JP2006106544A - Movement display device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that a conventional three dimensional map image is hard to observe and recognize in the vertical direction. <P>SOLUTION: This movement display consists of a map memory storing three dimensional wide area map images including images of the facilities and sceneries with their map coordinates, a map display part which can partly display the above three dimensional wide area map images, a map display circuit which reads the part of the above map images around the map coordinates desired by the user to display on the above map display, a map image rotation means to rotate the above map image within the above map display to show the desired side of the desired street at the center of the screen when the user operates, and a means to scroll the displayed map images vertically and horizontally when the user operates. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a map information display device. The present invention also relates to a portable or mobile display device capable of displaying stereoscopic map information in combination with local or urban facilities and products, services, events, and other information.

  2. Description of the Related Art Methods and apparatuses that can collect and detect information on various facilities and services in cities and sightseeing spots have been known. For example, the Internet can obtain desired information from a vast amount of information around the world using a search means (search engine). Such search means classify urban facilities and services into broad categories such as entertainment, culture, education, and industry, so that users can search for target facilities more quickly. Since they are disjoint and the classification is not systematized, the contents cannot be compared with each other at the same level, and the correlation between arrangement and function cannot be fully understood.

  In order to solve this problem, the present inventor constructed a database in which accumulated information is organized in a tree-like hierarchical structure in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-60201, and displays it on the screen of a portable computer or PC terminal with a display device. It is displayed in a hierarchy, and any hierarchy and any information can be easily accessed using the displayed image or text.

  In other words, at least two levels of regions or further facilities and their products, services, historical backgrounds related to regions and facilities, literary expressions, etc. are stored in a database in a systematic manner from top to bottom. Then, the information retrieval method is such that an arbitrary hierarchy of data associated in the form of a tree is selected, and the data of the selected hierarchy is displayed on the screen of the display device together with the adjacent upper and lower hierarchy data.

  That is, in the above Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-60201, a three-dimensional map or a landscape image is stored in a map memory together with map coordinates, and is associated with the map image, such as at least two layers of regions or further facilities and products or services existing there. Images in which the systems are associated in a tree form from the top to the bottom (real images, virtual images, images in which character information, etc. are visually displayed) are stored in the hierarchical memory, and images in any hierarchy are selected from the images associated in the tree form The images corresponding to the selected hierarchy and the adjacent upper and lower hierarchies are read from the hierarchy memory and displayed on the plurality of screens corresponding to the display unit in the order of the hierarchies. The interrelationship between images can be clearly identified.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-60201 JP 11-328223 A JP 11-328217 A

  However, the conventional hierarchical screen selection method makes it difficult to understand the relationship between the target facility and the map. Normally, the map display unit used for mobile navigation devices such as walking navigation devices is displayed as a three-dimensional stereoscopic map that compresses the map image from the current location toward the destination, and also important facilities (buildings, parks, A real image or virtual image that looks three-dimensionally, such as ruins) is often displayed together on the map image, but the far-side facility along the road traveling direction is hidden by the image of the facility in front and the road side It is difficult to grasp the facilities specifically because the walls of the building are only slightly visible. Especially when it is desired to use the walking navigation device as a guide information source for shopping and eating and drinking, it is difficult to grasp the facility.

Accordingly, the present invention is a mobile type for re-displaying a map or a photograph containing a facility to be displayed in the traveling direction (a photograph is equivalent to a map in that it is a street display having a facility image) so that it can be easily seen by the user. An object is to provide a display device.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a mobile display device that improves the shortcomings of the conventional system and enables a desired information source to be accessed and displayed quickly. Here, the mobile display device refers to a display device in a mobile phone, a PDA, an information providing digital camera, an in-vehicle navigation device, and a walking navigation device.

In addition to this, the present invention further classifies the same information into two or more and enables switching display as two or more screens, thereby speeding up access to information sources, increasing simplicity and freedom, one-handed operation, etc. It is an object to improve the convenience and practicality of a mobile display device that is required.
Another object of the present invention is to make it easier to grasp the mutual relationship between a map image and a hierarchical image by displaying a map image and a hierarchical image selectively or in parallel, and displaying a correspondence relationship between both images. To do.

  That is, the present invention provides a three-dimensional map image containing a facility or landscape image and a map memory in which map coordinates are stored, a map display unit capable of displaying the map image, and a center of the coordinates when the user selects a desired map coordinate. A map display circuit that reads out a part of the map image from the map memory and displays the map image on the map display unit, and an arbitrary side of an arbitrary road on the map image becomes a front side when operated by a user A map image rotating means for rotating the map image in the map display section, and a means for scrolling the displayed map image in the vertical and horizontal directions of the map display section when operated by a user. A display device is provided.

