JP2005214630A - Communication-type navigation device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate the comprehension of information necessary for course guidance even by a small screen of a portable information terminal when performing course guidance by using the information terminal mounted on a movable body as to a communication-type navigation device. <P>SOLUTION: In course guidance, a plurality of image planes such as own vehicle's peripheral map, an enlarged intersection view, and a guidance direction arrow, necessary for guidance and different in displayed information amount, are displayed on a display screen of the portable information terminal as they are changed over in keeping with the movement of the movable body. The setting of a display level as to guidance information is performed at the information terminal for determining which is to be displayed of the plurality of kinds of image planes. The information terminal receives an operation input for changing over displays on a plurality of kinds of guidance information to put together information transmitted from an information center to the information terminal according to the display level. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a portable information terminal that displays information with high visibility in a portable information terminal having a small screen display such as a cellular phone or a PDA.

  In mobile phones, not only telephone functions but also various functions such as a phone book and a schedule table are installed, and it is also possible to install self-made applications. Furthermore, the terminal measures the current position by GPS (Global Positioning System), requests route information, map information, and guidance information from the terminal to the information center, creates route information, map information, guidance information at the information center, A communication type navigation system has been developed that transmits information to a terminal and performs route guidance using the information. Basically, a high-resolution display installed in the car is used to simultaneously display a map, an enlarged view of an intersection, and an arrow in the direction of guidance. Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-018159 proposes a system for performing navigation using a mobile phone by using a mobile phone as a terminal of a communication type navigation system.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-018159 (paragraphs 0007 to 0017, FIG. 5)

  The problem to be solved is that, when performing route guidance on a portable information terminal such as a mobile phone, the screen of the portable information terminal is basically small, so there is a problem in visibility when the conventional display method is applied. Also, when the speed of wireless communication is slow, it takes time to acquire information.

  The present invention is characterized in that, in a portable information terminal, a plurality of screens with different display information amounts are switched and displayed as a screen necessary for route guidance as the portable information terminal moves. The timing for switching the display for presenting the guidance information is based on the method of switching according to the distance between the guide point that is the reference for route guidance and the current position, or the route deviation is detected based on the distance between the guide route and the current position. There are a switching method, a switching method according to the feature of the next guidance point, and a switching method according to a user input. In the method of switching the screen display when a route departure is detected, when a departure from the guidance route is detected, the screen is switched to a screen that displays the destination direction or the direction to return to the route together with the distance to the return point. In addition, in the method of switching according to the characteristics of the next guidance point, if the intersection has lane information, switch to the lane information display screen, and if the intersection does not have lane information, the map around the intersection is displayed. Or, the traveling direction at the intersection is displayed as a guidance screen. Furthermore, in order to call the user's attention to changes in the screen display, the switched screen is notified by voice guidance.

  The present invention also accepts a display level setting related to guidance information, transmits information related to the display level setting to the information center, and receives route information or map information or route guidance information received from the information center according to the display level. It is characterized by selecting.

  Since the communication type navigation system of the present invention can switch and display a plurality of types of guidance information according to the situation, even a portable information terminal having a small screen can provide information necessary for a situation to the user. There is an advantage that the user can easily grasp the information. Further, by switching the screen according to the distance, it is easy to grasp the sense of distance by seeing the change in the displayed information, so that the driver can be given a sense of security.

  In addition, since the display of the guidance information is switched by the operation input, it is possible to display the guidance information according to the user's preference according to the distance.

  Furthermore, it has a function that can set the display level of guidance information, and it can be used without waiting for the communication time even in a slow environment of wireless information communication by transmitting information from the information center as much as necessary according to the display level. I can do it.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, a navigation system that operates in the automobile 1 is assumed, but the present invention can also be applied to a navigation system that operates on a mobile terminal or a mobile phone. This navigation system includes a portable information terminal 1, an information center 2,
It is composed of a GPS satellite group 3, a communication carrier 6, the Internet 7, and a provider 8.

  The portable information terminal 1 is equipped with a GPS antenna 11 or a portable information terminal side wireless transceiver antenna 12. The GPS antenna 11 receives GPS radio waves from the GPS satellite group 3. The portable information terminal side wireless transmission / reception device antenna 12 transmits / receives the wireless transmission / reception communication medium 5 to / from the communication carrier 6. The information center 2 provides information necessary for route guidance in accordance with a request from the portable information terminal 1. In addition, a server system 20 or a gateway 21 is installed in the information center 2. The server system 20 creates and provides information necessary for route guidance. The gateway 21 controls information between the server system 20 and the Internet 7. The GPS satellite group 3 transmits a GPS transmission radio wave 4 necessary for measuring the position of the portable information terminal 1. The wireless transmission / reception communication medium 5 includes a request from the portable information terminal 1 regarding route guidance or information necessary for route guidance from the information center 2. The communication carrier 6 transmits / receives a wireless transmission / reception communication medium 5 to / from the portable information terminal 1. The communication carrier 6 is provided with an antenna 61 for a communication carrier-side radio transmission / reception device. The communication carrier-side radio transmission / reception device antenna 61 transmits and receives the radio transmission / reception communication medium 5. The Internet 7 transmits information between the information center 2 or the communication carrier 6. The provider 8 controls information between the communication carrier 6 and the Internet 7. The Internet 7 may be replaced with a local network, and the provider 8 may be replaced with a RAS (Remote Access Service) server.

