JP5816705B2 - Image processing apparatus, image processing management apparatus, terminal, image processing method, and data structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing device, an image processing management device, a terminal, an image processing method, and a data structure that generate a reachable range of a moving body based on a residual energy amount of the moving body. However, the use of the present invention is not limited to the image processing device, the image processing management device, the terminal, the image processing method, and the data structure.

  Conventionally, a processing device that generates a reachable range of a moving body based on the current location of the moving body is known (for example, see Patent Document 1 below). In the following Patent Document 1, all directions on the map are radially divided around the current location of the moving object, and the reachable intersection that is farthest from the current location of the moving object is obtained as a map information node for each divided region. A beige curve obtained by connecting a plurality of acquired nodes is displayed as the reachable range of the moving object.

  Also, a processing device is known that generates a reachable range from the current location of a moving body on each road based on the remaining battery capacity and power consumption of the moving body (see, for example, Patent Document 2 below). In the following Patent Document 2, the power consumption of the mobile body is calculated on a plurality of roads connected to the current location of the mobile body, and the travelable distance of the mobile body on each road based on the remaining battery capacity and the power consumption of the mobile body Is calculated. Then, a set of line segments obtained by acquiring the current location of the mobile body and a plurality of reachable locations of the mobile body that are separated from the current location by a travelable distance as nodes of map information and connecting the plurality of nodes Is displayed as the reachable range of the moving object.

  Further, a map display device that displays time in which a vehicle can reach in an isochronous zone is known (for example, see Patent Document 3 below). In Patent Document 3 below, an identifier is assigned to each node for each straight line distance from the vehicle, nodes that have the same arrival time are connected by a Bezier curve, and an area that can be reached is displayed by painting.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-016094 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 07-0859797 International Publication No. 2007/032318

  However, in the technique of Patent Document 1 described above, since only the reaching point farthest from the moving body in each azimuth is obtained with the current position of the moving body as the center, only the outline of the reachable range of the moving body can be obtained. For this reason, even if there is an area where the mobile body cannot travel, such as the sea or lake, between the current location of the mobile body and the destination farthest from the mobile body, As an example, a problem that the reachable range of the moving body cannot be obtained by excluding the area that cannot be obtained.

  Moreover, in the technique of patent document 2 mentioned above, since only a road is acquired as the reachable range of a mobile body, ranges other than a road cannot be included in the reachable range of a mobile body. In addition, since the reachable range of the mobile object is displayed as an assembly of line segments along the road on which the mobile object can travel, the outline of the reachable range cannot be acquired. For this reason, the problem that it is easy to see the reachable range of the moving body and it is difficult to display without omission is an example.

  In the technique of Patent Document 3 described above, nodes can be connected to display isochronous zones, but if there are unreachable areas such as lakes, swamps, and mountains, the reachable areas It cannot be displayed separately. In particular, if there are unreachable areas such as lakes, swamps, and mountains within the reachable area, it is not possible to clearly indicate that this is unreachable on the display. The problem is given as an example.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, an image processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is an image processing apparatus that processes information relating to a reachable range of a moving body, and the energy held by the moving body. A reachable range calculating means for calculating a reachable range including a reachable area of the moving object calculated based on an amount; and an arrival of the moving object based on the reachable range calculated by the reachable range calculating means Outline data calculating means for calculating outline data indicating the contour of the possible range, and direction calculating means for calculating direction data indicating that the outline data calculated by the outline data calculating means is clockwise or counterclockwise. And the contour data calculated by the contour data calculating means and the orientation data calculated by the orientation calculating means. Display control means for displaying range and the inside of the unreachable range of the reachable range in the display means, characterized in that it comprises a.

  An image processing management apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is an image processing management apparatus for processing information relating to a reachable range of a mobile object, wherein the information relating to the current location of the mobile object and the current status of the mobile object Receiving means for receiving information on the initial stored energy amount, which is the amount of energy held by the mobile body at the point, information on the current location of the mobile body received by the receiving means, and information on the initial stored energy amount Based on the reachable range calculating means for calculating the reachable range including the reachable area of the mobile body, and the reachable range of the mobile body based on the reachable range calculated by the reachable range calculating means. Contour data calculating means for calculating contour data indicating the contour, and the contour data calculated by the contour data calculating means is clockwise. Or characterized by comprising a direction calculation means for calculating data orientation indicating a counterclockwise, and transmission means for transmitting the data of the contour data and the orientation.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a terminal for processing information relating to a reachable range of a mobile object, wherein the mobile object is information at the current location of the mobile object and the current location of the mobile object. Transmitting means for transmitting information on the initial stored energy amount, which is the amount of energy held, to the management device, contour data indicating the contour of the reachable range including the reachable region of the mobile object, and the contour data is clockwise, Alternatively, receiving means for receiving the orientation data indicating that it is counterclockwise, and display control for causing the display means to display the reachable range of the moving object based on the contour data and the orientation data received by the receiving means. And means.

  An image processing method according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is an image processing method in an image processing apparatus for processing information relating to a reachable range of a moving object, wherein the image processing method is calculated based on an energy amount held by the moving object. A reachable range calculating step for calculating a reachable range including a reachable region of the moving object, and a contour indicating an outline of the reachable range of the moving object based on the reachable range calculated by the reachable range calculating step A contour data calculation step for calculating data, a direction calculation step for calculating direction data indicating that the contour data calculated by the contour data calculation step is clockwise or counterclockwise, the contour data, and Based on the orientation data calculated by the orientation calculation step, the reachable range of the moving body and the unreachable inside of the reachable range Characterized by comprising a display control step of displaying the circumference on the display unit.

  The data structure according to the invention of claim 7 is an image provided with reachable range calculating means for calculating a reachable range including a reachable area of the moving body calculated based on an energy amount held by the moving body. A data structure for display control handled by the processing device, contour data indicating a contour of the reachable range of the moving object, and data indicating a direction in which the contour data is clockwise or counterclockwise The reachable range of the moving object and the unreachable range inside the reachable range are indicated by the contour data and the orientation data.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an image processing procedure performed by the image processing apparatus. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the navigation device. FIG. 4A is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of reachable point search by the navigation device. FIG. 4B is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of reachable point search by the navigation device. FIG. 4-3 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of reachable point search by the navigation device. 4-4 is explanatory drawing typically shown about an example of the reachable point search by a navigation apparatus. FIG. 5A is an explanatory diagram of an example of a reachable point search by the navigation device. 5-2 is explanatory drawing shown about another example of the reachable point search by a navigation apparatus. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an example showing a reachable point by the navigation device in longitude-latitude. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an example showing the reachable points by the navigation device as mesh data. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of cloning processing by the navigation device. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the opening process by the navigation device. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of vehicle reachable range extraction by the navigation device. FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of mesh data after the reachable range of the vehicle is extracted by the navigation device. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating another example of vehicle reachable range extraction by the navigation device. FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an image processing procedure performed by the navigation device. FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of estimated power consumption calculation processing by the navigation device. FIG. 15A is a flowchart of an example of a procedure of reachable point search processing by the navigation device (part 1). FIG. 15-2 is a flowchart of an example of a procedure of reachable point search processing by the navigation device (part 2). FIG. 16A is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of identification information provision processing by the navigation device. FIG. 16-2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of first identification information change processing by the navigation device. FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a reachable range contour extraction process performed by the navigation device. FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of contour tracking processing by the navigation device. FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining the contour tracking process. FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of a contour direction calculation process performed by the navigation device. FIG. 21 is an explanatory view schematically showing an example of acceleration applied to a vehicle traveling on a road having a gradient. FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the reachable point search process by the navigation device. FIG. 23A is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the identification information providing process by the navigation device. FIG. 23-2 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a display example after the first identification information change process by the navigation device. FIG. 24 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the cloning process (expansion) by the navigation device. FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the cloning process (reduction) by the navigation device. FIG. 26 is a diagram illustrating an example of a reachable range and an unreachable range. FIG. 27 is a block diagram of an example of a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 28 is a block diagram of an example of a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the third embodiment. FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a system configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

  Exemplary embodiments of an image processing device, an image processing management device, a terminal, an image processing method, and a data structure according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. The image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment obtains a reachable point of the mobile object searched based on the remaining energy amount of the mobile object, generates a reachable range of the mobile object, and displays the reachable range on the display unit 110. The image processing apparatus 100 includes an acquisition unit 101, a calculation unit 102, a search unit 103, a division unit 104, a grant unit 105, a contour data calculation unit 106, a direction calculation unit 107, and a display control unit 108. The acquisition unit 101, the calculation unit 102, the search unit 103, the division unit 104, and the grant unit 105 calculate a reachable range that includes a reachable area of the mobile object calculated based on the amount of energy held by the mobile object. It functions as the range calculation unit 109.

  Here, the energy is energy based on electricity in the case of an EV (Electric Vehicle) vehicle, for example, and in the case of an HV (Hybrid Vehicle) vehicle, a PHV (Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle) vehicle, etc. Energy based on, for example, gasoline, light oil, gas and the like. In addition, in the case of a fuel cell vehicle, for example, energy is energy based on electricity and the like, for example, hydrogen or a fossil fuel that becomes a hydrogen raw material (hereinafter, EV vehicle, HV vehicle, PHV vehicle, and fuel cell vehicle are simply “ EV car "). In addition, the energy is energy based on, for example, gasoline, light oil, gas, etc., for example, in the case of a gasoline vehicle, a diesel vehicle or the like (hereinafter simply referred to as “gasoline vehicle”). For example, the residual energy is, for example, energy remaining in a fuel tank, a battery, a high-pressure tank, or the like of the moving body, and is energy that can be used for the subsequent traveling of the moving body.

  The acquisition unit 101 acquires information related to the current location of the moving object on which the image processing apparatus 100 is mounted, and information related to the initial amount of energy held by the moving object at the current location of the moving object. Specifically, the acquisition unit 101 acquires information (position information) about the current location by calculating the current position of the device using, for example, GPS information received from a GPS satellite.

  In addition, the acquisition unit 101 determines the remaining energy amount of the moving body managed by an electronic control unit (ECU) via an in-vehicle communication network that operates according to a communication protocol such as CAN (Controller Area Network). , Get the initial amount of energy.

  The acquisition unit 101 may acquire information regarding the speed of the moving object, traffic jam information, and moving object information. The information regarding the speed of the moving body is the speed and acceleration of the moving body. Moreover, the acquisition part 101 may acquire the information regarding a road from the map information memorize | stored in the memory | storage part (not shown), and may acquire a road gradient etc. from an inclination sensor etc., for example. The information on the road is, for example, a running resistance generated in the moving body due to the road type, road gradient, road surface condition, and the like.

  The calculation unit 102 calculates an estimated energy consumption that is energy consumed when the moving body travels in a predetermined section. The predetermined section is, for example, a section (hereinafter referred to as “link”) connecting one predetermined point on the road (hereinafter referred to as “node”) and another node adjacent to the one node. The node may be, for example, an intersection or a stand, or a connection point between links separated by a predetermined distance. The nodes and links constitute map information stored in the storage unit. The map information includes, for example, vector data in which intersections (points), roads (lines and curves), regions (surfaces), colors for displaying these, and the like are digitized.

  Specifically, the calculation unit 102 estimates the estimated energy consumption amount in a predetermined section based on the consumption energy estimation formula including the first information, the second information, and the third information. More specifically, the calculation unit 102 estimates an estimated energy consumption amount in a predetermined section based on information on the speed of the moving body and the moving body information. The moving body information is information that causes a change in the amount of energy consumed or recovered during traveling of the moving body, such as the weight of the moving body (including the number of passengers and the weight of the loaded luggage) and the weight of the rotating body. When the road gradient is clear, the calculation unit 102 may estimate the estimated energy consumption amount in the predetermined section based on the consumption energy estimation formula further including the fourth information.

  The consumption energy estimation formula is an estimation formula for estimating the energy consumption amount of the moving body in a predetermined section. Specifically, the energy consumption estimation formula is a polynomial including first information, second information, and third information, which are different factors that increase or decrease the energy consumption. Further, when the road gradient is clear, fourth information is further added to the energy consumption estimation formula. Detailed description of the energy consumption estimation formula will be described later.

  The first information is information related to energy consumed by the equipment provided in the moving body. This first information is the amount of energy consumed due to factors not related to the traveling of the moving body, and is the amount of energy consumed by the air conditioner, audio, etc. provided in the moving body. Moreover, it is the information regarding the energy consumed at the time of driving | running | working including the time of acceleration / deceleration of a moving body, and a stop.

  Specifically, the first information is the amount of energy consumed due to a factor not related to the traveling of the moving body. More specifically, the first information is the amount of energy consumed by equipment such as an air conditioner, a car audio, a headlight, a winker, and a brake pump provided in the moving body.

  The second information is information related to energy consumed and recovered during acceleration / deceleration of the moving body. The time of acceleration / deceleration of the moving body is a traveling state in which the speed of the moving body changes with time. Specifically, the time of acceleration / deceleration of the moving body is a traveling state in which the speed of the moving body changes within a predetermined time. The predetermined time is a time interval at regular intervals, for example, per unit time. In the case of an EV vehicle, the recovered energy is, for example, electric power charged in a battery when the mobile body is traveling. In the case of a gasoline vehicle, the recovered energy is, for example, fuel that can be saved by reducing (fuel cut) the consumed fuel.

  The third information is information related to energy consumed by the resistance generated when the mobile object travels. The traveling time of the moving body is a traveling state where the speed of the moving body is constant, accelerated or decelerated within a predetermined time. The resistance generated when the mobile body travels is a factor that changes the travel state of the mobile body when the mobile body travels. Specifically, the resistance generated when the mobile body travels is various resistances generated in the mobile body due to weather conditions, road conditions, vehicle conditions, and the like.

  The resistance generated in the moving body due to the weather condition is, for example, air resistance due to weather changes such as rain and wind. The resistance generated in the moving body according to the road condition is road resistance due to road gradient, pavement state of road surface, water on the road surface, and the like. The resistance generated in the moving body depending on the vehicle condition is a load resistance applied to the moving body due to tire air pressure, number of passengers, loaded weight, and the like.

  Specifically, the third information is energy consumption when the moving body is driven at a constant speed, acceleration or deceleration while receiving air resistance, road surface resistance, and load resistance. More specifically, the third information is consumed when the moving body travels at a constant speed, acceleration or deceleration, for example, air resistance generated in the moving body due to the head wind or road surface resistance received from a road that is not paved. Energy consumption.

