JP2001159535A - Route guiding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve visibility of a route in a navigation device for displaying the route from the present position to a destination or a passing place on a map screen. SOLUTION: A central processing unit renews the present position on a first map screen shown by figure 3 (1) and displays it together with the route to the destination or the passing place, corresponding to the direction and the mileage of a vehicle obtained by an earth magnetism sensor and a wheel speed sensor. When the vehicle approaches a guide spot such as a crossing or the like on the route as shown by figure 3 (5), an enlarged figure near the guide spot is displayed together with an arrow for showing the direction of travel as a second map screen on a corner angle part of the first map screen. The next guide spot is also displayed in the enlarged figure by shifting a forward guide spot from the center of the enlarged figure. Hereby, a driver can recognize instantly the shape of the guide spot and the direction of travel, to thereby contribute to safe driving.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is preferably applied to a so-called navigation device or the like, and relates to a method for displaying a route to a destination or a waypoint on a map screen for guidance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The navigation device is mounted on an automobile, and displays the position of the own vehicle on a map screen.
This device updates the display as the vehicle travels. In recent years, in this navigation device, by inputting the current location and a destination or a waypoint,
From the current location to the destination or transit point, for example, a route having the shortest distance is calculated, and a route search function for displaying the route as a recommended route has been added.

In a typical prior art, a route on the route searched as described above or a route arbitrarily set by an operator is displayed in a color different from that of the remaining roads. In addition, a marker indicating the current location is displayed on the route. In such a conventional technology, a map screen is displayed in a typical conventional technology such that the marker, that is, the current position is at the center of the screen.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned prior art,
The roads on the route are displayed in a different color from the remaining roads, so the user can recognize the route, but when making complex left and right turns in urban areas, etc. In addition, it is difficult to read quickly, which is not desirable from the viewpoint of safe driving.

On the other hand, as a method of displaying a map screen, there has been proposed a device capable of switching between a so-called north-up display in which the north of the azimuth is displayed upward and a head-up display in which an azimuth close to the traveling direction is displayed upward. I have. Therefore, in the case of such a device, for example, when the vehicle is traveling from north to south with the north-up display selected, the traveling direction is from the upper side to the lower side on the screen, which may cause erroneous recognition. is there.

In still another conventional technique, the marker, that is, the current position is shifted to the upstream side in the traveling direction of the vehicle on the map screen, so that an area in a direction to be traveled from now on is displayed so as to be so-called front wide. A display method referred to as “display method” is also employed. However, even with this method, if the route is complicated, it is difficult to immediately read the direction to be advanced.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a route guidance method that allows a driver to accurately and quickly recognize a route to be advanced.

[0008]

According to the present invention, there is provided a route guidance method for guiding a guide point of a preset route by display, wherein when the distance between the guide points is short, the guide point closest to the vehicle position is located. A route guidance method characterized by displaying an enlarged view of a plurality of guide points with the approach direction upward, together with arrows indicating the traveling directions.

According to the present invention, in a route guidance method for guiding a guide point of a preset route by displaying, when the distance between the guide points is short, the approach direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position is set upward. A route guidance method characterized by displaying an enlarged view of a plurality of guide points and displaying the enlarged view so as to rotate as the vehicle advances.

According to the present invention, a map is displayed in an orientation set by a user, a first map screen displaying a route and a vehicle position set in advance on the map, and a distance between a plurality of guide points is displayed. A second map screen that displays an enlarged view of a plurality of guide points, with the approach direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position up, along with an arrow indicating the traveling direction, when the vehicle position is close to the vehicle position, A route guidance method characterized by displaying a first map screen and a second map screen when approaching a guidance point requiring guidance.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that, when displaying a plurality of guide points, the guide points are displayed at positions where the traveling direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position can be displayed widely.

[0012]

According to the present invention, in a navigation device for displaying a route to be set to a destination or a transit point on a map screen to provide guidance on a map screen for guidance, the position of the vehicle is changed to an intersection. When it is a point within a predetermined distance to a point requiring guidance such as, in conjunction with the corner of the map screen or instead of the map screen, an enlarged view at a predetermined scale centered on the guide point. indicate. At this time, an index such as an arrow indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle at that point is also displayed.

