JP4770521B2 - Landmark presentation device, in-vehicle navigation device, and in-vehicle navigation system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for appropriately notifying information related to landmarks that are useful to a driver that changes every moment.

  There are known navigation devices that display the current position of the vehicle as it travels along with the road map on the monitor, set an appropriate route from the current location to the destination, and provide route guidance. It contributes to the drive. For example, in the route guidance by such a navigation device, an instruction to turn such as “Please turn left 300 m ahead” is given by voice or the like before an intersection on the route from the current location to the destination. In addition to the present location, purpose, and route, navigation devices that display a mark indicating a predetermined facility such as a gas station or a restaurant on a map are also known. This is effective when traveling.

  For information on road maps and facilities, it is common to use various types of information stored in recording media such as DVDs and HDDs, but in-vehicle information that can be used by acquiring various types of information on the network in recent years. Services are also provided. Such an in-vehicle information service provides various services having high added value using a large amount of information stored in a server and a high processing capability of the server, and can be used in a navigation device.

  However, a conventional so-called “distance-based” guidance method such as route guidance in the above-described navigation device is effective for a processing device such as a CPU of the navigation device to calculate, but the concept of this distance is actually However, it is difficult for the driver to recognize spatially when driving from the current location to the destination.

  On the other hand, according to research on urban cognitive engineering by scholars such as Lynch, information on landmarks as “land goals” such as mountains and high-rise buildings is a powerful means for humans to recognize spatially. It is supposed to be.

  Note that the above-described information on landmarks is also used in conventional navigation devices by displaying a mark indicating a predetermined facility such as a gas station or a restaurant on a map. At present, priority is not set, and only preset landmarks such as a specific genre are displayed uniformly. For this reason, there are the following problems. That is, when a map area having many facilities such as intersections is displayed on the display, marks indicating these facilities are displayed densely, making it difficult to check the current position, destination, route, and the like of the vehicle. On the other hand, when a map area with a small number of set facilities is displayed on the display, marks indicating these facilities are displayed in a scattered manner, making it easy to check the current position, destination, route, etc. of the vehicle. User convenience is low because there are few facilities.

  Further, in the navigation apparatus as described above, since the priority is not set for the landmark as described above, it is difficult to effectively convey information about the landmark to the driver by voice. Therefore, when handling landmarks, it is considered necessary to preset priorities by, for example, quantifying the relationship between landmarks and to inform the driver of landmarks with high priorities.

  Therefore, in order to solve the above-described problem, when a priority is set in advance for each facility, and a map area having many facilities such as intersections is displayed on the display, the facility with a higher priority is displayed. The technique which performs is known (for example, refer patent document 1). As a result, even when a map area with many facilities such as intersections is displayed on the display, the current position, destination, route, etc. of the vehicle can be easily confirmed.

Similarly, in order to solve the above-described problem, a technique for changing the display color for each type of facility is known (see, for example, Patent Document 2). As a result, when a map area with many facilities such as intersections is displayed on the display, the vehicle's current location, destination, route, etc. can be confirmed even if the marks indicating these facilities are displayed densely. It can be made easier.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-239078 JP 2002-39780 A

  However, in the above-described navigation device, since the priority of the facility is set in advance based on general elements such as attributes (genre), the facility that the driver wants to mark during traveling is in the traveling state. However, there is a problem that it is difficult to appropriately notify information on landmarks that are useful to the driver that changes every moment.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for appropriately notifying information on landmarks that are useful for a driver that changes every moment.

  The landmark presenting apparatus according to claim 1, which has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem, “selects a landmark to be notified with emphasis on the attribute information determined based on the running state of the vehicle, and selects the selected landmark. It is characterized by presenting a mark.

  Specifically, the map information storage unit stores map information related to the map, and the landmark information storage unit stores landmark information related to the landmark. The landmark information includes attribute information indicating the attributes of landmarks present on the map. A traveling state determination unit determines a traveling state of the vehicle. The important visual element determination means determines attribute information to be regarded as important when determining the importance of the landmark existing on the preset route based on the traveling state of the vehicle determined by the traveling state determination means. Then, the importance level calculation means uses the “map information” stored in the map information storage means and the “landmark information” stored in the landmark information storage means to determine the importance of the landmarks existing on the preset route. The degree is calculated by placing importance on the attribute information determined by the important element determination means. Further, the selection means selects a landmark to be presented based on the importance of the landmark calculated by the importance calculation means. Then, the presenting means presents the landmark selected by the selecting means.

  In the conventional navigation device, since the priority of the facility is set in advance based on the general elements such as the attribute (genre), the facility that the driver wants to make a mark during traveling depends on the traveling state. There is a problem that it is difficult to appropriately notify information on landmarks that are useful to the driver that changes every moment, because it does not correspond to the case where it changes.

  On the other hand, according to the landmark presenting apparatus of the present invention, the landmark to be notified is selected with emphasis on the attribute information determined based on the traveling state of the vehicle, and the selected landmark is presented. As a result, in response to the fact that the facility that the driver wants to mark while driving may change depending on the driving conditions, information on landmarks that are useful to the driver that changes every moment is appropriately reported. can do.

In this case, it is conceivable that the above-described attribute information includes straight-ahead attribute information and turning attribute information (claim 1 ). Of these, the straight-ahead attribute information is straight-ahead attribute information that is important information when the vehicle goes straight. For example, information indicating the height dimension of the landmark (Claim 2 ) or the degree of famousness of the landmark. Information (Claim 3 ) and the like. The turning attribute information is information that is regarded as important when the vehicle turns, such as information indicating the width dimension of the landmark (Claim 2 ), information indicating the general degree of the landmark (Claim 3 ), and the like. Is mentioned.

  If the attribute information is classified in advance as described above, the amount of calculation can be reduced and the importance can be determined at high speed. Further, by storing information with attribute classifications according to “straight ahead” and “turn” calculated in advance, it is possible to reduce the amount of calculation at the time of retrieval and to perform high-speed calculation.

  In addition, the “meaning” element and the position element of the landmark can be switched according to the driver's situation, such as at high speed, low speed, turning, or straight ahead. For example, when turning an intersection, increase the weight of information that the driver can recognize the point immediately while turning, such as “General”, while when driving straight ahead, such as “famous”, It is possible to increase the weight of information that can be understood. Also, for example, when turning an intersection, the weight of the position where the driver is likely to be noticed while turning, such as “near”, is increased, and the weight of the position where the driver is conscious while traveling straight, such as “far” while driving straight. Can be increased.

  Furthermore, when the speed is high even when judged to be the same “straight”, the weight of the “height” element is increased, while when judged as “straight”, the weight of the “width” element is given when the speed is low. Can be increased. Therefore, since the driver's gaze range varies depending on the speed, landmarks having elements that more closely match the driver's reality can be presented by adding weight using the speed.

  In addition, “landmark” elements of general landmarks that are easy to recognize immediately when the driver is aware of the neighborhood, and landmarks that are easy to recognize the direction of travel when the driver is aware of the distance Can be high. When the speed is high even when judged to be the same `` straight forward '', the weight of the `` famous '' element that makes the direction of travel easy to recognize is increased, and conversely when the speed is low even when judged to be the same `` straight forward '' It is possible to increase the weight of the “generality” element that is easily recognizable. Accordingly, since the driver has a difference in the margin to consider depending on the speed, a landmark having an element that more closely matches the driver's reality can be presented by linearly adding weight using the speed.

Incidentally, for the above running state determining means, it as the running state of the vehicle can be determined the traveling direction of the vehicle can be considered (claim 4).
And it is possible to perform the following processes using the traveling direction of the vehicle determined by the traveling state determination means.

(A) First, since the facility that the driver wants to mark during traveling is considered to exist in the traveling direction of the vehicle, it is conceivable to select attribute information that is regarded as important according to the traveling direction of the vehicle. Specifically, as in claim 5 , the important element determination unit determines that the straight traveling attribute information is regarded as important when the traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling direction of the vehicle is straight ahead, If it is determined by the traveling state determination means that the traveling direction of the vehicle is turning, it may be determined that the turning attribute information is regarded as important.

  If comprised in this way, the landmark which exists in the advancing direction of a vehicle can be considered more important, and the information regarding the landmark useful for the driver | operator which changes every moment can be alert | reported appropriately.

