Patent Document

PRIORITY CLAIM 
     The present application is a 35 U.S.C. 371 filing of International Patent Application Number PCT/JP2007/064017 filed on Jul. 13, 2007, which is based on and claims the priority benefit of Japanese Patent Application 2006-222071 filed on Aug. 16, 2006, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     The present application is based on and claims the priority benefit of Japanese Patent Application 2006-222071 filed on Aug. 16, 2006, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a navigation apparatus which is configured to guide a mobile subject, a navigation server which is configured to support the guidance of the mobile subject performed by the navigation apparatus on the basis of communication with the navigation apparatus, and a navigation system comprised of the navigation apparatus and the navigation server. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     There has been disclosed an art which displays information for specifying an area where the traffic may be obstructed by weather conditions or the like on a navigation apparatus, and re-searches a route on a condition that a preliminarily searched route is contained in the specified area (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2002-156236, paragraphs 0040, 0041, 0056 and 0059, FIG. 3 and FIG. 5). 
     However, in the case where a traffic regulation is not conducted in the specified area and therefore it is not necessary to detour along the re-searched route, as a result, the detour may make a vehicle travel a longer distance than necessary. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been accomplished in view of the aforementioned problems, and it is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide a navigation apparatus which may output information relating to situation information of a specified area on the basis of real-time traffic information including a traffic regulation. 
     The navigation apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention, which is configured to guide a mobile subject on the basis of communication with a navigation server, includes: a first processing element which is configured to define a navigation route joining a present position and a destination position of the mobile subject on the basis of navigation map information stored in a navigation map storing element and road traffic information distributed or broadcasted from the navigation server; and a second processing element which is configured to recognize a specified area and situation information representing a situation which affects the movement of the mobile subject in the specified area on the basis of communication with the navigation server, determine whether an entry position to the specified area is present in the navigation route defined by the first processing element, and output an icon having a design in relation to the situation information to the entry position on a map based on the navigation map on a condition that the presence of the entry position is determined. 
     According to the navigation apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention, in the case where the mobile subject is moving along the navigation route, a user may recognize the entry position of the mobile subject to the specified area and the situation information of a situation happening or possible to happen in the specified area via an icon. Thereby, it is possible for the user to take an appropriate action according to the situation information, such as determining whether to detour the specified area, issuing a re-searching instruction for another route to the navigation apparatus on the basis of the determination, or detouring along the navigation route outputted. 
     A second aspect of the present invention is dependent on the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the second processing element recognizes a distance from the present position of the mobile subject to the entry position to the specified area in the navigation route, and outputs an approaching notification indicating an approach to the specified area on a condition that the distance is equal to or smaller than a predefined distance. 
     According to the navigation apparatus of the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible for a driver of the mobile subject to recognize the approach of the entry position to the specified area from the output of the approaching notification when the mobile subject is moving along the navigation route. 
     According to the navigation server of the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible for the navigation apparatus to recognize whether an entry position to the specified area is present in a navigation route where the mobile subject is moving and the situation information of the specified area. According thereto, it is possible for the navigation apparatus to output or display an icon having a design corresponding to the entry position and the situation information at an appropriate position on the map. Thereby, it is possible for the user to take an appropriate action according to the situation information, such as determining whether to detour the specified area, issuing a re-searching instruction for another route to the navigation apparatus on the basis of the determination, detouring along the outputted navigation route, or the like. 
     To attain the aforementioned problems, a navigation system of a fourth aspect of the present invention is comprised of the navigation apparatus of the first aspect or the second aspect of the present invention, and the navigation server of the third aspect of the present invention. 
