Motor vehicle operating data collection and analysis

• US 9,637,134 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2014
• Issued: 05/02/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Allstate Insurance Company (Allstate Corporation)
• Inventors: Phelan, Joseph Patrick, Perquin, Johannes A.
• Primary Examiner(s): BUTLER, RODNEY ALLEN
• Application Number:
  US14/310,697
• Publication Number:
  US 20140303833A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,047 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2520/105 Longitudinal acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2555/20 Ambient conditions, e.g. wind or rain
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/10 Historical data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/09 Driving style or behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/107 Longitudinal acceleration
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• 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: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0841 Registering performance data recording measured values G01D; information storage G11B
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/182 Level alarms, e.g. alarms responsive to variables exceeding a threshold
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0104 Measuring and analyzing of parameters relative to traffic conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/052 with provision for determining speed or overspeed speed measuring in general G01P
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/162 Control of ships, boats, or other waterborne vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/165 Control of aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/167 : Control of land vehicles

Abstract

A method and apparatus for collecting and evaluating powered vehicle operation utilizing on-board diagnostic components and location determining components or systems. The invention creates one or more databases whereby identifiable behavior or evaluative characteristics can be analyzed or categorized. The evaluation can include predicting likely future events. The database can be correlated or evaluated with other databases for a wide variety of uses.

Claims

1. A driving evaluation computing device comprising

a processing unit comprising a processor;

a memory unit; and

a wireless receiver, wherein the driving evaluation computing device is configured to;

receive via the wireless receiver a first vehicle operational data of a first vehicle collected by a vehicle data acquiring component, wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises time marked data acquired by the vehicle data acquiring component, wherein the time marked data comprises data time marked at intervals of up to about two seconds;

determine a first vehicle operation factor from the first vehicle operational data;

compare the first vehicle operation factor to a corresponding vehicle operation factor from an average driver profile;

determine whether the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor; and

record in a driver profile associated with the first vehicle a deviation event, wherein the driver profile is stored in a driver profile database;

wherein the device is further configured to transmit a notification to a mobile telephone of a vehicle driver or a vehicle owner of the first vehicle that the deviation event has occurred.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is configured to calculate a driver safety rating using the deviation event.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle speed and location, the first vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle speed of the first vehicle over a first road segment, and the corresponding vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle speed over the first road segment from the average driver profile;

and wherein the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor when the average vehicle speed of the first vehicle over the first road segment exceeds the average vehicle speed over the first road segment from the average driver profile by a predetermined amount, and the deviation event comprises a speed violation.

4. The device of claim 3 wherein the first vehicle operational factor further comprises a weather condition and the corresponding vehicle operational factor further comprises the weather condition.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle acceleration and location, the first vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle acceleration of the first vehicle over a first road segment, and the corresponding vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle acceleration over the first road segment from the average driver profile;

and wherein the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor when the average vehicle acceleration of the first vehicle over the first road segment exceeds the average vehicle acceleration over the first road segment from the average driver profile by a predetermined amount, and the deviation event comprises an acceleration violation.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle speed, tailgating distance, and location, the first vehicle operational factor comprises average tailgating distance of the first vehicle at a first speed over a first road segment, and the corresponding vehicle operational factor comprises average tailgating distance at the first speed over the first road segment from the average driver profile;

and wherein the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor when the average tailgating distance of the first vehicle exceeds the average tailgating distance from the average driver profile by a predetermined amount, and the deviation event comprises a tailgating violation.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein the vehicle data acquiring component comprises the mobile telephone of the vehicle driver.

8. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is further configured to identify from the driver profile database other driver profiles having the deviation event of the driver profile associated with the first vehicle.

9. The device of claim 8 wherein the other driver profiles include information pertaining to goods and services associated with drivers of the other driver profiles, and wherein the device is further configured to store the information pertaining to goods and services in the driver profile associated with the first vehicle.

10. The device of claim 8 wherein the device is further configured to determine a category of driver personality type comprising the driver profile and the other driver profiles having the deviation event and store the category of driver personality type in a driver category database.

21. The device of claim 1 wherein the average driver profile comprises driving data collected from a plurality of other drivers and wherein the device is further configured to determine the corresponding vehicle operation factor from the driving data in the average driver profile.

22. The device of claim 1 wherein the average driver profile comprises average driving data of the vehicle driver and wherein the average driving data comprises the corresponding vehicle operation factor.

11. A method for evaluating driving of a vehicle comprising:

determine a first vehicle operation factor from a first vehicle operational data of a first vehicle, wherein the first vehicle operational data is collected by a vehicle data acquiring component, wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises time marked data acquired by the vehicle data acquiring component wherein the time marked data comprises data time marked at intervals of up to about two seconds;

comparing the first vehicle operation factor to a corresponding vehicle operation factor from an average driver profile;

determining whether the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor;

recording in a driver profile associated with the first vehicle a deviation event, wherein the driver profile is stored in a driver profile database; and

transmitting a notification to a mobile telephone of a vehicle driver or a vehicle owner of the first vehicle that the deviation event has occurred.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising calculating a driver safety rating for the driver profile using the deviation event.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle speed and location, the first vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle speed of the first vehicle over a first road segment, and the corresponding vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle speed over the first road segment from the average driver profile;

and wherein the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor when the average vehicle speed of the first vehicle over the first road segment exceeds the average vehicle speed over the first road segment from the average driver profile by a predetermined amount, and the deviation event comprises a speed violation.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the first vehicle operational factor further comprises a weather condition and the corresponding vehicle operational factor further comprises the weather condition.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle acceleration and location, the first vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle acceleration of the first vehicle over a first road segment, and the corresponding vehicle operational factor comprises average vehicle acceleration over the first road segment from the average driver profile;

and wherein the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor when the average vehicle acceleration of the first vehicle over the first road segment exceeds the average vehicle acceleration over the first road segment from the average driver profile by a predetermined amount, and the deviation event comprises an acceleration violation.

16. The method of claim 11 wherein the first vehicle operational data comprises vehicle speed, tailgating distance, and location, the first vehicle operational factor comprises average tailgating distance of the first vehicle at a first speed over a first road segment, and the corresponding vehicle operational factor comprises average tailgating distance at the first speed over the first road segment from the average driver profile;

and wherein the first vehicle operation factor deviates from the corresponding vehicle operation factor when the average tailgating distance of the first vehicle exceeds the average tailgating distance from the average driver profile by a predetermined amount, and the deviation event comprises a tailgating violation.

17. The method of claim 11 wherein the vehicle data acquiring component comprises the mobile telephone of the vehicle driver.

18. The method of claim 11 further comprising identifying from the driver profile database other driver profiles having the deviation event of the driver profile associated with the first vehicle.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the other driver profiles include information pertaining to goods and services associated with drivers of the other driver profiles, and storing the information pertaining to goods and services in the driver profile associated with the first vehicle.

20. The method of claim 18 further comprising determining a category of driver personality type comprising the driver profile and the other driver profiles having the deviation event and store the category of driver personality type in a driver category database.

23. The method of claim 11 wherein the average driver profile comprises average driving data of the vehicle driver and wherein the average driving data includes the corresponding vehicle operation factor.