JPH11248484A - Navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a passenger effectively with regional advertisement information by acquiring local advertisement information prepared at each region through an internet and displaying on a navigation unit. SOLUTION: Display sections 44 are provided for the driver's seat and the rear seats of a vehicle, tar example, and navigation operating state is displayed at the driver seat display section 44. Current position of the vehicle is then determined and if local advertisement information of that region is prepared on a home page, a request signal is transmitted from the antenna 51 of a telephone unit 5 through a public network or an internet to a specific navigation server in response to a control signal from a navigation unit 1. The navigation server retrieves a home page comprising local advertisement information corresponding to the request and delivers it to the navigation unit 1. In the vehicle, the home page is displayed at the rear seat display section 44.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a navigation system which is mounted on a moving body or carried when moving, and which can advertise a facility or a product near the current location.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is a car navigation system for displaying effective information at the time of movement according to the movement of a user. This conventional car navigation system has a GPS that detects a current position by a signal from a satellite.
(Global Positioning System) The display unit includes a device, a display unit including a liquid crystal display panel, and the like, an operation unit, a CD-ROM playback device, and the like. In addition to a GPS device, a device having a vehicle speed sensor, a terrestrial magnetism, a direction sensor using a gyro, and a traveling sensor for autonomously correcting an error is also known.

In a conventional car navigation system, first, a user operates to register a destination based on map data read from a CD-ROM reproducing device. After the registration, the current position information is periodically obtained from the GPS device, the map data around the current position is appropriately read from the CD-ROM reproducing device based on the position information, and the map data is displayed on the display unit. At the same time, the current position is displayed, and at an intersection, an indication of a direction to be turned is also displayed.

[0004]

The main purpose of such a car navigation system is to provide information to a driver, and no particular consideration is given to providing information to a passenger in a rear seat. There was a problem.

[0005] However, in commercial vehicles such as taxis, providing some kind of information to passengers has provided a high advertising effect. Specifically, an advertisement for a mass retailer near the traveling position can be made in accordance with the position of the own vehicle, so that a high advertising effect can be obtained.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a dedicated advertisement information corresponding to an area in a network, and to provide the information to a passenger by sequentially downloading the data. It is to provide a system.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a navigation system for detecting a current position, reading map information or the like recorded on a recording medium and displaying at least a current position. Determining means for determining a corresponding area, obtaining means for obtaining advertisement information prepared for the area, storage means for storing the advertisement information,
A navigation system comprising a display unit for displaying advertisement information.

[0008] The current position of the vehicle is determined, and if advertisement information is prepared in a region including the current position, the advertisement information is downloaded and displayed on the display unit, thereby automatically providing information to the passenger. It can be carried out. If the advertisement information to be displayed has already been downloaded, or if the advertisement information has not been prepared, the advertisement information recorded on the recording medium is displayed.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an entire configuration of an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a car navigation system. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a navigation unit. The system shown in FIG. 1 is configured with the navigation unit 1 as a center, and in addition to the navigation unit 1, a display device 4, a telephone unit 5, an FM
A multiplex unit 6, a beacon unit 7, a remote control unit 8, and the like are provided.

The display device 4 comprises an amplifier 41 to which a speaker 42 is connected, a controller / driver 43, and a display unit 44 composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display panel. Voice output and display are performed by the signal.

For example, arithmetic processing is performed in the navigation unit 1, and an audio signal formed by processing such as voice synthesis is supplied to the amplifier 41 of the display device 4. In the amplifier 41, the audio signal from the navigation unit 1 is amplified and supplied to the speaker 42. Therefore, from the speaker 42, operation guidance, road guidance, and the like are provided by voice.

[0012] A video signal formed by arithmetic processing in the navigation unit 1 is supplied to the controller / driver 43 of the display device 4. In the controller / driver 43, a display signal is formed based on the video signal. The display signal is supplied to the display unit 44, and the display unit 44 displays, for example, a home page or the like including the map information and the vehicle position or the advertisement information. Since the advertisement information constituting this home page is set for each area, in the present invention, the advertisement information having a regionality is hereinafter referred to as local advertisement information.

