JPH07319914A - Electronic map device and method for inputting data to the device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To use a map drawn on paper or the like and an electronic map device in combination by storing inputted positional information such as longitude and latitude and displaying a map in accordance with the positional information and map information stored in a map information recording part. CONSTITUTION:A GPS receiver 2 calculates the longitude and latitude of a current position by the use of a signal received from a GPS satellite through an antenna 1 and outputs the calculated result to a central processing part 7 and an image scanner 4 optically reads out picture information, converts the luminous intensity of each picture element into a digital value and outputs the digital value to the central processing part 7. The processing part 7 records the information in a peripheral information data base 6 and displays an electronic map on a display 9 in accordance with a map information data base 8. Consequently a paper map or positional information supplied from a recording medium such as book can simply be inputted to the electronic map device and the electronic map device can be simply used together with the paper map or the book.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a map information processing device such as an electronic map device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been provided an electronic map device such as a car navigation device which is mounted on an automobile or the like to convey a current location and map information to a driver. By supplying not only map information but also peripheral information such as a tourist guide together with the map information on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM or an IC card, a symbol ( You can search by displaying (icon). Further, a vehicle equipped with the device is also devised which automatically outputs the tourist guide or the like by voice when approaching a position where peripheral information is registered (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-290473, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-290473). Kaihei 2-101
No. 004).

[0003]

However, the usefulness of these devices is greatly influenced by the quality and quantity of the database of map information and peripheral information such as tourist spots and shops. That is, even if there is an electronic map system capable of searching map information and peripheral information, it is meaningless if the database of essential map information and peripheral information is not sufficiently prepared. In recent years, these pieces of information are CD-ROs that can be used in electronic map devices.
Those recorded on media such as M (for example, "Zenrin Navisoft" by Zenrin Co., Ltd.) have become available, but both quality and quantity are provided by conventional media such as paper maps and books. It is still poor compared to what is done. Therefore, at present, it is unavoidable to search for a place name and confirm the current position with an electronic map device and to obtain detailed map information and peripheral information from a paper map or a book. In this case, there is a problem in that it is difficult to grasp the locations of tourist spots and shops published in books and the like on the map displayed by the electronic map device.

Therefore, the present invention eliminates the above problems,
An object of the present invention is to provide a method of easily inputting positional information supplied by a conventional recording medium such as a paper map or book into an electronic map device, and easily using a paper map or book together with the electronic map device. And

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, the electronic map device of the present invention is a position information input section for inputting position information such as longitude and latitude values in peripheral information published in a book or the like. And a map information recording unit that stores map information, a map display unit that displays a map according to the position information and the map information.

[0006]

According to the present invention, when the operator inputs position information such as longitude / latitude values from the position information input unit, the recording unit stores the input position information and the map display unit stores in the recording unit. The map is displayed according to the stored position information and the map information stored in the map information recording unit.

[0007]

Embodiments of the electronic map device of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment, in which 1 is an antenna, 2 is a GPS receiver, 3 is a bar code reader, 4 is an image scanner, 5 is a switch group, and 6 is peripheral information. A database, 7 is a central processing unit, 8 is a map information database, and 9 is a display. Here, the GPS receiver 2 calculates the longitude and latitude of the current location using the signal from the GPS satellite received by the antenna 1 and outputs the longitude and latitude to the central processing unit 7. Barcode reader 3
Is for optically reading the position information represented as a barcode and recording it in the peripheral information database 6. The image scanner 4 optically reads image information, converts the light intensity of each pixel into a digital value (A / D conversion), and outputs the digital value to the central processing unit 7. After this,
The central processing unit 7 records this information in the peripheral information database 6. The switch group 5 includes function keys and number keys for the operator to control the electronic map. The central processing unit 7 displays the electronic map on the display 9 according to the map information database 8. Here, the map information database 8 stores only the information of place names, roads, and railroads, and the operator himself registers the peripheral information such as sightseeing spots and shops in the peripheral information database 6.

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the embodiment.
Is a GPS antenna / receiver, 203 is a bar code reader, 204 is an image scanner, 205 is a switch group,
208 is a CD-ROM as a map information database,
209 is a display, 210 is a power switch, 211
It is a modern body. Here, GPS antenna / receiver 2
01, barcode reader 203, image scanner 20
4 can be attached to and detached from the casing 211. Further, as a recording medium of the peripheral information database 6, a hard disk mounted in the housing 211 is used, and the central processing unit 7 is also mounted in the housing 211.

FIG. 3 is a display example of an electronic map on the display 9, which uses the information in the map information database 8 to display roads, railways, place names, and direction information. In addition, the double circle in the center is an icon that represents your current location.
It is displayed at a position on the map corresponding to the longitude and latitude of the current location obtained from the S receiver 2.

FIG. 4 is an example of posting peripheral information on a printed matter such as a book. A title such as the name of an inn at the top of the paper, a photograph at the center left, a commentary at the center right, and a schematic at the bottom left Map, the letter L circled with the numerical value indicating the location information on the bottom right
Place after. The location of the inn shown here is 135 degrees 19 minutes 55.2 seconds east longitude and 34 degrees 37 minutes 15.7 north latitude.
If it is seconds, the numerical value showing the position information is 13519552-3
437157 and so on (for example, 135 degrees west longitude 19 degrees
If the minute is 55.2 seconds and the latitude is 34 degrees 37 minutes 15.7 seconds, the numerical value representing the position information is (13519552 + 180,000).
00)-(3437157 + 9000000), that is, 31519552-12437157, so that any position on the earth can be represented by a positive integer).

Now, a method for the operator to register this information in the peripheral information database 6 will be described below. Here, as the key of the switch group 5, the switch group 20 of FIG. 2 is used.
“0”, “1”, “2”, “3”,
"4", "5", "6", "7", "8", "9",
"-", ".", "MODE" (mode switching),
"C" (clear), "BS" (backspace), "E"
There are 16 keys of "NT" (enter), "1" ~
An example will be given in which the number key of "9" is also used as the cursor key.

First, the switch group 5 is used to input a numerical value representing position information as a character string. For example, if the numerical value indicating the position information is 13519552-3437157, the keys are "1", "3", "5", "1", "9",
"5", "5", "2", "-", "3", "4",
"3", "7", "1", "5", "7", "ENT"
Press in the order of and enter the location information.

Next, the character string of the title is displayed on the display 9
Display the Japanese syllabary (not shown) above and select the characters with the cursor keys to enter. Although not described here, it is necessary to have a function of converting the input kana character string into a character string mixed with kanji kana.

Finally, information such as photographs and commentary is input as image data using the image scanner 4.

Information such as position information, titles, photographs, and commentary is stored in the peripheral information database 6 as described above.

FIG. 5 shows an example of data storage in the peripheral information database 6 at this time. The heading section has a heading number, a longitude, a latitude, a title, and a storage location of a pointer to the image data. The operator inputs the longitude, the latitude, and the title, and the heading number and the pointer to the image data register information. The device automatically assigns according to the order. The data section has a heading number and a storage location for image data. The heading number is automatically assigned by the device so as to correspond to the pointer to the image data in the heading section, and the image data is the data input by the operator. Is.

FIG. 6 shows a method of displaying the peripheral information input as described above on the map. A star icon and a title below the icon are displayed at the position on the map corresponding to the longitude and latitude of the peripheral information. (In this case, the name of the inn “Horenso”) is displayed so that the position where the peripheral information exists can be seen on the map. Although not shown here, an “attribute” item is provided in the heading section of the peripheral information database 6 to store the identifier of the attribute of the information to be registered, and when displayed on the map, each attribute is previously stored. By using a predetermined icon, it is effective to understand the attribute of the information at a glance (for example, a star sign for a ryokan, a white circle for a hotel, a black circle for a guest house, etc.).

When the operator selects the star icon using the switch group 5, a new window is opened on the map using the multi-window and the image data is displayed on the window. An example of this display is shown in FIG. The icon may be selected not only by using the switch group 5 but also by using a pointing device (not shown) such as a mouse or a touch screen. If the operator finishes referring to the image data and operates the switch group 5 to input that the window in which the image data is displayed is deleted,
The original screen displaying only the map (for example, FIG. 6) is returned to.

