Facilitating location determination employing vehicle motion data

• US 9,366,540 B2
• Filed: 10/23/2014
• Issued: 06/14/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai Motor Group), Kia Corp.
• Original Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chien, Ginger
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAN QUANG
• Application Number:
  US14/522,063
• Publication Number:
  US 20160116291A1
• Time in Patent Office: 600 Days
• Field of Search: 701/519, 701/41, 701/472, 701/500, 342/357.3, 342/357.62, 342/357.31, 340/438, 340/995.25
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/188 for accumulated errors, e.g. by coupling inertial systems with absolute positioning systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/30 Map- or contour-matching

Abstract

Location determination is facilitated based on motion data accumulated at a vehicle in cases in which a beacon is not available. One method includes receiving, by a first device, first information about a vehicle indicative of a position and a direction of the vehicle. The position is measured by the vehicle based on a measured angular rotation rate and radius of a wheel of the vehicle and the direction of the vehicle is measured by the vehicle based on a measured amount of a turn radius of a steering wheel device of the vehicle. The method also includes determining a previously determined location of the vehicle. The method also includes generating second information about a location of the first device based on the previously determined location of the vehicle and the first information. Error estimates for the location and/or tuning bias for sensors at the vehicle can also be determined.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a first device comprising a processor, first information associated with a vehicle indicative of a position and a direction of the vehicle, wherein the position is measured by the vehicle based on a measured angular rotation rate and radius of a wheel of the vehicle and wherein the direction of the vehicle is measured by the vehicle based on a measured amount of a turn radius of a steering wheel device of the vehicle;

determining, by the first device, a previously determined location of the vehicle; and

generating, by the first device, second information about a location of the first device based on the previously determined location of the vehicle and the first information.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the first device, that the first device is positioned along a constrained path; and

determining, by the first device, estimation error information about the second information based on the determining that the first device is positioned on the constrained path.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first information is information associated with sensor adjustments based on measured tuning biases of respective sensors of the vehicle.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the first device, whether beacon-based location information is available, and wherein the determining the previously determined location is based on a determination that the beacon-based location information is not available.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the first device, third information about the vehicle indicative of the direction of the vehicle, wherein the direction is a bias factor associated with a tilt of the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the generating the second information about the location of the first device is further based on the third information.

7. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

determining, by the first device, that the first device is in a tunnel region, wherein the determining that the first device is on the constrained path is based on determining that the first device is in the tunnel region.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

rejecting, by the first device, a first portion of the first information about the direction of the first device based on determining that the first device is in the tunnel region.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the first device, actual location information for the first device based on beacon-based location information; and

determining, by the first device, tuning bias information for tuning a sensor of the vehicle based on comparing the second information with the actual location information.

10. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising;

receiving first information about a device indicative of a position and a direction of the device, wherein the position and the direction are determined by the device based on sensed data from the device;

determining a previously determined location of the device;

generating second information about a location of the apparatus based on the previously determined location of the device and the first information; and

determining tuning bias information associated with modifying a sensor of the device based on comparing the second information with location information, wherein the sensor generates the sensed data.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining whether the apparatus is positioned on a constrained path; and

determining estimation error information about the second information based on a result of the determining whether the apparatus is positioned on the constrained path.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first information is adjusted information based on a measured tuning bias of the sensor of the device.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining whether beacon-based location information is available, and wherein the determining the previously determined location is based on a determination that the beacon-based location information is not available.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving third information about the device indicative of the direction of the device, wherein the direction is a bias factor associated with a sensed tilt of the device.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the apparatus is in a tunnel region; and

determining that the apparatus is on the constrained path based on the determining that the apparatus is in the tunnel region.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

rejecting a first portion of the first information about the direction of the device.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

computing the location information for the apparatus based on beacon-based location information.

18. A machine-readable storage medium, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:

receiving first information associated with a second device indicative of a position and a direction of the second device, wherein the position is measured by the second device based on a measured angular rotation rate and radius of a wheel of the second device and wherein the direction of the second device is measured by the second device based on a measured amount of a turn radius of a steering wheel device of the second device;

identifying previously determined position and direction information for the second device; and

generating second information about the first device based on the previously determined position and direction information for the second device and the first information.

19. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining estimation error information about the second information based on whether the first device is determined to be positioned on a constrained path.

20. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

computing actual location information for the first device based on beacon-based location information; and

determining tuning bias information for tuning a sensor of the second device based on comparing the second information with the actual location information.