JPH09119847A - Navigation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a navigation apparatus by which required guidance information can be accessed in a short time at a driver's request. SOLUTION: An apparatus is provided with a CD-ROM 2 in which all data required for a navigation operation such as a map, a voice and the like are stored and with a buffer 41 which accesses the CD-ROM and which writes a phrase required for a road guidance operation in advance. Then, a control means 1 by which, by a request signal by a driver's intention issued from a request sensor 7, phrases which are selected so as to correspond to the present position of a vehicle are read out sequentially from the buffer 41 so as to be processed is installed. Road guidance information which is processed is converted by a decoder 42, and a voice is output from a loudspeaker 5. The control means 1 erases the phrases whose usage frequency is small by checking the usage frequency of the phrases inside the buffer 41, it performs the write processing operation of new phrases, it sets identifiers with reference to selected phrases, and it continuously reads out the phrases with the identifiers in the predetermined order according to a driver's request so as to process a voice output.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a navigation device that guides a destination while driving by voice and / or screen display, and particularly, a navigation device capable of quickly responding to an output timing of guide information. Regarding

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional vehicle navigation system detects a vehicle entering a specific range of an intersection by detecting that the vehicle has entered the intersection, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-202307. It is used for notifying the driver of the traveling direction of the vehicle or the like by voice or as a voice, and as suggested in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-21199, a voice alert is given when traveling a predetermined distance after passing an intersection. It was something to do.

[0003]

However, in a device which gives a guidance when it is detected that a vehicle has entered a specific range of an intersection, when the guidance is heard or the guidance output interval is long, the next guidance timing is set. It was not possible to obtain guidance information until the driver reached, and when the driver needed guidance information, it was not always possible to obtain guidance. In addition, even in a device that notifies a voice after passing an intersection, the following information cannot be obtained unless the device passes through the intersection.
I couldn't get the guidance of the next intersection or target in front of me. That is, in the conventional device, even if the driver determines that the guidance is necessary, the notification of the guidance must be waited for until the next predetermined guidance timing. In addition, the data such as maps and voice guidance are CDR
Since it is recorded in the OM, it takes time to access the necessary data. In particular, if the timing interval at which the guidance information is notified is short, such as when the guidance intersection is adjacent, it is possible that the vehicle will progress while the data is being accessed and guidance will be provided immediately before that point. It was In other words, the necessary information was not provided in real time at the point where you wanted to get directions. An object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device in which necessary voice guidance information can be accessed in a short time in response to a driver's request.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention according to claim 1 calculates a route to a destination and at the same time, performs navigation along the route by tracking the movement of a vehicle. In the device, an information storage unit that stores map information and guide information divided into a plurality of voice phrases; a route information storage unit that stores route information;
Based on the route information and the current position stored in the route storage unit, the guide information regarding the point requiring the next guidance is read from the information storage unit, and the control unit for processing the guide information and the control unit read the guide information. It has guide information storage means for separately storing the guide information for each voice phrase, and output means for outputting the guide information processed by the control means by voice, and the control means stores the guide information in voice phrase units. The information is read out and stored in the guide information storage means. According to a second aspect of the invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the control means determines whether or not the next guidance information is stored in the guidance information storage means by each phrase, and determines that it is not stored in the guidance information storage means. Only the phrase is read from the information storage means and stored in the guidance information storage means. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the invention, the control means includes a comparison means for comparing the use frequency of each voice phrase of the guide information stored in the guide information storage means, and based on the use frequency. It is configured to update to new guide information.
According to the invention of claim 4, in a navigation device which calculates a route to a destination and guides along the route by tracking the movement of the vehicle, a current position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle. To store map information and information storage means for storing guide information divided into a plurality of voice phrases, route information storage means for storing route information, and information for the next point on the route that requires guidance. Based on the route information and the current position stored in the route storage unit and the route information stored in the route storage unit, the guide information regarding the point requiring the next guidance is read from and stored in the information storage unit, and is also guided by the request unit. In response to the request, the control means for processing the read guidance information and the guidance information read by the control means for each voice phrase. And the guidance information storage means for storing people in,
The control means reads the guidance information processed by the control means by voice, and the control means reads the guidance information from the information storage means in voice phrase units in accordance with the movement of the current position and stores the guidance information in the guidance information storage means. When a guidance request is made by the requesting means, the corresponding voice phrase is read from the guidance information storing means to create the guidance information. The invention of claim 5 is the same as claim 4
In the invention, the control means determines whether or not the next guidance information is stored in the guidance information storage means by each phrase, and reads only the phrase determined not to be stored in the guidance information storage means from the information storage means, The information is stored in the guide information storage means. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth or fifth aspect of the invention, the control means includes the guide information means, and a comparison means for comparing the use frequency of each voice phrase of the guide information stored in the guide information storage means. The configuration is such that new guidance information is updated based on the frequency.

