JP5495837B2 - Navigation device using memory card - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a memory card using navigation device that records map data or the like on a memory card and uses it as a database of the navigation device, and particularly when navigation data and audio data for a user are recorded on the same memory card, The present invention relates to a navigation device using a memory card that can prevent a decrease in navigation function when audio data or the like is written to the memory card.

  In a general navigation device mounted on a vehicle or the like, a map / information data storage medium such as a DVD-ROM, a hard disk, etc., which stores map data for drawing a map and facility information data for searching for a facility, etc. A map can be displayed by a data capturing device that captures data in the map / information data storage medium, a map rendering device that renders the captured map, a monitor that displays the map, and the like.

  On the other hand, this navigation device has a vehicle position detection device for detecting the current position of the vehicle and the direction of the traveling direction using an autonomous navigation device using a GPS receiver, a mileage sensor, a gyro, and the like. Based on the current position of the map, or based on the position designated by the user, map data including the position is fetched from the map / information data storage medium, and the map around the position is read by the map display device as described above based on the map data. While drawing the image on the monitor screen, the vehicle position mark and the indicated position mark are displayed at the center of the monitor screen or at a specific position, and the map image is moved according to the movement of the vehicle position or the indicated position. The image is fixed on the screen so that the vehicle position mark and the indicated position mark can be moved.

  Map data stored in DVD-ROM, hard disk, and map / information data storage media such as memory cards, which have become cheap and large in recent years, have an appropriate longitude width according to various scale levels. The map data is a road layer consisting of a road list and a node table, etc., and a background consisting mainly of polygon data for displaying roads, buildings, facilities, parks, rivers, etc. on the map screen. It consists of character layers for displaying characters, map symbols, etc., such as layers, names of administrative divisions such as municipalities, road names, intersection names, and facility names.

  The road list and the node table are collected for each unit area (parcel or mesh). The node included in the node table is point information, and includes information indicating the position of the point and the type of the point such as a high-speed junction / general intersection. The road link included in the road list is road information and includes attributes such as the position of the start and end points of the road and the length and width of the road. Generally, the start point and end point of a road link are expressed as nodes, and the attributes include the type and width of a road such as an expressway, a national road, and a general road.

  In recent years, due to advances in semiconductor manufacturing technology, memory cards that are generally used have increased in capacity to, for example, 8 gigabytes, 16 gigabytes, and 32 gigabytes, and the price has become lower year by year. Since this memory card is extremely small and lightweight and easy to handle, it is used as a data recording medium instead of a hard disk as well as a conventional DVD. Therefore, a memory card is used in the navigation device instead of a conventional hard disk or the like.

  In particular, a memory card is optimal as a database for portable navigation devices, taking advantage of its small size, and is currently spreading widely. Also in the vehicle navigation device, it is required to reduce the weight of all in-vehicle devices from the viewpoint of improving the fuel efficiency of the vehicle, and it is necessary to reduce the weight of the navigation device as much as possible. Moreover, since there are no movable parts such as a rotation like a hard disk, it is suitable for portable use and for vehicles. Therefore, it is predicted that a memory card is frequently used in a navigation device instead of a conventional hard disk.

  An example of a vehicle navigation device that uses such a memory card as a map database is shown in FIG. In the example of the vehicle navigation device 61 shown in FIG. 5A, the navigation device 61 includes a 1DIN deployable monitor 62 that is a standard for an in-vehicle device mounted on a dashboard of the vehicle. The memory card 64 can be inserted into and removed from the memory card slot 63 provided on the front surface. Normally, the memory card is inserted into the card slot 63 of the navigation device 61, and the navigation data recorded on the memory card 64 is used as a database of the navigation device.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 5C, the data in the memory card 64 used here is roughly divided into a navigation data area and a user free use area for recording audio data, for example. Includes information area in which map data and various related information are recorded, and an area for recording user data. As user data in the navigation data area, user-specific data such as a previously set destination or a specific facility or place is recorded.

  In addition, audio data as described above can be recorded in the user's free-use area, and in addition to this, it is possible to store audio with video and even a large number of small-screen movies by increasing the capacity of the memory card. it can. Since this memory card is a database for a navigation device, measures such as covering it may be taken so as not to accidentally remove it during normal times.

  The vehicle navigation device 61 shown in FIG. 5 (a) is connected to the head unit 65, which is the same 1DIN standard, so that data can be transmitted and received, and a CD- that reproduces a CD and a DVD provided in the head unit 65. The audio data of the CD inserted into the DVD drive is commonly referred to as “ripping”, in which data is compressed and written to the memory card 64 inserted in the memory card slot 63 provided in the navigation device 61, or copied as it is. be able to. Similarly, by copying a DVD movie, various data can be written from the head unit to the memory card.

