JP7269746B2 - Guidance system and guidance program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a guidance system and a guidance program.

Conventionally, there is known a technique of providing arrival guidance before arriving at a point to be passed along the route. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for obtaining the time when a specific point such as a station on the route is passed, detecting that a predetermined time has passed before the passing time, and displaying information about the specific point. is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-178923

In the conventional technology, when the point to be guided is close, the guidance may be difficult to understand. For example, it is preferable to be notified that the train is about to arrive before arriving at a station. Also, it is preferable to be informed that the train is about to depart from a certain station before the train departs. When changing trains at a certain station in such a configuration in which both guidance is performed, if the arrival time at the station and the departure time from the station are close, separate guidance at close timings would be troublesome. Further, if the departure guidance is provided immediately after the arrival guidance, there is a possibility that the departure guidance will be provided while the passenger is preparing for arrival, and the guidance may be overlooked. Conversely, if the departure guidance is given before the arrival guidance, the guidance is very difficult to understand.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a technique for guiding arrival and departure in an easy-to-understand manner.

In order to achieve the above object, the guidance system includes a transit information acquisition unit that acquires the arrival time at a transit point existing between the departure point and the destination and the departure time from the transit point; A guidance time acquiring unit that acquires a time one period earlier as the guidance time of arrival and a time that is a second period earlier than the departure time as the guidance time for departure; and a guidance control unit that causes the guidance unit to guide the departure from the transit point at the departure guidance time, wherein the guidance control unit controls when the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is less than or equal to a threshold value, or When the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint are combined and guided.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, the guidance program comprises a computer that acquires a transit information acquisition unit that acquires the time of arrival at and the time of departure from a transit point existing between a departure point and a destination; A guidance time acquisition unit that acquires a time that is a first period before the arrival time as the guidance time of arrival and a time that is a second period before the departure time as the guidance departure time, and calculates arrival at the transit point at the guidance time. When the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than the threshold Alternatively, when the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, the computer is caused to execute a function of providing guidance by combining arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint.

As described above, in the guidance system and the guidance program, in a configuration in which arrival guidance is provided at the arrival guidance time and departure guidance is provided at the departure guidance time, when the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time are close to each other, or when the departure guidance time is close to the departure guidance time, When the guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, the arrival guidance and the departure guidance are combined. According to this configuration, it is possible to provide guidance on arrival and departure in an easy-to-understand manner without providing guidance at different timings.

1 is a block diagram showing a guidance system; FIG. It is a flow chart of guidance processing. 3A to 3C are diagrams showing examples of guidance data, and FIGS. 3D to 3G are diagrams showing relationships of time.

Here, embodiments of the present invention will be described according to the following order.
(1) Configuration of guidance system:
(2) Guidance processing:
(3) Other embodiments:

(1) Configuration of guidance system:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a guidance system 10 that is one embodiment of the present invention. The guidance system 10 according to the present embodiment includes a control unit 20 having a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, etc., a recording medium 30, and a communication unit 40. The control unit 20 is recorded in the ROM and the recording medium 30. program can be executed. The communication unit 40 is a device for performing wireless communication with the guide terminal S. As shown in FIG. That is, by controlling the communication unit 40, the control unit 20 can communicate with the guide terminal S at any timing to exchange any information.

The guidance terminal S is a portable computer (for example, a smart phone, etc.), and can execute various application programs by a control unit (not shown). In the present embodiment, the guidance terminal S includes a guidance section 210a, and route guidance is provided by the guidance section 210a functioning as a user interface. That is, the guidance terminal S can execute an application program that cooperates with the guidance system 10, and by executing the application program, the guidance terminal S receives instructions from the user via the guidance unit 210a, and responds to the instructions. Arbitrary information is displayed on the guidance section 210a. If the user's instruction is route guidance, information indicating the route is displayed.

When route guidance is performed, the user of the guidance terminal S uses the guidance unit 210a to input the parameters (departure point, destination) of the route to be guided. When the guidance terminal S receives the parameters of the route, the guidance terminal S transmits them to the guidance system 10 together with a route search request. When the guidance system 10 receives a route search request, the guidance system 10 searches for a route from the departure point to the destination and generates information indicating the route. The guidance system 10 then returns information indicating the route to the guidance terminal S via the communication unit 40 . When the guidance terminal S receives these pieces of information, it displays the route on the guidance section 210a. Of course, guidance may be given by voice. The user of the guidance terminal S can act to move along the route from the starting point to the destination based on the displayed contents.

