Claims:We claim:

1. A method of providing a temporary access to a vehicle, the method comprising:
receiving, by an access control system (101), a request from a user for temporary access of a vehicle associated with an owner of the vehicle;
providing, by the access control system (101), profile information associated with the user from a predefined user database (107) to the owner based on request of the owner;
generating, by the access control system (101), a temporary access code for the user, based on response from the owner; wherein the owner views pre-verified profile information of the user; and
providing, by the access control system (101), the user with the temporary access code to access the vehicle associated with the owner.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the user request is received by scanning a code, present on the vehicle of the owner, by the user.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the profile information associated with the user is pre-verified by a vehicle authority associated with a region.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the temporary access code unlocks the vehicle of the owner and permits the user to operate the vehicle.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the temporary access code provides accesses to the vehicle associated with the owner for a predetermined time interval.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising providing navigation details associated with the vehicle to the owner of the vehicle for monitoring.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6 further comprising:

modifying, by the access control system (101), at least one of, predetermined time interval for accessing the vehicle and speed associated with an engine of the vehicle, based on the monitoring.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1 further comprising receiving a notification from the user, when a requirement for accessing the vehicle is completed.

9. An access control system (101) for providing a temporary access to a vehicle, comprising:
a processor (115); and
a memory (113) communicatively coupled to the processor (115), wherein the memory (113) stores processor instructions, which, on execution, causes the processor (115) to:
receive a request from a user for temporary access of a vehicle associated with an owner of the vehicle;
provide profile information associated with the user from a predefined user database (107) to the owner based on request of the owner;
generate a temporary access code for the user, based on response from the owner; wherein the owner views pre-verified profile information of the user; and
provide the user with the temporary access code to access the vehicle associated with the owner.

10. The access control system (101) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the user request is received by scanning a code, present on the vehicle of the owner, by the user.

11. The access control system (101) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the profile information associated with the user is pre-verified by a vehicle authority associated with a region.

12. The access control system (101) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the temporary access code unlocks the vehicle of the owner and permits the user to operate the vehicle.

13. The access control system (101) as claimed in claim 12, wherein the temporary access code provides accesses to the vehicle associated with the owner for a predetermined time interval.

14. The access control system (101) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the processor (115) is further configured to provide navigation details associated with the vehicle to the owner of the vehicle for monitoring.

15. The access control (101) system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the processor (115) is further configured to:
modify, at least one of, predetermined time interval for accessing the vehicle and speed associated with an engine of the vehicle, based on the monitoring.

16. The access control system (101) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the processor (115) is further configured to receive a notification from the user, when a requirement for accessing the vehicle is completed.
, Description:TECHNICAL FIELD
The present subject matter relates to vehicle access management, more particularly, but not exclusively to a method and a system for providing a temporary access to a vehicle.

BACKGROUND

Rapid development of urbanization and motorization has led to advancement in mobility. In recent years, automobiles have gained an important place in day to day activities. Generally, every now and then situation arises where an owner of a vehicle needs allowing someone else to access the vehicle or situation where a person wishes to have a temporary access to a locked vehicle for several reasons. For instance, no adequate space to park/remove a vehicle due to undisciplined parked vehicles, accidentally leaving keys inside the vehicle, valet parking without handing over your key, to keep luggage inside a parked car at malls or airport without handing over keys etc. Also, in case of an accident, if a person is trapped inside the vehicle, the emergency services do not know condition of the person or kids and pets left behind in the vehicle in locked condition and the like.
Traditionally in existing systems, to deal with such situations, users requiring such a temporary access need to be familiar with the owner of the vehicle or the owner of the vehicle must be present nearby. Hence, there is a need for a system for providing temporary access to a vehicle in such situations.
e only way out to deal with the
The information disclosed in this background of the disclosure section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment, the present disclosure may relate to a method of providing a temporary access to a vehicle. The method comprises receiving a request from a user for temporary access of a vehicle associated with an owner of the vehicle, providing profile information associated with the user from a predefined user database to the owner based on request of the owner, generating a temporary access code for the user, based on response from the owner. The owner views pre-verified profile information of the user. The method comprises providing the user with the temporary access code to access the vehicle associated with the owner.

