Traffic monitoring system

• US 6,965,325 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2003
• Issued: 11/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Finnern, Mark
• Primary Examiner(s): TRIEU, VAN THANH
• Application Number:
  US10/441,860
• Publication Number:
  US 20040233070A1
• Time in Patent Office: 911 Days
• Field of Search: 340/936, 340/991, 340/995.19, 340/995.23, 340/995.27, 340/905, 340/933, 340/937, 340/988, 340/990, 340/995.1, 340/995.13, 340/995.14, 340/995.17, 701/208, 701/209, 701/117, 701/200
• US Class Current: 340/995.23
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096816 where the complete route is transmitted to the vehicle at once
• 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 1/096866 where the complete route is shown to the driver
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096883 where input information is obtained using a mobile device, e.g. a mobile phone, a PDA

Abstract

Systems and techniques to determine a primary route between two locations by monitor vehicle speed using transmitting wireless devices. In general, in one implementation, the technique includes: receiving information associated with traffic conditions on a route from a starting location to a destination location; determining a primary route from the starting location to the destination location; determining an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from the vehicles; identifying one or more delayed portions of the primary route at which the average speed is less than a respective predetermined speed; and displaying the primary route including indicia of the one or more identified delayed portions. The wireless device may include a cellular phone and a personal digital assistant.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining a primary route from a starting location to a destination location;

determining an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from the vehicles, wherein determining an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route comprises determining a speed for at least one of the vehicles based on signals indicative of the presence of the vehicle within multiple reception areas;

identifying one or more delayed portions of the primary route at which the average speed is less than a respective predetermined speed; and

displaying the primary route including indicia of the one or more identified delayed portions.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying a delayed portion comprises:

determining an initial time when a signal from each of a plurality of transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along the primary route is received by a first receiver having a known reception area;

determining a final time when each of transmitters is no longer received by the first receiver;

calculating the speed of each of the transmitters through the first reception area;

combining the speeds of all transmitters in the series; and

determining a delayed portion based upon a comparison of the combined speed with a predetermined speed.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

iteratively identifying at predetermined intervals one or more delayed portions of the primary route at which the average speed is less than the respective predetermined speed; and

displaying the primary route including indicia of the one or more identified delayed portions.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising enabling a user to select the starting location and the destination location.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing at least one alternative route from the starting location to the destination location.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising enabling a user to select a primary route or an alternative route as a selected route.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a link from the indicia to the network resource identifying the delayed portion.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing a link to a display of information describing instructions for traveling the primary route.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the selected starting location or the destination location has a default value selectable by the user.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the starting location is determined from a signal received from a global positioning system associated with the user'"'"'s wireless transmitter.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a menu of options the options linked to network resources to provide information including at least one of map to display a map of the route from the starting location to the destination location, camera to display a camera view of a delayed portion, jams to display a listing of delayed portions on the primary route, switch to interchange the starting and destination locations, directions to provide a textual listing of driving instruction from the stating location to the destination location and change to enable a user to enter a default starting location or a default destination location.

12. A method comprising:

transmitting a starting location and a destination location to a server;

receiving a primary route from the starting location to the destination location including indicia at each portion of the route at which vehicle speed in each delayed portion is less than a respective expected value and wherein the vehicle speed is determined from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along the primary route, the signals being indicative of the presence of the vehicles in multiple reception areas; and

displaying the primary route and indicia.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the transmitting is accomplished by a wireless transmitting device.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the starting location is determined from a signal received from a global positioning system associated with the wireless transmitting device.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the wireless device includes a cellular phone and a personal digital assistant.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein the route and indicia are displayed on a wireless device.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising receiving at least one alternative route from the starting location to the destination location.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein each indicium provides a link to a network resource identifying the delayed portion.

19. The method of claim 13 further comprising receiving a display of information describing instructions for traveling the primary route.

20. The method of claim 13, further comprising receiving a menu of options the options linked to network resources to provide information including at least one of map to display a map of the route from the starting location to the destination location, camera to display a camera view of a delayed portion, jams to display a listing of delayed portions on the primary route, switch to interchange the starting and destination locations, directions to provide a textual listing of driving instruction from the stating location to the destination location and change to enable a user to enter a default starting location or a default destination location.

