JP2004125808A - Navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation system for allowing a driver to easily be aware of rough location even in an unfamiliar area. <P>SOLUTION: On the basis of both detection result sensed by a position transducer and node information established as map data indicating a local boundary (i.e., prefectures boundary or divisions/cities/towns/villages boundary), this system reads cross-border guidance information associated with the passed-through local boundary upon sensing that the vehicle passed through (crossed) the local boundary (S110-Y). Unless the cross-border guidance using this cross-border guidance information is forbidden (S120-N), the system provides cross-border guidance information service with "image only", "voice only" or both of them according to the separately established guidance setting (S150-S190). Thus it allows the driver to easily be aware of which area he is driving without switching a road map on the display screen into broader spectrum ones for checking present position on the map. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

The present invention relates to a navigation device that provides image and voice guidance when passing through a specific point set in advance.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a navigation device displays a road map on a display screen, displays a current position of a vehicle with a mark on the displayed road map, and relatively displays the mark on the road map according to traveling of the vehicle. By moving the vehicle, the driver is informed of the current position of the vehicle.

{Circle around (1)} On the road map on the display screen, usually, the names of the landmarks, the names of places near the landmarks, and the like are displayed together with the positions of the landmarks such as buildings and facilities during traveling.

However, in areas where the driver does not have a sense of land, it may be difficult to grasp the approximate location of the vehicle that is currently driving, even when looking at the place name and landmark name displayed on the road map. For this reason, in order to grasp the approximate location, it is necessary to switch the map displayed on the display screen to a wider area each time to confirm the location, and there is a problem that the operation is troublesome.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device that enables a driver to easily recognize a rough location even in an area where the driver does not know the land, in order to solve the above-described problem.

In the navigation device of the present invention made to achieve the above object,
When a vehicle crosses a regional border of a prefecture, the navigation device includes a guidance unit that executes a cross-border guidance process of providing guidance information indicating the fact by an image or a sound.
A guidance prohibition unit that prohibits the subsequent provision of guidance information for a regional border where the provision of the guidance information has already been performed by the guidance unit,
And a prohibition canceling means for canceling the prohibition of the guidance process by the guidance prohibiting means when the canceling condition is satisfied when a predetermined time or more has elapsed after passing through the regional border. .

Therefore, according to the navigation device of the present invention, if at least information for recognizing the name of the area where the vehicle has entered by crossing the border is provided as the guide information indicating that the vehicle has crossed the border, the driver can easily know which area he is currently in. And it can be quickly grasped.

In addition, since it is not necessary to perform a troublesome operation such as switching the road map on the display screen to a wide area one by one to confirm such a rough location, the driver can concentrate on driving, thereby improving driving safety. Performance can be improved. It should be noted that the target of the cross-border guidance is any level, such as a prefecture, a ward, a municipal, or the like, and may be set by the user.

By the way, depending on the shape of the regional borders and roads, the same regional border may be repeatedly crossed in a short time, and in such a case, if the crossing guidance is provided every time the crossing is repeated, it may cause discomfort to the driver. May be lost. Therefore, in the present invention, in order to prevent such a situation, a guidance prohibition unit for prohibiting the subsequent provision of the guidance information is provided for a regional border where the guidance information has already been provided by the guidance unit. ing.

However, if it is not done very often, it is unlikely to cause discomfort to the driver.In order to correctly grasp the current location, it is necessary to provide guidance information repeatedly even at the same regional border Is often good. In view of the above, in the first aspect, a prohibition canceling means is provided for canceling the prohibition of the guidance processing by the guidance prohibiting means when the canceling condition is satisfied when a set time or more has passed after passing through the regional border. Have been.

As the cancellation condition, it is conceivable that the vehicle travels a set distance or more after passing through the regional border as in claim 2, and that the accessory switch is operated (on or off) as in claim 3.

画像 By the way, an image output device for outputting an image of guidance information or a voice output device for outputting a voice is also generally used not only for cross-border guidance but also for various information provisions. Therefore, for example, traveling safety such as an enlarged view of an intersection displayed on a screen by approaching the intersection and various regulation information obtained through a VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication System) is ensured. In the case where information of higher importance than cross-border guidance is being provided, such as information necessary for providing information, the guide means is configured to stop or delay the cross-border guidance and provide it after the end of providing high importance information. It is desirable to do.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the entire configuration of the navigation device 2 according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1, a navigation device 2 of the present embodiment receives a FM broadcast signal via a radio antenna to collect various road traffic information and a position detector 4 for detecting the current position of a vehicle. A VICS receiver 6 for receiving a radio beacon signal and an optical beacon signal from a VICS service fixed station located near a road, map data for displaying a road map, and a so-called so-called system for improving the accuracy of position detection. A map data input device 8 for inputting data for map matching, a liquid crystal display capable of color display, a display device 10 for displaying a road map and various information, a speaker, an audio amplifier, etc. An audio output device 12 for outputting, image data used for providing information by image via the display device 10, and audio An external memory 14 for storing voice data and the like used when providing information by voice via the power device 12, and a touch panel or a mechanical switch formed integrally with the display device 10, and sends various commands to the device 2. An operation switch group 16 for inputting, a remote control sensor 18 for inputting a signal from a remote control terminal (hereinafter referred to as a remote control) C capable of inputting the same command as the operation switch group 16, an operation switch group 16 and a remote control A control circuit 20 for controlling the position detector 4, the VICS receiver 6, the external memory 14, the display device 10, and the audio output device 12 to execute various processes according to various commands input through the sensor 18. I have.

