JP5026237B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technology for supporting a lane change in a navigation device mounted on an automobile.

As a technology to support lane change in a navigation device installed in an automobile, when a navigation device that provides route guidance to a destination approaches a branch point where a traffic direction classification for each lane is set in front In addition, a technique for guiding a lane to travel in order to pass the branch point in a direction along a route is known (for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 07-129889 A

  If a traffic segment according to the direction of travel is set before the branch point and you must enter the branch point in a specific lane to pass the branch point in the direction along the route, the direction at the branch point When there is a long traffic jam in the lane because there are many vehicles heading to the lane, it may not be possible to change the lane to the specific lane after approaching a section in which the traffic classification according to the traveling direction of the lane is set. Therefore, in such a case, even if the lane is guided when approaching the branch point by the technique of Patent Document 1, the user cannot proceed to the lane, and as a result, travels along the route. Can no longer do.

  Then, this invention makes it a subject to assist a user's lane change so that it can drive | work along the set route more reliably.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a navigation device mounted on an automobile, a current position calculation means for calculating a current position, a route to a destination is set as a guidance route, and the guidance route is set. It comprises route guidance means for guiding and lane change support means, and in the lane change support means, includes information on the traffic classification according to the traveling direction set in each lane constituting the road at a predetermined opportunity Based on the road map data, the travel direction is a branch within a predetermined distance from the current position on the guide route to the travel direction side, and the travel direction can pass the branch only outside the guide route in the section immediately before the branch A branch where there is a lane for which another traffic classification is set is searched as a travel lane restriction branch, and when the travel lane restriction branch exists, the current position of the existing travel lane restriction branch The distance from the current position to the nearest travel lane restriction branch and the section immediately before the travel lane restriction branch nearest to the current position in order to pass the travel lane restriction branch nearest to the current position along the guidance route. A message for guiding a lane to be traveled is output.

  According to such a navigation device, when there is a branch in a predetermined distance where a lane that cannot travel according to the guidance route exists within a predetermined distance, the user grasps the distance between the lane and the branch in advance, It becomes possible to determine whether or not to change lanes when traveling according to the guidance route.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a navigation device mounted on an automobile, a current position calculating means for calculating a current position, and a route to a destination is searched and set as a guide route. A route guidance means for guiding a route, a lane recognition means for identifying a running lane, and a lane change support means are configured, and the lane recognition means identifies the lane change support means at a predetermined opportunity. Estimate the lane change destination lane of the lane change intended by the user based on the running lane, and the road map data including information on the traffic classification by the traveling direction set in each lane constituting the road Based on the current position on the guidance route, a branch within a predetermined distance from the current position to the traveling direction side, and the branch passes only to the estimated lane change destination lane in the section immediately before the branch only outside the guidance route. A branch in which a traffic classification by traveling direction can be set is searched as a travel lane restriction branch, and when the travel lane restriction branch exists, the travel lane closest to the current position of the existing travel lane restriction branches. The distance from the current position to the restricted branch and the lane that should be traveled in the section immediately before the restricted lane closest to the current position in order to pass the restricted lane closest to the current position along the guidance route The message which guides is output.

  According to such a navigation device, when a branch that becomes a lane in which the lane of the lane change destination estimated in the immediately preceding section cannot travel according to the guidance route exists within a predetermined distance, the user preliminarily selects the lane and the branch. It is possible to determine the right or wrong of the lane change when traveling according to the guidance route.

  Here, the navigation device described above is preferably configured to output a message indicating that there is no problem even if the lane change is performed in the lane change support means when the travel lane restriction branch does not exist. .

  By doing in this way, when the lane which must pass in order to advance along a guidance route does not exist within a predetermined distance, a user can change a lane in comfort.

