JP2001023084A - Information obtaining system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information obtaining system for easily obtaining forecast information at a passing time ahead of a path. SOLUTION: In this information obtaining system, a traveling time is calculated from a path from the present location to the destination related with the traveling path of a vehicle, and passage predicted forecast time and forecast block are decided by time-dividing the path based on the traveling time, and the latest broadcast weather in the passage predicted forecast time and forecast block on the path is outputted to terminal equipment by using terminal agent software integrated in the terminal equipment 1, integral agent software integrated in an information center 11, and monitor agent software and retrieval agent software generated from the software through the substitute processing of each software. Thus, it is possible to obtain weather forecast at the passage predicted time at plural spots ahead of the path from the terminal equipment without making it necessary to execute any troublesome operation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information acquisition system for acquiring forecast information at a passing time on a route from a site to a destination using a terminal device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an automobile has come to employ an information acquisition system capable of acquiring ever-changing information relating to the running of the automobile, for example, weather information from outside the automobile.

In this information acquisition system, a terminal device for selecting an area for which weather information is to be obtained is used, and a selection function of the terminal device is used to access an information center serving as a base via communication means and to access each area. A system that can acquire the weather information is adopted. Specifically, the information center provides forecast weather information for each forecast time in the forecast area nationwide through the weather information server, so the user operates the terminal device and selects the area on the way to the car. When the forecast weather information is obtained, the display unit attached to the terminal device displays, for example, the weather in the selected area one hour later, the same two hours later, the same three hours later, and so on. The weather forecast of the area selected by the user is displayed in chronological order.

[0004]

By the way, the forecast weather information that the user wants when heading from the current location to the destination includes not only the weather at the location where the user arrives but also each point on the route from the current location to the destination. There is also weather at the time of passing.

[0005] In other words, if the user knows in advance that the weather in the area ahead of the route will be degraded by acquiring the forecast weather information, the user can change the route to avoid the area with bad weather,
You can do things like shift the time to avoid bad weather.

However, the forecast weather information obtained from the terminal device is a time-series forecast in a selected area. Therefore, the forecast weather at the time when the vehicle will pass each point on the route is understood from the forecast weather information. It is difficult. Moreover, it is difficult to grasp the weather change on the route based on the passing time simply from the time series forecast of the area selected by the user, and even if the weather changes on the route, the user will have the weather change It is difficult to understand. In addition, when acquiring information on the route, the user must select an area along the route each time.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an information acquisition system capable of easily acquiring forecast information at a passing time ahead of a route.

[0008]

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information acquisition system for determining a route from a current location to a destination based on current location information and destination information input on a travel route of a vehicle. A terminal device having a function to determine, a function to set request information, an output function to output these routes and request information, and an output of the terminal device to obtain an estimated travel time of the vehicle from the current position to the destination. A base for determining a forecast time and a forecast area to be predicted to pass by time-dividing the route according to the time, obtaining the forecast time and forecast information to be predicted to pass on the route from the information source, and outputting the information to the terminal device. And a system having

[0009] Thus, when the present location and the destination are input from the terminal device to obtain the forecast information, the forecast information at the predicted passing time of each passing area in front of the route is obtained from the information source and output to the terminal device. .

[0010] Therefore, the user is provided with the forecast information at the passage predicted time at a plurality of points on the route through the terminal device, so that the forecast information at the passage time ahead of the route can be easily obtained. This is particularly effective in the case of a vehicle that frequently requires information on a destination.

According to the information acquisition system of the present invention, the base calculates an estimated travel time and determines a forecast time and a forecast area in accordance with an instruction of first agent software which controls and processes various information. Information center, and an information server for obtaining the latest request information in the forecast time and the forecast area by the second agent software generated by the first agent software, and the request information obtained by the second agent software. Is configured to be output to the terminal device via the first agent software, so that the latest information can be obtained autonomously while continuously monitoring the status change by the proxy processing by the agent software.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the information acquisition system, the terminal device outputs the route and request information to the first agent software of the base, and outputs the time and weather information by the third agent software incorporated in the terminal device. Has a function of outputting an information update request to the first agent software based on the traveling environment of the vehicle or the vehicle condition such as the vehicle speed and the position of the own vehicle. The third agent software and the first agent software are provided between the terminal device and the base. By configuring to cooperate, it is possible to reduce the burden on the operation of the user, and it is also possible to perform appropriate information search and provision according to various situations. As a specific example, based on an information update event instructed by the first agent software, the third agent software of the terminal device autonomously monitors whether an event has occurred and automatically updates the information when the event occurs. By requesting the software, users can get the latest information without having to be aware of when information needs to be updated and without performing information update operations.
This is particularly effective in a situation where the terminal device cannot be operated during driving.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to one embodiment shown in FIGS.