Therefore, even if the route repeatedly turns left and right in a complicated manner or regardless of the display state such as displaying the north of the azimuth at the top of the screen, the driving direction and the detailed shape of the guide point are provided to the driver. Can be accurately and instantly recognized, and safety can be improved.

Preferably, in the enlarged view, the guide point and the next guide point can be displayed at the reduced scale. That is, when two points are present on the map screen of the reduced scale, the enlarged view of the enlarged view is displayed. The two guide points are displayed with the preceding guide point shifted from the center.

Therefore, when it is necessary to make a right or left turn immediately after making a right or left turn at the previous intersection,
The driver can quickly recognize the direction in which the vehicle should proceed, and can easily cope with the direction.

Furthermore, the enlarged view may display the traveling direction of the branch destination broadly, so that the driver can recognize the preceding information quickly. Further, the enlarged view may be a head-up display in which the azimuth to the guide point is always upward, whereby errors in the direction of turning right or left can be reduced.

In particular, according to the present invention, when the distance between a plurality of guide points such as intersections is short, as shown in FIG. The approach direction of the point is displayed as up, and an arrow indicating the traveling direction is also displayed.

According to the present invention, in the state where the enlarged view is displayed, the enlarged view is rotated in accordance with the traveling of the vehicle, for example, so that the approach direction to the guide point is upward.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, guidance is required for a first map screen displaying a set route and a vehicle position, and a second point screen displaying an enlarged view of a plurality of guide points and an entry direction arrow. Displayed when approaching an important guide point.

According to the present invention, when displaying a plurality of guide points, the guide points are displayed at positions where the traveling direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position can be displayed widely. In this way, a plurality of, for example, two guide points are displayed as one enlarged view, and are displayed with the traveling direction upward, that is, with the head up. In this way, the driver can accurately and quickly recognize the route to be advanced.

[0021]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electric configuration of a navigation apparatus 1 using a guidance method according to an embodiment of the present invention. The navigation device 1 is mounted on an automobile and displays a current position and a route guide to a destination, and is used for determining a course of a driver.

Therefore, roughly, in the navigation device 1, the central processing unit 3 realized by a microcomputer or the like responds to an input operation to the operation keys 2 via a communication bus 10 via a CD-ROM device. Instruct 4 to read map information of a desired area. In response to the instruction, the processing circuit 5 reads the corresponding area map information from the map information recorded on the CD-ROM disc 7 as the recording medium via the decoder 6. Thus, the processing circuit 5
The central processing unit 3 drives the display device 9 realized by a liquid crystal display device or the like via the display drive circuit 8 in accordance with the map information input from the The map screen display of the desired area is realized.

When the current location is set as described later, the central processing unit 3 responds to the detection results of the geomagnetic sensor 12 and the wheel speed sensor 13 input from the processing circuit 11 via the communication bus 10. Then, the azimuth and distance of travel of the vehicle are calculated, the map information of the map screen corresponding to the current location is read from the CD-ROM device 4, and the map screen is scrolled and displayed together with the current location.

Also, at predetermined intervals, the traveling locus of the vehicle is compared with the road shape obtained from the map information, and the current position is corrected so that, for example, when the vehicle turns right or left at an intersection, the traveling locus matches the road shape. Perform the matching process to be performed. In this way, as indicated by reference numeral P1 in FIG. 2A, a marker indicating the current position and the traveling direction of the own vehicle is updated and displayed together with the map screen as the own vehicle travels.

Further, as described above, the present location is input, and thereafter, the map screen is scrolled, and the operator searches for the destination, sets the position of the destination, and selects the route search function. Thus, as shown in FIG. 2 (2), a recommended route that has the shortest distance, for example, from the current location indicated by the reference symbol P1 to the destination indicated by the reference symbol P2 is calculated and displayed. Further, the operator can arbitrarily set a route by setting a desired transit point.