  The fourth information is information relating to energy consumed and recovered by a change in altitude at which the mobile object is located. The change in altitude at which the moving body is located is a state in which the altitude at which the moving body is located changes over time. Specifically, the change in altitude at which the moving body is located is a traveling state in which the altitude changes when the moving body travels on a sloped road within a predetermined time.

  Further, the fourth information is additional information that can be obtained when the road gradient in the predetermined section is clear, thereby improving the energy consumption estimation accuracy. When the road slope is unknown or when the calculation is simplified, it is assumed that there is no change in the altitude at which the moving body is located, and the energy consumption is estimated with the road gradient θ = 0 in the energy consumption estimation formula described later. be able to.

  The search unit 103 is based on the map information stored in the storage unit, the current location and initial stored energy amount of the mobile object acquired by the acquisition unit 101, and the estimated energy consumption calculated by the calculation unit 102. Search for a plurality of reachable points that can be reached from the current point.

  Specifically, in all routes that can move from the current location of the mobile object, the search unit 103 starts from the current location of the mobile object, and in a predetermined section that connects predetermined points on the route from the mobile object. A predetermined point and a predetermined section are searched so that the total of the estimated energy consumption is minimized. Then, the search unit 103 moves the mobile unit to a predetermined point where the total estimated energy consumption amount is within the range of the initial stored energy amount of the mobile unit in all routes that can move from the current point of the mobile unit. The reachable point of

  More specifically, the search unit 103 starts from the current location of the mobile object as a starting point, all links that can be moved from the current location of the mobile object, nodes that connect to these links, and all that can be moved from these nodes. , And all the nodes and links that can be reached by the moving object. At this time, each time the search unit 103 searches for a new link, the search unit 103 accumulates the estimated energy consumption of the route to which the one link is connected, and the accumulated energy consumption is minimized. Search for a node connected to the link and a plurality of links connected to this node.

  For example, when the one link and the other link are connected to the same node, the search unit 103 estimates the estimated energy consumption from the current location of the mobile body to the node among the plurality of links connected to the node. The estimated energy consumption of the relevant node is calculated using the estimated energy consumption of the link with a small amount of accumulation. Then, in the plurality of paths configured by the searched nodes and links, the search unit 103 sets all the nodes whose accumulated energy consumption amount is within the range of the initial stored energy amount of the mobile object, respectively. Search as a reachable point. As described above, by using the estimated energy consumption of the link with the small estimated energy consumption, it is possible to calculate the correct total of the estimated energy consumption of the node.

  Further, the search unit 103 may search for a reachable point by excluding a predetermined section in which the movement of the mobile object is prohibited from candidates for searching for a reachable point of the mobile object. The predetermined section in which the movement of the moving body is prohibited is, for example, a link that is one-way reverse running, or a link that is a passage-prohibited section due to time restrictions or seasonal restrictions. The time restriction is, for example, that traffic is prohibited in a certain time zone by being set as a school road or an event. The seasonal restriction is, for example, that traffic is prohibited due to heavy rain or heavy snow.

  When the importance of another predetermined section to be selected next to one predetermined section among the plurality of predetermined sections is lower than the importance of the one predetermined section, the search unit 103 selects another predetermined section as a mobile object The reachable point may be searched for by removing it from the candidates for searching for the reachable point. The importance of the predetermined section is, for example, a road type. The road type is a type of road that can be distinguished by differences in road conditions such as legal speed, road gradient, road width, and presence / absence of signals. Specifically, the road type is a narrow street that passes through a general national road, a highway, a general road, an urban area, or the like. A narrow street is, for example, a road defined in the Building Standard Law with a width of less than 4 meters in an urban area.

  Further, when the entrance and exit of one bridge or one tunnel are reachable points of the moving body, the search unit 103 moves all the areas constituting one bridge or one tunnel of the map information divided by the dividing unit 104. It is preferable to search for a reachable point of the moving body so as to be included in the reachable range of the body. Specifically, for example, when the entrance of one bridge or one tunnel is a reachable point of the mobile object, the search unit 103 is located on one bridge or one tunnel from the entrance of the one bridge or one tunnel toward the exit. You may search the said reachable point so that several reachable points may be searched. The entrance of one bridge or one tunnel is the starting point of one bridge or one tunnel on the side close to the current position of the moving object.

  The dividing unit 104 divides the map information into a plurality of areas. Specifically, the dividing unit 104 divides the map information into a plurality of rectangles based on a reachable point farthest from the current point of the mobile object among a plurality of reachable points of the mobile object searched by the search unit 103. It is divided into shape areas and converted into mesh data of m × m dots, for example. The m × m dot mesh data is handled as raster data (image data) to which identification information is added by the adding unit 105 described later. Note that each m of m × m dots may be the same numerical value or a different numerical value.

  More specifically, the dividing unit 104 extracts the maximum longitude, the minimum longitude, the maximum latitude, and the minimum latitude, and calculates the distance from the current location of the moving object. Then, the dividing unit 104 divides the map information into a plurality of areas, for example, by dividing the size of one area when the reachable point farthest from the current position of the moving object and the current position of the moving object are equally divided into n. The map information is divided into mesh data of m × m dots. At this time, n = (m / 2) −4 is set in order to make, for example, 4 dots around the mesh data blank.

  The assigning unit 105 assigns identification information for identifying whether or not the mobile body can reach each of the plurality of areas divided by the dividing unit 104 based on the plurality of reachable points searched by the search unit 103. To do. Specifically, when the reachable point of the moving object is included in one area divided by the dividing unit 104, the granting unit 105 can reach the one area to identify that the moving object is reachable. The identification information is assigned. After that, when the reachable point of the moving object is not included in the one area divided by the dividing unit 104, the assigning unit 105 identifies that the moving object cannot reach the one area. The identification information is assigned.

  More specifically, the assigning unit 105 assigns reachable identification information “1” or unreachable identification information “0” to each area of the mesh data divided into m × m. It is converted into mesh data of two-dimensional matrix data in rows and columns. The dividing unit 104 and the assigning unit 105 divide the map information in this way, convert it into mesh data of 2D matrix data of m rows and m columns, and handle it as binarized raster data.

  The assigning unit 105 includes a changing unit that performs identification information changing processing on a plurality of areas divided by the dividing unit 104. Specifically, the adding unit 105 treats mesh data obtained by dividing the map information as binarized raster data by the changing unit, and performs a cloning process (a process of performing a reduction process after the expansion process). Further, the assigning unit 105 may perform an opening process (a process of performing an expansion process after the reduction process) by the changing unit.

  Specifically, the changing unit includes first and second changing units, and the first changing unit is provided with identification information that can reach another region adjacent to one region to which the identification information is added. If so, the identification information of the one area is changed to reachable identification information (expansion process). More specifically, the first change unit is any one of the other areas adjacent to the left, bottom, bottom, bottom right, right, top right, top, top left, and left of one rectangular area. If “1”, which is identification information that can reach the area, is assigned, the identification information of the one area is changed to “1”.

  In addition, after the identification information is changed by the first changing unit, the second changing unit is provided with identification information that cannot reach another region adjacent to the one region to which the identification information is provided. The identification information of the area is changed to unreachable identification information (reduction process). More specifically, the second changing unit is any one of the other regions adjacent to each other in the eight directions of lower left, lower, lower right, right, upper right, upper, upper left, and left of one rectangular region. If “0”, which is identification information that cannot reach the area, is assigned, the identification information of the one area is changed to “0”. The expansion process by the first changing unit and the reduction process by the second changing unit are performed the same number of times.

  The granting unit 105 identifies that the moving body can reach a region including a reachable point that is a point where the moving body can reach from the current point among the plurality of regions divided by the dividing unit 104. Reachable identification information is given to make the movable body reachable. Thereafter, the assigning unit 105 assigns reachable identification information to a region adjacent to the region to which reachable identification information is assigned, and the identification information of each region so that no missing point is generated in the reachable range of the moving object. To change.

  Further, when the reachable identification information for identifying that the reachable unit 105 is reachable is assigned to the divided map information corresponding to the entrance and exit of one bridge or one tunnel of the map information, Reachable identification means is assigned to the divided map information corresponding to all areas constituting one bridge or one tunnel. Specifically, the granting unit 105 corresponds to the entrance of one bridge or one tunnel, for example, when the reachable identification information is given to each area corresponding to the entrance and exit of one bridge or one tunnel, respectively. Identification information that can reach all areas where the moving body can move from the area to the area corresponding to the exit is given.

  More specifically, the assigning unit 105 has identification information “1” that is reachable to each region corresponding to an entrance and an exit of one bridge or one tunnel, for example, before the expansion process by the first changing unit. All areas located on the section connecting the area corresponding to the entrance and the area corresponding to the exit of one bridge or tunnel when there is a defect point on the one bridge or tunnel if it is granted Is changed to “1”. The section connecting the area corresponding to the entrance of one bridge or tunnel and the area corresponding to the exit may be a section corresponding to a road including a plurality of curves, or a single straight road. It may be a section.

  The contour data calculation unit 106 calculates the contour data of the contour of the reachable range given by the grant unit 105. For example, the outer contour of the reachable range is calculated by connecting the outermost contour to which the reachable identification information “1” is assigned.

  Further, the contour data calculation unit 106 can calculate a contour in a range where the moving body cannot reach within the reachable range. This unreachable range may occur in the form of a “hole” inside the reachable range. This hole corresponds to a region where a moving body cannot enter, such as a lake, a swamp, or a mountain on map information. Then, when there is an unreachable range in which the mobile object cannot enter within the reachable range, the contour data calculation unit 106 calculates the inner contour of this unreachable range.

  The reachable range and unreachable range outline of the mobile object can be calculated using, for example, a Freeman chain code. Both the reachable range and the unreachable range inside the reachable range can be calculated using the same chain code. Although details will be described later, the map information to which the identification information is added is scanned in the horizontal direction one line at a time in the vertical direction.

  The contour data calculation unit 106 includes a direction calculation unit 107. The direction calculation unit 107 calculates the direction when calculating the contour. Depending on the direction indicated by the identification information, it can be determined whether the contour is an outer contour or an inner contour, and the reachable range and the contour of the unreachable range can be detected. When scanning one line at a time, a point where identification information is first detected in one scan (identification point 1) is adjacent to the identification point 1 in the next or subsequent scan in either a vertical or horizontal direction. The detection direction of the location where the other identification information is detected (identification location 2) is added according to the chain code. At this time, the identification information detected with the detection direction of each identification information counterclockwise is an outer contour, and the identification information detected with the detection direction of each identification information clockwise is an inner contour.

  The contour data calculation unit 106 outputs a chain code value (sequence) for each piece of identification information for each of the outer contour indicating the reachable range and the inner contour indicating the unreachable range. At this time, the direction calculation unit 107 also outputs that the identification information detection direction (rotation direction on the map information) is clockwise or counterclockwise.

  The display control unit 108 causes the display unit 110 to display the reachable range of the moving object together with the map information based on the identification information of the region to which the identification information is given by the granting unit 105. Specifically, the display control unit 108 converts mesh data, which is a plurality of image data to which identification information has been added by the adding unit 105, into vector data, and displays it on the display unit 110 together with the map information stored in the storage unit. Let

  More specifically, the display control unit 108 extracts the contour of the reachable range of the moving object calculated by the contour data calculation unit 106 and causes the display unit 110 to display the contour. If there is an unreachable range within the reachable range, the contour is also extracted from the unreachable range and displayed on the display unit 110. At this time, the corresponding area in which the detection direction of the identification information is counterclockwise is displayed as the reachable range. Further, the corresponding area in which the detection direction of the identification information is clockwise is displayed as the unreachable range within the reachable range.

  Next, image processing by the image processing apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an image processing procedure performed by the image processing apparatus. In the flowchart of FIG. 2, the image processing apparatus 100 first uses the acquisition unit 101 to obtain information on the current location of the moving object and information on the initial amount of energy held by the moving object at the current location of the moving object. Are acquired (steps S201 and S202). At this time, the image processing apparatus 100 may also acquire moving body information.

  Then, the image processing apparatus 100 uses the calculation unit 102 to calculate an estimated energy consumption that is energy consumed when the moving body travels in a predetermined section (step S203). At this time, the image processing apparatus 100 calculates estimated energy consumption amounts in a plurality of predetermined sections connecting predetermined points on the route of the moving body. Next, the image processing apparatus 100 uses the search unit 103 based on the map information stored in the storage unit and the initial stored energy amount and the estimated energy consumption amount acquired in steps S202 and S203. A reachable point is searched (step S204).

  Next, the image processing apparatus 100 uses the dividing unit 104 to divide the map information made up of vector data into a plurality of regions and convert it into mesh data made up of raster data (step S205). Next, the image processing apparatus 100 assigns the reachable or unreachable identification information to each of the plurality of regions divided in step S205 based on the plurality of reachable points searched in step S204. (Step S206). After that, the image processing apparatus 100 causes the display control unit 108 to display the reachable range of the moving object on the display unit 110 based on the identification information of the plurality of areas to which the identification information is assigned in step S206 (step S207). If there is an unreachable range within the reachable range of the mobile object, the unreachable range is displayed based on the identification information of the plurality of areas to which the identification information is assigned in step S206 (step S208). Then, the process according to this flowchart is terminated.

  As described above, the image processing apparatus 100 according to the embodiment divides the map information into a plurality of areas, searches for each area to determine whether or not the moving body is reachable, and each area has a moving body. Reachable or unreachable identification information that identifies reachability or unreachability is added. Then, the image processing apparatus 100 generates a reachable range of the moving object based on the region to which reachable identification information is assigned. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 100 can generate the reachable range of the moving object in a state excluding areas where the moving object cannot travel, such as the sea, lakes, and mountain ranges. Therefore, the image processing apparatus 100 can accurately display the reachable range of the moving object.

  Further, the image processing apparatus 100 generates an unreachable range inside the reachable range of the moving object based on the region to which reachable identification information is assigned. Therefore, the image processing apparatus 100 can display the unreachable range when there is an unreachable range such as a lake, a swamp, or a mountain inside the reachable range of the moving object.

  Further, the image processing apparatus 100 converts a plurality of areas obtained by dividing the map information into image data, and assigns identification information that can be reached or cannot reach each of the plurality of areas, and then performs an expansion process of cloning. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 100 can remove missing points within the reachable range of the moving object.

