JP2002195849A - Display device and on-vehicle navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation system and display device facilitating the input of a drive plan out of a vehicle. SOLUTION: This display device 40 for navigation system comprises a liquid crystal screen 42, a touch panel 41, an operation switch group 43, a control circuit 44 for controlling them, and a power source 45 for supplying power to each part. The display device 40 can be separated from a navigation body 10 side set within the vehicle between a display device-side connector 46 and a first connector 64, and brought out of the vehicle. The control circuit 44 stores the drive plan inputted through the touch panel 41 by use of a pen 60 out of the vehicle in a RAM. The navigation body 10 acquires the drive plan from the control circuit 44 when the display device 40 is connected again, and performs a route calculation to generate route guide information, which is then transmitted to the control circuit 44 and displayed on the display device 40.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a navigation system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Route guidance is provided by setting an appropriate route from a current position to a destination and displaying a current position of the vehicle as it travels along with a road map on a display together with a road map. There is a navigation system that contributes to a smooth drive.

In such a navigation system,
In order to navigate to the destination, it is necessary to input a drive plan for setting a destination and the like before departure of the drive. The drive plan is input by operating a remote controller or the like of the navigation system to select a destination location from a menu or the like or to input and set information capable of specifying the destination location. Therefore, since such an operation requires a predetermined time and labor, there is a problem that it is difficult to perform such an operation in the vehicle when the vehicle is busy before departure from the drive.

In order to solve this problem, for example, a method of inputting a drive plan by voice recognition is conceivable. However, this method has many errors in recognition itself and cannot be easily input. For example, it is difficult to make an input such as "go to destination A first and then go to destination B" by voice recognition.

Therefore, there is a demand that such a drive plan input operation should be performed at home, for example, several days before departure, not immediately before departure or in a vehicle. However, conventionally, each part of the navigation system (for example, a GPS sensor,
CDROM device, etc.), remove the wiring, carry it home, connect the wiring again, and input the drive plan in the same procedure as in the car, or use an integrated navigation system that integrates these parts and integrates them I had no choice but to mount the car.
In the former system, it takes time to remove and assemble,
In the latter system, there are problems that functions are limited in order to reduce the size and that the price is increased.

[0006] The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems and provides a display device of a navigation system capable of easily inputting a drive plan outside a vehicle.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention The display device according to the first aspect of the present invention, which has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, can be taken out of the vehicle to input and store the set contents. . The stored settings can be referred to from the main body of the navigation system.

Therefore, for example, as described in claim 5, route guidance information based on the set contents can be generated in the main body of the navigation system and displayed on the display device. In other words, according to the display device of the first aspect, the setting contents can be input at home or the like in advance, for example, so that the setting in the car immediately before departure is eliminated, and the setting can be performed with a margin. It can be carried out. Further, since the setting contents are stored in the display device itself, it is not necessary to remove the entire navigation system and take it out of the vehicle as in the related art. Further, since it is not necessary to include all the functions of the navigation system in the display device itself, it can be realized relatively inexpensively.

Since this display device is a display device for displaying route guidance information of the navigation system, it is not necessary to separately provide another device for inputting settings outside the vehicle, for example. In addition, the display device of the navigation system has not been used when the vehicle is not used in the past, but according to the present invention, the display device can be effectively used even when the vehicle is not used.

[0010] Such a display device may be pen-inputable. A general navigation system uses a remote controller as an input means, assuming that the remote controller is used in a vehicle. However, a pen input can be more easily input outside the vehicle than a remote controller in many cases.

It is preferable that the setting content is as described in claim 3. Here, the drive plan includes, for example, a destination (including information for specifying the destination), an estimated arrival time, a traveling road type, and the like. By doing so, the drive plan can be input in advance at home or the like before the drive.

It is preferable that such a display device can be detachably fixed. With this configuration, when the display device is used in a vehicle, the display device can be safely used by fixing the display device to the vehicle, and can be easily taken out of the vehicle.

The fixing portion may be configured to engage with, for example, a member on the vehicle side. Alternatively, an iron plate may be provided as the fixing portion, and a magnet may be provided on the vehicle side to fix using a magnetic force. You may. Further, the fixing may be performed by using other various forces. For example, the fixing portion may be an adsorptive or sticky member.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. It is needless to say that the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the following examples, and can take various forms as long as they belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

The navigation system 1 of the present embodiment
The navigation body 10, a position detector 20 for detecting the current position of the vehicle, a map data input device 30 for inputting map data and the like, and a display for performing various displays such as a map display screen and a TV screen. The apparatus includes a device 40 and a remote controller 50 for operation. Position detector 20, map data input device 3
The display device 40 is connected to the navigation body 10 via a cable and a connector.

