JP7489272B2 - Vehicle delivery management device and vehicle delivery management method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle delivery management device and a vehicle delivery management method for a delivery company, which is a parcel delivery company, to deliver parcels to vehicles owned by users, who are parcel recipients.

Currently, a service has started in which a delivery company, which is a home delivery company, delivers parcels to vehicles owned by users, which are parcel recipients. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a delivery receiving system in which information required for delivery, characteristics of the receiving vehicle, parking location, and information required for authentication are registered in a delivery information server in advance, and the parcel is delivered to the trunk of the receiving vehicle after authentication. Here, the trunk is a general term for, for example, a one-box car or two-box car hatchback, and a trunk (hereinafter simply referred to as a "luggage compartment") as an independent luggage compartment in a three-box car such as a sedan.
However, some users, who are the recipients of such services, are concerned about the risk of their personal belongings being stolen from their vehicles, which has made it difficult for such services to become widespread. In response to such user concerns, Patent Literature 2 discloses a technology for providing an opening in the tailgate section that is isolated from the interior space of the vehicle.

JP 2006-206225 A JP 2019-059259 A

However, the recent trend for vehicles is for hatchbacks to be more prevalent. Therefore, the technology described in Patent Document 2 leads to increased vehicle costs, and it is difficult to motivate users to purchase a vehicle such as that described in Patent Document 2 just to use the service of leaving and delivering luggage in a vehicle. For this reason, there remains an issue that prevents the service of leaving and delivering luggage in a vehicle from becoming widespread.

The present invention has been made in consideration of these problems, and aims to provide a vehicle delivery management device and vehicle delivery management method that prevents delivery personnel from entering the vehicle, even in vehicles that do not have an opening isolated from the interior space, by controlling the opening and closing amount of the vehicle windows to an extent that allows the package to enter based on the size of the package to be delivered. This allows the delivery company (delivery personnel) to deliver the package to the vehicle without entering the vehicle, and allows the user, who is the recipient, to have the package delivered to the vehicle with peace of mind.

(1) The vehicle delivery management device of the present invention (e.g., the vehicle delivery management server 40 described below)
A user information storage unit (e.g., a storage unit 42 described later) in which user names, vehicle IDs of vehicles used by the users, and vehicle window opening information are stored as user information related to multiple users who are consignees;
A parcel information storage unit (e.g., a storage unit 42 described later) that stores parcel information including information on the delivery destination and size of parcels to be delivered;
A communication unit (e.g., a communication unit 43 described later) capable of transmitting a command for controlling opening and closing of a window of a vehicle used by the user;
and a control unit (e.g., opening/closing control command generating unit 417 described below) that instructs the communication unit to send a command to control the amount of opening of the window so that, when the delivery destination is a vehicle used by the user, the window has an opening that allows the package to be inserted into the vehicle through the window, based on the size of the package in the package information.

According to (1) above, the window only opens and closes to the extent that the package can enter, so the delivery person cannot enter the vehicle, and the user can have the package delivered to the vehicle with peace of mind. In addition, since there is no need to adopt a special structure for the vehicle, it is possible to prevent the price of the vehicle from increasing.

(2) In the vehicle delivery management device described in (1) above, the communication unit is further capable of transmitting a command for controlling unlocking of a door or a trunk of the vehicle,
The control unit may further instruct the communication unit to send a command to control unlocking of the door or trunk (e.g., a hatchback) when the size of the luggage in the luggage information is larger than the window opening of the vehicle.

According to (2) above, even if the package is larger than the window opening, it can be delivered to the vehicle, improving user convenience. It also eliminates the need for redelivery for the delivery company, which leads to reduced delivery costs.

(3) In the vehicle delivery management device described in (1) above, the package information storage unit further includes fragile item information of the package to be delivered,
The communication unit is further capable of transmitting a command to control unlocking of a door or a trunk (e.g., a hatchback) of the vehicle;
The control unit may further instruct the communication unit to transmit a command for controlling unlocking of the door or trunk (e.g., a hatchback) when the luggage information includes fragile item information.

According to (3) above, users can feel safe using home delivery to their vehicles, even for fragile items. It also eliminates the need for redelivery for the delivery company, which leads to reduced delivery costs.

(4) A vehicle delivery management method of the present invention is a vehicle delivery management method executed by a computer, comprising:
A user information storage step of storing user names, vehicle IDs of vehicles used by the users, and vehicle window opening information as user information related to a plurality of users who are consignees;
a parcel information storage step of storing parcel information including information on a delivery destination and size of a parcel to be delivered;
a communication step of transmitting a command for controlling opening and closing of a window of a vehicle used by the user;
The method includes a control step of instructing the communication unit to send a command to control the amount of opening and closing of the window so that, when the delivery destination is a vehicle used by the user, the opening is large enough to allow the package to be inserted into the vehicle through the window, based on the size of the package in the package information.

The method (4) above provides the same effect as the vehicle delivery management device (1) above.

The present invention makes it possible to provide a vehicle delivery management device and a vehicle delivery management method that eliminate the need for a special structure in the vehicle for the user who is the consignee, and allows the delivery company (delivery person) to deliver the package to the vehicle without entering the vehicle, allowing the user who is the consignee to have the package delivered to the vehicle with peace of mind.

1 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of an entire delivery management system including a vehicle delivery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of a consignee terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of an apparatus included in a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of a vehicle management server according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of a delivery management server in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of a vehicle delivery management server in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of a deliveryman terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle delivery management server when a vehicle is designated as the delivery destination of goods in an embodiment of the present invention.

A preferred embodiment of the vehicle delivery management device of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The vehicle delivery management device of the present invention is a device that characterizes the present invention and is added to a delivery management system. Therefore, the delivery management system will be described together with the vehicle delivery management device. Figure 1 shows the overall configuration of a delivery management system 1.
As shown in FIG. 1, the delivery management system 1 includes a consignee terminal 10 used by a consignee user, a vehicle 20 registered as a drop-off location where the consignee user receives deliveries, a vehicle management server 30 that manages the vehicle 20, a vehicle delivery management server 40 as a vehicle delivery management device that manages deliveries when a vehicle is designated as a drop-off location, a delivery management server 50 that manages delivery information related to packages to be delivered to the consignee user, a delivery person terminal 60 that is a terminal carried by a delivery person who delivers packages to the consignee user, and a communication network 70 that connects these devices and the like.

A consignee terminal 10 is provided for each user, for example. In the following description, when the consignee terminal 10 is to be distinguished for each user, it will be exemplified as consignee terminals 10A and 10B. In addition, in the following description, when the consignee terminal 10 is to be described without distinguishing between users, the alphabet at the end will be omitted and it will simply be called the "consignee terminal 10." The same applies to the vehicle 20.
Similarly, the delivery member terminal 60 is provided for each delivery member, for example. In the following description, when the delivery member terminal 60 is to be distinguished for each delivery member, it will be exemplified as, for example, delivery member terminal 60A, 60B. In addition, in the following description, when the delivery member terminal 60 is to be described without distinguishing between delivery members, the final alphabet will be omitted and it will simply be called "delivery member terminal 60."
Furthermore, a vehicle management server 30 may be provided for each automobile manufacturer of the vehicle 20. In the following description, when the vehicle management servers 30 are differentiated for each automobile manufacturer, they will be exemplified as vehicle management servers 30A and 30B. In the following description, when the vehicle management servers 30 are described without differentiating between automobile manufacturers, the final alphabet will be omitted and the server will simply be referred to as the "vehicle management server 30."
Similarly, the delivery management server 50 may be provided for each delivery company, for example. In the following description, when the delivery management server 50 is differentiated for each delivery company, it will be exemplified as, for example, delivery management servers 50A and 50B. In addition, in the following description, when the delivery management server 50 is described without differentiating between delivery companies, the final alphabet will be omitted and it will simply be referred to as the "delivery management server 50."
The communication network 70 is realized by a network such as the Internet, a mobile phone network conforming to standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G, 5G, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark), or a combination of these. In addition, a LAN (Local Area Network) may be included as part of the network (for example, between the vehicle management server 30 and the vehicle delivery management server 40, and between the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the delivery management server 50).
The communication network 70 may also include a security network 71 and a security network 72. Specifically, as described below, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can maintain the confidentiality of transmitted and received data by connecting to a vehicle management server 30 set for each automobile manufacturer via the security network 71. Similarly, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can maintain the confidentiality of transmitted and received data by connecting to a delivery management server 50 set for each delivery company via the security network 72.

<Processing Overview>
Conventionally, for example, when a user purchases a product through mail order from an electronic commerce site (EC site), the user is usually unable to select a delivery company. This is because the delivery company contracted by the EC site is used. Therefore, in the past, when the user wanted a package to be delivered to the vehicle used by the user, the user had to enter into a contract for delivery to the vehicle with each of the delivery companies in advance. In addition, when the delivery companies deliver packages to the vehicles of, for example, each of the delivery companies of each of the automobile manufacturers, the delivery companies had to enter into a contract with the automobile manufacturers to obtain vehicle location information. This is very troublesome for the user, the delivery company, and the automobile manufacturer, and seems to be practically impossible to realize. Such problems can be solved by applying the vehicle delivery management server of the present invention.

Before providing a detailed description of each device (equipment) that constitutes the delivery management system 1, a brief overview of the processing performed by the delivery management system 1 will be provided.
First, a user, for example, through an automobile manufacturer, registers a vehicle in advance in the vehicle management server 30. This allows the vehicle management server 30 to collect and manage location information including parking position information of the registered vehicle, current location information, and the like.
When a user uses a vehicle as a drop-off and delivery location for a delivery item, the user registers the vehicle registered in the vehicle management server 30 in the vehicle delivery management server 40 as the vehicle 20 as the drop-off and delivery location for the user. Specifically, the user registers, for example, a user name, a user address, and a vehicle ID in the vehicle delivery management server 40 (storage unit 42). Note that, for example, a code identifying an automobile manufacturer may be added to the vehicle ID. In this way, the vehicle ID is associated with a specific vehicle management server among the multiple vehicle management servers 30. Note that, the user may register the vehicle in the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the vehicle management server 30. Specifically, for example, the user may request the vehicle management server 30 to register the vehicle in the vehicle delivery management server 40.
By cooperating with the vehicle management server 30, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can obtain, for example, from the vehicle management server 30, location information history information including stopping position history information of the vehicle, and current location information, etc., based on the user name, user address, and vehicle ID of the registered vehicle, etc. In addition, information related to the opening and closing parts of the vehicle (for example, what type of opening and closing parts are provided, and opening information such as the shape and size of the window, etc.) can be obtained. For example, if a vehicle has windows, doors, and a hatchback as opening and closing parts, and does not have a trunk (luggage compartment) as an independent luggage compartment like a sedan, when a delivery person opens the door or hatchback to place and distribute a package inside the vehicle, the delivery person can also enter the inside of the vehicle, which causes the user to worry about the risk of theft of personal belongings inside the vehicle. For this reason, in such vehicles, it is desirable to prioritize the opening and closing of the window as an opening and closing part for placing and distributing the package. In addition, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can determine whether or not a package can be put in through the window based on the size of the package or fragile information of the package. Furthermore, when a package is placed through a window, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can calculate the opening and closing amount of the window according to the size of the package. Hereinafter, the hatchback and the luggage compartment are collectively referred to as the trunk.