FIG. 1 shows, for example, forecast weather information (request information).
A vehicle information acquisition system suitable for acquiring
In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a terminal device mounted on an automobile (vehicle), which forms an in-vehicle terminal.

The terminal device 1 has, for example, a switch unit 2 for turning on and off a weather information function, and a navigation function unit 3. The terminal device 1 includes a control unit 4 that operates according to terminal agent software (hereinafter, referred to as terminal agent: corresponding to third agent software).
(Comprising, for example, a microcomputer). The terminal agent uses the map information contained in the navigation function unit 3 to determine the current position information of the vehicle detected by radio waves from the GPS satellites and the destination information input by the destination setting unit 5, thereby determining the vehicle between the two. Of the traveling route of the communication line 7
With a, it has a function of transmitting information to the general agent software of the information center 11 described later. The terminal agent has a function of displaying forecast weather information transmitted from the general agent software on a display unit 6 (corresponding to a display unit) connected to the navigation function unit 3, and uses the navigation function to display the weather forecast. Display is enabled.

On the other hand, reference numeral 10 denotes a base installed at a specific place. The base 10 includes various servers 11 for controlling information.
and a combination of an information center 11 configured using a and a weather information server 12 (information server) in which, for example, the latest weather forecast information nationwide via a communication line 12a is stored in a database. I have.

The server 11a of the information center 11 incorporates general agent software (hereinafter, general agent: corresponding to first agent software). The general agent has a function of calculating a travel time (predicted travel time) from the current location to the destination based on the route information transmitted from the terminal device 1, and a predetermined time (for example, every one hour) according to the travel time. ) Has a function to determine the forecast time and the forecast area by dividing the route in time. That is, the estimated time of passage at each point on the route and the passage area at that time are set based on the current time and the travel time. The general agent has a function of defining an information update event such as updating the information every time it passes through a location where the information is updated, for example, a forecast area.

Further, the supervising agent includes monitoring agent software for obtaining forecast weather information (hereinafter, referred to as monitoring agent: corresponding to second agent software) and search agent software (hereinafter, referred to as second agent software) for searching for information on a specific point. Search agent: equivalent to the second agent software).

The monitoring agent is a weather information server 12
Transmitted to the weather information server 12, and has a function of acquiring the weather forecast (request information) of each passing area at the predicted passing time, that is, the forecast area.

The search agent has a function of using the terrain information D / B (database) 13 to search for a unique point in each forecast area, which is a point that may hinder driving due to bad weather.

The general agent software has a function of determining a display point based on each forecast weather information obtained by the monitoring agent and information of a unique point obtained from the search agent, and an event function for obtaining each of the information by an event function. It has a function of transmitting it to the terminal agent together with the information, and the obtained forecast weather information is displayed on the display unit 6 of the terminal device 1.

On the other hand, when the forecast time does not match the forecast area (for example, when the current time has passed the forecast time in the corresponding forecast area), the terminal agent has a function of requesting the general agent to update the information. A function is provided for requesting the general agent to update the information if the time changes. The monitoring agent has a function of requesting the general agent to update the information when the weather information changes (weather change). That is, the terminal agent and the supervising agent are configured to cooperate between the terminal device 1 and the base 10.

With this information acquisition system, the latest forecast weather information based on the arrival time is provided to the user.

FIG. 2 shows a processing flowchart for providing the forecast weather information. In the figure, the area (a) partitioned by a broken line shows the area where the terminal agent executes the processing, the area (b) also shows the area where the general agent executes the processing, and the area (c) also The area indicates the area where the monitoring agent executes the processing, and the area (d) indicates the area where the search agent executes the processing.

The operation of the information acquisition system will be described with reference to this processing flowchart. Assume that the current location is, for example, the Okazaki IC, and that the vehicle is to be driven to the Tokyo IC via the Tomei Expressway.

At this time, it is assumed that the user wants to know the weather at the time of arrival at a passing point on the way to arrive.

