JP3501195B2 - Vehicle navigation system - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a technical field of a vehicle navigation device that searches for an optimum route from a current position to a destination and guides a vehicle to the destination according to the optimum route.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A vehicular navigation system searches a route from a current position or a designated starting point to a destination based on an input of a destination, etc., and provides route guidance based on the searched optimum route. Thus, the driver is provided with information on the route to the destination when traveling on an unguided road. In this route search, it is possible to re-search for the optimum route when traffic congestion on the road or traffic regulation is encountered.

For example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-182596 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-95423, traffic information such as traffic congestion information of a road is received, and traffic congestion occurs in the forward traveling direction on a preset optimum route. When a location is detected, try not to pass through the traffic jam location, or increase the cost (for example, length) of the road data at the traffic jam location to make it difficult to pass and reroute the route to avoid the traffic jam location. I'm trying to explore. Further, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-186049, VICS (Road Traffic Information System; Vehicle)
Information & Communication Sistem) Information is taken into consideration and the route from the current position to the destination is searched again for the preset route.

[0004]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention
In the methods of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 596 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-95423, only when there is traffic congestion information on a preset route, the road data of the route is updated and the route is searched again. When the congestion information is detected on the route ahead in the traveling direction during the guidance and it is possible to reach the destination earlier by traveling on another detour, it is effective to derive the detour. However, the route currently being guided is searched by considering traffic congestion information, and at the time of the search, as shown in, for example, FIG. 15 (A), a highway that is normally easy to pass is congested due to construction or accidents. Then, when the vehicle is searched for to bypass the main road and the traffic jam is cleared during traveling on the route as shown in FIG. 15B, it is faster to reach the destination through the main road. Even if it can be reached, it has the drawback that the information is not taken into account.

Further, in the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-186049, unnecessary traffic information at a point far from the current position is unnecessary because the traffic information about a wide area including the current position and the destination is taken into consideration for the re-search. However, there is a problem in that it takes time to search for a route.

By the way, at present, VICS is in the stage of practical application, and its service area is gradually expanded, and it is important how to effectively use this real-time road traffic information for navigation route search in a short time. It has become a challenge.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and provides a vehicle navigation device capable of searching for an optimum route in a short time while adapting to changes in traffic conditions around the current position. With the goal.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the invention according to claim 1 is a vehicle navigation device for guiding a route to a destination input according to a preset route. A current position calculation means for calculating a position, an information storage device storing search road data for searching a route, a traffic information acquisition means for acquiring traffic information, the searched road data and the acquired traffic information. Route search means for searching an optimal route from the current position to the destination based on the area, area setting means for setting a predetermined range around the current position of the vehicle, and surrounding search for obtaining search road data in the set area Data acquisition means and peripheral search data storage means for storing the acquired peripheral search data are provided, and the route search means is provided for intersections within the set area. If it is determined that the information has been acquired, the surrounding search data is converted based on the acquired traffic information in the set area, and the surrounding search data is used to connect the current position to the original route. The search is performed, and if the original route can be connected, a new route is set, and if the original route cannot be connected, the original route is left as it is. The described invention is a vehicle navigation device that guides a route to a destination input according to a preset route, and a current position calculating unit that calculates the current position of the vehicle and search road data for searching the route. An information storage device that stores the information, a traffic information acquisition unit that acquires traffic information, and an optimum route from the current position to the destination based on the searched road data and the acquired traffic information. A route search means, an area setting means for setting a predetermined range around the current position of the vehicle, a peripheral search data acquisition means for acquiring search road data in the set area, and the acquired peripheral search data. And a route search means for storing, the route search means, when it is determined that the traffic information in the set area is acquired, based on the acquired traffic information in the set area By converting the peripheral search data and performing a route search so as to connect from the current position to the original route with the peripheral search data, if it can be connected to the original route, it is set as a new route, If the connection cannot be established, the feature is that the route search is performed using the searched road data to the destination.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is an overall configuration diagram showing an example of a vehicle navigation device to which the present invention is applied.
The vehicle navigation device according to the present invention includes an input / output device 1 for inputting / outputting information regarding route guidance, a current position detecting device 2 for detecting or receiving information regarding the current position of the vehicle, and a navigation device required for route calculation. An information storage device 3 in which data and display / voice guidance data necessary for route guidance and programs (OS and / or applications) and the like are stored, and route / display processing and display / voice guidance processing required for route guidance are performed. The central processing unit 4 controls the entire system. First, each configuration will be described.