As an example, a display section 44 is provided in each of the driver's seat and the rear seat, a navigation operation state is displayed on the display section 44 of the driver's seat, and a local advertisement information is displayed on the display section 44 of the rear seat. The configured home page may be displayed. Further, the display section 44 may be configured to be able to move between the driver's seat and the rear seat, and at this time, the navigation operation state and the homepage display state may be switched and used.

The telephone unit 5 has a so-called PHS (Pers
onal Handy phone System), transmitting and receiving units such as mobile phones,
And a transmitting / receiving operation according to control information from the navigation unit 1, and supplies the acquired homepage data to the navigation unit 1.

For example, the telephone unit 5 includes an antenna 51
, And a radio signal is transmitted from the antenna 51. FIG.
As shown in the figure, this radio signal is transmitted to the nearest wireless base station 53.
Is received by the antenna 52. Then, it is connected to a predetermined navigation server 56 via an exchange (not shown), a public line 54 and the Internet 55, so that data can be exchanged bidirectionally. The navigation server 56 searches for a home page composed of the local advertisement information according to the received request from the navigation unit 1 and sends this home page to the navigation unit 1. That is, the homepage data is taken into the navigation unit 1 via the Internet 55, the public line 54, the wireless base station 53, and the telephone unit 5. Note that other Web sites 57 and 58 are connected to the Internet 55. For example, map information, sightseeing information, town information, and the like can be imported.

The FM multiplexing unit 6 includes an FM antenna 6
1, an RF unit 62, a decoder 63, and a controller 64, which receive a multiplexed broadcast wave of a predetermined frequency channel on which road traffic information transmitted by an FM broadcast station is superimposed based on control information from the navigation unit 1. Then, by performing decoding processing and the like, road traffic information (congestion information, destination information, travel time information, road regulation information, etc.) is extracted from the FM multiplex signal, and the road traffic information is supplied to the navigation unit 1.

The beacon unit 7 includes a beacon antenna 71, an RF unit 72, a decoder 73, and a controller 74. By extracting a quasi-microwave band beacon signal and performing decoding processing, etc., road traffic information (position information, congestion information, destination information, travel time information, road regulation information, etc.) is extracted from the beacon signal, The traffic information is supplied to the navigation unit 1.

That is, VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication) is performed by the FM multiplex signal and the beacon signal.
n System: Road traffic information communication system).
Note that the FM multiplex unit 6 and the beacon unit 7
Are unitized separately from the navigation unit 1 for expansion, and are provided by the user as appropriate. The navigation unit 1 and the FM multiplex unit 6
As a communication means between the communication unit and the beacon unit 7, for example, UART (Universal Asynchronus Rec.)
eiver-Transmitter) communication (a bidirectional asynchronous communication circuit for a serial port) is used.

The remote control unit 8 has operation buttons, input keys, and the like. When the user operates the operation buttons, input keys, and the like, the remote control unit 8 forms an infrared control signal according to the operation state. A signal is transmitted to the navigation unit 1 side. The navigation unit 1 is provided with a light receiving unit 81 including a decoding circuit and an infrared light receiving element. When an infrared control signal from the remote control unit 8 is received, the light receiving unit 81
Control information is formed based on the infrared control signal, and the control information is supplied to the navigation unit 1 in a predetermined format.

For example, by operating the remote control unit 8, it is possible to set various modes, such as inputting a destination, fetching a homepage, displaying the position of the own vehicle, etc.
In addition, a setting such as comprehensive guidance display based on road traffic information taken in through the beacon unit 7 and a homepage, map information, sightseeing information, town information and the like taken in through the telephone unit 5 is made.

