Information collection system

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an information collection system. The information collection system collects vehicle status information of each of a plurality of vehicles. Identification information and vehicle status information for determining a target vehicle among a plurality of vehicles are sent by a first communication device. Public location information and identification information are sent by a second communication device, and the public location information is set as location information of the target vehicle based on alternative location information that alternatively indicates the location of the target vehicle and public information that indicates a disclosure range of the alternative location information. The information collection system comprises: an acquisition unit that acquires identification information, vehicle status information, and public location information; and a computing device that matches the vehicle status information with the public location information based on the identification information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information collection system. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles have become popular. The power storage devices installed in these vehicles for driving may deteriorate due to the passage of time or repeated charging and discharging. Therefore, in order to accurately estimate the deterioration state of the power storage device, it is considered to collect "power storage device information" related to the state or usage of the power storage device in a server installed outside the vehicle. By collecting the power storage device information and analyzing it by the server, for example, it is possible to estimate the life of the power storage device or detect the malfunction of the power storage device in advance.

[0003] However, when the accuracy of the vehicle's position information is high, an excessively detailed driving history of the vehicle (in other words, information on the user's movement path) is collected, and the user's privacy may not be sufficiently protected.

[0004] Therefore, in the information collection system described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2018-181323, at least a portion of the user address information is associated with the “battery information” as the location information of the vehicle 10 . Summary of the invention

[0005] In the above-mentioned information collection system, at least a part of the user's address information is disclosed to a third party, but the range of the address that each user permits to be disclosed is expected to be different.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide an information collection system that collects vehicle state information related to a vehicle in consideration of a disclosure range of position information that differs for each user.

[0007] The present disclosure provides an information collection system for collecting vehicle status information of each of a plurality of vehicles, wherein identification information and vehicle status information for determining a target vehicle among the plurality of vehicles are sent by a first communication device, and public location information and identification information are sent by a second communication device, wherein the public location information is set as the location information of the target vehicle based on alternative location information that replaces the location of the target vehicle and public information that represents the disclosure range of the alternative location information, and the information collection system comprises: an acquisition unit that acquires identification information, vehicle status information, and public location information; and a computing device that matches the vehicle status information with the public location information based on the identification information.

[0008] According to the above information collection system, it is possible to collect vehicle state information related to the vehicle in consideration of the disclosure range of the position information which is different for each user.

[0009] The alternative location information is at least one of an address of a user of the target vehicle or an address of a sales store where the user purchased the target vehicle. The user's address and the sales store's address are represented by a postal code. The public location information includes information indicating the number of digits of the public postal code.

[0010] According to the information disclosure system of the present disclosure, it is possible to collect vehicle state information related to a vehicle in consideration of the disclosure range of position information that is different for each user. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like symbols represent like elements, and in which:

[0012] Figure 1 1 is a schematic diagram schematically showing the information collection system 1 according to the present embodiment.

[0013] Figure 2 It is a diagram showing the configuration of the information collecting system 1 in more detail.

[0014] Figure 3 2 is a diagram schematically showing the initial information database 33 .

[0015] Figure 4 Schematic diagram schematically showing the customer information database 34 .

[0016] Figure 5 Schematically shows an example of marking address information LI1.

[0017] Figure 6 is a diagram schematically showing public information OI.

[0018] Figure 7 This is a first example schematically showing a process of generating the public location information LI3.

[0019] Figure 8 This is a second example schematically showing the generation process of the public location information LI3.

[0020] Fig. 9 This is a diagram showing an example of the data format of the collected data CI(n)-10 in the first embodiment.

[0021] Fig.10 It is a schematic diagram showing the registration information I6 ( 1 ) to I6 (n) stored in the registration information database 312 .

[0022] Fig.11 is a schematic diagram showing a process of generating the combined information X. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] use Figures 1 to 11 , the information collection system 1 of this embodiment is described. Figures 1 to 11 The same or substantially the same structures among the structures shown are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated descriptions are omitted.

[0024] <Structure of battery information collection system>

[0025] Figure 1 1 is a schematic diagram schematically showing the information collection system 1 according to the present embodiment. The information collection system 1 includes a vehicle 10 , a plurality of vehicles 20 , a terminal 17 of a store 15 , a terminal 18 of a store 16 , and a server 30 .

