Patent ID: 11915165
Assignee: GEOTAB INC.
Field: Control (Instruments)
Classification: CPC G  B | IPC G

Claim 0:
1. A method for managing shared access to a vehicle including a vehicle device, the method comprising:
storing, by a first at least one non-transitory processor-readable storage medium of the vehicle device, a plurality of virtual keys in a plurality of virtual key slots, wherein:
each virtual key is stored in a respective virtual key slot of the plurality of virtual key slots;
each virtual key is associated with a respective list of at least one user from a plurality of lists of at least one user;
each virtual key is associated with a respective set of vehicle access privileges;
users included in each respective list of at least one user are entitled to the respective set of vehicle access privileges associated with a respective virtual key to which the respective list of at least one user is associated;
the plurality of virtual key slots includes one active virtual key slot and a plurality of non-active virtual key slots; and
access to the vehicle is controlled according to a set of vehicle access privileges associated with a virtual key stored in the active virtual key slot;

in response to an interaction event with the vehicle device by a candidate user, where credentials for the candidate user are received by the vehicle device, determining by a first at least one processor of the vehicle device, whether the candidate user is included in a list of the plurality of lists;
if the candidate user is included in a list of the plurality of lists:
determining, by the first at least one processor of the vehicle device, a virtual key associated with the list in which the candidate user is included and a set of vehicle access privileges associated with the determined virtual key;
storing, by the first at least one non-transitory processor-readable storage medium, the determined virtual key in the active virtual key slot; and
providing vehicle access to the candidate user in accordance with the determined set of vehicle access privileges, by providing a vehicle access mechanism which controls access to the vehicle with control instructions from the first at least one processor based on the set of vehicle access privileges associated with the determined virtual key stored in the active virtual key slot; and

if the candidate user is not included in a list of the plurality of lists:
communicating, by a communication interface of the vehicle device, the credentials of the candidate user for reception by a reservation management device;
receiving, by the communication interface of the vehicle device from the reservation management device, an indication of vehicle access privileges of the candidate user;
storing, by the first at least one non-transitory processor-readable storage medium, a virtual key associated with the vehicle access privileges provided in the indication of vehicle access privileges in the active virtual key slot; and
providing vehicle access to the candidate user in accordance with the vehicle access privileges indicated in the indication of vehicle access privileges, by providing the vehicle access mechanism with control instructions from the first at least one processor based on the vehicle access privileges associated with the virtual key stored in the active virtual key slot.