Similarly, the vehicle delivery management server 40 of the present invention is configured to cooperate with the delivery management server 50 managed by each delivery company in advance. For example, when purchasing an item on an electronic commerce site (EC site), the user can specify a vehicle as a drop-off location along with the delivery date and time (delivery date and delivery time slot). At that time, the user may further specify the opening and closing parts of the vehicle for dropping off and dropping off the package (e.g., windows, doors, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.). In this way, the delivery management server 50 managed by the delivery company that undertakes the delivery of the item can send the delivery destination information (e.g., the user name of the delivery destination, the user address, the drop-off location, the scheduled delivery date and time, etc.) and the package information (e.g., the item ID, information on the size of the package, information on whether the package is fragile, information on the appearance of the package, etc.) sent from the EC site to the vehicle delivery management server 40. As a result, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can manage the delivery information of all deliveries delivered by all delivery companies participating in the delivery management system 1 and for which at least a vehicle is used as a drop-off location.

Specifically, the delivery management server 50 transmits to the vehicle delivery management server 40 the delivery destination information of the delivery item that is about to be delivered and for which the vehicle is to be used as the drop-off location. In this way, the vehicle delivery management server 40 determines whether a vehicle is registered as the drop-off location for the recipient that corresponds to the delivery destination user name and user address, and if a vehicle ID corresponding to the user is registered, it can transmit to the delivery management server 50 the vehicle's predicted location information at the scheduled delivery date and time of the delivery item, which is calculated using the vehicle's stopping location history information and current location information, etc., obtained from the vehicle management server 30. This enables the delivery company to create a delivery plan without having to possess information about the vehicle.

The delivery management server 50 formulates a delivery plan for each delivery date and time based on delivery destination information (e.g., the user name of the delivery destination, the user address, the vehicle ID as the delivery location, the delivery date and time, etc.) and parcel information (e.g., the item ID, information on the size of the parcel, information on whether the parcel is fragile or not, information on the appearance of the parcel, etc.). A delivery plan may be created for each delivery person in charge of delivery at the delivery date and time. At that time, a parcel number is assigned to each delivery item in order to manage the parcel delivery status of the delivery item. In this way, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can set the parcel number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, delivery destination vehicle ID, delivery date and time, etc. for each delivery item. When an opening/closing part (e.g., a window, a door, a hatchback, a luggage compartment, etc.) of the vehicle 20 for leaving and delivering the parcel is specified, the opening/closing part of the vehicle 20 may be added. As described above, when a window is specified as an opening/closing part, the opening amount of the window may be added.
Here, the set information is information that associates the parcel number of the delivery item at the specified delivery date and time, the delivery company ID, the delivery person ID, and the vehicle ID (and its opening and closing part), and the vehicle delivery management server 40 may generate key information (hereinafter also referred to as a "one-time password") for mutual authentication of the delivery person and the vehicle ID based on this information, for example, using a hash function.
As described below, the vehicle delivery management server 40 may send, for example, the parcel number, the vehicle ID (and its opening/closing unit), and the one-time password to the vehicle (specifically, the opening/closing control device 22), the delivery management server 50, the delivery person (specifically, the delivery person terminal 60), the vehicle management server 30, and the vehicle (specifically, the opening/closing control device 22). This allows the vehicle (specifically, the opening/closing control device 22) and the vehicle management server 30 to reliably authenticate the delivery person (specifically, for example, the delivery person terminal 60) based on the one-time password for each delivery piece.
For example, in one embodiment, a delivery person can present a one-time password via the delivery person terminal 60 to the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle delivery management server 40 (or directly), thereby making a request to the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle delivery management server 40 (or directly) to control the opening and closing of the opening and closing part of the vehicle. The vehicle management server 30 may remotely control the opening and closing of the opening and closing part of the vehicle by authenticating that the delivery company and the delivery person are authentic, as described below. Note that when a window is used as the opening and closing part, the opening and closing of the window may be controlled based on the opening and closing amount of the window calculated by the vehicle delivery management server 40 as described above.
In another embodiment, a delivery person may directly present a one-time password to the vehicle 20 (opening/closing control device 22) via the delivery person terminal 60 to request control of the opening/closing of the opening/closing section of the vehicle. In this case, the vehicle (specifically, the opening/closing control device 22) may execute control of the opening/closing of the opening/closing section of the vehicle by authenticating that the delivery person is authentic.
In addition, when a window is used as an opening/closing section, as in the case of remote control by the vehicle management server 30, the vehicle (specifically, the opening/closing control device 22) may control the opening and closing of the window based on the amount of opening and closing of the window calculated by the vehicle delivery management server 40.
The above provides a brief overview of the process performed by the delivery management system 1 when a vehicle is used as a delivery location.
Next, each device (equipment) that constitutes the delivery management system 1 will be described.

<Consignee Terminal 10>
The consignee terminal 10 is a terminal for a user who is a consignee to communicate with, for example, the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the delivery management server 50. As the consignee terminal 10, for example, a known terminal such as a PC, a tablet terminal, a smartphone, or a mobile terminal may be used.
2 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the consignee terminal 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the consignee terminal 10 is configured to include at least a control unit 11, a memory unit 12, a communication unit 13, a display unit 16, and an input unit 17.
The control unit 11 is composed of an arithmetic processing device such as a microprocessor, and controls each part constituting the consignee terminal 10. The control unit 11 will be described in detail later.
The storage unit 12 is composed of semiconductor memory or the like, and may store various programs such as control programs called firmware or operating systems, a program for registering vehicle information as a drop-off and delivery location to the vehicle delivery management server 40, and a program for acquiring information related to delivery from the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the delivery management server 50 and presenting it to the user who is the consignee. The storage unit 12 may also store various information registered in the vehicle delivery management server 40.
The communication unit 13 has a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) etc., and realizes wireless communication between, for example, the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the delivery management server 50 via the communication network 70 in compliance with standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G, 5G, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark).
The display unit 16 is configured with a display device such as a liquid crystal display, an organic electroluminescence panel, etc. The display unit 16 receives an instruction from the control unit 11 and displays an image.
The input unit 17 is composed of an input device (not shown) such as a physical switch called a numeric keypad or a touch panel provided over the display surface of the display unit 16 .

Next, the control unit 11 will be described in detail. The control unit 11 is composed of a microprocessor having, for example, a CPU, RAM, ROM, and I/O. The CPU executes each program read from the ROM or the storage unit 12, and during execution, for example, reads information from the RAM, ROM, and storage unit 12, writes information to the RAM and storage unit 12, and transmits and receives signals to and from the communication unit 13, the display unit 16, and the input unit 17. In this way, the processing in this embodiment is realized by the cooperation of the hardware and software (programs).
The control unit 11 executes each program to cause the consignee terminal 10 to function as a predetermined means (hereinafter collectively referred to as the "consignee information management unit"). The control unit 11 also executes each program for consignee information management to cause the consignee terminal 10 to execute a predetermined step (hereinafter collectively referred to as the "consignee information management step").
The functions of the control unit 11 will be described below from the perspective of the consignee information management unit. Note that a description based on the perspective of the consignee information management steps (method) will be omitted because it can be explained by replacing "unit" with "step".

As shown in FIG. 2 , the control unit 11 includes a vehicle designation unit 111 and a notification information acquisition unit 112 .
As described above, when a user uses a vehicle as a delivery location for a delivery item, the vehicle designation unit 111 registers a vehicle registered in the vehicle management server 30 in the vehicle delivery management server 40 as the vehicle 20 serving as the delivery location for the user. Specifically, the vehicle designation unit 111 registers registration information including the user name, user address, and vehicle ID designated as the delivery location input by the user via the input unit 15 in the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the communication unit 13. At this time, in addition to the vehicle ID, openings and closings available for the vehicle (e.g., windows, doors, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.) may be registered.
In the present embodiment, the vehicle designation unit 111 registers the delivery information to the vehicle delivery management server 40, but the present invention is not limited to this. The vehicle designation unit 111 may request the vehicle management server 30 to register the vehicle ID to be designated as the delivery location to the vehicle delivery management server 40.
The notification information acquisition unit 112 acquires notification information notified from the vehicle delivery management server 40 or the delivery management server 50. The notification information acquisition unit 112 may acquire notification information provided (notified) from the vehicle delivery management server 40 or the delivery management server 50, for example, by using a known function such as email by a push method or SNS. The notification information acquisition unit 112 may display the acquired information on the display unit 14, and, if a reply is required, may acquire a reply from the user via the input unit 15 and transmit it to the vehicle delivery management server 40 or the delivery management server 50.

<Vehicle 20>
The vehicle 20 is registered in advance in the vehicle management server 30, and is set so that the vehicle management server 30 can collect the vehicle's location information and remotely control the locking and unlocking of the opening and closing parts (e.g., windows, doors, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.) that can be used in the vehicle. In addition, the location of the parking lot (e.g., home or a nearby parking lot) where the vehicle 20 is parked may be registered in advance as normal vehicle location information.
3, the vehicle 20 includes an on-board device 21 and an opening/closing control device 22. The on-board device 21 measures the position information of the vehicle for each vehicle ID, and transmits the measured position information together with the measured time information (measured time information) to the vehicle management server 30. The opening/closing control device 22 controls the locking and unlocking of opening/closing parts (e.g., windows, doors, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.) that can be used in the vehicle, and transmits locking/unlocking state information including locking/unlocking time information to the vehicle management server 30.

<In-Vehicle Device 21>
The in-vehicle device 21 has a function of transmitting position information of the vehicle 20 to the vehicle management server 30. The in-vehicle device 21 may be configured, for example, by an in-vehicle navigation device, a PND, or the like.
3, the in-vehicle device 21 includes a control unit 211, a storage unit 212, a communication unit 213, and a sensor unit 214. A display unit 216 and an input unit 217 may also be included.

The control unit 211 is composed of a processing device such as a microprocessor, and controls each part of the in-vehicle device 21. Details of the control unit 211 will be described later.

The memory unit 212 is composed of semiconductor memory, etc., and may store various programs such as control programs called firmware or operating systems, programs for acquiring location information and transmitting the location information to the vehicle management server 30, and other information such as map information.
The storage unit 212 may also store location information 2121 and a vehicle ID 2122, which are information related to the transmission process of the location information of the vehicle 20.
The position information 2121 is position information of the in-vehicle device 21 (i.e., position information of the vehicle 20) measured by a sensor unit 24 described later. The position information 2121 includes not only information indicating the measured position, but also the time when the positioning was performed.
The vehicle ID 2122 is information for identifying the vehicle 20 in which the in-vehicle device 21 is installed. For example, a manufacturing number uniquely assigned to the in-vehicle device 21 can be used as the vehicle ID 2122. In addition, a telephone number assigned to a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) inserted into the communication unit 213 so that the communication unit 213 can connect to the communication network 70, which is a network such as a mobile phone network, can be used as the vehicle ID 2122. In addition, a VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) uniquely assigned to the vehicle 20 or a license plate number can be used as the vehicle ID 2122.