By the way, the most troublesome work when actually inputting the peripheral data is a longitude / character consisting of 15 characters.
This is a numerical input of the latitude position information. Therefore, if it is expressed in a form such as a bar code that can be optically automatically read, it is possible to greatly simplify the trouble of inputting. That is, the numerical value indicating the position information is expressed as a barcode as shown in FIG.
Put this in place of the numerical value showing the position information in Figure 4,
This bar code is input by the bar code reader 3.

If the bar code is always used for inputting the position information as described above, the numeral keys as the switch group 5 can be omitted.

FIG. 9 is an external perspective view of an embodiment equipped with a pen in which the numeric keys are omitted. Here, 901 is a GPS antenna / receiver, 903 is a bar code reader, 905 is a switch group, and 908 is a CD as a map information database.
-ROM, 909 is a display, 910 is a power switch, 911 is a case, and 912 is a pen. The switch group 905 has four keys, 913 is a cursor key, 914 is a backspace key, 915 is an input key,
Reference numeral 916 is a mode switching key. Also, the pen 912
And the barcode reader 903 are integrated. This configuration may be used if the numerical value is always input using a barcode, but even with the current technology, there are cases where a barcode reading error occurs in rare cases. In such a case, if it is necessary to input as numbers, a table of numbers 0 to 9 (1
0 key figure) is displayed as shown, and the cursor key 913
To select a number, or touch the surface of the display with the tip of the pen 912 to select and enter a number.

In the peripheral information database 6 as described above, the typefaces (fonts) of the icons and titles to be displayed are limited to the types preliminarily incorporated in the apparatus, but information such as stores is displayed. In this case, you may want to use a unique shape symbol (such as a logo mark) or a unique typeface title (such as a trademark) for the store. In such a case, a mechanism that allows the operator to input the symbols and titles published in books and the like as image data is required. The registration method using this mechanism is shown below.

FIG. 10 shows an example of posting symbols and titles.
This is arranged under the bar code in FIG. 4 or the like, and the operator uses the image scanner 4 to capture it as image information in the apparatus. Here, if the parentheses surrounding the symbol and the title are attached from four sides and the positions occupied by the symbol and the title within the parentheses are determined in advance (here, the inside of the parentheses is 10 mm x 40 mm.
10 mm x 10 mm on the left side of the bracket is for symbols, 10 on the right side
(× 30 mm is for a title), and images of a symbol and a title can be automatically divided and taken out. The image data of the symbol and the image data of the title input in this way are recorded in the peripheral information database 6 as image information.

FIG. 11 shows the peripheral information database 6 at this time.
2 is an example of data storage in. In the heading section, in addition to the heading number, longitude, latitude, title, pointer to image data, pointers to symbol image data and pointer to title image data are provided. In addition to the image data of the description and the commentary, the image data of the symbol and the title are also stored together.

FIG. 12 shows a method of displaying the peripheral information input as described above on the map.
At the position on the map corresponding to the latitude, the image data of the symbol image data (here, the logo mark of the store) is displayed as an icon, and the image data of the title is displayed below it (here, the inn name "Horenso"). The trademark is displayed.

The method of inputting the position information and the image information such as a photograph and a commentary separately by using the barcode reader 3 and the image scanner 4 has been described above, but the peripheral information is published in a book or the like. If the size of the time information on the paper is determined in advance, and the position and size of the bar code indicating the position information on it and the symbols and the title are also determined in advance, the image scanner 4 is used. Location information bar code and image information such as photos and commentary can be entered at once.

FIG. 13 shows an example of publication of peripheral information at this time. The vertical and horizontal barcodes are printed on the upper left and used to align the entire image. If the position and size of the bar code at the bottom right and the symbols and titles therebelow are determined in advance, the image scanner 4
The bar code image portion of the position information, the symbol image portion, and the title image portion can be respectively divided and extracted from the entire image input by the above, and these can be stored in the peripheral information database 6 respectively. You can In this way, if the bar code of the position information, the image of the symbol and the title are collectively input, the bar code reader 203 shown in FIG.
Only 4 is enough. Further, the image scanner and the main body can be integrated. Also, the vertical and horizontal barcodes are used not only for alignment but also for the size and content of the entire image (for example, in FIG. 1).
In 3, the information such as the position of each of the title, the photograph, the commentary, the outline map, etc.) can be coded so that the information can be freely arranged.

