JP2007257583A - Information providing system, information providing apparatus, and terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce waste of a communication charge which a user pays, not by making the user acquire the same information duplicately but by reducing unnecessary update notification, in information providing service for onboard apparatuses. <P>SOLUTION: Whenever providing information for a car navigation system 2, an information providing service center 1 records the car navigation system 2 for which it has provided the information and the type of the provided information, in an access history management section 14. When update information to be stored in a provided information storage 12, the information providing service center refers to the access history management section 14, and notifies the car navigation system 2 for which it has provided the same type of the information, of the update of the information. It also records the date when it has provided the information in the access history management section 14, and notifies the car navigation system 2 in which the latest provision date precedes the information update date, of the update of the information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information providing system for providing desired information to a terminal device such as a car navigation system from an information providing center through communication using a mobile phone or the like, and an apparatus used therefor.

  In recent years, information providing services for automobiles that acquire information related to driving of automobiles from outside the vehicle have been put into practical use. In that case, the latest information can be acquired in real time from the service center by connecting a mobile phone or the like to an in-vehicle terminal device (car navigation system or the like) mounted on the automobile and using data communication of the mobile phone. The provided information includes various information such as the latest map information, leisure information related to driving, weather information, event information, and the like.

  When using the information providing service, the charge for data communication of the mobile phone is borne by the user. Therefore, it is desirable to eliminate unnecessary communication and use the information providing service with the minimum necessary communication charge. Therefore, various technologies for reducing unnecessary communication in information providing services have been proposed.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, the communication terminal device stores date / time information indicating a storage date / time when receiving and storing data from a communication center for the purpose of reducing unnecessary communication opportunities and reducing communication costs. In addition, a technique is disclosed in which an update request is made to the center with data that has passed a predetermined period from the storage date and time as an update target.

  Patent Document 2 aims to always obtain the latest service information, and when the information center is updated, the information center transmits the update status to the mobile terminal and notifies the user of the update status. A technique is disclosed in which a user obtains updated information by connecting to an information center as necessary.

JP 2004-20220 A JP 2002-123475 A

  According to the technique described in Patent Document 1, when the update time on the communication center side is clear, the communication terminal sets a predetermined period until an update request is made accordingly, thereby reducing unnecessary communication. Can do. However, the data handled by the communication center varies and is not always updated regularly. As a result, the acquired data is acquired redundantly, and the user is burdened with useless communication charges.

  According to the technique described in Patent Document 2, even if the information is updated irregularly, the user can avoid acquiring redundant information by knowing the update timing accurately. However, each time the service information is updated, the information center performs an update notification without any type of information, so that an update notification is also made for information that is not of interest to the user. In that case, since a communication fee is also generated when the update notification is acquired by e-mail or the like, a communication fee that is useless for the user is borne.

  An object of the present invention is to prevent the user from acquiring the same information repeatedly, reduce unnecessary update notifications, eliminate the waste of communication charges borne by the user, and improve the usability of the user.

  The present invention is an information providing system for providing information from an information providing device to a terminal device via a communication unit, wherein the information providing device includes a provision information accumulation unit that accumulates information to be provided to the terminal device, In response to a request from the terminal device, an information providing unit that reads out the corresponding information from the provision information storage unit and provides the information to the terminal device, and each time the information is provided to the terminal device, And an access history management unit that records the type of information provided. The terminal device includes an information request operation unit that requests the information providing device to acquire information, and an acquisition information storage unit that stores information acquired from the information providing device. The information providing unit of the information providing device refers to the access history management unit when updating the information stored in the provided information storage unit, and provides the terminal device that provided the same type of information before the update. Notification of information update.

  Further, the present invention is an information providing device that provides information to a terminal device via a communication unit, and a provision information storage unit that stores information to be provided to the terminal device, and the above-mentioned information according to a request from the terminal device An information providing unit that reads out corresponding information from the provided information storage unit and provides it to the terminal device, and an access that records the identifier of the terminal device of the providing destination and the type of the provided information every time the information is provided to the terminal device And a history management unit. When the information stored in the provided information storage unit is updated, the information providing unit refers to the access history management unit and notifies the terminal device that provided the same type of information before the update to the information update unit. .

  The access history management unit records the provision date and time of the further provided information, and the information provision unit compares the update date and time of the updated information with the latest provision date and time recorded in the access history management unit. Then, information update notification is sent to the terminal device whose latest provision date and time is earlier than the update date and time.

