JP2007108001A - Navigation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation apparatus which can change the contents of voice guidance for route guidance in accordance with the preferences and senses of individuals. <P>SOLUTION: An intersection voice guidance setting screen 40 is displayed on a display monitor 16. In the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40 intersection simplified diagrams 41a to 41c and guidance message candidates 42a to 42c for an intersection when receiving route guidance are displayed. The intersection simplified diagrams 41a to 41c have typical shapes of intersections and indicate directions entering into and leaving the intersections with arrows. A user refers to the intersection simplified diagrams 41a to 41c, selects the shape of the intersection for which the route guidance is desired to be changed, and selects a guidance message suited for his/her preferences and senses from the guidance message candidates 42a to 42c. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device that guides a route to a destination by voice.

A navigation apparatus that outputs guidance information by voice to guide a user to a destination and changes the contents of the voice guidance according to the user's suitability is known as a prior art (Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-116041 A

  In the navigation device described in Patent Document 1, the content of the voice guidance is changed according to the suitability of the occupant, but there is a problem that the content of the voice guidance cannot be changed according to the passenger's preference and feeling. For example, when voice guidance is given for a right turn at an intersection, some passengers are advised that “the next intersection is to the right” rather than “the next intersection is to the right”. May fit.

(1) The navigation device of the invention of claim 1 is a route searching means for searching for a recommended route to the destination, route guiding means for guiding the recommended route by voice guidance, and a guidance message for a voice guidance message. Guide message storage means for storing candidates and guide message selection means for selecting a guide message selected by the user from among guide message candidates.
(2) The invention according to claim 2 is the navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the guidance message is voice guidance at a guidance intersection.
(3) The invention of claim 3 is the navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a display monitor, and the guide message selection means is selected by the user from among guide message candidates displayed on the display monitor. The guide message is selected.
(4) According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the navigation device according to the third aspect, there is provided an intersection schematic display control means for displaying an intersection schematic corresponding to the guidance message together with the guidance message candidate on the display monitor.
(5) The invention of claim 5 is the navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising voice input means for inputting a voice uttered by the user, and the guidance message selecting means is a word input by the voice input means. A guide message is selected from guide message candidates based on the above.

  According to the present invention, since the user can change the contents of the voice guidance according to his / her preference and feeling, the route guidance can be received with the voice guidance suitable for his / her taste and feeling.

-First embodiment-
A configuration of a navigation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. The navigation device 1 of FIG. 1 has a function of guiding a route by voice output and is operated by a voice uttered by a user. The navigation device 1 includes a control circuit 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, a current location detection device 14, an image memory 15, a display monitor 16, a speaker 17, an input device 18, a microphone 19, a voice recognition unit 110, a data storage unit 111, and a disk drive 112. have.

  The control circuit 11 includes a microprocessor and its peripheral circuits, and performs various controls by executing a control program stored in the ROM 12 using the RAM 13 as a work area. When the control circuit 11 performs a predetermined route search process based on the map data stored in the DVD-ROM 113, the processing result is displayed on the display monitor 16 as a search route.

  The current position detection device 14 is a device that detects the current position of the vehicle. For example, a vibration gyro 14a that detects the traveling direction of the vehicle, a vehicle speed sensor 14b that detects the vehicle speed, and a GPS signal from a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite. It consists of a GPS sensor 14c and the like. The navigation device 1 determines a map display range, a route search start point, and the like based on the current location of the vehicle detected by the current location detection device 14, and displays the current location on the map.

  The image memory 15 stores image data to be displayed on the display monitor 16. This image data includes road map drawing data and various graphic data, which are generated as appropriate based on map data stored in the DVD-ROM 113 read by the disk drive 112. The navigation device 1 can perform map display and the like by using the image data generated in this way.

  The display monitor 16 provides the user with various information such as a road map near the vehicle position as a screen display based on various information such as map data. The speaker 17 generates sound for guiding various input operations of the user and for guiding the route to the user. The input device 18 has an input switch for a user to set various commands, and is realized by a remote controller or the like. The user selects and sets the destination by manually operating the input device 18 in accordance with instructions on the display screen of the display monitor 16.