  The portable information terminal 1 includes a CPU 100, an information recording device 101, an information storage device 102, an I / F 103, various sensors 104, an operation input device 105, a display 106, a GPS processing device 107, a wireless transmission / reception device 108, and an audio output device 109. ing.

  The CPU 100 performs control of information and calculation using the information in the portable information terminal 1. The information recording device 101 records data and programs necessary in the medium to long term in the portable information terminal 1. Examples of the information recording apparatus 101 include a hard disk, a memory card, and a flash memory. The information storage device 102 stores data and programs that are necessary in the short term in the portable information terminal 1. Examples of the information storage device 102 include a memory and a memory card. The I / F 103 has a function of electrically connecting the CPU 100 or the information storage device 102 and the various sensors 104 or the audio output device 109 in the portable information terminal 1.

  The various sensors 104 measure information related to the portable information terminal 1, such as an azimuth angle and a moving speed, and transmit the information to the portable information terminal 1. Examples of the various sensors 104 include an accelerometer, a gyroscope, and a geomagnetic sensor. Further, when the user of the portable information terminal 1 is in a car, a vehicle speed pulse counter, a gyro, or the like in the car may be used as the various sensors 104. The operation input device 105 receives an operation input from the user of the portable information terminal 1 and transmits it to the CPU 100 of the portable information terminal 1. Examples of the operation input device include a remote controller, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, and a microphone. The display 106 displays information transmitted from the CPU 100 in accordance with a request from the CPU 100 of the portable information terminal 1. Examples of information transmitted from the CPU 100 include a map screen and a route guidance screen. The GPS processing device 107 converts a signal from the GPS antenna 11 to calculate the current position, and transmits it to the portable information terminal 1. The wireless transmission / reception device 108 converts the signal from the portable information terminal side wireless transmission / reception device antenna 12 and transmits the signal to the portable information terminal 1. The wireless transmission / reception device 108 converts information from the portable information terminal 1 into a signal and transmits the signal to the portable information terminal-side wireless transmission / reception device antenna 12. The audio output device 109 outputs audio information transmitted from the CPU 100 in accordance with a request from the CPU 100 of the portable information terminal 1. Examples of voice information transmitted from the CPU 100 include guidance voice and alarm.

FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the information recording device 101 in the portable information terminal 1. The in-vehicle terminal main body information recording device 101 includes a program area 1010 and a data area 1011. In the program area 1010, a navigation program 10100 and other programs 10101 are stored. The navigation program 10100 is a program that performs route guidance based on information from the information center 2. The navigation program 10100 includes modules of an overall control 101000, a locator 101001, a destination setting 101002, a map drawing 101003, a route guidance 101004, a map matching 101005, and an operation input reception 101006.

  In the overall control 101000 module, an instruction for controlling information between modules in the navigation program 10100 is described. In the locator 101001 module, an instruction for acquiring the current position calculated by the GPS processing unit 107 is described. The destination setting 101002 module receives input information related to the destination from the user of the portable information terminal 1 from the operation input device 105, requests the information center 2 for a destination search, and sends a destination search result from the information center 2. And a command for displaying the result on the display 106 is described. In the map drawing 101003 module, an instruction to display the display map information 10114 sent from the information center 2 on the display 106 is described. In the route guidance 101004 module, a command for displaying the route guidance information 10111 sent from the information center 2 on the display 106 and outputting it to the voice output device 109 is described. In the map matching 101005 module, a command for matching the current position acquired by the locator 101001 module to a route based on the route search map information 10110 sent from the information center 2 is described. Other programs 10101 include a program for making a call with another phone as a mobile phone, a scheduler / clock program, and the like.

The data area 1011 includes route information 10110, route guidance information 10111, image information 10112, guidance voice information 10113, display map information 10114, destination information 10115, display setting information 10116, personal information 10117, program setting information 10118, and others. Each data of 10119 is stored. The route information 10110 is information relating to the latitude / longitude of the route or a collection of link strings. The route information 10110 is also used when various distances are calculated when the route guidance 101004 module performs route guidance, and is also used when the map drawing 101003 module displays a route on a map. The route guidance information 10111 is information on guidance points necessary for the route guidance 101004 module to perform route guidance. The image information 10112 is information relating to an image displayed on the program, such as a banner or a number. The display map information 10114 is information obtained by digitizing a map necessary for performing map drawing by the module of the map drawing 101003. The destination information 10115 is information regarding the destination used in the destination setting 101002 module. The destination information 10115 includes both input information related to the destination input by the user of the portable information terminal 1 and a destination search result from the information center 2. The display setting information 10116 is information set by the user regarding the level of detail of the guidance information. The personal information 10117 is information such as the moving speed and azimuth angle of the mobile portable terminal 1 and the member number of the user. Program setting information 10118 is setting information of the navigation program 10100. The other 10119 data includes cellular phone phone book data and buffering voice data during a call. The above data and programs are transferred to the information storage device 102, and the CPU
Processed at 100.

  FIG. 3 shows the data structure of the route guidance information 10111 in the embodiment of the present invention. The route guidance information 10111 is composed of the route section number 101110, the total section distance 101112 of the route, and the section guidance information 101111 for the number of sections 101110. The section of the route refers to a route divided for each guidance point. The guidance point refers to a point where the driver needs guidance, such as an intersection or an IC.

