SEAMLESS TRANSITION FROM OUTDOOR TO INDOOR MAPPING

• US 20140309924A1
• Filed: 04/11/2014
• Published: 10/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Varoglu, Devrim, Bansal, Monika, Dave, Swapnil R.
• Granted Patent: US 9,976,860 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/410
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/206 specially adapted for indoor navigation

Abstract

Techniques are described for seamlessly transitioning from a map that displays out-of-doors elements to a map that displays indoor elements, in response to detecting a transition event. The transition event may be, for example, that a navigation system that is generating the out-of-doors map has moved to an indoors location. Techniques are also provided for navigating to a parking spot in a parking structure. Specifically, users may search for parking spots that satisfy specific criteria. The search for a parking spot that satisfies the criteria may be initiated at the time a trip begins, or may be automatically triggered by some event. For example, a search for available parking spots near a designated destination may be automatically initiated as a user comes within a predetermined distance of the designated destination.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

detecting a current location of a computing device that is associated with a display;

based on the current location of the computing device, causing the display to depict a first map of out-of-doors elements in the vicinity of the current location of computing device; and

detecting that the current location of the computing device has transitioned to an indoors location by

detecting that the computing device has begun to receive wireless signals from a plurality of stationary transmitters; and

based on the wireless signals, determining that the computing device is moving into the indoors location; and

in response to detecting that the current location of the computing device has transitioned to an indoors location, causing the display to depict a second map of indoors elements in the vicinity of the current location of the computing device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein detecting that the current location of the computing device has transitioned includes detecting that a GPS signal by which the current location of the computing device is determined has become weak or lost.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the indoors location is a parking structure, and the second map illustrates individual parking spots within the parking structure.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the second map indicates that a particular parking spot within the parking structure is currently available.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising causing the computing device to communicate directions for moving from the current location to the particular parking spot.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the computing device receives map data for the second map from at least one stationary transmitter.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the second map includes a first indicator that indicates a current location of the computing device, a second indicator that indicates a particular indoor element designated as a destination, and a suggested route from the current location to the particular indoor element.

8. A method comprising:

receiving, at a computing device, input that indicates an intended destination;

filtering a plurality of indoor elements, which belong to one or more indoor structures at or near the intended destination, based on one or more characteristics of the indoor elements to produce a filtered set of indoor elements that includes less than all of the plurality of indoor elements; and

causing the computing device to provide directions from a current location of the computing device to a particular indoor element from the filtered set of indoor elements.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein:

the one or more indoor structures are one or more parking structures; and

the indoor elements are parking spots.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the intended destination is a particular parking structure.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein:

the intended destination is not a particular parking structure; and

the method further comprises automatically performing a search based on the location of the intended destination to identify the one or more parking structures.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the one or more characteristics include current availability of the parking spots.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the one or more characteristics include size of the parking spots.

14. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of automatically performing a search is performed in response to an event that indicates that the computing device is approaching the intended destination.

15. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of filtering is performed in response to an event that indicates that the computing device is approaching the intended destination.

16. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause performance of a method comprising:

detecting a current location of a computing device that is associated with a display;

based on the current location of the computing device, causing the display to depict a first map of out-of-doors elements in the vicinity of the current location of computing device; and

detecting that the current location of the computing device has transitioned to an indoors location by

detecting that the computing device has begun to receive wireless signals from a plurality of stationary transmitters; and

based on the wireless signals, determining that the computing device is moving into the indoors location; and

in response to detecting that the current location of the computing device has transitioned to an indoors location, causing the display to depict a second map of indoors elements in the vicinity of the current location of the computing device.

17. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16 wherein detecting that the current location of the computing device has transitioned includes detecting that a GPS signal by which the current location of the computing device is determined has become weak or lost.

18. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 17 wherein the indoors location is a parking structure, and the second map illustrates individual parking spots within the parking structure.

19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 18 wherein the second map indicates that a particular parking spot within the parking structure is currently available.

20. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises causing the computing device to communicate directions for moving from the current location to the particular parking spot.

21. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16 wherein the computing device receives map data for the second map from at least one stationary transmitter.

22. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16 wherein the second map includes a first indicator that indicates a current location of the computing device, a second indicator that indicates a particular indoor element designated as a destination, and a suggested route from the current location to the particular indoor element.

23. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause performance of a method comprising:

receiving, at a computing device, input that indicates an intended destination;

filtering a plurality of indoor elements, which belong to one or more indoor structures at or near the intended destination, based on one or more characteristics of the indoor elements to produce a filtered set of indoor elements that includes less than all of the plurality of indoor elements; and

causing the computing device to provide directions from a current location of the computing device to a particular indoor element from the filtered set of indoor elements.

24. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 23 wherein:

the one or more indoor structures are one or more parking structures; and

the indoor elements are parking spots.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the intended destination is a particular parking structure.

26. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 24 wherein:

the intended destination is not a particular parking structure; and

the method further comprises automatically performing a search based on the location of the intended destination to identify the one or more parking structures.

27. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 24 wherein the one or more characteristics include current availability of the parking spots.

28. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 24 wherein the one or more characteristics include size of the parking spots.

29. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 23 wherein the step of automatically performing a search is performed in response to an event that indicates that the computing device is approaching the intended destination.

30. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 23 wherein the step of filtering is performed in response to an event that indicates that the computing device is approaching the intended destination.