Vehicle guidance system

A system for monitoring and guiding motor vehicles in a municipality comprising a central traffic control, a plurality of roadside equipments, and at least one vehicle having an on-board guidance unit wherein:

• said central traffic control comprising,
• central memory means for storing coordinate and route guidance information,
• central transmission means for transmitting dynamically alterable coordinate information indicative of congested route segments in said municipality for use as route guidance information to said plurality of roadside equipments,
• central receiving means for receiving information from said plurality of said roadside equipments, and
• control means for controlling the transmission of said route guidance information to said roadside equipments;
• at least one of said roadside equipments comprising,
• roadside memory means for storing coordinate information representative of the location of said at least one roadside equipment,
• first receiver means for receiving said route guidance information transmitted by the central traffic control,
• first transmission means for transmitting to said at least one vehicle at least one of said coordinate information of said at least one roadside equipment and said route guidance information,
• second receiver mans for receiving at least one of vehicle position and vehicle destination information from said at least one vehicle, and
• second vehicle destination transmitter means connected to said second receiver means for transmitting the information received by said second receiver means to the receiver means of said central traffic control;
• said on-board guidance unit comprising,
• on-board memory means for storing at least one of instantaneous position information and vehicle destination information,
• on-board receiver means for receiving at least one of said coordinate and route guidance information
• transmitted by the first transmission means of said at least one roadside equipment,
• on-board control means for controlling the reception of the information received by said on-board receiver means, and
• display means for displaying a representation that is indicative of at least one of said instantaneous position information and said route guidance information transmitted by said central traffic control.

A method for use in a traffic management system for directing the movement of a motor vehicle in a municipality wherein the system comprises a central traffic control which includes at least one roadside equipment for communicating with passing vehicles and at least one on-board monitoring unit located in a vehicle, and wherein locations within said municipality are designated by respective horizontal and vertical coordinate means, said method comprising the steps of:

• in the central traffic control;
• transmitting dynamically alterable coordinate information representative of congested routes for use as route guidance information in accordance with detected traffic conditions,
• in said at least one roadside equipment;
• providing horizontal and vertical coordinate memory means for storing coordinate information representative of said congested routes,
• transmitting roadside identification information indicative of the location of the transmitting roadside equipment and transmitting to said vehicle said route guidance information received from the central traffic control for avoiding said congested routes,
• in said on-board guidance unit including;
• providing on-board receiver means for receiving said identification information and said route guidance information transmitted by said roadside equipment,
• storing vertical and horizontal coordinate information representative of said congested routes in an on-board vertical and horizontal coordinate memory means,
• controlling the reception and storage of said identification information and said congested route information,
• updating said coordinate information in said on-board memory means in accordance with coordinates representing said congested routes transmitted by said at least one roadside equipment, and
• generating vehicle guidance information in accordance with data contents of said on-board
• memory and transferring said vehicle guidance information to display means for assisting a driver in directing said vehicle in said municipality.

A vehicle guidance system for guiding a motor vehicle in a municipality wherein locations within said municipality are designated by a plurality of decision points represented by horizontal and vertical coordinates and a plurality of links interconnecting said decision points, said system comprising a central traffic control system which includes at least one

• roadside equipment and at least one on-board guidance unit located in said vehicle,
• said central traffic control system including;
• memory means for storing in a primary data segment a representation of at least one primary street in the municipality having an associated plurality of decision points representing crossing streets intersecting said at least one primary street, and for storing in a crossing street data segment representations of vertical and horizontal coordinate information associated with said decision points along said at least one primary street,
• means for transmitting a representation of data contents of said memory means wherein said contents are dynamically alterable in accordance with a detection of congested routes for uses as route guidance information by said vehicle,
• said at least one roadside equipment including;
• horizontal and vertical coordinate memory means for storing said route guidance information received from said central control system which is indicative of said congested routes,
• roadside transmitter means for transmitting roadside identification information indicative of the location of said at least one roadside
• equipment and for transmitting to said vehicle said route guidance information received from the central traffic control system,
• said on-board guidance unit including:
• on-board receiver means for receiving said identification information and said route guidance information transmitted by said at least one roadside equipment,
• an on-board system control unit for controlling the reception and storage of said identification information and said route guidance information,
• on-board memory means for storing in a primary data segment a representation of said at least one primary street in the municipality having an associated plurality of decision points representing crossing streets intersecting said primary street, and for storing in a crossing street data segment said vertical and horizontal coordinate information associated with said decision points along said primary street, at least one bearing representation of a route direction from one of said decision points to a next decision point, a programmed distance representation indicative of the distance between at least two of said decision points, and a representation of a crossing street name,
• means for altering data contents of said on-board memory means in accordance with said route guidance information transmitted by said at least one roadside equipment, and said on-board system control unit including means for generating guidance instructions in accordance with the data contents of said on-board memory means and for transferring said guidance instructions to a display means for assisting a driver in guiding said vehicle.

A vehicle guidance system for guiding a motor vehicle in a municipality wherein locations within said municipality are designated by representations of horizontal and vertical coordinates, said system comprising:

• a central traffic control system including;
• memory means for storing in a primary data segment a representation of at least one primary street in the municipality having an associated plurality of decision points representing crossing streets intersecting said primary street, and for storing in a crossing street data segment representations of vertical and horizontal coordinate information associated with said decision points along said primary street,
• means for transmitting a representation of data contents of said memory means wherein said contents are dynamically alterable in accordance with a detection of congested route segments for use as route guidance information by said vehicle,
• and an on-board guidance unit including:
• on-board receiver means for receiving the transmitted dynamically alterable contents of said memory means transmitted by said central traffic control system,
• an on-board system control unit for controlling the reception and storage of said alterable contents received by said on-board receiver,
• on-board memory means for storing in a primary data segment a representation of said at least one primary street in the municipality having an associated plurality of decision points representing crossing streets intersecting said primary street, and for storing in a crossing street data segment said vertical and horizontal coordinate information associated with said decision points along said primary street, at least one bearing representation of a route direction from one of said decision points to a next decision point, and a crossing street identification representation for referencing said crossing street in said primary data segment,
• means connected with said on-board system control unit for altering data contents of said on-board memory means in accordance with said route guidance information transmitted by said central traffic control system, and
• said on-board system control unit including means for generating guidance instructions in accordance with the data contents of said on-board memory means and for transferring said guidance instructions to a display means for assisting a driver in guiding said vehicle.