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`6,073,075 A * 6/2000 Kondou et al.
`............... 7011203
`6,202,023 B1 * 3/2001 Hancock et a!. .............. 7011201
`6,584,402 B2 * 6/2003 Fukushima et a!.
`.......... 7011202
`2002/0156578 A1 * 10/2002 Kondou et al.
`............... 7011213
`2003/0018428 A1 *
`112003 Knockeart et a!. ............ 7011210
`2003/0050751 A1 * 3/2003 Fukushima et a!.
`.......... 7011202
`2003/0055542 A1 * 3/2003 Knockeart et a!. .............. 701126
`2003/0055555 A1 * 3/2003 Knockeart et a!. ............ 7011202
`2004/0049337 A1 * 3/2004 Knockeart et a!. ............ 7011201
`2004/0049338 A1 * 3/2004 Beesley et a!. ................ 7011202
`2004/0064245 A1 * 4/2004 Knockeart et a!. ............ 7011117
`2004/0228489 A1 * 1112004 Ishibashi et al. .............. 380/258
`2005/0004944 A1 *
`1/2005 Cossins eta!. ............. 707/104.1
`2006/0041374 A1 * 2/2006 Inoue . ........................... 7011207
`2006/0094353 A1 * 5/2006 Nielsen et a!. .................. 455/17
`2006/0240860 A1 * 10/2006 Benco et al. ............... 455/550.1
`2007/0143015 A1 * 6/2007 Kim .............................. 7011213
`* cited by examiner
`Primary Examiner- Khoi Tran
`Assistant Examiner- Ian Jen
`(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm- Gerald E. Hespos; Michael
`J. Porco
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`Devices, systems and methods for remotely entering, storing
`and sharing location addresses for a positional information
`device, e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) device, are
`provided. The present disclosure allows a user to easily and
`safely enter an address into a GPS device by giving that
`address to a remote communications link and to have that link
`automatically program the user's GPS device for usage. The
`device, system and method of the present disclosure further
`allows the user to use this stored address( es) on multiple GPS
`devices without having to manually enter the address( es ).
`18 Claims, 5 Drawing Sheets
`
`ANT
`
`112
`
`100
`
`102
`
`~116
`
`~104
`
`106
`
`114
`
`118
`
`VWGoA - Ex. 1001
`Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., Petitioner
`
`1
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.29,2011
`
`Sheet 1 of 5
`
`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`ANT
`
`112
`
`100
`
`102
`
`~116
`
`104
`
`106
`
`114
`
`110
`
`118
`
`FIG. 1
`
`2
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.29,2011
`
`Sheet 2 of 5
`
`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`121
`
`~100
`
`ENCRYPTION
`MODULE
`
`INPUT
`MODULE
`
`DISPLAY
`MODULE
`
`128
`
`126
`
`104
`
`LOCATIONAL
`INFORMATION MODULE
`
`122
`
`USER VERIFICATION
`MODULE
`
`COMPUTER
`PROCESSING
`MODULE
`
`STORAGE
`MODULE
`
`120
`
`110
`
`COMMUNICATION
`MODULE
`
`DATE& TIME
`MODULE
`
`112
`
`124
`
`SPEED CONTROL
`MODULE
`
`130
`
`132
`
`FIG. 2
`
`3
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.29,2011
`
`Sheet 3 of 5
`
`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`304
`
`306
`
`~14
`~
`
`Satellite
`
`~ 307
`
`Associated Information
`E.g., -name of person
`- cross street
`-zip code
`- phone number
`- alternative spelling
`
`Terminal
`
`308
`
`Satellite dish
`
`Communications Network
`
`302
`
`. //// t~12
`
`.·· .. ·
`
`WiMAX Tower
`
`~,00······················ .......... .
