Map display system, map display method, and program

Abstract

In a map display system that displays a map on a screen, the system prevents markers set on the map from disappearing when the map is scrolled or the map scale is changed. [Solution] The map display system is a map display system that displays a map on a display screen, and includes a determination unit configured to perform a determination process to determine whether a plurality of markers corresponding to a plurality of real estate properties on the map are displayed within the range of the display screen when the map is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed, and a display control unit configured to perform a display control process to control the display screen so that the plurality of markers are displayed within the range of the display screen when at least a portion of the plurality of markers are not displayed within the range of the display screen.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a map display system, a map display method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] A map display system that displays a map on a display screen is known. In such a map display system, by specifying a point on the map displayed on the display screen, marks such as icons or annotations can be displayed on the map.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the conventional technology, for example, when the map displayed on the display screen is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed, the marks set on the map may move outside the range of the display screen and may not be displayed on the display screen.

[0005] An embodiment of the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and in a map display system that displays a map on a display screen, when the map is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed, it suppresses the situation where the marks set on the map are not displayed.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above problems, the map display system according to this embodiment is a map display system that displays a map on a display screen, and includes a determination unit configured to perform a determination process to determine whether a plurality of markers corresponding to a plurality of real estate properties on the map are displayed within the range of the display screen when the map is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed, and a display control unit configured to perform a display control process to control the display screen so that the plurality of markers are displayed within the range of the display screen when at least a portion of the plurality of markers are not displayed within the range of the display screen. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present invention, in a map display system that displays a map on a display screen, it is possible to suppress the disappearance of markers set on the map when the map is scrolled or the map scale is changed. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example of the system configuration of a map display system according to one embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure (1) illustrates the outline of the process according to one embodiment. [Figure 3] Figure (2) illustrates the outline of the process according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] Figure (3) illustrates the outline of the process according to one embodiment. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of a computer hardware configuration according to one embodiment. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example of the functional configuration of a map display system according to one embodiment. [Figure 7] This figure shows another example of the functional configuration of a map display system according to one embodiment. [Figure 8] This flowchart shows an example of processing in a map display system according to one embodiment. [Figure 9] This flowchart shows an example of an automatic map adjustment process according to one embodiment. [Figure 10] This figure illustrates a modified example of the automatic map adjustment process according to one embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, this embodiment (an embodiment of the present invention) will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment described below is merely an example, and the embodiments to which the present invention applies are not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0010] <System Configuration> Figure 1 shows an example of the system configuration of the map display system according to this embodiment. In one example, the map display system 1 has a terminal device 10 and a server device 20 that are connected to each other via a communication network 2. The map display system 1 is a system that displays a map on a display screen.

[0011] The terminal device 10 is, for example, an information processing device (computer) used by a user, such as a car navigation system, smartphone, tablet, or PC (Personal Computer). For example, the terminal device 10 works in cooperation with the server device 20 to display a map on the display screen of a map application (hereinafter referred to as a map application) by running the application. Alternatively, the terminal device 10 may display a map on its display screen by running a web browser or the like and displaying a web page provided by the server device 20.

[0012] The server device 20 is, for example, an information processing device with a computer configuration, or a system including multiple computers. The server device 20 displays a map on the display screen shown by the terminal device 10 in response to a request from the terminal device 10. For example, the server device 20 provides the terminal device 10 with map data for displaying a map on the display screen, or a web page for displaying a map.

[0013] As another example, the map display system 1 may be a system in which the terminal device 10 has map information such as a road map DB (Database) and autonomously displays a map on a display or the like provided in the terminal device 10, such as a car navigation device.

[0014] Note that the map displayed by the map display system 1 may be various maps such as a road map, a residential map, or an urban map.

[0015] (Overview of the process) FIGS. 2 to 4 are diagrams for explaining the overview of the process according to an embodiment. The map display system 1 can display a mark 202 such as an icon or a note on the map 201A, for example, by designating a point on the map 201A displayed on the display screen 200 as shown in FIG. 2. This mark 202 may be displayed, for example, by name search or route search, or may be displayed by selecting a point on the map 201A by touch or click.

