JP6849123B2 - Positioning device, positioning control method and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a positioning device, a positioning control method and a program.

Conventionally, a GPS logger that performs GPS positioning and logs the position of a terminal for a long time is known.
In such a GPS logger, when the device is small, the battery capacity is small, and logging is required for a long time, if the GPS reception operation is continuously performed, the power consumption of the GPS reception operation is several tens of mW. Because it is large, the battery life is shortened. Therefore, in order to suppress power consumption, a GPS logger that performs intermittent GPS reception operation is used (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-74826 Japanese Patent No. 5614548

However, in order to always maintain the state of short-time positioning (so-called Hot Start) that receives in a few seconds, the interval is about 30 minutes, considering the case where positioning is not possible due to poor reception environment or newly appearing satellites. If the ephemeris is not received in an intermittent sequence of about 1 to 3 minutes, the ephemeris required for short-time positioning cannot be constantly updated, which may greatly affect the battery life. In addition, when acquiring the ephemeris by actual measurement, only the ephemeris of the satellite visible from the GPS logger is acquired, so the satellite that appeared after the update of the ephemeris cannot be used for short-time positioning, which affects the positioning accuracy. There was a case. It should be noted that such a situation is common not only to GPS but also to positioning systems such as GLONASS in Russia, Galileo in Europe, and BeiDou in China.

The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object of the present invention is to realize short-time positioning with low power consumption.

To achieve the above object, a positioning apparatus according to the present invention, the external device, and requesting means for requesting the transmission of ephemeris data for each of the predetermined number of positioning satellites, according to a request of the requesting unit Each of the ephemerals data transmitted by the external device is set to the predetermined number by the acquisition means for receiving from the external device and the number of channels to be searched or tracked, and then the ephemeris data acquired by the acquisition means. A positioning means for positioning the current position based on each of the above means, and the requesting means includes a determination means for determining the orientation of the positioning antenna or the topographical environment around the positioning antenna, and a determination result by the determination means. select positioning satellite corresponding from a plurality of positioning satellites in the ephemeris data for the selected positioning satellite, setting means for setting as ephemeris data requesting transmission to the external device, the The setting means is characterized in that the predetermined number is set by selecting the positioning satellite so that the number of positioning satellites selected differs depending on the difference in the determination result by the determination means. To do.
Further, the positioning control method according to the present invention is a positioning control method executed by a positioning device, and is a request step for requesting an external device to transmit ephemerals data for each of a predetermined number of positioning satellites. After setting the acquisition step of receiving each of the ephemerals data transmitted by the external device in response to the request in the request step from the external device and the number of channels to be searched or tracked to the predetermined number. It has a positioning means for positioning the current position based on each of the ephemeris data acquired in the acquisition step, and the request step determines the orientation of the positioning antenna or the topographical environment around the positioning antenna. The determination step and the positioning satellite corresponding to the determination result in the determination step are selected from a plurality of positioning satellites, and the ephemerals data for the selected positioning satellite is requested to be transmitted to the external device. It has a setting step to be set as ephemeris data to be performed, and the setting step selects the positioning satellite so that the number of positioning satellites selected differs depending on the difference in the determination result in the determination step. , The predetermined number is set.
Further, the program according to the present invention responds to a request means for requesting the computer of the positioning device to transmit ephemeris data for each of a predetermined number of positioning satellites to an external device, and a request of the request means. Each of the ephemeris data transmitted by the external device is set to the predetermined number of acquisition means, search or tracking channel number to be received from the external device, and then each of the ephemeris data acquired by the acquisition means. The requesting means corresponds to the determination means for determining the orientation of the positioning antenna or the topographical environment around the positioning antenna, and the determination result by the determination means. It functions as a setting means for selecting a positioning satellite from a plurality of positioning satellites and setting the ephemeris data for the selected positioning satellite as ephemeris data for requesting transmission to the external device. The setting means is characterized in that the predetermined number is set by selecting the positioning satellites so that the number of positioning satellites selected differs depending on the difference in the determination result by the determination means.

According to the present invention, it is possible to realize short-time positioning with low power consumption.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the system structure of the GPS receiving system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structure of the GPS logger which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structure of the smartphone which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a functional block diagram which shows the functional configuration for executing the positioning control processing among the functional configurations of the GPS logger and the smartphone of FIG. It is a flowchart explaining the flow of the positioning control processing executed by the GPS logger 1 and the smartphone 2 of FIG. 1 having the functional configuration of FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the sequence of the intermittent positioning control at the time of enabling short-time positioning in the conventional GPS logger. It is a schematic diagram which shows the sequence of the intermittent positioning control in the case of performing short-time positioning in this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[System configuration]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a system configuration of a GPS receiving system S according to an embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the GPS receiving system S includes a GPS logger 1 and a smartphone 2, and the GPS logger 1 and the smartphone 2 can communicate with each other by short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (trademark). It is configured.

[Hardware configuration]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the GPS logger 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention.
The GPS logger 1 is configured as, for example, a GPS POD.

