Mobile communication terminal and map display system

• US 20050288854A1
• Filed: 06/07/2005
• Published: 12/29/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: Kitajima, Jiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,725,406 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/208
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/367 Details, e.g. road map scale, orientation, zooming, illumination, level of detail, scrolling of road map or positioning of current position marker
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3896 Transmission of map data from central databases

Abstract

A map display system has a server and a mobile communication terminal connected via a communication network. The communication terminal has a storage device for storing advance map data associated with position data; a position measurement device for measuring a present position and obtaining position present position data; a present map data obtaining device for obtaining present map data from the server via the communication network by sending the server the present position data; an instruction device for issuing an instruction for map display; and a display device for displaying a map based on either the present map data or the advance map data. The server has a storage device for storing map data; and a map providing device for searching the stored map data in accordance with the position data sent from the mobile communication terminal and sending the mobile communication terminal map data corresponding to the position data.

Claims

1. A mobile communication terminal comprising:

a storage device for storing map data, which is associated with position data, as advance map data in advance;

a position measurement device for measuring a present position and obtaining position data of the present position as present position data;

a present map data obtaining device for requesting and obtaining present map data relating to the present position data via a communication network;

an instruction device for issuing an instruction for map display; and

a display device for displaying a map based on either the present map data or the advance map data in accordance with the instruction.

2. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the instruction for map display is issued from the instruction device, if the present map data obtaining device can access the communication network, then the present map data is requested and obtained, and a map based on the present map data is displayed by the display device.

3. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the instruction for map display is issued from the instruction device, if the present map data obtaining device cannot access the communication network, then a map based on the advance map data stored in the storage device is displayed by the display device.

4. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a position designating device for designating a desired position, wherein

the storage device is searched for map data relating to the designated position, and a map based on the map data retrieved from the storage device is displayed by the display device.

5. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 4, wherein when a start point and a destination are designated by the position designating device, the storage device is searched for map data indicating a travel route from the start point to the destination, and a map based on the map data retrieved from the storage device is displayed by the display device.

6. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 4, wherein when the map data relating to the designated position is not retrieved, map data relating to a position which is close to the designated position is searched for, and a map based on the map data retrieved from the storage device is displayed by the display device.

7. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the instruction for map display is issued from the instruction device, if no advance map data is stored in the storage device and the present map data obtaining device can access the communication network, the present map data is requested and obtained, and a map based on the present map data is displayed by the display device.

8. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein the position measurement device measures the present position in accordance with the instruction for map display, issued from the instruction device.

9. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a position designating device for designating a desired position; and

an advance map data obtaining device for obtaining the advance map data by requesting and obtaining map data relating to the designated position in advance via a communication network.

10. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 9, wherein the present map data obtaining device and the advance map data obtaining device constitute a single data obtaining device.

11. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 9, wherein the advance map data obtaining device obtains the advance map data by designating at least one of a place name, a station name, an airport name, and a facility name.

12. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein the present map data obtaining device obtains the present map data by designating at least one of a place name, a station name, an airport name, and a facility name.

13. The mobile communication terminal as claimed in claim 9, wherein when a start point and a destination are designated by the position designating device, the advance map data obtaining device obtains the map data indicating a travel route from the start point to the destination, and the obtained map data is stored as the advance map data in the storage device.

14. A map display system in which a server having map data and a mobile communication terminal for obtaining the map data are connected via a communication network, wherein:

the mobile communication terminal comprises;

a first storage device for storing map data, which is associated with position data, as advance map data in advance;

a position measurement device for measuring a present position and obtaining position data of the present position as present position data;

a present map data obtaining device for requesting and obtaining present map data relating to the present position data from the server via the communication network by sending the server the present position data as position data;

an instruction device for issuing an instruction for map display; and

a display device for displaying a map based on either the present map data or the advance map data in accordance with the instruction, and the server comprises;

a second storage device for storing map data; and

a map providing device for searching the stored map data in accordance with the position data sent from the mobile communication terminal and sending the mobile communication terminal map data corresponding to the position data.

15. The map display system as claimed in claim 14, wherein:

when a start point and a destination are designated by the mobile communication terminal, the server computes a travel route from the start point to the destination and sends the mobile communication terminal the travel route as the map data; and

the mobile communication terminal receives the map data and stores the received map data as the advance map data into the first storage device.

16. The map display system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the server adjusts the map data to be sent to the mobile communication terminal in a manner such that a size of the map data does not exceed a predetermined value.

17. The map display system as claimed in claim 16, wherein the size of the map data is adjusted by controlling a scale of the map data.

18. The map display system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the mobile communication terminal further comprises:

a position designating device for designating a desired position; and

an advance map data obtaining device for obtaining the advance map data by requesting and obtaining map data relating to the designated position from the server in advance via the communication network by sending position data relating to the designated position to the server.

19. The map display system as claimed in claim 18, wherein when map data requested by the advance map data obtaining device is not stored in the second storage device, the server retrieves map data relating to a position which is close to the designated position and sends the retrieved map data to the mobile communication terminal.