JP2008175581A - Car navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

[PROBLEMS] To provide safer and more comfortable driving by notifying altitude information and inclination information on the current position and route, and alerting driving operation in consideration of the current weather conditions and vehicle conditions. To help.
An in-vehicle navigation system includes a storage unit 4 that stores map information including elevation information for each node on a road link, a display unit 2 that displays map information stored in the storage unit 4, A current position detection unit 5 for detecting the current position of the host vehicle, a current position detected by the current position detection unit 5, or a road inclination calculation unit 7 for calculating the degree of inclination of the road from the altitude information of the map information; It is comprised by the control part 1 which displays the road inclination calculated by the calculation part 7, and the altitude information in a present position on the display part 2 numerically.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-vehicle navigation system that promotes safe driving by outputting driving operation guidance from altitude information, for example.

  In-vehicle navigation systems are currently being developed rapidly and are becoming widespread. This in-vehicle navigation system displays a map stored in a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disc Drive), and displays the position of the vehicle and the locus of the vehicle on the map. In addition, the optimum route from the current location to the destination (including the waypoint) is searched, the current position and the optimum route selected by the search are displayed on the map, and the travel route is guided.

Conventionally, the map displayed by the in-vehicle navigation system has generally taken a two-dimensional display of images on a flat surface, and has taken into account elevation information and inclination information on the current position and route. Absent.
For this reason, conventionally, when setting a destination for route selection, the gradient of each road link on the route is calculated, and the overall average gradient, the average gradient of the up / down slope, the maximum gradient of the up / down slope, etc. A vehicle-mounted navigation system that can be displayed on a display screen by color coding or the like has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP-A-8-24777

According to the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, in addition to the planar map information, the gradient is displayed in an easy-to-understand manner, so the user can select a route that matches the driving skill or vehicle performance, In addition, it is possible to drive suitable for the driving skill.
On the other hand, the altitude information and slope on the current position and route change the influence on driving depending on the current weather conditions, vehicle weight, vehicle type (large and small), passengers, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to call attention to driving operation according to the situation. However, according to the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, since weather information and vehicle information are not taken into account, the driver is not sufficiently alerted on the driving operation, and the driver Only the experience was the criterion to judge.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. When notifying the current position and the altitude information and the inclination information on the route, the present invention is considered in driving operation in consideration of the weather conditions and the vehicle state at that time. It is an object of the present invention to obtain an in-vehicle navigation system that can support safer and more comfortable driving by calling attention.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the in-vehicle navigation system of the present invention displays a storage unit that stores map information including elevation information for each node on a road link, and the map information stored in the storage unit. A display unit, a current position detection unit that detects a current position of the host vehicle, a current position detected by the current position detection unit, or a road inclination calculation unit that calculates a road inclination from the altitude information of the map information; A safety evaluation unit that evaluates safety on road driving based on the road inclination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit, and generates and outputs a warning or guidance on driving operation.

  According to the present invention, when notifying altitude information and inclination information on the current position and route, it is safer by calling attention on driving operation in consideration of the weather conditions and vehicle state at that time. Comfortable driving can be supported.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
1 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of an in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention includes a control unit 1, a display unit 2, an audio output unit 3, a storage unit 4, and a current position detection unit 5. , An input unit 6, a road inclination calculation unit 7, a vehicle information detection unit 8, a safety evaluation unit 9, and a communication unit 10. The in-vehicle navigation system configured as described above is connected to the weather information server 11 installed in the information center, for example, via the communication line 20.

The control unit 1 serves as a control center of the in-vehicle navigation system, and executes functions essential for navigation such as current location display, route search, and guidance guidance based on a program recorded in a built-in memory (not shown). The display unit 2 has a function of displaying the road inclination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 described later and the altitude information at the current position.
The display unit 2 displays the route search processed by the control unit 1, the result of guidance guidance, and a driving operation guidance for warning or alerting generated by the safety evaluation unit 9 described later to a display monitor such as a liquid crystal display. indicate. Further, the road inclination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 and the altitude information at the current position are also displayed numerically. The voice output unit 3 sends a route search processed by the control unit 1, a result of guidance guidance, and a driving operation guidance for warning or attention generated by the safety evaluation unit 9 described later via a speaker. Output audio.

