System for transmitting, processing, receiving, and displaying traffic information

• US 7,613,564 B2
• Filed: 10/06/2008
• Issued: 11/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Dimitri Vorona
• Inventors: Vorona, Dimitri
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Cuong H
• Application Number:
  US12/287,065
• Publication Number:
  US 20090082950A1
• Time in Patent Office: 393 Days
• Field of Search: 701/117, 701200-214, 701/119, 340/989, 340/995.1, 340/995.13, 340/995.12, 340/995.19
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0104 Measuring and analyzing of parameters relative to traffic conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09675 where a selection from the received information takes place in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096791 where the origin of the information is another vehicle

Abstract

A system for sharing and processing traffic information includes a number of traffic information computer systems within individual vehicles and a traffic information server system. The traffic information computer systems are each connected to the server system through a network, which are additionally connected to one another by peer-to-peer radio communications, and which each operate with a database for displaying road maps, with a database storing average speed data for directions of travel along roadways, and with a location sensor used to determine the location and average speed of the vehicle, which are transmitted to the server. The server returns average speed data for road segments, which is displayed on the road maps.

Claims

1. A system for communicating and processing traffic information among a plurality of vehicles and a base station, wherein said system comprises:

within said base station, a traffic information server including a first database for storing traffic data, wherein said traffic information server further includes a processor programmed to receive said traffic data from at least one vehicle of said plurality of vehicles, to store said traffic data received from said at least one vehicle within said first database, to calculate average data values from said traffic data stored within said first database, and to transmit a portion of said first database or transmit said entire first database of said average data values to at least another vehicle of said plurality of vehicles;

a communication network connecting each vehicle of said plurality of vehicles with said traffic information server;

within said each vehicle, a first transceiver for connecting with said communication network to transmit said traffic data and to receive said portion or said entire first database of said average data values, a location sensor for determining a geographic location of said vehicle, a second database for storing average data values, a second transceiver for transmitting said average data values to at least said another vehicle of said plurality of vehicles and for receiving said average data values from at least said another vehicle within said plurality of vehicles, and a traffic information computer including a display screen, a pre-existing constructed GPS antenna, a display and a microprocessor programmed to determine said traffic data from geographic location data received from said location sensor, to transmit said traffic data determined from data received from said location sensor over said communication network to said traffic information server, to receive said average data values over said communication network from said traffic information server, and to transmit and receive said traffic data values from at least said another vehicle of said plurality of vehicles through said second transceiver,

wherein said communication network is a cellular network, a 3G cellular network, a 4G cellular network, Edge network, WiFi network, WiMax network, or any other wireless network and

further wherein said microprocessor is additionally programmed to display an icon having at least one of color or speed on a road segment displayed on said display screen in a location corresponding with a location indicated by an output of said location sensor and in an orientation indicating a direction of travel of said traffic information computer system.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said microprocessor in said traffic information computer is additionally programmed to determine whether a connection can be made over said communication network with said traffic information server and, if a connection cannot be made with said traffic information server, said microprocessor in said each vehicle establishes a connection with said plurality of vehicles through said second transceiver to receive said traffic data from said at least said another vehicle, wherein said traffic data includes data received from said at least another vehicle from said plurality of vehicles, and to receive said average data values received by said at least another vehicle from said at least one of said plurality of vehicles, and to transmit said average data values from said each vehicle to at least one of said plurality of vehicles.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein

said microprocessor in said traffic data and to computer is programmed to transmit said traffic data and to receive said average data values in a single connection to said traffic information server, and

said processor in said traffic information server is programmed to receive said traffic data from a vehicle in said plurality of vehicles and to transmit said average data to said vehicle in single connection.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said communication network includes:

an Internet connection,

a public switched telephone network, and

a cellular tower connecting said first transceiver to at least one of a public switched network, each of said plurality of vehicles, a satellite link, cellular network, a 3G cellular network, a 4G cellular network, Edge network, WiFi network, WiMax network, or any other wireless network.

5. The system of claim 1 additionally comprising a personal computer or a cellular communication device connected to said traffic information server over said communication network to receive said average data values from said traffic information server.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said traffic data comprises an average speed of said each vehicle, wherein said processor within said traffic information server is programmed to calculate average data values comprising average of speeds of said each vehicle and a number of vehicles over particular road segments, and further wherein said microprocessor within said each vehicle is programmed to calculate said average data values comprising said average of speeds of said each vehicle and said number of vehicles over said particular road segments.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein

said processor within said traffic information server is additionally programmed to calculate values comparing said averages of speeds of a number of vehicles over particular road segments with normal speeds of vehicles over said particular road segments, and

said average data values additionally comprise codes representing said values comparing said averages of speeds with said normal speeds,

wherein said values are used to display a color if said averages of speeds is higher or lower than said normal speeds.