The GPS logger 1 includes a first CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11a, a second CPU 11b, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, a bus 14, an input / output interface 15, and a positioning unit 16. The input unit 17, the output unit 18, the sensor unit 19, the storage unit 20, the communication unit 21, the drive 22, and the power supply management unit 23 are provided.

The first CPU 11a controls the operation of the entire GPS logger 1 and executes various processes according to the program recorded in the ROM 12 or the program loaded from the storage unit 20 into the RAM 13.
The second CPU 11b mainly controls the intermittent operation of GPS reception by executing the positioning control process described later. The second CPU 11b is composed of low power consumption hardware that operates at a lower clock frequency than the first CPU 11a. The function of the second CPU 11b may be realized by FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit).
Further, the first CPU 11a and the second CPU 11b may be configured by a single CPU.

Data and the like necessary for the first CPU 11a or the second CPU 11b to execute various processes are also appropriately stored in the RAM 13.

The first CPU 11a, the second CPU 11b, the ROM 12 and the RAM 13 are connected to each other via the bus 14. An input / output interface 15 is also connected to the bus 14. A positioning unit 16, an input unit 17, an output unit 18, a sensor unit 19, a storage unit 20, a communication unit 21, a drive 22, and a power management unit 23 are connected to the input / output interface 15.

The positioning unit 16 includes a GPS receiver and detects the position (latitude, longitude, altitude) of the GPS logger 1 and the current time indicated by GPS based on the GPS signal received from the GPS satellite. Further, the positioning unit 16 outputs information indicating the detected position and the current time to the first CPU 11a or the second CPU 11b.

The input unit 17 is composed of various buttons and the like, and inputs various information according to a user's instruction operation.
The output unit 18 is composed of a display, a speaker, or the like, and outputs an image or sound.
The sensor unit 19 includes various sensors such as a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, and a geomagnetic sensor, and detects the posture of the GPS logger 1, the movement or orientation of the GPS logger 1, and the like.

The storage unit 20 is composed of a hard disk, a flash memory, or the like, and stores programs and various data (ephemeris data in GPS, positioning result data by GPS, etc.) executed by the first CPU 11a or the second CPU 11b.
The communication unit 21 controls communication with other devices (not shown) via a network including the Internet. In addition, the communication unit 21 controls communication with another device by short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth.

A removable media 31 made of a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a semiconductor memory, or the like is appropriately mounted on the drive 22. The program read from the removable media 31 by the drive 22 is installed in the storage unit 20 as needed. Further, the removable media 31 can also store various data such as image data stored in the storage unit 20 in the same manner as the storage unit 20.
The power management unit 23 detects the remaining battery level of the GPS logger 1 and outputs information indicating the detected remaining battery level to the first CPU 11a and the second CPU 11b.

Next, the hardware configuration of the smartphone 2 will be described.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the smartphone 2 according to the embodiment of the present invention.
The smartphone 2 includes a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, a bus 114, an input / output interface 115, a positioning unit 116, an input unit 117, an output unit 118, a sensor unit 119, a storage unit 120, and a communication unit. It includes 121, a drive 122, and an imaging unit 123.

Of these, the configurations other than the imaging unit 123 are the same as the corresponding hardware configurations of the GPS logger 1 shown in FIG.
Although not shown, the image pickup unit 123 includes an optical lens unit and an image sensor.

The optical lens unit is composed of a lens that collects light, such as a focus lens or a zoom lens, in order to photograph a subject.
The focus lens is a lens that forms a subject image on the light receiving surface of the image sensor. A zoom lens is a lens that freely changes the focal length within a certain range.
The optical lens unit is also provided with peripheral circuits for adjusting setting parameters such as focus, exposure, and white balance, if necessary.

The image sensor is composed of a photoelectric conversion element, an AFE (Analog Front End), and the like.
The photoelectric conversion element is composed of, for example, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) type photoelectric conversion element or the like. A subject image is incident on the photoelectric conversion element from the optical lens unit. Therefore, the photoelectric conversion element performs photoelectric conversion (imaging) of the subject image, accumulates an image signal for a certain period of time, and sequentially supplies the accumulated image signal as an analog signal to AFE.
The AFE executes various signal processing such as A / D (Analog / Digital) conversion processing on the analog image signal. A digital signal is generated by various signal processing and is output as an output signal of the imaging unit 123.
The output signal of such an imaging unit 123 is appropriately supplied to the CPU 111 and the like.

[Functional configuration]
FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration for executing positioning control processing among the functional configurations of the GPS logger 1 and the smartphone 2.
The positioning control process refers to a series of processes in which ephemeris data is acquired from the smartphone 2 and the ephemeris data is used to intermittently receive GPS signals to perform short-time positioning (Hot Start). When the positioning control process is executed, the positioning function of the smartphone 2 is set to a state in which positioning is not always performed (that is, positioning is performed only when it is OFF or necessary), and power consumption is reduced.