[0026] The vehicles 10 and 20 are electric vehicles. The vehicles 10 and 20 are configured to be able to communicate with the server 30 or to be able to communicate bidirectionally. Thus, the server 30 collects vehicle state information (battery information) of the assembled battery 110 from the vehicle 10 and each of the plurality of vehicles 20 .

[0027] Each of the sales stores 15 is a sales store for the vehicle 10, and the sales store 16 is a sales store for the vehicle 20. The sales store 15 is provided with a terminal 17, and the sales store 16 is provided with a terminal 18. In addition, the vehicle 10 is purchased by the purchaser 11 at the sales store 15.

[0028] The terminals 17 and 18 are configured to be able to communicate with the server 30 or to be able to communicate bidirectionally. The terminals 17 and 18 transmit various input information to the server 30 .

[0029] Figure 2 1 is a diagram showing the structure of the information collection system 1 in more detail. The terminal 17 and the terminal 18 basically have the same structure. Each vehicle 20 has a basically the same structure as the vehicle 10. Figure 2 In the figure, the terminal 18 and the vehicle 20 are omitted, and the configurations of the terminal 17 and the vehicle 10 are representatively described.

[0030] The vehicle 10 includes an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 100, a battery pack 110, a monitoring device 120, a navigation device 130, and a communication module 140. The ECU 100, the monitoring device 120, the navigation device 130, and the communication module 140 are connected to each other via a wired vehicle network 150 such as a CAN (Controller Area Network).

[0031] As described above, the battery pack 110 is configured to include a plurality of battery cells (not shown) such as lithium-ion secondary batteries or nickel-metal hydride batteries. Although not shown, the battery pack 110 supplies driving power to the electric generator via a power control unit (PCU). The electric generator can also generate power through regenerative braking. The AC power generated by the electric generator is converted into DC power by the power control unit and charged to the battery pack 110.

[0032] The monitoring device 120 is provided to monitor the state of the assembled battery 110, and is configured to include a voltage sensor 121, a current sensor 122, and a temperature sensor 123. The voltage sensor 121 detects a voltage Vb of the assembled battery 110. The current sensor 122 detects a current Ib input and output to the assembled battery 110. The temperature sensor 123 detects a temperature Tb of the assembled battery 110. The detection results of each sensor are transmitted to the ECU 100 via the in-vehicle network 150.

[0033] The navigation device 130 includes a GPS receiver 131 for determining the position of the vehicle 10 based on radio waves from an artificial satellite (not shown). The navigation device 130 uses the position information (GPS information) of the vehicle 10 determined by the GPS receiver 131 to perform various navigation processes of the vehicle 10. More specifically, the navigation device 130 displays the current position of the vehicle 10 on a navigation screen (not shown) by overlapping a road map of the surroundings of the vehicle 10 based on the GPS information of the vehicle 10 and road map data stored in a memory (not shown). In addition, the navigation device 130 guides a recommended route from the current position of the vehicle 10 to the destination. The position information of the vehicle 10 is also output to the ECU 100 via the in-vehicle network 150.

[0034] The communication module 140 is a vehicle-mounted DCM (DCM: Data Communication Module) configured so that the ECU 100 and the server 30 can communicate bidirectionally. The communication method of the communication module 140 is not particularly limited, and for example, it may be a fifth-generation mobile communication or a communication method with a relatively low communication speed such as a third-generation mobile communication. In addition, in Embodiment 1, the communication module 140 is equivalent to the "communication machine" of the present disclosure.

[0035] ECU 100 includes CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, memory 102, input / output buffer 103 and timer 104. ECU 100 controls PCU (not shown) to charge and discharge the assembled battery 110 as desired based on the detection result obtained by monitoring device 120, and generates "battery information".

[0036] The battery information means all information related to the state and usage of the assembled battery 110. The details will be described later. As an example, the battery information may include information (voltage information, current information, and temperature information) detected by each sensor included in the monitoring device 120 and SOC (State Of Charge) information of the assembled battery 110 inferred from the information. The battery information generated by the ECU 100 is transmitted to the server 30 via the communication module 140. The details of the battery information will be described later. In addition, in the present embodiment, as an example of "vehicle state information", an example of using "battery information" is described, but as "vehicle state information", information related to the engine, etc. may also be used.

[0037] The terminal 17 includes an input device 21, a storage device 22, and a computing device 23. The input device 21 is a device that an input person 25 of the store 15 operates to input various information into the terminal 17.

