Navigation device and method for displaying alternative routes

ES 2 304 606 T3

DESCRIPTION

Navigation device and method for exchanging data between resident applications.

Background of the invention

1. Field of the invention

This invention relates to a navigation device, such as a GPS-based receiver, that can display simulated navigation data, and to a related method. The device finds a specific application such as a car navigation system. Data can be exchanged between applications resident on the device.

2. Description of prior art

GPS-based devices are well known and widely used as car navigation systems. Reference may be made to the Navigator series software of the present assignee, TomTom BV This is software that, when operated on a PDA (such as a Compaq iPaq) connected to an external GPS receiver, allows a user to enter addresses on the PDA. start and destination. The software then calculates the best path between the two extreme points and displays instructions on how to navigate that path. By using position information derived from the GPS receiver, the software can determine at regular intervals the position of the PDA (typically mounted on the dashboard of a vehicle), and can display the current position of the vehicle on a map, and display (and pronounce) appropriate navigation instructions (for example, “100 m left turn”). Graphics describing the actions to be carried out (for example an arrow to the left, indicating a next turn to the left) can be displayed in a status bar, and can also be superimposed on the corresponding junctions / curves, etc. on the roads shown on the map itself. Reference can also be made to devices that integrate a GPS receiver in a programming device, programmed with a cartographic database, and that can generate navigation instructions on a screen. The term "navigation device" refers to a device that allows a user to drive to a predefined destination. The device may have an internal system for receiving location data, such as a GPS receiver, or it may simply be connectable to a receiver that can receive location data.

Reference may be made to document WO 01/74 037, in which a mobile wireless device with a GPS receiver, capable of obtaining longitude and latitude information, sends such information to a remote web server, over a wireless network, for reverse geocoding - that is, determining postal addresses from latitude and longitude. Such postal addresses are then returned to the wireless device over the wireless network, to allow the device to display its location in street / city format.

Summary of the invention

In a first aspect, there is a navigation device programmed with a cartographic database, and a navigation software that allows the planning of an itinerary, where the navigation software presents an interface that is used by multiple resident applications on the device, to allow the transfer of address data in street and city format, or postal code, used by each of the multiple applications, to and / or from the navigation software, and where the device is further programmed to be able to display a menu option which, when selected, causes the automatic export of address data in street, city or postal code format , from one of the multiple resident applications on the device, to the resident navigation software on the device, for processing.

By providing the navigation software on the same device as the multiple applications, address data in street, city or postal code format, and allowing the export of such data from one or multiple applications to the navigation software, it is possible that the device quickly process such data in new and useful ways. For example, the selection of the menu option can initiate the conversion of the address data, to an address based on a coordinate system, by the navigation software, which can then automatically be set as the destination address used by the navigation software. navigation to calculate the itinerary, and / or be automatically marked on a generated map and be displayed by the navigation software.

Furthermore, the coordinate system-based address can be automatically returned to the application (or to a different application resident on the device), and stored as part of the data supported by, or accessible by, such application.

Brief description of the drawings

The present invention is described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a screenshot from a navigation device that implements the present invention; the screenshots show a flat map view, and a status bar that runs along the bottom of the image;

ES 2 304 606 T3 figure 2 is a screenshot from the navigation device, enlarging a 3D view;

Figure 3 is a screenshot from the navigation device, showing various itinerary planning functions, which allow a user to request the device to represent a new route to the destination point and to be (i) an alternative route ; (ii) avoid an impending roadblock; (iii) avoid predefined roads, or (iv) be a return to the original itinerary.

