JP2009128065A - Route guidance apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a route guidance apparatus which can perform route guidance for a plurality of vehicles, allowing them to avoid traffic congestion, as well as, to reduce the total exhausted volume, while taking the fuel consumption of each vehicle into account. <P>SOLUTION: The route guidance apparatus stores map information, acquires from a plurality of vehicles destination information and fuel consumption characteristics corresponding to each vehicle; and when it performed route search from the map information on the basis of the acquired destination information, it determines a route to be provided to a specific vehicle, according to the fuel consumption characteristics of each of the plurality of vehicles. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a route guidance device, and more particularly to a route guidance device that performs route guidance for a plurality of vehicles.

  Conventionally, the current location of a vehicle is identified using GPS (Global Positioning System) and autonomous navigation, the map information is referred to obtain the optimum route to the destination, and the route guidance to the destination is displayed on the display screen. Car navigation devices have been developed.

  In recent years, a route search device has been developed that not only provides an optimum route with respect to distance and time but also provides an optimum route guidance with respect to the fuel consumption of the vehicle.

  For example, the route search device of Patent Document 1 is a device that acquires vehicle type information and driver characteristic information, corrects fuel consumption information, and guides a minimum fuel consumption route according to the vehicle type and driver characteristic.

  The navigation device disclosed in Patent Document 2 is a device that performs a fuel consumption simulation in consideration of a road congestion situation obtained from a VICS (Vehicle Information & Communication System) or the like, and performs a route search that can reduce the fuel consumption most.

  The method of Patent Document 3 is a method of outputting a command to the drive system management unit such as a shift control command so as to optimize fuel consumption based on forward route information acquired from map information.

  Here, there is a system that does not search and guide the optimum route for one vehicle, but obtains destination information and current location information from a plurality of vehicles and performs route guidance for the plurality of vehicles.

  For example, in Patent Document 4, the current location information and destination information of each vehicle are centrally managed, and the route distribution is performed by calculating each route to the destination for each vehicle so as to be distributed to different routes. It describes a route distribution server that efficiently solves traffic jams.

  Further, in Patent Document 5, the base station of the destination guidance system predicts the future traffic volume, generates a movement route that does not cause traffic concentration for each moving body, and performs wireless data distribution and the like. It is described.

JP 2006-300780 A JP 2000-002553 A JP 2002-122221 A JP 2004-301667 A JP 2002-319098 A

However, in the conventional route search device that provides the optimum route for fuel consumption, the route search is performed centering on the own vehicle. Therefore, the traffic is concentrated by selecting the optimum route for the plurality of vehicles. However, traffic jams may occur. When the jam occurs, as a result fuel consumption of the entire vehicle is deteriorated, there is a problem that CO ₂ emissions as a whole is increased.

  In particular, in the techniques of Patent Documents 1 to 3, the optimum route search is performed for one vehicle, and the possibility of a future traffic jam is not considered. There is a problem that the fuel efficiency effect cannot be obtained.

In addition, as described in Patent Documents 4 and 5, in the conventional system for performing route guidance for a plurality of vehicles, although the route of each vehicle can be dispersed, the fuel consumption of each vehicle is not considered. In some cases, a vehicle with poor fuel efficiency may be guided to travel a long distance, and the total amount of exhaust gas such as CO ₂ cannot be kept low as a whole.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and can provide route guidance to a plurality of vehicles to avoid traffic congestion, while reducing the total exhaust gas amount while considering the fuel consumption of each vehicle. An object of the present invention is to provide a route guidance device capable of

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, one aspect of the present invention provides a route guidance device including at least a storage unit and a control unit, wherein the storage unit stores map information, and the control unit includes: When obtaining a route information from the map information based on the acquired destination information, acquisition means for acquiring destination information and fuel efficiency characteristics corresponding to the vehicle from the plurality of vehicles, Route determining means for determining a route to be provided to the corresponding vehicle according to the fuel consumption characteristic of each vehicle.

