JP2022138698A - Riding-together support device, riding-together support method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a riding-together support device, a riding-together support method, and a program each of which enables a route of a mobile object to be suitably changed during the movement of thereof.SOLUTION: A riding-together support device is provided, comprising: a communication unit; an operation processing unit determining an operation plan driving a mobile object with a first user ridden thereon based on the positional information of a driver who drives the mobile object acquired via the communication unit and the positional information of the first user who rides on the mobile object; and a notification unit which notifies using the communication unit, a driver terminal device of the driver and a first user terminal device of the first user of information on the determined operation plan. The operation processing unit at least determines whether or not to change the operation plan based on the positional information of the second user, when the communication unit receives the riding request from a second user during the movement of the mobile object.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a passenger assistance device, a passenger assistance method, and a program.

Conventionally, there have been disclosed technologies related to ride sharing in which a plurality of users ride together on a mobile object. For example, in Patent Document 1, a route for getting on and off passengers and collecting cargo is calculated based on one or more passenger movement requests and one or more cargo movement requests, and route guidance is provided based on this route. Techniques related to on-demand systems are disclosed. Furthermore, Patent Literature 1 describes recalculating a route when there is a request for movement of a passenger or a request for movement of cargo during operation.

JP 2017-220090 A

However, the prior art does not sufficiently consider the degree of change in the initially calculated route. For this reason, for example, the recalculated route may be a route that returns to a point already passed, a route that departs greatly before the destination, or a route that uses a point beyond the destination as a waypoint. It is also conceivable that there may be In this case, the route change may cause distrust among passengers who have already boarded the vehicle, or greatly affect the estimated arrival time of the cargo that has already been collected, thereby causing distrust among the recipients of the cargo. There is a concern that it will become loose. Further, if the recalculated route is a sudden change, the driver will be burdened, which may lead to dangerous driving.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made based on the recognition of the above problems, and aims to provide a passenger assistance device, a passenger assistance method, and a program capable of favorably changing a route during movement of a mobile body. there is

A passenger assistance device, a passenger assistance method, and a program according to the present invention employ the following configurations.
(1): A co-riding support device according to an aspect of the present invention comprises: a communication unit; an operation processing unit that determines an operation plan for operating the mobile body with the first user on board based on the position information of the person, and information on the determined operation plan is transmitted using the communication unit a notification unit that notifies the driver terminal device of the driver and the first user terminal device of the first user; The operation processing unit is a ride-on assistance device that, when receiving a ride-on request, determines whether or not to change the operation plan based on at least the location information of the second user.

(2): In the aspect of (1) above, the operation processing unit changes the operation plan when the position of the second user is within a reference range determined based on the position of the mobile object. It is something to do.

(3): In the aspect of (2) above, the reference range is determined based on the position of the moving object after a reference time.

(4): In the aspect of (3) above, the reference range is centered on the position of the mobile body after the reference time and includes a range within a reference distance from the mobile body.

(5): In the aspect (3) or (4) above, the operation plan includes at least a moving route of the moving object and a waypoint through which the moving object passes during movement, and the reference range is , a range determined based on the positions of the moving object and the waypoint after the reference time.

(6): In the aspect of (5) above, the reference range is centered on a point included in the moving route of the moving body between the position of the moving body after the reference time and the position of the waypoint. , a range within the distance of a straight line connecting the position of the moving object after the reference time and the position of the waypoint.

(7): In any one of the above (3) to (6), the operation plan includes at least a moving route of the moving body, a waypoint through which the moving body passes during movement, and a waypoint through which the moving body travels. The reference range includes a range determined based on the positions of the transit point and the arrival point.

(8): In the aspect of (7) above, the reference range is centered on a point included in the movement route of the moving object between the position of the waypoint and the position of the destination, and It includes a range within the distance of a straight line connecting the position and the position of the arrival point.

(9): In any one aspect of the above (1) to (8), when the operation plan is changed, the operation processing unit stores the location information of the driver and the location information of the second user. based on, determines a second operation plan for operating the mobile body with the second user on board, and the notification unit transmits information on the determined second operation plan to the communication unit and notifies at least the driver's terminal device and the second user terminal device of the second user.

(10): A ride-on assistance method according to an aspect of the present invention, in which a computer obtains via a communication unit position information of a driver who drives a mobile body and position information of a first user who rides on the mobile body. determining an operation plan for operating the mobile body with the first user on board based on the position information, and transmitting information on the determined operation plan to the driver terminal of the driver using the communication unit; device and the first user terminal device of the first user, and when the communication unit receives a ride-on request from the second user during movement of the mobile body, at least the second use This is a ride-on support method for determining whether or not to change the operation plan based on the position information of the person.

(11): A program according to an aspect of the present invention stores positional information of a driver who drives a mobile body and positional information of a first user who rides in the mobile body, which are acquired via a communication unit. and determines an operation plan for operating the mobile object with the first user on board, and transmits information on the determined operation plan to the driver terminal device of the driver using the communication unit. and the first user terminal device of the first user, and when the communication unit receives a ride-on request from the second user while the mobile body is moving, at least the second user It is a program that determines whether to change the operation plan based on the position information of.

According to the aspects (1) to (11) described above, it is possible to favorably change the route of the mobile body while it is moving.

It is a figure which shows an example of a structure of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment, and an environment of use. It is a figure which shows an example of the vehicle owner information in the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the fellow passenger information in the fellow passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the matching information in the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a positional relationship between a vehicle and a reference range for matching a new user in the passenger assistance device according to the embodiment; 4 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of processing executed in the passenger assistance device according to the embodiment; FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the information screen which provides information in the process of the passenger assistance apparatus which concerns on embodiment.