The operation key 2 is a current position setting key 2a.
, Destination setting key 2b, waypoint setting key 2c, cursor key 2d, setting key 2e, route search key 2f
And a scale switching key 2g. The route display operation using these keys 2a to 2g will be described in detail below with reference to FIG.

When the current position setting key 2a of the operation keys 2 is operated and the current position can be set, a cursor is displayed on the map screen, and the cursor is moved to a desired position by operating the cursor key 2d. By operating the setting key 2e, the current location can be set as shown in FIG. Similarly, by operating the cursor key 2d and the setting key 2e following the operation of the destination setting key 2b and the transit point setting key 2c, the destination and the transit point can be set.

The scale of the display screen is set to a scale switching key 2g.
Is operated, for example, on the screen of the display device 9, from the state where the whole of Japan is displayed, 1/15000
The switching can be performed in eight steps up to the scale of. Furthermore, as described above, when the route search key 2f is operated after the current location and the destination or the waypoint are set, for example, the recommended route with the shortest distance is automatically calculated and the above-mentioned FIG. It is displayed as shown in 2). This route can be set as desired by the operator, for example, by setting a destination at each intersection where a right or left turn is made.

In a state where the setting of the current position is not selected, when the vehicle travels and the current position obtained from the detection results of the geomagnetic sensor 12 and the wheel speed sensor 13 changes, in response to an input from the processing circuit 11, The current location on the map screen is also updated and displayed.

Further, according to the present invention, in a state where a route is set as shown in FIG. 3A, the current position is determined by a predetermined distance, for example, 5 from the next intersection P11 which is a guide point.
When approaching the point up to 00m, as shown in FIG. 3 (2), the intersection P11 is located at the corner of the map screen display.
Is displayed. At this time, in the enlarged view, an arrow indicating the route and an index indicating the direction in which the vehicle should proceed is displayed as indicated by reference numeral P21.

In the display example of FIG. 3 (2), an enlarged view of the intersection P11 is displayed with the displayed map screen as it is, that is, the display is performed so that the upper side of the screen is north. The map screen is displayed enlarged. For this reason, it may be difficult for the driver to immediately make a right / left turn. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a so-called head-up display in which the approach direction to the guide point is displayed upward as shown in FIG.

In the present invention, there is an intersection P13, which is the next guide point, close to the intersection P12, which is the preceding guide point, and these two intersections P12, P1
3 can be displayed within the scale of the enlarged view, FIG.
As shown in (5), two intersections P12 and P13 are displayed together.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3 (5), when it is necessary to make a right or left turn at the next intersection immediately after making a right or left turn at the previous intersection, the driver makes a right or left turn at the previous intersection. At this point, it is possible to prepare for a lane change or the like for the next intersection, and it is possible to drive along an appropriately set route.

The number of intersections displayed in the enlarged view may be three or more when the intersections are extremely close to each other. Further, even if two intersections cannot be displayed at the same time, as shown in FIG. 3D, an enlarged view may be displayed by the front wide display in which the downstream side in the traveling direction is displayed widely.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram for explaining the route guidance operation as shown in FIG. When a current location, a destination, or a stopover is input from the input unit 21 such as the operation keys 2 or the processing circuit 11, the route search
2 reads out the map information from the CD-ROM device 4 or the like as indicated by a reference numeral 23, stores the read out map information in the storage unit 24, and performs an operation in the data operation unit 25. The route calculated so that the distance becomes the shortest or the route selected by the operator is output to the route guide unit 26.

On the other hand, the output of the current position detecting section 27 realized by the geomagnetic sensor 12 and the wheel speed sensor 13 is given to the route guiding section 26. The enlarged map data creation unit 28 of the route guidance unit 26
The map information on the intersections to be passed after the current position detected by the current position detection unit 27 is extracted from the routes searched in the above, and enlarged map data is created.

