JP2013200247A - Navigation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation device capable of searching for routes by making use of contactless charging road information and of allowing electric vehicle users to select routes that suit purposes.SOLUTION: A navigation system 10 let a route search unit 19 search for a normal route based on map information, a standard route using charging station information and contactless charging road information, and a charging route based on the contactless charging road information, and displays the standard route and the charging route. Thus, the navigation system searches for routes using the contactless charging road information and allows a user to select a route that suit a purpose of the user.

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device that is mounted on an electric vehicle and performs route guidance to a set destination.

  Recently, electric vehicles have begun to spread gradually as they are put into practical use. Electric vehicles need to be recharged when the installed battery is insufficient, and if you are on your way to your destination, the place where the charging equipment is installed in the public place facing the public road (hereinafter, charging station) The battery is being charged. Patent Document 1 discloses a navigation device that searches for a route to a destination using information on a charging station including position information (hereinafter, charging station information).

However, even if quick charging is performed at the charging station, it takes more time than the gasoline refueling time of a gasoline car.
Therefore, unlike the charging method that is performed at the charging station, that is, charging that is performed by connecting the charging facility and the electric vehicle with a cord (hereinafter referred to as contact charging), charging is performed in a non-contact state between the charging facility and the electric vehicle. A charging method to be performed (hereinafter referred to as non-contact charging) is attracting attention.

  This non-contact charging is an application of non-contact power transmission technology such as an electromagnetic induction method or a magnetic field resonance method. A method of charging in a non-contact manner while an electric vehicle is running or stopped at an intersection has been developed by using this non-contact charging and providing a charging facility on the road. Patent Documents 2 and 3 describe a method for charging an electric vehicle by such non-contact charging.

JP-A-10-170293 JP 2010-193657 A JP 2011-182608 A

  However, the navigation device described in Patent Literature 1 includes information on roads equipped with non-contact charging facilities as described in Patent Literature 2 and Patent Literature 3 (hereinafter referred to as non-contact charging road information). Is not considered. Therefore, even if the number of roads that can be contactlessly charged has increased, conventional navigation devices are not suitable for electric vehicles.

  Further, for example, some users may want to use an electric vehicle immediately after arriving at the destination, and want to increase the amount of remaining power when arriving at the destination as much as possible. At this time, the battery is charged by running on the road where the non-contact charging facility is provided, and the consumption of the battery can be suppressed. Therefore, even if it is a little more detour than traveling on the shortest route to the destination, the remaining energy of the battery when traveling to the destination on the road with a non-contact charging facility when arriving at the destination Since there are cases where there are many cases, it is preferable for the user that such a route can also be selected.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device capable of searching a route using non-contact charging road information, and to select a route suitable for the user's purpose for a user using an electric vehicle. It is providing the navigation apparatus which can be performed.

  To achieve the above object, a navigation device according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a remaining power acquisition unit that acquires remaining power information of an electric vehicle battery, map information, charging station information, and non-contact charging road information. Storing means for storing, route searching means for searching for a route to a set destination using information stored in the storing means, and display means for displaying the route searched by the route searching means The route search means uses a search for a normal route based on the map information, and uses the remaining power information, the charging station information, and the contactless charging road information based on the searched normal route. And a search for a charging route that prioritizes driving on a non-contact charging road based on the map information, the remaining power information, and the non-contact charging road information. Display means, and displaying and said charging route and the reference route.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the navigation device performs a route search using also the non-contact charging road information, and thus can perform a route search using the non-contact charging road that is expected to be spread in the future. In addition, the navigation device gives priority to the non-contact charging road using the reference route created based on the normal route searched using the map information and the map information and the non-contact charging road information not based on the normal route. Since the route having a different character such as the searched charging route is displayed, the user can select the route suitable for the purpose.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation device according to the first aspect, wherein the cost calculation unit calculates the cost of the reference route and the cost of the charging route, and is calculated by the cost calculation unit. Comparing means for comparing the cost of the reference route with the cost of the charging route is provided.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the costs of the reference route and the charging route are compared based on the calculation result of the cost calculating means, the navigation device can propose a better route.

  Further, a third aspect of the present invention is the navigation apparatus according to the second aspect, wherein the cost calculated by the cost calculating means is the cost of time required to arrive at the destination, And the cost of the remaining power remaining in the electric vehicle battery when it arrives at the destination.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the navigation device can compare the reference route and the charging route based on the cost of time and the cost of remaining power.

  A fourth aspect of the present invention is the navigation apparatus according to the third aspect, wherein the charging station information is also used for searching the charging route by the route searching means, and the cost calculating means The calculated cost includes the cost of the number of times of use of the charging station used to arrive at the destination, the cost of the time calculated by the cost calculating means, the cost of the remaining power amount, The apparatus further comprises cost selection means capable of selecting a cost for comparison by the comparison means from the cost of using the charging station.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the navigation device reflects the items emphasized by the user among the cost of time, the cost of remaining power, and the cost of using the charging station, and performs a route search. It can be carried out.

  A fifth aspect of the present invention is the navigation device according to the third or fourth aspect, wherein the cost calculated by the cost calculating means is displayed by the display means.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the user can easily know the difference between the reference course and the charging course.

  According to the present invention, the navigation device performs a route search using also the non-contact charging road information, and thus can perform a route search using the non-contact charging road. Further, the navigation device displays the reference route created based on the normal route searched using the map information and the charging route searched using the map information and the non-contact charging road. It is possible to select a route suitable for the purpose.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus of one Embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the route searched in the route search part which comprises the navigation apparatus of one Embodiment of this invention. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an operation until a searched route is displayed in the navigation device of one embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a flowchart for explaining an operation when creating a reference route in the navigation device of one embodiment of the present invention. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an operation when creating a charging route in the navigation device of one embodiment of the present invention. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an operation when calculating a route cost in the navigation device according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which showed the example of a display displayed on the display part which comprises the navigation apparatus of one Embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the other example of a display displayed on the display part which comprises the navigation apparatus of one Embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the example of a display of the list display regarding the cost of a reference | standard route and a charge route.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the navigation device 10 of the present embodiment includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver 11, an input unit 12, a data storage unit 13, a communication unit 14, a display unit 15, and a voice. The output part 16, the vehicle information acquisition part 17, and the control part 18 are provided.

  The GPS receiving unit 11 detects the current position and the traveling direction of the navigation device 10. For example, the GPS receiving unit 11 receives radio waves including time information and position information from three or more GPS satellites orbiting the earth. It operates as a means for detecting the current position by processing.

  The input unit 12 is configured by a touch panel attached to the navigation device 10. Then, the route search conditions such as the destination, the waypoint, and the road type to be prioritized are input by the user via the touch panel and buttons. The input unit 12 is also used when the user selects a favorite route from a plurality of routes to the destination presented by the navigation device 10. Note that the input unit 12 may use a mechanical button or a voice input device such as a microphone in addition to the touch panel.

  The data storage unit 13 is composed of a storage medium such as a hard disk or a flash memory, and stores map information, charging station information, and contactless charging road information.

The map information includes various kinds of information necessary for performing a route search with a general navigation device. Specifically, the map information includes road information. The road information includes node information whose nodes are road nodal points and link information whose links are links between the nodes.
The node information of the road information includes road node numbers, position coordinates, the number of connection links, branch point names, and the like. In addition, the link information of the road information includes the road attributes such as the start and end node numbers, road types such as general roads and toll roads, link length (link cost), required time, speed limit, number of lanes, and road width. Also included is information on bridges, tunnels, railroad crossings, toll booths, etc.

  The map information includes water system information such as coastline, lakes, and river shapes, administrative boundary information, facility position coordinates, facility shape, facility information including the name of the facility, and the like.

  The charging station information is information including position coordinates of a charging station equipped with a contact charging facility, facility shape, name, number of installations, and the like. Moreover, it is preferable that the information regarding the charging speed (Kw / h) of the charging equipment installed in the charging stand is contained in charging station information. If the charging speed of the charging facility is known, for example, it is possible to easily calculate the time until the battery of an electric vehicle is fully charged.

  Charging stations equipped with contact charging equipment are not only dedicated to contact charging, but also stand with contact charging equipment on the same site as the gas station, convenience stores and parks with contact charging equipment, etc. It doesn't matter. Further, the charging station information is not necessarily stored in the data storage unit 13 as independent information. For example, the charging station information may be included in the facility information included in the map information.

  The non-contact charging road information is information including the position coordinates of a road (hereinafter referred to as a non-contact charging road) equipped with a non-contact charging facility and the amount of electric power that can be charged to the battery by traveling on the corresponding non-contact charging road. It is.

