JP4825705B2 - Information provision device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention generally relates to an information providing apparatus that provides traffic information to a traveling vehicle using communication, and particularly provides both necessary and sufficient information and a reduction in communication load appropriately. The present invention relates to the information providing apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an information providing device that provides traffic information to a traveling vehicle using communication is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Patent Document 1 discloses a center device that searches for traffic information within a predetermined fan-shaped range from a current position of a vehicle to a traveling direction in response to a traffic information request from a vehicle on a route, and transmits the traffic information to the vehicle. Yes.
JP-A-2005-135386

  However, according to the conventional device described in Patent Document 1, traffic information of road types unnecessary for the route of the vehicle is provided, which may increase the communication load. In addition, when traffic information is collected by a so-called probe car system, the communication load at the time of collection can also increase.

  The present invention is intended to solve such a problem, and a main object of the present invention is to provide an information providing apparatus that appropriately provides both necessary and sufficient information and a reduction in communication load.

One aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is an information providing apparatus that provides traffic information to a traveling vehicle using communication, and the vehicle position and destination of the vehicle are determined from the vehicle. Setting means for setting, as a range for providing the traffic information, a predetermined area extending including a point on a straight line extending in a predetermined direction from the vehicle position determined using the destination when received, Creating means for creating traffic information in the predetermined area so that the road type for which the traffic information is provided differs according to the amount of deviation of the angle from the predetermined direction centered on the vehicle position in the predetermined area; A transmission unit configured to transmit the traffic information generated by the generation unit to the vehicle.

In the one embodiment, the creating means, the larger the amount Re not a top SL, stepwise, information narrow road width roads so as not included in the traffic information.

In the aspect, the predetermined area is, for example, a fan-shaped, elliptical, or rhombic area that is symmetrical about the straight line . When the predetermined area is a fan-shaped area, the amount of deviation is an angle deviation of a central angle from the predetermined direction in the sector.

  According to the above aspect, the necessary information can be narrowed down based on the relationship between the vehicle position and the destination, and unnecessary traffic information can be prevented from being distributed as much as possible, while providing necessary traffic information, Since the communication load can be reduced, providing both necessary and sufficient information and the reduction of the communication load can be achieved at the same time.

  In the above aspect, 1) when the destination is located within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position, the direction from the vehicle position to the destination is the predetermined direction. 2) From the vehicle position to the destination When traveling on a highway within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position, the direction from the vehicle position to the point on the highway is the predetermined direction. 3) A predetermined distance from the vehicle position If the destination does not exist in the vehicle and the route from the vehicle position to the destination does not get on the highway within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position, the route from the vehicle position to the destination Therefore, it is preferable that the direction from the vehicle position to the point at a predetermined distance from the vehicle position is the predetermined direction.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an information providing apparatus that appropriately provides both necessary and sufficient information and a reduction in communication load.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the basic concept, main hardware configuration, operating principle, basic control method, and the like of the route guidance device (car navigation system) are known to those skilled in the art, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 1-9, the traffic information provision system which concerns on one Example of this invention is demonstrated.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a traffic information providing system 100 according to the present embodiment.

  The traffic information providing system 100 is managed and operated by a route guidance device 101 mounted on each vehicle V and a business entity such as a national or local public organization, a public organization entrusted by them, or a private organization. And a center (information providing device) 102 that provides traffic information to the traveling vehicle V.

  The route guidance apparatus 101 and the center 102 are configured to be able to communicate with each other using wireless communication. The communication connection between the route guidance apparatus 101 and the center 102 is not limited to a direct wireless communication connection, and may be an indirect communication connection via vehicle-to-vehicle communication, road-to-vehicle communication, and / or satellite communication. . Moreover, the communication system employ | adopted may be arbitrary.

