Automatic crash detection

• US 10,083,551 B1
• Filed: 02/21/2018
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arity International Limited (Allstate Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Inventors: Schmitt, Kyle Patrick, Harish, Pratheek M., Tammali, Venu Madhav, Layne, Larry, Ferguson, Dana
• Primary Examiner(s): Shafi, Muhammad
• Application Number:
  US15/900,958
• Time in Patent Office: 216 Days
• Field of Search: 701 315, 701121, 701 305, 701 309, 701 311, 701301, 701302
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for determining whether or not a crash involving a vehicle has occurred. A computing device may receive acceleration measurement(s) measured by one or more accelerometers during a time window. The computing device may determine, for one or more acceleration measurements, a corresponding acceleration magnitude. Based on the corresponding acceleration magnitude(s), the computing device may identify, from the acceleration measurement(s), an acceleration measurement and/or may determine whether the acceleration magnitude exceeds a threshold acceleration magnitude. The computing device may corroborate whether a vehicle associated with the mobile computing device was involved in a crash. Data associated with the acceleration magnitude and/or an event, such as a crash event, may be transmitted to a server.

Claims

1. A mobile computing device comprising:

an accelerometer configured to measure acceleration of at least one axis of the accelerometer;

communication circuitry configured to wirelessly communicate with other devices;

a processor; and

memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor of the mobile computing device to;

receive, from the accelerometer, a plurality of acceleration measurements measured by the accelerometer during a time window comprising a predetermined duration;

determine, for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, a corresponding acceleration magnitude;

based on the corresponding acceleration magnitude for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, identify, from the plurality of acceleration measurements, an acceleration measurement having an acceleration magnitude that satisfies a metric;

determine whether the acceleration magnitude exceeds a threshold acceleration magnitude;

after determining that the acceleration magnitude exceeds the threshold acceleration magnitude, corroborate, based on sensor measurements different from the plurality of acceleration measurements, whether a vehicle associated with the mobile computing device was involved in a crash based on the acceleration magnitude of the identified acceleration measurement, determine a confidence value associated with whether the vehicle was involved in a crash; and

transmit, via the communication circuitry and to a server, data indicative of the acceleration magnitude and data indicative of the sensor measurements.

2. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the time window overlaps a previous time window by a predetermined amount of time.

3. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein each corresponding acceleration magnitude is determined based on a sum of squares of acceleration measurements for three axes of the accelerometer.

4. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the metric comprises a predetermined percentile, and wherein the identifying the acceleration measurement having the acceleration magnitude that satisfies the metric comprises identifying, from the plurality of acceleration measurements, the acceleration measurement having a minimum acceleration magnitude in the predetermined percentile for the plurality of acceleration measurements.

5. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the sensor measurements comprise deceleration data, and wherein the corroborating whether the vehicle was involved in a crash comprises determining whether a deceleration value calculated from the deceleration data exceeds a threshold deceleration.

6. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the sensor measurements comprise location data, and wherein the corroborating whether the vehicle was involved in a crash comprises determining, based on the location data, whether a distance the vehicle traveled during one or more additional time windows after the time window exceeds a threshold distance.

7. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the confidence value is determined based on the acceleration magnitude of the identified acceleration measurement and based on one or more of a deceleration value associated with the vehicle or a distance the vehicle traveled.

8. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the determining, for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, the corresponding acceleration magnitude is performed in response to one or more of a determination that a speed associated with the vehicle is above a first threshold speed or a determination that the speed associated with the vehicle is below a second threshold speed.

9. A method comprising:

receiving, by a mobile computing device, a plurality of acceleration measurements measured by an accelerometer during a time window comprising a predetermined duration;

determining, by the mobile computing device and for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, a corresponding acceleration magnitude;

based on the corresponding acceleration magnitude for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, identifying, by the mobile computing device and from the plurality of acceleration measurements, an acceleration measurement having an acceleration magnitude that satisfies a metric;

determining, by the mobile computing device, whether the acceleration magnitude exceeds a threshold acceleration magnitude;

after determining that the acceleration magnitude exceeds the threshold acceleration magnitude, corroborating by the mobile computing device and based on sensor measurements different from the plurality of acceleration measurements, whether a vehicle associated with the mobile computing device was involved in a crash;

based on the acceleration magnitude of the identified acceleration measurement, determining, by the mobile computing device, a confidence value associated with whether the vehicle was involved in a crash; and

transmitting, by the mobile computing device, via communication circuitry associated with the mobile computing device, and to a server, data indicative of the acceleration magnitude and data indicative of the sensor measurements.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the time window overlaps a previous time window by a predetermined amount of time.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein each corresponding acceleration magnitude is determined based on a sum of squares of acceleration measurements for three axes of the accelerometer.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the metric comprises a predetermined percentile, and wherein the identifying the acceleration measurement having the acceleration magnitude that satisfies the metric comprises identifying, from the plurality of acceleration measurements, the acceleration measurement having a minimum acceleration magnitude in the predetermined percentile for the plurality of acceleration measurements.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the sensor measurements comprise deceleration data, and wherein the corroborating whether the vehicle was involved in a crash comprises determining whether a deceleration value calculated from the deceleration data exceeds a threshold deceleration.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the sensor measurements comprise location data, and wherein the corroborating whether the vehicle was involved in a crash comprises determining, based on the location data, whether a distance the vehicle traveled during one or more additional time windows after the time window exceeds a threshold distance.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that, when read by a processor of a mobile computing device, cause the processor of the mobile computing device to:

receive a plurality of acceleration measurements measured by an accelerometer during a time window comprising a predetermined duration;

determine, for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, a corresponding acceleration magnitude;

based on the corresponding acceleration magnitude for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, identify, from the plurality of acceleration measurements, an acceleration measurement having an acceleration magnitude that satisfies a metric;

determine whether the acceleration magnitude exceeds a threshold acceleration magnitude;

after determining that the acceleration magnitude exceeds the threshold acceleration magnitude, corroborate, based on sensor measurements different from the plurality of acceleration measurements, whether a vehicle associated with the mobile computing device was involved in a crash based on the acceleration magnitude of the identified acceleration measurement, determine a confidence value associated with whether the vehicle was involved in a crash; and

transmit, via communication circuitry associated with the mobile computing device and to a server, data indicative of the acceleration magnitude and data indicative of the sensor measurements.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the confidence value is determined based on the acceleration magnitude of the identified acceleration measurement and based on one or more of a deceleration value associated with the vehicle or a distance the vehicle traveled.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the determining, for each acceleration measurement of the plurality of acceleration measurements, the corresponding acceleration magnitude is performed in response to one or more of a determination that a speed associated with the vehicle is above a first threshold speed or a determination that the speed associated with the vehicle is below a second threshold speed.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the metric comprises a predetermined percentile, and wherein the identifying the acceleration measurement having the acceleration magnitude that satisfies the metric comprises identifying, from the plurality of acceleration measurements, the acceleration measurement having a minimum acceleration magnitude in the predetermined percentile for the plurality of acceleration measurements.