JP2006300610A - Information providing device for vehicle, information providing method for vehicle, and information providing system for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To rapidly provide a user with information related to a vehicle position even if the position of an own vehicle is not grasped by the user. <P>SOLUTION: In this system, an operator in an information center 20 retrieves information according to an information transmission request from the user to transmit the retrieved information to an on-vehicle unit 1 by means of data communication. When information has been transmitted last to the on-vehicle unit 1 by means of data communication, data are received from the on-vehicle unit 1 on the vehicle position and on a time when the vehicle position is detected. The vehicle position is estimated on the information center 20 side based on the received vehicle position, the time data, and present time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicular information providing apparatus, a vehicular information providing method, and a vehicular information providing system that provide a vehicle with information desired by a vehicle occupant.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known an information providing system that transmits information desired by a user to an information center operator and transmits information requested by the user from the information center to the vehicle-mounted device via wireless communication (Patent Document). 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-150596

  However, the conventional information providing system has a problem that when a user requests information on the vicinity of the current location of the vehicle, if the user knows the geography around the current location, the operator cannot tell where the current location is. It was.

(1) An information providing device for a vehicle according to the present invention searches for information related to the current location of the vehicle desired by the user by an operator by telephone and searches for the information. In a device that transmits to an in-vehicle device, the present location of the vehicle that has requested transmission of information is estimated, the present location of the estimated vehicle is presented to the operator, and the information retrieved by the operator is requested to be transmitted. It transmits to a machine.
(2) The vehicle information providing system according to the present invention transmits information related to the current location of the vehicle desired by the user to the operator of the information center by telephone, and after the telephone line is disconnected, the information retrieved by the operator is used for data communication. The information center transmits the information to the vehicle-mounted device. The information center estimates the current location of the vehicle that has requested the transmission of information and presents it to the operator. It transmits to the vehicle equipment which requested | required, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.
(3) In the vehicle information providing method according to the present invention, an operator listens to and searches for information related to the current location of the vehicle desired by the user by telephone, and after the telephone line is disconnected, the searched information is transmitted by data communication. This is a method of transmitting to an in-vehicle device, estimating the current location of a vehicle that has requested transmission of information, presenting the estimated current location of the vehicle to the operator, and requesting information transmission for information searched by the operator. It transmits to the in-vehicle device.

  According to the vehicle information providing apparatus, the vehicle information providing system, and the vehicle information providing method according to the present invention, since the current location of the vehicle is estimated and presented to the operator, the user does not grasp the position of the vehicle. However, the operator can search for information related to the vehicle position based on the estimated vehicle position and transmit it to the in-vehicle device.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of an embodiment of a vehicle information providing system according to the present invention. A user who uses this vehicle information providing system calls the information center 20 (vehicle information providing apparatus), transmits the desired information to the operator of the information center 20, and retrieves information searched by the operator using the search system 34. It transmits to the vehicle equipment 1.

  The in-vehicle device 1 includes a navigation unit 2, a monitor 3, a communication adapter 5, a telephone harness 6 that connects the mobile phone 4 and the communication adapter 5, a connection harness 7 that connects the communication adapter 5 and the navigation unit 2, A microphone 8, a speaker 9, a GPS antenna 10, an operation switch 11, an operator call switch 12, and a vehicle speed sensor 16 are provided.

  The monitor 3 displays a map around the current location of the vehicle, a recommended route to the destination, information acquired from the information center 20, and the like based on instructions from the navigation unit 2 described later. The mobile phone 4 is used when a user has a conversation with an operator standing by at the information center 20 and also when data communication is performed between the information center 20 and the vehicle-mounted device 1.

  The microphone 8 is used when a user (driver) has a conversation with an operator of the information center 20 using a hands-free system. The speaker 9 outputs a voice when the user talks with the operator using the hands-free system and voices when the navigation unit 2 performs route guidance. The GPS antenna 10 receives radio waves from GPS satellites (not shown) in order to acquire current position information of the vehicle. The vehicle speed sensor 16 detects the speed of the vehicle.

  The operation switch 11 is used for a user to perform various operations such as an operation on a screen displayed on the monitor 3, an operation for using a hands-free system, and an operation for performing data communication. The operator call switch 12 is a switch used when a call is made to the information center 20.

  The communication adapter 5 performs communication control with the information center 20. The communication adapter 5 is registered with a telephone number of an operation center 30 of the information center 20 to be described later. When the user presses the operator call switch 12, the operation center 30 is automatically called via the mobile phone 4. It takes. The telephone number of the operation center 30 is registered before the communication adapter 5 is shipped from the factory, for example.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the navigation unit 2. The navigation unit 2 includes a map data unit 18 and a storage unit 21, and a display processing unit 13, a communication processing unit 14, a voice control unit 15, a position calculation unit 17, an input processing unit 19, and an internal processing function. And an integrated calculation unit 22.

  The display processing unit 13 issues a display instruction to the monitor 3 based on a command from the integrated calculation unit 22. The communication processing unit 14 performs control for exchanging data with the communication adapter 5. The voice control unit 15 instructs the speaker 9 to output a voice for route guidance, for example, based on a command from the integrated calculation unit 22. The position calculation unit 17 obtains the current position of the vehicle based on the radio wave received by the GPS antenna 10 and the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor 16. The map data unit 18 is, for example, a hard disk device (HDD), and stores map data.

  The input processing unit 19 outputs a command input by the user via the operation switch 11 or the operator call switch 12 to the integrated calculation unit 22. The storage unit 21 stores data such as a registration location (for example, a home position) set in advance by the user using the operation switch 11 and a road that has traveled in the past. The integrated calculation unit 22 exchanges various data with the display processing unit 13, the communication processing unit 14, the voice control unit 15, the position calculation unit 17, the input processing unit 19, the map data unit 18, and the storage unit 21. While exchanging, comprehensive processing of the navigation unit 2 is performed.

  The information center 20 includes an operation center 30, an information database group 40, a vehicle information center 50, and a customer center 60. The operation center 30 includes a PBX / CTI 31 that controls a telephone line and a search system 34. The search system 34 includes a search processing terminal 32, a telephone 33, a headset 36, a monitor 38, and an input device 39. The input device 39 includes a keyboard and a mouse.

  A PBX (Private Branch Exchanger) is usually installed in a corporate building or the like, and exchanges external telephones with internal telephones and between internal telephones. CTI (Computer Telephony Integration) integrates a telephone communication system such as PBX and an information system such as a computer and a database so that they can be linked to each other. In other words, the PBX / CTI 31 controls the telephone line such as connecting a call received from the user to a vacant operator or sending a waiting voice guidance when there is no vacant operator.

  An operator working at the operation center 30 uses the telephone 33 or the headset 36 to converse with the user and confirm information requested by the user. The operator searches for information desired by the user using the search processing terminal 32 based on the information heard from the user. The search processing terminal 32 is a personal computer, for example.

  FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating an example of a search screen displayed on the display of the search processing terminal 32, and FIG. 3B is a diagram illustrating an example of a search result. As shown in FIG. 3A, a name input field 71, an address input field 72, a genre input field 73, a map display field 74, and a search start button 75 are displayed on the display of the search processing terminal 32. . The name input field 71 is a field for inputting the name of a facility or the like, and the address input field 72 is a field for inputting an address. The genre input field 73 is a field for inputting the genre of the destination. For example, “restaurant”, “park”, “gas station”, and the like can be input. Based on the information heard from the user, the operator inputs necessary information in at least one of the information input fields 71 to 73 and searches for information desired by the user.

  The map display column 74 is a column that displays a map around the searched facility (position) when the information searched by the search system 34 is information related to position information such as the facility. The search start button 75 is a button operated by an operator when starting a search for information.

  The search system 34 is connected to a plurality of databases 41 to 45, 56 constituting the information database group 40 through a network 37 such as a LAN.

  The information database group 40 includes a location / phone information database 41, a traffic information database 42, a weather forecast database 43, various information databases 44, a guidance voice database 45, and a user profile database 56. The position / phone information database 41 stores names of various facilities such as restaurants and public facilities, position information, telephone number information, and the like. The traffic information database 42 stores traffic information such as general roads and toll roads. The weather forecast database 43 stores weather forecast information for each location. The various information database 44 stores information other than the above-described information on various facilities, traffic information, and weather information. The guidance voice database 45 stores voice data for voice guidance to the user. The user profile database 56 stores user information such as user names, addresses, and mobile phone numbers that have been registered in advance, and information on the history of using information providing services in the past. The user registration method will be described later.

  The vehicle information center 50 includes a PBX / CTI 52 that controls a telephone line, a communication device 53, and an information processing terminal 54. The communication device 53 performs data communication with the in-vehicle device 1 based on a command from the information processing terminal 54. The information processing terminal 54 performs various data processing such as transmitting information to the in-vehicle device 1 via the communication device 53. For example, in the search system 34, when information desired by the user is searched, the searched information is transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1 through the communication device 53. The PBX / CTI 31 of the operation center 30 and the PBX / CTI 52 of the vehicle information center 50 are connected to the general telephone line network 55.