  The movement of the traffic information providing system 100 in this embodiment will be described briefly. First, (1) each vehicle V uploads its own vehicle position and the destination set by the user to the center 102. (2) The center 102 creates traffic information within a predetermined range set in accordance with a predetermined rule (described later) based on the vehicle position and destination received from each vehicle V in a predetermined format (described later), (3) Send back to each vehicle V.

  Such provision of traffic information from the center 102 to each vehicle V can be performed by, for example, A) when a destination is set by the user, or B) when a request operation is performed by the user. And the destination are uploaded to the center 102.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the route guidance apparatus 101 mounted on each vehicle V in the present embodiment.

  The route guidance apparatus 101 includes a communication unit 201 for transmitting and receiving information to and from the center 102 (FIG. 1) using wireless communication. The performance and shape of the antenna included in the communication unit 201 and the method and frequency band used for communication are not particularly limited and may be arbitrary. Specifically, for example, it is conceivable to adopt a wireless communication system that conforms to a communication standard such as an existing mobile phone or a wireless local area network (LAN).

  The route guidance apparatus 101 further includes a host vehicle position detection unit 202 that detects the position of the host vehicle using, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System). The detection accuracy (resolution) of the own vehicle position detection unit 202 is preferably as high (fine) as possible. For example, it is preferable to use high-accuracy GPS such as RTK (Real Time Kinetic) -GPS.

  The route guidance apparatus 101 further includes a user input unit 203 that is used by the user to input and set a destination. It is desirable that the user input unit 203 is provided at a position where the own vehicle driver can easily operate.

  The route guidance apparatus 101 further includes a storage unit 204 that stores and holds map information in advance. The storage unit 204 may be a storage medium of any type / standard. Moreover, it is preferable that the map information stored and held in the storage unit 204 is appropriately updated to the latest version / content using communication by the communication unit 201, for example.

  The route guidance apparatus 101 further extracts map information around the current position of the host vehicle detected by the host vehicle position detection unit 202 from the storage unit 204, and determines the detected current position of the host vehicle and the route to the destination. An information providing unit 205 is provided that visually superimposes and displays the information to the driver of the host vehicle, and outputs a voice message to guide the route to the driver when turning right or left.

  The information providing unit 205 includes, for example, a display device that displays character / symbol information and a speaker that outputs a voice message. The display device of the information providing unit 205 may be any type of display device, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD). It may also be used as a display device of another in-vehicle system (for example, a multimedia system). Further, the user input unit 203 and the display device of the information providing unit 205 can be realized as an integrated touch panel display device, and such a touch panel display device from the viewpoint of user convenience. It is rather preferable to be realized as

  Moreover, the speaker of the information provision part 205 may be an arbitrary speaker provided in the vehicle interior, and may also be used as a speaker of another in-vehicle system (for example, an audio visual system).

  The route guidance apparatus 101 further includes a calculation / control unit 206 that executes various calculations and controls each component of the route guidance apparatus 101 in an integrated manner. In the present embodiment, the calculation / control unit 206 is, for example, an ECU (Electronic Control Unit).

  In the route guidance device 101 having such a configuration, the calculation / control unit 206 performs a request operation for requesting traffic information acquisition from the center 102 (FIG. 1) when a destination is set by the user through the user input unit 203. When performed, the vehicle position detected by the vehicle position detection unit 202 and the destination set by the user are transmitted to the center 102 (FIG. 1) through the communication unit 201.

  When traffic information, which will be described in detail later, is acquired as a response from the center 102 (FIG. 1) to the uploading of the vehicle position and the destination, the calculation / control unit 206 acquires the traffic information from the center 102 (FIG. 1). The route from the current position of the own vehicle to the destination is searched in light of the traffic information stored in the storage unit 204 and stored in the map information. When a route to the destination is searched, it is presented to the user through the information providing unit 205.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a center (information providing apparatus) 102 that provides each vehicle V with traffic information within a predetermined range in a predetermined format in the traffic information providing system 100 according to the present embodiment.

