JP2005292084A - Navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a navigation system which outputs suitable guide message at a suitable timing depending on the loading status of an IC card or whether the gate of a toll road and an interchange is supported by the ETC System or not. <P>SOLUTION: The navigation system is comprises: the map information acquisition part 13 for acquiring map information and road information; the position detection part 12 for detecting the present position; the card loading status detection part 25 for detecting the loading status of the IC card 23 memorizing information for automatic charge collection; the control part 10 for creating a guidance message from the combination of kinds of entrance gate or toll gate and status of the IC card when it is determined that the entrance gate or the toll gate has approached nearly the prescribed distance from the map information and road information within the area being prescribed distance from the detected present position; and the output part 14 for outputting the created guidance message with voice or on a display. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation apparatus corresponding to an automatic fee collection (hereinafter abbreviated as “ETC: Electric Toll Collection”) system.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ETC system that automatically collects tolls for vehicles by wireless communication using an IC card for fee settlement has been operated. The automatic toll collecting on-board device (hereinafter referred to as “ETC on-vehicle device”) used in this ETC system is an IC that stores personal information such as the type and owner of a vehicle when the vehicle passes through a toll road entrance gate. The information is read from the card and transmitted by radio communication to a road device installed at the entrance rogate, and information on the entrance rogate is received from the road device and recorded on the IC card. In addition, when the ETC on-vehicle device passes through the toll gate on the toll road, it transmits information on the entrance gate recorded on the IC card to the road device. The roadside device that has received the information related to the entrance gate calculates the toll and performs automatic toll collection processing (for example, automatic settlement processing by credit), and transmits toll information to the ETC on-board unit. The ETC on-board unit receives this toll information and notifies the driver.

  Thus, the IC card records the driver's personal information such as the type and owner of the vehicle, and has a credit function. Therefore, many ETC in-vehicle devices are configured so that the IC card can be attached and detached from the viewpoint of crime prevention so that the driver can take the IC card out of the vehicle when getting off the vehicle. The driver normally attaches / detaches the IC card to / from the ETC on-board unit every time he gets on and off the vehicle. By the way, in order to enable automatic toll collection processing at the entrance gate or toll gate of the toll road, it is necessary that the IC card is mounted on the ETC on-board device at that time. If the driver forgets to install the IC card and enters the entrance gate or toll gate, the automatic toll collection process cannot be performed because communication cannot be performed between the ETC on-board unit and the on-road unit. As a result, the own vehicle cannot pass through the gate in a non-stop manner, and the subsequent passage of other vehicles is hindered.

  As a device to solve such problems, an information transmission device that notifies the driver that the IC card is not installed before the vehicle enters the entrance gate or toll gate, and prevents the IC card from being forgotten to be installed. An in-vehicle device is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this on-vehicle device for an information transmission device, it is estimated by the estimating means that the vehicle passes through the toll gate before reaching the toll gate, and it is determined that the IC card is not installed by the informing means when the IC card is not installed. Is notified that the IC card is not installed. Here, it is estimated that the vehicle passes through the toll gate. When it is detected that the vehicle has passed the entrance gate, it is detected that the vehicle has passed a predetermined distance before the toll gate. This is the case when it is estimated that the vehicle passes the toll gate based on the travel route set in the apparatus, or when it is determined that the vehicle is boarding after passing through the entrance gate and before passing through the toll gate.

  As another device that solves the above problem, there is known a vehicle information notification device that settles a fee by a fee settlement card based on wireless communication performed between an on-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle and a wireless device. (For example, Patent Document 2). In this vehicle information notifying device, a gate to be passed on a toll road is specified, it is determined whether or not the specified gate is a toll collection gate compatible with the toll collection system, and this judgment result is determined as driving. Will be notified.

Japanese Patent No. 3314238 (page 1-15, FIG. 5) JP 2001-118185 A

  In the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, all the toll gates on toll roads are ETC systems as a condition for estimating whether or not the vehicle passes through the toll gate when notifying the driver of forgetting to install the IC card. It is assumed to be a corresponding toll gate. Therefore, there is a possibility that notification of forgetting to install the IC card may be made at the entrance gates or toll gates of all toll roads.

  However, actual toll roads include toll roads not compatible with the ETC system in addition to toll roads compatible with the ETC system. In addition, even on toll roads that are compatible with the ETC system, not all entrances or toll gates that are compatible with the ETC system are installed at all interchanges. Furthermore, there are many cases where a gate compatible with the ETC system and a non-compatible gate are mixed in one interchange.

