Driver Identification and Data Collection Systems for Use with Mobile Communication Devices in Vehicles

• US 20140335902A1
• Filed: 05/08/2014
• Published: 11/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellcontrol, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Obdedge LLC
• Inventors: GUBA, Robert W., Breaux, Joseph E. III, Kennedy, Chad A.
• Granted Patent: US 9,338,605 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.4
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0227 Cooperation and interconnection of the input arrangement with other functional units of a computer G06F3/023 - G06F3/037 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/13 Acoustic transducers and sound field adaptation in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/00 Circuits for transducers , loudspeakers or microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/48 for in-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

Systems, methods, and devices for determining the location of one or more mobile devices within a vehicle comprising: (a) a controller located within the vehicle and configured to transmit at least two audio signals, a first audio signal directed generally into a driver space within the vehicle and a second audio signal directed generally into a passenger space within the vehicle, and (b) software code stored in memory of the mobile device and having instructions executable by a processor that performs the steps of: (i) detecting the at least two audio signals, (ii) sampling the at least two audio signals for a predetermined period of time; (iii) performing digital signal processing on the sampled at least two audio signals; and (iv) based on the results of the digital signal processing, determining whether the mobile device was located within the driver space of the vehicle during the predetermined period of time.

Claims

1. A system for determining the location of a mobile device within a vehicle, comprising:

a controller located within the vehicle and configured to transmit at least two audio signals, a first audio signal directed generally into a driver space within the vehicle and a second audio signal directed generally into a passenger space within the vehicle;

software code stored in memory of the mobile device and having instructions executable by the processor that performs the steps of;

(i) detecting the at least two audio signals, (ii) sampling the at least two audio signals for a predetermined period of time;

(iii) performing digital signal processing on the sampled at least two audio signals; and

(iv) based on the results of the digital signal processing, determining whether the mobile device was located within the driver space of the vehicle during the predetermined period of time.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is mounted within the vehicle in proximity to a central axis of the vehicle, the central axis extending generally between the driver space and the passenger space within the vehicle.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the controller is mounted on an inside surface of the front windshield of the vehicle.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the controller is built into the vehicle.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller includes a speaker system for transmitting the at least two audio signals.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the speaker system includes a first speaker configured to transmit the first audio signal generally into the driver space within the vehicle.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the speaker system includes a second speaker configured to transmit the second audio signal generally into the passenger space within the vehicle.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is in electronic communication with a sound system of the vehicle, the sound system having a plurality of speakers, and wherein the first audio signal is output through one of the plurality of speakers near the driver space within the vehicle and the second audio signal is output through another of the plurality of speakers near the passenger space within the vehicle.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the at least two audio signals are transmitted at a frequency above 19 kHz.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least two audio signals are transmitted simultaneously.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least two audio signals are transmitted repeatedly in sequence, each transmission lasting for a first duration and being separated by a period of silence lasting a second duration between each transmission.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the first audio signal includes a first plurality of tones, each of the first plurality of tones having its own frequency, wherein each of the first plurality of tones are transmitted simultaneously.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the second audio signal includes a second plurality of tones, each of the second plurality of tones having its own frequency, wherein the respective frequency of each of the second plurality of tones are distinct from the respective frequency of each of the first plurality of tones and wherein the second plurality of tones are transmitted simultaneously.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions executable by the processor performs the additional steps of:

filtering the sampled at least two audio signals and performing digital signal processing on the filtered at least two audio signals.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions executable by the processor performs the additional steps of:

calculating a baseline sound level from the sampled at least two audio signals, identifying each audio spike from the sampled at least two audio signals that exceeds the calculated baseline, applying Goetzel analysis on each identified audio spike, and initially determining whether the mobile device is in the driver space or the passenger space based on the application of the Goeztel analysis.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the step of detecting the at least two audio signals is performed by a microphone of the mobile device within the vehicle.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the step of sampling the at least two audio signals is performed at a sampling rate that is at least twice the maximum frequency of the highest frequency of the first and second audio signals.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the step of determining whether the mobile device was located within the driver space of the vehicle during the predetermined period of time is used to identify the user of the mobile device as the driver of the vehicle during the predetermined period of time.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions executable by the processor performs the additional step of:

determining that there is only one mobile device within the vehicle, which identifies the user of the only one mobile device as the driver of the vehicle.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions executable by the processor performs the additional step of:

determining whether the mobile device is oriented in a circumventing manner, wherein the mobile device is not located in the driver space, but the mobile device is oriented and located in view of the driver.

21. A device for collecting and transmitting operational data about a vehicle to a receiving device located within the vehicle, the device comprising:

a housing mounted to the vehicle; and

a power supply contained within the housing and adapted to provide power to electronic components contained within the housing, the electronic components including;

a microprocessor;

memory in electronic communication with the microprocessor and configured to store the operational data;

an accelerometer for detecting movement of the vehicle, the detected movement being converted by the microprocessor into an acceleration value stored as one of the operational data in the memory; and

a data transmission module, controlled by the microprocessor and configured to retrieve the operational data from the memory and to transmit the retrieved operational data to the receiving device.