Determining exit from a vehicle

• US 9,712,977 B2
• Filed: 02/12/2016
• Issued: 07/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Tu, Xiaoyuan, Kandangath, Anil K.
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, MONG-THUY THI
• Application Number:
  US15/043,243
• Publication Number:
  US 20160242008A1
• Time in Patent Office: 522 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561, 701 2
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]

Abstract

Methods and mobile devices determine an exit from a vehicle. Sensors of a mobile device can be used to determine when the user is in a vehicle that is driving. The same or different sensors can be used to identify a disturbance (e.g., loss of communication connection from mobile device to a car computer). After the disturbance, an exit confidence score can be determined at various times, and compared to a threshold. A determination of the exit of the user can be determined based on the comparison of the exit confidence score to the threshold. The mobile device can perform one or more functions in response to the exit confidence score exceeding the threshold, such as changing a user interface e.g., of a navigation app) or obtaining a location to designate a parking location.

Claims

1. A method for detecting a change in a motion state of a user of a mobile device, the method comprising:

determining, based on one or more sensors of the mobile device, that the motion state of the user is a driving state, the driving state indicating that the user is inside a vehicle that is moving;

providing, on the mobile device, a driving interface of a navigation application to the user;

monitoring, with the mobile device, the one or more sensors;

detecting, with the mobile device, a disturbance based on measurements from the one or more sensors, the disturbance indicating a possibility that the motion state of the mobile device has changed;

in response to the disturbance, determining, by the mobile device, that a new motion state of the user is a walking state based on measurements from the one or more sensors, the walking state indicating that the user has exited the vehicle and is walking;

in response to determining that the new motion state is the walking state, switching, by the mobile device, the driving interface to a pedestrian interface of the navigation application; and

using, by the mobile device, a confidence score of whether the motion state has changed to the walking state, wherein the confidence score is determined based on measurements from the one or more sensors at a plurality of times after the disturbance.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the new motion state is the walking state comprises:

determining, based on measurements from the one or more sensors, that the vehicle is no longer moving;

identifying the location of the vehicle as a parked location; and

storing the parked location of the vehicle for retrieval by an application that identifies the parked location.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the parked location is viewable in the pedestrian interface of the navigation application.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing, with the mobile device, the confidence score to a threshold; and

in response to the confidence score exceeding the threshold at a first time, determining that the new motion state is the walking state.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the confidence score includes:

increasing or decreasing the confidence score from a value obtained at a previous time to obtain the confidence score at a current time.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the confidence score includes:

determining a plurality of contributions for changing the confidence score, each contribution corresponding to a different motion state of the user determined based on measurements from the one or more sensors; and

summing the plurality of contributions to obtain the confidence score at a current time.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the disturbance comprises detecting at least one of:

a change in a connection of the mobile device to a computer of the vehicle and a change in a classification of motion of the mobile device.

8. A computer product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium storing a plurality of instructions that when executed control a computer system to detect a change in a motion state of a user of a mobile device, the instructions comprising:

instructions for determining, based on one or more sensors of the mobile device, that the motion state of the user is a driving state, the driving state indicating that the user is inside a vehicle that is moving;

instructions for providing, on the mobile device, a driving interface of a navigation application to the user;

instructions for monitoring, with the mobile device, the one or more sensors;

instructions for detecting, with the mobile device, a disturbance based on measurements from the one or more sensors, the disturbance indicating a possibility that the motion state of the mobile device has changed;

in response to the disturbance, instructions for determining, by the mobile device, that a new motion state of the user is a walking state based on measurements from the one or more sensors, the walking state indicating that the user has exited the vehicle and is walking;

in response to determining that the new motion state is the walking state, instructions for switching, by the mobile device, the driving interface to a pedestrian interface of the navigation application; and

instruction for using, by the mobile device, a confidence score of whether the motion state has changed to the walking state, wherein the confidence score is determined based on measurements from the one or more sensors at a plurality of times after the disturbance.

9. The computer product of claim 8, wherein the instructions for determining that the new motion state is the walking state comprise:

instructions for determining, based on measurements from the one or more sensors, that the vehicle is no longer moving;

instructions for identifying the location of the vehicle as a parked location; and

instructions for storing the parked location of the vehicle for retrieval by an application that identifies the parked location.

10. The computer product of claim 9, wherein the parked location is viewable in the pedestrian interface of the navigation application.

11. The computer product of claim 8, the instructions further comprising:

instructions for comparing, with the mobile device, the confidence score to a threshold; and

in response to the confidence score exceeding the threshold at a first time, instructions for determining that the new motion state is the walking state.

12. The computer product of claim 8, wherein the instructions for determining the confidence score include:

instructions for increasing or decreasing the confidence score from a value obtained at a previous time to obtain the confidence score at a current time.

13. A mobile device comprising:

one or more sensors;

a display; and

one or more processors configured to perform operations for detecting a change in a motion state of a user of the mobile device, the operations comprising;

determining, based on the one or more sensors, that the motion state of the user is a driving state, the driving state indicating that the user is inside a vehicle that is moving;

providing, on the display of the mobile device, a driving interface of a navigation application to the user;

monitoring, with the mobile device, the one or more sensors;

detecting, with the mobile device, a disturbance based on measurements from the one or more sensors, the disturbance indicating a possibility that the motion state of the mobile device has changed;

in response to the disturbance, determining, by the mobile device, that a new motion state of the user is a walking state based on measurements from the one or more sensors, the walking state indicating that the user has exited the vehicle and is walking;

in response to determining, by the mobile device, that the new motion state is the walking state, switching the driving interface to a pedestrian interface of the navigation application; and

using, by the mobile device, a confidence score of whether the motion state has changed to the walking state, wherein the confidence score is determined based on measurements from the one or more sensors at a plurality of times after the disturbance.

14. The mobile device of claim 13, wherein determining that the new motion state is the walking state comprises:

determining, based on measurements from the one or more sensors, that the vehicle is no longer moving;

identifying the location of the vehicle as a parked location; and

storing the parked location of the vehicle for retrieval by an application that identifies the parked location.

15. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein the parked location is viewable on the display in the pedestrian interface of the navigation application.

16. The mobile device of claim 13, wherein the confidence score is increased or decreased from a value obtained at a previous time to obtain the confidence score at a current time, and wherein the operations further comprise:

comparing, with the mobile device, the confidence score to a threshold; and

in response to the confidence score exceeding the threshold at a first time, determining that the new motion state is the walking state.

17. The mobile device of claim 16, wherein determining the confidence score further includes:

determining a plurality of contributions for changing the confidence score, each contribution corresponding to a different motion state of the user determined based on measurements from the one or more sensors; and

summing the plurality of contributions to obtain the confidence score at the current time.

18. The mobile device of claim 13, wherein detecting the disturbance comprises detecting at least one of:

a change in a connection of the mobile device to a computer of the vehicle and a change in a classification of motion of the mobile device.