Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Navigation – Employing position determining equipment
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-23
2002-02-12
Cuchlinski, Jr., Willam A. (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Navigation
Employing position determining equipment
C701S200000, C701S212000, C340S990000, C340S995190, C340S988000, C340S910000, 36, 36, 36, 36, 36, C342S451000, C342S452000, C345S182000, C345S182000, C345S182000, C345S182000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06347280
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a navigation system that outputs guidance information along a route. Further, the intersection according to the invention also includes a junction point.
2. Description of Related Art
A guidance method according to a previous navigation system is explained with reference to
FIG. 4
wherein a predetermined guidance route is shown and includes sections A, B, C and D. According to the guidance route in
FIG. 4
, a vehicle approaching guide intersection
1
makes a right turn at guide intersection
1
, a left turn at guide intersection
2
and a right turn at guide intersection
3
. A figure of the guide intersection
1
and an arrow indicating “Turn right” are displayed on a display screen and the content thereof is audible with voice output as the vehicle approaches guide intersection
1
. After passing through the guide intersection
1
, the figure is redrawn to a figure of the guide intersection
2
, which is then displayed on the screen with an arrow indicating “Turn left” and the content thereof is audible with voice output. Each time the vehicle approaches a subsequent guide intersection, a figure of the previous guide intersection is redrawn and guidance is performed with display and voice output in the same manner explained above. This method is hereinafter called individual guidance that performs display/voice guidance on one guide intersection.
When approaching a guide intersection
1
, for example, if a distance d
1
between the guide intersection
1
and the next guide intersection
2
is relatively short (ex. 750 m), then a figure of guide intersection
1
is displayed on the screen with an arrow indicating “Turn right” and voice output guidance is provided as in “Make a right turn, then make a left turn N miles ahead” thus providing guidance output for each of the immediately following two intersections. After passing through guide intersection
1
, the figure is rewritten to display a figure of the guide intersection
2
, which is provided with an arrow indicating “Turn left”. The content of the display for guide intersection
2
is also audible with voice output to execute further route guidance. This method is hereinafter called individual display/successive voice guidance which displays one guide intersection and executes voice guidance on a plurality of guide intersections.
Further, when the distance d
1
between guide intersections
1
and
2
is relatively short (ex. 150 m), a figure composed of both guide intersections
1
and
2
is displayed with arrows indicating “Turn right” and “Turn left” together with voice output guidance of “Make a right turn, then make a left turn N miles ahead”. This method is hereinafter called plural displays/successive voice guidance that performs a plurality of displays and voice guidance on a plurality of guide intersections.
Another guidance method according to a previous navigation system is explained with reference to
FIG. 11
, wherein exits or branch roads diverging from an expressway are all treated as intersections requiring guidance when the vehicle travels through the long section of an expressway or a motorway wherein roads are under the same road name. For example, in
FIG. 11
, a guidance route involving Roads
11
,
12
and
13
is determined as approaching a guide intersection R
1
. A figure of the guide intersection R
1
and an arrow indicating “Right direction” are displayed on a screen and the content thereof is audible with voice output directing one to Road
13
. After passing through guide intersection R
1
and as approaching guide intersection R
2
, the figure of the guide intersection R
1
is rewritten to a figure of the guide intersection R
2
, and the arrow indicating “the direction” is displayed again with the content thereof audible with voice output directing one further. Thus, guidance is performed by redrawing a previous figure of an intersection and performing display/voice guidance each time one approaches a new guide intersection in the same way as above.
Another previous navigation system is shown in
FIG. 14
, wherein rotary intersections are beltways to which a plurality of entering and departing roads are connected. Such rotary intersections are all treated as requiring guidance in the previous navigation system.
FIG. 14
shows rotary intersections R
10
to Rn in succession between a road
21
and a road n+1. A guidance route is provided straight on between the road
21
and the road n+1, wherein a voice phrase of “It is a rotary, take a straight direction. Then, take the second exit.” is output in a section A
1
. Thereafter, in the same way, route guidance is performed at each rotary intersection by repeating and outputting the voice guidance of “It is a rotary, take a straight direction. Then, take the second exit.” in the respective sections A
2
, An, An+1 and so on.
The previous related art therefore provides that when two guide intersections are in succession, route guidance is easy for a driver to understand by applying the above-stated three methods respectively in the appropriate case. Further, as shown in
FIG. 4
, when more than 3 guide intersection and the distance d
1
between the guide intersection
1
and the guide intersection
2
, and the distance d
2
between the guide intersection
2
and the intersection
3
are both short, a method of the above plural display/successive voice guidance is applied. In such a case, when approaching the guide intersection
1
, a figure composed of the intersections
1
,
2
and
3
is displayed with arrows indicating “Turn right”, “Turn left” and “Turn right” and a voice guidance of “Make a right turn, then make a left turn N miles ahead. A branch point comes further ahead (or a branch point follows)” is provided. The voice guidance specific to the guide intersection
3
in the form of “A branch point comes ahead (or a branch point follows)” is provided to avoid confusion by the driver who might become confused were the voice guidance output as merely “Turn right, then left N miles ahead, then, make a right turn (or then, make a right turn, and make a left turn further ahead.)”.
The related art further provides that when more than three guidance intersections adjacent to each other are in succession, display/voice guidance processing is performed on all the guide intersections at once. Therefore, the third guide intersection, and any following intersections, are displayed in a figure. Voice guidance is still provided in the form of, for example, “A branch point comes ahead (or a branch point follows.)”. Thus, it is difficult for a driver to recognize all the visual and audible route guidance provided. This raises a problem that route guidance is unclear.
The invention is made to solve the above problem by providing a navigation system in which the driver can easily recognize route guidance information when more than three guide intersections are in succession, and in which a memory medium stores the programs providing the route guidance information.
Further, whereas previous navigation systems perform route guidance each time a vehicle approaches a guide intersection even if the vehicle maintains travel on the same named road, which, in most cases, does not require route guidance as the route is evident to the driver, the invention eliminates confusion by eliminating route guidance at successive intersections along the same named road. The related art also poses the problem of driver confusion by presenting a large amount of information as guidance output when a plurality of guide intersections are in succession, as when a large number of rotary intersections are in succession in one display section, and route guidance is output with several similar voice phrases while driving, thus confusing the driver. The invention is made to solve the above problems by providing a navigation system in which the driver can drive comfortably without confusion by eliminating needless route guidance when guide intersections are in succession on roads under the same
Inoue Koji
Sakai Tomoaki
Aisin AW Co. Ltd.
Cuchlinski, Jr. Willam A.
Mancho Ronnie
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
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