JP2003121191A - Electronic map data and route searching apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technology of searching for a route with taking account of the walking power and the safety of walkers in a navigation system specified for persons as an object. SOLUTION: The electronic map data utilizable for the electronic route search comprises link data for showing walking roads, walking road data memory for storing linking conditions of actual walking roads based on junctions or end points of the walking roads, and a cost data memory for storing cost data set up in relation with link data, with taking account of at least either the difficulty or safety of walking in relation to the link data. Thus, a route can be found from the map data, using the electronic map data with taking account of the walking power and the safety of the walkers.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to route searching using electronic map data, and more particularly to a technique for searching a route for pedestrians.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, car navigation systems have become widespread, and a driver can search an optimum route to a desired destination by setting a current position and a destination. Further, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-202982, a technique relating to a human navigation system, which is an extension of the car navigation system, is being proposed.

[0003]

However, in such a navigation system, a vehicle or a person who is a target of a route is uniformly searched for as having the same ability. Therefore, for example, a user of a wheelchair may be guided along a route including stairs. As described above, since the walking ability of a person remarkably differs depending on the age and sex, or the use of a wheelchair, it has been impossible to provide the optimum route for each user in the conventional route search.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for performing a route search in consideration of the walking ability and safety of a pedestrian in a navigation system specialized for a person. To do.

[0005]

Means for Solving the Problems and Their Actions / Effects In order to solve at least a part of the above problems, the present invention adopts the following configurations. That is, the present invention is an electronic map data used for electronic route search, which is a link of an actual walking path by link data representing a walking path and node data representing a connection point or an end point between the walking paths. A walking path data storage section that stores a state; and a cost data storage section that stores cost data set in consideration of at least one of difficulty and safety of walking in association with the link data. Is the gist.

[0006] According to such electronic map data, by using cost data in consideration of the degree of difficulty and safety of walking, for example, a route such as a route with low walking difficulty or a route with high walking safety. Can be flexibly searched. The route can be obtained from the link data, the node data, and the cost data by using the Dijkstra method which is a well-known route search algorithm.

In the electronic map data, the cost data may be set in consideration of at least one of the age, sex and physical disability of walking.

With such a structure, it is possible to search for an optimum route according to a pedestrian. The cost data is
For example, pedestrians may be classified into children, adult men, adult women, elderly people, wheelchair users, etc., and may be set for each category.

Further, in the above electronic map data, the link data includes a link type parameter indicating a type of a walking path, and the cost data storage unit sets a cost set in consideration of the degree of difficulty of walking. The data may be stored in association with the link type parameter.

At this time, the link type parameter is
Specifically, it can be a sidewalk, steps, stairs, slopes, slopes, pedestrian crossings, pedestrian bridges, and the like.

With such a configuration, it is possible to search for a route in consideration of the degree of difficulty corresponding to various types of walking paths. In addition to the above, the link type parameter may include parameters such as a road under construction, a moving sidewalk, an elevator, an escalator, a railroad crossing, a station yard, and a public facility.

Further, in the above electronic map data, the link data includes peripheral information parameters representing the situation around the walking path, and the cost data storage unit includes:
Cost data set in consideration of walking safety may be stored in association with the peripheral information parameter.

At this time, the peripheral information parameter may be, for example, a street light, a police box, a guardrail, a store, a telephone booth, or the presence or absence of a school road.

With such a configuration, it is possible to search for a route in consideration of safety according to the surrounding conditions of various walking paths. In addition to the above, the peripheral information parameter
Bus stops, stations, various transportation facilities, 24-hour stores, family restaurants, gas stations, places where molesters frequently occur, places where trapping frequently occurs, roofs, crossing flags, places with heavy traffic, places where accidents frequently occur, children 110 house, wheelchairs It is also possible to include a parameter such as the presence or absence of a toilet.

The peripheral information parameter is used not only for route search in consideration of safety, but also as a destination which is a link having a desired peripheral information parameter, or a transit point which is preferentially reached before reaching the destination. It can also be used as.