  Further, in the above invention, the route determining means determines to provide the shorter route or the shorter route as the vehicle having lower fuel efficiency of the acquired fuel efficiency characteristic. And

  In the above invention, the route determination means determines the route in the order of the vehicles with the low fuel efficiency of the acquired fuel efficiency characteristics, and the route for the vehicles in the lower order of the vehicle is the order of the vehicles. Is determined to take a route different from the route determined for the upper vehicle.

  Further, in the above invention, the map information stores a maximum speed reference corresponding to each road, and the control unit acquires optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition means for acquiring an optimum fuel consumption speed corresponding to each of the plurality of vehicles. The route determination means compares the acquired optimum fuel consumption speed with the highest speed reference stored in the map information, and the optimum fuel consumption speed of the vehicle satisfies the highest speed reference. Determining a route.

  Further, in the above invention, vehicle total weight calculating means for acquiring fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information from the plurality of vehicles, and calculating vehicle total weight based on the acquired fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information, The route determining means determines the route by correcting the fuel consumption characteristic with the gross vehicle weight.

  According to this invention, the storage unit stores the map information, and the control unit acquires the destination information and the fuel consumption characteristics corresponding to the vehicle from the plurality of vehicles, and based on the acquired destination information. When the route search is performed from the map information, the route to be provided to the corresponding vehicle is determined according to the fuel consumption characteristics of each of the plurality of vehicles, so that it is possible to avoid the traffic congestion by performing route guidance for the plurality of vehicles. On the other hand, the total exhaust gas amount as a whole can be reduced while considering the fuel consumption of each vehicle.

  In addition, according to the present invention, a vehicle having a lower fuel efficiency of the acquired fuel efficiency characteristics is determined to provide a short-distance route or a short-time route. It can guide and can reduce the exhaust gas total amount as a whole.

  Further, according to the present invention, the route is determined in the order of the vehicles with the lowest fuel efficiency of the acquired fuel efficiency characteristics, and the route for the lower order vehicle is different from the route determined for the higher order vehicle. Since it is determined to take, it is possible to efficiently avoid traffic jam while considering the fuel consumption of each vehicle.

  According to the present invention, the map information stores the maximum speed reference corresponding to each road, and the control unit acquires the optimum fuel consumption speed corresponding to each of the plurality of vehicles, and the acquired optimum fuel consumption speed is obtained. Is compared with the maximum speed standard stored in the map information to determine the route that satisfies the maximum speed standard of the vehicle, so that each vehicle can travel at the optimal speed that can achieve the best fuel efficiency. A route can be provided.

  Further, according to the present invention, fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information are obtained from a plurality of vehicles, the vehicle total weight is calculated based on the acquired fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information, and the fuel consumption characteristics are expressed as vehicle total weight. Since the route is determined after correction, it is possible to provide an appropriate route to each vehicle in consideration of substantial fuel efficiency even between vehicles having identical specifications.

  Embodiments of a route guidance device and a route guidance method according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

[Outline of the present invention]
Hereinafter, the outline of the present invention will be described, and then the configuration and processing of the present invention will be described in detail. FIG. 1 is a principle configuration diagram showing the basic principle of the present invention.

  The present invention generally has the following basic features. That is, the present invention is a route guidance device including at least a storage unit and a control unit, and the storage unit stores map information. Here, a maximum speed reference corresponding to each road may be stored in the map information. In the following description, for simplicity of explanation, there are cases where a plurality of vehicles are described as three, but the present invention is not limited to this as long as there are a plurality of vehicles.

  As shown in FIG. 1, (1) when destination information is transmitted from a plurality of vehicles 10-1 to 3, (2) the route guidance device 100 acquires the destination information and Get the corresponding fuel consumption characteristics.

  And (3) When this route search device 100 performs a route search from map information based on the acquired destination information, according to the fuel consumption characteristic for every plurality of vehicles 10-1 to 3, it corresponds to the corresponding vehicle. Determine the route to provide.

