US 12,192,130 B1
Drive through audio communication system with multi-lane support
Christopher Siefken, Charlotte, NC (US); Tushar Dabhade, Charlotte, NC (US); Michael Roth, Doylestown, PA (US); Israel Rivera, Philadelphia, PA (US); and Arjun Wadwalkar, Charlotte, NC (US)
Assigned to Xenial, Inc., Charlotte, NC (US)
Filed by Xenial, Inc., Charlotte, NC (US)
Filed on Mar. 15, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/607,065.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/529,850, filed on Jul. 31, 2023.
Int. Cl. H04W 4/00 (2018.01); H04L 5/00 (2006.01); H04R 1/02 (2006.01); H04R 3/00 (2006.01)
CPC H04L 5/0046 (2013.01) [H04R 1/023 (2013.01); H04R 1/028 (2013.01); H04R 3/00 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A communications system for a restaurant comprising:
a plurality of field communications units including a speaker and a microphone;
a portable communications device transportable by an order taker of the restaurant; and
processing circuitry configured to:
operate a graphical user interface (GUI) to prompt the order taker to provide a user input in response to both (i) detecting a vehicle at one of the plurality of field communications units, and (ii) detecting that the portable communications device is not connected on an audio channel of a plurality of different channels corresponding to one of the plurality of field communications units;
obtain the user input to transition the portable communications device between the plurality of different channels, the plurality of different channels corresponding to the plurality of field communications units;
transition the portable communications device to the audio channel of the plurality of different channels according to the user input; and
conduct end-to-end bi-directional audio communication between the order taker and a customer by operating the portable communications device and the one of the plurality of field communications units to exchange audio data over the audio channel of the plurality of different channels.