The present invention can also be configured as the following route search device. That is, the route search device of the present invention is a route search device that electronically performs a route search, a data reference unit that refers to the various electronic map data described above, a starting point of the route search, a destination, and A search condition input unit that inputs a parameter that specifies a request of a pedestrian on a route search, a route that matches the search condition with reference to the cost data, and a route search unit that searches according to the pedestrian, The main point is to provide.

According to such a route search device, it is possible to flexibly perform a route search according to a pedestrian using the cost data stored in the electronic map data. For example, when the pedestrian is an elderly person or a wheelchair user, it may be possible to preferentially search for a route having a low degree of difficulty in walking,
When the pedestrian is a child or a woman, a route with high walking safety may be preferentially searched. Also, if the pedestrian is a wheelchair user, steps, stairs, slopes,
You can also search for routes by lowering the priority of pedestrian bridges and the like.

In addition to the above, the route search device is
For example, even if a healthy person has heavy luggage, pushes a stroller, or is carrying a baby, it may be possible to search with lower priority for stairs, steps, slopes, and pedestrian bridges. . In addition, the route may be searched via a wheelchair-compatible toilet, elevator, or the like so that the wheelchair user can walk with peace of mind.

In addition, by providing the route searching device with a clock function, it is possible to avoid a walking path that frequently causes molesting or snagging at night. Further, by providing means for detecting or inputting weather, it may be configured to preferentially search for an underground mall or a covered walkway on a rainy day.

The present invention can also be configured as a computer program for realizing the functions of the above-described route search device when it is configured as a computer.
The above-mentioned electronic map data and the computer program are the flexible disk, CD-ROM, DVD, M
It may be recorded in a recording medium such as O, an IC card, a ROM cartridge, or a hard disk.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in the following order. A. Configuration of navigation device: B. Structure of electronic map data: C. Route search processing: D. Example of route search:

A. Navigation device configuration:
It is a schematic block diagram of the navigation apparatus in a present Example. The navigation device 100 includes a display unit 101 for displaying maps and menus and an operation unit 102 for inputting commands, and the control unit 1 is provided inside.
It has 03. Through the operation, the operation unit 102 can move the cursor displayed on the map, change / scroll the display scale of the map, input a route search starting point, a destination, user information, and the like.

The input of the above command is not limited to the input by the operation unit 102. When the display unit 101 is a touch panel type display unit, the finger or the touch pen 112 may be used to directly touch the display unit 101 for input.

The control unit 103 mainly comprises a CPU and RA.
It is composed of M and ROM. A program for realizing each of the illustrated functional units is recorded in the ROM, and the CPU executes the program by using the RAM as a work area.

The electronic map data input section 104 inputs electronic map data from various recording media such as a memory card and a CD-ROM. Alternatively, the data may be input from an external server by using a GPS antenna, a wireless network, infrared communication, or the like.

The electronic map data input by the electronic map data input unit is stored in the electronic map data storage unit 105. The stored electronic map data is referred to by the main control unit 107 via the electronic map data reference unit 106.

The main control section 107 has a command input section 108.
Origin and destination input from the operation unit 102 via
A route search is performed using the route search unit 109 based on various commands such as input of user information. The starting point in the route search may be input by the position detection unit 110. In this case, the navigation device 100 has a GPS
Input the current position by connecting an antenna or PHS.

The result of the route search performed by the main control unit 107 and the route search unit 109 is displayed on the display unit 101 by the display control unit 111. The user can reach a desired destination by using the search result displayed on the display unit 101.

B. Structure of electronic map data: FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of electronic map data. The electronic map data is configured by hierarchically holding a background layer for displaying a map on the display unit 101 and a walking path layer used for route search. In addition, if necessary, a character layer for displaying a place name, a building name, etc. on the map may be provided.

The background layer is composed of latitude / longitude data.
The figures of walkways and houses are reproduced in detail. The result of the route search process, which will be described later, is displayed on the display unit 101 so as to be superimposed on the background layer.