Here, in the above navigation device, the predetermined trigger may be, for example, generation of a predetermined operation input by the user or occurrence of detection of traffic jam at the current position point.
Further, the lane change frequency calculating means for calculating the frequency of the lane change performed by the automobile equipped with the navigation device in the above navigation device, and the frequency that the lane change frequency calculating means calculates the predetermined distance is high. It is also preferable to provide adjusting means for adjusting so as to become smaller.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to assist the user in changing the lane so that the vehicle can travel along the set route.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 shows a configuration of an in-vehicle system according to the present embodiment.
The in-vehicle system is a system mounted on an automobile, and as shown in the figure, a navigation device 1, a camera 2 for photographing the front of the vehicle, a speaker 3, an operation unit 4, a display device 5, and a vehicle state sensor 6 are shown. And a GPS receiver 7 and a VICS receiver 8 that receives traffic information such as traffic jam information. Here, the vehicle state sensor 6 is various sensors that detect various states of the vehicle, such as an azimuth sensor such as an angular acceleration sensor or a geomagnetic sensor, or a vehicle speed sensor such as a vehicle speed pulse sensor.

  The navigation device 1 is photographed by the current state calculation unit 11, the route search unit 12, the map data storage unit 13, which is a storage device such as a DVD drive or HDD that stores map data representing a map, the memory 14, and the camera 2. An image recognition processing unit 15 that performs various image recognition processes such as lane recognition and other vehicle recognition on an image, a voice generation unit 16 that generates synthesized speech and outputs it from the speaker 3, a control unit 17, a guidance image generation unit 18, an operation And a GUI control unit 19 that controls input / output with the user using the unit 4 and the display device 5.

  However, the above navigation apparatus 1 may be a computer having a peripheral device such as a microprocessor, a memory, and other graphic processor or geometric processor in hardware. In this case, the navigation described above Each part of the apparatus may be realized as a process realized by a microprocessor executing a program prepared in advance. In this case, such a program may be provided to the navigation apparatus 1 via a recording medium or an appropriate communication path.

Next, FIG. 2 shows the contents of the map data stored in the map data storage unit 13.
As shown in the figure, the map data includes management data describing the version of the map data, route data in which various information such as route names of each route is registered, and basic map data representing a map.
The basic map data includes a road unit representing a road network and a drawing unit representing drawing objects (such as place names and topographical figures) other than roads included in the map.
Here, the road unit defines a road network as a set of nodes and links connecting the nodes, and the road unit includes node data provided for each node and link data provided for each link. And have. A link is provided for each of the upward and downward directions of the same road section.

  Each node data includes a node number serving as an identifier of the corresponding node, node attributes indicating various attributes of the corresponding node, node coordinates indicating the position of the corresponding node, and node connection information. The link number of the link connected to the corresponding node and the node number of the other node connected to the corresponding node via one link are registered.

  Each link data includes a link number that is an identifier of the corresponding link, a link attribute that represents various attributes of the corresponding link, an end point node number that represents the node numbers of the two nodes that are the end points of the corresponding link, and an end point of the link Link connection information and lane information representing other links connected to each node are registered.

In the lane information, the number of lanes indicating the number of lanes existing on the corresponding link, the presence / absence of the setting of the traffic classification by the traveling direction of each lane, and the progress indicating the contents of the traffic classification classified by the traveling direction are set. Direction-specific traffic classification information is registered.
Now, in such a configuration, the current state calculation unit 11 of the navigation device 1 repeatedly performs the following processing.
That is, the current state calculation unit 11 reads from the map data storage unit 13 the temporary current position and the temporary current traveling direction that are the current position and the traveling direction estimated from the outputs of the vehicle state sensor 6 and the GPS receiver 7. Map matching processing is performed with links around the current position previously determined by the map data, and the position on the link that most closely matches the temporary current position or the temporary current travel direction and the direction of the link are the current position and current travel. Calculate as direction. Then, current position information indicating the calculated current position and the current traveling direction is set in the memory 14.

  The control unit 17 receives a destination setting from the user via the operation unit 4 and the GUI control unit 19, and sets the destination setting in the memory 14. And the route search part 12 is made to search for the guidance route to the destination. The route search unit 12 reads out map data of a necessary geographical range from the map data storage unit 13 and sets a minimum cost route from the current position indicated by the current position information set in the memory 14 to the destination at a minimum distance, A search is performed based on a predetermined cost model such as a time minimum, the searched route is set as a guidance route, and route data of the guidance route is set in the memory 14 as guidance route data.