The communication unit 213 has a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and the like, and realizes wireless communication with other devices (e.g., the vehicle management server 30) via the communication network 70 in compliance with standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G, and 5G, and standards such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark). The communication unit 213 is used, for example, by the position information transmission unit 2112 described below to transmit the position information 2121 and the vehicle ID 2122 stored in the memory unit 212 to the vehicle management server 30.

The sensor unit 214 is composed of, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) sensor, a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, etc. The sensor unit 214 has a function as a position detection means for detecting position information, and receives a GPS satellite signal by a GPS sensor to measure the position information (latitude and longitude) of the in-vehicle device 21. The positioning by the sensor unit 214 is performed at a predetermined time interval (for example, every 3 seconds) as described above. The measured position information is stored in the storage unit 212 as position information 2121.
The sensor unit 214 can further improve the accuracy of measuring the position information of the in-vehicle device 21 based on the angular velocity and acceleration measured by the gyro sensor and acceleration sensor.
In addition, when GPS communication becomes difficult or impossible, the sensor unit 214 can use Assisted Global Positioning System (AGPS) communication to calculate the location information of the in-vehicle device 21 using base station information obtained from the communication unit 213.

Next, the control unit 211 will be described in detail. The control unit 211 is composed of a microprocessor having a CPU (Central Processing Unit), RAM (Random access memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), and I/O (Input/Output). The CPU executes each program read from the ROM or storage unit 212, and during execution, reads information from the RAM, ROM, and storage unit 212, writes information to the RAM and storage unit 212, and transmits and receives signals to the communication unit 213, sensor unit 214, display unit 216, and input unit 217. In this way, the processing in this embodiment is realized by the cooperation of hardware and software (programs).

As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 211 includes at least a position information transmission unit 2111 as a functional block.
The position information transmission unit 2112 is a part that transmits the position information 2121 and the vehicle ID 2122 stored in the memory unit 212 to the vehicle management server 30 by wireless communication using the communication unit 213.

The location information transmission unit 2111 transmits the location information 2121 and the vehicle ID 2122 to the vehicle management server 30 periodically from when the ignition switch of the vehicle 20 is turned on (to start the engine) by the user in the vehicle 20 at the start of a drive and the in-vehicle device 21 automatically starts up, until the ignition switch of the vehicle 20 is turned off (to stop the engine) at the end of the drive. For example, transmission is performed in real time every time the sensor unit 214 performs positioning at a predetermined time interval (for example, every 3 seconds). In other words, transmission is performed in real time from the start of a drive until the end of the drive.

Also, instead of transmitting to the vehicle management server 30 in real time, a plurality of pieces of information (for example, the position information 2121 updated at 3-second intervals over a 3-minute period and the vehicle ID 2122) may be transmitted at once. In other words, so-called burst transmission may be performed. The length of such a predetermined time interval and whether to transmit in real time or in burst transmission can be set arbitrarily depending on the environment in which this embodiment is applied, etc.
In this way, by performing real-time transmission or burst transmission, the location information transmission unit 2111 transmits location information 2121 for identifying the movement route of the vehicle 20 measured by the sensor unit 214, and a vehicle ID 2122 to the vehicle management server 30.

In this case, the position specified by the position information 2121 measured immediately after the ignition switch is turned on (engine is started) and the in-vehicle device 21 is automatically started can be transmitted to the vehicle management server 30 as the initial vehicle position in the drive, i.e., the starting position. Furthermore, the position specified by the position information 2121 measured immediately before the ignition switch is turned off (engine is stopped) can be transmitted to the vehicle management server 30 as the final vehicle position in the drive, i.e., the parking position. For example, information indicating that the position information 2121 represents the starting position or the position information 2121 represents the parking position (for example, the value of a flag indicating this is set to 1) is added to the position information 121 before it is transmitted to the vehicle management server 30.
In addition, the location information 2121 (i.e., the parking position) determined immediately before the ignition switch is turned off (engine is stopped) may be transmitted when the ignition switch is turned on (engine is started) and the in-vehicle device 21 is started up again.
In addition, after the ignition switch is turned off (engine is stopped), the in-vehicle device 21 may be in an operating state for a predetermined time, and the position information 2121 (i.e., the parking position) measured after parking may be transmitted to the vehicle management server 30. This allows more accurate parking position information to be transmitted to the vehicle management server 30.
In addition, if the in-vehicle device 21 is equipped with a navigation function unit (not shown), the location information transmission unit 2111 may transmit information on the destination set in the navigation function unit to the vehicle management server 30 together with the above-mentioned location information 2121 and vehicle ID 2122.
As described above, the location information transmitted from the on-board device 21 to the vehicle management server 30 specifically includes the departure location information, arrival location information, movement information, and parking location information of the vehicle. As will be described later, the vehicle management server 30 can grasp the current location information, parking location information, and parking time zone information of the vehicle 20 in which the on-board device 21 is installed.

<Opening and closing control device 22>
3, opening and closing controller 22 includes a control unit 221, a memory unit 222, a communication unit 223, and a short-range communication unit 224. Opening and closing controller 22 receives power from a battery (not shown) provided in vehicle 20.
3, the control unit 221 includes at least an authentication unit 2211, a lock/unlock control unit 2212, and a lock/unlock information transmission unit 2213. Details will be described later.
The storage unit 222 includes a one-time information storage unit 2221 that stores the one-time information described above.
The communication unit 223 may be equipped with wireless communication such as LTE, 4G, 5G, etc. Wireless communication such as LTE, 4G, 5G, etc. is used to receive locking/unlocking control information transmitted from the vehicle management server 30 when the opening/closing part is locked/unlocked by remote control from the vehicle management server 30. In addition, as described later, the locking/unlocking information transmitting unit 2213 may be used to transmit locking/unlocking history information of the vehicle to the vehicle delivery management server 40 (via the vehicle management server 30).
The short-distance communication unit 224 is a part for performing non-contact short-distance communication conforming to standards such as NFC (Near Field Communication) and Bluetooth (registered trademark). For example, it is used when directly receiving one-time information from the deliveryman terminal 60 to lock and unlock the opening and closing part.
Here, the locking/unlocking control information refers to control information for controlling the locking and unlocking of the opening/closing part, and in particular, when the opening/closing part is a window, the locking/unlocking control information includes the opening/closing amount of the window and means control information for controlling the opening/closing amount of the window. Hereinafter, when the opening/closing part is a window, the term "locking/unlocking of the opening/closing part" refers to the control of opening/closing of the window based on the opening/closing amount of the window.

<Authentication Unit 2211>
When the delivery person's terminal 60 sends one-time information directly to the opening/closing control device 22 to lock or unlock the opening/closing section, the authentication unit 2211 authenticates whether or not the delivery person is authorized to lock or unlock the opening/closing section.

A case will be described where one-time information is sent directly from the deliveryman terminal 60 to the opening/closing control device 22 to lock and unlock the opening/closing section.
In this case, the authentication unit 2211 uses the one-time password received in advance (via the vehicle management server 30) from the vehicle delivery management server 40 as described above to authenticate the parcel number, delivery company ID, and delivery person ID received from the delivery person terminal 60. Specifically, the authentication unit 2211 generates a hash value using a hash function based on the parcel number, vehicle ID (and its opening/closing unit) acquired in advance, and the parcel number, delivery company ID, and delivery person ID received from the delivery person terminal 60, and if the hash value matches the one-time password, authenticates the delivery person as authentic.
In addition, when the vehicle management server 30 receives an opening/closing control request from the delivery person terminal 60 and performs remote opening/closing control on the opening/closing control device 22, as mentioned above, the vehicle management server 30 has already authenticated the parcel number, delivery company ID, and delivery person ID received from the delivery person terminal 60, so the parcel number, delivery company ID, and delivery person ID received from the vehicle management server 30 may be processed as having been authenticated.

<Locking/Unlocking Control Unit 2212>
The locking/unlocking control unit 2212, in addition to the function of locking and unlocking the opening/closing section based on control information from the vehicle key held by the user, will only lock or unlock the opening/closing section when the opening/closing section is locked or unlocked by remote opening/closing control from the vehicle management server 30 if the vehicle management server 30 certifies that the remote opening/closing control is based on an opening/closing control request from a valid delivery person.
In addition, when one-time information is sent directly from the delivery person terminal 60 to the opening/closing control device 22 to lock or unlock the opening/closing section, the locking/unlocking control unit 2212 locks or unlocks the opening/closing section only if the authentication unit 2211 authenticates the delivery person as authentic.
In any of the above cases, if the opening/closing part is a window, the opening/closing control request information from the delivery person includes the amount of opening/closing of the window, as described below. Therefore, the locking/unlocking control unit 2212 may control the opening/closing of the window based on the amount of opening/closing of the window included in the opening/closing control request information.

<Locking/Unlocking Information Transmission Unit 2213>
When the locking/unlocking control unit 2212 locks or unlocks the door to leave a delivery, the locking/unlocking information transmission unit 2213 transmits the parcel number of the delivery, the time information when the door is unlocked, and the time information when the door is locked to the vehicle delivery management server 40 (via the vehicle management server 30). When the user locks or unlocks the door with the vehicle key, the locking/unlocking information transmission unit 2213 transmits the time information when the door is unlocked and the time information when the door is locked to the vehicle delivery management server 40 (via the vehicle management server 30). In this way, as described later, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can determine whether the user has taken out the parcel based on the locking/unlocking history information of the vehicle. Specifically, when the user locks or unlocks the door with the vehicle key, it can be considered that the parcel that was left before that has been taken out by the user.

<Vehicle Management Server 30>
Next, functional blocks of the vehicle management server 30 provided for each automobile manufacturer, for example, will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4 , the vehicle management server 30 includes a control unit 31 , a storage unit 32 , a communication unit 33 , a display unit 36 , and an input unit 37 .
Here, the control unit 31, the storage unit 32, the communication unit 33, the display unit 36, and the input unit 37 are realized by hardware equivalent to the functional blocks of the same names included in the above-described in-vehicle device 21, but have different functions and uses from the above-described in-vehicle device 21. Therefore, some of the redundant descriptions of the hardware will be omitted, and the different functions and uses will be described below.

The control unit 31 is composed of a processing device such as a microprocessor, and controls each part that constitutes the vehicle management server 30. Details of the control unit 31 will be described later.

