JP4741268B2 - Road traffic information display device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for receiving and displaying road traffic information.

  As a traffic traffic information service provider, there is a road traffic information communication system center (VICS center) in Japan. There is known a navigation device that receives road traffic information transmitted from the VICS center and displays the contents in a list for each event such as traffic jams and traffic restrictions to inform the user of the traffic situation to the destination. (Patent Document 1).

JP 2004-226168 A

  In the navigation device disclosed in Patent Document 1, every time road traffic information is received, it is necessary to create a list as described above based on the road traffic information. Therefore, for example, if the received road traffic information contains too much information or the road traffic information update interval is too short, the processing load on the navigation device when creating a list from the road traffic information is excessive. There is a possibility. Therefore, in order to prevent such an excessive processing load, road traffic information transmitted by a road traffic information service provider such as a VICS center is received, and the contents of the road traffic information are listed for each event. There is a demand for an apparatus for displaying in a list that can reduce processing load when a list is created from received road traffic information.

The road traffic information display device according to the invention of claim 1 is a receiving means for receiving road traffic information whose contents are updated every predetermined time, and converts the road traffic information received by the receiving means into a specific geographical name. Conversion means, display control means for displaying the geographical name converted from the road traffic information by the conversion means using a display monitor, road traffic information received this time by the receiving means, and the last time received by the receiving means Comparing with the road traffic information, the display control means comprises a determination means for determining whether or not to use the geographical name previously displayed by the display control means, and using the geographical name previously displayed by the determination means as it is If determined, the conversion means does not convert the road traffic information into a specific geographical name, and the display control means displays the previously displayed geographical name using a display monitor. It is intended.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the road traffic information display device according to the first aspect, the road traffic information includes a plurality of event data each representing an event relating to the road traffic , and each event data is set with a unique event number. Point information for indicating the point of occurrence of the event is included, and the conversion means converts the road traffic information into a specific geographical name indicating the point of occurrence for each event based on the point information. The display control means displays the geographical name converted from the road traffic information by the conversion means in a list for each event using the display monitor, and the judgment means receives the road traffic information received this time by the receiving means. Each event number (current event number) set for each event data included in the event data is the road traffic information previously received by the receiving means. It is determined whether it matches any of the event numbers (previous event numbers) set for each event data included in the event data, and the current event number determined to match any of the previous event numbers is With respect to the set event data, it is determined that the geographical name converted from the previously received road traffic information and displayed based on the point information included in the event data is used as it is.

  According to the present invention, in a device that receives road traffic information transmitted by a service provider of road traffic information and displays the contents of the road traffic information in a list for each event, a list is received from the received road traffic information. The processing load when creating the list can be reduced.

  A configuration of a navigation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. This navigation device is mounted on a vehicle, and executes a so-called normal navigation process for guiding the vehicle to the destination, such as setting a destination and searching / displaying a recommended route. Furthermore, road traffic information is received, the received road traffic information is converted into characters and icons for each event, and displayed in a list. The navigation device 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a control circuit 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, a current location detection device 14, an image memory 15, a display monitor 16, an input device 17, a road traffic information receiving unit 18, and a disk drive 19. The disk drive 19 is loaded with a DVD-ROM 20 on which map data is recorded.

  The control circuit 11 includes a microprocessor and its peripheral circuits, and performs various processes and controls as will be described later by executing a control program stored in the ROM 12 using the RAM 13 as a work area. The current location detection device 14 is a device that detects the current location of the host vehicle. For example, a vibration gyro sensor 14a that detects the traveling direction of the host vehicle, a vehicle speed sensor 14b that detects a vehicle speed, and a GPS that detects a GPS signal from a GPS satellite. It consists of various sensors such as the sensor 14c. The navigation main body 1 can determine a route search start point, which will be described later, based on the current location of the host vehicle detected by the current location detection device 14, or can indicate the location of the host vehicle on a road map.