  The customer center 60 includes a customer registration system 62 and a customer management server 66. The customer registration system 62 performs user registration and changes of registered user personal information. A customer management server 66 connected to the customer registration system 62 is a server for managing user information.

  An Internet 63 is also connected to the network 37 to which the operation center 30, the information database group 40, the vehicle information center 50 and the customer center 60 are connected. Accordingly, the information center 20 exchanges various information with the content provider / application service provider group 64 via the Internet 63. Further, when the user performs user registration, which will be described later, it is possible to use a terminal 65 such as a personal computer connected to the Internet 63 without going through the operator of the customer center 60.

  A user who uses the vehicle information provision system in one embodiment needs to perform user registration in advance. The first method for user registration is to enter the phone number of the mobile phone 4 used when using this system, along with general information such as the user's name, address, and date of birth on a given application form. And mail it to the customer center 60 of the information center 20. After confirming the contents of the application form, the customer center 60 operator performs user registration processing on the customer management server 66 using the customer registration system 62. The registered user information is stored in the user profile database 56.

  As described above, the second method for user registration is a method of directly registering in the customer management server 66 using a terminal 65 such as a personal computer connected to the Internet 63. Further, when the in-vehicle device 1 has an online registration function, the in-vehicle device 1 can be used to directly register with the customer management server 66.

  4 and 5 are flowcharts showing the contents of processing performed by the in-vehicle device 1 and the information center 20, respectively. The process of step S10 to step S60 is a process performed on the in-vehicle device 1 side, and the process of step S100 to step S280 is a process performed on the information center 20 side.

  In step S <b> 10, the integrated calculation unit 22 of the navigation unit 2 determines whether the operator call switch 12 is turned on based on a signal input from the input processing unit 19. If it is determined that the operator call switch 12 is not turned on, the process waits in step S10 until it is turned on. If it is determined that the operator call switch 12 is turned on, the process proceeds to step S20.

  In step S20, a call is made to the operation center 30 of the information center 20 in the voice mode. The voice mode is a mode for the user and the operator to have a conversation. As described above, since the telephone number of the operation center 30 is registered in the communication adapter 5 in advance, when the user presses the operator call switch 12, the automatic operation is performed via the navigation unit 2, the communication adapter 5, and the mobile phone 4. A call is made to the operation center 30. At this time, the communication adapter 5 places the number “186” in front of the telephone number of the operation center 30 and makes a call. That is, since some mobile phones 4 have a function for notifying the caller number, the caller number is notified so that the information center 20 can identify the caller. Make a phone call in the form.

  Of the processes performed on the information center 20 side, the processes of steps S100 to S150 are performed by the PBX / CTI 31 of the operation center 30. In step S100, it is determined whether there is an incoming call from the user. If it is determined that there is no incoming call, it waits in step S100 until there is an incoming call. If it is determined that there is an incoming call, the process proceeds to step S110. In step S110, caller telephone number acquisition processing is performed. At this time, if a call is received with the caller non-notification setting, and there is no caller telephone number, for example, “Caller ID is not notified” registered in the guidance voice database 45 in advance. "Is played and the telephone line is disconnected.

  In step S120, the telephone number is authenticated based on the caller telephone number acquired in step S110. This authentication is performed based on whether or not the caller telephone number is registered in the user profile database 56. In step S130 following step S120, it is determined whether or not the authentication is OK based on the result of the telephone number authentication performed in step S120. If the acquired caller telephone number is registered in the user profile database 56 and it is determined that the authentication is OK, the process proceeds to step S150. On the other hand, if it is determined that the authentication is NG, the process proceeds to step S140, and a message such as “cannot receive the service because the telephone number is not registered” pre-registered in the guidance voice database 45 is reproduced. Disconnect the telephone line.

  In step S150, the telephone call from the user is connected to the operator who has a free telephone line, and the process proceeds to step S160. However, when there is no available line, for example, a message such as “Now, the line is busy” is registered in advance in the guidance voice database 45.

  The processing from step S160 to step S190 is performed by the search system 34. In step S160, processing for estimating the current position of the vehicle is performed. Details of the process for estimating the current position of the vehicle will be described later. In step S170 following step S160, it is determined whether the operator has input information necessary for searching for information desired by the operator and a search execution command has been issued. The operator hears information desired to be received by the vehicle-mounted device 1 from the user through a conversation with the user, and inputs information necessary for the search to the search processing terminal 32. When the information to be searched is related to the location of the facility, for example, the name of the facility to be searched, the search target area, the genre, and the like are input.