  Here, the route search device 100 may determine to provide a shorter distance or a shorter route for a vehicle having a lower fuel efficiency of the fuel efficiency characteristic, or to route in order of vehicles having a lower fuel efficiency of the fuel efficiency characteristic. The route for the vehicle having the lower vehicle order may be determined so as to take another route from the route determined for the vehicle having the higher vehicle order.

  In addition, here, the route search device 100 acquires the optimum fuel consumption speed corresponding to each of the plurality of vehicles 10-1 to 3, compares the optimum fuel consumption speed with the maximum speed reference stored in the map information, A route in which the optimum fuel consumption speed of the vehicle satisfies the maximum speed criterion may be determined. Further, the route search apparatus 100 acquires fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information from the plurality of vehicles 10-1 to -3, calculates a vehicle total weight based on the fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information, and calculates fuel consumption characteristics. May be corrected by the total vehicle weight to determine the route.

  (4) By providing the routes determined as described above to each of the vehicles 10-1 to 10-3, a plurality of vehicles can avoid traffic congestion according to the route guidance, and exhaust gas as a whole. The total amount can be reduced.

  Here, the route search device 100 may be configured as a car navigation device mounted on a vehicle, or may be configured as a center (server device) that provides a route separately from the vehicle. In the following embodiments, an example mounted on a vehicle may be described. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and the present invention is similarly applied to a case where the center is configured separately from the vehicle. be able to.

[Configuration of Route Guidance Device 100]
First, the configuration of the route guidance device 100 will be described. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the route guidance apparatus 100 to which the present invention is applied, and conceptually shows only the portion related to the present invention.

  In FIG. 2, the route guidance device 100 is configured as a car navigation device or the like mounted on a vehicle 10-1, and schematically, a control unit 102 such as a CPU that controls the entire route guidance device 100. A communication control interface unit 104 connected to a communication device (not shown) connected to a communication line or the like, an input / output control interface unit 108 connected to the destination input device 11 to the output device 14, and various databases And a storage unit 106 that stores a table and the like. These units are communicably connected via an arbitrary communication path. Here, the route guidance apparatus 100 may be configured to be connected to an electronic control unit (ECU) of the vehicle 10-1 and transmit / receive arbitrary data.

  Various databases and tables (map database 106a to optimum fuel consumption speed file 106c) stored in the storage unit 106 are storage means such as fixed disk devices, and various programs, tables, files, databases, and the like used for various processes are stored therein. Store.

  Among these components of the storage unit 106, the map database 106a functions as a map information storage unit that stores map information necessary for route search. Here, the maximum speed reference corresponding to each road may be stored in the map information.

  The fuel consumption characteristic file 106b functions as a fuel consumption characteristic storage unit that stores the fuel consumption characteristics for each vehicle type. Here, the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b may store vehicle specification information including information such as catalog fuel consumption, power train efficiency, engine efficiency, and engine operating point.

  The optimum fuel consumption speed file 106c functions as optimum fuel consumption speed storage means for storing the optimum fuel consumption speed.

  In FIG. 2, the communication control interface unit 104 performs communication control between the route guidance device 100 and the network 300 or a communication device (not shown). That is, the communication control interface unit 104 communicates data with other vehicles 10-2, 3 and the external system 200 etc. directly or indirectly via a wired or wireless communication line (vehicle-to-vehicle communication, road-to-vehicle communication, etc.). ) Function.

  Here, in FIG. 2, the network 300 has a function of mutually connecting the route guidance device 100 and the external system 200 and other vehicles 10-2 and 3, and is, for example, a wireless LAN or the Internet.

  In FIG. 2, the external system 200 is connected to the route guidance device 100 via the network 300 to execute an external database regarding vehicle specification information such as fuel efficiency characteristics, a route guidance method, and the like. It has a function to provide an external program. Here, the external system 200 may be configured as a WEB server, an ASP server, or the like, and its hardware configuration is configured by an information processing apparatus such as a commercially available workstation or a personal computer and its attached devices. May be. Each function of the external system 200 is realized by a CPU, a disk device, a memory device, an input device, an output device, a communication control device, and the like in the hardware configuration of the external system 200 and a program for controlling them.

