JP2008064468A - Navigation device and information displaying method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation device and an information displaying method capable of enhancing the visibility for congestion display of VICS level 3 and traveling track display without complicated operation by a user. <P>SOLUTION: A display controlling unit 24 is provided for controlling a traveling track drawing section 21 in such a manner that traveling track information is not displayed, when the position of a road section indicated by congestion information stored in a VICS information memory 15 and the position of a road section indicated by traveling track information stored in a traveling track memory 18 are substantially the same, thereby preventing the congestion information and the traveling track information from overlapping each other while displayed. This makes it unnecessary for a user to operate a troublesome menu, e.g., to change a display mode not to display the traveling track information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device and an information display method, and is particularly suitable for use in a navigation device having a function of displaying traffic information received from a VICS center and accumulated past travel locus information on a screen.

  In general, in-vehicle navigation devices detect the current position of a vehicle using a self-contained navigation sensor, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver, or the like, read out map data in the vicinity of the vehicle, and display it on a screen. Then, the vehicle position mark indicating the vehicle position is superimposed and displayed at a predetermined location on the screen, so that it can be seen at a glance where the vehicle is currently traveling.

  The navigation device receives VICS road traffic information (hereinafter abbreviated as VICS information) sent from the road traffic information center (VICS center), and can display a constantly changing road condition on the navigation screen. There are many things. A navigation device equipped with such a VICS function can provide road traffic information such as traffic jam information and regulation information to the user in real time through a screen display.

  VICS information includes three types of information: level 1 (character display type), level 2 (simple graphic display type), and level 3 (map display type). Of these, the level 3 VICS information is traffic information for informing the presence or absence of traffic congestion or congestion by colored arrows on the map. That is, when congestion information (congestion / congestion / smooth) of each link representing a road is received from the VICS center, a congestion location (red arrow) beside the road corresponding to each link based on the congestion information. And crowded places (orange arrows) are blinking. In addition, a blue arrow is displayed on the side of the road where cars are flowing smoothly.

Some navigation devices have a function of automatically recording a trajectory traveled by a vehicle. In this type of navigation device, when the user operates the remote controller or the like to switch to the traveling locus display mode, the traveling locus is displayed as a row of dots (points) on the road corresponding to each link. You can go back to the original point. A technique has also been proposed in which the display / non-display of the travel locus is automatically switched according to the location where the vehicle is traveling (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2005-181073 A

  However, VICS level 3 traffic jam information (arrows beside the road) and travel locus information (dot columns on the road) are both displayed using road link information. Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, in a road shape in which an expressway and a general road overlap each other, the road link of the expressway and the road link of the general road almost overlap, so the traffic jam display and the travel locus display are May overlap. When the traffic jam display and the travel locus display are displayed in an overlapping manner, it is very difficult to see and there is a problem that the user is difficult to recognize both.

  In addition, it is possible to make traffic information easy to see by switching to the traveling locus non-display mode and turning off the traveling locus display. However, for this purpose, the user must manually switch the mode by operating a remote controller or the like. In general, a navigation apparatus is equipped with a large number of functions, and a desired function is selected from a hierarchical menu. Therefore, in order to switch from the traveling locus display mode to the traveling locus non-display mode, an operation for selecting a menu item is required several times, which is complicated.

  Further, according to the technique described in Patent Document 1, the display / non-display of the travel locus can be automatically switched. However, when the vehicle is not traveling on the main road, the travel locus is displayed. However, there is still a problem that it may be difficult to see due to the overlap of the traveling locus display.

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and can improve the visibility of a traffic congestion display and a travel locus display at VICS level 3 without troublesome operations by the user. The purpose is to do so.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, in the present invention, the position of the road section indicated by the traffic information received by the traffic information receiving unit and the road section indicated by the travel path information stored in the travel path storage unit When the position is substantially the same, the display / non-display of at least one of the traffic jam information and the travel locus information is controlled. For example, control is performed so that only one of traffic jam information and travel locus information is displayed and the other is not displayed. Alternatively, control is performed so that traffic jam information and travel locus information are alternately displayed for a predetermined time.

