Data processing: vehicles – navigation – and relative location – Navigation
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-05
2001-03-13
Cuchlinski, Jr., William A. (Department: 3661)
Data processing: vehicles, navigation, and relative location
Navigation
C701S208000, C701S210000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06202022
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle-use data processing system which includes an information center and an on-vehicle terminal device and which uses data transmitted from the information center, particularly to a system in which a user can easily register registration point information as customized information. The invention can be suitably applied to a vehicle navigation device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Navigation devices for vehicles are now common. In such navigation devices, ordinarily a map indicating road configuration or topography is displayed. It is also common that marks indicating positions of various facilities are displayed on the map and that a list of the facilities is displayed separately from the map. For example, the various facilities may include gas stations, shops, convenience stores, restaurants, accommodations, public facilities, buildings, or the like. The presentation of such facility information is convenient function of such a navigation device.
For example, a navigation system having the function of indicating facilities is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 138193/1996, in which a navigation terminal mounted on a vehicle transmits a present position and a facility classification to a host station. The host station returns to the vehicle the information of the facility which exists around the present position and belongs to the facility classification. In the vehicle, the facility information is displayed.
Furthermore, a recently known navigation device is provided with a function in which a user pre-registers the information of the facility at a desired point at his disposal and this facility information is displayed. The function in which the user registers the desired point is called a point registration function. The user inputs a desired point into the navigation device. In this case, on a display, flags or other default marks are displayed on a map as shown in FIG.
1
. Furthermore, the user can change the mark to a mark indicating the classification of the facility, e.g., a coffee cup symbol can be used to indicate a cafe. The user can also enter the name and telephone number of the facility by operating switches. Moreover, the position of the mark can be adjusted by moving the mark. Additionally, an alarm can be set to sound when the vehicle nears the registered point. The input information is stored in the navigation device as registration point information. The user can optionally allow the registration point information to be displayed on the display.
By using the point registration function, the user can register facilities according to his discretion and can conveniently customize or personalize the navigation device.
However, the task of placing a mark indicating the facility classification and entering the facility name, telephone number and another information is very laborious for the user, with the task of entering a facility name using Chinese characters being especially laborious.
Furthermore, in the conventional point registration function, it is difficult to update the registered information. For example, a facility registered as a restaurant may change to a cafe or may move to another location. To update the information on the side of the vehicle in accordance with the change of the facility, the user must input new information into the device. However, it is not easy for the user to obtain the information concerning the facility change. Even if the information can be obtained, such updating work is very laborious for the user.
To make such a navigation device more convenient, it is desirous that more detailed and rich information be presented to the user in addition to the facility location and name. In the known art, however, only the user's input information is stored as the registration point information in the navigation device. Therefore, there remains a strong demand that detailed and rich information be included in the registration point information.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to facilitate a user's point registration work and to provide detailed and rich registration point information.
To attain this and other objects in the present invention, maintenance of registration point information is performed by using data communication between a vehicle and an information center. Maintenance includes a process of adding a facility name or the like to the registration point information and a process of updating old registered information.
A vehicle-use data processing system of the present invention includes an information center and an on-vehicle terminal device connected via a communication means to the information center. Data presented by the information center is used in the vehicle. The on-vehicle terminal device includes a registration point information memory means for storing registration point information such as a position of a registration point as well as facility information for a facility at that point, and a request means for generating a request for maintenance of the registration point information. The on-vehicle terminal device transmits the maintenance request to the information center. The information center has a facility information memory means for storing the facility information together with the position of the facility and a maintenance data preparation means for preparing maintenance data in response to the maintenance request to complete and update the registration point information of the vehicle based on the facility information stored in the facility information memory means. The information center returns the maintenance data to the on-vehicle terminal device.
In the present invention, the maintenance request transmitted from the vehicle to the information center and the maintenance data returned from the information center may have aspects as described in the following (1) to (3):
(1) The position of the registration point is indicated in the maintenance request, and the maintenance data includes the facility information of the facility which exists at the position of the registration point indicated in the maintenance request.
This aspect preferably acts when a user registers a new point. The user inputs the position of the registration point into the on-vehicle terminal device. The input position is stored in the registration point information memory. At this stage, the registration point information includes only the position of the point. The maintenance request indicating the position is transmitted to the information center. The information center reads the facility information of the facility existing in the position of the registration point from the facility information memory. The facility information may include facility name, classification, and other various additional information. For example, the additional information may include operation date, operation content, in-shop photos, recommendation information, or the like. The facility information is transmitted from the information center to the vehicle. According to the aspect, when the user simply inputs the position of a registration point, the registration point information including detailed and rich facility information can be obtained in response to the user's operation.
(2) The position of the registration point and a facility classification are indicated in the maintenance request, and the maintenance data includes the facility information of a facility which exists at the position of the registration point indicated in the maintenance request and also belongs to the facility classification.
This aspect also preferably acts when the user registers a new point. The user inputs the position of the registration point as well as the classification of the facility at the point into the on-vehicle terminal device. For example, a coffee cup mark as described in a previous example is selected for the input of the classification of the cafe. User input of the position and the facility cl
Cuchlinski Jr. William A.
Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner L.L.P.
Hernandez Olga
Toyota Jidosha & Kabushiki Kaisha
LandOfFree
Vehicle-use data processing system, on-vehicle terminal... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Vehicle-use data processing system, on-vehicle terminal..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Vehicle-use data processing system, on-vehicle terminal... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2543255