Vehicle fleet work order management system

• US 9,818,302 B2
• Filed: 01/04/2016
• Issued: 11/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Telogis Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: McCormick, Sean, Koch, Jason, Morris, Arthur N., Mason, Ralph, Elliot, William
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): MCCORMACK, THOMAS S
• Application Number:
  US14/987,097
• Publication Number:
  US 20160358478A1
• Time in Patent Office: 680 Days
• Field of Search: 340988-996
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/34 Route searching; Route guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• 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: G08G 1/202 Dispatching vehicles on the basis of a location, e.g. taxi dispatching

Abstract

Vehicle management systems and associated processes can monitor the progress of assets, such as vehicle, along predetermined routes and report the progress to user. The system can compare the actual status of the vehicle to the expected status of the vehicle and to report any difference between the actual status and expected status to a user. Further, the system can receive a predetermined threshold value of the difference from a user and report to the user if the predetermined threshold has been exceeded.

Claims

1. A system for presenting fleet vehicle progress information regarding job progress in real-time to a manager of vehicles in a fleet of vehicles that service a plurality of stops associated with a plurality of jobs, the system comprising:

a computer system comprising computer hardware configured to;

access a plurality of routes for a plurality of vehicles in a fleet of vehicles from a memory device, the plurality of routes connecting a plurality of stops via a network of streets in a geographic region, the plurality of stops associated with a plurality of jobs serviced by the plurality of vehicles;

determine actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs, the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles determined using vehicle telematics data from in-vehicle devices associated with the plurality of vehicles, the vehicle telematics data comprising data indicative of physical locations of the plurality of vehicles in the geographic region;

determine progress indications for the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs, the progress indications being determined from comparisons of (i) the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs to (ii) expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs, the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles indicative of estimated progress for the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs;

determine a first proportion of a group of vehicles of the plurality of vehicles that satisfy a progress threshold and a second proportion of the group of vehicles that do not satisfy the progress threshold, the progress threshold being satisfied when vehicles of the group of vehicles are on time servicing the plurality of jobs according to comparisons of the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles and the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles;

output to a display for presentation to a manager of the plurality of vehicles;

at least some of the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles, at least some of the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles, and the progress indications for presentation together on a first user interface, and

a graphical representation of the group of vehicles on a second user interface, the graphical representation being superimposed on a graphical map of the geographic region and comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion being a first color and having a size corresponding to the first proportion, a second portion being a second color different from the first color and having a size corresponding to the second proportion; and

in response to determining that an updated first proportion of the group of vehicles satisfy the progress threshold and that an updated second proportion of the group of vehicles do not satisfy the progress threshold,

change the size of the first portion on the second user interface to correspond to the updated first proportion rather than the first proportion, and

change the size of the second portion on the second user interface to correspond to the updated second proportion rather than the second proportion.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the graphical representation is a circle having a periphery portion and an inner portion different from the periphery portion, the first portion being a first part of the periphery portion and the second portion being a second part of the periphery portion different from the first part.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first color is green, and the second color is red.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer system is configured to output the at least some of the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles, the at least some of the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles, and at least some of the progress indications to the display for presentation together on the first user interface as part of a report that lists at least some of the plurality of stops, the report comprising textual highlighting of one or more stops of the plurality of stops listed in the report indicating that the one or more stops of the plurality of stops is associated with the progress indications.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer system is configured to:

determine at least some of the progress indications by calculating magnitudes of differences between the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles and the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles;

receive an input from the manager defining a magnitude threshold related to at least one of the magnitudes; and

determine at least one of the progress indications by determining if the at least one of the magnitudes is greater than the magnitude threshold.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the computer system is configured to output to the display for presentation the at least one of the progress indications on the first user interface as a visual alert to the manager that the at least one of the magnitudes is greater than the magnitude threshold.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the visual alert comprises coloring of displayed information.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein the computer system is configured to output to the display for presentation the at least one of the progress indications on the first user interface as a value of the at least one of the magnitudes.

9. A method for presenting fleet vehicle progress information regarding job progress in real-time to a manager of vehicles in a fleet of vehicles that service a plurality of stops associated with a plurality of jobs, the method comprising:

accessing a plurality of routes for a plurality of vehicles in a fleet of vehicles from a memory device, the plurality of routes connecting a plurality of stops via a network of streets in a geographic region, the plurality of stops associated with a plurality of jobs serviced by the plurality of vehicles;

determining actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs, the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles determined using vehicle telematics data from in-vehicle devices associated with the plurality of vehicles, the vehicle telematics data comprising data indicative of physical locations of the plurality of vehicles in the geographic region;

determining progress indications for the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs, the progress indications being determined from comparisons of (i) the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs to (ii) expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs, the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles indicative of estimated progress for the plurality of vehicles as the plurality of vehicles travel along the plurality of routes to service the plurality of jobs;

determining a first proportion of a group of vehicles of the plurality of vehicles that satisfy a progress threshold and a second proportion of the group of vehicles that do not satisfy the progress threshold, the progress threshold being satisfied when vehicles of the group of vehicles are on time servicing the plurality of jobs according to comparisons of the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles and the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles;

outputting to a display for presentation to a manager of the plurality of vehicles;

at least some of the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles, at least some of the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles, and the progress indications for presentation together on a first user interface, and

a graphical representation of the group of vehicles on a second user interface, the graphical representation being superimposed on a graphical map of the geographic region and comprising a first portion and a second portion, the first portion being a first color and having a size corresponding to the first proportion, a second portion being a second color different from the first color and having a size corresponding to the second proportion; and

in response to determining that an updated first proportion of the group of vehicles satisfy the progress threshold and that an updated second proportion of the group of vehicles do not satisfy the progress threshold,

changing the size of the first portion on the second user interface to correspond to the updated first proportion rather than the first proportion, and

changing the size of the second portion on the second user interface to correspond to the updated second proportion rather than the second proportion,

wherein the method is performed by a computer system comprising computer hardware.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the graphical representation is a circle having a periphery portion and an inner portion different from the periphery portion, the first portion being a first part of the periphery portion and the second portion being a second part of the periphery portion different from the first part.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the first color is green, and the second color is red.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein said outputting comprises outputting the at least some of the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles, the at least some of the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles, and at least some of the progress indications to the display for presentation together on the first user interface as part of a report that lists at least some of the plurality of stops, the report comprising textual highlighting of one or more stops of the plurality of stops listed in the report indicating that the one or more stops of the plurality of stops is associated with the progress indications.

13. The method of claim 9,

wherein said determining the progress indications comprises determining at least some of the progress indications by calculating magnitudes of differences between the actual statuses of the plurality of vehicles and the expected statuses of the plurality of vehicles;

further comprising receiving an input from the manager defining a magnitude threshold related to at least one of the magnitudes; and

wherein said determining the progress indications comprises determining at least one of the progress indications by determining if the at least one of the magnitudes is greater than the magnitude threshold.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said outputting comprises outputting to the display for presentation the at least one of the progress indications on the first user interface as a visual alert to the manager that the at least one of the magnitudes is greater than the magnitude threshold.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the visual alert comprises coloring of displayed information.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein said outputting comprises outputting to the display for presentation the at least one of the progress indications on the first user interface as a value of the at least one of the magnitudes.