Map information management system and map information distribution system

• US 8,892,522 B2
• Filed: 10/02/2007
• Issued: 11/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Mapmaster Incorporated (Toyota Motor Corporation), Zenrin Company Limited (Zenrin)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Mapmaster Incorporated (Toyota Motor Corporation), Zenrin Company Limited (Zenrin)
• Inventors: Sugimoto, Hironobu, Koshiba, Sadahiro, Maekawa, Kazuteru, Tsujiko, Masahiro, Uchiyama, Koji, Matsumoto, Yoshikatsu, Miyazaki, Kaname, Yano, Kenji, Ochi, Yuichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Perveen, Rehana
• Assistant Examiner(s): HAVAN, HUNG T
• Application Number:
  US12/311,746
• Publication Number:
  US 20100011022A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,604 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 707/661
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3859 Differential updating map data
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3896 Transmission of map data from central databases
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 29/10 Map spot or coordinate position indicators; Map reading aids optical projection apparatus per se G03B

Abstract

There is provided a map information providing technology that can keep map information very fresh at all times.

A map information management system has a map to be updated DB for storing map data to be updated that is used to update and maintenance, a map to be provided DB for storing map data to be provided that is distributed, an updated data DB for storing updated data for updating the map data to be provided, a map DB update means for updating the map data to be updated when the updated data for updating the map data of the map data to be updated DB is input, an updated data creation mean for creating the differential data before and after it is updated by the updated data and storing the differential data in the updated data DB as the updated data, and a data distribution means for extracting the map data to be provided or the updated data stored in the map to be provided DB when it receives a request to distribute the map data or the updated data from a destination system and distributing it to the destination system.

Claims

1. A map information management system comprising a computer connected to a destination system located in a destination and a map information update system located in a vender side to which map information is provided through a communication line for managing, updating, and distributing the map data, characterized by comprising:

an updating map database for storing map data for update used to update and maintain map information;

a difference information database for storing difference information for updating the map information;

a providing map database for storing a providing map data that is distributed to the destination system;

a map database update module for updating, when data is input to update the map data of the updating map database, the updating map in the updating map database;

a difference information creation module for creating the differential data of the map data for update before and after updating is updated by the difference information and storing the differential data to the difference information database as difference information;

a data distribution module for extracting, when the data distribution module receives a request to distribute difference information from the destination system, the difference information stored in the difference information database in response to the distribution request and distributes the difference information to the destination system;

an update execution module;

a data matching module that reads out the objects, which must be updated because the changed objects are updated, from the tentatively revised providing map data, and matching the read out objects in the tentatively revised providing map data so that the extracted difference information does not conflict with the providing map data, creating the revised providing map data, and storing the revised providing map data in the providing map database; and

a map data for update revision module for revising the map data for update stored in the updating map database by the revised providing map data;

wherein the map data to be updated is replaced with revised map data all together at a predetermined time, wherein only the map data having been subjected to the matching step exist in the map to be updated;

wherein the update execution module reading the providing map stored in the providing map database and the difference information stored in the difference information database, change the objects in the providing map data based on the difference information, and create the tentatively revised providing map data.

2. The map information management system according to claim 1, characterized in that the difference information creation module comprises:

a differential data creation module for creating the differential data between the map data for update before and after updating is updated by the update data; and

a transaction data creation module for creating transaction data for stipulating a transaction for updating the map data for update before updating is updated based on the differential data and storing the transaction data in the difference information database as difference information.

3. The map information management system according to claim 1, characterized in that the data distribution module distributes the providing map data or the difference information to the destination system after encrypting.

4. The map information management system according to claim 1, characterized by comprising:

a list creation module for obtaining the information of the map data held by the destination system, and creating a list of the difference information to the map data held by the destination system from the difference information stored in the difference information database; and

a list distribution module for distributing the list of the difference information to the destination system in response to a request from the destination system,

wherein when the data distribution module receives a request to distribute specific difference information in the list of the difference information from the destination system, the data distribution module extracts the difference information stored in the difference information database in response to the distribution request and distributes the difference information to the destination system.

5. The map information management system according to claim 1, comprising a program being executed by the computer to function as the map information system.

11. The map information management system according to claim 1, wherein:

an object constitutes one of the group consisting of a link, a node, a polygon, and an image of a planimetric feature;

the data matching module matches a portion of an object in a second map tile to a portion of the object in a first map tile; and

the update execution module changes a portion of an object in a second map based on the difference information.

13. The map information management system according to claim 1, wherein a program is embodied in a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising steps executed by the computer.

14. The map information management system according to claim 1, wherein

the providing map data is separated from the updating map data, and when the map data to be updated is updated, an updated-data tag of only the data to be updated is created and distributed, whereby it is not necessary to stop the distribution of the map information even while the map data to be updated is updated, and a vender on the destination system side can obtain the latest map data at all times.

