JP2014109540A - Navigation device and method for providing navigation function - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation device and a method for providing a navigation function for enabling a user to continuously use a navigation function without performing any operation by solving a problem that it becomes impossible to continuously use the navigation function due to the depletion of the prepaid balance of a portable terminal.SOLUTION: A navigation device 100 includes: a balance detection part 14 connected to the navigation device for detecting the prepaid balance of a portable terminal 200 which is executing a navigation application; and a switching control part 15 for, when it is detected that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value, switching a portable navigation function to an in-vehicle navigation function to execute the in-vehicle navigation function. When the prepaid balance charged in the portable terminal 200 becomes small and less than a predetermined value, the switching control part 15 automatically switches the portable navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function to continuously provide the navigation function. Thus, it is possible for a user to continuously use the navigation function without performing any operation.

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device and a method for providing a navigation function, and is particularly suitable for use in a navigation device that is connected to a mobile terminal and can use the navigation function of an application provided in the mobile terminal.

  In recent years, it has become possible to use functions of applications installed on mobile terminals (hereinafter referred to as mobile applications) by connecting to mobile terminals (smartphones, tablet terminals, etc.) by wire such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) or wirelessly such as Bluetooth. An in-vehicle device made is provided. For example, it is possible to perform route guidance by displaying a navigation image on a screen of an in-vehicle device using a mobile app having a navigation function (hereinafter referred to as a “navigation app”).

  The in-vehicle device has a navigation function of the in-vehicle device itself (hereinafter referred to as an in-vehicle navigation function), and a navigation function (hereinafter referred to as a portable navigation function) that provides travel guidance using a result executed by the navigation application of the mobile terminal. When it is provided, the user is expected to use the mobile navigation function with priority. One of the reasons is that the map data is always updated to the latest in the server connected to the mobile terminal, and the latest map data can always be used through communication with the server. Another major reason is that it can be used for navigation for walking before getting on the car and after getting off the car.

  By the way, there are two types of mobile terminal contract systems: a prepaid system and a postpaid system. The prepaid method is mainly a method of charging to a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card. The prepaid method has a merit that payment of a basic charge is not necessary, but has a demerit that all services cannot be used when the prepaid balance charged to the SIM card is exhausted.

  Therefore, if the prepaid balance becomes zero during execution of the navigation application, the mobile terminal cannot communicate with the server, and thus the navigation device cannot continue to use the mobile navigation function. In that case, it is necessary to switch to the in-vehicle navigation function that does not require communication with the server.

  However, it is necessary for the user to manually switch from the mobile navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function, and the destination set in the navigation application must be set again on the in-vehicle device, which is troublesome for the switching operation. There was a problem that it took. In addition, since the switching operation cannot be performed during traveling, there is an inconvenience that it is necessary to continue traveling while the navigation function cannot be used.

  When route data can be received from the information center, the route to the destination is guided based on the received route data, and when it is detected that route data cannot be received from the information center, A system has been proposed in which a route to a destination is searched and guided based on road data stored in a storage device (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In addition, the applicant of the present invention may change the state of the first portable terminal device that is executing the process, and it becomes difficult to acquire a process result corresponding to the process that is being executed. When it is expected to be difficult (battery exhausted, poor communication with the server, in-vehicle device connection stop, etc.), the processing can be continued on the second mobile terminal device different from the first mobile terminal device The invention related to the in-vehicle device is proposed (see Patent Document 2).

Japanese Patent No. 4147712 Japanese Patent Application No. 2011-82321

  However, the techniques described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 cannot solve the problem that the use of the navigation function cannot be continued when the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal runs out.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and solves the problem that the use of the navigation function cannot be continued because the prepaid balance is lost in the mobile terminal connected to the in-vehicle device, The purpose is to continue to use the navigation function without any operation.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention detects a prepaid balance of a mobile terminal connected to a navigation device that is an in-vehicle device, and when it is detected that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value, In the apparatus, the portable navigation function is switched to the in-vehicle navigation function and executed.

  According to the present invention configured as described above, when the prepaid balance charged in the mobile terminal connected to the navigation device and executing the navigation application decreases and becomes less than a predetermined value, the navigation device uses the mobile navigation function from the mobile navigation function. Since the navigation function is automatically switched to the navigation function and the navigation function is continuously provided, the user can continue to use the navigation function without any operation.

