Method and apparatus for providing access to autonomous vehicles based on user context

• US 9,547,985 B2
• Filed: 11/05/2014
• Issued: 01/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HERE Global B.V. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: HERE Global B.V. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Tuukkanen, Marko Tapio
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Calvin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Martinez Borrero, Luis A
• Application Number:
  US14/533,691
• Publication Number:
  US 20160125735A1
• Time in Patent Office: 804 Days
• Field of Search: 701/117, 701/23, 701/2, 701/19, 701/20, 701/301, 701/300, 701/119, 701/517, 701/93, 701/96, 701/22, 701/27, 701/3, 701/36, 701/408, 701/465, 701/532, 701/5
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09 Arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions railroad crossing signals B61L; reflectors E01F, G08B; indicating arrangements for variable information by selection or combination of individual elements G09F9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/202 Dispatching vehicles on the basis of a location, e.g. taxi dispatching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

An approach is provided for granting access to an autonomous vehicle based on validation of a request, and configuring an autonomous vehicle to transport a user and/or items to at least one destination. The approach involves receiving a transport request for a transport of at least one user, at least one item, or a combination thereof to at least one destination. The approach also involves determining profile information associated with the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof, wherein the profile information specifies at least one role associated with the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof. The approach further involves causing, at least in part, a validation of the request based, at least in part, on a comparison of the at least one destination to one or more approved destinations associated with the at least one role. The approach also involves causing, at least in part, a granting of an access to one or more autonomous vehicles for the transport of the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof to the at least one destination based, at least in part, on the validation.

Claims

1. A method of granting access to an autonomous vehicle comprising:

receiving at an configuration server a transport request, sent over a communication network, for a transport of at least one user, at least one item, or a combination thereof to at least one destination, wherein the transport request is based on a service request for the at least one user to perform profession skills, and wherein the service request specifies one or more approved destinations, one or more approved routes, one or more approved stopovers, or a combination thereof where the profession skills associated with the at least one user are to be performed, the configuration server comprising a processor and a memory that stores profile information associated with the at least one user including the profession skills of the at least one user, stores item information associated with the profession skills, and stores the approved destinations where the profession skills are to be performed by the at least one user, wherein the processor;

determines the profile information associated with the at least one user, information regarding the at least one item, or a combination thereof;

validates the transport request when the at least one destination is among the approved destinations where the profession skills are to be performed by the at least one user;

grants the access to an autonomous vehicle for the transport of the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof to the at least one destination based on the validation;

transmits one or more command messages to the autonomous vehicle, at least one device associated with the autonomous vehicle, or a combination thereof, to configure the autonomous vehicle for initiating the transport; and

transmits another command message to the autonomous vehicle canceling one or more current navigation instructions of the autonomous vehicle, wherein the one or more current navigation instructions are active prior to the transport request, and wherein the autonomous vehicle cancels the one or more current navigation instructions.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the profession skills of the at least one user is associated with one or more emergency services;

and wherein the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof is associated with at least one provider, at least one recipient, or a combination thereof of the one or more emergency services.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the approved destinations, one or more approved routes to the approved destinations, one or more approved stopovers along the one or more approved routes, or a combination thereof to the autonomous vehicle to initiate the transport of the at least one user,

wherein the at least one user is restricted from modifying the one or more approved routes during the transport of the at least one user by the autonomous vehicle.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a user interface for presenting progress information of the autonomous vehicle during the transport.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the autonomous vehicle based on contextual information associated with the at least one user, the at least one item, the at least one destination, the profession skills of the at least one user, the autonomous vehicle, a purpose of the transport, or a combination thereof.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the contextual information associated with the autonomous vehicle include fuel availability information, vehicle configuration information, passenger capacity information, cargo capacity information, or a combination thereof.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining one or more locations for obtaining the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof; and

generating at least one route to the at least destination based on specifying the one or more locations as one or more stopover locations.

15. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

monitoring position information of the autonomous vehicle during transport of the at least one user; and

redirecting the autonomous vehicle to a police station when the position information indicates an inconsistency with the one or more approved routes.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions stored thereon executed by a processor to perform a method of granting access to an autonomous vehicle, the method comprising:

storing, in a memory of a server, profile information associated with at least one user including profession skills of the at least one user, storing item information associated with the profession skills, and storing approved destinations where the profession skills are to be performed by the at least one user;

receiving a transport request, sent over a communication network, for a transport of the at least one user, at least one item, or a combination thereof to at least one destination, wherein the transport request is based on a service request for the at least one user to perform the profession skills, and wherein the service request specifies the one or more approved destinations, one or more approved routes, one or more approved stopovers, or a combination thereof where the profession skills associated with the at least one user are to be performed;

determining profile information associated with the at least one user, information regarding the at least one item, or a combination thereof;

validating the transport request when the at least one destination is among the approved destinations where the profession skills are to be performed by the at least one user;

granting the access to an autonomous vehicle for the transport of the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof to the at least one destination based on the validation;

transmitting one or more command messages from the server to the autonomous vehicle, at least one device associated with the autonomous vehicle, or a combination thereof, to configure the autonomous vehicle for initiating the transport; and

transmitting another command message from the server to the autonomous vehicle canceling one or more current navigation instructions of the autonomous vehicle, wherein the one or more current navigation instructions are active prior to the transport request, and wherein the autonomous vehicle cancels the one or more current navigation instructions.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the profession skills of the at least one user is associated with one or more emergency services;

and wherein the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof is associated with at least one provider, at least one recipient, or a combination thereof of the one or more emergency services.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

transmitting the approved destinations, one or more approved routes to the approved destinations, one or more approved stopovers along the one or more approved routes, or a combination thereof to the autonomous vehicle to initiate the transport of the at least one user,

wherein the at least one user is restricted from modifying the one or more approved routes during the transport of the at least one user by the autonomous vehicle.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

displaying a user interface for presenting progress information of the autonomous vehicle during the transport.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises

selecting the autonomous vehicle based on contextual information associated with the at least one user, the at least one item, the at least one destination, the profession skills of the at least one user, the autonomous vehicle, a purpose of the transport, or a combination thereof.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the contextual information associated with the autonomous vehicle include fuel availability information, vehicle configuration information, passenger capacity information, cargo capacity information, or a combination thereof.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

determining one or more locations for obtaining the at least one user, the at least one item, or a combination thereof; and

generating at least one route to the at least destination based on specifying the one or more locations as one or more stopover locations.