JP2014238519A - Electronic device and method for displaying icon - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide "an electronic device and a facility display method" which, when a specific stack icon is operated on, can also have the effect of the operation reflected on other stack icons present on a display screen.SOLUTION: A facility display program 200 comprises: a facility search part 202 for searching for a facility to be displayed on a map; a facility data extraction part 204 for extracting necessary facility data pertaining to the searched facility; an icon creation part 206 for creating an icon on the basis of the extracted facility data; an icon display part 208 for displaying the created icon on the map; a stack icon identification part 210 for identifying a stack icon selected by a user operation; a stack content display part 212 for having a stacked content displayed on the identified stack icon; a change determination part 214 for determining whether or not a representative icon of the stack icon has been changed; and a stack information change part 216 for changing stack information about the stack icon when the representative icon is changed.

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus having an icon display function for indicating a position of interest (POI (Point of Interest)) such as a facility on a map, and more particularly to a method for displaying a POI icon in a navigation apparatus.

  The navigation device is equipped with a function of searching for facilities and the like using a database prepared in advance. Search methods include, for example, a genre search that searches for facilities of a selected genre, a peripheral facility search that searches for facilities around the vehicle location, a phone number search that searches for facilities from a telephone number, and a facility from a name or keyword. There is name search to search. The search result is displayed as an icon on the road map or the name of the facility is displayed as a list, so that the user selects a desired facility from the search result and sets it as a destination or waypoint be able to.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the facility display in the navigation device. A large number of icons 500 are displayed on the road map so as to indicate the facility positions. When displaying the icons 500 in this way, if many icons are displayed densely or overlapped, it becomes difficult to see roads and icons. To avoid this, the distance between the icons is within a certain range. The navigation apparatus has a function of displaying a single representative icon by stacking a plurality of icons. By using such a function, the display density of the icons can be kept constant, and the road map is easy to see for the user.

  Such stacked icons are called, for example, stack icons, and a plurality of adjacent icons are grouped into one. As shown in FIG. 9, the stack icon 520 is a collection of peripheral icons 540 indicated by dotted lines around the periphery, and only one representative icon of the peripheral icons 540 is displayed as a representative icon. The For example, a + mark is added to the upper right of the stack icon 520 so that it can be distinguished from other icons. The peripheral icons 540 are not displayed on the actual display screen of the navigation device. The icons included in the stack icon are stacked according to a predetermined rule, for example, a priority order of genres.

  When the user operates the stack icon with a touch operation, a cursor, or the like, the display of each of a plurality of collected icons can be sequentially changed. For example, when the stack icons are stacked in the order of categories of gas station, convenience store, and fast food, the user operates the stack icons so that the icons are switched in a certain period according to the category order. In this state, for example, when the user selects a convenience store icon, the representative icon of the stack icon is changed to the convenience store icon.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a technique related to a car navigation device that can display only a representative logo mark so that the logo mark does not overlap even when a plurality of facilities are densely arranged on a display map. Further, in Patent Document 2, when the number of facilities is a predetermined value or more, a representative icon display area is provided in a part of the display screen, and the icon displayed on the map is operated by operating the representative icon. A technology related to a navigation device that can select the menu is disclosed.

JP 2004-69561 A JP 2006-275661 A

  For example, if there is no icon indicating the location of a convenience store on the map displayed on the screen of the navigation device, the user must operate a specific stack icon and search for an icon corresponding to the convenience store from the stack icons. there were. When there are a plurality of stack icons on the map, it is necessary to operate the stack icons one by one to check whether there is a convenience store, and the operation is complicated for the user.

  The present invention solves such a conventional problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device and an icon display method that improve the operability of an integrated image obtained by integrating a plurality of position images.

  The electronic apparatus according to the present invention includes a creation unit that creates an integrated image obtained by integrating a plurality of position images into one position image when there are a plurality of position images within a certain range on a displayed map; Display means for displaying a position image selected from a plurality of position images included in the integrated image as a representative of the integrated image, and when the representative position image of the integrated image is changed to another position image, According to the change, a change means for changing a representative position image of another integrated image is provided, and a position image representing a position of interest can be displayed on the map.

