Technology for providing real-time route safety and risk feedback

• US 10,490,078 B1
• Filed: 07/20/2017
• Issued: 11/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Original Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Inventors: Fields, Brian Mark, Williams, Aaron, Gaudin, Kristopher Keith
• Primary Examiner(s): Camby, Richard M
• Application Number:
  US15/655,404
• Time in Patent Office: 859 Days
• Field of Search: None
• 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 21/3492 employing speed data or traffic data, e.g. real-time or historical traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3611 using character input or menus, e.g. menus of POIs character input methods in general G06F3/0233
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3629 Guidance using speech or audio output, e.g. text-to-speech text to speech systems per se G10L13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3652 Guidance using non-audiovisual output, e.g. tactile, haptic or electric stimuli
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3661 Guidance output on an external device, e.g. car radio
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3667 Display of a road map G01C21/3614 takes precedence; guidance using 3D or perspective road maps G01C21/3635
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09
• 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: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• 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 1/0969 having a display in the form of a map
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/16 Anti-collision systems road vehicle drive control systems for predicting or avoiding probable or impending collision otherwise than by control of a particular sub-unit B60W30/08
• 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

Abstract

Systems and approaches relate to, inter alia, providing near real-time route safety and risk information. The systems and approaches may receive a request for a desired destination for vehicular travel. The systems and approaches may then access historical route data for a plurality of potential travel routes to arrive at the desired location and also access near real-time route data for the plurality of potential travel routes. The systems and approaches may further determine a risk index based on the historical route data and the near real-time route data, and present at least one travel route for the vehicle based on the calculated risk index.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, carried out by one or more processors, of providing near real-time route safety information, the method comprising:

receiving, by the one or more processors, a request for a desired destination for vehicular travel;

accessing, by the one or more processors, historical route data for a plurality of potential travel routes to arrive at the desired location, the historical route data corresponding to one or more comparable areas near the plurality of potential travel routes;

accessing, by the one or more processors, near real-time route data for the plurality of potential travel routes;

determining, by the one or more processors, a risk index, wherein the risk index is a comparison result of the historical route data and the near real-time route data and is representative of how prone the one or more comparable areas are to collisions; and

presenting, by the one or more processors, at least one travel route for the vehicle based on the calculated risk index.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting, by the one or more processors, a desired travel route from the at least one presented travel routes; and

presenting, by the one or more processors, the desired travel route to a device to facilitate routing of the vehicle according to the selected travel route, wherein the device comprises at least one of a mobile device, an on-board computer, or a navigator.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

periodically accessing, by the one or more processors, the near real-time route data for the selected desired travel route;

calculating, by the one or more processors, an updated risk index based on the historical route data and the near real-time route data for the selected desired travel route; and

presenting, by the one or more processors, updated risk information for the selected desired travel route.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting, via a transceiver and via wireless communication or data transmission over one or more radio frequency links or wireless communication channels, the selected travel route to a device to facilitate routing of the vehicle according to the selected travel route, wherein the device comprises at least one of a mobile device, an on-board computer, or a navigator.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the historical route data comprises at least one of historical traffic data, historical accident data, and neighborhood data.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the near real-time route data comprises at least one of near real-time traffic data, near real-time road engineering data, and near real-time incident data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises at least one of an automobile, a self-powered machine, and a manually-powered machine.

8. A server configured to reduce vehicle collisions, the server comprising:

a memory configured to store non-transitory computer executable instructions; and

a processor configured to interface with the memory, wherein the processor is configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the processor to;

receive a desired destination input for vehicular travel;

access historical route data for a plurality of potential travel routes to arrive at the desired location, the historical route data corresponding to one or more comparable areas near the plurality of potential travel routes;

access near real-time route data for the plurality of potential travel routes;

calculate a risk index, wherein the risk index is a comparison result of the historical route data and the near real-time route data and is representative of how prone the one or more comparable areas are to collisions; and

present at least one travel route for the vehicle based on the calculated risk index.

9. The server of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to:

select a desired travel route from the at least one presented travel routes; and

present at least one travel route for the vehicle based on the calculated risk index.

10. The server of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to:

periodically access the near real-time route data for the selected desired travel route;

calculate an updated risk index based on the historical route data and the near real-time route data for the selected desired travel route; and

present updated risk information for the selected desired travel route.

11. The server of claim 8, further comprising:

a transceiver coupled to the processor, the transceiver configured to communicate via a wireless communication or data transmission over one or more radio frequency links or wireless communication channels, wherein the transceiver is configured to transmit the selected travel route to a device to facilitate routing of the vehicle according to the selected travel route;

wherein the device comprises at least one of a mobile device, an on-board computer, or a navigator.

12. The server of claim 8, wherein the historical route data comprises at least one of historical traffic data, historical accident data, and neighborhood data.

13. The server of claim 8, wherein the near real-time route data comprises at least one of near real-time traffic data, near real-time road engineering data, and near real-time incident data.

14. The server of claim 8, wherein the vehicle comprises at least one of an automobile, a self-powered machine, and a manually-powered machine.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing a set of computer readable instructions for reducing vehicle collisions that when executed by a processor configure the processor to:

receive a desired destination for vehicular travel;

access historical route data for a plurality of potential travel routes to arrive at the desired location, the historical route data corresponding to one or more comparable areas near the plurality of potential travel routes;

access near real-time route data for the plurality of potential travel routes;

calculate a risk index, wherein the risk index is a comparison result of the historical route data and the near real-time route data and is representative of how prone the one or more comparable areas are to collisions; and

present at least one travel route for the vehicle based on the calculated risk index.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to

select a desired travel route from the at least one presented travel routes;

and

present at least one travel route for the vehicle based on the calculated risk index.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to:

periodically access the near real-time route data for the selected desired travel route;

calculate an updated risk index based on the historical route data and the near real-time route data for the selected desired travel route; and

present updated risk information for the selected desired travel route.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, that when executed by a transceiver, configure the transceiver to:

transmit the selected travel route to a device to facilitate routing of the vehicle according to the selected travel route;

wherein the device comprises at least one of a mobile device, an on-board computer, or a navigator.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein the historical route data comprises at least one of historical traffic data, historical accident data, and neighborhood data.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein at least one of a number of expected collisions, a number of observed collisions, or a number of near real-time events occurring on the route contribute to the risk index.