PACKAGED TOURS WITH TURN-BY-TURN NAVIGATION

• US 20080162042A1
• Filed: 12/29/2006
• Published: 07/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Huber, Chester A., Tretyak, Laurence J., Johnson, Richard A., Nedeljkovic, Nebojsa
• Granted Patent: US 9,841,288 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/211
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/343 Calculating itineraries, i.e. routes leading from a starting point to a series of categorical destinations using a global route restraint, round trips, touristic trips travelling salesman problem G06Q10/04; optimisation of routes G06Q10/047
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3644 Landmark guidance, e.g. using POIs or conspicuous other objects
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3679 Retrieval, searching and output of POI information, e.g. hotels, restaurants, shops, filling stations, parking facilities G01C21/3611 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3682 output of POI information on a road map G01C21/3614, G01C21/3685 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096827 where the route is computed onboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0969 having a display in the form of a map

Abstract

An improved guidance system and method provide a packaged tour object having tour directions and media related to points of interest of a tour for playing via a telematics unit. A user is provided, via their telematics unit, with specific directions to access points of interest of the tour in a certain sequence, while the telematics unit optionally conveys media content to the user at appropriate points. The media content may be keyed to an upcoming site, and may comprise audio and/or visual information. In addition, user convenience information such as parking and ticketing information may be contained ion the packaged tour object for presentation via the telematics unit.

Claims

1. A method of providing a packaged tour object to a user of a telematics unit associated with a vehicle occupied by the user, the method comprising:

receiving from the telematics unit a request to provide to the telematics unit a packaged tour object related to a predetermined set of geographic points, each point having associated therewith a feature of interest;

determining whether there are routing preferences associated with the telematics unit;

calculating a route comprising directions usable to travel sequentially from a starting point to each of the predetermined set of geographic points;

associating at least one media object with each of one or more of the predetermined geographic points; and

packaging the directions and information associated with the at least one media object to create the packaged tour object.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting the packaged tour object to the telematics unit.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one media object comprises audio data.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the audio data comprises information regarding a feature of interest of one or more of the predetermined geographic points.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information associated with the at least one media object comprises information identifying at least one storage location from which the at least one media object can be obtained.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the information associated with the at least one media object comprises a URL.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information associated with the at least one media object comprises at least a portion of the at least one media object.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the packaged tour object includes a sequence number associated with each of the predetermined set of geographic points, wherein the sequence number identifies the order in which the predetermined set of geographic points are to be reached.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating a route comprising directions usable to travel sequentially from a starting point to each of the predetermined set of geographic points further comprises:

calculating a travel distance between each of the predetermined set of geographic points;

weighting each such travel distance in accordance with any applicable routing preference;

calculating a route length for each acceptable route using the weighted travel distances; and

choosing a route having a minimum route length as the optimal route.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the request to provide a packaged tour object identifies a desired ending point, and wherein calculating a route length for each acceptable route using the weighted travel distances comprises calculating a route length for each route ending at the desired ending point.

13. The computer-readable medium according to claim 1, wherein the information associated with the at least one media object comprises information identifying at least one storage location from which the at least one media object can be obtained.

11. A computer-readable medium having thereon computer-executable instructions for providing a packaged tour object to a user of a telematics unit associated with a vehicle occupied by the user comprising:

instructions for receiving from the telematics unit a request to provide to the telematics unit a packaged tour object related to a predetermined set of geographic points, each point having associated therewith a feature of interest;

instructions for determining whether there are routing preferences associated with the telematics unit;

instructions for calculating a route comprising directions usable to travel sequentially from a starting point to each of the predetermined set of geographic points;

instructions for associating at least one media object with each of one or more of the predetermined geographic points; and

instructions for packaging the directions and information associated with the at least one media object to create the packaged tour object.

12. The computer-readable medium according to claim 11, wherein the at least one media object comprises information regarding a feature of interest of one or more of the predetermined geographic points.

14. The computer-readable medium according to claim 11, wherein the packaged tour object includes a sequence number associated with each of the predetermined set of geographic points, wherein the sequence number identifies the order in which the predetermined set of geographic points are to be reached.

15. The computer-readable medium according to claim 11, wherein the instructions for calculating a route comprising directions usable to travel sequentially from a starting point to each of the predetermined set of geographic points further instructions for:

calculating a travel distance between each of the predetermined set of geographic points;

weighting each such travel distance in accordance with any applicable routing preference;

calculating a route length for each acceptable route using the weighted travel distances; and

choosing a route having a minimum route length as the optimal route.

16. The computer-readable medium according to claim 15, wherein the request to provide a packaged tour object identifies a desired ending point, and wherein the instructions for calculating a route length for each acceptable route using the weighted travel distances further comprise instructions for calculating a route length for each route ending at the desired ending point.

17. A method of obtaining a packaged tour object at a telematics unit associated with a vehicle occupied by a user, the method comprising:

sending from the telematics unit to remote provider a request to provide to the telematics unit a packaged tour object related to a predetermined set of geographic points, each point having associated therewith a feature of interest;

receiving at the telematics unit a packaged tour object comprising travel directions usable to travel sequentially from a starting point to each of the predetermined set of geographic points, at least one media object associated with at least one of the predetermined geographic points; and

conveying the travel directions to the vehicle user.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the at least one media object comprises audio data and wherein conveying the travel directions to the vehicle user comprises playing an audible representation of the directions to the user.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the audio data comprises information regarding a feature of interest of one or more of the predetermined geographic points, and wherein conveying the travel directions to the vehicle user further comprises playing an audible representation of the information regarding a feature of interest to the user.

20. The method according to claim 17, wherein the request to provide a packaged tour object identifies one of the predetermined geographic points as a desired ending point, and wherein the directions in the received packaged tour object describe a route whose last point is the identified ending point.