Vehicle navigation playback mehtod

• US 20080234934A1
• Filed: 03/14/2008
• Published: 09/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Otani, Kazuoki
• Granted Patent: US 9,170,120 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/213
• 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 21/3632 Guidance using simplified or iconic instructions, e.g. using arrows G01C21/365 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/365 Guidance using head up displays or projectors, e.g. virtual vehicles or arrows projected on the windscreen or on the road itself
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096855 where the output is provided in a suitable form to the driver details on I/O arrangements for onboard navigation computers G01C21/36
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096872 where instructions are given per voice
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems

Abstract

An automotive vehicle navigation method includes obtaining electronic textual navigation information and converting the textual navigation information into audio data. The audio data is stored within the vehicle and is played back within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to respective legs of a trip being made by the vehicle.

Claims

1. An automotive vehicle navigation method, said method comprising the steps of:

obtaining electronic textual navigation information;

converting the textual navigation information into audio data;

storing the audio data within the vehicle; and

playing back the audio data within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to respective legs of a trip being made by the vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining step includes downloading the textual navigation information from the internet.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio data is in at least one of MP3, AAC and WMA format.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio data is stored on a personal electronic device connected to a navigation system of the vehicle.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising the further steps of:

storing the electronic textual navigation information within the vehicle; and

playing back the electronic textual navigation information within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to the respective legs of the trip being made by the vehicle.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the audio data and the electronic textual navigation information are stored and played back together in sequential tracks corresponding to the respective legs of the trip.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising the further steps of:

obtaining electronic graphical navigation information;

storing the electronic graphical navigation information within the vehicle; and

playing back the electronic graphical navigation information within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to the respective legs of the trip being made by the vehicle.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the user may selectively switch between the playing back of the electronic textual navigation information and the playing back of the electronic graphical navigation information.

9. An automotive vehicle navigation method, said method comprising the steps of:

providing audio navigation data within the vehicle;

audibly playing second audio data within the vehicle; and

repeatedly interrupting the playing of the second audio data by audibly playing back the audio navigation data in sequential increments in association with respective legs of a trip being made by the vehicle.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the playing of the second audio data is resumed after the playing back of each of the sequential increments of audio navigation data.

11. The method of claim 9, comprising the further steps of:

obtaining electronic textual navigation information; and

converting the textual navigation information into the audio navigation data.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the obtaining step includes downloading the textual navigation information from the internet, and the providing step includes storing the audio navigation data on a personal electronic device connected to a navigation system of the vehicle.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising the further steps of:

storing the electronic textual navigation information within the vehicle; and

playing back the electronic textual navigation information within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to the respective legs of the trip being made by the vehicle.

14. An automotive vehicle navigation method, said method comprising the steps of:

storing within the vehicle at least one of audio navigation data and textual navigation data;

receiving vehicle location data in real time;

using the vehicle location data to determine the vehicle'"'"'s progress in a trip being made by the vehicle; and

playing back the at least one of audio navigation data and textual navigation data within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to the vehicle'"'"'s progress in the trip.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the vehicle location data is received from a GPS.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein each of the sequential increments is associated with a respective vehicle location.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the playing back step is performed automatically for each of the sequential increments when the vehicle arrives at the respective vehicle locations.

18. The method of claim 14, comprising the further steps of:

storing within the vehicle graphical navigation data; and

playing back the graphical navigation data within the vehicle in sequential increments that correspond to the vehicle'"'"'s progress in the trip.

19. The method of claim 14, comprising the further steps of:

updating a sequential increment of the at least one of audio navigation data and textual navigation data based upon the vehicle location data; and

automatically playing back the updated sequential increment of the at least one of audio navigation data and textual navigation data.

20. The method of claim 14, comprising the further steps of:

specifying the trip made by the vehicle before the trip is commenced;

retrieving the at least one of audio navigation data and textual navigation data from the internet in association with the specified trip; and

downloading the at least one of audio navigation data and textual navigation data from the internet to the vehicle.