The input / output device 1 centrally performs navigation processing according to the driver's intention so that the driver can input the destination and output the guidance information from at least one of the voice and / or the screen when the driver needs it. It has a function of instructing the processing device 4 and printing out the processed data and the like. As a means for realizing the function, the input unit has a touch switch 11 and an operation switch for inputting a destination by a telephone number, coordinates on a map, or requesting route guidance. Of course, an input device such as a remote controller may be used. In the output unit, input data is displayed on the screen, or a display 12 that automatically displays route guidance on the screen in response to a driver's request, data processed by the central processing unit 4, and stored in the information storage device 3 are stored. A printer 13 that prints out the data and a speaker 16 that outputs the route guidance by voice are provided.

Here, a voice recognition device for enabling voice input or a recording card reading device for reading data recorded in an IC card or a magnetic card can be added. Further, it is possible to add a data communication device for exchanging data with an information source such as a personal computer in which driver-specific data such as map data and destination data is stored in advance.

The display 12 is composed of a color CRT or a color liquid crystal display, and is necessary for navigation such as a route setting screen based on map data or guidance data processed by the central processing unit 4, a section map screen, an intersection map screen, etc. In addition to outputting all screens in color display, buttons for setting route guidance, guidance during route guidance, and screen switching operations are displayed on this screen. In particular, passing intersection information such as the name of a passing intersection is displayed in a pop-up color on the section map screen at any time.

The display 12 is provided in the instrument panel near the driver's seat, and the driver can confirm the present location of the vehicle by looking at the displayed map.
You can also get information about future routes. Further, the display 12 is provided with a touch switch (input device) 11 corresponding to the display of the function buttons, and the above-mentioned operation is executed based on a signal input by touching the button. Has been done.
The input signal generating means including the button and the touch switch constitutes an input section, but a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

The current position detecting device 2 is a device for detecting or receiving information about the current position of the vehicle, and an absolute direction sensor 24 composed of a geomagnetic sensor or the like, a relative direction sensor composed of a steering sensor, a gyro or the like. Two
5. Distance sensor 2 that detects the distance traveled from the rotation speed of the wheels
6. A GPS receiver 21 using the satellite navigation system (GPS) and a communication device 5 are provided. The communication device 5
Is composed of a VICS receiving device 22 or a data transmitting / receiving device 23 which is a traffic information acquiring means according to the present invention. The VICS receiving device 22 receives road traffic information by FM multiplex, radio wave beacon and optical beacon. The data transmission / reception device 23 is, for example, a mobile phone or a personal computer, and exchanges information necessary for navigation with a traffic information center (for example, ATIS) at the request of the driver.

The information storage device 3 is an external storage device in which a navigation program and data are stored in an external storage medium such as a CD-ROM (hereinafter simply referred to as a CD), an optical CD or an IC card. The program is composed of a map drawing unit, a route search unit, a route guidance unit, a current position calculation unit, a destination setting operation control unit, etc., and an application unit and an OS unit for performing signal processing of navigation. Program for processing such as processing, display output control required for route guidance, program for performing voice output control required for voice guidance and data required for it, and display information required for route guidance and map display The data is stored. Further, as the data, all data necessary for navigation such as map data, intersection data, road data, various guidance data, etc. are stored.