[0038] The storage device 22 stores an initial information database 33 and a customer information database 34. The initial information database 33 stores initial information I1 of vehicles handled at the sales store 15. The customer information database 34 stores information on purchasers who purchased vehicles at the sales store 15.

[0039] Figure 3 Schematic diagram schematically showing the initial information database 33. The initial information database 33 contains initial information I1 of each vehicle. Each initial information I1 includes a vehicle ID and a communication device (identification information) ID of the communication module 140. Figure 3 , the initial information I1 ( 10 ) represents the initial information of the vehicle 10 .

[0040] Such initial information I1 is input by an inputter 25 of the store 15 using the input device 21 and is stored in the storage device 22 .

[0041] Figure 4 : is a schematic diagram schematically showing a customer information database 34. In the customer information database 34, a plurality of customer information I3 is stored. For example, customer information I3 (10) is customer information of a purchaser 11 who purchased a vehicle 10. The customer information I3 includes a vehicle ID of the purchased vehicle, a communication device ID, address information LI1 of the purchaser, store address information LI2 of the sales store where the vehicle was purchased, and public information OI.

[0042] When the purchaser allows a third party to use the information related to the purchased vehicle 10, the purchaser specifies the scope of disclosure of the address information LI1 and the store address information LI2 and which address information of the address information LI1 or the store address information LI2 is to be disclosed. Then, the public information OI includes information that specifies the scope of disclosure of the address information LI1 and the store address information LI2 and which address information of the address information LI1 or the store address information LI2 is to be disclosed as location information related to the vehicle 10. In the present embodiment, the address information LI1 and the store address information LI2 are represented by a postal code. In addition, the postal code is an example and may be expressed by other numerical values.

[0043] Figure 5 1 is a diagram schematically showing an example of marking address information LI1. Figure 5 In the example shown, address information LI1 is represented by a 6-digit numerical value. The numerical value A, which is the first two digits, represents, for example, "province". The numerical value B represents "city", and the numerical value C represents "street". In addition, store address information LI2 is also represented in the same way as address information LI1.

[0044] Figure 6 Schematic diagram schematically showing public information OI. Public information OI includes range information RI and selection information SI. Selection information SI is information indicating which address information of address information LI1 and store address information LI2 is disclosed to a third party as vehicle location information. Range information RI is information indicating the number of digits to be disclosed in the postal code of the selected address.

[0045] The purchaser 11 can select which address information LI1 or store address information LI2 to disclose to a third party as location information of the purchased vehicle 10. Therefore, the purchaser 11 can prevent his current location, movement path, etc. from being known to a third party when using the vehicle 10.

[0046] In this way, the address information LI1 and the store address information LI2 are "alternative location information I5" that alternatively indicates the location of the vehicle 10. In addition, in the present embodiment, as the alternative location information I5, either the address information LI1 or the store address information LI2 is included, but it may be at least one of the address information LI1 and the store address information LI2.

[0047] The purchaser 11 can select from a plurality of options as the range to be disclosed. The first option is an option to disclose only the numerical value A. The second option is an option to disclose the numerical values ​​A and B (the numerical value C is not disclosed). The third option is an option to disclose the numerical values ​​A, B, and C. The range information RI stores information on the option selected by the purchaser 11.

[0048] The purchaser who purchases the vehicle decides the content of the public information OI. Then, when the purchaser 11 purchases the vehicle 10, the inputter 25 of the sales store 15 inputs the content into the terminal 17. The input public information OI is accumulated in the customer information database 34.

[0049] Here, the calculation device 23 generates public position information LI3 from the alternative position information I5 and the public information OI.

[0050] Figure 7 This is a first example schematically showing the process of generating the public location information LI3. Figure 7 In the example shown, it is assumed that the store address information LI2 is selected in the selection information SI and the second option is selected in the range information RI. The calculation device 23 deletes the address information LI1 from the alternative position information I5 and sets the value C of the address information LI1 to a blank.

[0051] In this way, the computing device 23 generates the public position information LI3. Then, the computing device 23 combines the public position information LI3 with the vehicle ID and the communication device ID of the vehicle to generate the registration information I6.

[0052] Figure 8 This is a second example schematically showing the process of generating the public location information LI3. Figure 8 In the example shown, it is assumed that the address information LI1 is selected in the selection information SI, and the first option is selected in the range information RI.

[0053] The calculation device 23 deletes the store address information LI2 and sets the numerical value A and the numerical value B of the address information LI1 to blank.

