A system and method for evaluating driving performance

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for evaluating driving performance. The method comprises installing, within a vehicle (100), an onboard module (110) comprising a controller (111) coupled with a Controller Area Network (CAN) interface (112), an accelerometer and gyroscope module (113), and a Global Positioning System (GPS) module (114) for reading telemetry data therefrom; and providing a data processing module (120) configured to receive ride summary data from the onboard module (110). The method involves, by means of the onboard module (110): reading and buffering (201) telemetry data; aggregating (202) the telemetry data by determining for each telemetry data one of: an average value, last recorder value or a maximum value during an aggregation period comprising a number of buffered samples; calculating a plurality of drive parameters based on the aggregated data; upon determining that a state lasted for a predetermined time since a change of state, creating (205) a vehicle state vector containing a vehicle state and drive parameters; creating (206) a driver's errors vector corresponding to the vehicle state vector and comprising penalty points calculated as a product of a weight coefficient dependent on vehicle state and an error dependent on telemetry data aggregated during that state; creating (207) output ride summary data comprising at least part of the vehicle state vector and driver's error vector; and sending (208) the ride summary data to the data processing module (120). The method further involves, by means of the data processing module (209) generating (209) a driving report based on the ride summary data.

Description

[0001] A SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR EVALUATING DRIVING PERFORMANCE

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present invention relates in general to the field of automotive technology, specifically focusing on telematics, vehicle safety, and driver assistance systems, in order to evaluate driving performance in order to improve driving safety.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] In recent years, the automotive industry has witnessed a significant rise in the creation and application of telematics and driver assistance systems. These developments have played a crucial role in enhancing vehicle safety, decreasing the number of road accidents, and improving the overall driving experience. Yet, there's still a considerable gap in offering realtime, personalized feedback to drivers based on their driving habits and performance.

[0006] The existing technology in this area includes systems that gather and scrutinize driving data. Such systems generally use a range of sensors and devices fitted in the car to track parameters like speed, acceleration, braking, steering, and location. The gathered data is then analyzed.

[0007] These existing systems have several shortcomings. Although they are capable of gathering various types of measurements, there are no satisfactory solutions that would present the results of these measurements in a unified manner that provides an overall assessment of driving performance.

[0008] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Therefore, there is a need to provide an improved system and method for evaluating driving performance that would provide a reliable metric that would efficiently summarize various measurements collected during a ride. Such metric could be useful for various purposes, including determining a risk factor associated with a particular driver that drives a car, which could be of high value to insurance companies or car rental companies. Moreover, feedback information provided to the driver could encourage the drivers to improve their performance during subsequent rides, thereby improving the overall driving safety.

[0010] The object of the invention is a method for evaluating driving performance, which includes the installation of an onboard module within a vehicle. This onboard module comprises a controller, a Controller Area Network (CAN) interface, an accelerometer and gyroscope module, and a Global Positioning System (GPS) module for reading telemetry data. The method also involves providing a data processing module configured to receive ride summary data from the onboard module. The onboard module is responsible for reading and buffering telemetry data, aggregating this data, calculating a variety of drive parameters, creating a vehicle state vector and a corresponding driver’s errors vector, and generating output ride summary data. This summary data is then sent to the data processing module, which generates a driving report based on the ride summary data.

[0011] One preferred embodiment includes the decimation of aggregated data by reading only every nth sample for further processing. This technique reduces the amount of data to be processed, thereby improving the efficiency of the system and potentially reducing the computational load on the onboard module.

[0012] Another preferred aspect involves the onboard module calculating such specific controller parameters that include a change of state of the controllers and a directional flag indicating a change greater than a predefined threshold. This feature enhances the accuracy of the system in detecting and evaluating driver actions, leading to more precise feedback and error assessment.

[0013] A further preferred embodiment calculates average values for telemetry data, including short-term and long-term averages for various parameters. This allows for a nuanced understanding of driving patterns over different time scales, which can be critical for identifying trends and providing targeted feedback to improve driving performance.

[0014] Further, the onboard module may determine a change of vehicle state based on the current state and a value or change of a controller parameter or average value of telemetry data. This feature enables the system to dynamically adapt to driving conditions and more accurately reflect the driver's behavior in the generated reports.

[0015] The vehicle state vector may comprise a comprehensive set of parameters such as the percentage of time with various systems active and pedal usage. This detailed information allows for a thorough analysis of driving behavior, which can be particularly beneficial for identifying areas of risk and potential improvement.