  Preferably, the display unit displays, as a representative, the position image selected based on the priority order of the plurality of position images included in the integrated image, and the priority order is given to the order information given to the category of the position of interest. The changing means can change the order information when a representative position image is changed. In addition, when the representative position image is changed, the display means can change the display position of the integrated image to a position corresponding to the changed representative position image.

  Preferably, the position image is an icon indicating POI, the integrated image is a stack icon in which icons are combined into one, and the display means adds one icon included in the stack icon to the integrated information. Based on this, it is displayed as a representative icon.

  An icon display method according to the present invention includes a step of creating a stack icon in which a plurality of icons within a certain range on a displayed map are combined into one, and stacking a high priority icon from the stack icons. A step of displaying the icon as a representative icon of the icon, and a step of simultaneously changing the representative icon of the other stack icon according to the change when the representative icon of the selected stack icon is changed. A POI icon can be displayed. For example, the priority is order information set according to the category of POI.

  According to the present invention, when the representative position image of the integrated image is changed, the representative position image of the other integrated image can be changed at the same time, and the complexity of the user operation can be reduced.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus which concerns on the Example of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structure of a facility display program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a stack icon. It is a figure which shows the example of the stack information of a stack icon. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the display screen of a navigation apparatus. It is a flowchart explaining the facility display operation | movement by a present Example. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the stack content of the stack icon by a present Example. It is a figure which shows the stack information of each stack icon explaining the facility display operation | movement by a present Example. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the facility display in a navigation apparatus.

  Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The electronic device of the present invention is fixedly mounted on a moving body such as an automobile, and can be brought into the moving body by a user (for example, a smartphone such as a multi-function phone or a tablet terminal), Alternatively, any one that is detachable from the moving body may be used. The electronic device of the present invention is equipped with a navigation function, but other functions such as a function for reproducing audio / video data, a function for receiving television / radio broadcasts, a function for executing application software, and the like are integrated. It may be provided. Furthermore, the electronic device of the present invention may itself store road map data for executing a navigation function in a storage device, or may be necessary from a distribution site or a distribution server via a data communication means. Road map data may be acquired. In the following description, a navigation device mounted on a vehicle is illustrated as an example of an electronic device.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The navigation device 100 includes a position information acquisition unit 102 that acquires own vehicle position information, a traffic information acquisition unit 104 that acquires road traffic information such as traffic jams and traffic restrictions, a user input unit 106 that receives input from a user, wired or wireless A data communication unit 108 that enables data communication with the outside, a display unit 110 that displays a road map or the like on a display, an audio output unit 112 that outputs sound, a storage unit 114, and an external device that enables connection with an external device An interface (I / F) 116 and a control unit 118 that controls each unit are configured. The configuration shown here is an example, and the navigation device is not necessarily limited to such a configuration.

  The position information acquisition unit 102 is mounted on a vehicle such as a gyro sensor or an acceleration sensor that detects the absolute position of the own vehicle using a signal transmitted from a GPS satellite 136 (see FIG. 1B), for example. The relative position of the vehicle can be detected from various sensors. Further, as shown in FIG. 1B, the position information acquisition unit 102 can access the position information distribution site (or distribution server) 130 via the network 120 and acquire the vehicle position information therefrom. . In this case, connection to the network 120 is performed via the data communication unit 108.

  The traffic information acquisition unit 104 acquires, for example, road traffic information superimposed on FM radio broadcasts or other broadcast waves, or receives road traffic information by radio communication from an antenna installed on a roadside such as a main road or an expressway. Can be acquired. Further, as shown in FIG. 1B, the traffic information acquisition unit 104 can access a road traffic information distribution site (or distribution server) 134 via the network 120 and acquire road traffic information therefrom. . In this case, connection to the network 120 is performed via the data communication unit 108.

  The user input unit 106 provides an interface between the user and the navigation device 100. The user input unit 106 can include an input key device, a touch panel, a voice recognition device, and the like. The data communication unit 108 enables wired or wireless data communication using WiFi, LAN, infrared communication, a telephone line, or the like. The data communication unit 108 may have a built-in function in the navigation device, or may use a communication function by externally connecting a mobile phone or a smartphone. As described above, the data communication unit 108 can be connected to various data distribution sites via the network 120 as shown in FIG.

