Routing display for navigation systems

• US 6,762,696 B2
• Filed: 05/11/2001
• Issued: 07/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Mannesmann VDO AG (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Schott, Joachim, Hulverscheidt, Jürgen
• Primary Examiner(s): SWARTHOUT, BRENT
• Application Number:
  US09/854,022
• Publication Number:
  US 20020032524A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,159 Days
• Field of Search: 340/995, 340/990, 340/988, 340/995.1, 340/995.19, 340/995.2, 340/995.27, 701/208, 701/211
• US Class Current: 340/995.2
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3632 Guidance using simplified or iconic instructions, e.g. using arrows G01C21/365 takes precedence

Abstract

A routing display for a navigation system in a road vehicle in the form of an electro-optical display can be driven by a routing computer and uses symbols to display a direction of current travel and a direction which is to be taken after a turn-off point relative to one another. The sizes of the two symbols relative to one another is changed such that the relative size of the symbol marking the direction which is to be taken after the turn-off point increases as the turn-off point is approached. Accordingly, when the driver looks at the routing display, he is given the visual impression that he is approaching the turn-off point.

Claims

1. A method for showing routing information from a navigation system for a road vehicle on an electro-optical display driven by a routing computer, the method comprising the steps of:

displaying a symbol for a direction of current travel and a symbol for a direction to be taken after a turn-off point relative to the direction of current travel;

determining a distance from the vehicle to the turn-off point; and

changing the size of the symbol for the direction of current travel relative to the size of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point in response to the distance to the turn-off point while maintaining the same view of the symbols including changing the size and position of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point in response to the distance to the turn-off point, and maintaining the size and position of the symbol for the direction of current travel independent of the distance to the turn-off point.

2. A routing display for a navigation system in a road vehicle, said routing display comprising:

an electro-optical display device drivable by a routing computer;

means for displaying, on said display device, a symbol for a direction of current travel and a symbol for a direction to be taken after a turn-off point relative to said direction of current travel, said means for displaying comprising means for displaying the symbols in isolation from a depiction of roads corresponding to the direction of current travel and the direction to be taken after the turn-off point; and

means for changing the size of the symbol for the direction of current travel relative to the size of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point in response to a distance from the vehicle to the turn-off point while maintaining the same view of the symbols such that the relative size of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point increases as the distance of the vehicle to the turn-off point decreases, and such that the distance to the turn-off point is indicated exclusively by the change in the relative sizes of the symbols.

3. The routing display of claim 2, further comprising means for changing a relative distance between the symbol for the direction of current travel and the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point in response to the distance to the turn-off point.

4. The routing display of claim 2, wherein said means for changing the size of the symbol for the direction of current travel relative to the size of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point comprises means for changing two dimensions of said sizes of said symbols.

5. The routing display of claim 2, wherein said means for changing the size of the symbol for the direction of current travel relative to the size of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point comprises means for changing the size and position of the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point and means for maintaining the size and position of the symbol for the direction of current travel independent of the distance to the turn-off point.

6. The routing display of claim 2, wherein at least one of the symbols is an arrow.

7. The routing display of claim 2, wherein said routing display is a liquid crystal display.

8. The routing display of claim 2, wherein the symbol for the direction of current travel is a different color than the symbol for the direction to be taken after the turn-off point.

9. The routing display of claim 2, wherein said means for displaying comprises means for displaying advanced warning instructions by displaying a symbol for a direction of current travel and a symbol for a direction to be taken after a turn-off point relative to the direction of current travel on a more detailed representation of the turn-off point when the vehicle is closer to the turn-off point than a minimum distance.