JP2846558B2 - How to add information to a map - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides information necessary for a map user, such as an on-site survey, by utilizing an unnecessary part of the same map for the purpose of use. The original map display of the part can be sacrificed (in the blank space created by removing the map display or superimposed on the original display) and added and displayed there, immediately at the site where we went to the survey To how to add information to the map.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, as shown in FIG. 5, information necessary for map users, for example, names and locations of specific companies, cautions when entering and exiting buildings, which are not displayed on ordinary general maps. Items, locations of buildings, locations of specific equipment in buildings, etc. are added to the same map using unnecessary parts for the purpose of use, at the expense of the original map display of those parts. Displaying such information is convenient when, for example, a trader who has newly started a transaction with the above-mentioned company transmits necessary information to another person inside the same trader.

[0003] As described above, it is possible to add special information to an ordinary general map without any special difficulty by using an ordinary stationary computer. In such a case, in the past, for example, those who first visited and experienced, for example, directions from the nearest station, remarkable buildings on the way to be a sign, procedures at reception and guard posts, It was usually created by tracing memories or making notes at that time. As long as the computer has a certain degree of function, the above operation can be sufficiently performed.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional method, the memory is inaccurate or the contents of a simple memo are incorrectly input when the user tries to input the information later to the stationary computer at the base. Is easy to occur.

In recent years, what is called a portable so-called notebook computer has been widely circulated, so it seems that it would be better to carry this and carry out an on-site investigation of information to be added to the map and immediately write it. In a notebook computer, a keyboard or a mouse is usually used for input.
The keyboard cannot be made very small due to the thickness of the human fingers, and requires a substantially horizontal place to place it. A mouse also needs a plane with a certain size.
On the other hand, there are many cases where the above-mentioned places cannot be found at the site or at the so-called site. In particular, in the case of machine maintenance companies, it is not unusual for machines to be installed at places where people using the same building do not understand well, or that entrances are changed to special places at night. .
Therefore, it is highly desirable to draw a more detailed sketch of a building on site in addition to a general map, but this requires that computer functions can be used while standing on site.

Further, in the above-mentioned case, a method of inputting a map of a surrounding area to be a base is described in a case where the map is suddenly needed, even if a portable computer is brought. If a printed or handwritten map is to be used as a basis, it may be necessary to input it into a computer that can be read by an image scanner and put it into a portable computer brought to the site by data communication.

When the terrain of the created map changes, for example, it is necessary to change the above-mentioned map in which necessary special information is additionally entered. Would require a considerable amount of man-hours.

[0008] The present invention solves the conventional problems when information is added to a map as described above, and conducts a field survey while viewing the map display of the surrounding area. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for adding information to a map, which is capable of immediately adding necessary information to a map of the above-mentioned surrounding area on site and storing the result.

[0009]

According to the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a map of a target peripheral area to which information is to be added is printed or handwritten on paper as a base paper.
Using a general facsimile machine or from a remote facility where the map is stored, the data is transmitted via a communication line. During that time, the data is once transmitted in analog mode by a general facsimile transmission procedure, and A / D converted by a modem at the time of reception. Then, the contents taken into the storage device of the portable pen computer, which can be operated by directly touching the display screen with the pen, are displayed on the pen computer screen and visited to the site for investigation. We decided to perform additional information input work.

[0010] In addition, in preparation for a case where the map around the information addition target area is changed, the display of a map of a part unnecessary for the purpose of use is partially deleted, and necessary information is added to the deleted part. If you have already created an additional map,
Based on the content of the additional information of the already created map, partially delete the display of the map of the unnecessary part from the display of the changed map for the purpose of use and paste the necessary additional information there. Means to do this automatically are provided.

[0011]

The pen computer requires a certain area on the display screen, but is lightweight and easy to carry because it does not use a keyboard or mouse, and can be used while standing. In addition, with the progress of semiconductor devices in recent years, the functions of pen computers have been greatly improved.

On the other hand, as is well known, in a G3 facsimile apparatus conforming to the CCITT recommendation most commonly used at present, digital processing is inevitably performed inside the apparatus in order to use a CCD or LED for reading and recording. However, most of the telephone lines used today as a mainstay of transmission use copper wires with inductance, and therefore perform analog conversion upon input / output with the outside. Therefore, converting a facsimile analog (eg, MR system for improving telephone line transmission efficiency) signal to a bit map system for input to a solid-state storage device of a pen computer (or vice versa) requires receiving It can be easily done with the modem used sometimes.
Of course, it is also easy to input a signal according to CCITT rules, which outputs a map or the like printed on paper to a telephone line (or an ordinary electric wire) via a facsimile device directly to a computer instead of the facsimile device.

