Method and apparatus for tracking vehicle location

• US 5,594,650 A
• Filed: 05/09/1995
• Issued: 01/14/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Telematics Corporation (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mobile Information Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Shah, Mukesh C., Prabhakaran, Sanjiv
• Primary Examiner(s): ZANELLI, MICHAEL J
• Application Number:
  US08/437,772
• Time in Patent Office: 616 Days
• Field of Search: 364/449, 364/460, 364/452, 342/457, 342/357, 340/990, 340/995, 395/135, 395/600
• US Class Current: 701/207
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/127 to a central station ; Indicators in a central station
• 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 1/202 Dispatching vehicles on the basis of a location, e.g. taxi dispatching

Abstract

An method and apparatus for simultaneously displaying a raster map and vectorized street information corresponding to a vehicle position is provided. The system extracts information from a plurality of databases, including a mobile position database, a raster database and a vector database. The database information is interrelated by common latitude and longitude information. A graphical user interface displays the information in a format easily understood a dispatcher.

Claims

1. Apparatus for fleet management comprising:

a first memory portion comprising a first value and a second value, said first value and said second value defining a mobile unit location for a mobile unit at a selected time;

a second memory portion comprising raster map data, said raster map data defining a digitized representation of a selected geographical area;

a third memory portion comprising street data, said street data defining said raster map in vector form; and

a display comprising a first display segment, said first display segment comprising said digitized representation of said selected geographical area, said street data, and a user locatable mark, said user locatable mark defining said mobile unit position based upon said first value and said second value.

2. Apparatus of claim 1 wherein said third memory portion further comprises vector text data, said vector text data defining vector text information.

3. Apparatus of claim 2 further comprising a second display segment, said second display segment displaying said vector text information.

4. Apparatus of claim 3 wherein said first display segment and said second display segment are simultaneously displayed.

5. Apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a mobile tracking station, said mobile tracking station being operably coupled to said display.

6. Apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of mobile units, each of said mobile units comprising a navigation tracking device, said navigation tracking device comprising a radio.

7. Apparatus of claim 6 further comprising a data acquisition device, said data acquisition device being operably coupled to said navigation tracking device, said data acquisition device being adapted to capture said first value and said second value from said navigation tracking device to define said mobile unit position.

8. Apparatus of claim 1 wherein said display is provided in a mobile tracking station.

9. Apparatus of claim 8 wherein said mobile tracking station is a UNIX workstation.

10. A method for fleet management comprising steps of:

providing a first memory portion, a second memory portion, and a third memory portion, said first memory portion comprising a first value and a second value to define a mobile unit position for a mobile unit at a selected time, said second memory portion comprising raster map data to define a digitized representation of a selected geographical area, said third memory portion comprising street data to define said digitized representation of said selected geographical area in vector form;

retrieving from said second memory portion said raster map data and displaying in a first display segment said digitized representation of said selected geographical area;

retrieving from said third memory portion said street data, and superimposing said street data onto said digitized representation of said selected geographical area; and

retrieving from said first memory portion said mobile unit data and displaying said mobile unit data as a user locatable mark on said first display segment, said user locatable mark defining said mobile unit position.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein said third memory portion further comprises vector text data, said vector text data defining vector text information.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising retrieving from said third memory portion said vector text data, and displaying said vector text information from said vector text data on a second display segment.

13. The method of claim 11 further comprising receiving from said mobile unit location data, said location data defining said first value and said second value at said selected time.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein said first display segment is displayed simultaneously with a second display segment.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein said first display segment is operably coupled to a mobile tracking station.

16. The method of claim 11 wherein said mobile unit comprises a navigation tracking device, said navigation tracking device comprising a radio.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said navigation tracking device is operably coupled to a data acquisition device, said data acquisition device being adapted to capture said first value and said second value from said navigation tracking device to define said mobile unit position.

18. The method of claim 10 wherein said first display segment is provided in a mobile tracking station.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein said mobile tracking station is a UNIX workstation.

20. Display apparatus for fleet management comprising:

a first memory portion comprising a first value and a second value, said first value and said second value defining a mobile unit location for a mobile unit;

a second memory portion comprising raster map data, said raster map data defining a digitized representation of a selected geographical area; and

a display comprising a first display segment, said first display segment comprising said digitized representation of said selected geographical area and a user locatable mark, said user locatable mark defining said mobile unit position based upon said first value and said second value.