  The microphone 19 inputs a voice uttered by the user. The microphone 19 is provided with a PTT (Press to Talk) switch. When a sound is emitted while the PTT switch is pressed, the sound is input to the microphone 19. The voice recognition unit 110 analyzes and recognizes the voice input from the microphone 19. The recognition result is output to the control circuit 11. In this way, the user's voice is input to the control circuit 11, and the navigation device 1 can be operated by voice, or words or the like can be voiced.

  When the destination is set by the user, the navigation apparatus 1 performs a route calculation from the current location detected by the GPS sensor 14c to the destination based on a predetermined algorithm. Hereinafter, this route calculation is referred to as route search. The route thus obtained (hereinafter referred to as a recommended route) is displayed on the screen separately from other roads by changing the display form, for example, the display color. Thereby, the user can recognize the recommended route on the map on the screen. In addition, the navigation device 1 instructs the user in the direction of travel using a screen or voice so that the vehicle can travel according to the recommended route or the route designated by the user tracing the road. To do.

  The data storage unit 111 is configured by a rewritable recording medium such as a memory or a hard disk, and stores data necessary for various functions of the navigation device 1. Information stored in the data storage unit 110 is appropriately read and used by the control circuit 11. Further, the data storage unit 111 stores recommended route data of a recommended route that has been route-calculated and a guidance message for voice guidance when the route is guided. Details of the recommended route data and the voice guidance message will be described later.

  The disk drive 112 is loaded with a DVD-ROM 113 in which map data to be displayed on the display monitor 16 is recorded. The map data includes map display data, route search data, and the like, and the display and route search data include road link information and node information. The map display data includes map data of a plurality of scales from a wide area to details, and the scale of the display map can be changed according to a user's request. The disk drive 112 reads map data for displaying a map on the display monitor 16 from the loaded DVD-ROM 113. The map data may be read from a recording medium other than the DVD-ROM 113, such as a CD-ROM or a hard disk.

  Information on the recommended route searched for the route is stored in the data storage unit 111 as the recommended route data 21. The recommended route data 21 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2A is a diagram showing a part of the searched route. The recommended route R1 is composed of links L1 to L6 and nodes N1 to N6, and the vehicle is 90 degrees in each node. Convert. An example of the data structure of such a recommended route R1 is shown in FIG.

  The recommended route data 21 includes a recommended route ID number, the number of nodes, the number of links, the node number, the position coordinates of each node, the incoming link number connected to each node, the outgoing link number connected to each node, the incoming link and the outgoing Each information of the connection angle with the link is held. Regarding the node number N1, the position coordinates X1, Y1 of the node N1, the link number L1 of the incoming link connected to the node N1, the link number L2 of the outgoing link connected to the node N1, the incoming link L1 and the outgoing link L2 Connection angle of -90 degrees is recorded. Here, a negative value indicates a left turn.

  A guidance message that is generated when instructing to turn an intersection by route guidance is stored in the data storage unit 111 as intersection guidance message data 30. The intersection guidance message data 30 will be described with reference to FIG. The intersection guidance message data 30 has an angle range column 31 in which the angle formed between the advance link and the exit link of the recommended route is divided for each predetermined angle range, and voice guidance guidance message candidates corresponding to each angle range. Guidance message candidates 32a and 32b are stored. The stored guidance message candidates 32a and 32b are candidates for the message “***” of “next intersection ***” in the voice guidance message.

  For guidance messages used for voice guidance in the guidance message candidates 32a and 32b, flags are set in the application fields 33a and 33b. For example, in FIG. 2A, when the node L1 is bent from the link L1 and proceeds to the link L2, the angle formed by the link L1 that is the incoming link and the link L2 that is the outgoing link is -90 degrees. A “Left direction” guidance message in which a flag is set in the angle range −105 to −75 degrees is applied. When the vehicle approaches the node N1, a voice guidance message “The next intersection is in the left direction” is output from the speaker 17.

