Communication Of Promotions Based On Data Associated With A Vehicle

Abstract

A computer can receive diagnostics data and location data associated with a vehicle. The diagnostics data identifies a condition of the vehicle and the location data identifies a location of the vehicle. Further, the computer can receive promotional data that includes a plurality of promotions. Each promotion promotes a purchase transaction or offers products and/or services. Upon receiving the diagnostics data and the location data, the computer can determine if the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition. If the threshold condition is satisfied, the computer can select one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the location of the vehicle and the condition of the vehicle. In addition, the computer can select the one or more promotions based on situational data. Further, the computer can transmit the selected one or more promotions for presentation to a driver or a user associated with the vehicle.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/714,436 filed Oct. 16, 2012 in the names of Max L. Johnson, Jr., Jeffrey D. Lamb, and Donovan Williams and entitled "Fuel Card Transaction Fraud Detection, Authorization, and Promotion," the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF INVENTION

[0002] This disclosure relates generally to a field of advertising and, in one example embodiment, to a system, method, and apparatus for communication of promotions based on data associated with a vehicle.

BACKGROUND

[0003] Businesses may offer promotions to customers to influence the customers to purchase goods and/or services provided by the businesses. Current technology may provide the businesses with the ability to target the promotions to customers based on the location of the customers. For example, a business may provide a promotion to a customer when the customer is in a vicinity of the business. However, targeting the promotions based on location alone may not necessarily influence customers to make a purchase because the promotions associated with a location may not be related or meaningful to the customers. Customers may be more likely to be influenced by the promotions if the promotions were more meaningful to the customer. In one example, customer may be more likely to make a purchase based on a promotion if the promotion is associated with a current situation of a customer, and/or the promotion is provided to the customer at an apt time. For example, a customer may be more likely to purchase a new tire for the customer's vehicle based on a promotion for tires, if the promotion for tires is provided when the customer's vehicle has a flat tire or in anticipation of a flat tire. Current technology lacks the ability to obtain information associated with a situation of a customer and combine that with location information of the customer to provide more meaningful promotions to customer at an apt time. Such limitations may result in businesses incurring a loss on their return on promotions, i.e., dollar earned per dollar spend on corresponding promotions which may affect a revenue of the businesses. Thus, there is a need for a technology that addresses the above-mentioned deficiencies of conventional technology.

SUMMARY

[0004] For one aspect of the present invention, a computer can receive diagnostic data and location data associated with a vehicle. The diagnostic data identifies a condition of the vehicle and the location data identifies a location of the vehicle. The computer also receives promotion data that includes a plurality of promotions. Each promotion of the plurality of promotions typically promotes a purchase transaction or offers a product or service. Further, the computer can select one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the condition of the vehicle and the location of the vehicle. In addition, the computer can transmit the one or more promotions for presentation by a device that is associated with the vehicle or a driver of the vehicle. The one or more promotions can also be transmitted to any device associated with any appropriate user.

[0005] For another aspect of the present invention, a computer can receive promotional data that includes a plurality of promotions. Further, the computer can receive location data associated with a vehicle and a signal that represents a trigger event. The trigger event may be determined and correspondingly the signal may be transmitted to the computer by a telematics device that is configured for use with the vehicle. The location data identifies a location of the vehicle and the signal represents a trigger event. Upon receiving the signal, the computer can select one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the location of the vehicle and the trigger event. In addition, the computer can transmit the one or more promotions for presentation by a device that is associated with the vehicle or a driver of the vehicle.

[0006] For yet another aspect of the present invention, a computer system can receive fuel level data and location data of a vehicle. The fuel level data identifies the quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank of the vehicle and the location data identifies the location of the vehicle. The computer system can also receive situational data. Further, the computer system can receive promotional data that includes a plurality of promotions, and a payment card identifier. The payment card identifier identifies a payment card. The computer system can determine that the quantity of fuel represented by the fuel level data of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition. Upon determining that the fuel level data of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition, the computer system can determine if the vehicle is qualified to receive at least one promotion. Further, upon determining that the vehicle is qualified to receive at least one promotion, the computer system can select one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the location of the vehicle, the quantity of fuel provided by the fuel level data of the vehicle, and the situational data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0007] Example embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0008] FIG. 1 illustrates an example system for communication of promotions based on data associated with the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0009] FIG. 2 illustrates a functional block diagram of a telematics server of FIG. 1, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0010] FIG. 3 illustrates a functional block diagram of a promotions server of FIG. 1, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0011] FIG. 4 is a flow chart that illustrates a process of communicating promotions by the telematics server based on data associated with the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0012] FIGS. 5A and 5B (collectively `FIG. 5`) is a flow chart that illustrates another example process of communicating promotions by the telematics server based on data associated with the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0013] FIGS. 6A and 6B (collectively `FIG. 6`) is a flow chart that illustrates a process of communicating promotions by the promotions server based on data associated with the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0014] FIG. 7 is a flow chart that illustrates a process of selecting one or more promotions, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0015] FIG. 8 is a flow chart that illustrates another process of selecting one or more promotions, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

[0016] Many aspects of the invention may be better understood with reference to the above drawings. The elements and features shown in the drawings are not to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of exemplary embodiments of the present invention. Moreover, certain dimensions may be exaggerated to help visually convey such principles. In the drawings, reference numerals designate like or corresponding, but not necessarily identical, elements throughout the several views. Other features of the present embodiments will be apparent from the Detailed Description that follows.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] Disclosed are a system, a method and an apparatus for communication of promotions based on data associated with a vehicle. Before discussing the embodiments directed to the method and system of communication of promotions based on data associated with a vehicle, it may assist the reader to understand the various terms used herein by way of a general description of the terms in the following paragraphs.

[0018] The term `promotions,` as used herein, may generally refer to any means that may be used to engage a user with any goods, items, any/or services. The term `promotions,` as used herein may include, but are not limited to, advertisements, coupons, free giveaways, incentives, rewards, rebates, loyalty discounts, general discounts, and so on. In one example embodiment, each promotion may include a code specific to the corresponding promotion. The code may be machine readable and may be used to validate and track a redemption of the promotion. In another example embodiment, the promotions may be in a digital format. For example, the promotion may be a digital coupon that is transmitted and/or received via a smart phone over a communication network. In yet another example embodiment, the promotions may be printed on a tangible medium, such as paper. For example, a "10% discount on the next purchase" offer may be printed on a receipt which can be used to redeem the discount.

[0019] The term `diagnostic data associated with a vehicle,` as used herein, may generally refer to data that represents the condition or state of a vehicle. Examples of the condition or state of a vehicle may be represented by, inter alia, an amount of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle, an oil level of the vehicle, a performance of the engine, a maintenance and service of the vehicle, a tire pressure of the vehicle, a condition of the windshield of the vehicle (broken), a broken taillight, an issue with the alignment of the wheels of a vehicle, an issue with a headlight of a vehicle, an issue associated with a license plate of the vehicle, an issue with the breaks of the vehicle, and so on. One or ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that the above-mentioned examples that represent the condition or state of a vehicle are not exhaustive and may include any appropriate data associated with the body of the vehicle, external features of the vehicle, internal features of the vehicle, electronics of the vehicle, electrical features of the vehicle, control features of the vehicle, and so on, without departing from a broader scope of the disclosure.

[0020] The term `situational data,` as used herein, may generally refer to data representative of factors that are external to the vehicle. Examples of the situational data may include, but are not limited to, data representative of time and date, year, seasons, weather, temperature, route travelled by a vehicle, and so on. In some embodiments, the situational data may include likes and dislikes of a user to whom the promotion is being presented.

[0021] The term `telematics device,` as used herein, may generally refer to device that is adapted to send, receive, and collect information via a wired or wireless communications link. In one example embodiment, the telematics device may be configured to send information associated with a vehicle, such as location of the vehicle, a heading direction of the vehicle, speed of the vehicle, distance travelled by the vehicle, and so on. In addition, the telematics device may be configured to obtain, store and/or send diagnostics data of a vehicle, such as fuel level, state of the vehicle's breaks, oil level, condition of the lights and/or mirrors associated with the vehicle, and so on. The telematics device may be adapted to be used with the vehicle. In one embodiment, the telematics device may be an independently purchasable device that is configured to be attached to and/or detached from the vehicle as desired. For example, the telematics device 104 may be attached to an onboard diagnostics (OBD) port of the vehicle. In another embodiment, the telematics device may be integrated with the vehicle. For example, the telematics device may be a Global Positioning System technology integrated in automotive navigation systems.

