JP2008077351A - Navigation device and computer program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation device capable of setting and searching a target spot with KANJI (Chinese character) even when the reading of the designation of the target spot is not clear, and to provide a computer program. <P>SOLUTION: A processing part 11 of the navigation device extracts the leading character of KANJI notation of the designation of a target spot from a spot database 151 stored by a storage part 15, and displays a selection screen configured of the list of the extracted leading characters at a display part 14. The processing part 11 selects the leading character when an acceptance part 16 accepts an operation to select one leading character in the list of the leading characters, and the processing part 11 displays the selection screen configured of a search result list by retrieving the designation having the selected leading character from the spot database 151 stored in the storage part 15. When the operation to select the designation of the target spot in the search result list is accepted by the acceptance part 16, the processing part 11 selects and set the designation. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to navigation devices such as automobiles and ships, and more particularly to a navigation device and a computer program capable of searching for a destination point even if the reading of the name of the destination point is unknown.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an automobile navigation device that estimates the current position of an automobile and guides an appropriate route from the estimated current position to a destination point to an automobile driver is used. The navigation device accepts the setting of the destination point by the user's operation, and receives GPS (Global
A current position of the vehicle is specified using a position specifying technique such as Positioning System, and a route from the current position to the destination point is searched based on map data stored in a storage device such as an optical disk or a hard disk. Thereafter, the navigation device guides the route to the driver of the vehicle using the display on the display or the voice while sequentially specifying the position of the vehicle as the vehicle travels.

As a method for setting the name of the destination point with the navigation device, there is a method for receiving and setting a user's operation using a receiving means such as a touch panel. The navigation device that has set the name of the destination point searches for the name of the destination point from the data stored in the storage device, and reads the data related to the name of the destination point. Based on the obtained data, the optimum route is searched and information such as route guidance is transmitted to the driver by voice and display. However, the person who visited the place for the first time may not know the correct reading of the special place name and road name. In such a case, it is possible to set the destination point by accepting not only the correct reading of the place name, but also the general reading of the kanji, and the correct reading and general information of the current position and route guidance etc. A technique for making it easier for the driver to recognize the special place name and road name reading and the match of the kanji written on the road sign during route guidance is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 1) ).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-141978

  However, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the user does not know not only the correct reading of the name of the destination point but also the general reading of the Chinese character, the destination point cannot be easily set based on the Chinese character. There is a problem.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the object of the present invention is to extract and display the first character in kanji notation of the name of each destination point from the data stored in the storage means, To provide a navigation device and a computer program capable of setting the name of a destination point using kanji characters even if the kanji reading of the name of the destination point is unknown by the user selecting one of the first characters It is in.

  Another object of the present invention is to allow the user to easily select the first character of the name of the destination point by accepting an operation for selecting the total number of strokes or the radical of the Chinese character when there are many extracted first characters. It is an object of the present invention to provide a navigation device that enables selection of an item.

The navigation device according to the present invention comprises storage means for storing data relating to each point including the names of a plurality of points on a map, searches for the name of the destination point from the data stored in the storage means, In a navigation device that performs navigation to a destination point based on such data, first character display means for extracting and displaying the first character in Chinese characters from the names of a plurality of points stored in the storage means, and the first character display means displays And a first character receiving means for receiving one of the first characters, and an output means for searching for a name having the first character received by the first character receiving means and outputting a search result. .

  In the navigation device according to the present invention, the first character display means includes total stroke number receiving means for receiving the total stroke number of kanji, and searches for and displays the first character having the total stroke number received by the total stroke number receiving means. It is comprised so that it may be comprised.

  In the navigation device according to the present invention, the head character display means includes radical reception means for receiving a radical of a Chinese character, and searches for and displays the head character having the radical received by the radical reception means. It is comprised so that it may be comprised.

  A computer program according to the present invention searches a name of a destination point from data stored in the storage unit, a computer comprising storage means for storing data relating to each point including names of a plurality of points on a map, and the purpose A computer program for causing a computer to function as means for executing navigation to a destination point based on data relating to a point, wherein the computer extracts a head character in Chinese characters from the names of a plurality of points stored in the storage unit and displays the first character display unit The first character receiving means for receiving one first character from the first characters displayed by the first character display means, and the output means for searching the name having the first character received by the first character receiving means and outputting the search result It is characterized by that.

