KR20140038582A - Navigation device and method performing route guide by using image informaition of road signs and communication device capable of communicating with the navigation device - Google Patents

Abstract

The navigation device provided by the present invention comprises; a storage unit to contain information of inherent link ID′s for roads per direction of road signs as a storage unit to store map information; a road sign communication unit to receive images per progressing directions of the road signs and inherent link ID′s of each road linked with each image from a communication device by communicating with the communication devices installed on the road signs; a road sign image matching unit to display progressing direction images of the road signs linked with agreed inherent link ID′s through a display unit by determining whether the inherent link ID′s of the roads in progressing direction on the currently moving route to a set destination agree with the received inherent link ID′s per direction of each road; a map image generating unit to generate map images by using the stored map information and display through the display unit; and a control unit to control actions of the individual units. [Reference numerals] (AA) Link id:No.2; (BB) Link id:No.1; (CC) Link id:No.4; (DD) Route with calculated route; (EE) Link id:No.3; (FF) No.1(id : 4→1); (GG) No.2(id : 4→2); (HH) No.3(id : 4→3)

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a navigation apparatus and method for performing route guidance using image information of a road sign, and a communication apparatus for communicating with the apparatus. BACKGROUND ART [0002] }

The present invention relates to a navigation apparatus and method, and more particularly, to a navigation apparatus and a method provided with a means for performing a route guidance using image information of a road sign, and a method of communicating with the navigation apparatus to transmit predetermined information Communication apparatus.

Navigation devices that provide the driver with the current position of the vehicle and map information to the destination are well known (see, for example, Publication No. 10-2006-23619). The navigation device calculates the current position of the vehicle based on the position data received from the GPS satellite via the GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver, maps the calculated current position to the map data and displays the map on the display device, To the driver.

Meanwhile, various types of traffic signs are provided on the road, and some navigation devices may provide images of road signs in consideration of the convenience of the user. At this time, the road sign displays the road sign information stored in advance through the field inspection work. However, if a road sign is changed or new, a wrong road sign may be provided.

On the other hand, the map used in the navigation apparatus should be periodically updated in accordance with changes in roads, road signs, and the like. However, since the map is mainly created through on-site inspection, there is a problem that real-time updating is impossible in reality, and such map update also poses a considerable burden on the maker of the navigation apparatus.

As described above, the road sign is provided for each road, and provides the driver with the guidance information. However, there is a problem that the road sign information is not widely utilized except for providing the road sign image and the road image information together with the widespread use of the navigation device. That is, despite the fact that the road signs are installed by the national policy, there is a problem that the utilization rate of the roads is decreased for the driver.

On the other hand, road signs installed on roads can not contain much information due to their size limitations. In other words, it is a reality that the function of road guidance through road sign is inferior because it only provides the geographical information of the distance and the nearness to the road sign. That is, in the case of the road marking alone, although it is installed every predetermined road by national policy, it has a fundamental limitation that it can not provide more information to the user. For example, although a user who does not use a navigation device or a navigation device has a navigation device, the driver who travels without using the device must actually use the road sign to reach the destination. However, due to limited information, It is not easy to reach.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a navigation system and a navigation system capable of providing a driver with guidance information of a destination to a destination even if the map is not updated in real time or the map is not updated in a timely manner, And a navigation apparatus and method that can accurately provide the navigation apparatus and method.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a navigation apparatus and method that can precisely provide route guidance information to a destination to a driver using image information of each route displayed on a dispensing sign.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a communication device capable of communicating with a navigation device and providing predetermined geographical information to the device.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a communication device capable of providing information necessary for a user to a user who does not have a navigation device or is operating a navigation device without using it, will be.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a navigation device comprising: a storage unit for storing map information, the storage unit including information of a unique link ID for a road by a direction of a road sign; A road sign communicator communicating with a communication device installed in a road sign to receive an image for each direction of the road sign and a unique link ID of each road associated with each image from the communication device; It is judged whether or not the unique link ID of the traveling direction road on the route to the currently set destination is consistent with the unique link ID of each direction of the received road and the progress of the road sign linked with the matched unique link ID A road sign image matching unit displaying a direction image through a display unit; A map image generating unit for generating a map image using the stored map information and displaying the generated map image through a display unit; And a control unit for controlling the operation of each of the units.

In one embodiment, the road sign image matching unit may overlap and display a traveling direction image of a road sign linked with the matched unique link ID on a map image generated by the map image generating unit.

In one embodiment, the road sign image matching unit may display the traveling direction image of the road sign linked with the matched unique link ID as an image separate from the map image generated by the map image generating unit have.

