JP2004075005A - Entrainment guide system and method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an entrainment guide system for easily performing individual guide by receiving entrainment guide information on a relay route of a train designated by a user by using a portable terminal. <P>SOLUTION: The entrainment guide system comprises a train information receiving means which is notified of a train relay route by a user and receives information on the relay route, and a guide notifying means which notifies the user of the entrainment guide information required to attract attention of the user based on the information on the relay route received by the train information receiving means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a boarding guide system and the like for notifying a user of guide information such as a train schedule and its operation status using a portable terminal.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, when attempting to use a train or the like, a trainee goes to a boarding station and obtains information such as a departure / arrival time and a departure / arrival line of the corresponding train mainly by relying on an electronic bulletin board or an announcement in the premises. In recent years, there has also been an operation information distribution service using a portable information communication terminal (mobile phone, PDA, portable radio) as an information transmission medium, but these are all one-way information for unspecified large numbers of people. There was no service system that provided individual guidance type ride guidance that specified the individual.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and is easily guided individually by receiving, using a portable terminal, boarding guide information on a connecting route of a train specified by a user. It is intended to provide a guidance system.
[0004]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the user is notified of the connecting route of the train, the train information receiving means for receiving the information on the connecting route, and the information on the connecting route received by the train information receiving means. And a guide notifying means for notifying the user of the boarding guide information that needs to draw the user's attention by using the boarding guide system.
[0005]
According to claim 2 of the present invention, the guide information includes information on a train departure time at a station serving as a base point of the connecting route.
[0006]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the boarding guidance system according to the first or second aspect, wherein the guidance information includes information relating to a train delay or section suspension occurring in the connecting route. .
[0007]
According to claim 4 of the present invention, in response to a notification of information on train delay or section suspension of the train departure information, when a request for presentation of an alternative route is received from the user, the section of the train delay or section suspension And an alternative route search means for searching for the shortest train transit alternative route, and an alternative route notifying means for notifying the user of the shortest train transit alternative route searched by the alternative route search means. 4. A boarding guide system according to claim 3, wherein:
[0008]
According to claim 5 of the present invention, the guidance notifying means provides guidance information for calling attention to the user before the scheduled time of boarding each train along the connecting route and the flow of time. The train boarding guide system according to claim 1, wherein the notification is provided.
[0009]
According to claim 6 of the present invention, the guidance notifying means includes means for displaying the guidance information, and voice output means for outputting the guidance information by voice. 5. A boarding guidance system according to any one of 5.
[0010]
According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the user is notified of the transit route of the train, the departure information receiving step of receiving information on the transit route, and based on the information on the transit route received in the departure information receiving step. A guide notification step of notifying the user of the boarding guide information that needs to draw the user's attention by using the boarding guide method.
[0011]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0012]
FIG. 1 shows an overall configuration example of a boarding guide system according to the present invention. The portable terminal 11 held by the user has a communication function of enabling data communication with the train use guidance system 12, and at the same time, performs input operation by the user, information display to the user, voice (including electronic sound), and the like. It also has a notification function.
[0013]
On the other hand, the train usage guidance system 12 performs individual identification management of each mobile terminal 11 and data communication with the JR / private railway operation system 13 to always hold information such as train schedules and operation statuses, and to carry the information by the user. Each processing such as an information provision request from the terminal 11, a route search request, a route registration request, and a notification of sequential boarding guide information by route monitoring is performed. In addition, the notification of the boarding guide information by the route monitoring in the train use guidance system 12 corresponds to an unexpected situation due to a delay in a train schedule or a section interruption in the registered route. This provides the shortest alternative route search function as well as the guidance of train schedule delay / disconnection information. Hereinafter, the mobile terminal 11 and the train use guidance system 12 will be described in detail.
[0014]
First, FIG. 2 shows a configuration example of the mobile terminal 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In other words, the portable terminal 11 receives an input operation of the user, processes the input operation, displays a variety of information for the user, and outputs various information to the user such as voice or electronic sound. , A route search unit 24 for organizing each piece of information for route search and transmitting a search request, and a route determination unit 25 for registering a route in response to a user's decision on the searched route. , A related information acquisition unit 26 that acquires notification information from the train usage guidance system 12 and notifies the user of the information, and a communication unit 27 that performs data communication with the train usage guidance system 12.
