In automotive GPS navigation systems, a traveler's agenda with multiple
desired destinations can be entered in a largely automatic fashion by
downloading an agenda table created using the agenda replicator system
and methods disclosed herein. The replicator system includes computer
hardware and software systems, operable by a user, to acquire and store,
apart from a vehicle and its GPS navigation system, personal travel
agenda information for later transfer to a storage subsystem of the
vehicle's GPS navigation system. The hardware system may be implemented
as a desktop or laptop computer, or even a personal digital assistant.
The software system includes program components for controlling the
hardware and providing a data structure in which personal travel
information selected by the user is placed in an agenda table. The
replicator system includes means for transferring the information from
this data structure into a storage subsystem of the vehicle's GPS
navigation system. In this manner, the agenda replicator system allows an
agenda table to be created by the user while in an office or other
convenient location, and then be easily transferred to the storage
subsystem of the vehicle's navigation system. The disclosed replicator
system and methods also allow the user to specify personal preferences in
the agenda table. These in turn allow the route-planning subsystem to do
a better job of selecting routes to follow when traveling from one
destination to the next.