  In this vehicle information providing system, the user must inform the operator of the information center 20 of information to be downloaded to the in-vehicle device 1. However, when traveling in an area that is not normally traveled, if the position of the host vehicle is not known, it may take time to inform the operator of information desired to be downloaded. For example, when requesting information on a restaurant in the vicinity of the current location of the vehicle, it is necessary to inform the operator that the information on the restaurant is desired and which area the vehicle is traveling. However, if the vehicle is traveling in an area that is not normally traveled by a drive, it takes time to convey the vehicle position to the operator without knowing where the current location is.

  Therefore, in the vehicle information providing system according to the embodiment, by estimating the current position of the vehicle on the information center 20 side, it is possible to reduce the trouble of the user conveying the vehicle position to the operator. Although details of the process for estimating the current position of the vehicle will be described later, the operator uses the current position of the vehicle estimated in step S160 to confirm the actual vehicle position with the user and specify the vehicle position. Can do.

  In step S170, if it is determined by the operator that information necessary for the search has been input and a search execution command has been issued, the process proceeds to step S180. If it is determined that a search execution command has not been issued, the process waits in step S170. .

  In step S180, information to be transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1 is searched by referring to the databases 41 to 44 included in the information database group 40 based on the input information. When searching for information to be transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device 1, the process proceeds to step S190. In step S190, the retrieved information is temporarily stored in the user profile database 56. Here, the information is stored in correspondence with the user information of the user who has requested transmission of information.

  When data (information) to be transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1 is stored in the user profile database 56, the operator prompts the user to operate a download button included in the operation switch 11. Note that voice guidance data that prompts the user to operate the download button may be registered in the guidance voice database 45, and voice guidance may be automatically performed after saving data (information) to be transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1. .

  In step S <b> 30, the integrated calculation unit 22 of the navigation unit 2 determines whether or not the download button included in the operation switch 11 has been pressed based on the signal input from the input processing unit 19. If it is determined that the download button is not pressed, the process waits in step S30 until the download button is operated. If it is determined that the download button is pressed, the process proceeds to step S300.

  In step S300, the telephone connected to the operation center 30 is temporarily disconnected. The reason for disconnecting the telephone is to reconnect the telephone connected in the voice mode in the data mode and download the data stored in the user profile database 56 of the information center 20 by data communication. The data mode is a mode for exchanging data by data communication.

  Subsequently, the description will be continued from step S40 of the flowchart shown in FIG. When the download button included in the operation switch 11 is pressed, in step S40, a call is automatically connected to the vehicle information center 50 in the data mode. Also in this case, in order to notify the caller number, a call is made with “186” in front of the telephone number of the vehicle information center 50.

  In the vehicle information providing system according to the embodiment, it is necessary to perform the process of estimating the current position of the vehicle on the information center 20 side next time when calling the vehicle information center 50 from the in-vehicle device 1 in the data mode. The correct data. This data includes the current position of the vehicle and the current time. Here, based on the radio wave received by the GPS antenna 10 from the GPS satellite, the current position of the vehicle detected by the position calculation unit 17 of the navigation unit 2 and the data of the time when the current position of the vehicle is detected are transmitted.

  A call transmitted via the download button (operation switch 11), the navigation unit 2, the communication adapter 5, and the mobile phone 4 arrives at the PBX / CTI 52 of the vehicle information center 50 via the general line network 55. In step S200, the PBX / CTI 52 of the vehicle information center 50 determines whether there is an incoming call. If it is determined that there is no incoming call, the process waits in step S200 until there is an incoming call. If it is determined that there is an incoming call, the process proceeds to step S210.

  In step S210, the PBX / CTI 52 performs caller telephone number acquisition processing, and proceeds to step S220. The processing from step S220 to step S290 is performed by the information processing terminal 54. In step S220, the telephone call from the user is connected to the information processing terminal 54, and data mode negotiation for establishing the data mode is performed. In step S230 following step S220, after completion of the data mode negotiation, a telephone number authentication process is performed. This authentication processing method is the same as the processing in step S120 described above.

  In the next step S240, it is determined whether or not the caller telephone number is stored in the user profile database 56 as a result of the authentication process performed in step S230. If the caller telephone number is stored in the user profile database 56 and it is determined that the authentication is OK, the process proceeds to step S260. On the other hand, if it is determined that the caller number is not stored in the user profile database 56 and is authentication NG, the process proceeds to step S250. In step S250, an NG message such as “Service cannot be received because the telephone number is not registered” is reproduced, and the telephone line is disconnected.

