Height generating satellite navigation system

• US 7,489,991 B2
• Filed: 02/11/2003
• Issued: 02/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Harman International Industries Incorporated (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Bruelle-Drews, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Camby; Richard M.
• Application Number:
  US10/543,220
• Publication Number:
  US 20060271288A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,191 Days
• Field of Search: 701200-214, 701 3- 14, 34235702-35706, 342/352
• US Class Current: 701/10
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3822 Road feature data, e.g. slope data
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3844 Data obtained from position sensors only, e.g. from inertial navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position

Abstract

A vehicle satellite navigation system is provided for generating a standard height for a geographic location where the vehicle is located. The system may include a satellite receiver (100) that is capable of generating position data as a function of signals received from navigation satellites. The position data may include a longitude, a latitude, and a ellipsoidal height. The system may store undulation values for a geographic area in an undulation grid model (146) or in a digital map. The system may determine an approximate undulation value for the position, and calculate the standard height value for the position.

Claims

1. A vehicle satellite navigation system for determining a standard height for a position, the system comprising:

a satellite receiver operable to receive radio signals from navigation satellites and generate, as a function of the radio signals, a position for the vehicle;

a data storage device operable to store a digital map representing a section of road as a vector that includes an undulation value for the position; and

a processor coupled to the satellite receiver and to the data storage device;

where the position has an ellipsoidal height value and the processor is operable to generate a standard height value for the position as a function of the ellipsoidal height value and the undulation value.

2. The vehicle satellite navigation system of claim 1 comprising a height grid model that includes the undulation value, where the data storage device includes the height grid model.

3. A vehicle satellite navigation system for determining a standard height for a position, the system comprising:

a satellite receiver operable to receive radio signals from navigation satellites and generate, as a function of the radio signals, a position for the vehicle;

a data storage device operable to store a digital map representing a road as a vector and a height grid model that includes an undulation value for the position; and

a processor coupled to the satellite receiver and to the data storage device;

where the position has an ellipsoidal height value and the processor is operable to generate a standard height value for the position as a function of the ellipsoidal height value and the undulation value.

4. A method for determining a standard height for a vehicle position, the method comprising:

receiving radio signals from navigation satellites;

determining a longitude, a latitude, and an ellipsoidal height for a vehicle position as a function of the radio signals;

retrieving a first undulation value stored in a digital map in association with a section of road stored as a vector in the digital map in response to correspondence between the vehicle position and a position of the section of road;

retrieving a second undulation value stored in the digital map in association with the latitude and the longitude in response to an absence of any correspondence between the vehicle position and the position of the section of road; and

generating a standard height for the vehicle position as a function of the ellipsoidal height value and one of the first undulation value or the second undulation value.

5. The method of claim 4, where the second undulation value includes a set of undulation values for an area.

6. The method of claim 5, where retrieving the second undulation value includes identifying an undulation value from the set of undulation values stored in the digital map based on the longitude and latitude of the vehicle position.

7. The method of claim 4, further including the step of storing the first undulation value or the second undulation value for later retrieval.

8. The method of claim 7, where the step of storing the first undulation value or the second undulation value for later retrieval includes storing an undulation grid model having a plurality of second undulation values, where each of the second undulation values in the undulation grid model is associated with a particular latitude and longitude.

9. The method of claim 4, where generating a standard height for the vehicle position includes subtracting the first undulation value or the second undulation value from the ellipsoidal height.

10. The method of claim 4, where generating a standard height for the vehicle position includes adding the first undulation value or the second undulation value to the ellipsoidal height.

11. A method for determining a standard height for a vehicle position, the method comprising:

storing a digital map;

receiving radio signals from navigation satellites;

determining a longitude, latitude, and ellipsoidal height for the vehicle position as a function of the radio signals;

retrieving, based on the longitude and the latitude of the vehicle position, an undulation value from a set of undulation values stored in the digital map; and

generating a standard height for the vehicle position as a function of the ellipsoidal height and the undulation value.

12. The method of claim 11, where storing the digital map includes storing a vector that represents a section of road, and associating an undulation value of the set of undulation values with the vector.

13. The method of claim 11, where storing the digital map includes storing a height grid model that includes the set of undulation values.

14. The method of claim 13, where storing the digital map includes associating a subset of undulation values from the set of undulation values with the vector.

15. The method of claim 11, where generating a standard height for the position includes combining the undulation value with the ellipsoidal height.

16. An article of manufacture comprising:

a program storage device having a program of instructions embodied therein for causing a vehicle navigation system to determine a standard height for a vehicle position, the program of instructions in the article of manufacture comprising;

instructions to cause the vehicle navigation system to store a digital map for an area, where the digital map includes a set of undulation values;

instructions to cause the vehicle navigation system to receive radio signals from navigation satellites;

instructions to cause the vehicle navigation system to determine a longitude, a latitude, and an ellipsoidal height for the vehicle position as a function of the radio signals;

instructions to cause the vehicle navigation system to retrieve an undulation value from the stored digital map; and

instructions to cause the vehicle navigation system to generate a standard height for the vehicle position as a function of the ellipsoidal height and the undulation value.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 16, where the program storage device is selected from the group comprising a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, and an electromagnetic storage device.

18. A computer program product comprising:

a data storage device including a computer readable medium having a program of instructions embodied therein for causing a vehicle navigation system to determine a standard height for a vehicle position, the program of instructions comprising;

instructions to store a digital map in the data storage device;

instructions to receive radio signals from navigation satellites;

instructions to determine a longitude, a latitude, and an ellipsoidal height for the vehicle position as a function of the radio signals;

instructions to retrieve an undulation value stored in conjunction with the digital map; and

instructions to generate a standard height for the vehicle position as a function of the ellipsoidal height and the undulation value.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, where the instructions to store the digital map include instructions to store a vector that represents a section of road, and instructions to associate the undulation value with the vector.

20. A vehicle satellite navigation system for determining a standard height for a position, the system comprising:

a satellite receiver operable to receive radio signals from navigation satellites and generate, as a function of the radio signals, a position for the vehicle;

a means for storing a digital map that includes an undulation value for the position;

a means for embodying a program of instructions; and

a processor coupled to the satellite receiver, to the means for storing, and to the means for embodying;

where the position has an ellipsoidal height value and the processor is operable to execute the program of instructions to generate a standard height value for the position as a function of the ellipsoidal height value and the undulation value.

21. A vehicle satellite navigation system for determining a standard height for a position, the system comprising:

a satellite receiver operable to receive radio signals from navigation satellites and generate, as a function of the radio signals, a position for a vehicle;

a data storage device operable to store a first undulation value associated with a section of road in near proximity to the position, or a second undulation value associated with the position when no section of road is in near proximity to the position; and

a processor coupled to the satellite receiver and to the data storage device;

where the position has an ellipsoidal height value and the processor is operable to generate a standard height value for the position as a function of the ellipsoidal height value and one of the first undulation value or the second undulation value.

22. The vehicle satellite navigation system of claim 21, comprising a digital map representing the section of road as a vector that includes the first undulation value, where the data storage device includes the digital map.

23. The vehicle satellite navigation system of claim 21, comprising a height grid model that includes the first undulation value or the second undulation value, where the data storage device includes the height grid model.

24. The vehicle satellite navigation system of claim 21, comprising a digital map representing a road as a vector and a height grid model that includes the first undulation value, where the data storage device includes the digital map and the height grid model.