  In addition, the image processing apparatus 100 converts a plurality of areas obtained by dividing the map information into image data, and assigns identification information indicating whether the plurality of areas are reachable or unreachable, and then performs an opening reduction process. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 100 can remove isolated points in the reachable range of the moving object.

  As described above, the image processing apparatus 100 can remove missing points and isolated points in the reachable range of the moving body, and therefore, the travelable range of the moving body can be displayed on a two-dimensional smooth surface in an easy-to-read manner. it can. The image processing apparatus 100 also extracts the outline of mesh data generated by dividing the map information into a plurality of regions. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 100 can display the outline of the reachable range of the moving object smoothly.

  In addition, the image processing apparatus 100 narrows down the road for searching for the reachable point of the moving object, and searches for the reachable point of the moving object. For this reason, the image processing apparatus 100 can reduce the processing amount at the time of searching the reachable point of a moving body. Even if the number of reachable reachable points is reduced by narrowing down the road to search for the reachable points of the mobile object, the expansion process of cloning is performed as described above, so that the reachable range of the mobile object is within the reachable range. The resulting defect point can be removed. Therefore, the image processing apparatus 100 can reduce the processing amount for generating the reachable range of the moving object. In addition, the image processing apparatus 100 can display the travelable range of the moving object in a two-dimensional smooth manner so that it can be easily seen.

  Example 1 of the present invention will be described below. In the present embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied will be described with the navigation apparatus 300 mounted on the vehicle as the image processing apparatus 100.

(Hardware configuration of navigation device 300)
Next, the hardware configuration of the navigation device 300 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the navigation apparatus. In FIG. 3, a navigation device 300 includes a CPU 301, ROM 302, RAM 303, magnetic disk drive 304, magnetic disk 305, optical disk drive 306, optical disk 307, audio I / F (interface) 308, microphone 309, speaker 310, input device 311, A video I / F 312, a display 313, a camera 314, a communication I / F 315, a GPS unit 316, and various sensors 317 are provided. Each component 301 to 317 is connected by a bus 320.

  The CPU 301 governs overall control of the navigation device 300. The ROM 302 records programs such as a boot program, an estimated energy consumption calculation program, a reachable point search program, an identification information addition program, and a map data display program. The RAM 303 is used as a work area for the CPU 301. That is, the CPU 301 controls the entire navigation device 300 by executing various programs recorded in the ROM 302 while using the RAM 303 as a work area.

  In the estimated energy consumption calculation program, an estimated energy consumption in a link connecting one node and an adjacent node is calculated based on a consumption energy estimation expression for calculating an estimated energy consumption of the vehicle. In the reachable point search program, a plurality of points (nodes) that can be reached with the remaining energy amount at the current point of the vehicle are searched based on the estimated energy consumption calculated in the estimation program. In the identification information addition program, identification information for identifying whether the vehicle is reachable or unreachable is assigned to a plurality of areas obtained by dividing the map information based on a plurality of reachable points searched in the search program. The In the map data display program, the reachable range and unreachable range of the vehicle, and the unreachable range inside the reachable range are displayed on the display 313 based on the plurality of areas to which the identification information is given by the identification information giving program. Display.

  The magnetic disk drive 304 controls the reading / writing of the data with respect to the magnetic disk 305 according to control of CPU301. The magnetic disk 305 records data written under the control of the magnetic disk drive 304. As the magnetic disk 305, for example, an HD (hard disk) or an FD (flexible disk) can be used.

  The optical disk drive 306 controls reading / writing of data with respect to the optical disk 307 according to the control of the CPU 301. The optical disk 307 is a detachable recording medium from which data is read according to the control of the optical disk drive 306. As the optical disc 307, a writable recording medium can be used. In addition to the optical disk 307, an MO, a memory card, or the like can be used as a removable recording medium.

  Examples of information recorded on the magnetic disk 305 and the optical disk 307 include map data, vehicle information, road information, travel history, and the like. Map data is used when searching for a reachable point of a vehicle in a car navigation system or when displaying a reachable range of a vehicle. This is vector data including road shape data that expresses the shape of the road by links and nodes.

  The audio I / F 308 is connected to a microphone 309 for audio input and a speaker 310 for audio output. The sound received by the microphone 309 is A / D converted in the sound I / F 308. For example, the microphone 309 is installed in a dashboard portion of a vehicle, and the number thereof may be one or more. From the speaker 310, a sound obtained by D / A converting a predetermined sound signal in the sound I / F 308 is output.

  Examples of the input device 311 include a remote controller having a plurality of keys for inputting characters, numerical values, various instructions, and the like, a keyboard, and a touch panel. The input device 311 may be realized by any one form of a remote control, a keyboard, and a touch panel, but can also be realized by a plurality of forms.

  The video I / F 312 is connected to the display 313. Specifically, the video I / F 312 is output from, for example, a graphic controller that controls the entire display 313, a buffer memory such as a VRAM (Video RAM) that temporarily records image information that can be displayed immediately, and a graphic controller. And a control IC for controlling the display 313 based on the image data to be processed.

  The display 313 displays icons, cursors, menus, windows, or various data such as characters and images. As the display 313, for example, a TFT liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, or the like can be used.

  The camera 314 captures images inside or outside the vehicle. The image may be either a still image or a moving image. For example, the outside of the vehicle is photographed by the camera 314, and the photographed image is analyzed by the CPU 301, or a recording medium such as the magnetic disk 305 or the optical disk 307 via the image I / F 312. Or output to

  The communication I / F 315 is connected to a network via wireless and functions as an interface between the navigation device 300 and the CPU 301. Communication networks that function as networks include in-vehicle communication networks such as CAN and LIN (Local Interconnect Network), public line networks and mobile phone networks, DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), LAN, and WAN. The communication I / F 315 is, for example, a public line connection module, an ETC (non-stop automatic fee payment system) unit, an FM tuner, a VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication System (registered trademark)) / beacon receiver, or the like.

  The GPS unit 316 receives radio waves from GPS satellites and outputs information indicating the current position of the vehicle. The output information of the GPS unit 316 is used when the CPU 301 calculates the current position of the vehicle together with output values of various sensors 317 described later. The information indicating the current position is information for specifying one point on the map data, such as latitude / longitude and altitude.

  The various sensors 317 output information for determining the position and behavior of the vehicle, such as a vehicle speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, and a tilt sensor. The output values of the various sensors 317 are used by the CPU 301 to calculate the current position of the vehicle and the amount of change in speed and direction.

  The acquisition unit 101, the calculation unit 102, the search unit 103, the dividing unit 104, the adding unit 105, and the display control unit 108 of the image processing apparatus 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 are the ROM 302, the RAM 303, the magnetic disk 305, the navigation device 300 described above. The CPU 301 executes a predetermined program using a program and data recorded on the optical disc 307 and the like, and realizes its function by controlling each unit in the navigation device 300.

(Outline of estimated energy consumption calculation by the navigation device 300)
The navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment calculates the estimated energy consumption of the vehicle on which the device itself is mounted. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 is one or more of energy consumption estimation formulas including first information, second information, and third information based on, for example, speed, acceleration, and vehicle gradient. Is used to calculate the estimated energy consumption of the vehicle in a predetermined section. The predetermined section is a link connecting one node (for example, an intersection) on the road and another node adjacent to the one node.

  More specifically, the navigation device 300 determines whether the vehicle is linked based on the traffic jam information provided by the probe, the traffic jam prediction data acquired through the server, the link length or road type stored in the storage device, and the like. The travel time required to finish driving is calculated. And the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption per unit time using either of the consumption energy estimation formulas shown in the following formulas (1) to (4), and the vehicle travels the link in the travel time. Calculate the estimated energy consumption when finishing.

  The energy consumption estimation formula shown in the above equation (1) is a theoretical formula for estimating the energy consumption per unit time during acceleration and traveling. Where ε is the net thermal efficiency and η is the total transmission efficiency. Assuming that the sum of the acceleration α of the moving object and the acceleration of gravity g from the road gradient θ is the combined acceleration | α |, the energy consumption estimation formula when the combined acceleration | α | is negative is expressed by the above equation (2). The That is, the energy consumption estimation formula shown in the above equation (2) is a theoretical formula for estimating the energy consumption per unit time during deceleration. Thus, the energy consumption estimation formula per unit time during acceleration / deceleration and travel is expressed by the product of travel resistance, travel distance, net motor efficiency, and transmission efficiency.

  In the above formulas (1) and (2), the first term on the right side is the energy consumption (first information) consumed by the equipment provided in the moving body, such as when idling. The second term on the right side is the energy consumption (fourth information) due to the gradient component and the energy consumption (third information) due to the rolling resistance component. The third term on the right side is energy consumption (third information) due to the air resistance component. Further, the fourth term on the right side of the equation (1) is the energy consumption (second information) by the acceleration component. The fourth term on the right side of equation (2) is the energy consumption (second information) due to the deceleration component.

  In the above formulas (1) and (2), the motor efficiency and the drive efficiency are considered to be constant. However, in practice, the motor efficiency and the driving efficiency vary due to the influence of the motor speed and torque. Therefore, the following equations (3) and (4) show empirical equations for estimating the energy consumption per unit time.

  The empirical formula for calculating the estimated energy consumption when the combined acceleration | α + g · sin θ | is positive, that is, the empirical formula for calculating the estimated energy consumption per unit time during acceleration and traveling is (3) It is expressed by a formula. The empirical formula for calculating the estimated energy consumption when the combined acceleration | α + g · sin θ | is negative, that is, the empirical formula for calculating the estimated energy consumption per unit time during deceleration is the following formula (4): It is represented by

  In the above formulas (3) and (4), the coefficients a1 and a2 are constants set according to the vehicle situation. The coefficient k1 is a variable based on the amount of energy consumed during traveling and stopping including acceleration / deceleration. The coefficients k2 and k3 are variables based on the energy consumption during traveling including acceleration / deceleration. Further, the speed V and the acceleration A are set, and other variables are the same as the above formulas (1) and (2). The first term on the right side corresponds to the first term on the right side of the above equations (1) and (2).

  In the above formulas (3) and (4), the second term on the right side is the energy of the gradient resistance component in the second term on the right side and the acceleration in the fourth term on the right side in the formulas (1) and (2). It corresponds to the energy of the resistance component. The third term on the right side corresponds to the energy of the rolling resistance component in the second term on the right side and the energy of the air resistance component in the third term on the right side in the above equations (1) and (2). Β in the second term on the right side of the equation (4) is the amount of potential energy and kinetic energy recovered (hereinafter referred to as “recovery rate”).

  Moreover, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the travel time required for the vehicle to travel on the link as described above, and calculates the average speed and average acceleration when the vehicle travels on the link. Then, the navigation device 300 uses the average speed and average acceleration of the vehicle at the link, and the vehicle travels on the link in the travel time based on the consumption energy estimation formula shown in the following equation (5) or (6). You may calculate the estimated energy consumption at the time of finishing.

  The energy consumption estimation formula shown in the above formula (5) is a theoretical formula for calculating the estimated energy consumption amount in the link when the altitude difference Δh of the link on which the vehicle travels is positive. The case where the altitude difference Δh is positive is a case where the vehicle is traveling uphill. The consumption energy estimation formula shown in the above equation (6) is a theoretical formula for calculating the estimated energy consumption amount in the link when the altitude difference Δh of the link on which the vehicle travels is negative. The case where the altitude difference Δh is negative is a case where the vehicle is traveling downhill. When there is no difference in altitude, it is preferable to use the energy consumption estimation formula shown in the above formula (5).

  In the above formulas (5) and (6), the first term on the right-hand side is the energy consumption (first information) consumed by the equipment provided in the moving body such as when idling. The second term on the right side is the energy consumption (second information) by the acceleration resistance. The third term on the right side is energy consumption consumed as potential energy (fourth information). The fourth term on the right side is the energy consumption (third information) due to the air resistance and rolling resistance (running resistance) received per unit area.

  When the road gradient is not clear, the navigation device 300 may calculate the estimated energy consumption amount of the vehicle by setting the road gradient θ = 0 in the energy consumption estimation equations shown in the above equations (1) to (6).

Next, the recovery rate β used in the above equations (1) to (6) will be described. In the above equation (5), if the second term on the right side is the energy consumption P _acc of the acceleration component in the link, the energy consumption P _acc of the acceleration component is _calculated from the total energy consumption (left side) of the link from the energy at idling. This is obtained by subtracting the amount of consumption (first term on the right side) and the amount of energy consumed by the running resistance (fourth term on the right side), and is expressed by the following equation (7).

  In the above equation (7), it is assumed that the vehicle is not affected by the road gradient θ (θ = 0). That is, the third term on the right side of the above equation (5) is set to zero. Then, by substituting the above equation (7) into the above equation (5), the calculation formula for the recovery rate β shown in the following equation (8) can be obtained.

  The recovery rate β is about 0.7 to 0.9 for EV vehicles, about 0.6 to 0.8 for HV vehicles, and about 0.2 to 0.3 for gasoline vehicles. The recovery rate of the gasoline vehicle is a ratio of energy required for acceleration and energy recovered for deceleration.

(Outline of reachable point search in the navigation device 300)
The navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment searches for a plurality of nodes that can be reached from the current location of the vehicle on which the device is mounted as reachable locations of the vehicle. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption in a link using any one or more of the consumption energy estimation formulas shown in the above formulas (1) to (6). Then, the navigation device 300 searches for a reachable node of the vehicle so as to make the reachable point so that the total of the estimated energy consumption in the link is minimized. Below, an example of the reachable point search by the navigation apparatus 300 is demonstrated.

  4A to 4D are explanatory diagrams schematically illustrating an example of reachable point search by the navigation device 300. FIG. In FIGS. 4-1 to 4-4, nodes (for example, intersections) of map data are indicated by circles, and links (predetermined sections on the road) connecting adjacent nodes are indicated by line segments (FIGS. 5-1 and 5- Similarly, nodes and links are shown for 2).

  As illustrated in FIG. 4A, the navigation device 300 first searches for a link L1_1 that is closest to the current location 400 of the vehicle. Then, navigation device 300 searches for node N1_1 connected to link L1_1 and adds it to a node candidate for searching for a reachable point (hereinafter simply referred to as “node candidate”).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption in the link L1_1 that connects the current point 400 of the vehicle and the node N1_1 that is the node candidate using the consumption energy estimation formula. Then, the navigation device 300 writes the estimated energy consumption 3wh in the link L1_1 to the storage device (magnetic disk 305 or optical disk 307) in association with the node N1_1, for example.

