The present invention relates to a system for securing a vehicle. More
particularly, the present invention relates to system having an anti-theft device
that monitors the theft and a user device for operating the activities of a vehicle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The current century is going through massive technological revolution and the
electric vehicle industry being at the nucleus of it. There are multiple ways in
which remote unlocking and anti-theft devices are boosting the ongoing
revolution: the vehicle unlocking has evolved from using keys to RF keys fobs
and Bluetooth low energy, cloud connectivity has made the users cell phone his
key thus enhancing his/her user experience, the current technology has enabled
the vehicle to be tracked in real-time as well as provide distress notification thus
improving the asset security, with technologies like remote unlock and anti-theft
already embedded within the vehicle has enabled the operator in exploring new
business models around the vehicles. Some examples are Ride Sharing, Vehicle
Leasing etc.
The current system comes with the following limitations: The secure methods
available causes man in the middle attack “MITM” attack and systems using
Rolling Codes are also vulnerable to signal jamming and signal replay, anti-theft
device provides security to the vehicle but many a time the box itself is left
unsecure that leads to tampering of the device, sometimes the smart vehicle
does not detect a “False Trigger” that causes noise nuisance and low power
efficiency, a lot of the anti-theft devices use internet for the cloud connectivity/
real time notifications that sometimes lead to network jam and leads to theft.
Moreover, the subsystems should be disabled in case of theft so that they could
be used in other vehicle or for other purpose. The hub motor protection is also
necessary apart from theft. The hub motor is removed by tampering the vehicle
by removing screws and taking out the motor.
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WO2010033010A1 discloses an anti-theft system with locking mechanism
adapted to lock the wheel of a motorcycle wherein the locking device is adapted
to interlock with the motorcycle engine housing member cam chain area which
comprises a spocket cap, metallic cylinder, building motor, metallic lock bar and
a switch. The present invention further comprises a central control unit which
controls the locking mechanism and having a built-in shock sensor. A wireless
unit controls the locking and unlocking, function of the said locking mechanism.
The main drawback of the invention is that the system only locks the vehicle and
is only confined to motorcycle.
CN1291870 discloses a CPU, a remote control receiver for detecting a
locking/unlocking signal fed from the remote controller and a vibration
detecting sensor as a theft detecting means are stored in a handle lock module
including a handle lock mechanism. Thus, the locking/unlocking signal received
by the remote control receiver is transmitted, or a wire for transmitting a
vibration sensing signal of a car body by the vibration detecting sensor to the
CPU is not exposed to the outside. The main drawback of the invention is that
the locking mechanism is only applicable to two-wheeler vehicles.
US20040164850 discloses multiple components of a motorcycle theft-deterrent
device enclosed within a single weather-resistant module, to ensure that wiring
thereof is protected from the elements. The theft-deterrent device permits
secure starting of the engine with a remotely operated device. The
theft-deterrent device includes a CPU, a remote control receiver for detecting a
locking/unlocking signal from a remote operation device, and a vibration sensor
as theft-deterrent equipment in a handlebar lock module, including a handlebar
lock mechanism. As a result of this inclusion, wiring is protected. The protected
wiring sends locking/unlocking signals, which have been received by the remote
control receiver to the CPU, as well as vibration sense signals from the vibration
sensor to the CPU for protecting the vehicle body. The main drawback of the
invention is that the invention focuses on protecting the wiring from elements.
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US4700801 discloses an antitheft device for a vehicle that includes a deadbolt
mounted on the vehicle door for providing security to the vehicle door. The
deadbolt operates a normally closed switch which is in series circuitry with the
vehicle battery, starter and ignition key switch. The deadbolt and switch are
arranged so that the switch is open when the deadbolt is in locked position and
the switch is closed when the deadbolt is in unlocked position. The main
drawback of the invention is that the anti-theft device is mounted on the vehicle
door that clearly indicates that the device can only be mounted on a four
wheeler vehicle.
Therefore, there is a need of a device which is simple in design and can be used
for all types of vehicle and can overcome all the above limitations.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
The main object of the present invention is to develop a system for securing a
vehicle having a theft device and a user device for detecting theft, tampering and
monitoring various activities of a vehicle.
Another main object of the present invention is to provide theft device having a
plurality of components for detecting theft, tampering and vandalizing
protection of vehicle.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide user device for
operating various activities that include but is not limited to lock/unlock, start/
stop, pause/ resume of vehicle. Further, it protects vehicle from network
jamming.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a simple system that
overcomes false alarm triggering and at the same time protects subsystems of
vehicle.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a system for protecting a vehicle by detecting
theft, tampering and controlling various activities.