  According to the present invention configured as described above, when the position of the road segment indicated by the traffic jam information and the position of the road segment indicated by the travel trajectory information are substantially the same, the traffic jam information and the travel trajectory information Are not displayed at the same time, the traffic jam information and the travel trajectory information are not displayed overlapping each other, and the visibility of the traffic jam information and the travel trajectory information can be improved. In addition, since the display / non-display of the traffic jam information and the travel locus information is automatically switched, the user does not have to perform a complicated menu operation to switch the display mode.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a navigation device according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a system controller that controls the entire navigation device. The system controller 1 is constituted by a microcomputer or the like, and performs a drawing process of a map, VICS level 3 traffic jam information (arrows beside a road), travel locus information (dots on a road), and the like.

  Reference numeral 2 denotes a map storage medium such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), which stores map data necessary for map display and route search. Here, the DVD 2 is used as a storage medium for storing the map data, but other storage media such as a CD-ROM, a hard disk, and a semiconductor memory may be used. A DVD control unit 3 controls reading of map data from the DVD 2.

  The map data stored on the DVD 2 includes information on nodes corresponding to points where a plurality of roads intersect such as intersections and branches, and roads that connect between a node on the road and other nodes adjacent thereto. And information about links corresponding to lanes and the like. In other words, the map data includes a connection node table storing detailed data of all nodes and a link table storing detailed data of links specified by two adjacent nodes.

  The connection node table includes information such as normalized longitude / latitude of nodes, attribute flags, the number of traffic regulations, and traffic regulation records for each existing node. The normalized longitude / latitude indicates a relative position in the longitude direction / latitude direction with reference to a predetermined section. The attribute flag includes an intersection node flag indicating whether or not the node is an intersection node. The number of traffic regulations indicates the number of traffic regulations when there is traffic regulation such as right turn prohibition or U-turn prohibition on the link connected to the node. The traffic regulation record indicates the specific contents of the traffic regulation corresponding to the number of traffic regulations described above, if any.

  Further, the link table includes information such as a link distance, a link cost, a road attribute flag, and a road type flag. The link distance indicates the actual distance of the actual road corresponding to the link. The cost of the link is, for example, a value obtained by multiplying a predetermined constant according to the road width, road type, left / right turn, traffic regulation, etc. based on the distance, and is a numerical value of the appropriate degree as a guide route. . The road attribute flag indicates various attributes relating to the link. For example, an attribute indicating whether or not the link corresponds to a VICS link (link capable of receiving road traffic information) managed by the VICS center is included. The road type flag indicates a type indicating whether the actual road corresponding to the link is an expressway or a general road.

  Reference numeral 4 denotes an operation unit, which includes, for example, a remote controller (remote controller). The operation unit 4 allows the user to set various types of information (for example, route guidance destinations and waypoints) to the system controller 1 and various operations (for example, screen scrolling, map search, enlargement / reduction, Various operators (buttons, joysticks, etc.) for performing an optimal route search) are provided. In addition, you may comprise this operation part 4 with the touchscreen etc. which were provided on the screen of the display apparatus 10 mentioned later.

  Reference numeral 5 denotes a GPS receiver, which receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites by a GPS antenna 6 and performs a three-dimensional positioning process or a two-dimensional positioning process to calculate the absolute position and direction of the vehicle (vehicle The azimuth is calculated based on the current vehicle position and the current vehicle position one sampling time ΔT before). Then, the calculated information on the absolute position and direction of the vehicle is output to the system controller 1 together with the positioning time.

  Reference numeral 7 denotes a self-contained navigation sensor, which includes a relative azimuth sensor (angle sensor) 7a such as a vibration gyro that detects the rotation angle of the vehicle, and a distance sensor 7b that outputs one pulse for each predetermined travel distance. The self-contained navigation sensor 7 detects the relative position and direction of the vehicle by the angle sensor 7a and the distance sensor 7b, and outputs the information to the system controller 1.

  8 is a beacon transmitter / receiver that performs two-way communication with radio wave beacon transmitters / receivers mainly installed on highways, mainly with optical beacon transmitters / receivers installed on general roads. By performing two-way communication via light between them, VICS information sent from a VICS center (not shown) is received. Reference numeral 9 denotes an FM multiplex broadcast receiver that receives VICS information sent from an unillustrated VICS center via FM broadcast radio waves. The VICS information received by the beacon transceiver 8 and the FM multiplex broadcast receiver 9 includes level 3 traffic jam information. The beacon transmitter / receiver 8 and the FM multiplex broadcast receiver 9 constitute a traffic jam information receiving unit of the present invention.

