WO2011160679A1

WO2011160679A1 - Navigation device & method

Info

Publication number: WO2011160679A1
Application number: PCT/EP2010/058833
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jasper Michiel Van Hemert; Michiel Alders
Original assignee: Tomtom International B.V.
Priority date: 2010-06-22
Filing date: 2010-06-22
Publication date: 2011-12-29
Also published as: TW201200396A

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a navigation device (620), comprising means for receiving a telephone call and a module (490) arranged to determine a cognitive workload of a user according to one or more criteria and to determine a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload. Other embodiments of the invention relate to a method of handling a telephone call, comprising receiving a telephone call at a navigation device (620), determining a cognitive workload of a user of the navigation device (620) and determining a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload.

Description

NAVIGATION DEVICE & METHOD

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to navigation devices and to methods for handling telephone calls by navigation devices. Illustrative embodiments of the invention relate to portable navigation devices (so-called PNDs), in particular PNDs that include Global Positioning System (GPS) signal reception and processing functionality. Other embodiments relate, more generally, to any type of processing device that is configured to execute navigation software so as to provide route planning, and preferably also navigation, functionality.

Background to the Invention

Portable navigation devices (PNDs) that include GPS (Global Positioning System) signal reception and processing functionality are well known and are widely employed as in-car or other vehicle navigation systems.

In general terms, a modern PNDs comprises a processor, memory (at least one of volatile and non-volatile, and commonly both), and map data stored within said memory. The processor and memory cooperate to provide an execution environment in which a software operating system may be established, and additionally it is commonplace for one or more additional software programs to be provided to enable the functionality of the PND to be controlled, and to provide various other functions.

Typically these devices further comprise one or more input interfaces that allow a user to interact with and control the device, and one or more output interfaces by means of which information may be relayed to the user. Illustrative examples of output interfaces include a visual display and a speaker for audible output. Illustrative examples of input interfaces include one or more physical buttons to control on/off operation or other features of the device (which buttons need not necessarily be on the device itself but could be on a steering wheel if the device is built into a vehicle), and a microphone for detecting user speech. In a particularly preferred arrangement the output interface display may be configured as a touch sensitive display (by means of a touch sensitive overlay or otherwise) to additionally provide an input interface by means of which a user can operate the device by touch.

Devices of this type will also often include one or more physical connector interfaces by means of which power and optionally data signals can be transmitted to and received from the device, and optionally one or more wireless transmitters/receivers to allow communication over cellular telecommunications and other signal and data networks, for example Wi-Fi, Wi-Max GSM and the like.

PND devices of this type also include a GPS antenna by means of which satellite-broadcast signals, including location data, can be received and subsequently processed to determine a current location of the device.

The PND device may also include electronic gyroscopes and accelerometers which produce signals that can be processed to determine the current angular and linear acceleration, and in turn, and in conjunction with location information derived from the GPS signal, velocity and relative displacement of the device and thus the vehicle in which it is mounted. Typically such features are most commonly provided in in-vehicle navigation systems, but may also be provided in PND devices if it is expedient to do so.

The utility of such PNDs is manifested primarily in their ability to determine a route between a first location (typically a start or current location) and a second location (typically a destination). These locations can be input by a user of the device, by any of a wide variety of different methods, for example by postcode, street name and house number, previously stored "well known" destinations (such as famous locations, municipal locations (such as sports grounds or swimming baths) or other points of interest), and favourite or recently visited destinations.

Typically, the PND is enabled by software for computing a "best" or "optimum" route between the start and destination address locations from the map data. A "best" or "optimum" route is determined on the basis of predetermined criteria and need not necessarily be the fastest or shortest route. The selection of the route along which to guide the driver can be very sophisticated, and the selected route may take into account existing, predicted and dynamically and/or wirelessly received traffic and road information, historical information about road speeds, and the driver's own preferences for the factors determining road choice (for example the driver may specify that the route should not include motorways or toll roads).

In addition, the device may continually monitor road and traffic conditions, and offer to or choose to change the route over which the remainder of the journey is to be made due to changed conditions. Real time traffic monitoring systems, based on various technologies (e.g. mobile phone data exchanges, fixed cameras, GPS fleet tracking) are being used to identify traffic delays and to feed the information into notification systems.

PNDs of this type may typically be mounted on the dashboard or windscreen of a vehicle, but may also be formed as part of an on-board computer of the vehicle radio or indeed as part of the control system of the vehicle itself. The navigation device may also be part of a hand-held system, such as a PDA (Portable Digital Assistant) a media player, a mobile phone or the like, and in these cases, the normal functionality of the hand-held system is extended by means of the installation of software on the device to perform both route calculation and navigation along a calculated route.

Route planning and navigation functionality may also be provided by a desktop or mobile computing resource running appropriate software. For example, the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) provides an on-line route planning and navigation facility at http://www.rac.co.uk, which facility allows a user to enter a start point and a destination whereupon the server to which the user's PC is connected calculates a route (aspects of which may be user specified), generates a map, and generates a set of exhaustive navigation instructions for guiding the user from the selected start point to the selected destination. The facility also provides for pseudo three-dimensional rendering of a calculated route, and route preview functionality which simulates a user travelling along the route and thereby provides the user with a preview of the calculated route.

In the context of a PND, once a route has been calculated, the user interacts with the navigation device to select the desired calculated route, optionally from a list of proposed routes. Optionally, the user may intervene in, or guide the route selection process, for example by specifying that certain routes, roads, locations or criteria are to be avoided or are mandatory for a particular journey. The route calculation aspect of the PND forms one primary function, and navigation along such a route is another primary function.