[0022] The term `payment card,` as used herein may generally refer to a financial services card. For example the payment card may include, but is not limited to, debit cards, credit cards, fuel cards, gift cards, and so on. One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that the above-mentioned examples of payment cards may not be exhaustive and may include any appropriate card that can be used by a cardholder, and accepted by a merchant to make a payment for a purchase or in payment of some other obligation. In one example embodiment, the payment card may be a physical card, such as a magnetic stripe card. In another example embodiment, the payment card may be a smart card. For example, the fuel card may be an NFC based card, RFID based card, QR code based cards, and so on. In yet another example embodiment, the payment card may be software implementation, such as a mobile payment card stored in a mobile wallet wherein the payment is performed via a mobile computing device.

[0023] The term `characteristic of a driver," as used herein, may generally refer to data representative of a user's pattern associated with addressing any appropriate condition of the a vehicle. For example, characteristic of a driver may indicate a driver's pattern associated with refueling a vehicle in response to a fuel level of a vehicle. In said example, the characteristic of the driver may indicate that a driver follows a pattern of refueling the vehicle each time the vehicle has 2 gallons left in the fuel tank. In another example, the characteristic of a driver may indicate a driver's pattern associated with servicing the vehicle, wherein the driver typically services the vehicle after every 5000 miles. One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that the above mentioned examples are not exhaustive and may include any number of patterns associated with addressing any appropriate condition of a vehicle. In one example embodiment, the characteristic of a driver may represent any appropriate data of the driver in association with the vehicle. For example, the characteristic of a driver may represent a typical route traveled by the driver using the vehicle.

[0024] It will be appreciated that the various embodiments discussed herein need not necessarily belong to the same group of exemplary embodiments, and may be grouped into various other embodiments not explicitly disclosed herein. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various embodiments.

[0025] An exemplary system for communicating promotions based on data associated with a vehicle, as described herein, includes a telematics device, a telematics server, and/or a promotions server that may be communicably coupled to each other.

[0026] The telematics server receives promotional data comprising promotions from the promotions server. Each promotion may promote a purchase transaction or may offer goods and/or services. Further, each promotion may include information such as one or more locations where the promotion is redeemable, expiration date of the promotion, a code that identifies and/or validates the promotion, a value associated with the promotion, and so on. In addition to the promotional data, the telematics server receives a list of payment card identifiers from the promotions server. The list of payment card identifiers may be associated with payment cards that are eligible to receive at least one promotion. Further, for each payment card identifier, the telematics server receives a list of vehicle identifiers associated with the payment card identifier.

[0027] In addition to the data from the promotions server, the telematics server receives diagnostics data of a vehicle, location data of the vehicle, and a vehicle identifier of a vehicle from the telematics device that is configured for use with the vehicle. The diagnostics data may identify a condition of the vehicle and the location data may identify a location of the vehicle. In some embodiments, each data received from the telematics device may be time stamped, wherein the timestamp associated with the received data may be indicative of a time and date at which the data was obtained or recorded by the telematics device.

[0028] Upon receiving the diagnostics data of the vehicle, the telematics server determines if the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition. If the threshold condition is satisfied, the telematics server determines if the vehicle identified by the vehicle identifier received from the telematics device is eligible to receive at least one promotion. If the vehicle identifier of the vehicle is associated with a eligible payment card identifier, then the vehicle is considered eligible to receive at least one promotion. Accordingly, the telematics server selects one or more promotions based on the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition and the location of the vehicle. The one or more promotions are selected such that a location at which the selected promotion is redeemable is within a threshold distance from the location of the vehicle. In other words, a promotion may be selected if a location where the promotion is being offered is within a threshold distance from the location of the eligible vehicle. In addition, the promotions are selected such that they are associated with the condition of the vehicle. For example, if the condition of the vehicle is a low fuel level, then the selected promotion may associated with fuel prices and/or gas stations. Further, the selected promotions are transmitted to a computing device associated with the vehicle, such as a vehicle display or vehicle navigation system, or a computing device associated with a driver of the vehicle, such as the driver's mobile phone.

[0029] In an additional embodiment, the telematics server receives situational data. The telematics server selects the one or more promotions based on the situational data in addition to the condition of the vehicle, and the location of the vehicle. For example, if the condition of the vehicle is low tire pressure, and the situational data includes weather conditions that show snowfall, and time of day when low tire pressure is detected as 7 pm, then, the selected promotions may be narrowed to promotions associated with snow tires provided at tire shops that are open past regular business hours of 8 am-5 pm.

[0030] In one example embodiment, the telematics server and the promotions server may be implemented as a single server. Further, one of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that in some embodiments, one or more of the above-mentioned operations associated with the telematics server for communicating promotions based on data associated with the vehicle can be performed by the promotions server.

[0031] Technology for communicating promotions based on data associated with a vehicle will now be described in greater detail with reference to FIGS. 1-8, which describe representative embodiments of the present invention. First, FIG. 1 will be discussed in the context of describing a representative operating environment associated with communicating promotions based on data associated with a vehicle according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. Then, FIGS. 2 and 3 will be discussed, making exemplary reference back to FIG. 1 as may be appropriate or helpful. Further, the remaining FIGS. 4-8 will be discussed, making exemplary reference back to FIGS. 1-3 as may be appropriate or helpful.

[0032] The following paragraphs describe various embodiments of the method, apparatus, and system for communicating promotions based on data associated with a vehicle. It will be appreciated that the various embodiments discussed herein need not necessarily belong to the same group of exemplary embodiments, and may be grouped into various other embodiments not explicitly disclosed herein. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various embodiments.

[0033] Further, the present invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those having ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, all "examples" or "exemplary embodiments" given herein are intended to be non-limiting and among others supported by representations of the present invention.

[0034] Moving now to discuss the FIGS. 1-3 further, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail. As further discussed below and in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention, FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary operational system for communication of promotions based on data associated with a vehicle; while FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrates exemplary system elements such as a telematics server and promotions server.

[0035] FIG. 1 illustrates example system for communication of promotions based on data associated with the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention In particular, FIG. 1 illustrates a vehicle 102, a telematics device 104, a telematics server 106, a promotions server 108, data sources 120a-n, a driver of the vehicle 110, a mobile computing device associated with the driver 150, and a payment card 112.

[0036] As illustrated in FIG. 1, a telematics device 104 that is configured for use with the vehicle 102 may be attached to or integrated with the vehicle 102. While in operation, the telematics device 104 may be configured to obtain diagnostics data, location data, and/or a vehicle identifier associated with the vehicle 102. In one embodiment, the diagnostics data and the location data of the vehicle 102 may be recorded at regular intervals of time and/or distance, for example, the diagnostics data and the location data may be recorded every 30 minutes and/or for every 100 miles covered by the vehicle. In another embodiment, the diagnostics data and the location data may be recorded based on other triggers such as turning on or turning off the vehicle ignition, application of breaks, crossing a geo-fence, and so on.

[0037] As described earlier, the diagnostics data may identify a condition of the vehicle 102, and the location data may identify the location of the vehicle 102. In one example embodiment, the vehicle identifier may be embedded within each of the diagnostics data and the location data to identify the vehicle 102 to which the respective data is associated.

[0038] For example, a vehicle identifier number `1234` may identify vehicle X and vehicle identifier number `XYZD` may identify vehicle Y. Continuing with the example, embedding the vehicle identifier 1234 in a first fuel level data and the vehicle identifier XYZD in a second fuel level data may aid in determining that the first fuel level data represents the fuel level of vehicle X and the second fuel level data represents the fuel level of vehicle Y.

[0039] In some embodiments, the frequency at which the telematics device 104 obtains and/or transmits data (e.g., diagnostics, location, etc.) to the telematics server 106 may vary based on a condition of the vehicle. For example, when the fuel level of the vehicle indicates a full tank, the telematics device 104 may record the fuel level of a vehicle at every 30 minutes. However, as the fuel level reduces, the frequency at which the telematics device 104 records and transmits data may increase, i.e., the frequency may increase to recording the fuel level every 3 minutes. In another embodiment, the frequency at which the telematics device 104 obtains and/or transmits data (e.g., diagnostics, location, etc.) to the telematics server 106 may vary based on a characteristic of the driver. For example, when the fuel level of the vehicle indicates a full tank, the telematics device 104 may record the fuel level of a vehicle (i.e., amount of fuel present in the fuel tank of the vehicle) at every 20 minutes. In said example, the characteristic of the driver may indicate that the driver typically refuels the vehicle when the fuel tank is 3/4.sup.th empty. Continuing with the example, as the fuel level in the fuel tank gets closer to being 3/4.sup.th empty or has gone below a preferred refueling level of the driver 110, the telematics device 104 may increase a frequency of recording the fuel level of the vehicle to every 5 minutes.