The storage unit 32 is composed of a semiconductor memory or the like, and stores control programs called firmware or an operating system, a program for collecting vehicle position information, a program for remotely controlling locking and unlocking the opening and closing part of the vehicle 20, and various other information such as map information. In the figure, map information 321, user information 322, vehicle information 323, a correspondence 324 between the user information 322 and the vehicle information 323, and a position information database 325 are exemplified as information stored in the storage unit 32.
The map information 321 includes information on features such as roads, facilities, and parking lots, as well as road information, facility information, parking lot information, etc. As facility information and parking lot information, location information of each facility and parking lot is stored as latitude and longitude information. Note that, as location information of each facility and parking lot, information such as address, telephone number, etc. may be stored in addition to latitude and longitude information.
The user information 322 includes, for example, a user name including a family name and a given name, a user address, etc. A user identification ID may be stored for each user.
The vehicle information 323 may include a vehicle ID, information regarding the opening and closing parts of the vehicle (e.g., opening information regarding the type of opening and closing part and the shape and size of the window opening), and command information for remotely locking and unlocking the opening and closing parts.
The correspondence 324 between the user information 322 and the vehicle information 323 is information indicating the correspondence 324 between the user information and the vehicle ID, and may be stored in, for example, a table format.
The position information database 325 is a database that stores the position information of each vehicle 20 that is constructed based on the position information received from the in-vehicle device 21 .
The position information database 325 is constructed and updated by each functional block included in the control unit 31. Details of the position information database 325 will be described later with reference to FIG. 5 when describing each functional block included in the control unit 31.

The communication unit 33 has a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and the like, and realizes wireless communication with other devices (e.g., the in-vehicle device 21, the opening and closing control device 22, etc.) via the communication network 70 in compliance with standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G, 5G, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark).
The communication unit 33 is used, for example, to receive position information transmitted from the above-mentioned in-vehicle device 21. It may also be used to transmit lock/unlock control information to the above-mentioned opening/closing control device 22.
The vehicle delivery management communication unit 34 is a communication unit that communicates with the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the security network 71. The vehicle delivery management communication unit 34 is used for transmitting and receiving information between the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the vehicle delivery management server 40 to share user information, vehicle information, vehicle information such as vehicle position information, information on the opening and closing parts of the vehicle (for example, opening information on the type of opening and closing parts and the shape and size of the window openings, etc.), and information on locking and unlocking the opening and closing parts of the vehicle.

The display unit 36 is configured with a display device such as a liquid crystal display, an organic electroluminescence panel, etc. The display unit 36 receives an instruction from the control unit 31 and displays an image.
The input unit 37 is composed of an input device (not shown) such as a physical switch called a numeric keypad or a touch panel provided over the display surface of the display unit 36 .

Next, the control unit 31 will be described in detail. The control unit 31 is composed of a microprocessor having, for example, a CPU, RAM, ROM, and I/O. The CPU executes each program read from the ROM or memory unit 32, and during execution, reads information from the RAM, ROM, and memory unit 32, writes information to the RAM and memory unit 32, and sends and receives signals to and from the communication unit 33. In this way, the processing in this embodiment is realized by the cooperation of hardware and software (programs).

As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 31 includes, as functional blocks, a location information acquisition unit 311, a stay determination unit 312, a vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 313, a delivery person authentication unit 314, and a lock/unlock remote control unit 315.

The location information acquisition unit 311 is a part that updates information such as movement progress contained in the location information database 325 based on the location information and vehicle ID received by the communication unit 33 from the in-vehicle device 21, and the map information 321.

The stay determination unit 312 is a part that determines where the user stayed (parked). Here, the place where the user stayed (parked) may be a parking lot at the user's home, a parking lot at a facility, etc. The stay determination unit 312 compares the location information when the communication unit 33 receives the ignition off from the in-vehicle device 21 with the location information included in the map information 321. Then, when the result of the comparison shows that this location information matches the location information of any personal home or facility (or the location information of a parking lot), the stay determination unit 312 determines that the user corresponding to the in-vehicle device 21 that transmitted the location information stayed (parked) at this location.
Then, the stay determination unit 312 updates information such as the stay location (parking location) contained in the location information database 325 based on the determination result.

If the location information does not change for a predetermined period of time or more while driving, specifically if location information indicating the same location is transmitted continuously for a predetermined period of time or more, it is possible that the vehicle is stopped with the engine running (e.g., idling). In this case, it is assumed that the stopped location is an idling location due to, for example, a temporary stop or traffic congestion. For this reason, it is assumed that the location is not suitable for dropping off and delivering packages.

An example of the data structure of the location information database 325 will be described. The location information database 325 includes attributes such as "vehicle ID", "user ID", "movement progress", and "parking position information". Note that this information may be stored in association with each drive.

As described above, the "vehicle ID" in the location information database 325 is information for identifying the in-vehicle device 21 that is the source of the location information and the like, and the vehicle 20 in which the in-vehicle device 21 is mounted. The location information acquisition unit 311 creates a record for each drive based on the received vehicle ID.
As described above, the "user ID" in the position information database 325 is information for identifying a user corresponding to a vehicle ID. The position information acquisition unit 311 specifies and stores the user ID.

The "movement progression" in the position information database 325 is all the position information received from the start to the end of transmission of the position information, etc. This all the position information makes it possible to specify the movement progression from the starting position to the parking position during one drive (i.e., the movement route of the vehicle 20).
The movement progress is also included in the time when the position information was measured, so that the start time and end time of one drive can be identified.
The position information acquisition unit 311 updates the movement progress based on the received position information.

Here, as described above, for example, if the location information includes information indicating a starting location, the location information acquisition unit 311 determines that a new drive has started based on the information indicating the starting location. Also, if the location information does not include information indicating a starting location, the location information acquisition unit 311 determines that a new drive has started, for example, when the transmission of location information, etc. is started again after determining that the previous drive has ended.
The location information acquisition unit 311 updates the "movement progress" in the location information database 325 based on each piece of received information each time the location information acquisition unit 311 receives location information and the like from the in-vehicle device 21 while the drive is continuing.

On the other hand, the "stay location" in the location information database 325 is updated by the stay determination unit 312 making a determination as described above at the timing when one drive ends.
In this manner, the position information database 325 is appropriately updated by the position information acquisition unit 311 and the stay determination unit 312 working together.

The vehicle delivery management server linking unit 313 is a functional unit that transmits and receives information to be shared between the vehicle management server 30 and the vehicle delivery management server 40.
Specifically, the vehicle management server 30 (vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 313) receives vehicle information (e.g., user information and vehicle ID (which may include opening/closing information) registered as a drop-off location by the consignee user from the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the security network 71 using the vehicle delivery management communication unit 34, and determines whether or not a vehicle 20 with that vehicle ID is present. If a vehicle 20 with that vehicle ID is present, it instructs the vehicle delivery management communication unit 34 to transmit location information of the vehicle 20 with that vehicle ID to the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the security network 72 as appropriate. Alternatively, the location information data may be made accessible to the vehicle delivery management server 40. Note that if the vehicle ID does not exist, the vehicle delivery management server 40 is notified of error information indicating that the vehicle ID does not exist and a request to correct the registration information.
In this way, as described below, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can obtain the user name, user address, vehicle ID, past location information for each time period of the vehicle (particularly parked location information and moving state) and current location information for each vehicle 20 registered by the user as a package delivery location, and based on this information, calculate predicted location information (parked location information, moving state) of each vehicle 20 for each time period in the near future. The vehicle delivery management server 40 can also generate a one-time password for mutual authentication of the delivery person and the vehicle ID.
Furthermore, when the delivery plan is finally set to leave the delivery item in the vehicle 20 and the delivery person delivers the delivery item, the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 313 can obtain information related to the delivery item, such as the parcel number, delivery date and time, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, and delivery destination vehicle ID (including opening and closing part information if an opening and closing part (e.g., window, door, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.) of the vehicle 20 for leaving and leaving the parcel is specified), as well as a one-time password, from the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the security network 71 by receiving the information by the vehicle delivery management communication unit 34. Here, if a window is specified as the opening and closing part of the vehicle 20 for leaving and leaving the parcel, the opening and closing part information may include the opening amount of the window. In this way, the vehicle management server 30 can transmit information for leaving and leaving the parcel to the opening and closing control device 22 of the vehicle in advance.

Next, the delivery person authentication unit 314 and the locking/unlocking remote control unit 315 will be described. Here, the delivery person authentication unit 314 and the locking/unlocking remote control unit 315 are required when the delivery person makes a request to the vehicle management server 30 to control the opening and closing of the opening and closing part of the vehicle based on the one-time password via the delivery person terminal 60 (i.e., when the vehicle management server 30 remotely executes the opening and closing control of the opening and closing part of the vehicle). Therefore, they are not required when the delivery person directly controls the opening and closing of the opening and closing part of the vehicle based on the one-time password via the delivery person terminal 60.

When the delivery person authentication unit 314 receives, for example, a parcel number, a delivery company ID, a delivery person ID, and a one-time password from the delivery person terminal 60 via the vehicle delivery management server 40 (or directly), the delivery person authentication unit 314 generates a hash value using a hash function based on the parcel number, vehicle ID (and its opening/closing unit) that it has previously acquired, and the parcel number, delivery company ID, and delivery person ID received from the delivery person terminal 60, and if the hash value matches the one-time password, it authenticates the delivery person as authentic.

When the delivery person authentication unit 314 authenticates the delivery person as authentic, the lock/unlock remote control unit 315 issues an instruction to control the opening and closing of the opening and closing part, i.e., an unlock instruction and a lock instruction, to the opening and closing control device 22 of the vehicle by remote control via the communication unit 33. As described above, if the opening and closing part is a window, the unlock instruction includes the amount of opening and closing of the window.

<Delivery management server 50>
Next, before describing the vehicle delivery management server 40, the functional blocks of a delivery management server 50 provided for each delivery company will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, the delivery management server 50 includes a control unit 51, a memory unit 52, a communication unit 53, a display unit 56, and an input unit 57.
Here, the control unit 51, storage unit 52, communication unit 53, display unit 56, and input unit 57 are realized by hardware equivalent to the functional blocks of the same names contained in the above-mentioned vehicle management server 30, but have different functions and uses from the above-mentioned vehicle management server 30. Therefore, some of the redundant explanations about the hardware will be omitted, and the different functions and uses will be explained below.

The control unit 51 is composed of a processing device such as a microprocessor, and controls each part that constitutes the delivery management server 50. Details of the control unit 51 will be described later.

The storage unit 52 is composed of a semiconductor memory or the like, and stores control programs called firmware or operating systems, programs for creating delivery plans and managing deliveries in the delivery company, and other information such as delivery plan information, delivery management information, etc. In the figure, delivery plan information 521, delivery management information 522, etc. are shown as examples of information stored in the storage unit 52.
The delivery plan information 521 includes information on parcels to be delivered (e.g., parcel number, information on the size of the parcel, information on whether the parcel is fragile, information on the appearance of the parcel, etc.), delivery destination information (e.g., the user name of the delivery destination, the user address, the parcel delivery destination, the drop-off location, the delivery date and time, etc.), and delivery person information (e.g., a delivery establishment ID, a delivery person ID, etc.), and may be created for each delivery establishment, for example. Note that the fragile information may be, for example, glass products, precision machinery, etc., and when accepting a parcel from a sender (e.g., an EC site), a tag with fragile information may be attached to the parcel, and fragile information indicating that the parcel is fragile may be included in the parcel information.
Furthermore, the delivery plan information 521 created for each delivery establishment may be created for each delivery vehicle (delivery person). The delivery location includes a vehicle ID. In addition to the vehicle ID, the vehicle's opening and closing parts (for example, windows, doors, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.) may also be included.
The delivery management information 522 may include delivery history information for managing the delivery status from when a package is, for example, removed from a warehouse, sent to a delivery office, loaded onto a delivery vehicle, and delivered to a destination in accordance with a delivery plan.

