Transportation routing

• US 20060149461A1
• Filed: 12/31/2004
• Published: 07/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Rowley, Henry, Baluja, Shumeet
• Granted Patent: US 7,908,080 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/202
• 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: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096838 where the user preferences are taken into account or the user selects one route out of a plurality
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096844 where the complete route is dynamically recomputed based on new data
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096883 where input information is obtained using a mobile device, e.g. a mobile phone, a PDA
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096888 where input information is obtained using learning systems, e.g. history databases

Abstract

A computer-implemented method of providing personalized route information involves gathering a plurality of past location indicators over time for a wireless client device, determining a future driving objective using the plurality of previously-gathered location indicators, obtaining real-time traffic data for an area proximate to the determined driving objective, and generating a suggested route for the driving objective using the near real-time traffic data.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of providing personalized route information, comprising:

gathering a plurality of past location indicators over time for a wireless client device;

determining a future travel objective using the plurality of previously-gathered location indicators;

obtaining transportation flow data for an area proximate to the determined driving objective; and

generating a suggested route for the travel objective using the transportation flow data.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting via wireless communication link information for the suggested route to the wireless device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the information is transmitted at a predetermined time of day.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting information indicative of real-time traffic data to the wireless device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the location indicators are gathered using a GPS-enabled device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the location indicators are gathered automatically.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each location indicator is gathered in response to a request from a user of the client device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein each location indicator is gathered as the result of a cell-tower hand-off for the device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the location indicators are grouped according to multiple different time periods.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating an updated suggested route based on updated real-time traffic data and position information from the device

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the client device is a cell phone.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the client device is an on-board navigation system

13. A computer-implemented navigation system, comprising:

a location generator for a moving vehicle that produces data indicative of a plurality of vehicle locations;

a navigation point generator that analyzes the data indicative of a plurality of vehicle locations and generates one or more expected navigation points for the vehicle; and

a route generator that receives information indicative of transportation flow near the one or more expected navigation points, and generates data for one or more optimized routes through the one or more expected navigation points.

14. The computer-implemented navigation system of claim 13, further comprising a response formatter that generates data in the form of an electronic document for viewing on a remote device.

15. The computer-implemented navigation system of claim 13, further comprising a response formatter that generates data in a form usable by a navigation device having client-level map generation capability.

16. The computer-implemented navigation system of claim 13, wherein the information indicative of transportation flow includes real-time traffic data.

17. A computer-implemented navigation device having memory for storing instructions that, when executed:

obtain information showing a suggested navigation route;

receive a command in response to display of the information showing a suggested navigation route; and

transmit data relating to the command to a remote system and receive follow-up information in response to the transmission of data relating to the command.

18. The computer-implemented navigation device of claim 17 further having memory storing instructions that, when executed, generate a location information for use in computing expected navigation points for the device based on past locations for the device.

19. The computer-implemented navigation device of claim 18, wherein the expected navigation points are computed for a time period corresponding to a time period for the past locations for the device.

20. The computer-implemented navigation device of claim 17, wherein the obtaining of information showing a suggested navigation route occurs at a predetermined time of the day.

21. A computer-implemented navigation system, comprising:

a location generator for a moving vehicle that produces data indicative of a plurality of vehicle locations;

a navigation point generator that analyzes the data indicative of a plurality of vehicle locations and generates one or more expected navigation points for the vehicle; and

means for generating one or more optimized routes through the one or more expected navigation points.