JP3965895B2 - Communication type navigation device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an in-vehicle navigation system, and more particularly, to a navigation system of a method for performing communication between an in-vehicle terminal and a server.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-55682 discloses a system in which a map and a guidance route are transferred from a server to an in-vehicle device, and the in-vehicle device performs navigation using such information. In this system, the departure point and the destination are transmitted from the in-vehicle device to the server, and the guide route between them is calculated by the server. Thereafter, the route and a map of the route portion are transferred to the in-vehicle device, and the route guidance is performed while the map is displayed on the in-vehicle device.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the above prior art does not give consideration to the control method of the display screen at the time of route guidance and the reduction of the data transfer amount. In addition, no consideration has been given to operability such as when the terminal deviates from the guidance route or distribution of a map in consideration of safety during traveling. Furthermore, it does not disclose a method for grasping the cost required for data communication or the fee for downloading content.
[0004]
Accordingly, a first object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle terminal and a server that realize a communication type car navigation system with a small data transfer amount.
[0005]
A second object is to provide an in-vehicle terminal and a server that realize a communication-type car navigation system aimed at improving operability.
[0006]
A third object is to provide an in-vehicle terminal and a server that realize a communication-type car navigation system that easily presents data communication costs and content charges to users.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The first object is to allow the user to select a guidance method from a plurality of guidance methods when transferring the route guidance data calculated by the server to the terminal, and to guide the guidance data from the server based on the selection. The problem is solved by displaying the guidance screen on the terminal. It can also be solved by transferring only map data and route guidance data of the type desired by the user. Furthermore, the problem can be solved by caching these data to the terminal or by compressing and transferring these data.
[0008]
The second object is solved by a map and route information transfer method and route guidance method taking into account the traveling state, and selection of guidance means desired by the user.
[0009]
The third object is achieved by providing the server with means for calculating the communication fee and content fee, and further providing means for displaying this fee at the terminal.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Next, details of the communication type navigation device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an entire communication navigation system of the present invention. The present invention receives a satellite 101, a user vehicle 102, a mobile communication network 103, a provider 104 that connects to the Internet, data transmitted from the satellite, and distributes the data to the user via the IP network 106. 105, a navigation information providing apparatus 107 (which may be referred to as a navigation server) for receiving and transmitting data distributed between the broadcaster 105 and the provider 104 by connecting to the IP network 106, and connecting to the provider It consists of a fixed telephone network 108 for transmitting and receiving data through an IP network or a mobile telephone network, a home 109 for each user, and a personal computer 110 at the home of each user.
[0011]
Next, the contents of the navigation information providing apparatus (navigation server) 107 will be described with reference to FIG. The navigation information providing device 107 sends parameters of latitude and longitude information of the user terminal, moving speed information of the user terminal, moving direction, ID number, authentication password, engine speed, and other vehicle status sent via the IP network 106. First, data relating to the combination and request service is received. Thereafter, after user authentication is performed by a CGI (Commom Gate Interface) 115, any one of the user management 111, the POI management 112, the registration point 113, the map management 114, and the route search 116 is performed according to a user request service. Send data to the functional unit that The data received by each functional unit is the information on the service according to the user's request through the CGI 115, the IP network 106, the provider 104, and the mobile communication network 103 (this route is hereinafter referred to as “communication network”). Sent to. Alternatively, if the information related to the service is cheaper using broadcasting, the information is transmitted to the user vehicle through the route of the CGI 115, the IP network 106, the broadcaster 105, and the satellite 101 (this route is hereinafter referred to as “broadcast network”). Is done.
[0012]
Next, the configuration of the functional unit will be described. The user management function unit 111 includes a user management database 118 and a user information registration / edit application 117. Here, if the user information is registered / edited in the data sent from the user, the user information database 118 is checked based on the ID of the corresponding user, and the corresponding item is registered / edited. Do.
[0013]
When there is a POI information acquisition request from the user, the POI management function unit 112 searches the POI database 120 for point information around the position information of the user by the POI search 119, and the result is the above-described broadcasting network or Distribute to user vehicles through communication network. Here, the number of POIs to be distributed may be registered in advance for each user, or the maximum number may be designated when the user requests a POI.
[0014]
The registration point functional unit 113 is a functional unit in which the user registers information such as destinations, favorite places, and spots visited in the past, and the user can freely register and delete the information. The navigation server stores user-registered point database 122 for storing point information registered for each user (its latitude and longitude, name, features, other comments, image information, audio information, etc.), and points registered in the past in response to user requests And a point registration / deletion function 121 which is an application for the user to perform point registration / deletion. The trigger for processing at the time of registration is either a user request via the CGI 115 or a request from the map editing function unit 114 described later.
[0015]
The map editing function unit 114 includes a map database and a map segmentation application. This is because when a map data download request is sent from the user together with the latitude / longitude information that currently exists, map data in a predetermined range is extracted from the map database 125 by the map cutout function 124, and the user Send to. At this time, it is possible not only to transmit only the map data to the user, but also to simultaneously cut out the POI or registered point information within the range of the map data and transmit the data to the user. In addition, when the route search function unit 116 to be described later is called, if the map data on the searched route is not downloaded to the terminal side, the map cutout function unit is automatically called to Cut out the map and download it.
[0016]
The route search function unit 116 includes an option information database 126, a route search engine 127, an option information setting / changing application 128, and a guidance point creation application 129. After the user authenticates with the CGI 115, a guidance point is created based on data such as destination information and presence / absence of options sent from the user. The guidance point is searched from the option database 126 for information necessary to create an optimum guidance point based on option information specified by the user (for example, a route that uses many ordinary roads and takes as little time as possible). The result is reflected in the guidance point creation application.
[0017]
The charge calculation unit is a part that performs a charge process for a service charge for the in-vehicle terminal. It has a function of charging content such as map data and POI data, and notifying the in-vehicle terminal of the communication fee by counting communication data packets.
[0018]
An example of the navigation terminal configuration will be described with reference to FIG. The navigation terminal includes a display device 130, a GPS receiver 131, a main body 132, a memory card slot 133, a mobile phone 134, a remote controller 135, and a microphone 137. The display device 130 is a device capable of displaying graphics such as a liquid crystal screen. The GPS receiver 131 is a device that receives positioning signals from a plurality of GPS satellites 136 and accurately calculates the position of the terminal. The main body 132 is a device in which a CPU, a memory, a power source, and a graphics display device are mounted. Details of this will be described later with reference to FIG. The mobile phone 134 is a device that performs communication with the outside, that is, data transmission / reception with the navigation information providing device described above. The remote control 135 is a device that transmits a user's desired operation to the navigation terminal using buttons. A command can also be sent by voice using the microphone 137.
