System and method for vehicle routing using monetary cost

• US 9,097,547 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 08/04/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: 8318808 Canada Inc.
• Original Assignee: 8318808 Canada Inc.
• Inventors: Bhole, Anil, Garg, Neeraj
• Primary Examiner(s): ARTHUR JEANGLAUDE, GERTRUDE
• Application Number:
  US13/834,505
• Publication Number:
  US 20140278092A1
• Time in Patent Office: 872 Days
• Field of Search: 701/410, 701/468, 701/532, 701/533
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3446 Details of route searching algorithms, e.g. Dijkstra, A*, arc-flags, using precalculated routes
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3461 Preferred or disfavoured areas, e.g. dangerous zones, toll or emission zones, intersections, manoeuvre types, segments such as motorways, toll roads, ferries
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3484 Personalized, e.g. from learned user behaviour or user-defined profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis

Abstract

A vehicle routing system and method in which routing is based in part on the monetary cost of various candidate routes. The candidate route that has a monetary cost less than a user determined cost parameter is selected as the route to be presented to the user.

Claims

1. A vehicle routing system comprising:

a) a user interface operable to collect from a user

i. a start point and end point for which a route is requested; and

ii. a cost parameter for said user, said cost parameter comprising monetary value of the user'"'"'s time as a currency amount per a unit of time; and

iii. a time category for varying the cost parameter of said user according to the user'"'"'s valuation of their time in different circumstances;

b) a routing database comprising toll information for routes in a territory; and

c) a routing engine operable to

i. determine one or more candidate routes between the start point and the end point by varying the usage of toll routes, each candidate route having a toll cost and a time savings compared to a fastest no-cost route having no tolls;

ii. compute for each candidate route a monetary cost per the unit of time from its time savings and toll cost; and

iii. select for output the candidate route having the highest time savings and a monetary cost per the unit of time that is lower than the cost parameter varied by the time category.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the cost parameter further comprises monetary cost of operating a vehicle.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is further operable to collect from the user one or more intermediate points to be traversed along the route.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the route is the candidate route that has least travel time among the candidate routes having a monetary cost lower than the cost parameter.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the time categories comprise at least two of business, leisure, family, casual, and urgent.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said cost parameter can be entered using a user-specified unit and the routing engine normalizes the cost parameter.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of such users provide cost parameters and the routing engine determines a blended value of the cost parameters for said users to determine the route.

8. A method for vehicle routing system comprising:

a) collecting from a user;

i. a start point and end point for which a route is requested; and

ii. a cost parameter for said user, said cost parameter comprising monetary value of the user'"'"'s time as a currency amount per a unit of time; and

iii. a time category for varying the cost parameter of said user according to the user'"'"'s valuation of their time in different circumstances;

b) determining, from a routing database comprising toll information for routes in a territory, one or more candidate routes between the start point and the end point by varying the usage of toll routes, each candidate route having a toll cost and a time savings compared to a fastest no-cost route having no tolls;

c) computing, by one or more processors, for each candidate route a monetary cost per the unit of time from its time savings and toll cost; and

d) selecting, by the one or more processors, the the candidate route having the highest time savings and a monetary cost per the unit of time that is lower than the cost parameter varied by the time category.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the cost parameter further comprises monetary cost of operating a vehicle.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the user interface is further operable to collect from the user one or more intermediate points to be traversed along the route.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the route is the candidate route that has least travel time among the candidate routes having a monetary cost lower than the cost parameter.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the time categories comprise at least two of business, leisure, family, casual, and urgent.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein said cost parameter can be entered using a user-specified unit and the routing engine normalizes the cost parameter.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein a plurality of such users provide cost parameters and the routing engine determines a blended value of the cost parameters for said users to determine the route.