JP2002116041A - Navigation device and voice guide document creating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation device and a voice guide document creating method which can change guide contents, according to the suitability of a user. SOLUTION: Multiple template groups are prepared, and a template group matching the suitability of the user is selected. A template is selected from the selected template group according to the situation, and the values of variable corresponding to the situation is applied to the variable parts of the template to create a voice guide document. For example, a guidance where route shapes (distance and angle) are regarded as important is given to a user, having superior capability of grasping figures and spaces and a guidance where landmarks are regarded as important is given to a user, who has superior capability of processing visual information.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a navigation apparatus for guiding a user to a destination, which changes the manner of voice guidance according to the suitability of the user, and a voice guidance document creating method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An on-vehicle navigation device is a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) -RO storing map data.
M, a map data storage device, a display device, a gyro,
The vehicle has a vehicle movement detecting device such as a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver and a vehicle speed sensor for detecting the current position and current direction of the vehicle. Then, the map data including the current position of the vehicle is read from the map data storage device,
Based on the map data, a map image around the vehicle position is drawn, a vehicle position mark (location) is superimposed on the map image and displayed, and the map image is scrolled or displayed according to the movement of the vehicle. Is fixed on the screen and the vehicle position mark is moved so that the user can see at a glance where the vehicle is currently traveling.

[0003] In addition, usually, a car navigation system is equipped with a route guidance function that allows a user to easily travel to a desired destination without making a mistake on a road. According to this route guidance function, the lowest cost route from the starting point to the destination using the map data is automatically searched by performing a simulation calculation such as the horizontal search method or the Dijkstra method, and the searched route is guided. The route is stored as a route, and during driving, the guidance route is drawn on the map image in a different color from the other roads and displayed thicker, or displayed on the screen, or a certain distance to the intersection where the vehicle should change the route on the guidance route When approaching the inside, the user is guided to the destination by drawing an arrow indicating the course at the intersection where the course is to be changed on the map image and displaying the arrow on the screen.

The cost is a value obtained by multiplying a constant according to a road width, a road type (such as a general road or an expressway), a right turn, a left turn, and the like based on the distance, a predicted traveling time of the vehicle, and the like. , The degree of appropriateness as a guidance route is quantified. Even if there are two routes having the same distance, the cost differs depending on whether the user specifies, for example, whether to use a toll road, or gives priority to distance or time.

[0005] Voice guidance is one of the guidance methods by the in-vehicle navigation device. For example, when the vehicle approaches an intersection that should be turned right, the navigation device displays an enlarged view of the intersection on a screen and outputs guidance such as "turn right at an intersection 50 m ahead" by voice.

[0006]

[0006] Drivers include those who have excellent ability to grasp figures and spaces, and those who have excellent ability to process visual information. In the conventional in-vehicle navigation device, the same content of voice guidance is provided regardless of the suitability of the driver. However, since the suitability differs depending on the driver as described above, even if the voice guidance is easy to understand for some drivers, it is not always easy for other drivers to understand. In general, it is said that men have an excellent ability to grasp figures and spaces, and women have an excellent ability to process visual information. It is preferable that the content of the voice guidance is also changed according to the suitability of the driver.

[0007] Further, in a conventional in-vehicle navigation device, voice guidance is generally performed using voice guidance data recorded in advance. For example, as described above, voice guidance data is combined according to the distance to the intersection and whether the vehicle is turning right or left to generate voice guidance data to be output. As described above, in the conventional voice guidance, voice guidance is performed by combining voice guidance data in a predetermined procedure, so that the guidance contents cannot be flexibly organized.

[0008] Conventionally, there is a navigation device that can select voice guidance from guidance by a male voice, guidance by a female voice, or guidance by a dialect. However, in this type of navigation device, only the guidance voice is different, and the content of the guidance does not change. In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device and a voice guidance document creation method capable of changing guidance content according to the suitability of a user.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a navigation apparatus which organizes guidance contents flexibly and provides voice guidance which is easy for a user to understand, and a voice guidance document creation method therefor.

[0010]

A navigation device according to the present invention outputs guidance information by voice and guides a user to a destination. The navigation device changes the content of voice guidance according to the suitability of the user. And
In the present invention, for example, when the user has excellent ability to grasp a figure or a space, guidance giving importance to the route shape on the map is performed, and when the user has excellent visual information processing ability, an intersection to be turned right or left is required. Provides guidance that emphasizes nearby landmark information. As described above, according to the present invention, guidance according to the suitability of the user is performed, so that audio guidance that is easy for the user to understand can be provided.

Further, in the voice guidance document creating method for a navigation device according to the present invention, a plurality of sets of guidance text templates corresponding to suitability are prepared, and a user's suitability is selected from the plurality of guidance text template groups. A guide text template group corresponding to the situation is selected, a guide text template corresponding to the situation is selected from the selected guide text template group, and the value of the variable corresponding to the situation is applied to the selected guide text template to provide a voice guidance text. Is created.

In the present invention, a plurality of sets of guide text templates corresponding to suitability are prepared in advance, and a voice guide document is created by using a guide text template set corresponding to the suitability of the user from among them. . For example, a template group for creating voice guidance sentences that emphasizes route shapes on a map and a template group for creating voice guidance sentences that emphasize landmarks are prepared, and one of the template groups is selected according to the suitability of the user. select. Then, a guidance sentence template according to the situation is selected from the selected template group, and the value of the variable (numerical value or character string) according to the situation is applied to the variable portion of the template to create a voice guidance document.

As described above, according to the present invention, since a plurality of sets of guidance text templates are prepared, it is possible to flexibly organize guidance contents and create a voice guidance text according to the suitability of the user. The suitability of the user may be determined by the user himself and set in the navigation device, or a simple suitability for the user to answer a question displayed on the screen of the navigation device or a question output by voice. An inspection may be performed so that the navigation device determines the suitability of the user. In general, males are superior in the ability to grasp figures and spaces, and females are superior in processing visual information. Therefore, suitability may be determined based on gender.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment shows an example in which the present invention is applied to an in-vehicle navigation device.

1 is a DVD-RO storing map data
M and 2 are operation units for operating a navigation device body 10 described later. The operation unit 2 is provided with a joystick for moving a cursor, an “enter” button, and other operation buttons. Reference numeral 3 denotes a microphone for inputting a voice of a driver (user). The on-vehicle navigation device according to the present embodiment can also be operated by voice input. 5 is GPS sent from GPS satellite
This is a GPS receiver that receives a signal and detects the longitude and latitude of the current position of the vehicle. Reference numeral 6 denotes a self-contained navigation sensor. The self-contained navigation sensor 6 includes an angle sensor 6a such as a gyro for detecting a rotation angle of the vehicle, and a traveling distance sensor 6b for generating a pulse at every constant traveling distance.
Reference numeral 7 denotes a liquid crystal display, which is a navigation device main body 10.
Displays a map around the current position of the vehicle on the display device 7, a guidance route from the departure point to the destination, a vehicle position mark, and other guidance information. Reference numeral 8 denotes a speaker for providing guidance to the user by voice.

The navigation apparatus main body 10 comprises the following. Reference numeral 11 denotes a buffer memory for temporarily storing map data read from the DVD-ROM 1. 12 is an interface connected to the operation unit 2, 13 is a voice recognition unit for recognizing voice input from the microphone 3, 15 is an interface connected to the GPS receiver 5, and 16 is connected to the self-contained navigation sensor 6. Interface.

Reference numeral 17 denotes a control unit constituted by a microcomputer. The control unit 17 controls the interface 1
The current position of the vehicle is detected based on the information input from 5 and 16, predetermined map data is read from the DVD-ROM 1 to the buffer memory 11,
Various kinds of processing are performed, such as searching for a guidance route from a departure place to a destination under the search conditions set using the map data read out in step (1).

Reference numeral 18 denotes a map drawing unit for generating a map image using the map data read into the buffer memory 11;
Reference numeral 9 denotes an operation screen / mark generation unit that generates various menu screens (operation screens) and various marks such as a vehicle position mark and a cursor according to the operation status. Reference numeral 20 denotes a guidance route storage unit that stores the guidance route searched by the control unit 17, and reference numeral 21 denotes a guidance route drawing unit that draws the guidance route. In the guidance route storage unit 20, all nodes of the guidance route searched by the control unit 17 are recorded from the departure place to the destination. When displaying the map, the guidance route drawing unit 21 uses the guidance route storage unit 20.
, The guidance route information is read out, and the guidance route is drawn in a color and line width different from those of other roads.

An audio output unit 22 supplies an audio signal to the speaker 8 based on a signal from the control unit 17.
Reference numeral 24 denotes an image synthesizing unit, which superimposes, on the map image drawn by the map drawing unit 18, various marks generated by the operation screen / mark generation unit 19, the operation screen, the guidance route drawn by the guidance route drawing unit 21, and the like. Display on the display device 7.

In the navigation device configured as described above, the control unit 17 controls the G signal received by the GPS receiver 5.
The current position of the vehicle is detected from the PS signal and the signal input from the self-contained navigation sensor 6. And DVD-ROM1
, The map data around the current position of the vehicle is read out and stored in the buffer memory 11. The map drawing unit 18 generates a map image based on the map data read into the buffer memory 11, and displays a map image around the current position of the vehicle on the display device 7.

The control unit 17 detects the current position of the vehicle based on signals input from the GPS receiver 5 and the self-contained navigation sensor 6 as the vehicle moves, and displays the current position on the display device 7 according to the detection result. The vehicle position mark is superimposed on the displayed map image, and the vehicle position mark is moved with the movement of the vehicle, or the map image is scroll-displayed. Further, when the user operates the operation unit 2 to set a destination, the control unit 17 sets the current position of the vehicle as the departure point, and determines the route with the lowest cost from the departure point to the destination by using the map data of the DVD-ROM 1. Use to explore. Then, the route obtained by the search is stored in the guidance route storage unit 20 as a guidance route,
The guidance route is superimposed on the map image and displayed. Also,
The control unit 17 outputs guidance information as needed as the vehicle travels, and guides the vehicle to travel along the guidance route to the destination.

The on-vehicle navigation device according to the present embodiment operates basically in the same manner as a conventional on-vehicle navigation device, except that the manner of guidance by voice guidance can be changed. The map stored in the DVD-ROM 1 is
It is divided into longitude and latitude widths of appropriate size according to the scale level such as 1/12500, 1/25000, 1/50000 and 1/100000, and roads etc. are vertices represented by longitude and latitude ( (Node) coordinate set. A road is formed by connecting two or more nodes, and a portion connecting the two nodes is called a link. The map data includes (1) a road layer including a road list, a node table, and an intersection configuration node list; (2) a background layer for displaying roads, buildings, parks, rivers, and the like on a map screen;
(3) Character / symbol layer for displaying characters and map symbols such as administrative division names such as municipal names, road names, intersection names, and building names. (4) Stores that serve as landmarks on the map. It is composed of landmark data for displaying marks.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the road layer in the map data recorded on the DVD-ROM 1. The road layer includes a road list RDLT, a node table NDTB, an intersection configuration node list CRLT, and the like. The road list RDLT includes, for each road, the type of the road (national road, expressway, prefectural road, and others), the total number of nodes constituting the road, the position of the node constituting the road on the node table NDTB, and the next node. It consists of data such as road width up to.

The intersection configuration node list CRLT includes, for each intersection on the map, a node table N of the other end node (intersection configuration node) of each link connected to the intersection.
A set of positions on the DTB. Node table NDT
B is a list of all nodes on the map, location information (longitude and latitude) for each node, an intersection identification flag indicating whether or not the node is an intersection, and an intersection (if the intersection identification flag is "1", Intersection configuration node list CRLT (if any)
Pointer (Pn) indicating the position of the road to which the node belongs on the road list RDLT if the intersection is not an intersection (if the intersection identification flag is “0”).
And so on.

Hereinafter, the voice guidance of the vehicle-mounted navigation device according to the present embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, a first group of templates composed of a group of text creation templates for realizing “guidance with emphasis on route shape” and a group of groups for realizing “guidance with emphasis on landmarks” And a second template group composed of the guide text templates described above.

The driver judges his / her suitability and, if he / she judges that his ability to grasp figures and spaces is excellent, sets "guidance with emphasis on route shape" to improve his ability to grasp visual information. When it is determined that the information is excellent, the information is set to “guidance giving importance to landmarks”. Also, it is determined whether the driver is male or female based on the voice input from the microphone 3, and automatically set to "guidance with emphasis on route shape" for males and "guidance with emphasis on landmarks" for females. May be performed.

Further, a function for performing an aptitude test is provided in the navigation device, and the aptitude test is performed to determine the aptitude of the driver. "Guidance with emphasis on landmarks" may be automatically set, and if it is determined that the ability to grasp visual information is excellent, "guidance with emphasis on landmarks" may be automatically set. For example, a question for an aptitude test is stored in the navigation device in advance, and the question is issued to the driver by voice or a display device, and the aptitude of the driver is determined based on a response to the question.

The suitability of the driver is thus determined,
According to the result, one of the first template group and the second template group is selected. (Method of Creating Voice Guidance Sentence) A description will be given of a method of creating voice guidance sentences for guidance giving importance to route shapes and guidance giving importance to landmarks when turning right at an intersection as shown in FIG. When the vehicle approaches the intersection where the vehicle turns right and left, the navigation device calculates the distance x meters from the current position of the vehicle to the intersection and the angle θ of the right and left turn at the intersection with reference to the map data. The landmarks LM1 to LM6 around are extracted from the map data to generate an enlarged view of the intersection as shown in FIG. The voice guidance text contains these data (variable values)
And a document creation template.

(1) Method of Creating Voice Guidance Text with Emphasis on Route Shape FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method of creating voice guidance text with emphasis on route shape. First, in step S11, the distance to the intersection and the right / left turn angles are acquired. Step S
In step 12, a guidance text template according to the situation is selected from the first template group, and the value of the variable acquired in step S11 is applied to the guidance text template. In this example, the guide text template is "turn at the intersection x meters ahead at an angle of about θ degrees."
Is selected. here,
x, θ, and turn are variables. The value calculated from the current position of the vehicle, the position data of the intersection, and the road link is substituted for x. Also, a value calculated from the intersection list of the map data is substituted for θ. For turn, a character string such as “turn right” or “turn left” is substituted with reference to the guidance route data.

In this way, the voice guidance sentence "Turn right at the intersection 30 meters ahead at an angle of about 90 degrees" is created and output from the speaker 8 as voice. (2) Method of Creating Voice Guidance Text with Emphasis on Landmark FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a method of creating voice guidance text with emphasis on landmark. First, step S21
Then, landmark information around the intersection turning right and left is obtained from the map data. In step S22, an angle θ for turning right or left is obtained.

In step S23, a guide text template according to the situation is selected from the second template group, and steps S21 and S2 are added to the guide text template.
The value of the variable obtained in step 2 is applied. Here, "LM
Turn at the intersection of 1, LM2, LM3, LM4, LM
Go through the LM6 road. "Is selected. Here, LM1 to LM6
turn is a variable. In the example shown in FIG. 5, LM1 is “Sumitomo Bank”, LM2 is “Asahi Bank”, LM3 is blank,
“Asahi Bank” is assigned to LM4, “Tokyu Department Store” is assigned to LM5, blank is assigned to LM6, and “turn right” is assigned to turn.

In this way, the voice guidance sentence "Please turn right at the intersection of Sumitomo Bank and Asahi Bank and go to the road of Asahi Bank and Tokyu Department Store" is generated, and the voice is output from the speaker 8. In the above example, a method of creating a voice guidance sentence when turning right or left at an intersection has been described. However, a voice guidance sentence for the entire route may be created by a similar algorithm.

An example of a voice guidance sentence when traveling on a route as shown in FIG. 6 is shown. In the case of "guidance giving importance to route shape", a predetermined text creation template is selected from the first template group, and the value of a variable obtained from map data or map data is used for a variable portion of this template. Substitute the value of the variable obtained by the calculation, for example, "Go north on Sakurada-dori toward Shirokane.
Go about m and turn right at an angle of about 90 degrees. Head east to leave at Daiichi Keihin. At about 650m, turn left at Takanawa 2-chome intersection at an angle of about 90 degrees to the left. If you go along Daiichi Keihin for about 1.7km along the road, you are at your destination. Is generated.

On the other hand, in the case of "guidance emphasizing landmarks" for a similar route, a predetermined guide text template is selected from the second template group, and a variable portion of this template is obtained from map data. The value of the variable,
Or, substitute the value of the variable obtained by the calculation using the map data, for example, "Run on Sakurada Street while looking at 31 Ice Cream or Sanwa Bank on your left. You will see Meiji Gakuin University in front, and you will see Business Hotel and Lawson on your left.
Turn right at the intersection with Lawson. Drive while looking at Takanawa Prince Hotel on your left. Proceed about 650m and turn left in front of JR Shinagawa Station. ... "is produced.

As described above, in the navigation apparatus according to the present embodiment, a plurality of groups of voice guidance templates are prepared, and a specific template group is selected from among these groups of templates to generate voice guidance sentences. Since it is created, the voice guidance sentences can be flexibly organized according to the suitability of the driver. Further, in the present embodiment, as described above, the content of the voice guidance is changed according to the driver's aptitude, so that the driver can more clearly understand the intersection where the vehicle turns right and left and the road to which the vehicle should proceed after turning left and right. it can.

Further, in the above embodiment, the in-vehicle navigation device has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to, for example, a portable navigation device.

[0037]

As described above, according to the navigation apparatus of the present invention, the contents of guidance are changed according to the suitability of the user. Can be more clearly understood. Further, according to the voice guidance text creation method of the navigation device of the present invention, a plurality of guidance text template groups are prepared, and a specific template group is selected from these template groups to create a voice guidance text. Therefore, it is possible to flexibly compose an appropriate voice guidance sentence according to the suitability of the user.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a road layer in map data recorded on a DVD-ROM.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of an intersection that outputs voice guidance.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of creating a voice guidance sentence emphasizing a route shape.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of creating a voice guidance sentence emphasizing a landmark.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a route related to voice guidance sentences relating to the entire route.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... DVD-ROM, 2 ... Operation part, 3 ... Microphone, 5 ... GPS receiver, 6 ... Self-contained navigation sensor, 7 ... Display device, 8 ... Speaker, 10 ... Navigation device main body, 11 ... Buffer memory, 13 ... Sound Recognition unit 17 Control unit 18 Map drawing unit 19 Operation screen / mark generation unit 20 Guide route storage unit 21 Guide route drawing unit 22 Voice output unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G10L 13/04 G10L 5/02 J F-term (Reference) 2F029 AA02 AA07 AB01 AB07 AC02 AC18 5B075 PP07 PP13 PQ02 PQ04 PQ69 UU14 5D045 AB21 5H180 AA01 AA21 BB13 CC12 FF04 FF05 FF22 FF25 FF27 FF33 FF35 FF38

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A navigation device for outputting guidance information by voice to guide a user to a destination, wherein the content of voice guidance is changed according to the suitability of the user. 2. A method for generating a voice guidance document for a navigation device for outputting guidance information by voice and guiding a user to a destination, wherein a plurality of groups of guidance text templates corresponding to suitability are prepared, A guide text template group corresponding to the user's suitability is selected from the guide text template groups of the above, and a guide text template corresponding to the situation is selected from the selected guide text template group. A voice guidance document creation method for a navigation device, wherein a voice guidance sentence is created by applying a value of a variable according to the following. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the suitability of the user is determined by the user's own judgment. 4. The voice guidance document for a navigation device according to claim 2, wherein the user's suitability is determined by outputting a question for aptitude test from the navigation device and responding to the user's response thereto. How to make. 5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the suitability of the user is determined by gender.