Systems, functional data, and methods to bias map matching

• US 20030158659A1
• Filed: 02/11/2003
• Published: 08/21/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Garmin Limited
• Original Assignee: Garmin Limited
• Inventors: Krull, Jay Dee, Tompkins, Mark D.
• Granted Patent: US 6,845,320 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/30 Map- or contour-matching

Abstract

Devices, systems, functional data and methods are provided for biasing an active location to an acceptable location within a planned route of a map. The navigational device with map biasing capabilities includes a processor communicating with a memory. In biasing a map, an active position and a planned position are received, and an active score and a planned score are associated with each position, respectively. The active position is checked to ensure it falls within a second range, and if it does the active score is made to fall within a first range associated with the planned score, such that the active position is biased to appear as if it were the planned position.

Claims

1. A navigational device, comprising:

a processor;

a memory in communication with the processor;

a display in communication with the processor;

wherein the device uses the memory in cooperation with the processor to dynamically generate one or more scores associated with one or more roads included in a route path for the device, wherein a current score associated with a current position of the device is biased by a factor in favor of the current position being on the route path; and

wherein at least a portion of the route path is dynamically communicated to the display.

2. The device of claim 1, further comprising an interface device operable to audibly communicate the route path.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein each of the scores comprise a positional weight and a bearing weight.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the memory in communication with the processor of the device detects a location off of the route path if a delta associated with at least one of a current position and a current bearing of the device falls outside a predefined threshold range associated with the route path.

5. The device of claim 4, wherein the current bearing includes at least one of an angle associated with the device, a velocity associated with the device, a direction of travel associated with the device, and an altitude associated with the device.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the current score continuously updates as the device moves.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is a portable electronic device.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the memory is remote from the processor.

9. A navigation system, comprising:

a mass storage device adapted to store navigation data;

a server adapted to communicate with the mass storage; and

a navigation device adapted to communicate with and retrieve navigation data from the server via a communication channel, wherein the navigation device includes a processor in communication with a memory, wherein the processor and memory cooperate to generate a current score associated with a current position and a current bearing of a device, the current score is used to determine whether the device is located on a planed route for the device and is biased to map the current position to a position on the planned route for the device and whether the current score is within a tolerance level.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the communication channel includes a wireless channel.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein one or more locations receive one or more location scores based on the planned route.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the current score is regularly compared to the location scores to determine if the current score is within the tolerance level.

13. Functional data to bias a location to a map, comprising:

active location data operable to be plotted within the map;

a planned path comprising planned location data operable to be plotted within the map;

an active score associated with the active location data and a planned score associated with the planned path; and

bias instruction data to bias the active score in favor of the planned score as long as the active location data do not deviate from the planned path by a preset range.

14. The functional data of claim 13, wherein the active location data include an active position and an active bearing.

15. The functional data of claim 14, further comprising re-route instruction data operable to generate an alternative path to the planned path when the active location data deviates from the planned path by the preset range.

16. The functional data of claim 13, wherein at least a portion of the functional data is processed on a navigational device.

17. The functional data of claim 13, further comprising communication instruction data operable to communicate a biased active location data plotted within the map.

18. The functional data of claim 17, wherein the communication instruction data is further operable to communicate at least one of an audio device and a visual device.

19. The functional data of claim 13, wherein the active location data are updated and the bias instruction data executed dynamically and repetitively until a termination is detected.

20. A method to bias an active position to a planned position, comprising:

dynamically receiving the active position and the planned position;

biasing an active score associated with the active position by forcing the active score to be at least as favorable as a planned score associated with the planned position ensuring that the difference between the active score and the planned score fall within a first range; and

aborting the biasing if the active position falls outside a second range.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising dynamically generating an alternative position if the biasing was aborted.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the biasing is predetermined based on inaccurate map data associated with the planned position.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the biasing is based on one or more errors associated with calculating the active position.

24. The method of claim 20, further comprising plotting the active position as if it were the planned position in a map if the biasing was not aborted.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein a plurality of additional planned positions comprise a route within the map.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the active position, the route and the map are dynamically provided to a communication device.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the method is used in connection with an electronic navigational aid device.

28. A navigation system, comprising:

a mass storage device adapted to store navigation data;

a server adapted to communicate with the mass storage; and

a navigation device adapted to communicate with and retrieve navigation data from the server via a communication channel, wherein the navigation device includes a processor in communication with a memory, wherein the processor and memory cooperate to generate a current score associated with a current position and a current bearing of a device, the current score is used to determine whether the device is located on a planned route for the device and is biased to map the current position to a position on the planned route for the device if the current score is within a tolerance level.

29. The system of claim 28, wherein the communication channel includes a wireless channel.

30. The system of claim 28, wherein one or more locations receive one or more location scores based on the planned route.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein the locations are positions located on thoroughfares.

32. The system of claim 30, wherein the current score is biased to be within the tolerance level when the one or more location scores are within the tolerance level.

33. The system of claim 28, wherein the current score is regularly updated as the device moves.

34. The system of claim 28, wherein the current score is also associated with one or more weighting algorithms.

35. A navigation system, comprising:

a navigation device having memory and at least one processor; and

a set of executable instructions residing in the memory of the navigation device and processed by the at least one processor, and wherein the set of executable instructions generate a current score associated with a current position of the navigation device, and wherein the current score is regularly compared to thoroughfare scores associated with positions of thoroughfares on a planned route for the navigation device, and the current score is biased in favor of being on the planned route when the current score falls within a threshold.

36. The navigation system of claim 35, further comprising a display in communication with the navigation device and operable to visually and audibly present the current position and the planned route.

37. The navigation system of claim 35, wherein the current position is regularly acquired from a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system.

38. The navigation system of claim 35, wherein when the current score is biased the current position is mapped to a route position on the planned route.

39. The navigation system of claim 35, wherein the current score is also associated with a current bearing of the navigation device.

40. The navigation system of claim 35, wherein the current score is also associated with a velocity of the navigation device as it moves.

41. The navigation system of claim 35, wherein the positions of thoroughfares are associated with thoroughfares within a defined radius of the current position.

45. The navigation system of claim 41, wherein the threshold is a predefined value representing an acceptable delta distance from the route position.

42. A navigation system, comprising:

a navigation device in communication with a positioning system to determine a current position for the navigation device; and

a set of executable instructions processing on the navigation device that biases the current position of the navigation device to a route position on a planned route when the current position when compared to thorough fare positions is within a threshold.

43. The navigation system of claim 42, wherein the current position is compared by generating a current score for the current position and thoroughfare scores for the thoroughfare positions.

44. The navigation system of claim 42, wherein the score is generated by uses velocity information and bearing information associated with the current position.

46. The navigation system of claim 42, wherein the current position, the route position, and the thoroughfare positions are dynamically updated as the navigation device moves.

47. The navigation system of claim 42, wherein the navigation device is portable.