  In FIG. 2, the input / output control interface unit 108 controls the destination input device 11, the vehicle weight measurement sensor 12, the vehicle speed sensor 13, and the output device 14. Here, a speaker as well as a monitor can be used as the output device 14 (in the following, the output device 14 may be described as a monitor). Moreover, as the destination input device 11, a touch panel, an operation button, a microphone, or the like can be used.

  In FIG. 2, the control unit 102 has a control program such as an OS (Operating System), a program defining various processing procedures, and an internal memory for storing necessary data. Information processing for executing various processes is performed. The control unit 102 is conceptually configured to include an acquisition unit 102a, a route determination unit 102b, an optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c, a vehicle gross weight calculation unit 102d, and a traffic jam prediction unit 102e.

  Among these, the acquisition part 102a functions as an acquisition means which acquires the destination information and the fuel consumption characteristic corresponding to the said vehicle from the some vehicles 10-1 to 3. Here, the acquisition unit 102a may acquire destination information related to the host vehicle 10-1 by controlling the destination input device 11 via the input / output control interface unit 108. 3 may be acquired from the other vehicles 10-2 and 3 via the network 300 or the communication device by controlling the communication control interface unit 104. Further, the acquisition unit 102a may acquire the fuel consumption characteristics from the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b, and by controlling the communication control interface unit 104, the external system 200 or the other vehicle 10-2 via the network 300 or the communication device. , 3 may be obtained.

  Here, the acquisition unit 102a may further acquire current location information of each vehicle. For example, the acquisition unit 102 a may acquire the current location information of the host vehicle 10-1 using a GPS system or the like, and controls the communication control interface unit 104 to acquire the current location information of the other vehicles 10-2 and 3. You may acquire from each other vehicle 10-2,3. In addition, when the acquisition unit 102a controls the communication control interface unit 104 to perform inter-vehicle communication, the acquisition unit 102a may regard the current location of the host vehicle as the current location of another vehicle. When the route guidance device 100 is configured as a center, the acquiring unit 102a may control the communication control interface unit 104 to acquire the position of a terminal that performs road-to-vehicle communication as current vehicle location information. As described above, the current location information acquired by the acquisition unit 102a is used for route search by the route determination unit 102b as necessary.

  In addition, the route determination unit 102b performs a route search from the map information stored in the map database 106a based on the destination information acquired by the acquisition unit 102a, for each of a plurality of vehicles acquired by the acquisition unit 102a. It functions as route determination means for determining a route to be provided to the corresponding vehicle according to the fuel consumption characteristics. Here, the route determination unit 102b may determine to provide a short-distance or short-time route for a vehicle having a lower fuel efficiency of the fuel efficiency characteristic, or determine a route in order of vehicles having a lower fuel efficiency of the fuel efficiency characteristic. However, the route for the lower order vehicle may be determined to take a route different from the route determined for the higher order vehicle.

  Here, the route determination unit 102b compares the optimum fuel consumption speed acquired by the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c with the maximum speed reference stored in the map information of the map database 106a, and determines the optimum fuel consumption of each vehicle. A route may be determined such that the speed meets the maximum speed criteria. The route determination unit 102b may determine the route by correcting the fuel consumption characteristics based on the total vehicle weight calculated by the total vehicle weight calculation unit 102d.

  The optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c functions as an optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit that acquires the optimum fuel consumption speed corresponding to each of the plurality of vehicles 10-1 to 10-3. Here, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c may acquire the optimum fuel consumption speed based on the vehicle specification information (information such as power train efficiency and engine efficiency) stored in the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b and the external system 200. Good.

  The vehicle total weight calculation unit 102d acquires the remaining fuel amount information and the occupant number information from the plurality of vehicles 10-1 to -3, and calculates the total vehicle weight based on the acquired remaining fuel amount information and the occupant number information. It functions as vehicle gross weight calculation means. For example, the total vehicle weight calculation unit 102d calculates the total vehicle weight by adding the remaining fuel amount converted in weight, the total occupant weight calculated based on the number of passengers, and the vehicle weight based on the specification information. Here, the total vehicle weight calculation unit 102d sends the remaining fuel amount information and the occupant number information about the own vehicle 10-1 to the vehicle weight measurement sensor 12 (for example, the remaining fuel amount measurement sensor or the like) via the input / output control interface unit 108. The remaining amount of fuel and the number of passengers regarding the other vehicles 10-2, 3 may be obtained by controlling the communication control interface unit 104 or the communication device. You may get through.

