Device and program

Abstract

For example, providing a device that prompts users to reflect on dangerous driving behaviors that could have resulted in speeding violations, thereby encouraging safer driving. [Solution] The device that issues a warning when approaching a speed enforcement location stores information indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed enforcement location is a speed that may be subject to enforcement in the RAM of the control unit 18, and outputs information to the display unit 5 and speaker 20 indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed enforcement location was a speed that may be subject to enforcement based on the stored first information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to, for example, a device for prompting a user to drive safely and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Regarding the speed control of vehicles, for example, speed control by a speed automatic control device (Orbis) installed on the road is known. And when a vehicle approaches a point where such a speed automatic control device is installed, a device having a function of warning a user (for example, a driver; the same shall apply hereinafter) of approaching the vehicle control point is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] This Patent Document 1 discloses a device provided with a control unit that performs predetermined warning processing when the position information received by a GPS receiver and the position of a speed measuring device or the like stored in a database have a predetermined positional relationship.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, the technology in Patent Document 1 is useful for prompting the driver to decelerate the speed of the vehicle or the like before reaching the point where the speed automatic control device or the like that is the warning target is installed and to drive at a safe speed (hereinafter also referred to as "safe driving"). However, after passing through the installation point or the like of this speed control device or the like, the driver may forget the necessity of safe driving. As a result, some drivers would start driving again at speeds exceeding the speed limit, and there was a problem in that it was not possible to encourage safe driving by issuing warnings to such drivers every time they approached a speed enforcement point.

[0006] (Purpose of the invention) The present invention aims to improve upon the problems of conventional examples, such as those described above, and to provide a device that encourages users (e.g., drivers) to reflect on dangerous driving behaviors that could have resulted in speed enforcement, thereby promoting safe driving. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above objective, (1) The device according to the present invention is a device that issues a warning of approaching a speed enforcement location, and preferably has the following configuration: if the driving speed when approaching the speed enforcement location is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, it stores information indicating that (hereinafter referred to as "first information"), and based on the stored first information, it outputs information indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed enforcement location was a speed that may be subject to enforcement.

[0008] In this way, if the user (for example, the driver; the same applies hereinafter) receives output indicating that their driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they will know that their driving speed when approaching a speed enforcement location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Therefore, the user can improve their awareness of safe driving by reflecting on the dangerous driving that occurred.

[0009] A "speed enforcement location" may be, for example, a location where enforcement is carried out against vehicles traveling at a speed exceeding the legal speed limit (hereinafter referred to as "speed limit"), but it is particularly good if it is a location where an automatic speed enforcement device (for example, a so-called Orbis®) is installed. Furthermore, a "speed enforcement location" does not necessarily have to be a place where speed enforcement is actually being carried out, and may be a place where drivers should pay attention to their driving speed.

[0010] "Approaching a speed enforcement location" can be defined, for example, by storing the locations of speed enforcement locations, detecting the current location of this device, and determining when the distance between these locations falls below a predetermined value.

[0011] A "proximity warning" can be anything that informs the user (especially the driver) that they are approaching a speed enforcement location, for example. However, it is preferable that the warning includes information such as the speed limit at the time of the proximity warning, and it is even better if the warning includes information that the vehicle's speed at the time of the proximity warning exceeds the speed limit. In particular, (7) is preferable.

[0012] "Issuing a proximity warning" means, for example, that the proximity warning can be any form such as sound, voice, image, or a combination thereof, but it is preferable to output it as sound and / or voice, and it is particularly preferable to output both sound and / or voice and an image.

[0013] The "driving speed" could be obtained from the vehicle itself, for example, but it is preferable to obtain it using this device. For acquiring data from the vehicle, a suitable configuration would be to acquire speed information from the vehicle via an ODB2 connector (diagnostic connector). For acquiring speed using this device, for example, this device could be equipped with a GPS receiver, and the GPS receiver would receive signals from GPS satellites to calculate the speed. Furthermore, when detecting "driving speed" with this device, it is preferable to configure it so that it is as close as possible to the vehicle's driving speed.

[0014] "Information indicating that fact" (first information) may refer to information indicating, for example, that the speed at which the vehicle was traveling when approaching the speed enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and may be as shown below.

[0015] For example, the first piece of information may be count information regarding the number of times the driving speed was subject to enforcement. When count information is used in this way, the "information indicating that the driving speed was subject to enforcement" may be output as information that visually represents the number of times, specifically, information that visually displays the number of times using numbers, information that indicates the number of times using the number of objects on the display screen (for example, the number of cat marks displayed on the display screen), or information that expresses the number of times using sound. Here, the counting of "the number of times the aforementioned driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement" is, for example, when there are multiple instances of approaching a speed camera enforcement location, it is determined each time whether the driving speed at the time of approaching the speed camera enforcement location falls under the category of a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and if it is determined that it does, the driving speed at the time of approaching the speed camera enforcement location is subject to enforcement. The process involves storing the information corresponding to the desired speed as a first flag (1) in a table format in non-volatile memory, and then counting the number of entries in the non-volatile memory where the first flag information is 1.

[0016] Furthermore, the first piece of information may, for example, be information that identifies the location of the speed enforcement location (for example, it may identify the identification number assigned to the speed enforcement location, or it may identify the latitude and longitude of the speed enforcement location). For example, if the information identifies the location of a speed enforcement point in this way, the "information indicating that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement" could be, for example, displayed visually for each speed enforcement point, or it could be, each time the vehicle approaches a previously stored speed enforcement point, it could output information indicating that it is approaching a speed enforcement point where the driving speed was previously recorded as a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0017] The "information indicating that fact" (the first piece of information) should be stored each time the driving speed when approaching the speed enforcement location is a speed that could be subject to enforcement. For example, as mentioned above, the first piece of information may be stored as count information regarding the number of times the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0018] The "user" can be anyone who installs and uses this device in a vehicle, for example, an assistant who conveys information to the driver, but it is especially preferable if it is the driver themselves.

[0019] The "speed at which enforcement may be applied" could be the speed limit itself, but it is preferable to set it to a value greater than the speed limit. For example, the speed at which enforcement may be applied could be the speed limit multiplied by a predetermined percentage and added to that speed limit. For example, if the speed limit is 100 km / h, the speed at which enforcement may be applied could be 130 km / h, which is 30% more.

[0020] However, it is particularly good to do as described in (8) below. In particular, it is good to add the allowable upper limit error of the vehicle's speedometer to the excess speed in (8) (for example, the excess speed in (8) below should be the allowable upper limit error of the speedometer). In particular, the error range of the speedometer should be within the range permitted by law. For example, according to Article 148 of the Notification Specifying the Details of Safety Standards for Road Vehicles, the allowable error range of a vehicle's speedometer is given by 10(V1-6) / 11≦V2≦(100 / 94)V1, where V1 is the speed displayed on the speedometer installed in the vehicle (unit: km / h) and V2 is the speed measured using a speed tester (unit: km / h). Based on this, for example, when a car is driven so that the speedometer reads 40 km / h (V1 = 40 km / h), the car's speed (the speed equivalent to the speed measured using a speed tester) V2 is in the range of 30.9 ≤ V2 ≤ 42.55. In this case, for example, the allowable upper limit error of the speedometer should be set at 2.55 km / h.

[0021] "Output information indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed limit position is a speed that can be a target for enforcement based on the memorized first information" may be performed when passing through, or may be performed immediately after passing through, but it is better to do it later so as to forget the approach to the speed limit position. For example, it may be performed after a predetermined time from the approach to the speed limit position, when the vehicle stops, when the engine stops, or when the engine starts next.

[0022] (2) When approaching the speed limit position, it is preferable to adopt a configuration where it is regarded as when passing through the speed limit position.

[0023] In this way, when the user receives the output of information indicating that the driving speed is a speed that can be a target for enforcement, the user can know that the driving speed at the time of passing through the speed limit position was a speed that could be a target for enforcement. Therefore, the user can effectively enhance the awareness of safe driving by reflecting on their dangerous driving based on the output of information indicating that the driving speed at a position close to the speed limit position (for example, the position where the automatic speed enforcement device actually measures the speed of the traveling vehicle) was a speed that could be a target for enforcement.

[0024] "When passing through the speed limit position" may be, for example, the position immediately before reaching the speed limit position, the time of reaching the speed limit position, or the position immediately after passing through the speed limit position.

[0025] (3) When approaching the speed limit position, it is preferable to adopt a configuration where it is regarded as when issuing the approach warning.

[0026] In this way, when the user receives an output indicating that their driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they will know that the driving speed at the time the proximity warning was issued was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Therefore, the user will know, for example, that the speed they were driving before hearing the proximity warning (for example, before they started to decelerate the vehicle based on the proximity warning (the original state)) was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. For example, the user will know that if this device had not issued the proximity warning, there was a high probability that the vehicle would have reached the speed enforcement location while still traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0027] Therefore, for example, a user can reflect on whether they were in a dangerous driving situation where they might have been caught speeding if they had continued driving at the normal speed, and thus further enhance their awareness of safe driving.

[0028] "When issuing an approach warning" can be defined as approaching the target before it is actually passed, for example, 1 km before the speed enforcement location, 500 m before the speed enforcement location, etc.

[0029] (4) At the speed enforcement location, if the driving speed is no longer at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, information indicating that fact (hereinafter referred to as "second information") is stored, and based on the stored second information, information indicating that enforcement has been avoided is output.

[0030] In this way, the user can know that although their driving speed at the time the approach warning was issued was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, their driving speed was no longer subject to enforcement when they reached the speed enforcement location, and therefore they were able to avoid enforcement.

[0031] For example, (4) can be structured as follows: A device that issues a warning of approaching a speed enforcement location is provided, characterized in that, when issuing the approach warning, if the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, it stores information (first information) indicating that fact, and outputs information (first output) indicating that the speed was subject to enforcement based on the stored information, and at the speed enforcement location, if the driving speed is no longer a speed that may be subject to enforcement, it stores information (second information) indicating that fact, and outputs information (second output) indicating that enforcement has been avoided based on this stored information.

[0032] In this way, the user can know that the speed at which the approach warning was issued was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and that by the time they reached the speed enforcement location, their speed was no longer at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and therefore they were able to avoid enforcement. Therefore, the user can reflect on the dangerous driving they were doing, such as driving at a speed that could easily have resulted in being stopped by a police officer before receiving the proximity warning, and they can also see that the device slowed down the vehicle while driving, prompting them to drive more safely.

[0033] In particular, it is best to perform the first and second outputs in a related manner. For example, the first and second outputs can be performed at different times, but it is better to perform them at the same time. It is especially good to perform them in a related manner. For example, they can be output on the same screen, or the content can be included in a single phrase and output as audio.

[0034] The phrase "at the speed enforcement location, when the driving speed is no longer at a speed that may be subject to enforcement" should be interpreted as, for example, a case where, when the proximity warning was issued, the driving speed was at a speed that may be subject to enforcement, but the vehicle slowed down based on this proximity warning, and at the speed enforcement location, the driving speed was no longer at a speed that may be subject to enforcement. In particular, the phrase "at the speed enforcement location, when the driving speed is no longer at a speed that may be subject to enforcement" should be interpreted as a case where, regardless of any changes in driving speed that occurred between the issuance of the proximity warning and reaching the speed enforcement location (for example, even if the driving speed repeatedly fell below and above a speed that may be subject to enforcement), the driving speed at the speed enforcement location was no longer at a speed that may be subject to enforcement.

[0035] The "second piece of information" should be stored whenever the vehicle's speed at the speed enforcement location ceases to be a speed that could be subject to enforcement. For example, the second piece of information should be stored whenever the vehicle was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement when the proximity warning was issued, but the vehicle slowed down based on this warning and the speed at the speed enforcement location ceased to be a speed that could be subject to enforcement. For example, the second piece of information should be count information regarding the number of times the vehicle has ceased to be at a speed that could be subject to enforcement at the speed enforcement location.

