AUTOMOBILE NAVIGATION SYSTEM USING REAL TIME SPOKEN DRIVING INSTRUCTIONS

An automobile navigation system which provides spoken instructions to the driver of an automobile to guide the driver along a route is disclosed. The heart of the system is a computing apparatus comprising a map database, route finding algorithms, a vehicle location system, discourse generating programs, and speech generating programs. Driver input means allows the driver to enter information such as a desired destination. The route finding algorithms in the computer apparatus calculate a route to the destination. The vehicle location system accepts input from a position sensor which measures automobile movement (magnitude and direction) continuously, and using this data in conjunction with the map database, determines the position of the automobile. Based on the current position of the automobile and the route, the discourse generating programs compose driving instructions and other messages according to a discourse model in real time as they are needed. The instructions and messages are sent to voice generating apparatus which conveys them to the driver.