Detection and reporting of a collision event

• US 10,292,064 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2017
• Issued: 05/14/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Yang, Yue, Kinthada Venkata, Madhusudan, Sandhu, Manjinder Singh, Balasubramanian, Srinivasan, Pratha, Raj
• Primary Examiner(s): Tang, Kiet
• Application Number:
  US15/428,939
• Publication Number:
  US 20170265102A1
• Time in Patent Office: 824 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/013 including means for detecting collisions, impending collisions or roll-over
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/016 Personal emergency signalling and security systems emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm activators G08B25/12
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0858 collision detection

Abstract

Enhanced techniques may be used for identifying and reporting collision-based scenarios. In one example, a wireless modem measures a number of signals received from a number of devices that are located on the same chip as the wireless modem when a physical link between the wireless modem and an accelerometer is broken, the accelerometer is inoperable, or a combination thereof. In the event of a collision event, the wireless modem may use the measured signals to determine that the collision event has occurred and may transmit an indication of the collision event. For instance, the wireless modem may use signals from an audio sensor, a motion sensor, a global navigation satellite system (GNSS), or the like.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication at a wireless modem, comprising:

measuring, at the wireless modem, a plurality of signals associated with a corresponding plurality of devices located on a same chip as the wireless modem;

predicting, at the wireless modem, a period of time at which a collision event can occur based at least in part on the measured plurality of signals;

estimating, at the wireless modem, a probability that a collision event will occur at the predicted period of time, based at least in part on the measured plurality of signals;

determining, at the wireless modem, that the collision event has occurred based at least in part on the measured plurality of signals and estimation;

transmitting, from the wireless modem, an indication that the collision event has occurred based at least in part on the determining.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the measuring occurs when a physical link between the wireless modem and an accelerometer is broken, the accelerometer is inoperable, or a combination thereof.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining that the collision event has occurred is based at least in part on a first set of the plurality of signals measured at a first time before the predicted collision event and a second set of the plurality of signals measured at a second time after the predicted collision event.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving, at the wireless modem, a signal of the plurality of signals from the accelerometer via a wireless link or a wired link.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the signal indicates an acceleration or a deceleration of the wireless modem.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the wireless modem, a signal of the plurality of signals from a wireless device within communication range of the wireless modem, the signal is received via a shared radio frequency spectrum band, and the signal is indicative of a position, a velocity, an acceleration, or a combination thereof, of the wireless device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting comprises:

transmitting the indication that the collision event has occurred to a wireless device within communication range of the wireless modem via a shared radio frequency spectrum band.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the indication is transmitted to a dispatcher through the wireless device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting comprises:

scanning for an available channel in a shared radio frequency spectrum band; and

transmitting an emergency prose code on the available channel.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing a signal of the plurality of signals to a threshold, wherein the determining comprises determining that the signal is greater than the threshold.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

applying a weighting value to the signal, wherein the comparing comprises comparing the weighted signal to the threshold.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless modem is in an idle mode or a connected mode prior to the determining.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining, at the wireless modem, a history of a movement of the wireless modem, wherein the determining comprises determining that a present movement of the wireless modem is inconsistent with the history of the movement.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the corresponding plurality of devices comprises an accelerometer, a global navigation satellite system (GNSS), a motion sensor, an audio sensor, a thermal sensor, a reception analyzer, a Doppler estimator, a wireless device, a history logger, or a combination thereof.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of signals indicate:

a position of the wireless modem, a direction of the wireless modem, a velocity of the wireless modem, an acceleration or deceleration of the wireless modem, an auditory signal received at the wireless modem, a temperature of the wireless modem, a Doppler pattern identified by the wireless modem, a signal strength of a cellular signal, or a combination thereof.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from a dispatcher, a voice call in response to the indication that the collision event has occurred.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, to a dispatcher, a voice call based at least in part on the determining that the collision event has occurred.

18. A method of wireless communication at a wireless modem, comprising:

measuring, at the wireless modem, a signal received from a motion sensor, wherein the wireless modem and the motion sensor are located on a same chip and coupled with a delivery package;

determining, at the wireless modem, that a collision event has occurred based at least in part on the measured signal; and

transmitting, from the wireless modem to a distributor, an indication that the collision event has occurred based at least in part on the determining.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

comparing the signal to a threshold, wherein the determining comprises determining that the signal is greater than the threshold.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the signal indicates:

a position of the wireless modem, a direction of the wireless modem, a velocity of the wireless modem, an acceleration or deceleration of the wireless modem, or a combination thereof.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the wireless modem and the motion sensor are attached to the delivery package, placed within the delivery package, or a combination thereof.

22. An apparatus for wireless communication at a wireless modem, comprising:

a processor;

memory in electronic communication with the processor; and

instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to;

measure, at the wireless modem, a plurality of signals associated with a corresponding plurality of devices located on a same chip as the wireless modem;

predict, at the wireless modem, a period of time at which a collision event can occur based at least in part on the measured plurality of signals;

estimate, at the wireless modem, a probability that a collision event will occur at the predicted period of time, based at least in part on the measured plurality of signals;

determine, at the wireless modem, that a collision event has occurred based at least in part on the measured plurality of signals and estimation; and

transmit, from the wireless modem, an indication that the collision event has occurred based at least in part on the determining.

23. The apparatus of claim 22 wherein the measuring occurs when a physical link between the wireless modem and an accelerometer is broken, the accelerometer is inoperable, or a combination thereof.

24. The apparatus of claim 22 wherein the determining that the collision event has occurred is based at least in part on a first set of the plurality of signals measured at a first time before the predicted collision event and a second set of the plurality of signals measured at a second time after the predicted collision event.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the instructions are operable to cause the processor to:

receive, at the wireless modem, a signal of the plurality of signals from the accelerometer via a wireless link or a wired link.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the signal indicates an acceleration or a deceleration of the wireless modem.

27. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the instructions are operable to cause the processor to:

receive, at the wireless modem, a signal of the plurality of signals from a wireless device within communication range of the wireless modem, the signal is received via a shared radio frequency spectrum band, and the signal is indicative of a position, a velocity, an acceleration, or a combination thereof, of the wireless device.

28. An apparatus for wireless communication at a wireless modem, comprising:

a processor;

memory in electronic communication with the processor; and

instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to;

measure, at the wireless modem, a signal received from a motion sensor, wherein the wireless modem and the motion sensor are located on a same chip and coupled with a delivery package;

determine, at the wireless modem, that a collision event has occurred based at least in part on the measured signal; and

transmit, from the wireless modem to a distributor, an indication that the collision event has occurred based at least in part on the determining.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the instructions are operable to cause the processor to:

compare the signal to a threshold, wherein the determining comprises determining that the signal is greater than the threshold.

30. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the signal indicates:

a position of the wireless modem, a direction of the wireless modem, a velocity of the wireless modem, an acceleration or deceleration of the wireless modem, or a combination thereof.