In an embodiment, the present disclosure may relate to an access control system for providing a temporary access to a vehicle. The access control system may comprise a processor and a memory communicatively coupled to the processor, where the memory stores processor executable instructions, which, on execution, may cause the access control system to receive a request from a user for temporary access of a vehicle associated with an owner of the vehicle, provide profile information associated with the user from a predefined user database to the owner based on request of the owner, generate a temporary access code for the user, based on response from the owner. The owner views pre-verified profile information of the user. The access control system provides the user with the temporary access code to access the vehicle associated with the owner.

The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this disclosure, illustrate exemplary embodiments and, together with the description, serve to explain the disclosed principles. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system and/or methods in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:

Fig.1 illustrates an exemplary environment for providing a temporary access to a vehicle in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

Fig.2 shows a detailed block diagram of an access control system in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

Fig.3 shows an exemplary representation for providing a temporary access to a vehicle, i.e. a car in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

Fig.4a illustrates a flowchart showing a method for providing a temporary access to a vehicle in accordance with some embodiments of present disclosure;

Fig.4b illustrates a flowchart showing a method for monitoring the user associated with temporary access in accordance with some embodiments of present disclosure; and

Fig.5 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary computer system for implementing embodiments consistent with the present disclosure.

It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any block diagrams herein represent conceptual views of illustrative systems embodying the principles of the present subject matter. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudo code, and the like represent various processes which may be substantially represented in computer readable medium and executed by a computer or processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the present document, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any embodiment or implementation of the present subject matter described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments.

While the disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiment thereof has been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail below. It should be understood, however that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the spirit and the scope of the disclosure.

The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a setup, device or method that comprises a list of components or steps does not include only those components or steps but may include other components or steps not expressly listed or inherent to such setup or device or method. In other words, one or more elements in a system or apparatus proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or method.

In the following detailed description of the embodiments of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the disclosure may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.

The present disclosure relates to a method and an access control system for providing temporary access to a vehicle. In an embodiment, the vehicle may be any vehicle, for instance, car, truck, lorry, van, bus, and the like. In an embodiment, the vehicle may be based on a keyless entry system. The present disclosure may be utilized in situations where a temporary access is required for controlling the vehicle of a person who may not be present around. Particularly, when a user requires an access to the vehicle of such person, who may not be present around, the access control system may receive a request from the user and provide to the person (also referred as an owner of the vehicle). The temporary access to the vehicle of the owner may be provided based on consent of the owner. Based on the temporary access, the vehicle of the owner may be unlocked, and the user may be permitted to operate the vehicle. The present disclosure provides temporary access to the vehicle, thereby providing user convenience in different situations.

Fig.1 illustrates an exemplary environment for providing temporary access to a vehicle in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

As shown in Fig.1, an environment 100 comprises an access control system 101 connected to a vehicle owner device 103. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may be connected to the vehicle owner device 103 associated with an owner of the vehicle (also referred as owner), through a communication network 108. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may be connected to a plurality of vehicle owner devices. A person skilled in the art would understand that Fig.1 is an exemplary environment 100 and the access control system 101 may be connected to the plurality of vehicle owner devices. In an embodiment, the vehicle owner device 103 may include any computing device, but is not limited to, a laptop, a desktop computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a notebook, a smartphone, a tablet, and any other computing devices. A person skilled in the art would understand that, any other device for communicating with vehicle, not mentioned explicitly, may also be used in the present disclosure. The access control system 101 may be connected through a communication network 109 to a user device 105 associated with a user. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may be connected to a plurality of user devices. In an embodiment, the user device 105 may include any computing device, but is not limited to, a laptop, a desktop computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a notebook, a smartphone, a tablet, and any other computing devices. A person skilled in the art would understand that, any other user devices, not mentioned explicitly, may also be used in the present disclosure. Further, the access control system 101 may be connected to a user database 107. The user database 107 may comprise details of users registered with the access control system 101. Further, the communication network 109 may include, but is not limited to, a direct interconnection, an e-commerce network, a Peer to Peer (P2P) network, Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), wireless network (e.g., using Wireless Application Protocol), Internet, Wi-Fi and the like.

