Improved ETA calcs for OCN5

RobMan · 03-20-06, 04:07 PM

If you are using OCN5 and want to improve your ETA and route calculations, take a look at THIS THREAD AT OCN FORUMS. This change will be part of the upcoming OCN5 patch.

EngPaul wrote an excellent tutorial for non-computer savvy folks. Basically you are changing a portion of the default.ini and prefs.ini file. Very easy, and the ETA calcs seem much more accurate in the little time I have had to look at it.

Remember to backup these two files first as EngPaul points out!

joekee · 03-20-06, 09:34 PM

Rob, glad to hear that! Thanks!

RobMan · 03-24-06, 09:27 AM

As an update to the improved ETA's - I took a business trip this week. I compared OCN5 ETA calculations to Microsoft Streets and Trips ETA calculations.

Car Fast 349 miles / 6' 02"
Car Std 349 miles / 6' 18"
MS&T 348 miles / 5' 48"

The trip consisted of 35 miles of fairly busy two and four lane roads, followed by the remainder as interstate miles. I generally drive slightly above the speedlimit (sometimes more

). Interstate speeds are generally around 77-78 mph on the open road; slower of course in construction zones and high traffic areas.

My actual time for this trip including stops for gas,etc was about 5 hours and 40 minutes. ETA's were pretty accurate as far as I'm concerned (within ~6%). Obviously, driving patterns play a big role in ETA estimates. Most are also calculated as pure driving time (no stops). The time spent on my two stops were probably made up for by increased hwy speeds.

RobMan · 05-25-06, 11:00 PM

Update after installing patch a couple of weeks ago.

I have made a number of lengthy trips in the SE USA since installing the OCN patch to improve ETA's, routing algorithm, and elevation.

IMO, the ETA's and routing algorithms have been greatly improved - sure you still get the occasional funky route, but what software doesn't? By and large, the routes have been good. The elevation is still reading low, but this does not bother me for Nav software.

Below are two trips that detail the ETA function. Both are primarily interstate drives. In rural interstate areas, I tend to cruise around 77 mph, sometimes a bit faster. Both used the CAR FAST .... FAST ROUTE settings. I think the s/w uses ~60 mph as the average speed, and while driving down the interstate, I switched to car standard and car slow with no difference in ETA values.

The first trip is ~220 miles, and I just wrote down the accumulative mileage and the ETA at that point.

Miles ETA
0 6:12
25 6:10
60 6:06
Seven minute stop
75 6:13
110 6:10
Traffic jam
125 6:14
175 6:11
200 6:05
215 6:03
Heavy traffic
221 6:11

For the second trip, I documented the time, miles to go, and ETA.

Miles
Time to Go ETA
10:00 403 4:43
11:15 321 4:32
11:53 271 4:25
6-7 minute stop
Blocked route due to construction - detoured off interstate for 26 miles.
1:37 165 4:24
2:52 70 4:05
16 minute stop
3:21 52 4:16
4:20 - Arrived

Conclusion: The ETA's are pretty good. I probably tend to drive a little faster and make less stops than average, so I tend to beat the ETA's as long as there are no significant traffic jams.

EDIT - Sorry if the tables don't tab correctly. I'm posting mobile and having a little difficulty.