(B) When the vehicle goes straight, it is considered that a landmark far from the intersection is more effective as a landmark than a landmark near the intersection. On the other hand, when the vehicle turns, a landmark near the intersection is considered to be more effective as a landmark than a landmark far from the intersection. Therefore, it is conceivable to select a landmark that is regarded as important by the distance from the intersection according to the traveling direction of the vehicle. Specifically, as described in claim 6 , the attribute information includes position information indicating a distance from the nearest intersection on the map to the landmark, and the important element determination means determines the traveling direction of the vehicle. When the traveling state determination means determines that the vehicle is traveling straight, it is determined that the attribute information having a large position information value among the attribute information is more important, while the traveling state is determined that the traveling direction of the vehicle is turning. When it is determined by the determination means, it may be determined that attribute information having a small value of position information among attribute information is regarded as more important.

If comprised in this way, according to the advancing direction of a vehicle, the information regarding the landmark useful for the driver which changes every moment can be reported appropriately.
Further, with respect to the above-described traveling state determination means, it is further conceivable that the traveling speed (vehicle speed) of the vehicle can be determined as the traveling state of the vehicle (claim 7 ).

Then, it is conceivable to perform the following processing using the vehicle speed determined by the traveling state determination means. That is, when the vehicle is traveling at high speed, for example, it is estimated that the vehicle will go straight even if the intersection is approaching. On the other hand, when the vehicle is traveling at a low speed, it is estimated that the vehicle will turn at the intersection or enter a store, for example. Therefore, it is conceivable that important attribute information is selected according to the vehicle speed. Specifically, as in claim 8 , the important element determination unit determines that the straight traveling attribute information is regarded as important when the traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is high, If the traveling state determining means determines that the vehicle traveling speed is low, it may be determined that the turning attribute information is regarded as important.

  As an example, when the speed is low, the “position” element of the landmark in a close area and a narrow area can be increased according to the speed. When the speed is high, the “position” element of the landmark in a wide area can be increased according to the speed. Similarly, when the speed is low, the “position” element of the landmark at a place where there is a high possibility of turning can be increased. When the speed is high, the “position” element of the landmark that is likely to go straight ahead can be increased.

  If configured in this way, the next action of the vehicle is estimated according to the vehicle speed, and the attribute information to be regarded as important is selected, so that information on landmarks that are useful for the driver that changes every moment is appropriately notified. can do.

  By the way, when the destination is far from the current position, it is necessary to calculate the importance of a huge number of landmarks in order to calculate the importance of all the landmarks existing on the preset route. As the processing load on the importance degree calculation means increases, the calculation may take time.

Therefore, it is conceivable to set a search range for searching for landmarks. More specifically, as in claim 9 , there is provided search range setting means for setting on the map a search range for searching for landmarks that should be regarded as important when presenting to the user. However, it is conceivable to calculate the importance of landmarks existing on a preset route among landmarks existing within the search range set by the search range setting means. By configuring in this way, it is only necessary to calculate the importance of the landmarks existing in the search range, so compared to the case of calculating the importance of all the landmarks existing on the preset route, The processing burden can be reduced.

In this case, it is conceivable to set the search range described above as follows.
(C) That is, for the search range described above, when the vehicle is traveling at a high speed, it is estimated that the driver's line of sight is directed far away, while when the vehicle is traveling at a low speed. Since it is estimated that the driver's line of sight is directed nearby, it is conceivable to change the distance from the vehicle to the search range according to the vehicle speed. Specifically, as in claim 10 , when the search range setting means determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is high by the traveling state determination means, the distance from the current position of the vehicle is increased. On the other hand, it is conceivable that the search range is set so that the distance from the current position of the vehicle becomes smaller when the travel state determination means determines that the vehicle traveling speed is low.

(D) Regarding the above search range, it is conceivable to change the radius of the search range according to the vehicle speed. Specifically, as in claim 11 , when the search range setting means determines that the running speed of the vehicle is high by the driving state determination means, the search range is set so that the radius becomes large, On the other hand, when the traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is low, it is conceivable to set the search range so that the radius becomes small.

(E) Regarding the above-described search range, it is conceivable to change the search range in accordance with the vehicle speed. Specifically, as in the twelfth aspect , when the search range setting means determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is high, the search range is set to be more or less than the length dimension in the left-right direction. When the traveling state determination means determines that the vehicle travel speed is low, the search range is set to the left-right direction rather than the length dimension in the front-rear direction. It is conceivable that the length dimension of is set to be larger.

If it comprises like above-mentioned (c)-(e), the information regarding the landmark useful for the driver who changes every moment can be reported appropriately.
By the way, as a method for presenting the landmark selected as described above, the following may be considered.

(F) That is, it is conceivable to present the selected landmark by displaying it. Specifically, as shown in claim 13 , the presenting means may display the landmark selected by the selecting means together with the map information around the landmark based on the map information stored in the map information storing means. Conceivable. It is also conceivable to highlight only the selected landmark.

If comprised in this way, a driver | operator can grasp | ascertain the position of the landmark on a map instantaneously.
(G) It is also conceivable to present the selected landmark by voice guidance. Specifically, as shown in claim 14 , it is conceivable that the presenting means informs the landmark selected by the selecting means by voice.

If comprised in this way, the driver | operator can know the information regarding the landmark useful for the driver | operator which changes every moment, turning a gaze ahead.
(H) Further, when presenting the landmarks selected as described above, it is conceivable to select and present the top N landmarks. Specifically, as in claim 15 , the selection means selects a predetermined number of landmarks in order from the landmark having the highest importance based on the importance of the landmark calculated by the importance calculation means. Can be considered.

By presenting a predetermined number of landmarks selected in this way, it is possible to more reliably know information on landmarks that are beneficial to the driver by presenting a number of landmarks according to the judgment ability of the driver. it can.
(I) When the landmarks selected as described above are presented, it is conceivable that the landmarks are presented in descending order of importance. Specifically, as in claim 16 , the selection means selects landmarks in descending order of importance based on the importance of the landmarks calculated by the importance calculation means, and the presentation means It is conceivable to present the landmarks selected by the selection means in the order of selection.

If comprised in this way, the time allowance which collates the presented landmark and the real thing can be given to a driver | operator.
(Nu) Moreover, when presenting the landmarks selected as described above, it is conceivable to present the landmarks in the order in which they exist on the above-described route. Specifically, as in claim 17 , it is conceivable that the presenting means presents the landmarks selected by the selecting means in the order along a preset route.

  If the landmarks selected in this way are presented, the driver can grasp the landmarks that should be regarded as important in accordance with the progress of the vehicle, and the convenience for the driver can be enhanced.

By the way, when calculating the importance level of a landmark as described above, information related to the driver may be used in addition to the map information and the landmark information. Specifically, as in claim 18 , based on the information acquisition means for acquiring various information from the outside, the various information acquired by the information acquisition means, and the running state of the vehicle determined by the traveling state determination means, Driver information generation means for generating driver information relating to the driver, and the importance level calculation means is generated by the driver information generation means when calculating the importance level of the landmarks existing in the search range. It is conceivable to use driver information.

  Note that specific examples of the driver information described above include the purpose (intention), personality, and state of the driver. Further, specific examples of the external information described above include information (route, current position, destination) specific to the navigation device.

  With this configuration, the driver's status, such as the operating status during driving such as route search and around the destination, and environmental status such as travel and daily life estimated from information such as the location and time of use, etc. The importance of the landmark according to the vehicle can be determined, and information on the landmark useful for the driver can be appropriately selected and notified.

By the way, it is possible to implement | achieve various functions which the above-mentioned landmark presentation apparatus plays as a vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus. Specifically, as in claim 19 , the above-described vehicle-mounted navigation device includes the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 18, and the map information storage means of the landmark presenting device. Display means for displaying the landmark selected by the selection means of the landmark presenting device together with the map information around the landmark based on the stored map information. If comprised in this way, the landmark corresponding to the real-time condition of a vehicle can be shown to a driver.

Moreover, it is possible to implement | achieve as a vehicle-mounted navigation system about the various functions which the above-mentioned landmark presentation apparatus show | plays.
Specifically, as described in claim 20 , the above-described vehicle-mounted navigation system includes the vehicle-mounted navigation device according to claim 19, and a center, and various types of data between the vehicle-mounted navigation device and the center. Can be sent and received.

