System and method for reducing the amount of repetitive data sent by a server to a client for vehicle navigation

• US 20050004751A1
• Filed: 10/21/2003
• Published: 01/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Intellisist, Inc. dba Spoken Communications (Avaya Incorporated)
• Inventors: Odinak, Gilad, Phillips, Marc, Chaubey, Nishith K.
• Granted Patent: US 7,092,816 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/202
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3629 Guidance using speech or audio output, e.g. text-to-speech text to speech systems per se G10L13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3655 Timing of guidance instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096872 where instructions are given per voice
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence

Abstract

A system and method for reducing the amount of repetitive data sent by a server to a client for vehicle navigation. The system includes a computer-based vehicle unit located in a vehicle, a gateway configured to wirelessly send and receive trip information to and from the vehicle unit, and a computer-based server in communication with the gateway over a network. The vehicle unit wirelessly receives signals from a computer-based server that includes the desired navigation information in packet form. The vehicle unit includes a user interface component that presents the received navigation information and records user requests. The server processes the requests, generates a trip plan according to the navigation information and sends the generated trip plan back to the vehicle unit via a gateway when a request has been completed.

Claims

1-21. -21. (Canceled)

22. A vehicle navigation method comprising:

initiating a trip request, including trip request information;

communicating vehicle coordinates and trip request through a network to a network server;

generating a trip plan according to navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip request information, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan with associated navigation prompts;

sending the generated trip plan table from the server, through the network, and to the vehicle;

comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table;

determining whether the vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table, and

presenting the navigation prompt associated with the location in the table that is found to be within the threshold value of the vehicle'"'"'s location.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein trip request information includes voice instructions.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein generating comprises determining a destination by interpreting the trip voice instructions by performing voice recognition processing.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the navigation prompts include voice prompts.

26. The method of claim 22, -further comprising determining if the vehicle is adhering to the trip plan, wherein determining adherence comprises:

determining distance of the vehicle coordinates to the trip plan; and

if the vehicle coordinates are not within a threshold value from the trip plan, sending present vehicle coordinates to the server, generating a new trip plan and trip plan table based on the sent present vehicle coordinates, and sending the new trip plan table to the vehicle.

27. A vehicle navigation method comprising:

initiating a trip request;

entering trip voice instructions;

determining vehicle coordinates;

communicating wirelessly vehicle coordinates and trip request to a network in communication with a network server;

generating a trip plan according to navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip voice instructions, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan with associated voice prompts;

sending the generated trip plan table from the server, through the network and wirelessly to the vehicle;

comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table to determine whether vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value; and

presenting the navigation prompt associated with the location in the table that is found to be within the threshold value of the vehicle'"'"'s location.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein generating comprises determining a destination by interpreting the trip voice instructions by performing voice recognition processing.

29. The method of claim 27, further comprising determining if the vehicle is adhering to the trip plan, wherein determining adherence comprises:

determining the distance of the vehicle coordinates to a trip plan location; and

if the vehicle coordinates are not within a threshold value from the trip plan location, sending present vehicle coordinates to the server, generating a new trip plan and trip plan table based on the sent present vehicle coordinates, and sending the new trip plan table to the vehicle.

30. A vehicle navigation method comprising:

initiating a trip request;

entering trip voice instructions;

determining vehicle coordinates;

communicating wirelessly vehicle coordinates and trip request to a network in communication with a network server;

generating a trip plan according to navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip voice instructions, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan with associated one or more identifiers;

sending the generated trip plan table from the server, through the network and wirelessly to the vehicle;

comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table;

determining whether the present vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table;

retrieving one or more voice prompts having one or more identifiers associated with the location in the table, and

presenting the retrieved voice prompts.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein:

retrieving comprises when a voice prompt is not previously stored at the vehicle, sending a request to the server for the non-stored voice prompt and sending the non-stored voice prompt from the server to the vehicle; and

presenting comprises presenting the sent voice prompt.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein retrieving further comprises saving the sent voice prompt according to the corresponding identifier.

33. The method of claim 30, further comprising purging saved voice prompts according to a user purge request.

34. The method of claim 30, further comprising purging saved voice prompts according to a server generated purge request.

35. A vehicle navigation method comprising:

initiating a trip request;

entering trip voice instructions;

determining vehicle coordinates;

sending vehicle coordinates and the entered voice instructions wirelessly to a server over a network;

generating a trip plan according to vehicle navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip voice instructions, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan and each location entry in the table includes an associated voice prompt;

comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table;

determining whether the present vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table;

retrieving one or more voice prompts or voice prompt tag identifiers associated with the location in the table,

sending the retrieved one or more voice prompts or voice prompt tag identifiers wirelessly to the vehicle, and

presenting the sent voice prompts or previously stored voice prompts.

36. A vehicle navigation system comprising:

a computer-based vehicle unit located in a vehicle for wirelessly receiving and transmitting trip request information and receiving trip plan navigation information, the computer-based vehicle unit having a processor and associated memory, a user interface, a global positioning system for determining vehicle coordinates, and a radio unit;

a network configured to wirelessly send and receive trip request information to and from the vehicle unit via the radio unit; and

a computer-based server in communication with the network for receiving trip request information from the computer-based vehicle unit, generating a trip plan according to navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server and the trip request information, and wirelessly sending the generated trip plan to the vehicle unit over the network.

37. The system of claim 36, wherein:

the computer-based vehicle unit compares present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table; and

if, according to the comparison, the vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table, the vehicle unit presents the navigation prompt

associated with the location in the table that is within the threshold value of the vehicle'"'"'s location.

38. A vehicle navigation apparatus comprising:

means for initiating a trip request;

means for entering trip voice instructions;

means for determining vehicle coordinates;

means for wirelessly sending vehicle coordinates and the entered voice instructions to a server over a network;

means for generating a trip plan according to vehicle navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip voice instructions, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan and each location entry in the table includes an associated voice prompt;

means for comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table;

means for determining whether the present vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table;

means for retrieving one or more voice prompts having one or more identifiers associated with the location in the table;

means for sending the voice prompts and identifiers wirelessly to the vehicle, and

means for presenting the retrieved voice prompts and identifiers.

39. A vehicle navigation apparatus comprising:

means for initiating a trip request;

means for entering trip voice instructions;

means for determining vehicle coordinates;

means for sending vehicle coordinates and the entered voice instructions to a server over a network;

means for generating a trip plan according to navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip voice instructions, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan with associated one or more identifiers;

means for sending the generated trip plan table to the vehicle over the network;

means for comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table;

means for determining whether the present vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table;

means for retrieving one or more voice prompts having one or more identifiers associated with the location in the table;

means for wirelessly sending the retrieved prompts and identifiers to the vehicle, and

means for presenting the retrieved voice prompts and identifiers.

40. A vehicle navigation apparatus comprising:

means for initiating a trip request;

means for entering trip voice instructions;

means for determining vehicle coordinates;

means for sending vehicle coordinates and the entered voice instructions to a server over a network;

means for generating a trip plan according to navigation information stored in a memory associated with the server, the vehicle coordinates, and the trip voice instructions, wherein the generated trip plan includes a table of locations of the trip plan with associated voice prompts;

means for sending the generated trip plan table from the server, through the network, and wirelessly to the vehicle;

means for comparing present vehicle coordinates to the trip plan table;

means for determining whether the vehicle coordinates are within a threshold value from a location in the table,

means for retrieving one or more voice prompts having one or more identifiers associated with the location in the table,

means for wirelessly sending the retrieved prompts and identifiers to the vehicle, and

means for presenting the voice prompts and identifiers.