Systems and methods for providing navigation data to a vehicle

• US 10,054,463 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2013
• Issued: 08/21/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Foster, Andrew, Pelly, Nicholas Julian
• Primary Examiner(s): Whittington, Jess G
• Application Number:
  US14/038,437
• Publication Number:
  US 20150088412A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,790 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3626 Details of the output of route guidance instructions traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3676 Overview of the route on the road map

Abstract

A set of instructions implements an application programming interface (API) for providing navigation data from a portable device to a head unit of a vehicle. When invoked by a companion application executing on the portable device, the API is configured to obtain navigation data for navigating a user between a source and a destination, where the portable device receives the navigation data from a navigation server via a long-range communication link. The API is further configured to provide the navigation data to the companion application for transmission to the head unit via a short-range communication link.

Claims

1. A method for exchanging navigation data between a portable device and a head unit of a vehicle, the method being implemented in a portable device that includes one or more processors executing (i) a navigation service application specifically configured to receive navigation data from a navigation server and (ii) a companion application, the method comprising:

receiving, by the companion application and via a short-range communication link, a destination selected via the head unit;

invoking, by the companion application, a navigation application programming interface (API) of the navigation service application, wherein the companion application executes on the portable device separately from the navigation service application, and wherein invoking the navigation API includes using a syntax and a list of parameters specific to the navigation API to provide the destination to the navigation service application;

sending, by the navigation service application, the destination to the navigation server via a long-range communication link;

receiving, by the navigation service application, first navigation data from the navigation server via the long-range communication link, wherein the first navigation data describes at least one of a plurality of steps for navigating between a source and the destination, and wherein invoking the navigation API further includes using the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API to obtain, from the navigation service application, the first navigation data;

sending, by the companion application, the first navigation data to the head unit via the short-range communication link to cause the head unit to display navigation information indicating at least the one of the plurality of steps for navigating between the source and the destination.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the navigation API communicates with the navigation service application using an IPC scheme.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API defines a set of one or more data structures for exchanging data between the navigation API and the companion application.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first navigation data describes a sequence of steps, and wherein invoking the navigation API includes using the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API to receive from the navigation service application, in response to providing each of a plurality of next step requests to the navigation service application, a next one in the sequence of steps for transmission to the head unit.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein invoking the navigation API includes using the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API to provide authentication information to the navigation service application.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first navigation data received from the navigation server conforms to a first format; and

the navigation API, when invoked by the companion application, converts the first navigation data to a second format defined only for communicating navigation data between the navigation service application and the head unit.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the second format is an open format compatible with a plurality of vehicle makes.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the second format is a format specific to a manufacturer of the vehicle.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the companion application communicates with the head unit according to a proprietary communication protocol defined by a manufacturer of the head unit.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the companion application communicates with the head unit according to a first proprietary communication scheme defined by a manufacturer of the head unit, and wherein the navigation service application communicates with the navigation server according to a second proprietary communication scheme defined by an operator of the navigation server.

11. A portable device that includes one or more processors, wherein the portable device is configured, when the one or more processors execute (i) a navigation service application specifically configured to receive navigation data from a navigation server and (ii) a companion application, to execute a method comprising:

receiving, by the companion application and via a short-range communication link, a destination selected via the head unit;

invoking, by the companion application, a navigation application programming interface (API) of the navigation service application, wherein the companion application executes on the portable device separately from the navigation service application, and wherein invoking the navigation API includes using a syntax and a list of parameters specific to the navigation API to provide the destination to the navigation service application;

sending, by the navigation service application, the destination to the navigation server via a long-range communication link;

receiving, by the navigation service application, first navigation data from the navigation server via the long-range communication link, wherein the first navigation data describes at least one of a plurality of steps for navigating between a source and the destination, and wherein invoking the navigation API further includes using the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API to obtain, from the navigation service application, the first navigation data;

sending, by the companion application, the first navigation data to a head unit of a vehicle via the short-range communication link to cause the head unit to display navigation information indicating at least the one of the plurality of steps for navigating between the source and the destination.

12. The portable device of claim 11, wherein the navigation API communicates with the navigation service application using an IPC scheme.

13. The portable device of claim 11, wherein the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API defines a set of one or more data structures for exchanging data between the navigation API and the companion application.

14. The portable device of claim 11, wherein the first navigation data describes a sequence of steps, and wherein invoking the navigation API includes using the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API to receive from the navigation service application, in response to providing each of a plurality of next step requests to the navigation service application, a next one in the sequence of steps for transmission to the head unit.

15. The portable device of claim 11, wherein invoking the navigation API includes using the syntax and the list of parameters specific to the navigation API to provide authentication information to the navigation service application.

16. The portable device of claim 11, wherein:

the first navigation data received from the navigation server conforms to a first format; and

the navigation API, when invoked by the companion application, converts the first navigation data to a second format defined only for communicating navigation data between the navigation service application and the head unit.

17. The portable device of claim 16, wherein the second format is an open format compatible with a plurality of vehicle makes.

18. The portable device of claim 16, wherein the second format is a format specific to a manufacturer of the vehicle.

19. The portable device of claim 11, wherein the companion application communicates with the head unit according to a proprietary communication protocol defined by a manufacturer of the head unit.

20. The portable device of claim 11, wherein the companion application communicates with the head unit according to a first proprietary communication scheme defined by a manufacturer of the head unit, and wherein the navigation service application communicates with the navigation server according to a second proprietary communication scheme defined by an operator of the navigation server.