Method for displaying points of interest (POs) on a navigation system

Abstract

A method for displaying points of interest (POIs) on a display device (12) of a navigation system, wherein the POIs (16, 18, 20) stored in the navigation system and located within a displayed map section are displayed as symbols, and wherein the displayed map section can be resized by placing and sliding two fingers apart or together along the display device (12), is characterized in that each POI (16, 18, 20) is assigned a priority flag, wherein, before the map section is resized by zooming, a priority area (10a - f) is determined based on two finger placement points (14a, 14b) and the priority flag is reset for all POIs (16, 18, 20), wherein, if the zoom movement results in a reduction of the map section (zooming in),For all POIs (16) located within the priority area (10a - f), the priority flag is set, whereas when the zoom movement results in an enlargement of the map section (zooming out), the priority flag is only set for the one POI (20) that is closest to the center point (M) of the priority area (10a - f), and during the subsequent resizing of the map section, the POIs (16, 20) falling within the map section with the priority flag set are always displayed. The introduction of the priority flag means that a filter algorithm of the navigation system for displaying or not displaying POIs is thereby caused to display POIs even if the filter algorithm would otherwise hide them, provided the priority flag for the POI is set.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for displaying points of interest (POs) on a display device of a navigation system, wherein the POs stored in the navigation system and located within a displayed map section are displayed as symbols, and wherein the displayed map section can be resized by placing and sliding two fingers apart or together along the display device (zoom movement). The invention further relates to a navigation system configured to carry out this method and to a motor vehicle with such a navigation system.

[0002] Navigation systems enable quick and easy orientation in unfamiliar areas. A digital road map, showing a route from the current location to the destination, is displayed on the navigation system's screen. In addition to the road route, supplementary information is shown, particularly points of interest (POIs), represented by appropriate symbols (e.g., a stylized gas station). These are specific locations that may be relevant to the driver depending on the situation, such as airports, train stations, parking lots, gas stations, doctors' offices, supermarkets, and the like.

[0003] Depending on the zoom level (or map scale), especially in densely populated areas, more POLs (Points of Interest) are available than can be meaningfully displayed on the map. To prevent the map from being cluttered with POL symbols and to keep it clear, navigation systems include POL filter algorithms to reduce the number of POLs displayed in the selected map area. The number of displayed POLs changes depending on the zoom level, so it can happen that a POL of particular interest to the user / driver disappears when zooming out, or is displaced by other POLs when zooming in, because more data is available at the closer zoom level.

[0004] It is known, for example, from DE 10 2015 105 433 A1, to change the displayed map section by placing and sliding two fingers apart or together along the display device (zoom movement), i.e., by sliding the fingers apart (also called pinch-out), to reduce the displayed map section, i.e., to zoom in on the map, or by sliding them together (also called pinch-in), to enlarge the displayed map section, i.e., to zoom out.

[0005] When zooming in, there is a risk that in densely populated areas with a high density of POIs, their symbols will overlap or that some POIs will be suppressed by a POI filter algorithm. Conversely, when zooming out, there is a risk that a POI filter algorithm will prevent a POI from being displayed.

[0006] Furthermore, the publications DE 10 2013 006 025 A1, US 2012 / 0 046 861 A1, US 2010 / 0 077 361 A1, US 2018 / 0 211 636 A1 and BEREUTER, Pia; WEIBEL, Roberto; BURGHARDT, Dirk: Content zooming and exploration for mobile maps. In: Proceedings of the AGILE 2012 International Conference of Geographic Information Science. 2012. pp. 74-80 are known.

[0007] The object of the invention is to avoid these disadvantages during zoom operations and to ensure that polarities located within the user's presumed area of ​​interest do not disappear during the execution of the zoom movement. This area of ​​interest can be considered the area between the two contact points where a user of the navigation system places their fingers on the display device to perform a zoom movement.

