Method and system for route calculation that avoids railroad crossings
First Claim
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1. A method of providing a user of a motor vehicle with a route to a destination using a vehicle navigation system, comprising the steps of:
- receiving input from the user that indicates a destination;
accessing a geographic database to obtain data that represent roads in a region in which the motor vehicle is operating, wherein said data that represent roads include data that indicate railroad crossings along said roads; and
determining a route to the destination by selecting portions of roads to form a continuous path to the destination, wherein during the step of selecting, portions of roads that have railroad crossings are suppressed from inclusion in said route.
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Abstract
A navigation system provides information about railroad crossing locations. A geographic database used by the navigation system includes data that indicate whether an at-grade railroad crossing is located along a road segment. Using this information, a route calculation function in the navigation system calculates a route to a destination that avoids road segments that have at-grade railroad crossings. In this way, the delays associated with waiting for a train to cross a road are avoided.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. A method of providing a user of a motor vehicle with a route to a destination using a vehicle navigation system, comprising the steps of:
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receiving input from the user that indicates a destination;
accessing a geographic database to obtain data that represent roads in a region in which the motor vehicle is operating, wherein said data that represent roads include data that indicate railroad crossings along said roads; and
determining a route to the destination by selecting portions of roads to form a continuous path to the destination, wherein during the step of selecting, portions of roads that have railroad crossings are suppressed from inclusion in said route. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
receiving an indication from the user that at-grade railroad crossings should be avoided.
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3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
providing a warning to the user when an at-grade railroad crossing is being approached.
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4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
if all routes route to the destination include at least one at-grade railroad crossing, advising the user that a route that avoids at-grade railroad crossings is not available.
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5. The method of claim 1 wherein portions of roads that have at-grade railroad crossings are suppressed from inclusion in said route by increasing a value of a cost of travel associated with a road segment that has an at-grade railroad crossing located thereon.
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6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
as part of the step of determining the route to the destination, increasing a cost of travel associated with each road segment that has an at-grade railroad crossing located thereon by an amount.
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7. The method of claim 6 wherein said amount corresponds approximately to an average duration of time that the represented road segment is blocked by a train crossing.
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8. The method of claim 6 wherein said amount corresponds to a relatively much greater amount of time than the amount of time that the represented road segment is blocked by a train crossing.
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9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
receiving an indication from the user that at-grade railroad crossings should be minimized.
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10. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of determining the route to the destination provides the fastest route from which portions of roads that have railroad crossings have been suppressed.
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11. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of determining the route to the destination provides the shortest route from which portions of roads that have railroad crossings have been suppressed.
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12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
providing the user with an option to choose between minimizing roads that have railroad crossings and avoiding portions of roads that have railroad crossings.
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13. A method of providing a user of a motor vehicle with a route to a destination using a vehicle navigation system, comprising the steps of:
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receiving input from the user that indicates a destination;
accessing a geographic database to obtain data that represent roads in a region in which the motor vehicle is operating, wherein said data that represent roads include data that indicate railroad crossings along said roads;
determining a first route to the destination by selecting portions of roads to form a continuous path to the destination; and
if the first route includes at least one at-grade railroad crossing and another route to the destination exists that does not have any at-grade railroad crossings, advising the user that a route that avoids at-grade railroad crossings exists. - View Dependent Claims (14)
after the step of advising, requesting an indication from the user whether guidance for following the route that avoids at-grade railroad crossings should be provided.
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Specification