JPH11149596A - On-vehicle information device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To estimate a destination based on a driver's driving history and also almost accurately estimate required time. SOLUTION: This device detects driving start and end by driving start and end detecting means (6 and 10) and accumulates and records a driving start place, a driving end place, and the date, day of the week, hour, time and travel distance when they take place. When the driving start and end detecting means detect driving start, destination estimating means (14 and 15) estimate the destination and required time of driving based on driving start time and a day of the week which are detected by a clocking means, information about the present position that is detected by a present place detecting means 1 and information stored in a driving history storing means 11, and an outputting means 5 outputs information about the name of a driving destination and information about the required time to the destination.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an in-vehicle information device for automatically predicting a destination and a required time based on past driving history information at the start of driving and presenting the information to a driver.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
What is described in 271277 is known.
This conventional in-vehicle information device has means for storing the route search information performed in the past in combination of the time zone in which the route search was performed, the departure place, and the destination, and the frequency of occurrence of this set information is determined. This is a device that automatically sets a destination and a route when the navigation device is activated based on the navigation device.

[0003]

However, in such a conventional in-vehicle information device, since a travel route is automatically set together with a destination setting, it is necessary to cancel the set route when the destination is different. There was a problem that there is. In addition, since the past traveling history is stored only with the departure time zone, the departure place, and the position information of the destination, there is a problem that only the information on the arrival destination can be estimated.

The present invention has been made in view of such conventional problems, and stores past traveling histories as a set of driving departure times, departure points, destination arrival times, destination points, and traveling distances. It is an object of the present invention to provide an in-vehicle information device that can predict a driving destination at the start of driving and notify the driver of the name of the destination and the required time.

[0005] The present invention also predicts the destination of the driving at the start of driving, informs the driver of the name of the driving, obtains a response from the driver, and if the prediction is correct, subsequently calculates the time required to reach the destination. It is an object of the present invention to provide an in-vehicle information device capable of estimating from a traveling history and transmitting the estimated information to a driver again.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an in-vehicle information device capable of predicting a destination by reflecting the driving history characteristics of the driver for each day of the week, weekdays, and holidays and holidays.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an on-vehicle information device, comprising: a driving start / end detecting means for detecting starting and ending of driving; a clock means for detecting a driving date and time of the vehicle; Current position detection means for detecting the operation start point and operation end point, the operation history storage means for accumulating and storing the date and time when these occurred and the travel distance, and when the operation start / end detection means detected the operation start, The operation history information stored in the operation history storage means is searched under predetermined conditions based on the operation start date and time detected by the clock means and the information on the current position detected by the current position detection means, and the name of the destination of the operation is retrieved. And a destination estimating means for estimating a required time, and an output for outputting information on a name of a driving destination extracted by the destination estimating means and information on a required time to the destination. It is that a stage.

In the vehicle information system according to the first aspect of the present invention, the operation start / end is detected by the operation start / end detection means,
The operation start point and the operation end point, the date and time when they occurred, and the traveling distance are accumulated and stored as operation history information in the operation history storage means. Then, when the operation start / end detection means detects the operation start, the destination prediction means performs the operation under a predetermined search condition based on the operation start date and time detected by the clock means and the information on the current position detected by the current position detection means. The operation history information stored in the history storage means is searched to predict the name of the driving destination and the required time, and the output means outputs information on the name of the driving destination and information on the required time to the destination. Is output.