[0019]
The memory card slot 133 is a device for connecting an external storage device to accumulate received data from the navigation information providing device 107 and loading information downloaded from the device in the past into the navigation terminal. The memory card slot can be used as a simple storage device, or can be used for authentication of user information for receiving communication or broadcasting. For example, when the vehicle on which the navigation device is installed is a vehicle used by an unspecified number of users such as a rental car, the user can use the service by inserting a memory card in which authentication information is written into a memory card slot. In addition, if the upper limit for receiving the service of the navigation terminal is set in the memory card, it can be used in accordance with the user's budget. If the map of the departure point is downloaded in advance, the user can save time and effort to download the map from the navigation information terminal device 107 in the initial state. In addition, the service used by the user is written in the memory card, uploaded to the navigation information providing device 107 at regular intervals, and analyzed on the navigation information providing device side, so that the point according to the user's preference information. Distribution of POI becomes possible.
[0020]
In the configuration of FIG. 3, the mobile phone 134 is used as the communication device, but another communication device, a PDA, or a modem integrated with the main body 132 may be used. Further, in-vehicle LAN (Loacal Area Network) can be connected instead of the mobile phone. Further, instead of the GPS receiver 131, a position identification service using PHS (Persopnal Handyphone System) can be used. In addition, the configuration of FIG. 4 is configured assuming that the received data from the navigation information terminal uses communication, but in addition to this, broadcast radio waves from satellites, broadcast radio waves using terrestrial digital, It is also possible to load the main body 132 with a receiver that can receive broadcast radio waves using FM radio waves and a device that decodes received data.
[0021]
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the navigation terminal. In this example, the CPU 141, a remote control driver 142 that interprets a signal from the remote control 135, an RS-232C driver 143, a mobile phone driver 144, an interface 145 with a memory card slot, a flash memory 146, a DRAM 147, a graphics processor 148, It consists of a graphics memory 149 and an NTSC encoder 150. Audio input / output is used for microphone input for voice recognition and voice guide output.
[0022]
The configuration shown above is a configuration in the case where data exchange with the navigation information providing device is performed using communication. As described above, the configuration in the case of using broadcast media includes an antenna for receiving a broadcast, Interface, decoder, etc. In general, NTSC is used as a signal to the display device. However, in the case where the PAL system is used for broadcasting, or when the display apparatus is compatible with the PAL system, of course, the portion 150 corresponds to the PAL system.
[0023]
FIG. 5 shows an example of the software configuration of the navigation terminal apparatus. This configuration includes a device layer 205, a driver layer 204, a middle layer 203, a tool layer 202, a shared OBJ layer 201, and an application layer 200. Of these, for example, the device layer 205 represents a hardware device, and includes an external input device such as a mouse and a keyboard, an output device such as a display and a speaker, a smart medium having a PCMCIA interface, a memory card, and a mobile phone. Or it consists of GPS which takes in data via a communication modem and RS232C interface.
[0024]
The driver layer 204 is software for driving each device of the device layer 205 described above, and the middle layer 203 is general common software for driving each driver. The tool layer 202 includes tools necessary for navigation such as map drawing 213, dead reckoning 214, route determination 215, guidance 216, reroute 217, route search 218, map management 219, and the like. In the shared OBJ layer 201, data necessary for navigation, such as the vehicle position 206, the trajectory 207, the route point 208, the guidance route 209, the route calculation result 210, the time 211, and other information are obtained from the tool of the tool layer 202 described above. Includes commonly accessible data. These data are necessary in the shared OBJ 201 according to an event input to the MMI (Man Machine Interface) of the application layer 200, for example, display or change of each data, or an event input from a mouse or keyboard. The data is referred to related data via the MMI.
[0025]
Next, services implemented in the present invention will be described. First, an example in which a user travels a vehicle while downloading a map with the user vehicle 102 using the communication navigation system of FIG. 1 will be described. First, while the user vehicle 102 is traveling, the map data in the vicinity where the navigation system currently mounted on the vehicle is currently traveling is stored in the navigation system, and the vehicle is out of the stored map area. Assume a case. At this time, a map data download request is transmitted from the navigation system in the user vehicle to the navigation information providing apparatus 107 via the mobile communication network 103, the provider 104, and the IP network 106 using a mobile phone or a modem. . Here, in addition to the request transmission data, for example, at least an IP address indicating the position of the navigation information providing apparatus 107 on the IP network and the data describing the latitude and longitude of the position of the vehicle are transmitted. The latitude / longitude data of the vehicle is acquired by a GPS system mounted on the vehicle or a position identification service by PHS. This data is transmitted to the provider 104 through the mobile communication network 103. The provider recognizes the IP address of the navigation information providing apparatus designated by the navigation system mounted on the vehicle from the received data, and accesses the navigation information providing apparatus 107 through the IP network. The navigation information providing apparatus 107 creates necessary map data in the shape (rectangle, circle) determined in advance from the latitude / longitude information requested by the vehicle in the map data accumulated in 107. The map data is transmitted to the broadcaster 105, where the map data is encoded and packetized, then transmitted to the satellite 101, received by the vehicle 102, and then decoded by the vehicle to display a map.
[0026]
In the above-described embodiment, map data is downloaded to a vehicle via satellite using broadcasting. In the following embodiment, a method for acquiring necessary map data only by communication will be described. When the vehicle enters a region where map data is not held in the storage device of the navigation device in the vehicle 102 due to movement, the vehicle is connected to the mobile communication network 103 in the same manner as in the previous example. The latitude / longitude information and the IP address of the navigation information providing device are transmitted, and the data is transmitted to the navigation information providing device 107 through the provider 104 and the IP network 106. The navigation information providing apparatus 107 creates necessary map data as in the example shown on the left. Next, the created data is given IP address information of the vehicle navigation device, and then divided into packets and transmitted to the vehicle navigation device through the IP network 106, the provider 104, and the mobile communication network 103.
[0027]
In the above embodiment, as the data transmission route from the navigation information providing apparatus 107, a signal propagation path independent of broadcasting and communication is assumed. However, the location of the vehicle, for example, an area where communication is possible although broadcasting is interrupted, Alternatively, communication and broadcasting can be switched according to the situation such as the reverse case. When the switching is performed, the necessary cost for downloading map data by broadcasting and the necessary cost for downloading data by communication are displayed on the display screen of the navigation device. By looking at the value, the driver of the vehicle can determine whether or not to execute the download when the map data is interrupted. Of course, it is also possible to download the map data fully automatically by setting in advance.
[0028]
Switching between broadcasting and communication is normally announced by broadcasting stations and communication companies in advance in areas where broadcasting is possible and where communications are possible, so if the data is stored in the navigation information provider and a map download request occurs In addition, it is possible to switch between communication and broadcasting by referring to the data. In the above embodiment, satellite broadcasting is used as a broadcast transmission path, but there is no problem even if other media such as other media, terrestrial digital broadcasting, and FM broadcasting are used.
[0029]
As a next service, a service for distributing point information (POI, Point of Interest) to the user will be described. The latitude / longitude information is transmitted to the navigation information providing apparatus through the mobile communication network 103, the provider 104, and the IP network 106 by the position identification system using GPS or PHS mounted on the vehicle 102. The navigation information providing apparatus performs user authentication with the CGI 115 based on the sent user information, and returns a plurality of POIs corresponding to the periphery to the user based on the latitude / longitude information. The transmission path here may be either broadcast or communication as described above. In addition, when performing the service of downloading the map information of the above-described embodiment, it is also possible to simultaneously distribute the POI for the map data to be downloaded and simultaneously distribute the POI data for the display map data to the user terminal side.
