GUIDE INFORMATION PROVIDING SYSTEM, GUIDE INFORMATION PROVIDING METHOD, SERVER DEVICE, TERMINAL DEVICE

• US 20090156234A1
• Filed: 12/09/2008
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Sugino, Akinobu, Sano, Akane, Sako, Yoichiro, Ito, Taiji, Kamatani, Yoshiteru, Takehara, Mitsuru, Asukai, Masamichi, Kon, Takayasu, Kamada, Yasunori, Hayashi, Kazunori
• Application Number:
  US12/330,963
• Publication Number:
  US 20090156234A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.300
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3614 through interaction with a road map, e.g. selecting a POI icon on a road map
• 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: G01C 21/3682 output of POI information on a road map G01C21/3614, G01C21/3685 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/106 using electronic means

Abstract

A guide information providing system including terminal and server devices, comprising: a specified location acceptance unit in the terminal device, to accept input of a specified location; a display unit in the terminal device, to display information; a storing unit, in the server device, to store guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of an object of guiding, are correlated; an information selecting unit to select guide information correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to the specified location based on the content of specified location information accepted by the specified location acceptance unit, and the guide information classified by position, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference; and a display control unit in the terminal device, configured to control the display unit to provide the guide information selected by the information selecting unit, and position information correlated with the guide information thereof, to a user in a predetermined display format.

Claims

1. A guide information providing system which is configured so as to include a terminal device, and a server device, comprising:

specified location acceptance means, provided in said terminal device, configured to accept input of a specified location;

display means, which are provided in said terminal device, configured to display information;

storing means, provided in said server device, configured to store guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding, are correlated;

information selecting means configured to select guide information which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of specified location information of which the input has been accepted by said specified location acceptance means, and said guide information classified by position, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference; and

display control means, which are provided in said terminal device, configured to control said display means to provide the guide information selected by said information selecting means, and position information correlated with the guide information thereof to a user in a predetermined display format.

2. The guide information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said specified location acceptance means accept input of a specified area as said input of a specified location;

and wherein said information selecting means perform selection of guide information with guide information which is correlated with position information indicating a position within a specified area of which the input has been accepted by said specified location acceptance means as a target.

3. The guide information providing system according to claim 2, further comprising:

position detecting means, provided in said terminal device, configured to detect the current position of the relevant terminal device; and

time-distance calculating means configured to calculate time distance from the current position of said terminal device detected by said position detecting means to the position corresponding to said specified location in said guide information classified by position;

wherein said information selecting means perform selection of guide information satisfying a time-of-day condition with expected arrival time-of-day calculated by adding the time distance to the position corresponding to said specified location calculated by said time-distance calculating means to the current time-of-day as reference.

4. The guide information providing system according to claim 3, wherein said display control means determine whether or not time difference between the time-of-day indicated by time-of-day information included in said guide information selected by said information selecting means, and the expected arrival time-of-day calculated by adding the time distance to the position correlated with said selected guide information to the current time-of-day, is equal to or smaller than a predetermined time length, and as the determination result thereof, in a case wherein said time difference is equal to or smaller than said predetermined time length, controls said display means to perform display to the effect thereof.

5. The guide information providing system according to claim 4, wherein said guide information classified by position is stored by having been classified into a plurality of types for each genre of a thing which is the object of guiding;

and wherein said terminal device further includes specified genre acceptance means configured to accept input of specification of said genre;

and wherein said time-distance calculating means calculate said time distance based on the current position information of said terminal device, and the guide information classified by position corresponding to the specified genre of which the input has been accepted and specified by said specified genre acceptance means;

and wherein said information selecting means performs selection of guide information based on the time distance information calculated by said time-distance calculating means with guide information in the guide information classified by position corresponding to said specified genre as a target.

6. The guide information providing system according to claim 5, said terminal device further comprising:

specified position acceptance means configured to accept specification regarding the position indicated by the position information correlated with the guide information selected by said information selecting means; and

route navigation means configured to perform route navigation to the specified position accepted by said specified position acceptance means.

7. The guide information providing system according to claim 6, wherein said time-distance calculating means and said information selecting means are provided in said server device.

8. The guide information providing system according to claim 7, said server device comprising:

route search means configured to perform route search from the current position of said terminal device detected by said position detecting means to the position corresponding to said specified location of the position information in said guide information classified by position to obtain route information;

wherein said route navigation means perform route navigation based on said route information obtained by said route search means.

9. The guide information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said guide information classified by position is information wherein guide information including business-hours information regarding a store or facility is correlated with position information indicating the location of the store or facility;

and wherein said information selecting means perform selection of guide information such that the business end time-of-day which said business-hours information indicates is at least the current time-of-day and thereafter.

10. The guide information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said guide information classified by position is information wherein guide information including the title information of a movie and the showing time information of the title thereof is correlated with position information indicating the location of the screen facility of the movie;

and wherein said information selecting means perform selection of guide information such that the showing start time-of-day which said showing time information indicates is at least the current time-of-day and thereafter.

11. The guide information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said guide information classified by position is information wherein guide information including the open hours information of an event and the content information of the event is correlated with position information indicating the venue of the event;

and wherein said information selecting means perform selection of guide information such that the holding end time-of-day which said open hours information indicates is at least the current time-of-day and thereafter.

12. The guide information providing system according to claim 1, wherein said information selecting means select guide information which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with a time-of-day obtained by adding a predetermined offset value to said time-of-day which is at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference.

13. The guide information providing system according to claim 12, wherein said information selecting means set said offset value variably according to a user'"'"'s operations.

14. A guide information providing method comprising the steps of:

accepting input of a specified location;

storing guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding, are correlated;

selecting guide information which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of specified location information of which the input has been accepted in said accepting, and said guide information specified by position, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference; and

performing display such that the guide information selected in said selecting, and position information correlated with the guide information thereof are provided to a user in a predetermined display format.

15. A server device making up an information providing system together with a terminal device, comprising:

communication means configured to perform data communication with said terminal device;

storing means configured to store guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding are correlated; and

control means;

wherein said control means execute

information selection processing for selecting guide information in the case of location information specified by said terminal device being received by said communication means, which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of the received specified location information and said guide information classified by position, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference, and

transmission control processing for controlling said communication means to transmit the guide information selected in said information selection processing, and the position information correlated with the guide information thereof to said terminal device.

16. A terminal device making up a guide information presenting system together with a server device, comprising:

communication means configured to perform data communication with said server device;

display means configured to display information; and

control means;

wherein said control means execute

guide information obtaining control processing for controlling said communication means so as to periodically obtain guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding are correlated,

specified location acceptance processing for accepting input of a specified location,

information selection processing for selecting guide information which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of the specified location information of which the input has been accepted in said specified location acceptant processing, and said guide information classified by position obtained in said guide information obtaining control processing, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference, and

display control processing for controlling said display means such that the guide information selected in said information selection processing, and the position information correlated with the guide information thereof are provided to a user in a predetermined display format.

17. A guide information providing system which is configured so as to include a terminal device, and a server device, comprising:

a specified location acceptance unit, provided in said terminal device, configured to accept input of a specified location;

a display unit, provided in said terminal device, configured to display information;

a storing unit, provided in said server device, configured to store guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding, are correlated;

an information selecting unit configured to select guide information which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of specified location information of which the input has been accepted by said specified location acceptance unit, and said guide information classified by position, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference; and

a display control unit, provided in said terminal device, configured to control said display unit to provide the guide information selected by said information selecting unit, and position information correlated with the guide information thereof to a user in a predetermined display format.

18. A server device making up an information providing system together with a terminal device, comprising:

a communication unit configured to perform data communication with said terminal device;

a storing unit configured to store guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding are correlated; and

a control unit;

wherein said control unit executes

information selection processing for selecting guide information in the case of location information specified by said terminal device being received by said communication unit, which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of the received specified location information and said guide information classified by position, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference, and

transmission control processing for controlling said communication unit to transmit the guide information selected in said information selection processing, and the position information correlated with the guide information thereof to said terminal device.

19. A terminal device making up a guide information presenting system together with a server device, comprising:

a communication unit configured to perform data communication with said server device;

a display unit configured to display information; and

a control unit;

wherein said control unit executes

guide information obtaining control processing for controlling said communication unit so as to periodically obtain guide information classified by position wherein guide information including time-of-day information, and position information, of a thing which is the object of guiding are correlated,

specified location acceptance processing for accepting input of a specified location,

information selection processing for selecting guide information which is correlated with position information indicating the position corresponding to said specified location based on the content of the specified location information of which the input has been accepted in said specified location acceptant processing, and said guide information classified by position obtained in said guide information obtaining control processing, and satisfies a time-of-day condition with at least the current time-of-day and thereafter as reference, and

display control processing for controlling said display unit such that the guide information selected in said information selection processing, and the position information correlated with the guide information thereof are provided to a user in a predetermined display format.