When the positioning control process is executed, as shown in FIG. 4, in the second CPU 11b of the GPS logger 1, the static determination unit 51, the battery remaining amount determination unit 52, the ephemeris request unit 53, and the GPS reception control unit 54 and the state setting unit 55 function. Further, in the first CPU 11a of the GPS logger 1, the timer unit 61 and the activation notification unit 62 function. Further, in the CPU 111 of the smartphone 2, the ephemeris acquisition unit 151, the format conversion unit 152, and the ephemeris transmission unit 153 function.
Further, a GPS log storage unit 71 and an ephemeris data storage unit 72 are set in one area of the storage unit 20 of the GPS logger 1.
The GPS log storage unit 71 stores position data acquired by GPS positioning.
The ephemeris data storage unit 72 stores the ephemeris data acquired from the smartphone 2 or the ephemeris data acquired by receiving a GPS signal.

The rest determination unit 51 determines whether or not the GPS logger 1 is stationary based on the detection result of the sensor unit 19. For example, in the stationary determination unit 51, the GPS logger 1 is stationary when the detection results of the gyro sensor and the acceleration sensor of the sensor unit 19 are in a state of being equal to or less than a preset value for a set time or longer. Is determined.
The battery remaining amount determination unit 52 determines whether or not the battery remaining amount is less than the set threshold value based on the information indicating the battery remaining amount input from the power management unit 23.

The ephemeris requesting unit 53 requests the smartphone 2 for ephemeris data to be used for GPS positioning. At this time, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 determines the preset requirement conditions, and changes the number of requested ephemeris data according to the determination result.
Specifically, the ephemeris requesting unit 53
(1) Whether the current position can be specified by the smartphone 2 (2) Whether the current position can be specified from the latest GPS positioning result (3) Whether the current position has a good view such as a park (That is, whether the reception environment is good or not)
(4) Depending on each condition whether the GPS antenna is facing the sky or not,
(A) Request only the ephemeris data of GPS satellites with a mid-elevation angle (for example, 45 degrees) or higher that can be captured within the ephemeris validity period (for example, 4 hours) (B) All GPS satellites that can be captured within the ephemeris validity period (C) Request only the ephemeris data of the GPS satellites (C) Switch the request contents of requesting the ephemeris data of all GPS satellites.

For example, the ephemeris request unit 53 executes the request content of (C) when the condition (1) is not satisfied and the condition (2) is not satisfied.
Further, the ephemeris request unit 53 executes the request content of (A) when all the conditions (1), (3) and (4) are satisfied.
Further, the ephemeris request unit 53 executes the request content of (B) in cases other than these.
As a result of changing the number of requested ephemeris data in this way, the number of search engines and tracking engines that operate when GPS positioning is performed in the positioning unit 16 is changed. The search engine is a circuit that detects a signal from a GPS satellite (a circuit that performs a satellite capture operation). The tracking engine is a circuit (circuit that performs satellite tracking operation) that maintains the synchronization of signals detected by the search engine and obtains the decoding of navigation messages and the delay time (pseudo distance) from the satellite to the receiver. is there.

For example, if the number of ephemeris data used for GPS positioning is 16 satellites, the number of search engines and tracking engines operated during GPS positioning is 16 channels. If the number of ephemeris data used for GPS positioning is for 6 satellites, the number of search engines and tracking engines to be operated during GPS positioning will be for 6 channels.
By making the number of ephemeris data used for GPS positioning different in this way, it is possible to change the number of search engines and the number of tracking engines at the time of GPS positioning to perform GPS positioning with lower power consumption.

The GPS reception control unit 54 controls the positioning unit 16 to intermittently execute the reception of GPS signals (GPS positioning). Specifically, the GPS reception control unit 54 executes reception of the GPS signal when the activation notification signal is input from the activation notification unit 62. The GPS reception control unit 54 executes reception of GPS signals when an input instructing GPS reception is made from the input unit 17.
In the present embodiment, the GPS reception control unit 54 can perform short-time positioning (Hot Start) at a long interval (120 minutes in this case) by receiving the ephemeris data from the smartphone 2.

The state setting unit 55 sets the interval for intermittently receiving the GPS signal, and also sets the state of the GPS logger 1 (ON / OFF of communication by Bluetooth, etc.) at the time of receiving the GPS signal.
The timer unit 61 measures the time until the next reception of the GPS signal when the interval for intermittently receiving the GPS signal is set by the state setting unit 55.
The activation notification unit 62 refers to the measurement result of the timer unit 61, and outputs an activation notification signal for notifying the second CPU 11b that it is the GPS signal reception timing when the time until the next GPS signal reception has elapsed. To do.

The ephemeris acquisition unit 151 acquires ephemeris data from a mobile phone base station or the like. This ephemeris data can be extracted from, for example, assisted data of A-GPS (Assisted Global Positioning System).

The format conversion unit 152 converts the format of the ephemeris data acquired by the ephemeris acquisition unit 151 into a format that can be used in the GPS logger 1.
The ephemeris transmission unit 153 transmits the ephemeris data format-converted by the format conversion unit 152 to the GPS logger 1 via short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth.