[0016] In the display screen 200 shown in FIG. 2, when the user scrolls the map 201A, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the mark 202 may disappear from the map 201B displayed on the display screen 200. Note that, in the display screen 200 shown in FIG. 2, when the user enlarges the map 201A, similarly, the mark 202 may disappear from the map displayed on the display screen 200.

[0017] As a specific example, assume that the user marks a candidate property or the like on a residential map (real estate map) with a mark 202 as shown in FIG. 2. Also, assume that the user scrolls the residential map to search for the nearest facility (for example, a school, a park, an office, etc.) to the property marked with the mark 202. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the mark 202 may no longer be displayed on the display screen 200, and it may become impossible to know where the property marked with the mark 202 is.

[0018] Therefore, the map display system 1 according to the present embodiment has a function of controlling the display screen 200 so that the mark 202 set on the map 201A continues to be displayed when the map 201A displayed on the display screen 200 is scrolled or enlarged.

[0019] As an example, when the map 201A displayed on the display screen 200 as shown in FIG. 2 is scrolled or enlarged, the map display system 1 determines whether the mark 202 is displayed on the display screen 200 after scrolling or enlargement.

[0020] Further, for example, when the mark 202 is not displayed on the display screen 200 as in the display screen 200 shown in FIG. 3, the map display system 1 causes the display screen 200 to display a reduced map 201C so that the mark 202 is displayed as shown in FIG. 4.

[0021] As described above, according to the present embodiment, in the map display system 1 that displays a map on the display screen, it is possible to suppress the mark set on the map from disappearing when the map is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed. Thereby, the convenience of the user who uses the map can be improved.

[0022] <Hardware Configuration> The terminal device 10 and the server device 20 have a hardware configuration of a computer 500 as shown in FIG. 5, for example. Note that the server device 20 may be realized by a plurality of computers 500 or may be realized by a virtual machine on the cloud or the like.

[0023] Figure 5 shows an example of a computer hardware configuration. Computer 500 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 501, memory 502, storage device 503, communication device 504, output device 505, input device 506, external I / F (Interface) 507, and bus 509. Furthermore, if computer 500 is a terminal device 10, computer 500 may also have a positioning device such as a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver.

[0024] The CPU 501 is a processor that realizes various functions of a terminal device 10 or a server device 20 by executing a predetermined program stored in a storage medium such as a storage device 503. The memory 502 includes, for example, volatile memory such as RAM (Random Access Memory) used as the work area of ​​the CPU 501, and non-volatile memory such as ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores the CPU 501 startup program. The storage device 503 is a large-capacity, non-volatile storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive).

[0025] The communication device 504 is an interface for connecting the computer 500 to a network. For example, if the computer 500 is a server device 20, the communication device 504 includes a NIC (Network Interface Card) for connecting the server device 20 to the communication network 2. If the computer 500 is a general-purpose terminal device 10 such as a smartphone or tablet terminal, the communication device 504 includes a wireless communication device for connecting the information terminal to the communication network 2 wirelessly. Furthermore, if the computer 500 is an in-vehicle device such as a car navigation system (another example of the terminal device 10), the communication device 504 further includes a communication interface for connecting the in-vehicle device to the in-vehicle network.

[0026] The output device 505 is an output device that outputs to the outside, such as a display or speaker. The input device 506 is an input device that receives input from the outside, such as a touch panel, keyboard, mouse, microphone, switch, or sensor. Note that the output device 505 and the input device 506 may be input / output devices such as a touch panel display.

[0027] External I / F 507 is an interface for connecting external devices to the computer 500. External devices include, for example, a recording medium 508. The computer 500 can read from and write to the recording medium 508 via the external I / F 507. Recording medium 508 includes, for example, CDs (Compact Discs), DVDs (Digital Versatile Discs), Blu-ray® Discs, memory cards, USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, etc. Bus 509 is connected in common to all of the above components and transmits, for example, address signals, data signals, and various control signals.

[0028] <Functional Configuration> Figure 6 shows an example of the functional configuration of a map display system according to one embodiment.

[0029] (Server device functional configuration) The server device (information processing device) 20 achieves the functional configuration shown in Figure 6 by having the CPU 501 execute a program stored in, for example, a storage device 503, memory 502, or recording medium 508. In the example in Figure 6, the server device 20 includes a communication unit 601, a determination unit 602, a display control unit 603, a setting unit 604, a route search unit 605, and a storage unit 606. At least some of the above functional configurations may be implemented by hardware.

