JP2003090730A - Menu-previously-providing-type drive-through system, road side system and onboard apparatus therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To order commodities by previously selecting a desired store and desired commodities while in a motor vehicle before reaching the store without approaching or entering the store along a road, shorten the time that elapses before receiving the commodities, and substantially improving the convenience. SOLUTION: This menu-previously-providing-type drive-through system is provided with both an onboard apparatus 1 mounted to a motor vehicle CR and capable of performing communications between the motor vehicle and a road side, and a road side system (communication system 21, etc., between the motor vehicle and the road side, store side devices 22, and a center side system 23 (each data base 41, etc., and a service provider system 42)) 2 capable of previously providing the onboard device 1 of the motor vehicle CR travelling in a specific area with store information including menu information on articles of commerce providable within the specific areas (A-C areas) previously set in a road RW along which the motor vehicle CR is traveling by stores St, etc., within the specific areas in such a way that the articles of commerce can be ordered by communications between the motor vehicle and the road side.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a menu advance-provided drive-through system, a roadside system, and an in-vehicle device, and particularly for a user in a vehicle to use a drive-through store along a road. Regarding the devise of the drive-through system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, DSRC (Dedicated Short Range) of ETC (Nonstop Automatic Toll Collection System), which is being put to practical use at tollgates on expressways.
As one of the applications of e-Communication system, the so-called "drive-through type" that enables processing such as ordering products and paying fees by drive-through by operating the terminal device while in the car System ”has been proposed (for example,“ DSRC System Study Group: “ITS Information Shower”,
Create Cruise Co., Ltd., published in 2000, p.
37-40, p. 193-197 "))).

According to this drive-through type system,
For example, a DSRC terminal device, a multi-application IC card, a car navigation device, etc. are installed on the vehicle side, a DSRC roadside communication device, a POS system, etc. are installed on the drive-through store side, and the store side is communicably connected via a network. With a configuration where a cashless payment server and content distribution server are placed on the center side,
By performing road-to-vehicle communication by DSRC between the vehicle and the store, it is possible for the user to carry out processing such as ordering products and paying charges while the user is in the vehicle.

[0004]

However, in the drive-through type system proposed in the above-mentioned conventional example, when the vehicle approaches the store side or actually enters the store in order to receive the order from the product. Since the information such as the menu of the store is spot-transmitted to the vehicle side by road-to-vehicle communication, the following inconveniences are considered.

First, the user does not know the existence of the store or the menu thereof until the user approaches or enters the store (the degree of freedom for selecting the store is limited), and therefore the desired product for the store is not available. Even if there is a desired product, I do not know whether or not it is available, so I order the product after that, so it takes time from entering the store to receiving the product, which is not always convenient.

The present invention has been made in consideration of such a conventional situation, and even if a store along a road is not approached or entered, a desired store and It is an object of the present invention to select a desired product and place an order for the product, shorten the time until the product is received, and significantly improve the convenience.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present inventor divides a route on which a vehicle travels into appropriate areas along the route and puts a regional database in each area, The database of is connected not only to stores along the route but also to the road-to-vehicle communication device group and service providers installed along the line, and the road-to-vehicle communication device group is installed in the vehicle on the line by wireless communication. With the configuration connected to (in-vehicle device), the service provider controls the flow of information between the store, regional database, vehicle terminal device, and service provider, and the information provided by road-to-vehicle communication is in a specific region. I got the idea of a drive-through system that provides local information only from

In addition, the present inventor, in such a drive-through system, when the vehicle enters the area of the route,
The idea is to communicate between the roadside-to-vehicle communication device group installed on the roadside and the terminal device of the vehicle, and sequentially receive and store the data provided by the regional database at the terminal device of the vehicle while traveling in that area. Also got.

According to this, the user of the vehicle browses various menus in advance without limiting the store while traveling on the road, and selects and orders the desired product in advance before arriving at the store. This enables the store side to handle a wide range of items and provide information such as the selling points of each item in advance, so that the purchaser who is traveling can significantly increase the degree of freedom in selecting the target store and the purchased item. It is possible to expect an increase in purchasing opportunities.

The present invention has been completed based on such an idea.

That is, the menu advance provision type drive-through system according to the present invention is installed in a vehicle and is capable of road-to-vehicle communication, and an on-vehicle device in a specific area preset on the road on which the vehicle runs. A roadside system that provides shop information including menu information of products that can be provided at stores in a specific area to an in-vehicle device of the vehicle that is traveling in the specific area in advance so that a product can be ordered by the road-to-vehicle communication. It is characterized by having.