Detailed description

System Overview

The present invention is implemented in the TomTom BV software called Navigator. The Navigator software runs on a touch screen (ie, contract pen controlled) Pocket PC-enabled PDA device, such as the Compaq iPaq. This provides a GPS-based navigation system, when the PDA is paired with a GPS receiver. The combined PDA and GPS receiver system is designed to be used as an in-vehicle navigation system. The invention can also be implemented by any other navigation device arrangement, such as one with an integral GPS / computer / display receiver, a device designed for non-vehicle use (for example, for pedestrians), or for other non-vehicle vehicles. be cars (for example, boats). The navigation device can implement any kind of position sensing technology, and is not limited to GPS; therefore, it can be implemented using other classes of GNSS (global navigation satellite system) such as the European Galileo system. Likewise, it is not limited to satellite-based speed / location systems, but can also be deployed using ground beacons, or any other kind of system that allows the device to determine its geographical location.

When the Navigator software runs on a PDA, it results in a navigation device that causes the screen to be displayed in normal navigation mode, shown in Figure 1. This view provides driving instructions using the combination of text, symbols, voice guides and a moving map. The following are key elements of the user interface: A 2-D map 1 takes up most of the screen. The map shows the user's vehicle and its immediate surroundings, rotated in such a way that the direction in which the vehicle is moving is always "up". Across the bottom quarter of the screen is the status bar 2. The current location of the device, which the device itself determines using conventional GPS location and finding its orientation (which is inferred from its direction of travel), is described by an arrow 3. The itinerary calculated by the device (using the device's itinerary calculation algorithms, applied to map data stored in a cartographic database in the memory of the device) is shown as the darkened part 4, on which it overlays arrows that provide the direction of travel. On the darkened path 4, all the main actions (for example turning corners, junctions, roundabouts, etc.) are schematically described by arrows 5 superimposed on path 4. Status bar 2 also includes on its left side a schematic description 6 of the next action (here, a right turn). Status bar 2 also shows the distance to the next action (that is, to the right turn - here the distance is 220 meters), which is extracted from a database of the entire itinerary calculated by the device (that is, , a list of all the roads and related actions, which defines the itinerary to be adopted). The status bar 2 also shows the name of the current road 8, the estimated time before arrival 9 (here, 2 minutes and 40 seconds), the actual estimated arrival time 10 (11:36 am) and the distance to destination 11 (1.4 km). The strength of the GPS signal is displayed on a mobile phone type signal strength indicator 12.

If the user touches the center of the screen 13, then a screen menu, navigation is displayed; from this menu other central navigation functions can be started or controlled within the Navigator application. Allowing selection of navigation functions from a screen menu, which is invoked very easily (for example, in a single step from the map display to the menu screen) greatly simplifies user interaction, and makes it faster and easier. simple.

The area of ​​the touch zone that needs to be traced by a user is much larger than in most touchscreen systems based on contact skin. It is designed to be large enough to be feasibly selected by a single finger, without special precision; that is, to imitate real life conditions for a driver, when he is controlling a vehicle; the driver will have little time to look at an extremely detailed screen, with small control icons, and even less time to precisely press one of such small control icons. Therefore, using a very large touch screen associated with a given soft key (or a hidden soft key, be it in the center of screen 13) is a deliberate design feature of this implementation. Unlike other stylus-based applications, this design feature is consistently displayed throughout the Navigator, to select essential functions that are likely to be required by a driver while driving. Therefore, as long as the user is given the option to select on-screen icons (for example control icons, or buttons on a virtual keyboard to enter a destination address) then the layout of such icons / buttons is kept simple, and the associated touch screen areas are expanded to a size such that each icon / button can be unambiguously selected with the finger. In practice, the associated area of ​​the touch screen will be of the order of at least 0.7 cm², and it will typically be a square area. In normal navigation mode the device displays a map. Touch the map (that is, the touchscreen) once (or twice in a different implementation) near the center of the

ES 2 304 606 T3 screen (or anywhere on the screen, in another implementation), will then invoke a navigation menu (see figure 3) with large icons, corresponding to various navigation functions such as the option to calculate a alternative route, and recalculate the route to avoid the next section of road (useful when there is a traffic jam or a big traffic jam); or recalculate the itinerary to avoid specific listed roads.

