System and method of automatic destination selection

• US 9,518,833 B2
• Filed: 10/11/2010
• Issued: 12/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Fink, Daniel Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): MOYER, DALE S
• Application Number:
  US12/901,794
• Publication Number:
  US 20110161001A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,255 Days
• Field of Search: 701/424, 701/465, 701/527
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3407 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3484 Personalized, e.g. from learned user behaviour or user-defined profiles
• 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 21/3605 Destination input or retrieval
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3617 using user history, behaviour, conditions or preferences, e.g. predicted or inferred from previous use or current movement
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09

Abstract

When a user enters, initializes, or otherwise starts using a navigation function, such as a navigation function on a mobile phone or a stand-alone device, a destination is automatically selected for route generation and production of a navigation output (e.g., an Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) at the destination). The destination can be selected based on current proximity to a location having an associated pre-defined destination. Such pre-defined destination can be associated with the location by the user. A time of day criteria can also be imposed. In one example, locations proximate a work place can be associated with home as a pre-defined destination, and vice versa. A time of day criteria can be imposed, such that even if proximate work and it is in the morning, a route and ETA to home will not be generated.

Claims

1. A method for implementation on a mobile device comprising:

selecting, by a processor of the mobile device, a first pre-defined location and a second pre-defined location from a plurality of pre-defined locations based on user input;

activating, by the processor, a navigation function on the mobile device;

determining, by the processor, a location of the mobile device in response to the activation of the navigation function;

determining, by the processor, whether the location of the mobile device is proximate to one of the first and second pre-defined locations;

in response to determining that the location of the mobile device is proximate to one of the first and second pre-defined locations;

automatically selecting, by the processor, the location of the mobile device as an origin for a navigation output; and

automatically determining, by the processor, the one of the first and second pre-defined locations that is not proximate to the location of the mobile device as a destination for the navigation output without user selection;

in response to determining that the location of the mobile device is proximate to neither of the first and second pre-defined locations;

determining if a current time satisfies a time of day criteria; and

in response to determining that the current time satisfies the time of day criteria;

automatically selecting, by the process, the location of the mobile device as the origin for the navigation output; and

based on the current time, automatically determining one of the first and second pre-defined locations as the destination for the navigation output without user selection; and

producing, by the processor, the navigation output using the origin and the destination.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising rendering, by the processor, an option to associate a selected destination as one of the first or second pre-defined locations.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining, by the processor, a route to the destination and outputting the route as the navigation output.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the navigation output comprises an estimated time of arrival at the destination.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising rendering, by the processor, a start page upon mobile device initialization, which includes a user selectable option to activate the navigation function, and activating the navigation function responsive to detecting a user selection of the option to activate the navigation function.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining, by the processor, traffic congestion information over a network interface, selecting, by the processor, a route based at least in part on the traffic congestion information, and outputting, by the processor, an estimated time of arrival based on the selected route.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the time of day criteria comprises a criteria that the current time is within one of the morning or the afternoon hours.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically determining one of the first and second pre-defined locations as the destination based on the current time comprises selecting work as the destination if the current time is in a morning and selecting home as the destination if the current time is in an afternoon.

9. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing computer executable instructions for a method to be implemented on a mobile device comprising:

selecting a first pre-defined location and a second pre-defined location from a plurality of pre-defined locations based on user input;

activating a navigation function on the mobile device;

determining a location of the mobile device in response to the activation of the navigation function;

determining whether the location of the mobile device is proximate to one of the first and second pre-defined locations;

in response to determining that the location of the mobile device is proximate to one of the first and second pre-defined locations;

automatically selecting the location of the mobile device as an origin for a navigation output; and

automatically determining the one of the first and second pre-defined locations that is not proximate to the location of the mobile device as a destination for the navigation output without user selection;

in response to determining that the location of the mobile device is proximate to neither of the first and second pre-defined locations;

determining if a current time satisfies a time of day criteria; and

in response to determining that the current time satisfies the time of day criteria;

automatically selecting the location of the mobile device as the origin for the navigation output; and

based on the current time, automatically determining one of the first and second pre-defined locations as the destination for the navigation output without user selection; and

producing the navigation output using the origin and the destination.

10. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises displaying an option to associate a selected destination as one of the first or second pre-defined locations.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises outputting, as the navigation output, an estimated time of arrival to the destination.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises displaying a start page upon mobile device initialization, which includes a user selectable option to activate the navigation function, and activating the navigation function responsive to detecting a user selection of the option to activate the navigation function.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises obtaining traffic congestion information over a network interface, selecting a route based at least in part on the traffic congestion information, and outputting an estimated time of arrival based on the selected route.

14. A mobile device, comprising:

one or more processors;

a user interface module, of the mobile device, communicatively coupled to the one or more processors, and configured to receive input; and

a navigation module, of the mobile device, communicatively coupled to the one or more processors, and configured to;

select a first pre-defined location and a second pre-defined location from a plurality of pre-defined locations based on user input;

initialize responsive to input from the user interface module indicative of a command to initialize;

obtain information representative of a location of the mobile device in response to the command to initialize;

determine whether the location of the mobile device is proximate to one of the first and second pre-defined locations;

in response to determining that the location of the mobile device is proximate to one of the first and second pre-defined locations;

automatically select the location of the mobile device as an origin for an estimated time of arrival; and

automatically determine the one of the first and second pre-defined location as a destination that is not proximate to the location of the mobile device for the estimated time of arrival without user selection;

in response to determining that the location of the mobile device is proximate to neither of the first and second pre-defined locations;

determine if a current time satisfies a time of day criteria; and

in response to determining that the current time satisfies the time of day criteria;

automatically select the location of the mobile device as the origin for the navigation output; and

based on the current time, automatically determine one of the first and second pre-defined locations as the destination for the navigation output without user selection; and

output the estimated time of arrival using the origin and the destination.

15. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein the user interface module further is configured to display an option to associate a selected destination as one of the first or second pre-defined locations.

16. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein the navigation module further is configured to output an estimated time of arrival to a destination selected in response to detection of user input.

17. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein the user interface module further is configured to display a start page upon mobile device initialization, which includes a user selectable option to activate the navigation function, and to activate the navigation function responsive to detecting a selection of the option to activate the navigation function.

18. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein the navigation module further is configured to obtain traffic congestion information over a network interface, select a route based at least in part on the traffic congestion information, and to output the estimated time of arrival based on the selected route.

19. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein the time of day criteria comprises a criteria that the current time is within one of the morning or the afternoon hours.