[0015]
FIG. 3 shows a configuration example of the train usage guidance system 12 according to the embodiment of the present invention. That is, a communication unit 31 that performs data communication with the mobile terminal 11, a request reception unit 32 that receives and processes a request from the mobile terminal 11, and a mobile terminal that transmits information such as route search results, boarding guidance, and train delay / disconnection. An information distribution unit 33 that distributes information to the mobile terminal 11, a route search unit 34 that processes a route search or an alternative route search from the mobile terminal 11, a route monitoring unit 35 that receives a route registration of the mobile terminal 11 and monitors the registration. The route monitoring target mobile terminal 11 sequentially stores the boarding guide unit 36 for notifying the boarding guide information and information such as train delay and disconnection from the operation status, and the train schedule information from the JR / private railway operation system 13. It communicates with the train schedule information 37, the train operation status information 38 storing the current train operation status, and the JR / private railway operation system 13 to acquire the train schedule information and the operation status information. It consists of train service information acquisition unit 39.
[0016]
Hereinafter, the flow of the process of the train boarding guide system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 5.
[0017]
First, the route search processing will be described with reference to FIG. In the mobile terminal 11, in step S401, the input operation unit 21 performs a condition input for a route search by the user. Prior to this, the user activates the portable terminal 11 of the boarding guidance system and calls, for example, a route search screen 61 of the screen display shown in FIG. The route search screen 61 has input fields for specifying search conditions for a route to be searched.
[0018]
That is, this screen includes a departure column 62 including columns of a boarding station, a use route, a boarding train, a boarding time, and a condition as a starting point of boarding guide (a first boarding), a use route passing through the route, and a boarding train. , A boarding column 63 composed of columns of a boarding station, a boarding time, and a condition, an arrival station 64 as an end point of boarding information, an arrival column 64 for designating an arrival time, a search button 65 for instructing a route search, and a route. It comprises a cancel button 66 for ending without performing a search. Here, each condition input column specifies whether or not it is “required”, and is specified when a seat reservation or the like must be performed and a ride must be performed or when a ride must be performed.
[0019]
On this screen, the user inputs the departure line, train, station, time, arrival station, and arrival time that he / she wants to get on. Fill in the via column only when it is necessary to specify it. In step S402, the route search unit 24 transmits a route search request to the train usage guidance system 12 by the communication unit 27 according to a user's route search instruction.
[0020]
In the train usage guidance system 12, the communication unit 31 and the request receiving unit 32 receive the search request, the route search unit 34 searches the train schedule information 37, and the search result is transmitted to the mobile terminal using the information distribution unit 33 and the communication unit 31. Reply to 11.
[0021]
In the portable terminal 11, the information of the route guidance received by the communication unit 27 from the train use guidance system 12 in step S403 is displayed on the display unit 22. Here, a display example of the route guidance is shown in FIG. The example route guidance screen 71 is composed of route guidance information 72 for displaying search results in text, a route registration button 73 for registering this route and performing subsequent boarding guidance, and search / display only (route inquiry). It consists of a cancel button 74 that does not perform registration.
[0022]
In step S404, the process proceeds to step S405 when the user instructs route registration by pressing the “route registration” button on the input operation unit 21, but ends when the user presses the “cancel” button to perform only inquiry. In step S <b> 405, the route determination unit 25 receives a route registration instruction from the user through the input operation unit 21, and transmits a route registration request to the train usage guidance system 12 through the communication unit 27. Thereafter, the mobile terminal 11 enters a standby state, and waits for reception of the boarding guidance information from the train usage guidance system 12.
[0023]
Next, the route registration process in the train usage guidance system 12 is as follows. The request receiving unit 32 receives the route registration request from the mobile terminal 11 via the communication unit 31 and places the request on the route monitoring target list, thereby making the route monitoring unit 35 a monitoring target.
[0024]
Next, the boarding guidance process will be described with reference to FIG. This is the route monitoring process after the route is registered in the train use guidance system 12, and is as shown in the flowchart of FIG.