  Next, as illustrated in FIG. 4B, the navigation apparatus 300 searches for all links L2_1, L2_2, and L2_3 connected to the node N1_1 and searches for reachable points (hereinafter simply referred to as “links”). "Candidate"). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption in the link L2_1 using the consumption energy estimation formula.

  The navigation device 300 associates the accumulated energy amount 7wh obtained by accumulating the estimated energy consumption amount 4wh in the link L2_1 and the estimated energy consumption amount 3wh in the link L1_1 with the node N2_1 connected to the link L2_1, and stores the storage device (magnetic disk 305). Or the optical disc 307) (hereinafter referred to as “set cumulative energy amount to node”).

  Furthermore, similarly to the case of the link L2_1, the navigation device 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption in the links L2_2 and L2_3 using the energy consumption estimation formula. Then, the navigation apparatus 300 sets the accumulated energy amount 8wh obtained by accumulating the estimated energy consumption amount 5wh in the link L2_2 and the estimated energy consumption amount 3wh in the link L1_1 to the node N2_2 connected to the link L2_2.

  In addition, the navigation device 300 sets the accumulated energy amount 6wh obtained by accumulating the estimated energy consumption amount 3wh in the link L2_3 and the estimated energy consumption amount 3wh in the link L1_1 to the node N2_3 connected to the link L2_3. At this time, if the node for which the cumulative energy amount is set is not a node candidate, navigation device 300 adds the node to the node candidate.

  Next, as illustrated in FIG. 4C, the navigation device 300 includes all links L3_1 and L3_2_1 connected to the node N2_1, all links L3_2_2, L3_3, L3_4 connected to the node N2_2, and links connected to the node N2_3. L3_5 is searched for as a link candidate. Next, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption in link L3_1-link L3_5 using a consumption energy estimation formula.

  Then, the navigation apparatus 300 accumulates the estimated energy consumption 4wh in the link L3_1 to the accumulated energy amount 7wh set in the node N2_1, and sets the accumulated energy amount 11wh in the node N3_1 connected to the link L3_1. Also, the navigation apparatus 300 sets the cumulative energy amounts 13wh, 12wh, and 10wh for the nodes N3_3 to N3_5 that are respectively connected to the links L3_3 to L3_5 in the links L3_3 to L3_5 as in the case of the link L3_1.

  Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 accumulates the estimated energy consumption 5wh in the link L3_3 to the accumulated energy amount 8wh set in the node N2_2, and sets the accumulated energy amount 13wh in the node N3_3. The navigation device 300 accumulates the estimated energy consumption 4wh in the link L_3_4 to the accumulated energy amount 8wh set in the node N2_2, and sets the accumulated energy amount 12wh in the node N3_4. The navigation device 300 accumulates the estimated energy consumption 4wh in the link L3_5 to the accumulated energy amount 6wh set in the node N2_3, and sets the accumulated energy amount 10wh in the node N3_5.

  On the other hand, in the case where a plurality of links L3_2_1 and L3_2_2 are connected to one node like the node N3_2, the navigation device 300 includes a cumulative energy amount in a plurality of routes from the vehicle current point 400 to the one node N3_2. , The minimum accumulated energy amount 10wh is set in the one node N3_2.

  Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 accumulates the estimated energy consumption 4wh in the link L3_2_1 to the accumulated energy amount 7wh set in the node 2_1 (= total energy amount 11wh), and the estimated energy consumption amount 2wh in the link L3_2_2 is set to the node 2_2. Is accumulated in the accumulated energy amount 8wh set to (= total energy amount 10wh). Then, the navigation device 300 compares the cumulative energy amount 11wh of the route from the current point 400 of the vehicle to the link L3_2_1 with the cumulative energy amount 10wh of the route from the current point 400 of the vehicle to the link L3_2_2, and the minimum cumulative energy. The cumulative energy amount 10wh of the path on the link L3_2_2 side that is the amount is set to the node N3_2.

  When there are a plurality of nodes in the same hierarchy from the current location 400 of the vehicle, such as the above-described nodes N2_1 to N2_3, the navigation device 300, for example, from a link connected to a node having a low cumulative energy amount among the nodes at the same level. The estimated energy consumption and the cumulative energy amount are calculated in order. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the estimated energy consumption amount in the link connected to each node in the order of the node N2_3, the node N2_1, and the node N2_2, and accumulates the accumulated energy amount in each node. Thus, by specifying the order of the nodes for calculating the estimated energy consumption amount and the cumulative energy amount, it is possible to efficiently calculate the reachable range with the remaining energy amount.

  Thereafter, the navigation apparatus 300 continues to accumulate the accumulated energy amount as described above from the nodes N3_1 to N3_5 to the deeper level nodes. And the navigation apparatus 300 extracts all the nodes in which the cumulative energy amount below the preset designated energy amount was set as the reachable point of the vehicle, and the longitude and latitude information of the nodes extracted as the reachable points Write to the storage device in association with each node.

  Specifically, for example, when the designated energy amount is 10wh, the navigation device 300, as shown by a hatched circle in FIG. 4-4, is a node N1_1, for which a cumulative energy amount of 10wh or less is set. N2_1, N2_2, N2_3, N3_2, and N3_5 are extracted as reachable points of the vehicle. The designated energy amount set in advance is, for example, the remaining energy amount (initial stored energy amount) at the current point 400 of the vehicle.

  The map data 440 composed of the current location 400 of the vehicle and a plurality of nodes and links shown in FIG. 4-4 is an example for explaining the reachable location search, and the navigation device 300 is actually shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, more nodes and links are searched in a wider range than the map data 440 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 5A is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of reachable point search by the navigation device 300. As described above, when the cumulative energy amount is continuously calculated for all roads (excluding narrow streets), as shown in FIG. 5-1, the total energy amount in all nodes of each road is searched in detail without omission. can do. However, the estimated energy consumption of about 2 million links in Japan is calculated and accumulated, and the information processing amount of the navigation device 300 becomes enormous. For this reason, the navigation apparatus 300 may narrow down the road which searches for the reachable point of a mobile body based on the importance of a link etc., for example.

  FIG. 5B is an explanatory diagram illustrating another example of the reachable point search by the navigation device 300. Specifically, for example, the navigation device 300 calculates a cumulative energy amount on all roads (excluding narrow streets) around the current location 400 of the vehicle, and only high-importance roads are within a certain distance away. To calculate the total energy. Accordingly, as illustrated in FIG. 5B, the number of nodes and the number of links searched by the navigation device 300 can be reduced, and the information processing amount of the navigation device 300 can be reduced. Therefore, the processing speed of the navigation device 300 can be improved.

(Outline of map data division in navigation device 300)
The navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment divides the map data stored in the storage device based on the reachable point searched as described above. Specifically, the navigation device 300 converts map data composed of vector data into, for example, 64 × 64 dot mesh data (X, Y), and converts the map data into raster data (image data).

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an example showing the reachable point by the navigation device 300 in longitude-latitude. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an example in which a reachable point by the navigation device 300 is indicated by mesh data. FIG. 6 shows, in absolute coordinates, longitude and latitude information (x, y) of reachable points searched as shown in FIGS. 5-1, 5-2, for example. FIG. 7 illustrates screen data of 64 × 64 dot mesh data (X, Y) to which identification information is given based on reachable points.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the navigation apparatus 300 first generates longitude / latitude information (x, y) having a point group 600 in absolute coordinates based on the longitude x and latitude y of each of a plurality of reachable points. . The origin (0, 0) of the longitude / latitude information (x, y) is at the lower left of FIG. Then, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the distances w1 and w2 from the longitude ofx of the current point 400 of the vehicle to the maximum longitude x_max and the minimum longitude x_min of the reachable point farthest in the longitude x direction. Further, the navigation device 300 calculates the distances w3 and w4 from the latitude of the current point 400 of the vehicle to the maximum latitude y_max and the minimum latitude y_min of the reachable point farthest in the direction of the latitude y.

  Next, the navigation device 300 has a distance w2 (hereinafter, w5 = max (w1, w2) from the vehicle current point 400 to the minimum longitude x_min, which is the longest distance among the distances w1 to w4 from the vehicle current point 400. , W3, w4)), and map data including a plurality of reachable points so that the length of 1 / n becomes the length of one side of a rectangular element of mesh data (X, Y). For example, it is converted into mesh data (X, Y) of m × m dots (for example, 64 × 64 dots).

  Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 sets the ratio of 1 mesh and the size of longitude and latitude as the magnification mag = w5 / n, and the longitude / latitude information (x, y) and mesh data (X, Y) are the following ( The longitude / latitude information (x, y) is converted into mesh data (X, Y) so as to satisfy the expressions (9) and (10).

  X = (x−ofx) / mag (9)

  Y = (y-ofy) / mag (10)

  By converting the longitude / latitude information (x, y) into mesh data (X, Y), as shown in FIG. 7, the current location 400 of the vehicle is configured by mesh data (X, Y) of m × m dots. The mesh data (X, Y) of the current point 400 of the vehicle is the same in both the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, and X = Y = m / 2 = n + 4. Further, n = (m / 2) −4 is set in order to make, for example, four dots around the mesh data (X, Y) blank. Then, when the navigation device 300 converts the longitude / latitude information (x, y) into mesh data (X, Y), it gives identification information to each area of the mesh data (X, Y), and m rows m It is converted into mesh data of two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of columns.

  Specifically, when the reachable point of the vehicle is included in one area of the mesh data (X, Y), the navigation device 300 can be identified to identify that the vehicle can reach the one area. For example, “1” is given as the identification information (in FIG. 7, one dot is drawn in black, for example). On the other hand, when the reachable point of the vehicle is not included in one region of the mesh data (X, Y), the navigation device 300 cannot reach that vehicle that cannot reach the one region. For example, “0” is given as the identification information (in FIG. 7, one dot is drawn in white, for example).

  As described above, the navigation device 300 converts the map data into binarized map data of m rows and m columns of two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) obtained by adding identification information to each area obtained by dividing the map data. Treated as raster data. Each area of the mesh data is represented by a rectangular area within a certain range. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, m × m dot mesh data (X, Y) in which a point group 700 of a plurality of reachable points is drawn in black is generated. The origin (0, 0) of the mesh data (X, Y) is at the upper left.

(Outline of identification information assignment in the navigation device 300, part 1)
The navigation apparatus 300 according to the present embodiment changes the identification information given to each area of the m × m dot mesh data (X, Y) divided as described above. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 performs a cloning process (a process of performing a reduction process after the expansion process) on mesh data of m-dimensional data and m-dimensional two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X).

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of cloning processing by the navigation device. 8A to 8C are mesh data of two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of m rows and m columns in which identification information is assigned to each region. FIG. 8A shows mesh data 800 to which identification information is given for the first time after map data division processing. That is, the mesh data 800 shown in FIG. 8A is the same as the mesh data shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8B shows mesh data 810 after the cloning process (expansion) is performed on the mesh data 800 shown in FIG. 8A. FIG. 8C shows mesh data 820 after the cloning process (reduction) is performed on the mesh data 810 shown in FIG. 8B. In the mesh data 800, 810, and 820 shown in FIGS. 8 (A) to 8 (C), the vehicle reachable ranges 801, 811 and 821 generated by a plurality of regions to which reachable identification information is assigned are blacked out. It shows in the state.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, in the mesh data 800 after the identification information is given, a missing point 802 (in the reachable range 801 that is hatched) that is an unreachable area included in the reachable range 801 of the vehicle. White background). For example, as shown in FIG. 5B, the missing point 802 is a node that becomes a reachable point when narrowing down roads to search for nodes and links in order to reduce the load of reachable point search processing by the navigation device 300. This occurs when the number is reduced.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 8B, the navigation device 300 performs an expansion process of cloning on the mesh data 800 after the identification information is given. In the expansion process of cloning, the identification information of one area adjacent to the area to which reachable identification information is added in the mesh data 800 after the identification information is added is changed to reachable identification information. As a result, the missing portion 802 generated in the reachable range 801 of the vehicle before the expansion process (after the identification information is given) disappears.

  Moreover, the identification information of all the areas adjacent to the outermost area of the reachable range 801 of the vehicle before the expansion process is changed to the reachable identification information. For this reason, the outer periphery of the reachable range 811 of the vehicle after the expansion process is one dot at a time so as to surround the outer periphery of each outermost region of the reachable range 801 of the vehicle before the expansion process every time the expansion process is performed. spread.

  Thereafter, as illustrated in FIG. 8C, the navigation device 300 performs a cloning reduction process on the mesh data 810. In the reduction process of cloning, the identification information of one area adjacent to the area to which the unreachable identification information is added in the mesh data 810 after the expansion process is changed to the unreachable identification information.

  For this reason, each area on the outermost periphery of the reachable range 811 of the vehicle after the expansion process becomes an area that cannot be reached by one dot every time the reduction process is performed, and the reachable range 811 of the vehicle after the expansion process is reached. The outer circumference shrinks. Thereby, the outer periphery of the reachable range 821 of the vehicle after the reduction process is substantially the same as the outer periphery of the reachable range 801 of the vehicle before the expansion process.

  The navigation device 300 performs the expansion process and the reduction process described above by the same number of times. Specifically, when the expansion process is performed twice, the subsequent reduction process is also performed twice. By equalizing the number of times of the expansion process and the reduction process, the identification information of almost all areas in the outer periphery of the reachable range of the vehicle that has been changed to the identification information that can be reached by the expansion process is restored to the original information by the reduction process. It can be changed to unreachable identification information. In this way, the navigation device 300 can remove the missing point 802 in the reachable range of the vehicle and generate the reachable range 821 of the vehicle that can clearly display the outer periphery.

(Outline of identification information addition in the navigation device 300, part 2)
The navigation device 300 performs an opening process (a process of performing an expansion process after the reduction process) on the mesh data of the two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X), and generates a vehicle reachable range in which the outer periphery can be clearly displayed. May be. Specifically, the navigation device 300 performs an opening process as follows.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the opening process by the navigation device. FIGS. 9A to 9C are mesh data of two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of m rows and m columns in which identification information is assigned to each region. FIG. 9A shows mesh data 1000 after identification information is given. FIG. 9B shows mesh data 1010 after the opening process (reduction) with respect to FIG. FIG. 9C shows mesh data 1020 after the opening process (expansion) with respect to FIG. 9B. In mesh data 1000, 1010, and 1020 shown in FIGS. 9A to 9C, vehicle reachable ranges 1001, 1011, and 1021 generated by a plurality of areas to which reachable identification information is assigned are shown. Shown in black.