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The device has two main operating mode Sleep and Wakeup Mode. By default
the device is in sleep mode and only wakes up if triggered by any of the two
group members Unlock(BLE signal, Key Signal) or the Theft(Wheel rotation
signal, Jerk Signal, Jamming Signal, Tampering Signal). When the device wakeup
its in Wakeup Mode and checks the source of wakeup. Depending upon source
of wakeup from the two of the groups the device checks for authentication(In
case of Unlock Signal) or theft monitoring(In case of Theft Signal).
In a main embodiment, the present invention provides a system for securing a
vehicle comprises of a theft device and a user device. The theft device is either
retrofitted or inbuilt inside said vehicle. Said theft device detects theft by
monitoring various actions of said vehicle and subsequently said device
performs a plurality of tasks to indicate theft, when said actions cross a
predefined value. The actions include such as but not limited to jerk, wheel
rotation and tampering. The task includes such as but is not limited to triggering
an alarm, notifying the user device via a communication protocol and notifying
subsystems of vehicle via intra vehicle communication means to perform a
desired function. The communication protocol includes such as but not limited
to Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy, Internet. The subsystem includes such as
but is not limited to i-vec compatible motor, battery controllers. The intra
vehicle communication means include such as but is not limited to a user
platform, user interface. The desired function includes blocking said subsystems
to avoid theft.
The user device operates various activities of said vehicle such as but is not
limited to lock/unlock, start/stop, pause/resume and controlling alarm. The user
device includes such as but not limited to a smart phone, tablet or a device with
an inbuilt or preinstalled application.
In yet another embodiment, the present invention provides a theft device
comprising of a plurality of components such as but is not limited to a
microcontroller, a communication medium, a position detector, a plurality of
sensors, a plurality of data inputs, a communication protocol, a storage device
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and an intra vehicle communication means. The communication medium
includes but is not limited to gsm. The position detector includes such as but not
limited to gps. The sensors include but are not limited to current sensor, motion
sensor, temperature sensor, distance sensor. Said sensors provide data inputs to
said device for measuring vehicle performance. The communication protocol
includes such as but not limited to Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy. The storage
device includes such as but not limited to a memory chip for storing said data
inputs.
Said theft device works on two modes namely sleep mode and active mode. The
theft device is in sleep mode when the vehicle is locked and is in active mode
when it identifies theft. The theft is identified by monitoring actions of said
vehicle such as but is not limited to jerk, wheel rotation and tampering. The theft
device detects said actions through the plurality of sensors and if said actions
exceed a predefined value, the device performs a plurality of tasks. The actions
leads to displacement of said vehicle and the predefined value of displacement
exceeds 100m. The tampering is monitored by checking a plurality of
connections or attachments bolted to said device. The plurality of connections
or attachments includes enclosure screws, ring connectors. The plurality of tasks
include but is not limited to triggering an alarm, communicating and notifying
the user device through said communication medium and said position
detector, notifying subsystems of vehicle via intra vehicle communication means
to perform blocking of said subsystems to avoid theft. The intra vehicle
communication means include such as but is not limited to a user platform, user
interface. The intra vehicle communication is based upon a wired protocol. All
the subsystems are interconnected via the wired bus. For communication
between subsystems the need to have a compatible version of the protocol.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
Fig.1 shows the flowchart of theft device in accordance with an embodiment of
the present invention.
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Fig.2 shows the flowchart of user device in accordance with an embodiment of
the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention focuses on the system for protecting a vehicle thus
eliminating the cumbersome installation process and provides anti-theft feature
that secures the vehicle. The system comprises of a theft device and a user
device. The theft device is either retrofitted or inbuilt inside the vehicle. The
user device is used by user to operate the activities of the vehicle.
The theft device comprises of a plurality of components such as but is not
limited to a microcontroller, a communication medium, a position detector, a
plurality of sensors, a plurality of data inputs, a communication protocol, a
storage device and an intra vehicle communication means. The communication
medium includes but is not limited to gsm. The position detector includes such
as but not limited to gps. The sensors include but are not limited to current
sensor, motion sensor, temperature sensor, distance sensor. Said sensors
provide data inputs to said device for measuring vehicle performance. The
communication protocol includes such as but not limited to Bluetooth,
Bluetooth low energy, Internet. The storage device includes such as but not
limited to a memory chip for storing said data inputs.
Referring to Fig.1, the present invention shows the flowchart of the theft device.
