JP2002297029A - Navigation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation device through which contents of the roads in a map are easily comprehended. SOLUTION: A map plotting section 14 generates map image data, corresponding to the vicinity of own vehicle position using map data stored in a map buffer 10. When the set value of reduction of the map image is equal to or less than a prescribed value, a pseudo-stereoscopic processing section 16 extracts a road, having a higher priority order within the displayed range of the map image and conducts a processing, so that the road is displayed pseudo- stereoscopically. An image compositing section 32 reads map image data of the range equivalent to the data of one screen from a VRAM 18 and outputs the data to a display device 6. Based on the image data outputted from the section 32, the device 6 displays the map image, in which the road having a higher priority order is displayed pseudo-stereoscopically.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a navigation device for displaying a map of a location around a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, an on-vehicle navigation device has a map display function of displaying a map around a vehicle position on a screen, and a route search for searching for a route specified by a user to a destination or a waypoint. It has a function, a route guidance function for guiding the traveling of the vehicle along the route set by the route search, and the like.

[0003] The map displayed by the navigation device includes various roads such as highways, national roads, prefectural roads, and general roads. These roads are often displayed in different display colors, etc., depending on the type of road, the number of lanes, etc.
As a result, the contents of each road can be visually recognized.

[0004] For example, when a display color is set such as blue on an expressway, red on a national road, and green on a prefectural road, when a red line and a green line intersect, the national road and the prefectural road are set. Can be grasped, and when the red line and the blue line are arranged in parallel, it can be grasped that the national road and the highway are parallel. That is, it is possible to recognize the content of each road, such as the presence or absence of an intersection and the existence of another parallel road, based on the arrangement state of each line for which a predetermined display color is set.

[0005]

As described above, in the conventional navigation device, the roads included in the map are displayed in different colors according to their contents. However, the display colors are accurately assigned to each road. There is a problem that it is difficult for many users to intuitively grasp the contents of each road from the displayed map.

When a plurality of display colors are used in accordance with the type of road and the like, a number of display colors are used in the map, so that the visibility of the map deteriorates.
It may be difficult to understand the contents of each road. Further, in the map display in the conventional navigation device, particularly in the case where two-dimensional display is performed, a display in which the actual vertical relationship of each road is not taken into account at the intersection of roads has not been performed. For this reason, when seeing the place where the roads intersect on the map, it is not possible to distinguish whether a plurality of roads intersect as an intersection or three-dimensionally at this place. Points also made it difficult to grasp the road contents in the map.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device that can easily grasp the contents of a road on a map.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a navigation device according to the present invention stores map data necessary for drawing a map image including a road in a map data storage means, and stores the map data. Based on the map data, a map image of a predetermined range is drawn by the map drawing means, and a pseudo three-dimensional display is performed for a specific road, and the map image drawn by the map drawing means is displayed by the map display means. are doing. Specifically, the specific road may be a main road such as a highway or a national road, or a road on which the vehicle is traveling. By performing a pseudo three-dimensional display on such a specific road, the specific road and the other roads can be visually and clearly distinguished, and the contents of the road in the map can be easily determined. You can figure out.

When a plurality of types of roads having different priorities are included in the drawing range of the map image, it is desirable that the map drawing means perform pseudo three-dimensional display on the roads having the higher priority. Normal map images include various roads such as expressways, national roads, prefectural roads, and general roads. Among these, expressways and national roads, for example, have high priority, that is, It is considered highly likely. Therefore, by performing a pseudo three-dimensional display on such a road, it is possible to reliably grasp a road with high necessity.

In the case where the display of a map image by the map display means can switch a plurality of reduction magnifications from a detailed display to a wide area display, a pseudo three-dimensional display of a specific road is displayed by the map drawing means. It is desirable to perform the processing in correspondence with a map image having a reduction ratio equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. In general, as the reduction ratio becomes smaller, that is, as the range of the map image becomes wider, the number and types of roads included in the display range increase, and it tends to be difficult to clearly distinguish each road. Therefore, the pseudo three-dimensional display is performed only when a reduction ratio equal to or less than a predetermined value corresponding to the wide area display is set, so that it is easy to grasp the contents of each road while minimizing an increase in processing amount. A map display can be realized.

It is desirable that the above-mentioned specific road is a road on an upper side of a grade separation. By performing a pseudo three-dimensional display according to the actual road condition on the upper road where a three-dimensional intersection intersects, the presence or absence of a three-dimensional intersection can be easily grasped. In addition, it is desirable that a part of the specific road that has a three-dimensional intersection corresponds to one link. By associating the part where the intersection crosses over with one link, the process of specifying the part where the lower road and the upper road cross the intersection is facilitated.

[0012] Further, the specific road may include a crossover part in its entirety corresponding to one link, and in this case, the map drawing means may perform pseudo three-dimensional display for the crossover part. desirable. In this case, it is not necessary to reset the link corresponding to the intersection where the vehicle crosses over, and the labor required for changing the map data can be reduced.

