Dynamic destination map display for navigation system

• US 20100268448A1
• Filed: 04/17/2009
• Published: 10/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Doan, Linh, Iao, Mike
• Granted Patent: US 8,255,150 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/201
• 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

Abstract

A map display apparatus and method for a navigation changes a map scale dynamically to help the driver visualize the environment of the destination when the vehicle is approaching the destination. The map scale is changed dynamically to display the destination along with at least one map attribute near the destination to provide more information to the driver. The navigation system includes, among others, a searching unit and a scale changing unit to change the map scale to display the destination along with at least one map attribute when the vehicle is approaching the destination. The navigation system also includes a priority table to prioritize the map attributes and the searching unit searches the map attributes near the destination according to order in the priority table.

Claims

1. A map display apparatus for a navigation system comprising:

a display unit;

an information receiver adapted to receive position information about current location of a vehicle;

at least one database to store and provide maps, map attributes, road networks, geographical features, and point-of-interest (POI) information;

a position and distance measuring unit for measuring distance between the vehicle and a destination; and

a searching unit,

wherein when the position and distance measuring unit indicates that the vehicle is within the a predetermined distance to the destination, the searching unit starts searching for at least one map attribute near the destination, and the map attribute is displayed with the destination.

2. The map display apparatus for a navigation system as defined in claim 1, wherein the navigation system comprises a map scale changing unit adapted to dynamically change the map scale to display the destination with the map attribute found by the searching unit in an appropriate map scale.

3. The map display apparatus for a navigation system as defined in claim 1, wherein the navigation system further comprises a priority table in which the map attributes are prioritized in a priority list for said searching unit to search.

4. The map display apparatus for a navigation system of claim 3, wherein the priority table defines a search distance near the destination of each map attribute.

5. The map display apparatus for a navigation system as defined in claim 2, wherein once the searching unit finds at least one map attribute near the destination, the map attribute information is transmitted to the map scale changing unit to dynamically change the map scale to display the map attribute along with the destination.

6. The map display apparatus for a navigation system as defined in claim 4, wherein the searching unit starts searching the priority list from a first map attribute in the list.

7. The map display apparatus for a navigation system as defined in claim 6, wherein the searching unit searches a next map attribute in the priority list if a previous map attribute or attributes in the list do not exist in the search distance.

8. A method of displaying a map of variable scales to help a driver visualize a destination, comprising the following steps of:

receiving current position of a vehicle from a global positioning system (GPS);

inputting the destination;

determining a route according to the current position of the vehicle and the destination;

calculating distance between the vehicle and the destination;

searching for at least one map attribute near the destination;

determining an appropriate map scale to display both the destination and at least one map attribute found near the destination; and

displaying the destination along with at least one map attribute found in the appropriate map scale.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the step of calculating distance between the vehicle and the destination comprises a step of triggering a searching unit when the vehicle is within a predetermined distance to the destination.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of searching for at least one map attribute near the destination comprises a step of searching a priority table in which the map attributes are prioritized in a priority list.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the priority table defines a search distance near the destination of each map attribute.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the step of determining an appropriate map scale to display both the destination and at least one map attribute found near the destination comprises a step of receiving map attribute information from said searching unit.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the step of searching for at least one map attribute near the destination comprises a step of searching the priority list from a first map attribute in the list.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of searching for at least one map attribute near the destination further comprises a step of searching a next map attribute in the priority list if a previous map attribute or attributes in the list do not exist in the search distance.

15. An apparatus for displaying a map including a destination along with at least one map attribute, comprising:

a display unit;

a plurality of input buttons adapted to accept user instructions;

a position and distance measuring unit; and

a searching unit,

wherein the position and distance measuring unit indicates that the vehicle is within a predetermined distance to a destination and said searching unit starts searching for at least one map attribute near the destination to be displayed with the destination in the same map.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the apparatus comprises a map scale changing unit adapted to dynamically change the map scale to display the destination with the map attribute found by the searching unit in an appropriate map scale.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the apparatus further comprises a priority table in which the map attributes are prioritized in a priority list for said searching unit to search.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the priority table defines a search distance near the destination of each map attribute.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein once the searching unit finds at least one map attribute near the destination, the map attribute information is transmitted to the map scale changing unit to dynamically change the map scale to display the map attribute along with the destination.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the searching unit starts searching the priority list from a first map attribute in the list and searches a next map attribute in the priority list if a previous map attribute or attributes in the list do not exist in the search distance.