Further, a terminal indicated by 31 in FIG. 1 is supplied with a speed detection signal from a moving speed detecting section comprising a speed sensor and the like. Based on the speed information based on the speed detection signal and the azimuth information from the gyro sensor in the navigation unit 1 described later, even in the case where the GPS signal cannot be received, for example, in a tunnel, under a highway, in a building, etc., a certain degree of accuracy can be obtained. Position detection and autonomous traveling become possible.

Although the case where asynchronous communication UART communication is used as communication means between the FM multiplexing unit 6 and the beacon unit 7 has been described, other communication systems may be used. Also, a case has been described where an FM multiplex unit 6 and a beacon unit 7 corresponding to a radio beacon are provided as expansion units.
As other road traffic information communication means, for example, a unitized receiving device corresponding to an optical beacon may be further provided, and an FM multiplex unit 6, a beacon unit 7, a unit corresponding to an optical beacon, and the like may be provided. They may be used in combination.

FIG. 3 shows a configuration of the navigation unit 1 in one embodiment of the present invention. Note that portions corresponding to those in FIG. 1 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals. In FIG. 3, what is indicated by reference numeral 11 is map information,
This is a disc on which general advertisement information (hereinafter, referred to as general advertisement information) is recorded. As the disk 11, for example, a CD-ROM disk is used. When the remote control unit 8 is operated to enter the navigation operation state, the disk 11 is rotated by the spindle motor 12 to read the map information and general advertisement information recorded on the disk 11, and the optical pickup 13 is moved from the disk 11. Reads the recorded information.

The optical pickup 13 includes a lens, a photodetector, a laser diode, and the like. In order to sequentially read information on recording tracks on the disk 11, a focus coil (not shown) for keeping the distance between the lens and the disk 11 constant and a lens driven in the radial direction of the disk 11 are provided on the optical pickup 13. A tracking coil is provided, and a sled mechanism for moving the entire optical pickup 13 in the radial direction of the disk 11 is provided.

The output of the optical pickup 13 generated by reading the information recorded on the disk 11 is output to the RF amplifier 14.
Supplied to The RF amplifier 14 has a function of an RF signal processing circuit, and forms an RF signal binarization, a tracking error signal, and a focus error signal. RF amplifier 1
The reproduction binary signal, tracking error signal, and focus error signal formed in step 4 are supplied to the digital servo processor 15.

The digital servo processor 15 performs various operations in accordance with control information from the system controller 18 and converts the formed control signals and the obtained various data into D / A signals.
The power is supplied to each unit such as the converter 16, the A / V controller 19, the system controller 18, and the servo driver 17. For example, in the digital servo processor 15, a control signal for tracking control and focus control is formed based on the tracking error signal and the focus error signal, and the control signal is supplied to the servo driver 17. In the servo driver 17, a drive output to each unit is formed based on a control signal from the digital servo processor 15, and the drive output drives a focus coil, a tracking coil, and a sled mechanism.

In the digital servo processor 15, the reproduced binary signal is decoded to form a control system signal or control data, digital data of general advertisement information, audio data, and the like. The audio data is supplied to the D / A converter 16 and converted into an analog audio signal. The analog audio signal is taken out through the terminal 32 and is output from the display device 4.
Is supplied to the amplifier 41 to which the speaker 42 is connected.

Digital data such as general advertisement information is supplied to an A / V controller 19 via a system controller 18. The A / V controller 19 includes
DSP (Digital Signal Processor) 26, CPU2
7, and SRAM 20, DRAM 21, Flash R
A processing memory unit including an OM 22 and a program ROM 23 is connected. Various processes are mainly performed by the arithmetic processing of the CPU 27 while reading data from the memory unit. The A / V controller 19 performs a drawing process on the display device 4 and controls the memory unit, and the DSP 26 performs a voice synthesis process based on the vehicle position information and the like.

