JP2007024520A - Vehicle-mounted navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicle-mounted navigation system capable of eliminating users' preconceptions and making the user realize the conveniences of a route guidance function. <P>SOLUTION: The vehicle-mounted navigation system comprises: a route guidance means for executing route guidance to a destination; a storage means for storing the number of times of the execution of route guidance; a determination means for determining whether the number of times fulfills a prescribed criterion or not; and a route guidance recommendation means for recommending the execution of route guidance to a prescribed location to a user if the number of times does not fulfill the prescribed criterion. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle navigation device that guides a vehicle to a destination according to a guide route.

  As the vehicle travels, the current position is detected by GPS (Global Positioning System), etc., and the current position is displayed on the display device together with the road map, and an appropriate route from the current position to the destination is displayed. An in-vehicle navigation device that is set and guided by a display device, an audio output device, or the like contributes to an efficient and safe operation of the user.

  In a vehicle-mounted navigation device, when searching for a travel route to a destination, it is necessary to set a destination point in advance. For example, when setting by the name of a prefecture or the name of a municipality, or by selecting a point by moving the cursor from points registered in advance.

  However, the destination setting operation in the conventional in-vehicle navigation device has a complicated hierarchy, and many selection operations are required before setting the final destination. Further, since these operations are performed while checking the screen, setting operations during traveling are often prohibited, and there is a problem that destination setting operations cannot be performed during traveling.

  Therefore, an in-vehicle navigation device has been devised in which the destination can be set safely and easily even when the vehicle is running, and the destination can be set by voice without any setting operation while checking the screen. (See Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 08-110234

  Even if an in-vehicle navigation device such as Patent Document 1 is devised, the route guidance function is used especially with the preconceptions such as “The navigation device is complicated to operate” and “Will it recognize voice correctly?” Some users don't want to.

  Against the background of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle navigation device that eliminates a user's preconception and informs the convenience of a route guidance function.

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

  This invention provides the vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus for solving the said subject. That is, according to claim 1, route guidance means for performing route guidance to the destination, storage means for storing the number of times route guidance has been performed, and determination means for determining whether the number of times satisfies a predetermined criterion And a route guidance recommendation means for recommending the user to perform route guidance to a predetermined point when the number of times does not satisfy a predetermined criterion.

  The present invention performs the route guidance function of the in-vehicle navigation device under a predetermined condition regardless of the user's intention, so that the in-vehicle navigation device has the original functions of the in-vehicle navigation device such as watching TV broadcast. The user who does not use it knows the convenience of the route guidance function which is the original function of the vehicle-mounted navigation device. With the above configuration, even users who rarely use the route guidance function recognize that the in-vehicle navigation system has a route guidance function, and sometimes want to use it, making the route guidance function convenient enough In the future, the route guidance function will be actively used. Then, other functions of the in-vehicle navigation device are used, and the in-vehicle navigation device itself can be used effectively.

  According to claim 2, the determination means in the in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention can be configured to determine that the predetermined criterion is not satisfied when the route guidance is not performed a predetermined number of times in a predetermined period. .

  The above configuration determines whether the route guidance function is fully utilized based on the frequency of using the route guidance function. In addition, since the vehicle-mounted navigation device handles data including date and time, the above configuration does not require a special device for setting and managing the period, so the cost does not increase. Further, if the predetermined period is set to one week or one month, the predetermined reference can be set with a simple configuration.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the vehicle-mounted navigation device includes a position detection unit that detects a current position of the vehicle, and a distance calculation unit that calculates a distance between the current position and a predetermined point. The recommendation means can take a configuration that recommends that route guidance to a predetermined point be performed when the calculated distance exceeds a predetermined value.

  In many cases, the user does not feel the appreciation of the route guidance function even if the route guidance is performed at a short distance. With the above configuration, it is possible to motivate the user to use the route guidance function by recommending route guidance only when the user is at a small point to reach by himself / herself.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention includes a point setting unit that sets at least one predetermined point and a point storage unit that stores the set predetermined point. be able to.

  With the above configuration, it is possible to cope with a case where the user wants to set a plurality of predetermined points. Further, since the predetermined point is stored, it is possible to save the trouble of setting the predetermined point every time the in-vehicle navigation device is used.

  According to claim 5, the predetermined point in the in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention can be configured to be the user's home.

