Navigation system with web interface

• US 9,464,910 B2
• Filed: 08/31/2007
• Issued: 10/11/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hertz Corporation (Hertz Global Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Navigation Solutions, LLC (Hertz Global Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Stevens, Roger, Stevens, Ryan, Ruskin, Marc Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): Mawari, Redhwan k
• Application Number:
  US11/848,496
• Publication Number:
  US 20090063037A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,329 Days
• Field of Search: 701/207
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3611 using character input or menus, e.g. menus of POIs character input methods in general G06F3/0233
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3679 Retrieval, searching and output of POI information, e.g. hotels, restaurants, shops, filling stations, parking facilities G01C21/3611 takes precedence

Abstract

A user can selectively download complete databases of selected favorite chains (or other selected destinations or collections of destinations) from a server and store them on a portable media device. The user can also create his own address book with locations that he selects. The user can also create trip plans, containing locations selected by the user that are associated with specific trips. The address books and trip plans can also be stored on the portable media device. The user can then access the portable media device with the navigation system to select destinations stored there. The destinations are both more efficiently accessible by the user and more up to date, since the information on the server can be updated more frequently.

Claims

1. A method for operating a navigation system including the steps of:

a) connecting to a remote server over a network;

b) selecting from among a plurality of collections of related points of interest (POIs), wherein each POI is associated with a specific physical location;

c) downloading the selected collection of related POIs with specific physical locations from the remote server without determining a route;

d) accessing the downloaded collection with a navigation system; and

e) choosing one of the related POIs in the downloaded collection so that the navigation system routes to the specific physical location of the chosen POI.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of collections of related POIs contains a plurality of locations of a different chain.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said step b) is performed by selecting from among a plurality of icons, each representing the chain associated with the associated collection.

4. The method of claim 3 further including the steps of writing the selected collection of related POIs to a portable media device and, in said step d), accessing the portable media device.

5. The method of claim 4 further including the step of determining a route to the specific address of the chosen POI.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of collections of related POIs each contain a plurality of locations related to a different event.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the plurality of locations are related to a different one-time event occurring in proximity to the plurality of locations.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the POI is not stored in a map of the navigation system.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the navigation system identifies the selected POI by the specific physical location.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected POI is identified prior to connecting the portable media device to the navigation system.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the navigation system identifies a POI from a predetermined group of locations consisting of locations associated with a POI stored on the portable media device.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein step b) further comprises selecting from the plurality of POIs having a predetermined physical address.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of step b) and step c) are performed by a driver of a rental car.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein both step b) and step c) are completed prior to entering the rental car.

8. A user interface for use with a navigation system comprising:

a server accessible over a wide area network;

the server storing a plurality of collections of points of interest (POIs), each collection having an associated chain, each collection containing only POIs that are locations of the associated chain, each location having a specific physical location;

the server communicating an identifier of the chain associated with each collection so that a user can select a collection based upon the associated chain, the server transmitting a selected one of the collections of POIs based upon selection by the user; and

a first interface, wherein the user can store a selected POI having said specific physical location to an itinerary on the server having a plurality of trip locations, wherein the itinerary from the server, having the plurality of trip locations and the selected POI, is stored on a portable media device such that the navigation system determines a route by accessing one of the selected POI stored on the portable media device.

9. The user interface of claim 8 wherein the server communicates the identifier by communicating a logo associated with the chain.

10. The user interface of claim 8 further including a navigation system, the selected one of the collections of POIs being readable by the navigation system, the navigation system being programmed to permit the user to select another POIs from the selected one of the collections of POIs, the navigation system then determining a route to the selected POI.

11. The user interface of claim 10 including the portable media device that the user can download the selected collection onto and from which the navigation system can access the selected collection.

12. The user interface of claim 10 wherein the plurality of collections is a plurality of first collections, the user interface further including a plurality of second collections of POIs each associated with an event, each of the POIs in each second collection associated with the event associated with the associated second collection of the POI.

13. The user interface of claim 12 wherein the event with which each of the second collections is associated is a one-time event.

18. A method for operating a navigation system including the steps of:

a) connecting to a remote server over a network;

b) selecting from among a plurality of collections of related points of interest (POIs), wherein each POI is associated with a specific physical location;

c) transmitting the selected collection of related POIs with specific physical locations from the remote server;

d) creating at least one tab, each tab using at least one POI from the selected collection of related POI;

e) downloading contents of the at least one tab to a portable media device;

f) accessing the contents of the at least one tab with a navigation system; and

g) choosing the contents of one of the tabs.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein step e) includes downloading the selected collection of related POI'"'"'s to the portable media device.

20. The method of claim 18, including the step of saving contents of at least one of the at least one tab on the server.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the navigation system transmits the contents of the at least one tab to the portable media device.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the portable media device transmits the contents of the at least one tab of the navigation system to the server for saving.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein step d) further comprises downloading without determining a route.