Further, the roadside system according to the present invention provides store information including menu information of products that can be provided at stores in a specific area preset in the specific area on the road on which the vehicle travels, in the specific area. Is configured to provide in-vehicle devices mounted in a vehicle that is traveling in advance so that products can be ordered in advance by road-to-vehicle communication, and the products are arranged at predetermined intervals on a road in the specific area and And a plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices capable of the road-to-vehicle communication, and a database unit that is communicatively connected to the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices and manages the store information for each of the specific areas; The store information managed by the database means is stored in the plurality of store information so that a product order to the store is completed in advance based on the store information between the time when it enters the area and the time when the store arrives at the store. Characterized in that the product ordering information from the vehicle-mounted device that is received by the plurality of roadside-vehicle communication apparatus and an information supply means for supplying to the shop side is supplied to the road-vehicle communication device.

The information supply means according to the present invention may include means for causing the vehicle-mounted device to sequentially receive and store store information from the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices while the vehicle is traveling in the specific area.

The information supply means may be composed of an information processing system for service providers.

Further, the vehicle-mounted device according to the present invention provides road-to-vehicle communication with store information including menu information of products that can be provided at stores in a specific area preset in the specific area on the road on which the vehicle travels. The roadside-vehicle communication is possible with a roadside system that allows ordering products in advance, and the roadside-vehicle communication is performed from the roadside system while the vehicle is traveling on a road in a specific area. Receiving means for receiving the store information provided by the display means, display means for displaying the store information received by the receiving means on a screen of a predetermined format in which the user of the vehicle can select products, and the display means It is characterized by further comprising: a transmission unit for transmitting information regarding the product order for the product selected from the displayed store information to the roadside system.

[0016]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of a menu advance provision type drive-through system, a roadside system, and an on-vehicle apparatus according to the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a menu advance provision type drive-through system of this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a detailed diagram of a communication system in the system. The menu advance provision type drive-through system shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a wireless road between an in-vehicle device (terminal device) 1 mounted on a vehicle CR traveling on a road (route) RW and the in-vehicle device 1. It is composed of a roadside system 2 for exchanging various information by inter-vehicle communication.

The in-vehicle device 1 is a device to which the receiving means, the transmitting means and the display means of the present invention are applied. In the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in addition to the information processing section 11 which is the control / processing center, As each unit or each unit (each device) connected to this information processing unit 11, relatively narrow road-to-vehicle communication by DSRC or the like using radio waves in the 5.8 GHz band is possible with the roadside system 2. An in-vehicle wireless device 13 having an in-vehicle antenna 12, a communication control unit 14 that controls road-vehicle communication, and a car navigation system (hereinafter abbreviated as “car navigation”) 15 are included.

Of these, the information processing unit 11 is, for example, a vehicle C.
Other devices or units mounted on the R (for example, DSRC
Such as a dedicated vehicle-mounted device such as a car navigation system, an in-vehicle information processing device), or a single processing device or unit, and a CPU (not shown) incorporated therein executes a program in the memory at the time of its operation. By executing it, various processing (see later) is performed between the communication control unit 14 and the car navigation 15.

The car navigation system 15 is equipped with known devices and units such as a GPS device for vehicle position detection, a database for map information, a display device such as a liquid crystal monitor, and a unit for controlling / processing, which are not shown. In addition to the ordinary car navigation function, in the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, under the control of the information processing unit 11, product information such as a menu of the store ST sent from the roadside system 2 by road-to-vehicle communication. Is displayed on the screen with a hierarchical menu that can be hierarchically selected, and a request for the product finally selected by the user from the hierarchical menu is issued to the store ST via the roadside system 2 by roadside-vehicle communication. As a response, confirmation of the product order sent from the roadside system 2 (product, quantity, price, etc.) can be performed on the screen (see below). .

In the above-mentioned on-vehicle device 1, communication data such as store information provided by the roadside system 2 by road-to-vehicle communication while traveling on the road RW is kept in a fragmentary state, and the on-vehicle antenna 12 and the on-vehicle radio device are used. A function of sequentially receiving via the communication control unit 14, the communication control unit 14, and the information processing unit 11 and reconfigurablely storing the fragmentary communication data in a recording medium (not shown) such as a buffer memory is also added.

The roadside system 2 has a plurality of areas ("areas") set by dividing the road RW into an appropriate range (for example, several kilometers) in advance, for example, in the example shown in FIG. Three areas (A ~
(C region). The respective areas are not limited to the example shown in FIG. 1, but may be arranged in a scattered manner with an interval therebetween.

