JP2001175987A - Rout guiding system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a rout guiding system suitable for safely and surely guiding a route to the destination for the walker of the blind while using a portable transmitter/receiver. SOLUTION: A portable transmitter/receiver (PHS) 10 holds an ID value for identification and a blind person B makes a telephone call through a radio base station 21 to the operator of a head office 30 and reports the location information of the destination D. The operator inputs the location information or the like to terminal equipment PC in the head office 30. On the basis of the location information of the radio base station 21, the destination information and a map data base, the terminal equipment PC calculates the navigation information (rout guiding information) from the position of the radio base station 21 (almost equal to the position of the blind person B) to the destination D. This rout guiding information is reported to the blind person B in voice and the route to the destination D is guided.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a road guidance system, and more particularly to a road guidance system suitable for safely and reliably guiding a blind pedestrian to a destination by using a portable transceiver such as a PHS. About.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art One type of navigation system (electronic navigation system) is intended for pedestrians. This is called a pedestrian navigation system. As an example of a pedestrian navigation system, a portable G used by connecting to a PC card slot or the like of a notebook computer
There is a PS (Global Positioning System). The portable GPS guides a user to a destination by a map displayed on a "screen" of a personal computer or the like, and is convenient for use in climbing, hiking, cruising, and the like.

[0003]

However, since the conventional portable GPS is premised on the display on the "screen", it is difficult for a blind person to operate the portable GPS by himself and go to a desired destination. There was a problem that it was impossible. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a route guidance system that can reliably guide a destination to a destination even for a blind person, for example.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention connects a plurality of radio base stations, each covering a predetermined cell area, via a network. And a portable transceiver for performing information communication with another person via the information processing apparatus, wherein the method includes a headquarters for information communication connected to the wireless base station or a network. The information communication headquarters includes a map database storing a map of a predetermined area, and provides route guidance information to the destination when receiving a route guidance request from the owner of the portable transceiver to the destination. An information providing means is provided.

Further, the locations of the plurality of radio base stations are known in advance, and the portable transceiver can always transmit its own identification signal to the radio base station. The information communication headquarters further includes a route analysis unit that analyzes a route from the nearest wireless base station currently communicating to the destination based on the wireless base station location information, the destination information, and the map database. It is characterized by having.

[0006] Further, the route analysis means is characterized by comprising direction distance calculation means for calculating a direction and a distance from the nearest wireless base station in communication to the destination. Further, the information communication headquarters makes an operator who receives destination information by voice from the portable transceiver be stationed, and the operator inputs the destination information by voice to the route analyzing means. Further, the route analyzing means includes an automatic voice transmitting means for automatically transmitting a route to the analyzed destination to the portable transceiver by voice.

In this way, as shown in FIG.
Blind person B of PHS10 owner who is "portable transceiver"
Firstly the current through the position (point) P ₁ from nearest the PHS10 radio base station 21 to call by conversation operators stationed in the headquarters 30 is "Information Communication Headquarters", the destination D location ( Address data) and ask for directions. The operator uses the notified address data as "route analysis means" which forms a part of "route guidance information providing means".
To enter. The route analyzing means, based on the radio base station location information known in advance, the address data of the destination D, and the map database, determines the location of the radio base station (that is, the blind person B).
(Substantially equal to the current location of the destination) to the destination D (direction and distance) are automatically analyzed. The analyzed route guidance information (direction and distance) is automatically transmitted to the PHS 10 by voice by the automatic voice transmitting means.

[0008] In this way, the blind B which has received the first of the directions is, to reach the next point P _2. In point _{P 2} PHS1
0 is two or more wireless base stations (for example, wireless base station 2
2, 23, 24), the current position of the PHS 10 is accurately grasped from the headquarters 30. Thereafter, the direction and distance are sequentially instructed to the blind person B by voice, so that the blind person B can reach the destination D without fail. Therefore, the blind person B only first calls the operator and tells the destination D, and thereafter automatically receives voice guidance and can reach the destination D reliably.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to an embodiment shown in FIG.