[0036] When the information is presented in this manner, the "information indicating that enforcement was avoided" may be output as visual information showing the number of times enforcement was avoided, as the number of objects on the display screen (for example, the number of cat marks shown on the display screen), or the number of times enforcement was avoided may be output as audio. Here, the counting of "the number of times the speed at a speed enforcement location is no longer subject to enforcement" is performed, for example, when the vehicle reaches a speed enforcement location multiple times, it is determined each time the vehicle reaches the speed enforcement location whether the speed at that location falls within the range of a speed subject to enforcement. If it is determined that the speed at the speed enforcement location falls within the range of a speed subject to enforcement, the second flag information is set to 0 and associated with the first flag information mentioned above, and this is stored in a table format in non-volatile memory. The number of entries in the non-volatile memory where the first flag information is 1 and the second flag information is 0 is then counted.

[0037] When visually displaying "information indicating that enforcement was avoided," the "output of information indicating that enforcement was avoided" may be displayed on a different screen than the "information indicating that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement" in (1), or it may be displayed on the same screen.

[0038] (5) In the case of a speed enforcement location, if the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, information indicating that fact (hereinafter referred to as "third information") is stored, and based on the stored third information, information indicating that enforcement could not be avoided is output, and the output of information indicating that enforcement could be avoided is output in a different manner than the information indicating that enforcement could not be avoided.

[0039] In this way, when the user focuses on the different aspects of the outputted information, Even at speed enforcement locations, it is possible to determine whether the driving speed was within the range that could trigger enforcement and therefore could not be avoided, or whether the driving speed was no longer within the range that could trigger enforcement and therefore could be avoided.

[0040] The second and third outputs should ideally be related. For example, while the second and third outputs could be performed at different times, it is preferable to perform them at the same time. In particular, it is best to make them related. For instance, they could be output on the same screen, or the content could be included in a single phrase and output as audio.

[0041] The phrase "even at the speed enforcement location, if the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement" should be interpreted as, for example, the case where the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement when the proximity warning is issued, and the vehicle slows down based on this proximity warning, but the driving speed is still a speed that may be subject to enforcement at the speed enforcement location. In particular, the phrase "even at the speed enforcement location, if the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement" should be interpreted as the case where the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement at the speed enforcement location, regardless of any changes in the driving speed from the time the proximity warning is issued until reaching the speed enforcement location (for example, even if the driving speed repeatedly falls below and exceeds the speed that may be subject to enforcement).

[0042] The "third piece of information" should be stored whenever the driving speed at the speed enforcement location falls within the range of speeds subject to enforcement. For example, the third piece of information may be the speed at which enforcement is possible when the proximity warning is issued, and should be stored whenever the speed at the speed enforcement location falls within the range of speeds subject to enforcement. For example, the third piece of information may be count information regarding the number of times the speed at the speed enforcement location has been within the range of speeds subject to enforcement. Here, the counting of "the number of times the speed at a speed enforcement location was subject to enforcement" is performed, for example, when the vehicle reaches a speed enforcement location multiple times, it is determined each time the vehicle reaches the speed enforcement location whether the speed at that location falls within the range of a speed subject to enforcement. If it is determined that the speed at the speed enforcement location falls within the range of a speed subject to enforcement, a third flag information of 1 is assigned to the aforementioned first flag information and stored in a table format in non-volatile memory. The number of entries in the non-volatile memory where both the first flag information and the third flag information are assigned to 1 is then counted.

[0043] When the information is presented in this manner, the "information indicating that enforcement was avoided" may be output as visual information showing the number of times enforcement was avoided, as the number of objects on the display screen (for example, the number of cat marks shown on the display screen), or the number of times enforcement was avoided may be output as audio.

[0044] "Outputting in a different manner" can refer to any method of outputting in a different manner, but for example, this can be done by displaying objects in different colors or in different color tones.

[0045] In this way, users can recognize information indicating that they were able to avoid enforcement and information indicating that they were not able to avoid enforcement by paying attention to and recognizing the color coding or different color scheme of the objects.

[0046] "Displaying objects in different colors or shades" could, for example, mean displaying the inner color or shade of the object's outline in different ways depending on whether or not enforcement was avoided. For example, a color could be used to indicate relative success when enforcement was avoided, and a color could be used to indicate relative failure when enforcement was not avoided. For example, It is best to display cases where enforcement was avoided in white, and cases where enforcement could not be avoided in gray.

[0047] In particular, the color used when enforcement is avoided should indicate that the driving speed when approaching the speed enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and that at the speed enforcement location, the driving speed was no longer a speed that could be subject to enforcement, thus there was a certain degree of danger. Therefore, it is desirable to use a color that indicates this danger, however, the color should indicate a lower level of danger than when the speed at the speed enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement. For example, it would be good to display cases where enforcement could not be avoided in red, and cases where enforcement was avoided in yellow. (It would be good to use yellow to indicate cases where there was danger but speed enforcement was not performed, and red to indicate cases where speed enforcement could easily have occurred.)

[0048] Furthermore, for example, cases where enforcement was avoided may be shown in color, and cases where enforcement could not be avoided may be shown in colorless. In addition to color coding and using different color tones, other methods such as adding a pattern to one side and leaving the other side without a pattern may also be used.

[0049] In this way, when a user looks at an object by its color coding or color scheme, they can visually recognize whether, when a proximity warning was issued, the vehicle was traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, but when it passed the speed enforcement location, it was no longer at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and thus enforcement was avoided.

[0050] Furthermore, for example, the first piece of information may be the number of times the driving speed was subject to enforcement, as mentioned above. In this way, when the user counts the number of objects by paying attention to the color coding and color scheme, they can recognize the number of times they were able to avoid enforcement, the number of times they were not able to avoid enforcement, or the ratio of both.

[0051] (6) The information indicating that the speed was subject to enforcement should be configured as an object with the same external appearance.

[0052] In this way, when a user sees and recognizes an object that looks the same, they can know that it was traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0053] "Objects with the same external appearance" means, for example, when displaying multiple objects, they may be objects with the same external appearance and content, but any object with the same external appearance will suffice. For example, if there are multiple instances of approaching a speed enforcement location, and information indicating that the driving speed at each of these instances was within the range of a speed that could be subject to enforcement is stored separately in multiple objects, it is appropriate to use objects that display this information using a picture or symbol with the same external appearance across all of the objects.

[0054] In particular, for example, "objects with the same external shape" can be represented by simple illustrations of animals such as cats.

[0055] Furthermore, "objects with the same external form" are not limited to those composed of pictures or symbols, but may also be other shapes. "Identical pictures or symbols" do not necessarily have to be completely identical, but may be pictures or symbols that appear substantially identical.

[0056] The objects should, for example, be objects that evoke images of speed enforcement, such as traffic tickets or fines.

[0057] When users see objects that evoke images of speed traps or fines, they can be reminded to drive safely to avoid being caught, and thus more effectively reflect on dangerous driving behavior.

[0058] Furthermore, when displaying objects that evoke speed enforcement, the illustration may be color-coded or displayed in progressively different tones depending on the degree to which the driving speed at the location of the speed enforcement exceeded the speed limit. For example, if the illustration that evokes speed enforcement is an illustration of a traffic ticket, it is appropriate to color-code it according to the degree to which the driving speed exceeded the speed limit. Also, for example, if the illustration that evokes speed enforcement is an illustration of a fine, it is appropriate to change the amount of the fine according to the degree to which the driving speed exceeded the speed limit.

[0059] Furthermore, if objects are represented by illustrations of fines, for example, white (or yellow) for cases where enforcement was avoided and gray (or red) for cases where enforcement could not be avoided, users can easily visualize how much fine they could have avoided by using this device by focusing on the white (or yellow) illustrations of fines, thereby realizing the effectiveness of installing this device. Moreover, they can consider using the amount they saved to purchase new products.

[0060] (7) The proximity warning should be issued at a position just before reaching the speed enforcement location, at a position where the user who receives the proximity warning can decelerate from the current speed subject to enforcement to a speed that is not subject to enforcement before reaching the speed enforcement location.

[0061] In this way, by recognizing the approach warning issued by the device, the user can decelerate from their current speed, which is subject to speed enforcement, to a speed that is not subject to enforcement, before reaching the speed enforcement location.

[0062] A "position where deceleration is possible" can be any position where the vehicle's speed can be reduced to a speed that is not subject to enforcement, for example, but it is especially good to choose a position where the vehicle's speed can be safely reduced to a speed that is not subject to enforcement. Even if the current speed that is subject to enforcement is significantly higher than the speed that is subject to enforcement, it is good to choose a position where the vehicle can decelerate without applying the brakes suddenly (for example, if the speed limit is 100 km / h, it is good to choose a position where the vehicle can decelerate to the speed limit even if the driving speed is 160 km / h or 170 km / h). In particular, it is good to choose a position where the vehicle's speed can be gradually reduced to a speed that is not subject to enforcement while maintaining a constant distance between the vehicle in front and behind without suddenly closing in.

[0063] (8) The speed at which enforcement may be conducted should be set to the speed limit plus a predetermined value (hereinafter referred to as "excess speed") when approaching the enforcement location.

[0064] In this way, when a user receives information indicating that their speed when approaching a speed enforcement location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they will know that they were driving at a speed exceeding the speed limit. Therefore, for example, the user only needs to be aware of decelerating to a speed equivalent to a predetermined value (the excess speed) relative to their current speed. Thus, the thought process involved in deceleration is simplified, and the effectiveness of deceleration can be improved.

[0065] The "pre-set value" can be any value that makes it highly likely that a vehicle will be subject to enforcement if it is driven at a speed that is the speed limit plus this pre-set value. It is recommended to use values ​​such as those shown below.

[0066] For example, when a vehicle is traveling on a road with a speed limit of 100 km / h, the preset values ​​could be, for example, 30 km / h 1 km before reaching the enforcement point on the road, and 15 km / h immediately before reaching the enforcement point (for example, 250 m before reaching the enforcement point).

[0067] The output of information indicating that the aforementioned driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement should be configured to output in different ways for each of several ranges of speeds that could be subject to enforcement.

[0068] In this way, if a user receives and recognizes information indicating that their speed was subject to enforcement in multiple ranges and different manners, they can learn that their driving speed was subject to enforcement in multiple ranges. For example, it would be good to divide the speed at which one is likely to be caught into multiple stages, such as speeds with a relatively high probability of being caught and speeds with a relatively low probability of being caught, and change the display method for each stage. For example, it would be good to do as shown in (9) below.

[0069] (9) The information that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement should be displayed on the screen, and based on the content of the first information, the information that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement should be displayed in two stages on the screen, divided into an acceptable level range that is normally permitted and an unacceptable level range that exceeds the acceptable level.

[0070] In this way, when a user receives and recognizes information on the screen indicating that the driving speed displayed in two stages was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they can understand that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, by dividing it into an acceptable level range that is normally permitted and an unacceptable level range that exceeds that acceptable level.

[0071] The "acceptable and unacceptable speed ranges on a daily basis" can be defined by any criteria that allows you to distinguish between information indicating a speed that could be subject to enforcement, based on whether the probability of being enforced is high or low (from the perspective of the risk of enforcement), but it is best to do so as follows.

[0072] Given that in many cases driving at speeds exceeding the speed limit is tacitly permitted under the premise of safe driving, the range within which this tacitly permitted speed is allowed can be defined as the permissible range, and the "permissible level range" can be defined as, for example, the speed range within this permissible range, while the "unpermissible level range" can be defined as, for example, the speed range exceeding this permissible range.

[0073] (10) The non-acceptable level range may be configured to be displayed in two or more stages depending on the degree to which the driving speed exceeds the speed limit.

[0074] In this way, when users view the unacceptable speed limit range, which is displayed in two or more stages, they can understand in more detail how much the vehicle was exceeding the speed limit within that range. Therefore, users can specifically recognize their own driving tendencies when exceeding the speed limit and use this information to improve safe driving.

[0075] "Depending on the extent to which the aforementioned driving speed exceeds the speed limit" means, for example, in the case of a road with a speed limit of 100 km / h, the speeds subject to enforcement (speeds at which enforcement is considered likely) are listed in order of increasing risk, for example, 1 km before the road, and the speeds exceeding the speed limit are It would be appropriate to define the risk level as follows: a speed exceeding the speed limit by 15-30% (for example, exceeding the speed limit by 15-30 km / h) is considered low risk, while exceeding the speed limit by 30% or more (exceeding the speed limit by 30 km / h or more) is considered high risk.