[0009] Thus, the name of the destination and the required time can be automatically presented to the driver from the past driving history just by the driver getting into the vehicle and performing the driving start operation.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the on-vehicle information device according to the first aspect, further comprising a response input unit for inputting a response from a driver, wherein the output unit outputs information on a name of the destination of the driving. When a positive response is input by the response input means, information on the time required to reach the destination is output. Information about the required time can be notified only when the prediction matches the intended destination.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the in-vehicle information device according to the first or second aspect, the destination prediction means predicts a plurality of destination candidates and a required time for each of the plurality of destination candidates, and the output means sets the destination prediction means. And outputs information on the names of the plurality of predicted destination candidates, and outputs a required time to the selected destination when the destination is selected from the destination candidates by the response input means. When a destination cannot be uniquely determined, a plurality of destinations can be presented, and when the driver selects a destination, the required time for the destination can be presented.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the on-vehicle information device of the first to third aspects, a specific operation detecting means for detecting a specific operation or operation of the driver is further provided, and the output means is adapted to detect the specific operation. Means for outputting information on the name of the destination or information on the time required to reach the destination when the means detects a specific operation or operation of the driver, and only when the driver requests the destination prediction processing. The destination and the required time can be presented by performing a destination prediction calculation, and the presentation is not performed when the driver does not intend.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the on-vehicle information device of the first to fourth aspects, the operation start / end detecting means detects the occurrence of insertion / removal of an ignition key and the time from insertion to removal of the ignition key. This is to determine the start or end of driving based on either the time from when the ignition key is removed to when it is inserted, or the travel distance from when the ignition key is inserted to when it is removed, so that the destination prediction calculation is not necessary. It is possible to prevent a useless prediction operation from being performed for a short distance movement.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the on-vehicle information device of the first to fifth aspects, the operation date and time detected by the clock means, the operation history information stored in the operation history storage means, and the destination prediction means are executed. The search condition includes the day of the week information together with the date and time information. With this, it is possible to predict the destination reflecting the driving history characteristics of the driver for each day of the week.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the on-vehicle information device of the first to sixth aspects, the operation date and time detected by the clock means, the operation history information stored in the operation history storage means, and the destination prediction means are executed. The search condition includes the holiday / holiday information together with the date / time information, thereby making it possible to make a destination prediction reflecting driving history characteristics that are different between weekdays and holidays / holidays.

The invention according to claim 8 is the on-vehicle information device according to claims 1 to 7, further comprising driver identification means for identifying a driver, wherein the destination estimating means identifies the driver. The present invention predicts a driving destination and a required time according to a driver, and can predict a destination according to a driving history characteristic of each driver.

[0017]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the destination and the required time are automatically presented to the driver from the past driving history of the driver only by the driver getting into the vehicle and performing a driving start operation. When using the vehicle on a daily basis, the vehicle will give the driver advice based on the past driving history without operating the navigation device as in the past, The time required to reach the destination can also be predicted and presented based on past driving histories with similar driving patterns, and more realistic advice can be given.

According to the second aspect of the invention, when the start of driving is detected and the destination prediction calculation is performed, information on the required time is notified only when the destination intended by the driver matches the prediction. And the driver is not bothered.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when a destination cannot be uniquely determined, a plurality of destinations are presented, and when a driver selects a destination, the time required for the destination is presented. It is possible to provide driver-friendly driving support.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the destination and required time can be presented by performing the destination prediction calculation only when the driver has requested the destination prediction processing. May not be presented.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the useless prediction calculation for a short-distance movement that does not require the destination prediction calculation.

According to the invention of claim 6, it is possible to predict a destination reflecting the driving history characteristic of each day of the week of the driver.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to predict a destination reflecting different driving history characteristics between weekdays and holidays and holidays.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, even when a plurality of users use the same vehicle, it is possible to predict the driving destination and the required time according to the driving history characteristics of each user. it can.

[0025]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a system configuration of an in-vehicle information device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The in-vehicle information device includes a GPS signal receiving unit 1 for receiving a GPS signal for specifying a vehicle position, date and time, month, day, and day of the week, a navigation control unit 2 for performing various controls of the navigation device,
A map database 3 and a facility information database 4 used as a database of a navigation device, an information display unit 5 such as a CRT or a liquid crystal monitor for displaying maps and information, and the state of an ignition key are detected to determine the start of driving. A driving start detecting unit 6, a driving distance calculating unit 7 for calculating a driving distance of a vehicle, a driver specifying unit 8 for specifying a driver from information such as an IC card, a driving date and time, a driving start point, an end point, a required time, The vehicle includes a running history temporary storage unit 9 for temporarily storing running history data including a running distance, and an operation end detecting unit 10 for detecting the end of driving based on the state of the ignition key, the running distance, and the passage of time.