  Note that the contactless charging road information is not necessarily stored in the data storage unit 13 as independent information. For example, the link information of the road information included in the map information includes the contactless charging road information. It doesn't matter. Further, the timing for charging on the non-contact charging road may be when charging while the electric vehicle is running, or when charging is performed at a timing where the vehicle stops at a predetermined position such as an intersection or a temporary stop. The non-contact charging method may be any method as long as it can wirelessly transmit power to the electric vehicle, such as an electromagnetic induction method, a magnetic field resonance method, and a microwave transmission method.

  The communication unit 14 receives road traffic information from the VICS (registered trademark) center or receives FM multiplex broadcasting by an optical beacon or a radio beacon output from a transmitter provided along the road. The communication unit 14 is connected to a network such as the Internet, and acquires information for updating various information in the data storage unit 13 to the latest information.

  The display unit 15 is configured by a display panel such as a liquid crystal panel. The display unit 15 displays a searched route, a map image based on map information, a selected route, a current position mark indicating the current position, and the like at the time of route guidance. Further, the navigation device 10 acquires information such as the remaining power amount of the electric vehicle 30 described later, and the display unit 15 displays the state of the electric vehicle 30 based on the acquired information.

  The voice output unit 16 is configured by a speaker, and outputs voice guidance for route guidance, voice necessary for operation of the navigation device 10, a buzzer sound such as a warning, and the like.

  The vehicle information acquisition unit 17 acquires information about the vehicle speed and the remaining power amount from the electric vehicle 30 via the in-vehicle LAN.

Here, the electric vehicle 30 is a vehicle mainly composed of a battery 31 for storing electric power and a motor 32 that drives the electric power stored in the battery 31 as a power source. The electric vehicle 30 may be a four-wheel vehicle or a two-wheel vehicle.
The electric vehicle 30 includes a remaining power sensor 33 that measures the amount of remaining power stored in the battery 31 and a vehicle speed sensor 34 that measures the speed of the electric vehicle based on the rotation of the motor 32. Outputs from the remaining power sensor 33 and the vehicle speed sensor 34 are sent to the vehicle information acquisition unit 17 via the in-vehicle LAN.
Further, the battery 31 of the electric vehicle 30 can be charged by either a method of performing contact charging from the contact charging facility 35 of the charging station or a method of performing contactless charging with the contactless charging facility 36 provided on the road. It has become.

  The control unit 18 includes a processor including a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM (all not shown), executes predetermined processing based on a control program recorded in the ROM and RAM, and operates each unit of the navigation device 10. To control. In the present embodiment, the control unit 18 is described as reading and executing a control program recorded in the ROM or RAM. However, the control program is stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM. Can also be provided to the control unit 18.

  And the control part 18 implement | achieves the function structure of the route search part 19, the cost calculation part 20, and the comparison part 21 by running a control program.

  The route search unit 19 refers to the information stored in the data storage unit 13 to search for a route from the current position detected by the GPS receiving unit 11 or the like to the destination set by the user via the input unit 12. Do.

  At this time, if the vehicle on which the navigation device 10 is mounted is not an electric vehicle but a gasoline vehicle or the like, the route search unit 19 uses the map information in the data storage unit 13 under the set search condition to determine the shortest route. Search (hereinafter referred to as normal route).

  On the other hand, when the navigation device 10 is mounted on an electric vehicle as in the present embodiment, the route search unit 19 performs a search for a reference route and a search for a charging route in addition to a search for a normal route.

The normal route is a route searched using only map information without considering charging stunt information and contactless charging road information. Therefore, the normal route is the shortest route connecting the current position of the vehicle and the set destination on the set conditions. Specifically, according to the set conditions, the link information of the road information included in the map information and the node information are used to calculate the route calculation cost using the Dijkstra method or a method equivalent thereto, and the calculated route calculation The shortest path is searched by connecting links that reduce the cost.
The set condition is not only the condition that the distance to the destination is the shortest, but also the condition set by the user to avoid the toll road as much as possible, or the road that is as wide as possible There are conditions such as.

