JP3766501B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a navigation device that displays traffic jam information provided by a road traffic information communication system.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A road traffic information communication system (VICS) that provides various information such as traffic congestion and traffic restrictions to vehicles via FM multiplex broadcasting, radio wave beacons or optical beacons has been put into practical use. Information can be obtained. There are three modes from level 1 to level 3 for providing and displaying VICS information using these various methods, and information that can be used depending on the function of the receiver, etc. mounted on the vehicle and the travel location. Is different.
[0003]
Among them, level 3 is to display traffic congestion information and regulation information to the destination sent from the VICS center, parking lot availability information, etc. on the display screen of the in-vehicle navigation device. Yes, by looking at the screen of the navigation device, it is possible to drive while grasping the surrounding situation that changes every moment.
[0004]
FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a display example of level 3 VICS information, for example, traffic congestion information marks displayed along a road. An arrow a along the road D shown in the figure indicates the degree of traffic jam according to the color, and from where on the road D to where the traffic jam occurs depending on the display position and length. Therefore, the driver can look at the display screen that includes this traffic information mark to determine whether or not the road included in his / her driving route is congested, and if there is a traffic jam, how much traffic is in which place. The travel route can be changed as appropriate according to the degree of traffic congestion.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, the traffic information mark indicated by the arrow described above is displayed at a predetermined position along the corresponding road. For example, a predetermined number of dots are displayed parallel to the corresponding road. Therefore, when other roads are running under the elevated road, even if the traffic information mark is displayed in parallel with these two roads, the traffic information mark of the road running underneath Is hidden behind the traffic information mark on the road running on the road, and the traffic information is not accurately transmitted. In particular, in urban areas, there are many cases where elevated urban expressways and ordinary roads overlap, and both roads are prone to congestion, so check the traffic conditions of ordinary roads running underneath on the screen. Is not easy.
[0006]
The present invention was created in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device that can easily identify congestion information on each road even when the roads overlap. It is in.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problem, the navigation device according to the present invention extracts a corresponding road by a traffic jam location specifying unit when traffic jam information is sent from a road traffic information center, Identify. Then, the congestion information drawing means determines whether the road is high or low, and draws a traffic information mark that can be distinguished from each other even when the road display overlaps based on the height. Therefore, even if the roads overlap and run side by side, the traffic information mark of the road running under these will not be hidden behind the traffic information mark of the road running above, and traffic on both roads Information can be easily identified.
[0008]
The above-described road height judgment by the traffic jam information drawing means can be performed by examining whether the road is an expressway or a general road. Usually, when two roads overlap each other, the highway including the city expressway is running above, and the general roads other than the expressway are often running below it. In most cases, there is no problem in determining whether the road is high or low depending on whether it is a highway or a general road, and such determination can be made by simply including the road type in the map data. Since it can be performed easily, it is possible to reduce the burden of processing including the determination processing and the subsequent drawing processing. Or, by including the hierarchical level data related to the vertical position of the road in the map data and using this to determine the level of the road, the congestion information mark based on the exact vertical position between the overlapping roads Display is possible.
[0009]
Specifically, each traffic jam information mark when roads overlap can be displayed so as to be distinguishable from each other by shifting the display position and by changing the color and density. In particular, when these colors and densities are made different, a part of the traffic information mark displayed above is partially shaded or trimmed. Alternatively, each traffic information mark is as small as the one displayed above, that is, even when the traffic information mark is overlaid, the traffic information mark below is partially exposed, and these colors and densities are changed. You may make it differ. Further, the size of the traffic information mark to be overlapped may be the same, and a larger border may be added toward the bottom.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The navigation device to which the present invention is applied, when displaying an arrow indicating a traffic jam section of a road based on traffic jam information sent from the VICS center, or a traffic jam information mark having a predetermined shape that changes to the arrow, overlaps the top and bottom. Even when the traffic congestion sections of the roads to be overlapped, the above-described arrows and the like are displayed so as to be distinguishable from each other. Hereinafter, a navigation device according to an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0011]
(1) Overall configuration of navigation device
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of an in-vehicle navigation device according to an embodiment to which the present invention is applied. The navigation apparatus shown in FIG. 1 includes a navigation controller 1 that controls the entire system, a CD-ROM 2 that records various map data necessary for map display, route search, and the like, and map data recorded on the CD-ROM 2. A disk reader 3 to be read, a remote control (remote control) unit 4 as an operation unit for inputting various instructions by a driver or a passenger, a GPS receiver 5 for detecting the vehicle position and vehicle direction, and autonomous navigation Sensor 6, beacon transmitter / receiver 7 and FM multiplex broadcast receiver 8 that receive road traffic information sent from the VICS center by various communication methods, a map image, and a guidance route superimposed on the map image or VICS center Display device 9 for displaying various traffic information sent from the vehicle and a predetermined guidance sound when performing route guidance And an audio unit 10 for outputting.