[I] First Embodiment (1) System Configuration of First Embodiment First, a system configuration of a road guidance system BGS of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, B is a blind person and P
HS (Personal Handy Phone S)
system). The portable transceiver 10 has an ID which is a user identification code of the blind B
Holds the value (Identification Number). PHS
As is well known, one terminal can be used as a cordless phone at home or the like, a system cordless phone at an office or the like, and a simple mobile phone outdoors.

Reference numerals 21 to 28 denote radio base stations, which are areas in which the portable transceiver 10 can talk in a small zone (cell) Z having a small radius. The radius of the small zone Z is 100
Within meters are preferred. The wireless base station 21 and the like are installed indoors or outdoors. In the case of indoors, they may be installed in, for example, each room or corridor of an office building. In the case of outdoors, they may be installed in, for example, a station building, a public telephone box, a convenience store, or the like. I just need.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a headquarters (center) of the road guidance system BGS, and an operator who operates the system BGS is resident (standby for 24 hours). The head office 30 is provided with a terminal device PC such as a desktop personal computer and a database DB. The database DB contains map data of all over Japan (city map, street address, personal house name / company name, etc. and their telephone numbers, e-mail numbers, etc.), and in the case of indoors (office buildings, etc.), Number of floors, installation location, telephone numbers (dial-in, extension number, fax number, e-mail number) of the president's office, medical office, dining room, shop, etc.
Data including a graphic such as is stored in advance. The database DB stores the location, latitude, and location of the wireless base stations 21 to 28.
It stores data such as longitude.

[0014] blind B is induced sequentially position _P 2 to PN in the first position _{P 1} by the navigation information (direction and distance) to be described later, reaching the destination D.

(2) Detailed Configuration of First Embodiment Next, a detailed configuration of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

The portable transceiver 10 includes an ID value transmitting means 11 for transmitting a signal, a navigation information receiving means 12, and a voice output means 13, which will be described below.

The radio base station 20 (hereinafter, radio base stations 21 to 21)
The wireless base station 20 is represented by an ID value receiving means 21, an ID value / wireless base station ID value transmitting means 22, a navigation information receiving means 23, and a navigation information transmitting means 24, which will be described next. including.

The head office 30 includes an ID value / wireless base station ID value receiving means 31, an ID value displaying means 32, a position searching means 33, a destination information inputting means 34, a route searching means 35 , Navigation information creation means 36,
A navigation information transmitting means 37 is included. Said 31,3
2, 33, 34, 35, 36, and 37 constitute "road guidance information providing means".

(3) Schematic operation of each means These means operate as follows.

The portable transmitter / receiver 10 ID value transmitting means 11 transmits an ID value, which is a user identification code of the blind person B, to the radio base station 20 from the portable transmitter / receiver 10. The navigation information receiving means 12 receives navigation information (information on the direction and how far away from the base station 20, which will be described later). The voice output means 13 outputs the received navigation information by voice and transmits the content to the blind person B.

The ID value receiving means 21 of the radio base station 20 receives the ID value of the blind person B transmitted by the ID value transmitting means 11. The ID value / wireless base station ID value transmitting means 22 transmits the received ID value of the blind person B and the wireless base station ID which is the identification code of the wireless base station 20.
The value is transmitted to the headquarters 30. Based on the wireless base station ID value and the location of the wireless base station registered in the database in advance, the headquarters 30 grasps the approximate location of the blind person B covered by the wireless base station (for example, the wireless base station 21). The navigation information receiving means 23 receives the navigation information from the head office 30, and the navigation information transmitting means 24 relays and transmits the received navigation information to the portable transceiver 10.

The headquarters 30 ID value / wireless base station ID value receiving means 31 receives the ID value of the portable transceiver 10 and the ID value of the wireless base station itself relayed from the wireless base station 20. ID value display means 22
Is displayed to inform the operator of the two types of ID values received from the wireless base station 20. The position detecting means 33 detects the current position of the pedestrian (blind person B). In this case, the current position of the blind man B can be detected based on the ID value of the portable transceiver and the ID value of the nearest wireless base station currently communicating.

