Method and system for providing reminders about points of interests while traveling

#The present invention relates to navigation systems and more particularly the present invention relates to a feature in a navigation system that facilitates making stops at points of interest of a specified type while traveling.

#Navigation systems are available that provide end users (such as drivers and passengers of the vehicles in which the in-vehicle navigation systems are installed) with various navigation-related functions and features. For example, some navigation systems are able to determine an optimum route to travel by roads between locations in a geographic region. Using input from the end user, and optionally from equipment that can determine one's physical location (such as a GPS system), a navigation system can examine various routes between two locations to determine an optimum route to travel from a starting location to a destination location in a geographic region. The navigation system may then provide the end user with information about the optimum route in the form of guidance that identifies the driving maneuvers required to be taken by the end user to travel from the starting location to the destination location. The guidance may take the form of visual and/or audio instructions that are provided along the way as the end user is traveling the route. Some navigation systems are able to show detailed maps on computer displays outlining routes to destinations, the types of maneuvers to be taken at various locations along the routes, locations of certain types of features, and so on.

#In order to provide these and other navigating functions, navigation systems use geographic data. The geographic data may be in the form of one or more databases that include data that represent physical features in a geographic region. The geographic database may include data representing the roads and intersections in a geographic region and also may include information relating to the represented roads and intersections in the geographic region, such as turn restrictions at intersections, speed limits along the roads, street names of the various roads, address ranges along the roads, and so on.

#FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing components of an exemplary navigation system used in conjunction with a first embodiment of a feature that provides reminders about points of interest of a specified type while traveling.

#FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing portions of the navigation application programming in FIG. 1.

#FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating some of the types of data contained in the geographic database shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

#I. Navigation System—Overview

#For purposes of this disclosure, a “navigation system” is understood to mean a navigation system used in a vehicle (i.e., an in-vehicle navigation system). A “navigation system” is also understood to mean any software application installed on a computer platform that provides navigation-related features and uses geographic data, including applications that are installed on personal computers, networks, portable electronic devices, and so on.

#Referring to FIG. 1, there is a block diagram of a navigation system 110. The navigation system 110 is installed in a vehicle 111, such as a car, bus, or truck, although in alternative embodiments, the navigation system 110 may be located outside of a vehicle or may be implemented in various other platforms or environments, as described below. The navigation system 110 is a combination of hardware and software components. In one embodiment, the navigation system 110 includes a processor 112, a drive 114 connected to the processor 112, and a non-volatile memory storage device 116 for storing programming 118 and possibly other information. The processor 112 may be of any type used in navigation systems.