During navigation along a calculated route, it is usual for such PNDs to provide visual and/or audible instructions to guide the user along a chosen route to the end of that route, i.e. the desired destination. It is also usual for PNDs to display map information on-screen during the navigation, such information regularly being updated on-screen so that the map information displayed is representative of the current location of the device, and thus of the user or user's vehicle if the device is being used for in- vehicle navigation.

An icon displayed on-screen typically denotes the current device location, and is centred with the map information of current and surrounding roads in the vicinity of the current device location and other map features also being displayed. Additionally, navigation information may be displayed, optionally in a status bar above, below or to one side of the displayed map information, examples of navigation information include a distance to the next deviation from the current road required to be taken by the user, the nature of that deviation possibly being represented by a further icon suggestive of the particular type of deviation, for example a left or right turn. The navigation function also determines the content, duration and timing of audible instructions by means of which the user can be guided along the route. As can be appreciated a simple instruction such as "turn left in 100 m" requires significant processing and analysis. As previously mentioned, user interaction with the device may be by a touch screen, or additionally or alternately by steering column mounted remote control, by voice activation or by any other suitable method.

A further important function provided by the device is automatic route recalculation in the event that: a user deviates from the previously calculated route during navigation (either by accident or intentionally); real-time traffic conditions dictate that an alternative route would be more expedient and the device is suitably enabled to recognize such conditions automatically, or if a user actively causes the device to perform route re-calculation for any reason.

It is also known to allow a route to be calculated with user defined criteria; for example, the user may prefer a scenic route to be calculated by the device, or may wish to avoid any roads on which traffic congestion is likely, expected or currently prevailing. The device software would then calculate various routes and weigh more favourably those that include along their route the highest number of points of interest (known as POIs) tagged as being for example of scenic beauty, or, using stored information indicative of prevailing traffic conditions on particular roads, order the calculated routes in terms of a level of likely congestion or delay on account thereof. Other POI-based and traffic information-based route calculation and navigation criteria are also possible.

Although the route calculation and navigation functions are fundamental to the overall utility of PNDs, it is possible to use the device purely for information display, or "free-driving", in which only map information relevant to the current device location is displayed, and in which no route has been calculated and no navigation is currently being performed by the device. Such a mode of operation is often applicable when the user already knows the route along which it is desired to travel and does not require navigation assistance.

Devices of the type described above, for example the 720T model manufactured and supplied by TomTom International B.V., provide a reliable means for enabling users to navigate from one position to another.

As mentioned above, a navigation device may be part of a hand-held device capable of handling telephone calls i.e. receiving incoming calls and making outgoing calls, such as a PDA or mobile phone. Alternatively, a navigation device may be associated with a device capable of receiving incoming calls, such as a mobile phone, via a connection which enables the navigation device to support a hands-free use of the mobile phone to receive the incoming call. For example, a navigation device may connect with a mobile phone over a wireless data connection such as Bluetooth to provide the hands-free operability of the mobile phone via the navigation device. However, even using a mobile phone in a hands-free manner may not be entirely safe since it has been observed that merely holding a phone conversation, even via hands- free, may cause a distraction.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a navigation device and method capable of handling incoming calls in an improved manner.

Summary of the Invention

In pursuit of this aim, a presently preferred embodiment of the present invention provides: a device, comprising a navigation device comprising means for receiving a telephone call and a module arranged to determine a cognitive workload of a user according to one or more criteria and to determine a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload.

A further preferred embodiment of the invention provides a method of handling a telephone call, comprising receiving a telephone call at a navigation device; determining a cognitive workload of a user of the navigation device; and determining a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload.

Yet another embodiment of the present invention relates to computer software comprising one or more software modules operable, when executed in an execution environment, to cause a processor to perform a method of handling a telephone call comprising receiving a telephone call at a navigation device; determining a cognitive workload of a user of the navigation device; and determining a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload.

Advantages of these embodiments are set out hereafter, and further details and features of each of these embodiments are defined in the accompanying dependent claims and elsewhere in the following detailed description.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Various aspects of the teachings of the present invention, and arrangements embodying those teachings, will hereafter be described by way of illustrative example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a schematic illustration of a Global Positioning System (GPS);

Fig. 2 is a schematic illustration of electronic components arranged to provide a navigation device;

Fig. 3 is a schematic illustration of the manner in which a navigation device may receive information over a wireless communication channel; Figs. 4A and 4B are illustrative perspective views of a navigation device;

Fig. 5 is a schematic representation of the software employed by the navigation device;

Fig. 6 is a schematic illustration of an embodiment of the invention associated with a mobile telephone;

Fig. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating a method according to an embodiment of the invention; and

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating an embodiment of the invention. Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to a PND. It should be remembered, however, that the teachings of the present invention are not limited to PNDs but are instead universally applicable to any type of processing device that is configured to execute navigation software so as to provide route planning and navigation functionality. It follows therefore that in the context of the present application, a navigation device is intended to include (without limitation) any type of route planning and navigation device, irrespective of whether that device is embodied as a PND, a navigation device built into a vehicle, or indeed a computing resource (such as a desktop or portable personal computer (PC), mobile telephone or portable digital assistant (PDA)) executing route planning and navigation software.