  Reference numeral 10 denotes a display device, which displays a map image of the vicinity of the vehicle along with vehicle position marks and various landmarks based on image data output from the system controller 1, or displays a travel locus, a guide route, VICS on this map. Information on traffic congestion based on the information is displayed, and an enlarged view of the intersection is displayed when the position of the vehicle approaches the vicinity of the guidance intersection.

  Next, a detailed configuration of the system controller 1 will be described. Reference numeral 11 denotes a map data memory, which temporarily stores map data read from the DVD 2. Reference numeral 12 denotes an interface for receiving operation information of the operation unit 4. Reference numeral 13 denotes a GPS data storage unit that sequentially stores data on the absolute position and direction of the host vehicle output from the GPS receiver 5. Reference numeral 14 denotes a vehicle position / orientation calculation unit, which calculates an absolute vehicle position (estimated vehicle position) and vehicle direction based on data on the relative position and direction of the vehicle output from the self-contained navigation sensor 7. To do.

  A VICS information storage unit 15 stores the VICS information received by the beacon transceiver 8 and the FM multiplex broadcast receiver 9. Reference numeral 16 denotes a map matching processing unit, which is the map data read into the map data memory 11, the vehicle position and vehicle orientation data by the GPS receiver 5 stored in the GPS data storage unit 13, and the vehicle position / Using the vehicle position and vehicle direction data based on the self-contained navigation sensor 7 calculated by the direction calculation unit 14, map matching processing is performed for each vehicle travel distance, and the travel position of the vehicle is determined on the road of the map data. Correct the position.

  Reference numeral 17 denotes a guidance route generator, which searches for a guidance route from the current location to the destination using the map data read out to the map data memory 11 under the set search conditions. Reference numeral 18 denotes a travel trajectory storage unit. Based on data output from the GPS data storage unit 13 or the vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 14, vehicle position information for each predetermined time or for each predetermined travel distance is used as vehicle travel trajectory information. Remember.

  A map drawing unit 19 displays a map around the vehicle position based on the map data stored in the map data memory 11 and the vehicle current position information after the map matching processing unit 16 performs the map matching process. Map image data necessary for display on the apparatus 10 is drawn. At this time, the map drawing unit 19 generates vehicle position marks and various landmarks representing the position of the vehicle, and generates map image data necessary for displaying these various marks together with the map.

  Reference numeral 20 denotes a guidance route drawing unit, which draws a guidance route based on the guidance route data generated by the guidance route generation unit 17. Specifically, the guidance route is drawn thickly with a different color from other roads. Further, when the vehicle approaches a guidance intersection on the guidance route within a certain distance, an enlarged view of the intersection is drawn. Reference numeral 21 denotes a travel locus drawing unit, which draws a row of dots (points) on the road corresponding to each link based on the travel locus data stored in the travel locus storage unit 18. That is, a row of dots is drawn at the vehicle position on the road plotted every predetermined time or every predetermined mileage.

  A traffic jam information drawing unit 22 draws the traffic jam information with colored arrows on the side of the road corresponding to each link based on the VICS information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15. Specifically, drawing is performed so that a traffic jam location (red arrow) or a congestion location (orange arrow) blinks beside the road corresponding to each link. Also, a blue arrow is drawn on the side of the road where the cars are flowing smoothly.

  Reference numeral 23 denotes an image composition unit, which is a map route drawn by the map drawing unit 19, a guide route drawn by the guide route drawing unit 20, a travel locus drawn by the travel locus drawing unit 21, and a traffic jam information drawing unit 22. The drawn VICS level 3 traffic jam information is superimposed and output to the display device 10.

  24 is a display control unit, and when the mode for displaying both the traffic jam information and the travel locus information is set, the position of the road section indicated by the traffic jam information in the map area displayed on the screen, and the screen display It is determined whether or not the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information in the map area to be displayed is substantially the same, and if it is substantially the same, control is performed so that the travel locus information is not displayed ( Traffic congestion information is displayed).

  The map area displayed on the screen is a predetermined range including the current vehicle position based on the map data stored in the map data memory 11 and the current vehicle position information obtained by the map matching processing unit 16. It can be specified as an area. The size of the predetermined range including the current vehicle position is determined according to the display scale set in the system memory (not shown) by the operation of the operation unit 4.

