Systems and methods for traffic violation avoidance

• US 9,928,735 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2016
• Issued: 03/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Operr Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Operr Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Wang, Kevin Sunlin
• Primary Examiner(s): Marc-Coleman, Marthe Y
• Application Number:
  US15/019,862
• Publication Number:
  US 20160232785A1
• Time in Patent Office: 777 Days
• Field of Search: 701119, 701117, 340441, 340903, 340917, 340929
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/265 Personal security, identity or safety
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/012 from other sources than vehicle or roadside beacons, e.g. mobile networks
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0133 for classifying traffic situation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0141 for traffic information dissemination
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/015 with provision for distinguishing between two or more types of vehicles, e.g. between motor-cars and cycles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0175 by photographing vehicles, e.g. when violating traffic rules
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/054 photographing overspeeding vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096816 where the complete route is transmitted to the vehicle at once
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]

Abstract

The various embodiments herein provide a system for mapping and storing traffic violation citations and alerting a user of traffic violations. The system comprises a location identifier, an accelerometer, a unified database, a data processing module, a forum module, and a display apparatus. The unified database comprises traffic related data for commercial and non-commercial vehicles. The unified database is synchronized with the location identifier about commercial or non-commercial vehicle based on a type of vehicle and vehicle plate. The unified database contains historical and real-time traffic violation citations and other traffic related information resides in a central server. The data processing module is connected to the location identifier and the unified database through a communication medium. The data processing module is further connected to the accelerometer. The display apparatus is connected to the data processing module.

Claims

1. A system for providing traffic violation avoidance guidance, the system comprising:

a computing system;

a database residing in a central server of the computing system, the database configured to store traffic related data, wherein the traffic related data is categorized into one or more data types, the data types comprising at least one of;

commercial vehicle related data, non-commercial vehicle related data, data type based on type of vehicle, data type based on type of vehicle plate, motorcyclist related data, cyclist related data, or pedestrian related data;

one or more processors in communication with the database, configured to (i) analyze the traffic related data applicable to a user directly or by inference to predict one or more potential traffic violations, and (ii) generate at least one notification of a potential traffic violation;

one or more non-transitory computer readable program storage media storing instructions to instruct the one or more processors to provide traffic violation avoidance guidance based on at least one user type, the at least one user type comprising at least one of;

commercial vehicle user, non-commercial vehicle user, user type based on type of vehicle, user type based on type of vehicle plate, motorcyclist user, cyclist user, or pedestrian user, wherein the traffic related data is categorized based on the at least one user type; and

a remote computing device in communication with the computing system, the remote computing device configured to display the at least one notification of a potential traffic violation based on the data type corresponding to the user type and an identified location of the user.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the traffic related data is received from one or more sources selected from the group comprising:

one or more additional users, other interested individuals, government agencies, government websites, non-government organizations, private entities, transportation companies, community organizations, websites containing useful information such as law enforcement abbreviations, media sources, municipalities, municipal drivers, private drivers, employees of said system, third-party contractors of said system, blog posts, social networks, newspapers, magazines, professional articles, publicly available sources, real-time crowd-sourcing, and other resources where traffic violation related data is stored.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the traffic related data includes at least one traffic violation citation and at least one of:

one or more traffic rules, one or more vehicle traffic rules, one or more motorcycle traffic rules, one or more cycle traffic rules, one or more pedestrian traffic rules, temporary traffic notices, violation codes, or content of traffic signs for commercial vehicles, non-commercial vehicles, motorcyclists, cyclists, and pedestrians.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the database is updated by at least one of:

receiving at least one traffic violation citation from one or more sources;

receiving real-time crowdsourced records from a plurality of users;

verifying accuracy of at least one traffic violation citation;

or

removing at least one duplicate traffic violation citation from the database.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the database includes a traffic sign database associated with a forum which stores traffic sign locations, images and applicable rules, and wherein the traffic sign database includes information associated with temporary traffic notices applying to certain locations.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the traffic related data further includes crowdsourced traffic related data, wherein the crowdsourced traffic related data is obtained by one or more users providing the traffic related data through one or more remote computing devices, and wherein the traffic related data stored in the database is modified with the crowdsourced traffic related data.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the database includes traffic signal data associated with details on type, location, timing, or sequence for a plurality of traffic signals in at least one geographic region.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the database is configured to store at least one violation code, and wherein the one or more potential traffic violations are inferred by the computing system based at least on the at least one violation code.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the remote computing device is an in-vehicle system having a Global Positioning System (GPS) device, wherein the GPS device is used to help identify firsthand experience of one or more additional users with respect to particular traffic violations stored in the database, and wherein the firsthand experience is identified as physically being or having been within a predetermined distance from locations at which the particulars traffic violations occurred.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the remote computing device is a mobile computing device in communication with a forum,