With the above provisos in mind, Fig. 1 illustrates an example view of Global Positioning System (GPS), usable by navigation devices. Such systems are known and are used for a variety of purposes. In general, GPS is a satellite-radio based navigation system capable of determining continuous position, velocity, time, and in some instances direction information for an unlimited number of users. Formerly known as NAVSTAR, the GPS incorporates a plurality of satellites which orbit the earth in extremely precise orbits. Based on these precise orbits, GPS satellites can relay their location to any number of receiving units.

The GPS system is implemented when a device, specially equipped to receive

GPS data, begins scanning radio frequencies for GPS satellite signals. Upon receiving a radio signal from a GPS satellite, the device determines the precise location of that satellite via one of a plurality of different conventional methods. The device will continue scanning, in most instances, for signals until it has acquired at least three different satellite signals (noting that position is not normally, but can be determined, with only two signals using other triangulation techniques). Implementing geometric triangulation, the receiver utilizes the three known positions to determine its own two-dimensional position relative to the satellites. This can be done in a known manner. Additionally, acquiring a fourth satellite signal will allow the receiving device to calculate its three dimensional position by the same geometrical calculation in a known manner. The position and velocity data can be updated in real time on a continuous basis by an unlimited number of users.

As shown in Figure 1 , the GPS system is denoted generally by reference numeral 100. A plurality of satellites 120 are in orbit about the earth 124. The orbit of each satellite 120 is not necessarily synchronous with the orbits of other satellites 120 and, in fact, is likely asynchronous. A GPS receiver 140 is shown receiving spread spectrum GPS satellite signals 160 from the various satellites 120.

The spread spectrum signals 160, continuously transmitted from each satellite 120, utilize a highly accurate frequency standard accomplished with an extremely accurate atomic clock. Each satellite 120, as part of its data signal transmission 160, transmits a data stream indicative of that particular satellite 120. It is appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art that the GPS receiver device 140 generally acquires spread spectrum GPS satellite signals 160 from at least three satellites 120 for the GPS receiver device 140 to calculate its two-dimensional position by triangulation. Acquisition of an additional signal, resulting in signals 160 from a total of four satellites 120, permits the GPS receiver device 140 to calculate its three-dimensional position in a known manner.

Figure 2 is an illustrative representation of electronic components of a navigation device 200 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in block component format. It should be noted that the block diagram of the navigation device 200 is not inclusive of all components of the navigation device, but is only representative of many example components.

The navigation device 200 is located within a housing (not shown). The housing includes a processor 210 connected to an input device 220 and a display screen 240. The input device 220 can include a keyboard device, voice input device, touch panel and/or any other known input device utilised to input information; and the display screen 240 can include any type of display screen such as an LCD display, for example. In a particularly preferred arrangement the input device 220 and display screen 240 are integrated into an integrated input and display device, including a touchpad or touchscreen input so that a user need only touch a portion of the display screen 240 to select one of a plurality of display choices or to activate one of a plurality of virtual buttons. The navigation device may include an output device 260, for example an audible output device (e.g. a loudspeaker). As output device 260 can produce audible information for a user of the navigation device 200, it is should equally be understood that input device 240 can include a microphone and software for receiving input voice commands as well.

In the navigation device 200, processor 210 is operatively connected to and set to receive input information from input device 220 via a connection 225, and operatively connected to at least one of display screen 240 and output device 260, via output connections 245, to output information thereto. Further, the processor 210 is operably coupled to a memory resource 230 via connection 235 and is further adapted to receive/send information from/to input/output (I/O) ports 270 via connection 275, wherein the I/O port 270 is connectible to an I/O device 280 external to the navigation device 200. The memory resource 230 comprises, for example, a volatile memory, such as a Random Access Memory (RAM) and a non-volatile memory, for example a digital memory, such as a flash memory. The external I/O device 280 may include, but is not limited to an external listening device such as an earpiece for example. The connection to I/O device 280 can further be a wired or wireless connection to any other external device such as a car stereo unit for hands-free operation and/or for voice activated operation for example, for connection to an ear piece or head phones, and/or for connection to a mobile phone for example, wherein the mobile phone connection may be used to establish a data connection between the navigation device 200 and the internet or any other network for example, and/or to establish a connection to a server via the internet or some other network for example.

Fig. 2 further illustrates an operative connection between the processor 210 and an antenna/receiver 250 via connection 255, wherein the antenna/receiver 250 can be a GPS antenna/receiver for example. It will be understood that the antenna and receiver designated by reference numeral 250 are combined schematically for illustration, but that the antenna and receiver may be separately located components, and that the antenna may be a GPS patch antenna or helical antenna for example.

Further, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the electronic components shown in Fig. 2 are powered by power sources (not shown) in a conventional manner. As will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, different configurations of the components shown in Fig. 2 are considered to be within the scope of the present application. For example, the components shown in Fig. 2 may be in communication with one another via wired and/or wireless connections and the like. Thus, the scope of the navigation device 200 of the present application includes a portable or handheld navigation device 200.

In addition, the portable or handheld navigation device 200 of Fig. 2 can be connected or "docked" in a known manner to a vehicle such as a bicycle, a motorbike, a car or a boat for example. Such a navigation device 200 is then removable from the docked location for portable or handheld navigation use.

Referring now to Fig. 3, the navigation device 200 may establish a "mobile" or telecommunications network connection with a server 302 via a mobile device (not shown) (such as a mobile phone, PDA, and/or any device with mobile phone technology) establishing a digital connection (such as a digital connection via known Bluetooth technology for example). Thereafter, through its network service provider, the mobile device can establish a network connection (through the internet for example) with a server 302. As such, a "mobile" network connection is established between the navigation device 200 (which can be, and often times is mobile as it travels alone and/or in a vehicle) and the server 302 to provide a "real-time" or at least very "up to date" gateway for information.

