DATA STRUCTURE OF ROUTE GUIDANCE DATABASE

• US 20110054783A1
• Filed: 10/21/2008
• Published: 03/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Geo Technical Laboratory Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Geo Technical Laboratory Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Kimura, Tatsuji, Teshima, Eiji, Shimozuru, Hideyuki, Irie, Toru, Aramaki, Masatoshi, Kishikawa, Kiyonari, Baba, Satomi, Tou, Kouhei, Ada, Masaya
• Granted Patent: US 8,600,654 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3632 Guidance using simplified or iconic instructions, e.g. using arrows G01C21/365 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3658 Lane guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/003 Navigation within 3D models or images

Abstract

It is an object to realize a route guidance that follows a real passage mode without a feeling of wrongness. In a route guidance device, aside from a two-dimensional road network for a route search, a three-dimensional road network used for the route guidance and guiding line shape data are prepared. The guiding line shape data are three-dimensional guidance display data that guide you to go straight through a crossroads, to turn right, to turn left, etc. in accordance with a passage mode or guide you to change a car lane before you enter a crossroads. A link node of the two-dimensional road network is associated with the guiding line shape data through the three-dimensional road network. The route search is carried out by using the two-dimensional road network. The route guidance is carried out by using the guiding line shape data associated with the link node acquired by the route search. This can realize an instinctively understandable route guidance that follows a passage mode without increasing a load of a route search.

Claims

1. A data structure of a route guidance database used to display a guiding line for guiding a moving body as an object of route guidance on a route,

the route guidance database being referred to by a route guidance device to give a guidance display for guiding passage of the moving body on a route to be guided, wherein the route guidance device reads a route search result, which specifies the route to be guided by a combination of nodes and links with position coordinates as a retrieval result from a route search database constructed to include roads expressed by nodes and links with position coordinates, detects position coordinates of a current location of the moving body, and displays a route to be taken by the moving body by referring to the route search result according to the detected position coordinates of the current location of the moving body,

the data structure comprising:

guiding line shape data, each piece being structured to specify a guiding line for guiding passage of the moving body on the route; and

relevant information, each piece being provided in relation to each piece of the guiding line shape data and structured to correlate the guiding line shape data to the nodes and the links in the route search database.

2. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 1, wherein the relevant information includes:

intermediate nodes and intermediate links provided separately from the guiding line shape data and structured as simplified representation of the guiding line shape data;

first relevant data structured to show a relation of the nodes and the links in the route search database to the intermediate nodes and the intermediate links; and

second relevant data structured to show a relation of the guiding line shape data to the intermediate nodes and the intermediate links.

3. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 2, wherein each of the intermediate nodes is allowed to be correlated to multiple nodes in the route search database, and

each of the intermediate links is provided to include a specific piece of information indicating an available moving direction of the moving body.

4. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 1, the data structure further including combination data, which is used to specify a guiding line going through multiple traffic intersections by a combination of multiple pieces of the guiding line shape data, wherein the guiding line starts from an approach link specified in the route search result for approaching to one traffic intersection and ends at an exit link specified in the route search result for exiting from the traffic intersection.

5. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 1, wherein the guiding line shape data has region information assigned to specify one of multiple region types corresponding to a positional relation to a traffic intersection, and

the multiple region types include an intersection region representing an inner area of a traffic intersection, a connection region representing a specific area approaching to the traffic intersection, and a route region representing another area.

6. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 1, wherein the guiding line shape data is provided for each of multiple available guiding lines starting from an approach link specified in the route search result for approaching to one traffic intersection and ending at an exit link specified in the route search result for exiting from the traffic intersection.

7. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 6, wherein the guiding line shape data is provided to allow for an approach from one of multiple different approach points to the traffic intersection specified according to an angle between the approach link to the traffic intersection and the exit link from the traffic intersection.

8. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 7, wherein the guiding line shape data is provided to specify an approach point for each of three available passage behaviors through the traffic intersection, going straight, turning right, and turning left, that are defined according to the angle between the approach link and the exit link.

9. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 7, wherein the guiding line shape data includes a specific piece of data representing a connection trajectory of connecting a moving trajectory of the moving body to an approach point in an area of each approach road to the traffic intersection, and

the relevant information provided in relation to the specific piece of the guiding line shape data representing the connection trajectory includes a piece of data used to specify the approach point.

10. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 6, wherein the guiding line shape data with regard to at least one traffic intersection is provided for each of multiple guiding lines running from an approach link via the traffic intersection to an exit link specified in the route search result to be directed to multiple different exit points corresponding to multiple available passage routes after the traffic intersection, and

the relevant information with regard to the at least one traffic intersection is structured to correlate the guiding line shape data including data specifying the multiple available passage routes after the traffic intersection to the nodes and the links in the route search database.

11. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 1, wherein the guiding line shape data is provided as a three-dimensional sequence of points including position information and height information.

12. The data structure of the route guidance database in accordance with claim 1, wherein a yaw angle calculated from the guiding line shape data as a change in moving direction at each point along the guiding line is not greater than an upper limit value determined according to a deflection performance of the moving body at an expected speed on the route to be guided.

13. A generation support system configured to support generation of a route guidance database, which is used to display a guiding line for guiding a moving body as an object of route guidance on a route,

the route guidance database being referred to by a route guidance device to give a guidance display for guiding passage of the moving body on a route to be guided, wherein the route guidance device reads a route search result, which specifies the route to be guided by a combination of nodes and links with position coordinates as a retrieval result from a route search database constructed to include roads expressed by nodes and links with position coordinates, detects position coordinates of a current location of the moving body, and displays a route to be taken by the moving body by referring to the route search result according to the detected position coordinates of the current location of the moving body,

the route guidance database including:

guiding line shape data, each piece being structured to specify a guiding line for guiding passage of the moving body on the route; and

relevant information, each piece being provided in relation to each piece of the guiding line shape data and structured to correlate the guiding line shape data to the nodes and the links in the route search database,

the generating support system comprising;

a map data reference module configured to refer to three-dimensional map data used for displaying a three-dimensional map including features expressed in three-dimensional representation;

a route guidance data reference module configured to refer to the route guidance database in a course of generation;

a display controller configured to display the three-dimensional map in a view of the moving body as the object of route guidance based on the three-dimensional map data and to display the guiding line based on the route guidance database;

a command input module configured to receive an operator'"'"'s instruction on requirement or non-requirement for correction of the route guidance database as a checking result of the display; and

a correction controller configured to, in response to the operator'"'"'s correction instruction, shift the display to a correction window for correcting the route guidance database or to output correction-relating information usable to specify a position as a target of the correction instruction in the route guidance database.

14. The generation support system in accordance with claim 13, the generation support system further including:

a yaw angle detection module configured to determine whether a yaw angle calculated from the guiding line shape data as a change in moving direction at each point along the guiding line is not greater than an upper limit value determined according to a deflection performance of the moving body at an expected speed on the route to be guided.

15. A route guidance device configured to display a guiding line for guiding a moving body as an object of route guidance on a route, the route guidance device comprising:

a map data reference module configured to refer to three-dimensional map data used for displaying a three-dimensional map including features expressed in three-dimensional representation;

a route search result storage module configured to store a route search result, which specifies a route to be guided by a combination of nodes and links with position coordinates as a retrieval result from a route search database constructed to include roads expressed by nodes and links with position coordinates;

a route guidance database storage module configured to store a route guidance database that is used for the route guidance and includes guiding line shape data, each piece being structured to specify a guiding line for guiding passage of the moving body on the route, and relevant information, each piece being provided in relation to each piece of the guiding line shape data and structured to correlate the guiding line shape data to the nodes and the links in the route search database;

a current location detection module configured to detect position coordinates of a current location of the moving body; and

a display controller configured to specify a route to be taken by the moving body by referring to the route search result according to the detected position coordinates of the current location of the moving body, to specify the guiding line shape data corresponding to the route by referring to the relevant information, and to give a guidance display in three-dimensional representation for guiding passage of the moving body on the route, based on the three-dimensional map data and the specified guiding line shape data.

16. The route guidance device in accordance with claim 15, wherein the guiding line shape data has region information assigned to specify one of multiple region types corresponding to a positional relation to a traffic intersection,

the multiple region types including an intersection region representing an inner area of a traffic intersection, a connection region representing a specific area approaching to the traffic intersection, and a route region representing another area, and

the display controller changes over a view approach of the guidance display in three-dimensional representation according to the region type.