System and method for route representation with waypoint storage

• US 8,108,139 B1
• Filed: 02/29/2008
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: WilliamsRDM, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Williams-Pyro Incorporated
• Inventors: Pylant, Christopher D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender, F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): YU, ARIEL J
• Application Number:
  US12/040,572
• Time in Patent Office: 1,432 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/206
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/14 by recording the course traversed by the object G01C21/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3676 Overview of the route on the road map

Abstract

A method is provided, which optimizes a represented route of a traveling object. The method herein provides route representation compatible with various sampling protocols and accounts for high velocity states and near stand still states. In addition, route representation can be optimized for a given number of waypoints, accommodating a maximum waypoint storage file size. Waypoints are captured and significance scores are calculated and compared. The least significant waypoint is discarded in favor of a subsequently captured waypoint and the significance of waypoints surrounding the discarded waypoint are recalculated. By quantified waypoint selection the user can obtain an optimized route representation with quantified errors from a manageable number of waypoints.

Claims

1. A storage medium storing an executable code, which when executed performs a method of recording a representative traversed route, the method comprising:

capturing a first permanent waypoint;

assigning a highest significance score to the first waypoint and storing the assigned significance score of the first waypoint with the first waypoint data;

capturing N subsequent waypoints, wherein N is an integer and is at least 3;

calculating significance scores of N−

1 waypoints;

storing the calculated significance scores of N−

1 waypoints with respective N−

1 waypoint data;

triggering acquisition of a current N+1 waypoint;

calculating a significance of a previous N waypoint;

comparing the calculated significance score of the previous N waypoint to each stored calculated significance score;

if the significance score of the previous N waypoint is less than stored significance scores then discard the previous N waypoint and rename the current N+1 waypoint as the previous N waypoint;

if the previous N waypoints significance score is not less than stored significance scores, then;

discard a waypoint with a lowest stored significance score;

store the previous N waypoint data and respective significance data;

recalculate and store the significance of waypoints previously adjacent to the discarded waypoint;

shift waypoints right of the discarded waypoint left; and

rename the current N+1 waypoint as the previous N waypoint;

repeating the triggering of acquisition of a current N+1 waypoint and subsequent steps until a route is no longer being recorded; and

compiling stored waypoint data of N waypoints and the first waypoint forming a recording of a representative traversed route,

wherein, calculating the significance score of a captured waypoint comprises calculating an error in a representative distance traversed in the absence of said captured waypoint.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

the calculating significance scores of the captured waypoint comprises using position data of three consecutive waypoints.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

adding the significance score of the discarded waypoint to a running total of distance difference between a representative travel distance and a distance actually traveled; and

exporting the running total of distance difference for display or exporting the running total of distance difference with the recording of the representative traversed route.

4. A storage medium storing an executable code, which when executed performs a method of recording a representative traversed route, the method comprising:

capturing a first permanent waypoint;

assigning a highest significance score to the first waypoint and storing the assigned significance score of the first waypoint with the first waypoint data;

capturing N subsequent waypoints, wherein N is an integer and is at least 3;

calculating significance scores of N−

1 waypoints;

storing the calculated significance scores of N−

1 waypoints with respective N−

1 waypoint data;

triggering acquisition of a current N+1 waypoint;

calculating a significance of a previous N waypoint;

comparing the calculated significance score of the previous N waypoint to each stored calculated significance score;

if the significance score of the previous N waypoint is less than stored significance scores then discard the previous N waypoint and rename the current N+1 waypoint as the previous N waypoint;

if the previous N waypoint'"'"'s significance score is not less than stored significance scores, then;

discard a waypoint with a lowest stored significance score;

store the previous N waypoint data and respective significance data;

recalculate and store the significance of waypoints previously adjacent to the discarded waypoint;

shift waypoints right of the discarded waypoint left; and

rename the current N+1 waypoint as the previous N waypoint;

repeating the triggering of acquisition of a current N+1 waypoint and subsequent steps until a route is no longer being recorded; and

compiling stored waypoint data of N waypoints and the first waypoint forming a recording of a representative traversed route,

wherein, calculating the significance score of a captured waypoint comprises calculating a significance of a captured waypoint as an error in represented position at a time of the waypoint capture in the absence of said captured waypoint.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein:

the calculating significance scores of the captured waypoint comprises using position data at a respective time of three consecutive waypoints.