In an embodiment, the controller determines whether a route is set by a user, and when the route is not set, the controller does not display an image for each direction of the road sign among information transmitted from the communication device. Instead, it is configured to display only the image of the entire road sign, and in addition to the information displayed on the actual road sign, a plurality of location geographical information may be additionally displayed for each direction of the road sign.

In one embodiment, the unique link ID can use Navigation network data or the Ministry of Construction & Transportation standard node link data.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication device installed in a road sign, for communicating with a navigation device installed in a vehicle approaching the road sign, for providing road sign related information to the device. The communication device includes: a storage unit for storing an image for each direction of the road sign and a unique link ID of each road in each traveling direction associated with each image; a communication unit for communicating with the navigation device; And a control unit for controlling operations of the communication device and the respective units. The control unit controls the operation of the communication unit and the navigation unit.

In one embodiment, the storage unit stores the image of the entire road sign in addition to the image for each direction of progress and the unique link ID of the road for each direction of progress, the typical image that is displayed by the direction of the road sign on the image of the entire road sign In addition to the location geographic information, at least one location geographic information may be added and displayed for each direction.

According to an embodiment, the transmission unit may further include an image of the entire road sign to which the at least one location geographical information is added for each direction in addition to the image for each direction and the unique link ID of the road for each direction. Can transmit

In one embodiment, the unique link ID can use Navigation network data or the Ministry of Construction & Transportation standard node link data.

The navigation device of the present invention communicates with a communication device installed on a road sign to receive an image for each direction of the road sign from the device and a unique link ID of each road in each traveling direction Finds that the unique link ID matches the unique link ID of the road in the traveling direction at the corresponding point on the route to the destination stored in the storage unit, and displays the corresponding image through the display unit. Therefore, it is possible not only to use only the navigation device but also to perform the guidance using the already installed road sign, and also to perform accurate guidance without updating. In addition, the communication device capable of communicating with the navigation device stores therein an image of each directional sign of each road sign and an image of the entire road sign, and by transmitting such image to the navigation device, the user can navigate to the destination by using the navigation device It is possible to use an image of a clear road sign and to drive to a destination more smoothly by using a road sign image containing more information when going to a destination without using a navigation device.

1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a navigation device according to one embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a communication device capable of communicating with a navigation device to transmit certain information according to one embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a navigation method according to the present invention.
Figure 4 is a flow chart of navigating in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, a description of well-known technical structures such as a configuration of a navigation device and a navigation method well known in the art will be omitted. Even if these explanations are omitted, those skilled in the art will readily understand the characteristic features of the present invention through the following description.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a navigation device according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a communication device 200 capable of transmitting predetermined information by communicating with the navigation device.

As illustrated, the navigation device N according to the present invention includes a storage unit 10, a location information receiving unit 20, a road sign communication unit 300, a road sign image matching unit 40, and a map image generating unit 50. , Update communication unit 60, display unit 70, speaker 80, and control unit 90.

The storage unit 10 stores map information. The map information includes all relevant information such as the map itself as well as information about the road sign for each location on the map. The navigation device N calculates the route to the destination desired by the user according to the map information and guides the route to the user. Then, the map information is received from the map providing map server (not shown) via the update communication unit 60. This storage unit is a storage device provided in a conventional navigation device.

Meanwhile, the storage unit 10 of the present invention also has a unique link ID for each road. That is, in the present invention, the data used in the route calculation uses the navigation network data or the standard nodal link data of the Ministry of Construction & Transportation. The road sign image matching unit 40 receives the image information of each direction of the road sign received from the communication device 200 through the road sign communicator 30 (i.e., the unique link ID of each road and each road Is compared with the unique link ID stored in the storage unit 10 and the road image information associated with the corresponding unique link ID is displayed on the display unit 70. [ This will be described in detail below.

The position information receiving unit 20 is a unit for receiving position information of the navigation device N, for example, a GPS receiving unit can be used. The GPS receiver receives the radio wave from at least two GPS satellites and measures the arrival time of the radio wave to calculate the current position. The position information receiving unit 20 is not limited to the GPS receiving unit, and may be configured by various means such as position calculation using a base station.

The road sign communication unit 30 communicates with the communication device 100 (refer to FIGS. 2 and 3) installed at the road sign, and the image for each direction of the sign from the communication device and a unique link of each road linked to each image. It is responsible for receiving ID.

For example, as shown in Fig. 3, according to the present invention, a road sign, in particular a road sign of an intersection, is provided with a communication device 200 capable of communicating with the navigation device N. [ The communication device 200 serves to transmit to the navigation device N the respective images of the road signs on which the communication devices are installed and the unique link IDs of the respective roads associated with the respective images, A storage unit 210, a communication unit 220, a transmission unit 230, and a control unit 240, as shown in FIG.

