Navigation system with three-dimensional display

A navigation system for a mobile vehicle comprising:

• (a) a real environment scene generator adapted to provide:
• (i) three dimensional location pertinent information based upon vehicle position data obtained from a vehicle position data provider and three dimensional local scene information obtained from a local scene information provider;
• and
• (ii) direction information based upon commands received from an input device;
• (b) a three dimensional graphic renderer, said renderer generating said three dimensional local scene information from two dimensional local scene information;
• and
• (c) a display, coupled to said real environment scene generator, adapted to visually display said three dimensional location pertinent information in conjunction with said direction information.

A method for producing a visual display of navigation information for a mobile vehicle comprising the steps of:

• (a) producing, in response to vehicle position data and three dimensional local scene information representative of settings of local environs at various locations, three dimensional location pertinent information representative of the setting of the local environs at the location indicated by the said vehicle position data;
• (b) providing direction information;
• (c) generating three dimensional local scene information from two dimensional local scene information;
• and
• (d) visually displaying said three dimensional location pertinent information in connection with said direction information.

A navigation system for a mobile vehicle comprising:

• (a) a real environment scene generator;
• (b) a vehicle position data generator having an output which is coupled to a first input of said real environment scene generator;
• (c) a local scene information provider having an input which is coupled to a first output of said real environment scene generator, and an output which is coupled to a second input of said real environment scene generator;
• (d) an input device having an output which is coupled to a third input of said real environment scene generator;
• (e) a three dimensional graphic renderer having an output coupled to an input of said local scene information provider, said three dimensional graphic renderer generating three dimensional local scene information from two dimensional local scene information;
• and
• (f) a display having an input coupled to a second output of said real environment scene generator, said display adapted to visually display real time three dimensional location pertinent information with direction information received from said real environment scene generator overlaid on said three dimensional location pertinent information, said three dimensional location pertinent information based upon real time vehicle position data received from said vehicle position data generator and real time three dimensional local scene information received from said local scene information provider, and said direction information based upon commands received from said input device.