`
`\
`
`Mobile Terminal
`Communications Tower
`
`FIG. 3
`
`4
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.29,2011
`
`Sheet 4 of 5
`
`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`INITIATE/ACTIVATE COMMUNICATION LINK ~ 402
`
`,
`
`TRANSMIT/RECEIVE REQUEST FOR LOCATION
`INFORMATION
`
`~
`
`404
`
`"
`
`DETERMINE COORDINATES FOR LOCATION OF THE
`REQUESTED LOCATION
`
`~
`
`406
`
`,,
`
`RECEIVE/TRANSMIT COORDINATES TO DEVICE ~ 408
`,,
`
`DISPLAY ROUTE GUIDANCE TO REQUESTED LOCATION ~ 410
`
`FIG. 4
`
`5
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Mar.29,2011
`
`Sheet 5 of 5
`
`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`INITIATE/ACTIVATE COMMUNICATION LINK ~ 502
`
`,
`
`TRANSMIT/RECEIVE REQUEST FOR LOCATION
`INFORMATION STORED IN ANOTHER DEVICE
`
`~
`
`504
`
`,
`
`TRANSMIT/RECEIVE IDENTIFIER ~ 506
`,,
`
`RETRIEVE REUESTED INFORMATION FROM DATABASE
`OR OTHER DEVICE
`
`508
`~
`
`,,
`
`RECEIVEfTRANSMIT REQUESTED INFORMATION TO
`DEVICE
`
`~ 510
`
`,,
`
`DISPLAY ROUTE GUIDANCE TO REQUESTED LOCATION ~ 512
`
`FIG. 5
`
`6
`
`

`

`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`1
`DEVICE, SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR
`REMOTELY ENTERING, STORING AND
`SHARING ADDRESSES FORA POSITIONAL
`INFORMATION DEVICE
`
`BACKGROUND
`
`1. Field
`The present disclosure relates generally to navigational or
`positional information systems, and more particularly, to
`devices, systems and methods for remotely entering, storing
`and sharing addresses for a positional information device,
`e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) device.
`2. Description of the Related Art
`GPS (Global Positioning System) devices are everywhere. 15
`These devices provide a user with such information as lati(cid:173)
`tude and longitude, accurate time, heading, velocity, etc. GPS
`devices are particularly useful in automobiles and other
`vehicles. Many individuals have multiple GPS devices if they
`own, for instance, two cars that both have the device. Con- 20
`ventionally, most devices will allow a user to store informa(cid:173)
`tion such as address points in the internal memory of the
`device. Some devices will allow you to store this information
`on removable memory, e.g., memory cards, optical media,
`etc. In the latter case, this can be particularly helpful because 25
`a list of addresses, for instance, will be useful to be moved
`from GPS device (e.g., a first vehicle) to GPS device (e.g., a
`second vehicle).
`Conventionally, a GPS device will inform a user how to get
`from one point to another. Additionally, it provides informa- 30
`tion on points of interest, e.g., hotels, restaurants, historic
`landmarks, etc. Some GPS units will also provide informa(cid:173)
`tion including current speed of travel as well as average speed
`of travel.
`GPS devices must be programmed by the user to tell the 35
`device the address that the user wishes to travel to. The GPS
`device then provides route guidance information to the user. If
`the user has already programmed the address in (in many
`devices the address is referred to as a waypoint), many GPS
`devices will store this address information in internal or 40
`removable memory so that the device will be able to retrieve
`this information for future usage.
`There are several major problems with the current systems
`of programming addresses (e.g., destination information)
`into a GPS device. The first problem is that different devices
`recognize addresses differently depending on the prepro(cid:173)
`grammed information that has been stored. Additionally, dif(cid:173)
`ferent devices have different user interfaces and program
`differently. If a user knows how to program one device, he
`may not necessarily know how to program another unit. By
`example, if a user tries to program the address 19333 Collins
`Avenue, Sunny Isles, Fla., many devices will not accept this
`address. Instead, the user will have to decide which city the
`street address lies in. In many cases, this can be a laborious
`and timely procedure. In the previous example, some GPS
`devices will accept Surmy Isles Beach as the proper address,
`while others will only accept North Miami Beach, while still
`others will require an entry ofNorth Miami, while still others
`will only recognize Sunny Isles as the correct entry. In some
`cases, a user can spend 15 to 20 minutes attempting to pro(cid:173)
`gram in a single address. In some cases, the user is never able
`to have the nnit accept an address, therefore not allowing the
`use of the GPS device.
