JP2008128929A - Navigation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make content easy to understand by deleting place names not important for a user who is driving a vehicle to a destination from maps and area guide signs. <P>SOLUTION: Icons 21 indicating gas stations and icons 22 indicating convenience stores are displayed on a map in the periphery of the location of a self-vehicle indicated by a self-vehicle location mark 20 on a map screen in the normal mode shown in (a). Then place names 23 and 24 are additionally displayed on the map. On the other hand, the place names 23 and 24 are not displayed on the map screen in the trip mode shown in (b). Various types of facilities such as gas stations and convenience stores are displayed on the map as they are, and place display is deleted at locations except in the vicinity of a starting location and the destination in trip mode in this way. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device mounted on a vehicle.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in navigation devices that display a map, place name display on the map has been widely performed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In addition, a navigation device that makes it easier for the driver of the vehicle to determine which direction to proceed when passing the intersection by displaying a direction signboard at the intersection in front of the intersection in front of the vehicle Is also widely known (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

JP 2005-321268 A JP 2001-311625 A

  As disclosed in Patent Document 1, among the place names displayed on the map on the way from the departure place to the destination, and the direction guide sign displayed in front of the intersection as disclosed in Patent Document 2 The place names other than the traveling direction are not so important for the user who drives the vehicle toward the destination. When such an insignificant place name is displayed on a map or a direction guide signboard, there is a problem that the content becomes difficult to understand.

The navigation device according to the first aspect of the present invention is a map display control means for displaying a map on a display monitor, a route setting means for setting a recommended route from a departure place to a destination, and a recommended route set by the route setting means. When the vehicle travels, an erasing unit that erases the place name display from the map except for the vicinity of the departure point and the destination is provided.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the navigation device of the first aspect, the erasing means erases the place name display not on the direction guide signboard from the map.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, a map display control means for displaying a map on a display monitor, a route setting means for setting a recommended route from the departure place to the destination, and the vehicle travels on the recommended route set by the route setting means. In this case, the direction guide sign display means for displaying the direction guide sign for the intersection ahead and the area name display from the direction guide sign displayed by the direction guide sign display means except for the vicinity of the departure point and destination Means.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the navigation device of the third aspect, the erasing means erases the place name display other than the traveling direction when the host vehicle travels along the recommended route from the direction guide signboard.

  According to the present invention, a place name that is not important for a user who drives a vehicle toward a destination can be erased from a map or a direction guide sign, and the contents can be easily understood.

  A configuration of a navigation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. The navigation device 1 shown in FIG. 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, an input device 17, and a disk drive 18. The disc drive 18 is loaded with a DVD-ROM 19 in which map data is recorded.

  The control circuit 11 includes a microprocessor and its peripheral circuits, and performs various processes and controls by executing a control program stored in the ROM 12 using the RAM 13 as a work area. Based on the map data recorded on the DVD-ROM 19, various processes such as setting a destination and searching for a recommended route to the set destination are performed by the control circuit 11. Further, the display of a map screen and a direction guide sign as described later is also performed based on the map data recorded on the DVD-ROM 19.

  The current location detection device 14 detects the position of the host vehicle. The current location detection device 14 includes, for example, a vibration gyro sensor 14a for detecting the traveling direction of the host vehicle, a vehicle speed sensor 14b for detecting the vehicle speed, and a GPS sensor 14c for receiving GPS signals from GPS satellites. The navigation device 1 can determine the starting point for starting the route search or the position of the vehicle position mark displayed on the map based on the current location detected by the current location detection device 14. .

  The image memory 15 temporarily stores image data output from the control circuit 11. Various image displays are performed on the display monitor 16 based on the image data stored in the image memory 15. The display monitor 16 is combined with a touch panel 16a for detecting a user's touch panel operation. When the user touches any position on the display monitor 16 with a finger or the like, the touch panel operation is detected by the touch panel 16 a and information on the touch position is output to the control circuit 11. Based on the touch position information from the touch panel 16a, the control circuit 11 determines which part of the image displayed on the display monitor 16 is touched, and executes processing according to the determination result. Thereby, various operations are executed in the navigation device 1.