In addition, when the current position indicated by the current position information set in the memory 14 is near the destination, the control unit 17 determines that the destination has arrived, and determines the destination and the guidance route set in the memory 14. Perform the clearing process.
In addition, the guide image generation unit 18, under the control of the control unit 17, draws a drawing object (such as a place name or a terrain figure) within the map display range indicated by the map data drawing unit and a map indicated by the link data of the road unit of the map data. A map image is generated by drawing a link within the display range. Further, the guide image generating unit 18 stores the current position indicated by the current position information set in the memory 14 on the drawn map image, the guide route indicated by the guide route data set in the memory 14, and the memory 14. A process of drawing a graphic representing the set destination and displaying it as a guide image on the display device 5 via the GUI control unit 19 is repeated.

And the control part 17 performs the lane change assistance process further shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, in this process, it is checked whether or not a guide route is currently set (step 302), and if not set, the process waits for the guide route to be set. On the other hand, if the guidance route is set, it is checked whether or not a lane change confirmation request generated by a predetermined operation of the operation unit 4 by the user has occurred (step 304). Return to.

  On the other hand, if a lane change confirmation request is generated, the current position information, guidance route data, and map data set in the memory 14 are referred to, and the current position on the direction of travel from the current position on the guidance route. In a section within a predetermined distance L (for example, L is 1 km), it is a branch point such as an intersection, and the branch point cannot pass in a direction along the guidance route to a road section immediately before the branch point. It is checked whether or not there is a branch point where there is a lane in which a travel direction-specific passage segment is set (step 306). In addition, the setting situation of the passage classification according to the traveling direction of each lane in each road section can be obtained from the lane information of the link data of the map data.

  If such a branch point does not exist and the search fails (step 308), for example, the fact that there is no problem even if a lane change such as “It is okay to change the lane ahead” is possible. The voice generation unit 16 outputs the voice message shown from the speaker 3 (step 318), and the process returns to step 302.

  On the other hand, if such a branch point exists and the search is successful (step 308), the branch point from the current location among the searched branch points is set as the guide point, and the route from the current position to the branch point is set. The distance D along the guidance route (step 310), the number M of branch points that are closer to the current position than the guidance point on the recommended route (step 312), and the lane of the road section immediately before the guidance point, The lane # (step 314) that can pass through the guidance point in the direction along the guidance route is obtained with reference to the lane information of the link data of the map data.

  Then, the voice generation unit 16 outputs a voice message for guiding the calculated distance D, the number of branch points M, and the lane # from the speaker 3 (step 316), and the process returns to step 302. Here, the voice message output in this step 318 is “the left lane before the third branch, 600 m ahead” (in the case of D = 600 M, M = 2, # = the left lane), “ , Right lane before next branch "(D = 200M, M = 0, # = right lane).

Here, a processing example of such lane change support processing is shown in FIG.
Now, there exists a branch point 401 as shown in FIG. 4a, and a road-specific traffic division dedicated to the direction of travel that branches leftward from the branch point 401 is set in the left lane of the road section before the branch point 401. Take as an example a case in which a traveling direction-specific traffic section that branches in the right direction from the branch point 401 is set in the right lane of the road section before the point 401.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 4 b, the vehicle 420 equipped with the in-vehicle system according to the present embodiment and having a route set on a road that branches leftward at the branch point 401 is set as the guide route 410. If a lane change confirmation request is generated when the distance to the road is at a position where D (where D <predetermined distance L), the right lane before branch point 401 branches according to guidance route 410 Since it is not possible to branch leftward at the point 401, the branching point 401 is set as a guide point, and a voice message “This is Dm, before the next branch, the left lane” is output to the user.