[motion]
Next, the operation of the GPS receiving system S will be described.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of positioning control processing executed by the GPS logger 1 and the smartphone 2 of FIG. 1 having the functional configuration of FIG.
The positioning control process is started by the user's operation of starting the positioning control process to the input unit 17.

In step S11, the rest determination unit 51 determines whether or not the GPS logger 1 is in the rest state.
When the GPS logger 1 is in the stationary state, YES is determined in step S11, and the process proceeds to step S12.
On the other hand, when the GPS logger 1 is not in the stationary state, NO is determined in step S11, and the process proceeds to step S13.

In step S12, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 stops requesting the ephemeris data. That is, as long as the GPS logger 1 remains stationary, the position does not change, so GPS positioning is not performed. After step S12, the process proceeds to step S11.

In step S13, the battery remaining amount determination unit 52 determines whether or not the battery remaining amount is less than the set threshold value.
If the remaining battery level is less than the set threshold value, YES is determined in step S13, and the process proceeds to step S14.
On the other hand, when the remaining battery level is equal to or higher than the set threshold value, NO is determined in step S13, and the process proceeds to step S20.

In step S14, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 determines whether or not the current position can be specified by the smartphone 2.
If the current position can be specified by the smartphone 2, YES is determined in step S14, and the process proceeds to step S16.
On the other hand, if the current position cannot be specified by the smartphone 2, NO is determined in step S14, and the process proceeds to step S15.

In step S15, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 determines whether or not the current position can be specified from the result of the latest GPS positioning.
If the current position can be specified from the result of the latest GPS positioning, YES is determined in step S15, and the process proceeds to step S19.
On the other hand, if it is not possible to specify the current position from the result of the latest GPS positioning, NO is determined in step S15, and the process proceeds to step S20.

In step S16, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 determines whether or not the current position is a place with a good view such as a park. At this time, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 can determine whether or not the current position is a place with a good view by referring to the map information stored in the smartphone 2 or the map information downloaded via the smartphone 2. ..
If the current position is a place with a good view such as a park, YES is determined in step S16, and the process proceeds to step S17.
On the other hand, if the current position is not a place with a good view such as a park, NO is determined in step S16, and the process proceeds to step S19.

In step S17, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 determines whether or not the GPS antenna is facing the sky.
When the GPS antenna is facing the sky, YES is determined in step S17, and the process proceeds to step S18.
On the other hand, if the GPS antenna is not facing the sky, NO is determined in step S17, and the process proceeds to step S19.

In step S18, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 requests the smartphone 2 for the ephemeris data of the GPS satellite having a mid-elevation angle or more that can be captured within the valid period of the ephemeris data.
After step S18, the process proceeds to step S20.
In step S19, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 requests the smartphone 2 for ephemeris data of all GPS satellites that can be captured within the ephemeris validity period.

In step S20, the ephemeris requesting unit 53 requests the ephemeris data of all GPS satellites from the smartphone 2.
In step S21, the ephemeris transmission unit 153 transmits the ephemeris data in response to the request of the GPS logger 1. The ephemeris data transmitted at this time is the ephemeris data of the GPS satellites requested in any of steps S18, S19, and S20 acquired by the ephemeris acquisition unit 151 and format-converted by the format conversion unit 152.

In step S22, the state setting unit 55 turns off the communication used for communication with the smartphone 2 (here, it is assumed to be Bluetooth) after the reception of the ephemeris data is completed.
In step S23, the GPS reception control unit 54 starts GPS positioning in the positioning unit 16 using the ephemeris data received in step S24, and the state setting unit 55 continues until the next reception of the GPS signal (update of the ephemeris data). Set the interval for. At this time, since the ephemeris data received from the smartphone 2 is used as described above, the GPS logger 1 can perform short-time positioning (Hot Start) at long intervals. Further, since the number of search engines and the number of tracking engines to be operated change according to the number of ephemeris data used for GPS positioning, GPS positioning is performed with lower power consumption.

In step S24, the GPS reception control unit 54 stops GPS positioning, and the timer unit 61 measures (counts down) the time until the next GPS signal reception.

In step S25, the state setting unit 55 starts GPS positioning in response to a request for GPS positioning by an operation or the like from the input unit 17, and enters a standby state for performing short-time positioning (Hot Start). .. When a GPS positioning request is made, the state setting unit 55 stops GPS positioning when the GPS positioning is completed or timed out.

In step S26, the state setting unit 55 determines whether or not it is the reception timing of the next GPS signal (whether or not the interval has elapsed). Specifically, the state setting unit 55 determines whether or not the activation notification signal has been input from the activation notification unit 62.
When it is the reception timing of the next GPS signal, YES is determined in step S26, and the process proceeds to step S11.
On the other hand, if it is not the reception timing of the next GPS signal, NO is determined in step S26, and the process proceeds to step S24.