The position detector 20 is a GPS (Global Positi
A GPS receiver 22 that receives a transmitted radio wave from an artificial satellite for an oning system via a GPS antenna and detects the position, azimuth, speed, and the like of the vehicle, and a gyro that detects the magnitude of rotational motion applied to the vehicle. The vehicle includes a scope 24, a vehicle speed sensor 26 including a vehicle speed sensor and a wheel sensor for detecting the traveling distance of the vehicle, and a geomagnetic sensor 28 for detecting an absolute azimuth based on geomagnetism. Each of these sensors and the like has an error having a different property, and is configured to be used while complementing each other. Depending on the accuracy, it may be configured using only a part of the above-described sensors and the like, or a sensor or the like that obtains the direction by accumulating the steering angle of the vehicle obtained from the rotation difference between the left and right steering wheels and the like. May be used.

The map data input device 30 is a device for inputting various data including so-called map matching data for improving the accuracy of position detection, road data representing road connections, and landmark data from a storage medium. . As a storage medium, a CD-ROM or a DVD is generally used because of its data amount, but another medium such as a hard disk or a memory card may be used. The road data forms a map by connecting a plurality of nodes such as intersections with links, and for each link, a unique number (link ID) for specifying the link and a link indicating the length of the link Length, x, y at the beginning and end of the link
Link information including data of coordinates, a road width of a link, and a road type (indicating road information such as a toll road) is stored.

The display device 40 is a color display device, and is connected to the navigation body 10 via a cable 66 as shown in FIG. A first connector 62 and a second connector 68 are provided at both ends of the cable 66. The first connector 62 is formed integrally with a support portion 64 for supporting the display device 40 in a vehicle, and can be inserted into the display device-side connector 46 of the display device 40. Therefore, by inserting the first connector 62 into the display device side connector 46, the display device 40 is in a state of being supported in the vehicle.
On the other hand, when the first connector 62 and the display-device-side connector 46 are disconnected, the display device 40 is separated from the support portion 64 and can be taken out of the vehicle. Also, the second connector 6
Numeral 8 can be inserted into a main body side connector (not shown) of the navigation main body 10, and is normally always inserted. In this state, when the first connector 62 is inserted into the display-side connector 46, power is supplied from the navigation body 10 to the display device 40 via the cable 66, and the control circuit 44 of the display device 40 and the navigation body 10 are connected. Communication with the navigation control circuit 19 becomes possible.

The display device 40 is composed of a liquid crystal screen 42, a touch panel 41 which is integrally formed with the liquid crystal screen 42 and detects a contact of a pen 60, and a mechanical key switch provided around the liquid crystal screen 42. Switch group 43
And A communication interface for controlling the touch panel 41, the liquid crystal screen 42, and the operation switch group 43 to communicate with the navigation body 10, a CPU, a ROM,
A control circuit 44, which is a microcomputer including a RAM and other I / Os, is provided.

The above-described components of the display device 40 include a power supply 4
5 supplies power. The power supply 45 is an AC power supply (not shown).
Terminal for receiving power supply from adapter and its AC
A battery (not shown) that is charged by power from an adapter or power supplied from the navigation body 10 via the cable 66 is provided. When electric power is supplied from the navigation body 10 via the cable 66, the electric power is preferentially supplied to each unit. When power is not supplied from the navigation body 10, the power from the AC adapter is used first. When power is not supplied from the AC adapter, power is supplied from the battery.

The touch panel 41 is composed of infrared sensors that are arranged on a liquid crystal screen 42 in all directions.
For example, when the infrared ray is blocked by a finger or a pen 60, the blocked position is detected as a two-dimensional coordinate value (X, Y). As a result, a predetermined instruction can be input by directly touching the display screen as described later. Note that the pen 60 is configured to be housed in the display device 40.

An operation switch group 43 is a mechanical key switch or the like provided around the liquid crystal screen 42. The operation switch group 43 inputs various commands to a control circuit 44 and controls the control circuit 4.
Various commands can be input to the navigation control circuit 19 of the navigation body 10 via the control unit 4. The navigation body 10 includes an external memory 11 and an external information input / output device 13 as shown in FIG.
An operation switch group 15 for inputting various commands;
A remote control terminal capable of inputting various commands similar to those of the operation switch group 15 (hereinafter, referred to as a remote control).
The remote control sensor 17 for inputting a signal from the remote controller 50 and the position detector 20, the map data input device 30, the display device 40, the external memory 11, the external information input / output device 13, the operation switch group 15, and the remote control 50 And a navigation control circuit 19 for executing various processes according to the input.

