JPH09330024A - Vehicle navigation system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Problem] To display a polygon name even when only a part of the polygon is displayed on the display screen. A plurality of registration positions Pn, Pn in a polygon
1 to Pn11 are provided with road map data including polygon data in which the polygon name "AB park" is registered, a display area of the road map is set, and polygons included in the display area are extracted. Then, the road map in the display area is displayed based on the road map data, and the polygon name is displayed at any of the registered positions included in the display area for the extracted polygon. With this, even if only a part of the polygon is displayed on the screen, the polygon name is displayed,
The polygon name can be confirmed without stopping the vehicle and scrolling the display screen as in the conventional case.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle navigation device for displaying a road map to guide an occupant.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is known a vehicular navigation device for guiding a passenger by setting a display range of a road map centering on the present location of the vehicle and displaying the display range on a display.

[0003]

By the way, lakes, parks, stadiums, schools, factories, etc. occupy certain areas on the map, and in digital road maps, the contours of these areas are polygonal. Approximately, the polygon is registered by the coordinates of each vertex of the polygon and the connection order of each vertex starting from any vertex. Depending on the shape of the polygon, valley points may be included, and in this specification, the valley points are also referred to as vertices or simply points.
The name of each polygon is a facility name of the polygon such as a lake, a park, a stadium, a school, or a factory, a place name, and a name indicating the feature of the polygon, and is registered near the center of gravity of the polygon.

In a conventional vehicle navigation system, when a vehicle passes by a XX factory having a large site as shown in FIG. 17, if a road map display area around the vehicle's present location is set to the abcd range. , ○ × A part of the polygon of Seisakusho covers the display area. In such a case, since the polygon center-of-gravity position Pn is not included in the display area abcd, the polygon name "Ox Manufacturing" is not displayed on the road map screen, and the polygon name cannot be known. Also, FIG.
The same problem occurs when a road map is displayed in a bird's eye view as shown in FIG. Especially, in the bird's-eye view road map, the area around the current location of the vehicle is greatly enlarged and displayed, so even if a part of the polygon of XX mill near the current location of the vehicle occupies the bird's-eye view display area, it occupies a large area on the display screen. . However, when the vehicle passes by the side of the XX factory, despite the polygon of the XX factory occupying a large display area,
Since the position of its center of gravity is not in the bird's eye view display area, the polygon name is not displayed.

In order to know the polygon name, the road map may be scrolled so that the polygon center of gravity position Pn falls within the display area abcd, but normally, the scroll operation cannot be performed while the vehicle is running. You have to stop and scroll through the screen to see the polygon names.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle navigation device which displays a polygon name even when only part of the polygon is displayed on the screen.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems (1) The invention according to claim 1 is a map storage means for storing road map data including polygon data in which polygon names are registered at a plurality of name registration positions in a polygon, and a road map. Area setting means for setting a display area, extraction means for extracting polygons included in the display area, a road map of the display area based on the road map data of the map storage means, and the extraction means extracted. Display means for displaying the polygon name at any name registration position included in the display area for each polygon. (2) In the vehicle navigation device according to a second aspect of the present invention, in the polygon data of the map storage means, the polygon name is included in the polygonal center of gravity position and a plurality of name registration positions set at substantially equal intervals along the polygon outline. Is to be registered. (3) In the vehicular navigation device according to the third aspect, the polygon name is displayed by the display means at a substantially barycentric position of a polygon included in the display region and having a substantially barycentric position in the display region. It was done like this. (4) In the vehicular navigation device according to the fourth aspect, the display area is displayed by the display means for polygons included in the display area and having a plurality of name registration positions other than the substantially center-of-gravity position in the display area. The polygon name is displayed at the name registration position closest to the center of the polygon. (5) In the vehicular navigation device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the polygon of the vehicle included in the display area by the display means is included in the display area including a plurality of name registration positions other than the substantially center-of-gravity position. The polygon name is displayed at the name registration position closest to the current location. (6) In the vehicle navigation device according to the sixth aspect, polygon names corresponding to respective name registration positions are registered in the polygon data of the map storage means. (7) The vehicle navigation device according to claim 7 comprises a conversion means for converting road map data into a bird's-eye view, the area setting means sets a bird's-eye view display area, and the display means converts the bird's-eye view road map converted by the conversion means. It is intended to be displayed.