  In the present invention, the navigation device extracts and displays the first character in Kanji notation of the name of each destination point from the data stored in the storage means, and accepts an operation for selecting one of the first characters. The name having the accepted first character is searched and the search result is displayed.

  In the present invention, the total stroke number receiving means receives an operation for selecting the total stroke number of kanji, and the first character display means searches for the first character having the received total stroke number and displays the search result.

  In the present invention, the radical accepting unit accepts an operation of selecting a radical of a Chinese character, and the first character display unit retrieves the first character having the accepted radical and displays the search result.

  In the present invention, an operation of extracting the first character in Kanji notation at each point and selecting one of the first characters is accepted. By searching for a name having the received first character, even if a kanji whose reading is unknown is included in the name of the destination point, it is possible to search for the name of the destination point using kanji.

  In the present invention, even when there are a large number of the first characters in the Kanji notation of the names of the points, the operation of selecting the total stroke number of the Kanji characters is accepted and the first character having the selected total stroke number is searched and displayed. This makes it possible to easily select the first character of the destination point name.

  In the present invention, even when there are a large number of Kanji characters in the name of each point, the operation of selecting the Kanji radical is accepted and the first character having the selected radical is searched and displayed. This makes it possible to easily select the first character of the destination point name.

Embodiment 1
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the navigation apparatus of the present invention. The navigation apparatus of the present invention is installed in a car to be navigated, and performs navigation for guiding an appropriate route to a destination point while estimating a current position. The navigation device includes a processing unit 11 that is a CPU for performing calculations. The processing unit 11 is connected to a RAM 12 that stores temporary information associated with the calculations and a ROM 13 that stores the computer program 131 of the present invention. ing. The navigation device of the present invention is a computer, and the processing unit 11 is configured to execute processing necessary for the navigation device of the present invention in accordance with the computer program 131 of the present invention stored in the ROM 13.

  The processing unit 11 is connected to a display unit (display unit) 14 such as a liquid crystal display and a reception unit (reception unit) 16 that receives various instructions by a user's operation. The display unit 14 displays information necessary for navigation in the form of images or characters. The reception unit 16 is configured using a touch panel combined with the display unit 14 and various switches. The processing unit 11 is connected to a storage unit (storage unit) 15 that is configured by a hard disk, a nonvolatile semiconductor memory, or the like and stores map data from the current position to the destination point. Further, the storage unit 15 stores a map database 152 composed of map data and a point database 151 composed of data relating to each point including the name, address, and coordinates in the map data of each point on the map. The point database 151 has a tree hierarchical structure, and in order from the upper hierarchy to the lower hierarchy, the hierarchy of data including the prefecture name, the hierarchy of data including the city name, the hierarchy of data including the chome or letter, and the lot number or It consists of a hierarchy of data including house numbers. Hereinafter, each level is described as a prefecture name block, a municipality name block, a place name block, and an address name block.

  When performing navigation to the destination point, the processing unit 11 searches the destination database 151 for the name of the destination point. Further, the processing unit 11 acquires the coordinates of the destination point related to the name obtained by the search from the point database 151, reads out the map data corresponding to the acquired coordinates from the map database 152, and performs the navigation processing to the destination point. . The storage unit 15 may be a memory that temporarily stores spot data and map data received from the outside, or spot data and map data read from a storage medium such as an optical disk. Further, the processing unit 11 is connected to a position information acquisition unit 17 that acquires position information necessary for estimating the position of the vehicle, such as a GPS signal transmitted from a GPS satellite, an acceleration of the vehicle, or a vehicle speed pulse. ing. The processing unit 11 performs a process of estimating the current position of the vehicle based on the position information acquired by the position information acquisition unit 17 and the map database 152 stored in the storage unit 15.

