JP3049064U - Pedestrian navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To provide a map information display system for navigation that is convenient for pedestrians to carry and use. A pedestrian and a target point are included in a range necessary for the pedestrian based on position information including a pedestrian's latitude / longitude information and a target point's latitude / longitude information using GPS. Is retrieved from a database prepared in advance through computer network communication and displayed on a display. The method of positioning the latitude / longitude of the target point is as follows.
A device that retrieves longitude from a database.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

[Technical field to which the invention belongs]

 The present invention relates to a system for displaying map information by positioning a pedestrian and providing information on hotels, sightseeing spots, eating places, and the like by connecting the pedestrian to a navigation device that can be carried by the pedestrian and the Internet.

[0002]

[Prior art]

 Currently, the infrastructure for navigation systems that communicate traffic information is being developed. At present, vehicle information and communication systems (hereinafter referred to as “VICS”) and traffic information services (hereinafter referred to as “ATIS”) are known as such infrastructures.

[0003] In VICS, an optical beacon, a radio wave beacon, or FM multiplex broadcasting is used for communication. ATIS uses a telephone line for communication. Currently, VICS is being tested for commercialization, and ATIS has already been commercialized. In VICS and ATIS, traffic congestion information and traffic regulation information (for example, information on road closures and speed limits) are directly transferred to the on-board navigation device. This allows the driver to obtain current traffic information and traffic regulation information in real time.

[0004] Many navigation devices use a CD-ROM as a storage medium. There is also known a navigation device in which static sightseeing information (information such as sightseeing sights) is stored in a CD-ROM, and a user can obtain desired sightseeing information from the information. Public utility model registration public information on the navigation system or device includes “General Information System” (JP-A-9-257501) and “Navigation Device” (JP-A-9-164450). The former proposes a means to combine and display the map information stored in the secondary storage medium (for example, CD-ROM) and various regional information extracted from the Internet, and the latter proposes a vehicle that also obtains and displays the map information from the Internet. It proposes a navigation device that can be installed.

[0005] In the "Comprehensive Guidance System" (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-257501), a mobile terminal means is provided with a means for detecting its own position information, a secondary storage means for storing map information, and a radio for performing wireless communication. A communication means is added, the corresponding map information is read from the secondary storage means in accordance with the detection result of the position information detection means, and the mobile terminal device displayed on the upper display of the terminal means is connected to a network. A plurality of information providing servers for providing various types of guidance information, and a navigation server connected to the network and having wireless communication control means for communicating with the wireless communication means of the mobile terminal device. I have.

[0006] The navigation server accesses the plurality of information providing services based on a communication result with the mobile terminal device, and collects the above-mentioned guide information effective when the mobile terminal device moves, and obtains the mobile terminal device. The mobile terminal device displays the guide information obtained from the navigation server on the display unit in association with the map information read from the secondary storage means. It is a comprehensive information system.

[0007] However, the above-described system requires GPS, a handheld telephone, a personal computer, and each element of the Internet, which are positioned by radio waves from an artificial satellite. The equipment requires a GPS, a handheld telephone, and a personal computer. There is a problem of heavy equipment due to the use of CD-ROM and ROM drives.

[0008] A "navigation device" (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-164650) is characterized in that it is connected to an information service network through computer communication for the purpose of simplifying the device configuration and reducing costs, and is mounted on a vehicle. Is disclosed. The present invention is characterized in that the navigation device is connected to an information service network through computer communication, and it is possible to obtain desired information through the information service network through computer communication. This eliminates the need for a large-scale storage medium that was required for providing information in the device, thereby simplifying the device configuration.

Further, the navigation device can acquire various information without using an expensive system such as VICS or ATIS by using an information service network by computer communication and an existing system. In addition, since the information provision system can be realized with a general-purpose computer, the production of its components is also easy. In addition, since information services can be diversified, it is possible to acquire information that is not provided by conventional VICS or ATIS and is unrelated to vehicle driving.

Further, in the above “navigation device”, a user obtains information necessary for a drive from a personal computer at home, processes the obtained data for a navigation device, and stores the processed data in a floppy disk. After being stored on a disk or PC card, it was necessary to carry it to the navigation device of the vehicle. However, since the above-mentioned navigation device can perform communication via an information service network by computer communication, Can be referred from a navigation device by registering information contained in a personal computer at home in a WWW server machine. As a result, the usability of the navigation device is improved, and the configuration of the navigation device can be simplified.

Further, by using an information service network by computer communication, a large-scale storage device such as a CD-ROM required for a conventional navigation device becomes unnecessary. It is disclosed that this makes it possible to reduce the cost of the navigation device.