[0040] In some embodiments, in addition to the diagnostics data and location data, the telematics device 104 may be configured to obtain situational data representative of factors external to the vehicle such as weather conditions, time of day, atmospheric temperature, season, etc. In one example, the situational data may be associated with a current location of the vehicle, such as weather conditions at a current location of the vehicle. In another example, the situational data may be associated with a time when the diagnostics data is obtained, such as atmospheric temperature at the time a low fuel level is detected.

[0041] Upon obtaining the diagnostics data, the location data, the vehicle identifier, and/or the situational data, the telematics device 104 may be configured to transmit the obtained data to the telematics server 106. In another embodiment, instead of transmitting the diagnostics data, the location data, the vehicle identifier, and/or the situational data to the telematics server 106, the telematics device 104 may be configured to process the obtained data to determine if the condition of the vehicle 102 identified by the diagnostics data satisfies a threshold condition. If the threshold condition is satisfied, then, the telematics server 104 may be configured to generate a signal that indicates that the threshold condition has been satisfied, and then transmit the signal to the telematics server 106. Alternatively, the operation of determining if the condition of a vehicle 102 satisfies a threshold condition may be performed by the telematics server 106.

[0042] Now referring to the telematics server 106 as illustrated in FIG. 1, the telematics server 106 may be communicably coupled to the telematics device 104 via a communication network to receive data from and/or transmit data to the telematics device 104. As described above, the data received from the telematics device 104 may include the diagnostics data, the location data, the situational data, and/or the vehicle identifier of the vehicle 102. Upon receiving the diagnostics data, the location data, situational data, and/or the vehicle identifier, the telematics server 106 may be configured to determine if the condition of the vehicle 102 satisfies a threshold condition, provided the determination has not already been made by the telematics device 104. If the determination of meeting the threshold condition has been made by the telematics device 104, then the telematics server 106 may receive a signal indicating that the threshold condition has been satisfied by the condition of the vehicle.

[0043] In either case, once it is determined that the condition of the vehicle satisfies the threshold condition, the telematics server 106 may be configured to determine if the vehicle 102 identifier by the vehicle identifier received from the telematics device 104 (i.e., the vehicle for which the condition of the vehicle has satisfied the threshold condition) is associated with a payment card identifier that is qualified to receive at least one promotion, wherein the payment card identifier identifies a payment card 112 associated with a driver 110 of the vehicle 102. If the vehicle identifier is associated with an eligible payment card identifier, then the vehicle may be considered eligible to receive promotions. Upon determining that the vehicle identified by the vehicle identifier is qualified to receive at least one promotion, the telematics server 106 may be configured to select one or more promotions from a plurality of promotions based on the condition of the vehicle and the location of the vehicle. In another embodiment, the one or more promotions may be selected additionally based on the situational data. Further, the telematics server 106 may be configured to transmit the selected one or more promotions to the telematics device 104 associated with the vehicle 102, provided the telematics device 104 is adapted to communicate the promotions to the driver 110 of the vehicle 102. The received promotions may be communicated to the driver 110 of the vehicle through visual, auditory, and/or tactile means. In another embodiment, the telematics server 106 may be configured to transmit the selected one or more promotions to the mobile computing device 150 associated with a driver 110 of the vehicle 102 As illustrated in FIG. 1, the telematics server 106 may be communicably coupled to the mobile computing device 150 via a wireless communication network.

[0044] Referring back to FIG. 1, the telematics server 106 may be communicably coupled to the promotions server 108 to receive data from and/or transmit data to the promotions server 108. The promotions server 108 may be configured to receive information associated with promotions from one or more data sources 120a-n that comprises, but are not limited to, the manufacturer of a product, goods, or service associated with a promotion 120b, a retailer or merchant associated with the promotion 120a, and/or any other appropriate third party data source for promotions 120n, such as coupon databases and so on. The promotions may either be pushed by the data sources 120a-n to the promotions server 108 or be pulled from the data sources 120a-n by the promotions server 108. In one example embodiment, the promotions server 108 may include a web interface through which users may push promotions to the promotions server 108. For example, if a merchant is introducing a new promotion, the merchant may access the promotions server through the associated web interface and enter or store the new promotion in the promotions server 108. Continuing with the example, in some embodiments, the web interface may also facilitate users with tools based on which a user can create promotions through the promotions server 108. In another example embodiment, the promotions server 108 may receive the promotions from the data sources 120a-n at regular intervals in the form of batches, for example receive all promotions from each data source 120a-n every night. In yet another example embodiment, the promotions server 108 may be configured to crawl through or access databases and servers associated with the data sources 120a-n to pull promotions to the promotions server 108 as and when promotions are made available.

[0045] The promotions server 108 may store the promotions for a period of validity of the promotions after which the promotions server 108 may either remove the expired promotions to make space for new promotions or store them in a long term storage database for future processing. In some embodiments, the promotions server 108 may categorize the promotions based on any appropriate information associated with the promotions, for example, the expiration data, the theme of the promotion, the value associated with the promotion, the locations at which the promotions can be redeemed, the products, goods, or services that the promotions are related to, the merchant associated with the promotions, and so on.

[0046] In one embodiment, the promotions server 108 may be configured to transmit a plurality of the promotions to the telematics server 106 at regular intervals, such in a batch mode. For example, the promotions server 108 may transmit promotions to the telematics server 106 every morning. In another embodiment, the promotions server 108 may be configured to transmit the plurality of promotions to the telematics server 106 upon receiving a request for promotions from the telematics server 106. In an example embodiment, the request may be for specific promotions or for all new promotions available each day.

[0047] In addition to the receiving and storing promotions, the promotion server 108 may be configured to receive and store a list of payment card identifiers, and vehicle identifiers associated with each of the payment card identifiers. Each payment card identifier may identify a payment card 112 that may be qualified to receive at least one promotion, wherein the payment card 112 may be associated with a user (e.g., driver 110) of the vehicle 102. Further, each payment card may be linked to a vehicle associated with a user to whom the payment card belongs. For example, the payment card 112 may be associated with a vehicle 102 associated with the driver 110 to whom the payment card 112 belongs. Accordingly, to link the payment card 112 that qualifies for promotions to a vehicle 102, the payment card identifier associated with the payment card 112 may be mapped to a vehicle identifier of the vehicle 102, provided the vehicle 102 is associated with a driver 110 to whom the payment card 112 belongs.

[0048] In one example embodiment, a user that desires to receive promotions may have to register with the promotions server 108 and/or the telematics server 106 to receive promotions services associated with the respective servers. During registration, the user may enter one or more vehicle identifiers of a vehicles (e.g., vehicle 102) associated with the user (e.g., driver 110). Further, the user (e.g., driver 110) may enter one or more payment card identifiers of payment cards (e.g., a payment card 112) associated with the user. In some embodiments, the user may be prompted to enter only a portion of the payment card identifier for security and privacy purposes. The telematics server 106 and/or the promotions server 108 may associate each user with the one or more payment card identifiers (or portions of the payment card identifier) of payment cards (e.g., payment card 112) associated with the user, and each payment card identifier may be associated with one or more vehicle identifiers of vehicles associated with the user to whom the payment cards belong. For example, user A may have a vehicle X that is identified by a first vehicle identifier `1234,` and a vehicle B that is identified by a second vehicle identifier `9876`. Further, user A may have three payment cards, payment card E, F, and G identified by payment card identifiers 11, 22, and 33 respectively. Upon registration, each of the payment cards E, F, and G may qualify for promotions. Continuing with the example, once user A provides information regarding the payment cards and vehicles associated with user A, the telematics sever 106 and/or the promotions server 108 may process the information and associate each of the first vehicle identifier of vehicle X and second vehicle identifier of vehicle Y with each of the payment card identifiers 11, 22, and 33. User A may choose to change the associations, for example, user A may choose to associate the first vehicle identifier with the first two payment card identifiers, and the second vehicle identifier with the third payment identifier. One or ordinary skill in the art can understand appreciate that the associations of the vehicle identifiers and the payment card identifiers may be mixed and matched in any appropriate order without departing from the broader scope of the disclosure.

[0049] Further, in addition to the vehicle identifiers and the payment card identifiers, the telematics server 106 and/or the promotions server 108 may receive a device identifier associated with the mobile computing device 150 of the user (e.g., driver 110) to which promotions may be transmitted for presentation to the user. The received device identifier may be associated with the vehicle identifier and/or the payment card identifier. For example, a phone number associated with the driver's smart phone, or an IMEI number associated with the driver's mobile phone may be associated with the vehicle identifier and/or the payment card identifier.

