JP5121255B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a navigation device, and more particularly to a navigation device having a function of displaying a plurality of selectable routes as a schematic diagram.

  The navigation device searches for a route to the destination set by the user and presents the road on the route on the screen. There is known an apparatus having a function of displaying a plurality of candidate routes from a departure point to a destination on a map screen and allowing a user to select one of them as an initial route (guide route).

  For example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-214879 (Patent Document 1), a plurality of searched candidate routes are displayed on a map screen, and associated with each route, an estimated required time, a travel distance, A navigation device that displays character information such as a fee is disclosed.

  Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2004-347420 (Patent Document 2) discloses a navigation device that presents a plurality of searched candidate routes as a summary map on a screen. Patent Document 2 proposes a method of converting a plurality of searched candidate routes into a summary map that is easy for the user to view by performing deformation processing such as straightening or orthogonalizing a road shape.

  Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-170376 (Patent Document 3) obtains traffic jam information in advance, predicts the occurrence of traffic jam on the searched route, and passes along the guidance route. A navigation device has been proposed which can indicate when and where a position can be reached.

JP 2003-214879 A JP 2004-347420 A JP 2004-170376 A

  However, in the navigation device disclosed in Patent Document 1, a plurality of searched candidate routes are displayed on the screen in the original shape indicated by the map data, and character information such as predicted required time, travel distance, and fee is displayed on the route. Since it is displayed in the blank space in the figure, it is difficult for the user to grasp the driving situation for each route only by looking at the route map.

  Further, in the navigation device disclosed in Patent Document 2, since a plurality of candidate routes are presented on the screen as a summary map, it is easy for the user to sort the plurality of routes. However, since the summary map of Patent Document 2 does not display information indicating the required time for each route, it is difficult for the user to determine which route is optimal simply by looking at the summary map.

  On the other hand, in the navigation device of Patent Document 3, the relationship between the passing position Ti and the passing time ti (i = 1, 2, 3,...) Expected when the guide route is passed is calculated in advance. Above the map screen showing the route, a time scale indicating the time at a fixed time interval is displayed with the departure time as an initial value. When the user selects any time ti on the time scale, a mark Pv indicating the predicted car position is displayed at the position Ti scheduled to pass at the time ti on the guidance route. Therefore, the user can guess which position on the guide route is traveling by selecting the times on the time scale one after another.

  However, Patent Document 3 is such that a predicted passage position for each time is displayed as a mark in the already determined guidance route, and is not related to a map screen displaying a plurality of routes for route selection. The predicted position mark of Patent Document 3 changes the display position one after another in response to a user operation. For example, a plurality of alternative routes whose routes can be changed while the vehicle is traveling toward the destination. If this method is applied to a route selection screen that presents, there is a practical problem because it causes forward carelessness.

An object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device capable of displaying a route selection screen suitable for selecting one of a plurality of routes as a guide route.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device that can display a route selection screen that can change the route according to the situation while the vehicle is running as well as when selecting a guidance route before departure.

In order to achieve the above object, the navigation device of the present invention generates a route schematic diagram expressing a plurality of routes to a destination with simplified line segments, and the passage positions at predetermined time intervals predicted for each route. Is displayed as a row of marks on the route schematic diagram. Since a section with a lot of marks takes time to pass, and a section with few marks shows a section that can pass in a short time, according to the present invention, the user can display a column of marks displayed in the route schematic diagram. By comparing, a plurality of paths can be easily compared.
The mark indicating the passing position is not necessarily displayed over the entire section of each route, and may be displayed in a specific route section necessary for determination of route selection. In this specification, the mark displayed on the route schematic diagram is referred to as a time scale symbol.

  More specifically, the navigation device of the present invention is based on a route search unit for searching for a plurality of routes from the map data to the destination, and route data indicating the plurality of routes searched by the route search unit. A route schematic diagram generating unit for generating a route schematic diagram showing a plurality of routes as a plurality of line segments having a branching point and a merge point, and a line segment indicating a specific route section on the route schematic diagram, And a time scale arrangement section for arranging a number of time scale symbols determined according to the required time for passing.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, the route schematic diagram generation unit analyzes, for example, route data indicating a plurality of routes searched by the route search unit, and each route overlaps with other routes and non-overlaps. The route data is divided into sections, simplified route data having a link identifier is generated for each overlapping section and each non-overlapping section, and a route schematic diagram is generated based on the simplified route data.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, the route schematic map generation unit treats one of a plurality of routes searched by the route search unit as a guide route and the other route as an alternative route. A polygonal line or curve that is expressed by a first straight line including a plurality of nodes that become a branching point or a junction point, and each of the alternative routes branched from the guide route is coupled to any node on the first straight line. The route schematic represented by is generated.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, the time scale arrangement unit has a required time calculation unit for calculating a required time for passing the designated route section, and the required time calculation unit specifies the specified time on the route schematic diagram. The required passage time of the route section corresponding to the section is calculated, and the arrangement interval of the time scale to be arranged in the specific section is determined based on the required passage time.

  The vehicle-mounted navigation device according to the present invention includes a map data storage unit, a current position acquisition unit that outputs position information indicating the current position of the automobile, and the guidance according to the position information output from the current position acquisition unit. A route guidance control unit that controls the screen, a route search unit that searches for a plurality of routes from the current position to the destination based on the map data stored in the map data storage unit, and the route search unit. A route schematic diagram generating unit for generating a route schematic diagram showing the plurality of routes as a plurality of line segments having simplified branching points and merging points based on the route data indicating the plurality of routes; A route scale diagram with a time scale symbol is provided on a line segment indicating a specific route section on the schematic diagram, with a time scale placement portion for placing a number of time scale symbols determined according to the required time of passage of the section. , Alone Together with the guidance screen, characterized in that it is displayed on the display device.