Among these, the center includes various information storage means, stored content update means, and transmission means. On the other hand, the vehicle-mounted navigation device includes a receiving unit and a storage control unit.
The center configured as described above has the following effects. That is, various information storage means stores various information including map information and landmark information, and the storage content update means updates the storage contents stored by the various information storage means. When the storage contents of the various information storage means are updated by the storage content update means, the transmission means reads the updated update data and transmits the read update data to the in-vehicle navigation device.

  On the other hand, the vehicle-mounted navigation device configured as described above has the following effects. That is, the receiving means can receive the update data transmitted from the center, and the storage control means stores the update data received by the receiving means in the map information storage means or the landmark information storage means, so that the map information The storage content of the storage means and the storage content of the landmark information storage means are kept up to date.

  If comprised in this way, the landmark which the person actually recognizes can be extracted by analyzing the data on the internet. In addition, by regularly updating the data, it is possible to reflect the recognition of the time and season, such as current trend information. In addition, landmarks taking into account the driver's viewpoint can be extracted by using geographical building elements (width, height, position, etc.). Also, by performing these operations on a server capable of high-speed processing, a large amount of geographical information and Internet information can be actually used. In the in-vehicle navigation device, landmarks corresponding to the state of the vehicle such as “run” and “turn” can be extracted by using the information acquired from the in-vehicle sensor.

Moreover, about the above-mentioned vehicle-mounted navigation system, it can be considered that various data can be transmitted and received by wireless communication (claim 21 ). If comprised in this way, the map information and landmark information which a vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus memorize | stores can be kept up-to-date, and the information regarding the landmark useful for a driver | operator can be selected more appropriately and can be notified. . In addition, since only the necessary area needs to be retained, the dynamic landmark analysis process becomes faster.

Moreover, about the above-mentioned vehicle-mounted navigation system, it can be considered that various data can be transmitted and received by an external storage device (claim 22 ). With this configuration, it is possible to eliminate the communication charge compared to the case of connecting to the public network via one or a plurality of wireless media.

Furthermore, in the vehicle-mounted navigation system as described above, it is conceivable to periodically collect the latest various data via the WEB. Specifically, as described in claim 23 , the stored content updating means of the center periodically checks the update status of various information including map information and landmark information stored in various external databases, If updated, the update data is acquired, and the stored contents of the various information storage means can be updated by storing the acquired update data in the various information storage means.

  If comprised in this way, the map information and landmark information which a vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus memorize | stores can be kept up-to-date, and the information regarding the landmark useful for a driver | operator can be selected more appropriately and can be notified. .

In addition, in the in-vehicle navigation system as described above, it is conceivable to periodically collect various data from the in-vehicle navigation device. Specifically, as in claim 24 , there are a plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices, and the storage content updating means of the center periodically checks the update status in various information stored in each of the plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices. When various information is updated, the update data is acquired, and the acquired update data is stored in the various information storage means, thereby updating the storage contents of the various information storage means. On the other hand, it is conceivable that each of the plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices includes various information acquisition means capable of acquiring various information stored in the various information storage means of the center.

  If comprised in this way, the various information which the other vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus acquired can be utilized, and the information regarding the landmark useful for a driver | operator can be selected more appropriately, and can be notified. In addition, by utilizing various information acquired by other in-vehicle navigation devices as described above, it is possible to use real-time and detailed road peripheral information such as traffic congestion and surrounding images, and to obtain more real-time and detailed analysis results. Obtainable.

In addition, a dedicated probe car for collecting road periphery information may be prepared, and the road periphery information collected by the probe car may be collected (claim 25 ). If comprised in this way, a more real-time and detailed analysis result can be obtained by using real-time and detailed road periphery information, such as a traffic jam condition and a surrounding image.

Further, the probe car may be provided with a camera to collect images around the road and transmit them to the server together with position information at the time of photographing (claim 26 ). On the other hand, the server recognizes the image taken by the probe car camera, extracts the height, width, and color of the part of the building that can be seen from the road, and performs basic information analysis processing. It may be configured. If configured in this way, analysis can be performed using the height, width, and color of the part of the building that is actually visible from the driver, and "look" information that is closer to the driver's sense can be extracted. . Also, there is no “color” information in general map data. By using an image photographed by the probe car, it is possible to automatically extract information on “color”.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[First embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment. 2-4 is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display in the presentation apparatus 13 of the landmark presentation apparatus 100. FIG. FIGS. 5 and 6 are explanatory diagrams showing landmark basic information stored in the landmark basic information storage database 10. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the processing contents of the presentation device 13. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing the processing contents of the vehicle state determination device 14.

[Description of Configuration of Landmark Presentation Device 100]
As shown in FIG. 1, the landmark presentation device 100 includes a landmark basic information storage database (DB) 10, a map data database (DB) 11, a vehicle sensor 12, a presentation device 13, and a vehicle state determination device 14. And comprising.

[Description of Configuration of Landmark Basic Information Storage Database 10]
The landmark basic information storage database 10 is a storage device in which a disk as a storage medium and a drive as a read / write device are integrated. The landmark basic information storage database 10 stores landmark information relating to landmarks existing on the map. Below, the concept regarding the memory | storage content which a landmark basic information preservation | save database memorize | stores is demonstrated with reference to FIG.

  This landmark information includes attribute information. The attribute information includes straight-ahead attribute information and turning attribute information. Of these, the straight-ahead attribute information is straight-ahead attribute information that is important information when the vehicle goes straight, and includes, for example, information indicating a height dimension in a landmark, information indicating a famous degree in a landmark, and the like. . The turning attribute information is information that is regarded as important when the vehicle turns, and includes information indicating the width dimension of the landmark, information indicating the general degree of the landmark, and the like. In FIG. 5, this straight traveling attribute information is exemplified by generalizing as an element “b1”, an element “b2”, and an element “b3”, and the values are normalized to 10 levels for each landmark. Is generalized as an element “a1”, an element “a2”, and an element “a3”, and the values are normalized to 10 levels for each landmark.

  In the present embodiment, the landmark information is configured as illustrated in FIG. That is, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the attribute information of the landmark information includes an “appearance” element, a “meaning” element, and a “position” element, and is set for each building. Among these, the “appearance” element includes data indicating the height dimension of the landmark as the straight traveling attribute information and data indicating the width dimension of the landmark as the turning attribute information. In addition, the “meaning” element includes data indicating “famousness” of the landmark as straight traveling attribute information and data indicating “generality” of the landmark as turning attribute information. In addition, the “position” element includes data indicating the degree of proximity to the vicinity of the intersection. The closer to the intersection, the stronger the meaning as turning attribute information, and the farther from the intersection, the stronger the meaning as straight ahead attribute information. In the present embodiment, the landmark information is calculated in advance and stored in the landmark basic information storage database 10. Specifically, the “height” dimension of the landmark and the “width” dimension of the landmark are calculated from the height of the building and the length of the road contact road, respectively, and normalized to 10 levels. In addition, the position of the landmark from “around the intersection” is calculated from the distance from the nearest intersection to the landmark, and is normalized to 10 levels in advance. In addition, “famousness” normalizes the number of hits when searching for a building name of a landmark on the WEB to 10 levels. The “generality” is normalized to 10 levels by calculating the number of buildings in the genre using the genre (convenience store, gas station, etc.) existing in the map data.

[Description of Configuration of Map Data Database 11]
Similar to the landmark basic information storage database 10, the map data database 11 is a storage device in which a disk as a storage medium and a drive as a read / write device are integrated. The map data database 11 stores map data (map information) related to the map. Since the map data is in accordance with a known technique, detailed description thereof is omitted here.

[Description of Configuration of Vehicle Sensor 12]
The vehicle sensor 12 is a sensor for detecting various types of information indicating the running state of the vehicle. Specifically, the vehicle sensor 12 can detect the vehicle speed, the current position of the vehicle, information about the route from the current position to the destination, and the traveling direction of the vehicle. In the present embodiment, the vehicle sensor 12 acquires the above-described various information as follows. That is, for the vehicle speed, an output signal from a vehicle speed sensor provided in the vehicle is acquired via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown). In addition, for information regarding the current position of the vehicle and the route from the current position to the destination, an output signal from an in-vehicle navigation device (not shown) provided in the vehicle is acquired via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown). As for the traveling direction of the vehicle, an output signal from a steering angle sensor (not shown) that detects the steering angle provided in the vehicle is acquired via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown).