21. A method comprising:

determining a first location of a wireless transmitter transmitting from a vehicle traveling along a route relative to a first receiver at a first time based on a first signal received from the transmitter, the first location being within a first reception area;

determining a second location of the transmitter relative to the first receiver at a second time based on a second signal received from the transmitter, the second location being within a second reception area;

calculating a distance between the first and second locations based on information related to the first and second reception areas; and

calculating a speed of movement the transmitter.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising comparing the calculated speed to a predetermined speed.

23. A method comprising:

determining an initial time when a signal from each of a plurality of transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along a route is received by a first receiver having a known reception area;

determining a final time when each transmitter is no longer received by the first receiver;

calculating a time interval for each transmitter to travel through the first reception area;

calculating an average time for all transmitters to travel through the reception area; and

calculating an average speed of the transmitters traveling through the first reception area.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising comparing the average speed to a predetermined speed.

25. A method comprising:

associating each of a plurality of transmitting devices transmitting from vehicles traveling along a route with a time when a signal from each transmitting device is received by each of a plurality of receivers in a predetermined time period;

eliminating the associations where there is no corresponding time associated with each receiver;

calculating an interval time from an earliest time to a latest time associated with each transmitter;

calculating an average interval time, TiAv, for all transmitters; and

calculating an average speed, SPG1, of movement the transmitters as;

$\mathrm{SPG1}=\frac{L*60}{\mathrm{TiAv}}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{miles}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{per}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{hour}$

wherein L is a distance of a transmitter location from a nearest receiver when an earliest signal is received by one of the receivers to a transmitter location when from a nearest receiver when a latest signal is received from the transmitter.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising comparing the average speed to a predetermined speed.

27. An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

determining a primary route from a starting location to a destination location;

determining an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from the vehicles, wherein determining an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route comprises determining a speed for at least one of the vehicles based on signals indicative of the presence of the vehicle within multiple reception areas;

identifying one or more delayed portions of the primary route at which the average speed is less than a respective predetermined speed; and

displaying the primary route including indicia of the one or more identified delayed portions.

28. The article of claim 27, wherein identifying a delayed portion comprises storing instructions operable to cause the one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

determining an initial time when a signal from each of a plurality of transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along the primary route is received by a first receiver having a known reception area;

determining a final time when each of transmitters is no longer received by the first receiver;

calculating the speed of each of the transmitters through the first reception area;

combining the speeds of all transmitters in the series; and

determining a delayed portion based upon a comparison of the combined speed with a predetermined speed.

29. The article of claim 27, further comprising storing instructions operable to cause the one or more machines to perform operations comprising providing at least one alternative route from the starting location to the destination location.

30. The article of claim 29, further comprising enabling a user to select a primary route or an alternative route as a selected route.

31. An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

transmitting a starting location and a destination location to a server;

receiving a primary route from the starting location to the destination location including indicia at each portion of the route at which vehicle speed in each delayed portion is less than a respective expected value and wherein the vehicle speed is determined from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along the primary route, the signals being indicative of the presence of the vehicles in multiple reception areas; and

displaying the primary route and indicia.

32. The article of claim 31 wherein the route and indicia are displayed on a wireless device.

33. The article of claim 31, further comprising receiving at least one alternative route from the starting location to the destination location.

34. An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

determining a first location of a wireless transmitter transmitting from a vehicle traveling along a route relative to a first receiver at a first time based on a first signal received from the transmitter, the first location being within a first reception area;

determining a second location of the transmitter relative to the first receiver at a second time based on a second signal received from the transmitter, a second location being within the second reception area;

calculating a distance between the first and second locations based on information related to the first and second reception areas; and

calculating a speed of movement the transmitter.

35. The article of claim 34, further comprising storing instructions operable to cause the one or more machines to perform operations comprising comparing the calculated speed to a predetermined speed.

36. An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

determining an initial time when a signal from each of a plurality of transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along a route is received by a first receiver having a known reception area;

determining a final time when each transmitter is no longer received by the first receiver;

calculating a time interval for each transmitter to travel through the first reception area;

calculating an average time for all transmitters to travel through the reception area; and

calculating an average speed of the transmitters traveling through the first reception area.

37. The article of claim 36, further comprising storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising comparing the average speed to a predetermined speed.

