Fuel and vehicle monitoring methods and systems

• US 8,457,874 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2010
• Issued: 06/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WEX Inc.
• Original Assignee: WEX Inc.
• Inventors: Kancharla, Venugopal R., Maxham, Eric P., Rinaldi, Samuele M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): LANG, MICHAEL DEAN
• Application Number:
  US12/818,247
• Publication Number:
  US 20110313646A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,082 Days
• Field of Search: 701/123
• US Class Current: 701/123
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C

Abstract

The invention, in one aspect, features a fuel and vehicle monitoring method. The method includes receiving, via a first processor, a first odometer value and a first fuel acquisition value for a vehicle at a first instance. The method also includes determining, with a second processor, whether the first odometer value satisfies a predetermined criterion. The method also includes forecasting a first future fuel economy value for the vehicle based on the first odometer value and the first fuel acquisition value and a plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criterion is satisfied, or the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criterion is not satisfied.

Claims

1. A fuel and vehicle monitoring method, comprising:

receiving, via a first processor, a first odometer value and a first fuel acquisition value for a vehicle at a first instance;

determining, with a second processor, whether the first odometer value satisfies a predetermined criterion;

forecasting a first future fuel economy value for the vehicle based on;

the first odometer value and the first fuel acquisition value and a plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criterion is satisfied, or

the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criterion is not satisfied;

identifying questionable action by a user of the vehicle by comparing a second future fuel economy value to the first fuel economy value; and

limiting the user'"'"'s authorized activity in response to identifying the questionable action.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first future fuel economy value for the vehicle is forecast based on a moving average of the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the moving average is a weighted moving average, simple moving average, cumulative moving average, or an exponentially weighted moving average.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, via the first processor, a second odometer value and a second fuel acquisition value for a vehicle at a second instance;

determining, with the second processor, whether the second odometer value satisfies a predetermined criterion; and

forecasting the second future fuel economy value for the vehicle based on;

the second odometer value and the second fuel acquisition value, the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values, and the first forecast future fuel economy value if the predetermined criterion is satisfied, or

the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criteria is not satisfied.

5. The method of claim 4, comprising modifying the first future fuel economy value based on the second future fuel economy value and the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values.

6. The method of claim 5, comprising modifying one or more odometer values based on the modified first future fuel economy value.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising modifying the first odometer value based on the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values.

8. The method of claim 7, comprising determining when to service the vehicle based on the modified first odometer value.

9. The method of claim 7, comprising estimating an operating cost parameter for the vehicle based on the modified first odometer value.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the operating cost parameter is predicted fuel consumption or predicted service schedule for the vehicle.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first odometer value satisfies the predetermined criterion when the first odometer value is determined to be greater than a lower control limit and less than an upper control limit.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein at least one of the lower control limit and the upper control limit are modified based on the plurality of previously received odometer values and the first odometer value.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein a user inputs the first odometer value into a second processor at a fuel station.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the second processor transmits the first fuel acquisition value to the first processor, and wherein the first fuel acquisition value is an amount of fuel purchased by the user at the station at the first instance.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein questionable action is identified if the second future fuel economy value is less than the first fuel economy value by a predetermined amount.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein questionable action is identified if the second future fuel economy value is less than a fuel economy value typical of the vehicle'"'"'s type.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the questionable action is fraudulent action, suspicious action or inaccurate action.

18. The method of claim 1, comprising transmitting one or more future fuel economy values, odometer values or fuel acquisition values to a user.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of transmitting is based on a query by the user.

20. The method of claim 18, comprising modifying utilization parameters of the vehicle based on the one or more future fuel economy values, odometer values or fuel acquisition values.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein modifying utilization parameters comprises modifying a service schedule for the vehicle or an operating region specified for the vehicle.

22. The method of claim 18, comprising modifying estimated fuel economy statistics stored for a family of vehicles of the same type as the vehicle.

23. The method of claim 1, comprising transmitting one or more future fuel economy values to a user for a family of vehicles of the same type as the vehicle based on the user inputting a vehicle identification number.

24. A system for fuel and vehicle monitoring, comprising:

means for receiving a first odometer value and a first fuel acquisition value for a vehicle at a first instance;

means for determining whether the first odometer value satisfies a predetermined criterion;

means for forecasting a first future fuel economy value for the vehicle based on;

the first odometer value and the first fuel acquisition value and a plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criterion is satisfied, or

the plurality of previously received odometer values and fuel acquisition values if the predetermined criterion is not satisfied;

means for identifying questionable action by a user of the vehicle by comparing a second future fuel economy value to the first fuel economy value; and

limiting the user'"'"'s authorized activity in response to identifying the questionable action.