Patent ID: 6184802
Filing Date: 2001-02-06
Classification: G08G

Abstract:
A system for estimating the time of arrival at user selected sites of a vehicle that repeatedly traverses a specific route, comprising:(a) a vehicle unit which is carried by the vehicle, and(b) a user unit which is available to each user,said vehicle unit comprisingmeans for determining the space-time coordinates of the vehicle at each point where it comes to a stop and at predetermined intervals between stops;means for broadcasting said space-time coordinates;said user unit comprisingmeans for receiving said space-time coordinates broadcast by said vehicle unit;means for generating a database of space-time coordinates, said database containing all space-time coordinates received from said vehicle unit during a plurality of the most recent traversals of the vehicle's route;button means that the user can press on any one occasion when the vehicle is stopped at a selected site;means for determining the time T.sub.b that said button means is pressed;means for finding within said database of space-time coordinates the space-timecoordinate S,T whose time component T is equivalent to T.sub.b ;means for designating the space component S of said space-time coordinate S,T as the spatial coordinates of said selected site;means for estimating from the space-time coordinates in said database of space-time coordinates and the space-time coordinates most recently received from said vehicle unit the time of arrival of the vehicle at said selected site;means for displaying said time of arrival.