Telecommunications – Wireless distribution system – Remote control of distribution
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-25
2004-08-17
Vuong, Quochien B. (Department: 2685)
Telecommunications
Wireless distribution system
Remote control of distribution
C455S186100, C455S003060
Reexamination Certificate
active
06778808
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a route-adaptive on-demand radio communication system for a driver, a communication method using the system, and a recording medium storing a program for executing the method and, in particular, to a route-adaptive on-demand radio communication system preliminarily supplied with a scheduled route for selectively receiving and reproducing a broadcast program adapted to time information and location information at each transit point a communication method using the system, and a recording medium storing a program for executing the method.
In recent years, a car navigation system for use in an automobile becomes increasingly used. An improved car navigation system has a communication function. Specifically, the improved car navigation system acquires various kinds of information, for example, about restaurants or play spots through a portable cellular telephone or a mobile cellular telephone. The information on stores or shops is also available as software in a CD (Compact Disk) or a DVD (Digital Video Disk). However, such information is changeable and the change may be very frequent. Under the circumstances, the car navigation system having a communication function is advantageous in that latest information can be acquired through communication.
For the car navigation system having a communication function, information services specialized in providing information for a driver of the automobile as a user are known. The above-mentioned services assume bi-directional communication between a service provider and the driver.
Apart from the above, “Vehicle Information and Communication System” Information Service is also known. In the “Vehicle Information and Communication System”, it is possible to acquire traffic information such as traffic jam and traffic control or parking information indicative of the availability of a parking space in a parking lot and to display the information on a navigator screen. The “Vehicle Information and Communication System” utilizes two types of beacon signals, namely, light and radio waves transmitted from beacon sources arranged along a highway, and a wide-band FM (Frequency Modulation) radio wave. The above-mentioned service is presented via a one-way or unidirectional communication from the service-provider to the driver.
In the world of the Internet, a so-called PUSH technique is popularly used. For example, PointCast (see: www.pointcast.com) provided a service called “PointCast Network”. The mechanism of the “PointCast Network” is as follows. The user or the driver preliminarily registers in his PC (Personal Computer) the types of desired information he requires. Then, the user's PC automatically accesses via the Internet to a WWW server of the “PointCast Network” at predetermined cycles (for example, once an hour or once a day) to acquire the latest information on the WWW server and to display the information on the user's PC. Thus, an uncontrolled, continuous, and nonstop effluence of related information corresponding to the desired information he selected is automatically supplied to the user for his review and observation.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (JP-A) No. H08-191255 discloses a technique relating to a FM multiplex broadcasting receiver for receiving multiplex broadcasting and selecting desired information relating to a local area included in a route between a current location and a destination point to supply the desired information to a navigator. Specifically, the navigator preliminarily supplies the FM multiplex broadcasting receiver with an area code indicative of the local area included in the route from the current location of an automobile to the destination point. Then, from a plurality of area information extracted from the multiplex broadcasting through an antenna, a FM reception circuit, a filter, a demodulation circuit, and an error correction circuit, the microcomputer selectively extracts the desired information relevant to the area code specified by the navigator and supplies the desired information through a communication interface to the navigator.
The technique disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (JP-A) No. H08-191255 has a problem that location information corresponding to the current location of the automobile can not be obtained with high accuracy.
In the above-mentioned technique, an adaptive program is selected by comparing location information included in the content of each broadcast program with location information related to the route preliminarily stored in a memory. With this structure, a different program which is not adapted to the current location of the automobile may possibly be selected.
In order to realize an ideal service mode for many drivers, it is required to provide selected information matching the situation or the desire of each individual user. Since most of the users are drivers, a user interface should be as simple as possible. If possible, it is convenient to provide the information as an uncontrolled, continuous, and nonstop effluence without requiring any user's operation.
The above-mentioned user interface is a one-way interface such as radio broadcasting. With such user interface, a series of information required for the driver at the current location, at the current time instant, and in the current situation is selected and automatically announced or displayed in the manner similar to the radio broadcasting. For example, the driver is given the information “McDonald is nearby”, “Firework festival will start in an hour in this city”, “If you go out through the second exit, you will find a gas station”, “Around the noon, you will pass XX where a two-star French restaurant is available”. In this event, the driver is not required to operate the navigator at all.
At present, the above-mentioned information service adaptable to every individual user is not available as far as the car navigation system is concerned. Even if such information service is provided, the bidirectional communication function is required. Disadvantageously, this results in an increase in cost on the side of the user.
In order to realize the above-mentioned information service adaptable to every individual user, the user should register the types of the information he requires while the service provider should provide the user exclusively with the information requested by the user. If only the information required for the user is presented, the user need not to tell his desire in an on-demand fashion. As a result, the user interface is simplified.
The above-mentioned “PointCast” is a technique intended to satisfy such requirements. At a first glance, the “PointCast” seems like television broadcasting. However, the television broadcasting is addressed to unspecified recipients or audiences while the “PointCast” exclusively presents particular information of the type selected by each individual user. In other words, the “PointCast” is broadcasting customized for each individual user. However, the “PointCast” is operated by the use of the communication and the user's PC must access the WWW server. If the service is used in the automobile through the portable cellular telephone, charges for the portable cellular telephone are inevitably required.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to realize a PUSH-type information providing mechanism which is adapted for a driver moving from time to time and from place to place with a desired content variable and which does not use a communication infrastructure but uses a broadcasting infrastructure such as digital satellite radio broadcasting or digital surface wave radio broadcasting simultaneously broadcasted for unspecified recipients.
It is a specific object to provide an information providing method in which an itinerary or a route is preliminarily given and a broadcast program adapted to time information and location information at each scheduled transit point is selectively received to provide desired information such as “Go
Chow C.
McGinn & Gibb PLLC
NEC Corporation
Vuong Quochien B.
LandOfFree
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