JP2009087280A - Map information display system, terminal device, application server, and map information display program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system in which the easiness and convenience of an operation for selecting a desired alternative from among a plurality of alternatives having positional information using an information processor are improved, and the easiness and convenience of a system operation are improved. <P>SOLUTION: The selection of an alternative performed by selecting each divided area by displaying divided frames by being superimposed on a map where alternatives are dotted on the map based on positional information, and discriminating to which divided area each alternative belongs by the system. In this case, when the plurality of alternatives exist in the selected divided area, the alternative is efficiently selected by magnifying and moving the map according to a positional variation of the alternative. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to information retrieval using an information processing apparatus, and in particular, improves the ease and convenience of operation for selecting a desired option from a plurality of options having positional information, and facilitates system operation. The present invention relates to technology for improving safety and convenience.

  Information includes information including positional elements. For example, things like “sightseeing spot information”, “souvenir shops”, “restaurants”, “various events (venues)” include information about the facilities where they are located, as well as information about where they are located. It is. One method for searching for information including such positional elements is to place each piece of information (detailed information itself or guide information for obtaining detailed information) at the corresponding location on the map. is there.

  The simplest example of the above method is a “guide map” provided on a paper medium. In such a paper medium map, the vertical and horizontal directions are divided into a plurality of sections in order to easily identify the position. For example, the target area is limited by designating “C3” with ABC... In the horizontal direction and 123... In the vertical direction.

  Currently, information processing devices are widely used as information retrieval means. According to the above example, map information is provided via the Internet, and icons are displayed at corresponding positions on the map. There are a number of services that provide detailed information about the spot by clicking on it and clicking on it. In addition, navigation systems are widely used and used in automobiles and mobile phones. In the case of a search using such an information processing apparatus, by assigning various attributes to each spot, for example, by directly inputting an address or name, the corresponding spot is automatically detected in the information processing apparatus. This makes it possible to display the corresponding spot directly, etc., and to easily enlarge / reduce or scroll the map freely. Therefore, as in the case of the paper medium described above, the “ABC. ... Dividing the vertical and horizontal directions into a plurality of sections by assigning a sign such as 123... In the vertical direction is hardly performed.

  As for the above technology, sites such as Non-Patent Document 1 to Non-Patent Document 4 exist as of August 2007.

  In Non-Patent Document 1, the map data of longitude and latitude appears, but the map data itself is simply divided into rectangles, and you can select your own from a number of destinations in the map. It is not intended to facilitate selection of a desired point.

  In Non-Patent Document 2, a list of destination candidates is displayed on the left side of the screen displaying a map, and when one candidate destination is selected from the list by operating the mouse, the corresponding destination on the map is displayed. Something that scrolls the map to the center of the screen and displays detailed information appears. The destination on the map and the candidate list indicate correspondence using alphabets and numbers, but it is necessary to look for correspondence by visual inspection, and it becomes difficult to find when the number increases, and skill of mouse operation is also necessary. Further, since the number of items that can be displayed in the list is displayed on the map, it is necessary to search the destination while switching the list, and it is not possible to display all the destination candidates on the map.

  Non-Patent Document 3 is a developed version of Non-Patent Document 2, drawing concentric circles from the initially displayed map center as 100m, 200m, and 500m, color-coding each, and matching it with the background color of the list. Visibility is improved. At this time, a destination candidate close to the center is easy to find, but a destination candidate located in the outermost circle has a wide-area donut shape, making it difficult to find. Similar to Non-Patent Document 2, the skill of mouse operation is also necessary.

  Non-Patent Document 4 is devised so that the display on the map does not become complicated by performing grouping when Non-Patent Document 2 has many destinations. The destination displayed on the map is treated as a destination group in which a plurality of destinations are grouped, and a list of destination groups is also displayed as a list. When this destination group is selected, the list display is switched to a list of grouped destinations, and details are displayed by selecting a destination from this list. However, since this destination group is an approximate position composed of the positions of the connected destinations or a representative position, the exact positions of all the destinations cannot be confirmed on the map. Similar to Non-Patent Document 2, the skill of mouse operation is also necessary.

http://210.255.173.147/tml/idokeido. htm http: // maps. Google. co. jp / maps http: // www. chizumaru. com / businesses / map /? mode = map http: // maps. homes. jp / homes / map / main? nl = 35/26 / 29.688 & el = 139/38 / 43.296 & scl = 7 & tk = 3 & bsg = 1 & o = 158hw9j8Jk1hEVE

  As described above, the conventional technology (retrieval of “information including positional elements” using an information processing device) basically assumes operation with a mouse or keyboard, and is familiar with these operations. It is not applicable when considering providing a device with a simplified interface for those who have not, and even if applied on an ad hoc basis, it will hinder subsequent system operations (for example, , Information extensibility is low, etc.).

  In view of the above-described points, the present invention improves the ease of operation and convenience for selecting a desired option from among a plurality of options having positional information using an information processing device, and ease of system operation. An object of the present invention is to provide a system with improved convenience.

  Information devices currently used in the world called the ubiquitous era are classified according to the operation method, and are operated by pressing a numeric keypad with a finger and a computer called a personal computer operated by a keyboard and a mouse (including some PDAs). It is divided into a mobile phone and a television (including other AV devices) operated by an input device called a remote controller having a channel button and some keys. Recently, touch panel type information devices having a keyboard or the like displayed on the screen have been widely used.

  In this way, the development of information equipment has made it possible for anyone to share information in a ubiquitous society. In the ubiquitous society, it cannot be denied that there is an information weak called information divide. The cause of this is that “anyone” is an element that product developers tend to forget among the “anytime”, “anywhere”, and “anyone” elements that the ubiquitous society is aiming for. Product developers can use the keyboard and mouse without any problems. Rather, I thought that I couldn't operate a PC without a keyboard and mouse. However, it seems that information devices that can be used by both young and old are common throughout the world: TVs that only operate channels, telephones that only input numbers, and calculators that only perform arithmetic operations. What is common to these devices is that the device performs a sufficient function only by inputting numeric keys from the input device. In other words, it would be no exaggeration to say that the arrival of a ubiquitous society will not occur unless information equipment that can be used by anyone is developed.

  Recently, a product of the genre called Internet TV is on the market. However, it is still difficult to operate, and I think that it is a situation that cannot be said to be a simple operation that can be used by both young and old people worldwide. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is an easy-to-use system that can be used by anyone, for example, providing an easy-to-operate system that can be operated as if operating a TV just by pressing a channel button on the remote controller. It is to be.

  The map information display system according to claim 1 is a map information display system that displays map information based on the map data by including a storage device in which map data is stored, a display device, and a control device, By providing division frame information for visually dividing the display area of the display device into a plurality of pieces, when the map information is displayed on the display device, a division frame based on the division frame information is displayed by the control device. It is characterized by being displayed superimposed on the map information.

  According to the above configuration, a divided frame for visually dividing the display area into a plurality of frames superimposed on the map information displayed based on the map data (generated based on divided frame information different from the map data). Display). The “map” here is a broad term including a chart or the like having some positional information (for example, an item is pointed on a certain graph), and is a so-called geographical “map”. It is not limited to "". The “division frame for visually dividing the display area of the display device into a plurality of parts” may divide the entire display area of the display device into a plurality of parts or a part of the display area of the display device. May be divided into a plurality.

  The map information display system according to claim 2 is the map information display system according to claim 1, wherein the map information display system includes an input device for instructing a movement direction. The control device displays the division frame fixedly on a display screen, and moves and displays the map information according to the movement instruction.

  According to the above configuration, the map is moved and displayed (scrolled) according to the movement instruction. At this time, since the frame is fixedly displayed on the display screen, the map moves with respect to the frame.

  The map information display system according to claim 3 is the map information display system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein as the spot information on the map, the position information on the map data corresponds to the attribute information on the spot. The map information is displayed on the basis of the map scale information and the display reference position information when the map information is displayed by having the position information on the screen of each divided area on the display screen divided by the division frame. Map information is displayed on the screen, and the position information on the display screen of each spot is calculated based on the scale information, the display reference position information, and the position information on the map data of each spot. Based on the position information on the screen of the divided area, the control device determines which divided area each spot is in, or the scale Position information on the map data of each divided area based on the information, the display reference position information and the position information on the screen of each divided area, and the position information on the map data of each spot Based on the above, the control device determines which divided region each spot is in.

  According to the above configuration, when the spot having the position data on the map data is displayed on the screen, the position on the screen is determined, and this is determined on the screen of each divided area. Based on the position information, it is automatically determined which divided area each spot is in. Alternatively, the position of each divided area having position information on the screen is determined as the position on the map data, and based on this and the position information on the map data of the spot, It is automatically determined whether it is in the divided area.

  A map information display system according to a fourth aspect is the map information display system according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the position information on the map data and the spot are related as spot information on the map. The attribute information is held in association with each other, and the range information that defines the range of the map to be displayed in the display area is stored in the storage device in advance or given by the user, by the control device according to the range information. When there are a plurality of spots obtained by discriminating the spots existing within a predetermined range, the minimum range in which all these spots fit is calculated from the position information of each spot, and the minimum Map scale information and display reference position information are calculated based on the range information and the display area information of the display device, and the scale Characterized in that the screen displays the map information on the basis of the broadcast and the display reference position information.

  According to the above configuration, the minimum range in which the spots existing within the range defined by the range information fall is calculated, and the map scale information and the display reference position information are based on the minimum range information and the display area information of the display device. Calculated. Therefore, the map can be automatically enlarged / reduced / moved and displayed in accordance with the positional variation of the spots existing within the range defined by the range information.

  The map information display system according to claim 5 is the map information display system according to claim 4, wherein any one of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected by an instruction from the user to the input device. When determined by the control device, the selected divided area is regarded as the range information, so that spots existing in the selected divided area are discriminated and the scale information and the display reference position information are calculated. A process is executed.

  According to the above configuration, the calculation of the reduced scale information and the display reference position information is performed by determining the spot existing in the selected divided area by regarding the divided area selected by the user as the range information. Therefore, the map can be automatically enlarged / reduced / moved and displayed according to the positional variation of the spots existing in the divided area selected by the user.

  The map information display system according to claim 6 is the map information display system according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the visual effect information is associated with each divided region divided by the divided frame. Each of the divided areas is displayed with a visually different effect, and the icon indicating each spot entering each divided area is visually changed based on the visual effect information corresponding to each divided area. It is characterized by being displayed.

  According to the above configuration, each divided area is displayed with a visually different effect, and an icon indicating each spot is also displayed with a visually different effect according to the divided area to which each spot belongs. Note that “displaying an icon indicating each spot by visually changing based on the visual effect information corresponding to each of the divided regions” is based on the visual effect information each time for a predetermined icon. It is not limited to the one that executes the process of changing to an icon, and an icon that is visually changed based on each visual effect information is prepared in advance, and may be appropriately selected and displayed (divided frame). Visual effect information is included in the image data for displaying the image data or the icon image data itself).

  The map information display system according to claim 7 is the map information display system according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the number of spots belonging to the minimum range and icon display effect information corresponding thereto. Or a table defining the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, so that the number of spots belonging to the minimum range is determined by the control device. The icon display effect information corresponding to this is acquired from the table and an icon indicating each spot is displayed based on the icon display effect information, or the number of spots belonging to the divided area is determined, and Icon display effect information corresponding to the icon is obtained from the table and each spot is displayed based on the icon display effect information. Show, characterized in that.

  According to the said structure, based on the icon display effect information according to the number of the spots which belong to the minimum range or a division area, an icon will be displayed with a visually different effect.

  The map information display system according to claim 8 is the map information display system according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein the map information display system retains visual effect information indicating the absence of a spot or selection failure. The control device determines whether or not there is the spot in each divided region divided by the divided frame, and when there is a divided region where no spot exists, the divided region is selected as the unselectable visual effect information. It is characterized by being displayed visually changed based on the above.

  According to the above configuration, the divided area where no spot exists in the area is displayed with a visual effect indicating the absence of the spot or the inability to select.

  A map information display system according to claim 9 is the map information display system according to any one of claims 3 to 8, wherein an information display field corresponding to each divided area divided by the divided frame is provided. By providing title information and priority information in the attribute information of each spot, the control device discriminates the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering each divided area. And a title is displayed on the information display column of each said division area based on the title information of the said spot.