The destination information input means 34 inputs the destination information notified by the pedestrian by the operator. The route search means 35 searches for a route based on the ID value of the wireless base station currently receiving a call and the input destination information. The navigation information creation unit 36 creates navigation information (described later) based on the search result of the route search unit 35 and the current pedestrian position information. 3 above
5 and 36 constitute a "path analysis means" and a "direction distance calculation means". The navigation information transmitting means 37
The information created by the navigation information creating means 36 is transmitted to the wireless base station 20.

(4) Detailed Operation Next, the overall operation of the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 are operation flowcharts of the present embodiment.

First, a pedestrian (blind person B) makes a call to the headquarters 30 by the telephone function of the portable transceiver 10. In this case, the nearest wireless base station is the closest wireless base station 21. An operator who is always waiting at the head office 30 picks up the telephone. The pedestrian (blind person B) uses the address data of destination D
A noticeable building or the like is transmitted to the operator (step S1 in FIG. 4). The ID value of the blind B is displayed on the terminal screen (the screen of the terminal device PC) of the ID value display means 32 of the headquarters 30 (step S2), and the operator transmits the information of the destination D transmitted from the blind B on the screen (step S2). Address data, etc.) and the ID value of the blind B (step S3).

Next, the current position information of the pedestrian (blind person B) is calculated on a computer (terminal device) PC in the headquarters 30 based on the ID of the radio base station whose location is known in advance. The coverage area of the portable transceiver 10 is, for example, radius 1
Since the distance is within 00 m, the operator can recognize the approximate current position information of the blind person B (step S4). FIG.
If the position of P ₂ in, since both of the radio base station ID value of the radio base station 22 and 24 is obtained, the current position information of the blind B further increases accuracy.

Next, a route search is performed based on the detected position information of the blind person B and the destination information, and the calculated route (for example, a route on a city map) is stored in the database DB (step S5). ). Based on the calculated route information, the terminal device PC calculates “navigation information” indicating how far (distance) the pedestrian (blind person B) should walk (from east to west to north and south) from the current position. (Step S6).

The calculated navigation information is transmitted to the portable transceiver 10 of the pedestrian (blind person B), for example, by an automatic voice transmission method via the wireless base station 21 which is currently communicating (for example, “South Southwest”). Please walk for 100m. "). The portable transceiver 10 outputs the received navigation information by voice, and starts navigation of the pedestrian (blind person B) (step S7). After the operator first hears the destination D of the blind person B by telephone and inputs it to the terminal device PC, the operator leaves the direct charge of the blind person B. That is, the operator intervenes only in the input of the first destination D,
Thereafter, the location information of the destination entered by the operator, the ID value of the blind B (used for tracking the blind B), the terminal device PC, the database DB, and the route guidance system BGS automatically guide the blind B.

After the navigation is started, the current position of the pedestrian (blind person B) is periodically monitored (the portable transceiver 10 constantly transmits a signal to the wireless base station), and the calculation is performed first. In the case where the vehicle deviates from the route, a warning (to the effect that the vehicle deviated from the route) is automatically transmitted to the pedestrian (blind person B) by voice (step S8,
Step S9).

If navigation information is needed to change the direction (turn the road, etc.), the navigation information is created as needed (step S10).

As described above, the destination D is passed through the routes P ₁ , P _{2 to Pn} shown in FIG.
Arrives at the terminal device PC and the current position of the blind person B and the destination D
At the time when the destinations match, the pedestrian is automatically notified of the arrival at the destination D by voice, and the navigation is terminated.

In this embodiment, the operator receives the destination information by voice from the portable transceiver 10.
For example, a "voice destination information receiving means" for recognizing voice and recognizing destination information may be provided in the headquarters 30, and the above-mentioned route guidance information may be provided based on the output of this means.

[II] Second Embodiment In the input method of destination information in the first embodiment, a blind person B
Made a telephone call to the headquarters 30 via the portable transceiver 10, conveyed the destination D to the operator by voice, and the operator entered the location information of the destination D and the ID value of the blind B into the terminal device PC.

However, if the pedestrian is a visible person (= sighted person), the pedestrian may be able to input using the portable transceiver 10. That is, a pedestrian (sighted person) calls the headquarters 30 with the portable transceiver 10, and the portable transceiver 10
The address data of the destination D, the ID value of the portable transceiver 10 and the like are directly input to the terminal device PC by the data communication function of (1). In this case, the headquarters 30 is provided with “data communication destination information receiving means”.