The communication unit 53 is realized by hardware equivalent to the communication unit 33 included in the vehicle management server 30, and realizes wireless communication with other devices (e.g., delivery person terminal 60, etc.) via the communication network 70.
The communication unit 53 is used, for example, to send and receive information to and from the delivery person terminal 60 in order to share package information, delivery destination information, delivery person information, delivery history information, and the like relating to packages handled by the delivery person.
The vehicle delivery management communication unit 54 is a communication unit that communicates with the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the security network 72. The vehicle delivery management communication unit 54 is used for sending and receiving information to and from the vehicle delivery management server 40 to share, for example, package information, delivery destination information, delivery person information, and delivery history information related to packages designated with a vehicle as a drop-off and delivery location.
The display unit 56 and the input unit 57 are realized by hardware equivalent to the display unit 36 and the input unit 37 included in the vehicle management server 30.

Next, a detailed description will be given of the control unit 51. The control unit 51 is realized by hardware equivalent to the control unit 31 included in the vehicle management server 30, for example.
As shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 51 includes, as functional blocks, a delivery plan creation unit 511, a delivery management processing unit 512, and a vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 513.

The delivery plan creation unit 511 creates a delivery plan that enables efficient delivery of ordered items (parcels) to be delivered, based on parcel information (e.g., parcel number, information on the size of the parcel, information on whether the parcel is fragile or not, information on the appearance of the parcel, etc.), delivery destination information (e.g., the user name and user address of the delivery destination, the parcel delivery location, the delivery location, the delivery date and time, etc.), etc.
The delivery management processing unit 512 manages the delivery status of the delivery items in accordance with the delivery plan created by the delivery plan creation unit 511 .
The delivery plan creation function and delivery management processing function are well known to those skilled in the art, so detailed explanations will be omitted. Here, we will explain the additional functions when a user who is the consignee specifies a vehicle as the delivery destination for the package.

When a vehicle is specified as the delivery location, the delivery plan creation unit 511 creates a delivery plan based on information about the vehicle required to create a delivery plan. Specifically, the delivery plan creation unit 511 checks whether or not there is a vehicle ID corresponding to the user based on the user name who specified the vehicle as the delivery location at the destination of the package, via the vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 513 described later. When the presence of the vehicle ID is confirmed, the delivery plan creation unit 511 acquires predicted location information of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID at the delivery date and time specified by the user, via the vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 513 described later. Here, the predicted location information may be, for example, location information occupying a predetermined range, rather than accurate location information. For example, it may be the area of a parking lot where multiple vehicles are parked, or the range of "chome" or "chome, banchi" of the address notation "chome, banchi, go", or a predetermined area. Note that, when there is no vehicle ID corresponding to the user, the delivery plan creation unit 511 may notify the user (for example, via the consignee terminal 10) by email or the like to correct the delivery location of the package related to the user.
In addition, when a vehicle is specified as a delivery location, the delivery plan creation unit 511 can determine whether delivery to the vehicle is possible around the delivery date and time specified by the user, and can create a more detailed delivery plan. Specifically, for example, when there is a high probability that the vehicle will be moving around the delivery date and time, the user may be notified by email or the like (for example, via the consignee terminal 10) to make corrections such as shifting the time zone.
In this way, even if a vehicle is specified as the drop-off and delivery location, the delivery company can create a delivery plan without having information about the vehicle stored in the delivery management server 50 itself. Also, for the user, unlike the conventional technology, it is no longer necessary to conclude a contract for a delivery service in which the drop-off and delivery location is a vehicle with each individual delivery company, and the user can easily use the vehicle drop-off and delivery service.

The delivery management processing unit 512 manages the delivery progress status when delivering deliveries in accordance with the delivery plan created by the delivery plan creation unit 511, and in particular, when a vehicle is specified as the drop-off location, it collects the progress status of delivery of the package to the vehicle and can provide information necessary for the actual delivery to the delivery person or delivery vehicle as appropriate.
Specifically, when a delivery person or delivery vehicle delivers a package to a vehicle (more specifically, for example, before the delivery person requests the opening and closing of the door), the delivery management processing unit 512 acquires more accurate location information of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID at the delivery date and time specified by the user via the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 described later. Here, the more accurate location information may be, for example, the address notation of "block, number, and number" or latitude and longitude information indicating a location.
After acquiring the vehicle's location information, the delivery management processing unit 512 may acquire, via the vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 513, a one-time password corresponding to information related to the delivery item to be delivered to the vehicle (e.g., parcel number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, and delivery destination vehicle ID, etc.), as well as opening and closing information.
In this way, the delivery management processing unit 512 can provide the delivery person terminal 60 with the information necessary for actual delivery as appropriate.

The vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 513 is a functional unit that transmits and receives information to be shared between the delivery management server 50 and the vehicle delivery management server 40.
Specifically, as described above, the vehicle delivery management server cooperation unit 513 instructs the vehicle delivery management communication unit 54 based on a request from the delivery plan creation unit 511 to transmit delivery destination information including the user name, user address, and delivery date and time (e.g., delivery date and time specified by the user) that specifies the vehicle as the delivery destination of the package to the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the security network 72. By doing so, if a vehicle ID corresponding to the user name and user address exists, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can receive predicted location information according to the delivery date and time of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID via the vehicle delivery management communication unit 54. Note that if there is no vehicle ID corresponding to the user name and user address, error information indicating this may be received and the user may be notified by e-mail or the like (e.g., via the consignee terminal 10). By doing so, the user may be prompted to correct the delivery location.
As described above, when a delivery person or a delivery vehicle delivers a package to a vehicle, the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 requests more accurate location information of the vehicle from the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the vehicle delivery management communication unit 54 based on a request from the delivery management processing unit 512, thereby being able to receive more accurate location information of the vehicle. After receiving the vehicle location information, the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 may receive a one-time password corresponding to the information related to the delivery item to be delivered to the vehicle (e.g., package number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, and delivery destination vehicle ID, etc.). After receiving the vehicle location information, the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 may obtain a one-time password based on a request from the delivery management processing unit 512.
The functional parts of the delivery management server 50, in particular the additional functions when the user, who is the consignee, designates the vehicle as the delivery location for the package, have been described above.

<Vehicle delivery management server 40>
Next, functional blocks of the vehicle delivery management server 40 serving as a vehicle delivery management device will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

As shown in Figure 6, the vehicle delivery management server 40 is composed of a control unit 41, a memory unit 42, a communication unit 43, a vehicle management communication unit 44, a delivery management communication unit 45, a display unit 46, and an input unit 47.
Here, the control unit 41, the storage unit 42, the communication unit 43, the display unit 46, and the input unit 47 are realized by hardware equivalent to the functional blocks of the same names contained in the above-mentioned vehicle management server 30, but have different functions and uses from the above-mentioned vehicle management server 30. Therefore, some of the redundant explanations about the hardware will be omitted, and the different functions and uses will be explained below.

The control unit 41 is composed of a processing device such as a microprocessor, and controls each part that constitutes the vehicle delivery management server 40. Details of the control unit 41 will be described later.

The storage unit 42 is composed of semiconductor memory and the like, and stores various programs such as control programs called firmware or operating systems, programs for performing vehicle delivery management processing, and also various information such as user information about the user who will be the consignee, location information of the vehicle used by the user, and vehicle door locking/unlocking history information. The figure illustrates the information stored in the storage unit 42, which is particularly related to the delivery management processing for delivering deliveries to vehicles, including user information 421, vehicle location information 422, parcel information 423, and vehicle door locking/unlocking history information 425.

The user information 421 includes, for example, a user name including a family name and a given name, a user address, and a vehicle ID of a vehicle used by the user as a delivery location. In addition to the vehicle ID, the information may include information about openings and closings of the vehicle used by the user as a delivery location (for example, information about windows, doors, hatchbacks, luggage compartments, etc. equipped in the vehicle). The information about the openings and closings may include opening information, particularly about the shape and size of the window openings.
The vehicle position information 422 includes information such as predicted position information of the vehicle for each vehicle ID within a predetermined period (for example, a predetermined time period such as the next week including today).
The package information 423 includes information related to the package (e.g., an item ID, information on the size of the package, information on whether the package is fragile, information on the appearance of the package, etc.). In addition, when a user designates a vehicle as the delivery destination (location) of the package, the package information 423 may include delivery destination information of the package (e.g., the user name of the delivery destination, the user address, the vehicle ID as the location and its opening/closing section, the scheduled delivery date and time, etc.).
The vehicle door lock/unlock history information 425 includes lock/unlock history information of the door for each vehicle ID.
As mentioned above, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can, for example, by working in cooperation with each vehicle management server 30 for each automobile manufacturer, obtain the user name and user address of the user who has registered the vehicle as a drop-off and delivery location at the delivery destination of the package, the vehicle's vehicle ID, the vehicle's past location information for each time period (especially parking location information and movement status), current location information, and locking and unlocking history information for the opening and closing parts of the vehicle.
In addition, the vehicle delivery management server 40, for example, by cooperating with each delivery management server 50 for each delivery company, can obtain user information (user name, user address, etc.) related to a user who has designated a vehicle as a drop-off and delivery location for the delivery destination of the package, delivery destination information for the package (e.g., the user name of the delivery destination, user address, vehicle ID as the drop-off and delivery location and its opening and closing, scheduled delivery date and time, etc.), and package information including information regarding the package (e.g., item ID, information on the size of the package, information on whether the package is fragile, information on the appearance of the package, etc.), and the progress of the delivery of the package to the vehicle when the package is actually delivered.
Based on the acquired information, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can provide the necessary information to each vehicle management server 30 and each delivery management server 50.

The communication unit 43 is realized with hardware equivalent to the communication unit 33 included in the vehicle management server 30, and realizes wireless communication with other devices (e.g., the consignee terminal 10, the delivery person terminal 60, etc.) via the communication network 70.
The vehicle management communication unit 44 is a communication unit for communicating with the vehicle management server 30 via the security network 71. The vehicle management communication unit 44 is used for transmitting and receiving vehicle information, such as user information, vehicle information, and vehicle position information, to and from the vehicle management server 30 in order to share such vehicle information.
Similarly, the delivery management communication unit 45 is a communication unit as a transmitting/receiving unit for communicating with the delivery management server 50 via the security network 72. The delivery management communication unit 432 is used for transmitting and receiving to and from the delivery management server 50 to share delivery information such as parcel information related to a parcel designated as a delivery location for which a vehicle is specified, delivery destination information, delivery person information, and delivery history information.
The display unit 46 and the input unit 47 are realized by the same hardware as the display unit 36 and the input unit 37 included in the vehicle management server 30.

