Navigation system for updating partly map layers, and method for the same

• US 8,428,876 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2010
• Issued: 04/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai Motor Group)
• Original Assignee: Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai Motor Group)
• Inventors: Lee, Jae Ok
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): MARC-COLEMAN, MARTHE Y
• Application Number:
  US12/775,036
• Publication Number:
  US 20110130951A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 701/532, 701/451, 701/430, 701/409, 701/421, 701/411, 340/995.12, 340/990, 709/219, 709/204, 707/602, 707/E17.002, 707/E17.005, 711/103, 711/E12.008
• US Class Current: 701/532
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3878 Hierarchical structures, e.g. layering
• 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

The present invention features a navigation system for partly updating a map layer, and a method for the same, in which, by dividing a map into locally small data areas considering connectivity with adjacent areas, and updating only areas updated among the divided areas, the navigation system is able to minimize a size of the updated data, and delete unnecessary procedures for post-processing in a user terminal.

Claims

1. A navigation system for updating partly a map layer, in which a management server updates map data of a user terminal through a wireless communication network, the navigation system comprising:

a management server configured to transmit an occurrence of update to the user terminal when map data is updated, in which the management server produces an update area and an update layer based on a map data version which is acquired by the user terminal, transmits a layer list and a data capacity which is produced, and transmits update data requested by the user terminal; and

a user terminal configured to transmit information about the map data version of that user terminal, in which the user terminal produces the layer list to be updated, requests the update data, and modifies old map data into the updated map data so that the data may be partly updated,

wherein, the map data is divided into a plurality of layer units having connectivity with adjacent areas based on a data attribute and a data type, and the layer unit is defined as a basic update unit,

wherein, the map data is composed of a plurality of layer units, including road data, which has connectivity with adjacent areas, in which the map includes each of a plurality of objects based on the data attribute and the data type, and wherein, when the update of the map data occurs, a determination is made that updated areas are included in a certain layer, and accordingly, only required layers are updated.

2. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein, the data attribute includes information about a remark, a background and a road, wherein, in case where the data attribute corresponds to the remark, the data type includes characters without the connectivity with adjacent areas, and, in case where the data attribute corresponds to the background, the data type includes a building, a green area, a water area or a housing complex without the connectivity with adjacent areas, and, in case where the data attribute corresponds to the road, the data type includes an express way, a highway, a provincial road, a special metropolitan city road, a Si-road, a Gun-road or a Gu-road which has connectivity with adjacent areas.

3. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein, the layers of the data are divided on the basis of the objects having different data attributes, or, when the objects have the same data attributes, the data allocates the layers which are divided and defined based on the data type.

4. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein, the management server comprises:

a data transmitting unit configured to transmit the data with the user terminal through the wireless communication network;

a layer management unit configured to manage the information about the map data version, and divide the map data into a plurality of layer units based on an area unit as well as the data attribute and the data type, in which, after comparing the map data version received from the user terminal with a latest map data version of the management server, the layer management unit produces information about the modified update area, the layer list and the data capacity, and transmits the update data which is requested from the user terminal; and

a map database configured to store the map data corresponding to the version information and the map data which is divided into the layer units.

5. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein, the user terminal comprises:

a data transmitting unit configured to transmit the data with the management server through the wireless communication network;

a data updating and processing unit configured to update partly the map data at each layer according to the map data which is received from the management server; and

a map database configured to store the old map data corresponding to old version information, and additionally store the map data processed by the data updating and processing unit, in which the map data is divided into the layer units.

6. The navigation system of claim 5, wherein, the user terminal, when a pre-updated layer exists in the received list, excludes the pre-updated layer, and concludes the list to be acquired for the last time.

7. A method for updating partly a map layer of a navigation system, in which a management server updates map data of the navigation system in a user terminal through a wireless communication network, the method comprising:

a) receiving an occurrence of update from the management server when the map data is updated, and transmitting information about the map data version of the user terminal to the management server, which is performed by the user terminal;

b) producing an update area and an update layer based on a map data version acquired by the user terminal, and transmitting a layer list and a data capacity to the user terminal, which is performed by the management server;

c) producing the layer list to be updated, and requesting the update data to the management server, which is performed by the user terminal, in which the update data includes an update area and a layer list which are required for the last time;

d) transmitting the update data to the user terminal, which is performed by the management server, in which the update data is requested from the user terminal; and

e) modifying old map data into updated map data, and updating the map partly, which is performed by the user terminal,

wherein, the map data is divided into a plurality of layer units having connectivity with adjacent areas based on a data attribute and a data type, and the layer unit is defined as a basic update unit,

wherein, the map data is composed of a plurality of layer units including road data which has connectivity with adjacent areas, in which the map includes each of a plurality of objects based on the data attribute and the data type, and wherein, when the update of the map data occurs, a determination is made that updated areas are included in a certain layer, and accordingly, only required layers are updated.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, the data attribute includes information about a remark, a background and a road, wherein, in case where the data attribute corresponds to the remark, the data type includes characters without the connectivity with adjacent areas, and, in case where the data attribute corresponds to the background, the data type includes a building, a green area, a water area or a housing complex without the connectivity with adjacent areas, and, in case where the data attribute corresponds to the road, the data type includes an express way, a highway, a provincial road, a special metropolitan city road, a Si-road, a Gun-road or a Gu-road which has connectivity with adjacent areas.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein, the layers of the data is divided based on the plurality of the objects having different data attributes, or, when the objects have the same data attributes, the data allocates the layers which are divided and defined based on the data type.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein, in the step of b), the management server produces information about the modified update area, the layer list and the data capacity after comparing the map data version received from the user terminal with the latest map data version of the management server.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein, the produced layer list of the step of b) includes a layer version by each of the layers.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein, in the step of c), the user terminal excludes a pre-updated layer when the pre-updated layer exists in the received list, and concludes the list to be acquired for the last time.