The present invention provides an information provision device and the like capable of reliably providing necessary guidance information while reducing the amount of audio information that is necessary for processing.

The information provision device is provided with: a guidance voice output control unit 1 and a speaker 10 which output a guidance voice; a microphone 11 and a collected sound transmission unit 2 which collect sounds that are made after the guidance voice starts to be output, wherein the guidance voice output control unit 1 and the speaker 10 output re-guidance voice corresponding to the guidance voice, on the basis of the result of determination of whether the collected sounds include a specific sound.

The technology employs spatial audio information to enhance wayfinding for pickup, drop-off and in-vehicle situations. The spatial information has a directional component, and a sense of distance can also be incorporated into the audio information. Audio cues or other spatial information is provided via headphones worn by a user. The spatial audio gives the user direction information, which can help locate the vehicle. In addition, this approach can be used when the rider is in the vehicle prior to exiting. For instance, spatial audio can be provided to the rider to give them contextual information about the environment outside the vehicle prior to exiting, such as whether a bicyclist is approaching on the side they will be exiting. This contextual information can alert the rider to wait or otherwise be more situationally aware when departing the vehicle.

A guide voice output control system includes a voice output control unit having a function of outputting a guide voice in response to a trigger and a function of executing interaction related processing having a reception stage for receiving voice, a recognition stage for recognizing voice, and an output stage for outputting voice based on a recognition result, in which the voice output control unit controls the output of the guide voice according to the processing stage of the interaction related processing when the trigger is generated during the execution of the processing, and dynamically controls the output of the guide voice according to whether or not the processing stage is a stage that does not affect the accuracy of voice recognition or listening difficulty of a user even if the guide voice is output.

A driving control method and apparatus are provided. The method may be applied to the intelligent vehicle field such as intelligent driving/automatic driving. The driving control method includes, after calculating a conventional path in a conventional map, the driving control apparatus searches a high-definition map for a high-definition path that matches the conventional path, and if yes, performs real-time navigation broadcast by using the conventional path, and performs automatic driving by using the found high-definition path. The driving control method and apparatus use advantages of the conventional map, for example, rich road sections and updated real-time traffic information, a more proper calculated conventional path, and a better effect of real-time navigation broadcast, and implement automatic vehicle driving by using a high-definition path, to reduce user operations, thereby improving user experience.

The information processing device includes a voice guidance unit configured to acquire a current position of the mobile body and perform voice guidance along a route to a destination. When an information request by a user is made by designating a direction different from the direction indicated by a current route at a guide point, the voice guidance unit outputs information on a comparison between the current route and a route to the destination advancing in a designated direction.

An apparatus configured to: determine, with a position sensor, position information; determine at least one keyword within at least one audio signal, wherein at least the at least one keyword is configured to be spatially processed; obtain at least one spatial processing parameter based at least partially, on the position information, wherein the at least one spatial processing parameter is configured to be used to spatially process at least the at least one keyword to be perceived from a direction during rendering, wherein the direction indicates a navigation direction; generate at least one processed audio signal, comprising processing at least the at least one keyword based on the at least one spatial processing parameter; and provide the at least one processed audio signal, comprising the at least one processed keyword, for generation of a virtual audio image.

A route from a current location of a portable device to a destination is determined, where the route includes a sequence of directed sections. Navigation instructions to guide a user of the portable device along the route to the destination are generated. To this end, candidate navigation landmarks perceptible within a 360-degree range of the current location of the portable device are identified, a navigation landmark disposed in a direction substantially opposite to the direction of the first one in the sequence of directed sections is selected from among the candidate navigation landmarks, and an initial instruction in the navigation instructions is generated and provided via a user interface of the portable device. The initial instruction references the selected navigation landmark.

A device system includes an acoustic device, a sensor, and a sound processor. The acoustic device is configured to be worn by a user. A sensor is configured to detect a movement of a shielding object. The sound processor is configured to generate sound with a first sound quality for a block state in which the shielding object blocks a virtual sound source localized on an opposite side of the shielding object and emit the sound from the acoustic device. The sound processor is further configured to change a sound quality of the sound from the first sound quality to a second sound quality for a non-block state in which the shielding object does not block the virtual sound source, in response to the sensor detecting that the shielding object moves from a position blocking the virtual sound source.

A method and an apparatus are disclosed for providing navigation instructions. The method may include receiving, from a user apparatus, a first location and a destination location; calculating a first route from the first location to the destination location; generating, for a predetermined time period, a first set of maneuvering data corresponding to the first route, the first set of maneuvering data comprising playback cues based on a predicted user apparatus location; transmitting the first set of maneuvering data to the user apparatus; receiving, from the user apparatus, a second location; generating, for a subsequent predetermined time period, a second set of maneuvering data, the second set of maneuvering data comprising playback cues based on a further predicted user apparatus location; calculating an update set of maneuvering data based on the first and second set of maneuvering data; and transmitting the update set of maneuvering data to the user apparatus.

A method for providing guided navigation for personal transport devices is described. In one embodiment, the method includes providing a list of predetermined destinations associated with a geographic area, projecting directions to one or more of the destinations on a ground surface located in front of a personal transport device, and providing an option to a user of the personal transport device to select between at least two different destinations. A direction associated with each destination of the at least two destinations may be projected on the ground surface located in front of the personal transport device. The method also includes receiving an input from the user indicating a selection of one of the at least two different destinations and projecting directions to the selected destination on the ground surface located in front of the personal transport device to guide the user to the selected destination.