  Therefore, there is a possibility that notification of forgetting to install an IC card may be made even if all the entrance gates or toll gates to be passed are non-ETC system compatible gates and there is no need to install an IC card. In some cases, the driver may be confused and smooth running may be hindered. In addition, if there are mixed gates that are compatible with the ETC system and gates that are not compatible with the ETC system, you can go to the gate that does not support the ETC system and take a toll ticket, or you can perform payment processing with the staff. Since it is possible, it may not be appropriate to notify the user to insert the IC card.

  Furthermore, if you are going to pass through a gate that is not compatible with the ETC system with an IC card installed, you can take a pass ticket, or you can take the IC card out of the ETC on-board unit and perform payment processing with the staff. In this case, no notification is given to the driver. Therefore, if the driver misunderstands the ETC system compatible gate and passes through the entrance gate or toll gate in a non-stop manner, the toll collection process may not be performed.

  On the other hand, since the technique disclosed in Patent Document 2 described above is a technique based on the premise that an IC card has already been installed, notifying the driver that the IC card has been forgotten to be installed is only once at the start of processing. It is only done. Therefore, a navigation device capable of notifying the driver of information such as forgetting to install the IC card, whether the toll road is compatible with the ETC system, whether the gate at the interchange is compatible with the ETC, etc. at a suitable timing. Is desired.

  The present invention has been made in order to meet the above-mentioned demands. An appropriate guidance message is sent at a suitable timing depending on whether an IC card is installed or whether a gate on a toll road or interchange is compatible with ETC. It is an object to provide a navigation device that can output.

  A navigation device according to the present invention is used to perform a map information acquisition unit for acquiring map information and road information, a position detection unit for detecting a current position, and automatic toll collection (ETC: Electric Toll Collection). A card mounting state detection unit for detecting whether or not an IC card storing information stored therein is detected, and a predetermined range of map information and road information centered on the current position detected by the position detection unit from the map information acquisition unit, Lanes included in the map information or road information extracted from the map information acquisition unit when it is determined that the vehicle has approached a predetermined distance from the entrance gate or toll gate of the toll road based on the extracted map information and road information The type of the entrance gate or charge gate defined by the information and the IC card detected by the card attachment state detector Comprises a control unit for generating a wear whether a guidance message based on a combination of, and an output unit for outputting a voice or display a guide message generated by the control unit.

  According to the present invention, when the vehicle approaches the entrance gate or toll gate on the toll road, the guidance message is output based on the combination of the type of the entrance gate or toll gate and whether or not the IC card is installed. A suitable guidance message can be output at a suitable timing depending on whether the toll is forgotten, whether the toll road is compatible with the ETC system, whether the gate at the interchange is compatible with the ETC, or the like. As a result, smooth driving can be performed without confusing the driver near the entrance gate or toll gate.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
Embodiment 1 FIG.
1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. This navigation apparatus is composed of a navigation unit 1 and an ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 connected to the navigation unit 1.

  First, the navigation unit 1 will be described. The navigation unit 1 includes a control unit 10, a memory unit 11, a position detection unit 12, a map information acquisition unit 13, and an output unit 14.

  The control unit 10 is composed of, for example, a microcomputer, and controls the entire navigation unit 1 by operating according to a control program stored in the memory unit 11. Moreover, the control part 10 controls transmission / reception of the data performed between the control parts 20 of the ETC onboard equipment 2. Details of the processing performed by the control unit 10 will be described later.

  The memory unit 11 includes, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a flash memory, and the like, and is accessed from the control unit 10. As described above, the memory unit 11 is used as a work area used by the control unit 10 at the time of calculation, in addition to being used as a control program storage area.

  The position detection unit 12 includes, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System), a beacon, a gyro sensor, a speed sensor, and the like, and detects the current position of the vehicle on which the navigation device is mounted. Current position data representing the current position of the vehicle detected by the position detection unit 12 is sent to the control unit 10.

  In response to a request from the control unit 10, the map information acquisition unit 13 includes an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disk Read Only Memory), a CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), etc. Map information and road information are acquired from such a storage medium or an information communication station outside the vehicle. The map information and road information acquired by the map information acquisition unit 13 include the location of the toll road and the toll gate on the toll road, and whether each lane is a lane of an ETC compatible gate or a non-ETC compatible gate. The lane information corresponding to the gate type is included. The map information and road information acquired by the map information acquisition unit 13 are sent to the control unit 10.

