Automobile navigation system

• US 20060074552A1
• Filed: 09/23/2005
• Published: 04/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ito, Takafumi, Naito, Takahiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,584,050 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/211
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3629 Guidance using speech or audio output, e.g. text-to-speech text to speech systems per se G10L13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3655 Timing of guidance instructions

Abstract

A driver'"'"'s action at a target intersection in a guided route is predicted based on driving data. When the driver is attempting to go straight ahead at a target intersection where the driver should make a turn, or when the driver is attempting to make a turn at a target intersection where the driver should go straight ahead, the predicted driver'"'"'s action is determined to disagree with the guided route. In this case, an execution of an audio guidance is performed but re-execution is awaited for a predetermined period. Further, when the driver is attempting to go straight ahead at a target intersection where the driver should make a turn, an audio guidance is executed after a distance to the target intersection is determined to be smaller than a required distance computed from a vehicle speed.

Claims

1. A navigation system provided in a vehicle, the navigation system comprising:

a distance computing unit for acquiring route information indicating a route to a destination and position information indicating a present position of the vehicle, and for determining a distance to a guidance point included in the route information;

a driving data acquiring unit for acquiring driving data including speed information about the vehicle and operation information about an operation that relates to a driver of the vehicle and has influence on a running state of the vehicle;

an action predicting unit for predicting, with respect to the driver, an action at the guidance point based on a history of the acquired driving data; and

an audio guidance executing unit for executing audio guidance about the guidance point when the determined distance is equal to or less than a preset allowable value and the predicted action disagrees with an action that the driver is required to take at the guidance point.

2. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the running state of the vehicle includes acceleration of the vehicle.

3. The navigation system of claim 2,

wherein the operation information relates to an accelerator pedal and a brake pedal.

4. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the action predicting unit includes a plurality of templates and predicts the action at the guidance point by comparing the history of the acquired driving data with the plurality of templates, and

wherein the plurality of templates are formed by classifying action patterns designated from accumulated data including one of (i) driving data previously acquired by the driving data acquiring unit and (ii) pseudo driving data corresponding to the previously acquired driving data.

5. The navigation system of claim 4,

wherein the action predicting unit

generates a plurality of accumulated data groups, each accumulated data group includes consecutive N1 pieces of accumulated data previously acquired for a given period up to a time when reaching the guidance point, wherein the N1 is a positive integer,

classifies the plurality of accumulated data groups so that accumulated data groups approximating to each other are classified into a same cluster of a plurality of clusters,

computes an average of accumulated data acquired at a same timing with respect to accumulated data groups of each cluster of the plurality of clusters so as to generate a plurality of average accumulated data groups, each average accumulated data group of which includes consecutive N1 pieces of average accumulated data,

cuts off, with respect to each of the plurality of average accumulated data groups, a plurality of partial data groups, each partial data group of which includes consecutive N2 pieces of average accumulated data, wherein the N2 is a positive integer and smaller than the N1, wherein the consecutive N2 pieces of average accumulated data starts from each of individual starting points of the individual partial data groups, the individual starting points are shifted every a given length of a period of shift, and

uses the plurality of partial data groups that are cut off as templates with respect to the each of the plurality of average accumulated data groups.

6. The navigation system of claim 4,

wherein the plurality of templates are formed using the accumulated data acquired with respect to a plurality of drivers of the vehicle.

7. The navigation system of claim 4,

wherein the plurality of templates are formed using the accumulated data acquired with respect to a given driver of the vehicle.

8. The navigation system of claim 4,

wherein the plurality of templates are prepared for each of kinds of weather that are previously set, and

wherein the action predicting unit changes the plurality of templates to be used, based on information that designates a kind of weather and is obtained from an outside of the vehicle.

9. The navigation system of claim 4,

wherein the plurality of templates are prepared for each of periods of time that are previously set, and

wherein the action predicting unit changes the plurality of templates to be used, based on information that designates a period of time and is obtained from an outside of the vehicle.

10. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the guidance point is a branch included in the route, and

wherein, with respect to the driver, an action at the guidance point is an operation of the driver based on a direction following the route.

11. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the preset allowable value is varied based on a speed of the vehicle.

12. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the audio guidance executing unit includes a first prohibiting unit that prohibits re-executing the audio guidance about the guidance point.

13. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the audio guidance executing unit includes a second prohibiting unit that prohibits re-executing the audio guidance about the guidance point for a predetermined period after the audio guidance is executed.

14. The navigation system of claim 1,

wherein the audio guidance executing unit prohibits executing the audio guidance about the guidance point when the predicted action at the guidance point agrees with the action that the driver is required to take at the guidance point.