The route guidance unit 26 normally outputs a map screen corresponding to the current location detected by the current location detection unit 27 from the map screen stored in the storage unit 24 to the output unit 3.
0 on the map screen display unit 30a, and a marker output unit 30b and a direction indication marker output unit 30c, together with a vehicle marker indicating a traveling direction at a position corresponding to the current position, as shown in FIG. Display.

On the other hand, when the output timing determining section 29 determines that the current location detected by the current location detecting section 27 is close to the intersection P11 to be guided, the enlarged map data creating section 28 creates the information. The enlarged view is displayed and output by the enlarged view output unit 30d as shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the above-described route guidance operation. In step n1,
The route from the current location to the destination or the waypoint is set based on the input operation from the operation keys 2 and the output from the processing circuit 11. In step n2, a map screen is displayed in which the road section of the set route is drawn in a different color from the other road sections. In step n3, a guide point such as an intersection on the route is extracted.

In step n4, the geomagnetic sensor 12
The vehicle position obtained based on the detection result of the wheel speed sensor 13 and the like are read. In step n5, the distance from the vehicle position obtained in step n4 to the nearest next guide point among the guide points obtained in step n3 is calculated. In Step n6, Step n
The distance calculated in 5 is a predetermined value, for example, 50
It is determined whether the distance is within 0 m. If not, the process returns to step n4, and if so, the process proceeds to step n7.

In step n7, when performing the above-described enlarged map display, it is determined whether or not it is possible to display from the current location through the next guide point to the next guide point within the scale of the enlarged display screen. When it is determined, that is, when the next guide point is relatively close to the next guide point, the process proceeds to step n8, and the display position of the next guide point in the enlarged view is further changed to the next position. Is set to a displayable position of the guide point. Step n7
In the above, when the display to the next guide point is impossible, that is, when the guide points are relatively far apart, the process proceeds to step n9, and it is determined whether or not the front wide display is selected. Sometimes, in step n10, as shown in FIG. 3 (4) or FIG. 3 (5), the guide point is set so that the preceding traveling direction can be seen widely. Otherwise, in step n11, FIG. 3 (2) or FIG. As shown in 3 (3), the next guide point is set at the center of the enlarged view.

From steps n10 and n11, the process proceeds to step n12. As shown in FIGS. 3 (3) to 3 (5), the enlarged view is rotated so that the approach direction to the guide point is upward, and then step n13 Then, an enlarged view of the set point is displayed. In step n14, in the enlarged view,
The direction in which the vehicle should travel is indicated by an arrow. When the guide point is displayed in an enlarged view in this manner, it is determined in step n15 whether the vehicle has arrived at the destination. If not, the process returns to step n4, and if so, the operation ends.

As described above, in the route guidance method according to the present invention, when the road section of the set route is displayed in a color different from that of the remaining road sections, and when the vehicle approaches a guidance point such as an intersection when the vehicle runs, An enlarged view near the guide point,
Since it is displayed at the corner of the map screen along with the arrow indicating the traveling direction at the guide point, the driver can quickly recognize the shape and the traveling direction of the guide point, thereby improving safety. .

In performing the enlarged display, when the next guide point and the next guide point are close to each other and can be displayed in the same enlarged view, both are displayed together. In 3 (5), when it is necessary to make a left turn immediately after a right turn, a smooth driving can be performed on a traveling route provided for the next guide point such as changing lanes to the left lane after making a right turn. FIG.
As shown in (3) to FIG. 3 (5), the approach direction to the guide point is always displayed upward, so that the direction in which the vehicle should bend is not mistaken.

In the above embodiment, the enlarged view is displayed at the corner of the map screen. However, as another embodiment of the present invention, when approaching the guide point, the map shown in FIG. This enlarged view may be displayed on the entire screen instead of the screen display.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display example of a map screen for explaining a route guidance method according to another embodiment of the present invention.
In this embodiment, in addition to the marker display indicated by reference numeral P1 in FIG. 2A, a direction indication marker indicating the direction of the next stopover indicated by reference numeral P31 and the final destination indicated by reference numeral P32 are displayed. A direction indicating marker indicating the direction is displayed. This also allows the driver to easily recognize the traveling direction.

