RELATED APPLICATIONS

Benefit is claimed to Indian Provisional Application No. 3062/CHE/2009, titled "AUTOMATIC LOAD MONITORING SYSTEM IN A VEHICLE AND THE METHOD THEREOF" by Logica Pvt. Ltd., filed on December 11, 2009, which is herein incorporated in its entirety by reference for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to vehicles and more particularly relates to monitoring number of occupants in a vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Fuel used in vehicles is a non-renewable resource and due to rapid increase in the number of vehicles driven on road, a demand for fuel has gone high at a rapid pace. Fuel economy therefore is an important consideration in designing a vehicle. Engineers attempt to design control systems such as automatic transmissions, valve timing systems, throttle control systems, etc., to achieve optimum fuel efficiency relative to the performance of the vehicle. Improper vehicle utilization may, however, lead to wastage of the fuel.

Consider a car X which has a maximum capacity of carrying 6 people and only three people travel to a destination, say A. Consider another car Y which also has a maximum capacity of carrying 6 people and only two people travel to the same destination A at the same time as the car X. Since both the cars X and Y are traveling to the same destination A and at the same time and also total number of people traveling in two different cars is 5. They can pool into one car since a single car can carry 6 people. Carpooling reduces costs involved in car travel by sharing journey expenses such as fuel, tolls, and car rental between the people travelling. Carpooling Is also seen as a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way to travel as sharing journeys reduces carbon emissions, traffic on the roads, and the need for parking spaces. Authorities often encourage carpooling, especially during, high pollution periods and after fuel rises. Carpooling where the driving is shared can also decrease driving stress as each driver gets a break from being at the wheel.

Currently, there exist load monitoring system which determines the load in the vehicle and assigns a green index rating based on the number of persons traveling to encourage car pooling. For example, if the number of persons traveling in the vehicle is per maximum seating capacity of the vehicle, the maximum green index rating is assigned to the vehicle. On the contrary, if the number of the persons traveling in the vehicle is only a driver, then a lowest green rating is assigned to the vehicle. The green rating can be redeemed at the fuel stations, supermarkets, insurance providers to obtain discounts on products. This is to encourage a driver to use the vehicle to its maximum seating capacity.

Current load monitoring systems use a weight sensor to calculate weight of the occupants in the vehicle. This method may fail to determine exact number of occupants in the vehicle based on the weight since weight of occupant may vary. Another load monitoring system determines a load in the vehicle by transmitting waves. The wave transmission method is not efficient as the waves may be blocked by some solid objects leading to an erroneous load computation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a system and method of monitoring a load in a vehicle. In one aspect, a system for monitoring number of occupants in a vehicle includes one or more sensors mounted beneath a floor of a vehicle for sensing at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle for a predetermined time period, where the at least one parameter includes an acceleration relative to the floor, a jerky motion of the floor, a vibration of the floor, and an angle of tilt of the floor. The system also includes an onboard device mounted in the vehicle having a processor, and memory coupled to the processor. The memory includes a load computation module for computing a load inside the vehicle based on the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle, where the load is indicative of a ratio of number of occupants traveled in the vehicle to a maximum seating capacity of the vehicle. The memory also includes an average computation module for comparing outputs of the one or more sensors and providing a highest value of the at least one parameter sensed by at least one of the one or more sensors to the load computation module.

Further, the memory includes an occupancy computation module for computing a number of occupants inside the vehicle based on the computed load. Moreover, the system includes a backend server remotely located from the vehicle for storing the number of occupants inside the vehicle communicated by the onboard device over a wireless link, and for computing at least one of driver rating and green index rating based on the average number of occupants travelled in the vehicle for a predetermined parameter such as a time threshold and number of trips. Additionally, the memory includes a display module for displaying the at least one of driver rating and green index rating on the display associated with the on board device.

In another aspect, a method of monitoring number of occupants in a vehicle includes sensing at least one parameter associated with a floor of the vehicle by one or more accelerometers for a predetermined time period, where the at least one parameter includes an acceleration relative to the floor, a jerky motion of the floor, a vibration of the floor, and an angle of tilt of the floor. The method also includes the computing a load inside the vehicle based on the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle. The load is indicative of a ratio of number of occupants traveled in the vehicle to a maximum seating capacity of the vehicle. The method may also include computing a number of occupants inside the vehicle based on the computed load.

