JP2002202135A - Method and apparatus for downloading of map information - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and an apparatus wherein proper map information taking a movement distance into consideration is downloaded to a moving object being moved. SOLUTION: On the basis of GPS position data and GPS time data transmitted by an on-vehicle navigation system 1 through a network 21, an information center 11 roughly calculates the speed per hour of a vehicle. A value in which the speed per hour is multiplied by a time lap required for downloading the map information is added to the GPS position data in a request to send. A position which is reached by the vehicle during the time lag is estimated. The map information corresponding to the position can be transmitted. A map in which a deviation from the actual position of the vehicle is excluded can be displayed on a display part 9. Without roughly calculating the speed per hour, a vehicle speed signal which is received from an on-vehicle apparatus may be used.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a map information distribution method and apparatus for transmitting map information to a moving object.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a mobile device such as a vehicle is equipped with a navigation device as a route guidance device.
This has a detailed map on a storage medium such as a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, and displays the position of the vehicle on a map by matching GPS positioning values with map data in the medium. In combination with the sophistication, the search and display speeds are becoming faster, from one second to less than a few seconds. For this reason, even if the position of the own vehicle is changing every moment, the current position of the own vehicle can always be displayed accurately by following up sufficiently.

On the other hand, relatively inexpensive PDAs and the like have been realized as navigation devices for other moving objects. This is to download map information from the information center and display and guide the current location, destination, route, etc., but it is designed mainly for pedestrians, for example, during the download time, It is not assumed that the user is traveling several kilometers. Therefore, if a pedestrian moves at most several hundred meters, considering the size and scale of the distribution map,
The user can be sufficiently captured within the map area, and can be used without any practical problems.

[0004]

However, when the technology of downloading map information from an information center realized by a PDA or the like is applied to an in-vehicle navigation device, the communication is not a problem with a PDA or the like. The problem occurs that the vehicle moves within the time. After the distribution of map information is notified to the information center, the vehicle travels a considerable distance before the actual map information is distributed, depending on the running speed of the vehicle. For example, 60 per hour
When traveling at km, the vehicle travels 16.6 m per second.
For this reason, the map information that has been actually sent becomes the one that has already passed, and may not be useful, and may confuse the driver who does not know the circumstances. In particular, when short-distance enlarged intersection map information is requested, the intersection may have already passed.

[0005] Further, since the distribution map is charged for the communication time and the communication capacity, it is not practical to distribute infinitely large map data. The received map data is stored in RAM
Also, when data is stored in a flash memory or a memory card, the size of the received map data is limited due to the limited capacity of the memory. Therefore, in such a case, it is necessary to download only a map within a range necessary for traveling from the current position to the destination, but when traveling off the originally planned route, the download is performed in the memory. Since the map information is useless, it becomes necessary to newly download the map information of that part from the information center. Also in this case, it is desired that appropriate map information can be downloaded in consideration of the moving distance of the moving object.

The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional problem, and a map information distribution method and a map information distribution method capable of distributing appropriate map information to a moving body in consideration of a moving distance. It is intended to provide a device.
In the present invention, the map information includes road map data and related facility data, intersection data, three-dimensional data, voice guidance data, and the like.

[0007]

According to the map information distribution method of the present invention, when a request for transmission of map information is made from a moving body, the map information is transferred from at least the time when the transmission request was made. Transmitting the map information corresponding to the estimated position to the mobile body by estimating the position reached by the mobile body until the time when the mobile body received the mobile body and received the mobile body. When distributing map information to a moving body that is moving, there is a time lag from the time when the transmission request is issued to the time when the map information is transmitted to the moving body and received by the moving body. Therefore, by estimating the position reached by the moving object during the time lag, it is possible to distribute appropriate map information in consideration of the distance moved.

