Patent Issued for Electrical data processing system for monitoring or affecting movement of a vehicle using a traffic device (USPTO 11462104): Allstate Insurance Company

2022 OCT 26 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Allstate Insurance Company (Northbrook, Illinois, United States) has been issued patent number 11462104, according to news reporting originating out of Alexandria, Virginia, by NewsRx editors.

The patent’s inventors are Gibson, Timothy W. (Barrington, IL, US), Hayes, Howard (Glencoe, IL, US), Kumar, Surender (Palatine, IL, US), Madigan, Regina (Mountain View, CA, US).

This patent was filed on June 10, 2019 and was published online on October 4, 2022.

From the background information supplied by the inventors, news correspondents obtained the following quote: “Traffic accidents and other unsafe conditions on or affecting roads is surprisingly common. Drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and other parties often rely on their own abilities to avoid accidents and unsafe conditions. However, conditions for these individuals may be made even safer using certain traffic infrastructure, vehicle capabilities, and mobile device capabilities, many of which currently are not being utilized.”

Supplementing the background information on this patent, NewsRx reporters also obtained the inventors’ summary information for this patent: “The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosure. The summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure. It is neither intended to identify key or critical elements of the disclosure nor 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 description below.

“Aspects of the disclosure relate to a system comprising a traffic device having a traffic device computer, one or more traffic signals, and/or a transceiver. The system may comprise first memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the traffic device computer, cause the traffic device to transmit, via the transceiver and to a vehicle and infrastructure computing device, information indicative of a status of the one or more traffic signals. The vehicle and infrastructure computing device may comprise a vehicle and infrastructure control computer and/or second memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the vehicle and infrastructure control computer, cause the vehicle and infrastructure computing device to receive, from the traffic device, the information indicative of the status of the one or more traffic signals. The computing device may determine that the information indicative of the status of the one or more traffic signals indicates that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device switched from a red light to a green light and a time that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device switched from the red light to the green light. In response to determining that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device switched from the red light to the green light, the computing device may determine an amount of time between the time that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device switched from the red light to the green light and a time that a vehicle at a location of the traffic device moved. In response to determining that the amount of time exceeds a threshold amount of time, the computing device may determine that a driver of the vehicle is distracted.

“In some aspects, the system may comprise a traffic camera. The vehicle and infrastructure computing device may receive, from the traffic camera, one or more images of the vehicle captured by the traffic camera. Based on the one or more images of the vehicle captured by the traffic camera, the computing device may determine the time that the vehicle at the location of the traffic device moved. Additionally or alternatively, the system may comprise a mobile device having one or more of a position sensor, speed sensor, or acceleration sensor. The computing device may receive, from the mobile device or the vehicle, data indicative of one or more of a position, speed, or acceleration of the vehicle. Based on the data indicative of one or more of the position, speed, or acceleration of the vehicle, the computing device may determine the time that the vehicle at the location of the traffic device moved.

“In some aspects, the vehicle and infrastructure computing device may determine that the vehicle is at the location of the traffic device and that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is not red. In response to determining that the vehicle is at the location of the traffic device and that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is not red, the computing device may send an instruction to one or more mobile device of the driver to prevent driver interaction with the mobile device while the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is not red. The instruction may be configured to disable one or more applications of the mobile device, such as a messaging application.

“In some aspects, the vehicle and infrastructure computing device may determine that the vehicle is at the location of the traffic device and that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is red. In response to determining that the vehicle is at the location of the traffic device and that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is red, the computing device may send an instruction to one or more mobile device of the driver to enable use of the mobile device while the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is red. The vehicle and infrastructure computing device may determine that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device switched from red to green. In response to determining that the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device switched from red to green, the computing device may send an instruction to the one or more mobile device of the driver to prevent driver interaction with the mobile device while the one or more traffic signals of the traffic device is green.”

