DIRECTIONS BASED ON PREDICTED FUTURE TRAVEL CONDITIONS

• US 20150168169A1
• Filed: 12/12/2013
• Published: 06/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Caceres, Manuel E., Li, Yuk Lun, Jackowski, Craig
• Granted Patent: US 9,709,413 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3492 employing speed data or traffic data, e.g. real-time or historical traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0133 for classifying traffic situation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0141 for traffic information dissemination
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096844 where the complete route is dynamically recomputed based on new data

Abstract

A device is configured to receive a request for directions from a user device. The device determines a start time, a start location, and a destination location for the directions. The device determines a route from the start location to the destination location and obtains travel condition information corresponding to the route. The travel condition information indicates a traffic condition or a weather condition. The device predicts a future travel condition along the route based on the travel condition information and the start time. The device generates the directions based on the future travel condition and provides the directions to the user device.

Claims

1. A device, comprising:

one or more processors to;

receive a request for directions from a user device;

determine a start time, a start location, and a destination location for the directions;

determine a route from the start location to the destination location;

obtain travel condition information corresponding to the route,

the travel condition information indicating at least one of a traffic condition or a weather condition;

predict a future travel condition along the route based on the travel condition information and the start time;

generate the directions based on the future travel condition; and

provide the directions to the user device.

2. The device of claim 1, where the directions indicate another route that avoids the future travel condition,

the other route being different from the route.

3. The device of claim 1, where the directions indicate another route that mitigates the future travel condition by reducing traffic on the route,

the other route being different from the route.

4. The device of claim 1, where the directions indicate a different start time that avoids the future travel condition.

5. The device of claim 1, where the one or more processors, when determining the destination location, are further to:

obtain past pattern information indicating at least one location to which the user device has previously traveled; and

predict the destination location based on the past pattern information.

6. The device of claim 5, where the one or more processors, when determining the destination location, are further to:

obtain current travel information indicating at least one of a current location of the user device, a location where the user device started moving, or a current route user device is using; and

predict the destination location based on the past pattern information and the current travel information.

7. The device of claim 5, where the past pattern information indicates a past route to the destination location used by the user device, and

where the one or more processors, when generating the directions, are further to:

generate the directions based on the past route and the future travel condition,

the directions indicating a different route than the past route that avoids the future travel condition.

8. A computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

a plurality of instructions that, when executed by a processor of a device, cause the processor to;

receive a request for directions from a user device;

determine a start time, a start location, and a destination location for the directions;

determine a route from the start location to the destination location;

obtain travel condition information related to the route,

the travel condition information indicating at least one of a current condition along the route or a planned condition along the route;

predict a future travel condition that intersects the route at a future time based on the start time and the travel condition information;

generate the directions based on the future travel condition; and

provide the directions to the user device.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the travel condition information is obtained by crowdsourcing a plurality of user devices.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the travel condition information indicates at least one of a planned route or planned destination location for a plurality of user devices, and

where the plurality of instructions, when predicting the future travel condition, further cause the processor to:

determine an intersect location where the plurality of user devices will intersect the route at the future time based on the at least one of the planned route or the planned destination location for the plurality of user devices; and

predict the future travel condition based on the intersect location.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the travel condition information indicates a predicted weather pattern, and

where the plurality of instructions, when predicting the future travel condition, further cause the processor to:

determine an intersect location where the weather pattern will intersect the route at the future time; and

predict the future travel condition based on the intersect location.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the travel condition information indicates a timing of a traffic light, and

where the plurality of instructions, when predicting the future travel condition, further cause the processor to:

determine an amount of traffic caused by the traffic light at the future time based on the timing of the traffic light; and

predict the future travel condition based on the amount of traffic.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the future travel condition corresponds to an amount of traffic at a location along the route at the future time,

where the amount of traffic does is independent of an amount of traffic present at the location along the route at a current time.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the future travel condition is a weather condition at a location along the route at the future time,

where the weather condition is independent of a weather condition present at the location along the route at a current time.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, where the directions include information, about the future travel condition, to be displayed on the user device.

16. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a device, a request for directions from a user device;

identifying, by the device, a start time, a start location, and a destination location for the directions;

identifying, by the device, a route from the start location to the destination location;

acquiring, by the device, travel condition information associated with the route,

the travel condition information indicating a travel condition along the route;

predicting, by the device, a future travel condition occurring at a future time along the route based on the travel condition information and the start time;

generating, by the device, the directions based on the future travel condition; and

transmitting, by the device, the directions to the user device.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising

determining an arrival time at the destination location based on the future travel condition,

where the directions indicate the arrival time.

18. The method of claim 16, where the future travel condition is a road condition at a location along the route at a future time,

where the road condition is independent of a road condition present at the location along the route at a current time.

19. The method of claim 16, where generating the directions further includes:

generating the directions based on a plurality of start times.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

updating the future travel condition based on new travel condition information;

generating new directions based on the updated future travel condition; and

providing the new directions to the user device.