NAVIGATION PEEK AHEAD AND BEHIND

• US 20150345976A1
• Filed: 05/30/2014
• Published: 12/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Moore, Christopher D., Blumenberg, Christopher, van Os, Marcel, Chen, Billy P.
• Granted Patent: US 9,599,485 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3415 Dynamic re-routing, e.g. recalculating the route when the user deviates from calculated route or after detecting real-time traffic data or accidents
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3632 Guidance using simplified or iconic instructions, e.g. using arrows G01C21/365 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3635 Guidance using 3D or perspective road maps
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3638 including 3D objects and buildings three dimensional [3D] modelling, e.g. data description of 3D objects G06T17/00; geographic models G06T17/05
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3664 Details of the user input interface, e.g. buttons, knobs or sliders, including those provided on a touch screen; remote controllers; input using gestures

Abstract

Some embodiments of the invention provide a navigation application that allows a user to peek ahead or behind during a turn-by-turn navigation presentation that the application provides while tracking a device (e.g., a mobile device, a vehicle, etc.) traversal of a physical route. As the device traverses along the physical route, the navigation application generates a navigation presentation that shows a representation of the device on a map traversing along a virtual route that represents the physical route on the map. While providing the navigation presentation, the navigation application can receive user input to look ahead or behind along the virtual route. Based on the user input, the navigation application moves the navigation presentation to show locations on the virtual route that are ahead or behind the displayed current location of the device on the virtual route. This movement can cause the device representation to no longer be visible in the navigation presentation. Also, the virtual route often includes several turns, and the peek ahead or behind movement of the navigation presentation passes the presentation through one or more of these turns. In some embodiments, the map can be defined presented as a two-dimensional (2D) or a three-dimensional (3D) scene.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program for providing turn-by-turn navigation presentation as a device traverses a physical route, the program comprising sets of instructions for:

providing, as the device traverses along the physical route, a navigation presentation that shows a representation of the device on a map traversing along a virtual route that represents the physical route on the map;

receiving input to look along the virtual route past the device representation; and

based on the received input, moving the navigation presentation past the device representation to show at least a location on the virtual route that does not correspond to a current location of the device on the physical route.

2. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the received input for is for peeking ahead along the virtual route, and the set of instructions for moving comprises a set of instructions for moving the navigation presentation to show a location on the virtual route that corresponds to a possible future location of the device on the physical route.

3. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the received input for is for peeking behind along the virtual route, and the set of instructions for moving comprises a set of instructions for moving the navigation presentation to show a location on the virtual route that corresponds to a previous location of the device on the physical route.

4. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein each location on the virtual route corresponds to a past, current or possible-future location of the device on the physical route.

5. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein moving the navigation presentation past the device presentation causes the device representation to no longer be visible in the navigation presentation.

6. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 1, wherein the program further comprises a set of instructions for returning, without user intervention, the navigation presentation to show a current location on the virtual route that corresponds to the current location of the device on the physical route.

7. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6, wherein the navigation presentation returns to the current location on the virtual route when the device reaches a navigation maneuver that has to be performed along the physical route.

8. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6, wherein

the device has a touch-sensitive display screen for receiving touch input,

the received input is a received touch input, and

the navigation presentation returns to the current location on the virtual route upon expiration of a timer that is set after the touch input terminates.

9. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6, wherein

the device has a touch-sensitive display screen for receiving touch input,

the received input is a received touch input, and

the navigation presentation returns to the current location on the virtual route when the touch input terminates.

10. A method of providing turn-by-turn navigation directions as a device traverses a physical route, the method comprising:

providing a navigation presentation from a perspective of a virtual camera that traverses along a virtual route on a map as the device traverses along the physical route, in order to generate successive rendering of the map about successive localities of the map that are defined by successive positions of the device;

receiving input to look ahead along the virtual route;

based on the received input, moving the virtual camera along the virtual route to generate renderings of the map at locations ahead along the virtual route.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

defining the map in terms of a three dimensional scene;

wherein the virtual camera captures successive perspective views of the three-dimensional map scene.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

changing an angle of rotation of the virtual camera so that the perspective view generated by the virtual camera includes more of the three dimensional map scene that is ahead along the route.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the changing of the angle of rotation occurs before the moving of the virtual camera.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the changing of the angle of rotation occurs in conjunction with the moving of the virtual camera.

15. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

defining the map in terms of a two dimensional scene;

wherein the virtual camera captures successive top-down views of the two-dimensional map scene.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the device has a touch-sensitive display screen for receiving touch input, wherein receiving input comprises receiving touch input, the method further comprising:

computing a first distance based on the touch input; and

based on the computed first distance, computing a second distance to move the virtual camera along the route.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the second computed distance is directly proportional to the first computed distance.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the second computed distance is not directly proportional to the first computed distance.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein computing the second distance comprises computing the second distance based on a formulation that reduces growing the second distance as the first distance grows.

20. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

without user intervention, returning the virtual camera to a current location in the map that is defined by a current location of the device along the physical route.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the virtual camera is returned to the current location based the device reaching a navigation maneuver that has to be performed along the physical route.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein

the device has a touch-sensitive display screen for receiving touch input,

receiving input comprises receiving touch input, and

the virtual camera is returned to the current location based on expiration of a timer that is set after the touch input terminates.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein

the device has a touch-sensitive display screen for receiving touch input,

receiving input comprises receiving touch input, and

the virtual camera is returned to the current location when the touch input terminates.

24. The method of claim 10, wherein the device is a mobile device.

25. The method of claim 10, wherein the device is a navigation device of a vehicle.

26. The method of claim 10, wherein the virtual route comprises a plurality of turns, wherein moving the virtual camera along the virtual route comprises moving the virtual camera past a subset of the turns.

27. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

tracking a position of the device as the device travels along the route; and

correlating the tracked position of the device to a location on the route in order to move the displayed representation of the device along the displayed representation of the route.

28. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

tracking the device as the device travels along the route;

determining when the device travels off the route;

identifying another route to the destination when the device travels off the route;

displaying the newly identified route and instructions to guide the device along the newly identified route.

29. A non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program for providing turn-by-turn navigation directions as a device traverses a physical route, the program comprising sets of instructions for:

presenting a navigation presentation from a perspective of a virtual camera that traverses along a virtual route on a map as the device traverses along the physical route, in order to generate successive rendering of the map about successive localities of the map that are defined by successive positions of the device;

receiving input to look behind along the virtual route to see a portion of the virtual route that has been traversed thus far;

moving the virtual camera along the route to generate renderings of the map at prior locations along the virtual route.