In the above-described embodiment, the vehicle position and the vehicle direction are determined by the geomagnetic sensor 12 and the wheel speed sensor 13.
In yet another embodiment of the present invention, a so-called GPS (G.P.) which receives signals from satellites in orbit around the earth and measures the current position by triangulation is used.
The present position may be measured using a global positioning system, and another azimuth sensor such as a vibration gyro sensor or an optical fiber gyro sensor may be used instead of the geomagnetic sensor 12.

[0048]

As described above, according to the present invention, when displaying a route to a destination or a transit point, when a vehicle position approaches a point requiring guidance such as an intersection, an enlarged view near the guidance point. Is displayed along with the corners of the map screen with an index such as an arrow indicating the traveling direction of the vehicle at that point, or is displayed instead of the map screen, so that the route repeatedly turns right and left complicatedly , Or regardless of the display state, such as displaying the north of the azimuth at the top of the screen, the driver can accurately and quickly recognize the shape and route of the guide point, and safety Improvement can be achieved.

Preferably, when the guide point is further close to the next guide point and can be displayed in the enlarged view of a predetermined scale, the preceding guide point is shifted from the center of the enlarged view. Since these two guide points are displayed, the driver can easily cope with a complicated route such as making a right or left turn at the preceding guide point and turning again at the next guide point. be able to.

Further, the enlarged view may display the traveling direction of the branch destination widely, so that the driver can recognize the preceding information quickly. Further, the enlarged view may be a head-up display in which the azimuth to the guide point is always upward, whereby errors in the direction of turning right or left can be reduced.

In particular, according to the present invention, when the distance between a plurality of guide points such as intersections is short, an enlarged view of the plurality of guide points is displayed with the approach direction of the nearest guide point upward, and An arrow indicating the direction is also displayed. Further, in the display state of the enlarged view, the enlarged view is rotated in accordance with the progress of the vehicle, for example, so that the approach direction to the guide point is upward. Furthermore, when a first map screen displaying a set route and a vehicle position and a second point screen displaying an enlarged view of a plurality of guide points and an approach direction arrow are approached to a guide point requiring guidance, indicate. When displaying a plurality of guide points, the guide points are displayed at positions where the traveling direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position can be displayed widely. In this way, a plurality, for example, two guide points,
It is displayed as one enlarged view, and is displayed with the traveling direction upward, that is, with the head up. In this way, the driver can accurately and quickly recognize the route to be advanced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a navigation device 1 using a guidance method according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a display example of a current location and a recommended route on the navigation device 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display example by a route guidance operation according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram for explaining the route guidance operation shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the route guidance operation shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display example by a route guidance operation according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Navigation device 2 Operation key 2a Current position setting key 2b Destination setting key 2d Cursor key 2f Route search key 3 Central processing unit 4 CD-ROM device 5,11 Processing circuit 9 Display device 12 Geomagnetic sensor 13 Wheel speed sensor

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A route guidance method for guiding a guide point of a preset route by display, wherein when a distance between the guide points is short, a plurality of guide points are set such that the approach direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position is upward. A route guidance method characterized by displaying an enlarged view of a guidance point together with an arrow indicating a traveling direction. 2. A route guidance method for guiding a guide point of a preset route by display, wherein when the distance between the guide points is short, a plurality of guide points are set with the approach direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position being upward. A route guidance method, wherein an enlarged view of a guide point is displayed, and the enlarged view is displayed so as to rotate as the vehicle travels. 3. A first map screen displaying a map in a direction set by a user and displaying a route and a vehicle position set in advance on the map, and when a distance between a plurality of guide points is short. A second map screen which displays an enlarged view of a plurality of guide points with the approach direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position upward with arrows indicating the traveling direction, and the vehicle position provides guidance according to the route. A route guidance method characterized by displaying a first map screen and a second map screen when approaching a required guide point. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein, when displaying a plurality of guide points, the guide points are displayed at positions where the traveling direction of the guide point closest to the vehicle position can be displayed widely. The route guidance method described.