Graphical Progress Interface for Dynamic Transportation Networks
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Solution Overview
Problem
On-demand transportation services often cause confusion and anxiety for requestors due to the lack of sufficient travel progress information provided by transportation providers, leading to uncertainty about arrival times and potential delays.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a graphical user interface on requestor devices that receives and displays progress information and contextual data, such as location, traffic conditions, and vehicle status, using computer-generated graphics and animations to enhance user experience and reduce anxiety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If on-demand transportation services are provided without sufficient travel progress information, then service flexibility and convenience are improved, but user confusion and anxiety increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback by continuously providing travelers with progress information about their transportation provider's location and status. The graphical user interface displays real-time updates on the provider's movement along the route, current location relative to the traveler, and estimated time of arrival, creating a closed-loop information system that reduces uncertainty while maintaining service flexibility
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary information system that mediates between the transportation provider and the traveler. This system processes provider location data, calculates progress metrics, and presents contextualized information to the traveler through the graphical interface, acting as a bridge that transforms raw data into meaningful progress indicators without requiring direct communication between provider and traveler
2Reliability
If detailed progress information is provided to reduce user anxiety, then user experience improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments progress information into distinct, manageable components displayed through the graphical user interface: provider location indicators, route progress markers, time estimates, and status messages. Each segment serves a specific informational purpose, allowing the complex state of transportation progress to be broken down into simple, digestible visual elements that reduce perceived system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses graphical representations and icons that copy or represent real-world concepts (vehicle icons representing the provider, map visuals representing location, clock icons representing time). These visual copies simplify complex data into intuitive symbols, maintaining reliability by accurately representing the actual transportation state while reducing system complexity through familiar visual metaphors
3Loss of information
If real-time progress tracking is implemented, then user awareness of transportation status improves, but information processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic action by updating progress information at regular intervals rather than continuously. The graphical user interface refreshes provider location and status data at predetermined time intervals or distance milestones, maintaining user awareness of transportation status while reducing information processing energy by processing and displaying updates only when significant changes occur or at scheduled intervals
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosed computer-implemented method may include receiving, by a transportation requestor device, progress information that indicates progress of a transportation provider toward a request location, presenting, via a graphical user interface of the transportation requestor device, the progress of the transportation provider toward the request location with a graphical representation of the transportation provider according to the progress information, receiving, by the transportation requestor device, contextual information from a server that explains the progress of the transportation provider as indicated by the progress information, and changing, via the graphical user interface of the transportation requestor device, the graphical representation of the transportation provider with a graphical representation of the contextual information. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are disclosed.