  Next, the destination point setting process according to the first embodiment, which is executed by the processing unit 11 of the navigation apparatus having the above configuration, will be described. The processing unit 11 reads the prefecture name block from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15. FIG. 2A is an explanatory diagram showing a format example of a prefecture name block. Prefecture name numbers 1 to 47 for distinguishing prefecture names are assigned to the prefecture name block, and position data serving as representative points on the map in the respective prefecture name numbers are stored. The processing unit 11 extracts a prefecture name included in the read prefecture name block and displays a selection screen including a list of prefecture names on the display unit 14. FIG. 3A is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a list of prefecture names for the user to select a prefecture name. The processing unit 11 receives an operation selected by the user via a touch panel in which the receiving unit 16 and the display unit 14 are combined. When the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key displayed on the selection screen, the processing unit 11 ends the process. When the reception unit 16 does not accept the operation of the “return” key, the processing unit 11 selects a prefecture name when the reception unit 16 accepts an operation of selecting one prefecture name in the list of prefecture names. In FIG. 3A, “Okinawa Prefecture” is selected by the user. The processing unit 11 reads the municipality name block associated with the selected prefecture name from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit (storage unit) 15.

  FIG. 2B is an explanatory diagram illustrating a format example of a municipality name block associated with the prefecture number 47 of “Okinawa Prefecture”. The names of municipalities included in “Okinawa Prefecture” are classified according to the first kanji, and a first letter number is assigned to distinguish each kanji. In addition, different municipality numbers are assigned to the municipalities having the same first character in order to distinguish them. Accordingly, each municipality name is designated by a combination of the first character number and the municipality number. Each municipality name stores position data as a representative point. The processing unit 11 extracts the first character of the municipality name included in the read municipality block and displays the first character selection screen including the first character list on the display unit 14. FIG. 3B is an image diagram showing an example of a selection screen composed of a first character list for the user to select the first character of the municipality name. When the reception unit 16 receives an operation of selecting the first character, the processing unit 11 selects the first character of the municipality name. In FIG. 3B, “good” is selected by the user. The processing unit 11 searches the municipality name block having the selected first character from the municipality name block and displays a municipality name selection screen including a list of municipalities on the display unit 14. FIG. 4A is an image diagram showing an example of a municipality name selection screen composed of a list of municipalities. When the reception unit 16 receives an operation of selecting one municipality name in the list of municipalities, the processing unit 11 selects a municipality name. In FIG. 4A, “Ginoza Village” is selected by the user.

  The processing unit 11 reads the place name block associated with the municipality name selected from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15. FIG. 5A is an explanatory diagram showing a format example of a place name block associated with “Ginoza Village”. The place names included in “Ginoza Village” are classified according to the first character, and a first character number for distinguishing each character is assigned. Different place name numbers are assigned to place names having the same first character number. Accordingly, each place name is designated by a combination of the first character number and the place name number. Each location name stores position data as a representative point. The processing unit 11 extracts the first character of the place name from the read place name block and displays a first character selection screen including a first character list on the display unit 14. FIG. 4B is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a list of first characters for the user to select the first character of the place name. When the receiving unit 16 receives an operation of selecting one head character in the head character list, the processing unit 11 selects the head character. In FIG. 4B, “惣” is selected by the user. The processing unit 11 searches the place name block having the selected first character from the place name block, and displays a place name selection screen including a place name list on the display unit 14. FIG. 6A is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a place name list for the user to select a place name. When the receiving unit 16 receives an operation of selecting one place name in the place name list, the processing unit 11 selects a place name. In FIG. 6A, the user has selected “Zhaoqing”.

  The processing unit 11 reads an address name block associated with the place name selected from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15. FIG. 5B is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the format of the address name block associated with “Jinkei”. A serial number is assigned to an address name included in “Beikei”, and position data serving as a representative point is stored in each address name. The processing unit 11 extracts an address name from the read address name block and displays an address name selection screen including a list of address names on the display unit 14. FIG. 6B is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a list of address names for the user to select an address name. When the receiving unit 16 receives an operation of selecting one address name in the address name list, the processing unit 11 selects the address name. In FIG. 6B, “2” is selected by the user. The processing unit 11 sets the destination address and ends the destination setting process.

7 and 8 are flowcharts showing a procedure of processing in which the navigation device of the present invention receives information on the name of the destination point from the user and sets the destination point. The processing unit 11 of the navigation device executes the following processing according to the computer program 131 stored in the ROM 13. The processing unit 11 reads the prefecture name block from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit (storage means) 15, extracts the prefecture name, and displays a selection screen including a list of prefecture names as shown in FIG. 14 (step S1). The processing unit 11 determines whether or not the reception unit 16 has received an operation of the “return” key displayed on the selection screen (step S2). When the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key (YES in step S2), the processing unit 11 ends the process. If the reception unit 16 has not received an operation of the “return” key (NO in step S2), the processing unit 11 has received an operation for the user to select one prefecture name in the list of prefecture names by the user. It is determined whether or not (step S3). If the accepting unit 16 does not accept the operation (NO in step S3), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S2 for determining acceptance of the “return” key operation. When the accepting unit 16 accepts the operation (YES in step S3), the processing unit 11 reads the municipality name block associated with the prefecture name selected from the spot database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 (step S4). . In FIG. 3A, “Okinawa Prefecture” is selected by the user.