[0004]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the control means reads the guidance information regarding the next point from the information storage means in voice phrase units and stores the guidance information in the guidance information storage means, and the processed guidance information. Audio is output from the audio output means. As a result, the time until the next guidance information is output as voice can be shortened based on the guidance information prepared in advance in the guidance information storage means, and the driver can be guided to the next guidance even if the guidance timing interval is short. Information can be provided with a margin. According to the invention of claim 2, the control means reads only the phrases not stored in the guide information storage means from the information storage means and stores them in the guide information storage means among the following guide information. By performing guidance information management in which high phrases are always stored in the guidance information storage means, it is possible to omit accessing frequently used phrases to the information storage means each time, and to increase processing speed. According to the invention of claim 3, the control means updates the guide information stored in the guide information storage means with a low use frequency to new guide information based on the use frequency of each voice phrase of the stored guide information. With the guide information storage means having a small storage capacity, the same effects as those of the first and second aspects can be obtained. According to the invention of claim 4, the control means reads the guidance information in units of voice phrases from the information storage means in accordance with the movement of the current position and stores the guidance information in the guidance information storage means. Reads the corresponding voice phrase from the guide information storage means and creates guide information. Therefore, since the guide information is automatically synthesized and output at the request of the driver, the driver can hear the guide information from the ear during the driving operation while paying attention to the road condition. Drivers can request when and where they want, and hear the latest voice announcements.
Also, since the system does not access the database after making a request, but the phrase prepared in advance in the guidance information storage means is accessed, the time from request to voice guidance becomes extremely short, and the driver gives guidance. You can listen to the information and proceed with sufficient margin. According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the control means reads only the phrases not stored in the guide information storage means from the information storage means and stores them in the guide information storage means among the following guide information. By performing guidance information management in which high phrases are always stored in the guidance information storage means, it is possible to omit accessing frequently used phrases to the information storage means each time, and to increase processing speed. Further, the invention of claim 6 is small because the control means updates the guide information stored in the guide information storage means with a low use frequency to new guide information based on the use frequency of each voice phrase of the stored guide information. With the guide information storage means having a storage capacity, the same operational effects as those of the above-mentioned claims 4 and 5 can be obtained.

[0005]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a system configuration diagram of a navigation device according to the present invention. INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is a navigation device capable of proceeding to a destination while interacting with a driver. While navigating to a preset destination, guidance information is voiced in real time in response to a driver's request. Is provided by. In this embodiment, the voice phrase output during traveling is composed of three combinations of the distance to the target object, the target object, and the traveling direction from the target object. For example,
In case of "about 400m", "soon", etc., in case of "Fujii town""signal""intersection without signal", etc.
In the case of further, "go straight ahead", "turn right", etc.

In FIG. 1, the navigation device includes a CPU 1 for controlling the entire system, a CDROM 2 in which navigation data such as a map and a target object, voice data, etc. are recorded, and a CDROM in response to a command from the CPU 1.
CDROM driver 3 that reads the required data from 2
And a voice data RAM (hereinafter referred to as “voice buffer”) 41 into which the voice data read from the CDROM 2 by the CDROM driver 3 and voice data called from the voice buffer 41 are converted into voice signals, that is, from digital signals to analog signals. Convert to ADP
A voice synthesizer 4 including a CM decoder 42, a speaker 5 for guiding voice output from the voice synthesizer, and C
The CPU 1 processes the navigation data read out from the DROM 2 for display in response to the driver's request and displays the screen on a display or the like, and the guide information when the driver needs it (timely). In order to obtain at least by voice, the request sensor 7 as a request means for issuing a signal (trigger) for instructing the CPU to perform its operation processing according to the driver's intention, and the flow of data such as a voice buffer and a decoder. And a ROM 8 in which a program for controlling is written.

The CPU 1 is configured to control whether or not to operate the display device 6 in accordance with a driver's request, traveling speed, or the like, and basically provides guidance during traveling by voice only. For example, a switch 9 for selecting the operation of the display device is provided, and a screen display is performed by input of this selection signal, or a traveling speed signal from a vehicle speed sensor 10 is input, and when this speed is equal to or higher than a set value, the display is performed. The device 6 can also be configured to be inactive. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the screen from appearing at a certain traveling speed or more or by the user's selection. This is useful for focusing on driving.