The access control system 101 provides temporary access to the vehicle. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may include, but is not limited to, a laptop, a desktop computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a notebook, a smartphone, a tablet, a server, and any other computing devices. A person skilled in the art would understand that, any other device, not mentioned explicitly, may also be used as the access control system 101 in the present disclosure. The access control system 101 may comprise an I/O interface 111, a memory 113 and a processor 115. The access control system 101 may receive a request from the user device 105 associated with a user for temporary access of a vehicle associated with the owner. In an embodiment, the user associated with the request may scan a code present on the vehicle of the owner using the user device 105. In an embodiment, the temporary access may be intended to refer to allowing access of the vehicle to the user based on the request. In an embodiment, the access to the vehicle is restricted by pre-defined conditions such as, access time and the like. The access control system 101 on receiving the request may provide profile information associated with the user to the owner, from the user database 107. In an embodiment, the profile information associated with the registered users may be pre-verified by a vehicle authority associated with a region and stored in the user database 107. The owner views pre-verified profile information of the user. Further, the access control system 101 may generate a temporary access code for the user associated with the request based on response from the owner. In an embodiment, the temporary access code may be used to unlock the vehicle of the owner and permits the user to operate the vehicle. In an embodiment, the temporary access code provides accesses to the vehicle associated with the owner for a predetermined time interval. For instance, the time interval may be five minutes. Thereafter, the access control system 101 may provide the user with another temporary access code to access the vehicle associated with the owner if the request is generated again. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may provide navigation details associated with the vehicle to the owner for monitoring the vehicle. In an embodiment, based on the monitoring, the access control system 101 may modify at least one of the predetermined time interval for accessing the vehicle and a speed associated with an engine of the vehicle. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may receive a notification from the user when a requirement for accessing the vehicle is completed.

The I/O interface 111 may be configured to receive the request from the user for temporary access of the vehicle. The I/O interface 111 may receive the profile information of the users from the user database 107. The I/O interface 111 may provide the temporary access code to the user device 105 of the user for accessing the vehicle of the owner.

The information received from the I/O interface 111 may be stored in a memory 113. The memory 113 may be communicatively coupled to the processor 115 of the access control system 101. The memory 113 may also store processor 115 instructions which may cause the processor 115 to execute the instructions for providing the temporary access to the vehicle.

Fig.2 shows a detailed block diagram of an access control system in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Data 200 and one or more modules 209 of the access control system 101 are described herein in detail. In an embodiment, the data 200 may include request data 201, user profile data 203, temporary access code data 205 and other data 207.

The request data 201 may comprise details regarding the request of the user associated with the user device 105 for accessing the vehicle of the owner. In an embodiment, the request is received by scanning the code present on the vehicle of the owner by the user. In an embodiment, the request data 201 may comprise the scanned code associated with the vehicle which may be used for identifying the owner of the vehicle.

The user profile data 203 may comprise details associated with each user registered with the access control system 101. The details may comprise personal details associated with each user such as, name, User Identification Number (UID), age, address, date of birth, education details, place of residence and the like. Further, the user profile data 203 may comprise details of the vehicle associated with each user. In an embodiment, the details of the vehicle may comprise vehicle number, vehicle record history, Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), driving quality, number of accidents recorded, code present on the vehicle and the like. In an embodiment, the profile information associated with each user is pre-verified by the vehicle authority associated with the region. Further, the user profile data 203 may comprise rating details of the user indicating assessment of the user. For example, the rating may be such as, excellent, good, bad, very bad and the like. A person skilled in the art would understand that any other type of rating, not mentioned explicitly, may also be used in the present disclosure.

The temporary access code data 205 may comprise the temporary access code generated for the user based on the response of the owner on viewing the pre-verified profile information of the user. In an embodiment, the temporary access code may be a unique combination of alphanumeric and special characters. In an embodiment, the temporary access code data 205 may comprise the predetermined time interval associated with the temporary access code generated for the user. Further, the temporary access code data 205 may comprise the modified predetermined time interval for accessing the vehicle and speed details associated with the engine of the vehicle.
The other data 207 may store data 200, including temporary data and temporary files, generated by modules 209 for performing the various functions of the access control system 101.

In an embodiment, the data 200 in the memory 113 are processed by the one or more modules 209 of the access control system 101. As used herein, the term module refers to an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), Programmable System-on-Chip (PSoC), a combinational logic circuit, and/or other suitable components that provide the described functionality. The said modules 209 when configured with the functionality defined in the present disclosure will result in a novel hardware.