  As a result, the image of the facility along an arbitrary road is displayed on the display unit so that it can be seen from the front or a position close to it, so that they can be grasped specifically. When it is desired to use as a guide information source for searching, shopping or eating and drinking, it is easy to grasp the facilities and streets.

  In the mobile display device, when the user selects a desired map coordinate, the map display circuit that reads the map image centered on the coordinate and displays the map image on the map display unit is similar to the conventional display. The map image is displayed on the map display unit in a state where the direction of the unit (or the moving display device) is detected and the distance is viewed from the desired map coordinates. For this, a conventional technique for automatically detecting the direction of the mobile display device by measuring the direction can be used.

Further, in the present invention, in the above mobile display device, a large number of hierarchical images relating to areas, place names, facilities, products or services or other information associated with the hierarchical layered relationship in the form of a tree from the top to the bottom, and their contents are stored. A hierarchical memory and one of the hierarchical images hierarchized in the form of a tree in the hierarchical memory and its immediate upper hierarchical image, the nearest peer hierarchical image, and the nearest lower hierarchical images are simultaneously displayed on a plurality of corresponding hierarchical screens. Hierarchical display section (displays a hierarchical display window having two or more hierarchical screens for displaying one of the hierarchical images hierarchized in a tree shape in the hierarchical memory and its uppermost hierarchical image, and the latest isotopic hierarchical image. And a selection screen display unit capable of simultaneously displaying the one layer image and the latest plurality of lower layer images on a plurality of corresponding layer screens), Selection that can select and confirm any one of a plurality of layer screens displaying layer images of the latest upper layer, the latest peer layer, and a plurality of latest lower layers from the layer screen displayed in the layer display section A confirmation means, and when the selected and confirmed, the hierarchical image corresponding to the selected hierarchical screen and its immediate upper layer, the latest peer, and the latest lower layer image are read out from the memory to the display unit A read-out display circuit for sending, and when a hierarchical screen showing a place name exists in the displayed hierarchical image, a hierarchical screen displaying a hierarchical image showing a map heading displayed in a lower hierarchy of the hierarchical screen is displayed. By confirming the selection, the map image is displayed on the map display unit.
This makes it easy to switch and move between hierarchical images by classifying and organizing them into a tree shape, thereby facilitating access to information sources.

  The present invention also provides means for cooperating the rearrangement of the map image and the hierarchical image, and selecting and confirming the image of an arbitrary facility displayed on the map display unit by scrolling the map image as described above. Thereby, the hierarchy screen related to the facility is displayed on the hierarchy display section. It is preferable to provide the map display unit and the hierarchy display unit separately, but when the space of the display unit of the mobile display device is limited, the map display unit and the hierarchy display unit (at least the selection screen display unit and the peer hierarchy display unit) ) May be provided at the same location and selectively switched for display.

  Preferably, the map display unit and the layer display unit are provided in parallel, and when a desired point on the map image displayed on the map display unit is selected and confirmed, a pointer is displayed at that point, and the layer image The display circuit reads out the hierarchical image corresponding to the facility or landscape indicated by the pointer, the immediate upper layer, the immediate peer, and the immediate lower hierarchical image, and displays them on the hierarchical display unit. Preferably, the pointer is fixed to the screen center portion of the map display portion and the heading screen of the hierarchical display portion so that the pointer feels as if it moves relative to the image by scrolling the screen.

According to the present invention, the facility on the map can be easily grasped, and the access to the desired information source can be further facilitated by using the hierarchical structure in combination therewith.
That is, it is possible to easily display a facility that is difficult or invisible, particularly in the forward (traveling) direction of the street.

Furthermore, by specifying the facility selected by scrolling etc. from the map image displayed on the screen on the map display device, it is possible to selectively switch to the hierarchical image, or display the map image and the hierarchical image in parallel, Thereby, it is possible to easily access a region, a place name, a facility, a product, a service, or other information that is associated in a tree form from the upper level to the lower level.
Further, by switching from such a hierarchical structure to a map display, it is possible to conveniently grasp and search for facilities on the map.

