Patent ID: 7490004

Claim:
A vehicle navigation apparatus with a searching range having directivity comprising: a display unit for providing guidance information through a screen; an information input unit for entering information designated by a user; a storage unit for storing map information including information about facilities; and a controller for controlling the input and output of information to and from said display unit, said information input unit, and said storage unit, wherein, while a map image is displayed on the screen of said display unit with reference to said map information, when a desired searching direction viewed from a base point on the map image is designated by the user, said controller searches across said map information for facilities located within a searching range having a predetermined shape and directed in the designated searching direction, and displays a list of the searched facilities on the screen of said display unit, and wherein, while the same searching direction continues to be designated by the user, said controller enlarges the searching range in stages according to the duration of the designation and searches for facilities included in the corresponding searching range at every stage of enlargement, to display the list of searched facilities on the screen of said display unit in real time.