By such processing, the GPS logger 1 has the following effects.
That is, ephemeris data for performing GPS positioning by short-time positioning (Hot Start) can be extracted from A-GPS data transmitted for mobile phones such as smartphones, converted into a format, and used by GPS logger 1. By doing so, it is possible to perform positioning in a short time while reducing power consumption as compared with the case of acquiring ephemeris data by actual measurement.

In addition, by adaptively acquiring the number of ephemeris data according to the remaining battery level without the user being aware of the acquisition of ephemeris data, it is possible to achieve both further reduction in power consumption and convenience. ..
In addition, when acquiring ephemeris data by actual measurement, the ephemeris data of the satellite that is actually visible is acquired. Therefore, for satellites that appear after updating (acquiring) the ephemeris data, short-time positioning (Hot Start) is used. It cannot be used for GPS positioning, which affects the positioning accuracy. On the other hand, in the present invention, since the ephemeris data is acquired even for the GPS satellites that appear after the ephemeris data is updated, the positioning accuracy can be improved. In addition, the interval for intermittent GPS positioning can be set longer.

Here, the outline of the power reduction effect in the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a sequence of intermittent positioning control when short-time positioning is possible in a conventional GPS logger.
Further, FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a sequence of intermittent positioning control in the case of performing short-time positioning in the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 6, in the intermittent positioning control in the conventional GPS logger, it is assumed that only the ephemeris data of the GPS satellites (for example, 0 to 12) visible from the GPS logger is acquired, and the interval is about 30 minutes. If the GPS signal is not received for 1 to 3 minutes, the ephemeris data required for short-time positioning (Hot Start) cannot always be maintained.

In this case, the average power consumption of the conventional GPS logger is based on the assumption that the power consumption of GPS positioning is 100 mW.
100mW x operating rate (3.3-10%) = 3.3mW ~ 10.0mW
Will be.
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, in the intermittent positioning control in the GPS logger 1 of the present invention, power consumption required for receiving the ephemeris data and the GPS signal from the smartphone 2 is generated.
Since the ephemeris data per satellite is 420 bits, assuming that the ephemeris data of all 32 satellites is received,
420 Bit x 32 satellites = 13440 Bit
Will be.

Assuming that the actual communication rate of Bluetooth is 400 kbps, the communication time for receiving the ephemeris data of all 32 satellites from the smartphone 2 is 33.6 milliseconds.
When communicating with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), assuming that the actual communication rate is 28.8 kbps, the communication time for receiving the ephemeris data of all 32 satellites from the smartphone 2 is 0.47 seconds. ..
Therefore, it can be assumed that the time required to receive the ephemeris data of all 32 satellites from the smartphone 2 is 1 second or less including various latencies.
If you set the ephemeris data update (GPS signal reception) interval to 120 minutes,
The utilization rate of Bluetooth is
1 second / (120 minutes x 60 seconds) = 0.014%
Will be.

As for the operating rate of GPS positioning, assuming that the actual GPS communication rate is 90 kbps, the communication time for receiving the ephemeris data (13440 Bit) of all 32 satellites is 14.9 milliseconds.
Therefore, it can be assumed that the reception time of the ephemeris data of all 32 satellites is 1 second or less including various latencies.
If you set the ephemeris data update (GPS signal reception) interval to 120 minutes,
The operating rate of GPS positioning is
1 second / (120 minutes x 60 seconds) = 0.014%
Will be.

In this case, assuming that the average power consumption of the GPS logger 1 is 50 mW for communication by Bluetooth and 100 mW for GPS positioning.
100mW x operating rate (0.014%) + 50mW x operating rate (0.014%) = 0.021mW
Will be.
Therefore, in the GPS logger 1 of the present invention, the power reduction rate for maintaining the short-time positioning (Hot Start) is at least 99.4 to 99.8%.
In the above calculation, the case where the ephemeris data of all 32 satellites is used for GPS positioning is given as an example, but as shown in steps S18 and S19 of the positioning control process, the ephemeris is targeted at a smaller number of GPS satellites. When acquiring data, the power consumption can be further reduced.

The GPS logger 1 configured as described above includes an ephemeris acquisition unit 151, a power management unit 23, a second CPU 11b, and a positioning unit 16.
The ephemeris acquisition unit 151 is configured to be able to acquire ephemeris data from an external device.
The power management unit 23 detects the remaining battery level.
The second CPU 11b has a determination process for determining whether or not the remaining battery level detected by the power management unit 23 is less than a predetermined value, and when it is determined that the remaining battery level is less than a predetermined value. , The control process for controlling the acquisition of the ephemeris data by the ephemeris acquisition unit 151 is executed according to the reception status of the positioning satellite at the current position.
The positioning unit 16 positions the current position based on the ephemeris data acquired by the ephemeris acquisition unit 151 and the ephemeris data received from the positioning satellite.
As a result, a number of ephemeris data corresponding to the remaining battery level and the reception status of the positioning satellite are adaptively acquired from the external device.
Therefore, positioning can be performed intermittently at long intervals, and short-time positioning can be realized with low power consumption.