Section guidance information 101111 includes guidance direction 1011110, guidance point latitude / longitude 1011111, section total distance 1011112, guidance point name 1011113, intersection enlarged map drawing information 1011114, lane information drawing information 1011115, peripheral facility icon information 1011116, and other drawing. It consists of information 1011117. The guidance direction 1011110 is information indicating in which direction the user should move at the guidance point. For example, the right, left, diagonal right, diagonal left, large right, large left, and U-turns are numerically labeled. Enter one of the values. When used for pedestrians, include information on stairs and under stairs. The intersection enlarged map drawing information 10111114 is information necessary for drawing a road map and a landmark near the guidance point when the guidance point is an intersection, and may be a link string or an image itself. . The lane information drawing information 10111115 is information necessary for drawing a figure indicating which lane to enter when the intersection or junction (JCT) of the guidance point is a plurality of lanes. The lane information drawing information 10111115 may be numerical data such as the number of lanes and an approachable direction, or an image itself drawn on the screen. The peripheral facility icon information 1011116 is image information related to icons of peripheral facilities that serve as landmarks when the intersection enlarged map is drawn by the intersection enlarged map drawing information 10111114. The other drawing information 1011117 indicates other information necessary for guidance. For example, there are drawing information indicating which lane to go to which area when the JCT is a plurality of lanes, and drawing information indicating the exit when entering the interchange (IC).

  4 to 6 show the processing flow of the navigation program 10100 in this embodiment. First, the mobile information terminal 1 executes the navigation program 10100 selected from the menu or the like by the user, receives an input regarding a desired processing item such as destination setting, and discriminates the input processing item (F01). Here, when the user of the portable information terminal 1 inputs various settings, the process proceeds to various setting processes F02 for performing setting processes other than the destination setting. If the destination setting is input, the processing proceeds to the destination setting input acceptance process F03. In the destination setting input reception process F03, the portable information terminal 1 sets a destination used for route search. Therefore, a destination facility name and a part of the address name, a telephone number, a facility and address option, and a destination setting An input of destination related input information S01 such as a method is accepted. The portable information terminal 1 transmits the destination related input information S01 received here to the server system 20 of the information center 2.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, a display level is set in the display setting information 10116 in various setting processes F02. The display level is a classification according to the level of detail / information amount of guidance guidance output at the time of route guidance, and is divided into display levels from level 1 (Lv1) to level 4 (Lv4). As the display level increases from level 1 to level 4, the information displayed in the guidance guidance displays a compass display (Lv1) that displays the direction of the destination and the straight line distance at the current position, and an outline of the guidance route. Simple display (Lv2), detailed display (Lv3) that displays the direction of travel at the guidance intersection in addition to the guidance route, and full display (Lv4) that displays the map around the guidance route in addition to the guidance route. come.

  In this various setting processing F02, a screen for various settings is displayed, a registered point editing for editing a point registered as a destination, a search condition for setting a search condition such as highway permission / inhibition, a map The map display method that sets whether the display direction of the terminal is the terminal direction or a fixed direction, the guidance volume that changes the volume of the guidance voice, and the guidance guidance method that changes the display level in the guidance guidance display setting information Do.

  The server system 20 of the information center 2 that has received the destination related input information S01 performs a destination related information search process F04 using the destination search server. In the search process F04, the destination related information S02 is searched using the destination related input information S01 as a search key, and is returned to the portable information terminal 1. Here, the destination related information S02 indicates information on options related to destination candidates narrowed down by the destination related input information S01.

When the mobile information terminal 1 receives the destination related information S02, the mobile information terminal 1 determines the contents of the destination related input information S01 as to whether or not the destination setting is completed, or asks the user of the mobile information terminal 1 Judgment is made by asking for confirmation (F05). If the destination setting input process is canceled and the destination setting is not completed, the process returns to the screen transition determination process F01. Otherwise, the portable information terminal 1 transmits the confirmed destination information S03 to the server system 20 of the information center 2.

  The server system 20 of the information center 2 that has received the destination information S03 performs destination information search processing F06. In the destination information search process F06, the destination search server searches the destination position S04 and the detailed information of the destination using the destination information S03 as a search key. The searched destination position S04 is returned from the server system 20 to the portable information terminal 1.