[0076] (11) It is preferable that the system be configured so that information indicating that the speed was subject to enforcement is not output as text information.

[0077] In this way, users can obtain information that their speed was within the range of a potential speed limit without having to read any text. It is especially beneficial to output this information using concise, non-textual data. This allows users to efficiently review whether their driving speed was within the range of a potential speed limit based on the concisely presented information. This concise information should ideally be displayed using non-textual objects.

[0078] (12) The proximity warning may be configured to be performed in different ways depending on whether the first information is stored or not.

[0079] In this way, the user receives different types of approach warnings depending on whether the first piece of information (information that the driving speed is subject to enforcement) is stored in the system, and can distinguish between them. In particular, if the user recognizes the approach warning issued when the first piece of information is stored, they can know that they are approaching a speed enforcement location where they have previously driven at a speed subject to enforcement.

[0080] Therefore, users can recognize when they are about to pass through a section where they tend to speed excessively, and slow down their vehicle to avoid repeating past speeding mistakes.

[0081] "The actions are performed in different ways depending on whether the first information is stored or not" could be any different way, for example, but it would be particularly good to include a warning that the location where the first information is stored is approaching.

[0082] Here, the warning may be, for example, an image displayed or an audio output, but it is particularly good to display a dedicated warning screen, or to output an announcement such as "This is a point to be careful of," or a combination of these may be output.

[0083] (13) In the program of the present invention, each processing function of the apparatus described in any one of (1) to (12) above is to be implemented by a computer provided in a control unit that is pre-installed as the main part of the apparatus.

[0084] In this way, the control functions of the control unit, which constitutes the core of the device, are implemented by a computer installed in the control unit, enabling the rapid and smooth output of information such as whether the vehicle's speed was within the range that could be subject to enforcement. Therefore, drivers and others have the advantage of being able to quickly obtain the information necessary for safe driving.

[0085] The components (1) through (13) can be combined in any way. Similarly, the components (1) through (13) can also be combined in any way. [Effects of the Invention]

[0086] According to the device of the present invention, for example, when a user (e.g., a driver) is caught speeding, This can prompt drivers to reflect on dangerous driving behaviors that could have easily occurred, thereby encouraging safer driving. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0087] [Figure 1] This is a diagram showing the configuration of a radar detector, which is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram of a radar detector. [Figure 3] This figure shows examples of the standby screen, radar scope, and GPS warning display. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of the display of the warning screen in the radar wave warning function. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of how information regarding speeds that may be subject to enforcement can be displayed. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0088] (First embodiment) Figures 1 and 2 show the configuration of an in-vehicle radar detector as one embodiment of the device of the present invention. This radar detector is typically mounted on the dashboard of a vehicle.

[0089] This radar detector is typically fixed to the dashboard by attaching the bottom surface of the plate 33b of the base 33. The top of the base 33 is provided with a ball joint receiving portion 33a, and the ball portion, which is attached to the lower end of the support column portion 31 that extends downward from the bottom surface of the case body 1, is inserted into this ball joint receiving portion 33a, allowing the ball portion to be held at any angle and position within its range of motion. The base 33 has a spherical recess at a predetermined position on its upper surface, and the base 33 is made of a material that is elastically deformable, such as rubber, and has a suitable coefficient of friction. The outer diameter of the ball portion and the inner diameter of the recess are set to be approximately equal.

[0090] As a result, when the ball is inserted into the recess, the outer shape of the ball and the inner shape of the recess roughly coincide, allowing the ball to rotate and move in any direction along the spherical surface. Furthermore, by making the diameters of both nearly the same and providing an appropriate coefficient of friction to the inner shape of the recess, the ball can be held at any angle and position.

[0091] Furthermore, since the base 33 is elastically deformable, if the case body 1 is biased upward while holding the base 33 from the state shown in Figure 1, the diameter of the opening in the recess widens, and the ball part can be detached from the recess.

[0092] Conversely, if the base 33 and the ball part are separated, pressing the ball part against the opening of the recess and then applying bias to push it towards the base 33 will cause the recess to elastically deform, temporarily widening the opening and housing the ball part within the recess. After that, the elastic restoring force of the base 33 will return the recess to its original shape, preventing the ball part from easily detaching from the recess.

[0093] Furthermore, one side of an adhesive material such as an adhesive sheet, double-sided adhesive tape, or hook-and-loop fastener is attached to the bottom surface of the base 33, and the other side of the adhesive material is attached to a predetermined position in the vehicle interior, such as the dashboard. In this way, the base 33 is fixed to the predetermined position in the vehicle interior.

[0094] As shown in Figure 1, this radar detector has a solar panel 2 and a switch unit 3 on the top surface of the case body 1, and a microwave receiver 4 for detecting microwaves in the frequency band emitted by the speed measuring device is placed inside the front side of the case body 1 (the side facing the front of the vehicle (windshield side)).

[0095] On the other hand, the rear side of the case body 1 (the side facing the rear of the vehicle (user side (driver side)) houses the display unit 5, warning lamp 6, infrared communication device 7, and remote control receiver 16. Additionally, a GPS receiver 8 is located inside the top of the case body 1.

[0096] Furthermore, an adapter jack 9 is located on one side of the case body 1, and on the other side A power switch 10 and a DC jack 21 (not shown) are located there. A battery is located inside the bottom of the case body, and this battery is charged with power supplied from the solar panel 2 and the DC jack 21, which then supplies power to each component.

[0097] Furthermore, a speaker 20 is also built into the case body 1. In the first embodiment, the display unit 5 is a 2.4-inch small liquid crystal display, and the rear side of the case body 1 (the side positioned towards the rear of the vehicle (user side (driver side))) serves as the display surface. The height H of the rear side of the case body 1 on which the display unit 5 is mounted is greater than the height H0 of the other parts.

[0098] As shown in Figure 2, the infrared communication device 7 transmits and receives data with a communication device that has a built-in infrared communication device, such as a mobile phone 12.

[0099] The adapter jack 9 is a terminal for connecting the memory card reader 13. By connecting the memory card reader 13 to the adapter jack 9, data stored on the memory card 14 inserted into the memory card reader 13 can be imported internally, and the contents of the database 19 and the memory of the control unit 18 can be written to the memory card 14.

[0100] More specifically, if the data stored on the memory card 14 contains updated information such as new target information (location information including longitude and latitude, type information, etc.), the control unit 18 stores (downloads) this updated information into the database 19 built into the radar detector and updates the data in the database 19. The memory card reader 13 may be configured to be built into the case body 1. Specifically, if the information of the new target object is information of a speed enforcement location, such as a speed camera location, the memory card 14 stores the following data: the identification number of the speed camera location, location information including longitude and latitude (latitude and longitude information of the speed camera location), type information, speed limit information of the speed camera location, and information on speeds that may be subject to enforcement. The control unit 18 downloads this data to the database 19, updates the data in the database 19, and stores it. Here, the term "Orbis enforcement location" refers to the position where the target object, an automatic speed enforcement device (Orbis), is conducting enforcement using speeds that are subject to enforcement. Furthermore, the speed at which enforcement may occur is stored in the database 19 as a value greater than the speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location. Here, the speed at which enforcement may occur is calculated by adding 30% of the speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location to the speed limit. In the first embodiment, if the speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location is 100 km / h, the database 19 stores the speed at which enforcement may occur as 130 km / h, which is 30% higher.

[0101] The database 19 is a non-volatile memory (such as an EEPROM) located within the microcontroller of the control unit 18 or attached externally to the microcontroller. The database 19 initially contains information about certain target objects at the time of shipment, and data for subsequently added targets can be updated as described above. Data updates can also be performed via the infrared communication device 7. Furthermore, this database 19 is also designed to store audio information such as approach warnings, audio informing the driver that their speed when approaching a speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, audio informing the driver of the speed limit, and audio informing the driver of a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Here, the driving speed refers to the driving speed (movement speed) of the radar detector, and the system is configured so that when this radar detector detects something, it is equal to the driving speed of the vehicle on which the radar detector is installed.

[0102] DC jack 21 is for connecting a cigarette lighter plug cord (not shown), which can be connected to the vehicle's cigarette lighter socket to receive power.

[0103] The wireless receiver 15 receives incoming wireless signals of a predetermined frequency. The remote control receiver 16 communicates with the remote control (portable unit: slave unit) 17 via infrared light to perform various settings for this device. The switch unit 3 is also connected to the control unit 18 (not shown) and can perform the same settings as the remote control 17. The remote control 17 is equipped with a standby switch button, a setting button, a select button, a cancel button, a confirm button, and a cross-shaped button for up, down, left, and right directions.

[0104] Furthermore, the radar detector of the first embodiment includes a connection cable 22 that connects to the ODB-II (II is the Roman numeral "2", and hereafter "ODB-II" will be written as "ODB2") connector installed in the vehicle, as shown in Figure 2. A connector terminal 23 that can be detachably attached to the vehicle's ODB2 connector is attached to the tip of this connection cable 22. The ODB2 connector is also called a fault diagnosis connector and is connected to the vehicle's ECU, and various vehicle information is output from it.

[0105] Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the other end of the connecting cable 22 is provided with a connector terminal 25 for connecting to a socket port 24 provided on the side of the radar detector case body 1, so that the connecting cable 22 can also be attached to and detached from the radar detector. Of course, the connecting cable 22 may also be connected directly to the radar detector.

[0106] Therefore, by connecting the connector terminal 23 attached to this connection cable 22 with the ODB2 connector on the vehicle body side, the control unit 18 can periodically acquire various vehicle information. This vehicle information includes vehicle speed, engine speed, engine load, throttle opening, instantaneous fuel consumption, intake air volume (MAF), injection opening time, remaining fuel amount, accelerator opening, turn signal information (operation of left and right turn signals (ON / OFF)), steering wheel rotation angle information, etc.

[0107] Furthermore, the control unit 18 is a microcontroller equipped with a CPU, ROM, RAM, non-volatile memory, I / O, etc., and executes specific processing as described later based on the information input from the various input devices mentioned above, and outputs alarm messages and information corresponding to the processing using the various output devices mentioned above.

[0108] For example, the non-volatile memory stores data of a cat illustration as an object to be displayed on the display screen of the display unit 5. The non-volatile memory also stores information in a table format, associating it with a first flag information regarding whether the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, information regarding the speed camera enforcement location (in the first embodiment, the identification number of the speed camera enforcement location), information on the date and time of storage, and information on the stored location. Here, the first flag information is stored as 1 if the speed is one that may be subject to enforcement, and as 0 if the speed is not one that may be subject to enforcement.

[0109] The first flag information, the information regarding the location of the speed camera enforcement, the stored date and time information, and the stored location information constitute information (also referred to as "first information") indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location falls within the speed range that may be subject to enforcement. Here, this first piece of information is stored in a list format, with additional information added each time the vehicle approaches a speed camera enforcement location. Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the proximity to the speed camera enforcement location occurs when passing the speed camera enforcement location and when an approach warning is issued, as will be described later. When an approach warning is issued, the speed camera This refers to the approach to the speed camera enforcement location before passing the speed enforcement location. Also, in the case of the first embodiment, the time of passing the speed camera enforcement location is the position immediately before reaching the speed camera enforcement location (the point immediately preceding it). Furthermore, the approach warning is issued by the GPS warning function described later, and the approach warning is issued 1 km before the speed enforcement location, as described later. Furthermore, these basic configurations can essentially be the same as those used in the past.

[0110] The functions of the radar detector in the first embodiment are realized when a program is stored on the EEPROM of the control unit 18 as a program executed by the computer in the control unit 18 (the computer provided in the control unit 18 that is pre-equipped as the main part of the radar detector), and the computer in the control unit 18 executes this program.

[0111] The functions implemented by the computer through the program of the control unit 18 include GPS logging, standby screen display, radar scope display, GPS warning, radar wave warning, and wireless warning functions.

[0112] The GPS logging function is a function in which the control unit 18 stores the current location detected by the GPS receiver 8 every second as a location history in non-volatile memory, associated with the time of detection and speed (vehicle speed). This location history is recorded in, for example, NMEA format. The standby screen display function, as shown in Figure 3(a), displays the vehicle's speed, latitude, longitude, and altitude detected by the GPS receiver 8 on the display unit 5.