The second CPU 11b executes an intermittent control process that intermittently activates the ephemeris data reception operation by the positioning unit 16.
Based on the ephemeris data acquired by the ephemeris acquisition unit 151, the positioning unit 16 performs positioning of the current position by short-time positioning when receiving the ephemeris data activated by the intermittent control process.
As a result, positioning can be performed intermittently at long intervals, and short-time positioning can be realized with low power consumption.

The second CPU 11b is an ephemeris acquisition unit so as to acquire ephemeris data of all satellites when it is determined in the control process that the remaining battery level detected by the power management unit 23 is equal to or higher than a predetermined value. The process of controlling 151 is executed.
As a result, if there is a margin in the remaining battery power, more accurate positioning can be performed.

In the control process, the second CPU 11b further determines whether or not the current position is a good location in the reception environment based on the map information, and controls the acquisition of the ephemeris by the ephemeris acquisition unit 151 according to the reception environment. Execute the process.
This makes it possible to perform positioning more efficiently.

When the second CPU 11b determines in the control process that the current position is in a good reception environment, the second CPU 11b determines whether or not the reception status (antenna orientation, etc.) of the positioning unit 16 is in a good state. If it is determined that the reception condition is good, the process of acquiring only the ephemeris data of the satellite having a predetermined elevation angle or more that can be captured within the valid period of the ephemeris data is executed.
This makes it possible to perform positioning more efficiently.

In the control process, the second CPU 11b further determines whether or not the current position can be specified by the smartphone 2, and if it is determined that the current position cannot be specified by the smartphone 2, the current position is determined from the latest positioning result. If it is determined that the current position cannot be specified from the result of the latest positioning, the process of acquiring the ephemeris data of all satellites is executed.
This makes it possible to suppress the situation of acquiring ephemeris data of all satellites and perform positioning more efficiently.

When it is determined in the control process that the current position can be specified from the result of the latest positioning, the second CPU 11b executes a process of acquiring only the ephemeris data of the satellite that can be captured within the valid period of the ephemeris data. To do.
This makes it possible to perform positioning more efficiently.

The second CPU 11b is within the valid period of the ephemeris data when it is determined in the control process that the current position is not a good place in the reception environment, or when it is determined that the reception status of the positioning unit 16 is not in a good state. Performs the process of acquiring only the ephemeris data of the satellite that can be captured.
This makes it possible to perform positioning more efficiently.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications, improvements, and the like within the range in which the object of the present invention can be achieved are included in the present invention.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where positioning is performed by GPS has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the present invention can be applied to various positioning systems using satellites such as GLONASS in Russia, Galileo in Europe, and BeiDou in China.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the interval for intermittently performing GPS positioning has been described as being set to 120 minutes, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the interval for intermittently performing GPS positioning can be appropriately set according to the degree of reduction in power consumption, the reception status of GPS signals, and the like.
Further, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the number of ephemeris data required for the smartphone 2 is reduced when the remaining battery level is less than the set threshold value, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, even when the remaining battery level is equal to or higher than the set threshold value and the remaining battery level has a margin, the process of reducing the number of ephemeris data requested from the smartphone 2 may be executed.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the GPS logger to which the present invention is applied has been described as an example, but the present invention is not particularly limited thereto.
For example, the present invention can be generally applied to electronic devices having a positioning function. Specifically, for example, the present invention is applied to digital cameras, wearable terminal devices, notebook personal computers, printers, television receivers, video cameras, portable navigation devices, mobile phones, smartphones, portable game machines, and the like. It is possible.

The series of processes described above can be executed by hardware or software.
In other words, the functional configuration of FIG. 4 is merely an example and is not particularly limited. That is, it suffices if the GPS logger 1 is provided with a function capable of executing the above-mentioned series of processes as a whole, and what kind of functional block is used to realize this function is not particularly limited to the example of FIG.
Further, one functional block may be configured by a single piece of hardware, a single piece of software, or a combination thereof.

When a series of processes are executed by software, the programs constituting the software are installed on a computer or the like from a network or a recording medium.
The computer may be a computer embedded in dedicated hardware. Further, the computer may be a computer capable of executing various functions by installing various programs, for example, a general-purpose personal computer.

The recording medium including such a program is not only composed of the removable media 31 of FIG. 1 distributed separately from the device main body in order to provide the program to the user, but also is preliminarily incorporated in the device main body. Consists of recording media and the like provided in. The removable media 31 is composed of, for example, a magnetic disk (including a floppy disk), an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or the like. Optical discs include, for example, CD-ROM (Compact Disk-Read Only Memory) and DVD (Digital).
Versaille Disk), Blu-ray (registered trademark) Disc (Blu-ray Disc), etc. The magneto-optical disk is composed of an MD (Mini-Disc) or the like. Further, the recording medium provided to the user in a state of being incorporated in the apparatus main body in advance includes, for example, the ROM 12 of FIG. 2 in which the program is recorded, the hard disk included in the storage unit 20 of FIG. 2, and the like.