  According to the above configuration, the information display column corresponding to each divided area is provided, and the title of the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering each divided area is displayed.

  The map information display system according to claim 10 is the map information display system according to any one of claims 3 to 9, wherein each of the map information display systems is divided by the division frame according to an instruction to the input device by a user. When it is determined by the control device that any one of the divided areas has been selected, the control device determines whether or not the number of the spots existing in the selected divided area is one. If the number of the spots is two, detailed information about the spot is displayed on the screen based on the attribute information corresponding to the spot.

  According to the above configuration, when there is one spot in the divided area and the divided area is selected, detailed information on the spot is displayed on the screen.

  The map information display system according to claim 11 is the map information display system according to claim 10, wherein the browsing history information is stored in each spot by accumulating the browsing history when the detailed information display processing is performed. Are stored in association with each other, and the browsing history information is used as the priority information.

  According to the above configuration, since the browsing history is accumulated for the spot where the detailed information is displayed and the browsing history information is used as the priority information, for example, among the spots existing in each divided region The title of the spot with the most browsing history can be displayed in the information display column corresponding to the divided area.

  A map information display system according to a twelfth aspect is the map information display system according to any one of the first to eleventh aspects, comprising an input device having an input key, wherein the arrangement of the divided areas is By configuring the division frame information so as to be the same as the arrangement of the input keys of the input device, and by providing an input signal correspondence table in which the input signal when the input key is pressed and the division areas are associated with each other. The selection operation of each divided region is made possible by the input of the input key corresponding to the arrangement of the divided regions displayed on the screen.

  According to the above configuration, the division frame is configured in the same arrangement as that of the input keys of the input device, so that the correspondence between the display screen and the input device becomes clear. Note that “similar to the arrangement of the input keys of the input device” is not limited to the same arrangement of all the input keys existing in the input device (for example, a keyboard or a remote control device). This includes the same arrangement as a part of existing input keys (for example, a range that can be regarded as one unit such as a numeric keypad of a keyboard or a numeric keypad of a remote controller).

  The map information display system according to claim 13 is the map information display system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the map data includes information also in a height direction. Accordingly, the position information on the map data of the spot is three-dimensional position information. In addition to the display reference position information and the scale information, camera position information and camera direction information with respect to the display reference position information Each of the above processes is executed using

  According to the above-described configuration, the above-described processes are executed on the three-dimensional map data by using the information on the camera position and direction as the viewpoint for displaying the map data on the screen.

  Moreover, the 1st terminal device which concerns on this invention is provided with a control part, a memory | storage part, a display part, and a communication part, and acquires map data via a network from the map server which has map data. A terminal device for displaying map information based on the map data, comprising: divided frame information for visually dividing the display area of the display unit into a plurality of pieces, or dividing frame information into the communication unit When the map information is displayed on the display unit by being acquired from the server via the network, the control unit causes the division frame based on the division frame information to be displayed superimposed on the map information. Features.

  The second terminal device according to the present invention is the first terminal device, and includes an input unit that instructs a moving direction, so that when the moving instruction is given to the input unit, the control unit Thus, the division frame is fixedly displayed on the display screen, and the map information is moved and displayed in accordance with the movement instruction.

  The third terminal device according to the present invention is the first or second terminal device, and holds the position information on the map data and the attribute information related to the spot as spot information on the map, Alternatively, the map information is displayed by acquiring the information from the server via the network by the communication unit and having position information on the screen of each divided area on the display screen divided by the division frame. Map information is displayed on the screen based on the map scale information and the display reference position information, and each spot is determined based on the scale information, the display reference position information, and the position information on the map data of each spot. The position information on the display screen is calculated, and based on this and the position information on the screen of each divided area, which divided area each spot is in It is determined by the control unit, or position information on map data of each divided area is calculated based on the scale information, the display reference position information, and position information on the screen of each divided area, And the position information on the map data of each spot, the control unit determines which divided region each spot is in.

  A fourth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the first to third terminal devices, and associates position information on the map data with attribute information about the spot as spot information on a map. Holding or acquiring such information from the server via the network by the communication unit, and holding in advance the range information that defines the range of the map to be displayed in the display area in the storage unit or being given by the user By the control unit, the spot existing in the range determined by the range information is determined, and when there are a plurality of spots obtained by this, all of these spots from the position information of each of these spots Is calculated, and the map scale information is calculated based on the minimum range information and the display area information of the display unit. And calculating a display reference position information, characterized in that the screen displays the map information on the basis of the scale information and the display reference position information.

  The fifth terminal device according to the present invention is the fourth terminal device, and when one of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected by an instruction from the user to the input unit, the control unit When the determination is made, the selected divided area is regarded as the range information, so that a spot existing in the selected divided area is discriminated and the scale information and the display reference position information are calculated. It is characterized by that.

  A sixth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the third to fifth terminal devices, which holds visual effect information associated with each divided region divided by the divided frame, or visually By obtaining effect information from the server via the network by the communication unit, each divided area is displayed with a visually different effect, and an icon indicating each spot entering each divided area is displayed in each divided area. It is characterized by being displayed visually changed based on the visual effect information corresponding to.

  A seventh terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the fourth to sixth terminal devices, wherein the table defines the number of spots belonging to the minimum range and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, or The icon display effect information is provided by providing a table that defines the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, or from a server having these tables by the communication unit via the network. The control unit determines the number of spots belonging to the minimum range, acquires icon display effect information corresponding to the spot, and displays an icon indicating each spot based on the icon display effect information. Or determine the number of spots belonging to the divided area, and acquire icon display effect information corresponding thereto It is displaying an icon showing each spot based on the icon display effect information, characterized in that.

  An eighth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the third to seventh terminal devices, which holds visual effect information indicating the absence of a spot or selection failure, or stores these information in the communication unit When the control unit determines whether or not the spot exists in each divided area divided by the division frame by obtaining from the server via the network, and there is a divided area where no spot exists Is characterized in that the divided area is visually changed and displayed based on the non-selectable visual effect information.

  A ninth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the third to eighth terminal devices, provided with an information display column corresponding to each divided area divided by the divided frame, and an attribute of each spot By including the title information in the information and including the priority information, the control unit determines the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering the divided areas, and the title information of the spot Based on the above, a title is displayed in the information display column of each of the divided areas.

  The tenth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the third to ninth terminal devices, and any one of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected by a user instruction to the input unit. When it is determined by the control unit that it has been performed, the control unit determines whether or not the number of the spots existing in the selected divided region is one, and if this is one, Detailed information about the spot is displayed on the screen based on the attribute information corresponding to the spot.

  The eleventh terminal device according to the present invention is the tenth terminal device, and stores the browsing history information in association with each spot by accumulating the browsing history when the detailed information display process is performed. Alternatively, when the detailed information display process is performed, the browsing history is transmitted to the server via the network so that the browsing history information is associated with each spot in the server and the browsing history information is given priority. It is used as information.

  A twelfth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the first to eleventh terminal devices, comprising an input unit having an input key, wherein the arrangement of the divided areas is the arrangement of the input key of the input unit. The division frame information is configured so as to be similar to the above, and an input signal correspondence table in which the input signal generated by pressing the input key is associated with each of the divided areas is provided. The selection operation of each divided area is enabled by the input of the input key corresponding to the arrangement of each divided area.

  A thirteenth terminal device according to the present invention is any one of the first to twelfth terminal devices, wherein the map data is three-dimensional map data having information also in a height direction, and accordingly the spot The position information on the map data is three-dimensional position information, and in addition to the display reference position information and the scale information, each process is executed using camera position information and camera direction information with respect to the display reference position information. It is characterized by that.

  Furthermore, a first application server according to the present invention includes a control unit, a storage unit, and a communication unit, and the storage unit includes map data, or a map server having map data via a network. By obtaining map data, the server provides a service using the map data, and includes division frame information for visually dividing the display area of the display unit of the terminal device that enjoys the service into a plurality of parts. The division frame information and the map data are transmitted from the communication unit in response to a request from the terminal device, and the division frame based on the division frame information is displayed when the map information is displayed on the display unit of the terminal device. Information to be displayed superimposed on the map information is transmitted to the terminal device.

  The second application server according to the present invention is the first application server, and when the map movement instruction is received from the terminal device, the control unit assigns the divided frame to the display screen of the terminal device. In addition to displaying the map information in a fixed manner, information for moving and displaying the map information is generated, and the information is transmitted to the terminal device.

  The third application server according to the present invention is the first or second application server, and associates and holds position information on the map data and attribute information on the spot as spot information on the map, The scale information and the display reference position information are obtained by having position information on the screen of each divided area on the display screen divided by the divided frame or by obtaining position information on the screen of each divided area from the terminal device. And the position information on the map data of each spot, the position information on the display screen of each spot is calculated, and based on this and the position information on the screen of each divided area, It is determined by the control unit whether it is in a divided area, or the scale information, the display reference position information, and the screen of each divided area Based on the position information, position information on the map data of each divided area is calculated, and based on this and position information on the map data of each spot, which divided area each spot is in The determination is made by the control unit.

  The fourth application server according to the present invention is any one of the first to third application servers, and associates position information on the map data with attribute information about the spot as spot information on the map. The range information that defines the range of the map to be held and displayed in the display area and the display area information of the display area are stored in the storage unit in advance or acquired from the terminal device, and the range is thereby controlled by the control unit. Determine the spot existing in the range determined by the information, and when there are a plurality of spots obtained by this, calculate the minimum range in which all these spots fit from the position information of each of these spots, Based on the minimum range information and the display area information, the scale information and the display reference position information are calculated, and The information for displaying the map information on a display unit of the terminal device based on the information and the display reference position information and transmits to the terminal device.

  The fifth application server according to the present invention is the fourth application server, and the control unit determines that any one of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected based on the information received from the terminal device. If the selected divided area is regarded as the range information, the spot existing in the selected divided area is discriminated and the scale information and the display reference position information are calculated. It is characterized by.

  A sixth application server according to the present invention is any one of the third to fifth application servers, and holds visual effect information associated with each divided area divided by the divided frame, thereby Information for displaying the divided areas visually with different effects and displaying icons indicating the spots entering the divided areas while visually changing the icons based on the visual effect information corresponding to the divided areas. It transmits to an apparatus, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  A seventh application server according to the present invention is any one of the fourth to sixth application servers, wherein the table defines the number of spots belonging to the minimum range and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, or And a table defining the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, whereby the number of spots belonging to the minimum range is determined by the control unit, and the icon corresponding thereto Information for obtaining display effect information from the table and displaying an icon indicating each spot based on the icon display effect information is transmitted to the terminal device, or the number of spots belonging to the divided area is determined, Icon display effect information corresponding to each icon is obtained from the table, and each icon is displayed based on the icon display effect information. The information to be displayed an icon indicating Tsu preparative be transmitted to the terminal device, and wherein the.

  The eighth application server according to the present invention is any one of the third to seventh application servers, and is divided by the division frame by holding visual effect information indicating the absence of a spot or selection failure. The control unit determines whether or not the spot exists in each divided area, and when there is a divided area where no spot exists, the divided area is visually changed based on the unselectable visual effect information. The information to be displayed is transmitted to the terminal device.

  A ninth application server according to the present invention is any one of the third to eighth application servers, wherein an information display field corresponding to each divided area divided by the divided frame is provided, and the attribute of each spot By including the title information in the information and including the priority information, the control unit determines the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering the divided areas, and the title information of the spot Based on the above, information for displaying a title in the information display column of each divided area is transmitted to the terminal device.

  A tenth application server according to the present invention is the application server according to any one of the third to ninth, and any of the divided areas divided by the divided frame according to information received from the terminal device. When the control unit determines that the spot is selected, the control unit determines whether or not the number of the spots existing in the selected divided region is one. Is characterized in that information for displaying detailed information regarding the spot is transmitted to the terminal device based on the attribute information corresponding to the spot.

  The eleventh application server according to the present invention is the tenth application server, and stores browsing history information in association with each spot by accumulating the browsing history when transmitting the information for displaying the detailed information. The browsing history information is used as the priority information.

  A twelfth application server according to the present invention is the application server according to any one of the first to eleventh aspects, wherein the arrangement of the divided areas is an arrangement of input keys of an input unit included in the terminal device. The division frame information is configured to be similar to the above, and the terminal device includes a table in which the information transmitted from the terminal device when the input key is pressed and the division regions are associated with each other. It is possible to select each divided area by inputting the input key corresponding to the arrangement of the divided areas displayed on the screen.

