Mobile Device Parking Location Estimation Using GNSS and Pedometer Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Commuters often forget where they parked their vehicles, especially in large parking lots, and existing solutions like manual note-taking are inefficient and prone to errors or loss.
Innovation Solution
A system on a mobile device that detects parking events by monitoring connection/disconnection with a vehicle and using GNSS and pedometer data to estimate the parking location, providing automatic and transparent storage with confirmation and editing options, and offering turn-by-turn directions for retrieval.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual note-taking is used to record parking location, then the commuter can remember where they parked, but the solution requires the commuter to have pencil and paper handy and remember to jot down the location, which increases the risk of loss or errors
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically detects parking events using sensors (GNSS, pedometer, accelerometer) and records the parking location without requiring any manual action from the user. The mobile device serves itself by monitoring movement patterns, connection status, and location data to autonomously identify when parking occurs and store the location information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection and recording of parking locations in advance, before the user needs to retrieve their vehicle. By continuously monitoring and automatically storing parking location data as soon as parking is detected, the system ensures the information is ready for later retrieval without requiring the user to take any preparatory action.
2Reliability
If a parking application is installed on the mobile device to store parking location, then the parking location can be stored electronically, but the commuter has to remember to invoke the application and manually store the parking location, which increases the risk of forgetting
Solution Approach 1:
The parking application operates autonomously by monitoring device sensors and automatically triggering location storage when parking conditions are detected. The system self-manages the entire process of detecting parking events, retrieving location data, and storing it in the database without requiring user intervention or memory.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection and automatic storage of parking locations before the user needs to access them. By continuously monitoring parking conditions and proactively storing location data, the system ensures information is ready for later retrieval without requiring the user to remember to invoke the application.
3Extent of automation
If automatic parking detection using multiple sensors is implemented, then parking location can be estimated without manual intervention, but the device complexity increases due to multiple sensors and processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system leverages existing multi-functional sensors already present in the mobile device for other purposes. The GNSS receiver provides both navigation and parking location data, the pedometer counts steps for activity tracking and also detects parking events, and the accelerometer monitors both device orientation and parking conditions. This multi-functionality approach avoids adding separate dedicated sensors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple sensor data streams (GNSS location, pedometer step counts, accelerometer orientation data) into a unified parking detection algorithm. By merging these existing sensor capabilities through software processing, the system achieves automatic parking detection without physically adding new hardware components, thus managing device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, methods, devices and computer-readable mediums are disclosed for parking event detection and location estimation. In some implementations, a method comprises: determining, by a processor of a mobile device, a first activity state indicative of a possible parking event; obtaining, by the processor, a speed of the mobile device from a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) of the mobile device; obtaining, by the processor, pedometer data from a digital pedometer of the mobile device; determining, by the processor, a second activity state indicative of a possible parking event based at least in part on the GNSS speed and pedometer data; and responsive to the second activity state, estimating, by the processor, a location of the vehicle.