In one implementation, the one or more modules 209 may include, but are not limited to a receiving module 211, a profile information providing module 213, an access code generation module 215 and an access code providing module 217. The one or more modules 209 may also include other modules 219 to perform various miscellaneous functionalities of the access control system 101. In an embodiment, the other modules 219 may include a navigation providing module which may provide real-time navigation details associated with the vehicle of the owner to the owner on the vehicle owner device 103. Further, the other modules 219 may include a user rating module which may allow the owner to rate the user once the requirement of accessing the vehicle is completed. In an embodiment, the ratings provided by the owner may be added to the profile information of the user. In an embodiment, the ratings may be accumulated as points in the profile information of the user. The accumulated points of the user may be redeemed for one or more services.
The receiving module 211 may receive the request from the user for accessing the vehicle of the owner. In an embodiment, the user request is received by scanning the code present on the vehicle of the owner by the user. The user may scan the code by using the user device 105. The receiving module 211 may receive the notification from the user, when the requirement for accessing the vehicle is completed. In an embodiment, the receiving module 211 may receive an acknowledgment for the notification, indicating completion of the requirement from the owner. In an embodiment, the receiving module 211 may receive a request from the owner for the profile information of the user. In an embodiment, the receiving module 211 may receive a modification request from the owner for modifying at least one of the predetermined time interval and speed limit for the engine of the vehicle.
The profile information providing module 213 may provide the profile information of the user to the owner by accessing from the user database 107. In an embodiment, the profile information providing module 213 may provide the profile information on receiving the owner request for providing the profile information. In an embodiment, the data stored in the user database 107 may be stored in the memory 113 of the access control system 101. In an embodiment, the profile information may be provided to the vehicle owner device 103 associated with the owner.
The access code generation module 215 may generate the temporary access code for the user based on the response of the owner on viewing the pre-verified profile information provided by the profile information providing module 213. The access code generation module 215 may generate the temporary access code based on the vehicle details of the owner such as, the vehicle number, the VIN associated with the vehicle and the like, and the profile information of the user such as, the UID of the user, date of birth and the like. In an embodiment, the access code generation module may assign special characters for the temporary access code. In an embodiment, the owner may either deny or accept the request of the user based on the profile information. In an embodiment, the temporary access code generated may unlock the vehicle, typically doors of the vehicle and permits the user to operate the vehicle. Further, the access code generation module 215 may generate the temporary access code for the user along with the predetermined time interval for accessing the vehicle. In an embodiment, the predetermined time interval may be provided by the owner or may be generated based on the request of the user. In an embodiment, the user may be restricted access to one or more areas inside the vehicle such as, fingerprint enabled glove box to keep valuables and the like. In an embodiment, the access code generation module 215 may generate the temporary access code based on the vehicle details of the owner. In an embodiment, the access code generation module 215 may modify the predetermined time interval and the speed of the engine associated with the vehicle on receiving modification request from the owner. For example, the access code generation module 215 may modify the predetermined time interval from five minutes to one minute and may reduce the speed of the engine to a minimum speed value for the vehicle.

