Abstract: The present invention combines the geographical coverage possible with fixed, pre-defined route segment costs (e.g. the legal speed limit) with, wherever possible, richer time dependent costs. A user of, for example, a portable navigation device, can therefore continue route planning as before to virtually any destination in a country covered by the stored map database, but wherever possible, can also use traffic data with time-dependent costs, so that the effect of congestion with any time predictability can be accurately taken into account as an automatic, background process. It leaves the user to simply carry on driving, following the guidance offered by the navigation device, without needing to be concerned about congestion that exists now, and whether it will impact his journey.

Abstract: The present invention combines the geographical coverage possible with fixed, pre-defined route segment costs (e.g. the legal speed limit) with, wherever possible, richer time dependent costs. A user of, for example, a portable navigation device, can therefore continue route planning as before to virtually any destination in a country covered by the stored map database, but wherever possible, can also use traffic data with time-dependent costs, so that the effect of congestion with any time predictability can be accurately taken into account as an automatic, background process. It leaves the user to simply carry on driving, following the guidance offered by the navigation device, without needing to be concerned about congestion that exists now, and whether it will impact his journey.

Abstract: The present invention combines the geographical coverage possible with fixed, pre-defined route segment costs (e.g. the legal speed limit) with, wherever possible, richer time dependent costs. A user of, for example, a portable navigation device, can therefore continue route planning as before to virtually any destination in a country covered by the stored map database, but wherever possible, can also use traffic data with time-dependent costs, so that the effect of congestion with any time predictability can be accurately taken into account as an automatic, background process. It leaves the user to simply carry on driving, following the guidance offered by the navigation device, without needing to be concerned about congestion that exists now, and whether it will impact his journey.

Abstract: The present invention combines the geographical coverage possible with fixed, pre-defined route segment costs (e.g. the legal speed limit) with, wherever possible, richer time dependent costs. A user of, for example, a portable navigation device, can therefore continue route planning as before to virtually any destination in a country covered by the stored map database, but wherever possible, can also use traffic data with time-dependent costs, so that the effect of congestion with any time predictability can be accurately taken into account as an automatic, background process. It leaves the user to simply carry on driving, following the guidance offered by the navigation device, without needing to be concerned about congestion that exists now, and whether it will impact his journey.

Abstract: A subscriber database, in at least one embodiment, stores RF level and timing advance information associated with all mobile telephones on a network. A location parameters database stores location data that associates different physical locations with RF levels/timing advance data that have been measured or inferred for those locations. The subscriber database is then interpreted for the purpose of establishing the location of a specific mobile telephone at a given time by matching the RF level/timing advance data for that specific mobile telephone against the location parameters database. This generates the location of the mobile telephone. The interpretation or querying of the subscriber database only occurs, however, when there is a request to establish the location of a specific mobile telephone, and not as an automated process applied to all mobile telephones on a network.

Abstract: A subscriber database, in at least one embodiment, stores RF level and timing advance information associated with all mobile telephones on a network. A location parameters database stores location data that associates different physical locations with RF levels/timing advance data that have been measured or inferred for those locations. The subscriber database is then interpreted for the purpose of establishing the location of a specific mobile telephone at a given time by matching the RF level/timing advance data for that specific mobile telephone against the location parameters database. This generates the location of the mobile telephone. The interpretation or querying of the subscriber database only occurs, however, when there is a request to establish the location of a specific mobile telephone, and not as an automated process applied to all mobile telephones on a network.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for monitoring vehicular traffic flow in a road network (1) in an area served by a mobile telecommunications device network (7) having a call management system (10) provided with a mobile telecommunications device positioning system (11) providing positional data for active mobile telecommunications devices (12). The method comprises capturing geographical positioning data for individual active devices carried aboard vehicles (12) and converting these into probability vectors representing the likelihood of the vehicle having arrived at any of the possible road components (16) of the road network (7) compatible with the geographical positional data. As the vehicle (12) travels along, this process is repeated and new probability vectors constructed based on the probability of any of the available routes between the new probability vector mad component position and the immediately preceding probability vector road component position.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for monitoring vehicular traffic flow in a road network 1 in an area served by a mobile telecommunications device network 7 having a call management system 10 provided with a mobile telecommunications device positioning system 11 providing positional data for active mobile telecommunications devices 12. The method comprises capturing geographical positioning data for individual active devices carried aboard vehicles 12 and converting these into probability vectors representing the likelihood of the vehicle having arrived at any of the possible road components 16 of the road network 7 compatible with the geographical positional data. As the vehicle 12 travels along, this process is repeated and new probability vectors constructed based on the probability of any of the available routes between the new probability vector road component position and the immediately preceding probability vector road component position.