Navigation apparatus and navigation method

• US 20050004746A1
• Filed: 02/24/2003
• Published: 01/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company), Nippon Seiki Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company), Nippon Seiki Company Limited
• Inventors: Morita, Hiroyuki, Kawada, Shinichi, Murohashi, Eiichi
• Granted Patent: US 9,476,726 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/34 Route searching; Route guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/36 Input/output arrangements for on-board computers
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0969 having a display in the form of a map
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/127 to a central station ; Indicators in a central station

Abstract

A navigation device 10 comprises: position detecting means 11 for determining the current position of a user from the absolute position in longitude and latitude by using the electric waves coming from a plurality of artificial satellites going around the earth; storage means 14 for storing the coordinates in longitude and latitude of nodes, as obtained by setting a starting point and a final place, on a scheduled route; display means 12 for displaying the current position and the scheduled route; and control means 16 for controlling the display on the display means 12 by converting the angular data of the absolute positions and the coordinates into distance data while making corrections according to the current position, and by calculating an element between the nodes thereby to calculate whether or not the current position is on the scheduled route, in dependence upon whether or not the distance between the element and the current position is within a predetermined range.

Claims

1. A navigation device is characterized by comprising:

position detecting means for determining the current position of a user from the absolute position in longitude and latitude by using the electric waves coming from a plurality of artificial satellites going around the earth;

storage means for storing the coordinates in the longitude and latitude of a starting place and a final place, and the coordinates in the longitude and latitude of nodes, as obtained by setting said starting point and said final place, on a scheduled route;

display means for displaying said current position and said scheduled route; and

control means for controlling the display on said display means by converting the angular data of said absolute positions and said coordinates into distance data while making corrections according to said current position, and by calculating an element between said nodes thereby to calculate whether or not said current position is on said scheduled route, in dependence upon whether or not the distance between said element and said current position is within a predetermined range.

2. A navigation device is characterized by comprising:

position detecting means for determining the current position of a user from the absolute position in longitude and latitude by using the electric waves coming from a plurality of artificial satellites going around the earth;

storage means for storing the coordinates in the longitude and latitude of a starting place and a final place, and the coordinates in the longitude and latitude of nodes, as obtained by setting said starting point and said final place, on a scheduled route;

display means for displaying said current position and said scheduled route;

control means for controlling the display on said display means by converting the angular data of said absolute positions and said coordinates into distance data while making corrections according to said current position, and by calculating an element between said nodes thereby to calculate whether or not said current position is on said scheduled route, in dependence upon whether or not the distance between said element and said current position is within a predetermined range; and

interface means for interchanging data with an external auxiliary device for searching said scheduled route.

3. A navigation method characterized:

in that at least one scheduled route is determined by setting a starting place and a final place, before used, with an external auxiliary device thereby to search said scheduled route;

in that the coordinates in longitude and latitude of the starting place and the final place and the coordinates in longitude and latitude of nodes on said scheduled route are stored in storage means of the navigation device through interface means;

in that the absolute position in longitude and latitude of the current position of a user by using electric waves coming from a plurality of artificial satellites going around the earth with position detecting means;

in that the angular data of said absolute position and said coordinates while making corrections according to said current position are converted into distance data, and in that an element between said nodes is determined by calculations;

in that whether or not said current position is on said scheduled route is calculated depending on whether or not the distance between said element and said current position is within a predetermined range; and

in that said current position and said scheduled route are displayed by display means in accordance with the calculation results.

4. A navigation method as set forth in claim 3, characterized in that said predetermined range is made so different in values between the cases, in which said current position is approaching and leaving said scheduled route that the former value is smaller than the latter value.