     According to the navigation system of the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible for a user to recognize whether an entry position to the specified area is present in the navigation route where the mobile subject is moving and the situation information of the specified area via the navigation apparatus. Accordingly, it is possible for the user to take an appropriate action according to the situation information, such as issuing a re-searching instruction for another route to the navigation apparatus on the basis of the determination, detouring along the outputted navigation route, or the like. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a structural diagram illustrating a configuration of a navigation system according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a functional diagram illustrating the functions of the navigation system according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a functional diagram illustrating the functions of the navigation system according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a functional diagram illustrating the functions of the navigation system according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, embodiments of a navigation apparatus, a navigation server and a navigation system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a structural diagram illustrating the configuration of the navigation system of the present invention.  FIG. 2  to  FIG. 4  are functional diagrams of the navigation system of the present invention. 
     The configuration of the navigation system of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIG. 1 . 
     The navigation system is comprised of a navigation server  100 , and a navigation apparatus  200  which is mounted in a vehicle (mobile subject) Q. It should be noted that the navigation apparatus  200  may be mounted in a mobile subject other than a vehicle. It is also acceptable for the navigation apparatus  200  to be carried by a user. 
     The navigation server  100  is comprised of one or a plurality of server computers. The navigation server  100  is provided with a first road traffic information storing element  101 , a second road traffic information storing element  102 , a situation information storing element  103 , a support map storing element  104 , a first support processing element  110 , and a second support processing element  120 . 
     The first road traffic information storing element  101  is stored with first road traffic information (required moving time, traffic congestion information or the like for an individual link) on the basis of probe information (position of an individual probe car at an individual time) transmitted or uploaded from the navigation apparatus  200  to the navigation server  100 . The navigation apparatus  200  is mounted in a vehicle Q which serves as a probe car or a floating car. 
     The second road traffic information storing element  102  is stored with second road traffic information (traffic regulation information, event information around an individual link, event type information if there were an event and the like, in addition to the required moving time and traffic congestion information for the individual link) transmitted from a road traffic information center server or the like to the navigation server  100 . 
     The situation information storing element  103  is stored with an area (a specified area) where a situation which is possible to exert obstruction against the moving or traveling of the vehicle Q is happening or is possible to happen, and situation information of the situation (summary of the situation, effect extent of the situation against the moving of the vehicle Q). The specified area and the situation information are associated to each other. The specified area and the situation information stored in the situation information storing element  103  may be updated appropriately according to the variations of the specified area and the situation information, respectively. 
     The support map storing element  104  is stored with support map information. In the support map information, the location, shape and posture or the like of an individual link constituting a road are expressed by a series of coordinates ((latitude, longitude), or (latitude, longitude, altitude)). Moreover, an individual link is tagged with link identification information for identifying the individual link and road type data. The boundary of an individual area is defined according to the series of coordinates of the support map information stored in the support map storing element  104 . 
     The first support processing element  110  searches or retrieves the situation information from the situation information storing element  103 . The second support processing element  120 , on the basis of communication with the navigation apparatus  200 , causes the navigation apparatus  200  to recognize the specified area A and the situation information inf(A). 
     The navigation apparatus  200  is comprised of an ECU or a computer mounted in the vehicle Q as hardware, and a navigation program which provides the computer with various functions. It should be noted that the navigation program may be pre-installed in the memory (ROM) in the vehicular computer; or the entire or a part of the navigation program may be downloaded or broadcasted from a server (not shown) via a network or a satellite to the vehicular computer to store in the memory (EEPROM, RAM) or the like thereof at an arbitrary timing when there is a request or the like from the vehicular computer. 
     The navigation apparatus  200  is provided with an input device  201 , an output device  202 , a navigation map storing element  204 , a first processing element  210 , and a second processing element  220 . 
     The input device  201  is comprised of operating buttons disposed in a center console and a microphone in the vehicle Q. It is possible for a user to perform various settings by operating or vocally instructing the input device  201 . The output device  202  is a display device disposed in the center console of the vehicle Q for displaying or outputting map information or the like. 
     The navigation map storing element  204  is stored with navigation map information or the like to be output to the output device  202 . In the navigation map information, the location, shape and posture or the like of an individual link constituting a road are expressed by a series of coordinates. Moreover, an individual link is tagged with the link identification information for identifying the individual link. Even the definitions of the coordinates in the navigation map information and the support map information are different due to the different specifications and data architectures therebetween, it is possible to match the links by tagging the identical links with common link identification information. 
