Method for the operation of a navigation device

• US 8,359,160 B2
• Filed: 06/03/2008
• Issued: 01/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Navigon AG (Garmin Limited)
• Original Assignee: Garmin Limited
• Inventors: Hess, Philipp
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): MARC-COLEMAN, MARTHE Y
• Application Number:
  US12/664,123
• Publication Number:
  US 20100185386A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,694 Days
• Field of Search: 701/400, 701/408, 701/410, 701/412, 701/418, 701/419, 701/421, 701/428, 701/429, 701/431, 701/436, 701/437, 701/467, 701/532, 701/533, 340/995.2
• US Class Current: 701/533
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3655 Timing of guidance instructions

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for operating a navigation device comprising an input device into which operating commands and/or location data, especially start data and/or destination data, can be entered, a road network database, a route calculation unit for calculating and storing a planned route taking into account the location data and the road network database, a signal receiving unit for receiving position signals, particularly GPS signals, a position determining unit for determining the current position of a vehicle, and a display device. In embodiments, the method comprises the following steps: a) the current vehicle position is determined taking into account the received position signals; b) a route preview is calculated which represents at least one section of the planned route as a film sequence, starting from the current vehicle position; c) the route preview is displayed.

Claims

1. A navigation device comprising:

an input device into which operating commands and location data can be entered,

a road network database,

a route calculation unit for calculating and storing a planned route taking into account the location data and the road network database,

a signal receiving unit for receiving position signals, particularly GPS signals,

a position determining unit for determining the current position of a vehicle by taking into account the received position signals, and

a display device operable to display a route preview,

wherein the route calculation unit is operable to calculate the route preview which represents at least one section of the planned route as a film sequence, starting from the current vehicle position;

wherein, in the route preview, only one route section of the planned route is represented, whereby the start of the route preview is defined on the basis of the current vehicle position, and whereby the end of the route preview is defined on the basis of an intermediate point of the planned route, which lies ahead of the destination of the planned route.

2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the location data comprises destination data.

3. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the position signals are GPS signals.

4. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the calculation of the route preview is triggered during an ongoing route guidance operation of the navigation device by activation of an input element, and the calculated film sequence is displayed or cross-faded within the image representing the ongoing route guidance action.

5. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, when the route preview is displayed, no acoustic maneuvering instructions are output.

6. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, in the route preview, road names of roads that have to be passed when traveling along the planned route are displayed in a visually highlighted fashion.

7. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, in the route preview, driving maneuvers that have to be executed when traveling along the planned route are displayed in a visually highlighted fashion.

8. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, in the route preview, the road segments to be traveled and the driving maneuvers to be executed are represented in real-time.

9. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, in the route preview, at least some of the road segments to be traveled and driving maneuvers to be executed are represented in an accelerated fashion relative to the real-time representation.

10. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate point of the route preview is defined by a predetermined maximum duration of the film sequence.

11. The navigation device according to claim 10, wherein the maximum duration of the film sequence is about 10 to 30 seconds.

12. The navigation device according to claim 10, wherein the maximum duration of the route preview can be set by the user.

13. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate point of the route preview is defined by a predetermined number of driving maneuvers included in the route preview.

14. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate point of the route preview is defined by the distance of the planned route between the current vehicle position and the intermediate point.

15. The navigation device according to claim 14, wherein the distance for defining an intermediate point is dependent on the type of the planned route, particularly on whether the route is a primarily in-town route or a primarily out-of-town route.

16. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate point of the route preview is defined by the duration of the planned time of travel between the current vehicle position and the intermediate point.

17. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate point of the route preview is defined by a combination of multiple parameters.

18. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the route preview further includes driving maneuvers, the time of travel, the time of arrival and the distance traveled since the starting point.

19. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, by means of a traffic obstruction information receiver, up-to-date traffic obstruction information is received, whereby the road segments affected according to the up-to-date traffic obstruction information are represented in the route preview, in particular in a color-highlighted fashion.

20. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein alternative routes that can be traveled alternatively to the planned route are represented in the route preview in a highlighted fashion.

21. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein, in the route preview, a road segment can be defined as being closed by activation of an input element, and on the basis thereof an alternative route devoid of closed road segments is calculated.

22. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the film sequence of the route preview can be stopped, fast-forwarded, rewound, changed over to the subsequent driving maneuver and changed back to the previous driving maneuver by activation of an input element.

23. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the route preview is displayed when the vehicle is traveling, whereby the route preview is automatically interrupted when a maneuvering instruction for an ongoing route guidance operation is due to be output.

24. The navigation device according to claim 23, wherein the interrupted route preview is automatically resumed when the output of the maneuvering instruction has been terminated.

25. The navigation device according to claim 23, wherein the route preview is not interrupted when a maneuvering instruction for an ongoing route guidance operation is output only acoustically.

32. The navigation device according to claim 23, wherein a display element assigned to the interruption of the route preview is automatically deactivated when the route preview is discarded.

26. A navigation device comprising:

an input device into which operating commands and location data can be entered,

a road network database,

a route calculation unit for calculating and storing a planned route taking into account the location data and the road network database,

a signal receiving unit for receiving position signals, particularly GPS signals,

a position determining unit for determining the current position of a vehicle by taking into account the received position signals, and

a display device operable to display a route preview,

wherein the route calculation unit is operable to calculate the route preview which represents at least one section of the planned route as a film sequence, starting from the current vehicle position;

wherein the traveling state of the vehicle is monitored when the route preview is displayed, whereby the route preview is displayed when the vehicle is stationary, and whereby the route preview is interrupted when the vehicle has started to move.

27. The navigation device according to claim 26, wherein, when the route preview is interrupted, the route guidance action of an ongoing route guidance operation of the navigation device is displayed.

28. The navigation device according to claim 26, wherein an interrupted route preview is resumed when the vehicle is stationary again.

29. The navigation device according to claim 26, wherein, prior to resumption of the interrupted route preview, the route calculation unit is further operable to verify whether the route segments and driving maneuvers represented in the route preview have already been traveled and executed, respectively whereby the road segments and driving maneuvers already traveled and executed, respectively, are not displayed in the route preview anymore.

30. The navigation device according to claim 26, wherein, prior to resumption of the interrupted route preview, the route calculation unit is further operable to verify whether the vehicle is still traveling along the planned route displayed in the route preview, whereby when the vehicles has exited from the planned route, the interrupted route preview is discarded.

31. The navigation device according to claim 26, wherein, when the route preview is interrupted, a changeover to the standard representation of the ongoing route guidance operation is performed.

33. The navigation device according to claim 26, wherein, when the route preview is interrupted, a display element assigned to the interruption is displayed.