  As described above, the navigation device of the present invention expresses a plurality of routes in a simplified route schematic diagram, and displays a mark (time memory symbol) that serves as a guide for the required time for each route. The user can easily compare a plurality of routes by looking at the route schematic diagram.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows an example of a navigation system to which the present invention is applied.
The navigation system includes a navigation device 10 mounted on an automobile and a traffic information distribution server 30 connected to a communication network NW. A plurality of radio base stations 20 are connected to the communication network NW, and the navigation apparatus 10 is connected to the communication network NW via the radio base station 20, and traffic information such as congestion information described later is transmitted from the traffic information distribution server 30. Get traffic information.

  The navigation device 10 includes a control unit 100 that controls the entire device, a map data storage unit 102 that stores map data, a current position acquisition unit 103 that acquires position information of the vehicle by a GPS sensor, and the like. An input unit 104 that receives input, a display unit 105 that displays a user operation screen and a map, and a wireless communication unit 106 that communicates with the traffic information distribution server 30 via the wireless base station 20 and the communication network NW20. . Although omitted in FIG. 1, the navigation device 10 may include a voice output unit that gives guidance information to the user by voice in conjunction with information presentation to the display unit 105.

The control unit 100 includes a processor 101 and a memory 107.
The memory 107 includes, as a program related to the present invention executed by the processor 101, an input reception control unit 110 that receives input information such as a destination input from the input unit 104 by a user operation, a departure place setting, and a destination setting. , Initial route selection, route guidance, etc., according to the state of the navigation device, the route guidance control unit 111 that controls the display content and route guidance of the display unit 105, and the map data storage unit 102 when the user sets the destination , A route search unit 112 that searches for a plurality of candidate routes from the departure point (or current position) to the destination, a map image generation unit 113, and a plurality of route search conditions to be used by the route search unit 112 A route search condition setting unit 114 for setting 115 (115-1 to 115-n) is prepared. As program software characteristic of the present invention, a route map generation unit with time scale 116 and a required time calculation unit 117 are prepared.

  The route guidance control unit 111 is a main program of the navigation device, and the map image generation unit 113 according to the current position of the vehicle output from the current position income unit 103 and the output from the direction sensor omitted in the drawing. And a guidance image whose contents change as the automobile travels is output to the display unit 105. When the route guidance control unit 111 receives a control command corresponding to a user operation from the input reception control unit 110, the route guidance control unit 111 activates the route search unit 112 and the time scale route map generation unit 116 to generate a route schematic diagram. To the display unit 105.

  On the initial screen for selecting a guide route for the first time, a plurality of candidate routes are searched according to the destination designated by the user, and a route schematic diagram showing these routes with simplified line segments is displayed. When the user selects one of the candidate routes as a guide route, a map image displaying a current position mark on the guide route is output to the display unit 105 as a guide screen. As will be described later, the route schematic diagram is a guide screen for informing the user who is traveling along the guide route about the traffic state of the user on the guide route and the traffic state of an alternative route that can be changed on the way. Can be displayed side by side on the display screen.

  The map data storage unit 102 is configured by a hard disk drive or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) drive having a relatively large capacity recording medium. The input unit 104 includes input parts such as buttons and dials, and the display unit 105 includes a display screen capable of displaying images and text, such as a liquid crystal display, and an audio output device such as a speaker. . By making the display of the display unit 105 into a touch panel format, the function of the input unit 104 can be given to the display unit 105. The memory 107 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory). The programs 110 to 104 are stored in the ROM, and the map data read from the route search condition 115 and the map data storage unit 102 are: Stored in RAM.

  Here, although the navigation apparatus 10 that receives traffic information from the traffic information distribution server 30 via the network NW is shown, the present invention accesses, for example, a Web (World Wide Web) server via the network NW, The present invention can also be applied to a communication type car navigation apparatus having a function of enjoying various Web services.

FIG. 2 shows a configuration example of the navigation map database 40 stored in the map data storage unit 102.
The map database 40 includes map display data 41, route calculation data 42, and link correspondence data 43. The map display data 41 is data for defining a map displayed on the display screen, and is composed of road data 401, background data 402, and character data 403.

  As described in detail in FIG. 4, the road data 401 describes each road by a combination of a plurality of nodes serving as end points or branch points and links connecting two adjacent nodes. The shape of the road is represented by the coordinates of a shape interpolation point located at a key point in each link.

  The background data 402 includes data serving as the background of a road map such as a coastline, a railway, a river, and a building, and the character data 403 includes a note character string displayed on the map such as a place name, a road name, and an intersection name. .

  The route calculation data 42 describes a route (node network) by a combination of a node and a link, and can express a cost (time required or fee) between nodes and links. The link correspondence data 43 is for associating each link with another data block, for example, a data block indicating traffic jam information acquired from the traffic information distribution server 30.

  Node IDs (identifiers) and link IDs are assigned to the nodes and links that define each road, respectively. Each link is associated with another data block such as a traffic jam information data block, a road shape data block, and a name data block, for example, by a link ID.

  The map data for car navigation includes route guidance data indicating signboards and driving lanes output at the time of route guidance, guidance search data used for POI search and address search, etc. Since the data is not related to the present invention, the detailed description is omitted.

FIG. 3 shows a hierarchical structure of map data stored in the map data storage unit 102.
In the car navigation device, the map display data 41 and the route calculation data 42 shown in FIG. 2 are managed in several scale levels in order to manage the map data according to the scale. The map data at each level is managed for each mesh by dividing the map area into a plurality of meshes along the latitude and longitude.

  FIG. 3 shows the relationship between the level L (i) and the upper level L (i + 1), L (i + 2) mesh with the level L (i) indicating the most detailed map as the lowest level. As indicated by the diagonal lines, the map data at the level L (i) indicates an enlarged map of one mesh at the upper level L (i + 1), and one mesh at the level L (i + 2) indicates the lower level L (i + 1). The scale map which integrated the some mesh (in FIG. 2, 16 mesh) is shown.

  The route calculation data 42 includes data for associating the levels described above. Further, data distributed from the traffic information distribution server 30 to each navigation device, for example, data indicating a traffic jam area is associated with at least one of the plurality of levels described above.

  The route search unit 112 searches the map data storage unit (map database) 102 for a plurality of routes from the departure point (for example, the current location) to the destination according to the route search condition 115, and from the traffic information distribution server 30, these Get traffic information on the route. The route data indicating the search result is output after converting the level so that it can be associated with the distribution data from the traffic information distribution server 30.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a basic configuration of the road data 401.
The road data includes nodes n (n1 to n4) indicating feature points such as branch points and intersections, and links a (a1 to a5) indicating road sections connecting the nodes. In the road data, a point called a shape interpolation point is set in the middle of a link in order to express a road shape between nodes. In FIG. 4, sections a1 to a5 indicated by broken line arrows are links, and black circles p1 to p10 represent shape interpolation points.

  The route search condition 115 used by the route search unit 112 of the navigation device 10 is provided with a plurality of search conditions with different parameters to be regarded as important, such as required time priority or distance priority. . In the route search condition with the required time priority, as the traffic information to be applied to the required time calculation, the statistical traffic information stored in the internal memory in advance and the real-time traffic information dynamically received from the traffic information distribution server 30 are used. Either one can be selected.

  The route search unit 112 calculates the cost of each link shown in FIG. 4 in accordance with the route search condition 115 specified by the user. For example, based on the route search method such as the Dijkstra method, the route search unit 112 starts from the start node (current location). A route with the lowest link cost to the end node (destination) is searched as an optimum route, and several selected routes are selected as candidate routes in the order of the link cost. The candidate routes searched here are each expressed as a string of links shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the data structure of the candidate route searched by the route search unit 112.
(A) shows, as an example, the data structure of route data 50 searched under a route search condition with priority on time required, and (B) and (C) show road shape data of each link included in route data 50. The data structure of 51 and the name data 52 is shown. The route data 50, road data 51, and name data 52 are stored in a predetermined data storage area prepared in the memory 107.

  The route data 50 is composed of a plurality of data blocks corresponding to the candidate route, and each data block includes a plurality of ((time required) arrival times (or required times) 501 when the route is used and a plurality of ( n links) are represented by a pair of link ID: 502-i and link length 503-i (i = 1 to n).

  The road shape data 51 is a data block generated in association with the link ID 502 indicated by the route data 50. For example, the link ID 511, the start / end position 512, the time required for passing the link 513, and the traffic congestion degree 514 , ID 515 of the start point node of the link, ID 516 of the end point node, the number (n) 517 of coordinate points specifying the link shape, and n coordinate points 518 (X coordinate 518X-i, Y coordinate 518Y-i, i = 1 to n). The start / end position 512 indicates a coordinate value representing the position when the current position or destination is in the middle of the link. Further, the values of the required time 513 and the congestion degree 514 are extracted from the traffic information data distributed from the traffic information distribution server 30.

  The name data 52 is also a data block generated corresponding to the link ID 502 indicated by the route data 50. For example, the link ID 521, the number of intersection names (k) 522 existing in the link, and the intersection name 523 ( 523-1 to 523-k), the number of road names (m) 524 of the links, and individual road names 525 (5255-1 to 525-m). When one link is a part of the national highway y line and a part of the xx road, the name data 52 has two road names 525.

In the navigation device shown in FIG. 1, when a user (automobile driver) inputs a destination from the input unit 104, route guidance in the following procedure is performed by the control unit 100.
Input information such as a destination input to the input unit 104 is received by the input reception control unit 110 and passed to the route guidance control unit 111. When the destination is input and the display of the route schematic diagram is requested, the route guidance control unit 111 acquires the current location from the current position acquisition unit 103, and the route search unit 112 receives the route from the current location to the destination. Request a search.

The route search unit 112 reads the route search conditions 115 (115-1 to 115-n), and starts searching for a route from the current location to the destination in descending order of priority. In this embodiment, the route search condition with the highest priority is referred to as “top priority search condition”, the optimum route searched under the top priority search condition is referred to as “guide route”, and the other routes are referred to as “alternative routes”. To.
When the route search is completed in the route search unit 112, the route guidance control unit 111 activates the route map generation unit with time scale 116, generates a route schematic diagram with time scale, and outputs this to the display unit 105. .

When a route section is specified by the extended link ID indicated by the simplified route data from the route map generation unit 116, the required time calculation unit 117 calculates the required time for passing through the section and displays the calculation result. It has a function to return. Immediately after the route search by the route search unit 112, the latest required time 513 and the congestion degree 514 for each basic link section are held in the road data 51 corresponding to the basic link ID of each route.
Accordingly, the required time calculation unit 117 uses a correspondence relationship between an extended link ID and a basic link ID, which will be described later with reference to FIGS. By referring to the individual road data 51 and accumulating the required time 513, the required time for passing through the route section specified by the extended link ID can be calculated.

  As will be described later, when the user is guided along the guide route and wants to periodically calculate the required travel time of the remaining section in the guide route, traffic information data indicating the latest required time 513 and the congestion degree 514 is required. Become. With respect to the required time 513 and the congestion degree 514 of the remaining section of the guide route, if the route guide control unit 111 periodically obtains information from the traffic information server 30 and updates the road data, the required time The calculation unit 117 can calculate the required travel time for the designated section with reference to the road data 51 stored in the memory 107.

