System and method for use with an accelerometer to determine a frame of reference

• US 8,892,385 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2012
• Issued: 11/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Scope Technologies Holdings Limited
• Original Assignee: Scope Technologies Holdings Limited
• Inventors: Van den Bergh, Johann
• Primary Examiner(s): Olszewski, John R
• Assistant Examiner(s): MELTON, TODD M
• Application Number:
  US13/679,749
• Publication Number:
  US 20130166099A1
• Time in Patent Office: 732 Days
• US Class Current: 702/104
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0051 combined with averaging
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/0082 for initialising the control system
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/125 Lateral acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/09 Driving style or behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 50/0098 Details of control systems ensuring comfort, safety or stability not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/005 measuring translational acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/18 in two or more dimensions
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 21/00 Testing or calibrating of apparatus or devices covered by the preceding groups
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00

Abstract

A system and method for use with a device that includes an accelerometer, which can be used to determine a frame of reference for the device relative to a moving vehicle or other equipment, and which can be subsequently used in assessing or monitoring the status of the vehicle or an operator thereof. In accordance with an embodiment, by sampling accelerometer data over a period of time, the system can determine a rotation matrix or skew between the device/accelerometer'"'"'s orientation and understanding of direction, and the vehicle'"'"'s true orientation or direction in three-dimensions. The information can be used to provide corrections to the accelerometer data, and to more accurately determine the vehicle'"'"'s true orientation/direction and motion within a three-dimensional frame of reference.

Claims

1. A system to determine the direction of travel of a vehicle in motion relative to the orientation of an accelerometer fixedly attached within the vehicle, for subsequent use in characterizing motion and assessing or monitoring a status of at least one of the vehicle, other equipment, and a operator thereof, comprising:

a data collection and assessment system configured to collect information from at least the accelerometer; and

a frame determination module which receives information comprising accelerometer information from the data collection and assessment system over a period of time and uses this information to determine a rotation matrix that reflects the skew between the orientation of the accelerometer and the direction of travel of the vehicle.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a data communication module which enables communication of the collected information, and vehicle motion characterizations and status, to one or more other systems.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the collected information, and vehicle motion characterizations are used together with pattern matching as part of an operator assessment and monitoring system or service.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the frame determination module determines the direction of travel of a vehicle relative to the orientation of the accelerometer by sampling the accelerometer data, and

first determining averages over a period of time, to determine the moving vehicle or other equipment'"'"'s x-y plane, and

then averaging the accelerometer data over several braking instances to determine an x-axis, y-axis and z-axis for the moving vehicle or other equipment.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the x-axis, y-axis and z-axis determinations are stored as a rotation matrix, and used to subsequently characterize motions of the moving vehicle or other equipment in three dimensions.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the data collection and assessment system collects additional information from at least one of a second accelerometer and gyroscope, a gps and other sensors and wherein the frame determination module uses the additional information along with the accelerometer information to characterize motion and assess or monitor.

7. A method to determine the direction of travel of a vehicle in motion, relative to the orientation of an accelerometer fixedly attached within the vehicle, for subsequent use in characterizing motion and assessing or monitoring a status of at least one of the vehicle, other equipment, and a operator thereof, comprising:

sampling or otherwise receiving the accelerometer data over a period of time and using this information to determine a rotation matrix that reflects the skew between the direction of travel of the vehicle and the orientation of the accelerometer.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising a data communication module which enables communication of the collected information, and vehicle motion characterizations and status, to one or more other systems.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the collected information, and vehicle motion characterizations are used together with pattern matching as part of an operator assessment and monitoring system or service.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the direction of travel of the vehicle relative to the orientation of the accelerometer is determined by

first determining average acceleration over a period of time, to determine the vehicle or other equipment'"'"'s x-y plane, and

then averaging the accelerometer data over several braking instances to determine an x-axis, y-axis and z-axis for the vehicle or other equipment.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the x-axis, y-axis and z-axis determinations are stored as a rotation matrix, and used to subsequently characterize motions of the moving vehicle or other equipment in three dimensions.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein additional information is sampled and otherwised received from at least one of a second accelerometer, a gyro, a gps and other sensors and wherein the additional information is used along with accelerometer information to characterize motion and assess or monitor.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium, including instructions stored thereon which when read and executed by one or more computers cause the one or more computers to perform the steps comprising:

using an accelerometer to collect information as a vehicle or other equipment is moving; and

sampling or otherwise receiving the accelerometer data over a period of time and using this information to determine a rotation matrix that reflects the skew between the direction of travel of the vehicle and the orientation of the accelerometer for use in subsequently characterizing motions and status of the vehicle or other equipment in three dimensions.