  In addition, the traffic jam prediction unit 102e functions as a traffic jam prediction unit that predicts the possibility of traffic jam occurrence based on the destination information acquired by the acquisition unit 102a. Here, the traffic jam prediction unit 102e may predict the occurrence of traffic jams due to the presence of a large number of vehicles that have selected the same destination, taking into account the traffic congestion status obtained by VICS, traffic regulation information, etc. In the future, the occurrence of traffic jams may be predicted.

[Process of Route Guidance Device 100]
An example of the processing of the route guidance apparatus 100 configured as described above (processing for vehicle allocation control and traffic jam prediction processing) will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS.

[Vehicle allocation control 1]
First, details of the process of the dispatch control 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of the vehicle allocation control 1 of the route guidance device 100 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 3, first, when the acquisition unit 102a acquires destination information from a plurality of vehicles, the acquisition unit 102a acquires the fuel consumption characteristics of each vehicle based on the fuel consumption characteristics stored in the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b (step SA). -1). Here, the acquisition unit 102a may acquire the destination information of the host vehicle 10-1 by controlling the destination input device 11 via the input / output control interface unit 108, and the other vehicle 10-2, The destination information 3 may be acquired by controlling the communication control interface unit 104. Further, regarding the acquisition of the fuel consumption characteristic, the acquisition unit 102a may acquire the fuel consumption characteristic of each corresponding vehicle based on the vehicle specification information stored in the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b, and controls the communication control interface unit 104. Then, fuel efficiency characteristics may be acquired based on vehicle specification information acquired from the external system 200 via the network 300. Moreover, the acquisition part 102a may control the communication control interface part 104, and may acquire the fuel consumption characteristic corresponding from other vehicles 10-2 and 3 directly with destination information.

  Then, the route determination unit 102b compares the fuel consumption characteristics of the vehicles acquired by the acquisition unit 102a and classifies the vehicles (step SA-2). Here, the route determination unit 102b may classify the vehicles by sorting the acquired fuel efficiency characteristics in the order of low fuel efficiency (low fuel efficiency).

  Then, for each classified vehicle, the route determination unit 102b performs a route search from the map information stored in the map database 106a based on the destination information acquired by the acquisition unit 102a, and provides a route to be provided to each vehicle. Determine (step SA-3). For example, the route determination unit 102b first performs a route search so that a vehicle with low fuel efficiency arrives at the destination early with priority, and then performs a route search so that a vehicle with low fuel efficiency arrives at the destination early. As described above, the route search is repeated in ascending order of fuel efficiency to determine the route of each vehicle. Here, the route determination unit 102b may determine to take a shorter distance route as the vehicle with lower fuel efficiency, or determine a route in order of vehicles with lower fuel efficiency, and for vehicles with lower vehicle order. The route may be determined so as to take a route different from the route determined for the higher order vehicle. This completes the process of the dispatch control 1.

[Processing of dispatch control 2]
Next, details of the process of the dispatch control 2 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of processing of the vehicle control 2 of the route guidance device 100 in the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c calculates the optimum fuel consumption speed based on the vehicle specification information (power train efficiency, engine efficiency information, etc.) stored in the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b. And stored in the optimum fuel consumption speed file 106c (step SB-1). Here, an example of the calculation process of the optimum fuel consumption speed will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the calculation process of the optimum fuel consumption speed.

  As shown in FIG. 5, first, the optimum fuel efficiency speed acquisition unit 102c sets 0 to the vehicle speed V (km / h) (step SB-11).

  Then, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c adds 10 to the vehicle speed V (step SB-12).

