Route Guidance System and Method

• US 20080319640A1
• Filed: 03/15/2005
• Published: 12/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
• Original Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
• Inventors: Fujita, Ryujiro, Inoue, Hiroto, Shioda, Takehiko, Ichihara, Naohiko
• Granted Patent: US 7,653,485 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3476 using point of interest [POI] information, e.g. a route passing visible POIs
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3602 Input other than that of destination using image analysis, e.g. detection of road signs, lanes, buildings, real preceding vehicles using a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3647 Guidance involving output of stored or live camera images or video streams
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/106 using electronic means

Abstract

A routing guide system includes route calculating means for calculating the route of a vehicle to a destination, image providing means for reading from storage means scenery images on the route calculated by the route calculating means, and display means for displaying the scenery images on the calculated route generated by the image providing means. The routing guide system also includes route confirming means for confirming as a set route the route calculated by the route calculating means, according to an operation, during or after display of the scenery images on the calculated route by means of the display means.

Claims

1. A routing guide system comprising:

route calculating means for calculating a route of a vehicle to a destination;

image providing means, having storage means that stores as data scenery images of a plurality of location points, for reading from said storage means scenery images on the route calculated by said route calculating means;

display means for displaying the scenery images on the calculated route generated by said image providing means; and

route confirming means for confirming as a set route the route calculated by said route calculating means, according to an operation, during or after display of the scenery images on said calculated route by means of said display means,

wherein the vehicle is provided with a camera for capturing scenery images in front of the vehicle, and pleasantness degree calculating means for calculating degree of pleasantness of each of the scenery images in front of the vehicle captured by the camera,

said pleasantness degree calculating means includes;

road analyzing means for performing road analysis processing on each of the scenery images in front of the vehicle captured by the camera;

scene analyzing means for performing scene analysis processing on each of the scenery images in front of the vehicle;

background analyzing means for performing background analysis processing on each of the scenery images in front of the vehicle;

means for calculating the degree of road pleasantness on the basis of results of said road analysis processing;

means for calculating the degree of scene pleasantness on the basis of results of said scene analysis processing; and

means for calculating the degree of background pleasantness on the basis of results of said background analysis processing, and

each said scenery image contains appendix information that includes said degree of pleasantness of each said scenery image, and said degree of pleasantness of each said scenery image includes said degree of road pleasantness, said degree of scene pleasantness and said degree of background pleasantness.

2. The routing guide system according to claim 1 further comprising route guiding means for providing guidance on said set route when the set route is confirmed by said route confirming means.

3. The routing guide system according to claim 2, wherein when a current position of said vehicle approaches a location point corresponding to a scenery image on said set route, said route guiding means provides guidance as a that approach.

4. The routing guide system according to claim 1, wherein said route calculating means includes:

image selection means for selecting, according to a second operation, an image from among the scenery images on said calculated route displayed by said display means; and

route correcting means for re-calculating the route to said destination to avoid a location point corresponding to the image selected by said image selection means.

5. The routing guide system according to claim 1, wherein said image providing means reads from said storage means scenery images on the route calculated by said route calculating means or peripheral thereto, and

said route calculating means further includes:

periphery display means for displaying scenery images of the calculated route periphery generated by said image providing means;

second image selection means for selecting, according to a third operation, an image from among the scenery images of said calculated route periphery displayed by said periphery display means; and

route correcting means for re-calculating the route to said destination to transit a location point corresponding to the image selected by said second image selection means.

6. The routing guide system according to claim 1, wherein said route calculating means, said display means, and said route confirming means are provided in an on-vehicle terminal device mounted in said vehicle;

the image providing means having said storage means is included in a server positioned outside said vehicle; and

bi-directional communication is carried. out between said server and said on-vehicle terminal device.