FIG. 14 is an external perspective view of an embodiment in which the image scanner and the main body are integrated. Here, 1401 is G
PS antenna / receiver, 1404 is an image scanner,
1405 is a switch group, 1408 is a CD-ROM as a map information database, 1409 is a display, 1
410 is a power switch and 1411 is a case. Since the image scanner 1404 is incorporated in the lower portion of the main body, the main body can be brought into direct contact with a magazine or the like to capture image information.

If a character recognition device is available,
It is not necessary to convert the numerical value indicating the position information into a bar code, etc., and you can enter the numerical string as it is. Further, if the address can be recognized by characters, even if the numerical value indicating the positional information cannot be obtained by using the database of the relationship between the address and the numerical value indicating the positional information, it is possible to input the address if the user knows the address. Further, if the commentary text is recognized and input, it can be registered as a character in the database, or the commentary text can be output as a voice by using a voice synthesizer. Furthermore, if a voice recognizer is available, it is also possible to speak and input the numerical value of the position information, or to speak and input the place name.

FIG. 15 is a configuration diagram at this time.
Is an antenna, 1502 is a GPS receiver, 1504 is an image scanner, 1505 is a switch group, 1506 is a peripheral information database, 1507 is a central processing unit, 1508 is a map information database, 1509 is a display, 15
Reference numeral 10 is a voice synthesizer, 1511 is a speaker, 1512 is a character recognition unit, 1513 is a microphone, and 1514 is a voice recognition unit. Here, the image scanner 1504 optically reads a character string as image information, A / D-converts the luminous intensity of each pixel, and outputs it to the character recognition unit 1512. The character recognition unit 1512 is the image scanner 15
The image information (luminance information for each pixel) obtained from No. 04 is converted into a character string and output to the central processing unit 1507. Then, this character string information is recorded in the peripheral information database 1506. 16 is an external perspective view at this time. Here, 1601 is a GPS antenna / receiver, 1604 is an image scanner, 1605 is a switch group, and 1608 is a CD-as a map information database.
ROM, 1609 is a display, 1610 is a power switch, and 1611 is a casing. Switch group 1605
Has three keys, 1613 is cursor key, 1
Reference numeral 614 is an input key, and 1615 is a mode switching key. Since the image scanner 1604 is incorporated in the lower part of the main body, the main body can be brought into direct contact with a magazine or the like to capture image information.

First, a method of inputting using the character recognition device will be described. FIG. 17 shows the character recognition unit 151.
It is a block diagram of 2. Here, 1701 is a character template which stores character data used for collation. A place name database 1702 stores a correspondence table between addresses and numerical values indicating position information. Reference numeral 1703 denotes a collating unit, which is the image scanner 1
The image information of the character input from 504 is collated with the character data of the character template 1701, and the character most similar to the input image information is output as the recognition result. 1
A search unit 704 searches the place name database 1702 for the address input from the collation unit 1703 and obtains the numerical value of the position information. 1705 is a switch.

When character recognition is used to input position information expressed as a numerical value or a character string of a commentary, the switch 1705 is tilted down to recognize the recognized number or character. Output as is. When the address is input and the numerical value of the position information is obtained, the switch 1705 is pushed upward so that the search section 1704 is passed.

FIG. 18 shows an example of a method of storing information in the place name database. In this figure, the place name is stored with the attributes of heading number, position, upper pointer, and lower pointer. The attribute “heading number” is a serial number of place name data. Attribute “Position” is a numerical value of position information at a representative point of the place name (for example, if the place name is the name of a prefecture, the position of the prefectural office, etc.). Attribute "Pointer to upper level"
Is the higher place name to which the place name belongs (for example, since Otsu city belongs to Shiga prefecture, the pointer to the higher place is heading number 25 of Shiga prefecture). Attribute "Lower pointer is a lower place name belonging to the place name (for example, a place name including Otsu city belonging to Shiga prefecture is a heading number 418.
Stored later). Accordingly, the search unit 1704 can obtain the numerical value of the position information from the address. For reference, the address shown in FIG. 4 "3-1 Daikoncho, Ginseng City, Shiga Prefecture"
The numerical value of the position information is obtained from the following. First, the address is scanned from the front and compared with the place name. First, you can find heading number 25, "Shiga Prefecture". The lower pointer of "Shiga Prefecture" is 418, which indicates that the place name existing in Shiga Prefecture is stored in the heading number 418 and thereafter. Then, scan the address and continue to compare the place names after heading number 418.
You can find 29 "Ginseng City". In the same manner, the heading numbers 24419 to "3-2" are found. Position 13519510-3437 of heading number 24419 at this time
Address given 281 "3-1 Daikoncho, Ginseng, Shiga Prefecture"
It is the position information of. In this way, if you record the location information for each place name, the address will be "Ginseng City, Shiga Prefecture".
Position 13520 in Ginseng City, even if only understood until
It can be entered as 999-3438650.

