AU2004202419A1 - Road Vehicle Monitoring Apparatus - Google Patents

Description

PATENTS ACT 1990 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention title ROAD VEHICLE MONITORING APPARATUS Invention The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing known to me.

This invention relates to road safety devices. More particularly although not exclusively, it discloses an improved apparatus for monitoring the driving speed of motorists.

Excessive speed in relation to driver experience and road conditions is the commonest cause of motor vehicle accidents.

Statistics are readily available which show the enormous cost in personal and financial loss caused by road accidents directly related to speeding. While the authorities make considerable effort to discourage speeding by increased police presence on the roads, use of radar and speed cameras these have only a limited effect on the determined speeder.

Due to high costs maintaining large numbers of officers on the road is not feasible except for short periods during peak holiday travel, radar is often evaded by using detectors easily obtained from overseas and speed cameras only work in specific areas which quickly become known to motorists.

Further, such cameras tend to be unreliable during periods of poor visibility or if a vehicle number plate is obscured or faded.

It is therefore an object of this invention to ameliorate the aforementioned disadvantages and accordingly a tracking and monitoring apparatus for installation in a road vehicle is disclosed, said apparatus having a first means including a global positioning system to determine a geographical location of said vehicle, a speed of said vehicle and a posted road speed limit for said geographical location and second means for measuring any difference between said vehicle speed and said posted speed limit and in the event that said vehicle speed exceeds said posted speed limit by a predetermined amount transmitting information to a remote database system sufficient to enable a speeding offence to be indentified by an authority against said vehicle.

Preferably the vehicle speed is measured from a conventional speedometer which is fitted with any suitable form of security and anti-tampering device.

It is further preferred that said apparatus be permanently fitted to the vehicle and only removed when said vehicle is retired from service.

It is further preferred that subject to privacy legislation said apparatus include a chip containing some or all of the following information:identifying serial number, personal details of vehicle owner such as name, address, DOB, sex, marital status and telephone number(s), emergency contact etc.

vehicle registration number, vehicle make and chassis number, driver licence number, insurance details, -3passport number, photo identification, blood type other eligible drives of vehicle photo indentification Preferably similar information would also be stored in a central database for access by an authority such as the police.

When the vehicle is driven over the speed limit posted for a particular area and the information transmitted to the central database a speeding fine would then be automatically issued through the post or by e-mail etc. On those occasions when the registered owner is not driving the vehicle the onus would be on the owner to enter details of the driver into the system in order to avoid responsibility for fines.

One currently preferred embodiment of this invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawings in which:figure 1 is a schematic representation of a vehicle speed regulator according to this concept, figure 2 shows an example of the speed regulator of figure 1 when integrated into the dashboard display of said vehicle, and figure 3 is a block diagram of a database system for processing information from said speed regulator.

Global positioning systems (GPS) offer unique navagation security that enables the position and time of a vehicle to be calculated with extraordinary accuracy. The speed regulator of figure 1 is adapted to work in conjunction with a GPS to identify speed limits. It is envisaged that the speed regulator would be compulsory and would be permanently fitted to all licenced vehicles. It would only be removed when a vehicle is retired from service. The regulator of figure 1 is adapted to display the road speed limit for the zone through which the vehicle is travelling at any given time. It is permanently connected to the vehicle speedometer or speed sensor and would be fitted with any suitable type of anti-tampering device. If the anti-tampering device is interfered with in any way (for example to disconnect the GPS or to avoid speed regulation) an alert message would be sent to a database system as referred to later to effect immobilisation of the vehicle. Such arrangement would have the added benefit of deterring car theft.

With the currently preferred embodiment of the invention the speed regulator would use a GPS to continuously adjust the displayed speed limit. For example, when a vehicle travelling at 60kms enters a school zone the speed regulator would automatically adjust to display 40kms to the driver.

The driver would then be allowed a certain period of time to comply by reducing speed. In the absence of compliance within said time period a flashing light and/or audio alarm would be activated to provide a second opportunity to comply.

Continued failure to comply would result in the speed, location and time of the speeding offence against the indentified vehicle being transmitted back to a-database system for infringment processing.

Figure 2 shows an example of how the speed regulator may be integrated into the dashboard of a new vehicle and connected to the speedometer For older vehicles already on the road the speed regulator would preferably be permanently mounted in an appropriate position on the dashboard.

Referring more specifically to figure 3 a flow chart of a database system is shown where appropriate information is received from the speed regulator. Preferably the capture of information would be recorded with both a date/time stamp and a unique reference number for tracking and statistical purposes All information would be stored against a registered and licenced driver and would preferably also be linked to other relevant information against a driver. It is envisaged that a search facility would be available on various items such as a driver's name/address, vehicle registration and serial number etc. Such structured information would preferably be managed and processed according to rules established by principal groups such as the police, RTA and insurance companies. Accordingly, owners of offending vehicles would be issued with various types of correspondence such as warning letters or speed infringement notices. The database would also preferably store all significant activities by drivers to improve the governance of disqualifications, suspension of licences and unregistered vehicles.

It will thus be appreciated that this invention at least in the form of the currently preferred embodiment discloses a novel and effective system for reducing speeding on public roads. By ensuring that the registered owner or driver is always immediately accountable for breaking speed limits it is envisaged that the attitude of the motoring public toward speeding will be altered. Also, the general ability of the system to monitor a vehicle location at any particular time would assist police in tracking unregistered or stolen vehicles as well as prosecuting other traffic related offences such as road rage. Clearly however the example described is only the currently preferred form of the invention and a wide variety of modifications may be made following further research and development work by the inventor. For example the invention is not at this stage limited to any particular type of hardware or software to be used with the system. Also the type and range of information recorded and transmitted by the system may be changed according to requirements.

Claims (7)

1. 2. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said first means includes a speed regulator which is permanently connected to the vehicle speedometer or speed sensor and is fitted with an anti-tamper device.
2. 3. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein said regulator is adapted to display the posted road speed limit to the driver of said vehicle.
3. 4. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim 3 wherein when said vehicle enters an area of reduced posted speed said regulator allows a period of time for driver compliance before transmitting said information to the remote -8- I database system. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said period of time for driver compliance is supplemented by an audio and/or visual alarm.
4. 6. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim wherein said anti-tampering device, upon interference therewith, is adapted to transmit an alert message to said remote database to effect immobilisation of said vehicle.
5. 7. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein said apparatus is adapted to include personal details of the vehicle owner.
6. 8. The tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein the information transmitted to said database is stored against the vehicle owner and vehicle registration to improve governance of disqualifications, suspensions and unregistered vehicles.
7. 9. A road vehicle which is fitted with a tracking and monitoring apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8. A method of enforcing a posted road speed limit for a geographical location of a vehicle, said method including the steps of:- requiring the fitting to said vehicle of a tracking and monitoring apparatus having a first means including a global positioning system to determine the geographical location of said vehicle, a speed of said vehicle and said posted road speed limit for said geographical location and a second means for measuring any difference between the speed of said vehicle and said posted road speed limit and in the event that the speed of said vehicle exceeds said posted road speed limit by a predetermined amount transmitting information to a remote database system sufficient to enable a speeding offence to be identified by an authority against said vehicle, and operating said database system to receive and process said information whereby a speeding offence is identified against the vehicle if the speed thereof exceeds the posted road speed limit by said predetermined amount. Dated this 31st day of May, 2004 Gregory Adamopoulos By His Patent Attorney MICHAEL ANDERSON-TAYLOR