Next, the control unit 41 will be described in detail. The control unit 41 is composed of a microprocessor having, for example, a CPU, RAM, ROM, and I/O. The CPU executes each program read from the ROM or memory unit 42, and during execution, reads information from the RAM, ROM, and memory unit 42, writes information to the RAM and memory unit 42, and transmits and receives signals to and from the communication unit 43. In this way, the processing in this embodiment is realized by the cooperation of hardware and software (programs).

As shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 41 includes, as functional blocks, a delivery vehicle registration unit 411, a vehicle management server linkage unit 412, a delivery management server linkage unit 413, a predicted location information calculation unit 414, a one-time password generation unit 415, a user notification information transmission unit 416, and an opening/closing control command generation unit 417.

As described above, when a user uses a vehicle as a location for leaving and delivering deliveries, the delivery vehicle registration unit 411 registers information input in advance by the user via the recipient terminal 10, such as the user name including the family name and given name, the user address, and the vehicle ID of the vehicle that the user will use as a location for leaving and delivering deliveries, as user information 421 in the memory unit 42.
In addition to the vehicle ID, openings and closings (e.g., windows, doors, hatchbacks, luggage compartments, etc.) that can be used as delivery locations in the vehicle may be registered as user information 421. When the vehicle is used as a delivery location for deliveries, the information may be applied as a default to all delivery companies that operate the delivery management server 50 that cooperates with the vehicle delivery management server 40.

The vehicle management server linking unit 412 is a functional unit that transmits and receives information to be shared between the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the vehicle management server 30, and links with the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 313 in the vehicle management server 30. In other words, it receives data sent from the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 313 in the vehicle management server 30, and conversely transmits specified data to the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 313 in the vehicle management server 30.

Specifically, the vehicle management server cooperation unit 412 instructs the vehicle management communication unit 44 to transmit vehicle information (e.g., user information and vehicle ID (which may include opening/closing information) registered as a drop-off and delivery location by the user who is the consignee to the vehicle management server 30 (vehicle delivery management server cooperation unit 313) via the security network 71, and the vehicle management server cooperation unit 412 determines whether or not a vehicle 20 with the vehicle ID is present via the vehicle management communication unit 44, and collects the location information of the vehicle if the vehicle 20 with the vehicle ID is present. Alternatively, The vehicle delivery management server 40 may be configured to be able to access the location information data stored in the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 313. In this way, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can obtain, for each vehicle 20 registered by a user as a location for leaving or delivering packages, the user name, user address, vehicle ID, location information of the vehicle for each time period in the past (particularly, parking location information and moving state) and current location information, and can calculate predicted location information (parking location information and moving state) of each vehicle 20 for each time period in the near future based on this information, as described below.
In addition, if the vehicle 20 with the vehicle ID registered as the delivery location is not present in the vehicle management server 30, the user notification information sending unit 416 described later may notify the user of this fact, for example to the consignee terminal 10, so that the user can make corrections.

In addition, when the delivery plan is finally set to leave the delivery at the vehicle 20, the vehicle management server linking unit 412 transmits information related to the delivery, such as the parcel number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, and delivery destination vehicle ID (including the opening and closing part information if the opening and closing part of the vehicle 20 for leaving and leaving the parcel (e.g., window, door, hatchback, luggage compartment, etc.) is specified), and the one-time password generated by the one-time password generating unit 415 described later, to the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle management communication unit 44. In this way, as described above, when the vehicle management server 30 (delivery person authentication unit 314) receives, for example, the parcel number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, and one-time password from the delivery person terminal 60 via the vehicle delivery management server 40 (or directly), it generates a hash value using a hash function based on the parcel number, vehicle ID (and its opening and closing part), the parcel number, delivery company ID, and delivery person ID received from the delivery person terminal 60 that have been acquired in advance, and if the hash value matches the one-time password, it can authenticate the delivery person as correct.

Furthermore, as described above, the vehicle management server linkage unit 412 can receive, via the vehicle management server 30, information to confirm that the delivery item has been stored in the vehicle 20 specified at the drop-off location by the opening/closing control device 22 of the vehicle 20, for example, locking/unlocking history information when the opening/closing part of the vehicle is locked/unlocked based on a request from the delivery person (time information when the opening/closing part is unlocked, time information when it is locked, and the delivery company ID and delivery person ID associated with the delivery person in the case of drop-off).
In addition, when the user locks or unlocks the opening/closing part with the vehicle key, the time information when the opening/closing part of the vehicle is unlocked and the time information when it is locked can be received via the vehicle management server 30.
In this way, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can determine whether the delivery item corresponding to the parcel number has been removed by the user or has been left there.

The delivery management server linking unit 413 is a functional unit that transmits and receives information to be shared between the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the delivery management server 50, and links with the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 in the delivery management server 50. In other words, it receives data transmitted via the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 in the delivery management server 50, and conversely transmits specified data to the vehicle delivery management server linking unit 513 in the delivery management server 50.

Specifically, as described above, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 receives, via the security network 72, the parcel information including user information (user name, user address, etc.) related to the user who designated the vehicle as the delivery location for the parcel delivery destination, delivery destination information of the parcel (e.g., the user name of the delivery destination, the user address, the vehicle ID as the delivery location and its opening and closing, and the scheduled delivery date and time, etc.), and information about the parcel (e.g., the item ID, information about the size of the parcel, information about whether the parcel is fragile, and information about the appearance of the parcel), which is transmitted from the delivery management server 50 via the security network 72, and determines whether or not there is a vehicle ID corresponding to the user name and user address. If there is a vehicle ID, the delivery management communication unit 432 instructs the delivery management communication unit 432 based on the vehicle location information stored in the storage unit 42 to transmit predicted location information according to the scheduled delivery date and time of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID via the security network 71. Here, as described above, the predicted location information may be, for example, location information occupying a predetermined range, rather than accurate location information. Note that, if there is no vehicle ID corresponding to the user name and user address, error information indicating that fact can be transmitted.
In this way, even if a vehicle is specified as the drop-off and delivery location, each delivery company can create a delivery plan without having information about the vehicle in each delivery management server 50. Also, for users, it is no longer necessary to enter into a contract for a delivery service in which the drop-off and delivery location is a vehicle with each individual delivery company, as in the conventional technology, and it becomes possible to easily use the vehicle drop-off and delivery service. Also, the delivery company can determine whether delivery to the vehicle is possible around the scheduled delivery date and time, and can create a more detailed delivery plan.
Furthermore, even if the vehicle is, for example, a one-box or two-box car that does not have a trunk as a separate luggage compartment like a three-box car such as a sedan, the opening and closing amount of the window can be controlled to deliver the package into the vehicle, preventing the delivery person from entering the vehicle, allowing the user to have the package delivered to the vehicle with peace of mind.

As described above, when a delivery person or a delivery vehicle delivers a package to a vehicle (more specifically, for example, before the delivery person delivers the package), in response to a request for more accurate location information of the vehicle received from the delivery management server 50 by the delivery management communication unit 432, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 can transmit the more accurate location information of the vehicle via the security network 72 by instructing the delivery management communication unit 432 on the basis of the vehicle location information stored in the storage unit 42. Note that the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 can refrain from providing the location information of the vehicle after delivering the package to the vehicle.
In this way, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 determines whether the vehicle location information is the minimum necessary, thereby enabling the vehicle location information to be sent to the delivery management server 50.
In this way, when creating a delivery plan, the delivery company obtains predicted vehicle location information (e.g., location information occupying a specified range) from the vehicle delivery management server 40, and when the delivery person delivers the package, the delivery company can obtain more accurate vehicle location information from the vehicle delivery management server 40, making it possible to obtain the information required for each purpose, and also respecting the user's privacy by making it impossible to obtain vehicle location information after delivery is completed.
In addition, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 may transmit a one-time password corresponding to the information related to the delivery item to be delivered to the vehicle (e.g., a parcel number, a delivery company ID, a delivery person ID, and a delivery destination vehicle ID, etc.) after transmitting the vehicle location information to the delivery management server 50. In addition, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 may transmit a one-time password based on a request from the delivery management server 50 after transmitting the vehicle location information to the delivery management server 50. Furthermore, after transmitting the one-time password, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 may record the end of transmission of the vehicle location information and the one-time password for the delivery item, for example, so as not to provide the vehicle location information related to the delivery item. In this way, the delivery management server cooperation unit 413 can at least not provide the vehicle location information after the delivery person is able to lock and unlock the opening and closing part of the vehicle.
In addition, after transmitting the location information, the delivery management server linkage unit 413 may, for example, record the end of transmission of the vehicle location information regarding the delivery piece, thereby not providing the location information of the vehicle related to the delivery piece.

The predicted location information calculation unit 414 calculates predicted location information of the vehicle for each vehicle ID registered as a delivery location by the consignee user based on the vehicle's location information data obtained by the vehicle management server linkage unit 412, and stores the predicted location information in the memory unit 42 as user information 421.
Specifically, based on the history information of the vehicle's past location information, the predicted location of the vehicle (e.g., parked location, moving status information indicating that the vehicle is moving, etc.) for each time period on each day of, for example, a week is calculated. When calculating the predicted location, the location information with the highest probability may be calculated as the predicted location based on probability. As described above, the predicted location information may be location information occupying a predetermined range, or more accurate location information.
As a result, as described above, the vehicle delivery management server 40 can store user information 421 in the memory unit 42, which includes the user name, user address, vehicle ID of the vehicle used by the user, predicted location information, etc.

As described above, the one-time password generation unit 415 generates a one-time password for authenticating the delivery person and the vehicle ID of the delivery destination vehicle based on information for each delivery item (including, for example, the parcel number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, etc.) obtained from the delivery management server 50, for example, using a hash function. The generated one-time password is transmitted, for example, to the vehicle management server 30, and, for example, to the delivery person terminal 60 via the delivery management server 50. The one-time password may also be transmitted to the opening/closing control device 22 of the vehicle 20 via the vehicle management server 30.

The user notification information transmission unit 416 creates user notification information that is a notification to the user, and notifies the user, for example, via the consignee terminal 10. The user notification information transmission unit 416 may notify the user notification information by using, for example, e-mail in a push method or a known function such as SNS.
Here, the user notification information includes information for notifying the user, for example, the consignee terminal 10, of the vehicle ID registered as the delivery location when the vehicle ID is not present in the vehicle management server 30. By doing so, the user may be allowed to correct the vehicle ID, etc.

The opening/closing control command generating unit 417 determines whether or not the parcel satisfies the conditions for delivery into the vehicle through the window opening of the vehicle based on the parcel information of the parcel to be delivered. Specifically, when the parcel is not fragile and the size of the parcel is smaller than the window opening of the vehicle, the opening/closing control command generating unit 417 may calculate the opening amount of the window based on the size of the parcel so that the opening amount is such that the parcel can be inserted into the vehicle through the window. More specifically, the opening amount of the window may be, for example, an opening amount that allows the parcel to be inserted and does not allow the delivery person to enter the vehicle.
On the other hand, if the package does not meet the conditions for delivery into the vehicle through the vehicle window opening, i.e., if the package is fragile or the size of the package is larger than the vehicle window opening, the opening/closing control command generating unit 417 decides to deliver the package into the vehicle through the vehicle door or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) instead of the window opening.