It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the navigation apparatus by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of a transition of the screen displayed on the display part of the navigation apparatus by this embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the navigation apparatus by this embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the navigation device according to the present embodiment. The navigation device 100 according to the present embodiment is connected to a mobile terminal 200 such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal, and can use a navigation function of a navigation application provided in the mobile terminal 200.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the navigation device 100 of the present embodiment has a communication I / F unit 11, an in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12, a portable navigation execution unit 13, a balance detection unit 14, a switching control unit 15 and a functional configuration. A display unit 16 such as a liquid crystal display is provided.

  Each of the functional blocks 11 to 15 can be configured by any of hardware, DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and software. For example, when configured by software, each of the functional blocks 11 to 15 is actually configured by including a CPU, RAM, ROM, and the like of a computer, and is realized by operating a program stored in the RAM or ROM. The program may be stored in another recording medium such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory.

  The communication I / F unit 11 is connected to the portable terminal 200 by wire such as USB or wirelessly such as Bluetooth or wireless LAN, and transmits / receives data to / from the portable terminal 200. For example, the communication I / F unit 11 receives the destination information indicating the destination set in the navigation application of the mobile terminal 200 and supplies it to the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12. Further, the communication I / F unit 11 receives a navigation image that is a result processed by the navigation application of the mobile terminal 200 and supplies it to the mobile navigation execution unit 13. Further, the communication I / F unit 11 receives balance information representing the prepaid balance of the SIM card from the portable terminal 200 and supplies it to the balance detection unit 14.

  The in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 provides vehicle travel guidance using a navigation function (in-vehicle navigation function) provided in the navigation device 100 itself. The in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 includes a destination setting unit 12a and a route search unit 12b as specific functional configurations. The destination setting unit 12a sets a destination through a user operation on an operation unit (not shown) of the navigation device 100. In addition, the destination setting unit 12a receives the destination set by the navigation application of the mobile terminal 200 from the mobile terminal 200 via the communication I / F unit 11, and sets it as the destination of the in-vehicle navigation function.

  The route search unit 12b searches the route to the destination set by the destination setting unit 12a as a guidance route for the in-vehicle navigation function. The in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 guides the vehicle to the destination by displaying a navigation image on the display unit 16 according to the guidance route searched by the route search unit 12b.

  The mobile navigation execution unit 13 performs vehicle travel guidance according to the navigation function provided in the mobile terminal 200. That is, the mobile navigation execution unit 13 receives a navigation image as a result processed by the navigation application of the mobile terminal 200 via the communication I / F unit 11 and displays the navigation image on the display unit 16 so that the vehicle To the destination. As described above, the mobile navigation execution unit 13 has a mobile navigation function for performing travel guidance using the result processed by the navigation application of the mobile terminal 200.

  The balance detection unit 14 detects the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 that is executing the navigation application based on the balance information received from the mobile terminal 200 through the communication I / F unit 11. Here, the balance information may always be transmitted from the mobile terminal 200 to the navigation device 100 at a predetermined time interval, or when the prepaid balance is reduced to a value less than a predetermined value, and the prepaid balance is a predetermined value. You may make it transmit only when it increases above.

  The switching control unit 15 performs control so that the in-vehicle navigation function by the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 and the mobile navigation function by the mobile navigation execution unit 13 are switched and executed. That is, when the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the switching control unit 15 controls the mobile navigation execution unit 13 to operate while stopping the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12.

  On the other hand, when the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance is less than the predetermined value, the switching control unit 15 switches the portable navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function and executes it. That is, when the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 decreases below a predetermined value, the switching control unit 15 controls the mobile navigation execution unit 12 to operate while stopping the mobile navigation execution unit 13.

  There are three possible methods for stopping execution of the in-vehicle navigation function until the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 becomes less than a predetermined value. As a first method, the switching control unit 15 completely stops the execution of the in-vehicle navigation function until the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 becomes less than a predetermined value, and the balance detection unit 14 causes the prepaid balance to become less than the predetermined value. When it is detected that the vehicle has been detected, the vehicle navigation function is started, the destination is set by the destination setting unit 12a, and the route search unit 12b is searched for the guidance route to perform the driving guidance. To do.