[0016] A further preferred aspect of the invention involves sending the driver report to a personal communication module of the driver, presenting the report along with suggestions to eliminate driver errors. This feature ensures that the feedback is directly communicated to the driver, facilitating immediate and effective action to enhance driving safety.

[0017] The invention also pertains to a system for evaluating driving performance that encompasses an onboard module installed in a vehicle and a data processing module configured to receive ride summary data. The system is designed to execute the steps of the method described herein, providing a structured and automated approach to driver performance evaluation.

[0018] A preferred embodiment of the system includes a personal communication module coupled with the data processing module, configured to present the driving report to the user. This integration ensures that the driver receives timely and personalized feedback, which can be instrumental in promoting safer driving habits.

[0019] Another aspect of the system is that the data processing module is a remote server with data processing software capable of communicating with multiple onboard modules across various vehicles. This feature allows for scalability and centralized data analysis, which could be advantageous for fleet management and monitoring.

[0020] A further preferred embodiment of the system is that the onboard module comprises a wireless communication module, facilitating connectivity with the data processing module. This wireless capability ensures seamless data transfer and real-time processing, which is essential for providing immediate feedback.

[0021] Furthermore, the system can be designed to read telemetry data at a frequency specific to the type of data, optimizing the accuracy and relevance of the information collected. This tailored approach to data collection can lead to more precise assessments and recommendations for driving performance improvements.

[0022] The final report can describe the driving style of a driver and provide the driver (and possibly third parties as well) with a feedback information that includes at least one of: an overall rating, change of trend as compared to previous rides and personalized guidance to eliminate reoccurrence of errors recorded by the system.

[0023] The system according to the invention allows for systematic observation of behavior and improvement of drivers' behavior in terms of safety in the execution of road maneuvers and general driving safety. The system can be used both for personal and commercial purposes. For example, the system used for personal purposes can be used by young, inexperienced drivers to assist them in improving their driving style. Alternatively, a system used for commercial purposes can be installed in rental cars, in particular these for short-term and medium-term rental, in order to evaluate whether the cars are used in a safe manner. The system can also be applied to personal cars or company cars as part of an insurance contract.

[0024] These and other features, aspects and advantages of the invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, descriptions and claims.

[0025] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS The invention is shown by means of example embodiments in a drawing, wherein:

[0026] Fig. 1 shows an overall schematic of the system of the present invention;

[0027] Fig. 2 shows steps performed by the onboard module to gather and pre-process data and additional data processing step at the data processing module;

[0028] Fig. 3 shows buffers of the onboard module.

[0029] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention.

[0031] The system of the present invention, as shown schematically in Fig. 1, comprises three main modules: an onboard module 110 installed in a vehicle 100, a data processing module 120 and a personal communication module 130.

[0032] The system can be used with various types of vehicles. The most common vehicle for which the system is applicable is a standard car, but the system is also applicable to trucks, buses, motorcycles, or even boats, offering a wide range of usage scenarios.

[0033] The onboard module 110 is based on a controller 111 coupled with data input-output modules. The input modules are used to feed vehicle data to the controller 111 such as a microcontroller or a microprocessor operating a dedicated software. A CAN interface Controller Area Network (CAN) interface 112 is configured to read data from vehicle’ s onboard electronic modules such as Engine Control Unit (ECU) 101, Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) 102 or Body Control Module (BCM) 103. A dedicated accelerometer and gyroscope module 113 is provided to determine data on vehicle movement, in particular acceleration and deceleration in three axes. A Global Positioning System (GPS) module 114 is provided to determine the current position of the vehicle. Data from these sources 112-114 are synchronized with each other and subject to advanced processing, as described below. The processed data are then compared with the drivers' patterns of errors and unsafe behavior. Consequently, the microcontroller 111 may provide a set of data corresponding to a processed parameters of the particular ride, along with additional data such as the driver's ID, time, place, circumstances can be transmitted to the data processing module 120.

[0034] The data processing module 120 is preferably a remote server that includes a computer 121 with data processing software capable to communicate with a plurality of onboard modules 110 of a plurality of vehicles to collect and process data generated by the onboard modules 110. The onboard module 110 may have a wireless communication module 115 configured to connect with a wireless communication module 122 of the data processing module 120. For example, data may be communicated over a cellular GSM network. Other connections are possible as well, such as the data processing module being located in an Internet cloud environment and accessible to the onboard module 110 via dedicated Internet connection.