  When the route image generation unit 116 with time scale receives route data of a plurality of routes searched by the route search unit 112, the route image generation unit 116 extracts a part of the route and uses the required time calculation unit 117 to pass through this interval. Time is calculated and a route map in which time scales are arranged is generated. The time scale here means symbols arranged at substantially equal intervals on a line segment (straight line or curve) representing a certain route section on the route schematic diagram. In this specification, this symbol is called a time scale symbol.

  For example, in a route section represented by a line segment of length L, when the estimated required travel time is T, when it is desired to display the position of the car at every elapsed time t after entering the route section with a scale symbol A scale symbol is arranged at a position obtained by dividing a line segment representing a route section into n equal parts (n = T / t). When T = 60 minutes and t = 20 minutes, the user can know that it takes 60 minutes to pass this section by placing a scale symbol at a position obtained by dividing the line segment representing the route section into three equal parts.

  According to the present invention, as will be described in detail later, in the route schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the guide route and the alternative route, the estimated passage time is displayed on each route by a time scale symbol. You can compare the traffic conditions on the route at a glance.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the function of the route scale map generation unit 116 with time scale.
The route scale map generation unit 116 with time scale analyzes the connection relation between routes based on the route data 50 of the guide route and the alternative route generated by the route search unit 112, and simplified route data suitable for the schematic diagram. Path connection relationship analysis processing (step S1) for generating a route, route schematic diagram generation processing (step S2) for generating a route schematic diagram based on simplified route data, and time scale arrangement for arranging a time scale on the route schematic diagram Processing (step S3), display information addition processing (step S4) for adding traffic information and a road name to each route on the route schematic diagram, and outputting the route schematic diagram to the display unit 105 via the map image generating unit 113 The display process (step S5) is executed.

  In step S1, a basic link sequence connected to a branch point or a merge point of the route is extracted from the route data generated by the route search unit 112, and one basic link sequence in an overlapping section in which a plurality of routes overlap each other is extracted. In summary, the basic link string of non-overlapping sections is combined into one, and a new link identifier (extended link ID) is assigned to each section, thereby generating simplified route data. The simplified route data has a data structure in which nodes are connected by links that are extended in distance from the basic link indicated by the original route data 50 by defining a branch point or a junction point of a plurality of routes as a node. .

  For example, it is assumed that the candidate routes R1, R2, and R3 searched by the route search unit 112 have the connection relationship shown in FIG. 7, and each route data is composed of a link string shown in FIG. Here, the node S indicates the departure place, the node G indicates the destination, and a01 to a20 indicate the identifiers of the basic links used in the map data.

  The route R1 is a guide route and includes links a01 to a10. The routes R2 and R3 are alternative routes, and the route R2 includes links a01, a02, a11 to a16, a09, and a10, and the route R3 includes links a01, a02, a11, a12, a17 to a20, a09, a10.

  As indicated by an arrow 1 between the route data, routes R1, R2, and R3 overlap in a section between links a01 and a02 and links a09 and a10, and paths R2 and R3 overlap in a section between links a11 and a12. ing. In the route connection relation analysis process (step S1), these overlapping sections are extracted from the route data of R1, R2, and R3, and new link identifiers (extended link IDs) L1 to L6 are assigned to the overlapping sections and the non-overlapping sections. Thus, simplified route data is generated.

FIG. 9 shows the relationship between the nodes R1 and R3 included in the simplified route data generated by the route connection relationship analysis process (step S1) and the routes R1 to R3, and FIG. 10 shows the simplification of the routes R1 to R3. The structure of route data is shown.
Here, the arrow 2 represents a link overlapping between routes, and the symbols N1 to N5 represent nodes in the simplified route data. The node N1 is the departure point S, the node N4 is the destination G, the end point node N2 of the link L1 is the branch point of the route R1 and the other two routes, the end point node N5 of the link L4 is the branch point of the routes R2 and R3, and the link The starting point node N3 of L3 is a confluence of paths R1, R2, and R3.

  In the simplified route data, each route is defined as an extended link ID column (L1, L2,...) As shown in FIG. 10, but each extended link ID is shown in FIG. Thus, it is associated with one or more basic link IDs. Therefore, if the extended link ID is designated, the original link ID is specified, and the road shape data 51 and the name data 52 shown in FIG. 5 can be accessed.

FIG. 11 shows the detailed procedure of the route schematic diagram generation process (step S2).
In the route schematic diagram generation processing, links (L1, L2,... L5) between nodes serving as branch points or junctions of routes are obtained from the simplified route data generated in the route connection relationship analysis processing (step S1). Extract (step S201). Next, guide route links (L1, L2, L3), which are preferential routes, are arranged on a straight line (S202), and alternate route links (L4, L5) are placed on the left or right side of the guide route, respectively. It arrange | positions so that a branch point and a junction may be connected (S203). For example, when the link L4 of the alternative route is arranged, the positional relationship between the link L4 and the link L2 of the guide route is based on the route data shown in FIG. 8 and the first basic link a03 of the link L2 and the first basic link of the link L4. It is determined by specifying a11 and comparing the sequence of coordinate points of the road shape data associated with the basic link a03 with the sequence of coordinate points of the road shape data associated with the basic link a11.

FIG. 12 shows a time scale arrangement procedure in the time scale arrangement process (S3).
In the time scale arrangement process, steps S301 to S303 are repeated for each section Li (i = 1 to 5 in FIG. 12) displayed on the route schematic diagram. In step S301, the length L of the line segment representing the section Li on the route schematic diagram is measured, and the required travel time T of the section Li is obtained using the required time calculation unit 117.