  The user finally returns to his home wherever he goes. The route to the home is most familiar to the user, and route guidance is considered unnecessary. However, it is possible to make the user recognize the usefulness of the route guidance function by displaying a different guidance route from the route on which the vehicle normally travels or displaying traffic information such as traffic jam information. Also, especially near homes, users are familiar with road conditions, so they can understand how the in-vehicle navigation device provides route guidance while concentrating on driving without being overly dependent on the in-vehicle navigation device. it can.

  According to claim 6, the route guidance recommendation means in the in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention can be configured to recommend that the user guide the route to a predetermined point by voice message.

  With the above configuration, since the line of sight movement during driving does not occur as in the case of displaying a message on the display device, it is possible to grasp the current situation while concentrating on driving.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention can be configured to include a selection unit that selects whether or not to perform recommended route guidance.

  With the above-described configuration, it is possible to select not to perform route guidance when the user does not go to a predetermined point or when the user knows the route to the predetermined point. Nothing distrusts the device.

  According to claim 8, the selection means in the in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention includes voice input means for inputting a user's voice and operation command recognition means for recognizing the input voice as an operation command. When the operation command is recognized as a selection command, the recommended route guidance can be provided.

  While driving, some operations of the in-vehicle navigation device are restricted to ensure safety, but voice input is often permitted. With the above configuration, the user can easily select whether or not to perform route guidance by voice. Further, since the user can recognize the convenience of the voice input function, the user who feels troublesome about the key input operation can be motivated to use the in-vehicle navigation device.

  The purpose of providing an in-vehicle navigation device that eliminates user preconceptions and informs the convenience of the route guidance function, when the number of route guidance per month is less than a predetermined value, to provide route guidance from the destination to the home It was realized by the recommended configuration.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to examples shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an in-vehicle navigation device of the present invention. An in-vehicle navigation device (hereinafter abbreviated as a navigation device) 100 includes a position detector 1, a map data input device 6, an operation switch group 7, a remote control (hereinafter referred to as a remote control) sensor 11, voice synthesis for performing voice guidance, and the like. A circuit 24, a speaker 15, a nonvolatile memory 9, a display device 10, a hard disk device (HDD) 21, a control circuit 8 connected thereto, and a remote control terminal 12 are provided.

  A position detector 1 as position detection means of the present invention has a known geomagnetic sensor 2, a gyroscope 3, a distance sensor 4, and a GPS receiver 5 that detects the position of the vehicle based on radio waves from a satellite. Yes. Since these sensors 2, 3, 4, and 5 have errors of different properties, they are configured to be used while being complemented by a plurality of sensors. Depending on the accuracy, some of the above-described sensors may be used, and further, a steering rotation sensor or a wheel sensor of each rolling wheel, such as a vehicle speed sensor 23, may be used.

  As the operation switch group 7 which is the point setting means of the present invention, for example, a touch panel 22 integrated with the display device 10 or a mechanical switch is used. The touch panel 22 is pressed when an electric circuit is wired in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction through a gap called a spacer on a glass substrate and a transparent film on the screen of the display device 10 and the user touches the film. Since the voltage value changes due to short-circuiting of a part of the wiring, a so-called resistance film method for detecting this as a two-dimensional coordinate value (X, Y) is widely used. In addition, using a so-called capacitance method, a substance that receives an electrical signal is applied to the glass surface of a transparent conductive substrate, and a change in capacitance is detected by the sensor as an electrical signal when a finger is brought close to the glass surface. Also good.

  In addition to the mechanical switch and the touch panel 22, a pointing device such as a mouse or a cursor may be used. In addition, various instructions are input using the microphone 31 as the point setting means, selection means, and voice input means of the present invention, and the voice recognition unit 30 as the point setting means, selection means, and operation command recognition means of the present invention. It is also possible. In this method, a voice signal input from the microphone 31 is processed by a known voice recognition technique in the voice recognition unit 30 and converted into an operation command corresponding to the result. The voice recognition unit 30 amplifies the voice signal input from the microphone 31 to an appropriate level, and after A / D converting the amplified voice signal, the voice is recognized by a voice recognition algorithm such as a known hidden Markov model. An audio signal processing device (DSP: Digital Signal Processor) for identifying, a memory or the like in which reference data for identifying audio is stored, and the DSP converts the audio signal into numerical information corresponding to the audio. After being converted, it is sent to the control circuit 8. Various instructions can be input through the operation switch group 7, the remote control terminal 12, and the microphone 31.

  The transceiver 13 is a device for receiving road traffic information from, for example, a VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication System) center 14.