  A thirteenth application server according to the present invention is any one of the first to twelfth application servers, wherein the map data is three-dimensional map data having information also in a height direction, and accordingly the spot The position information on the map data is three-dimensional position information, and in addition to the display reference position information and the scale information, each process is executed using camera position information and camera direction information with respect to the display reference position information. It is characterized by that.

  In addition, a first map information display program according to the present invention includes a control unit, a storage unit, a display unit, and a communication unit, and receives map data from a map server having map data via a network. By acquiring the map information based on the map data, when the map information is displayed on the display unit, the display area of the display unit stored in the storage unit is visually displayed. A step of acquiring divided frame information for dividing into a plurality of frames and displaying the divided frame based on the divided frame information superimposed on the map information is performed, or the divided frame information is transmitted by the communication unit via the network. And acquiring the divided frame based on the acquired divided frame information and displaying the divided frame on the map information. And features.

  The second map information display program according to the present invention is the first map information display program, and when the movement instruction is given to the input unit of the terminal device, the division frame is displayed on the display screen. A step of displaying the map information in a fixed manner and a step of moving and displaying the map information in response to the movement instruction are executed.

  A third map information display program according to the present invention is a first or second map information display program, and associates position information on the map data and attribute information on the spot as spot information on the map. Holding or acquiring these information from the server via the network by the communication unit, the terminal device having position information on the screen of each divided area on the display screen divided by the divided frame, Displaying the map information on the screen based on the map scale information and the display reference position information when displaying the map information, the scale information, the display reference position information, and the position information on the map data of each spot; Calculating the position information on the display screen of each spot based on the calculated position information on the display screen, and Determining which divided area each spot is in based on the position information on the screen of each divided area, or performing the scale information, the display reference position information, and the The step of calculating the position information on the map data of each divided area based on the position information on the screen of each divided area, and the position information on each map based on this and the position information on the map data of each spot And a step of discriminating whether it is in a divided area.

  A fourth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the first to third map information display programs, and includes position information on the map data and attribute information on the spot as spot information on the map. Are stored in association with each other, or the information is acquired from the server via the network by the communication unit, and range information that defines a range of a map to be displayed in the display area is stored in the storage unit in advance. A step of determining, in the terminal device provided with information by the user, the spot existing within a range determined by the range information, a step of determining whether or not there are a plurality of spots obtained by this, and If this is a plural number, the minimum range within which all of these spots fit from the position information of each of these spots. Calculating map scale information and display reference position information based on the minimum range information and display area information of the display unit, and calculating map information based on the scale information and display reference position information. And displaying the screen.

  The fifth map information display program according to the present invention is the fourth map information display program, and any of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected by an instruction to the input unit by the user. When determined by the control unit, determining a spot existing in the selected divided region, and executing a process for calculating the scale information and the display reference position information based on the step. Features.

  A sixth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the third to fifth map information display programs, and holds visual effect information associated with each divided area divided by the divided frame. Or displaying each divided region with a visually different effect based on the visual effect information on the terminal device obtained from the server via the network by the communication unit, and each divided region; A step of visually changing and displaying an icon indicating each spot entering in accordance with visual effect information corresponding to each divided area.

  A seventh map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the fourth to sixth map information display programs, and defines the number of spots belonging to the minimum range and icon display effect information corresponding to the number of spots. Or a table defining the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, or the icon display via the network from the server having these tables by the communication unit On the terminal device that obtains effect information, a step of determining the number of spots belonging to the minimum range and icon display effect information corresponding to the step are obtained, and an icon indicating each spot is displayed based on the icon display effect information Or the step of determining the number of spots belonging to the divided area. Characterized in that to execute the steps which acquires the icon display effect information corresponding to an icon indicating each spot on the basis of the icon display effect information.

  The eighth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the third to seventh map information display programs, which holds visual effect information indicating the absence of a spot or selection failure, or these information Determining whether or not the terminal device obtained from the server via the network by the communication unit includes the spot in each divided region divided by the divided frame, and a divided region where no spot exists. A step of visually changing the divided area based on the non-selectable visual effect information and displaying the divided area.

  A ninth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the third to eighth map information display programs, wherein an information display column corresponding to each divided area divided by the divided frame is provided, Determining the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering the respective divided areas by including the title information in the attribute information of each spot and including the priority information; and the title of the spot And a step of displaying a title in an information display field of each of the divided areas based on the information.

  A tenth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the third to ninth map information display programs, wherein each divided area divided by the divided frame is instructed by a user to an input unit. When it is determined by the control unit that any one has been selected, a step of determining whether or not there is one spot in the selected divided region, and if this is one, And displaying the detailed information on the spot on the screen based on the attribute information corresponding to the spot.

  An eleventh map information display program according to the present invention is a tenth map information display program, wherein the browsing history information is stored in each spot by accumulating the browsing history when the detailed information display processing is performed. A step of holding in association with each other, or a step of transmitting a browsing history to a server via a network when the detailed information display processing is performed, and each processing using the browsing history information as the priority information And a step of executing.

  A twelfth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the first to eleventh map information display programs, comprising an input unit having an input key, wherein the arrangement of the divided areas is the input unit. The terminal device comprising the input signal correspondence table that configures the division frame information so as to be similar to the arrangement of the input keys, and associates the input signal generated when the input key is pressed with the divided areas. When the input key corresponding to the arrangement of each divided area displayed on the screen is input, a step of determining a divided area corresponding to an input signal based on the input with reference to the input signal correspondence table is executed. It is characterized by making it.

  A thirteenth map information display program according to the present invention is any one of the first to twelfth map information display programs, wherein the map data is three-dimensional map data having information also in the height direction. Accordingly, the position information on the map data of the spot is three-dimensional position information, and in addition to the display reference position information and the scale information, the camera position information and the camera direction information with respect to the display reference position information are used. A process is executed.

  According to the map information display system of claim 1, the division frame for visually dividing the display area into a plurality of frames is displayed so as to be superimposed on the map information displayed based on the map data. Are easily discriminated and selected, and the visibility is improved. In addition, since the division frame is generated based on division frame information different from the map data, even when it is necessary to reconfigure the division frame (for example, increase or decrease of the division number), the influence on the map data is eliminated. (The map data does not need to be modified), so the system is easy to operate. As shown in Non-Patent Document 1 (or a guide map of a paper medium), it is not possible to obtain the effect of the present invention when the map data and the frame are integrated.

  According to the map information display system of claim 3, since it is automatically determined which divided area each spot is in, the above-described division frame reconstruction, spot information increase / decrease, etc. Excellent system operation convenience. That is, for example, when increasing the spot information, it is not necessary to consider which divided area the spot is assigned to. The system automatically increases the spot information on the map, and each time the system automatically displays each screen. It is excellent in the operability of the system because it determines which divided area the spot falls into.

  According to the map information display system of claim 4, the map can be automatically enlarged / reduced / moved and displayed in accordance with the positional variation state of the spots existing within the range determined by the range information. Therefore, an efficient display can be performed as a display for selecting a spot. For example, when you want to search for a spot in a specific range (for example, Kanagawa Prefecture), if the spot information in the area is partially biased, the given range information (range called Kanagawa Prefecture) If the entire range is displayed as it is based on the spot, the spot may be biased to a part of the screen, and a part where no spot is present may occupy the majority. Since the map can be automatically enlarged / reduced / moved in accordance with the state of variation, the display can be very efficient for selecting a spot.

  According to the map information display system of claim 6, each divided area is displayed with a visually different effect, and an icon indicating each spot is also displayed with a visually different effect according to the divided area to which each spot belongs. Therefore, it is excellent in visibility.

  According to the map information display system of claim 7, since the icon is displayed with a visually different effect based on the icon display effect information corresponding to the minimum range or the number of spots belonging to the divided region, In contrast to the phenomenon that the icons are displayed in an overlapping manner due to the large number of icons, it is possible to display the icons in a small size according to the number of spots belonging to the region, and thus the visibility is excellent.

  According to the map information display system of the ninth aspect, since the title of the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering each divided area is displayed in the information display column, it is excellent in user convenience.

  According to the map information display system of the twelfth aspect, since the correspondence between the display screen and the input device becomes clear, it is easy for the user who operates for the first time to understand how to operate.

  Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The following embodiment is one form when the present invention is embodied, and is not intended to limit the present invention within the scope thereof.

  The system of the embodiment that realizes the present invention is a system for searching and displaying regional information by a simple operation, so that it can be used by those who are not familiar with the operation of a personal computer (keyboard, mouse operation, etc.). This is an input device that can be operated with the same operational feeling as the operation of simply pressing the “channel button” of a TV remote control that is widely used in ordinary homes. Furthermore, the arrangement of selection items (or divided areas) on the screen is the same as the arrangement of buttons on the input device. Thus, the user can obtain necessary information by sequentially pressing the number buttons corresponding to the selection items (or divided areas) to which the numbers on the screen are attached. In the present embodiment, the description has been made assuming that a terminal device with a simple operation input device for searching for information is installed in a public place (for example, a station), but the processing described below is performed. Naturally, it is possible to install the program to be executed in a general household by installing the program to be executed on the PC.

  In this information retrieval system, there are two types of display formats, a list format (FIG. 11 (b)) and a map format (FIG. 11 (a)) as screen display formats for retrieving information. Or images (as described above, the same arrangement as the buttons on the input device) and selecting them is a list format, displaying a map and an icon (a spot icon) on it, and dividing it A map format allows a desired spot to be selected by designating an area. When a search target is finally determined based on the selection screen of these “list format” or “map format”, desired information is displayed on the detailed display screen (FIG. 11C). Become. As described above, the search operation from the first screen to the final target detail display screen can be performed only by pressing the number key of the input device (remote control) associated with the number. It is a feature of the system.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of the configuration of the information search system of the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram thereof.

  Reference numerals 11 and 12 denote terminal devices for searching for information, which are connected to the map information providing service company site 3 via a network 2 such as the Internet. The map information providing service company site 3 (hereinafter simply referred to as “map providing site 3”) is a site operated by a company that provides geographical map information, map data is stored in the map server 31, and the network 2 A service is provided for transmitting necessary map data in response to a request through the Internet.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the terminal devices 11 and 12 include control units 111 and 121 that control each unit, transfer data, perform various operations, temporarily store data, and various data and programs. Storage units 112 and 122 that are stored, display units 114 and 124 that are monitors, communication units 115 and 125 that transmit and receive information to and from the network, and the like. The terminal devices 11 and 12 are functionally the same, but the terminal device 11 is a type in which an input unit 113 is formed integrally with the main body, and the terminal device 12 includes a remote control device 127 as an input unit. The main body includes a receiving unit that receives a signal from the remote control device 127. The terminal devices 11 and 12 are devices for searching for area information and the like. As described above, the terminal devices 11 and 12 display spots on a map as one means for selecting information (spots) to be searched. ing. Map data for displaying the map is obtained from the map providing site 3 via the network 2.

  As shown in FIG. 3, terminal files having information such as terminal names, installation positions (latitude and longitude coordinates), initial display ranges (two latitude and longitude coordinates) are stored in the storage units 112 and 122 of the terminal devices 11 and 12. 1121, a divided frame data 1122 having information for displaying a divided frame at the time of map format display, a page information file 1123 storing information for configuring each page, information for page transition, and the like A spot file 1124 in which information about the spot is stored, a common image file 1125 in which image data of an icon to be displayed on the map, and the like are input by pressing a button on the input unit 113 (remote controller 127). An input signal correspondence table 1126 in which signals and selection items (or divided areas) on the screen are associated is stored.

  The page information file 1123 stores a category file composed of category identification information, category type, parent category, description, description image, icon identification information, and the like as shown in FIG. Each category is managed in a hierarchical structure by the category file. The category file is an information source for configuring each selection item ((1) to (8) in this embodiment) on the selection screen in the list format. FIG. 8B shows a specific example of the category file. “Top category” on the left side of FIG. 8 is data having no parent category in the category file, and each category belonging to these top categories. The file is used as data for configuring each selection item ((1) to (8) in the present embodiment) on the selection screen in the list format of the top page. For example, display is performed in each selection item column on the selection screen in the list format based on the information of “category name” of each category file. The category type is a display format of a screen that transitions next when the category is selected. As described above, there are two types: a list format and a map format.

