Road segment safety rating system

• US 10,096,038 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2016
• Issued: 10/09/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Inventors: Ramirez, Philip Peter, Otten, Derek, Ferguson, Dana, Jordan Peters, Julie A., Madigan, Regina, McKenna, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatib, Rami
• Application Number:
  US15/015,623
• Publication Number:
  US 20160171521A1
• Time in Patent Office: 978 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3461 Preferred or disfavoured areas, e.g. dangerous zones, toll or emission zones, intersections, manoeuvre types, segments such as motorways, toll roads, ferries
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3697 Output of additional, non-guidance related information, e.g. low fuel level G01C21/3679 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0635 Risk analysis of enterprise or organisation activities
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/012 from other sources than vehicle or roadside beacons, e.g. mobile networks
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096816 where the complete route is transmitted to the vehicle at once
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096827 where the route is computed onboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096838 where the user preferences are taken into account or the user selects one route out of a plurality
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental

Abstract

Methods, computer-readable media, systems and apparatuses for determining a safest road segment for traveling between a first location and a second location are provided. In some cases, the road segment safety rating may be determined for a plurality of road segments between the first location and the second location based on historical data associated with the road segments (e.g., accident history data, traffic volume data, etc.) and/or based on driving behavior data of the operator of the vehicle. An indication of the road segment determined as being the safest may be provided to the operator of the vehicle. An actual route of travel of the vehicle can be captured and compared to the safest route. If the vehicle has traveled the safest route, the operator may earn an award. If not, the operator may be notified that an award may be earned when an indicated safest route is traveled.

Claims

1. A mobile device comprising:

at least one processor;

at least one network interface;

at least one display screen; and

at least one non-transitory memory device storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the mobile device to;

receive, via a first user interface presented by the at least one display screen, input identifying a first location located along a current road segment being traveled by a vehicle;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, determine, at the mobile device, a plurality of road segments located between the first location and a second location corresponding to a current location of the vehicle, the plurality of road segments comprising a first series of road segments and a second series of road segments, the first series of road segments corresponding to a first route between the first location and the second location, and the second series of road segments corresponding to a second route between the first location and the second location different from the first route;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receive, at the mobile device, from at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle, driving data associated with operation of the vehicle, the driving data comprising speed data, acceleration data, braking data, and turning data;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, analyze, at the mobile device, the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle to determine at least one driving behavior of an operator of the vehicle comprising one or more of a speed limit observation behavior of the operator of the vehicle, a speed relative to other drivers behavior of the operator of the vehicle, a braking distance behavior of the operator of the vehicle, or a following distance behavior of the operator of the vehicle;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, transmit, from the mobile device, to a remote server, the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, transmit, from the mobile device, to the remote server, location information identifying the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receive, at the mobile device, from the remote server, historical accident data associated with the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receive, at the mobile device, from the remote server, traffic volume data associated with the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, determine, at the mobile device, based on the historical accident data received from the remote server, the traffic volume data received from the remote server, the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device, and a direction of travel of the vehicle through each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location, a safety rating for each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, provide, via a second user interface presented by the at least one display screen to the operator of the vehicle, an indication of a safest road segment in the first series of road segments corresponding to the first route between the first location and the second location or in the second series of road segments corresponding to the second route between the first location and the second location based on determining the safety rating for each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

determine that the vehicle is beginning to travel along a new route corresponding to the safest road segment; and

based on determining that the vehicle is beginning to travel along the new route corresponding to the safest road segment, cause an insurance discount to be provided to the operator of the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the new route corresponding to the safest road segment.

2. The mobile device of claim 1, comprising:

a location detection unit configured to provide, to the at least one processor, data indicative of the current location of the vehicle.

3. The mobile device of claim 2, wherein the location detection unit comprises one or more of a mobile location tracking device or a global positioning satellite unit.

4. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the first location corresponds to an end location of the first route and the second route and the second location corresponds to a start location of the first route and the second route.

5. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the at least one non-transitory memory device stores additional computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the mobile device to:

receive, at the mobile device, from the remote server, data identifying an award to be earned by the operator of the vehicle upon confirmation that the operator of the vehicle traveled a safest route segment identified in the indication of the safest road segment provided via the second user interface presented by the at least one display screen; and

provide, via a third user interface presented by the at least one display screen, an indication identifying the award to be earned by the operator of the vehicle upon confirmation that the operator of the vehicle traveled the safest route segment.

6. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the at least one non-transitory memory device stores additional computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the mobile device to:

receive, from a location detection unit, data identifying a plurality of locations of the vehicle associated with the vehicle traveling to the first location from the second location;

determine, based on the data identifying the plurality of locations received from the location detection unit, whether the vehicle traveled along a safest route between the first location from the second location; and

based on determining that the vehicle traveled along the safest route between the first location from the second location, provide, via a third user interface presented by the at least one display screen, an indication that an award has been earned by the operator of the vehicle.

7. A method comprising:

at a mobile device comprising at least one processor, at least one network interface, at least one display screen, and at least one non-transitory memory device;

receiving, by the at least one processor, via a first user interface presented by the at least one display screen, input identifying a first location located along a current road segment being traveled by a vehicle;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, determining, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, a plurality of road segments located between the first location and a second location corresponding to a current location of the vehicle, the plurality of road segments comprising a first series of road segments and a second series of road segments, the first series of road segments corresponding to a first route between the first location and the second location, and the second series of road segments corresponding to a second route between the first location and the second location different from the first route;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receiving, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, from at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle, driving data associated with operation of the vehicle, the driving data comprising speed data, acceleration data, braking data, and turning data;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, analyzing, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle to determine at least one driving behavior of an operator of the vehicle comprising one or more of a speed limit observation behavior of the operator of the vehicle, a speed relative to other drivers behavior of the operator of the vehicle, a braking distance behavior of the operator of the vehicle, or a following distance behavior of the operator of the vehicle;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, transmitting, by the at least one processor, from the mobile device, to a remote server, the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, transmitting, by the at least one processor, from the mobile device, to the remote server, location information identifying the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receiving, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, from the remote server, historical accident data associated with the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receiving, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, from the remote server, traffic volume data associated with the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, determining, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, based on the historical accident data received from the remote server, the traffic volume data received from the remote server, the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device, and a direction of travel of the vehicle through each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location, a safety rating for each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, providing, by the at least one processor, via a second user interface presented by the at least one display screen to the operator of the vehicle, an indication of a safest road segment in the first series of road segments corresponding to the first route between the first location and the second location or in the second series of road segments corresponding to the second route between the first location and the second location based on determining the safety rating for each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

determining, by the at least one processor, that the vehicle is beginning to travel along a new route corresponding to the safest road segment; and

based on determining that the vehicle is beginning to travel along the new route corresponding to the safest road segment, causing, by the at least one processor, an insurance discount to be provided to the operator of the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the new route corresponding to the safest road segment.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the mobile device comprises a location detection unit configured to provide, to the at least one processor, data indicative of the current location of the vehicle.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the location detection unit comprises one or more of a mobile location tracking device or a global positioning satellite unit.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the first location corresponds to an end location of the first route and the second route and the second location corresponds to a start location of the first route and the second route.

11. The method of claim 7, comprising:

receiving, by the at least one processor, at the mobile device, from the remote server, data identifying an award to be earned by the operator of the vehicle upon confirmation that the operator of the vehicle traveled a safest route segment identified in the indication of the safest road segment provided via the second user interface presented by the at least one display screen; and

providing, by the at least one processor, via a third user interface presented by the at least one display screen, an indication identifying the award to be earned by the operator of the vehicle upon confirmation that the operator of the vehicle traveled the safest route segment.

