DYNAMIC DETERMINATION OF OPTIMAL ROUTE DELIVERY METHOD

• US 20100057341A1
• Filed: 08/29/2008
• Published: 03/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Bradburn, Travis L., Parks, Jason J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,392,112 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/201
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3415 Dynamic re-routing, e.g. recalculating the route when the user deviates from calculated route or after detecting real-time traffic data or accidents
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/047 Optimisation of routes or paths, e.g. travelling salesman problem
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096816 where the complete route is transmitted to the vehicle at once
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096844 where the complete route is dynamically recomputed based on new data

Abstract

A method and system for dynamic determination of optimal route delivery receives a point of interest location, a current vehicle location, and a date of first set of route directions from a telematics unit over a wireless network by a software application running on a navigation server. The application accesses the first set of route directions and a second set of route directions from a database located on a telematics service provider premises. Both the first and second set of route directions are between the current vehicle location and the point of interest. If there is a traffic obstacle along a route between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location and the traffic obstacle was implemented after the first set of directions, a live advisor sends a notification to a user and provides the user with an alternate method of delivering route directions over the wireless network.

Claims

1. A method for dynamic determination of optimal route delivery, the method comprising:

receiving a point of interest location, a current vehicle location, and a date of first set of route directions from a telematics unit over a wireless network;

accessing the first set of route directions and a second set of route directions by a software application running on a navigation server from a database, wherein both the first set and second set of route directions are between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location;

determining whether there is a traffic obstacle along a route between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location;

determining whether the traffic obstacle was implemented after the date of the first set of directions;

sending a notification to a telematics service user of the traffic obstacle; and

providing the telematics service user with an alternate method of delivering route directions over the wireless network.

2. The method according to claim 1, the method further comprising notifying a live advisor of the traffic obstacle along the route between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first set of directions is downloaded from a database within an autonomous navigation unit that is part of the telematics unit.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the alternative method of delivering route directions is selected from the group consisting of verbal route directions and turn-by-turn directions.

5. The method according to claim 4, the method further comprising determining whether the wireless network supports packet data service.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the traffic obstacle is selected from the group consisting of traffic congestion, parade routes, detours, road construction, and road closure.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the traffic obstacle is selected from the group consisting of traffic congestion, parade routes, detours, road construction, and road closures.

7. A method for dynamic determination of optimal route delivery, the method comprising:

downloading a first set of route directions from a database within an autonomous navigation unit that is between a current vehicle location and a point of interest location;

determining a date of the first set of route directions;

sending the point of interest location, the current vehicle location, and the date of the first set of route directions to a telematics service provider over a wireless network; and

receiving a second set of route directions between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location, from the telematics service provider, through an alternate method of delivering route directions, wherein the second set of route directions includes a traffic obstacle not in the first set of route directions.

8. The method according to claim 7, the method further comprising:

requesting the point of interest through a user interface of a telematics unit;

providing a user the point of interest through the user interface from a database within an autonomous navigation unit that is part of the telematics unit;

accessing the point of interest location from the database within the autonomous navigation unit; and

determining a current vehicle location using the telematics unit.

9. The method according to claim 7 wherein the alternative method of delivering route directions is selected from the group consisting of verbal route directions and turn-by-turn directions.

10. The method according to claim 7, the method further comprising determining whether the wireless network supports packet data service.

12. A system for dynamic determination of optimal route delivery, the system comprising:

a software application running on a navigation server that accesses route directions and geographical data from a database containing selected route directions and geographical data;

a telematics unit installed in a vehicle that provides telematics services to a user;

a wireless network that provides communication between the telematics unit and the navigation server; and

an autonomous navigation unit installed within the telematics unit.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the autonomous navigation unit comprises:

a user interface through which the user can request a point of interest; and

an autonomous navigation unit database containing route directions and geographical data.

14. The system according to claim 13, further comprising an application for accessing the point of interest location from the autonomous navigation unit database, determining a current vehicle, downloading a first set of route directions between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location, and determining the date of the first set of route directions.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the application provides the user the first set of route directions through the user interface.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein the application sends the telematics service provider the point of interest location, the current vehicle location, and the date of the first set of route directions over the wireless network.

17. The system according to claim 12, wherein the application is running on a navigation server and receives the point of interest location, the current vehicle location, and the date of first set of route directions from a telematics unit over a wireless network;

accesses the first set of route directions and a second set of route directions the database located on the telematics service provider'"'"'s premises, wherein both the first set and second set of route directions are between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location;

determines whether there is a traffic obstacle along route between the current vehicle location and the point of interest location;

determines whether the traffic obstacle was implemented after the date of the first set of directions;

sends a notification to a telematics service user of the traffic obstacle by a live advisor; and

provides the user with an alternate method of delivering route directions over the wireless network.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the alternative method of delivering route directions is selected from the group consisting of verbal route directions and turn-by-turn directions.

19. The system according to claim 17, wherein the software application further determines whether the wireless network supports packet data service.

20. The system according to claim 17, wherein the traffic obstacle is selected from the group consisting of traffic congestion, parade routes, detours, road construction, and road closures.