wherein the forum contains at least one of a general forum for general information relating to avoidance of traffic violations not relating to a specific location, or a specific forum connected to specific locations where traffic violations have occurred, and

wherein the general forum includes a general discussion area enabling an exchange of information about traffic violation citations.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein the forum includes the specific forum, and wherein the specific forum is configured to at least one of:

organize content according to specific locations of the traffic violations;

organize content to provide explanations of traffic signs;

obtain suggestions to clarify meanings of the traffic signs along with a rating corresponding to each suggestion, wherein the suggestions having a top rating appear on top of a list;

gather information relating to the traffic violations for specific locations;

organize content to clarify one or more reasons for receipt of the traffic violations;

provide responsive information relating to avoidance of the traffic violations;

organize content to provide at least one of;

plain explanations, multiple language translations, or requests for redesign suggestions of confusing traffic signs to clarify their meanings;

or

provide a street view function to enable one or more of;

photos, comments, or videos for locations having a predetermined number of traffic violations.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

subject the at least one notification to positive ratings or negative ratings by at least one of a plurality of additional users having firsthand experience, wherein the positive or negative ratings are provided through at least one of a plurality of remote computing devices, and wherein the firsthand experience is identified by the plurality of additional users passing or having passed within a predetermined distance of the geographic area associated with the at least one notification.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the computing system is configured to:

allocate a monetary or non-monetary reward to one of the plurality of additional users having the firsthand experience, based on the notification receiving a predetermined number of the positive ratings.

14. The system according to claim 12, wherein at least part of the traffic relevant data in the database is modified in response to the one or more notifications with the one or more reasons reaching a predetermined number of the ratings or one or more recommendations reaching a predetermined number of the ratings.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

modify the one or more notifications relating to inaccurate relevant information upon the one or more notifications reaching a predetermined number of negative ratings,

wherein the inaccurate relevant information includes at least one of;

a part of the one or more reasons, or a part of the one or more recommendations.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein one or more of the plurality of additional users submit one or more additional reasons or one or more additional recommendations to replace the inaccurate relevant information,

wherein at least one of the one or more additional reasons or the one or more additional recommendations is subject to ratings from one or more other of the plurality of additional users, and

wherein at least one of the one or more additional reasons or the one or more additional recommendations are incorporated into the one or more notifications upon reaching the predetermined number of positive ratings.

17. The system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one notification is further based on at least one of:

at least one traffic violation citation, the remote computing device entering a particular geographic area, or a current time and date related to the user.

18. The system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one notification further provides one or more reasons for violations applicable to the user type of the user during the user'"'"'s approach to an intended location associated with at least one traffic violation citation.

19. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

receive, from the remote computing device, a modifier representative of an amount over a speed limit the user must be travelling in order to receive a particular notification; and

determine, based on the traffic related data and the modifier, a vehicle speed at a specific location at which to send the particular notification to the remote computing device.

20. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

send a respective notification to the remote computing device informing a driver associated with the remote computing device that a traffic light is about to change.

21. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

send a respective notification to the remote computing device informing a driver associated with the remote computing device that the driver is near a particular red-light camera location.

22. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to receive from the user a predetermined distance from a geographic region associated with a respective notification at which the user desires to receive the respective notification.

23. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to accept from the user an override of at least one respective notification according to at least one of a location, a geolocation, a time, a bus lane violation, a school zone violation, or any respective potential notification.

24. The system according to claim 1, further comprising school zone mapping wherein a region defined by a predefined radius from a speed camera is indicated as a school zone,

wherein the speed camera operates within a certain time period before and after school is in session, and

wherein an applicable speed limit for the school zone is stored in the database.

25. The system according to claim 1, wherein a transportation vehicle driven by the user whose particular identified location, determined from the remote computing device, indicates the transportation vehicle is at any point within a particular geographic region or school zone, will receive notification when a speed of the vehicle reaches a predetermined threshold.

26. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

transmit at least one respective notification of one or more unpaid pending traffic violations to the user containing information related to the one or more unpaid pending traffic violations; and

update the database with the information related to the one or more unpaid pending traffic violations.

27. The system according to claim 1, wherein the remote computing device is configured to display traffic violation notifications along a suggested travel route.

28. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to determine the potential traffic violation by combining a traffic advisory with a route plan,

wherein a global positioning system (GPS) navigation device or the remote computing device is configured to enter a route planning mode through input of an intended destination from the user,

wherein traffic violation citation data, traffic rules, or traffic regulations are retrieved from the database and advisory traffic alerts are sent to the user along a route, or

wherein a route is provided to the GPS navigation device or the remote computing device with advisory traffic alerts based on a location of a transportation vehicle driven by the user.

29. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

identify a plurality of specific locations along a route which, for a specific type of vehicle or a specific type of vehicle plate, have at least a predetermined number of issued traffic citations; and

display, on the remote computing device, a plurality of indicators corresponding to the plurality of specific locations along the route having at least the predetermined number of issued traffic citations.

30. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

identify a fluctuation in a number of issued traffic violation citations at one or more specific locations along a route based on a change in at least one of time or date, and based on the traffic related data stored in the database for the location; and

display, on the remote computing device, an indicator representative of the fluctuation at the specific location.

31. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

store, in the database, at least one route travelled by a vehicle at least a predetermined number of times;

determine, based on the traffic related data, at least one potential traffic violation within a geographic region on the at least one route; and

send a respective notification to a display apparatus of the remote computing device prior to the remote computing device entering the geographic region.

32. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

receive at least one user customizable parameter from the remote computing device;

identify a plurality of matching route options based on a start location, an end location, and the at least one user customizable parameter; and

display the plurality of matching route options on the remote computing device along with, for each matching route, information corresponding to the at least one user customizable parameter.

33. The system according to claim 32, wherein the user customizable parameter relates to at least one of:

a government restriction for a type of vehicle the user is driving, a government restriction for a type of vehicle plate on a vehicle the user is driving, a bridge, a highway, or a tunnel.

34. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing system is configured to:

identify idling of a transportation vehicle driven by the user by identifying one or more of;

a location of the transportation vehicle by a location identifier, a stationary mode of the transportation vehicle by an accelerometer, a time the transportation vehicle has been in stationary mode, or a location of the transportation vehicle; and

determine idling rules from the database according to at least one of;

the type of vehicle, the type of vehicle plate, the location, or the time.

35. The system according to claim 34, wherein the computing system is configured to:

display a warning on a display apparatus associated with the remote computing device when the time the transportation vehicle has been in the stationary mode is approaching the time for committing an idling violation at the location.

36. The system according to claim 35, wherein the computing system is configured to:

display on the display apparatus penalties associated with the idling violation.

37. The system according to claim 34, wherein the computing system is configured to:

infer idling rules from the database according to one of;

the type of vehicle, the location, the type of vehicle plate, or the time.

38. The system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the following applies for the data type corresponding to the user type:

the commercial vehicle related data at least corresponds to the commercial vehicle user type;

the non-commercial vehicle related data at least corresponds to the non-commercial vehicle user type;

the data type based on type of vehicle at least corresponds to the user type based on type of vehicle;

the data type based on type of vehicle plate at least corresponds to the user type based on type of vehicle plate;

the motorcyclist related data at least corresponds to the motorcyclist user type;

the cyclist related data at least corresponds to the cyclist user type;

or

the pedestrian related data at least corresponds to the pedestrian user type.

39. The system according to claim 1, wherein the remote computing device cross-correlates the identified location and an identified time of the user with a time and a location of at least one traffic violation citation and at least one traffic rule corresponding to the identified location and the identified time to predict a likelihood of receiving a particular traffic violation citation at the identified location at the identified time.

40. The system according to claim 1, wherein a display apparatus associated with the remote computing device displays a comparison of traffic rules for different jurisdictions based on the traffic related data, wherein the comparison is based on a particular identified location of the user and a location identified from the user'"'"'s driver license stored in a user profile,

wherein the user profile indicates at least one of a country, a state, or a city of issuance of the user'"'"'s driver license;

wherein the traffic rules are analyzed to inform the user about differences between traffic rules of the location identified from the user'"'"'s driver license and the identified location of the user;

or

wherein the differences between the traffic rules are displayed on the display apparatus.

41. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a speed sensor for determining a speed of a transportation vehicle associated with the user,

wherein a location identifier in conjunction with the speed sensor is used to identify a location of the transportation vehicle,

wherein the remote computing device is configured to alert the user when the user is driving the transportation vehicle within a predefined radius of one or more locations having particular speed limitations, or

wherein the one or more locations with particular speed limitations are represented on a display of the remote computing device having different indicators.

42. The system according to claim 1, wherein traffic zones having a history of issued traffic violation citations are identified as one or more traffic violation citation zones, and represented on a display apparatus of the remote computing device with at least one indicator.

43. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more potential traffic violations are inferred by the computing system based on information associated with a vehicle of the user and location data from the remote computing device, and wherein the information includes at least one of:

a type of vehicle plate or a type of vehicle.

44. The system according to claim 1, wherein a verification algorithm performs the steps of at least one of:

identifying a firsthand experience from one or more of the plurality of additional users who received a notification about potential traffic violation citations by passing through the location identified to have historical or real-time issued traffic violation citation data;

receiving historical and real-time crowd sourced data from the unified database and verifying the accuracy of the data received therefrom;

or

supplementing data received from the database with data acquired through one or more sources different from the database.

