Navigation apparatus, navigation method, and navigation program

• US RE42,547 E1
• Filed: 02/19/2010
• Issued: 07/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Zaitsu, Tomoyuki, Ishikawa, Hiroki
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Delena
• Application Number:
  US12/656,944
• Time in Patent Office: 508 Days
• Field of Search: 701207-209, 701/211, 701/213, 340988-990, 340/994, 340/906
• US Class Current: 701/209
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3492 employing speed data or traffic data, e.g. real-time or historical traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09675 where a selection from the received information takes place in the vehicle

Abstract

Navigation apparatus, methods, and programs merge and correct a plurality of types of past traffic information. The apparatus, methods, and programs may store a plurality of types of past traffic information, each type of past traffic information having a priority and may merge the stored past traffic information in accordance the priorities. The apparatus, methods, and programs may detect adjacency relationships among the plurality of links; and, if a detected link number indicates that the corresponding link is not adjacent to adjacent links, replaces the detected link number for the link, the replaced link number indicating that the link is adjacent to the adjacent links.

Claims

1. A travel history data correction apparatus, comprising:

a memory that stores;

map data comprising connection relationships of links; and

vehicle travel history data for a plurality of the links along a vehicle travel route, each of the plurality of the links having a link number; and

a controller that;

detects adjacency relationships among the plurality of the links based on the map data; and

replaces a link having a link number indicating that there is no adjacency relationship for the link in the vehicle travel history data with another link having another link number indicating that there is an adjacency relationship for the other link.

2. The travel history data correction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller:

detects a current vehicle position; and

stores a current link number corresponding to the current position as the vehicle travel history data in the memory.

3. The travel history data correction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the vehicle travel history data includes times at which each of the plurality of the links was passed through along the vehicle travel route; and

if a particular link having a particular link number indicating that the particular link is not related to adjacent links is detected, replaces the particular link number for the particular link with a link number indicating that the particular link is related to the adjacent links.

4. A travel history data correction apparatus, comprising:

a memory that stores;

map data comprising connection relationships of links; and

vehicle travel history data for a plurality of the links along a vehicle travel route, each of the plurality of the links having a link number; and

a controller that;

detects whether there is an adjacency relationship between a first link having a first link number and a second link having a second link number based on the map data, the second link number appearing directly after the first link number in the vehicle travel history data;

detects whether there is an adjacency relationship between the first link and a third link having a third link number based on the map data, the third link number appearing directly after the second link number in the vehicle travel history data; and

if there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the second link and there is a an adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the third link, replaces the second link number with at least one of first link number and the third link number.

5. The travel history data correction apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the controller:

detects whether there is a first common link which connects with both of the first link and the second link; and

if the first common link is detected, there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the second link, and there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the third link, replaces a link number at a last occurrence of the first link in the vehicle travel history data with a link number corresponding to the first common link.

6. The travel history data correction apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the controller:

detects whether there is a first common link which connects with both of the first link and the second link;

detects whether there is a second common link which connects with both of the first link and the third link; and

if there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the second link, there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the third link, there is no first common link, and there is a second common link, replaces the second link number with a link number corresponding to the second common link.

7. A travel history data correction method, comprising:

storing;

map data comprising connection relationships of links; and

vehicle travel history data for a plurality of the links along a vehicle travel route, each of the plurality of the links having a link number;

detecting adjacency relationships among the plurality of links based on the map data; and

replacing a link having a link number indicating that there is no adjacency relationship for the link in the vehicle travel history data with another link having another link number indicating that there is an adjacency relationship for the other link.

8. A travel history data correction method, comprising:

storing;

map data comprising connection relationships of links; and

vehicle travel history data for a plurality of the links along a vehicle travel route, each of the plurality of the links having a link number; and

detecting whether there is an adjacency relationship between a first link having a first link number and a second link having a second link number based on the map data, the second link number appearing directly after the first link number in the vehicle travel history data;

detecting whether there is an adjacency relationship between the first link and a third link having a third link number based on the map data, the third link number appearing directly after the second link number in the vehicle travel history data; and

if there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the second link and there is a an adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the third link, replacing the second link number with at least one of first link number and the third link number.

9. A travel history data correction apparatus comprising:

a memory that stores;

map data comprising connection relationships of links; and

vehicle travel history data for a plurality of the links along a vehicle travel route, each of the plurality of the links having a link number; and

a controller that;

detects whether there is an adjacency relationship between a first link having a first link number and a second link having a second link number based on the map data, the second link number appearing directly after the first link number in the vehicle travel history data;

detects whether there is a first common link which connects with both of the first link and the second link; and

if there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the second link and there is a first common link, replaces the first link number with a link number corresponding to the first common link.

10. A travel history data correction method comprising:

storing in a memory;

map data comprising connection relationships of links; and

vehicle travel history data for a plurality of the links along a vehicle travel route, each of the plurality of the links having a link number;

detecting whether there is an adjacency relationship between a first link having a first link number and a second link having a second link number based on the map data, the second link number appearing directly after the first link number in the vehicle travel history data;

detecting whether there is a first common link which connects with both of the first link and the second link; and

replacing the first link number with a link number corresponding to a first common link if there is no adjacency relationship detected between the first link and the second link and there is the first common link.