Method and system for vehicle proximity searching

• US 6,775,613 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2002
• Issued: 08/10/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Motors LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Burt, Wylie R., Gibb, Mark, Hanevich, Daniel A., Kettenbeil, Kelley
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAN QUANG
• Application Number:
  US10/100,320
• Publication Number:
  US 20030182057A1
• Time in Patent Office: 869 Days
• Field of Search: 701/201, 701/202, 701/206, 701/208, 701/209, 701/210, 701/211, 701/213, 340/995.24, 340/995.23, 340/995.12, 340/995.17
• US Class Current: 701/213
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3679 Retrieval, searching and output of POI information, e.g. hotels, restaurants, shops, filling stations, parking facilities G01C21/3611 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles

Abstract

The invention provides a method of searching for features of interest in proximity to a mobile vehicle. A vehicle location coordinate and a vehicle proximity parameter are provided to a vehicle proximity search application. The application generates a vehicle proximity area for the mobile vehicle based on the mobile vehicle location coordinate and the vehicle proximity parameter. The application may access a database containing features of interest. A feature or element of interest that has any portion of it in the vehicle proximity area is selected. The distance from each feature of interest to the mobile vehicle location is calculated.

Claims

1. A method of searching for an element of interest in proximity to a mobile vehicle comprising:

receiving a vehicle proximity search request from the mobile vehicle;

receiving a mobile vehicle location coordinate from the mobile vehicle;

receiving a vehicle proximity parameter from the mobile vehicle;

determining a vehicle proximity area for the mobile vehicle based on the received mobile vehicle location coordinate and the received vehicle proximity parameter;

determining whether the element of interest is located within the determined vehicle proximity area;

determining a distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to the element of interest; and

transmitting a notification to the mobile vehicle based on the determined distance from the mobile vehicle location to the element of interest, wherein the vehicle proximity search request, the mobile vehicle location coordinate, and the vehicle proximity parameter are received at a stationary site.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the element of interest is selected from a plurality of elements of interest contained in a database, the database residing at the stationary site.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the element of interest is selected from a group consisting of a point, a line, a polygon and a region.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the element of interest is within the vehicle proximity area when at least one point of the element of interest is within the vehicle proximity area.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the vehicle proximity parameter is a distance.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the vehicle proximity area comprises a box positioned around the mobile vehicle location coordinate.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the distance from the mobile vehicle location coordinate to the sides of the box is substantially equal to the vehicle proximity parameter.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the vehicle proximity area is determined based on an existing condition.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the existing condition is selected from the group consisting of a vehicle speed, a vehicle direction, a vehicle destination, a vehicle destination route and a vehicle destination route condition.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

classifying each element of interest within the determined vehicle proximity area based on the determined distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to the element of interest.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving the mobile vehicle location coordinate comprises receiving a mobile vehicle location coordinate from an in-vehicle global positioning system unit.

12. A mobile vehicle proximity search system comprising:

means for receiving a vehicle proximity search request from the mobile vehicle;

means for receiving a mobile vehicle location coordinate from the mobile vehicle;

means for receiving a vehicle proximity parameter from the mobile vehicle;

means for determining a vehicle proximity area for the mobile vehicle based on the received mobile vehicle location coordinate and the received vehicle proximity parameter;

means for determining whether the element of interest is located within the determined vehicle proximity area;

means for determining a distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to the element of interest; and

means for transmitting a notification to the mobile vehicle based on the determined distance from the mobile vehicle location to the element of interest, wherein the vehicle proximity search request, the mobile vehicle location coordinate, and the vehicle proximity parameter are received at a stationary site.

13. The system of claim 12 further comprising:

an in-vehicle global positioning system unit to provide the mobile vehicle location coordinate.

14. The system of claim 12 further comprising:

a communication system connected between the mobile vehicle and the stationary site.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the communication system has at least one wireless portion.

16. A computer usable medium including a program for searching a database for an element of interest in proximity to a mobile vehicle, comprising:

computer program code to receive a vehicle proximity search request from the mobile vehicle;

computer program code to receive a mobile vehicle location coordinate from the mobile vehicle;

computer program code to receive a vehicle proximity parameter from the mobile vehicle;

computer program code to determine a vehicle proximity area based on the received mobile vehicle location coordinate and the received vehicle proximity parameter;

computer program code to determine whether an element of interest is located within the determined vehicle proximity area;

computer program code to determine a distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to the element of interest; and

computer program code to transmit a notification to the mobile vehicle based on the determined distance from the mobile vehicle location to the element of interest, wherein the vehicle proximity search request, the mobile vehicle location coordinate, and the vehicle proximity parameter are received at a stationary site.

17. The program of claim 16, further comprising:

computer program code to classify each element of interest within the determined vehicle proximity area based on the determined distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to the element of interest.

18. The program of claim 16, further comprising:

computer program code to classify each element of interest based on an existing condition.

19. The program of claim 18, wherein the existing condition is selected from the group consisting of a vehicle speed, a vehicle direction, a vehicle destination, a vehicle destination route and a vehicle destination route condition.

20. The program of claim 16, further comprising:

computer program code to receive the mobile vehicle location coordinate from a wireless communication system connected between the mobile vehicle and the stationary site.

21. A method of searching for a feature of interest in proximity to a mobile vehicle, the method comprising:

receiving a vehicle proximity search request from a subscriber in the mobile vehicle, the vehicle proximity search request including a mobile vehicle location coordinate and a vehicle proximity parameter;

determining a vehicle proximity area for the mobile vehicle based on the received mobile vehicle location coordinate and the received vehicle proximity parameter;

searching a plurality of elements of interest contained in a database;

determining whether any elements of interest in the plurality of elements of interest are within the determined vehicle proximity area;

determining a distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to each of the elements of interest within the determined vehicle proximity area; and

transmitting a vehicle proximity search response to the subscriber based on the determined distance from the received mobile vehicle location coordinate to each of the elements within the determined vehicle proximity area, wherein the vehicle proximity search request is received by an advisor residing at a stationary site.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the advisor comprises one of a human advisor and a virtual advisor.