  Then, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c calculates the driving force F required at the vehicle speed V (km / h) (step SB-13).

  Then, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c calculates the calculated fuel consumption at the time of the driving force F based on the vehicle specification information acquired from the fuel consumption characteristic file 106b or the external system 200 (step SB-14). Here, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c creates a vehicle consumption rate map in consideration of the power train efficiency and engine efficiency of the vehicle specification information, and calculates the fuel consumption based on the created vehicle consumption rate map. Also good. Further, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c may obtain the value taken by each power train when the driving force F is output based on the power train map of the vehicle specification information. You may obtain | require based on an operating point map.

Then, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c determines whether or not the vehicle speed V is equal to or higher than V _max (the upper limit value of the speed for determining the optimum fuel consumption speed) (step SB-15), and determines that it is less than V _max (step SB). -15, No), and the processing of steps SB-12 to 14 (V = 20, 30, 40,...) Is repeated.

Then, optimum fuel consumption rate obtaining unit 102c, when the vehicle speed V is determined to be equal to or greater than _{V max} (step SB-15, Yes), by comparing the fuel consumption at each vehicle speed V calculated, the optimum fuel consumption rate of the vehicle It is determined and stored in the optimum fuel consumption speed file 106c (step SB-16). The above is an example of the calculation process of the optimum fuel consumption speed.

  Returning to FIG. 4 again, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c acquires the optimum fuel consumption speed of each vehicle stored in the optimum fuel consumption speed file 106c (step SB-2).

  When the route determination unit 102b performs a route search from the map information stored in the map database 106a based on the destination information acquired by the acquisition unit 102a, the optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit 102c acquires the optimum The fuel consumption speed is compared with the maximum speed reference stored in the map information of the map database 106a (step SB-3).

  Then, the route determination unit 102b searches for and determines a route in which the optimum fuel consumption speed of the vehicle satisfies the maximum speed criterion (step SB-4). This completes the process of the dispatch control 2.

[Processing of vehicle allocation control 3]
Next, details of the process of the vehicle allocation control 3 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the process of the dispatch control 3 of the route guidance device 100 according to the present embodiment.

  When the fuel consumption characteristics are the same or approximate, such as when the vehicle specifications match, it may not be possible to appropriately determine the route to be provided to the vehicle according to the fuel consumption characteristics. In such a case, the vehicle allocation control may be performed by correcting the fuel consumption characteristic with the total weight of the vehicle as follows.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the vehicle total weight calculation unit 102d acquires the remaining fuel amount information from the vehicle and measures the remaining fuel amount (step SC-1). Here, the vehicle gross weight calculation unit 102d may measure the remaining fuel amount corresponding to the own vehicle 10-1 by controlling the remaining fuel sensor for the own vehicle 10-1, and the other vehicle 10-. 2 and 3, the communication control interface unit 104 may be controlled to obtain the corresponding remaining fuel amount information from the other vehicles 10-2 and 3.

  Then, the total vehicle weight calculation unit 102d acquires the occupant number information and calculates the occupant weight (step SC-2). Here, the total vehicle weight calculation unit 102d automatically calculates the total occupant weight by controlling the vehicle weight measurement sensor 12 and the seat belt wearing sensor via the input / output control interface unit 108 for the host vehicle 10-1. Alternatively, with respect to the other vehicles 10-2 and 3, the communication control interface unit 104 may be controlled to obtain corresponding occupant number information from the other vehicles 10-2 and 3 to calculate the occupant weight.

  Then, the total vehicle weight calculation unit 102d calculates and compares the total vehicle weight based on the remaining fuel amount obtained in step SC-1 and the occupant weight obtained in step SC-2. Are classified (step SC-3).

  When the route determination unit 102b performs a route search from the map information stored in the map database 106a based on the destination information acquired by the acquisition unit 102a, the total vehicle weight with respect to the vehicle having the same specifications is determined. Routes are preferentially determined in the order of the total vehicle weight calculated by the calculation unit 102d (step SC-4). This completes the process of the dispatch control 3.