The in-vehicle information device further includes a travel history database 11 for storing a determined series of travel histories, a search condition determining unit 12 for performing a history search according to date and time, day of the week, etc., and a search result based on the search conditions. Frequency calculation unit 1 for calculating the frequency distribution of the driving destination point and the driving time required from the
3. A destination prediction unit 14 for predicting a destination based on frequency information, a required time prediction unit 15 for predicting a required time to the destination, and a message generation unit for generating a message about the destination and the required time to the destination. 16, a voice synthesizing unit 17 for converting the generated message into a voice signal, and a voice output unit 18 for outputting the converted voice signal.

The on-vehicle apparatus further includes a point list presenting unit 19 for giving a name to a point visited for the first time or a point which has not been registered in the history, and responding to the output message or the presented list. To do
An information input unit 20 including an input device such as a touch panel, a remote control, a mechanical switch, or a voice input device; and a destination input unit for inputting a new destination when the device goes to a place different from the predicted destination. 2
1 is provided.

Next, the operation of the on-vehicle information device of the first embodiment having the above configuration will be described. First, the outline of the operation of this embodiment will be described. Past driving history data, such as the date and time of driving, the driving start point, the destination point, the required time, and the driving distance, are accumulated and stored in the driving history database 11, and at the time of starting driving, the past time is determined according to the current location, current date and time, and day of the week. The destination is predicted by referring to the travel history database 11, and the destination is predicted from the voice output unit 18 and transmitted to the driver. Further, when the driver responds affirmatively to the call for the destination from the vehicle-mounted device, the time required to reach the destination is predicted, and this is output as voice. Here, on the contrary, if the driver replies negatively to the call for the destination from the on-board information device, a call for prompting a new destination input is made, and the driving history to the new destination is also obtained. At the end of the operation, the information is registered in the travel history database 11 and is reflected in the destination prediction at the time of operation. In this way, the efficiency of information exchange for destination prediction performed between the driver and the on-vehicle information device at the time of boarding the vehicle is improved.

Hereinafter, the operation of the on-vehicle information device according to the first embodiment will be further described with reference to FIGS. The driving history database 11 includes driving history data 31 such as the date and time of driving, a driving start point, a destination point, a required time, and a driving distance shown in FIG. 2, and a driving history data shown in FIG. Latitude and longitude and registered point data 32 of a label assigned to the latitude and longitude are accumulated and stored.

As shown in the flow charts of FIGS. 5 to 7, an IC in which a driver gets in and personal attributes are written.
When the card is inserted, the driver is specified by the driver specifying unit 8 (step S1). When the ignition key is further inserted, the driving start is detected by the driving start detecting unit 6 and a trigger signal is given to the navigation control unit 2 (step S1). Step S2). It should be noted that a condition that “a certain period of time has elapsed” after the ignition key is first removed can be set as the criterion for determining the start of operation.

When the navigation control unit 2 receives the trigger signal from the driving start detecting unit 6, the navigation control unit 2 receives the vehicle position information (latitude and longitude information; driving starting point information) from the GPS signal receiving unit 1 and the current time. The date and time and day of the week information are fetched and temporarily stored in the running history temporary storage unit 9. This information serves as a material to be registered in the travel history database 11, and is held until the operation end is determined (step S3).

The traveling history temporary storage unit 9 compares the latitude and longitude information of the registered driving start point with the point information of the past traveling history database 11 and labels the departure point. This labeling process is performed by using the registration point data 32 shown in FIG.
, The latitude and longitude information (numerical data) of the driving start point is replaced with facility name information such as "home" and "company" (steps S4 and S5).

If the location information registered in the past cannot be found, a label representing the current location is presented from the location list presenting section 19 to urge the driver to register (step S).
4, S6, S7). In this process, the message generator 1
6, the message registered in the voice synthesizing unit 1 is designated.
7 synthesizes the contents of the message by voice, and outputs the voice
For example, a message "Where is this place?" Is uttered, and at the same time, as shown in FIG. 4, a label list 33 prepared in advance is displayed on the information display section 5, and the driver is notified of the information. A corresponding label is selected from the input unit 20. Since there is a possibility that the driver does not have an input intention, if there is no information input for a certain period of time, it is determined that a timeout has occurred, and this mode is exited (step S8).

When the labeling of the operation start point is completed,
Based on the acquired information at the time of starting the operation, the content of the past travel history database 11 is searched (step S).
9, S10).

