Road Closure Verification Using Probe Data Graphs

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Solution Overview

Problem

Traffic service providers face challenges in accurately reporting road closures due to the reliance on third-party reports, which can be inaccurate, leading to poor user experiences and increased labor costs for manual verification.

Innovation Solution

A system that constructs a closure link graph using road links, upstream, and downstream links, and retrieves probe data from vehicles to calculate vehicle paths, enabling the automatic evaluation and classification of road closure status based on vehicle activity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If manual verification of road closure reports is performed, then accuracy of closure reports is improved, but labor costs and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccuracy of closure reportsVSAvoidprocessing time

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces manual verification (mechanical human labor) with an automated system that uses probe data from vehicles and graph-based path analysis to verify road closure reports. The system automatically determines whether reported closures are accurate by analyzing whether probe data shows vehicles traversing the closed road segments, eliminating the need for manual verification while maintaining high accuracy.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The system enables self-verification of road closure reports by using existing probe data from vehicles that are already being collected for other purposes. The probe data naturally provides evidence about road status without requiring additional active measurement or verification efforts, allowing the system to self-evaluate closure accuracy using readily available data.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Measurement precision

If manual verification of road closure reports is performed, then accuracy of closure reports is improved, but labor costs increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccuracy of closure reportsVSAvoidlabor costs

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Productivity

If automated evaluation using probe data is implemented, then labor costs are reduced, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprocessing efficiencyVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a closure link graph as an intermediary structure that connects road segments and enables systematic analysis of probe data. The graph includes closed road segments, upstream segments, and downstream segments, allowing the system to efficiently determine whether probe data indicates vehicles traversed closed roads. This intermediary structure organizes the complexity in a manageable way while enabling automated verification.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent divides the road network into discrete segments and represents them as nodes in a graph structure. By segmenting the continuous road network into manageable units (closed segments, upstream segments, downstream segments), the system can efficiently process and analyze probe data without being overwhelmed by the complexity of the entire road network.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

4Loss of information

If third-party road closure reports are used, then coverage of traffic information is improved, but reliability of reports deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecoverage of traffic informationVSAvoidreliability of closure reports

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback by using probe data from vehicles to verify the accuracy of third-party road closure reports. The system continuously monitors whether vehicles are traversing reported closed segments and uses this feedback to confirm or refute the reliability of closure reports. This feedback mechanism maintains high coverage from third-party sources while filtering out unreliable reports through automated verification.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS10497256B1Method, apparatus, and system for automatic evaluation of road closure reports

Publication Date: 2019.12.03 HERE GLOBAL BV

AI summary

An approach is provided for automatically evaluating a road closure report (e.g., to reject or confirm the report). The approach, for example, involves processing the road closure report to determine one or more road links that are associated with a road closure. The approach also involves constructing a closure link graph comprising the road links, upstream road links, and downstream road links relative. The upstream and downstream road links are open for travel. The approach further involves retrieving probe data collected from vehicles traveling on roadways corresponding to the closure link graph. The approach further involves processing the probe data to calculate vehicle paths traversing the closure link graph. The approach then involves classifying a closure status of the road links based on the vehicle paths.