[Description of Configuration of Vehicle State Determination Device 14]
The vehicle state determination device 14 is a normal computer configured with a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and has a function of determining the traveling state of the vehicle based on various data acquired from the vehicle sensor 12. Specifically, the vehicle state determination device 14 executes vehicle state determination processing for determining the state of the vehicle, whereby information indicating the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle sensor 12, information indicating the current position of the vehicle, and the current position Whether information about the route to the destination and information indicating the direction of travel of the vehicle is acquired as information indicating the driving state of the vehicle, and whether the vehicle is going straight ahead based on the acquired information indicating the driving state of the vehicle Determine if you are going to turn. The determination result is calculated as the probability that the vehicle goes straight and the probability that the vehicle turns.

  In the present embodiment, the vehicle state determination device 14 determines the traveling state of the vehicle by executing a vehicle state determination process. Hereinafter, the above-described vehicle state determination process will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, it is determined whether or not route information is included in various information acquired by the vehicle sensor 12 (S110). If it is determined that route information is not included (S110: N), it is predicted whether the vehicle will go straight or turn at the next intersection based on various information (S120). For example, based on various information, the vehicle status is determined to be (b) the distance to the intersection is within 300 m, (b) the vehicle is decelerating, and (c) the winker is being operated. If so, the probability that the vehicle will turn and go straight is predicted to be 80% and 20%, respectively. Then, the process proceeds to S130, on the basis of the previous prediction result, it is determined that the probability of the vehicle turning and the probability of going straight are 80% and 20%, respectively (S130), and the process returns to S110.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the route information is included when the previous S110 is executed (S110: Y), the route information exists on the route from the current position of the vehicle to the destination. Since information indicating whether to go straight or turn at the intersection is included, it is determined based on the route information whether the vehicle goes straight or turns at the next intersection (S120). Then, the process returns to S110.

[Description of Configuration of Presentation Device 13]
The presentation device 13 includes a landmark element determination unit 15, an importance level determination unit 16, and a presentation unit 19. In addition, the presentation device 13 executes a landmark presentation process described later.

[Description of the configuration of the landmark element determination unit 15 of the presentation device 13]
9 to 12 are explanatory diagrams showing the processing contents for determining the appearance element by the landmark element determination unit 15. FIG. 13 to FIG. 16 are explanatory diagrams showing the processing contents in which the landmark element determination unit 15 determines the semantic elements. FIGS. 17 to 22 are explanatory diagrams showing the processing contents of the landmark element determination unit 15 determining the position element.

  The landmark element determination unit 15 is a normal computer configured by a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and exists on a route set in advance based on the traveling state of the vehicle determined by the vehicle state determination device 14. It has a function of determining attribute information that is regarded as important when determining the importance of a landmark.

  In this embodiment, the landmark element determination unit 15 includes an appearance element determination unit 151 (see FIG. 9), a semantic element determination unit 152 (see FIG. 13), and a position element determination unit 153 (see FIG. 17). Hereinafter, it demonstrates in order.

(1) The appearance element determination unit 151, as shown in FIG. 9, includes attribute information ("height" and "width" of the landmark) included in the "landmark information" stored in the landmark basic information storage database 10. Based on the running state of the vehicle determined by the vehicle state determination device 14 (the probability of the vehicle turning and the probability of going straight), the value of the appearance element V _d is determined for each landmark.

The value of the appearance element V _d is calculated as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the appearance element determination unit 151 specifies the destination and the current position from the route information included in various information acquired by the vehicle sensor 12. Subsequently, the appearance element determination unit 151 uses the specified destination and the surrounding area of the current position as a search range for searching for the landmark, and maps the area around the destination and the current position from the map data database 11. At the same time as reading, the landmark information relating to the landmarks existing within the inspection range is read from the landmark basic information storage database 10. Note that the distance dimension a (m) in the left-right direction and the distance dimension b (m) in the front-rear direction for setting the search range can be arbitrarily specified. Then, the appearance element determination unit 151 deletes landmarks whose attribute information values included in the read landmark information are not more than a predetermined value, and uses the following expression (1) for other landmarks. The value of the visual element V _d is calculated. The predetermined value can be arbitrarily specified. Further, f _h (v) is a probability (%) that the vehicle goes straight, and f _w (v) is a probability (%) that the vehicle turns.

Since the value of the appearance element V _d is calculated as described above, the following effects can be obtained. That is, when the probability of the vehicle turning is high, the turning attribute information is emphasized, and the importance of the landmark having a large width dimension is calculated to be larger. As a result, a landmark having a large width dimension can be easily selected (see the display example in FIG. 11A). On the other hand, when there is a high probability that the vehicle will go straight, the straight traveling attribute information is emphasized, and the importance of the landmark having a large height dimension is calculated to be larger. As a result, a landmark having a large height is easily selected (see the display example in FIG. 11B).

Also, in consideration of the traveling speed of the vehicle, when the value of the traveling speed of the vehicle is large, the weight of the “height” that is the attribute information of the landmark is increased. On the other hand, when the value of the traveling speed of the vehicle is small, the landmark The value of the appearance element V _d may be calculated so as to increase the weight of the “width” that is the attribute information. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 12, instead of the probability (%) that the vehicle travels straight, f _h (v) increases in value as the vehicle traveling speed increases. A coefficient is set, and the coefficient is set to f _w (v) so that the value decreases as the vehicle traveling speed increases, instead of the probability that the vehicle turns (%) (see FIG. 12).

(2) The semantic element determination unit 152, as shown in FIG. 13, includes attribute information ("famousness" and "generality" of the landmark) included in the "landmark information" stored in the landmark basic information storage database 10. ), The value of the semantic element S _d is determined for each landmark, based on the running state of the vehicle (probability that the vehicle turns and probability that the vehicle goes straight) determined by the vehicle state determination device 14.

Note that the value of the semantic element S _d is calculated as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 14, the semantic element determination unit 152 specifies the destination and the current position from the route information included in various information acquired by the vehicle sensor 12. Subsequently, the semantic element determination unit 152 sets the area around the identified destination and current position as a search range for searching for a landmark, and maps the area around the destination and current position from the map data database 11. At the same time as reading, the landmark information relating to the landmarks existing within the inspection range is read from the landmark basic information storage database 10. Note that the distance dimension a (m) in the left-right direction and the distance dimension b (m) in the front-rear direction for setting the search range can be arbitrarily specified. Then, the semantic element determination unit 152 deletes landmarks whose attribute information values included in the read landmark information are not more than a predetermined value, and uses the following expression (2) for other landmarks. To calculate the value of the semantic element S _d . The predetermined value can be arbitrarily specified. Further, f _f (v) is a probability (%) that the vehicle goes straight, and f _p (v) is a probability (%) that the vehicle turns.

Since the value of the semantic element S _d is calculated as described above, the following effects are obtained. That is, when the probability of turning of the vehicle is high, the turning attribute information is emphasized, and the importance of the landmark having a large “generality” is calculated to be larger. As a result, a landmark having a large “generality” is easily selected (see the display example in FIG. 15A). On the other hand, when there is a high probability that the vehicle will go straight, the straight attribute information is emphasized, and the importance of a landmark having a high “famousness” is calculated to be larger. As a result, landmarks having a large “famousness” are easily selected (see the display example in FIG. 15B).

Also, in consideration of the vehicle traveling speed, when the vehicle traveling speed value is large, the weight of the “famousness” that is the attribute information of the landmark is increased. On the other hand, when the vehicle traveling speed value is small, the landmark The value of the semantic element S _d may be calculated so as to increase the weight of “generality” that is attribute information. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 16, instead of the probability (%) that the vehicle travels straight, the value f _f (v) increases as the traveling speed of the vehicle increases. the coefficient is set, the f _p (v), the vehicle is instead of the probability of turning (%), similarly sets a coefficient to the value decreases as the value of traveling speed of the vehicle increases (FIG. 16).

(3) As shown in FIG. 17, the position element determination unit 153 uses the attribute information (distance from the intersection) included in the “landmark information” stored in the landmark basic information storage database 10, and the vehicle state determination device 14. Based on the determined running state of the vehicle (the probability that the vehicle turns and the probability that the vehicle goes straight), the value of the position element L _d is determined for each landmark.