[0050] In an alternative embodiment, the promotions may be transmitted to any appropriate user or entity that might be a stakeholder in receiving promotions regarding the vehicle, such as fleet manager, in-house maintenance foreman or crew, contracted maintenance crew. In one example embodiment, the promotions may be transmitted to a leasing company. For example, a leasing company might agree to take care of all the maintenance on a fleet of vehicles. If the condition of the vehicle meets a threshold condition, then a promotion could be sent to the leasing company so that they could get a promotion on a certain good or service involving the vehicle itself.

[0051] Further, there may be combinations of activity such that drivers receive certain promotions like where to buy fuel, for example; a fleet manager might receive a certain promotion on where to get driver training or registration done, for example; and a leasing company might receive a promotion on a maintenance aspect of the vehicle, for example--all regarding one vehicle/driver combination.

[0052] Referring back to the promotions server 108 as illustrated in FIG. 1, the promotions server 108 may be configured to receive information that indicates that a promotion has been redeemed. Accordingly, the promotions server 108 may keep track of a usage of the promotions and update a count that represents the number of times a particular group of or an individual promotion has been redeemed. Further, the data associated with tracking of the promotions may be further processed by the promotions server 108 to generate analytics associated with the promotions, such as a popularity of the promotions, percentage increase in sales due to the promotions, demographics that the promotion was most popular among, etc. In one embodiment, the promotions server 108 may generate analytics reports associated with the promotions, which may be distributed to the corresponding manufacturers, merchants or other user associated with the promotion. In another embodiment, the promotions server 108 may facilitate software tools for users to run their own analytics on any appropriate data stored in the promotions server 108. The promotions server 108 and the telematics server 106 may be described below in greater detail in association with FIGS. 2 and 3.

[0053] Turning to FIG. 2, this figure illustrates a functional block diagram of a telematics server of FIG. 1, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. In particular, FIG. 2 illustrates an input engine 202, a vehicle condition detector engine 204, a location identifier 206, an account identifier engine 212, a promotion selection engine 208, a pattern analyzer engine 210, a user interface engine 216, a memory 220, a processor 222, a vehicle identifier database 224, a rules database 226, a driver characteristics database 228, and an output engine 230.

[0054] The telematics server 106 may be implemented using one or more data processing devices. Further, the telematics server 106 may be implemented as a distributed server system where the operations of the telematics server 106 may be distributed between one or more data processors and/or a centralized server system where the operations of the telematics server 106 may be handled by a single data processor.

[0055] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the telematics server 106 may include a processor 222. The processor 222 may be a multi-core processor. In another embodiment, the processor 222 may be a combination of multiple single core processors. In one embodiment, the telematics server 106 can include a memory 220 coupled to the processor 222. The memory 220 may be non-transitory storage medium, in one embodiment, and a transitory medium in another embodiment. The memory 220 can include instructions that may be executed by the processor 222 to perform operations of the telematics server 106. In other words, operations associated with the different engines of the telematics server 106 may be executed using the processor 222.

[0056] Further, the telematics server 106 may include a user-interface engine 216. In an example embodiment, the user-interface engine 216 of the telematics server 106 may be configured to provide a web portal (e.g., web interface, hereinafter `web interface`) through which a user may access the telematics server 106. In other words, the users can interact with the telematics server 106 using the web interface provided by the user-interface engine 216. In one embodiment, the user-interface engine 216 may be configured to authenticate the users prior to providing access to the telematics server 106. The users authenticated to access the telematics server 106 through the web portal may include, but are not limited to, a server administrator, driver 110, users associated with data sources 120a-n, and/or application developers. The data stored in the telematics server 106 may be accessed using an API associated with the telematics server 106. For example, application developers may access the data stored in the telematics server 106 using the API to develop applications based on the data stored in the telematics server 106.

[0057] In an exemplary embodiment, the user-interface engine 216 may be configured to display information available in the driver characteristics database 228, the rules database 226, and/or the vehicle identifier database 224 through the web interface. Authorized users may be allowed to browse the data stored in the various databases of the telematics server 106 and further run analytics as permitted. In one embodiment, an administrator may have permission to edit the rules database, wherein the administrator may add new rules and regulations associated with the determining if a condition of the vehicle has satisfied a threshold condition, delete existing rules and regulations and/or modify the stored rules and regulations. The said edit operations are representative examples and one of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that other appropriate edit operations may be available to a user without departing from the broader scope and sprit of the present invention.

[0058] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the telematics server 106 may further include an input engine 202 which may be configured to receive inputs from the promotions server 108, the telematics device 104, and/or a user such as the driver 110. In an additional embodiment, the input engine 202 may be configured to receive an input from the plurality of data sources 120a-n as well.

[0059] The input received from the promotions server 108 may include a plurality of promotions which are either pushed to, or requested by the telematics server 106. Upon receiving the plurality of promotions, the input engine 202 may be configured to store the received promotions in the rules database 226 or any other appropriate database associated with the telematics server 106.

[0060] In addition to the plurality of promotions, the input received from the promotions server 108 may include a list of payment card identifiers and/or vehicle identifiers associated with the payment card identifiers which may be stored in the vehicle identifier database 224 of the telematics server 106. In some embodiments, the input engine 202 of the telematics server 106 may receive the payment card identifier and/or the vehicle identifiers directly from users (e.g., driver 110) instead of the promotions server 108.

[0061] Further, the input received from the promotions server 108 may include data representative of threshold conditions associated with the condition of the vehicle. The received threshold conditions may be stored in the rules database 226. Threshold conditions may identify conditions that may trigger the selection and transmission of promotions to a user. Accordingly, threshold conditions may include threshold values associated with any appropriate condition of a vehicle. Examples of the received threshold conditions may include, but are not limited to, a condition where, when a fuel level of vehicle falls below a threshold fuel level of a vehicle below a selection and transmission of promotions may be triggered. Examples of threshold values may include, but is not limited to, a due date for maintenance of the vehicle, a threshold tire pressure of the vehicle, an threshold engine performance of the vehicle, a threshold gas mileage of the vehicle, etc. One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that the above-mentioned example of threshold condition is not exhaustive and can include any appropriate threshold value associated with the threshold condition. In some embodiments, the threshold values may be user-settable. In other embodiments, the threshold values may be set based on a characteristic of the driver. For example, a threshold fuel level value may be set as 4 gallons if a driver exhibits a pattern of refueling his vehicle when there is 4 gallons left in his fuel tank. In another example, the threshold fuel level may be manually set by the user to 8 gallons.

[0062] As described above in association with FIG. 1, the input received from the telematics device 104 may include, but is not limited to, the diagnostics data of the vehicle 102, the location data of the vehicle 102, the vehicle identifier of the vehicle 102, and/or the situational data. Upon receiving data from the telematics device 104, the input engine 202 may be configured to distribute the data to the various other engines of the telematics server 106. In particular, the input engine 202 may be configured to forward the location data of the vehicle to the location identifier engine 206, and the diagnostics data to the vehicle condition detector engine 204.

[0063] Upon receiving the location data, the location identifier engine 206 may be configured to process the location data to determine a location of the vehicle 102. Similarly, upon receiving the diagnostics data, the vehicle condition detector engine 204 may be configured to process the diagnostics data to determine a condition of the vehicle.

[0064] Once the condition of the vehicle is determined, the vehicle condition detector engine 204 may be configured to retrieve a threshold condition associated with the condition of the vehicle from the rules database 226. Further, the vehicle condition detector engine 204 may be configured to compare the retrieved threshold condition with the condition of the vehicle obtained from the diagnostics data to determine if the condition of the vehicle satisfies the retrieved threshold condition.

[0065] Upon determining that the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition, the vehicle condition detector engine 204 may communicate with the account identifier engine 212 to analyze the vehicle identifier associated with the vehicle 102 for which the threshold condition has been satisfied. Accordingly, the account identifier engine 212 may analyze the vehicle identifier to determine if a vehicle 102 associated with the vehicle identifier is qualified to receive a promotion. The account identifier engine 212 may make the determination based on a comparison of the vehicle identifier of vehicle 102 with a list of vehicle identifiers stored in the vehicle identifier database 224. As described above, the list of vehicle identifiers stored in the vehicle identifier database 224 may include vehicle identifiers that are associated with payment identifiers that qualify for at least one promotion. If the vehicle identifier of the vehicle 102 for which the threshold condition is satisfied matches a vehicle identifier stored in the vehicle identifier database 224, then the vehicle 102 may be qualified to receive a promotion.