`A second problem that currently exists is that many users
`have multiple vehicles that go to the same address and require
`route guidance by the GPS device. The current systems would
`require the user to enter the requested address (e.g., destina-
`
`2
`tion information) or multiple addresses into all vehicle units
`individually. This is an urmecessary waste of time, and as
`discussed above, can be a very difficult assignn1ent.
`A third problem that currently exists, is that many times a
`user needs to route to an address or destination while the user
`is driving. It may be an address that the user does not even
`have a correct city designation for. The current GPS devices
`make it extremely difficult or impossible for a user to program
`the device for an address while driving. In fact, for reasons of
`10 safety, some GPS devices discourage or lock out users from
`address entry while the vehicle is being operated. However, a
`definite need exists for a user to quickly program the GPS
`device to a desired address.
`A current and major trend in automobile technology is
`automobile telematics. Many oftoday's cars feature systems
`that allow the user to communicate with a central processing
`center in case of emergency. Routine features allow the user
`to receive help and directions from a live agent or operator,
`and further allow the processing service center to nnlock car
`doors, track stolen vehicles, warn a user when an airbag has
`deployed and provide information on various subjects, e.g.,
`points of interests along travel. Examples of telematics sys(cid:173)
`tems include Onstar of Troy, Mich., Mercedes Assist of
`Montvale, N.J. and Lexus Link of Troy, Mich.
`Despite the various services that the telematics companies
`provide, one service that they do not provide is the automatic
`programming of a vehicle's GPS device. Yet, a clear need
`exists for a system and method to allow a user to be able to
`easily, quickly and safely program their GPS device(s) with
`address/destination information.
`
`SUMMARY
`
`The present disclosure provides a device, system and
`method of remotely entering, storing, and sharing addresses
`for Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) devices. Additionally,
`a system and method of progrannning GPS nnits from a link
`on the Global Computer Network (e.g., the Internet) is also
`provided.
`According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method
`for entering location information into a positional informa(cid:173)
`tion device is provided. The method includes receiving a
`request for at least one location from a user; determining
`coordinates of the least one requested location; and transmit-
`45 ting the determined coordinates to the device. The receiving
`step includes receiving an identifier of the device, wherein the
`identifier is a mobile phone number or an IP address.
`In various different aspects, the request is received by voice
`communication and/or data transfer. Furthermore, the request
`50 may be received from the device and/or a remote computer.
`In another aspect, the determining step includes retrieving
`the coordinates from a database residing on a server. In a
`further aspect, the determining step includes retrieving the
`coordinates from at least one second positional information
`55 device.
`In yet another aspect of the present disclosure, the deter(cid:173)
`mining coordinates step includes resolving an address of the
`at least one location into latitude and longitude coordinates.
`The address may be determined by information associated to
`60 the address, wherein the associated information is a name of
`a person residing at the address, a cross street of the address,
`a zip code of the address, a phone number of the address or an
`alternative spelling of the address.
`In a further aspect of the present disclosure, a positional
`information device includes a locational information module
`for determining location information of the device; a commu(cid:173)
`nication module for transmitting a request for at least one
`
`65
`
`7
`
`

`

`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`3
`location remote of the device and for receiving coordinates of
`the at least one location; a processing module configured to
`receive the coordinates from the communication module and
`determine route guidance based on the location of the device
`and the received coordinates; and a display module for dis(cid:173)
`playing the route guidance. The communication module is
`configured to transmit the request by voice communications
`and/or wireless data transfer.