[0030]
The registration point service will be described as the next service. In response to a request from the user, the registration point service accesses the registration point navigation server in the navigation information providing apparatus 107 from the vehicle 102 via the mobile communication network 103, the provider 104, and the IP network 106, and the registration point information desired by the user. Pull out. Alternatively, before the user goes out to the drive, a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a personal computer) in each user's home 109 passes through the fixed telephone network 108 to the registration point navigation server in the navigation information providing apparatus via the provider 104 and the IP network 106. It is possible to access and register or delete point information desired by the user, and organize the registration data so that redundant operations are not performed during actual driving.
[0031]
User registration and registration contents are changed by the user management navigation server. The route from which the user requests is the same as the registration point service described above. Here, new user registration, deletion of registration, change of registration contents, confirmation of registration contents, search of billing information such as usage fees, confirmation, etc. It is possible to receive service.
[0032]
The route search service specifies the destination when the user is on the vehicle, and is optimal from the destination, the current position obtained from the position identification system such as GPS, and the information such as the user's preference described above. It is a service that searches for a simple route and sends the result to the user.
[0033]
6 and 7 show screen transitions when route guidance is performed. (1) is a display on the terminal side when the route is calculated by the navigation server. In the navigation server, it is possible to perform a route search in consideration of traffic jam information and information under construction. (2) shows an example of a screen displaying the entire route 3100 on the terminal after the route search is completed. After transferring the search result from the navigation server to the terminal, the terminal adjusts the display scale so that the entire route is displayed from the current location to the destination. In addition, the screen and voice are used to call attention so as to encourage driving in accordance with actual road regulations. (3) is a screen for confirming to the driver whether guidance may be started. When the driver is ready, the driver presses the “OK” button on the remote control. (4) is a screen when the “OK” button is pressed. After that, the screen of (5) is displayed when the vehicle position 3104 gets on the route 3100. (6) is a screen when the vehicle position approaches the guidance point. The guidance point is a point where the route deviates from the road and changes the course direction. This is the case when turning right or left at an intersection. When the vehicle position approaches the guidance point, the direction to bend by the arrow 3101 and the distance to the point are displayed on the half of the screen. In addition, guidance such as “This is 300m leftward” is also given by voice. (7) is a screen when approaching the destination. Announced “I arrived near my destination. The guidance will end.” After about 10 seconds, the screen (8) appears and the current location is displayed on the map.
[0034]
FIG. 8 shows a process flow of the terminal for performing the route guidance process.
S3000 and S3001 determine whether or not the vehicle position has entered the route, and wait until the vehicle gets on the route. In step S3002, a guidance “start route guidance” shown in (5) of FIG. 6 is performed. In S3003, information on the vehicle position is obtained by GPS. In S3004 and S3005, if the vehicle enters a place where GPS information cannot be obtained, such as under an overpass, the driver is notified that positioning is impossible by darkening the color of the displayed screen. In S3006, the distance between the vehicle position and the route is calculated, and it is determined whether the vehicle is on the route or approaches the guidance point. In S3007, even if the vehicle position is close to the guidance point, if the point has already been guided (a point with an arrow as shown in (6) in FIG. 7), that point does not need guidance and nothing is done. Further, in S3013, the process is performed when the approaching point is approached and an arrow is issued, but then the GPS reception state deteriorates and positioning cannot be performed. In that case, the display of the arrow is turned off in S3008. In S3009, the process is performed when the vehicle position has normally approached the guidance point. When the vehicle position approaches 300m, an arrow is displayed as shown in (6) of FIG. 7, and voice guidance is also performed. If the distance between the route and the vehicle position exceeds 300 m, it is considered that the route has been deviated, and route guidance cancellation processing is performed in S3010 and S3011. The distance of 300 m is not an absolute value, and should be changed depending on the positioning accuracy. In other words, if the positioning error is small, the distance is reduced, and if the error is large, the distance is increased. In S3014, it is determined whether or not the guidance to the destination is finished. If the destination is reached, the display of (7) in FIG. 7 is performed in S3012.
[0035]
FIG. 9 illustrates the relationship between the vehicle position 3104, the route 3100, and the guidance points 3102 and 3103. The own vehicle position 3104 may be measured at a location shifted from the road depending on the positioning accuracy. Therefore, while always measuring the distance to the route, if the distance exceeds a certain range, it is determined that the route has been deviated. In this embodiment, the distance is 300 m, and R1 corresponds to this. Also, the distance (R2) from the guidance point is always measured. When approaching R2 by a certain distance, a guidance guidance screen (an arrow as in (6) of FIG. 7) is displayed. This distance is changed according to the speed of the vehicle. That is, when the speed is low, guidance may be issued immediately before the guidance point (for example, 100 to 300 m), but in high speed traveling, the course cannot be changed even if the guidance is performed immediately before. Therefore, in the case of high speed traveling, guidance is issued at a long distance (for example, 500 m to 1 km).
[0036]
FIG. 10 is a flowchart for measuring the distance between the vehicle position and the route. In S3020, a process of selecting only the route line segment near the own vehicle position is performed. By selecting the route close to the vehicle position in this way without checking the route in order of progress, guidance can be resumed even after a state where positioning cannot be performed continues for a long time or after returning from the route. be able to. In S3021, when calculating the distance to the route, distance calculation is performed in consideration of the traveling direction of the host vehicle. That is, the route portion having the same traveling direction as that of the route is preferentially selected. In this way, all the distances to the line segments selected in S3020 are calculated, and it is determined that the vehicle position is on the route line segment that is the closest distance (S3025 to S3027).
[0037]
When performing a guidance instruction when the vehicle position approaches the guidance point, an enlarged view of the intersection may be displayed instead of an arrow display. FIG. 11 shows an example in which an enlarged view of an intersection at a guidance point is displayed. Whether the guidance point is displayed as an arrow or an enlarged intersection view can be set in advance using a menu as shown in FIG. This setting may be stored in the terminal or in the navigation server. If stored in the navigation server, unnecessary guidance data may not need to be sent to the terminal, which is effective in reducing the amount of communication. For example, if the intersection enlarged display is unnecessary, it is not necessary to transmit a navigation server detailed map or intersection information. There is also a method of dynamically changing the display method along the route. For example, an arrow may be displayed if the intersection is simple such as a T-junction or an orthogonal quadrangle, and an enlarged intersection may be displayed if the intersection is complex as shown in FIG. As another method, there is a method of distinguishing by road type, such as displaying an arrow in the case of a simple road such as a branch of an expressway and displaying an enlarged view of an intersection on a general road.
