System and method for facilitating transportation of a vehicle involved in a crash

• US 9,607,339 B1
• Filed: 01/29/2016
• Issued: 03/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Original Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Inventors: Mullen, Christina P., Leise, William J., Graff, Douglas Albert
• Primary Examiner(s): Antonucci, Anne M
• Application Number:
  US15/010,895
• Time in Patent Office: 424 Days
• Field of Search: 701/31.4
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/0027 Post collision measures, e.g. notifying emergency services
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/00 Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks safety belts or body harnesses in vehicles B60R22/00; seats constructed to protect the occupant from the effect of abnormal g-forces, e.g. crash or safety seats, B60N2/42; energy-absorbing arrangements for hand wheels for steering vehicles B62D1/11; energy-absorbing arrangements for vehicle steering columns B62D1/19
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 Price estimation or determination
• 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 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0841 Registering performance data recording measured values G01D; information storage G11B

Abstract

A system, method, and computer-readable medium to facilitate treatment of a damaged vehicle by gathering crash information, estimating an extent of vehicle damage, and requesting transport of the damaged vehicle from the crash site to a treatment facility.

Claims

1. A method implemented on a computer system including one or more processors for treating a vehicle damaged in a crash, the method comprising:

providing a plurality of indications of treatment facilities;

assigning a treatment complexity level to each of the plurality of indications of treatment facilities, the treatment complexity level representing a degree of difficulty associated with treating damaged vehicles, including repairing, salvaging, or scrapping;

storing, by the one or more processors, each of the plurality of indications of treatment facilities and the assigned treatment complexity level;

receiving, by the one or processors via one or more sensors coupled to the damaged vehicle, crash information about a damaged vehicle, the crash information including vehicle operating data of the damaged vehicle near or at the time of the crash;

evaluating, by the one or more processors, the received crash information with collision data of a vehicle type that includes the damaged vehicle;

determining, by the one or more processors, the treatment complexity level associated with treating the damaged vehicle based on the evaluation of the received crash information;

selecting, by the one or more processors, the treatment facility for treating the damaged vehicle based on the stored indications of treatment facilities and assigned treatment complexity levels corresponding to the determined treatment complexity level of the damaged vehicle; and

transmitting, by the one or more processors, information associated with treating the damaged vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting information associated with treating the damaged vehicle includes transmitting information associated with transporting the damaged vehicle to the selected treatment facility.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein evaluating the received crash information includes comparing an operating characteristic of the damaged vehicle with an impact characteristic of the vehicle type that includes the damaged vehicle.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein evaluating the received crash information includes comparing an image of the damaged vehicle to a like image of another vehicle of similar type to that of the damaged vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving crash information about a damaged vehicle includes receiving a description of the damaged vehicle.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the description of the damaged vehicle includes an auditory and/or a visual description.

7. A computer system for treating a vehicle damaged in a crash, the computer system comprising:

a computing device including one or more processors;

one or more memory devices coupled to the one or more processors of the computing device, the one or more memory devices storing executable instructions that when executed by the one or more processors of the computing device cause the computer system to assign a treatment complexity level to each of a plurality of indications of treatment facilities, store each of the plurality of indications of treatment facilities and the assigned treatment complexity level, receive crash information near or at the time of the crash and including vehicle operating data of a damaged vehicle from one or more sensors coupled to the damaged vehicle, evaluate the received crash information of the damaged vehicle with collision data of a vehicle type that includes the damaged vehicle and determine the treatment complexity level associated with treating the damaged vehicle based on the evaluation of the crash information;

select the treatment facility for treating the damaged vehicle based on the stored indications of treatment facilities and assigned treatment complexity levels corresponding to the determined treatment complexity level of the damaged vehicle; and

transmit information associated with treating the damaged vehicle.

8. The computer system of claim 7, wherein the information associated with treating the damaged vehicle includes information associated with transporting the damaged vehicle to the selected treatment facility.

9. The computer system of claim 7, wherein the received crash information about the damaged vehicle includes a description of the damaged vehicle.

10. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the description of the damaged vehicle includes an auditory and/or a visual description.

11. The computer system of claim 7, further comprising an analyzer operatively coupled to the one or more processors, the analyzer for evaluating the received crash information of the damaged vehicle with a compilation of collision data of the vehicle type that includes the damaged vehicle.

12. The computer system of claim 11, wherein the compilation of collision data includes a particular treatment complexity level equated to a particular collision data.

13. The computer system of claim 11, wherein the compilation of collision data is stored on the one or more memory devices.

14. The computer system of claim 7, further comprising one or more sensors coupled to the one or more processors to monitor operating information of the damaged vehicle and facilitate providing crash information of the damaged vehicle to the computing device.

15. The computer system of claim 7, further comprising a communication module coupled to the computing device and transmitting information associated with treating the damaged vehicle to the selected treatment facility.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by one or more processors of a computer system cause the computer system to:

assign a treatment complexity level to each of a plurality of indications of treatment facilities, treatment complexity level representing a degree of difficulty associated with treating damaged vehicles, including repairing, salvaging, or scrapping;

store each of the plurality of indications of treatment facilities and the assigned treatment complexity level;

receive crash information near or at the time of the crash and including vehicle operating data of a damaged vehicle from one or more sensors coupled to the damaged vehicle;

evaluate the received crash information with collision data of a vehicle type that includes the damaged vehicle;

determine the treatment complexity level associated with treating the damaged vehicle based on the evaluation of the received crash information;

select the treatment facility for treating the damaged vehicle based on the stored indications of treatment facilities and assigned treatment complexity levels corresponding to the determined treatment complexity level of the damaged vehicle; and

transmit information associated with treating the damaged vehicle.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein information associated with treating the damaged vehicle includes information associated with transporting the damaged vehicle to the selected treatment facility.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the crash information about the damaged vehicle includes a description of the damaged vehicle.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the description of the damaged vehicle includes an auditory and/or a visual description.