Method and device for carrying out travel route planning for a vehicle

• US 9,810,543 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2013
• Issued: 11/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Original Assignee: Volkswagen Aktiegesellschaft
• Inventors: Hoch, Nicklas, Werther, Bernd
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatib, Rami
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wiltey, Nicholas K
• Application Number:
  US14/043,348
• Publication Number:
  US 20140052374A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,498 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0205 Simultaneously evaluating both cardiovascular conditions and different types of body conditions, e.g. heart and respiratory condition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/021 Measuring pressure in heart or blood vessels A61B5/0205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/024 Detecting, measuring or recording pulse rate or heart rate A61B5/0205, A61B5/021 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0816 Measuring devices for examining respiratory frequency measuring frequency of electric signals G01R23/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14542 for measuring blood gases A61B5/14551 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/18 for vehicle drivers or machine operators
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/343 Calculating itineraries, i.e. routes leading from a starting point to a series of categorical destinations using a global route restraint, round trips, touristic trips travelling salesman problem G06Q10/04; optimisation of routes G06Q10/047
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3469 Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/362 received from an external device or application, e.g. PDA, mobile phone or calendar application
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting

Abstract

A method and device for carrying out travel route planning for a vehicle, in which schedule data are transmitted to a calculation unit, which is coupled to a data memory, in which data relating to a path network for the vehicle and data relating to the geographic positions of energy supply facilities are stored. The calculation unit checks if a route sequence which connects the geographic positions of the destinations associated with the schedule data is calculable such that the destinations are reached at the associated time data of the schedule data, wherein the prognosticated residual energy amount in the energy store of the vehicle for travelling the route sequence is determined and taken into account, if no such route sequence is calculable using the calculation unit, the latter determines matched schedule data for which such a route sequence is calculable, and the matched schedule data are output.

Claims

1. A method for carrying out travel route planning for a vehicle, the method comprising:

transmitting schedule data, which comprise geographic positions of destinations of the travel route to be planned and associated time data, to a computing unit that is coupled to a data memory, in which data based on a road network for the vehicle and data based on geographic positions of energy supply facilities are stored;

checking, via the computing unit, whether a route sequence that connects the geographic positions of the destinations associated with the schedule data is calculable, so that destinations are reached at the associated time data of the schedule data, wherein a predicted remaining amount of energy in an energy storage device of the vehicle for traveling the route sequence is determined and taken into account;

storing further data on geographic positions of parking areas comprising parking lots or energy supply facilities for the vehicle for the destinations of the route sequence in the data memory;

determining, via the computing unit in calculating a route sequence also for the destinations of a destination sequence case, parking areas assigned to the destinations at the particular destination, determining an assigned parking area for each destination of the destination sequence, wherein, in determining the distance of the parking area from an assigned destination, the geographic position of the next destination or the geographic position of the parking areas of the next destination and the predicted remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device for traveling the route sequence are taken into account, and wherein the route sequence comprises routes between parking areas of successive destinations of the destination sequence;

checking whether a route sequence connects the geographic positions of the destinations associated with the schedule data so that the destinations are reached at the associated time data of the schedule data, wherein a length of time is taken into account that the user requires to reach the destination from the parking area assigned to the destination;

determining, if no such route sequence is calculable by the computing unit, adjusted schedule data for which such a route sequence is calculable; and

outputting the adjusted schedule data,

wherein, during said checking, a probability of parking area availability at said destinations is taken into consideration,

wherein the energy supply facilities are located in the parking area at said destinations,

wherein, during said checking, time data for the destinations and a length of time for increasing energy reserves while the vehicle is at the destination is taken into consideration,

wherein said increasing energy reserves includes a possibility of ending charging of the energy storage device before the energy storage device is filled so that destinations are reached at the associated time data of the schedule data, and

