Claims:WE CLAIM:

1. A method for identification of a person driving a vehicle, the method comprising:

acquiring a set of physiological data like ECG of the person in real time using a vehicle telematics unit (102) of the vehicle;
sensing a touch of the person based on a skin impedance calculated using a galvanic skin response (GSR) sensor (104);
sensing a finger grip pressure applied on a steering wheel of the vehicle using a pressure sensor (106);
analyzing by a processor (108), the set of physiological data to detect the presence of at least one of a pacemaker or a transplanted heart in the person; and
identifying by the processor (108), the presence of the person based on an output generated by the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor (102) and the pressure sensor (104); and
sending the output to a central server (110) for a plurality of applications.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the output is generated by the comparison of the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor (102) and the pressure sensor (104) with a set of data present in a database to identify the presence of the person.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of physiological data is acquired from a steering wheel or seat or mobile phone of the person.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the physiological data is acquired in real time or on demand using the vehicle telematics unit (102) of the vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle telematics unit (102) is an external unit and configured to be embedded to the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicle telematics unit is in-built to the vehicle.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of physiological data comprises at least one of an electrocardiogram (ECG) of the person.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of analyzing further comprises the step of parameter reduction to increase the accuracy of the method.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the parameter comprises Maximal information coefficient (MIC) and Principal component analysis (PCA).

10. The method of claim 1, wherein an ECG sensor, the pressure sensor and the GSR sensor are present on the steering wheel of the vehicle.

11. The method of claim 1 further includes the step determining the stress of the person driving the vehicle.

12. A system for identification of a person driving a vehicle, the system comprising:

a vehicle telematics unit (102) of the vehicle for providing a set of physiological data of the person in real time;
a galvanic skin response (GSR) sensor (104) for sensing a touch of the person based on a skin impedance calculation;
a pressure sensor (106) for sensing a finger/hand grip pressure applied on a steering wheel of the vehicle; and
a processor (108) comprising,
an analyzing module (112) for analyzing the set of physiological data to detect the presence of at least one of a pacemaker or a transplanted heart in the person,
an identification module (114) for identifying the presence of the person based on an output generated by the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor and the pressure sensor, and
a communication module for (116) sending the output to a central server (110) for a plurality of applications.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the identification module (114) further configured to compare the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor (102) and the pressure sensor (104) with a set of data present in a database to identify the presence of the person.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the central server (110) is accessible to a third party.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the third party is an insurance service provider.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the vehicle telematics unit comprises a plurality of sensors (102A) for sensing the set of physiological data.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the set of physiological data comprises at least one of an electrocardiogram (ECG) of the person.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the set of physiological data further comprises skin temperature, respiration, stress, and blood pressure of the person.

19. The system of claim 12 further comprises a display module (118) for displaying the output. , Description:FORM 2

THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENT RULES, 2003

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See Section 10 and Rule 13)

Title of invention:
METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFICATION OF A PERSON DRIVING A VEHICLE

Applicant
Tata Consultancy Services Limited
A company Incorporated in India under the Companies Act, 1956
Having address:
Nirmal Building, 9th floor,
Nariman point, Mumbai 400021,
Maharashtra, India

The following specification particularly describes embodiments and the manner in which it is to be performed.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[001] The present application generally relates to the field of vehicle telematics system. More particularly, but not specifically, the invention is related to a method and system for the identification of a person driving a vehicle using the vehicle telematics system.

BACKGROUND

[002] Vehicle telematics system monitor the location, movements, status, and behavior of a vehicle. Such devices commonly use GPS receivers and an electronic device to transmit the collected data. The vehicle telematics system may additionally include capabilities to interface with signals from the car. Such devices are often installed in the car or vehicle. Mobile phones contain similar sensing capabilities as telematics system installed on the device and are owned by more people. Thus, there is a need in the vehicle telematics field to create a new and useful system and method for determining a driver status in a telematics application. The use of vehicle telematics system have been more prominent by the insurance service providers.

[003] Various auto insurance telematics systems are used to monitor and estimate the driver’s behavior. This information is used to aid the insurance company to assess the risk factor to estimate the insurance premiums. Even though the current state of art technique is adapted globally, there are certain limitations. In various cases, it has been observed that the insurance company does not have any clear idea or evidence that who drive the vehicle for that particular period. There is a high possibility of occurrence that other person/non insurance individuals could drive the vehicle for that period. However, the claim is assessed based on the data available.

[004] In addition to that, it is also necessary to be aware of the status of the driver while driving the vehicle like emotions, stress or alcohol. In few cases one unique mobile device identifier and at least one unique vehicle telematics unit identifier associated with the mobile device are available. However, as explained earlier fraud claim is possible in this case also. Few inventors has attempt this issue using audio input and so on. However, those approach has their own limitation

[005] Above limitation could be overcome by means of providing a system or device that could identify the driver. A number of potential solutions have been proposed such as fingerprint, palm veins, face recognition, DNA, palm print, hand geometry, iris recognition, retina and odor/scent for person identification so far. However, although these techniques broaden the perception horizon, they demand the attention of the driver and all would be an event base authentication.