  The spot file 1124 is as shown in FIG. 9A (a specific example is shown in FIG. 9B), on the point identification information, the spot name, the spot name Kana, the category to which the spot file belongs. Information (latitude and longitude coordinates), detailed explanation, route guidance, number of selections, and the like, and is configured for each spot (that is, the spot position information and attribute information are associated and held). The detailed description in the spot file is composed of point identification information, display pattern, detailed description, detailed image, page number, soft key number, and after the destination is selected (the search target is finally determined) It is used to display detailed information of (after). The route guidance in the spot file 1124 is composed of point identification information, terminal identification information, and route point group (latitude / longitude coordinates), and is used when displayed as one piece of route information among the detailed information of the destination.

  The list format selection screen will be mainly described with reference to FIG. 8B and FIG. 11 which is a configuration example of the screen. FIG. 11B shows an example of the screen configuration in the list format, and FIG. 11A shows an example of the screen configuration in the map format. FIG. 11C is a screen configuration example of a detail display screen displayed when a desired target is selected. As described above, in this system, the arrangement of the selection items (or divided areas) on the screen and the arrangement of the buttons of the input unit 113 (remote control 127) are the same. In this embodiment, the selection items are selected. And buttons are arranged in a horizontal 4 × vertical direction (as will be understood from the following description, in this embodiment, the “selection item” and the “divided area” have a horizontal 4 × vertical 2 configuration, and the remaining (4 horizontal x 1 vertical are assigned as function keys). The buttons provided in the input unit 113 (remote control 127) may include not only the above-mentioned “buttons for selecting horizontal 4 × vertical 3 items” but also the up / down / left / right direction keys and other buttons as will be described later. It is.

  When “play” of category A01 located in the top category of FIG. 8B is selected (that is, when one of the selection items on the top page in the list format (FIG. 11B) is selected) , A selection screen in a list format in which each selection item is generated based on each category file having A01 as a parent category is displayed (the page changes). This is because the category type of category A01 is a list format. At this time, A02 is the lowest category because there is no category file whose parent category is A02. When this category A02 is selected, a spot file belonging to the category A02 is searched, and a list-type selection screen in which each selection item is generated based on each spot file is displayed. When displayed in a list format based on the spot file, the spots assigned to the selection items (1) to (8) are narrowed down to a single one, so these are handled as (1) to (8). When the button of the input unit 113 is selected, the screen changes to a screen for displaying the detailed information of the spot, that is, a detailed display screen (FIG. 11C).

  On the other hand, when “search from map” of category B01 located in the top category of FIG. 8B is selected, each selection item is generated based on the category files of B02 and B03 with B01 as the parent category. A list format selection screen is displayed. Since these are the lowest categories and the category type is a map format, when these are selected, the screen transitions to the map selection screen (FIG. 11A). When B02 is selected by the button of the corresponding input unit 113, each spot file belonging to the category B02 becomes a candidate and is displayed based on the position of each spot on the map selection screen on which a map is displayed. Since the spot file belongs to a plurality of categories, in the case of the spot at the point a001 in FIG. 9B, the category B03 is selected and the category A02 is selected as a candidate. The single narrowing of spots on the map selection screen will be described later. Here, similarly to the list format, when a single spot is selected (when a search target is finally determined), a transition is made to the detailed display screen (FIG. 11C).

  In this embodiment, the items (buttons) (9) to (12) are assigned as function keys (such as “return to the previous screen” or “top page”). Only (1) to (8) can be used, but since functions such as “next list” and “previous list” can be provided as function keys, they can be defined for one category. There is virtually no limit to the number of subcategories or spots.

  Next, the outline of the processing operation (mainly the processing operation in the map format) of the information search system of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. Each of these processes basically operates when a program stored in the storage unit 112 is executed in the control unit 111, and the control unit 111 performs data and communication units in the storage unit 112 as necessary. While using the data transmitted / received via the network by 115, various data are processed in response to an instruction (user request) from the input unit 113, and the result is displayed on the display unit 114.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an outline of the entire process. In step 401, top page display processing is performed. The top page is a list selection screen having selection items based on each category file of the highest category as described above. In the selection item fields of (1) to (8) on the list selection screen (FIG. 11B), explanation character strings and explanation images (these information are obtained from each category file in the storage unit 112 by the control unit 111). Is obtained). Note that the image data for configuring the screen is acquired from the common image file 1125 or the like by the control unit 111 as necessary.

  In step 402, input from the input unit 113 (remote controller 127) is waited. If there is an input, the process proceeds to step 403 and the input button is a numeric key ((1) to (12) in this embodiment). It is determined whether there is an end instruction button (for example, power OFF), and if it is an end instruction, the process ends. On the other hand, if the input button is a numeric key, the control unit 111 refers to the input signal correspondence table 1126 in the storage unit 112 to select which selection item or function key ((1) to (( It is determined which of 12) is selected. In the following, the process when there is an input from the input unit 113 is also a determination process with reference to the input signal correspondence table 1126, but the description is omitted hereinafter.

  In step 404 following step 403, the control unit 111 refers to the category file in the page information file 1123 of the storage unit 112, and the category file assigned to the “selected item” obtained as a result of the above determination. It is determined whether or not the category type is “map format”. If it is “map format”, the process proceeds to step 405, and if it is “list format”, the process proceeds to step 406. To do. In step 406 in the case of “list format”, processing for transitioning to the corresponding page is performed according to the definition of the category file. In step 405 in the case of “map format”, “map selection screen display processing” described later is performed. Executed. If the category file assigned to “selected item” does not exist, no operation is performed and the process returns to step 402 to wait for the next input.

  FIG. 12 shows an example of screen transition. When the top menu of FIG. 12A is displayed (step 401), there is an input for selecting (2) (step 402), and when this is “list format” (step 404), FIG. When the display process transitions to 12 (b) is performed (step 406), there is an input for selecting (3) on the screen (step 402), and when this is “map format” (step 404). The display process transitioning to FIG. 12C is performed (step 405). If the “selected item” is not a category file but a spot file, a detailed display screen is displayed. In the process of step 406 in FIG. 4, regardless of whether the category file or spot file is assigned to the “selected item”, the “page display process corresponding to each file” is performed. The description is summarized (simplified). In addition, even when the function key is selected, the page display process according to the instruction (the display process of the previous screen, the display process of the top page, and “next” when there are many selection items) The description is summarized (simplified) as the processing to move from step 404 to step 406, assuming that the processing is to perform processing such as “list” or “previous list” page display processing.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an outline of the processing operation of the “map selection screen display process” executed in step 405 of FIG. “Map selection screen display process” is a process for displaying a map format selection screen. In the map format selection screen, a spot to be selected is displayed on the map, and a divided frame is further superimposed. Display (see FIG. 12C). The divided area formed by the divided frames is the same as the button arrangement of the input unit 113 as described above, and the user selects the corresponding divided area (the divided area where the spot to be seen exists) by the input unit 113. Will do. When there are a plurality of spots in a divided area, one spot cannot be determined by designating the divided area. Therefore, by enlarging the designated divided area, further designation of any divided area is prompted. become. By repeating this, when only one spot is finally obtained in the divided area, when this is selected, detailed information regarding the spot is displayed.

  In step 501, a map data transmission request is sent to the map server 31 (map providing site 3). The map data includes at least image data to be displayed as a map and latitude / longitude information for determining the position, and the display of the map in the terminal device is display reference position information (latitude for determining the location of the map to be displayed on the screen) It is basically performed based on (longitude information) and scale information that determines the scale of the map to be displayed. The position and range of the map displayed on the screen are determined by the display reference position information, the scale information, and the display area information (screen display range) for displaying the map. Accordingly, the map can be displayed on the screen if the map data of this range is acquired from the map providing site 3 at a minimum. However, as described below, the map needs to be enlarged / reduced or scrolled. The processing efficiency may be improved by acquiring the map data in the range and storing it in the storage unit 112. “Obtain a certain range of map data in advance” refers to the area where the terminal device 111 is installed when the device is started (it may be performed at the first stage of the processing of FIG. 4 instead of step 501 of FIG. 5). It is like acquiring map data around the area in advance. Note that orientation information is also required to display the map, but in this embodiment, since the north is always displayed as the top, the orientation information is not particularly described (there is always orientation information that north is up). Each processing is performed).

  The map data transmission request in step 501 and the “display reference position information” and “scale information” used in the map display process in step 502 are, for example, a map around the place where the terminal device 111 is installed as a default. Is displayed as “display reference position information”, and “scale information” is similarly defined in advance in the terminal file 1121 and acquired. (Note that “display reference position information” and “scale information” may be directly defined as such information, or range information (for example, the latitude and longitude of each point for tracing the outer periphery of Yokohama City). Information) is defined (or given) and calculated based on this (in order to display the map range defined by the range information on the screen, Calculated from the circumference information and the display area information) may be a thing or the like). On the other hand, when the display location is determined based on the category assigned to the “selected item” in the process of step 404 in FIG. 4, if each spot file belonging to the category is acquired, these spots are included. Based on this (the information is obtained as an argument from the processing of FIG. 4), the same processing as the “display reference position information / scale information calculation processing” executed in step 514 described below is performed, so that “display It can be used to calculate “reference position information” and “scale information”, and can be used by defining “display reference position information” and “scale information” directly in the category file. It may be. Further, by defining range information in the category file, spots that belong to the area defined by the range information are discriminated with reference to the spot file, and based on these spots, in step 514 “Display reference position information” and “scale information” may be calculated by performing a process similar to the “display location information / scale information calculation process” to be executed.

  In step 503, a process of displaying the divided frame superimposed on the map displayed on the screen in step 502 is performed. The dividing frame is for visually dividing the area where the map is displayed into a plurality of parts, and in this embodiment, the divided areas (1) to (8) are formed as shown in FIG. Is. The divided frame is generated based on the data in the divided frame data 1122 of the storage unit 112, and the divided frame data 1122 corresponds to position information on the screen corresponding to each divided region and each divided region. Also stored are visual effect information, visual effect information indicating absence of spots or inability to select, and the like. FIG. 10 shows an example of a table defining “position information on the screen corresponding to each divided area”. “Visual effect information corresponding to each divided area” is, for example, color information (some other design information) for displaying the frame portion of each divided area in a different color, and “visual effect indicating absence of spot or non-selection” Similarly, “information” is color information (some other design information) for displaying the frame portion of the corresponding divided region in a different color.

  Step 504 is processing for discriminating spots to be displayed on the map displayed on the screen. As described above, when a map around the place where the terminal device 111 is installed is displayed as a default, the map is displayed based on “display reference position information”, “scale information”, and “display area information”. The map range is calculated, and spots belonging to the range are determined by referring to the position information of each spot file (note that the spot attribute information (spot type, number of selections, etc., information that the spot file has)) It may be such that only spots having a predetermined attribute are obtained based on this). When the display location is determined based on the category assigned to the “selected item” in the process of step 404 in FIG. 4, each spot file belonging to the category is acquired, and based on these Naturally, these spots correspond to the case where “display reference position information” and “scale information” are calculated.

  In step 505, “spot corresponding area determination / display processing” is executed. This processing is processing for determining which divided region each spot falls into when each spot acquired in step 504 is arranged on a map and displayed on the screen.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an outline of the operation process of the “spot corresponding area determination / display process”.

  In step 601, position information on the screen of each spot is calculated based on “display reference position information”, “scale information”, and position information of each spot (latitude and longitude information in the spot file). This processing converts the position information (longitude / latitude) on the map into position information (for example, in pixels) on the screen, converts the distance on the map to the distance on the screen based on the scale information, and maps It is calculated by combining “display reference position information” that is a reference point for the above display and a reference point on the screen (for example, the center point of the screen).

  In the subsequent step 602, based on the position information on the screen of each spot calculated in step 601 and the position information on the screen of each area included in the divided frame data 1122 (table in FIG. 10), which division each spot has. It is determined whether it falls within the area, and the information is temporarily stored (temporarily written in a spot file, etc.). “Temporarily” is because the information may be necessary in the subsequent processing, and since a function such as “return to the previous screen” is provided as a function key, The information is held as long as necessary to execute the function. In addition, although it is conceivable that the spot is exactly on the boundary line of the divided area, it is possible to set a priority in advance between adjacent divided areas (for example, at the boundary between (2) and (3)) Are determined according to the number of spots belonging to (2)) or the number of spots belonging to the divided areas (for example, the number of spots belonging to (2) and (3) is compared, and (3) If the number is less, it may be treated as belonging to (3)).

