METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REDUCING DATA TRANSFER RATES FROM A VEHICLE DATA LOGGER WHEN A QUALITY OF THE CELLULAR OR SATELLITE LINK IS POOR

• US 20140277831A1
• Filed: 03/11/2014
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zonar Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Zonar Systems, Inc. (Continental AG)
• Inventors: HUNT, BRYAN
• Granted Patent: US 9,292,978 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 17/02 Tyres
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/021 Calibration, monitoring or correction G01S5/0252 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0244 Accuracy or reliability of position solution or of measurements contributing thereto
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/06 Position of source determined by co-ordinating a plurality of position lines defined by path-difference measurements G01S5/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 7/02 by radio
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10178 including auxiliary means for focusing, repeating or boosting the electromagnetic interrogation field comparable booster antennas integrated on the record carrier itself G06K19/07794
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

System and method for reducing data transfer rates when a quality of the cellular or satellite link (i.e., a long range wireless data link) is poor. Such a concept is particularly well suited to embodiments where the vehicle data being logged or collected includes position data, because consumers of vehicle data that includes position data often desire to have such data exported from the vehicle on frequent basis, so that the physical location of fleet vehicles can be tracked in real-time. In one embodiment, before transmitting data a current location of the vehicle is checked against known bad locations, and no data is sent when the current location is known to be bad. In another embodiment, if successful data transmission is not confirmed during a first time period, additional transmission attempts are delayed for a second time period.

Claims

1. A method for reducing data transfer rates when a quality of the cellular or satellite link is known to be problematical, leading to an undesirable amount of failed data transmissions, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) providing at least one known poor location for which data link quality is known to be problematical;

(b) automatically collecting vehicle data from the vehicle during vehicle operation;

(c) before transmitting the collected vehicle data to a remote computing site, automatically determining if a current position of the vehicle corresponds to a known poor location; and

(d) if the current location corresponds a known poor location, then automatically storing the collected vehicle data for transmission from a different location, the different location not being a known poor location.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein if the step of automatically determining if the current position of the vehicle corresponds to a known poor location determines that the current location of the vehicle does not correspond to a known poor location, then further comprising the step of automatically determining if there is any stored vehicle data that was not transmitted because a prior location of the vehicle was a known poor location and collected vehicle data was stored rather than being transmitted, and if so, automatically transmitting the stored vehicle data.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein each known poor location comprises a specific coordinate defined by a latitude and longitude;

and wherein the step of automatically determining if the current position of the vehicle corresponds a known poor location comprises the step of automatically applying an expansion factor so that if the current location of the vehicle is within an expanded distance of a known poor location, then automatically storing the collected vehicle data for transmission from a different location.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the expansion factor is 1 kilometer.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each known poor location comprises a specific coordinate defined by a latitude and longitude;

and wherein the step of automatically determining if the current position of the vehicle corresponds to a known poor location comprises the steps of;

(a) automatically applying an expansion factor to each known poor location; and

(b) automatically determining if the current location of the vehicle, corresponds to an expanded known poor location, and if so, then automatically storing the collected vehicle data for transmission from a different location.

6. A non-transitory memory medium having machine instructions stored thereon, which when executed by a processor, carry out steps b, c, and d of claim 1.

7. The non-transitory memory medium of claim 6, wherein the machine instructions stored thereon, when executed by a processor, further carry out the steps of claim 3.

8. The non-transitory memory medium of claim 6, wherein the machine instructions stored thereon, when executed by a processor, further carry out the steps of claim 5.

9. A geographical position system for use in a vehicle, the geographical position system comprising:

(a) a positioning sensing component for collecting geographical position data from the vehicle during vehicle operation, the geographical position data being time indexed;

(b) a memory in which at least one known poor location associated with poor data link quality is stored;

(c) a wireless data link; and

(d) a processor for implementing the functions of;

(i) automatically collecting vehicle data from the vehicle during vehicle operation

(ii) before transmitting the collected vehicle data to a remote computing site, automatically determining if a current position of the vehicle corresponds to a poor known location; and

(iii) if the current location corresponds to a known poor location, then storing the collected vehicle data for transmission from a different location.

10. The geographical position system of claim 9, wherein the processor further implements the function of, after automatically determining that the current position of the vehicle does not corresponds to a known poor location, automatically determining if there is any stored vehicle data that was not transmitted because a prior location of the vehicle was a known poor location and vehicle data was stored rather than being transmitted, and if so, automatically transmitting the stored vehicle data.

11. The geographical position system of claim 9, wherein the processor further implements the functions of automatically applying an expansion factor so that if the current location of the vehicle is within an expanded distance of a known poor location, then automatically storing the collected vehicle data for transmission from a different location:

12. The geographical position system of claim 9, wherein the processor further implements the functions of:

(a) automatically applying an expansion factor to each known poor location; and

(b) automatically determining if the current location of the vehicle, corresponds to an expanded known poor location, and if so, then automatically storing the collected vehicle data for transmission from a different location.

13. A method for reducing data transfer rates when a quality of the cellular or satellite link is poor, leading to an undesirable amount of failed data transmissions, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) automatically collecting vehicle data from the vehicle during vehicle operation;

(b) automatically attempting to transmit the collected vehicle data to a remote computing site;

(c) automatically determining if a conformation receipt has been received from the remote site, such that if no confirmation receipt is received from the remote computing site;

automatically attempting to transmit the collected vehicle data to the remote computing site at least one subsequent time during a first predefined time period; and

(d) automatically determining if a conformation receipt has been received from the remote computing site during the first predefined period of time, and if not;

automatically delaying any additional attempts to transmit collected vehicle data to the remote computing site during a second predefined time period.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first and second time periods are different.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of recording each location of the vehicle associated with an attempt to transmit collected vehicle data that does not result in a confirmation receipt from the remote computing site.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of adding the record of each location of the vehicle associated with an attempt to transmit collected vehicle data that does not result in a confirmation receipt from the remote computing site to the collected vehicle data, so that the record is transmitted to the remote computing site.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of automatically increasing the second predefined time period for subsequent failed confirmation receipts.

18. A method for automatically generating a set of known poor locations from which data transmission from a vehicle to a remote computing site should not be attempted, comprising the steps of:

(a) automatically collecting vehicle data from a plurality of vehicles;

(b) automatically parsing the vehicle data to identify any known poor location defined in the vehicle data;

(c) automatically adding a specific known poor location so identified to the set of known poor locations if any of the following conditions are met;

(i) that specific known poor location has been included in vehicle data collected by more than one vehicle; and

(ii) that specific known poor location has been included in vehicle data collected on more than one date.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein that specific known poor location is added to the set of known poor locations only if both of conditions is paragraphs (i) and (ii) of claim 18 are met.