Information provision apparatus

• US 20080284615A1
• Filed: 01/24/2008
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: YAMAMOTO, Mitsuo, KIYOHARA, Hirofumi, MASUTANI, Osama, TAUCHI, Makiko, ENOKIZAKA, Tetsuya, MATSUMOTO, Yuuji, TSUKAHARA, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 8,305,234 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/905
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/091 Traffic information broadcasting broadcasting communication H04H

Abstract

An information provision apparatus of the present invention includes a stop detector to detect a stop of a vehicle; a display unit to display various information; and a control unit to control the display unit to display a plurality of display contents in a manner that two successive contents of information differ with each other while the vehicle is standing at the temporal stop. When the vehicle is caught in a traffic congestion to stop temporarily, the driver of the vehicle is entertained by plural contents of the information appearing on the display unit for his/her diversion.

Claims

1. A vehicular information provision apparatus comprising:

a stop detector capable of detecting a temporal stop of a vehicle that is having a travel;

a display unit capable of displaying various information at a position that is viewable in the vehicle; and

a control unit capable of controlling the display unit to display a plurality of display contents in a manner that two successive contents of information differ with each other while the vehicle is standing at the temporal stop.

2. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the control unit controls the display unit to display a content of information that is self-contained in one screen on the display unit.

3. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a driver'"'"'s condition detector capable of detecting a current driver'"'"'s condition; and

a condition determiner capable of determining that a content of a predetermined time length is acceptable for the driver according to the current driver'"'"'s condition detected by the driver'"'"'s condition detector based on a predetermined criterion,

wherein, when the content of the predetermined time length is determined to be acceptable for the driver, the control unit controls the display unit to display the content of information including the content of the predetermined time length.

4. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 3, wherein

a current driver'"'"'s operation detected as being diverted from a history of driver'"'"'s operation stored in a database is used as one of predetermined criteria for determining that the driver'"'"'s condition is not normal, and

the determination of the driver'"'"'s condition not being normal is used to control the display unit to avoid displaying information that includes the content of the predetermined time length.

5. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 3, wherein

a current driver'"'"'s operation in association with driver'"'"'s emotion that surfaces as voice tone, facial expression is detected as being diverted from a history stored in a database is used as one of predetermined criteria for determining that the driver'"'"'s condition is not normal, and

the determination of the driver'"'"'s condition not being normal is used to control the display unit to avoid displaying information that includes the content of the predetermined time length.

6. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 4, wherein

the information displayed on the display unit is configured to be edited in consideration of driver'"'"'s characteristic.

7. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 5, wherein

the information displayed finally on the display unit is the information that indicates that the vehicle is starting in a short time.

8. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the information displayed on the display unit shows a remaining time before the vehicle starts, and

the brightness of the information on the display unit is configured to be dimmed as time elapses.

9. A vehicular information provision apparatus comprising:

a stop detector capable of detecting a temporal stop of a vehicle that is having a travel;

a display unit capable of displaying various information at a position that is viewable in the vehicle; and

a control unit capable of controlling the display unit to display a plurality of information contents in a manner that two successive information contents differ with each other while the vehicle is standing at the temporal stop, wherein

the information content displayed finally on the display unit is information to remind a driver of the vehicle that the vehicle is about to start.

10. The vehicular information provision apparatus of claim 9, wherein

two successive contents of information are serially displayed in a fade-out and fade-in manner, and

the information displayed finally on the display unit is abruptly displayed without fading-in for providing impression for the driver that the vehicle is about to start.