[006] In another technique, the introduction of the sense of touch as additional information modality or the utilization of multimodal instead of uni-modal interfaces. But again these solutions demand attention of the driver. In order to cope with the issues of workload and/or distraction, it is essential to find a non-distracting and non-invasive solution for generation of significant sensory information about the driver's awareness and health condition.

OBJECTIVE

[007] In accordance with the present disclosure, the primary objective is to provide a system and method for identification of a person driving a vehicle.

[008] Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a solution for continuous person identification or authentication using physiological signals like ECG, skin impedance etc.

[009] Another object of the present disclosure is to identify the user using ECG signal within short length of data for example 1 min of ECG signal.

[0010] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide a system that could sense the human touch based on the impedance of the skin. There by this could avoid faking of the current system by providing an external stimulated or synthesis ECG signal.

[0011] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to determine or identify the user has undergone a heart transplant or pacemaker and alert the provider.

[0012] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide additional authentication using finger GRIP pressure applied on the steering wheel.

[0013] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to use the ECG based driver identity as information to assign responsibility or to ensure identity of the driver in case of accidents.

[0014] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to use one unique vehicle telematics based on ECG unit but multiple user identifier associated with the device.

[0015] Yet another object of the present disclosure is to facility the propensity to make an accident by driver based on the stress level of the individual with speed of driving and other parameters.

[0016] Other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will be more apparent from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures, which are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

SUMMARY

[0017] Before the present methods, systems, and hardware enablement are described, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular systems, and methodologies described, as there can be multiple possible embodiments of the present invention, which are not expressly illustrated, in the present disclosure. It is also to be understood that the terminology used in the description is for the purpose of describing the particular versions or embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention which will be limited only by the appended claims.

[0018] The present application provides a system for identification of a person driving a vehicle. The system comprises a vehicle telematics unit, ECG electrode, a galvanic skin response (GSR) sensor, a pressure sensor and a processor. The vehicle telematics unit of the vehicle provides a set of physiological data of the person in real time. The ECG electrodes are located either on the steering wheel or on the driver seat and sense the cardiac signal. The GSR sensor senses a touch of the person based on a skin impedance calculation. The pressure sensor senses a finger/hand grip pressure applied on a steering wheel of the vehicle. The processor further comprises an analyzing module, an identification module and a communication module. The analyzing module analyzes the set of physiological data (ECG signal) to detect the presence of at least one of a pacemaker or a transplanted heart in the person. The identification module for identifies the presence of the person and identify the individual based on an output generated by the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor and the pressure sensor. The communication module sends the output to a central server for a plurality of applications.

[0019] Another embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a method for identification of the person driving the vehicle. Initially, a set of physiological data of the person is acquired in real time using the vehicle telematics unit of the vehicle. In the next step, the touch of the person is sensed based on a skin impedance calculated using the GSR sensor. Also, a finger grip pressure applied on a steering wheel of the vehicle is sensed using the pressure sensor. In the next step, the set of physiological data is analyzed by the processor to detect the presence of at least one of a pacemaker or a transplanted heart in the person using HRV extracted from the ECG signal. In the next step the presence of the person is identified based on an output generated by the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor and the pressure sensor. The the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor (102) and the pressure sensor (104) is compared with a set of data present in the database to identify the presence of the person. And finally, the output is sent to the central server for a plurality of applications.

[0020] Another embodiment of the present invention also provides an application of the person identification system to be used by an insurance service providers. The system is configured to verify the authenticity of the person using physiological set of data during any unfortunate incident such as accident. The system also determines the current state of the persons such as stress, alcohol etc. to determine insurance claim which needs to be disbursed to the person.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, are better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings exemplary constructions of the invention; however, the invention is not limited to the specific methods and system disclosed. In the drawings:

[0022] Fig. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of a system for the identification of a person driving a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure;

[0023] Fig. 2 shows an architecture overview of the system for the identification of the person driving a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure; and

[0024] Fig. 3 shows a flowchart illustrating the steps involved in the identification of the person driving a vehicle, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Some embodiments of this invention, illustrating all its features, will now be discussed in detail.

[0026] The words "comprising," "having," "containing," and "including," and other forms thereof, are intended to be equivalent in meaning and be open ended in that an item or items following any one of these words is not meant to be an exhaustive listing of such item or items, or meant to be limited to only the listed item or items.