[0066] Upon determining that the vehicle 102 is qualified to receive a promotion, the vehicle condition detector engine 204 may communicate with the promotions selection engine 208 to select one or more promotions from a plurality of promotions stored in the telematics server 106 (e.g., stored in the rules database 226 and received from the promotions server 108) based on the condition of the vehicle, the location of the vehicle, and/or the situational data.

[0067] Once the one or more promotions are selected, the output engine 230 may be configured to transmit the selected promotions to the telematics device 104 of the vehicle 102 and/or the mobile computing device 150 associated with the driver 110 of the vehicle 102. In one embodiment, prior to transmission, the output engine 230 may be configured to format the selected promotions to be compatible with the device to which the promotions are being transmitted. For example, the output engine 230 may format the selected promotions to fit a display form factor of the mobile computing device 150. In addition to formatting and transmitting the selected promotions, the output engine 230 may be configured to communicate any other appropriate additional data from the telematics server 106 to the telematics device 104, the mobile computing device 150, and/or the promotions server 108.

[0068] Further, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the telematics server 106 may include a pattern analyzer engine 210 and a driver characteristics database 228. In one embodiment, the pattern analyzer engine 210 may be configured to analyze data received from the telematics device 104 to determine a driver's pattern associated with addressing a condition of the vehicle. For example, if the diagnostics data of the vehicle includes data representative of a fuel level of the vehicle 102, then, the pattern analyzer engine 210 of the telematics server 106 may be configured to analyze the fuel level data received at regular intervals to determine a driver's refueling pattern. In said example, the pattern analyzer engine 210 may determine that the driver 110 consistently refuels the vehicle 102 when the fuel level of the vehicle is approximately one-fourth of the fuel tank. Accordingly, in said example, the pattern analyzer engine 210 may determine that the characteristic of the driver is to refuel the vehicle when the fuel level of the vehicle is approximately one-fourth of the fuel tank.

[0069] In another embodiment, the pattern analyzer engine 216 may be configured to analyze transaction data associated with the payment card 112 of a driver 110 to determine the driver's pattern associated with addressing a condition of the vehicle, provided such transaction data is available to the telematics server 106. For example, the pattern analyzer engine 216 may be configured to analyze a transaction data associated with the driver's payment card 112 to determine the driver's pattern of servicing the vehicle, provided the driver paid for the servicing using the payment card 112. In said example, the pattern analyzer engine 210 may determine that the driver services the vehicle every 5000 miles. Accordingly, the pattern analyzer engine 210 may determine the characteristic of the driver is to service the vehicle approximately every 5000 miles. In one embodiment, the telematics server 106 may be configured to receive the transaction data associated with the payment card 112 from the promotions server 108. In another embodiment, the telematics server 106 may be configured to receive the transaction data directly from the source of the transaction data, for example a point of sale system or transaction gateway that processes transactions associated with the payment card 112.

[0070] In another embodiment, the pattern analyzer engine 216 may receive the characteristics of the driver from the promotions server 108. In an additional embodiment, the driver 110 may access the telematics server 106 to manually enter the driver's characteristics through the web interface. In either case, the characteristic of the driver that is either received from the promotions server 108/driver 110 and/or determined by the pattern analyzer engine 210 may be stored in the driver characteristics database 228. Further, as described above, threshold conditions may be formulated and threshold values may be set based on a characteristic of the driver 110.

[0071] One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that one or more operations of the telematics server 106 as described above may be performed solely by the telematics server 106 and/or may be distributed to the promotions server 108 without departing from the broader scope of the disclosure. The promotions server 108 may be described in greater detail below in association with FIG. 3.

[0072] Now turning to FIG. 3, this figure illustrates a functional block diagram of a promotions server of FIG. 1, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. In particular, FIG. 3 illustrates an input engine 302, the transaction analyzer engine 304, the promotions tracking engine 306, statistics engine 308, user-interface engine 310, memory 320, processor 322, payment card account database 324, promotions database 326, promotions tracking database 328, and an output engine 330.

[0073] The promotions server 108 may be implemented using one or more data processing devices. Further, the promotions server 108 may be implemented as a distributed server system where the operations of the promotions server 108 may be distributed between one or more data processors and/or a centralized server system where the operations of the promotions server 108 may be handled by a single data processor.

[0074] Similar to the telematics server 106, the promotions server 108 may include a processor 320 and memory 322. The processor 322 may be a multi-core processor. In another embodiment, the processor 322 may be a combination of multiple single core processors. In one embodiment, the processor 322 may be coupled to the memory 320. The memory 320 may be non-transitory storage medium, in one embodiment, and a transitory medium in another embodiment. The memory 320 can include instructions that may be executed by the processor 322 to perform operations of the promotions server 108. In other words, operations associated with the different engines of the promotions server 108 may be executed using the processor 322.

[0075] Further, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the promotions server 108 may include a user-interface engine 310. The user-interface engine 310 may be configured to engage users with the promotions server 108, for example through a web-interface. The users can include both users that register to receive promotions (e.g., driver 110), and users that provide promotions, such as merchants, retailers, and/or manufacturers (herein `merchants`).

[0076] In one embodiment, users such as manufacturers, retailers, and/or merchants (herein `merchants`) that provide the promotions may register with the promotions server 108. Upon registering, user-interface engine 310 may provide software tools to assist the merchants to create and/or enter the promotions. The promotions that are created and/or entered by the merchants may be received by the input engine 302 and forwarded to the promotions database 326 for storage. In some embodiment, in addition to receiving the promotions based on entry by the merchants, the input engine 302 of the promotions server 108 may be configured to browse or crawl through servers and/or databases associated with the data sources 120a-n to retrieve any appropriate promotion for storage in the promotions database 326.

[0077] In another embodiment, in addition to the merchants, users such as driver 110 may register with the promotion server 108 to receive promotions. Accordingly, the user-interface engine 310 may be configured to prompt users (e.g., driver 110) to register with the promotions server 108 to receive services associated with the promotions server 108 and/or the telematics server 106. The registration may include prompting a user to provide at least a portion of a payment card identifier associated with the user's payment card 112, and a vehicle identifier of the user's vehicle 102. Further, in some embodiments, the user-interface 310 may prompt the user to enter a user's characteristic associated with addressing a condition of the user's vehicle 102. Furthermore, the registration may include prompting the user (e.g., driver 110) to enter a device identifier associated with the a mobile computing device 150 of the user. As described above the user may enter the requested data through the web-interface provided by the user-interface engine 310. Further, information entered by the users may be received by the input engine 302 and forwarded to the payment card account database 324 for storage. In addition, the input engine 302 may be configured to associate the payment card identifiers with the appropriate vehicle identifiers and device identifiers.

[0078] In an additional embodiment, the user-interface engine 310 may prompt a user (e.g., driver 110) to provide permission to access and process transaction data associated with the user's payment card 112. Accordingly, the promotions server 108 may be configured to receive transaction data associated with the payment card 112 either from a point of sale system where the payment card 112 is used, or from a transaction gateway that handles transactions associated with the payment card 112.

[0079] Upon receiving the transaction data associated with a payment card 112, the input engine 302 may store the transaction data in the payment card account database 324. Further, the input engine 302 may forward the transaction data to the transaction analyzer engine 304. In one embodiment, the transaction analyzer engine 304 may analyze the transaction data to determine the characteristic of the driver as described above in association with FIG. 2. In another embodiment, the transaction analyzer engine 304 may communicate with the promotions tracking engine 306 to analyze the transaction data to determine if a promotion has been redeemed in association with the transaction using the payment card 112. If a promotion has been redeemed in association with a transaction using the payment card 112, the transaction data may be embedded with a code that identifies the corresponding promotion that has been redeemed. Accordingly, the promotions tracking engine 306 can track the promotions that have been redeemed and update tracking information associated with each promotion in the promotions tracking database 328. The tracking information can include, but is not limited to, the number of times a promotion is used, the demographics within which the promotion is more popular, a spread of the promotions, locations at which the promotions are most popular, and so on. For example, if promotion A is distributed to 20 different users and 10 of them have redeemed the promotions, the promotions tracking engine 306 can update the count representative of the number of times promotion A has been redeemed to 10. One or ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that any appropriate information associated with the promotion may be tracked without departing from the broader scope of the disclosure.

[0080] Further, promotions server 108 may include a statistics engine 308 that may be configured to run analytics of the information stored in the promotions tracking database 328. Further, the statistics engine 308 may generate analytics reports associated with an various characteristics of the promotions, such as effectiveness of the promotion, the most popular promotion, a time period when the promotion is most popular, the least popular promotion, and so on. In one example embodiment, the analytics report may be include analytics data that is of interest to the merchant in association with the promotions put forth by the merchant. In another embodiment, the user-interface engine 310 may provide software tools that allow merchants to run their own analytics on any appropriate data that is stored in the promotions server 108.