  Next, in step 302, the moving distance (time scale width) d of the automobile for each elapsed time t on the line segment L is calculated. L / T indicates the movement distance per unit time on the line segment L when the section Li is displayed in a reduced scale with a line segment of length L. Accordingly, when a scale symbol for each elapsed time t is arranged on the line segment L, the scale width (interval) d is d = L / T × t. For example, if the elapsed time t is 10 minutes, d indicates the predicted position of the automobile expressed at 10 minute intervals.

  In step S303, a scale symbol is arranged on the line segment of the section Li according to the scale width (interval) d. When the section Li is drawn with a curve, the measured line segment ΔL having a length ε smaller than the scale width d is used, and ΔL is traced from the start point along the curve, so that d <n × ε. A time scale symbol should be placed at the position.

  In the display information addition process S4, the character information such as the road name and the intersection name and the congestion section display are superimposed on the route schematic diagram in which the scale symbols are arranged. By the above method, since the travel distance for each predetermined time can be displayed with a time scale symbol in each section on the route schematic diagram, the user can guide the proposed route as an optimum route by comparing the time scale symbols. It is possible to easily grasp the expected degree of passing of the car on the route and the alternative route.

  FIG. 13 shows a second embodiment of the present invention in which a route that can be proposed to the user when a route that can reach the destination earlier than the current route is found during guidance along the guide route. The operation of the guidance control unit 111 is shown.

  In the present embodiment, the route guidance control unit 111 (processor 101) executes route guidance processing (S501) at a predetermined cycle, updates the guidance screen as the vehicle travels, and guides by voice in a known manner. It is carried out. Each time the route guidance process for one cycle is completed, it is determined whether a predetermined time, for example, 5 minutes has elapsed since the previous required time calculation (S502). If not, the process returns to step 501. The route guidance process is repeated in the next cycle. If the predetermined time (5 minutes) has elapsed since the previous required time calculation, the processor 101 uses the required time calculation unit 117 to calculate the required time for passing through the remaining section of the guide route (S503).

  The required time to the destination is compared with the initially estimated time (S504), and when it is found that the required time increases beyond a preset delay time, the processor 101 activates the route search unit 112. (S505), the route from the current location to the destination is searched again. As a result of the route search, when an alternative route that can arrive at the destination earlier than the currently traveling guide route is found (S506), a route map with time scale is displayed and a route change is proposed to the user (S507). Wait for a response from (S508).

FIG. 14 shows an example of a display screen when a route change is proposed.
A guide screen Map-A in the vicinity of the current location along the guide route is displayed on the left side of the screen, and a route schematic map Map-B is displayed on the right side of the screen. In the schematic route map Map-B shown here, the currently guided route R1 is displayed as a straight line, and two alternative routes R2 and R3 are displayed on the left and right. In order to propose a route change to the user, a branch to the route R2 that can reach the destination earliest is displayed on the route schematic Map-B by an arrow 600, and a voice message 601 that prompts the user to change the guide route is output. Is done by.

  The route schematic Map-B displayed for proposing a route change is obtained by adding a slight change to the route schematic diagram generation processing S2 and the display information addition processing S4 in the time scale generation route map generation described in FIG. Can be generated by In the route schematic diagram generation process S2 shown in FIG. 6, the highest priority route among the searched routes is displayed in a straight line, and the other routes are displayed in a curve. Accordingly, when the alternative route R2 is searched for as the highest priority route while guiding the user using the route R1 as the guide route, the route schematic map generation process S2 is executed by regarding the previous guide route R1 as the highest priority route. For example, a route schematic diagram of the arrangement shown in FIG. 14 can be generated. Further, in the display information addition process S4, a branch arrow 600 may be added from the previous guide route R1 toward the new highest priority route R2.

  Since the route schematic Map-B is sufficiently simplified, the user can easily grasp the schematic connection relationship between the current ongoing guide route and the alternative route. In addition, each route has a predicted passage position for each fixed time indicated by a column of time scale symbols 602, so the user can glance at the time required for passing each section according to the number of time scale symbols. I can grasp.

  Returning to FIG. 13, when the user instructs a route change by voice or input button operation, the processor 101 executes a route change process (S509). As a result, the alternative route R2 with the highest priority becomes a new guide route and is switched to guide control for guiding the user along the route R2 on the guide screen Map-A.

Next, as a third embodiment of the present invention, an in-vehicle navigation device having a function of displaying a guidance route and a traffic jam situation of surrounding roads will be described.
FIG. 15 shows an example of a route schematic diagram in which time scale symbols are displayed for the traffic jam sections of the guide route and the alternative route.

  In the present invention, since a plurality of routes that can be selected by the user are shown in a schematic route map, when a certain section on the route map is displayed as a traffic jam section, the length of the traffic jam section on the display screen is the actual length. It is not necessarily proportional to the length. Therefore, in this embodiment, as indicated by reference numerals 611 and 612, a time scale symbol serving as a guide for the required travel time is displayed in each traffic jam section. In the display screen illustrated here, the path length of the section 611 is shorter than that of the section 612. From the number of time scale symbols displayed, the user determines that the sections 611 and 612 take approximately the same time to pass. it can.

FIG. 16 shows operations of the input reception control unit 110 and the route guidance control unit 111 in the navigation device of the third embodiment.
When the user operates the input unit 104 to instruct display of traffic information on the surrounding road (OP1), the input reception control unit 110 gives a peripheral traffic information display trigger to the route guidance control unit 111 (S100). Upon receiving the surrounding traffic information display trigger, the route guidance control unit 111 executes the surrounding traffic information acquisition process S101, and communicates with the traffic information distribution server to indicate the required travel time and the degree of traffic on the guidance route and the surrounding roads. Get traffic information. Next, the route guidance control unit 111 activates the route search unit 112 to search for a plurality of routes toward the destination (S102), and instructs the route map generation unit with time scale 116 to generate a congestion route map. (S103).

