JP3514324B2 - Navigation device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a navigation device for guiding a route to a destination.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a navigation system has been developed in which a course is set in advance before traveling and the course is guided by voice or the like according to the set course. With the guidance by the conventional navigation device, at any time while running,
The direction output to the destination was instructed and output. For example, in front of an intersection, "Please turn left at the next intersection."
The voice guidance was output.

[0003]

By the way, on a road having a plurality of lanes, it is necessary to enter a predetermined lane when making a right turn, a left turn or going straight at an intersection. In such a case, conventionally, the driver checks the lane guidance by a sign on the road or on the side of the road just before the intersection and enters the predetermined lane. However, in the unfamiliar road, not known immediately or can I ran any lane, or could not proceed without it in the guide as to not be a lane change, and the excessive lane change, as a result, or cause congestion There was a problem of doing. Such a problem occurs not only at an intersection but also at a branch point between an elevated road such as a highway and other roads, or when the number of lanes increases or decreases.

Incidentally, in JP-A-64-16915, in the case where there is a next intersection immediately after turning at the first intersection, before turning at the first intersection and after turning at the intersection. A technique for indicating and outputting information on a lane to be driven is shown. With this technology, for example, when turning left at the second intersection, “Before turning into the left lane,” or “Before turning into the left lane” before the first intersection, Please output a voice guidance such as "Please." To inform the driver of the lane to be taken after turning the first intersection. However, this technique has a problem that the driver does not know which lane to enter when turning at the first intersection. On a road with many lanes, it may be necessary to instruct which lane is appropriate. For example, guidance with four lanes requires particularly smooth driving, and it is necessary to provide guidance so that the driver does not get lost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a navigation device capable of outputting detailed information of a lane to be driven before a place where a lane change is required.

[0006]

The [Summary of invention of claim 1, wherein, the current position detecting means for detecting a current position of the vehicle, exchange
Proceed from the intersection for each lane on the road entering the difference
And lane data indicating a road that can output, a storage means for storing the road data, on the basis of the detected present position by said present position detecting means has been the road data stored in the storage means, to the destination a route determining means for performing the traveling direction determination, on the basis of the traveling direction <br/> determined by the route determining means, outputs the guidance information in the traveling direction in accordance with the current position detected by said present position detecting means Route guidance means and the way of travel determined by the route determination means
A lane determining unit configured to determine the lane should travel on the basis of the stored vehicle-ray data countercurrent with the storage means, the indication information of the lane that is determined by the lane determining unit, the path
The above-mentioned object is achieved by providing the navigation device with lane indicating means that outputs a predetermined distance before the intersection guided by the guide means . According to the second aspect of the invention, the present position detecting means for detecting the present position of the vehicle and the intersection are provided.
It is possible to advance from the intersection to each lane of the approaching road
And lane data indicating roads, storage means for storing the road data, on the basis of the detected present position by said present position detecting means has been the road data stored in the storage means, the traveling direction to the destination Route determination means for making a determination, route guidance means for outputting guidance information in the traveling direction according to the current position detected by the current position detection means based on the route determined by the route determination means, and the route a lane determining unit configured to determine the lane should travel on the basis of the stored vehicle-ray data in the traveling direction and said storage means is determined by the determining means, the vehicle recognizes the traffic lane recognition means the lane in which the vehicle is currently traveling When the a lane should travel which is determined by the lane determining unit, in accordance with the lane on which the vehicle is currently traveling which is recognized by the traffic lane recognition means, the indication information of the lane, the advanced From the intersection of guide means for guiding
The lane indicating means for outputting before a predetermined distance and the navigation device are provided to achieve the above-mentioned object. According to another aspect of the invention, the current position detecting means for detecting the current position of the vehicle and the lane data indicating which lane increases or decreases.
Course of performing the storage means for storing the road data, the traveling direction <br/> determination to a destination based on the current position detected by the stored road data and the current position detecting means in the storage means Based on the traveling direction determined by the route determining means, the determining means, the route guiding means for outputting the route guidance information according to the current position detected by the current position detecting means, and the route determining means based on the stored lane data in the traveling direction and said storage means being a lane decrease point determining means for determining increase or decrease point traveling in the same direction as the direction of the lane, it is determined by said lane decreasing point determination unit lane The lane increase / decrease guide means for guiding increase / decrease of lanes at a point before a predetermined distance from the increase / decrease point is provided in the navigation device to achieve the above object.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in the navigation device according to the first or second aspect, the lane indicating means outputs the instruction information of the lane to be traveled by voice. According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the navigation device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the storage means stores lane number data as lane data. Characterize.