  In step S260, the data stored in the user profile database 56, that is, the data saved in the user profile database 56 in step S190 is acquired. Data acquisition is performed based on the result of authentication of the telephone number performed in step S230. That is, the data stored in association with the telephone number matched by the telephone number authentication is acquired. When data acquisition processing is performed, the process proceeds to step S270.

  In step S270, it is determined whether data to be transmitted to the user is stored in the user profile database 56 as a result of the data acquisition process performed in step S260. If it is determined that it is stored, the process proceeds to step S280, and if it is determined that it is not stored, the process proceeds to step S250. In step S250, an NG message such as “Information cannot be sent because there is no information to send” is transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device 1 to disconnect the line. On the other hand, in step S280, the data acquired in step S260 is transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1 by data communication.

  In step S290 following step S280, the transmission of information is requested for the current position of the vehicle transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device 1 in step S40, the data of the time when the current location was detected, and the data of the destination where the vehicle is heading. The user profile database 56 stores the user information corresponding to the user information. The destination to which the vehicle is heading is determined by the conversation between the user and the operator, and the operator uses the search processing terminal 32 to store the destination information in the user profile database 56.

  On the other hand, in-vehicle device 1 determines in step S50 whether or not the data transmitted from vehicle information center 50 in step S280 has been received. If it is determined that no data is received, the process waits in step S50 until it is received. If it is determined that data is received, the process proceeds to step S60. In step S60, received data (downloaded data) is processed. For example, if the received data is information related to a facility, the facility information is displayed on the monitor 3. If the received data is news information, the news information is output from the speaker 9 by voice and the content of the news is displayed on the monitor 3. When the received data is processed, the line connected between the in-vehicle device 1 and the vehicle information center 50 is disconnected in step S310.

  The detailed contents of the process of step S160 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, that is, the process of estimating the current position of the vehicle will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The process starting from step S400 is started by the search system 34. In step S400, the data of the vehicle position, the destination and the vehicle position detected in the user profile database 56 when the data was transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1 based on a request from the user last time are stored in the user profile database. 56.

  The vehicle position, destination, and transmission time data acquired from the user profile database 56 are used to estimate the current vehicle position. Therefore, when the data stored in the user profile database 56 is old, it cannot be used when estimating the current location of the vehicle. For this reason, here, the stored data is acquired only when the data such as the vehicle position is stored in the user profile database 56 within 24 hours. If the vehicle position, destination, and transmission time data stored in the user profile database 56 within 24 hours are acquired, the process proceeds to step S410.

  In step S410, a route from the acquired vehicle position to the destination is searched based on the vehicle position acquired in step S400 and the destination data. The search processing terminal 32 of the search system 34 includes a storage device 78 in which map data and a route calculation program are stored, and performs route calculation processing similar to the route calculation processing performed by the navigation unit 2 of the in-vehicle device 1. By doing so, the route from the vehicle position acquired from the vehicle-mounted device 1 to the destination is calculated. When the route calculation is performed, the process proceeds to step S420.

  In step S420, the required travel time for each road on the route calculated in step S410 is obtained. The map data stored in the storage device 78 of the search processing terminal 32 includes road data composed of nodes and links. A node is a point designated on the road, such as an intersection, and information on the coordinates of the intersection and the number of connected roads is registered. A link corresponds to a road connecting nodes, and road attribute information indicating a highway, a national road, and the like, and information such as a distance and a direction are registered. Here, for each link, the time required to travel the link is determined in advance and registered together with the road attribute information described above. Accordingly, in step S420, information on the required time registered in advance for all links existing on the route calculated in step S410 is acquired from the road data.

  In step S430 following step S420, the current location of the vehicle is estimated. Here, the current location of the vehicle is estimated based on the time at which the vehicle position acquired in step S400 is detected, the required travel time for each road on the calculation route obtained in step S420, and the current time. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the required travel time for each road on the route calculated in step S410 and the cumulative required time obtained by integrating the travel station time.

  Based on the time acquired at step S400 (the time when the vehicle position was detected) and the current time, the time elapsed since the vehicle position was detected in the vehicle-mounted device 1 last time was obtained, and the obtained time The current location of the vehicle is estimated based on the accumulated required time accumulated. For example, if the time acquired at step S400 (the time when the vehicle position is detected) is 11:30 and the current time is 11:50, the time elapsed since the vehicle position was detected last time is 20 minutes. Become. In the example shown in FIG. 7, since the accumulated required time from the previously detected vehicle position to the D intersection is 21 minutes, it can be estimated that the current location of the vehicle is near the D intersection.