Specifically, a program and communication for setting a destination and a passing point based on the position information from the current position detecting device 2 and an input signal from the input device 11 and executing a route search using the searched road data. A program for converting the searched road data based on the traffic information acquired from the device 5 and executing the route search again, or for drawing the map and matching the map, determining the voice output timing and the content of the voice phrase along the route. The programs and the like are stored, and the functions stored in the information storage device 3 are activated to execute the navigation functions of the present invention. That is, in the present embodiment, the program for realizing the functions of the present invention is stored in the information storage device 3, which is an external storage medium.

The central processing unit 4 comprises a CPU 40 for executing various arithmetic processes and a flash memory 41 for reading and storing a program from a CD of the information storage device 3. The flash memory 41 is for erasing and rewriting the existing program even if the program of the CD is changed. Further, the first ROM 43a storing a program (program reading means) for performing the program check and update processing of the flash memory 41, the set point coordinates of the destination, the road code No. It is provided with a RAM 42 for temporarily storing searched route guidance information such as the above and data under calculation processing, and a second ROM 43b storing display information data necessary for route guidance and map display.
The program for performing the above-mentioned update processing may be stored in an external storage device.

Further, the image memory 44 storing the image data used for the screen display on the display, the CPU 4
Image processor 45 that takes out image data from the image memory based on the display control signal from 0, performs image processing and outputs to the display 12, and voice read from the RAM 42 based on the voice output control signal from the CPU 40.
A voice processor 46 for synthesizing a phrase, a sentence, a sound, etc., into an analog signal and outputting the analog signal to the speaker 16, a communication interface 47 for exchanging input / output data by the communication device 5, and a current position detecting device 2.
A sensor input interface 48 for taking in the sensor signal of, and a clock 49 for entering the date and time in the internal diagnostic information are provided.

In the central processing unit 4, when the data acquired by each sensor of the current position detecting device 2 is fetched from the sensor input interface 48, the CPU 40 calculates the current position coordinates at regular intervals based on the data, It is temporarily written in the RAM 42. The current position coordinates are obtained by performing map matching processing in consideration of detection errors of various data. Further, the output values of various sensors are constantly corrected. Here, route guidance is performed by screen display and voice output, and the driver can select whether or not to output voice.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a search (guidance) road data file in which data necessary for calculating a route by the route searching unit and performing route guidance is stored. FIG. 3 (A) shows a data structure. FIG. 3B is a diagram for explaining the data. In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 9, the search road data is divided into a plurality of blocks Bn having a radius of 3 to 10 km.
It is divided into and is managed for each block. For each of the n block numbers, m road numbers are provided, and for each road number, the coordinates of the start point and the end point, the road having the same start point, the road having the same end point, the length, the road attribute, It consists of data such as width, no-guidance road, intrusion prohibition, one-way prohibition information, node data address, and size. The road number is set for each of the roads between the intersections (branches) for each of the outbound route and the inbound route. The road attribute is data indicating road type information such as whether the road is a national road, an elevated road, an underpass, or the number of lanes. The node data is coordinate data including east longitude and north latitude for each number of nodes when each road is divided into a plurality of nodes.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing transmission data transmitted from VICS. VICS transmits road traffic information to vehicles in real time by FM multiplexing, radio beacons, and optical beacons. FM multiplexing transmits coarse information over a wide area, and information on radio beacons and optical beacons indicates the beacon installation position. It is detailed information on a narrow area within a radius of about 10 km as a center, and can be received when a vehicle passes a beacon installation position. V
The ICS transmission data includes the degree of congestion (for example, impassability, congestion, congestion, heavy traffic, normal congestion, etc.), congestion top position, congestion length, and traffic for link numbers assigned to each road. It consists of regulations (construction information, traffic closures, etc.) and travel time (time required at a predetermined speed). Alternatively, the traffic information may be obtained by accessing the traffic information center (for example, ATIS) using the data transmitting / receiving device (for example, mobile phone) 23. By doing so, it is possible to obtain the traffic information at the user's desire and request the optimum route based on the traffic information.

