Nissan Motor Company Limited

Kiyomichi Yamada

Norimasa Kishi

Masaki Watanabe

Hiroshi Tsuda

Okihiko Nakayama

Yoshitaka Yatsugi

Toshiyuki Itoh

Katsuhiko Mizushima

Masayasu Iwasaki

Akio Kosaka

Kouichi Ide

In an apparatus and method for navigating a mobile body such as a vehicle or user, an accurate and easily grasping road map graphic data in a bird's eye display mode are achieved with a running route on which the mobile body has traveled maintained and having a continuity to the past running information and operability of the navigating apparatus is improved. In the navigating apparatus and method, the present position information and display parameter information are previously set, a line of sight is determined on the basis of the forwarding direction information, a view point position is determined on the basis of the forwarding direction is determined. A road map data expressed with a two-dimensional X-Y plane as a reference is stored. The road map data stored receive their coordinate transformations on the basis of the determined view point position and direction of line of sight to generate the bird's eye view. Such generated bird's eye view image data are output to a display unit so that the bird's eye view can be viewed from a display image screen. Furthermore, character data such as names of places are selectively superimposed on respective minor regions of the image screen without superimpositions on other character data belonging to adjacent minor regions.

Portable or vehicular navigating apparatus and method capable of

A bird's eye view commonly used in a flight simulation is applicable to an apparatus and method for navigating a vehicle running on a set route of travel to a set destination using a (color) display unit according to the present invention. The bird's eye view of a road map surrounding a present position of the vehicle has a viewing point placed at a predetermined position on an upper sky in a direction opposite to the set destination with the present position of the vehicle as a reference and has a line of sight looking down over the road map so that a part of the road map surrounding the present position of the vehicle can be viewed in an extended scale form and the remaining part of the road map remote from the present position and nearer to the set destination can be viewed in a gradually reduction scale form.

Apparatus and method for navigating vehicle to destination using display

A vehicle navigation system includes: a key board (9) for setting a start point and a destination of a vehicle; a speed sensor (2) for detecting vehicle travel speed; an azimuth sensor (1) for detecting travel direction; a road map data memory (3) for storing road map data related to various roads; a display unit (8); and CPU (4) provided with functions for detecting a current vehicle position (CVP) on the basis of the detected speed and direction after the start point and in accordance with road map data; calculating a recommendable route from the start point to the destination on the basis of the road map data; and forming various birds-eye view road maps. In particular, the birds-eye view road maps of different visual points (E) and different contraction scale ratios can be formed according to vehicle travel speed or according to a distance from the current vehicle position to the nearest specific traffic point (e.g., intersection); that is, various birds-eye view road maps obtained from a suitable visual point and in a suitable contraction scale ratio can be displayed at all times according to the vehicle travel conditions.

Vehicle navigation system displaying bird-eye view of different visual

A navigation system for an automotive vehicle includes a map data storage unit. The storage unit stores first known target points and adjoining target points preselected for each of the first target points from the first target points. The storage unit further stores a first data group associated with each of the first target points. Each of the first data groups includes a second data group corresponding to each of the adjoining target points of the corresponding first target point. Each of the second data groups includes an abstract configuration of the corresponding first target point and a travel information required at the corresponding first target point for going to the corresponding adjoining target point. The system selects second target points from the first target points to define a vehicle travel route. The system further selects one of the second data groups based on third and fourth target points selected from the second target points. The third target point is a next forward target point for the vehicle and the fourth target point is one of the adjoining target points of the third target point and positioned forward of the third target point. The third target point is used as the target point and the fourth target point is used as the adjoining target point for identifying the one of the second data groups. The system displays the corresponding travel information along with the abstract configuration of the third target point before the vehicle reaches the third target point.

Navigation system for automotive vehicle

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Kiyomichi Yamada