The establishing of the network connection between the mobile device (via a service provider) and another device such as the server 302, using an internet (such as the World Wide Web) for example, can be done in a known manner. This can include use of TCP/IP layered protocol for example. The mobile device can utilize any number of communication standards such as CDMA, GSM, WAN, etc.

As such, an internet connection may be utilised which is achieved via data connection, via a mobile phone or mobile phone technology within the navigation device 200 for example. For this connection, an internet connection between the server 302 and the navigation device 200 is established. This can be done, for example, through a mobile phone or other mobile device and a GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)- connection (GPRS connection is a high-speed data connection for mobile devices provided by telecom operators; GPRS is a method to connect to the internet).

The navigation device 200 can further complete a data connection with the mobile device, and eventually with the internet and server 302, via existing Bluetooth technology for example, in a known manner, wherein the data protocol can utilize any number of standards, such as the GSRM, the Data Protocol Standard for the GSM standard, for example.

The navigation device 200 may include its own mobile phone technology within the navigation device 200 itself (including an antenna for example, or optionally using the internal antenna of the navigation device 200). The mobile phone technology within the navigation device 200 can include internal components as specified above, and/or can include an insertable card (e.g. Subscriber Identity Module or SIM card), complete with necessary mobile phone technology and/or an antenna for example. As such, mobile phone technology within the navigation device 200 can similarly establish a network connection between the navigation device 200 and the server 302, via the internet for example, in a manner similar to that of any mobile device.

For GPRS phone settings, a Bluetooth enabled navigation device may be used to correctly work with the ever changing spectrum of mobile phone models, manufacturers, etc., model/manufacturer specific settings may be stored on the navigation device 200 for example. The data stored for this information can be updated.

In Fig. 3 the navigation device 200 is depicted as being in communication with the server 302 via a generic communications channel 318 that can be implemented by any of a number of different arrangements. The server 302 and a navigation device 200 can communicate when a connection via communications channel 318 is established between the server 302 and the navigation device 200 (noting that such a connection can be a data connection via mobile device, a direct connection via personal computer via the internet, etc.).

The server 302 includes, in addition to other components which may not be illustrated, a processor 304 operatively connected to a memory 306 and further operatively connected, via a wired or wireless connection 314, to a mass data storage device 312. The processor 304 is further operatively connected to transmitter 308 and receiver 310, to transmit and send information to and from navigation device 200 via communications channel 318. The signals sent and received may include data, communication, and/or other propagated signals. The transmitter 308 and receiver 310 may be selected or designed according to the communications requirement and communication technology used in the communication design for the navigation system 200. Further, it should be noted that the functions of transmitter 308 and receiver 310 may be combined into a signal transceiver.

Server 302 is further connected to (or includes) a mass storage device 312, noting that the mass storage device 312 may be coupled to the server 302 via communication link 314. The mass storage device 312 contains a store of navigation data and map information, and can again be a separate device from the server 302 or can be incorporated into the server 302.

The navigation device 200 is adapted to communicate with the server 302 through communications channel 318, and includes processor, memory, etc. as previously described with regard to Fig. 2, as well as transmitter 320 and receiver 322 to send and receive signals and/or data through the communications channel 318, noting that these devices can further be used to communicate with devices other than server 302. Further, the transmitter 320 and receiver 322 are selected or designed according to communication requirements and communication technology used in the communication design for the navigation device 200 and the functions of the transmitter 320 and receiver 322 may be combined into a single transceiver.

Software stored in server memory 306 provides instructions for the processor 304 and allows the server 302 to provide services to the navigation device 200. One service provided by the server 302 involves processing requests from the navigation device 200 and transmitting navigation data from the mass data storage 312 to the navigation device 200. Another service provided by the server 302 includes processing the navigation data using various algorithms for a desired application and sending the results of these calculations to the navigation device 200.

The communication channel 318 generically represents the propagating medium or path that connects the navigation device 200 and the server 302. Both the server 302 and navigation device 200 include a transmitter for transmitting data through the communication channel and a receiver for receiving data that has been transmitted through the communication channel.

The communication channel 318 is not limited to a particular communication technology. Additionally, the communication channel 318 is not limited to a single communication technology; that is, the channel 318 may include several communication links that use a variety of technology. For example, the communication channel 318 can be adapted to provide a path for electrical, optical, and/or electromagnetic communications, etc. As such, the communication channel 318 includes, but is not limited to, one or a combination of the following: electric circuits, electrical conductors such as wires and coaxial cables, fibre optic cables, converters, radio-frequency (RF) waves, the atmosphere, empty space, etc. Furthermore, the communication channel 318 can include intermediate devices such as routers, repeaters, buffers, transmitters, and receivers, for example.

In one illustrative arrangement, the communication channel 318 includes telephone and computer networks. Furthermore, the communication channel 318 may be capable of accommodating wireless communication such as radio frequency, microwave frequency, infrared communication, etc. Additionally, the communication channel 318 can accommodate satellite communication.

The communication signals transmitted through the communication channel 318 include, but are not limited to, signals as may be required or desired for given communication technology. For example, the signals may be adapted to be used in cellular communication technology such as Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), etc. Both digital and analogue signals can be transmitted through the communication channel 318. These signals may be modulated, encrypted and/or compressed signals as may be desirable for the communication technology.

The server 302 includes a remote server accessible by the navigation device 200 via a wireless channel. The server 302 may include a network server located on a local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), virtual private network (VPN), etc.