Further, the map information distribution device of the present invention comprises: a receiving means for receiving a request for transmitting map information from a moving moving body; a transmitting means for transmitting map information to the moving body;
The map information was transmitted to the moving body at least from the time when the transmission request was made, and the position reached by the moving body was estimated at a time from the time when the moving body received the time, and the position corresponding to the estimated position was estimated. Control means for reading map information from a map database and outputting the map information to the transmitting means. To the mobile unit, and a time lag occurs until the time when the mobile unit receives the data.Therefore, by estimating the position reached by the mobile unit during the time lag, distributing appropriate map information in consideration of the distance traveled. Can be.

Further, in the map information distribution apparatus according to the present invention, the control means estimates a position reached by the moving body based on GPS position data and GPS time data received from the moving body. By estimating the moving speed of the moving object from GPS position data and time data, and adding a value obtained by multiplying the moving speed by a time lag required for map information distribution to the GPS position data at the time of the transmission request, Since the position reached by the moving object during the time lag can be estimated, by transmitting the map information corresponding to the position, it is possible to distribute appropriate map information in consideration of the moving distance of the moving object.

[0010] In the map information distribution apparatus of the present invention, the control means may include a current position data received from the moving body,
The present invention estimates a position reached by the moving object based on moving speed data and time data, and multiplies the received speed data by a time lag required for map distribution to a current position at the time of a transmission request. By adding to the data, it is possible to estimate the position where the moving object arrived during the time lag, so by transmitting the map information corresponding to that position, the appropriate map information considering the moving distance of the moving object can be obtained. Can be delivered.

Further, in the map information distribution device of the present invention, the control means uses the traffic information received from the moving body for estimating a position reached by the moving body, and When is crowded or when one-way traffic is being performed during construction, a longer transit time is required than in a normal case, so that appropriate map information can be distributed in consideration of this point.

The map information distribution apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that the control means transmits map information corresponding to the display mode data received from the moving body, and When there is a designation, an enlarged intersection map, or the like, by transmitting the map information in the designated display mode, it is possible to distribute appropriate map information desired by the moving object.

[0013] The present invention also includes a mobile unit that requests transmission of map information through a network, and a map information distribution device that transmits map information in response to a distribution request from the mobile unit received through the network. The map information distribution device estimates a position reached by the mobile unit at least from a time when the transmission request is issued to a time when the map information is transmitted to the mobile unit and received by the mobile unit. A map information distribution system that transmits map information corresponding to the determined position to the moving object, and can distribute appropriate map information in consideration of a moving distance of the moving object.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a map information distribution system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The overall configuration is an in-vehicle navigation device 1 as a moving body.
, An information center 11 as a map information distribution device, and a network 21 connecting the two. In the in-vehicle navigation device 1, the GPS receiver 2 includes a plurality of GPs.
A radio wave from the S satellite is received to acquire latitude and longitude position data and time data at the time of reception. The VICS receiver 3
An optical beacon, a radio beacon, or an FM multiplex broadcast is received to acquire road traffic information. The storage unit 4 stores the received GP
It stores S data, VICS data, map information, program data, and other data. The data converter 5 compresses data to be transmitted and decompresses received data. The transmission / reception unit 6 modulates the compressed data and transmits the modulated data to the information center 11 via the network 21, and receives and demodulates the compressed data from the information center 11 via the network 21. The operation input unit 7 inputs a distribution request of map information and other instructions to the information center 11. The control unit 8
In addition to controlling the entire apparatus, each unit is controlled based on an instruction from the operation input unit 7 to realize the instruction. Display 9
Displays the received map information on the liquid crystal screen. The external signal input / output unit 10 inputs a vehicle speed signal, an external ETC signal, and the like from the electronic control unit of the vehicle, and outputs necessary signals. The information center 11 transmits and receives data to and from the in-vehicle navigation device 1, a control unit 13 that controls the entire device and estimates the arrival position of the in-vehicle navigation device 1, and a map that stores map information to be transmitted. And a database 14. Network 21
Is open to the public, such as the Internet, but may be a dedicated line.