In this embodiment, the pathway is a multimodal pathway. That is, in the present embodiment, transportation means may differ for each section that constitutes the route. Transportation means include vehicles, trains as public transportation, and the like. In this embodiment, the guidance system 10 causes the guidance terminal S to output guidance indicating boarding and alighting of the train when the means of transportation is a train. Hereinafter, a configuration in which the means of transportation is a train will be described.

In this embodiment, intermediate points may be included between the departure point and the destination. In other words, when trains are used as a means of public transportation, a station at which at least one of boarding and alighting of the train is performed becomes a waypoint. In this embodiment, when a route includes a waypoint, the guidance system 10 generates guidance data for providing guidance regarding the waypoint, and provides guidance for the waypoint to the guidance terminal S based on the guidance data. Let In this embodiment, the guidance data includes a station as a waypoint, a train to board at the station (route number, destination, etc.), arrival time at the station, arrival guidance time at which arrival guidance should be provided, departure time, departure guidance time at which departure guidance should be provided, and the like.

In the guidance system 10, the control unit 20 executes the guidance program 21 to generate guidance data based on the route, and to cause the guidance terminal S to execute arrival guidance at the arrival guidance time based on the guidance data. . Further, the control unit 20 causes the guidance terminal S to execute departure guidance at the departure guidance time based on the guidance data. For this purpose, the guidance program 21 includes a route information acquisition section 21a, a guidance time acquisition section 21b, and a guidance control section 21c.

The route information acquisition unit 21a is a program module that causes the control unit 20 to execute a function of acquiring arrival times at and departure times from intermediate points existing between a departure point and a destination. In this embodiment, the control unit 20 uses the function of the route information acquisition unit 21a to search for a route, and if the route includes a section traveled by a train as a means of public transportation, at least one of boarding and alighting of the train is performed. Acquire the station that is called as a waypoint. Then, the time of arrival at the waypoint and the time of departure from the waypoint are acquired.

The route search is executed based on the map information 30a recorded on the recording medium. The map information 30a is information used for route search and the like, and indicates a network of sections defined by nodes and links for each means of transportation. That is, nodes are set on the road on which the vehicle travels, and connections between the nodes are indicated by links. Nodes are set on the section to be moved on foot, and connections between the nodes are indicated by links. Nodes indicating stations and the like are also set on the tracks on which trains move, and connections between nodes are indicated by links. A link indicating a section traveled on foot may be connected to a node on a road on which a vehicle travels or a node indicating a train station.

The map information 30a includes node data indicating the positions of these nodes, shape interpolation point data indicating the positions of shape interpolation points for specifying the shape of sections between nodes, and link data indicating connections between nodes. include. The map information 30a also includes feature data indicating the positions of features existing on roads, stations, and their surroundings. In this embodiment, the link data is associated with the cost for traveling the section indicated by the link. Further, in the present embodiment, facility data indicating stations is associated with a timetable indicating times when trains arrive at and depart from each station.

When the departure point and the destination are transmitted from the guidance terminal S, the control unit 20 acquires the destination from the departure point via the communication unit 40, and refers to the map information 30a to calculate the distance from the departure point to the destination. Explore routes. The search may be performed with various algorithms, such as the Dijkstra method, the A* algorithm, and improved algorithms thereof. In addition, when a means of transportation is a public transportation system, a search may be performed in a state in which various constraint conditions are imposed. For example, in the case of movement by train, a constraint is imposed such that the departure time from the station and the arrival time at the station are in accordance with the timetable indicated by the map information 30a.

If the route includes a section using public transportation, a route including a station as a waypoint is searched. If the route includes a waypoint, the control unit 20 acquires the arrival time at the waypoint and the departure time from the waypoint. That is, the arrival time at the waypoint is acquired based on the timetable. When the transit point is a transfer station, the search is performed with the train heading for the transit point specified, and the control unit 20 determines the arrival time at which the train arrives at the transfer station as the transit point based on the timetable. get. Furthermore, the control unit 20 acquires the departure time of the train after the transfer based on the timetable. If the waypoint is the boarding station, the control unit 20 acquires the arrival time at the station, for example, based on the route length of the section in front of the boarding station and the average travel time for each section. If the transit point is a station that is the final point of travel by train, the control unit 20 acquires the arrival time at the station that is the final point based on the timetable of the train heading for the station.

