Real-time traffic condition measurement using network transmission data

• US 9,086,295 B2
• Filed: 06/02/2014
• Issued: 07/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Edward H. Nortrup
• Original Assignee: Edward H. Nortrup
• Inventors: Nortrup, Edward H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Marc, McDieunel
• Application Number:
  US14/293,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20140278035A1
• Time in Patent Office: 414 Days
• Field of Search: 701/117, 701/118, 701/119, 701/412, 705/14.63
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3407 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3415 Dynamic re-routing, e.g. recalculating the route when the user deviates from calculated route or after detecting real-time traffic data or accidents
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3492 employing speed data or traffic data, e.g. real-time or historical traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3608 using speech input, e.g. using speech recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/362 received from an external device or application, e.g. PDA, mobile phone or calendar application
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3629 Guidance using speech or audio output, e.g. text-to-speech text to speech systems per se G10L13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3667 Display of a road map G01C21/3614 takes precedence; guidance using 3D or perspective road maps G01C21/3635
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3694 Output thereof on a road map
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3697 Output of additional, non-guidance related information, e.g. low fuel level G01C21/3679 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/52 Determining velocity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/022 Knowledge engineering; Knowledge acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0266 based on the position of the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/012 : from other sources than vehicle or roadside beacons, e.g. mobile networks
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0129 : for creating historical data or processing based on historical data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0133 : for classifying traffic situation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0141 : for traffic information dissemination
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/052 : with provision for determining speed or overspeed speed measuring in general G01P
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/091 : Traffic information broadcasting broadcasting communication H04H
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0967 : Systems involving transmission of highway information, e.g. weather, speed limits transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 : where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 : where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 : where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096883 : where input information is obtained using a mobile device, e.g. a mobile phone, a PDA
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72457 : according to geographic location
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72463 : to restrict the functionality of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 : including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 : Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/024 : Guidance services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/025 : using location based information parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 : using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 : Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 : for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/48 : for in-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

In embodiments of the present disclosure, improved capabilities are described for determining roadway traffic conditions based on cell phone locations.

Claims

1. A computer program product embodied in a non-transitory computer readable medium that, when executing on one or more computers, performs the steps of:

a. Identifying a cell phone that is apparently currently traveling in a vehicle along a roadway by;

causing the cell phone to confirm a user setting that permits the cell phone to provide a requester a location of the cell phone;

causing the cell phone to identify its location through a triangulation process;

receiving the location of the cell phone from the cell phone, and

comparing the cell phone location to a known location of the roadway to determine that the cell phone is proximate the roadway;

b. calculating a speed of the vehicle by using a time between two locations of the cell phone that are proximate the roadway in a speed calculation; and

c. following receipt of a map related request, communicating to a requesting cell phone map traffic information based on the vehicle speed on the roadway in a form to be presented on the cell phone.

2. The computer program of claim 1, wherein the triangulation process involves GPS triangulation.

3. The computer program of claim 1, wherein the triangulation process involves a combination of cell tower triangulation and GPS triangulation.

4. The computer program of claim 1, wherein the user setting is accessible through a user interface on the cell phone.

5. The computer program of claim 1, further comprising a step of identifying the requester.

6. The computer program of claim 1, wherein the requesting cell phone is executing a navigation program.

7. The computer program of claim 6, wherein the map traffic information causes a change in a route presented by the navigation program.

8. The computer program of claim 1, further comprising, following the receipt of the map related request, communicating an advertisement to the requesting cell phone, wherein the advertisement relates to a user profile of a user associated with the requesting cell phone.

9. The computer program of claim 1, wherein the triangulation process involves cell phone tower triangulation.

10. A computer program product embodied in a non-transitory computer readable medium that, when executing on one or more computers, performs the steps of:

a. identifying a plurality of cell phones that are apparently currently traveling in a plurality of vehicles along a roadway by;

causing at least one of the plurality of cell phones to confirm a user setting that permits the at least one cell phone to provide a requester a location of the cell phone;

causing the plurality of cell phones to identify their locations through a triangulation process;

receiving a location of each of the plurality of cell phones from each of the plurality of cell phones, and

comparing each respective cell phone location, from the plurality of cell phones, to a known location of the roadway to determine that each of the plurality of cell phones is proximate the roadway;

b. identifying a speed of each of the plurality the vehicles by using a time between two respective locations of each of the plurality of the cell phones that are proximate the roadway in a speed calculation, forming a roadway traffic metric; and

c. following receipt of a map request, communicating to a requesting cell phone map traffic information based on the roadway traffic metric in a form to be presented on the cell phone.