  The center 102 has a communication unit 301 for transmitting and receiving information to and from the route guidance device 101 (FIG. 1) mounted on each vehicle V using wireless communication. The performance and shape of the antenna included in the communication unit 301 and the method and frequency band used for communication are not particularly limited and may be arbitrary. Specifically, for example, it is conceivable to adopt a wireless communication system compliant with a communication standard such as an existing mobile phone or wireless LAN.

  The center 102 further includes a storage unit 302 that stores and holds map information in advance. The storage unit 302 may be a storage medium of any type / standard. Moreover, it is preferable that the map information stored and held in the storage unit 302 is appropriately updated to the latest version / content using, for example, communication by the communication unit 301.

  The center 102 further includes a calculation / control unit 303 that executes various calculations and comprehensively controls each component of the center 102. In the present embodiment, the calculation / control unit 303 is, for example, an ECU.

  Further, it is assumed that traffic information acquired from the outside is input to the calculation / control unit 303. Here, the traffic information provided to the center 102 may be any traffic information as long as it can be used to provide traffic information as described later to each vehicle V. For example, the existing VICS ( (Vehicle Information and Communication System) information, or traffic information created from information collected from a traveling vehicle in a so-called probe car system or the like.

  In the center 102 having such a configuration, when the vehicle position and the destination are received from the vehicle V through the communication unit 301, the calculation / control unit 303 determines a range in which traffic information is provided by a procedure / method described in detail later. Then, the traffic information within the range is organized into a predetermined format and sent back to the transmission source vehicle V.

  Next, the flow of traffic information provision processing by the center (information provision apparatus) 102 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, when the calculation / control unit 303 receives a vehicle position and a destination from a certain vehicle V through the communication unit 301, in light of the received vehicle position and destination stored in the storage unit 302, the map information is stored. A basic route from the vehicle position to the destination is calculated (S401). Here, the basic route means a route that is searched only from map information without considering traffic information and user's wishes (priority priority, etc.).

  When the basic route from the vehicle position to the destination is calculated, the calculation / control unit 303 then selects a highway, a toll road, etc. within a predetermined distance (for example, 10 kilometers) from the vehicle position in the basic route. In principle, there is no crossing road, and if you get on (enter) once and get off the exit (interchange; IC), the road will be the only route (hereinafter referred to simply as "highway") Is determined (S402).

  When the basic route is a route on the expressway within the predetermined distance from the vehicle position (“YES” in S402), the calculation / control unit 303 makes it difficult to change the route once it gets on the expressway. Based on the idea that the area requiring traffic information for reference when selecting is an ordinary road traveling section until the ride on the expressway, the IC on the expressway is set as the information provision reference position (S404). The information provision reference position will be described in detail later.

  On the other hand, when the basic route is a route that does not get on the expressway within the predetermined distance from the vehicle position (“NO” in S402), the calculation / control unit 303 then determines that the destination is a predetermined distance from the vehicle position (for example, It is determined whether it is located within 10 kilometers (S403).

  When the destination is within the predetermined distance from the vehicle position (“YES” in S403), the calculation / control unit 303 sets the destination as the information provision reference position (S405).

  On the other hand, when the destination is not within the predetermined distance from the vehicle position (“NO” in S403), the calculation / control unit 303 selects a point on the basic route at a predetermined distance (for example, 10 kilometers) from the vehicle position. The information provision reference position is set (S406).

  When the information provision reference position is set in this way, the calculation / control unit 303 sets the vehicle position as the center, the straight line connecting the vehicle position and the information provision reference position as the radius, and is symmetric about the straight line. A fan-shaped area is determined as a range for providing traffic information. Then, the traffic information of this area is collected and used as traffic information to be sent back to the vehicle V, and transmitted to the transmission source vehicle V that has transmitted the vehicle position and destination through the communication unit 301 (S407).

  FIG. 5 schematically shows an example of an area where traffic information is provided when the process proceeds from S404 to S407 in FIG. In the figure, a dashed arrow indicates a basic route on a general road.