The external information input / output device 13 receives an FM broadcast signal via a radio antenna (not shown) or a VICS (Vehicle Information and VICS) disposed near a road.
Communication System (Road Traffic Information System) Receives a radio beacon signal and an optical beacon signal from a fixed station for service. The received information is sent to the navigation control circuit 19 for processing. It is a device for transmitting information to the outside. The information received from the outside is processed by the navigation control circuit 19, and if necessary, the information processed by the navigation control circuit 19 is output from the external information input / output device 13.

The navigation control circuit 19 has a CPU, ROM, R
It is mainly composed of a well-known microcomputer composed of AM, and displays a current position of the vehicle based on each detection signal from the position detector 20, a map near the current position read through the map data input device 30, and the like. The touch panel 41 and the operation switch group 1 are displayed based on the processing to be displayed on the display screen and the facility index data stored in the map data input device 30.
5, 43, a drive plan input process for inputting a destination facility, a departure time, an arrival time, a road type to be used, etc. in accordance with an operation of a remote controller 50 (hereinafter, these are collectively referred to as an instruction input device), and a current position. A so-called navigation process such as a route guidance process for automatically selecting an optimal route from a destination to a destination and performing guidance according to the selected route is executed. As a technique for automatically setting the optimum route, a technique such as the Dijkstra method is known. In the route guidance processing, the guidance route is displayed on the road map so as to guide the driver to an appropriate route. In the control circuit 19 of the navigation body 10, the mark indicating the current position of the vehicle detected from the position detector 20, the road data input from the map data input device 30, the guidance route to be displayed on the map, the name,
It generates route guidance information on which additional data such as a mark is superimposed and transmits the route guidance information to the control circuit 44 of the display device 40.
4 displays this route guidance information on the liquid crystal screen 42.

When the navigation control circuit 19 and the control circuit 44 of the display device 40 are connected, if any one of the control circuits changes various setting data, the other control circuit is connected to the other control circuit. Send the changed data to
The other control circuit stores the information. When the power is turned on, both control circuits determine whether or not communication is possible with the control circuit of the other party. If communication is possible, it is determined whether or not there is a mismatch in the setting information of each other. If there is a mismatch, the user is informed of the mismatch and any information is selected, and the information is stored in both control circuits.

When the navigation main body 10 and the display device 40 are connected, the navigation system 1 operates in the same manner as a normal navigation system.
9 performs drive plan input processing. For example, facility name,
A destination can be set by inputting a telephone number, address, latitude and longitude, etc. from the instruction input device.

On the other hand, even when the display device 40 is separated from the navigation body 10 and taken out of the vehicle, the drive plan input process can be performed by the process of the control circuit 44 of the display device 40. Thus, the display device 40 is connected to the navigation body 10.
The method of inputting a drive plan in the control circuit 44 and the process of inputting a drive plan in the control circuit 44 in the case where the control circuit 44 is operated after detaching the drive plan will be described with reference to FIG.

When the control circuit 44 detects that the user has pressed the drive plan setting switch of the touch panel 41 or the operation switches 43 in a state where communication with the navigation body 10 is not possible, the drive plan input screen 7 is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 42.
Displays 0. FIG. 3 shows an example of input to the drive plan input screen 70.

The left part of FIGS. 3A and 3B shows an example of input to the drive plan input screen 70 displayed on the liquid crystal screen 42 of the display device 40. The drive plan input screen 70 includes a handwritten character input field 71 and a destination input field 72.
, Estimated arrival time input field 73 and traveling road type input field 7
4 and a completion button 75.

The display device 40 is provided with a character input function using a dedicated pen 60. Character data handwritten by a user's pen input can be converted into a character code and stored in a built-in RAM. When the user writes one character in the handwritten character input field 71 with the pen 60, the control circuit 4
4 recognizes the written figure and associates it with the character. In FIG. 3A, the character “D” is written in the handwritten character input field 71 with the pen 60. Note that writing does not mean that ink can be written out from the pen 60 and writing can be performed. The control circuit 4 displays the liquid crystal screen 42 at a position where the touch is detected by the touch panel 41 in a predetermined color (for example, black).
Under the control of 4, it appears as if written. This handwritten character recognition process is a known process. When this handwritten “do” is converted into the character “do” (character code) by the handwritten character recognition process, the destination input field 72 in FIG. 3A is displayed as “Tokyo OO Land”.

