Navigation Destination Extraction Using Parking Position Aggregation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional navigation systems fail to accurately extract and propose destination locations when a vehicle parks at different positions within the same facility or due to GPS detection errors, leading to ineffective destination suggestions.

Innovation Solution

A destination/departure location extraction apparatus and method that aggregates nearby parking positions as a single location using a learning process unit within a navigation system, incorporating travel history data to estimate frequently visited destinations and adjust for GPS errors by setting primary and secondary occupation areas.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If GPS detection is used to determine parking position, then vehicle position can be detected, but detection precision is insufficient causing same facility to be recognized as different positions

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevehicle position detection precisionVSAvoiddestination location extraction reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple parking position data points that fall within a predetermined distance threshold of each other, treating them as a single destination location. This combines scattered GPS detection results into unified location representations, resolving the issue where same facility appears as different positions due to detection precision limitations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent segments the space around a destination into multiple occupation areas (primary and secondary) with different weights. By dividing the detection space and assigning different importance levels to different zones, the system can more accurately distinguish between truly different destinations and apparent differences caused by GPS precision errors.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Measurement precision

If parking positions are determined individually, then each parking position is accurately recorded, but multiple positions within same facility are not extracted as single destination

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveparking position recording accuracyVSAvoiddestination aggregation capability
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies merging by collecting multiple parking position records and consolidating them into a single destination location when they fall within the predetermined distance threshold. This maintains precise individual position recording while adding the capability to aggregate them into unified destination representations for frequency-based recommendations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Measurement precision

If navigation apparatus determines destination based on exact parking position, then position accuracy is maintained, but destination proposal effectiveness decreases when parking positions vary

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedestination position accuracyVSAvoiddestination proposal effectiveness
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple parking positions into unified destination locations, enabling the navigation system to recognize that different parking spots within a facility represent the same destination. This significantly improves destination proposal effectiveness by allowing frequency-based recommendations to work properly, while still maintaining accurate position information for navigation purposes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a predetermined distance threshold as a new parameter to transform the destination determination process. By changing from exact position matching to threshold-based position grouping, the system achieves both position accuracy and improved destination proposal effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP2980533B1Departure/destination location extraction apparatus and departure/destination location extraction method
Publication Date: 2018.11.28 TOYOTA JIDOSHA KK
  • EP2980533B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2980533B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2980533B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A departure/destination location extraction apparatus includes a travel history accumulation unit configured to store a travel history of a vehicle, including a plurality of parking positions of the vehicle; and a position extraction unit configured to extract, among the parking positions stored in the travel history accumulation unit, one or more pairs of the parking positions where a distance between the parking positions in each of the pairs of the parking positions is less than or equal to a predetermined first threshold, each of the pairs being treated as a set of candidate points, and to extract an area including the candidate points that would be connected as a whole if the parking positions in each of the sets were connected with each other, as at least one of a departure location and a destination location.