[0012]
The disk reader 3 described above can be loaded with one or more CD-ROMs 2 and reads map data from any of the CD-ROMs 2 under the control of the navigation controller 1. The remote control unit 4 includes a search key for giving a route search instruction, a route guidance mode key used for setting the route guidance mode, a destination input key, left / right / up / down cursor keys, a map reduction / enlargement key, and a cursor on the display screen. Various operation keys such as a setting key for determining an item at a position are provided, and an infrared signal corresponding to the operation state of the key is transmitted to the navigation controller 1.
[0013]
The GPS receiver 5 receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites, performs a three-dimensional positioning process or a two-dimensional positioning process, and calculates the absolute position and direction of the vehicle (the vehicle direction is determined by the current vehicle). Calculated based on the position and the vehicle position before one sampling time ΔT), and these are output together with the positioning time. The autonomous navigation sensor 6 includes an angle sensor 12 such as a vibration gyro that detects a vehicle rotation angle as a relative direction, and a distance sensor 14 that outputs one pulse for each predetermined travel distance. Detect position and orientation.
[0014]
The beacon transmitter / receiver 7 performs two-way communication with a radio beacon transmitter / receiver mainly installed on a highway via radio waves, and between an optical beacon transmitter / receiver mainly installed on a general road. The VICS traffic information sent from the VICS center is received by performing two-way communication via light. The FM multiplex broadcast receiver 8 receives the VICS traffic information included in the multiplexed data superimposed on the general FM broadcast. When the above-mentioned radio wave beacon, optical beacon and FM multiplex broadcasting are compared, there is no fundamental difference in the point and contents of the VICS traffic information that can be received. Traffic information can be obtained.
[0015]
Based on the image data output from the navigation controller 1, the display device 9 displays map information around the vehicle along with the vehicle position mark, the departure point mark, the destination mark, etc., and displays a guidance route on the map. Or display. In addition, when the traffic information is sent from the VICS center, the display device 9 displays a traffic congestion section and an arrow indicating the level of the traffic congestion or a predetermined traffic information mark instead of the traffic road. A specific example of the display of arrows and the like corresponding to the received traffic jam information will be described later.
[0016]
(2) Detailed contents of map data
Next, details of the map data recorded on the CD-ROM 2 will be described. The map data recorded on the CD-ROM 2 is based on the leaves separated by a predetermined longitude and latitude. The map data of each leaf can be specified and read by specifying the leaf number. It becomes. The map data for each map leaf includes (1) a drawing unit composed of various data necessary for map display, and (2) data necessary for various processing such as map matching, route search, and route guidance. Road unit and (3) intersection unit consisting of detailed data of the intersection. Further, the drawing unit described above has a background necessary for displaying the VICS conversion layer data necessary for specifying the corresponding road based on the traffic jam information sent from the VICS center and the buildings or rivers. Layer data and character layer data necessary for displaying a city name, a road name, and the like are included.
[0017]
In the road unit described above, a line connecting a certain intersection on the road and another adjacent intersection is called a link, and an intersection connecting two or more links is called a node. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of the road unit described above. As shown in the figure, the road unit includes a unit header for identifying the road unit, a connection node table storing detailed data of all nodes, and a node table indicating a storage position of the connection node table. And a link table storing detailed data of links specified by two adjacent nodes.
