Systems and methods for using on-board resources of individual vehicles in a fleet of vehicles as a distributed data center

• US 10,482,686 B2
• Filed: 10/11/2018
• Issued: 11/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SmartDrive Systems, Inc. (Solera Holdings Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: SmartDrive Systems, Inc. (Solera Holdings Incorporated)
• Inventors: Ghanbari, Reza, Brookins, Nicholas Shayne, Forney, David, Freitas, Mark, Deninger, Daniel Andrew, Griswold, Jeffrey, Palmer, Jason
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim, Krisna
• Application Number:
  US16/158,124
• Publication Number:
  US 20190325665A1
• Time in Patent Office: 404 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/903 Querying for retrieval from the web G06F16/953
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0841 Registering performance data recording measured values G01D; information storage G11B
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a distributed data center that includes resources carried by a fleet of vehicles. The system includes sensors configured to generate output signals conveying information related to the vehicles. The system may detect vehicle events based on the information conveyed by the output signals. The system includes a remote computing server configured to present a user interface to a user. Through the user interface, the user may query information from one or more vehicles in the fleet. The distributed query is transmitted to individual vehicles, and results are locally processed in accordance with response constraints and subsequently transmitted back to the remote computing server for presentation to the user.

Claims

1. A system configured to use data-processing resources carried by a fleet of vehicles as a distributed data center, the system configured to couple with the fleet of vehicles, wherein the fleet includes at least three vehicles, the system comprising:

a remote computing server including one or more processors, wherein the remote computing server is separate and discrete from the fleet of vehicles, and wherein the one or more processors are configured via machine-readable instructions to;

facilitate presentation of a user interface to a user, wherein the user interface is configured to receive input from the user;

receive the input from the user through the user interface, wherein the received input represents a distributed query related to the operation of one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles;

transmit wirelessly query information based on the distributed query from the remote computing server to at least three vehicles to effectuate individual ones of the at least three vehicles to;

(i) obtain sets of response constraints,

(ii) obtain current local data transmission conditions,

(iii) perform the distributed query on locally-stored information regarding operation of the individual ones of the at least three vehicles, resulting in individual sets of potential results, and

(iv) convert the individual sets of potential results to create sets of results, wherein conversion is based on the sets of response constraints and the current local data transmission conditions;

receive the sets of results from the individual ones of the at least three vehicles;

aggregate the sets of results into aggregated results; and

facilitate presentation of the aggregated results via the user interface to the user.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the distributed query corresponds to one or more particular time frames, wherein performance of the distributed query is limited to output signals that were generated in the one or more particular time frames by sensors that are carried by the at least three vehicles.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the fleet of vehicles includes a first vehicle, a second vehicle, and a third vehicle,

wherein the locally-stored information regarding the operation of the first vehicle includes first timing information and first operator information, wherein the first timing information associates the generated output signals with one or more first moments of generation by the sensors that are carried by the first vehicle, wherein the first operator information associates the generated output signals with a first vehicle operator of the first vehicle at the one or more first moments of operation,

wherein the locally-stored information regarding the operation of the second vehicle includes second information includes second timing information and second operator information, wherein the second timing information associates the generated output signals with one or more second moments of generation by the sensors that are carried by the second vehicle, wherein the second operator information associates the generated output signals with a second vehicle operator of the second vehicle at the one or more second moments of operation,

wherein the locally-stored information regarding the operation of the second vehicle includes third information includes third timing information and third operator information, wherein the third timing information associates the generated output signals with one or more third moments of generation by the sensors that are carried by the third vehicle, wherein the third operator information associates the generated output signals with a third vehicle operator of the third vehicle at the one or more third moments of operation.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein at least part of the sets of response constraints are determined based on the query information.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the current local data transmission conditions are obtained locally from sensors that are carried by the at least three vehicles.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the distributed query corresponds to a particular vehicle operator.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the sets of results are received in annotated data packets, wherein the one or more processors of the remote computing server are further configured to:

receive a set of data packets;

determine whether one or more particular data packets are missing or corrupted, based on annotations in the set of received data packets; and

responsive to a determination that the one or more particular data packets are missing or corrupted, transmit a request to re-transmit the one or more particular data packets.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the conversion of the individual sets of potential results is based on summarizing one or more results from sets of potential results such that an amount of bandwidth required to transmit the sets of results is reduced compared to the sets of potential results.

9. The system of claim 2, wherein the conversion of the individual sets of potential results is based on adjusting a rate of generation and/or capture for at least one of the sensors such that an amount of bandwidth required to transmit the sets of results is reduced compared to the sets of potential results.

10. The system of claim 3, further comprising:

the first vehicle, wherein the first vehicle includes a first event recorder configured to detect a first set of vehicle events related to current operating conditions of the first vehicle, wherein the first vehicle event recorder is carried by the first vehicle, wherein detection of the first set of vehicle events is based on the output signals generated by the first set of sensors, wherein the first set of resources is further configured to store information related to the first set of detected vehicle events.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the first vehicle includes one or more physical processors configured by machine-readable instructions to:

determine a first set of derivative operating information, wherein the first set of derivative operating information is derived from the first set of detected vehicle events;

assign the first set of derivative operating information to a first set of virtual sensors; and

store the first set of derivative operating information.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the stored information related to the first set of detected vehicle events is associated with one or more primary rates of storage, wherein the first set of resources is further configured to reuse a section of previously used storage such that, responsive to reuse of the section of previously used storage, remaining information of the stored information related to the first set of detected vehicle events appears to be associated with one or more modified rates of storage, wherein the one or more modified rates of storage are lower than the one or more primary rates of storage.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the user interface is further configured to:

effectuate a review presentation to the user, wherein the review presentation is based on the information related to the first set of detected vehicle events, and wherein the review presentation provides a prompt to the user to provide manual review input regarding the first set of detected vehicle events; and

receive manual review input from the user, wherein the manual review input is responsive to the provided prompt;

wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit the manual review input to the first vehicle,

wherein the first vehicle is further configured to receive the transmitted manual review input, and

wherein the first vehicle is further configured to store the manual review input responsive to receipt by the first vehicle.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the first vehicle includes a first driver interface configured to facilitate interaction with the first vehicle operator during vehicle operation, wherein the first driver interface is further configured to effectuate presentation of feedback information to the first vehicle operator, wherein the feedback information is based on the first set of detected vehicle events and the manual review input.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the first vehicle is further configured to:

determine one or more operator scores, wherein the one or more operator scores are vehicle operator-specific scores based on the first set of detected vehicle events; and

effectuate presentation of the one or more operator scores to the first vehicle operator.

16. A method to use data-processing resources carried by a fleet of vehicles as a distributed data center, wherein the fleet includes at least three vehicles, the method comprising:

facilitating, by a remote computing server that is separate and discrete from the fleet of vehicles, presentation of a user interface to a user;

receiving input from the user through the user interface, wherein the received input represents a distributed query related to the operation of one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles;

transmitting wirelessly query information from the remote computing server to at least three vehicles to effectuate individual ones of the at least three vehicles to;

(i) obtain sets of response constraints,

(ii) obtain current local data transmission conditions,

(iii) perform the distributed query on locally-stored information regarding operation of the individual ones of the at least three vehicles, resulting in sets of potential results,

(iv) convert the individual sets of potential results to create sets of results, wherein conversion is based on the sets of response constraints and the current local data transmission conditions;

receiving, by the remote computing server, the sets of results from the individual ones of the at least three vehicles;

aggregating, by the remote computing server, the sets of results into aggregated results; and

facilitating, by the remote computing server, presentation of the aggregated results via the user interface to the user.