  When the current location of the vehicle is estimated in step S430, the process proceeds to step S440. In step S440, the estimated current location of the vehicle is displayed on the monitor screen of the search processing terminal 32. As a result, the operator can proceed with the conversation while confirming with the user, "Is the current location near the D intersection?" Even if the estimated current location is different from the actual vehicle position, the actual vehicle location can be quickly identified by talking to the user based on the estimated current location.

  According to the vehicle information providing system in the embodiment, the operator of the information center 20 asks and searches for information related to the current location of the vehicle desired by the user, and searches the information by data communication. In the system that transmits to the previous time, when the information was transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device 1 last time, the vehicle position transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device and the data of the time when the vehicle position was detected are stored by data communication, When there is an information request from the user, the current location of the vehicle is estimated based on the stored vehicle position, the data of the time when the vehicle location was detected, and the current time. Thus, even when the user cannot identify the current location of the vehicle, the vehicle position is estimated on the information center 20 side, so that convenience is improved when the user desires to distribute information related to the vehicle position.

  Here, two lines, a voice conversation line for conversation between the user and the operator, and a line for data communication are prepared in advance, and while the user and the operator have a conversation, A method of transmitting vehicle position data from the in-vehicle device 1 to the information center 20 by data communication is conceivable. However, in this method, communication control of two lines is performed on the in-vehicle device 1 side, and the communication cost and the cost of the in-vehicle device itself increase. However, in the vehicle information providing system in the embodiment, when the information desired by the user is transmitted from the information center 20 to the vehicle-mounted device 1 by data communication, the vehicle position and the vehicle position detected from the vehicle-mounted device 1 are detected. Is stored in the user profile database 56, and when the user requests information next time, the current location of the vehicle is estimated on the information center 20 side using the stored data. Therefore, the communication cost and the cost of the in-vehicle device itself are not increased.

  Also, in a system with only one line, when a conversation is performed between the user and the operator, the voice conversation line is temporarily disconnected and switched to data communication, and the vehicle position data is obtained from the in-vehicle device 1 as information. A method of transmitting to the center 20 and then switching to the voice conversation line again can be considered. However, this method is inconvenient for the user because it takes time and effort to switch between a voice conversation line and a data communication line. According to the vehicle information providing system in the embodiment, since the line switching process as described above is not performed, an extra operation burden is not given to the user.

  In the vehicle information providing system according to the embodiment, when information is transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device 1 last time, a route to the destination is searched based on the vehicle position and the vehicle destination acquired from the vehicle-mounted device 1. In addition, the elapsed time from the detection of the vehicle position to the present is calculated based on the time when the vehicle position was detected and the current time, and the vehicle position on the searched route is calculated based on the calculated elapsed time. presume. Thereby, the present location of the vehicle can be estimated more accurately.

  Further, in the vehicle information providing system according to the embodiment, when the vehicle position transmitted from the in-vehicle device 1 and the data of the time when the vehicle position is detected are stored before the predetermined time from the current time, the vehicle The process of estimating the present location of was performed. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an erroneous vehicle position from being estimated based on old data.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. For example, the destination data stored in the user profile database 56 is stored in the user profile database 56 based on a conversation with the user by the operator of the information center 20. The data may be transmitted. In the above-described embodiment, when a call is made from the vehicle-mounted device 1 to the vehicle information center 50 in the data mode, the vehicle position and the like necessary for performing the process of estimating the current position of the vehicle on the information center 20 side next time. Is transmitted (step S40 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 5). At this time, the destination data set in the in-vehicle device 1 may be transmitted together and stored in the user profile database 56 of the information center 20.

  Further, the data stored in the user profile database 56 for estimating the current location of the vehicle is not limited to the vehicle position, the time when the vehicle position is detected, and the destination data. The data of the waypoints up to and the route search conditions (general road priority / toll road priority, etc.) may be stored. By storing the data of the waypoints and the route search conditions, when searching for a route to the destination in the information center 20, it is possible to search for an appropriate route according to the actual driving conditions.

  The process of estimating the current location of the vehicle may be performed only when requested by the user. FIG. 8A is a diagram showing another example of a search screen displayed on the display of the search processing terminal 32. On the display of the search processing terminal 32, a current location prediction button 76 is displayed next to the search start button 75. When the operator operates the current location prediction button 76 based on a request from the user, the current location prediction process described above is started. According to this method, since the process of estimating the vehicle position is performed only when necessary, the processing load on the information center 20 side can be reduced.