[0013] The map drawing means hides a lower road included in a predetermined range on at least one side of the specific road, so that a pseudo road of the upper road that is crossed over is provided. It is desirable to perform stereoscopic display. By a relatively simple process of hiding the lower road included in the predetermined range on the side of the specific road, the lower road and the upper road (specific road) intersect three-dimensionally. You can express how you are.

The map drawing means performs, for a specific road, a drawing process in which a lower road included in a predetermined range on at least one side of the road is made semi-transparent, so that an upper road crossing over a three-dimensional intersection is obtained. Pseudo three-dimensional display may be performed. When the translucent drawing processing is performed, the lower road looks thin even in the predetermined range on the upper road side, so that the state of the three-dimensional intersection is more easily understood.

It is desirable that the map drawing means performs a translucent drawing process by performing a pixel thinning process on a lower road included in the predetermined range. The pixel thinning process is a relatively simple process, and the translucent rendering process can be simplified.

Preferably, the map drawing means performs pseudo three-dimensional display by shifting the drawing position of the road in a predetermined direction and adding a shadow to the road. The process of shifting the drawing position and shadowing the road is relatively simple, and a pseudo three-dimensional display can be performed without significantly increasing the processing load.

The map drawing means draws the first band-shaped image and then draws the second band-shaped image shifted in a predetermined direction from the drawing position of the first band-shaped image to thereby simulate a specific road. It is desirable to perform a realistic three-dimensional display. The second belt-shaped image corresponds to a specific road in the map, and the first belt-shaped image corresponds to a shadow, so that a road to which a shadow is added in a predetermined direction, that is, a road that is pseudo-stereoscopically displayed. can do.

Further, the map drawing means makes the drawing position of the second belt-shaped image correspond to the road position of the drawing target, and shifts the drawing position of the first belt-shaped image from the road position of the drawing target, so that the specific road is drawn. Pseudo three-dimensional display may be performed. By making the drawing position of the second belt-shaped image correspond to the position of the road to be drawn, there is an advantage that the drawing position of the road itself does not change as compared with the case where pseudo three-dimensional display is not performed.

The map drawing means draws, for a specific road, a third band-shaped image including an area corresponding to the road and the shadow, and then draws a fourth band-shaped image having a width smaller than that of the third band-shaped image. By rendering the image at a position eccentric from the center of the third band image and included in the third band image, a pseudo three-dimensional display of a specific road may be performed. Alternatively, the map drawing means may perform pseudo three-dimensional display of a specific road by attaching a belt-shaped additional image to the specific road in a predetermined direction. According to the above-described method, a specific road can be pseudo-stereoscopically displayed, and the number of options for the map drawing method can be increased.

Preferably, the map drawing means performs coloring such that the color of the belt-shaped additional image gradually changes between the color of the road to which the additional image is attached and the background color around the road. As a result, the display color changes smoothly between the side of the road and the background color, and the visibility of the map can be further improved.

It is desirable that the map drawing means thins out the pixels of the belt-shaped additional image so that the degree of exposure of the background increases as the distance from the road to which the additional image is attached increases. By a simple process of pixel thinning process, it is possible to realize coloring such that the color gradually changes between the road and the background color around the road.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a navigation device according to a first embodiment. The navigation device 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes a navigation controller 1, a DVD 2, a disk reader 3, a remote control (remote control) unit 4, a vehicle position detector 5, and a display device 6.

The navigation controller 1 controls the entire operation of the navigation device 100.
This navigation controller 1 includes a CPU, an RO
The function is realized by executing a predetermined operation program using the M, the RAM, and the like. The detailed configuration of the navigation controller 1 will be described later.

The DVD 2 is an information storage medium storing map data necessary for map display, route search, and the like.
Specifically, the DVD2 has several stages of reduction magnifications,
Stores map data in units of rectangular figures divided into appropriate sizes by longitude and latitude, and the map data of each figure is specified by specifying the figure number and can be read out. Becomes possible. The map data of each map includes (1) a "drawing unit" composed of various data necessary for displaying a map image, and (2) various data necessary for processing such as map matching, route search, and route guidance. “Intersection unit” composed of various data representing detailed information of the intersection.

The disk reader 3 can load one or a plurality of DVDs 2 and reads map data from any one of the DVDs 2 under the control of the navigation controller 1. The loaded disk is not necessarily a DVD, but may be a CD. Also, D
Both VD and CD may be selectively loadable.

The remote control unit 4 includes various operation keys such as up / down / left / right cursor keys, numeric keys, and a scale key for setting a reduction ratio of a map image, and outputs a signal corresponding to the operation content to the navigation controller 1. The vehicle position detection unit 5 includes, for example, a GPS receiver, a direction sensor, a distance sensor, and the like, detects a vehicle position (longitude, latitude) at a predetermined timing, and outputs a detection result.