In the present specification, the steps for describing a program to be recorded on a recording medium are not only processed in chronological order but also in parallel or individually, even if they are not necessarily processed in chronological order. It also includes the processing to be executed.
Further, in the present specification, the term of the system means an overall device composed of a plurality of devices, a plurality of means, and the like.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are merely examples and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. The present invention can take various other embodiments, and various modifications such as omission and substitution can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention described in the present specification and the like, and are also included in the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

The inventions described in the claims at the time of filing the application of the present application are described below.
[Appendix 1]
An acquisition unit that can acquire satellite information for positioning from an external device,
Battery level detector that detects battery level and
A determination process for determining whether or not the remaining battery level detected by the battery level detection unit is less than a predetermined value, and a determination process for determining whether or not the remaining battery level is less than a predetermined value, A processing unit that executes a control process that controls the acquisition of satellite information for positioning by the acquisition unit according to the reception status of the positioning satellite at the current position.
A positioning unit that positions the current position based on the positioning satellite information acquired by the acquisition unit and the positioning satellite information received from the positioning satellite.
A positioning device characterized by being equipped with.
[Appendix 2]
The processing unit executes an intermittent control process for intermittently activating the operation of receiving satellite information for positioning by the positioning unit.
Based on the satellite information for positioning acquired by the acquisition unit, the positioning unit determines the current position by short-time positioning when receiving the satellite information for positioning activated by the intermittent control process. The positioning device according to Appendix 1, wherein positioning is performed.
[Appendix 3]
When the processing unit determines in the control processing that the remaining battery level detected by the battery level detecting unit is equal to or higher than a predetermined value, the processing unit acquires satellite information for positioning of all satellites. The process of controlling the acquisition unit is executed so as to perform the above.
The positioning device according to Appendix 1 or 2, wherein the positioning device is characterized by the above.
[Appendix 4]
In the control process, the processing unit further determines whether or not the current position is a good location in the reception environment based on the map information, and according to the reception environment, the acquisition unit performs the positioning. Executes the process that controls the acquisition of satellite information
The positioning device according to any one of Supplementary note 1 to 3, wherein the positioning device is characterized by the above.
[Appendix 5]
When the current position is determined to be a good location in the reception environment in the control process, the processing unit determines whether or not the reception status of the positioning unit is in a good state, and receives the reception. If it is determined that the situation is good, a process of acquiring only the positioning satellite information of a satellite having a predetermined elevation angle or more that can be captured within the valid period of the positioning satellite information is executed.
The positioning device according to Appendix 4, wherein the positioning device is characterized by the above.
[Appendix 6]
In the control process, the processing unit further determines whether or not the current position can be specified by the external device, and if it is determined that the current position cannot be specified by the external device, the latest It is determined from the positioning result whether or not the current position can be specified, and if it is determined from the latest positioning result that the current position cannot be specified, the satellite information for the positioning of all satellites is acquired. Execute the process to
The positioning device according to any one of Supplementary note 1 to 5, wherein the positioning device is characterized by the above.
[Appendix 7]
When the processing unit determines in the control process that the current position can be specified from the result of the latest positioning, the processing unit is for positioning the satellite that can be captured within the valid period of the satellite information for positioning. Executes the process of acquiring only the satellite information of
The positioning device according to Appendix 6, wherein the positioning device is characterized by the above.
[Appendix 8]
When the processing unit determines in the control process that the current position is not a good location in the reception environment, or when it is determined that the reception status of the positioning unit is not in a good state, the processing unit is used for positioning. The process of acquiring only the satellite information for positioning of the satellite that can be captured within the valid period of the satellite information of
The positioning device according to Appendix 5, wherein the positioning device is characterized by the above.
[Appendix 9]
An acquisition unit that can acquire satellite information for positioning from an external device, a battery level detection unit that detects the remaining battery level, satellite information for positioning acquired by the acquisition unit, and the positioning received from the positioning satellite. It is a positioning control method used in a positioning device having a positioning unit for positioning the current position based on satellite information for, and a processing unit, and the processing unit is a positioning unit.
It is determined whether or not the remaining battery level detected by the battery level detection unit is less than a predetermined value, and the battery level is determined.
When it is determined that the remaining battery level is less than a predetermined value, the acquisition unit controls the acquisition of satellite information for positioning according to the reception status of the positioning satellite at the current position.
A positioning control method characterized by this.
[Appendix 10]
An acquisition unit that can acquire satellite information for positioning from an external device, a battery level detection unit that detects the remaining battery level, satellite information for positioning acquired by the acquisition unit, and the positioning received from the positioning satellite. A computer used as a positioning device having a positioning unit for positioning the current position and a processing unit based on satellite information for
A step of determining whether or not the remaining battery level detected by the battery level detection unit is less than a predetermined value, and
A step of controlling the acquisition of satellite information for positioning by the acquisition unit according to the reception status of the positioning satellite at the current position when it is determined that the remaining battery level is less than a predetermined value.
A program that executes.

