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TRACKING VEHICLE LOCATIONS IN A PARKING LOT FOR DEFINITIVE DISPLAY ON A GUI

  • US 20090204325A1
  • Filed: 02/08/2008
  • Published: 08/13/2009
  • Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2008
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A computer implemented method to automatically track/identify respective locations occupied by respective individual vehicles of a group of vehicles crowded together in a parking lot to enable definitive, real time, display the vehicles'"'"' respective locations on a GUI, comprising the steps of:

  • a) creating a digital map of a main area of a parking lot by identifying sub-areas of the parking lot of different types comprising parking slots and movement slots, potentially occupiable by vehicles;

    dividing the parking lot into a grid of cells so that respective slots are filled by at least one cell with each cell being in only a single slot;

    b) determining a business environment rule for each type of slot based on vehicle compatibility which provides a probability that a slot of a particular type is occupiable by a vehicle;

    c) determining precise positional coordinates of respective parking slots and movement slots;

    d) providing means for remotely identifying respective vehicles and for providing approximate positional coordinates of each vehicle identified;

    e) designating a vehicle and comparing the approximate positional coordinates of said designated vehicle with the precise positional coordinates of each slot, as provided by the digital map, to determine respective raw distances therebetween;

    f) calculating adjusted distances of the designated vehicle from respective slots by changing values of respective raw distances by a factor dependent on relative probabilities of respective slots being occupiable by the designated vehicle according to the business rule, so that relative proximities of respective slots to the designated vehicle are increased with increasing probability, by comparison with relative proximities derived from respective raw distances;

    g) ranking the slots in order by least adjusted distances from the designated vehicle and, in the event of slots having equal highest ranking, assigning a top rank to one of those equal highest ranking slots by one of random selection and other criteria;

    h) when the top ranked slot is unoccupied by another of the vehicles, placing the designated vehicle in the top ranked slot and, when the top ranked slot is occupied, comparing the adjusted distance of the designated vehicle from the top ranked slot and the adjusted distance of the occupying vehicle from the top ranked slot and placing the more proximate of those vehicles in the top ranked slot;

    i) when the designated vehicle is not more proximate than the occupying vehicle repeating step h) for successively ranked slots until one of the designated vehicle is placed in a slot and all attempts to place the designated vehicle are exhausted;

    j) when the designated vehicle is more proximate than the occupying vehicle, replacing the occupying vehicle by the designated vehicle so that the occupying vehicle returns to the group; and

    ,k) repeating the steps e)-j) for all remaining vehicles of the group.

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