  Further, the present invention is a terminal device that is mounted on a vehicle and acquires information from an information providing device via a communication means, and an information request operation unit that requests the information providing device to acquire information, and the information providing device An acquisition information storage unit that stores information acquired from the device, an update notification storage unit that stores an update notification of information received from the information providing device, a display unit that displays the acquired information and the received update notification, A host vehicle position detection unit that detects a current position of the host vehicle and a control unit that controls acquisition of the information. Then, the control unit receives the update notification received on the display unit when the current position detected by the host vehicle position detection unit or the traveling destination of the host vehicle substantially matches the position information of the received update notification. Is displayed.

  Further, the present invention is a terminal device that acquires information from an information providing device via a communication unit, the information request operating unit that requests the information providing device to acquire information, and the information requesting device that is acquired from the information providing device. An acquisition information storage unit for storing information, an update notification storage unit for storing an update notification of information received from the information providing device, a display unit for displaying the acquired information and the received update notification, and acquisition of the information And a control unit for controlling. When the control unit requests acquisition of information from the information request operation unit, information of the same type as the requested information is stored in the acquired information storage unit, and the information is stored in the update notification storage unit. If the subsequent update notification is not stored, the information stored in the acquired information storage unit is read out and displayed on the display unit without requesting the information providing apparatus to acquire the information. To do.

  According to the present invention, the information providing center does not redundantly provide the same information to the user and does not send unnecessary update notifications. Improved usability.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an information providing system according to the present invention and each device constituting the information providing system. The present embodiment is a system that takes an in-vehicle car navigation device as an example of a user terminal and acquires information stored in a server of an information providing service center via a mobile phone.

  This system provides information from an information providing service center 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as “center”) to a car navigation device 2 (hereinafter abbreviated as “car navigation”). As a communication means, a mobile phone communication network via the Internet 31 is provided. 32, transmitted from the radio base station 33, received by the mobile phone 3, and provided to the car navigation system 2. On the contrary, using this communication means, the car navigation 2 requests the center 1 to provide information. Although not shown in the figure, the mobile phone communication network 32 includes a plurality of radio base stations 33, a mobile station exchange station for exchange connection to a public telephone network, a gateway for connection to the Internet 31, and the like. ing.

First, the internal configuration of the center 1 will be described.
The center 1 includes an information providing server 10 that manages information provided to the car navigation system 2 and an interface unit 16 that connects the information providing server 10 to the Internet 31. For example, a modem or a router is used for the interface unit 16. In the information providing server 10, the server overall control unit 11 includes a CPU and a memory (ROM, RAM, etc.), performs system control of the information providing server 10 as a whole, and is connected to the following elements.

  The provided information storage unit 12 stores and manages information data to be provided to the car navigation system 2. The types of provided information include, for example, event information, traffic information such as traffic congestion, construction, etc., weather information, and map information. These pieces of information are managed separately for each region. When there is an information acquisition request from the car navigation system 2, the server overall control unit 11 searches and reads out the corresponding information from the provided information storage unit 12 based on the requested information type and location information (location), To send.

  The registered user information accumulating unit 13 stores and manages user information regarding users who have contracted service use with the center 1. For example, user information is registered using the user ID issued at the time of user registration as an index. In this embodiment, it is assumed that an e-mail address used in the car navigation system 2 is registered in one of the user information. This is used for information update notification.

  This embodiment is characterized in that an information access history management unit 14 is further provided. The information access history management unit 14 accumulates and manages data relating to the distribution destination (user ID) to which the center 1 has provided information so far and the content (type) of the distributed information. Then, as will be described later, the history information is referred to and update information is notified to the user. That is, when the provision information managed by the center is updated, only the user who delivered the information before the update is notified of the update.

  The server operation unit 15 performs internal maintenance of the information providing server 10 such as updating of the provided information storage unit 12 and the registered user information storage unit 13.

Next, the internal configuration of the car navigation 2 will be described.
The car navigation overall control unit 21 is composed of a CPU and a memory (ROM, RAM, etc.), and each peripheral component is connected by an electrical interface circuit to perform system control of the entire car navigation 2 and use a mobile phone 3. Also performs data communication processing. These functions are realized by installing software.

