Condition-based lane suggestions for travel advising

Abstract

Users who are traveling on a path between a first location and a second location may be informed by navigation devices about the user's selected route. The path may also feature two or more lanes, which may present comparative advantages (e.g., a toll-restricted lane may present less traffic, and a toll-free lane may present more traffic at a reduced cost). Presented herein are techniques for enabling navigation devices to advise users about the lanes of the path. A travel service may collect information about the respective lanes, such as traffic density and the typical travel duration of users utilizing the lane during various periods, and may transmit information about the predicted travel durations of the respective lanes to the device. Such information may enable the device to advise the user to choose a selected lane, according to the predicted travel durations of the lanes of the path.

1 . A method, comprising:
 for a first lane of a path between a first location and a second location, receiving a first predicted travel duration of the first lane between the first location and the second location, wherein the first lane is associated with a first lane cost for users traveling in the first lane;   for a second lane of the path, receiving a second predicted travel duration of the second lane between the first location and the second location, wherein the second lane is associated with a second lane cost for users traveling in the second lane; and   selecting either the first lane or the second lane for a user when the user is traveling the path between the first location and the second location based upon the first predicted travel duration, the first lane cost, the second predicted travel duration, and the second lane costs to yield a selected lane.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first lane cost or the second lane cost is zero. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the user has a cost sensitivity; and   selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user comprises selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user based upon the cost sensitivity of the user.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising:
 communicating the selected lane to the user.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising:
 providing a notice regarding the selected lane on a windshield of a vehicle associated with the user.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein providing the notice comprises providing an icon on the windshield in a sight-line between the user and the selected lane. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising:
 detecting that the user is transitioning lanes along the path; and   providing a notice regarding the selected lane responsive to detecting that the user is transitioning lanes.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising:
 communicating the selected lane and a basis for recommending the selected lane to the user.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising:
 determining a vehicle class of a vehicle associated with the user, wherein selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user comprises selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user based upon the vehicle class of the vehicle.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising:
 predicting a surface condition of the first lane; and   predicting a surface condition of the second lane, wherein selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user comprises selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user based upon the surface condition of the first lane and the surface condition of the second lane.   
     
     
         11 . A method, comprising:
 determining a path of a user between a first location and a second location, wherein:
 the path comprises a first portion and a second portion separated from the first portion by a transitional portion, 
 the first portion comprises at least a first lane and a second lane, and 
 the first lane abuts the transitional portion; 
   determining a travel condition of the first lane between a current location of the user and the transitional portion;   determining a travel condition of the second lane between the current location of the user and the transitional portion; and   determining a point at which to recommend that the user transition from the second lane to the first lane between the current location and the transitional portion based upon the travel condition of the first lane and the travel condition of the second lane.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , comprising:
 upon the user arriving at the point, providing a notice to the user to transition from the second lane to the first lane.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein providing the notice comprises providing the notice on a windshield of a vehicle associated with the user. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein providing the notice comprises providing an icon on a windshield of a vehicle associated with the user in a sight-line between the user and the first lane. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein at least one of:
 determining the travel condition of the first lane comprises determining a traffic condition of the first lane, or   determining the travel condition of the second lane comprises determining a traffic condition of the second lane.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein at least one of:
 determining the travel condition of the first lane comprises determining a surface condition of the first lane, or   determining the travel condition of the second lane comprises determining a surface condition of the second lane.   
     
     
         17 . A system comprising:
 a processor; and   memory comprising instructions that when executed by the processor cause operations to be performed, wherein the operations are configured to:
 for a first lane of a path between a first location and a second location, receive a first predicted travel duration of the first lane between the first location and the second location, wherein the first lane is associated with a first lane cost for users traveling in the first lane; 
 for a second lane of the path, receive a second predicted travel duration of the second lane between the first location and the second location, wherein the second lane is associated with a second lane cost for users traveling in the second lane; and 
 select either the first lane or the second lane for a user when the user is traveling the path between the first location and the second location based upon the first predicted travel duration, the first lane cost, the second predicted travel duration, and the second lane costs to yield a selected lane. 
   
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 17 , wherein:
 the user has a cost sensitivity; and   selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user comprises selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user based upon the cost sensitivity of the user.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 17 , wherein the operations are configured to:
 detect that the user is transitioning lanes along the path; and   provide a notice regarding the selected lane responsive to detecting that the user is transitioning lanes.   
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 17 , wherein the operations are configured to:
 predict a surface condition of the first lane; and   predict a surface condition of the second lane, wherein selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user comprises selecting either the first lane or the second lane for the user based upon the surface condition of the first lane and the surface condition of the second lane.