  On the other hand, the head unit 65 can capture and reproduce various data recorded on the memory card such as audio data from the memory card 64, and output it from the speaker or display the image on the monitor. . Therefore, it can be considered that the memory card 64 frequently writes data for ripping from a CD while performing normal data reading in the navigation device.

  This is not limited to the vehicular navigation device as described above, but also applies to a portable navigation device as shown in FIG. 5B, for example. That is, the portable navigation device 67 shown in the figure shows an example in which two memory card slots are provided, and navigation data is recorded in the first memory card slot 68 on one side, and the user can freely use it. A first memory card 71 having an area can be inserted, and a second memory card 72 in which audio data captured by a personal computer or the like is recorded in a second memory card slot 69 which is another memory card slot. You can insert and use it.

  As a result, even in such a portable navigation device 67, the audio data recorded on the second memory card 72 is reproduced while performing the navigation function with the navigation data normally recorded on the first memory card 71. And the audio can be listened to by the earphone inserted into the earphone jack 70. In addition, for example, several pieces of audio data recorded on the second memory card 72 are ripped to a user free use area existing on the first memory card 71, and then the second memory card 72 is used elsewhere. Therefore, even if it is removed, the audio data ripped to the first memory card can be reproduced and listened to.

  When a flash memory read operation is requested for the same bank of memory cells where the write and erase operations are performed, the write and erase operations are automatically extended while the read operation is being performed. And the wait signal is asserted by the flash memory, thereby indicating to the processor that the write and erase operations are extended, so that the wait signal is negated after the write and erase operations are extended. As described above, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which when a plurality of read operations are requested, all read operations are executed before the write and erase operations are resumed.

JP-A-11-175391

  As described above, the navigation device using the memory card is used as a navigation database, and the free area is used as a user free use area where the user can freely use, and other data recording is performed in the user use free use area. A large number of audio data can be ripped from the medium and played back.

  On the other hand, the memory card is composed of a NAND memory, and the write operation for writing data is slower than the HDD, and data read for reading data cannot be performed during this write operation. In a unit that writes a large amount of data such as ripping CD ripping, an HDD is often used.

  If a write operation for writing data frequently occurs when a memory card is used, there is a concern that the data read waiting time for reading the data becomes long, resulting in a slow operation of the navigation device. In particular, there is a concern that there is a problem that a response to a process that occurs unexpectedly, such as a user operation, is delayed rather than a predetermined process.

  Specifically, a map that continuously reads map data during a series of processes from destination setting for route search during CD ripping as described above, in which data is frequently written to a memory card. When a user operation that causes a read to the memory card, such as scrolling display, changing the map scale, moving to the setting screen, etc., is slow to respond to the operation, it is difficult for the user to use, and there are concerns about the performance of the navigation device May cause problems such as

  That is, FIG. 6 shows a data reading delay state when data writing to the memory card and data reading occur simultaneously. FIGS. 6A and 6B show timing charts when the reading operation does not occur, and FIG. 6A shows timing charts under the condition 1 shown in FIG. In particular, an example when performing 10-times CD ripping is shown. Here, the data is read from the CD at a cycle of 685 msec, the data is transferred to the memory card for writing in 4 msec (Write Data 1), and then the actual writing operation to the memory card is performed as the Busy period 1 thereafter.

  FIG. 6B shows a timing chart under the condition 2 in the figure, and particularly shows an example when 6-times speed CD ripping is performed. In this case, the CD reading speed decreases from 10 times speed of Condition 1 to 6 times speed, resulting in a period of 1142 msec as shown in FIG. FIG. 4 (c) shows that the writing operation is completed when the writing operation is repeated six times during CD ripping.

  In FIG. 6D, when the writing operation to the memory card as described above is performed, for example, the navigation device continuously performs the reading operation of the map data recorded on the same memory card for the map scroll. The timing chart at the time of reading map data etc. with a navigation apparatus like the time is shown.

  At this time, as shown in the figure, when the writing operation is completed for each period, one reading is performed and this is continued. Therefore, if the reading operation is continued, the data for each cycle is read. Therefore, the data reading interval becomes long and a reading delay occurs, and the navigation device becomes a slow-responsive operation. In the example shown in FIG. 6 (e), the normal operation is performed after the writing process is completed, and reading with a short cycle is performed to indicate that the navigation device operates normally. In this way, when writing to the memory card is continued, reading is delayed during that time, and the operation of the navigation device is delayed.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a navigation device that records and uses a map database or the like on a memory card. When recording and using audio data or the like in an empty area of the same memory card, The main object of the present invention is to provide a memory card-use navigation device in which the delay in operation of the navigation device is reduced as much as possible by not reading the navigation data while data is being written to the card. .