Embodiments of a passenger assistance device, a passenger assistance method, and a program according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The passenger support device is a device for supporting a service (hereinafter simply referred to as "service") that matches a user who owns a mobile body with a user who wishes to ride on the mobile body. Mobile objects used in this service are, for example, two-wheeled, three-wheeled, and four-wheeled vehicles. Furthermore, this vehicle may be a vehicle that travels by the driving operation of the user who owns the vehicle, or a so-called automated driving vehicle that travels without the need for driving operation by the user who owns the vehicle. It may be a vehicle. In the following description, it is assumed that the vehicle is a four-wheeled vehicle. A vehicle is an example of a "moving object" in the claims.

[Usage environment of the passenger support device]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration and usage environment of a passenger assistance device according to an embodiment. The passenger support device 100 communicates with one or more terminal devices (the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 in FIG. 1) via the network NW. The network NW includes, for example, the Internet, a WAN (Wide Area Network), a LAN (Local Area Network), a provider device, a radio base station, and the like.

For example, the ride-in support device 100 receives permission to ride in the vehicle M from the user UD who drives the vehicle M, and another user UP who wishes to ride in the vehicle M (in FIG. A ride-on request from the person UP2) is received, and processing is performed to allow the user UP to ride on the vehicle M. The ride-on approval from the user UD and the ride-on request from the user UP are not limited to immediate execution, and may include a reservation for use at a later time. The user UD may be the owner of the vehicle M, or may be a driver who temporarily drives the vehicle M instead of the owner of the vehicle M. In the following description, it is assumed that the user UD is the owner of the vehicle M.

The processing for allowing the user UP to ride in the vehicle M includes, for example, processing for extracting the user UP to ride in the vehicle M of the user UD, and determination of an operation plan for the vehicle M in which the user UP rides. Including processing, etc. The passenger support device 100, for example, allows the user UD to ride in the vehicle M to the vicinity of the destination in the same direction as the user UD's destination (for example, the user UD's company or home). A desired user UP is extracted, and an operation plan such as a travel route and travel time of the vehicle M is determined. The passenger support device 100 performs processing for allowing a new user UP to ride in the vehicle M even while the vehicle M is moving. In other words, the co-riding support device 100 accepts a co-riding request from a new user UP even while the vehicle M is moving. Then, when the new user UP rides on the vehicle M, the ride-on support device 100 changes the already determined operation plan (original operation plan) to a new operation plan. In the following description, it is assumed that the user UP1 is the user UP who rides the vehicle M first, and the user UP2 is the user UP who rides the vehicle M while it is moving. It is assumed that the destination of user UP2 is the same as that of user UD. In the following description, the user UD, the user UP1, and the user UP2 are simply referred to as "user U" when not distinguished from each other. The user UD is an example of the "driver" in the claims, the user UP1 is an example of the "first user" in the claims, and the user UP2 is This is an example of a "second user". The destination of the user UD (including the user UP2) is an example of the "arrival point" in the claims, and the destination of the user UP1 is an example of the "transit point" in the claims. . The original operation plan is an example of the "operation plan" in the scope of claims, and the new operation plan is an example of the "second operation plan" in the scope of claims.

The terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 are, for example, portable terminal devices such as smartphones and tablet terminals. A terminal device TD is a terminal device used by a user UD. The terminal device TD may be a navigation device mounted on the vehicle M. The terminal device TP1 is a terminal device used by the user UP1. The terminal device TP2 is a terminal device used by the user UP2. In the following description, it is assumed that terminal device TD, terminal device TP1, and terminal device TP2 are portable terminal devices. In the following description, when the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 are not distinguished, they are simply referred to as "terminal device T", and when the terminal device TP1 and TP2 are not distinguished, , simply referred to as "terminal device TP". The terminal device TD is an example of the "driver terminal device" in the claims, the terminal device TP1 is an example of the "first user terminal device" in the claims, and the terminal device TP2 is an example of the It is an example of a "second user terminal device" in the claims.

The terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 carry out procedures for using services according to operations by the user U carrying them. In the terminal device T, an application or the like for using the service is executed. The application sends, for example, information on membership (registration) to a service input by operation by the user U, application for use, and position information of the terminal device T (hereinafter referred to as "terminal position information") to the passenger assistance device 100. , an image based on the information or notification transmitted by the passenger support device 100 is displayed on a display device, and audio data is presented to the user U by pronunciation through a speaker. The terminal position information is, for example, information representing the current position of the terminal device T acquired from a position sensor such as a GPS (Global Positioning System) provided in the terminal device T. FIG.

The vehicle M may have a communication function for communicating with the passenger assistance device 100 via the network NW. In this case, the vehicle M transmits position information representing the position of the own vehicle (hereinafter referred to as “vehicle position information”) to the passenger support device 100 . The vehicle position information is, for example, information acquired from a navigation device (not shown) included in the vehicle M. The vehicle position information may be position information acquired from a position sensor such as GPS provided in the vehicle M regardless of the navigation device. The vehicle M may transmit information about the destination set in the navigation device by the user UD to the passenger support device 100 . The information about the destination includes, for example, information representing the name and position of the set destination, information representing the route to the destination guided by the navigation device, and the destination set based on the route guided by the navigation device. It may also include information representing the estimated time of arrival at the destination.

[Configuration of Riding Assist Device 100]
The passenger assistance device 100 includes, for example, a storage unit 110, a communication unit 120, an information acquisition unit 130, a processing unit 140, and an information notification unit 150.