Note that the calculation of the value of the position element L _d is performed as follows. That is, as illustrated in FIG. 18, the position element determination unit 153 identifies the destination and the current position from the route information included in various information acquired by the vehicle sensor 12. Subsequently, the position element determination unit 153 uses the specified destination and the surrounding area of the current position as a search range for searching for the landmark, and a map of the surrounding area of the destination and the current position from the map data database 11. At the same time as reading, the landmark information relating to the landmarks existing within the inspection range is read from the landmark basic information storage database 10. Note that the distance dimension a (m) in the left-right direction and the distance dimension b (m) in the front-rear direction for setting the search range can be arbitrarily specified. Then, the position element determination unit 153 deletes landmarks whose attribute information values included in the read landmark information are not more than a predetermined value, and uses the following expression (3) for other landmarks. to calculate the value of the positional element L _d Te. The predetermined value can be arbitrarily specified. Specifically, the “weight area E” for weighting the landmark is determined. The weight area E is calculated using the following equation (3). The reference distance d (m) is a distance from the current position of the vehicle to the center of the weight area E, and is set to increase as the vehicle traveling speed increases (see FIG. 21). The area diameter r (m) is a radial dimension from the center of the weighted area E to the boundary, and is set to increase as the vehicle traveling speed increases (see FIG. 21).

Since the value of the positional element L _d as described above is calculated, the following effects. That is, when the vehicle has a high probability of turning, the turning attribute information is emphasized, and the importance of the landmark that is on the route and is close to the intersection is calculated to be larger. As a result, a landmark that exists on the route as described above and is close to the intersection can be easily selected (see the display example in FIG. 20A). On the other hand, when the probability that the vehicle is going straight is high, the straight traveling attribute information is emphasized, and the importance of the landmark that exists on the route and is far from the intersection is calculated to be larger. As a result, landmarks that exist on the route as described above and are far from the intersection can be easily selected (see the display example in FIG. 20B).

  For the above-described weight area, instead of setting the area diameter, the vertical and horizontal diameters of the weight area may be set (see FIG. 22). In this case, the longitudinal diameter is set to increase as the value of the vehicle traveling speed increases. In addition, about this longitudinal diameter, the variation | change_quantity with respect to the unit increase amount of the driving speed of a vehicle is set small. The lateral diameter is set to increase as the vehicle traveling speed increases.

Furthermore, as illustrated in FIG. 19, the position element determination unit 153 calculates the temporary position element L ^′ _d of the landmark existing in the weight area using the following equation (4), and also the search range. A temporary position element L ^′ _d of a landmark existing outside the weight area is calculated using the following equation (5). Note that i is an intersection peripheral parameter and is set in advance. F _i is a parameter for weighting and can be arbitrarily set. Then, the position element L _d is calculated by normalizing the provisional position element L ^′ _d calculated as described above to 10 levels.

  This makes it possible to appropriately notify information related to landmarks that are useful to the driver that changes every moment.

[Description of Configuration of Importance Determining Unit 16 of Presentation Device 13]
The importance determination unit 16 is a normal computer configured by a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and includes “map information” stored in the map data database 11 and “landmarks” stored in the landmark basic information storage database 10. Based on “information”, it has a function of calculating the importance of the landmarks existing on the route set in advance with the attribute information determined by the landmark element determination unit 15 as important. The importance level determination unit 16 has a function of selecting a landmark to be presented based on the calculated importance level of the landmark. Specifically, the importance level determination unit 16 calculates the importance level “I” of the landmark using the following equation (6). Then, based on the importance level “I” of the landmark calculated as described above, the importance level determination unit 16 selects the landmark having the highest importance level “I” as the landmark to be presented. The variable “X” (%) indicates the probability that the vehicle will turn. The variable “Y” (%) indicates the probability that the vehicle will go straight.

In the present embodiment, the importance level determination unit 16 calculates the importance level “I” of the landmark using the following equation (7) (see FIG. 7). Here, I _d is the importance of the landmark, i ^′ _v is a weight parameter related to the appearance element, V _d is an appearance element, i ^′ _s is a weight parameter related to the semantic element, and S _d is meaning I ^′ _l is a weight parameter for the position element, and L _d is the position element. Each weight parameter is set in advance.

[Description of Configuration of Presenting Unit 19 of Presenting Device 13]
The presenting unit 19 is a color display device. On the screen of the presenting unit 19, a vehicle current position mark, map data read from the map data database 11, and additional data such as a guide route and a touch switch to be displayed on the map are displayed. Can be displayed in a superimposed manner. The presentation unit 19 has a function of presenting the landmark selected by the importance level determination unit 16.

[Explanation of correspondence]
The landmark basic information storage database 10 corresponds to landmark information storage means. The map data database 11 corresponds to map information storage means. The vehicle state determination device 14 corresponds to a traveling state acquisition unit. The landmark element determination unit 15 corresponds to an important element determination unit. The importance level determination unit 16 corresponds to an importance level calculation unit and a selection unit. The presentation unit 19 corresponds to a presentation unit. Further, the position element determination unit 153 of the landmark element determination unit 15 corresponds to a search range setting unit.

[Description of landmark presentation process]
Next, landmark presentation processing executed by the presentation device 13 of the landmark presentation device 100 will be described. This process is executed when an accessory power supply of a vehicle (not shown) is turned on and power is supplied to the landmark presentation device 100.

First, the vehicle sensor 12 detects various types of information indicating the traveling state of the vehicle, and transmits the detected various types of information to the vehicle state determination device 14.
Subsequently, the vehicle state determination device 14 determines the traveling direction of the vehicle. Specifically, the vehicle state determination device 14 determines the traveling direction of the vehicle by executing a vehicle state determination process based on various information transmitted by the vehicle sensor 12.

Then, the presentation device 13 selects a landmark to be presented. Specifically, the position element determination unit 153 of the landmark element determination unit 15 uses the above-described formula (4) as a search range for searching for a landmark from the route information, using the area around the destination and the current position of the vehicle. ) And equation (5). Next, the appearance element determination unit 151 of the landmark element determination unit 15 calculates the appearance element V _d using the above equation (1) based on the determination result of the traveling direction of the vehicle. Further, the semantic element determination unit 152 of the landmark element determination unit 15 calculates the semantic element S _d using the above-described equation (2) based on the determination result of the traveling direction of the vehicle. Further, the position element determination unit 153 of the landmark element determination unit 15 calculates the position element L _d using the above-described equation (3) based on the determination result of the traveling direction of the vehicle. Then, the importance level determination unit 16 calculates the importance level I _d of the landmark within the search range using the above-described formula (7), and presents the landmark having the largest calculated importance level I _d. Select the landmark you want to use.

Further, the presentation device 13 causes the presentation unit 19 to present the previously selected landmark together with the map.
[Effect of the first embodiment]
(1) As described above, according to the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment, the following operational effects can be obtained. That is, the landmark element determination unit 15 sets the area around the destination and the current position of the vehicle from the route information as a search range for searching for the landmark, and looks based on the determination result of the traveling direction of the vehicle. Element V _d , semantic element S _d and position element L _d are calculated. Then, the importance level determination unit 16 calculates the importance level I _d of the landmark within the search range based on the appearance element V _d , the semantic element S _d, and the position element L _d , and the calculated importance value is Select the landmark that presents the largest landmark. Further, the presentation device 13 causes the presentation unit 19 to present the previously selected landmark together with the map.

  For example, when it is determined that the vehicle is turning, the turning attribute information is regarded as important, and a landmark having a large width dimension is selected and presented (FIGS. 2A and 3). reference). Further, for example, when it is determined that the vehicle is going straight, the straight traveling attribute information is regarded as important, the height dimension is large, and a famous landmark is selected and presented (FIG. 2B). And FIG. 4).

This makes it possible to appropriately notify information related to landmarks that are useful to the driver that changes every moment.
(2) Moreover, according to the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment, the landmark information includes attribute information, and the attribute information includes straight traveling attribute information and turning attribute information. By previously classifying the attribute information in this way, the amount of calculation can be reduced and the importance can be determined at high speed. Further, by storing information with attribute classifications according to “straight ahead” and “turn” calculated in advance, it is possible to reduce the amount of calculation at the time of retrieval and to perform high-speed calculation.