The guidance time acquisition unit 21b causes the control unit 20 to execute a function of acquiring a time a first period before the arrival time as the arrival guidance time and acquiring a time a second period before the departure time as the departure guidance time. It is a program module. That is, in the present embodiment, by providing arrival guidance before the arrival time and departure guidance before the departure time, the user of the guidance terminal S is urged to prepare for arrival and departure, and the arrival or to remember to leave.

In this embodiment, the first period and the second period are predetermined. Therefore, the control unit 20 acquires the time obtained by subtracting the first period from the arrival time acquired by the function of the route information acquisition unit 21a as the arrival guidance time. Further, the control unit 20 acquires the time obtained by subtracting the second period from the departure time acquired by the function of the route information acquiring unit 21a as the departure guidance time. In this embodiment, the preparation for arrival is an action such as packing luggage in the train, and the preparation for departure is an action including moving to a platform where you can board a train to transfer to. We see preparation as taking longer than preparation for arrival.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the second period is set longer than the first period. For example, the second period can be set to 10 minutes, and the first period can be set to 2 minutes. FIG. 3D is a diagram showing the relationship of times at waypoints. In FIG. 3D, a portion of the route is shown on the time axis, and the period of travel by the train is indicated by solid arrows. The dashed-dotted line is the staying time at the waypoint (that is, the station). If it is necessary to move within the station, the period of the dashed-dotted line includes walking.

In FIG. 3D, the one-dot chain line indicates the staying time at the waypoint, so the earlier end point of the one-dot chain line is the arrival time Ta, and the later end point is the departure time Td. In FIG. 3D, the first period is P ₁ and the second period is P ₂ . Therefore, the time earlier than the arrival time Ta by the first period _P1 is the arrival guidance time Tag, and the time earlier than the departure time Td by the first period _P1 is the departure guidance time Tdg.

The guidance control unit 21c is a program module that causes the control unit 20 to execute the function of causing the guidance unit to guide the arrival at the transit point at the arrival guidance time and to cause the guidance unit to guide the departure from the transit point at the departure guidance time. In other words, the control unit 20 generates guidance data for prompting preparations for arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint. The guidance data includes information indicating guidance timing. Therefore, the control unit 20 monitors the movement of the guide terminal S, and makes the guide terminal S guide the arrival at the waypoint and the departure from the waypoint at the guidance timing.

That is, the control unit 20 acquires the guidance content for moving the user along the route based on the route acquired by the function of the route information acquisition unit 21a, and outputs the guidance of the guidance content. and generate guidance data showing them. Specifically, the control unit 20 identifies a station as a waypoint from the route, identifies the arrival time at the station and the station name, and uses them as guidance contents in the arrival guidance. Then, the control unit 20 generates guidance data for arrival guidance by associating the information with the arrival guidance time acquired by the function of the guidance time acquisition unit 21b. According to such guidance data, the guidance timing of the guidance whose guidance content is "arrival of train" is specified as the arrival guidance time.

Furthermore, the control unit 20 specifies a station as a transit point from the route, specifies the station name, the train to be boarded at the station (route number, destination, etc.), the departure time from the station, and provides guidance in the departure guidance. content. Then, the control unit 20 generates guidance data for departure guidance by associating the information with the departure guidance time acquired by the function of the guidance time acquisition unit 21b. According to such guidance data, the guidance timing of the guidance whose guidance content is "departure of the train" is specified as the departure guidance time.

The contents of the guidance may be various contents as long as they indicate arrival or departure. FIG. 3A is a diagram showing an example of guidance data indicating arrival guidance content. In the example shown in FIG. 3A, the ID of the waypoint is 01, the arrival guidance time is 2018/12/11 10:10:00, and the guidance text "Arrival guidance 10:12 A station A configuration is shown in which "arrival" is used as guidance data. The guidance text indicates the name of the transit point to arrive at, Station A, and the arrival time, 10:12. However, the guidance text is not limited to this example, and may include other information.

