JP4413044B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device that is mounted on a vehicle and displays a guidance route to a destination and a current position on a map to guide a user to the destination.

  A navigation device mounted on a moving body such as an automobile (hereinafter, a case where a navigation device is mounted on an automobile will be described as an example) is a vehicle travel guide (guidance) so that the driver can easily drive to a destination designated by the driver. I do. Such a navigation device detects the position of the vehicle and uses a map data storage medium such as a CD-ROM (compact disk / read only memory), DVD (digital versatile disk), HDD (Hard Disk Drive), etc. The map data of the area corresponding to the current position is called, a map image is displayed on the display, and a mark indicating the vehicle position is superimposed on a predetermined position on the map image. Patent Document 1 also proposes a navigation device that guides traveling according to a guidance route to a destination by displaying a screen.

JP 2003-232648 A

  However, when the route to the destination can be grasped, guidance guidance by the navigation device is not necessary, but there are cases where it is desired to recognize the required time and the moving distance to the destination. For example, the child has to be picked up at 5 o'clock, so he wants to return home by 4:30. In such a case, inputting the home which is the destination to the navigation apparatus and performing the route search is a troublesome work.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device that can display a required time and a distance to a predetermined registration location even during non-guidance.

  In order to achieve such an object, the navigation device of the present invention is a navigation device that guides traveling according to a guidance route to a destination by display on a screen, and the destination is set by the navigation device. It is characterized by having a control unit that obtains a distance from the current location to a preset registration location and a required time to the registration location and displays at least one of them when not guided. When the destination is not set, the distance and required time to the registered location are calculated in advance, so even when the destination is not set, at least the distance and required time to the registered location are calculated. One can be displayed.

  The navigation device according to the present invention is characterized in that the navigation device further includes an operation input unit for setting display and non-display of the road distance and the required time. By displaying the distance and required time to the registered location calculated at the time of non-guidance by inputting the operator's instructions, the distance and required time are displayed only when the operator needs it. Can be made.

  The present invention can provide a navigation device that can display a required time and a distance to a registered place set in advance during non-guidance.

  Next, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  First, the configuration of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the navigation device 1 of this embodiment includes a map data storage medium 10, a disk driver 11, an operation unit 12, a communication device 13, a VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication System) sensor 14, a GPS receiver 15, A self-contained navigation sensor 16, a navigation controller 20, a display 40 and a speaker 41 are included.

  The map data storage medium 10 includes a storage device such as a CD-ROM, DVD, HDD. The map data stored in the map data storage medium 10 is divided into longitude and latitude widths of appropriate sizes according to the scale level such as 1/1500, 1/25000, 1 / 50,000 and 1/100000. The map is managed in units of leaves, and roads and the like are stored as a coordinate set of vertices (nodes) expressed by longitude and latitude. A road is formed by connecting two or more nodes, and a portion connecting two nodes is called a link. The map data of each leaf can be specified and read by designating the leaf number. In addition, map data for each map leaf includes a drawing unit composed of various data necessary for map display, a road unit composed of data necessary for various processes such as map matching, route search, route guidance, and intersections. An intersection unit consisting of detailed data is included. The drawing unit described above includes background layer data necessary for displaying buildings, rivers, and the like, and character layer data necessary for displaying city names, road names, and the like.

  The disk driver 11 reads various map data necessary for map display, route search, and the like, and program data from the map data storage medium 10 as necessary.

  The operation unit 12 is a remote controller or input keys for the user to input various instructions to the navigation controller 20.

  The communication device 13 includes a vehicle-mounted telephone for communicating with a service center (a service center of a manufacturer or other organization).

  The VICS sensor 14 receives traffic information provided from the VICS center via an optical beacon or a radio beacon. When the vehicle passes under an oscillator that transmits this optical beacon or radio wave beacon, road information is transmitted from the transmitter to the vehicle. The location data of the transmitter is included in the upper part of the road.

  The navigation device 1 receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites, performs positioning processing, and calculates the relative position of the vehicle using satellite navigation that measures the absolute position of the vehicle and a plurality of sensors mounted on the vehicle. The current position of the vehicle is specified by the self-contained navigation to be measured. The vehicle position detection unit 22 that controls this function includes a GPS receiver 15, a GPS data storage unit 23, a self-contained navigation sensor 16, and a vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 24.

