JP3218012B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an on-vehicle navigation device for detecting the current position of a vehicle, searching for a route from a current position to a destination, and displaying the route on a map on a monitor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Heretofore, detection of a current position in a navigation device can be considerably improved by receiving radio waves from a GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite. However, in a place where a radio wave from a GPS satellite cannot be received, such as in a tunnel or a valley of a building, the self-vehicle position may be lost, so self-contained navigation using a vehicle speed sensor and a direction sensor is also used. More recently, errors in GPS radio waves received by reference stations installed in various parts of the country are calculated, data for correcting the errors is transmitted from the FM station through multiplex broadcasting, and the navigation device receiving the data transmits the GPS information of the vehicle. By adopting the differential GPS for correcting the position error, the position error which was about 100 m in the past can be reduced to about 10 m. Recently, VICS (Vehi
cle Information and Communication System) provides traffic information. VICS acquires traffic information from optical beacons installed on general roads, radio beacons installed on expressways, and FM multiplex broadcasting, and displays them on the monitor of the navigation device. Detour information and the like can be obtained.

On the other hand, the route search in the navigation apparatus can detect not only the shortest route by simply inputting the place name to the destination, but also the address or telephone number of the facility, or the latitude and longitude. It has become Further, it has become possible to search for a plurality of routes to a destination, select whether or not to give priority to a toll road, and issue a search instruction for a detour route. In addition, a map screen displayed on a monitor is provided in a three-dimensional and easily viewable bird's eye view format or a virtual view format.

[0004]

However, the conventional navigation apparatus has a problem that the position information and traffic information obtained by the own vehicle can be used only by the own vehicle and cannot be used by other vehicles. For example, if two vehicles heading to a destination with different departure times can know each other's current position, it is safe. If the preceding vehicle encounters traffic congestion and detours to another route, If the information is transmitted to the following vehicle, both can reach the destination smoothly. Heretofore, such transmission means has had to rely on voice communication by car or mobile phone, and it has been difficult to transmit accurate information.

An object of the present invention is to solve such a conventional problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation apparatus capable of transmitting own vehicle position information and the like to another vehicle.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a navigation apparatus having a map and accompanying information.
Display means for displaying
A network interface for transmitting the
VICS information receiving means for receiving ICS information;
The VICS information received by the ICS information receiving means is
Wherein it is intended that includes a mail sending means for sending included in the e-mail, thereby own position information and VI
CS information and the like can be transmitted to others , the drive can be enjoyed with peace of mind, and the navigation device can be multimedia-added, and the added value can be increased.

[0007]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention according to claim 1 of the present invention comprises a current position means for detecting the current position of a vehicle, a route search means for searching for a route from the current position to a destination, and A navigation device comprising a display means for displaying a route on a map displayed on a monitor together with its accompanying information, a network interface for transmitting and receiving an e-mail via the Internet, and the current position detecting means for the e-mail. Mail sending means for sending to the other vehicle including the current position information of the own vehicle detected by the
When receiving an e-mail from another vehicle, the navigation device includes a mail receiving unit that displays the current position information of the other vehicle included in the e-mail on a display unit of the own vehicle. By telling the position of the vehicle to other vehicles and displaying the position on the monitor screen of the other vehicle, it is possible to visually check the relationship between the position of the vehicle and the position of the other vehicle, and enjoy driving with peace of mind. Has an action.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation apparatus according to the first aspect, further comprising means for registering a point to be transmitted by e-mail. It is possible to arbitrarily register position information to be transmitted to another vehicle such as a relay point of the vehicle.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation device according to the second aspect, wherein the registration of a point is performed by a name or a lot number. It has the effect that it is possible to register a point by using a location number.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation device according to the second aspect, wherein the registration of the location is performed by using the telephone number of the facility. There is an effect that the location can be registered by the telephone number.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation device according to the second aspect, wherein the registration of a point is performed by longitude and latitude, and when the longitude and latitude of the position of the relay point are known, There is an effect that a point can be registered based on the longitude and latitude.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a VIC
2. The navigation device according to claim 1, further comprising means for receiving S information, wherein the mail transmitting means transmits the received VICS information in an electronic mail.
The VICS information obtained by the own vehicle can be transmitted to other vehicles.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the mail receiving means includes a VIC included in the received electronic mail.
7. The navigation device according to claim 6, wherein the S information is displayed on a display means, and has an effect that VICS information obtained from another vehicle can be displayed on a monitor screen.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, the display screen is divided into two parts, one of which displays map information and the other displays the content of the received e-mail. 7. The navigation device according to any one of items 1 to 7, which has an operation of displaying the contents of an e-mail without covering the map displayed on the monitor screen.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, further comprising means for inputting the contents of the e-mail to be transmitted by voice. It has the effect that input can be performed easily.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the navigation device according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, further comprising means for outputting the content of the received e-mail by voice. It has the effect that the contents can be easily confirmed.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a network such as the Internet, 2 denotes a network interface for performing communication through the network 1, and
It communicates with a server computer connected to the server according to a predetermined protocol. 3 is a mail transmitting means for creating an e-mail and transmitting the e-mail through the network interface 2; and 4 is an e-mail for analyzing the e-mail received through the network interface 2 and converting it into data suitable for display. It is a receiving means. 5 is a point registration means for registering a point desired to be transmitted to the other party, and 6 is a VICS information receiving means for receiving VICS information through an optical beacon, a radio beacon or FM multiplex broadcasting and converting it into data suitable for display. It is. Reference numeral 7 denotes a voice input unit having a microphone for converting input voice into a voice signal, 8 denotes voice recognition means for obtaining character information from the voice signal, and 9 generates a voice signal from the character information. Output means having a speaker for outputting an audio signal.

