Abstract:
In the current state of the art there are a number of operable devices  11, 12, 13  known that have an operating panel  14  through which a user of the device  11, 12, 13  can produce and/or change-existing operating states, Because of the fact that manual operation is often very complex and can also result in the distraction of the user in situations that require the full the attention of a user to be directed elsewhere, the invention increases the ease of operation and simultaneously reduces the amount of attention required to be paid to the devices  11, 12, 13 . The invention uses a decision unit  15  that blocks or releases certain operating states of the operable device  11, 12, 13  based on the data received. The invention can be implemented, for example, so that a mobile telephone  11  installed in a vehicle  10  does not “transfer” any telephone calls or suppresses the making of telephone calls from within the vehicle  10  when the vehicle  10  is moving faster than a certain speed.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention contributes to the safe and/or convenient use of operable devices in or under conditions that require the full the attention of a user to be directed elsewhere. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     There are numerous operable devices known in the current state of the art that provide an operating panel through which a user of the device can produce and/or change existing operating states. Examples of such types of devices are telephones or stereos. These devices are characterized in that at least one button or knob must be operated to produce and/or change operating states, This may be acceptable when the user can direct his or her full attention to the operable device. However, it is often the case that the user cannot or will not direct any of his or her attention to the operable device due to other events or conditions. For example, if a telephone or car stereo is installed in a vehicle, it is not acceptable from a safety standpoint that the driver, while operating the vehicle, nevertheless makes a telephone call or changes a cassette. 
     The aspect of convenience as well as the safety aspect has been neglected in many operable devices. For example, if in a vehicle that is equipped with a permanently installed telephone, a user must enter the appropriate data when he wants calls to be forwarded. This is often deemed to be tedious and the user therefore refrains from doing this. Refraining from doing this does not have any consequences other than that the user cannot be reached. This is not the case, however, when a user accidentally uses his or her mobile telephone or laptop computer at a location where the use of such devices is prohibited for safety reasons. 
     It is also not acceptable for all incoming calls to a mobile telephone to be transferred to the user. This may be desirable in most cases, but in some cases may lead to problems when private calls are “transferred” to the user during a business call, for example. 
     Even if the problems presented in this context only relate to telephones and car stereos, it should be noted for the sake of completeness that these problems are also present in other operable devices. For example, adjusting the temperature of an air conditioning system or setting up a navigation system while driving is just as dangerous as operating a car phone. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention implements the task of specifying an operable device that takes safety aspects as well as convenience aspects into consideration. 
     If, in accordance with the invention, there is a decision unit present that blocks or releases certain operating states of the operable device based on received data, then the detection of dangerous situations based on the data can be used to ensure that certain operating states cannot be executed and/or it is impossible to manually operate the operating panel, for example. The latter also results in a training effect that is not to be underestimated because restricting functionality, however it is accomplished, will help the user develop a better feel for dangerous situations and, due to his or her unsuccessful efforts to operate the device in dangerous situations, the user will automatically refrain from operating the device in such situations. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a motor vehicle; and 
         FIG. 2  a mobile telephone 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The invention is now explained in more detail based on the drawings. 
       FIG. 1  shows a diagram of a motor vehicle  10 . This motor vehicle is equipped with a car phone  11 , a car radio  12  and a navigation system  13 . The car phone  11 , the car radio  12  and the navigation system  13  each fulfill the definition of the term “operable device”. For the sake of clarity, however, the operating panel  14  is only shown in more detail for the car radio  12 . 
     There is also a decision unit  15  present. This decision unit  15  is connected to sensors  17 . 1 ,  17 . 2  via the wires  16 . 1 ,  16 . 2 . Sensor  17 . 1  has the task of determining the speed of the vehicle  10 , The determination of when the vehicle brakes (not shown) have been activated is done via sensor  17 . 2 . Even though the diagram in  FIG. 1  is limited to just two sensors  17 , this does not mean that the invention is limited to these two sensors  17 . On the contrary, other sensors (not illustrated) may be used which determine when the steering wheel has been turned or that determine the angle of inclination of the vehicle  10 , for example. The type of sensors  17  which are used are left up to the expert. The arrangement of the sensors  17 . 1 ,  17 . 2  is not limited to the wheels  18  of the vehicle  10  as shown in  FIG. 1 . For example, it is possible in a different example (not shown) that the sensor  17 . 1  determines the speed of the vehicle  10  using the tachometer (not shown) or that existing speed data, when already available in the vehicle  10 , is fed directly to the decision unit  15 . 
     Furthermore, the decision unit  15  is connected to the car phone  11  via a data line  19 . 1  and is connected to the car radio  12  via a data line  19 . 2 . 
     To better understand the invention it is assumed that the vehicle  10  is moving on a highway at a speed between 100 and 140 kin/h. Furthermore, it is assumed that operating the car phone  11  and/or the car radio  12  at speeds over 130 km/h is considered dangerous. 