The access code providing module 217 may provide the generated temporary access code to the user for accessing the vehicle. The temporary access code may unlock the vehicle. In an embodiment, the user along with the user device 105 may be required to be within a predefined range from the vehicle of the owner to unlock the vehicle. In an embodiment, the temporary access code may generate and transmit a predefined range of radio frequency. The radio frequency transmitted by the temporary access code may be received by a receiver unit in the vehicle, which may interpret the radio signal and unlocks the door of the vehicle through one of a Body Control Module (BCM) and an Electronic Control Unit (ECU) of the vehicle. In an embodiment, at least one of Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) and Infrastructure to Vehicle (I2V) technique may be used for accessing the vehicle. In an embodiment, the V2I is a wireless communication technique which may link vehicle at an area to physical surroundings.
Fig.3 shows an exemplary representation for providing a temporary access to a vehicle, i.e. a car in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring now to Fig.3, an exemplary representation 300 for providing a temporary access to a car associated with a user is illustrated. The exemplary representation 300 comprises a car 301 associated with owner of the car 303 (referred hereafter as owner 303), the access control system 101 and a user 307. The access control system 101 may be connected to a mobile phone 305 of the owner 303. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may be connected through a communication network to the mobile phone 305 (not shown explicitly in fig.3). Further, the access control system 101 may be connected to a mobile phone 309 of the user 307. In an embodiment, the access control system 101 may be connected through a communication network to the mobile phone 309 of the user 307 (not shown explicitly in fig.3). Consider a scenario where the car 301 is parked such that the user 307 may not be able to take out his car parked ahead the car 301. In such case, the user 307 may scan the code present on the car 301 of the owner 303 using the mobile phone 309. On scanning the code, the access control system 101 receives the request of the user 307 for temporary access of the car 301. The request of the user 307 is provided to the owner 303 of the car 301 through the mobile phone 305. On receiving a notification regarding the request to access the car 301, the owner 303 may request the access control system 101 to provide profile information associated with the user 307. The access control system 101 may access the profile information associated with the user 307 from the user database 107 (not shown explicitly in fig.3) and provides to the owner 303 on the mobile phone 305. The owner 303 may view the pre-verified profile information of the user 307. In an embodiment, the owner 303 may grant or deny the request of the user 307 based on the profile information. For example, the owner 303 may grant the request of the user 307 if the driving quality of the user 307 is rated high, no record of accidents, good ranking provided by other users and the like based on the pre-verified profile information of the user 307. Similarly, for example, the owner may reject the request of the user 307 if the user 307 is poorly rated by other users and if the driving quality is rated low and the like based on the profile information. Consider that the owner 303 grants the request of the user 307. In such case, the access control system 101 may generate the temporary access code for the user 307. In an embodiment, the temporary access code may be the alphanumerical value for accessing the vehicle. For instance, the temporary access code may be” AXGG123*”. In an embodiment, the temporary access code provides access to the car 301 associated with the owner 303 for the predetermined time interval. Consider, in the present case, the access control system 101 provides a predetermined time interval of five minutes. Thereafter, the access control system 101 may provide the temporary access code “AXGG123*” to the user 307 through the mobile phone 309 for accessing the car 301. In an embodiment, the temporary access code may be communicated from the mobile phone 309 to the car 301 through V2I technique. In an embodiment, the V2I technique may be the wireless communication technique for connecting the car 301 to the surrounding devices. The temporary access code “AXGG123*” may be communicated to the car 301 from the mobile phone 309, thereby unlocking doors of the car 301. Subsequently, the user 307 may park the car 301 in suitable position. In an embodiment, while the user 307 accesses the car 301, the owner 303 may track movement of the car 301 based on navigation details provided by the access control system 101 through the mobile phone 305 to the owner 303. Further, once the car 301 is parked suitably, the user 307 may send a notification to the owner 303, where the notification indicates completion of parking of the car 301 in suitable position. Thereafter, the car 301 of the owner 303 may be locked automatically. In an embodiment, the owner 303 may rate the user 307 based on the parking of the car 301.
Fig.4a illustrates a flowchart showing a method for providing a temporary access to a vehicle in accordance with some embodiments of present disclosure.

As illustrated in Fig.4a, the method 400 includes one or more blocks for providing a temporary access to a vehicle. The method 400 may be described in the general context of computer executable instructions. Generally, computer executable instructions can include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, procedures, modules, and functions, which perform particular functions or implement particular abstract data types.

The order in which the method 400 is described is not intended to be construed as a limitation, and any number of the described method blocks can be combined in any order to implement the method. Additionally, individual blocks may be deleted from the methods without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matter described herein. Furthermore, the method can be implemented in any suitable hardware, software, firmware, or combination thereof.

At block 401, the request from the user is received from the receiving module 211, for temporary access of the vehicle associated with the owner. In an embodiment, the user request is received by scanning the code present on the vehicle of the owner by the user through the user device 105. In an embodiment, the request of the user is provided to the owner. On receiving the request, the owner may request the profile information of the user associated with the request.

At block 403, profile information associated with the user is provided by the profile information providing module 213, from the predefined user database 107 to the owner based on the request of the owner.

At block 405, the access control system 101 may check if the owner wishes to grant or reject the request of the user. The method proceeds to block 407 if the owner wishes to reject the user request based on the profile information of the user. Alternatively, the method moves to block 409 if the owner wishes to grant the request of the user.

At block 407, the access control system 101 may discard the request of the user and notify the user regarding the rejection of the request to the user.

At block 409, temporary access code for the user is generated by the access code generation module 215. In an embodiment, the owner views the pre-verified profile information of the user.

