Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.

Yukio Yamamoto

Yumi Shibata

Hiroki Ishikawa

Toshihiro Kano

Tomoki Kubota

Katsuya Maruyama

Traffic situation determination systems, methods, and programs acquire a current position of the vehicle based on a radio signal received from a GPS satellite and determine a first travel path of the vehicle based on the acquired position of the vehicle. The systems, methods, and programs determine whether a road on which the vehicle is traveling has a traffic jam. If the road on which the vehicle is traveling has a traffic jam, the systems, methods and programs transmit first information relating to the first travel path from the vehicle to an information center. The systems, methods, and programs receive second information relating to a second travel path of the vehicle, the second information being received from a mobile phone communication center and being based on a mobile phone signal received by the mobile phone communication center. The systems, methods, and programs determine a road corresponding to the first travel path as having a traffic jam and determine a road corresponding to the second travel path, and not corresponding to the first travel path, as having no traffic jam.

Traffic situation determination systems, methods, and programs

A navigation system presents and updates information that allows the driver to determine an appropriate vehicle speed and a steering angle depending on a condition or a feature of a road. The navigation system includes storage means for storing map data, a display for displaying information, a vehicle speed sensor for detecting a vehicle speed, and a controller for determining the shape of a road section being approached by a vehicle, based on the map data and the vehicle speed, and controlling the display to display the shape of the road.

Navigation system

Vehicle position information providing devices, methods, and programs acquire a first current position of a vehicle based on a radio signal received from a GPS satellite and acquire a second current position of the vehicle based on a signal received by a communication device that communicates over a mobile phone network. The devices, methods, and programs determine whether the first current position and the second current position coincide. If the first current position and the second current position do not coincide, the devices, methods, and programs cause the communication device to transmit information relating to the first current position to an information center.

Vehicle position information providing devices, methods, and programs

Responsive to braking, a CPU of a driving assist apparatus calculates an average deceleration of the vehicle and then calculates a braking distance. The CPU further calculates a final position at which the vehicle will come to a stop, on the basis of the braking distance. The CPU next activates an assist display for display a map including, superimposed thereon, the route to the final position and an arrival indicator indicating the stop (final) position of the vehicle.

Driving assist method and driving assist apparatus for vehicle

Apparatus, methods, and programs display a virtual escort vehicle that appears to be driving ahead of a user's vehicle on at least one of a windshield of the user's vehicle and a display disposed in front of a driving seat of the user's vehicle and display a driving instruction for the user's vehicle based on actual driving condition information and standard driving condition information for a predetermined reference point located ahead of the current position of the user's vehicle.

Growing community of inventors

Okazaki, Japan

Yukio Yamamoto