Navigation apparatus, position information registration method and program thereof

• US 20060020387A1
• Filed: 07/05/2005
• Published: 01/26/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Sakamoto, Akira, Nagata, Koji
• Granted Patent: US 7,680,591 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/207
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3682 output of POI information on a road map G01C21/3614, G01C21/3685 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3685 the POI's being parking facilities

Abstract

A navigation apparatus that includes a position information acquiring unit acquiring position information of a parking position; a parking information acquiring unit acquiring information as to a parking time in the parking position; and a memory storing the position information acquired by the position information acquiring unit when it is judged on the basis of the information as to the parking time acquired by the parking information acquiring unit that its parking time exceeds a predetermined time.

Claims

1. A navigation apparatus, comprising:

position information acquiring means for acquiring position information of a parking position;

parking information acquiring means for acquiring information as to a parking time in the parking position; and

memory means for storing the position information acquired by said position information acquiring means when it is based on the information as to the parking time acquired by said parking information acquiring means that the parking time exceeds a predetermined time.

2. The navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

search means for searching frequencies of storage of position information per each position information stored in said memory means.

3. The navigation apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said memory means stores the information as to the parking time together with the position information of the, parking position, and said navigation apparatus further comprising;

search means for searching position information based on the information as to the parking time.

4. A position information registering method, comprising:

a position information detecting step of detecting position information of a vehicle;

a measuring step of measuring a parking time of the vehicle;

a judgment step of judging whether to register the position information detected in said position information detecting step based on a duration of the parking time measured in said measuring step; and

a registration step of registering the position information judged to be registered in said judgment step.

5. The position information registering method as claimed in claim 4, wherein:

said measuring step measures a parking time as an elapsed time from OFF to ON of an accessory power supply of the vehicle.

6. The position information registering method as claimed in claim 4, wherein:

said measuring step measures an elapsed time from activation of a parking brake of the vehicle until release thereof as the parking time.

7. The position information registering method as claimed in claim 4, wherein:

said judgment step judges not to register the position information in a case where the parking time measured in said measurement step does not reach a first threshold value, and to register the position information in a case where the parking time reaches a second threshold value which is greater than the first threshold value, and the position information registering method further comprising;

a confirmation step of confirming with a user whether to register the position information in a case where the parking time reaches the first threshold value and does not reach the second threshold value.

8. A program which causes a computer apparatus acquiring position information of a vehicle to realize:

a parking information acquiring function that acquires information as to a parking time in a parking position of the vehicle, and

a memory function that stores the position information of the parking position in a case where it is judged based on the information as to the parking time acquired by said parking information acquiring function that the parking time exceeds a predetermined time.

9. The program as claimed in claim 8, wherein:

said memory function confirms with a user whether to register the position information in a case where the parking time does not exceed the predetermined time based on the information as to the parking time acquired by said parking information acquiring function.

10. A navigation apparatus, comprising:

a position information acquiring unit for acquiring position information of a parking position;

a parking information acquiring unit for acquiring information as to a parking time in the parking position; and

a memory unit for storing the position information acquired by said position information acquiring unit when it is judged based on the information as to the parking time acquired by said parking information acquiring unit that the parking time exceeds a predetermined time.