  In addition, by communicating with an ETC (Automatic Toll Collection System, ETC: Electronic Toll Collection) vehicle-mounted device 16, fee information received by the ETC vehicle-mounted device 16 from the ETC road device can be taken into the navigation device 100. Further, the ETC vehicle-mounted device 16 may be connected to an external network and communicate with the VICS center 14.

  The control circuit 8 which is the route guidance means, determination means, route guidance recommendation means, and distance calculation means of the present invention is configured as an ordinary computer, and includes a well-known CPU 81, ROM 82, RAM 83, input / output circuit I / O 84 and A bus line 85 for connecting these components is provided. The CPU 81 controls the navigation program 21p and data stored in the HDD 21. The CPU 81 controls the reading / writing of data to / from the HDD 21. The A / D conversion unit 86 includes a well-known A / D (analog / digital) conversion circuit, and converts analog data input from the position detector 1 or the like to the control circuit 8 into digital data that can be calculated by the CPU 81, for example. It is. The ROM 82 may store a program for performing a minimum necessary operation among the navigation functions when the HDD 21 fails.

  In addition to the navigation program 21p, the HDD 21 stores so-called map matching data for improving the accuracy of position detection, and map data 21m including road data representing road connections. The map data 21m stores predetermined map image information for display and road network information including link information and node information. The link information is predetermined section information constituting each road, and includes position coordinates, distance, required time, road width, number of lanes, speed limit, and the like. The node information is information that defines an intersection (branch road) and the like, and includes position coordinates, the number of right / left turn lanes, a connection destination road link, and the like. In addition, data indicating whether or not traffic is possible is set in the inter-link connection information.

  In addition, in the HDD 21, auxiliary information for route guidance, entertainment information, and other data can be written independently by the user and stored as user data 21u. The user data 21 u can be rewritten by operating the operation switch group 7, the touch panel 22 and the remote control terminal 12, or by inputting voice from the microphone 31. Further, data and various information necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100 may be stored as the database 21d.

  The map data 21m and user data 21u can be added / updated from the storage medium 20 via the map data input device 6. The storage medium 20 is generally a CD-ROM or DVD based on the amount of data, but may be another medium such as a memory card.

  The non-volatile memory 9 which is the storage means and the point storage means of the present invention is constituted by a rewritable semiconductor memory such as an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable & Programmable Read Only Memory) or a flash memory, Information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100 are stored. The nonvolatile memory 9 holds the stored contents even when the accessory switch of the vehicle is turned off, that is, the navigation device 100 is turned off.

  Further, information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100 may be stored in the HDD 21 instead of the nonvolatile memory 9. Furthermore, information and data necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100 may be stored separately in the nonvolatile memory 9 and the HDD 21.

  The display device 10 is composed of a known color liquid crystal display, and includes a dot matrix LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and a driver circuit (not shown) for performing LCD display control. The driver circuit uses, for example, an active matrix driving method in which a transistor is attached to each pixel so that the target pixel can be reliably turned on and off, and is based on a display command and display screen data sent from the control circuit 8. To display. An organic EL (ElectroLuminescence) display or a plasma display may be used as the display.

  Moreover, the display apparatus 10 may arrange | position the mechanical switch of the operation switch group 7 around the display screen like FIG. A touch switch is arranged on the touch panel 22 as in 22a.

  The speaker 15 is connected to a known voice synthesis circuit 24 connected to the I / O 34 of the control circuit 8, and the digital voice data stored in the nonvolatile memory 9 or the HDD 21 is converted into an analog voice by the voice synthesis circuit 24 according to a command from the navigation program 21 p. The one converted to is sent. Note that the speech synthesis method includes a recording / editing method in which speech waveforms are stored as they are or after being encoded and connected as necessary.

  The vehicle speed sensor 23 includes a rotation detection unit such as a known rotary encoder. For example, the vehicle speed sensor 23 is installed in the vicinity of the wheel mounting unit to detect the rotation of the wheel and send it to the control circuit 8 as a pulse signal. The control circuit 8 converts the rotation speed of the wheel into the speed of the vehicle, calculates the expected arrival time from the current position of the vehicle to a predetermined location, and calculates the average vehicle speed for each travel section of the vehicle.