21. Apparatus of claim 20 further comprising a third memory portion comprising street data, said street data defining said raster map in vector form.

22. Apparatus of claim 21 wherein said third memory portion further comprises vector text data, said vector text data defining vector text information.

23. Apparatus of claim 22 further comprising a second display segment, said second display segment displaying said vector text information.

24. Apparatus of claim 23 wherein said first display segment and said second display segment are simultaneously displayed.

25. Apparatus of claim 21 further comprising a mobile tracking station, said mobile tracking station being operably coupled to said display.

26. Apparatus of claim 21 further comprising a plurality of mobile units, each of said mobile units comprising a navigation tracking device, said navigation tracking device comprising a radio.

27. Apparatus of claim 26 further comprising a data acquisition device, said data acquisition device being operably coupled to said navigation tracking device, said data acquisition device being adapted to capture said first value and said second value from said navigation tracking device to define said mobile unit position.

28. Apparatus of claim 21 wherein said display is provided in a mobile tracking station.

29. Apparatus of claim 28 wherein said mobile tracking station is a UNIX workstation.

30. A fleet management method comprising steps of:

providing a first memory portion and a second memory portion, said first memory portion comprising a first value and a second value to define a mobile unit position for a mobile unit, said second memory portion comprising raster map data to define a digitized representation of a selected geographical area;

retrieving from said second memory portion said raster map data and displaying in a first display segment said digitized representation of said selected geographical area; and

retrieving from said first memory portion said first value and said second value and displaying said first value and said second value as a user locatable mark on said first display segment, said user locatable mark defining said mobile unit position.

31. The method of claim 30 further comprising providing a third memory portion, said third memory portion comprising vector text data, said vector text data defining vector text information.

32. The method of claim 31 further comprising retrieving from said third memory portion said vector text data, and displaying said vector text information from said vector text data on a second display segment.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein said first display segment and said second display segment are simultaneously displayed.

34. The method of claim 31 wherein said first display segment is operably coupled to a mobile tracking station.

35. The method of claim 31 wherein said mobile unit comprises a navigation tracking device, said navigation tracking device comprising a radio.

36. The method of claim 35 wherein said navigation tracking device is operably coupled to a data acquisition device, said data acquisition device being adapted to capture said first value and said second value from said navigation tracking device to define said mobile unit position.

37. The method of claim 30 further comprising receiving from a mobile unit location, said first value and said second value at said selected time.

38. The method of claim 30 wherein said first display portion is provided in a mobile tracking station.

39. The method of claim 38 wherein said mobile tracking station is a UNIX workstation.

40. Apparatus for identifying a vehicle location, said apparatus comprising:

a first memory portion comprising a first value and a second value, said first value and said second value defining a vehicle location from a vehicle;

a second memory portion comprising raster map data, said raster map data defining a digitized representation of a selected geographical area;

a first display segment, said first display segment comprising said digitized representation of said selected geographical area and a user locatable mark, said user locatable mark defining said vehicle position based upon said first value and said second value; and

a navigational tracking device operably coupled to said first memory portion, said navigational tracking device comprising a global positioning unit.

41. Apparatus of claim 40 further comprising a third memory portion comprising street data, said street data defining said raster map in vector form.

42. Apparatus of claim 41 wherein said third memory portion further comprises vector text data, said vector text data defining vector text information.

43. Apparatus of claim 42 further comprising a second display segment, said second display segment displaying said vector text information.

44. Apparatus of claim 43 wherein said first display segment and said second display segment are simultaneously displayed.

45. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said navigation tracking device further comprises a radio.

46. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said navigation tracking device further comprises a microprocessor-controlled circuit.

47. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said navigation tracking device further comprises a mobile radio.

48. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said navigation tracking device further comprises a specialized mobile radio.

49. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said navigation tracking device further comprises a mobile radio modem.

50. Apparatus of claim 40 further comprising a data acquisition device, said data acquisition device being operably coupled to said navigation tracking device, said data acquisition device being adapted to capture said first value and said second value from said navigation tracking device to define said vehicle position.

51. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said first display segment is provided in a mobile tracking station.

52. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said first display segment is provided in a UNIX workstation.

53. Apparatus of claim 40 wherein said first display segment is provided in a personal computer.