[0054] Then, the calculation device 23 generates the public position information LI3. Then, the calculation device 23 combines the public position information LI3 with the vehicle ID and the communication device ID of the vehicle to generate the registration information I6.

[0055] Then, return to Figure 2 , the computing device 23 sends the registration information I6 from the communication device 24 to the server 30.

[0056] The server 30 further includes, for example, a computing device 300 as an application server, a storage device 310, and a communication device 320. The storage device 310 includes a battery information database 311 and a registration information database 312, which are database servers.

[0057] The battery information database 311 stores combined information X combining the battery information (record) of the assembled battery 110 received from the ECU 100 of the vehicle 10 with the public location information LI3 of the vehicle 10 in accordance with an instruction from the computing device 300. The combined information X will be described in detail later.

[0058] The communication device 320 is configured to perform bidirectional data communication with the communication module 140 mounted on the vehicle 10. The computing device 300 collects battery information of the vehicle 10 via the communication device 320 and stores the collected battery information in the battery information database 311. The battery information will be described in more detail below.

[0059] <Battery Information>

[0060] The battery information may include not only the voltage information, current information, temperature information, and SOC information described above, but also information on an index value indicating the degree of degradation of the assembled battery 110 .

[0061] Generally speaking, as the assembled battery deteriorates over time or due to repeated charge and discharge, the full charge capacity of the assembled battery decreases and the internal resistance of the assembled battery increases. Therefore, the battery information may include one or both of the full charge capacity and the internal resistance of the assembled battery 110 as an indicator value indicating the degree of deterioration of the assembled battery 110. As a method for calculating the full charge capacity and the internal resistance of the assembled battery, a known method can be used, and therefore, it will not be described again here.

[0062] In addition, when the assembled battery 110 is an assembled battery of lithium ion secondary batteries, the concentration distribution of lithium ions in the electrolyte may deteriorate due to a shift caused by continuous charge and discharge at a large current (so-called high-rate degradation). The degree of the high-rate degradation can be quantitatively evaluated (for details, refer to International Publication No. 2013 / 046263, for example). The battery information may also include information related to the evaluation value indicating the degree of the high-rate degradation of the assembled battery 110.

[0063] By collecting information on such index values ​​indicating the degree of degradation of the assembled battery 110 (full charge capacity, internal resistance, index value of high rate degradation) as battery information, it is possible to provide users with services such as estimating the life of the assembled battery 110 or detecting in advance the failure of the assembled battery 110. For example, if the degradation of the assembled battery 110 has progressed to a certain extent, the user can be advised to have the assembled battery 110 inspected. In addition, if the degradation of the assembled battery 110 has further progressed, the user can be advised to replace the assembled battery 110.

[0064] Furthermore, it is possible to determine what treatment should be performed on the collected battery pack 110 based on the battery information. For example, when the index value indicates that the degradation of the collected battery pack 110 is relatively not advanced, it can be determined that the collected battery pack 110 should be reused (reused or rebuilt) after being refurbished (for example, after a performance recovery process for restoring the full charge capacity). On the other hand, when the index value indicates that the degradation of the collected battery pack 110 is greatly advanced, it can be determined that the collected battery pack should be used for resource recycling.

[0065] Furthermore, the server 30 may include another database (not shown) storing information on reusable products (reused products or rebuilt products) newly installed by replacing the collected battery pack 110 (other battery packs as replacement candidates).

[0066] Thus, when inspecting, collecting, replacing, or reusing the assembled battery 110, it is preferable to collect the vehicle location information in addition to the battery information. This is because by collecting the vehicle location information, it is possible to establish a supply and demand plan, for example, in which region, how many assembled batteries are likely to be collected, and in conjunction with this, how many new assembled batteries must be prepared.

[0067] In addition, the battery information can also be used to improve existing battery assemblies or develop new battery assemblies. The use environment of the battery assemblies can be inferred based on the location information of the vehicle, so it is best to collect location information for this purpose as well. Specifically, the temperature load of the battery assemblies can be inferred based on the location information of the vehicle, such as the area where the battery assemblies are used being a high temperature / low temperature area, an area where the temperature changes greatly between day and night, etc. In addition, the charge and discharge load of the battery assemblies can also be inferred based on the location information of the vehicle, such as the area where the battery assemblies are used being an area prone to sudden acceleration / sudden deceleration (i.e., an area where rapid charge and discharge of the battery assemblies are prone to occur). By considering such loads of the battery assemblies, it is possible to appropriately improve and develop the battery assemblies.