[0018]
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating detailed contents of various tables included in the road unit. As shown in FIG. 3A, the node table stores node records # 0, # 1,... Corresponding to all the nodes included in the drawing of interest. Each node record is given a node number from # 0 in the order of arrangement, and indicates the storage position of the connection node table corresponding to each node.
[0019]
In addition, as shown in FIG. 3B, the connection node table is provided for each existing node.
a. Normalized longitude / latitude,
b. "Node attribute flag" consisting of an intersection node flag indicating whether or not this node is an intersection node, an adjacent node flag indicating whether or not the node is at the boundary with other leaves,
c. "Number of connected nodes", which indicates the number of nodes that make up the other end of each link when there is a link with this node as one end of the link,
d. If the link connected to this node has traffic restrictions such as right turn prohibition or U turn prohibition, the "number of traffic restrictions"
e. Connection node records for the number of links indicating the link number of each link where this node is one end,
f. A traffic regulation record showing the specific contents of the traffic regulation corresponding to the number of traffic regulations mentioned above,
g. If this node is a node at the boundary with another leaf, an “adjacent node record” indicating the position of the connection node table of the corresponding node in the adjacent leaf,
h. If this node is an intersection node, the storage location and size of the corresponding intersection record in the intersection unit;
Etc. are included.
[0020]
Further, as shown in FIG. 3C, the link table includes a plurality of link records in the order of link numbers corresponding to all the links included in the drawing of interest. Each of these link records
a. Link ID, which is a code attached to each link mainly for the search route display,
b. Node number 1 and node number 2 identifying two nodes located at both ends of the link,
c. Link distance,
d. Costs obtained by statistically calculating the actual time required to travel on this link (for example, the actual travel time is shown as a multiplier with respect to the time required to travel on average roads and highways at an average speed) Value),
e. Various road attribute flags including a VICS link correspondence flag indicating whether or not this link corresponds to a VICS link managed by the VICS center,
f. A road type flag indicating the type of whether the actual road corresponding to this link is a highway or a general road,
g. The route number given to the road corresponding to this link,
Etc. are included.
[0021]
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the detailed contents of the VICS conversion layer included in the drawing unit. As shown in the figure, the VICS conversion layer of the drawing unit includes a VICS conversion table. The VICS conversion table further includes a VICS unit header for identifying the VICS conversion table, and a road link. A number table and a VICS link conversion table are included. In the road link number table, the data of each road link (each link included in the road unit is particularly referred to as “road link” in order to distinguish it from the VICS link) in the order of the road link number is stored in any position in the VICS conversion table. It corresponds to all the links of the leaf of interest.
[0022]
The VICS link conversion table corresponds to each existing road link,
a. A VICS link information flag including a VICS link length indicating the relative length of the VICS link and the road link, and a vertical line distinction indicating whether the vertical link of the road link of interest is the same or different;
b. The number of corresponding VICS links when looking at the road link of interest from one node to the other,
c. The distance from one node direction of the VICS link to the start position of this road link (percentage when viewed from the distance of the entire VICS link),
d. The number of corresponding VICS links when the road link of interest is viewed from the other node toward the one node,
e. The distance from the other node direction of the VICS link to the start position of this road link (percentage when viewed from the distance of the entire VICS link),
f. Secondary mesh code corresponding to each of the VICS links when viewed from one node of the road link toward the other node, VICS link ID, distance to the VICS link,
g. Conversely, the secondary mesh code corresponding to each of the VICS links when viewed from the other node of the road link toward the one node, the VICS link ID, the distance to the VICS link,
Etc. are included.
[0023]
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the detailed contents of the intersection unit. As shown in the figure, for each intersection, the intersection unit constitutes an intersection with an intersection record including data regarding the intersection itself, an intersection direction information record including data regarding a road destination extending from the intersection, and the like. An intersection lane information record containing data relating to each lane of the road and an intersection drawing record containing image data necessary for displaying an enlarged image of the intersection are stored.