The SRAM 20 connected to the A / V controller 19 stores various set values such as a destination mark and wake data as a user memory for navigation. Further, the program ROM 23 stores a program for executing a startup process and the like, and most other programs are stored in the flash ROM 22. Note that the flash ROM 22 can be rewritten and configured to be easily upgraded. The DRAM is used for storing a work area of a program and data for drawing.

The voice data obtained by voice synthesis processing based on the vehicle position information and the like is transmitted to the A / V controller 19.
Is supplied to the D / A converter 16 via the D / A converter and converted into an analog audio signal. Then, the analog audio signal is extracted via the terminal 32 and supplied to the amplifier 41 to which the speaker 42 of the display device 4 is connected.

The A / V controller 19 forms a video signal based on digital data such as general advertisement information, and the video signal is taken out via a terminal 33. Then, the controller /
It is supplied to the driver 43.

In FIG. 3, the GP is designated by 28.
It is a GPS antenna that receives radio waves from S (Global Positioning System) satellites. A radio signal from a GPS satellite is received by a GPS antenna 28, and the received signal is
The signal is supplied to the demodulator 30 via the F unit 29. Demodulation processing and the like are performed in the demodulator 30.
GPS data indicating an absolute position is formed, and this GPS data is supplied to the system controller 18.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 24 denotes a gyro sensor. The gyro sensor 24 detects the direction and forms an output according to the direction. The output of the gyro sensor 24 is converted into gyro data through the A / D converter 25, and the gyro data is supplied to the system controller 18.

Note that the system controller 18 is supplied with a speed detection signal from the moving speed detection unit including the speed sensor as described above via the terminal 31. The terminal 35 is connected to the telephone unit 5 and the terminal 3
The FM multiplexing unit 6 is connected to 6, and the beacon unit 7 is connected to the terminal 37. Therefore, the homepage, the map information, the sightseeing information, the town information, and the like from the telephone unit 5 are supplied to the system controller 18, and the road traffic information from the FM multiplex unit 6 and the beacon unit 7 is supplied. Further, control information generated by operating the remote control unit 8 described above is supplied to the system controller 18 via a terminal 38.

For example, the remote control unit 8
Is operated to set the navigation operation state, the position information based on the map data read from the disk 11, the GPS data and the gyro data, the speed information based on the speed detection signal from the moving speed detection unit, and the FM
The CPU 27 performs arithmetic processing based on road traffic information and the like from the multiplex unit 6 and the beacon unit 7, and the display unit 44 of the display device 4 displays the map information and the position of the vehicle. In parallel with the display process,
From the speaker 42, operation guidance, road guidance, and the like are provided by voice.

In the navigation server 56, the general advertisement information of the facilities or products around the current position is obtained from the position information on the navigation unit 1 side.
Searched from. Further, the home page is downloaded to the navigation unit 1 via the Internet 55, the public line 54, the wireless base station 53, and the telephone unit 5. Therefore, while the general advertisement information or the homepage is displayed on the display unit 44 of the display device 4,
In parallel with the display process, the speaker 42 may provide general advertisement information or local advertisement information constituting a homepage by voice.

At the time of downloading, the processing is performed in such a manner that the download time is minimized and the chance of repeated download is minimized. Specifically, for example, when it is determined that the destination is clear based on the telephone number, address, etc., the homepage of the minimum range including the destination is taken in. For example, homepages of, for example, eight adjacent areas around the ground are taken in.
By this processing, only the necessary minimum home page is taken into the navigation unit 1 and used.

The fetched homepage data is stored and stored in the flash ROM 22. Then, the stored data is automatically deleted after a certain period of time or when the storage amount exceeds a certain storage amount, from the one with the smallest number of accesses (the number of times of display), and is operated efficiently.

Here, an example of the operation of the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. For each area indicated by a dashed circle in FIG. 4, a home page including local advertisement information having a locality corresponding to the area is prepared. When the vehicle travels as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 4, the general advertisement information stored on the disk 11 is displayed on the display unit 44 of the display device 4 until the vehicle enters the area B indicated by the dashed circle. When the user enters the area B, the home page of the area B downloaded via the telephone unit 5 is displayed.

