Navigation system with voice controlled presentation of secondary information

• US 7,472,020 B2
• Filed: 08/04/2005
• Issued: 12/30/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Brulle-Drews, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US11/197,742
• Publication Number:
  US 20060041379A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,244 Days
• Field of Search: 701200-202, 701208-211, 340/988, 340/995.1
• US Class Current: 701/211
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3629 Guidance using speech or audio output, e.g. text-to-speech text to speech systems per se G10L13/00

Abstract

A navigation system for a vehicle is disclosed, where the navigation system operates in a route planning mode and a route guidance mode. The navigation system employs an interface device that provides route guidance information to a user during the route guidance mode. The route guidance information provided through the interface device may be audible and/or visual, as through a voice and/or visual indicia on a display screen. The navigation system also comprises a voice control system that responds to vocal commands issued by the user. In response to user vocal commands, the navigation system uses the interface device to provide the user with secondary information relating to a planned route. This secondary information may include, for example, locations and items that are ancillary to principal route guidance functions, such as special locations, map topography, environmental information, and the like.

Claims

1. A navigation system for a vehicle comprising:

an interface device for allowing a user to enter endpoint destination information during a route planning mode of operation, where the interface device further provides route guidance information to a user while in a route guidance mode of operation in which the navigation system provides instructions that direct the user along a calculated route to the endpoint destination from a current location of the vehicle; and

a voice control system that responds to vocal commands issued by the user during the route guidance mode to direct the navigation system to provide the user with one or more classes of secondary information through the interface device, where the voice control system further responds to vocal commands issued by the user during the route guidance mode to select secondary information in a selected class of secondary information for provision through the interface device.

2. The navigation system of claim 1 where the interface device comprises a display screen.

3. The navigation system of claim 2 where the interface device further comprises a map that is displayed on the display screen.

4. The navigation system of claim 3 where the secondary information is provided to the user as one or more icons on the map.

5. The navigation system of claim 1 where the secondary information comprises special location classes.

6. The navigation system of claim 5 where the special location classes comprise classes selected from the group consisting of police stations, hospitals, fire stations, gas stations, service stations, parking garages, hotels, train stations, airports, ports, schools, and cultural institutions.

7. The navigation system of claim 5 where the voice control system is responsive to one or more vocal commands to select a special location from one or more special locations provided to the user.

8. The navigation system of claim 5 where special locations of at least one special location class are indexed when provided to the user on the interface device.

9. The navigation system of claim 1 where the interface device comprises a display screen on which a map is displayed, where the secondary information comprises one or more special location classes, and where the provision of special locations of a special location class comprises display of symbolic representations corresponding to the special locations on the map.

10. The navigation system of claim 9 where special locations of at least one special location class are indexed when provided to the user on the interface device.

11. The navigation system of claim 10 where the voice control system is responsive to one or more vocal commands to select a special location from one or more special locations provided to the user using the index for the special location.

12. The navigation system of claim 11 where the navigation system modifies route guidance information provided to the user in response to selection of the special location.

13. The navigation system of claim 12 where the navigation system uses the special location as an endpoint destination.

14. The navigation system of claim 12 where the navigation system uses the special location as a transit destination.

15. The navigation system of claim 1 where the voice control system operates in a voice reception mode and a voice rejection mode.

16. The navigation system of claim 15 and further comprising a manual switch to control whether the voice control system is in the voice reception mode or the voice rejection mode.

17. The navigation system of claim 15 where the voice control system is responsive to one or more vocal commands to switch between the voice reception mode and the voice rejection mode.

18. The navigation system of claim 17 where the voice rejection mode is a standby mode of operation.

19. The navigation system of claim 7 where the voice control system automatically enters a voice rejection mode after user selection of the special location in which the voice control system is only responsive to a subset of a set of voice control commands.