The display device 6 displays various information such as a map image around the position of the vehicle based on the image data output from the navigation controller 1.
Next, a detailed configuration of the navigation controller 1 will be described. Navigation controller 1 shown in FIG.
Are a map buffer 10, a map reading control unit 12, a map drawing unit 14, a VRAM 18, a vehicle position calculation unit 20, a route search processing unit 22, a guidance route memory 24, and a guidance route drawing unit 2.
6, an input processing unit 28, a mark image drawing unit 30, and an image synthesizing unit 32.

The map buffer 10 includes the disk reading device 3
, The map data read from the DVD 2 is temporarily stored. The map readout control unit 12 includes a vehicle position calculation unit 2
In response to the vehicle position calculated by 0, a request from the input processing unit 28, and the like, a read request for map data in a predetermined range is output to the disk reading device 3.

The map drawing section 14 generates map image data necessary for displaying a map image based on the map data stored in the map buffer 10 and includes a pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16. ing. Pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 1
6 performs processing for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a specific road included in the map image. As the specific road in this embodiment, an expressway, a national road, and a prefectural road are considered.
The details of the processing performed by the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 will be described later.

The VRAM 18 temporarily stores map image data output from the map drawing section 14. The vehicle position calculation unit 20 calculates the own vehicle position and the own vehicle direction based on the detection data output from the vehicle position detection unit 5, and when the calculated own vehicle position is not on the road of the map data, A map matching process for correcting the own vehicle position is performed.

The route search processing unit 22 searches for a traveling route that connects a departure point and a destination (or a waypoint) specified by the user under predetermined conditions. For example, the shortest distance,
Under various conditions such as the shortest time, a traveling route that minimizes the cost is set as the guidance route. Data (guide route data) indicating the content of the guide route set by the route search processing unit 22 is stored in the guide route memory 24.

The guide route drawing unit 26 is provided with a route search processing unit 2
2 is selected from the guidance route data stored in the guidance route memory 24 set in step 2 and included in the map drawn in the VRAM 18 at that time, and a guidance route for displaying the guidance route over the map. Generate drawing data.

The input processing unit 28 outputs a command for performing an operation corresponding to various operation instructions input from the remote control unit 4 to each unit in the navigation controller 1. The mark image drawing unit 30 generates image data for displaying a predetermined vehicle position mark at the own vehicle position after the map matching processing has been performed, or for displaying a predetermined cursor mark at the cursor position.

The image synthesizing section 32 superimposes the map image data read from the VRAM 18 corresponding to the position of the vehicle and the image data output from the mark image drawing section 30 to perform image synthesis, and converts the synthesized image data. Output to the display device 6. The above-described map buffer 10 corresponds to the map data storage unit, the map drawing unit 14 corresponds to the map drawing unit, and the display device 6, the VRAM 18, and the image combining unit 32 correspond to the map display unit.

The navigation device 100 of this embodiment has such a configuration. Next, the operation of the navigation device when displaying a map image around the position of the vehicle will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of the navigation device 100 according to the first embodiment. It is assumed that a series of processing shown in FIG. 2 is repeatedly performed at predetermined time intervals.

The map readout control unit 12 is a vehicle position calculation unit 2
A request to read map data in a predetermined range is sent to the disk reading device 3 based on the own vehicle position calculated by 0 and the reduction ratio of the map image set at that time. As a result, the map data in a predetermined range is
Read from the DVD 2 by the map buffer 10
(Step 100).

Next, the map drawing unit 14 stores the map buffer 10
Then, map image data corresponding to the vicinity of the position of the vehicle is generated using the map data stored in step S101 (step 101). Further, in parallel with the processing shown in step 101, the pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16 in the map drawing section 14 determines whether or not the currently set reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value (step 102). As the predetermined value for determining the reduction ratio,
For example, it is preferable to set a value of about 1 / 10,000 (so-called “100 m scale”), which is a reduction magnification corresponding to 1 cm on an actual map of 100 m.

If the reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than the predetermined value, an affirmative determination is made in step 102 and the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 1
6 extracts a road having a high priority within the display range of the map image (step 103), and performs a process of pseudo-stereoscopically displaying the road (pseudo-stereoscopic process) (step 104).

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the contents of the pseudo three-dimensional processing performed in step 104. The pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 performs a process of shifting the road image 100 (corresponding to the first belt-shaped image) by a predetermined moving amount in the upper left direction (FIG. 3).
(A)), the road image 100a after the shift processing (corresponding to the second belt-shaped image) is overwritten on the road image 100 before the shift processing (FIG. 3B).

Next, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 paints a portion of the road image 100 that does not overlap with the shifted road image 100a in black (or gray or the like). As a result, as shown in FIG. 3C, the shadow image 110 is formed in a portion that straddles the right side and the lower side of the road image 100a after the shift processing, and the road image 100a is pseudo-stereoscopically displayed. .