  FIG. 8B is a diagram showing a state in which a map around the estimated vehicle position is displayed on the display of the search processing terminal 32. Here, the estimated vehicle position is indicated by a mark 80. The operator confirms whether the estimated vehicle position is correct through a conversation with the user. When the vehicle position is confirmed and the mark 80 is clicked with the mouse included in the input device 39, the address corresponding to the vehicle position can be automatically input to the address input field 72. FIG. 8C is a diagram illustrating a state in which the mark 80 is clicked and an address corresponding to the vehicle position is automatically input to the address input field 72. According to this method, it is possible to save the operator from inputting the address of the vehicle position in the address input field 72. In addition, what is necessary is just to make it input the name of a city or a town, for example for the address corresponding to a vehicle position.

  In order to display the estimated vehicle position on the display, as shown in FIG. 8 (b), it may be indicated by a mark 80, or a circle with a predetermined radius centered on the estimated vehicle position with some error in mind. May be indicated. When the estimated vehicle position is displayed on a map as shown in FIG. 8B, the calculated route to the destination may be displayed together. Further, the estimated vehicle position can be displayed as an address without being displayed on the map.

  In step S420 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 6, information on the required travel time registered in advance is acquired from the road data. However, the required travel time may be calculated for each road link existing on the calculated route. Good. For example, the vehicle speed when traveling on a general road is uniformly set to 30 km / h, the vehicle speed when traveling on a highway is uniformly set to 80 km / h, and based on the set vehicle speed and the link distance. Thus, the required travel time can be calculated. In addition, the vehicle speed can be set individually according to the status of the link without being set uniformly for each link. Furthermore, the travel time required for each road link may be calculated in consideration of the traffic information stored in the traffic information database 42.

  Also, the current location of the vehicle can be estimated in consideration of the time zone in which the vehicle is traveling. For example, when the time zone during which the vehicle is traveling is a lunch time zone (for example, from 12:00 to 14:00), the vehicle is considered in consideration of the time (for example, 1 hour) considered to be having lunch. The position can be estimated.

  In step S120 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, user authentication is performed based on the mobile phone number, but user authentication can also be performed based on a user ID issued after user registration is performed. Further, user authentication may be performed based on the vehicle-mounted device ID unique to the vehicle-mounted device 1. In this case, as the in-vehicle device ID, for example, the serial ID is written when the in-vehicle device 1 is shipped from the factory, and the user applies the in-vehicle device serial ID on the application form when registering the user. In other words, it is only necessary that the in-vehicle device 1 used by the calling user can be specified and data of the temporary destination and the destination data can be transmitted to the specified in-vehicle device 1 when performing data communication. The user authentication method for specifying the in-vehicle device 1 is not limited to the method described above.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the configurations in the above-described embodiments as long as the characteristic functions of the present invention are not impaired.

  The correspondence between the constituent elements of the claims and the constituent elements of the embodiment is as follows. In correspondence with the description of the claims of the vehicle information providing device and the vehicle information providing system, the search system 34 is the current location estimating means and the route searching means, the monitor 38 is the presenting means, the communication device 53 is the transmitting means, The user profile database 56 constitutes data storage means, the input device 39 constitutes destination input means, and the mobile phone 4 constitutes reception means. In addition, the above description is an example to the last, and when interpreting invention, it is not limited to the correspondence of the component of said embodiment and the component of this invention at all.

The figure which shows the whole structure of one Embodiment of the information provision system for vehicles by this invention. Diagram showing the detailed configuration of the navigation unit FIG. 3A is a diagram showing an example of a search screen displayed on the display of the search processing terminal, and FIG. 3B is a diagram showing an example of the search result. The flowchart which shows the contents of processing which each vehicle equipment and information center performs The flowchart which shows the processing content following the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. Flow chart showing detailed contents of processing for estimating current position of vehicle The figure which shows an example of the accumulation required time which accumulated the required travel time for every road on the route, and the time for the driving station FIG. 8A shows another example of a search screen displayed on the display of the search processing terminal, and FIG. 8B shows a map around the estimated vehicle position on the display of the search processing terminal. FIG. 8C is a diagram showing a state where the mark indicating the vehicle position is clicked, and the address corresponding to the vehicle position is automatically input in the address input field.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle equipment, 2 ... Navigation unit, 3 ... Monitor, 4 ... Mobile phone, 5 ... Communication adapter, 6 ... Telephone harness, 7 ... Telephone for data communication, 8 ... Microphone, 9 ... Speaker, 10 ... GPS antenna, 11 ... Operation switch, 12 ... Operator call switch, 13 ... Display processing unit, 14 ... Communication processing unit, 15 ... Voice control unit, 16 ... Vehicle speed sensor, 17 ... Position calculation unit, 18 ... Map data unit, 19 ... Input processing unit , 20 ... Information center, 21 ... Storage unit, 30 ... Operation center, 31 ... PBX / CTI, 32 ... Search processing terminal, 33 ... Telephone, 34 ... Information search system, 36 ... Headset, 37 ... Network, 39 ... Input Equipment 40 ... Information database group 41 ... Location / telephone information database 42 ... Traffic information database 43 ... Weather forecast database 44 ... Various information database, 45 ... Guidance voice database, 50 ... Vehicle information center, 52 ... PBX / CTI, 53 ... Communication device, 54 ... Information processing terminal, 55 ... General telephone line network, 56 ... User profile database, 60 ... Customer Center, 62 ... Customer Registration System, 63 ... Internet, 65 ... User PC, 66 ... Customer Management Server