[0008]

【The invention's effect】

(1) According to the invention of claim 1, road map data including polygon data in which polygon names are registered is provided at a plurality of name registration positions in the polygon, and a display area of the road map is set and included in the display area. Extract polygons. And
Since the road map of the display area is displayed based on the road map data, and the polygon name is displayed at any name registration position included in the display area for the extracted polygon, only a part of the polygon is displayed. Even if is displayed on the screen, the polygon name is displayed, and the polygon name can be confirmed without stopping the vehicle and scrolling the display screen as in the conventional case. (2) According to the invention of claim 2, in the polygon data, the names of the polygons are registered at the substantially barycentric position of the polygon and a plurality of name registration positions set at substantially equal intervals along the contour of the polygon. Therefore, even when a part of the outline of the polygon is displayed on the screen, the display area includes any polygon name registration position, and the polygon name can be displayed reliably. (3) According to the invention of claim 3, among the polygons included in the display area, the polygon name is displayed at the approximate center of gravity position of the polygon whose approximate center of gravity position is included in the display area. When many parts of the polygon are displayed on the screen, the polygon name is displayed at the center of gravity of the polygon, and the polygon name is easy to see. (4) According to the invention of claim 4, among the polygons included in the display area, the polygon whose name includes a plurality of name registration positions other than the position of the substantial center of gravity is closest to the center of the display area. Since the polygon name is displayed at the name registration position, the polygon name can be easily seen. (5) According to the invention of claim 5, among the polygons included in the display area, the polygon having a plurality of name registration positions other than the substantially center-of-gravity position in the display area is registered closest to the current vehicle position. Since the polygon name is displayed at the position, it is possible to reliably display the polygon name near the current location where the occupant has a high degree of interest. (6) According to the invention of claim 6, since the polygon name corresponding to each name registration position is registered in the polygon data, the optimum polygon name can be displayed for each name registration position. (7) According to the invention of claim 7, road map data including polygon data in which polygon names are registered at a plurality of registered positions in the polygon is provided, a bird's-eye view display area is set, and polygons included in the bird's-eye view display area are set. Extract. Then, the road map data is converted to a bird's-eye view to display the road map in the bird's-eye view display area, and the polygon name is displayed at any registered position included in the bird's-eye view display area for the extracted polygon. Even when only a part of polygons is displayed on the bird's-eye view screen, the polygon name is displayed, and the polygon name can be confirmed without stopping the vehicle and scrolling the display screen as in the conventional case.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

-First Embodiment of the Invention- FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the first embodiment.
The controller 1 is composed of a microcomputer and its peripheral parts, searches for a guide route to a destination, sets a display area of the road map, and displays the road map.
The current route of the vehicle and the guide route to the destination are displayed on the road map. The azimuth sensor 2, the distance sensor 3, the GPS receiver 4, the storage device 5, and the input device 6 are connected to the controller 1. The direction sensor 2 detects the traveling direction of the vehicle,
The distance sensor 3 detects the traveling distance of the vehicle. The current position of the vehicle is detected by self-contained navigation based on the traveling distance and the traveling direction detected by the direction sensor 2 and the distance sensor 3. The GPS receiver 4 receives a GPS signal from a satellite and detects the current position, traveling direction, traveling speed, etc. of the vehicle by satellite navigation. Further, the storage device 5 is a device such as a CD-ROM that stores road map data in a plan view,
The input device 6 is a device for setting a destination and the like. The controller 1 is also connected with a display 7 for displaying a road map and character information, a speaker 8 for performing voice guidance, and the like.

FIG. 2 shows the arrangement of polygon name registration positions in this embodiment. As described above, conventionally, the polygon name is registered at the center of gravity Pn of the polygon. In this embodiment, a polygon name is registered in the center of gravity position Pn, and a plurality of positions Pn at substantially equal intervals along the contour of the polygon are registered.
Polygon names are additionally registered in 1 to Pn6. This allows
Even if part of the polygon enters the display area of the road map,
Since any of the name registration positions is included in the display area, the polygon name can be displayed reliably. The storage device 5 stores the above-mentioned polygon data, that is, road map data including polygon data in which polygon names are registered at the center of gravity of the polygon and a plurality of name registration positions set at substantially equal intervals along the contour of the polygon. are doing.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the polygon name display processing of the first embodiment. The controller 1
This polygon name display processing is executed every time a road map is drawn on the display 7. In step 1, a control program (not shown) is executed to read the set road map display area, and in subsequent step 2, all polygons included in the display area are extracted. At this time, polygons partially included in the display area are also extracted. In step 3, from the polygons included in the display area, it is confirmed whether or not there is a polygon including a plurality of name registration positions in the display area.

