Assistance on the go

• US 9,406,228 B1
• Filed: 07/28/2014
• Issued: 08/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Inventors: Kozlowski, Tara Cavallaro, Briggs, Ryan Mark, Iqbal, Imran
• Primary Examiner(s): Shaawat, Mussa A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Berns, Michael
• Application Number:
  US14/444,247
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 701/24
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/388 using mutual authentication without cards, e.g. challenge-response
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/016 After-sales
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0833 Card having specific functional components
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0967 Systems involving transmission of highway information, e.g. weather, speed limits transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/38 Displays
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/487 Arrangements for providing information services, e.g. recorded voice services or time announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 : for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 : Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A mobile computerized apparatus for use with a roadside assistance program to assist in identifying a service provider, such as a tow truck, is disclosed. The apparatus transmits relevant information to a remote server. The server in turn provides information about a plurality of service providers available to service the vehicle.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a wireless component in a mobile apparatus, safety information about a first navigation route for a motorized vehicle, wherein the mobile apparatus is situated within the motorized vehicle;

providing, by the mobile apparatus, different color-coded zones on a displayed map to indicate a degree of safety for an area based on the received safety information;

determining, by the mobile apparatus, a hazard measure of a first road intersection in the first navigation route from the received safety information, wherein the hazard measure of the first road intersection is indicative of a statistically higher rate of vehicle accidents than a second road intersection;

receiving, by the mobile apparatus, a safety score that is indicative of a safety measure for a driver in a nearby vehicle in a vicinity of the motorized vehicle, wherein the safety measure is based on a driving record of the driver in the nearby vehicle; and

alerting a user of the mobile apparatus when the safety score is greater than a statistical limit; and

when the hazard measure is greater than a hazard limit, generating, by the mobile apparatus, an alert indication.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

converting the safety score to a displayed representation on the displayed map.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing a relative degree of safety for the first navigation route with a second navigation route; and

generating a displayed representation of the relative degree of safety.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

selecting a selected navigation route from a plurality of navigation routes having a greatest relative degree of safety; and

displaying only the selected navigation route.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining whether the motorized vehicle traveled the selected navigation route.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

sending a message through the wireless component, wherein the message is indicative whether the motorized vehicle traveled the selected navigation route.

7. An apparatus, comprising:

a communications interface with a vehicle'"'"'s onboard diagnostics system;

a display device;

a mobile device processor for executing computer-executable instructions;

a memory storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by the processor cause the apparatus to perform steps comprising;

receiving, by the communications interface, safety information about one of a plurality of navigation routes for a motorized vehicle through the communications interface;

providing different color-coded zones on a displayed map on the display device to indicate a degree of safety for an area based on the received safety information;

determining a hazard measure of a first road intersection in said one navigation route from the received safety information, wherein the hazard measure of the first road intersection is indicative of a statistically higher rate of vehicle accidents than a second road intersection;

receiving, through the communications interface, a safety score that is indicative of a safety measure of a driver in a nearby vehicle in a vicinity of the motorized vehicle; and

when the hazard measure is greater than a hazard limit, generating an alert indication.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by the mobile device processor cause the apparatus to perform steps further comprising:

converting the safety score to a displayed map representation on the display device.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by the mobile device processor cause the apparatus to perform steps further comprising:

comparing a relative degree of safety for said one navigation route with the plurality navigation routes; and

selecting a selected navigation route from the plurality having a greatest relative degree of safety.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by the mobile device processor cause the apparatus to perform steps further comprising:

displaying only the selected navigation route on the display device.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by the mobile device processor cause the apparatus to perform steps further comprising:

determining whether the motorized vehicle traveled the selected navigation route.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by the mobile device processor cause the apparatus to perform steps further comprising:

sending a message through the communications interface, wherein the message is indicative whether the motorized vehicle traveled the selected navigation route.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause an apparatus to perform a method comprising:

receiving safety information about a first navigation route for a motorized vehicle;

providing different displayed zones on a map to indicate a degree of safety for an area based on the received safety information;

determining a hazard measure of a road intersection in the first navigation route from the received safety information, wherein the hazard measure of the road intersection is indicative of a statistically higher rate of vehicle accidents than at least one other road intersection;

receiving a safety score that is indicative of a safety measure for a driver in a nearby vehicle in a vicinity of the motorized vehicle, wherein the safety measure is based on a driving record of the driver in the nearby vehicle;

generating an alert indication when the safety score is greater than a statistical limit; and

when the hazard measure is greater than a hazard limit, generating an alert indication.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13 storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, further cause the apparatus to perform a method comprising:

converting the safety score to a displayed representation on the displayed map.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13 storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, further cause the apparatus to perform a method comprising:

comparing a relative degree of safety for the first navigation route with a second navigation route; and

generating a displayed representation of the relative degree of safety.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, further cause the apparatus to perform a method comprising:

selecting a selected navigation route from a plurality of navigation routes, wherein the selected navigation route has a greatest relative degree of safety; and

displaying only the selected navigation route.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, further cause the apparatus to perform a method comprising:

determining whether the motorized vehicle traveled the selected navigation route; and

sending a message through a communication device, wherein the message is indicative whether the motorized vehicle traveled the selected navigation route.