  The GPS receiver 15 receives a GPS signal sent from a GPS satellite and detects the current position and direction of the vehicle. More specifically, the GPS receiver 15 receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of GPS satellites, performs three-dimensional positioning processing or two-dimensional positioning processing, calculates the absolute position and direction of the vehicle, and Is output together with the positioning time. The absolute position and direction of the vehicle calculated by the GPS receiver 15 and the positioning time are stored in the GPS data storage unit 23.

  The self-contained navigation sensor 16 includes a vehicle speed sensor 17, a gyro sensor 18, a reverse sensor 19, and the like, and measures the relative position of the vehicle using these sensors.

  The vehicle speed sensor 17 is disposed in the vehicle and detects the rotational speed of an output shaft or wheels of a transmission that outputs a driving force from an engine mounted on the vehicle, for example. Specifically, a predetermined number of vehicle speed pulses are output every time the wheel rotates once. By counting the number of vehicle speed pulses, the travel distance of the host vehicle can be calculated, and the vehicle speed of the host vehicle can be calculated from the travel distance per unit time.

  The gyro sensor 18 is a sensor for detecting the vehicle direction. The vehicle azimuth is calculated by sampling a predetermined number of azimuths determined from the current vehicle position at the present time and the vehicle position one sampling time before ΔT. The reverse sensor 19 outputs a signal indicating the reverse of the vehicle. The vehicle speed sensor 17, the gyro sensor 18, and the reverse sensor 19 enable autonomous navigation, and complement navigation using GPS.

  Based on the image data output from the navigation controller 20, the display 40 displays a map image around the host vehicle together with a vehicle position mark, a departure point mark, a destination mark, etc., and a guide route or a detour route on this map. Or display a guidance route. The speaker 41 outputs various messages to the user based on the audio data output from the navigation controller 20.

  The navigation controller 20 includes a buffer memory 21, a GPS data storage unit 23 and a vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 24, a control unit 25, a map drawing unit 26, an operation screen / mark generation unit 27, and a route storage. Section 28, route drawing section 29, mark storage section 30, mark drawing section 31, history memory section 32, audio output section 33, connection ID storage section 34, and image composition section 35.

  The buffer memory 21 temporarily stores map data and programs read from the map data storage medium 10 by the control unit 25 via the disk driver 11.

  The GPS data storage unit 23 stores the absolute position and direction of the vehicle calculated by the GPS receiver 15 and the positioning time.

  The vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 24 calculates the vehicle position (estimated vehicle position) and the vehicle direction based on the vehicle speed and the vehicle azimuth data output from the self-contained navigation sensor 16. Specifically, the vehicle travel distance is calculated by multiplying the vehicle speed pulse output from the vehicle speed sensor 17 by a correction coefficient that is the travel distance per vehicle speed pulse. Further, the vehicle speed is obtained by dividing the moving distance by the unit time. Further, the displacement amount obtained by the gyro sensor 18 is multiplied by a bearing calculation coefficient to obtain a moving bearing. When the moving distance and moving direction are obtained, the current position is obtained by adding the moving distance and moving direction to the vehicle position obtained last time.

  The control unit 25 is configured by a microcomputer, for example, and controls the navigation controller 20 as a whole. The control unit 25 calculates various costs under search conditions set using the read map data, and searches for a route from the departure point to the destination. For example, the guide route that minimizes the cost under various conditions such as the shortest time is selected. As a typical method of route search, Dijkstra method and horizontal search method are known. The searched route information is recorded in the route storage unit 28. Note that the cost is defined in the dimension of time, and is obtained by adding the time required to pass a certain section and the time required to pass an intersection or the like. In general, the average speed is set according to factors such as the width of the road and the road type (for example, general roads, high speeds, etc.), and the time required for passing the road is obtained. The cost is calculated by adding the time taken into consideration.

  In addition, the control unit 25 obtains a required time and a distance to reach the destination by traveling according to the guidance route obtained by the route search. Since a distance (referred to as a link distance) is obtained for each link, the road distance is obtained by adding the link distances on the guidance route. Further, since the control unit 25 has a time measuring function and can calculate the average vehicle speed of the own vehicle from the output signal of the vehicle speed sensor 17, the required time can be obtained from the obtained road distance and the average vehicle speed. The required time is calculated by multiplying the link distance by the unit distance travel time set according to the number of lanes registered for each link, lane width, and road type (highway, national highway, prefectural road, etc.) It can also be calculated by obtaining the time and obtaining the sum of the link passage times on the guidance route. When the required time is calculated in more detail, the travel time of a predetermined section provided by the VICS information can be used for cost calculation.