The information acquisition unit 130, the processing unit 140, and the information notification unit 150 are each implemented by a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). Some or all of these components are hardware (circuit part; circuitry) or by cooperation of software and hardware. Some or all of the functions of these components may be realized by a dedicated LSI. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device (a storage device having a non-transitory storage medium) such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory provided in the passenger assistance device 100, or may be stored in a DVD or CD-ROM. are stored in a detachable storage medium (non-transitory storage medium) such as a storage medium, and when the storage medium is attached to a drive device provided in the passenger support device 100, the HDD or flash memory provided in the passenger support device 100 may be installed. The passenger assistance device 100 may be implemented in a server device or storage device incorporated in a cloud computing system. In this case, the functions of the passenger assistance device 100 may be realized by a plurality of server devices and storage devices in the cloud computing system.

The storage unit 110 stores vehicle owner information 112, fellow passenger information 114, matching information 116, and map information 118, for example. Vehicle owner information 112, fellow passenger information 114, and matching information 116 will be described later. The map information 118 is, for example, information in which road shapes are represented by links indicating roads and nodes connected by the links.

The communication unit 120 is a communication interface such as a network card for connecting to the network NW. The communication unit 120 communicates with the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 via the network NW. Communication unit 120 may communicate with vehicle M via network NW.

The information acquisition unit 130 acquires various types of information regarding the use of services from the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 via the communication unit 120, and stores the information in the storage unit 110. FIG. For example, the information acquisition unit 130 obtains information for performing service enrollment processing, information indicating a request for a ride from the user UP who wishes to ride together in the vehicle M, and consent to ride in the vehicle M from the user UD. Get the information shown. The information for performing the membership process for the service may include, for example, information for identifying the user U such as name, gender, date of birth, address, telephone number, etc. Even if it is the minimum information possible, it does not matter. When the user U operates an application running on the terminal device T to input such information, the application transmits the information to the passenger support device 100 . The application may transmit the terminal location information when the information indicating the request for riding together or the information indicating the consent to ride together is transmitted to the riding assistance device 100, or the user UP may ride in the vehicle M and move. The terminal location information may be transmitted from the start.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the vehicle owner information 112 in the passenger assistance device 100 according to the embodiment. The vehicle owner information 112 is information about the user UD (vehicle owner) who owns the vehicle. The vehicle owner information 112 may be information only for the user UD who has given consent to ride with the vehicle. The vehicle owner information 112 is information in which, for example, a vehicle owner ID that identifies a user UD is associated with a destination, a ride-on consent, a current position, and a mobile body position. The destination is information representing a position registered as a destination by the user UD. Riding consent is information indicating whether or not the user UD has consented to riding in the vehicle M. Either "Y", which is consented at present, or "N", which is not consented at present, is described in the boarding consent. The current position is information representing the current position of the user UD. The current position is transmitted by the terminal device TD of the user UD, and updated by the information acquisition section 130 every time the communication section 120 receives it. The mobile position is information representing the current position of the vehicle M of the user UD. The mobile body position is transmitted by the vehicle M of the user UD, and is updated by the information acquisition section 130 every time the communication section 120 receives it. The moving body position is the same as the current position of the user UD while the user UD is in the vehicle M. The mobile body position is omitted when the vehicle M does not have a communication function, and is regarded as the same position as the current position of the user UD. In this case, the position of the mobile body may be similarly updated at the timing when the current position is updated, or "same" may be described as the information on the position of the mobile body.

The vehicle owner information 112 is not limited to that shown in FIG. Various information such as information indicating the position of a confluence point candidate with the user UP existing in the middle of the route may be included.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the fellow passenger information 114 in the fellow passenger support device 100 according to the embodiment. The fellow passenger information 114 is information about the user UP (fellow passenger) who wishes to ride in the vehicle. The fellow passenger information 114 may be information only for the user UP who requested to ride together. The fellow passenger information 114 is, for example, information in which a destination, a fellow passenger request, and a current position are associated with a fellow passenger ID that identifies the user UP. The destination is information representing a position registered as a destination by the user UP. The ride-in request is information indicating whether or not the user UP requests to ride in the vehicle. The ride-on request describes either "Y" which is requested at present or "N" which is not requested at present. The current position is information representing the current position of the user UP. The current position is transmitted by the terminal device TP (here, the terminal device TP1 and the terminal device TP2) of the user UP, and is updated by the information acquisition section 130 every time the communication section 120 receives it.

The fellow passenger information 114 is not limited to that shown in FIG. Various information such as information representing the position of the .

Returning to FIG. 1, the processing unit 140 stores information acquired from the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 via the communication unit 120, the vehicle owner information 112 stored in the storage unit 110, and the fellow passenger. Based on the information 114, a process of matching the user UD and the user UP (hereinafter referred to as "matching process") is performed. Based on the map information 118 stored in the storage unit 110, the processing unit 140 determines an operation plan for the vehicle M in which the user UD and the user UP ride together. The processing unit 140 includes, for example, a matching processing unit 142 and an operation plan determining unit 144. The processing unit 140 is an example of the "operation processing unit" in the claims.

The matching processing unit 142 refers to the vehicle owner information 112 and the fellow passenger information 114 in response to the ride-in consent and the ride-in request acquired via the communication unit 120, and matches the vehicle M owned by the user UD who has given the ride-in consent. A user UP who requests to ride together is extracted. For example, based on the information on the current location of the user UD and the information on the current location of the user UP, the matching processing unit 142 matches within a predetermined range centered on the current location of the user UD (for example, the current location of the user UD). (within 1 km from ) is the current position. Alternatively, the matching processing unit 142 refers to the map information 118 based on the current position of the user UD and the information of the destination described in the vehicle owner information 112, for example. A route to the destination after getting on may be estimated, and users UP whose current position or destination is within a predetermined range (for example, within 1 km from the route) from the estimated route may be extracted. The matching processing unit 142 associates the extracted user UD and user UP with each other and stores them in the storage unit 110 as the matching information 116 .