  The intersection guidance message can be changed as follows. This will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a voice guidance setting screen at an intersection displayed on the display monitor 16. The user selects the voice guide setting mode for setting the contents of the voice guidance by operating the input device 18 from the setting menu (not shown) of the function of the navigation device 1, and the mark (not shown) for selecting the voice guidance at the intersection Is selected, an intersection voice guidance setting screen 40 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed.

  On the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40, intersection schematic diagrams 41a to 41c and intersection guidance message candidates 42a to 42c are displayed. The intersection schematic diagrams 41a to 41c represent typical forms of intersections, and the directions of entering and exiting the intersections are represented as arrows. For example, the schematic diagram 41a represents an intersection that turns right, the schematic diagram 41b represents an intersection that travels diagonally to the right, and the schematic diagram 41c represents an intersection that travels forward to the right. The intersection schematic diagrams 41a to 41c are not limited to the three types shown in FIG. 4, but when the marks 43a and 43b are selected, other types of intersections are displayed.

  A user selects the form of the intersection which changes a guidance message with reference to the intersection schematic diagrams 41a-41c. And the guidance message suitable for one's liking and feeling is selected from guidance message candidates 42a-42c. For example, when changing the voice guidance message when turning right at an angle of 90 degrees from “right” to “right”, the guidance message to be applied in the guidance message candidate 42a in the lower column of the intersection schematic diagram 41a is Change from “I am right” to “I am right”. When the guidance message to be applied is changed to “right”, the display of “right” is reversed. In addition, with the change of the guidance message on the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40, the position of the flag set in the application field 33b of the guidance message 32b of the intersection guidance message data 30 is changed from “right” to “right”. "Is changed to the position.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the guidance message when the vehicle turns right at the intersection after the setting of the guidance message is changed. A road map 50 is displayed on the display monitor 16, and a recommended route 52 is displayed on the road map 50 together with the vehicle position mark 51. The recommended route 52 turns right at the intersection 53 at an angle of 90 degrees. When the vehicle approaches the intersection 53 up to a predetermined distance, a guidance message 54 “The next intersection is in the right direction” is output from the speaker 17.

  Next, the guidance message changing process of the navigation device 1 of the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The process of FIG. 6 is executed in the control circuit 11 by a program that starts when the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40 is displayed on the display monitor 16.

  In step S601, it is determined whether a guidance message is selected from the guidance message candidates 42a to 42c displayed on the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40. If it is selected, an affirmative determination is made in step S601, and the process proceeds to step S602. If not selected, step S601 is repeated. In step S602, the position of the flag set in the intersection guidance message data application fields 33a and 33b stored in the data storage unit 110 is changed to the position of the selected guidance message. In step S603, it is determined whether the setting of the guidance message is finished. Whether or not the processing has been completed is determined by whether or not a return mark (not shown) has been selected. If it has been completed, the guidance message changing process is terminated; otherwise, the process returns to step S601.

The navigation device 1 according to the first embodiment described above has the following operational effects.
(1) Since the user can change the voice guidance message according to his / her preference and feeling, he / she can receive route guidance by voice guidance that matches his / her taste and feeling. In addition, since the route guidance is received with a guidance message that suits one's preference and feeling, it is less likely that the guidance message is mistakenly captured and mistakenly deviated from the recommended route.
(2) Since a schematic diagram showing the form of the intersection is displayed, the guidance message to be changed can be found immediately.

-Second Embodiment-
The configuration of the navigation device according to the second embodiment is the same as the configuration of the navigation device 1 according to the first embodiment. The navigation device according to the second embodiment can change the setting of the guidance message by outputting sound to the microphone 19 in addition to operating the input device 18 from the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40 to change the setting of the guidance message. it can. This setting change of the guidance message will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a view for explaining setting change of a guidance message by voice. It is assumed that the user is driving while receiving route guidance. A road map 70 is displayed on the display monitor 16 of the navigation device 1, and a recommended route 72 is displayed on the road map 70 together with the vehicle position mark 71 of the vehicle. The recommended route 72 turns right at the intersection 73 at an angle of 90 degrees. When the vehicle approaches the intersection 73 to a predetermined distance, a guidance message 74 “The next intersection is right” is output from the speaker 17. If the user feels uncomfortable after hearing this guidance message, the user changes the guidance message as follows.