As described above as one embodiment, when controlling the opening and closing of an opening/closing part of a vehicle by remote control of the vehicle management server 30 based on a request from a delivery person, the opening and closing control command generating unit 417 may transmit opening and closing control instruction information for the windows of the vehicle, or opening and closing control instruction information for the doors of the vehicle or the trunk of the vehicle (e.g., a hatchback), to the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle management communication unit 44. In this way, the vehicle management server 30 can remotely control the opening and closing of the opening and closing part of the vehicle based on a request from the delivery person.
In addition, as described above as another embodiment, when the opening/closing control device 22 of the vehicle opens/closes the opening/closing part of the vehicle based on a direct instruction from the delivery person, the opening/closing control command generating unit 417 may transmit opening/closing control command information for the window of the vehicle, or opening/closing control command information for the door of the vehicle or the trunk of the vehicle (e.g., hatchback) to the delivery person terminal 60 via the communication unit 43. In this way, the opening/closing control device 22 of the vehicle can open/close the opening/closing part of the vehicle based on a request from the delivery person to open/close the opening/closing part of the vehicle. The opening/closing control command generating unit 417 may transmit opening/closing control command information for the vehicle to the delivery person terminal 60 via the delivery management server 50. In this way, the delivery person can request the opening/closing control device 22 of the vehicle to open/close the opening/closing part of the vehicle via the delivery person terminal 60 from the delivery person.
According to the opening/closing control command generating unit 417 described above, the window is opened or closed to a degree that allows the parcel to enter the vehicle, so the delivery person cannot enter the vehicle, and the user can have the parcel delivered to the vehicle with peace of mind. Even if the parcel is larger than the window opening, or if the parcel is fragile, the parcel can be delivered to the vehicle by opening, for example, the door or hatchback instead of the window, improving the user's convenience and allowing the user to use home delivery to the vehicle with peace of mind. In addition, the delivery company will no longer need to redeliver the parcel, which will lead to reduced delivery costs.

As described above, even if the vehicle management server 30 is operated and managed, for example, by each automobile manufacturer, and the delivery management server 50 is operated and managed, for example, by each delivery company, the vehicle delivery management server 40 enables the consignee user to specify a vehicle as the drop-off and delivery location for the package delivery address when purchasing goods by mail order from any electronic commerce site (EC site), without having to individually enter into contracts with multiple delivery companies for home delivery services to the vehicle.
In addition, the vehicle delivery management server 40 provides predicted location information of the vehicle (e.g., location information occupying a specified range) when the delivery company creates a delivery plan, and provides accurate location information of the vehicle when the delivery person delivers the package, making it possible to provide the information required for each purpose, and by not providing vehicle location information after delivery is completed, it is possible to respect the user's privacy.
Furthermore, even if the vehicle designated as the delivery location is, for example, a one-box car or two-box car that does not have a trunk as a separate luggage compartment like a three-box car such as a sedan, the package can be delivered into the vehicle via the mechanism by controlling the opening and closing amount of the window.In this case, the delivery person cannot enter the vehicle, so the user can rest assured that the package will be delivered to the vehicle.

<Delivery Personnel Terminal 60>
The delivery person terminal 60 is a terminal for a delivery person to communicate with the delivery management server 50. As the delivery person terminal 60, a known terminal such as a PC, a tablet terminal, a smartphone, or a mobile terminal may be used.
As shown in FIG. 7, the deliveryman terminal 60 is configured to include at least a control unit 61, a memory unit 62, a communication unit 63, a short-range communication unit 64, a display unit 66, and an input unit 67.
The control unit 61 is composed of an arithmetic processing device such as a microprocessor, and controls each part constituting the delivery member terminal 60. The control unit 61 will be described in detail later.
The storage unit 62 is composed of a semiconductor memory or the like, and may store various programs such as a control program called firmware or an operating system, a registration processing program for registering vehicle information as a delivery location to the vehicle delivery management server 40, and a program for acquiring notification information from the vehicle delivery management server 40 and the delivery management server 50 and presenting it to the user who is the consignee. The storage unit 12 may also store data such as a one-time password transmitted from the vehicle delivery management server 40.
The communication unit 63 has a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and the like, and is used when communicating with other devices via the communication network 70 in accordance with standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G, 5G, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark).
The short-distance communication unit 64 is a part for performing non-contact short-distance communication conforming to standards such as NFC (Near Field Communication) and Bluetooth (registered trademark). For example, it is used when performing short-distance communication for locking and unlocking the opening and closing part by directly transmitting one-time password information from the deliveryman terminal 60 to the opening and closing control device 22 of the vehicle 20.
The display unit 66 is configured with a display device such as a liquid crystal display, an organic electroluminescence panel, etc. The display unit 66 receives an instruction from the control unit 61 and displays an image.
The input unit 67 is composed of an input device (not shown) such as a physical switch called a numeric keypad or a touch panel provided over the display surface of the display unit 66 .

Next, the control unit 61 will be described in detail. The control unit 11 is composed of a microprocessor having, for example, a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and an I/O. The CPU executes each program read from the ROM or the storage unit 62, and during execution, for example, reads information from the RAM, ROM, and storage unit 62, writes information to the RAM and storage unit 62, and transmits and receives signals to and from the communication unit 63, the display unit 66, and the input unit 67. In this way, the processing in this embodiment is realized by the cooperation of the hardware and the software (programs).
The control unit 61 executes each program to cause the deliveryman terminal 60 to function as a predetermined means (hereinafter collectively referred to as a "deliveryman information management unit"). The control unit 61 also executes each program for managing deliveryman information to cause the deliveryman terminal 60 to execute a predetermined step (hereinafter collectively referred to as a "deliveryman information management step").
Hereinafter, the functions of the control unit 61 will be described from the perspective of the delivery person information management unit. Note that a description from the perspective of the delivery person information management steps (method) will be omitted because it can be explained by replacing "unit" with "step".

As shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 61 includes a delivery-related information acquisition unit 611 and an opening/closing unit lock/unlock request unit 612.

The delivery-related information acquisition unit 611 acquires, from the delivery management server 50 via the communication unit 63, package information (e.g., package number, package size information, information on whether the package is fragile or not, package appearance information, etc.) relating to the package handled by the delivery person, delivery destination information (e.g., the delivery destination's user name, user address, package delivery destination, drop-off location, delivery date and time, etc.).
In addition, when a delivery person makes an actual delivery, the delivery-related information acquisition unit 611 acquires from the delivery management server 50 via the communication unit 63, for parcels for which a vehicle is to be used as a drop-off location, information such as the location information of the vehicle and a one-time password required to lock and unlock the opening and closing parts of the vehicle, as well as opening and closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or opening and closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.).

As one embodiment, the opening/closing section locking/unlocking request unit 612 makes a request to the vehicle management server 30 for control of opening/closing of an opening/closing section of the vehicle based on a one-time password and opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (e.g., hatchback), via the delivery person terminal 60. In other words, the vehicle management server 30 remotely executes control of opening/closing of the opening/closing section of the vehicle.
In another embodiment, the opening/closing section locking/unlocking request unit 612 requests the opening/closing control of the opening/closing section by directly transmitting the package number, the delivery company ID, the delivery person ID, authentication information including a one-time password, and opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or the opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) to the opening/closing control device 22. Next, the functions in each embodiment will be described individually.

First, a function for requesting the vehicle management server 30 to control the opening and closing of an opening/closing part of the vehicle will be described.
The opening/closing section lock/unlock request unit 612 transmits, via the communication unit 63, for example, the parcel number, the delivery company ID, the delivery person ID, the vehicle ID (and its opening/closing section), a one-time password, and opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) to the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle delivery management server 40 (or directly). In this way, as described above, the vehicle management server 30 remotely controls the opening/closing of the opening/closing section of the vehicle only when it has authenticated that the delivery person is a legitimate delivery person.

Next, we will explain the function of locking and unlocking the opening and closing parts by directly sending one-time information and opening and closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or opening and closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) from the delivery person's terminal 60 to the vehicle opening and closing control device 22.
The opening/closing section locking/unlocking requesting section 612 transmits, for example, the parcel number, the delivery company ID, the delivery person ID, the vehicle ID (and its opening/closing section), a one-time password, and opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) to the vehicle (opening/closing control device 22) via the short-range communication section 64. In this way, as described above, the opening/closing control device 22 locks or unlocks the opening/closing section of the vehicle only when it has been authenticated that the delivery person is a legitimate delivery person.
The functions of the vehicle delivery management server 40 as a vehicle delivery management device have been described above together with the functions of the delivery management system 1 .

<Operation of this embodiment>
Next, the operation of one example of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 8. Here, the vehicle registered by the user in the vehicle delivery management server 40 as a drop-off and delivery location is, for example, a vehicle that does not have an opening separated from the vehicle interior space, as described above. Specifically, the processing flow shown in Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vehicle delivery management server 40 until the vehicle delivery management server 40 transmits (for example, via the delivery management server 50) to the delivery person terminal 60 the location information of the vehicle at the delivery date and time of the vehicle, the one-time password related to the delivery item, and the opening and closing control instruction information of the vehicle window, or the opening and closing control instruction information of the vehicle door or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) of the vehicle, after the user registers the vehicle in the vehicle delivery management server 40 as a drop-off and delivery location, when the user purchases a product from an electronic commerce site (EC site), specifies the vehicle as the delivery destination of the product, and sets a delivery company of the product on the EC site.

Referring to FIG. 8, in step S10, the vehicle delivery management server 40 receives delivery destination information from the delivery management server 50, which includes the user name and address of the user who specified the vehicle as the delivery location at the package delivery destination, and the delivery date and time (e.g., the delivery date and time specified by the user).

In step S11, the vehicle delivery management server 40 determines whether or not a corresponding vehicle ID is registered based on the user name and user address. If the vehicle ID is registered, the process proceeds to step S13. If the vehicle ID is not registered, the process proceeds to step S12.

In step S12, the vehicle delivery management server 40 sends error information indicating that the vehicle is not registered to the delivery management server 50. This ends the process.

In step S13, the vehicle delivery management server 40 transmits to the delivery management server 50 predicted location information corresponding to the scheduled delivery date and time of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID based on the vehicle location information stored in the memory unit 42. At this time, information on the predicted location information that has already been transmitted may be stored.

In step S14, the vehicle delivery management server 40 receives a request for accurate location information of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID for which predicted location information has been transmitted from the delivery management server 50.

In step S15, the vehicle delivery management server 40 transmits the location information of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID during the delivery date and time period based on the vehicle location information stored in the memory unit 42 to the delivery management server 50. At this time, information on the location information that has already been transmitted may be stored.

Then, in step S16, the vehicle delivery management server 40 receives from the delivery management server 50 information related to the delivery person who will deliver the parcel to the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle ID for which the location information has been transmitted and for which the vehicle has been designated as the drop-off and delivery location at the parcel delivery destination (e.g., parcel number, delivery company ID, delivery person ID, and delivery destination vehicle ID, etc.) and parcel information (e.g., parcel number, information on the size of the parcel, information on whether the parcel is fragile, information on the appearance of the parcel, etc.).

In step S17, the vehicle delivery management server 40 creates information such as the vehicle's location and a one-time password required to lock and unlock the vehicle's door, as well as vehicle window opening/closing control instruction information or vehicle door or vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) opening/closing control instruction information for the package for which the vehicle is to be used as a drop-off and delivery location.

In step S18, the vehicle delivery management server 40 transmits the one-time password corresponding to the delivery item created in step S17 and opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.) to the delivery person terminal 60 (e.g., via the delivery management server 50).
In addition, the vehicle delivery management server 40 transmits the one-time password to the opening/closing control device 22 of the vehicle.

In step S19, the vehicle delivery management server 40 records the completion of transmission of the one-time password related to the delivery item and the opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle windows, or the opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle doors or the vehicle trunk (hatchback, etc.). This ends the process.

According to the present embodiment described above, even if a user specifies a vehicle as the delivery destination of a package, the delivery company can create a delivery plan without possessing information about the vehicle. In addition, the user, who is the consignee, no longer needs to enter into contracts with multiple delivery companies for home delivery services to the vehicle, and can easily use the delivery receipt service.

<Modification>
The above-described embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the present invention can be implemented in various modified forms without departing from the gist of the present invention.
For example, the functional configurations in Figures 2 to 7 are merely examples and do not limit the functional configuration of this embodiment. In other words, it is sufficient for each device to have a function capable of executing a series of processes related to the functions of the present invention as a whole, and the functional blocks used to realize these functions are not limited to the examples in Figures 2 to 7.
For example, if the vehicle management server 30 is composed only of a server managed by a specific automobile manufacturer, the vehicle management server 30 may have the functions of the vehicle delivery management server 40.
In addition, the above-described embodiment may be modified, for example, as in the modified examples described below. Note that the modified examples described below may be further combined.

<Second Modification>
The system configuration in the above-described embodiment is merely an example, and may be modified as appropriate. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the vehicle delivery management server 40 as a vehicle delivery management device is described as being realized by one server device or the like, but the functions of the vehicle delivery management server 40 may be appropriately distributed to multiple server devices, and the vehicle delivery management server 40 may be realized as a distributed processing system. In addition, the functions of the vehicle delivery management server 40 may be realized by using a virtual server function or the like on the cloud.

<Third Modification>
The network configuration in the above embodiment is merely an example and may be changed as appropriate. For example, in the above embodiment, the security network 71 and the security network 72 may be realized not only by a dedicated line but also by a VPN (Virtual Private Network) or the like.

<Fourth Modification>
In the above embodiment, the vehicle designation unit 111 of the consignee terminal 10 is configured to register the delivery information to the vehicle delivery management server 40, but this is not limited to the above. The vehicle designation unit 111 may request the vehicle management server 30 to register the vehicle ID to be specified as the delivery location to the vehicle delivery management server 40. At this time, the input of the user name and user address can be omitted, and the request can be made to register based on the user name and user address already registered with the vehicle management server 30. This can prevent input errors of the user name and user information from occurring, compared to when registering directly to the vehicle delivery management server 40.
In this case, the vehicle management server 30 may register delivery information to the vehicle delivery management server 40 (delivery vehicle registration unit 411) via the vehicle delivery management communication unit 34, for example.
Similarly, in the above embodiment, the notification information acquisition unit 112 of the consignee terminal 10 is configured to acquire notification information notified from the vehicle delivery management server 40, but is not limited to this. The notification information acquisition unit 112 may acquire notification information notified from the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the vehicle management server 30.

<Fifth Modification>
In the above embodiment, the opening/closing control command generating unit 417 of the vehicle delivery management server 40 transmits opening/closing control command information for the vehicle's windows, or opening/closing control command information for the vehicle's doors or the vehicle's trunk (e.g., hatchback) to the vehicle management server 30 via the vehicle management communication unit 44, thereby requesting the vehicle management server 30 to control the opening/closing of the vehicle's opening/closing part by remote control, but this is not limited to the above. The opening/closing control command generating unit 417 of the vehicle delivery management server 40 may remotely control the vehicle's opening/closing control device 22 via the communication unit 43 based on the opening/closing control command information for the vehicle's windows, or opening/closing control command information for the vehicle's doors or the vehicle's trunk (e.g., hatchback).

<Sixth Modification>
In the above embodiment, the opening/closing section locking/unlocking request unit 612 of the delivery person terminal 60 is configured to transmit a request for remote opening/closing control to the vehicle management server 30 based on the opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle's windows, or the opening/closing control instruction information for the vehicle's doors or the vehicle's trunk (e.g., hatchback), but this is not limiting. The opening/closing section locking/unlocking request unit 612 of the delivery person terminal 60 may directly transmit a request for remote opening/closing control to the vehicle delivery management server 40.

<Seventh Modification>
In the above embodiment, the locking/unlocking information transmitting unit 2213 of the opening/closing control device 22 equipped in the vehicle 20 transmits the parcel number of the delivery piece, the time information when the opening/closing part is unlocked, and the time information when the opening/closing part is locked when the opening/closing part is locked or unlocked, and transmits the time information when the opening/closing part is unlocked and the time information when the opening/closing part is locked when the user locks or unlocks the opening/closing part with the vehicle key to the vehicle delivery management server 40 via the vehicle management server 30, but this is not limited to the above. The locking/unlocking information transmitting unit 2213 may transmit this information directly to the vehicle delivery management server 40.

<Hardware and software>
Each of the devices included in the delivery management system 1, including the vehicle delivery management server 40, can be realized by hardware, software, or a combination of these. In addition, the vehicle delivery management method carried out by the cooperation of each of the devices included in the delivery management system 1 can also be realized by hardware, software, or a combination of these. Here, "realized by software" means that it is realized by a computer reading and executing a program.

The program can be stored and supplied to the computer using various types of non-transitory computer readable media. Non-transitory computer readable media include various types of tangible storage media. Examples of non-transitory computer readable media include magnetic recording media (e.g., flexible disks, magnetic tapes, hard disk drives), magneto-optical recording media (e.g., magneto-optical disks), CD-ROMs (Read Only Memory), CD-Rs, CD-R/Ws, and semiconductor memories (e.g., mask ROMs, PROMs (Programmable ROMs), EPROMs (Erasable PROMs), flash ROMs, and RAMs (random access memories)). The program may also be supplied to the computer by various types of transitory computer readable media. Examples of transitory computer readable media include electrical signals, optical signals, and electromagnetic waves. The transitory computer readable media can supply the program to the computer via wired communication paths such as electric wires and optical fibers, or wireless communication paths.

LIST OF SYMBOLS 1 Delivery management system 10 Consignee terminal 11 Control unit 111 Vehicle designation unit 112 Notification information acquisition unit 12 Memory unit 13 Communication unit 16 Display unit 17 Input unit 20 Vehicle 21 Vehicle-mounted device 211 Control unit 2111 Position information transmission unit 212 Memory unit 22 Opening/closing control device 221 Control unit 2211 Authentication unit 2212 Locking/unlocking control unit 2213 Locking/unlocking information transmission unit 222 Memory unit 223 Communication unit 224 Short-range communication unit 30 Vehicle management server 31 Control unit 311 Position information acquisition unit 312 Stay determination unit 313 Vehicle delivery management server cooperation unit 314 Delivery person authentication unit 315 Locking/unlocking remote control unit 33 Communication unit 34 Vehicle delivery management communication unit 40 Vehicle delivery management server 41 Control unit 411 Delivery vehicle registration unit 412 Vehicle management server linkage unit 413 Delivery management server linkage unit 414 Predicted location information calculation unit 415 One-time password generation unit 416 User notification information transmission unit 417 Opening/closing control command generation unit 42 Memory unit 43 Communication unit 44 Vehicle management communication unit 45 Delivery management communication unit 50 Delivery management server 51 Control unit 511 Delivery plan creation unit 512 Delivery management processing unit 513 Vehicle delivery management server linkage unit 52 Memory unit 53 Communication unit 54 Vehicle delivery management communication unit 60 Delivery person terminal 61 Control unit 611 Delivery related information acquisition unit 612 Opening/closing unit locking/unlocking request unit 62 Memory unit 63 Communication unit 64 Short-range communication unit 70 Communication network 71 Security network 72 Security network

Claims (4)

A user information storage unit in which user names, vehicle IDs of vehicles used by the users, and vehicle window opening information are stored as user information relating to a plurality of users who are consignees;
a parcel information storage unit for storing parcel information including information on the delivery destination and size of parcels to be delivered;
a communication unit capable of transmitting a command for controlling opening and closing of a window of a vehicle used by the user;
a control unit that, when the delivery destination is a vehicle used by the user, instructs the communication unit to transmit a command to control the opening/closing amount of the window so that the window has an opening that allows the package to be inserted into the vehicle through the window, based on the size of the package in the package information;
The control unit further
A vehicle delivery management device characterized by generating a one-time password for mutually authenticating the delivery person and the vehicle ID based on information relating to at least the parcel number of the parcel, the delivery company ID, the delivery person ID, the vehicle ID, and the openings of the vehicle at a specified delivery date and time, and authenticating the delivery person based on the one-time password for each parcel to be delivered, thereby instructing the communication unit to send a command to control the amount the window is opened or closed . The communication unit is further capable of transmitting a command for controlling unlocking of a door or a luggage compartment of the vehicle,
The vehicle delivery management device of claim 1, further characterized in that the control unit further instructs the communication unit to send a command to control unlocking the door or luggage compartment when the size of the parcel in the parcel information is larger than the window opening of the vehicle. The package information storage unit further includes fragile item information of the package to be delivered,
The communication unit is further capable of transmitting a command for controlling unlocking of a door or a luggage compartment of the vehicle,
The vehicle delivery management device of claim 1, characterized in that the control unit further instructs the communication unit to send a command to control unlocking the door or luggage compartment when the luggage information includes fragile item information. 1. A computer-implemented method for managing vehicle deliveries, comprising:
A user information storage step of storing user names, vehicle IDs of vehicles used by the users, and vehicle window opening information as user information related to a plurality of users who are consignees;
a parcel information storage step of storing parcel information including information on a delivery destination and size of a parcel to be delivered;
a communication step of transmitting a command for controlling opening and closing of a window of a vehicle used by the user;
a control step of instructing, when the delivery destination is a vehicle used by the user, to transmit a command to control the opening/closing amount of the window in the communication step so that the window has an opening that allows the package to be put into the vehicle through the window, based on the size of the package in the package information;
The vehicle delivery management method further includes a step of generating a one-time password for mutually authenticating the delivery person and the vehicle ID based on information relating at least the parcel number of the parcel, the delivery company ID, the delivery person ID, the vehicle ID and the openings of the vehicle at a specified delivery date and time, and by authenticating the delivery person based on the one-time password for each parcel to be delivered, the method instructs the sending of a command to control the opening and closing amount of the window in the communication step .

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