[0008] The invention is defined by the features of the independent claims. Advantageous further developments and embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0009] The problem according to claim 1 is solved by assigning a priority flag to each POI, wherein, before the map view is resized by zooming, a priority area is determined based on two finger placement points, and the priority flag is reset for all POIs. When the zoom movement reduces the map view (zoom in), the priority flag is set for all POIs located within the priority area, whereas when the zoom movement enlarges the map view (zoom out), the priority flag is set only for the POI that is closest to the center of the priority area. During subsequent map view resizes, the POIs falling within the map view with a set priority flag are always displayed.

[0010] The introduction of the priority flag means that a navigation system's filter algorithm for displaying or hiding POIs is overridden. In other words, even if the filter algorithm would otherwise hide a POI, it will still be displayed as long as the priority flag is set for the POI and the POI falls within the displayed map area. When the navigation system recalculates which POIs should be displayed due to the zoom process, those POIs with the priority flag set are given the highest priority, preventing them from being overridden by other POIs.

[0011] This ensures that when zooming in, the POIs are selected and displayed within the area of ​​interest identified by the user's finger placement before zooming. When zooming out, only one POI is prioritized, as otherwise there is a risk of overlap, since the potentially relevant POIs move closer together when zooming out and could therefore overlap.

[0012] If the navigation system's data storage is organized based on zoom levels, this priority flag must also be set for POls with the same ID at the other zoom levels.

[0013] It should be noted that "finger" also includes the user's thumb. It should also be noted that a finger movement involving a rotation, i.e., a movement of one finger slightly around the other, which in navigation systems usually results in the map being rotated, falls under the above doctrine, provided that the rotation is also associated with enlarging or reducing the map area, i.e., the displayed map scale.

[0014] The method according to the invention advantageously leads to a more consistent display of POls / points of interest when zooming. The user finds what they are looking for more quickly. In a vehicle application, this results in less distraction from the road and a better user experience.

[0015] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, a set priority flag remains visible when the map section is shifted or rotated without changing its size (without changing the zoom level). This ensures that the POLs likely to be of interest to the user remain visible even when only the map section is changed manually or by the vehicle's movement during active navigation.

[0016] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the priority area lies between the two finger placement points before the start of a zoom movement. The user will – especially when zooming in – place their fingers on both sides of the map area of ​​interest, so that this area has a higher priority for the user and it can therefore be assumed that all POLs located there could be significant.

[0017] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the priority area is circular. This can have any shape, in particular rectangular, polygonal or oval, but preferably the priority area is designed as a priority circle.

[0018] According to an advantageous further development of this design, the priority circle is determined by the two finger placement points, which define the diameter of the priority circle, provided that the line connecting the two finger placement points deviates from the vertical or horizontal by less than a predetermined acute angle. This angle is approximately 10–30°, preferably 20°.

[0019] If this condition is not met, i.e., the line connecting the two finger placement points deviates from the vertical or horizontal by more than the specified acute angle, then, according to an advantageous further development, the priority circle is determined by a vertical and a horizontal tangent, each passing through one of the two finger placement points, wherein a radius of the priority circle corresponds to the smaller of the two segments from the finger placement points to the intersection of the tangents.

[0020] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the distances between POls with a set priority flag are calculated, and if a minimum distance between two POls is not reached, a substitute symbol is displayed instead of the two symbols shown for the POls. This substitute symbol represents the type of both POls. This avoids an overlap of POI symbols when POls are very close together.

[0021] According to a second aspect of the invention, a navigation system is proposed which is set up to carry out the aforementioned method.

[0022] According to a third aspect of the invention, a motor vehicle is proposed which includes a navigation system which is configured to carry out the method described above.

[0023] Further advantages, features, and details will become apparent from the following description, in which – with reference to the drawings – at least one embodiment is described in detail. Identical, similar, and / or functionally equivalent parts are identified by the same reference numerals.

