Managing traffic flow

• US 9,092,978 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2013
• Issued: 07/28/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Globalfoundries US Incorporated (GlobalFoundries, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Joglekar, Kaushik C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ramesh, Krishnan
• Application Number:
  US13/965,995
• Publication Number:
  US 20150051822A1
• Time in Patent Office: 714 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0145 for active traffic flow control

Abstract

A system or computer usable program product for tracking and routing traffic to avoid congestion via a plurality of user devices including providing a traffic reservation user interface for receiving a plurality of path selections from the plurality of user devices; responsive to predicting a traffic congestion from the plurality of user devices taking into account real-time and predicted conditions, presenting a first set of users with a first set of route selection recommendations via the user interface; and responsive to receiving a plurality of actual routing selections from the first set of users from the user interface, adjusting the traffic prediction, and presenting a second set of users with a second set of route selection recommendations via the user interface to reduce expected traffic congestion.

Claims

1. A computer usable program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable storage medium including computer usable code for use in tracking and routing traffic to avoid congestion via a plurality of user devices, the computer usable program product comprising code for performing the steps of:

providing a traffic reservation user interface for receiving a plurality of path selections from the plurality of user devices;

responsive to predicting a traffic congestion from the plurality of user devices taking into account real-time and predicted conditions, at least one of which is selected from the group of road, traffic, and weather conditions, providing a first set of users with a first set of route selection recommendations via the interface; and

responsive to receiving a plurality of actual routing selections from the first set of users through the interface, adjusting the traffic prediction according to the predicted conditions and the actual routing selections from the first set of users, and providing a second set of users with a second set of route selection recommendations based on the adjusted traffic prediction via the interface to reduce expected traffic congestion.

2. The computer usable program product of claim 1 wherein the plurality of user devices includes mobile devices selected from a group consisting of a smart phone, a notebook, a tablet and a GPS unit;

and wherein the computer usable program product comprises an application programming interface (API).

3. The computer usable program product of claim 1 wherein the predicted conditions includes scheduled road maintenance, scheduled road construction, scheduled events, predicted rush hour traffic loads, and weather forecasts.

4. The computer usable program product of claim 1 wherein the second set of route selection recommendations does not include routes which are predicted to be congested based on the adjusted traffic prediction.

5. The computer usable program product of claim 1 wherein the second set of route selection recommendations includes incentives offered to the second set of users to avoid selecting routes which are predicted to be congested based on the adjusted traffic prediction.

6. The computer usable program product of claim 5 wherein the incentives are based on statistical analysis of prior incentives accepted by the second set of users.

7. The computer usable program product of claim 1 further comprising tracking selected routes during route usage;

notifying users of alternate routes due to increased congestion in the selected routes; and

providing incentives for notified users to utilize the alternate routes.

8. The computer usable program product of claim 1 further comprising obtaining feedback from the first set of users during route travel;

and wherein adjusting the traffic prediction includes utilizing the feedback.

9. The computer usable program product of claim 8 wherein the feedback includes whether the first set of users are travelling the actual routing.

10. A data processing system for tracking and routing traffic to avoid congestion via a plurality of user devices, the data processing system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory storing program instructions which when executed by the processor execute the steps of;

providing a traffic reservation interface for receiving a plurality of path selections from the plurality of user devices;

responsive to predicting a traffic congestion from the plurality of user devices taking into account real-time and predicted conditions, at least one of which is selected from the group of road, traffic, and weather-conditions, providing a first set of users with a first set of route selection recommendations via the interface; and

responsive to receiving a plurality of actual routing selections from the first set of users through the interface, adjusting the traffic prediction according to the predicted conditions and the actual routing selections from the first set of users, and providing a second set of users with a second set of route selection recommendations based on the adjusted traffic prediction via the interface to reduce expected traffic congestion.

11. The data processing system of claim 10 wherein the plurality of user devices includes mobile devices selected from a group consisting of a smart phone, a notebook, a tablet and a GPS unit;

and wherein the program instructions comprises an application programming interface (API).

12. The data processing system of claim 10 wherein the predicted conditions includes scheduled road maintenance, scheduled road construction, scheduled events, predicted rush hour traffic loads, and weather forecasts.

13. The data processing system of claim 10 wherein the second set of route selection recommendations does not include routes which are predicted to be congested based on the adjusted traffic prediction.

14. The data processing system of claim 10 wherein the second set of route selection recommendations offered to the second set of users includes incentives to avoid selecting routes which are predicted to be congested based on the adjusted traffic prediction.

15. The data processing system of claim 14 wherein the incentives are based on statistical analysis of prior incentives accepted by the second set of users.

16. The data processing system of claim 10 further comprising tracking selected routes during route usage;

notifying users of alternate routes due to increased congestion in the selected routes and providing incentives for notified users to utilize the alternate routes.

17. The data processing system of claim 10 further comprising obtaining feedback from the first set of users during route travel;

and wherein adjusting the traffic prediction includes utilizing the feedback.

18. The data processing system of claim 17 wherein the feedback includes whether the first set of users are travelling the actual routing.