12. The method of claim 7, comprising:

receiving, by the at least one processor, from a location detection unit, data identifying a plurality of locations of the vehicle associated with the vehicle traveling to the first location from the second location;

determining, by the at least one processor, based on the data identifying the plurality of locations received from the location detection unit, whether the vehicle traveled along a safest route between the first location from the second location; and

based on determining that the vehicle traveled along the safest route between the first location from the second location, providing, by the at least one processor, via a third user interface presented by the at least one display screen, an indication that an award has been earned by the operator of the vehicle.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the mobile device is configured to communicate with at least one vehicle control computer that is configured to operate one or more vehicle driving aspects of the vehicle in an autonomous driving mode.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the mobile device is configured to communicate with at least one telematics device of the vehicle.

15. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device is determined by a driving analysis application received by the mobile device via the at least one network interface from an application store.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the indication of the safest road segment is provided by a road segment safety rating application received by the mobile device via the at least one network interface from an application store.

17. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed by a mobile device comprising at least one processor, at least one network interface, at least one display screen, and at least one non-transitory memory device, cause the mobile device to:

receive, via a first user interface presented by the at least one display screen, input identifying a first location located along a current road segment being traveled by a vehicle;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, determine, at the mobile device, a plurality of road segments located between the first location and a second location corresponding to a current location of the vehicle, the plurality of road segments comprising a first series of road segments and a second series of road segments, the first series of road segments corresponding to a first route between the first location and the second location, and the second series of road segments corresponding to a second route between the first location and the second location different from the first route;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receive, at the mobile device, from at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle, driving data associated with operation of the vehicle, the driving data comprising speed data, acceleration data, braking data, and turning data;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, analyze, at the mobile device, the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle to determine at least one driving behavior of an operator of the vehicle comprising one or more of a speed limit observation behavior of the operator of the vehicle, a speed relative to other drivers behavior of the operator of the vehicle, a braking distance behavior of the operator of the vehicle, or a following distance behavior of the operator of the vehicle;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, transmit, from the mobile device, to a remote server, the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, transmit, from the mobile device, to the remote server, location information identifying the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receive, at the mobile device, from the remote server, historical accident data associated with the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, receive, at the mobile device, from the remote server, traffic volume data associated with the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, determine, at the mobile device, based on the historical accident data received from the remote server, the traffic volume data received from the remote server, the at least one driving behavior of the operator of the vehicle determined from analyzing the driving data received from the at least one sensor arranged on the vehicle at the mobile device, and a direction of travel of the vehicle through each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location, a safety rating for each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

while the vehicle is traveling on the current road segment, provide, via a second user interface presented by the at least one display screen to the operator of the vehicle, an indication of a safest road segment in the first series of road segments corresponding to the first route between the first location and the second location or in the second series of road segments corresponding to the second route between the first location and the second location based on determining the safety rating for each road segment of the plurality of road segments located between the first location and the second location;

determine that the vehicle is beginning to travel along a new route corresponding to the safest road segment; and

based on determining that the vehicle is beginning to travel along the new route corresponding to the safest road segment, cause an insurance discount to be provided to the operator of the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling on the new route corresponding to the safest road segment.

18. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 17, wherein the first location corresponds to an end location of the first route and the second route and the second location corresponds to a start location of the first route and the second route.

19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 17, storing additional instructions that, when executed, cause the mobile device to:

receive, at the mobile device, from the remote server, data identifying an award to be earned by the operator of the vehicle upon confirmation that the operator of the vehicle traveled a safest route segment identified in the indication of the safest road segment provided via the second user interface presented by the at least one display screen; and

provide, via a third user interface presented by the at least one display screen, an indication identifying the award to be earned by the operator of the vehicle upon confirmation that the operator of the vehicle traveled the safest route segment.

20. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 17, storing additional instructions that, when executed, cause the mobile device to:

receive, from a location detection unit, data identifying a plurality of locations of the vehicle associated with the vehicle traveling to the first location from the second location;

determine, based on the data identifying the plurality of locations received from the location detection unit, whether the vehicle traveled along a safest route between the first location from the second location; and

based on determining that the vehicle traveled along the safest route between the first location from the second location, provide, via a third user interface presented by the at least one display screen, an indication that an award has been earned by the operator of the vehicle.