METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR GPS BASED SLOPE DETERMINATION, REAL-TIME VEHICLE MASS DETERMINATION, AND VEHICLE EFFICIENCY ANALYSIS
First Claim
1. A system for producing a performance metric indicative of a performance of a driver using at least in part slope data derived from vehicle position data, comprising:
- (a) at least one vehicle data acquisition component disposed at the vehicle, the at least one vehicle data acquisition component being configured to collect time indexed vehicle data, the time indexed vehicle data comprising;
(i) position data;
(ii) speed data;
(iii) torque data; and
(iv) engine speed data; and
(b) at least one processor, the at least one processor being configured to implement the functions of;
(i) determining a slope the vehicle is traveling over at a specific point in time based on the vehicle position data at that point in time;
(ii) determining a mass of the vehicle at a specific point in time, based on the slope the vehicle is traveling over at that point in time, the speed data at that point in time, the torque data at that point in time, and the engine speed data at that point in time; and
(iii) producing the performance metric of the driver'"'"'s operation of the vehicle based at least in part on the mass of the vehicle, the mass having been determined using slope data derived from vehicle position data.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Three dimensional GPS or vehicle position data is used to determine a slope the vehicle is traveling over at a specific point in time. The slope data can then be combined with other metrics to provide an accurate, slope corrected vehicle mass. The vehicle mass can then be used along with other vehicle data to determine an amount of work performed by a vehicle, enabling s detailed efficiency analysis of the vehicle to be performed. To calculate slope, horizontal ground speed (VHGS) can be calculated using the Pythagorean Theorem. One can take the Z/Up magnitude and divide it by the horizontal ground speed. Replacing Z, x and y with directional vectors enables one to calculate slope. The slope data is then used to determine the mass of the vehicle at that time. Pervious techniques to calculate mass did not factor in slope, and thus are not accurate.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system for producing a performance metric indicative of a performance of a driver using at least in part slope data derived from vehicle position data, comprising:
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(a) at least one vehicle data acquisition component disposed at the vehicle, the at least one vehicle data acquisition component being configured to collect time indexed vehicle data, the time indexed vehicle data comprising; (i) position data; (ii) speed data; (iii) torque data; and (iv) engine speed data; and (b) at least one processor, the at least one processor being configured to implement the functions of; (i) determining a slope the vehicle is traveling over at a specific point in time based on the vehicle position data at that point in time; (ii) determining a mass of the vehicle at a specific point in time, based on the slope the vehicle is traveling over at that point in time, the speed data at that point in time, the torque data at that point in time, and the engine speed data at that point in time; and (iii) producing the performance metric of the driver'"'"'s operation of the vehicle based at least in part on the mass of the vehicle, the mass having been determined using slope data derived from vehicle position data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A vehicle telematics system for use in a vehicle, the vehicle telematics system comprising:
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(a) a positioning sensing component for collecting position data from the vehicle during vehicle operation, the position data being time indexed; and (b) at least one performance metric determining component selected from a group of performance metric determining components consisting of; (i) a first component comprising a processor configured to implement the functions of determining a slope the vehicle is traveling over at a specific point in time based on the position data, determining a mass of the vehicle based on slope, speed data, torque data, and engine speed data; and
producing a driver performance metric based at least in part on the mass of the vehicle;(ii) a second component comprising a wireless data link to a remote processor configured to implement the functions of determining a slope the vehicle is traveling over at a specific point in time based on the position data, determining a mass of the vehicle based on slope, velocity data, torque data, and engine speed data; and
producing a driver performance metric based at least in part on the mass of the vehicle; and(c) a display on which the driver performance metric is displayed to the driver. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A vehicle telematics system for use in a vehicle, the vehicle telematics system comprising:
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(a) a positioning sensing component for collecting position data from the vehicle during vehicle operation, the position data being time indexed; and (b) at least one data port for receiving vehicle data from the vehicle during operation of the vehicle, the vehicle data comprising; (i) speed data; (ii) torque data; and (iii) engine speed data; and (c) a processor configured to implement the functions of determining a slope the vehicle is traveling over at a specific point in time based on the position data, determining a mass of the vehicle based on slope, speed data, torque data, and engine speed data; and
producing a driver performance metric based at least in part on the mass of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification