Autonomous vehicle with interactions with wearable devices

• US 20170151959A1
• Filed: 11/21/2016
• Published: 06/01/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Bragi GmbH
• Original Assignee: Bragi GmbH
• Inventors: Boesen, Peter Vincent
• Application Number:
  US15/357,063
• Publication Number:
  US 20170151959A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/18 for vehicle drivers or machine operators
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6803 Head-worn items, e.g. helmets, masks, headphones or goggles
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/0836 due to alcohol
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2040/0872 Driver physiology
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/08 related to drivers or passengers
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/12 Limiting control by the driver depending on vehicle state, e.g. interlocking means for the control input for preventing unsafe operation
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3617 using user history, behaviour, conditions or preferences, e.g. predicted or inferred from previous use or current movement
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0061 for transition from automatic pilot to manual pilot and vice versa

Abstract

A system includes an vehicle having functionality for autonomous operation, a vehicle network disposed within the vehicle, and an earpiece comprising an earpiece housing, a physiological monitoring sensor, an intelligent control system operatively connected to the physiological monitoring sensor and disposed within the ear piece housing, and a wireless transceiver disposed within the earpiece housing and operatively connected to the intelligent control system. The vehicle is configured to receive health data from the ear piece and in response to the health data perform one or more functions independent of a vehicle occupant using the earpiece.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

an vehicle having functionality for autonomous operation;

a vehicle network disposed within the vehicle;

an earpiece comprising an earpiece housing, a physiological monitoring sensor, an intelligent control system operatively connected to the physiological monitoring sensor and disposed within the ear piece housing, and a wireless transceiver disposed within the earpiece housing and operatively connected to the intelligent control system;

wherein the vehicle is configured to receive health data from the ear piece and in response to the health data perform one or more functions independent of a vehicle occupant using the earpiece.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the physiological monitoring sensor is an inertial sensor.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the physiological monitoring sensor is a glucose sensor.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the physiological monitoring, sensor is an alcohol sensor.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the physiological monitoring sensor is a temperature sensor.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the physiological monitoring sensor is a pulse oximeter.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the vehicle is configured to determine presence of a health condition based on the health data and lock vehicle controls to prevent the vehicle occupant from operating the vehicle controls.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the vehicle is configured to determine presence of a health condition based on the health data and change destination settings to a nearest emergency room.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the vehicle is configured to determine presence of a health condition based on the health data and change destination settings to a nearest hospital.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the vehicle is configured to determine presence of a health condition based on the health data and pull over and place a call to an emergency responder.

11. A method comprising:

sensing physiological data at one or more physiological sensors of an ear piece of an occupant of a self-driving vehicle;

wirelessly communicating a representation of the physiological data from the ear piece to vehicle network of the self-driving vehicle;

performing an action by the self-driving vehicle in response the physiological data and independently from the occupant to enhance safety of the self-driving vehicle.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the physiological data comprises pulse oximeter data.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the physiological data further comprises inertial sensor data.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the physiological data further comprises temperature data.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein the physiological data further comprises glucose sensor data.

16. The method of claim 11 wherein the action is to lock driver controls to prevent the occupant from over-riding autonomous operation.