By the way, in general, the road data of FIG. 3 stored in the CD of the information storage device 3 and the VICS link number of FIG. 4 may not be in a one-to-one correspondence. There is a need. FIG. 5A shows VI.
FIG. 5B shows a correspondence table showing which link of the road data stored in the CD corresponds to the link number transmitted from the CS, and FIG. 5B is a diagram for explaining the correspondence. That is, as shown in FIG. 5B, the road having the VICS link number 1 is the road numbers 3 and 4 in the CD-ROM.
CD link numbers 3, 4, and 5 are linked so as to correspond to 5. The linking method is not limited to this, and the link number transmitted from VICS and the road data stored in the CD may be matched in advance. In this case, the search road data shown in FIG. 3 may be provided with a frame for storing data relating to VICS traffic congestion information, and the data obtained from the VICS may be stored therein as the search road data.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the flow of the entire system of the vehicle navigation device of the present invention. When the navigation program is activated by the CPU 40 of the central processing unit 4, first, the current position detection device 2 detects the current position and displays a peripheral map around the current position and acquires the current position (departure point). Yes (step S1). Next, a destination is set using a telephone number, an address, a facility name, a registration point, etc. (step S2), and a route search (initial search) from the current position to the destination is performed (step S3). The route to reach the destination is set as the guide road number data which is a road number sequence to guide as shown in FIG. When the route is determined, the current position is tracked by the current position detection device 2 and the route is guided and displayed until the destination is reached (steps S4 and S).
5). Next, the processing for setting the surrounding search data and the processing for acquiring the traffic information are performed each time a predetermined time elapses. (Step S
6-S8).

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a flow of processing for setting the peripheral search data in step S7 of FIG. 6, and FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining setting of areas for acquiring the peripheral search data of FIG. is there. After acquiring the road data of the current position of the vehicle in step S14, the block to which the current position P (FIG. 9) belongs is determined, and in step S16 it is determined whether or not this is the first time to acquire the peripheral search data. If it is the first time, the process proceeds to step S18. If it is not the first time, it is determined in step S17 whether the block to which the current position belongs has changed from the previous time. If not, the process proceeds to the next process,
If it has changed, the process proceeds to step S18. Then, in step S18, the road data of the area BA (FIG. 9) of the block to which the current position belongs and a total of 9 blocks adjacent to the block is acquired, and the data is stored as peripheral search data in the memory (RAM4).
Store in 2).

The processing of FIG. 8 is a method of setting an area for acquiring the surrounding search data in order to select traffic information corresponding to the surrounding search data described later.
It may be applied when setting the area for selecting the peripheral information used for search among the acquired traffic information,
In that case, the searched road data is converted based on the acquired traffic information to perform a route search.

Returning to step S8 in FIG. 6, here, the VIC
The traffic information acquisition process of S is performed. This will be described with reference to FIG. In step S30, it is determined whether or not the FM multiplex broadcast is received, and if it is received, the VICS data is stored in the memory. In step S32, it is determined whether or not the beacon is received. Store VICS data in memory. Next, in step S34, the current position is acquired, and in step S35, the peripheral search data of the area BA of 9 blocks around the current position described in FIGS. 8 and 9 is acquired.

Next, in step S36, the number n of blocks of the VICS traffic jam information that is already held is acquired, and in step S37 it is determined whether or not this block is a block within the acquired area. If so, the process proceeds to step S39, and if the block is not in the area, the data is deleted in block units. In the processing of steps S36 to S38, for example, when the congestion information is stored for four blocks of the previous nine blocks, n = 4,
This is a process of acquiring those blocks that overlap the current 9 blocks.