  Next, there is a branch point 501 as shown in FIG. 5 a, and a traveling direction-specific traffic division for traveling in a straight direction is set in the left lane of the road section before the branch point 501, and the branch point 501 is set. For example, assume that the right lane of the road section in front of the road is set with a traveling direction according to the traveling direction of a traveling direction that goes straight on the branch point 501 and a traveling direction that branches the branch point 501 rightward.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 5b, the vehicle-mounted system according to the present embodiment is mounted, and the vehicle 520 in which a route that goes straight through the branch point 501 is set as the guidance route 510 has a distance D to the branch point 501. (However, when a lane change confirmation request is generated when the vehicle is located at a position where D <predetermined distance L), it is possible to go straight on the branch point 501 according to the guidance route 510 in all lanes before the branch point 501. Therefore, the branch point 501 is not set as a guidance point, and a voice message “It is okay to change the lane in the future” is output to the user. However, this example is for a case where there is no other branch point other than the branch point 501 within a predetermined distance L from the vehicle 520 along the guidance route 510.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5 c, when a route to the road that branches rightward at the branch point 501 is set as the guidance route 510 in the vehicle 520, if a lane change confirmation request is generated, the branch point 501 is generated. In the left lane in front of you, you cannot branch to the right at the branch point 501 according to the guidance route 510, so the branch point 501 is set as the guide point, and the voice message "Dm ahead, next lane, right lane" Will be output.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 5d, there is a branch point 601 and a branch point 602 that are arranged in this order as viewed in the traveling direction, and travels straight on the branch point 601 in the left lane of the road section before the branch point 601. A direction-specific traffic section is set, and the direction of travel by the direction of travel and the direction of travel straight on the branch point 601 in the right lane of the road section in front of the branch point 601 and the direction of travel by branching the branch point 601 to the right Is set in the left lane of the road section before the branch point 602, and a traffic section according to the direction of travel dedicated to the left direction from the branch point 602 is set, and the right of the road section before the branch point 602 is set. Take the case where the traffic lane according to the traveling direction dedicated to the traveling direction that branches rightward from the branch point 602 is set in the lane as an example.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 5e, the in-vehicle system according to the present embodiment is installed, and a route is set as a guidance route 610 that goes straight on a branch point 601 and goes to a road that branches leftward at the branch point 602. When a vehicle 620 is located at a position where the distance to the branch point 602 is D (but D <predetermined distance L) before the branch point 601, a lane change confirmation request is generated. Since the branch point 601 can go straight along the guidance route 610 in all lanes before the branch point 601, the branch point 601 is not set as a guide point, and the next right lane cannot pass in the passing direction along the guidance route. A branch point 602 is set as a guide point.

Then, a voice message “Dm ahead, second lane before the second branch, left lane” is output to the user.
The processing example of the lane change support processing has been described above.
As described above, according to the present lane change support process, the lane that must be traveled in order to proceed according to the guidance route in the immediately preceding section of the branch point within the predetermined distance L is a plurality of lanes existing in the immediately preceding section. When only a part of the lanes is included, a message is output to notify the lane # and the number M of branch points before the branch point and the distance D to the branch point. And the distance D to the said branch point can be grasped | ascertained, and it becomes possible to judge the right or wrong of the lane change in driving | running | working according to a guidance route. In addition, if there is no branch point within the predetermined distance L that has a lane that cannot be followed according to the guidance route, a message indicating that there is no problem even if the lane change is output to the user is output. In such a case, the user can change lanes with peace of mind.

The lane change support process described above may be performed as shown in FIG.
That is, in this process, in the state where the guidance route is currently set (step 602), the process waits for a lane change confirmation request to be generated (step 604). The lane of the lane change destination of the lane change to be performed is estimated (step 606). Here, the lane change destination lane is estimated as follows. That is, based on the lane recognition result of the lane recognition processing performed in the image recognition processing unit 15 on the image captured by the camera 2 and the number of lanes indicated by the lane information of the link data of the link where the current position is located, Estimate the driving lane. If the running lane is the leftmost lane, the right lane of the running lane is estimated as the lane change destination lane, and if the running lane is the rightmost lane, the running lane The left lane is estimated as the lane change destination lane. In other cases, the lane change destination lane estimation fails.

  Next, it is checked whether the lane change destination lane has been successfully estimated (step 608), and if it has failed, within a section within a predetermined distance L (for example, L is 1 km) from the current position on the guidance route. In addition, a lane that is a branching point such as an intersection and has a traveling direction-specific passage section that is set in the direction of the route along the guidance route in the road section immediately before the branching point. It is checked whether there is a branch point that exists (step 622).

If such a branch point does not exist and the search fails (step 612), the process proceeds to step 624. If such a branch point exists and the search is successful (step 612), step 614 is performed. Proceed to
On the other hand, if the lane change destination lane has been successfully estimated (step 608), at a branch point such as an intersection within a predetermined distance L (for example, L is 1 km) from the current position on the guidance route. In the road section immediately before the branch point, a passage section for each traveling direction dedicated to the traveling direction that cannot pass the branch point in the direction along the guidance route with respect to the lane change destination lane estimated in step 606 is set. It is checked whether or not a branch point exists (step 610).

