Vehicle location in weak location signal scenarios

• US 9,019,129 B2
• Filed: 02/21/2013
• Issued: 04/28/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Skinder, Jason A., Lemay, Stephen O., Moore, Bradford A., Pylappan, Seejo K., Blumenberg, Christopher, van Os, Marcel, Varoglu, Devrim
• Primary Examiner(s): Tweel, Jr., John A
• Application Number:
  US13/773,546
• Publication Number:
  US 20140232570A1
• Time in Patent Office: 796 Days
• Field of Search: 340/989, 455/456.1, 701/468
• US Class Current: 340/989
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/1654 with electromagnetic compass
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/005 including pedestrian guidance indicator
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/144 on portable or mobile units, e.g. personal digital assistant [PDA]

Abstract

A mobile computing device can be used to locate a vehicle parking location in weak location signal scenarios (e.g., weak, unreliable, or unavailable GPS or other location technology). In particular, the mobile device can determine when a vehicle in which the mobile device is located has entered into a parked state. GPS or other primary location technology may be unavailable at the time the mobile device entered into a parked state (e.g., inside a parking structure). The location of the mobile device at a time corresponding to when the vehicle is identified as being parked can be determined using the first location technology as supplemented with sensor data of the mobile device. After the location of the mobile device at a time corresponding to when the vehicle is identified as being parked is determined, the determined location can be associated with an identifier for the current parking location.

Claims

1. A method of identifying a location of a vehicle, the method comprising:

detecting, with a mobile device in the vehicle while the vehicle is moving, an unavailability of a first location technology;

subsequent to detecting the unavailability of the first location technology, measuring sensor data from one or more sensors of the mobile device;

determining, based at least in part on the sensor data and while the first location technology is unavailable, that the vehicle is in a parked state; and

subsequent to determining the vehicle is in the parked state, calculating a location estimate based at least in part on;

a last known location determined using the first location technology before detecting the unavailability of the first location technology; and

a location of the mobile device determined using the sensor data at a first time corresponding to when the vehicle is identified as being parked.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors include an accelerometer and a compass.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the sensor data is used to calculate a distance and a direction traveled.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors include a gyrometer.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first location technology is a global position system (GPS) based technology of the vehicle, and wherein the determining the vehicle is in the parked state is based at least in part on network connectivity between the mobile device and the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

periodically determining, with the mobile device, the last known location prior to detecting the unavailability of the first location technology.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein calculating the location of the mobile device includes combining sensor data with the last known location before the first location technology became unavailable.

8. A computer readable storage medium having program code stored thereon, the program code including instructions that, when executed by a processor in a mobile device, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

detecting, with a mobile device in the vehicle while the vehicle is moving, an unavailability of a first location technology;

subsequent to detecting the unavailability of the first location technology, measuring sensor data from one or more sensors of the mobile device;

determining, based at least in part on the sensor data and while the first location technology is unavailable, that the vehicle is in a parked state; and

subsequent to determining the vehicle is in the parked state, calculating a location estimate based at least in part on;

a last known location determined using the first location technology before detecting the unavailability of the first location technology; and

a location of the mobile device determined using the sensor data at a first time corresponding to when the vehicle is identified as being parked.

9. A method of identifying a location of a vehicle, the method comprising:

detecting, with a mobile device, an unavailability of a first location technology;

determining, based at least in part on first sensor data from one or more sensors of the mobile device, that the vehicle is in a parked state, the first location technology being unavailable when the vehicle enters the parked state;

subsequent to determining the vehicle is in the parked state, measuring second sensor data from the one or more sensors of the mobile device;

detecting, with the mobile device, the availability of the first location technology after the first location technology is unavailable;

determining a next known location after the first location technology became available; and

in response to determining the next known location, calculating the location that the vehicle is parked by combining the second sensor data with the next known location, the location being a location of the mobile device at a first time corresponding to when the vehicle is identified as being parked.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the detecting of the unavailability of the first location technology occurs while the vehicle is moving.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the detecting of the unavailability of the first location technology occurs after determining that the vehicle is in a parked state.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the one or more sensors include an accelerometer and a compass and the sensor data is used to calculate a distance and a direction traveled.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the one or more sensors include a gyrometer.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the first location technology is a global position system (GPS) based technology of the vehicle, and wherein the determining the vehicle is in the parked state is based at least in part on network connectivity between the mobile device and the vehicle.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein location of the mobile device is determined using one or more of WiFi, cellular, or time of flight location technologies.

16. A computer readable storage medium having program code stored thereon, the program code including instructions that, when executed by a processor in a mobile device, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

detecting an unavailability of a first location technology;

determining, based at least in part on first sensor data from one or more sensors of the mobile device, that the vehicle is in a parked state, the first location technology being unavailable when the vehicle enters the parked state;

subsequent to determining the vehicle is in the parked state, measuring second sensor data from the one or more sensors of the mobile device;

detecting the availability of the first location technology after the first location technology is unavailable;

determining a next known location after the first location technology became available; and

in response to determining the next known location, calculating the location that the vehicle is parked by combining the second sensor data with the next known location, the location being a location of the mobile device at a first time corresponding to when the vehicle is identified as being parked.

17. A method of identifying a location of a vehicle, the method comprising:

detecting, with a mobile device, an unavailability of a first location technology, the mobile device in the vehicle while the vehicle is moving;

determining that the vehicle is in a parked state, the first location technology being unavailable when the vehicle enters the parked state;

calculating a first location estimate, the first location estimate based on;

a last known location determined using the first location technology before detecting the unavailability of the first location technology; and

first sensor data from one or more sensors of the mobile device measured after the first location technology became unavailable;

detecting, with the mobile device, the availability of the first location technology after determining that the vehicle is in a parked state; and

calculating a second location estimate, the second location estimate based on a next known location after detecting the availability of the first location technology and second sensor data measured from the one or more sensors of the mobile device after the parked state determination.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first location technology is a global position system (GPS) based technology, the method further comprising determining a final location estimate based on the first and second location estimates.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the first sensor data is used to calculate a distance and a direction traveled by the vehicle before the vehicle entered into a parked state.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the second sensor data is used to calculate a distance and a direction traveled by the user after the vehicle entered into a parked state.