FIG. 17 is a flowchart of the congestion route map generation process S103 executed by the route scale generation block 116 with time scale.
First, the time scale route map generation unit 116 (processor 101) executes the route connection relationship analysis processing S1, analyzes the connection relationship of a plurality of routes searched by the route search unit 112, as described in FIG. Generate simplified path data suitable for the schematic. Next, in the route schematic diagram generation process S21, feature points (start point, end point, branch point or merge point) of the route are arranged on the grid. Here, a two-dimensional lattice is used which is composed of X-axis grid lines and Y-axis grid lines and has a structure in which a new lattice can be additionally inserted between the lattices.

FIG. 18 shows an example of a route schematic diagram generation procedure by the route schematic diagram generation processing S21.
First, feature points on the guide route indicated by the simplified route data are arranged on the reference Y-axis grid line 1000 so that the guide route (highest priority route) R1 is represented by a straight line in the vertical direction (step) S211). However, the guide route is not necessarily a straight line, and may be displayed by, for example, a broken line approximate to the route shape or other line segments.

  Next, the guide route is traced from the start point S to the end point G, the first branch point N1 is found, the branch direction of the alternative route at the branch point N1 is determined, and a new Y-axis grid line 1001 is set in that direction. It adds (step S212). Thereafter, the guide route R1 is traced from the branch point N1 to the end point G, the junction point N3 corresponding to the branch point N1 is found, and the alternative route R2 connecting the branch point N1 and the junction point N3 is arranged on the grid. . Here, the feature points N4 and N5 of the alternative route R2 are arranged on the Y-axis grid line 1001 in a section (shaded portion) between the branch point N1 and the junction N3. If there are not enough grid points on the Y-axis grid line 1001, a new X-axis grid line is inserted in the section 1002.

Next, the processing similar to steps 212 and 213 is repeated for the alternative route R2, and a new alternative route R3 connecting the branch point N4 and the junction N5 on the alternative route R2 is arranged on the Y-axis grid line 1002 ( S214).
If the new alternative route has no feature points to be arranged on the grid, the repetition of steps 212 and 213 in the alternative route is terminated, and step S212 is continued for the guidance route R1. Thereby, the next branch point N2 is found, and a new Y-axis grid line 1003 is added in the branch direction of the alternative route at the branch point N2 (S215). Thereafter, the guide route R1 is traced from the branch point N2 toward the end point G, a junction point corresponding to the branch point N2 (end point G in the illustrated example) is found, and the alternative route connecting the branch point N2 and the junction point G. R4 is placed on the grid.

  In step 212, when the end point is reached through all branch points and junctions on the guide route R1, the final step S216 is executed. In the final step S216, the grids are rearranged so that the grid line intervals are constant. Thereby, a route schematic diagram in which the guide route R1 is displayed as a straight line and the alternative routes R2 to R4 are displayed as a broken line is obtained.

  Returning to FIG. 17, in the traffic jam section extraction process S22, a traffic jam section in the route is extracted. As the traffic jam section, based on the traffic jam information acquired in the peripheral traffic jam information acquisition process S101, for example, a section with a high traffic jam degree or a section with a low average speed is extracted, and the start point, end point, and route outline of each traffic jam section are extracted. Record the length and time required on the diagram.

  In the time scale arrangement processing S31, for example, by executing steps S311 to S313 shown in FIG. 19 for each traffic jam section, a time scale symbol is arranged in each traffic jam section on the route schematic diagram. In step S311, one traffic jam section CR is selected from the traffic jam sections extracted in the traffic jam section extraction process S22, and the length L of the traffic jam section CR on the route schematic diagram and the required transit time T are read. In step S312, a time scale symbol interval d is calculated from T and L.

  In the present embodiment, the time scale symbol is arranged in the straight line section of the route schematic diagram. Therefore, in step S312, in order to facilitate the calculation of the scale width d, the fractional value (decimal part) of T / t is rounded off, and the line segment length L is equally divided by an integer value. In step 313, a time scale symbol is arranged with a scale width d on a line segment indicating a traffic jam section. In the present embodiment, since the traffic jam section is displayed in a straight line, a time scale symbol may be arranged for each d from the start point of the traffic jam section. However, the line segment length L does not necessarily have to be equally divided by an integer value, and the scale width d may be calculated by the same expression as in step S302 of FIG.

  Thereafter, in the display information display process S4, information such as a road name, a congestion section display, and the length of the congestion section is added to each route on the route schematic map, and then the route schematic map is displayed on the display unit 05 by the display process S5. Output to. According to the present embodiment, the guide route can be displayed as a straight line, the alternative route toward the destination can be displayed as a broken line, and a route schematic diagram having a time scale symbol in a traffic jam section can be displayed. Therefore, since the user can grasp the traffic jam situation of the surrounding roads from the route schematic diagram, it is easy to determine whether to travel on the current route and wait for the traffic jam to be resolved or to change to an alternative route.

Next, as a fourth embodiment of the present invention, a navigation device is shown in which a user can determine a guide route from among a plurality of candidate routes presented on a route selection screen.
FIG. 20 shows operations of the input reception control unit 110 and the route guidance control unit 111 in the navigation device of the fourth embodiment.

  When the user inputs a destination (OP11), the input reception control unit 110 gives a route search trigger to the destination to the route guidance control unit 111 (S110). When receiving a route search trigger, the route guidance control unit 111 executes a multiple route search process S112. In the multiple route search process S112, for example, a plurality of routes are searched based on search conditions having different evaluation parameters to be prioritized, such as a shortest distance route, a shortest time route, and a route not using a toll road.