  The image memory 15 temporarily stores image data to be displayed on the display monitor 16. This image data includes road map drawing data for displaying a road map, various graphic data, etc., and is received by the map data recorded on the DVD-ROM 20 or by the road traffic information receiving unit 18 described later. It is created in the control circuit 11 based on the road traffic information. By outputting the image data created by the control circuit 11 to the image memory 15, various images such as a road map and a list of road traffic information are displayed on the display monitor 16.

  The input device 17 has various input switches for the user to set a destination and a transit point of the vehicle (hereinafter simply referred to as a destination). The input device 17 is realized by an operation panel, a remote controller, or the like. The user can set a destination by specifying a place name, a position on a map, and the like by operating the input device 17 in accordance with a screen instruction displayed on the display monitor 16.

  The road traffic information receiving unit 18 receives road traffic information transmitted by a road traffic information service provider. The data format of the road traffic information will be specifically described later with reference to FIG. The road traffic information received by the road traffic information receiving unit 18 is output to the control circuit 11, and the control circuit 11 converts the contents of the road traffic information into characters and icons for each event. Thereby, image data for displaying the list as described above is created. The specific processing contents at this time will be described later with reference to the flowchart of FIG. By outputting this image data to the image memory 15, a list of road traffic information is displayed on the display monitor 16.

  The road traffic information service provider transmits road traffic information representing various events to be provided as road traffic information such as traffic jams and various traffic regulations. Providers of road traffic information services vary depending on regions. For example, in Japan, road traffic information called VICS information is provided by a road traffic information communication system center (VICS center). This transmission of VICS information is performed mainly by radio beacons installed on highways, optical beacons installed mainly on general roads, or FM multiplex broadcasting. In areas other than Japan, for example, the United States and Europe, road traffic information is provided by a provider of road traffic information services in each area.

  The disk drive 19 reads map data for displaying a road map from the loaded DVD-ROM 20. This map data includes route calculation data used for route search, route guidance data used to guide the vehicle to the destination according to recommended routes, such as intersection names and road names, and road data representing roads. include. The map data also includes background data representing map shapes other than roads such as rivers, railways, various facilities on the map (landmarks), and the like. The road data includes road classification data for representing the road classification (road type) of each road. By this road classification, for example, expressways, national roads, prefectural roads, etc. are represented.

  In the road data, the minimum unit representing a road section is called a link, and each road is composed of a plurality of links. A point connecting the links is called a node, and each node has position information (coordinate information). The link shape, that is, the shape of the road is determined by the position information of this node. Although an example using a DVD-ROM is described here, the map data may be read from a recording medium other than the DVD-ROM, such as a CD-ROM or a hard disk.

  When the user operates the input device 17 to set the destination, the navigation device 1 uses the current location detected by the current location detection device 14 as a route search start point and calculates a predetermined algorithm based on the above-described route calculation data. By doing so, a route search from the present location to the destination is performed. The recommended route obtained as a result of the route search is displayed on the road map separately from other roads by changing its display form, for example, display color. Thus, the user can recognize the recommended route on the road map displayed on the display monitor 16. In addition, the navigation device 1 guides the host vehicle by instructing the traveling direction by an image or voice to the user so that the host vehicle can travel according to the recommended route. In this way, route guidance to the destination is performed by displaying the road map and guiding the vehicle to the destination according to the recommended route.

  Next, the data format of road traffic information will be described with reference to FIG. The road traffic information transmitted from the road traffic information service provider in the navigation device 1 of the present embodiment is composed of road traffic information relating to a plurality of areas. In the example of FIG. 2, road traffic information from region A to region X is transmitted as one set of road traffic information. That is, when the road traffic information related to the area A is transmitted, the road traffic information related to the next area B is subsequently transmitted. In this way, road traffic information from region A to region X is continuously transmitted as one set of road traffic information.

  The road traffic information of each region includes a region flag for indicating the region and a plurality of event data. Each event data has a unique number called an event number for each region. In the example of FIG. 2, the road traffic information related to the region A includes a total of n event data from event # 1 data to event #n data. Similarly, the road traffic information related to region B includes a total of m event data from event numbers 1 to m, and the road traffic information related to region X includes the total from event numbers 1 to k. k pieces of event data are included.