  The GPS receiving unit 22 receives radio waves transmitted from GPS satellites, and the car navigation overall control unit 21 detects latitude and longitude data indicating the current vehicle position from the received signal of the GPS receiving unit 22. The car navigation operation unit 23 is used by the user to set the operation of the car navigation 2 and to operate the center 1 for obtaining information. The display unit 24 is a liquid crystal display or the like that displays various information including route guidance map data. The map data storage unit 25 includes a hard disk, a flash memory, or the like that stores a road map for route guidance, and updates and stores the map information with new information distributed from the center 1.

  The user ID storage unit 26 stores a user ID issued from the center 1 to the car navigation system 2. When a contract for service use is made with the center 1, the center 1 issues a user ID to an applicant who has accepted the use, and thereby identifies the contracted user.

  This embodiment is characterized in that an update notification storage unit 27 is further provided. The update notification storage unit 27 stores the content of the update notification received from the center 1. By referring to this content, the timing at which the acquired information is displayed is controlled, and the same information is not redundantly acquired. Further, the acquired information storage unit 28 stores and stores the distribution information acquired from the center 1.

  An example of a communication protocol will be described in detail as to how information is provided between the center 1 and the car navigation 2 in the information providing system.

  FIG. 2 shows a configuration example of a communication frame used for communication between the center 1 and the car navigation system 2. (A) is a communication frame before authentication, and (b) is a communication frame after authentication.

  The configuration of the communication frame is provided with control type data 101 at the head, “1” is “server connection request”, “2” is “authentication request”, “3” is “authentication response”, and “4” is “ “Authentication Result”, “5” is “Information Acquisition Request”, “6” is “Information Acquisition Confirmation”, “7” is “Continue Distribution”, “8” is “Distribution Complete”, and “9” is “Update Notification” "Means" ".

  FIG. 2A is a communication frame when “1: server connection request”, “2: authentication request”, “3: authentication response”, and “4: authentication result” are set as the control type data 101. . Here, “server connection request” and “authentication response” are set by the car navigation system 2 side, and “authentication request” and “authentication result” are set by the center 1 side. When setting “server connection request” and “authentication request”, the attached data 102 following the control type data 101 is not added. When setting “authentication response”, the user ID is set as the attached data 102, “ In the case of “authentication result”, data indicating authentication success or authentication failure is added as attached data 102.

  In FIG. 2B, “5: information acquisition request”, “6: information acquisition confirmation”, “7: distribution continued”, “8: distribution completed”, and “9: update notification” are set as the control type data 101. It is a communication frame when Here, “information acquisition request” and “information acquisition confirmation” are set by the car navigation system 2 side. When the car navigation system 2 makes an information acquisition request for the first time, “information acquisition request” is performed, and then all desired information has been acquired. Sets “information acquisition confirmation”. “Continue distribution” and “distribution complete” are set when the center 1 (information providing server 10) distributes information data requested from the car navigation system 2. "Continue distribution" and "Distribution complete" indicate to the car navigation 2 side that the information data portion 106 of the transmitted communication frame is valid, and at the same time, there is a continuation of information data in the communication frame to be transmitted next. It is provided to indicate whether or not. “Update notification” is set to notify the target car navigation 2 side when the provided information managed by the center 1 side is updated.

  After the control type data 101, an information type 103, position information 104, a data length 105, and an information data unit 106 are added as attached data 102. Here, the information type 103 indicates the type of the information data part. For example, “1” is defined as event information, “2” is defined as map information, and “3” is defined as traffic information. The position information 104 is, for example, latitude and longitude data such as a destination position set by the car navigation system 2 or a current travel position. On the center 1 side, with reference to the information type 103 and the position information 104 in the communication frame received from the car navigation 2 side, the designated information is searched and distributed to the car navigation 2. At that time, the position information 104 (latitude and longitude data) may be searched for an area including this (appropriate range such as a city). The data length 105 is the data length (for example, the number of bytes) of the information data unit 106 arranged subsequently. In the case of “update notification”, only the information type 103 and the position information 104 may be used as the attached data 102.

Next, a procedure when the car navigation system 2 acquires event information around the host vehicle from the center 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communication sequence between the center 1 and the car navigation system 2. Here, the communication frame described in FIG.
FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of information acquisition processing on the car navigation 2 side, and this processing is controlled by the car navigation overall control unit 21.
FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the information providing process on the center 1 side, and this process is controlled by the server overall control unit 11 in the information providing server 10.
Each step in FIGS. 4 and 5 is indicated by S, and in FIG. 3, the step S used in FIGS. 4 and 5 is given.