The expected arrival time input column 73 is a column for inputting a time at which the user wants to arrive at the destination input in the destination input column 72. The expected arrival time input field 73 is processed so that the number is added by one by tapping the number portion with the pen 60. That is, in FIG.
Tapping the “10” part of “am10: 00” with the pen 60 results in “am11: 00”. On the other hand, if the part of "00" is tapped, it will become "am10: 01". When the pen 60 is kept in contact with the numeral portion for a predetermined time, such plus 1 is continuously repeated.

The traveling road type input field 74 is a field for setting whether or not the expressway may be used to go to the place entered in the destination input field 72. If the expressway may be used, tapping “す る と Expressway” with the pen 60 displays “● Expressway” as shown in FIG. On the other hand, if the user does not want to use the expressway, tapping "○ general road" displays "● general road" as shown in FIG. That is, when one of them is tapped, the other is deselected.

As shown in FIG. 3A, when the setting of the first destination "Tokyo OO Land" is completed, the completion button 75 is tapped with the pen 60. When the tap of the completion button 75 is detected, the information is stored in the RAM of the control circuit 44 in a text format. That is, “1. Tokyo ○ land: high speed: am10: 0” in FIG.
0 ".

Subsequently, a second destination input screen is displayed. Similarly, input is made on this input screen as shown in FIG. When the input is completed, the completion button 75 is tapped. The input contents are stored in the RAM of the control circuit 44 in the same manner as described above. That is, “2. Tokyo Bay ○” in FIG.
：: General: pm08: 00 ”.

Subsequently, a third destination input screen is displayed. Here, the user taps "complete" without inputting anything in the destination input field 72. If nothing has been entered in the destination entry field 72, it is determined that the input of the drive plan has been completed and, as shown in FIG. "END" and memorize it. Since the RAM of the control circuit 44 is backed up by a battery, the stored contents are retained even when the power of the display device 40 is turned off.

As described above, the input of the drive plan can be performed in a state of being separated from the navigation body 10. Moreover,
Instead of using a remote control or a group of operation switches, input can be performed using the pen 60. Particularly, for example, outside the vehicle such as at home, it is often easier to input using the pen 60.

When the input is completed, the display device 40 is brought into the vehicle, and the first connector 62 is inserted into the display-side connector 46 so that the display device 40 is supported in the vehicle. When the power switch of the display device 40 is turned on in this state, the control circuit 44 checks that communication with the navigation control circuit 19 of the navigation body 10 is possible. When a guidance start instruction is input from the instruction input device, the navigation control circuit side processing shown in FIG. 4 is performed.

In S110 of FIG. 4, it is determined whether or not there is drive plan data in the RAM of the control circuit 44 of the display device 40. In this determination, the navigation control circuit 19 requests the control circuit 44 of the display device 40 for the presence or absence of data.
The control circuit 44 determines whether or not the drive plan data exists in its own RAM, and the result is referred to as the navigation control circuit 19.
By sending it to

If there is drive plan data in the RAM of the control circuit 44 (S110: YES), the process proceeds to S120, and if not (S110: NO), this process ends. In S120, the data of the drive plan stored in the RAM of the control circuit 44 is received, converted into the data for navigation in the RAM of the navigation control circuit 19, and stored. That is, the text data of FIG. 3C is analyzed, the destination name is converted into coordinates, the travel road setting is converted into a flag, and the estimated arrival time is converted into planned time data and stored.

In S130, a route is calculated based on the navigation data in the same manner as in the related art. The following S1
At 40, route guidance is performed based on this route calculation result. That is, route guidance information is generated and sent to the control circuit 44, and the control circuit 44 displays the route guidance information on the liquid crystal screen 42.
To be displayed.

In this way, route guidance based on the drive plan set outside the vehicle can be performed. Therefore, it is not necessary to input a drive plan in a vehicle before departure as in the related art, and a drive plan can be input in advance. Further, the user can input the drive plan easily without operating the remote controller or the like, because the input can be made with the pen 60 and the error is less than in the voice recognition.

Since the display device 10 of the navigation system 1 is taken out as it is, there is no need to purchase another portable information terminal or the like for inputting a drive plan. By making the display device 10 function alone, the display device can be effectively used other than when the vehicle is used.

