Apparatus and method for guiding vehicle occupant to travel from present position of vehicle to set destination through display unit
First Claim
1. An apparatus for guiding a vehicle occupant toward a destination at which the vehicle occupant desires to arrive through a display unit, comprising:
- a) road map storing means for storing a road map therein;
b) setting means through which the vehicle occupant sets the destination;
c) first detecting means for detecting a present position of the vehicle and outputting a signal indicative of the present position of the vehicle;
d) display control means for reading the road map from said road map storing means, displaying the road map on the display unit, and simultaneously displaying the detected present position of the vehicle and an optimum route of travel of the vehicle to the set destination from the present position of the vehicle;
e) second detecting means for detecting whether a vehicular ignition key switch is placed at an OFF position or at an ON position to determine whether or not the vehicle is stopped;
f) first route searching means for previously searching the optimum routes of the vehicle to respective intersections from the detected present position of the vehicle when said second detecting means detects that the vehicular ignition key switch is placed at the OFF position with the vehicle stopped before the display control means is effective, said respective intersections falling in a region other than the destination set by the occupant through the setting means and surrounding the detected present position of the vehicle; and
g) second route searching means operating for immediately displaying one of the optimum routes from the present position of the vehicle to the set destination if the set destination set through the setting means corresponds to one of the respective intersections falling in the region and whose optimum route is searched by the first route searching means when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position and the vehicle occupant sets the destination through the setting means and otherwise operating for retrieving the result of search by the first route search means and the read road map data so as to derive the optimum route from the set destination toward the present position of the vehicle via one of the optimum routes searched by the first route searching means when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position when the destination is set, and for immediately displaying the derived optimum route from the set destination through the setting means toward the present position of the vehicle via the searched optimum route by said first route searching means through one of the respective intersections in the region on the display unit through the display control means.
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Accused Products
Abstract
In an apparatus and method for guiding a vehicle occupant from a present position of the vehicle to a destination to which the vehicle occupant desires to reach, optimum routes of travel from the present position to respective intersections surrounding the present position of the vehicle are already searched and stored when the vehicle stops at the present position of the vehicle with a vehicular ignition switch turned off. Then, when the ignition switch is turned on and the vehicle occupant sets the destination, the optimum routes from the set destination toward the present position are searched on the basis of the road map data and result of search of the optimum routes of the respective intersections surrounding the present position of the vehicle. When the optimum route from the set destination to the present position of the vehicle is searched, the display unit superimposes and displays the present position of the vehicle and the optimum route to the destination on the road map so as to quickly start the guidance of the route from the present position to the destination. In the embodiment, if the set destination corresponds to one of registered points of locations, the present position and the optimum route to the destination are immediately displayed on the road map after the destination is set.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. An apparatus for guiding a vehicle occupant toward a destination at which the vehicle occupant desires to arrive through a display unit, comprising:
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a) road map storing means for storing a road map therein; b) setting means through which the vehicle occupant sets the destination; c) first detecting means for detecting a present position of the vehicle and outputting a signal indicative of the present position of the vehicle; d) display control means for reading the road map from said road map storing means, displaying the road map on the display unit, and simultaneously displaying the detected present position of the vehicle and an optimum route of travel of the vehicle to the set destination from the present position of the vehicle; e) second detecting means for detecting whether a vehicular ignition key switch is placed at an OFF position or at an ON position to determine whether or not the vehicle is stopped; f) first route searching means for previously searching the optimum routes of the vehicle to respective intersections from the detected present position of the vehicle when said second detecting means detects that the vehicular ignition key switch is placed at the OFF position with the vehicle stopped before the display control means is effective, said respective intersections falling in a region other than the destination set by the occupant through the setting means and surrounding the detected present position of the vehicle; and g) second route searching means operating for immediately displaying one of the optimum routes from the present position of the vehicle to the set destination if the set destination set through the setting means corresponds to one of the respective intersections falling in the region and whose optimum route is searched by the first route searching means when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position and the vehicle occupant sets the destination through the setting means and otherwise operating for retrieving the result of search by the first route search means and the read road map data so as to derive the optimum route from the set destination toward the present position of the vehicle via one of the optimum routes searched by the first route searching means when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position when the destination is set, and for immediately displaying the derived optimum route from the set destination through the setting means toward the present position of the vehicle via the searched optimum route by said first route searching means through one of the respective intersections in the region on the display unit through the display control means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21)
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20. A method for guiding a vehicle occupant toward a destination at which the vehicle occupant desires to arrive via a display unit, comprising the steps of:
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a) storing a road map at least including a present position of the vehicle on the road map; b) setting the destination; c) detecting the present position of the vehicle and outputting a signal indicative of the present position of the vehicle; d) reading the road map, displaying the read road map on the display unit, and simultaneously displaying the detected present position of the vehicle and an optimum route of travel of the vehicle to reach to the set destination from the present position of the vehicle; e) detecting whether a vehicular ignition key switch is placed at an ON position to determine whether or not the vehicle is stopped; f) previously searching the optimum routes of travel of the vehicle to respective intersections from the detected present position of the vehicle when the vehicular ignition key switch is placed at an OFF position with the vehicle stopped, said respective intersections falling in a region other than the destination set by the occupant and surrounding the detected present position of the vehicle; and g) immediately displaying one of the optimum routes from the present position of the vehicle to the set destination if the set destination corresponds to one of the respective intersections falling in the region when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position and the vehicle occupant sets the destination and otherwise retrieving the result of search at said step f) and the read road map data so as to derive the optimum route from the set destination toward the present position of the vehicle via one of the optimum routes when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position when the destination is set, and for immediately displaying the derived optimum route from the set destination toward the present position of the vehicle via the searched optimum route through one of the respective intersections in the region on the display unit.
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22. A method for guiding a vehicle occupant toward a destination at which the vehicle occupant desires to arrive through a display unit, comprising the steps of:
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a) storing a road map; b) detecting a present position of the vehicle and outputting a signal indicative of the present position of the vehicle; c) reading the road map stored at step a) from road map storing means, displaying the road map on the display unit, and displaying the detected present position of the vehicle and, simultaneously, an optimum route of travel of the vehicle to a set destination from the present position of the vehicle if the destination is set; d) detecting whether a vehicular ignition key switch is placed at an OFF position or at an ON position to determine whether the vehicle is stopped or not; e) previously searching the optimum routes of the vehicle to respective intersections from the detected present position of the vehicle when the vehicular ignition key switch is placed at the OFF position with the vehicle stopped before said step c), said respective intersections falling in a region other than the destination set by the occupant at the step c) and surrounding the present position of the vehicle; and f) immediately displaying one of the optimum routes from the present position of the vehicle to the set destination if the set destination set at the step c) corresponds to one of the respective intersections falling in the region and whose optimum route is searched at the step e) when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position and the vehicle occupant sets the destination and otherwise for retrieving the result of the search at the step e) and the read road map data so as to derive the optimum route from the set destination toward the present position of the vehicle via one of the optimum routes searched at the step e) when the ignition key switch is placed at the ON position and when the destination is set, and for immediately displaying the derived optimum route from the set destination toward the present position of the vehicle via the searched optimum route searched at the step e) through one of the respective intersections in the region on the display unit.
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23. A system for a vehicular travel route guidance to a destination to which a vehicle occupant desires to reach from a present position of the vehicle, comprising:
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a) road map storing means for storing a road map data therein; b) first detecting means for detecting the present position of the vehicle using a vehicle forward direction sensor and GPS satellites wave receiver; c) second detecting means for detecting whether a key switch of an ignition key is closed or open; d) setting means through which the vehicle occupant sets the destination when the key switch is closed; e) display means for reading and displaying the road map data from the road map storing means on a display unit image screen and for superimposing the detected present position of the vehicle and an optimum route from the detected present position of the vehicle to the set destination on the displayed road map after the destination is set with the key switch closed; f) first route searching means for previously searching for one of the routes along which the vehicle is to travel at optimum, said optimum route being present in a road segment from the detected present position of the vehicle to each of a plurality of intersections falling in a first region surrounding the detected present position of the vehicle, when the key switch is open so that the vehicle stops; g) second route searching means for searching for one of the routes along which the vehicle is to travel at optimum on the basis of the result of route search by said first route searching means and read road map data, said optimum route being present in a road segment from the set destination to each of a plurality of intersections falling in a second region surrounding the set destination, when the key switch is closed and the destination is set; and h) display control means, responsive to the set of the destination with the key switch closed, for combining the optimum route searched by the first route searching means and that searched by the second route searching means so as to derive and display the optimum route from the present position to the set destination on the road map of the display unit image screen, a timer by means of which a power supply from a vehicular battery to the vehicular travel route guidance system is continued for a predetermined time duration so as to activate the first route searching means when the timer is started in response to the open of the key switch, wherein said first searching means searches for the optimum route from the detected present position of the vehicle to each of the intersections falling in the first region, the optimum route therein having a road distance h from the detected present position to any one of the intersections falling in the first region which gives a minimum value from among the searched plurality of the routes from the detected present position of the vehicle to the one intersection, wherein said first route searching means searches for the optimum route from the present position to each of the plurality of intersections falling in the first region in such a way that the first route searching means comprises a road map data base including an intersection network and a memory which stores the result of route search by the first route searching means, the result of route search memory means storing the road distance h from a start intersection to each of the intersections falling in the first region and a preceding intersection A placed in front of each intersection falling in the first region and each intersection therein being present on the optimum route from the start intersection to each intersection therein for each intersection falling therein, said start intersection being defined as an intersection which is present outside of a circle with the present position as a center of the circle and which is nearest to the present position of the vehicle, said first route searching means starts the route search by setting the road distance h of a center intersection to zero (h=0) and by setting the road distances h of the other intersection except the center intersection to an infinity (h=+∞
), the center intersection being defined as the intersection to be searched to calculate the route and intersections adjacent to the center intersection being defined as the adjacent intersections, adds the road distance hO of the center intersection from the start intersection stored in the road distance portion of the route result storing means and the road distance from the center intersection to the selected adjacent intersection to derive the road distance h1 from the start intersection to the selected adjacent intersection, compares the derived road distance h1 with the road distance h2 from the start intersection to the selected adjacent intersection stored as the road distance of the selected adjacent intersection in the route result storing means, changes the road distance h2 of the selected adjacent intersection to the road distance h1 when the derived road distance h1 is smaller than the road distance h2, sets the preceding intersection to the selected adjacent intersection as the new center intersection, sets the next new center intersection which has the least value of road distance h from the start intersection from among all of the intersections except the center intersections already selected as the center intersections when the above-described series of processing are ended for all adjacent intersections to the center intersection, and repeats the above-described series of processing for all intersections adjacent to the next new center intersection, so that the first route searching means sets sequentially the new center intersection in the order that the road distances from the start intersection give smaller values. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification