ROUTE PLANNING SYSTEM FOR VEHICLES

• US 20100286908A1
• Filed: 05/05/2009
• Published: 11/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations Incorporated (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Massoll, Charles A., Tate, Edward D. JR.
• Granted Patent: US 9,008,955 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3469 Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects

Abstract

A navigation system includes a user-operable input device configured to receive a desired destination. A storage medium stores a map database that describes a road network comprising route segments. The map database includes, for each of the route segments, a respective attribute value and a respective energy cost. A processor is configured to analyze the route segments in the database in accordance with a predetermined optimization algorithm that considers both the attribute values and the energy costs of the route segments in order to select a combination of route segments from the database that interconnects a starting location and the destination.

Claims

1. A navigation system for selecting a route from a starting location to a destination, the system comprising:

a user-operable input device configured to receive the destination;

a storage medium having a map database describing a road network comprising route segments;

each of said route segments having a respective attribute value and a respective energy cost;

a processor operatively connected to the input device to receive the destination, and operatively connected to the storage medium and configured to selectively access the map database;

said processor being configured to analyze the route segments in the database in accordance with a predetermined optimization algorithm that considers both the attribute values and the energy costs of the route segments to select a combination of route segments from the database that interconnects the starting location and the destination.

2. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein the attribute values are time costs.

3. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein the optimization algorithm solves for, of the possible combinations of route segments interconnecting the starting location and the destination, that combination of route segments having the lowest summation of a mathematical expression that includes attribute value and energy cost.

4. The navigation system of claim 3, wherein the mathematical expression includes a weighting variable by which one of the attribute value and energy cost is multiplied.

5. The navigation system of claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to receive the value of the weighting variable from the input device.

6. The navigation system of claim 1, further comprising an output device;

and wherein the processor is configured to communicate the combination of route segments to the output device.

7. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein the database stores the attribute values of said route segments;

and

wherein the processor is configured to determine the energy costs of the road segments from the stored attribute values.

8. A method of determining an optimized route from a starting location to a predetermined destination, the method comprising:

receiving the starting location;

receiving the predetermined destination;

accessing a map database describing a road network comprising route segments;

said map database including, for each of the route segments, a respective attribute value and a respective energy cost; and

analyzing the route segments in the database in accordance with a predetermined optimization algorithm that considers both the attribute values and the energy costs of the route segments to select a combination of route segments from the database that interconnects the starting location and the destination.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the attribute values are time costs.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the optimization algorithm solves for, of the possible combinations of route segments interconnecting the starting location and the destination, that combination of route segments having the lowest summation of a mathematical expression that includes attribute value and energy cost.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the mathematical expression includes a weighting variable by which one of the attribute value and energy cost is multiplied.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising receiving the value of the weighting variable from an input device.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising communicating the combination of route segments to an output device.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the database stores the attribute values of said route segments;

and

wherein the method further comprises determining the energy costs of the road segments from the stored attribute values.

15. A method of modifying a navigation system comprising:

providing a navigation system with a database describing a road network having route segments having respective attribute values and respective energy costs, and a processor configured to perform an optimization analysis of the attribute values to select a route; and

modifying the processor such that the optimization analysis includes the attribute values and the energy costs.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the database stores the attribute values;

and wherein the method further comprises modifying the processor to cause the processor to determine the energy costs from the attribute values.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the modified optimization analysis solves for, of the possible combinations of route segments interconnecting a starting location and a destination, that combination of route segments having the lowest summation of a mathematical expression that includes attribute value and energy cost.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the mathematical expression includes a weighting variable by which one of the attribute value and energy cost is multiplied.