  In order to hide the travel locus information, for example, the display control unit 24 stops the operation of the travel locus drawing unit 21. By doing so, conventionally, the travel locus information is displayed superimposed on the traffic information of VICS level 3 as shown in FIG. 5, but in this embodiment, only the traffic information is displayed as shown in FIG. . Therefore, since the travel locus information is not displayed overlapping the traffic jam information, the visibility of the traffic jam information can be improved.

  Note that when the operation of the travel locus drawing unit 21 is stopped as described above, no travel locus information is displayed on the display device 10. On the other hand, it is also possible to perform control so that only a part of the travel locus information stored in the travel locus storage unit 18 is hidden. For example, N or more plot points (N is a natural number) behind the current position of the vehicle or travel locus information corresponding to plot points stored within the latest M minutes (M is a positive number) in the travel locus storage unit 18 (M is a positive number). Only the dot) may be displayed, and the travel locus information corresponding to other plot points may be hidden.

  In this case, the display control unit 24 acquires the current position information of the vehicle from the map matching processing unit 16. Then, the current position information of the vehicle is supplied to the travel locus drawing unit 21, and only the travel locus information corresponding to N plot points counted backward from the current vehicle position is displayed, and other plot points are displayed. The traveling locus drawing unit 21 is controlled so as to hide the corresponding traveling locus information.

  Alternatively, each time the travel locus storage unit 18 stores the vehicle position information of each plot point, for example, the time information output from the GPS receiver 5 and stored in the GPS data storage unit 13 is timed to the vehicle position information of each plot point. Associating and storing as a stamp. Then, the display control unit 24 controls the traveling locus drawing unit 21 so as to display only traveling locus information corresponding to the plot points stored within the latest M minutes in the traveling locus storage unit 18.

  In this way, since the traveling locus is displayed to some extent at least behind the vehicle position, the user can grasp from which direction the vehicle has traveled. For example, when you stop at a certain facility and start again, you can find out which direction you are coming from. In addition, if the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the road section indicated by the travel trajectory information are substantially overlapped, the travel trajectory information is not displayed before the vehicle position. The traffic information of becomes easy to see.

  Further, it is possible to hide the travel locus information only in the road section that is substantially the same as the road section indicated by the traffic jam information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15. In this case, the display control unit 24 examines the road section where the traffic information is displayed based on the traffic information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15. Then, information indicating the road section is supplied to the travel locus drawing section 21, and the travel locus drawing section 21 is controlled so as not to draw the travel locus for a road section that is substantially at the same position as the road section. Further, the travel trajectory information may be hidden only in a road section at the same position as the road section where traffic congestion or congestion is indicated by the traffic congestion information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15.

  In this way, even if the position of the road section indicated by the traffic jam information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same in a part of the display map area, the sections are not substantially the same. As for, the traveling track information will be displayed. Thereby, while improving the visibility of traffic jam information, the travel locus information can be provided to the user in part. For this reason, the user can travel while following the travel locus, and can easily recognize traffic jam information.

  Next, an operation example of the navigation device according to the present embodiment configured as described above, that is, a processing procedure of the information display method according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the navigation device according to the present embodiment. Here, it is assumed that a mode for displaying the travel locus information is set.

  In FIG. 2, the travel locus storage unit 18 plots the vehicle position, for example, every predetermined time based on the data output from the GPS data storage unit 13 or the vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 14. That is, the traveling locus storage unit 18 sequentially stores the vehicle position information of each plot point as traveling locus information (step S1).

  Further, the beacon transceiver 8 and the FM multiplex broadcast receiver 9 receive VICS information sent from a VICS center (not shown) and output it to the system controller 1. The system controller 1 stores this VICS information in the VICS information storage unit 15 (step S2).

  Next, the display control unit 24 displays the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information stored in the travel locus storage unit 18 and the road section indicated by the traffic jam information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15. It is determined whether or not the position is substantially the same (step S3). Here, it is determined whether or not there is a matching road section by focusing on the map area displayed on the screen.