  In addition, the “meaning” element and the position element of the landmark can be switched according to the driver's situation, such as at high speed, low speed, turning, or straight ahead. For example, when turning an intersection, increase the weight of information that the driver can recognize the point immediately while turning, such as “General”, while when driving straight ahead, such as “famous”, It is possible to increase the weight of information that can be understood. Also, for example, when turning an intersection, the weight of the position where the driver is likely to be noticed while turning, such as “near”, is increased, and the weight of the position where the driver is conscious while traveling straight, such as “far” while driving straight. Can be increased.

  Furthermore, when the speed is high even when judged to be the same “straight”, the weight of the “height” element is increased, while when judged as “straight”, the weight of the “width” element is given when the speed is low. Can be increased. Therefore, since the driver's gaze range varies depending on the speed, landmarks having elements that more closely match the driver's reality can be presented by adding weight using the speed.

  In addition, “landmark” elements of general landmarks that are easy to recognize immediately when the driver is aware of the neighborhood, and landmarks that are easy to recognize the direction of travel when the driver is aware of the distance Can be high. When the speed is high even when judged to be the same `` straight forward '', the weight of the `` famous '' element that makes the direction of travel easy to recognize is increased, and conversely when the speed is low even when judged to be the same `` straight forward '' It is possible to increase the weight of the “generality” element that is easily recognizable. Accordingly, since the driver has a difference in the margin to consider depending on the speed, a landmark having an element that more closely matches the driver's reality can be presented by linearly adding weight using the speed.

  (3) Moreover, according to the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment, the position element determination unit 153 of the landmark element determination unit 15 determines the landmark and the surrounding area of the current position of the vehicle from the route information. Is set using the above-described equations (4) and (5). As a result, it is only necessary to calculate the importance level of the landmarks existing within the search range, so that the processing burden is higher than when calculating the importance levels of all the landmarks existing on the preset route. Can be reduced.

(4) Moreover, according to the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment, the presenting apparatus 13 calculates the importance I _d of the landmark within the search range using the above-described formula (7), and calculates The landmark having the highest importance _Id value is selected as the landmark to be presented, and the selected landmark is presented to the presentation unit 19 together with the map. As a result, the driver can instantly grasp the position of the landmark on the map.

[Other Embodiments]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It is possible to implement in the following various aspects.

  (1) In the first embodiment, the vehicle sensor 12 is configured to acquire an output signal from an external vehicle speed sensor, an in-vehicle navigation device, and a steering angle sensor via the in-vehicle LAN. The landmark presenting device includes a vehicle speed sensor, an in-vehicle navigation device, and a steering angle sensor, and the vehicle sensor 12 presents an output signal from the vehicle speed sensor, the in-vehicle navigation device, and the steering angle sensor. The configuration may be known to be acquired in the device 100.

(2) In the first embodiment, the presentation device 13 calculates the importance level I _d of the landmark in the search range using the above-described formula (7), and the calculated importance level I _d is The landmark that presents the largest landmark is selected, and the selected landmark is presented together with the map to the presentation unit 19. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the presentation device 13 receives the selected landmark from the speaker. You may make it alert | report by. In this way, it is possible to know information relating to landmarks that are useful to the driver that changes every moment while the driver turns his gaze forward.

(3) Further, the presentation device 13, the importance value I _d that is calculated may be selected landmarks N by the largest order. Note that the above-described constant N can be arbitrarily set. In this way, by presenting a quantity of landmarks corresponding to the judgment ability of the driver, it is possible to know information on landmarks useful for the driver more reliably.

  (4) When the presentation device 13 presents the selected landmark, the presentation unit 19 may present the selected landmark in order of the calculated importance. In this way, it is possible to give the driver time margin for comparing the presented landmark with the actual object.

  (5) When the presentation device 13 presents the selected landmark, the presentation unit 19 may present the landmark in the order in which they exist on a preset route. In this way, the driver can grasp landmarks that should be regarded as important in accordance with the progress of the vehicle, and the convenience for the driver can be enhanced.

  (6) As for various functions performed by the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment, a vehicle-mounted navigation system having a route setting function and a map display function for displaying the landmarks selected as described above together with a map. You may implement | achieve as a function which an apparatus plays. In this way, landmarks corresponding to real-time conditions of the vehicle can be presented to the driver.

  (7) Further, when the presentation device 13 causes the presentation unit 19 to present the selected landmark, only the selected landmark may be highlighted. As a result, the driver can instantly grasp the position of the landmark on the map.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 23 is a block diagram illustrating the overall configuration of the landmark presenting apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment. FIG. 24 is an explanatory diagram showing the processing contents of the analyzer 20.

In the first embodiment, the landmark presentation device 100 includes the landmark basic information storage database (DB) 10, the map data database (DB) 11, the vehicle sensor 12, the presentation device 13, and the vehicle state determination device 14. The importance level determination unit 16 of the presentation device 13 is configured to calculate the importance level I _d of the landmark within the search range based on the appearance element V _d , the semantic element S _d, and the position element L _d. Has been. On the other hand, the landmark presenting apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 23, presents a landmark basic information storage database (DB) 10, a map data database (DB) 11, a vehicle sensor 12, and a presentation. Device 13, vehicle state determination device 14, and analysis device 20, and importance level determination unit 16 of presentation device 13 determines the importance level I _d of the landmark within the search range, visual element V _d , and semantic element. The calculation is based on S _d , the position element L _d , and the analysis result by the analysis device 20.

  Since the landmark presenting apparatus 200 of the present embodiment has the same configuration as the landmark presenting apparatus 100 of the first embodiment described above, the same reference numerals are given to the common configurations and the details thereof are described. The detailed explanation is omitted.

Below, the analyzer 20 is demonstrated.
[Description of Configuration of Analyzer 20]
The analysis device 20 is a normal computer configured by a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and has a function of estimating a driver's state and determining a weight parameter.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 24, the analyzer 20 performs the following process. That is, first, a driver profile is acquired (S210). The driver profile refers to information related to the driver, and includes information indicating the age, sex, and preference of the driver. For this driver profile, an output signal from an in-vehicle navigation device (not shown) provided in the vehicle is acquired via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown).

  Next, by acquiring route information including information regarding the departure point, destination, and waypoint, information regarding the destination is acquired (S220). In addition, about this route information, the output signal from the vehicle-mounted navigation apparatus (illustration omitted) with which a vehicle is equipped is acquired via in-vehicle LAN (illustration abbreviation).

  And the information which shows a vehicle state is acquired (S230). The information indicating the vehicle state refers to information on the current position of the vehicle, the current time, the weather, and the like. As for the current position of the vehicle, an output signal from an in-vehicle navigation device (not shown) provided in the vehicle is acquired via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown). Information indicating the current time is obtained from an internal clock (not shown). For information indicating the weather, an output signal from a weather sensor (not shown) provided in the vehicle is acquired via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown).

  Further, based on the driver profile, information on the destination, and information indicating the vehicle state, the vehicle state and the driver state are estimated (S240). Then, a weight parameter is determined based on the estimation result regarding the vehicle state and the driver state (S250). For example, when parameters such as “suburb”, “travel”, and “away from destination” are determined as weight parameters, the relative weights of these parameters are increased. In addition, when parameters such as “urban area”, “shopping”, and “a little more to the destination” are determined as weighting parameters, the relative weights of these parameters are increased.

The importance level determination unit 16 described above calculates the landmark importance level “I” in consideration of the weight parameter set with a relatively high relative weight.
Then, with reference to the route information, it is determined whether or not the destination has been changed (S260). If it is determined that the destination has been changed (S260: Y), the process proceeds to S220. On the other hand, if it is determined that the destination has not been changed (S260: N), the process proceeds to S230.

[Effects of Second Embodiment]
As described above, according to the landmark presenting apparatus 200 of the second embodiment, when traveling, estimated during travel, daily life, etc., estimated from information such as driving conditions such as route search / destination vicinity, driving location / time, etc. The importance of the landmark according to the driver's situation such as an environmental situation can be determined, and information on the landmark useful for the driver can be appropriately selected and notified.

[Other Embodiments]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It is possible to implement in the following various aspects.

  (1) Various functions performed by the landmark presenting apparatus 200 of the second embodiment may be realized as functions performed by an in-vehicle navigation apparatus having a route setting function and a map display function.