The operation plan determination unit 144 determines the operation plan of the vehicle M based on the matching information 116 or the vehicle owner information 112 of the user UD and the fellow passenger information 114 of the user UP associated by the matching information 116. do. The operation plan includes the meeting point and meeting time (or meeting time zone) where the matched user UD and the user UP meet, and the destination of the user UD to which the vehicle M with the user UP is traveling ( destination), a drop-off point where the user UP gets off the vehicle M on the travel route (destination (route) of the user UP), drop-off time (or drop-off time period), and the like. For example, based on the terminal position information of the terminal device TD and the terminal device TP, the operation plan determination unit 144 determines a point existing between the current position of the user UD and the current position of the user UP, or a predetermined range The point inside is determined as the meeting point. For example, based on the destination information registered in the vehicle owner information 112 and the destination information described in the fellow passenger information 114, the operation plan determination unit 144 determines the route from the current position of the user UD. , the confluence point, the destination of the user UP or points within a predetermined range from the destination of the user UP (drop-off point), and the route to the destination of the user UD is determined. The operation plan determination unit 144 may refer to the map information 118 and set a point on the determined travel route as a confluence point or a drop-off point. The meeting points and drop-off points include, for example, facilities such as shopping malls, supermarkets, convenience stores, restaurants, accommodation facilities, various activity facilities, hospitals, administrative agencies, and parking lots attached to these facilities. The operation plan determination unit 144 determines the current position of the user UD and the current position of the user UP, the information on the confluence point and the drop-off point (that is, the dissolution point where the user UD and the user UP disband), and the movement route Based on and, the arrival time at each of the confluence point, the drop-off point, and the destination of the user UD is predicted. The operation plan determination unit 144 adds (updates) information such as a confluence point, a merge time, an alighting point and alighting time (a dissolution point or a dissolution time) to the matching information 116 stored in the storage unit 110 .

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of matching information 116 in the passenger assistance device 100 according to the embodiment. The matching information 116 shown in FIG. 4 is updated by the operation plan determination unit 144 . The matching information 116 includes, for example, the vehicle owner ID of the user UD, the current location of the vehicle owner, the location of the mobile object, the passenger ID, the current location of the passenger, the meeting point, the meeting time, It is information in which a dissolution point, a dissolution time, an arrival point, and an arrival time are associated with each other. The vehicle owner current position is information on the current position of the user UD extracted from the vehicle owner information 112 by the matching processing unit 142 . The moving body position is information on the moving body position extracted from the vehicle owner information 112 by the matching processing unit 142 . The fellow passenger ID is the fellow passenger ID of the user UP extracted as a fellow passenger by the matching processing unit 142 . The fellow passenger current position is information on the current position of the user UP extracted from the fellow passenger information 114 by the matching processing unit 142 . The merging point and merging time are information on the merging point and the merging time determined by the operation plan determination unit 144 . The dissolution point and the dissolution time are information on the dissolution point and the dissolution time determined by the operation plan determination unit 144 . The arrival point and arrival time are information on the destination of the user UD extracted from the vehicle owner information 112 by the matching processing unit 142 and the arrival time of the user UD at the destination determined by the operation plan determination unit 144. be.

The matching information 116 is not limited to that shown in FIG. and the user UP may include various information such as information on the movement route to the dissolution point together with the user UP, information on the movement route from the dissolution point to the destination by the user UD, and the like.

Returning to FIG. 1, the information notification unit 150 transmits various types of information to the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2 via the communication unit 120. FIG. As a result, the application executed in each terminal device T notifies the user UD and the user UP of the information from the passenger support device 100 . The information notification unit 150 notifies the user UD and the user UP of information on the operation plan determined by the operation plan determination unit 144 . The information notification unit 150 uses the map information 118, for example, to provide information for guiding the user UD, the user UP, or the vehicle M to the meeting point, the dissolution point, and the route to the destination. and to the terminal device TP1 and the terminal device TP2. In this case, the application causes the terminal device T to display the meeting point, the dissolution point, and the route to the destination using the navigation functions of the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2, and/or to pronounce the voice. Let The information notification unit 150 is an example of a "notification unit" in the scope of claims.

With such a configuration, the ride-on assistance device 100 matches the user UD who has accepted to ride with the user UP who has requested to ride together, determines the operation plan of the vehicle M in which the user UD and the user UP ride together, Information on the operation plan is notified to the user UD and the user UP.

By the way, in the passenger support device 100, when the user UD has already started moving by the vehicle M based on the transmitted operation plan, the new user UP (here, the user UP2) , the processing unit 140 determines whether or not to change the current operation plan. At this time, in the processing unit 140, the matching processing unit 142 determines whether or not to perform matching processing for matching a new user UP, including the moving user UD as a candidate. is matched, the operation plan determining unit 144 changes the operation plan. The matching processing unit 142 matches the new user UP with the user UD when the current position of the new user UP satisfies a predetermined condition. Satisfying a predetermined condition means that the current position of the new user UP is within a reference range determined based on the current position of the moving user UD. When the matching processing unit 142 matches the new user UP with the user UD, the operation plan determination unit 144 converts the current operation plan into a new route in which the new user UP rides along with the moving vehicle M from the middle. change to a more efficient operation plan. The information notification unit 150 sends the information of the new operation plan determined by the operation plan determination unit 144 to the terminal device TD of the user UD and the terminal device T (here, the terminal device TP2) of the new user UP. Send.

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the positional relationship between a reference range for matching a new user UP2 and the vehicle M in the passenger assistance device 100 according to the embodiment. In FIG. 5, the user UD, with the user UP1 riding in the vehicle M, travels along the movement route TR toward the destination DP of the user UD using the dissolution point VP1, which is the destination of the user UP1, as a transit point. It shows an example of a case where In FIG. 5, it is assumed that the vehicle M is at the current position PP in the middle of the travel route TR. In this case, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the user UP2 is in the vehicle M Then, it is determined that the user UP2 and the user UD are matched with each other. In FIG. 5, the moving route TR is assumed to be a straight route. Therefore, each distance in the following description shall be a straight line distance. Therefore, the range within each distance becomes a circular range.

The reference range RR1 is a range within a reference distance determined based on the position to which the vehicle M has moved after the reference time. The reference range RR1 is a range of a circle whose center is the expected position EP that the vehicle M is expected to move from the current position PP after the reference time and whose radius is a predetermined reference distance R. The reference time and the reference distance R in the reference range RR1 are determined according to the movement state of the vehicle M, such as whether the movement route TR is a route traveling in an urban area or a route traveling in a suburban area. For example, if the movement route TR is a route for traveling in an urban area, the reference time is set to 5 minutes, and the reference distance R is set to 200 m. The reference distance R is defined as 1 km or the like. The reference range RR1 is not limited to that determined by the reference time and the reference distance R depending on whether the moving route TR is a route in an urban area or a route in a suburb. The reference range RR1 is a reference time corresponding to various situations when the vehicle M travels, such as whether or not there is a road around the travel route TR on which it is easy to change course, and the degree of congestion of vehicles on the travel route TR. or the reference distance R. The reference range RR1 is applied as a range of predetermined conditions when the vehicle M has already traveled a distance of twice or more the reference distance R from the starting point.

The reference range RR2 is a range within a distance determined based on the predicted position EP of the vehicle M and the dissolution point VP1. The reference range RR2 is, for example, the range of a circle whose diameter is the distance D1 of the straight line connecting the predicted position EP and the dissolution point VP1. The distance D1 may be the distance along the road between the predicted position EP and the dissolution point VP1, or may be determined by the time required to reach the dissolution point VP1. The range in this case may be a range equivalent to the reference range RR2 shown in FIG. In the case where the movement route TR between the predicted position EP and the dissolution point VP1 is not straight, for example, the reference range RR2 is any point included in the movement route TR between the predicted position EP and the dissolution point VP1. It may be a circular range with a center and a diameter of the distance D1, or a circular range with a radius half the distance D1 (D1/2).

The reference range RR3 is a range within a distance determined based on the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP. The reference range RR3 is, for example, the range of a circle whose diameter is the distance D2 of the straight line connecting the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP. The distance D2 may be the distance along the road between the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP, or may be determined by the time required to reach the destination DP. The range in this case may be a range equivalent to the reference range RR3 shown in FIG. In the case where the movement route TR between the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP is not straight, for example, the reference range RR3 is an arbitrary point included in the movement route TR between the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP. It may be a circular range with a center and a distance D2 as a diameter, or a circular range with a radius half the distance D2 (D2/2). In FIG. 5, the reference range RR3 is determined based on the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP, but the user UD may travel with a plurality of users UP on board. In other words, it is conceivable that the moving route of the vehicle M is a route that passes through destinations of a plurality of users UP as dissolution points (route points). In this case, the reference range RR3 may be determined by setting the dissolution point (route point), which is the destination of another user UP, which the vehicle M passes through after passing through the dissolution point VP1, as being equivalent to the destination DP. .

During the movement of the vehicle M, the reference range RR3 may be determined before the vehicle M reaches the dissolution point VP1. For example, at the initial stage of movement of the vehicle M, a reference range RR1 and a reference range RR2 are defined, and the reference range RR3 is a point where the current position PP of the vehicle M reaches the dissolution point VP1 after the reference time. may be determined at any time. That is, while the vehicle M is moving, the reference range RR3 may be determined in order as the vehicle M moves. However, the dissolution point VP1 and the destination DP (or the dissolution points after the dissolution point VP1) have already been determined when the operation plan determination unit 144 determines the operation plan, and will not be changed. Therefore, the reference range RR3 may be set at any timing before the dissolution point VP1, such as when the operation plan determination unit 144 determines the operation plan, or when the vehicle M starts moving.

The matching processing unit 142 determines that a predetermined condition is satisfied when the current position of the new user UP2 is within the reference range RR1, the reference range RR2, or the reference range RR3 as shown in FIG. , to match user UP2 to user UD. FIG. 5 shows an example of the current position of the user UP2 who requests to ride with the vehicle M while it is moving. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the matching processing unit 142 determines that users UP2-1, UP2-2, UP2-3, UP2-6, and UP2-8 satisfy a predetermined condition. First, it is determined that users UP2-4, UP2-5, and UP2-7 satisfy a predetermined condition. More specifically, the user UP2-1 is at a point after the current position PP, that is, at a point where the vehicle M has already passed and cannot be allowed to ride with the user unless the vehicle M returns. The unit 142 determines that the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and does not perform matching processing including the user UD as a candidate. The user UP2-2 must make a course change that is far away from the movement route TR even though the current position is ahead of the current position PP. It is determined that the condition is not satisfied, and matching processing including the user UD as a candidate is not performed. The user UP2-3 is a user UP who has a junction point CP2 at a point ahead of the current position PP. Therefore, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and does not perform matching processing including the user UD as a candidate. Since the current positions of the users UP2-4 are within the reference range RR1, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied, and performs matching processing including the user UD as a candidate. Since the current position of the user UP2-5 is within the reference range RR2, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied, and performs matching processing including the user UD as a candidate. Although the user UP2-6 is currently located at a point before the dissolution point VP1, the user UP2-6 must make a large change of course in order to return to the travel route TR after being let into the vehicle M. Therefore, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and does not perform matching processing including the user UD as a candidate. Since the current position of the user UP2-7 is within the reference range RR3, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied, and performs matching processing including the user UD as a candidate. For the user UP2-8, the point ahead of the destination DP, that is, the point where the user UP2-8 has to pass through the destination DP and ride with him before returning is the current position. It is determined that the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and matching processing including the user UD as a candidate is not performed.