[0007]

According to the navigation apparatus of the present invention, the intersection of each lane of the road entering the intersection
Lane data indicating roads that can be reached from
It was stored in the storage means, based on the detected current position stored road data and the current position detecting means in the storage means, depending on the route determining unit, performed the traveling direction determination to a destination, the direction of travel On the basis of the above, the route guidance means outputs guidance information in the traveling direction according to the current position detected by the current position detection means. In addition, the traveling direction determined by the route determination means and the stored in the storage means
Was based on the vehicle-ray data, the lane determining unit, the lane should travel is determined, the instruction information of the lane, road draft
It is output by the lane indicating means before a predetermined distance from the intersection guided by the inner means . According to the second aspect of the present invention , the route guidance means guides the lane instruction information in accordance with the lane to be traveled determined by the lane determination means and the currently traveling lane recognized by the travel lane recognition means. A certain distance from the intersection
It is output by the lane indicating means before the departure . In the invention according to claim 3 , which lane increases or decreases in the storage means.
And lane data indicating, stores road data, increasing or decreasing the point of traveling in the same direction as that of the lane based on the car line data stored in the traveling direction and the storage means is determined by the route determining means is determined , Guidance to increase / decrease lanes at a point before a predetermined distance from the determined lane increase / decrease point. In the invention according to claim 4, the lane indicating means outputs the instruction information of the lane to be traveled by voice. In the invention according to claim 5 , the storage means stores lane number data as lane data.

[0008]

EXAMPLES Hereinafter, an embodiment of the navigation system of the present invention with reference to FIGS be described in detail.
FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a navigation device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the navigation device according to the present embodiment includes a calculation unit 10 that functions as a route determination unit, a route guidance unit, a lane determination unit, and a lane instruction unit. The arithmetic unit 10 includes a display 11a functioning as a touch panel and operating switches 11b provided around the display 11a.
And a display unit 11, a switch input management unit 12 that manages inputs from the touch panel and the switch 11b of the display unit 11, a current position measurement unit 13, and a speed sensor 14.
The map information storage unit 15, the voice recognition unit 16, and the voice output unit 17 are connected to each other.

The current position measuring unit 13 has a GPS (Global
Position System) Receiver 21, Direction Sensor 22,
The distance sensor 23 is connected, and the current position measuring unit 13 measures the current position of the vehicle using the information from these. A microphone 24 is connected to the voice recognition unit 16. The map information storage unit 15 includes a road data storage unit 42 and a display data storage unit 44. The road data storage unit 42 stores destination data, intersection data, road data, etc. necessary for route determination, and lane data that holds data on the number of lanes and data on the correspondence between the traveling direction and lanes. 43 is stored.
Further, the display data storage unit 44 includes the display 11a.
Display data for drawing a map or the like is stored in.

The voice output section 17 includes a voice output IC 26 for outputting voice as an electric signal and the voice output IC 2
An amplifier 27 that amplifies the output of 6 and a D / A converter 2 that digital-analog converts the output of the amplifier 27.
8 and. A speaker 29 is connected to the output terminal of the D / A converter 28.

The calculation unit 10 includes a map data reading unit 31 connected to the speed sensor 14 and the map information storage unit 15,
Map drawing unit 32, map management unit 33 managing map data reading unit 31 and map drawing unit 32, and map drawing unit 32
And a screen management unit 34 connected to the display unit 11, an input management unit 35 connected to the switch input management unit 12 and the voice recognition unit 16, and a voice output IC of the voice output unit 17.
Audio output management unit 36 connected to 26 and map management unit 3
3, a screen management unit 34, an input management unit 35, and an overall management unit 37 that manages the audio output management unit 36.

The arithmetic unit 10 includes a CPU (central processing unit),
A ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. are provided, and the CPU executes the program stored in the ROM using the RAM as a working area to realize each of the above configurations. ing.