[0024]
As shown in FIG. 6, an intersection record is provided for each existing intersection.
a. “Intersection information flag” comprising a three-dimensional intersection flag indicating whether or not this intersection has a hierarchical structure (three-dimensional structure), a signal flag indicating whether or not a signal is standing at this intersection,
b. "Number of intersections" indicating how many differences this intersection is,
c. Storage location of intersection drawing record corresponding to this intersection,
d. Display coordinates when displaying the intersection name,
e. Intersection string to display,
f. Intersection name reading kana character string necessary for text speech when reading the intersection name by voice,
g. The storage location of the link ID of each link constituting this intersection and the intersection direction information record corresponding to this link (for the number of intersection differences),
Etc. are included.
[0025]
(3) Detailed configuration and operation of the navigation controller
Next, a detailed configuration of the navigation controller 1 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. The navigation controller 1 includes a map buffer 16 for displaying a predetermined map on the display device 9 based on the map data read from the CD-ROM 2, a map reading control unit 18, a map drawing unit 20, a VRAM 22, a reading control unit 24, An image composition unit 26, a data storage unit 30 for performing calculation of the vehicle position, map matching processing, route search processing, route guidance processing and displaying the result, vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 32, map matching processing unit 34, a route search processing unit 36, a guidance route memory 38, a guidance route drawing unit 42, a mark image generation unit 44, an intersection guide unit 46, and a reception data buffer 50 for displaying VICS information received by the beacon transceiver 7 and the like. , VICS information drawing unit 52 and various operation screens for the user or remote control Remote control unit 60 for transmitting the operation instruction from the knit 4 in each unit, the cursor position calculating unit 62, and an operation screen generating unit 64.
[0026]
The map buffer 16 is for temporarily storing map data read from the CD-ROM 2 by the disk reader 3. When the map readout control unit 18 calculates the screen center position, an instruction to read out a predetermined range of map data including the screen center position is sent from the map readout control unit 18 to the disk reader 3 and is necessary for map display. Map data is read from the CD-ROM 2 and stored in the map buffer 16. For example, map data corresponding to four map leaves including the screen center position is read and stored in the map buffer 16.
[0027]
The map drawing unit 20 creates a map image necessary for display based on drawing units included in the map data of the four leaves stored in the map buffer 16. The created map image data is stored in the VRAM 22, and the map image data for one screen is read by the read control unit 24. The image composition unit 26 superimposes the image data output from each of the mark image generation unit 44, the intersection guide unit 46, and the operation screen generation unit 64, which will be described later, on the read map image data, and performs image composition. The synthesized image is displayed on the screen of the display device 9.
[0028]
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the relationship between the map image data stored in the VRAM 22 and the display image read by the read control unit 24. As shown in FIG. In the same figure, each of areas A to D is a map image drawn based on a drawing unit included in the map data of four map leaves read out from the map buffer 16, and the map images of these four map leaves Data is stored in the VRAM 22. An area P shows display image data read from the VRAM 22 by the reading control unit 24 around the screen center position O. In this area P, the screen center position O corresponding to the own vehicle position moves as the vehicle travels. Then, it moves with it and scrolls the screen.
[0029]
The data storage unit 30 sequentially stores positioning position (own vehicle position) data output from the GPS receiver 5. Further, the vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 32 calculates the absolute vehicle position and direction from the relative position and direction of the own vehicle output from the autonomous navigation sensor 6. The map matching processing unit 34 determines whether or not the vehicle position calculated by the vehicle position / orientation calculating unit 32 by the GPS receiver 5 stored in the data storage unit 30 is on the road of the map data. If the vehicle is off the road, a process for correcting the vehicle position obtained by calculation is performed. Pattern matching and projection methods are known as typical map matching methods.