FIG. 3B is a diagram showing an example of guidance data indicating departure guidance content. In the example shown in FIG. 3B, the ID of the waypoint is 01, the departure guidance time is 2018/12/11 10:14:00, and the guidance text "Departure guidance A station X line B 10:24 departure for line C" is shown as guidance data. The guidance text indicates the name of the waypoint to depart from, Station A, and the departure time of 10:24. is indicated by the line C, which is, of course, not limited to this example, and may include other information.

After the guidance data is created, the control section 20 controls the communication section 40 to monitor the movement of the guidance terminal S. FIG. That is, the guidance terminal S has a current location acquisition unit (not shown) that uses GNSS signals and the like, and periodically transmits information indicating the current location when movement along the route is started. The control unit 20 monitors movement of the guide terminal S by acquiring information indicating the current location via the communication unit 40 . Then, when the current location of the guidance terminal S reaches the arrival guidance time in the process of moving toward the station as a transit point, the control unit 20 causes the guidance terminal S to guide the arrival at the station. That is, the control unit 20 refers to guidance data indicating arrival guidance for the station, extracts information indicating guidance content, and transmits the information to the guidance terminal S via the communication unit 40 . The guidance terminal S displays the transmitted guidance content on the guidance section 210a. As a result, the guide terminal S provides arrival guidance for the station at the arrival guidance time.

When the current location of the guidance terminal S has not departed from the station as the transit point and the departure guidance time comes, the control unit 20 causes the guidance terminal S to guide the departure from the station. That is, the control unit 20 refers to guidance data indicating departure guidance from the station, extracts information indicating guidance content, and transmits the information to the guidance terminal S via the communication unit 40 . The guidance terminal S displays the transmitted guidance content on the guidance section 210a. As a result, the guidance terminal S will guide the departure from the station at the departure guidance time.

In this embodiment, with the above configuration, as shown in FIG. can be executed. Also, as shown in FIG. 3D, at the departure guidance time Tdg before the departure time Td from the waypoint, as shown in FIG. be able to. As a result, the user of the guidance terminal S can move along the route from the departure point specified by himself to the destination. If a transit point is included, the user can move to the destination via the transit point.

In this embodiment, as described above, preparation for departure is considered to take longer than preparation for arrival, and the second period is set to be longer than the first period. For this reason, when the arrival time and the departure time at a transit point are close to each other, if the arrival guidance and the departure guidance are provided separately, the guidance may be difficult to understand. FIGS. 3E and 3F show an example in which the arrival time Ta at the waypoint and the departure time Td from the waypoint are close. In FIG. 3E, since the arrival time Ta and the departure time Td are close, the arrival guidance time Tag and the departure guidance time Tdg are very close. Furthermore, after the arrival guidance is provided at the arrival guidance time Tag, the departure guidance is provided at the departure guidance time Tdg before arriving at the transit point at the arrival time Ta. If the guidance is given at such timing, it is troublesome for the user, and the departure guidance may be overlooked due to preparations for arrival.

In the example shown in FIG. 3F, the arrival time Ta is close to the departure time Td, so the departure guidance time Tdg is earlier than the arrival guidance time Tag. If the guidance is provided at such timing, the guidance is provided in the reverse order of the events of arrival and departure at the waypoint. Therefore, the guidance is very difficult for the user to understand.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than a threshold, or when the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, the control unit 20 controls the guidance control unit The function 21c combines the arrival at the waypoint and the departure from the waypoint for guidance. That is, the control unit 20 subtracts the arrival guidance time from the departure guidance time, and if the obtained value is positive, compares it with the threshold value. Then, if the value is smaller than the threshold, it is determined that the guidance should be combined. The threshold may be determined in advance as an interval at which the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time are too close to make the guidance difficult to understand. It can be defined by a value greater than the difference (eg, 3 minutes) or the like.

If the value obtained by subtracting the arrival guidance time from the departure guidance time is negative, the control unit 20 determines that the guidance should be combined. Based on the above determination, the control unit 20 determines that guidance should be combined in the case of FIG. 3E or FIG. 3F. When the guidance should be combined, in the present embodiment, the control unit 20 provides guidance for arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint at the same time. Specifically, the control unit 20 generates guidance data whose guidance content is "arrival and departure of a train" and whose guidance timing is the arrival guidance time. In addition, the guidance timing is not limited to the arrival guidance time, and a configuration in which the guidance timing is the departure guidance time may be adopted. And, after arrival, it can be urged to prepare for departure.