The lane data 43 stored in the road data storage unit 42 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, lane data is created for each point where there is a possibility of changing lanes, such as intersections, road junctions, points where lanes increase or decrease. For example, in the case of an intersection as shown in FIG. 2, as shown in FIG. 3, the intersection name is x, the road name on the left side of the figure with respect to this intersection x is a, and the lower road name in the figure is b. The network information is created with the road name on the right side in c as c and the road name on the upper side in the figure as d. Then, lane data relating to the intersection x is created as shown in FIG. In FIG.
"Number of lanes" indicates the number of lanes on the approach road, and "lane" is
It shows which lane of the lanes of the approach road is counting from the left side and which is linked to the road. From this lane data, for example, when entering the intersection x from the road a, making a right turn and advancing to the road b, it is necessary to drive in the second lane from the left side of the road a.

Similarly, in the case of lane data concerning a branch point 53 between an elevated road 51 such as an expressway and the other roads 52 as shown in FIG. 5, which lane is linked to the destination road is shown. It is a thing. In addition, the lane data relating to points where lanes increase / decrease is, for example, data indicating the number of lanes before and after the increase / decrease and which lane increases or decreases.

Next, the operation of the navigation system of this embodiment will be described. The driver inputs information such as the destination required by the navigation device by hand using the touch panel or the switch 11b of the display unit 11 or by voice using the microphone 24. Information input using the touch panel or the switch 11b is input to the input management unit 35 via the switch input management unit 12. Information input by voice using the microphone 24 is recognized by the voice recognition unit 16 and input to the input management unit 35.

The calculation unit 10 determines the route to the destination based on the information such as the destination input by the driver and the information stored in the map information storage unit 15, and according to the route, the current position is determined. The route guidance is performed according to the current position measured by the measuring unit 13. For route guidance, a map is displayed on the display 11a, an arrow indicating the traveling direction at an intersection as shown in FIG. 2 or a branch point as shown in FIG. 5 is displayed, and voice guidance is output from the speaker 29. To do. Further, the calculation unit 10 determines the lane to be driven based on the route determined as described above and the lane data 43 stored in the road data storage unit 42 in the map information storage unit 15, and The instruction information of the determined lane is output as voice from the speaker 29, as described below.

FIG. 6 shows a lane change instruction routine at the time of a branch road, and this routine is one of the subroutines in the main routine for controlling the overall operation of the navigation device. In this lane change instruction routine, first, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is Lm before a junction such as an intersection (step 101). L is 300, for example. Note that the guidance information on the route at a junction such as an intersection is, for example, 10 at the junction.
It is output 0 m before and 200 m before. The above Lm is
It is set a predetermined distance before the point where the route guidance information is output. If it is not before the branch point Lm (step 101; N), the process returns to the main routine. If it is before Lm before the branch point (step 101; Y), it is determined whether or not lane guidance is required based on the lane data (step 102). If lane guidance is not required (N), the main routine is executed. To return. Here, when the lane guidance is not required, for example, there is a case of one lane.

On the other hand, if lane guidance is required (step 102; Y), the lane to be traveled is based on the route determined by another subroutine for determining the route and the lane data 43 as shown in FIG. And outputs a lane guidance instruction indicating the lane by voice (step 10
3) Return to the main routine. For lane guidance instructions, please follow the left (right) lane. "Left (right)"
Proceed in two lanes. "Please enter the left (right) lane near the intersection (branch).""Proceed in the second lane from the left (right)." In addition,
In the operation when the number of lanes increases / decreases, at the point before Lm where the number of lanes increases / decreases, "Increase (decrease) one lane" and "Increase (decrease) one left (right) lane" Lane guidance instructions such as "." Are output.

As described above, according to this embodiment, in the case of the intersections shown in FIG. 2 and the branch points shown in FIG. 5, the intersections are shown before the traveling direction is shown before these intersections and the branch points. To a driver at a point before a predetermined distance from
A voice tells you which lane to drive. When the number of lanes increases or decreases, the information is presented to the driver by voice. Therefore, the driver can drive with peace of mind without being panicked, and can avoid excessive driving. Also, it is prevented from becoming impossible <br/> proceeds continuously be in the guide as unable lane change. In addition, since there is no need to change lanes unnecessarily, traffic congestion will be alleviated.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a lane change instruction routine at the time of a branch road in the second embodiment of this embodiment. In this embodiment, when there is a second intersection immediately after turning the first intersection, guidance is given as to which lane to drive after turning the first intersection.