If such a branch point does not exist and the search fails (step 612), the process proceeds to step 624. If such a branch point exists and the search is successful (step 612), step 614 is performed. Proceed to
Next, when the process proceeds from step 612 to step 624, the voice generation unit 16 outputs a voice message indicating that there is no problem even if the lane change is performed, and the process returns to step 602.
On the other hand, when the process proceeds from step 612 to step 614, the branch point from the current location among the branch points searched in step 622 or step 610 is set as the guide point, and the guide route from the current position to the branch point The distance D along the road (step 614), the number M of branch points that are closer to the current position than the guidance point on the recommended route (step 616), the lane of the road section immediately before the guidance point, and the guidance A lane # that can pass through the point in the direction along the guidance route is obtained (step 618).

The calculated distance D, the number of branch points, and a voice message for guiding the lane # are output from the speaker 3 to the voice generation unit 16 (step 620), and the process returns to step 602.
According to such a lane change support process, for example, when the branch point 401 as shown in FIG. 4a exists, the vehicle 420 traveling in the left lane reaches the branch point 401 as shown in FIG. If a lane change confirmation request is generated at a time when the road distance is D (where D <predetermined distance L), the right lane is estimated as the lane change destination lane. And in the right lane, which is the lane change destination lane, it is not possible to branch left at the branch point 401 according to the guidance route 410, so the branch point 401 is set as a guide point, and "This is the left lane before the next branch, Dm." Is output to the user.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4c, when the vehicle 420 traveling in the right lane is located at a position where the distance to the branch point 401 is D (where D <predetermined distance L), the lane is changed. If a confirmation request is generated, the left lane is estimated as the lane change destination lane. And in the left lane that is the lane change destination lane, you can branch to the left at the branch point 401 according to the guidance route 410, so the branch point 401 is not set as a guide point, and "It is okay to change the lane in the future" A voice message will be output to the user. However, this example is for a case where there is no other branch point other than the branch point 401 within a predetermined distance L from the vehicle 420 along the guide route 410.

  As described above, according to the lane change process shown in FIG. 6, even when a branch point where a lane that cannot travel according to the guidance route exists in the immediately preceding section exists within the predetermined distance L, it is estimated that the lane change destination. If you follow the guidance route, a message indicating that there is no problem even if you change lanes is output. Therefore, it becomes possible to notify the user whether or not to change the lane more appropriately.

  By the way, in each of the above lane change support processes, the lane change confirmation request is generated according to a predetermined operation of the user's operation unit 4, but the lane change confirmation request is generated due to other causes. You may do it. That is, for example, when traffic congestion received by the VICS receiver 8 or other vehicle recognition processing of the image recognition processing unit 15 for the image captured by the camera 2 is detected, a traffic lane is automatically detected. A change confirmation request may be generated.

  In addition, the predetermined distance L used for searching for the guidance point in the above lane change assist processing is not set to a fixed value, and a shorter distance is set as the predetermined distance L for a user who is skilled in driving. You may make it adjust so. The adjustment is performed, for example, by detecting a lane change performed by the user using the lane recognition process of the image recognition processing unit 15 with respect to an image photographed by the camera 2, and as the frequency of the lane change performed by the user increases, a predetermined route The predetermined distance L is adjusted so that a shorter distance is set as the distance L. Alternatively, the user may set an arbitrary value for the predetermined journey distance L.

  In addition, each lane change support process described above is performed in the direction along the guidance route in the road section immediately before the guide point set in steps 310 and 614 based on the traffic information received by the VICS receiver 8. It may be determined whether or not there is a traffic jam in the passing direction, and the voice message may be changed according to the presence or absence of the traffic jam. In other words, if there is no traffic jam, “It is the left lane before the second branch, 600m ahead. There is no traffic jam before the branch” (D = 600M, M = 2, # = left lane) If there is a traffic jam and a voice message such as “It is okay to change lanes ahead” is displayed, “If you are 600 meters ahead, you are in the left lane before the second branch. It is also possible to output a voice message such as “Near traffic jam” (D = 600M, M = 2, # = left lane). Also, if there is a traffic jam, check whether the traffic jam continues to the current position. If the traffic jam is continuous, “If this is 600 meters ahead, it is the left lane just before the second branch. A voice message such as “There is a traffic jam before the branch” (in the case of D = 600M, M = 2, # = left lane) may be output.