[0030]
When the destination input key is pressed after the cursor is moved to a specific location on the map by the operation of the cursor key of the remote control unit 4, the route search processing unit 36 calculates the cursor calculated by the cursor position calculation unit 62 at this time. Set the location as the destination of the route search. The set destination data is stored in the guide route memory 38. In addition, when the search key of the remote control unit 4 is pressed, the route search processing unit 36 sets the vehicle position after being corrected by the map matching processing unit 34 as a departure place and stores it in the guidance route memory 38. The travel route connecting the starting point and the destination stored in the guide route memory 38 under a predetermined condition is searched. For example, a guide route that minimizes the cost under various conditions such as the shortest time, the shortest distance, and general road priority is set. As a typical method of route search, Dijkstra method and horizontal search method are known. The guidance route set by the route search processing unit 36 in this way is stored in the guidance route memory 38.
[0031]
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of data stored in the guide route memory 38. As shown in the figure, the guidance route data set by the route search processing unit 36 is represented as a set of nodes NS, N1, N2,..., ND from the departure point to the destination, and stored in the guidance route memory 38. Is done.
[0032]
The guide route drawing unit 42 selects, from the guide route data stored in the guide route memory 38, the one included in the map area drawn in the VRAM 22 at that time, and overlaid on the map image and emphasized thickly with a predetermined color. Draw a guidance route. The mark image generation unit 44 generates a vehicle position mark at the own vehicle position after the map matching process, or generates a cursor mark having a predetermined shape.
[0033]
The intersection guide unit 46 performs guidance at the intersection where the vehicle is approaching with a display image and sound. When the vehicle approaches within a predetermined distance from the intersection ahead of the guidance route, A guide map (intersection enlarged view, destination, travel direction arrow) of the approaching intersection is displayed on the screen of the display device 9 and the travel direction is guided by voice through the audio unit 10.
[0034]
The reception data buffer 50 stores VICS information received by the beacon transceiver 7 and the FM multiplex broadcast receiver 8. The VICS information includes traffic information indicating how much the specific part of the road is congested, event information indicating an accident, freezing of the road, etc., regulation information such as road closure and face-to-face traffic, and the like. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing traffic jam information which is one of the VICS information. The congestion information packet shown in the figure indicates how much a specific part of a certain VICS link is congested. A secondary mesh code for specifying an area including the VICS link and the VICS link The attached VICS link number, the distance from the starting point (one end of the VICS link) for specifying the position where the traffic jam starts, the length indicating the traffic jam section, the degree of traffic jam (for example, the vehicle is below a certain speed) And “congestion” in which the vehicle hardly moves is specified).
[0035]
The VICS information drawing unit 52 selects one included in the map area drawn in the VRAM 22 from the VICS information (congestion information, event information, regulation information) stored in the reception data buffer 50, and corresponds to each information. A predetermined display is performed. For example, for the traffic jam information, as shown in FIG. 16, an arrow having a length corresponding to the traffic jam section and a color corresponding to the degree of the traffic jam is displayed (details will be described later). For event information and regulation information, predetermined symbols (marks) corresponding to these events and regulations are displayed in the target section.
[0036]
The map buffer 16 described above serves as map data storage means, the map drawing unit 20, VRAM 22, read control unit 24 and image composition unit 26 serve as map display means, and the received data buffer 50 and VICS information drawing unit 52 serve as congestion point identification means. The VICS information drawing unit 52 corresponds to the traffic information drawing unit.
[0037]
(4) Operation of navigation device
The entire navigation device and the navigation controller 1 have the above-described configuration. Next, detailed operations when traffic jam information is received as VICS information will be described. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the operation procedure of the navigation device related to the display of traffic jam information. When a highway, which is generally an elevated road, and other ordinary roads overlap each other and the traffic jam sections overlap Even in such a case, an operation in the case of displaying a traffic jam that can be distinguished from each other is shown. The operations shown in FIG. 10 are performed in parallel with the original operations of the navigation device such as map display processing, map matching processing, route search / route guidance processing, and the like.