  In order to solve the above problems, the memory card using navigation device according to the present invention controls the writing to the memory card in the memory card using navigation device that uses a memory card for recording navigation data and user data as a database. Data writing control means for performing data writing, data writing operation detecting means for detecting that data writing is being performed by the data writing control means, and navigation for detecting a state in which the navigation data reading operation is started This is a state in which the current reading operation start state detecting means and the data writing operation detecting means detect that the current writing is being performed, and the navigation reading operation start state detecting means starts the reading operation of the navigation data. When the data write control In characterized by interrupting the writing predetermined time.

  In another navigation apparatus using a memory card according to the present invention, in the navigation apparatus using a memory card, the navigation reading operation start state detecting means performs an operation for starting a reading operation of navigation data directly by a user operation. It is characterized by detecting.

  Another memory card using navigation device according to the present invention is the memory card using navigation device, wherein the navigation reading operation start state detecting means is the first in a series of operations for starting the reading operation by a plurality of operations of the user. It is characterized by detecting an operation.

  Another navigation apparatus using a memory card according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the navigation apparatus using a memory card, a first operation in a series of operations for starting a reading operation by a plurality of operations is a menu screen display. To do.

  Another navigation apparatus using a memory card according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the navigation apparatus using a memory card, the predetermined time during which the writing is interrupted is changed and set according to the type of operation for reading. To do.

  In another navigation apparatus using a memory card according to the present invention, when the navigation apparatus using a memory card is set to start reading in a predetermined state in the navigation apparatus, the reading operation start state detecting means for navigation is used. Then, it is detected that the navigation device is in the predetermined state.

  Since the present invention is configured as described above, in a navigation device that records and uses a map database or the like on a memory card, when audio data or the like is recorded and used in an empty area of the same memory card, When writing data, it is possible to reduce the operation delay of the navigation device as much as possible because the navigation data is not read while the data is being written to the memory card.

It is a functional block diagram of the Example of this invention. It is an operation | movement flowchart of the Example. It is a timing chart figure which shows the operation | movement aspect of the Example. It is a timing chart which shows the operation of various embodiments. (A) shows an example of a navigation device using a memory card mounted on a vehicle, (b) shows an example of a navigation device using a memory card, and (c) shows a data configuration of a memory card in the navigation device using a memory card. It is a figure which shows an example. It is a timing chart figure in various operation modes of a memory card.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an example of a navigation apparatus provided with various functional units so that the present invention can be implemented in various modes. The present invention is an arbitrary one of these functional blocks. And can be implemented in various ways. In addition, the function part which performs each function in the figure can be said to be a means which performs each function.

  The navigation device shown in FIG. 1 shows an example of a vehicle navigation device. Various functional units are connected to a system control unit 10 having a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., and desired by software recorded in the ROM. Can be operated. In the example of FIG. 1, the position data of the GPS receiver 11 is input to the vehicle position detection unit 13, and further, the movement data of the vehicle from the travel distance / direction detection unit 12 by the vehicle speed sensor or the direction sensor is input as necessary. Thus, the current position of the vehicle is accurately detected.

  The VICS information input unit 14 includes a VICS receiver, receives traffic information, and appropriately displays traffic jam information on a map screen. In the instruction signal input unit 17, an instruction signal for the remote controller 15 or the like by the user in the navigation device is input. Further, a signal of the voice recognition unit 16 that inputs a user instruction signal by a process of recognizing the user voice as necessary is also input to the instruction signal input unit 21. Moreover, you may provide the instruction signal input part by a touchscreen here.

  A speaker 18 is connected to the audio output unit 19 so that various types of guidance are provided by voice, centering on voice guidance at a point where a route is changed, such as a right or left turn intersection. A monitor 20 is connected to the image output unit 25 and can perform a map screen of the navigation device, a guidance route, various facility guidance, and the like. To make it possible to change the route appropriately, the screen is divided into two parts and a normal map is displayed on one side. On the other screens, there is an enlarged screen near the intersection where the route guidance is performed, or a screen simulating the intersection. The route guidance screen such as displaying and guiding can be divided and displayed.

  A monitor 20 shown in FIG. 1 is connected to a navigation device 21 of the present invention, and this navigation device includes a memory card slot 22 into which a memory card 26 described later is inserted. The memory card 26 inserted into the memory card slot 22 of the navigation device 21 records various data including map data necessary for the navigation device to function, and is shown in FIG. 5 (c). As described above, an area that the user can use freely is provided. Thereby, audio data can be recorded in an area that can be freely used by the user, and the audio data can be reproduced and listened to.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the navigation device 21 shown in FIG. 1 is connected to the head unit 23 so that data can be transmitted and received. In particular, a CD or DVD inserted in a CD-DVD drive 24 provided in the head unit 23. The data can be ripped or copied to the memory card 26 inserted into the memory card slot 22 of the navigation device 21.

