JP3824306B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a navigation apparatus used for guiding a moving body such as a person or a vehicle.
[0002]
[Prior art]
By displaying at least information about the current location of the user on the screen of the display device, as a navigation device used for route guidance of a moving body such as a person or a vehicle, for example, a symbol ( The "information on the current location"), information that displays information such as travel route, destination, direction, scale, etc. has been put into practical use, and the present location is arranged in the approximate center of the display device as a display mode. There are a current center display mode, a front wide display mode that displays the front of the traveling direction widely, and in each mode, a north-up display mode that displays with the direction “north” up, and a traveling direction It is known to display in combination with a heading-up display mode or the like to be displayed (see, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-20776).
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the case of a configuration in which the current location or travel route is displayed on a map having a place name, road name, river name, railway line name, main building name, etc., if the display device is about 5 inches to 7 inches, a display area, That is, there is a tendency that the ratio of information to the screen becomes excessive, and there is room for improvement in improving the visibility.
[0004]
In addition, the front wide display mode is a convenient display mode in which it is easy to check the information about the area to be passed and the driving route from now on. The attention-raising power when approaching the waypoint was weak, and there was room for improvement in improving convenience.
[0005]
The present invention has been conceived by paying attention to such a problem, and an object thereof is to provide a navigation device with improved visibility and convenience.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problem, the navigation device according to the present invention, as claimed in claim 1, includes a current location display icon indicating a current location of a user, a usage road image indicating a usage road on which the user is moving, A selected road image that is connected to a usage road and is located in front of the current location in the direction of travel, and a waypoint that is set by the user and is located in front of the current location in the direction of travel. A waypoint display icon indicating the same is displayed on the same screen . The waypoint display icon indicates that the current location moves in a predetermined direction on the screen as the approach to the waypoint, and the current location and the waypoint are displayed. When the distance is within a certain distance, it is fixedly displayed at a predetermined location on the screen, and then the current location is displayed. Wherein the shown icon moves the usage road image on toward the Parkway point icon.
[0011]
In particular, as described in claim 2 according to claim 1, when the current position has passed the Parkway point, a predetermined time or until a certain distance has elapsed, the current position display icon on the display at the Parkway point passes It is characterized by displaying.
[0012]
According to the invention described in claim 1 to claim 2 , since the display mode when approaching the waypoint is different from the normal display mode, the alerting power when approaching the waypoint becomes stronger, A navigation device with improved visibility and convenience can be provided.
[0013]
In particular, as described in claim 3 in claim 1, when the current location deviates from the use road, a trajectory image indicating the history of the current location is displayed behind the current location display icon. To do.
[0014]
In particular, as described in claim 4 in claim 3 , the display mode of the screen when the current location deviates from the usage road is different from that in which the user is moving on the usage road. Features.
[0015]
According to the invention described in claim 3 to claim 4 , the display mode of the screen is greatly different depending on whether or not the vehicle is on the regular route, and the alerting power when approaching the regular route becomes strong and visually recognized. It is possible to provide a navigation device with improved performance and convenience.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention will be described based on the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.
[0017]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention. An antenna 1 that receives a signal from a GPS positioning satellite, and the signal is captured at a certain period, and frequency-modulated and demodulated. By calculating and outputting position data such as latitude, longitude, traveling direction (also referred to as azimuth and angle), altitude, etc. of the receiving position, and by performing output processing by inputting an output signal from the receiving unit 2 A CD-ROM that stores map data such as maps, topographic maps, roads, rivers, and place names in accordance with the position data of the control apparatus 3 for obtaining position data relating to the current location of the moving body that is the user A reading device 5 that reads display data based on the map data around the current location from a storage medium 4 such as a keyboard, and a keyboard for inputting various settings to the control device 3 by a user operation By using the display device based on the position data of the control device 3 and the input device 6 such as a switch or a switch, a display composed of an LCD for displaying information such as the current location, destination, travel route, direction, reduced scale, etc. The apparatus 7 is comprised. Reference numeral 8 denotes a driver circuit positioned between the control device 3 for driving the display device 7 and the display device 7.
[0018]
In the so-called GPS type navigation device shown in this embodiment, the antenna 1, the receiving unit 2, and the control device 3 serve as position detecting means for detecting the situation such as the current location of the user. Or, if it is a so-called hybrid type navigation device that is a combination of the GPS type and the GPS type, various sensors such as a speed sensor and a direction sensor, and an arithmetic device such as a microcomputer for performing calculation serve as position detection means. As the arithmetic device, the CPU 3a of the control device 3 can also be used.