[0038]
As described above, the map image data for one display screen including the vehicle position is read from the VRAM 22 by the read control unit 24, and the vehicle position mark output from the mark generation unit 44 is superimposed on the map image data. A map around the car is displayed. The displayed map image is scrolled as the position of the vehicle progresses, and when the range of the four leaves drawn in the VRAM 22 is exceeded, the map data of the leaves in the traveling direction of the own vehicle is read from the CD-ROM 2. Is newly read out, and the map drawing unit 20 updates the map image data in the VRAM 22. Further, when the route guidance mode key of the remote control unit 4 is pressed to set the route guidance mode, the guidance route drawn by the guidance route drawing unit 42 is displayed on the map image.
[0039]
In parallel with the map display, the VICS information drawing unit 52 examines the VICS data sequentially stored in the reception data buffer 50 and monitors whether new traffic information has been received (step 100). When new traffic information is received, the VICS drawing unit 52 next determines whether or not the traffic information is traffic jam information (step 101), and the traffic information is event information other than traffic jam information or If it is restriction information, a display operation related to the received event information and restriction information is performed (step 102).
[0040]
When the received traffic information is traffic jam information, the VICS information drawing unit 52 determines whether or not the newly received traffic jam information is included in the map area drawn in the VRAM 22. (Step 103). As shown in FIG. 9, the received traffic information packet includes a secondary mesh code. The secondary mesh code included in the traffic information packet and each of the four drawings drawn in the VRAM 22 are included. By comparing the secondary mesh code with each other, it is compared whether or not the VICS link subject to the traffic jam information corresponds to the road link included in the map area drawn in the VRAM 22. It ’s easy to understand. If the received traffic information is not included in the map area drawn in the VRAM 22, no display operation related to the traffic information is performed, and the process returns to step 100 to wait for reception of traffic information.
[0041]
When the received traffic jam information is included in the drawing area, the VICS information drawing unit 52 next identifies the corresponding road link and the traffic jam location on this road link based on the received traffic jam information (step 104). . As shown in FIG. 9, the traffic jam information packet includes the VICS link number, the distance from the start point of the VICS link to the traffic jam start section, and the length of the traffic jam section. The map data drawing unit stored in the map buffer 16 includes the VICS conversion table shown in FIG. 4. Based on the road link number table and the VICS link conversion table, the VICS link and The correspondence with road links can be understood. Therefore, the road link in the corresponding drawing area can be specified based on the VICS link number included in the traffic jam information packet, and based on the “distance from the start point” and “length” included in the traffic jam information packet. Thus, it is possible to identify a traffic jam location on the road link.
[0042]
Next, the VICS information drawing unit 52 determines whether or not the identified road link corresponds to a highway (step 105). If the road link corresponds to a general road other than the highway, the VICS information drawing unit 52 identifies A traffic congestion display arrow for general roads is drawn on the VRAM 22 in parallel with the congestion level of the road link in a color corresponding to the traffic congestion level (step 106). The VRAM 22 is arranged so that it can be identified even in the case where the traffic congestion display arrow for the expressway is colored according to the traffic congestion level in parallel with the traffic congestion location and the display is overlapped with the traffic congestion display arrow for the general road described above. Drawing is performed (step 107).
[0043]
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a traffic jam display arrow, and shows a case where a highway D2 overlaps a general road D1 and both roads are congested. The arrow a1 shown in the figure corresponds to the general road D1 running below, and the arrow a2 corresponds to the highway D2 running above it. As described above, when the highway arrow a2 and the general road arrow a1 are displayed, the congestion position is partially or partially changed by slightly shifting the display position in the vertical direction with respect to the road and changing the display colors. Even when all sections overlap, the general road arrow a1 displayed below can be identified.
[0044]
Thus, in the navigation device of the present embodiment, when the traffic information is sent from the VICS center, when the traffic information is for a general road and when it is for a highway, The display position of the arrow displayed in parallel with each road is slightly shifted, and even if the general road and the expressway that are subject to congestion information overlap and the congestion section also overlaps, each of the overlapping roads Congestion information arrows can be identified separately.