The server 302 may include a personal computer such as a desktop or laptop computer, and the communication channel 318 may be a cable connected between the personal computer and the navigation device 200. Alternatively, a personal computer may be connected between the navigation device 200 and the server 302 to establish an internet connection between the server 302 and the navigation device 200. Alternatively, a mobile telephone or other handheld device may establish a wireless connection to the internet, for connecting the navigation device 200 to the server 302 via the internet.

The navigation device 200 may be provided with information from the server 302 via information downloads which may be periodically updated automatically or upon a user connecting navigation device 200 to the server 302 and/or may be more dynamic upon a more constant or frequent connection being made between the server 302 and navigation device 200 via a wireless mobile connection device and TCP/IP connection for example. For many dynamic calculations, the processor 304 in the server 302 may be used to handle the bulk of the processing needs, however, processor 210 of navigation device 200 can also handle much processing and calculation, oftentimes independent of a connection to a server 302.

As indicated above in Fig. 2, a navigation device 200 includes a processor 210, an input device 220, and a display screen 240. The input device 220 and display screen 240 are integrated into an integrated input and display device to enable both input of information (via direct input, menu selection, etc.) and display of information through a touch panel screen, for example. Such a screen may be a touch input LCD screen, for example, as is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Further, the navigation device 200 can also include any additional input device 220 and/or any additional output device 241 , such as audio input/output devices for example.

Figs 4A and 4B are perspective views of a navigation device 200. As shown in

Fig. 4A, the navigation device 200 may be a unit that includes an integrated input and display device 290 (a touch panel screen for example) and the other components of fig. 2 (including but not limited to internal GPS receiver 250, microprocessor 210, a power supply, memory systems 230, etc.).

The navigation device 200 may sit on an arm 292, which itself may be secured to a vehicle dashboard/window/etc. using a suction cup 294. This arm 292 is one example of a docking station to which the navigation device 200 can be docked.

As shown in Fig. 4B, the navigation device 200 can be docked or otherwise connected to an arm 292 of the docking station by snap connecting the navigation device 292 to the arm 292 for example. The navigation device 200 may then be rotatable on the arm 292, as shown by the arrow of Fig. 4B. To release the connection between the navigation device 200 and the docking station, a button on the navigation device 200 may be pressed, for example. Other equally suitable arrangements for coupling and decoupling the navigation device to a docking station are well known to persons of ordinary skill in the art.

Referring now to Fig. 5 of the accompanying drawings, the memory resource 230 stores a boot loader program (not shown) that is executed by the processor 210 in order to load an operating system 470 from the memory resource 230 for execution by functional hardware components 460, which provides an environment in which application software 480 can run. The operating system 470 serves to control the functional hardware components 460 and resides between the application software 480 and the functional hardware components 460. The application software 480 provides an operational environment including the GUI that supports core functions of the navigation device 200, for example map viewing, route planning, navigation functions and any other functions associated therewith. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, part of this functionality comprises an adaptive call handling module (ACHM) 490, the function of which will now be described in detail in connection with the following figures.

As mentioned above, a navigation device 200 may be associated with a device capable of handling telephone calls in a number of ways. The navigation device 200 may include its own mobile phone technology, such as a SIM card, or the navigation device may be included within a mobile phone. Alternatively, the navigation device 200 may have established a data connection with the mobile phone, for example over a wireless interface such as Bluetooth. In all of these cases, the navigation device is capable of providing hands-free functionality for the mobile phone i.e. receiving the person's speech and outputting audio from a phone call established with the mobile phone. In particular, when the mobile phone receives an incoming call, the navigation device may alert the user of the incoming call and allow the user to answer the call through interaction with the navigation device.

Figure 6 illustrates a mobile telephone 610 which is associated with a navigation device 620. Although the mobile phone 610 is illustrated as being a discrete device from the navigation device 620, as mentioned above, the two may be an integrated device. The mobile phone 610 of Figure 6 is connected via a wireless communication channel 630 to the navigation device 620 to enable communication there-between. The wireless communication channel 630 may, for example, be a Bluetooth communication channel. The mobile phone 610 and navigation device 620 exchange various data over the communication channel 630. The mobile phone 610 provides status information to the navigation device 620, such as indicating whether the mobile phone 610 currently receives a signal from a telecommunications network with which it is associated. The navigation device 620 may display on its display screen 240 indicators relating to some or all of the status information received from the mobile phone 610. Other data, such as contact information, may also be communicated to the navigation device 620 from the mobile phone 610. The navigation device 620 may communicate to the mobile phone 610 user generated instructions relating to the operation of the mobile phone 610 which are received by the navigation device 620 from the user. For example, as shown in Figure 6, in a sub-menu or GUI screen of the navigation device 620, one or more controls 621 , 622 relating to the operation of the mobile phone 610 are displayed. Using these controls 621 , 622, the user may perform operations of the mobile phone 610, such as making a call, answering an incoming call, viewing contact information from the user's address book, etc. Furthermore, the mobile phone 610 may communicate incoming call information to the navigation device 620 so that the navigation device 620 may alert the user to the call. The navigation device 620 may display information identifying the caller such as name retrieved from the user's address book if the number of the incoming caller is known. The navigation device 620 may alert the user to the incoming call visually and/or audibly. Finally, during a call the mobile phone 610 and navigation device 620 exchange audio data relating to the voices of those participating in the call.