  When the display control unit 24 determines that the position of the road section of the travel locus information is substantially the same as the position of the road section of the traffic jam information, the display section 24 draws the travel locus so that the travel locus information is not displayed. The unit 21 is controlled (step S4). As the method of non-display of the travel locus information here, there are several patterns as described above, and any pattern may be adopted. On the other hand, when it is determined that the position of the road segment of the travel locus information and the position of the road section of the traffic jam information are not substantially the same, the display control unit 24 displays the travel locus drawing unit 21 so as to display the travel locus information. Control is performed so that both the travel locus information and the traffic jam information are displayed on the screen (step S5).

  As described above in detail, according to the present embodiment, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same, It is made to hide. As a result, the congestion information and the travel locus information are not displayed overlapping each other on the road, and the visibility of the congestion information can be improved. In addition, since the display / non-display of the travel locus information is automatically switched, the user does not have to perform a complicated menu operation to switch the display mode.

  Further, in this embodiment, for only the map area displayed on the screen, it is determined whether the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same. If it is determined that they are substantially the same, the travel locus information is not displayed. In this way, even if the road section of the traffic jam information and the road section of the travel trajectory information almost overlap in the map area not displayed on the screen, the road section of the traffic jam information and the road travel within the map area displayed on the screen. If the road section of the trajectory information does not substantially overlap, the travel trajectory information can also be displayed.

  In the above-described embodiment, the example of controlling the display / non-display of the travel locus information has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel path information are substantially the same, the display control unit 24 displays the travel path information and displays the traffic congestion information. You may make it control the traffic information drawing part 22 so that it may not be displayed. Several control patterns for hiding the traffic information in this case are also conceivable, as are the control patterns for hiding the travel locus information.

  For example, in order to hide the traffic jam information, the display control unit 24 can stop the operation of the traffic jam information drawing unit 22. It is also possible to control to hide only a part of the traffic jam information. For example, the congestion information is not displayed only in a road section that is substantially the same as the road section indicated by the travel path information stored in the travel path storage unit 18.

  The display control unit 24 also displays the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15 and the road section indicated by the travel path information stored in the travel path storage unit 18. When the position is substantially the same, the travel locus drawing unit 21 and the congestion information drawing unit 22 may be controlled to alternately display the congestion information and the travel locus information for each predetermined time.

  Further, the position of the road section indicated by the traffic jam information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15 and the position of the road section indicated by the travel path information stored in the travel path storage unit 18 are substantially the same. In some cases, the operation unit 4 previously displays a display mode in which the traffic information is preferentially displayed, the travel locus information is preferentially displayed, or both the traffic jam information and the travel locus information are alternately displayed. The setting may be made through the operation.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a navigation device configured to be able to set a display mode. 3 that have the same reference numerals as those shown in FIG. 1 have the same functions, redundant description thereof will be omitted here. The navigation device shown in FIG. 3 includes a mode setting unit 25 in addition to the configuration shown in FIG. Further, instead of the display control unit 24 shown in FIG. 1, a display control unit 26 having a function different from this is provided.

  The mode setting unit 25 sets the display mode in accordance with a mode designation instruction made by the user operating the operation unit 4. The display mode includes a traffic jam information priority mode that prioritizes traffic information, a travel trajectory priority mode that prioritizes travel trajectory information, and a bilateral priority mode that displays both traffic jam information and travel trajectory. . When the user operates the operation unit 4 to designate a desired display mode, the mode setting unit 25 sets the display mode by storing information on the designated display mode in a system memory (not shown).

  The display control unit 26 controls display / non-display of the traffic jam information stored in the VICS information storage unit 15 and the travel locus information stored in the travel locus storage unit 18. That is, when the traffic information priority mode is set by the mode setting unit 25, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same. The traveling locus drawing unit 21 is controlled so that the traveling locus information is not displayed.

  Further, when the travel locus priority mode is set by the mode setting unit 25, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same. The traffic jam information drawing unit 22 is controlled so as to hide the traffic jam information. Further, when the two-side priority mode is set by the mode setting unit 25, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same, The travel locus drawing unit 21 and the congestion information drawing unit 22 are controlled so as to alternately display the congestion information and the travel locus information for each predetermined time.

  In the above embodiment, an example in which the display control units 24 and 26 control the travel locus drawing unit 21 and / or the traffic information drawing unit 22 in order to control the display / non-display of the traffic jam information or the travel regulation information will be described. However, it is not limited to this. For example, the travel locus drawing unit 21 and the traffic jam information drawing unit 22 always operate normally, and the display control units 24 and 26 control whether or not to output the drawing data to the image composition unit 23. Also good.