The term “image” refers to image data when in the memory, and refers to a visible image corresponding to the image data when displayed on the screen of the display unit.
“Map image” refers to a three-dimensional map image, which is a three-dimensional image including a facility or landscape image (virtual image or real image) associated with map coordinates and, optionally, a place name, a facility name, and the like. By designating the map coordinates and direction, the map image around the coordinates is read out in a fixed direction and displayed on the map display unit.

  A “hierarchical image” is an image of a place name, a region, a facility, an inside of a facility, a product, a service, a description, etc., which are hierarchically arranged in a tree shape. By specifying a specific hierarchical position, a hierarchical image at that hierarchical position and a plurality of related hierarchical images are read out and the corresponding hierarchical display section (hierarchy window, peer hierarchy display section, selection screen display section) Displayed simultaneously on multiple screens. Images such as place names, regions, facilities, inside facilities, products, services, and explanations can be represented by “headings” that allow the contents to be concisely understood rather than actual images.

  The “hierarchy display section” includes a hierarchy window that displays one selected hierarchy and one or more higher-order hierarchies thereof, a selection screen display section that displays one selected hierarchy and its immediate hierarchies, Divided into peer hierarchy display.

The map display unit, the selection screen display unit, and the peer level display unit may be selectively switched and displayed at the same location, but are preferably displayed in parallel and in association with each other.
Instead of selecting and confirming “scrolling”, the map display unit uses the manual means to run an image on the same screen without using the image switching mechanism, and to display a map that does not appear on the screen. The operation to display. For hierarchical screens, the manual screen is used to move the screen of the lower layer of the confirmed layer into the display unit, thereby moving the invisible portion of the hierarchical image belonging to the lower layer into the display unit and displaying it. .

  “Select and confirm” means to select and confirm a screen, whereby the selected screen and its immediate lower hierarchy are displayed on a plurality of screens of the selected image display unit. Selection only moves the pointer between a plurality of screens, and the screen is not switched. The selection means is a manual joystick, for example, and the confirmation is a confirmation button. Press the confirm button. The display is redisplayed with the pointed screen at the center. Used for switching between hierarchical screens and switching between the map display section and the hierarchical display section.

“Rotation of a map image” is to rotate a map image along a road in a specific direction to an arbitrary angle or level in the map display unit in the horizontal direction.
“Self-headline” is a representative image displayed on one screen of the selection screen display section, and the two screens are alternately switched by clicking there. One is composed of a plurality of screens on which explanations, facilities, photographs, maps, telephones, addresses, and the like, which explain facilities displayed in the self-heading, are displayed.

  In the present invention, a map memory in which a three-dimensional map image containing landscape and facility images and map coordinates are stored is used. Map images are vectors, but three-dimensional map images are also currently used to compress vectors to compress information. For example, the external appearance of a building is a three-dimensional vector display of the framework starting from the map coordinates, and the surface portion is electronically pasted around the framework as an image and synthesized. Such information may be stored in a fixed memory, or may be stored in advance in a rewritable memory obtained from a map provider via the Internet or the like. Further, a map display unit that can display a map image is provided. When the user selects a desired map coordinate (the current position is automatically specified by default), a map display circuit that reads a part of the map image centered on the coordinate and displays it on the map display unit Is used. Selection of the map coordinates corresponding to the current position is automatically determined using a facility such as a space satellite, and a set of mobile display devices is detected by a direction detector using a gyro etc. built in the mobile display device. From the current position (pedestrian's view), it is displayed on the map display unit as a perspective view far away. Such mobile display devices are well known.

  The display unit of the mobile display device is provided with a map display unit that displays a map image. This is arranged side by side with the peer and hierarchy display section (FIG. 16 to be described later), or when there is not enough space, the map display section and the hierarchy display section (especially the selection screen display section and the peer hierarchy display section) display the same. It can be displayed at a place, and selectively displayed. In the latter case, switching between these can be performed automatically when the specific conditions are satisfied in the hierarchical display unit and the map display unit.

  In the present invention, the map image rotating means for rotating the map image within the map display unit so that an arbitrary side of an arbitrary road on the map image is a front side when operated by the user, and the user operated Sometimes, means for scrolling the displayed map image in the vertical and horizontal directions of the map display unit is essential.

  In the present invention, a selection unit that scrolls the map image displayed on the map display unit in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction and a determination unit that confirms the selection are used. As such means, a normal joystick or the like having four-way scroll buttons up and down and left and right and a confirmation button can be arbitrarily used. The present invention further requires image rotation means for rotating any side of any road on the displayed map to the front side. For example, a left / right rotation switch is provided, the road of the map image on the screen is indicated by a pointer, the map image is rotated to the left when the right switch is pressed with the right or left switch, and the map image is rotated to the right when the left switch is pressed All the images other than the front side are omitted.