[0027] It must also be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Although any systems and methods similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments of the present invention, the preferred, systems and methods are now described. In the following description for the purpose of explanation and understanding reference has been made to numerous embodiments for which the intent is not to limit the scope of the invention.

[0028] One or more components of the invention are described as module for the understanding of the specification. For example, a module may include self-contained component in a hardware circuit comprising of logical gate, semiconductor device, integrated circuits or any other discrete component. The module may also be a part of any software programme executed by any hardware entity for example processor. The implementation of module as a software programme may include a set of logical instructions to be executed by a processor or any other hardware entity.

[0029] The disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms.

[0030] The elements illustrated in the Figures interoperate as explained in more detail below. Before setting forth the detailed explanation, however, it is noted that all of the discussion below, regardless of the particular implementation being described, is exemplary in nature, rather than limiting. For example, although selected aspects, features, or components of the implementations are depicted as being stored in memories, all or part of the systems and methods consistent with the attrition warning system and method may be stored on, distributed across, or read from other machine-readable media.

[0031] Method steps of the invention may be performed by one or more computer processors executing a program tangibly embodied on a computer-readable medium to perform functions of the invention by operating on input and generating output. Suitable processors include, by way of example, both general and special purpose microprocessors. Generally, the processor receives (reads) instructions and data from a memory (such as a read-only memory and/or a random access memory) and writes (stores) instructions and data to the memory. Storage devices suitable for tangibly embodying computer program instructions and data include, for example, all forms of non-volatile memory, such as semiconductor memory devices, including EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROMs. Any of the foregoing may be supplemented by, or incorporated in, specially-designed ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits) or FPGAs (Field-Programmable Gate Arrays). A computer can generally also receive (read) programs and data from, and write (store) programs and data to, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium such as an internal disk (not shown) or a removable disk.

[0032] Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 illustrates a schematic block diagram and schematic architectural overview respectively of a system 100 for identifying a person driving a vehicle according to an embodiment of the disclosure. The physiological signal of a driver is acquired and registered which is used for continuous identification of a person driving in the vehicle, thereby act as intruder detection system towards vehicle telematics security. Further, the system 100 is also configured to make sure that the person is not installed with a pacemaker or did not have heart transplant in the past. The system 100 is configured to provide security and a personalization vehicle telematics system for the person. The system 100 is integrated with the vehicle to obtain various parameters. The disclosure provides the system 100 with improved accuracy of result and the reduced processing time, which is required for the continuous authentication of the person driving the vehicle. The continuous authentication of the person can further be used in various applications. In an embodiment, the system 100 can also be used by an insurance service provide to determine the amount of insurance which needs to be disbursed to the person. In another example, the system can also be used to design a personalization of vehicle telematics based on person’s driving preferences.

[0033] According to an illustrative embodiment of the disclosure, the device 100 includes a vehicle telematics unit 102, a galvanic skin response (GSR) sensor 104, a pressure sensor 106 and a processor 108. The vehicle telematics unit 102, the GSR sensor 104 and the pressure sensor 106 remains in communication with the processor 108.

[0034] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the vehicle telematics unit 102 of the vehicle is configured to sense a plurality of parameters of the person. The vehicle telematics unit 102 generally includes a plurality of sensors 102A which provides a set of physiological data of the person in the real time, periodically or in the batch mode. The vehicle telematics unit 102 collects/acquires physiological information using external or internal device or combination of external and internal that has been attached to the vehicle that coordinate with a mobile phone of the user. In the various example, the set of physiological data comprises ECG signal of the patient, heart rate of the patient, respiration data, stress of the person, blood pressure of the person, skin temperature of the person etc. It should be appreciated that the set of physiological data can be acquired either on-demand, in the real time or periodically using the vehicle telematics unit 102. It should be appreciated that the system 100 can also be configured to personalize the vehicle telematics unit 102 based on external sensor and inbuilt sensor input. It should also be appreciated that the same vehicle telematics unit 102 can be personalized for multiple users.
[0035] In another embodiment, the vehicle telematics unit 102 is an external unit and configured to be embedded in the vehicle. In another embodiment, the vehicle telematics unit 102 may be in-built to the vehicle. The vehicle telematics unit 102 includes a decision support system (DSS) application. The DSS application will receive the signal and may use the signal for analysis. Then DSS will receive and upload the physiological information to a central server 110, where further analysis can be performed. Similarly, the DSS application in the vehicle telematics unit will receive the signal and upload the physiological information to the central server 110, where further analysis can be performed.

[0036] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the GSR sensor 104 is configured to sense the skin impedance of the person. The skin impedance is calculated based on the touch provided by the person on the steering wheel of the vehicle. In an example, the GSR sensor 104 is present on the steering wheel of the vehicle. It should be appreciated that the GSR sensor 104 can also be present at any other place. The use of GSR sensor 104 is to avoid the faking of the current system by providing an external stimulated ECG signal. Thus the presence of ECG simulation device can be detected using the GSR sensor 104.

