Systems and methods for analyzing the use of mobile resources

• US 9,921,066 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2016
• Issued: 03/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Telogis Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Brown, Steven T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Singh, Gurkanwaljit
• Application Number:
  US15/069,870
• Publication Number:
  US 20160364660A1
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/34 Route searching; Route guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3415 Dynamic re-routing, e.g. recalculating the route when the user deviates from calculated route or after detecting real-time traffic data or accidents
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/047 Optimisation of routes or paths, e.g. travelling salesman problem
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0968 Systems involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles

Abstract

A system for analyzing the use of a mobile resource, such as a vehicle, includes a central processing unit adapted to receive a plurality of geographic locations and create an optimal travel route between the geographic locations, and an analyzer device incorporating global positioning satellite (GPS) technology being positionable with a mobile resource for comparing an actual route traveled by the mobile resource with the optimal travel route created by the central processing unit. The central processing unit includes mobile resource management software stored therein adapted to use pre-selected criteria for creating the optimal travel route. The pre-selected criteria may include time, distance, cost, load parameters, territory, and customer requirements.

Claims

1. A system for analyzing the use of a fleet of mobile resources comprising:

a fleet of mobile resources, each mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources comprising an analyzer device comprising a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a communication device, the analyzer device configured to determine and transmit raw GPS ping data of the GPS receiver; and

at least one central processing unit comprising;

a memory comprising computer-executable instructions;

a recording database configured to receive and store the raw GPS ping data transmitted by the analyzer device, and

a computer database comprising identified stop information converted from the raw GPS ping data,

wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed, configure the at least one central processing unit to;

receive periodically in real-time the raw GPS ping data of an actual route traveled by a first mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources;

identify and convert the raw GPS ping data into two or more stops associated with the actual route based, in part, on an analysis of the raw GPS ping data of an actual sequence of stops taken in the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource;

identify and convert the raw GPS ping data into the actual route for the two or more stops;

generate a first optimal route between the two or more stops comprising a first optimal sequence for the two or more stops for the first mobile resource;

generate a second optimal route between the two or more stops comprising a second optimal sequence for the two or more stops for a second mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources that is available in real-time, the second mobile resource being a different type of mobile resource than the first mobile resource,

wherein the first and second optimal routes are based, in part, on the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, each of the first and second optimal routes differing at least in part from the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, wherein the actual route is traveled by the first mobile resource prior to generation of the first and second optimal routes;

analyze the actual route traveled and the first and second optimal routes to determine usage of at least one criterion that would have been reduced during each of the first and second optimal routes compared to the actual route;

compare the usage of the at least one criterion by the first mobile resource when traveling the actual route with the usage of the at least one criterion by the first and second mobile resources when travelling the first and second optimal routes respectively; and

generate an output of a comparison of the usage of the at least one criterion by the first mobile resource for the actual route and the usage of the at least one criterion by the first and second mobile resources for the first and second optimal routes respectively.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one central processing unit is further configured to create the first and second optimal routes using pre-selected criteria.

3. The system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the pre-selected criteria include at least one from a group consisting of time, distance, cost, load parameters, territory, or customer requirements.

4. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the two or more stops comprise a plurality of schedule stops for delivering items or performing services.

5. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the at least one central processing unit is further configured to automatically generate the first and second optimal routes in order to reach each scheduled stop of the plurality of scheduled stops using minimum resources.

6. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the analyzer device is adapted to be carried by the first mobile resource as the first mobile resource travels the actual route.

7. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said at least one central processing unit is further configured to determine a number of mobile resources required to efficiently complete the plurality of scheduled stops.

8. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first and second mobile resources are selected from a group consisting of vehicles, aircraft, watercraft, and humans.

9. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said vehicles are selected from a group of vehicles consisting of trucks, cars, busses, vans, taxis, motorcycles, bicycles, boats, ships, balloons, and planes.

10. A method of analyzing usage of a fleet of mobile resources using one or more hardware processors configured with specific computer-executable instructions, the specific computer-executable instructions stored in an electronic hardware memory, each mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources comprising an analyzer device comprising a global positioning system (GPS) receiver and a communication device, the method comprising:

receiving positional information of an actual route traveled by a first mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources wherein the positional information comprises raw GPS ping data received during operation of the first mobile resource on the actual route;

determining two or more geographic locations associated with the actual route based, in part, on an analysis of the positional information of the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource;

automatically generating a first optimal route for the first mobile resource between the two or more geographic locations based, in part, on the positional information of the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, the first optimal route differing at least in part from the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, wherein the actual route is traveled by the first mobile resource prior to generation of the first optimal route;

automatically generating a second optimal route for a second mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources between the two or more geographic locations based, in part, on the positional information of the actual route, the second optimal route differing at least in part from the actual route and the second mobile resource being a different type of mobile resource than the first mobile resource;

analyzing the actual route traveled and the first and second optimal routes to determine usage of at least one criterion that would have been reduced during each of the first and second optimal routes compared to the actual route;

comparing the usage of the at least one criterion by the first and second mobile resources when travelling the first and second optimal routes respectively to the usage of the at least one criterion by the first mobile resource when travelling the actual travel route; and

generating an output of a comparison of the usage of the at least one criterion by the first mobile resource for the actual route and by the first and second mobile resources for the first and second optimal routes respectively.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the two or more geographic locations comprise a plurality of scheduled stops for delivering items or performing services.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising generating the first and second optimal routes using minimum criteria to reach each scheduled stop of the plurality of scheduled stops.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising determining a number of mobile resources required to efficiently complete the plurality of scheduled stops.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising periodically receiving a position of the first mobile resource from the analyzer device.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein pre-selected criteria are used in generating the first and second optimal routes.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the pre-selected criteria are selected from a group consisting of time, distance, cost, load parameters, territory, and customer requirements.

17. Non-transitory physical computer storage comprising computer-executable instructions stored thereon that, when executed in one or more processors, are configured to execute operations comprising:

identifying a fleet of mobile resources, each mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources comprising an analyzer device comprising a global positioning system (GPS) receiver and a communication device;

receiving positional information of an actual route traveled by a first mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources, wherein the positional information comprises raw GPS ping data received during operation of the first mobile resource on the actual route;

determining two or more geographic locations associated with the actual route based, in part, on an analysis of the positional information of the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource;

automatically generating a first optimal route between the two or more geographic locations based, in part, on the positional information of the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, the first optimal route differing at least in part from the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, wherein the actual route is traveled by the first mobile resource prior to generation of the first optimal route;

automatically generating a second optimal route for a second mobile resource of the fleet of mobile resources between the two or more geographic locations based, in part, on the positional information of the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, the second optimal route differing at least in part from the actual route traveled by the first mobile resource, the second mobile resource being a different type of mobile resource than the first mobile resource;

analyzing the actual route traveled and the first and second optimal routes to determine usage of at least one criterion that would have been reduced during each of the first and second optimal routes compared to the actual route; and

generating an output comparing the usage of the at least one criterion by the first and second mobile resources when travelling the first and second optimal routes respectively as compared to the usage of the at least one criterion by the first mobile resource when travelling the actual route.

18. The non-transitory physical computer storage of claim 17, wherein the analyzer device is configured to periodically report a position of the first mobile resource to the computer system.

19. The non-transitory physical computer storage of claim 17, wherein the communication device is selected from a group of communication systems consisting of wireless communication systems;

radio wave communication systems, and cable communication systems.

20. The non-transitory physical computer storage of claim 17, wherein the at least one criterion is at least one of time or money.