6. A map information distribution system comprising a first computer, which updates, manages, and distributes map information, is connected to a destination system comprising a second computer as a destination to which the map information is provided and a map information update system comprising a third computer through a network, characterized by comprising:

an updating map database for storing map data for update used to update and maintain map information;

a difference information database for storing difference information for updating the map information;

a providing map database for storing a providing map data that is distributed to the destination system;

a map database update module for updating, when data is input to update the map data of the updating map database from the map information update system, the updating map in the updating map database;

a difference information creation module for creating the differential data of the map data for update before and after updating is updated by the difference information and storing the differential data to the difference information database as difference information;

a data distribution module for extracting, when the data distribution module receives a request to distribute difference information from the destination system, the difference information stored in the difference information database in response to the distribution request and distributes the difference information to the destination system;

an update execution module for reading the providing map stored in the providing map database and the difference information stored in the difference information database, changing the objects in the providing map data based on the difference information, and creating the tentatively revised providing map data;

a data matching module that reads out the objects, which must be updated because the changed objects are updated, from the tentatively revised providing map data, and matching the read out objects in the tentatively revised providing map data so that the extracted difference information does not conflict with the providing map data, creating the revised providing map data, and storing the revised providing map data in the providing map database; and

a map data for update revision module for revising the map data for update stored in the updating map database by the revised providing map data,

wherein the map data to be updated is replaced with revised map data all together at a predetermined time, wherein only the map data having been subjected to the matching step exist in the map to be updated;

wherein the destination system comprises;

a destination map database for storing destination map data used in the destination system;

a distribution request module for transmitting a request to distribute difference information to the map information management system;

a format conversion module for converting, when the format conversion module receives the difference information from the map information management system, object data created based on the difference information into a format used in the destination system; and

a map update module for updating the destination map data of the providing map database based on the object data the format of which is converted by the format conversion module.

7. The map information distribution system according to claim 6, characterized in that the destination system comprises:

a data extraction module for extracting, when the data extraction module receives the difference information from the map information management system, the necessary difference information on a part of the difference information that is needed by the destination system from the data; and

a map update module for updating the destination map data of the destination map database based on the necessary difference information extracted by the data extraction module,

wherein the format conversion module converts the object data created based on the necessary difference information extracted by the data extraction module into a format used in the destination system.

8. The map information distribution system according to claim 6, characterized in that the difference information creation module of the map information management system comprises:

a differential data creation module for creating the differential data between the map data for update before and after updating is updated by the update data; and

a transaction data creation module for creating transaction data for stipulating a transaction for updating the map data based on the differential data and storing the transaction data in the difference information database as difference information,

wherein the data update module of the destination system comprises transaction process module for performing the transaction process which is stipulated by the transaction data that is the necessary difference information extracted by the data extraction module referring to the destination map data of the destination map data base and creating object data for updating the destination map data.

9. The map information distribution system according to claim 6, characterized in that:

the data distribution module of the map information management system distributes the difference information to the destination system by encrypting the difference information ; and

when the data extraction module of the destination system receives the encrypted difference information from the map information management system, the data extraction module decodes the data as well as extracts the necessary difference information needed by the destination system.

10. The map information distribution system according to claim 6 characterized in that the map information management system comprises:

a list creation module for creating a list of the difference information stored in the difference information database; and

a list distribution module for distributing the list of the difference information to the destination system in response to a request to distribute the list from the destination system,

wherein when the data distribution module receives a request to distribute specific difference information in the list of the difference information from the destination system, the data distribution module extracts the difference information stored in the difference information database in response to the distribution request and distributes the difference information to the destination system, and

the destination system comprises;

a list distribution request module for transmitting a request to distribute the list to the map information management system; and

a list presentation module for displaying the list on a display device when the list presentation module receives the list of the difference information from the map information management system and prompting a user to select difference information in the list,

wherein when the user selects the specific difference information in the list, the distribution request module transmits a request to distribute the specific difference information to the map information management system.

12. The map information management system according to claim 6, wherein:

an object constitutes one of the group consisting of a link, a node, a polygon, and an image of a planimetric feature;

the data matching module matches a portion of an object in a second map tile to a portion of the object in a first map tile; and

the update execution module changes a portion of an object in a second map based on the difference information.

15. The map information distribution system according to claim 6, wherein

the providing map data is separated from the updating map data, and when the map data to be updated is updated, an updated-data tag of only the data to be updated is created and distributed, whereby it is not necessary to stop the distribution of the map information even while the map data to be updated is updated, and a vender on the destination system side can obtain the latest map data at all times.