[0113] As shown in Figure 3(b), the radar scope display function searches for target objects within a predetermined range (for example, within a range of about 1 km) from the current position detected by the GPS receiver 8, based on the location information stored in the database 19, and displays the relative positional relationship between the vehicle's position and the target object's position on the display unit 5.

[0114] In Figure 3(b), the "W" on the left indicates west, the "E" on the right indicates east, and the "N" at the top indicates north. The icon at the intersection of the horizontal line connecting "W" and "E" and the vertical line extending downwards from "N" indicates the vehicle's position. Icons with letters such as "L," "RD," "P," and "N" indicate the type and location of the target object.

[0115] If the standby screen display function shown in Figure 3(a) is activated and the standby switch button on the remote control 17 is pressed, the system switches to the radar scope display function shown in Figure 3(b). Also, if the standby switch button on the remote control 17 is pressed while the radar scope display function is activated, the system switches back to the standby screen display function.

[0116] The control unit 18 executes processing to implement various functions such as GPS warning function, radar wave warning function, and wireless warning function in response to events that occur while the standby screen display function or radar scope display function (hereinafter these functions are collectively referred to as the standby function) is being executed. The priority of each function is set in the following order from highest to lowest: radar wave warning function, wireless warning function, and GPS warning function.

[0117] The GPS warning function is a process that is executed at predetermined time intervals (1-second intervals) in response to an event from a timer in the control unit 18. It calculates the distance between the latitude and longitude of the target object stored in the database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current position detected by the GPS receiver 8. When the calculated distance reaches a predetermined proximity distance (for example, 1 km), it displays a message to that effect (proximity warning) on ​​the display unit 5 and outputs an audio proximity warning from the speaker 20.

[0118] These targets include locations where drowsy driving accidents have occurred, radar, speed limit change points, enforcement areas, speed cameras (also called "automatic speed enforcement devices" or "vehicle speed measuring devices"), and checkpoints. The system stores information on the type of target, latitude and longitude information indicating its location, schematic diagrams or photographs displayed on the display unit 5, audio data, the speed limit at that location, and the speed at which enforcement may be required at that location in the database 19. The speed at which enforcement may be required is stored as the speed limit plus a value obtained by multiplying the speed limit by 30%.

[0119] Here, an Orbis (automatic speed enforcement device, vehicle speed measuring device) is a device that automatically measures the speed of a vehicle passing through an enforcement location and records the vehicle if its speed exceeds the speed at which enforcement may be required at the aforementioned enforcement location. Examples include loop coils, new H systems, LH systems, radar systems, etc.

[0120] The radar wave warning function is a warning function that, when the microwave receiver 4 detects a signal corresponding to microwaves in a frequency band emitted from a speed measuring device (mobile radar, etc. (hereinafter simply referred to as "radar")), displays a warning screen on the display unit 5 and outputs a warning sound from the speaker 20.

[0121] For example, when microwaves in the frequency band emitted by the radar are detected by the microwave receiver 4, as shown in Figure 4, a schematic diagram or photograph of the radar stored in the database 19 is displayed on the display unit 5 as an alarm screen, and audio data stored in the database 19 is read out and the voice message "Radar detected. Speed ​​warning" is output from the speaker 20. The alarm lamp 6 is illuminated while the voice is being output.

[0122] The wireless warning function is a function that, when the wireless receiver 15 receives radio waves emitted by emergency vehicles, etc., issues a warning to prevent interference with their driving. The wireless warning function scans frequencies such as speed enforcement radio, car location radio, digital radio, low-power radio, police station activity radio, police telephone, police activity radio, tow truck radio, helicopter telemetry radio, fire helicopter telemetry radio, fire radio, ambulance radio, highway radio, and security radio. When a radio signal is received on a scanned frequency, a schematic diagram indicating that a radio signal corresponding to that frequency has been received, stored in the database 19 for each radio signal type, is displayed on the display unit 5 as a warning screen. At the same time, audio data stored in the database 19 for each radio signal type is read out and an alarm sound indicating the type of radio signal is output from the speaker 20. For example, when a speed enforcement radio signal is received, an audio message such as "Speed ​​enforcement radio. Be careful of speed" is output. The warning lamp 6 is illuminated while the audio is being output.

[0123] In addition to the functions described above, the radar detector of the first embodiment is equipped with a first output function which includes a speed limit notification function, a speeding violation notification function, a recent driving speed notification function, and a function which outputs that the driving speed when approaching a speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0124] The speed limit notification function is a process performed by the control unit 18 when the vehicle is within 1 km of a speed camera enforcement location. The control unit 18 reads the speed limit for the speed camera enforcement location stored in the database 19 and displays the speed limit on the display unit 5. At the same time, it outputs an audio message announcing the speed limit, which is stored as audio data in the database 19, from the speaker 20. The audio message announcing the speed limit is something like, "The speed limit is XX kilometers per hour."

[0125] Here, a point that is within 1 km of a speed camera enforcement location is determined by calculating the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location stored in database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by GPS receiver 8, and the point where the calculated distance is 1 km. Furthermore, the driving speed used is calculated by the control unit 18 using the location information and time received by the GPS receiver 8 from the radar detector. In addition, the speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location is the road speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location read from the database 19 by the control unit 18.

[0126] The speeding violation notification function is a process executed by the control unit 18 at a point where the vehicle is 1 km away from a speed camera enforcement location or immediately before a speed camera enforcement location. In this process, the control unit 18 reads the speed limit for the speed camera enforcement location stored in the database 19, and if the result of subtracting the speed limit from the driving speed calculated as described later is greater than zero, it displays on the display screen of the display unit 5 that the driving speed at that location exceeds the speed limit, and also outputs an audio message stored as audio data in the database 19 to the speaker 20 informing the driver that they have exceeded the speed limit. The audio message informing the driver that they have exceeded the speed limit may be something like, "You are speeding by XX km / h."

[0127] Here, a point within 1 km of a speed camera enforcement location is determined by calculating the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location stored in database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by GPS receiver 8, and the point where the calculated distance is 1 km.

[0128] Furthermore, the point immediately preceding the speed camera enforcement location is determined by calculating the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location stored in the database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by the GPS receiver 8, and the point where the calculated distance is 100m.

[0129] Furthermore, the driving speed used is calculated by the control unit 18 using the location information and time received by the GPS receiver 8 from the radar detector. In addition, the speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location is the road speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location read from the database 19 by the control unit 18.

[0130] The immediate driving speed notification function is a process executed by the control unit 18 at the point immediately preceding the speed camera enforcement location. In this process, the control unit 18 controls the display unit 5 to display the driving speed at the point immediately preceding the speed camera enforcement location as the immediate driving speed, and also controls the speaker 20 to output an audio message announcing this immediate driving speed, which is stored as audio data in the database 19. The audio message announcing the immediate driving speed is, for example, "Your vehicle's speed is XX kilometers per hour."

[0131] Here, the point immediately preceding the speed camera enforcement location is determined, as mentioned above, by calculating the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location stored in database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by GPS receiver 8, and the point where the calculated distance is 100m.

[0132] As mentioned above, the driving speed used is the speed calculated by the control unit 18 using the location information and time received by the GPS receiver 8 from the radar detector.

[0133] As mentioned above, the first output function is a function that outputs a message indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, at the time of approach warning (1 km away from the speed camera location) and immediately before the speed camera location (100 m away from the speed camera location). Specifically, the control unit 18 performs the following processing for this first output function.

[0134] The control unit 18 reads from the database 19 the location of the speed camera enforcement that has been targeted for an approach warning by the GPS warning function described above, including the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location and the speed at which enforcement may be applied at that speed camera enforcement location, which is stored in association with that speed camera enforcement location.

[0135] Furthermore, the driving speed used is calculated by the control unit 18 using the position information and time received by the GPS receiver 8 from the radar detector. Specifically, the control unit 18 continuously detects the current position of the radar detector from the GPS receiver 8 at 1-second intervals, stores this detected current position in non-volatile memory at 1-second intervals, and continuously calculates the driving speed at 1-second intervals from the current position and the position from 1 second ago.

[0136] Then, when the distance between the current position of the radar detector detected by the GPS receiver 8 and the speed camera enforcement location read from the database 19 as described above becomes 1 km, the control unit 18 determines whether the driving speed at the time of approaching the speed camera enforcement location is equal to or greater than the speed at which speed cameras can be enforced at the speed camera enforcement location read from the database 19.

[0137] When the control unit 18 determines that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location is equal to or greater than the speed that may be subject to enforcement, it stores the following in the non-volatile memory as a first information storage process. Specifically, the control unit 18 sets a first flag information of 1 regarding whether or not the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, and stores this first flag information, information regarding the speed camera enforcement location (here, the identification number of the enforcement location (speed camera)), information on the date and time of storage, and information regarding the stored location (here, information indicating that the storage was made at the time of approach warning (1 km before the speed camera enforcement location) or just before reaching the speed camera enforcement location (information indicating that the storage was made 100 m before the speed camera enforcement location) in the non-volatile memory in association with this first flag information.

[0138] The control unit 18 performs the above process of storing the first information whenever the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location reaches a speed that may be subject to enforcement. Therefore, if the speed reaches a speed that may be subject to enforcement multiple times, and the first information is stored each time, the first information will be stored multiple times in non-volatile memory in a table format. Consequently, when the control unit 18 stores the first information multiple times, it stores the first information in the non-volatile memory within the control unit 18 as count information regarding the number of times the driving speed was at a speed that may be subject to enforcement.

[0139] Subsequently, when the vehicle engine is stopped, the control unit 18 reads the first information stored in the non-volatile memory, counts the number of instances of this first information (specifically, information where the first flag information is 1), and displays a number of cat illustration objects on the display unit 5 that corresponds to the counted number of instances of information indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement (see Figure 5).

[0140] When displaying this object on the display unit 5, the control unit 18 performs the following process for each object to be displayed: if it determines that the location information stored in the first information is the "proximity warning" position, the object is made white; and if it determines that the position is "just before reaching the speed camera enforcement location," the object is made gray.

[0141] Furthermore, the number of times the driving speed when approaching the speed camera location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement is recorded in database 19 as audio data. The system outputs an audio message to speaker 20 informing the user of the number of times the vehicle's speed while approaching the vehicle's location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0142] Figure 5 shows an example of the display screen when the control unit 18 outputs information to the display unit 5 indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, as information on the number of times the speed was subject to enforcement.

[0143] The information indicating that the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement can be output in any way, but in the first embodiment, if there are multiple instances of approaching a speed camera enforcement location, the control unit 18 reads out the first information stored in the non-volatile memory multiple times each time the vehicle approaches a speed camera enforcement location, counts the number of these first information items, and displays an amount of objects on the display screen of the display unit 5 that corresponds to the counted number of first information items. These objects are all the same in appearance and are simple illustrations of cats with identical appearances.

[0144] In this way, when a user sees objects that look the same externally and recognizes their number, they can determine how many times they were traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Here, "user" refers to the person who installs and uses this device in the vehicle, such as the driver themselves or an assistant who provides information to the driver.

[0145] As shown in Figure 5, the display screen of the display unit 5 is configured as a single display screen. The control unit 18 reads cat illustration data from the non-volatile memory as objects with the same external shape, and controls the display screen to display a number of objects corresponding to the number of first information items, arranged in a maximum of 8 vertically x 5 horizontally.

[0146] Furthermore, in Figure 5, the control unit 18 displays each object as a white cat and / or a gray cat by executing a program stored in the control unit 18's non-volatile memory. In the first embodiment, the white cat-shaped object in Figure 5 indicates a speed that could be subject to enforcement at the time of the approach warning. The gray cat-shaped object indicates a speed that could be subject to enforcement when the vehicle is just before reaching the speed camera.

[0147] Next, the operation of the radar detector in this first embodiment will be described.

[0148] This radar detector is powered on when the engine is started. This causes the control unit 18 to activate the GPS warning function, read the speed camera enforcement locations stored in the database 19, and begin calculating the distance between the read speed camera enforcement locations and the current location detected by the GPS receiver 8. The control unit 18 continues this calculation at predetermined time intervals (1-second intervals) using its timer.