Claims (11)

In a vehicle information providing apparatus for transmitting information to a vehicle-mounted device by data communication after an operator listens and retrieves information related to the current location of the vehicle desired by the user by telephone and disconnects the telephone line.
Current location estimating means for estimating the current location of a vehicle that has requested transmission of information;
Presenting means for presenting to the operator the current location of the vehicle estimated by the current location estimating means;
A vehicular information providing apparatus comprising: a transmission unit configured to transmit information retrieved by an operator to an in-vehicle device that has requested transmission of information by data communication. The vehicle information providing device according to claim 1,
Lastly, when transmitting information to the in-vehicle device by the transmitting unit, the vehicle further includes a data storage unit that stores the data of the vehicle position transmitted from the in-vehicle device and the time when the vehicle position is detected by data communication,
The vehicle location information is characterized in that the current location estimation means estimates the current location of the vehicle based on the vehicle position stored in the data storage means and the time data at which the vehicle position is detected and the current time. Providing device. The vehicle information providing apparatus according to claim 2,
The data storage means stores the vehicle position transmitted from the in-vehicle device and the time data at which the vehicle position is detected, as well as the destination data to which the vehicle is headed,
A route search means for searching for a route to the destination based on the vehicle position and the destination stored in the data storage means;
The present location estimating means calculates the elapsed time from the detection of the vehicle position to the present based on the time when the vehicle position was detected and the current time, and based on the calculated elapsed time, the route search means A vehicle information providing apparatus for estimating a vehicle position on a route searched for by the vehicle. In the vehicle information provision device according to claim 3,
An information providing apparatus for a vehicle, further comprising destination input means for an operator to save the destination of the vehicle heard from a user in the data storage means. In the vehicle information provision device according to claim 3,
The data storage means stores data of a destination transmitted from the in-vehicle device by data communication when information is transmitted to the in-vehicle device by the transmission means last time. Providing device. In the information providing device for vehicles according to any one of claims 3 to 5,
The present location estimating means estimates the current location of the vehicle in consideration of traffic information on the route searched by the route search means. In the vehicle information provision device according to any one of claims 2 to 6,
The current location estimating means detects the vehicle position and the vehicle position stored in the data storage means when the time when the vehicle position stored in the data storage means is detected is a predetermined time before the current time. A vehicle information providing apparatus that estimates a current location of a vehicle based on time data and a current time. In the vehicle information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The vehicle current providing unit is configured to perform a process of estimating a vehicle current location when an information transmission request is received from a user. In the vehicle information providing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The information providing device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the current location estimating means performs a process of estimating the current location of the vehicle when there is a command to estimate the current location of the vehicle from a user. Information about the vehicle's current location that the user wants is transmitted to the operator of the information center by telephone, and after the telephone line is disconnected, the information retrieved by the operator is transmitted from the information center to the vehicle-mounted device by data communication. In the provision system,
The information center has a current location estimating means for estimating a current location of a vehicle that has requested transmission of information,
Presenting means for presenting to the operator the current location of the vehicle estimated by the current location estimating means;
Transmission means for transmitting the information retrieved by the operator to the in-vehicle device that has requested transmission of the information,
The in-vehicle device includes a receiving unit that receives information transmitted from the information center. In the vehicle information providing method in which an operator listens and searches for information related to the current location of the vehicle desired by the user by telephone, and after the telephone line is disconnected, the searched information is transmitted to the in-vehicle device by data communication.
Estimate the current location of the vehicle that has requested the transmission of information and inform the operator,
A vehicle information providing method, comprising: transmitting information searched by an operator to an in-vehicle device that has requested transmission of information based on the estimated current location of the vehicle.

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