Next, the searched road data is converted based on the VICS information in the peripheral area set in step S39. Assuming that there is traffic congestion information on the VICS link number 1 road described in FIG. 5, as shown in FIG.
In order to increase the search cost of road data according to the degree of traffic congestion information, the CD link number is weighted by a constant α ₁ ,
This is done by adding α ₂ and α ₃ or multiplying by a weighting coefficient. Specifically, the converted distance of the road corresponding to the CD link number having the traffic jam information is increased. Further, when there is traffic regulation information such as traffic closure, α is made infinite and the road cannot be selected. In the above, the cost of the searched road data is changed based on the congestion information,
Although the data is converted, the road data for which the congestion information is acquired at the time of executing the route search may be multiplied by the coefficient.

The search cost will be described. In the route search, the search cost is usually set for the road (number) by the required transit time, distance, easiness of running (road width, road type such as national road), charge, and the like. Therefore, if the search cost is set by distance, for example, the difference in road width,
Since the ease of travel depending on the road type etc. is converted into distance, the equivalent distance is shortened for expressways compared to main roads, but the equivalent distance for branch roads is longer even if they have the same physical length. Is set. When there is the above-mentioned traffic congestion information for these converted distances, the distance is further added by a constant value or a multiplication factor to increase the search cost and make it difficult to select that road from candidates for the optimum route. .

Next, in step S40, the previously acquired data is checked. This is because, of the traffic jam information acquired last time and already stored, valid information is left this time and reflected in the search. Specifically, for example, when the previously acquired data is detailed information by the beacon and the currently acquired information is rough data by FM multiplexing, the previous data is left without being updated. Naturally, the data acquired this time is the same as the data acquired last time, and if there is a change in the data, this data is valid. The data thus obtained is managed for each block as peripheral search data in step S41.

When the above traffic information acquisition processing is completed,
It is determined whether or not there is traffic jam in the surrounding area set in step S9 of FIG. 6, and if there is no traffic jam, the process proceeds to step S10, and if there is traffic jam, the re-search process of step S11 is performed. This will be described with reference to FIG. First, step S
In 51, the peripheral search data of the current vehicle position (VIC in FIG.
S conversion data) is read to obtain the previous guide route string (guide road number data in FIG. 7), and in step S53, the traveling direction and the search cost at each intersection in the direction returning to the previous guide route are calculated. This is calculated, for example, so as to reduce the search cost of the road returning in the traveling direction. Next, in step S54, the road and direction of the vehicle's current location are acquired, and in step S55, an intersection connecting the current location road is selected in the traveling direction, and a route to return to the previous guidance route is determined based on the traveling direction to each intersection and the search cost. And step S5
At 6, the guide route road train is recreated.

When the above-mentioned re-search process is completed, it is judged in step S12 of FIG. 6 whether or not the re-search route is different from the previous route. If they are not different, the process proceeds to step S10, and if they are different. Rewrite the route. Then, in step S10, it is determined whether or not the destination has arrived, and the processes of steps S4 to S13 are repeated until the destination is reached.

FIG. 13 is a process flow chart showing another embodiment of the re-search process in the present invention. The re-search process described with reference to FIG. 12 searches only with the surrounding search data, and thus there may be a case where a route that avoids the traffic jam ahead cannot be searched. Therefore, in the embodiment of FIG. 13, step S
At 61, the road and direction of the current vehicle position are acquired, and step S
The destination road is acquired at 62, and the search road data between the current position and the destination is read at step S63. In this case, the peripheral search data uses the data converted by VICS, and the other data uses the previously stored data as they are. Then, in step S64, an intersection connecting the current roads in the traveling direction is selected, all routes to the destination are determined based on the traveling direction to each intersection and the search cost, and in step S65, the guide route road train is recreated. I am trying.