The walkway layer holds node data, link data, and cost data, as shown in the figure.
The node data represents points such as intersections and end points (stops / targets) of a pedestrian, are assigned a series of node numbers, and hold latitude / longitude data. The link data represents a walking path, and its start point and end point are represented by the node numbers assigned to the nodes. Although not shown, the link data may include distance data indicating the distance of the walking path. However, even if omitted, it can be calculated from the latitude / route data of the node data associated by the node number.

In addition, the link type and peripheral information are recorded in the link data. The link type represents the type of pedestrian path represented by the link, and information such as sidewalks, stairs, slopes, pedestrian crossings, pedestrian bridges, and railroad crossings is recorded. In the peripheral information, information for safely walking on a walkway, that is, information such as the presence or absence of various stores such as police boxes, street lights, guardrails, convenience stores, etc. is recorded. In addition, the surrounding information includes roads with frequent accidents, school roads, roads with high traffic volume,
Information such as telephone boxes can also be recorded.

In the cost data, a cost representing the degree of difficulty of walking associated with the link type and a cost representing the safety of walking associated with the peripheral information are recorded. In the link type, a plurality of costs are set according to the pedestrian classification in which pedestrians are classified in consideration of age, sex, physical disability on walking, and the like. In this embodiment, "normal", "wheelchair", and "elderly" are set as pedestrian classifications. A plurality of costs may be set in the peripheral information as well, depending on the pedestrian classification.

Although the link data and the cost data are separately configured here, the cost data may be included in the link data. With this configuration, for example, even if the links of the same type,
Different costs can be assigned by comprehensively considering the slope angle, distance, etc. of the slope. Even when the cost data is included in the link data, it is preferable to associate a plurality of cost data according to the pedestrian classification.

C. Route Search Process: FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the route search process by the navigation device 100. The navigation device 100 first inputs a destination, a departure place, and user information by the user operating the operation unit 102 via the command input unit 108 (step S100).

4 to 7 are diagrams showing examples of screens for inputting these various search conditions. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an initial screen for inputting search conditions. This screen allows the user to select the parameters to input.

FIG. 5 is a view showing a menu screen for inputting a departure place. When “input current position” is selected, the navigation device 100 uses the position detection unit 110 to acquire the longitude / latitude information of the current position and sets it as the departure point. When “input with map” is selected, the navigation device 100 displays the map on the display unit 101, and the user uses the operation unit 102 and the touch pen 112 to specify the departure place.
If the electronic map data includes a database of phone numbers and addresses, "Enter by phone number" and "Enter by address"
By selecting, the location registered in advance can be designated. If "BACK" is selected, the screen returns to the initial screen of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a menu screen for inputting a destination. The input of the destination is performed in the same manner as the input of the departure point described above. However, the input using the position detection unit 110 cannot be normally performed.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a screen for inputting user information. Here, the user is
And enter whether to use a wheelchair.

With the above input, step S100 in FIG. 3 is completed. Next, the navigation device 100
Sets the pedestrian classification used for the route search according to the input user information (step S101). The pedestrian classification is determined by gender and age and whether or not a wheelchair is used, using a table as shown in the figure. For example, in FIG.
On the screen, the gender is male and the age is 26 without using a wheelchair.
When inputting, "normal" is set as the pedestrian classification. The “normal + safety” in FIG. 3 means that the pedestrian classification is “normal” and the route search is performed in consideration of safety.

Next, the navigation device 100 selects the cost to be used according to the set pedestrian classification. According to FIG. 2, when the pedestrian classification is “normal”, “walkway”,
The costs of links representing "stairs" and "hills" are 1, 3, and 2, respectively. The navigation device 100 is
Using the cost thus selected, the link and the node, the route with the minimum cost is searched by the Dijkstra method, which is a route search algorithm (step S10).
2). An example of this step will be described later.

Finally, the navigation device 100 outputs the searched route to the display unit 101 (step S10).
3), the process ends. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the route display.

In the above description, the user information is input every time the route search is performed, but the user information may be input in advance before the route search is performed.

D. Example of route search: FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of route search. Here, a route is searched with the node N1 as the departure point and the node N4 as the destination. The Dijkstra method is a method for sequentially evaluating costs and searching for a route, but here, in order to simplify the description, a route A that reaches the node N4 from the node N1 through the node N3 and a node N1 through the node N1. An explanation will be given by comparing the evaluation results of two types of routes, route B, which reaches the node N4 via N2 and N3. As shown in the figure, the link data X holds various costs and safety costs depending on the distance / type of the link, the pedestrian classification. FIG. 2 shows an example in which cost data is separately present, but in this figure, the link data includes cost data.

The following two methods of cost evaluation can be considered. Any method may be applied to the route search. The first method is a method for evaluating a route regardless of the distance of each link and the like, only considering the cost involved in the difficulty or safety of walking. In this method, the distance of each link is supplementarily referred to when there are a plurality of routes having the same cost. As the calculation example 1 in the figure, the evaluation result based on the first method is shown. According to this result, for normal pedestrians, route A (total cost 3)
Is shown, and for wheelchair users, route B (total cost 13)
Will be guided. Since the total cost of both routes is the same for the elderly (total cost 7), route A with a shorter distance will be guided.

The second method is a method of calculating a cost that comprehensively considers the difficulty of walking and the distance, and evaluates the route based on the calculated cost. As the calculation example 2 in the figure, the evaluation result based on the second method is shown. Here, the product of the cost based on the difficulty of walking and the distance of each link is used as the cost for route search. The cost for route search is not limited to the product and can be set by various calculations. According to this result, the normal pedestrian and the elderly are guided to the route A (total costs 100 and 235 respectively), and the wheelchair user is guided to the route B (total cost 550).

As described above, the route search can take various forms depending on the calculation method using the link and the cost. When searching for a route in consideration of safety, the cost may be evaluated using the product of the cost indicating safety and the cost indicating difficulty. In addition, when providing route guidance to wheelchair users, steps, stairs, slopes,
It is also possible to avoid a link that holds a parameter such as a pedestrian bridge or lower the priority to search for a route. As a method of lowering the priority, for example, a method of setting the cost associated with the link to an extremely large value can be used. However, like the link L4 shown in the figure,
If there is no other link that can be selected even if it is a link such as a step or stairs, the wheelchair user may be guided using the link.

Even the same wheelchair user may have different routes depending on their exercise ability. For example, a wheelchair user with high athletic ability may be able to pass over even on a stepped road depending on the height, and it may pass over a slope with a certain degree of inclination. Sometimes you can. Therefore, detailed user information such as the height of a step over which the vehicle can be overridden and the upper limit inclination angle of a passable slope can be input, and the route search may be performed in consideration of such information. In this case, a parameter indicating the height of the step, the inclination angle of the slope, etc. is added to the link data, and the user information is compared with these parameters to determine whether the link to be searched is passable or not. Should be done. By doing so, even the same wheelchair user can search for a route according to the athletic ability of the user.

In the calculation example 2 shown in the embodiment, the cost calculation is required for each link. In order to perform the route search promptly, a cost that comprehensively considers walking difficulty, distance, etc. may be associated with each link in advance. In this case, the same route search as in the embodiment can be realized by properly using the plurality of costs stored in each link according to the pedestrian classification and the like.

In the embodiment, the costs are selectively used according to the pedestrian classifications such as "normal", "elderly", "wheelchair", etc., all of which are represented by weighting factors and the cost is calculated by the following formula. May be calculated. Cost = distance × pedestrian classification coefficient × safety coefficient In this case, the value 1 is used for each coefficient in the route search without considering the pedestrian classification and safety.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various configurations can be taken without departing from the spirit of the invention. The various processes described above may be realized by software or may be realized by hardware. When configuring the route search device using a computer,
The various processes described above can be realized as a computer program. The computer program can be recorded in various recording media.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a navigation device.