[0035] The data processing module 120 collects data from the onboard modules 110 to be analyzed in order to generate a driving safety rating for a specific driver and ride. This allows online tracking of the ride and historical tracking of driver behavior. The driving safety rating can be provided to the driver as a feedback information, informing the driver about the driving style and corresponding safety issues.

[0036] The driver's personal information module 130 can be a telecommunications terminal, such as a smartphone with dedicated software. It can communicate via a wireless interface 131 with the data processing module 120. It presents on a user interface 132 (such as a screen) the information generated by the data processing module to the driver.

[0037] In order to make efficient use of system resources, in particular to efficiently gather and process data, the method of the present invention implements a series of specific data gathering and pre-processing steps, explained with reference to Fig. 2.

[0038] First, in step 201, it reads and buffers telemetry data from the data sources such as modules 111, 112 (including input from modules 101-103) and 113. The telemetry data gathered in step 201 may include at least one of the following: data from the accelerometer and gyroscope module 113: accelerations (measured in m / s2, with the gravitational component removed) for axes X, Y, Z and angular velocities (measured in degrees / s) for axes X, Y, Z; data from the CAN interface 112, such as odometer, engine revolutions, speed, status of: stop lights, turn signals, parking lights, low beam, high beam, system activity related to: ABS, ASR, ESP modules, information about unfastened seat belts, percentage activation of the pedals such as: gas, brake, clutch pedals, steering angle (-100%, 0, 100%), gear used; data from the GPS module 114: longitude and latitude, time stamp.

[0039] The telemetry data is read in step 201 with a preset frequency, such as every 10 milliseconds. The frequency can be set individually for each source of data. The data is gathered in an input data buffer 111-B1 configured to store a number of data samples, configured as a circular buffer. For example, a buffer storing 75 samples read every 10 milliseconds can store data corresponding to a duration of 750 milliseconds. The buffer size and data reading frequency shall be selected such that the buffer includes at least 2 samples of the least frequently collected data, in order to be able to calculate an average value during the duration corresponding to the buffer size.

[0040] Next, in step 202, data are aggregated, in a manner depending on the type of parameter. For example, the following aggregation is performed on a selected number of samples (for example, on all samples) from the data stored in the input buffer: average value: for acceleration of each axis X, Y, Z; for angular velocities about each axis X, Y, Z; for engine rotations per minute (RPMs); for driving speed; for pressure of gas, brake and clutch pedals; and for steering wheel angle; last recorded value: for time stamp, odometer, longitude and latitude, gear engaged; maximum value: for activity of ABS, ASR, ESP systems.

[0041] In step 203, the aggregated data can be decimated, such as by reading only every 10thaggregated sample and storing it in a decimated data buffer 111-B2. This means that either the aggregated data is stored in step 202 in a circular buffer having at least 10 rows, or the aggregation is performed with a frequency 10 times lower than the frequency of data read in step 201.

[0042] In step 204, several drive parameters are calculated for the (preferably decimated) aggregated data, wherein these calculations can be performed in parallel.

[0043] In step 204-1, controller parameters are defined and stored in buffer 111-B3 for the gas pedal, brake pedal and steering wheel, such as: change of the state of the controllers as compared to 10 previous decimated samples; directional flag (+ / -) of the change of the state (relative to the state before 50 decimated samples and holding for 10 decimated samples); for example, a change in the direction of the steering wheel is considered as a change that is greater than a predefined threshold, such as 2.5 pp (percentage points), for the accelerator pedal the minimum difference is Ipp, and for the brake is 0.25pp.

[0044] In step 204-2, short-term and long-term average values are calculated and stored in buffer 111-B4. For example, the short-term averages are calculated for the past 5 decimated samples and the long-term averages are calculated for the past 25 samples, for example using a central Gaussian average method (the Gaussian filter). The averages can be calculated for the following parameters: short-term averages for: speed, engine RPMs, accelerations in X, Y, Z axes, angular velocities about X, Y, Z axes, percentage pedal activation for gas, brake, clutch pedals, steering angle, difference between activation of the gas and brake pedals; long-term averages for: accelerations in X, Y, Z axes, angular velocities about X, Y, Z axes. In step 204-3, vehicle state is determined and stored in buffer 111-B5 within one of the categories:

[0045] I. movement state: stopped, driving;

[0046] II. change of speed: starting, accelerating, constant speed, decelerating,

[0047] III. change of direction: straight ahead, turning left, turning right.