  The present invention is also an image (hierarchical image) that is a region, a place name, a facility, a product or service, and / or an event that are associated in a tree structure from the upper level to the lower level, and / or information related thereto, and that can be displayed on the screen. Is stored in the hierarchical memory of the mobile display device, for example, by downloading from the Internet site wirelessly or by wire, or stored in the hierarchical memory of the mobile display device from a hard disk or the like, It constitutes a part of the mobile display device of the invention.

  The mobile display device includes a hierarchy display section (hierarchy display window, peer hierarchy display section, and peer hierarchy display section) that can be visually displayed simultaneously on a plurality of screens corresponding to a plurality of images of one or more hierarchies in the hierarchy memory. Screen selection means capable of selecting one of the upper screen for selecting a single screen of the latest upper hierarchy according to the tree from the displayed specific screen and a plurality of hierarchy screens of the nearest peer or the nearest lower hierarchy And a readout circuit that reads out a hierarchical image corresponding to the selected heading from the memory and sends it to the display unit when one of the hierarchical screens is selected and confirmed.

  The hierarchical images displayed on each screen selected and displayed here are stored as images in the hierarchical memory, and each image is composed of a text image and / or a video image, and each image has its address (hierarchical tree structure). Heading information associated with each of the hierarchized positions). When a desired image is selected and confirmed, the image is displayed on the selection screen of the display unit of the moving display device. Therefore, the selection screen is displayed as a screen corresponding to the selected image, and the hierarchical relationship of the images displayed on the display unit corresponds to the hierarchical relationship in the memory.

1 to 7 show the display device of the present invention and its screen, and the information of the tree-like hierarchical structure stored in the memory is displayed according to the screen configuration of the present invention.
FIG. 9 shows the appearance of the mobile display device of the present invention. The display unit 1, the joystick 2, the confirmation button 3, the return button 4, the screen A content switching button 7, the upper button 9 for selecting the upper layer, the keyboard 5, and the antenna. 6 is included. Although not shown in the figure, the screen data signal received via the antenna 6 is stored in the portable device as the above-described hierarchical screen data.

  The display unit 1 has a joystick (or command navigation button) 2, a confirmation button (or click button) 3, a return button 4, a screen A content switching button 7, a high-level button 9, and a selection means according to the roles assigned to the keyboard 5. 1 to 7 can be displayed. In this example, the joystick 2 can be selected in four directions, and the heading of a plurality of hierarchical screens displayed in the hierarchical display portion can be arbitrarily pointed, and an image of a specific screen can be obtained from the memory by pressing (clicking) the confirmation button 3. Read and display on the selected screen (selection screen). In the present invention, two adjacent images in the same hierarchy are automatically displayed at the same time.

The return button 4 is a button that can return to the screen immediately before the selection screen determined by the joystick, and can return to the screen of the upper hierarchy selected immediately before or the screen of the lower hierarchy immediately before.
The confirmation button 3 further has a function of switching to another screen having a self-heading of the selection screen by pressing a hierarchical image (self-heading in this example) displayed on the selected screen among the selection screens. Alternatively, a self-heading button may be provided separately to have the same function.
The screen A content switching button 7 is a button for cycling and switching a plurality of contents displayed on the screen A belonging to the heading.
The upper button 9 is a button for returning to the latest upper layer screen.
The various buttons may be buttons displayed as images on the display unit 1 in addition to mechanical buttons.

  The display unit 1 includes a selection screen display unit 11 and a peer hierarchy display unit 12. Reference numeral 13 denotes a hierarchical window for displaying a headline displayed on the current selection screen display unit 11 and one or more hierarchical images (headings) of the upper hierarchy immediately adjacent thereto.