In addition, if it is not possible to search for a route that can connect to the original route by avoiding the traffic jam in the front only with the peripheral search data, the original route may be left displayed and used as the guide route, or it is currently stored. The area of the surrounding search data that has been set may be expanded, or the entire route search to the destination may be switched as shown in FIG.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing another embodiment for acquiring the peripheral search data. If the area is set in block units as in the above embodiment, the processing is fast,
There is a difference in the area in front of the current position between the upper part and the lower part in the block. Therefore, in FIG. 14A, data within a predetermined distance from the current position is acquired, and specifically, the coordinates of the end points (only one of the start point and the end point, or both) of the road data and the current position coordinates are acquired. Acquire data within a predetermined distance. In FIG. 14B, in order to prioritize the search in the forward direction of the traveling direction (the vehicle rarely backs up), the reference position of the rectangle or circle is set to the point forward of the predetermined distance direction from the current position. Within a predetermined distance from, specifically, a reference position is offset by a predetermined distance forward (in a straight line) in the traveling direction or a predetermined distance forward on the road from the current position. In FIG. 14C,
Data of a fan-shaped area is acquired at a predetermined angle based on the traveling direction of the current position.

FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the effect of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 15 (A), when the information that the main road is congested is received and the route (thick line) detouring the ordinary road is re-searched by the re-search, the re-search is performed, and thereafter, FIG. 15 (B) If the information that the congestion of the main road is cleared at the time when the vehicle P moves to the position shown in (1) is received, the main road can be searched again as the optimum route.

The embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made. For example, the traffic information acquisition process of step S8 of FIG. 6 may be performed after the destination setting of step S3. Further, although peripheral data setting and traffic information acquisition are performed at predetermined time intervals in steps S6 to S8 in FIG. 6, they may be performed at a predetermined distance before a branch point or an intersection. Further, when traffic jam is detected in the surrounding area in step S9 of FIG. 6, it may be notified by voice output or screen display. You may make it notify by a screen display. In this way, the user can accurately recognize information such as changes in traffic information and route changes due to the changes.

Further, in the above embodiment, a program such as a navigation program for implementing the present invention is stored in the external storage device, and the program is read into the flash memory in the central processing unit to execute various processes. However, the program may be stored in the ROM in the central processing unit.

Further, in the above embodiment, VI
When the information by CS is used, the information transmitted from the VICS center is updated every predetermined time. Therefore, VICS reception may be performed every predetermined time according to the timing.

Information as roads whose traffic conditions are likely to change (for example, highways and trunk roads such as national roads) is added to the searched road data in advance, and these roads exist in the area currently acquired. In some cases, traffic information may be acquired.

Further, in the above embodiment, FIG.
Although the initial search is performed in step S3 of 1 to set the guide route, the route may be manually input, for example. Also, the initial search may or may not take traffic information into consideration, but, for example, a device that can be used as a vehicle navigation device after connecting to a home TV to perform route search If it takes time to start route guidance after the initial search, for example, the initial search is performed without considering traffic information, and it is determined that the vehicle has started running and route guidance has started. After that, the route search may be performed by adding the traffic information as described in the above embodiment.

[0042]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, an area including the current position is set, and traffic information such as traffic congestion information is acquired for road data in the area.
If it is judged that the traffic congestion information is added, the search is performed again, so it is possible to search for the optimum route not only on the route currently being traveled but also according to changes in traffic conditions around the current position. . For example, the original route is a road that has been searched in consideration of traffic congestion information, and at the time of the search, it is a route that was found because there was traffic congestion on the other road, and the traffic congestion on the other road was resolved during traveling. Thus, even when the destination can be reached earlier from the current position through the other road, the re-search adapted to the destination can be performed.

Further, since the traffic congestion information changes every moment during traveling, the traffic congestion information of the road far from the current position is unnecessary. However, in the present invention, the traffic congestion information around the current position is not necessary.
Since the traffic congestion information is acquired and the road data is updated for the roads in the area, it is possible to select only useful information and perform the re-search process to shorten the processing time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a vehicle navigation device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall configuration diagram showing an example of a vehicle navigation device to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a searched road data file according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing VICS transmission data according to the present invention.

FIG. 5: Road data and VI of the information storage device according to the present invention
It is a figure for demonstrating the example which links CS transmission data.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the flow of the entire system of the vehicle navigation device according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining guide road number data obtained by the route search of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a process of setting peripheral search data in FIG.

9 is a diagram for explaining setting of a peripheral area for acquiring the peripheral search data of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a process of acquiring traffic information in FIG.

11 is a diagram for explaining search cost conversion of congestion information in the process of FIG.

12 is a flowchart showing the re-search process of FIG.

FIG. 13 is a flow chart of processing showing another embodiment of the re-search processing in the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing another embodiment for setting a peripheral area.

FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the effect of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

3 ... Information storage device, 3A ... Navigation program 3B ... Search road data, 4A ... Current position calculation means, 4B
... Route search means 4C ... Area setting means, 4F ... Traffic information acquisition means, 5
... communication device (traffic information) 11 ... input means

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) Reference JP-A-7-209005 (JP, A) JP-A-6-324137 (JP, A) JP-A-5-46087 (JP, A) JP-A-9- 35183 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G01C 21/00-21/36 G08G 1/09-1/0969 G09B 29/00-29/10

Claims (11)

(57) [Claims] 1. A vehicle navigation device for guiding a route to a destination input according to a preset route, a current position calculating means for calculating a current position of a vehicle,
An information storage device that stores searched road data for searching a route, a traffic information acquisition unit that acquires traffic information, and an optimum from the current position to the destination based on the searched road data and the acquired traffic information. Route search means for searching a route, area setting means for setting a predetermined range around the current position of the vehicle, surrounding search data acquisition means for acquiring search road data in the set area, and the acquired surroundings Peripheral search data storage means for storing search data, the route search means, when it is determined that the traffic information in the set area is acquired, the acquired traffic in the set area If the peripheral search data is converted based on the information, a route search is performed using the peripheral search data so that the current position is connected to the original route, and if the original route is successfully connected, It is a new route, the source of the vehicle navigation apparatus, characterized in that remain of the original route if it can not connect to the path. 2. A current position calculating means for calculating a current position of a vehicle in a vehicle navigation device for guiding a route to a destination input according to a preset route.
An information storage device that stores searched road data for searching a route, a traffic information acquisition unit that acquires traffic information, and an optimum from the current position to the destination based on the searched road data and the acquired traffic information. Route search means for searching a route, area setting means for setting a predetermined range around the current position of the vehicle, surrounding search data acquisition means for acquiring search road data in the set area, and the acquired surroundings Peripheral search data storage means for storing search data, the route search means, when it is determined that the traffic information in the set area is acquired, the acquired traffic in the set area If the peripheral search data is converted based on the information, a route search is performed using the peripheral search data so that the current position is connected to the original route, and if the original route is successfully connected, Is a new path, the original vehicle navigation apparatus characterized by performing path search in the search road data to the destination if it can not connect to the path. 3. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the traffic information is acquired every predetermined time. 4. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the peripheral search data is acquired and updated at predetermined time intervals. 5. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the searched road data is divided into a plurality of blocks and stored, and the area is set in block units. 6. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the area is within a predetermined distance from the current position. 7. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the area is within a predetermined angle from the current position toward the traveling direction. 8. The vehicular navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the area is within a predetermined distance from a point ahead of the current position in the predetermined distance direction. 9. A search cost is given to the searched road data in advance, and the route searching means converts the searched cost of the road data of the searched road data for which traffic information has been obtained to perform a route search. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the traffic information corresponding to the searched road data in the set area is determined to have been acquired, the fact that the traffic information has been acquired is notified. 2. The vehicle navigation device according to 2. 11. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein when the route searched by the route search means is different from the original route, the fact that the route has been changed is notified. Vehicle navigation system.