Numeral 11 denotes a current position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle by both GPS navigation using a GPS receiver and self-contained navigation using a vehicle speed sensor and a direction sensor. Reference numeral 12 denotes a route search unit that calculates an optimal route from the input or detected current position to the destination. Reference numeral 13 denotes a map information storage means, which stores not only map information nationwide but also facility information such as a gas station, a convenience store, a family restaurant, a hotel, a bank, and a post office in a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM. . A display means 14 is capable of displaying not only image information such as a map but also character information on a screen of a monitor such as a liquid crystal display, and further has a function of dividing the screen into two parts. Reference numeral 15 denotes operation input means, which includes various operation keys provided on a front panel of the apparatus, a touch panel provided on a monitor screen, and further includes a remote controller. Reference numeral 16 denotes a storage unit, which includes a ROM storing a program, a RAM for reading and writing data necessary for processing, and the like. A control unit 17 is connected to each of the above units and controls the entire system.

Next, the operation of the navigation device will be described. Since the navigation function is almost the same as the conventional one, a description thereof will be omitted, and the mail transmission / reception function which is a main part of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. When the apparatus is started by an operation from the operation input unit 15, a menu display screen 21 shown in FIG. When "Mail" is selected from this screen 21, an e-mail screen 22 is displayed. When "Write / Send Mail" is selected from the screen, a mail transmission screen 23 is displayed. On the mail transmission screen 23, fill in the necessary items in the "address", "carbon copy (Cc)", "title", and "content" fields, and click "send".
Select When the destination, title, etc. are properly input and "Send" is selected, a screen shown in FIG.
If "Send" is selected without inputting the destination, title, etc., the screen of FIG. 3B is displayed. When "yes" is selected in FIG. 3A, the mail sending means 3 creates a mail in a predetermined format and sends it to the network 1 via the network interface 2. When "Return" is selected on the screen 23 in FIG. 2, the screen shown in FIG. 4 is displayed, and the mail creation is performed again.

After creating a mail on the screen 23 of FIG. 2,
When "Attach point information" is selected, the point registration means 5 in FIG.
Is activated, and the attached point information registration screen 24 of FIG. 2 is displayed on the monitor screen. When "current location" is selected on this screen 24, the control means 17 passes the coordinate information of the current position obtained from the current position detection means 11 to the mail transmission means 3, and the mail transmission means 3 adds the current position information to the created mail. To the network 1. Similarly, on the screen 23, "VI
When "CS information attachment" is selected, the control means 17
The VICS information obtained from the information receiving means 6 is passed to the mail transmitting means 3, and the mail transmitting means 3
It is sent to the network 1 with the CS information attached.

