Modify function of driver's phone during acceleration or braking
A system for restricting uses of moving phones used by drivers, but not passenger phones, and sometimes interrupting voice calls, including: (a) Provide for more than one level or state of restriction. (b) When a caller calls a person driving, play to the caller a query whether the call is important enough to put through, and put it through only if the caller responds affirmatively. (c) The phone is restricted in functionality when the vehicle is determined to be experiencing acceleration greater than a threshold. The restricting may be to play an alert sound to be heard by people listening to a voice conversation on the phone. The restricting may be to suspend a voice conversation on the phone.
1. A method for reducing traffic accidents comprising:
implementing components of a system with a mobile phone in a vehicle so that the phone is restricted in functionality when the vehicle is determined to be experiencing speed or acceleration greater than a threshold, wherein
a controller that determines when the phone is restricted is fixed in the vehicle and includes an authenticating chip, and
the authenticating chip communicates via a radio network with a remote authentication server to establish to the remote server authenticity of the controller.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein speed or acceleration sensing is done with one or more sensors in the vehicle that detect speed.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein the comparison of acceleration to a threshold is made in one or more processors installed in the vehicle.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the restricting is to play an alert sound to be heard by people listening to a voice conversation on the phone.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the restricting is to suspend a voice conversation on the phone.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein acceleration sensing is done in one or more accelerometers in the phone.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein the authenticating chip is a crypto-authenticating chip.