The selection screen display unit 11 is designed to display one of the following four types of screens.
(1) The selection screen displayed on the selection screen display unit from the highest level to a certain level below it is composed of an array of a plurality of lower level headings of the latest lower level. This portion is convenient for selecting and transferring a tree-like hierarchical structure gradually to lower screens by selecting a heading (menu item). This part is known. Such a hierarchical structure and selection (search) are described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-328223 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-328217 “Information Collection Search Device” by the present applicant.
(2) The screen of the lowest hierarchy selected in (1) above and the selection screen of the lower hierarchy have a screen A that displays the self-headings and the contents of information belonging thereto.
(3) As another screen having the same heading as in the previous item (2), a screen B indicating a plurality of headings in a lower hierarchy of the selection screen is provided. These screen A and screen B can be displayed by switching from each other or from screen A to screen B.
(4) As another screen having the same heading as (2) and (3) in the previous section, a self-heading of the selection screen, a plurality of first lower-level headings in the latest lower hierarchy, and a specific heading among the lower-level headings Including a screen C that simultaneously displays a plurality of second subordinate headings of the immediately lower subordinate hierarchy, and the screen selection means selects the heading of the screen C to switch to the first or second subordinate screen for display. Like that.
By using this screen C together, the screens A, B, and C can be switched in order and displayed.

  By selecting and displaying the screens (2) to (3) above, it is possible to search for desired information and display it on the screen.

  A specific example of the above (1) is shown in FIG. The heading (hierarchical image) of the screen of the upper hierarchy having the latest relationship with the current selection screen is displayed in another hierarchy window 13, and the selection screen of the current hierarchy is displayed in the selection screen display unit 11. In this example, it can be seen that the heading of the display screen is “Shinjuku West Exit” and the heading of the screen of the upper hierarchy is “Tokyo”. Each screen in the upper layer can have the same configuration as the selection screen shown in FIG. The selection screen displayed on the selection screen display unit 11 is composed of an array (9 in this example) of a plurality of subordinate headings in the immediately lower hierarchy of the selection screen (in this example, the screen displaying “Shinjuku West Exit”).

  When an arbitrary heading (in this example, “park tower”) is selected with the joystick 2 (for example, reverse display) and then the confirm button 3 is pressed, the screen A in FIG. 2 is displayed on the selection screen display unit 11. On the other hand, if it is desired to return to the upper screen from this screen, the return button 4 is pressed if the immediately preceding selection screen is higher. The upper button 9 may be simply pressed. Alternatively, numbers 1 to 9 may be added to the headings in the selection screen, and the same thing may be performed by inputting the numbers from the keys of the numeric keyboard 5.

  In the screen of FIG. 1, if the joystick 2 selects a heading (for example, “Sumitomo Building”) at the left and right ends of the screen and continues to tilt the joystick 2 to the right without confirmation, the hidden screen cannot be displayed. It is preferable to scroll to another screen.

  FIG. 2 is a screen corresponding to the above (2). The screen of the lowest hierarchy selected in the above (1) and the selection screen of the lower hierarchy are screens displaying self-headings and images of information contents belonging thereto. A. In this example, the self-heading is “Park Tower”, and the content of the target information represented by the name of the self-heading is “Description, Photo, Address Phone Number, Map”. is there. Each content may be composed of a plurality of screens (in the example of FIG. 8, n photos showing the appearance and interior of the park tower). For example, when the “Photo” section is selected and confirmed with a joystick, FIG. Photo 1 is displayed as shown. At that time, the button 7 appears at the same time as an image, and a pointer is automatically attached to the button 7 so that the button is selected (state before confirmation). Therefore, every time the button 7 is confirmed, the images from the photo 1 to the photo n are cyclically displayed in order on the selection screen display unit.

  The image of the selection screen is displayed in a large size on the selection screen display unit 11, and the image of the heading of the two screens of the same peer hierarchy is simultaneously displayed on the peer hierarchy display unit 12. Since all displayed headings are subject to selection, even if the headlines of the left and right peer hierarchy display sections 12 and 12 are selected and confirmed without returning to the upper hierarchy, they are displayed on the display section of FIG. It is possible to shift to another screen having the same configuration as the screen configuration. This point will be described later in the case of switching from the screen display of FIG. 4 equivalent to FIG. 2 to the screen display of FIG.

In this way, it is possible to select any one of the arbitrary screens in the peer hierarchy (in this example, the screen having the nine headings in FIG. 1).
When the self heading 11 ′ “Park Tower” is selected and confirmed in the screen display of FIG. 2, the selection screen display unit 11 is switched to the selection screen B of FIG.

FIG. 3 shows a screen B corresponding to (3) above. This screen is a separate screen having the same heading 11 ′ “Park Tower” as the selection screen display unit of FIG. 2, and a plurality of headings “PARK / HYATT / HOTEL” and the other six subordinates of the selection screen display unit. It has a screen B showing a headline. Each of these headings can be selected by pointing and confirming.
As a result, it can be understood what kind of facility belongs to the self-heading 11 ′ “Park Tower”. When the heading “PARK / HYATT / HOTEL” is selected, the screen shown in FIG. 4 appears.