     The first processing element  210  searches or defines a navigation route r which is comprised of a plurality of links and joins a present position p 1  and a destination p 2  of the vehicle Q. 
     The second processing element  220  recognizes the specified area A and the situation information inf(A) representing a situation which will affect the moving of the vehicle Q in the specified area A, and outputs the navigation route r defined by the first processing element  210  to the output device  202 . 
     Further, the second processing element  220  determines whether an entry position p in  to the specified area A is present in the navigation r. On a condition that the presence of the entry position p in  is determined, the second processing element  220  displays the entry position p in  on a map based on the navigation map information and outputs an icon x having a design corresponding to the situation information inf (A) to the output device  202 . 
     Furthermore, the second processing element  220  recognizes a distance from the present position p 1  to the entry position p in  along the searched navigation route r, and outputs a notification when the distance is equal to or smaller than a predefined distance. 
     Note that “a component of the navigation server  100  or the navigation apparatus  200  which serves as hardware “recognizes” information” means that the component performs a possible information processing on apiece of information to prepare the piece of information ready for other information processing, for example, the component receives the piece of information; searches the piece of information in a database or memory or retrieves the piece of information from a database or memory; calculates, estimates, configures, determines, searches the piece of information or the like via arithmetic processing on the basis of the received basic information or the like; elicits information by decoding packages; and stores in memory or the like the calculated information or the like. In addition, “a component serving as hardware “outputs” information” means that the component outputs the information in form of picture, voice, vibration and the like, which may be recognized by a human by means of five senses thereof such as eyesight, hearing, touch, etc. 
     The function of the navigation system with the above-mentioned configuration will be explained with reference to  FIG. 2  through  FIG. 4 . 
     The first processing element  210  in the navigation apparatus  200  recognizes the present position p 1  and the destination position p 2  of the vehicle Q (FIG.  2 /S 211 ). The present position of the vehicle Q is calculated or determined according to an arithmetic computation on GPS signals received by a GPS receiver, or output signals from a vehicular acceleration sensor or a vehicular gyro sensor. The destination position p 2  of the vehicle Q is defined or recognized on the basis of operation signals inputted via the input device  201  to the navigation apparatus  200  or phonetic signals issued by the user. 
     The first processing element  210  retrieves the navigation map information from the navigation map storing element  204 , and receives the road traffic information (containing the first road traffic information and the second road traffic information) distributed or broadcasted from the navigation server  100 . Thereafter, on the basis of the navigation map information and the road traffic information, the first processing element  210  searches one or a plurality of routes joining the present position p 1  and the destination position p 2  of the vehicle Q (FIG.  2 /S 212 ). The road traffic information contains cost (required moving time or the like) for an individual link. If the cost for a link where traffic regulation, for example, is probably conducted is high, a route which does not contain the link may be searched in high priority. Accordingly, the navigation route r which joins the present position p 1  and the destination position p 2  of the vehicle Q and contains a plurality of links is searched or defined, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , for example. 
     In the navigation server  100 , the first support processing element  110  searches the specified area A and the situation information inf(A) from the situation information storing element  103  (FIG.  2 /S 122 ). Thereby, a framed specified area A illustrated in  FIG. 3 , for example, is recognized. The situation information inf(A) includes weather-relating information or natural phenomenon-relating information, such as “The precipitation is surpassing 00 mm/h, therefore, it is possible for the floods or the earth-flow disaster to happen.”, “The vision is bad due to fog.”, “There is a earth fissure occurred.” and the like, and man-made disaster-related information, such as “The vehicles involved in the traffic accident are still left on the road.”, “There is a fire nearby.” and the like. Thereafter, the second support processing element  120  distributes or broadcasts the specified area A and the situation information inf(A) to the navigation apparatus  200  (FIG.  2 / Arrow A 1 ). 