  The output unit 14 includes, for example, a speaker and a display. The output unit 14 notifies the driver by voice or display in accordance with a guidance message sent from the control unit 10.

  An outline of the operation of the navigation unit 1 configured as described above will be described. In this navigation unit 1, map information and road information in a predetermined range centered on the current position of the host vehicle detected by the position detection unit 12 are read from the map information acquisition unit 13, so that the current position of the vehicle Map information and road information are acquired.

  Further, in the navigation unit 1, when a destination and a planned travel route are set using an operation unit (not shown), guidance information, traffic jam information, and the like of the planned travel route are acquired. By sending these pieces of information to the output unit 14, in addition to the current position and surrounding map information and road information, guidance information, traffic jam information, and the like are notified to the driver by voice or display at a predetermined timing. The

  Next, the ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 will be described. The ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 includes a control unit 20, a memory unit 21, a communication unit 22, a card attachment / detachment unit 24 to / from which an IC card 23 is attached / detached, and a card attachment state detection unit 25.

  The control part 20 is comprised, for example from the microcomputer, and controls the whole ETC onboard equipment 2 by operate | moving according to the control program stored in the memory part 21. FIG. Further, the control unit 20 controls data transmission / reception performed with the navigation unit 1. Details of the processing performed by the control unit 20 will be described later.

  The memory unit 21 includes, for example, a ROM, a RAM, a flash memory, and the like, and is accessed from the control unit 20. As described above, the memory unit 21 is used as a work area used by the control unit 20 during calculation, in addition to being used as a control program storage area. Furthermore, the memory unit 21 is also used for storing information related to the type and owner of the vehicle.

  The communication unit 22 performs wireless communication with an on-road device (not shown) installed on a toll road via an antenna. Specifically, the communication unit 22 transmits data transmitted from the control unit 20 to the road unit via the antenna, and transmits data received from the road unit via the antenna to the control unit 20.

  The IC card 23 is used to specify a driver and perform a toll collection process, and is attached to and detached from the card attaching / detaching unit 24. This IC card 23 has a credit function and stores personal information of drivers, available balances, and the like.

  When the IC card 23 is inserted, the card attaching / detaching unit 24 reads the data stored in the IC card 23 and sends the data to the control unit 20 and the data sent from the control unit 20 to the IC card 23. Write. Since the IC card 23 can be attached to and detached from the card attaching / detaching portion 24, the driver can take the IC card 23 out of the vehicle when getting off the vehicle. As a result, crime prevention measures are possible.

  The card mounting state detection unit 25 is constituted by, for example, a micro switch or the like, and detects whether or not the IC card 23 is mounted on the card attaching / detaching unit 24. The card attachment state detection unit 25 outputs a card attachment state signal indicating that the micro switch is turned on when the IC card 23 is attached to the card attaching / detaching unit 24 and the IC card 23 is attached. This card mounting state signal is sent to the control unit 20.

  The ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 configured as described above operates as follows. In other words, when the vehicle approaches the ETC-compatible gate installed on the toll road, the ETC on-vehicle device 2 exchanges data by radio communication with a road device installed on the toll road via the communication unit 22.

  That is, when the vehicle approaches the entrance gate, the ETC on-vehicle device 2 responds to the data request from the road unit, and transmits the information on the vehicle type and the owner stored in the memory unit 21 to the communication unit. 22 to the roadside machine. In response to this, since information related to the incoming rogate is sent from the roadside device, the control unit 20 writes the information related to the incoming rogate received by the communication unit 22 into the IC card 23.

  In addition, when the vehicle approaches the toll gate, the ETC on-board unit 2 is stored in the memory unit 21 and the information related to the incoming gate stored in the IC card 23 in response to the data request from the road unit. Information on the type and owner of the vehicle is transmitted to the roadside machine via the communication unit 22. In response to this, the road unit calculates a toll based on the received information and sends it back to the ETC on-board unit 2 as toll information. The control unit 20 writes the fee information received via the communication unit 22 to the IC card 23. The automatic fee collection process is completed by the above procedure, and the vehicle can normally pass through the fee gate.

  Moreover, the control part 20 of the ETC onboard equipment 2 requests | requires notifying or displaying charge information etc. with respect to the control part 10 of the navigation unit 1 in response to the completion of an automatic charge collection process. Thereby, the charge information or the like is notified to the driver using the output unit 14 of the navigation unit 1.