Here, the position detector 4 receives a radio wave transmitted from an artificial satellite for GPS (Global Positioning System) via a GPS antenna, and detects a position, a direction, a speed, and the like of the vehicle, and a GPS receiver 4a. A gyroscope 4b for detecting the magnitude of the rotational motion applied to the vehicle, a distance sensor 4c comprising a vehicle speed sensor and a wheel sensor for detecting the traveling distance of the vehicle, and a geomagnetism for detecting an absolute azimuth based on geomagnetism. And a sensor 4d. Each of the sensors 4a to 4d has an error having a different property, and is configured to be used while complementing each other. Depending on the accuracy, only a part of the above-described sensors 4a to 4d may be used, or the steering angle of the vehicle obtained from the rotation difference between the left and right steering wheels may be accumulated to change the direction. A sensor or the like to be obtained may be used.

In addition, the map data input device 8 generally uses a CD-ROM because of its data amount, but may use a medium such as a memory card. The map data input from the map data input device 8 includes coordinates of a specific point (hereinafter, referred to as a node) on a road, such as a bending point or an intersection of a road, or a regional border of a prefecture or a ward, a municipal government. Node information to be represented, link information that specifies characteristics of links connecting the nodes (link length, start and end coordinates, road width, road type, etc.), and names of facilities and places to be displayed on the map Etc. are stored.

Next, the control circuit 20 is mainly composed of a well-known microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM, and executes a well-known navigation process. That is, the current position of the vehicle is obtained based on the detection signal from the position detector 4, and a road map near the current position read from the map data input device 8, a mark representing the current position, and the like are displayed on the display screen of the display device 10. In addition to the display, when a destination is input via the operation switch group 16 or the remote controller C, an optimum route from the current position to the destination is automatically selected and displayed on a road map on the display screen. For example, a guide for the set route (for example, when approaching the intersection, an enlarged map near the intersection is automatically displayed, and the traveling direction at the intersection is displayed with an arrow or guided by voice).

In addition to the navigation processing, the control circuit 20 also outputs road traffic information and the like collected via the VICS receiver 6 to the same display device 10 and audio output device 12 as those used for the navigation processing. In addition, when the vehicle crosses a local border such as a prefecture or a ward, a municipalities, etc., a cross-border guidance process for providing guidance information to that effect by image or voice is also executed.

Here, the cross-border guidance processing which is a main part of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. As the user setting items for the cross-border guidance processing, the guidance type (no cross-border guidance / image only / sound only / image and sound) and the level of the local border to provide guidance (prefectural level / ward municipal level) are operated. It can be set arbitrarily through the switch group 16 or the remote controller C.

In addition, for this cross-border guidance process, the external memory 14 stores image data of an image representing the characteristics of each region and a voice notifying that the user has crossed the border, such as "Entered XX City, XX Prefecture". Cross-border guidance information including voice data used for synthesis is stored in association with nodes representing each regional border. Further, each cross-border guide information is provided with a prohibition flag which is set when cross-border guidance using the information is prohibited, and the prohibition flag is set after the ignition key is turned on. It is assumed that all are reset by the initialization processing.

As image diagrams represented by the image data, specifically, in addition to the prefectural chapter, the prefectural flower, the prefectural bird, and the like, for example, in Kyoto, “capital letter grill”, “Kinkakuji”, “Gion Matsuri”, etc. In Tokyo, you can use "Tokyo Tower", "Shintocho Building", "Asakusa Sensoji" and so on. Note that these image diagrams may be of one type or a plurality of types for each region. In the case where there are a plurality of types, the image diagram to be displayed may be switched every time a border is crossed, or may be changed according to the season or season. The switching may be performed according to time. When the landscape is displayed, the image may be switched between day and night, spring, summer, autumn and winter, or a limited-time image diagram that displays only the time of holding an event such as a festival representing the area may be prepared.

The cross-border guidance process is started when the navigation process is being performed and the guidance type is set to a value other than “no cross-border guidance”. As shown in FIG. 2, first, a step (hereinafter simply referred to as “S”) is performed. At 110, it is determined whether or not the vehicle has passed the local border (crossing) based on the detection result of the position detector 4 and the node information of the map data input from the map data input unit 8. It waits by repeatedly executing the same step until it is determined.

