Pass through for improved response time

• US 8,095,410 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2008
• Issued: 01/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: Bloom, Andrew M.
• Primary Examiner(s): LOFTIS, JOHNNA RONEE
• Application Number:
  US12/338,555
• Publication Number:
  US 20100161370A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,118 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7.22, 705/7.25, 705/323, 705/324
• US Class Current: 705/7.22
• CPC Class Codes: A62B 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/047 Optimisation of routes or paths, e.g. travelling salesman problem
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06312 Adjustment or analysis of established resource schedule, e.g. resource or task levelling, or dynamic rescheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 90/20 Destination assistance within a business structure or complex
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 90/205 Building evacuation
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096844 where the complete route is dynamically recomputed based on new data
• 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

Abstract

Method and systems of improving the response of public safety personnel to or evacuation from a desired location are provided. In addition to path information obtained through traditional sources, information is used to determine the optimal route for emergency personnel to an emergency situation and for aiding emergency personnel to route people from the situation. The information may also be used to automatically prioritize vehicles and personnel to optimize response time. Further, the information may also be used to in situations in which it is advantageous for the vehicle or personnel to be tactically positioned in nearby locations rather than at the incident scene. Although the descriptions below will primarily focus on routes to a particular location, similar methods can be used for evacuations from the location. The optimal route may use historical information stored in a database local or remote to the dispatcher and/or real-time information updated during the emergency situation.

Claims

1. A method of optimizing a responder'"'"'s route to a target location, the method comprising:

identifying, via dispatcher equipment, a plurality of available responding units to respond to an event at a first location;

identifying, via the dispatcher equipment, capability requirements of the event;

eliminating, via the dispatcher equipment, identified available responding units whose capabilities do not meet the capability requirements of the event;

identifying, via the dispatcher equipment, a target location associated with the first location;

identifying, via the dispatcher equipment, a second location associated with each remaining available responding unit;

after the elimination;

selecting, via the dispatcher equipment, one of the remaining available responding units;

analyzing, via the dispatcher equipment and storage equipment, paths between the second location and the target location to determine an optimal route for the selected responding unit to travel, the analysis dependent on both traditional roadway map data and non-traditional map data, the non-traditional map data including paths linking roadways in the traditional roadway map data with one another and/or paths linking roadways in the traditional roadway map data with the target location; and

repeating the selection and analysis for each of the available responding units remaining;

selecting, via the dispatcher equipment, an optimal one of the available responding units dependent on the analyses; and

conveying, via the dispatcher equipment, instructions to the selected optimal responding unit to follow the corresponding determined optimal route determined for the selected optimal responding unit.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected optimal unit comprises a vehicle containing personnel capable of using pedestrian paths not accessible to the vehicle, the non-traditional map data includes pedestrian paths not accessible to the vehicle, and the corresponding determined optimal route includes at least one pedestrian path.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first location is located within a building, the non-traditional map data includes interior paths of the building, and the corresponding determined optimal route includes the interior paths of the building.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of analyzing paths between the second location and the target location comprises determining, via the dispatcher equipment, whether at least one segment along a particular identified bath is unable to satisfy the capability requirements of the event and, if so, eliminating, via the dispatcher equipment, the particular identified path from consideration as the corresponding determined optimal route.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of analyzing paths between the second location and the target location further comprises summing, via the dispatcher equipment, traversal times of each segment along a particular identified path, based at least in part on a terrain type of each segment along the particular path, and wherein the corresponding determined optimal route has a lowest summed traversal time among all summed traversal times of all analyzed paths.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of analyzing paths between the second location and the target location further comprises determining, via the dispatcher equipment, an automotive vehicular travel times along at least one segment in a particular path and a pedestrian travel time along at least another segment in the particular path.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the target location is the first location.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the target location is an escape route proximate to the first location.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the event is an emergency, the method further comprising a dispatcher receiving an emergency call, via the dispatcher equipment, concerning the event and responsively conveying the instructions, via the dispatcher equipment, to the selected optimal responding unit.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising, when multiple responding units are to respond to the event, using the analysis to prioritize the multiple responding units.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the analysis comprises taking into account real-time traffic situations.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of analyzing paths between the second location and the target location comprises taking into account capability requirements of the event and the capabilities of each remaining available responding unit.

13. A route-optimizing system comprising dispatcher equipment and storage equipment, the dispatcher and storage equipment in communication and a processor in at least one of the dispatcher or storage equipment that is configured to:

identify a plurality of available responding units to respond to an event at a first location,

identify, via the dispatcher equipment, capability requirements of the event;

eliminate identified available responding units whose capabilities do not meet the capability requirements of the event,

identify a target location associated with the first location;

identify a second location associated with each remaining available responding unit;

after the elimination;

selects one of the remaining available responding units,

analyze paths between the second location and the target location to determine an optimal route for the selected responding unit to travel, the analysis dependent on both traditional roadway map data and non-traditional map data including paths linking roadways in the traditional roadway map data with one another and/or paths linking roadways in the traditional roadway map data with the target location, the traditional roadway map data and non-traditional map data being stored in the storage equipment; and

repeat the selection and analysis for each of the available responding units remaining,

select an optimal one of the available responding units dependent on the analyses, and

convey instructions to the selected optimal responding unit to follow the corresponding determined optimal route determined for the selected optimal responding unit.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the selected optimal unit comprises a vehicle containing personnel capable of using paths not accessible to the vehicle, the non-traditional map data includes pedestrian paths not accessible to the vehicle, and the corresponding determined optimal route includes at least one pedestrian path.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the first location is within a building, the non-traditional ma data includes interior paths of the building, and the corresponding determined optimal route includes the interior paths of the building.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to, while analyzing paths between the second location and the target location, to determine whether at least one segment along a particular identified path is unable to satisfy the capability requirements of the event and, if so, to eliminate the particular identified path from consideration as the corresponding determined optimal route.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to, while analyzing paths between the second location and the target location, to determine an automotive vehicular travel time along at least one segment in a particular path and a pedestrian travel time along at least another segment in the particular path, taking into account real-time traffic situations.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to, while analyzing paths between the second location and the target location, take taking into account the capability requirements of the event and the capabilities of each remaining available responding unit.

19. The system of claim 13, wherein when multiple responding units are to respond to the event, the processor is further configured to use the analysis to prioritize the multiple responding units.

20. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to, when multiple responding units are to respond to the event, use the analysis to prioritize the multiple responding units.