SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VEHICLE ROUTING USING MONETARY COST

• US 20140278092A1
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: 8318808 Canada Inc.
• Original Assignee: 8318808 Canada Inc.
• Inventors: Garg, Neeraj, Bhole, Anil
• Granted Patent: US 9,097,547 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/533
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3446 Details of route searching algorithms, e.g. Dijkstra, A*, arc-flags, using precalculated routes
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3461 Preferred or disfavoured areas, e.g. dangerous zones, toll or emission zones, intersections, manoeuvre types, segments such as motorways, toll roads, ferries
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3484 Personalized, e.g. from learned user behaviour or user-defined profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis

Abstract

A vehicle routing system and method in which routing is based in part on the monetary cost of various candidate routes. The candidate route that has a monetary cost less than a user determined cost parameter is selected as the route to be presented to the user.

Claims

1. A vehicle routing system comprising:

a) a user interface operable to collect from a user

i. a start point and end point for which a route is requested; and

ii. a cost parameter for said user;

b) a routing database comprising toll information for routes in a territory; and

c) a routing engine operable to determine one or more candidate routes between the start point and the end point and select the route from among the candidate routes by determining which of said candidate routes has a monetary cost lower than said cost parameter.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more candidate routes are determined by varying the usage of toll roads.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the cost parameter comprises monetary value of the user'"'"'s time.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the cost parameter comprises cost of operating a vehicle.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is further operable to collect from the user one or more intermediate points to be traversed along the route.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the route is the candidate route that has least travel time among the candidate routes having a monetary cost lower than the cost parameter.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the routing engine is configurable to apply cost differently for different categories.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the categories comprise at least two of business, leisure, family, casual, and urgent.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein cost parameter can be entered using user-specified unit and the routing engine normalizes the cost parameter.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of such users provide cost parameters and the routing engine determines a blended value to determine the route.

11. A method for vehicle routing system comprising:

a) collecting from a user;

i. a start point and end point for which a route is requested; and

ii. a cost parameter for said user;

b) determining, from a routing database comprising toll information for routes in a territory, one or more candidate routes between the start point and the end point; and

c) selecting, by one or more processors, the route from among the candidate routes by determining which of said candidate routes has a monetary cost lower than said cost parameter.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the one or more candidate routes are determined by varying the usage of toll roads.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the cost parameter comprises monetary value of the user'"'"'s time.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the cost parameter comprises cost of operating a vehicle.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the user interface is further operable to collect from the user one or more intermediate points to be traversed along the route.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the route is the candidate route that has least travel time among the candidate routes having a monetary cost lower than the cost parameter.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the routing engine is configurable to apply cost differently for different categories.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the categories comprise at least two of business, leisure, family, casual, and urgent.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein the cost parameter can be entered using user-specified unit and the routing engine normalizes the cost parameter.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein a plurality of such users provide cost parameters and the routing engine determines a blended value to determine the route.