Patent ID: 7684570

Claim:
An electronic system for a vehicle, the system comprising: at least one pre-existing entertainment component for a vehicle having a first plurality of user inputs; a pre-existing user interface for the vehicle, wherein the pre-existing user interface controls the at least one pre-existing entertainment component by generating a plurality of pre-existing control signals that control the first plurality of user inputs in response to receiving a first plurality of respective user inputs; at least one additional entertainment component added to the vehicle having a second plurality of user inputs that are controlled by a plurality of additional component control signals; and a control interface added to the vehicle as an aftermarket product, wherein the control interface is configured to receive and store at least one of the plurality of additional component control signals in a memory component, correlate at least one of the plurality of pre-existing control signals with at least one of the stored plurality of additional component control signals, and transmit the correlated at least one of the plurality of additional component controls signals to the second plurality of user inputs in response to receiving at least one of the plurality of pre-existing control signals, thereby enabling the pre-existing interface to control both the pre-existing entertainment component and the at least one additional entertainment component with the plurality of pre-existing control signals.