At this time, first, for example, the switch unit 2 attached to the terminal device 1 is turned on, and then, in step S1
Set the route information shown in (1).

Here, since the current location information is input by the detection of radio waves from GPS satellites performed by the navigation function unit 3, only the destination information need be set from the destination setting unit 5 for this setting.

Then, on the terminal device 1, the terminal agent uses the navigation function unit 3 to pass through the Tomei Expressway as shown in FIG.
Determine the route from C) to the destination (Tokyo IC). Subsequently, the route information is transmitted to the information center 11 through the communication line 7a together with a signal requesting the current time and forecast weather information.

In the information center 11, the supervising agent first calculates a predicted travel time that will reach the destination from the current location based on the route information as in step 2. Next, as in step S3, the route from the current location to the destination is classified, for example, every hour based on the travel time. By this time division, the predicted time of passage at each point on the route that will pass through the current time and the passage area at that time are divided, and the forecast time is determined (step S4). Then, the update event point is determined by using this division.

On the other hand, a monitoring agent is generated from the general agent. The monitoring agent is the communication line 1
The information is transmitted to the weather information server 12 via 2a, and is resident in the weather information server 12, and the weather forecast in each forecast area is attached as in step S5. More specifically, the weather information server 12 stores, for example, 20 as shown in FIG.
There are various types of weather forecast information at each point observed with the km mesh, and the monitoring agent resident on the server 12 obtains the latest weather information in the forecast area at the forecast time while monitoring the current weather, that is, obtains the forecast weather Is performed.

A search agent is generated from the general agent. The search agent performs step S6
From the terrain information D / B13, a section of a unique point that may hinder driving due to bad weather is searched for in the forecast area. If the singular point is within the forecast area, the point is determined as an update event point, and the monitoring agent attaches the latest weather information of the searched singular point, that is, the forecast weather, as in the case of the forecast area.

Next, the supervising agent determines a point at which weather information is to be displayed based on the information obtained by the search agent and the information obtained by the monitoring agent, and determines the forecast weather of each forecast area at each forecast time together with the event information. Is transmitted to the terminal agent of the terminal device 1 via the communication line 7a.

The terminal agent displays, on the display unit 6 of the terminal device 1, the obtained forecast weather of the predicted passing point for each event point including the unique point, and provides the user with the forecast weather information (step S7). . For example, FIG.
As shown in the display example of the weather forecast shown in (d), the display unit 6 displays a plurality of points to a destination including a unique point, for example, points A, B, and D from Hamamatsu to Atsugi and the weather in the middle. The weather and the temperature at the predicted passing time of each event point are displayed together with the event display with the illustration of the section C (or the point) where the driving may be hindered due to the deterioration.

On the other hand, while the vehicle is running, the terminal agent determines the event point (each forecast area, unique point) determined as shown in steps S8 to S10, more specifically, the boundary point determined according to the forecast time division. Is monitored to see if it passes. Then, the terminal agent determines that an event has occurred when passing through the event point, and uses this as a trigger to request the general agent to update information.
In response to this request, information is updated again by the supervising agent and the monitoring agent, and the latest forecast weather information such as weather and temperature at the predicted passage time based on the event occurrence point is displayed on the display unit 6 of the terminal device 1. .

The terminal agent determines in step S11
The travel time is monitored as shown in FIG. 4. For example, when the current time elapses the forecast time in the corresponding area, step S
As shown in FIG. 12, a request for information update is made to the general agent from the determination of the change in the time. Thereby, the latest forecast weather information is similarly displayed on the display unit 6 of the terminal device 1.

On the other hand, the monitoring agent resident in the weather information server 12 executes steps S13 to S15.
The weather information in the forecast area is monitored as shown in, and a change in the weather in the forecast area occurs, or a sudden weather change, such as a rainfall (for example, time If it is predicted that the rainfall will be reached, request the information update from the general agent. Thereby, the same latest weather information is displayed on the display unit 6 of the terminal device 1.

By such processing, the user is provided with the forecast weather information at the predicted passage time at each point on the route.

Therefore, without any troublesome operation,
Forecast information at the passing time ahead of the route can be easily acquired. Moreover, since the forecast information on the route is based on the passing time, the weather change on the route can be easily grasped, and the user's ability to understand information and the burden of operation can be reduced.

