3011results about "Vehicle-to-vehicle communication" patented technology

Methods and systems for monitoring use and determining risks associated with operation of a vehicle having one or more autonomous operation features are provided. According to certain aspects, a virtual log of data regarding performance of the features in a non-test environment may be recorded during operation of the vehicle. This may include information regarding the vehicle, the vehicle environment, use of the autonomous operation features, and / or control decisions made by the features. The control decisions may include evasive maneuvers performed by the vehicle under the control of the features. The performance data in the virtual log may be used to determine risk levels associated with vehicle operation by the autonomous operation features. The risk levels may further be used to adjust an insurance policy associated with the vehicle.

Methods and systems for monitoring use, determining risk, and pricing insurance policies for an autonomous vehicle having one or more autonomous operation features are provided. According to certain aspects, accident risk factors may be determined for autonomous operation features of the vehicle using information regarding the autonomous operation features of the vehicle or other accident related factors associated with the vehicle. The accident risk factors may indicate the ability of the autonomous operation features to avoid accidents during operation, particularly without vehicle operator intervention. The accident risk levels determined for a vehicle may further be used to determine or adjust aspects of an insurance policy associated with the vehicle.

Methods and systems are described for monitoring the use of a vehicle by multiple users. In various aspects, telematics data regarding operation of the vehicle may be collected by one or more sensors associated with a vehicle. The telematics data may be associated with a vehicle operator and also used to determine that a driving event has occurred. The driving event may indicate improper usage of the vehicle by the vehicle operator. A notification of the driving event may be generated and transmitted, via a network, to an interested party associated with the vehicle for presentation to the interested party.

A vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication transponder for use in V2V communication, safety, optimization and anti-collision systems wherein the transponder records and shares observed traffic signal timing and phasing, and uses this information to make recommendations or perform automatic operation to optimize parameters such as safety, gas mileage, travel time, and overall traffic flow. Methods for sharing and making recommendations are described. Embodiments include considerations of traffic and road history in recommendations. No central authority, road-side equipment, (RSU), or pre-determined lane maps are required. Embodiments include a hybrid protocol using both TDMA and CSMA. Some embodiments are free of MAC and IP addresses. Embodiments include equipped vehicles and V2V system using the transponder.

Device, system and method, in a vehicle communication system, of transmitting a risk value in a message, wherein the risk value identifies quantitatively a risk of vehicle collision. Embodiments determine risk value by combining sub-risk values wherein sub-risks comprise: (i) vehicle behavior; (ii) weather and road conditions; (iii) current traffic; and (iv) location history. Embodiments include driver warnings responsive to the risk value in a received message. Embodiments include a collision type in a message. Embodiments include unique features of: risk is applicable to receiving vehicles; risk is applicable to a geographical region; computation and storage of location histories; messages free of IP and MAC addresses; haptic devices used for driver warning.

Methods and systems are described for providing vehicular alerts. In various aspects, a vehicle environment may be monitored using one or more sensors associated with a vehicle located in the vehicle environment. One or more pedestrians or cyclists within the vehicle environment may be identified based upon sensor data obtained from the one or more sensors. At least one of the pedestrians or cyclists may be determined to meet predetermined alert criteria based upon the sensor data. An alert indicating a presence of the pedestrians or cyclists may be generated and presented to an output device associated with the vehicle.

Device, system and method, in a vehicle communication system, of providing guidance, route and safety information to a driver. Embodiments use the observation and storage of signal light timing information to make recommendations. Embodiments include computation of future times of signal light changes. Embodiments use information relating to the number of vehicles, location of vehicles, and speed of vehicles in a plurality of lanes approaching a signal to recommend lane changes to a driver. Embodiments include receiving timing information wirelessly about signal timing. Embodiments include using historical information to compute a risk value for a location and then generating a recommendation to a driver responsive to that risk value. Embodiments include using speed of travel on route options to compute an expected travel time, and then generating a recommendation to a driver responsive to those computed travel times.

Device, system and method of implementing a wireless vehicle-to-vehicle anti-collision system. Details of message formats are described, particularly efficient formats using flags and compressed data, expressing distances, both in the horizontal and vertical directions. Details of protocols are described. Details of encoding locations, headings and speed are described. In one embodiment messages are free of IP addresses and MAC addresses. Roadway elevation is included in some embodiments.

Device, system and method, in a vehicle communication system, of generating a location by the use of combining the rough locations of a “consensus set” of vehicles within wireless communication range to produce more accurate locations of the vehicles in the consensus set. Unique features of some embodiments include the continual re-computation and re-adjustment of both the vehicles in the consensus set and the more accurate locations. Embodiments use sensors on a first vehicle, such as cameras, sonar, radar and LIDAR to determine the relative location of the second vehicle to the first vehicle. Embodiments use this relative location in the computation of the more accurate locations. Algorithms are described for the computation, communication, convergence and updating of the more accurate locations. Algorithms are described for generation and update of the consensus set.

A method of optimizing a vehicle-to-vehicle communication system is described. One embodiment uses a set of desired and defined metrics of success, combined with pre-recorded operating histories, combined with a series of simulations to optimize certain specific parameters in the vehicle-to-vehicle communication protocol.

A dynamic ‘vehicle grid’ system provides the ability for drivers to be automatically warned to the conditions of other vehicles in the vicinity. In this grid system, a motor vehicle would be equipped with a transmitter, receiver, computer and a selection of sensors. Other adjacent vehicles are also contain the same of equipment for transmitting and receiving signals. When the sensors in a vehicle detect a change such as hard braking (rapid deceleration) or very slow speed (blockages), it automatically sends this information via the transmitter over a wireless communication channel to any other receivers in the vicinity.