JP2004184168A - Navigation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To freely specify a region shape when the region is specified on a map. <P>SOLUTION: A navigation apparatus 1 is provided with a path calculation means for calculating a path from a departure place to a destination, a facility search means for searching a facility, etc. and constituted so as to enable a user to freely specify the region shape on the map. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a navigation device including a route calculation unit, a facility search unit, and the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When calculating a route from a departure point to a destination, a navigation device having a function of calculating a route that avoids (ie, does not pass through) an area set by a user on a map has been considered (for example, Patent Document 1).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-11-83519
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the case of the above-described conventional configuration, the user can change the size of the designated area up to the size of the predetermined maximum area. However, the shape of the area that can be specified by the user is only a rectangular area, and the shape cannot be changed. For this reason, it cannot be said that an area of a shape (and size) desired by the user can be specified, and there is a problem that the degree of freedom in specifying the area is small.
[0005]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a navigation device that can freely specify the shape of an area when specifying the area on a map.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the user is provided with the area designating means for designating an area having a free shape on the map, the shape (including the size) of the area can be freely designated.
[0007]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, a touch panel provided on the surface of a screen for displaying a map is provided, and the area is specified by touching the touch panel with a finger or the like. Can be easily realized with a simple configuration.
[0008]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, the facility search means is configured to search for a facility with the inside of the designated area as a search target, so that the facility search results can be narrowed down.
[0009]
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the route is calculated by the route calculating means so as to pass through the designated area, it is possible to set a route that always passes through the designated area.
[0010]
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the route is calculated by the route calculating means so as to avoid the designated area, it is possible to set a route that always avoids the designated area.
[0011]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a car navigation device will be described with reference to the drawings. First, FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of the car navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the car navigation device 1 includes a control circuit 2, a position detector 3, a map data input device 4, an operation switch group 5, an external memory 6, a display device 7, an external information It comprises an input / output device 8, a voice recognition input unit 9, a speaker 10, and a remote control sensor 11.
[0012]
The control circuit 2 has a function of controlling the overall operation of the car navigation device 1, and is configured as a normal computer (for example, a microcomputer). That is, the control circuit 2 includes a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an I / O, and a bus (not shown) for connecting them. The control circuit 2 has each function as a route calculation unit and a facility search unit of the present invention.
[0013]
The position detector 3 constitutes a position detecting means, and comprises a geomagnetic sensor 12, a gyroscope 13, a distance sensor 14, and a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver 15. The position detector 3 is configured to detect the current position of the vehicle while interpolating each other by the four sensors 12 to 15 and has a highly accurate position detection function. When the position detection accuracy is not so required, the position detector 3 may be constituted by any of the four sensors 12 to 15 (or by a combination of a plurality of sensors). Further, the position detector 3 may be configured by combining a rotation sensor of the steering of the vehicle, a wheel sensor of the wheel, and the like.
[0014]
The map data input device 4 is configured by a reading device that can read a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, or the like, and inputs various data such as map data, map matching data, landmark data, and voice recognition dictionary data. It is a device for.
[0015]
The operation switch group 5 includes a touch panel (touch switch) provided on the upper surface of the display screen of the display device 7, a mechanical push switch (not shown) provided on the periphery of the display device 7, and the like. . The operation switch group 5 and the control circuit 2 constitute an area designating means of the present invention.
[0016]
The external memory 6 is configured by a reading device such as a memory stick, a memory card, or a magnetic tape, and is a device for inputting map data, music data, video data, and the like.
[0017]
The display device 7 is configured by, for example, a color liquid crystal display for displaying a map screen, and is configured to be able to superimpose and display map data, own vehicle position marks, additional data such as guidance routes, and the like. ing.
[0018]
The external information input / output device 8 includes, for example, a VICS communication device or a mobile phone (a dedicated mobile phone terminal, a general-purpose mobile phone, or the like). The control circuit 2 is configured to transmit and receive data to and from an external information supply center (not shown) (for example, a VICS center or various information centers) via the external information input / output device 8. . In the case of the present embodiment, the map data (road data, character data, background data, etc.) is configured to be able to be input from the map data input device 4, the external memory 6, or the external information input / output device 8. ing.
[0019]
When the user operates the operation switch group 5 or the remote controller 16 to set a destination, the control circuit 2 of the car navigation device 1 automatically calculates an optimal route (guide route) from the current position to the destination. And a function of executing a map matching process for locating the current position on the map. As a method for automatically setting the optimum route, for example, the Dijkstra method is known. When the remote controller 16 is operated, the operation signal is provided to the control circuit 2 via the remote controller sensor 9.
[0020]
Next, the operation of the car navigation device 1 having the above-described configuration, in particular, the operation of designating a free-form area on a map when searching for a facility will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, and 4. . The flowchart of FIG. 2 shows the contents of the control for searching for a facility in the control of the control circuit 2. Further, the flowchart of FIG. 3 shows the contents of control for designating a freely shaped area on a map.
[0021]
First, in step S1 in FIG. 2, a facility to be examined (searched for) is selected. In this case, specifically, when the user operates the facility search key in a state where the map is displayed on the screen of the display device 7, a plurality of facility items such as “convenience store”, “hotel”, “GS (gas station)”, “P (parking lot)” and the like are displayed (see FIG. 4A). On this screen, the user selects a desired facility to be searched.
[0022]