[0081] Referring back to the input engine 302, in one embodiment, the input engine 302 may be configured to receive data from the telematics server 106. In one example embodiment, the data received from the telematics server 106 may include the diagnostics data, the location data, and/or situational data. Further, the data received from the telematics server 106 may include a request to select one or more promotions based on the diagnostics data, location data, and/or the situational data for transmission to the telematics server 106 and/or the mobile computing device 150. In some embodiments, the promotions server 108 may be configured to push the plurality of promotions from the promotions database 328 to the telematics server 106, instead of waiting for a request from the telematics server 106. In other words, the promotion server 108 may be configured to transmit a plurality of promotions to the telematics server 106 at regular intervals in a batch mode. Data may be transmitted from the promotions server 108 through the output engine 330.

[0082] One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that in some embodiments, the promotions server 108 and the telematics server 106 may be implemented as a single server, without departing from the broader scope of this disclosure. Further, one of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that one or more of the operations associated with the promotions server 108 may be distributed to the telematics server 106 without departing from a broader scope of the disclosure. The operations of the telematics server 106 and the promotions server 108 may be described in greater detail below in association with FIGS. 4-8.

[0083] Turning now to FIGS. 4-8, these figures include flow charts that illustrate the process of communicating promotions based on data associated with a vehicle. Although specific operations are disclosed in the flowcharts illustrated in FIGS. 4-8, such operations are exemplary. That is, embodiments of the present invention are well suited to performing various other operations or variations of the operations recited in the flowcharts. It is appreciated that the operations in the flowcharts illustrated in FIGS. 4-8 may be performed in an order different than presented, and that not all of the operations in the flowcharts may be performed.

[0084] All, or a portion of, the embodiments described by the flowcharts illustrated in FIGS. 4-8 can be implemented using computer-readable and computer-executable instructions which reside, for example, in computer-usable media of a computer system or like device. As described above, certain processes and operations of the present invention are realized, in one embodiment, as a series of instructions (e.g., software programs) that reside within computer readable memory of a computer system and are executed by the processor of the computer system. When executed, the instructions cause the computer system to implement the functionality of the present invention as described below.

[0085] Turning to FIG. 4, this figure illustrates a flow chart that illustrates a process of communicating promotions by the telematics server based on a condition of the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. In operation 402, the promotions server 108 may be configured to transmit promotions that are stored in the promotions database 326 to the telematics server 106 at regular intervals. In some embodiments, the promotions server 108 may check the promotions database 326 to identify any new promotions that have not been transmitted to the telematics server 106 in previous transmissions. Accordingly, the promotions server 108 may transmit the identified new promotions to the telematics server 106. The process of identifying new promotions and transmitting them to the telematics server 106 may be performed as a daily routine to keep the telematics server 106 updated with the latest promotions. In another embodiment, instead of automatically pushing the promotions to the telematics server 106 on a regular basis, the promotions server 108 may transmit the promotions based on a request for promotions from the telematics server 106.

[0086] In addition to providing promotions to the telematics server 106, in operation 402 the promotions server 108 may be configured to transmit, to the telematics server 106, a list of payment card identifiers that identify payment cards (e.g., payment card 112) that are qualified to receive at least one promotion. In some embodiments, a user may specify the kind of promotions and the number of promotions that the user would like to receive in a day during registration. Further, the user can specify a time of day that the user may desire not to receive any promotions. One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that a number of other customization filters may be available to the user at the time of registration or later without departing from a broader spirit of the disclosure. Additionally, in some embodiments, the customization that is available to the users may be restricted based on a registration or membership status of the user. Such registration and/or membership status may also be applicable to the merchants. However, the customization filters provided to the merchants may vary in some embodiments. For example, the merchants may be provided with features related to customizing an analysis report that tracks performance or any other appropriate characteristics of a promotion associated with the merchant. In said example for merchants, some analytics tools may be restricted to merchants based on a membership or registration status of the merchant.

[0087] Referring back to operation 402, in addition to the list of payment card identifiers, the promotions server 108 may be configured to provide the telematics server 106 with a list of vehicle identifiers that are associated with each payment card identifier that qualifies for a promotion. Further, in some embodiments, in operation 402, the promotions server 108 may also provide the telematics server 106 with device identifiers associated with devices through which a user may be contacted. For example, the promotions server 108 may provide a phone number associated with a smart phone 150 of the driver 110. One of ordinary skill in the art can understand and appreciate that the promotion server 108 may facilitate the telematics server 106 with any appropriate contact information associated with a user through which a telematics server 106 may contact a user for providing promotions.

[0088] In an additional embodiment, the promotions server 108 may transmit to the telematics server 106 threshold conditions associated with a condition of a vehicle for one or more vehicles. The threshold conditions may either be manually set by the user or automatically set by the server 108 based on characteristic of the driver of the vehicle. Such settings by the user may be made at any time during or after registration. For example, after registration, a user-interface engine 310 may provide the user with options to set threshold conditions associated with the condition of the vehicle. In said example, the user may be provided with an option to set trigger conditions such as a break sensitivity value of the vehicle below which an action may be taken, or a value of fuel level of the vehicle below which an action may be taken. In another example, the characteristic of a user, for example driver may be analyzed and the threshold condition may be automatically set by a computer. In said other example, the computer may determine that a driver consistently services his vehicle after 5000 miles and accordingly the threshold condition may be set such that an action may be taken after every 5000 miles the vehicle covers. The action may include, but is not limited to, selecting and/or transmitting promotions to the driver of the vehicle. Further, the action may be taken by the telematics server 106 and/or the promotion server 108 which may be discussed below in greater detail.

[0089] In operation 404, the telematics device 106 may be configured to receive data that is transmitted from the promotions server 108, such as promotions data, payment card identifiers, vehicle identifiers, device identifiers, threshold conditions, and/or characteristic of the driver. In some embodiments, one or more of the above-mentioned data may be received directly from a user by the telematics server 106, provided the telematics server 106 can be accessed by the user. Upon receiving the data, in operation 404, the telematics device 106 may be configured to store the received data in one or more databases associated with the telematics server 106 such as, vehicle identifier database 224, rules database 226, and driver characteristics database 228.

[0090] Further, in operation 406, the telematics device 104 may be configured to transmit, to the telematics server 106, data associated with the vehicle 102 to which the telematics device 104 is attached and/or integrated. The data transmitted by the telematics device 104 may include, but is not limited to, diagnostics data of the vehicle, the location data of the vehicle, the situational data, and/or the vehicle identifier. In some embodiments, the vehicle identifier may be embedded in the diagnostics data, location data, and/or the situational data.

[0091] Once the telematics device 104 transmits the data, in operation 408, the telematics server 106 may receive the data from the telematics device 104 and further process the data. As described above the data received from the telematics device 104 may include diagnostics data of the vehicle 102, location data of the vehicle 102, the situational data of the vehicle 102, and a vehicle identifier of the vehicle 102. Upon receiving the data, in operation 408, the telematics server 106 may be configured to process the diagnostics data to determine a condition of a vehicle and/or a value associated with the condition of the vehicle. Further, in operation 408, the location data may be processed to determine a location of the vehicle 102.

[0092] Once the condition of the vehicle or a corresponding value is determined, in operation 410, the telematics server 106 may be configured to select one or more promotions for transmission to the telematics device 104 of the vehicle 102 and/or the mobile computing device 150 of the vehicle 102. The one or more promotions may be selected based on the location data and the diagnostics data, and/or the situational data. Operation 410 of selecting the one or more promotions may be described in greater detail below, in association with FIG. 7.

[0093] Turning to FIG. 7, this figure illustrates a flow chart that illustrates a process of selecting one or more promotions, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. In operation 702, the vehicle condition detection engine 204 of the telematics server 106 may determine if the condition of the vehicle identified by the diagnostics data satisfies a threshold condition. Rules that determine if the threshold condition is satisfied may be stored in the rules database.

[0094] In one example, the condition of the vehicle identified by the diagnostics data may be a value representative of a fuel level of a vehicle. Further, the threshold condition may be such that if the fuel level of the vehicle is below a threshold value of fuel level, then the threshold condition may be satisfied. The threshold value may be set by a driver 110 of the vehicle or may be determined based on a characteristics of the driver 110 of the vehicle 102. In said example, the threshold value of the fuel level may be set by the driver as 4 gallons, and the value of fuel level determined from the diagnostics data may be less than 4 gallons. Accordingly, the vehicle condition detection engine 204 may determine that the threshold condition has been satisfied.

