SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MONITORING AND REPORTING ROAD QUALITY
First Claim
1. A method for monitoring road quality using a device comprising an electronic circuit, the method comprising the steps of:
- obtaining, by the electronic circuit, a geographic location of a vehicle comprising the electronic circuit;
monitoring, by the electronic circuit, at least one sensor signal that corresponds to road quality;
determining, by the electronic circuit, a road quality indication of the geographic location based on the at least one sensor signal;
wherein obtaining the geographic location is performed using a global positioning system (GPS);
wherein the at least one sensor signal is generated by at least one of a suspension sensor, strut sensor, shock sensor, a horizontal displacement sensor, and a vertical displacement sensor;
transmitting, by the electronic circuit, the geographic location and the road quality indication to a server;
receiving, by the electronic circuit, information updates from the server comprising an average road quality indicia based on a plurality of road quality indications from a plurality of vehicles;
comparing, by the electronic circuit, the average road quality indicia to the road quality indication obtained in the determining step; and
,if the average road quality indicia differs from the obtained road quality indication by more than a predetermined amount, indicating, by the electronic circuit, a potential problem with the at least one sensor signal.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods for monitoring vehicle sensors to determine and report road quality using a communication device are disclosed. The communication device determines the vehicle'"'"'s location on a road, such as by use of a GPS-enabled head unit or similar device and appropriate mapping software. Monitoring road quality may be achieved by adding a sensor to the shocks, by use of a vertical displacement sensor present on the head unit, and the like. Various combinations of sensors may be employed. A horizontal displacement sensor may be used. The signals from the sensors are monitored by the head unit and analyzed to judge the quality of the road by the amount of vertical vibration that is encountered. This data, together with the vehicle'"'"'s location, may be transmitted through a mobile network to a central server for distribution in road quality reports and to improve driving directions in mapping software.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method for monitoring road quality using a device comprising an electronic circuit, the method comprising the steps of:
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obtaining, by the electronic circuit, a geographic location of a vehicle comprising the electronic circuit; monitoring, by the electronic circuit, at least one sensor signal that corresponds to road quality; determining, by the electronic circuit, a road quality indication of the geographic location based on the at least one sensor signal; wherein obtaining the geographic location is performed using a global positioning system (GPS); wherein the at least one sensor signal is generated by at least one of a suspension sensor, strut sensor, shock sensor, a horizontal displacement sensor, and a vertical displacement sensor; transmitting, by the electronic circuit, the geographic location and the road quality indication to a server; receiving, by the electronic circuit, information updates from the server comprising an average road quality indicia based on a plurality of road quality indications from a plurality of vehicles; comparing, by the electronic circuit, the average road quality indicia to the road quality indication obtained in the determining step; and
,if the average road quality indicia differs from the obtained road quality indication by more than a predetermined amount, indicating, by the electronic circuit, a potential problem with the at least one sensor signal.
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2-5. -5. (canceled)
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6. A method for monitoring and reporting road quality by a server device comprising an electronic circuit, the method comprising the steps of:
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obtaining, by the electronic circuit, a report comprising the geographic road location of a vehicle and a road quality indication of the geographic location; updating, by the electronic circuit, a table correlating the geographic road location and the road quality indication; determining, by the electronic circuit, average road quality indicia based on the road quality indications from a plurality of vehicles; generating, by the electronic circuit, a calibration factor for the vehicle based on the difference between the obtained road quality indication and the determined average road quality indicia; and
,generating, by the electronic circuit, a calibration factor for the geographic location based on the difference between the obtained road quality indication and the determined average road quality indicia. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
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7. (canceled)
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10. A system comprising:
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at least one sensor; at least one electronic circuit configured to perform the following operations; obtaining a geographic location of a vehicle comprising the electronic circuit; monitoring at least one sensor signal generated by the sensor that corresponds to road quality; determining a road quality indication of the geographic location based on the at least one sensor signal; a global positioning system (GPS) receiver, wherein the electronic circuit is further configured to obtain the geographic location from GPS data obtained from the GPS receiver; wherein the sensor is at least one of a suspension sensor, strut sensor, shock sensor, a horizontal displacement sensor and a vertical displacement sensor; a transmitter; and
,a receiver, wherein the at least one electronic circuit is further configured to cause the transmitter to transmit the geographic location and the road quality indication to a server, and to obtain from the receiver information updates from the server comprising an average road quality indicia based on a plurality of road quality indications from a plurality of vehicles; wherein the electronic circuit is further configured to perform the following operations; comparing the received average road quality indicia to the obtained road quality indication; and
,if the received average road quality indicia differs from the obtained road quality indication by more than a predetermined amount, indicating a potential problem with the at least one sensor signal.
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11-14. -14. (canceled)
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15. A device comprising an electronic circuit and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program for analyzing road quality information, the computer program having a plurality of code sections, the code sections executable by a computer to cause the computer to perform the steps of:
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obtaining, by the electronic circuit, a report comprising geographic road location of a vehicle and a road quality indication of the geographic location; updating, by the electronic circuit, a table correlating the geographic road location and the road quality indication; wherein the device further comprises code sections for causing the computer to perform the steps of; determining, by the electronic circuit, average road quality indicia based on the road quality indications from a plurality of vehicles; generating, by the electronic circuit, a calibration factor for the vehicle based on the difference between the obtained road quality indication and the determined average road quality indicia; and
,generating, by the electronic circuit, a calibration factor for the geographic location based on the difference between the obtained road quality indication and the determined average road quality indicia. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18)
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16. (canceled)
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19-24. -24. (canceled)
Specification