45. A system for providing traffic violation avoidance guidance, comprising:

a computing system;

a database residing on a central server connected to the computing system, the database configured to store traffic related data categorized into one or more data types or one or more user types; and

a remote computing device in communication with the computing system, the remote computing device comprising a location identifier which provides location data associated with an identified location of a user,

wherein the computing system is configured to provide a summary of differences between a first plurality of traffic rules associated with the identified location and a second plurality of traffic rules associated with a geographic region from which a driver'"'"'s license of the user issued, and wherein the summary is based on at least one of the one or more data types or the one or more user types.

46. The system according to claim 45, wherein the remote computing device is configured to display the summary.

47. The system according to claim 45, wherein the identified location and the geographic region are two different countries.

48. The system according to claim 45, wherein the identified location and the geographic region are two different geographic regions within the same country.

49. The system according to claim 45, wherein the computing system is further configured to:

provide a notification, through the remote computing device, relating to a potential traffic violation at the identified location.

50. The system according to claim 45, wherein the one or more user types comprise at least one of:

commercial vehicle user, non-commercial vehicle user, motorcyclist user, cyclist user, or pedestrian user.

51. The system according to claim 45, wherein the one or more data types comprise at least one of:

commercial vehicle relevant data, non-commercial vehicle relevant data, data based on type of vehicle, data based on type of vehicle plate, motorcyclist relevant data, cyclist relevant data, or pedestrian relevant data.

52. The system according to claim 45, wherein the traffic related data includes at least one traffic violation citation comprising at least traffic violation location information.

53. The system according to claim 45, wherein at least one of the first plurality of traffic rules or the second plurality of traffic rules includes at least one of:

a temporary traffic notice, a violation code, or content of traffic signs for commercial vehicles, non-commercial vehicles, motorcyclists, cyclists, or pedestrians.

54. The system according to claim 45, wherein the traffic related data further includes crowdsourced traffic related data, wherein the crowdsourced traffic related data is subject to ratings by one or more additional users, and wherein the database is modified upon the ratings reaching a predetermined number of ratings.

55. The system according to claim 45, wherein the identified location includes at least a location the user is approaching or a predetermined location.

56. A system for providing traffic violation avoidance guidance, comprising:

a computing system configured for communication with a user and a plurality of additional users through one or more remote computing devices;

a database, in communication with the computing system, the database configured to store traffic related data;

a location determining apparatus, in communication with the one or more remote computing devices, to identify a present location of the user;

one or more non-transitory computer readable program storage media storing instructions to instruct one or more processors, in communication with the computing system, wherein the one or more processors are configured to (i) categorize said traffic related data based on at least one user type of said user, the at least one user type comprising at least one of;

commercial vehicle user, non-commercial vehicle user, motorcyclist user, cyclist user, or pedestrian user, (ii) analyze the traffic related data in said database applicable to the user directly or applicable to the user by inference to predict one or more potential traffic violations based on at least the identified present location of the user and the user type of the user, and (iii) generate at least one notification based on the predicted one or more potential traffic violations based on the traffic relevant data;

a display apparatus, in communication with the computing system, configured to display the at least one notification based on the user type and an identified location of the user.

57. The system according to claim 56, wherein the computing system is configured to:

subject the at least one notification to positive ratings or negative ratings by at least one of the plurality of additional users having firsthand experience, wherein the positive or negative ratings are provided through at least one of the one or more remote computing devices, and wherein the firsthand experience is identified by the plurality of additional users passing or having passed within a predetermined distance of a geographic area associated with the at least one notification.

58. The system according to claim 56, wherein the computing system is configured to:

identify idling of a transportation vehicle driven by the user by identifying one or more of;

a location of a transportation vehicle by the location identifier, a stationary mode of the transportation vehicle by an accelerometer, a time the transportation vehicle has been in the stationary mode, or a location of the transportation vehicle;

or

determine idling rules from the database according to at least one of;

the type of vehicle, the type of vehicle plate, the location, or a time.

59. The system according to claim 56, wherein the computing system is configured to:

store, in the database, at least one route traveled by a vehicle at least a predetermined number of times;

determine, based on the traffic related data, at least one potential traffic violation within a geographic region on the at least one route; and

send a respective notification to a display apparatus of the one or more remote computing device prior to the one or more remote computing device entering the geographic region.

60. The system according to claim 56, wherein the computing system is configured to:

receive at least one user customizable parameter from the one or more remote computing devices;

identify a matching route based on a start location, an end location, and the at least one user customizable parameter; and

display the matching route on the remote computing device along with information corresponding to the at least one user customizable parameter.