  The processing unit 11 extracts the first character of the municipality name included in the read municipality name block and displays the first character selection screen including the first character list on the display unit 14 as shown in FIG. S5). The processing unit 11 determines whether or not the receiving unit 16 has received an operation of the “return” key displayed on the first character selection screen (step S6). When the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key (YES in step S6), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S1 for displaying a selection screen including a list of prefecture names. If the accepting unit 16 has not accepted an operation of the “return” key (NO in step S6), the processing unit 11 has accepted an operation by the accepting unit 16 to select one leading character in the leading character list by the user. It is determined whether or not (step S7). If the accepting unit 16 does not accept the operation (NO in step S7), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S6 for determining acceptance of the “return” key operation. When the accepting unit 16 accepts the operation (YES in step S7), the processing unit 11 searches the municipality name block having the selected first character from the municipality name block (step S8). In FIG. 3B, “good” is selected by the user.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 4A, a municipality name selection screen composed of a list of municipalities is displayed (step S9). The processing unit 11 determines whether or not the receiving unit 16 has received an operation of the “return” key displayed on the selection screen (step S10). If the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key (YES in step S10), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S5 for displaying a selection screen including a list of the first characters of the municipalities. If the reception unit 16 does not accept the operation of the “return” key (NO in step S10), the processing unit 11 has received an operation for the reception unit 16 to select one municipality name in the list of municipalities by the user. It is determined whether or not (step S11). If the accepting unit 16 does not accept the operation (NO in step S11), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S10 for determining the operation of the “return” key. If the accepting unit 16 accepts the operation (YES in step S11), the processing unit 11 reads the place name block associated with the selected municipality name from the location database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 (step S12). In FIG. 4A, “Ginoza Village” is selected by the user.

The processing unit 11 extracts the first character of the place name included in the read place name block and displays the first character selection screen including the first character list on the display unit 14 as shown in FIG. 4B (step S13). The processing unit 11 determines whether or not the receiving unit 16 has received an operation of the “return” key displayed on the selection screen (step S14). When the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key (YES in step S14), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S9 in which a selection screen including a list of municipalities is displayed. If the accepting unit 16 has not accepted the operation of the “return” key (NO in step S14), the processing unit 11 has accepted the operation of the accepting unit 16 to select one of the first characters in the first character list by the user. It is determined whether or not (step S15). If the accepting unit 16 does not accept the operation (NO in step S15), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S14 for determining acceptance of the “return” key operation. When the accepting unit 16 accepts the operation (YES in step S15), the processing unit 11 searches the place name block having the selected first character from the place name block (step S16). In FIG. 4B, “惣” is selected by the user.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6A, a place name selection screen including a place name list is displayed (step S17). The processing unit 11 determines whether or not the receiving unit 16 has received an operation of the “return” key displayed on the selection screen (step S18). When the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key (YES in step S18), the processing unit 11 returns the process to the display of the selection screen composed of the first character list of the place names in step S13. When the reception unit 16 does not receive the “return” key operation (NO in step S18), the processing unit 11 determines whether the reception unit 16 has received an operation for selecting one place name in the place name list by the user. Is determined (step S19). If the accepting unit 16 does not accept the operation (NO in step S19), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S18 for determining acceptance of the “return” key operation. When the accepting unit 16 accepts the operation (YES in step S19), the processing unit 11 reads an address name block associated with the place name selected from the spot database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 (step S20). In FIG. 6A, the user has selected “Zhaoqing”.