Additionally, the method includes transmitting the number of occupants travelled in the vehicle to a backend server remotely located from the vehicle over a wireless link, storing the number of occupants in the backend server, and computing at least one of driver rating and green index rating based on the average number of occupants travelled in the vehicle for a predetermined parameter such as a time threshold and number of trips. Moreover, the method may include receiving the at least one of driver rating and green index rating by an onboard device mounted in the vehicle from the backend server over the wireless link, and displaying the at least one of driver rating and green index rating on a display associated with the on board device.

Other features of the embodiments will be apparent from the accompanying drawings and from the detailed description that follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWING

Figure 1 illustrates a block diagram of a load monitoring system for monitoring a load inside a vehicle, according to one embodiment.

Figure 2 is a process flow chart illustrating an exemplary process of computing driver rating and green index rating based on number of occupants travelling in a vehicle, according to one embodiment.

The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a system and method for monitoring a load in a vehicle based on a number of occupants boarding a vehicle. In the following detailed description of the embodiments of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined only by the appended claims.

Figure 1 illustrates a block diagram of a load monitoring system 100 for monitoring a load inside a vehicle 102, according to one embodiment. In Figure 1, the load monitoring system 100 includes accelerometers 104A-N, an onboard device 106, and a backend server 108. The onboard device 106 includes a processor 110, memory 112 coupled to the processor 110, and a display 114. The memory 112 includes an acceleration module 116, a load monitoring module 118, an occupant computation module 120, and a display module 122.

The accelerometers 104A-N are mounted beneath the floor of the vehicle 102 at different points. In exemplary implementation, the accelerometers 104A-N are mounted at entry and/or exit points of the vehicle 102. The onboard device 106 is mounted inside the cabin of the vehicle 102 and is operatively coupled to the accelerometers 104A-N. The backend server 108 remotely located from the vehicle 102 is communicatively coupled to the onboard device 106 via a wireless link.

In an exemplary operation, when an occupant boards/exits the vehicle, the floor of the vehicle at the entry/exit point of the occupant experiences an acceleration relative to the floor, a jerk in upward or downward direction, a vibration, and/or a tilt due to the weight of the occupant. In such case, the respective accelerometer 104A mounted at the entry point of the vehicle 102 senses parameters such as a acceleration relative to the floor, a downward/upward jerk, a vibration, and/or an angle of tilt and outputs a signal based on the sensed parameters. The DSP filters 105 then filters the outputted signal to reduce noise in the outputted signal. Further, the acceleration computation module 116 compares the output signal from the accelerometer 104A with the signal outputted by the other accelerometers 104B-N and provides a highest value of the acceleration, jerk, vibration and tilt angle to the load computation module 118. Based on the above, the load computation module 118 computes a load in the vehicle 102. The computed load indicates a ratio of number of occupants traveled in the vehicle 102 to a maximum seating capacity of the vehicle 102. The computed load is determined by monitoring the number of occupants boarded or exited the vehicle 102 during a predetermined number of trips or a predetermined time threshold.

Accordingly, the occupant computation module 120 computes the number of occupants present in the vehicle 102 based on the computed load. The onboard device 106 transmits data associated with the number of occupants travelled in the vehicle 102 to the backend server 108. The backend server 108 stores the data associated with the number of occupants and computes a driver rating and/or green index rating based on the average number of occupants travelled in the vehicle 102 for the predetermined time threshold, predetermined number of trips, and the like.

If the number of occupants traveled in the vehicle 102 is lower or greater than a maximum seating capacity of the vehicle 102, then the backend server 108 assigns less driver rating/green index rating. On the contrary. If the number of occupants traveled is equal to the maximum seating capacity of the vehicle 102, then the backend server 108 assigns maximum driver rating/green index rating.

Accordingly, the onboard device 106 receives the driver rating and/or driver rating from the backend server 108. The display module 122 thus displays the driver rating and/or green index rating on the display 114 associated with the onboard device 106 fitted inside the vehicle 102.

Also, the backend server 108 generates a detailed report based on the stored data and sends the detailed report to the owner of the vehicle 102 via any of the communication channels such as email.

Figure 2 is a process flow chart 200 illustrating an exemplary process of computing driver rating and green index rating based on number of occupants travelling in a vehicle, according to one embodiment. At step 202, at least one parameter (e.g., acceleration, jerk, vibration and tilt angle associated with the floor when a person boards or exits the vehicle 102) associated with a floor of the vehicle 102 is sensed by the one or more accelerometers 104A-N for a predetermined time period. At step 204, outputs of the one or more accelerometers 104A-N associated with the at least one parameter are compared. At step 206, a highest value of the at least one parameter sensed by at least one of the one or more accelerometers 104A-N is outputted. At step 208, a load inside the vehicle 102 is computed based on the highest value of the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle 102.