  Further, the control unit 25 displays a map around the vehicle position on the display 40 while the navigation device 1 is powered on. The vehicle position calculated from the GPS data of the GPS receiver 15 and the output data of the autonomous navigation sensor 16 is acquired, and the currently selected map scale stored in the buffer memory 21 is always checked. Unless the operation unit 12 inputs an operation for enlarging or reducing the map, the background data, road data, and facility data around the vehicle position corresponding to the currently selected map scale are transferred from the map data storage medium 10 to the disk driver 11. And store it in the buffer memory 21. When a map enlargement / reduction operation is input by the operation unit 12, background data, road data, and facility data corresponding to the corresponding map scale are read from the map data storage medium 10 and stored in the buffer memory 21.

  The map drawing unit 26 performs a map image drawing process using the map data read to the buffer memory 21.

  The operation screen / mark generation unit 27 generates various menu screens (operation screens) and various marks such as a vehicle position mark and a cursor according to the operation status.

  The route storage unit 28 includes data on all nodes (coordinate points expressed by latitude and longitude) from the departure point to the destination of the guidance route searched by the control unit 25, and the guidance route changed during guidance. Data is recorded. The route drawing unit 29 reads the guidance route data (node string) from the route storage unit 28 and draws the guidance route with a color and line width different from those of other roads.

  The mark storage unit 30 relates to icons of a predetermined shape (brand icon, category icon, etc.) given as information for instructing the position of the target property on the map screen and a simple shape mark given instead of this icon. Data is stored in advance. The mark drawing unit 31 performs drawing processing of data read from the mark storage unit 30 based on the control of the control unit 25.

  The image synthesis unit 35 synthesizes images output from the map drawing unit 26, the operation screen / mark generation unit 27, the route drawing unit 29, and the mark drawing unit 31 and outputs the synthesized image to the display 40.

  The history memory unit 32 is composed of a nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM or a flash memory, and stores various data to be backed up. For example, information such as a destination set in the past and a facility where a search is performed is registered together with information on a set time and a search time. The audio output unit 33 outputs an audio signal to the speaker 41 based on the signal from the control unit 25. The connection ID storage unit 34 stores service center addresses, connection IDs, passwords, and the like of manufacturers and other organizations.

  In the registered location position information storage unit 36, the latitude of the registered location and the location information of the route preset by the user are registered. As for the registered location, the control unit 25 calculates the required time and distance to the registered location when not guided, and displays it on the display 40. For example, by setting the home as a registered place, the required time and distance to the home can be displayed on the display 40 without setting the destination. The registration location can be rewritten by the operation unit 12.

  As described above, the navigation device 1 according to the present embodiment has general functions of the navigation device 1 such as a route search function, and guides the vehicle on which the navigation device 1 is mounted to a set destination. For example, there is a function of searching for facilities registered in advance and setting a destination. This function will be described. The map data storage medium 10 stores, for example, data related to facilities such as convenience stores, gas stations, restaurants, etc., classified by genre. When the facility search is designated by the user, the control unit 25 searches for and extracts the facility corresponding to the designated search condition. For the extracted facilities, calculate the relative positional relationship between the location and the vehicle position, and reflect the relative positional relationship, the vehicle position mark and the facility mark (marks indicating the location of surrounding facilities) The drawing data for displaying the predetermined facility information image in which is arranged is generated and stored in the buffer memory 21. The drawing data stored in the buffer memory 21 is output to the display 40 via the map drawing unit 26 and the image composition unit 35, and a predetermined facility information image is displayed on the screen of the display 40.

  The navigation device 1 of the present embodiment displays at least one of the required time to the place registered in the registered place position information storage unit 36 and the road distance during non-guidance when the destination is not set. It is said. The control unit 25 calculates the road distance to the registered location and the required time stored in the registered location position information storage unit 36 when no destination is set. The control unit 25 searches for a route from the current position to the registered location, and obtains a required time and a distance to reach the destination by traveling according to the guidance route obtained by the route search. Since a distance (referred to as a link distance) is obtained for each link, the road distance is obtained by adding the link distances on the guidance route. Further, the required time can be obtained from the obtained road distance and the average vehicle speed.