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of electronic map data.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a route search process by the navigation device.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an initial screen for inputting search conditions.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a menu screen for inputting a departure place.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a menu screen for inputting a destination.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a screen for inputting user information.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a route display.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of route search.

[Explanation of symbols]

100 ... Navigation device 101 ... Display unit 102 ... Operation unit 103 ... Control unit 104 ... Electronic map data input section 105 ... Electronic map data storage unit 106 ... Electronic map data reference section 107 ... Main control unit 108 ... Command input section 109 ... Route search unit 110 ... Position detection unit 111 ... Display control unit 112 ... Touch pen

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Yuji Torisu             1-1 Shimoiritsu, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture             No. 10 Zenrin Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor, Shuichi Ichihara             1-1 Shimoiritsu, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture             No. 10 Zenrin Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Koji Hino             1-1 Shimoiritsu, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture             No. 10 Zenrin Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Mamoru Okumura             1-1 Shimoiritsu, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture             No. 10 Zenrin Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 2C032 HB02 HB08 HB22 HB25 HC11                       HC14 HC25 HD03 HD16                 2F029 AA07 AB05 AB07 AB12 AB13                       AC02 AC09 AC13                 5H180 AA21 BB05 BB13 CC02 CC12                       FF05 FF13 FF22 FF32 FF38

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. An electronic map data used for electronic route search, wherein link data representing a walking path and node data representing a connection point or an end point between the walking paths are actually connected to each other. An electronic map comprising: a pedestrian path data storage section that stores the cost data; and a cost data storage section that stores cost data set in consideration of at least one of difficulty and safety of walking in association with the link data data. 2. The electronic map data according to claim 1, wherein the cost data is set in consideration of at least one of a pedestrian's age, sex, and physical disability on walking. data. 3. The electronic map data according to claim 1, wherein the link data includes a link type parameter indicating a type of a walking path, and the cost data storage unit stores the degree of difficulty of walking. Electronic map data that stores the cost data set in consideration of the above in association with the link type parameter. 4. The electronic map data according to claim 3, wherein the link type parameter includes at least one of a sidewalk, a step, a stairway, a slope, a slope, a pedestrian crossing, and a pedestrian bridge. 5. The electronic map data according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the link data includes a peripheral information parameter indicating a condition around a walking path, and the cost data storage unit stores a walking information. Electronic map data in which cost data set in consideration of safety is stored in association with the peripheral information parameter. 6. The electronic map data according to claim 5, wherein the peripheral information parameter includes at least one of a street light, a police box, a guardrail, a store, a telephone box, and a school road. 7. A route search device that electronically searches for a route, comprising a data reference unit for referring to the electronic map data according to claim 1, a starting point, a destination, and a destination of the route search. And a search condition input unit that inputs a parameter that specifies a request of a pedestrian on the route search, and a route search unit that searches for a route that meets the search condition by referring to the cost data according to the pedestrian. A route search device comprising: 8. The route search device according to claim 7, wherein the route search unit walks when the request specified by the parameter is a route search suitable for an elderly person or a wheelchair user. Route search device that preferentially searches for routes with low difficulty. 9. The route search device according to claim 7, wherein the route search unit, when the request specified by the parameter is a route search suitable for a child or a woman,
A route search device that preferentially searches for routes with high walking safety. 10. The route search device according to claim 7, wherein the route search unit, when the request specified by the parameter is a route search suitable for a wheelchair user, A route search device that searches routes by lowering the priority of slopes and pedestrian bridges. 11. A computer program for electronically searching for a route, the function of referring to the electronic map data according to claim 1, a starting point, a destination, and A search condition input function that inputs a parameter that specifies a request of a pedestrian on a route search, a route that matches the search condition with reference to the cost data, and a route search function that searches according to the pedestrian, A computer program for realizing the above with a computer. 12. A computer-readable recording medium in which the computer program according to claim 11 is recorded. 13. A computer-readable recording medium in which the electronic map data according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is recorded.