Navigation system

• US 7,912,632 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2006
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Watanabe, Yoshinori, Ohashi, Yasuko, Kawakami, Hidehiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Keith; Jack
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Chuong P
• Application Number:
  US11/511,239
• Publication Number:
  US 20070067099A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,666 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701200-215, 340/988, 3409951-99528
• US Class Current: 701/208
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/30 Map- or contour-matching

Abstract

A navigation system stores setting record information related to places designated as destination or reached place. The setting record information includes setting frequencies with which corresponding places were designated. A control unit searches a map database for places meeting a keyword inputted by a user and causes a display unit to present the places in the descending order of their corresponding setting frequencies in the stored setting record information. The user then selects as a destination a certain place from the presented places. The control unit stores the selected certain place to update the setting record information. Thus, the names of places meeting the keyword inputted are directly displayed in the descending order of the setting frequency with which they have been designated in the past. Therefore, the user need not perform an operation to hierarchically select a desired place by region or facility name.

Claims

1. A navigation system comprising:

an input unit configured to facilitate a user to input a keyword;

a navigation unit configured to identify a current position and to navigate based on the identified current position;

a search database configured to store data of a place to be searched for;

a setting record storage unit configured to store both

(i) destination setting record information, which is related to a place designated as a destination, and

(ii) reached placed setting record information, different from the destination setting record information, the reached place setting record information being related to a place designated as a reached place;

a presenting unit configured to present information; and

a control unit configured to execute a search that searches the search database in accordance with a predetermined rule, which directly identifies a place having a name which contains the keyword inputted via the input unit,

the control unit being further configured to

execute a first determination as to whether destination setting record information corresponding to a search result from the executed search is existing by acquiring the destination setting record information stored in the setting record storage unit;

execute a second determination as to whether reached place setting record information corresponding to a search result from the executed search is existing by acquiring the reached place setting record information stored in the setting record storage unit;

cause the presenting unit to present a search result in a predetermined order based on the reached place setting record information when the first determination is negated and the second determination is affirmed;

cause the presenting unit to present a search result in a predetermined order based on both (i) the destination setting record information and (ii) the reached place setting record information, when the first determination is affirmed and the second determination is affirmed, and

store a place, which is included in the search result presented and then selected as a destination via the input unit, in the setting record storage unit as destination setting record information so as to update the destination setting record information.

2. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein

the place designated as the reached place includes (i) a place where designating a reached place is performed via the input unit or (ii) a place estimated when a guidance by the navigation unit is terminated.

3. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the setting record information stored in the setting record storage unit includes a frequency of setting related to a place, and

the control unit is configured to cause the presenting unit to present the search result in a descending order of the frequency of setting included in the setting record information.

4. The navigation system according to claim 3, wherein

when the control unit causes the presenting unit to present the search result in the descending order of the frequency of setting,

the control unit gives a higher priority to the destination setting record information than the reached place setting record information.

5. The navigation system according to claim 3, wherein

when the control unit causes the presenting unit to present the search result in the descending order of the frequency of setting,

the control unit gives a higher priority to the reached place setting record information than the destination setting record information.

6. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein,

when the setting record storage unit stores the setting record information related to a place, an attribute related to the place is stored together,

the control unit is configured to cause the presenting unit to present the search result based on an attribute related to a place included in the setting record information, and

the control unit is configured to store a place together with the attribute of the place, which is included in the search result presented and then selected via the input unit, in the setting record storage unit as setting record information.

7. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the setting record information stored in the setting record storage unit includes information on time when the setting record information was set, and

the control unit is configured to cause the presenting unit to present the search result while considering the information on time.

8. The navigation system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a situation acquiring unit configured to acquire a situation in which a keyword is inputted, wherein

the setting record storage unit is configured to store as selection record information a situation acquired by the situation acquiring unit in association to the setting record information,

the control unit is configured to cause the presenting unit to present a search result based on selection record information when a certain search of the search database is started based on a certain keyword inputted, which is stored in the setting record storage unit and related to a certain situation acquired by the situation acquiring unit when the certain keyword is inputted, and

the control unit is configured to store a place, which is included in the search result presented and then selected via the input unit, as setting record information in the setting record storage unit, while associating with the certain situation, as selection record information.

9. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the control unit is configured to compute a distance from a current position identified by the navigation unit to a place included in the search result, based on data related to the place included in the search database, and

the control unit is configured to cause the presenting unit to present the search result in an increasing order of the computed distance.

10. The navigation system according to claim 1, wherein

the search database is configured to store map information, which is displayed as a map image by the presenting unit, and

the control unit is configured to cause the presenting unit to present the search result along with a map surrounding a place to be most preferentially presented using map information acquired from the search database.

11. The navigation system according to claim 1, which is mounted in a vehicle.

14. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein

the place designated as the destination is a place selected by the user, or any different user, that is intended to be visited, and

the place designated as a reached place is a place that has been visited.

15. The navigation system of claim 14, wherein

the place designated as the reached place is designated (i) by the user, or any other user, via the input unit, or (ii) by the termination of a guidance by the navigation.

12. A navigation system comprising:

means for facilitating a user to input a keyword;

means for identifying a current position and for navigating based on the identified current position;

a search database configured to store data of a place to be searched for;

means for storing setting record information including both

(i) destination setting record information which is related to a place designated as a destination, and

(ii) reached place setting record information which is related to a place designated as a reached place, which is different from the destination designated;

means for searching the search database in accordance with a predetermined rule, which directly identifies a place having the inputted keyword;

means for executing a first determination as to whether destination setting record information corresponding to the search result exists by acquiring the stored destination setting record information;

means for executing a second determination as to whether reached place setting record information corresponding to the search result exists by acquiring the stored reached place setting record information;

means for presenting the search result corresponded to by the reached place setting record information in a predetermined precedence order, when the first determination is negated and the second determination is affirmed; and

means for presenting both (i) the search result corresponded to by the destination setting record information and (ii) the search result corresponded to by the reached place setting record information, in a predetermined precedence order, when the first determination is affirmed and the second determination is affirmed.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein

the place designated as the destination is a place selected by the user, or any different user, that is intended to be visited, and

the place designated as a reached place is a place that has been visited.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein

the place designated as the reached place is designated (i) by the user, or any other user, inputting the designation, or (ii) by the navigation system terminating guidance.

13. A method for presenting places only upon receiving a keyword from a user in a navigation system, which has a search database for storing data of places to be retrieved and navigates based on an identified current position, the method comprising

storing destination setting record information, which is related to a place designated as a destination;

storing, in addition to the destination setting record information, reached place setting record information, which is related to a place designated as a reached place;

facilitating a user to input a keyword;

searching the search database for a search result, which includes at least one place having a name containing the inputted keyword;

executing a first determination as to whether destination setting record information corresponding to the search result exists by acquiring the stored destination setting record information;

executing a second determination as to whether reached place setting record information corresponding to the search result exists by acquiring the stored reached place setting record information;

presenting,

(a) when the first determination is negated and the second determination is affirmed,

the search result corresponded to by the reached place setting record information

in a predetermined precedence order; and

presenting,

(b) when the first determination is affirmed and the second determination is affirmed,

both (i) the search result corresponded to by the destination setting record information and (ii) the search result corresponded to by the reached place setting record information

in a predetermined precedence order.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein

the place designated as the destination is a place selected by the user, or any different user, that is intended to be visited, and

the place designated as a reached place is a place that has been visited.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein

the place designated as the reached place is designated (i) by the user, or any other user, inputting the designation, or (ii) by the navigation system terminating guidance.