  Further, the display control units 24 and 26 may control display / non-display of the travel locus information as follows. That is, each time the traveling locus storage unit 18 stores the vehicle position information of each plot point, the time information output from the GPS receiver 5 and stored in the GPS data storage unit 13 is timed to the vehicle position information of each plot point. Associating and storing as a stamp. The display control units 24 and 26 compare the plot time of each plot point stored in the travel locus storage unit 18 and the reception time of the traffic jam information, respectively, and the plot time is older than the reception time of the traffic jam information. The traveling locus drawing unit 21 is controlled so that the locus information is not displayed.

  Further, in the above embodiment, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information are substantially the same, at least one of the congestion information and the travel locus information is displayed. Although an example of controlling non-display has been described, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the position of the road section indicated by the traffic congestion information is the same as the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information, display / non-display of at least one of the traffic congestion information and the travel locus information is controlled. You may do it.

  In addition, each of the above-described embodiments is merely an example of implementation in carrying out the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention should not be construed in a limited manner. In other words, the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the spirit or main features thereof.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of the navigation apparatus by this embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the navigation apparatus by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the other structural example of the navigation apparatus by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the map screen by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the conventional map screen.

Explanation of symbols

8 Beacon transceiver 9 FM multiplex broadcast receiver 15 VICS information storage unit 18 Traveling track storage unit 21 Traveling track drawing unit 22 Congestion information drawing unit 24, 26 Display control unit 25 Mode setting unit

Claims (11)

A traffic information receiving unit for receiving traffic information sent from outside,
A traveling locus storage unit for storing traveling locus information of the vehicle;
The traffic jam in the map area displayed on the screen when a mode for displaying both the traffic jam information received by the traffic jam information receiving unit and the travel trajectory information stored in the travel trajectory storage unit is set. When it is determined whether or not the position of the road section indicated by the information and the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information in the map area displayed on the screen are substantially the same And a display control unit for controlling display / non-display of at least one of the traffic jam information and the travel locus information. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit controls the traffic information to be displayed and the travel locus information to be hidden. 3. The navigation according to claim 2, wherein the display control unit performs control so that the travel locus information is not displayed only in a road section substantially at the same position as the road section indicated by the traffic jam information. apparatus. The display control unit performs control so that the travel locus information is not displayed only in a road section at substantially the same position as a road section where congestion or congestion is indicated by the congestion information. 3. The navigation device according to 2. The display control unit corresponds to N plot points (N is a natural number) behind the current position of the vehicle or plot points stored within the last M minutes (M is a positive number) in the travel locus storage unit. The navigation apparatus according to claim 2, wherein only the traveling locus information to be displayed is displayed and the traveling locus information corresponding to the other plot points is hidden. The display control unit includes a position of a road section indicated by the traffic congestion information in the map area displayed on the screen, and a position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information in the map area displayed on the screen. 2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein when the two are substantially the same, the travel locus information is displayed and the traffic jam information is not displayed. The display control unit includes a position of a road section indicated by the traffic congestion information in the map area displayed on the screen, and a position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information in the map area displayed on the screen. 2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the traffic jam information and the travel trajectory information are alternately displayed for a predetermined time when the traffic information is substantially the same. A first step of receiving traffic information sent from outside at the traffic information receiving unit;
When the mode for displaying both the traffic information received by the traffic information receiving unit and the travel track information stored in the travel track storage unit is set, the traffic information in the map area displayed on the screen is displayed. A second step of determining whether or not the position of the road section shown is substantially the same as the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information in the map area displayed on the screen;
The position of the road section indicated by the traffic jam information in the map area displayed on the screen is substantially the same as the position of the road section indicated by the travel locus information in the map area displayed on the screen. And a third step of controlling a display control unit to display / hide at least one of the traffic jam information and the travel locus information when it is determined. 8. The information display method according to claim 7, wherein, in the third step, the display control unit performs control so as to display the traffic jam information and hide the travel locus information. 8. The information display method according to claim 7, wherein, in the third step, the display control unit performs control so that the travel locus information is displayed and the traffic jam information is not displayed. 8. The information display method according to claim 7, wherein in the third step, the display control unit performs control so that the traffic jam information and the travel locus information are alternately displayed for each predetermined time.