  In the screen B of FIG. 3, when the heading of the end of the screen (for example, “PARK TO HALL”) is selected with the joystick 2 (without confirmation) and the joystick 2 is continuously tilted to the right, it is not displayed on the screen B. It is preferable that the selected image can be scrolled.

  The screen of FIG. 4 is a screen A similar to the screen configuration of FIG. 2, and an image represented by the self-heading 11 ′ “PARK / HYATT / HOTEL” is displayed on the selection screen display unit 11 and two others in the same hierarchy. The images of the facilities are simultaneously displayed on the peer hierarchy display units 12 and 12.

  FIG. 5 is a screen A that is a selection screen when the heading (in this example, “OZONE”) of the peer level display unit 12 in FIG. 4 is selected and confirmed, and is the same as FIG. 2 and FIG. See the description of 2.

  When the self-heading 11 '“PARK / HYATT / HOTEL” is selected again and confirmed in FIG. Since the configuration of this screen is the same as that of screen B shown in FIG. 3, refer to the description of FIG. 3 for details. When the self-heading 11 '“PARK / HYATT / HOTEL” is selected again in FIG. 6, the screen is switched to the screen shown in FIG.

  FIG. 7 displays the screen C described in (4) above on the selection screen display unit 11. The selection screen display unit includes the self-heading 11 ′, a plurality of first sub-headings (“Peak”, “Gilandol”, “New York Grill”) in the immediate lower hierarchy, and a specific heading among the sub-headings. For example, it includes a screen C that simultaneously displays a plurality of second sub-headings, for example, cooking menus, in the immediate lower hierarchy of the restaurant “Giandoor”, and each heading can be selected.

Further, by selecting the self-heading of the screen C, it is possible to switch to and display the screen A or B having the same self-heading (that is, the screen of FIG. 4 or FIG. 6). In the example described later with reference to FIG. 10, screens A, B, and C are cyclically displayed.
Note that FIG. 3 has a screen configuration equivalent to that in FIG. 6, and the selection screen in FIG. 3 can be switched to a screen having the same configuration as in FIG. 7.

  In summary, when the correspondence between the embodiment and the screen is shown, the screen A (displays the self-heading of the screen and the description of the facility represented by the heading, etc.) is displayed together with the headings of the other two screens in the same level. Examples of this are shown in FIGS.

  An example of displaying screen B (the self-heading of the screen and a list of headings belonging to the nearest lower hierarchy such as a facility represented by the heading) together with the headings of the other two screens in the same hierarchy is shown in FIGS. is there.

  Along with the headings of the other two screens in the same hierarchy, the screen C (represented by a self-heading of the screen, a list of headings belonging to the nearest lower hierarchy such as a facility represented by the heading, and a specific heading of the lower hierarchy An example of displaying a list of a plurality of subordinate facilities or products is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 10 shows the above-described screen selection operation and display flow for further understanding. First, it is assumed that the subheading “Park Tower” in FIG. 1 is selected and confirmed. As a result, the screen A having the heading 11 ′ “Park Tower” is displayed, and the two peer screen display units 12, 12 are displayed immediately before the next input.

If the right or left peer screen display section heading 12 is selected and confirmed, the readout display circuit determines whether the confirmation screen is right or left and displays the screen A of the right or left screen on the selection screen display section 11. To do.
If the self heading 11 'is selected and confirmed, the readout display circuit switches the selection screen to the screen B in FIG. If the self-heading 11 'is selected and confirmed again, the screen is switched to the screen C. If the self-heading 11 ′ is selected and confirmed again, the readout display circuit switches to the screen A. The same applies hereinafter.
If a content heading such as a photo heading is selected and confirmed on the screen A, the first image (photo 1) shown in FIG. The content button 7 is displayed on the screen. By repeatedly pressing the button, the photograph 1 is returned to the photograph 5, and then the photograph 1 is returned. The same applies hereinafter.

When the upper button 9 is pressed on an arbitrary selection screen that is displayed, the latest upper layer screen is displayed.
When the return button 4 is pressed on any displayed selection screen, the screen displayed immediately before is displayed on the selection screen.