The search condition at this time is determined by the search condition determining unit 1
2 creates. For example, a "time condition" that the departure time is close to the current time and a "driving start point condition" that the label of the departure point is equal are created, and the traveling history data of the past traveling history database 11 is created based on these conditions. 31 is searched. In addition, as a search condition, if the date and time when the driving was started is Sunday, a "day of the week condition" that data of only the past Sunday is searched, and information of the past 20 days from the date of starting driving is searched for There is also a "date condition". These search conditions are listed in the search condition determination unit 12, and appropriate search conditions are extracted from the attributes of the current date, time, and day of the week.

Here, from the information on the current date and time, the day of the week, and the location, "time condition": operation started at the current time ± 30 minutes, "operation start point condition": operation started near the current position, ""Day of the week condition": The current date and time, if the day of the week is a weekday, only weekdays, holidays, if it is a holiday, holidays, only holidays. "Date condition": The past 20 days, and data are searched by the logical product of four conditions Is set as the default search condition.

Since weekdays, holidays, and holidays may vary from person to person, for example, it may be configured to be registered in an IC card and read from the driver identification unit 8 as holiday information. The search condition may be set as a default search condition, or a new search condition may be generated from attributes of the current date and time, day of the week, and location.
For example, if the day when you started driving is "five or ten days",
If you search only the past "Five days", or if the day you started driving is "Higanshi", you can search only the past "Higanshi", by setting these new search conditions In addition, it is possible to extract information that will be buried in the information search on successive dates.

The frequency calculator 13 creates a frequency distribution for each destination label and a frequency distribution of required time for each destination for the data extracted by the above-described search processing (step S11). On the other hand, the destination prediction unit 14
Identifies the most frequent driving destination (step S1).
2) When the most frequent driving destination is further identified, the required time predicting unit 15 determines the most frequent required time with reference to the frequency distribution of the required time to the destination, and estimates the required required time. (Step S13).

Subsequently, the message generation unit 16 generates a message (speech data) for outputting the specified destination name by voice (step S14). here,
For example, "It's a company.""It's a department store."
Is generated. To generate the calling sentence, the phrase data such as "Is it up to" or "Is it up to" prepared in advance in the message generator 16 and the destination label determined by the destination predictor 14 are used. By combining

The generated message is sent to the voice synthesizing unit 17, where the voice data is generated by using a voice synthesizing device that converts text data into a voice signal, and is output from the voice output unit 18 as voice. Step S15).

When a message about the predicted destination is uttered from the voice output unit 18 of the onboard information device, the driver uses the information input unit 20 to input a reply thereto. This includes “YES” displayed on the information display unit 5,
The display of “NO” may be selected and confirmed by a remote control switch, or a touch panel may be provided on the information display unit 5 and input may be performed by touching the display buttons of “YES” and “NO”. In addition, by preparing a voice recognition device as the information input unit 20, by recognizing the voice of "Yes" and "No" uttered by the driver,
Alternatively, the input may be made by operating a mechanical switch installed near the driver's seat.

If the answer is YES, step S1
The required time to the destination predicted in step 3 is output via the message generator 16, the voice synthesizer 17, and the voice output unit 18. At this time, for example, a message “It takes 40 minutes to reach the destination” is uttered (steps S16 and S17).

If the driver does not reply for a certain period of time, it is determined that there is no intention to input the destination, and the process is terminated and the process proceeds to step S23 (steps S16 and S23).
18, S19).

If the answer from the driver is NO (step S18), a message prompting the input of a new destination is output from the voice output unit 18 (step S2).
0). For example, a message such as "Please enter a destination because route guidance is provided" can be output.

When the driver inputs a request for inputting a destination by using the destination input section 21, the driving history is temporarily stored in the driving history temporary storage section 9; And is temporarily stored, and is used as the material of the travel history data at the time of the subsequent operation end (step S21). The input of the destination is performed by searching the destination input unit 21 on the map for the destination in the same manner as in the conventional navigation system. If there is no input of the destination even after the lapse of the fixed time, the process proceeds to the next processing step S23 with a timeout (step S22).

With the above processing, input of the driving start point, start date and time, day of the week, etc., the prediction of the destination and the prediction of the required time,
When the input of the new destination is completed, the operation is started toward the destination. Whether the vehicle has arrived at the destination is determined based on whether the ignition key has been removed, and it is determined that the vehicle is traveling toward the destination until the ignition key is removed (step S23).

