Traffic information prediction apparatus

• US 7,609,176 B2
• Filed: 02/10/2005
• Issued: 10/27/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Endo, Yoshinori, Yamane, Kenichiro, Machii, Kimiyoshi, Fujiwara, Junsuke
• Primary Examiner(s): POPE, DARYL C
• Application Number:
  US11/053,902
• Publication Number:
  US 20050206534A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,720 Days
• Field of Search: 340/994, 340/988, 340/989, 701/209, 701/210, 701/117, 701/25, 701/26
• US Class Current: 340/994
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0104 Measuring and analyzing of parameters relative to traffic conditions

Abstract

A traffic information prediction system, including a traffic information prediction apparatus, of the present invention comprises travel status measuring means for measuring a travel status of a vehicle and accumulating it as travel record information, and traffic information predicting means for predicting traffic information on a route on the basis of the travel record information and statistical traffic information to predict an arrival time to any place on a route containing the destination. The traffic information predicting means compares a traveling trace based on the statistical traffic information and the traveling trace based on the travel record information to calculate the degree of progress of the travel record based on the statistical traffic information, and correct the traveling trace based on the statistical traffic information on the basis of the degree of progress.

Claims

1. A traffic information prediction apparatus that has a function for predicting an arrival time at a destination, comprising:

map data containing road data;

a route searching means for searching a travel route from a current place to the destination on the basis of the map data;

statistical traffic information obtained by statistical processing past accumulated traffic information;

a travel status measuring means for measuring a travel status of a vehicle and accumulating the travel status of the vehicle thus measured as travel record information;

a traffic information predicting means for predicting traffic information on a searched route on the basis of the travel record information and the statistical traffic information to predict arrival time at any place on the route containing the destination; and

a prediction result outputting means for outputting a prediction result,

wherein the traffic information predicting means compares a traveling trace based on the statistical traffic information on the searched route from a departure to the destination and a traveling trace based on the travel record information to calculate a degree of progress of the travel record to the statistical traffic information, and corrects the traveling trace based on the statistical traffic information from the current place to the destination on the basis of the degree of progress to predict an arrival time at a representative point including the destination on the travel route.

2. The traffic information prediction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the traffic information predicting means judges whether prediction should be carried out in accordance with the degree of progress or not, and predicts the arrival time by using the traveling trace based on the statistical traffic.

3. The traffic information prediction apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising prediction result outputting means for outputting a prediction result,

wherein the prediction result outputting means outputs the degree of progress along with a passing time or an arrival time of a passing point or a destination which is predicted in the traffic information predicting means.

4. The traffic information prediction apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising;

a means for transmitting/receiving data to/from the outside, route searching means for searching a route to the destination,

a route searching means for searching a route to a destination, and

a prediction result outputting means for outputting a prediction result,

wherein when the degree of progress is out of the predetermined range in the traffic information predicting means, the traffic information predicting means notifies this fact to the user, and further the traffic information predicting means allow the user to obtain traffic information from an outside institution such as a traffic information center or the like and input whether a re-search of a route is carried out or not, and downloads traffic information from the outside institution to carry out the re-search of the route by using the traffic information in the route searching means when it is determined that the re-searching is carried out.

5. A traffic information prediction, that has a function for predicting an arrival time at a destination, comprising:

map data containing road data;

a route searching means for searching a travel route from a current place to the destination on the basis of the map data;

statistical traffic information obtained by statistical processing past accumulated traffic information;

a travel status measuring means for measuring a travel status of a vehicle and accumulating the travel status of the vehicle thus measured as travel record information;

a traffic information predicting means for predicting traffic information on a searched route on the basis of the travel record information and the statistical traffic information to predict arrival time at any place on the route containing the destination; and

a prediction result outputting means for outputting a prediction result,

further comprising user identifying means for identifying/setting a user of a running vehicle,

wherein the travel record information accumulated in the travel status measuring means is discriminated for every user, and the travel record information used in the traffic information predicting means is travel record information of each user.

6. The traffic information prediction apparatus, that has a function for predicting an arrival time at a destination, comprising:

map data containing road data;

a route searching means for searching a travel route from a current place to the destination on the basis of the map data;

statistical traffic information obtained by statistical processing past accumulated traffic information;

a travel status measuring means for measuring a travel status of a vehicle and accumulating the travel status of the vehicle thus measured as travel record information;

a traffic information predicting means for predicting traffic information on a searched route on the basis of the travel record information and the statistical traffic information to predict arrival time at any place on the route containing the destination; and

a prediction result outputting means for outputting a prediction result,

further comprising statistical traffic information correcting means for correcting the statistical traffic information on the basis of the travel record information.

7. The traffic information prediction apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising means for transmitting/receiving data to/from the outside,

wherein the means downloads statistical traffic information from an outside institution such as a traffic information center or the like, and renews the statistical traffic information on the basis of the statistical traffic information thus downloaded by the statistical traffic information correcting means.

8. The traffic information prediction apparatus that has a function for predicting an arrival time at a destination, comprising:

map data containing road data;

a route searching means for searching a travel route from a current place to the destination on the basis of the map data;

statistical traffic information obtained by statistical processing past accumulated traffic information;

a travel status measuring means for measuring a travel status of a vehicle and accumulating the travel status of the vehicle thus measured as travel record information;

a traffic information predicting means for predicting traffic information on a searched route on the basis of the travel record information and the statistical traffic information to predict arrival time at any place on the route containing the destination; and

a prediction result outputting means for outputting a prediction result,

further comprising means for transmitting/receiving data to/from the outside,

wherein the means uploads the travel record information to an outside institution such as a traffic information center or the like, and carries out monetary charge to the outside institution.