[0030] The communication unit 601, for example, uses a communication device 504 to connect the server device 20 to the communication network 2 and performs communication processing to communicate with other devices such as the terminal device 10.

[0031] The determination unit 602 performs a determination process to determine whether or not a marker set on the map is displayed on the display screen when the map displayed on the display screen is scrolled or the map scale is changed.

[0032] As a preferred example, the determination unit 602 determines whether a marker set on the map falls within the range of the display screen when the map is scrolled or zoomed in.

[0033] For example, in the display screen 200 of Figure 2, when the user scrolls the map 201A, the marker 202 disappears from the map 201B displayed on the display screen 200, as shown in Figure 3. In this case, the determination unit 602 determines that the marker set on the map is not displayed on the display screen (or the marker set on the map is not within the range of the display screen).

[0034] The display control unit 603 performs various processes to display the map on the display screen. For example, in this embodiment, when the determination unit 602 determines that a marker set on the map is not displayed on the display screen, the display control unit 603 performs display control processing to control the display screen so that the marker set on the map is displayed within the range of the display screen.

[0035] This display control process includes, for example, if the determination unit 602 determines that a marker set on the map does not fit within the range of the display screen, the process of shrinking the map so that the marker fits within the range of the display screen.

[0036] The setting unit 604 performs a setting process to receive a setting value that determines whether or not to execute the display control process described above. For example, the setting unit 604 displays a setting screen for configuring the map display system 1, and on this setting screen, it accepts a setting operation to determine whether or not to execute a display control process that controls whether or not to display markers set on the map within the range of the display screen. The setting unit 604 also stores the received setting value 607 in the storage unit 606 or the like.

[0037] The route search unit 605 performs a route search process to find a guidance route to the specified destination using a known route search algorithm, based on location information indicating the location of the terminal device 10, a specified destination, and the map DB 608, etc., which are received from the terminal device 10.

[0038] Note that the route search unit 605 is optional and is not a necessary functional configuration for this embodiment. If the server device 20 has a route search unit 605, the display control unit 603 also performs the process of displaying the guidance route found by the route search unit 605 on the map to be displayed on the display screen.

[0039] The memory unit 308 is implemented, for example, by a program executed by the CPU 501 and a storage device 503, and stores various information, data, and programs, such as the setting value 607 received by the setting unit 604 and the map DB 608. The map DB 608 includes map data such as road maps, residential maps, or city maps.

[0040] (Functional configuration of terminal devices) The terminal device 10 achieves the functional configuration shown in Figure 6 by having the CPU 501 execute a program stored in, for example, a storage device 503, memory 502, or recording medium 508. In the example in Figure 6, the terminal device 10 includes a communication unit 611, a UI (User Interface) unit 612, a location information acquisition unit 323, and a storage unit 614. At least some of the above functional configurations may be implemented by hardware.

[0041] The communication unit 611, for example, uses the communication device 504 to connect the terminal device 10 to the communication network 2 and performs communication processing to communicate with other devices such as the server device 20.

[0042] The UI unit 612 displays UI screens, such as a display screen for displaying a map and a settings screen for configuring the map display system 1, on a display (an example of an output device 505) provided by the terminal device 10. The UI unit 612 also receives user operations on the UI screen and transmits the received information to the server device 20 via the communication unit 611.

[0043] The location information acquisition unit 323 acquires location information indicating the location of the terminal device 10, for example, using a positioning device such as a GPS receiver. The location information acquisition unit 323 may also acquire location information of the terminal device 10 by further using a sensor such as an IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit).

[0044] The memory unit 614 is implemented, for example, by a program executed by the CPU 501 and a storage device 503, and stores various information, data, and programs.

[0045] Note that the functional configuration of the map display system 1 shown in Figure 6 is just one example. For example, at least some of the functions provided by the server device 20 may be provided by the terminal device 10.

