Motor vehicle operating data collection and analysis

• US 9,053,591 B2
• Filed: 11/22/2013
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Inventors: Phelan, Joseph Patrick, Perquin, Johannes A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Mary
• Assistant Examiner(s): BUTLER, RODNEY ALLEN
• Application Number:
  US14/087,968
• Publication Number:
  US 20140080100A1
• Time in Patent Office: 564 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701/29, 701/30, 701/33, 701/35, 705/4, 705/10
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2555/20 Ambient conditions, e.g. wind or rain
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/10 Historical data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/09 Driving style or behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/107 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0841 Registering performance data recording measured values G01D; information storage G11B
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/182 Level alarms, e.g. alarms responsive to variables exceeding a threshold
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0104 Measuring and analyzing of parameters relative to traffic conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/052 with provision for determining speed or overspeed speed measuring in general G01P
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/162 Control of ships, boats, or other waterborne vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/165 Control of aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/167 : Control of land vehicles

Abstract

A method and apparatus for collecting and evaluating powered vehicle operation utilizing on-board diagnostic components and location determining components or systems. The invention creates one or more databases whereby identifiable behavior or evaluative characteristics can be analyzed or categorized. The evaluation can include predicting likely future events. The database can be correlated or evaluated with other databases for a wide variety of uses.

Claims

1. A driving evaluation computing device comprising

a processing unit comprising a processor;

a memory unit; and

a wireless receiver, wherein the driving evaluation computing device is configured to;

receive via the wireless receiver a first vehicle operational data collected by a vehicle data acquiring component, wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises time marked data acquired at regular periodic intervals by the vehicle data acquiring component;

determine a first vehicle operation factor from the first vehicle operational data; and

calculate a driver safety rating using the first vehicle operation factor;

wherein the first vehicle operational data is vehicle speed and the first vehicle operation factor is vehicle acceleration;

wherein, to determine the first vehicle operation factor, the device is further configured to identify elapsed seconds between at least two data points of the vehicle speed from the first vehicle operational data, calculate a change in the vehicle speed between the at least two data points, and calculate the vehicle acceleration between the at least two data points.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is configured to determine whether the first vehicle operation factor exceeds a threshold factor, wherein the threshold factor is an acceleration limit.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is further configured to:

receive via the wireless receiver a second vehicle operational data;

determine a second first vehicle operation factor from the second vehicle operational data; and

compare the first vehicle operation factor determined from the first vehicle operational data to the second first vehicle operation factor determined from the second vehicle operational data to assess the accuracy of the first vehicle operation factor.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is a mobile telephone device.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is configured to receive the first vehicle operational data from a mobile telephone.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is further configured to associate at least one of the first vehicle operation factor and driver safety rating with a driver profile.

7. The device of claim 2 wherein the device further configured to transmit a notification to a mobile telephone of a vehicle driver or a vehicle owner that the threshold factor has been exceeded.

8. The device of claim 3 wherein the second vehicle operational data is collected by a second vehicle data acquiring component, wherein second vehicle data acquiring component is distinct from the first data acquiring component.

9. The device of claim 6 wherein the device is further configured to receive from a user device a user log-in information associated with the driver profile;

and

transmit to the user device for display on the user device information associated with the driver profile.

10. A method for evaluating driving of a vehicle comprising:

receiving via a wireless receiver a first vehicle operational data collected by a vehicle data acquiring component, wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises time marked data acquired at regular periodic intervals by the vehicle data acquiring component;

determining a first vehicle operation factor from the first vehicle operational data; and

calculating a driver safety rating using the first vehicle operation factor;

wherein the first vehicle operation data is vehicle speed and the first vehicle operation factor is vehicle acceleration;

wherein determining the first vehicle operation factor comprises identifying elapsed seconds between at least two data points of the vehicle speed from the first vehicle operational data, calculating a change in vehicle speed between the least two data points, and calculating the vehicle acceleration between the at least two data points.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising determining whether the first vehicle operation factor exceeds a threshold factor and transmitting a notification in real-time to a mobile telephone of a driver of the vehicle driver or vehicle owner if the threshold factor has been exceeded.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising associating at least one of the first vehicle operation factor and driver safety rating with a driver profile.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising transmitting to a computing device associated with a vehicle driver or vehicle owner information associated with the driver profile.

14. A method for evaluating driving of a vehicle comprising:

receiving via a wireless receiver a first vehicle operational data and a second vehicle operational data collected by a vehicle data acquiring collector, wherein the first and second vehicle operational data comprise time marked data acquired at regular periodic intervals by the vehicle data acquiring collector;

correlating the first vehicle operational data to a first data source to identify a first data parameter associated with the first vehicle operational data;

comparing the second vehicle operational data to the first data parameter and determine a driving factor;

determining whether the driving factor exceeds a threshold factor; and

transmitting to a computing device associated with a driver of the vehicle or vehicle owner a notification when the driving factor exceeds the threshold factor;

wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle location, the second vehicle operational data comprises vehicle speed, the first data source comprises a plurality of posted speed limits for a plurality of locations;

wherein the step of correlating comprises correlating the vehicle location to the first data source to identify a posted speed limit associated with the vehicle location;

wherein the comparing step comprises comparing the vehicle speed to the posted speed limit to determine the driving factor, wherein the driving factor comprises whether the vehicle speed is in excess of the posted speed limit;

wherein the transmitting step comprises transmitting in real time to a mobile telephone associated with the vehicle driver or vehicle owner the notification that the vehicle speed exceeds the posted speed limit; and

calculating a driver safety rating using the driving factor.