[0025]
That is, in the train usage guidance system 12, in step S501, the route monitoring unit 35 sets a predetermined time (predetermined to be 10 minutes or 5 minutes) before the departure time of the train to be boarded on the registered route of the mobile terminal 11. Investigate whether it has become. If the predetermined time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S502; otherwise, the process ends.
[0026]
In step S502, the route monitoring unit 35 searches the train operation status information 38 and extracts information related to the registered route. In step S503, if there is the train delay / disconnection information related to the registered route, the process proceeds to step S504, and if not, the process proceeds to step S508. In step S <b> 504, the information distribution unit 33 transmits the train delay / interruption information to the portable terminal 11 using the communication unit 31 in accordance with an instruction from the route monitoring unit 35. In step S508, the boarding guide unit 36 transmits normal boarding guide information to the mobile terminal 11 using the information distribution unit 33 and the communication unit 31.
[0027]
Upon receiving any of the above information transmissions from the train usage guidance system 12, the portable terminal 11 performs a boarding guidance notification process. That is, the information from the train usage guidance system 12 is received by the communication unit 27 in the related information acquisition unit 26 in step S406. It is checked whether the received information is ordinary boarding guide information. If the received information is boarding guide information, the process proceeds to step S412; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S407. In step S407, if the received information is the train delay / disconnection information, the process returns to step S408; otherwise, the process returns to step S406 to enter a reception waiting state.
[0028]
In step S408, the user is notified of the train delay / disconnection information by the display unit 22 and the voice output unit 23. FIG. 8 shows a screen display example of the train delay / disconnection information notification here. The train delay / disconnection guidance screen example 81 includes train delay / disconnection guidance information 82 that displays the train delay / disconnection information in text and an alternative route search that instructs a search for the shortest alternative route that avoids the train delay / disconnection section. It comprises a button 83 and a registration cancel button 84 for canceling the registered route and terminating the boarding guidance.
[0029]
In step S 409, the user waits for an instruction input by the user at the input operation unit 21, and if the instruction is an alternative route search instruction by pressing the “alternate route search” button, the process returns to step S 402 and requests the alternative search using the route search unit 24. . In step S410, if the user's instruction is a deregistration instruction using the "deregistration" button, the process proceeds to step S411, but if not, the process returns to step S406 to enter a reception waiting state. In step S411, the registration release request is transmitted to the train use guidance system 12 by the communication unit 27, and the process ends.
[0030]
On the other hand, in step S412, since the received information is the normal boarding guide information in the related information acquisition unit 26, this is notified to the user using the display unit 22 and the voice output unit 23 to alert the user. FIG. 9 shows a screen display example of this boarding guidance information notification. The boarding guide screen 91 includes boarding guide information 92 for notifying the user that the boarding time is approaching within a predetermined time and alerting the user, and a confirmation button for notifying that the user has confirmed the notification. 93, and a registration cancel button 94 for canceling the boarding guide of the registered route.
[0031]
In step S413, if the user instructs the input operation unit 21 to cancel the route registration using the "cancel registration" button, the process proceeds to step S414. If the “confirm” button has been pressed, the process returns to step S406 to enter a reception waiting state. In step S414, the registration release request is transmitted to the train use guidance system 12 by the communication unit 27, and the process ends.
[0032]
In the train usage guidance system 12, the communication unit 31 waits for a response in step S505, and if the received instruction is an alternative route search, the process proceeds to step S509; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S506. In step S506, if the instruction from the portable terminal 11 is to cancel the route registration, the process proceeds to step S507, otherwise, the process ends. In step S507, the route monitoring unit 35 cancels the route registration of the mobile phone 11 and ends the process.
[0033]
In step S509, the shortest alternative route to the registered route is searched from the train schedule information 37 and the train operation status information 38 using the route search unit 34. In step S510, as a result of the search by the route search unit 34, if there is an alternative route, the alternative route is transmitted to the portable terminal 11 using the information distribution unit 33 and the communication unit 31, and the process is terminated.
[0034]
As described above, by the processes in the mobile terminal 11 and the train use guidance system 12, the user can obtain the boarding guide information one by one at the required points only by registering the train transit route to be used, You can get the service of "escort", not just "guide".
