VEHICULAR NAVIGATION DEVICE

• US 20060212219A1
• Filed: 02/21/2006
• Published: 09/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Okada, Koudai, Fukui, Toshio
• Granted Patent: US 7,124,025 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/211
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/30 Map- or contour-matching

Abstract

A vehicular navigation device includes a control circuit to designate a route to a destination from a start point to be defined. When a route designation instruction is inputted, it is determined whether an intersection being a target for route designation is present close to the current position. When the intersection being the target is present, it is determined whether a lane the vehicle is traveling is a traffic directed lane that includes a traffic direction. When the traveled lane is determined to be the traffic directed lane, a start point is defined as an exit of the intersection reached by following the traffic direction. When the traveled lane is determined to be not the traffic directed lane or when the intersection for the target is determined to be not present, the start point is defined as the current position.

Claims

1. A navigation device in a vehicle, the device comprising:

a map data storage unit for storing map data including information of a traffic direction of a lane;

a position detector for detecting a current position of the vehicle;

an input unit for inputting an instruction of route designation; and

a route designation unit

for executing route designation including computation of a route to a destination to designate the route based on a start point and

for including

an intersection determining unit for determining, when the vehicle travels a lane, when the instruction is inputted via the input unit, whether an intersection being a target for route designation is present close to the current position,

a lane determining unit for determining, when the intersection for the target is determined to be present, whether the traveled lane is a traffic directed lane that includes a traffic direction, and

a start point defining unit for defining, when the traveled lane is determined to be the traffic directed lane, the start point as an exit of the intersection reached by following the traffic direction included in the traffic directed lane; and

a navigation unit for navigating along a route designated by the route designation unit.

2. The navigation device of claim 1, wherein

when the traveled lane is determined to be not the traffic directed lane or when the intersection for the target is determined to be not present, the start point defining unit defines the start point as the current position.

3. The navigation device of claim 2, wherein

when the traveled lane is determined to be not the traffic directed lane,

(i) when the navigation unit does not navigate along a route, the start point defining unit defines the start point as the current position, and

(ii) when the navigation unit navigates along a route, the start point defining unit defines the start point as an exit of the intersection reached by following the route along which the navigation unit navigates.

4. The navigation device of claim 2, further comprising:

a navigation determining unit for determining, when the traveled lane is determined to be not the traffic directed lane, whether the navigation unit navigates along a route, wherein

(i) when the navigating unit is determined to not navigate, the start point defining unit defines the start point as the current position, and

(ii) when the navigating unit is determined to navigate, the start point defining unit defines the start point as an exit of the intersection reached by following the route along which the navigation unit navigates.

5. The navigation device of claim 1, wherein

the intersection determining unit

computes a time period for reaching an intersection from the current position and

determines that the intersection being the target for route designation is present close to the current position when the time period is a given time period or less.

6. The navigation device of claim 1, wherein

the instruction of route designation includes at least one of (i) an instruction of retrieval of a route to a destination and (ii) an instruction of route condition change.