  In the navigation device 21 shown in FIG. 1, various information data such as map data and facility data are recorded in the memory card 26 as described above, and this is inserted into the memory card slot 22 of the navigation device 21 for use. The data read / write unit 27 reads map data or the like recorded in the memory card 26 and displays a map or facility. In particular, when audio data is recorded in an area that can be freely used by the user of the memory card 26, the data read / write unit 27 performs actual writing. Note that reading cannot be performed during this writing operation.

  In the guidance route calculation unit 28, the current location of the vehicle detected by the vehicle position detection unit 13 is fetched, the map is scrolled by operating the cursor displayed on the screen, or an address is input, and further a telephone number is input. The destination set by various methods such as the above is taken in, and the optimum guide route is calculated and presented under various conditions such as the shortest required time, the shortest distance, and the general road priority.

  The guidance route storage unit 29 stores the guidance route calculated by the guidance route computation unit 28 and confirmed by the user as described above. The stored data at this time can be stored in a memory provided separately in the navigation device, but can also be used by writing it in the user data area or the like of the memory card 26. Can store guidance route data as user data in a memory card, and then read and use this data.

  The guidance route guide unit 30 displays the guidance route stored in the guidance route storage unit 29 in an overlapping manner on the map screen displayed on the monitor 20 from the image output unit 25, and further enlarges and displays the right / left turn intersection. Voice guidance is also performed by outputting to the speaker 18 from the voice output unit 19.

  In the present invention, a memory card read / write control unit 31 is provided to perform various functions of the present invention, and various operations can be performed by appropriately selecting the various functional units shown in the figure. The memory card read / write control unit 31 shown in FIG. 1 includes a data write control unit 32, and performs data write control on the memory card 26, and the data read / write unit 27 actually controls the memory card 26 by the control. Perform the writing operation.

  In particular, in the example of FIG. 1, when audio data 54 such as a CD is output by an audio function unit 51 corresponding to the function unit of the head unit 23 as will be described later, this area can be freely used by the user of the memory card 26. The operation which writes in is performed. In addition, predetermined user data is also written in the navigation data area of the memory card. In addition, when a write interruption instruction is output from a write interruption instruction unit 41, which will be described later, the data write control unit 32 may interrupt the data writing operation, and then resume writing from the write resumption instruction unit 43. Writing is suspended until an instruction to that effect is output.

  The data write control unit 32 includes a write operation detection unit 33, and detects whether the data write control unit 32 is actually performing a write operation. The write operation at this time is the same as the timing chart of the read / write operation of the memory card of FIG. 6 in the timing chart of FIG. 3, as shown in FIG. In the subsequent writing cycle, the time point at which each writing process in the first, second... Therefore, in the illustrated example, it is detected that the writing process is completed at time t3, t6, and t9. In addition, a series of write operation end points which are the end points of the sixth write process period in FIG. 6D are also detected.

  When the writing operation detecting unit 33 detects that one writing process period has ended, the writing operation detecting unit 33 outputs a signal to the writing interruption possible state detecting unit 42 described later. Thereby, the write interruption possible state detection unit 42 can detect that the subsequent writing can be interrupted when one writing process period ends.

  The data reading control unit 34 reads data necessary for performing various functions of the navigation device, which is recorded in the memory card, from a map / information data recording portion as shown in FIG. Similarly, user data is read as necessary. Further, when audio data or the like is recorded in the user's free use area of the memory card, it is read, outputted to the audio function unit 51, reproduced, and outputted from the speaker 18. The data read control unit 34 includes a read operation detection unit 35, and detects the progress of the read operation when the navigation data is read from the memory card. Accordingly, the reading operation end detection unit 47 can detect that the reading operation has ended by detecting the operation.

  The navigation reading operation start state detection unit 36 detects whether or not the navigation apparatus has entered a state in which an operation that needs to read the data in the map database recorded in the memory card 26 has started. In the reading operation start prediction unit 37, the destination search is performed by, for example, the navigation device, the touch panel for the destination search display is pressed, or the hard key for that purpose is pressed, and further the target screen is displayed from the menu screen. When the user selects a location search, if it detects that the user will perform a destination search from now on, it is highly likely that the user will read the memory card facility data, registration point data, etc. I predict that.

  In addition, when such a destination search operation is performed, it is predicted that a series of operations will be continued after that. Similarly, for example, when an operation to display a “menu” screen is performed, in addition to the destination setting, “meal” is selected by selecting “genre” for facility search, and “ramen” is then selected. In this way, it is predicted that the selection operation will be sequentially performed on the deeper layers. In the same way, there are operations for selecting “facility search”, “leisure”, “amusement park”, “neighboring” in order from the “menu” screen. Therefore, when the “menu” screen is displayed, a series of reading operations are performed. The reading operation start predicting unit 37 predicts that the reading operation is started even when the “menu” screen is displayed.

  As described above, the reading operation start predicting unit 37 in the navigation reading operation start state detecting unit 36 does not immediately read from the database by the user's operation. Hereinafter, an operation that is highly likely to be performed is referred to as a read operation specifying mode. A navigation read specific mode detection unit 45 described later detects this mode. Similarly, for example, when it is detected that a map scroll operation has been performed, this operation is considered to continue for a while in order to search for a user's desired point, so this is also set as a navigation reading specific mode.

  In the reading direct instruction detecting unit 38 in the navigation reading operation start state detecting unit 36, for example, when the “wide area” display portion displayed on the monitor screen is touched, the “wide area” provided similarly as a push button of the navigation device is provided. As in the case of pressing a push button for performing an operation, an instruction to immediately access the database and take in necessary data is detected by the instruction.

  In the read direct instruction detecting unit 38, for example, when a joystick for scrolling a map provided close to the monitor is operated, or the display unit indicating the scroll direction displayed on the screen is touched, the map screen is further displayed. 3D display or a touch operation on a screen display unit for an operation for changing various display methods such as bird's-eye view display is also detected as an instruction to immediately access the database by a user operation. Such direct instruction for reading the database is hereinafter referred to as a read operation non-specific mode with respect to the read operation specific mode. In the navigation read mode detection 44, the read operation non-specific mode detection unit 46 detects this mode by the detection of the read direct instruction detection unit 38.

  By the above-described operation in the navigation read mode detection unit 44, the read operation specific mode detection unit 45 and the read operation non-specific mode detection unit 46 respectively detect the current read mode as described above, The result is output to the reading operation end detection unit 47.

  In the read operation end detection unit 47, the mode of detecting the end of the read operation differs depending on which mode the current read mode is. The read operation specific mode operation end detection unit 48 uses the read operation specific mode in the read operation specific mode. For example, when performing a data read operation by various operations from the menu screen, it is highly likely that the user will continue the operation and then perform another operation again to perform the data read operation. It is determined that the operation has not completely ended even if the operation is simply ended. For example, when the navigation device returns to the original map screen, it is determined that the series of reading operations has ended.

  On the other hand, the read operation non-specific mode operation end detection unit 49 in the read operation end detection unit 47 performs the current read operation as described above in the read operation non-specific mode detection unit 46 in the navigation read mode detection unit 44. When this mode is detected, the reading operation is one-off and it is unlikely to continue, so when the actual reading operation ends, the reading operation ends here. It is determined as a thing.

  In the detection unit 39 for a predetermined time after the end of the reading operation, after the detection of the end point of the reading operation corresponding to each reading operation mode is finished in the reading operation end detecting unit 47, according to each mode, and further in each mode. Depending on the various read operations, resumption of writing is interrupted in consideration of the continuation of subsequent read operations. Therefore, a predetermined time such as 1 second, 3 seconds, or 5 seconds is set in the predetermined time setting unit 40 in accordance with each mode and each reading operation. Thereby, when it is detected that the time set by the predetermined time setting unit 40 of the predetermined time elapse detection unit 39 has elapsed after the end of the reading operation, the signal is output to the write resumption instruction unit 43.

  In the writing interruption possible state detecting unit 42, when the data writing control unit 32 continues to write data to the memory card 26 by, for example, CD ripping, the writing can be interrupted. Then, it is detected whether or not the writing is temporarily interrupted so that the data can be read smoothly. When it is detected that the interruption is possible, the signal is output to the write interruption instruction unit 41, and the write interruption instruction unit 41 writes the current data to the data write control unit 32. Give instructions to suspend. As a result, the data reading control unit 34 performs a reading operation in a state where writing is not performed thereafter.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 5A, the audio function unit 51 shown in FIG. 1 is connected to a head unit 65 having a CD-DVD drive 66 so that data communication is possible. The audio function part in the unit 65 corresponds to the audio function part 51 of FIG. Audio data 54 exists in the audio function unit 51 of FIG. 1, for example, a CD or DVD inserted into a CD-DVD drive, or a portable audio player or a mobile phone with an audio function connected to the head unit by wire or wirelessly. Audio data recording medium such as a hard disk provided in the head unit, a memory card recording audio data inserted into a memory card slot provided in the head unit, and data such as a hard disk provided in the head unit It becomes.