[0038]
In addition, when the detailed map is not in the terminal, the intersection enlarged view cannot be displayed on the terminal. Therefore, an enlarged intersection map can be created by the navigation server and transferred to the terminal. For example, if there is a detailed map in the middle of the route on the terminal, create an enlarged map of the intersection on the terminal, and if it becomes a place that does not have a detailed map, the terminal requests the navigation server to create a detailed map and transfers the result to the terminal do that for me. As another means, there is a method of generating an enlarged display of the intersection at the terminal after transferring the detailed map from the navigation server to the terminal. On the other hand, when it is desired to reduce communication with the navigation server, there is a method in which arrows are displayed only in places where the enlarged intersection map cannot be generated by the terminal.
[0039]
Even if a detailed map exists on the terminal, if the detailed map is old and does not match the current situation, an incorrect intersection is displayed. Therefore, it is better not to create an enlarged enlarged view of the intersection on the terminal. In this case as well, the navigation server creates an enlarged view of the intersection, or after transferring the detailed map to the terminal, creates an enlarged view of the intersection at the terminal. To determine whether the terminal map is out of date, the version number of the terminal map is compared with the version number of the map of the navigation server.
[0040]
FIG. 13 shows an example of a screen display at the time of departure from a route. In this example, when the map on the terminal side does not support route search, the reroute is performed by the navigation server. Since it is necessary to perform data communication, a confirmation screen display and voice confirmation are requested from the driver. If the driver presses the enter button, the navigation server starts reroute, and if the driver does nothing for 10 seconds or presses the cancel button, the guidance ends. Alternatively, there is a method in which the guidance is not terminated and the guidance is interrupted while the vehicle position is off the route as shown in FIG.
[0041]
FIG. 14 shows a display example when the reroute processing is not performed when the route deviates. The voice also informs you that you have left the route. Thereafter, the route guidance is resumed when the vehicle position 3104 is on the route.
[0042]
In addition, if the map of the terminal is data that can be searched for a route, the terminal can perform reroute processing. In this case, reroute is performed within the range of the detailed map existing in the terminal. If you go to a place that doesn't have a detailed map, reroute after getting the detailed map from the navigation server.
[0043]
FIG. 15 shows a display example of guidance by characters. When the host vehicle position 3104 approaches the guidance point, the direction and distance that the guidance point should travel are displayed in text. In addition, since the driver cannot gaze at the characters, guidance is also given by voice. Such guidance based on character information can be performed even when the terminal does not have a detailed map. FIG. 16 shows a display example of a state in which guidance is performed using a schematic map and route data. The left half of the screen displays the route, and the right half displays guidance based on text information. Guidance information is also provided by voice. Since the route display portion is not a detailed map, an intersection shape or the like cannot be displayed, but it can be confirmed whether the vehicle position 3104 is on the route 3100. According to this method, since the terminal only needs to have a schematic map, it is not necessary to distribute a detailed map.
[0044]
FIG. 17 shows a flow of route search. In FIG. 17, the operations of the navigation terminal and the navigation server are collectively described. First, the navigation terminal sets a destination in S2000. For destination setting, for example, there is a method of downloading a region list or a category list from a navigation server and narrowing down using the list. The list is described in a language such as HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language). Each item in the list has a hyperlink to the CGI (Common Gateway Interface) of the navigation server, and the user can download the list from the navigation server simply by selecting the item. Such processing is repeated using HTML, and finally the user can narrow down the destination location. Examples of the screen are shown in FIGS. 18 (a) and 18 (b). The screen in FIG. 18 is displayed by an Internet browser (not shown) provided on the navigation terminal side.
[0045]
FIG. 18A shows a screen for designating a prefecture after the genre of the destination is designated. When “Ibaraki Prefecture” is designated in FIG. 18A, the screen of FIG. 18B appears. Further, when “around current location” is selected in FIG. 18A, the vehicle position is measured and sent to the server, and a name list can be obtained as shown in FIG. 18B. This will be described later, and will be described here only when a prefecture is selected.
[0046]
FIG. 18B shows an example of narrowing down a leisure park in Ibaraki Prefecture. When the user selects a name from the screen of FIG. 18B, point information of the name is sent from the server. There are at least two ways to send the point information. One is a method of streaming point information in a stream, and the other is a method of storing point information in a file and transmitting the file name in HTML. The transmission format is shown in FIGS.
[0047]
Alternatively, a method of displaying a map on the navigation terminal side and designating a destination point on the map may be used.
[0048]
After narrowing down the destination location, the location is displayed on the map in step S2001. The point display on the map is shown in FIG. In FIG. 18C, a cross 2010 is displayed on the map, which is a point narrowed down by the above processing.
[0049]
The user confirms the point on the map and presses the OK button on the remote control when he / she wants to make the destination. After the navigation terminal interprets it in S2002, the process proceeds to S2003. When the “return” button on the remote control key is pressed, the destination is set again.
[0050]
When the destination is set, search conditions are set in S2003. Search conditions include, for example, a method of displaying some conditions on the screen and allowing the user to select from them. An example of this display is shown in FIG. In FIG. 18D, two types of general road priority and expressway priority are displayed, and the user can select one of these. In addition to the above, for the route search condition, charge priority, time priority, distance priority, or the like may be set, or a plurality of these may be specified in combination.
[0051]
After the user specifies the route search condition, the navigation terminal measures the vehicle position in S2004. A device called GPS (Global Positioning System) is used for measuring the position of the vehicle, and GPS is generally used in current car navigation systems.
[0052]
When the measurement of the vehicle position is completed, the navigation terminal transmits the vehicle position to the navigation server together with the destination and search conditions set so far. As a transmission protocol to the navigation server, for example, HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) can be used. Moreover, as a transmission format of the destination, search conditions, and own vehicle position, a method described in a CGI parameter as a part of a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) can be used.
[0053]
In S <b> 2005, the navigation server performs a route search based on the destination, the search condition, and the vehicle position transmitted from the navigation terminal, and transmits the calculation result to the navigation terminal. Meanwhile, a message indicating that the route is being calculated by the server is displayed on the screen of the navigation terminal. This is shown in FIG. However, this display is not essential.
[0054]
The navigation terminal receives the calculation result in S2006. The route search result includes the latitude / longitude of the passing point and guidance point information. However, if the latitude / longitude of the passing point is sent as it is, it is possible that the communication amount will increase. Therefore, the difference data from the reference point and the reference point may be sent. This will be described later. HTTP may also be used when transmitting route data to the navigation terminal. In this case, at least two types of transmission methods are possible. One is a method of flowing route data directly to HTTP. This sends the route data in a stream after sending the content type. The other is a method in which route data is stored in a file and the file name is described in HTML and sent. In this embodiment, the latter format is shown in FIG. 21, FIG. 22, FIG. 23, and FIG. Details will be described later.
[0055]
In step S2007, the navigation terminal receives route data from the navigation server and displays the route data on a map. An example of this screen is shown in FIG. On the screen of FIG. 18 (f), the smallest scale map on which the entire route is displayed is displayed. If there is no map, the map is displayed with the smallest scale map. The route data is displayed along a road on the map using a color different from that of the map. Further, at the same time as displaying the route, a display for prompting the user to travel according to actual traffic regulations may be displayed. Further, it may be notified to the user by voice.