When the vehicle arrives at the destination and the ignition key is removed, the operation ending unit 10 judges the end of the operation. For example, when the ignition key is removed (step S23), the time T1 when the operation is determined to be started and the current time T1 are determined.
2 and the condition is that a certain time has elapsed and that the traveling distance during that time is not less than a certain distance (steps S24 and S25). For example, a case where the time T1 determined to start driving and the current time T2 are extremely short (for example, three minutes), or a case where the travel distance from when the ignition key is inserted to when the ignition key is removed is extremely short (for example, 500 m). In this case, it is determined that the vehicle is not driving, and the driving start data temporarily stored in the driving history temporary storage unit 9 is deleted (step S26).

The operation end detecting section 10 determines in step S2
If it is determined that the destination has arrived through the determination in steps 3 to S25,
The mileage calculating unit 7 receives the position information (latitude and longitude) of the vehicle at that time from the navigation control unit 2 and information on the date and time at that time and the day of the week, and calculates the required time from the start of driving and the mileage. Then, the position information and the time information at the time of completion of the driving, and the information of the required time and the traveling distance are stored in the traveling history temporary storage unit 9 (step S27).

The position information (latitude, longitude) of the driving end point stored in the driving history temporary storage unit 9 is compared with the data of the driving history database 11 and the past registration point data 3 is stored.
The operation end point is labeled with reference to Step 2 (Steps S28 and S29). This process is unnecessary if a label has already been assigned.

On the other hand, when the driving is completed at a point that has never been seen in the past, the point list presenting section 19 presents a label list representing the current position, thereby selecting and registering it (steps S28 and S30). , S31). That is, the label list 33 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed on the information display unit 5, and the destination input unit 21 performs a selection and confirmation operation.
Thereafter, the values of latitude and longitude are close to each other (for example, radius 50
m), the same label is assigned. As a result, even when there is no input during the destination input process (when a timeout occurs in steps S19 and S22), the operation end point can be registered at this stage.

If there is no label selection input within a certain period of time, it is determined that there is no intention to register, and the process proceeds to the next step (step S32).

The acquisition of the history data of one drive is completed by the above series of processing. Thereafter, the series of data acquired at the start and end of the operation is transferred from the traveling history temporary storage unit 9 to the traveling history database 11, and It is registered as the travel history data 31 shown in FIG. 2, and the history is updated (step S33).

The contents of the running history database 11 accumulated and stored in this manner are stored at arbitrary timings.
It is also possible for the driver to browse the information. When the driver needs to browse the information, an instruction is sent from the information input unit 20 so that the content of the travel history database 11 is displayed on the information display unit 5. Further, an instruction is sent from the information input unit 20,
It is also possible to browse data on a required date.

Also, as in the second embodiment described later, when the most frequent destination cannot be uniquely determined, a plurality of candidate locations are presented and the driver selects the destination, and the selected destination is selected. May be configured to output the estimated required time.

As described above, the in-vehicle information device according to the first embodiment performs the prediction of the driving destination and the required driving time by referring to the database in which the past driving history is accumulated and stored. Since the result is transmitted to the driver, it is possible to predict the actual destination and the required time, and it is possible to present more accurate information to the driver. This reduces the trouble of operating the navigation device such as setting a destination.

In addition to this, since a call is made from the device side in accordance with the driver's own action history, even if the call is not conscious of the driver, the device will not be distrusted.
In addition, the more the vehicle is used to use the database of the cumulative storage type, the more the call that matches the driver's action pattern can be made. Furthermore, when the information is presented by voice, the driver can catch the information without watching the screen of the information display unit. In addition, since it is determined whether or not the vehicle has been driven based on the distance between the time when the ignition key is inserted and removed and the distance traveled, and the start of operation is detected based on the lapse of time between the time when the key is removed and the next time it is inserted. Thus, it is possible to determine the actual start of operation and traveling.