Further, when the base map is changed, the processing for changing and updating the map information database according to the present invention is performed by once creating map information to which necessary information is added. For example, based on the contents of an already created one, it is easy to provide a means for blanking out unnecessary parts of the map for the user and writing necessary information there as in the previous one. . It is needless to say that the work for this change need not be performed by the pen computer, but may be performed by the above-described means on the computer of the department storing the map information database according to the present invention.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A company that implements the present invention usually has a department that stores a database of map information according to the present invention. Such departments usually collect in advance maps of regions and areas where relations are likely to occur. Therefore, a person who conducts a field survey and intends to add necessary information to a map according to the present invention first inputs a map of the surrounding area into a storage device for a pen computer carried by requesting such a department. deep. At this time, if a facsimile apparatus is used, the display of the map digitally read from the map printed on paper as described above is D / A converted and output, and the A / D converted, It is input to a storage device for a pen computer. In order to actually perform such work, there are international recommended standards and regulations as described above, which will be referred to as a facsimile transmission procedure.
FIG. 1 shows the process of loading the map of the surrounding area into the storage of the pen computer in the manner described above before going onsite. FIG. 2 shows the received input map first to check whether there is any change in the past, and if there is no change, go to a site survey and provide necessary information such as directions to a specific building, signs,
In addition, sketches of the building and passages to specific equipment installation locations in the building should be placed in blank areas created by deleting the map display, for example, at the periphery of the map, which is less relevant to the information to be added. , Add and write. Although the functions of pen computers have been improved with the progress of semiconductor devices, they are inevitably inferior in storage capacity and various other capabilities as compared with notebook computers, as well as desktop computers that are larger and heavier. Therefore, when the necessary information has been added to the surrounding area map by the field survey, it is desirable to transmit the content to the above-mentioned map information database storage unit as soon as possible in accordance with the facsimile transmission procedure. Once you do that, you can safely start another task.) It is shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, there is a step of determining whether or not there is a record of the contents of the change of the map. However, this step is a time-consuming and troublesome operation without knowing that a similar field survey has been performed before. It is also necessary to prevent this and to add necessary information to the changed map if the map of that area is changed, in the latter case it is necessary to obtain the changed map Since it is possible, the information addition work is performed by the above-mentioned database storage department, based on the map to which the necessary information has already been added, by creating a blank part at unnecessary places by the automatic creation means described above, By pasting the information, the updating operation can be performed with little effort.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the system according to the present invention. The left frame shows the work in the department that stores the map information database, and the right frame carries the field surveyor. 1 shows operations performed by a pen computer.

[0016]

As described above, according to the present invention, special information necessary for a map user is immediately and accurately provided on the site while conducting a site survey in a map of a surrounding area, and is effective for the user. It can be added at the expense of parts that are not. In addition, even when the map of the surrounding area is changed, if a map to which the above information is added has already been created, the map obtained by adding the information to the map after the above change is almost It can be created automatically without any hassle.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a procedure for loading a map of a peripheral area to which necessary information is to be added into a storage device of a pen computer carried on site.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a procedure for actually adding necessary information to a map of a peripheral area to which necessary information is to be added and saving the contents thereof;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a procedure for transmitting contents stored as shown in FIG. 2 to the map information database storage unit and storing the contents.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the entire system configuration for executing the method for adding information to a map according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a map to which special information to be created according to the present invention is added.

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Shuzo Watanabe 2--14-6 Uchikanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Inside Hitachi Electronics Service Co., Ltd. (72) Akio Otani 2--14 Uchikanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. 6 within Hitachi Electronics Service Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-5-135151 (JP, A) JP-A-5-181411 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) ) G09B 29/00

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] (1) A pen is touched by directly touching a display screen.
A portable computer storage device that can perform power
A first area storing map information of a map of a predetermined area.
And carrying the portable computer to the predetermined area.
And in the area, the map is obtained from the map information.
Display on the display screen of the portable computer,
By touching the display screen with the pen, the map information is displayed.
And a second step of adding information to the report.
How to add information to a featured map. 2. A method for adding information to the map according to claim 1.
In the method, the storage device is stored in the storage device in the first step.
Using a facsimile machine to store map information
A / D converting the map information and storing it in the storage device
Method or the map information that has passed through the transmission path
Any of the methods of storing in said storage device via a modem
A method for adding information to a map, characterized in that a map is used. 3. A method for adding information to the map according to claim 1.
The information of the second step in the map information.
The addition of the information partially erases part of the map information,
Create a blank on the map and add the information to the blank
And adding a map of the predetermined area after the second step.
If there is a change, the map information
Automatically add the information performed in the second step.
Performing the third step of updating and updating the map
How to add information to a map that features.