[Congestion prediction processing]
Details of the traffic jam prediction process will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a traffic jam prediction process of the route guidance device 100 according to the present embodiment.

  As a premise for executing the above-described processes of vehicle allocation control 1 to 3, the route guidance apparatus 100 predicts the possibility of traffic jam and, when it is determined that traffic jam occurs, performs vehicle allocation control and determines that traffic jam does not occur. In this case, a normal route search may be performed.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 7, when the destination information is acquired from the plurality of vehicles 10-1 to 3 by the acquisition unit 102a (step SD-1), the traffic jam prediction unit 102e predicts the possibility of traffic jam occurrence. (Step SD-2). Here, the traffic jam prediction unit 102e may determine whether or not a traffic jam is expected by determining whether there are many vehicles that have selected the same destination based on the destination information. Further, the traffic jam prediction unit 102e may determine the possibility of traffic jam in consideration of traffic congestion information and traffic regulation information acquired from VICS information and the like.

  When the occurrence of traffic jam is predicted by the traffic jam prediction unit 102e (Yes in step SD-2), the route guidance device 100 performs the above-described vehicle allocation control process (step SD-3). On the other hand, when the occurrence of traffic jam is not predicted by the traffic jam prediction unit 102e (No in step SD-2), the route guidance device 100 performs a normal route search.

  And the route guidance apparatus 100 provides each vehicle 10-1 to 3 with the result of a route search (step SD-4). For example, the route guidance device 100 performs route guidance for the host vehicle 10-1 by controlling the output device 14 via the input / output control interface unit 108. This concludes the description of the process of the route guidance device 100 including the traffic jam prediction process.

[Other embodiments]
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described so far, the present invention can be applied to various different embodiments in addition to the above-described embodiments within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims. May be implemented.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the example in which the route guidance device 100 is configured as a car navigation device or the like mounted on the vehicle 10 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and all or one of the processes performed by the route guidance device 100 is described. You may comprise a part so that it may be performed in other control apparatuses, such as an electronic control unit (ECU) of a vehicle, for example.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the process is performed with the route guidance device 100 mounted on the vehicle 10 has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the route guidance device 100 is configured as a center. It may be configured to perform processing in response to a request from the network via the network and return the processing result to the vehicle.

  In addition, among the processes described in the embodiment, all or part of the processes described as being automatically performed can be performed manually, or the processes described as being performed manually can be performed. All or a part can be automatically performed by a known method.

  In addition, processing procedures, control procedures, specific names, information including registration data for each process, parameters such as search conditions, and database configuration shown in the above-mentioned documents and drawings are arbitrarily selected unless otherwise specified. Can be changed.

  In addition, regarding the route guidance device 100, each illustrated component is functionally conceptual and does not necessarily need to be physically configured as illustrated.

  For example, all or some of the processing functions provided in each device of the route guidance device 100, particularly the processing functions performed by the control unit 102, are interpreted and executed by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and the CPU. It can be realized by a program to be executed, or can be realized as hardware by wired logic. The program is recorded on a recording medium to be described later, and is mechanically read by the route guidance device 100 as necessary. In other words, the storage unit 106 such as ROM or HD stores a computer program for performing various processes by giving instructions to the CPU in cooperation with an OS (Operating System). This computer program is executed by being loaded into the RAM, and constitutes a control unit in cooperation with the CPU.

  Further, this computer program may be stored in an application program server connected to the route guidance apparatus 100 via an arbitrary network 300, and may be downloaded in whole or in part as necessary. It is.

  The program according to the present invention can also be stored in a computer-readable recording medium. Here, the “recording medium” refers to any “portable physical medium” such as a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, an EPROM, an EEPROM, a CD-ROM, an MO, and a DVD, or a LAN, WAN, or Internet. It includes a “communication medium” that holds the program in a short period of time, such as a communication line or a carrier wave when the program is transmitted via a network represented by

  The “program” is a data processing method described in an arbitrary language or description method, and may be in any format such as source code or binary code. Note that the “program” is not necessarily limited to a single configuration, but is distributed in the form of a plurality of modules and libraries, or in cooperation with a separate program typified by an OS (Operating System). Including those that achieve the function. Note that a well-known configuration and procedure can be used for a specific configuration for reading a recording medium, a reading procedure, an installation procedure after reading, and the like in each device described in the embodiment.