Next, an in-vehicle information device according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The in-vehicle information device according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 8 further includes a driver state detection unit 22 in addition to the in-vehicle information device according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. In the same manner as in the embodiment, at the start of driving, the destination and the required time to the destination are predicted based on the past driving history, but when the driver state detecting unit 22 detects a predetermined operation or operation of the driver, the The feature is that the prediction result is output.

Most of the components of the in-vehicle information device of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 8 are common to those of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and the common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals. It is. The driver state detection unit 22 added as a characteristic part of the on-vehicle information device according to the second embodiment detects a driver's switch operation, a specific operation such as light nodding, or a specific utterance and detects the detection signal. Is input to the voice synthesizing unit 17 ′. The voice synthesizing unit 17 ′ synthesizes the voice of the message given from the message generating unit 16 when receiving an input from the driver state detecting unit 22, and
8 is output. The contents of the travel history database 11 are the same as in the first embodiment shown in FIGS.
It is shown in FIG.

Next, the operation of the in-vehicle information device of the second embodiment having the above configuration will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. The destination prediction, the required time to the destination prediction and the presentation operation of the second embodiment are shown in FIG.
8 are almost the same as those in the first embodiment shown in the flowchart of FIG. 8, in which common processes are denoted by the same step numbers, and different processes are denoted by different step numbers. is there.

As in the first embodiment, the travel history database 11 includes travel history data 31 of the date and time of driving, a driving start point, a destination, a required time, and a traveling distance shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the latitude and longitude of the point where the operation was started and ended in the past and the registered point data 32 of the label attached thereto are accumulated and stored.

The driver on board is specified (step S
1) When the start of driving is detected by the insertion of an ignition key (step S2), the position information of the vehicle, the date and time at that time, and the day of the week are taken and temporarily stored in the running history temporary storage unit 9. (Step S3).

Subsequently, the latitude of the registered driving start point,
For the longitude information, the departure point is labeled based on the point information of the past travel history database 11 (steps S4 and S5). If the location information registered in the past cannot be found, a label representing the current location is presented from the location list presenting unit 19 to prompt the driver to register (steps S4, S6, S7). If there is no information input for a certain period of time, it is determined that a time-out has occurred and the mode is exited (step S8).

When the labeling of the operation start point is completed,
Based on the acquired information at the time of starting the operation, the content of the past travel history database 11 is searched (step S).
9, S10).

For the data extracted by the search processing, a frequency distribution for each destination label and a frequency distribution of required time for each destination are created, and the most frequent driving destination is specified. (Steps S11 and S12).

Here, it is determined whether or not there is a place name whose frequency is prominent as a driving destination (step S12a).
When a destination having a prominent frequency is specified, the estimated required time to the destination is calculated (step S1).
3). However, when the destination having the prominent frequency cannot be specified, the destination candidates whose frequencies are arranged side by side are determined, and the estimated required time is calculated for each of them (step S1).
2b, S13).

Subsequently, the message generator 16 generates a message for outputting the most frequent driving destination name or a plurality of destination candidate names as voice (step S1).
4).

Here, when the most frequent destination name is specified, for example, an appeal sentence such as "I'm a company" or "I'm a department store" is generated. If there are a plurality of destination candidates, for example, a question sentence such as “Is it a department store or a hospital?” Is generated. To generate these calling sentences or questioning sentences, the message generation unit 16 prepares in advance “to-is.” Or “to-is.”
This is performed by combining phrase data such as “is it or is it?” And the destination label determined by the destination prediction unit 14.

At this stage, the driver cannot always determine that he / she wants the destination prediction, so that the driver state detecting section 22 detects a specific operation or operation of the driver. Occasionally the destination is uttered (steps S14a, S15).

For example, a case where a slight nodding of a driver is detected will be described. When a driver's face area is observed with a television camera, and the observed image is binarized by a light-dark pattern, the low-brightness eyes, nostrils, hair, and the like are generally observed in black. Here, the area centroid (Xg, Y
g). When this observation is continuously performed, (Xg, Yg) is captured by vibrating in the vertical direction when the driver nods lightly. Nodding can be detected by detecting this vertical movement.

However, the driver state detecting section 22 is not limited to this, and is configured to detect an operation of tapping a part of the interior of the vehicle with a hand using a pressure sensor. Hey, ”or other specific utterances may be detected. However, it is preferable that a natural movement of the driver is detected.