When the portable information terminal 1 receives the destination position S04 returned from the server system 20 of the information center 2, the portable information terminal 1 performs a terminal state measurement process F07. In the terminal state measurement process F07, the module of the locator 101001 uses the GPS processing device 107 to measure the terminal state such as the current position, azimuth angle, and moving speed. After obtaining the terminal state in the terminal state measurement process F07, the display level is determined based on the display setting information (F08). If the display level is Lv1, since it is not necessary to obtain the guidance route, the process moves to the terminal state measurement process F071 in FIG. If the display level is other than Lv1, the server of the information center 2 uses data (S05) including the current position obtained in the destination position S04, the terminal state measurement process F07, and the display setting information 10116 in order to search for the guidance route. Send to system 20. When the server system 20 receives the data S05 including the destination position / current position / display setting information, the server system 20 first performs a route search process F09. In the route search process F09, using the route search server, the route from the current position to the destination position based on the map data in the map information database from the destination position / current position stored in the received data S05. Explore. Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the display level is Lv2 based on the display setting information 10116 (F10). If the display level is Lv2, the operation moves to transmission information integration processing F14. If the display level is not Lv2, guidance information creation processing F11 is performed. In the guidance information creation process F11, route guidance information is created from the route information by the guidance information server. Thereafter, it is determined whether the display level is Lv3 or Lv4 (F12). If the display level is Lv3, the operation moves to transmission information integration processing F14. If the display level is Lv4, route vicinity map extraction processing F13 is performed, and the operation moves to transmission information integration processing F14. In the route vicinity map extraction process F13, map information along the guidance route is extracted based on the route information using the map extraction server. In the transmission information integration process F14, the route information obtained in the route search process F09 and the route guidance information obtained in the guidance information creation process F11 according to the display level of the display setting information stored in the received data (S05) The map information obtained in the route vicinity map extraction process F13 is summarized as transmission information (S06) and returned to the portable information terminal 1. When the portable information terminal 1 receives the transmission information S06 including any of the route information, the map information, and the guidance information from the server system 20, the portable information terminal 1 performs a transmission information analysis process F15. In the transmission information analysis process F15, route information, map information, and guidance information are extracted from the received information and stored in the route information 10110, route guidance information 10111, and display map information 10114, respectively, and the navigation program performs data processing. To be recognized as.

The portable information terminal 1 starts route guidance after it is determined that the display level is Lv1, or after the communication information analysis processing F11 is completed. In the route guidance process, first, a terminal state measurement process F071 is executed, and the terminal state is acquired in the same manner as the terminal state measurement process F07. Next, the display level is determined based on the display setting information 10116 (F16). If the display level is Lv1, the compass display process F17 is executed and the compass display screen is displayed on the display 106 of the portable information terminal 1. Then, the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98. If the display level is other than Lv1, map matching processing F18 is performed. The map matching process F18 is a process for obtaining a point on the route closest to the current position using the current position, azimuth, moving speed, and route information 10110, and updating the point as the current position. At the same time, the distance between the current positions before and after the update is calculated. Thereafter, the portable information terminal 1 performs a route departure determination process F19. The route departure determination process F19 is a process for determining whether or not the current position is on the route from the distance between the current positions before and after the update by the map matching process. If the current position deviates from the route, that is, if the distance between the current positions before and after the update is larger than the threshold value, the process proceeds to display level determination processing F23 when the route deviates, otherwise, the guidance point-current position distance Move to calculation process F20.

  First, processing at the time of departure from the route will be described. In the display level determination process F23 at the time of departure from the route, the process is switched according to the display level of the display setting information 10116. If the display level is Lv2, route display processing F24 is performed, and a route screen is displayed on the display 106 of the portable information terminal 1. If the display level is Lv3, the compass display process F171 is performed in the same manner as the compass display process F17. If the display level is Lv4, map display processing F25 is performed based on the display map information 10114, and a map screen is displayed on the display 106 of the portable information terminal 1. Thereafter, it is determined whether or not a route departure voice (for example, a voice with a content such as “I have departed from the route”) has been output to the voice output device 109 of the portable information terminal 1 in that section (F26). If the route departure voice has not been output yet, the route departure guidance voice output processing F27 is executed, and the route departure voice is output by the voice output device 109 of the portable information terminal 1 to reach the destination. The process proceeds to determination processing F98. If it has already been output, the process proceeds directly to the destination arrival determination process F98.

The processing when traveling on the route will be described below. First, the distance from the guidance point to the current position is calculated in the guidance point-current position distance calculation process F20. Here, the current position refers to the current position updated in the map matching process F18. The guidance point means the next point (mainly an intersection) that arrives on the guidance route included in the route guidance information 10111, and guidance information approaching this guidance point is output. If the distance from the guidance point to the current position is 1000 m or more, the process proceeds to the display level determination process F30 when the distance is 400 m or more, otherwise the process proceeds to the determination process F22 over the distance between the guidance point and the current position (F21). . In the guidance point-current position distance 400m or more determination processing F22, it is determined whether the guidance point-current position distance is 400m or more. If it is 400m or more, the process proceeds to the lane information presence / absence determination processing F28. The process proceeds to display level determination processing F34 when the distance is less than 400 m.

Hereinafter, processing when the distance is 400 m or more will be described. In the lane information presence / absence determination processing F28, it is determined whether or not the route guidance information 10111 includes the lane information drawing information 1011115. If it is included, lane information display processing F29 is performed, and a lane information display screen is displayed on the display 106 of the portable information terminal 1. Otherwise, the process proceeds to the display level determination process F30 when the distance is 400 m or more. In the display level determination process F30 of the distance of 400 m or more, if the display setting information 10116 is the display level Lv2, the path display process F241 is executed in the same manner as the path display process F24, and if the display level Lv3, the arrow display process F32 is performed. If it is executed and the display level is Lv4, the map display process F251 is executed in the same manner as the map display process F25, and the guidance point-current position distance 600 m or more determination process F33 is performed in any case. In the arrow display process F32, an arrow screen indicating the traveling direction at the guidance intersection is displayed on the display 106 of the portable information terminal 1.

  In the guide point-current position distance 600 m or more determination processing F33, it is determined whether the guide point-current position distance is 600 m or more. If it is 600 m or more, the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98, and if not, whether or not the voice at the time of reaching 500 m (for example, the voice of “about 500 m ahead XXX direction”) has already been output. Is determined (F35). If the voice has not been output yet, the voice output process F36 when reaching 500 m is executed, the voice output device 109 of the portable information terminal 1 outputs the voice when reaching 500 m, and the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98. Otherwise, the process directly proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98.

