Method and System for Determining Geographic Data to Display

• US 20140236937A1
• Filed: 02/18/2013
• Published: 08/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HERE Global B.V. (HERE Holding Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Navteq B.V.
• Inventors: Hohs, Cory James
• Granted Patent: US 9,619,484 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/724
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases

Abstract

When a first map application initiates a search of a first geographic database associated with the first map application, for geographic data or when the first geographic database does not return at least a portion of the geographic data in response to the search, the first map application initiates a search of a second geographic database for at least the portion of the geographic data. The second geographic database is associated with a second map application. If the second geographic database includes the portion of the requested data, the first map application displays the geographic data, which is received from the first database, the second database, or a combination thereof. The first map application also requests that a user input the portion of the geographic data not included in the first geographic database, which may then be added to the first geographic database.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving data representing a request for geographic data;

initiating a first search for the geographic data, the first search being of a first geographic database;

initiating a second search for the geographic data based on the initiated first search, the second search being of a second geographic database; and

determining, with a processor, data to be displayed at a computing device, the data to be displayed at the computing device comprising first data, second data, or a combination thereof, the first data being receivable in response to the initiated first search, the second data being receivable in response to the initiated second search.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the geographic data comprises data representing a point of interest (POI), a location, a geographic area, a route between the POI and another POI, the location and another location, or the POI and the location, or a combination thereof.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating the second search for the geographic data based on the initiated first search comprises initiating the second search for the geographic data when the first geographic database does not include at least a portion of the geographic data.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the geographic data comprises data representing a location and data representing a point of interest (POI) corresponding to the location, and wherein the method further comprises:

receiving the first data from the first geographic database, the first data including one of the data representing the location and the data representing the POI corresponding to the location, the first database not including the other of the data representing the location and the data representing the POI corresponding to the location;

determining when the second geographic database includes the other of the data representing the location and the data representing the POI corresponding to the location, the second data comprising the other of the data representing the location and the data representing the POI corresponding to the location when the second geographic database includes the other of the data representing the location and the data representing the POI corresponding to the location;

initiating an exchange of the first data for the second data between the first geographic database and the second geographic database when the second geographic database includes the second data and does not include the first data.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the geographic data comprises data representing a geographic area including a point of interest (POI), a location, or the POI and the location, the portion of the geographic data comprising data representing the POI, the location, or the POI and the location,

wherein the method further comprises:

receiving the first data from the first geographic database, the first data comprising data representing at least a portion of the geographic area, the first database not including data representing the POI, the location, or the POI and the location; and

receiving the second data from the second geographic database, the second data comprising the data representing the POI, the location, or the POI and the location, and

wherein determining the data to be displayed at the computing device comprises supplementing the received first data with the received second data.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating the second search for the geographic data based on the initiated first search comprises initiating the second search for the geographic data when the first search for the geographic data is initiated.

7. An apparatus comprising:

a processor operable to identify data representing a request for geographic data; and

memory including computer program code, the memory and the computer program code configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus at least to;

initiate a first search for the geographic data, the first search being of a first geographic database;

initiate a second search for the geographic data based on the initiated first search, the second search being of a second geographic database; and

supplement first data to be displayed at the computing device with second data to be displayed at the computing device when the first database includes less than all of the geographic data, the first data being receivable in response to the initiated first search, the second data being receivable in response to the initiated second search.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the apparatus is a mobile device, a personal computer, or a navigation device.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the apparatus is a server, the server comprising the first geographic database.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processor is operatively connected to a computing device, the computing device comprising the second geographic database, and

wherein the computing device is geographically remote from the apparatus.

11. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processor is operable to automatically initiate the second search for the geographic data when the first search for the geographic data is initiated, the second search being initiated in parallel with the first search.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising an input device and a communications interface operatively connected to the processor,

wherein the processor is operable to receive the first data and the second data, and the memory is operable to store the received first data and the received second data, and

wherein the processor is operable to:

identify a first input and a second input, the first input being at the input device, the second input being at the communications interface; and

delete the stored second data based on the first input, the second input, or a combination thereof.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the identified first input comprises a user input at the input device, and the identified second input comprises a global positioning system (GPS) signal received by the communications interface.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processor is further operable to:

identify a display mode associated with the request;

determine additional geographic data based on the identified display mode, the initiated first search being for the geographic data and the additional geographic data, the initiated second search being for the geographic data and the additional geographic data;

receive the first data in response to the initiated first search;

receive the second data in response to the initiated second search;

compare the received first data to the received second data;

supplement the received first data with the received second data based on the comparison; and

display the supplemented first data.

15. In a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium configured to store instructions executable by one or more processors, the instructions configured to:

receive a request for the geographic data;

initiate a first search for the geographic data, the first search being of a first geographic database;

initiate a second search for the geographic data when the first search is initiated, the second search being of a second geographic database;

receive and storing, with a memory, first data in response to the initiated first search;

receive and storing, with the memory, second data in response to the initiated second search; and

determine data to be displayed at a computing device, the data to be displayed at the computing device comprising the stored first data, the stored second data, or a combination thereof, the data to be displayed at the computing device comprising at least a portion of the stored second data when the first geographic database includes less than all of the geographic data.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions are further configured to determine a characteristic relating to the geographic data, and

wherein the instructions are configured to initiate the second search such that a search for data representing a geographic area based on the determined characteristic relating to the geographic data is initiated, the data representing the geographic area comprising the geographic data.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the characteristic is a population of a city that the geographic data at least partially represents, one or more points of interest (POIs) represented by the geographic data or other data within the first geographic database or the second geographic database, a geographic area the geographic data represents, or a combination thereof.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions are further configured to:

determine, when the first database does not include at least a portion of the geographic data, when the stored second data includes the portion of the geographic data;

supplement the first data with a part of the stored second data representing the portion of the geographic data; and

display the supplemented first data at the computing device.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions are further configured to:

identify an input at the computing device; and

initiate a display of data representing a request to a user of the computing device to input the portion of the geographic data based on the identified input at the computing device.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions are further configured to:

identify an input at the computing device; and

delete the stored second data based on identified input at the computing device.