NAVIGATION SYSTEM

• US 20120179365A1
• Filed: 12/02/2009
• Published: 07/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Miyahara, Tadashi, Kitano, Toyoaki, Miyazaki, Hideto, Matsubara, Tsutomu, Ieda, Kuniyo, Ozaki, Minoru, Tanaka, Syoji, Nakagawa, Takashi, Shiino, Tomohiro, Yamazaki, Wataru
• Granted Patent: US 8,612,141 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/428
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3469 Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3617 using user history, behaviour, conditions or preferences, e.g. predicted or inferred from previous use or current movement

Abstract

A navigation system capable of enabling a user to use navigation functions such as route guidance without setting a destination. It includes an information recording unit for storing a driving history, a destination estimating unit for estimating a destination from the driving history stored in the information recording unit, a route computing unit for calculating a route to the destination estimated by the destination estimating unit, and an information display unit for causing the route calculated by the route computing unit to be displayed.

Claims

1. A navigation system comprising:

a position information acquiring unit for capturing the present position and a direction of travel;

an information recording unit for storing a driving history;

a destination estimating unit for estimating a plurality of destinations from the present position and the direction of travel and from the driving history stored in the information recording unit;

a route computing unit for calculating routes to the plurality of destinations estimated by the destination estimating unit; and

an information display unit for causing the route calculated by the route computing unit to be displayed.

2. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the route computing unit calculates the route by using the destination estimated by the destination estimating unit as the destination.

3. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the route computing unit calculates the route by using the destination estimated by the destination estimating unit as a direction of the destination.

4. The navigation system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an operation input unit for a user to input an instruction by operation, wherein

the route computing unit calculates an ecoroute that enables arrival at the destination cost-effectively, an express route that enables arrival at the destination in the shortest time, and a well-balanced route that has a balance between cost and time; and

the information display unit selects, in response to the instruction input from the operation input unit, one of the ecoroute, express route and balanced route calculated by the route computing unit, and causes the route selected to be displayed.

5. The navigation system according to claim 4, further comprising:

an operation mode of estimating the destination without any operation of a user, wherein when the operation mode is set,

the information display unit starts route guidance of the ecoroute when an estimate of the cost-efficiency exceeds a prescribed threshold.

6. The navigation system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an operation mode of selecting a destination, wherein in the operation mode,

the information display unit prompts a user to select a destination candidate by displaying destination candidates at a time when driving is done by a prescribed distance.

7. The navigation system according to claim 4, wherein

the information display unit displays, when guiding an ecoroute, an ecoroute decided by taking account of a gas or electric power service station.

8. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the route computing unit calculates a route by anticipating fuel consumption due to low-speed driving because of a traffic jam or fuel consumption due to stop and start at a signal, or by anticipating a volume of traffic or a traffic jam location due to seasons or hours, and calculates an ecoroute by taking into account various information including opening hours of a store.

9. The navigation system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a speaker for making guidance in a voice in conjunction with guidance of the destination estimated by the destination estimating unit.