Due to its configuration, the roadside system 2 has a predetermined interval (for example, 100 m to 1) along the road RW in each area.
a plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices 21 ... 21, which form a base station for road-to-vehicle communication (base station) installed at a distance of about km.
A store side device 22 provided in a drive-through type store ST along the road RW in each region, and the store side device 2
2 is communicatively connected via a network (communication network) N1 and is communicatively connected to each road-vehicle communication device 21 ... 21 via a transmission network N2 such as an optical fiber cable. A center side system (which constitutes a main part of the database means and the information supply means of the present invention) 23 arranged on the center side including the center side.

In the drive-through type store ST, in the example of this embodiment, in addition to fast-food stores such as hamburgers, drive-throughs such as convenience stores, pharmacies, laundry stores, rental video / CD stores, etc. It also includes stores in a business form where you can order and deliver products while you are in a car.

As shown in FIG. 2, each of the road-to-vehicle communication devices 21 ... 21 includes an information processing unit 31 serving as a control / processing center thereof, as well as each unit / unit (each device) connected to the information processing unit 31. Roadside base station for inter-vehicle communication (or base station for broadcasting)
The base station radio set 33 has a roadside antenna 32 that functions as a base station, and a communication control section 34 that controls the radio communication. Of these, the information processing section 31 is constituted by, for example, a processing device that is equipped with a microcomputer, or can be incorporated in another device, and a communication control section is executed by a CPU (not shown) executing a program in the memory during its operation. 34, various processing (see later) is performed with the center side system 23.

With the above configuration, each road-vehicle communication device 21
21 receives information such as menus provided by the store ST unique to each area supplied from the center-side system 23 at the information processing section 31 via the transmission network N2, and the information is transmitted to the base by the communication control section 34. While transmitting (broadcasting) to the vehicle CR side that is traveling in the area via the roadside antenna 32 of the station radio 33, communication control is performed on the information about the product order to the store ST sent from the vehicle-mounted device 1 of the vehicle CR. The unit 34 receives the information via the roadside antenna 32 of the base station radio 33, and receives the information via the information processing unit 31 from the transmission network N.
It is possible to supply to the center side system 23 via 2

The store-side device 22 is, for example, a data management terminal or a POS (Point O) having a communication device (not shown).
f Sales system, etc., in addition to general functions of general product management such as product ordering, charge settlement, sales management, inventory management, etc., in the present embodiment, various information is communicated with the center side system 23 via the network N1. By exchanging information, a series of functions related to information provision and response from prior product order by vehicle CR user to delivery / charge collection upon arrival is added, and these functions are added to the data management terminal and POS system. It can be executed by computer processing in.

The center-side device 23 includes a plurality of database systems (database systems for areas A to C in the example of FIG. 1) 41 ... 41 that function as area-specific databases that are assigned in advance for each area. It is composed of a service provider system 42 provided on the side of a service provider (not shown) that manages the database systems 41.

Of these, each database system 41 ...
21 are individually assigned to each road-to-vehicle communication device 21 ... 21 and each store ST ... ST store side device 22 ... 22 in each area, but in the example shown in FIG. The road-to-vehicle communication devices 21 ... 21 and the store-side devices 22 ... 22 located in the overlap area between two adjacent areas are assigned to both areas.

Each of these database systems 41 ... 41
Is composed of a computer such as a server equipped with a communication device and a database management system. Under the control of the service provider system 42, a built-in CPU (not shown) executes a program in the memory when operating. Register and manage the store information (including product information such as menus) supplied from the store side device 22 of the store ST via the network N1 for each area.
While supplying the information to each road-to-vehicle communication device 21 ... 21 in each area via the transmission network N2, information such as a product order from the user of the vehicle CR running in each area is transmitted to each road-to-vehicle communication. When receiving from the devices 21 ... 21 via the transmission network N2,
The information can be supplied to the shop-side device 22 of the shop ST via the network N1.

The service provider system 42 is composed of, for example, a computer such as a PC server, a dedicated server, etc., and a built-in CPU (not shown) executes a program in the memory at the time of operation so that the database system 41 ... It is possible to control the flow of information between the inter-vehicle communication device 21 and the store-side device 22. The service provider system 42 may be configured by a computer integrated with each database system 41 as needed.

The overall operation of this embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

FIG. 3 illustrates the flow of information between the vehicle-mounted device 1 and the roadside system 2 according to the condition of the vehicle CR and each processing example.