  Each event data is set corresponding to an event represented by road traffic information. For example, when traffic congestion or traffic regulation occurs in a certain area, event data for representing the traffic jam or traffic regulation status is set in the road traffic information related to that area. If traffic jams or traffic restrictions occur in other places in the same area, event data different from the above is set in the road traffic information.

  Each event data includes type information for indicating what event the event data represents, and point information and distance information for indicating the occurrence point and occurrence range of the event, respectively. . By referring to this type information in the navigation device 1, whether the event data represents, for example, a traffic jam, traffic regulation due to construction, or traffic regulation due to an accident, etc. Judgment can be made. Further, by referring to the point information and the distance information in the navigation device 1, it is possible to specify at what point and to what extent the phenomenon represented by the event data occurs. In the case of traffic jams, the range of occurrence is present, but in the case of traffic regulation, it is performed only at a specific point and there may be no range of occurrence. In such a case, the distance information may not be included in the event data.

  The content of road traffic information transmitted in the data format as described above is updated every predetermined time by the provider of the road traffic information service. In the updated road traffic information, the same event number as before the update is set for event data representing the same phenomenon as before the update. Thus, in the event data in which the same event number as that before the update is set, only the content of the distance information among the type information, the point information, and the distance information changes depending on the situation. That is, if the event number does not change, the type information and the spot information included in the event data do not change even if the content of the road traffic information is updated.

  When the road traffic information is received by the navigation device 1, the navigation device 1 determines the area from which the road traffic information is acquired based on the vehicle position detected by the current location detection device 14, the set recommended route, and the like. Then, only the road traffic information of the area is extracted from the received road traffic information. At this time, the road traffic information to be extracted is determined based on the above-mentioned area flag. Then, each event data included in the extracted road traffic information is converted into characters and icons, and displayed in a list for each event. As a result, the above-described list of road traffic information is displayed on the display monitor 16.

  The road traffic information providing service as described above is currently provided in some parts of the United States and Europe. In the United States, such road traffic information is provided using radio waves transmitted from artificial satellites, and the contents are updated at intervals of 5 minutes. Also, in the update period of 5 minutes, the same content is repeatedly transmitted a plurality of times so that the reception side can reliably receive it. On the other hand, in Europe, such road traffic information is provided by FM broadcasting.

  An example of a list of road traffic information displayed on the display monitor 16 in the navigation device 1 by receiving the road traffic information is shown in FIG. FIG. 3A shows an example of a list displayed when the host vehicle is located at a certain point. In this list, each list of list 30, list 40, and list 50 is displayed in order for each event represented by the road traffic information. The display contents of each list are determined based on the event data of the road traffic information extracted as described above.

  In the list 30, an icon 31, road names 32 and 33, a direction arrow 34, and a distance 35 are displayed. The icon 31 indicates the type of event represented by the list 30, and here indicates traffic regulation during construction. The icon 31 is determined by selecting one of various icons stored in advance in the navigation device 1 based on the type information in the event data. That is, when the type information indicates that the traffic is restricted during construction, the icon 31 is displayed in the list corresponding to the event data including the type data.

  Road names 32 and 33 represent road names, respectively, and indicate that an event in the list 30 occurs at a point where the two roads represented by the road names 32 and 33 intersect. That is, it is shown that traffic regulation is being performed during construction at a point where “A street” and “B street” intersect. The contents of the road names 32 and 33 are determined by converting the point information in the event data into specific road names based on a conversion table stored in advance in the navigation device 1. At this time, the navigation device 1 stores a conversion table for converting the point information into road names for each intersection on the map. Here, the occurrence point is indicated by the names of two intersecting roads, but the occurrence point may be indicated by an intersection name or a place name. Any specific geographical name that can indicate the point of occurrence of the event displayed in the list may be used.

