Patent ID: 8781656

Claim:
A master/slave interface device comprising: a plurality of inputs from vehicular peripheral devices; an input from a handheld computing device; and a dual mode controller configured to operate in a slave mode and a master mode, wherein in the slave mode i) the handheld computing device is communicatively coupled to the dual mode controller, ii) the handheld computing device serves as a master controller which receives input from a user and which communicates with each of the vehicular peripheral devices, iii) the data communicated from each one of the peripheral devices to the handheld computing device or from the handheld computing device to any one of the peripheral devices is routed to and passes through the dual-mode controller, and iv) the dual mode controller receives data retrieved by the handheld computing device from a remote server, and wherein in the master mode i) the handheld computing device is not communicatively coupled to the dual-mode controller, and ii) the dual-mode controller serves as a master controller which receives input from a user and which communicates with each of the vehicular peripheral devices.