[Third embodiment]
FIG. 25 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the in-vehicle navigation system 300 of the third embodiment. FIG. 26 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the server.

  As shown in FIG. 25, the in-vehicle navigation system 300 includes a server 50 connected to a public network 60 such as the Internet, and an in-vehicle navigation device 70. The server 50 is configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via radio, and the in-vehicle navigation device 70 is also configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via one or a plurality of radio media 90. Has been.

  Among these, as shown in FIG. 26, the server 50 includes a map data database 52, a dictionary data database 53, a collection unit 54 for periodically collecting WEB content 80 on the Internet, and the above-described map data and dictionary data. Analysis and extraction unit 55 for extracting landmark information for each geographical information, landmark basic information storage database 51 for storing the extracted landmark basic information, and landmarks from the landmark basic information storage database 51 And a distribution unit 56 that reads information and distributes the information to the outside.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 25, the in-vehicle navigation device 70 includes a database 71 that stores landmark information extracted separately from the landmark information stored in the server 50, a map data database 72, and the current position of the vehicle. A vehicle sensor 73 that acquires various information such as the traveling speed of the vehicle and the traveling direction of the vehicle, a presentation device 74 that selects and presents a landmark suitable for the driver's condition using the various information described above, Is provided.

  In addition, about the presentation apparatus 74 of this embodiment, the structure and function similar to the presentation apparatus 13 with which the landmark presentation apparatus 100 of 1st embodiment is provided are provided. The landmark basic information storage database 51 of the present embodiment has the same configuration and function as the landmark basic information storage database 10 of the first embodiment. In addition, the map data database 52 of the present embodiment has the same configuration and functions as the map data database 11 of the first embodiment.

[Effect of the third embodiment]
(1) Thus, according to the vehicle-mounted navigation system 300 of the third embodiment, landmarks that are actually recognized by a person can be extracted by analyzing data on the Internet. In addition, by regularly updating the data, it is possible to reflect the recognition of the time and season, such as current trend information. In addition, landmarks taking into account the driver's viewpoint can be extracted by using geographical building elements (width, height, position, etc.). Also, by performing these operations on a server capable of high-speed processing, a large amount of geographical information and Internet information can be actually used. In the in-vehicle navigation device, landmarks corresponding to the state of the vehicle such as “run” and “turn” can be extracted by using the information acquired from the in-vehicle sensor.

  (2) Further, according to the in-vehicle navigation system 300 of the third embodiment, the server 50 is configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via radio, and the in-vehicle navigation device 70 is also one or It is configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via a plurality of wireless media 90. As a result, the in-vehicle navigation device 70 can always obtain the latest landmark information. In addition, since only the necessary area needs to be retained, the dynamic landmark analysis process becomes faster.

[Other Embodiments]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It is possible to implement in various aspects.

[Fourth embodiment]
FIG. 27 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the in-vehicle navigation system 400 of the fourth embodiment.

  In the third embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, the in-vehicle navigation system 300 includes a server 50 connected to a public network 60 such as the Internet and an in-vehicle navigation device 70, of which the server 50 is configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via radio, and the in-vehicle navigation device 70 is also configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via one or a plurality of radio media 90. . On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 27, the in-vehicle navigation system 400 according to the fourth embodiment includes a server 50 connected to a public network 60 such as the Internet and an in-vehicle navigation device 70. 50 is configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via radio, and the in-vehicle navigation device 70 is configured to acquire landmark information from the server 50 via a large-capacity physical medium 61. Yes.

  In addition, since the vehicle-mounted navigation system 400 of this embodiment has the same configuration as the vehicle-mounted navigation system 300 of the third embodiment described above, the same reference numerals are given to common configurations, and the details thereof are given. The detailed explanation is omitted.

  The server 50 described above stores landmark information of a certain area designated in advance by the administrator in a physical medium 61 such as a DVD that can be used by the in-vehicle navigation device 70. In addition, it is possible that the user of the vehicle-mounted navigation device 70 purchases the media from a card dealer or the like and installs the media on the vehicle-mounted navigation device 70 for use.

[Effect of the fourth embodiment]
As described above, according to the vehicle-mounted navigation system 400 of the fourth embodiment, the landmark information is acquired from the server 50 via the large-capacity physical media 61 for the vehicle-mounted navigation device 70, so that one or more Compared with the case of connecting to the public network 60 via the wireless medium 90, a communication fee can be eliminated.

[Other Embodiments]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It is possible to implement in various aspects.

[Fifth embodiment]
FIG. 28 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an in-vehicle navigation system 500 of the fifth embodiment.

  In the third embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, the in-vehicle navigation system 300 includes a server 50 connected to a public network 60 such as the Internet and an in-vehicle navigation device 70, of which the server 50 is configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via radio, and the in-vehicle navigation device 70 is also configured to be connectable to the public network 60 via one or a plurality of radio media 90. . On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 28, the in-vehicle navigation system 500 of the fifth embodiment is configured such that the collection unit 54 collects road periphery information collected by other vehicles.

A dedicated probe car 81 that collects road periphery information may be prepared, and the collection unit 54 may collect the road periphery information collected by the probe car 81.
Further, the probe car 81 may be provided with a camera, collect an image around the road, and transmit it to the server together with position information at the time of photographing. On the other hand, the server 50 performs image recognition on the image captured by the camera of the probe car 81, extracts the height, width, and color of the portion of the building that can be seen from the road, and performs basic information analysis processing. It may be configured to do.

[Effect of the fifth embodiment]
(1) As described above, according to the in-vehicle navigation system 500 of the fifth embodiment, more real-time and detailed analysis results are obtained by using real-time and detailed road periphery information such as traffic conditions and surrounding images. be able to.

  (2) Moreover, according to the vehicle-mounted navigation system 500 of the fifth embodiment, the probe car 81 includes a camera, and is configured to collect images around the road and transmit them to the server together with position information at the time of shooting. Yes. In this way, analysis can be performed using the height, width, and color of the part of the building that is actually visible from the driver, and “look” information closer to the driver's sense can be extracted. Also, there is no “color” information in general map data. By using an image photographed by the probe car, it is possible to automatically extract information on “color”.

[Other Embodiments]
As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It is possible to implement in various aspects.

It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the landmark presentation apparatus of 1st embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display in the presentation part of a landmark presentation apparatus, (a) shows the example of a display at the time of turning, (b) shows the example of a display at the time of going straight, (c) is the example of the conventional display Show. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display at the time of the turn in the presentation part of a landmark presentation apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display at the time of straight ahead in the presentation part of a landmark presentation apparatus. It is explanatory drawing (1) which shows the landmark basic information which a landmark basic information storage database memorize | stores. It is explanatory drawing (2) which shows the landmark basic information which a landmark basic information storage database memorize | stores. It is explanatory drawing which shows the processing content of a presentation apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows the processing content of a vehicle state determination part. It is explanatory drawing (1) which shows the processing content which determines an appearance element. It is explanatory drawing (2) which shows the processing content which determines an appearance element. It is explanatory drawing (3) which shows the processing content which determines an appearance element. It is explanatory drawing (4) which shows the processing content which determines an appearance element. It is explanatory drawing (1) which shows the processing content which determines a semantic element. It is explanatory drawing (2) which shows the processing content which determines a semantic element. It is explanatory drawing (3) which shows the processing content which determines a semantic element. It is explanatory drawing (4) which shows the processing content which determines a semantic element. It is explanatory drawing (1) which shows the processing content which determines a position element. It is explanatory drawing (2) which shows the processing content which determines a position element. It is explanatory drawing (3) which shows the processing content which determines a position element. It is explanatory drawing (4) which shows the processing content which determines a position element. It is explanatory drawing (5) which shows the processing content which determines a position element. It is explanatory drawing (6) which shows the processing content which determines a position element. It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the landmark presentation apparatus of 2nd embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the processing content of an analyzer. It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the vehicle-mounted navigation system of 3rd embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a server. It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the vehicle-mounted navigation system of 4th embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the vehicle-mounted navigation system of 5th embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Landmark basic information storage database, 11 ... Map data database,
12 ... Vehicle sensor, 13 ... Presentation device, 14 ... Vehicle state determination device,
15 ... Landmark element determination unit, 151 ... Eye element determination unit, 152 ... Semantic element determination unit,
153: Position element determination unit, 16 ... Importance determination unit, 19 ... Presentation unit, 20 ... Analysis device,
50 ... Server, 51 ... Landmark basic information storage database,
52 ... Map data database, 53 ... Dictionary data database, 54 ... Collection unit,
55 ... Analysis / extraction unit, 56 ... Distribution unit, 60 ... Public network, 61 ... Physical media,
70: In-vehicle navigation device, 71 ... Database,
72 ... Map data database, 73 ... Vehicle sensor, 74 ... Presentation device,
80 ... WEB content, 81 ... probe car, 90 ... wireless medium,
100, 200 ... Landmark presentation device,
300, 400, 500 ... In-vehicle navigation system