In FIG. 3, first, when the vehicle CR enters the area (step S100), the in-vehicle device 1
Starts roadside-vehicle communication with each roadside-vehicle communication device 21 ... 21 of the roadside system 2 passing through the area while traveling, and is unique to the area such as the menu of the store ST in the area. Information is received via the road-to-vehicle communication devices 21 ... 21. This area-specific information is prepared and created in advance by each store ST (store-side device 22) existing in the area where the vehicle CR travels, and each area-specific database system 41 assigned to that area ...
It is registered in 41 (steps S1 to S
4).

While the road-to-vehicle communication is performed, the vehicle CR
When the vehicle-mounted device 1 receives the information in a fragmentary manner while passing through the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices 21, ... 21, The fragmentary information is sequentially accumulated / reconstructed.

On the side of the in-vehicle device 1, the information provided by the roadside system 2 by the roadside-to-vehicle communication is used by the information processing unit 1
By the processing of No. 1, a hierarchical menu is displayed on the screen of, for example, the car navigation system 15 so that the user can browse it and perform operations such as menu selection, product order, and confirmation thereof as necessary (step S5). Display example of this hierarchical menu
Shown in.

In the hierarchical menu shown in FIG. 4, for example, the first screen D1 on which one of the toll booths and shops in the area can be selected through the car navigation 15 is displayed. If a store is selected on this screen D1 by, for example, an operation of a user (purchased person) (for example, an operation using various operation devices such as an input device mounted on the car navigation system 15; the same applies hereinafter), the area within that area is selected. Multiple stores (in the example shown,
A next screen D2 is displayed in which any one of a hamburger store, a convenience store, etc. can be selected (multiple selections are possible).

Next, on this screen D2, for example, when one of the plurality of stores is selected as the purchase target store by the operation of the user, the menu provided in the selected purchase target store, that is, a plurality of products. The next screen D3 in which any of the above can be selected (multiple selections are possible) is displayed. It should be noted that, on each of these screens D1 to D1, it is possible to display advertisements and advertising information of each store as necessary.

On the screen D3, for example, the name of each product (if the image of the product can be displayed, the image is also included), the fee, etc. are displayed, and a plurality of products are operated by the user. When any one of the items to be purchased is selected, the in-vehicle device 1 requests the in-vehicle device 1 for a request (including product code and quantity information) regarding the product order of the to-be-purchased product by the processing of the information processing unit 11. It transmits to the roadside system 2 by road-to-vehicle communication via the vehicle-mounted antenna 12 of the vehicle-mounted radio 13 by the communication control unit 14 together with necessary additional information such as an identification code and user information thereof (steps S6, S).
7).

Then, on the side of the roadside system 2, the roadside-to-vehicle communication device 21 receives the request regarding the product order from the vehicle-mounted device 1 and sends it to the storeside device 22 via the centerside system 23 (steps S9 to S11). ). In response to this, in the shop-side device 22, the product order details (product, quantity, price) of the planned purchase product determined by the request.
Center side system 2 for the response to confirm
3. It returns to the vehicle-mounted apparatus 1 by road-to-vehicle communication via the road-to-vehicle communication device 21 (steps S12 to S14).

Therefore, when the in-vehicle device 1 receives the above response (step S15), the on-vehicle device 1 displays information prompting confirmation of the product order contents (product / quantity / amount) on the screen of the car navigation system 15, for example. If there is a change due to reasons such as the above, it will be corrected by the user's operation, the process will return to the above process, the request will be issued again, and the product content of the planned ordered product will be confirmed by the user's operation. , A response to that effect is returned to the roadside system 2 (steps S16 to S).
18).

On the side of the roadside system 2, the roadside-vehicle communication device 21 receives a response (confirmation response) from the vehicle-mounted device 1 to the effect that the contents of the product order have been confirmed. It is sent to the device 22 (steps S19 to S21). As a result, the store ST prepares the ordered product (for example, takes it out of the warehouse).
Then, the arrival of the vehicle CR is awaited (step S200).

After that, when the vehicle CR arrives at the store ST in the area (step S101), the ordered products are immediately handed over according to the arrival timing, and at the same time, the payment / collection of the fee is also carried out. It is performed (steps S201 and S102). Regarding the charge settlement in this case, for example, when road-to-vehicle communication by DSRC is applied, a method of using an IC card of a DSRC vehicle-mounted device may be applied.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, the user (purchaser) in the vehicle arrives at the store while referring to the menu displayed on the in-vehicle device and the advertisement information accompanying the menu. You can select the items you plan to purchase in between. At this time, it is possible to obtain more detailed information by making a request from the vehicle-mounted device to the database through road-to-vehicle communication.

In this way, the user can browse various menus in advance without limiting the store while traveling on the road and select and order the desired product in advance before arriving at the store. Therefore, convenience such as the degree of freedom in selecting the target store and the purchased product is remarkably increased, and the like is remarkably improved.