  Various databases and the like (map database 106a to optimum fuel consumption speed file 106c) stored in the storage unit 106 are storage means such as a memory device such as RAM and ROM, a fixed disk device such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, and an optical disk. Various programs, tables, databases, files, etc. used for various processes and website provision are stored.

  The route guidance apparatus 100 is connected to an information processing apparatus such as a known personal computer or workstation, and software (including programs, data, etc.) for realizing the method of the present invention is installed in the information processing apparatus. It may be realized.

  Furthermore, the specific form of distribution / integration of the devices is not limited to the one shown in the figure, and all or a part thereof is configured to be functionally / physically distributed / integrated in arbitrary units according to various loads. can do.

  As described in detail above, according to the present invention, it is possible to guide route to a plurality of vehicles to avoid traffic congestion, while reducing the total exhaust gas amount while considering the fuel consumption of each vehicle. Therefore, it is possible to provide a route guidance device that can be used in the automobile industry or the like.

It is a principle block diagram which shows the basic principle of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a structure of this route guidance apparatus 100 with which this invention is applied. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process of the dispatch control 1 of this route guidance apparatus 100 in this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows an example of a process of the vehicle control 2 of this route guidance apparatus 100 in this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the calculation process of optimal fuel-consumption speed. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process of the dispatch control 3 of this route guidance apparatus 100 in this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the traffic congestion prediction process of this route guidance apparatus 100 in this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10-1 to 3 vehicle 100 route guidance device
102 Control unit
102a acquisition unit
102b Route determination unit
102c Optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition unit
102d Total vehicle weight calculation unit
102e Traffic jam forecasting part
104 Communication control interface unit
106 Storage unit
106a Map database
106b Fuel consumption characteristic file
106c Optimum fuel consumption speed file
108 Input / output control interface
11 Destination input device
12 Vehicle weight measurement sensor
13 Vehicle speed sensor
14 Output device 200 External system 300 Network

Claims (5)

In a route guidance device having at least a storage unit and a control unit,
The storage unit
Remember the map information,
The control unit
Acquisition means for acquiring destination information from a plurality of vehicles and fuel consumption characteristics corresponding to the vehicles;
Route determination means for determining a route to be provided to the corresponding vehicle according to the fuel consumption characteristics for each of the plurality of vehicles when performing a route search from the map information based on the acquired destination information;
A route guidance device comprising: The route guidance device according to claim 1,
The route determination means is
The vehicle having a lower fuel efficiency of the acquired fuel efficiency characteristic is determined to provide the shorter route or the shorter route.
A route guidance device characterized by the above. The route guidance device according to claim 1,
The route determination means is
The route is determined in the order of the vehicles with the lowest fuel efficiency of the acquired fuel efficiency characteristics, and the route for the vehicle in which the vehicle order is lower is different from the route determined for the vehicle in which the vehicle order is higher. Deciding to take the route,
A route guidance device characterized by the above. The route guidance device according to claim 1,
The above map information stores the maximum speed standard corresponding to each road,
The control unit
An optimum fuel consumption speed acquisition means for acquiring an optimum fuel consumption speed corresponding to each of the plurality of vehicles;
Further comprising
The route determination means is
Comparing the acquired optimum fuel consumption speed with the maximum speed reference stored in the map information, and determining the route where the optimum fuel consumption speed of the vehicle satisfies the maximum speed reference;
A route guidance device characterized by the above. The route guidance device according to claim 1,
Vehicle total weight calculating means for acquiring fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information from the plurality of vehicles, and calculating a vehicle total weight based on the acquired fuel remaining amount information and occupant number information;
Further comprising
The route determination means is
Correcting the fuel consumption characteristics with the gross vehicle weight to determine the route;
A route guidance device characterized by the above.

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