Map-updating-data creating method, and map updating method and apparatus

A navigation apparatus for updating an old map file stored in a storage unit to a new map file by using map-updating data and provide navigation guidance to a user, the navigation apparatus comprising:

• a storage unit operable to store old map data;
• a reading/writing control unit operable to control reading of the old map data from the storage unit and writing new map data into the storage unit;
• and
• a control unit operable configured to provide navigation guidance to the user and to simultaneously perform sequential map-data processing associated with updating a plurality of map files using map-updating data and configured to determine if a necessary map file required for navigation control contains up-to-date map data;
• a serial number management file in which marks are respectively written at positions corresponding to new and old serial numbers of all the map files, wherein a mark is written at a serial number position in the serial number management file after map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has been performed, and wherein no mark is written at the serial number position before map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has not been performed;
• wherein the new serial number is added to the map-updating file and an old map file is updated with the new serial number to a new map file;
• wherein if the necessary map file contains up-to-date map data, then the necessary map file is used to execute navigation control;
• wherein said rewriting or overwriting is performed in an entire updating mode by rewriting or overwriting the old map file to the new map file in a sequential manner when navigation control is not performed based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• wherein the entire updating mode is interrupted and the rewriting or overwriting is performed in an on-demand mode when navigation control is requested to perform guidance based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• and
• wherein the entire updating mode resumes when navigation control is no longer performed based on the location corresponding to the old map file, and navigation control is performed for the user based on the new map file.

A map-updating-data creating apparatus for creating map-updating data and provide navigation guidance to a user, the map-updating data being used to update old map data to new map data, the old map data including a plurality of old map files, the map-updating-data creating apparatus comprising:

• a map file unit operable to transfer map files;
• a processing unit operable to create, for each old map file to be updated, a map-updating file for rewriting or overwriting the old map file to a new map file, and to determine serial numbers of updated map files such that previously assigned old serial numbers of map files not being updated are not changed, and new serial numbers following the old serial numbers are assigned in ascending order to map files being updated, and to create a serial number management file, wherein a mark is written at a serial number position in the serial number management file after map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has been performed, and wherein no mark is written at the serial number position before map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has not been performed, and wherein the new serial number is added to the map-updating file and an old map file is updated with the new serial number to a new map file;
• a map-updating-data unit operable to generate map-updating data to provide an updated region of the map,
• wherein said rewriting or overwriting is performed in an entire updating mode by rewriting or overwriting the old map file to the new map file in a sequential manner when navigation control is not performed based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• wherein the entire updating mode is interrupted and the rewriting or overwriting is performed in an on-demand mode when navigation control is requested to perform guidance based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• and
• wherein the entire updating mode resumes when navigation control is no longer performed based on the location corresponding to the old map file, and navigation control is performed for the user based on the new map file.

A map-data updating method for updating old map data to new map data and provide navigation guidance to a user, the old map data including a plurality of old map files, the map-data updating method comprising:

• for each old map file to be updated, creating a temporary map-updating file to be used for rewriting or overwriting the old map file to a new map file;
• determining serial numbers of updated map files such that previously assigned old serial numbers of map files which are not updated are not changed, and new serial numbers which follow the previously assigned serial numbers are assigned in ascending order to map files which are updated;
• creating a serial number management file in which marks are respectively written at positions corresponding to the serial numbers of map files received, wherein a mark is written at a serial number position in the serial number management file after map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has been performed, and wherein no mark is written at the serial number position before map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has not been performed;
• generating map-updating data, by a map updating data processor, the map-updating data including the map-updating file and the serial number management file, wherein the new serial number is added to the map-updating file and an old map file is updated with the new serial number to a new map file;
• using the map-updating data to perform sequential map-updating processing and simultaneously provide navigation guidance to the user;
• and
• determining if a necessary map file required for navigation control contains up-to-date map data by referring to the serial number management file;
• wherein if the necessary map file contains up-to-date map data then the necessary map file is used to execute the navigation control, and alternatively, if the necessary map file does not contain up-to-date map data, then the necessary map file is updated or overwritten using the map-updating data to provide an updated region of the map;
• wherein said rewriting or overwriting is performed in an entire updating mode by rewriting or overwriting the old map file to the new map file in a sequential manner when navigation control is not performed based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• wherein the entire updating mode is interrupted and the rewriting or overwriting is performed in an on-demand mode when navigation control is requested to perform guidance based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• and
• wherein the entire updating mode resumes when navigation control is no longer performed based on the location corresponding to the old map file, and navigation control is performed for the user based on the new map file.

A map-data updating system for updating old map data to new map data and providing navigation guidance to a user, comprising;

• a map-updating-data creating apparatus operable to create map-updating data for updating or overwriting old map data to new map data, the old map data including a plurality of old map files;
• and
• a navigation apparatus operable to perform map updating using the map-updating data and simultaneously providing navigation guidance to the user,
• wherein the map-updating-data creating apparatus comprises:
• a map file unit operable to transfer old map files and new map files;
• a processing unit operable to create, for each old map file to be updated, a map-updating file for rewriting or overwriting the old map file to a new map file, and to determine serial numbers of updated map files such that a previously assigned old serial numbers of map files not being updated are not changed, and new serial numbers sequentially following the old serial numbers are assigned to map files being updated, and to create a serial number management file in which marks are respectively written at positions corresponding to all the serial numbers;
• and
• a map-updating-data unit operable to generate map-updating data, the map-updating data including the map-updating file and the serial number management file, wherein a mark is written at a serial number position in the serial number management file after map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has been performed, and wherein no mark is written at the serial number position before map file updating and an indication is issued that file updating has not been performed, and wherein the new serial number is added to the map-updating file and an old map file is updated with the new serial number to a new map file;
• and
• the navigation apparatus comprises:
• a storage unit operable to store the old map data;
• a reading/writing control unit operable to control reading of the old map data from the storage unit and writing of the new map data into the storage unit;
• a map-updating-data input unit operable to transfer the map-updating data;
• and
• a control unit operable to perform map-updating processing by using the map-updating data, and to determine if a necessary map file required for navigation control contains up-to-date map data,
• wherein if the necessary map file contains up-to-date map data then the necessary map file is used to execute the navigation control, and if the necessary map file does not contain up-to-date map data then the map-updating data is used to update or overwrite the necessary map file to provide an updated region of the map;
• wherein said rewriting or overwriting is performed in an entire updating mode by rewriting or overwriting the old map file to the new map file in a sequential manner when navigation control is not performed based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• wherein the entire updating mode is interrupted and the rewriting or overwriting is performed in an on-demand mode when navigation control is requested to perform guidance based on a location corresponding to the old map file;
• and
• wherein the entire updating mode resumes when the navigation guidance no longer provide guidance based on the location corresponding to the old map file, and navigation control is performed for the user based on the new map file.