  The reference route is a route searched using information on the remaining power amount from the remaining power sensor 33, charging station information, and non-contact charging road information based on the searched normal route. Since the reference route is a route created on the basis of the normal route, the reference route is as close as possible to the normal route. In other words, the reference route is a route that can reach the destination while traveling on the normal route as much as possible in consideration of the remaining power amount of the electric vehicle 30, a charging station on the normal route, and a non-contact charging road. It has become.

  Unlike the normal route and the reference route, the charging route is a route searched using map information, information on the remaining power amount from the remaining power sensor 33, and contactless charging road information. Since this charging route is a route toward the destination while giving priority to traveling on the non-contact charging road as much as possible, depending on the searched route, it is a route that travels to the destination while considerably detouring compared to the normal route.

  Here, the route concept of the normal route, the reference route, and the charging route searched by the route search unit 19 of the navigation device 10 is shown in FIG. For the route between the current location S and the set destination G, the normal route A is indicated by a broken line. The reference route B and the charging route C are indicated by solid lines.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the normal route A is the shortest route among the routes connecting the current position S and the destination G.

  Since the reference route B is a route searched based on the normal route A, it is a route along the normal route A (in FIG. 2, the normal route A and the reference route B are displayed with a slight shift. doing). In addition, the reference route B also uses charging station information and contactless charging road information, and is normally connected to the charging station D on the route A, and contactless charging that existed on the route The road E1 is indicated by a thick solid line.

Since the charging route C is a route searched with priority on the non-contact charging road so as to use the non-contact charging road as much as possible, the route to the destination G is compared with the normal route A and the reference route B, At first glance it is a roundabout route. The charging route C is a route that passes through the non-contact charging roads E2, E3, and E4 to the destination G.
Here, since the charging route C does not require charging time at the charging station as compared with the reference route B via the charging station D, the time required to reach the destination G may be shortened. Further, since the charging route C travels a longer distance on the non-contact charging road than the reference route B, the remaining power of the battery 31 may increase when it arrives at the destination G.

The cost calculation unit 20 calculates a route cost for each of the reference route and the charging route searched by the route search unit 19. In this embodiment, the specific example of the cost to be calculated is that the total time (total time cost) that is expected to arrive at the destination G and that the battery 31 remains when the destination G is reached. They are the remaining amount of power that is planned (remaining power cost) and the number of times that the charging station that is scheduled to be used to arrive at the destination G (the number of times of use) is used.
Costs may be calculated for items other than the above three items.

  The comparison unit 21 performs comparison based on the costs of the reference route B and the charging route C calculated by the cost calculation unit 20. Specifically, the comparison unit 21 determines which route is superior for each item based on the cost for each item.

  The navigation device 10 in the present embodiment has the configuration as described above. Next, a specific operation of the navigation device 10 until the searched route is displayed will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the route search unit 19 searches for a normal route (step 101). As described above, this normal route uses the map information in the data storage unit 13 to calculate the shortest route connecting the current position of the vehicle acquired by the GPS receiving unit 11 to the set destination. Explore. Specifically, the link information of the road information included in the map information and the node information are used to calculate the route calculation cost using the Dijkstra method or a method equivalent thereto, and the link connection that reduces the calculated route calculation cost To find the shortest path. If the vehicle on which the navigation device 10 is mounted is a gasoline vehicle or the like, this normal route is called a recommended route or the like and corresponds to the most efficient route.

  Next, the route search unit 19 creates a reference route (step 102). The reference route uses the search result of the normal route searched in step 101, and is stored in the data storage unit 13 and information on the remaining power of the battery 31 acquired from the remaining power sensor 33 by the vehicle information acquisition unit 17. This is a route created using charging station information and contactless charging road information.

  The reference route creation process performed in step 102 will be specifically described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the route search part 19 acquires the information regarding the remaining power of the battery 31 from the vehicle information acquisition part 17 (step 201). By acquiring information about this remaining power, the route search unit 19 can know how far the electric vehicle 30 can travel at the present time.

  Then, the route search unit 19 determines whether or not it is possible to travel on the normal route and reach the destination with the remaining power amount of the battery (step 202). Note that the travel distance (km) from the current position to the destination is known by searching for the normal route, and the remaining power information (Kw) of the electromagnetic vehicle 30 is also known, so the fuel consumption (km / Kw) If the information is known, it can be easily known whether or not the destination can be reached.

  Regarding the fuel consumption information of the electric vehicle 30, it is preferable to use the fuel consumption information calculated by the navigation device 10 or the electric vehicle 30 according to the past traveling state, but the catalog value of the electric vehicle 30 is set in the navigation device 10 in advance. It doesn't matter.

