Prevention of texting while operating a motor vehicle

• US 8,952,800 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2012
• Issued: 02/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Quartz Auto Technologies, LLC
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Chefalas, Thomas E., Liu, Leslie S., Mastrianni, Steven J., Bantz, David F., Moulic, James R., Shea, Dennis G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bugg, George
• Assistant Examiner(s): Small, Naomi
• Application Number:
  US13/603,585
• Publication Number:
  US 20120326855A1
• Time in Patent Office: 888 Days
• Field of Search: 340/439, 340/438, 340/425.5
• US Class Current: 340/439
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C

Abstract

A system and method includes sensors configured to measure conditions of a vehicle. A monitoring module is configured to evaluate the conditions input thereto from the sensors. The monitoring module is further configured to determine a state of a mobile device located within the vehicle. Based upon a combination of the conditions of the vehicle and the state of the mobile device, a determination of improper use of the mobile device is made.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

one or more sensors configured to measure one or more conditions of a vehicle; and

a monitoring module configured to evaluate the conditions input thereto from the one or more sensors, the monitoring module further configured to determine a state of a phone located within the vehicle, wherein the monitoring module collects information about a user to determine baseline driving data for that user and create a learned profile for that user, wherein the learned profile is linked to the phone;

wherein based upon a combination of the one or more conditions of the vehicle and the state of the phone, a determination of improper use of the phone is made, wherein the improper use is determined by profiling a manner in which a user enters data into the phone.

2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors are configured to measure at least one of motion of a vehicle, a position of a driver of the vehicle and concurrent use of a driving mechanism and the phone.

3. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the phone includes a wireless communication device that communicates with an external network to notify an entity of the improper use.

4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the monitoring module provides a warning if a triggering change from the data of the learned profile occurs.

5. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the vehicle includes a computer system and the phone and the computer system communicate such that messages received by the phone are rendered acoustically and are responded to verbally.

6. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the improper use is determined by a sporadic fashion of entering data by a user.

7. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the improper use is determined based on a correlation between feedback of driving activities and times of inputs to the phone by a user.

8. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the monitoring module initiates a corrective action when the improper use is detected.

9. The system as recited in claim 8, wherein the corrective action includes one or more of:

an audible alarm in the vehicle, an automatic message sent over an external network;

a shut down of the phone or a function thereof.

10. A system, comprising:

an on-board vehicle computer system configured to monitor one or more sensors which measure one or more conditions of a vehicle;

the computer system including a monitoring module configured to evaluate the one or more conditions input thereto from the one or more sensors and determine a state of a phone located within the vehicle, wherein based upon a combination of the one or more conditions of the vehicle and the state of the phone a determination of improper use of the phone is made, wherein the improper use is determined by profiling a manner in which a user enters data into the phone, wherein the monitoring module collects information about a user to determine baseline driving data for that user and create a learned profile for that user, wherein the learned profile is linked to the phone, and wherein the phone is further programmed to enforce laws for how to use the phone, said laws being based on at least a location of the phone, and wherein the location is correlated to the laws to determine improper use of the phone; and

a notification device associated with the phone to notify one or more entities via an external network that the improper use has been detected.

11. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the one or more sensors are configured to measure at least one of motion of a vehicle, a position of a driver of the vehicle and concurrent use of a driving mechanism and the phone.

12. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the notification device includes at least one of a text message application, and email application and a telephone application to notify the one or more entities.

13. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the monitoring module provides a warning if a triggering change from the data of the learned profile occurs.

14. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the computer system renders messages received by the phone acoustically and the messages are responded to verbally.

15. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the improper use is determined by a sporadic fashion of entering data by a user.

16. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the improper use is determined based on a correlation between feedback of driving activities and times of inputs to the phone by a user.

17. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein one of the monitoring module and the phone initiates a corrective action when the improper use is detected wherein the corrective action includes one or more of:

an audible alarm in the vehicle, an automatic message sent over an external network; and

a shut down of the phone or a function thereof.

18. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising a computer readable program, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a computer causes the computer to perform the steps of:

storing one or more condition criteria in a memory device;

monitoring one or more conditions in a vehicle;

monitoring usage of a phone in the vehicle;

responsive to the usage and the one or more conditions, determining whether improper use of the phone has been performed, wherein the improper use is determined by profiling a manner in which a user enters data into the phone, further comprising collecting information about a user to determine baseline driving data for that user and create a learned profile for that user, and linking the learned profile to the phone; and

communicating the improper use to one or more of the vehicle, individuals in the vehicle and an entity via an external network.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium as recited in claim 18, wherein the phone enables communicating with the external network.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium as recited in claim 18, wherein the step of communicating comprises providing a warning if a triggering change from the data of the learned profile occurs.