Denso Corporation

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.

Kousokuya, Inc.

Yasutaka Atarashi

Kazunori Watanabe

Takamitsu Suzuki

Takayuki Watanabe

Makoto Yano

Mitsuyasu Matsuura

Motonari Ohbayashi

Tomoki Kodan

Hiroyoshi Masuda

Toshio Shinjo

Hidetoshi Fujimoto

Toshio Nomura

Kimiyoshi Sawai

Tsuyoshi Ando

Tetsuo Kumagai

Akio Samizu

Hikaru Nagasaka

An obstacle detection apparatus for vehicles includes: a first ultrasonic sensor for detecting a distance to an obstacle; a second ultrasonic sensor at a position of the vehicle for receiving a reflection wave from the obstacle of an ultrasonic wave from the first ultrasonic wave; a notifier that gives a notification of detecting the obstacle present within a preset distance in one or more of predetermined notification areas including a first notification area for the first ultrasonic sensor, and a second notification area for the second ultrasonic sensor detects the obstacle for the vehicle; and a controller that controls contents to be notified by the notifier. Furthermore, the controller determines whether a first indirect wave distance and a second indirect wave distance are used to determine whether to give the notification of detecting the obstacle in the first notification area.

Obstacle detection apparatus for vehicles

A map difference data distribution system includes a map difference data distribution device including a map difference data storage unit storing map difference data items and a distribution unit distributing map difference data items, and a map data maintaining device including update unit updating map data based on map difference data items. The map difference data storage unit traces the updated data items and data items having dependent relationships with the updated data items back to the different version updates, and stores the data items as map difference data items. The map difference data distribution device includes a non-updated data extraction unit extracting non-updated data items from the map data maintaining device, a grouping unit grouping the data items in dependent relationships, and a distribution data generation unit generating distribution data by arranging grouped records of non-updated data items from higher priority of map element under specified communication traffic volume.

Map difference data distribution system, map difference data distribution device, map data maintaining device, update management server, and map difference extraction server

A map difference data delivery system includes a map difference data delivery device and a map data holding device. The map difference data delivery device stores map difference data representing a difference between before and after version update and delivers the map difference data. The map difference data includes map elements updated in the version update and dependent map elements by dating back to update of map elements corresponding to a different version. The dependent map elements are map elements that have a dependent relationship and need to be previously updated to avoid conflict with other map elements when updated. The map difference data delivery device groups data of the dependent map elements that have a dependent relationship in the same version.

Map difference data delivery system, map difference data delivery device, map data holding device, update management server, and map difference extraction server

When an update instruction to update 'A' navigation map information and 'B' navigation map information is inputted, a CPU initializes the storage area having stored therein no map information currently in use out of the two storage areas. The CPU then reads, from a CD-ROM, the latest version of the &#x201c;A&#x201d; navigation map information or the &#x201c;B&#x201d; navigation map information that corresponds to the map information currently in use, and stores it in the initialized storage area. The CPU then updates management information, starts use of the newly stored map information, initializes the storage area having stored therein the map information whose use is stopped out of the two storage areas, reads, from the CD-ROM, the latest version of the &#x201c;A&#x201d; navigation map information or the &#x201c;B&#x201d; navigation map information not currently in use, and stores it in the initialized storage area.

Navigation apparatus and map information updating method

A map update data supply device includes: a request update data extraction unit that based on an update request extracts a request update section, and a latest version of an overwrite update data file for overwrite updating; and a safeguard update data extraction unit that extracts a safeguard update section that safeguards a network between adjacent sections, and up to an update safeguard version of a difference update data file, wherein the extracted data files are supplied to a navigation device.

Map update data supply device and map update data supply program

In map data having link information, each of the links has reference information regarding a start point node of the link, a next link in a series of links, and an upper link. Further, links are memorized in a form of link list, and the position of the link in the link list is not changed in the course of adding/deleting a link, thereby enabling a direct reference to each of the links in the link list by the position of the link. The link information organized in the above-described manner enables the ease of the update of the map data as well as the speed-up of the calculation of, for example, a navigation route.

Apparatus, program, and method for map data update

Vehicular swept path data and electronic map data representing a road map are compared with each other to compute correction information that represents the amount of deviation of the electronic map data from the vehicular swept path data with respect to each predetermined block. The electronic map data is corrected using the computed correction information, and the corrected electronic map data is provided.

Map data providing device

A navigation device has a regional map data item for each of multiple regions, into which a nation is divided. A connection table is included in a regional map data item for a certain region and associates (i) a certain ID of a connection road in the certain region with a certain connection number. The connection road is connected with a paired connection road in an adjacent region. A connection table of a regional map data item for the adjacent region associates an ID of the paired connection road with the same connection number as the certain connection number. When the certain ID in the certain region is replaced with a different ID because of a road construction or the like, only the certain ID is replaced in the connection table with the certain connection number unchanged. This eliminates need of amending the connection table for the adjacent region.

Growing community of inventors

Kariya, Japan

Yasutaka Atarashi