Embodiments of the present invention involve the determination to a cognitive workload of a user of the navigation device. The cognitive workload of a person is a measure of a mental load of that person. In the sense of the present invention, the cognitive workload may be thought of as the "busyness" of the person i.e. how much of the person's attention is currently being utilised. Determining the cognitive workload of the person may involve consideration of one or many factors which each, to a greater or lesser degree, consume some portion of the person's cognitive capacity. In embodiments of the present invention, the ACHM 490 determines the cognitive workload of the user of the navigation device 620 based upon one or more criteria and handles a telephone call according to the determination. An incoming call may be handled in one or more ways, such as the user not being alerted to the call through to the user being alerted to the call as normal. An outgoing call may be handled in a similar manner. The user may be totally prevented from making outgoing calls, or outgoing calls may only be permitted to some destinations. In some embodiments, the ACHM 490 determines the handling of the call according to the cognitive workload of the user and information associated with the call such, as an identification of the caller or called person.

A method 700 according to an embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to Figure 7.

The method 700 begins and in step 710 a call is received. As an example an incoming call will be described, although embodiments of the invention may also relate to outgoing calls. In the case of the mobile phone 610 and navigation device 620 being separate, i.e. communicating via the communications channel 630, the navigation device 620 is notified of the incoming call by the mobile phone 610 via the communications channel 630 such that the ACHM 490 becomes aware of the incoming call. The mobile phone 610 may also communicate data associated with the call to the navigation device 620 such as caller information. The caller information may be a number of the calling party and/or other identification information such as a name associated with the calling number which is stored in the mobile phone 610. In the case of the number of the calling party being communicated to the navigation device 620 the ACHM 490 may determine information associated with the number from a phone book stored in the memory of the navigation device 620.

In step 720 the cognitive workload of the user is determined. The cognitive workload of the user may be determined by the ACHM 490 according to many factors. The cognitive workload of the user may be determined by the ACHM 490 as a cognitive score. The cognitive workload of the user is determined by the ACHM 490 in some embodiments according to one or more of: a speed of movement of the navigation device 620, which may be determined by the ACHM 490 or another module of the navigation device 620 from the received GPS signals; a location of the navigation device 620; a time of day at which the call is received; current traffic and/or weather conditions, although this list is not exhaustive.

Some of the factors involved in determining the cognitive workload will now be explained in more detail. The location of the navigation device 620 may affect the cognitive workload of the user in many ways. The location of the navigation device 620 may be determined with respect to a geographic locality of the navigation device 620. For example, a locality classification may be used to identify locations as one of a plurality of predetermined location categories, such as "urban, semi-urban or rural", although this list is not exhaustive. If the location of the navigation device 620 is identified as being "urban", then the cognitive workload of the user according to the location may be given a high cognitive score, whereas if the location corresponds to "rural" then the cognitive workload may be scored relatively low. This is because it is expected that when travelling in an urban environment more of the user's attention is required to avoid accidents. The cognitive workload of the user may also or alternatively be determined with respect to the current location and one or more aspects of a route being followed by the navigation device 620.

Figure 8 illustrates a route 800 for which the navigation device 620 is providing route guidance between a start location 810 and a destination location 850. Intermediate points 820, 830, 840 indicate locations at which route guidance is provided to the user, for example at junctions, lane changes etc. along the route 800. A current location of the navigation device 620 along the route 800 is indicated with symbol 860. The ACHM 490 may determine the cognitive workload of the user based on the location 860 of the navigation device 620 with respect to a distance between the current location 860 and a next upcoming route guidance location, in the present case location of symbol 830. If the distance is less than a predetermined threshold, e.g. 1 km, then the cognitive workload may be given a relatively high score as it is expected that the user will shortly be relatively busy dealing with the upcoming route guidance 830, such as taking a turn off from a current road segment. Similarly, the ACHM 490 may determine the cognitive workload of the user with respect to a distance of the current location 860 from either the start or destination locations 810, 850 of the route. The cognitive workload may also be determined with respect to the current location and one or more user defined geographic areas, such as area 870. The user may identify geographic areas which are defined to have a high cognitive workload for many reasons, such as the user finding these areas particularly difficult to travel through. When the location 860 is within the user-defined area 870 then the ACHM 490 determines a relatively high cognitive workload score of the user.

The time of day may affect the cognitive workload of the user. For example, when driving at night i.e. during darkness the user may require more attention and thus the ACHM 490 may determine a relatively high cognitive score according to this criterion during hours of darkness. In some embodiments the ACHM 490 may determine the cognitive workload of the user with respect to traffic and/or weather conditions at the current location 860 of the navigation device 620. Traffic may influence the cognitive workload since in an area of high traffic the user may be more occupied and thus the ACHM 490 determines a higher cognitive score. Similarly, at a location experiencing one or more predetermined types of weather conditions, such as strong winds, heavy rain, ice, snow, etc., the ACHM 490 determines a relatively high cognitive score as the user is likely to require more attention being expended on travelling in those conditions.

Returning again to Figure 7, in optional step 730 a classification of the calling party may be determined. Some mobile phones allow the user to assign contacts stored in the phone book to one or more predetermined categories or groups. Alternatively or additionally, contacts stored in the memory of the navigation device 620 may be assigned to one or more groups. Groups may be, typically, "friends", "work", "boss", "spouse", "friends A", "friends B", etc although these groups are merely exemplary. Each group may have one or more contacts assigned to that group and contacts are not necessarily limited to being assigned to only one group. In some embodiments, each group has an assigned caller value, such as a numeric value between 1 and 10 or 1 and 100, although these ranges are merely exemplary. The caller value indicates the importance or likelihood that the user wishes to speak to the caller. For example, members of "spouse" or "boss" may be assigned a relatively high caller value indicating that it is likely that the user wishes to speak to that caller, whereas "friends B" may be a group of less well known friends and thus are assigned a relatively low caller value. Of course, step 730 does not require each caller to be assigned to a group, individual callers may have their own caller value assigned i.e. groups may consist of only one caller.