[0048] The following conditions can be defined for entry to and exit from each state:

[0049] 1.1 “stopped” state (if the movement state is “stopped”, then the states of the other two categories are undefined):

[0050] Entry: the vehicle is not in the “stopped” state and the speed is less than Ikm / h;

[0051] Exit: the vehicle is in the “stopped” state and the speed is greater than or equal to Ikm / h.

[0052] 1.2 “driving” state:

[0053] Entry: the vehicle is not in the “driving” state and the speed is greater than or equal to Ikm / h;

[0054] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and the speed is less than Ikm / h.

[0055] II. 1 “starting” state:

[0056] Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in the “starting” or “accelerating” state, the short-term acceleration in the X axis is greater than or equal to 0.1m / s2and the speed is less than 2km / h;

[0057] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” and “starting” state, and the short-term acceleration in the X-axis is less than 0.05m / s2or the speed is greater than 20km / h.

[0058] II.3 “accelerating” state:

[0059] Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in the “starting” or “accelerating” state, the short-term acceleration in the X axis is greater than or equal to 0.3m / s2and the speed is greater than or equal to 2km / h;

[0060] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” and “starting” state, and the short-term acceleration in the X-axis is less than 0. lm / s2.

[0061] 11.3 “decelerating” state:

[0062] Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in the “decelerating” state, and the short-term acceleration in the X axis is less than or equal to -0.3m / s2;

[0063] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” and “decelerating” state, and the short-term acceleration in the X-axis is greater than -0. lm / s2.

[0064] 11.4 “constant speed” state: Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in any of the following states: “constant speed", “starting", “accelerating” or “decelerating";

[0065] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and one of the following states: “starting", “accelerating” or “decelerating".

[0066] III.1 “turning left” state:

[0067] Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in the “turning left” state, and the angular velocity of rotation about the Z axis is less than or equal to -2.57s;

[0068] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” and “turning left” state, and the angular velocity of rotation around the Z axis is greater than -27s.

[0069] 111.2 “turning right” state:

[0070] Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in the “turning right” state, and the angular velocity of rotation around the Z axis is greater than or equal to 2.57s;

[0071] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” and “turning right” state, and the angular velocity of rotation around the Z axis is less than 2° / s.

[0072] 111.3 “straight ahead” state:

[0073] Entry: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and is not in one of the following states: “straight ahead”, “turning left” or “turning right”;

[0074] Exit: the vehicle is in the “driving” state and one of the following states: “turning left” or “turning right”.

[0075] The moment the vehicle enters a certain state is marked with a timestamp, and the determination of parameters in steps 204-1, 204-2, 204-3 is resumed for the purpose of creating a vector. At the moment of exit from the state, the determination is terminated, and a vehicle state vector is created in step 205.

[0076] In order to limit the amount of processed data, vehicle state vectors can be created and stored in buffer 111-B6 only if the previous state lasted for a predetermined period, such as 2 seconds. The vehicle state vector contains the following data aggregated while the vehicle was in the recent state: state identifier, state entry time, state exit time, state duration, initial GPS position (on entry to the state), final GPS position (on exit from the state), percentage of time with ESP system active, percentage of time with ASR system active, percentage of time with ABS system active, percentage of time with clutch pedal pressed, total time of holding the clutch pedal pressed, percentage of time with gas pedal pressed to accelerate, percentage of time with gas pedal pressed, maximum speed during the state, minimum acceleration in the vehicle axis during the state, average acceleration in the vehicle axis during the state, maximum acceleration in the vehicle axis during the state, frequency of change of the longitudinal acceleration trend, frequency of transition between pressing the gas pedal and the brake pedal, percentage of time with excessive engine RPMs (depending on engine type), percentage of time with deficient engine RPMs (depending on engine type), maximum brake pedal pressure, time of activation of turn indicator before initiating the turn, percentage of time with seat belts unfastened.

[0077] Next, in step 206, a driver’s errors vector is calculated and stored in buffer 111-B7 for each of the recorded vehicle states. Penalty points are awarded (as vector dimensions) for each identified error, which depend on the type of error and the maximum speed recorded in the analyzed state. The following speed ranges are distinguished: K - stopped, P - parking speed (l-30km / h), U - urban speed (31-50km / h), S - suburban speed (51-100km / h), H- highway speed (101-150km / h), F - forbidden speed (>151 km / h).

[0078] ASR activation - if the percentage of time with active ASR system is greater than 0%: 1 penalty point, speed multiplier: K=0, P=l, U=5, S=9, H=10, F=10.