wherein, during said checking, driving behavior based on historical data for a specific driver is taken into consideration, the driving behavior including historical driving speed data.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in the adjusted schedule data new time data are assigned to geographic positions of destinations.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein destinations are deleted in the adjusted schedule data.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in calculating the route sequence, the computing unit optimizes a time usable for a user of the vehicle.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the computing unit calculates the predicted remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device based on a predicted energy consumption for traveling the route sequence, and wherein the predicted energy consumption for driving the vehicle and a predicted energy consumption of internal consumers of the vehicle are taken into account.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein in determining the predicted energy consumption of internal consumers of the vehicle, weather forecasts and/or season in which the route sequence is to be traveled is taken into account.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein, during traveling of the calculated route sequence, the remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device of the vehicle is determined and compared with the predicted remaining amount of energy of the vehicle for a respective route position and, if a deviation of the determined amount of energy from the predicted remaining amount of energy exceeds a limit value, it is checked whether the destinations of the route sequence can continue to be reached at the associated time data of the schedule data, and wherein the predicted remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device of the vehicle for traveling the route sequence is determined.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein, if the check shows that the destinations of the routes cannot be reached at the associated time data, an adjusted route sequence is calculated or adjusted schedule data are determined and the adjusted route sequence or the adjusted schedule data are output.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the energy storage device stores energy for driving the vehicle.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the route sequence comprises a series of routes that connects the destinations.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the associated time data includes a starting time for an appointment and an ending time for an appointment.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein said probability of parking area availability at said destinations is determined based on historical data indicating statistically the times at which individual parking areas where occupied.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein said historical data comprises driver profiles based on driving behavior of the specific driver.

14. The method according to claim 1, further comprising displaying a visualization of a remaining range for a route sequence and marking, with respect to the destinations, an area reachable from a current destination with a remaining amount of energy in the storage device.

15. A device for travel route planning for a vehicle, the device comprising:

an energy storage device for storing energy for driving the vehicle;

a computing unit;

a data memory that is coupled to the computing unit and in which data based on a road network and data based on geographic positions of energy supply facilities for the vehicle are stored;

an interface that is coupled to the computing unit and via which schedule data, which comprises geographic positions of destinations of the travel route to be planned and associated time data, are adapted to be transmitted to the computing unit;

an output unit coupled to the computing unit and via which a route sequence calculated by the computing unit and/or adjusted schedule data is configured to be output;

wherein, via the computing unit, it is checked whether a route sequence is calculable that connects the geographic positions of the destinations associated with the schedule data so that the destinations are reached at an associated time data of the schedule data,

wherein a predicted remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device of the vehicle for traveling the route sequence is determined and taken into account, and if no such route sequence is calculable, adjusted schedule data for which such a route sequence is calculable is determined by the computing unit,

wherein, during said checking, a probability of parking area availability at said destinations is taken into consideration,

wherein the energy supply facilities are located in the parking area at said destinations,

wherein, during said checking, time data for the destinations and a length of time for increasing energy reserves while the vehicle is at the destination is taken into consideration,

wherein said increasing energy reserves includes a possibility of ending charging of the energy storage device before the energy storage device is filled so that destinations are reached at the associated time data of the schedule data,

wherein, during said checking, driving behavior based on historical data for a specific driver is taken into consideration, the driving behavior including historical driving speed data,

wherein the device has an off-board module and an on-board module,

wherein the off-board module comprises the computing unit, wherein the off-board and on-board modules are coupled to one another via an interface at least at times in terms of data links, so that at least one route sequence is transmitted from the off-board module to the on-board module,

wherein the on-board module comprises an additional computing unit, an additional output unit, a memory for storing the route sequence transmitted from the off-board module, and a sensor for determining the remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device of the vehicle,

wherein during the traveling of the calculated route sequence, the determined remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device of the vehicle is compared via the additional computing unit with the predicted remaining amount of energy of the vehicle for a corresponding route position of the route sequence stored in the memory and, if the deviation of the detected remaining amount of energy from the predicted remaining amount of energy exceeds a limit value, it can be checked via an additional computer unit whether the destinations of the route sequence can be reached at the associated time data of the schedule data,

where in the predicted remaining amount of energy in the energy storage device of the vehicle for traveling the route sequence is determined, and

wherein, if a check shows that the destinations of the route sequence cannot be reached at the associated time data, the additional computing unit calculates an adjusted route sequence for outputting via the additional output unit or determines adjusted schedule data.