In step 740 a response to the incoming call is determined. The response may be selected from one or more predetermined call responses. In some embodiments, the call response is determined according to one or more rules, which may be determined by the user. For example, a rule may indicate that if the speed of the vehicle is over a predetermined speed, such as 80kmh^"1, then a predetermined call response should be selected. Similarly, if the call takes place during the hours of darkness and/or the distance to an upcoming route guidance location is less than a predetermined distance a predetermined call response may be selected. Rules may be combined to take into account a plurality of conditions, such as speed greater than Y kmh^"1 and within an urban location then select a predetermined response. In some embodiments, the response may be selected according to the cognitive workload score determined in step 720. For example, a predetermined call response may be selected if the cognitive workload score is over a value X or between values Y and Z.

In embodiments of the invention including step 730, the response may be selected in step 740 according to, at least in part, the classification of the caller. For example, the rules may indicate that above a predetermined speed incoming calls should receive a first response, unless the caller is, for example, "spouse" who would receive a second response. In some embodiments, the response may be selected according to a combination of the cognitive workload value and the caller value. In some embodiments, the call response may be selected according to the equation:

R = W - C

Where R is the call response, W is the cognitive workload value and C is the caller value. As can be appreciated, the importance of the caller counteracts the cognitive workload, where higher values of R select call responses which are less likely to require attention from the user. If the caller identity is unknown i.e. originates from an unknown number, then the caller may be assigned a very low caller value.

In some embodiments, the call response relates to the handling of the call i.e. the direction of the call. For example, an incoming call may either be rejected, such that the user is not alerted, alerted to the user only visually, alerted to the user normally i.e. audibly and visually, or redirected to another destination such as to an answer phone, or to a selected one of one or more other numbers, such as to a colleague of the user in the case of the caller being a member of group "work". In some embodiments, the ACHM 490 may accept the call but may only allow one-way communication between the caller and user. For example, navigation device 620 may indicate to the user that the call has been automatically answered, but may then only allow mono-directional communication between the user and the caller i.e. only allow the caller to hear the user so that the user may verbally indicate that they are busy and to call back later.

However, in other embodiments, the ACHM 490 is arranged to answer the call i.e. without user involvement. In these embodiments, a response to the call may be provided by the ACHM 490. The response may dynamically include information associated with the navigation device 620. In other words, the ACHM 490 may respond to the call by providing information associated with the user of the navigation device 620. The information may be a location or a current speed of the navigation device 620, information identifying a start and/or destination location of the navigation device, or any other information indicative of circumstances associated with the navigation device 620.

In these embodiments, the ACHM 490 is equipped with a speech synthesis capability to respond verbally to the caller. The verbal response provided to the caller by the ACHM 490 may be geo-coded i.e. based upon geographic and/or route information of the navigation device 620. Some responses provided to callers may indicate the location of the navigation device 620, such as "Thank you for calling. Mike cannot take your call now as he is engaged driving though Manchester", where the name of the user is stored in their user profile on the navigation device 620 and the location is determined by the ACHM 490 according to the received GPS signals. Alternatively, the ACHM 490 may respond to the incoming call with a verbal response based on the current location of the navigation device and the route being followed, such as "Thank you for calling. Mike cannot take your call now as he is engaged driving and will arrive in Wakefield in approximately 12 minutes". One embodiment of the invention may base, at least partly, the verbal response upon data stored in a database accessible to the navigation device 620 such as a database accessible over the communications channel 318 with the server 302. In some embodiments, the ACHM 490 may retrieve data associated with the caller from the database and provide the verbal response based thereon, the location of the navigation device 620 and the route being followed. For example, in the case of a delivery driver following a route to one or more destinations, the ACHM 490 determines the identity of the caller from data associated with the incoming call, then retrieves information about the caller from the database, in particular the location of the caller in order to determine an expected time of arrival at the caller's location along the route. The ACHM 490 then responds with, for example, "Thank you for calling. Mike cannot take your call now as he is engaged driving. However, your delivery will arrive at your location at approximately 14:50." It will be appreciated that a variety of geo-coded (providing details of the location of the navigation device) verbal responses may be provided to callers and those described above are merely exemplary.