[0035]
By the way, in the above-described embodiment, the train use guidance system mainly has a processing function of constantly monitoring the registered route and performing the boarding guidance (route monitoring) to the user, and the portable terminal side performs the route search. Although it had only the function of inputting conditions and notifying the boarding guide information, all information on the registered route (excluding information such as sudden train schedule delays and section interruptions) was carried at the time of route registration. A method may be used in which batch transmission is performed to the terminal, and route monitoring and boarding guidance processing are performed on the mobile terminal side.
[0036]
According to this method, the data communication between the mobile terminal and the train usage guidance system is performed by transmitting the train schedule information (train, boarding station, boarding time, boarding line) of the registered route, and the sudden train related to the registered route. Only transmission of delay / disconnection information can be performed.
[0037]
Therefore, there is an advantage that the frequency of data communication between the portable terminal and the train usage guidance system can be minimized, and the communication cost can be reduced.
[0038]
In the above two embodiments, the portable terminal and the train use guidance system have been described as performing transmission and reception using a specific communication line, but this communication may be performed using the Internet. In this case, the mobile terminal may be a mobile phone or a PHS as long as it is a communication device connectable to the Internet. The mobile terminal in the present invention includes these mobile phones and PHS. In the present invention, a train includes a train.
[0039]
The train usage guidance system is made to function as a Web site on the Internet, and the boarding guidance information is transmitted by e-mail. The advantages of this method are that no new capital investment is required by using the existing communication means, and that the user can receive this service with a mobile phone that is now widely used.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
Advantageous Effects of Invention As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a boarding guide system or the like that is easily guided individually by receiving boarding guide information regarding a connecting route of a train specified by a user using a portable terminal. There is.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration example of an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a train usage guidance system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is an exemplary flowchart showing the operation of the portable terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a view showing a flowchart for explaining the operation of the train use guidance system in one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display example of a route search screen according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a view showing a display example of a route guidance screen according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a display example of a train delay / disconnection guidance screen according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a view showing a display example of a boarding guide screen according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
11 ・ ・ ・ Portable terminal,
12 ... Train use guidance system,
13 ・ ・ ・ JR and private railway operation system,
21 ... input operation unit,
22 display unit,
23 ・ ・ ・ Audio output unit,
24 ・ ・ ・ Route search unit,
25 ... route determination unit,
26 ... related information acquisition unit,
27, 31 ... communication unit,
32 Request receiving unit
33 ... information distribution unit,
34 ... route search unit,
35 ... route monitoring unit
36 ... boarding guide,
38 ... train operation status information,
39 ... train operation information acquisition unit,
62 ... departure place input field,
63 ... transit place input field,
64 ... arrival place input column,
65 ... search instruction button,
66, 74 ... Cancel button,
73 ... route registration button
83 ... Alternate route search instruction button,
84, 94 ... registration cancel button,
93 ... Confirmation button.

Claims (7)

A train information receiving means that is notified of a connecting route of a train by a user and receives information on the connecting route;
A guide notifying unit for notifying the user of boarding guide information that needs to draw the user's attention based on the information on the connecting route received by the train information receiving unit. Guidance system. 2. The boarding guide system according to claim 1, wherein the guide information includes information on a train departure time at a station serving as a base point of the connecting route. 3. The boarding guide system according to claim 1, wherein the guide information includes information on a train delay or section suspension occurring in the connecting route. In response to the notification of the information on the train delay or section suspension of the train departure information, when a request for the presentation of an alternative route is received from the user, the section of the train delay or section suspension is avoided, and the shortest train transfer alternative An alternative route search means for searching a route,
4. The boarding guide system according to claim 3, further comprising an alternative route notifying unit that notifies the user of the shortest train transit alternative route searched by the alternative route searching unit. 2. The guide notification unit notifies the user of guide information that calls attention to the user before the scheduled time of boarding each train along the connecting route and the flow of time. Ride guide system as described. The guidance notification means,
Means for displaying the guidance information;
The boarding guide system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising voice output means for outputting the guide information by voice. A train information receiving step in which a user is notified of a connecting route of a train and receives information on the connecting route;
A guide notifying step of notifying the user of boarding guide information that needs to draw the user's attention based on the information on the connecting route received in the train information receiving step. .

Images