  If the destination can be reached (YES in step 202), the route search unit 19 then determines whether or not there is a non-contact charging road on the normal route (step 203). This determination is performed using the non-contact charging road information in the data storage unit 13. Specifically, the route search unit 19 can determine whether there is a link of a non-contact charging road among the links constituting the normal route.

  If it is determined in step 203 that there is a non-contact charging road (YES in step 203), the route search unit 19 displays information on the amount of power that can be charged by traveling on the corresponding non-contact charging road. It is acquired from the information and the remaining power amount of the battery 31 is updated (step 204).

  If it is determined in step 203 that there is no contactless charging road (NO in step 203), or if the remaining power amount is updated in step 204, the cost calculation unit 20 then travels along the reference route to the destination. The total time required to arrive at is calculated (step 205). Since the planned travel distance is known, the total time cost can be calculated if the vehicle speed is known. As the vehicle speed information, the information on the speed limit of the link information can be used.

  If it is determined in step 202 that arrival at the destination is impossible (NO in step 202), the route search unit 19 determines whether or not there is a non-contact charging road that can be reached on the normal route ( Step 206). This determination is performed using the non-contact charging road information in the data storage unit 13.

  If it is determined that there is a non-contact charging road that can be reached in step 206 (YES in step 206), the route search unit 19 is based on information on the amount of power that can be charged by passing through the corresponding non-contact charging road. Then, the remaining power amount is updated (step 207). Then, the route search unit 19 returns to step 202 again, and determines whether or not the destination can be reached with the remaining power amount.

  If it is determined in step 206 that there is no contactless charging road (NO in step 206), the electric vehicle 30 cannot reach the destination with the remaining power amount of the battery 31. Therefore, the route search unit 19 next determines whether or not there is a charging station that can be reached on the normal route (step 208). This determination is made using the charging station information in the data storage unit 13.

  If it is determined in step 208 that there is a charging station that can be reached (YES in step 208), the route search unit 19 creates a reference route that uses the charging station as a route in the normal route (step 209).

Then, the route search unit 19 updates the remaining power as replenishing power at the corresponding charging station (step 210).
In addition, the replenishment of the electric power performed by the charging stand may be such that the battery 31 is fully charged, or only the electric power necessary to arrive at the destination may be charged.

Then, the remaining power is updated in step 210, and the route search unit 19 returns to step 202 again to determine whether or not the destination can be reached with the remaining power.
In addition, when such processing via the charging station is performed, in the calculation process of the total time performed in step 205, not only the traveling time but also the charging time at the charging station is required. The charging time at the charging station can be calculated by using the charging speed (Kw / h) information and the remaining power (Kw) information of the charging equipment included in the charging station information.

  If it is determined in step 208 that there is no charging station that can be reached (NO in step 208), the electric vehicle 30 cannot reach even when traveling on the normal route toward the destination. Therefore, the route search unit 19 determines whether or not there is a charging station that can reach the vicinity of the normal route (step 211). It should be noted that how far the charging station is searched from the normal route may be set in advance. In addition to the charging station, it may be determined whether there is a non-contact charging road that can reach the vicinity.

At this time, if there is no charging station that can reach the vicinity of the normal route (NO in step 211), even if the vehicle travels along the normal route, the electric vehicle 30 cannot reach the destination in the remaining power status. Since this is not possible, the navigation device 10 displays a warning via the display unit 15 to call attention to the user (step 212), and ends this process.
Note that the navigation device 10 may display only other routes as described later, instead of displaying warnings.

  If there is a charging station that can reach the vicinity of the normal route (YES in step 211), the route search unit 19 proceeds to step 209 and performs a route search using the charging station as a waypoint to create a reference route. Then, the route search unit 19 updates the remaining power (step 210), returns to step 202 again, and determines whether or not the destination can be reached with the remaining power amount.

Through the processing as described above, the route search unit 19 creates a reference route based on the normal route. Since the reference route created in this way is created based on the normal route, it is the shortest route and a route that can reach the destination in consideration of the remaining power amount of the electric vehicle 30. ing.
Note that the reference route created when YES is determined at step 202 and NO is determined at step 203 is exactly the same as the normal route. Further, the reference route created by determining YES in step 203 is the same route as the normal route, but the remaining power increases because of the non-contact charging road.