Next, a method of inputting using the voice recognition device will be described. FIG. 19 is a configuration diagram of the character recognition unit 1514. Here, reference numeral 1901 is a voice template and stores voice data used for matching. A place name database 1902 stores a correspondence table between addresses and numerical values representing position information. Reference numeral 1903 denotes an A / D converter, which is a microphone 1513.
The analog audio signal obtained from is sampled, digitized and output. Reference numeral 1904 is a collation unit, which is an A / D conversion unit 1
Audio signal input from 503 and audio template 19
The voice data of 01 is collated, and the voice most similar to the input voice signal is output as the recognition result. 1905
The search unit searches the place name database 1702 for the address input from the collation unit 1904 and obtains the numerical value of the position information. Reference numeral 1906 is a switch.

When the position information expressed as a numerical value or the character string of the commentary is input by using the voice recognition, the switch 1906 is tilted downward so that the recognized number or character is displayed. Output as is. When the address is input and the numerical value of the position information is obtained, the switch 1906 is tilted upward so that the search unit 1905 is passed. Search section 1
The processing in 905, the structure of the place name database 1902, and the like are exactly the same as those of the search unit 1704 and the place name database 1702 described above in the character recognition, and may of course be shared. In addition, regarding the positional information expressed as a numerical value, for example, “135195” is used for the input by voice.
To enter "10-3372871," delimit each character and enter as "1, san, go, ichi, kyu, gon, ichi, rei, san, yon, san, nana, ni, hachi, ichi". There are various methods such as inputting a continuous voice such as “Ichisangoichikyugoichirei, nosansansannanichiichi”. These various methods can be used in the present invention. It does not exclude it from the scope.

In addition, if information such as position information and address is posted as magnetic information, it can be magnetically detected and input.

Up to now, the method of inputting the peripheral information published in a book has been described, but the position information can be published in other books.

FIG. 20 shows an example in which the position information is posted on the business card, but it is of course possible to place it as a bar code as shown in FIG. 8 instead of as a number. Since position information can be easily input to the electronic map by adding position information in this way, it becomes possible to confirm a position on the electronic map that is difficult to understand only by the address.

In addition to this, a lot of position information such as the position information of the place where the landscape photograph was taken on the postcard and the position information of the shooting place displayed on the corner of the screen in the TV broadcasting (site relay) are displayed. In the embodiment, it is possible to input the providing method of.

When voice is input using the voice recognition device, not only the voice uttered by the operator is input,
Not only can reliable operation be obtained by using pulse sounds, but data input using a telephone line is also possible.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but various modifications can be made. For example, the digitization method of the position information can be converted by the equation (1) to reduce the number of digits, and the number of digits can be further reduced by limiting the range to Japan.

[0043]

[Equation 1]

Although a hard disk is used as a recording medium for the peripheral information database 6 in this embodiment,
It is also possible to use a portable recording medium such as a floppy disk or an IC card so that it can be detached from the main body. Such various modifications are not excluded from the scope of the present invention.

[0045]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) Since the operator can easily input the position information such as the longitude and latitude values of the peripheral information by using the switch group or the bar code reader, the information can be easily collected and stored.

(2) By expressing the position information by a number string or the like, it is possible to publish it on an information medium such as a conventional book, so that it can be used only for an electronic map device.
Unlike the information recorded in the ROM or the like, it can be used as a normal book even when the electronic map device is not used.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of map display on a display screen of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a method of posting peripheral information on the page of a book.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a method of storing peripheral information in a peripheral information database of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of map display on the display screen of the electronic map device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a map display on a display screen of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention and an output example of peripheral information on the map.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a method of posting position information on the surface of a book, showing an example in which numerical values representing the position information are expressed using a barcode.

