Claims:We Claim:
1. A method for providing map information to a vehicle to enable an occupant of the vehicle to access the map information, comprising:
a. forming a database including map data about roadways that the vehicle can travel on, the data including a speed limit for the vehicle in the roadways, the database being formed using a processor, the database including a plurality of map database segments, each of the plurality of map database segments having an associated date and time;
b. installing the database on the vehicle;
c. managing the database to ensure that the database has current data about a roadway on which the vehicle is currently situated or approaching; and
d. displaying on a heads-up or other display visible to an occupant of the vehicle, data from the database to the occupant of the vehicle including
e. a map derived from the map data from the database of an area around the vehicle, and
f. the speed limit for the roadway on which the vehicle is travelling,
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicles provides information about one or more roads on which the host vehicle will travel or is expected to travel at some time in the future
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the vehicles include data channels with weather information, i.e., meteorological reports, and traffic information such as that provided by highway, bridge and tunnel operators and municipalities.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the host vehicle can also be a probe vehicle, in that information it obtains can be used for transmission to vehicles behind it on the same path, and that a probe vehicle can be a host vehicle in that information it receives was obtained by vehicle in front of it on the same path.
, Description:Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to methods and arrangements for managing a map database on vehicles.
Background of the Invention
A detailed discussion of background information is set forth in parent applications, for example, U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 09/679,317, 10/822,445, 11/028,386 and 11/034,325, all of which are incorporated by reference herein.
All of the patents, patent applications, technical papers and other references mentioned herein and in the parent, applications are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety. No admission is made that any or all of these references are prior art and indeed, it is contemplated that they may not be available as prior art when interpreting in consideration of the claims of the present application.
Definitions of terms used in the specification and claims are also found in the parent applications.
Object of the Invention
It is an object of the present invention to provide methods and arrangements for managing a map database on vehicles.
Summary of the Invention
In order to achieve this object and possibly others, a method for providing map information to an operator of a vehicle in accordance with the invention includes forming a map database to reside on the vehicle, e.g., after installation on the vehicle, and which includes for example, data about lanes that the vehicle can travel on locations of a boundary or edges of the travel lanes, data about traffic control devices in the database, data about guard rails along travel lanes and/or data about inanimate objects such as poles and trees alongside the travel lanes. The database is managed to ensure that it has current information about a travel lane on which the vehicle is currently situated. This may entail establishing wireless communications to the vehicle to enable data to be provided to the database, e.g., from other vehicles and/or from infrastructure.
Among other features, management of the database may include transmitting from the vehicle requests, for example, to other vehicles, a central map management facility or infrastructure, to ascertain whether the database has current map data for the current location of the vehicle and surrounding locations. For example, a latest date and time of each segment of the map database may be broadcast to that portion of earth covered by the map database segment to enable the vehicle, when it approaches or enters each discrete portion of earth, to compare its date and time of the map database segment with the broadcast latest date and time. If the processor of the vehicle realizes that its date and time of a file of the map database segment differ from the broadcast date and time, it can initiate a transmission to receive the latest map data for inclusion in its database or simply be programmed to accept and process a transmission of the map data. If the database has the latest map data, the processor can be designed to prevent processing of the transmitted map data since it is unnecessary. The map data may be received using vehicle-to-vehicle communication, infrastructure-to-vehicle communication, Internet communication or a communications system in the vehicle. Map data may also be transmitted to the vehicle for a section to be traveled by the vehicle to be included in the database from infrastructure as the vehicle passes by the infrastructure in advance of the section to be traveled. The database may be limited to map data within a predetermined distance from the vehicle and additional map data provided to the database for areas of earth for map data is not included in the database via a wireless communication to the vehicle as the vehicle travels toward the area of earth for which map data is not included in the database. Map data from the database may be displayed to an occupant of the vehicle.
Brief description of Diagrams:
FIG. 1 is a schematic of a ubiquitous communication system in accordance with the invention.
Detailed Description of Invention:
FIG. 1 shows a schematic of the flow of data. Information to be wirelessly transmitted, preferably via a ubiquitous network, to an information receiving system resident on the “host” vehicle during travel of the vehicle is generated by one or more information sources which include “probe” vehicles. traffic cameras . and road sensors. The probe vehicles provide information about one or more roads on which the host vehicle will travel or is expected to travel at some time in the future, the difference being if the road the vehicle expects to travel on is congested, the driver of the host vehicle can take an alternative route. Other sources of information include data channels with weather information, i.e., meteorological reports, and traffic information such as that provided by highway, bridge and tunnel operators and municipalities. It is important to note that the host vehicle can also be a probe vehicle, in that information it obtains can be used for transmission to vehicles behind it on the same path, and that a probe vehicle can be a host vehicle in that information it receives was obtained by vehicle in front of it on the same path. As such, FIG. 1 shows element designated as vehicles.
This information is sent from the various sources, preferably over a ubiquitous network, and is gathered in a central data storage, monitoring and/or processing facility ., e.g., a network server or mainframe computer, which may entail directing the information sources to respond to inquiries for information from the data facility or programming the information sources to automatically provide the information at set times. The probe vehicles can also continually provide information limited only by the components of the transmission unit thereon. The data facility can also be programmed to automatically access data channels on a regular basis to obtain current information about roads and weather. Although the data facility gathers a large amount of information, not all of the information will be directed to the vehicle., i.e., only potentially relevant information will be considered for each vehicle. in communication with the data facility. Thus, different subsets of the total available information will be generated for each host vehicle.
The data facility includes software and hardware components which enables it to prioritize the information to distinguish between high priority, time-critical information of immediate relevance to operation of the host vehicle. and low priority, non-time-critical information of non-immediate relevance to the operation of the host vehicle. It can thus be programmed to control and communicate with the information receiving system to cause it to receive and process high priority information before low priority information, the transmission of both of which are directed by the data facility. Prioritization can be established based on the current position of the host vehicle.
Data facility can be programmed to maintain a map of roads resident in host vehicles by transmitting map updates necessary for the maps to be current, the map updates being generated based on the gathered information. If a temporary map update is created based on a change in the operability or functionality of a road, e.g., based on a traffic accident, the data facility is programmed to continuously monitor the change to determine when the use of the road reverts to a state preceding the change. When this happens, notification of this reversion is transmitted to the host vehicle, e.g., via another map update.