Patent ID: 8160811

Claim:
A system for providing driving risk assessment in a host vehicle operated by a vehicle operator, the driving risk assessment identify the degree of risk of the current operating condition, the system comprising: a hierarchical index of passive driving conditions, the hierarchical index having a plurality of passive conditions, each of the plurality of passive conditions assigned a first risk factor, and the plurality of passive conditions arranged in order by value of first risk factor, wherein passive conditions are conditions not influenced by another driver, wherein each passive driving condition is assigned a first risk factor; an active driving conditions identification system operable to detect moving objects within a predetermined distance of the host vehicle, wherein said system further providing characteristics of said objects such as speed, relative speed, distance, trajectory, and size, wherein said active driving conditions identification system assigning a second risk factor to each of each of said active driving conditions identified; and a processor for generating a driving risk assessment, said processor identifying each of said passive driving condition applicable to current driving conditions so as to determine a totality of first risk factors, the processor further operable to refine said identified passive driving conditions with the identified active driving conditions to provide a driving risk assessment for current host vehicle operation.