[0095] In another example, the condition of the vehicle identified by the diagnostics data may be a value representative of a tire pressure associated with the tires of a vehicle. Further, the threshold condition may be condition wherein when a tire pressure of the vehicle is below a threshold value of tire pressure, then the threshold condition may be satisfied. In said other example associated with tire pressures, the threshold value of the tire pressure may be determined based on a characteristic of the driver that indicates that the driver typically fills air into the tires when the tire pressure is below 29 pounds per square inch (psi). Accordingly, the threshold value of tire pressure may be set as 29 psi. The characteristic of the driver may be a datum that is obtained based on telematics data associated with the vehicle, analyzing transaction data, or provided directly by the driver. In said other example, the tire pressure associated with the vehicle's tires maybe 30 psi. Accordingly, the vehicle condition detection engine 204 may determine that the threshold condition has not been satisfied.

[0096] In yet another example, the condition of the vehicle identified by the diagnostics data may be a value representative of a distance travelled by the vehicle since last servicing of the vehicle. Further, the threshold condition may include sub-conditions concerning a distance travelled by the vehicle and a time since last servicing of the vehicle. In this example concerning distance and time, the threshold condition may be satisfied if the distance value obtained from the diagnostics data is above a threshold distance value OR a determined time value is above a threshold time value. As described above, the threshold condition may be formed based on one or more sub conditions that can be combined using AND, OR, or any other appropriate logic combinations. In said concerning distance travelled by the vehicle and time of purchase, the distance value may be obtained from the diagnostics data and the time value representing the time since purchase may be obtained from the promotions server 108 or an external source. The threshold distance may be set as 5000 miles and the threshold time since last servicing may be set as 6 months. In said example, the distance value obtained from the diagnostics data indicate that the vehicle has covered 4000 miles, and the time since last servicing may be 8 months. Accordingly, the vehicle condition detection engine 204 may determine that the threshold condition has been met, since one of the sub conditions of the threshold condition has been satisfied.

[0097] In another example, in addition to the diagnostics data, the condition of the vehicle may also be obtained from additional external sources. For example, information regarding a broken tail light may be obtained from the diagnostics data, provided such data is detectable by the telematics device 104 or the on-board diagnostics of the vehicle 102. However, in addition to the diagnostics data, if the vehicle 102 is ticketed by the law enforcement for driving with a broken tail light, information regarding the broken tail light may also be obtained from the external data source such as a database that maintains law enforcement records. In another example, data regarding the last time a vehicle was serviced may be obtained from a database associated with a vehicle servicing agency. In yet another example, sometimes users may provide the vehicle for servicing, but may not address every issue associated with the vehicle because of time or monetary constraints. Such unaddressed issues may reflect a condition of the vehicle and data representative of such unaddressed issues may be obtained from a database associated with the servicing agency that maintains such records. In said examples, the promotions server 108 and/or the telematics server 106 may be configured to be communicably coupled to external data sources.

[0098] Referring back to operation 702, if the vehicle condition detection engine 204 determines that the threshold condition has not been met, then the process returns to operation 408 of FIG. 4, wherein the telematics server 106 receives new data from the telematics device 104 which may be further processed to determine if a threshold condition is met. On the other hand, once the vehicle condition detection engine 204 determines that the threshold condition has been satisfied, in operation 704, the vehicle condition detection engine 204 may communicate with the account identifier engine 212 to determine if the vehicle identifier of the vehicle for which the threshold condition has been satisfied is associated with a payment card identifier that is qualified for at least one promotion.

[0099] If the account identifier engine 212 determines that the vehicle identifier is associated with a payment card identifier that is qualified to receive at least one promotion, then, in operation 708, the account identifier engine 212 may communicate with the promotion selection engine 208 to determine one or more promotions that are to be selected for transmission. The promotion selection engine 208 may select the one or more promotions based on a location of the vehicle, the condition of the vehicle, and the situational data. In other words, the promotion selection engine 208 may filter a plurality of promotions present in a database of the telematics server 106 based on the location of the vehicle, the situational data, and the condition of the vehicle. In particular, the one or more promotions may be selected such that the one or more promotions are applicable within a threshold distance from the location of the vehicle. In some embodiments, the one or more promotions may be selected such that a location associated with the one or more promotions or the location at which the one or more promotions are offered is within a threshold distance from the location of the vehicle. Further, the one or more promotions may be filtered based on the condition of the vehicle such that the one or more promotions are associated with the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition. Furthermore, the one or more promotions that are filtered based on location and condition of the vehicle may be further filtered based on a factors external to the vehicle that are identified by the situational data. In some embodiments, the filtering based on situational data may be omitted without departing from the broader scope of the invention. Further, the order in which the promotions are filtered can be varied.

[0100] For example, the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition may identify that vehicle is low on fuel. Further, the location data may identify that the vehicle is at location X. In addition, the situational data may identify that the atmospheric temperature at location X is 30 Fahrenheit and the time of day is 11 pm. In said example, the promotion selection engine 208 may determine one or more promotions that are associated with a low fuel condition of the vehicle. Accordingly, the promotion selection engine 208 may select one or more discounted fuel price promotions associated with gas stations that are within a 4 mile radius of location X. Further, the selected one or more promotions may be filtered down to promotions associated with gas stations that are open at 11 pm and/or promotions associated with gas stations that offer hot coffee. Some promotions offered by the gas stations may include complimentary hot coffee with the purchase of fuel. In another example, the promotions may include free car wash when the driver purchases fuel at the gas station that offers the promotion, free tire pressure check, etc.

[0101] In another example, the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition may identify that vehicle is due for servicing. Further, the location data may identify that the vehicle is at location Y. In said example, the promotion selection engine 208 may determine one or more promotions that are associated with a servicing the vehicle. Accordingly, the promotion selection engine 212 may select promotions associated with service shops within a 2 mile radius from location Y. The promotions offered by the different service shops may include discount associated with servicing, free oil change, free towing service, and so on.

[0102] In one embodiment, the threshold distance may be user-settable and may be static. In another embodiment, the threshold distance may be changed dynamically based on a condition of the vehicle, i.e., if the condition of the vehicle indicates an extremely critical condition then the threshold distance may be reduced. For example, if the fuel level of the vehicle is close to empty, then the threshold distance associated with the selection of promotions may be reduced from 5 miles radius to 0.5 mile radius from the location of the vehicle.

[0103] Referring back to operation 708, once the one or more promotions for transmission are determined, then in operation 710 the process 410 returns to operation 412 of FIG. 4. Similarly, if the account identifier engine 212 determines that the vehicle identifier is not associated with a payment card identifier that is qualified to receive at least one promotion, then in operation 706, the account identifier engine 212 may inform the vehicle condition detection engine 204 that the corresponding vehicle 102 does not qualify to receive a promotion and return to operation 412 of FIG. 4. In some embodiments, in operation 706, the account identifier engine 212 may communicate with the output engine 230 to generate an alert regarding the condition of the vehicle. Further, in operation 706, the output engine 230 may transmit, to a mobile computing device 150 of the driver 110 and/or the telematics device 104, the generated alert along with a request to sign-up or register to receive any promotions based on data associated with the vehicle 102. Further, in operation 710, the process returns to operation 412 of FIG. 4.

[0104] Referring back to FIG. 4, in operation 412, the output engine 230 of the telematics server 106 may transmit the selected one or more promotions to the telematics device 104 and/or the mobile computing device 150 of the driver 110. Accordingly, in operation 414, the telematics device 104 and/or the mobile computing device 150 of the driver 110 may receive and present the one or more promotions to the driver 110. The process of communicating promotions based on the data associated with a vehicle ends at operation 416.

[0105] As described earlier, one or more operations of the telematics server 106 may be distributed to and performed by promotions server 108 and/or the telematics device 104, the process of which will be described in association with FIGS. 5 and 6.

[0106] Turning to FIG. 5, this figure illustrates a flow char that illustrates another example process of communicating promotions by the telematics server based on a condition of the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. The operations illustrated in FIG. 5 are largely the same as those illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 7, except for operations 502-514 where the telematics device 104 determines a trigger event for transmission of promotions to the driver 110. Therefore, the description of FIG. 5 will be limited to the operations 502-514 for sake of brevity.