[0012]

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

 The above navigation systems using VICS and ATIS have the following problems. In these navigation systems, expensive computers are used as sources of information. For this reason, the source of information is limited, and it is economically burdensome to provide a system for information services that differs from region to region. For this reason, the user could only obtain the specified information from a specific infrastructure.

For this reason, for example, even if a local government, a specific company, or a specific individual has sightseeing information to be transmitted to a facility or driver who wants to advertise, the information must be provided by the conventional VICS or ATIS. Was difficult. In addition, VICS and ATIS could provide traffic jam information, regulation information, and parking lot information, but could not provide tourist information. This is because the amount of data to be transferred is enormous in this type of system, and it is difficult for VICS and ATIS to collect tourist information and so on.

A navigation device having a CD-ROM drive has the following problems. Mounting a CD-ROM drive in a navigation device led to an increase in the cost of the navigation device. Further, a storage medium such as a CD-ROM cannot hold data (such as map data or sightseeing data) that exceeds the storage capacity of the medium. Therefore, a plurality of map data, facility information, and sightseeing information (including audio data, moving image data, etc.) had to be configured within the determined capacity of the medium.

As a result, there is a problem that, for example, the map data is simplified or uniformized. Furthermore, the tourist information previously input to a storage medium such as a CD-ROM is static information (information that does not normally change), and unpredictable tourist information that changes over time (for example, autumn leaves, cherry blossom information, It is difficult to store festival information and various event information of each place on CD-ROM. Since the information is temporary, it is less attractive as a product considering the time required for distribution of the CD-ROM.

As a use of the conventional navigation device, a user obtains information necessary for a drive at home using an information providing device such as a personal computer, and inputs the information to a navigation device mounted on a vehicle. Sometimes. However, in such a navigation device, a user must input information from a personal computer at home into a PC card or a floppy disk and then carry the information to a navigation device mounted on a vehicle. It was complicated. In this case, it is necessary to connect a PC card or a floppy disk reader to the navigation device, which increases the cost of the device.

[0017] The "navigation device" described in the conventional example requires GPS, a mobile phone, and a personal computer, and is heavy when pedestrians use it while carrying it. . Regarding this, since the subject is a vehicle, the display and display range of map information are not mentioned, and no solution is proposed for use for pedestrians.

Most navigation systems up to now have been mainly for vehicles or those using a personal computer for home use as a terminal. This is partly because the navigation system itself requires extensive equipment. Many maps were simplified, and it was unfriendly to walk to the destination. In the case of a car, which is moving at high speed, the display is centered on the main street (main street). In contrast, the purpose of the present invention is to provide maps and information that can be referred to at the speed at which pedestrians walk.

[0019] Based on the above problems, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to propose a map information display system for navigation that is convenient for pedestrians to carry and use.

[0020]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a pedestrian navigation system using an intelligent terminal capable of connecting to a portable computer net for navigating a pedestrian, and the pedestrian's latitude / longitude information, Based on the location information consisting of the latitude and longitude information of the target point, map information including the pedestrian and the target point and including a range necessary for the pedestrian is prepared from a database prepared in advance through computer network communication. Take it out and display it on the display.

As the means for positioning the latitude / longitude of the target point, a point name is inputted, and a latitude / longitude corresponding to the inputted point name is inputted from a database. A means for extracting the latitude / longitude corresponding to the place name from a prepared database via computer network communication is adopted.

The pedestrian's latitude / longitude positioning means may be an automatic positioning means using GPS, or the pedestrian's latitude / longitude positioning method may be such that a location name is input and the input location name is input. It is also possible to take out the latitude and longitude corresponding to the above from a prepared database. Also, by using both means and selecting and using them, the range of use can be expanded.

Further, by designating a base on the map, the information of the type required by the pedestrian is displayed from a database on the Internet having service information linked to the target base. This information includes the means of transportation between bases and the optimal time, town information, sightseeing spot information, accommodation place information, and the like.

In the system of the present invention, GPS is used as a current pedestrian positioning device. When a pedestrian calls the navigation information service center using a mobile phone, the location of the pedestrian and the nearest landmark (target) can be obtained from the map prepared on the server (the map can be a separate Web server). Location), the minimum distance (linear distance) between them is calculated from the map using latitude and longitude, and the minimum distance (linear distance) is always used as a reference scale to display both positions. The map information in the necessary range is displayed on the display at the optimal magnification.

For example, when a target (a destination) is newly specified, the shortest distance from the immediately preceding target to the newly specified target is obtained, and the shortest distance is used as a reference scale at a new map at an optimum magnification. Is displayed on the display. The map is displayed on the display at the optimum magnification in the same manner. By specifying a base on the map, the type of information required by the pedestrian is displayed from a database having service information linked to the base. Contents can be selected in a hierarchical structure.