  As a second method, the switching control unit 15 stops the execution of the in-vehicle navigation function while the destination is set by the destination setting unit 12a of the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12. Then, when the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance is less than the predetermined value, the vehicle navigation function is started to be executed, and the route search unit 12b searches for the guidance route and performs the travel guidance. To do.

  As a third method, the switching control unit 15 is in-vehicle in a state in which the route search unit 12b searches for a guidance route until the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value. Stop execution of the navigation function. Then, when the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance is less than the predetermined value, execution of the in-vehicle navigation function is started, and the route search unit 12b performs travel guidance using the searched guidance route. To control.

  If the in-vehicle navigation function is stopped in the state where the route search has been performed, when switching from the mobile navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function, there is no need to perform route search processing at that stage, so switching can be performed quickly. It has the merit of being able to.

  After the operation of the portable navigation execution unit 13 is stopped as described above, when the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance has returned to a predetermined value or more, the switching control unit 15 carries the in-vehicle navigation function. Switch to the navigation function and execute it. That is, the switching control unit 15 controls the mobile navigation execution unit 13 to operate while stopping the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 again.

  In addition, when switching control part 15 switches a portable navigation function to a vehicle-mounted navigation function, it is preferable to display the message to the effect of switching to a vehicle-mounted navigation function on the display part 16. Similarly, when switching the in-vehicle navigation function to the portable navigation function, the switching control unit 15 preferably displays a message on the display unit 16 to switch to the portable navigation function.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a transition example of screens displayed on the display unit 16 of the navigation device 100. FIG. 2A shows a state in which the destination is set by the navigation application of the mobile terminal 200, the route search is performed, and the travel guidance is started. At this time, a navigation image is sent from the portable terminal 200 to the navigation device 100, and is displayed on the display unit 16 by the portable navigation execution unit 13. Further, the destination information set by the navigation application is sent to the navigation device 100, and is set as the destination of the in-vehicle navigation function by the destination setting unit 12a. However, the in-vehicle navigation function is thereafter stopped.

  Thereafter, when the prepaid balance charged in the SIM card of the portable terminal 200 becomes less than a predetermined value, the balance detection unit 14 detects this and notifies the switching control unit 15 of it. Upon receiving this notification, the switching control unit 15 causes the display unit 16 to display a message for switching to the in-vehicle navigation function as shown in FIG. Then, the switching control unit 15 stops the operation of the mobile navigation execution unit 13 and starts the operation of the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12.

  Thereby, the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 searches the route search unit 12b for a guidance route to the destination set by the destination setting unit 12a, and displays a navigation image on the display unit 16 according to the searched guidance route. Travel guidance is performed by. FIG. 2C shows the display screen at this time. As described above, the in-vehicle navigation function may be stopped by performing the route search by the route search unit 12b at the stage of FIG.

  When the prepaid balance returns to a predetermined value or more by charging the SIM card while the travel guidance is provided by the in-vehicle navigation function, the balance detection unit 14 detects that and notifies the switching control unit 15 To do. Upon receiving this notification, the switching control unit 15 causes the display unit 16 to display a message for switching to the portable navigation function as shown in FIG.

  Then, the switching control unit 15 stops the operation of the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 and restarts the operation of the mobile navigation execution unit 13. As a result, the portable navigation execution unit 13 performs the travel guidance by displaying the navigation image sent from the portable terminal 200 again on the display unit 16 as shown in FIG.

  At this time, the in-vehicle navigation function is again stopped. Here, the route search unit 12b is in a stopped state while storing the data of the guide route searched for. Next, when the prepaid balance of the portable terminal 200 becomes less than a predetermined value and the portable navigation function is switched to the in-vehicle navigation function, the travel guidance is continued using the stored guidance route data.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the navigation device 100 according to the present embodiment configured as described above. The flowchart shown in FIG. 3 starts when the mobile terminal 200 is connected to the navigation device 100 and the navigation application is executed. Here, a case where a guidance route is searched and travel guidance to a destination is performed will be described as an example.