In some embodiments of the invention, the ACHM 490 may also handle outgoing calls according to embodiments of the method shown in Figure 7, except the call is received from the user i.e. requesting to make a call. In these cases the ACHM 490 may determine in step 740 whether to allow the outgoing call based on one or both of the cognitive workload of the user, as determined in step 720, or the classification of the called person, as determined in step 730. For example, the ACHM 490 not allow a call to any persons to be made if the speed exceeds, for example, 80kmh^"1, whereas the ACHM 490 may allow calls to be made to a person having an assigned importance greater than a predetermined level when the speed is between 50 kmh^"1 and 80kmh^"1. The one or more rules to determine the call response in step 740 to an outgoing call may be set by the user, as for incoming calls. In some embodiments of the invention, the response to the call determined by the ACHM 490 may include a visual component. The visual component may be one or more still images, or a moving image i.e. a video. The navigation device 620 may be associated with one or more cameras. The cameras may form part of the navigation device 620, or may be formed within a vehicle carrying the navigation device 620 wherein the navigation device 620 is capable of receiving images from the cameras i.e. over a communication channel with the vehicle. A camera may be arranged to have a user of the navigation device 620 within its field of view, such as a driver of the vehicle. Alternatively or additionally, a camera may be arranged to capture surroundings of the navigation device 620, such as a forward view of the navigation device showing, for example, the road ahead of the navigation device 620. It will be a realised that one or more cameras may be arranged to capture any desired view. When the ACHM 490 determines the response to the call in step 740 the response may include the visual component showing, for example, the user of the navigation device 620 i.e. driver of the vehicle and/or the forward view of the navigation device 620 i.e. showing the road ahead. In addition, in some embodiments, the visual component may include information associated with the route guidance, if any, being provided by the navigation device 620 i.e. showing the caller an icon associated with upcoming route guidance being provided to the user of the navigation device. In some embodiments, the ACHM 490 may also shown on the display screen of the navigation device 620 an image, still or video, of the caller. The visual component may thus communicate the current situation of the user of the navigation device 620, particularly to a person calling the user.

The visual component may be communicated as a still or video image as a multimedia message service message (MMS) or as a video connection with the mobile telephone 610. The visual component may then be displayed on a display screen of the mobile phone 610.

In step 750 the response to the call determined in 750 is made by the ACHM

490.

As mentioned above, embodiments of the invention allow a customised, dynamic, response to be provided to calls according to a cognitive workload of the user and, in some embodiments, the identity of the calling or called person. In order to manage embodiments of the invention, one or more of the cognitive scores associated with factors in step 720, the caller values used in step 730 and the rules-base and the determination of one or more call responses used in step 740 may be determined by the user. For example, the user may program a user profile stored on the navigation device 620 either by direct interaction with the navigation device 620 or via a computer communicatively coupled to the navigation device 620. In some embodiments e.g. for commercial users of the navigation device 620 the settings of the navigation device may only be set by an administrator or similar having particular privileges to stop, for example, users who are employees configuring the navigation device 620 to allow calls at any time etc.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the teachings of the present invention provide an arrangement whereby a navigation device associated with a mobile telephone may handle calls according to a cognitive workload of the user. Thus calls may be prevented, partially allowed in a variety of different forms or redirected according to the cognitive workload, such that the user is not distracted, particularly at times of high cognitive workload. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the identity of the caller in part determines the response to the call.

It will also be appreciated that whilst various aspects and embodiments of the present invention have heretofore been described, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the particular arrangements set out herein and instead extends to encompass all arrangements, and modifications and alterations thereto, which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

For example, whilst embodiments described in the foregoing detailed description refer to GPS, it should be noted that the navigation device may utilise any kind of position sensing technology as an alternative to (or indeed in addition to) GPS. For example the navigation device may utilise using other global navigation satellite systems such as the European Galileo system. Equally, it is not limited to satellite based but could readily function using ground based beacons or any other kind of system that enables the device to determine its geographic location.

It will also be well understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art that whilst the preferred embodiment implements certain functionality by means of software, that functionality could equally be implemented solely in hardware (for example by means of one or more ASICs (application specific integrated circuit)) or indeed by a mix of hardware and software. As such, the scope of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited only to being implemented in software.

Lastly, it should also be noted that whilst the accompanying claims set out particular combinations of features described herein, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the particular combinations hereafter claimed, but instead extends to encompass any combination of features or embodiments herein disclosed irrespective of whether or not that particular combination has been specifically enumerated in the accompanying claims at this time.

Claims

1 . A navigation device (620), comprising: means for receiving a telephone call; characterised by: a module (490) arranged to determine a cognitive workload of a user according to one or more criteria and to determine a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the cognitive workload indicates a mental workload of the user.

3. The device of claim 1 or 2, wherein the cognitive workload of the user is determined according to one or more of: a speed of travel of the navigation device (620), a location of the navigation device (620), a time of day and/or current traffic and/or weather conditions.

4. The device of any preceding claim, wherein the module (490) is arranged to determine the response to the call based on identity information associated with the call.

5. The device of any preceding claim, wherein the identity information identifies the calling or called party.

6. The device of any preceding claim, wherein the module (490) selects the response from one or more of rejecting the call, diverting the call to another destination, partially allowing the call or automatically responding to the call.

7. The device of any preceding claim, wherein the module (490) comprises a speech synthesis capability and is arranged to automatically respond to the call by providing a voice response.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the voice response identifies a current location of the navigation device (620).

9. The device of any preceding claim, wherein the telephone call is received from a mobile telephone (610) associated with the navigation device (620) or a user of the navigation device (620).

10. A method of handling a telephone call, comprising: receiving a telephone call at a navigation device (620); characterised by: determining a cognitive workload of a user of the navigation device (620); and determining a response to the call based at least in part on the cognitive workload.

1 1 . The method of claim 10, wherein the cognitive workload of the user is determined according to one or more of: a speed of travel of the navigation device (620), a location of the navigation device (620), a time of day and/or current traffic and/or weather conditions.

12. The method of claim 10, or 1 1 , comprising determining an identity of a calling or called party to the telephone call, wherein the response to the call is based in part on the determined identity.

13. The method of claim 10, 1 1 or 12, comprising responding to the call by one of: rejecting the call, partially allowing the call, providing a voice response to the call or allowing the call.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the voice response to the call provides an indication of a current location of the navigation device (620).

15. The method of claim any of claims 10 to 14, wherein the call is received from a mobile telephone or from a user of the navigation device.