  When the route search is completed, a route selection screen is generated by the route selection screen generation processing S112 and output to the display unit 105 (S113). When the user selects a specific route from a plurality of routes displayed on the route selection screen (OP12), the input reception control unit 110 gives a selected route trigger to the route guidance control unit 111 (S120). When the route guidance control unit 111 receives the selected route trigger, it starts the route guidance process S121. In the route guidance process S121, a route guidance screen having the selected route as the guidance route is output to the display unit 105 (S122), and known route guidance control is performed to change the guidance screen as the automobile moves.

FIG. 21 shows an example of the route selection screen generated in the route selection screen generation processing S112.
Here, as a route search condition, “toll road / time priority”, which uses a toll road to select a route with the minimum required time, and a route with the shortest distance to the destination using a toll road is used. Select “Toll road / shortest distance” to select, “General road / time priority” to select the route with the minimum required time without using toll road, and distance to destination without using toll road There are four conditions of “general road / shortest distance” for selecting the shortest route.

  The route selection screen includes a route schematic diagram Map-B and a route search condition window 800. In the route schematic Map-B, the route searched under the route search condition described above is displayed as a route with a time scale. In the route search condition window 800, the required time and distance of each route are shown as the route search condition. Displayed in correspondence. Reference numeral 801 denotes a route selection button. For example, the route selection button 801 is displayed in different colors and each route on the route schematic map Map-B is displayed in the same color as the route selection button, so that the route on the route schematic map MAP-B and the search condition are displayed. It is associated. The user can select a guide route from a plurality of searched candidate routes by selecting a route selection button 801.

FIG. 22 shows an example of the procedure for generating the route schematic map Map-B in the route selection screen generation processing S112.
In the route selection screen generation process S112, first, the grid-like route schematic diagram described in FIG. 18 is created (step S1121). Next, in step S1122, a bent line representing the alternative path is trapezoidal by shifting the bent portion of the alternative path line segment connected to the branch point or the merge point, for example, by 1/3 of the grid width in the Y-axis direction. To shape. Finally, in step S1123, the time scale symbols are arranged by applying the time scale arrangement processing described in FIG. 19 to the linear section in the Y-axis direction that is the main part of each path.

  According to the present embodiment, on the route schematic diagram, the time scale is arranged in the straight line section in the Y-axis direction which is the main part of each alternative path, excluding the section immediately after the branch point or immediately before the junction. Therefore, it is easy for the user to compare the time required for each route. In addition, according to the present embodiment, in the route schematic diagram simplified to such an extent that the branching state of the route can be grasped at a glance, it is possible to easily compare the time required for each route and the traffic jam situation. It is possible to instantly select a guide route from candidate routes.

  In the above embodiment, in the display information adding process S4, the character information such as the road name and the intersection name and the congestion section display are superimposed on the route schematic diagram in which the time scale symbol is arranged. If there is a margin, the main facilities and stores located along the route may be displayed with text information and icons.

Further, in each route, the user can determine the display position of the name of the main facility or the display position of the time scale based on the estimated passing time indicated by the time scale symbol and the estimated passing time of the main facility, so that the user can The estimated passage time τ of a certain main facility (or store) may be predicted from the time scale array displayed in FIG. For example, when the nth time scale symbol corresponds to the passing time of the point Pa before the facility K, and the passing time of the point Pb past the facility K corresponds to the (n + 1) th time scale symbol, the time Assuming that the scale width (time scale symbol arrangement interval) is d, there is a relationship of n × d <τ <(n + 1) × d between the expected passage time τ of the facility K and the time scale symbol. Therefore, by displaying the name or icon of the facility K at the position (n + 0.5) × d, the approximate passage time of the facility K can be communicated to the user.

The figure which shows an example of the navigation system to which this invention is applied. The figure which shows the structural example of the map database 40 stored in the map data storage part. The figure which shows the hierarchical structure of the map data stored in the map data storage part. The figure which showed an example of the basic composition of the road data 401. FIG. The figure which shows an example of the data structure of the candidate path | route searched with the path | route search part. The flowchart which shows the basic function of the route schematic map production | generation part 116 with a time scale. The figure which shows the connection relation of candidate route | root R1, R2, R3 searched in the route search part 112. FIG. The figure which shows the link row | line | column of candidate path | route R1, R2, R3. The figure which shows the relationship between the node and expansion link contained in the simplified path | route data produced | generated by path | route connection relationship analysis processing (step S1), and path | route R1-R3. The figure which shows the structure of the simplified path | route data of path | route R1-R3. The figure which shows the detailed procedure of a route schematic map production | generation process (step S2). The figure which shows the arrangement | positioning procedure of the time scale in a time scale arrangement | positioning process (S3). The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the route guidance control part 111 in 2nd Example of this invention. The figure which shows an example of the display screen at the time of a route change proposal. The figure which shows the route schematic which displayed the time scale in the traffic congestion area of a guidance route and an alternative route. The figure which shows operation | movement of the input reception control part 110 and the route guidance control part 111 in 3rd Example of this invention. The flowchart of the congestion route map generation process S103 which the route map generation part 116 with a time scale performs. The figure which shows an example of the production | generation procedure of the route schematic map by route schematic map production | generation process S21. The figure which shows one example of the time scale arrangement | positioning process S31 in FIG. The figure which shows operation | movement of the input reception control part 110 and the route guidance control part 111 in 4th Example of this invention. The figure which shows an example of the route selection screen which the route guidance control part 111 produces | generates by route selection screen production | generation process S112. The figure which shows an example of the production | generation procedure of the route schematic map MAP-B in route selection screen production | generation process S112.

Explanation of symbols

10: Navigation device, 20: Base station, 30: Traffic information distribution server, 40: Map database, 50: Route data, 51: Road shape data, 52: Name data,
100: control unit, 101: processor, 102: map data storage unit, 103: current position acquisition unit, 104: input unit, 105: display unit, 106: communication unit, 107: memory, 110: input reception control unit, 111 : Route guidance control unit, 112: route search unit, 113: route schematic map generation unit, 114: route search condition setting unit, 115: route search condition, 117: route map generation unit with time scale, 117: required time calculation unit .

