Method and device for providing traffic information

• US 6,240,364 B1
• Filed: 02/07/2000
• Issued: 05/29/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: OL Security LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: DaimlerChrysler AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Inventors: Aleksic, Mario, Kerner, Boris
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US09/498,979
• Time in Patent Office: 477 Days
• Field of Search: 701/200, 701/201, 701/204, 701/210, 701/117, 701/118, 701/23, 701/24, 701/26, 340/988, 340/990, 340/995, 342/357.09
• US Class Current: 701/210
• 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 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard

Abstract

A method and a device for providing traffic information for a given vehicle in a road network whereby, starting with a given starting location and starting time, current and forecast traffic data are determined at a traffic center and prepared in such fashion that they can be transmitted to a given vehicle. Traffic data present at the traffic center, which include at least the current and forecast functional values of a traffic-dependent cost function for the individual route paths, is used to calculate, as a function of the starting location and the starting time, a cost function optimized route to each route path. A corresponding arrival time is then determined to each route path. The cost function value that belongs to each determined arrival time is then selected. The cost function values thus selected are prepared, if necessary, with additional traffic data as traffic information that can be transmitted.

Claims

1. A method for providing, to a vehicle, current and forecast traffic data for a given starting location on a road network at a given starting time, said method comprising the steps of:

determining a plurality of individual paths in the road network;

providing, at a traffic center, preliminary traffic data including at least current and forecast functional values of a specified traffic-dependent cost function for each of said individual paths, independent of said starting location and said starting time;

performing a traffic-dependent route search to determine a route which optimizes the cost function from the starting location to each respective one of said plurality of paths and determining a corresponding path arrival time;

choosing, for each respective route, one of said current and forecast cost function values which belongs to an associated determined arrival time;

providing at least said chosen cost function values as processed traffic data for the route paths of the network and transmitting said traffic data to said vehicle.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the step of providing said processed traffic data includes transforming said data into a data format used in the vehicle.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of choosing, for each respective route, one of said current and forecast cost function values which belongs to an associated determined arrival time includes the step of producing identifiable traffic events from said chosen cost function values, wherein said traffic events represent previously specified traffic objects and/or chosen cost function values which differ by more than a specified amount from specified reference cost function values.

4. The method according to one of claims 1, further including the step of generating error messages by which identifiable parts of previously prepared traffic data is marked individually as no longer valid.

5. A device for providing traffic information, from a traffic center to a given vehicle in a road network, comprising:

means for providing at least current and forecast functional values of a specified traffic-dependent cost function for each of a plurality of route paths of the road network;

a traffic-dependent route search means for calculating a plurality of routes which optimize the cost function from a starting location to each of said plurality of route paths of the road network;

means for determining a plurality of corresponding route path arrival times for each of said plurality of calculated routes;

means for choosing, for each respective path, one of said current and forecast cost function values which corresponds to said determined arrival time at said each respective path; and

means for transmitting to said vehicle at least said chosen cost function values as processed traffic data for each of said route paths of the road network.

6. The device according to claim 5, wherein said traffic center has at least one transformation unit for transforming said processed traffic data in a format that is used in the vehicle.

7. The device according to claim 5, wherein said traffic center further includes a delete generator for producing one of vehicle-related and road-network-related delete messages for marking identifiable parts of previously prepared traffic data as no longer valid.

8. A method for providing traffic information to a vehicle, comprising the steps of:

determining a plurality of individual paths in a road network;

providing, at a traffic center, traffic data including at least current and forecast functional values of a specified traffic-dependent cost function for each of said individual paths;

transmitting, from said vehicle to said traffic center, data indicating a starting location (S) and a starting time (t₀);

calculating, by means of a traffic-dependent route search method, a route which optimizes said cost function from said starting location to each of said plurality of route paths of the road network;

determining corresponding arrival times for each of said route paths;

choosing one of the current and forecast cost function values which belongs to the determined arrival time for a respective route path; and

processing said chosen value as traffic information and transmitting said traffic data to said vehicle.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the step of processing said chosen value further includes the step of generating error messages to delete parts of traffic information which are identified as no longer valid.

10. The method according to claim 8, further including the step of producing identifiable traffic events from the said chosen cost function values wherein said traffic events represent previously specified traffic objects.

11. The method according to claim 8, further including the step of producing identifiable traffic events from the said chosen cost function values wherein said traffic events represent selected cost function values which differ by more than a predetermined amount from a specified reference cost function value.