If a certain time has elapsed without detecting a specific operation of the driver, the next step S15
(Step S14b).

Next, the message content converted into a voice signal by the voice synthesizing unit 17 is output as voice from the voice output unit 18 (step S15).

When a message relating to the predicted destination is uttered from the voice output unit 18 of the onboard information device, the driver uses the information input unit 20 to input a reply thereto. This includes “YES” displayed on the information display unit 5,
The display of “NO” may be selected and confirmed by a remote control switch, or a touch panel may be provided on the information display unit 5 and input may be performed by touching the display buttons of “YES” and “NO”. In addition, by preparing a voice recognition device as the information input unit 20, by recognizing the voice of "Yes" and "No" uttered by the driver,
Alternatively, the input may be made by operating a mechanical switch installed near the driver's seat.

In addition, in response to the multiple-choice message of “Is it a department store or a hospital?”, The “department store” and “hospital” selection buttons displayed on the information display section 5 are displayed simultaneously with the message. May be selected and confirmed by a remote control switch, or, if a touch panel is provided, may be directly determined by a touch operation. Further, the input may be made by recognizing the driver's utterance of "department store" or "hospital" by the voice recognition device, or by operating a mechanical switch installed near the driver's seat.

If the answer is YES, or if one of the destination candidates is selected, the required time to the destination predicted in step S13 is determined by the message generation unit 16,
The signal is output via a voice synthesis unit 17 and a voice output unit 18. At this time, for example, a message “It takes 40 minutes to reach the destination” is uttered. In the case of multi-limb selection input, the estimated required time is similarly output for the selected destination candidate (steps S16 ', S16).
17 ').

If the driver does not reply for a certain period of time or longer, it is determined that there is no intention to input a destination, the process is terminated, and the process proceeds to step S23 (step S16 ',
S18 ', S19).

If the answer of the driver is NO (step S18 '), a message prompting the input of a new destination is output from the voice output unit 18 (step S2).
0). For example, a message such as "Please enter a destination because route guidance is provided" can be output. Here, the process may return to step S12, and the destination predicting unit 14 may extract the second candidate of the driving destination and perform the subsequent processing.

When the driver inputs a request for inputting a destination using the destination input unit 21, the driver inputs the information into the driving history temporary storage unit 9 to store the driving start point such as the driving start point, date and time, day of the week, and time information. And is temporarily stored, and is used as the material of the travel history data at the time of the subsequent operation end (step S21). If the destination has not been entered after a certain period of time,
The process proceeds to the next processing step S23 with a timeout (step S22).

When the vehicle arrives at the destination and the ignition key is removed after the start of the operation, the operation ending unit 10 judges the end of the operation. The subsequent processing is the same as the flowchart of FIG. That is, when the ignition key is removed (step S23), the time T when it is determined that operation has started is determined.
1 and the current time T2, and if a certain time has elapsed and the traveling distance during that time is equal to or more than the certain distance, it is determined that the vehicle has arrived at the destination (steps S24 and S25). Based on the information on the date, time and day of the week, the required time and driving distance from the start of driving are calculated, and the positional information and time information at the end of driving, and the information of the required time and driving distance are temporarily stored in the driving history. The location information (latitude, longitude) of the driving end point stored in the storage unit 9 (step S27) and further stored in the travel history temporary storage unit 9
Is compared with the data in the travel history database 11, and the driving end point is labeled with reference to the past registered point data 32 (steps S28 and S29). If the time T1 at which the driving is determined to be started and the current time T2 are extremely short, or if the traveling distance from when the ignition key is inserted to when the ignition key is removed is extremely short, it is determined that the vehicle is not driving, and the traveling history is determined. The operation start data temporarily stored in the temporary storage unit 9 is deleted (step S26).

When the driving is completed at a point which has never been seen in the past, the point list presenting section 19 presents a label list representing the current position, thereby selecting and registering it (steps S28 and S30). , S31). Here, if there is no label selection input within a predetermined time, it is determined that there is no intention of registration, and the process proceeds to the next step (step S32).

The acquisition of the history data of one drive is completed by the above series of processing. Thereafter, the series of data acquired at the start and end of the operation is stored in the traveling history database 1.
1 and the history is updated (step S33).

