Systems and methods for post-collision vehicle routing via blockchain

• US 10,839,015 B1
• Filed: 02/20/2018
• Issued: 11/17/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Original Assignee: State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm)
• Inventors: Leise, William J., Graff, Douglas A., McCullough, Stacie A., Call, Shawn M., Bellas, Eric, Skaggs, Jaime, Alt, Jacob J., Moore, Eric R., King, Vicki
• Primary Examiner(s): Sarwar, Babar
• Application Number:
  US15/900,054
• Time in Patent Office: 1,001 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 22/00 Measuring distance traversed on the ground by vehicles, persons, animals or other moving solid bodies, e.g. using odometers, using pedometers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9027 Trees
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/602 Providing cryptographic facilities or services
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/64 Protecting data integrity, e.g. using checksums, certificates or signatures
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2220/00 Business processing using cryptography postage metering system using cryptography G06Q2250/05
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0278 Product appraisal
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/006 Indicating maintenance
• 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 5/0816 Indicating performance data, e.g. occurrence of a malfunction
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/84 Vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0442 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply asymmetric encryption, i.e. different keys for encryption and decryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for public-key encryption H04L9/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/123 received data contents, e.g. message integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0637 : Modes of operation, e.g. cipher block chaining [CBC], electronic codebook [ECB] or Galois/counter mode [GCM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/30 : Public key, i.e. encryption algorithm being computationally infeasible to invert or user's encryption keys not requiring secrecy
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3236 : using cryptographic hash functions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3239 : involving non-keyed hash functions, e.g. modification detection codes [MDCs], MD5, SHA or RIPEMD
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 : involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/50 : using hash chains, e.g. blockchains or hash trees
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/03 : Protecting confidentiality, e.g. by encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/106 : Packet or message integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/71 : Hardware identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 : for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]

Abstract

The present embodiments relate to systems and methods for using a blockchain or shared ledger to record information regarding a vehicle identified by a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), or other vehicle identifier. The blockchain may be used to handle vehicles after vehicle collisions based upon sensor data regarding the collision and the vehicle stored on-chain. An indication that a vehicle has been involved in a collision is received including sensor data collected at substantially the time of the vehicle collision. A transaction is broadcast to the blockchain to reflect the sensor data of the vehicle. Since the chain is searchable by VIN, any future searches for the vehicle by VIN include the sensor data collected substantially at the time of the collision.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, via one or more processors, a first indication indicative of a vehicle being involved in a vehicle collision, the vehicle being identified by a vehicle identification number (VIN), the indication of the vehicle being involved in the vehicle collision including vehicle sensor data collected at substantially the time of the vehicle collision; and

creating, via the one or more processors, an update to a blockchain tracking vehicles by respective VINs, the update including a second indication indicative of the vehicle collision and a hash of at least a portion of the collected vehicle sensor data.

2. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising:

analyzing, via the one or more processors, the vehicle sensor data; and

determining a cause of the vehicle collision based upon the vehicle sensor data.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle sensor data includes vehicle telematics data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the update to the blockchain includes a service proposal.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the service proposal is for vehicle repair with a requested cost of repair, the requested cost of repair being based upon the vehicle sensor data.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the service proposal includes a cryptographic proof-of-identity.

7. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving an indication of a vehicle collision including one or more vehicles identified by vehicle identification number (VIN); and

deploying a smart contract to a blockchain for tracking vehicles over a lifecycle by respective VINs, the smart contract configured to;

record one or more sets of documentary evidence relating to the vehicle collision;

accept a position as to the acceptability of each of the sets of documentary evidence from one or more entities with an interest in the vehicle collision; and

resolve a claim relating to the vehicle collision if an agreement condition among the parties is satisfied, wherein the agreement condition is determined based upon vehicle sensor data, wherein a hash of the vehicle sensor data is recorded to the blockchain.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the smart contract is further configured to receive a bond payment from one or more insurers holding a policy relating to at least one of the vehicles in the vehicle collision.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the smart contract is further configured to release the bond payments to one or more entities based upon the agreement condition.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the smart contract is further configured to release the bond payments to one or more service providers, the one or more service providers having submitted service proposals to the smart contract.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the smart contract is further configured to receive an indication of acceptance or rejection from the one or more insurers of proposals made to the smart contract.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the smart contract is further configured to accept documentary evidence and service proposals from one or more service provider entities.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein at least one of the service proposals is a proposal to repair vehicle damage caused by the vehicle collision.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein at least one of the service proposals is a proposal identifying a party at fault in the vehicle collision.

15. The method of claim 7, wherein the smart contract is further configured to classify the vehicle collision as resolved upon satisfaction of the agreement condition.

16. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, via one or more processors, an indication of a first vehicle and a second vehicle involved a vehicle collision, the first vehicle and the second vehicle each having a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN);

receiving, via the one or more processors, vehicle sensor data from at least one of the first vehicle and the second vehicle;

making, based upon the vehicle sensor data, a fault determination based upon the vehicle sensor data, the fault determination apportioning fault between the first vehicle and the second vehicle; and

broadcasting, via the one or more processors, an update to a blockchain tracking vehicles by respective VINs, the update including the fault determination and a hash of at least a portion of the vehicle sensor data.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the broadcasting operation further includes a repair estimate, the repair estimate being based upon the vehicle sensor data.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the update to the blockchain includes a flag for a party to indicate agreement or disagreement with the assignation of fault, the flag being switchable by a second update to the blockchain.

19. The method of claim 16, the operation that makes the fault determination is based in part on a location of the collision.