Next, an operation of requesting distribution of map information in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, when the in-vehicle navigation device 1 is first activated, G
The PS receiver 2 starts a receiving operation, acquires position data and time data at regular time intervals, and causes the control unit 8 to store the data in the storage unit 4 (step S1). The GPS data is stored two times, the present time received this time and the previous one immediately before, and is sequentially updated. Next, the control unit 8 stores the map data from the current position of the vehicle to the destination to be displayed on the display unit 9 to the storage unit 4.
(Step S2). As a result of the search, if there is the corresponding map data, the control unit 8 reads the map data from the storage unit 4 and displays the map data on the display unit 9 (Step S).
7) If there is no corresponding map data (step S
3) The control unit 8 asks the driver whether or not to make a distribution request of the map data by text or voice through the display unit 9 (step S4). When performing the above, data including the latest GPS data stored in the storage unit 4, the immediately preceding GPS data, the ID data of the vehicle-mounted navigation device 1, and the like are created, and the data conversion unit 5 converts the data into transmission data. A process of transmitting from the transmitting / receiving unit 6 to the information center 11 via the network 21 is performed (step S5). Thereafter, since the map data is sent from the information center 11, it is received by the transmission / reception unit 6 (step S6), decompressed by the data conversion unit 5, stored in the storage unit 4, and then displayed on the display unit 9. (Step S7). The map data requested to be distributed may be all data from the current position to the destination or a part of the data.

On the other hand, in the information center 11, as shown in FIG. 3, when the transmitting / receiving unit 12 receives a distribution request for map data from the on-vehicle navigation device 1 (step S1).
1) The control unit 13 extracts the received current GPS position data and the previous GPS position data and the GPS time data, and extracts the current position data and time data from the two position data and time data to determine the speed per hour of the vehicle equipped with the on-vehicle navigation device 1. Approximately v (step S12). That is, the elapsed time is obtained from the two time data, the moving distance is obtained from the two position data, and the moving speed is calculated from the moving distance with respect to the elapsed time. The speed per hour v of the vehicle is based on data on which road the vehicle is currently traveling without using GPS data, that is, the speed limit is determined depending on whether the vehicle is a highway or a general road. It may be set in advance assuming that the vehicle is traveling at the speed limit. Next, the control unit 13
Is used to estimate GSP time data t0, time t1 at which reception was completed at the information center 11, further processing, transmit necessary map information, receive at the in-vehicle navigation device 11, and estimate reception completion time t2 to be displayed on the display unit 9. Then, a movement distance s estimated to have reached after the estimated time lag Δt = (t2−t1) + (t1−t0) is obtained by multiplying the time lag Δt by an hourly speed v.
Is added to the GPS position data p0, so that the vehicle position p at which the moving body will have reached when the map information reception is completed is obtained.
1 is estimated, the corresponding map data is read from the map database 14 based on the vehicle position p1, and transmitted to the network 21 via the transmission / reception unit 12. Therefore, when the in-vehicle navigation device 1 receives this map data and displays it on the display unit 9, the vehicle moves to the information center 1.
Since the vehicle has reached the position estimated in step 1, the display unit 9 displays map data without any deviation from the actual vehicle position.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the information center 11 estimates the vehicle speed based on the GPS position data and the GPS time data transmitted from the on-vehicle navigation device 1 via the network 21 and calculates the vehicle speed. A value obtained by multiplying the time lag required for map information distribution is added to the GPS position data at the time of the transmission request, and the position at which the vehicle has arrived during the time lag is estimated, so that the map information corresponding to the position can be transmitted. The display unit 9 can display a map without deviation from the actual vehicle position.

In this embodiment, the vehicle speed is estimated from the GPS position data and the GPS time data.
As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle speed signal is input to the external signal input / output unit 10 from the electronic control unit of the vehicle, and the data of the vehicle speed signal is transmitted to the information center 11 by being included in the map data distribution request. Since the information center 11 can estimate the arrival position of the vehicle using the vehicle speed data without estimating the hourly speed, the calculation processing time and the time lag for distributing the map information can be shortened.