[0037] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the finger/hand grip pressure is also sensed using the pressure sensor 106. The pressure sensor 106 determines the pressure which is applied by fingers or hands of the person on the steering wheel of the vehicle. The determination of the pressure helps in identifying the current state of the person. In addition to that, the pressure sensor 106 is also used to determine if the signal is coming from the person or any simulation device such as the ECG simulation device. The data sensed by the vehicle telematics unit 102, the GSR sensor 104 and the pressure sensor 106 is then provided to the processor 108 for further analysis.

[0038] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the processor 108 further includes a plurality of modules such as an analyzing module 112, an identification module 114 and a communication module 116 for performing various functions. The analyzing module 112 is configured to analyze the set of physiological data to detect the presence of the pacemaker or a transplanted heart in the body of the person using HRV extracted from the ECG signal. The presence of the pacemaker or the transplanted heart may send an alert to the insurance company. In addition to this the analyzing module 112 will also identify the person who is driving the vehicle.

[0039] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the identification module 114 is configured to identify the presence of person based on an output generated by the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor 104 and the pressure sensor 106. The use of multi-modal approach further increases the accuracy of the system 100. In an example, the identification module 114 further configured to compare the set of physiological data, skin impedance and the finger grip pressure with a set of data present in the database (not shown) to identify the presence of the person. The database is maintained by capturing the physiological data of the person at the initial stage, before person drives the vehicle for the first time. Over a period of time, the size of database keeps on increasing by storing the physiological data of more than one person which are going to drive the vehicle.

[0040] The communication module 116 receives the output of the identification module 114 and send it to the central server 110 for further application and use. It should be appreciated that the central server 110 can be any external entity or a third party. In an example, the third party can be an insurance service providers. The insurance service providers can further analyze the data to decide the insurance claim which needs to be disbursed. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure an automatic personalized insurance scheme can be devised based on the person’s secured telematics system.

[0041] In another embodiment, the system 100 can also be used to identify the identity of the driver of the vehicle in case of any accident or any other unfortunate incident. The system uses the ECG signal of the person to ensure the identity of the driver. This further helps the insurance service providers to determine the insurance amount which needs to be disbursed to the person. The system identify the user using ECG signal within short length of data for example 1 min of ECG signal.

[0042] In another embodiment, the system 100 can also be used to determine the stress of the person driving the vehicle. The stress can be determined based on the speed of the vehicle. In addition to that the other physiological parameters of the person driving the vehicle can also be monitored to determine the stress. For example, the person with higher stress may sweat a little more as compared to be in the non-stress condition. In other words, the system can identify the propensity to accident depending on the stress level of the person.

[0043] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the output data can be displayed on a display module 118. The display module 118 is in communication with the processor 108. The display module 108 may include a variety of software and hardware interfaces, for example, a web interface, a graphical user interface, and the like. The display module 118 can facilitate multiple communications within a wide variety of networks and protocol types, including wireless networks, such as WLAN, cellular, or satellite. The display module 118 is configured to be accessed by the user.

[0044] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the system also includes a parameter reduction module 120. The parameter reduction module 120 is configured to analyze the set of physiological data step to increase the accuracy of the system 100 and reduce the processing time. The parameter reduction module 120 reduces the parameters such as Maximal information coefficient (MIC) and Principal component analysis (PCA). The parameter reduction module 120 also avoid the true false ratio.

[0045] In operation, a flowchart 200 illustrating the steps involved in the identification of the person driving the vehicle is shown in Fig. 3, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Initially at step 202, a set of physiological data of the person is acquired in real time or batch mode using a vehicle telematics unit 102 of the vehicle. The set of physiological data may include, but not limited to, ECG signal, temperature, blood pressure, respiration parameters of the person. In the next step 204, the touch of the person is sensed based on the skin impedance calculated using the GSR sensor 104. And at step 206, the finger grip pressure applied on the steering wheel of the vehicle is sensed using the pressure sensor 106. It should be appreciated that the GSR sensor 104 and the pressure sensor 106 are helps in determining whether the signal is coming from the person or the ECG simulation device. In the next step 208, the set of physiological data is analyzed by the processor 108 to detect the presence of at least one of a pacemaker or a transplanted heart in the person using HRV extracted from the ECG signal. At step 210, the presence of the person is identified by the processor 108 based on the output generated by the analysis of the set of physiological data, the GSR sensor 104 and the pressure sensor 106. And finally, the output is sent to the central server 110 for a plurality of applications.

[0046] In view of the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the present disclosure provides a method and system for identifying the presence of the person driving the vehicle. Still, it should be understood that the foregoing relates only to the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, and that numerous changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.