  The processing unit 11 extracts an address name from the read address name block and displays an address name selection screen including an address name list on the display unit 14 as shown in FIG. 6B (step S21). The processing unit 11 determines whether or not the receiving unit 16 has received an operation of the “return” key displayed on the selection screen (step S22). When the accepting unit 16 accepts an operation of the “return” key (YES in step S22), the processing unit 11 returns the process to the display of the selection screen including the place name list in step S17. If the accepting unit 16 has not accepted an operation of the “return” key (NO in step S22), the processing unit 11 has accepted an operation by the accepting unit 16 to select one leading character in the leading character list by the user. It is determined whether or not (step S23). If the accepting unit 16 does not accept the operation (NO in step S23), the processing unit 11 returns the process to step S22 for determining acceptance of the “return” key operation. If the accepting unit 16 accepts the operation (YES in step S23), the processing unit 11 sets the destination address (step S24) and ends the destination setting process. In FIG. 6B, “2” is selected by the user. The processing unit 11 reads the map data relating to the set address from the map database 152 and displays it on the display unit 14.

  As described above, in the present invention, the processing unit 11 displays a selection screen composed of a list of the first characters of the municipality name and the place name, and the first character of the name of the destination point by the operation selected by the user received by the receiving unit 16. Select. The processing unit 11 searches for a name having the selected first character and outputs the search result as a list. The receiving unit 16 accepts an operation for selecting one first character in the search result list, so that the user can Even if the first character of the point contains a kanji that does not know the reading, the name of the destination can be set.

Embodiment 2
The second embodiment relates to a navigation device including a total stroke number receiving unit. When there are many leading characters extracted by the processing unit 11 from the municipality name block and the place name block, it is difficult for the user to select the leading character of the name of the destination point on the selection screen composed of the leading character list. Therefore, the head character list is narrowed down by accepting the total number of strokes of the first character. The municipality name block and the place name block included in the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 include the total stroke number data of the first character of the name. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a format example of a municipality block associated with the prefecture name number 47 of “Okinawa Prefecture”. The names of municipalities included in “Okinawa Prefecture” are classified according to the first kanji, and a first letter number for distinguishing each kanji is assigned. In addition, different municipality numbers are assigned to the municipalities having the same first character in order to distinguish them. Each municipality name stores the total number of strokes of the first character and position data as representative points.

Next, the destination point setting process performed by the total stroke number receiving unit according to the second embodiment performed by the processing unit 11 will be described. The processing unit 11 selects a prefecture name by the prefecture name selection operation received by the receiving unit 16. Next, the processing unit 11 reads the municipality name block associated with the selected prefecture name from the point database 151. The processing unit 11 extracts the total number of strokes of the first character included in the read municipality block and displays a selection screen including the extracted total stroke number list on the display unit 14. FIG. 10A is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a total number of strokes list. The processing when the “return” key displayed on the selection screen is operated is the same as in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted. The processing unit 11 selects the total number of strokes by an operation of selecting the total number of strokes of the user received by the receiving unit 16. In FIG. 10A, “8” is selected as the total number of strokes. The processing unit 11 searches the municipality block for the first character having the selected total number of strokes, the total number of strokes obtained by subtracting 1 from the selected total number of strokes, and the total number of strokes obtained by adding 1 to the selected total number of strokes. A selection screen composed of the sorted first character list is displayed on the display unit 14. The processing unit 11 selects a leading character by receiving an operation in which the receiving unit 16 selects one leading character in the leading character list. FIG. 10B is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a first character list. In FIG. 10B, the first character having the total number of strokes 7, 8, and 9 is displayed, and “Yi” is selected by the user. The user can easily select one head character in the list of head characters that has become fewer.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the total stroke number receiving means according to the second embodiment. The processing unit 11 executes the following processing according to the computer program 131 stored in the ROM 13. The processing unit 11 selects a prefecture name by accepting an operation in which the receiving unit 16 selects a prefecture name (step S31). Next, the processing unit 11 reads the municipality name block associated with the prefecture name selected from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 (step S32). The processing unit 11 extracts the total number of strokes of the first character included in the read municipality name block, and displays a total stroke number selection screen including a total stroke number list on the display unit 14 as shown in FIG. Step S33). The processing unit 11 selects the total number of strokes when the receiving unit 16 receives an operation for selecting one total number of strokes in the total stroke number list by the user (step S34). Next, the processing unit 11 searches the municipality name block for the first character having the selected total number of strokes, the total number of strokes obtained by subtracting 1 from the selected total number of strokes, and the total number of strokes obtained by adding 1 to the selected total number of strokes (step S35). . The processing unit 11 displays a first character selection screen including a first character list classified by the total number of strokes on the display unit 14 (step S36). The processing unit 11 selects the first character by accepting an operation in which the receiving unit 16 selects one first character in the first character list by the user (step S37), and ends the first character selection process. In the second embodiment, the case where the first character of the destination city name is selected from the city name block is shown, but the same operation is performed when the first character of the destination name is selected from the place name block. Can do.

