Patent Application
20140067429
1. Field of the Invention
The subject matter disclosed generally relates to a method and system for photographing the vehicle.
2. Background Information
When a vehicle such as an automobile is damaged the owner may file a claim with an insurance carrier. A representative typically inspects the vehicle to determine the amount of damage and the costs required to repair the automobile. The owner of the vehicle or the vehicle repair facility may receive a check equal to the estimated cost of the repairs. If the repair costs exceed the value of the automobile, or a percentage of the car's value, the representative may “total” the vehicle. The owner may then receive a check based on the value of the automobile.
The repair costs and other information may be entered by the representative into an estimate report. After inspection the representative sends the estimate report to a home office for approval. To improve the efficiency of the claims process there have been developed computer systems and accompanying software that automate the estimate process. By way of example, the assignee of the present invention, Audatex, Inc., (“Audatex”) provides a software product under the trademark Audatex Estimating that allows a representative to enter claim data. The data is processed into an estimate for repairing the vehicle and/or a valuation report of the vehicle.
Photographs of the damaged vehicle are sometimes used in the estimating process. By way of example, the photograph may be attached to the estimate. To promote consistency in generating insurance estimates it is desirable to capture vehicle photographs in a systematic manner. When photographing a vehicle it is desirable to take into consideration the horizontal angle, vertical height, resolution and quality of the photo along with the size of the vehicle within the photo.
A device and method for assisting a user in photographing a vehicle for documenting a condition of the vehicle. The method includes receiving information regarding the vehicle and displaying a graphic overlay that is associated with the information. A video image of the vehicle is captured with a camera and is displayed with the graphical overlay of the vehicle. The video image of the vehicle is aligned with the graphical overlay of the vehicle and the image of the vehicle is stored.
Disclosed is a device and method for assisting a user in photographing a vehicle to document the condition of the vehicle. The method includes receiving information regarding the vehicle and displaying a graphic overlay of the vehicle. A video image of the vehicle is captured with a camera and is displayed with the graphical overlay. The video image of the vehicle is aligned with the graphical overlay of the vehicle and the image of the vehicle is stored. The graphical overlay can be oriented on the screen in a manner so that the stored image of the vehicle is captured at a predetermined horizontal angle, vertical height and/or vehicle size. The photograph of the vehicle may be attached to an insurance estimate. Standardizing the horizontal angle, vertical and/or vehicle size of the photographed vehicle promotes consistency and uniformity in the estimating process. Although utilization with an insurance estimate is described, the photograph of the vehicle can be used in other application where it is desired to document the condition of the vehicle. The overlay may be an outline of the entire vehicle or an outline of a portion of the vehicle. For example, the overlay may be an outline of a door of the vehicle. The user can then utilize the overlay to take a photograph of the vehicle door.
Referring to the drawings more particularly by reference numbers,
The system 10 may further include an claim server 16 connected to the network 14. The claim server 16 may provide a web based portal that provides access to a repair cost estimate and/or a vehicle valuation web site. The web site may provide one or more web pages that can be used by a representative to generate a repair cost estimate and/or a vehicle valuation. By way of example, the representative may utilize the web pages to determine the estimate and/or a vehicle valuation of a vehicle or claims adjuster submitting vehicle information on a theft claim, or a policy system that requires vehicle data to provide a price quote. Although one claim server 16 is shown, it is to be understood that the claim server may include two or more separate servers including a web server and an application server that together perform various functions.
The system may also include an OEM server 18 that can be coupled to the claim server 16 and clients 12 through the network 14. The OEM server 18 may contain a database that includes vehicle model information and vehicle option information. The OEM server 18 may provide vehicle model information and vehicle options information based on a VIN. Although a web based system is shown and described, it is to be understood that a non-web based system could be employed.
The system 10 may also include a camera device 20 that can be used to capture an image of a vehicle. The device 20 may be a smartphone, tablet or a similar device that contains a camera, a screen and processing to create a graphic overlay. The camera device 20 may be coupled to the client 12.
The camera device 20 further includes a screen 36 and a camera 38. The device 20 may also include transceivers and network ports to communicate with external sources such as the servers 16 and 18 shown in
The servers 16 and 18 may contain relational databases that correlate data with individual data fields and a relational database management system (RDBMS). The RDBMS of the server 16 may include a reference to a website that can be accessed by the client 12 and/or camera device 20. The website has one or more specific uniform resource locators (URL) that can be used to access the site through the network 14. The URL can be entered through a web-based application resident in the client computer 12 and/or device 20. By way of example, the web based application may be a browser. Servers 16 and/or 18 may contain a database of graphic overlays that are associated with vehicle information.
The user can move the camera to align the vehicle image 50 with the graphical overlay 52 as shown in
The graphical overlay 52 can be created by extrapolating a 2D image showing only the outline and various highlights of the vehicle from a 3D model of the vehicle. The area between the outline may be shaded but still transparent when overlayed onto the video image captured by the camera. The color of the shaded area and outlines can be varied. For example, the shaded area and outlines may be gray, but the user can change the color to yellow. This would be desirable if the vehicle is gray and would be difficult to distinguish from a gray shaded area and outline. Some vehicle components, such as the front driver side wheel may be created in the overlay 52. This would allow the user to align the wheel of the image captured by the camera with the graphical wheel provided by the overlay.
By way of example, the assignee Audatex has a database(s) that contains 3D models of various vehicles. The overlays may be created from these 3D models. For example, the 3D models can be rotated and otherwise manipulated to achieve the desired horizontal angle, vertical height and vehicle size. The outline of the 3D model is then extrapolated to create the overlay 52. Overlays for various vehicles can be created and stored in a database(s).
The photograph of the vehicle can be used in a process to create an insurance estimate.
A representative may enter and/or select damaged parts for the vehicle.
While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention, and that this invention not be limited to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described, since various other modifications may occur to those ordinarily skilled in the art.