[0026]

[Embodiment of the invention]

 An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Automatic positioning is performed by GPS for pedestrian positioning. Recently, GPS integrated circuits have appeared, and you can check your position by latitude and longitude just by setting it as a PC card in a personal computer. In the case of manual input, if a place name is input in advance, the server of the navigation information center calculates the latitude and longitude. Once the pedestrian can be located, the nearest target or destination is searched based on the map information, and the shortest distance (linear distance) between the current position and the nearest target is determined. Based on this shortest distance, It calculates the optimal display magnification of the map, sends the map information to the terminal, and displays it on the terminal.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the system of the present invention. The communication device 1 and the intelligent terminal 2 are connected via the Internet 5. The communication device 1 may be a home telephone, a public telephone, or a mobile telephone. However, mobile phones are preferred for pedestrians. As the intelligent terminal 2, a configurable device such as a notebook personal computer or a system organizer is preferable. In the case of an intelligent terminal with a built-in GPS, the current position of the pedestrian is sent directly to the server 3 of the navigation information center in latitude and longitude. If GPS is not installed, enter the place name. In this case, the place name is sent to the server 3, and the server calculates the latitude and longitude.

In any case, when the current location of the pedestrian is determined, the server 3 searches the map for a nearest target. Target landmarks include the nearest stations, airports, and terminals. These pieces of information are stored as pairs of place names and location information in the information service network database 6 of the server (which may be on another Web server).

When the current position of the pedestrian and the nearest target are determined as described above, in this example, the server 3 obtains the shortest distance between the two points. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a display method. Assuming that the pedestrian's current position A and the calculated nearest target position B are d, the actual distance (distance on the map) of the straight line AB is d from the latitude and longitude of both, and the straight line AB and the east-west direction (x-axis). Direction), the east-west component d _x and the north-south component _dy are obtained as follows: d _x = d · cos (θ) _dy = d · sin (θ).

The point A, so that B is always fit in the display area 7, with respect to appropriate coefficient _{c, h = L y / L} x d x '= cd x d y' = cd y h'= d y / (if, however _{d x = 0, h'= h} + 1 to) d _x a request, if _{h ≧ h'α = L x /} (d x + 2d x ') h <h' if α = L _y / (d _y + 2d _y ′) to determine the optimum magnification α for display. Here, L _x and _Ly represent the length of the display area in the horizontal direction (x direction) and the vertical direction (y direction).

A map is displayed in the vertical direction in the north at the determined magnification and so that the midpoint Ct of the straight line AB is located at the center ( _Lx / 2, _Ly / 2) of the display area. For example, x-coordinate of the display area of the point separated by a distance D _x on the map from the point Ct on the x-direction is calculated (the coordinates of the display area of the point Ct) + .alpha.D _x.

When an ordinary person does daily shopping, it is said that a radius of 500 meters is an activity range. This is about 7 minutes walking at 4 kilometers per hour. Depending on the distance d of Hometown and the objective point, the distance d _x 'or d _y' is preferably about 500 m or et al.1 km.

With the above-described map display method using the optimum magnification (hereinafter referred to as “optimal map information display method”), the points A and B always enter the display area, and a map of the same scale as the actual map can be drawn.

Next, when a target C (target point C) is input, a new map is drawn based on the points B and C by the same method as described above. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 3, a map is displayed in the order of display 1, display 2, and display 3 by sequentially designating a target (a destination). The display method is performed by the optimal magnification map information display method.

When a base on the map is designated, the surrounding information is obtained. Systematically, the information service you want to obtain obtains information from the Web server 4 (see Fig. 1) through the Internet. The information has a hierarchical structure and can be obtained by a menu selection method. Details will be given later.

In any case, when the position of the pedestrian is determined within a certain range, the server searches for a target closest to the pedestrian, and maps the map using an optimal map information display method based on the base station and the target. Send to terminal and display on terminal display.

[0037] At this time, if the radius of the reach of radio waves is longer than l _x 'or l _y' shown in Figure 2 is replaced by the radius of the reach of l _x 'or l _y' radio wave. In other words, the range that radio waves can reach must be displayed. In FIG. 4, point A is a base station, point B is the nearest target, and radio wave reach area 8 is indicated by a circle. There will be pedestrians in this circle.

Hereinafter, a map is displayed by an optimum map information display method by sequentially designating a target (a destination). In addition, service information such as accommodation facilities and restaurants can be made available by specifying each base.

