System for Constructing a Spanning Forest in a Vehicular Network

• US 20130179056A1
• Filed: 01/10/2012
• Published: 07/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Infotechnology Center Co., Ltd. (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Fukuyama, Junichiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,725,395 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/32 for defining a routing cluster membership

Abstract

A first leader vehicle system and method for forming a first group including the first leader vehicle system is disclosed. The first leader vehicle system comprises a requesting module, a determination module and an aggregation module. The requesting module identifies a second leader vehicle system within a transmission range. The second leader vehicle system is in a second group. The requesting module chooses a first merging direction and receives a second merging direction chosen by the second leader vehicle system. The determination module determines that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction. The aggregation module aggregates probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction so that the first leader vehicle system merges with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for forming a first group including a first leader vehicle system, the method comprising:

identifying a second leader vehicle system within a transmission range, the second leader vehicle system being in a second group;

choosing a first merging direction;

receiving a second merging direction chosen by the second leader vehicle system;

determining that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction; and

merging with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group including the first leader vehicle system by aggregating probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first merging direction and the second merging direction are chosen from a set of two elements.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first leader vehicle system is in a third group adjacent to the second group before merging with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group including the first leader vehicle system.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving one or more beacon messages; and

determining a location of the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the one or more beacon messages.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction further comprises:

determining that the first merging direction is directed toward the second merging direction based at least in part on the location of the second leader vehicle system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein aggregating probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction further comprises:

receiving probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system;

updating existing probe vehicle data based at least in part on the received probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving probe vehicle data from a third leader vehicle system in a right lane within a maximum distance; and

updating existing probe vehicle data based at least in part on the received probe vehicle data from the third leader vehicle system in the right lane within the maximum distance.

8. A first leader vehicle system for forming a first group including the first leader vehicle system, the first leader vehicle system comprising:

a requesting module for identifying a second leader vehicle system within a transmission range, the second leader vehicle system being in a second group, the requesting module choosing a first merging direction and receiving a second merging direction chosen by the second leader vehicle system;

a determination module communicatively coupled to the requesting module, the determination module determining that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction; and

an aggregation module communicatively coupled to the determination module, the aggregation module aggregating probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction so that the first leader vehicle system merges with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group.

9. The first leader vehicle system of claim 8, wherein the first merging direction and the second merging direction are chosen from a set of two elements.

10. The first leader vehicle system of claim 8, wherein the first leader vehicle system is in a third group adjacent to the second group before merging with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group.

11. The first leader vehicle system of claim 8 further comprising a communication module communicatively coupled to the requesting module, the communication module configured to receive one or more beacon messages, the requesting module configured to receive the one or more beacon messages from the communication module and to determine a location of the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the one or more beacon messages.

12. The first leader vehicle system of claim 11, wherein determining that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction further comprises:

determining that the first merging direction is directed toward the second merging direction based at least in part on the location of the second leader vehicle system.

13. The first leader vehicle system of claim 8, wherein aggregating probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction further comprises:

receiving probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system;

updating existing probe vehicle data based at least in part on the received probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system.

14. The first leader vehicle system of claim 8 further comprising an initialization module communicatively coupled to the aggregation module, the initialization module configured to receive probe vehicle data from a third leader vehicle system in a right lane within a maximum distance, the aggregation module further configured to update existing probe vehicle data based at least in part on the received probe vehicle data from the third leader vehicle system in the right lane within the maximum distance.

21. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein instructions encoded in the computer readable medium when executed cause the computing device to perform operations further comprising:

receiving probe vehicle data from a third leader vehicle system in a right lane within a maximum distance; and

updating existing probe vehicle data based at least in part on the received probe vehicle data from the third leader vehicle system in the right lane within the maximum distance.

15. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium encoding instructions that, in response to execution by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform operations comprising:

identifying a second leader vehicle system within a transmission range, the second leader vehicle system being in a second group;

choosing a first merging direction;

receiving a second merging direction chosen by the second leader vehicle system;

determining that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction; and

merging with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group including the first leader vehicle system by aggregating probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the first merging direction and the second merging direction are chosen from a set of two elements.

17. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the first leader vehicle system is in a third group adjacent to the second group before merging with the second leader vehicle system to form the first group including the first leader vehicle system.

18. The computer program product of claim 15, instructions encoded in the computer readable medium when executed cause the computing device to perform operations further comprising:

receiving one or more beacon messages; and

determining a location of the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the one or more beacon messages.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein determining that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction further comprises:

determining that the first merging direction is directed toward the second merging direction based at least in part on the location of the second leader vehicle system.

20. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein aggregating probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system based at least in part on the determination that the first merging direction matches the second merging direction further comprises:

receiving probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system;

updating existing probe vehicle data based at least in part on the received probe vehicle data from the second leader vehicle system.