  The input device 17 has various input switches and is realized by an operation panel, a remote controller, or the like. The user searches for the corresponding place from the map data by inputting the address, telephone number, facility name, etc. of the place desired as the destination by operating the input device 17 or the touch panel operation as described above. Can be set to Alternatively, the destination can be set by designating a specific point on the map screen or selecting one of registered locations registered in advance.

  The disk drive 18 reads map data from the loaded DVD-ROM 19. This map data includes route calculation data used for route search to the destination, route guidance data used to guide the vehicle to the destination according to the set route, such as intersection name and road name, and road The road data that represents is included. The map data also includes background data representing map shapes other than roads such as rivers, railways, various facilities on the map (landmarks), and the like.

  In the road data, the minimum unit representing a road section is called a link, and each road is composed of a plurality of links. A point connecting the links is called a node, and each node has position information (coordinate information). The link shape, that is, the shape of the road is determined based on the position information of the node.

  Although an example using a DVD-ROM is described here, the map data may be read from a recording medium other than the DVD-ROM, such as a CD-ROM, a hard disk, or a memory card. Or it is good also as receiving the map data transmitted via a mobile telephone line etc. from the outside, and using the map data. That is, any method may be used for acquiring map data.

  When the destination is set for the user as described above, the navigation device 1 performs a predetermined algorithm operation based on the above-described route calculation data, with the current location detected by the current location detection device 14 as the departure location. To search for a route from the departure point to the destination. Among the routes obtained by this route search, the optimum route is set as the recommended route. When the recommended route is set from the departure point to the destination in this way, the recommended route is displayed on the map separately from other roads by a method such as using a color different from that of other roads. Thereby, the user can easily recognize the recommended route on the map screen displayed on the display monitor 16. In addition, the navigation device 1 guides the host vehicle by instructing the traveling direction by an image or voice to the user so that the host vehicle can travel according to the recommended route. In this way, route guidance to the destination is performed.

  Next, a map screen displayed on the navigation device 1 will be described. The navigation device 1 displays a map around the vehicle position on the display monitor 16 based on the map data recorded on the DVD-ROM 19. At this time, as the map display mode, the user selects either a normal mode for displaying a normal map or a travel mode for displaying a travel map used when traveling at a long distance. it can. In each mode, different maps are displayed as described below.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of a map screen displayed on the navigation device 1 when the host vehicle is traveling on the recommended route toward the destination. FIG. 2A is an example of a map screen displayed in the normal mode. An icon 21 representing a gas station and an icon 22 representing a convenience store are displayed around the vehicle position indicated by the vehicle position mark 20. Are displayed on the map. Furthermore, as indicated by reference numerals 23 and 24, place names “A town” and “B town” are displayed on the map, respectively.

  On the other hand, FIG. 2B is an example of a map screen displayed in the travel mode. In this travel mode map screen, icons 21 and 22 are displayed, but place names 23 and 24 are not displayed, compared to the map screen in the normal mode of FIG. That is, on the map screen in the travel mode, various facilities such as gas stations and convenience stores are displayed on the map, but the place name display is erased.

  When the host vehicle is traveling on the recommended route toward the destination, the place name of the area that passes along the route is considered not so important for the user who drives the vehicle. Therefore, when the travel mode is selected, a map screen without a place name display as shown in FIG. 2B is displayed at a place other than the vicinity of the departure place or the destination. As a result, since only necessary information is displayed on the map, the map can be easily viewed. Even when the travel mode is selected, the place name can be displayed by displaying a normal map screen as shown in FIG. 2A near the departure point or destination of the recommended route. preferable.

