Navigation system

• US 20070093955A1
• Filed: 05/28/2004
• Published: 04/26/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hughes, Ian
• Granted Patent: US 7,941,270 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3644 Landmark guidance, e.g. using POIs or conspicuous other objects
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3647 Guidance involving output of stored or live camera images or video streams

Abstract

A method and system for providing navigational instructions. A signal is received from a first device. The signal specifies a destination location, a second device, and a request for at least one route leading to the destination location such that the at least one route is to be sent to the second device. During or after the signal is received from the first device, a device type of the second device is determined. At least one set of images is sent to the second device. Each set of images defines a unique route leading to the destination location. A total number of the sets of images and a content of each set of images are a function of the determined device type.

Claims

1-22. -22. (canceled)

23. A method for providing navigational instructions, said method comprising:

receiving a signal from a first device, said signal specifying a destination location, a second device, and a request for at least one route leading to the destination location such that the at least one route is to be sent to the second device;

determining a device type of the second device during or after said receiving the signal from the first device; and

sending at least one set of images to the second device, wherein each set of images of the at least one set of images defines a unique route leading to the destination location, and wherein a total number of said sets of images and a content of each set of images are a function of the determined device type.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the first and second devices are a same device.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the first and second devices are different devices.

26. The method of claim 23, wherein the at least one set of images comprises a plurality of sets of images.

27. The method of claim 23, wherein the method further comprises:

providing a database that comprises the at least one set of images;

receiving a vote on a usefulness of each received image in the at least one set of images; and

modifying the database in dependence upon said received votes, wherein said modifying comprises at least one of replacing, deleting, and amending at least one image in the at least one set of images in the database.

28. The method of claim 23, wherein the signal does not comprise a starting location from which each route to the destination location is to originate from.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the at least one set of images comprises a plurality of sets of images.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein each set of images comprises a furthest image that is furthest from the destination path, and wherein the furthest images of the plurality of sets of images collectively form on a ring of images surrounding the destination location.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the ring of images is shaped as a circle whose center is at the destination location.

32. The method of claim 23, wherein said sending comprises sending the at least one set of images to the second device as a time-ordered sequence of subsets of the images in the at least one set of images, and wherein each subset is sent to the second device in response to a prompt from the first device.

33. The method of claim 23, wherein said sending comprises sending the at least one set of images to the second device as a time-ordered sequence of subsets of the images of the at least one set of images, and wherein each subset is automatically sent to the second device.

34. The method of claim 23, wherein the method further comprises providing a database that comprises the at least one set of images, wherein each image in the at least one set of images is keyed in the database by the destination location for each route of the routes defined by the at least one set of images, and wherein said providing the database that comprises the at least one set of images is performed prior to said receiving the signal from the first device.

35. The method of claim 23, wherein the method further comprises:

providing a database that comprises the at least one set of images; and

recording in the database that each set of images of the at least one set of images defines a unique route leading to the destination location, wherein said providing the database and said recording in the database are performed prior to said receiving the signal from the first device.

36. The method of claim 23, wherein the method further comprises providing a database that comprises the at least one set of images and relative indicators showing a positional relationship of each image in the at least one set of images relative to another image in the at least one set of images, and wherein said providing the database that comprises the at least one set of images and the relative indicators is performed prior to said receiving the signal from the first device.

37. A computer program product stored on a computer readable storage medium, comprising computer readable program code for performing a method for providing navigational instructions, said method comprising:

receiving a signal from a first device, said signal specifying a destination location, a second device, and a request for at least one route leading to the destination location such that the at least one route is to be sent to the second device;

determining a device type of the second device during or after said receiving the signal from the first device; and

sending at least one set of images to the second device, wherein each set of images of the at least one set of images defines a unique route leading to the destination location, and wherein a total number of said sets of images and a content of each set of images are a function of the determined device type.

38. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the first and second devices are a same device.

39. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the first and second devices are different devices.

40. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the at least one set of images comprises a plurality of sets of images.

41. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the method further comprises:

providing a database that comprises the at least one set of images;

receiving a vote on a usefulness of each received image in the at least one set of images; and

modifying the database in dependence upon said received votes, wherein said modifying comprises at least one of replacing, deleting, and amending at least one image in the at least one set of images in the database.

42. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the signal does not comprise a starting location from which each route to the destination location is to originate from.

43. The computer program product of claim 42, wherein the at least one set of images comprises a plurality of sets of images.

44. The computer program product of claim 43, wherein each set of images comprises a furthest image that is furthest from the destination path, and wherein the furthest images of the plurality of sets of images collectively form on a ring of images surrounding the destination location.

45. A system comprising a server, said server comprising a database for storing images of locations and a computer program product for performing a method for providing navigational instructions using images in the database, said method comprising

receiving a signal from a first device, said signal specifying a destination location, a second device, and a request for at least one route leading to the destination location such that the at least one route is to be sent to the second device;

determining a device type of the second device during or after said receiving the signal from the first device; and

sending at least one set of images to the second device, wherein each set of images of the at least one set of images defines a unique route leading to the destination location, and wherein a total number of said sets of images and a content of each set of images are a function of the determined device type.

46. The system of claim 45, wherein the first and second devices are a same device.

47. The system of claim 45, wherein the first and second devices are different devices.

48. The system of claim 45, wherein the at least one set of images comprises a plurality of sets of images.

49. The system of claim 45, where the database comprises the at least one set of images, and wherein the method further comprises:

receiving a vote on a usefulness of each received image in the at least one set of images; and

modifying the database in dependence upon said received votes, wherein said modifying comprises at least one of replacing, deleting, and amending at least one image in the at least one set of images in the database.

50. The system of claim 45, wherein the signal does not comprise a starting location from which each route to the destination location is to originate from.

51. The system of claim 50, wherein the at least one set of images comprises a plurality of sets of images.

52. The system of claim 51, wherein each set of images comprises a furthest image that is furthest from the destination path, and wherein the furthest images of the plurality of sets of images collectively form on a ring of images surrounding the destination location.