  When the PTT switch provided on the microphone 19 is pressed, the word 75 “change guidance method” is issued toward the microphone 19. Next, the user utters the word 75 “It is right”. As a result, the position of the flag set in the application field 33b of the guidance message 32b of the intersection guidance message data 30 is changed from the position “right” to the position “right”. Next time, when approaching an intersection that turns at an angle of 75 to 105, the word “next intersection is in the right direction” is output.

  If the user's words are not included in the guidance message 32b of the intersection guidance message data 30, such as “turn right”, for example, select the nearest guidance message 32b (for example, “right direction” )), An inquiry message “How about the right direction?” Is output from the speaker 17 to inquire the user whether or not the guidance message can be applied. When the user utters a positive word such as “OK” or “OK” toward the microphone 19, a flag is set at the position of the guidance message. If a negative word such as “No” or “Reject” is issued, an inquiry message of another guidance message is output to inquire whether or not the other guidance message can be applied.

  Next, the guidance message changing process of the navigation device 1 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. The processing of FIGS. 8 and 9 is executed in the control circuit 11 by a program that starts when route guidance is started.

  In step S801, it is determined whether the PTT switch provided in the microphone 19 has been pressed. If the button is pressed, an affirmative determination is made in step S801 and the process proceeds to step S802. If not, step S801 is repeated. In step S 802, it is determined whether the word “guidance method change” is input from the microphone 19. If it is input, an affirmative decision is made in step S802, and the process proceeds to step S803. If not, step S802 is repeated.

  In step S803, it is determined whether the words of the guidance message have been input. If it is input, an affirmative decision is made in step S803 and the operation proceeds to step S804. If not, step S803 is repeated. In step S804, it is determined from the intersection guidance message data 30 whether there is a guidance message that includes the input word among the guidance message candidates in the angle range in the guidance message output last time. If there is, affirmative determination is made in step S804 and the process proceeds to step S805. If not, the determination in step S804 is negative and the process proceeds to step S901 in FIG.

  In step S805, the flag position of the application field in the intersection guidance message data 30 is changed to the position of the guidance message including the input word. Then, the guidance message changing process is terminated.

  In step S901 in FIG. 9, a guidance message close to the inputted word is selected from the guidance message candidates in the angle range in the guidance message output last time. In step S902, the selected guidance message is output and an inquiry message for inquiring application of the selected guidance message is output.

  In step S903, it is determined whether a positive word is input from the microphone 19. If a positive word is input, an affirmative determination is made in step S903, and the process proceeds to step S904. In step S904, the flag position in the application fields 33a and 33b of the intersection guidance message data 30 is changed to the position of the selected guidance message. Then, the guidance message changing process is terminated. In step S905, another guidance message is selected from the guidance message candidates in the angle range in the guidance message output last time. Then, the process returns to step S902.

The navigation device 1 according to the second embodiment described above has the following operational effects.
(1) Since the guidance message can be changed by voice, it can be changed even during a driving operation. Therefore, the user can immediately change the guide message when the user feels uncomfortable with the guide message, and can prevent the user from forgetting to change the guide message that feels uncomfortable.

(2) Even if a user issues a guidance message that is not in the guidance message candidates 32 a and 32 b of the intersection guidance message data 30, another guidance message is output to inquire whether it can be applied. Even if the user does not remember the guide message candidates 32a and 32b, the guide message can be changed to a guide message suitable for the user.

The navigation apparatus 1 of the above embodiment can be modified as follows.
(1) Although the intersection guidance message is determined by the angle between the entrance link and the exit link, the type of road and the width may be taken into consideration. For example, as shown in the intersection schematic diagram 101 of FIG. 10, when the road entering the intersection and the road traveling diagonally right are main roads, and the road traveling straight and the road traveling diagonally left are narrow streets , You can also guide the route with the guidance message "I am the way." Therefore, even in the same form of intersection, the guidance message may change depending on the road type and width, so the guidance message candidate 102 taking the road type and width into consideration is displayed on the intersection voice guidance setting screen 40. Further, the intersection schematic diagram may be displayed by changing the width of the road 101 and selecting the guidance message.

