Enhanced traffic sign information messaging system

• US 9,911,329 B1
• Filed: 07/26/2017
• Issued: 03/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert Gordon
• Original Assignee: Robert Gordon
• Inventors: Gordon, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Toan N
• Application Number:
  US15/660,789
• Time in Patent Office: 223 Days
• Field of Search: 340905, 340990, 340991, 34099513, 34099512, 701117-119
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]

Abstract

An Enhanced Traffic Sign Information Messaging System (ETSIMS) that provides the methodology, functions and support equipment to provide vehicles, which might not be within sight of the traffic message sign, with all or some prioritized parts of the message displayed on the sign, or an enhanced version of the information provided on the sign, including traffic information messages inferred from the message displayed on the traffic message sign. ETSIMS may also provide messages of this type without the need for the physical presence of a sign on the roadway.

Claims

1. A method for providing traffic information messages, comprising:

a. receiving at an ETSIMS management center at a physical location or in a cloud a plurality of messages displayed on a DMS or an ADMS, said plurality of messages originating from a traffic management center (TMC), a regional traffic information management center or a traffic information service;

b. associating a first at least one catchment domain including one or more parts of a roadway network and a management domain including one or more parts of the roadway network containing the physical location of the DMS or the ADMS;

c. prioritizing messages from the plurality of messages to be provided to vehicles; and

d. communicating the prioritized messages to the vehicles.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying message components of each of the plurality of messages after receiving the plurality of messages and communicating the message components to the vehicles.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of identifying the message components is performed using keywords or other artificial intelligence techniques.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

a. identifying the keywords present in each message;

b. identifying roadway links for which the message applies using the keywords present in the message and a link identifier table;

c. identifying a management domain in which the links are located;

d. identifying a second at least one catchment domain associated with the management domain;

e. determining applicable informational messages originating on the sign; and

f. transmitting the applicable informational messages to vehicles located in the second at least one catchment domain.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising tagging each of the plurality of messages with the corresponding management domain, the second at least one catchment domain, and message components.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical location of the DMS or the ADMS is not within sight of drivers or automated vehicles.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical location of the DMS or the ADMS is within sight of drivers or automated vehicles.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a geographical data structure that correlates the DMS or the ADMS to the management domain and to the first at least one catchment domain.

9. A method for providing inferred traffic information messages, comprising:

a. receiving a message displayed on a real or virtual DMS or a real or virtual ADMS at a management center from a traffic management center (TMC), a regional traffic information center or a traffic information service;

b. associating a first at least one catchment domain including one or more parts of a roadway network and a management domain including one or more parts of the roadway network with the real or virtual DMS or the real or virtual ADMS;

c. identifying keywords present in the message;

d. analyzing the message by message components using the keywords or other techniques;

e. classifying the message components by informational event categories;

f. identifying roadway links for which the message applies using the keywords and a link identifier table;

g. identifying the management domain in which the links are located;

h. identifying a second at least one catchment domain associated with the management domain;

i. searching a plurality of databases for additional message components for each of the informational event categories;

j. generating analyzed database data corresponding to the additional message components;

k. generating inferred enhanced messages as appropriate based on the analyzed database data; and

l. transmitting the inferred enhanced messages to vehicles.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising assigning a priority level to each of the inferred enhanced messages.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of transmitting the inferred enhanced messages to vehicles is based on the informational event categories and the priority level.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising providing a geographical data structure that correlates the real or virtual DMS or the real or virtual ADMS to the management domain and to the first at least one catchment domain.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising processing inferred enhanced messages to generate corresponding processed inferred enhanced messages for presentation in the vehicles.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of generating inferred enhanced messages is performed at a processing center.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising limiting a size of the inferred enhanced messages to be displayed in the vehicles.

16. A method for providing traffic information messages, comprising:

a. receiving at an ETSIMS management center at a physical location or in a cloud at least one message displayed on a DMS or an ADMS, said at least one message originating from a traffic management center (TMC), a regional traffic information management center or a traffic information service;

b. associating a first at least one catchment domain including one or more parts of a roadway network and a management domain including one or more parts of the roadway network containing the physical location of the DMS or the ADMS; and

c. communicating the at least one message to vehicles.

17. An Enhanced Traffic Sign Information Messaging System, comprising:

a. an interface for receiving at an ETSIMS management center at a physical location or in a cloud at least one message displayed on a DMS or an ADMS, said at least one message originating from a traffic management center (TMC), a regional traffic information management center or a traffic information service;

b. a processor coupled to the interface, wherein the processor receives the at least one message through the interface, associates a first at least one catchment domain including one or more parts of a roadway network and a management domain including one or more parts of the roadway network containing the physical location of the DMS or the ADMS, and transmits the at least one message to one or more vehicles.

18. The Enhanced Traffic Sign Information Messaging System of claim 17, wherein the processor processes the at least one message using one or more processing module, selected from the group consisting of prioritizing the at least one message, identifying keywords present in the at least one message, analyzing the at least one message by message components using keywords or other techniques, classifying the at least one message or the components by informational event categories, identifying roadway links for which the at least one message applies using the keywords and a link identifier table, identifying the management domain in which the links are located, identifying a second at least one catchment domain associated with the management domain, searching a plurality of databases for additional message components for each of the informational event categories, generating analyzed database data corresponding to the additional message components, and generating inferred enhanced messages based on the analyzed database data, said one or more processing module operatively coupled to the processor for developing enhanced traffic messages.