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SonyGranted patentCars & transportInterest 4/10

Sony patents holder that lets phones steer moving devices

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Sony describes an external holder that mounts a smartphone or tablet onto a moving vehicle. The holder acts as a bridge, sending steering commands from the phone to the vehicle and sending vehicle status data back to the phone.

Why it mattersThis setup allows standard consumer phones to control vehicles without needing custom built-in screens or hardware.

In the filing’s own words

A device is a device mounted on a moving body and configured to control the moving body. The device includes a holding unit and a control unit. The holding unit holds an information processing device that controls the moving body. The control unit is configured to acquire control information used to control the moving body from the information processing device, and to control the moving body based on the control information.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. An external device mounted on a moving body and configured to control the moving body, the external device comprising: a holder configured to hold an information processing device configured to generate control information for the moving body, the external device being external to the information processing device; and circuitry configured to act as a bidirectional communication relay between the moving body and the information processing device by (i) acquiring the control information from a first application operated at an application framework layer of the information processing device, the first application not being able to be rewritten by an end user; (ii) executing the control of the moving body based on the control information acquired from the first application operated at the application framework layer of the information processing device; (iii) acquiring information on the moving body from the moving body; and (iv) providing the information on the moving body to the first application operated at the application framework layer of the information processing device.

Facts

Company
Sony (Sony Group Corporation)
Official title
Device and system
Patent number
US12748428B2
Application number
18707954
Filed
Oct 20, 2022
Granted
Sep 29, 2026
Inventors
1
Claims
13

Classified under

G05D 1/222 Physics & computingG05D 2109/20 Physics & computing

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.