Patent ID: 8977550
Filing Date: 2015-03-10
Classification: G01C

Abstract:
1. An information providing apparatus which generates speech information to be provided to an occupant of a vehicle based on various kinds of information inputted to the vehicle, the information providing apparatus comprising: a speech information storage section adapted to store a plurality of speech part units of speech information; a speech information set generation sections connected to the speech information storage section and being adapted to arrange the speech part units of speech information stored in the speech information storage section in a predetermined order to generate a sentence unit of a speech information set; and a priority interrupt information processing section connected to the speech information storage section, and when priority interrupt information having a higher priority rank than the speech information set is inputted during a reproduction process of the speech information set, the priority interrupt information processing section is adapted to reproduce the speech information set being currently reproduced and to start a reproduction process of the priority interrupt information; and when the priority interrupt information having the higher priority rank than the speech information being currently reproduced is inputted, the priority interrupt information processing section is adapted to reproduce the speech information set being currently reproduced at a point in time later than a point in time at which the priority interrupt information is inputted, and then to start the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information, wherein each of the plural speech part units of speech information has either a first attribute or a second attribute applied thereto, the first attribute signifying “interrupt possible after reproduction” with which the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information is adapted to be started after the speech information is reproduced, and the second attribute signifying “interrupt impossible after reproduction” with which the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information is adapted to be not started even after the speech information is reproduced, wherein when the priority interrupt information having the higher priority rank than the speech information set being currently reproduced is inputted, and the speech part unit of speech information has the first attribute applied thereto, the priority interrupt information processing section is adapted to start the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information after the speech part unit is reproduced, and when the speech part unit of speech information being reproduced at a point in time at which the priority interrupt information has the second attribute applied thereto, the priority interrupt information processing section is adapted to continue and to complete the reproduction process of the speech information set, and then to start and to complete the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information after the reproduction process of the speech part unit of speech information having the first attribute applied thereto, wherein each of the plural speech part units of speech information has either a third attribute or a fourth attribute further applied thereto, the third attribute signifying “omission possible,” and the fourth attribute signifying “omission impossible,” and when the priority interrupt information having the higher priority rank than the speech information set being currently reproduced is inputted, and the speech part unit has the first attribute applied thereto, the priority interrupt information processing section is adapted to start the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information after the speech part unit of speech information is reproduced, and when the speech part unit of speech information being reproduced at a point in time at which the priority interrupt information has the second attribute applied thereto, the priority interrupt information processing section is adapted to continue the reproduction process of the speech information set and to omit the speech part unit having the third attribute applied thereto and which is disposed before the speech part unit of speech information having the first attribute applied thereto and which is scheduled to be reproduced subsequently, and then is adapted to start the reproduction process of the priority interrupt information after the reproduction process of the speech part unit having the first attribute applied thereto is completed.