METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ROUTE-BASED SCROLLING OF A NAVIGATIONAL MAP

• US 20110010082A1
• Filed: 07/09/2009
• Published: 01/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Burgin, Roger W., Wilson, Blake
• Granted Patent: US 9,851,219 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/33 of global position, e.g. by providing GPS coordinates
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/00 Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraft; Combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/35 Constructional details or hardware or software details of the signal processing chain
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0021 located in the aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0052 for cruising combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value G01C23/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0086 for monitoring terrain radar or analogous systems specially adapted for terrain avoidance G01S13/935

Abstract

Methods and systems are provided for indicating the relationship of a displayed area on a map with respect to a route or flight plan. A method comprises displaying a navigational map on a display device and displaying a graphical adjustment element on the display device. The position of the graphical adjustment element on the display device corresponds to the along track distance between the displayed area of the navigational map and a first navigational reference point of a route comprising the first navigational reference point and a second navigational reference point.

Claims

1. A method for presenting, on a display device, information relating to a route comprising a first navigational reference point and a second navigational reference point, the method comprising:

displaying a navigational map on the display device, the navigational map having a displayed area; and

displaying a graphical adjustment element on the display device, wherein a position of the graphical adjustment element on the display device corresponds to the along track distance between the displayed area and the first navigational reference point.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a graphical adjustment path on the display device, the graphical adjustment path corresponding to the along track distance between the first navigational reference point and the second navigational reference point; and

displaying the graphical adjustment element overlying the graphical adjustment path at a position corresponding to the along track distance between the displayed area and the first navigational reference point, such that the position of the graphical adjustment element with respect to the graphical adjustment path corresponds to the along track distance between the displayed area and the first navigational reference point.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying a point within the route that corresponds to the displayed area;

calculating the along track distance from the point to the first navigational reference point to obtain the along track distance between the displayed area and the first navigational reference point; and

determining the position of the graphical adjustment element based on a ratio of the along track distance between the displayed area and the first navigational reference point to a total along track distance between the first navigational reference point and the second navigational reference point.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein identifying the point within the route that corresponds to the displayed area comprises identifying the point within the route nearest a center location for the displayed area.

5. The method of claim 3, the graphical adjustment path being displayed with a first number of pixels, wherein determining the position of the graphical adjustment element comprises:

determining a scale of the graphical adjustment path based on a ratio of the first number of pixels to the along track distance between the first navigational reference point and the second navigational reference point; and

calculating a second number of pixels based on the along track distance between the displayed area and the first navigational reference point and the scale of the graphical adjustment path, wherein the graphical adjustment element is displayed at the position corresponding to the second number of pixels.

6. The method of claim 2, the display device being associated with an aircraft, the method further comprising displaying a graphical representation of the aircraft overlying the graphical adjustment path, the graphical representation of the aircraft overlying the graphical adjustment path at an aircraft position corresponding to the along track distance between a current location of the aircraft and the first navigational reference point, such that the aircraft position with respect to the graphical adjustment path corresponds to the along track distance between the current location of the aircraft and the first navigational reference point.

7. The method of claim 2, further comprising displaying the graphical adjustment element with a display size corresponding to the displayed area.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the method further comprises:

determining the along track distance for a first portion of the route within the displayed area; and

calculating the display size based on the along track distance for the first portion of the route within the displayed area and a scale of the graphical adjustment path.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising adjusting the display size in response to an adjustment of a range setting of the navigational map.

10. The method of claim 2, further comprising correlating the displayed area and the position of the graphical adjustment element.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein correlating the displayed area and the graphical adjustment element comprises automatically adjusting a center location of the displayed area in response to an adjustment of the position of the graphical adjustment element, the adjustment of the position of the graphical adjustment element resulting in an updated position for the graphical adjustment element, wherein the center location corresponds to the updated position.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein correlating the displayed area and the graphical adjustment element comprises automatically adjusting the position of the graphical adjustment element with respect to the graphical adjustment path in response to an adjustment of the displayed area.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein automatically adjusting the position of the graphical adjustment element comprises:

identifying a point within the route that corresponds to the adjusted displayed area;

calculating the along track distance from the point to the first navigational reference point to obtain the along track distance between the adjusted displayed area and the first navigational reference point;

determining an updated position for the graphical adjustment element based on a ratio of the along track distance between the adjusted displayed area and the first navigational reference point to a total along track distance between the first navigational reference point and the second navigational reference point; and

displaying the graphical adjustment element overlying the graphical adjustment path at the updated position.

14. The method of claim 10, the display device having a vertical profile corresponding to the displayed area rendered thereon, the method further comprising correlating the vertical profile and the graphical adjustment element, wherein the vertical profile is automatically adjusted such that the vertical profile corresponds to a portion of the route within the displayed area in response to an adjustment of the graphical adjustment element.

15. A method for presenting information on a display device associated with a vehicle, the method comprising:

displaying a map on the display device;

displaying a graphical adjustment path on the display device, the graphical adjustment path corresponding to an along track distance from a first navigational reference point to a second navigational reference point, wherein the first navigational reference point and the second navigational reference point define a route for the vehicle; and

when a portion of the route is within a displayed area of the map, rendering a graphical adjustment element overlying the graphical adjustment path at a first position, wherein the first position with respect to the graphical adjustment path corresponds to a location of the displayed area with respect to the route.

16. The method of claim 15, the graphical adjustment element comprising a slider overlying the graphical adjustment path at a slider position, wherein the method further comprises automatically adjusting a center location for the displayed area in response to an adjustment of the slider position with respect to the graphical adjustment path, wherein the center location of the displayed area is adjusted in a manner corresponding to the adjustment of the slider position.

17. The method of claim 15, the graphical adjustment element comprising a slider overlying the graphical adjustment path at a slider position, wherein the method further comprises:

detecting an adjustment of a center location of the displayed area of the map, resulting in an updated center location for the displayed area; and

in response to the adjustment of the center location of the displayed area, automatically adjusting the slider position with respect to the graphical adjustment path, resulting in an updated slider position, wherein the updated slider position with respect to the graphical adjustment path corresponds to the along track distance between the updated center location and the first navigational reference point.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising rendering a graphical representation of the vehicle overlying the graphical adjustment path, the graphical representation of the vehicle being positioned overlying the graphical adjustment path based on the along track distance between a current location of the vehicle and the first navigational reference point.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein rendering the graphical adjustment element comprises rendering the graphical adjustment element with a width corresponding to a field of view of the displayed area.

20. A display system comprising a display device having rendered thereon:

a navigational map corresponding to a geographic area;

a graphical adjustment path corresponding to an along track distance from a first navigational reference point to a second navigational reference point;

a graphical adjustment element overlying the graphical adjustment path, the graphical adjustment element being positioned with respect to the graphical adjustment path in a manner that corresponds to the along track distance from the first navigational reference point to the geographic area; and

a graphical representation of an aircraft overlying the graphical adjustment path at a position corresponding to the along track distance from the first navigational reference point to a current location of the aircraft.