[0056]
After a few seconds, the screen shown in FIG. 18 (g) appears. Here, a message is displayed on the screen indicating that guidance is started when the enter key on the remote control is pressed. Alternatively, this may be notified to the user by voice. This means that the guidance starts after reading the precautions on the previous screen. When the user presses the enter key, route guidance is started.
[0057]
Here, the formats of FIGS. 19 and 20 will be described. FIG. 19 shows an example of HTML after category narrowing down. This is HTML for designating a prefecture, and describes the screen of FIG. For prefectures, only a link to the navigation server CGI is provided. However, “current location surroundings” is a menu for searching around the current location of the navigation terminal. Therefore, the current location surrounding search can be executed only after the vehicle position is transmitted from the navigation terminal to the navigation server.
[0058]
Next, the case where the user selects “around current location” in FIG. 18A will be described with reference to FIG. In this case, the navigation application file shown in FIG. 19B is sent from the navigation server. This navigation application file is created by the navigation server at the same time that the prefecture list of (a) is created. The navigation application file is linked from “Near present location”, and can be downloaded from the server in S2082 when the user selects “Near present location” in S2081. When this navigation application file is downloaded, an application for processing this is started on the navigation terminal. In the navigation application file, a command for the application on the navigation terminal side and a navigation server URL for requesting the next route search process are described. The application that has read this measures the vehicle position by GPS or the like in S2083, and transmits the vehicle position to the navigation server in S2084. The navigation server that has received the vehicle position searches landmark information around the position in S2085, creates a list in HTML, and transmits the list to the navigation terminal. The format is as shown in FIG. 20, and the screen is as shown in FIG. The processing after receiving the list of FIG. 18B is exactly the same as the processing when the prefecture is selected.
[0059]
Through the above processing, the user can receive a route guidance service. However, the user does not necessarily drive along the route calculated by the server. If the car goes off the route, it is possible to reroute (route recalculation). This will be described next.
[0060]
The screen transition in the case of reroute is shown in FIGS. FIG. 27 shows a case where the user requests a reroute after stopping. In FIG. 27, when the car deviates from the route, a screen 2201 appears. The screen 2201 displays only a warning that the car has left the route, and does nothing further while driving. When the car stops, the navigation terminal displays a screen 2202 and asks the user whether to reroute. When the user presses the enter key on the remote controller, a screen 2203 appears and the navigation terminal requests a route search from the navigation server. When the route search is completed in the navigation server, route information is transmitted from the navigation server to the navigation terminal, and a new route is displayed as shown in a screen 2204. Finally, when a screen 2205 appears and the user presses the enter key, route guidance is started. When the user deviates from the route, if the user's input is prompted during traveling, the user may be distracted by the operation of the navigation terminal, which may lead to an accident. Therefore, the probability of an accident can be kept low by not prompting the user for input while traveling.
[0061]
FIG. 28 shows the screen transition of auto reroute. In this case, if the car deviates from the route, the reroute is automatically executed. When the car deviates from the route, a screen 2301 appears. Unlike the screen 2201, the screen 2301 displays that reroute is performed. The navigation terminal requests the navigation server to search for a route from the current location to the destination, and a screen 2203 appears during that time. When the route search is completed, a screen 2204 appears. Finally, a screen 2302 appears and displays that route guidance is to be started. In the case of an auto route, since it is also considered that the vehicle is traveling, the route guidance is started without prompting the user to input the determination key. When an auto reroute is performed, the navigation server is accessed regardless of the user's intention, and a communication fee is incurred each time. However, since rerouting can be performed without input from the user, there is no risk that the user will be distracted by the operation and lead to an accident.
[0062]
Voice may be used as a reroute method. When the car goes off the route, a screen 2201 appears. At that time, the navigation terminal waits for a voice input from the user. When the user inputs the voice “reroute” using the voice input device, a screen 2203 appears, and the navigation terminal requests the navigation server to search for a route from the current location to the destination. When the route search is completed, route information is transmitted from the navigation server to the navigation terminal, a screen 2204 appears, and finally a screen 2302 appears to start route guidance. In this method, input to the navigation terminal is simple, and the navigation server can be accessed according to the user's intention.
[0063]
The above processing will be described again with reference to the flowchart of FIG. If the car deviates from the route, the navigation terminal determines whether or not the auto reroute mode is set in S2091. In auto reroute mode, whether you are driving or stopped, the screen displays “You have exited the route. This is as shown on the screen 2201. Thereafter, a reroute is requested in S2098.
[0064]
If it is not the auto re-route mode, only “I'm off the route” is displayed on the screen in S2092. This is as shown on the screen 2201. Next, when it is determined in S2093 that there is a voice input device, the user waits for voice input in S2094, and if the user says “reroute” or “research”, the user requests a reroute from the navigation server in S2098. .
[0065]
If it is not in auto route mode and there is no voice input device, it will remain on the screen and “do not go” and do nothing until it stops. If it is determined in S2095 that the vehicle has stopped, “Do you want to reroute” is displayed on the screen, and a remote control input from the user is awaited. If the enter key is pressed, a reroute is requested in S2098.
[0066]
When a reroute is requested by the above method, a reroute result is transmitted from the navigation server, and a new route is displayed on the map in S2099. This is as shown on the screen 2204. After the route is displayed on the screen, in the case of auto reroute or voice reroute, the message “Start Guidance” is displayed on the screen and the route guidance is started. When a reroute is requested after the vehicle stops, a message such as “Start guidance with the Enter key” is displayed, and the route guidance starts after confirming that the Enter key on the remote control has been pressed. However, it is not always necessary to change the screen display contents for auto reroute, voice reroute request, and reroute request after stopping. Even for a reroute request after stopping, route guidance may be started without prompting the enter key after downloading route data from the navigation server.
[0067]
For example, a determination method such as a case where the distance from the route is off by 300 m may be used. Alternatively, a determination method of 30 seconds after leaving the route may be used.
[0068]
The reroute mode can be set by the user. In the present embodiment, an example is shown in which a user calls and sets a setting screen with a remote controller. 29A shows a main menu of the navigation terminal, and FIG. 29B shows a route search setting menu. When the user presses the “MENU” key on the remote controller, a main menu 2401 shown in FIG. 29A is displayed. Further, when the user selects “Setting” from the main menu 2401, a setting menu 2402 appears. Furthermore, when the user selects “route search setting” from the setting menu 2402, the screen shown in FIG. At this time, a route search setting menu 2403 is displayed on the screen. The route search setting menu 2403 includes a “route re-search” setting menu, and a reroute mode can be set. Among these, when “automatic” is selected, the auto reroute mode is set. When “Voice” is selected, a mode for enabling a reroute request by voice input is entered. When “No” is selected, a mode in which a reroute request cannot be made until the vehicle stops is entered.