Also, by including the road traffic information received by the VICS receiver 3 of FIG.
By using the road traffic information, if there is congestion or traffic restrictions on the vehicle travel route, estimate the time required to pass through it and add it to the time log, It is possible to estimate a practical and highly accurate vehicle arrival position.

The in-vehicle navigation device 1 designates a mode of map data to be displayed, that is, a mode such as a scale, an enlarged view of an intersection, and a three-dimensional view, and makes a distribution request to thereby display a currently displayed map. Continuity and more detailed map information can be obtained.

In the above-described embodiment, the moving body is a vehicle-mounted navigation device. However, this may be a fixed device mounted on a vehicle, or a portable device that can be simply mounted on a vehicle and freely carried. Good. Although the information center is used as a device for distributing map information, it may be another facility or moving object having a similar function.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, when a request for transmission of map information is made from a moving mobile body, the map information is transmitted to the mobile body at least from the time of the transmission request. Estimating the position reached by the moving body up to the time when the body received, and transmitting map information corresponding to the estimated position to the moving body, When distributing map information to a moving object, it is possible to distribute appropriate map information in consideration of the distance traveled. CD-R for storing map information
By storing map information of a limited area in a small-capacity semiconductor memory or the like without requiring a large-capacity storage medium such as a DVD or a DVD-R, it is cheaper and more practical than conventional in-vehicle navigation devices. The device can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a map information distribution system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a map data distribution request operation in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a map data distribution operation according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Onboard navigation apparatus 2 GPS receiver 3 VICS receiver 4 Storage unit 5 Data conversion unit 6 Transmission / reception unit 7 Operation input unit 8 Control unit 9 Display unit 10 External signal input / output unit 11 Information center 12 Transmission / reception unit 13 Control unit 14 Map database 21 Network

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04Q 7/38 H04B 7/26 109M F-term (Reference) 2C032 HB22 HB23 HB24 HB25 HC08 HC11 HC23 HC24 HC31 HC32 HD13 HD16 2F029 AA02 AB05 AB07 AC02 AC06 AC14 AC19 AC20 5H180 AA01 BB02 BB04 BB12 BB13 BB15 CC12 FF05 FF12 FF13 FF22 FF27 5K067 AA34 BB04 BB21 BB36 DD52 EE02 FF03 JJ53

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. When a request for transmission of map information is issued from a moving mobile body, at least from the time when the transmission request is issued to the time when the map information is transmitted to the mobile body and received by the mobile body. And estimating a position reached by the moving body at a time, and transmitting map information corresponding to the estimated position to the moving body. 2. A receiving unit for receiving a request for transmitting map information from a moving mobile unit, a transmitting unit for transmitting map information to the mobile unit, and transmitting the map information from at least the time at which the transmission request was issued. Estimating the position reached by the moving body by the time transmitted to the moving body and received by the moving body, reading map information corresponding to the estimated position from a map database and outputting the map information to the transmitting means A map information distribution apparatus comprising: 3. The map information distribution device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit estimates a position reached by the moving object based on GPS position data and GPS time data received from the moving object. . 4. The map according to claim 2, wherein the control unit estimates a position reached by the moving object based on current position data, moving speed data, and time data received from the moving object. Information distribution device. 5. The map information distribution device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit uses traffic information received from the moving body for estimating a position reached by the moving body. . 6. The map information distribution apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said control means transmits map information matching the display mode data received from said moving body. 7. A map information distribution apparatus, comprising: a mobile unit that requests transmission of map information through a network; and a map information distribution apparatus that transmits map information in response to a distribution request from the mobile unit received through the network. However, at least the time at which the transmission request was sent, the map information is transmitted to the moving body, and the position at which the moving body has arrived at a time from the time when the moving body has received is estimated. A map information distribution system for transmitting corresponding map information to the mobile object.