JP2004117044A - Navigation system, method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation system, a method, and a program for securing a display area for a map etc. by changing the width of a lane display according to the number of lanes in an intersection. <P>SOLUTION: Intersection information is displayed on a display unit on the basis of map information and lane information according to the measured traveling direction of a motor vehicle. When the number of lanes in the intersection on the display of the intersection information exceeds a prescribed number, the width of the lane display is narrowly displayed. Especially when the number of lanes is four or more, the width of the lane display for straight forward traffic lane is narrowly displayed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a navigation device, a method, and a program that secure a display area such as a map by changing the width of lane display according to the number of lanes at an intersection.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the spread of automobiles and digital technologies, navigation technologies such as navigation devices, methods, and programs have rapidly advanced. Navigation technology searches and sets the optimal route to a specified destination based on road data prepared in advance, detects the position of the vehicle in real time, and displays it on the screen together with the surrounding map, at each intersection Is output as a screen display or a synthesized voice according to the progress of the vehicle.
[0003]
Further, in order to assist the guidance, when a turning intersection or a passing intersection is approaching, there is also proposed a screen display of information on how the lanes are arranged such as turning right or left or going straight (for example, see Patent Document 1). .), Such information and display are called lane information and lane display. In the conventional lane display, the lanes such as straight ahead, left turn, right turn, etc. are all displayed on the screen with the same width regardless of the number of lanes (FIG. 3A).
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-2000-251197 (paragraph 0003 et al., FIG. 6)
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the above-described conventional technology, the area of the lane display increases as the number of lanes increases, occupying a limited display area, and especially when the information is superimposed on a map, other information such as a map is not included. There was a problem that it was hard to see.
[0006]
The present invention has been proposed in order to solve the above-described problems of the related art. The purpose of the present invention is to change the width of the lane display according to the number of lanes at an intersection to thereby reduce a display area such as a map. An object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device, a method, and a program for securing.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a storage means for storing map information and lane information according to an approach direction to an intersection, and a vehicle position measurement for measuring a position and a traveling direction of the vehicle. Means, and a means for displaying the measured position of the vehicle on a map on a predetermined display unit, wherein the computer further comprises: Intersection information display means for displaying intersection information on the display unit based on the map information and the lane information, and a lane for displaying a narrow lane display width when the number of lanes of the intersection according to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number Width changing means.
[0008]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the invention of the first aspect is grasped from the viewpoint of a method, and a computer including storage means for storing map information and lane information according to an approaching direction to an intersection comprises a vehicle. In the navigation method of measuring the position and the traveling direction of the vehicle and displaying the measured position of the vehicle on a map on a predetermined display unit, the computer further comprises the map information according to the measured traveling direction of the vehicle. And displaying intersection information on the display unit based on the lane information, and performing a lane width changing process of displaying a narrow lane display width when the number of lanes of the intersection related to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number. Features.
[0009]
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the inventions of the first and fourth aspects are captured from the viewpoint of a computer program, and include storage means for storing map information and lane information according to an approach direction to an intersection. In a navigation program for controlling the computer to measure the position and the traveling direction of the vehicle, and to display the measured position of the vehicle on a map on a predetermined display unit, the program is further measured by the computer. The intersection information is displayed on the display unit based on the map information and the lane information according to the traveling direction of the vehicle, and when the number of lanes at the intersection related to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number, the lane display width is increased. It is characterized in that a lane width changing process for displaying narrowly is performed.
[0010]
In these embodiments, if the number of lanes is large, the display width of the lane is narrowed, so that the display area is effectively used and the visibility of other information such as a map is secured. Since the roads are displayed at the same width, the visibility of the lane display itself is maintained.
[0011]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the navigation device according to the first aspect, the lane width changing unit narrows a display width of a straight lane.
[0012]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the invention of the second aspect is grasped from the viewpoint of a method. In the navigation method according to the fourth aspect, the lane width changing process narrows a display width of a straight lane. .
[0013]
The invention of claim 8 captures the invention of claims 2 and 5 from the viewpoint of a computer program. In the navigation program according to claim 7, the lane width change processing reduces the display width of a straight lane. It is characterized by.
[0014]
In these embodiments, since a graphic such as an arrow to be displayed displays the width of a simple straight lane narrow, the visibility of other lanes such as turning left and right and the use of the display area are effectively compatible.
[0015]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the navigation device according to the first or second aspect, when the number of lanes is four or more, the lane width changing means displays a narrow display width of the straight lane.
[0016]
The invention of claim 6 captures the invention of claim 3 from the viewpoint of a method. In the navigation method according to claim 4 or 5, the lane width change processing is performed when the number of lanes is 4 or more. The display width of the lane is narrowed.
[0017]
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, the inventions of the third and sixth aspects are grasped from the viewpoint of a computer program. In this case, the display width of the straight lane is narrowed.
[0018]
In these aspects, while the display width increases, the display area is effectively used because the width of the straight lane is narrowed in four or more lanes, which often have a plurality of straight lanes. Ease of viewing is ensured by the uniform width display.
[0019]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Next, embodiments of the present invention (hereinafter, referred to as “embodiments”) will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present embodiment can be realized by controlling a computer with a program. However, in this case, the way of realizing the hardware and the program can be variously changed, and therefore, in the following description, each of the present invention and the present embodiment will be described. A virtual circuit block that realizes a function is used.
[0020]
[1. Constitution〕
The present embodiment relates to the navigation device shown in FIG. 1 (hereinafter referred to as “this device”). However, the present embodiment can be grasped as a method, a program, and a recording medium on which such a program is recorded. It is also an aspect of the present invention to download and execute the program on the navigation device of each vehicle via a communication network such as the Internet or a mobile phone network.
[0021]
[1-1. Overall configuration of navigation device)
First, in this device, the computer searches and sets a route to a given destination based on road data prepared in advance, and sequentially outputs guidance along the route according to the progress of the vehicle. This is a navigation device, and includes the following elements shown in the functional block diagram of FIG.
[0022]
That is, the absolute position / azimuth detecting unit 1 calculates the absolute position coordinates and the azimuth on the ground surface of the current position of the vehicle (called the own vehicle) on which the present device is mounted, that is, the own vehicle position (also called the vehicle position). It is a part for receiving, for example, a GPS radio wave transmitted from a GPS satellite by an antenna or a receiver for calculation. The relative azimuth detecting unit 2 is a part for detecting the relative azimuth of the own vehicle using a gyro or the like. The vehicle speed detection unit 3 is a part that calculates the speed of the own vehicle by processing a vehicle speed pulse obtained from the vehicle.
[0023]
The main CPU and its peripheral circuit 4 are parts that serve as a control circuit for controlling the entire device. The memory group M is various memories necessary for the operation of the present apparatus. For example, the ROM 5 for storing programs is accessed by the main CPU when the present apparatus is started. A main program is loaded into a dynamic RAM (DRAM) 6 which provides a work area and the like. An SRAM (static RAM) 7 for backing up information such as settings is backed up by a battery even while the main power is off, and provides memory contents when the main power is turned on. A display VRAM (video RAM) 8 stores bitmap data of an image to be displayed on the display unit 10.
[0024]
The display unit 10 is a part for displaying various information such as a map and an operation menu on a liquid crystal display screen (not shown), and is desirably used together with speech synthesis. The input unit 11 is a part for the user to input information such as a command from a switch or the like, and includes a touch sensor function, a remote control unit, an infrared transmitting / receiving unit, and the like. The user interface unit 9 is a user interface that connects the display unit 10 and the input unit 11 to the main CPU and its peripheral circuits 4 using an I / O control circuit, a device driver, and the like.
[0025]
The CD / DVD-ROM control unit 12 is a means for reading various data recorded on a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM from a database. The storage means stores map information indicating a target object or facility around the road and lane information according to the approach direction to the intersection.
[0026]
The FM multiplex reception and processing unit 13 is a part that performs processing for receiving FM broadcast waves and extracting desired data such as VICS service traffic information from the broadcast waves, and the traffic information includes congestion information. The light / beacon receiving and processing unit 14 is a part that receives and processes information such as identification information of each beacon and traffic information of a VICS service from an optical beacon or a radio beacon installed on a road shoulder or the like. The voice recognition unit 15 is a part that recognizes a word such as a command word from an input utterance of the user.
[0027]
[1-2. Role of main CPU and its peripheral circuits]
Further, the main CPU and its peripheral circuit 4 are configured to realize the role of each of the following parts shown in FIG. 1 by the autonomous control processing of the computer based on the above-mentioned program. That is, the current position detecting unit 40 is a vehicle position measuring unit that measures the position (own vehicle position) and the traveling direction of the vehicle. Specifically, the current position detecting unit 40 combines the GPS navigation positioning and the autonomous navigation positioning to determine the vehicle position. And calculating the heading direction.
[0028]
Here, in the GPS navigation positioning, the current position is calculated using information obtained by the absolute position / azimuth detecting unit 1 based on radio waves from artificial satellites. In the autonomous navigation positioning, the current position is calculated using information obtained from the relative azimuth detecting unit 2 and the vehicle speed detecting unit 3 based on the geomagnetism and the speed of the own vehicle.
[0029]
The destination specifying unit 41 is a means for receiving an input of a destination by searching for a facility from a database or specifying a cursor on a map. The route setting unit 42 determines a route to the input destination by the road. A means for searching and setting based on data. In addition, the map display unit 43 displays two-dimensional or tertiary information on the display unit 10 based on the calculated vehicle position and the road data, and displays the vehicle position on a surrounding map and at least a part of the route. The guidance unit 44 is a unit that outputs guidance guidance to the display unit 10, and also uses highlighted display and synthesized voice.
[0030]
The intersection information display unit 45 displays the intersection information including the name, structure, and lane information of the intersection on the display unit 10 based on the map information and the lane information according to the measured traveling direction of the vehicle. It is an information display means. The lane width changing unit 46 is a lane width changing unit that causes the lane display width to be displayed narrower when the number of lanes at an intersection related to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number. In the above case, the display width of the straight lane is configured to be reduced.
[0031]
[2. Action)
In the present embodiment configured as described above, when approaching a predetermined distance to an intersection that turns right or left, or another passing intersection, the intersection information display unit 45 displays the intersection according to the measured traveling direction of the vehicle. The intersection information is displayed on the display unit 10 based on the map information and the lane information.
[0032]
At this time, the lane width changing unit 46 calls the processing procedure of the lane width display (FIG. 2). In this processing, the lane information for the intersection guidance regarding the corresponding intersection is sent to the CD / DVD-ROM control unit 12. It is extracted directly from the set CD or DVD or via a memory (step 1), and the number of lanes is referred to (step 2).
[0033]
Then, the lane width changing unit 46 determines that the number of lanes at the intersection according to the display of the intersection information is equal to or more than the predetermined number of four lanes (step 3) and that there is a straight lane, that is, a straight-only lane. (Step 4), the display width of the straight lane is displayed narrow (Step 6), and otherwise, each lane is displayed with the same width (Step 6). Here, FIG. 3A is a display example of the related art in which four lanes are displayed with the same width, and FIG. 3B shows only the straight lane out of the four lanes in the present embodiment. It is a display example displayed small.
[0034]
[3. effect〕
As described above, in the present embodiment, when the number of lanes is large, the lane display width is displayed narrow, so that the display area is effectively used and the visibility of other information such as a map is ensured. If there are not many lanes, they are displayed in the same width as before, so that the visibility of the lane display itself is maintained.
[0035]
Further, in the present embodiment, since a graphic such as an arrow to be displayed displays the width of a simple straight lane narrow, the visibility of other lanes such as turning right and left and the utilization of the display area are effectively compatible.
[0036]
Further, in the present embodiment, while the display width is increased, the number of straight lanes is often four or more, and the width of the straight lanes is narrowed, so that the display area is effectively used. At the same time, visibility is ensured by the equal width display.
[0037]
[4. Other embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but includes other embodiments as exemplified below. For example, a lane displayed with a narrow width is not limited to a straight lane, and may be another type of lane. Also, the condition that the number of lanes is 4 or more is not essential, and other conditions may be used. For example, when the number of lanes is 3 or more, or when a right or left turn is prohibited and there are a plurality of straight lanes, the straight lane is displayed narrow. You may.
[0038]
FIGS. 1 to 3 are merely examples, and the format and position of the lane information display on the screen are free. Further, at least the FM multiplex reception and processing unit 13, the light / beacon reception and processing unit 14, the voice recognition The unit 15 can be omitted. Also, the processing procedure can be rearranged by various conventionally known programming techniques.
[0039]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a navigation device, a method, and a program that secure a display area such as a map by changing the width of lane display according to the number of lanes at an intersection.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display example of a screen according to the related art and the embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Absolute position and direction detection part 2 ... Relative direction detection part 3 ... Vehicle speed detection part 4 ... Main CPU and its peripheral circuit 5 ... ROM
6 ... DRAM
7 ... SRAM
8 ... VRAM
9 User interface unit 10 Display unit 11 Input unit 12 CD / DVD-ROM control unit 13 FM multiplex reception and processing unit 14 Light / beacon reception and processing unit 15 Voice recognition unit 40 Current position detection unit 41 destination designation unit 42 route setting unit 43 map display unit 44 guidance control unit 45 intersection information display unit 46 lane width change unit M memory group

Claims (9)

Storage means for storing map information and lane information according to the approach direction to the intersection;
Vehicle position measuring means for measuring the position and traveling direction of the vehicle,
Means for displaying the measured position of the vehicle on a map on a predetermined display unit,
In a navigation device provided with a computer,
The computer further comprises:
Intersection information display means for displaying intersection information on the display unit based on the map information and the lane information according to the measured traveling direction of the vehicle,
A lane width changing unit configured to display a narrow lane display width when the number of lanes at an intersection according to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number;
A navigation device comprising: 2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the lane width changing unit reduces a display width of a straight lane. The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lane width changing unit displays a narrow display width of the straight lane when the number of lanes is four or more. A computer including storage means for storing map information and lane information according to the approach direction to the intersection,
Measure the position and traveling direction of the vehicle,
In a navigation method of displaying the measured position of the vehicle on a map on a predetermined display unit,
The computer further comprises:
Displaying intersection information on the display unit based on the map information and the lane information according to the measured traveling direction of the vehicle,
When the number of lanes at an intersection related to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number, a lane width changing process for narrowing a lane display width is performed. 5. The navigation method according to claim 4, wherein the lane width changing process reduces a display width of a straight lane. 6. The navigation method according to claim 4, wherein the lane width changing process displays a narrow display width of the straight lane when the number of lanes is four or more. By controlling a computer having storage means for storing map information and lane information according to the approach direction to the intersection,
Measure the position and traveling direction of the vehicle,
In a navigation program for displaying the measured position of the vehicle on a map on a predetermined display unit,
The program is further stored on the computer.
Displaying the intersection information on the display unit based on the map information and the lane information according to the traveling direction of the measured vehicle,
A navigation program for performing a lane width changing process of displaying a narrow lane display width when the number of lanes at an intersection related to the display of the intersection information exceeds a predetermined number. The navigation program according to claim 7, wherein the lane width change processing reduces a display width of a straight lane. 9. The navigation program according to claim 7, wherein in the lane width changing process, when the number of lanes is four or more, the display width of the straight lane is reduced.

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