[0046] Figure 7 shows another example of the functional configuration of a map display system 1 according to one embodiment. In the example of Figure 7, the terminal device (information processing device) 10 has the same functional configuration as the server device 20 in the figure, including a determination unit 602, a display control unit 603, a setting unit 604, and a route search unit 605. Each of the above functional configurations is realized, for example, by the CPU 501 executing a program stored in a storage device 503, memory 502, or recording medium 508.

[0047] Thus, each functional configuration of the map display system 1 only needs to be included in the map display system 1, and may be possessed by any device within the map display system 1.

[0048] <Processing flow> Next, the processing flow of the map display method according to this embodiment will be described.

[0049] (Processing of the map display system) Figure 8 shows an example of processing in a map display system according to one embodiment. This processing shows an example of the processing that the map display system 1 performs, for example, when a user starts a map search.

[0050] In step S801, the determination unit 602 determines whether or not a marker is set on the map on the display screen of the terminal device 10 used by the user. If no marker is set on the map, the determination unit 602 proceeds to step S802. On the other hand, if a marker is set on the map, the determination unit 602 proceeds to step S803.

[0051] When the system proceeds to step S802, the decision unit 602 determines that it will not perform the automatic map adjustment process. In this way, it is desirable for the map display system 1 not to perform the automatic map adjustment process described later if no markers are set on the map.

[0052] When the process moves to step S803, the determination unit 602 determines whether the automatic map adjustment function is enabled based on the setting value 607 etc. stored in the storage unit 606 (or storage unit 614). If the automatic adjustment function is not enabled, the determination unit 602 moves the process to step S802. On the other hand, if the automatic map adjustment function is enabled, the determination unit 602 moves the process to step S804.

[0053] When the system proceeds to step S804, the decision unit 602 determines to execute the automatic map adjustment process described later. It is desirable that the user can set whether or not to execute the automatic map adjustment process described later in the map display system 1. Note that the process shown in Figure 8 may also be executed by the display control unit 603.

[0054] (Automatic map adjustment process) Figure 9 is a flowchart showing an example of an automatic map adjustment process according to one embodiment. This process shows an example of an automatic map adjustment process executed by the map display system 1 when it is determined in step S804 of Figure 8 to perform the automatic map adjustment process. At the start of the process shown in Figure 9, the display control unit 603 is assumed to be displaying a map on the display screen.

[0055] In step S901, when the display control unit 603 receives a scroll operation or zoom operation for the map displayed on the display screen, it executes the processing from step S902 onwards.

[0056] In step S902, the display control unit 603 scrolls or zooms in on the map displayed on the display screen in response to a scroll operation or zoom operation.

[0057] In step S903, the determination unit 602 determines whether the marker set on the map is within the display screen showing the map. For example, if the marker 202 is displayed on the display screen after scrolling or zooming in on the map, as shown in Figure 2, the determination unit 602 determines that the marker is within the display screen. On the other hand, if the marker 202 is not displayed on the display screen after scrolling or zooming in on the map, as shown in Figure 3, the determination unit 602 determines that the marker is not within the display screen.

[0058] If the marker is within the display screen, the determination unit 602 proceeds to step S905. On the other hand, if the marker is not within the display screen, the determination unit 602 proceeds to step S904.

[0059] When the process moves to step S904, the display control unit 603 reduces the map size so that the marker fits on the display screen. For example, the display control unit 603 reduces the map 201B displayed on the display screen 200 in Figure 3 so that the marker 202 is displayed on the display screen 200, as shown in map 201C on the display screen 200 in Figure 4.

[0060] When the process moves to step S905, the display control unit 603 determines whether the scroll operation or zoom operation received in step S901 has been completed. If the scroll operation or zoom operation has been completed, the display control unit 603 terminates the process shown in Figure 9. On the other hand, if the scroll operation or zoom operation has not been completed, the display control unit 603 returns to step S902 and re-executes the same process.

[0061] The process shown in Figure 9 allows the map display system 1 to prevent the markers set on the map from disappearing when the map is scrolled or zoomed in.

[0062] Note that the automatic map adjustment process shown in Figure 9 is just one example. The automatic map adjustment process according to this embodiment can be modified or applied in various ways.

[0063] (Variation 1) In the explanation of Figure 9, it was described that when the map displayed on the display screen is scrolled or zoomed in, the markers displayed on the map disappear. However, this embodiment is not limited to this, and can also be applied to a map display system in which the markers displayed on the map disappear when the map displayed on the display screen is zoomed out.

