Safe Transit Route Generation System with Safety Preference Integration

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing routing programs fail to consider safety factors such as crime rates, road quality, and health risks when generating transit routes, potentially endangering travelers by directing them through unsafe areas.

Innovation Solution

A safe transit route generation system that assesses user safety preferences and compares them to route safety scores, modifying routes to ensure they meet or exceed user risk aversion values by incorporating risk profiles and real-time safety data to suggest safer alternatives.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of time

If routing programs prioritize fastest routes and shortest distances, then travel time and distance are reduced, but safety of the route deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetravel timeVSAvoidroute safety

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of timeVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a new parameter (safety score) alongside traditional routing parameters like time and distance. The system calculates safety scores based on multiple factors including crime rates, road quality, and environmental conditions, then integrates this parameter into the route selection algorithm to balance speed and safety considerations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs safety data providers and intermediary systems that collect, process, and evaluate safety information from multiple sources. These intermediaries transform raw data into actionable safety scores that routing programs can use to modify route recommendations without completely abandoning efficiency optimization

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Device complexity

If routing programs ignore safety concerns, then device complexity and data processing requirements are reduced, but traveler safety deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem complexityVSAvoidtraveler safety

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the routing system into separate functional modules: traditional routing calculation components, safety data collection modules, safety scoring components, and route modification algorithms. This segmentation allows each component to specialize in specific tasks, managing overall system complexity while comprehensively addressing safety concerns

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates a universal safety assessment framework that can be applied across different routing contexts and transportation modes. The safety scoring system serves multiple functions including route evaluation, risk assessment, and recommendation generation, reducing the need for separate specialized systems

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS20250012583A1Systems, methods, and devices for generating a transit route based on a safety preference

Publication Date: 2025.01.09 METLIFE

AI summary

A safe transit route generation system determines a travel route for a user traveling from an origin location to a destination location and generates a route safety value for the travel route based on one or more safety conditions associated with at least one geographic location of the travel route. The system also determines a risk aversion value for the user based on a plurality of safety preferences associated with a user risk profile and that the risk aversion value for the user exceeds the route safety value for the travel route. The system further modifies one or more portions of the travel route to increase the route safety value above the risk aversion value.