Hereinafter, the flow of processing will be described in order along the communication sequence (communication frame) of FIG.
<F301>
The user operates the user operation unit 23 of the car navigation 2 to perform an event information acquisition request operation. When an information acquisition request operation is detected (S401), Internet connection processing is executed (S402).

  In the case of connecting to the Internet from the car navigation 2 side, it is generally performed via an Internet connection operator. In this embodiment, the Internet connection is the same as the communication procedure generally performed. That is, in addition to the contract with the center 1, the user also makes a use contract for Internet connection in advance with the Internet connection company, and uses the user ID and password for Internet connection issued by the Internet connection company. Make an Internet connection. In the Internet connection processing (S402), processing for connecting to the Internet using data communication of the mobile phone 3 is performed. First, the mobile phone 3 is controlled to make a call to an access point provided by the Internet connection provider, and data is transmitted. Data communication connection control processing specified by the mobile phone operator until communication is established. After establishing the data communication, send the user ID and password issued by the Internet connection provider, request the Internet connection, and perform the Internet connection confirmation response reception process received from the Internet connection provider as a response. Establish an internet connection.

  Subsequently, the car navigation system 2 generates a communication frame (F301) in which “server connection request” is set as the control type in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2A, and transmits the communication frame to the information providing server 10 side (S403). ). On the car navigation 2 side, an authentication request reception detection process is entered, and the state shifts to a state waiting for receiving an authentication request (F302) from the information providing server 10 (S403).

<F302>
The information providing server 1 side is waiting to receive a communication frame (F301) of an information providing server connection request from the car navigation system 2. When this communication frame is received (S501), an authentication request transmission process to the car navigation system 2 is executed (S502). Here, a communication frame (F302) in which the control type is set to “authentication request” in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2A is generated and transmitted to the car navigation 101 side. After transmitting the authentication request (F302), the processing enters an authentication response reception detection process (S503), and shifts to a state waiting for receiving an authentication response (registered user ID) (F303) from the car navigation system 2.

<F303>
When the car navigation 2 side receives and detects an authentication request communication frame (F302) from the information providing server 10 (S404), it executes an authentication response transmission process (S405). Here, “authentication response” is set as the control type in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2A, then the registered user ID is set, and the communication frame (F303) is transmitted to the information providing server 10 side. After transmitting the authentication response (registered user ID), the process enters an authentication result reception detection process (S406), and shifts to a state waiting for receiving an authentication result (F304) from the information providing server 10.

<F304>
When the information providing server 10 receives and detects the authentication response (registered user ID) (F303) (S503), the information providing server 10 executes a user authentication process (S504). Here, the registered user ID set in the communication frame (F303) of the received authentication response is extracted, and it is checked whether or not this is the ID registered in the registered user information storage unit 13 in FIG. As a result of the check, if it can be confirmed that it is registered, it is determined that authentication is successful, and if registration is not confirmed, it is determined that authentication is failed. And the process which transmits the authentication result by S504 to the car navigation 3 side is performed (S505). Here, in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2A, the “authentication result” of the control type is set, and then the authentication success / failure result data stored in advance is read and set, and the car navigation 2 side A communication frame (F304) is transmitted. After transmitting the authentication result, an authentication result check process is performed (S506). If the authentication is successful, an information acquisition request reception detection process is entered (S507), and a transition is made to a state waiting for receiving an information acquisition request (F305) from the car navigation system 2. . In the case of authentication failure, the subsequent processing is terminated.

<F305>
When the car navigation 2 receives and detects the communication frame (F304) of the authentication result (success / failure) (S406), the authentication success / failure check process is performed (S407). If the authentication fails, the subsequent processing is terminated. If the authentication is successful, the vehicle position information acquisition process is executed (S408). Here, the latitude / longitude data of the own vehicle is calculated based on the input signal from the GPS receiver 22. If the vehicle position can be acquired, an information acquisition request transmission process is executed (S409). Here, in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2 (b), latitude / longitude data indicating the information type request “information acquisition request” as the control type 101, “event information” as the information type 103, and the vehicle position detected in S408 as the position information 104. Then, a communication frame (F305) in which 0 (no information data part) is set in the data length 105 is generated and transmitted to the information providing server 10 side. After transmitting the information acquisition request (event information request around the vehicle), the center distribution information reception completion detection process is executed (S410), and the corresponding event information (F306, F307) distributed from the information providing server 10 is waiting to be received. Transition to.