The storage unit 4 stores map information, and the map information includes altitude information in addition to information on latitude and longitude for each node on the road link.
The current position detection unit 5 detects the current position of the host vehicle based on radio waves received from, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite and supplies the current position to the control unit 1. The input unit 6 captures input information related to vehicle information and the like by the user and supplies the input information to the control unit 1.

The road inclination calculation unit 7 calculates the inclination of the road from the current position or the altitude information of the map information and supplies it to the control unit 1 and the safety evaluation unit 9. A method for calculating the slope of the road will be described later with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
The vehicle information detection unit 8 acquires vehicle information from an ECU (electronic control unit) or various sensors connected via an in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network) and supplies the vehicle information to the control unit 1 and the safety evaluation unit 9. .

The safety evaluation unit 9 uses the current position or the altitude information of the map information, the road inclination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7, and the weather information acquired via the communication unit 10 described later, The safety is evaluated and a warning or guidance on safe driving operation is generated and output to the control unit 1. The safety evaluation unit 9 also evaluates the safety on road driving based on the road inclination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 and the vehicle information detected by the vehicle information detection unit 8, so as to ensure safe driving operation. A guidance or control command is generated and output to the control unit 1.
Note that the communication unit 10 communicates with the weather information server 11 installed in the information center via the communication line 20 under the control of the control unit 1, and acquires weather information here and supplies it to the control unit 1. .

  FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the function of the internal configuration of the safety evaluation unit 9 shown in FIG. The safety evaluation unit 9 has a safety determination processing unit 90 as a core, a weather information acquisition unit 91, a vehicle information acquisition unit 92, a road inclination information acquisition unit 93, a map information acquisition unit 94, a warning / driving operation The guidance generation unit 95, the control command generation unit 96, and the input information acquisition unit 97 are configured.

The weather information acquisition unit 91 supplies the weather information output by the communication unit 10 to the safety determination processing unit 90. In addition to the safety determination processing unit 90, vehicle information is obtained via the vehicle information obtaining unit 92, and road inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculating unit 7 via the road inclination information obtaining unit 93 is obtained as a map information obtaining unit. The altitude information at the current location is supplied via 94, and the input information is supplied via the input information acquisition unit 97.
The safety determination processing unit 90 evaluates safety on road driving based on each of these input information, activates a warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95, and generates a warning or guidance on safe driving operation, The data is output to the display unit 2 or the audio output unit 3. In addition, a control command is generated by the control command generator 96 and is output to each ECU via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown).

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, the slope information calculation by the road slope calculation unit 7 shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the road slope calculation unit 7 acquires map information including elevation information for each node on the road link from the storage unit 4 (step ST31), and the slope of the road is obtained from the elevation information at each node and the coordinates of each node. Information is calculated (step ST32).
For example, the starting point is a node a, when the road link having the distance the endpoint is such node b, the 3-dimensional coordinates of the node _{a (x a, y a,} z a), 3 -dimensional coordinates of the node b, (x _b , Y _b , z _b ). From these three-dimensional coordinates, the inclination d is calculated by obtaining the following arithmetic expression (1).

  The road inclination calculation unit 7 outputs the calculated road link inclination d (%) to the control unit 1, and the control unit 1 calculates the road link inclination d (%) calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 and the current value. The altitude information H at the position is numerically displayed on the display unit 2 (ST33). In the case of route search, the average inclination and the maximum inclination to the destination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 may be displayed.

  According to the first embodiment described above, the user can visually check the road conditions at the traveling point or up and down to the destination by numerical values together with the altitude information. Therefore, the route can be obtained without relying only on experience. It is possible to perform driving or route search that predicts the situation.

The road link inclination d (%) calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 is supplied to the safety evaluation unit 9 in addition to the control unit 1. The safety evaluation unit 9 evaluates the safety on road driving based on the road link inclination d (%) acquired by the road inclination calculation unit 7, and gives a warning, a guidance or a control command for safe driving operation. Generate and output to the control unit 1.
Hereinafter, specific operations by the safety evaluation determination unit 9 will be described in detail as Embodiments 2 to 9, respectively.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, the headlight angle correction command generation processing by the safety evaluation unit 9 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

In the flowchart of FIG. 4, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires the inclination information d (%) at the current position of the host vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 to determine safety. It supplies to the process part 90 (step ST41).
The safety determination processing unit 90 is acquired from the acquired inclination information and the control unit 1 when it is necessary to drive with the headlights turned on, for example, at night or in a tunnel (step ST42 “Yes”). The threshold information is compared (step ST43). When the tilt information is equal to or greater than the threshold value and it is determined that the visibility is poor (step ST43 “Yes”), the control command generation unit 96 generates a headlight angle correction command under the control of the safety determination processing unit 90. (Step ST44).

  The headlight angle correction command generated by the control command generator 96 is transferred to the ECU that controls the headlight via an in-vehicle LAN (not shown), whereby the headlight angle is automatically adjusted. Alternatively, an instruction (up / low beam) for prompting the driver to adjust the angle of the headlight may be displayed on the display unit 2 or may be announced by the voice output unit 3 by voice.

  According to the second embodiment described above, the safety evaluation unit 9 detects that it is nighttime based on the vehicle information, and the road inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 indicates a predetermined value or more. In this case, by generating and outputting a control command for correcting the angle of the headlight, it is possible to secure visibility on a slope and contribute to safe driving.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 5, a warning or driving operation guidance generation process during parking and stopping by the safety evaluation unit 9 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described.

In the flowchart of FIG. 5, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires road inclination information d (%) at the current position of the vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7, and the safety. It supplies to the determination process part 90 (step ST51).
For example, when it is detected that the host vehicle is parked or stopped via the vehicle information detection unit 8 (ST52 “Yes”), the safety determination processing unit 90 acquires the inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93. And the threshold value acquired from the control unit 1 (step ST53). Here, when the road has a road inclination equal to or greater than the set threshold value (step ST53 “Yes”), the safety determination processing unit 90 activates the warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95, which causes a warning. The driving operation guidance generation unit 95 generates and outputs driving operation guidance that prompts the driver to operate a brake (parking brake or side brake) (step ST55). Then, the fact is displayed on the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 or the driver is notified by voice announcement by the voice output unit 3.

  If the vehicle is not parked (step ST52 “No”) or the slope information is equal to or less than the threshold value (step ST53 “No”), the safety evaluation unit 9 issues a warning during parking. Alternatively, the operation guidance generation process is terminated. If the slope is equal to or greater than the threshold value (step ST53 “Yes”), and if the vehicle is parked or stopped more than a preset value, it is determined whether or not the brake operation is performed (step ST54). If not executed (step ST54 “Yes”), an announcement may be made to prompt the driver to execute the brake operation (step ST55).

  According to the above-described third embodiment, the safety evaluation unit 9 is a case where the vehicle information detection unit 8 determines that the host vehicle is parked and stopped, and is calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7. When the road inclination information indicates a predetermined value or more, the driver can prevent an accident caused by forgetting to apply the brake by generating and outputting a guidance for urging the brake operation.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, an alarm or driving operation guidance generation process performed by the safety evaluation unit 9 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 6.

In the flowchart of FIG. 6, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires the inclination information d (%) at the current position of the vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 to determine safety. It supplies to the process part 90 (step ST61).
For example, when the safety determination processing unit 90 detects that the host vehicle is a large vehicle based on the vehicle information that is set and input via the vehicle information detection unit 8 or the input unit 6 in advance (step S100). (ST62 “Yes”), the inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 is compared with the threshold acquired from the control unit 1 (step ST63). Here, when it has road inclination more than the set threshold value (step ST63 "Yes"), the safety determination processing part 90 has an uphill lane by the map information acquired via the map information acquisition part 94. Only in the case (step ST64 “Yes”), the warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 is caused to generate guidance for changing the lane to the climbing lane. The warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 displays guidance on the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 based on the generated operation guidance, or notifies the driver by voice announcement by the voice output unit 3 (step ST65). .

  In addition, when the own vehicle is a small vehicle (step ST62 “No”), when the road inclination information is equal to or less than the threshold information (step ST63 “No”), or when there is no uphill lane (step ST64 “No”), all are safe. The operation guidance generation process by the sex evaluation unit 9 ends.

  According to Embodiment 4 described above, the safety evaluation unit 9 detects that the vehicle information detection unit 8 detects that the host vehicle is a large vehicle or that a load is loaded on the loading platform, and When the road inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 indicates a predetermined value or more, by generating and outputting guidance for prompting the lane change to the uphill lane at the point where the uphill lane is detected from the map information The vehicle can be driven without difficulty, and adverse effects on other traveling vehicles such as traffic jams can be avoided.

Embodiment 5. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, an alarm or driving operation guidance generation process by the safety evaluation unit 9 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to a flowchart illustrated in FIG. 7.

In the flowchart of FIG. 7, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires the inclination information d (%) at the current position of the vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 to determine safety. It supplies to the process part 90 (step ST71).
When the safety determination processing unit 90 detects that the host vehicle is other than a large vehicle, for example, based on vehicle information set and input via the vehicle information detection unit 8 or the input unit 6 in advance ( Step ST72 “Yes”), and further, by comparing the vehicle information set and input in advance via the vehicle information detection unit 8 or the input unit 6 with the threshold value acquired from the control unit 1, It is determined whether or not the weight exceeds a threshold value (step ST73).

Here, when the threshold value is exceeded (step ST73 “Yes”), the safety determination processing unit 90 uses the inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 and the threshold value regarding the road inclination acquired from the control unit 1. Are compared (step ST74). Here, when it has road inclination more than the set threshold value (step ST74 "Yes"), the safety determination processing part 90 has an uphill lane by the map information acquired via the map information acquisition part 94. Only in the case (step ST75 “Yes”), the warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 is activated to generate operation guidance for changing the lane to the climbing lane.
Based on the generated operation guidance, the warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 displays the operation guidance on the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 or notifies the driver by voice announcement by the audio output unit 3 (step) ST76).

  When the host vehicle is a large vehicle (step ST72 “No”), the total weight is less than the threshold value (step ST73 “No”), the slope information is less than the threshold value (step ST74 “No”), the uphill lane is If none exists (step ST75 “No”), the operation guidance generation process by the safety evaluation unit 9 ends.

  According to the above-described fifth embodiment, the safety evaluation unit 9 uses the vehicle detection unit 8 to determine whether the host vehicle is other than a large vehicle, and the weight of the vehicle, the number of passengers, and the luggage loaded on the loading platform. When the road slope information calculated by the road slope calculation unit 7 indicates a predetermined value or higher, the climbing lane is detected from the map information. By generating and outputting guidance that prompts the driver to change lanes to the uphill lane, it is possible for the vehicle to travel comfortably according to the weight of the passenger or baggage, even if it is not a large vehicle, and to other traveling vehicles such as traffic jams. Adverse effects can be avoided.

Embodiment 6 FIG.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart cited for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 6 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, the alarm generation processing by the safety evaluation unit 9 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

In the flowchart of FIG. 8, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires the inclination information d (%) at the current position of the host vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 to determine safety. It supplies to the process part 90 (step ST81).
For example, when the safety determination processing unit 90 detects that the host vehicle is a large vehicle based on the vehicle information that is set and input via the vehicle information detection unit 8 or the input unit 6 in advance (step S100). ST82 “Yes”), and further, it is determined whether or not the cargo is loaded on the loading platform based on the vehicle information set and input via the vehicle information detection unit 8 or via the input unit 6 in advance (step ST83). Here, when it is detected that a load is loaded on the loading platform (step ST83 “Yes”), the safety determination processing unit 90 obtains the inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 and the control unit 1. The obtained threshold value regarding the road inclination is compared (step ST84). Here, if the road has a road slope that is equal to or greater than the set threshold value (step ST84 “Yes”), the warning / operation guidance generating unit 95 indicates that there is a possibility that the load on the loading platform may fall. And a warning message is displayed on the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 or a warning sound is output from the audio output unit 3.

  When the host vehicle is other than a large vehicle (step ST82 “No”), when no load is loaded on the loading platform (step ST83 “No”), or when the inclination information is equal to or less than a threshold value (step ST84 “No”). In either case, the warning generation process by the safety evaluation unit 9 ends.

  According to the above-described sixth embodiment, when the safety evaluation unit 9 determines that the vehicle detection unit 8 determines that the host vehicle is a large vehicle and a load is loaded on the loading platform, By generating and outputting a warning indicating that the load may fall when the road inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 shows a predetermined value or more, the driver can be alerted, The driver can prevent the load from falling by performing careful driving or checking the fixed state of the load.

Embodiment 7 FIG.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 7 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, the alarm generation process performed by the safety evaluation unit 9 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 9.

In the flowchart of FIG. 9, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires the road inclination information d (%) at the current position of the vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7, and the safety. Assume that the data is supplied to the determination processing unit 90.
When the elevation information acquired from the storage unit 4 via the map information acquisition unit 94 is higher than the threshold value related to the elevation information acquired from the control unit 1 (step ST91 “high”), the safety determination processing unit 90 performs vehicle information. The presence or absence of road surface freezing is determined with reference to the output of a road surface sensor (not shown) acquired from the detection unit 8 via the vehicle information acquisition unit 92 (step ST92). Then, when the road surface is frozen (step ST92 “Freeze”), the inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 is compared with the threshold value regarding the road inclination acquired from the control unit 1 (step ST93). If the road slope exceeds the set threshold value (step ST93 “Yes”), the warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 is activated to drive for warning such as slip caution and chain attachment. Operation guidance is generated (step ST94). The warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 displays driving operation guidance for alerting the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 based on the driving operation guidance generated as described above, or from the voice output unit 3 Make an audio announcement.

In addition, when the altitude is lower than the threshold information (step ST91 “low”), when the road surface is not frozen (step ST92 “no freezing”), when the road slope information is equal to or lower than the threshold information (step ST93 “No”). In either case, the driving operation guidance generation process by the safety evaluation unit 9 ends.
Further, according to the seventh embodiment described above, the presence or absence of road surface freezing is determined using the road surface sensor. However, the possibility of road surface freezing with the weather information acquired from the weather information server 11 of the information center via the communication unit 10 is determined. You may determine the presence or absence of. In this case, the safety evaluation unit 9 (safety determination processing unit 90) receives the altitude information acquired from the storage unit 4 via the map information acquisition unit 94 and the road inclination calculation unit 7 via the road inclination information acquisition unit 93. If the current weather is snowy and the temperature is low and the altitude is high, the road surface is frozen by the road inclination information acquired by the communication unit 10 and the weather information acquired from the communication unit 10 via the weather information acquisition unit 91. If the road slope information is steeper than a certain set value, the fact that the chain is required is displayed on the display unit 2 or by voice guidance by the voice output unit 3 The driver may be alerted.

  According to the above-described seventh embodiment, when the safety evaluation unit 9 detects the road surface freezing of the traveling road by the vehicle detection unit 8 or the road surface freezing is predicted by the weather information acquired from the communication unit 10. In addition, when the slope information calculated by the road slope calculation unit 7 shows a predetermined value or more, the guidance for encouraging the driver to drive is generated and output, so that the expectation of driving on a mountain road or the like can be expected. It is possible to cope with bad weather, avoid slip accidents, etc., and preventive operation by attaching a chain etc. becomes possible.

Embodiment 8 FIG.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 8 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, the alarm generation processing by the safety evaluation unit 9 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

In the flowchart of FIG. 10, in the safety evaluation unit 9, first, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 acquires the inclination information d (%) at the current position of the host vehicle calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 to determine safety. It is assumed that it has been supplied to the processing unit 90.
The safety determination processing unit 90 first inputs the tire by operating the input unit 6, and determines the tire wear level from the previous tire replacement time stored in the storage unit 4 (step ST101). Specifically, the degree of wear of the tire is determined by comparing the travel distance calculated from the tire replacement time with a threshold value related to the travel distance acquired from the control unit 1. When it is determined that the tire wear degree is high (step ST101 “high”), the weather information acquired from the weather information server 11 of the information center via the communication unit 10 is further determined (step ST102). Here, when it is determined that the road surface condition is relatively poor due to rain or snow (step ST102 “Yes”), the road inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 and the road inclination acquired from the control unit 1 are related. The threshold information is compared (step ST103).

The safety determination processing unit 90 activates the warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 to raise a warning such as a slip caution when the road has a slope greater than or equal to the set threshold (step ST103 “Yes”). A driving operation guidance is generated for (step ST104). The warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 displays driving operation guidance for alerting the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 based on the driving operation guidance generated as described above, or from the voice output unit 3 Make an audio announcement.
In addition, when the tire wear degree is low (step ST101 “low”), when it is determined that the road surface condition is relatively good based on weather information (ST102 “No”), when the road inclination information is equal to or less than threshold information (step ST103 “ In “No”), the driving operation guidance generation process by the safety evaluation unit 9 ends.

  According to the above-described eighth embodiment, the safety evaluation unit 9 has a tire wear degree determined from the inputted previous tire replacement time that is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, and slips according to weather information acquired by the communication unit 10. When the road slope information calculated by the road slope calculation unit 7 indicates a predetermined value or more, a guidance for prompting attention to driving is generated and output, thereby causing a slip accident or the like in advance. It can be avoided and can contribute to safe driving.

Embodiment 9 FIG.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the in-vehicle navigation system according to Embodiment 9 of the present invention.
Hereinafter, with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 11, the operation guidance or control command generation processing by the safety evaluation unit 9 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described.

In the flowchart of FIG. 11, it is assumed that the destination is set by the driver operating the input unit 6 and the route search process is executed by the control unit 1. At this time, the control unit 1 transfers the weather information acquired by the communication unit 10 to the safety evaluation unit 9 and starts driving operation guidance generation processing by the safety evaluation unit 9.
In the safety evaluation unit 9, the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 has already acquired the road inclination information d (%) at the current vehicle position calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 and supplies it to the safety determination processing unit 90. It shall be. When the weather information acquired via the weather information acquisition unit 91 indicates snow (step ST113 “Yes”) and the safety determination processing unit 90 indicates that the slope on the road in the route is greater than or equal to the set value (Step ST114 “Yes”) Further, when it is determined that the inclination information at the current location is equal to or greater than the threshold (Step ST115 “Yes”), it is first determined whether or not the chain is necessary (Step ST116). ). The determination of the presence / absence of chain attachment is made by comparing the road inclination information acquired by the road inclination information acquisition unit 93 with threshold information for road inclination information that requires chain attachment for each altitude acquired from the control unit 1. Is determined.

Subsequently, the safety determination processing unit 90 activates the warning / driving operation guidance generating unit 95 or the control command generating unit 96, and provides driving operation guidance for alerting that it is necessary to attach the chain. A control command for generating or searching for an alternative route is generated (step ST117).
The warning / driving operation guidance generation unit 95 displays driving operation guidance for alerting the display unit 2 via the control unit 1 based on the driving operation guidance generated as described above, or the voice output unit 3 Through voice announcements. On the other hand, the control command generation unit 96 outputs a control command for searching for another route to bypass the route obtained by the route search, to the control unit 1. In this case (step ST118 “Yes”), the control unit 1 and the safety evaluation unit 9 repeatedly execute the processes after step ST112.

  If the weather information in the route does not indicate snow (step ST113 “No”), or if the slope on the road in the route is less than or equal to the set value (step ST114 “No”), the slope information is less than or equal to the threshold value. If there is any (step ST115 “No”), and if it is determined that the chain is not required (step ST116 “No”), the driving operation guidance generation process by the safety evaluation unit 9 ends.

According to the above-described ninth embodiment, the safety evaluation unit 9 indicates that the weather information of the destination acquired by the communication unit 10 indicates snowfall, and the road inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit 7 is predetermined. When it is determined that chain attachment is necessary with a value greater than or equal to the value, a control command for searching for a detour route is output to the control unit 1 or guidance for prompting attention to driving is generated and output. Therefore, it is possible to avoid accidents due to slipping or the like by avoiding the passage of a dangerous place when crossing a mountain or by attaching a chain in advance.
Specifically, it is determined that it is necessary to wear a chain when it is currently snowing and there is a risk of road surface freezing because the temperature is low and the altitude is high, and the road slope is steeper than the threshold information. In such a case, the dangerous route is displayed on the display unit 3 and the voice output unit 3 outputs the voice, so that it is possible to drive with the chain attached with caution. Alternatively, it is possible to search for a route that bypasses the place by searching for a route to the destination.

As described above, the in-vehicle navigation system according to the present invention includes road inclination information calculated from altitude information acquired from the storage unit 4 that stores map information, weather information acquired by the communication unit 10, and vehicle information. Driving safety is evaluated by evaluating driving safety based on at least one of the vehicle information acquired from the detection unit 8 and alerting the driver to driving operation. It is to support.
In FIG. 1, each of the control unit 1, the road information calculation unit 7, and the safety evaluation unit 8 has been described as an independent control block for convenience of description. The function of each block described above is realized by reading and executing the program recorded in the storage unit 4 by the constituent microprocessor. At this time, each of the display unit 2, the audio output unit 3, the current position detection unit 5, and the input unit 6 including the storage unit 4 is realized by a commercially available peripheral LSI, and is connected to the microprocessor via an input / output port (not shown). To be connected.

It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the functional block diagram which expanded and showed the function of the internal structure of the safety evaluation part 9 shown in FIG. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 5 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 6 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 7 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 8 of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the vehicle-mounted navigation system which concerns on Embodiment 9 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Control part, 2 Display part, 3 Voice output part, 4 Storage part, 5 Current position acquisition part, 6 Input part, 7 Road inclination calculation part, 8 Vehicle information detection part, 9 Safety evaluation part, 10 Communication part, 11 Information center (meteorological information server), 20 communication lines, 90 safety judgment processing unit, 91 weather information acquisition unit, 92 vehicle information acquisition unit, 93 road inclination information acquisition unit, 94 map information acquisition unit, 95 warning / driving operation guidance Generation unit, 96 control command generation unit, 97 input information acquisition unit.

Claims (11)

A storage unit storing map information including altitude information for each node on the road link;
A display unit for displaying the map information stored in the storage unit;
A current position detector for detecting the current position of the host vehicle;
A road inclination calculating unit that calculates the inclination of the road from the current position detected by the current position detecting unit or the elevation information of the map information;
A safety evaluation unit that evaluates safety on road driving based on the road inclination calculated by the road inclination calculation unit and generates and outputs warning or driving operation guidance;
An in-vehicle navigation system characterized by comprising: It further comprises a communication unit that acquires weather information by communication,
The safety evaluation unit
Based on the altitude information, the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculating unit, and the weather information acquired by the communication unit, safety on road driving is evaluated and warning or driving operation guidance is generated and output. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 1. A vehicle information detector for detecting vehicle information;
The safety evaluation unit
Based on the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit and the vehicle information detected by the vehicle information detection unit, safety on road driving is evaluated and driving guidance or control commands are generated and output. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 1 or 2. The safety evaluation unit
4. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein when the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculating unit indicates a predetermined value or more, a control command for correcting the angle of the headlight is generated and output. The safety evaluation unit
When the vehicle information is determined to be parked and stopped by the vehicle information, and when the slope information calculated by the road slope calculation unit indicates a predetermined value or more, the driving The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein the operation guidance is generated and output. The safety evaluation unit
The vehicle information detection unit detects that the host vehicle is a large vehicle or is in a state where a load is loaded on a loading platform, and the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit exceeds a predetermined value. 4. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein when the vehicle is shown, driving guidance for driving to change the lane to the uphill lane is generated and output at a point where the uphill lane is detected from the map information. The safety evaluation unit
When the vehicle detection unit determines that the host vehicle is other than a large vehicle and the total weight is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit indicates a predetermined value or more. 4. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, further comprising: generating and outputting a driving operation guidance that prompts a lane change to the uphill lane at a point where the uphill lane is detected from the map information. The safety evaluation unit
When the vehicle detection unit determines that the host vehicle is other than a large vehicle and a load is loaded on the loading platform, the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit indicates a predetermined value or more. 4. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein a warning indicating that the load may fall in the case is generated and output. The safety evaluation unit
In the case where the road surface freezing of the traveling road is detected by the vehicle detection unit or the road surface freezing is predicted by the weather information acquired from the communication unit, the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit is a predetermined value The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein when the above is indicated, guidance for prompting attention to driving is generated and output. An input unit for inputting the last tire change time is further provided.
The safety evaluation unit
The tire wear degree determined from the inputted previous tire replacement time is a predetermined value or more, a slip is predicted according to weather information acquired by the communication unit, and the slope calculated by the road slope calculation unit 4. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein when the information indicates a predetermined value or more, a guidance for prompting attention to driving is generated and output. An input section for setting and inputting the destination;
A control unit that executes a route search process based on the set and input destination,
The safety evaluation unit
When it is determined that the weather information of the destination acquired by the communication unit indicates snowfall, and the inclination information calculated by the road inclination calculation unit indicates a predetermined value or more and it is necessary to attach a chain. 4. The in-vehicle navigation system according to claim 3, wherein a control command for searching for a detour route is output to the control unit, or guidance for prompting attention to driving is generated and output.

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