However, up to which level of the regional border the cross-border guidance is to be performed is set in advance as the user setting item described above, and accordingly, the corresponding level of the regional border is determined according to the setting. If an affirmative determination is made in S110, the process proceeds to S120, in which the external memory 14 is searched for cross-border guidance information corresponding to the passed regional border, and whether or not the prohibition flag of the searched cross-border guide information is set. Judge. If an affirmative determination is made, that is, if cross-border guidance for the local border is prohibited, the process returns to S110 and waits until the next cross-border is detected, while if a negative determination is made, S130 Move to

In S130, the use state of the display device 10 and the sound output device 12 is checked, and it is determined whether or not other information is currently being provided. If a negative determination is made, the crossing guidance can be immediately performed. Then, the process directly proceeds to S150. On the other hand, if the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to S140, and waits until the provision of the information currently being provided is completed and there is no longer a wait for provision of information of higher importance than the cross-border guidance. Then, the process proceeds to S150.

In S150, it is determined whether or not the guidance type is set to "image guidance only". If the determination is affirmative, the process shifts to S160 to execute cross-border guidance using only images. In the cross-border guidance using the image, only the image data of the cross-border guidance information corresponding to the crossed regional border is read from the external memory 14, and the image is displayed on the display screen of the display device 10 for about 10 seconds based on the image data. Let it. At this time, the display area W for displaying an image is set at the upper right corner of the display screen D, as shown in FIG.

This means that a map orientation mark R is displayed at the upper left of the road map display area D1 as a customary method of map display of the navigation system. The current location cursor M is positioned at about 2/3 to 3/4 of the height from the top of the road map display area D1. The various function switches K displayed at the height are generally displayed on the left side of the display screen D, so that important information such as ~ is not hidden.

When a plurality of maps are simultaneously displayed on the display screen D, the display area W of the cross-border guidance is set in the upper left of the display screen D in principle. The display area W is set in the upper right corner of the normal road map display area D1 so that various information displayed in the simple map display area D2 is not hidden only when displayed.

On the other hand, if a negative determination is made in S150, the process proceeds to S170, and it is determined whether the guidance type is set to “voice guidance only”. If an affirmative determination is made, the process proceeds to S180. And execute the cross-border guidance by voice only. In this cross-border guidance by voice, only the voice data of the cross-border guide information corresponding to the crossed regional border is read from the external memory 14, a voice signal is synthesized based on the voice data, and supplied to the voice output device 12 to output the voice ( If, for example, a negative determination is made in step S170, the guidance type is set to “image and voice”, and the process proceeds to step S190. Perform cross-border guidance by both voice and voice.

In this case, both the image data and the audio data of the cross-border guide information corresponding to the crossed regional border are read from the external memory 14 and the display device 10 of the display device 10 is based on this image data just like the processing in S160 and S180. An image is displayed on the display screen, and sound is generated from the sound output device 12 based on the sound data.

During the execution of S160, 180, and 190, an information provision request with a higher importance than the cross-border guidance (for example, display of traffic regulation information collected via the VICS receiver 6, intersection enlargement performed as part of navigation processing) If there is a diagram or a schematic diagram of a highway branch), the process is interrupted and information with high importance is given priority.

When the processes in S160, S180, and S190 are completed, the process proceeds to S200, in which the prohibition flag of the cross-border guidance information used for the cross-border guidance is set, and the prohibition release process executed separately from this process is performed. After starting, the process returns to S110. Here, the prohibition release process started in S200 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

When the prohibition releasing process is activated, first, in S210, based on the detection result of the position detector 4, a predetermined distance L1 [m] (for example, 5000 [m]) after the crossing is detected first. It is determined whether or not the vehicle has traveled as described above. If a negative determination is made, the process repeats the same steps to stand by. If an affirmative determination is made, the process proceeds to S220, and after the prohibition flag is reset, This processing ends.

As described above, in the navigation device 2 according to the present embodiment, when the vehicle crosses the local border, crossing guidance is performed. After that, crossing guidance for the same local border is prohibited, but the vehicle has traveled L1 [m] or more after the crossing. In that case, the prohibition is lifted.

That is, as shown in FIG. 5 (a), when a certain crossing is first crossed (X1), the crossing guidance is performed, and then after crossing the same crossing (X2) before traveling L1m or more. Is prohibited, but if the vehicle crosses the same regional border (X3) after traveling L1 m or more, the cross-border guidance is performed again.

Therefore, according to the navigation device 2 of the present embodiment, the driver can switch the road map displayed on the display screen to a wide area without changing the current road map by the cross-border guidance performed when the vehicle crosses the regional border. (Region), or you can recognize the approximate current location. As a result, there is no need to perform an operation such as switching of a road map to confirm such a current location, and the driver can concentrate on driving, so that driving safety can be improved.