[0107] In FIG. 5 the telematics device 104 may be an intelligent device that is configured to process data, make decision, and generate signals. Accordingly, in operations 502-510, the telematics device 104 attached to the vehicle 102 may process diagnostics data of the vehicle to determine if a threshold condition has been satisfied and generate a signal in response to the determination. In particular, in operation 502, the telematics device 104 attached to the vehicle 102 may obtain a diagnostics data associated with the vehicle 102. Further, in operations 504 and 506, the telematics device 104 may determine if a trigger event has occurred. A trigger event may generally refer to an event where the condition of the vehicle identified by the diagnostics data satisfies a threshold condition. If the trigger event has occurred, i.e., if the condition of the vehicle satisfied a threshold condition, then in operation 508, the telematics device 104 may generate a signal that indicates a trigger event has occurred. Each signal may be specific to the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition. For example, a signal indicative of a low fuel level may be different from a signal indicative of a low tire pressure or a past due oil change.

[0108] Once the signal is generated, in operation 510, the telematics device 104 may be configured to transmit the signal, the vehicle identifier, the location data and/or the situational data to the telematics server 106. In operation 512, the telematics server 106 may be configured to receive the data transmitted from the telematics device 104 comprising the signal, the vehicle identifier, the location data and/or the situational data. Further, in operation 512, the telematics server 106 may process the received signal to determine the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition as identified by the signal.

[0109] Once the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition is determined, in operation 514, the telematics server 106 may select one or more promotions for transmission to the telematics device 104 and/or mobile computing device 150 of the driver 110. The one or more promotions may be selected based on the location of the vehicle, the condition of the vehicle that satisfies the threshold condition, and the situational data. The process associated with operation 514 may be further described in association with FIG. 8.

[0110] Turning to FIG. 8, this figure is a flow chart that illustrates another process of selecting one or more promotions, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. The operations illustrated in FIG. 8 may be similar to the corresponding operations of FIG. 7 with the exception that operation 702 which determines if the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition may be omitted because the operation of determining if the threshold condition is satisfied is performed by the telematics device 104 in corresponding operations 506-508 prior to operation 514 as shown in FIG. 5. Accordingly, the operations of FIG. 8 may not be repeated for sake of brevity.

[0111] Now turning to FIG. 6, this figure is a flow chart that illustrates a process of communicating promotions by the promotions server based on a condition of the vehicle, according to certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 6 illustrates an example embodiment where the process of selecting the one or more promotions for presentation to the driver 110 of the vehicle 102 may be performed by the promotions server 108 rather than the telematics server 106.

[0112] Accordingly, the process begins with operations 406 and 408 which are described above in association with FIG. 4. In operations 406 and 408, the telematics device 104 may transmit diagnostics data, location data and/or the vehicle identifier of the vehicle 102 to the telematics server 106. Upon receiving the data from the telematics device 104, in operations 602-606 the telematics server 106 may process the diagnostics data to determine the condition of the vehicle. Further, the telematics server 106 may determine if the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition and if the threshold condition is satisfied, the telematics device may generate a signal that indicates that the threshold condition has been satisfied. Then, the telematics server 106 may transmit the signal, the location of the vehicle, and/or the vehicle identifier to the promotions server 108.

[0113] In operation 610, the promotions sever 108 may receive the data transmitted from the telematics server 106 which comprises the signal, the location of the vehicle and/or the vehicle identifier of the vehicle. Further, in operation 608, the promotions server 108 may receive promotions from the one or more data sources 120a-n and store the promotions in the promotions database 326. Further, after receiving the signal and the location of the vehicle, the promotions server 108 may proceed to operation 514 where the promotion server may select one or more promotions based on the signal and the location of the vehicle. Operation 514 is described in greater detail above in association with FIG. 8 and won't be repeated for sake of brevity. Further, in operations 412 and 414, the selected one or more promotions may be transmitted by the promotions server 108 to either the mobile device 150 associated with the driver 110 or the telematics device 104 for presentation to the driver 110. The process ends at operation 416.

[0114] 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. For example, the various devices and modules described herein may be enabled and operated using hardware circuitry (e.g., CMOS based logic circuitry), firmware, software or any combination of hardware, firmware, and software (e.g., embodied in a machine readable medium). For example, the various electrical structures and methods may be embodied using transistors, logic gates, and electrical circuits (e.g., application specific integrated (ASIC) circuitry and/or in Digital Signal Processor (DSP) circuitry).

[0115] The terms "invention," "the invention," "this invention," and "the present invention," as used herein, intend to refer broadly to all disclosed subject matter and teaching, and recitations containing these terms should not be misconstrued as limiting the subject matter taught herein or to limit the meaning or scope of the claims. From the description of the exemplary embodiments, equivalents of the elements shown therein will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art, and ways of constructing other embodiments of the present invention will appear to practitioners of the art. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is to be limited only by the claims that follow.

[0116] In addition, it will be appreciated that the various operations, processes, and methods disclosed herein may be embodied in a machine-readable medium and/or a machine accessible medium compatible with a data processing system (e.g., a computer system), and may be performed in any order (e.g., including using means for achieving the various operations). Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Claims

1) A method comprising: receiving, at a computer, diagnostic data and location data associated with a vehicle, the diagnostic data identifying a condition of the vehicle and the location data identifying a location of the vehicle; receiving, at the computer, promotional data comprising a plurality of promotions, each promotion promoting a purchase transaction or offering a product or service; selecting, by the computer, one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the condition of the vehicle and the location of the vehicle; and transmitting, by the computer, the one or more promotions for presentation by a device associated with the vehicle or a driver of the vehicle.

2) The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the condition of the vehicle and the location of the vehicle further comprising: determining, by the computer, that the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition; and responsive to a positive determination that the condition of the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition, determining, by the computer, the one or more promotions such that the one or more promotions are applicable within a threshold distance from the location of the vehicle.

3) The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving, at the computer, a payment card identifier associated with a payment card, wherein the payment card qualifies for at least one promotion of the plurality of promotions.

4) The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving, by the computer, a vehicle identifier associated with the vehicle; and responsive to the positive determination that the condition of the vehicle satisfies the threshold condition, determining, by the computer, that the vehicle identifier is associated with the card identifier for the payment card.

5) The method of claim 1, wherein the diagnostic data and the location data are received from a telematics device configured for use with the vehicle.

6) The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more selected promotions are transmitted to a wireless communication device associated with a driver of the vehicle.

7) The method of claim 1, wherein the condition of the vehicle comprises a quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank associated with the vehicle.

8) The method of claim 1, wherein the condition of the vehicle comprises a maintenance level for the vehicle.

9) The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the one or more promotions for presentation to a user that is associated with the vehicle.

10) A method, comprising: receiving, at a computer, promotional data comprising a plurality of promotions; receiving, by the computer, location data associated with a vehicle and a signal representative of a trigger event, the location data identifying a location of the vehicle; responsive to receiving the signal, selecting, by the computer, one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the location of the vehicle and the trigger event; and transmitting, by the computer, the one or more promotions for presentation by a device associated with the vehicle or a driver of the vehicle.

11) The method of claim 10, wherein the trigger event is an event where a value representative of a quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank associated with the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition.

12) The method of claim 10, wherein the trigger event is an event where a characteristic of the driver that is associated with the vehicle satisfies a threshold condition.

13) The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more promotions are selected such that the one or more promotions are associated with the trigger event and the one or more promotions are offered at a location that is within a threshold distance from the location of the vehicle.

14) The method of claim 10, further comprising: receiving, at the computer, a card identifier associated with a payment card, wherein the payment card qualifies for at least one promotion of the plurality of promotions.

15) The method of claim 10, further comprising: receiving, by the computer, a vehicle identifier associated with the vehicle; and responsive to receiving the signal, determining, by the computer, that the vehicle identifier is associated with the card identifier of the payment card that qualifies for at least one promotion of the plurality of promotions.

16) The method of claim 10, wherein the signal and the location data are received from a telematics device configured for use with the vehicle.

17) The method of claim 10, wherein the trigger event is detected a telematics device configured for use with the vehicle.

18) The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more selected promotions are transmitted to a computing device associated with a driver of the vehicle.

19) A system, comprising: a communication network; and a computer system coupled to the communication network, wherein the computer system is configured to: receive fuel level data and location data associated with a vehicle, the fuel level data identifying a quantity of fuel present in a fuel tank of the vehicle and the location data identifying a location of the vehicle; receive a situational data; receive promotional data comprising a plurality of promotions and a payment card identifier that identifies a payment card; determine that the fuel level data of the vehicle meets a threshold condition; responsive to a positive determination that the fuel level data of the vehicle meets the threshold condition, determine that the vehicle is qualified to receive at least one promotion; and responsive to a positive determination that the vehicle is qualified to receive at least one promotion, select one or more promotions from the plurality of promotions based on the location data associated with the vehicle, the fuel level data of the vehicle, and the situational data.

20) The system of claim 19, wherein the computer system is configured to transmit the one or more promotions for presentation to a user that is associated with the vehicle.