At step 210, a number of occupants inside the vehicle 102 is computed based on the computed load. At step 212, data associated with the number of occupants travelled in the vehicle 102 is transmitted to the backend server 108 remotely located from the vehicle 102 over a wireless link. At step 214, the data associated with the number of occupants is stored in the backend server 108. At step 216, at least one of driver rating and green index rating is computed based on the average number of occupants travelled in the vehicle 102 for a predetermined parameter such as a time threshold and number of trips. At step 218, the at least one of driver rating and green index rating information is received by the onboard device 106 mounted in the vehicle 102 over the wireless link. At step 220, the at least one of driver rating and green index rating information is displayed on the display 114 associated with the on board device 106.

Although the present embodiments have been described with reference to specific example embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the various embodiments. Furthermore, the various devices, modules, analyzers, generators, and the like described herein may be enabled and operated using hardware circuitry, for example, complementary metal oxide semiconductor based logic circuitry, firmware, software and/or any combination of hardware, firmware, and/or software embodied in a machine readable medium. For example, the various electrical structure and methods may be embodied using transistors, logic gates, and electrical circuits, such as application specific integrated circuit.

We claim

1. A system for monitoring number of occupants in a vehicle, comprising:

one or more sensors mounted beneath a floor of a vehicle for sensing at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle for a predetermined time period; and an onboard device mounted in the vehicle comprising:

a processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor; wherein the memory includes a load computation module for computing a load inside the vehicle based on the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle, wherein the load is indicative of a ratio of number of occupants traveled in the vehicle to a maximum seating capacity of the vehicle, and wherein the at least one parameter comprises an acceleration relative to the floor, a jerky motion of the floor, a vibration of the floor, and an angle of tilt of the floor.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory further comprises:

an average computation module for comparing outputs of the one or more sensors and providing a highest value of the at least one parameter sensed by at least one of the one or more sensors to the load computation module.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the memory further comprises:

an occupancy computation module for computing a number of occupants inside the vehicle based on the computed load.

4. The system of claim 3, further comprising:

a backend server remotely located from the vehicle for storing the number of occupants inside the vehicle, wherein the onboard device communicates the number of occupants to the backend server over a wireless link.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the backend server computes at least one of driver rating and green index rating based on the average number of occupants travelled in the vehicle for a predetermined parameter, wherein the predetermined parameter is selected from the group consisting of a time threshold and number of trips.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the memory further comprises:
a display module for displaying the at least one of driver rating and green index rating information on the display associated with the on board device.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors includes accelerometers.

8. A method of monitoring number of occupants in a vehicle comprising:

sensing at least one parameter associated with a floor of the vehicle by one or more accelerometers for a predetermined time period; and

computing a load inside the vehicle based on the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle, wherein the load is indicative of a ratio of number of occupants traveled in the vehicle to a maximum seating capacity of the vehicle, and wherein the at least one parameter comprises an acceleration relative to the floor, a jerky motion of the floor, a vibration of the floor, and an angle of tilt of the floor.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein computing a load inside the vehicle based on the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle comprises:

comparing outputs of the one or more accelerometers associated with the at least one parameter;

outputting a highest value of the at least one parameter sensed by at least one of the one or more accelerometers; and

computing a load inside the vehicle based on the highest value of the at least one parameter associated with the floor of the vehicle.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprises:
computing a number of occupants inside the vehicle based on the computed load.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

transmitting data associated with the number of occupants travelled in the vehicle to a backend server remotely located from the vehicle over a wireless link;

storing the data associated with the number of occupants in the backend server; and

computing at least one of driver rating and green index rating based on the average number of occupants travelled in the vehicle for a predetermined parameter, wherein the predetermined parameter includes a time threshold and number of trips

12. The method of claim 11, further comprises:

receiving the at least one of driver rating and green index rating information by an onboard device mounted in the vehicle over the wireless link; and

displaying the at least one of driver rating and green index rating information on a display associated with the on board device.

13. The method claim 8 in a form of a machine-readable medium embodying a set of instructions that, when executed by a computing device, causes the computing device to perform the method of claim 8.

14. Method and system of monitoring number of occupants inside a vehicle as described and explained with reference to the drawings.