[Processing of Riding Assist Device 100]
Next, an example of processing in the passenger assistance device 100 will be described. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of processing executed in the passenger assistance device 100 according to the embodiment. 7 to 13 are diagrams showing examples of information screens that provide information in the processing of the passenger assistance device 100 according to the embodiment. 7 to 13 show examples of information providing screen images displayed on the terminal device T so that the passenger support device 100 provides information to each user U in each process. In the following description, examples of images of the information providing screens shown in FIGS. 7 to 13 will be referred to as needed in the processing of the passenger assistance device 100 shown in FIG.

In the following description, an application is executed in the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2, and the passenger support device 100 provides image information to be displayed on the terminal device TD, the terminal device TP1, and the terminal device TP2. shall be notified to each of the user UD and the user UP. In the passenger support device 100, as described above, each of the information acquisition unit 130, the processing unit 140 (the matching processing unit 142 and the operation plan determination unit 144), and the information notification unit 150 communicates via the communication unit 120 and the network NW. Each piece of information is exchanged, but for ease of explanation, it is assumed that each component of the passenger assistance device 100 directly exchanges each piece of information. It is assumed that the user UD has consented to ride in the vehicle M by operating the terminal device TD (application).

The user UP1 operates the terminal device TP1 (application) to perform procedures for requesting to ride in the vehicle. The application running on the terminal device TP1 transmits a request for the user UP1 to ride in the vehicle with the passenger support device 100 (step S100). The information acquisition unit 130 included in the passenger support device 100 receives a request for a passenger to ride in the vehicle transmitted by the terminal device TP1 (step S102).

Next, the matching processing unit 142 of the processing unit 140 included in the passenger support device 100 retrieves the vehicle owner information 112 and the fellow passenger information 114 stored in the storage unit 110 in response to the request for riding together with the information acquisition unit 130. By referring to it, a matching process of extracting the user UD who consented to ride together and matching it with the user UP1 is performed (step S200).

Next, based on the matching information 116 stored in the storage unit 110, the operation plan determination unit 144 of the processing unit 140 included in the passenger support device 100 uses the vehicle M of the user UD matched by the matching processing unit 142. An operation plan in which the person UP1 rides together is determined (step S202).

Next, the information notification unit 150 included in the passenger support device 100 transmits information on the operation plan determined by the operation plan determination unit 144 to the terminal device TD and the terminal device TP1, and notifies the user UD and the user UP1. (step S204). FIG. 7 shows an example of an information providing screen displayed on the terminal device TD to notify the user UD of the operation plan. FIG. 7 is an example of displaying a notification screen for notifying that "user UP1 will ride in vehicle M" and "join user UP1 toward meeting point CP1". The navigation device mounted on the vehicle M may notify the user UD of the operation plan. The notification screen in this case may be equivalent to the notification screen shown in FIG. The same applies to the information providing screen of the terminal device TD described below. FIG. 8 shows an example of an information providing screen displayed on the terminal device TP1 to notify the user UP1 of the operation plan. FIG. 8 shows an example of a displayed notification screen for notifying that "you can ride in the vehicle M of the user UD" and "you will join the user UD toward the meeting point CP1". With these notifications, the user UD and the user UP1 head to the meeting point CP1.

After that, the user UD and the user UP1 meet at the confluence point CP1, ride together in the vehicle M, and start moving. At this time, the information notification unit 150 may confirm whether or not the user UD and the user UP1 have joined. FIG. 9 shows an information providing screen (confirmation screen) displayed on the terminal device TP1 for the user UP1 to confirm whether or not the user UP1 was able to join the user UD (whether the user UD was able to ride in the vehicle M). An example is shown. This confirmation screen includes, for example, an answer button BY for answering that it was possible to ride in the vehicle M, and an answer button BN for answering that it was not possible to ride in the vehicle M. be The user UP1 responds to the information notification unit 150 as to whether or not he or she could ride in the vehicle M by touching either the response button BY or the response button BN. FIG. 9 shows an example of a state in which the user UP1 touches the answer button BY and answers that he was able to ride in the vehicle M together.

While the vehicle M is moving, the user UP2 operates the terminal device TP2 (application) to perform procedures for requesting to ride in the vehicle. The application running on the terminal device TP2 transmits to the passenger support device 100 a request for the user UP2 to ride in the vehicle (step S300). The information acquisition unit 130 receives the request to ride in the vehicle transmitted from the terminal device TP2 (step S302).

In this case, in the processing unit 140, the matching processing unit 142, in response to the ride-on request received by the information acquisition unit 130, performs a matching process including, as candidates, the user UD who has already started moving based on the operation plan. Determine whether or not to perform. The matching processing unit 142 confirms the current location of the user UD (step S304). Confirmation of the current position of the user UD (see current position PP in FIG. 5) in step S304 is performed by, for example, the terminal position information transmitted by the terminal device TD (which may be the terminal device TP1), or the terminal position information transmitted by the vehicle M. based on the vehicle position information provided.

