Reversing vehicle remote telematics detection

• US 8,744,700 B2
• Filed: 04/25/2012
• Issued: 06/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GeoTab Incorporated
• Original Assignee: GeoTab Incorporated
• Inventors: Beams, Darren, Cawse, Neil
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Mary
• Assistant Examiner(s): Trivedi, Atul
• Application Number:
  US13/506,525
• Publication Number:
  US 20130289837A1
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 701/7, 701/70, 701/74, 701/79, 701 93- 96, 701/110, 701/119, 701/121, 701/502, 701/507
• US Class Current: 701/51
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/06 Direction of travel
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/10 Longitudinal speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/45 External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18027 Drive off, accelerating from standstill
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18036 Reversing
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 30/18045 Rocking, i.e. fast change between forward and reverse
• CPC Class Codes: B60Y 2400/90 Driver alarms

Abstract

A device comprising a processor that detects an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s operational state from an initial state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed equal to about 0; to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by sensed vehicle speed being greater than about 0 and, verification from a reverse operating mode sensor that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction; and presumptively signals the thusly detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of the associated vehicle.

Claims

1. A device comprising a processor:

that detects an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s operational state;

from an initial state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed equal to about 0, to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by;

sensed vehicle speed being greater than about 0; and

, verification from a reverse operating mode accelerometer that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction, and presumptively signals said detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

2. The device according to claim 1 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by said sensed vehicle speed remaining greater than about 0 for a predetermined uninterrupted period of time.

3. The device according to claim 1 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by said sensed vehicle speed not exceeding a predetermined maximum speed.

4. The device according to claim 1 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by said sensed vehicle speed:

remaining greater than about 0 for a predetermined uninterrupted period of time; and

, not exceeding a predetermined maximum speed.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein said processor calculates change in speed from said initial speed state of about 0 to speed in range greater than about 0 but less than said predetermined maximum for an uninterrupted predetermined period of time with an average negative acceleration, to detect said change in state.

6. The device according to claim 4, wherein said predetermined max speed is about 25 kph.

7. The device according to claim 4, wherein said predetermined minimum period of time is about 2 seconds.

8. The device according to claim 1 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by a reverse operating mode sensor verification is provided by a negatively-valued average sensed vehicle acceleration along the vehicle'"'"'s longitudinal axis of travel.

9. A device according to claim 1 wherein said processor:

a) uses logic state comparators to detect an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s operational state;

a. from an initial state characterized by sensed vehicle speed equal to about 0 being TRUE,

b. to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by;

i. sensed vehicle speed greater than about 0 being TRUE; and

,

ii. a reverse operating mode sensor verification that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction being TRUE,

b) and, presumptively signals said detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

10. The device according to claim 9 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized in a)b.i. with said sensed vehicle speed remaining greater than about 0 for a predetermined uninterrupted period of time being TRUE.

11. The device according to claim 9 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized in a)b.i. with said sensed vehicle speed greater than about 0 and not exceeding a predetermined maximum speed, being TRUE.

12. The device according to claim 9 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized in a)b.i. with said sensed vehicle speed remaining greater than about 0 for a predetermined uninterrupted period of time and not exceeding a predetermined maximum speed, being TRUE.

13. The device according to claim 1, wherein said processor initiates a new change of state detection cycle in response to detecting speed=about 0.

14. A vehicular telematics device according to claim 1, and further comprising a selected one or more of the group consisting of a memory;

and, a wireless transmitter operatively connected to said processor and responsive to said processor'"'"'s detected change of vehicle operational state signals to respectively;

record or transmit a detected instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

15. The device according to claim 14, wherein said memory further records a serial log of said signals.

16. The device according to claim 15, wherein said memory records a serial log of said signals in conjunction with records of other contemporaneously-associated vehicle data.

17. The device according to claim 16, wherein said contemporaneously-associated vehicle data include geographic vehicle location data.

18. The device according to claim 17, wherein said geographic location data is GPS receiver sensed data from a device-associated GPS receiver.

19. The device according to claim 14, wherein said memory comprises a two tiered memory for recording vehicular telematics data from said processor at a first rate in a first log and at a second higher rate in a second log, and recording said detected instances of reverse operation in said second log.

