System for Safe Texting While Driving
First Claim
1. A method performed by a cellular service provider for safe texting while driving utilizing speech-text conversion, comprising:
- determining that a user of a phone is a current driver of a vehicle;
determining that the user'"'"'s phone is travelling at a velocity in excess of a disable threshold;
disabling conventional text messaging for the phone;
converting an incoming text to speech and sending as a text-voice message to the phone; and
converting a text-voice message from the phone to a conventional text message, and forwarding to a recipient.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods are described to allow safe texting with speech-text conversion for vehicle drivers, with provisions to prevent a user from defeating or bypassing the speech-text conversion. Some embodiments include a special software application in a driver'"'"'s phone while other embodiments require only software changes at a service provider. If the velocity of a phone exceeds a disable threshold, it is assumed that the user may be texting while driving. That the user is a driver is then determined by one or more of multiple methods including registration. Conventional texting is then disabled for their phone and a safe texting capability is enabled instead. Where persons in the same vehicle utilize different service providers, parameters such as for instance cell phone position, velocity, and direction of travel are time stamped and passed between service providers or alternately made available to other service providers via a central database.
43 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method performed by a cellular service provider for safe texting while driving utilizing speech-text conversion, comprising:
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determining that a user of a phone is a current driver of a vehicle; determining that the user'"'"'s phone is travelling at a velocity in excess of a disable threshold; disabling conventional text messaging for the phone; converting an incoming text to speech and sending as a text-voice message to the phone; and converting a text-voice message from the phone to a conventional text message, and forwarding to a recipient. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A cell phone including an application for safe texting, comprising:
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one or more processors; a software or firmware operating system; memory; a software or firmware application for safe texting, wherein when activated conventional texting is disabled; a validation engine to validate the application for safe texting; and wherein the application for safe texting is enabled when; it has been determined that the cell phone is being used by a driver of a vehicle; it has been determined that the vehicle is travelling at a velocity in excess of a disable threshold; and it has been determined by the validation engine that the application for safe texting is valid. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A cellular service provider system for safe texting while driving utilizing speech-text conversion, comprising:
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a conventional service provider hardware and software infrastructure; a software application for safe texting operating within the hardware and software infrastructure; and wherein the service provider determines that a user of a phone is a current driver of a vehicle in response to the user voluntarily registering the phone as a master phone; wherein the service provider determines that the user'"'"'s phone is travelling at a velocity in excess of a disable threshold; wherein the service provider prevents conventional text messages from being transmitted to or from the phone; wherein the service provider converts incoming text messages to text-voice messages and sends the text-voice messages to the phone; and wherein the service provider converts text-voice messages from the phone to conventional text messages, and forwards the conventional text messages to recipients. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification