Vehicle navigation apparatus and program

• US 20040102899A1
• Filed: 09/30/2003
• Published: 05/27/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Nimura, Mitsuhiro, Masuda, Hiroyoshi, Yamada, Kunihiro, Kaji, Takanori
• Granted Patent: US 7,031,831 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/210
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3484 Personalized, e.g. from learned user behaviour or user-defined profiles

Abstract

A vehicle navigation apparatus for searching for a route from an inputted place of departure to an inputted destination and performing guide, the apparatus comprising: a registration unit for associating a traveled route with a place of departure and a destination and thus registering the traveled route; a judgment unit for judging whether the same place of departure and destination as a place of departure and a destination of a registered route are inputted or not; a route search unit for reading out information of the registered route when it is judged by the judgment unit that the same place of departure and destination are inputted, and lowering weighting in searching for the route so as to search for the route; and a control unit for performing guide of the route found by the search by the route search unit. Thus, route guide preferred by a user can be performed.

Claims

1. A vehicle navigation apparatus for searching for a route from an inputted place of departure to an inputted destination and performing guide, the apparatus comprising:

a registration unit for associating a traveled route with a place of departure and a destination and thus registering the traveled route;

a judgment unit for judging whether the same place of departure and destination as a place of departure and a destination of a registered route are inputted or not;

a route search unit for reading out information of the registered route when it is judged by the judgment unit that the same place of departure and destination are inputted, and lowering weighting in searching for the route so as to search for the route; and

a control unit for performing guide of the route found by the search by the route search unit.

2. The vehicle navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a current position detecting unit and a vehicle speed detecting unit,

wherein when it is judged that a destination has been reached from information detected by the current position detecting unit and the vehicle speed detecting unit, the control unit performs guide as to whether or not to update a registered route with a traveled route, and when update of the route is selected, the registration unit updates and registers the route.

3. The vehicle navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the registration unit updates and registers the shortest traveling time in the past with respect to route travels between the same place of departure and destination, and the traveling distance in that travel.

4. The vehicle navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the vehicle travels off a guide route, the route search unit performs peripheral search to return to the guide route.

5. A vehicle navigation apparatus for searching for a route from an inputted place of departure to an inputted destination and performing guide, the apparatus comprising:

a registration unit for associating a traveled route with a place of departure and a destination and thus registering the traveled route;

a judgment unit for judging whether the same place of departure and destination as a place of departure and a destination of a registered route are inputted or not; and

a control unit for reading out information of registered plural routes when it is judged by the judgment unit that the same place of departure and destination are inputted, and performing guide of a selected route.

6. The vehicle navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein information of each route registered by the registration unit includes a shortest required time and an average required time.

7. The vehicle navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the information of each route registered by the registration unit further includes calendar information of a traveling date and/or traveling time slot information.

8. The vehicle navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the information representing a traveling time slot includes departure time or arrival time.

9. A program for a vehicle navigation apparatus that searches for a route from an inputted place of departure to an inputted destination and performs guide, the program comprising:

associating a traveled route with a place of departure and a destination and thus registering the traveled route;

judging whether the same place of departure and destination as a place of departure and a destination of a registered route are inputted or not;

reading out information of the registered route when it is judged that the same place of departure and destination are inputted, and lowering weighting in searching for the route so as to search for the route; and

performing guide of the route found by the search.

10. A program for a vehicle navigation apparatus that searches for a route from an inputted place of departure to an inputted destination and performs guide, the program comprising:

associating a traveled route with a place of departure and a destination and thus registering the traveled route;

judging whether the same place of departure and destination as a place of departure and a destination of a registered route are inputted or not; and

reading out information of registered plural routes when it is judged that the same place of departure and destination are inputted, and performing guide of a selected route.