`In another aspect of the present disclosure, a system for
`entering location information into a positional information
`device is provided. The system includes a server configured to
`receive a request for at least one location, determine coordi(cid:173)
`nates of the least one requested location and to transmit the
`determined coordinates to the device; the positional informa(cid:173)
`tion device including a locational information module for
`determining location information of the device; a communi(cid:173)
`cation module for receiving coordinates of the at least one
`location from the server; a processing module configured to
`receive the coordinates from the communication module and 20
`determine route guidance based on the location of the device
`and the received coordinates; and a display module for dis(cid:173)
`playing the route guidance; and a communications network
`for coupling the positional information device to the server.
`In one aspect, the communications network is a telematics 25
`network.
`In a further aspect, the server is operated by a live operator
`and the request for the at least one location is received by
`voice communications.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`4
`Referring to FIG. 1, a global positioning system (GPS)
`device 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present
`disclosure is illustrated. Although the device shown and
`described in relation to FIG. 1 is a hand-held device, it is to be
`understood the principles of the present disclosure may be
`applied to any type of navigation or positional information
`device including but not limited to a vehicle-mounted device,
`a GPS receiver coupled to a desktop computer or laptop, etc.
`Furthermore, the present disclosure may apply to various
`10 types of vehicles such as an automobile, a boat, a bicycle, etc.
`It is also to be appreciated that the components described
`below may not necessarily be disposed in a single housing but
`incorporated into another device or structure, for example,
`components of the device may be integrated into a dashboard
`15 of an automobile.
`The GPS device 100 includes various electrical compo(cid:173)
`nents, which will be described in detail below, disposed in a
`generally rectangular housing 102. A display module 104 is
`provided for displaying a location of a user, a map, coordi(cid:173)
`nates, waypoints, frequently accessed addresses, personal
`information, etc. As will be described in more detail below,
`the display module 104 may include a touch screen for facili(cid:173)
`tating user input of information. Input module 106 includes a
`plurality of buttons 108 for inputting data and navigating
`through a plurality of menus and/or maps. The GPS device
`100 further includes a storage module 110 for storing a plu-
`rality of maps, frequently used addresses, traveled routes, etc
`and a communication module 112 for transmitting stored data
`to another device, e.g., a personal computer, a personal digital
`30 assistant (PDA), a server residing on the Internet, etc. and for
`transmitting verbal communications to other devices. The
`device 100 will include a microphone 114 for acquiring audio
`from the user of the device to input data and to communicate
`to others. A speaker 116 for audibly producing communica-
`35 tions from others, directions, warnings and/or alarms to a user
`is also provided.
`Referring to FIG. 2, the various components of the device
`100 will now be described. The device will contain a com-
`puter processing module 120, e.g., a microprocessor. The
`40 computer processing module 120 will use computer software
`instructions that have been progrmed into the module and
`conventional computer processing power to interact and orga(cid:173)
`nize the traffic flow between the various other modules. It is to
`be understood that the present disclosure may be imple(cid:173)
`mented in various forms of hardware, software, firmware,
`special purpose processors, or a combination thereof. A sys-
`tem bus 121 couples the various components shown in FIG. 2
`and may be any of several types of bus structures including a
`memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a
`50 local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. The
`device also includes an operating system and micro instruc(cid:173)
`tion code preferably residing in read only memory (ROM).
`The various processes and functions described herein may
`either be part of the micro instruction code or part of an
`55 application program (or a combination thereof) which is
`executed via the operating system. Exemplary operating sys(cid:173)
`tems include but are limited to SymbianOS, Windows
`Mobile/Windows CE, Palm OS, Linux, Blackberry OS, etc.
`which have been developed for mobile computing applica-
`60 tions and can handle both data computing and communica(cid:173)
`tion applications.