  The display unit 110 displays a road map when guiding a guidance route to a destination, displays a search result when a facility search is performed, a menu screen for setting various settings of the navigation device, and the like Including a touch panel compatible display. The audio output unit 22 includes a speaker that outputs guidance route guidance, various warnings, and the like.

  The storage unit 114 can store road map data and the like necessary for the operation of the navigation device 100. In one example, the storage unit 114 includes a large-capacity storage device, and a database such as road map data and facility data can be stored therein. In another example, the storage unit 114 can access the road map data distribution site 132 via the network 120 as shown in FIG. 1B and acquire necessary road map data and the like therefrom. In this case, connection to the network 120 is performed via the data communication unit 108.

  In a preferred embodiment, the control unit 118 includes a microcontroller including a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and the ROM or the RAM can store various programs for controlling the operation of each unit of the navigation device. The program includes, for example, a program that searches for a destination or waypoint, a program that searches for an optimum route to the destination, and a program that searches for a facility using a database or the like. Further, the control unit 118 includes a POI display program for displaying an icon of a position or point of interest (POI) such as a facility, a historic site, a landmark, a station, or a shrine on a road map. In the following description, an example in which facility icons are displayed as a representative example of POI will be described.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the facility display program in the present embodiment. The facility display program has a function of displaying an icon indicating each facility at a corresponding position on the map displayed on the navigation device, for example, in order to provide the user with the location of the facility. In this way, the icons indicating each facility are displayed on the map, so that the user can immediately grasp the facility that is the destination or waypoint, the facility that serves as a landmark during driving, and the position thereof. . The facility display program can be executed in various situations. For example, the facility display program is executed when searching for a destination or a waypoint, searching for surrounding facilities at the vehicle position, or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the facility display program 200 uses a facility database to search for a facility to be displayed on a map, a facility search unit 202, and a facility data extraction unit 204 to extract necessary facility data related to the searched facility. An icon creation unit 206 that creates an icon based on the extracted facility data, an icon display unit 208 that displays the created icon on a map, a stack icon identification unit 210 that identifies a stack icon selected by a user operation, and a stack The stack content display unit 212 for displaying the contents stacked on the stack icon identified by the icon identification unit 210, the change determination unit 214 for determining whether or not the representative icon of the stack icon has been changed, and the change determination unit 214 When it is determined that the icon has changed Comprising a stack information changing unit 216 for changing the stack information of the stack icon. However, the functions shown here are the main functions of the facility display program 200, and other functions not shown here are executed by the control unit 118.

  The facility search unit 202 searches for peripheral facilities to be displayed on the map by referring to the facility database based on the conditions or instructions input by the user. The facility database includes the name, location information, category (genre), address, telephone number, etc. of each facility, and further includes image data of the facility, information when the facility is displayed as an icon, facility review information, and facility characteristics. Detailed information such as can be included. When the navigation apparatus 100 includes a facility database in the storage unit 114, a search is performed using the facility database. When the road map data distribution site 132 has a facility database, the facility is searched using the facility database of the distribution site 132.

  The icon creation unit 206 creates an icon displayed on the map based on the facility data. The icon is image data indicating each facility, and a mark corresponding to the genre of each facility or a logo mark unique to the facility is used.

  The icon creation unit 206 creates a stack icon so that only one representative icon is displayed by collecting a plurality of icons when a large number of icons are concentrated in a certain area. In the stack icon, icons representing a plurality of facilities are combined in one stack, and only one representative icon, that is, the representative icon is displayed. By using the stack icon, it is possible to avoid a large number of icons from being crowded, displayed overlapping each other, or covering the road.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the stack icon. The icon creation unit 206 creates a display form in which, for example, as shown in FIG. 3A, a + mark 222 is attached to a part of the upper right of the icon 220 so that the stack icon and the general icon can be identified. To do. The display form of the stack icon is not limited to this, and as shown in FIG. 3B, the icons 220A to 220C appear to overlap each other, or as shown in FIG. The display frame may be doubled. The stack icon is not limited to the illustrated display form, and may be any icon that can be distinguished from a general icon.

