Detecting device movement and/or device usage within a vehicle

• US 10,567,919 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2018
• Issued: 02/18/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arity International Limited (Allstate Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Arity International Limited (Allstate Corporation)
• Inventors: Schmitt, Kyle Patrick, Harish, Pratheek M., Tammali, Venu Madhav, Snyder, Jared S., Ferguson, Dana
• Primary Examiner(s): Siddiqui, Kashif
• Application Number:
  US15/935,161
• Publication Number:
  US 20180213360A1
• Time in Patent Office: 694 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/18 Stabilised platforms, e.g. by gyroscope
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724098 Interfacing with an on-board device of a vehicle for hands-free speaking in vehicles H04M1/6075
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72463 to restrict the functionality of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724631 by limiting the access to the user interface, e.g. locking a touch-screen or a keypad
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/026 using orientation information, e.g. compass
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for receiving and transmitting accelerometer data and/or usage data, and analyzing the data to detect movement or usage of the device within a vehicle. A device, such as a mobile device, may detect a device movement event or a device usage event associated with the device. Based on the detection of the device movement event or the device usage event, a time associated with the event may be stored. The device may determine whether another event associated with the device occurs within a threshold amount of time from the time associated with the event. Based on a determination of whether the other event occurs within the threshold amount of time, the device may determine an event session associated with the device. The event session may comprise an instantaneous event or a continuous event. Data indicative of the event session may be transmitted to a server.

Claims

1. A mobile device comprising:

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

a processor; and

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

receive, from the accelerometer, acceleration data measured by the accelerometer;

detect, based on the acceleration data measured by the accelerometer, a mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device;

based on the detection of the mobile device movement event, store a time associated with the mobile device movement event;

determine whether an event associated with the mobile device occurs within a threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event;

based on the determination of whether the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event, determine an event session associated with the mobile device, wherein a start time of the event session comprises the time associated with the mobile device movement event; and

transmit, to a server, data indicative of the event session.

2. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein receiving the acceleration data comprises receiving first acceleration data measured by the accelerometer at a first time and second acceleration data measured by the accelerometer at a second time, and wherein detecting the mobile device movement event comprises:

determining a difference in angle between a first three-dimensional vector corresponding to the first acceleration data and a second three-dimensional vector corresponding to the second acceleration data; and

determining that the difference in angle is greater than a threshold angle.

3. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the memory stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor of the mobile device to:

determine that the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event,

wherein determining the event session associated with the mobile device comprises determining a continuous event session associated with the mobile device, wherein an end time of the continuous event session comprises a time associated with the event or a time associated with a different event occurring after the event.

4. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the event associated with the mobile device comprises a second mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device, and wherein the memory stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor of the mobile device to:

determine that the second mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event.

5. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the event associated with the mobile device comprises a mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device, and wherein the memory stores computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor of the mobile device to:

determine that the mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event.

6. The mobile device of claim 5, wherein the mobile device usage event comprises a mobile device unlock or a mobile device lock.

7. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein determining whether the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time comprises determining that each event, of a plurality of events associated with the mobile device, occurs within a respective threshold amount of time from a prior event, wherein determining the event session associated with the mobile device comprises determining a continuous event session associated with the mobile device, and wherein an end time of the continuous event session comprises a time associated with a last event of the plurality of events.

8. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein determining the event session associated with the mobile device comprises determining the start time of the event session, an end time of the event session, and a duration of the event session, and wherein transmitting the data indicative of the event session comprises transmitting data indicative of the start time of the event session, the end time of the event session, and the duration of the event session.

9. A method comprising:

receiving, by a mobile device and from an accelerometer configured to measure acceleration of at least one axis of the accelerometer, acceleration data measured by the accelerometer;

detecting, by the mobile device and based on the acceleration data measured by the accelerometer, a mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device;

based on the detecting the mobile device movement event, storing a time associated with the mobile device movement event;

determining whether an event associated with the mobile device occurs within a threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event;

based on the determining whether the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event, determining an event session associated with the mobile device, wherein a start time of the event session comprises the time associated with the mobile device movement event; and

transmitting, by the mobile device and to a server, data indicative of the event session.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving the acceleration data comprises receiving first acceleration data measured by the accelerometer at a first time and second acceleration data measured by the accelerometer at a second time, and wherein detecting the mobile device movement event comprises:

determining a difference in angle between a first three-dimensional vector corresponding to the first acceleration data and a second three-dimensional vector corresponding to the second acceleration data; and

determining that the difference in angle is greater than a threshold angle.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining that the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event,

wherein determining the event session associated with the mobile device comprises determining a continuous event session associated with the mobile device, wherein an end time of the continuous event session comprises a time associated with the event or a time associated with a different event occurring after the event.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the event associated with the mobile device comprises a second mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device, the method further comprising:

determining that the second mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the event associated with the mobile device comprises a mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device, the method further comprising:

determining that the mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device movement event.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the mobile device usage event comprises a mobile device unlock or a mobile device lock.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein determining whether the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time comprises determining that each event, of a plurality of events associated with the mobile device, occurs within a respective threshold amount of time from a prior event, wherein determining the event session associated with the mobile device comprises determining a continuous event session associated with the mobile device, and wherein an end time of the continuous event session comprises a time associated with a last event of the plurality of events.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the event session associated with the mobile device comprises determining the start time of the event session, an end time of the event session, and a duration of the event session, and wherein transmitting the data indicative of the event session comprises transmitting data indicative of the start time of the event session, the end time of the event session, and the duration of the event session.

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

detect a mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device;

based on the detection of the mobile device usage event, store a time associated with the mobile device usage event;

determine whether an event associated with the mobile device occurs within a threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device usage event;

based on the determination of whether the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device usage event, determine an event session associated with the mobile device, wherein a start time of the event session comprises the time associated with the mobile device usage event; and

transmit, to a server, data indicative of the event session.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions that, when read by the processor of the mobile device, cause the processor of the mobile device to:

receive, from an accelerometer configured to measure acceleration of at least one axis of the accelerometer, first acceleration data measured by the accelerometer at a first time and second acceleration data measured by the accelerometer at a second time;

determine a difference in angle between a first three-dimensional vector corresponding to the first acceleration data and a second three-dimensional vector corresponding to the second acceleration data; and

determine that the difference in angle is greater than a threshold angle,

wherein determining whether the event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device usage event comprises determining, based on the determination that the difference in angle is greater than the threshold angle, that a mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device usage event.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein the event associated with the mobile device comprises a mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device, and wherein the instructions that, when read by the processor of the mobile device, cause the processor of the mobile device to:

determine that the mobile device movement event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device usage event.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein the event associated with the mobile device comprises a second mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device, and wherein the instructions that, when read by the processor of the mobile device, cause the processor of the mobile device to:

determine that the second mobile device usage event associated with the mobile device occurs within the threshold amount of time from the time associated with the mobile device usage event.