  As shown in FIG. 9A, when there are many isolated points 1002 on the outer periphery of the reachable range 1001 of the vehicle in the mesh data 1000 after the identification information is added, the mesh data 1000 after the identification information is added is opened. By performing the processing, the isolated point 1002 can be removed. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9B, the navigation device 300 performs an opening reduction process on the mesh data 1000 after the identification information is given.

  In the opening reduction process, the identification information of one area adjacent to the area to which the unreachable identification information is added in the mesh data 1000 after the identification information is added is changed to the unreachable identification information. As a result, the isolated point 1002 generated in the reachable range 1001 of the vehicle before the reduction process (after the identification information is given) is removed.

  For this reason, each area of the outermost periphery of the reachable range 1001 of the vehicle after the identification information is added becomes an area that cannot be reached by one dot every time the reduction process is performed, and the reachable range of the vehicle after the identification information is given The outer periphery of 1001 shrinks. Further, the isolated point 1002 generated in the reachable range 1001 of the vehicle after the identification information is given is removed.

  Thereafter, as illustrated in FIG. 9C, the navigation device 300 performs an opening expansion process on the mesh data 1010. In the opening expansion process, the identification information of one area adjacent to the area to which the unreachable identification information is added in the mesh data 1010 after the reduction process is changed to the reachable identification information. For this reason, the outer periphery of the reachable range 1021 of the vehicle after the expansion process is one dot at a time so as to surround the outer periphery of each outermost region of the reachable range 1011 of the vehicle after the reduction process every time the expansion process is performed. spread.

  In the opening process, the navigation device 300 performs the expansion process and the reduction process the same number of times as in the cloning process. Thus, by equalizing the number of times of the expansion process and the reduction process, the outer periphery of the reachable range 1011 of the vehicle shrunk by the reduction process is expanded, and the outer periphery of the vehicle reachable range 1021 after the reduction process is expanded before the reduction process. Can be returned to the outer periphery of the reachable range 1001 of the vehicle. In this way, the navigation apparatus 300 can generate the vehicle reachable range 1021 in which the isolated point 1002 does not occur and the outer periphery can be clearly displayed.

(Outline of outline extraction of reachable range in navigation device 300, part 1)
The navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment extracts the outline of the reachable range of the vehicle based on the identification information given to the mesh data of the two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of m rows and m columns. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 extracts the outline of the reachable range of the vehicle using, for example, a Freeman chain code. More specifically, the navigation device 300 extracts the outline of the reachable range of the vehicle as follows.

  FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of vehicle reachable range extraction by the navigation device. Moreover, FIG. 11 is explanatory drawing which shows typically an example of the mesh data after vehicle reachable range extraction by a navigation apparatus. FIG. 10A shows numbers indicating the adjacent directions of the areas 1110 to 1117 adjacent to the area 1100 (hereinafter referred to as “direction index (chain code)”) and arrows in eight directions corresponding to the direction index. . FIG. 10B shows mesh data 1120 of two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of i rows and i columns as an example. In FIG. 10B, regions 1121 to 1138 to which reachable identification information is assigned are indicated by hatching. In addition, areas 1140 to 1142 to which unreachable identification information is assigned exist in areas 1121 to 1138 to which reachable identification information is assigned (illustrated in white).

  The direction index indicates the direction in which the unit length line segment is facing. In the mesh data (X, Y), the coordinates corresponding to the direction index are (X + dx, Y + dy). Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10A, the direction index in the direction from the region 1100 toward the region 1110 adjacent to the lower left is “0”. The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 to the adjacent region 1111 is “1”. The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 toward the region 1112 adjacent to the lower right is “2”.

  The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 to the region 1113 adjacent to the right is “3”. The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 toward the region 1114 adjacent to the upper right is “4”. The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 toward the adjacent region 1115 is “5”. The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 toward the region 1116 adjacent to the upper left is “6”. The direction index in the direction from the region 1100 toward the region 1117 adjacent to the left is “7”.

  The navigation device 300 searches the area 1100 adjacent to the area 1100 and provided with the reachable identification information “1” counterclockwise. In other words, the navigation device 300 searches for a region to which the reachable identification information “1” is assigned, for example, using the region 1110 as a search start point, counterclockwise around the region 1100. Here, the navigation apparatus 300 determines the search start point of the area | region to which the reachable identification information adjacent to the area | region 1100 was provided based on the last direction index | exponent. Specifically, when the direction index from another area toward area 1100 is “0”, navigation apparatus 300 is adjacent to area 1100, that is, adjacent to the direction of direction index “5”. 1115 is determined, and the search is started from the area 1115.

  Similarly, when the direction index from another region toward the region 1100 is “1” to “7”, the navigation device 300 is adjacent to the upper left, left, lower left, lower, lower right, right, and upper right of the region 1100. Matching areas, that is, areas 1116, 1117, 1110, 1111 adjacent to each other in the directions of direction indices “6”, “7”, “0”, “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, respectively. , Region 1112, region 1113, and region 1114 are determined, and the search is started from the determined region. When the navigation apparatus 300 detects the reachable identification information “1” for the first time after starting the search, the direction index “0” corresponding to the areas 1110 to 1117 in which the reachable identification information “1” is detected. ”To“ 7 ”are written in the storage device in association with the area 1100.

  Using such a start region that starts the search counterclockwise around the target region, which is determined based on the direction index to the target region, the navigation device 300 is as follows. The contour of the reachable range of the vehicle is extracted. Note that the relationship between the direction index to the target region and the start region where the search is started is an example, and the contour of the reachable range of the vehicle can be extracted with other relationships. As shown in FIG. 10 (B), the navigation device 300 cannot be reached in units of rows from the region of a row and a column of the mesh data 1120 of the two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of i row and i column. An area that has changed from an area assigned identification information to an area assigned reachable identification information is detected.

  Since unreachable identification information is given to all the regions in the a-th row of the mesh data 1120, the navigation apparatus 300 next moves the b-row and i-th column from the b-row and a-column region of the mesh data 1120. Search for identification information that can be reached toward the area. Then, the navigation device 300 detects the reachable identification information (the first start point of the contour detection) in the region 1121 in the b row f column of the mesh data 1120 by scanning the b row in the horizontal direction. And the area | region which has the reachable identification information used as the outline of the reachable range of a vehicle is searched counterclockwise centering on the area | region 1121 of b row f column of the mesh data 1120 which is the 1st start point of outline detection. .

  Specifically, the navigation device 300 determines the region 1122 adjacent to the lower left of the region 1121 because the direction index to the region 1121 by the scanning in the horizontal direction is “3”, and determines from the determined region 1122 to the region 1121. It is searched whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise around the center. Then, the navigation apparatus 300 detects the reachable identification information of the area 1122 and stores the direction index “0” in the direction from the area 1121 to the area 1122 in the storage device in association with the area 1121.

  Next, since the navigation apparatus 300 has the previous direction index “0”, the navigation apparatus 300 determines a region of b rows and e columns adjacent to the region 1122, and centers the region 1122 from the determined region of b rows and e columns. As a counterclockwise search for whether there is an area having reachable identification information. The navigation apparatus 300 detects the reachable identification information of the area 1123 adjacent to the lower left of the area 1122 and stores the direction index “0” in the direction from the area 1122 to the area 1123 in association with the previous direction index. Store in the device.

  Thereafter, the navigation device 300 determines a search start point based on the previous direction index, and uses the direction index as a process for searching whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the search start point. The process is repeated until the corresponding arrow returns to the area 1121. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 determines an adjacent area on the area 1123, and determines whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the determined area centering on the area 1123. Retrieval is performed, the reachable identification information of the area 1124 adjacent below the area 1123 is detected, and the direction index “1” is stored in the storage device in association with the previous direction index.

  Similarly, after determining the search start point based on the previous direction index, the navigation device 300 searches for an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the search start point, and an area having reachable identification information 1124 to 1134 are sequentially detected. Then, every time the navigation device 300 acquires the direction index, the navigation device 300 associates it with the previous direction index and stores it in the storage device.

  After that, the navigation device 300 determines the c rows and h columns adjacent to the right of the region 1134, and the region having the reachable identification information is located in the counterclockwise direction from the determined region of the c rows and h columns around the region 1134. A search is performed to determine whether or not there is, reachable identification information of the area 1121 adjacent to the upper left of the area 1134 is detected, and the direction index “6” is stored in the storage device in association with the previous direction index. As a result, the direction index “0” → “0” → “1” → “0” → “2” → “3” → “4” → “3” → “2” → “5” → “5” → “5” → “6” → “6” is stored in this order. The continuous arrangement of the direction indices stored in this way represents the outline of the reachable range as shown in FIG. Also, the direction of the outline of the reachable range, which is represented by the direction of the continuous arrow of the direction index, is counterclockwise as shown in FIG. This indicates that the region that is the outline of the reachable range is searched counterclockwise.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 extracts another outline of the reachable range. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10 (B), the region 1121 in the b row and f column of the mesh data 1120 is reached from the region to which unreachable identification information is given by scanning in the b row in the horizontal direction. Other areas that have changed to areas to which possible identification information is assigned are detected. That is, the second start point for contour detection is detected. At this time, since the region once extracted as the outline of the reachable range is excluded from the detection, the region 1122 and the region 1123 are not detected as the second start point of the contour detection.

  In this manner, the region 1135 of the d row and the g column is detected as the start point of another contour in the reachable range, that is, the second start point of the contour detection. And the area | region which has the reachable identification information used as the outline of the reachable range of a vehicle is searched counterclockwise centering on the area | region 1135 of d line g column of the mesh data 1120 which is a 2nd start point of outline detection. .

  Specifically, the navigation device 300 determines the region 1142 adjacent to the lower left of the region 1135 because the direction index to the region 1135 is “3” by scanning in the horizontal direction, and the determined region 1135 is the center. It is searched whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise. Then, the navigation device 300 detects the reachable identification information of the region 1132 and stores the direction index “2” in the direction from the region 1135 to the region 1132 in association with the region 1135 in the storage device.

  Next, since the navigation apparatus 300 has the previous direction index “2”, it determines an area of e rows and g columns adjacent to the left of the area 1132, and centers the area 1132 from the determined area of e rows and g columns. As a result of searching whether there is an area having reachable identification information in the counterclockwise direction, reachable identification information of the area 1129 is detected, and the direction index “0” in the direction from the area 1132 to the area 1129 is set. And stored in the storage device in association with the previous direction index.

  Thereafter, the navigation device 300 determines a search start point based on the previous direction index, and uses the direction index as a process for searching whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the search start point. Repeat until the corresponding arrow returns to region 1135. As a result, the direction index “2” → “0” → “7” → “6” → “5” → “4” is stored in the storage device as the outline of the reachable range starting from the area 1135 of the second start point. "→" 2 "is stored in this order. The continuous arrangement of the direction indexes stored in this way represents the second contour of the reachable range as shown in FIG. In addition, the direction of the second outline of the reachable range represented by the direction of the arrow having the continuous direction index is clockwise as shown in FIG. This indicates that the region that is the outline of the reachable range has been searched clockwise.

  Further, the navigation device 300 extracts other contours of the reachable range. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10B, the mesh data 1120 reaches from the region 1135 in the d row and the g column from the region to which the identification information that cannot be reached is given by scanning the d row in the horizontal direction. Other areas that have changed to areas to which possible identification information is assigned are detected. That is, the third and subsequent start points for contour detection are detected. At this time, the area once searched as the outline of the reachable range is excluded from detection. This scanning continues until i rows and i columns.

  As described above, the navigation device 300 determines the search start point from the first detected region 1121 based on the previous direction index, and whether there is a region having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the search start point. By repeating this search process until the arrow corresponding to the direction index returns to the area 1121, the areas 1122 to 1134 are searched to acquire the direction index. Further, from the next detected area 1135, similarly, the search start point is determined based on the previous direction index, and it is searched whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the search start point. By repeating the processing until the arrow corresponding to the direction index returns to the area 1135, the area 1132, the area 1129, the area 1128, the area 1136, the area 1137, and the area 1138 are searched to acquire the direction index. Then, the navigation device 300 is surrounded by the contour 1201 of the reachable range of the vehicle and the contour 1201 as shown in FIG. 11 by painting a series of regions in the direction corresponding to the direction index from the region 1121 and the region 1135. The mesh data having the reachable range 1200 excluded from the portion surrounded by the contour 1203 is generated.

  Further, the navigation device 300 determines a search start point based on the previous direction index, and corresponds to the direction index for a process of searching whether there is an area having identification information that can be reached counterclockwise from the search start point. As shown in FIG. 10 (b), the continuous trajectory of the direction index obtained by repeating until the arrow to return to the original area is counterclockwise (counterclockwise) in the outer contour of the reachable range of the vehicle. ) In addition, when there is an unreachable range inside the reachable range of the vehicle, the direction index of the inner contour of the reachable range in contact with the unreachable range is clockwise (clockwise). That is, if the direction of the continuous arrow of the direction index is determined to be clockwise or counterclockwise, whether the contour indicated by the direction of the continuous arrow of the direction index is the outer contour of the reachable range, It is possible to determine whether the inner contour of the reachable range exists when the reachable range exists inside the reachable range.

(Outline of outline extraction of reachable range in navigation device 300, part 2)
Another example of vehicle reachable range extraction by the navigation device 300 of the present embodiment will be described. For example, the navigation device 300 may extract the outline of the reachable range of the vehicle based on the longitude and latitude information of the mesh data of the two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) to which reachable identification information is assigned. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 extracts the outline of the reachable range of the vehicle as follows.

  FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating another example of vehicle reachable range extraction by the navigation device. The mesh data 1300 of the two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X) of d rows and i columns as shown in FIG. 12 will be described as an example. The navigation device 300 searches the mesh data 1300 for the region to which the reachable identification information “1” is assigned. Specifically, the navigation apparatus 300 first searches for identification information “1” that can be reached from the area of the a row and the a column to the area of the a row and the i column.

  Since unreachable identification information “0” is assigned to all the regions in the a-th row of the mesh data 1300, the navigation device 300 next moves the region from the b-th row a-column to the b-th row i-th column. A region having identification information “1” that can be reached is searched. Then, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires the minimum longitude px1 and the minimum latitude py1 (upper left coordinates of the area 1301) of the area 1301 in the b row and c column having the reachable identification information “1”.