At block 411, the temporary access code is provided to the user by the access code providing module 217, to access the vehicle associated with the owner. In an embodiment, the temporary access code unlocks the vehicle and permits the user to operate the vehicle. In an embodiment, the owner may be provided with navigation details associated with the vehicle for monitoring. Fig.4b illustrates a flowchart showing a method for monitoring the user associated with temporary access in accordance with some embodiments of present disclosure. As shown in fig.4a, at block 413, the navigation providing module may provide the navigation details associated with the vehicle to the owner for monitoring, once the temporary access code is provided to the user.

At block 415, the access control system 101 may check if the user accesses the vehicle as per the request based on monitoring. The method proceeds to block 417 if the user accesses the vehicle as per the request. For example, if the owner grants the access of the vehicle to the user for parking the vehicle in a suitable place inside a parking area and the user is parking the vehicle suitably. Alternatively, the method moves to block 419 if the user is not accessing the vehicle as per the request. For example, if the owner grants the access of the vehicle to the user for parking the vehicle in a suitable place inside the parking area, but the user takes the vehicle outside the parking area.

At block 417, the access control system 101 may allow the user to continue accessing the vehicle. In an embodiment, the user may access the vehicle for the predetermined time interval.
At block 419, the access control system 101 may modify at least one of the predetermined time interval and the speed of the engine associated with the vehicle.
Computing System
Fig.5 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary computer system 500 for implementing embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the computer system 500 may be used to implement the access control system 101. The computer system 500 may include a central processing unit (“CPU” or “processor”) 502. The processor 502 may include at least one data processor for providing temporary access to a vehicle. The processor 502 may include specialized processing units such as, integrated system (bus) controllers, memory management control units, floating point units, graphics processing units, digital signal processing units, etc.

The processor 502 may be disposed in communication with one or more input/output (I/O) devices (not shown) via I/O interface 501. The I/O interface 501 may employ communication protocols/methods such as, without limitation, audio, analog, digital, monoaural, RCA, stereo, IEEE-1394, serial bus, universal serial bus (USB), infrared, PS/2, BNC, coaxial, component, composite, digital visual interface (DVI), high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI), RF antennas, S-Video, VGA, IEEE 802.n /b/g/n/x, Bluetooth, cellular (e.g., code-division multiple access (CDMA), high-speed packet access (HSPA+), global system for mobile communications (GSM), long-term evolution (LTE), WiMax, or the like), etc.

Using the I/O interface 501, the computer system 500 may communicate with one or more I/O devices. For example, the input device may be an antenna, keyboard, mouse, joystick, (infrared) remote control, camera, card reader, fax machine, dongle, biometric reader, microphone, touch screen, touchpad, trackball, stylus, scanner, storage device, transceiver, video device/source, etc. The output device may be a printer, fax machine, video display (e.g., cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), light-emitting diode (LED), plasma, Plasma display panel (PDP), Organic light-emitting diode display (OLED) or the like), audio speaker, etc.

In some embodiments, the computer system 500 consists of the access control system 101. The processor 502 may be disposed in communication with the communication network 509 via a network interface 503. The network interface 503 may communicate with the communication network 509. The network interface 503 may employ connection protocols including, without limitation, direct connect, Ethernet (e.g., twisted pair 10/100/1000 Base T), transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP), token ring, IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/x, etc. The communication network 509 may include, without limitation, a direct interconnection, local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), wireless network (e.g., using Wireless Application Protocol), the Internet, etc. Using the network interface 503 and the communication network 509, the computer system 500 may communicate with a user device 514 associated with the user. Further, the computer system 500 may communicate using a communication network 510, with the vehicle owner device 515 associated with the owner. The network interface 503 may employ connection protocols include, but not limited to, direct connect, Ethernet (e.g., twisted pair 10/100/1000 Base T), transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP), token ring, IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/x, etc.

The communication network 509 includes, but is not limited to, a direct interconnection, an e-commerce network, a peer to peer (P2P) network, local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), wireless network (e.g., using Wireless Application Protocol), the Internet, Wi-Fi and such. The first network and the second network may either be a dedicated network or a shared network, which represents an association of the different types of networks that use a variety of protocols, for example, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), Wireless Application Protocol (WAP), etc., to communicate with each other. Further, the first network and the second network may include a variety of network devices, including routers, bridges, servers, computing devices, storage devices, etc.