Returning to the flowchart of FIG.
When the processing from step 201 to step 212 is performed in step 102, the route search unit 19 searches for a charging route (step 103). The charging route is a route searched using the map information, the remaining power amount information from the remaining power sensor 33, the non-contact charging road information, and the charging station, and travels on the non-contact charging road as much as possible. However, the route was searched to go to the destination.
The charging route creation processing performed in step 103 will be specifically described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the route search unit 19 acquires information on the remaining power of the battery 31 from the vehicle information acquisition unit 17 (step 301). Next, the route search unit 19 calculates the distance that the electric vehicle 30 can travel based on the remaining power (step 302).

  Next, the route search unit 19 searches for a plurality of routes from the current position of the electric vehicle 30 to the set destination (step 303). It is preferable to search all routes to the destination by a search method such as a full search method. At this time, the route search unit 19 sets the ease of passing the link according to the road attributes such as the road type and the width. However, the route search unit 19 makes the setting easy to pass through the non-contact charging road or allows the user to pass through the non-contact charging road. You may be able to set and change the ease.

  Next, if there is a non-contact charging road within the reachable distance on each route based on the travelable distance calculated in step 302, the route search unit 19 has a remaining power at a reachable position. The amount is updated according to the amount of power that can be charged (step 304). Specifically, the route search unit 19 obtains a node that can be reached on each route, and determines whether or not there is contactless charging road information in a link that forms a route to the corresponding node. .

  Next, the route search unit 19 also considers the remaining power updated in step 304 and determines whether there is a route for the electric vehicle 30 to arrive at the destination (step 305).

  If there is no route arriving at the destination (NO in step 305), the process returns to step 303 to further search for a route. In this case, since all the routes have already been searched first, the cost for the search is adjusted (for example, the cost of the non-contact charging road is further reduced so that the non-contact charging road is searched more). The search is made again, or the route that can be reached using the charging station information and the route that passes through the charging station that exists in the vicinity of the route is searched again.

  If there is a route arriving at the destination (YES in step 305), the route that is most likely to travel is selected from each route (step 306). Specifically, items such as the presence / absence of non-contact charging facilities and the amount of electric power to be charged are set, and an evaluation score is set for each item, and the route search unit 19 adds an evaluation score for each route. Then, the total score of each route is calculated. And the route search part 19 selects a route with many total points as a charge route.

  As described above, when searching for a charging route, the route search unit 19 does not simply search for a route to the destination by the shortest route search, but searches for a plurality of routes and performs evaluation for each route. A route traveling on the contact charging road is easily selected as the charging route.

  In the present embodiment, the charging route searched by the route searching unit 19 does not include charging station information, but the route searching unit 19 may search including charging information station information. In particular, when traveling in areas other than urban areas, it is expected that there will be few roads equipped with non-contact charging facilities. In such a case, the route search unit 19 uses a charging station. It is better to search for a charging route.

As another example of the charging route, the charging route may be searched for by the following method. First, in the charging route, since the non-contact charging road is to be included in the route as much as possible, the route search unit 19 reduces the cost of the non-contact charging road at the time of the search, and the non-contact charging road is selected over the normal road. Keep it easy. And remaining power information is acquired and all the links included in the range which the electric vehicle 30 can reach by remaining power are acquired.
Next, a route search by the Dijkstra method is performed. At this time, if the link acquired during the search by the Dijkstra method is a link in a range that can be reached with the remaining power acquired earlier and is a non-contact charging road, the power that can be obtained by traveling on this link The remaining power is updated based on the above. If the link acquired during the search by Dijkstra method is a link outside the reachable range with the remaining power acquired earlier, if this link is a contactless charging road, the remaining output is updated (in this case increased) and contactless If it is not a charging road, the remaining power is updated (in this case reduced). At this time, if the remaining power becomes 0 or less, the link is not allowed to pass and another route is searched according to the Dijkstra method. Such a method is repeated until the destination is reached, and the charging route is searched.
In addition, in such a charging route, when there is no route that can reach the destination, the route search including the charging station may be performed using the charging station information.
Also, if you use a non-contact charging road with a very long trip, it may be preferable to use a charging station. For example, link information can be presented so that a route using such a charging station can be presented. The route search may be performed by including information on the presence / absence of the charging station in the attribute of.

