Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.

Kyoumi Morimoto

Mitsuhiro Nimura

Hiroyoshi Masuda

Shoji Yokoyama

Kazuteru Maekawa

Akimasa Nanba

Shigekazu Ohara

Kiyohide Kato

Naokazu Ozaki

Hiroaki Kondo

Masahiro Suetsugu

Naoko Sugiura

A vehicle navigation apparatus in accordance with the present invention includes a CDROM (,) for storing all the data required for navigation processing such as maps and voice data, and a buffer (,-,) for accessing CDROM (,) to prepare beforehand a phrase necessary for the navigation guidance. A control device (,) selects appropriate phrases corresponding to the present vehicle position and reads out the selected phrases from the buffer, (,-,) successively, in response to a request signal supplied from a request sensor (,) which is output in response to the driver's request. The thus processed navigation information data is transformed into voice signals through a decoder (,-,) and output from a speaker (,) as a voice response. The control device (,) checks whether or not a phrase prepared in the buffer (,-,) is a frequently used phrase and replaces this phrase with a new phrase if this phrase is not frequently used. Furthermore, the control device (,) sets discriminating flags to the selected phrases and continuously reads out these phrases with the discriminating flags, in a predetermined order, in accordance with the driver's request, so as to execute voice response processing.

Vehicle navigation apparatus providing both automatic guidance and guidance information in response to manual input request

Goals desired by a user are searched based on the search reference data that serve as reference for searching the goals, the order of priority of the goals is determined from a relationship between the data of goals and the data of a reference position, and the data of the thus determined order of priority are indicated. Even when the car is running, therefore, the user is allowed to easily select within a short time the goals that conform to his desire with reference to the order of priority. Accordingly, the user can devote himself to driving. When the goals are to be indicated, a map scale is so determined that the goals are indicated in a predetermined number or in a number not less than the predetermined number, and the goals are indicated on the map of this scale. Therefore, the scale of the map picture indicating the goals is automatically so adjusted, and can be easily discerned by the user. Therefore, the user is liberated from the need to manually adjust the reduced scale.

Navigation device

Geographical, guide or search information and route information are stored in storage sections. An arithmetic section provides a route researching function with preference for the traveling direction of a vehicle. A route-calculating section is provided for re-calculating the route, and a route guide control system is also provided, inclusive of a route deviation-detecting section. The re-calculating section calculates either the shortest route from the point of deviation to the previous route or a new route to the destination. In case of the search of the shortest route to the previous route, the shortest route from the present location to the previous route is searched giving preference to the traveling direction, e.g. avoidance of a U-turn, on the basis of the search information relating to the immediate vicinity of the present location, so that the route to rejoin the previous route can be quickly calculated. In case of search of a new route, the whole route from the present location to the destination is searched, again giving weight to the present traveling direction, on the basis of the search information relating to the area between the present location and the destination, to guide the driver along a new route completely different from the previous one.

Navigation system with recalculation of return to guidance route

A navigation system for use in a vehicle including a route-calculating section and a route guide control section. The route-calculating section searches for an optimum route according to conditions set for the search. The guide control section provides displays necessary to guide the driver of the vehicle, and guides the driver by speech. This guide control has a landmark name-setting section which sets the names of landmarks according to information about the landmarks, the information retrieved from a guidance information storage section according to information about the present position from a present position-determining section. A display section displays a whole route map indicating the selected route according to instructions from the route guidance control section. At the same time, the names of the landmarks are presented on the display section. When the navigation system guides the driver to a destination via a tollway such as a toll highway, the name of an entry/exit interchange connecting to the highway is displayed. This permits the driver to take a familiar route up to this interchange.

Navigation system for vehicle

Growing community of inventors

Nishio, Japan

Kyoumi Morimoto