`It is to be further understood that because some of the
`constituent device components and method steps depicted in
`the accompanying figures may be implemented in software,
`65 the actual connections between the device components (or the
`process steps) may differ depending upon the manner in
`which the present disclosure is programmed. Given the teach-
`
`The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of
`the present disclosure will become more apparent in light of
`the following detailed description when taken in conjunction
`with the accompanying drawings in which:
`FIG. 1 is front view of a positional information device
`according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
`FIG. 2 is a block diagram of various modules included in
`the device illustrated in FIG. 1;
`FIG. 3 is a diagram of an exemplary system for entering,
`storing and sharing location information in GPS devices in
`accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
`FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for entering,
`storing and sharing location information in GPS devices 45
`according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
`FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for entering,
`storing and sharing location information in GPS devices
`according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`
`Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be
`described hereinbelow with reference to the accompanying
`drawings. In the following description, well-known functions
`or constructions are not described in detail to avoid obscuring
`the present disclosure in unnecessary detail.
`Devices, systems and methods for remotely entering, stor(cid:173)
`ing and sharing location addresses for a positional informa(cid:173)
`tion device, e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) device,
`are provided. The present disclosure allows a user to easily
`and safely enter an address into a GPS device by giving that
`address to a remote communications link and to have that link
`automatically program the user's GPS device for usage. The
`device, system and method of the present disclosure further
`allows the user to use this stored address( es) on multiple GPS
`devices without having to manually enter the address( es ).
`
`8
`
`

`

`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`5
`ings of the present disclosure provided herein, one of ordinary
`skill in the related art will be able to contemplate these and
`similar implementations or configurations of the present dis(cid:173)
`closure.
`A locational information module 122 is provided for deter(cid:173)
`mining a location of the device 100 and/or user. The loca(cid:173)
`tional information module 122 may include a receiver and
`antenna ANT employing conventionallocational information
`processing technology such as Global Positioning Satellite
`(GPS) Technology, Loran Technology, or any other available
`locational technology, to indicate the exact location or coor(cid:173)
`dinates, e.g., latitude, longitude and altitude, of the device
`100. Exemplary GPS receivers and antennas are described in
`U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,654,718 and 6,775,612, the contents ofboth
`of which are herein incorporated by reference. It is to be
`appreciated that the latitude, longitude and altitude may be
`used to interact with maps stored in memory or in the storage
`module 110 of device 100 to determine the city, state or
`address of the location the device 100. Furthermore, the loca(cid:173)
`tional information module 122 may calculate routes traveled,
`velocity or speed of a vehicle including the device 100, etc., or
`alternatively, may send the position coordinates to the pro(cid:173)
`cessing module 120 at a predetermined sampling period
`where the processing module will perform the calculations.
`Furthermore, the device 100 will include a date and time
`module 124. The date and time module 124 will use standard
`computer chip processing technology widely in use, or alter(cid:173)
`natively, input from locational information module 122, e.g.,
`a GPS receiver, to supply the date and time. The date and time
`may be associated or correlated with routes traveled, a par(cid:173)
`ticular location and speeds and may be employed to deter(cid:173)
`mine velocity or speed of the user of the device 100 whether
`in a vehicle, on a bicycle or while walking.
`The device 100 will also contain a display module 104 for
`displaying a location of a user, a map, coordinates, waypoints, 35
`frequently accessed addresses, etc. This display may be in any
`current form in the art, including Liquid Crystal Displays
`(LCD), Light emitting diode displays (LED), Cathode Ray
`Tube Displays (CRT) or any other type of display currently
`existing or existing in the future. The display module 104 will 40
`include an audio output device 116, e.g., a speaker, head(cid:173)
`phone jack, etc., allowing the user to also hear audio output
`from the device 100, e.g., for audibly producing directions to
`a desired location or predetermined address. The speaker 116
`will also be used in conjunction with microphone 114 and 45
`communication module 112 to enable voice communications
`as will be described below.