[0069]
The route search setting menu 2403 includes a “search condition” menu in addition to “route re-search”. This is to set search conditions for route search, and high speed priority, general road priority, distance priority, time priority and the like can be set. In addition, a menu other than the above may be provided in the route search setting menu.
[0070]
Next, the transmission format of route data and guidance data will be described. As described above, route data and guidance data can be transmitted by being included in HTML. The format is as shown in FIGS. FIG. 21 shows route HTML 2041 for transmitting route data to the navigation terminal, and FIG. 22 shows the format of the route information file 2051. The file name of the route information file 2051 is described in the <embed> tag in the route HTML 2041, and when the navigation terminal receives the route HTML 2041, it downloads the route information file 2051 and selects an appropriate application for processing the route information. to start.
[0071]
The route information file 2051 includes route information and guidance point information. The route information is expressed by base point data serving as a reference and a difference from the base point. FIG. 23 shows the relationship between the base point data and the difference data.
[0072]
The base point data includes latitude / longitude, difference table start index, number of difference table records, and node point type. Among these, the difference table start index indicates an index (position) on the memory where the difference data from the base point is stored. The number of difference table records is the number of differences from the base point. The latitude / longitude is converted into a numerical value such as 1/10 second unit and stored. Depending on the convenience of the system, the values may be 16 bits, 8 bits, and 8 bits, respectively.
[0073]
The difference data is represented by 16 bits, with the upper 8 bits representing the latitude difference and the lower 8 bits representing the longitude difference. Each most significant bit represents a plus or minus sign. This difference is preferably expressed in the same way as the base point.
[0074]
The base point is not necessarily one on the route, and a plurality of positions can be the base point. For example, in the case of the present embodiment, the latitude and longitude of the difference are each expressed by 8 bits, and since the most significant 1 bit is a code, only a numerical value of 0 to 127 can be expressed. Therefore, if the difference value exceeds 127, a new base point is created. Alternatively, the base point may be determined according to the convenience of the system, such as a base point where the road type changes on the route. By doing so, the data amount can be reduced and the communication fee can be reduced compared to sending the latitude and longitude of the passing point on the route as it is.
[0075]
The guidance point information included in the route information file 2051 includes an audio data ID. The voice data ID is an ID of voice data to be reproduced by the navigation terminal when the navigation terminal approaches the guidance point. For example, when the navigation terminal approaches the guidance point, the navigation terminal informs the direction in which the car should turn by voices such as “turn left for 300 meters” or “coming to the left”. The navigation server executes a process of assigning an ID to the voice.
[0076]
The voice data ID is included in the guidance angle / voice ID of the route data 2051, and the format is as shown in FIG. In order to cope with software expansion on the navigation terminal side, an unused area may be provided. Also, the way of allocating the audio data ID is as shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, an example in which the voice data ID is expressed by a hexadecimal 2-digit code is shown. The upper 4 bits represent right or left, and the lower 4 bits represent an angle.
[0077]
In this embodiment, the navigation server determines the voice data ID and transmits it to the navigation terminal. However, like the conventional car navigation system, the navigation terminal performs the process of determining the voice data ID from the guidance angle. May be.
[0078]
The operation shown in the above embodiment is processing mainly viewed from the navigation terminal side. Next, the processing of the navigation server will be described with reference to FIG. The software configuration of the navigation server is shown in FIG. 2, and the description thereof is as described above. The navigation server receives various requests from the navigation terminal and activates an application that meets the request. Conversely, it is possible for the navigation server to actively output some information to the navigation terminal using broadcasting or the like, but the description is omitted here.
[0079]
First, the navigation server interprets the request received from the navigation terminal. This request is passed as a CGI parameter to the navigation server, and is interpreted by the CGI 115 in S2501. The request received from the navigation terminal includes at least the start point / end point latitude / longitude and the via point latitude / longitude of the route search. If the route search condition is held on the navigation terminal side, it may be transmitted to the navigation server together, or the route search condition may be stored in the navigation server. In the latter case, the route search is executed with reference to the option information database 126 in the route search navigation server 116.
[0080]
Next, in S2502, the navigation server sets the start point / end point, the latitude / longitude of the via point, and search conditions, and starts a route search in S2503. The output of the route search includes the latitude / longitude of the passing point, travel time, guidance point information, and the like. The CGI 115 acquires the information from the route search navigation server 116 in steps S2504 to S2506, and converts the information into HTML in step S2507. The HTML format is as shown in FIGS. Finally, this HTML is transmitted to the navigation terminal, and the processing of the navigation server ends.
[0081]
This navigation terminal is a rewritable function that downloads map data from the navigation server, wide-area map data recorded at the time of shipment, and detailed map data acquired through communication so far, and can be used as a cache. Have a good storage medium. When a map display request for a designated point is generated while using the navigation terminal, the map data recorded in the built-in storage medium is read and the map is displayed. If all necessary map data is not recorded in the storage medium, a map request is issued to the navigation server, and the map data is downloaded and displayed.
[0082]
When a navigation terminal requests a route search, even if there is no detailed information in the navigation terminal, it can receive a certain service. For example, even when the vehicle is traveling in a place where there is no map on the navigation terminal, some service can be received by transmitting the travel locus so far to the server simultaneously with the route request and processing it on the server side. As the travel locus, the latitude / longitude of the place that has passed so far may be used. This embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
[0083]
In step S2601, the navigation server receives a travel locus from the navigation terminal, and any other request. The navigation server grasps the vehicle state of the vehicle equipped with the navigation terminal by comparing the map information stored in the navigation server with the received travel locus (S2602). At the same time, based on the running trajectory, you can see where you are running in which direction. Therefore, when a route search is requested, not only the destination information but also the travel locus is sent to the navigation server, so that the navigation server can search for the optimum route in consideration of the direction in which it is heading in S2608. is there.
[0084]
It is possible to save the transmitted travel locus in the navigation server, analyze the type of road that the user often passes in S2607, and search for a route suitable for it in S2608. For example, if it is known that the user often passes a national road, when a route search request is received from the user to the navigation server, the navigation server can search the route with priority on the national road. Alternatively, if the user does not pass through a wide road and often passes through a back road, it is possible to search for a route that prioritizes a narrow street instead of a road such as a national road, and return the result to the navigation terminal. It is also possible to store the route search conditions at that time in the navigation server and execute a route search based on the route search conditions when a next route search request is received from the user.
[0085]
If route information is stored in the server, route guidance can be performed. For example, if the navigation server knows that the navigation terminal is approaching the guidance point, in S2606, the navigation server informs the navigation terminal that the navigation terminal is about to be a guidance point, and in which direction it should proceed. it can. At that time, in the navigation terminal, the direction to go to the screen may be represented by an arrow, or if the voice data is in the navigation terminal, the voice data ID may be sent from the navigation server and voice guidance may be performed on the navigation terminal side.
