Turn-by-turn navigation system and next direction guidance method using the same

[0001] Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119(a), this application claims the benefit of earlier filing date and right of priority to Korean Application No. 49339/2003, filed on Jul. 18, 2003, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to a car navigation system.

[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0005] In recent years, a variety of car navigation systems have been developed. Such a car navigation system can be classified according to a screen guide method into a full map navigation system and a turn-by-turn navigation system. The former is designed to guide a driver to a destination by displaying a current path and location on a map, while the latter is designed to guide the driver to the destination by issuing a simple directional command such as a left turn, a right turn and a straight drive instructions considering the current location and driving direction.

[0006] As is well known, the turn-by-turn navigation system is suitable to a person who is not familiar with reading a map or to a case where a display screen is too small to display a sufficient range of the map.

[0007] FIG. 1 shows a screen example of a prior full map navigation system.

[0008] Referring to FIG. 1, the screen shows that the car successively makes a right turn, a left turn, a right turn, and a right turn to reach the destination. That is, since the full map navigation system displays a path that would give a driver a direction where the car must be advanced at a glance so that the driver can properly cope with a next path guide.

[0009] Meanwhile, the screen guide of the turn-by-turn navigation system is however designed to focus on the current point of time. FIG. 2 shows a screen example of a prior turn-by-turn navigation system.

[0010] As shown in FIGS. 2a through 2c, the turn-by-turn navigation system shows only a current directional guide to a right-turn or a left-turn. That is, the turn-by-turn navigation system has a disadvantage of not providing a next guidance of the current guidance. The system provide a next guidance after the car advances by a predetermined distance from the current position. As shown in FIGS. 2a through 2c, a predetermined distance 21 required for the direction change and direction information 22 are displayed on the screen.

[0011] When the time and distance for coping with a lane change are sufficient to perform the next guidance after following the current guidance, the driver may not get into trouble. However, when the user does not have any information on the current driving road and the distance to the next direction change point is too short for the driver to cope with the next guidance, the driver may get into trouble. This may sometimes cause a fatal accident.

[0012] Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a turn-by-turn navigation system and a next direction guiding method the same that substantially obviate one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

[0013] An object of the present invention is to provide a turn-by-turn navigation system and a next direction guidance method that allow a driver to effectively cope with the next advancing direction by allowing the driver to predict a next advancing direction as well as by informing a current advancing direction.

[0014] Another object of the present invention is to provide a turn-by-turn navigation system and a next direction guidance method that can allow a driver to effectively cope with the next advancing direction by informing the driver the extent of urgency for responding to the next advancing direction.

[0015] Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.

[0016] To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided a turn-by-turn navigation system including: a positioning module receiving position information and updating real time road information on a road where a car is currently located; a map database storing map information required for driving the car; a route planning/route guidance module receiving the real time road information and the map information and generating current guidance information and next guidance information; a turn-by-turn graphic user interface module receiving the current and next guidance information and generating current and next guidance images; and an image display unit displaying the current and next guidance images.

[0017] In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for guiding a next direction using a turn-by-turn navigation system, the method comprising: inputting a destination; identifying a current car position and generating a path to the destination inputted; generating a current guidance image based on the current car position and a next guidance image; and displaying the current and next guidance images.

[0018] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

[0025] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0026] FIG. 3 shows a turn-by-turn navigation system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 3, a turn-by-turn navigation system 30 includes a positioning module 31, a map database 32, a route planning/route guidance module 33, a turn-by-turn graphic user interface module 34, and a direction display unit 35.

[0028] The positioning module 31 functions to receive information from a satellite and update real time information on a road where a car is currently located. The map database 32 stores map information required for driving.

[0029] The route planning/route guidance module 33 functions to receive the current road information and the map information and generate current and next guidance information. The turn-by-turn graphic user interface module 34 functions to receive the current and next guidance information and generate current and next guide images. The direction display unit 35 provides the current and next guide images to the driver by displaying the same.

[0030] FIG. 4 shows a flowchart illustrating a screen guide method of a turn-by-turn navigation system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Referring to FIG. 4, a screen guide method includes a destination setting step S41, a path generating step S42, a current guidance generating step S43, a next guidance generating step S44, a next guidance urgency determining step S45, an image generating step S46, a converting step S47 for converting a next guidance into a current guidance, and a determining step S48 for determining if the car reaches the destination.

[0032] The screen guide method composed of the above-described steps will be described more in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

[0033] In Step S41, the driver (or other user) inputs the destination in the navigation system using a keypad, a touch screen or his/her voice.