20. The navigation system of claim 1 and further comprising a storage unit for storing at least one user vocal profile.

21. A navigation system for a vehicle, where the navigation system operates in a route planning mode in which a user enters an endpoint destination and a route guidance mode in which the navigation system provides instructions that direct the user along a calculated route to the endpoint destination from the current location of the vehicle, the navigation system comprising:

a map display providing route guidance information to the user during the route guidance mode; and

a voice control system that responds to vocal commands issued by the user during the route guidance mode to direct the navigation system to display symbols on the map display, where the symbols correspond to one or more secondary information classes audibly selected using the vocal commands, and where the voice control system is further responsive to vocal commands issued by the user to direct the navigation system to display secondary information corresponding to a selected display symbol.

22. The navigation system of claim 21 where the secondary information comprises special location classes.

23. The navigation system of claim 22 where the special location classes comprise classes selected from the group consisting of police stations, hospitals, fire stations, gas stations, service stations, parking garages, hotels, train stations, airports, ports, schools, and cultural institutions.

24. The navigation system of claim 22 where special locations of the special location classes are indexed on the map display.

25. The navigation system of claim 24 where the voice control system is responsive to one or more vocal commands that include the index to select a special location.

26. The navigation system of claim 21, where the navigation system modifies route guidance information provided on the map display in response to selection of the special location.

27. The navigation system of claim 26 where the navigation system uses the special location as a new endpoint destination.

28. The navigation system of claim 26 where the navigation system uses the special location as a transit destination.

29. The navigation system of claim 21 where the voice control system operates in a voice reception mode and a voice rejection mode.

30. The navigation system of claim 29 and further comprising a manual switch to control whether the voice control system is in the voice reception mode or the voice rejection mode.

31. The navigation system of claim 29 where the voice control system is responsive to one or more vocal commands to switch between the voice reception mode and the voice rejection mode.

32. A navigation system for a vehicle, where the navigation system operates in a route planning mode in which a user enters an endpoint destination and a route guidance mode in which the navigation system provides instructions that direct the user along a calculated route to the endpoint destination a current location of the vehicle, the navigation system comprising:

a map display providing route guidance information to a user during the route guidance mode;

a voice control system that responds to vocal commands issued by the user during the route guidance mode to display indexed symbols on the map display, where the indexed symbols correspond to one or more special locations in one or more special location classes, where the special location classes correspond to special location classes audibly selected using the vocal commands, and where the voice control system is responsive to one or more further vocal commands that include the index to select a special location for further processing by the navigation system, and where indices for non-selected special locations are removed from the map display after selection of the special location.

33. The navigation system of claim 32 where the further processing comprises modifying navigation route guidance information provided on the map display in response to selection of the special location.

34. The navigation system of claim 33 where the navigation system uses the special location as a new endpoint destination.

35. The navigation system of claim 33 where the navigation system uses the special location as a transit destination.

36. The navigation system of claim 32 where the special location classes comprise classes selected from the group consisting of police stations, hospitals, fire stations, gas stations, service stations, parking garages, hotels, train stations, airports, ports, schools, and cultural institutions.

37. A navigation system for a vehicle, where the navigation system operates in a route planning mode in which a user enters an endpoint destination and a route guidance mode in which the navigation system provides instructions that direct the user along a calculated route to the endpoint destination from a location of the vehicle, the navigation system comprising:

a map display providing route guidance information to a user during the route guidance mode;

a voice control system that responds to vocal commands issued by the user during the route guidance mode to direct display one or more special locations in one or more special location classes, where the special location classes correspond to special location classes audibly selected using the vocal commands, and where the voice control system is responsive to one or more further vocal commands to direct selection of a specific special location for further processing by the navigation system, and where the voice control system may selectively enter a voice rejection mode after selection of the specific special location.

38. The navigation system of claim 37 where the further processing comprises modifying navigation route guidance information provided on the map display in response to selection of the special location.

39. The navigation system of claim 38 where the navigation system uses the special location as a new endpoint destination.

40. The navigation system of claim 38 where the navigation system uses the special location as a transit destination.

41. The navigation system of claim 37 where the special location classes comprise classes selected from the group consisting of police stations, hospitals, fire stations, gas stations, service stations, parking garages, hotels, train stations, airports, ports, schools, and cultural institutions.