Returning to the flowchart of FIG.
In step 103, when the charging route search processing from step 301 to step 306 is performed, the cost calculation unit 20 next calculates a path cost for each of the reference route and the charging route (step 104).
A specific example of the route cost calculation processing performed in step 104 will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the cost calculation unit 20 calculates the total time of the reference route and the total time of the charging route (step 401). The total time is the time it takes to depart from the current position and arrive at the destination, and includes not only the actual driving time but also the charging time at the charging station when going through the charging station. .
Note that the total time of the reference route is the same as the total time calculated in step 205, and the total time of the charging route can be easily calculated based on the planned travel distance and speed limit information. Further, if a search using charging station information is also performed in the charging route, the total time of the charging route can be calculated from the planned travel distance, speed limit information, and the charging time at the charging station.

  Next, the cost calculation unit 20 calculates the remaining power amount of the reference route and the remaining power amount of the charging route (step 402). The remaining power amount is the power remaining in the battery 31 of the electric vehicle 30 when it arrives at the destination.

  Next, the cost calculation unit 20 calculates the charging station usage count for the reference route and the charging station usage count for the charging route (step 403). The number of times the charging station is used is the number of times that the charging station is used via the charging station. Note that the number of times the charging station is used for the reference route can be calculated based on the result of the processing for generating the reference route in step 102. In addition, the charging station usage count of the charging route is zero because the charging station information is not used in the charging route search in step 103 of the present embodiment, but when the charging station information is also used, The number of times the charging station is used will be calculated.

Next, the cost calculation unit 20 assigns the calculated cost value for each item to each of the reference route and the charging route (step 404).
Specifically, in the case of the total time calculated in step 401, a route with a large total time is regarded as a route with a high cost (inferior), a cost value 1 is set for a route with a large total time, and a route with a short total time. Is assigned a cost value of 0.
Further, in the case of the remaining power calculated in step 402, a route with less remaining power is regarded as a route with higher (inferior) cost, a cost value 1 is set for a route with less remaining power, and a cost value is set for a route with more remaining power. 0 is given.
Further, in the case of the charging station usage count calculated in step 402, a route with a high usage count is regarded as a route with a high cost (inferior), and a cost value of 1 is assigned to a route with a high usage count and a route with a low usage count. A cost value of 0 is assigned.
Such processing is performed by the cost calculation unit 20, and the navigation device 10 ends the route cost calculation processing.

  Note that the cost value does not necessarily have to be 1 and 0, and the navigation device 10 may change the cost value for each item. Further, the navigation device 10 may allow the user to set and change the cost value via the input unit 12. The navigation device 10 can search for a route that more reflects the user's purpose by allowing the user to set and change the cost value.

Returning to the flowchart of FIG.
When the processing from step 401 to step 404 is performed in step 104, the navigation device 10 then compares the cost of the charging route with the cost of the reference route in the comparison unit 21 (step 105).

  Specifically, the result of step 404 is used to determine the number of superiority or inferiority according to the cost value assigned to each item, and it is determined whether or not the cost of the charging route is low for all three items. If it is determined that the cost of the charging route is low for all three items (YES in step 105), the process proceeds to step 106.

  Here, if the cost of the charging route is low in all three items, it is possible to arrive at the destination early, the amount of remaining power when arriving at the destination is large, and the number of times the charging stand is used is small. If so, the charging route is clearly better than the reference route. Therefore, the possibility that the user selects the reference route is extremely low.

  Therefore, if the user guides the reference route created in step 102 to such a case, the user may be confused. Therefore, the navigation device 10 recommends the charging route without guiding the reference route. Display on the display unit 15 is performed (step 106).

FIG. 7 shows a specific display example displayed on the display unit 15. On the display screen of the display unit 15, a charging route that is a recommended route C1 from the current location S to the destination G is displayed together with an actual route.
In the actual navigation device 10, in addition to the recommended route, a route that prioritizes traveling on a priority road or a route that prioritizes traveling on a general road may be searched and guided to the user. Therefore, in such a case, the navigation device 10 may display not only the recommended route but also the toll road priority route and the general road priority route as shown in FIG. In FIG. 7, the display of a specific route with priority on toll roads and a specific route with priority on general roads is omitted.

