Patents by Inventor Marcus Prochaska

Marcus Prochaska has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8966289
    Abstract: Various embodiments relate to a tamper-proof vehicle sensor system and a related method for sending secure packets between components. A sensing unit may include an angular sensor, such as an anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensor, which determines the angular position of a magnetic field and produces related angle sensor data. The sensing unit may place the angle sensor data in a packet and may encrypt the packet using a selected encryption key. The sensor may append an encryption key identifier (ID) associated with the selected encryption key onto the packet and send the secure, unidirectional packet to an electrical control unit (ECU). The ECU may then use the appended encryption key ID to retrieve the selected encryption key to decrypt the packet. The ECU may then extract the angle sensor data from the packet to modify the configuration of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: NXP B.V.
    Inventors: Marcus Prochaska, Nils Kolbe Kolbe
  • Patent number: 8682559
    Abstract: The application of braking force to drive components that move a vehicle is controlled. As consistent with one or more example embodiments, an integrated circuit chip is located at each of two or more drive components (e.g., wheels) of a vehicle for controlling the application of a braking force to the drive component independently of the application of braking force to other drive components. Each of the integrated circuit chips communicate with one another over a vehicle network, with brake control (e.g., using an algorithm to limit wheel slip) being carried out separately at each drive component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2014
    Assignee: NXP B.V.
    Inventors: Nils Kolbe, Marcus Prochaska
  • Patent number: 8362765
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and a sensor device (1) for measuring a magnetic field comprising a first circuit (4) including a magneto sensitive sensor element (2) and a current source (5) and a second circuit (6) including a signal generator (7) and a coil (3) producing a excitational magnetic field at the sensor element (2), wherein the output signal of the sensor element is processible such that a second derivative of the sensor signal and the signal of the signal generator are derivable which are processible such that a countable signal is resulting being a measure of the magnetic field.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2013
    Assignee: NXP B.V.
    Inventors: Stefan Butzmann, Marcus Prochaska
  • Publication number: 20120158356
    Abstract: Various embodiments relate to a system and related method of validating a distance based on a plurality of sensor measurements in a vehicle. A tamper-proof odometer system may comprise an odometer and a tamper-proof sensor that independently determine distances based on measurements of vehicle components. The tamper-proof sensor may maintain a non-modifiable count based on the angular rotation of a target wheel from which to calculate a vehicle's distance traveled. An odometer may maintain a count based on the rotation of a wheel mounted to the transmission. An electronic control unit (ECU) or dashboard control unit (DCU) may compare the distance derived from the odometer with the distance derived from the tamper-proof sensor by comparing the error to a defined threshold. When the error value is above the defined threshold, this may indicate that one or more of the components of the odometer system have been manipulated.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 17, 2010
    Publication date: June 21, 2012
    Applicant: NXP. B.V.
    Inventors: Marcus Prochaska, Nils Kolbe
  • Publication number: 20120155645
    Abstract: Various embodiments relate to a tamper-proof vehicle sensor system and a related method for sending secure packets between components. A sensing unit may include an angular sensor, such as an anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensor, which determines the angular position of a magnetic field and produces related angle sensor data. The sensing unit may place the angle sensor data in a packet and may encrypt the packet using a selected encryption key. The sensor may append an encryption key identifier (ID) associated with the selected encryption key onto the packet and send the secure, unidirectional packet to an electrical control unit (ECU). The ECU may then use the appended encryption key ID to retrieve the selected encryption key to decrypt the packet. The ECU may then extract the angle sensor data from the packet to modify the configuration of the vehicle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 17, 2010
    Publication date: June 21, 2012
    Applicant: NXP. B.V.
    Inventors: Marcus Prochaska, Nils Kolbe
  • Publication number: 20120150362
    Abstract: The application of braking force to drive components that move a vehicle is controlled. As consistent with one or more example embodiments, an integrated circuit chip is located at each of two or more drive components (e.g., wheels) of a vehicle for controlling the application of a braking force to the drive component independently of the application of braking force to other drive components. Each of the integrated circuit chips communicate with one another over a vehicle network, with brake control (e.g., using an algorithm to limit wheel slip) being carried out separately at each drive component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2010
    Publication date: June 14, 2012
    Inventors: Nils Kolbe, Marcus Prochaska
  • Publication number: 20100207623
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method and a sensor device (1) for measuring a magnetic field comprising a first circuit (4) including a magneto sensitive sensor element (2) and a current source (5) and a second circuit (6) including a signal generator (7) and a coil (3) producing a excitational magnetic field at the sensor element (2), wherein the output signal of the sensor element is processible such that a second derivative of the sensor signal and the signal of the signal generator are derivable which are processible such that a countable signal is resulting being a measure of the magnetic field.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 27, 2008
    Publication date: August 19, 2010
    Applicant: NXP B.V.
    Inventors: Stefan Butzmann, Marcus Prochaska
  • Publication number: 20100194387
    Abstract: A magnetoresistive sensor system (400) is provided, wherein the system comprises a magnetic field source (402), a magnetoresistive sensor (403) having an easy axis, and a differentiation element (404), wherein the magnetic field source (402) is adapted to emit an auxiliary magnetic field generated from an oscillating input signal (401), wherein the auxiliary magnetic field is orthogonal to the easy axis of the magnetoresistive sensor (403), wherein the magnetoresistive sensor (403.) is adapted to sense a signal associated to a superposition of an external magnetic field and the auxiliary alternating magnetic field, and wherein the differentiation element (404) is adapted to differentiate the sensed signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 27, 2008
    Publication date: August 5, 2010
    Applicant: NXP B.V.
    Inventors: Stefan Butzmann, Marcus Prochaska