Next, the operation plan determination unit 144 obtains the predicted position of the vehicle M (see the predicted position EP in FIG. 5) based on the confirmed current position of the user UD and the operation plan of the vehicle M (step S306). .

Next, the operation plan determination unit 144 determines a reference range (reference range RR in FIG. (see step S308). In step S308, the matching processing unit 142 obtains at least the reference range RR1 and the reference range RR2 shown in FIG.

Next, the operation plan determining unit 144 confirms whether or not the current position of the user UP2 is within the obtained reference range (step S310). When it is confirmed in step S310 that the current position of the user UP2 is not within the reference range, the matching processing unit 142 performs matching processing that does not include the user UD as a candidate (step S400). In other words, the matching processing unit 142 refers to the vehicle owner information 112 and the fellow passenger information 114 of the user UD other than the vehicle M stored in the storage unit 110, extracts the user UD other than the user UD who has consented to ride together, A matching process for matching with the user UP2 is performed.

Next, based on the matching information 116 stored in the storage unit 110, the operation plan determination unit 144 determines another operation plan in which the user UP2 rides in a vehicle other than the user UD matched by the matching processing unit 142. Determine (step S402). Next, the information notification unit 150 transmits information of another operation plan determined by the operation plan determination unit 144 to the terminal device T other than the user UD and the terminal device TP2, and UP2 is notified (step S404). The notification screen in this case may be equivalent to the notification screens shown in FIGS.

On the other hand, when it is confirmed in step S310 that the current position of the user UP2 is within the reference range, the matching processing unit 142 performs matching processing including the user UD as a candidate (step S500). At this time, the matching processing unit 142 may confirm with the user UD whether or not to allow the user UP2 to ride with the user. In this case, the matching processing unit 142 performs matching processing including the user UD as a candidate after the user UD approves the riding of the user UP2. FIG. 10 shows an example of an information providing screen (confirmation screen) displayed on the terminal device TD in order to confirm whether or not the user UD accepts to ride with the user UP2 who wishes to ride with the user. there is This confirmation screen includes, for example, an answer button BY for answering that you agree to ride in the vehicle M, and an answer button BN for answering that you do not approve to ride in the vehicle M. The user UD responds to the matching processing unit 142 by touching either the response button BY or the response button BN as to whether or not the user approves to ride in the vehicle M together. FIG. 10 shows an example of a state in which the user UD has touched the answer button BY and answered that he/she agrees to ride in the vehicle M. As shown in FIG. On the other hand, when the user UD touches the reply button BN and replies that he does not approve to ride in the vehicle M, the matching processing unit 142 determines that the current position of the user UP2 is not within the reference range. Similarly, the user UP2 is matched with the user UD, and the operation plan is notified (see steps S400 to S404).

Next, based on the matching information 116 of the user UD with which the user UP2 has been newly matched, the operation plan determining unit 144 makes the user UP2 ride in the vehicle M of the user UD based on the current operation plan. Change to a new operation plan (step S502).

Next, the information notification unit 150 transmits information on the new operation plan (after change) changed by the operation plan determination unit 144 to the terminal device TD and the terminal device TP2, and notifies the user UD and the user UP2. (step S504). FIG. 11 shows an example of an information providing screen to be displayed on the terminal device TD to notify the user UD of a new operation plan (after change). FIG. 11 is an example of displaying a notification screen for notifying that "the user UP2 will newly ride in the vehicle M" and "the user UP2 will join with the user UP2 toward the meeting point CPA". FIG. 12 shows an example of an information providing screen displayed on the terminal device TP2 to notify the user UD2 of the operation plan. FIG. 12 is an example of displaying a notification screen for notifying that "you can ride in the vehicle M of the user UD" and "you will join the user UD toward the meeting point CPA". With these notifications, the user UD and the user UP1 head to the meeting point CPA.

After that, the user UP2 joins the user UD at the confluence point CPA and rides on the vehicle M, and the user UD starts moving by the vehicle M according to the new operation plan (after the change). At this time, the information notification unit 150 may confirm whether or not the user UD and the user UP2 have joined. The confirmation screen in this case should be equivalent to the confirmation screen shown in FIG.

Thereafter, after the vehicle M arrives at the drop-off point (route point) where the user UP1 gets off, the information notification unit 150 may confirm whether or not the user UP1 has arrived at the destination. FIG. 13 shows an example of an information providing screen (confirmation screen) displayed on the terminal device TP1 for the user UP1 to confirm whether or not the destination has been reached. This confirmation screen includes, for example, an answer button BA for reporting that the destination has been reached. The user UP1 notifies (reports) the arrival at the destination to the information notification unit 150 by touching the response button BA. FIG. 13 shows an example of a state in which the user UP1 has touched the response button BA to report that he has arrived at his destination. After that, similarly, the information notification unit 150 continues to notify the destination after the vehicle M has arrived at the user UP2's drop-off point (user UP2's destination (route)) and the user UD's destination. You may make it confirm whether it arrived at. The confirmation screen in this case should be equivalent to the confirmation screen shown in FIG.