  In step 603, the number of divided areas (8 in this embodiment) is substituted for n. The number of divided areas is acquired from the divided frame data 1122.

  The subsequent processing of loop 1 is to execute the processing of step 604 to step 608 for each divided region. In this embodiment, (i = 1) for each of the divided regions (1) to (8). The process will be performed.

  In step 604, the number of spots belonging to the i-th divided area is determined based on the information obtained in step 602. As a result of the determination, if the spot is 0, the process proceeds to step 605. If the spot is 1, the process proceeds to step 606. If the spot is plural, the process proceeds to step 607.

  In step 605 in the case where the spot is 0, a visual effect is given to the i-th divided region based on “visual effect information indicating absence or non-selection of spot” in the divided frame data 1122. For example, it is possible to visually recognize that the i-th divided area cannot be selected by changing the color-displayed frame (the frame portion of the i-th divided area) to gray or using character information or an icon. It is what you want to do.

  In step 606 when the spot is 1, title information (point name) is acquired from the spot file of the spot, and this is displayed in the information display field (reference numeral 1102a in FIG. 11A) of the i-th divided area. Process to display. Note that the fact that there is one spot belonging to a divided area means that a single spot can be designated by specifying the divided area (that is, the final selection target can be determined). Information may be displayed in the divided area, or some visual effect may be given (changing the display of an icon indicating a spot to be displayed below).

  In step 607 in the case where the number of spots is 2 or more, the “number of selections” information of the spot file of each spot is referred to determine the one having the largest number, and the title information of the spot is used as information on the i-th divided region. A process of displaying in the display column 1102a and displaying the number of spots belonging to the divided area as the number of cases in the information display column 1102a is performed. In this embodiment, the number of selections (the number of times the detailed information of the spot is displayed) is used as “priority information”. However, priority information is defined in advance for each spot file, and the title is defined according to the defined priority information. It is also possible to determine a spot for displaying the information, or to determine the distance from the installation position of the information terminal of each spot (determined from the position information of the terminal file and the position information of the spot file). It may be used as “ Further, the titles may be displayed in the information display column in order from the highest priority (switching the display).

  In step 608 through any of steps 605 to 607, the spot file of each spot is referred to, and an icon corresponding to this is acquired from the common image file 1125. For example, information indicating that the spot is a restaurant is stored in the spot file, and an icon shaped like a knife and fork corresponding to the restaurant is acquired. Furthermore, the visual effect information corresponding to the i-th divided region is acquired from the divided frame data 1122, and the visual effect corresponding to the i-th divided region is given, and the position of each spot (the position on the screen calculated in step 602) Process to display the icon. For example, the icon is displayed as an icon having the same color as the color of the frame portion of the i-th divided area, or the icon is displayed with the number of the divided area (ie, “i”) added to the icon. An icon suitable for the visual effect of each divided area may be prepared in advance and acquired.

  When the processing of the above loop 1 is completed, an icon indicating a spot (an icon having a visual effect corresponding to the divided area) is displayed at an appropriate position on the map in all the divided areas. It will be. As a result, the display screen is in the state shown in FIG.

  Returning to FIG.

  In step 506 following the “spot corresponding area determination / display process” which is the process of FIG.

  In the subsequent step 507, it is determined whether the input is an enlargement / reduction or scroll (movement) instruction. The enlargement / reduction or scroll instruction is when there is an input from a direction key or the like provided in the input unit 113. If there is this, a process for enlarging / reducing / scrolling the map is executed in step 508. As the map is enlarged / reduced / scrolled, the spot position is naturally moved, but the divided frame does not move or scale (it is fixed to the screen), so the division to which the spot belongs. The area may change or a newly displayed spot may occur. Therefore, when the map is enlarged / reduced / scrolled (after step 508), the process returns to step 504 to determine / acquire a spot to be displayed according to the display state of the map (step 504), and each spot. The process etc. (step 505) which discriminate | determine to which division | segmentation area | region corresponds are performed each time. As a result, when the spot moves to a different divided area as the map moves, the visual effect changes while moving the icon indicating the spot (the color changes when entering the adjacent divided area). Such).

  Step 509 is a branching process when the input button is a numeric key. If the input is a “return button” ((9) in this embodiment) that is a function key, step 510 is executed. If the "top page button" ((12) in this embodiment) is selected, the process proceeds to step 511. If the divided area ((1) to (8) in this embodiment) is selected, the process proceeds to step 511. Move to 512 respectively.

  In step 510 in the case of the “return button”, display processing of the previously displayed screen is performed, and the process returns to step 506 to wait for the next input.

  In step 511 in the case of the “top page button”, the top page display process (similar to step 401 in FIG. 4) is performed, the “map selection screen display process” is terminated, and the process proceeds to step 402 in FIG. Return and repeat the following process.

  In step 512 when the divided area is selected, it is determined whether or not the number of spots in the selected divided area is one. This is determined using the information stored in step 602 of FIG. If there is only one spot, the process proceeds to step 513. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step 514. When executing the process of step 512 (that is, when a divided area is selected), the divided area portion is visually changed so that the user can confirm the selected area (for example, The number of the divided area selected by voice may be output. If the spot in the divided area is 0, it is treated as “not selectable” as described above, so if a divided area having a spot of 0 is selected, this is ignored (or a warning is output). ) Return to step 506 to wait for the next input.

  In step 513 when there is one spot, a detailed information page (FIG. 13C) regarding the spot is displayed, the “map selection screen display process” is terminated, the process returns to step 402 in FIG. Repeat the process. That is, a specific spot is selected on the “map format selection screen”, and finally the information desired by the user is displayed. When the detailed information is displayed, the “number of selections” of the corresponding spot file is incremented (that is, stored as browsing history information).

  On the other hand, in step 514 when there are a plurality of spots, “display location information / scale information calculation processing” is executed. This process is a process for obtaining the optimum map display position and scale based on the variation of each spot in the selected divided region.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an outline of the operation process of the “display location information / scale information calculation process”.

  In step 701, spots in the selected divided area are determined (determined using the information stored in the process of step 602 in FIG. 6), and the position information (latitude and longitude) of all these spots. Is obtained with reference to each spot file, and the smallest rectangular range including all spots is calculated by determining the point most displaced in the east, west, north and south directions. For example, when there is spot variation as shown in FIG. 14A, the coordinates where the spot 141 is most displaced to the north and west are given, the spot 142 is most displaced to the east, and the spot 143 is most displaced to the south. Gives the coordinates. As a result, the minimum rectangular area including all spots is defined as 147.

  In subsequent step 702, display reference position information is calculated based on the calculated minimum rectangular range information. This may simply be the midpoint (ie, the center point) of the diagonal line of the minimum rectangular area 147.

  In step 703, scale information is calculated based on the minimum rectangular range information and the display area information. This is to calculate the scale information so that the minimum rectangular range fits in the display area of the screen. For example, the rectangular range is expanded by a predetermined amount (a2) from the minimum rectangular range 147 in FIG. 148 is calculated (this provides a margin so that the edge spot is not located on the boundary on the display screen), and the ratio of the width A1 of the rectangular area 148 to the width B1 of the display area The value and the ratio value of the vertical width A2 of the rectangular area 148 and the vertical width B2 of the display area are calculated and compared, and the smaller one (the values (A1, A2) on the rectangular area 148 side is used as the denominator). Yes, if the values on the display area side (B1, B2) are used as the denominator, the reciprocal of the larger value is used as the map display scale. In the present embodiment, the “minimum range including all spots” is calculated as a rectangle because the display area for displaying the map is a rectangle. Normally, the display area is likely to be rectangular, but if the display area is not rectangular, the “minimum range including all spots” is calculated accordingly.

  When the display reference position information and the scale information are calculated by the above process, the “display location information / scale information calculation process” is terminated, and the process proceeds to step 515 in FIG.

  In step 515, based on the display reference position information and scale information acquired in step 514 (the process of FIG. 7), a process of zooming and scrolling the map (continuous moving display instead of switching display) is performed. As described in step 508, the divided area to which the spot belongs changes due to zooming and scrolling (however, no new spot increases here), so the process returns to step 505 and the following processing is repeated. In addition, according to the processing flow of step 512, steps 514 to 515, and step 505 after a certain divided area is selected (step 509), spots that did not belong to the selected divided area are displayed on the screen. In some cases, it is possible to select the divided region to which the spot is displayed (that is, the spot once excluded from the selection target may be selected again). For example, as shown in FIG. 23, when the divided area (2) is selected in the spot arrangement state as shown in FIG. 23 (a), the divided area (2) is changed as shown in FIG. 23 (b). The spot 2301 that did not belong may remain on the screen. In this respect, although it is one measure to make such an operation, in order to narrow down the search target more actively, spots that did not belong to the selected divided area are not displayed on the screen after transition. You may do it. That is, in the processing flow of step 512, steps 514 to 515, and step 505, spots that did not belong to the selected divided region may be excluded from the processing target of step 505.

  By repeating the above processing, even if a plurality of spots are present in the divided area, it is possible to finally have only one spot in the divided area. FIG. 15 shows a screen example (only the divided area portion) at the time of processing from step 514 to step 515. When the divided region (2) is selected on the map selection screen of FIG. 15A, since there are a plurality of spots, the optimum display reference position information and scale information are calculated according to the variation of these spots (step 514). ) Based on the display reference position information and the scale information, the map is zoomed and scrolled from the screen shown in FIG. 15A to the screen shown in FIG. 15B (step 515). At this time, since “spot corresponding area determination / display processing” is performed in step 505, the moved spot becomes an icon to which a visual effect according to the divided area that has been moved is given. In FIG. 15B, there is only one spot in the divided area. If (1) or (8) is selected here, detailed information on the spot 151 or 152 is displayed, respectively. It becomes.

  Detailed information is displayed as a detailed display screen (FIG. 13C) based on the information of the corresponding spot file. On the detailed display screen, for example, as shown in FIG. 16A, a photograph of a spot, an explanatory note, and the like are displayed together with a map (the screen configuration is based on display pattern information in a spot file). Also on the detailed display screen, (1) to (8) are selection items, and (9) to (12) are function keys. The selection items (1) to (8) include, for example, bus timetables (timetable of buses that go from the place where the terminal device is installed to the nearest bus stop to the spot) and route guidance information items. Is also defined in the spot file, and when a corresponding item is selected, necessary information is acquired from the spot file and displayed (FIG. 16 (b), FIG. 16 (c)). .

  As described above, according to the information search system of the present embodiment, the division frame for visually dividing the display area into a plurality of parts is displayed so as to be superimposed on the map with the spot (icon) attached thereto, and Since an input device (button) having the same arrangement as that of the divided frame is provided, a spot on the map can be selected by button input, which is a very simple and easy-to-understand operation. Therefore, it is possible to provide a system that is easy to use even for those who are not familiar with the operation of the keyboard and mouse.

  In addition, each divided area is displayed with a visually different effect, and an icon indicating each spot is also displayed with a visually different effect according to the divided area to which each spot belongs, so that the visibility is excellent. Further, a visual effect similar to the visual effect of each divided area is given to the button of the corresponding input device (for example, if each divided area is color-coded, the button has the same color as the color) (A light emitting device capable of emitting each color may be provided on the button), and the visibility of the user can be further improved. In addition, since the title of the spot having the highest priority information among the spots entering each divided area is displayed in the information display column, it is excellent for the user and priority information is appropriately determined on the information providing side. Therefore, it is possible to designate a spot for displaying a title, which is excellent in convenience on the information providing side. In addition, in the map selection screen (FIG. 11A) of the present embodiment, information display fields 1102a are provided above and below the division frame (so that the information display field 1102a does not enter between adjacent divided areas). Therefore, the visibility of the map is excellent (in order to achieve such a configuration, either the vertical or horizontal division number of the divided area needs to be 2 or less).

  Furthermore, since the division frame is generated based on the division frame information different from the map data, even when it is necessary to reconfigure the division frame (for example, increase / decrease in the number of divisions), the influence on the map data is eliminated. The system can be operated easily. In addition, since it is automatically determined which divided area each spot is in, it is excellent in the convenience of system operation when there is a reconstruction of the divided frame and the increase / decrease of the spot information described above. That is, for example, when increasing spot information, it is not necessary to consider which divided area to assign each spot, and the system automatically increases each spot information on the map by simply increasing the spot information on the map. It is excellent in system operability (extensibility, etc.) because it determines which divided area the spot falls into.