In addition, when crossing the same area repeatedly, the cross-border guidance is not activated at each cross-border, but is provided at intervals that are not disturbing. It doesn't even happen. Further, in the navigation device 2 of the present embodiment, when the display device 10 and the sound output device 12 provide information other than the cross-border guidance, if a cross-border is detected, the cross-border guidance is performed after the information provision is completed. If there is a request to provide information of high importance during the cross-border guidance, the cross-border guidance is interrupted.

That is, as shown in FIG. 6, when there is a low-importance information provision request (request 2) during the cross-border guidance (cross-border 2), the low-priority information provision starts until the cross-border guidance ends. However, if there is a higher importance information provision request (request 1) during the cross-border guidance (cross-border 1), the cross-border guidance is interrupted and the high-priority information is provided. In addition, regardless of the provision of high importance information (request 3) and the provision of low importance information (request 4), if a cross-border (cross-border 3, cross-border 4) is detected during the provision of other information, The start of the cross-border guidance is delayed until the information provision ends.

As described above, according to the navigation device 2 of the present embodiment, information is provided in accordance with the importance of the information. Can be provided without delay. In the above embodiment, the condition for resetting the prohibition flag, that is, the condition for canceling the cross-border guidance prohibition, is whether or not the vehicle has traveled a distance L1 [m] or more after the crossing. However, for example, the distance L2 [ m] or more. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), after a certain boundary is first crossed (Y1) and the crossing guidance is executed, once outside the prohibited area within L2 [m] on both sides of the local boundary. If the user crosses the same regional border (Y2) after leaving, the cross-border guidance is performed again. However, even if the user crosses the same regional border (Y3) without leaving the prohibited area, the cross-border guidance is not performed. .

解除 Also, as a condition for canceling the cross-border guidance prohibition, whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed after crossing the border may be used, or a combination of these may be used. Further, the setting may be such that all the prohibition flags are reset only when the accessory switch is operated (on or off) without any release condition.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, when executing the cross-border guidance, the image data and the audio data of the cross-border guidance information that are stored in the external memory 14 in advance are used. The information obtained through the VICS receiver 6 may be used by providing the VICS base station with such information.

In this embodiment, S160, S180, and S190 correspond to guidance means, S120 and S200 correspond to guidance inhibition means, and S210 and S220 correspond to inhibition cancellation means.

It is a block diagram showing the whole navigation device composition of an example. It is a flowchart showing the processing content of the cross-border guidance processing. It is a flowchart showing the processing content of prohibition release processing. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state of a display screen on which cross-border guidance information is displayed. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which cross-border guidance is prohibited by the cross-border guidance process and the prohibition release process, and the prohibition is released. It is a time chart showing the timing at which cross-border guidance is performed by the cross-border guidance processing.

Explanation of reference numerals

Reference Signs List 2 navigation device 4 position detector 4a GPS receiver 4b gyroscope 4c distance sensor 4d geomagnetic sensor 6 VICS receiver 8 map data input device 10 display device 12 audio output device 14 external memory 16 operation switch group 18 remote control sensor 20 control circuit 30 control circuit C remote control D display screen W, D1, D2 display area

Claims (3)

When a vehicle crosses a regional border of a prefecture, the navigation device includes a guidance unit that executes a cross-border guidance process of providing guidance information indicating the fact by an image or a sound.
A guidance prohibition unit that prohibits the subsequent provision of guidance information for a regional border where the provision of the guidance information has already been performed by the guidance unit,
And a prohibition canceling means for canceling the prohibition of the guidance process by the guidance prohibiting means when the canceling condition is satisfied when a predetermined time or more has elapsed after passing through the regional border. Navigation device. When a vehicle crosses a regional border of a prefecture, the navigation device includes a guidance unit that executes a cross-border guidance process of providing guidance information indicating the fact by an image or a sound.
A guidance prohibition unit that prohibits the subsequent provision of guidance information for a regional border where the provision of the guidance information has already been performed by the guidance unit,
A navigation device comprising: a traveling condition that is equal to or more than a set distance from the regional border, and a prohibition canceling device that cancels the prohibition of the guidance process by the guidance prohibiting device when the canceling condition is satisfied. . When a vehicle crosses a regional border of a prefecture, the navigation device includes a guidance unit that executes a cross-border guidance process of providing guidance information indicating the fact by an image or a sound.
A guidance prohibition unit that prohibits the subsequent provision of guidance information for a regional border where the provision of the guidance information has already been performed by the guidance unit,
A navigation device, comprising: operating an accessory switch as a release condition; and, when the release condition is satisfied, prohibition canceling means for canceling prohibition of guidance processing by the guidance prohibiting means.