Furthermore, the following modifications can be made.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 7, an auxiliary display unit 14 for displaying a selection headline of desire satisfaction items corresponding to the selection screen (in this example, a headline of activities such as meals, shopping, etc.) is provided together with the screens A, B, or C. By providing a means for selecting one of them, it is possible to jump to the screen of a facility (restaurant, store, etc.) belonging to any category. Such an auxiliary display screen is associated with a specific category classification in advance. This association is described in detail in JP-A-11-328223 and JP-A-11-328217.

  11 illustrates a system in which the display device 20 (for example, in-vehicle navigation) and a remote controller are separated and a signal is sent to the infrared sensor 21 to operate the screen of the display unit 1 of the display device 20. The configuration and operation are the same as those of the embodiment described above. A toggle button may be used as the button 7.

  FIG. 12 shows a means for displaying the front of the map image along the street at a predetermined point on the map display unit in order to display a facility that is difficult to see along the street of the map image according to the present invention. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a method of switching from a specific screen in the hierarchy screen to the map display unit.

  First, in the display method using the hierarchical structure described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 11, as shown in FIG. 13, the latest upper hierarchy is Ginza, the currently selected hierarchy is Ginza 4-chome, and the peer hierarchy is Assume that images of Ginza 3-chome and Ginza 5-chome are respectively displayed. The photos, explanations, maps, etc. are displayed in the Ginza 4-chome level.

  When the screen where the headline image is a map is pointed (20) and a map headline is selected, the hierarchical display unit disappears from the display unit according to the flow of FIG. 12 and is switched to the map display unit (or the hierarchical display unit and the map display). When the units are in parallel, images are displayed in parallel on the hierarchical display unit and the map display unit as in screen I or II of FIG. 16), the current position and the direction of the mobile display device are the internal circuit and GPS. Etc. (steps S1, S2), whereby a map image is displayed on the map display unit (S3). The map image is preferably displayed in a three-dimensional form from the current position on the map display unit (see FIG. 14). The map display unit displays a real image or a virtual image of a facility such as a building along with a map image. For example, if a street and a building facing a certain direction from the intersection of Ginza 4-chome are displayed, the image of the building a little away is disturbed by the building in front and is not visible so the user is displayed Of the streets, the street that the user wants to see and the side that he / she wants to see (left side L or right side R in FIG. 14) are scrolled with the joystick to point (select), and confirmed with the confirm button (S4). The internal circuit of the mobile display device determines whether the selected street is the current location using the coordinates of the pointed map and the current location (S5), and if it is not the current location, displays a map image of the point pointed to (S6). Next, it is determined whether the point pointed to is the right side R or left side L of the street when viewed from the current location (S7). If the left side is L, the map image is rotated to the right around the pointed point and the facility along the left side street Is displayed on the front (S8). If it is right R, the map image is rotated to the left with the pointed point as the center, and the facility image along the right street is displayed in front (S9). FIG. 15 shows this state.

  Next, the desired facility is pointed (selected) by scrolling the displayed image in the map display portion to the left and right, and determined (S10). Then, for example, the screen is a hierarchical screen having an A screen corresponding to FIGS. 2 and 4 (which may be programmed to shift to other screens B and C) and an adjacent peer screen (an image of facilities on both sides). Switch. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 16, when the hierarchical display unit and the map display unit are arranged in parallel, the facility image that has entered under the pointer on the map display unit is identified by coloring or reverse display, and the map display ( When the “cityscape display” is scrolled to the left and right, the image of the identified facility moves, and the corresponding hierarchical display portion of the facility newly entered under the pointer also corresponds to that. The pointed facility image on the map display part is displayed by entering under the pointer, and the self-heading 11 ′ corresponding to 11 ″ of the hierarchy screen and the related hierarchical structure are displayed at the same time. When the left 12 ″ image moves below the pointer, the right or left 12 of the hierarchical screen also becomes the self-heading screen.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to display, select, and confirm a facility that is difficult to see using the map image and its coordinates. In the mobile display device, another screen of the same hierarchy can be directly selected from the display screen, and screens A, B, and C can be selected and displayed under the same heading, so that the target information can be searched quickly. Is obtained. In the embodiment, the map image is rotated in the horizontal direction. However, the map image may be rotated at an arbitrary angle that does not reach the horizontal direction.
If there is room in the mobile display device, as shown in FIG. 16, the hierarchical image and the map image are displayed in parallel on the hierarchical level and the map display unit, respectively, so that the positional relationship can be displayed very easily.

