Patent ID: 8838332

Claim:
A memory encoded with instructions for centralized management of a plurality of vehicle user interfaces using a central server located remotely from the plurality of vehicle user interfaces, each of the vehicle user interfaces associated with a different vehicle, wherein the instructions, if executed, result in: storing a mapping of vehicle conditions to resources of the plurality of vehicle user interfaces, wherein the vehicle conditions include at least a first condition of powered but not moving and a second condition of moving; at the central server, receiving a request over a cellular telephone network for a particular application, wherein the received request is for one of the vehicle user interfaces and includes an application identifier; at the central server, comparing the received request to the mapping and identifying a resource of said vehicle user interface responsive to the comparison; transmitting a first control signal from the central server to control software on a corresponding one of the vehicles to permit the particular application to access only the identified resource of said vehicle user interface; storing a plurality of graphical user interfaces remotely from the vehicles, wherein a first one of the plurality of graphical user interfaces is configured for a first vehicle configuration and a second one of the plurality of graphical user interfaces is configured for a second vehicle configuration that is different than the first vehicle configuration; wherein the first vehicle configuration corresponds to a vehicle component to which the second vehicle configuration does not correspond; probing with the central server the control software or said vehicle user interface; and transmitting a second control signal from the central server to cause said vehicle user interface to display a particular one of the plurality of graphical user interfaces based on a result of said probing; wherein said probing elicits a response specifying a make, model, and year of the corresponding vehicle, and wherein the instructions, if executed, result in selecting the particular graphical user interface responsive to the specified make, model, and year.