An apparatus and method for configuring a customized tour includes providing a list of tour subject indicators with a relevance value for locations to be toured, receiving user selection data regarding the subject indicators, and configuring a tour route based on an aggregate relevance score calculated for the tour subject indicators and locations indicated by one or more users. The method and apparatus may further include defining at least one tour route record comprising an ordered list of locations that satisfies at least a minimum aggregate relevance score constraint and a maximum tour duration constraint and saving information defining the at least one tour route record in a computer memory for use in delivering a corresponding tour.

Some embodiments provide a mapping application that displays a transit map including a group of transit lines. The mapping application receives a request to display a transit route in the transit map. The mapping application also, in response to the received request, displays the transit route by modifying portions of transit lines along the route to emphasize the portions of the transit lines while modifying other transit lines not along the route to de-emphasize the transit lines not along the route.

Route acquisition systems, methods, and programs receive input of a plurality of destination locations and acquire a visit history that indicates a history of visit locations visited previously together with an order of visit to the visit locations. The systems, methods, and programs refer to the visit history which includes the visit locations which match the plurality of destination locations, set an order of visit to the plurality of destination locations on a basis of the order of visit to the visit locations which is indicated in the visit history, and acquire a route for visit to the plurality of destination locations.

Some embodiments provide a mapping application that displays transit information in a map region. The mapping application identifies several transit lines for a map region. Each transit line corresponds to at least one transit vehicle route. Based on a particular zoom level of the map, the mapping application determines a subset of the transit lines to display in the map region. The mapping application displays the subset of the transit lines in the map region to emphasize the transit lines over other map features.

The present teachings include a carrying case that offers connectivity and versatility to a user including a housing of the carrying case having a main compartment and at least one technology compartment. The housing is configured to have a closed position and an open position that provides access to the main compartment for placement and removal of items in the carrying case. A mobile computing device is contained in the at least one technology compartment. The mobile computing device is configured to store at least one identifier for the user of the carrying case. A travel information module is associated with the mobile computing device to receive travel information of the user based on the at least one identifier of the user. The travel information includes at least one itinerary data item of the user.

A system and method for adapting the behavior of an interactive presence based application on a mobile computing device associated with a user; comprising: providing a plurality of multifunctional beacons; wherein the plurality of beacons provide a mesh wireless network; wherein each of the plurality of beacons provides a local wireless connection; providing an OMS backend for management of the plurality of beacons; wherein the OMS backend runs on a server; connecting by the mobile device to one or both of the mesh network and a local network; wherein the plurality of beacons report the connecting to the OMS backend; determining by the OMS backend the proximity of the mobile device to one or more of the plurality of beacons based on the reported connections; and adapting the behavior of the application and/or the beacons based on the determined proximity.

The present invention relates to an application or a system and a method for finding/exploring areas, and specifically historical markers. The application alerts travelers to road-signs that list historical information. In addition to identifying them on a map, user input/output is adapted to accept user-input via spoken user commands, and for playing audio output to the user, the audio output comprising historical marker content and acknowledgement of audio commands. The functionality of the present invention includes a registration process, a data base of markers (i.e., a data), locating and navigating user to the nearest marker (i.e., navigating to a location). The user can add information to the selected marker.

A system and method for adapting the behavior of an interactive presence based application on a mobile computing device associated with a user, by providing a plurality of multifunctional beacons, where the plurality of beacons provide a mesh wireless network, where each of the plurality of beacons provides a local wireless connection, providing an OMS backend for management of the plurality of beacons, where the OMS backend runs on a server, connecting by the mobile device to one or both of the mesh network and a local network, where the plurality of beacons report the connecting to the OMS backend, determining by the OMS backend the proximity of the mobile device to one or more of the plurality of beacons based on the reported connections, and adapting the behavior of the application and/or the beacons based on the determined proximity.

Some embodiments provide a mapping application that displays a transit map including a group of transit lines. The mapping application receives a request to display a transit route in the transit map. The mapping application also, in response to the received request, displays the transit route by modifying portions of transit lines along the route to emphasize the portions of the transit lines while modifying other transit lines not along the route to de-emphasize the transit lines not along the route.

An apparatus and method for configuring a customized tour includes providing a list of tour subject indicators with a relevance value for locations to be toured, receiving user selection data regarding the subject indicators, and configuring a tour route based on an aggregate relevance score calculated for the tour subject indicators and locations indicated by one or more users. The method and apparatus may further include defining at least one tour route record comprising an ordered list of locations that satisfies at least a minimum aggregate relevance score constraint and a maximum tour duration constraint and saving information defining the at least one tour route record in a computer memory for use in delivering a corresponding tour.