In some embodiments, the processor 502 may be disposed in communication with a memory 505 (e.g., RAM, ROM, etc. not shown in figure 5) via a storage interface 504. The storage interface 504 may connect to memory 505 including, without limitation, memory drives, removable disc drives, etc., employing connection protocols such as, serial advanced technology attachment (SATA), Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE), IEEE-1394, Universal Serial Bus (USB), fiber channel, Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI), etc. The memory drives may further include a drum, magnetic disc drive, magneto-optical drive, optical drive, Redundant Array of Independent Discs (RAID), solid-state memory devices, solid-state drives, etc.
The memory 505 may store a collection of program or database components, including, without limitation, user interface 506, an operating system 507 etc. In some embodiments, computer system 500 may store user/application data 506, such as, the data, variables, records, etc., as described in this disclosure. Such databases may be implemented as fault-tolerant, relational, scalable, secure databases such as Oracle or Sybase.

The operating system 507 may facilitate resource management and operation of the computer system 500. Examples of operating systems include, without limitation, APPLE MACINTOSHR OS X, UNIXR, UNIX-like system distributions (E.G., BERKELEY SOFTWARE DISTRIBUTIONTM (BSD), FREEBSDTM, NETBSDTM, OPENBSDTM, etc.), LINUX DISTRIBUTIONSTM (E.G., RED HATTM, UBUNTUTM, KUBUNTUTM, etc.), IBMTM OS/2, MICROSOFTTM WINDOWSTM (XPTM, VISTATM/7/8, 10 etc.), APPLER IOSTM, GOOGLER ANDROIDTM, BLACKBERRYR OS, or the like.

In some embodiments, the computer system 500 may implement a web browser 508 stored program component. The web browser 508 may be a hypertext viewing application, for example MICROSOFT® INTERNET EXPLORERTM, GOOGLE® CHROMETM, MOZILLA® FIREFOXTM, APPLE® SAFARITM, etc. Secure web browsing may be provided using Secure Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTPS), Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), Transport Layer Security (TLS), etc. Web browsers 508 may utilize facilities such as AJAXTM, DHTMLTM, ADOBE® FLASHTM, JAVASCRIPTTM, JAVATM, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), etc. In some embodiments, the computer system 500 may implement a mail server stored program component. The mail server may be an Internet mail server such as Microsoft Exchange, or the like. The mail server may utilize facilities such as ASPTM, ACTIVEXTM, ANSITM C++/C#, MICROSOFT®, .NETTM, CGI SCRIPTSTM, JAVATM, JAVASCRIPTTM, PERLTM, PHPTM, PYTHONTM, WEBOBJECTSTM, etc. The mail server may utilize communication protocols such as Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP), Messaging Application Programming Interface (MAPI), MICROSOFT® exchange, Post Office Protocol (POP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), or the like. In some embodiments, the computer system 500 may implement a mail client stored program component. The mail client may be a mail viewing application, such as APPLE® MAILTM, MICROSOFT® ENTOURAGETM, MICROSOFT® OUTLOOKTM, MOZILLA® THUNDERBIRDTM, etc.
Furthermore, one or more computer-readable storage media may be utilized in implementing embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. A computer-readable storage medium refers to any type of physical memory on which information or data readable by a processor may be stored. Thus, a computer-readable storage medium may store instructions for execution by one or more processors, including instructions for causing the processor(s) to perform steps or stages consistent with the embodiments described herein. The term “computer-readable medium” should be understood to include tangible items and exclude carrier waves and transient signals, i.e., be non-transitory. Examples include Random Access Memory (RAM), Read-Only Memory (ROM), volatile memory, non-volatile memory, hard drives, CD ROMs, DVDs, flash drives, disks, and any other known physical storage media.

An embodiment of the present disclosure provides convenience to users in accessing vehicle of unknown person during emergency situations, thereby saving time and cost of the users.

An embodiment of the present disclosure addresses societal problems in general and space management, traffic reduction and safety in particular.

An embodiment of the present disclosure enhances safety in emergency situation associated with vehicles.