  The direction arrow 34 indicates in which direction the occurrence point of the event represented by the list 30 is located when viewed from the host vehicle. That is, it is shown that traffic regulation is being performed during construction, diagonally to the left front of the host vehicle. The direction of the directional arrow 34 is determined based on the vehicle position detected by the current location detection device 14 and the point information in the event data.

  The distance 35 indicates the distance from the host vehicle to the occurrence point of the event represented by the list 30. That is, it is shown that traffic regulation is being performed during construction at a point 2.6 km away from the host vehicle. The value of the distance 35 is determined based on the vehicle position detected by the current location detection device 14 and the point information in the event data.

  Similar to the list 30 described above, the list 40 displays icons 41, road names 42 and 43, direction arrows 44, and distance 45. Similarly, in the list 50, an icon 51, road names 52 and 53, a direction arrow 54, and a distance 55 are displayed. Since the events represented by the lists 40 and 50 are all traffic jams, the icons 41 and 51 and the distances 45 and 55 are determined by a method different from the icon 31 or the distance 35 of the list 30, respectively. . This point will be described below.

  The icons 41 and 51 both indicate that the event type is a traffic jam, and the icon 41 indicates that the traffic is more severe than the icon 51. Unlike the icon 31 described above, these icons are determined based on the type information and distance information in the event data. Specifically, when the type information indicates that the traffic is jammed, the degree of traffic jam is further determined based on the distance information. When the value of the distance information is larger than the predetermined value, that is, when the occurrence range of the traffic jam is wide, it is determined that the traffic jam degree is high, and the icon 41 indicating that the traffic jam is more severe is selected. On the contrary, when the value of the distance information is smaller than the predetermined value, that is, when the occurrence range of the traffic jam is narrow, it is determined that the traffic jam degree is low, and the icon 51 is selected. In a traffic jam, the icon 41 or 51 selected in this way is displayed.

  The distances 45 and 55 indicate the distance from the host vehicle to the event represented by the list 40 or 50, that is, the end of the traffic jam. That is, it shows that the destination is congested from a point 9.5 km or 12.7 km away from the host vehicle. The values of the distances 45 and 55 are determined based on the vehicle position detected by the current position detection device 14 and the point information and distance information in the event data. Specifically, in the case of a traffic jam, the last point of the traffic jam is calculated based on the spot information and the distance information, and the distance from the spot to the vehicle position is displayed as a distance 45 or 55.

  FIG. 3B shows an example of a list displayed when a predetermined time elapses from the time when the list of FIG. 3A is displayed and the content of the road traffic information is updated. At this time, it is assumed that the position of the host vehicle has moved from the point in time when the list in FIG. 3A is displayed. The display contents of the list 30, the list 40, and the list 50 in this list are changed as follows from FIG.

  In the list 30, the directional arrow 34 and the distance 35 in FIG. 3A are not displayed, but a current location mark 36 is displayed instead. The current location mark 36 indicates that the host vehicle is located at an event represented by the list 30, that is, a point where traffic restriction is being performed during construction. When the vehicle position detected by the current location detection device 14 is equal to the point indicated by the point information in the event data corresponding to the list 30 in the received updated road traffic information, the direction arrow 34 or Instead of the distance 35, the current location mark 36 is displayed.

  The icon 41 in the list 40 has been changed to the same icon 51 as in FIG. By changing this icon 41, the value of the distance information in the event data corresponding to the list 40 in the received updated road traffic information becomes smaller than when the list in FIG. 3A is displayed. It is shown that the degree of traffic congestion has decreased. Further, the direction of the direction arrow 44 and the value of the distance 45 are changed according to the change in the vehicle position and the change in the distance information in the event data corresponding to the list 40 in the received updated road traffic information as shown in FIG. It has changed from a). As for the distance 55 in the list 50, the display content changes in accordance with changes in the vehicle position and distance information, similarly to the distance 45.

  As described above, the icons, direction arrows, and distances displayed in each list change in the position of the vehicle or the event data in the updated road traffic information every time the content of the road traffic information is updated. The display content changes according to the change in the distance information. However, since the road name is displayed regardless of the distance information in the event data or the vehicle position, the display content does not change even if the content of the road traffic information is updated.

