Map display device and map display method

• US 20070078599A1
• Filed: 12/05/2006
• Published: 04/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Godo Kaisha IP Bridge 1 (IP Bridge, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kudo, Takahiro, Ozawa, Jun, Yoshioka, Mototaka
• Granted Patent: US 7,412,326 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/211
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/367 Details, e.g. road map scale, orientation, zooming, illumination, level of detail, scrolling of road map or positioning of current position marker
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096861 where the immediate route instructions are output to the driver, e.g. arrow signs for next turn
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096866 where the complete route is shown to the driver
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/0969 having a display in the form of a map
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/102 using electrical means

Abstract

A map display device which scroll-displays a travel route simply scroll-displays a route from a current driving location to a destination on an entire screen. The map display device of the present invention is a map display device which displays a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object, and is configured of: a display unit; a route calculation unit and a map information storage unit which obtain map information concerning a current position of the mobile object and the travel route; a current position detection unit, a current position storage unit and a display area determination unit which allow a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object to be displayed entirely on a display screen; and a partial map display area storage unit and a partial map display position determination unit which display a map indicated by the obtained map information with regard to the travel route of the mobile object on a partial display area which is a part of the display screen, in which the partial map display position determination unit displays, on the partial display area, a partial map which is a map regarding a part of the travel route while allowing the partial map to be scrolled along the travel route.

Claims

1. A map display device which displays a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object, said device comprising:

a display screen;

a map information obtainment unit operable to obtain map information concerning a current position and the travel route of the mobile object;

a whole-display unit operable to display, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object; and

a partial-display unit operable to display, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to display, on the partial display area, a partial map that is a map related to a part of the travel route while causing the map to be scrolled along the travel route, the partial map being superimposed on the map displayed by said whole-display unit.

2. The map display device according to claim 1,

wherein the travel route is a route from the current position of the mobile object to a destination, and

said partial-display unit is operable to display the partial map while causing the partial map to be scrolled in one of the following directions:

a direction from the current position to the destination, and a direction from the destination to the current position.

3. The map display device according to claim 2, further comprising:

a position detection unit operable to detect the current position of the mobile object,

wherein each time said position detection unit detects a new current position, said map information obtainment unit is operable to obtain map information concerning the new current position and a moving route from the new current position to the destination, said whole-display unit is operable to display a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the new current position and said partial-display unit is operable to display a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route.

4. The map display device according to claim 1,

wherein in the case where a point on the travel route included in the map displayed by said whole-display unit is defined as a base point, said partial-display unit is operable to define a display area as the partial display area, and to display the partial map while causing the partial map to be scrolled, the display area including the base point and being associated with the base point by a predetermined distance.

5. The map display device according to claim 4,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to define a base point as a starting point or an ending point of the scroll, and to display the partial map while causing the partial map to be scrolled, the base point being a point at which the partial map displayed in the partial display area matches a map in the partial display area on the map displayed by said whole-display unit.

6. The map display device according to claim 1,

wherein when said partial-display unit displays the partial map in the partial display area, said whole-display unit is operable to change the display area of the map displayed on the whole display screen, based on the travel route included in the map displayed on the whole display screen.

7. The map display device according to claim 1,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to display the partial map while causing the partial map to be scrolled, by sequentially setting plural predetermined points on the travel route as the base points.

8. The map display device according to claim 1, further comprising

an input unit operable to receive a user'"'"'s operational input,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to start causing the partial map to be scrolled when said input unit has received the user'"'"'s operational input.

9. The map display device according to claim 1,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to calculate the points on the travel route indicated in the displayed partial map, by predicting a time when the mobile object passes the respective points, and to display the calculated time together with the partial map.

13. The map display device according to claim 4, further comprising

a partial map area calculation unit operable to calculate plural base points on the travel route from the current position to the destination, and to calculate a form or a reduction scale of the partial map based on a positional relationship of the calculated base points,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to display the partial map in the form or at the reduction scale calculated by said partial map area calculation unit.

20. The map display device according to claim 4, further comprising:

an input unit operable to receive a user'"'"'s operational input; and

an input valid range control unit operable to control a valid range of the user'"'"'s operation inputted by said input unit,

wherein said input valid range control unit is operable to determine, as the valid range, an area which includes the base point and is associated with the base point by a predetermined distance, and

said partial display unit is operable to start causing the partial map to be scrolled in the case where said input unit receives the user'"'"'s operational input within the valid range.

21. The map display device according to claim 4, further comprising:

a current position information display unit operable to display, in a menu form, information concerning a current position which is not displayed on the map, in a predetermined area within the display screen,

wherein in the case where the area in which the information concerning the current position is displayed in the menu form is superimposed on the partial display area, said current position information display unit is operable to move the information concerning the current position in another predetermined area which is not superimposed on the partial display area.

10. A map display device which displays a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object, said device comprising:

a display screen;

a map information obtainment unit operable to obtain map information concerning a current position of the mobile object and plural travel routes from the current position to respective destinations;

a whole-display unit operable to display, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object; and

a partial-display unit operable to display, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to display different partial maps in respective partial display areas while causing each of the partial maps to be scrolled along the travel route, each partial map being a map related to a part of each of the obtained travel routes.