  Also, depending on the positional variation status of spots existing within the range defined by the range information (if a divided region is specified, the divided region will function as “range information”) In addition, since the map can be enlarged and reduced / moved and displayed, it is possible to efficiently perform spot selection. For example, considering the case where the divided area (4) is selected on the map selection screen as shown in FIG. 19A, a process for simply enlarging the entire divided area (4) In this case, since the spots are biased toward a part of the divided area (4), all the spots are included in the divided area (6) in FIG. 19B after the screen transition. Therefore, even if the divided area (6) is selected in this situation, information cannot be narrowed down at all. On the other hand, according to the present invention, as described in the embodiment, zooming and scrolling processing is performed so that the optimum position and range are obtained in accordance with the variation state of spots existing in the divided region (4). Therefore, as shown in FIG. 19 (c), each spot is efficiently arranged in each divided region, so that spot selection can be performed efficiently.

  In this embodiment, in the “spot corresponding area determination / display process” in FIG. 6, the position information (latitude and longitude) on the map of the spot is converted into the position information on the screen, and the position information on the screen is obtained. The location information on the map and the location information on the screen can be converted to each other if there is necessary information. The position information on the screen of the divided area is converted into the position information (latitude and longitude) on the map, and the position information on the map of the spot is compared with this to determine whether to enter each divided area. Processing may be used (the concept is the same).

  In this embodiment, the “button” is described as an example of the input device, but a display screen with a touch panel may be used as the input device. In this case, the operation can be made as simple and easy to understand as (or better than) the button input. These are intended to be intuitively operated by anyone by making the selection item on the screen and the input unit have a one-to-one correspondence and also corresponding to the arrangement, but are used in the present invention. However, the input device is not limited to these. That is, it is naturally possible to operate the list selection screen or the map selection screen using an input device such as a mouse or a keyboard.

  In the present embodiment, the map data is acquired from another device (map server 31), but the terminal device 11 itself has map data (that is, the terminal device operates independently). There may be. Conversely, in the present embodiment, a part of information held by the terminal device and a part of the processing executed by the terminal device are transferred to the server side via the network (may be a map server or other It may be possessed and executed by a site server).

  FIG. 17 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a system that holds main information and executes main processing in a server on the network (the same reference numerals are used for the same components as in FIG. 1). . FIG. 18 shows a schematic block diagram of the server 51.

  In such a configuration, in accordance with a request from the terminal device, execution of main processing is performed on the server 51, and a processing result is returned to the terminal device as a response. May be realized. In this embodiment, in response to a command (request) obtained from the input unit, the control unit executes each process while using each piece of information in the storage unit, and outputs the processing result to the display unit. However, in response to the request received from the terminal device, the server executes each processing while using each information (or information obtained from the terminal or information acquired from the map server) that the server has, and the processing result is transmitted to the terminal device. As a response to the message, and the terminal device that has received the message may output it to the display unit. It is possible to appropriately select which device has each information and which device performs each process. For example, if the map providing site 3 provides spot information in addition to the map data, the information may be acquired from the map server 31.

  In mobile terminal devices such as mobile phones and PDAs, there are cases where processing capacity and storage area are limited. In such a case, if the main processing is performed on the server side as a system configuration as shown in FIG. Good. Cellular phones are provided with numeric keys 0 to 9 and “*” and “#” keys, and these key layouts are the same regardless of the type of product. The present invention can be suitably applied by creating a frame. Also, in mobile terminal devices such as mobile phones and PDAs, the display screen tends to be small, and the input device part for operation tends to be simplified. An input interface with excellent performance is required, and the present invention exactly meets these needs. By applying the present invention, “simple and good operability” that is indispensable for a portable terminal device that is assumed to be carried and used is realized. It can be said that the present invention is very suitable as a terminal device to which the present invention is applied.

  In this embodiment, as previously described, since it is assumed that the map is displayed so that the north is always on the top, no particular mention is made regarding the direction information, but the map is displayed in a rotated manner. Assuming that the display reference position information and the scale information are the direction in the map display process and the spot position calculation process (or the calculation process of the position of the divided area on the map) described above, It is only necessary to execute processing with the addition of information, and there is no difference in basic concepts. However, in the “display location information / scale information calculation process” which is the process of FIG. 7, the process is slightly increased when considering that “a map can be rotated so that spots can be selected most efficiently”. . An example will be described below.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing an outline of the operation process of the rotation angle calculation process necessary for the “display location information / scale information calculation process”. This process is a process for obtaining a rotation angle for “most efficiently selecting a spot by rotating the map”.

  In step 2001, the aspect ratio of the display area is calculated from the display area information and substituted for X.

  The subsequent process of loop 1 is a process of calculating a rotation angle at which the arrangement of spots with respect to the display area is most efficient while rotating the map (all spots in the selected divided area) by one degree. In this example, the rotation is performed in units of 1 degree, but there may be units of 5 degrees, and the unit amount of rotation may be determined as appropriate.

  In step 2002, the map (all spots in the selected divided area) is rotated once. The center point of the rotation may be anywhere.

  In step 2003, the position information of each spot after rotation is calculated, and by determining the point most displaced in the east, west, south, and north directions, the minimum rectangular range including all spots is calculated (step 701 in FIG. 7). Similar concept).

  In step 2004, the aspect ratio of the minimum rectangular range calculated in step 2003 is calculated and substituted for Y. In step 2005, step 2006 cannot be determined (necessary) at the time of the first processing, so step 2006 is skipped (actually, the processing in steps 2002 to 2004 and 2007 in which i = 1). Is performed before loop 1, and loop 1 is executed from i = 2, so that the processing in step 2005 is not necessary, but this is done in order to simplify the description of the figure).

  In step 2006, the value of X / Y (the ratio of the aspect ratio of the display area to the aspect ratio of the minimum rectangular range) and the value of Z (the X / Y value closest to 1 in the processing so far are substituted). If the value of X / Y is closer to 1, the process proceeds to step 2007, where X / Y is substituted for Z and i (that is, the rotation angle). ) Is substituted for n. On the other hand, if the value of Z is closer to 1, step 2007 is skipped.

  By performing the above process 360 degrees (until i changes from 1 to 360), “all the spots in the selected divided region” are rotated once, and the aspect ratio of the “minimum rectangular range” is the highest in the display region. An angle close to the aspect ratio is obtained as n.

  When the aspect ratio of the smallest rectangular area is closest to the aspect ratio of the display area, it means that the outer shape of the smallest rectangular area is the closest to the outline of the display area, that is, the display area can be used most effectively. ing. For example, when there is a variation spot as shown in FIG. 21A, the “minimum rectangular range” is slightly vertically long. The monitor is usually horizontally long, and therefore the display area is often horizontally long. However, if a vertically long monitor as shown in FIG. 21A is reduced to a horizontally long display area, it is placed on both sides of the display area. An empty area (waste) will occur. FIG. 21 (b) is a slightly rotated version of FIG. 21 (a). At this stage, it is longer than FIG. 21 (a). Further rotation is shown in FIG. 21C, and the “minimum rectangular range” at this time is a horizontally long one. Thus, by obtaining the minimum rectangular range closest to the display area, the display area can be used most effectively (that is, the spot selection efficiency is improved).

  After the “rotation angle for rotating the map so that spots can be selected most efficiently” is obtained by the process of FIG. 20, the process of FIG. 7 may be executed in the same manner. (The display reference position information, the scale information, and the direction information can be obtained by these.)

  In this embodiment, the divided area is 4 × 2 (4 × 3 when a function key is inserted) as an example. However, it is not necessary to divide the area into a plurality of lengths and widths. The method of division can be determined as appropriate (a simple division into two (2 × 1) or a division into 100 may be used). Further, the divided areas do not necessarily have to be rectangular. For example, the divided areas may be hexagonal and may be divided frames.

  In the present embodiment, a two-dimensional map is assumed as map information, but the present invention can be applied to three-dimensional map information. Even if the map information is three-dimensional, it is displayed two-dimensionally on the monitor (even if the image is a three-dimensional representation, as long as it is displayed on a flat screen, two-dimensional It can be said that the image has been converted into two-dimensional information), and it can be said that a spot having three-dimensional position information belongs to which of the divided areas on the screen as in the processing concept described above. It is possible to calculate by concept. Only the processing for converting the three-dimensional position information into the two-dimensional information on the monitor is necessary, and for this purpose, the camera position and the viewpoint for displaying the three-dimensional map information (and spots) on the screen and Each process may be executed using direction information. FIG. 22 shows a transition example of a screen in which the divided frame of the present invention is superimposed on a three-dimensional map. As can be understood from the figure, even if the data itself is three-dimensional, it can be regarded as a “two-dimensional image with a three-dimensional representation” on the screen, and each spot is one of the divided areas. It is possible to discriminate whether it is contained, and it is possible for the operating side to operate with the same feeling as in the case of a two-dimensional map.

  In this embodiment, even if there are a large number of icons in the divided area, the display of the icons is not particularly changed. However, if a certain amount of icons enter the limited area, the icons overlap. It may be very difficult to see. Therefore, the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information are defined in association with the number of spots (including a table that defines the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information corresponding thereto). Thus, the icon display may be changed according to the number of spots determined by the process of step 604 in FIG. For example, if the icon is 5 or more, the icon is reduced by 20%, and if the icon is 10 or more, the icon is reduced by 50% (for example, simply reducing / enlarging the icon) Instead, another icon may be displayed such as simplifying the display). If this process is performed for each divided area, there is a view that the size of the spot in each area is displayed differently, resulting in an impression of lack of unity as a whole screen. Therefore, the number of spots belonging to the minimum range calculated in step 701 in FIG. 7 (that is, spots to be displayed on the screen) and icon display effect information corresponding thereto are determined, and the number of spots on the entire screen is determined. The icon display may be changed accordingly.

  Further, as a method of changing the icon display for the same purpose as described above, the icon display may be changed according to the scale by defining the scale information and the icon display effect information in association with each other ( Simply change the icon size in proportion to the scale information).

  In addition, by providing icon grouping information as spot attribute information, when it is determined that a predetermined condition defined by the icon grouping information is met, a plurality of icons are grouped and displayed. The number of icons may be reduced to make the screen easier to see. “Icon grouping information” includes, for example, information that defines the relationship of spots that can be grouped (for example, spots having attributes such as restaurants are allowed), a threshold for grouping icons of adjacent spots, and the like. The information on the distance between spots, the information on the icons at the time of grouping, etc. are determined. For example, the spot of the restaurant and the spot of the sushi restaurant are the distance on the display screen from the “inter-spot distance information”. If these spots are close to each other, these spots are grouped, and a single icon indicating a restaurant is displayed based on “information of icons at the time of grouping” (the number of spots grouped at this time is used as a subscript) It may be attached to an icon, etc.) and the distance on the display screen between spots by reducing the scale of the map display (zoom display) When it becomes larger than "inter-spot distance information", (which again grouped Zooming out) to display an icon indicating the respective spots to ungroup such that it is possible.

  In this embodiment, after calculating the “minimum rectangular range”, the display reference position information and the scale information are uniquely calculated regardless of the spot arrangement state (the process of FIG. 7) as an example. However, the display reference position information and the scale information may be calculated so that spot selection is performed more efficiently. Examples of such processing are shown below.

  In FIG. 24, after the scale information is obtained in the same manner as step 703 in FIG. 7 described above, the minimum rectangular range obtained in step 701 (or a range by a predetermined amount with respect to the minimum rectangular range as described above) is obtained. This is a process for obtaining display reference position information so that spot selection can be performed most efficiently while moving it in the vertical or horizontal direction based on the expanded rectangular range. That is, in step 703, when the minimum rectangular range (or a rectangular range expanded by a predetermined amount with respect to the minimum rectangular range) is displayed on the screen, either the vertical direction or the horizontal direction of the rectangular range is displayed. Since the scale information is calculated so as to fill the entire area, there is a margin in either direction unless the aspect ratio of the rectangular range and the aspect ratio of the display area are the same (see FIG. 14B). (For example, it is possible to move in the horizontal direction), so display criteria that enable spot selection most efficiently by moving in the movable direction and determining the status of spots belonging to each divided area The position information is obtained.