In addition, a surrogate processing information acquisition system using a supervising agent, a monitoring agent, a search agent, and a terminal agent makes it possible to autonomously acquire the latest information while continuously monitoring changes in the situation, and always obtain the latest information. Information is available.

In addition, since the terminal agent autonomously grasps the driving environment and the vehicle condition, and cooperates with the supervising agent of the base 10 to select and obtain necessary information on behalf of the user, the conventional method has been adopted. Unlike the case where the user himself / herself judges the situation and directly performs the information acquisition operation using the terminal device 1, not only the burden on the user's operation is greatly reduced, but also the appropriateness according to various situations Information retrieval and provision becomes possible. That is, the terminal agent of the terminal device 1 autonomously monitors whether an event has occurred based on the information update event instructed by the general agent, and automatically requests the general agent to update the information when the event occurs, thereby utilizing the information. It is possible for the user to obtain the latest information without being conscious of when the information update is required and without performing the information update operation. The effect is particularly exhibited in a situation where the terminal device 1 cannot be operated during driving.

In the embodiment, an example is described in which weather forecast information is obtained at a plurality of predicted points at a plurality of points in front of a route. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It may be applied also when acquiring traffic information. Particularly, in a vehicle, information at a destination is often required, and thus such an information acquisition system is effective for a vehicle.

In one embodiment, the present invention is applied to an on-vehicle information acquiring system. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention may be applied to a portable information acquiring system in which a user carries a terminal device.

[0044]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to acquire the forecast information at the predicted passing time of each point on the route from the current position to the destination without any troublesome operation. it can.

Therefore, the user can easily obtain the forecast information at the passing time ahead of the route.
Moreover, because it is forecast information on the route based on the passing time,
Changes on the route are easy to grasp, and the burden on the user for understanding information can be reduced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, an agent processing system using agent software provides
It is possible to autonomously acquire the latest information while continuously monitoring a change in the situation, and it is possible to always acquire the latest information while suppressing the burden on the user.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, conventionally, the user himself / herself has directly determined the situation and directly performed the information acquisition operation using the terminal device. Since the vehicle status is autonomously grasped and the selection and acquisition of necessary information is performed on behalf of the first agent software at the base, the burden on user operations is greatly reduced. Instead, it is possible to search for and provide appropriate information according to various situations.

This is particularly effective in a situation where the terminal device cannot be operated during driving. As a specific example, based on an information update event instructed by the first agent software, the third agent software of the terminal device autonomously monitors whether an event has occurred and automatically updates the information when the event occurs. By requesting the software, the latest information can be obtained without the user being conscious of when the information needs to be updated and without performing the information update operation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view for explaining a configuration of an information acquisition system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a flow of acquiring a weather forecast at a passing time ahead on a route by the system.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary view for explaining processing of a weather forecast executed by the system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Terminal device 3 ... Navigation function part 4 ... Control part 5 ... Destination setting part 6 ... Display part 10 ... Base 11 ... Information center 12 ... Weather information server (information server).

Claims (3)

[Claims] The present invention has a function of determining a route from a current position to a destination based on current position information and destination information input with respect to a traveling route of a vehicle, a function of setting required information, and an output function of outputting the route and the required information. A terminal device, receiving the output of the terminal device, obtains a predicted travel time from the current location of the vehicle to the destination, determines a forecast time and a forecast area to be predicted to pass by time-dividing the route according to the same time. A base for acquiring a forecast time on a route and request information in a forecast area from an information source and outputting the information to the terminal device. 2. The information acquisition system according to claim 1, wherein the base calculates the predicted travel time, and calculates the predicted time and the predicted time according to an instruction of first agent software that integrally processes various types of information. An information center for determining an area, and an information server for obtaining the forecast time and the latest request information in the forecast area by the second agent software generated by the first agent software. An information acquisition system, wherein the information acquisition system is configured to output request information acquired by the second agent software to the terminal device via the first agent software. 3. The information acquisition system according to claim 1, wherein the terminal device outputs the route and the request information to the first agent software of the base by using third agent software incorporated in the terminal device. Having a function of outputting an information update request to the first agent software based on a traveling environment such as time or weather or a vehicle condition such as a vehicle speed or a vehicle position,
An information acquisition system, wherein the third agent software and the first agent software are configured to cooperate between the terminal device and the base.