Navigation system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10663306-B2
Application number	US-201515323533-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 16, 2015
Priority date	Jul 8, 2014
Publication date	May 26, 2020
Grant date	May 26, 2020

Abstract

A navigation system which performs route guidance from a vehicle departure location to a target location. After a vehicle has arrived at the target location and completed the route guidance, if the vehicle has moved away from the target location and thereafter has approached the target location again, the navigation system: determines that the vehicle is disorientated and unable to arrive at the target location; and resumes the route guidance.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A navigation system comprising:
a memory unit;
a navigation device configured to perform route guidance from a departure point to a destination point of a vehicle, the navigation device including:
a destination point setting unit configured to set the destination point of the vehicle,
a global positioning system (GPS) configured to obtain current location of the vehicle, and
a communication device configured to transmit the destination point and the current location of the vehicle to the memory unit; and

a lost determination unit configured to perform a lost determination after the vehicle reaches the destination point, the route guidance ends, and the vehicle moves away from the destination point and then moves toward the destination point again, the lost determination comprising restarting route guidance and determining that the vehicle is lost,
wherein the lost determination unit is configured to perform the lost determination based on a condition that the current location of the vehicle obtained by the global positioning system reaches a point separated from the destination point by a first distance having a first predetermined value, and then reaches a point separated from the destination point by a second distance having a second predetermined value, the first predetermined value being larger than the second predetermined value.

2. The navigation system according to claim 1 , wherein the navigation system is configured to increase the first predetermined value when a vicinity of the destination point includes a road with a traffic restriction.

3. The navigation system according to claim 1 , wherein the navigation system is configured to increase the first predetermined value when the destination point is a facility including a parking lot that requires the vehicle to further travel from the destination point for a travelling distance equal to or greater than a predetermined distance.

4. The navigation system according to claim 1 , wherein
the vehicle further includes a display unit that is capable of separately displaying route guidance information in multiple screens, and
the display unit is configured to display, when the lost determination is repeated, detailed information related to a vicinity of the destination point together with the route guidance information.

5. The navigation system according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a management center configured to manage traveling information of subject vehicles through wireless communication, wherein the lost determination unit is configured to be located in the management center and to restart route guidance for the vehicle that has been determined as being lost.

6. The navigation system according to claim 1 , wherein the lost determination unit is configured to be arranged in the vehicle and to restart route guidance for the corresponding vehicle that has been determined as being lost.

7. A navigation system comprising:
a memory unit;
a navigation device configured to perform route guidance from a departure point to a destination point of a vehicle, the navigation device including:
a destination point setting unit configured to set the destination point of the vehicle,
a global positional system (GPS) configured to obtain current location of the vehicle, and
a communication device configured to transmit the destination point and the current location of the vehicle to the memory unit; and

a lost determination unit configured to perform a lost determination after the vehicle reaches the destination point, the route guidance ends, and the vehicle moves away from the destination point and then moves toward the destination point again, the lost determination comprising restarting route guidance and determining that the vehicle is lost,
wherein the lost determination unit is configured to perform the lost determination based on a condition that after reaching a returning point separated from the destination point by a first distance having a first predetermined value, and the current location of the vehicle obtained by the global positional system returns toward the destination point from the returning point by an other distance having an other predetermined value.

8. The navigation system according to claim 7 , wherein the navigation system is configured to increase the first predetermined value when a vicinity of the destination point includes a road with a traffic restriction.

9. The navigation system according to claim 7 , wherein the navigation system is configured to increase the first predetermined value when the destination point is a facility including a parking lot that requires the vehicle to further travel from the destination point for a travelling distance equal to or greater than a predetermined distance.

10. The navigation system according to claim 7 , wherein
the vehicle further includes a display unit that is capable of separately displaying route guidance information in multiple screens, and
the display unit is configured to display, when the lost determination is repeated, detailed information related to a vicinity of the destination point together with the route guidance information.

11. The navigation system according to claim 7 , further comprising:
a management center configured to manage traveling information of subject vehicles through wireless communication, wherein the lost determination unit is configured to be located in the management center and to restart route guidance for the vehicle that has been determined as being lost.

12. The navigation system according to claim 7 , wherein the lost determination unit is configured to be arranged in the vehicle and to restart route guidance for the corresponding vehicle that has been determined as being lost.

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Murai Rie
• Suzuki Keiko

Classifications

• G01C21/3415 Primary

  Dynamic re-routing, e.g. recalculating the route when the user deviates from calculated route or after detecting real-time traffic data or accidents · CPC title

• G09B29/10

  Map spot or coordinate position indicators; Map reading aids (optical projection apparatus per se G03B) · CPC title

• G01C21/367

  Details, e.g. road map scale, orientation, zooming, illumination, level of detail, scrolling of road map or positioning of current position marker · CPC title

• G01S19/42

  Determining position · CPC title