  In step 2401, a movable direction is determined. The determination is made based on display area information and rectangular range information. As a result of the determination, if the image can be moved in the vertical direction, the process proceeds to step 2409. If the image can be moved in the horizontal direction, the process proceeds to step 2402. If the image cannot be moved (that is, the aspect ratio of the rectangular area is the same as the aspect ratio of the display area) The process proceeds to step 702.

  If the horizontal movement is possible as shown in FIG. 14B, in step 2402, the leftmost rectangular area is displayed with respect to the display area based on the rectangular area information, the scale information, and the display area information. Display reference position information is calculated so as to be positioned. The display state based on this is as shown in FIG. 25A (this process is merely a process for calculating the display reference position information, and does not mean that the screen is actually displayed).

  In the subsequent step 2403, a movable amount (L in the figure) is calculated based on the rectangular range information, the scale information, and the display area information, and is substituted for x. The unit of L may be either a distance unit on the map (for example, m) or a unit on the display screen (for example, pixel). As described above, they can be converted into each other.

  In the subsequent loop 1, as shown in FIG. 25 (b), the status of spots belonging to each divided area is determined while moving the rectangular range to the right, and the display reference position information with the highest use efficiency of the divided areas is calculated. It is processing to do.

  In step 2404, the display location is displaced to the right by i (the unit of i is the same as L). In step 2405, the number of spots belonging to each divided area is determined, and the number of divided areas where the spot exists is set to n. Substitute (4 in the example of FIG. 25A). The method for determining the number of spots belonging to each divided region is the same concept as described in the processing of FIG.

  Subsequent step 2406 has the same purpose as step 2005 in FIG. 20, and in step 2407, m (the one having the largest “number of divided areas where spots exist” has been substituted). When the value of n is larger, the process proceeds to step 2408, where the value of n is substituted for m, and the current display reference position information is substituted for y. On the other hand, if n is less than or equal to m, step 2408 is skipped and loop 1 is continued.

  When i becomes x (that is, when the rectangular range is moved to the right end), the loop 1 is terminated.

  By the processing of loop 1, the display reference position information when y is the largest “number of divided areas where spots exist” while the rectangular range is moved from the left end to the right end of the display area is obtained as y. It will be.

  Note that “vertical direction display location information calculation processing” in step 2409 is the same concept as steps 2402 to 2408 described above, except that the moving direction changes from horizontal to vertical. Further, step 702 when it is determined as a result of step 2401 that it cannot move is the same processing as step 702 of FIG.

  As described above, according to the “display location information / scale information calculation process” in FIG. 24, the scale information is calculated so as to display the “rectangular range” as much as possible in the display area. The display reference position information is determined so that the “number of divided areas where spots exist” increases. Accordingly, it is possible to efficiently use the divided areas (that is, the information selection efficiency is good).

  According to the processing in FIG. 24, when there are a large number of conditions (rectangular range positions) in which “the number of divided areas where spots are present” is largest, the processing result obtained is the one located on the leftmost side. However, there is an idea that it is better to make the “rectangular range” as close to the center of the screen as possible. Therefore, it is possible to store all the positions where “the number of divided areas where spots exist” is the largest, and to select the one closest to the center of the screen from among them. For the same purpose, in the process of FIG. 24, the process is executed after the rectangular range is moved to the left end (step 2402). However, if the process is started from the center of the screen (right or left from the center) To the left or right direction from the center), and a processing result close to the center of the screen can be obtained. These points have the same concept with respect to “vertical processing”.

  In FIG. 26, after obtaining the display reference position information and the scale information by the process of FIG. 7 described above (steps 701 to 703), the display location is not changed, and only the scale is changed, thereby improving the efficiency. This is processing for enabling spot selection. For example, in the case of the spot arrangement situation as shown in FIG. 27A, by reducing this slightly, “the number of divided areas where spots exist” as shown in FIG. Therefore, such a process is performed.

  In step 2601, assuming that the display area is 100, the area ratio (an integer obtained by truncating the decimal point) corresponding to one divided area is calculated and substituted for z. In the embodiment, since the display area is divided into eight equal parts, it becomes 12. This is to determine the end condition of “Process for calculating the scale information with the best use efficiency of the divided areas by determining the status of the spots belonging to each divided area while reducing the rectangular range while reducing the rectangular range” in loop 1 described below. In this case, a value is set at which the use efficiency of the divided area cannot be improved even if the size is reduced below this.

  In step 2602, the scale of the map is multiplied by j / 100, and in step 2603, the number of spots belonging to each divided area is determined, and the number of divided areas in which spots are present is substituted for n (FIG. 27A). In the example, it is 4). The method for determining the number of spots belonging to each divided region is the same concept as described in the processing of FIG.

  The subsequent step 2604 has the same purpose as that of step 2005 in FIG. 20. In step 2605, m (the one having the largest “number of divided areas where spots exist” has been substituted). When the value of n is larger, the process proceeds to step 2606 where the value of n is substituted for m and the current scale information is substituted for s. On the other hand, if n is less than or equal to m, step 2606 is skipped and loop 1 is continued.

  When i becomes z, loop 1 is terminated. By the processing of loop 1, the scale information when the “number of divided areas where spots exist” is the largest among the rectangular ranges is reduced as s.

  In the processing of loop 1 in FIG. 26, a method of sequentially processing the scale from the smallest to the largest (j starts from z and ends at 100) may be used, but as shown in FIG. By starting from the maximum scale, it is preferable that the result of processing is that the largest scale is obtained as s in the condition that “the number of divided areas where spots exist” is the largest. It is. Of course, even if the scale is sequentially processed from the smallest to the largest, the same effect can be obtained if the determination in step 2605 in FIG. Can do.

  FIG. 28 is a process for calculating display reference position information and scale information so that the most efficient spot selection is performed while changing both the scale and the display position. In addition, about the process similar to another process (FIG. 26 etc.), the same code | symbol is used and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As in FIG. 26, loop 1 is a process of determining the status of spots belonging to each divided region while changing the scale, and calculating scale information with the best use efficiency of the divided region. Loop 2 in loop 1 is 24 is a process of calculating the display reference position information with the best use efficiency of the divided areas by determining the status of the spots belonging to each divided area while moving the rectangular range with the same concept as FIG.

  The processing of loop 2 is described in a considerably simplified manner in FIG. 28, but when the rectangular range is moved by 1 in the vertical direction, the processing in step 2802 (the concept is the same as in steps 2402 to 2408 in FIG. From the top edge to the bottom edge (similar to TV scanning), and the rectangular area is moved over the entire display area. As a result, the display reference position information when the “number of divided areas where spots exist” is the largest is obtained as y.

  In step 2803 after the loop 2, m (the one having the largest number of divided areas where spots exist as a result of the loop 2 is substituted) and k (in the processing of the loop 1 so far). The value of “the number of divided areas where spots are present” is substituted). If m is larger, the process proceeds to step 2804 and the value of m is set to k. Substituting and substituting the value of y (display reference position information when the number of divided areas where spots exist as a result of loop 2) is the largest into t, and substituting the current scale information into s . On the other hand, if m is less than or equal to k, step 2804 is skipped and loop 1 is continued.

  By the above process, a process is performed in which the rectangular range is moved over the entire display area at each scale to determine the case where the “number of divided areas having spots” is the largest, and the process of FIG. As a result, the display reference position information when “the number of divided areas where spots exist” is the largest is t, and the scale information is obtained as s.

  In each of the above processes, it is determined that “the number of divided areas where spots exist” is the largest. For example, “the number of divided areas where one spot exists” is the largest. You may make it calculate the case where there are many. This is because the fact that there is only one spot in the divided area means that detailed information can be displayed immediately next time. The goal is to increase the number of spots where information can be displayed. Further, the sample variance may be obtained based on the number of spots belonging to each divided region, and the case where this is the smallest may be calculated. This leads to the direction of “all spots can be selected with the minimum number of steps” by making the number of spots belonging to each divided region uniform.

  The details of the system of the present invention have been described above. Here, the operation of the actual system to which the present invention is applied will be described again according to the screen transition. Although this screen transition is not consistent with the detailed description given above in detail, there are some overlapping portions because they are common as a large flow.

  FIG. 29 is a screen of the top page when an actual system to which the present invention is applied is launched, and is a system when applied in Tsurumi Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture as an example for explaining sightseeing guidance using an actual map. Will be described below. Since recent display devices are standard in color, the screen is also in color, but because it cannot display color due to drawing creation, it can be replaced with color display by marking “red”, “green”, etc. Yes. In FIG. 29, on the top screen, twelve selection buttons are displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of the remote control buttons in accordance with the number of remote control channels of a normal television, and eight buttons among them are displayed. Is displayed as a search operation selection button with a large button in the center. Specifically, “(1) play”, “(2) watch”, “(3) search by name”, “(4) search from map” “(5) Souvenir genre search”, “(6) Souvenir store map search”, “(7) Souvenir store name search”, and “(8) Event information”. In the embodiment of this figure, the buttons “9”, “10”, “11”, and “12” are not used, but they can be used as function keys such as “back” and “forward”. In addition, it may be used as an access button for various information such as “station area information”, “news from ward office”, “trash reduction”, “weather forecast” and the like.

  Here, an example has been described in which twelve selection frames are configured in accordance with the number of remote control channels of a normal television. However, of course, the items to be selected are configured with fewer than twelve selection frames. On the other hand, if using a remote control with 12 or more buttons, for example, 16 selection frames up to “13” “14” “15” “16” buttons or more It is also possible to configure a selection frame.

  When “(4) Search from map” is selected by the “4” button on the remote controller on the top page (FIG. 29) of this embodiment, the “sight map search” screen of FIG. 30 is displayed. FIG. 31 shows a screen transition diagram of “highlight search” starting from the top page of FIG. In this example, in the example on the top screen, the selection items are assigned to all eight divided frames, but for items that are not assigned on other pages, the divided frames cannot be selected. It is preferable to display in gray tone for notification.

  On the “Highlight Map Search” screen of FIG. 30, “Highlight”, which is the tourist destination of the entire ward, is displayed on the map at various latitudes / longitudes by various marks, and each mark can be simply a ● mark. You may display using a specific map mark. When displaying a map with a divided frame on the display screen, in order to display the title in each divided area of the divided frame, four on the top and four on the bottom so that the map is not hidden by the title display. As for the eight divided areas, the title display position is preferably displayed above the frame in the upper four divided areas and below the frame in the lower four divided areas. Each division is preferably displayed in different colors. The above countermeasures are also desirable in the screens developed thereafter.

  In “Highlight Map Search”, the map and the “Highlight” mark are displayed together with the display of the four divisions at the top and the four at the bottom, and finally the detailed display screen of “Highlight” is displayed. Information (contents) related to “Highlight” is displayed. If there is no “Highlight” mark in the divided area, the button corresponding to the divided frame does not perform any action even if the button is pressed (or emits a warning sound or a sound such as “Cannot be selected”). In order to inform the user of this, it is preferable to display the division frame in gray tone.

  When “(3) Search by name” is selected with the “3” button on the remote control on the top page (FIG. 29) of this embodiment, the “Point name search” screen of FIG. 32 is displayed. In FIG. 32, “(1) Line”, “(2) Line”, “(3) Line”, “(4) Line”, “ “(5) Na Line”, “(6) is Line”, “(7) Line”, “(8) Yara La Wa Line” can be selected. When each row is selected, the names corresponding to the selected row are displayed in the top four in order of names, and the remaining number is also displayed.

  Next, for example, when “MA” of “7” is selected, the “sights” starting with “MA” are sequentially assigned to display in the divided frames, and the photos of the highlight pamphlets and the explanation of the beginning part are displayed. FIG. 33 shows an example in which “(1) Misono Park” and “(2) Mitsuike Park” are displayed in the divided frames “1” and “2”. Here, the final destination is selected by pressing the “1” or “2” button on the remote controller, and finally the information (content) regarding “highlight” is displayed on the detailed display screen of “highlight”. FIG. 34 shows an example in which “(2) Mitsuike Park” is selected and its detailed information is displayed. Since the method of reaching the final destination information from the “Highlight Map Search” screen in FIG. 30 has already been described in detail, no further description will be given.