As described with reference to FIG. 3, by inputting a destination, a route to the destination can be calculated to provide guidance. Also, by inputting the estimated arrival time, the departure time for realizing the drive plan can be calculated. Also, by inputting the estimated time of arrival at a place that is more likely to be on the way, the navigation side can also calculate when to depart from a place that is closer to that point. Then, by setting the traveling road, the navigation body 10 can determine whether the vehicle may pass through a toll road or a general road because it may cost money.

In the above embodiment, the drive plan is input on the destination input screen shown in FIG. 3. However, any interface that allows the user to easily input the drive plan may be used. For example, as shown in FIG. , May be input in a text-like format. FIG. 5A shows an example in which a screen on which only the ruled lines are drawn is displayed, and the schedules of the first and second days are written there with the pen 60. A predetermined rule is provided as the description method, and the user inputs according to the rule. In the example of FIG. 5A, the symbols are given meaning as in FIG. 5B. The input handwritten character is converted into text by character recognition and stored in the RAM of the control circuit 44 as in the case of FIG. In this way, a drive plan can be input as if the user writes a schedule while writing down on a piece of paper. The meanings and rules of the symbols as shown in FIG. 5B may be displayed immediately when a predetermined switch of the operation switch group 43 is pressed, for example.

Further, as information to be input at the time of a drive plan, it is preferable to be able to set what can be considered in the drive plan, such as the name of the store to be visited, the toll road to be passed, and the scheduled interval of restroom rest. The navigation body 10 performs route calculation in consideration of these contents and provides route guidance. In addition, for example, pictograms may be registered. Since it takes time and effort to input such information created by the user himself, it is convenient to be able to perform the information outside the vehicle in advance. As a method of registering pictograms, for example, a freehand drawn picture may be input in association with the name of the destination, and may be transferred to the navigation body 10,
Pictograms may be input and transferred while selecting a portion to be painted and a portion not to be painted as shown in FIG. This matrix should have the same number of dots as the navigation font (16 * 16 dots, 32 * 32 dots, etc.). Of course, it may be possible to register in color.

As described above, since various kinds of information can be registered outside the vehicle in advance, it is easy to customize the navigation system to one unique to the user. Moreover, if the route guidance is performed based on the data created by the user himself / herself, the guidance will be easier for the user to understand.

The communication between the navigation body 10 and the display device 40 may be performed by wireless communication. Then, the liquid crystal screen 42 may be directly controllable from the navigation control circuit 19. In this case, a video signal such as an RGB signal is placed on the cable 66 and sent to the display device 40,
What is necessary is just to switch and display the control signal (video signal) of the liquid crystal screen from the control circuit 44.

In this embodiment, the touch panel 4
1 and the operation switch group 43 correspond to input means in the claims, and the RAM of the control circuit 44 corresponds to storage means. The liquid crystal screen 42 corresponds to a display unit, and the control circuit 44 corresponds to a communication unit.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a navigation system according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a display device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a drive plan input screen displayed on the display device of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a route guidance process according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a drive plan input screen displayed on the display device of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a pictograph input screen.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Navigation system 10 ... Navi body 11 ... External memory 13 ... External information input / output device 15 ... Operation switch group 17 ... Remote control sensor 19 ... Navi control circuit 20 ... Position detector 22 ... GPS receiver 24 ... Gyroscope 26 ... Vehicle speed Sensor 28 Geomagnetic sensor 30 Map data input device 40 Display device 41 Touch panel 42 Liquid crystal screen 43 Operation switch group 44 Control circuit 45 Power supply 46 Display-side connector 50 Remote control 60 Pen 62 First Connector 64 ... Supporting part 66 ... Cable 68 ... Second connector 70 ... Drive plan input screen 71 ... Handwritten character input field 72 ... Destination input field 73 ... Expected arrival time input field 74 ... Driving road type input field 75 ... Complete button

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A display device in a vehicle-mounted navigation system comprising: a main body for generating route guidance information based on set contents; and a display device for displaying the route guidance information, wherein the display device is provided outside the vehicle. Input means for inputting the setting content, storage means for storing the setting content input from the input means, display means for displaying the route guidance information and the setting content, and the main body And a communication unit for communicating setting contents stored in the storage unit to the display unit. 2. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the input device has a pen input function. 3. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the setting content includes a drive plan. 4. The display device according to claim 1, further comprising a fixing portion detachably fixed to the vehicle. 5. An in-vehicle navigation system comprising the display device according to claim 1 and a main body, wherein the main body acquires setting contents stored in the storage means via the communication means. An on-vehicle navigation system for generating route guidance information based on the acquired setting contents.