Navigation terminal and method of processing data for a navigation system

• US 7,062,375 B2
• Filed: 12/13/2002
• Issued: 06/13/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
• Original Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
• Inventors: Hatano, Ichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US10/318,012
• Publication Number:
  US 20030083809A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,278 Days
• Field of Search: 701/200, 701/207, 701/208, 701/211, 701/24, 342/357.01, 342/357.09, 342/357.1, 340/988, 340/990, 340/995
• US Class Current: 701/207
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3837 Data obtained from a single source
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3844 Data obtained from position sensors only, e.g. from inertial navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3878 Hierarchical structures, e.g. layering
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3881 Tile-based structures
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0962 having an indicator mounted inside the vehicle, e.g. giving voice messages
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096811 where the route is computed offboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096822 where the segments of the route are transmitted to the vehicle at different locations and times
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096827 where the route is computed onboard
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096872 where instructions are given per voice
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0969 having a display in the form of a map

Abstract

A navigation terminal 2 loaded in a vehicle 1 is provided with a wireless communication device connectable to a movable communications network 3 and a present position detection device and instructs implementation of a predetermined navigation function. The gateway apparatus 4 connects the movable communications network 3 and the Internet 5 and implements protocol conversion and charging processing. A navigation server 6 acquires positional data of the vehicle 1 from the navigation terminal 2 via the Internet 5, discriminates map data to be a distribution object to the navigation terminal 2, and generates navigation information based on the instructed navigation function to provide it to the navigation terminal 2. A map search server 7 reads map data discriminated as the distribution object from a map data base 8 accumulating map data and distributes them to the navigation terminal 2 via the Internet 5.

Claims

1. A navigation terminal comprising:

a wireless communication device connected to a network and operable to transmit and receive data over the network;

a present position detection device operable to detect a present position of a movable body; and

an instruction device operable to instruct a predetermined navigation function,

wherein the present position and the instructed navigation function are transmitted by the wireless communication device over the network, and

a map on which the present position is superimposed and navigation information based on the instructed navigation function are received by the wireless communication device over the network.

2. A navigation terminal as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a display device operable to display the map and the present position; and

a memory device operable to store at least one of control data and process data.

3. A navigation terminal as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a hands-free device operable to enable the navigation terminal to be operated by voice-activation and commands.

4. A navigation terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein said present position detection device comprises:

a sensor device operable to detect a dynamic trait of the movable body;

a location detection device operable to detect a relative location position of the movable body; and

a processor operable to correlate the dynamic trait detected by said sensor device with a corresponding relative location position detected by said location detection device.

5. A navigation terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein said wireless communication device is operable to transmit and receive both voice communication signals and data.

6. A navigation terminal as claimed in claim 2, wherein the navigation terminal is operable to receive map data from the network over said wireless communication device and store the map in said memory device.

18. The navigation terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein the navigation information received by the wireless communication device comprises at least any one of:

facility information related to the map received by the wireless communication device;

the VICS (Vehicle Information Communication System) information considering a vicinity area of the present position and an advance direction of the movable body;

point information corresponding to a genre and an area selected by a user;

guidance information which information showing advance directions of the movable body corresponding to positions where a road turns to the right/left is set;

supplementary information; and

contents information other than the map received by the wireless communication device.

19. The navigation terminal as claimed in claim 1, wherein the navigation information received by the wireless communication device is related to the map received by the wireless communication device.

7. A navigation terminal comprising:

a wireless communication device connected to a network and operable to send and receive data;

a present position detection device operable to detect a present position of a movable body;

an instruction device operable to instruct a predetermined navigation function; and

a navigation server interface operable to enable communications between the navigation terminal and a navigation server, wherein the navigation server is operable to acquire positional data corresponding to the detected present position via the network, discriminate map data to be a distribution object to the navigation terminal based on the positional data, and provide navigation information based on the instructed navigation function to the navigation terminal; and

a map search server interface operable to enable communications between the navigation terminal and a map search server, wherein the map search server comprises a memory device operable to accumulate map data and is operable to read the map data discriminated as the distribution object from the memory device to distribute it to the navigation terminal via the network.

8. A method of processing data for a navigation system, the method comprising:

detecting a present position of a movable body in a navigation terminal;

instructing a predetermined navigation function;

transmitting the instructed navigation function and the present position over a network from the navigation terminal to a navigation server;

determining appropriate navigation data in the navigation server based on the instructed navigation function and the present position;

providing the appropriate navigation data to the navigation terminal over the network.

9. A method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the navigation data is a map.

10. A method as claimed in claim 9, further comprising:

displaying the map on a display portion of the navigation terminal; and

superimposing a marker representative of the present position on the displayed map.

11. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising:

selecting, from a stored database, an appropriate map based on the present position; and

transmitting the appropriate map to the navigation terminal over the wireless network.

12. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising:

connecting the wireless network to the Internet; and

establishing a communication link between the navigation terminal and the Internet through the wireless network.

13. A method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the communication link comprises both a voice link and a data link.

14. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising:

providing optimum route information to the navigation terminal based on the present position.

15. A method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

providing optimum route information to the navigation terminal based on the present position and the selected map.

16. A method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising:

selecting, from a stored database, an appropriate map based on the present position;

dividing the selected map into blocks; and

transmitting the blocks to the navigation terminal over the wireless network based on the navigation instruction.

17. A method of processing data for a navigation system, the method comprising:

detecting a present position of a movable body in a navigation terminal;

instructing a predetermined navigation function;

acquiring, in a navigation server and via a network, positional data representative of the detected present position;

discriminating map data based on the positional data;

providing navigation information to the navigation terminal via the network, wherein the navigation information is based on the instructed navigation function;

accumulating map data in a memory device of a map search server;

reading discriminated map data from the memory device; and

distributing the discriminated map data to the navigation terminal via the network.