`The device 100 of the present disclosure will contain a user
`input module 126 to either receive user instructions via text
`input by the way ofbuttons 108, a standard keyboard interface
`coupled to the device, or a character recognition capture
`device which translates user text input into alphanumeric
`characters. Preferably, the character recognition device is a
`touch screen which overlays the display module 104 and text
`is entered via a pen-like stylus. Such input devices are stan(cid:173)
`dard and currently available on many electronic devices
`including portable digital assistants (PDAs) and cellular tele(cid:173)
`phones. Microphone 114 will be further coupled to the input
`module 126 for capturing any audio information spoken by
`the user and the input module will further include an analog(cid:173)
`to-digital (A/D) converter for converting the spoken audio
`information into a digital format. Furthermore, the input
`module may include a voice recognition processor that trans(cid:173)
`lates the digital human voice into alpha numeric characters
`for user input. The user will utilize the user input module 126
`to enter various data, for example, a plurality of destination
`addresses, waypoints, etc.
`
`6
`The storage module 110 includes internal storage memory,
`e.g., random access memory (RAM), or removable memory
`such as magnetic storage memory; optical storage memory,
`e.g., the various types of CD and DVD media; solid-state
`storage memory, e.g., a CompactFlash card, a Memory Stick,
`SmartMedia card, MultiMediaCard (MMC), SD (Secure
`Digital) memory; or any other memory storage that exists
`currently or will exist in the future. The storage module 110
`will store various types of information such as the inputted
`10 destination addresses, routes traveled by the user, the user's
`home address, etc. The storage module 110 will further store
`a plurality of geographical maps. In operation, the processing
`module 120 will process information received from overhead
`satellites and calculate the geographic location that the device
`15 100 is currently at. The processing module 120 then plots that
`location on a graphic representation of a map stored in the
`storage module 110, e.g., internal or external memory. This
`map is then displayed on the display module 104 of the device
`100. The map optionally will include points of interest also
`20 plotted on the map. By example, hospitals, police offices, gas
`stations, ATMs, hotels, restaurants, etc. can also be displayed.
`These point of interest locations are placed on the map in their
`proper locations by the publisher of the map when the map is
`published, or alternatively, these locations are stored in an
`25 internal address database and then dynamically placed on the
`graphical representation map by the processing module 120
`as the map displays on the display module 104.
`Maps may be provided for different areas via multiple
`removable memory cards, e.g., a memory card for each state
`30 in the United States. Alternatively, different maps may be
`received wirelessly via the communication module 112 and
`loaded into memory or the storage module 110 as needed. The
`processing module 120 will determine based on the informa(cid:173)
`tion received from the locational information module 122 that
`a map corresponding to the devices current position is not
`available and the processing module 120 will request an
`appropriate map from a service provider available on a com(cid:173)
`munication network accessed via the communication module
`112.
`The communication module 112 will enable the device 100
`to transmit or transfer information, e.g., current location of a
`vehicle, speed of a vehicle, time and date of the recorded
`location and/or speed, etc., to other computing devices and to
`receive information from other computing devices, e.g.,
`maps, software updates, etc. Furthermore, the communica(cid:173)
`tion module 112 will enable voice communications between
`the device 100 and other devices, remote operators, etc. The
`communication module 112 will perform its functionality by
`hardwired and/or wireless connectivity. The hardwire con-
`50 nection may include but is not limited to hard wire cabling,
`e.g., parallel or serial cables, USB cable, Firewire (1394
`connectivity) cables, and the appropriate port. The wireless
`connection will operate under any of the various known wire(cid:173)
`less protocols including but not limited to Bluetooth™ inter-
`55 connectivity, infrared connectivity, radio transmission con(cid:173)
`nectivity including computer digital signal broadcasting and
`reception commonly referred to as Wi-Fi or 802.11.X (where
`x denotes the type of transmission), or any other type of
`communication protocols or systems currently existing or to
`60 be developed for wirelessly transmitting data. The commu(cid:173)
`nication module will compress and encode the encrypted
`information for transmission using any known wireless com(cid:173)
`munication technology. It is to be appreciated that the com(cid:173)
`munication module may include a single integrated circuit
`65 chip to perform data transfer and voice communications or a
`single module including a separate data transfer chip, e.g., a
`WiFi transceiver, and a separate voice communication chip,
`
`9
`
`

`

`US 7,917,285 B2
`
`7
`e.g., a CDMA chip. Preferably, the communication module
`will operate on the wireless GPRS (General Packet Radio
`Service) data protocol or a 3G protocol such as W-CDMA,
`CDMA2000 and TD-SCDMA. Both the GPRS and 3G pro(cid:173)
`tocols have the ability to carry both voice and data over the
`same serv1ce.