  In addition, as for the direction guide sign displayed when the host vehicle approaches the intersection, different ones are displayed in the normal mode and the travel mode. An example is shown in FIG. FIG. 3A is an example of a map screen when the direction guide sign 32 is displayed on the display monitor 16 at the intersection 31 in front of the host vehicle in the normal mode. In this direction guide sign 32, a place name is written for each traveling direction of the intersection as in the case of an actual direction guide sign installed on the road. By looking at the direction guide sign 32, the user can know that the vehicle heads toward the C city when proceeding in the straight direction at the intersection 31, toward the D town when proceeding to the left direction, and toward the E town when proceeding toward the right turn.

  On the other hand, FIG. 3B is an example of a map screen when the direction guide sign 33 is displayed for the intersection 31 in front of the host vehicle in the travel mode. Compared to the direction guide sign 32 displayed in the normal mode, the direction guide sign 33 has only the place name “C city” corresponding to the direction in which the host vehicle should travel, that is, the straight direction in which the recommended route extends. The other place names of “D town” and “E town” are deleted.

  Thus, in the direction guide sign displayed when the travel mode is selected, the place name in the direction that is not the direction in which the host vehicle should travel is deleted. Thereby, since only necessary information is displayed on the direction guide signboard, the direction guide signboard can be easily seen. In this case, as in FIG. 2, even when the travel mode is selected, a normal direction guide signboard as shown in FIG. 3A is displayed near the departure point or destination of the recommended route. Is preferably displayed.

  FIG. 4 shows a flowchart for displaying the travel mode map as described above. This flowchart is executed when the map screen is displayed in the control circuit 11 of the navigation device 1.

  In step S10, based on the map data recorded on the DVD-ROM 19, a map for a predetermined map range such as the vicinity of the vehicle position is displayed on the display monitor 16. In the next step S20, it is determined whether or not the travel mode is selected as the map display mode. If the travel mode is selected, the process proceeds to step S30. On the other hand, when the travel mode is not selected, that is, when the normal mode is selected, the flowchart of FIG. 4 ends. In this case, a normal map screen is displayed on the display monitor 16. The map display mode can be selected on the menu screen.

  In step S30, it is determined whether or not the vehicle position is near the departure point or the destination. If the vehicle position is not near the departure point or destination, that is, if the vehicle is traveling at a point that is not within a predetermined distance from the start point or end point of a preset recommended route, the next step Proceed to S40. In step S40, the characters representing the place names are deleted from the map displayed in step S10. As a result, a map screen from which the place name display as shown in FIG. If step S40 is performed, it will progress to step S50.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S30 that the vehicle position is near the departure point or the destination, the process proceeds to step S50 without executing step S40. In this case, even if the travel mode is set, the map screen including the place name as shown in FIG. 2A is displayed on the display monitor 16 as in the case of the normal mode.

  In step S50, it is determined whether the distance from the vehicle position on the recommended route to the next intersection is within a predetermined distance set in advance. When it is within the predetermined distance to the next intersection, the process proceeds to the next step S60. In step S60, a direction guide signboard for the intersection determined to be within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position in step S50 is displayed on the display monitor 16. On the other hand, when it is determined in step S50 that the distance is not within the predetermined distance to the next intersection, the process returns to step S30 and the above process is repeated.

  In step S70, as in step 30 described above, it is determined whether or not the vehicle position is near the departure place or the destination. If the vehicle position is not near the departure point or the destination, the process proceeds to the next step S80. In step S80, the characters representing the place names not related to the traveling direction are deleted from the direction guide sign displayed in step S60. As a result, a direction guide sign from which the place name display other than the traveling direction as shown in FIG. 3B is deleted is displayed on the display monitor 16. If step S80 is performed, it will progress to step S90.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S70 that the vehicle position is near the departure point or the destination, the process proceeds to step S90 without executing step S80. In this case, even when the travel mode is set, the direction guide signboard including the place name not related to the traveling direction as shown in FIG. 3A is displayed on the display monitor 16 as in the normal mode.