  The icon creation unit 206 compares the coordinates (latitude, longitude) of adjacent icons, and identifies the adjacent icons as icons to be stacked when the distance between the coordinates is equal to or less than the threshold value. Stack. The number of adjacent icons is not particularly limited, and three or more icons may be stacked. Further, since the number of icons displayed on the map and the degree of congestion differ according to the map scale, the threshold value can be changed to an appropriate value according to the map scale. The stack icons shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C are displayed at, for example, the coordinates of any of the stacked icons, or the approximate center point of the plurality of stacked icons. It should be noted that the distance to determine whether or not to stack icons is not limited to the straight line distance between the icon coordinates, but a distance between the icons can also be used.

  Further, the icon creation unit 206 creates stack information indicating the stack contents of the stack icon when creating the stack icon. FIG. 4 is an example of stack information of the stack icon. As shown in FIG. 4, the stack information includes identification information (facility A, B, C,... N) for identifying a facility, icon images (images A, B, C,... N) regarding the facility, and the category of the facility. Information, facility location information, and order information (1, 2, 3,... N) defining the order of stacking on the stack icon are included. In the present embodiment, the order of stacking on the stack icons is defined by category information. In the example of FIG. 4, a convenience store is set as the order “1”, a restaurant is set as the order “2”, and a gas station is set as the order “3”. Has been. Therefore, the representative icon of the stack icon is the convenience store image B, and icons of other categories are not displayed.

  The order according to the category information can be set or changed by the user. In addition, when the user sets the icon of a desired category to be hidden, the setting may be automatically reflected. That is, the category set not to be displayed is prevented from being in the order “1”. On the other hand, when the user has set and displayed the icon of the desired category, the display and set category may be automatically set so that the order is “1”. In this embodiment, as described later, when the representative icon of the stack icon is changed, the order based on the category information of the stack information is changed so that the representative icons of the other stack icons are also changed in conjunction with each other. In addition, when the stack contents of the stack icon are displayed by the user operation, the stack information shown in FIG. 4 is referred to. However, if the facility name or the word-of-mouth is displayed when displaying the stack contents, the stack information is displayed. The information may include facility name and word-of-mouth information, or link information to a database to facilitate access to such information. The stack information created in this way is held in the memory.

  The icon display unit 208 synthesizes and displays the icon created by the icon creation unit 206 on the road map data. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a map around the vehicle position of the navigation device. On the screen 250 of the navigation device 100, icons 260A to 260E indicating normal facilities and stack icons 270A to 270C indicating the representative icons are displayed together with surrounding icons. The displayed icons 260A to 260E and stack icons 270A to 270C provide a user interface, that is, can be selected by a user input such as a touch panel or a cursor.

  When the user selects any of the stack icons 270A to 270C displayed on the screen 250, the stack icon identification unit 210 identifies the stack icon. When the stack icon is identified by the stack icon identifying unit 210, the stack content display unit 212 reads the corresponding stack information (FIG. 4) from the memory based on the identification result, and displays the stack content of the stack icon. The display mode of the stack content is not particularly limited. For example, icons other than the representative icon included in the identified stack icon are switched and displayed at regular time intervals or by a user's selection operation. For example, in the example of FIG. 4, when a convenience store image B is displayed as a representative icon, the image B is switched to a restaurant image C, and then the image C is displayed for a certain period of time. After that, the image is switched to the image A of the gas station. Next, after the image A is displayed for a certain period of time, an icon image corresponding to the next category is displayed according to the order information. In addition to this, the icon images stacked on the stack icon may be displayed at one time, or when displaying, the balloon notation or display is divided into two screens and displayed on one of them. May be. Furthermore, the stack content may be displayed not only for the icon image but also for the facility name and its word-of-mouth information as described above. In this way, when the user selects the stack icon, the stacked contents that are not currently displayed are displayed, so that other facilities that are stacked can be confirmed. The representative icon can be changed.