[0064] In this case, the display control unit 603 receives a map scrolling operation or a map zoom in / out operation (scale change operation) in step S901 of Figure 9. If a map zoom out operation is received, the display control unit 603 zooms out the map in step S902, and the determination unit 602 determines whether or not a marker is displayed on the display screen after the map has been zoomed out. If a marker is not displayed on the display screen, the display control unit 603 zooms in the map so that the marker is displayed on the display screen. As a result, the map display system 1 can continue to display the marker set on the map on the display screen when the map is scrolled or the map scale is changed (when the map is zoomed in / out).

[0065] (Modification 2) For example, as shown in Figure 10, if a marker 202 set on map 201 is located in the peripheral area of ​​the display screen 200, away from the center 100A of the map, the process shown in Figure 9 alone may not be sufficient to effectively zoom in on the map. This is because the zooming of map 201 is performed around the center 1001A of the map, so even a slight zoom in on map 201 will cause marker 202 to fall outside the range of the display screen 200.

[0066] Therefore, if the display control unit 603 receives a map zoom operation in step S901 of Figure 9, it may move the center of the map 1001A in the direction of the marker 202 and perform the zoom operation centered on the center of the map 1001B when zooming the map in step S902. This makes it easier to zoom the map 201 even when the marker 202 is located in the peripheral area of ​​the display screen 200.

[0067] (Variation 3) For example, in a display screen 200 as shown in Figure 10, the number of markers 202 set on the map 201 is not limited to one, but may be multiple. In this case, the display control unit 603 of the map display system 1 controls the display screen 200 so that, for example, multiple markers 202 set on the map 201 are displayed within the range of the display screen 200. Displaying multiple markers 202 within the range of the display screen 200 has the advantage of making it possible to compare multiple markers 202. For example, it becomes easier for a user to compare and consider multiple real estate properties while looking at the nearest facilities.

[0068] For example, in a display screen like the one shown in Figure 10, if multiple markers 202 are set on the map 201, the display control unit 603 may perform a zooming process to the center of the set multiple markers 202.

[0069] As described above, according to each embodiment of the present invention, in a map display system 1 that displays a map on a display screen, when the map is scrolled or the map scale is changed, the markers set on the map can be continuously displayed on the display screen. This improves the convenience of the user using the map. [Explanation of symbols]

[0070] 1. Map display system 10 Terminal devices 20 Server Devices 200 display screen Maps for rooms 201, 201A, and 201C. 202 Landmark 500 Computers 602 Judgment Department 603 Display Control Unit 604 Settings Section

Claims

1. A map display system that displays a map on a display screen, A determination unit is configured to perform a determination process to determine whether or not multiple markers corresponding to multiple real estate properties on the map are displayed within the range of the display screen when the map is scrolled or the map's scale is changed. A display control unit is configured to execute a display control process to control the display screen so that at least a portion of the plurality of markers are displayed within the range of the display screen if they are not displayed within the range of the display screen, A map display system having the following features.

2. The map display system according to claim 1, wherein the display control process is executed so that the plurality of landmarks and the nearest facilities are displayed within the range of the display screen.

3. If, when the map is enlarged, at least some of the multiple markers are not displayed within the range of the display screen, The map display system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the display control process includes a process of moving the center of the map in the direction of the centers of the plurality of markers.

4. A computer that displays a map on its screen, Regarding multiple markers corresponding to multiple real estate properties on the map, a determination process is performed to determine whether the multiple markers are displayed within the range of the display screen when the map is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed. If at least a portion of the plurality of markers is not displayed within the range of the display screen, a display control process controls the display screen so that the plurality of markers are displayed within the range of the display screen. A method for displaying a map.

5. A computer that displays a map on its screen, Regarding multiple markers corresponding to multiple real estate properties on the map, a determination process is performed to determine whether the multiple markers are displayed within the range of the display screen when the map is scrolled or the scale of the map is changed. If at least a portion of the plurality of markers is not displayed within the range of the display screen, a display control process controls the display screen so that the plurality of markers are displayed within the range of the display screen. A program that executes something.

Images