The shadow image 110 may be formed by painting the entire road image 100 before the shift processing and overwriting the road image 100a after the shift processing. When the pseudo three-dimensional processing is performed on a road having a higher priority, or when the reduction ratio is equal to or more than a predetermined value (negative determination in step 102 described above), the map drawing unit 14 converts the generated map image data into the VRAM1.
8 (step 105).

Next, the image synthesizing section 32 reads map image data in a range corresponding to one screen from the VRAM 18,
The image data generated by the mark image drawing unit 30 is combined with the image data and output to the display device 6. A map image is displayed on the screen of the display device 6 based on the image data output from the image synthesis unit 32 (step 106). Then, returning to step 100 described above,
The map data corresponding to the new vehicle position is read, and the subsequent processing is repeated.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a display example of a map image. As shown in FIG. 4, a pseudo three-dimensional display with a shadow is performed on a road with a high priority, and a conventional planar display is performed on a road with a low priority. By performing such a display, it is possible to visually and clearly distinguish between a road having a higher priority and other roads.

As described above, the navigation apparatus 100 of this embodiment performs pseudo three-dimensional display by adding a shadow image to a high-priority road such as a highway or a national road. A high road and other roads can be visually and clearly distinguished. Therefore, the contents of the road on the map can be easily grasped.

In the above-described embodiment, an expressway or a national highway is considered as a high-priority road. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other roads are set as high-priority roads. Is also good. For example, a road on which the vehicle is traveling or a road connected to the traveling road may be a high-priority road, and a guidance route during route guidance may be a high-priority road.

Further, when performing pseudo three-dimensional display, the priority may be further expressed by variably setting the shift amount when shifting the original road image. For example, assuming that the priority order is highway, national road, and prefectural road,
If the shift amount is increased as the priority order increases and the shift amount is decreased as the priority order decreases, the priority order can be further expressed on the road on which the pseudo three-dimensional display is performed. Even in this case, since the display colors used in the map do not increase, the visibility does not deteriorate due to the frequent use of the display colors.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, a value of "1 / 10,000" is given as a specific example of the reduction ratio in step 102 shown in FIG. 2, but this value is merely an example, and is set to another value. You may. In the above-described embodiment, a high priority road is pseudo-stereoscopically displayed by shifting the upper left direction to give a shadow, but a method of pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road is not limited to this. Instead, various modified examples are conceivable.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a modified example of a method for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road. In the case of the modified example shown in FIG. 5, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 shifts the band shape to a position shifted from the original drawing position 120 'of the road image (FIG. 5A) by a predetermined moving amount in the lower right direction. The image 120a (corresponding to the first band-shaped image) is drawn, and the road image 120 (corresponding to the second band-shaped image) is overwritten and drawn thereon (FIG. 5B).
Next, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 paints a portion of the belt-shaped image 120a that does not overlap with the road image 120 in black (or gray or the like). Thereby, FIG. 5 (C)
As shown in (1), a shadow image 130 is formed in a portion that extends over the right side and the lower side of the road image 120, and the road image 120 that is pseudo-stereoscopically displayed can be obtained. In this case,
There is an advantage that the drawing position of the road image does not change as compared with the case where the pseudo three-dimensional processing is not performed.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing another modified example of a method for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road. In the case of the modification shown in FIG. 6, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 draws the road image 140 and also draws partial shadow images 142 and 144 on the lower right side of the road image 140, respectively. (FIG. 6 (A)). As a result, as shown in FIG. 6B, the partial shadow images 142 and 144 form the road image 14.
A shadow image 146 is formed on a portion extending between the right side and the lower side of 0, and a road image 140 which is pseudo-stereoscopically displayed is obtained. In this case, the shadow images 142 and 144 correspond to the band-shaped additional images.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing another modified example of a method for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road. In the case of the modification shown in FIG. 7, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 first sets the shadow image 160 having a predetermined width near the original drawing position 150 ′ of the road image.
(Corresponding to the third band image) is drawn (FIG. 7A).
Next, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 places a predetermined color (e.g., a narrower width than the shadow image 160) in the drawing position 150 ′, that is, a position eccentric from the center of the shadow image 160 and included in the shadow image 160. For example, the line 150a (for example, black) is overwritten and drawn (FIG. 7B).

Next, the pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16 overwrites a line 150a of a predetermined color with a line 150b having a display color different from the line 150a and having a slightly smaller area inside the line 150a. . As a result, as shown in FIG. 7C, the periphery of the line 152b is bordered by the outer edge of the line 150a, and the road image 150 (corresponding to the fourth belt-shaped image) is formed using the lines 150a and 150b. Is formed. In addition, a part of the shadow image 160 is visible in a portion extending between the right side and the lower side of the road image 150, so that a pseudo three-dimensionally displayed road image 150 can be obtained.

As described above, the method shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 7 can also display a pseudo three-dimensional road, and can increase the options of the map drawing method. Further, as a simpler method for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road, a road having a high priority may be distinguished from other roads by highlighting both sides of the road with a bold line. . In this case, the processing amount can be further reduced.

