Patent ID: 8738285
Filing Date: 2014-05-27
Classification: G01C,G08G

Abstract:
1. A computer-implemented method comprising: receiving, by one or more programmed computing systems, information about a plurality of prior vehicle trips along a plurality of roads in a geographic area, the plurality of prior vehicle trips involving a plurality of drivers of vehicles and each reflecting actual prior behavior of one of the plurality of drivers in traveling between a starting location in the geographic area and an ending location in the geographic area, the received information including, for each of the prior vehicle trips, indications of multiple data samples reported by a device in the vehicle as the vehicle travels between the starting and ending locations for that vehicle trip, each of the data samples indicating a road location and an associated time when the vehicle is at the indicated road location; automatically analyzing, by at least one of the one or more programmed computing systems, the received information about the plurality of prior vehicle trips to determine multiple compound links that each represents a preferred path between two locations in the geographic area based on actual prior behavior of the plurality of drivers, the automatic analyzing including: providing, by at least one of the one or more programmed computing systems, information about the determined compound links to enable future routing decisions for other vehicles to use the determined compound links as part of preferred routes; and after the determining of the multiple compound links, automatically using, by at least one of the one or more programmed computing systems, the determined compound links to improve routing of additional vehicle trips through the geographic area, the using of the determined compound links including, for each of multiple requests for a route between two indicated locations in the geographic area: