Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Navigation – Employing position determining equipment
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-09
2002-09-17
Beaulieu, Yonel (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Navigation
Employing position determining equipment
C701S023000, C701S208000, C701S217000, C340S988000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06453235
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to navigation apparatuses and, more particularly, to a navigation apparatus in which a guide picture for guiding a motor vehicle to a destination is displayed on a display unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
A vehicle navigation apparatus of a well known type performs vehicle travel guidance, enabling a driver to easily drive the vehicle to a desired destination. The navigation apparatus detects the position of the vehicle, reads out map data pertaining to an area at the vehicle position from e.g. a CD-ROM (compact disk read-only memory), and displays a map image on a display screen while superposing a mark representing the position of the vehicle (user's vehicle position mark) on a predetermined portion of the map image. As the present position of the vehicle changes with movement of the vehicle, the vehicle position mark in the image is moved or the map is scrolled while the vehicle position mark is fixed at a predetermined position, for example, at the center of the image, thereby enabling the driver to recognize the map information of the area at the vehicle position at a glance.
Such a navigation apparatus has a route guidance function for setting a guided route from a starting point to a destination and performing intersection guidance (displaying an enlarged intersection diagram and the direction in which a vehicle is to advance) while displaying the guided route on a map. When a starting point and a destination are input, a guide route control section of the navigation apparatus automatically determines a most suitable guided route and successively stores nodes (in terms of longitude and latitude) constituting the guided route in a memory. During actual traveling, the node series stored in the memory is searched for a portion of the guided route to be displayed on a map display area of the display screen and the portion of the guided route is displayed so as to be discriminable from other routes. When the vehicle is within a predetermined distance of and approaching an intersection, an intersection guidance diagram (an enlarged intersection diagram with an arrow indicating the direction in which the vehicle is to travel at the intersection) is displayed to inform the driver of the desired one of the roads or directions at the intersection. If the vehicle deviates from the guided route (off-route travel), the guided route is updated by recalculating a new route from the present vehicle position to the destination.
FIG. 17
is a diagram of an example of a guided route display containing a vehicle mark CM, a guided route RT (dotted line) and an enlarged intersection diagram EL
1
of an intersection Q. The enlarged intersection diagram EL
1
showing intersection formation links B
1
to B
4
, represented by link figures having a predetermined width, is converted into a perspective view (as shown) before being displayed. Each link is displayed with a name of a place to which a corresponding route leads (OHMIYA, TOKOROZAWA, URAWA STATION, NIHONBASHI). An arrow ARR is also displayed to indicate the direction in which the guided route leads to the destination. To draw such an enlarged intersection diagram. as shown in
FIG. 18
, an area through 360° about the intersection Q is divided into eight equal sections symmetrical about the direction of entry into the intersection (the direction of an intersection entry link L
1
), thereby obtaining eight angular ranges (reverse-to-entry-direction range A
1
, off-to-lower-left range A
2
, left turn range A
3
, off-to-upper-left range A
4
, straight drive range A
5
, off-to-upper-right range A
6
, right turn range A
7
, off-to-lower-right range A
8
). Then the relationship between intersection formation links and the angular ranges is examined to determine the angular ranges within which the intersection formation links fall, and an enlarged intersection diagram is formed and drawn in which the entry and diverging links extend in directions corresponding to the angular ranges within which the intersection formation links fall.
FIG. 19
is a table showing spoken intersection guidance sentences of the navigation apparatus. If the direction of an exit link corresponds to the right turn direction, spoken guidance such as “Turn right at the next intersection” is given. If the direction of an exit link corresponds to the off-to-upper-right direction, spoken guidance such as “Turn off to the right at the next intersection” is given. In some navigation systems, intersection guidance is not performed when driving straight through the intersection.
The vehicle navigation apparatus described above corresponds to those of the type commonly used in Japan. A vehicle navigation apparatus representative of the type commonly used in U.S.A. is arranged to display guidance pictures such as those shown in
FIGS. 20A
to
20
F, without displaying a map picture showing a map and a vehicle position mark during vehicle traveling, and to guide a driver by using spoken information for designating the direction in which to drive. In each of the guidance pictures shown in
FIGS. 20A
to
20
F, the distance (in miles) to an intersection is indicated in a space CDS; the distance (in miles) to a destination is indicated in a space DDS; sign VCD indicates a state of providing spoken guidance; the present time is displayed in a space TDL; and a heading direction is indicated in a guidance image NVG. If there is no intersection or a branching point in a guided route within a predetermined distance of the present vehicle position, a guidance picture such as
FIG. 20A
designating straight travel is displayed. If there is an intersection being approached within the predetermined distance, a guidance picture such as one of
FIGS. 20B
to
20
E is displayed which contains an enlarged diagram of the intersection or branching point and an arrow indicating a heading direction. Where a U-turn is required, a U-turn figure as shown in
FIG. 20F
is displayed. When a point at a predetermined distance from the branching point or intersection is reached, spoken guidance is provided to designate a heading direction.
The navigation apparatus of the type used in the U.S.A. displays guidance pictures instead of map pictures during navigation, as described above. However, it detects the position of the vehicle, reads out map data corresponding to the vehicle position from a map data base such as a CD-ROM, displays, by using map data, an enlarged diagram of an approached intersection or a branching point, which may exist in a guide route in a predetermined distance range from the present vehicle position, along with an arrow indicating a heading direction in the same manner as the intersection enlarged diagram display in the Japanese type navigation apparatus, and performs speech guidance by designating the heading direction. The navigation apparatus displays a guidance picture indicating driving straight if there is no branching point or intersection being approached within the predetermined distance.
If the navigated vehicles moves off of the guided route (off-route travel), the navigation apparatus updates the guided route by recalculating a new route from the present vehicle position to the destination. Further, at the time of guided route setting, the display changes to show a map picture, thereby enabling a starting point and a destination to be input for guided route setting.
As described above, the navigation apparatuses of the types in Japan and U.S.A. have generally the same internal configurations. Reduced to essentials, they differ only in display picture control.
The vehicle position is measured by self-contained navigation sensors (a distance sensor and a bearing sensor) mounted in the vehicle (self-contained navigation) or by a global positioning system (GPS) including a satellite (satellite navigation). Vehicle position measurement based on self-contained navigation can be performed at a comparatively low cost but entails the problem of sensor errors reducing the measurin
Endo Kouichi
Sato Yoshikazu
Shishido Kan
Alpine Electronics Inc.
Arent Fox Kintner & Plotkin & Kahn, PLLC
Beaulieu Yonel
LandOfFree
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