Map Information Display Controlling Device, System, Method, And Program, And Recording Medium Where The Program Is Recorded

• US 20070198181A1
• Filed: 03/25/2005
• Published: 08/23/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
• Original Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Shimamura, Tetsuro
• Granted Patent: US 7,996,151 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/211
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3691 Retrieval, searching and output of information related to real-time traffic, weather, or environmental conditions arrangements for giving variable traffic instructions G08G1/09
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/106 using electronic means

Abstract

Provided is a navigation device which appropriately notifies a user of information. When traffic information and feature information are acquired, the traffic information and the feature information are associated with an ID number in accordance with time information and a type contained in the traffic information and the feature information to generate guidance having a single data structure. Calculated based on the time information of the guidance is an elapsed time up to a current time counted by a timer. Regarding the guidance having exceeded a predetermined time period, an icon A of such guidance is displayed in a display pattern different from the guidance not having exceeded the predetermined time period, where the icon A is displayed with higher transparency like an icon A1 or A2. Accordingly, the user can easily recognize the reliability of the traffic information and the feature information. The information is thus appropriately notified to the user.

Claims

1. A map information display control device, comprising:

a map information acquirer which acquires map information;

an information acquirer which acquires map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature;

a time information acquirer which acquires time information relating to a time when the map component information is acquired;

a timer which counts an elapsed time up to a current time based on the time information; and

a display controller which controls a display unit to display the map information and to superpose the map component information relating to the elapsed time having exceeded a predetermined time period on the map information in a display pattern with higher transparency than the map component information relating to the elapsed time not having exceeded the predetermined time period.

2. The map information display control device according to claim 1, wherein the display controller changes the display pattern of the map component information relating to the elapsed time having exceeded the predetermined time period.

3. The map information display control device according to claim 1, wherein the time information acquirer associates the time information with the map component information to generate a single piece of information.

4. The map information display control device according to claim 1, wherein the time information acquirer acquires the current time counted by the timer at a time when the information acquirer acquires the map component information as the time information.

7. The map information display control device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a map information storage which stores the map information; and

an information storage which can store plural pieces of information, in each piece the map component information and the time information being associated.

9. The map information display control device according to claim 7, wherein the information storage stores the plural pieces of information by associating unique identification information with each type of the map component information.

11. The map information display control device according to claim 7, wherein when the information acquirer acquires the map component information same as one of the stored plural pieces of information, the information storage conducts an updating by replacing the one of the stored plural pieces of information with one piece of information associated with the time information corresponding to the same map component information.

13. The map information display control device according to claim 11, wherein when recognizing the updating the display controller displays the map component information relating to the replaced information in a different pattern from the other map component information.

15. The map information display control device according to claim 1, wherein the display controller displays such that a difference in transparency becomes large as the elapsed time becomes long.

5. A map information display control device, comprising:

a map information acquirer which acquires map information;

an information acquirer which acquires;

map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature; and

information containing time information relating to a time when the map component information is generated;

a timer which counts an elapsed time up to a current time based on the time information; and

a display controller which controls a display unit to display the map information and to superpose the map component information of the information relating to the elapsed time having exceeded a predetermined time period on the map information in a display pattern with higher transparency than the map component information of the information relating to the elapsed time not having exceeded the predetermined time period.

6. The map information display control device according to claim 5, wherein the display controller changes the display pattern of the map component information of the information relating to the elapsed time having exceeded the predetermined time period.

8. The map information display control device according to claim 5, further comprising:

a map information storage which stores the map information; and

an information storage which can store plural pieces of information, in each piece the map component information and the time information being associated.

10. The map information display control device according to claim 8, wherein the information storage stores the plural pieces of information by associating unique identification information with each type of the map component information.

12. The map information display control device according to claim 8, wherein when the information acquirer acquires the map component information same as one of the stored plural pieces of information, the information storage conducts an updating by replacing the one of the stored plural pieces of information with one piece of information associated with the time information corresponding to the same map component information.

14. The map information display control device according to claim 12, wherein when recognizing the updating, the display controller displays the map component information relating to the replaced information in a different pattern from the other map component information.

16. The map information display control device according to claim 5, wherein the display controller displays such that a difference in transparency becomes large as the elapsed time becomes long.

17. A map information display control system comprising:

a map information display control device; and

a terminal unit which is connected to the map information display control device via a network in a data transmittable manner, the terminal unit including the display unit which displays the map information, wherein

the map information display control device includes;

a map information acquirer which acquires map information;

an information acquirer which acquires map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature;

a time information acquirer which acquires time information relating to a time when the map component information is acquired, a timer which counts an elapsed time up to a current time based on the time information; and

a display controller which controls a display unit to display the map information and to superpose the map component information relating to the elapsed time having exceeded a predetermined time period on the map information in a display pattern with higher transparency than the map component information relating to the elapsed time not having exceeded the predetermined time period.

18. A map information display control system, comprising:

a server including a storage storing map information, and a distributing unit distributing;

map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature; and

time information relating to a time when the map component information is generated or distributed by an information distributor; and

a map information display control device which is connected to the server via a network in a data transmittable manner and controls the display unit to display the map information and the map component information, wherein

the map information display control device includes;

a map information acquirer which acquires map information;

an information acquirer which acquires map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature;

a time information acquirer which acquires time information relating to a time when the map component information is acquired;

a timer which counts an elapsed time up to a current time based on the time information; and

a display controller which controls a display unit to display the map information and to superpose the map component information relating to the elapsed time having exceeded a predetermined time period on the map information in a display pattern with higher transparency than the map component information relating to the elapsed time not having exceeded the predetermined time period.

19. A map information display control method in which a computing unit controls a display unit to display map information, wherein the computing unit acquires:

map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature; and

time information relating to a time when the map component information is acquired; and

controls, on recognizing that the acquired time information has exceeded the predetermined time period, the display unit to superpose the map information corresponding to the time information on the map information in a display pattern with higher transparency than the map component information corresponding to the time information not having exceeded the predetermined time period.

20. A map information display control method in which a computing unit controls a display unit to display map information, wherein the computing unit acquires:

map component information forming the map information with at least one of traffic information relating to a traffic status or feature information relating to a feature; and

time information relating to a time when the map component information is generated; and

controls, on recognizing that the time information of the acquired information has exceeded the predetermined time period, the display unit to superpose the map component information of the acquired information on the map information in a display pattern with higher transparency than the map component information of the information including the time information not having exceeded the predetermined time period.