[0079] ESP activation - if the percentage of time with active ESP system greater than 0%: 1 penalty point, speed multiplier: K=0, P=2, U=9, S=10, H=10, F=10;

[0080] ABS activation - if the percentage of time with active ABS greater than 0%: 1 penalty point, speed multiplier: K=0, P=2, U=7, S=10, H=10, F=10; uneven braking - if the state is “decelerating”, and the difference between the average acceleration in the vehicle axis and the minimum acceleration in the vehicle axis exceeds 1.25 m / s2: 1.5 penalty points, speed multiplier: K=0, P=l, U=2, S=3, H=4, F=4; uneven acceleration - if the state is “accelerating”, and the difference between the average acceleration in the vehicle axis and the maximum acceleration in the vehicle axis is less than -1.25 m / s2: 1.5 penalty points, speed multiplier: K=0, P=l, U=2, S=3, H=4, F=4; alternate deceleration and acceleration - if the frequency of change in the longitudinal acceleration trend is greater than 5 and the state is “straight ahead”: 2 penalty points, and if the state is “turning right” or “turning left”: 3 penalty points, speed multiplier: K=0, P=l, U=2, S=3, H=4, F=4; alternate use of gas and brake pedals - if the transition frequency between gas pedal and brake pedal activation is greater than 5.5 and the state is “straight ahead”: 2 penalty points, and if the state is “turning right” or “turning left”: 3 penalty points, speed multiplier: K=0, P=1, U=2, S=2.5, H=3, F=3; pulsed braking - if the state is “decelerating” and the frequency of change in the longitudinal acceleration trend exceeds 2.5: 1 penalty point, speed multiplier: K=0, P=l, U=l, S=2, H=2.5, F=3; riding the clutch - if the percentage of time with the clutch pressed is greater than 20 and the state is “straight ahead”: 1 penalty point, and if the state is “turning right” or “turning left”: 3 penalty points, speed multiplier: K=0, P=l, U=2, S=2, H=2, F=2; stopped with clutch pressed - if the condition is “stopped” and the time with the clutch pressed is greater than 1.5 sec: 1 penalty point; driving with excessive engine RPMs - if the percentage of time with excessive engine RPMs is greater than 1%: 1 penalty point; driving with deficient engine RPMs - if the percentage of time with deficient engine RPMs is greater than 1%: 1 penalty point; braking while cornering - if the maximum brake pedal activation is greater than 3% and the state is “turning right” or “turning left”: 4 penalty points, speed multiplier: K=0, P=0.25, U=0.5, S=0.5, H=1, F=1; throttling the engine when starting - if the state is “starting” and the minimum engine speed is less than 500 RPMs: 1 penalty point; driving at excessive speed - if the maximum speed during the state is more than 150km / h: 10 penalty points; indicator signal activated too late - if the indicator was activated less than 1 s before the state detected was “turning right” or “turning left”: 1 penalty point; driving with unfastened seat belts - if the percentage of time with unfastened seat belts is greater than 0% and the state is other than “stopped”: 1 penalty point, speed multiplier: K=0, P=3, U=5, S=6, H=7, F=7.

[0081] For example, if the driver with unfastened seat belts drove with a speed of 110 km / h at high engine RPMs, turned left without using indicator signal and suddenly pressed a brake pedal which caused activation of ABS system, the driver’s errors vector would be assigned the following penalty points in the following dimensions:

[0082] ABS activation: 1 * 10 = 10 points; driving with excessive engine RPMs: 1 point; braking while cornering: 4 * 1 = 4 points; indicator signal activated too late: 1 point; driving with unfastened seat belts: 1 * 7 = 7 points.

[0083] Finally, in step 207 output ride summary data is generated that contains state ID, state entry time, state exit time, state duration, initial GPS position, final GPS position, and a driver’s error vector (which may include points in each of the abovementioned dimensions). The output data is then sent in step 208 from the onboard module 110 to the data processing module 120 during the ride or after the ride is finished. The creation of the ride summary data and outputting the data may be dependent on whether the driver made any errors during the particular state - if no errors were made, the creation of the ride summary data and outputting it to the data processing module can be skipped.

[0084] After the data are received from the onboard module 110 and the ride is finished, the data processing module 120 can generate in step 209 a driving report that includes a description of the errors made, an assessment of the correctness of the maneuvers performed, an evaluation of the safety of the ride and personalized tips aimed at eliminating the observed errors, thereby improving the driver's driving safety. The report can be sent in step 210 to the personal communication module 130 for presentation to the driver. Furthermore, it can be stored and made accessible to third parties, such as users authorized by the driver to gain access to the driver’s rating, such as insurance companies or car rental companies.

