Navigation service

• US 7,613,563 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2005
• Issued: 11/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Piece Future Pte., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Losch, Kurt, Haegebarth, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): Bolda; Eric
• Assistant Examiner(s): Diacou; Ari M
• Application Number:
  US11/300,472
• Publication Number:
  US 20060161341A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,419 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0295 by at least one leading vehicle of the fleet
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/22 Platooning, i.e. convoy of communicating vehicles

Abstract

A group of two or more vehicles (21, 22, 23), each vehicle (21, 22, 23) comprising a communication unit (210, 220, 230) coupled with a navigation unit (211, 221, 231), wherein one vehicle of the group is classified as master vehicle (21) leading the group and the remaining vehicles of the group are classified as slave vehicles (22, 23) following the master vehicle (21), travel together. A central remote navigation server (30) provides the vehicles (21, 22, 23) with a navigation service, wherein the navigation server (30) calculates for each of the slave vehicles (22, 23) route instructions (506, 606) such that the slave vehicles (22, 23) are instructed to follow the master vehicle (21). The route instructions (506, 606) are transmitted to the slave vehicles (22, 23) via a communication network (10).

Claims

1. A method for providing vehicles with a navigation service, the method comprising the steps of:

building by a mediation server, a group of two or more vehicles, each vehicle comprising a communication unit coupled with a navigation unit, wherein one vehicle of the group is classified as master vehicle leading the group and the remaining vehicles of the group are classified as slave vehicles following the master vehicle;

storing communication addresses allocated to the communication units assigned to the vehicles of the group, and communicating, by the mediation server the stored communication addresses to the navigation units assigned to the vehicles of the group;

determining geographical position data of the master vehicle and the slave vehicles;

communicating geographical position data of the master vehicle and the slave vehicles to one or more data processing units;

calculating by the one or more data processing units for each of the slave vehicles route instructions in accordance with the route traveled by the master vehicle based on the received geographical position data of the master vehicle and the respective slave vehicle;

communicating the respective route instructions to a driver of each slave vehicle,

wherein the vehicles are manually controlled by drivers, and

wherein the mediation server is remote from the vehicles and all vehicles communicate with each other through the mediation server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of communicating route instructions to a driver of a slave vehicle comprises indicating the position of the master vehicle and the slave vehicle on a road map electronically displayed on a display.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the driver of the master vehicle receives an instruction to travel at a slower speed or to stop if a temporal distance and/or a spatial distance to a slave vehicle exceeds a predefined limit.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises the step of transferring the master status from the master vehicle to a slave vehicle after receipt of a corresponding request message from the slave vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises the step of incorporating a vehicle into the group en route or releasing a vehicle from the group en route after receipt of a corresponding request message from the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises the step of calculating route instructions for guidance to a suitable stop and communicating these route instructions to the driver of the master vehicle or to the drivers of all vehicles of the group after receipt of a corresponding request message requesting a stop from a vehicle of the group.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the group comprises vehicles originating from same location at the time of the group formation and heading for same destination as provided by the master vehicle.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the group is formed by receiving request messages from each of the vehicles in the group, said request messages indicating that the respective vehicle is to form a group and wherein the group is formed by geographic positioning data such that vehicles sending the requests that are at substantially identical geographic location form the group.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the master vehicle is obtained from a status of the vehicle specified in the request message.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the master vehicle is determined based on geographic position of each vehicle in the group and destination.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the request messages are submitted via web from terminals that are not located within the vehicles.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein communication addresses allocated to the communication units are Internet Protocol (IP) addresses.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the route instructions are displayed on an electronic road map.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the slave vehicles following the master vehicle are vehicles traveling to a destination that is a same destination traveled to by the master vehicle.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the route instructions are calculated based on road map data and guide a driver of a vehicle along a route to a destination.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the driver of the slave vehicle receives route instructions that guide the slave vehicle along an alternate route not used by the master vehicle to rejoin the master vehicle if the slave vehicle deviates from a route traveled by the master vehicle.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the group of vehicles comprises at least one master vehicle and two or more slave vehicles.

12. A method for providing vehicles with a navigation service, the method comprising:

forming a group of at least two vehicles, each vehicle comprising a communication unit and a navigation unit, where one vehicle of the group is classified as master vehicle leading the group to a destination and the remaining vehicles of the group are classified as slave vehicles following the master vehicle to the same destination;

determining geographical position data of the master vehicle and the slave vehicles;

calculating for each of the slave vehicles route instructions in accordance with the route traveled by the master vehicle based on the geographical position data of the master vehicle and the respective slave vehicle; and

communicating the respective route instructions to each slave vehicle such that said each slave vehicle follows the master vehicle,

wherein the vehicles are manually controlled by drivers, and

wherein all vehicles communicate with each other through the mediation server that is remote from the vehicles.