Thereafter, the navigation information is transmitted to the pedestrian by voice through the processing of steps S4 to S11 in FIGS. 4 and 5, and the vehicle can reach the destination D.
Accordingly, in this case, the operation of the operator at the headquarters is eliminated, and the unmanned operation of the entire road guidance system becomes possible.

In the case of a pedestrian who is deaf (a deaf person) rather than a blind pedestrian, a portable device that transmits information by using characters and vibration, such as a pager (pager) instead of a PHS, is used. Just use it. The mobile device in this case also needs to be able to transmit. That is, a mobile terminal having a telephone function and a videophone function is suitable.

[0037]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained. The first effect is that a pedestrian (for example, a blind person) can be navigated only by voice. The reason is that the headquarters always keeps track of the current position of pedestrians (blind people) and provides guidance information (navigation information).
Is provided by voice.

The second effect is that a device carried by a pedestrian (blind person) can be reduced in weight. The reason is that the screen display is not necessary because the navigation is performed only by the voice (the display is unnecessary).

A third effect is that another person (a family of the pedestrian, etc.) can grasp the current position of the pedestrian (blind person). The reason is that the current location of the pedestrian (blind person) is always grasped by the headquarters and can be provided to, for example, the family of the pedestrian.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the concept of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a system configuration diagram of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a detailed block diagram of a system configuration of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an operation flowchart of the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an operation flowchart continued from FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

BGS guidance system B blind D destination DB map database P ₁ to P _n pedestrian position and route Z radio small zone (cell) covered by a base station 10 the mobile transceiver 20 (21-28) the radio base station 30 Headquarters

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G06F 15/40 370C 15/403 310Z F-term (Reference) 2F029 AA07 AB05 AB13 AC02 AC13 AC14 AC18 5B075 ND07 PP07 PQ02 PQ04 UU13 5H180 AA23 BB04 BB05 CC12 FF13 FF25 5K101 KK19 LL12 MM07 NN02 NN07 NN08 NN16 NN18 NN21 PP03 TT06 9A001 BB04 CC05 DD11 EE02 GG01 HH17 HH18 JJ01 JJ11 KK31

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A portable transceiver for connecting a plurality of radio base stations each covering a predetermined cell area via a network, and performing information communication with another person via the radio base station and the network. A road guidance system comprising: a headquarters for information communication connected to the radio base station or a network; wherein the headquarters for information communication stores a map database storing a map of a predetermined area. A route guidance system comprising: a route guidance information providing unit that provides route guidance information to a destination when a request for guidance to the destination is received from a holder of the portable transceiver. 2. The location of the plurality of wireless base stations is known in advance, and the portable transceiver can always transmit its own identification signal to the wireless base station. 1. The guide system according to 1. 3. The information communication headquarters analyzes a route from a nearest wireless base station currently communicating to the destination based on the wireless base station location information, the destination information, and a map database. The route guidance system according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an analysis unit. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said route analysis means includes a direction distance calculation means for calculating a direction and a distance from a nearest wireless base station in communication to a destination. 3. The route guidance system according to any one of 3. 5. The information communication headquarters allows an operator who receives destination information by voice from the portable transceiver to be stationed, and the operator inputs the destination information by voice to the route analysis means. The route guidance system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein 6. The information communication headquarters includes audio destination information receiving means for receiving audio destination information from the portable transceiver, and the audio destination information receiving means transmits the audio destination information to the information. The route guidance system according to claim 3, wherein the signal is converted into a processing signal, and the converted information processing signal is input to the route analysis unit. 7. The information communication headquarters includes data communication destination information receiving means for receiving destination information by data communication from the portable transceiver, and outputting an output signal of the data communication destination information receiving means to the path. The route guidance system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the information is input to analysis means. 8. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said route analyzing means includes automatic voice transmitting means for automatically transmitting a route to the analyzed destination to said portable transceiver by voice. The guide system according to any one of the above. 9. The road according to claim 1, wherein the portable transceiver includes display means for displaying guidance information from the information communication headquarters. Guidance system.