Method and system for remotely verifying weather damage to a vehicle

• US 9,846,913 B2
• Filed: 06/03/2014
• Issued: 12/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Telematics Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Taylor, Thomas Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): LIU, CHIA-YI
• Assistant Examiner(s): Liu, Jennifer
• Application Number:
  US14/294,769
• Publication Number:
  US 20150348203A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,295 Days
• Field of Search: 705 35- 45
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance

Abstract

A system comprises a weather data network configured receive a severe weather profile including severe weather duration data, severe weather geographic boundary data, and severe weather type data. The system receives an automotive sensor profile for at least one individual vehicle including individual vehicle geographic location data. The system determines and stores a vehicle exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle including proximity of said individual vehicle geographic location data to the severe weather geographic boundary data.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to;

receive a weather profile including;

weather duration data,

weather geographic boundary data,

the weather geographic boundary data indicating a weather geographic boundary, and

weather type data;

receive an automotive sensor profile for at least one individual vehicle,

the automotive sensor profile including individual vehicle geographic location data indicating a geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle;

compute, based on the weather profile and the automotive sensor profile, a vehicle exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle,

the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary;

remotely activate, based on the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary, at least one automotive sensor of the at least one individual vehicle;

receive automotive sensor data from the at least one automotive sensor after remotely activating the at least one automotive sensor;

compute, based on the automotive sensor profile, the automotive sensor data, and the weather profile, a risk exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle;

store the risk exposure profile;

receive a claim profile including information associated with at least one claim,

the claim profile being added to the risk exposure profile, and

the at least one claim being filed in connection with the at least one individual vehicle; and

determine a validity of the at least one claim based on the risk exposure profile.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, where the instructions further include:

one or more instructions to transmit a message to an individual associated with the at least one individual vehicle based on the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, where the instructions further include:

one or more instructions to assign a risk avoidance profile when the automotive sensor profile indicates the at least one individual vehicle is operating within the weather geographic boundary in a manner that reduces exposure to a risk associated with a weather type indicated by the weather type data.

4. The computer-readable medium according to claim 3, where the instructions further include:

one or more instructions to implement a premium discount to the at least one individual vehicle assigned the risk avoidance profile.

5. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, where the automotive sensor data includes at least one of:

anti-lock brake data,

vehicle motion data,

vehicle speed data,

vehicle telemetry data,

airbag activation data,

vibration sensor data,

external temperature data,

road condition data, or

audio sensor data.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, where the claim profile includes at least one other claim, and

where the instructions to determine the validity of the at least one claim include:

one or more instructions to determine the validity of the at least one claim based on the at least one other claim.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, where the automotive sensor profile includes audio sensor data and vibration sensor data.

6. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a device, a weather profile including;

weather duration data,

weather geographic boundary data,

the weather geographic boundary data indicating a weather geographic boundary, and

weather type data;

receiving, by the device, an automotive sensor profile for at least one individual vehicle,

the automotive sensor profile including individual vehicle geographic location data indicating a geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle;

computing, by the device and based on the weather profile and the automotive sensor profile, a vehicle exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle,

the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary;

remotely activating, by the device and based on the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary, at least one automotive sensor of the at least one individual vehicle;

receiving, by the device, automotive sensor data from the at least one automotive sensor after remotely activating the at least one automotive sensor;

computing, by the device and based on the automotive sensor profile, the automotive sensor data, and the weather profile, a risk exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle;

storing, by the device, the risk exposure profile;

receiving, by the device, a claim profile including information associated with at least one claim,

the claim profile being added to the risk exposure profile, and

the at least one claim being filed in connection with the at least one individual vehicle; and

determining, by the device, a validity of the at least one claim based on the risk exposure profile.

7. The method of claim 6, where the automotive sensor data includes at least one of:

anti-lock brake data,

vehicle motion data,

vehicle speed data,

vehicle telemetry data,

airbag activation data,

vibration sensor data,

external temperature data,

road condition data, or

audio sensor data.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

transmitting a message to an individual associated with the at least one individual vehicle based on the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

assigning a risk avoidance profile when the automotive sensor profile indicates the at least one individual vehicle is operating within the weather geographic boundary in a manner that reduces exposure to a risk associated with a weather type indicated by the weather type data.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

implementing a premium discount to the at least one individual vehicle assigned the risk avoidance profile.

17. The method of claim 6, where the claim profile includes at least one other claim, and

where determining the validity of the at least one claim includes:

determining the validity of the at least one claim based on the at least one other claim.

18. The method of claim 6, where the automotive sensor profile includes audio sensor data and vibration sensor data.

11. A device, comprising:

a memory to store instructions; and

a processor to execute the instructions to;

receive a weather profile including;

weather duration data,

weather geographic boundary data,

the weather geographic boundary data indicating a weather geographic boundary, and

weather type data;

receive an automotive sensor profile for at least one individual vehicle,

the automotive sensor profile including individual vehicle geographic location data indicating a geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle;

compute, based on the weather profile and the automotive sensor profile, a vehicle exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle,

the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary;

remotely activate, based on the vehicle exposure profile indicating that the geographic location of the at least one individual vehicle is within the weather geographic boundary, at least one automotive sensor of the at least one individual vehicle;

receive automotive sensor data from the at least one automotive sensor after remotely activating the at least one automotive sensor;

compute, based on the automotive sensor profile, the automotive sensor data, and the weather profile, a risk exposure profile for the at least one individual vehicle;

store the risk exposure profile;

receive a claim profile including information associated with at least one claim,

the claim profile being added to the risk exposure profile, and

the at least one claim being filed in connection with the at least one individual vehicle; and

determine a validity of the at least one claim based on the risk exposure profile.

12. The device of claim 11, where the automotive sensor data includes at least one of:

anti-lock brake data,

vehicle motion data,

vehicle speed data,

vehicle telemetry data,

airbag activation data,

vibration sensor data,

external temperature data,

road condition data, or

audio sensor data.

13. The device of claim 11, where the processor is further to:

assign a risk avoidance profile when the automotive sensor profile indicates the at least one individual vehicle is operating within the weather geographic boundary in a manner that reduces exposure to a risk associated with a weather type indicated by the weather type data.

14. The device of claim 13, where the processor is further to:

implement a premium discount to the at least one individual vehicle assigned the risk avoidance profile.

19. The device of claim 11, where the claim profile includes at least one other claim, and

where the processor, when determining the validity of the at least one claim, is to:

determine the validity of the at least one claim based on the at least one other claim.

20. The device of claim 11, where the automotive sensor profile includes audio sensor data and vibration sensor data.