The CDROM 2 is a database as an information storage means in which all data such as map data and voice data necessary for navigation are recorded. Among these data, the voice data is a voice compression method such as (ADPCM system). It is compressed and recorded by. Recording time is XA
Standard C mono level, for example for normal recording time (72 minutes)
16 times 1152 minutes. FIG. 2 shows an example of audio data recorded contents. The recorded contents of the voice data are data types such as voice segment, intersection name, mark name, road name, destination name and the like and preset contents for each data type, for example, “intersection” “300 if voice segment”.
For example, "about m" or "Okazaki IC (interchange)" or "A country club" for destination names.

The voice synthesizer 4 synthesizes a voice, a phrase, a sentence, a sound and the like compressed by CPU control and outputs the synthesized voice. This voice synthesizer is provided with a voice buffer 41 which constitutes a guide information storage means for temporarily storing voice data, and voice data required for the guide information closest to the current traveling point is written in the voice buffer 41 one by one. On the other hand, unnecessary voice data for future guidance information is erased, and new voice data can be written. The voice buffer 41 is prepared according to the number of phrases, and is composed of, for example, 20 buffers. here,
The CPU control is a buffer management function such as management of the frequency of use of phrases in the buffer, addition of a flag to selected phrases, and audio output processing of the selected phrases in order.

A basic phrase to be synthesized is shown in FIG.
, Voice segment, intersection name, destination name,
There are road names, etc. The CPU knows the current position of the vehicle based on the route to the destination, the traveling distance, and the direction. Therefore, from the map database at that point,
Determine the optimal phrase combination. The determined phrase is converted into an analog signal by the ADPCM decoder, and the synthesized guidance information "For example, about 400 m""Ishikawa-cho""turnright" is output by voice from the speaker.

Next, an embodiment of voice synthesis will be described. FIG. 3 shows the flow chart of voice synthesis and the contents of the voice buffer according to the first embodiment of the present invention. here,
Explain using "about 400 m", "Fujiimachi", "turn right" as a phrase. While the vehicle is traveling to the destination, the CPU selects the phrases required for the guidance information one by one from the current position of the vehicle (S1). When the driver requests guide information at a certain point, the CPU receives a request signal from the request sensor (S
2) Instruct the CDROM driver to write the selected phrase into the audio buffer. CDROM
The driver accesses the CDROM and writes the selected phrase to the voice buffer. First, the CDROM driver uses the phrase "at about 400 m" as the remaining distance information.
Is accessed (S3), then the phrase "Fujiimachi" is accessed as target information (S4), and the phrase "turn right" is sequentially accessed as traveling direction information (S5), and written in the voice buffer. When all the phrases forming the guidance information for the request have been buffered in this way, the ADPCM decoder executes a voice output process for converting into a voice signal (S6).

Next, another embodiment of the navigation device of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, the CDROM is accessed and the voice data is buffered in all three phrases after the request. However, in the present embodiment, the CDROM is not accessed after the request and voice output is performed at the same time as the request. Has been improved. 4 to 6 are flowcharts of voice synthesis of the navigation device according to this embodiment. 7 and 8
Shows the contents of the voice buffer corresponding to the voice synthesis process. The voice buffer has a storage capacity of 20 phrases, and a phrase as voice data, a presence flag f indicating a selected phrase, and a usage frequency n for each phrase are written therein. Here, the presence flag f is set to f = 1 if it is a selected phrase, and f = 0 if it is not a selected phrase. In the example shown in FIG. 7 (1), the usage frequency n = 1 for the first buffered phrase.
Is recorded, and since there is no selected phrase yet, the existence flag f = 0 is recorded.

When the CPU starts executing, it is known that the phrase is used repeatedly, so the phrase that is frequently used, for example, "about 100 m""about 400 m""turnright""turnleft" The remaining distance, the direction of travel, etc., such as "Yes" is buffered in advance in a plurality of voice buffers (S10), and the frequency of use of the phrase is set to "1" (S11). Next, a guidance information phrase corresponding to the set course and the current location is selected from the remaining distance, the target object, and the traveling direction (S12). Here, for example, it is assumed that “about 4OOm” “Fujiimachi” “turn right” is selected as the guidance information phrase.

It is judged whether or not the selected phrase is changed (S13). If the phrase is not changed, it is judged whether or not there is a driver's request (S18).
If the phrase has been changed, the flags of all buffers are cleared (f = 0) so that the phrase selected last time does not exist (S14). As for the selected phrase, a phrase already existing in the buffer and a phrase not so are separated (S15). Since the phrase already existing in the buffer must not be erased, as shown in Fig. 7 (2), the presence flag f is set to 1 for the guidance information phrase "At about 400 m" and "Turn left" n +
1 and set to "2" (S16). Then, it is determined whether or not all of the selected phrases are present in the buffer (S17). When all the selected phrases are in the buffer, it is determined whether or not there is a driver's request (S18).