  Next, the navigation device 300 searches for an area having identification information “1” that can be reached from the area of b rows and d columns toward the area of b rows and i columns. Then, the navigation device 300 searches for a boundary between the area having the reachable identification information “1” and the area having the reachable identification information “0”, and b rows having the reachable identification information “1”. The maximum longitude px2 and the maximum latitude py2 (lower right coordinates of the region 1302) of the region 1302 in the f column are acquired.

  Next, the navigation device 300 has a rectangular area whose apexes are the upper left coordinates (px1, py1) of the area 1301 of b rows and c columns and the lower right coordinates (px2, py2) of the area 1302 of b rows and f columns. Fill.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 searches the mesh data 1300 for identification information “1” that can be reached from the b row g column to the b row i column area and further from the c row a column to the c row i column. The navigation apparatus 300 acquires the minimum longitude px3 and the minimum latitude py3 (upper left coordinates of the area 1303) of the area 1303 in the c row and d column having the reachable identification information “1”.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 searches for an area having identification information “1” that can be reached from the area of the c row and the e column toward the area of the c row and the i column. Then, the navigation apparatus 300 searches for a boundary between the area having the reachable identification information “1” and the area having the reachable identification information “0”, and row c having the reachable identification information “1”. The maximum longitude px4 and the maximum latitude py4 (lower right coordinates of the region 1304) of the region 1304 in the f column are acquired.

  Next, the navigation device 300 has a rectangular area whose apexes are the upper left coordinates (px3, py3) of the area 1303 of c row and d column and the lower right coordinates (px4, py4) of the area 1304 of c row and f column. Fill.

  After that, the navigation apparatus 300 searches for an area having identification information “1” that can be reached from the area of the c row and the g column to the area of the c row and the i column and further from the d row and the a column to the d row and the i column. . The navigation device 300 ends the process because the unreachable identification information “0” is assigned to all the areas from the c row and g column area to the d row and i column.

  In this way, by filling the area having the reachable identification information “1” for each row of the mesh data 1300 of the two-dimensional matrix data (Y, X), the reachable range of the vehicle and the reachable range of the vehicle are set. The contour can be acquired.

  Even if there is an unreachable range within the reachable range of the vehicle, the contour of the unreachable range can be obtained by changing (returning) part of the fill by performing the same process as above for the unreachable range. Can be obtained.

(Image processing in the navigation device 300)
As described above, the navigation device 300 generates a reachable range of the moving object based on the reachable node of the moving object searched based on the remaining energy amount of the vehicle, and causes the display 313 to display the reachable range. Hereinafter, for example, a case where the navigation device 300 is mounted on an EV car will be described as an example.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an image processing procedure performed by the navigation device. In the flowchart of FIG. 13, the navigation device 300 first acquires the current location (ofx, ofy) of the vehicle on which the device is mounted, for example, via the communication I / F 315 (step S1301). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires the initial stored energy amount of the vehicle at the current location (ofx, ofy) of the vehicle, for example, via the communication I / F 315 (step S1302).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 performs a reachable node search process (step S1303). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 performs mesh data generation and identification information addition processing (step S1304). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 extracts the contours of the reachable range and the unreachable range of the vehicle (step S1305). Thereafter, the navigation device 300 displays the reachable range of the vehicle on the display 313 (step S1306), and ends the processing according to this flowchart.

(Estimated power consumption calculation process in the navigation device 300)
Next, the estimated power consumption calculation process by the navigation device 300 will be described. FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of estimated power consumption calculation processing by the navigation device. In the flowchart shown in FIG. 14, it is the process performed by the reachable node search process of step S1303 mentioned above.

  In the flowchart of FIG. 14, the navigation device 300 first acquires traffic jam information such as probe data and traffic jam prediction data via the communication I / F 315 (step S1401). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires the length of the link and the road type of the link (step S1402).

  Next, the navigation device 300 calculates the travel time of the link based on the information acquired in steps S1401 and S1402 (step S1403). The travel time of the link is the time required for the vehicle to finish traveling on the link. Next, the navigation device 300 calculates the average link speed based on the information acquired in steps S1401 to S1403 (step S1404). The average speed of the link is an average speed when the vehicle travels on the link.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires the altitude data of the link (step S1405). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires vehicle setting information (step S1406). Next, based on the information acquired in steps S1401 to S1406, the navigation apparatus 300 uses one or more of the above-described energy consumption estimation formulas (1) to (6) to estimate the consumption at the link. The amount of electric power is calculated (step S1407), and the processing according to this flowchart ends.

(Reachable point search process in the navigation device 300)
Next, reachable point search processing by the navigation device 300 will be described. 15A and 15B are flowcharts illustrating the procedure of reachable point search processing by the navigation device. The navigation device 300 adds the node N (i) _j connected to the link L (i) _j closest to the search start point to the node candidates (step S1501). The search start point is the current point (ofx, ofy) of the vehicle acquired in step S1301 described above.

  The variables i and j are arbitrary numerical values. For example, a link and a node closest to the search start point are a link L (1) _j and a node N (1) _j, respectively, and are further connected to the node N (1) _j. A node connecting the link to the link L (2) _j and the node connecting to the link L (2) _j may be a node N (2) _j (j = 1, 2,..., J1). The variable j1 is an arbitrary numerical value and means that a plurality of links or nodes exist in the same hierarchy.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether there are one or more node candidates (step S1502). When there is one or more node candidates (step S1502: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 selects a node candidate with the minimum cumulative power consumption from the current point of the vehicle to the node candidate (step S1503). For example, the following processing will be described assuming that the navigation device 300 selects the node N (i) _j as a node candidate.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether or not the cumulative power consumption from the current point of the vehicle to the node N (i) _j is less than or equal to the specified energy amount (step S1504). The designated energy amount is, for example, the remaining energy amount of the vehicle at the current location of the vehicle. If it is equal to or less than the specified energy amount (step S1504: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 extracts all links L (i + 1) _j connected to the node N (i) _j (step S1505).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 selects one link L (i + 1) _j among the links L (i + 1) _j extracted in step S1505 (step S1506). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 performs candidate determination processing for determining whether or not the one link L (i + 1) _j selected in step S1506 is a link candidate (steps S1507 and S1508).

  When one link L (i + 1) _j is set as a link candidate (step S1508: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 performs a power consumption calculation process for the one link L (i + 1) _j (step S1509). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 calculates the cumulative power consumption W (i + 1) _j up to the node N (i + 1) _j connected to one link L (i + 1) _j (step S1510). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether there is another processed route connected to the node N (i + 1) _j (step S1511).

  If there is another route that has been processed (step S1511: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 determines that the cumulative power consumption W (i + 1) _j from the current point of the vehicle to the node N (i + 1) _j is the cumulative amount of the other route. It is determined whether or not it is smaller than the power consumption (step S1512). If the accumulated power consumption is smaller than the other route (step S1512: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 causes the node N (i + 1) _j to accumulate the accumulated power consumption W from the current point of the vehicle to the node N (i + 1) _j. (I + 1) _j is set (step S1513).

  On the other hand, when there is no other processed route (step S1511: No), the navigation apparatus 300 proceeds to step S1513. Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether or not the node N (i + 1) _j is a node candidate (step S1514). If not a node candidate (step S1514: No), the navigation apparatus 300 adds the node N (i + 1) _j to the node candidate (step S1515).

  When one link L (i + 1) _j is not a link candidate (step S1508: No), the accumulated power consumption W (i + 1) _j from the current point of the vehicle to the node N (i + 1) _j is another route. If the node N (i + 1) _j is a node candidate (step S1514: Yes), the navigation device 300 proceeds to step S1516.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether or not the candidate determination process for all links L (i + 1) _j has been completed (step S1516). When the candidate determination process for all links L (i + 1) _j is completed (step S1516: Yes), the node N (i) _j is excluded from the node candidates (step S1517), and the process returns to step S1502. Then, when there is one or more node candidates (step S1502: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 selects a node candidate having the minimum cumulative power consumption from the current location of the vehicle from the node candidates (step S1503). Then, the node candidate selected in step S1503 is set as the next node N (i) _j, and the processing from step S1504 is performed.

  On the other hand, if the candidate determination process for all links L (i + 1) _j is not completed (step S1516: No), the process returns to step S1506. The navigation device 300 selects another link L (i + 1) _j connected to the node N (i) _j again, and performs candidate determination processing for all the links L (i + 1) _j connected to the same node candidate. Until the process ends (step S1516: Yes), the processes from step S1507 to step S1515 are repeated. If there is no one or more node candidates (step S1502: No), the cumulative power consumption from the current point of the vehicle to the node N (i) _j is larger than the specified energy amount (step S1504: No), the navigation device 300 terminates the processing according to this flowchart.

(Identification information adding process in the navigation device 300)
Next, the identification information giving process by the navigation device 300 will be described. FIG. 16A is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of identification information provision processing by the navigation device. The flowchart in FIG. 16A is a process performed in step S1304 described above.

  In the flowchart of FIG. 16A, the navigation apparatus 300 first acquires longitude / latitude information (x, y) of a reachable node (searchable point) (step S1701). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires the maximum longitude x_max, the minimum longitude x_min, the maximum latitude y_max, and the minimum latitude y_min (step S1702).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines the distance w1 from the current vehicle location (ofx, ofy) acquired in step S1301 to the maximum longitude x_max, the distance w2 to the minimum longitude x_min, the distance w3 to the maximum latitude y_max, and the minimum latitude. A distance w4 to y_min is calculated (step S1703). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 acquires the longest distance w5 = max (w1, w2, w3, w4) among the distances w1 to w4 (step S1704).

  Next, the navigation device 300 calculates the magnification mag = w5 / n for converting the map data stored in the storage device from the absolute coordinate system to the screen coordinate system (step S1705). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 converts the map data from the absolute coordinate system to the screen coordinate system using the magnification mag calculated in step S1705, and generates m × m dot mesh data (X, Y) (step S1706). ).

  In step S1706, the navigation apparatus 300 gives reachable identification information to the mesh data (X, Y) including the reachable node, and cannot reach the mesh data (X, Y) that does not include the reachable node. The identification information is assigned. And the navigation apparatus 300 removes the missing point of the mesh data (X, Y) corresponding to a bridge or a tunnel by performing a 1st identification information change process (step S1707).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 performs a second identification information change process (step S1708). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 performs a third identification information change process (step S1709), and ends the process according to this flowchart. The second identification information changing process is a cloning expansion process. The third identification information change process is a cloning reduction process. In this flowchart, the second identification information change process (step S1708) and the third identification information change process (step S1709) are performed after the first identification information change process (step S1707). After the change process (step S1708) and the third identification information change process (step S1709), the first identification information change process (step S1707) may be performed.

(First Identification Information Changing Process in Navigation Device 300)
Next, the first identification information changing process by the navigation device 300 will be described. FIG. 16-2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of first identification information change processing by the navigation device. The flowchart in FIG. 16B is an example of the process performed in step S1707 described above. Specifically, when the identification information of each area corresponding to the entrance and exit of the bridge or tunnel is reachable identification information, the navigation device 300 detects the missing point generated in the area corresponding to the bridge or tunnel. Remove.

  In the flowchart of FIG. 16B, the navigation apparatus 300 first acquires mesh data of two-dimensional matrix data of my rows and mx columns (step S1711). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 substitutes 1 for the variables i and j in order to search the identification information of the area of the i row and j column of the mesh data (steps S1712 and S1713). Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether or not the area in the i-th row and j-th column of the mesh data is a bridge or tunnel entrance / exit (step S1714).

  When the i-th row and j-th column region is the entrance of a bridge or tunnel (step S1714: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether or not the identification information of the i-th row and j-th column region of the mesh data is “1”. (Step S1715). When the identification information of the i-th row and j-th column area is “1” (step S1715: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 corresponds to the i-th row and j-th column area of the mesh data and the other entrance / exit area of the bridge or tunnel. Position (i1, j1) is acquired (step S1716).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 determines whether the identification information of the area | region of i1 row j1 column of mesh data is "1" (step S1717). When the identification information of the area of i1 row j1 column is “1” (step S1717: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 determines that all the areas on the section connecting the i row j column area and the i1 row j1 column area are present. The position information of the area is acquired (step S1718).

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 changes the identification information of each area acquired in step S1718 to “1” (step S1719). As a result, the missing point generated in the region corresponding to the bridge or tunnel connecting the region of i row and j column and the region of i1 row and j1 column is removed. The navigation apparatus 300 may proceed to step S1720 without performing the process of step S1719 when the identification information of each area acquired in step S1718 is all “1”.

  Further, when the region of i row and j column is not the entrance of the bridge or tunnel (step S1714: No), when the identification information of the region of i row and j column is not “1” (step S1715: No), and i1 row j1 If the identification information of the row area is not “1” (step S1717: No), the navigation apparatus 300 proceeds to step S1720.

  Next, the navigation apparatus 300 adds 1 to the variable j (step S1720), and determines whether the variable j exceeds the mx column (step S1721). If the variable j does not exceed the mx column (step S1721: NO), the navigation device 300 returns to step S1714 and repeats the subsequent processing. On the other hand, when the variable j exceeds the mx column (step S1721: Yes), the navigation apparatus 300 adds 1 to the variable i (step S1722), and determines whether the variable i exceeds the my row. (Step S1723).

  If the variable i does not exceed the my line (step S1723: NO), the navigation apparatus 300 returns to step S1713, substitutes 1 for the variable j, and then repeats the subsequent processing. On the other hand, when the variable i exceeds the my line (step S1723: Yes), the navigation device 300 ends the process according to the flowchart. Thereby, the navigation apparatus 300 can remove all missing points on the bridge or tunnel included in the mesh data of the two-dimensional matrix data of my rows and mx columns.

  In addition, the navigation device 300 determines again whether or not the region of the column i1 and j1 acquired as the other entrance / exit of the bridge or tunnel in step S1716 is the other entrance / exit of the bridge or tunnel (processing in step S1714). ) Is not necessary. Thereby, the navigation apparatus 300 can reduce the processing amount of a 1st identification information change process.

(Area reachable range extraction process in navigation device 300)
Next, the identification information giving process by the navigation device 300 will be described. FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a reachable range contour extraction process performed by the navigation device. The flowchart in FIG. 17 is an example of the process performed in step S1305 described above.