[0149] When the control unit 18 determines, based on the calculation result of the distance between the vehicles, that it has reached a point 1 km away from the speed camera enforcement location, it performs a process to display a warning on the display unit 5 indicating that the vehicle is 1 km away from the speed camera, and also performs a process to output an approach warning sound from the speaker 20 indicating this.

[0150] Furthermore, when the control unit 18 determines that the vehicle has reached the point 1 km away, it provides a speed limit notification in addition to the 1 km approach warning. Specifically, regarding this speed limit notification, the control unit 18 processes the display unit 5 to display the speed limit of the enforcement location (speed camera) stored in the database 19, and also processes the speaker 20 to output an audio message announcing the said speed limit.

[0151] Furthermore, when the control unit 18 determines that the vehicle has reached the point 1 km away, it also issues a speeding alert. Specifically, the control unit 18 subtracts the speed limit from the vehicle's speed, and if the result is greater than zero, it displays on the display unit 5 that the vehicle's speed exceeds the speed limit, and also outputs an audio message from the speaker 20 informing the vehicle that the speed limit has been exceeded.

[0152] At this time, if the driving speed at the time of issuing an approach warning (or issuing a speeding violation notice) is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, the control unit 18 stores information indicating that fact (first information) in the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18. Here, as described above, the control unit 18 stores the first information by associating the first flag information with information regarding the location of the speed camera enforcement (information regarding the identification number of the speed camera enforcement location), the date and time of storage, and the location information of storage (information indicating that the storage was 1 km before the speed camera enforcement location).

[0153] Subsequently, when the control unit 18 determines that the radar detector has come even closer to the speed camera and has reached a position just before reaching the speed camera (100m before the speed camera enforcement location), the control unit 18 will issue a notification of the speed just before the speed violation and a second notification of exceeding the speed limit.

[0154] Just before reaching the speed camera, the control unit 18 stores information (first information) indicating that the driving speed at that location is a speed that could be subject to enforcement in the non-volatile memory within the control unit 18. At this time, the control unit 18 stores the first information by associating it with information regarding the speed camera enforcement location (information regarding the identification number of the speed camera enforcement location), information regarding the date and time of storage, and information regarding the location of storage (information indicating that the record was made 100m before (just before reaching) the speed camera enforcement location).

[0155] Here, when an approach warning is issued, if the driving speed at that time is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, the control unit 18 stores information (first information) indicating that the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement in its non-volatile memory. Then, if the driving speed at the position immediately before reaching the speed camera is also a speed that may be subject to enforcement, the control unit 18 updates the memory of the first information stored when the approach warning was issued with the first information at the time the vehicle reaches the position immediately before reaching the speed camera.

[0156] The above steps are repeated each time the radar detector installed in the vehicle approaches a location where a speed camera is set up.

[0157] Subsequently, when the vehicle stops its engine, the control unit 18 reads the first information stored in the non-volatile memory, counts the number of times the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and displays information indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement on the display unit 5 as the number of times the speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement (see Figure 5). At the same time, it outputs the number of times the speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement as an audio signal from the speaker 20.

[0158] Here, the control unit 18 performs a process to display information on the display unit 5, indicating that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, as information on the number of times the speed could be subject to enforcement, for a certain period of time (specifically, 10 seconds) after the vehicle engine is stopped.

[0159] Furthermore, if the standby screen was displayed on the display unit 5 until just before the vehicle stopped, when the vehicle's engine stops, the control unit 18 will terminate the display of the standby screen and the driving speed will be subject to enforcement. The screen displays information on the number of times the speed was achievable.

[0160] (Effects of the first embodiment) (1) The radar detector is equipped with a first output function that outputs information indicating that the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Therefore, when the user receives the output of information indicating that the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they will know that the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Thus, the user can improve their awareness of safe driving by reflecting on the dangerous driving that occurred.

[0161] (2) Furthermore, the control unit 18 displays information that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement as an object with the same external appearance on the display screen of the display unit 5. Therefore, when the user sees and recognizes the object with the same external appearance, they will know that the speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0162] (3) When the user receives an output of information indicating that their driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement based on the first information stored at the position immediately before reaching the speed camera enforcement location (for example, when the user focuses on the gray cat object displayed on the display unit 5), the user can effectively enhance their awareness of safe driving by reflecting on their own dangerous driving based on the output of information indicating that their driving speed at a position close to the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0163] (4) Furthermore, when information is received indicating that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement based on the first information stored at the location where the proximity warning was issued (for example, when focusing on the white cat object), it can also be known that the driving speed at the time the proximity warning was issued was a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0164] Therefore, the user can know, for example, that the speed they were traveling before hearing the approach warning (for example, before they started to decelerate the vehicle based on the approach warning (the "raw" state)) was a speed that could be subject to enforcement. For example, the user can also know that if this radar detector had not issued the approach warning, there was a high probability that the vehicle would have reached the speed camera enforcement location while still traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. Therefore, users can reflect on the fact that they were in a dangerous driving situation where they might have been caught speeding if they had continued driving at the speed they were normally going, and can further enhance their awareness of safe driving.

[0165] (5) Furthermore, when the radar detector has reached a speed that could be subject to enforcement multiple times, it stores the information from the first instance each time and outputs information on the number of times the driving speed was subject to enforcement based on this information. Therefore, if the user receives this information on the number of times the driving speed was subject to enforcement and recognizes the number, they can also find out how many times they have driven at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0166] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment will be described.

[0167] In this second embodiment, in addition to the first output function of the first embodiment, the radar detector stores in non-volatile memory information indicating that, if the driving speed was subject to enforcement at the location of the proximity warning or immediately before the speed camera enforcement location, but no longer falls within the range of speed subject to enforcement at the speed camera enforcement location (hereinafter referred to as "second information"), information indicating that the driving speed does not fall within the range of speed subject to enforcement at the speed camera enforcement location. The system is configured to remember the first piece of information, read it from the second piece of stored information, and, at the location of a speed camera enforcement, output information indicating that enforcement was avoided (a second output function).

[0168] Here, the radar detector according to the second embodiment is a radar detector that issues a warning of approaching a speed camera enforcement location, similar to the first embodiment.

[0169] Here, the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18 provided in the radar detector stores the second information in association with the first information, in addition to the first information mentioned above. Specifically, this second information is information (second flag information) that indicates with a flag that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location does not fall under the speed that may be subject to enforcement. Here, the control unit 18 stores the second flag information as 0 if it determines that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location does not fall under the speed that may be subject to enforcement.

[0170] When the radar detector issues an approach warning via its control unit 18, it reads out speeds that may be subject to enforcement from the database 19, and when it issues an approach warning or when the driving speed immediately before the speed camera enforcement location is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, it stores a first flag indicating that the driving speed is a speed that may be subject to enforcement as 1 in the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18 (first information), and outputs information that the speed was a speed that may be subject to enforcement based on the first information stored in the non-volatile memory (first output).

[0171] In addition, at a speed camera enforcement location, if the driving speed at that location is no longer a speed that could be subject to enforcement, the control unit 18 stores information (second information) indicating that the driving speed does not fall within the range of a speed that could be subject to enforcement, associating it with the first information by setting the second flag to 0, in the non-volatile memory within the control unit 18. When the vehicle engine is stopped, this stored information is read out and output to the display unit 5 and speaker 20 (second output) that enforcement has been avoided.

[0172] Here, "when the speed at the speed camera enforcement location is no longer subject to enforcement" refers to a situation where, for example, the speed was subject to enforcement when the proximity warning was issued, but the vehicle slowed down based on this warning, and at the speed camera enforcement location, the speed was no longer subject to enforcement. In particular, "when the speed at the speed camera enforcement location is no longer subject to enforcement" means that regardless of any changes in the speed between the issuance of the proximity warning and reaching the speed camera enforcement location (for example, even if the speed repeatedly fell below and above the speed subject to enforcement), the speed at the speed camera enforcement location is no longer subject to enforcement.

[0173] Furthermore, in the second embodiment as well, the database 19 stores speeds that may be subject to enforcement as values ​​greater than the speed limit. For example, as mentioned above, the speeds that may be subject to enforcement are calculated by adding a value obtained by multiplying the speed limit by 30% to the speed limit. In the second embodiment as well, if the speed limit is 100 km / h, the database 19 stores the speeds that may be subject to enforcement as 130 km / h, which is 30% higher.

[0174] Furthermore, in order to output information to the speaker 20 indicating that enforcement has been avoided, the database 19 stores not only the audio information shown in the first embodiment, but also the audio information of the second piece of information.

[0175] As described above, in the second embodiment, both the first output function and the second output function are performed. However, in this case, the first output from the first output function and the second output from the second output function are output as separate screens and sounds at separate timings. The first output of the first output function is the same as in the first embodiment, so its explanation is omitted. The second output function will be explained in more detail below.

[0176] The second output function is performed by the control unit 18, which carries out the following processing.

[0177] First, when the control unit 18 executes the second output function, it uses the speed camera enforcement location, the speed camera enforcement location (latitude and longitude) that was the target of the first output function, and the speeds that may be subject to enforcement at the enforcement location stored in association with the speed camera enforcement location as the speed camera enforcement location, the speed camera enforcement location (latitude and longitude) and the speeds that may be subject to enforcement at the enforcement location stored in association with the speed camera enforcement location, respectively, as the speed camera enforcement location, the speed camera enforcement location (latitude and longitude) that was the target of the second output function.

[0178] Furthermore, similar to the first output function, the driving speed used is calculated by the control unit 18 using the position information and time of the radar detector received by the GPS receiver 8. Specifically, the control unit 18 continuously detects the current position of the radar detector from the GPS receiver 8 at 1-second intervals, stores this detected current position in non-volatile memory at 1-second intervals, and continuously calculates the driving speed at 1-second intervals from the current position and the position from 1 second ago.

[0179] The control unit 18 then calculates the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by the GPS receiver 8. When it determines that the vehicle has reached the speed camera enforcement location, which is 20m away, it compares the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location with the speed at which the vehicle may be subject to enforcement, as read from the control unit 18.

[0180] If, as a result of the comparison, the control unit 18 determines that the calculated driving speed is less than or equal to the speed at which enforcement may occur (i.e., if it determines that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location does not fall under the speed at which enforcement may occur), it stores information indicating that the driving speed does not fall under the speed at which enforcement may occur (second information) in the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18, associating it with the first flag information by setting the second flag information to 0.

[0181] The control unit 18 performs the above process of storing the second information each time the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is below the speed at which enforcement may be applied. Therefore, if the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is below the speed at which enforcement may be applied multiple times, and the second information is stored each time, the second information will be stored in the non-volatile memory in a table format, associated with the first information.

[0182] Therefore, if the control unit 18 stores multiple pieces of the second information, it will store them in the non-volatile memory within the control unit 18 as count information regarding the number of times the driving speed has fallen below a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0183] Subsequently, when the vehicle's engine is stopped, the control unit 18 reads the first and second information stored in the non-volatile memory, counts the number of second information items (specifically, the number of items where the first flag information is 1 and the second flag information is 0), and displays a number of cat illustration objects on the display unit 5 corresponding to the counted number of second information items indicating that enforcement has been avoided (see Figure 5).

[0184] In this case, as in the first embodiment, in Figure 5, the control unit 18 displays each object as a white cat and / or a gray cat by executing a program stored in the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18. Here, in the second embodiment as well, the control unit 18, Information indicating a speed that could be subject to enforcement at the time of approach warning is displayed as a white cat object. In addition, the control unit 18 displays information indicating a speed that could be subject to enforcement when the vehicle is just before reaching the speed camera as a gray cat object.

[0185] Furthermore, the system processes the counted number of times enforcement was avoided and outputs an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the user of the number of times the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location was no longer subject to enforcement, as stored as audio data in the database 19.

[0186] In the second embodiment, in addition to the operation of the first output function included in the first embodiment, the operation of the following second output function is performed.

[0187] The control unit 18 calculates the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location stored in the database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by the GPS receiver 8. When it determines that the vehicle has reached the speed camera enforcement location (as a speed enforcement location) where the calculated distance is 20m, it reads out the speeds that may be subject to enforcement stored in the database 19 and determines whether the vehicle's current speed is one of the speeds that may be subject to enforcement.