     Accordingly, the second processing element  220  receives or recognizes the specified area A and the situation information inf (A) distributed or broadcasted from the navigation server  100  (FIG.  2 /S 221 ). Thereafter, the second processing element  220  determines where the entry position p in  to the specified area A is present in the navigation route r searched by the first processing element  210  (FIG.  2 /S 222 ). For example, in the case where the mobile subject is passing the specified area A in the searched navigation route r as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the presence of the entry position p in  is determined. 
     In the case where the presence of the entry position p in  is determined (FIG.  2 /S 222  . . . YES), the second processing element  220  outputs the icon x indicating the entry position p in  at the searched navigation router to the output device  202  (FIG.  2 /S 223 ). Thereby, as illustrated in an example in  FIG. 4 , a map with the searched navigation route r, the icon x and the situation information inf(A) is displayed on the output device  202 . The design of the icon x is configured in association with the situation information inf(A) and is stored in memory. 
     Subsequently, the second processing element  220  recognizes or measures a distance from the present position p 1  of the vehicle Q to the entry position p in  to the specified area A. Thereafter, the second processing element  220  determines whether the distance is within a predefined distance (FIG.  2 /S 224 ). 
     If the determination result is positive (FIG.  2 /S 224  . . . YES), an approaching notification indicating an approach to the entry position p in  to the specified area A is outputted. Thereby, for example, when the distance is equal to or smaller than the predefined distance, a piece of message, such as “The road ahead is slippery due to rain.” or the like is displayed on the output device (display device)  202 ; or the aforementioned message or a pop sound is phonetically output to the output device (speaker)  202 . 
     On the other hand, if the entry position p in  is determined to be absent (FIG.  2 /S 222  . . . NO), the second processing element  220  retrieves the navigation route r from memory, overlaps the navigation route r on the map based on the navigation map information and output it to the output device  202  (FIG.  2 /S 226 ). 
     According to the navigation system exhibiting the functions mentioned above, in the case where the vehicle Q enters moves along the searched navigation route r, the enter to the specified area A and the situation information inf (A) of a situation happening in the specified area A or possible to happen in the specified area can be recognized by a user via the icon x which has a design corresponding to the situation information inf (A) to indicate the entry position p in  to the specified area A (refer to FIG.  2 /S 223  and  FIG. 4 ). 
     Further, when the vehicle Q approaches the entry position p in  to the specified area A in the searched navigation route r, it will be recognized by the driver of the vehicle Q via the output of the approaching notification (refer to FIG.  2 /S 225 ). 
     Furthermore, it is possible for the user to take an appropriate action according to the situation information, such as determining whether to detour the specified area, issuing a re-searching instruction for another route to the navigation apparatus on the basis of the determination, or detouring along the outputted navigation route. 
     It is acceptable that the present position p 1  and the destination position p 2  of the vehicle Q is transmitted or uploaded from the navigation apparatus  200  to the navigation server  100 , together with a navigation identifier for identifying the navigation apparatus  200 , a support route joining the present position p 1  and the destination position p 2  is defined on the basis of the support map information or the like stored in the support map storing element  203  in the navigation server  100 , and a link identifier of an individual link constituting a part of or the entire part of the support route is transmitted or uploaded as the road traffic information from the navigation server  100  to the navigation apparatus  200  having the navigation identifier. Thereby, in the navigation apparatus  200 , the first processing element  210  may define a navigation route r which is partially or completely identical or similar to the support route (refer to FIG.  2 /S 212  and  FIG. 3 ). In other words, the navigation route r may be defined or set in the navigation apparatus  200  according to a definition algorithm for defining the support route in the navigation server  100 . 
     Although the present invention has been explained in relation to the preferred embodiments and drawings but not limited, it should be noted that other possible modifications and variations made without departing from the gist and scope of the invention will be comprised in the present invention. Therefore, the appended claims encompass all such changes and modifications as falling within the gist and scope of the present invention.

Technology Category: 3