The storage unit 210 includes image information of a road sign where the communication device 200 is installed. That is, the road sign used in the present invention represents at least a plurality of directions, and provides geographical information located along each direction. The storage unit 210 stores images related to each direction (for example, a straight line, a left turn and a right turn), location related geographical information corresponding to the image, and unique link IDs of the roads associated therewith. In connection with the unique link ID of each road, the Ministry of Construction and Transportation can use standard node link data.

The communication unit 220 is an interface for communicating with the navigation device N installed in various vehicles, and performs communication with the device using a wireless communication network. The transmitting unit 230 transmits the information stored in the storage unit 210, that is, the directional image of the road sign concerned (including the geographical information related to the location indicated by the image) and the unique link ID of each road associated with the image, . The control unit 240 controls the overall operation of the communication device 200 and the operation of each component.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the road sign has an image (id: 4 -> 1, Seoul Pangyo direction: location related geographical information), a left turn (Id: 4 -> 3, Seoul Shingal direction) of the direction (id: 4 -> 2, Sujin town / That is, the communication device 200 of the road sign of the intersection has the unique id (1, 2, 3, 4) of each road, (Including the road ID and the location-related geographical information indicated by the image) related to the id in the navigation device N installed in each vehicle in the traveling direction, As shown in FIG. The road sign communication unit 30 of the navigation device N transmits the image of each traveling direction transmitted from the communication device 200 (in the illustrated embodiment, the image in the straight traveling direction (id: 4 -> 1, (Id: 4 -> 3, Seoul Shinbal direction)), and the images of the left turn direction (id: 4 -> 2, Sujin town / And receives the unique link ID and location-related geographical information of each road. That is, in brief, the transmission unit 230 of the communication device transmits an image for each direction of the road sign stored in the storage unit 210 together with an associated road ID (in the case of FIG. 3, three images and three road IDs ), The road sign communicator 30 directly receives this information.

When the road sign communicator 30 receives the image of each traveling direction and the unique link ID of each road, the road sign image matching unit 40 compares the road ID on the moving route on which the vehicle is currently moving, Select the ID. In the case of this example, if the route is set so that the vehicle reaches the destination through the direction of Seoul Pangyo, in the vicinity of the road sign shown, the navigation apparatus N of the vehicle will set the route in the 4 -> 1 traveling direction, The road sign image matching unit 40 determines that the image ID (4 - > 1) in the direction of the Seoul railroad bridge among the three travel direction IDs received from the communication device 200 matches the set route, do. In addition to this selection, the road sign image matching unit 40 displays only the image corresponding to the ID (4 - > 1) among the received three traveling direction images through the display unit 70. Thus, the user can more easily grasp which direction to proceed in the intersection. In this case, in the illustrated embodiment, emphasis arrows are marked on the matched image to indicate the progress direction. However, the image may be displayed separately from the map image generated by the map image generation unit 50, that is, It may be greatly enlarged and displayed. That is, the display method of the image received from the communication device 200 is not particularly limited.

The map image generating unit 50 is a unit for generating an image of each road to a destination set by the user using the information stored in the storage unit 10 and includes a road map image matching unit 40, You can also create a map image, including an image of the sign.

The display unit 70 is a unit for displaying the map image generated by the map image generating unit 50. As described above, the image of the road sign selected and matched by the road sign image matching unit 40 is also displayed on the display unit 70 ). On the other hand, a speaker 80 is provided for auditory path guidance as well as visual path guidance.

On the other hand, the update communication unit 60 is a unit that performs communication for updating the navigation device. That is, the update communication unit 60 can communicate with a map server (not shown) via a computer to download map information from the map server, and download map information from the map server via a wireless network.

The control unit 90 controls the operation of each component and controls the overall operation of the navigation device. Particularly, the control unit 90 controls the road sign communicating unit 30 to communicate with the communication device 200 so as to receive each image related to the traveling direction of the road sign and the unique ID of each road from the communication device, The matching unit 40 compares the received unique ID of each road with the unique ID of the road in the traveling direction of the vehicle and controls the display unit 70 to display the traveling direction related image associated with the matching ID.

Hereinafter, a navigation method using an image of a road sign according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the user sets a destination (a pedestrian bridge) using the navigation device N (S10). When the destination is set, the navigation device N calculates the route to the destination according to the normal method, and guides the route to the user (S20).