[0045]
In the above description, the color of the arrows for displaying congestion on ordinary roads and expressways is changed and the display position thereof is slightly shifted, but various combinations of the congestion display arrows for each road can be considered. . FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of two types of congestion display arrows to be combined. FIG. 12 (A) shows a case in which the congestion display arrow a1 for general roads and the congestion display arrow a2 for highways overlaid thereon are shifted and displayed as shown in FIG. Different colors. For example, the color of arrow a1 is set to dark red corresponding to congestion, light red corresponding to traffic jam, and the color of arrow a2 is set to dark pink corresponding to traffic jam, and light pink corresponding to traffic jam To do.
[0046]
In FIG. 12B, instead of making the colors a1 and a2 different from each other as shown in FIG. 12A, the arrow a2 for the expressway displayed in a superimposed manner is shaded. In this case, even if the arrows a1 and a2 overlap, the arrows a1 and a2 are separated by the shadow attached to the arrow a1 and can be identified. In FIG. 12C, the colors of the two arrows a1 and a2 are made different, and each display position is not changed, and an edge is attached around the arrow a1 displayed below. In this case, even when the arrows a1 and a2 are completely overlapped, the border of the lower arrow a2 can be seen, so that the arrow a2 is hidden under the arrow a1 and can be identified.
[0047]
In FIG. 12D, the display positions of the two types of arrows a1 and a2 are not shifted, the thickness of the arrow a2 above the lower arrow a1 is reduced, and the colors of the arrows are different. In this case, even when the arrows a1 and a2 overlap, the thick lower arrow a1 is partially exposed, so that even when the arrows a1 and a2 overlap, it can be identified. In FIG. 12E, the shapes of the two types of arrows a1 and a2 themselves are changed and the sizes and colors thereof are different. As an example, the arrows a1 and a2 are expressed by a plurality of circles, but may be expressed by other shapes such as a triangle and a square.
[0048]
By the way, in the description of the present embodiment described above, it is noted that when the roads overlap, the combination of the highway and the general road is the most, and the highway often overlaps, and the traffic jam display for the highway is displayed. The arrow a2 is distinguished from the traffic congestion arrow a1 for other general roads, and even when these indications are overlapped, they are displayed in a state where they can be distinguished from each other, but how the roads actually overlap 12 is included in the map data, and based on this data, the upper arrow a2 shown in FIG. 12 is displayed for the road that actually overlaps, and for the road that actually runs below The lower arrow a1 shown in FIG. 12 may be displayed.
[0049]
For example, as described above, the intersection record of the intersection unit of the map data stored in the map buffer 16 has an intersection information flag indicating whether or not the focused intersection has a hierarchical structure (three-dimensional structure). include. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing details of the intersection information flag included in the intersection record shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 13, the intersection information flag includes a three-dimensional intersection flag indicating whether or not this intersection is a three-dimensional intersection, and an intersection level (ground level) indicating which level corresponds to a three-dimensional intersection. 0m is level 0, and the number of underground or ground floors is indicated by a number) and a level code indicating whether this intersection is underground or above the ground.
[0050]
FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an operation procedure in the case where the traffic information is displayed based on the intersection information flag. The operation from the reception of traffic information sent from the VICS center to the identification of the corresponding road link and traffic location is the same as the operation procedure of steps 100 to 104 shown in FIG. 52 checks the identified road hierarchy based on the intersection information flag (step 200), and draws a traffic congestion display arrow that can be identified according to the checked hierarchy (step 201).
[0051]
For example, when the road displaying the traffic jam information does not overlap with the other roads, the three-dimensional intersection flag included in the intersection information flag shown in FIG. 13 is not set. In this case, the VICS information drawing unit 52 displays an arrow for traffic jam information as conventionally performed. Further, when the road displaying the traffic jam information overlaps with other roads, the three-dimensional intersection flag shown in FIG. 13 is set, and the hierarchy level is indicated by the intersection level and the level code. . Therefore, the VICS information drawing unit 52 draws the congestion information display arrows corresponding to the respective layers so that they can be distinguished from each other.