11. A map display device which displays a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object, said device comprising:

a display screen;

a map information obtainment unit operable to obtain map information concerning a current position of the mobile object and plural travel routes from the current position to respective destinations;

a whole-display unit operable to display, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object; and

a partial-display unit operable to display, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to;

display different partial maps in respective partial display areas while causing each of the partial maps to be scrolled along the travel route, each partial map being a map related to a part of each of the obtained travel routes; and

simultaneously display the partial maps of the plural travel routes in such a manner that respective times from the start of scroll until the end of scroll are identical, while causing each of the partial maps to be scrolled.

12. A map display device which displays a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object, said device comprising:

a display screen;

a map information obtainment unit operable to obtain map information concerning a current position of the mobile object and plural travel routes from the current position to respective destinations;

a whole-display unit operable to display, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object; and

a partial-display unit operable to display, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object,

wherein said partial-display unit is operable to;

display different partial maps in respective partial display areas while causing each of the partial maps to be scrolled along the travel route, each partial map being a map related to a part of each of the obtained travel routes; and

simultaneously display the partial maps of the plural travel routes in such a manner that the partial maps of a same predicted time of the mobile object are simultaneously displayed, while causing each of the partial maps to be scrolled.

14. The map display device according to claim 14,

wherein said partial map area calculation unit is operable to calculate the form of the partial map based on the positional relationship of backward and forward base points on the travel route.

16. The map display device according to claim 14,

wherein said partial map area calculation unit is operable to calculate the reduction scale of the partial map to be displayed in the partial display area, based on the positional relationship of the base points located forward and backward with respect to each other on the travel route.

17. The map display device according to claim 14,

wherein said partial map area calculation unit is operable to specify, with respect to two axes which are orthogonal to each other, a set of two points from among the base points, as reference base points, and calculate the reduction scale of the partial map to be displayed in the partial display area, using the reference base points.

18. The map display device according to claim 17,

wherein said partial map area calculation unit includes

a reference base point coordinates obtainment unit operable to obtain coordinate values of two reference base points located forward and backward with respect to each other on the travel route,

said partial map area calculation unit is operable to calculate a reduction scale for reducing the size of the partial map to the extent that a difference in vertical axis does not exceed the height of the partial display area of a predetermined size and a difference in horizontal axis of the obtained coordinate values does not exceed the width of the partial display area of a predetermined size, and

said partial-display unit is operable to display the partial map at the reduction scale calculated by said partial map area calculation unit, the partial map regarding the travel route which includes the two base points.

15. The map display device according to claim 15,

wherein said partial map area calculation unit includes

a base point coordinates obtainment unit operable to obtain coordinate values of two base points located backward and forward with respect to each other on the travel route, and

said partial map area calculation unit is operable to calculate the form of the partial map by multiplying a ratio with a predetermined constant, the ratio being a ratio of the obtained coordinate values between a difference in vertical axis and a difference in horizontal axis.

19. A map display device which displays a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object, said device comprising:

a display screen;

a map information obtainment unit operable to obtain map information concerning a current position of the mobile object and a travel route from the current position to a destination;

a whole-display unit operable to display, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object;

a partial-display unit operable to display, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object;

a second mobile object detection unit operable to detect a location of a second mobile object that is different from the mobile object; and

an intersection information obtainment unit operable to obtain information concerning intersections on the route to the destination, in the case where the location detected by said second mobile object detection unit is set as the destination,

wherein in the case where a point on the travel route included in the map displayed by said whole-display unit is defined as a base point, said partial-display unit is operable to define a display area as the partial display area, and display a partial map that is a map regarding a part of the travel route while causing the partial map to be scrolled along the travel route, the display area including the base point and being associated with the base point by a predetermined distance, and the partial map being superimposed on the map displayed by said whole-display unit, and

said partial-display unit is further operable to judge whether or not the number of intersections between the current position and the destination exceeds a predetermined number, based on the information concerning the intersections, and start causing the partial map to be scrolled when the number of intersections exceeds the predetermined number.

22. A map display method of displaying a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object on a screen, said method comprising:

obtaining map information concerning a current position and the travel route of the mobile object;

displaying, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object; and

displaying, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object,

wherein in said displaying of the map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route, a partial map is displayed on the partial display area, while the map is caused to be scrolled along the travel route, the partial map being a map related to a part of the travel route, the partial map being superimposed on the map displayed in said displaying of the map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position.

23. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for displaying a map regarding a travel route of a mobile object on a screen, said program causing a computer to execute the steps of:

obtaining map information concerning a current position and the travel route of the mobile object;

displaying, on the whole display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position of the mobile object; and

displaying, on a partial display area that is a part of said display screen, a map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route of the mobile object,

wherein in said displaying of the map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the travel route, a partial map is displayed on the partial display area, while the map is caused to be scrolled along the travel route, the partial map being a map related to a part of the travel route, and the partial map is displayed, being superimposed on the map displayed in said displaying of the map indicated by the obtained map information concerning the current position.