The actual physical structure of the device itself may not be fundamentally different from any conventional laptop, apart from the integral GPS receiver or a supply of GPS data from an external GPS receiver. Therefore, the memory stores the route calculation algorithms, the cartographic database and the user interface software; a microprocessor interprets and processes user inputs (for example, using the touch screen device to enter the start and destination addresses, and all other control inputs) and displays the route calculation algorithms, to calculate the optimal route. "Best" can refer to a criterion such as the shortest time, or the shortest distance, or some other factors related to the user.

More specifically, the user enters his starting position and the required destination in the normal way, in the Navigator software running on the PDA, using a virtual keyboard. The user then selects the mode in which the itinerary of a trip is calculated: various modes are offered such as a "fast" mode that calculates the itinerary very quickly, but the itinerary may not be the shortest; a "complete" mode that looks at all possible routes and finds shorter ones, but the calculation is longer, and so on. Other options are possible, such as a user defining a picturesque itinerary - for example passing through most POIs (points of interest) marked as sights of extraordinary beauty, or passing through most POIs of possible interest for children, or that uses the minimum number of crosses, and so on.

The roads themselves are described, in the cartographic database that is part of the Navigator (or in another case, that is accessed by it) that runs on the PDA, as lines - that is, vectors (for example start point, end point, direction for a road, with a complete road being made up of many hundreds of such sections, each uniquely identified by parameters with the direction of the start point / end point). Thus, a map is a set of such road vectors plus points of interest (POIs), plus road names, plus other geographic features like park boundaries, river boundaries, etc., all of which are defined in terms of vectors. . All cartographic characteristics (for example road vectors, POIs, etc.) are defined in a coordinate system that corresponds to, or is related to, the GPS coordinate system, allowing the position of a device to be located by determining it at via a GPS system, over the relevant road shown on a map.

The route calculation uses complex algorithms that are part of the Navigator software. The algorithms are applied to introduce large numbers of potential different itineraries. The Navigator software then evaluates them against user-defined criteria (or device defaults) such as full-mode exploration, scenic drive, museums, and no speed cameras. Next, the route that best satisfies the defined criteria is calculated by means of a processor in the PDA, and later stored in a database in RAM, as a sequence of vectors, road names and actions to be carried out at extreme points of the vector. (for example, corresponding to predetermined distances along each road in the itinerary, such as after 100 meters, turn left at street x).

A central feature of the Navigator is that it presents an open interface to other resident applications on the device. That way, those other applications can easily send data to the Navigator software for processing by the Navigator, and receive data from the Navigator. This allows for a number of new and powerful techniques, some of which are described below.

Geocoding

The Navigator software is programmed with the WGC 84 coordinates (or other coordinate system) of roads, and house numbers along a road. Therefore, when a user defines a street / city or postal code, start or destination address, as part of the normal itinerary planning process, the software determines the associated WGC 84 coordinates (this process is called “geocoding”); then you can also mark the start and destination positions, on the maps that you can display with appropriate icons. The browser can share this geocoding capability with other applications (for example, by making it available seamlessly and automatically from such applications).

Integration between Navigator and Contacts Application

It is possible to auto-generate an option, displayed within a contacts application running on the device, to navigate to such a contact within the Navigator program. Thus, when a contact record is viewed in the Contacts application, one of the available menu items is a “go to” function: if selected, this automatically opens the Navigator software, causes the Navigator to be exported Address in street, city or postal code format, used in the contacts application, which then geocodes it and automatically sets that geocoded contact address, as the destination.

ES 2 304 606 T3

As a further example, it is possible to show the location of the contact address on the maps displayed by Navigator: therefore a "show on map" option can be selected for a given contact address, within the contacts application. If selected, then the contact address in street, city or postal code format is exported to the Navigator software, which then geocodes it and displays it on a map that generates an appropriate icon in the correct location. This icon can be annotated with appropriate information (eg contact name and address; possibly a thumbnail photo image of the contact).

Returning geocoded data

The Navigator software also allows data from the WGC 84 system (or other coordinates), to a street / city address, etc., to be automatically added to a contacts application or other application, using knowledge of the coordinate system, the navigation program integrated into Navigator. From the Contacts application, the user can select to have a "geographic area code address" function performed, in relation to a specific address (or a large group of addresses). In this way, the contacts application exports the contact address from the database it uses (in house number, street, city, or postal code format), to the Navigator software engine, which converts addresses expressed in these formats, in WGC 84 coordinates. This engine then determines the WGC 84 coordinates and returns that WGC 84 data to a new field, in the database used by the contacts application - the new field stores and makes available the WGC 84 data within the contacts application. (or of course in other applications not only running on the device, but also resident in remote devices). The ability to automatically add a geocoded location (for example, the location in WGC 84 format) of an address, to the address in the normal format of street, city, etc., stored in a contacts application (or otherwise accessible through this ) is very powerful, because many location-based services will use geocoded data.

For example, business cards in vCard format often include an address in street, city format. With the present invention, a vCard received by email or short-range wireless devices, etc., can be processed by the device extracting the postal address and sending it for geocoding by the resident Navigator application; the geocoded data can then be returned to the contact database, storing the vCard data to augment such data. This can facilitate many kinds of location-based services, which depend on geocoded data; For example, imagine that the recipient of the vCard is a seller, and that the vCard comes from a customer; After the vCard address has been geocoded, the device will have (and can download it to a server) a geocoded database of all customer contacts. Thus, it will be much easier to implement future activities that depend on the precise knowledge of the customer's locations, as well as to make service calls or distribute products, since this will often be done using software that requires geocoded data.

Integration between Navigator and a Messaging Application

As another example, presence data will be a dominant feature of personal mobile communications; the presence data of the user of a mobile phone, defines the state of that user through many parameters (for example, if he can be contacted by voice, data, SMS, etc .; current activity; current mood; physical location or logic (eg work; home), etc.). Presence data can be widely accessible to third parties; In theory, this allows someone to determine the location of a friend, etc., whose presence-derived location data they can access and view (typically, in a messaging application).

But such location data is often in a geocoded format - interpreting a geocoded address is inherently difficult for a person. With the present implementation, geocoded data in real time, entering a device, can be passed through the Navigator software on that device, to be displayed on a map generated by Navigator. This makes it immediate to locate a person. In addition, Navigator can also reverse the geocoded address - that is, determine the format of street, city, etc., from geocoded data entry. Then, if the user is interested in viewing the presence data, they can also view an address of the location (generated by the Navigator software through reverse geocoding) in normal street, city format. This can be included as an annotation to the POI, marking the location on the map generated by Navigator, of the person whose presence data has been obtained. This notation can also include other kinds of presence data (eg mood, current activity, etc.).

Integration between Navigator and a Browser Application

The Navigator software functionality can be integrated with a browser running on the device, as follows: when the device displays a web page (or other kind of pointing language page) that includes an address in street, city or code format postcard, a user can easily take such an address and send it to the Navigator software, so that it displays a map showing the actual location. This can be done with a browser plug-in, which allows a user to select the address on the web page (for example by highlighting it); a drop-down menu can then be selected. This menu includes the options "Show location in Navigator" and "Drive to this location". Mark the option “Show location

ES 2 304 606 T3 in Navigator ”causes the automatic export of the address to the Navigator, which then geocodes it and displays it on a map indicating the actual location. Selecting the "Drive to this location" option causes the address to be automatically exported to the Navigator, which then geocodes it and uses the geocoded address as the destination address to calculate an itinerary.

References cited in description

The list of references cited by the applicant is for the convenience of the reader only. It is not part of the European Patent document. Although special care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be ruled out and the EPO disclaims all responsibility in this regard.

Patent documents cited in the description:

• WO 0 174 037 A [0003]