Method of assisting a user of a personal navigation device with parking nearby a destination location and related personal navigation device

• US 20110106435A1
• Filed: 11/04/2009
• Published: 05/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: MiTAC International Corporation (MiTAC Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: MiTAC International Corporation (MiTAC Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Stanton, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 8,818,727 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/204
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3605 Destination input or retrieval
• 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: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/10 Automotive applications

Abstract

A method of assisting a user of a personal navigation device with parking nearby a destination location includes receiving instructions from the user to create navigation instructions to the destination location, determining that the destination location is in an urban area, querying whether the user requires parking, and presenting a plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking, receiving the user'"'"'s choice of a selected parking area from the plurality of nearby parking areas presented to the user, and planning a route to the destination location using the selected parking area as an intermediate destination.

Claims

1. A method of assisting a user of a personal navigation device with parking nearby a destination location, the method comprising:

receiving instructions from the user to create navigation instructions to the destination location;

determining that the destination location is in an urban area;

querying whether the user requires parking, and selecting a parking area when the user requests parking; and

planning a route to the destination location using the selected parking area as an intermediate destination.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein planning the route comprises:

creating a first leg of the route in which the user is given driving instructions to the intermediate destination; and

creating a second leg of the route in which the user is given walking instructions from the intermediate destination to the destination location.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising calculating an estimated time of arrival while considering the driving time to the intermediate destination and the walking time from the intermediate destination to the destination location.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the destination location is in an urban area is performed by determining that a number of streets within a predetermined radius of the destination location is greater than a threshold value.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the destination location is in an urban area is performed by determining that a number of street intersections within a predetermined radius of the destination location is greater than a threshold value.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the destination location is in an urban area is performed by reading an indicator stored in a map database of the personal navigation device, the indicator corresponding to a region in which the destination location is located.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the parking area when the user requests parking comprises:

presenting a plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking; and

receiving the user'"'"'s choice of a selected parking area from the plurality of nearby parking areas presented to the user.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein presenting the plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking comprises presenting all parking areas within a predetermined radius of the destination location.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein presenting the plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking comprises presenting a list of parking areas along with a corresponding distance from each parking area to the destination location.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein presenting the plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking comprises presenting a map having a superimposed first icon representing the destination location and a plurality of superimposed second icons representing parking areas, wherein a distance on the map from each second icon to the first icon is directly proportional to the actual distance between the corresponding parking area and the destination location.

11. A personal navigation device for assisting a user with parking nearby a destination location, the personal navigation device comprising:

a map database comprising map and address data;

routing software for receiving instructions from the user to create navigation instructions to the destination location and determining that the destination location is in an urban area;

a user interface for querying whether the user requires parking and selecting a parking area when the user requests parking; and

a processor for controlling operation of the personal navigation device, and executing the routing software for planning a route to the destination location using the selected parking area as an intermediate destination.

12. The personal navigation device of claim 11, wherein planning the route comprises:

creating a first leg of the route in which the user is given driving instructions to the intermediate destination; and

creating a second leg of the route in which the user is given walking instructions from the intermediate destination to the destination location.

13. The personal navigation device of claim 12, wherein the routing software calculates an estimated time of arrival while considering the driving time to the intermediate destination and the walking time from the intermediate destination to the destination location.

14. The personal navigation device of claim 11, wherein determining that the destination location is in an urban area is performed by determining that a number of streets within a predetermined radius of the destination location is greater than a threshold value.

15. The personal navigation device of claim 11, wherein determining that the destination location is in an urban area is performed by determining that a number of street intersections within a predetermined radius of the destination location is greater than a threshold value.

16. The personal navigation device of claim 11, wherein determining that the destination location is in an urban area is performed by reading an indicator stored in the map database of the personal navigation device, the indicator corresponding to a region in which the destination location is located.

17. The personal navigation device of claim 11, wherein selecting the parking area when the user requests parking comprises:

presenting a plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking; and

receiving the user'"'"'s choice of a selected parking area from the plurality of nearby parking areas presented to the user.

18. The personal navigation device of claim 17, wherein presenting the plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking comprises presenting all parking areas within a predetermined radius of the destination location.

19. The personal navigation device of claim 17, wherein presenting the plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking comprises presenting a list of parking areas along with a corresponding distance from each parking area to the destination location.

20. The personal navigation device of claim 17, wherein presenting the plurality of nearby parking areas to the user when the user requests parking comprises presenting a map having a superimposed first icon representing the destination location and a plurality of superimposed second icons representing parking areas, wherein a distance on the map from each second icon to the first icon is directly proportional to the actual distance between the corresponding parking area and the destination location.