The content of the guidance may be various as long as it indicates arrival and departure. FIG. 3C is a diagram showing an example of guidance data indicating the content of guidance for arrival and departure. In the example shown in FIG. 3C, 01, which is the ID of the waypoint, 2018/12/11 10:10:00, which is the guidance time (=arrival guidance time), and guidance text "arrival guidance 10:12 Arrive at A Station" and "Departure Guidance: Station A, Line X, Line B bound for C, Departure at 10:15" are shown as guidance data.

The guidance text indicates the name of the waypoint to arrive at Station A and the arrival time of 10:12, the name of the waypoint to depart from Station A and the departure time of 10:15, and also indicates the name of the waypoint to board the bus when departing. The train to be taken is indicated by platform X, which is the boarding point, B-line, which is the type of train, and C-bound, which is the destination. When the guidance time (=arrival guidance time) of the combined guidance data comes while the current location of the guidance terminal S is moving toward the station serving as a transit point, the control unit 20 The guidance terminal S is caused to execute the guidance combined with the departure. That is, the control unit 20 refers to guidance data indicating arrival and departure guidance for the station, extracts information indicating guidance content, and transmits the information to the guidance terminal S via the communication unit 40 . The guidance terminal S displays the transmitted guidance content on the guidance section 210a.

At this time, both the guidance text indicating the arrival guidance and the guidance text indicating the departure guidance are displayed in the guidance section 210a. Therefore, at the arrival guidance time, arrival and departure are announced at the same time. Note that arrival and departure may be announced at the same time, but it is preferable that the order of display in the guidance section 210a is in line with the order of occurrence of events. In other words, it is preferable that the earlier arrivals are displayed at the top of the guidance section 210a and the later departures are displayed at the bottom of the guidance section 210a. According to the above configuration, the user of the guidance terminal S can recognize the departure guidance at the same time as the arrival guidance, and can overlook the other guidance due to preparation for one guidance or one event. can reduce sexuality. In addition, guidance is not provided in the order opposite to the order in which events occur. Therefore, the user of the guide terminal S can be provided with easy-to-understand guidance.

(2) Guidance processing:
Next, guidance processing in the above configuration will be described in detail. FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing the guidance process. The guidance process is executed after the control unit 20 searches for a route in response to a route search request executed by the guidance terminal S and records (not shown) the route on the recording medium 30 . The guidance system 10 can receive route search requests from a plurality of guidance terminals S, and can perform guidance processing for the route of each guidance terminal S that has issued a route search request.

When a route is searched by a route search request from one or more guidance terminals S, the control section 20 confirms the monitoring target by the function of the guidance control section 21c (step S100). In this embodiment, the monitored object is a section traveled by a train as a public transportation system. Therefore, the control unit 20 refers to each of the routes obtained by the search, and confirms whether or not the route includes a section to be traveled by train.

If the route includes a section traveled by train, the control unit 20 determines that there is a monitoring target in step S105. If the route does not include a section traveled by train, the control unit 20 repeats the processing from step S100.

If it is determined in step S105 that there is an object to be monitored, the control unit 20 executes the processes after step S110 for each route. That is, the process from step S110 onward is executed for each guide terminal S that moves along a route including movement by train. This processing is executed in parallel for each of the guidance terminals S, but hereinafter, the processing from step S110 onward will be described with focus on the route of a specific guidance terminal S. FIG. Note that when a new route search request is received from the guide terminal S, the processing from step S100 onward may be performed.

In step S110, the control unit 20 acquires route information using the function of the route information acquisition unit 21a. That is, the route points included in the route of the guide terminal S to be processed are acquired, and the arrival time at the station and the departure time from the station are acquired. If there are multiple waypoints, the control unit 20 acquires the arrival time and departure time for each waypoint.

