Transfer location navigation method and arrangement

• US 6,477,462 B1
• Filed: 07/27/2000
• Issued: 11/05/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Rychlak, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PIPALA, EDWARD J
• Application Number:
  US09/626,944
• Time in Patent Office: 831 Days
• Field of Search: 701/201, 701/204, 701/208-211, 701/300, 701/302, 340/988, 340/990, 340/993, 340/994, 340/995, 340/905
• US Class Current: 701/210
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3423 Multimodal routing, i.e. combining two or more modes of transportation, where the modes can be any of, e.g. driving, walking, cycling, public transport

Abstract

A drive of a primary transportation means is navigated by a navigation device along a calculated route from a starting point to a destination by the device issuing appropriate travel advice, in that a transfer location from the primary transportation means to a secondary transportation means traveling to an ultimate destination is selected for the above destination, and additional information is produced in dependence on known departure times and destinations of various ones of the secondary transportation means for use in at least one of bringing such additional information to the driver'"'"'s attention and calculating the route.

Claims

1. A method of navigating a driver of a primary transportation means along a calculated route from a starting point to a destination by issuing appropriate travel advice, comprising the steps of:

selecting a transfer location from the primary transportation means to a secondary transportation means traveling to an ultimate destination as said destination; and

producing additional information, in addition to said travel advice, in dependence on known destinations of various ones of the secondary transportation means and departure times of various ones of the secondary transportation means from said transfer location and said starting point for use in at least one of bringing such additional information to the driver'"'"'s attention and calculating the route.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said producing step includes determining said information in dependence on the ultimate destination entered by the driver.

3. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said producing step includes generating an indication of the time available before the departure of the particular secondary transportation means from at least one of the present location of the primary transportation means and the prospective time or arrival of the primary transportation means at the transfer location.

4. The method as defined in claim 3, wherein said generating step includes issuing, in the event that said available time indication drops below a predetermined threshold, another indication of the time available before the departure of the next following secondary transportation means instead.

5. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said selecting step includes using the additional information obtained in said producing step for determining the travel route to that of all possible transfer locations from which the secondary transportation means that arrives at the ultimate destination the soonest departs.

6. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said selecting step includes using the additional information obtained in said producing step for determining the travel route to that of all possible transfer locations from which the secondary transportation means that arrives at the ultimate destination the soonest departs at a time no sooner than a predetermined time period after the prospective arrival of the primary transportation means at that transfer location.

7. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said producing step includes retrieving departure times and ultimate destinations of the secondary transportation means from a storage.

8. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein said producing step includes obtaining departure times and ultimate destinations of the secondary transportation means from a data base over a wireless connection.

9. An arrangement for navigating a driver of a primary transportation means along a calculated route from a starting point to a destination by issuing appropriate travel advice, comprising:

means for storing departure times from transfer locations from the primary transportation means to a secondary transportation means, and ultimate destinations to which such secondary transportation means travel; and

navigation computing means for producing additional information in dependence on such stored departure times of various ones of the secondary transportation means from said transfer locations and ultimate destinations of various ones of the secondary transportation means and the starting point information for use in at least one of bringing such additional information to the driver'"'"'s attention and calculating the route.

10. The arrangement as defined in claim 9;

and further comprising means for receiving updated information from a remote location about the currently applicable ones of said departure times and ultimate destinations; and

means for storing such updated information for use by said navigation computing means.

11. A method for calculating a route of transportation means in a navigation device, comprising the steps of:

calculating said route of a primary transportation means from a first starting point to a transfer location, whereby said transfer location is a second starting point for secondary transportation means to an ultimate destination;

producing information in dependence on known departure times and destinations of various ones of the secondary transportation means for use in calculating the route.

12. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said information is brought to the attention of a driver of said transportation means.

13. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said producing step includes determining said information in dependence on the ultimate destination entered by the driver.

14. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said producing step includes generating an indication of the time available before the departure of the particular secondary transportation means from at least one of the present location of the primary transportation means and the prospective time or arrival of the primary transportation means at the transfer location.

15. The method as defined in claim 14, wherein said generating step includes issuing, in the event that said available time indication drops below a predetermined threshold, another indication of the time available before the departure of the next following secondary transportation means instead.

16. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said calculating step includes using the information obtained in said producing step for determining the travel route to that of all possible transfer locations from which the secondary transportation means that arrives at the ultimate destination the soonest departs.

17. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said calculating step includes using the additional information obtained in said producing step for determining the travel route to that of all possible transfer locations from which the secondary transportation means that arrives at the ultimate destination the soonest departs at a time no sooner than a predetermined time period after the prospective arrival of the primary transportation means at that transfer location.

18. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said producing step includes retrieving departure times and ultimate destinations of the secondary transportation means from a storage.

19. The method as defined in claim 11, wherein said producing step includes obtaining departure times and ultimate destinations of the secondary transportation means from a data base over a wireless connection.