  Further, upon detecting whether or not the IC card 23 is mounted on the card attaching / detaching unit 24 by the card mounting state detecting unit 25 of the ETC on-vehicle device 2, the control unit 20 responds to the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1. Then, the presence or absence of the IC card 23 is notified. Thereby, a guidance message combining the mounting state of the IC card 23 is notified to the driver by voice or display using the output unit 14 of the navigation unit 1.

  Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, the operation when the navigation device according to the first embodiment of the present invention configured as described above actually reaches a predetermined distance before the entrance gate or the charge gate will be described. While explaining.

  When the driver starts the engine of the vehicle, power supply to the navigation unit 1 and the ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 is started, and the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 2 is started.

  First, it is checked whether or not the vehicle has reached a predetermined distance from the gate (step ST10). That is, the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1 acquires current position data representing the current position of the vehicle from the position detection unit 12, and maps information and roads in a predetermined range centered on the position indicated by the acquired current position data. Information is read from the map information acquisition unit 13. As a result, the current position of the vehicle and the surrounding map information and road information are acquired. Thereafter, the control unit 10 calculates the distance from the current position to the entry rogate or toll gate on the acquired map information and road information, and is a predetermined distance from the entrance rogate or toll gate to which the vehicle is to pass. Check if it has been reached. If it is determined that the vehicle has not reached the predetermined distance, the process waits while repeatedly executing step ST10.

  If it is determined that a predetermined distance has been reached in the middle of the repeated execution of step ST10, lane information is then searched (step ST11). That is, the control unit 10 determines from the map information and road information read from the map information acquisition unit 13 which lane of the entrance gate or toll gate to be passed is an ETC-compatible gate and is not an ETC-compatible gate. Lane information is acquired.

  Next, it is checked whether or not an ETC compatible gate exists (step ST12). That is, the control unit 10 refers to the lane information acquired in step ST11 and checks whether there is an ETC-compatible gate in the incoming rogate or toll gate to be passed.

  If it is determined in step ST12 that an ETC-compatible gate exists, the card mounting state is detected (step ST13). That is, the control unit 10 acquires card mounting state data indicating the card mounting state from the ETC on-vehicle device 2. Specifically, the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1 requests the control unit 20 of the ETC in-vehicle device 2 to transmit card mounting state data. The ETC on-vehicle device 2 that has received this request operates as follows. That is, the control unit 20 of the ETC on-vehicle device 2 requests the card mounting state detection unit 25 to detect whether the IC card 23 is mounted. In response to this request, the card mounting state detection unit 25 sends a card mounting state signal to the control unit 20. The control unit 20 receives the card mounting state signal sent from the card mounting state detection unit 25 and sends it to the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1 as card mounting state data.

  Next, it is checked whether or not the IC card 23 is attached (step ST14). That is, the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1 refers to the card mounting state data received in step ST13 and checks whether or not the IC card 23 is mounted on the card attaching / detaching unit 24 of the ETC on-vehicle device 2.

  If it is determined in step ST14 that the IC card 23 is attached, a guidance notification to the ETC compatible gate is made (step ST15). That is, the control unit 10 sends a guidance message to the output unit 14 urging to go to the ETC compatible gate. In accordance with this guidance message, the output unit 14 notifies the driver, for example, with a voice or display such as “Please proceed to the ETC compatible gate”. Upon receiving the notification, the driver can proceed to the ETC compatible gate and perform automatic fee collection processing to pass through the entrance gate or the fee gate. With this configuration, the driver can travel smoothly without making a mistake in the gate to be entered.

  If it is determined in step ST14 that the IC card 23 is not installed, guidance to the ETC non-compliant gate or card insertion notification is performed (step ST16). In other words, the control unit 10 sends a guidance message that prompts the user to go to the ETC non-compliant gate or insert the IC card 23 to the output unit 14. According to this guidance message, the output unit 14 notifies the driver, for example, with a voice or display such as “No card inserted. Go to ETC non-compliant gate or insert card”. . Upon receipt of the notification, the driver proceeds to the ETC non-compliant gate when entering the entrance gate and takes a pass ticket, or proceeds to the ETC compatible gate with the IC card 23 and performs automatic toll collection processing. Can pass through. Also, when passing through the fee gate, proceed to the non-ETC-compatible gate and perform fee payment processing with an attendant, or pass through the fee gate by mounting the IC card 23 and proceeding to the ETC-compatible gate and performing automatic fee collection processing Can do. With this configuration, the driver can make a more suitable selection according to the situation.

  If it is determined in step ST12 that there is no ETC-compatible gate, the card mounted state is detected (step ST17). The process in step ST17 is the same as the process in step ST13 described above.