<F306, F307>
On the information providing server 10 side, when reception of the information acquisition request (own vehicle surrounding event) (F305) is detected (S507), the corresponding information search process (S508) and the corresponding information transmission process (S509) are executed. In S508, information corresponding to the information acquisition request (own vehicle surrounding event) (F305) is read from the provision information storage unit 12 in FIG. In this embodiment, since event information around the own vehicle is requested, the event information in the provision information storage unit 12 is referred to and indicated in the latitude / longitude data set in the position information 104 of the communication frame (F305). Read the information near the place. Then, the read information is held as corresponding event information, and the corresponding information transmission process (S509) and the all information transmission completion detection process (S510) are executed.

  In S509, in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2 (b), “Continue distribution” or “Distribution complete” is set for the control type 101, “Event information” is set for the information type 103, and the latitude / A communication frame (F306 or F307) in which the longitude data, the data length 105, the number of data bytes read from the provided information storage unit 12, and the corresponding event information data read in the information data 106 is set is generated and transmitted to the car navigation system 2 side. .

  Subsequently, in S510, it is checked whether or not transmission of all corresponding information read from the provision information storage unit 12 is completed. After S509, if transmission is not completed, the control type 101 is set to “continue distribution” and transmission is completed. To do so, the control type 101 is transmitted as “distribution complete”. Thereby, the corresponding event information distribution continuation (F306) is transmitted first, and finally the corresponding event information distribution completion (F307) is transmitted. When transmission is completed in S510, an information acquisition confirmation reception detection process is executed (S511), and a transition is made to a reception waiting state for information acquisition confirmation (F308) from the car navigation system 2.

<F308>
On the car navigation 2 side, when the corresponding event information (F306, F307) distributed from the information providing server 10 is received and detected, the control type 101 of the communication frame is checked. In the case of “continuation of distribution”, the data of the information data unit 106 corresponding to the number of data set in the data length 105 is extracted, temporarily stored in the RAM or the like in the car navigation overall control unit 21, and the next communication frame is received Wait for detection (S410). Then, when the control type 101 receives “distribution complete”, the information data unit 106 is extracted, and then the acquisition information storage process stored in the acquisition information storage unit 28 together with the reception event information temporarily stored in the RAM or the like is performed (S411). ). At that time, the information distributed and received from the information providing server 10, the information type 103 at the time of acquisition request, and the position information 104 are stored in association with each other.

  Next, an information acquisition confirmation transmission process (S412) for notifying that information has been acquired is performed. Here, in the communication frame shown in FIG. 2B, the control type 101 is “information acquisition confirmation”, the information type 103 is “event information”, and the position information 104 is the latitude / time indicating the vehicle position detected in S408. A communication frame (F308) in which 0 (no information data portion) is set in the longitude data and the data length 105 is generated and transmitted to the information providing server 10 side. As a result, the reception of the event information is notified.

  Then, the car navigation system 2 performs an acquisition information display process (S413). Here, the event information stored in the acquired information storage unit 28 is read and output to the display unit 24. Thereby, the event information around the own vehicle acquired from the center 1 is displayed.

  On the other hand, when the center 1 receives and detects the information acquisition confirmation (F308) (S511), an information access history creation process is executed (S512). Here, the access history information regarding the delivery destination (user ID) that provided the information and the content (type) of the delivered information is recorded in the information access history management unit 14.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of access history information recorded in the information access history management unit 14. The contents include a user ID 601 for providing information, an information type 602 for which an information acquisition request has been made, position information 603, and an information provision date and time 604.

  The above is the flow of processing until the car navigation 2 completes the acquisition of event information around the host vehicle from the center 1. The center 1 is characterized by accumulating and recording access history information of a distribution destination user each time information is distributed.

Next, how information is notified to the user when information (for example, event information) stored in the provided information storage unit 12 is updated on the center 1 side will be described.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the update notification process on the center 1 side. FIG. 7A is an overall flowchart, and FIG. These processes are performed by the server overall control unit 11.

  First, processing for detecting whether or not the information in the provided information storage unit 12 has been updated is performed (S701). The information data may be updated by the server operation unit 15 or by communication via the Internet 31. When it is detected that there is an update, update information parameter storage processing is executed (S702). The update information parameter is the type of information to be processed, position information, update date and time, and the like. These parameters are temporarily stored in, for example, a memory (RAM) in the server overall control unit 11.