As described above, according to the ride-in support device 100 of the embodiment, the user UD who owns the vehicle M and the user UP1 who wishes to ride in the vehicle are matched, and the user UP1 rides together in the vehicle. The operation plan of the vehicle M to be used is determined and notified to the user UD and the user UP1. Furthermore, when the user UP2 makes a new request to ride with the vehicle M while the vehicle M is moving, the passenger support device 100 of the embodiment changes the current position of the user UP2 to the current position of the moving vehicle M, a transit point, or the like. , and determines whether or not the new user UP2 is to be matched as a fellow passenger of the vehicle M based on whether or not it is within a reference range RR determined based on the destination, etc., thereby changing the current operation plan. Decide whether to change to a new operation plan. Then, when allowing a new user UP to ride in the vehicle M, the ride-on support device 100 of the embodiment notifies the user UD and the user UP2 of information on the operation plan after the change. As a result, in the ride-on assistance device 100 of the embodiment, even when the new user UP2 is to ride in the vehicle M, the operation plan of the user UP1 who has already boarded and traveled (moving route ), it is possible to suppress (avoid) inefficiency such as greatly deviating from ), and to suitably change the current operation plan. As a result, even if the user UD has to let a new user UP2 ride in the vehicle M on the way to the destination of the user UP1, the user UD does not trust the user UP1 to go to the destination. The vehicle M can be moved according to the changed operation plan without having to hold the vehicle.

According to the passenger support device of the embodiment described above, the communication unit (communication unit 120) and the position information of the driver (user UD) who drives the moving body (vehicle M) acquired via the communication unit and the position information of the first user (user UP1) who rides with the moving body, determines an operation plan for operating the moving body with the first user on board (processing part 140); , a notification unit that notifies information on the determined operation plan to the driver terminal device (terminal device TD) of the driver and the first user terminal device (terminal device TP1) of the first user using the communication unit. (information notification unit 150); By determining whether or not to change the operation plan based on the position information, it is possible to suitably change the route of the mobile body while it is moving.

The embodiment described above can be expressed as follows.
a hardware processor;
a storage device storing a program,
By the hardware processor reading and executing the program stored in the storage device,
Based on the positional information of the driver who drives the mobile body and the positional information of the first user who rides with the mobile body, which are acquired via the communication unit, the mobile body is operated with the first user on board. Determine the operation plan to operate the
using the communication unit to notify the driver terminal device of the driver and the first user terminal device of the first user,
When the communication unit receives a ride-on request from the second user while the mobile object is moving,
Determining whether to change the operation plan based on at least the location information of the second user;
A passenger assistance device configured as follows.

As described above, the mode for carrying out the present invention has been described using the embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to such embodiments at all, and various modifications and replacements can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. can be added.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100... Passenger assistance apparatus 110... Storage part 112... Vehicle owner information 114... Fellow passenger information 116... Matching information 118... Map information 120... Communication part 130... Information acquisition unit 140 Processing unit 142 Matching processing unit 144 Operation plan determination unit 150 Information notification unit T, TD, TP, TP1, TP2 Terminal device NW Network M... vehicle

Claims (11)

a communications department;
Based on the position information of the driver who drives the mobile body and the position information of the first user who rides with the mobile body, which are acquired through the communication unit, the first user is allowed to ride with the mobile body. an operation processing unit that determines an operation plan for operating the body;
a notification unit that uses the communication unit to notify the driver terminal device of the driver and the first user terminal device of the first user of information on the determined operation plan;
with
When the communication unit receives a ride-on request from the second user while the mobile object is moving,
The operation processing unit determines whether to change the operation plan based on at least the location information of the second user,
Passenger support device. The operation processing unit changes the operation plan when the position of the second user is within a reference range determined based on the position of the mobile object.
The passenger support device according to claim 1. The reference range is determined based on the position of the mobile body after a reference time,
The passenger support device according to claim 2. The reference range is centered on the position of the moving body after the reference time and includes a range within a reference distance from the moving body,
The passenger support device according to claim 3. The operation plan includes at least a moving route of the moving object and a waypoint through which the moving object passes through during movement,
The reference range includes a range determined based on the positions of the moving object and the waypoint after the reference time,
The passenger assistance device according to claim 3 or 4. The reference range is centered on a point included in the moving route of the moving body between the position of the moving body after the reference time and the position of the waypoint, and the position of the moving body after the reference time. Including the range within the distance of the straight line connecting the position of the waypoint,
The passenger support device according to claim 5. The operation plan includes at least a route of movement of the mobile body, a waypoint through which the mobile body passes during movement, and a destination to which the mobile body passes through or arrives after the waypoint,
The reference range includes a range determined based on the positions of the waypoint and the destination,
The passenger assistance device according to any one of claims 3 to 6. The reference range is a straight line centered on a point included in the movement route of the moving object between the position of the waypoint and the position of the destination, and connecting the position of the waypoint and the position of the destination. Including range within distance,
The passenger support device according to claim 7. When the operation plan is changed, the operation processing unit causes the second user to ride along with the moving object based on the location information of the driver and the location information of the second user. Determine the operation plan of 2,
The notification unit uses the communication unit to notify at least the driver terminal device and the second user terminal device of the second user of information on the determined second operation plan.
The passenger assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 8. the computer
Based on the positional information of the driver who drives the mobile body and the positional information of the first user who rides with the mobile body, which are acquired via the communication unit, the mobile body is operated with the first user on board. Determine the operation plan to operate the
using the communication unit to notify the driver terminal device of the driver and the first user terminal device of the first user,
When the communication unit receives a ride-on request from the second user while the mobile object is moving,
Determining whether to change the operation plan based on at least the location information of the second user;
Co-riding support method. to the computer,
Based on the positional information of the driver who drives the mobile body and the positional information of the first user who rides with the mobile body, which are acquired via the communication unit, the mobile body is operated with the first user on board. Determine the operation plan to operate the
using the communication unit to notify the driver terminal device of the driver and the first user terminal device of the first user of the determined operation plan information;
When the communication unit receives a ride-on request from the second user while the mobile object is moving,
At least based on the location information of the second user, determine whether to change the operation plan,
program.

Images