When the user reaches the vicinity of the road sign indicating various road directions such as a road sign near the intersection while traveling along the route provided by the navigation device, the road sign communicator 30 transmits the signal to the communication device 200 (Not shown) such as a volatile memory by communicating with the transmission unit 230 of the communication device 200 and the progress direction image of the road sign and the unique link ID of each road associated with the respective images from the transmission unit 230 of the communication device 200 (S30). In the present embodiment, the destination is a pedestrian and the traveling direction of the vehicle through the navigation device is 4 to 1 in Fig. 3, that is, the road link ID in the traveling direction of the route set by the navigation device is 4 -> 1, , The unique link ID of 4 -> 2 (toward Sujin Village), 4 -> 1 (toward Seoul Pangyo), 4 -> 3 (Seoul Shinbal direction) On the other hand, in the case of a one-way road other than an intersection, since the vehicle must continue along the road, it is not particularly necessary to install a communication device on the road sign on the road, and accordingly the related image is also not received. It should be understood, however, that the present invention is not intended to exclude this case.

Then, when the progress direction image and the unique link ID of the road associated with each image are received, the road sign image matching unit 40 determines whether the unique ID of the progress direction road on the set route matches the received unique link ID (S40). If the matching ID is not searched through the storage unit 10 (S40, NO), the control unit 90 determines whether the map image generation unit 50 generates only the map image generated according to the normal process The related image is displayed through the display unit 70, and in some cases, the route is also guided through the speaker 80 (S50).

On the other hand, when it is determined that the unique ID of the received unique ID is identical to the unique ID of the road on the set route (S40, Yes), the controller 90 determines whether the road sign image matching unit 40 , And displays an image corresponding to the matching unique link ID through the display unit 70 (S60). At this time, the control unit 90 may cause the road sign image matching unit 40 to display an arrow of emphasis in the matched image to display the progress direction, as shown in FIG. 3, It is also possible to display only the images that are displayed separately. In the meantime, the progress direction image display may be displayed overlapping with or displayed separately from the image generated by the map image generating unit 50 according to a normal procedure, It is preferable that the route map image is displayed overlapping with the normal route map image generated by the route map image.

As described above, according to the present invention, the navigation apparatus also communicates with the communication device 200 installed on the road signboard of each road, thereby displaying only the image of the progress direction among the images of the road signboard, have. The navigation device does not need to have a separate map database in order to use the present invention. Instead, the navigation device communicates with the communication device 200 to receive predetermined information from the communication device, Or a simple operation of transforming it in a software manner. Therefore, there is an advantage that there is no great cost burden. In addition, there is an advantage that a road sign installed on the road can be utilized more politically.

Meanwhile, in the above-described embodiment, an image of a road sign is displayed through a process of setting a route using a navigation device, receiving information from a communication device on the way to a destination, and comparing it with a road ID on a set route. However, there may be a user who does not have a navigation device, or even if he / she has a navigation device, he knows the route to the destination and may operate without using the navigation device. In this case, if the path is fully known, the driver does not use the information of the road sign, but if the path to the destination is incompletely known, the road sign will be used on the move.

However, in the case of a conventional road sign, for example, a road sign installed in a roundabout, three directions, that is, a straight direction, a left turning direction, and a right turning direction are displayed, and only location geographic information representative of each direction, that is, landmarks, is displayed in each direction. That is, due to the limited size, it is not possible to display a large number of location geographic information in each direction, and in most cases, only one representative information of near and far is represented one by one. Thus, for example, when a user who wants to go to Sinchon Station approaches the Samsung Station Roundabout, information up to Sinchon Station cannot be obtained through the road sign installed in the Rotary Station. In consideration of this point, the Ministry of Construction and Transportation also attempts to include as much information as possible on road signs, but only road signs are displayed due to the limited size. Therefore, the driver is forced to operate the navigation device during driving, but the operation of the navigation device during operation may cause an accident. The present invention has a navigation device, but allows a user who wants to go to a predetermined destination without using the device to acquire a lot of information that can reach the destination through communication with the communication device. Hereinafter, This embodiment of the invention will now be described.

In the above embodiment, the storage unit 110 of the communication device 200 stores the image for each direction of the road sign on which the communication device is installed in association with the unique ID of the corresponding road. At this time, each directional image is actually the same information as the information displayed on the road sign. However, in the present embodiment, the image information of the road sign in which additional information is written in the storage 110 is constructed.