When a facility (for example, a convenience store) is selected, the process proceeds to step S2, and a message "Please specify an area" is displayed on the screen (map screen) of the display device 7 as shown in FIG. Control for designating a search area (area) on the map screen is executed. In this case, the control of the subroutine shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3 is performed.
[0023]
Specifically, first, in step S11 of FIG. 3, an operation of designating an area by the user is performed. In this case, the user draws an area of a desired shape on the map displayed on the screen by directly touching the surface of the screen of the display device 7 with a finger or the like.
[0024]
Then, the process proceeds to step S12, and the data of the position touched by the user with the finger or the like, that is, the data of the XY coordinates on the screen is stored in the memory incorporated in the control circuit 2. As a result, the coordinate data representing the locus touched by the user with the finger or the like is stored. In this case, the interval of the coordinate data is set to be narrow in the curved portion of the locus, and wide in the straight portion. Further, as shown in FIG. 4C, the trajectory 17 touched by the user is configured to be displayed on the screen of the display device 7 with a solid line, a broken line, or the like.
[0025]
Subsequently, the process proceeds to step S13, and it is determined whether or not the designation of the area has been completed. In this case, the completion of the area specification may be determined when the end point of the locus touched (specified) by the user coincides with the start point, or may be determined by the user pressing the area specification completion key. Is also good. Further, when the trajectory becomes a closed loop (for example, when the end part of the trajectory intersects the start part), it may be determined that the area designation is completed. Further, even when the trajectory does not completely form a closed loop (for example, when the starting point and the ending point of the trajectory are separated), the area is completed by interpolating so that the starting point and the ending point are connected by a straight line. You may comprise so that it may be.
[0026]
If it is determined in step S13 that the area designation has not been completed, the process proceeds to "NO", returns to step S11, and the area designation operation by the user is continued. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that the area designation has been completed, the process proceeds to "YES" and proceeds to step S14. In this step S14, the stored XY coordinate data of the designated area (trajectory) is converted into map coordinate data (that is, coordinate data of latitude and longitude) to represent a polygon area (designated area of a free shape). Create map coordinate data.
[0027]
Subsequently, the process proceeds to step S15, where the map coordinate data of the designated area (area) is stored in the memory of the control circuit 2. Thereby, the control of the area designation subroutine is completed, the process returns to the main routine, and proceeds to step S3 in FIG.
[0028]
In step S3, it is configured to determine whether the facility is located in the area designated as described above. If the facility exists, the process proceeds to “YES”, and the search result, that is, information (name, map coordinate data, etc.) of the facility existing in the designated area is used as information of the target facility by the control circuit 2. It is stored in the memory (step S4).
[0029]
Then, the process returns to step S3, and it is determined whether or not the facility is still present in the designated area, that is, whether or not the search is completed. Here, if there is another facility, the process proceeds to “YES” and the above-described process (step S4) is repeated. On the other hand, if the facility does not exist in step S3, the process proceeds to “NO” and proceeds to step S5.
[0030]
In this step S5, as shown in FIG. 4D, the target facility 18 as the search result is configured to be displayed on the screen of the display device 7. In this case, the displayed facilities, for example, three convenience stores 18 are all in the designated area 17 on the map.
[0031]
According to the present embodiment having such a configuration, the user is allowed to specify a freely-shaped region (area) on the map displayed on the screen of the display device 7. ), The shape (including the size) of the region can be freely designated, and the degree of freedom in region designation can be increased.
[0032]
Further, in the above embodiment, the touch panel is provided on the surface of the screen of the display device 7 for displaying the map, and the area is specified by touching the touch panel with a finger or the like. Can be easily realized.
[0033]
Further, in the above embodiment, the facility is searched for within the designated area (area 17), so that the search results of the facility can be narrowed down, and the usability is further improved for the user.
[0034]
In the above embodiment, the region (area 17) for determining the range for searching for the facility is applied to the configuration in which the user specifies, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the route calculation is performed so as to pass through the specified region. In a configuration provided with a function (route calculation means) for performing the above, the above-described passing area may be applied to a configuration in which a user specifies. Conversely, in a configuration having a function of calculating a route so as to avoid the designated area, the present invention may be applied to a configuration in which the user specifies the area to be avoided.
[0035]
Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the area is designated by touching the screen of the display device 7 with a finger or the like. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the area is designated by operating a cursor key. May be designated, or an area may be designated by remote control by operating a cursor key of a remote controller. Furthermore, the area may be designated by irradiating the screen of the display device 7 with a laser beam using a laser pointer or the like to draw the area.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a car navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart of control of facility search. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of control of area designation. FIG. 4A is a screen of facility search. , (B) is a view showing a screen for specifying an area, (c) is a view showing a screen on which an area is specified, and (d) is a view showing a screen on which a searched facility is displayed.
1 is a car navigation device, 2 is a control circuit (facility search means, route calculation means), 3 is a position detector, 4 is a map data input device, 5 is an operation switch group, 7 is a display device, 17 is an area, 18 is Indicates a convenience store (facility).

Claims (5)

In a navigation device provided with a route calculation means for calculating a route from a departure place to a destination, a facility search means for searching for a facility, and the like,
A navigation device comprising an area designating unit for designating a freely shaped area on a map by a user. The said area | region designation means is provided with the touchscreen provided in the surface of the screen which displays a map, and it is comprised so that this area | region may be designated by touching this touchscreen with a finger | toe etc. 2. The navigation device according to 1. The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the facility search unit is configured to search for a facility with the inside of the designated area as a search target. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the route calculation unit is configured to calculate a route so as to pass through the designated area. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the route calculation unit is configured to calculate a route so as to avoid the designated area.

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