  Next, update notification target user ID extraction processing is performed (S703). Here, the update information parameter and the access history recorded in the information access history management unit 14 are referred to extract a target user to be notified of the update.

FIG. 7B shows the update notification target user ID extraction process (S703) in detail.
In the update information type corresponding user ID extraction process (S7031), the information type of the update information parameter stored in S702 and the information type 602 distributed for each user ID 601 recorded in the information access history management unit 14 shown in FIG. Compare Then, a user ID that has previously distributed the same information type as the information type to be updated this time is extracted. When the information type of the update information is “event information”, “A1234” and “C5432” are extracted as the user ID 601 from the information access history management unit 14 illustrated in FIG. 6.

  Next, the update information position corresponding user ID extraction process (S7032) compares the position information of the update information with the position information 603 for each user ID recorded in the information access history management unit 14 using the user ID extracted in S7031 as a candidate. Then, the user ID that distributed the position information near the position information of the update information is extracted. For example, the location information of the update information is the latitude / longitude of the city A in the city B, and the latitude / longitude of the location information delivered to the user ID “A1234” is the location information delivered to the city C in the city A, “C5432”. The latitude and longitude are assumed to be in A prefecture B city. In this case, the position information distributed to “C5432” is determined to be near the position information of the update information, and this user ID is extracted.

  Further, the update information date / time corresponding user ID extraction processing (S7033) uses the user ID extracted in S7032 as a candidate, compares the update date / time of update information with the provided date / time 604 for each user ID recorded in the information access history management unit 14, A user ID whose latest provision date is earlier than the current update date is extracted. By this process, when the user voluntarily accesses and acquires the updated information before sending the update notification from the center, it is not necessary to send the update notification, and this can be eliminated. In FIG. 6, when the provision date / time of “C5432” is before the update date / time of the update information, “C5432” is extracted and set as the update notification target user ID. In this way, the update notification target user ID is determined.

  In addition, according to the above method, the target information is all users who distribute the target information before the update and do not distribute the updated information. Also good. For example, a user who has been updated several times in the past and distributed information that has been updated in the past, but has not distributed information that was updated last time (immediately preceding information) is considered to be no longer interested in the information. May be excluded.

  Next, in the update notification mail transmission process (S704), the registered user information storage unit 13 is referred to, and the e-mail address of the use contractor corresponding to the update notification target user ID extracted in S703 is read. Then, an update notification mail indicating that the previously distributed information has been updated is generated and transmitted to the target user (target car navigation system 2).

  As described above, according to this embodiment, since the center 1 manages the information access history of the user who distributed the information, the user who distributed the information before the update when the information was updated. It is possible to notify update only to

  For this reason, the user does not receive an update notification of uninteresting information, and it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of a communication fee for receiving an unnecessary update notification. At the same time, since only the user who has acquired the information before update is required to transmit the update notification in the center 1, the communication cost required for the update notification can be reduced.

  Next, a notification method for more suitably notifying the user of the received update notification on the car navigation 2 side will be described. On the car navigation 2 side, when an update notification is received, it can be displayed on the display unit 14 in real time and recognized by the user. However, if the user is traveling far away from the location of the update information, it is not necessary to immediately know the update notification. Rather, a notification that does not need to be known at the present time is received, which makes the user feel bothersome. Therefore, it is preferable to display the update notification in conjunction with the destination set by the user or the current location while traveling as the timing to display the update notification to the user. Hereinafter, a procedure for performing these will be described.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart in the case where the update notification is performed in conjunction with the destination setting on the car navigation 2 side.
The current vehicle position is detected using the GPS receiver 22 (S801), and a map around the vehicle position is displayed (S802). Based on the position information obtained in S801, the surrounding wide area map information is read from the map data storage unit 25 and output to the display unit 24. After that, the input from the car navigation operation unit 23 is checked to detect that it is a destination setting operation (S803). If it is detected that the destination setting operation has been performed, a destination mark or the like is displayed on the previously displayed map (S804). Next, route calculation is performed in accordance with search conditions (distance priority, time priority, use of toll roads, etc.) preset by the user (S805). When the route calculation from the current vehicle position to the set destination is completed, the searched route is displayed on the map (S806).