  As shown in FIG. 10B, the contour data calculation unit 106 of the navigation device 300 scans the mesh data of the two-dimensional matrix by +1 from the upper left end of the image in the x direction (eastward direction) and reaches the right end. Proceed +1 in the y direction (south direction) (step S1801). Then, the color of the current pixel is confirmed, a pixel that changes from white to black (identification information “0” → “1”) is searched, and this pixel (region 1121 in FIG. 10B) is set as a tracking start pixel ( Step S1802).

  Next, it is determined whether the tracking start pixel is a part of a previously extracted contour (step S1803). If the tracking start pixel is a part of the previously extracted contour (step S1803: Yes), the process proceeds to step S1806. If the tracking start pixel is not part of the previously extracted contour (step S1803: No), the above-described contour tracking process is performed (step S1804). Then, the pixels constituting the extracted contour are stored in the storage device as extracted pixels (step S1805). Thereafter, it is determined whether all the pixels have been scanned (step S1806). If all the pixels have not been scanned (step S1806: No), the process returns to step S1801, and if all the pixels have been scanned. (Step S1806: Yes), the above process ends.

  FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of contour tracking processing by the navigation device. The flowchart in FIG. 18 is an example of the process performed in step S1804 described above. FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining the contour tracking process. A chain code and a search start pixel are shown. The currently focused pixel (region 1100) is set as a search reference pixel, and adjacent pixels in eight directions are adjacent to this search reference pixel. When the search is started from the tracking start pixel, the tracking start pixel is set as the search reference pixel.

  First, the contour data calculation unit 106 of the navigation apparatus 300 starts searching for an adjacent pixel located in the search direction rotated by (2π / number of adjacent pixels) × 3 = 135 ° clockwise from the approach direction to the search reference pixel. This is called a pixel, and a search start pixel is determined (step S1901). For example, as shown in FIG. 19A, if the approach direction is 3, the search start direction is 0. If the approach direction is 6, the search start direction is 3.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 19B, starting from the search start pixel, all adjacent pixels are sequentially turned counterclockwise while changing the search direction counterclockwise by unit rotation angle (2π / number of adjacent pixels). The pixel that becomes black (identification information is “1”) for the first time after the search is set as the next search reference pixel (step S1902). Then, it is determined whether a search reference pixel exists (step S1903). That is, it is determined whether there is a black pixel (identification information is “1”) in the adjacent pixel. As shown in FIG. 19C, if it exists (step S1903: Yes), the approach direction to the next search start pixel is stored, and this search start pixel is set as a search reference pixel (step S1904). . Thereafter, it is determined whether the search reference pixel has returned to the tracking start pixel (step S1905). If the search reference pixel has not returned (step S1905: No), the contour is being tracked and the process returns to step S1901 to continue the process. If the contour has been traced (step S1905: Yes), the above process is terminated.

  In step S1903, if no search reference pixel exists (step S1903: No), as shown in FIG. 19D, the contour is defined by only isolated points. The process ends.

(Contour direction calculation processing)
FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of a contour direction calculation process performed by the navigation device. Processing performed by the orientation calculation unit 107 of the navigation device 300 will be described. The flowchart of FIG. 20 is executed after the contour tracking process shown in FIG. First, the transition in the approach direction determined by the contour tracking process shown in FIG. 18 is sequentially scanned (step S2201).

  Next, when the absolute value of the change amount in the approach direction is more than half of the number of adjacent pixels (4 or more or -4 or less in the above example), the number of adjacent pixels is added or subtracted once to change the approach direction. The absolute value of the quantity is corrected so as to be smaller than half of the number of adjacent pixels (−3 to 3) (step S2202). Then, the product of the corrected change amount in the approach direction and the unit rotation angle (2π / number of adjacent pixels) is calculated, and the cumulative rotation angle due to the transition in the approach direction is calculated (step S2203).

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not all the lines in the approach direction have been scanned (step S2204). If the scanning has not been completed (step S2204: No), the process returns to step S2201, and if the scanning has been completed (step S2204: Yes). Next, it is determined whether the cumulative rotation angle due to the transition in the approach direction is 2π or 0 (step S2205). If the cumulative rotation angle is 2π or 0 (step S2205: 2π or 0) as a result of the determination, it can be seen that the direction in which the transition of the approach direction circulates is counterclockwise (step S2206). finish. Here, when the accumulated value is 0, it is a special case of counterclockwise rotation. On the other hand, when the accumulated rotation angle is −2π (step S2205: −2π), it is found that the direction in which the transition of the approach direction circulates is clockwise (step S2207), and the above processing is terminated.

  The processing of the direction of the contour will be specifically described using the contours (outer contour and inner contour) shown in FIG. For the outer contour, the value of the direction index until it goes around changes as 0 → 0 → 1 → 0 → 2 → 3 → 4 → 3 → 2 → 5 → 5 → 5 → 6 → 6 → 0. The amount of change (difference) between the values is 0, 1, -1, 2, 1, 1, -1, -1, 3, 0, 0, 1, 0, -6, respectively. Here, with respect to the change in the direction index, the value of −6 indicated by the last 6 → 0 is a change of only two adjacent pixels as viewed in FIG. Suppose that the direction index is +2 instead of. The total accumulated value is 8 (8 × 45 ° = 360 °), and in this case, it is determined that the counterclockwise direction (outer contour) is obtained.

  As for the inner contour, the value of the direction index until it goes around changes from 2 → 0 → 7 → 6 → 5 → 4 → 2 → 2. The amount of change (difference) between the values is -2, 7, -1, -1, -1, -2, 0, respectively. Here, regarding the change in the direction index, the value of 7 indicated by 0 → 7 is a change corresponding to one adjacent pixel as seen in FIG. Let the direction index be -1. The total accumulated value is set to −8 (−8 × 45 ° = −360 °), and in this case, it is determined to be clockwise (inner contour).

  In this way, the orientation calculation unit 107 obtains the contour direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) calculated by the contour data calculation unit 106, and the contour data calculation unit 106 (direction calculation unit 107) As shown in (C), a chain code (direction index) 1150 for each coordinate and additional information 1160 representing the direction of the contour are attached to the contour data of the reachable range and output to the display control unit 108. Thus, the display control unit 108 can display the reachable range of the vehicle by the counterclockwise outer contour 1130, and if there is the clockwise inner contour 1140, the unreachable range of the vehicle is displayed inside the outer contour 1130. Will be able to.

(About road gradient)
Next, the road gradient θ used as a variable on the right side of the equations (1) to (6) will be described. FIG. 21 is an explanatory view schematically showing an example of acceleration applied to a vehicle traveling on a road having a gradient. As shown in FIG. 21, a vehicle traveling on a slope with a road gradient θ has acceleration A (= dx / dt) accompanying traveling of the vehicle and a traveling direction component B (= g · sin θ) of gravitational acceleration g. Take it. For example, taking the above equation (1) as an example, the second term on the right side of the above equation (1) indicates the acceleration A accompanying the traveling of the vehicle and the combined acceleration C of the traveling direction component B of the gravitational acceleration g. Yes. Further, the distance D of the section in which the vehicle travels is defined as the travel time T and the travel speed V.

  When the power consumption is estimated without considering the road gradient θ, the error between the estimated power consumption and the actual power consumption is small in the region where the road gradient θ is small, but the estimation is performed in the region where the road gradient θ is large. An error between the estimated power consumption and the actual power consumption increases. For this reason, in the navigation apparatus 300, the estimation accuracy is improved by estimating the fuel consumption in consideration of the road gradient, that is, the fourth information.

  The slope of the road on which the vehicle travels can be known using, for example, an inclinometer mounted on the navigation device 300. Further, when the inclinometer is not mounted on the navigation device 300, for example, road gradient information included in the map data can be used.

(About running resistance)
Next, traveling resistance generated in the vehicle will be described. The navigation device 300 calculates the running resistance by the following equation (11), for example. Generally, traveling resistance is generated in a moving body during acceleration or traveling due to road type, road gradient, road surface condition, and the like.

(Display example after cloning processing by the navigation device)
Next, a display example after the cloning process by the navigation device will be described. FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the reachable point search process by the navigation device. FIG. 23A is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the identification information providing process by the navigation device. FIG. 23-2 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a display example after the first identification information change process by the navigation device. FIG. 24 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a display example after the cloning process (expansion) by the navigation device. FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display example after the cloning process (reduction) by the navigation device.

  As shown in FIG. 22, for example, the display 313 displays reachable points of a plurality of vehicles searched by the navigation device 300 together with the map data. The state of the display 313 illustrated in FIG. 22 is an example of information displayed on the display when the reachable point search process is performed by the navigation device 300. Specifically, this is a state in which the process of step S1303 of FIG. 13 has been performed.

  Next, the map data is divided into a plurality of areas by the navigation device 300, and identification information indicating whether each area is reachable or unreachable is given based on reachable points, as shown in FIG. 23-1. The display 313 displays a reachable range 2500 of the vehicle based on the reachable identification information. At this stage, it is assumed that there is an unreachable region 2501 within the reachable range 2500 of the vehicle. The unreachable region 2501 is a region that the contour data calculation unit 106 determines that the vehicle cannot reach, but there are also missing points.

  Next, when the first identification information changing process is performed by the navigation device 300, the display includes a missing point (for example, a Tokyo Bay crossing road 2521) excluding the unreachable region 2501, as shown in FIG. In 313, a reachable range 2520 and an unreachable range 2501 including the entire area of the Tokyo Bay crossing road 2521 are displayed.

  Next, the expansion process of the cloning is performed by the navigation device 300, so that the reachable range 2600 of the vehicle from which the missing points are removed is generated as shown in FIG. In addition, since the entire area 2610 on the Tokyo Bay crossing road is already included in the reachable range 2600 by the first identification information change process, the entire area 2610 on the Tokyo Bay crossing road is The vehicle reachable range 2600 is obtained.

  Thereafter, the reduction processing of the cloning is performed by the navigation device 300, so that the outer periphery of the vehicle reachable range 2700 is substantially the same as the outer periphery of the vehicle reachable range 2500 before the cloning is performed, as shown in FIG. It becomes the size of.

  Then, by extracting the contour 2701 of the reachable range 2700 and the contour 2711 of the unreachable range 2710 by the navigation device 300, the contours of the reachable range 2700 and the unreachable range 2710 of the vehicle are displayed smoothly. Can do. In addition, since the missing points are removed by cloning, the vehicle reachable range 2700 is displayed with a two-dimensional smooth surface 2702. Even after the cloning reduction process, the entire area 2720 on the Tokyo Bay crossing road is displayed as a part of the reachable range 2700 of the vehicle.

(Example of reachable range and unreachable range)
FIG. 26 is a diagram illustrating an example of a reachable range and an unreachable range. The reachable range 2800 is an area surrounded by an outer contour by the contour data calculation unit 106. When the reachable range 2810 such as a lake or a mountain is inside the reachable range 2800, the contour data calculation unit 106 Is surrounded by an inner contour. An orientation calculation unit 107 included in the contour data calculation unit 106 obtains a counterclockwise direction for the outer contour and a clockwise direction for the inner contour. As a result, the display control unit 108 can clearly display the reachable range 2800 and the unreachable range 2810 with simple processing.

  A reachable range 2820 shown in FIG. 26 is an area that can be reached across a bridge 2821 that is a node at both ends, and there are a plurality of unreachable ranges 2822 and 2823 inside. The reachable range 2030 indicates an area that can move after reaching the reachable range 2800 via an external means (moving body other than a vehicle) 2831 such as a ferry. Thus, even when the areas of the plurality of reachable ranges 2800, 2820, and 2830 are different, it can be displayed. Further, even when there are a plurality of unreachable ranges 2822 and 2823 in one reachable range 2820, it can be displayed. Further, even when there is a further reachable range inside the unreachable range 2810, the same display can be performed.

  As described above, according to the navigation device 300, the map information is divided into a plurality of areas, and it is searched whether or not each mobile area can reach each area, and each mobile area can reach or reach each area. Reachable or unreachable identification information for identifying the impossibility is given. And the navigation apparatus 300 produces | generates the reachable range of a mobile body based on the area | region to which the reachable identification information was provided. For this reason, the navigation apparatus 300 can generate the reachable range of the moving object except for the unreachable range where the moving object cannot travel, such as the sea, the lake, and the mountain range. Therefore, the image processing apparatus 100 can accurately display the reachable range of the moving object.

  In addition, the navigation device 300 converts a plurality of areas obtained by dividing the map information into image data, and assigns identification information indicating that each of the plurality of areas is reachable or unreachable, and then performs an expansion process of cloning. For this reason, the navigation apparatus 300 can remove the missing point within the reachable range of the moving body.

  In addition, the navigation device 300 converts the plurality of areas obtained by dividing the map information into image data, and assigns identification information indicating whether the plurality of areas are reachable or unreachable, and then performs an opening reduction process. For this reason, the navigation apparatus 300 can remove the isolated points in the reachable range of the moving object.

  As described above, the navigation device 300 can remove missing points and isolated points from the reachable range of the moving body, and thus can display the travelable range of the moving body on a two-dimensional smooth surface in an easy-to-read manner. . Further, the navigation device 300 extracts the outline of mesh data generated by dividing the map information into a plurality of regions. For this reason, the navigation apparatus 300 can display the outline of the reachable range of a moving body smoothly.

  In addition, the navigation apparatus 300 narrows down the road for searching for the reachable point of the mobile object, and searches for the reachable point of the mobile object. For this reason, the navigation apparatus 300 can reduce the processing amount at the time of searching the reachable point of a mobile body. Even if the number of reachable reachable points is reduced by narrowing down the road to search for the reachable points of the mobile object, the expansion process of cloning is performed as described above, so that the reachable range of the mobile object is within the reachable range. The resulting defect point can be removed. Therefore, the navigation apparatus 300 can reduce the processing amount for detecting the reachable range of the moving body. In addition, the navigation device 300 can display the travelable range of the mobile object in a two-dimensional smooth manner in an easy-to-see manner.

  In addition, since the navigation device 300 determines the unreachable range based on a hole (a region in which a plurality of pieces of identification information are gathered) generated in the reachable range, the reachable range can be obtained from the outer contour, The possible range can be determined by the inner contour. Furthermore, the directions of the reachable range and the unreachable range are reversed when the same scanning is performed. By using this, the reachable range and the unreachable range can be displayed and controlled with a simple data structure, and the display control processing load can be reduced.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 27 is a block diagram of an example of a functional configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. A functional configuration of the image processing system 2900 according to the second embodiment will be described. An image processing system 2900 according to the second embodiment includes a server 2910 and a terminal 2920. The image processing system 2900 according to the second embodiment includes the server 2910 and the terminal 2920 having the functions of the image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment.