By doing in this way, a lane change assistance process is performed as follows, for example.
That is, as shown in FIG. 7a, there are a branch point 701 and a branch point 702 that are arranged in this order as viewed in the traveling direction, and go straight along the left lane of the road section before the branch point 701. A direction-by-direction traffic segment that sets the advancing direction and a branch point 701 to the left is set, and a traffic according to the direction of travel dedicated to the direction of travel that travels straight on the branch point 701 in the right lane of the road section in front of the junction 701 A section is set, and a traffic section by direction of travel dedicated to the direction of travel that branches leftward from the branch point 702 is set in the left lane of the road section before the branch point 702, and the road section before the branch point 702 The case where the traffic segment according to the advancing direction only for the advancing direction branching rightward from the junction 702 is set to the right lane is taken as an example.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 7 b, the in-vehicle system according to the present embodiment is installed, and a route is set as a guidance route 710 that goes straight on a branch point 701 and goes to a road that branches leftward at the branch point 702. When a vehicle 720 is located at a position where the distance to the branch point 702 is D (but D <predetermined distance L) before the branch point 701, a lane change confirmation request is generated, A branch point 702 is selected as the guide point. At this time, if the traffic jam occurs only in the section 730 immediately before the branch point 701 and does not occur in the section immediately before the branch point 702, the message “Dm ahead of the second branch, A voice message such as "There is no traffic jam before the branch."

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7c, when the traffic jam section 730 is continuously generated from the position of the vehicle 720 to the section immediately before the branch point 703, “Dm ahead of the second branch, A voice message such as “It is a left lane.
In this way, the lane that must be traveled in order to travel according to the guidance route in the immediately preceding section of the branch point within the predetermined distance L is only a part of the lanes in the plurality of lanes existing in the immediately preceding section. In this case, the user can determine in advance whether or not to change the lane by grasping whether or not he / she can return to the lane that should travel in the immediately preceding section without being blocked by traffic congestion.

  Further, the lane change process shown in FIGS. 3 and 6 may be configured to output a voice message even when a guidance route is not set. That is, step 302 in FIG. 3 and step 602 in FIG. 6 may be omitted, and other steps may be applied by regarding the traveling route as the guidance route when the guidance route is not set. .

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the map data which the navigation apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention hold | maintains. It is a flowchart which shows the lane change assistance process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the process example of the lane change assistance process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the process example of the lane change assistance process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the other example of the lane change assistance process which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the process example of the lane change assistance process which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Navigation apparatus, 2 ... Camera, 3 ... Speaker, 4 ... Operation part, 5 ... Display apparatus, 6 ... Vehicle state sensor, 7 ... GPS receiver, 8 ... VICS receiver, 11 ... Current state calculation part, 12 ... Route search unit, 13 ... map data storage unit, 14 ... memory, 15 ... image recognition processing unit, 16 ... voice generation unit, 17 ... control unit, 18 ... guide image generation unit, 19 ... GUI control unit.

Claims (9)

