Patent ID: 7075409

Claim:
A vehicle based access control system for controlling access to at least one vehicle telematics device, the system comprising: first and second ignition keys respectively having a first and a second identification datum specifying first and second access rights of a key user, wherein one of said first and second ignition keys comprises a valet key including an embedded transmitter having a unique identity; a receiver port associated with an ignition switch of the vehicle for reading an identification datum on a key inserted into the ignition switch; and a control module coupled to the receiver port and to the at least one vehicle telematics device for recognizing the identification datum received from the receiver port and modifying a predetermined set of operating features of the at least one vehicle telematics device based on an access right specified by the identification datum the control module further operative to disable the at least one vehicle telematics device upon recognizing the unique identity of the valet key.