Key fob with RSSI
A key fob includes: communicator(s), a battery, memory, and processor(s) configured to: find signal strengths of received polls; determine, based on the signal strengths, that the received polls have: (a) increased, (b) decreased, (c) leveled off; and if (a), issue a poll response; if (c), not issue the poll response.
1. A key fob comprising:
a communicator to communicate with a vehicle;
a processor to:
determine signal strengths of polling messages received from the vehicle;
establish a set of boundaries a decibel width around a running average of the signal strengths;
transmit a polling response message when the signal strengths are outside the boundaries; and
reset the running average after a threshold number of the received polling messages have signal strength outside the boundaries.
2. The key fob of claim 1 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is a fixed decibel width equidistant above and below the running average.
3. The key fob of claim 2 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is 3 dB above and below the running average.
4. The key fob of claim 1 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is a variable decibel width equidistant above and below the running average.
5. The key fob of claim 4 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is a percentage of the running average.
6. The key fob of claim 5 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is ten percent of the running average.
7. The key fob of claim 1 , wherein the processor is to approximate locations of the key fob based on the received polls.
8. A method comprising:
determining, via a communicator of a key fob, signal strengths of polling messages received from a vehicle;
establishing, via a processor of the key fob, a set of boundaries a decibel width around a running average of the signal strengths;
transmitting, via the communicator, a polling response message when the signal strengths are above an upper one of the set of boundaries; and
resetting, via the processor, the running average after a threshold number of the received polling messages have signal strength outside the boundaries.
9. The method of claim 8 , including approximate locations of the key fob based on the received polls.
10. The method of claim 9 including determining a current zone of a plurality of zones defined around the vehicle in which the key fob is located.
11. The method of claim 10 , including, based on the current zone, transmitting, via the communicator, the polling response message when the signal strengths are below a lower one of the set of boundaries.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of zones include a first zone, a second zone, and a third zone, the first and second zones being closer to the vehicle than the third zone.
13. The method of claim 12 , including transmitting, via the communicator, the polling response message when the signal strengths are below a lower one of the set of boundaries when the key fob is in one of the first or second zones.
14. The method of claim 8 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is a fixed decibel width equidistant above and below the running average.
15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is 3 dB above and below the running average.
16. The method of claim 8 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is a variable decibel width equidistant above and below the running average.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is a percentage of the running average.
18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the decibel width of the set of boundaries is ten percent of the running average.