The claims supplied by the inventors are:

“1. A system comprising: a computing device, wherein the first computing device comprises: a processor; and memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor of the computing device, cause the first computing device to: receive, from a first autonomous vehicle comprising a second processor, a transceiver, and a second memory storing second computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the second processor of the first autonomous vehicle, cause the first autonomous vehicle to transmit, via the transceiver and to the computing device separate from the first autonomous vehicle, information indicative of one or more traffic conditions associated with a portion of road; determine one or more autonomous vehicles within a predetermined distance of the portion of road; and based on the information indicative of the one or more traffic conditions associated with the portion of road, transmit, to each of the one or more autonomous vehicles within the predetermined distance of the portion of road, instructions to modify one or more operating conditions of a receiving autonomous vehicle, wherein the one or more autonomous vehicles comprise at least the first autonomous vehicle and the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprises a speed of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“3. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprises a braking of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“4. The system of claim 1, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor of the second computing device, cause the computing device to: transmit one or more control signals to one or more traffic devices associated with the portion of road.

“5. The system of claim 4, wherein a first traffic device of the one or more traffic devices comprises a traffic light comprising multiple lights, and wherein a first control signal of the one or more control signals comprises a modification in a timing of the multiple lights of the traffic light.

“6. The system of claim 4, wherein a first traffic device of the one or more traffic devices comprises a display device, and wherein a first control signal of the one or more control signals comprises data to be output by the display device.

“7. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprise a level of autonomy of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“8. A computing device comprising: a processor; and memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the computing device to: receive, from a first autonomous vehicle separate from the computing device, information indicative of one or more traffic conditions associated with a portion of road; determine one or more autonomous vehicles within a predetermined distance of the portion of road; and based on the information indicative of one or more traffic conditions associated with the portion of road, transmit by the computing device and to each of the one or more autonomous vehicles within the predetermined distance of the portion of road, instructions to modify one or more operating conditions of a receiving autonomous vehicle, wherein the one or more autonomous vehicles comprise at least the first autonomous vehicle and the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“9. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprises speed of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“10. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprises braking of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“11. The computing device of claim 8, the memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor of the computing device, cause the computing device to: transmit one or more control signals to one or more traffic devices associated with the portion of road.

“12. The computing device of claim 11, wherein a first traffic device of the one or more traffic devices comprises a traffic light comprising multiple lights, and wherein a first control signal of the one or more control signals comprises a modification in a timing of the multiple lights of the traffic light.

“13. The computing device of claim 11, wherein a first traffic device of the one or more traffic devices comprises a display device, and wherein a first control signal of the one or more control signals comprises data to be output by the display device.

“14. A method comprising: receiving, by a computing device and from a second computing device separate from the computing device, information indicative of one or more traffic conditions associated with a portion of road; determining one or more autonomous vehicles within a predetermined distance of the portion of road; and transmitting, to each of the one or more autonomous vehicles within the predetermined distance of the portion of road and based on the information indicative of one or more traffic conditions associated with the portion of road, instructions to modify one or more operating conditions of a receiving autonomous vehicle, wherein the one or more autonomous vehicles comprise at least the second computing device and the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“15. The method of claim 14, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprises speed of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“16. The method of claim 14, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprises braking of the receiving autonomous vehicle.

“17. The method of claim 14, further comprising: transmitting one or more control signals to one or more traffic devices associated with the portion of road.

“18. The method of claim 17, wherein a first traffic device of the one or more traffic devices comprises a traffic light comprising multiple lights, and wherein a first control signal of the one or more control signals comprises a modification in a timing of the multiple lights of the traffic light.

“19. The method of claim 17, wherein a first traffic device of the one or more traffic devices comprises a display device, and wherein a first control signal of the one or more control signals comprises data to be output by the display device.

“20. The method of claim 14, wherein the one or more operating conditions comprise a level of autonomy of the receiving autonomous vehicle.”

For the URL and additional information on this patent, see: Gibson, Timothy W. Electrical data processing system for monitoring or affecting movement of a vehicle using a traffic device. U.S. Patent Number 11462104, filed June 10, 2019, and published online on October 4, 2022. Patent URL: http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=11462104.PN.&OS=PN/11462104RS=PN/11462104

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