SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING VEHICLE ENGINE RUNNING STATE AT BUSY INTERSECTIONS FOR INCREASED FUEL CONSUMPTION EFFICIENCY

• US 20100125402A1
• Filed: 11/14/2008
• Published: 05/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Mahajan, Sandip D., Kottawar, Saidas, Gandhi, Salil, Bansal, Ravi P.
• Application Number:
  US12/271,498
• Publication Number:
  US 20100125402A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 11/0837 Environmental conditions thereof, e.g. traffic, weather or road conditions
• CPC Class Codes: F02N 2300/306 with external senders or receivers, e.g. receiving signals from traffic lights, other vehicles or base stations
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/07 Controlling traffic signals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 Engine management systems

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed to a method for managing engines in response to a traffic signal. The method may comprise establishing communications with participating vehicles; responding to a stop status indicated by the traffic signal, further comprising: receiving a position data from each participating vehicles; determining a queue of participating vehicles stopped at the traffic signal; determining a remaining duration of the stop status; sending a stop-engine notification to the list of participating vehicles stopped at the traffic signal when the remaining duration is greater than a threshold of time; responding to a proceed status indicated by the traffic signal, further comprising: sending a start-engine notification to a first vehicle in the queue; calculating an optimal time for an engine of a second vehicle in the queue to start; and sending the start-engine notification to the second vehicle at the optimal time.

Claims

1. A method for managing engines in response to a traffic signal, comprising:

establishing communications with a plurality of participating vehicles;

responding to a stop status indicated by the traffic signal, further comprising;

receiving a position data from each participating vehicles;

determining a queue comprising a list of participating vehicles stopped at the traffic signal;

determining a remaining duration of the stop status;

sending a stop-engine notification to the list of participating vehicles stopped at the traffic signal when the remaining duration is greater than a threshold of time;

responding to a proceed status indicated by the traffic signal, further comprising;

sending a start-engine notification to a first vehicle in the queue;

calculating an optimal time for an engine of a second vehicle in the queue to start when the first vehicle starts moving; and

sending the start-engine notification to the second vehicle in the queue at the optimal time.