[0188] If the calculated driving speed is less than or equal to the speed at which enforcement may occur, the control unit 18 stores information (second information) indicating that the driving speed does not fall under the speed at which enforcement may occur (second information) in the control unit 18's non-volatile memory by setting the second flag to 0.

[0189] The above operations are repeated each time the vehicle reaches a speed camera enforcement location. Therefore, the control unit 18 stores the second information each time the vehicle equipped with the radar detector of this embodiment slows down based on the proximity warning issued, and the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location is no longer subject to enforcement. Accordingly, the control unit 18 stores the second information (specifically, the information stored with the first flag information set to 1 and the second flag information set to 0) in the non-volatile memory as count information regarding the number of times the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location has been no longer subject to enforcement.

[0190] When the vehicle's engine is stopped, the control unit 18 reads out the second information stored in the non-volatile memory, where the first flag information is 1 and the second flag information is 0. The control unit 18 then counts the number of these second pieces of information and displays a number of cat illustration objects on the display unit 5 that corresponds to the number of pieces of information counted as information indicating that enforcement has been avoided (see Figure 5).

[0191] As mentioned above, when the control unit 18 processes the display of the cat illustration object on the display unit 5, it displays information that the speed at which the vehicle was subject to enforcement at the time of the approach warning as a white cat object, and information that the speed at which the vehicle was subject to enforcement when it was just before reaching the speed camera as a gray cat object.

[0192] Furthermore, the system takes the total number of times enforcement was avoided and outputs an audio message to the speaker 20, which is stored as audio data in the database 19, announcing the number of times enforcement was avoided.

[0193] Here, the display screen of the display unit 5 according to the second embodiment will be described in detail again with reference to Figure 5. On this display screen, similar to the display screen shown in Figure 5 in the first embodiment, the control unit 18 performs a process to display an object of a cat illustration that has the same external shape. Yes, they are.

[0194] As mentioned above, in the second embodiment, the first output from the first output function and the second output from the second output function are displayed on separate screens at different timings. Here, only the screen for the second output from the second output function will be described. The screen for the first output is the same as that shown in the first embodiment. The control unit 18 switches between the screens for the first and second outputs based on a timer.

[0195] In the second embodiment, each individual cat object corresponds to a second output, which is displayed in white or gray, as described above.

[0196] Here, the white cat object represents individual instances where, at the time the approach warning was issued, the vehicle's speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, but as a result of this warning, the vehicle slowed down, and by the time it passed the speed camera location, its speed was no longer at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0197] Furthermore, the gray cat object represents individual instances where, just before reaching the speed camera, the vehicle's speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, but based on this approach warning, the vehicle slowed down, and by the time it passed the speed camera's location, its speed was no longer at a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0198] In this way, the user can understand that the speed at which they were traveling when the proximity warning was issued or just before reaching the speed camera was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, but that by the time they reached the speed camera enforcement location, their speed was no longer a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and therefore they were able to avoid enforcement. As a result, the user can reflect on the fact that they were in a dangerous driving situation where they might have been subject to speed enforcement if they had continued driving at the speed they were traveling at before receiving the proximity warning, and they can also understand that the device prompted them to slow down their vehicle and drive safely.

[0199] (Third embodiment) Next, a third embodiment will be described.

[0200] The radar detector in the third embodiment has a configuration that adds the first output function in the first embodiment and the second output function in the second embodiment, in addition to the first output function in the first embodiment and the second output function in the second embodiment, to store information (hereinafter referred to as "third information") in non-volatile memory indicating that the driving speed at the point of approach warning or the point immediately before the speed camera enforcement location is a speed that may be subject to enforcement, and that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is also a speed that may be subject to enforcement. The radar detector then reads the stored third information from the non-volatile memory and outputs information indicating that enforcement could not be avoided at the speed camera enforcement location (third output function).

[0201] Furthermore, the control unit 18 is configured to simultaneously output, in different forms, information indicating that enforcement was avoided using the second output function and information indicating that enforcement was not avoided using the third output function.

[0202] Here, the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18 provided in the radar detector stores information (hereinafter referred to as "third information") indicating that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location falls within the range of speeds subject to enforcement, in association with the first and second information described above. Specifically, this third information is information (third flag information) that indicates with a flag that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location falls within the range of speeds subject to enforcement. Here, regarding the third flag information, the control unit 18 stores it as 1 if it determines that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location falls within the range that may be subject to enforcement.

[0203] Furthermore, in a different mode of output, in the third embodiment, the control unit 18 causes the display unit 5 to output in a different mode by changing the color tone of the object, such as white and gray.

[0204] Here, the radar detector according to the third embodiment is also a radar detector that issues a warning of approaching a speed camera enforcement location, similar to the first and second embodiments.

[0205] Specifically, the third output function adds the following processing to the processing of the first and second output functions.

[0206] When the control unit 18 compares the driving speed calculated at the speed camera enforcement location with the speed at which enforcement may be imposed, if the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is also at a speed at which enforcement may be imposed, it stores information (third information) indicating that the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is also at a speed at which enforcement may be imposed, associating it with the first and second information by setting the third flag to 1, in the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18. When the vehicle engine is stopped, it reads this stored information and outputs information (third output) to the display unit 5 and speaker 20 indicating that enforcement could not be avoided.

[0207] Here, "even at the location of the speed camera enforcement, if the driving speed is at a speed that could be subject to enforcement" refers to, for example, a situation where the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement when an approach warning was issued, and the vehicle slowed down based on this approach warning, but even at the location of the speed camera enforcement, the driving speed was still at a speed that could be subject to enforcement. In particular, the phrase "even at the speed camera enforcement location, if the speed in question is a speed that could be subject to enforcement" means that even if the speed has changed in any way from the time the approach warning was issued until reaching the speed camera enforcement location (for example, even if the speed has repeatedly fallen below and exceeded the speed that could be subject to enforcement), the speed at the speed camera enforcement location is a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0208] Furthermore, the speeds that may be subject to enforcement in the third embodiment are the same as the speeds that may be subject to enforcement in the first and second embodiments.

[0209] Furthermore, in order to output information to the speaker 20 indicating that enforcement could not be avoided, the database 19 stores audio information of the second piece of information in addition to the audio information shown in the first and second embodiments.

[0210] Next, in the third embodiment, the second and third output functions, which work in cooperation with the first function, will be described in more detail.

[0211] In addition to the first function, the second and third output functions are performed by the control unit 18, which performs the following processing.

[0212] First, when the control unit 18 executes the second and third output functions, it uses the speed camera enforcement location, the speed camera enforcement location (latitude and longitude) that was the target of the first output function, and the speeds that may be subject to enforcement at the enforcement location stored in association with the speed camera enforcement location, as the speed camera enforcement location, the speed camera enforcement location (latitude and longitude), and the speeds that may be subject to enforcement at the enforcement location stored in association with the speed camera enforcement location that are the targets of the second and third output functions.

[0213] Furthermore, similar to the first output function, the driving speed used is calculated by the control unit 18 using the position information and time of the radar detector received by the GPS receiver 8. Specifically, the control unit 18 continuously detects the current position of the radar detector from the GPS receiver 8 at 1-second intervals, stores this detected current position in non-volatile memory at 1-second intervals, and continuously calculates the driving speed at 1-second intervals from the current position and the position from 1 second ago.

[0214] The control unit 18 then calculates the distance between the latitude and longitude of the speed camera enforcement location and the latitude and longitude of the current location detected by the GPS receiver 8. When it determines that the vehicle has reached the speed camera enforcement location, which is 20m away, it compares the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location with the speed at which the vehicle may be subject to enforcement, as read from the control unit 18.

[0215] If the control unit 18 finds that the calculated driving speed is less than or equal to the speed at which enforcement may occur, it stores information indicating that the driving speed does not fall under the speed at which enforcement may occur (second information) in the control unit 18's non-volatile memory, associating the second flag information with the first flag information by setting the second flag information to 0. On the other hand, if the calculated driving speed is higher than the speed at which enforcement may occur, the control unit 18 stores information indicating that the driving speed falls under the speed at which enforcement may occur (third information) in the control unit 18's non-volatile memory, associating the third flag information with the first flag information by setting the third flag information to 1.

[0216] The control unit 18 performs the process of storing the second information each time the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is less than or equal to the speed at which enforcement may be applied, and performs the process of storing the third information each time the driving speed at the speed camera enforcement location is higher than the speed at which enforcement may be applied.

[0217] Therefore, if the vehicle reaches the speed camera enforcement location multiple times, and each time the second or third piece of information is stored, the second or third piece of information will be associated with the first piece of information and stored in non-volatile memory as a table.

[0218] Therefore, if the control unit 18 stores multiple instances of the second information, it stores the second information in its non-volatile memory as count information relating to the number of times the driving speed was no longer subject to enforcement. Furthermore, if the control unit 18 stores multiple instances of the third information, it stores the third information in its non-volatile memory as count information relating to the number of times the driving speed was subject to enforcement when approaching the speed camera enforcement location, and remained subject to enforcement even at the speed camera enforcement location.

[0219] Subsequently, when the vehicle engine is stopped, the control unit 18 reads the second information stored in the non-volatile memory, counts the number of these second pieces of information (specifically, the number of pieces of information where the first flag information is 1 and the second flag information is 0), and displays a number of cat illustrations corresponding to the counted number of pieces of information as white objects on the display screen of the display unit 5. Here, these white cat-shaped objects indicate that when the proximity warning was issued, the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, but at the speed camera enforcement location, the driving speed was no longer at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and enforcement was avoided (see Figure 5).

[0220] Furthermore, when the vehicle's engine is stopped, the control unit 18 reads the third information stored in the non-volatile memory, counts the number of these third pieces of information (specifically, the number of pieces of information where the first flag information is 1 and the third flag information is 1), and displays a number of cat illustrations corresponding to the counted number of pieces of information as gray objects on the display screen of the display unit 5. The process for displaying the information is performed in the same manner. Here, this gray cat-shaped object indicates that when the proximity warning was issued, the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, and that the driving speed was also a speed that could be subject to enforcement at the location of the speed camera enforcement, and therefore enforcement could not be avoided (see Figure 5).

[0221] Furthermore, the number of aggregated values ​​for the second piece of information is used to determine the number of times the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location was no longer subject to enforcement. This is used to output a voice message (first voice message) to the speaker 20, which is stored as voice data in the database 19, announcing the number of times the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location was no longer subject to enforcement. Similarly, the number of aggregated values ​​for the third piece of information is used to determine the number of times the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location remained subject to enforcement. This is used to output a voice message to the speaker 20, which is stored as voice data in the database 19, announcing the number of times the vehicle's speed at the speed camera enforcement location remained subject to enforcement.

[0222] Here, the control unit 18 processes the content of the first voice and the second voice into a single phrase and outputs it to the speaker 20.

[0223] In this way, the user can focus on the color of the cat illustration objects and, upon recognizing the number of gray cat illustration objects, determine how many times their driving speed at a speed camera enforcement location was within the range that could trigger enforcement, and how many times they failed to avoid enforcement. Furthermore, upon recognizing the number of white cat illustration objects, the user can determine how many times their driving speed at a speed camera enforcement location was no longer within the range that could trigger enforcement, and how many times they were able to avoid enforcement.

[0224] Furthermore, by comparing two of the above-mentioned counts, it is possible to determine the ratio of times enforcement was avoided to times enforcement was not avoided, the ratio of times the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement when approaching the speed camera location to times enforcement was avoided, and the ratio of times the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement when approaching the speed camera location to times enforcement was not avoided.

[0225] Furthermore, in the third embodiment, the control unit 18 performs a process to display both the second output and the third output on the same display screen of the display unit 5 at the same timing, relating them to each other. As a result, when the user recognizes the second output and the third output, which are displayed on the same display screen at the same timing in relation to each other, they can grasp the number of times they were able to avoid enforcement, the number of times they were unable to avoid enforcement, the number of times their driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement when approaching the speed camera enforcement location, and the proportions of these, all on a single display screen.