The external device connection device 26 includes an input / output circuit and a connector for connecting to external devices such as sensors and other control devices so as to be able to transmit data. It has a configuration capable of realizing at least one of the following functions.
(1) Connection of a data backup device for backing up the contents stored in the nonvolatile memory 9 or the HDD 21.
(2) In-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network) communication interface circuit for data transmission with other in-vehicle devices.
(3) External network connection via the mobile phone 17.

  In addition, data acquisition from the vehicle speed sensor 23 or connection to the ETC vehicle-mounted device 16 may be performed via the external device connection device 26.

  With this configuration, when the navigation program 21p is activated by the CPU 81 of the control circuit 8, the navigation device 100 allows the user to operate the operation switch group 7, the touch panel 22, the remote control terminal 12, or the voice from the microphone 31. When the route guidance process for displaying the destination route on the display device 10 is selected from the menu displayed on the display device 10 by the input, the following processing is performed.

  That is, when the user selects a point from a given point or facility search or address search on the map, a registered place set by the user, and sets it as a destination, the position detector 1 determines the current position of the vehicle, Processing for obtaining an optimum guide route from the current position to the destination is performed. Then, the guidance route is displayed on the road map on the display device 10 so as to guide the user to the appropriate route. As a method for automatically setting an optimum guide route, a method such as the Dijkstra method is known. In addition, at least one of the display device 10 and the speaker 15 provides a notification according to the guidance during operation or the operation state.

  The route guidance number storage process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is included in the navigation program 21p and is repeatedly executed together with other processes. For example, when a “guidance” button assigned to the touch switch 22a is pressed in order to search for a route to the destination and perform guidance according to the route (S1: Yes), a route in which an area is secured in the nonvolatile memory 9 The value of the guide count counter 9a is updated and the number of presses is stored (S2).

  FIG. 3 shows details of the route guidance number counter 9a. In the present embodiment, the route guidance number counter 9a is cleared to zero when the navigation device 100 is first started on the first day of every month.

  Further, instead of storing the number of times of route guidance, the history data storage area may be secured and stored in a predetermined number as shown in 9b of FIG. When new history data is stored when the history data is full, the oldest history data is erased and stored.

  The route guidance recommendation process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is included in the navigation program 21p and is repeatedly executed together with other processes. If the value of the route guidance number counter 9a, that is, the number of times the “Guide” button is pressed does not satisfy a predetermined standard, for example, lower than a prescribed value (S11: Yes), the position detector 1 determines the current position of the vehicle. When the distance between the current position of the vehicle and a predetermined point such as a home registered in advance in the nonvolatile memory 9 is measured based on the map data, and the measured distance exceeds a predetermined value (S12: Yes), A voice message that recommends route guidance to a predetermined point, such as “Do you want to give route guidance to your home,” for example, is sent from the speaker 15 and waits for voice input from the user (S13). .

  When the user desires to provide route guidance to a predetermined point, for example, “Yes” is uttered to the microphone 31. When the voice recognition unit 30 recognizes that “Yes” is uttered (S14: Yes), a guidance route from the current position of the vehicle to a predetermined point is searched, and guidance is performed according to the guidance route (S15). On the other hand, when there is no voice input even after a predetermined time has elapsed, or when the voice recognition unit 30 recognizes that there is an utterance other than “Yes” (S14: No), the user's voice input waiting state is canceled. Then, the normal operation of the navigation device 100 returns.

  When a plurality of predetermined points are set, for example, a voice message that recommends route guidance to a point farthest from the current position of the vehicle may be transmitted. In addition, a voice message such as “Do you want to provide route guidance to ○○” is sent in the order in which they are stored, and route guidance to the point where it was recognized that “Yes” was spoken may be performed. Good.

There are the following predetermined criteria for recommending route guidance to a predetermined point, and at least one or a combination of two or more is used.
(1) When the value of the route guidance number counter 9a per month is below a predetermined value, it is determined that the value is below a predetermined reference.
(2) When the value of the route guidance number counter 9a for a certain period in the past is less than a predetermined value, it is determined that the value is below a predetermined reference.
(3) If a predetermined number of days have elapsed since the previous route guidance was performed, it is determined that the value is below a predetermined standard.

  Even if it is determined that the number of history data that can be stored in the history data storage area 9b is a predetermined value used in the above (1), and the dates and times of the stored history data are not all the same month, it falls below a predetermined reference Good. In the example of the history data storage area 9b in FIG. 3, there is history data for June 2005 and July 2005, and the number of route guidance per month is below a predetermined value, so route guidance to a predetermined point is performed. Send a recommended voice message.