When a predetermined shadow image (band-like additional image) is added to the road image as in the example shown in FIG. 6, the shadow image is added to the shadow image. Coloring may be performed so that the display color gradually changes between the road image and the surrounding background image.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a display example in which the shadow image is colored so that the display color gradually changes between the road image to which the shadow image is added and the background image around the road image. And a part of the road image to which the shadow image is added. In FIG. 8, a predetermined display color is set in the road image 170, and this display color is represented in a pseudo manner by hatching. Also, a predetermined display color different from that of the road image 170 is set for the background image 180.
Then, the shadow image 172 arranged between the road image 170 and the background image 180 has the display color of the road image 170 and the display color of the road image 170 as represented by gradually changing the hatching density in the figure. Coloring is performed such that the color gradually changes between the display color of the background image 180 and the background image 180. For example, if the display color of the road image 170 is set to “blue” and the display color of the background image 180 is set to “white”, the display color of the shadow image 172 gradually changes between blue and white. The color changes. Accordingly, the display color changes smoothly between the road image 170 and the background image 180, and the visibility of the map can be further improved.

FIG. 9 shows another display example in which the shadow image is colored so that the display color gradually changes between the road image to which the shadow image is added and the background image around the road image. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a part of a road image to which a shadow image is added, similarly to FIG. 8 described above.

Also in FIG. 9, a predetermined display color is set in the road image 170, and this display color is represented in a pseudo manner by hatching. Also, a predetermined display color different from that of the road image 170 is set for the background image 180. The difference from the example shown in FIG. 8 described above is that, by performing pixel thinning processing on the shadow image 172 ′, the color gradually changes between the display color of the road image 170 and the display color of the background image 180. This is the point where coloring is performed.

Specifically, a shadow image 172 'shown in FIG.
Is composed of five pixel columns, and the road image 170
In the pixel row closest to, one pixel in every five pixels, one pixel in every four pixels in the next pixel row, one pixel in every three pixels in the third pixel row, and one in every two pixels in the fourth pixel row Pixel,
As the distance from the road image 170 increases, more and more pixels are thinned out, such as one pixel every other pixel in the fifth pixel column.

Therefore, as the distance from the road image 170 increases, the degree of exposure of the background image 180 increases, whereby the display color of the road image 170 and the background image 1
Coloring such that the color gradually changes between the 80 display colors is simulated. That is, in the display example shown in FIG. 9, there is an advantage that coloring such that the color gradually changes between the road and the background color around the road can be realized by a simple process of pixel thinning.

As a simpler method of coloring the road image so that the display color gradually changes between the road image and the background image around the road image, the intermediate color between the display color of the road image and the display color of the background image is shaded. A method of setting an image is also conceivable. For example, if “blue” is set for the road image and “white” is set for the background image, the display color of “light blue” may be set for the shadow image.

[Second Embodiment] By the way, in the above-described first embodiment, pseudo three-dimensional display is performed on a road such as a highway or a national road by adding a shadow image. By making pseudo three-dimensional display according to the actual road conditions, it is easy to grasp the contents of the road in the map (specifically, whether there is a three-dimensional intersection). Can be.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of the navigation device according to the second embodiment. The navigation device 100a shown in FIG. 10 is different from the navigation device 100 according to the first embodiment in that the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16 provided in the map drawing unit 14 has a pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16a having a different processing content. The only difference is the replacement.
Hereinafter, the description will be given mainly focusing on the difference between the two.

The pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16a performs a process for pseudo-stereoscopic display of the three-dimensional intersecting portion of the three-dimensional intersecting road. The details of the processing performed by the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16a will be described later. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the contents of map data relating to a portion where a crossover occurs. As a specific example, FIG.
As shown in (A), a method of expressing map data will be described on the assumption that a road R1 and a road R2 intersect in a plane, and a road R1 and a road R3 intersect at a three-dimensional level.

In the conventional map data, as shown in FIG. 11B, a node N1 is set corresponding to an intersection where the road R1 and the road R2 intersect, and the attribute information (for the intersection) is associated with the node N1. For example, the number of connected roads and traffic regulations are recorded. In addition, attribute information (for example, the number of lanes, running cost, and the like) on the road R1 is recorded in association with the links L11 and L12 connected to the node N1, and attribute information on the road R2 is recorded in association with the links L21 and L22. You. Similarly, attribute information on the road R3 is recorded in association with the link L31.

On the other hand, according to the map data of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11C, the information on the portion where the road R1 and the road R3 cross over each other is shown in FIG. Link L12 corresponding to R1 is newly 3
The link L122 is divided into two links L121, L122, and L123, and the link L122 is associated with a portion where the road R1 and the road R3 cross over each other. in this way,
In the upper road R1, the crossover part corresponds to one link L122, so that a part where the lower road R3 and the upper road R1 cross over in a pseudo three-dimensional manner is displayed. Is easy to specify.

