Patent ID: 7937075

Claim:
A system for mode changing of a mobile communication device in a vehicle, the system comprising: a driver identification module located within the vehicle that obtains an identification of a driver of the vehicle through the driver coming in physical contact with the driver identification module; a communication system that communicates with the mobile communication device when the mobile communication device comes into close proximity with the vehicle, wherein the communication system obtains an identification of the mobile communication device; storage that maintains an association of driver identifiers to mobile telephone identifiers, wherein each driver identifier is associated with at least one mobile telephone identifier; and a processor that receives the identification of the driver and the identification of the mobile communication device when the mobile communication device comes into close proximity with the communication system, wherein said receipt of the identification of the mobile communication device when the mobile communication device comes into close proximity with the communication system triggers the processor to: determine the at least one mobile telephone associated with the identification of the driver, compare the received identification of the mobile communication device with the at least one mobile telephone associated with the received identification of the driver, and when the received identification of the mobile communication device matches one of the at least one mobile telephone associated with the received identification of the driver then send a mode change command via the communication system to the mobile communication device to cause the mobile communication device to change a mode.