[0019]
The control device 3 is composed of a known microcomputer (microcomputer) including a CPU 3a, a ROM 3b, a RAM 3c, etc., and the CPU 3a performs predetermined arithmetic processing based on a program in which various data stored in the RAM 3c are stored in the ROM 3b in advance. Thus, the position data is obtained.
[0020]
The storage medium 4 takes in the map data (or the display data) stored in a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM from an external device such as a personal computer, or from a remote server via a communication line. In the configuration in which the map data (or the display data) is downloaded and stored in a storage device (portable semiconductor device called flash memory, memory stick, memory IC, etc.), the storage device is applicable. The CPU 3a of the control device 3 takes charge of the role of the reading device 5, and the storage medium 4 and the reading device 5, or an alternative equivalent thereto, are displayed on the display device 7 and serve as a basis for the information described later. It becomes display data creation means for creating display data.
[0021]
Next, specific display on the display device 7 will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0022]
The display device 7 has a screen X that is a rectangular display area that is long in the horizontal direction, and displays various types of information on the screen X. Examples of the information include data extracted from the display data, It is configured by combining data extracted from the various data stored in the RAM 3c. For example, the current location display icon a having a substantially arrow shape indicating the current location of the user, and a thick line shape indicating the usage road on which the user is moving Use road image b, a thin line-shaped selection road image c indicating a selection road that is connected to the use road and is located in front of the current location in the moving direction, and is set by the user and located in front of the current location in the moving direction. A circular way point display icon d indicating an intersection of the use road and the selected road is provided.
[0023]
The waypoints are used as landmarks such as destinations and checkpoints. The traveling direction includes not only the front direction during actual movement but also the direction that the user faces when not moving.
[0024]
FIG. 2 shows a display example in a normal state, where the current position display icon a is slightly lower than the center Y of the screen X, for example, at a position below the vertical center of the screen X, for example, the screen X Is positioned at one third of the upper end in the vertical direction from the lower end of the screen and the front in the traveling direction is displayed above the current location display icon a, and at least until the waypoint display icon d is displayed on the screen X Even if the current location changes, the current location display icon a is displayed in the so-called front wide display mode and the heading-up display mode in which the position and direction on the screen X remain unchanged and are displayed. In FIG. 2, the current location display icon a is displayed so as to be located at a substantially middle position on the left and right of the screen X. However, depending on the relationship with other display items to be described later, the current location display icon a is displayed shifted in either the left or right direction. It does not matter.
[0025]
The used road image b is displayed over substantially the entire screen X, and the current location display icon a is displayed on the used road image b. The road selected as the planned travel route from the departure point to the destination, which the user has searched and set in advance using the route guidance function or the like.
[0026]
The selected road image c is displayed narrower than the use road image b so as to have a display shape different from that of the use road image b, and is within a certain range displayed on the screen X ahead of the current direction of travel. Is not displayed on the screen X, and is not displayed on the screen X even if it exists behind the current location in the traveling direction.
[0027]
By the way, in this kind of navigation device, by displaying except the unnecessary route for guidance at a predetermined point of the route, the visibility of the guidance display is improved, and the prior literature that can easily recognize the course at the guidance point, There exists Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2001-255159.
[0028]
The present embodiment of the present invention and the prior document are common in that display of roads other than the selected road (the road of the prior document) connected to the use road (the guide road of the prior document) is limited. However, the latter is merely a display restriction, while the former has a display shape that is different between the use road and the selected road in addition to the display restriction. It is even more useful.
[0029]
The waypoint display icon d is not displayed on the screen X when it does not exist within a certain range displayed on the screen X ahead of the current location in the traveling direction, and the screen is displayed even if it exists behind the current location in the traveling direction. X is not displayed. Further, the information is not essential, and it is possible to select whether to display or not to display at all.
[0030]
In addition to the above information, the screen X includes, for example, satellite reception status 71, traveling direction (compass) 72, traveling guidance 73, place name 74 of current location, distance scale (scale) 75, remaining distance to the next waypoint. Other display items such as 76 are displayed simultaneously or selectively.
[0031]
In such a display mode, the current location display icon a is displayed in the same place without changing its position or direction in accordance with the change of the current location, so that the current location display icon a on the screen X can be easily recognized. Therefore, the visibility can be improved, and by comparing the actual surrounding scenery with the screen X, the arrival point of the present location in the near future can be easily estimated.
[0032]
FIG. 3 shows a case where the current location is approaching the waypoint. When the distance between the current location and the waypoint can be displayed on the screen X according to the scale 75, the current location display icon a and the way are displayed. A point display icon d is displayed (FIG. 3A).
