Information receiving method, navigation apparatus and motorcar

• US 6,085,146 A
• Filed: 04/23/1998
• Issued: 07/04/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Morita, Masao, Kuribayashi, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Gary
• Application Number:
  US09/064,508
• Time in Patent Office: 803 Days
• Field of Search: 701/200, 701/207, 701/208, 701/209, 701/210, 701/211, 340/988, 340/990, 340/995, 455/161.2, 455/186.1, 73/178 R
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/093 Data selection, e.g. prioritizing information, managing message queues, selecting the information to be output
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/094 Hardware aspects; Signal processing or signal properties, e.g. frequency bands
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 1/0008 using a central processing unit, e.g. a microprocessor digital tuning in general H03J5/0245
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/26 Arrangements for switching distribution systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/55 for traffic information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/51 of receiving stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/65 for using the result on users' side

Abstract

An information receiving method is one of receiving a district information transmitted at a predetermined frequency and then displaying a received district information, and includes a step of estimating a current location and then estimating whether a district information of an area to which the estimated current location pertains is contained in a received signal, and a step of performing, if it is estimated that the district information of the area to which the current location pertains is not contained in the received signal, a process for changing the receiving frequency.

Claims

1. An information receiving method for a mobile unit of receiving a transmitted district information transmitted at a predetermined frequency and then displaying the received district information from a received signal, comprising the steps of:

estimating a current location of the mobile unit and then determining whether a current location district information of a current location area to which the estimated current location pertains is included in said received signal; and

performing, when it is determined that the current location district information of the current location area to which the current location pertains is not included in the received signal, a process for changing said predetermined frequency.

2. An information receiving method according to claim 1, wherein the transmitted district information transmitted at said predetermined frequency is a road traffic information of a predetermined district, which is multiplexed over a broadcast wave, and further comprising the step of displaying road traffic information received on a road map in a predetermined mode.

3. An information receiving method according to claim 1, wherein when the transmitted district information contains at least one of ordinary road information and express highway information, the determination as to whether the current location district information of the current location area to which the current location pertains is included in the received signal is performed only by detecting a presence of said ordinary road information in the received signal.

4. An information receiving method according to claim 1, wherein a specified location area to which a specified location pertains is estimated instead of said current location being estimated and then it is determined when specified location district information of the estimated specified location area is included in the received signal.

5. A navigation apparatus for a mobile unit, comprising;

a recording medium for storing map information;

a readout unit for reading out the map information stored in said recording medium;

a location estimating unit for estimating an estimated location of the mobile unit;

a signal receiving unit for receiving a signal transmitted at a predetermined frequency, the received signal including received signal district information;

a map display processing unit for controlling said readout unit to read estimated location map information in a vicinity of the estimated location estimated by said location estimating unit and processing to display a map according to the read out estimated location map information and the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit;

a frequency list storing unit for storing frequency information concerning a frequency which is included in the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit; and

a frequency control unit for determining whether estimated location district information of an area corresponding to the estimated location estimated by said location unit is included in the received signal received by said signal receiving unit and, when the estimated location district information is not included in the received signal, controlling to change a reception frequency of said signal receiving unit.

6. A navigation apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit includes road traffic information of a predetermined district, which is multiplexed over a broadcast wave, and the road traffic information received is displayed on the map in a predetermined mode by said map display processing unit.

7. A navigation apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit includes at least one of ordinary road information and express highway information, and the determination in said frequency control unit as to whether the estimated location district information of the area corresponding to the estimated location estimated by said location estimating unit is included in the received signal received by said signal receiving unit is performed by determining whether only ordinary road information corresponding to the estimated location is included in the received signal received by said signal receiving unit.

8. A motorcar, comprising:

a recording medium for storing a map information;

a readout unit for reading out the map information stored in said recording medium;

a location estimating unit for estimating an estimated location of said motorcar;

a signal receiving unit for receiving a signal transmitted at a predetermined frequency, the received signal including received signal district information;

a map display processing unit for controlling said readout unit to read estimated location map information in a vicinity of the estimated location estimated by said location estimating unit and processing to produce a display signal for displaying a map according to the estimated location map information readout and the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit;

a frequency list storing unit for storing frequency information concerning a frequency which is included in the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit;

a frequency control unit for determining whether estimated location district information of an area corresponding to the estimated location estimated by said location estimating unit is included in the received signal received by said signal receiving unit and, when the estimated location district information is not included in the received signal, controlling to change a reception frequency of said signal receiving unit; and

a display for displaying the received signal district information and the map according to the display signal produced by said map display processing unit.

9. A motorcar according to claim 8, wherein the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit includes a road traffic information of a predetermined district, which is multiplexed over a broadcast wave, and the road traffic information received is displayed on the map in a predetermined mode by said display.

10. A motorcar according to claim 9, wherein the received signal district information received by said signal receiving unit includes at least one of ordinary road information and express highway information, and the determination in said frequency control unit as to whether the estimated location district information of the area corresponding to the estimated location estimated by location estimating unit is included in the received signal received by said signal receiving unit is performed by determining whether only ordinary road information corresponding to the estimated location is included in the received signal received by said signal receiving unit.