Seamless Digital Road Network Generation via Multithreaded Probe Trace Processing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current navigation systems face inefficiencies and errors when generating and updating digital maps of large geographical areas, particularly due to the computational limitations of single-threaded systems and the error-prone process of seaming together tiles, which leads to inaccuracies in road network representation.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of multithreading techniques allows multiple threads to simultaneously process probe traces across a geographical area, dividing them into subsets based on accuracy to generate independent networks that can be seamlessly combined, eliminating the need for tile seaming and reducing errors.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If a single thread is used to generate digital maps of large geographical areas, then the processing can be completed with simple system architecture, but the computation capacity is insufficient and real-time generation cannot be achieved

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemap generation speedVSAvoidsystem architecture complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The geographical area is divided into multiple tiles, and each tile is processed by a separate thread. This segmentation allows parallel processing of different regions simultaneously, dramatically increasing map generation speed while maintaining manageable complexity through modular organization of processing tasks

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Productivity

If the geographical area is divided into multiple tiles processed by separate threads, then computation capacity is increased and real-time generation becomes possible, but errors occur during the seaming process when combining adjacent tiles

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemap generation speedVSAvoidroad network accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of seaming tiles together after independent processing, the invention merges all probe traces from all tiles into a unified dataset before processing. This allows the road network to be generated as a single coherent structure across the entire geographical area, eliminating boundary errors between tiles while preserving the parallel processing benefits

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

A central coordination mechanism acts as an intermediary that manages the probe traces from multiple tiles and coordinates the thread processing. This intermediary ensures that road segments crossing tile boundaries are properly identified and connected, resolving the reliability issue without sacrificing the productivity gains from multithreading

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Productivity

If probe traces are processed independently in separate tiles, then each tile can be generated efficiently, but road segments crossing tile boundaries are incorrectly represented with duplicate or missing segments

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveprocessing efficiencyVSAvoidroad segment accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary aggregation of all probe traces from every tile into a unified dataset before the actual road network generation begins. This preliminary action ensures that complete information about roads crossing tile boundaries is available to all processing threads, allowing accurate road segment generation without duplication or omission while maintaining processing efficiency

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP2659228B1Generation of a seamless network of road or line segments in a digital map
Publication Date: 2023.11.15 TOMTOM GLOBAL CONTENT
  • EP2659228B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2659228B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2659228B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

A system and method for generating a seamless road network of a large geographical area includes a plurality of GPS probe traces extending across a geographical area. The probe traces are divided into sub-sets base on criteria, such as accuracy. A plurality of threads simultaneously employ the sub-sets traces to generate an independent network of the entire geographical area. The networks generated using sub-sets having a high accuracy are preferred over networks generating using sub-sets having a lower accuracy. The independent networks are combined to form a seamless networks of road segments.