Navigation devices, methods, and progrmas

• US 8,600,650 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2010
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Zaitsu, Tomoyuki, Kachi, Shinji, Nagase, Kenji, Iwata, Tsuyoshi, Inoguchi, Toshio, Watanabe, Kazunori, Hayashida, Teruhide
• Primary Examiner(s): Marc, McDieunel
• Application Number:
  US13/143,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20110276257A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,412 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701/23, 701/38, 701/51, 701/54, 701/118, 701/300, 701/301, 701/307, 701/411, 701/414, 701/422, 701/450, 701/482, 701/514, 340/435, 340/436, 340/440, 340/557, 340/905, 340/989, 340/990, 340/995.1, 340/995.13, 280/5.507, 280/5.512, 342/118, 180/169, 369/103, 345/581, 377/10, 555/22
• US Class Current: 701/117
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/26 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0104 Measuring and analyzing of parameters relative to traffic conditions

Abstract

When a vehicle passes through an intersection that is stored in a collection target intersection database and for which direction-specific probe information is collected, a CPU of a navigation device generates a plurality of direction-specific probe information (entry link, exit link, section travel time, and the like) from a plurality of unit distance section information that is collected within a direction-specific traffic information acquisition section until the vehicle passes through the intersection, an entry link traveled before entering the intersection; and an exit link traveled after passing through the intersection, and transmits these to an information distribution center.

Claims

1. A navigation device comprising:

a vehicle position detection unit that detects a vehicle position;

a map information storage unit that stores map information;

a communication unit that communicates with an information distribution center;

a travel information collection unit that collects travel information for every unit distance section, including vehicle position information at a travel start time of the unit distance section, travel time information for the unit distance section, and travel link information at the travel start time of the unit distance section;

an intersection passage determination unit that determines whether the vehicle passed through an intersection based on the vehicle position and the map information;

an exit link identification unit that, when the intersection passage determination unit determines that the vehicle passed through an intersection, identifies an exit link traveled after the vehicle passed through the intersection based on the vehicle position and the map information;

a probe information generation unit that, when the intersection passage determination unit determines that the vehicle passed through an intersection, generates probe information linked to the travel information collected for every unit distance section included in a predetermined distance section until passage of the intersection, an entry link traveled before entering the intersection that is identified based on the travel information, and the exit link;

a lane stay determination unit that determines whether the vehicle stayed in the lane traveled at the travel start time of the predetermined distance section throughout the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the probe information; and

a transmission control unit that, the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section, executes a control so as to transmit the probe information generated by the probe information generation unit to the information distribution center through the communication unit.

2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein

the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section when the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle did not change a lane within the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the probe information.

3. The navigation device according to claim 2, wherein

the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section when the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle follows a road throughout the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the probe information.

4. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein

the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section when the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle follows a road throughout the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the probe information.

5. A probe information transmission method comprising:

detecting a vehicle position;

reading map information;

collecting travel information for every unit distance section, including vehicle position information at a travel start time of the unit distance section, travel time information for the unit distance section, and travel link information at the travel start time of the unit distance section;

determining, with a processor, whether the vehicle passed through an intersection based on the vehicle position and the map information;

identifying, when the processor determines that the vehicle passed through an intersection, an exit link traveled after the vehicle passed through the intersection based on the vehicle position and the map information;

generating, when the processor determines that the vehicle passed through an intersection, probe information linked to the collected travel information for every unit distance section included in a predetermined distance section until passage of the intersection, an entry link traveled before entering the intersection that is identified based on the travel information, and the exit link;

determining, with the processor, whether the vehicle stayed in the lane traveled at the travel start time of the predetermined distance section throughout the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the generated probe information; and

executing, when the processor determines that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section, a control so as to transmit the generated probe information to an information distribution center.

6. A computer-readable storage medium that stores computer-executable instructions, comprising the steps of:

detecting a vehicle position;

reading map information;

collecting travel information for every unit distance section, including vehicle position information at a travel start time of the unit distance section, travel time information for the unit distance section, and travel link information at the travel start time of the unit distance section;

determining whether the vehicle passed through an intersection based on the vehicle position and the map information;

identifying, when a determination is made that the vehicle passed through an intersection, an exit link traveled after the vehicle passed through the intersection based on the vehicle position and the map information;

generating, when a determination is made that the vehicle passed through an intersection, probe information linked to the collected travel information for every unit distance section included in a predetermined distance section until passage of the intersection, an entry link traveled before entering the intersection that is identified based on the travel information, and the exit link;

determining whether the vehicle stayed in the lane traveled at the travel start time of the predetermined distance section throughout the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the generated probe information; and

executing, when a determination is made that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section, a control so as to transmit the generated probe information to an information distribution center.

7. A traffic information generation device comprising:

a receiver unit that receives probe information from a vehicle for which travel information for every unit distance section is collected, the travel information including vehicle position information at a travel start time of the unit distance section, travel time information for the unit distance section, and travel link information at the travel start time of the unit distance section, with such probe information transmitted each time the vehicle passes through an intersection and linked to the travel information that is collected for every unit distance section included in a predetermined distance section until passage of the intersection, an entry link traveled before entering the intersection that is identified based on the travel information, and an exit link traveled after passing through the intersection;

a lane stay determination unit that determines whether the vehicle stayed in the lane traveled at the travel start time of the predetermined distance section throughout the predetermined distance section based on the travel information included in the probe information; and

a traffic information generation unit that, when the lane stay determination unit determines that the vehicle stayed in the traveling lane throughout the predetermined distance section, generates lane-specific traffic information for the intersection based on the probe information.