[0052]
For example, the two types of arrows a1 and a2 shown in FIG. 12 are expanded to a plurality of types of arrows a1, a2, a3,. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a traffic congestion display arrow when the hierarchical level is 3 (for example, in the case where there are an underground road and an elevated road in addition to a ground road). Each of FIGS. 12A to 12D is obtained by extending FIGS. 12A to 12D to three types of arrows that can be distinguished from each other.
[0053]
In this way, the traffic congestion display arrow is displayed by judging the road hierarchy, so that it is possible to display the traffic congestion suitable for the actual road structure.
[0054]
In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation implementation is possible within the range of the summary of this invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the traffic jam information is represented by using one arrow, but it is represented by a simple line having a predetermined thickness, or a plurality of short arrows having a certain length are arranged along the road. You may make it represent.
[0055]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, when traffic jam information is received, the corresponding road is extracted by the traffic jam location specifying unit, the traffic jam location of this road is identified, and the traffic level information is drawn by the traffic jam information drawing unit. Even if the road display overlaps based on this height, traffic information marks that can be distinguished from each other are drawn, and even if the roads overlap and run parallel, The traffic information mark of the road running on the road is not hidden behind the traffic information mark of the road running on the road and the traffic information of both roads can be easily identified.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of an in-vehicle navigation device according to an embodiment to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a road unit.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing detailed contents of various tables included in a road unit.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing detailed contents of a VICS conversion layer included in a drawing unit.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing detailed contents of an intersection unit.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing detailed contents of an intersection record.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a relationship between a VRAM drawing area and a display area.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of data stored in a guidance route memory.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the contents of a traffic jam information packet.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an operation procedure of the navigation device related to display of traffic jam information.
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a congestion display arrow.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of two types of traffic congestion display arrows to be combined.
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing details of an intersection information flag included in an intersection record.
FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an operation procedure in the case of displaying traffic jam information based on an intersection information flag.
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a traffic jam display arrow when the hierarchy level is 3. FIG.
FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a display example of level 3 VICS information.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Navigation controller
7 Beacon transceiver
8 FM multiplex broadcast receiver
9 Display device
16 Map buffer
20 Map drawing part
22 VRAM
24 Read control unit
26 Image composition part
50 Receive data buffer
52 VICS information drawing unit

Claims (6)

Map data storage means for storing map data;
Map display means for displaying a predetermined range of map images based on the map data stored in the map data storage means;
Based on the traffic jam information including the traffic jam section of the road sent from the road traffic information center, the corresponding road is extracted from the map data and the traffic jam location specifying means for specifying the traffic jam section on the extracted road When,
Judgment is made on the road extracted by the traffic jam location identifying means, and even if the display positions of a plurality of target roads overlap, a traffic jam information mark that can be distinguished from each other according to the road height is provided. Traffic congestion information drawing means for drawing on the map image in correspondence with the traffic jam section on the road identified by the traffic jam location identifying means;
A navigation device comprising: In claim 1,
The map data includes road type data indicating whether the road is a highway or a general road other than that,
The said traffic information drawing means judges the height of a road based on the said road classification data, The navigation apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In claim 1,
The map data includes hierarchical level data related to the vertical position of the roads that overlap and overlap,
2. The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the traffic jam information drawing means determines a road level based on the hierarchy level data. In any one of Claims 1-3,
The traffic jam information drawing means shifts the traffic jam information marks corresponding to each of a plurality of roads with different heights where the display positions overlap each other in a direction perpendicular to the road, and at least the color and shading of the traffic jam information mark A navigation device characterized by drawing with one side different. In any one of Claims 1-3,
The traffic information drawing means narrows the width in the vertical direction with respect to the traffic information mark corresponding to each of a plurality of roads having different heights with overlapping display positions, and at least of color and shading. A navigation device characterized by drawing with one side different. In any one of Claims 1-3,
The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the congestion information drawing means draws the congestion information mark corresponding to each of a plurality of roads having different heights with overlapping display positions, with a larger border toward the bottom.

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