  In step S90, the host vehicle travels along the recommended route, and it is determined whether or not the host vehicle has passed the intersection determined to be within a predetermined distance from the host vehicle position in step S50. Until it is determined that the host vehicle has passed the intersection, the vehicle stays at step S90. When the vehicle passes the intersection, the process proceeds to step S100.

  In step S100, the direction guide sign displayed in step S60 is erased. Thereby, the display of the direction guidance signboard is stopped when passing the intersection. If step S100 is performed, it will return to step S30 and the above processes will be repeated.

According to the embodiment described above, the following operational effects can be obtained.
(1) A map is displayed on the display monitor 16 (step S10). When the host vehicle travels along a preset recommended route, the vicinity of the starting point and the destination is excluded (step S30), and the place name is displayed from the map. It was decided to erase (step S40). Since it did in this way, the place name which is not important for the user who drives a vehicle toward the destination can be deleted from a map, and the contents can be made easy to understand.

(2) A map is displayed on the display monitor 16 (step S10), and when the vehicle travels along a preset recommended route, a direction guidance sign is displayed for a front intersection (step S60). At this time, the place name display is erased from the direction guide sign (step S80) except for the vicinity of the departure point and the destination (step S70). Since it did in this way, the place name which is not important for the user who drives a vehicle toward the destination can be deleted from a direction guidance signboard, and the contents can be made easy to understand.

(3) In step S80, the place name display other than the traveling direction when the host vehicle travels the recommended route is erased from the direction guide signboard. Since it did in this way, the place name of the advancing direction required in order to drive a vehicle toward the destination can be left without deleting from a direction guidance signboard.

  When deleting the place name display from the map in step S40 of the flowchart of FIG. 4, not all the place name displays may be deleted, but only the place name display not on the direction guide sign may be deleted. In other words, for the direction guidance signs at each intersection on the recommended route, the place names written on the direction guidance signs are displayed on the map as they are, and the place names not shown on the direction guidance signs are displayed on the map. Erase from In this way, since the place name that the user sees when driving the vehicle toward the destination is displayed on the map, the map contents can be made more easily understood. In addition, in order to implement | achieve the above processes, it is preferable to record in the map data the information which shows the relationship between a direction guidance signboard and the place name described there.

  The embodiments and modifications described above are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these contents as long as the features of the invention are not impaired.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by one Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of the map screen displayed when the own vehicle is following the recommended route toward the destination, (a) is an example of the map screen displayed in the normal mode, and (b) is displayed in the travel mode. Each map screen example is shown. It is an example of a map screen when a direction guidance signboard is displayed about the intersection ahead of the own vehicle, (a) is a map screen example displayed in normal mode, (b) is a map screen displayed in travel mode. Each example is shown. It is a flowchart at the time of displaying the map of travel mode.

Explanation of symbols

1: Navigation device 11: Control circuit 12: ROM 13: RAM
14: Current location detection device 15: Image memory 16: Display monitor 17: Input device 18: Disk drive 19: DVD-ROM

Claims (4)

Map display control means for displaying a map on a display monitor;
A route setting means for setting a recommended route from the departure point to the destination,
A navigation unit that erases a place name display from the map except for the vicinity of the starting point and the destination when the host vehicle travels along the recommended route set by the route setting unit. apparatus. The navigation device according to claim 1.
The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the erasing unit erases a place name display that is not on the direction guide signboard from the map. Map display control means for displaying a map on a display monitor;
A route setting means for setting a recommended route from the departure point to the destination,
When the vehicle travels along the recommended route set by the route setting means, a direction guidance sign display means for displaying a direction guidance sign for a front intersection,
A navigation device comprising: erase means for erasing the place name display from the direction guide sign displayed by the direction guide sign display means except for the vicinity of the departure place and the destination. The navigation device according to claim 3,
The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the erasing unit erases the place name display other than the traveling direction when the host vehicle travels the recommended route from the direction guide signboard.

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