A navigation device mounted on a car,
Current position calculating means for calculating the current position;
A route guidance means for searching for a route to the destination, setting it as a guidance route, and guiding the guidance route;
Lane change support means,
The lane change support means is a predetermined direction, based on road map data including information on a traffic direction classified by travel direction set in each lane constituting the road, the travel direction from the current position on the guidance route A branch within a predetermined distance on the side, and a branch having a lane in which a traffic segment by traveling direction that can pass the branch only outside the guidance route exists in a section immediately before the branch. A search is made as a travel lane restricted branch regardless of whether or not the branch is closest to the current position on the guide route, and whether or not the branch is a branch to be changed along the guide route. When the travel lane restriction branch exists, the distance from the current position to the travel lane restriction branch closest to the current position among the existing travel lane restriction branches and the current position closest to the current route along the guidance route To pass the traffic lane restrictions branch, the navigation apparatus characterized by outputting a message for guiding the lane should travel in the current position nearest traffic lane restrictions branch immediately preceding section. A navigation device mounted on a car,
Current position calculating means for calculating the current position;
A route guidance means for searching for a route to the destination, setting it as a guidance route, and guiding the guidance route;
Lane recognition means for identifying the lane in which the vehicle is running;
Lane change support means,
The lane change assisting means, when the running lane identified by the lane recognizing means is either the leftmost lane or the rightmost lane, the lane recognition means When the identified running lane is the leftmost lane, the lane change destination is estimated by estimating the lane change destination lane to which the user intends the lane on the right side of the running lane. When the identified running lane is the rightmost lane, the left lane of the running lane is estimated as the lane change destination lane of the lane change intended by the user, and each road constituting the road Based on road map data including information on the traffic direction classification set in the lane, a branch within a predetermined distance from the current position on the guidance route to the direction of travel, and a section immediately before the branch The estimated lane change destination lane The branch traveling direction traffic section by which it is possible to pass only outside guide route is set, whether the branch is nearest branch to the current position on the guidance route, and the branch is Regardless of whether the route should be changed along the guidance route or not , the current position of the existing travel lane restriction branch is searched when the travel lane restriction branch exists. The distance from the current position to the nearest travel lane restriction branch and the section immediately before the travel lane restriction branch nearest to the current position in order to pass the travel lane restriction branch nearest to the current position along the guidance route. A navigation device that outputs a message for guiding a lane to be traveled. The navigation device according to claim 1 or 2,
The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the lane change support means outputs a message indicating that there is no problem even if the lane change is performed when the travel lane restriction branch does not exist. The navigation device according to claim 1, 2, or 3,
The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined opportunity is generation of a predetermined operation input by a user. The navigation device according to claim 1, 2, or 3,
A traffic jam detecting means for detecting traffic jam at the current position point;
The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined opportunity is occurrence of detection of traffic jam at a current position point by the traffic jam detection means. The navigation device according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5,
A lane change frequency calculating means for calculating the frequency of lane changes made by a car equipped with the navigation device;
A navigation apparatus comprising: an adjusting unit that adjusts the predetermined distance so that the frequency calculated by the lane change frequency calculating unit decreases as the frequency increases. In a navigation device mounted on an automobile, a lane change support method for supporting a user's lane change,
Calculating the current position;
Searching for a route to the destination, setting it as a guidance route, and guiding the guidance route;
Based on road map data including information on the traffic classification by direction of travel set for each lane constituting the road at a predetermined opportunity, a branch within a predetermined distance from the current position on the guidance route to the direction of travel And a branch having a lane in which a traveling direction-specific traffic division that can pass only through the branch off the guidance route exists in a section immediately before the branch, and the branch is the current on the guidance route. Whether or not the branch is closest to the position, and whether or not the branch is a branch to be changed along the guidance route, is searched as a travel lane restriction branch, and the travel lane restriction branch is If there is, the distance from the current position to the travel lane restriction branch closest to the current position among the existing travel lane restriction branches, and the travel lane restriction branch nearest to the current position along the guidance route. To lane change assist method characterized by a step of outputting a message for guiding the lane should travel in the current position nearest traffic lane restrictions branch immediately preceding section. In a navigation device mounted on an automobile, a lane change support method for supporting a user's lane change,
Calculating the current position;
Searching for a route to the destination, setting it as a guidance route, and guiding the guidance route;
Identifying a running lane;
Estimate the lane change destination lane change destination intended by the user based on the identified running lane at a predetermined opportunity, and information on the traffic classification according to the traveling direction set in each lane constituting the road Based on the road map data including the road, the branch is within a predetermined distance from the current position on the guidance route to the traveling direction, and the branch is guided to the estimated lane change destination lane in the section immediately before the branch A branch in which a traveling direction-specific traffic classification that can pass only outside the route is set , whether or not the branch is the nearest branch to the current position on the guidance route, and the branch is the guidance Regardless of whether the route should be changed along the route or not, a search is made as a travel lane restricted branch, and when the travel lane restricted branch exists, the nearest of the current position of the existing travel lane restricted branches Traveling car The distance from the current position to the restricted branch and the lane that should be traveled in the section immediately before the restricted lane closest to the current position in order to pass the restricted lane closest to the current position along the guidance route And a step of outputting a message for guiding the lane change. A lane change support method according to claim 7 or 8,
A lane change support method comprising a step of outputting a message indicating that there is no problem even if a lane change is performed when the travel lane restriction branch does not exist.