When a registration point (1) is selected on the screen 24,
Instead of the point input screen shown in FIG. 5, the name, lot number, telephone number, or latitude and longitude information of the point or facility desired to be registered is input through the voice input means 7 or the remote controller of the operation input means 15 in accordance with the guidance. Then, the point registration means 5 stores it in the memory and registers it. In the same way, it is possible to input several points that are relay points to the destination. Then, the point information for which registration has been completed is transmitted to the network 1 by the mail transmitting means 3 in the same manner as described above by selecting "transmission" on the screen 23.

In the navigation device that receives the e-mail, a notification of the arrival of the e-mail comes from a server on the network. When reading mail, select “mail” from the screen 21 and select “read mail” from the screen 22 to display the reception list screen 25. If there is no mail on the server, the screen of FIG. 6A is displayed, and if the number of mails is exceeded, the screen of FIG. 6B is displayed. On the screen 25, for example, the sender “Hanako Tanaka”
When is selected, the mail content display screen 26 is displayed, and the content of the mail can be confirmed. At this time, if the mail is too long and exceeds the readable size, FIG.
As shown in (1), a screen to call attention is displayed. Also,
When you want to read the next mail, click "Next mail" on screen 26.
Select If there is no next mail, the screen shown in FIG. 8 is displayed. When "Delete" is selected on the screen 26,
The screen shown in FIG. 9 is displayed. Further, when "attached information" is selected on the screen 26, if the point information is attached, a message "point displayed" is displayed as shown in FIG. The location of the point is displayed on the map. If the point information is not attached, a screen shown in FIG. 10B is displayed. When "Reply" is selected on the screen 26, the screen 23 is displayed.
Is displayed, create a reply email.

When a notification of arrival of an electronic mail is received from a server on the network, a beep sound may be generated on the side of the received navigation device, or the arrival of the electronic mail may be notified by voice. When reading mail while the device is displaying the map information, the screen 21 is displayed in accordance with an instruction from the remote controller, and then "read mail" is selected from the screen 22, so that the mail is similarly read. Can read. At this time, as shown in FIG. 11, the display of the monitor screen may be divided into two, and a map may be displayed on one screen 27 and the contents of the mail may be displayed on the other screen 28. On the map of the screen 27, in addition to the own vehicle mark 29 indicating the position of the own vehicle, based on the attached point information, an other vehicle mark 30 indicating the position of the other vehicle that has transmitted the e-mail is also displayed. .

[0024]

As described above, the present invention is provided with an electronic mail transmitting / receiving means for transmitting information through the Internet to the navigation device, whereby the position information of the own vehicle can be transmitted to other vehicles. This makes it possible to enjoy the drive with a sense of security and to achieve multimedia of the navigation device, thereby increasing the added value.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a monitor screen transition diagram showing mail transmission / reception processing in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of a mail transmission screen in a mail transmission process.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a mail discarding screen in a mail transmission process.

FIG. 5 is a diagram of a point registration screen in the mail transmission process.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a mail presence / absence screen in a mail receiving process.

FIG. 7 is an oversized screen in the mail receiving process.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a mail absence screen in a mail receiving process.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a mail deletion screen in the mail reception process.

FIG. 10 is a screen view showing the presence / absence of point information in a mail receiving process.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a point information display screen in a mail receiving process.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Network 2 Network interface 3 E-mail transmitting means 4 E-mail receiving means 5 Point registration means 6 VICS information receiving means 7 Speech input means 8 Speech recognition means 9 Speech synthesis means 10 Speech output means 11 Current position detection means 12 Route search means 13 Map information Storage means 14 Display means 15 Operation input means 16 Storage means 17 Control means

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-9-180094 (JP, A) JP-A-7-202788 (JP, A) JP-A-10-89976 (JP, A) JP-A-11-111 257976 (JP, A) JP-A-11-53278 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G01C 21/00 G08G 1/09 G08G 1/0969

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A display means for displaying a map and accompanying information; a network interface for transmitting an e-mail via a network; a VICS information receiving means for receiving VICS information; A navigation device comprising: a mail transmission unit configured to transmit the VICS information included in the electronic mail. 2. VI included in the received electronic mail
2. The navigation device according to claim 1, further comprising a mail receiving unit that displays CS information on the display unit.