[0086]
Further, when the route information of the user is stored in the navigation server and compared with the travel locus from the user, it can be determined whether or not the route is off the route. If not, the fact is notified to the navigation terminal (S2603), and the reroute process is performed on the navigation terminal side (S2604). This is as described above. Thereafter, if a reroute request comes from the navigation terminal to the navigation server, in S2605, the navigation server may reroute, save the result in the navigation server, and continue the above processing. At that time, it is also possible to inform the navigation terminal that the vehicle is off the route.
[0087]
In this way, even if there is no map on the navigation terminal side or downloading of a necessary map fails, it is possible to receive a route guidance service. However, if all the trajectory data in a single run is sent as the running trajectory, the communication load may be increased. In that case, it is possible to reduce the communication load by thinning out the trajectory point sequence or sending the trajectory of the past 2 km, for example, when running almost straight.
[0088]
The map request processing flow on the navigation terminal side is shown in FIG. 31 and a screen transition example is shown in FIG.
[0089]
In the navigation terminal, when a map display request for a specified point is generated (S1001) triggered by the user's scrolling, automatic scrolling while the vehicle is traveling, and the scale change by the user (S1000), all maps necessary for display are displayed. It is confirmed whether data is recorded on the storage medium (S1002).
[0090]
If all the map data necessary for display is recorded on the storage medium, it is confirmed whether the recorded map is the latest data (S1003). If the recorded data is not the latest, map data update processing (S1004) is performed. If the map is the latest, the map 1005 is displayed as it is (S1016).
[0091]
On the other hand, when all the map data necessary for display is not recorded on the storage medium, it is confirmed whether or not the host vehicle is traveling (S1005). The map is enlarged to such an extent that it can be displayed only with the map data in the storage medium, and the wide area map 1004 is displayed (S1001), and the download confirmation dialog 1001 is displayed after the vehicle is stopped. To do.
[0092]
If the vehicle is not running, a dialog 1001 is displayed to confirm to the user whether to download the insufficient map data from the navigation server (S1007). In the dialog, the predicted value of the communication charge is displayed. After the dialog is displayed, when there is no user input for a certain period of time and when the user does not select download, the display scale is automatically changed (S1010), and the wide area map 1004 is displayed.
[0093]
After downloading map data and route guidance data, the actual communication fee and content fee are displayed on the terminal each time. Fees are debited from the user's credit account or bank account on a monthly basis and settled. In addition, if the upper limit of the charge is registered from the terminal to the server in advance, the server will notify the terminal when the charge is likely to be exceeded, so the user needs to worry about overuse. Absent. The upper limit of charges can be set independently for communication charges and content charges. It is also possible to make an inquiry from the in-vehicle terminal to the navigation server as to how much the usage fee for the current month is annoying.
[0094]
When the user selects download in the map download confirmation dialog 1001, the map server 100 requests the map data for the shortage to the navigation server via communication (S1011), and displays a screen 1002 for indicating that communication is in progress. After the download is completed, it is confirmed whether there is a sufficient area for recording the downloaded data in the storage medium (S1013). If there is, the map data is recorded (S1014). If the storage area is insufficient, the map data is erased from the oldest reference date in the storage medium (S1013), and after the area for storing the newly downloaded map data is secured, the map data is recorded. (S1014). After the map is recorded, a download completion notification and the communication fee charged are displayed in a dialog 1003 (S1015), and a map 1004 is displayed (S1016).
[0095]
Next, the map update processing will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 33 showing the processing flow and FIG. First, when the map update process is started (S1004), a map update confirmation dialog 1101 is displayed (S1101). Thereafter, when there is no input for a certain period (S1102) and when the user does not permit the update (S1103), the current map is displayed without updating the map (S1109). If the user permits the update, the map data of the currently displayed position, scale, and area is requested from the navigation server (S1104). When updating the navigation map, the navigation server obtains the version owned by the user in addition to the method of transmitting all the extracted map data to the navigation terminal, and the map data of the version and the map data in the server It is also possible to transmit only the difference information. The difference information here includes the added road information and point information.
[0096]
The processing after downloading the map data (S1105 to S1108) is the same as the processing after downloading the map data (S1012 to 1015) in the map request processing, and is therefore omitted.
[0097]
A communication method between the navigation terminal and the navigation server will be described with reference to FIGS. In the process of requesting insufficient map data from the navigation server (S1011), the navigation terminal uses the map request command, the position of the display point, its representation method, the scale of the map data, and the requested area as a CGI argument. A map is requested to the navigation server through the Internet. As a method for expressing the point to be displayed, any one of latitude / longitude, address, postal code, telephone number, and landmark name can be selected.
[0098]
When the navigation server receives the request (S1200), it analyzes the argument of the CGI (S1201), and acquires the map level (S1202), the map center position (S1203), and the requested area (S1204). After the acquisition, predetermined map data is cut out from the map database (S1205), header information is added (S1206), and transmitted to the requesting terminal (S1207). The file format to be transmitted is shown in FIG. The file format to be transmitted includes map mesh position information 1200, map mesh data management information 1201, and map mesh data 1202. The map mesh position information 1200 includes the center of the extracted map mesh data. Map mesh data management information 1201 includes the size of map mesh data. Map mesh data 1202 includes background data, road shape data, road type data, and name data for displaying a map.
[0099]
Next, we will describe the update notification method for the map database in the server. The navigation terminal notifies the user whether or not to update the map at any one of the following three timings. After the notification, if the user permits the update, the above-described map update process is performed.
1) When displaying a map
When displaying the map, check whether the map data to be used is the latest. Whether the data is the latest data is checked by reading the data in the storage medium and comparing the version of the data with the map information of the server acquired from the navigation server in advance. The map information on the server side possessed by the navigation terminal here consists of the version of the entire map database and the version of each map mesh. Get it from the navigation server every time. As a result, only the updated map mesh can be updated.
2) When changing the map of the navigation server
When the map database is updated in the navigation server, the navigation server notifies the updated area to the navigation terminal and notifies the user through the updated area. If the user wants to update the map data of the notified area, the user communicates and downloads a new map.
3) When the data owned by the user is updated among the map data on the navigation server
The navigation server manages the version of map data in map mesh units possessed by the user. If the map data of a certain area is updated in the map data possessed by the user, the navigation server notifies the user that the map data has been updated through the navigation terminal.
[0100]
When downloading, only the difference information between the data held by the user and the data in the server is transmitted. The difference information here includes the added road information and point information. In this system, the navigation terminal periodically notifies the server of the map data owned by the user and its version.
[0101]
In the method described above, the map is always confirmed with the user when the map is acquired from the navigation server, but can be automatically downloaded by changing the setting of the navigation terminal.
[0102]
FIG. 39 shows a setting change screen regarding map download. The user can choose between “confirm when downloading” and “automatic download”. When “Confirm when downloading” is selected, a dialog is always displayed during communication as described above. When “Automatic download” is selected on the setting screen, communication is automatically started and map data is downloaded without displaying a confirmation dialog. In the setting screen, you can also automatically download by checking the check boxes for “Automatically download map on route”, “Automatically download when scrolling and scaling”, and “Automatically download when updating map”. You can choose when you want.