Further, for the store side, it is possible to handle a wide range of items and provide information such as sales points of each item in advance, and it is possible to expect an increase in purchasing opportunities.

Further, for the side providing information (stores, service providers), since the information is unique to each area and the information target is limited, a limited road-to-vehicle communication fee is charged. There is an advantage such as being able to effectively provide necessary information (if wide-area wireless communication is used, the number of simultaneous users will increase and it will be difficult to provide detailed information that is closely related to the area. However, this point can be greatly improved in the present embodiment).

In general, the amount of information that can be received while passing through one road-to-vehicle communication device is limited, but in the present embodiment, all the same information can be received from the road-to-vehicle communication device in the area. Therefore, even if the vehicle receives information in pieces while passing through a plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices on the vehicle side, a larger amount of information can be obtained by accumulating and reconfiguring it in the in-vehicle device. be able to.

In the present embodiment, the service provider side controls the flow of information in each area along the route. At this time, even if the areas are separated from each other or overlap each other, It is preferable that the service provider appropriately creates an appropriate information flow.

Further, in this embodiment, when the vehicle enters the area, the information about the shops in the area is provided in advance before the arrival of the shop. However, for example, the areas are continuously arranged. In some cases, if necessary, it is possible to provide information in advance at the time when the vehicle enters one or more front areas.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described representative embodiments, and those skilled in the art can
Based on the contents of the claims, it is possible to modify and change into various modes within the scope not departing from the gist thereof,
They also belong to the scope of rights of the present invention.

[0052]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Even if you do not approach or enter the store along the road, you can select the desired store and the desired product in advance while you are in the car before you arrive at the store and order the product. It is possible to provide a menu advance provision type drive-through system, a roadside system, and a vehicle-mounted device that can significantly reduce the time required and significantly improve convenience.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a menu advance provision type drive through system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing a configuration of a communication system of a roadside system and an in-vehicle device.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a flow of information between an in-vehicle device and a roadside system and each process.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a hierarchical menu on the in-vehicle device side.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 In-vehicle device (terminal device) 2 Roadside system 11 Information processing unit (vehicle-mounted device) 12 Onboard antenna 13 Onboard radio 14 Communication control unit (vehicle-mounted device) 15 Car navigation system (Car navigation) 21 Road-to-vehicle communication device 22 Store-side device 23 Center system 31 Information processing unit (roadside-vehicle communication device) 32 roadside antenna 33 base station radio 34 Communication control unit (roadside-vehicle communication device) N1 network N2 transmission network ST store CR vehicle

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Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle-mounted device that is mounted on a vehicle and is capable of road-to-vehicle communication, and menu information of products that can be provided at a store within a specific area preset on the road on which the vehicle travels. A roadside system for providing in-vehicle device of the vehicle, which is traveling in the specific area, with the roadside system so that the product can be ordered in advance by the roadside-to-vehicle communication. system. 2. A vehicle running in the specific area is provided with store information including menu information of products that can be provided by a store in the specific area preset in a specific area on a road on which the vehicle travels. It is a roadside system that provides an in-vehicle device with an orderable product in advance by road-to-vehicle communication. The roadside system is arranged at predetermined intervals on the road in the specific area, and the road-to-vehicle communication is possible with the on-vehicle device. A plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices, a database unit that is communicably connected to the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices and manages the store information for each of the specific areas, and after the vehicle enters the specific area. The store information managed by the database means is supplied to the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices so that a product order to the store is completed in advance based on the store information before arriving at the store. A roadside system, further comprising: an information supply unit that supplies, to the store side, information regarding a product order from the vehicle-mounted device that is received by the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices. 3. The information supply means comprises means for causing the vehicle-mounted device to sequentially receive and store store information from the plurality of road-to-vehicle communication devices while the vehicle is traveling in the specific area. Roadside system. 4. The information supply means is constituted by an information processing system for a service provider.
The listed roadside system. 5. A product order can be pre-ordered by road-to-vehicle communication with store information including menu information of products that can be provided by stores in a specific region set in advance on a road on which a vehicle travels. An on-vehicle device capable of performing the road-to-vehicle communication with a road-side system to provide, and stores the store information provided by the road-to-vehicle communication from the road-side system while the vehicle is traveling on a road in a specific area. Receiving means for receiving, display means for displaying the store information received by the receiving means on a screen of a predetermined format in which the user of the vehicle can select a product, and the store information displayed by the display means An in-vehicle device, comprising: a transmission unit that sends information related to a selected product to the roadside system.