  The change determination unit 214 determines whether the representative icon of the stack icon has been changed. In a preferred mode, when the stack content of the stack icon is displayed by the stack content display unit 212, the user selects an icon different from the current representative icon (for example, a touch operation on the displayed icon for a predetermined time or more = When a long press is detected), it is determined that the representative icon has been changed. In this case, a confirmation button for changing the representative icon may be displayed on the screen.

  When the change determination unit 214 determines that the representative icon of the stack icon has been changed, the stack information change unit 216 changes the stack information illustrated in FIG. 4 based on the change. For example, in the example of FIG. 4, the current representative icon is a convenience store image B. When this representative icon is changed to an image A that is an icon of a gas station in order “3”, the stack information is changed. The unit 216 changes at least the order of the gas stations to “1”. The order of other categories may be lowered as it is, or the order of the category of the current representative icon and the order of the representative icon to be changed may be switched.

  Further, the stack information changing unit 216 changes the stack information so that the representative icons of the other stack icons displayed on the screen are also changed at the same time. For example, when the representative icon of the stack icon 270A shown in FIG. 5 is changed, the order information of the stack information of the other stack icons 270B and 270C is similarly changed. That is, at least the order of the gas stations is changed to “1” in the stack information of the stack icons 270B and 270C. However, since the stack icons 270B and 270C do not always stack facilities of the same category as the stack icon 270A, if the gas station is not stacked on the stack icons 270B and 270C, the stack information The changing unit 216 does not change the contents of the stack information.

  When the stack information is changed by the stack information changing unit 216, the icon display unit 208 displays a stack icon according to the changed stack information. Accordingly, when the representative icon of one stack icon is changed, if the other stack icon is stacked in the same category of facility, the representative icons of the other stack icons are also changed at the same time.

  Next, the facility display operation in the navigation apparatus of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Here, it is assumed that the control unit 118 displays the search result of the surrounding facilities of the own vehicle according to the facility display program, and then the user operates the stack icon to change the representative icon. First, when an instruction to perform a peripheral facility is input from the menu screen or the like, a peripheral facility search is started.

  The facility data extraction unit 204 extracts facility data from the facility database according to the search result of the surrounding facility search unit 202, and the icon creation unit 206 creates normal icons and stack icons based on the extracted facility data. (S100). Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the icon display unit 208 displays normal icons 260A to 260E and stack icons 270A to 270C on the road (S102). The user recognizes facilities existing around the vehicle position from the icons displayed on the map.

  When the user wants to check the facilities stacked on the stack icons 270A to 270C, the user selects a desired stack icon with the cursor or the touch panel. As a result, the stack icon identifying unit 210 identifies the selected stack icon (S104). When the stack icon is identified, the stack content of the stack icon identified by the stack content display unit 212 is displayed (S106).

  FIGS. 7A to 7C show examples in which the stack icon 270A shown in FIG. 5 is identified and the stack contents shown in FIG. 8A are displayed. As shown in FIG. 7A, the initial representative icon of the stack icon 270A is an image B, which is displayed. Next, as shown in FIGS. 7B, 7 </ b> C, and 7 </ b> D, the display of the image B is switched to the image C, the image A, and the image D in a certain period or by a user's selection operation. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 7E, the image C, the image A, and the image D may be simultaneously displayed for a certain period as the balloon notation 272 of the stack icon 270A.

  Next, the change determination unit 214 determines whether there is a change in the representative icon of the stack icon (S108). For example, if a user input for selecting the image C is performed during the display period shown in FIG. 7B, the change determination unit 214 determines that the representative icon has been changed to the image C. This means that the restaurant category of the stack icon 270A is changed to the order “1”. If the change determination unit 214 determines that there is a change, the stack information change unit 216 changes the stack information of the stack icon based on the determination result (S110).