[0033]
The waypoint display icon d indicates that the current location moves toward a predetermined location on the screen X as the approach to the waypoint and stays at the predetermined location, and then the current location display icon a moves toward the waypoint display icon d. When moving on the image b and the distance between the current location and the waypoint is within a certain distance, for example, within 300 meters, the waypoint display icon d is displayed at a predetermined location on the screen X, for example, the center Y Alternatively, it is fixedly displayed near the center Y (FIG. 3B), and the current location display icon a is displayed gradually approaching the waypoint display icon d (FIG. 3C).
[0034]
Then, when the current location passes the waypoint, FIG. 3C shows a display when the waypoint passes until a certain time (for example, 5 seconds) or a certain distance (for example, 30 meters) elapses. The current position display icon a is displayed on the display, and during this time, the display (FIG. 3D) combining the heading-up display mode with the front wide display mode which is the display in the normal state is canceled. Thereby, the user can surely confirm that the user has passed the waypoint.
[0035]
Then, after the predetermined time or the predetermined distance has elapsed, the display returns to the normal display mode shown in FIG. 3A in which the display is performed in the front wide display mode and the heading up display mode.
[0036]
In such a display mode, the alerting power when approaching the waypoint is increased, so that it is possible to recognize the preparation for operation at the waypoint in advance with sufficient margins, improving convenience. In addition, it is possible to easily confirm the current location.
[0037]
FIG. 4 shows a display example of an off-route state when the current location deviates from the use road, and during this time, a front wide display that is a display mode in which the user is moving on the use road (normal state) The display mode in which the heading-up display mode is combined with the mode is canceled, and the display mode is different from the normal display mode, for example, the north-up display mode (FIG. 4A). In addition, the code | symbol e in the figure is the dot-like locus | trajectory image which shows the history of the said present location, ie, the past passing point which has moved.
[0038]
When the current location approaches the usage road in this off-route state, a current location display icon a and a usage road image b are displayed on the screen X. At this time, the direction of the next waypoint with respect to the current location is indicated by a travel guide 73. This is displayed (FIG. 4B). In this example, the progress guide 73 indicates that the next waypoint exists in the direction to turn left when the current location display icon a reaches the use road image b.
[0039]
In such a display mode, the display mode of the screen X varies greatly depending on whether or not the vehicle is on the regular route, and the alerting power when approaching the regular route is enhanced, improving convenience, and the situation of the current location Can be easily confirmed. In addition, the user can grasp in advance the direction to be taken when he / she gets on the regular route, and he / she does not get lost.
[0040]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in FIG. 4, the selected road image c and the waypoint display icon d are not necessarily displayed, and are displayed. It may be possible to select whether or not to display or not to display at all.
[0041]
In addition, the case where the display is performed by combining the front wide display mode with the heading up display mode has been described. However, the north wide display mode in which true north is displayed on the screen X in the front wide display mode or the waypoint is displayed on the screen. The same can be applied to the case where the display is performed by combining the target up display displayed on X.
[0042]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, a navigation device with improved visibility and convenience can be provided.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the display described above.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the display described above.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the display described above.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Antenna (position detection means)
2 Receiving unit (position detection means)
3 Control device (position detection means)
4 Storage media (display data creation means)
5 Reading device (display data creation means)
6 Input device 7 Display device a Present location display icon b Use road image c Selected road image d Waypoint display icon e Trajectory image X Screen Y Center

Claims (4)

A current location icon showing the user ’s current location,
A user road image showing a user road on which the user is moving; and
A selected road image indicating a selected road connected to the use road and positioned in front of the current direction of travel by a display shape different from the use road image;
A waypoint display icon indicating a waypoint set by the user and positioned in front of the current location in the traveling direction, and displayed on the same screen ;
The waypoint display icon is displayed when the current location moves in a predetermined direction on the screen as the waypoint approaches and the distance between the current location and the waypoint is within a certain distance. Fixedly displayed in place,
Thereafter, the present location display icon moves on the use road image toward the waypoint display icon . When the current location passes the waypoint,
Predetermined time, or a navigation device according to claim 1, characterized in that displaying a predetermined distance until the elapsed, the current position display icon on the display at the Parkway point passes. If the current location is off the road,
The navigation apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a trajectory image indicating the history of the current location is displayed behind the current location display icon. The display mode of the screen when the current location is off the usage road is:
The navigation device according to claim 3 , wherein the user is different from the user moving on the use road.

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