For a polygon whose display area includes a plurality of name registration positions, it is necessary to determine at which position the name is displayed. So, in step 4,
It is confirmed whether or not the barycentric position is included in the plurality of name registration positions. If the position of the center of gravity is included, the position of the center of gravity is set as the display position of the polygon name, and the process proceeds to step 5. In step 5, all the names registered in the auxiliary registration positions of the polygon outline are masked, and only the polygon names registered in the center of gravity are left. FIG. 4 shows an example of a polygon in which the display area includes a plurality of name registration positions Pn, Pn1, Pn2, Pn8, Pn11, and the center of gravity position Pn is included in the plurality of name registration positions. For this polygon,
Only the center of gravity position Pn is left as the polygon name display position, and auxiliary registration positions Pn1, Pn2, Pn of the other polygon contour parts are left.
8, all the names registered in Pn11 are masked.

For a polygon in which the display area includes a plurality of name registration positions but the center of gravity position is not included in the name registration positions, in step 6, the auxiliary registration closest to the center of the display area is performed. Select the position as the display position of the polygon name. Here, in the first embodiment for displaying the flat road map, the center of the display area is displayed at the center of the screen of the display 7. Of course, it is not always necessary to display the center of the display area in the center of the screen, but when the two are displaced, the auxiliary registration position closest to the center of the display screen may be the polygon name display position. In the following step 7, all names registered in other auxiliary registration positions are masked. FIG. 5 shows a plurality of auxiliary registration positions Pn4, Pn5, and Pn5 in the display area.
An example of a polygon that includes Pn6 but does not include the center of gravity position Pn is shown. For this polygon, the auxiliary registration position Pn5 closest to the center e of the display area is selected as the name display position, and the auxiliary registration positions Pn4 and Pn4 of the other polygon outline portion are selected.
Mask the name registered in Pn6. On the other hand, FIG.
As shown in, for a polygon whose display area includes only one name registration position, the name registration position is set as the display position of the polygon name.

In step 8, the finally selected polygon name registration position, that is, the display area includes a plurality of name registration positions. When the center of gravity position is not included, it is registered in the auxiliary registration position closest to the center position of the display area, and when the display area includes only one name registration position, it is registered in the name registration position. Draw the polygon name. In step 9, it is confirmed whether or not the above processing has been completed for all the polygons included in the display area. When the processing is completed, the polygon name display processing is ended, and if not, the processing returns to step 1 and the above processing is repeated. .

In the first embodiment described above, when the display area includes a plurality of name registration positions and the center of gravity position is not included therein, the name closest to the center of the display area is displayed. Although the polygon name is displayed at the registration position, the polygon name may be displayed at the name registration position closest to the current position of the vehicle among the plurality of name registration positions. Further, in the same polygon, the polygon names registered in the respective name registration positions do not have to be the same, and the names may correspond to the registration positions. For example, in the case of the XX factory of the above-described embodiment, the polygon name corresponding to the position in the polygon such as "○ X factory front gate" or "○ X factory back gate" is registered, and the center of the display area or the current location of the vehicle is registered. By displaying the polygon name registered at the position closest to the name registration position, it is possible to display the name of high importance to the occupant.

