Navigation Device

• US 20080178118A1
• Filed: 05/18/2005
• Published: 07/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Xanavi Informatics Corporation (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Xanavi Informatics Corporation (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yoshimaru, Takashi, Matsumoto, Kazumi, Aoyama, Noriaki, Yamadera, Hitoshi, Nomura, Mami, Ishii, Takaaki, Owaki, Tsugumichi
• Application Number:
  US11/662,877
• Publication Number:
  US 20080178118A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/810
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3664 Details of the user input interface, e.g. buttons, knobs or sliders, including those provided on a touch screen; remote controllers; input using gestures
• 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: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0969 having a display in the form of a map

Abstract

A navigation device includes: a display device; a control device that controls the display device so as to display a plurality of indexes to be selected in order to operate predetermined functions; and an instruction device with which a user gives an instruction to select among the plurality of indexes that are displayed. And the control device displays the plurality of indexes so that the plurality of indexes are arranged in two columns in a vertical direction, indexes that are arranged in one of the two columns and indexes that are arranged in the other of the two columns are mutually displaced in a vertical direction, and the indexes that are arranged in at least the one of the two columns have shapes that project towards the other of the two columns of indexes.

Claims

1. A navigation device, comprising:

a display device;

a control device that controls the display device so as to display a plurality of indexes to be selected in order to operate predetermined functions; and

an instruction device with which a user gives an instruction to select among the plurality of indexes that are displayed, wherein;

the control device displays the plurality of indexes so that the plurality of indexes are arranged in two columns in a vertical direction, indexes that are arranged in one of the two columns and indexes that are arranged in the other of the two columns are mutually displaced in a vertical direction, and the indexes that are arranged in at least the one of the two columns have shapes that project towards the other of the two columns of indexes.

2. A navigation device according to claim 1, wherein:

the control device displays the plurality of indexes so that the indexes that are arranged in the one of the two columns have shapes that project towards the other of the two columns of indexes, and the indexes that are arranged in the other of the two columns have shapes that project towards the one of the two columns of indexes.

3. A navigation device according to claim 2, wherein:

the control device displays the plurality of indexes so that portions of indexes that are arranged in the one of the two columns are arranged between two indexes adjacent to each other in the other of the two columns, and portions of indexes that are arranged in the other of the two columns are arranged between two indexes adjacent to each other in the one of the two columns.

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

the control device displays the plurality of indexes so that portions of indexes that are arranged in the one of the two columns are arranged between two indexes adjacent to each other in the other of the two columns.

5. A navigation device according to claim 1, wherein:

the instruction device comprises a touch panel that is provided upon a display screen of the display device, and outputs a signal related to a position at which the touch panel is pressed to the control device; and

the control device decides that an index corresponding to the pressed position has been selected, based upon the signal related to the pressed position.

6. A navigation device according to claim 5, wherein:

the instruction device further comprises, in addition to the touch panel, an actuation member that is actuated for selecting among the indexes; and

the control device displays the indexes in the one of the two columns and the indexes in the other of the two columns to be sequentially and alternately selected, when the actuation member is continually actuated.

7. A navigation device according to claim 1, wherein:

the instruction device comprises an actuation member that is actuated for selecting among the indexes; and

the control device displays the indexes in the one of the two columns and the indexes in the other of the two columns to be sequentially and alternately selected, when the actuation member is continually actuated,.

8. A navigation device according to claim 6, wherein:

the actuation member is a rotary actuation member;

any one of the indexes is selected by rotational actuation of the rotary actuation member; and

there is further provide a confirmation actuation member that is actuated in order to confirm the selected index.

9. A navigation device according to claim 7, wherein:

the actuation member is a rotary actuation member;

any one of the indexes is selected by rotational actuation of the rotary actuation member; and

there is further provide a confirmation actuation member that is actuated in order to confirm the selected index.