[0024] This shows: Fig. 1: a flowchart of the process according to the invention; Fig. 2a a first presentation of the determination of a priority circle; Fig. 2b a second representation of the determination of a priority circle; Fig. 3a: a third representation of the determination of a priority circle; Fig. 3b: a fourth representation of the determination of a priority circle; Fig. 4: an example of determining the POls with the priority flag set when zooming in; Fig. 5: An example of determining a POls with a set priority flag when zooming out.

[0025] Fig. Figure 1 shows a flowchart of the method according to the invention. Fig. 2a shows a procedure for determining a priority circle 10a.

[0026] When a user touches the display 12 of a navigation system display device with two fingers, the procedure starts in step 100, and in step 101 the coordinates of the two finger placement points 14a, 14b are recorded in the coordinate system of the display 12. In step 102, the angle of the connecting line between the finger placement points 14a, 14b with respect to the horizontal direction H and the vertical direction is determined. In step 103, it is checked whether the connecting line of the two finger placement points 14a, 14b has an angle of less than a predefined acute angle, in this case 20°, with respect to the horizontal H or vertical V. In the example of Fig. 2a The distance between the connecting line of the two finger placement points 14a, 14b and a horizontal H is only a few degrees, so this connecting line is determined as the diameter D1 of the priority circle 10a in step 104. The center of the circle is also determined and stored.

[0027] Analogously, in the example of Fig. 2b the finger placement points 14a, 14b are largely on top of each other and the distance between the connecting line of the two finger placement points 14a, 14b and a horizontal V is only a few degrees, so that analogously this connecting line is determined and stored as the diameter D2 of the priority circle 10b.

[0028] The example of Fig. 3a concerns the case where the finger placement points 14a, 14b are oblique to each other. In step 103, it is determined that the connecting line between the two finger placement points 14a, 14b has an angle of more than 20° to the horizontal H, so that in step 105 the second determination rule for the priority circle 10d is applied. For this purpose, a horizontal line T is drawn to one of the two finger placement points 14a. H and at the other finger placement points 14b a vertical line T VThe circles tangentially connected to the priority circle 10d to be determined are laid out. Now the radius of priority circle 10d must be determined. For this, the shorter of the two segments from finger placement points 14a, 14b to the intersection point of the two tangents T is measured. H and T V determined as radius R1 of priority circle 10c.

[0029] Similarly, in the example of Fig. 3b the radius R2 of priority circle 10d is calculated.

[0030] These priority circles 10a - 10d are transformed by the navigation system into the geographic coordinate system of the navigation map, so that the specified priority circle 10a - 10d has a coordinate point and a radius in meters (or kilometers) in the geographic coordinate system (e.g. in the GPS coordinate system).

[0031] In Fig. Figure 4 is an example of the selection of POls 16, 18 using a priority circle 10e determined according to one of the two methods above. First, before or after determining the priority circle 10e according to one of the methods relating to the Fig. 2 and Fig. The 3 described procedures reset the priority flag for all POls 16, 18 (e.g. set to false or 0).

[0032] Step 106 then checks whether at least one of the finger placement points 14a, 14b has been moved. If so, step 107 checks whether the two fingers have been moved away from each other, which corresponds to zooming in or reducing the size of the displayed map area. If so, step 108 checks whether the POIs 16, 18 stored in the navigation system lie within priority circle 10e. For those POIs 16 that lie within priority circle 10e, the priority flag is set (to true or logic 1), while it remains unset for the remaining POIs 18. If a different priority area shape, such as a square, is used instead of priority circle 10e, it is checked whether a POI lies within this priority area.

[0033] This means that these POls 16 with the priority flag set will remain displayed as long as the zoom process continues, or as long as the scale of the displayed map section remains unchanged after zooming has ended. Therefore, if the map section changes due to further finger movements or vehicle movement during navigation, these POls 16 with the priority flag set will continue to be displayed. Only when the zoom level is changed, i.e., by another two-finger gesture, does the process restart at step 100.

