Route Planning With Contingencies For Dynamic Traffic
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional route planning applications fail to account for dynamic factors such as time of day, day of week, and user preferences, leading to suboptimal routes, especially during rush hour, and require constant network connectivity, limiting their effectiveness in providing real-time adjustments.
Innovation Solution
A system that uses a traffic system representation as a weighted graph, allowing users to act as sensors by perceiving traffic conditions to select optimal routes based on context, with directions printed or downloaded for offline use, and includes branching points for contingencies, enabling route adjustments based on real-time observations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional route planning applications use static algorithms with fixed parameters, then the route planning is simple and fast, but the routes become suboptimal during dynamic conditions such as rush hour
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic route planning by allowing users to set multiple potential destination points and automatically selecting the optimal destination based on real-time traffic conditions. The system dynamically adjusts the recommended route by comparing travel times to multiple possible destinations and selecting the one that minimizes travel time, thereby resolving the contradiction between simple static algorithms and reliable optimal routes during dynamic conditions.
2Reliability
If route planning applications require constant network connectivity for real-time updates, then the routes can be optimized in real-time, but the device complexity and network dependency increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing multiple potential routes and destination points before the user begins travel. The system prepares contingency routes in advance that can be executed without real-time network connectivity, allowing the device to switch to pre-computed alternative routes when traffic conditions change, thereby reducing network dependency while maintaining real-time optimization capability.
3Ease of operation
If users print directions for offline use, then network connectivity is not required, but the directions cannot be adjusted if accidents or stoppages occur on the described road segments
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adaptability by embedding multiple contingency routes within the printed directions. The system identifies key decision points along the primary route and provides alternative instructions for each segment, allowing users to dynamically switch between pre-printed route options based on observed traffic conditions, accidents, or stoppages without requiring network connectivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the overall route into multiple manageable segments with designated decision points. At each segment, users are provided with specific contingency instructions for alternative actions. This segmentation allows the printed directions to be both simple for offline use and adaptable to changing conditions, as users can reference only the relevant segment instructions needed at each decision point.
Data Source
AI summary
A route planning system comprises a receiver component that receives a request for directions between two points. A route generator component outputs directions between the two points, the directions include a contingency such that an alternate route is provided, a selected route between the two points is dependent upon a user perception at a geographic location that corresponds to the contingency.