DE-102025146171-A1 - SYSTEMS, METHOD AND VEHICLES FOR PROVIDING A SAFE CHARGING PORT ON AN EXTERNAL SIDE OF A VEHICLE

Abstract

This disclosure discloses systems, methods, and vehicles. For example, this disclosure provides users with a secure charging port on the exterior of a vehicle. The port may be a wireless charging pad, allowing the user to receive power without needing to carry a portable charger and cable. The port may not be easily visible to someone in the vicinity of the vehicle. This disclosure provides support to the community, for example, by providing a charging mechanism in the event of a natural disaster via the vehicle's charging port. This disclosure provides protection for the vehicle battery and prevents misuse by using a limited charging duration (e.g., 1-10 minutes, sufficient to unlock the vehicle) and/or by not allowing a subsequent charging session until the vehicle is unlocked.

Inventors

• Yeana Annie Cho
• David George Butler
• Chelsey Colbert
• Arjuna Sivasithambaresan

Assignees

• RIVIAN IP HOLDINGS, LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260513

Application Date

20251110

Priority Date

20251021

Claims (20)

1. Vehicle, comprising: a connector located on an external section of the vehicle; and processing circuitry configured to: detect a signal indicating that a user device is connected to the connector; and determine whether to supply power to the user device via the connector at a first rate or a second rate, based on whether one or more criteria are met, the second rate being slower than the first rate.
2. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria include whether an exceptional condition is associated with a location of the vehicle, and wherein the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the exceptional condition is associated with the location of the vehicle; and based on the determination that the exceptional condition is associated with the location of the vehicle, via the connection, supply power to the user device at a first rate.
3. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle; and based on determining that the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, supply, via the connector, the user device with power at the first rate.
4. Vehicle after Claim 3 , wherein the processing circuit arrangement is further configured prior to determining that the user device is linked to the authenticated user of the vehicle in order to supply power to the user device, via the connector, at the second rate.
5. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; and based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, supply, via the connector, the user device with power at the second rate for a period of time, and after determining that the period of time has elapsed, stop supplying power to the user device via the connector.
6. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; based on the determination that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, provide a notification to a user device of an authorized user of the vehicle indicating that an unauthenticated user is attempting to use the port to receive power for their user device; and based on the authorization of the user device of the authenticated user of the vehicle, via the port, supply power to the user device at the first rate or the second rate.
7. Vehicle after Claim 6 , the notification further includes a video of the unauthenticated user in the vicinity of the vehicle.
8. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, provide a notification to a user device of an authorized user of the vehicle indicating that an unauthenticated user is attempting to use the port to receive power for their user device; and based on receiving no response to the notification from the user device of the authorized user of the vehicle or based on receiving a selection of a negative option, determine that power is withheld from the user device.
9. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria comprise whether the state of charge of a vehicle battery is below a threshold, and wherein the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold; and based on determining that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold, supply, via the connector, the user device with power at the first rate or the second rate for a period of time and, after determining that the period of time has elapsed, stop supplying power to the user device via the connector.
10. Vehicle after Claim 1 , wherein one or more criteria comprise whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle and whether the state of charge of a vehicle battery is below a threshold, and wherein the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to: determine that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; determine that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold; and, based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle and that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold, determine that the power supply to the user device is withheld.
11. Method comprising: Detecting, by the processing circuit arrangement, a signal indicating that a user device is connected to a connector, the connector being located on an external section of a vehicle; Determining, by the processing circuit arrangement, whether to supply current to the user device via the connector at a first rate or a second rate, based on whether one or more criteria are met, the second rate being slower than the first rate.
12. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria are to determine whether an exceptional state is associated with the location of the vehicle, and wherein the procedure further comprises: determining that the exceptional state is associated with the location of the vehicle; and, based on determining that the exceptional state is associated with the location of the vehicle, supplying power to the user device via the connection at the first rate.
13. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is linked to an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the method further comprises: determining that the user device is linked to an authenticated user of the vehicle; and, based on determining that the user device is linked to an authenticated user of the vehicle, via the connection, supplying power to the user device at the first rate.
14. Procedure according to Claim 13 , furthermore comprehensively, prior to determining that the user device is linked to the authenticated user of the vehicle, via the connection, supplying power to the user device at the second rate.
15. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the method further comprises: determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; and, based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, supplying, via the connector, the user device with power at the second rate for a period of time, and, after determining that the period of time has elapsed, stopping the supply of power to the user device via the connector.
16. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and wherein the method further comprises: determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, providing a notification to a user device of an authorized user of the vehicle indicating that an unauthenticated user is attempting to use the connection to receive power for their user device; and based on the authorization of the user device of the authenticated user of the vehicle, via the connection, supplying power to the user device at the first rate or the second rate.
17. Procedure according to Claim 16 , the notification further includes a video of the unauthenticated user in the vicinity of the vehicle.
18. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and wherein the method further comprises: determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, providing a notification to a user device of an authorized user of the vehicle indicating that an unauthenticated user is attempting to use the connection to receive power for their user device; and based on receiving no response to the notification from the user device of the authorized user of the vehicle or based on receiving a selection of a negative option, determining that power is withheld from the user device.
19. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria comprise whether the state of charge of a vehicle battery is below a threshold, and wherein the method further comprises: determining that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold; and, based on determining that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold, supplying, via the connection, the user device with power at the first rate or the second rate for a period of time and, after determining that the period of time has elapsed, stopping the supply of power to the user device via the connection.
20. Procedure according to Claim 11 , wherein one or more criteria comprise whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle and whether the state of charge of a vehicle battery is below a threshold, and wherein the method further comprises: determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; determining that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold; and, based on determining that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle and that the state of charge of the vehicle battery is below the threshold, determining that the power supply to the user device is withheld.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED REGISTRATIONS This application claims the benefit of preliminary status. US patent application no. 63/719,065 , which was filed on November 11, 2024, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. INTRODUCTION Smartphones can be used as keys to access a vehicle. However, if a smartphone battery runs out (or the smartphone is lost) while a user is far from home, they may lock themselves out of their car and potentially be stranded. SUMMARY As disclosed herein, the present disclosure provides vehicles, systems, methods, non-transitory computer-readable media, and devices in which a charging port can be safely provided to users on the exterior of a vehicle. In some embodiments, the port may be a wireless charging pad that allows the user to receive power without having to carry a portable charger and cable. In some embodiments, the port may not be readily visible to someone in the vicinity of the vehicle; for example, someone may not be "informed" about it. In some embodiments, the present disclosure provides community support, for example, by providing a charging mechanism in the event of a natural disaster via the vehicle's port. In some embodiments, the present disclosure provides protection of the vehicle battery and prevention of misuse by using a limited charging duration (e.g., 1-10 minutes, sufficient to unlock the vehicle) and/or by allowing a subsequent charging session only after the vehicle is unlocked (e.g., based on the current received at the port during an initial session), and/or the port can be configured to supply power only to specific devices (e.g., configurable devices, such as a friend's smartphone if the owner's smartphone is lost). In some embodiments, a user device can be authenticated, e.g., based on data received via Bluetooth signals or another suitable mechanism. As disclosed herein, the present disclosure provides vehicles, systems, methods, non-transitory, computer-readable media and devices in which a connector is located on an external section of the vehicle, as well as a processing circuit arrangement configured to detect a signal indicating that a user device is coupled to the connector and, based on whether one or more criteria are met, to determine whether the user device should be powered via the connector at a first rate or a second rate, the second rate being slower than the first rate. In some embodiments, this includes one or more criteria for determining whether an exceptional condition is associated with a location of the vehicle, and wherein the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to determine that an exceptional condition is associated with the location of the vehicle, and based on determining that an exceptional condition is associated with the location of the vehicle, supplying power to the user device via the connection at the first rate. In some embodiments, one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to determine that the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and based on the determination that the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, the user device is supplied with power via the connector at a first rate. In some embodiments, the processing circuit arrangement is further configured, prior to determining that the user device is linked to an authenticated user of the vehicle, via the connector to supply power to the user device at the second rate. In some embodiments, one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuit arrangement is further configured to determine that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, and based on the determination that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, the user device is supplied with power via the connection at the second rate for a period of time. and, after determining that the time period has elapsed, the power supply to the user device via the connection is stopped. In some embodiments, one or more criteria include whether the user device is associated with an authenticated user of the vehicle, and the processing circuitry is further configured to determine that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle; based on the determination that the user device is not associated with any authenticated user of the vehicle, providing a notification to a user device of an authorized user of the vehicle indicating that an unauthenticated user is attempting to use the port to receive power for their user device; based on the authorization of the user device of the authenticated user of the vehicle, via the port, supplying power to the user device at the first rate or the second rate. In