`The device 100 will also include an encryption module
`128. The encryption module 128 will use conventional code
`encryption algorithms currently in use or that will be in use in
`the future such as symmetric-key algorithms, e.g., DES,
`Triple-DES, Blowfish, RC2, RC4, RC5, etc, and asymmetric(cid:173)
`key algorithms, e.g., Diffie-Hellman, RSA, ElGamal, etc. to
`encrypt the data information that comes into the user input
`module 126 and/or that is stored in the storage module 110. In
`one embodiment of the present disclosure, the encryption 15
`module 128 will always encrypt the data information, but in
`other embodiments, the user will select whether to encrypt the
`data or to leave the data unencrypted.
`Upon initialization of device 100, processing module 120
`prompts the user via display module 104 or speaker 116 to 20
`select a code string that the user wishes to use. The user
`selects an appropriate code string and enters the code string
`into the device 100 with input module 126 via buttons 108,
`microphone 114 or touch screen. The input module 126 sends
`the code string to the processing module which in turn sends 25
`this string to encryption module 128. The encryption module
`128 then uses this code string to encrypt (using standard
`encryption algorithms identified above) all addresses and
`route points (or just the addresses and route points that the
`user designates) and store this information in the storage 30
`module 110. When the GPS device 100 is inactive, all infor(cid:173)
`mation in the storage module 110 is encrypted. When the GPS
`device 100 is active, the information in the storage module
`110 is sent to the encryption module 128 which after receiv(cid:173)
`ing the user's code string decrypts the information, and then 35
`sends the information to the processing module where it can
`then be presented to the user on the display module 104.
`In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the GPS
`device 100 will include a hardware interlock 118 to prevent
`the removal of the storage module 110. The interlock 118 may 40
`be a detent configured to engaged a memory card being
`employed, a mechanical door which prevents access to the
`storage module 110, or a mechanism which physical rejects
`the storage module 110. In this embodiment, the user would
`submit the code string to the encryption module 128 via the 45
`input module 126 which would then accept the code string
`and instruct the processing module 120 to unlock the hard(cid:173)
`ware interlock 118 and allow user removal of the storage
`module 110. If the code string is not accepted, the storage
`module 110 will not be able to be removed.
`In another embodiment, the device 100 will further include
`a user verification module (UVM) 130. The user verification
`module 130 will indicate and verify the identity of the user of
`the device 100. The user verification module 13 0 may execute
`a password protection algorithm or may include an identity
`capture device, either incorporated into the device 100 or
`coupled externally via a cable. The identity capture device
`may be a biometric device, such as a retinal scanning device,
`finger print reader, facial recognition reader or another type of
`user identity verification input device which will collect
`information on the user to be compared to information that
`has previously been stored in the device's memory. One such
`exemplary fingerprint reader is the BioTouch™ fingerprint
`reader commercially available from Identix Incorporated of
`Minnetonka, Minn. It is to be noted that identity detection
`devices such as biometric devices are common and are cur(cid:173)
`rently widely in use. It is to be further noted, that identity
`
`8
`verification devices that are not yet in use such as DNA
`detection, etc, would also be compatible with device 100. In
`one embodiment, the identity of the user may be required in
`addition to the entering of a code string to decrypt information
`on the storage module 110. In a further embodiment, the
`identity of a particular user may be linked to their code string
`and, upon verification of the identity of a user, the linked code
`string will be submitted to the encryption module 128. In
`another embodiment, the identity of the user may be required
`10 to unlock the interlock