[0034] If, in step 107, it was determined that the two fingers were moved towards each other, which corresponds to zooming out or enlarging the displayed map section, then – as in Fig.As shown in Figure 4, in step 109, the priority flag is set (to true or logical 1) only for a single POI 20, the one closest to the center point M of the priority circle 10f, while it remains unset for all other POIs 18. This results in only this one POI being privileged over all other POIs and always being displayed, thus taking precedence over the display of all other POIs.

[0035] Although the invention has been further illustrated and explained in detail by means of preferred embodiments, the invention is not limited by the disclosed examples, and other variations can be derived from them by a person skilled in the art without departing from the scope of protection of the invention. It is therefore clear that a multitude of possible variations exist. It is also clear that the embodiments mentioned as examples are truly only examples and are not to be understood in any way as limiting, for example, the scope of protection, the possible applications, or the configuration of the invention.Rather, the preceding description and the description of the figures enable the person skilled in the art to implement the exemplary embodiments in concrete terms, whereby the person skilled in the art, with knowledge of the disclosed inventive concept, can make various changes, for example with regard to the function or the arrangement of individual elements mentioned in an exemplary embodiment, without leaving the scope of protection defined by the claims and their legal equivalents, such as further explanations in the description. Reference symbol list Priority circle 10a-f 12 Display device 14a,b Finger placement points 16 POls with unset priority flag 18 POls with priority flag set 20 POIs with priority flag set D1, D2 Priority circle diameters H Horizontal M Center of the circle V Vertical TH tangent T V tangent R1,R2 Priority circle radius

Claims

[1] Method for displaying points of interest (POIs) on a display device (12) of a navigation system, wherein the POIs (16, 18, 20) stored in the navigation system and located within a displayed map section are displayed as symbols, and wherein the displayed map section can be resized by placing and sliding two fingers apart or together along the display device (12), characterized bythat each POI (16, 18, 20) is assigned a priority flag, wherein, before the map area is resized by zooming, a priority area (10a - f) is determined based on two finger placement points (14a, 14b), and the priority flag is reset for all POIs (16, 18, 20). If the zoom movement results in a reduction of the map area (zooming in), the priority flag is set for all POIs (16) located within the priority area (10a - f), while if the zoom movement results in an increase of the map area (zooming out), the priority flag is set only for the one POI (20) that is closest to the center point (M) of the priority area (10a - f). During the subsequent resize of the map area, the POIs (16, 20) falling within the map area are assigned the priority flag. The priority flag will always be displayed. [2] Method according to claim 1, characterized by, that a set priority flag is retained when the map section is moved or rotated without changing its size. [3] Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by , that the priority area lies between the two finger placement points (14a, 14b) before the start of a zoom movement. [4] Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the priority area is circular. [5] Method according to claim 4, characterized by , that the priority circle (10a, 10b) is determined by the two finger placement points (14a, 14b) which determine the circle diameter (D1) of the priority circle (10a, 10b) if the connecting line between the two finger placement points (14a, 14b) deviates from the vertical (V) or horizontal (H) by less than a predetermined acute angle. [6] Method according to claim 5, characterized by that the angle is 20°. [7] Method according to claim 5, characterized by , that the priority circle (10c, 10d) is otherwise determined by a vertical (T V ) and a horizontal tangent (T H ), passing through each of the two finger placement points, where a circle radius (R1) of the priority circle (10c, 10d) corresponds to the smaller of the two line segments from the finger placement points to the intersection of the tangents. [8] Method according to claim 7, characterized by , that the distances between POls (16, 20) with priority flag set are calculated and if a minimum distance between two POls (16, 20) with priority flag set is not reached, instead of two symbols displayed for the POIs a substitute symbol is displayed, the symbolism of which includes the type of the two POls. [9] Navigation system configured to perform the method according to any of the preceding claims. [10] Motor vehicle comprising a navigation system according to claim 9.

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