  Hereinafter, processing when the distance between the guidance point and the current position is less than 400 m will be described. In the display level determination process F34 when the distance is less than 400 m, it is determined whether the display level of the display setting information 10116 is Lv2. If it is Lv2, the route display processing F242 is executed similarly to the route display processing F24, otherwise the intersection enlarged view display processing F37 is executed, and the intersection enlarged view of route guidance information is displayed on the display 106 of the portable information terminal 1. The intersection enlarged view display screen is displayed using the drawing information. Thereafter, it is determined whether the distance between the guide point and the current position is 200 m or more (F38). If it is 200 m or longer, the current position is at a position less than 400 m and 200 m or more from the guidance point, so that the process proceeds to the voice already output determination process F39 when 300 m arrives, otherwise the process proceeds to the voice already output determination process F41 when it arrives immediately before. In the voice already output determination process F39 when reaching 300 m, it is determined whether or not the voice when reaching 300 m (for example, a voice having a content of “about 300 m ahead XXX direction”) has already been output. If this voice has not yet been output, the voice output process F40 when reaching 300 m is executed, the voice output device 109 of the portable information terminal 1 outputs the voice when reaching 300 m, and the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98. Otherwise, the process directly proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98. On the other hand, in the voice arrival output determination process F41 immediately before arrival, it is determined whether or not the voice immediately before arrival (for example, a voice content such as “Soon to be in the XXX direction”) has already been output. If the voice has not yet been output, the voice output process F42 at the time of the last arrival is executed, the voice output device 109 of the portable information terminal 1 outputs the voice at the time of the last arrival, and the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98. Otherwise, the process directly proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98.

  In destination arrival determination processing F98, whether or not the destination has been reached is determined by determining the distance between the latitude and longitude of the destination and the current position as a threshold. If it arrives at the destination, that is, if the distance between the destination and the current position is less than the threshold value, the voice output processing F99 at the time of arrival at the destination is executed, and the voice output device 109 of the portable information terminal 1 , "I will exit the route guide." Otherwise, in order to measure the change in the current position accompanying the movement of the vehicle, the process returns to the terminal state measurement process F07, and the operations after the display level Lv1 determination process F16 are repeatedly executed.

  The operation flow in the embodiment of the present invention has been described above. The absolute value of the distance, such as 1000 m and 400 m, is desirably changed according to the moving speed of the terminal and the travel route, and is not particularly limited.

  FIG. 7A shows a compass display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The compass display screen is a screen displayed by the compass display processes F17 and F171. The compass display screen displayed in the compass display process F17 is composed of displaying a distance display G11 to the destination, a destination direction display G12, and an arrow indicating the terminal traveling direction G13. The distance display G11 to the destination displays the distance from the portable information terminal 1 to the destination. When the route deviates when the display level according to the display setting information 10116 is Lv3, in the compass display processing F171, instead of the distance display G11 to the destination, the distance to the route that has deviated from the current position Instead of the ground direction display G12, a direction for returning to the route that has deviated may be displayed. The direction display G12 to the destination or route return point is an arrow indicating which direction the destination or route is based on the portable information terminal 1 or a certain direction (such as the north direction).

  FIG. 7B is a route display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The route display screen is a screen displayed by route display processing F24, F241, and F242. The route display screen is based on the data of the route information 10110, the route G21 representing the approximate shape of the route searched in the route search processing F09 in the server system 20 of the information center 2, and the current state of the terminal measured in the terminal state measurement processing F071. It consists of a terminal position mark G22 indicating the position and the traveling direction.

  FIG. 7C is an arrow display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The arrow display screen is a screen displayed in the arrow display processing F32. The arrow display screen includes a guidance direction arrow G31 and a remaining distance display G32 to the guidance point. The guidance direction arrow G31 is an arrow depicting the direction indicated by the guidance direction 1011110 of the section guidance information corresponding to the section on the route including the current position measured by the terminal state measurement processing F071 in the route guidance information 10111. The remaining distance display G32 to the guidance point is information that displays the distance from the current position to the guidance point.

  FIG. 7D is a map display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The map display screen is a screen displayed in the map display processing F25, F251. The map display screen is composed of a scale and direction display G41 of a map to be displayed, a terminal position mark G42, a guidance route G43, and background displays of surrounding roads, landmarks, green spaces, hydrospheres, and the like. The scale and orientation display G41 displays an arrow indicating the orientation of the upper side of the map displayed on the screen together with the scale of the map. The terminal position mark G42 is a mark indicating where the mobile information terminal 1 is on the map, and is not displayed if the mobile information terminal 1 is out of the range of the displayed map. A route 43 indicates the position of the guidance route on the map.

FIG. 7E is an enlarged cross-section display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The enlarged intersection display screen is a screen displayed in the enlarged intersection display processing F37. On the intersection enlarged map display screen, the vicinity of the intersection which is the guidance point where the road G51 around the guidance intersection, the guidance route G52, the terminal position mark G53, the remaining distance display G54, and the icons G55 and G56 indicating the facilities around the guidance route are displayed. This is a screen on which detailed information is drawn. The remaining distance display G54 displays the distance from the guidance point to the current position. The peripheral facility icons G55 and G56 are icons serving as landmarks of intersections created based on the peripheral facility icon information 1011116 of the section guidance information corresponding to the target intersection. In addition, you may include an intersection name etc. in an intersection enlarged view.

  FIG. 7F is a lane information display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The lane information display screen is a screen displayed in the lane information display process F29. The lane information display screen displays a plurality of lanes G61, a route G62 in each lane, and a route G63 in the guidance route based on the lane information drawing information 10111115 of the section guidance information corresponding to the guidance point. The course G62 in each lane is an arrow indicating the direction in which the vehicle can travel in each lane. The course G63 on the route represents an arrow indicating the direction to travel on the lane to travel on the route.

As described above, the screen switching button display G01 and the program end button display G02 are displayed on the screens from (a) to (f) of FIG. When the button indicated by the screen switching button display G01 is selected, the screen is switched to another screen within the constraints of the display level. When the button indicated by the program end button display G02 is selected, the navigation program itself is ended.

  8 to 9 are state transition diagrams in the embodiment of the present invention. Here, pressing the button indicated by the switching button display G01 is represented as a trigger, and indicates a state transition in which the screen is switched with respect to the trigger. Further, according to the processing flow of the previous navigation program 10100, the default screen display state displayed on the portable information terminal 1 is a state surrounded by a thick frame.

  First, a case where the display level based on the display setting information is Lv2 will be described. When the display level is Lv2, as described in the processing flow of the previous navigation program 10100, the screen displayed as a default is the route display screen displayed by the route display processing F24, F241, F242 (C02). When a trigger is applied while the route display screen is displayed, display processing similar to the compass display processing F17 and F171 is started and the compass display screen is displayed (C01). In the state C01 of the compass display screen, When the trigger is applied, the route display screen G02 is displayed (C02).

  Next, a case where the display level based on the display setting information is Lv3 will be described. When the display level is Lv3, first, when the route deviates, the compass display screen is displayed as a default by the compass display processing F171 according to the processing flow of the previous navigation program 10100 (C03). When a trigger is applied in this state, the route display screen is displayed (C04), and when a further trigger is applied, the compass display screen is displayed (C03).

  If the distance is 1 km or more during traveling on the route, an arrow screen G03 is displayed as a default by the arrow display processing F32 (C05). When the trigger is applied, when the lane information drawing information 10111115 is included in the section guidance information of the section corresponding to the current position, the lane information display screen is displayed by the display process similar to the lane information display process F29. (C06), otherwise, the route display screen is displayed (C07). In addition, when a trigger is applied in a state where the lane information display screen is displayed (C06), the route display screen is displayed (C07). When the trigger is applied in the state where the route display screen is displayed (C07), the compass display screen is displayed (C08). When the trigger is applied in the state where the compass display screen is displayed (C08), the arrow display screen is displayed. The displayed state is obtained (C05).

  When the display level is Lv3 and the distance is 400 m or more and less than 1 km when the route travels, if there is lane information drawing information 10111115, the lane information display process F29 displays the lane information display screen as a default (C09). Otherwise, the arrow display processing F32 results in a state where the arrow display screen G03 is displayed as a default (C10). When a trigger is applied in a state where lane information is displayed (C09), an arrow display screen is displayed (C10). When a further trigger is applied, the route display (C11), the compass display (C12) and the screen display are switched in order, and when a further trigger is applied, the lane display (C09) or the arrow display (C10) is displayed.

  When the display level is Lv3 and the distance is less than 400 m when traveling on a route, the intersection enlarged view display screen is displayed as a default (C13) by the intersection enlarged view display processing F37. When the trigger is further applied, the screen display state is sequentially switched to the arrow display (C14), the route display (C15), and the compass display (C16), and when the trigger is further applied, the intersection enlarged view display screen is displayed (C13). ).

  Finally, the case where the display level based on the display setting information is Lv4 will be described. When the display level is Lv4 and the route departs, the map display screen is displayed by default by the map display processing F25 (G17). When a further trigger is applied, the route display (C18), the compass display (C19) and the screen display state are sequentially switched, and when the trigger is further applied, a map display screen is displayed (C17).

  Further, when the distance is 1 km or more during traveling on the route, the map display processing F251 is in a state where the map display screen is displayed by default (G20). When a trigger is applied, an arrow display state (C21) is obtained. When the trigger is applied, the lane display (C22) is displayed when there is lane information, and the route display (C23) is displayed when there is no lane information. When the trigger is applied in the lane display (C22) state, the route display (C23) is performed, and when the trigger is further applied, the screen display state is switched between the compass display (C24) and the map display (C20).

When the distance is 400 m or more and less than 1 km when traveling on a route, by default, when there is lane information, lane display (C25) by the lane information display process F29, and when there is no lane information, map display by the map display process F251 is displayed. (G26) is displayed. When a trigger is applied in the lane display (C25) state, the map display (G26) state is entered. When a further trigger is applied in the state of the map display (G26), the screen display state is sequentially switched to the arrow display (C27), the route display (C28), the compass display (C29), and the lane display (C25) when the trigger is further applied. ) Or map display (G26).

  If the distance is less than 400 m when traveling on the route, the intersection enlarged map display screen by the enlarged intersection map display processing F37 is displayed by default (C05), and when the trigger is applied in this state, the map display screen is displayed. It will be in a state (C31). Thereafter, when a further trigger is applied, the screen is switched in the order of arrow display (C32), route display (C33), compass display (C34), and intersection enlarged display (C30).

  When the display level is Lv1, information on the guide route is not obtained from the information center 2, and only the compass display screen G1 can be displayed, and the display does not change even if the switch button is pressed.

Next, a default guidance screen and its display timing when the display level is Lv3 based on the processing flow of the navigation program 10100 in the embodiment of the present invention will be described. When the mobile object equipped with the portable information terminal 1 is separated from the guidance route by a predetermined distance or more, it is determined that the route has departed, and the guidance information cannot be applied to the route guidance, so the screen display is switched to the compass display screen (F171). When the moving body returns on the guidance route or when it is judged that there is a distance to the guidance point while continuing to travel on the guidance route (in this embodiment, when it is 1 km or more away), it is judged that the route is traveling. In order not to confuse the user with unnecessary information for a while approaching the guidance point, the screen display is switched to an arrow screen with only arrows (F32). When the moving object approaches the guidance point (in this example, when it approaches the range of 400m or more and within 1km), and there is lane information drawing information in the guidance information of the next guidance point, the lane will be changed soon. Is determined to be necessary, and the screen display is switched to the lane information display screen (F29). When the moving object further approaches the guidance point (in this embodiment, when approaching within 400m), it is judged that the guidance point is approaching, and in order to convey detailed information of the intersection to be bent to the user, landmarks and neighborhoods near the intersection The screen display is switched to the intersection enlarged map display screen on which the road is displayed (F37). As described above, by changing the screen display based on the distance from the guidance point, the necessary information is provided on the limited display screen to the driver at the necessary timing by switching the display screen step by step. It is possible to perform route guidance with high visibility without always displaying a lot of information and reducing the display of compass, arrow, intersection enlarged view and the like. In addition, by switching the screen according to the distance, it is easy to grasp the sense of distance, so that it is possible to give the driver a sense of security.

  When the portable information terminal 1 is moving with a moving body that moves relatively slowly like a pedestrian, the position of the moving body in display switching may be narrowed. FIG. 10 is a processing flow of the communication type navigation system in consideration of guidance to a pedestrian in the embodiment of the present invention. Here, differences from FIGS. 5 and 6 will be described. In the communication type navigation system considering the guidance to the pedestrian, the same processing as the above navigation system is performed, and only the case where it is determined that the vehicle is moving on the route as a result of the route departure determination processing F19 will be described. To do. After calculating the distance to the guidance point in the same manner as the navigation system described above (F20), in order to determine whether the moving body is walking or moving by car, whether the speed of the moving body is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold, Then, it is determined whether the moving body is inside or outside the vehicle (F201). As a means for determining whether the moving body is inside or outside the vehicle, there is a method for electrically detecting whether or not the mobile information terminal 1 is connected to a vehicle, for example, a cradle. If the speed of the moving body is equal to or higher than the threshold value or the moving body is in the vehicle, it is determined that the moving body is in the vehicle, and the process proceeds to a determination process F21 where the distance between the guidance point and the current position is 1000 m or more. Otherwise, it is determined that the moving body is walking, and the process proceeds to determination processing F211 for a distance between the guidance point and the current position of 40 m or more. If the distance from the guidance point to the current position is 40 m or more, the process proceeds to the display level determination process F301 when the distance is 40 m or more. Here, since the normal pedestrian does not use the lane information, the lane information display and the determination processing necessary for display are not performed unlike the processing of the navigation system described above. When the determined display level is Lv2, route display processing F25 is performed. When the display level is Lv3, arrow display processing F32 is performed. When the display level is Lv4, map display processing F34 is performed. After that, the distance to the guidance point is determined (F331), and if the distance from the guidance point to the current position is less than 60 m, it is determined whether or not the sound has been sounded at 50 m (F351), and the sound at 50 m has not been sounded. In this case, the voice output process F361 when reaching 50 m is performed. If the voice is sounded when the distance to the guidance point is 60 m or more or 50 m, the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98.

  On the other hand, if the distance between the guidance point and the current position is 40 m or more in the determination process F211, if the distance from the guidance point to the current position is less than 40 m, the process proceeds to the display level determination process F341 when the distance is less than 40 m. When the display level is determined to be Lv2 in the display level determination processing F341 when the distance is less than 40 m, the route display processing F24 is performed in the same manner as the above-described navigation system processing. However, when the display level is Lv3 or Lv4 for displaying detailed information, the pedestrian determines whether the type of the guidance point is a stairs in consideration of the possibility of passing not only the road but also the stairs (F370). If the guidance point is a staircase, a staircase information display process F371 is performed. Otherwise, an intersection enlarged map display process F37 is performed in the same manner as the above-described navigation system process.

  Thereafter, the distance from the guidance point is determined (F381). If the distance from the guidance point to the current position is 20 m or more, it is determined whether the sound at the time of reaching 30 m is output (F391) and still 30 m If the voice at the time of arrival is not output, the voice output process F401 at the time of arrival at 30 m is performed. However, if the sound at the time of reaching 30 m has already been output, the process proceeds to the destination arrival determination process F98. On the other hand, if the distance from the guidance point to the current position is less than 20 m, it is determined whether or not the immediately preceding sound has been output (F411). If the immediately preceding sound has not been output yet, the immediately preceding sound output process is performed. F42 is performed. Otherwise, the process proceeds to destination arrival determination processing F98.

  As described above, the user can obtain necessary information according to the state of the moving body by changing the distance that is the timing of guidance depending on whether the moving body is a pedestrian or in the vehicle.

FIG. 11 is a staircase information display screen in the embodiment of the present invention. The staircase information display screen is a screen displayed by the staircase information display process F371. The staircase information display screen includes a staircase enlarged view G91 and staircase gradient information G92. The enlarged staircase G91 is a diagram showing the shape of the staircase and the direction of travel. An arrow G910 indicating the travel direction (up / down) of the staircase is drawn on the schematic diagram of the staircase, and the current building name and floor number G911. The reach distance G912 to the guidance point is included. The staircase gradient information G92 is a diagram showing the staircase gradient, and is composed of a staircase gradient value G920 and a staircase gradient diagram G921.

In the above embodiment of the present invention, the process of switching the display of the screen has been described. However, the process of using the voice output together with the screen switching is also effective in notifying the driver of the change of the display information. In this case, in order to sound a sound when the screen is switched, the screen changes immediately after the destination arrival determination processing F98 after the guidance voice output related processing (F27, F36, F40, F42) in FIG. 5 or FIG. Performs judgment processing and audio output processing during screen change. In the screen change determination processing F43, it is determined whether or not the screen has been changed during the processing loop from the terminal state measurement processing (F071) to the destination arrival determination processing F98, and if the display screen has been changed. By the screen output audio output process, audio at the time of screen change, for example, “Switch to compass screen”, “Switch to intersection enlarged view screen”, etc. is output.

  As another embodiment of the present invention, a process of switching the guide screen and its display timing according to the moving speed is also possible. For example, if there is lane information for a vehicle traveling at a low speed, a lane information display screen with a medium level of detail is displayed. However, when the vehicle is stopped due to a red light or the like, the driver who is the user can calm down and see the screen, so the intersection enlarged view display screen with a high degree of detail of the screen is displayed. On the other hand, when the vehicle is traveling at high speed, it is difficult for the user to obtain a lot of information from the screen, so an arrow screen with high visibility but low visibility is displayed. Furthermore, a process such as displaying a map screen when the route departs and stops may be added. In this embodiment, it is possible to flexibly give the user route information by switching the screen based on the vehicle speed.

Even in a portable information terminal with a small screen, necessary information can be provided to the user, so a mobile phone equipped with navigation terminal software or a PDA (Personal Digital
This is particularly effective when route guidance is performed by Assistance).

It is a block diagram of the system in the Example of this invention. It is a block diagram of the information recording device of the portable information terminal in the Example of this invention. It is a figure showing the data structure of the route guidance information in the Example of this invention. It is a navigation system flowchart in the Example of this invention. It is a navigation system flowchart in the Example of this invention. It is a navigation system flowchart in the Example of this invention. It is an example of a screen display in the Example of this invention. It is a state transition diagram in the Example of this invention. It is a state transition diagram in the Example of this invention. It is a processing flow of the system in consideration of guidance to a pedestrian in the example of the present invention. It is a staircase information screen in the Example of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Portable information terminal, 2 ... Information center, 3 ... GPS satellite group, 6 ... Communication carrier, 7 ... Internet, 8 ... Provider, 11 ... GPS antenna, 12 ... Mobile information terminal side radio transmitter / receiver antenna, 20 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Server system, 21 ... Gateway, 61 ... Antenna for communication carrier side wireless transmission / reception device, 100 ... CPU, 101 ... Information recording device, 102 ... Information storage device, 103 ... I / F, 104 ... Sensor, 105 ... Operation input device , 106 ... display, 107 ... GPS processing device, 108 ... wireless transmission / reception device, 109 ... voice output device.

Claims (3)

Communication means for transmitting information on the destination and the current position to the server device provided with the guidance route search means and receiving a route search result sent from the server device, and for measuring the current position The route guidance information, comprising: a position measurement means; a storage means for storing the route search result as guidance route information; a means for displaying a screen for route guidance; and a means for outputting a voice for route guidance. Is provided with guidance information for guiding a route along with the coordinate information of the route, and based on the guidance route information stored in the storage means, creates a guidance screen for traveling along the guidance route to perform route guidance. In the device
Based on the distance between the current position obtained by the position measuring means and the next guide point that is included in the guide route information and arrives next on the guide route, or the moving speed of the communication type navigation device, As the distance to the current position becomes shorter or as the moving speed becomes slower, a plurality of kinds of different display modes are generated so that the display information of the guidance screen created based on the guidance information increases in detail. A communication-type navigation apparatus comprising a guidance screen switching means for switching and displaying a guidance screen. The communication type navigation device according to claim 1,
The switching guidance screen includes at least an arrow display screen indicating a traveling direction at the guidance point, a lane display screen indicating a lane to be advanced when the guidance point has a plurality of lanes, and an enlargement around the guidance point. Including figure,
The guide screen switching means switches the display screen in the order of an arrow screen display, a lane display, and an enlarged view display as the distance between the guide point and the current position becomes shorter or the moving speed becomes slower. Communication type navigation device. The communication type navigation device according to claim 1,
Furthermore, an audio output means is provided,
When the guidance screen is switched by the guidance screen switching means, the type of the switched guidance screen is notified by voice using the voice output means.

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