At this time, when downloading the home page in the area B, it is first determined whether or not the home page has already been downloaded. And B
If it is determined that the home page of the area has been downloaded, it has already been downloaded and the SRAM 20
Is compared with the date when the home page was last updated. If the date is the same, the download of the home page is stopped and the home page stored in the SRAM 20 is displayed on the display unit 44. Will be displayed. If the dates are different, the home page of the area B is downloaded via the telephone unit 5 and displayed on the display unit 44.

When the user exits the area B, the general advertisement information is displayed on the display unit 44, and when the user enters the area A, the display unit 44 displays the A by the same processing as when the user enters the area B.
The home page of the area is displayed. In this example, the general advertisement information is displayed on the display unit 44 in an area other than the area where the homepage is prepared.
For example, text data (such as news) obtained by FM multiplexing may be displayed. in this way,
If a homepage corresponding to the current location of the vehicle is prepared, the homepage can be automatically displayed on the display unit 44.

In one embodiment of the present invention, when the own vehicle enters an area where a home page composed of local advertisement information is prepared, the home page is automatically downloaded and displayed on the display unit 44. The processing will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 7. Each step of the flowchart of FIG. 5 is denoted by reference numerals S1 to S6, each step of the flowchart of FIG. 6 is denoted by reference numerals of S11 to S15, and each step of the flowchart of FIG. Is S2
Reference numerals 1 to S27 are assigned.

In step S1, the current location of the vehicle is confirmed. In step S2, a timer is started. In step S3, the general advertisement information recorded on the disk 11 is updated and displayed on the display unit 44. This display
The position of the own vehicle is confirmed, and the general advertisement information is, for example, 20
Seconds are displayed, and when 20 seconds have elapsed, the control moves to step S4. In step S4, it is determined whether or not the own vehicle has entered an area where a home page composed of local advertisement information is prepared. If it is determined that the own vehicle has entered that area, the control proceeds to step S6, and the control proceeds to step S6. If it is determined that the car has not entered the area, the control moves to step S5. In step S5, since the user has entered an area where a homepage is not prepared, the general advertisement information recorded on the disk 11 is read. In step S6, since the user has entered the area where the homepage is prepared, the process of displaying the homepage data (step S6).
The control moves to 11).

The processing for displaying the home page is step S
It starts from 11. In step S11, it is determined whether or not the data of the home page to be displayed has already been downloaded. If the data has already been downloaded, the control shifts to step S12, and if not, the control shifts to step S15. In step S15, the control moves to a process for downloading the data of the home page to be displayed (step S21). In step S12, since the homepage data to be displayed has already been downloaded, the homepage data is read from the SRAM 20, and the read homepage is displayed on the display unit 44. This display is, for example, 20
Displayed for seconds. In step S13, the current display unit 44
Is determined to be out of the area of the homepage displayed in the above. If it is determined that the area is out of the area, the flowchart ends, and if it is determined that the area is in the area, the control moves to step S14. In step S14, it is determined whether or not the data is the final data of the home page. If it is determined that the data is the final data, the control proceeds to step S13. If it is determined that the data is not the final data, the control proceeds to step S11.

The process of downloading the home page starts from step S21. In step S21, the homepage or general advertisement information is displayed on the display unit 44. The data displayed in step S21 is
It is displayed until the downloaded data is displayed. In step S22, a timer is started. In step S23, the home page data at the current location is downloaded. Data download starts, and 20
After a lapse of seconds, the control moves to the next step S24, but the download of the data of the homepage is continued until the end.