If it is not determined that the cost of the charging route is low for all three items (NO in step 105), the comparison unit 21 next determines whether the cost of the reference route is low for all three items (step 107).
In step 107, if it is not determined that the cost of the reference route is low in all three items (NO in step 107), the superiority and inferiority are divided between the reference route and the charging route.

  Therefore, in such a case, the navigation device 10 displays the reference route on the display unit 15 and also displays the charge route in order to guide the user that there is a charging route in addition to the reference route. (Step 108).

  FIG. 8 shows a specific display example displayed on the display unit 15. On the display screen of the display unit 15, the charging route C <b> 2 is displayed together with the actual route along with the reference route that is the recommended route B <b> 1 from the current location S to the destination G. Also in FIG. 8, the display of specific routes with priority on toll roads and specific routes with priority on general roads is omitted.

  At this time, since the calculated items in the reference route B1 and the charging route C2 are superior or inferior, the navigation device 10 can display the calculation result for each item on the screen of FIG. 8 so that the user can understand each item. You may do it.

Alternatively, the navigation apparatus 10 may display a list display command key on the screen of FIG. 8 and switch to the list display as shown in FIG. 9 when the user presses the list display command key. Good. The list shown in FIG. 9 displays the total time, the remaining power amount, the remaining travel distance, and the number of times the charging station is used for the recommended route B1 (reference route) and the route of the charging route C2. Yes. Although the display is omitted in FIG. 9, the actual navigation device 10 may display information such as a route distance, a high-speed / toll road distance, a fee to be paid, and an estimated arrival time. Therefore, the navigation apparatus 10 may display such information together with a list as shown in FIG.
Here, the total time is displayed using the result of step 401. The remaining power amount is displayed using the result of step 402. The remaining travel distance is a distance that the electric vehicle 30 can travel based on the remaining power amount, and is displayed based on the remaining power amount and the fuel efficiency information of the electric vehicle 30. The charging station usage count is displayed using the result of step 403.

  By displaying such a list, the user can easily understand the difference between the recommended route B1 (reference route) and the charging route C2, and the user can more easily select a route. Note that the navigation apparatus 10 may display information on toll road priority or general road priority routes even in the display of a list as shown in FIG.

  As described above, according to the navigation device 10 of the present embodiment, a route search using non-contact charging road information that has not been used in the route search of the conventional navigation device can be performed. In addition, the navigation device 10 displays a reference route that is created based on a normal route consisting of the shortest route searched using map information, and a charging route that is searched to travel as much as possible on a non-contact charging road. The user can select a favorite route according to the purpose.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Navigation apparatus 11 GPS receiving part 12 Input part 13 Data storage part 15 Display part 17 Vehicle information acquisition part 18 Control part 19 Path | route search part 20 Cost calculation part 21 Comparison part 30 Electric vehicle 31 Battery 32 Motor 33 Residual power sensor 34 Vehicle speed sensor 35 Contact charging device 36 Non-contact charging device

Claims (5)

A remaining power acquisition means for acquiring remaining power information of the battery for the electric vehicle;
Storage means for storing map information, charging station information, and contactless charging road information;
Route search means for searching for a route to a set destination using the information stored in the storage means;
Display means for displaying the route searched by the route search means,
The route search means includes
Search for a normal route based on the map information;
Based on the searched normal route, searching for a reference route using the remaining power information, the charging station information, and the contactless charging road information,
Based on the map information, the remaining power information, and the contactless charging road information, searching for a charging route that prioritizes traveling on the contactless charging road,
The navigation device, wherein the display means displays the reference route and the charging route. Cost calculating means for calculating the cost of the reference route and the cost of the charging route;
The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a comparison unit that compares the cost of the reference route and the cost of the charging route calculated by the cost calculation unit. The cost calculated by the cost calculation means is
The cost of time required to arrive at the destination; and
The navigation device according to claim 2, further comprising a cost of a remaining power amount remaining in the battery for the electric vehicle when arriving at the destination. The charging station information is also used for searching the charging route by the route searching means,
The cost calculated by the cost calculating means also includes the cost of the number of times the charging station is used to arrive at the destination,
Cost selection means for selecting a cost for comparison by the comparison means from the cost of the time calculated by the cost calculation means, the cost of the remaining power amount, and the cost of the use of the charging station is provided. The navigation device according to claim 3. The navigation apparatus according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the cost calculated by the cost calculating means is displayed by the display means.

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