  Therefore, if event data with the same event number as the previous time is included in the received road traffic information, the road name displayed in the previous list is used as it is, and the point information based on the conversion table as described above No conversion from road names to road names will be performed. In this way, the number of conversions is reduced and the processing load on the navigation device 1 is reduced. In particular, when the conversion processing load is relatively large, for example, when the number of point information and road names registered in the conversion table is large, the amount of road traffic information is large, or the road traffic information update interval In such a case, the processing load of the navigation device 1 can be greatly reduced, and an excessive processing load can be prevented.

  FIG. 4 shows a flowchart executed in the navigation device 1 when the road traffic information is received and the list is displayed. This flowchart is repeatedly executed at a period corresponding to the transmission interval of road traffic information. Hereinafter, the processing step at the time when the flowchart of FIG. 4 is actually executed is referred to as the current step, and the processing step when executed in the previous cycle is referred to as the previous step. If this point is not particularly mentioned, this step is assumed.

  In step S10, the road traffic information receiving unit 18 receives road traffic information. In step S20, the control circuit 11 selects a target area for acquiring road traffic information. The selection of the target area is performed based on the own vehicle position detected by the current position detection device 14 and the set recommended route. For example, a region around the vehicle position or a region through which a recommended route passes is selected as the target region.

  In step S30, the road traffic information of the target area selected in step S20 is extracted from the road traffic information received in step S10. At this time, the road traffic information to be extracted is determined based on the region flag included in the road traffic information as described above. In step S40, any event data set in the road traffic information extracted in step S30 is selected.

  In step S50, for the event data selected in step S40, the road traffic information received in the previous step S10 is compared with the road traffic information received in the current step S10. It is determined whether there is event data with the same event number as this time. If there is event data with the same event number, that is, if the current event number matches any of the previous event numbers, the process proceeds to step S60. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S70. Based on the determination in step S50, it is determined whether or not to use the previously displayed road name as it is. That is, if there is event data of the same event number, it is determined that the previously displayed road name is used as it is, and the process proceeds to step S60. Otherwise, it is determined that the previously displayed road name is not used as it is, and step S70 is determined. Proceed to

  In step S60, the previous road name is used as the road name when the event data selected in step S40 is displayed as a list. As a result, if the received road traffic information includes event data with the same event number as the previous time, the road name displayed in the current list is determined using the road name displayed in the previous list as it is. The After step S60 is executed, the process proceeds to step S90.

  On the other hand, in step S70, a conversion table for converting point information into road names is read. This conversion table is stored in the ROM 12 or the DVD-ROM 20, and is read into the control circuit 11 therefrom. In the next step S80, the point information included in the event data selected in step S40 is converted into a road name based on the conversion table read in step S70. Thereby, the road name displayed on this list is determined. If step S80 is performed, it will progress to step S90.

  In step S90, an icon to be displayed in the list is selected based on the type information and distance information in the event data selected in step S40. In step S100, based on the type information and the distance information in the event data selected in step S40, the direction and distance values of the direction arrows displayed in the list are calculated.

  In step S110, it is determined whether or not all event data set in the road traffic information extracted in step S30 has been selected in step S40. If all the event data has not been selected yet, the process returns to step S40, and after selecting new event data in step S40, the processing steps as described above are executed. In this manner, the display contents of each list are determined by executing the processing of steps S50 to S100 for all event data.

  If it is determined in step S110 that all event data has been selected, the process proceeds to step S120. In step S120, a list of road traffic information is displayed by arranging the display contents of each list determined so far in order and displaying them on the display monitor 16. If step S120 is performed, the flowchart of FIG. 4 will be complete | finished. As described above, the road traffic information is received and the list is displayed.