Claims (26)

Map information storage means for storing map information relating to the map;
Landmark information storage means for storing landmark information relating to the landmark, including attribute information indicating an attribute of the landmark present on the map;
Traveling state determining means for determining a traveling state of the vehicle;
Based on the traveling state of the vehicle determined by the traveling state determination unit, important element determination unit that determines attribute information to be emphasized when determining the importance of landmarks existing on a preset route;
Based on the map information stored in the map information storage unit and the landmark information stored in the landmark information storage unit, the importance level of the landmarks existing on a predetermined route is determined by the important visual element determination unit. Importance calculation means for calculating the determined attribute information with importance,
Selection means for selecting a landmark to be presented based on the importance of the landmark calculated by the importance calculation means;
Presenting means for presenting the landmark selected by the selecting means;
Equipped with a,
The attribute information includes a straight-ahead attribute information that is important information when the vehicle is going straight, and a turning attribute information that is information that is important when the vehicle is turning. Presentation device.   The landmark presenting apparatus according to claim 1,
  The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the straight traveling attribute information includes information indicating a height dimension of the landmark, and the turning attribute information includes information indicating a width dimension of the landmark.   In the landmark presenting device according to claim 1 or 2,
  The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the straight traveling attribute information includes information indicating a famous degree in the landmark, and the turning attribute information includes information indicating a general degree in the landmark.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
  The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the traveling state determination means can determine the traveling direction of the vehicle as the traveling state of the vehicle.   In the landmark presenting apparatus according to claim 4,
  The important element determination unit determines that the straight traveling attribute information is important when the traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling direction of the vehicle is straight, while the traveling direction of the vehicle turns. If it is determined by the traveling state determining means that the vehicle is determined to be important for the turning attribute information
  Landmark presentation device characterized by this.   In the landmark presenting device according to claim 4 or 5,
  The attribute information includes position information indicating the distance from the nearest intersection to the landmark on the map,
  The important element determination unit determines that the attribute information having a large position information value among the attribute information is more important when the traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling direction of the vehicle is straight. On the other hand, when the traveling state determining means determines that the traveling direction of the vehicle is turning, it is determined that attribute information having a small position information value among the attribute information is more important.
  Landmark presentation device characterized by this.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
  The landmark presenting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the traveling state determination means can further determine the traveling speed of the vehicle as the traveling state of the vehicle.   In the landmark presenting apparatus according to claim 7,
  The important element determination unit determines that the straight traveling attribute information is important when the traveling state determination unit determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is high, while the traveling speed of the vehicle is low. If it is determined by the traveling state determining means that the vehicle is determined to be important for the turning attribute information
  Landmark presentation device characterized by this.   In the landmark presenting device according to claim 7 or 8,
  Comprising search range setting means for setting a search range on the map for searching for landmarks that should be regarded as important when presented to the user;
  The importance calculating means calculates importance of landmarks existing on a preset route among landmarks existing in the search range set by the search range setting means.
  Landmark presentation device characterized by this.   The landmark presenting apparatus according to claim 9, wherein
  The search range setting means sets the search range so that the distance from the current position of the vehicle is increased when the travel state determination means determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is high, The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the search range is set so that a distance from a current position of the vehicle is reduced when the traveling state determining unit determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is low.   In the landmark presenting device according to claim 9 or 10,
  The search range setting means sets the search range so that the radius increases when the travel state determination means determines that the travel speed of the vehicle is high, while the travel speed of the vehicle is The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the search range is set so that the radius becomes small when the traveling state determining means determines that the speed is low.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 9 to 11,
  In the search range setting means, when the travel state determination means determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is high, the search range is set to have a length dimension in the front-rear direction rather than a length dimension in the left-right direction. On the other hand, when the traveling state determining means determines that the traveling speed of the vehicle is low, the search range has a length dimension in the left-right direction rather than the length dimension in the front-rear direction. Set to be larger
  Landmark presentation device characterized by this.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 12,
  The presenting means displays the landmark selected by the selecting means together with the map information around the landmark based on the map information stored in the map information storage means.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 13,
  The landmark presenting apparatus characterized in that the presenting means informs the landmark selected by the selecting means by voice.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 14,
  The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the selecting means selects a predetermined number of landmarks in order from the landmark having the highest importance based on the importance of the landmark calculated by the importance calculating means.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 15,
  The selecting means selects landmarks in order from the landmark having the highest importance based on the importance of the landmark calculated by the importance calculating means,
  The landmark presenting apparatus, wherein the presenting means presents the landmarks selected by the selecting means in the order of selection.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 16,
  The presenting means presents the landmarks selected by the selecting means in order along a preset route.   In the landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 17,
  Information acquisition means for acquiring various types of information from outside;
  Driver information generating means for generating driver information related to the driver based on various information acquired by the information acquiring means and the driving state of the vehicle determined by the driving state determining means;
  With
  The importance calculation means uses the driver information generated by the driver information generation means when calculating the importance of the landmarks existing in the search range.
  Landmark presentation device characterized by this.   The landmark presenting device according to any one of claims 1 to 18,
  Display means for displaying the landmark selected by the selection means of the landmark presentation device together with map information around the landmark based on the map information stored in the map information storage means of the landmark presentation device;
  A vehicle-mounted navigation device comprising:   An in-vehicle navigation system comprising: the in-vehicle navigation device according to claim 19; and a center, wherein the various types of data can be transmitted and received between the in-vehicle navigation device and the center.
  The center is
  Various information storage means for storing various information including map information and landmark information;
  Storage content update means for updating storage contents stored in the various information storage means;
  When the storage contents of the various information storage means are updated by the storage content update means, the updated update data is read, and the read update data is transmitted to the in-vehicle navigation device, Prepared,
  The in-vehicle navigation device is
  Receiving means capable of receiving update data transmitted from the center;
  Storage that keeps the storage contents of the map information storage means and the storage contents of the landmark information storage means up-to-date by storing the update data received by the reception means in the map information storage means or landmark information storage means And a control means
  In-vehicle navigation system.   The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 20,
  A vehicle-mounted navigation system configured to be able to transmit and receive various data by wireless communication between the vehicle-mounted navigation device and the center.   The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 21,
  A vehicle-mounted navigation system configured to transmit and receive various data between the vehicle-mounted navigation device and the center via an external storage device.   The in-vehicle navigation system according to any one of claims 20 to 22,
  The stored content update means of the center periodically checks the update status of various information including map information and landmark information stored in various external databases, and updates the various information if it is updated. A vehicle-mounted navigation system characterized by acquiring data and storing the acquired update data in the various information storage means to update the stored contents of the various information storage means.   The in-vehicle navigation system according to any one of claims 20 to 23,
  There are a plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices,
  The stored content updating means of the center periodically checks the update status of various information stored in each of the plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices, and acquires the update data when the various information is updated. , Updating the stored contents of the various information storage means by storing the acquired update data in the various information storage means,
  Each of the plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices,
  Provided with various information acquisition means capable of acquiring various information stored in the various information storage means of the center
  In-vehicle navigation system.   The in-vehicle navigation system according to any one of claims 20 to 23,
  It has a probe car that collects information around the road,
  The stored content update means of the center periodically checks the update status of various information collected by the probe car, acquires the update data when the various information is updated, and acquires the updated data Is stored in the various information storage means to update the stored contents of the various information storage means,
  Each of the plurality of in-vehicle navigation devices,
  Provided with various information acquisition means capable of acquiring various information stored in the various information storage means of the center
  In-vehicle navigation system.   The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 25,
  The in-vehicle navigation system, wherein the probe car includes an imaging unit that captures an image around a road.