Load-Based Mapping

• US 20200132487A1
• Filed: 01/01/2020
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Michael K. Colby
• Original Assignee: Michael K. Colby
• Inventors: Colby, Michael K.
• Granted Patent: US 10,900,797 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• 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: 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: G01C 21/3641 Personalized guidance, e.g. limited guidance on previously travelled routes

Abstract

This document describes techniques and apparatuses for load-based mapping. The techniques provide routes for drivers that take into account a cognitive, emotional, or psychological load for the routes. By so doing, a driver can receive a route from one point to another that the driver may better enjoy, feel less tired or stressed by, or take less mental effort to drive.

Claims

1. One or more computer-readable storage media having instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

determining, based on one or more factors affecting a cognitive, emotional, or psychological load for potential routes from a start location to an end location, a determined route for at least a portion of a route from the start location to the end location, the one or more factors affecting the cognitive, emotional, or psychological load including road surroundings for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, lane number for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, an amount of nature on a portion of at least one of the potential routes, types of vehicles present or likely to be present on a portion of at least one of the potential routes, perceived danger of a portion of at least one of the potential routes, a prior-driven route portion driven by the driver for at least a portion of one of the potential routes, aesthetics of a portion of at least one of the potential routes, or a route-based disturbance of a portion of at least one of the potential routes, the one or more factors including at least the prior-driven route portion driven by the driver for a least a portion of one of the potential routes,

wherein the determined route includes the at least one prior-driven route portion driven by the driver, the prior-driven route portion having a first location and a second location, the first location at or after the start location of the determined route and the second location at or before the end location of the determine route; and

providing the determined route to the driver, an entity from which a request to determine the route was received, or an automobile navigation system.

2. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein determining the determined route further comprises receiving multiple potential routes and the determining selects the determined route from the received multiple potential routes based on the factors.

3. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the determining the determined route determines a change to a portion of an existing route, the existing route determined based on a time or distance, the change to the portion altering the existing route based on the one or more factors.

4. The computer-readable storage media of claim 3, wherein the altering the existing route ceases audio for step-by-step instructions for at least a portion of the prior-driven route portion.

5. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein using the prior-driven route portion increases a total time for the route compared to a fastest route from the start location to the end location.

6. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes providing an instruction indicating to proceed to a name for the second location or the prior-driven route portion, the providing reducing an amount of instructions of step-by-step instructions to proceed from the start location to the end location.

7. The computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein reducing the amount of instructions avoids at least one instruction of the step-by-step instructions to proceed from the first location to the second location, the avoided at least one instruction including an instruction to turn from one street to another street or change lanes.

8. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route with the prior-driven route portion ceases audio instructions during at least a portion of the prior-driven route portion.

9. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes step-by-step instructions from the second location of the prior-driven location to the end location.

10. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes a single instruction to proceed to the second location, the single instruction not including step-by-step instructions from the first location to the second location.

11. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route provides the determined route in prior-driven portions, the prior-driven portions including at least the prior-driven route portion and an additional prior-driven route portion.

12. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein determining the determined route from the start location to the end location further comprises the determined route including a second prior-driven route portion previously driven by the driver, the prior-driven route portion having a third location after the second location and at or before the end location.

13. The computing device of claim 12, wherein providing the determined route includes providing instructions indicating to proceed to the third location, the instructions to the third location indicating a name for the third location and effective to avoid at least one step of step-by-step instructions to proceed from the second location to the third location.

14. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the one or more factors further include at least the road surroundings for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the road surroundings for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the road surroundings for the portion having open spaces and large gaps from a road of the portion to objects, and wherein the determined route includes the portion determined to have the low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

15. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the one or more factors further include at least the lane number for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the lane number for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the lane number being two lanes, and wherein the determined route includes the portion determined to have the low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

16. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the one or more factors further include at least the types of vehicles on or likely to be on a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the types of vehicles for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the types of vehicles including semi-tractor trailers, and wherein the determined route does not include the portion determined to have the high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

17. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the one or more factors further include at least the perceived danger for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the perceived danger for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the perceived danger including a lack of shoulder or lack of gradual entry, and wherein the determined route does not include the portion determined to have the high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

18. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the providing the determined route is provided to the driver and the providing is through an audio or visual output structure of a computing device.

19. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the providing the determined route is provided to the automobile navigation system, and wherein the automobile navigation system includes an audio or visual output structure and through which instructions to perform the determined route are to be presented to the driver.

20. The computer-readable storage media of claim 19, wherein the providing the determined route to the automobile navigation system is provided from a smartphone or wearable computing device associated with the one or more processors.

21. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the providing the determine route is provided to the entity from which the request to determine the route was received, the entity being a smartphone or wearable computing device, the smartphone or wearable computing device including an audio or visual output structure integral with the smartphone or wearable computing device and through which instructions to perform the determined route are to be presented to the driver.

22. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, further comprising receiving the request, from the driver, for a route to the end location and wherein the start location is determined based on a current location of a computing device at which the request is received.

23. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the time or distance is one of the one or more factors affecting the cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

24. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes providing instructions indicating to proceed to a name for the prior-driven route portion or the second location, the providing effective to avoid at least one step of step-by-step instructions to proceed from the first location to the second location and wherein the one or more factors further include at least the road surroundings for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the road surroundings for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the road surroundings for the portion having open spaces and large gaps from a road of the portion to objects, and wherein the determined route includes the portion determined to have the low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

25. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes providing instructions indicating to proceed to a name for the prior-driven route portion or for the second location, the providing effective to avoid at least one step of step-by-step instructions to proceed from the first location to the second location and wherein the one or more factors further include at least the lane number for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the lane number for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the lane number being two lanes, and wherein the determined route includes the portion determined to have the low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

26. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes providing instructions indicating to proceed to a name for the prior-driven route portion or for the second location, the providing effective to avoid at least one step of step-by-step instructions to proceed from the first location to the second location and wherein the one or more factors further include at least the types of vehicles on or likely to be on a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the types of vehicles for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the types of vehicles including semi-tractor trailers, and wherein the determined route does not include the portion determined to have the high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

27. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route includes providing instructions indicating to proceed to a name for the prior-driven route portion or for the second location, the providing effective to avoid at least one step of step-by-step instructions to proceed from the first location to the second location and wherein the one or more factors further include at least the perceived danger for a portion of at least one of the potential routes, and wherein the perceived danger for the portion of the at least one of the potential routes is determined to have a high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the perceived danger including a lack of shoulder or lack of gradual entry, and wherein the determined route does not include the portion determined to have the high cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

28. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the determining the determined route is based on a driver history indicating, for at least a recorded portion of one or more of the potential routes, a load or preference for the recorded portion.

29. The computer-readable storage media of claim 28, wherein the load or preference for the recorded portion includes a number of times that the driver has driven the recorded portion, the number of times inversely associated with the load for the recorded portion.

30. The computer-readable storage media of claim 28, wherein the load or preference for the recorded portion includes an explicit selection by the driver of the preference for or against the recorded portion.

31. The computer-readable storage media of claim 28, wherein the driver history is determined, prior to the determining the determined route, based on annotations to a map, the annotations indicating a preference affecting the load for a portion of the map.

32. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the determining the determined route is based on a driver history indicating a preference for road surroundings, lane number, amount of nature, types of vehicles present, perceived danger, a prior-driven route portion, or aesthetics.

33. The computer-readable storage media of claim 32, further comprising weighting the one or more factors based on the driver history, the weighting used as part of determining the determined route.

34. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein determining the determined route based on the one or more factors weights the factors based on a current condition of the driver or of a vehicle in which the driver resides or is associated.

35. The computer-readable storage media of claim 34, wherein the current condition is children in the vehicle, the current condition increasing a weight of the cognitive, emotional, or psychological load for the perceived danger of the portion of the at least one of the potential routes.

36. The computer-readable storage media of claim 34, wherein the current condition is the driver being in a hurry, the current condition decreasing a weight of the cognitive, emotional, or psychological load for the potential routes.

37. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, further comprising annotating a map useable to perform the determination of the route, the annotating including an indication of a load for a portion of the map.

38. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, further comprising also providing a second determined route, the second determined route being a faster or shorter route than the determined route, and, responsive to a selection by the driver of the determined route, providing the selected, determined route to the driver through an audio or visual structure.

39. The computer-readable storage media of claim 38, wherein the providing the second determined route indicates that the second determined route is faster or shorter than the determined route and information about a load of the determined route.

40. The computer-readable storage media of claim 39, wherein the providing also indicates an amount of time or distance between the determined route and the second determined route.

41. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein providing the determined route indicates a type of load of the determined route or a portion of the determined route, the type of load indicating a lower cognitive, emotional, or psychological load based on the road surroundings, lane number, amount of nature, types of vehicles present or likely to be present, perceived danger, prior-driven route portion driven by the driver, or aesthetics for the determined route or the portion of the determined route.

42. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the providing the determined route provides a portion of the route, the portion determined to have a low cognitive, emotional, or psychological load.

43. The computer-readable storage media of claim 42, wherein the providing the portion of the route causes an audio or visual structure to provide an indication of the portion and information about a load of the portion of the route.

44. The computer-readable storage media of claim 42, wherein the providing the portion of the route indicates a change to an existing route, the change adding time or distance to the existing route and reducing the cognitive, emotional, or psychological load of the existing route.

45. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein determining the determined route based on the one or more factors includes a factor for a number of turns.

46. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the determining the potential routes from the start location to the end location is further based on a time or distance for each of the potential routes or route portions.

47. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the determining the potential routes from the start location to the end location includes determining all of the route from the start location to the end location and the providing the determine route provides all of the determined route.

48. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein determining the determined route based on the one or more factors includes a factor for a number of stop lights.

49. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the prior-driven route portion has been driven by the driver multiple times.

50. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein determining the determined route based on the one or more factors includes a factor for an angle of a turn, a mild angle having a lower load than a 90-degree angle.