VEHICLE TRACKING AND LOCATING SYSTEM

• US 20120106801A1
• Filed: 09/12/2011
• Published: 05/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vigilant Solutions, LLC (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Endeavoring, LLC
• Inventors: Jackson, Scott A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,781,169 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/105
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0175 by photographing vehicles, e.g. when violating traffic rules
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental

Abstract

A vehicle tracking and locating system provides information to a user about a vehicle of interest, and includes a database controller in operative communication with a database, and configured to receive data corresponding to vehicles from a plurality of client sources, and configured to save the data as information records corresponding to each client source. A plurality of external communication devices transmit a data request by the user corresponding to the vehicle of interest. A request server receives the data request in one a variety of communication formats. An input request processor operatively coupled to the request server is configured to obtain information records from the database corresponding to the data request. An output processor operatively coupled to the request server provides data of interest from the obtained information records for transmission to the respective communication device to satisfy the user request.

Claims

1. A vehicle tracking and locating system for providing information to a user about a vehicle of interest, the system comprising:

a database controller in operative communication with a database, and configured to receive data corresponding to vehicles from a plurality of client sources, and save the data as information records corresponding to each client source;

one or more external communication devices configured to transmit a data request by the user, the data request corresponding to the vehicle of interest;

a request server configured to receive the data request, the data request received in one of a plurality of communication formats;

an input request processor operatively coupled to the request server and configured to obtain information records from the database corresponding to the data request; and

an output processor operatively coupled to the request server and configured to provide data of interest from the obtained information records for transmission to the respective communication device.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the data request includes a vehicle identification number (VIN), a license plate number, a photographic image of a license plate number, or a video stream containing images of a license plate number.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the communication formats are selected from the group consisting of a short message service (SMS), a text message, an email message, a multimedia message service (MMS), a photographic format, steaming video format, and a voicemail (VM) format.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the client sources correspond to banking entities, credit entities, loan entities, automobile credit agencies, and/or law enforcement agencies.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the data received from the client sources indicate that the vehicle of interest is a stolen vehicle or a vehicle subject to repossession.

6. The system according to claim 4, wherein the database is logically or physically segmented in accordance with the corresponding client source.

7. The system according to claim 4, wherein the database information records contain entries indicating the corresponding client source.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the request server is operatively coupled to an external service provider, which is configured to receive the data request from the remote communication, and configured to decode, format, and forward a user message to the request server.

9. The system according to claim 8, wherein the external service provider is a third party SMS messaging service or a third party MMS messaging service.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the request server includes a voice mail system operatively coupled to a voice recognition system configured to convert an audio voice message into a text message, and provide the text message to the request server.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the output processor provides the data of interest in the form of text, a voice message, and/or documents.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein the data of interest is selected from the group consisting of a vehicle year, vehicle make, vehicle color, vehicle model, vehicle owner, lien holder, vehicle identification number (VIN), and vehicle location history.

13. The system according to 1, further including

a video and image feed system operatively coupled to the database controller and configured to provide images of vehicle license plates;

and

a license plate recognizer coupled the video and image feed system, and configured to isolate and identify a license plate number based on the image of vehicle license plate.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the database controller stores the identified license plate number along with an indication of a time, a date, and a location that the image of the vehicle license plate was captured.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the video and image feed system receives images from municipal cameras, highway toll-collection cameras, traffic cameras, security cameras, crowd-sourcing communication devices, and/or spotter vehicle cameras.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein the video and image feed system receives the images from fixed cameras, and associates the images received from the fixed cameras with a location of the fixed camera.

17. The system according to claim 13, wherein the video and image feed system receives the images from fixed cameras along with an indication of the location of the fixed camera.

18. A vehicle tracking and locating method for providing information to a user about a vehicle of interest, the method comprising:

storing in a database, data corresponding to vehicles, the data provided by a plurality of client sources, and saved as information records corresponding to each client source;

transmitting a data request by the user, the data request corresponding to the vehicle of interest;

receiving the data request in one of a plurality of communication formats;

decoding the data request;

obtaining information records from the database corresponding to the data request; and

transmitting data of interest from the obtained information records to the user.

19. A vehicle tracking and locating method for providing information to a user about a vehicle of interest, the method comprising:

using an external communication device, and encoding a record identifier of a motor vehicle of interest;

communicating the encoded record identifier to a request server;

receiving and decoding the encoded record identifier by the request server;

obtaining information records from a database corresponding to the decoded record identifier; and

transmitting data of interest from the obtained information records to the external communication device.