[0085] While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, it will be appreciated that many variations, modifications, and other applications of the invention may be made. Therefore, the claimed invention, as recited in the claims that follow, is not limited to the embodiments described herein.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A method for evaluating driving performance, the method comprising: installing, within a vehicle (100), an onboard module (110) comprising a controller (111) coupled with a Controller Area Network (CAN) interface (112), an accelerometer and gyroscope module (113), and a Global Positioning System (GPS) module (114) for reading telemetry data therefrom; and providing a data processing module (120) configured to receive ride summary data from the onboard module (110);- by means of the onboard module (110): reading and buffering (201) telemetry data; aggregating (202) the telemetry data by determining for each telemetry data one of: an average value, last recorder value or a maximum value during an aggregation period comprising a number of buffered samples; calculating a plurality of drive parameters based on the aggregated data, including: o controller parameters for a gas pedal, a brake pedal and a steering wheel; o average values for telemetry data; and o vehicle state being one of a movement state, change of speed state and change of direction state;- upon determining that a state lasted for a predetermined time since a change of state, creating (205) a vehicle state vector containing a vehicle state and drive parameters; creating (206) a driver’s errors vector corresponding to the vehicle state vector and comprising penalty points calculated as a product of a weight coefficient dependent on vehicle state and an error dependent on telemetry data aggregated during that state; creating (207) output ride summary data comprising at least part of the vehicle state vector and driver’s error vector; and sending (208) the ride summary data to the data processing module (120); and by means of the data processing module (209): generating (209) a driving report based on the ride summary data.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising decimating (203) the aggregated data by reading only every nthsample from the aggregated data for further processing.

3. The method according to any of previous claims, wherein the controller parameters comprise a change of state of the controllers and a directional flag of the change of state of the controllers that indicates a change that is greater than a predefined threshold.

4. The method according to any of previous claims, wherein average values for telemetry data comprise: short-term averages for at least one of: speed, engine RPMs, accelerations in X, Y, Z axes, angular velocities about X, Y, Z axes, percentage pedal activation for gas, brake, clutch pedals, steering angle, difference between activation of the gas and brake pedals; and long-term averages calculated for a higher number of samples than the short-term averages, for at least one of: accelerations in X, Y, Z axes, angular velocities about X, Y, Z axes.

5. The method according to any of previous claims, comprising determining a change of vehicle state based on the current state and a value or change of a controller parameter or average value of telemetry data.

6. The method according to any of previous claims, wherein the vehicle state vector comprises at least one of: percentage of time with ESP system active, percentage of time with ASR system active, percentage of time with ABS system active, percentage of time with clutch pedal pressed, total time of holding the clutch pedal pressed, percentage of time with gas pedal pressed to accelerate, percentage of time with gas pedal pressed, maximum speed during the state, minimum acceleration in the vehicle axis during the state, average acceleration in the vehicle axis during the state, maximum acceleration in the vehicle axis during the state, frequency of change of the longitudinal acceleration trend, frequency of transition between pressing the gas pedal and the brake pedal, percentage of time with excessive engine RPMs (depending on engine type), percentage of time with deficient engine RPMs (depending on engine type), maximum brake pedal pressure, time of activation of turn indicator before initiating the turn, percentage of time with seat belts unfastened7. The method according to any of previous steps, further comprising sending (210) the driver report to a personal communication module (130) of a driver for presentation of the driver report along with suggestions to eliminate driver errors.

8. A system for evaluating driving performance, comprising:an onboard module (110) installed in a vehicle (100), comprising a controller (111) coupled with a Controller Area Network (CAN) interface (112), an accelerometer and gyroscope module (113), and a Global Positioning System (GPS) module (114) for reading telemetry data therefrom; and a data processing module (120) configured to receive ride summary data from the onboard module (110);- wherein the onboard module (110) and the data processing module (120) are configured to perform the steps of the method of any of the previous claims.

9. The system according to claim 8, further comprising a personal communication module (130) coupled with the data processing module (120) and configured to present the driving report to the user.

10. The system according to any of claims 8-9, wherein the data processing module (120) is a remote server including a computer (121) with data processing software capable of communicating with a plurality of onboard modules (110) of a plurality of vehicles.

11. The system according to any of claims 8-10, wherein the onboard module (110) comprises a wireless communication module (115) configured to connect with a wireless communication module (122) of the data processing module (120).

12. The system according to any of claims 8-11, wherein the telemetry data are read with a frequency specific to the type of the telemetry data.

Images