Patent Application Titled “Configuration And Transfer Of Image Data Using A Mobile Device” Published Online (USPTO 20230123844): Allstate Insurance Company

2023 MAY 09 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- According to news reporting originating from Washington, D.C., by NewsRx journalists, a patent application by the inventors Brandmaier, Jennifer A. (Chicago, IL, US); Faga, Mark E. (Evanston, IL, US); Johnson, Robert H. (Hoffman Estates, IL, US); Koza, Daniel (Hinsdale, IL, US); Loo, William (Arlington Heights, IL, US); Marlow, Clint J. (Barrington, IL, US); Stricker, Kurt M. (Northfield, IL, US), filed on December 19, 2022, was made available online on April 20, 2023.

The assignee for this patent application is Allstate Insurance Company (Northbrook, Illinois, United States).

Reporters obtained the following quote from the background information supplied by the inventors: “Conventional insurance claims processing is a complex process that starts with a first notification of loss related to an insured item. Upon notification of loss, the claim may be routed to multiple claims adjusters that analyze different aspects of the damage associated with the insured item in order to determine whether compensation for the loss is appropriate.

“In general, conventional claims adjustment can involve paperwork processing, telephone calls, and potentially face-to-face meetings between claimant and adjuster. In addition, a significant amount of time can elapse between a first notice of loss from the claimant and the final settlement of the claim.”

In addition to obtaining background information on this patent application, NewsRx editors also obtained the inventors’ summary information for this patent application: “The following presents a simplified summary of the present disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosure. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure. It is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the disclosure or to delineate the scope of the disclosure. The following summary merely presents some concepts of the disclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description provided below.

“Aspects of the disclosure involve a streamlined and efficient process for claims management and disclose methods, computer-readable media, and apparatuses for automating the processing and settling of claims related to an insured item. A mobile device may transmit data (e.g., images, video, etc.) related to damage associated with an insured item to an enhanced claims processing server. The enhanced claims processing server may manage analysis of damage associated with the insured item and settlement of a claim related to the damage.

“In another aspect of the disclosure, an enhanced claims processing server may analyze damage data received from a mobile device to generate a repair cost estimate for repairing the insured item.

“Further aspects of the disclosure may be provided in a computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause a computer, user terminal, or other apparatus to at least perform one or more of the processes described herein.”

The claims supplied by the inventors are:

“1. A processing server, comprising: a network interface; a processor; a memory storing executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processing server to: determine a plurality of image instructions, each image instruction indicating a type of image to capture; transmit, via the network interface, the plurality of image instructions to a mobile device; receive, via the network interface, a plurality of images from the mobile device; in response to receiving the plurality of images, determine at least one characteristic of at least one of the plurality of images; based on the at least one characteristic, generate a response; and transmit, via the network interface, the response to the mobile device.

“2. The processing server of claim 1, wherein the response comprises an additional image instruction indicating a type of image to re-capture.

“3. The processing server of claim 1, wherein the response comprises a damage estimate.

“4. The processing server of claim 3, further comprising a reference image database, the damage estimate being generated in part based on the at least one characteristic and at least one reference image in the reference image database.

“5. The processing server of claim 3, further comprising a damage template database, the damage estimate being generated in part based on the at least one characteristic and at least one damage template in the damage template database.

“6. The processing server of claim 1, wherein the response comprises an acceptability of at least one of the plurality of the images.

“7. The processing server of claim 1, wherein determining the at least one characteristic comprises determining whether the plurality of images meets a predefined set of criteria.

“8. The processing server of claim 7, wherein the predefined set of criteria includes a criteria related to blurriness.

“9. A method, comprising: executing, by a processing server, a memory storing executable instructions, wherein the memory storing executable instructions cause the processing server to perform operations, the operations comprising: determining a plurality of image instructions, each image instruction indicating a type of image to capture; transmitting, via a network interface, the plurality of image instructions to a mobile device; receiving, via the network interface, a plurality of images from the mobile device; in response to receiving the plurality of images, determining at least one characteristic of at least one of the plurality of images; based on the at least one characteristic, generating a response; and transmitting, via the network interface, the response to the mobile device.

“10. The method of claim 9, wherein the response is selected from a group consisting of an additional image instruction indicating a type of image to re-capture, a damage estimate, and an acceptability of at least one of the plurality of the images.

“11. The method of claim 10, further comprising a reference image database, the damage estimate being generated in part based on the at least one characteristic and at least one reference image in the reference image database.

“12. The method of claim 10, further comprising a damage template database, the damage estimate being generated in part based on the at least one characteristic and at least one damage template in the damage template database.

“13. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the at least one characteristic comprises determining whether the plurality of images meets a predefined set of criteria.

“14. The method of claim 13, wherein the predefined set of criteria includes a criteria related to blurriness.

“15. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor of a computing device, cause the computing device to: determine a plurality of image instructions, each image instruction indicating a type of image to capture; transmit, via a network interface, the plurality of image instructions to a mobile device; receive, via the network interface, a plurality of images from the mobile device; in response to receiving the plurality of images, determine at least one characteristic of at least one of the plurality of images; based on the at least one characteristic, generate a response; and transmit, via the network interface, the response to the mobile device.

“16. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein the response is selected from a group consisting of an additional image instruction indicating a type of image to re-capture, a damage estimate, and an acceptability of at least one of the plurality of the images.

“17. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16, further comprising a reference image database, the damage estimate being generated in part based on the at least one characteristic and at least one reference image in the reference image database.

“18. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16, further comprising a damage template database, the damage estimate being generated in part based on the at least one characteristic and at least one damage template in the damage template database.

“19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein determining the at least one characteristic comprises determining whether the plurality of images meets a predefined set of criteria.

“20. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 19, wherein the predefined set of criteria includes a criteria related to blurriness.”

For more information, see this patent application: Brandmaier, Jennifer A.; Faga, Mark E.; Johnson, Robert H.; Koza, Daniel; Loo, William; Marlow, Clint J.; Stricker, Kurt M. Configuration And Transfer Of Image Data Using A Mobile Device. U.S. Patent Application Number 20230123844, filed December 19, 2022 and posted April 20, 2023. Patent URL (for desktop use only): https://ppubs.uspto.gov/pubwebapp/external.html?q=(20230123844)&db=US-PGPUB&type=ids

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