  The server 2910 generates information to be displayed on the display unit 110 by the terminal 2920 mounted on the mobile object. Specifically, the server 2910 detects information related to the reachable range of the mobile object and transmits it to the terminal 2920. The terminal 2920 may be mounted on a mobile object, may be used in the mobile object as a mobile terminal, or may be used outside the mobile object as a mobile terminal. Terminal 2920 receives information about the reachable range of the moving object from server 2910.

  In FIG. 27, the server 2910 includes a calculation unit 102, a search unit 103, a division unit 104, a grant unit 105, a contour data calculation unit 106 and a direction calculation unit 107, a server reception unit 2911, and a server transmission unit 2912. The terminal 2920 includes an acquisition unit 101, a display control unit 108, a terminal reception unit 2921, and a terminal transmission unit 2922. In the image processing system 2900 shown in FIG. 27, the same components as those of the image processing apparatus 100 shown in FIG.

  In server 2910, server reception unit 2911 receives information transmitted from terminal 2920. Specifically, for example, the server reception unit 2911 receives information regarding a mobile unit from a terminal 2920 connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, WAN, etc. via wireless. The information regarding the moving body is information regarding the current position of the moving body and information regarding the initial amount of energy that is the amount of energy held by the moving body at the current position of the moving body. Information received by the server reception unit 2911 is information referred to by the calculation unit 102.

  The server transmission unit 2912 uses the plurality of areas obtained by dividing the map information to which reachable identification information for identifying that the moving body is reachable by the assigning unit 105 as a mobile object reachable range as a terminal. To 2920. Specifically, for example, the server transmission unit 2912 transmits information to a terminal 2920 that is connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, and WAN via a wireless connection.

  The terminal 2920 is connected to the server 2910 in a communicable state via, for example, an information communication network of a mobile terminal or a communication unit (not shown) provided in the own device.

  In terminal 2920, terminal reception unit 2921 receives information from server 2910. Specifically, the terminal reception unit 2921 divides the map information, which is divided into a plurality of regions, and each region is provided with identification information that is reachable or unreachable based on the reachable point of the mobile object. Receive. More specifically, for example, the terminal receiving unit 2921 receives information from a server 2910 that is connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, a DSRC, a LAN, and a WAN via a radio.

  The terminal transmission unit 2922 transmits information regarding the moving object acquired by the acquisition unit 101 to the server 2910. Specifically, for example, the terminal transmission unit 2922 transmits information about the mobile unit to a server 2910 connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, WAN, or the like wirelessly.

  Next, image processing by the image processing system 2900 according to the second embodiment will be described. Since the image processing by the image processing system 2900 is almost the same as that of the image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, the difference from the first embodiment will be described using the flowchart of FIG.

  In the image processing by the image processing system 2900, the server 2910 performs estimated energy consumption calculation processing, reachable point search processing, and identification information addition processing among the image processing by the image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. Specifically, in the flowchart of FIG. 2, the terminal 2920 performs the process of step S <b> 201 and transmits the information acquired in step S <b> 201 to the server 2910.

  Next, the server 2910 receives information from the terminal 2920. Next, the server 2910 performs the processes of steps S202 to S206 based on the information received from the terminal 2920, and transmits the information acquired in step S206 to the terminal 2920. Next, the terminal 2920 receives information from the server 2910. Then, the terminal 2920 performs steps S207 and S208 based on the information received from the server 2910, and ends the processing according to this flowchart.

  As described above, the image processing system 2900 and the image processing method according to the second embodiment can obtain the same effects as the image processing apparatus 100 and the image processing method according to the first embodiment.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 28 is a block diagram of an example of a functional configuration of the image processing system according to the third embodiment. A functional configuration of the image processing system 3000 according to the third embodiment will be described. An image processing system 3000 according to the third embodiment includes a first server 3010, a second server 3020, a third server 3030, and a terminal 3040. In the image processing system 3000, the first server 3010 has the function of the calculation unit 102 of the image processing apparatus 100 of the first embodiment, and the second server 3020 has the function of the search unit 103 of the image processing apparatus 100 of the first embodiment. The third server 3030 includes the functions of the dividing unit 104, the adding unit 105, the contour data calculating unit 106, and the orientation calculating unit 107 of the image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. The terminal 3040 has the functions of the acquisition unit 101 and the display control unit 108.

  In FIG. 28, terminal 3040 has the same configuration as terminal 2920 of the second embodiment. Specifically, the terminal 3040 includes an acquisition unit 101, a display control unit 108, a terminal reception unit 3041, and a terminal transmission unit 3042. Terminal receiving section 3041 has the same configuration as terminal receiving section 2921 of the second embodiment. Terminal transmission section 3042 has the same configuration as terminal transmission section 2922 of the second embodiment. The first server 3010 includes a calculation unit 102, a first server reception unit 3011, and a first server transmission unit 3012.

  The second server 3020 includes a search unit 103, a second server reception unit 3021, and a second server transmission unit 3022. The third server 3030 includes a dividing unit 104, an adding unit 105, a contour data calculating unit 106 and a direction calculating unit 107, a third server receiving unit 3031, and a third server transmitting unit 3032. In the image processing system 3000 shown in FIG. 28, the same components as those of the image processing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 and the image processing system 2900 shown in FIG.

  In the first server 3010, the first server reception unit 3011 receives information transmitted from the terminal 3040. Specifically, for example, the first server reception unit 3011 receives information from the terminal transmission unit 3042 of the terminal 3040 that is connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, and WAN via a radio. Receive. Information received by the first server reception unit 3011 is information referred to by the calculation unit 102.

  The first server transmission unit 3012 transmits the information calculated by the calculation unit 102 to the second server reception unit 3021. Specifically, the first server transmission unit 3012 transmits information to the second server reception unit 3021 connected to a communication network such as a public network, a mobile phone network, a DSRC, a LAN, and a WAN via a radio. Alternatively, the information may be transmitted to the second server reception unit 3021 connected by wire.

  In the second server 3020, the second server reception unit 3021 receives the information transmitted by the terminal transmission unit 3042 and the first server transmission unit 3012. Specifically, for example, the second server reception unit 3021 includes a first server transmission unit 3012 and a terminal transmission unit that are wirelessly connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, and WAN. Information from 3042 is received. The second server reception unit 3021 may receive information from the first server transmission unit 3012 connected by wire. Information received by the second server reception unit 3021 is information referred to by the search unit 103.

  The second server transmission unit 3022 transmits the information searched by the search unit 103 to the third server reception unit 3031. Specifically, for example, the second server transmission unit 3022 transmits information to a third server reception unit 3031 that is connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, WAN, or the like wirelessly. Alternatively, the information may be transmitted to the third server reception unit 3031 connected by wire.

  In the third server 3030, the third server receiving unit 3031 receives the information transmitted by the terminal transmitting unit 3042 and the second server transmitting unit 3022. Specifically, for example, the third server reception unit 3031 includes a second server transmission unit 3022 and a terminal transmission unit that are wirelessly connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, and WAN. Information from 3042 may be received. The third server reception unit 3031 may receive information from the second server transmission unit 3022 connected by wire. Information received by the second server reception unit 3021 is information referred to by the division unit 104.

  The third server transmission unit 3032 transmits the information generated by the assignment unit 105 to the terminal reception unit 3041. Specifically, for example, the third server transmission unit 3032 transmits information to a terminal reception unit 3041 that is connected to a communication network such as a public line network, a mobile phone network, DSRC, LAN, and WAN via a radio.

  Next, image processing by the image processing system 3000 according to the third embodiment will be described. Since the image processing by the image processing system 3000 is almost the same as that of the image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, the difference from the first embodiment will be described using the flowchart of FIG.

  In the image processing by the image processing system 3000, the first server 3010 performs the estimated energy consumption calculation processing among the image processing by the image processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, and the second server 3020 performs the reachable point search processing. The third server 3030 performs the identification information adding process and the contour data calculating process. In the flowchart of FIG. 2, the terminal 3040 performs the process of step S201 and transmits the information acquired in step S201 to the first server 3010.

  Next, the first server 3010 receives information from the terminal 3040. Next, the first server 3010 performs the processes of steps S202 and S203 based on the information received from the terminal 3040, and transmits the information calculated in step S203 to the second server 3020. Next, the second server 3020 receives information from the first server 3010. Next, the second server 3020 performs the process of step S204 based on the information received from the first server 3010, and transmits the information searched for in step S204 to the third server 3030.

  Next, the third server 3030 receives information from the second server 3020. Next, the third server 3030 performs the processes in steps S205 and S206 based on the information from the second server 3020, and transmits the information generated in step S206 to the terminal 3040. Next, the terminal 3040 receives information from the third server 3030. And the terminal 3040 performs step S207 and step S208 based on the information received from the 3rd server 3030, and complete | finishes the process by this flowchart.

  As described above, the image processing system 3000 and the image processing method according to the third embodiment can obtain the same effects as the image processing apparatus 100 and the image processing method according to the first embodiment.

  The second embodiment of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a system configuration of the image processing apparatus according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to an acquisition system 3100 provided with a server 3120 using a navigation device 3110 mounted on a vehicle as the terminal will be described. The image processing system 3100 includes a navigation device 3110, a server 3120, and a network 3140 mounted on the vehicle 3130.

  The navigation device 3110 is mounted on the vehicle 3130. The navigation device 3110 transmits information on the current location of the vehicle and information on the initial stored energy amount to the server 3120. In addition, the navigation device 3110 displays the information received from the server 3120 on a display and notifies the user. Server 3120 receives information on the current location of the vehicle and information on the initial stored energy amount from navigation device 3110. Server 3120 generates information related to the reachable range of vehicle 3130 based on the received vehicle information.

  The hardware configuration of the server 3120 and the navigation device 3110 is the same as the hardware configuration of the navigation device 300 of the first embodiment. The navigation device 3110 only needs to have a hardware configuration corresponding to a function of transmitting vehicle information to the server 3120 and a function of receiving information from the server 3120 and notifying the user.

  Further, the acquisition system 3100 is configured such that the navigation device 3110 mounted on the vehicle is the terminal 3040 of the third embodiment, and the functional configuration of the server 3120 is distributed to the first to third servers 3010 to 3030 of the third embodiment. May be.

  Note that the image processing method described in this embodiment can be realized by executing a program prepared in advance on a computer such as a personal computer or a workstation. This program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, a CD-ROM, an MO, and a DVD, and is executed by being read from the recording medium by the computer. The program may be a transmission medium that can be distributed via a network such as the Internet.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Image processing apparatus 101 Acquisition part 102 Calculation part 103 Search part 104 Division | segmentation part 105 Assignment part 106 Contour data calculation part 107 Orientation calculation part 108 Display control part 110 Display part

Claims (7)

An image processing apparatus for processing information relating to a reachable range of a moving object,
Reachable range calculating means for calculating a reachable range including a reachable area of the moving body calculated based on an amount of energy held by the moving body;
Contour data calculating means for calculating contour data indicating the contour of the reachable range of the mobile body based on the reachable range calculated by the reachable range calculating means;
Orientation calculation means for calculating the orientation data indicating that the contour data calculated by the contour data calculation means is clockwise or counterclockwise;
Based on the contour data calculated by the contour data calculating unit and the direction data calculated by the direction calculating unit , the reachable range of the moving body and the unreachable range inside the reachable range are displayed. Display control means for displaying on the means;
An image processing apparatus comprising: The direction calculation means is a second region included in the reachable range adjacent to the unreachable region and adjacent to the first region included in the reachable range and adjacent to the unreachable region. And using the direction index that defines the adjacent direction of the first area and the second area, the amount of change of the direction index on the contour is integrated, and the contour data is based on the integrated value. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the image processing device determines whether the image is clockwise or counterclockwise.   The contour data calculating means includes a fourth area included in the reachable range adjacent to the unreachable area and adjacent to the third area included in the reachable range and adjacent to the unreachable area. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a contour is searched for a region, and contour data serving as a contour of the reachable range is calculated by repeating the search using the fourth region as the third region. . An image processing management apparatus for processing information related to a reachable range of a moving object,
Receiving means for receiving information on the current location of the mobile body, and information on an initial amount of energy held by the mobile body at the current location of the mobile body;
Reachable range calculating means for calculating a reachable range including a reachable area of the mobile body based on information on the current location of the mobile body received by the receiving means, and information on an initial stored energy amount;
Contour data calculating means for calculating contour data indicating the contour of the reachable range of the mobile body based on the reachable range calculated by the reachable range calculating means;
Orientation calculation means for calculating the orientation data indicating that the contour data calculated by the contour data calculation means is clockwise or counterclockwise;
Transmitting means for transmitting the contour data and the orientation data;
An image processing management apparatus comprising: A terminal that processes information about the reachable range of a mobile object,
Transmitting means for transmitting to the management device information relating to the current location of the mobile object, and information relating to an initial retained energy amount that is an energy amount possessed by the mobile object at the current location of the mobile object;
Receiving means for receiving contour data indicating a contour of a reachable range including a reachable region of the moving object and data indicating a direction in which the contour data is clockwise or counterclockwise;
Display control means for displaying on the display means the reachable range of the moving body based on the contour data and the orientation data received by the receiving means;
A terminal comprising: An image processing method in an image processing apparatus for processing information relating to a reachable range of a moving object,
A reachable range calculation step of calculating a reachable range including a reachable area of the mobile body calculated based on an energy amount held by the mobile body;
A contour data calculating step for calculating contour data indicating the contour of the reachable range of the mobile body based on the reachable range calculated by the reachable range calculating step;
A direction calculating step for calculating the direction data indicating that the contour data calculated by the contour data calculating step is clockwise or counterclockwise;
A display control step for displaying on the display means the reachable range of the moving object and the unreachable range inside the reachable range based on the contour data and the orientation data calculated by the orientation calculating step; ,
An image processing method comprising: This is a data structure for display control handled by an image processing apparatus provided with reachable range calculation means for calculating a reachable range including a reachable area of the mobile body calculated based on the amount of energy held by the mobile body. And
Including contour data indicating an outline of the reachable range of the moving object, and data indicating a direction in which the contour data is clockwise or counterclockwise ,
The data structure characterized by showing the reachable range of the said mobile body, and the unreachable range inside the reachable range by the said contour data and the data of the said direction .

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