In the lane change instruction routine of this embodiment, first, it is judged whether or not a lane change is required before the intersection requiring the next guidance (step 111). If it is necessary to change lanes (Y), "lane guidance flag when entering an intersection"
Is turned on (step 112) and the process proceeds to step 113. When lane change is not necessary (step 111; N)
Proceeds directly to step 113. In step 113, it is determined whether or not a lane change is necessary before the intersection where the next guidance is required. If you need to change lanes (Y),
The “lane guidance flag when exiting the intersection” is turned on (step 114) and the process proceeds to step 115. If it is not necessary to change lanes (step 113; N), step 115 remains unchanged.
Go to.

At step 115, it is judged whether or not L (for example, 300) m before the intersection requiring the next guidance. If it is not before Lm before the intersection (N), the process returns to the main routine. If it is before Lm before the intersection (Y), it is determined whether or not the "lane guidance flag upon entering the intersection" is on (step 116). If it is on (Y), a lane guidance instruction for entering the first intersection is output (step 117),
The "lane guidance flag when entering an intersection" is turned off (step 118), and the process proceeds to step 119. In step 116, if the “lane guidance flag upon entering an intersection” is off (N), the process proceeds to step 119. Step 1
At 19, it is determined whether or not the "lane guidance flag for exiting the intersection" is on. If it is ON (Y), the lane guidance instruction after passing the first intersection is output (step 120), and the "lane guidance flag when exiting intersection" is turned off (step 12).
1) Return to the main routine. The lane guidance instruction after passing the first intersection is, for example, "please keep in the left (right) lane after passing the intersection."

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the lane guidance after the first intersection is passed together with the lane guidance instruction when entering the first intersection at a point a predetermined distance before the first intersection. Since the instruction is also output, the driver can enter the proper lane for turning the second intersection while turning the first intersection, so that smooth driving is possible.

In the operation shown in FIG. 7, immediately after the lane guidance instruction for entering the first intersection is output, the lane guidance instruction after passing the first intersection is output (step 120) to output the lane guidance instruction after passing the first intersection at a predetermined point between the point where the lane guidance instruction when entering the first intersection and the first intersection Alternatively, immediately after passing the first intersection, a lane guidance instruction for entering the second intersection may be output. Other configurations, operations and effects are similar to those of the first embodiment.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and for example, means for recognizing the currently traveling lane is provided on the navigation device side, and a lane guidance instruction corresponding to the currently traveling lane is output. You may do it. Thereby, for example, when entering the elevated road 51 as shown in FIG.
When the vehicle is in the left lane, it outputs a guidance such as "Please continue." When the vehicle is in the right lane, it outputs a guidance such as "Please enter the left lane." Or, if the number of lanes changes in the middle of the road, it is possible to output a guidance such as "Please enter the lane to the right." As a means for recognizing the lane that the vehicle is currently traveling in, for example, transmitters that synchronously transmit signals such as radio waves and light are provided on both sides of the road, and the navigation device side is provided with transmitters on both sides of the road. Each signal is detected, the deviation of the vehicle from the center of the road is detected from the detection time difference between the two signals, and the vehicle is currently traveling based on the information about the deviation from the center of the road and the road width information in the road data. It is conceivable to provide a device for recognizing the lane. Further, as another means for recognizing the lane that the vehicle is currently traveling in, a transmission device that transmits a different signal for each lane from directly above or beside the road is provided on the navigation device side. It is conceivable to provide a device that recognizes the lane in which the vehicle is currently traveling by detecting a signal from the transmitting device.

