POSITION ACCURACY TESTING SYSTEM

• US 20160102981A1
• Filed: 10/19/2015
• Published: 04/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Speedgauge Incorporated (Pelmorex, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Speedgauge Incorporated (Pelmorex, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hubbard, Jonathan, Kantarjiev, Christopher A.
• Granted Patent: US 9,897,451 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/30 Map- or contour-matching
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/23 Testing, monitoring, correcting or calibrating of receiver elements

Abstract

Accuracy of a positioning device may be determined without requiring the device to be at any specific location, such as a test location. Instead of comparing the reported location and directional data to a known location and directional data, the present technology may use multiple discrete location and directional reports for comparison with the reported data at multiple locations. The multiple comparisons are used to assess the relative accuracy of the positional telematics system. The reported location may be a GPS location or from another positioning system.

Claims

1. A method for determining accuracy of positional data, the method comprising:

receiving positional data points retrieved for from a first positioning device associated with a first vehicle, the first positioning device to generate the positional data while the first vehicle traverses a first roadway;

storing the received positional data in a memory of a computing device;

identifying one or more positional data points from the received positional data, the one or more positional data points generated at one or more locations along the first roadway;

calculating one or more difference values between the identified one or more positional data points and one or more average data points, the average data points based at least partially on averages previously calculated from past positional data from a plurality of past vehicles;

identifying that the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle is likely not performing as intended based on the calculated one or more difference values; and

transmitting a notification to the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle, the notification identifying that the first positioning device is likely not performing as intended.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each difference value of the one or more difference values is calculated as a multiple of a standard deviation from one average data point of the one or more average data points.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the positional data includes at least one of location data, heading data, or speed data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying that the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle is likely not performing as intended includes identifying that at least one difference value of the one or more calculated values exceeds a pre-determined threshold value.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the pre-determined threshold value is a pre-determined multiple of a standard deviation value based on an average value of the one or more average values.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying an accuracy of the one or more positional data points based on the one or more calculated difference values;

generating a report including the identified accuracy.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the report also includes one or more other identified accuracies corresponding to one or more other vehicles.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first vehicle and the one or more other vehicles share a trait, the trait being at least one of a vehicle type, a vehicle fleet, a model of positioning device, a similar time of day, a similar location, or some combination thereof.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first positioning device generates the positional data based at least partly on one or more wireless communications with one or more global positioning system (GPS) satellites.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the averages calculated from the past positional data are calculated using an arithmetic mean operation.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first positioning device is coupled to a first portion of the first vehicle, the first portion being located at one of an interior of the vehicle, an exterior of the vehicle, or some combination thereof.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device is coupled to a second portion of the first vehicle, the second portion being located at one of an interior of the vehicle, an exterior of the vehicle, or some combination thereof.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device a server that is in communicative contact with the positioning device via a network connection.

14. A system for determining accuracy of positional data, the system comprising:

a communication transceiver to receive positional data from a first positioning device associated with a first vehicle, the first positioning device to generate the positional data while the first vehicle traverses a first roadway;

a processor coupled to a memory, wherein execution of instructions stored in the memory by the processor;

stores the received positional data in the memory,

identifies one or more positional data points from the received positional data, the one or more positional data points generated at one or more locations along the first roadway,

calculates one or more difference values between the identified one or more positional data points and one or more average data points, the average data points based at least partially on averages previously calculated from past positional data from a plurality of past vehicles,

identifies that the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle is likely not performing as intended based on the calculated one or more difference values, and

transmitting a notification to the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle, the notification identifying that the first positioning device is likely not performing as intended.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the communication transceiver receives the positional data after a set of transmission operations that includes one or more wireless transmission operations, the one or more wireless transmission operations including at least one of a radio frequency wireless transmission, a cellular network wireless transmission, or some combination thereof.

16. The system of claim 14, further comprising the first positioning device, wherein the first positioning device generates the positional data based at least partly on one or more wireless communications with one or more global positioning system (GPS) satellites.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the positional data passes through at least one server before reaching the communication transceiver.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein each difference value of the one or more difference values is calculated as a multiple of a standard deviation from one average data point of the one or more average data points.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the positional data includes at least one of location data, heading data, or speed data.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of a computing device having embodied thereon a program, the program being executable by a processor of the computing device to perform a method for determining accuracy of positional data, the method comprising:

receiving positional data from a first positioning device associated with a first vehicle, the first positioning device to generate the positional data while the first vehicle traverses a first roadway;

storing the received positional data in a memory of a computing device;

identifying one or more positional data points from the received positional data, the one or more positional data points generated at one or more locations along the first roadway;

calculating one or more difference values between the identified one or more positional data points and one or more average data points, the average data points based at least partially on averages previously calculated from past positional data from a plurality of past vehicles;

identifying that the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle is likely not performing as intended based on the calculated one or more difference values; and

transmitting a notification to the first positioning device associated with a first vehicle, the notification identifying that the first positioning device is likely not performing as intended.