Mobile body navigation system, navigation apparatus and server apparatus

• US 8,260,544 B2
• Filed: 12/24/2008
• Issued: 09/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Kawa, Noriaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lubin, Valerie
• Application Number:
  US12/343,598
• Publication Number:
  US 20090210152A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,350 Days
• Field of Search: 705/6, 701/33, 701/35, 701/110, 701/119, 701/200, 701/211, 701/202, 701/1
• US Class Current: 701/409
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3889 Transmission of selected map data, e.g. depending on route
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3896 Transmission of map data from central databases

Abstract

A mobile-body navigation system comprises;

• • a navigation apparatus that is disposed in a mobile body and includes a position detection portion for detecting a position of the mobile body, a transmitter-receiver portion, a processing portion, a display portion, and a storage medium;
  • a radio communication apparatus for carrying out interactive radio communication with the transmitter-receiver portion; and
  • a server apparatus that includes a map information database;
    wherein the server apparatus repeats extraction of high-priority map information for map display from the map information database based on a mobile-body position that is detected by the position detection portion and received via the transmitter-receiver portion and via the radio communication apparatus, and repeats transmission of the extracted map information to the transmitter-receiver portion via the radio communication apparatus,
  • the processing portion receives the map information via the transmitter-receiver portion, makes the storage medium store the received map information, and makes the display portion display a map based on the stored map information and on the mobile-body position detected by the position detection portion.

Claims

1. A server apparatus comprising a server storage in which a map information database is stored therein,

wherein the server apparatus is arranged to

receive a map information request from a navigation apparatus by radio communication, the map information request including a mobile-body position,

transmit a map information to the navigation apparatus by the radio communication, the map information being based on the received mobile-body position,

determine whether a contractor vehicle is by a road not present in the map information database,

provisionally confirm that the road is a new road through processing an image of the road taken by the contractor vehicle, and

reconfirm that the road is the new road through processing an image of the road taken by another contractor vehicle.

2. The server apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the server apparatus is arranged to:

receive an additional map information request from the navigation apparatus, the additional map information request including an updated mobile-body position,

determine whether it is necessary to provide the additional map information based on the updated mobile-body position, and

retrieve and transmit the additional map information to the navigation apparatus based on a determination that it is necessary to provide the additional map.