FIG. 5 shows a procedure for acquiring information using a computer network. Function 1 is a procedure for acquiring map information, and function 2 is a procedure for acquiring service information such as town information. In the service information acquisition procedure, desired information can be acquired by hierarchically selecting menus. In the example shown in the figure, first, the nearest landmark (destination location) and service information are automatically linked. For example, select “1. If you select "Restaurant information", a resort information menu will be displayed. Further here, "1. If you select "Hida no Sato", you will be connected to the website that provides "Hida no Sato Information" via the Internet, and you can get the contents.

FIG. 6 shows an information providing destination and an information obtaining procedure. Map information and other service information is obtained from computer networks such as the Internet. The service information can also be used to search for routes under optimal conditions for transit based on timetables such as airplanes and JR. However, what kind of information is processed and displayed under what conditions is outside the scope of the present invention. By connecting to the Internet, useful information can be processed and provided to pedestrians. .

[0041]

[Effect of the invention]

 The feature of the present invention is to provide information suitable for pedestrians. For example, by connecting to a navigation information center, the nearest landmarks (destinations) automatically searched for are stations, airports, and terminals. This is because the emphasis is on. Also, the displayed map is a full-scale map, so it is easy to understand for pedestrians.

[0042] In a map for a car such as a car navigation system, a wide-area map is required to move on the main street at high speed, and the map itself is used for a target that is easily visible even at high speed. There is no problem even if it is deformed to some extent. However, in the case of pedestrians, accurate maps are useful information for pedestrians because they move at the speed of walking on complicated streets on the corners of buildings. This is a major difference from the conventional navigation system mainly for automobiles.

Since the points from the target point to the target point are always displayed on the map, the relative positions can be confirmed and the pedestrians can easily see. This is also because the map is based on the walking range of pedestrians. Although it is possible to display a wide area such as from Tokyo Station to Osaka Station, there are no obstacles for pedestrians in this case because the display is centered on transportation. Rather, it provides important information for pedestrians to choose the means of travel.

[0044] Since all information services such as eating places, lodging, and play guides, including map information, can be obtained via the Internet, the terminal side needs only a light system configuration. All information obtained by the present invention can be used simply by using a portable terminal as an intelligent terminal having a communication function, a simple judgment function and a display function. This is also advantageous for the design of pedestrian terminals.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a system configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of an optimum magnification map information display function in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which targets are sequentially displayed by the optimum magnification map information display function in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of display of map information in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a procedure of various information services in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a procedure for selecting various information by positioning using a GPS and a connection between systems in the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Communication device 2 Intelligent terminal 3 Navigation information center server 4 Web server 5 Internet 6 Information service network database 7 Display area 8 Range of radio wave

Claims (3)

[Utility model registration claims] 1. A pedestrian navigation system using an intelligent terminal connectable to a portable computer net for navigating a pedestrian, wherein (1) G
Means for obtaining pedestrian latitude / longitude information using PS,
(2) Entering the target point name, means for extracting the latitude and longitude information corresponding to the input target point name from the database, (3) from the latitude and longitude information of the pedestrian and the latitude and longitude information of the target point Means for extracting map information of a range necessary for the pedestrian, including the pedestrian and the target point, from a database prepared in advance through computer network communication, and displaying the map information on a display based on the position information. A pedestrian navigation system, comprising: 2. A navigation system for a pedestrian using an intelligent terminal connectable to a portable computer net for navigating a pedestrian, wherein (1) G
Means for obtaining pedestrian latitude / longitude information using PS,
Alternatively, a means for acquiring a pedestrian's latitude / longitude information, which is capable of selecting a means for inputting a place name and extracting a latitude / longitude corresponding to the inputted place name from a database,
(2) Entering the target point name, means for extracting the latitude and longitude information corresponding to the input target point name from the database, (3) from the latitude and longitude information of the pedestrian and the latitude and longitude information of the target point Means for extracting map information of a range necessary for the pedestrian, including the pedestrian and the target point, from a database prepared in advance through computer network communication, and displaying the map information on a display based on the position information. A pedestrian navigation system, comprising: 3. A pedestrian navigation system using an intelligent terminal connectable to a portable computer net for navigating a pedestrian, wherein (1) G
Means for obtaining pedestrian latitude / longitude information using PS,
(2) Enter the target point name, means to retrieve the latitude and longitude information corresponding to the input target point name from the database, (3) From the latitude and longitude information of the pedestrian and the latitude and longitude information of the target point Based on the location information, including the pedestrian and the target point, and retrieves map information of a range necessary for the pedestrian from a database prepared in advance via computer network communication, and displays the information on a display; (4) pedestrian navigation characterized by comprising means for extracting via a computer network communication from a database having service information linked to the base by designating the base on the map and displaying it on a display system.