The theft device functions on two modes namely sleep mode and active mode.
The device is in sleep mode when vehicle is locked and said device is in active
mode when the vehicle experiences movements such as sudden jerk or wheel
rotation. The movement leads to the activation of sensors that detects the
vehicle displacement, position detector that detects the position. The
displacement when exceeds 100m leads to the following tasks such as triggering
of alarm, the communication medium at the same time sends signals to the user
device through the communication protocol and the subsystems of vehicle are
notified to block themselves via intra vehicle communication means. The intra
vehicle communication means include such as but is not limited to a user
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platform, user interface. The intra vehicle communication means check the
state of said subsystem before locking themselves. The communication medium
when experiences network jamming notifies user device through a short
message service via communication protocol for further security. The theft
device also functions when said device is tampered. Various connections or
attachments are bolted to said device that includes enclosure screws, ring
connectors. The theft device after performing the tasks goes to sleep and user
manually resets the user device to normal state.
Referring to Fig.2, the present invention shows the flowchart of the user device.
The user device operates various activities of said vehicle such as but is not
limited to lock/unlock, start/stop, pause/resume and alarm. The user accesses
the activities of vehicle through a signal. The signal includes either receiving a
onetime password from a data centre and after receiving the signal, the user is
connected to theft device via communication protocol and said device starts
authentication. After successful authentication, the user performs lock/unlock,
start/end or pause resume of the vehicle according to user needs. The user
accesses the vehicle activities by repeating the above process. The user device
includes such as but not limited to a smart phone, tablet or a device with an
inbuilt or preinstalled application. The data centre includes such as but not
limited to cloud services.
EXAMPLE 1
START/ END THE RIDE OF VEHICLE
The theft device generates a unique token such as a onetime password when
starting a new ride of the vehicle. The user receives the unique token on the user
device and updates the data centre and the vehicle is unlocked for the ride and
similarly the same process is repeated while ending the ride. In this way, the user
gets wireless access to operate the vehicle.
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As the name suggests, unique token is used only once for each ride and sent by
the theft device for subsequent rides. The token encryption is also used to avoid
man in the middle attack and data distortion.
EXAMPLE 2
PAUSE/RESUME RIDE OF VEHICLE
When the vehicle is unlocked and ready to drive the user can pause the ride via
the BLE application. The device when it receives this signal it blocks the throttle
signal to the motor controller. Now the vehicle is still unlocked but will not
respond to the throttle. To reinstate the vehicle in the previous state the user
sends the resume signal to the device via the BLE application. Now the vehicle
will respond to the throttle.
EXAMPLE 3
NETWORK JAMMING
The theft device when detects network jamming, it advertise a short service
message indicating the network jam. The user device scans the messages from
registered users and notifies the respective user through user interface.
Therefore, the present invention provides the system that eliminates the
cumbersome installation process and fulfils the vehicle’s connectivity needs as
well as provides anti-theft feature and easy access for securing and controlling
the vehicle.

We Claim:

1. A system for securing a vehicle, comprising:
a. a vehicle, comprising:
i. a user device for operating the said vehicle;
ii. a theft device capable of performing a plurality of tasks,
b. the said theft device, comprising:
i. a plurality of sensors;
ii. a microcontroller;
iii. a communication protocol;
iv. a position detector;
v. a storage device; and
vi. an intra vehicle communication means,
wherein, the said theft device detects any unauthorized activity by the position
detector through the plurality of sensors installed in the said vehicle, and communicates
a plurality of data inputs received from the plurality of sensors by means of the
communication protocol to the user device,
wherein, the said theft device detects any unauthorized activity by the position
detector through the plurality of sensors installed in the said vehicle and communicates
through the intra-vehicle communication means, a plurality of data inputs to subsystems of the said vehicle and blocks the said sub-system of the said vehicle.
2. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the vehicle is an
Electric Vehicle.
3. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the plurality of sensors
are including but not limited to current sensor, motion sensor, temperature sensor,
distance sensor.
4. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the position of the
vehicle is detected by the position detector, the said position detector is a GPS.
5. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the communication
protocol includes Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy, and Internet.
6. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the said intra-vehicle
communication means, comprising:
a. a user platform; and
b. a user interface.
7. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the subsystem of the
said vehicle includes, i-vec compatible motor and battery controllers.
8. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the said vehicle can
be operated by the user device.
9. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the storage data
includes a memory chip for storing the said data inputs.
10. The system for securing a vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the said system detects
the unauthorized activity of the said vehicle by means of the position detector.