In step S24, it is determined whether the area is outside the area of the currently downloaded home page. If it is determined that the area is outside the area, this flowchart ends.
If it is determined that the area is within the area, the control moves to step S25. In step S25, it is determined whether or not the download of the homepage data started in step S23 has been completed. If it is determined that the download has been completed,
The control moves to step S27, and if it is determined that the download has not been completed, the control moves to step S26. In step S26, the general advertisement information read from the disk 11 and displayed on the display unit 44 is updated,
The control moves to step S22. In step S27, since it is determined that the download of the homepage data has been completed, the data is stored in the SRAM 20 and displayed on the display unit 44. Then, step S13
The control moves to.

The processing of the above-described flowchart will be briefly described. After confirming your location and displaying general advertising information,
After a lapse of 0 seconds, it is confirmed whether or not the vehicle is in the area. When the own vehicle enters an area where a home page including local advertisement information is prepared, control is transferred to the display of the home page. When displaying the homepage,
After checking whether or not the data has been downloaded, if it has been downloaded, the display shifts to the display. If there is data for the next page of the homepage, it is displayed after 20 seconds have elapsed. If the homepage data has not been downloaded, it will be downloaded. At this time, the display data is updated at intervals of 20 seconds. Thus, information provision to the passenger can be performed automatically.

In this embodiment, a home page composed of local advertisement information is obtained via the telephone unit 5 and displayed on the display unit 44. However, instead of obtaining the home page, a local advertisement is simply obtained. Information may be acquired and displayed on the display unit 44.

In this embodiment, the home page composed of the local advertisement information can be automatically obtained. However, the home page may be manually obtained by using the remote control unit 8. For example,
It can be used when you want to forcibly download the latest home page.

In this embodiment, a homepage composed of local advertisement information is downloaded via the Internet. However, the present invention is not limited to the Internet, and a homepage composed of local advertisement information can be downloaded from a dedicated server via a dedicated network. The downloaded homepage may be downloaded.

[0051]

According to the present invention, exclusive advertisement information is prepared in a homepage of the Internet which has recently become widespread, and the data of the homepage is sequentially downloaded to provide the passenger with the advertisement information. Thus, an effective advertising effect can be obtained.

According to the present invention, when a home page is not prepared, has already been downloaded, or when downloading takes a long time, data is read from the memory in the apparatus and displayed. Advertising can be performed efficiently.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram used for describing communication means according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation unit in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart used to describe an embodiment of the operation of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a process for displaying a home page according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a process for downloading a homepage according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 navigation unit, 4 display device,
5 ... telephone unit, 6 ... FM multiplex unit, 7
... beacon unit, 8 ... remote control unit, 11 ... disk, 13 ... optical pickup, 15 ... digital servo processor, 1
8 ... system controller, 19 ... A / V controller, 20 ... SRAM, 21 ... DRAM,
22: Flash ROM, 23: Program R
OM, 24 ... Gyro sensor, 26 ... DSP,
27: CPU, 28: GPS antenna, 30
..Demodulators, 42 ... speakers, 44 ...
Display unit, 55: Internet, 56: Navigation server

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A navigation system that detects its own position, reads out map information or the like recorded on a recording medium and displays at least a current position, and determines a region corresponding to the current position. A navigation system comprising: an acquisition unit for acquiring prepared advertisement information; a storage unit for storing the advertisement information; and a display unit for displaying the advertisement information. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the acquisition unit further includes a second determination unit configured to determine whether the advertisement information is prepared in the area, and the advertisement information is prepared in the area. If there is no advertisement information, the navigation information is read from the recording medium and displayed on the display means. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein, when the advertisement information is prepared in the area, the obtaining unit determines whether the advertisement information to be obtained is already stored in the storage unit. Determining means, the advertisement information is stored in the storage means, the advertisement information is read from the storage means, and the advertisement information is not stored in the storage means,
A navigation system wherein the advertisement information is downloaded. 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein during the period in which the advertisement information is downloaded,
A navigation system, wherein the advertisement information recorded on the storage medium is read, and the read advertisement information is displayed on the display means.