  The required time is calculated by multiplying the link distance by the unit distance travel time set by the number of lanes registered for each link, the lane width, and the road type (highway, national road, prefectural road, etc.), and the link transit time for each link And the total sum of links on the guidance route can be obtained. When the required time is calculated in more detail, the travel time of a predetermined section provided by the VICS information can be used for cost calculation.

  At least one of the required time and the road distance calculated in this way is displayed on the display 40 by an operation input from the operation unit 12. The display position may be displayed in the vicinity of the icon indicating the vehicle position as shown in FIG. 2 (A), or may be displayed in the corner of the screen displaying the map as shown in FIG. 2 (B). Good.

  Since the distance to the registered location registered in advance and the required time are calculated and displayed at the time of non-guidance, the user can register the registered location without setting the destination and performing the route guidance on the navigation device. It is possible to recognize the distance to the road and the required time. Therefore, you have to pick up your child at 5 o'clock, so you do not need to perform route guidance, such as when you want to return home by 4:30, but it is effective when you want to know the estimated arrival time and distance. Function can be provided.

  Next, the operation procedure of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, when the navigation apparatus 1 is powered on (step S1), it is confirmed whether or not a destination has been set (step S2). If the destination setting is not input, it is determined whether or not items such as the required time to the registered place and the distance to the registered place are set for display (step S3). When the display item is set (step S3 / YES), it is confirmed whether the item is only the required time, the distance, or both (step S4). It is taken out from the registered location position information storage unit 36 (step S5). Next, the current position of the vehicle is confirmed based on the information from the vehicle position detecting unit 22 (step S6), and a predetermined range of map data including the current position and the registered location, that is, data related to route search such as a road unit is obtained. Read (step S7). A route from the current position to the registered location is searched based on the read map data, and the distance and required time are obtained (step S8).

  Next, a map image around the current position is created based on the map data read from the map data storage medium 10 (step S9), and the vehicle mark, icon, and display items are set on the created map image. The information (distance to the registration location, required time) is superimposed and displayed on the display 40 (step S10).

  If the display item is not set (step S3 / NO), the current position of the vehicle is confirmed based on the information from the vehicle position detection unit 22 (step S11), and the map data storage medium 10 is used to check the vicinity of the current position. Map data is read out (step S12). A map image around the current position is created based on the read map data (step S13), and an icon such as a vehicle mark is superimposed on the created map image and displayed on the display 40 (step S14).

  Next, when the destination setting is input (step S2 / YES), the current position of the vehicle is confirmed based on information from the vehicle position detection unit 22 (step S15), and a predetermined range including the current position and the destination. Map data, that is, data related to route search such as road units is read (step S16). A route from the current position to the destination is searched based on the read map data, and a guidance route is set (step S17). Further, the travel distance and the required time are obtained from the obtained guidance route (step S18).

  Next, a map image around the current position is created based on the map data read from the map data storage medium 10 (step S19), and a guide route image, a vehicle mark, an icon, a destination are created on the created map image. Information such as the distance to the road and the required time is superimposed and displayed on the display 40 (step S20).

  The embodiment described above is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus of an Example. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the display at the time of non-guidance. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of a navigation apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Navigation apparatus 10 Map data storage medium 11 Disk driver 12 Operation part 13 Communication apparatus 14 VICS sensor 15 GPS receiver 16 Self-supporting navigation sensor 17 Vehicle speed sensor 18 Gyro sensor 19 Reverse sensor 20 Navigation controller 21 Buffer memory 22 Vehicle position detection part 23 GPS Data storage unit 24 Vehicle position / orientation calculation unit 25 Control unit 26 Map drawing unit 27 Operation screen / mark generation unit 28 Route storage unit 29 Route drawing unit 30 Mark storage unit 31 Mark drawing unit 32 History memory unit 33 Audio output unit 34 Connection ID storage unit 35 Image composition unit 36 Registration location position information storage unit 40 Display 41 Speaker

Claims (2)

A navigation device that guides driving according to a guidance route to a destination by display on a screen,
A navigation apparatus comprising: a control unit that obtains a distance from a current location to a preset registration location and a required time to the registration location and displays at least one of them when the destination is not set and is not guided . The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an operation input unit that sets display and non-display of the road distance and the required time.

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