[0034] In Step S42, when the driver sets the destination and requests the road guide, a current location is first determined. That is, referring to FIG. 3, the positioning module 31 receives the information from the satellite, calculates the current location, and keeps reporting on the current road where the car is located. At this point, the positioning module 31 may be designed to receive the position information from a global position system (GPS). Then, the route planning/route guidance module 33 generates the path based on such position information.

[0035] In Step S43, the current guidance is generated. That is, guide content appropriate for the current position is generated using the information generated in the route planning/route guidance module 33. For example, if the current position is in a section where the car should go straight, a straight guide is generated. However, when it is the straight guide, it is preferable that a guide such as “after a predetermined M” is omitted so as to avoid confusion.

[0036] In Step S44, a next guidance is generated. That is, when the route planning/route guidance module 33 imaginarily follows a predetermined path and a different type of driving should be realized after the car advances by a predetermined distance, the route planning/route guidance module 33 forms such a guide as the next guidance. Such a next guidance is performed at an intersection, an approaching road to a high level road, or an approaching road to the underground.

[0037] In Step S45, an extent of urgency for the next guidance is determined. That is, the route planning/route guidance module 33 generates information on how quickly the driver should cope with the next guidance after the car drives in response to the current guidance. The extent of the urgency generated by the route planning/route guidance module 33 can be divided into a plurality of steps.

[0038] For example, although not limiting the present invention, the extent of the urgency can be divided into three steps. After the current guidance is completed, when the distance and time for coping with the next guidance is sufficient, the extent of the urgency is represented as green light. After the current guidance is completed, when the distance and time for coping with the next guidance is sufficient but in an extent where the driver should recognize the next guidance, the extent of the urgency is represented as yellow light. After the current guidance is completed, when the next guidance should be urgently performed, the extent of the urgency is represented as red light.

[0039] In Step S46, a guide image is generated. That is, the turn-by-turn graphic user interface 34 generates and outputs an image formed according to the current guidance content. Then, the next guidance is added to the image and the extent of the urgency is displayed as a color determined in Step S3. At this point, since the next guidance may be confused with the current guidance, the next guidance is formed in a relatively small icon 51. FIG. 5 shows an example of this formation. This will be described in more detail later.

[0040] In Step S47, the next guidance is converted into the current guidance. That is, after the driver drives the car according to the current guidance, the current guidance is replaced with the next guidance.

[0041] In Step S48, it is determined if the car arrives at the destination. When the car arrives at the destination, the guide is finished. When the car does not reach the destination, the guide process is returned to Step S44.

[0042] FIGS. 5a through 5c show a screen example provided by the turn-by-turn navigation according to the present invention.

[0043] As shown in the screen example, a current guidance icon 50 and a next guidance icon 51 are displayed on the screen.

[0044] That is, as shown in FIG. 5a, the screen displays the current guidance icon 50 representing that the car should make a right turn after advancing 700 M and the next guidance icon 51 representing left turn information that is the next guidance.

[0045] At this point, the next guidance icon 51 providing the left turn information that is the next guidance is displayed on a lower right corner, being smaller than the current guidance icon so as to avoid the confusion between the current guidance and the next guidance. In addition, as shown in FIG. 5b, since the location where the left turn according to the next guidance is made is 300 M from a point where the right turn according to the current guidance is made, the extent of the urgency is medium, being represented as the yellow light.

[0046] According to the above-described guide, when the driver advances the car by 700 M and then makes a right turn, the guide image is changed as shown in FIG. 5b. That is, the next guidance icon 51 disposed in FIG. 5a is displayed as a current guidance icon 52 with the remained distance information. The right turn signal that is a next guidance is displayed as a new next guidance icon 53 on a lower right corner.

[0047] At this point, as shown in FIG. 5c, since the location where the right turn according to the next guidance is made is 100 M from a point where the right turn is made, the extent of the urgency is represented as the red light.

[0048] Meanwhile, the guidance signals include a go-straight signal, a left turn signal, a right turn signal, a U-turn signal, a P-turn signal, a high level road approaching signal, a high level road evading signal, an underground approaching signal, an underground evading signal, and a destination arrival signal. However, the guidance signals are not limited this case. If required, other signals can be added or some of the signals can be omitted.

[0049] According to the present invention described above, although the turn-by-turn navigation system is designed not to display full map at a glance, it can allow the driver to quickly cope with the next advancing path. Accordingly, the navigation system disallows the driver to frequently change and provides the safety drive to the driver.

[0050] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.