# US 9,437,108 B2 · Estimation of actual conditions of a roadway segment by weighting roadway condition data with the quality of the roadway condition data > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,437,108 B2 - Document ID: US9437108B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/617,562 - Filed: 2015-02-09 - Published: 2015-06-04 - Granted: 2016-09-06 - Earliest claimed: 2007-09-25 - Assignees: HERE Global B.V. - Applicants: HERE Global B.V. - Inventors: Dmitriy Bespalov; James F. Carroll, I; Dean Zimmerman - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9437108B2 ## CPC - G08G 1/0125: {Traffic data processing} - G06F 16/29: Geographical information databases - G08G 1/0104: {Measuring and analyzing of parameters relative to traffic conditions} - G08G 1/0129: {for creating historical data or processing based on historical data} - G08G: TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS (guiding railway traffic, ensuring the safety of railway traffic B61L; arrangement of road signs or traffic signals E01F9/00; radar or analogous systems, sonar systems, lidar systems specially adapted for traffic control G01S13/91, G01S15/88, G01S17/88; {radar or analogous systems, sonar systems, lidar systems specially adapted for anti-collision purposes G01S13/93, G01S15/93, G01S17/93}) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) ## Abstract Actual conditions of a roadway segment are estimated by providing roadway condition data to a processor for the roadway segment from a plurality of different types of sources of the roadway condition data, assigning a quality to each of the plurality of different types of sources of the roadway condition data, and estimating in the processor the actual conditions of the roadway segment by using the roadway condition data and the quality of each of the plurality of different types of sources of the roadway data. The quality determines weightings given to each of the plurality of different types of sources. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code for one or more programs; the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform: receive condition data for at least one path segment from a plurality of data sources; determine a hierarchy for the plurality of data sources; and calculate estimated conditions on the at least one path segment based on the hierarchy for the plurality of data sources, wherein when data is available at a higher level of the hierarchy, the higher level supersedes a lower level of the hierarchy for the estimated conditions, and when data is unavailable at the higher level of the hierarchy, the lower level of the hierarchy is used for the estimated conditions. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the hierarchy includes the higher level, the lower level, and at least one middle level. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the higher level is a real time component and the lower level is an incident component. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the real time component includes a time to travel between two toll tag readers. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the real time component includes probe data from a cellular phone. ### Claim 6 (depends on 3) The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the real time component includes sensor data from a sensor along the at least one path segment. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the higher level is an incident component and the lower level is a historical component. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the incident component includes congestion data based on information entered by a traffic operator. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the incident component includes non-congestion data including at least two of a weather condition, an incident, an event, and a mass transit condition. ### Claim 10 (depends on 7) The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the historical component includes a subhierarchy of data levels including historical speed data and speed limit data, wherein the historical speed data, when available, supersedes the speed limit data. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform: assign a quality to the plurality of data sources of the condition data, wherein the estimated conditions on the at least one path segment are based on the quality. ### Claim 12 An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code for one or more programs; the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform: receive condition data for at least one path segment from a plurality of data sources; determine a hierarchy for the plurality of data sources; and estimate conditions on the at least one path segment based on the hierarchy for the plurality of data sources, wherein when data is available at a higher level of the hierarchy, the higher level supersedes a lower level of the hierarchy for the estimated conditions, and when data is unavailable at the higher level of the hierarchy, the lower level of the hierarchy is used for the estimated conditions. ### Claim 13 A method comprising: Receiving, at input port, condition data for at least one path segment from a plurality of data sources; determining, by a processor, a hierarchy for the plurality of data sources; and calculating, by the processor, estimated conditions on the at least one path segment based on the hierarchy for the plurality of data sources, wherein when data is available at a point along the at least one path segment at a higher level of the hierarchy, the higher level supersedes a lower level of the hierarchy for the estimated conditions, and wherein when data is unavailable at the point along the at least one path segment at the higher level of the hierarchy, the lower level of the hierarchy is used for the estimated conditions. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the hierarchy includes the higher level, the lower level, and at least one middle level. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the higher level is a real time component, the middle level is an incident component, and the lower level is a historical component. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the lower level is an incident component including an event criticality ratio between historical speed and free-flow speed. ### Claim 17 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the higher level includes a real time component includes a time to travel between two toll tag readers. ### Claim 18 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the lower level includes a mass transit condition on a non-passenger-vehicle transit. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The method of claim 18, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform: assigning a quality to the plurality of data sources of the condition data, wherein the estimated conditions on the at least one path segment are based on the quality. ### Claim 20 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the lower level includes a subhierarchy of data levels including historical speed data and speed limit data, wherein the historical speed data, when available, supersedes the speed limit data.