Claims (10)

A navigation device that displays a plurality of routes from a current location to a destination on a display screen as a route schematic diagram, and displays map information of a specific route selected from the plurality of routes on a guidance screen,
A route search unit for searching a plurality of routes from the map data to the destination;
Based on route data indicating a plurality of routes searched by the route search unit, a route schematic diagram is generated for generating a route schematic diagram showing a connection relationship of the plurality of routes by a plurality of lines having branch points and junction points. And
On line indicating the specific path section of drawing the route outline, and a time scale arrangement portion passing placing time scale symbol number determined in accordance with the travel time between the compartment,
The route schematic diagram generation unit analyzes the route data of the plurality of routes, divides each route into a section overlapping with any other route and a non-overlapping section, and the highest priority route is used as the plurality of routes. When the second route and the third route serving as alternative routes are searched, the first route is represented by a first straight line having one end as a start point node and the other end as an end point node. provided a non-overlapping section of said second path comprising the alternative route next priority, the path portion including the overlap section between the path of the second and the third path, the ends of the first straight line A route portion composed of a non-overlapping section of the third route having a lower priority than the second route is expressed by a simplified second line coupled to the selected branch node or junction node. bifurcation node or confluence ends are provided on said first straight line or the second line Roh Generating a path schematic diagram of a form expressed by a third line which is simplified coupled to de,
While route guidance is performed using the highest priority route as a guide route on the guide screen, the route search unit re-searches a route to the destination, and one of the alternative routes heads for the destination. When it is determined that the route is a new highest priority route, the route schematic diagram generation unit is connected to the new highest priority route from the previous highest priority route in the vicinity of a node that becomes a branch point to the new highest priority route on the route schematic diagram. A navigation device, characterized by adding an arrow display for prompting a change of route to the highest priority route.   The route schematic diagram generating unit analyzes route data indicating a plurality of routes searched by the route searching unit, and divides each route into a section overlapping with another route and a non-overlapping section. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein route data having a link identifier is generated for each non-overlapping section, and the route schematic diagram is generated based on the route data. The route schematic diagram generation unit represents the second and third routes as alternative routes by a simplified curve or a broken line in which both ends are coupled to any one of the branch point nodes or the junction node. The navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein   The time scale arrangement unit has a required time calculation unit for calculating a required time for passing a designated route section, and the required time calculation unit passes the specific sections of the first, second, and third routes. The navigation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a required time is calculated and an arrangement interval of the time scales to be arranged in the specific section is determined based on the required passage time. . The time scale arrangement portion, the time required for passing through the by dividing a predetermined time width to calculate the arrangement interval of the time scale symbols, the distributed time tic mark above arrangement interval on a line indicating the specific path section The navigation device according to claim 4, wherein:   The navigation according to claim 5, wherein the time scale arrangement unit divides the time required for passing by a predetermined time width, rounds the division result to an integer value, and calculates an arrangement interval of the time scale symbols. apparatus. The time scale arrangement unit, a navigation device according to the plurality of time scale symbols in claim 4, characterized in that equally spaced a major portion of the line indicating the specific path section. A vehicle-mounted navigation device that displays map information along a guidance route to a destination on a display device as a guidance screen and updates display content of the guidance screen as the vehicle travels.
A map data storage unit;
A current position acquisition unit that outputs position information indicating the current position of the vehicle;
A route guidance control unit for controlling the guidance screen according to the position information output from the current position acquisition unit;
A route search unit for searching a plurality of routes from the current position to the destination based on the map data stored in the map data storage unit;
Based on route data indicating a plurality of routes searched by the route search unit, a route schematic diagram showing a plurality of lines having simplified branching points and merging points is generated. A route schematic generation unit;
A time scale placement unit for placing a number of time scale symbols determined according to the time required for passing through the section on a line indicating a specific route section on the route schematic diagram;
The route schematic diagram with the time scale symbol is displayed on the display device alone or together with the guidance screen. The route schematic diagram generation unit analyzes the route data of the plurality of routes, and displays each route. When a route that overlaps with any other route is divided into a non-overlapping zone, and the first route that is the highest priority route and the second and third routes that are alternative routes are searched as the plurality of routes. The first route is represented by a first straight line having one end as a start node and the other end as an end node, and a non-overlapping section of the second route serving as a next priority alternative route, and the second route And a portion of the route including the overlapping section with the third route is expressed by a simplified second line in which both ends are coupled to a branch point node or a junction node provided on the first straight line . The non-overlapping section of the third route having a lower priority than the second route The path schematic diagram of a form expressed by a third line across the path portion is simplified coupled to the branch point node or confluence node disposed on said first straight line or a second line consisting of Generate
While route guidance is performed using the highest priority route as a guide route on the guide screen, the route search unit re-searches a route to the destination, and one of the alternative routes heads for the destination. When it is determined that the route is a new highest priority route, the route schematic diagram generation unit is connected to the new highest priority route from the previous highest priority route in the vicinity of a node that becomes a branch point to the new highest priority route on the route schematic diagram. A navigation device, characterized by adding an arrow display for prompting a change of route to the highest priority route. The route schematic diagram generation unit represents the second and third routes as alternative routes by a simplified curve or a broken line in which both ends are coupled to any one of the branch point nodes or the junction node. The navigation device according to claim 8. The route search unit searches a plurality of routes under different search conditions from the map data,
The route guidance control unit displays a route selection screen showing a route schematic diagram with the time scale symbol and a required time and a travel distance to the destination according to the search conditions on the display device. The navigation device according to claim 8 or 9 .

Images