-Second Embodiment of the Invention- In the above-described first embodiment, the case of displaying a flat road map has been described as an example, but the second embodiment of displaying a bird's-eye view road map will be described. explain. The configuration of the second embodiment is the same as the configuration of the first embodiment shown in FIG. In the bird's-eye view road map, as shown in FIG. 7, a viewpoint B is set above a predetermined height of a point (viewpoint projection point) C which is a predetermined distance behind the current position A of the vehicle,
When the direction of the vehicle from the viewpoint B is looked down along a line of sight of a predetermined gaze angle, the display area abcd of the plan view road map developed on the XY plane is displayed on the virtual screen (display) set vertically to the line of sight. It is a perspective transformation to the screen).
The method of converting the plane road map into the bird's-eye view road map is well known, and the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 8 shows a bird's-eye view display area a on a flat road map.
Indicates bcd. In this example, a part of the uneven park around the current position of the vehicle is included in the bird's-eye view display area. FIG. 9 shows the polygon name registration positions of the uneven park shown in FIG. Center of gravity position Pn
A polygon name [concave / convex park] is registered in, and a plurality of auxiliary registration positions P11 to P1 at substantially equal intervals along the polygon outline are registered.
In the area 15, polygon names corresponding to the registered position [Concave Park Suzakuguchi], [Concave Park Nishiguchi], etc. are registered. As described above, in the bird's-eye view road map, the bird's-eye view display area abc is displayed.
Since the road map around the vehicle near the line segment cb of d is greatly enlarged and displayed, even a part of the polygon around the current position of the vehicle occupies a large display area. Therefore, it is desirable not only to display the name of the polygon around the current position of the vehicle but also to display the polygon name registered at that position at the name registration position closest to the current position of the vehicle.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing the polygon name display processing of the second embodiment. The polygon name display processing will be described by taking the road maps shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 as an example. The controller 1 executes this polygon name display processing every time a road map is drawn on the display 7. In step 11, a control program (not shown) is executed to read the set display area of the bird's-eye view road map, and in the following step 12, all polygons included in the bird's-eye view display area are extracted. At this time, polygons partially included in the bird's-eye view display area are also extracted. In step 3, from the polygons included in the bird's-eye view display area, it is confirmed whether or not there is a polygon including a plurality of name registration positions in the bird's-eye view display area.

For a polygon having a plurality of name registration positions in the bird's-eye view display area, it is necessary to determine at which position the name is to be displayed. Therefore, in step 14, it is confirmed whether or not the barycentric position is included in the plurality of name registration positions. If the position of the center of gravity is included, the position of the center of gravity is set as the display position of the polygon name in step 15
Proceed to. In step 15, all the names registered in the auxiliary registration positions of the polygon contour portion are masked, and only the polygon names registered in the center of gravity position are left.

For a polygon in which the bird's-eye view display area includes a plurality of name registration positions but the center of gravity position is not included in the name registration positions, in step 16, the auxiliary registration closest to the vehicle's current position is performed. Select the position as the display position of the polygon name. In the following step 17, all the names registered in other auxiliary registration positions are masked. FIG.
A plurality of auxiliary registration positions P11 in the bird's eye view display area abcd
An example of the polygon of the uneven park including 1, P112, P113, P114, and P115, but not including the gravity center position P1 is shown. For this polygon, the auxiliary registration position P112 closest to the current position A of the vehicle is selected as the polygon name display position, and the auxiliary registration position P11 of the other polygon outline portion is selected.
All the names registered in 1, P113, P114, and P115 are masked. On the other hand, for a polygon that has only one name registration position in the bird's eye view display area,
The name registration position is the polygon name display position.

In step 18, the polygon name registration position finally selected, that is, the bird's-eye view display area includes a plurality of name registration positions. If the center of gravity position is not included, the auxiliary registration position closest to the current position of the vehicle is registered, and if only one name registration position is included in the bird's-eye view display area, the polygon is registered in the name registration position. Draw the name. FIG. 12 shows an example in which the road map of the bird's eye view display area abcd shown in FIG. 8 is displayed. At the irregularities factory around the vehicle, at the name registration position closest to the vehicle's current location, draw the polygon name [Concave Park West Exit] registered at that position. In step 19, it is confirmed whether or not the above processing has been completed for all the polygons included in the bird's eye view display area. When the processing is completed, the polygon name display processing is ended, and if not so, the processing returns to step 11 to perform the above processing. repeat.