  Next, it is checked whether or not there is an information update notification from the center 1 (S807). Here, the update notification storage unit 27 is referenced to check whether an update notification is stored. When it is detected that the update notification is stored, the position information of the update notification is compared with the position information of the set destination, and it is determined whether or not the position information of the update notification is near the set destination (S808). ). Here, “near” refers to, for example, checking whether or not the position information of the update notification and the position information of the destination are in the same area (such as the same city). If it is determined that the position information of the update notification is near the set destination, information with an update notification is displayed (S809). In this case, a message with an update notification is displayed and output on the display unit 24 of the car navigation system 2. As a display method, the user may be notified by voice.

  With the above processing, when the car navigation system 2 receives the update notification, it does not receive the notification immediately, and when the user sets the destination, the set destination is the area that is the target of the update notification. Displaying the update notification for the first time in some cases can eliminate the annoyance felt by the user.

Next, FIG. 9 is a flowchart in the case of performing update notification in conjunction with the current travel position on the car navigation 2 side.
The current vehicle position is detected using the GPS receiving unit 22 (S901), the surrounding wide area map information is read from the map data storage unit 25, and the map around the vehicle position is displayed on the display unit 24. Further, a mark indicating the current position of the vehicle is displayed on the displayed map information (S902). The mark indicating the current position is updated and displayed as needed.

  Next, it is checked whether there is an information update notification from the center 1 (S903). If the reception of the update notification is detected, it is determined whether or not the position information of the update notification is near the current vehicle position (S904). This determination is performed in the same manner as the method described in S808. If the position information of the update notification is determined to be near the current location, the update notification presence information is displayed (S905).

  By the above processing, it is possible to eliminate the annoyance felt by the user by displaying the presence of an update notification for the first time when the traveling position of the vehicle reaches the vicinity of the position of the received update notification.

  As described above, the notification of the update notification to the user is notified in conjunction with the position information at the time of destination setting or the position information of the traveling position, so that the user can know the update notification at a necessary timing. Therefore, usability is improved.

  As yet another embodiment, when an update notification is received on the car navigation 2 side, the update notification is saved without performing the update notification to the user, and when the user subsequently performs an information acquisition request operation, the stored update notification is displayed. A method for efficiently acquiring information by referring to will be described.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart in the case where information acquisition is performed with reference to the stored update notification on the car navigation system 2 side.

  A reception check of the update notification mail from the center 1 is performed (S1001). When reception of the update notification is detected, contents such as an update notification message, information type, and position information are read from the received update notification mail and stored in the update notification storage unit 27 (S1002). At this time, the received update notification is not notified to the user.

  Thereafter, when an information acquisition request operation by the user is detected (S1003), it is checked whether there is information data that has been previously requested and acquired under the same conditions (S1004). Here, the acquired information storage unit 28 is searched to check whether there is corresponding information data.

  If it is determined in S1004 that there is already acquired information data in the same request, the past update notification stored in the update notification storage unit 27 is further referred to and whether or not an update notification corresponding to the request information has been received is determined. Check (S1005). Of course, in this update notification, the update date / time is after the provision date / time of the acquired information data. If there is no update notification, the acquired information data is the latest, so the acquired data stored in the acquired information storage unit 28 is read out without acquiring information from the center 1 (S1006) and displayed. The data is displayed on the unit 24. In this way, it is avoided to obtain the same information in duplicate.

  If there is an update notification in S1005, since the acquired information data is not the latest, communication connection with the center 1 is made and the latest updated information is acquired (S1007). If there is no corresponding acquired information data in S1004, the information acquisition is performed for the first time, and the information acquisition process is similarly performed on the center 1 (S1007). The details of the information acquisition process (S1007) are as described in FIG.

  As described above, when the user performs an information acquisition request operation, appropriate processing for information acquisition can be automatically selected by referring to the update notification storage unit 27. Therefore, the user can always acquire the latest information without worrying about the update status of the requested information, and can eliminate the waste of acquiring the same information repeatedly, thereby reducing the communication cost of the user. Usability is improved.

  In each of the embodiments described above, the information providing service for automobiles has been described. However, the user terminal is not limited to a mobile terminal such as a car navigation system. It can also be applied to an information providing system for fixed terminals by appropriately changing and setting the information classification. The communication means between the service center and the terminal is not limited to a mobile phone, and various communication technologies can be used.

The block diagram which shows one Example of the information provision system which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows the structural example of the communication frame between a center and car navigation. The figure which shows the example of the communication sequence between a center and car navigation. The figure which shows the flowchart of the information acquisition process in the car navigation side. The figure which shows the flowchart of the information provision process in the center side. The figure which shows an example of access history information. The figure which shows the flowchart of the update notification process in the center side. The figure which shows the flowchart which performs update notification in conjunction with the destination setting on the car navigation side. The figure which shows the flowchart which performs update notification in conjunction with the present traveling position on the car navigation side. The figure which shows the flowchart which acquires information with reference to the update notification preserve | saved in the car navigation side.

Explanation of symbols

1 ... Information providing service center (center),
2. Car navigation (car navigation),
3 ... Mobile phone,
10: Information providing server,
11 ... Server overall control unit,
12 ... Provided information storage unit,
13: Registered user information storage unit,
14 ... Information access history management unit,
15 ... Server operation unit,
16 ... interface,
21 ... The whole car navigation control part,
22 ... GPS receiver,
23. User operation unit,
24 ... display section,
25 ... Map data storage unit,
26 ... User ID storage unit,
27 ... Update notification storage unit,
28 ... Acquired information storage unit,
31 ... Internet.

Claims (6)

In an information providing system for providing information from an information providing device to a terminal device via a communication means,
The information providing apparatus is
A provision information storage unit for storing information to be provided to the terminal device;
An information providing unit that reads out corresponding information from the provision information storage unit in response to a request from the terminal device and provides the information to the terminal device;
Each time the information is provided to the terminal device, the access history management unit for recording the identifier of the provision destination terminal device and the type of information provided,
The terminal device is
An information request operation unit that requests the information providing apparatus to acquire information;
An acquisition information storage unit for storing information acquired from the information providing apparatus,
The information providing unit of the information providing device refers to the access history management unit when updating the information stored in the provided information storage unit, and provides information to the terminal device that provided the same type of information before the update. An information providing system for notifying update. In the information provision system of Claim 1,
In the access history management unit of the information providing apparatus, the provision date and time of the provided information is recorded,
The information providing unit compares the updated date / time of the updated information with the latest provided date / time recorded in the access history management unit, and for the terminal device whose latest provided date / time is earlier than the updated date / time. An information providing system for notifying information update. In an information providing device that provides information to a terminal device via a communication means,
A provision information storage unit for storing information to be provided to the terminal device;
An information providing unit that reads out corresponding information from the provision information storage unit in response to a request from the terminal device and provides the information to the terminal device;
Each time the information is provided to the terminal device, the access history management unit for recording the identifier of the provision destination terminal device and the type of information provided,
When the information stored in the provided information storage unit is updated, the information providing unit refers to the access history management unit and notifies the terminal device that provided the same type of information before the update to the information update unit. An information providing apparatus characterized by the above. In the information provision apparatus of Claim 3,
The access history management unit records the provision date and time of the further provided information,
The information providing unit compares the updated date / time of the updated information with the latest provided date / time recorded in the access history management unit, and for the terminal device whose latest provided date / time is earlier than the updated date / time. An information providing apparatus that performs information update notification. In a terminal device that is mounted on a car and acquires information from an information providing device via a communication means,
An information request operation unit that requests the information providing apparatus to acquire information;
An acquisition information storage unit for storing information acquired from the information providing device;
An update notification storage unit for storing an update notification of information received from the information providing device;
A display unit for displaying the acquired information and the received update notification;
A vehicle position detector for detecting the current position of the vehicle;
A control unit for controlling the acquisition of the information,
The control unit sends the received update notification to the display unit when the current position detected by the host vehicle position detection unit or the travel destination of the host vehicle substantially matches the position information of the received update notification. A terminal device characterized by displaying. In a terminal device that acquires information from an information providing device via a communication means,
An information request operation unit that requests the information providing apparatus to acquire information;
An acquisition information storage unit for storing information acquired from the information providing device;
An update notification storage unit for storing an update notification of information received from the information providing device;
A display unit for displaying the acquired information and the received update notification;
A control unit for controlling the acquisition of the information,
When requesting acquisition of information from the information request operation unit, the control unit stores information of the same type as the requested information in the acquisition information storage unit and stores the information in the update notification storage unit. When subsequent update notifications are not stored, the information stored in the acquired information storage unit is read and displayed on the display unit without requesting the information providing apparatus to acquire information. A terminal device characterized by that.

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