[0103]
When “Automatically download map on route” is selected, map data that does not exist in the built-in storage medium is searched from map data in the direction of the destination from the vehicle position on the route during route guidance. The map data is automatically downloaded.
[0104]
Next, the area setting at the time of map download will be described. Download map area setting The map area to be downloaded can be changed on the map download area setting screen of FIG. Settings can be selected from “Auto”, “Download widely” and “Download frequently”.
[0105]
When Auto is selected, the map area downloaded by the navigation terminal is dynamically changed according to the driving state. For example, during high speed traveling, the number of communications per fixed time can be reduced by widening the download area.
[0106]
Next, a method for selecting and downloading components from map information will be described. The map database in the navigation server is composed of a plurality of elements such as road shapes, backgrounds, place names, and spot names. However, not all information is necessarily required for map display. If all information is obtained from the navigation server, detailed information can be displayed, but a communication fee is charged. Therefore, in this embodiment, the map elements to be downloaded can be selected on the setting screen shown in FIG.
[0107]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, a communication navigation system can be realized with a small data transfer amount. Further, it is possible to realize a communication type navigation system with improved driving safety and operability.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an overall system diagram of a communication type navigation.
FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a navigation information providing apparatus.
FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a navigation terminal.
FIG. 4 is a hardware configuration diagram of a navigation terminal.
FIG. 5 is a software configuration diagram of the navigation terminal device.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of screen transition when route guidance is performed.
7 is a diagram showing an example of screen transition when route guidance following FIG. 6 is performed. FIG.
FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram of a terminal for performing route guidance processing.
FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram of the calculation of the distance between the vehicle position and route and the guidance point.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart for measuring the distance between the vehicle position and the route.
FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an enlarged intersection view at a guidance point.
FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a menu screen for instructing a guidance point display method.
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a screen display example when a route deviates.
FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a display example when reroute processing is not performed when a route is deviated.
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display example of guidance by characters.
FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a state in which guidance is performed using a schematic map and route data.
FIG. 17 is a flowchart of route search.
FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a screen transition diagram for destination setting.
FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a transmission format of point information.
FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating a transmission format of point information.
FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating a transmission format of a route search result.
FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a transmission format of a route search result.
FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a transmission format of a route search result.
FIG. 24 is a diagram illustrating a transmission format of a route search result.
FIG. 25 is a flowchart of point information search around the current location.
FIG. 26 is a flowchart of route re-search.
FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating screen transition for route re-search.
FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating screen transition of route re-search.
FIG. 29 is a diagram showing a setting screen of the navigation terminal.
FIG. 30 is a server-side processing flowchart of route search.
FIG. 31 is a processing flowchart when a map is requested;
FIG. 32 is a diagram showing an example of screen transition at the time of a map request.
FIG. 33 is a processing flowchart when updating a map;
FIG. 34 is a diagram showing an example of screen transition at the time of map update.
FIG. 35 is a diagram showing a URL when a map is requested.
FIG. 36 is a processing flowchart when a map is cut out by the navigation server.
FIG. 37 is a diagram showing a map data file format.
FIG. 38 is a diagram showing an update notification screen when the map of the navigation server is updated.
FIG. 39 is a diagram showing a setting screen for automatic map download;
FIG. 40 is a diagram showing a map download range setting screen.
FIG. 41 is a diagram showing a map download type setting screen.
FIG. 42 is a flowchart for transferring the traveling locus of the host vehicle to the center when a route is requested.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Satellite, 102 ... User vehicle, 103 ... Mobile communication network, 104 ... Provider, 105 ... Broadcasting company, 106 ... IP network, 107 ... Navigation information provision apparatus (navigation server), 108 ... Fixed telephone network, 109 ... User's home, 110 ... personal computer, 111 ... user management navigation server, 112 ... POI management navigation server, 113 ... registration point navigation server, 114 ... map management navigation server, 115 ... CGI, 116 ... route search navigation server, 117 ... User information registration / edit application 118 ... User management database, 119 ... POI search, 120 ... POI, 124 ... Map clipping, 125 ... Map database, 126 ... Option information database, 127 ... Route search engine, 128 ... Option information setting / Change application, 129 Guide point creation application, 130 ... display device, 131 ... GPS receiver, 132 ... terminal main body, 133 ... memory card slot, 134 ... mobile phone, 135 ... remote control, 136 ... GPS satellite, 137 ... microphone, 141 ... CPU, 142 ... Remote control driver, 143 ... RS-232C driver, 144 ... cell phone driver, 146 ... flash memory, 147 ... DRAM, 148 ... graphics processor, 149 ... graphics memory, 150 ... NTSC encoder, 200 ... application layer, 201 ... Shared OBJ layer, 202 ... tool layer, 203 ... middle layer, 204 ... driver layer, 205 ... device layer, 26 ... charge calculation unit, 1000 ... map display screen, 1001 ... download confirmation dialog display screen, 1002 ... during communication screen, 1003 Download end confirmation dialog display screen, 1004 ... Wide area map display screen, 1005 ... Map display screen, 1101 ... Map update confirmation dialog display screen, 1103 ... Download completion dialog, 1104 ... Latest map display screen, 1105 ... Map request URL, 1200 ... Map mesh position information, 1201 ... Map mesh data management information, 1202 ... Map mesh data, 1300 ... Map update notification screen, 1301 ... Map update, 1401 ... Map automatic download setting screen, 1402 ... Map download range setting screen, 1403 ... map download type setting screen, 3100 ... guidance route, 3101 ... guidance arrow display, 3102 ... guidance point 1, 3103 ... guidance point 2, 3104 ... own vehicle position display.

Claims (2)

Position measuring means for measuring the position of the terminal device;
Destination setting means for setting destination information;
A communication means for transmitting and receiving data to and from the information center;
Storage means for storing map data;
Route guidance means for guiding the route to the destination,
With
The communication means sends the current location information and destination information obtained by the position measurement means to the information center, receives route information from the information center to the destination, and guidance point information,
The route guidance means performs guidance to a destination using the received route information and guidance point information,
Said route guidance means, the intersection enlarged view of displaying superimposed guidance direction to the guidance point of the road type information to the vicinity of the guidance point-out based map included in the guidance point information generated using the map data Change the display of the guidance point depending on the type of guidance that displays the enlarged intersection and the guidance that displays the arrow ,
The route guidance means includes map confirmation means for determining whether map data necessary for creating an enlarged intersection map at the location of the guidance point is stored in the storage means when an enlarged intersection map is used as the guidance type. If it is determined that the map information necessary to create the enlarged intersection map is not stored, the generation request for the enlarged enlarged map of the guidance point is sent to the information center via the communication means. A communication type navigation device that receives and displays the result . The communication type navigation device according to claim 1,
Induction type is based on the road type information, if the road type is an ordinary road is derived for displaying the enlarged intersection, when the road type is highway, characterized in that an induction for performing arrow display communication Type navigation device.

Images