Next, the control unit 20 acquires the arrival guide time and the departure guide time of the intermediate point to be processed by the function of the guide time acquisition unit 21b (step S115). That is, steps S115 to S140 form a loop process, and the loop process is performed for each waypoint included in the route. For this reason, the control unit 20 selects one place to be processed, which is included in the route and not to be processed in the loop processing of steps S115 to S140. Then, the control unit 20 acquires the arrival guide time by subtracting the first period from the arrival time for the route point to be processed. Further, the control unit 20 acquires the departure guidance time by subtracting the second period from the departure time for the route point to be processed.

Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than a threshold using the function of the guidance control unit 21c (step S120). That is, the control unit 20 subtracts the arrival guidance time from the departure guidance time, and determines that the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than the threshold when the obtained value is positive and equal to or less than the threshold. .

If it is determined in step S120 that the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than the threshold, the control section 20 generates combined guidance data using the function of the guidance control section 21c (step S125). That is, the control unit 20 generates guidance data for simultaneously guiding the arrival and departure of the route point to be processed. Specifically, the control unit 20 specifies the guidance contents when the arrival and departure guidance is provided at the same time based on the route, and associates the arrival guidance time acquired in step S115 with the guidance time. As a result, guidance data as shown in FIG. 3C is generated.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S120 that the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is not equal to or less than the threshold value, the control unit 20 determines whether the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time by the function of the guidance control unit 21c. It is determined whether or not (step S130). If it is determined in step S130 that the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, the control unit 20 executes step S125 to generate combined guidance data.

If it is determined in step S130 that the departure guidance time is not earlier than the arrival guidance time, the control section 20 generates separate guidance data for arrival and departure using the function of the route information acquisition section 21a (step S135). That is, the control unit 20 generates guidance data for guiding arrival at the route point and guidance data for departing from the route point for the route point to be processed. Specifically, the control unit 20 identifies guidance content when providing guidance for arrival based on the route, and associates the guidance arrival time acquired in step S115. As a result, guidance data as shown in FIG. 3A is generated. In addition, the control unit 20 specifies guidance content when providing departure guidance based on the route, and associates the departure guidance time acquired in step S115. As a result, guidance data as shown in FIG. 3B is generated.

Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the processes of steps S115 to S140 have been completed for all waypoints. That is, the control unit 20 determines that the processing of steps S115 to S140 has been completed for all the waypoints when the processing of steps S115 to S140 has been performed for all the waypoints included in the route. If it is not determined in step S140 that the processing of steps S115 to S140 has been completed for all waypoints, the control unit 20 repeats the processing from step S115 onward.

If it is determined in step S140 that the processes of steps S115 to S140 have been completed for all waypoints, the control unit 20 monitors the movement of the guidance terminal S using the function of the guidance control unit 21c (step S145). That is, the control unit 20 acquires the current location of the guidance terminal S via the communication unit 40, and specifies the position on the route based on the map information 30a. Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the guidance timing for the waypoint to which the guidance terminal S is heading has come, using the function of the guidance control unit 21c (step S150). That is, the control unit 20 identifies the waypoint to which the guidance terminal S is heading based on the current location of the guidance terminal S, and determines whether or not the current time is the guidance timing for the waypoint based on the guidance data. judge. The guidance timing for the waypoint is any one of the arrival guidance time shown in FIG. 3A, the departure guidance time shown in FIG. 3B, and the guidance time shown in FIG. 3C.

In step S150, if it is not determined that the guidance timing has come, the control unit 20 repeats the processing from step S145. On the other hand, when it is determined in step S150 that the guidance timing has come, the control section 20 executes guidance control by the function of the guidance control section 21c (step S155). That is, the control unit 20 transmits the guidance content (guidance text in the case of FIGS. 3A to 3C) indicated by the guidance data determined to have reached the guidance timing in step S150 to the guidance terminal S via the communication unit 40. Send.

As a result, if the timing determined to be the guidance timing in step S150 is the arrival guidance time, the guidance unit 210a of the guidance terminal S outputs the guidance of arrival. If the timing determined to be the guidance timing in step S150 is the departure guidance time, the guidance unit 210a of the guidance terminal S outputs guidance for departure. If the timing determined to be the guidance timing in step S150 is the guidance time of the combined guidance, the guidance unit 210a of the guidance terminal S outputs the guidance of arrival and the guidance of departure.

Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the guidance has ended by the function of the guidance control unit 21c (step S160). That is, the control unit 20 determines that the guidance is completed when the guidance is completed based on all of the guidance data generated from each waypoint included in the route. The control unit 20 repeats the processes after step S145 until it is determined in step S160 that the guidance has ended.

(3) Other embodiments:
The above embodiment is an example for carrying out the present invention, and various embodiments can be adopted as a configuration for combining arrival guidance and departure guidance when the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time are close to each other. For example, each means constituting the guidance system may be implemented by one device as in the above-described embodiment, or may be divided into two or more devices. As the latter, for example, it is possible to employ a configuration in which the guidance terminal S executes the processing of the guidance control unit 21c. Of course, the configuration may be such that a control unit other than the control unit 20 shown in FIG. 1 executes part of each means.

Moreover, at least some of the units (route information acquisition unit 21a, guidance time acquisition unit 21b, guidance control unit 21c) constituting the guidance system 10 may be divided into a plurality of devices. For example, the guidance terminal S may monitor the movement of the guidance terminal S and determine whether or not it is time for guidance. Furthermore, a configuration in which a part of the configuration of the above-described embodiment is omitted, or a configuration in which the processing is changed or omitted can be assumed. For example, the guidance system 10 may not have a route search function, and the route may be searched by issuing a route search request to an external route search server. In this case, the guidance system 10 may acquire route information, or may acquire information indicating waypoints.

The transit information acquisition unit only needs to be able to acquire the time of arrival at and the time of departure from the transit point located between the departure point and the destination. That is, when a specific point is passed between the departure point and the destination, the point becomes the transit point. Then, the transit information acquisition unit only needs to be able to acquire the time of arrival at the transit point as the arrival time and the time of departure from the transit point as the departure time.

The arrival time and departure time may be determined in advance, and may be determined by the user, or may be determined according to the situation when moving to the waypoint. As for the time determined according to the situation when traveling to a transit point, there is a configuration in which the arrival time and departure time are determined according to road congestion when using a vehicle and delays due to weather when using a train. mentioned.

The waypoint may be any point that can be stopped by on the way from the departure point to the destination, for example, a point where movement by a specific means of transportation ends. Therefore, waypoints are not limited to points where trains are changed. For example, it may be a point visited in the process of moving by vehicle, or a point where the means of transportation is changed. The transit information acquisition unit should be able to acquire at least the arrival time at the transit point and the departure time from the transit point. good.

The guidance time acquisition unit may acquire a time that is a first period before the arrival time as the arrival guidance time, and a time that is a second period before the departure time as the departure guidance time. In other words, the guide time acquisition unit only needs to be able to acquire the guide arrival time and the guide departure time for providing advance guidance on the arrival time and the departure time, respectively. The first period may be set as a period for prompting action in preparation for arrival by being informed of arrival before the arrival time, and may be a fixed period or a variable period. It can be.

The second period may be set as a period in which it is possible to make it in time for departure by being notified of departure before the guidance time, and may be a fixed period or a variable period. Also good. When at least one of the first period and the second period is variable, a configuration may be adopted in which at least one of the means of transportation before and after the waypoint and the waypoint changes. That is, preparations for arrival and departure may differ from one mode of transportation to another. For example, trains and cars can have statistically different preparation times. Therefore, the first period and the second period may be configured to change when the means of transportation are different. In addition, when trains have different routes, types of trains, etc., they may be regarded as different means of transportation. That is, since the time required for preparation for arrival and departure may differ between a long-distance travel route and a short-distance travel route, the first period and the second period may change according to these differences. According to this configuration, the guidance timing can be optimized for each means of transportation.

The first period and the second period may be determined independently, but in many cases it is sufficient to simply get off the various means of transportation at the time of arrival, and at the time of departure, the place to get on the means of transportation (station or a parking lot), the second period is preferably longer than the first period. According to this configuration, guidance can be provided at appropriate timings for arrival and departure.

In addition, the arrival guidance time defines the timing at which arrival guidance is provided, and the departure guidance time defines the timing at which departure guidance is provided. It is substantially synonymous with the fact that the time and departure guide time are defined. In other words, the arrival guidance time may be defined as the timing at which a predetermined distance to the waypoint is reached, or the departure guidance time may be defined as the timing at which the predetermined distance to the waypoint is reached. It's okay to be there.