  First, the destination setting unit 12a of the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 sets a destination for the in-vehicle navigation function based on the destination information sent from the mobile terminal 200 (step S1). Thereafter, the switching control unit 15 operates the portable navigation execution unit 13 while stopping the operation of the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 (step S2). The mobile navigation execution unit 13 in the operating state displays a navigation image sent from the mobile terminal 200 on the display unit 16 to provide travel guidance (step S3).

  Next, the portable navigation execution unit 13 determines whether or not the destination has been reached (step S4). If it is determined that the destination has not yet been reached, the balance detection unit 14 determines whether the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 has become less than a predetermined value based on the balance information sent from the mobile terminal 200. It is determined whether or not (step S5). If the prepaid balance is not yet less than the predetermined value, the process returns to step S3.

  On the other hand, when the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance is less than the predetermined value, the balance detection unit 14 notifies the switching control unit 15 of this fact. In response to this notification, the switching control unit 15 causes the display unit 16 to display a message for switching from the portable navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function (step S6).

  Subsequently, the switching control unit 15 stops the portable navigation execution unit 13 and switches the vehicle-mounted navigation execution unit 12 to operate (step S7). In response to this switching, the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 searches for a guidance route by the route search unit 12b, and displays a navigation image on the display unit 16 according to the searched guidance route to perform travel guidance (step S8).

  Next, the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 determines whether or not the destination has been reached (step S9). When it is determined that the destination has not yet been reached, the balance detection unit 14 returns the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 to a predetermined value or more based on the balance information sent from the mobile terminal 200. Whether or not (step S10). If the prepaid balance has not yet returned to the predetermined value or more, the process returns to step S8.

  On the other hand, when the balance detection unit 14 detects that the prepaid balance has returned to a predetermined value or more, the balance detection unit 14 notifies the switching control unit 15 of the fact. In response to this notification, the switching control unit 15 causes the display unit 16 to display a message for switching from the in-vehicle navigation function to the portable navigation function (step S11).

  Subsequently, the switching control unit 15 stops the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 and switches the mobile navigation execution unit 13 to operate (step S12). Thereafter, the process returns to step S3. Thereby, the portable navigation execution unit 13 displays the navigation image sent from the portable terminal 200 again on the display unit 16 and performs the travel guidance.

  If it is determined in step S4 or step S9 that the mobile navigation execution unit 13 or the in-vehicle navigation execution unit 12 has reached the destination, the process of the flowchart shown in FIG.

  As described above in detail, in the present embodiment, the prepaid balance in the mobile terminal 200 that is connected to the in-vehicle navigation device 100 and is executing the navigation application is detected, and it is detected that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value. In such a case, the portable navigation function is switched to the in-vehicle navigation function for execution.

  According to the present embodiment configured as described above, when the prepaid balance charged in the mobile terminal 200 connected to the navigation device 100 and executing the navigation application decreases and becomes less than a predetermined value, the navigation device 100 carries the mobile phone. Since the navigation function is automatically switched to the in-vehicle navigation function and the provision of the navigation function is continued, the user can continue to use the navigation function without any operation.

  In the above embodiment, the example of controlling the switching between the in-vehicle navigation function and the portable navigation function in the navigation device 100 has been described, but in addition to this, the operation of the navigation application in the portable terminal 200 may be controlled. Good. For example, when the navigation device 100 switches from the portable navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function, the navigation device 100 may stop the operation of the navigation application by outputting an operation stop command from the navigation device 100 to the portable terminal 200. Good.

  In this way, when the prepaid balance of the mobile terminal 200 becomes less than the predetermined value, the mobile terminal 200 is charged until the SIM card is charged, that is, while the in-vehicle navigation function is being executed in the navigation device 100. The navigation application is not executed in, and it is possible to prevent wasteful consumption of the remaining prepaid balance.

  In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which a message indicating switching is displayed when switching from the in-vehicle navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function when switching from the in-vehicle navigation function to the in-vehicle navigation function. is not. If the navigation image provided by the mobile navigation function and the navigation image provided by the in-vehicle navigation function are different and can be clearly distinguished, the user can easily understand that the switching has been made without displaying the message. Because.

  Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated the example which switches and performs an in-vehicle navigation function to a portable navigation function when a prepaid balance returns more than predetermined value, this invention is not limited to this. For example, after the prepaid balance becomes less than a predetermined value and the portable navigation function is switched to the in-vehicle navigation function, the in-vehicle navigation function may continue to be executed even if the prepaid balance returns to a predetermined value or more. In this way, it is possible to prevent annoyance caused by switching the navigation image displayed on the display unit 16 many times.

  In addition, after the prepaid balance becomes less than the predetermined value and the mobile navigation function is switched to the in-vehicle navigation function, the in-vehicle navigation function is not continuously executed, but the in-vehicle navigation function is continuously executed according to a predetermined condition. It may be determined whether to switch to the mobile navigation function again. For example, if the remaining distance to the destination is less than the threshold, the in-vehicle navigation function may be continued, and if not, the mobile navigation function may be switched again.

  In addition, each of the above-described embodiments is merely an example of implementation in carrying out the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention should not be construed in a limited manner. That is, the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist or the main features thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 Car-mounted navigation execution part 12a Destination setting part 12b Route search part 13 Portable navigation execution part 14 Balance detection part 15 Switching control part 100 Navigation apparatus 200 Portable terminal

Claims (8)

A vehicle-mounted navigation device having a portable navigation function for performing travel guidance using a navigation function of an application provided in the portable terminal by connecting to a portable terminal,
A balance detection unit for detecting a prepaid balance of the mobile terminal that is executing the application;
A switching control unit that switches the portable navigation function to an in-vehicle navigation function that is a navigation function included in the navigation device when the balance detection unit detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value; A navigation device characterized by comprising. 2. The switching control unit, when the balance detection unit detects that the prepaid balance has returned to a predetermined value or more, switches the in-vehicle navigation function to the portable navigation function and executes it. The navigation device described in 1. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the switching control unit displays a message to switch to the in-vehicle navigation function when the portable navigation function is switched to the in-vehicle navigation function. The navigation device according to claim 2, wherein the switching control unit displays a message to switch to the mobile navigation function when the on-vehicle navigation function is switched to the mobile navigation function. A destination setting unit that receives the destination set by the application of the mobile terminal from the mobile terminal and sets the destination as the destination of the in-vehicle navigation function;
A route search unit for searching a route to the destination set by the destination setting unit as a guide route of the in-vehicle navigation function;
The switching control unit stops execution of the in-vehicle navigation function until the balance detecting unit detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value, and the balance detecting unit determines whether the prepaid balance is When it is detected that the vehicle is less than a predetermined value, execution of the in-vehicle navigation function is started, the destination is set by the destination setting unit, and the guidance route is searched by the route search unit to provide driving guidance. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the navigation device is controlled to perform. A destination setting unit that receives the destination set by the application of the mobile terminal from the mobile terminal and sets the destination as the destination of the in-vehicle navigation function;
A route search unit for searching a route to the destination set by the destination setting unit as a guide route of the in-vehicle navigation function;
The switching control unit is configured so that the in-vehicle navigation function is in a state in which the destination is set by the destination setting unit until the balance detecting unit detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value. When the balance detecting unit detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value, the vehicle navigation function is started, and the route searching unit searches for the guidance route and travel guidance. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the navigation device is controlled to perform the following. A destination setting unit that receives the destination set by the application of the mobile terminal from the mobile terminal and sets the destination as the destination of the in-vehicle navigation function;
A route search unit for searching a route to the destination set by the destination setting unit as a guide route of the in-vehicle navigation function;
The switching control unit executes the in-vehicle navigation function while the route search unit searches for the guidance route until the balance detection unit detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value. And the execution of the in-vehicle navigation function is started when the balance detection unit detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value, and the route search unit uses the guidance route that has been searched. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the navigation device is controlled to perform travel guidance. A method for providing a navigation function in an in-vehicle navigation device having a portable navigation function for performing travel guidance using an application navigation function of the portable terminal connected to a portable terminal,
A first step in which a balance detection unit of the navigation device detects a prepaid balance of the mobile terminal that is executing the application;
When the switching control unit of the navigation device detects that the prepaid balance is less than a predetermined value by the balance detection unit, the portable navigation function is changed to an in-vehicle navigation function that is a navigation function provided in the navigation device. And a second step of switching and executing the navigation function.

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