In this embodiment, the roads R1, R2,
Predetermined height data indicating the difference between the relative heights of R3 is set. Specifically, in the example shown in FIG. 11A, the road R1 and the road R2 have the same relative height, and
3 has a lower relative height than the roads R1 and R2, the height data includes, for example, links L11, L121, L122, and L123 that describe the road R1 and links L21 and L22 that describe the road R2. Data such as “height data = 0” may be recorded for each, and “height data = 0” may be recorded for the link L31 describing the road R3. Note that the expression method of the height data is an example, and any other expression method may be used as long as the data content allows the relative height between the roads to be determined.

The navigation device 10 according to the second embodiment
0a has such a configuration. Next, the navigation device 10a for displaying a map image around the own vehicle position
The operation at 0a will be described. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of the navigation device 100a according to the second embodiment. It is assumed that a series of processing shown in FIG. 12 is repeatedly performed at predetermined time intervals.

The map reading control section 12 is provided with a vehicle position calculating section 2
A request to read map data in a predetermined range is sent to the disk reading device 3 based on the own vehicle position calculated by 0 and the reduction ratio of the map image set at that time. As a result, the map data in a predetermined range is
Read from the DVD 2 by the map buffer 10
(Step 200).

Next, the map drawing section 14 stores the map buffer 10
Using the map data stored in the storage area, map image data for drawing a map image corresponding to the vicinity of the own vehicle position is generated (step 201). Specifically, the map drawing unit 14
Performs processing for generating background image data of a background portion of a map image, road image data for displaying a road, and the like.

Simultaneously with the processing shown in step 201, the pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16a in the map drawing section 14 determines whether or not there are three-dimensionally intersecting roads in the display range of the map image. A determination is made (step 202). If there is a three-dimensionally intersecting road, an affirmative determination is made in step 202, and the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16a performs a predetermined pseudo three-dimensional processing on the part where the road crosses the three-dimensional intersection (step S202). 203). Details of the processing content will be described later.

If there is no three-dimensionally intersecting road within the display range of the map image, a negative determination is made in step 202 described above. In this case, the pseudo three-dimensional processing shown in step 203 is performed. Is omitted. Next, the map drawing unit 14 converts the generated map image data into a VRA
It is stored in M18 (step 204).

Next, the image synthesizing unit 32 reads image data in a range corresponding to one screen from the VRAM 18, synthesizes the image data generated by the mark image drawing unit 30 with the read image data, and outputs the image data to the display device 6. A map image is displayed on the screen of the display device 6 based on the image data output from the image combining unit 32 (step 2).
05). After that, the process returns to step 200 described above, and the map data corresponding to the new own vehicle position is read out.
Subsequent processing is repeated.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the contents of the pseudo three-dimensional processing performed in step 203 described above. As a specific example, the description will be made on the assumption that the pseudo three-dimensional processing is performed on the road shown in FIG. The map drawing unit 14 determines the relative height of each road based on the difference in height.
Draw background images and road images in multiple layers,
A map image is drawn by combining these.
In the case of drawing the map image including the road shown in FIG. 11A, the map drawing unit 14 draws the background image on the lowest layer # 0 and the road R on the next upper layer # 1.
A road with height data = 0 such as 3 is drawn, and further height data such as roads R1 and R2 = +
The first road is drawn.

In this case, the pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16a
As shown in FIG. 13A, a link L relating to the road R1 is provided.
Based on the data of step 122, the part that crosses the intersection is specified. Next, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16a sets predetermined regions T1 and T2, which are portions that are three-dimensionally intersecting and correspond to both sides of the road R1, on the layer # 2, and sets these predetermined regions T1 and T2. Then, set the transparent color as the display color.

Next, the pseudo three-dimensional processing section 16a illuminates the road R3 drawn on the layer # 1 with the predetermined areas T1 and T2 set on the layer # 2, and
As shown in FIG. 3 (B), for the road R3, the predetermined area T
A process for hiding a portion included in 1 or T2 (a portion indicated by hatching in the figure) is performed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 13C, a part of the lower road R3 (a part close to the road R1) is deleted from the part where the road R1 and the road R3 intersect with each other. .

As described above, at the portion where the crossover is performed,
Due to the relatively simple process of hiding the lower road included in a predetermined range on both sides of the upper road (specific road), the lower road and the upper road are three-dimensionally intersected. You can express how you are. Note that FIG.
In 3, the lower road included in the predetermined range on both sides of the upper road is hidden, but the lower road included in the predetermined range on at least one of the upper roads is hidden. By doing so, the appearance of a three-dimensional intersection may be expressed.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a display example of a map image in which roads at a three-dimensional intersection are displayed in a pseudo three-dimensional manner. Figure 1
As shown in FIG. 4, the own vehicle position is indicated by the vehicle position mark G, and a map image around the own vehicle position is displayed.
In this map image, as indicated by the three-dimensional intersection portions 200 and 202, the predetermined pseudo three-dimensional processing shown in FIG. It is possible to easily grasp that the lower road crosses overpass.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing another display example of a map image in which roads at a three-dimensional intersection are displayed in a pseudo three-dimensional manner.
FIG. 15 shows a display example in the case where roads R4 and R5 corresponding to the upper road extend vertically near the center and a ring road R6 exists below the road. Overpass 20
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 206, by performing the predetermined pseudo three-dimensional processing, it can be seen that the upper roads R4 and R5 and the lower ring road R6 cross a three-dimensional intersection. .

As described above, the navigation device 100a according to the second embodiment performs
Since pseudo three-dimensional display is performed according to the actual road conditions (relative height relationship), it is possible to easily grasp the presence or absence of a three-dimensional intersection, and to understand the contents of the road in the map. It can be easily grasped.

In the above-described second embodiment, the lower road included in a predetermined range on both sides of the upper road that is overpassed by a three-dimensional intersection is set in a non-display state. Although the stereoscopic display is performed, a pseudo stereoscopic display may be realized by performing a rendering process in which a part of the lower road is made translucent.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a display example in the case where a pseudo three-dimensional display of an upper road that has undergone a three-dimensional intersection is performed by performing a drawing process in which a part of the lower road is made translucent. In FIG. 11 described above, a portion where the road R1 and the road R3 intersect is shown in an enlarged manner.

In FIG. 16, a predetermined display color is set for the road R3, and this display color is represented by hatching. Then, on the road R3, a portion included in a predetermined range close to the road R1 is subjected to pixel thinning processing at a predetermined interval, and the display color of the lower background can be seen in the thinned portion. In this manner, the rendering process that is made semi-transparent by the relatively simple process of pixel thinning is performed, and the upper road R
In a predetermined range on both sides of No. 1, the lower road R3 is in a state of being seen lightly, and the state where the road R1 and the road R3 cross over each other in a three-dimensional manner is expressed more easily.

The method of realizing the rendering process that is made translucent is not limited to the above-described pixel thinning process, but also includes various methods such as a method of mixing the display color of the lower background and the display color of the road R3. However, any of them may be adopted. In the embodiment described above, the link L1 shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 22, the map data is described by associating one newly set link with the part where the intersection crosses over, but one link with respect to the whole including the part where the intersection crosses over. Can also be made to correspond.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a modified example of the contents of map data relating to a portion where a crossover occurs. The configuration of links and nodes shown in FIG. 17 has substantially the same contents as those shown in FIG. 11B described above as an example of conventional map data. As shown in FIG. 17, position data P1 and P2 indicating the section where the intersection crosses over are recorded in association with the link L12 including the portion where the intersection crosses over and based on these position data P1 and P2. Then, the pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 16a may perform a process of pseudo-stereoscopic display of a part that crosses three-dimensionally. In this modification, since position data indicating the section where the vehicle crosses over the road is added in association with the existing link, there is no need to set a new link corresponding to the portion where the road crosses the road. There is an advantage that the labor required for changing the data can be reduced.

Further, in contrast to the pseudo three-dimensional display technique relating to a three-dimensional intersection shown in the second embodiment,
The map image may be drawn by further combining the methods described in the embodiments. FIG.
It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the map image at the time of combining and using the method of the pseudo three-dimensional display in 2nd Embodiment, and the method of the pseudo 3D display in 2nd Embodiment. The display example shown in FIG. 18 has almost the same contents as the display example in the first embodiment shown in FIG. 4 described above, and a predetermined shadow image is added to a specific road such as an expressway or a national road. While a pseudo three-dimensional display is performed by
As indicated by the three-dimensional intersections 208 and 210, a predetermined pseudo three-dimensional processing is performed on the three-dimensional intersection. In this way, by drawing the map image by further combining the technique shown in the first embodiment with the technique of the pseudo three-dimensional display related to the three-dimensional intersection shown in the second embodiment, It becomes easier to understand the road contents in the map.

[0085]

As described above, according to the present invention, a specific road such as a highway or a national road included in a map image is
Since pseudo three-dimensional display is performed, a specific road and other roads can be visually and clearly distinguished. Therefore, the contents of the road on the map can be easily grasped.