[0226] Furthermore, both the white cat object and the gray cat object correspond to the first piece of information, and the total number of white and gray cat objects represents the information that the vehicle was traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement at the time of the proximity warning. Therefore, when the user recognizes the total number of cat illustration objects output on the display screen of the display unit 5, they can understand how many times the vehicle was traveling at a speed that could be subject to enforcement at the time of the proximity warning.

[0227] (Other embodiments) Other embodiments will be described below.

[0228] In the GPS warning function of each of the embodiments described above, the control unit 18 displays a message (proximity warning) on ​​the display unit 5 and outputs an audio proximity warning from the speaker 20 when the calculated distance reaches a predetermined proximity distance (for example, 1 km). However, the proximity distance may be 500 m, or it may be both 1 km and 500 m.

[0229] In each of the above embodiments, the radar detector provided a speed limit notification function under the control of the control unit 18, but this speed limit notification is not required. Also, the control unit 18 displayed the speed limit at the speed camera enforcement location on the display unit 5 and output an audio notification of the speed limit from the speaker 20, but instead, only one of the audio output or the display output may be performed.

[0230] Furthermore, although the radar detectors in each of the above embodiments provided speed limit notification under the control of the control unit 18, this speed limit notification is not required. Also, although the control unit 18 performed the process of displaying on the display unit 5 that the driving speed exceeds the speed limit and outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the driver that the speed limit has been exceeded, this can be replaced by performing only one of the audio output or the display output.

[0231] The speed limit notification function in each of the above embodiments performs the process of displaying on the display screen of the display unit 5 that the driving speed exceeds the speed limit, and also performs the process of outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the driver that the speed limit has been exceeded, but does not perform the process of notifying the driver of the value of the exceeded speed itself. However, the control unit 18 may also perform the process of displaying on the display screen of the display unit 5 the value of the exceeded speed calculated at the time of speed limit notification and / or outputting it as an audio message. Alternatively, the control unit 18 may perform the process of displaying on the display screen of the display unit 5 the value obtained by subtracting the speed limit from the driving speed and / or outputting it as an audio message.

[0232] In each of the embodiments described above, the proximity warning is provided by the GPS warning function of the radar detector, but is not limited thereto. The proximity warning can be anything that indicates that the vehicle is within a predetermined proximity distance to the location of the speed camera enforcement, and the speed limit notification and / or speeding violation notification from the radar detector may serve the role of the proximity warning instead of using the GPS warning function's proximity warning.

[0233] Furthermore, the predetermined approach distance was set to 1 km when the distance between the latitude and longitude of the target object stored in the database 19 and the latitude and longitude of the current position detected by the GPS receiver 8 was calculated. However, when the vehicle is traveling on an expressway, the aforementioned predetermined approach distance may be 2 km before the speed camera instead of 1 km before it.

[0234] Furthermore, the proximity warning should be issued at a location just before reaching the speed camera enforcement location, and the user who receives the proximity warning via the GPS alert function should be able to decelerate the vehicle equipped with the radar detector of each embodiment to a speed that is not subject to enforcement, before reaching the speed camera enforcement location (for example, 2km, 1km, 500m, 100m before the speed camera enforcement location).

[0235] In this way, by recognizing the approach warning issued by this radar detector, the user can slow down from their current speed, which is subject to enforcement, to a speed that is not subject to enforcement, before reaching the location of the speed camera enforcement.

[0236] Here, the "position where deceleration is possible" can be any position where the vehicle's speed can be reduced to a speed that is not subject to enforcement, but it is especially good to choose a position where the vehicle can be safely reduced to a speed that is not subject to enforcement. Even if the current speed that is subject to enforcement is significantly higher than the speed that is subject to enforcement, it is good to choose a position where the vehicle can be reduced without sudden braking (for example, if the speed limit is 100 km / h, it is good to choose a position where the vehicle can be reduced to the speed limit even if the current speed is 160 km / h or 170 km / h). In particular, it is good to choose a position where the distance between the vehicle in front and behind is not suddenly reduced. It is preferable to gradually reduce the speed of the vehicle while maintaining a constant speed, so that it reaches a point where it is not subject to enforcement.

[0237] The proximity warning process involves displaying a message on the display unit 5, displaying a proximity warning from the speaker 20, and outputting an audio message indicating the proximity warning from the speaker 20. However, the proximity warning can be any form, such as sound, voice, image, or a combination thereof, and may be output by sound and / or voice.

[0238] In the embodiments described above, the location was assumed to be a speed enforcement location using an Orbis camera. However, any location where enforcement is carried out using a speed that can be used to target vehicles traveling at a speed exceeding the legal speed limit (hereinafter referred to as the speed limit) may also be a location where drivers should pay attention to their driving speed.

[0239] When a speed camera enforcement location is nearby, it is defined as when passing the speed camera enforcement location and when an approach warning is issued, but it may also be defined as when either passing the speed camera enforcement location or when an approach warning is issued.

[0240] While the definition of "passing a speed camera enforcement location" is currently defined as the position immediately before reaching the speed camera enforcement location, it is also acceptable to define it as the position upon arrival at the speed camera enforcement location, or the position immediately after passing the speed camera enforcement location.

[0241] The driving speed is calculated by the control unit 18 using the location information and time received by the GPS receiver 8 from the radar detector. However, instead, the control unit 18 may obtain the vehicle's driving speed from the vehicle via the vehicle's ODB2 connector (diagnostic connector) and the connecting cable 22 connected thereto, and use this as the driving speed for the radar detector.

[0242] Furthermore, regarding the first to third information, although the control unit 18 stores the first to third information in the non-volatile memory within the control unit 18, it is not limited to this. The control unit 18 may store all or part of the first to third information in other storage devices, for example, in the RAM within the control unit 18, or in the database 19.

[0243] In each of the above embodiments, the control unit 18 is configured to display a number of objects corresponding to the total number of the aggregated first pieces of information (second pieces of information, third pieces of information). However, it may also display a number corresponding to the total number of the aggregated first pieces of information (second pieces of information, third pieces of information), or it may display both together. Furthermore, the control unit 18 may output an audio message to the speaker 20 announcing the total number of aggregated first pieces of information (second pieces of information, third pieces of information) as the number of occurrences for each piece of information.

[0244] In each of the embodiments described above, the speed that may be subject to enforcement, as stored in the database 19, is the speed obtained by adding a value obtained by multiplying the speed limit by 30% to the speed limit. However, it may be any other value greater than the speed limit, and is not limited to this. When the speed that may be subject to enforcement is greater than the speed limit, it is preferable to use the speed obtained by adding the speed exceeding the speed limit when approaching the enforcement location.

[0245] Here, this excess speed can be any value that makes it highly likely that a vehicle will be apprehended if it is traveling at a speed that is the speed limit plus a predetermined value. For example, if a vehicle is traveling on a road with a speed limit of 100 km / h, the predetermined value may be, for example, 30 km / h 1 km before reaching the enforcement point on that road, and 15 km / h immediately before the enforcement point (for example, 100 m before reaching the enforcement point). It is h.

[0246] In this way, if a user receives information indicating that their speed when approaching a speed enforcement location was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they will know that they were driving at a speed that was the speed limit plus the speed exceeding the limit. Therefore, the user only needs to be aware of decelerating to a speed equivalent to a predetermined value (the speed exceeding the limit) relative to their current speed. Thus, the thought process involved in deceleration is simplified, and the deceleration operation can be made more effective.

[0247] In particular, the speed at which enforcement may be imposed should be the value including the allowable margin of error for the vehicle's speedometer. In particular, the error range of the speedometer should be within the range permitted by law. In particular, the error range of the speedometer should be within the range permitted by law.

[0248] For example, according to Article 148 of the "Notification Specifying the Details of Safety Standards for Road Vehicles," the permissible range of error for a vehicle's speedometer is given by 10(V1-6) / 11 ≤ V2 ≤ (100 / 94)V1, where V1 is the speed displayed on the speedometer installed in the vehicle (unit: km / h) and V2 is the speed measured using a speed tester (unit: km / h). Based on this, for example, when a vehicle is driven so that the speedometer reads 40 km / h (V1 = 40 km / h), the vehicle's speed (the speed equivalent to the speed measured using a speed tester) V2 is in the range of 30.9 ≤ V2 ≤ 42.55. In this case, for example, the permissible upper limit error for the speedometer should be set at 2.55 km / h.

[0249] Furthermore, while it was stated that any speed greater than the speed limit could be subject to enforcement, it is not limited to this. The speed that could be subject to enforcement could even be the speed limit itself.

[0250] In each of the above embodiments, the process of displaying the cat illustration object on the display unit 5 is performed when the vehicle engine is stopped. However, instead, the process may be performed when passing the speed camera enforcement location, immediately after passing the speed camera enforcement location, after a specific period of time has elapsed so long that the proximity to the speed camera enforcement location is forgotten, for example, 1 hour, 2 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours, 1 day, 2 days after passing the speed camera enforcement location, when the vehicle is stopped after the elapsed period of time, or when the engine is started again.

[0251] Similarly, the process of outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the driver of the number of times the vehicle's speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement is performed when the vehicle's engine is stopped. However, instead, this process may be performed when the vehicle passes the speed camera enforcement location, immediately after passing the speed camera enforcement location, after a specific period of time has elapsed, for example, 1 hour, 2 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours, 1 day, 2 days after passing the speed camera enforcement location, when the engine is stopped, or when the engine is started again.

[0252] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the process of the control unit 18 displaying a cat illustration object on the display unit 5 and the process of outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the driver of the number of times the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement were described as being performed simultaneously. However, the control unit 18 is not limited to this, and may perform these processes at different times.

[0253] Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, the process of displaying a cat illustration object on the display unit 5, and the process of outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the driver of the number of times the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, may be performed when passing the location, or after passing the location. You can go right after that.

[0254] Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, the process of displaying a cat illustration object on the display unit 5 and the process of outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the vehicle of the number of times the driving speed when approaching a speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement were performed when the vehicle's engine was stopped. However, the control unit 18 may also perform the following process: when the radar detector passes the entrance to a specific section of the road (for example, the entrance to an interchange on a highway), it reads only the first information of speed camera enforcement locations that are identified within a certain range (for example, 10 km) in the direction of travel associated with this entrance from the database 19, aggregates the number of these first pieces of information, displays a number of cat illustration objects corresponding to this number on the display unit 5, and outputs an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the vehicle of the number of times the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement.

[0255] In each of the above embodiments, the control unit 18 performs both the process of displaying an object of a cat illustration on the display unit 5 and the process of outputting an audio message to the speaker 20 informing the driver of the number of times the driving speed when approaching the speed camera enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement. However, it is also possible to perform only one of these outputs.

[0256] In the second embodiment, the first output from the first output function and the second output from the second output function are output as separate screens and sounds at different timings. However, the first and second outputs may be performed at the same timing. For example, it is particularly preferable to output them on the same screen or to include the content in a single phrase and output it as sound.

[0257] Furthermore, a configuration in which the first and second outputs are performed at the same time and displayed on the same screen is shown as a third embodiment.

[0258] Furthermore, although the control unit 18 is configured to switch between the first output screen and the second output screen based on a timer, the user may also switch between them by operating the remote control 17.

[0259] In the third embodiment, the control unit 18 performs the process of displaying both the second output and the third output on the same display screen of the display unit 5 at the same timing. However, this may be done on the same display screen at different timings, or on separate display screens at the same or different timings.

[0260] The control unit 18 performs a process to output the first voice and the second voice into a single phrase to the speaker 20, but they may also be output as separate phrases.

[0261] In each of the embodiments described above, Figure 5 shows a configuration in which the object displayed by the control unit 18 is an illustration of a cat that has the same external shape and is simple and identical in appearance, but it is not limited to this. Anything that has the same external shape and is simple and identical in appearance is acceptable. For example, it is good to have an object with a simple outline shape, and in particular, it is good to have a simple illustration of an animal or the like.

[0262] Furthermore, in each of the embodiments described above, Figure 5 shows a control mechanism that displays objects (cat illustrations) arranged in a 8x5 grid on the display screen. However, by scaling the objects, the display may be shown with a different number of rows and columns, or with fewer rows and columns.

[0263] Furthermore, although the object was displayed on a single screen in each of the above embodiments, it is not limited to this and may span multiple screens (pages).

[0264] Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, the recording period for the objects to be displayed on this single screen can be any period, such as one year up to the present, one month up to the present, one week up to the present, or one day up to the present, and it is particularly preferable to set it from the start of use to the present.

[0265] In the embodiments described above, the objects to be displayed on the display unit 5 are all the same in shape and are simple illustrations of cats. However, when displaying multiple objects, any object that is substantially the same in shape may be used.

[0266] For example, if the object has multiple instances of approaching a speed camera enforcement location, and each instance of the driving speed at that time was within the range of a speed subject to enforcement is stored separately in multiple objects, it is preferable to display this information of being within the range of a speed subject to enforcement using the same picture or symbol across the multiple objects.

[0267] In particular, for example, "objects with the same external shape" can be represented by simple illustrations of animals such as cats. "Objects with the same external form" are not limited to those composed of pictures or symbols, but may also be other shapes. "Identical pictures or symbols" do not necessarily have to be completely identical, but may be pictures or symbols that appear substantially identical.

[0268] The object is an illustration of a cat with the same and simple outline, but any illustration will do. For example, an illustration that evokes speed enforcement (for example, an illustration of a traffic ticket or fine) would be particularly good.

[0269] When an object such as an illustration that evokes speed enforcement or the like is used, when the user recognizes this, the user can imagine that they must drive safely so as not to violate the speed limit, and can more effectively reflect on dangerous driving.

[0270] Furthermore, when displaying an object that evokes speed enforcement or the like, depending on the degree to which the driving speed when approaching the orbis enforcement position exceeds the speed limit, this illustration may be displayed with color separation or in gradually different color tones. For example, when an illustration that evokes speed enforcement or the like is made into an illustration of a violation ticket, it may be color-separated by the color of the violation ticket according to the degree to which the driving speed exceeds the speed limit. Also, for example, when an illustration that evokes speed enforcement or the like is made into an illustration of a fine, the amount of the fine may be changed according to the degree to which the driving speed exceeds the speed limit.

[0271] When the object is displayed as an illustration of a fine, for example, when the enforcement can be avoided, it is white (or yellow), and when the enforcement cannot be avoided, it is gray (or red), the user can easily imagine how much fine they have saved by using this radar detector by paying attention to the white (or yellow) fine illustration, and thereby can also realize the effect of installing this device.

[0272] In each of the above embodiments, the process of outputting in different modes by changing the color tone of the object to white and gray is adopted, but this "outputting in different modes" may be anything as long as it outputs different modes. For example, it may be done by displaying the object with color separation. That's fine. For example, in each of the above embodiments, the white cat may be displayed as a yellow cat, and the gray cat may be displayed as a red cat.

[0273] In this way, by paying attention to and recognizing these through the color-coded display of the object, the user can recognize information indicating that the violation has been avoided and information indicating that the violation could not be avoided.

[0274] For example, in the first and second embodiments, when it is a speed that can be a target for enforcement at a position far from the orbis enforcement position such as the position at the time of approach warning, it was displayed as an object of a white cat, but in this case, the control unit 18 may display the object in another color (for example, yellow) indicating a relatively low enforcement risk.

[0275] When it is a speed that can be a target for enforcement at a position close to the orbis enforcement position such as immediately before the orbis enforcement position, it was displayed as an object of a white cat, but in this case, the control unit 18 may display the object in another color (for example, red) indicating a relatively high enforcement risk. For example, in the third embodiment, from the perspective of whether the enforcement can be avoided, information indicating that the enforcement has been avoided may be yellow, and information indicating that the enforcement could not be avoided may be red.

[0276] Also, in each of the above embodiments, the process of outputting in different modes by changing the color tone of the object to white and gray was adopted, but when displaying in different color tones, the control unit 18 may display the color tone inside the outer shape of the object differently on the display screen of the display unit 5.

[0277] Furthermore, instead of displaying the object in different color tones, the object may be color-coded and displayed. In this case, the control unit 18 may display the color inside the outer shape of the object differently on the display screen of the display unit 5.

[0278] Also, instead of displaying the object in different color tones, one object may be colored and the other may be uncolored when the enforcement could not be avoided. Also, for example, in addition to color-coding and different color tones, the control unit 18 may perform display processing such that a pattern is added to one and not added to the other.

[0279] In the first and second embodiments described above, the output of information indicating that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement was output in different ways depending on the location where the first information was stored. However, it is also possible to configure the system to output the information in different ways depending on multiple ranges of speeds that could be subject to enforcement.

[0280] For example, the non-volatile memory of the control unit 18 may further store information regarding the driving speed as first information.

[0281] Furthermore, when the radar detector is actually in use, if the control unit 18 determines that the driving speed at the time of approaching the speed camera enforcement location is equal to or greater than the speed at which enforcement may be applied, as read from the non-volatile memory, it is preferable to store the speed obtained by subtracting the speed at which enforcement may be applied from the driving speed at that time as enforcement target speed exceedance information in the non-volatile memory.

[0282] Then, when the vehicle engine is stopped, the information stored in the non-volatile memory 1 is read, and a number of cat illustration objects corresponding to the number of pieces of information in the 1st information are displayed on the display unit 5. If the value of the speed limit information subject to enforcement is less than 15 km / h, the display is white. It is recommended to treat it as an object and process it so that if the value of the speed limit information for enforcement is 15 km / h or more, it becomes a gray object.

[0283] Furthermore, the white color of this object may be changed to yellow, and the gray color may be changed to red, and the control unit 18 may process these to display them on the display screen of the display unit 5.

[0284] In this way, if a user receives and recognizes information indicating that their speed was subject to enforcement in multiple ranges and different manners, they can learn that their driving speed was subject to enforcement in multiple ranges.

[0285] Furthermore, when the vehicle stops its engine, the output of information indicating that the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement may be performed by the control unit 18 reading the first information from the non-volatile memory and displaying a number of cat illustration objects on the display unit 5 that correspond to the number of first information items. In this process, the output of information indicating that the driving speed was at a speed that could be subject to enforcement may be divided into an acceptable level range that is normally permitted and an unacceptable level range that exceeds that acceptable level, and the display of the objects may be performed in two stages on the display screen of the display unit 5.

[0286] In this way, when a user receives and recognizes information on the screen indicating that the driving speed displayed in two stages was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, they can understand that the driving speed was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, by dividing it into an acceptable level range that is normally permitted and an unacceptable level range that exceeds that acceptable level.

[0287] Here, the acceptable and unacceptable speed ranges, which are routinely permitted, can be defined by any criteria that distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable speed ranges based on whether the information indicating a speed that could be subject to enforcement is acceptable from the perspective of the probability of being subject to enforcement (from the perspective of the risk of enforcement). However, the following method is recommended.

[0288] In light of the current situation where driving at speeds exceeding the speed limit is often tolerated on the premise of safe driving, this tolerated range should be considered the permissible range. The permissible level range should be defined as the speed range within which values ​​of 100% or more but less than 115% of the speed limit fall within the range of speeds that could be subject to enforcement, while the non-permissible level range should be defined as, for example, the speed range that exceeds this permissible range (115% or more of the speed limit).

[0289] For example, the control unit 18 reads the first information from the non-volatile memory and, referring to the speed limit information of the first information, determines that the value of the speed limit information is within the range of 100% or more and less than 115% of the speed limit. In this case, it displays the first information on the display screen of the display unit 5 as an object belonging to the permissible level area. If the value is 115% or more of the speed limit, it displays the first information on the display screen of the display unit 5 as an object belonging to the non-permissible level area.

[0290] Furthermore, the non-acceptable level region may be divided into two or more stages and displayed in multiple stages depending on the degree to which the driving speed exceeds the speed limit.

[0291] For example, the control unit 18 reads the first information from the non-volatile memory and, referring to the speed limit information of the first information, determines that the value of the speed limit information is within the range of 115% or more and less than 130% of the speed limit. In this case, it displays the first information on the display screen of the display unit 5 as an object belonging to the first unacceptable level area. If the value is 130% or more of the speed limit, it displays the first information on the display screen of the display unit 5 as an object belonging to the second unacceptable level area.

[0292] In this way, when users view the unacceptable speed limit range, which is displayed in two or more stages, they can understand in more detail how much the vehicle was exceeding the speed limit within that range. Therefore, users can specifically recognize their own driving tendencies when exceeding the speed limit and use this information to improve safe driving.

[0293] Furthermore, with regard to "according to the degree to which the traveling speed exceeds the speed limit", for example, in the case of a road with a speed limit of 100 km / h, the speed subject to enforcement (the speed at which enforcement is considered dangerous) may be determined in ascending order of danger level. For example, 1 km before reaching the speed limit, if the speed exceeds the speed limit by 15 - 30% (i.e., the vehicle speed exceeds the speed limit by 15 - 30 km / h), it is a low danger level, and if the speed exceeds the speed limit by 30% or more (the vehicle speed exceeds the speed limit by 30 km / h or more), it is a high danger level.

[0294] The information indicating that the speed could be a target for enforcement may not be output as character information.

[0295] In this way, the user can obtain information indicating that the speed could be a target for enforcement without reading characters.

[0296] In particular, it is preferably output as concise information other than character information. In this way, based on the concise information, it is possible to efficiently review whether the traveling speed was at a speed that could be a target for enforcement.

[0297] In each embodiment, regarding the approach warning by the GPS warning function, before the control unit 18 issues the aforementioned approach warning, the control unit 18 queries whether first information is stored in the non-volatile memory regarding the enforcement position (orbis) where the approach warning is to be issued. Depending on whether the control unit 18 determines that the first information is stored or not, the control unit 18 may issue the approach warning in different manners.

[0298] In this way, the user can distinguish between different modes of approach warnings received depending on whether the first information (information indicating that the traveling speed could be a target for enforcement) is stored or not. In particular, when recognizing the approach warning issued when the first information is stored, the user can know that they are approaching again the orbis enforcement position that was a warning target where the traveling speed was at a speed that could be a target for enforcement in the past.

[0299] Therefore, users can recognize when they are about to pass through a section where they tend to speed excessively, and slow down their vehicle to avoid repeating past speeding mistakes.

[0300] The statement "The control unit 18 will issue an approach warning in a different manner depending on whether it determines that the first information is stored or not" is incorrect. Any different manner is acceptable, and it is particularly good to issue a warning that the vehicle is approaching a location where the first information is stored.

[0301] Specifically, the warning may be, for example, controlled to display an image about the warning via the display unit 5, or to output sound via the speaker 20. In particular, it is desirable to display a dedicated alarm screen on the display unit 5, or to control the speaker 20 to output an announcement such as "This is a point to be careful of," or to output a combination of these.

[0302] Modified examples, components of each embodiment, and elements and ideas described in the means for solving the problem can be combined in any way to form an embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0303] 1 Case body 2 Solar Panels 3. Switch section 4. Microwave receiver 5 Display section 6 lamps 7. Infrared communication device 8 GPS receiver 9 Adapter jacks 10 Power switch 12 Mobile phones 13. Memory card reader 14 Memory Cards 15 Wireless receiver 16 Remote control receiver 17 Remote control 18 Control Unit 19 Databases 20 speakers 21 DC Jack 22 connection cables 23 Connector terminals

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising a control unit, The control unit, When approaching the speed enforcement location, a warning of approaching the speed enforcement location is issued when the vehicle can decelerate from the speed at which it could be subject to enforcement to a speed at which it is not subject to enforcement, and when the vehicle can gradually decelerate to a speed at which it is not subject to enforcement without the distance to the vehicle behind it suddenly decreasing. An electronic device characterized by the following features.

2. In the electronic device according to claim 1, The speed at which enforcement may be applied is defined as the speed limit plus the allowable error in the speedometer, or the excess speed corresponding to the allowable error on the upper limit of the speedometer. An electronic device characterized by the following features.

3. In the electronic device according to claim 1 or 2, The control unit outputs information to the display unit and the speaker indicating that the vehicle's speed when approaching the speed enforcement location was a speed that could be subject to enforcement, at least one of the following timings: after a specific period has elapsed since passing the speed enforcement location, when the vehicle's engine is stopped, or when the vehicle's engine is started for the next time. An electronic device characterized by the following features.

4. A program that causes a computer to function as an electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

Images