Navigation device and facility image display method

• US 8,301,373 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2007
• Issued: 10/30/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Alpine Electronics Incorporated (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yamazaki, Noboru
• Primary Examiner(s): Algahaim, Helal A
• Application Number:
  US11/941,413
• Publication Number:
  US 20080125966A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,810 Days
• Field of Search: 701/201, 701/207, 701/208, 701/209, 701/436, 701/438, 701/461, 701/462, 340/995.1, 345/2.2
• US Class Current: 701/438
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network

Abstract

The invention provides a navigation device and a facility image display method, whereby a user can recognize various types of information about a facility from the image corresponding to the facility. The navigation device includes road information, etc., used for drawing map images; facility information including the nodes of the facilities and a plurality of attributes of the facilities; a buffer memory that stores data of icon images corresponding to each of the plurality of attributes of the facilities; a map drawing unit that draws a map image on the basis of the road information, etc., and draws any of the icon images corresponding to the plurality of attributes of the facilities contained in the facility information, at a position in the map image corresponding to the node identified in the facility information; and an image synthesizing unit that causes a display unit to display the drawn image.

Claims

1. A navigation device comprising:

a map drawing information storage means that stores map drawing information used for drawing a map image;

a facility information storage means that stores facility information including positional information on facilities and attributes of the facilities;

a facility image storage means that stores different facility images corresponding to each of a plurality of attributes of a facility;

a first attribute selection means that selects one of the attributes of the facilities included in the facility information stored in the facility information storage means in accordance with a user'"'"'s operation of an operating unit in selecting the facility attribute;

a map drawing means that draws the map image based on the map drawing information, and selectively draws one of the facility images corresponding to one of the plurality of attributes of an individual facility included in the facility information, at a position corresponding to the positional information of the facility included in the facility information in the map image, wherein the map drawing means draws a facility image corresponding to a facility attribute selected by the first attribute selection means, of the facility images stored in the facility image storage means; and

a first display control means that causes a display means to display images drawn by the map drawing means.

2. The navigation device according to Claim 1, wherein:

the facility is a gas station; and

the attributes include a brand of the gas station and a type of fuel provided by the gas station.

3. The navigation device according to claim 2, wherein the first attribute selection means selects the facility attribute in accordance with an operational state of the navigation device.

4. The navigation device according to claim 1, comprising:

a facility information search means that searches the facility information stored in the facility information storage means in accordance with a user'"'"'s operation of an operating unit in searching for a facility;

a search result drawing means that draws a search result image including an image corresponding to the facility information acquired as a search result by the facility information search means, and any of the facility images corresponding to the attributes of the facilities included in the facility information acquired as the search result by the facility information search means; and

a second display control means that causes the display means to display the search result image drawn by the search result drawing means.

5. The navigation device according to claim 4, comprising a second attribute selection means that selects one of the attributes of the facilities included in the facility information acquired as the search result by the facility information search means,

wherein the search result drawing means draws a facility image corresponding to a facility attribute selected by the second attribute selection means, of the facility images corresponding to the attributes of the facilities included in the facility information acquired as the search result by the facility information search means.

6. The navigation device according to claim 5, wherein the second attribute selection means selects one of the attributes of the facilities in accordance with a user'"'"'s operation of an operating unit in selecting the facility attribute.

7. The navigation device according to claim 6, wherein:

the facility is a gas station; and

the attributes include a brand of the gas station and a type of fuel provided by the gas station.

8. The navigation device according to claim 4, comprising:

a positional detection means that detects a position of the navigation device; and

a distance calculation means that calculates a distance between a facility corresponding to the facility information acquired as the search result by the facility information search means and the navigation device, on the basis of positional information included in the facility information acquired as the search result by the facility information search means and a position of the navigation device detected by the positional detection means,

wherein the search result drawing means draws an image, in a manner that the facility information acquired as the search result by the facility information search means are arranged in order of distance between the facility corresponding to the facility information and the navigation device.

9. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the attribute of the facility includes at least one of names of facilities, types of goods or services provided by the facilities, and information indicating that the navigation device can provide information about the facilities.

10. A facility image display method comprising:

drawing a map image based on map drawing information stored in a storage means;

selecting one of a plurality of attributes of a facility included in facility information stored in the storage means in accordance with a user'"'"'s operation of an operating unit in selecting the facility attribute;

selectively drawing one of a plurality of different facility images corresponding to the selected attribute of an individual facility included in facility information stored in the storage means, at a position in the map image corresponding to positional information of the facility included in the facility information; and

displaying, on a display means, the map image and the facility image corresponding to the selected attribute of the facility.

11. The facility image display method according to claim 10, further comprising:

searching the facility information stored in the storage means in accordance with a user'"'"'s operation of an operating unit in searching for a facility;

drawing a search result image including an image corresponding to the facility information acquired as a search result and one of the facility images corresponding to the attributes of the facilities included in the facility information acquired as the search result; and

causing the display means to display the drawn search result image.