Destination setting support devices, methods, and programs

• US 20090234568A1
• Filed: 03/12/2009
• Published: 09/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Kawauchi, Hiroshi
• Application Number:
  US12/382,272
• Publication Number:
  US 20090234568A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3611 using character input or menus, e.g. menus of POIs character input methods in general G06F3/0233

Abstract

A controller arranges in order destination candidates that are found and divides them into groups of two hundred destination candidates each. The controller caches in a cache memory the group to which the destination candidates that are currently displayed in search results display spaces belong, as well as the adjacent groups in the upward and downward directions. On a candidate display screen, a Previous Group button and a Next Group button are displayed that respectively display the first destination candidate and the last destination candidate in the group that is currently displayed in list form. If a user touches one of these buttons, the controller switches the list display on the candidate display screen to the adjacent group in one of the upward or downward directions. The controller can thus switch the list display one cached group at a time.

Claims

1. A destination setting support device, usable in a navigation device, comprising:

a controller that;

inputs a search term;

searches for destination candidates that correspond to the input search term;

displays a specified number of the destination candidates that are found as a result of the search;

arranges the found destination candidates in an order and divides the arranged destination candidates into groups that each contain more destination candidates than the specified number;

switches displayed destination candidates one group at a time; and

accepts a selection of one of the displayed destination candidates and sets the selected destination candidate as a destination.

2. The destination setting support device according to claim 1, wherein a current group is a group to which currently displayed destination candidates belong and the controller displays a range of the current group in a range display.

3. The destination setting support device according to claim 2, wherein the controller:

selects one end of the range, and

switches the display to the destination candidates that belong to a group that is adjacent to the selected end according to the arranged order.

4. The destination setting support device according to claim 3, wherein the controller:

displays a destination candidate positioned in the middle of the range.

5. The destination setting support device according to claim 4, wherein the controller:

selects the destination candidate positioned in the middle of the range, and

switches the display to the destination candidate positioned in the middle of the range.

6. The destination setting support device according to claim 1, wherein the controller caches in a storage area the found destination candidates in units of groups.

7. The destination setting support device according to claim 1, wherein the controller caches in a storage area the found destination candidates in units of three groups, wherein the three groups are a current group to which the currently displayed destination candidates belong, a preceding group adjacent to the current group, and a following group adjacent to the current group.

8. A method of setting a destination, usable in a navigation device, comprising:

inputting a search term;

searching for destination candidates that correspond to the input search term;

displaying a specified number of the destination candidates that are found as a result of the search;

arranging the found destination candidates in an order and dividing the arranged destination candidates into groups, each of which contains more destination candidates than the specified number;

switching displayed destination candidates one group at a time; and

accepting a selection of one of the displayed destination candidates and sets the selected destination candidate as a destination.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

displaying a range of the group to which the displayed destination candidates belong in a range display.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

selecting one end of the range, and

switching the display to the destination candidates that belong to the group that is adjacent to the selected end according to the arranged order.

11. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

displaying a destination candidate positioned in the middle of the range.

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising:

selecting the destination candidate positioned in the middle of the range, and

switching the display to the destination candidate positioned in the middle of the range.

13. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

caching in a storage area the found destination candidates in units of groups.

14. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

caching in a storage area the found destination candidates in units of three groups, wherein the three groups are a current group to which the currently displayed destination candidates belong, a preceding group adjacent to the current group, and a following group adjacent to the current group.

15. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer-executable program usable to control a destination setting support program, the program comprising:

instructions for inputting a search term;

instructions for searching for destination candidates that correspond to the input search term;

instructions for displaying a specified number of the destination candidates that are found as a result of the search;

instructions for arranging the found destination candidates in an order and dividing the arranged destination candidates into groups, each of which contains more destination candidates than the specified number;

instructions for switching displayed destination candidates one group at a time; and

instructions for accepting a selection of one of the displayed destination candidates and sets the selected destination candidate as a destination.

16. The computer-readable storage medium storing a computer-executable program usable to control a destination setting support program according to claim 15, further comprising:

instructions for caching in a storage area the found destination candidates in units of groups.

17. The computer-readable storage medium storing a computer-executable program usable to control a destination setting support program according to claim 15, further comprising:

instructions for caching in a storage area the found destination candidates in units of three groups, wherein the three groups are a current group to which the currently displayed destination candidates belong, a preceding group adjacent to the current group, and a following group adjacent to the current group.