It is a figure which shows an example of the selection screen and peer screen of the hierarchy display part of the mobile display apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the selection screen A displayed when the heading of the lower hierarchy displayed on the selection screen of FIG. 1 is selected. It is a figure which shows the selection screen B displayed when the self-heading displayed on the selection screen of FIG. 2 is selected. It is a figure which shows the selection screen A displayed when the heading of the lower hierarchy displayed on the selection screen of FIG. 3 is selected. It is a figure which shows the selection screen A displayed when the headline displayed on the peer hierarchy of FIG. 4 is selected. It is a figure which shows the selection screen B displayed when the self-heading displayed on the selection screen of FIG. 4 is selected. It is a figure which shows the selection screen C displayed when the self-heading displayed on the selection screen of FIG. 5 is selected. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing that a plurality of photos are sequentially switched and displayed when a photo is selected as the content of screen A in FIG. 2. It is a figure which shows the structure of the movement display apparatus of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the movement display apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the other mobile display apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure and operation | movement of a means to rotate a map image in the movement display apparatus of this invention. It is a figure explaining the switching or parallel display of the hierarchy display part and map display part of the movement display apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state which displayed the map image on the map display part of a display part. It is a figure which shows the state which rotated and displayed the map image within the map display part of the display part, and abbreviate | omitted the near side. It is a figure explaining the Example by which a hierarchy screen and a map display part are used in parallel by the mobile display apparatus of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Display part 2 Joystick 3 Confirmation button 4 Return button 5 Keyboard 6 Antenna 7 Screen A content switching button 9 High-order button 11 Selection screen display part 11 'Self-heading 11 "Pointer 12 Isotope hierarchy display part 13 Hierarchy window 14 Auxiliary display part

Claims (6)

  A map memory that stores a three-dimensional map image containing facility and landscape images associated with the map coordinates, a map display unit that can display a part of the map image, and the coordinates when the user selects the desired map coordinates. A map display circuit that reads out a part of the map image at the center and displays it on the map display unit, and the map so that an arbitrary side of an arbitrary road on the map image can be seen on the front side when operated by a user A moving display device comprising: map image rotating means for rotating an image in the map display section; means for scrolling the displayed map image in the vertical and horizontal directions of the map display section when operated by a user.   2. The map display circuit according to claim 1, wherein the map display circuit is configured to detect the direction of the mobile display device and display the map image on the map display unit in a state of looking far away from the desired map coordinates. Mobile display device.   Further, a hierarchical memory in which a large number of hierarchical images related to regions, place names, facilities, products or services or other information related in a hierarchical manner in a tree form from the upper level to the lower level, and their contents, and a tree in the hierarchical memory are stored. A hierarchical display window having two or more hierarchical screens for displaying one of the hierarchical images layered in a shape and the immediate upper hierarchical image thereof, a peer hierarchical display unit for displaying the closest peer hierarchical image, and the one hierarchical image And a selection screen display unit that can simultaneously display a plurality of latest lower layer images on a plurality of corresponding layer screens, and the one layer screen displayed on the layer display unit from the most recent upper layer Selection and confirmation means for selecting and confirming any one of a plurality of layer screens displaying a layer image of a latest peer hierarchy and a plurality of latest lower layers, and the selection and confirmation A hierarchical image display circuit that reads out the hierarchical image corresponding to the selected hierarchical screen from the hierarchical memory and the latest upper layer, the latest peer, and the latest lower layer image and sends them to the display unit. When a hierarchical screen showing a place name exists in the displayed hierarchical image, the hierarchical screen displaying the hierarchical image showing the map heading displayed in the lower hierarchy of the hierarchical screen is selected and confirmed, The moving display device according to claim 1, wherein a map image is displayed on the map display unit.   The map display unit, the peer level display unit, and the selection screen display unit are provided in parallel, and when a desired point on the map image displayed on the map display unit is selected and confirmed, a pointer is displayed at that point. The hierarchical image display circuit reads out the selected hierarchical image corresponding to the facility or landscape pointed to by the pointer, the immediate upper layer, the immediate peer, and the immediate lower hierarchical image, and displays them on the hierarchical display unit. The mobile display device according to claim 3.   The mobile display device according to claim 3, wherein the map display unit, the peer hierarchy display unit, and the selection screen display unit are provided at the same location and are selectively switched.   5. The apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising means for selecting and confirming an arbitrary facility displayed on the map display unit by the scroll, whereby the hierarchy screen related to the facility is displayed on the hierarchy display unit. Mobile display device.

Images