As described above in the first and second embodiments, after the voice lane guidance is performed before the intersection,
At the time of reaching the intersection, guidance is provided in the course direction.
For example, as shown in FIG. 2, it is assumed that the vehicle is traveling in the center lane of the road b and guides in the direction of the road c on the right side. In this case, before the intersection, for example, at a point of 300 m, a voice guidance "Change to the lane to the right" is displayed. Then, when the vehicle reaches a point before the intersection, for example, a point of 10 m, a voice guidance "turn right at this intersection." Further, in a four-way intersection as shown in FIG. 8, when the vehicle traveling in the leftmost lane is guided to turn in the direction of road A, the following voice guidance is given. That is, at a point 300 m before the intersection, a route change guidance such as "Please move to the right lane for two" or "Please move to the rightmost lane." And at a point 10m in front,
A guidance for changing the course is displayed, saying, "Take this intersection to the right and the road on the far right." In this way, appropriate guidance is provided according to the shape of the road.

[0027]

As described above , according to the present invention, it is possible to output detailed information of the lane to be driven to the driver before the place where the lane change is necessary. .

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a navigation device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an intersection.

3 is an explanatory diagram showing network information corresponding to the intersections in FIG. 2. FIG.

4 is an explanatory diagram showing lane data corresponding to the intersection in FIG. 2. FIG.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a branch path.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation of the navigation device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the navigation device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of an intersection.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 arithmetic unit 11 display unit 12 switch input management unit 13 current position measuring unit 14 speed sensor 15 map information storage unit 17 voice output unit 21 GPS receiver 22 direction sensor 23 distance sensor 29 speaker 31 map data reading unit 32 map drawing unit 33 Map management unit 34 Screen management unit 35 Input management unit 36 Voice output management unit 37 Overall management unit 42 Road data storage unit 43 Lane data 44 Display data storage unit

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) Reference JP-A-1-217210 (JP, A) JP-A-3-154529 (JP, A) JP-A 64-16915 (JP, A) JP-A-4- 98500 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G01C 21/00 G08G 1/0969 G09B 29/10

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A present position detecting means for detecting a present position of a vehicle and each lane of a road entering an intersection from the intersection
And lane data indicating the advancing possible road, and storage means for storing the road data, on the basis of the detected present position by said present position detecting means has been the road data stored in the storage means, to the destination a route determining means for performing the traveling direction determination, on the basis of the traveling direction determined by the route determining means, and route guidance means for outputting guidance information in the traveling direction in accordance with the current position detected by said present position detecting means a lane determining unit configured to determine the lane should travel on the basis of the stored vehicle-ray data in the storage means and the traveling direction is determined by the path determining means, indication information of the lane that is determined by the lane determining unit At a predetermined distance from the intersection where the route guidance means guides
A lane indicating means for outputting in front, and a navigation device. 2. Current position detecting means for detecting the current position of a vehicle, and from each of the lanes of the road entering the intersection from the intersection.
And lane data indicating the advancing possible road, and storage means for storing the road data, on the basis of the detected present position by said present position detecting means has been the road data stored in the storage means, to the destination Based on the route determination means for determining the traveling direction and the route determined by this route determination means,
Wherein the route guidance means for outputting guidance information in the traveling direction in accordance with the current position detected by the current position detecting means and to the vehicle line data stored and the traveling direction is determined to the storage means by the path determining means Lane determining means for determining a lane to drive based on, a lane recognizing means for recognizing a lane in which the vehicle is currently traveling, a lane to be driven determined by the lane determining means, and the lane recognizing means The route guidance means guides the lane instruction information in accordance with the currently traveling lane recognized in
A lane indicating means for outputting a predetermined distance before an intersection, and a navigation device. 3. Current position detection means for detecting the current position of the vehicle, lane data indicating which lanes increase and decrease , and road data.
And a route determining means for determining a traveling direction to a destination based on the road data stored in the storing means and the current position detected by the current position detecting means, and the route determining means. Route guidance means for outputting route guidance information according to the current position detected by the current position detection means based on the traveling direction determined by the traveling direction, and the storage direction and the traveling direction determined by the route determination means. based on the stored lane data, the traveling direction
A lane increase / decrease point determining means for determining an increase / decrease point of a lane in the same direction, and a lane increase / decrease guide means for guiding increase / decrease of a lane at a point before a predetermined distance from the lane increase / decrease point determined by the lane increase / decrease point determination means A navigation device comprising: 4. The navigation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the lane indicating means outputs the instruction information of the lane to be traveled by voice. 5. The navigation device according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores lane number data as lane data.