Navigation apparatus, driving direction guidance method, and navigation system

• US 20060058945A1
• Filed: 09/13/2005
• Published: 03/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Watanabe, Hisayuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,630,830 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3617 using user history, behaviour, conditions or preferences, e.g. predicted or inferred from previous use or current movement
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3626 Details of the output of route guidance instructions traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3647 Guidance involving output of stored or live camera images or video streams
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3685 the POI's being parking facilities

Abstract

A navigation apparatus and a driving direction guiding method are capable of clearly indicating a correct direction in which a vehicle should be driven at an exit when the vehicle exits a parking area through the exit. When a position measurement unit detects that the vehicle has entered a parking area based on measured position information, a CPU clearly indicates, on a display, a correct direction in which the vehicle should be driven at an exit of the parking area so that a user can know in advance the correct direction in which to drive his/her vehicle after passing through the exit of the parking area.

Claims

1. A navigation apparatus comprising:

a position measurement unit operable to determine the current position of a vehicle;

a map storage unit operable to store map data including position information indicating the location of a parking area;

an information presentation unit operable to indicate a direction in which the vehicle should be driven at an exit of the parking area; and

a controller operable to determine that the vehicle is within the parking area and direct the information presentation unit to present information about a direction in which the vehicle should be driven at the exit of the parking area when the current position determined by the position measurement unit corresponds to the location of the parking area.

2. A navigation apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a route storage unit operable to store data corresponding to a navigation route to a destination, wherein the controller is operable to determine the direction in which the vehicle should be driven at the exit of the parking area based upon the navigation route.

3. A navigation apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a driving history storage unit operable to store a driving history associated with traveling to a destination, wherein the controller is operable to determine the direction in which the vehicle should be driven at the exit of the parking area based upon the driving history.

4. A navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the position measurement unit includes a GPS receiver; and

the controller is operable to determine that the vehicle has entered the parking area when GPS radio waves cannot be received.

5. A navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the parking area has a plurality of exits, the controller is operable to direct the information presentation unit to indicate a direction in which the vehicle should be driven from each of the plurality exits of the parking area.

6. A navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the parking area has a plurality of exits, the controller is operable to calculate the cost for a navigation route from each of the respective exits to the destination and select the navigation route having a least cost.

7. A navigation apparatus according to claim 6, the controller is operable to direct the information presentation unit to present information associated with an exit of the parking area corresponding to the navigation route having the least cost.

8. A navigation apparatus comprising:

a position measurement unit operable to determine the current position of a vehicle;

a map storage unit operable to store map data including position information indicating the location of a parking area;

a driving direction image generator operable to produce an image indicating the direction in which the vehicle should be driven;

an image storage unit operable to store a scene image of an exit of the parking area;

an image mixer operable to combine the image indicating the driving direction with the scene image to produce a composite image;

a display screen for displaying the composite image; and

a controller operable to determine that the vehicle is within the parking area and direct that the display screen display the composite image when the current position determined by the position measurement unit corresponds to the location of the parking area.

9. A navigation apparatus according to claim 8, wherein:

the position measurement unit includes a GPS receiver; and

the controller is operable to determine that the vehicle has entered the parking area and direct that the composite image be displayed on the display screen when the vehicle is no longer able to receive GPS signals.

10. A navigation apparatus according to claim 8, wherein when the parking area has a plurality of exits, the image mixer is operable to produce a composite image for each of the plurality of exits by combining an image that indicates a driving direction with a corresponding scene image for each of the plurality of exits.

11. A navigation apparatus according to claim 8, wherein when the parking area has a plurality of exits, the controller is operable to calculate the cost for a navigation route from each of the respective plurality of exits to the destination, and selects the navigation route having a least cost.

12. A navigation apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the image mixer is operable to read a scene image of the exit corresponding to the navigation route selected by the controller and combine the image indicating the driving direction with the scene image.

13. A navigation apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the controller is operable to change a link cost of a road connected to each exit depending upon a driving direction at each exit.

14. A navigation apparatus comprising:

a position measurement unit operable to determine the current position of a vehicle;

a map data storage unit operable to store map data including position information indicating the location of a parking area;

a driving direction image generator operable to produce an image indicating the direction in which the vehicle should be driven;

a transmission/reception unit operable to transmit position information of the parking area and acquire a scene image of an exit of the parking area identified by the position information;

an image mixer operable to combine the image indicating the driving direction with the scene image to produce a composite image;

a display screen for displaying the composite image; and

a controller operable to determine that the vehicle is within the parking area and direct the display screen to display the composite image when the current position determined by the position measurement unit corresponds to the location of the parking area.

15. A navigation apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the position measurement unit includes a GPS receiver;

and

the controller is operable to determine that the vehicle has entered the parking area and direct that the composite image be displayed on the display screen when the vehicle is no longer able to receive GPS signals.

16. A driving direction guiding method comprising:

determining the current position of a vehicle when the vehicle is no longer able to receive GPS signals;

determining whether the current vehicle position is in a parking area; and

determining a direction in which the vehicle should be driven at an exit of the parking area when it is determined that the current vehicle position is in a parking area.

17. The method of claim 16, comprising displaying a plurality of directions on a display, each of the plurality of directions corresponding to a direction that the vehicle should be driven from the parking area to a destination.

18. A driving direction guiding method comprising:

determining the current position of a vehicle;

determining whether a GPS receiver on the vehicle is able to adequately receive GPS radio waves;

determining whether the current vehicle position is in a parking area; and

determining a direction in which the vehicle should be driven at an exit of the parking area when GPS radio waves cannot be received and the current vehicle position is in the parking area.

19. A navigation system comprising:

an exit image storage unit operable to store a scene image of an exit of a parking area;

a parking area apparatus including an image transmitter for transmitting the scene image stored in the exit image storage unit;

a position measurement unit operable to determine the current position of a vehicle;

a map storage unit operable to store map data including position information indicating the location of a parking area;

a driving direction image generator operable to produce an image indicating the direction in which the vehicle should be driven;

a receiver operable to acquire the scene image of the exit of the parking area transmitted from the exit image transmitter;

an image mixer operable to combine the image indicating the driving direction with the scene image to produce a composite image;

a display screen operable to display the composite image; and

a controller operable to determine that the vehicle is within the parking area and direct the display screen to present the composite image when the current position determined by the position measurement unit corresponds to the location of the parking area.

20. A navigation system according to claim 19, wherein the parking area apparatus is installed in the parking area.