  Even when the processing unit 11 extracts a large number of first characters by the above-described total stroke number receiving means, the processing unit 11 narrows down the first characters by the total number of strokes, and a selection screen including a list of a small number of first characters is displayed. Therefore, the user can easily select the first character of the destination point name. In addition to the total number of strokes selected by the user, the first character having a total of three types of total strokes obtained by adding and subtracting 1 to the selected total number of strokes is displayed on the first character selection screen. Thereby, even when the user selects a different total number of strokes in a situation where the total number of strokes is not recognized correctly, the possibility that the first character that the user intended to select is displayed on the selection screen increases. In addition, although an example is shown in which the first character list having three types of total strokes is displayed on the first character selection screen, the present invention is not limited to this. Only four or more types, two types, or the total number of strokes selected by the user are displayed. The first character list may be displayed on the selection screen. Also, without displaying the total stroke number selection screen and accepting operations for selecting the total number of strokes, the first character selection screen consisting of the first character list classified by the total stroke number of the first character is displayed, and the user selects the desired first character. You may make it easy to select.

The second embodiment is configured as described above, and other configurations and operations are the same as those of the first embodiment. Therefore, corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

Embodiment 3
Embodiment 3 relates to a navigation apparatus provided with radical receiving means. In the third embodiment, the head character list is narrowed down by accepting the radical of the first character. The municipality name block and the place name block included in the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 include radical data of the first character of the name. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing a format example of a municipality block associated with the prefecture name number 47 of “Okinawa Prefecture”. The names of municipalities included in “Okinawa Prefecture” are classified according to the first kanji, and a first letter number for distinguishing each kanji is assigned. In addition, different municipality numbers are assigned to the municipalities having the same first character in order to distinguish them. Each municipality name stores position data as a radical and a representative point of the first character. In addition, a radical number for distinguishing each radical type is assigned.

  A destination point setting process performed by the radical receiving unit according to the third embodiment executed by the processing unit 11 will be described. The processing unit 11 selects a prefecture name by the prefecture name selection operation received by the receiving unit 16. Next, the processing unit 11 reads the municipality name block associated with the selected prefecture name from the point database 151. The processing unit 11 extracts radicals included in the read municipality block and displays a selection screen including a radical list on the display unit 14. FIG. 13A is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a radical list. The processing when the “return” key displayed on the selection screen is operated is the same as in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted. The processing unit 11 selects a radical by an operation of selecting the user's radical received by the receiving unit 16. In FIG. 13A, “Nenben”, “Sansui”, “Ukanmuri”, etc. are displayed as radicals, and “Ukanmuri” is selected by the user. The processing unit 11 searches the municipality name block for the first character having the selected radical and displays a selection screen including a first character list on the display unit 14. The processing unit 11 selects a leading character by receiving an operation in which the receiving unit 16 selects one leading character in the leading character list. FIG. 13B is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen including a first character list. In FIG. 13B, the first character having the radical “Ukanmuri” is displayed, and “Yi” is selected by the user. Since the user has a smaller number of first character lists, the user can easily select one first character in the first character list.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the radical receiving means according to the third embodiment. The processing unit 11 executes the following processing according to the computer program 131 stored in the ROM 13. The processing unit 11 selects a prefecture name by accepting an operation in which the receiving unit 16 selects a prefecture name (step S41). Next, the processing unit 11 reads the municipality name block associated with the prefecture name selected from the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15 (step S42). The processing unit 11 extracts the radical of the first character of the municipality name included in the read municipality block and displays the radical selection screen including the radical list on the display unit 14 as shown in FIG. (Step S43). The processing unit 11 selects a radical when the receiving unit 16 receives an operation of selecting one radical in the radical list by the user (step S44). Next, the processing unit 11 searches the municipality block for the first character having the selected radical (step S45). The processing unit 11 displays the first character selection screen including the first character list on the display unit 14 (step S46). Next, the processing unit 11 selects the first character by accepting an operation in which the receiving unit 16 selects one first character in the first character list by the user (step S47), and ends the first character selection process. To do. In the third embodiment, the case where the first character of the destination city name is selected from the city name block is shown, but the same operation is performed when the first character of the destination name is selected from the place name block. Can do.