The contents of the running history database 11 accumulated and stored in this manner can be browsed by the driver at an arbitrary timing, similarly to the first embodiment.

As described above, in the vehicle-mounted information device according to the second embodiment, it is possible to predict the actual destination and required time similarly to the vehicle-mounted information device according to the first embodiment.
The driver can be presented with more accurate information, and the device can accurately predict the destination, so that the operation of the navigation device such as setting the destination can be reduced.

In addition, the prediction result can be output only when requested by the driver, and such information need not be presented if the driver does not need it.
Also, as a result of the prediction, if the number of destination candidates is not determined to be one, a question is asked in a multiple choice format, and the possibility of the interaction between the vehicle and the driver is increased.

In both of the above embodiments, the destination is predicted based on the frequency distribution. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various commonly used knowledge acquisition methods, for example, For example, prediction using a semantic network, a genetic algorithm (GA), fuzzy quantification theory, or a neural network may be performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of travel history data of a travel history database in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of registered point data in a travel history database according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a point registration support screen in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart (1) of a destination prediction process according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart (2) of a destination prediction process according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart (3) of a destination prediction process according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a system configuration according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart (1) of a destination prediction process according to the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart (2) of a destination prediction process according to the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart (3) of a destination prediction process according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 GPS signal receiving part 2 Navigation control part 3 Map database 4 Facility information database 5 Information display part 6 Driving start detection part 7 Driving distance calculation part 8 Driver identification part 9 Driving history temporary storage part 10 Driving end detection part 11 Driving history database 12 search condition determination unit 13 frequency calculation unit 14 destination prediction unit 15 required time prediction unit 16 message generation unit 17 voice synthesis unit 18 voice output unit 19 point list presentation unit 20 information input unit 21 destination input unit 22 driver state detection unit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Norimishi Kishi 2 Takaracho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. Start / end detection means for detecting start / end of operation, clock means for detecting date and time of operation of a vehicle, current position detection means for detecting current position of a vehicle, operation start point and operation end point An operation history storage means for accumulating and storing the date and time of occurrence and a running distance; and an operation start date and time detected by the clock means and a detection of the current position detection means when the operation start / end detection means detects the operation start. A destination estimating means for retrieving the driving history information stored in the driving history storage means under predetermined conditions based on the information on the current position to be performed, and estimating the name of the destination of the driving and the required time; An in-vehicle information device comprising output means for outputting information on the name of a driving destination extracted by the prediction means and information on a required time to the destination. 2. A response input means for inputting a response from a driver, wherein the output means outputs information on a name of a destination of the driving, and a positive response input is received by the response input means. 2. The in-vehicle information device according to claim 1, wherein information about a time required to reach the destination is output. 3. The destination predicting means predicts a plurality of destination candidates and a required time for each of the plurality of destination candidates, and the output means outputs information on the names of the plurality of destination candidates predicted by the destination predicting means. 3. The on-vehicle information according to claim 2, wherein when the destination is selected from the destination candidates by the response input means, a required time to the selected destination is output. apparatus. 4. A specific operation detecting means for detecting a specific operation or operation of the driver, wherein the output means is configured to output the destination when the specific operation detecting means detects the specific operation or operation of the driver. The in-vehicle information device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein information on a name of the vehicle or information on a time required to reach the destination is output. 5. The operation start / end detection means detects the occurrence of insertion / removal of an ignition key, the time from when the ignition key is inserted to when the ignition key is removed, the time from when the ignition key is removed to when the ignition key is inserted, and the ignition key. The start and end of driving are determined based on any of the travel distances until the vehicle is pulled out of the vehicle.
5. The in-vehicle information device according to any one of 4. 6. The driving date and time detected by the clock means, the driving history information stored in the driving history storage means, and the search condition executed by the destination predicting means include day information together with date and time information. The in-vehicle information device according to claim 1. 7. The driving date and time detected by the clock means, the driving history information stored in the driving history storage means, and the search condition executed by the destination predicting means include holiday / holiday information together with the date and time information. The on-vehicle information device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: 8. A driver specifying means for specifying a driver, wherein the destination predicting means predicts a driving destination and a required time according to the driver specified by the driver specifying means. The in-vehicle information device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.