Navigation device, navigation method, and navigation program

• US 9,341,492 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2011
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Watanabe, Keisuke, Furumoto, Yuki
• Primary Examiner(s): CHEUNG, CALVIN K
• Application Number:
  US14/130,417
• Publication Number:
  US 20140156181A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,650 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3608 using speech input, e.g. using speech recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3632 Guidance using simplified or iconic instructions, e.g. using arrows G01C21/365 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096872 where instructions are given per voice
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/106 using electronic means

Abstract

Because a navigation device or method according to the present invention extracts only route guidance expressions which a speaking person, such as a fellow passenger, provides for the driver, interprets the abstract route guidance expressions to determine a concrete route guidance expression, and outputs information to be presented corresponding to the concrete route guidance expression, the navigation device enables the driver to understand the content intuitively and can prevent the driver from mishearing the speaking person'"'"'s utterance and from driving the vehicle toward a direction which the speaking person does not intend.

Claims

1. A navigation device that includes a voice acquirer that acquires an inputted voice, a voice recognizer that carries out a voice recognition process on voice data acquired by said voice acquirer, and a position acquirer that acquires a position of a moving object, said navigation device providing route guidance on a basis of a result of the recognition by said voice recognizer, the position of the moving object which is acquired by said position acquirer, and map data, said navigation device comprising:

a route guidance expression storage that stores route guidance expressions;

a route guidance expression extractor that refers to said route guidance expression storage to extract a route guidance expression from the result of the recognition by said voice recognizer;

a route guidance expression interpreter that interprets the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor to determine a concrete route guidance expression including a travelling direction, wherein the concrete route guidance expression does not include a destination;

a route guidance expression information to be presented storage that stores visual information to be presented corresponding to said concrete route guidance expression while bringing the visual information to be presented into correspondence with said concrete route guidance expression;

a route guidance expression information to be presented retriever that refers to said route guidance expression information to be presented storage to retrieve the corresponding visual information to be presented as a real-time visual representation of the concrete route guidance expression determined by said route guidance expression interpreter; and

a presentation control outputter that outputs the visual information to be presented retrieved by said route guidance expression information to be presented retriever,

wherein the real-time visual representation includes graphical data of an arrow or a pointer which points in the travelling direction included in the concrete route guidance expression.

2. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said route guidance expression interpreter interprets the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor on a basis of both the position of said moving object and said map data to determine the concrete route guidance expression.

3. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said navigation device further includes a gesture recognizer that recognizes a gesture, and said route guidance expression interpreter interprets the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor on a basis of a result of the recognition by said gesture recognizer to determine the concrete route guidance expression.

4. The navigation device according to claim 3, wherein said navigation device further includes a contradiction determinator that determines whether or not there is a contradiction between the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor and the recognition result obtained by said gesture recognizer, and, when said contradiction determinator determines that there is a contradiction between them, said route guidance expression interpreter selects either one of the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor and the recognition result obtained by said gesture recognizer according to a predetermined rule to determine said concrete route guidance expression.

5. The navigation device according to claim 4, wherein when said contradiction determinator determines that there is a contradiction between the route guidance expression and the recognition result, said route guidance expression interpreter selects the recognition result obtained by said gesture recognizer to determine said concrete route guidance expression.

6. The navigation device according to claim 4, wherein when said contradiction determinator determines that there is a contradiction between the route guidance expression and the recognition result and a route to a destination is set, said route guidance expression interpreter selects one matching said set route from the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor and the recognition result obtained by said gesture recognizer to determine said concrete route guidance expression.

7. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said presentation control outputter outputs the visual information to be presented retrieved by said route guidance expression information to be presented retriever on a basis of a result of the interpretation by said route guidance expression interpreter.

8. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said route guidance expression interpreter interprets the route guidance expression extracted by said route guidance expression extractor to also determine a position where said visual information to be presented is to be presented, and said presentation control outputter displays said visual information to be presented at the position determined by said route guidance expression interpreter.

9. The navigation device according to claim 8, wherein when a route to a destination is set, said route guidance expression interpreter determines the position where said visual information to be presented is to be presented on a basis of information about said set route.

10. The navigation device according to claim 8, wherein said navigation device further includes an external object recognizer that recognizes a surrounding object, and said route guidance expression interpreter determines the position where said visual information to be presented is to be presented on a basis of a result of the recognition by said external object recognizer.

11. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said navigation device further includes a route guidance expression appropriateness determinator that determines whether or not the concrete route guidance expression determined by said route guidance expression interpreter is appropriate, and said presentation control outputter does not output said visual information to be presented when said route guidance expression appropriateness determinator determines that said concrete route guidance expression is not appropriate.

12. The navigation device according to claim 11, wherein said navigation device further includes a route resetter that resets a route when said route guidance expression appropriateness determinator determines that said concrete route guidance expression is not appropriate.

13. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said navigation device further includes a route guidance expression appropriateness determinator that determines whether or not the concrete route guidance expression determined by said route guidance expression interpreter is appropriate, and said presentation control outputter outputs visual information to be presented showing that said route guidance expression is not appropriate when said route guidance expression appropriateness determinator determines that said concrete route guidance expression is not appropriate.

14. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said navigation device further includes a cancellation/amendment expression storage that stores expressions used at a time of a cancellation or amendment, and a cancellation/amendment expression extractor that refers to said cancellation/amendment expression storage to extract an expression used for a cancellation or amendment from the result of the recognition by said voice recognizer, and wherein said presentation control outputter does not output said visual information to be presented when said cancellation or amendment expression is extracted.

15. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said navigation device further includes a cancellation/amendment expression storage that stores expressions used at a time of a cancellation or amendment, and a cancellation/amendment expression extractor that refers to said cancellation/amendment expression storage to extract an expression used for a cancellation or amendment from the result of the recognition by said voice recognizer, and wherein said presentation control outputter cancels the output of said visual information to be presented when said cancellation or amendment expression is extracted in a state in which said visual information to be presented is outputted.

16. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein said navigation device further includes a cancellation/amendment expression storage that stores expression used at a time of a cancellation or amendment, and a cancellation/amendment expression extractor that refers to said cancellation/amendment expression storage to extract an expression used for the cancellation or amendment from the result of the recognition by said voice recognizer, and wherein when said cancellation or amendment expression is extracted, said presentation control outputter outputs visual information to be presented corresponding to a route guidance expression extracted successively after said cancellation or amendment expression.

17. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the navigation device carries out recognition of a non-language input, and said route guidance expression interpreter determines the concrete route guidance expression using the recognized non-language input in combination with the interpretation of the extracted route guidance expression.

18. A navigation method that includes acquiring an inputted voice;

carrying out a machine-based voice recognition process on data of said acquired voice;

acquiring a position of a moving object; and

providing route guidance on a basis of a result of the voice recognition process, the acquired position of the moving object, and map data;

said method comprising;

storing, in a route guidance expression storage device, route guidance expressions;

referring to said route guidance expression storage device to extract a route guidance expression from the result of the voice recognition process;

interpreting the extracted route guidance expression to determine a concrete route guidance expression including a travelling direction, wherein the concrete route guidance expression does not include a destination;

storing, in a route guidance expression information to be presented storage device, visual information to be presented corresponding to said concrete route guidance expression while bringing the visual information to be presented into correspondence with said concrete route guidance expression;

referring to said route guidance expression information to be presented storage to retrieve the corresponding visual information to be presented as a real-time visual representation of the determined concrete route guidance expression; and

outputting the retrieved visual information to be presented,

wherein the real-time visual representation includes graphical data of an arrow or a pointer which points in the travelling direction included in the concrete route guidance expression.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium on which is stored a navigation program that, when executed by a computer, provides route guidance on a basis of a result of recognition by a voice recognizer, a position of a moving object which is acquired by a position acquirer and map data by causing said computer to perform a method including:

acquiring an inputted voice;

carrying out a machine-based voice recognition process on data of said acquired voice;

referring to a route guidance expression storage to extract a route guidance expression from the result of the voice recognition process;

interpreting the extracted route guidance expression to determine a concrete route guidance expression including a travelling direction, wherein the concrete route guidance expression does not include a destination;

storing, in a route guidance expression information to be presented storage, visual information to be presented corresponding to said concrete route guidance expression while bringing the visual information to be presented into correspondence with said concrete route guidance expression;

referring to said route guidance expression information to be presented storage to retrieve the corresponding visual information to be presented as a real-time visual representation of the determined concrete route guidance expression; and

outputting the retrieved visual information to be presented,

wherein the real-time visual representation includes graphical data of an arrow or a pointer which points in the travelling direction included in the concrete route guidance expression.