LEARNING TRANSPORTATION MODES FROM RAW GPS DATA

• US 20130073202A1
• Filed: 11/12/2012
• Published: 03/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Zheng, Yu, Wang, Longhao, Liu, Like, Xie, Xing
• Granted Patent: US 9,683,858 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/468
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3423 Multimodal routing, i.e. combining two or more modes of transportation, where the modes can be any of, e.g. driving, walking, cycling, public transport
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0112 from the vehicle, e.g. floating car data [FCD]

Abstract

Described is a technology by which raw GPS data is processed into segments of a trip, with a predicted mode of transportation (e.g., walking, car, bus, bicycling) determined for each segment. The determined transportation modes may be used to tag the GPS data with transportation mode information, and/or dynamically used. Segments are first characterized as walk segments or non-walk segments based on velocity and/or acceleration. Features corresponding to each of those walk segments or non-walk segments are extracted, and analyzed with an inference model to determine probabilities for the possible modes of transportation for each segment. Post-processing may be used to modify the probabilities based on transitioning considerations with respect to the transportation mode of an adjacent segment. The most probable transportation mode for each segment is selected.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining a transportation mode associated with a user; and

providing information to the user based upon the transportation mode.

2. The method of claim 1, the determining based upon positioning data.

3. The method of claim 2, the positioning data associated with the user.

4. The method of claim 2, the determining based upon a feature associated with at least some of the positioning data.

5. The method of claim 4, the feature comprising location-related information.

6. The method of claim 4, the feature comprising timing-related information.

7. The method of claim 1, the providing comprising:

providing first information to the user if the transportation mode is determined to comprise a first transportation mode; and

providing second information to the user if the transportation mode is determined to comprise a second transportation mode.

8. The method of claim 7, the first transportation mode different than the second transportation mode, the first information different than the second information.

9. A system comprising:

a component configured to determine a transportation mode associated with a first segment based upon a second transportation mode associated with a second segment.

10. The system of claim 9, the first segment different than the second segment.

11. The system of claim 9, the first segment corresponding to a first time and the second segment corresponding to a second time before the first time.

12. The system of claim 9, the component configured to determine the transportation mode based upon a probability associated with a transition between the second transportation mode and the transportation mode.

13. The system of claim 9, comprising a segmentation component configured to separate positioning data into the first segment and the second segment.

14. The system of claim 9, at least one of the transportation mode or the second transportation mode comprising at least one of walking, driving, bicycling or commuting by bus.

15. The system of claim 9, comprising a segmentation component configured to distinguish between certain segments and uncertain segments based upon a length of respective segments.

16. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions which when executed perform actions, comprising:

merging a first segment of positioning data with a second segment of positioning data based upon a determination that the first segment has a length below a threshold length.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, the actions comprising determining a transportation mode for at least one of the first segment or the second segment.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, the determining a transportation mode comprising determining the transportation mode based upon a feature.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, the feature associated with at least one of the first segment or the second segment.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, the first segment corresponding to a first time and the second segment corresponding to a second time before the first time.