  In the audio output unit 52 in the audio function unit 51, when a CD is used as the audio data 54 of the audio function unit 51, output for writing the data of the CD into the memory card 26 is enabled. The data capturing unit 53 captures the audio data recorded in the user's free use area of the memory card 26 for playback by the audio playback unit 55 of the audio function unit 51. In addition, when a hard disk or the like is present in the audio function unit 51, for example, the data capturing unit 53 is connected to another audio device having a large number of audio data in order to store the audio data in the hard disk. Data can also be acquired from the data acquisition unit 53.

  In the audio reproduction unit 55, as a normal function of the audio function unit 51, arbitrary audio data of the audio data 54 as described above is selected and reproduced, and is output to the speaker 12 via the audio output unit 19.

  In the navigation apparatus provided with the memory card reading control unit 31 as shown in FIG. 1, for example, it can be implemented by sequentially operating according to the operation flow as shown in FIG. 2. That is, in the example of the write interruption process of the navigation device using the memory card shown in FIG. 2, it is first determined whether or not data is being written to the memory card (step S1). This operation is performed by constantly detecting the write operation by the write operation detector 33 in the data write controller 32 of FIG. If it is determined by this determination that data is not being written, this operation is repeated and the process waits.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not a memory card data reading direct instruction or reading operation start predicted state has been reached (step S2). In this operation, the navigation reading operation start state detection unit 36 shown in FIG. 1 detects a state in which data from the memory card will be read, such as a destination search by the reading operation start prediction unit 37, or touches. This is done by detecting a direct reading instruction such as a predetermined map scale when the user directly touches the key. If it is determined that the memory card data reading direct instruction or the reading operation start prediction state has not yet been reached, the process returns to step S1 and the above operation is repeated.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the memory card data read direct instruction or the read operation start predicted state has been reached, it is determined whether or not the data writing to the memory card can be interrupted (step S3). In this process, the write interruption possible state detection unit 42 in FIG. 1 detects the operation by the detection process of the write operation detection unit 33 in the data write control unit 32, and the current write is interrupted by the detection result. This is done by determining whether or not it is possible.

  The operation at this time is shown in FIG. That is, FIG. 3 mainly shows the timing chart of the present invention of (c), and for the explanation, FIG. 3 (a) shows a timing chart of the memory card data when there is no user operation, and FIG. Shows a timing chart of memory card data when there is a user operation as a prior art.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 3 (a), when the user does not read the navigation database recorded on the memory card, as in FIGS. 6 (a), (b) and (c), during CD ripping, The data transfer period is determined by the transfer data reading time according to the CD reading speed and the like, and the writing operation to the memory card is performed during the period. At this time, data read during the previous transfer data read time is transferred as the data of the data transfer time for the writing process indicated as “Write Data1”. The “Busy period 1” in the figure is a time for writing data to be transferred to the memory card during the transfer time. Since the memory card is a long time unlike a hard disk or the like, a specific problem to be solved by the present invention occurs. It will be.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, the first, second... Write cycle time for reading a predetermined amount of data from the CD is “Write Data1” and “Busy” for the write processing. Since it is longer than the time period combined with “period 1”, it ends earlier than the time at which the next writing cycle starts. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5B, the operation of “Read Data 1”, which is the reading of data for the operation instructed by the user during this idle time, can be performed.

  However, in this conventional technique, when a state in which data is read by a user operation as indicated by the user operation 1 generation timing at time t3 in the “Busy period 1” as shown in FIG. Since the card is in the writing process and cannot be stopped here, reading from the memory card indicated as “Read Data1” is performed after the time t4 when the series of writing operations ends. Since this reading operation is faster than the writing operation, reading can be performed between time t4 and time t6, which are idle times in FIG.

  In this way, data cannot be read unless the user operation 1 generation time t3 is not waited until time t4 when the data read accompanying the user operation 1 can be started. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5B, when the user operation 2 generation timing occurs at time t7 during the data transfer period of “Write Data2,” it waits until time t9 when the writing is completed, and becomes “Read Data2”. You have to wait for the reading operation to show. Therefore, in this case, the delay time is particularly long, and the user has doubts about the performance of the navigation device.

  On the other hand, in the present invention, when it is determined in step S2 of FIG. 2 that the memory card data read direct instruction or the read operation start predicted time has come, whether or not the writing of data to the memory card has become interruptible. At that time, when [Busy period 1] in FIG. 3C ends at time t4, it is determined that the writing of data to the memory card can be interrupted in the determination. .

  When it is determined in step S3 of FIG. 2 that the data writing to the memory card has been interrupted as described above, the writing to the memory card is temporarily interrupted (step S4). This operation is currently being performed on the data write control unit 32 by the write interruption instruction unit 41 when the write interruption possible state detection unit 42 in FIG. 1 detects that the interruption is possible. This is done by giving an instruction to interrupt the writing operation. In step S3, when it is determined that data writing to the memory card has not yet been interrupted, the process returns to step S1 to repeat the above operation.