  On the detail display screen, information corresponding to the buttons “1” to “8” is displayed in the detail display section (area in the sketch book in FIG. 34). In FIG. 34, “(1) Information” “(2) Make a call” “(5) Bus timetable (bound)” “(6) Bus timetable (return)” “(7) Platform guidance” “(8) Route guidance” can be selected. For example, when “(1) Guidance” is selected, a guide map of “Highlight”, a photograph, an explanatory text, etc. are displayed on the detailed display section. When “(6) Bus timetable (return)” is selected, the detail display section switches to the contents of the return timetable. In addition to switching the display contents as described above, when “(2) Make a call” is selected, for example, it is possible to use a function such as making a telephone call for reservation of a store.

  The system of the present invention is not only used for searching for sightseeing spots, but can also be used for searching other objects such as “souvenirs” without changing the basic idea of the invention. Next, the screen transition of the “souvenir” search will be described with reference to FIG. “Souvenir” search in “Top screen” (similar to “Highlight” search, not shown), “(5) Souvenir genre search”, “(6) Souvenir store map search”, “( 7) “Search for souvenir shop name” is possible, and each is selected by a remote control button. When “(5) Souvenir genre search” is selected, a selection division frame for each genre of souvenirs is displayed. For example, “(1) All genres”, “(2) Japanese confectionery”, “(3) Western confectionery”, Display of “(4) confectionery”, “(5) bread”, “(6) food”, “(7) alcohol”, “(8) music / miscellaneous goods”, etc. is displayed in the divided frame. If the genre division is not satisfactory for the 8 genres, the button “11” is used to select “next list (page feed)” to proceed to the genre division screen on the second page. Genre display such as “furniture” and “interior” may be performed.

  Next, for example, when “(2) Japanese confectionery” is selected, “Japanese confectionery” of “souvenirs” is displayed in each divided frame in order according to a predetermined ranking. At this time, the ranking of the display order may be determined in advance by voting from the residents, or the ranking may be determined in the order of frequent access. In addition, when there is a problem with always displaying in the same order, it is also possible to display randomly. Furthermore, for example, when there are 20 “souvenirs”, numbers (1) to (20) are assigned to each of them in order, for example, in the order of a loop so that (1) is connected after (20). The numerical value from “1” to “20” is randomly selected at the time of display, and eight numbers (from “9” to “16”) are selected from the selected numbers (for example, “9”). It is also possible to select and display “Souvenirs”. Naturally, when proceeding to the next page, “Souvenirs” from “17” to “20” and “1” to “4” are selected and displayed. Thereafter, the same operation is performed. Finally, information (contents) related to the “souvenir” is displayed on the detailed display screen of the selected “souvenir”.

  When “(6) Souvenir store map search” is selected on the top screen of FIG. 35, “Souvenir store” is displayed with a mark on the location (latitude / longitude) together with the map, and at the same time, there are four sections above. A division frame composed of four sections and four sections is displayed below. The mark at that time may be simply a mark ●, or an illustration that can understand the genre for each genre of souvenirs may be displayed as a mark. If the number of “souvenirs” is too large, it may be difficult to select, so it is not shown in the transition diagram in FIG. 35. However, as a step after “(6) Souvenir store map search”, “( It is possible to insert the step “10) Genre search”. In that case, by selecting “(10) Genre search”, the same screen as “(5) Souvenir genre search” described above is displayed once, and the genre of the souvenir is selected. Perform a map search for “souvenir stores”. The subsequent map search procedure is the same as the procedure described in “Highlight Map Search” and will not be described again.

  “Genre search” in “(6) Souvenir store map search” is performed after the “Souvenir store map search” screen is displayed as described above when “Souvenir store map search” is selected by the remote control button “6”. “Genre search” may be performed, or when “souvenir store map search” is selected by remote control button “6”, “genre search” screen is displayed and genre selection is performed, followed by “souvenir search”. A “store map search” screen may be displayed. Finally, information (contents) related to the “souvenir store” is displayed on the detailed display screen of the selected “souvenir store”.

  When “(7) Souvenir store name search” is selected on the top screen of FIG. 35, a divided frame composed of 8 sections, 4 sections on the top and 4 sections on the bottom, is displayed. “(1) All”, “(2) Line”, “(3) Line”, “(4) Line”, “(5) Line”, “(6) Lines” "," (7) is a row ", and" (8) MAY, RARA, WA row "can be selected. In each divided frame, the names corresponding to the 50 sounds are displayed in the top four in order of the names, and the remaining number is also displayed. These four cases can be in the order of 50 notes, in a specific ranking order, or in random order.

  The subsequent name search procedure is the same as the procedure described in “Highlight Name Search”, and will not be described again. Finally, information (contents) related to the “souvenir store” is displayed on the detailed display screen of the selected “souvenir store”.

  In the detail display screen, information corresponding to the buttons “1” to “8” is displayed in the detail display section (area in the sketch book in FIG. 35). In FIG. 35, “(8) (Introduction of Souvenir 4)” can be selected from “(1) Introduction of the shop”, “(2) Map”, “(5) Introduction of (Souvenir 1)”. For example, when “(1) Introducing a store” is selected, the address, phone number, and description of the store are displayed in the detailed display section. When “(2) Map” is selected, the detailed display is displayed. The department switches to the contents of the map around the shop. When “(5) (Introduction of Souvenir 1)” is selected, a souvenir image and explanation text are displayed in the detail display section.

Schematic configuration diagram showing information retrieval system (map information display system) Block diagram showing the outline of the information retrieval system (map information display system) The block diagram which shows the outline of the memory | storage part of a terminal device Flow chart showing an outline of processing in an information retrieval system Flow chart showing the outline of "Map selection screen display process" Flow chart showing the outline of “Spot applicable area discrimination / display process” Flow chart showing the outline of "Display location information / scale information calculation process" Figure showing an example of a category file Figure showing an example of a spot file The figure which shows an example of the table which defines the positional information on the screen of each division area It is a figure which shows the structural example of a screen, (a): The structural example of a map selection screen, (b): The structural example of a list selection screen, (c): The structural example of a detailed display screen Diagram showing transition example of screen display Diagram showing transition example of screen display Diagram for explaining the processing concept of “display location information / scale information calculation processing” The figure which shows the example of a transition of the screen display when a division area is selected Figure showing an example of the detail display screen Schematic configuration diagram showing another configuration example of the information search system (map information display system) A block diagram showing an outline of a server provided in an information search system (map information display system) The figure which shows the example of a transition of the screen display when a division area is selected A flowchart showing an outline of the “rotation angle calculation process” executed in the “display location information / scale information calculation process” The figure for explaining the processing concept of “rotation angle calculation processing” The figure which shows the example of a transition of the screen display when a map is three-dimensional The figure which shows the example of a transition of the screen display when a division area is selected Flow chart showing an outline of another example of “display location information / scale information calculation processing” FIG. 24 is a diagram for explaining the processing concept of “display location information / scale information calculation processing” in FIG. Flow chart showing an outline of another example of “display location information / scale information calculation processing” FIG. 26 is a diagram for explaining the processing concept of “display location information / scale information calculation processing” in FIG. Flow chart showing an outline of another example of “display location information / scale information calculation processing” Screen of the top page when an actual system to which the present invention is applied is launched “Highlight map search” screen of actual system to which the present invention is applied Screen transition diagram of “Highlight search” of actual system to which the present invention is applied Screen of “Highlight name search” of actual system to which the present invention is applied Screen when selecting “Ma row” in “Highlight name search” of actual system to which the present invention is applied Screen displaying information of final destination in actual system to which the present invention is applied Screen transition diagram of “souvenir” search of actual system to which the present invention is applied

Explanation of symbols

2 Network 11, 12 Terminal device 31 Map server 51 Server 111 Control unit 112 Storage unit 113 Input unit 114 Display unit 115 Communication unit 127 Remote control device 1101 Divided frame 1102 Divided area 1102a Information display field 1122 Divided frame data 1124 Spot file

Claims (13)

  A map information display system for displaying map information based on the map data by including a storage device storing map data, a display device, and a control device, and visually displaying a display area of the display device By providing division frame information for dividing into a plurality of pieces, when the map information is displayed on the display device, the control device causes the division frame based on the division frame information to be displayed superimposed on the map information. Map information display system characterized by   By providing an input device for instructing the movement direction, when the movement instruction is given to the input device, the control device displays the divided frame on the display screen in a fixed manner, and the movement 2. The map information display system according to claim 1, wherein the map information is moved and displayed in response to an instruction.   As the spot information on the map, the position information on the map data and the attribute information on the spot are associated and held, and the position information on the screen of each divided area on the display screen divided by the division frame is included. Accordingly, when displaying the map information, the map information is displayed on the screen based on the map scale information and the display reference position information, and the scale information, the display reference position information, and the position information on the map data of each spot Based on the above, the position information on the display screen of each spot is calculated, and based on this and the position information on the screen of each divided area, which divided area each spot is included in the control device Or map data of each divided area based on the scale information, the display reference position information, and the position information on the screen of each divided area. The upper position information is calculated, and based on this and position information on the map data of each spot, the control device determines which divided area each spot is in. The map information display system according to claim 1 or 2.   Position information on the map data and attribute information on the spot are stored in association with each other as spot information on the map, and range information that defines a range of the map to be displayed in the display area is stored in the storage device in advance. Alternatively, when given by the user, the control device discriminates the spots existing within the range determined by the range information, and when there are a plurality of spots obtained by this, the positional information of each of these spots The minimum range in which all of these spots fit is calculated, the map scale information and the display reference position information are calculated based on the minimum range information and the display area information of the display device, and the scale information and the display reference position are calculated. 4. The map information is displayed on the screen based on the information, according to any one of claims 1 to 3. Map information display system.   When the control device determines that any one of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected by an instruction from the user to the input device, the selected divided area is regarded as the range information. 5. The map information display system according to claim 4, wherein a spot existing in the selected divided region is discriminated and the scale information and display reference position information are calculated.   By holding visual effect information associated with each divided area divided by the divided frame, each divided area is displayed with a visually different effect, and an icon indicating each spot entering each divided area is displayed. 6. The map information display system according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the map information display system is displayed by changing visually based on visual effect information corresponding to each divided area.   A table defining the number of spots belonging to the minimum range and icon display effect information corresponding thereto, or a table defining the number of spots belonging to the divided area and icon display effect information corresponding thereto. Thus, the control device determines the number of spots belonging to the minimum range, acquires icon display effect information corresponding to the spot from the table, and displays an icon indicating each spot based on the icon display effect information Alternatively, the number of spots belonging to the divided area is determined, icon display effect information corresponding to the spot is acquired from the table, and an icon indicating each spot is displayed based on the icon display effect information. The map information display system according to any one of claims 4 to 6.   By holding visual effect information indicating the absence of a spot or inability to select, the control device determines whether or not the spot exists in each divided area divided by the divided frame, and the divided area where no spot exists The map information according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein when there is, the divided area is visually changed based on the unselectable visual effect information and displayed. Display system.   An information display field corresponding to each divided area divided by the divided frame is provided, and title information is included in the attribute information of each spot, and priority information is included in each divided area by the control device. 4. The spot having the highest priority information among each of the entering spots is determined, and a title is displayed in the information display column of each of the divided areas based on the title information of the spot. Item 9. The map information display system according to any one of items 8.   Exists in the selected divided area by the control device when it is determined by the control device that any of the divided areas divided by the divided frame is selected by an instruction to the input device by the user It is determined whether or not there is only one spot, and if there is one, detailed information regarding the spot is displayed on the screen based on the attribute information corresponding to the spot. The map information display system according to any one of claims 3 to 9.   The browsing history information is stored in association with each spot by storing the browsing history when the detailed information display process is performed, and the browsing history information is used as the priority information. Item 11. The map information display system according to Item 10.   An input device having an input key, and the divided frame information is configured such that the arrangement of the divided areas is the same as the arrangement of the input keys of the input device, and an input signal when the input key is pressed; By providing an input signal correspondence table in which each divided area is associated, it is possible to select each divided area by inputting the input key corresponding to the arrangement of each divided area displayed on the screen. The map information display system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein:   The map data is 3D map data having information also in the height direction, and accordingly, the position information on the map data of the spot is 3D position information, and is added to the display reference position information and the scale information. The map information display system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the processing is executed using camera position information and camera direction information with respect to the display reference position information.

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