8. A traffic information computer system comprising:

data storage for storing a mapping database for obtaining data from users and for holding said data for generating roadmaps and a traffic database storing average speed data for road segments;

a traffic information server;

a display screen;

a first transceiver;

a location sensor for storing a geographic location or locations of said vehicle on a road;

a microprocessor programmed to generate at least one roadmap of said plurality of roadmaps from said data held within said mapping database, to display said at least one roadmap on said display screen, to receive average speed data for road segments through said first transceiver, to store said average speed data for road segments received through said first transceiver to said traffic database, to display portions of said average speed data for road segments stored within said traffic database in locations corresponding to said road segments on said display screen, and to receive average speed data for a plurality of vehicles received from said traffic information server or from said plurality of vehicles through a peer-to-peer network connection,

wherein said microprocessor is additionally programmed to display an icon on a road segment displayed on said display screen in a location corresponding with a location indicated by an output of said location sensor and in an orientation indicating a direction of travel of said vehicle on said road, and

further wherein said microprocessor is programmed to calculate periodically an average speed of movement in response to location data provided by said location sensor at a number of predetermined times and distances and to transmit said average speed of movement over said first transceiver, and

further wherein said microprocessor generates information representing values and colors of said average speed data for said plurality of vehicles and displays said information on said roadmap on said display.

9. The traffic information computer system of claim 8, wherein

said traffic database additionally stores traffic data representing average speed data indicating traffic conditions for said road segments, and

said microprocessor is additionally programmed to receive said traffic data through said first transceiver, to store said traffic data in said traffic database, and to display colors derived from said traffic data in locations corresponding to said road segments.

10. The traffic information computer system of claim 8, wherein numeric representations of said average speed data are located within icons placed on roadmap segments displayed on said display screen corresponding to said road segments, and

portions of said icons are colored in accordance with said colors derived from said color codes indicating traffic conditions for said segments of roadway.

11. The traffic information computer system of claim 8, wherein

said traffic database stores different average speed data for opposite directions of travel for certain of said road segments, and

said microprocessor is programmed to display said different average speed data in locations corresponding to said road segments on said display screen.

12. The traffic information computer system of claim 11, wherein said average speed for opposite directions of travel for certain of said road segments have different values for each direction of travel of said opposite directions of travel, and further wherein numeric representations of said different average speed data for opposite directions of travel are located within icons placed on roadmap segments displayed on said display screen corresponding to said road segments.

13. The traffic information computer system of claim 8, wherein said microprocessor is additionally programmed to calculate periodically an average speed of movement in response to location data provided by said location sensor for at least one of a number of predetermined times and distances, and to transmit said average speed of movement over said first transceiver.

14. The traffic information computer system of claim 13, wherein said microprocessor is programmed to transmit said average speed of movement and to receive said average speed data for road segments in a single connection placed over said first transceiver.

15. A traffic information server system including:

a traffic information computer system located in each vehicle of a plurality of vehicles comprising a data storage storing a mapping database holding data for generating roadmaps, a display screen, and a location sensor for determining locations of said computer system as said computer system is moved about within a vehicle, wherein said computer system comprises a microprocessor programmed to generate roadmaps, programmed to calculate periodically an average speed of movement in response to location data provided by said location sensor at a number of predetermined times;

a server computer having an interface for communicating over a network;

a database accessed by said server computer storing traffic data and average data values,

a processor within said server computer programmed to receive a call or a network connection from said each vehicle, to receive said traffic data from said each vehicle in response to receiving said call or said network connection, to transmit a portion of said average data values to said each vehicle in response to receiving said traffic data before said call or said network connection from said each vehicle is terminated, to store said traffic data received from said each vehicle within said database, and to calculate said average data values from said traffic data stored within said database.

16. The traffic information system of claim 15, wherein

said traffic data received from said each vehicle includes an average speed of movement of said each vehicle in a direction of movement along a road segment and a location of a vehicle on said road segment,

said processor within said server computer is programmed to store said traffic data received from said each vehicle within said database in a record corresponding to said direction of movement along said road segment and to calculate an average data value of all of said average speeds of movement received from said plurality of vehicle s to be included within said average data value stored within said record within said database.

17. The traffic information system of claim 16, wherein said processor within said server computer is additionally programmed to calculate a comparison between said average speed of movement stored within each said record within said database and a normal speed of movement for said direction of travel along said road segment, and to store a code representing said comparison as a portion of said average data value within said record within said database.