The third embodiment is configured as described above, and the other configurations and operations are the same as those of the first and second embodiments. Therefore, the corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and detailed description thereof is omitted. .

Embodiment 4
FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the navigation device according to the fourth embodiment. In FIG. 15, the same reference numerals are given to the same configurations of the navigation device of the fourth embodiment and the navigation device of the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted. An EEPROM 41 and a storage medium reading unit 42 are connected to the processing unit 11 of the navigation device. The EEPROM 41 is a rewritable memory that stores the computer program 131 of the present invention, and is a flash memory or the like. The processing unit 11 is configured to execute processing necessary for the navigation device of the present invention in accordance with the computer program 131 of the present invention stored in the EEPROM 41. The computer program 131 causes the navigation device to extract and display the first character in Chinese characters from the names of a plurality of points included in the point database 151 stored in the storage unit 15. Next, the computer program 131 accepts one of the displayed first characters, searches for a name having the accepted first character, and outputs a search result. The computer program 131 is recorded in a storage medium 43 that is inserted into the storage medium reading unit 42. The computer program 131 may be stored in the EEPROM 41 from the storage medium 43 via the storage medium reading unit 42 and executed.

  The computer program 131 according to the present invention can be stored not only in the storage medium 43 such as a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM but also in an external memory such as a memory card. In this case, the computer program 131 is read from an external memory (not shown) connected to the processing unit 11 and stored in the EEPROM 41. Furthermore, communication may be established between a communication unit (not shown) connected to the processing unit 11 and an external server computer, and the computer program may be downloaded to the EEPROM 41.

  The fourth embodiment is configured as described above, and the other configurations and operations are the same as those of the first to third embodiments. Therefore, corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and detailed description thereof is omitted. .

It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of the navigation apparatus of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a format of the prefecture name block which concerns on Embodiment 1, and a municipality name block. 6 is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 6 is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a format of the place name block and address name block which concern on Embodiment 1. FIG. 6 is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of processing for setting a destination point according to the first embodiment. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of processing for setting a destination point according to the first embodiment. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a format example of a municipality name block according to Embodiment 2. FIG. 12 is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen according to Embodiment 2. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a total stroke number receiving unit according to the second embodiment. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a format example of a municipality name block according to Embodiment 3. FIG. 10 is an image diagram illustrating an example of a selection screen according to Embodiment 3. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a radical receiving unit according to the third embodiment. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of a navigation device according to a fourth embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

11 processor 12 RAM
13 ROM
131 Computer Program 14 Display Unit 15 Storage Unit (Storage Unit)
16 Reception part (reception means)
151 point database 152 map database

Claims (4)

A storage means for storing data relating to each point including the names of a plurality of points on the map is provided, the name of the destination point is searched from the data stored in the storage means, and the destination point is determined based on the data relating to the destination point. In a navigation device that performs navigation,
First character display means for extracting and displaying the first character in kanji notation from the names of a plurality of points stored in the storage means;
First character accepting means for accepting one of the first characters displayed by the first character display means;
A navigation device comprising: an output unit that searches for a name having a first character accepted by the first character accepting unit and outputs a search result.   The first character display means includes total stroke number receiving means for receiving the total number of strokes of kanji, and is configured to search for and display the first character having the total number of strokes received by the total stroke number receiving means. The navigation device according to claim 1.   The head character display means includes radical reception means for receiving a radical of a Chinese character, and is configured to search for and display a head character having a radical received by the radical reception means. The navigation device according to claim 1. A computer having storage means for storing data relating to each point including the names of a plurality of points on the map is searched for the name of the destination point from the data stored in the storage means, and the destination point is based on the data relating to the destination point In a computer program that functions as a means for executing navigation up to,
Computer
First character display means for extracting and displaying the first character in Chinese characters from the names of a plurality of points stored in the storage means;
First character receiving means for receiving one first character from the first characters displayed by the first character display means;
A computer program that functions as an output unit that searches for a name having a first character accepted by the first character accepting unit and outputs a search result.

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