(2) Although the setting of the flag of the guidance message stored in the intersection guidance message data 30 is changed from the words of the guidance message issued by the user, the guidance message issued by the user is stored in the intersection guidance message data 30 as it is. The voice guidance may be received by a guidance message issued by the user. In this way, voice guidance can be received with a guidance message that matches the user's preference and feeling.

(3) The guidance message that can be changed by the user is not limited to the guidance message at the guidance intersection as long as it is a guidance message used for voice guidance. For example, the guidance message “100m ahead is on the right” may be changed to “Immediately on the right”.

  The navigation apparatus according to the present invention includes a route search means for searching for a recommended route to a destination, a route guide means for guiding the recommended route by voice guidance, and a guidance message for storing guidance message candidates for the guidance message for voice guidance. As long as it has a configuration including a storage unit and a guide message selection unit that selects a guide message selected by a user from among guide message candidates, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, and is for in-vehicle use. It is not limited to. For example, when setting a destination, a personal computer that executes the contents of route guidance is also included.

The correspondence between the elements of the claims and the embodiments will be described.
The route search means of the present invention corresponds to the control circuit 11, and the route guidance means corresponds to the control circuit, the display monitor 16, and the speaker 19. The guidance message storage means corresponds to the data storage unit 111, and the guidance message selection means corresponds to the control circuit 11 and the input device 18, or the control circuit 11 and the microphone 19. The intersection schematic display control means corresponds to the control circuit 11, and the voice input means corresponds to the microphone 19 and the voice recognition unit 110. In addition, the above description is an example to the last, and when interpreting invention, it is not limited to the correspondence of the component of said embodiment and the component of this invention at all.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus of embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2A is a diagram showing a part of the searched route, and FIG. 2B is a diagram for explaining the recommended route data. It is a figure for demonstrating intersection guidance message data. It is a figure for demonstrating the intersection audio guidance setting screen displayed on the display monitor. It is a figure for demonstrating the guidance message when a vehicle turns right at an intersection after the setting of a guidance message is changed. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the change process of the guidance message of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the setting change of the guidance message by an audio | voice. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the change process of the guidance message of 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the change process of the guidance message of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the intersection audio guidance setting screen which considered the classification and width of the road.

Explanation of symbols

1 Navigation device 11 Control circuit 12 ROM
13 RAM
14 Current location detection device 16 Display monitor 17 Speaker 18 Input device 19 Speaker 110 Voice recognition unit 111 Data storage unit 113 DVD-ROM
21 Recommended route data 30 Intersection guidance message data 31 Angles 32a, 32b, 42a to 42c, 102 Guidance message candidates 40 Intersection voice guidance setting screens 41a to 41b, 101 Intersection map 50, 70 Road map 51, 71 Own vehicle position mark 52, 72 Recommended Route 53, 73 Intersection

Claims (5)

A route search means for searching for a recommended route to the destination;
Route guidance means for guiding the recommended route by voice guidance;
Guidance message storage means for storing guidance message candidates of the voice guidance message;
A navigation device comprising: a guidance message selection means for selecting the guidance message selected by the user from among the guidance message candidates. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein
The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guidance message is voice guidance at a guidance intersection. The navigation device according to claim 1 or 2,
Equipped with a display monitor,
The navigation device, wherein the guidance message selection means selects a guidance message selected by a user from the guidance message candidates displayed on the display monitor. The navigation device according to claim 3,
A navigation apparatus comprising: an intersection schematic display control means for displaying an intersection schematic corresponding to the guidance message together with the guidance message candidate on the display monitor. The navigation device according to claim 1 or 2,
Voice input means for inputting voice emitted by the user;
The navigation device, wherein the guidance message selection means selects a guidance message from the guidance message candidates based on the words input by the voice input means.

Images