     Example 1 
     In this example only sensor  17 . 1  is present, and it continuously transmits speed values to the decision unit  15 . The decision unit  15  is designed as a threshold switch (not presented in more detail). If the threshold switch is provided with speed values from sensor  17 . 1  that are over the speed of 130 km/h that is considered dangerous, then a signal is triggered and is transmitted on the data lines  19 . 1 ,  19 . 2 . This signal then blocks the operation of the operating panel  14  on the car radio  12  and prevents telephone calls from being made in the vehicle  10  and from being received in the vehicle  10 . 
     Just for the sake of completeness it should be noted that it is not necessary for the same speed limitations to apply to both the car radio  12  and the car phone  11 . For example, making a telephone call can be prevented at speeds higher than 100 km/h while the operability of the car radio  12  is only restricted at speeds over 120 km/h. Even the various operating states of the car phone  11  could be dependent on the corresponding speed. For example, making a telephone call from the vehicle  10  could be prevented at speeds higher than 50 km/h while receiving a telephone call is allowed at speeds of up to 160 km/h, especially when the telephone is equipped with a hands-free operation accessory. 
     If the telephone function of the car phone  12  or the operability of the car radio  11  is suspended due to the current vehicle speed, the driver can be optically or acoustically informed of this state at the same time the signal is transmitted on the data lines  19 . 1 ,  19 . 2 . In the context of the car phone  12 , the unit could be designed so that the driver is also notified of incoming calls even if the current speed prevents the driver from accepting the call, In this case the driver may be provided the opportunity to reduce the speed in order to be able to accept the call. The unit can also be built so that incoming telephone calls are immediately forwarded to a different telephone at speeds where making or receiving a telephone call is prevented. Finally, the unit could be designed so that the number of the caller is stored when the vehicle  10  is moving at a speed higher than the speed at which making and receiving a telephone call is prevented. If the speed of the vehicle  10  drops below the critical value later on, the number stored could be used to automatically dial the caller. 
     The decision unit  15  can also be designed so that over a time period t the fluctuation of the driving speed is measured and used as a gauge for determining the operability or usability of operable devices. For example, if a speed of 100 km/h with a fluctuation of +/−5 km/h is determined during the time period t, then the demands placed on the driver could be considered low enough to allow the driver to make telephone calls, in contrast to when there is a fluctuation of +/−30 km/h. 
     If the vehicle  10  is equipped with a navigation system  13  that specifies the way to the destination for the driver through corresponding announcements, then the decision unit  15  can also be modified so that the corresponding announcements must be output at least twice at speeds over a critical speed, while at lower speeds the announcement only needs to be output once. 
     Even though the speed-dependent usability of the operable devices  11 ,  12  discussed in Example I already makes an undisputed contribution to safety, this type of influence on the operating states is very static because, from a safety standpoint, it may be safe to make a telephone call at a speed of 130 km/h when driving smoothly, while doing so in another situation at speeds higher than 70 km/h may present a safety hazard. For this reason, a more flexible solution is discussed in the context of Example 2. 
     Example 2 
     To realize this, an initial example is given in which the driving speed is not used immediately to influence the operating states of the operable devices  11 ,  12 , rather the driving speeds are averaged over a time period t within the decision unit  15 . Only after this average value is over the speed determined to be critical will a corresponding signal be output on the data lines  19 . 1 ,  19 . 2 . 
     In a second example not only is sensor  17 . 1  active, but also sensor  17 . 2 . For example, if it is determined that the actual driving speed is above one of the critical values stored in the decision unit but sensor  17 . 2 , which monitors the activation of the brakes, does not notify the decision unit  15  of a braking maneuver over a time period t 1 , then this can be used as an indicator that in spite of the current speed the operable devices  11 ,  12  are still operable or usable. 
     In addition to the vehicle-specific conditions (speed, braking response), external conditions can also be taken into consideration as influencing factors. For example, if the vehicle is equipped with a receiving unit  20  with which traffic and/or weather information can be received, then this information can be used to block or release the operable devices  11 ,  12 ,  13 . To do this, it is necessary that the data received by the receiving unit  20  is transmitted to the decision unit  15  (not shown in  FIG. 1 ). It is very advantageous in this context when there is a navigation system  13  present because the corresponding information can be restricted to the current location due to the knowledge of the current location of the vehicle. In addition, the presence of a navigation system  13  is also advantageous because important knowledge can be gained that can be used to block operating states due to the knowledge of the street currently being used or of the streets that will soon be used. If only the traffic information and navigation system  13  are used, objective knowledge of whether or not telephone calls are to be permitted in the near future can be gained, for example. 