The guidance control section only needs to cause the guidance section to guide the arrival at the transit point at the arrival guidance time, and cause the guidance section to guide the departure from the transit point at the departure guidance time. That is, it is sufficient that the guidance control section can start guidance with the time as a trigger, and that the guidance section can output arrival guidance and departure guidance. The guidance of arrival and the guidance of departure may be provided in various manners, such as images, sounds, and terminal vibrations. In addition, as the information provided to the user at the time of guidance, in addition to the guidance notifying arrival and departure, the arrival time and departure time may be announced, the difference between the current time and the arrival time, and the difference between the current time and the current time. The difference from the departure time may be guided.

Further, if the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than a threshold value, or if the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, the guidance control unit It is sufficient if it can be combined with the departure of . The threshold value for evaluating the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time may be a value corresponding to the period during which guidance is troublesome when the difference is equal to or less than the threshold and one guidance is likely to be overlooked. , should be determined in advance.

Guidance that combines arrival at a waypoint and departure from a waypoint may be provided at a time earlier than the arrival time and departure time, and may be provided at various timings. That is, various configurations can be adopted other than the configuration implemented at the arrival guidance time.

Guidance combining the arrival at the waypoint and the departure from the waypoint may take various forms. In other words, the present invention is not limited to simultaneous guidance in which information about both arrival at a waypoint and departure from a waypoint are displayed on the same screen as in the above-described embodiment. For example, guidance on departure from the waypoint may be provided following guidance on arrival at the waypoint. That is, the voice guidance for arrival is executed, the voice guidance is temporarily terminated, and then the voice guidance for departure is executed after a predetermined period of time. May be combined.

Furthermore, the technique of combining the arrival guidance and the departure guidance when the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time are close can be applied as a program or method. Moreover, the system, program, and method described above can be implemented as a single device or implemented by a plurality of devices, and include various modes. For example, it is possible to provide a server, method, and program having the above means. In addition, it can be changed as appropriate, such as a part of which is software and a part of which is hardware. Furthermore, the invention is established as a recording medium for a program for controlling the system. Of course, the recording medium for the software may be a magnetic recording medium, a semiconductor memory, or any other recording medium that will be developed in the future.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Guidance system, 20... Control part, 21... Guidance program, 21a... Route information acquisition part, 21b... Guidance time acquisition part, 21c... Guidance control part, 30... Recording medium, 30a... Map information, 40... Communication part, 210a... Guidance section

Claims (7)

a transit information acquiring unit that acquires the arrival time at a transit point existing between a departure point and a destination and the departure time from the transit point;
a guide time acquisition unit that acquires a time that is a first period before the arrival time as the arrival guidance time and acquires a time that is a second period before the departure time as the departure guidance time;
a guidance control unit that guides the arrival at the waypoint at the arrival guidance time in the guidance unit and guides the departure from the waypoint at the departure guidance time,
The guidance control unit
When the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than a threshold, or when the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint Combine and guide the departure,
guidance system. the second period is longer than the first period;
Guidance system according to claim 1. Guidance that combines arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint,
Simultaneous guidance of arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint, or guidance of departure from the waypoint following guidance of arrival at the waypoint,
Guidance system according to claim 1 or claim 2. The waypoint is
It is a point to go through using public transportation,
The guidance system according to any one of claims 1 to 3. At least one of the first period and the second period,
change depending on at least one of the means of transportation before and after the waypoint and the waypoint;
The guidance system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. Guidance that combines arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint,
carried out at the arrival guidance time,
The guidance system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. the computer,
a transit information acquiring unit that acquires the arrival time at a transit point existing between a departure point and a destination and the departure time from the transit point;
a guidance time acquisition unit that acquires a time that is a first period before the arrival time as the arrival guidance time and acquires a time that is a second period before the departure time as the departure guidance time;
A program that functions as a guidance control unit that guides arrival at the waypoint at the arrival guidance time and causes the guidance unit to guide departure from the waypoint at the departure guidance time,
The guidance control unit
When the difference between the arrival guidance time and the departure guidance time is equal to or less than a threshold, or when the departure guidance time is earlier than the arrival guidance time, arrival at the waypoint and departure from the waypoint cause the computer to perform the function of combining and guiding departure and
guidance program.

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