US 2,013,317,693 · Filed 2013-03-14
The Patent That Turned Your Phone Into a Car Rental Key
Imagine unlocking and returning a rental car using just your smartphone—no need to visit a desk or carry a physical key. This patent describes a system that uses QR codes, GPS, and a mobile app to let customers grab reserved cars instantly and drop them off anywhere, all while a tiny computer module tracks the vehicle's location and condition in real time.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a complete system for remote vehicle access and management using mobile devices. What's protected here is the combination of a mobile application that reads QR or NFC codes on vehicles, communicates with remote servers to authenticate users, and triggers a temporary digital access code that unlocks the car. Also included is the on-board control module that plugs into a vehicle's diagnostic port, containing GPS, wireless connectivity, and data logging to monitor vehicle status, location, and usage in real time.
Why it matters
This patent tackles a core operational pain point in car-sharing and rental fleets: reducing the friction between customer demand and vehicle access. By eliminating the need for physical keys, reservation desks, and in-person handoffs, the system cuts operational overhead and speeds up turnaround times. The combination of mobile authentication, GPS tracking, and remote vehicle control has become foundational to how modern car-share platforms operate at scale, making it a critical piece of infrastructure in the sharing economy.
Real-world use
When you use a car-sharing app like Zipcar or Turo to unlock a vehicle by scanning a code on the windshield, you're interacting with the core technology this patent protects.
Original USPTO abstract
A rental/car-share (RCS) vehicle access and management system and method, in some embodiments, utilizes barcodes, QR codes (or NFC/RFID), GPS, and a mobile app coupled with a wireless network to enable customers to bypass the reservation desk and pickup and drop off reserved RCS vehicles using a mobile phone, tablet or laptop. The QR code, RFID, or NFC communication with the mobile application allows for identification of the vehicle by a mobile application, which, if authorized, can access the vehicle via a temporary access code issued by remote servers. The remote servers and/or mobile application communicates with a control module that plugs into the on-board diagnostics module of the rental/car-share (RCS) vehicle and includes a host processing unit with a processor, an accelerometer, data storage, a GPS with internal GPS antenna; a wireless modem with internal antenna, and CAN bus transceivers connected with the processor, and a USB programmable interface.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 2,013,317,693
- Filing date
- 2013-03-14
- Grant date
- Application — not yet granted
- Assignee
- Global Integrated Technologies, Inc.
- Inventor(s)
- JEFFERIES JAMES E., DEMAY ROD W., LACHINYAN GURGEN L.
- CPC class
- G07B15/00
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