  8B and 8C show examples of stack information of the stack icons 270B and 270C. The stack information changing unit 216 changes the stack information of the other stack icons 270B and 270C simultaneously with the change of the stack information of the stack icon selected by the user. According to the above example, in the stack information of the stack icon 270A, the order is changed so that the restaurant image C is selected as the representative icon. In the stack information of the stack icon 270B, the order is changed so that the restaurant image E is selected as the representative icon. Since the category corresponding to the restaurant is not included in the stack information of the stack icon 270C, the stack information changing unit 216 determines that there is no need to change the stack information, and maintains the order as it is.

  As a result, “Image C” of the restaurant as the representative icon of the stack icon 270A, “Image G” of the restaurant as the representative icon of the stack icon 270B, and “Image H” of the convenience store as the representative icon of the stack icon 270C are simultaneously displayed. Switch.

  As described above, in the above embodiment, when the representative icon of the selected stack icon is changed, the representative icons of other stack icons can be changed at the same time according to the category information. As a result, the user does not have to change the representative icon by operating the stack icons one by one as in the prior art, and the user's complicated procedures can be reduced.

  Note that when the representative icon of the stack icon is changed, the icon creation unit 206 may change the display position of the stack icon. For example, when the display position of the stack icon is set to the coordinate position of the representative icon, it is changed to the coordinate position of the changed representative icon.

  In the above embodiment, the representative icon of the stack icon is determined based on the rank of the category information. In addition to the category information, for example, the rank of the brand name of the facility (brand A, brand B,... ), The ranking of the chain store (chain store A, chain store B,... Chain store n), the rank of the franchise store (franchise store A, franchise store B,... Franchise store n), etc. Also good. In this case, the order is set in advance, and when the representative icon of the selected stack icon is changed, the order is changed accordingly.

  Furthermore, although the example which displays the icon of a facility was shown in the said Example, it is applicable also to the display of the icon of POIs other than a facility. The display mode of the POI icon is not limited to a two-dimensional image, and may be a three-dimensional image. For example, when a plurality of facilities or the like are in one occupancy building, the stack icon may be an image of one three-dimensional building.

  Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, the present invention is not limited to specific embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the gist of the invention described in the claims. Is possible.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100: Navigation apparatus 102: Location information acquisition part 104: Traffic information acquisition part 106: User input part 108: Data communication part 110: Display part 112: Audio | voice output part 114: Storage part 116: External interface 118: Control part 120: Network 130 to 134: Distribution site 136: Satellite 200: Facility search program 202: Facility search unit 204: Facility data extraction unit 206: Icon creation unit 208: Icon display unit 210: Stack icon identification unit 212: Stack content display unit 214: Change Determination unit 214: Stack information changing unit 250: Display screens 260A to E: Icons 270A to C: Stack icons 272: Speech balloon notation 500: Icons 520: Stack icons 540: Surrounding icons

Claims (7)

An electronic device capable of displaying a position image representing a position of interest on a map,
Creating means for creating an integrated image obtained by integrating a plurality of position images into one position image when there are a plurality of position images within a certain range on the displayed map;
Display means for displaying a position image selected from a plurality of position images included in the integrated image as a representative of the integrated image;
When the representative position image of the integrated image is changed to another position image, a change unit that changes the representative position image of the other integrated image according to the change;
An electronic device. The display means displays a position image selected based on the priority order of a plurality of position images included in the integrated image as a representative, and the priority order is order information given to a category of the position of interest. The electronic device according to claim 1. The electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the changing unit changes the order information when a representative position image is changed. 4. The display unit according to claim 1, wherein when the representative position image is changed, the display unit changes the display position of the integrated image to a position corresponding to the changed representative position image. 5. Electronic equipment. The position image is an icon indicating POI, the integrated image is a stack icon in which icons are combined into one, and the display means displays one icon included in the stack icon based on the integrated information. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic device is displayed as an icon. An icon display method capable of displaying a POI icon on a map,
Creating a stack icon that combines a plurality of icons within a certain range on the displayed map into one,
Displaying a high priority icon from among the stack icons as a representative icon of the stack icon;
When the representative icon of the selected stack icon is changed, the step of simultaneously changing the representative icon of the other stack icon according to the change;
Display method of icons having The icon display method according to claim 6, wherein the priority is order information set in accordance with a POI category.

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