Method of direction-guidance using 3D sound and navigation system using the method

• US 7,970,539 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2007
• Issued: 06/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Hyun-chul
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TAN QUANG
• Application Number:
  US11/831,242
• Publication Number:
  US 20080215239A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,428 Days
• Field of Search: 701/211, 701/207, 701/213, 381/17, 455/456.1, 340/438, 340/384.1
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/47 the supplementary measurement being an inertial measurement, e.g. tightly coupled inertial

Abstract

Provided are a method of voice-guidance and a navigation system that guide a travel route of a mobile vehicle using a 3D sound having directivity. The method includes detecting at least one of a proceeding direction and a destination direction of a mobile vehicle base on navigation data, calculating a proceeding angle of the mobile vehicle and an angle of a destination direction based on at least one of the detected proceeding direction and the destination direction of the mobile vehicle, and generating a 3D direction-guidance sound of corresponding angle by providing the calculated angles to 3D sound technology.

Claims

1. A method of direction-guidance of a navigation system, the method comprising:

detecting at least one of a proceeding direction in which a mobile vehicle is moving and a destination direction from a mobile vehicle to a destination based on navigation data;

calculating a proceeding angle and an angle of a destination direction of a mobile vehicle based on at least one of the detected proceeding direction and the detected destination direction of the mobile vehicle; and

generating a 3D direction-guidance sound having an angle corresponding to one of the proceeding angle and the angle of a destination direction using 3D sound technology.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting a type of speaker for outputting a 3D sound direction-guidance voice according to the proceeding angle.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the calculating of the angle of the destination direction comprises calculating an angle difference between a straight line direction from a current location of the mobile vehicle to the destination and a proceeding direction of the mobile vehicle by referring to map data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the calculating of the proceeding angle of the mobile vehicle comprises:

calculating an angle of a current proceeding direction of the mobile vehicle referring to map data, and calculating a distance between a current location and a turning point of the mobile vehicle; and

calculating a proceeding angle that changes according to a distance from the calculated location of the mobile vehicle to the turning point.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the 3D direction-guidance sound comprises providing an input a tone signal and guiding voice to an acoustics transfer function of a predetermined angle, in which locations of a sound source and a driver are represented.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the acoustics transfer function is a head related transfer function (HRTF).

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the calculating of the angle difference comprises calculating vectors of a current proceeding direction and a destination direction of the mobile vehicle using latitude and longitude coordinates received from a GPS (global positioning system), and setting an angle difference between the current proceeding direction and the destination direction by using an inner product of the two vectors.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the calculating of the proceeding angle comprises calculating vectors of a current proceeding direction and a guided direction of the mobile vehicle using latitude and longitude coordinates received from the GPS, and setting an angle difference between the current proceeding direction and the destination direction using the inner product of the two vectors.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the 3D direction-guidance sound comprises generating a tone signal having a predetermined pattern with respect to a corresponding angle by providing the angle of the destination direction to 3D sound technologies.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the 3D direction-guidance sound comprises controlling output levels of a plurality of speakers according to a proceeding angle of the proceeding direction or the destination direction of the mobile vehicle.

11. An apparatus for 3D guidance voice processing of a navigation system, the apparatus comprising:

a direction measuring unit which measures at least one of a proceeding direction and a destination direction of a mobile vehicle based navigation data;

a sound angle setting unit which calculates a proceeding angle of the mobile vehicle or an angle of a destination direction of the mobile vehicle according to the proceeding direction or the destination direction of the mobile vehicle measured by the direction measuring unit, and which sets the proceeding angle of the mobile vehicle or the angle of the destination direction as a sound angle with respect to a corresponding direction; and

a 3D sound generating unit which generates a 3D guidance sound of a corresponding angle by providing at least one of the angle of the proceeding direction and the angle of the destination direction set by the sound angle setting unit to 3D sound technology.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the direction measuring unit comprises:

a proceeding direction measuring unit which measures an angle of a proceeding direction of the mobile vehicle and a distance between a current location and a changing point of direction of the mobile vehicle based on the current location of the mobile vehicle and a travel-route guidance signal; and

a destination direction measuring unit which measures a straight line direction from the current location of the mobile vehicle to a destination based on the current location of the mobile vehicle and the travel-route guidance signal.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the sound angle setting unit calculates a sound angle of a proceeding direction based on a distance between the current location and the changing point of direction and proceeding angles of the changing point of direction that are measured by the proceeding direction measuring unit, and sets a sound angle of the destination direction based on an angle difference between the current proceeding direction of the mobile vehicle and the destination direction that are measured by the destination direction measuring unit.

14. An apparatus of direction-guidance of a navigation system, the apparatus comprising:

a proceeding direction measuring unit which measures an angle of a proceeding direction of a mobile vehicle and a distance between a current location and a changing point of direction of the mobile vehicle based on a current location of the mobile vehicle and a travel-route guidance signal;

a destination direction measuring unit which measures a straight line direction from the current location of the mobile vehicle to a destination based on the current location of the mobile vehicle and the travel-route guidance operation;

a sound angle setting unit which calculates a sound angle of a proceeding direction based on a distance between the current location and the changing point of direction and proceeding angles of the changing point of direction that are measured by the proceeding direction measuring unit, and sets a sound angle of the destination direction based on an angle difference between the current proceeding direction of the mobile vehicle and the destination direction that are measured by the destination direction measuring unit; and

a 3D sound generating unit which generates a 3D guidance sound of a corresponding angle by providing at least one of the angle of the proceeding direction and the angle of the destination direction set by the sound angle setting unit to 3D sound technology.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the 3D sound generating unit comprises:

a sound source location setting unit which sets a location of a speaker;

a user location setting unit which sets a location of a user driving the mobile vehicle; and

an HRTF setting unit generating a 3D guiding sound of a corresponding angle by convolution of an audio signal with an HRTF of a corresponding angle, in which the location of the sound source set by the sound source location setting unit and the location of the user set by the user location setting unit are reflected.

16. A navigation system comprising:

a GPS module unit which receives location information from a plurality of GPS satellites, and calculates information on a current location of a mobile vehicle and a direction of travel of the mobile vehicle from the received location information;

a map data storage unit which stores map data;

a control unit which detects a current location of the mobile vehicle based on the information on the current location and the direction information input by the GPS module unit, matches the detected current location of the mobile vehicle with the map data stored in the map data storage unit, and determines a travel route for the mobile vehicle;

a voice data storage unit which stores voice data related to the travel-route determined by the controlling unit; and

a voice-guidance processing unit which measures a proceeding direction and a destination direction of the mobile vehicle using the current location of the mobile vehicle and the travel-route determined by the controlling unit, calculates a proceeding angle of the mobile vehicle according to the proceeding direction of the mobile vehicle and the destination direction of the mobile vehicle, and generates a 3D sound of a corresponding angle from the voice data stored in the voice data storage unit by providing the proceeding angle to 3D sound technology.

17. The navigation system of claim 16, wherein the voice-guidance processing unit comprises:

a proceeding direction measuring unit which measures a proceeding angle of the mobile vehicle and a distance between a current location and a turning point of the mobile vehicle based on the current location of the mobile vehicle and the travel-route determined by the controlling unit;

a destination direction measuring unit which measures a straight line direction from the current location of the mobile vehicle to a destination based on the current location of the mobile vehicle and the travel-route determined by the controlling unit;

a sound angle setting unit which calculates a proceeding angle that changes according to a distance between the current location and the turning point of the mobile vehicle, which is measured by the proceeding direction measuring unit, calculates an angle of the destination direction using an angle difference between the current location of the mobile vehicle and the destination direction that are measured by the destination direction measuring unit, and sets the angles as sound angles of the proceeding direction and the destination direction;

a 3D sound generating unit which generates a 3D guiding sound of a corresponding angle by providing information on the proceeding direction and the destination direction that is measured by the sound angle setting unit to 3D sound technology; and

a speaker unit which reproduces a 3D sound generated by the 3D sound generating unit.

18. The navigation system of claim 17, wherein the 3D sound generating unit comprises a database in which there is an HRTF of a predetermined angle corresponding to the proceeding direction and the destination direction.