Navigation Apparatus

• US 20090157296A1
• Filed: 12/11/2008
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Clarion Co., Ltd. (Faurecia SA)
• Original Assignee: Xanavi Informatics Corporation (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: ASAHARA, Akinori, ABE, Noriyuki, SHIMADA, Shigeru, ASADA, Katsuya, MARUYAMA, Kishiko, KOBAYASHI, Yuta
• Granted Patent: US 8,548,737 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• 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 21/3694 Output thereof on a road map

Abstract

A navigation apparatus comprises a map display control unit that displays a map on a display monitor, a voice information outputting unit that outputs voice information related to traveling of a vehicle, and a highlighting unit that highlights a part of the map that corresponds to the voice information in synchronization with output of the voice information by the voice information outputting unit.

Claims

1. A navigation apparatus, comprising:

a map display control unit that displays a map on a display monitor;

a voice information outputting unit that outputs voice information related to traveling of a vehicle; and

a highlighting unit that highlights a part of the map that corresponds to the voice information in synchronization with output of the voice information by the voice information outputting unit.

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

the highlighting unit starts highlighting the part that corresponds to the voice information when the voice information outputting unit starts outputting of the voice information, and terminates highlighting the part that corresponds to the voice information when the voice information outputting unit terminates outputting of the voice information.

3. A navigation apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a selection unit that selects an event to be voice-guided according to an operation by a user; and

a determination unit that determines contents of the voice information according to the event selected by the selection unit.

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

the highlighting unit highlights the part that corresponds to the voice information by changing the part in any of flashing, color, shape, size, font, background color, or presence of shadow.

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

the map display control unit displays a whole route map in which a plurality of routes are abridged on the display monitor.

6. A navigation apparatus according to claim 3, wherein:

the selection unit selects at least one of an optimal route, traffic congestion, a speed limit, a closed road, a traffic accident, a passing road, a passing intersection, necessary time for destination, drive time, a facility at which the vehicle can stop off, gas mileage, a toll, and drivability, as the event.