According to the embodiment described above, the following operational effects can be obtained.
(1) The road traffic information is received by the road traffic information receiving unit 18 (step S10), the received road traffic information is converted into a specific road name (step S80), and the road name is displayed using the display monitor 16. Are displayed as a part of the list (step S120). At this time, the road traffic information received this time is compared with the road traffic information received last time, and it is determined whether or not the road name displayed last time is used as it is (step S50). If it is determined that the previously displayed road name is used as it is, the previous road name is used (step S60), so that the road name displayed last time is displayed without converting the road traffic information to a specific road name. The list is displayed as a part of the list using the monitor 16 (step S120). Since it did in this way, in the apparatus which receives the road traffic information transmitted by the service provider of road traffic information, and displays the contents of the road traffic information on the list list for each event, the list is received from the received road traffic information. The processing load when creating the list can be reduced.

(2) Specifically, the road traffic information received based on the point information included in the event data is converted into a specific road name (step S80), and the road name is displayed in a list for each event ( Step S120). Each event number set for each event data included in the road traffic information received this time (current event number) is assigned to each event data included in the road traffic information received last time. It is determined whether each of the set event numbers (previous event number) matches (step S50). The event data set with the current event number determined to match one of the previous event numbers is converted from the previously received road traffic information based on the point information included in the event data and displayed on the display monitor. The road name displayed in 16 is used as it is. Since it did in this way, it includes a plurality of event data set for each event for which information is to be provided, and each event data is set with a unique event number, and a point for indicating the occurrence point of the event In a device that receives road traffic information each containing information and displays a list of the road traffic information, the processing load when creating the list from the received road traffic information can be reduced.

  The embodiment and various modifications described above are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these contents as long as the features of the invention are not impaired.

  In the above embodiment, the receiving means is realized by the road traffic information receiving unit 18, and each other means is realized by the processing in the control circuit 11 of the navigation device 1. Specifically, the determination means is realized by step S50, the conversion means is realized by step S80, and the display control means is realized by step S120. In addition, the above description is an example to the last, and when interpreting invention, it is not limited or restrained at all by the correspondence of the description matter of said embodiment, and the description matter of a claim.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus by one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the data format of road traffic information. It is a figure which shows the example of the list list of road traffic information. It is a flowchart of the process performed when receiving road traffic information and displaying a list.

Explanation of symbols

1 Navigation device 11 Control circuit 12 ROM
13 RAM
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 14 Present location detection apparatus 15 Image memory 16 Display monitor 17 Input apparatus 18 Road traffic information receiving part 19 Disk drive 20 DVD-ROM
31, 41, 51 Icon 32, 33, 42, 43, 52, 53 Road name 34, 44, 54 Directional arrow 35, 45, 55 Distance

Claims (2)

Receiving means for receiving road traffic information whose contents are updated every predetermined time;
Conversion means for converting road traffic information received by the receiving means into a specific geographical name;
Display control means for displaying the geographical name converted from the road traffic information by the conversion means using a display monitor;
Whether the geographical name displayed last time by the display control means is used as it is by comparing the road traffic information received this time by the receiving means and the road traffic information previously received by the receiving means. Determination means for determining,
If it is determined by the determination means that the previously displayed geographical name is used as it is, the conversion means does not convert the road traffic information into a specific geographical name, and the display control means A road traffic information display device for displaying a target name using the display monitor. In the road traffic information display device according to claim 1,
The road traffic information includes a plurality of event data each representing an event related to road traffic ,
Each event data includes a unique event number, and includes point information for indicating the occurrence point of the event,
The conversion means converts the road traffic information into a specific geographical name indicating the point of occurrence for each event based on the point information,
The display control means displays the geographical name converted from the road traffic information by the conversion means in a list for each event using a display monitor,
The determination means includes
Each event number (current event number) set for each event data included in the road traffic information received this time by the receiving means is included in the road traffic information previously received by the receiving means. Determine whether it matches any of the event numbers set for each event data (previous event number),
The event data set with the current event number determined to match one of the previous event numbers is displayed after being converted from the previously received road traffic information based on the point information included in the event data. A road traffic information display device characterized in that a geographical name is determined to be used as it is.

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