20. The device according to claim 1, wherein said accelerometer is a tri-axial accelerometer.

21. The device according to claim 1, wherein said accelerometer is a digital accelerometer.

22. The device according to claim 1, wherein said accelerometer is a micro-electrical-mechanical sensor accelerometer.

23. A method for detecting instances of vehicle reverse operation comprising the steps of detecting an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s operational state from an initial state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed equal to about 0 to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed being greater than about 0;

and, verifying from a reverse operating mode accelerometer that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction, and presumptively signaling said detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

24. The method according to claim 23 wherein said detection includes said immediately succeeding vehicle state being further characterized by said sensed vehicle speed remaining greater than about 0 for a predetermined uninterrupted period of time.

25. The method according to claim 23 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by said sensed vehicle speed not exceeding a predetermined maximum speed.

26. The method according to claim 23 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by said sensed vehicle speed:

remaining greater than about 0 for a predetermined uninterrupted period of time; and

, not exceeding a predetermined maximum speed.

27. The method according to claim 23 wherein said immediately succeeding vehicle state is further characterized by a reverse operating mode sensor verification is provided by a negatively-valued average sensed vehicle acceleration along the vehicle'"'"'s longitudinal axis of travel.

28. The method according to claim 23, wherein said accelerometer is a tri-axial accelerometer.

29. The method according to claim 23, wherein said accelerometer is a digital accelerometer.

30. The device according to claim 23, wherein said accelerometer is a micro-electrical-mechanical sensor accelerometer.

31. A method for displaying instances of detected reverse operation on a user computer comprising co-operably displaying computer-received and processed instances of detected reverse operation of said vehicle on a user computer and co-operable to display differentially distinguishable representations of computer-received and processed instances of detected reverse operation of said vehicle through a machine to human interface, and comprising the steps of detecting an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s o rational state from an initial state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed equal to 0 to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed being greater than about 0;

and, verifying from a reverse operating mode accelerometer that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction, and presumptively signaling said detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

32. The method according to claim 31 wherein said interface is displayed as a representational map including geographic vehicle location data, and user computer-received and processed instances of detected reverse operation of said vehicle are displayed as differentially distinguishable overlays on said representational map.

33. The method according to claim 31, wherein said accelerometer is a tri-axial accelerometer.

34. The method according to claim 31, wherein said accelerometer is a digital accelerometer.

35. The device according to claim 31, wherein said accelerometer is a micro-electrical-mechanical sensor accelerometer.

36. A method for actuarial data processing of vehicular telematics data, including user computer-received and processed instances of detected reverse operation of said vehicle, comprising processing computer-received instances and/or frequency of instances of detected reverse operation of said vehicle to characterize an actuarially-based vehicle operation profile in relation to said instances, and comprising the steps of detecting an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s operational state from an initial state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed equal to about 0 to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed being greater than about 0;

and, verifying from a reverse operating mode accelerometer that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction, and presumptively signaling said detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

37. The method according to claim 36, wherein said accelerometer is a tri-axial accelerometer.

38. The method according to claim 36, wherein said accelerometer is a digital accelerometer.

39. The device according to claim 36, wherein said accelerometer is a micro-electrical-mechanical sensor accelerometer.

40. A method for consolidating vehicular telematics devices from a plurality of vehicles employing a user computer having a vehicular telematics consolidating processing device to receive and process vehicular telematics data from a plurality of vehicles having associated therewith respective ones of said on-board telematics devices, and processing vehicular telematics data therefrom, including user computer-received and processed instances of detected reverse operation of ones of said plurality of vehicles, with said processor, and comprising the steps of detecting an autonomously sensed change in a vehicle'"'"'s operational state from an initial state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed equal to about 0 to an immediately succeeding vehicle state characterized by a sensed vehicle speed being greater than about 0;

and, verifying in from a reverse operating mode accelerometer that longitudinal vehicle speed is in a reverse direction, and presumptively signaling said detected change of vehicle operational state as an instance of reverse operation of said vehicle.

41. The device according to claim 40, wherein said accelerometer is a tri-axial accelerometer.

42. The device according to claim 40, wherein said accelerometer is a digital accelerometer.

43. The device according to claim 40, wherein said accelerometer is a micro-electrical-mechanical sensor accelerometer.