The described operations may be implemented as a method, system or article of manufacture using standard programming and/or engineering techniques to produce software, firmware, hardware, or any combination thereof. The described operations may be implemented as code maintained in a “non-transitory computer readable medium”, where a processor may read and execute the code from the computer readable medium. The processor is at least one of a microprocessor and a processor capable of processing and executing the queries. A non-transitory computer readable medium may include media such as magnetic storage medium (e.g., hard disk drives, floppy disks, tape, etc.), optical storage (CD-ROMs, DVDs, optical disks, etc.), volatile and non-volatile memory devices (e.g., EEPROMs, ROMs, PROMs, RAMs, DRAMs, SRAMs, Flash Memory, firmware, programmable logic, etc.), etc. Further, non-transitory computer-readable media include all computer-readable media except for a transitory. The code implementing the described operations may further be implemented in hardware logic (e.g., an integrated circuit chip, Programmable Gate Array (PGA), Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), etc.).

Still further, the code implementing the described operations may be implemented in “transmission signals”, where transmission signals may propagate through space or through a transmission media, such as, an optical fiber, copper wire, etc. The transmission signals in which the code or logic is encoded may further include a wireless signal, satellite transmission, radio waves, infrared signals, Bluetooth, etc. The transmission signals in which the code or logic is encoded is capable of being transmitted by a transmitting station and received by a receiving station, where the code or logic encoded in the transmission signal may be decoded and stored in hardware or a non-transitory computer readable medium at the receiving and transmitting stations or devices. An “article of manufacture” includes non-transitory computer readable medium, hardware logic, and/or transmission signals in which code may be implemented. A device in which the code implementing the described embodiments of operations is encoded may include a computer readable medium or hardware logic. Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize that many modifications may be made to this configuration without departing from the scope of the invention, and that the article of manufacture may include suitable information bearing medium known in the art.

The terms “an embodiment”, “embodiment”, “embodiments”, “the embodiment”, “the embodiments”, “one or more embodiments”, “some embodiments”, and “one embodiment” mean “one or more (but not all) embodiments of the invention(s)” unless expressly specified otherwise.

The terms “including”, “comprising”, “having” and variations thereof mean “including but not limited to”, unless expressly specified otherwise.

The enumerated listing of items does not imply that any or all of the items are mutually exclusive, unless expressly specified otherwise.

The terms “a”, “an” and “the” mean “one or more”, unless expressly specified otherwise.

A description of an embodiment with several components in communication with each other does not imply that all such components are required. On the contrary, a variety of optional components are described to illustrate the wide variety of possible embodiments of the invention.

When a single device or article is described herein, it will be readily apparent that more than one device/article (whether or not they cooperate) may be used in place of a single device/article. Similarly, where more than one device or article is described herein (whether or not they cooperate), it will be readily apparent that a single device/article may be used in place of the more than one device or article or a different number of devices/articles may be used instead of the shown number of devices or programs. The functionality and/or the features of a device may be alternatively embodied by one or more other devices which are not explicitly described as having such functionality/features. Thus, other embodiments of the invention need not include the device itself.

The illustrated operations of Fig. 4a and Fig.4b show certain events occurring in a certain order. In alternative embodiments, certain operations may be performed in a different order, modified or removed. Moreover, steps may be added to the above described logic and still conform to the described embodiments. Further, operations described herein may occur sequentially or certain operations may be processed in parallel. Yet further, operations may be performed by a single processing unit or by distributed processing units.

Finally, the language used in the specification has been principally selected for readability and instructional purposes, and it may not have been selected to delineate or circumscribe the inventive subject matter. It is therefore intended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by any claims that issue on an application based here on. Accordingly, the disclosure of the embodiments of the invention is intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of the invention, which is set forth in the following claims.

While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

Referral numerals:
Reference Number Description
100 Environment
101 Access control system
103 Vehicle owner device
105 User device
107 Database
108 Communication device
109 Communication device
111 I/O interface
113 Memory
115 Processor
200 Data
201 Request data
203 User profile data
205 Temporary access code data
207 Other data
209 Modules
211 Receiving module
213 Profile information providing module
215 Access code generation module
217 Access code providing module
219 Other modules
301 Car
303 Owner
305, 309 Mobile phone
307 User
500 Computer system
501 I/O interface
502 Processor
503 Network interface
504 Storage interface
505 Memory
506 User interface
507 Operating system
508 Web browser
509 Communication network
510 Communication network
512 Input devices
513 Output devices
514 User device
515 Vehicle owner device