Granted Patent B2

US 12,460,937 · App. 17/876,810 · Granted Nov 4, 2025

Inventors: Olarinre Salako (Plano, TX); Mehmet Cil (Plano, TX); Varun Prasad (Plano, TX); Daniel Ellis Holman (Plano, TX); Shravanthi Denthumdas (Frisco, TX); Danny Bargas (Plano, TX); Jennifer Lerman (Plano, TX); Brian M. Kursar (Fairview, TX)

Assignee: TOYOTA CONNECTED NORTH AMERICA, INC.

G01C21/3469B60W40/09B60W2540/30

Abstract

Claims (71)

1 . A method, comprising:

identifying a first group of vehicles having a first carbon footprint and a second group of vehicles having a second carbon footprint that is greater than the first carbon footprint;

identifying a vehicle in the second group of vehicles having a carbon footprint that exceeds an average carbon footprint for the second group of vehicles;

identifying a similar vehicle of the first group of vehicles having a similar carbon footprint as the vehicle;

determining to reduce carbon emissions of the vehicle based on driving behavior of the similar vehicle; and

activating a mode of an engine of the vehicle based on a determination to reduce carbon footprint and instructing the engine to conserve fuel more efficiently based on the activated mode.

2 . The method of claim 1 , comprising:

determining the carbon footprint for the vehicle as a function of distance based on an amount of fuel consumed by the vehicle;

determining an estimated carbon footprint for the vehicle based on a model created using one or more models that are based on one or more typical driving patterns;

comparing the carbon footprint with the estimated carbon footprint; and

identifying the first group and the second group based on the comparing.

3 . The method of claim 1 , comprising:

determining a plurality of driving behaviors that increase carbon emissions of the second group of vehicles; and

providing a recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle, wherein the recommendation comprises a list of the plurality of driving behaviors, and one or more actions that may be taken to reduce the carbon emissions of the second group of vehicles.

4 . The method of claim 1 , comprising:

ranking each vehicle in the second group of vehicles based on an individual carbon footprint for each vehicle;

identifying another vehicle having a similar ranking to the vehicle or sharing one or more characteristics with the vehicle; and

providing a recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle for reducing carbon footprint, wherein the recommendation is based upon data received from the another vehicle.

5 . The method of claim 1 , comprising:

ranking each vehicle in the first group of vehicles to generate a vehicle ranking based on individual carbon footprints for each vehicle; and

updating the vehicle ranking when the individual carbon footprint exceeds an average carbon footprint of the first group of vehicles.

6 . The method of claim 1 , comprising:

providing a second recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle, the second recommendation including a second driving behavior modification for reducing the carbon footprint.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising reducing a responsiveness of a throttle position sensor with respect to a throttle of the vehicle based on the determination to reduce carbon footprint.

8 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising controlling the vehicle to reduce fuel consumption by controlling the vehicle to consume energy from a rechargeable battery to conserve fuel more efficiently based on the determination to reduce carbon footprint.

9 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising reducing idling emissions of the engine of the vehicle prior to shutting off the engine of the vehicle based on the determination to reduce carbon footprint.

10 . A system, comprising:

a processor that, when executing one or more instructions stored in an associated memory, is configured to:

identify a first group of vehicles having a first carbon footprint and a second group of vehicles having a second carbon footprint that is greater than the first carbon footprint;

identify a vehicle in the second group of vehicles having a carbon footprint that exceeds an average carbon footprint for the second group of vehicles;

identify a similar vehicle of the first group of vehicles having a similar carbon footprint as the vehicle;

determine to reduce carbon emissions of the vehicle based on driving behavior of the similar vehicle; and

activate a mode of an engine of the vehicle based on a determination to reduce carbon footprint and instruct the engine to conserve fuel more efficiently based on the activated mode.

11 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine the carbon footprint for the vehicle as a function of distance based on an amount of fuel consumed by the vehicle;

determine an estimated carbon footprint for the vehicle based on a model created using one or more models that are based on one or more typical driving patterns;

compare the carbon footprint with the estimated carbon footprint; and

identify the first group and the second group based on the comparing.

12 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

determines a plurality of driving behaviors that increase carbon emissions of the second group of vehicles; and

provides a recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle, wherein the recommendation comprises a list of the plurality of driving behaviors, and one or more actions that may be taken to reduce the carbon emissions of the second group of vehicles.

13 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

rank each vehicle in the second group of vehicles based on an individual carbon footprint for each vehicle;

identify another vehicle having a similar ranking to the vehicle or sharing one or more characteristics with the vehicle; and

provide a recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle for reducing carbon footprint, wherein the recommendation is based upon data received from the another vehicle.

14 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

rank each vehicle in the first group of vehicles to generate a vehicle ranking based on individual carbon footprints for each vehicle; and

update the vehicle ranking when the individual carbon footprint exceeds an average carbon footprint of the first group of vehicles.

15 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the processor is further configured to:

provide a second recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle, wherein the second recommendation includes a second drive behavior modification to reduce the carbon footprint.

16 . A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform:

identifying a first group of vehicles having a first carbon footprint and a second group of vehicles having a second carbon footprint that is greater than the first carbon footprint;

identifying a vehicle in the second group of vehicles having a carbon footprint that exceeds an average carbon footprint for the second group of vehicles;

identifying a similar vehicle of the first group of vehicles having a similar carbon footprint as the vehicle;

determining to reduce carbon emissions of the vehicle based on driving behavior of the similar vehicle; and

activating a mode of an engine of the vehicle based on a determination to reduce carbon footprint and instructing the engine to conserve fuel more efficiently based on the activated mode.

17 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to perform:

determining the carbon footprint for the vehicle as a function of distance based on an amount of fuel consumed by the vehicle;

determining an estimated carbon footprint for the vehicle based on a model created using one or more models that are based on one or more typical driving patterns;

comparing the carbon footprint with the estimated carbon footprint; and

identifying the first group and the second group based on the comparing.

18 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to perform:

determining a plurality of driving behaviors that increase carbon emissions of the second group of vehicles; and

providing a recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle, wherein the recommendation comprises a list of the plurality of driving behaviors, and one or more actions that may be taken to reduce the carbon emissions of the second group of vehicles.

19 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to perform:

ranking each vehicle in the second group of vehicles based on an individual carbon footprint for each vehicle;

identifying another vehicle having a similar ranking to the vehicle or sharing one or more characteristics with the vehicle; and

providing a recommendation to a device associated with the vehicle for reducing carbon footprint, wherein the recommendation is based upon data received from the another vehicle.

20 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein the instructions further cause the processor to perform:

ranking each vehicle in the first group of vehicles to generate a vehicle ranking based on individual carbon footprints for each vehicle; and

updating the vehicle ranking when the individual carbon footprint exceeds an average carbon footprint of the first group of vehicles.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (1)

References Cited (25)