  Next, it is checked whether or not the IC card 23 is attached (step ST18). This process is the same as the process in step ST14 described above. If it is determined in step ST18 that the IC card 23 is mounted, guidance to the ETC non-compliant gate and card removal notification are performed (step ST19). That is, the control unit 10 sends to the output unit 14 a guidance message that prompts the user to go to the ETC non-compliant gate and to take out the card when attempting to pass the toll gate. According to this guidance message, for example, the output unit 14 “goes to the ETC non-compliant gate and take a pass ticket” when passing through the entrance gate, and “passes to the ETC non-compliant gate when passing through the toll gate, removes the card and charges the fee. Notify the driver with a voice or display such as "Please pay". Upon receipt of the notification, the driver proceeds to the non-ETC compatible gate when passing through the entrance gate and takes a pass ticket, and when passing through the toll gate, proceeds to the non-ETC compatible gate and takes out the IC card 23 to perform a fee payment process with the staff. You can go through the entrance gate or toll gate. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the driver from mistaking it as an ETC-compatible gate and not being able to collect the toll collection when trying to pass through the entrance gate or the toll gate non-stop.

  If it is determined in step ST18 that the IC card 23 is not attached, a guidance notification to an ETC non-compliant gate is made (step ST20). That is, the control unit 10 sends a guidance message to the output unit 14 urging to go to the ETC non-compliant gate. In accordance with this guidance message, the output unit 14 notifies the driver, for example, with a voice or display such as “Please proceed to the ETC non-compliant gate”. Upon receipt of the notification, the driver proceeds to the non-ETC-compatible gate when passing through the entrance gate and picks up a pass ticket, and when passing through the toll gate, proceeds to the non-ETC-compatible gate and performs fee payment processing with a clerk to enter the entrance gate or toll gate. Can pass through. This configuration does not confuse the driver.

  As described above, according to the navigation device of the first embodiment of the present invention, when the vehicle approaches the entrance gate or toll gate on the toll road, the type of entrance gate or toll gate and whether or not an IC card is installed A guidance message is output based on the combination of the above, and it is suitable depending on whether forgetting to install the IC card, whether the toll road is compatible with the ETC system, whether the gate at the interchange is compatible with the ETC, etc. An appropriate guidance message can be output at the timing. As a result, smooth driving can be performed without confusing the driver near the entrance gate or toll gate.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the control unit indicates that the type of entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information is a mixture of ETC compatible gates and ETC non-compatible gates. And when the card attachment state detection unit detects that the IC card is not attached, a guide message is generated to prompt the user to insert an IC card or go to an ETC non-compliant gate. If you are going to pass through an entrance gate or toll gate where ETC compatible gates and non-ETC compatible gates are mixed without an IC card attached, proceed to the non-ETC compatible gate and pay the fee. Or a message to select whether to install the IC card and go to the ETC compatible gate for automatic toll collection. Because, the driver can, depending on the situation, a more appropriate choice.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the control unit indicates that the type of entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information is a mixture of ETC compatible gates and ETC non-compatible gates. And when the card attachment state detection unit detects that the IC card is attached, a guidance message that prompts the user to go to the ETC compatible gate is generated. If you are going to pass through an entrance gate or toll gate where ETC compatible gates and non-ETC compatible gates are mixed, the driver will make a mistake in the gate to enter in order to notify the ETC compatible gate. It can drive smoothly without.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the control unit indicates that the type of the entrance gate or the charge gate defined by the lane information indicates that there is no ETC compatible gate, and the card installation state detection When it is detected that the IC card is not installed, the guidance message is generated to prompt the user to go to the ETC non-compliant gate. When there is only a corresponding gate and there is no need to install an IC card, no guidance message for prompting the installation of the IC card is output, so that the driver is not confused.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the control unit indicates that the type of the entrance gate or the charge gate defined by the lane information indicates that there is no ETC compatible gate, and the card installation state detection When it is detected that the IC card is installed in the part, it is urged to go to the ETC non-compliant gate when passing through the entrance gate, and when passing through the charge gate, it goes to the ETC non-compliant gate and takes out the attached IC card. Since it is configured to generate a guidance message that prompts the user, when an IC card is installed and an attempt is made to pass through an ETC non-compliant gate, the vehicle proceeds to the non-ETC compatible gate and takes a pass ticket when passing through the entrance gate. A message indicating that it is necessary is output, and the IC card is removed from the ETC on-board unit when passing through the charge gate. Since the guidance message that it is necessary to perform fee payment processing with the staff will be output, the driver will misunderstand the ETC compatible gate, and it will not be possible to collect the fee collection when trying to pass through the entrance gate or the fee gate non-stop Can be prevented.

  Further, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, since the card mounting state detection unit is housed in a separate ETC on-board unit that constitutes the ETC system, the IC card can be changed from an already-developed and operated ETC on-board unit. Therefore, it is possible to save the trouble of newly developing a card attachment state detection unit.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
The navigation device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention is an integration of the navigation unit 1 and ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 in Embodiment 1.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the navigation apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The same components as those of the navigation unit 1 and the ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 according to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as those used in the first embodiment, and description thereof is omitted.

  The control unit 30 is constituted by a microcomputer, for example, and controls the entire navigation device. The control unit 30 has both functions of the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1 according to the first embodiment and the control unit 20 of the ETC on-vehicle device 2.

  The memory unit 31 includes, for example, a ROM, a RAM, a flash memory, and the like. Similar to the memory unit 21 of the ETC on-vehicle device 2 in the first embodiment, the memory unit 31 is used as a work area and a control program storage area used by the control unit 30 at the time of calculation, as well as the type and ownership of the vehicle. It is also used to store information about the person.

  The operation of the navigation device according to the second embodiment of the present invention configured as described above is performed between the control unit 10 of the navigation unit 1 and the control unit 20 of the ETC in-vehicle device 2 according to the first embodiment described above. The operation is the same as the operation of the navigation device according to the first embodiment except that the data transmission / reception performed in is performed in the control unit 30.

  As described above, according to the navigation device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, since only one control unit 30 and one memory unit 31 are provided, the cost of the navigation device can be reduced. In addition, since the navigation device has a single unit configuration, wiring for connecting the navigation unit 1 and the ETC vehicle-mounted device 2 becomes unnecessary. As a result, troublesome wiring work is unnecessary, and the work of attaching the navigation device to the vehicle is simplified.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement when the navigation apparatus based on Embodiment 1 of this invention arrives in front of the predetermined distance from an entrance gate or a charge gate. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the navigation apparatus concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Navigation unit, 2 ETC onboard equipment, 10 Navigation unit control part, 11 Navigation unit memory part, 12 Position detection part, 13 Map information acquisition part, 14 Output part, 20 ETC onboard equipment control part, 21 ETC onboard equipment Memory unit, 22 communication unit, 23 IC card, 24 card attaching / detaching unit, 25 card mounting state detecting unit.

Claims (6)

A map information acquisition unit for acquiring map information and road information;
A position detector for detecting the current position;
A card mounting state detection unit for detecting presence or absence of an IC card storing information used for automatic charge collection (ETC: Electric Toll Collection);
A predetermined range of map information and road information centered on the current position detected by the position detection unit is extracted from the map information acquisition unit, and the vehicle enters a toll road or charges based on the extracted map information and road information. The type of the entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information included in the map information or road information extracted from the map information acquisition unit and the card installation when it is determined that the vehicle has approached a predetermined distance from the gate A control unit that generates a guidance message based on a combination of the presence or absence of an IC card detected by the state detection unit;
A navigation device comprising: an output unit that outputs the guidance message generated by the control unit by voice or display.   The control unit indicates that the type of entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information is a mixture of ETC compatible gates and non-ETC compatible gates, and the IC card is detected by the card attachment state detection unit. 2. The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when it is detected that the card is not attached, a guidance message prompting the user to insert an IC card or go to a non-ETC compatible gate is generated.   The control unit indicates that the type of entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information is a mixture of ETC compatible gates and non-ETC compatible gates, and the IC card is detected by the card attachment state detection unit. 2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein a guidance message prompting the user to go to an ETC-compatible gate is generated when it is detected that the device is attached.   The control unit indicates that the type of entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information indicates that there is no ETC compatible gate, and the card installation state detection unit detects that the IC card is not installed. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein a guidance message that prompts the user to go to an ETC-incompatible gate is generated.   The control unit indicates that the type of entrance gate or toll gate defined by the lane information indicates that there is no ETC compatible gate, and the card installation state detection unit detects that an IC card is installed. A message that prompts the user to go to an ETC non-compliant gate when passing through the entrance gate, and prompts the user to go to the non-ETC compatible gate and take out the attached IC card when passing through the toll gate. The navigation device according to claim 1.   The navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the card mounting state detection unit is housed in a separate ETC vehicle-mounted device constituting the ETC system.

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