-Modification of the Second Embodiment of the Invention- In the above-described second embodiment, the name registration position closest to the current position of the vehicle is selected as the display position of the polygon name. A modification in which the name registration position closest to the center of the display area is selected will be described. FIG.
9 is a flowchart showing a polygon name display process of a modified example of the second embodiment. In this modified example, only the process of step 16 in FIG. 10 is different. In the step 16A, the auxiliary registration position closest to the center of the bird's-eye view display area is set for a polygon in which the bird's-eye view display area includes a plurality of name registration positions but the center of gravity position is not included in the name registration positions. Is selected as the display position of the polygon name. The center of the bird's-eye view display area is the intersection D of the diagonal lines ac and bd of the bird's-eye view display area abcd as shown in FIG.
5, the name registration position P11 closest to the center D
Select 2 as the display position of the polygon name. And in FIG.
As shown in, at the name registration position P112, the polygon name “concave / convex park west exit” registered at that position is drawn. In FIG. 16, the line segment ad on the display screen is the horizon, and the upper part thereof represents the sky. In this variation,
An example in which the center D of the bird's-eye view display area is shifted slightly downward from the center of the screen of the display 7 is shown. In this case, instead of selecting the name registration position closest to the center D of the bird's-eye view display area, the name registration position closest to the center of the display screen may be selected.

In the above-described embodiment and its modified example, road map data in which polygon names are registered at the center of gravity of a polygon and a plurality of auxiliary registration positions set at substantially equal intervals along the contour of the polygon. As described above by way of example, the registration positions of polygon names and the number of polygon names are not limited to those in the above-described embodiments, and when a part of a polygon overlaps the road map display area, at least one name registration position is displayed in the display area. It is desirable to arrange so as to be included in.

In the configuration of the above embodiment, the storage device 5 constitutes map storage means, the controller 1 constitutes area setting means, extraction means and conversion means, and the controller 1 and display 7 constitute display means.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a polygon in which name registration positions are set at substantially equal intervals along the contour of the polygon.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a polygon name display process.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a name display process for a polygon whose display area includes a center of gravity position and an auxiliary registration position.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a name display process for a polygon whose display area includes a plurality of auxiliary registration positions.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a name display process for a polygon in which only one auxiliary registration position is included in the display area.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a display principle of a bird's-eye view road map.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a bird's-eye view display area on a flat road map.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a name registration position and a registered name of a polygon.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a polygon name display process of the second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a method of selecting a polygon name display position according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a polygon name display screen according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing polygon name display processing of a modified example of the second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the center of a bird's-eye view display area.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a method of selecting a polygon name display position according to a modified example of the second embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a polygon name display screen according to a modification of the second embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a display example of polygons in a conventional flat road map.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a display example of polygons in a conventional bird's-eye view road map.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 controller 2 direction sensor 3 distance sensor 4 GPS receiver 5 storage device 6 input device 7 display 8 speaker

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A map storage means for storing road map data including polygon data in which polygon names are registered at a plurality of name registration positions in a polygon, an area setting means for setting a display area of the road map, and the display area. And a road map of the display area based on the road map data of the map storage means, and each polygon extracted by the extraction means is included in the display area. And a display means for displaying the polygon name at any of the registered name positions. 2. The vehicle navigation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the polygon data in the map storage means has a plurality of name registrations set at substantially equal intervals along the polygonal center of gravity position and polygon outline. A vehicle navigation device characterized in that a polygon name is registered in a position and a polygon. 3. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 2, wherein the display unit has a substantially center of gravity for polygons included in the display area and having a substantially center of gravity position in the display area. A vehicle navigation device characterized by displaying a polygon name at a position. 4. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 2, wherein the display unit includes a polygon including a plurality of name registration positions other than the substantially barycentric position in the display area among the polygons included in the display area. On the other hand, the vehicle navigation device is characterized in that the polygon name is displayed at the name registration position closest to the center of the display area. 5. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 2, wherein the display unit includes a polygon including a plurality of name registration positions other than the substantially center-of-gravity position in the display area among polygons included in the display area. On the other hand, the vehicle navigation device is characterized in that the polygon name is displayed at the name registration position closest to the current position of the vehicle. 6. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, wherein a polygon name corresponding to each name registration position is registered in the polygon data of the map storage means. Navigation device for vehicles. 7. The vehicle navigation device according to claim 1, further comprising a conversion unit that converts the road map data into a bird's-eye view, wherein the area setting unit sets a bird's-eye view display area, The navigation device for a vehicle, wherein the display means displays the bird's-eye view road map converted by the conversion means.