  After temporarily interrupting writing to the memory card in step S4, in the illustrated example, in step S5, it is determined whether or not the user's operation instruction is a specific mode for performing a multi-step operation. That is, in the description of FIG. 1, particularly as described in the description of the navigation reading operation start state detection unit 36, the navigation reading operation start state is when the touch panel is operated to make the map screen a specific scale. In step S5, it is determined whether or not the mode is a specific mode in which, for example, the selection of multiple layers at the time of destination search, and the operation of the guide route calculation after the search, etc., occur continuously are performed. doing.

  In step S5, when it is determined that the current user's operation instruction is a specific mode in which the above-described multi-step operation is performed, it is determined in step S6 whether or not the operation is completed, and the operation is completed. When it is determined that the operation has been completed, it is further determined whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed after the end of the operation (step S7). This operation is detected by the read operation specific mode operation end detection unit 48 in the read operation end detection unit 47 of FIG. 1 and then a predetermined time elapse detection unit 39 sets a predetermined time after the completion of the read operation. This is done by determining whether or not a predetermined time set in the unit 39 has elapsed.

  When it is determined in step S7 that a predetermined time has elapsed after the operation is completed, writing to the memory card is resumed (step S6). Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the writing process has been completed (step S9). If it has not been completed yet, the process returns to step S1 to check again whether or not a reading operation has occurred during the writing process, and the above operation is repeated. When it is determined in step S9 that the writing process has ended, the series of processes here ends.

  In step S5, when it is determined that the current user's operation instruction is not the specific mode for performing the multi-step operation, for example, the scale displayed on the monitor is touched in order to set the map scale to a specific scale. In the non-specific mode which is ended by the number of operations, it is immediately determined whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed after the end of the operation (step S10). That is, when it is determined in step S5 that the user's operation instruction is a specific mode in which a multi-step operation is performed, it is determined whether or not the operation has been completed and waits until a series of operations are completed. When it is determined in step S5 that the mode is the non-specific mode, it is assumed that there is no series of operations, and immediately after performing this operation, whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed since the operation was performed is determined. Judging.

  When it is determined in step S10 that the predetermined time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S8 to resume writing to the memory card as described above. On the other hand, when it is determined that the predetermined time has not yet elapsed after the operation is completed, the process proceeds to step S11 together with the determination that the predetermined time has not elapsed after the operation is completed in step S7, and the memory card data reading operation state or It is determined whether or not a reading operation start predicted state has been reached. This determination is performed in the same manner as in step S3. However, the determination in step S3 is based on the determination during the writing operation and the subsequent processing before the writing to the memory card is suspended. On the other hand, the process in step Sj1 is a determination when writing to the memory card is temporarily interrupted, and the operating conditions of the two are different.

  When it is determined in step S11 that the memory card data reading operation state or the reading operation start prediction state is not reached, the operation returns to step S10 and the operation is repeated until a predetermined time elapses after the operation ends. On the other hand, when it is determined in step S11 that the memory card data reading operation state or the reading operation start prediction state has been reached, the process returns to step S5 to determine whether or not the user's operation instruction is a specific mode for performing a multi-step operation. Thereafter, the above operation is continued. That is, when waiting for a predetermined time to elapse after the operation set at a relatively short time in step S10, and when the reading operation is performed again by the user, writing to the memory card is temporarily suspended. Repeat the operation in the state.

  As a result of such an operation, as shown in FIG. 3C, when a user operation 1 for reading data in a memory card occurs at time t3 in “Busy period 1”, “Busy period 1” ends at first. However, after that, the writing process is interrupted, and “Read Data 2”... And the data read accompanying the user operation are performed simultaneously with the user operation generation timing. Further, after “Read DataN” that is the last data reading is completed, the user waits for a further operation for a predetermined time corresponding to each operation instruction, and when there is no user operation during that time, the time indicated by time t10 in the figure The process of resuming data writing is performed.

  The various operations described above are collectively shown in FIG. FIG. 4A shows the conventional example shown in FIG. 3B again for comparison with the present invention, and a description thereof is omitted here. On the other hand, the simplest operation example when the present invention is applied is shown in FIG. In this example, only the first operation S1 is performed, such as touching the “wide area” display on the map screen or pressing the “wide area” push button that is adjacent to the monitor. Therefore, in this example, the next operation is not performed within the operation waiting time of the first predetermined time T1. Here, the first feature of the present invention, which does not require waiting for a write operation to the memory card, is not utilized, but the second feature is to wait for a predetermined time after the read operation. When a user operation is performed during the predetermined time (T1), a process for interrupting the next writing is performed immediately.

  In the example of FIG. 4C, for example, an operation when the “wide area” is pressed twice or when it is long-pressed is shown, and an instruction for the second operation is present following the first operation S <b> 1 by the user. Is shown. In this example, after the first reading is performed by completing the operation of the first writing cycle at time t4, there is a reading instruction as the second user operation within the first predetermined time (T1). A second read “Read Data 2” corresponding to the instruction is performed. This reading operation can be performed immediately after the second reading operation S2 by stopping the writing operation. Therefore, for example, even when a long-time writing process is performed by CD ripping or the like, the process is interrupted, and the data reading process of the navigation device can be performed quickly.

  In the example of FIG. 4D, an example is shown in which data reading operations are continuously performed, for example, when a map scroll is performed. In the illustrated example, at a time t3 during the first writing operation, for example, a map scroll operation is started as a first operation S1 in the figure. Here, since the first writing is in operation, the process waits until it is finished, and the first reading operation is performed at the time t4 when it is finished. Thereafter, in order to read new data for scrolling the map, the second to fifth readings are performed in the illustrated example.

  During the reading operation, after each reading is completed, an operation is performed to detect whether or not the next reading operation is performed within the second predetermined time T2, and the first to fourth reading operations are the second operation. Since it is within the predetermined time, the writing operation is not performed during each reading operation. On the other hand, after the fifth read operation S5 is performed, the next read operation is not performed within the second predetermined time T2, so that the writing operation suspended at time t4 is resumed.

  As is clear from these operation examples, there are various read operations, and there are operations that need to be performed immediately by the user's operation, while operations on the menu screen are displayed and gradually deeper Performing the final read operation by performing multiple operations, such as when selecting, and performing the read operation after performing multiple operations, and then performing multiple operations after that There are those that perform a reading operation again, and those that perform a continuous reading operation after a single instruction operation by the user, etc., and in the present invention, it is possible to cope with any case. .

  Also, for example, when it is set to automatically present a detour when it is detected in advance that a traffic jam has occurred in the guidance route, such as when calculating a detour, the first operation instruction is given in the navigation device. There is an operation that is performed by software, performs an appropriate reading operation, presents a detour, and is terminated by a user confirmation operation. However, in the present invention, the operation can be performed including a case of an operation instruction by software.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 System control part 11 GPS receiver 12 Travel distance and direction detection part 13 Vehicle position detection part 14 VICS information input part 15 Remote control 16 Voice recognition part 17 Instruction signal input part 18 Speaker 19 Voice output part 20 Monitor 21 Navigation apparatus 22 Memory card Slot 23 Head unit 24 CD-DVD drive 25 Image output unit 26 Memory card 27 Data read / write unit 28 Guide route calculation unit 29 Guide route storage unit 30 Guide route guide unit 31 Memory card read / write control unit 32 Data write control unit 33 Write operation detection unit 34 Data read control unit 35 Read operation detection unit 36 Navigation read operation start state detection unit 37 Read operation start prediction unit 38 Read direct instruction detection unit 39 Predetermined time elapse detection unit 40 Predetermined time setting Part 41 Write interruption instruction part 2 Write interruption enable state detection unit 43 Write resumption instruction unit 44 Navigation read mode detection unit 45 Read operation specific mode 46 Read operation non-specific mode 47 Read operation end detection unit 48 Read operation specific mode 49 Read operation non-specific mode 51 Audio function section 52 Data output section 53 Data capture section 54 Audio data 55 Audio playback section

Claims (6)

In a navigation device using a memory card that uses a memory card that records navigation data and user data as a database,
Data writing control means for controlling writing to the memory card;
Data writing operation detecting means for detecting that data writing is being performed by the data writing control means;
A navigation reading operation start state detecting means for detecting a state of starting the reading operation of the navigation data;
When the data writing operation detecting means detects that the current writing is being performed, and the navigation reading operation start state detecting means detects that the navigation data reading operation is started, the data writing operation A memory card-use navigation device characterized in that the writing control means interrupts writing for a predetermined time from the reading operation end time point determined by the reading operation end detection unit . 2. The navigation apparatus using a memory card according to claim 1, wherein said navigation reading operation start state detecting means detects an operation for directly starting a navigation data reading operation by a user operation. 2. The navigation apparatus using a memory card according to claim 1, wherein the reading operation start state detecting means for navigation detects a first operation in a series of operations for starting a reading operation by a plurality of operations of the user. 4. The memory card using navigation device according to claim 3, wherein a first operation in a series of operations for starting a reading operation by the plurality of operations is a menu screen display. 2. The memory card using navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined time during which the writing is interrupted is changed and set according to the type of operation for performing the reading. When the navigation device is set to start reading in a predetermined state, the navigation read operation start state detecting means detects that the navigation device has entered the predetermined state. A navigation apparatus using a memory card according to claim 1.

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