  When the vehicle V gets on the highway H from the IC within a predetermined distance from the position of the vehicle V on the way to the destination G, this IC is set as the information providing reference position. Then, a straight line C connecting the position of the vehicle V and the information providing reference position IC is set as a radius, and a sectoral area R symmetrical about the straight line C is determined as the traffic information providing area.

  FIG. 6 schematically shows an example of an area where traffic information is provided when the process proceeds from S405 to S407 in FIG. In the figure, a dashed arrow indicates a basic route.

  When the destination G is within a predetermined distance from the position of the vehicle V, the destination G is set as the information provision reference position. Then, a straight line C connecting the position of the vehicle V and the destination G, which is the information providing reference position, has a radius, and a fan-shaped area R that is symmetric about the straight line C is determined as the traffic information providing area.

  FIG. 7 schematically shows an example of an area where traffic information is provided when the process proceeds from S406 to S407 in FIG. In the figure, a dashed arrow indicates a basic route.

  When the destination G is not within a predetermined distance from the position of the vehicle V, a point on the basic route that is a predetermined distance from the position of the vehicle V is set as the information provision reference position T (star). Then, a straight line C connecting the position of the vehicle V and the information provision reference position T is used as a radius, and a fan-shaped area R that is symmetric about the straight line C is determined as the traffic information provision area.

  FIG. 8 shows details of the format of the traffic information created by the center 102 and transmitted to the vehicle V schematically shown in FIGS.

  In the present embodiment, in order to reduce communication traffic of traffic information transmitted from the center 102 to the vehicle V, the distance from the straight line C connecting the position of the vehicle V and the information provision reference position T increases as the distance from the center increases. Based on the idea that only wide roads that are considered to be able to travel at a relatively high average vehicle speed will be taken into account when searching for routes, the road types for which data is provided in traffic information will be changed to larger roads. Limit in stages.

Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, for example, a traffic information provision range R set based on the information provision reference position T determined as described above is a range R ₁ that provides information to narrow streets. And a range R ₃ that provides only information on a large road such as a national road, and a range R ₂ that provides information in the middle of these. More specifically, it provides traffic information for all roads to the scope R _1, provides traffic information only for road national road and prefectural indicate the scope R _2, traffic information only for national road to the scope R ₃ It is conceivable to assign a stage depending on the road type such as providing.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, when traffic information is provided from the center to the vehicle, it is based on information such as the positional relationship between the vehicle position and the destination and whether the basic route passes through the expressway. In order to limit the range of traffic information provided in front of each vehicle to the necessary limit according to the direction of travel of the vehicle and to prevent unnecessary traffic information from being distributed as much as possible, Providing traffic information and reducing communication load can be achieved appropriately.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the traffic information provided as the outside of the fan-shaped area increases according to the deviation amount of the central angle from the direction from the vehicle position to the information providing reference position in the fan-shaped traffic information providing area. Since traffic information is provided in a format that is limited to a wider range of roads, compared to the case where traffic information is provided for all roads within a given area set according to the direction of travel of the vehicle, etc. Communication traffic can be reduced.

  In the above embodiment, as an example, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, the shape of the area (area) in which traffic information is provided is a sector that extends from the vehicle position toward the information provision reference position. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, (a) an oval traffic information provision range R ′ and (b) a rhombus traffic information provision range R ″ can also be adopted. These oval and rhombus traffic information provision ranges Compared with the fan-shaped case in the above embodiment, R is the information provision standard because the traffic information provision range R becomes “deepened / tapered” from the middle toward the information provision reference position T from the position of the vehicle V. It is particularly preferable that the position T is adopted when the IC is on the highway as shown in FIG. 5 or when it is the destination G as shown in FIG. This is because, when the information provision reference position T is an IC or a destination G, the closer to the information provision reference position T, the smaller the possibility of passing through a route greatly deviating from the basic route. .