Any of the following methods may be used to acquire date and time information that is a basis for determining the number of days elapsed.
(1) A method of generating date / time information by RTC based on a date / time set at the time of factory shipment, for example, including an RTC (Real Time Counter) for the control circuit 8 or CPU 81 of the vehicle-mounted navigation device 100 to time.
(2) A method for acquiring date and time information through communication with other on-vehicle equipment.
(3) A method of using date and time information included in the GPS signal acquired by the GPS receiver 5.
(4) A method of acquiring date and time information from facilities / equipment outside the vehicle by communication.

  The predetermined point can be arbitrarily set in addition to the user's home. The setting method is the same as the method of selecting a destination when searching for a guide route. The user selects a predetermined point from a point or facility search or address search on the map, a registered place set by the user, etc. Set as the point. The set contents are stored in the nonvolatile memory 9.

Moreover, you may set a predetermined point like a home as follows. In the case of home, it is often parked in a garage or the like at night (while the user is sleeping). Therefore, the current position of the vehicle may be set as a predetermined point such as a home when there are three or more days per week that satisfy all of the following conditions (1) to (3), for example.
(1) The current position of the vehicle immediately before the end of the operation of the navigation apparatus 100 is substantially the same as the current position of the vehicle immediately after the start of the subsequent operation (within the range of position measurement error).
(2) Nighttime is included between the end of the operation of the navigation device 100 and the start of the operation. Alternatively, the date changes between the end of the operation of the navigation device 100 and the start of the operation.
(3) The time from the end of the operation of the navigation device 100 to the start of the operation exceeds a predetermined time such as 6 hours or more.

  The sending of a voice message inquiring whether route guidance to a predetermined point such as a home is sent is obtained from the transition of the current position of the vehicle in addition to the condition that the distance between the current position and the predetermined point exceeds a predetermined value. A condition in which it can be determined that the difference between the travel direction of the vehicle and the direction of the predetermined point relative to the current position of the vehicle is within a predetermined range, that is, the vehicle is traveling toward the predetermined point May be added. In this way, even if a plurality of predetermined points are set, a voice message as to whether or not to perform route guidance is not sent to all the points, so the user can send an unnecessary voice message. It doesn't feel annoying when asked.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and the knowledge of those skilled in the art can be used without departing from the spirit of the claims. Various modifications based on this are possible.

The block diagram which shows the structure of a vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus. FIG. 6 illustrates a structure of a display device. The figure which shows allocation of the route guidance frequency | count counter in a non-volatile memory. The flowchart for demonstrating route guidance frequency storage processing. The flowchart for demonstrating route guidance recommendation processing.

Explanation of symbols

1 Position detector (position detection means)
7 Operation switch group (point setting means)
8 Control circuit (route guidance means, judgment means, route guidance recommendation means, distance calculation means)
9 Non-volatile memory (storage means, point storage means)
10 Display device 12 Remote control terminal (point setting means)
21 Hard disk drive (HDD)
22 Touch panel (point setting means)
30 Voice recognition unit (point setting means, selection means, operation command recognition means)
31 Microphone (point setting means, selection means, voice input means)
100 Car navigation system

Claims (8)

Route guidance means for route guidance to the destination;
Storage means for storing the number of times the route guidance has been performed;
Determining means for determining whether the number of times satisfies a predetermined criterion;
A route guidance recommendation means for recommending the user to perform route guidance to a predetermined point when the number of times does not satisfy a predetermined criterion;
A vehicle-mounted navigation device comprising:   The in-vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that the predetermined criterion is not satisfied when the route guidance is not performed a predetermined number of times during a predetermined period. Position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
Distance calculating means for calculating a distance between the current position and the predetermined point;
The in-vehicle navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the route guidance recommendation unit recommends that route guidance to the predetermined point is performed when the calculated distance exceeds a predetermined value. Point setting means for setting at least one predetermined point; and
The in-vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, further comprising a point storage unit that stores the set predetermined point.   The in-vehicle navigation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the predetermined point is a home of the user.   The in-vehicle navigation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the route guidance recommendation unit recommends that the user perform route guidance to the predetermined point by a voice message.   The in-vehicle navigation device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising selection means for selecting whether or not to perform the recommended route guidance. The selection means includes voice input means for inputting the voice of the user and operation command recognition means for recognizing the input voice as an operation command.
The in-vehicle navigation device according to claim 7, wherein the recommended route guidance is performed when the input voice is recognized as an operation command for performing the selection.

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