38. An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

associating each of a plurality of transmitting devices transmitting from vehicles traveling along a route with a time when a signal from each transmitting device is received by each of a plurality of receivers in a predetermined time period;

eliminating the associations where there is no corresponding time associated with each receiver;

calculating an interval time from an earliest time to a latest time associated with each transmitter;

calculating an average interval time, TiAv, for all transmitters; and

calculating an average speed, SPG1, of movement the transmitters as;

$\mathrm{SPG1}=\frac{L*60}{\mathrm{TiAv}}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{miles}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{per}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{hour}$

wherein L is a distance of a transmitter location from a nearest receiver when an earliest signal is received by one of the receivers to a transmitter location when from a nearest receiver when a latest signal is received from the transmitter.

39. The article of claim 38, further comprising comparing the average speed to a predetermined speed.

40. A system comprising one or more computers configured to:

determine a primary route from a starting location to a destination location;

determine an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from the vehicles, wherein the system configured to determine an average speed of vehicles along portions of the primary route comprises the system configured to determine a speed for at least one of the vehicles based on signals indicative of the presence of the vehicle within multiple reception areas;

identify one or more delayed portions of the primary route at which the average speed is less than a respective predetermined speed; and

display the primary route including indicia of the one or more identified delayed portions.

41. The system of claim 40, wherein the delayed portion is identified by the computers are configured:

determine an initial time when a signal from each of a plurality of transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along the primary route is received by a first receiver having a known reception area;

determine a final time when each of transmitters is no longer received by the first receiver;

calculate the speed of each of the transmitters through the first reception area;

combine the speeds of all transmitters in the series; and

determine a delayed portion based upon a comparison of the combined speed with a predetermined speed.

42. The system of claim 41, further comprising the computers configured to provide at least one alternative route from the starting location to the destination location.

43. The system of claim 42, further comprising the computers configured to enable a user to select a primary route or an alternative route as a selected route.

44. A system comprising one or more computers configured to:

transmit a starting location and a destination location to a server;

receive a primary route from the starting location to the destination location including indicia at each portion of the route at which vehicle speed in each delayed portion is less than a respective expected value and wherein the vehicle speed is determined from signals received from wireless transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along the primary route, the signals being indicative of the presence of the vehicle in multiple reception areas; and

display the primary route and indicia.

45. The system of claim 44 wherein the route and indicia are displayed on a wireless device.

46. The system of claim 45, further comprising the computers configured to receive at least one alternative route from the starting location to the destination location.

47. A system comprising one or more computers configured to:

determine a first location of a wireless transmitter transmitting from a vehicle traveling along a route relative to a first receiver at a first time based on a first signal received from the transmitter, the first location being within a first reception area;

determine a second location of the transmitter relative to the first receiver at a second time based on a second signal received from the transmitter, the second location being within a second reception areas;

calculate a distance between the first and second locations based on information related to the first and second reception areas; and

calculate a speed of the transmitter.

48. The system of claim 47, further comprising the computer configured to compare the calculated speed to a predetermined speed.

49. A system comprising one or more computers configured to:

determine an initial time when a signal from each of a plurality of transmitters transmitting from vehicles traveling along a route is received by a first receiver having a known reception area;

determine a final time when each transmitter is no longer received by the first receiver;

calculate a time interval for each transmitter to travel through the first reception area;

calculate an average time for all transmitters to travel through the reception area; and

calculate an average speed of the transmitters traveling through the first reception area.

50. The system of claim 49, further comprising the computers configured to compare the average speed to a predetermined speed.

51. A system comprising one or more computers configured to:

associate each of a plurality of transmitting devices transmitting from vehicles traveling along a route with a time when a signal from each transmitting device is received by each of a plurality of receivers in a predetermined time period;

eliminate the associations where there is no corresponding time associated with each receiver;

calculate an interval time from an earliest time to a latest time associated with each transmitter;

calculate an average interval time, TiAv, for all transmitters; and

calculate an average speed, SPG1, of the transmitters as;

$\mathrm{SPG1}=\frac{L*60}{\mathrm{TiAv}}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{miles}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{per}<br><br>\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{hour}$

wherein L is a distance of a transmitter location from a nearest receiver when an earliest signal is received by one of the receivers to a transmitter location when from a nearest receiver when a latest signal is received from the transmitter.

52. The system of claim 51, further comprising the computers configure to compare the average speed to a predetermined speed.