S ... GPS receiving system, 1 ... GPS logger, 2 ... smartphone, 11a ... 1st CPU, 11b ... 2nd CPU, 12, 112 ... ROM, 13, 113 ... RAM , 14, 114 ... Bus, 15, 115 ... Input / output interface, 16, 116 ... Positioning unit, 17, 117 ... Input unit, 18, 118 ... Output unit, 19, 119.・ ・ Sensor unit, 20, 120 ・ ・ ・ Storage unit, 21, 121 ・ ・ ・ Communication unit, 22, 122 ・ ・ ・ Drive, 23 ・ ・ ・ Power management unit, 31 ・ ・ ・ Removable media, 51 ・ ・ ・Static determination unit, 52 ... Battery level determination unit, 53 ... Ephemeris request unit, 54 ... GPS reception control unit, 55 ... Status setting unit, 61 ... Timer unit, 62 ... Start notification unit, 71 ... GPS log storage unit, 72 ... Ephemeris data storage unit, 111 ... CPU, 123 ... Imaging unit, 151 ... Ephemeris acquisition unit, 152 ... Format conversion unit , 153 ... Ephemeris transmitter

Claims (7)

A requesting means for requesting an external device to transmit ephemeris data for each of a predetermined number of positioning satellites, and
An acquisition means for receiving each of the ephemeris data transmitted by the external device in response to the request of the requesting means from the external device, and
A positioning means for positioning the current position based on each of the ephemeris data acquired by the acquisition means after setting the number of channels to be searched or tracked to the predetermined number.
With
The requesting means
Judgment means for determining the orientation of the positioning antenna or the topographical environment around the positioning antenna,
A positioning satellite corresponding to the determination result by the determination means is selected from a plurality of positioning satellites, and the ephemeris data for the selected positioning satellite is set as the ephemeris data for requesting transmission to the external device. Setting means and
With
The setting means sets the predetermined number by selecting the positioning satellites so that the number of positioning satellites selected differs depending on the difference in the determination result by the determination means.
A positioning device characterized by this. The setting means corresponds to the determination result by the determination means.
(A) A positioning satellite having a mid-elevation angle or higher that can be captured within the valid period of the ephemeris data.
(B) All positioning satellites that can be captured within the valid period of the ephemeris data,
(C) All positioning satellites,
Select one of
The positioning apparatus according to claim 1. The determination means determines that the current position can be specified by the external device, determines that the current position of the positioning device is a place with a good view, and the positioning antenna of the positioning device faces the sky. If judged,
The setting means selects the (A).
2. The positioning apparatus according to claim 2. When the determination means determines that the current position cannot be specified by the external device, and determines that the current position can be specified from the latest positioning result by the positioning means, or
When the determination means determines that the current position can be specified by the external device and the current position of the positioning device is not a place with a good view, or
When the determination means determines that the current position can be specified by the external device, determines that the current position of the positioning device is a place with a good view, and the positioning antenna of the positioning device faces the sky. If it is determined that there is no
The setting means selects the (B).
The positioning apparatus according to claim 2 or 3. When the determination means determines that the current position cannot be specified by the external device, and determines that the current position cannot be specified from the latest positioning result by the positioning means.
The setting means selects the (C).
The positioning apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 4. It is a positioning control method executed by the positioning device.
A request step that requires an external device to send ephemeris data for each of a given number of positioning satellites,
An acquisition step of receiving each of the ephemeris data transmitted by the external device in response to the request in the request step from the external device, and
A positioning means for positioning the current position based on each of the ephemeris data acquired in the acquisition step after setting the number of channels to be searched or tracked to the predetermined number.
Have,
The required step is
Judgment steps to determine the orientation of the positioning antenna or the topographical environment around the positioning antenna,
A positioning satellite corresponding to the determination result in the determination step is selected from a plurality of positioning satellites, and the ephemeris data for the selected positioning satellite is used as ephemeris data for requesting transmission to the external device. Setting steps to set and
Have,
In the setting step, the predetermined number is set by selecting the positioning satellite so that the number of positioning satellites selected differs depending on the difference in the determination result in the determination step.
A positioning control method characterized by this. The computer of the positioning device,
A requesting means for requesting an external device to transmit ephemeris data for each of a predetermined number of positioning satellites,
An acquisition means for receiving each of the ephemeris data transmitted by the external device in response to the request of the requesting means from the external device.
A positioning means that determines the current position based on each of the ephemeris data acquired by the acquisition means after setting the number of channels to be searched or tracked to the predetermined number.
To function as
The requesting means
Judgment means for determining the orientation of the positioning antenna or the topographical environment around the positioning antenna,
A positioning satellite corresponding to the determination result by the determination means is selected from a plurality of positioning satellites, and the ephemeris data for the selected positioning satellite is set as the ephemeris data for requesting transmission to the external device. Setting means,
Acts as
The setting means sets the predetermined number by selecting the positioning satellites so that the number of positioning satellites selected differs depending on the difference in the determination result by the determination means.
A program characterized by that.

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