Method for operating a navigation system for a vehicle

• US 6,711,498 B1
• Filed: 07/12/2002
• Issued: 03/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Lau, Stefan, Hoffmann, Ralf, Schmidt, Heinrich
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Thu V.
• Application Number:
  US10/070,593
• Time in Patent Office: 620 Days
• Field of Search: 701/200, 701/201, 701/202, 701/204, 701/205, 701/207-211, 701/213, 340/995, 340/990, 342/357, 342/454, 342/456-457
• US Class Current: 701/209
• 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 1/096827 where the route is computed onboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096838 where the user preferences are taken into account or the user selects one route out of a plurality
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096872 where instructions are given per voice

Abstract

A method for operating a navigation system for a vehicle, particularly for a motor vehicle, in which a travel route is calculated in a computing circuit on the basis of a location of the vehicle, a digitally stored map and a destination location, and is made available to the vehicle driver as an acoustical and/or visual message, where traffic information relevant to the travel route may be acquired via a receiver unit and a new travel time t resulting therefrom is calculated for the existing travel route with the aid of a predefined weighting factor G_f for a disturbance event and the length of a traffic disturbance L_s, and a travel time t_a is calculated in the same manner for an alternative route, and in the event that the travel time t_a of the alternative route is shorter than the travel time t of the travel route, is indicated to the vehicle driver. A correction value K for the weighting factors G_f is ascertained on the basis of the length of the traffic disturbance L_s, and a corrected weighting factor G_k is ascertained as a function of the correction value K_w and is used for calculating the new travel time t.

Claims

1. A method for operating a navigation system of a vehicle, comprising:

calculating a travel route in a computing circuit on the basis of a location of the vehicle, a digitally stored map, and a destination location;

communicating the travel route to a vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message;

acquiring traffic information relevant to the travel route via a receiver unit;

calculating a new travel time resulting from the traffic information and for the travel route in accordance with a weighting factor for a disturbance event and in accordance with a length of a traffic disturbance, the weighting factor for the disturbance event varying in accordance with a type of disturbance event;

calculating a second travel time in the same manner for an alternative route;

communicating at least one of the second travel time of the alternative route and the alternative route to the vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message, if the second travel time is shorter than the new travel time of the travel route;

ascertaining a correction value for predefined weighting factors on the basis of the length of the traffic disturbance; and

ascertaining a corrected weighting factor as a function of the correction value;

wherein;

the new travel time is calculated using the corrected weighting factor;

the correction value is ascertained in accordance with one of a family of characteristics and a predefined formula

the corrected weighting factor is calculated according to the formula G_k=G_f−

K, with K=L_s/100*n, G_k being the corrected weighting factor, G_f being the weighting factor for the disturbance event, K being the correction value, L_s being the length of the traffic disturbance, n being greater than or equal to 1, the alternative route being automatically calculated if G_k is less than or equal to 0.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

the vehicle driver inputs a subjective feeling with respect to the length of the traffic disturbance into the navigation system by determining a value for n, the new travel time rising with an increase in n, whereby the step of communicating at least one of the second travel time of the alternative route and the alternative route becomes more probable.

3. A method for operating a navigation system of a vehicle, the method comprising:

calculating a travel route in a computing circuit on the basis of a location of the vehicle, a digitally stored map and a destination location;

communicating the travel route to a vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message;

acquiring traffic information relevant to the travel route via a receiver unit;

calculating a new travel time resulting from the traffic information and for the travel route in accordance with a weighting factor for a disturbance event and in accordance with a length of a traffic disturbance, the weighting factor for the disturbance event varying in accordance with a type of disturbance event

calculating a second travel time in the same manner for an alternative route,

communicating at least one of the second travel time of the alternative route and the alternative route to the vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message, if the second travel time is shorter than the new travel time of the travel route;

ascertaining a correction value for predefined weighting factors on the basis of the length of the traffic disturbance; and

ascertaining a corrected weighting factor as a function of the correction value, wherein;

the new travel time is calculated using the corrected weighting factor, and

wherein, in addition to the length of the traffic disturbance, the correction value is ascertained on the basis of a vehicle driver selected value.

4. A method for operating a navigation system of a vehicle, the method comprising:

calculating a travel route in a computing circuit on the basis of a location of the vehicle, a digitally stored map, and a destination location;

communicating the travel route to a vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message;

acquiring traffic information relevant to the travel route via a receiver unit;

calculating a new travel time resulting from the traffic information and for the travel route in accordance with a weighting factor for a disturbance event and in accordance with a length of a traffic disturbance;

calculating a second travel time in the same manner for an alternative route;

communicating at least one of the second travel time of the alternative route and the alternative route to the vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message, if the second travel time is shorter than the new travel time of the travel route;

ascertaining a correction value for predefined weighting factors on the basis of the length of the traffic disturbance and a vehicle driver selected value; and

ascertaining a corrected weighting factor as a function of the correction value, wherein;

the new travel time is calculated using the corrected weighting factor.

5. A method for operating a navigation system of a vehicle, the method comprising:

calculating a travel route in a computing circuit on the basis of a location of the vehicle, a digitally stored map, and a destination location;

communicating the travel route to a vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message;

acquiring traffic information relevant to the travel route via a receiver unit;

calculating a new travel time resulting from the traffic information and for the travel route in accordance with a weighting factor for a disturbance event and in accordance with a length of a traffic disturbance;

calculating a second travel time in the same manner for an alternative route;

communicating at least one of the second travel time of the alternative route and the alternative route to the vehicle driver as at least one of an acoustical message and a visual message, if the second travel time is shorter than the new travel time of the travel route;

ascertaining a correction value for predefined weighting factors on the basis of the length of the traffic disturbance; and

ascertaining a corrected weighting factor as a function of the correction value, wherein;

the new travel time is calculated using the corrected weighting factor; and

wherein;

the corrected weighting factor is calculated according to the formula Gk=Gf−

K, with K=Ls/100*n, Gk being the corrected weighting factor, Gf being the weighting factor for the disturbance event, K being the correction value, Ls being the length of the traffic disturbance, n being greater than or equal to 1, the alternative route being automatically calculated if Gk is less than or equal to 0.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein:

the vehicle driver inputs a subjective feeling with respect to the length of the traffic disturbance into the navigation system by determining a value for n, the new travel time rising with an increase in n, whereby the step of communicating at least one of the second travel time of the alternative route and the alternative route becomes more probable.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein, in addition to the length of the traffic disturbance, the correction value is ascertained on the basis of a vehicle driver selected value.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the weighting factor for the disturbance varies in accordance with a type of disturbance event.