Management Center Module for Advanced Lane Management Assist for Automated Vehicles and Conventionally Driven Vehicles

• US 20140188376A1
• Filed: 12/17/2013
• Published: 07/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Almaguide Llc
• Original Assignee: Robert Gordon
• Inventors: Gordon, Robert
• Granted Patent: US 9,053,636 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/118
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09 Arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions railroad crossing signals B61L; reflectors E01F, G08B; indicating arrangements for variable information by selection or combination of individual elements G09F9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/167 Driving aids for lane monitoring, lane changing, e.g. blind spot detection

Abstract

The automated lane management assist method, data structure and system receive unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway information, including lane use and speed limits, from freeway transportation management centers or traffic management centers, process and convert the unprocessed information to a form that assists in the selection of driving lanes and target speeds for vehicles, and communicate the processed information to the vehicles by suitable means.

Claims

1. A method of assisting in selection of driving lanes and target speeds for vehicles, comprising the steps of:

a. receiving unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data from a traffic management center;

b. combining the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data with data from a static database to create intermediate lane-specific limited-access highway data;

c. generating processed lane-specific limited-access highway data from the intermediate lane-specific limited-access highway data; and

d. providing the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to one or more vehicles, said processed lane-specific limited-access highway data enabling an in-vehicle guidance assist vehicle module of the one or more vehicles to select a preferred lane and target speed for the preferred lane using a copy or a subset of the static database.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to the one or more vehicles is dynamic.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the in-vehicle guidance assist vehicle module uses the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to develop lane selection and target speed selection.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data provided to the in-vehicle guidance assist vehicle module includes one or more of lane volume, lane passenger car equivalent volume, lane average headway, lane density, lane speed, vehicle length by lane, static and dynamic regulatory lane-use data and static and dynamic tolling data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data is provided to the one or more vehicles sufficiently in advance of an action required by the one or more vehicles or a vehicle operator of the one or more vehicles to facilitate safe and comfortable lane changes and speed adjustments.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising using the processed lane-specific limited-accessed highway data in conjunction with software in the one or more vehicles.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising using the processed lane-specific limited-accessed highway data in conjunction with data provided by the one or more vehicles.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising using the processed lane-specific limited-accessed highway data in conjunction with data provided by an occupant of the one or more vehicles.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the data provided by the occupant of the one or more vehicles includes one or more of vehicle characteristics, vehicle passenger occupancy, highway use preferences, and toll preferences.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising periodically providing the data from the static database to the one or more vehicles to update the copy or the subset of the static database in the one or more vehicles.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of periodically providing data from a static database to the one or more vehicles includes correlating the static database with a data structure, wherein roadway zones containing the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data are sufficiently short to provide the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data with sufficient accuracy to facilitate lane selection and target speed generation and sufficiently long to facilitate a response by the one or more vehicles or by each respective driver of the one or more vehicles.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data includes one or more of lane based traffic parameter data, TMC traffic incident report data, lane blockage information, lane closure information, limitations on lane use, shoulder information, regulatory lane use data, scheduled roadway closures, toll information, dynamic speed limits, current lane speed, volume and occupancy vehicle detector data, camera data, vehicle class based lane restrictions, vehicle overheight restrictions, vehicle overweight restrictions, vehicle occupant requirements, and toll information to assist in the generation of lane selection information and the target speed information for vehicles.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data is generated based on one or more factors selected from the group consisting of traffic information, limitations on lane use, shoulder information, regulatory lane use data, scheduled roadway closures, toll information, dynamic speed limits, current lane speed, volume and occupancy vehicle detector data, camera data, vehicle class, vehicle overheight restrictions, vehicle overweight restrictions, vehicle occupant calls, and toll information.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data is performed using a data structure wherein roadway zones containing the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data are sufficiently short to generate the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data with sufficient accuracy to facilitate lane selection and target speed generation and sufficiently long to facilitate a response by the one or more vehicles or by each respective driver of the one or more vehicles.

15. A computer-implemented data structure for expressing traffic parameters, incident data, regulatory data and toll information in geographical segments that are appropriate for limited-access highway lane selection and target speed selection for the chosen lanes, said data structure comprising:

a. at least one interface for receiving unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data from a traffic management center; and

b. a processor coupled to the at least one interface, wherein the processor receives the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data through the at least one interface, processes the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data, and transmits processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to at least one vehicle in a form appropriate for limited-access highway lane selection and target speed selection for the chosen lanes.

16. The data structure of claim 15, further comprising a computer storage for storing processed lane-specific limited-access highway data, wherein the processor receives the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data through the at least one interface, processes the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data, and outputs processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to the computer storage in a form appropriate for limited-access highway lane selection and target speed selection for the chosen lanes.

17. The data structure of claim 16, wherein the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data is transmitted to the at least one vehicle from the computer storage.

18. A system for assisting in selection of driving lanes and target speeds for vehicles, comprising:

a. an interface for receiving unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data from a traffic management center;

b. a processor coupled to the interface, wherein the processor receives the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data through the interface, processes the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data, and transmits processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to one or more vehicles; and

c. one or more of a lane closure guidance module, lane and speed limit requirements module, dynamic lane use requirements module, toll information module, module for checking detector values for accuracy, module for formatting traffic data, miscellaneous data module, and static database module, said one or more module operatively coupled to the processor for developing driving lane and target speed selection.

19. A system of claim 18, further comprising a computer storage for storing the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data, said computer storage being coupled to the processor, wherein the processor receives the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data through the interface, processes the unprocessed lane-specific limited-access highway data, and outputs the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to the computer storage.

20. A system of claim 19, further comprising a transmitter operatively coupled to the computer storage for transmitting the processed lane-specific limited-access highway data to the one or more vehicles.