7. The routing guide system according to claim 6, wherein said on-vehicle terminal device includes:

said camera;

said pleasantness degree calculating means;

pleasant image determining means for determining whether or not the degree of pleasantness calculated by said pleasantness degree calculating means is larger than a predetermined threshold value; and

appendix information creation means for creating, for a scenery image determined by said pleasant image determining means to be of a degree of pleasantness larger than the predetermined threshold value, appendix information including location, direction and date and time of the image capture and the degree of pleasantness, and transmitting the scenery, image along with the appendix information to said server.

8. The routing guide system according to claim 6, wherein said server includes:

receiving means for receiving the scenery, image along with the appendix information thereof, transmitted from said on-vehicle terminal device;

comparison means for comparing the appendix information of the scenery image received by said. receiving means with. the appendix information of an existing scenery image already saved in said storage means; and

saving control means for saving in said storage means, said received scenery image and the appendix information thereof, if the appendix information of the received scenery image is different from the appendix information of the existing scenery image.

9. The routing guide system according claim, 8, wherein said saving control means discards said received scenery image and the appendix information thereof, if the appendix information of the receive scenery mage is the same as the appendix information of the existing scenery image.

10. The routing guide system according to claim 8, wherein when the degree of pleasantness contained in the appendix information of said received scenery image is higher than the degree of pleasantness contained in the appendix information of the existing scenery image, said saving control means saves in said storage means said received scenery image along with the appendix information thereof even if the appendix information of said received scenery image other than the degree of pleasantness is identical to the appendix information of the existing scenery image.

11. The routing guide system according to claim 7, wherein said pleasantness degree calculating means includes:

image dividing means for dividing an image in front of the vehicle, captured by said camera, into an upper region image, a lower region image, a right region image and a left region image by means of two diagonal lines,

said road analyzing means performs road analysis processing on the lower region image;

said scene analyzing means performs scene analysis processing on the right region image and the left region image;

said background analyzing means performs background analysis processing on the upper region image;

said pleasantness degree calculating means further includes;

means for establishing a plurality of road characteristic indices, on the basis of results of said road analysis processing;

means for establishing a plurality of scene characteristic indices for each of said right and left right region images, on the basis of results of said scene analysis processing; and

means for establishing a plurality of background characteristic indices on the basis of results of said background analysis processing,

said means for calculating the degree of road pleasantness calculates an average of said plurality of road characteristics indices, as the degree of road pleasantness;

said means for calculating the degree of scene pleasantness calculates an average of said plurality of scene characteristics indices for said right region image, as the degrees of right scene pleasantness and calculates an average of said plurality of scene characteristics indices for said left region image, as the degrees of left scene pleasantness; and

said means for calculating the degree of background pleasantness calculates an average of said plurality of background characteristics indices as the degree of background pleasantness; and

said pleasantness degree calculating means further includes_means for calculating an average of said degree of road pleasantness, said degree of right scene pleasantness, said degree of left scene pleasantness, and said degree of background pleasantness as the degree of pleasantness of said scenery image in front of the vehicle.

13. The routing guide system according to claim 2, wherein said route calculating means includes:

image selection means for selecting, according to a second operation, an image from among the scenery images on said calculated route displayed by said display means; and

route correcting means for re-calculating the route to said destination to avoid a location point corresponding to the image selected by said image selection means.

14. The routing guide system according to claim 3, wherein said route calculating means includes:

image selection means for selecting, according to a second operation, an image from among the scenery images on said calculated route displayed by said display means; and

route correcting means for re-calculating the route to said destination to avoid a location point corresponding to the image selected by said image selection means.

12. A routing guide method comprising:

a route calculating step of calculating a route of a vehicle to a destination;

a step of storing in storage means, as data, scenery images of a plurality of location points;

an image providing step of reading from said storage means scenery images on the route calculated in said route calculating step;

a display step of displaying the scenery images on the calculated route generated in said image providing step; and

a route confirming step of confirming as a set route the calculated route obtained by said route calculating step, according to an operation, during display or after display of the scenery images on said calculated route in said display step.