     Just for the sake of completeness it should be noted that the decision unit  15  can also be designed so that all values received by the sensors  17  are evaluated and converted into a driving profile that is then used to decide if the operable devices  11 ,  12  are usable after comparison with a driving profile stored in the decision unit. The driving profile stored in the decision unit  15  could also be designed to learn. This means that the decision unit  15  adapts the driving profile stored in it to the abilities of the corresponding driver, for example, based on the values received by the sensors  17 . This ensures that when the sensors  17  detect values that allow drawing the conclusion that the driver has fast reactions, such a driver can still use the operable devices  11 ,  12  in somewhat more critical situations than a driver with slower reactions. 
     Even if the navigation system  13  in  FIG. 1  does not have any operable device like the car phone  11  and the car radio  12 , but functions as a sensor (indicated in  FIG. 1  by the arrow from the navigation  13  to decision unit  15 ), it should be pointed out that an operable panel will be blocked in a similar manner as the operating panel  14  of the car phone  11 , if in another embodiment (not illustrated) the navigation system  13  is equipped with an operable panel. 
     If the navigation system  13  functions as a sensor in accordance with the diagram in  FIG. 1 , then, when a vehicle is driven on a difficult stretch of road such as a mountain road or on roads prone to accidents, a corresponding signal can be sent to the decision unit  15  via wire  16 . 3  and can be used to block the operable devices  11 ,  12  if necessary, for example. 
     In addition the navigation system  13  can also be used to improve convenience. Because the navigation system always knows the location of the vehicle, this information can easily be used to redirect calls. For example, if the vehicle is parked in front of the office or a private residence, the corresponding location data is transferred to the car phone  12 . This information can be used to activate call forwarding so that the user can automatically have his or her calls to the car phone  12  forwarded to the office or private telephone number, depending on the current location of the vehicle. 
       FIG. 2  shows a mobile telephone  11 ′. This mobile telephone is equipped with a display  22 , an operating panel  14  and an antenna  21 . In addition there is a memory unit inside the mobile telephone  11 ′ in which the user can store the name, telephone number and type of telephone. 
     Furthermore, the mobile telephone  11 ′ also contains a decision unit  15  that is connected to a clock  26  in the first example. If, for example, the decision unit  15  is informed using a general input that business calls are only allowed between 8 AM and 6 PM, then a telephone call from Hans Schnitt (see display image I) would only be “transferred” to the user between 6 PM and 8 AM while Hubert Mayer (see display image II) can also reach the user between 8 AM and 6 PM due to the “business” annotation. In addition to the clock  26 , the decision unit  15  can also be connected to a calendar (not shown) in order to block business calls on the weekend, for example. The mobile telephone shown in  FIG. 2  can also, of course, be modified so that users whose data has been stored in memory  22  and marked “private” can have telephone calls they make during the blocked period (8 AM to 6 PM) forwarded to the user&#39;s private telephone. 
     The reference mark  23  designates a sensor for the mobile telephone  11 ′. This sensor  23  is connected to the decision unit  15  and has the task of receiving signals sent out from a remote sender  24 . This sender  24  can be installed in aircraft, offices, hospitals, private dwellings or at gas stations, for example. If the sensor  23  receives the signal sent by the particular sender  24 , then this could cause the mobile telephone  11 ′ to not send out any more signals through the antenna  21  and not display incoming calls any more. The latter is practical in aircraft, for example, where airline companies have officially announced that mobile telephones  11 ′ that are ready for operation cause problems. If such a sender  24  is installed in offices or private dwellings, then it is ensured that unwanted telephone calls are not “transferred” to the user depending on where the mobile telephone  11 ′ is located at that moment. 
     Naturally, the mobile telephone  11 ′ shown in  FIG. 2  can also be equipped or connected to a GPS module (not shown) that determines the corresponding location of the mobile telephone  11 ′ when it is in use. In this case the mobile telephone  11 ′ is set up, for example, so that when location data is collected from which it can be concluded that the mobile telephone  11 ′ is in use in an office or corporate building, no private calls are transferred to the user, and when in use at home, no business calls are transferred to the user. Even a combination of the mobile telephone  11 ′ and the GPS module can be designed so that when a telephone number is stored when the user is in an office, the number can immediately be marked as a “business” number based on the location information obtained from the GPS module, for example, so that telephone calls from the caller whose number was just stored are only “transferred” to the user when the GPS module recognizes that the mobile telephone  11 ′ is currently located in the office. 
     The discussion pertaining to making and receiving telephone calls in the classical sense is also naturally applicable to services that are limited to just data transfers. This means that a user who does not want to receive any or only wants to receive specific faxes, e-mails, short messages via SMS and/or information from the Internet via the Mobil Media Mode (WWW:MMM) on his or her mobile telephone  11 ′ during non-office hours, for example, can block these as described above using clock-based or GPS control. 
     Finally, we would like to point out that if the user has blocked the “transfer” of business calls or data to his or her residence, then this can be implemented so that the corresponding transmissions are not displayed to the user. However, to prevent the sending of superfluous transmissions that are not shown to the user anyway, it can also be specified that when time or location events arise that are to block or activate certain services according to the user&#39;s specifications, the provider is automatically notified of these time or location events to reduce the load on the network.