  In the above embodiment, as an example, the vehicle position and the destination are transmitted from each vehicle V to the center using communication, the basic route is searched on the center side, the information providing reference position is determined, Although the information provision range is determined and the traffic information within the range is provided, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, the route guidance device mounted on the vehicle V searches the basic route, determines the information provision reference position, determines the traffic information provision range, and transmits the range to the center using communication, The provision of traffic information within the range may be received from the center. In other words, the process sharing between the route guidance device on the vehicle side and the center may be an arbitrary ratio. However, from the viewpoint of processing speed and processing load, it can be said that it is preferable that processing as much as possible is performed on the center side.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, as an example, the distance is used as a parameter to define a predetermined range from the vehicle position in, for example, the processes of S402, S403, and S406 in FIG. The embodiment is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, the time can be used as a parameter in consideration of the average vehicle speed of the vehicle at that time. In this case, the process of determining whether or not “within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position” in the above embodiment is a process of determining “whether or not the vehicle position can be reached within a predetermined time”.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used in a system that provides traffic information using communication to a route guidance device mounted on a vehicle. The power source type, fuel type, appearance design, weight, size, running performance, etc. of the target vehicle are all unquestioned.

It is a schematic block diagram of the traffic information provision system which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the route guidance apparatus mounted in each vehicle in the traffic information provision system which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the center (information provision apparatus) which produces traffic information in the traffic information provision system which concerns on one Example of this invention, and transmits to each vehicle. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the traffic information provision process by the center (information provision apparatus) which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the range by which traffic information is provided by the center (information provision apparatus) which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows another example of the range by which traffic information is provided by the center (information provision apparatus) which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows another example of the range by which traffic information is provided by the center (information provision apparatus) which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the format of the traffic information provided by the center (information provision apparatus) which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows another example of the shape of the range where traffic information is provided by the center (information provision apparatus) which concerns on one Example of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Traffic information provision system 101 Route guidance apparatus 102 Center (information provision apparatus)
201, 301 Communication unit 202 Own vehicle position detection unit 203 User input unit 204, 302 Storage unit 205 Information providing unit 206, 303 Calculation / control unit

Claims (9)

An information providing apparatus that provides traffic information to a running vehicle using communication,
When the vehicle position and the destination of the vehicle is received from the vehicle, a predetermined region extending contain point on a straight line extending in a predetermined direction from the vehicle position determined by using the destination, the traffic information Setting means for setting as a range to be provided ;
Creating means for creating traffic information in the predetermined area so that the road type in which the traffic information is provided differs according to the amount of deviation of the angle from the predetermined direction centered on the vehicle position in the predetermined area; ,
An information providing apparatus comprising: transmission means for transmitting the traffic information created by the creating means to the vehicle. The information providing device according to claim 1,
It said creation means, before Symbol not a Re amount increases, stepwise, narrow road information of the road width is not be included in the traffic information, the information providing apparatus characterized by. The information providing device according to claim 1 or 2,
The information providing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined area is a fan-shaped area symmetrical about the straight line . The information providing device according to claim 3,
The information providing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the deviation amount is an angular deviation of a central angle from the predetermined direction in the sector. The information providing device according to claim 1 or 2,
The information providing apparatus, wherein the predetermined area is an elliptical area symmetrical about the straight line . The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The information providing apparatus, wherein the predetermined region is a rhombus region symmetrical about the straight line . The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The information providing apparatus, wherein when the destination is located within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position, a direction from the vehicle position to the destination is the predetermined direction. The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
In the middle of the route from the vehicle position to the destination, and when getting on a highway within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position, the direction from the vehicle position to the point on the highway is the predetermined direction. An information providing apparatus characterized by that. The information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
When the destination does not exist within a predetermined distance from the vehicle position, and the route from the vehicle position to the destination does not get on the highway within a predetermined distance from the previous vehicle position, the destination from the vehicle position An information providing apparatus characterized in that the predetermined direction is a direction from the vehicle position to a point at a predetermined distance from the vehicle position on a route toward the ground.

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