That is, in the case of road signs, at most distance and geographical location information is displayed in each direction. However, such long-distance and short-range location geographic information contains only landmark information, which is difficult for users who are not good at geographic location. In view of such a problem, in addition to the information described in the above embodiments, the storage unit of the communication device 110 may include a plurality of location geographic information (eg, in addition to the far and near location geographic information typically included in each direction image). 5). For example, in the case of a road sign installed at a rotary station of the Samsung station, only the arrow indicating the direction of the Youngdong bridge and the Youngdong bridge information are shown. However, the storage unit 210 of the communication apparatus of the present invention stores additional information on the Olympic Bridge, the Riverside North Road, and the Seongsu Crossroad, in addition to such location-specific location information. So that it is not particularly limited in terms of how to set up additional information). This information is stored as an image of the entire road sign. That is, the additional information as described above is written in each direction in the image of the entire road sign, and is stored in the storage unit 210 as an image form of the whole road sign.

The information is transmitted to the navigation device N together with the information of the above-described embodiment (direction-specific image information, associated road ID information) by the transmitter 130. Since the control unit 90 has only turned on the navigation device without setting the route, the control unit 90 does not display the image information for each direction and the associated road ID information among the information transmitted by the transmitter 130, and the road signs as a whole. Only the image of the display unit 70 is displayed. Therefore, the user can check not only the same information displayed on the road sign but also location geographic information additionally described in each direction of the road sign, so that the user can more easily find a route to the destination. In other words, it is not easy to select a route to Sinchon by using only one location geographic information (Youngdong Bridge), but if you get three more information as described above, it is possible to link with the route to Sinchon according to the rule of thumb. You can easily choose the route to your destination. In other words, if the route to the destination is not known at all, the navigation device can only be used. However, even if the user does not know which direction to go instantaneously while driving without knowing the route through the navigation device, The road sign image in which the additional information is described from the communication device 200 installed on the road sign can be confirmed through the navigation device. Thus, it becomes possible to provide the user with a lot of information related to the route that can reach the destination without operating the navigation device during driving.

While the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the above drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. That is, the present invention can be variously modified and modified within the scope of the following claims, all of which are within the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the invention is limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.

30: Road Sign Communication Department
40: Road sign image matching unit
50: Map image generating unit
70:
90:
N: Navigation device
200: communication device
210:

Claims (9)

A storage unit for storing map information, comprising: a storage unit including information of a unique link ID (ID) for a road by a road sign;
A road sign communicator communicating with a communication device installed in a road sign to receive an image for each direction of the road sign and a unique link ID of each road associated with each image from the communication device;
It is judged whether or not the unique link ID of the traveling direction road on the route to the currently set destination is consistent with the unique link ID of each direction of the received road and the progress of the road sign linked with the matched unique link ID A road sign image matching unit displaying a direction image through a display unit;
A map image generating unit for generating a map image using the stored map information and displaying the generated map image through a display unit;
And a control unit
Navigation device comprising a. The navigation apparatus of claim 1, wherein the road sign image matching unit overlaps and displays a moving direction image of a road sign associated with the matched unique link ID on a map image generated by the map image generating unit. Device. The method of claim 2, wherein the road sign image matching unit displays a moving direction image of a road sign associated with the matched unique link ID as an image separate from the map image generated by the map image generating unit. Navigation device. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the controller determines whether a route is set by a user, and when the route is not set, the direction of the road sign of information transmitted from the communication device. It is configured to display only the image of the entire road sign without displaying a star image, and in addition to the information displayed on the actual road sign, a plurality of location geographic information for each direction of the road sign is additionally displayed on the image of the entire road sign. Navigation device characterized in that. The navigation device according to claim 4, wherein the navigation link data or the standard node link data of the Ministry of Construction and Transportation is used as the unique link ID. A communication device installed in a road sign and communicating with a navigation device installed in a vehicle approaching the road sign, for providing road sign related information to the device,
A storage unit which stores an image for each direction of the road sign and a unique link ID of the road for each direction associated with each image;
A communication unit for communicating with the navigation device,
A transmitting unit for transmitting the image of each storage direction of the storage unit and the unique link ID of the roads of the respective storage directions to the navigation device;
Control unit for controlling the operation of the communication device and each unit
Communication device comprising a. The method of claim 6, wherein the storage unit stores the image of the entire road sign in addition to the image for each direction of progress and the unique link ID of the road for each direction of progress, and the typical location geographic location indicated by the direction of the road sign on the image of the entire road sign And at least one location geographic information is added for each direction in addition to the information. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the transmitting unit transmits an image of the entire road sign to which the at least one location geographic information is added in each direction in addition to the image for each direction and the unique link ID of the road for each direction, to the navigation device. A communication device, characterized in that. The communication device according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the navigation network data or the Ministry of Construction and Transportation standard Node Link data is used as the unique link ID.

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