If all or part of the selected phrase is not in the buffer, it is determined whether or not the buffer is empty (S21). When there is no free space, processing for creating an empty buffer is executed (S23), while when there is free space, it is assumed that the No. 20 buffer shown in FIG. 7 (3) is free, for example. If so, it is checked whether or not the selected phrase is included in this buffer, that is, whether or not the size of the buffer is sufficient (S22). If there is no free space in the buffer or if the size of the free buffer is insufficient, the usage frequency n recorded in the buffer
Referring to, clear the buffer of the phrase that is rarely used from the phrases already in the buffer (S2
3). More specifically, by observing the use frequency n, phrases that have been used less (small n) are cleared. Normally, the buffer for this phrase is cleared first, since the crossed intersection name is not used again. by the way,
When one buffer is cleared, the size is checked again (S22). By repeating this routine, a buffer suitable for the size of the selected phrase is prepared.

When the buffer is prepared, the phrase "Fujiicho" selected in buffer No. 20 shown in FIG. 7 (4) is buffered (S24), and the existence flag f is set to "1" (S25). ), The usage frequency n is set to "+1" (S
26). Then, it is checked whether or not there is any phrase to be buffered (S27). If no other phrase remains, the process proceeds to S18 and waits for the timing of guidance output. If another phrase remains, the process returns to S21 and the buffering process is repeated. When the buffering of all the selected phrases is completed, it is determined whether there is a driver's request (S18), and if there is no request, the process returns to S12. If there is a request, since the phrases corresponding to the request are already available in the buffer in the previous process, the remaining distance, the target, and the traveling direction shown in FIG. 7 (5) are selected in this order (S19). Then, the data is continuously read from the buffer in the selected order, converted into voice by the ADPCM decoder, and output from the speaker (S20).

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a navigation device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of recorded contents of audio data.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a flowchart of voice synthesis processing of the navigation device according to the first embodiment of the present invention and a data content of a buffer.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a voice synthesizing process of the navigation device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart following FIG. 4;

6 is a flowchart following FIG. 5 or FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating data contents of a buffer during voice synthesis processing of the navigation device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... CPU, 2 ... CDROM (database), 3 ... C
DROM driver, 4 ... Voice synthesizer, 5 ... Speaker, 6 ... Display device, 7 ... Request sensor, 41 ... Voice buffer, 42 ... ADPCM decoder

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A navigation device that calculates a route to a destination and guides along the route by tracking the movement of a vehicle, and stores map information and guidance information divided into a plurality of voice phrases. Information storage means, route information storage means for storing route information, and based on the route information and current position stored in the route storage means, read guidance information about a point requiring guidance next from the information storage means. Control means for processing the guide information, guide information storage means for separately storing the guide information read by the control means for each voice phrase, and output means for outputting the guide information processed by the control means by voice. The control means may read guidance information in units of voice phrases from the information storage means and store the guidance information in the guidance information storage means. Characteristic navigation device. 2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the control means determines by each phrase whether or not the next guidance information is stored in the guidance information storage means, and is determined not to be stored in the guidance information storage means. A navigation device, characterized in that only the selected phrase is read from the information storage means and stored in the guidance information storage means. 3. The navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control means includes a comparison means for comparing the usage frequency of each voice phrase of the guidance information stored in the guidance information storage means, and based on the usage frequency. A navigation device characterized by updating to new guidance information. . 4. A navigation device for calculating a route to a destination and for guiding along the route by tracking the movement of the vehicle, and a current position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle, and a map. Information, information storage means for storing guide information divided into a plurality of voice phrases, route information storage means for storing route information, and a request signal for requesting information of the next point on the route that requires guidance. Based on the route information stored in the route storage means and the current position, the guide information regarding the point requiring the next guidance is read from and stored in the information storage means, and the guide information by the request means is displayed. In response to a request, the control means for processing the read guidance information, and the guidance information read by the control means for each voice phrase. And a guide information storage unit for separately storing the guide information, and an output unit for outputting the guide information processed by the control unit by voice, and the control unit in units of voice phrases in accordance with the movement of the current position. The information is read from the information storage unit and stored in the guidance information storage unit, and when the request unit requests a guidance, the corresponding voice phrase is read from the guidance information storage unit to create the guidance information. Navigation device. 5. The navigation device according to claim 4, wherein the control means determines whether or not the next guidance information is stored in the guidance information storage means by each phrase, and determines that it is not stored in the guidance information storage means. A navigation device, characterized in that only the selected phrase is read from the information storage means and stored in the guidance information storage means. 6. The navigation device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the control means includes the guide information means, and a comparison means for comparing the use frequency of each voice phrase of the guide information stored in the guide information storage means. A navigation device characterized by updating to new guidance information based on frequency.