Further, according to the present invention, a pseudo three-dimensional display is performed for a road above a three-dimensional intersection as a specific road, so that it is easy to grasp the presence or absence of a three-dimensional intersection, and the contents of the road in the map are displayed. It becomes easy to grasp.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of a navigation device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the navigation device.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating details of a pseudo three-dimensional processing.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a display example of a map image.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a modified example of a method of pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing another modified example of a method for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing another modified example of a method for pseudo-stereoscopic display of a road.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a display example in a case where coloring is performed on a shadow image such that a display color gradually changes between a road image to which the shadow image is added and a background image around the road image.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing another display example in which the shadow image is colored so that the display color gradually changes between the road image to which the shadow image is added and the background image around the road image. is there.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a navigation device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the contents of map data relating to a part where a crossover is performed.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of the navigation device according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing details of a pseudo three-dimensional processing performed in step 203;

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a map image in which roads that are crossing three-dimensionally are displayed in a pseudo three-dimensional manner.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating another display example of a map image in which roads that are crossing three-dimensionally are displayed in a pseudo three-dimensional manner.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a display example in a case where a pseudo three-dimensional display of an upper road that has undergone a three-dimensional intersection is performed by performing a rendering process in which a part of a lower road is made translucent.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a modified example of the contents of map data relating to a portion where a crossover occurs.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a map image in a case where the pseudo three-dimensional display method according to the first embodiment and the pseudo three-dimensional display method according to the second embodiment are used in combination. .

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 navigation controller 2 DVD 3 disk reading device 4 remote control (remote control) unit 5 vehicle position detecting unit 6 display device 10 map buffer 12 map reading control unit 14 map drawing unit 16, 16a pseudo three-dimensional processing unit 18 VRAM 20 vehicle position calculation Unit 22 route search processing unit 32 image synthesis unit 100, 100a navigation device

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) John McGovern, Inventor Alpine, Inc. 1-1-8 Nishi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo (72) Inventor Kiyozumi Fujiwara 1-1-1, Nishi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Alpine, Inc. F-term (reference) 2C032 HB22 HC22 HC23 HC24 HC26 HC27 HD03 HD21 2F029 AA02 AB01 AB07 AC09 AC14 AD01 AD07 5B050 AA01 BA07 BA17 DA04 EA19 EA30 FA02 5B075 ND08 ND34 PQ02 5H180 FF13 FF13 FF13 FFFF FFFF FFFF

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A map data storage means for storing map data necessary for drawing a map image including a road, a map image in a predetermined range is drawn based on the map data, and a pseudo A navigation device, comprising: a map drawing means for performing a three-dimensional display; and a map display means for displaying the map image drawn by the map drawing means. 2. The map drawing device according to claim 1, wherein the map image drawing range includes a plurality of types of roads having different priorities, and the map drawing means performs the pseudo three-dimensional display on a road having a higher priority. A navigation device characterized by performing: 3. The display of the map image by the map display means according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plurality of reduction magnifications from a detail display to a wide area display can be switched. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the pseudo three-dimensional display of the road is performed in correspondence with the map image having a reduction ratio equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. 4. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the specific road is an upper road that has an overpass. 5. The navigation device according to claim 4, wherein, in the specific road, the crossing portion corresponds to one link. 6. The specific road according to claim 4, wherein the whole of the specific road, including the crossing part, corresponds to one link, and the map drawing means performs the pseudo-crossing for the crossing part. A navigation device for performing three-dimensional display. 7. The three-dimensional map according to claim 4, wherein the map drawing unit hides the specific road from a lower road included in a predetermined range on at least one side of the specific road. A navigation device for performing pseudo three-dimensional display of a road on the upper side of an intersection. 8. The map drawing device according to claim 4, wherein the map drawing unit performs a drawing process on the specific road, in which a lower road included in a predetermined range on at least one side of the road is made translucent. A navigation apparatus for performing pseudo three-dimensional display of the road above the three-dimensional intersection. 9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the map drawing means performs a translucent drawing process by performing a pixel thinning process on a lower road included in the predetermined range. Navigation device. 10. The pseudo three-dimensional display according to claim 1, wherein the map drawing means shifts a drawing position of the road in a predetermined direction to cast a shadow on the road. A navigation device characterized by the above-mentioned. 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein, after drawing the first band image, the map drawing means shifts the second band image in a predetermined direction from a drawing position of the first band image. A navigation device characterized by the above-mentioned. 12. The map drawing device according to claim 11, wherein the map drawing means causes the drawing position of the second band image to correspond to the road position of the drawing target, and sets the drawing position of the first band image to the road position of the drawing target. A navigation device characterized by being displaced from the navigation device. 13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the map drawing means draws, for the specific road, a third band-shaped image including an area corresponding to the road and a shadow, and then displays the third band-shaped image. By drawing a fourth band image having a width smaller than that of the third band image at a position eccentric from the center of the third band image and included in the third band image, the pseudo band image is drawn. A navigation device for performing three-dimensional display. 14. The pseudo three-dimensional display according to claim 1, wherein the map drawing means attaches a belt-shaped additional image to the specific road in a predetermined direction with respect to the road. A navigation device characterized by performing: 15. The map drawing means according to claim 14, wherein the map drawing means changes the color of the belt-shaped additional image between a color of a road to which the additional image is attached and a background color around the road. A navigation device characterized by performing various coloring. 16. The map drawing device according to claim 15, wherein the map drawing means is configured such that as the distance from the road to which the additional image is attached is increased,
A navigation device that performs pixel thinning processing so as to increase the degree of exposure of a background.