FIG. 9 is an external perspective view of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a method of posting peripheral information on the surface of a book, in which symbols and titles are expressed as image information.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a method of storing peripheral information in a peripheral information database of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of map display on a display screen of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a method of posting peripheral information on the surface of a book.

FIG. 14 is an external perspective view of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a configuration diagram of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is an external perspective view of an electronic map device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of a character recognition unit.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of a data storage method in a place name database.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a voice recognition unit.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a method of posting position information on a business card paper surface.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Antenna 2 GPS Receiver 3 Bar Code Reader 4 Image Scanner 5 Switch Group 6 Peripheral Information Database 7 Central Processing Unit 8 Map Information Database 9 Display

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code Internal reference number FI technical display location G09B 29/00 // G01C 21/00 N

Claims (18)

[Claims] 1. A position information input unit for inputting a character string of at least one character (hereinafter, position information) expressing a latitude and a longitude or a position corresponding thereto, and the position input by the position information input unit. A recording unit that stores information, a map information recording unit that stores map information, a map display unit that displays a map according to the position information stored in the recording unit and the map information stored in the map information recording unit An electronic map device comprising: 2. The electronic map device according to claim 1, wherein the position information input unit detects the position information represented as the first image information. 3. An image information input section for inputting second image information, the input second image information is stored in a recording section, and the map display section is position information stored in the recording section. The electronic map device according to claim 1, wherein a symbol is displayed together with a map according to the above, and the symbol is the shape of the second image information. 4. An image information input section for inputting third image information including first image information and second image information, which are position information expressed as image information, is provided, and the input image information is input. Image information at a predetermined position where the first image information and the second image information exist is extracted from the third image information, and the position information input unit extracts the first image information. Of the image information is optically detected and stored in the recording unit, and the extracted second image information is stored in the recording unit, and the map display unit follows the position information stored in the recording unit. The electronic map device according to claim 1, wherein a symbol is displayed on a map, and the symbol is in the form of the second image information. 5. The image information input unit inputs third image information including first image information, second image information and fourth image information, which are position information expressed as image information, The electronic map device according to claim 5, wherein the predetermined position is changed by the fourth image information. 6. The electronic map device according to claim 1, wherein the position information input unit detects position information expressed as a sound. 7. The electronic map device according to claim 1, wherein the position information input unit detects position information expressed as magnetic information. 8. An address input section for inputting image information of a character string representing an address to obtain a character string of the address, and an address for obtaining positional information of the address from the character string of the address obtained from the address input section. A search unit, a recording unit for storing the position information, a map information recording unit for storing map information, a map according to the position information stored in the recording unit and the map information stored in the map information recording unit. An electronic map device comprising a map display unit for displaying. 9. The electronic map device according to claim 6, wherein the address input unit inputs an address expressed by sound to obtain a character string of the address. 10. A method of inputting data to an electronic map device, which comprises converting an input character string of at least one character into position information and storing the position information. 11. A method of inputting data to an electronic map device, which comprises detecting first image information, converting the first image information into position information, and storing the position information. 12. A method of inputting data to an electronic map device, which comprises detecting second image information and storing the second image information as it is. 13. The third image information including the first image information and the second image information is optically detected, and the first image information and the third image information are selected from the third image information. The image information of the predetermined position including the second image information is extracted, the extracted first image information is optically detected and stored, and the extracted second image information is also stored. A method for inputting data to an electronic map device, characterized in that the recording unit is stored as the image information as it is. 14. A method of inputting data to an electronic map device, which detects a character string input as a sound, converts the character string into position information, and stores the position information. 15. A method of inputting data to an electronic map device, comprising detecting a character string input as magnetic information, converting the character string into position information, and storing the position information. 16. A character string input as an image is detected,
A method for inputting data to an electronic map device, which comprises converting the above character string into a character string of an address, obtaining position information of the address from the character string of the address, and storing the position information. 17. An electronic device characterized by detecting a character string input as a sound, converting the character string into a character string of an address, obtaining positional information of the address from the character string of the address, and storing the positional information. Data input method to map device. 18. A character string input as magnetic information is detected, the character string is converted into a character string of an address, and positional information of the address is obtained from the character string of the address and stored. Data input method to electronic map device.