[0068] Furthermore, for example, when vehicles 10 and 20 are plug-in hybrid vehicles or electric vehicles and are configured to be chargeable using power supplied from a charging station (not shown) or the like (so-called plug-in charging), the battery information may include information on the charging power amount during plug-in charging.

[0069] In the information collection system 1 according to the first embodiment, the data format of the collected data collected from the vehicles 10 and 20 will be described.

[0070] Generally speaking, when collecting battery information, it is considered that the position information of the vehicles 10 and 20 is also collected as described above.

[0071] However, in order to collect the vehicle's location information, the user's permission (consent) is required from the perspective of protecting the user's privacy. When using highly accurate location information such as GPS information, an overly detailed vehicle driving history (in other words, information related to the user's movement path) will be collected, and the user's privacy may not be fully protected.

[0072] On the other hand, in the use of the battery information as described above, there are many cases where position information with high accuracy such as GPS information is not required. Generally speaking, the movement range of the vehicle 10 is often within a predetermined range centered on the address of the purchaser 11 or the address of the sales store 15. Therefore, in this embodiment, the current position information of the vehicle 10 is not used, but the alternative position information I5 is used.

[0073] Fig. 9 This is a diagram showing an example of the data format of the collected data CI(n)-10 in the first embodiment. Fig. 9 The collected data CI(n)-10 in the first embodiment is composed of a plurality of records acquired sequentially every predetermined period (eg, once every 30 seconds), for example. The n-th acquired record is represented as "y(n)".

[0074] The record y includes the communication device ID and the vehicle ID as identification information of the communication module 140, the battery information Bn of the assembled battery 110, and the time information tn indicating the time when the battery information Bn was acquired. In addition, the time information t does not need to be assigned to the battery information on the vehicle side, and the time when the server 30 received the battery information may be assigned as the time information t.

[0075] Then, when a predetermined number of records y are accumulated to generate collected data CI(n)- 10 , the vehicle 10 transmits the collected data CI to the server 30 .

[0076] In addition, the collected data CI is transmitted periodically, and the collected data CI(1) indicates the collected data transmitted for the first time, and the collected data CI(n) indicates the collected data transmitted for the nth time. The collected data CI(k)-10 indicates the collected data transmitted for the kth time from the vehicle 10, and for example, the collected data CI(m)-20 indicates the collected data transmitted for the mth time from the vehicle 20.

[0077] The registration information database 312 stores registration information I6 of each vehicle. Fig.10Schematic diagram showing registration information I6(1) to I6(n) stored in the registration information database 312. For example, the registration information received from the vehicle 10 is the registration information I6(10), and the registration information received from the vehicle 20 is the registration information I6(20). Each registration information I6 includes the public location information LI3, the vehicle ID, and the communication device ID.

[0078] Next, a description will be given of a process from when the computing device 300 receives the collected data CI from the vehicle 10 until when the combined information X is generated. Fig.11 is a schematic diagram showing a process of generating the combined information X.

[0079] For example, the computing device 300 receives the collected data CI(k)-10. Next, the computing device 300 extracts the registration information I6(10) including the communication device ID that matches the communication device ID included in the record y of the collected data CI(k)-10 from the registration information I6(1) to I6(n) stored in the registration information database 312.

[0080] Furthermore, the computing device 300 may extract the registration information I6 ( 10 ) including the vehicle ID that matches the vehicle ID included in the record y of the collected data CI(k)- 10 from the registration information I6 ( 1 ) to I6 (n) stored in the registration information database 312 .

[0081] Next, the computing device 300 combines the public location information LI3 of the registration information I6 (10) with the record y to generate a combined record w.

[0082] Specifically, when the collected data CI(k)-10 includes the records y(k) to y(m), the public location information LI3 is combined with all the records y(k) to y(m) to generate combined records w(k) to w(m).

[0083] In this way, the calculation device 300 generates the combined information X(k)-10 including the combined records w(k) to w(m).

[0084] Furthermore, the computing device 300 generates combined information X every time it receives collected data CI from the vehicle 10, and stores it in the battery information database 311. In this way, the vehicle state information in which the disclosure range such as the address intended by the purchaser 11 is reflected can be generated.

[0085] The embodiments disclosed herein are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and non-restrictive. The scope of the present disclosure is indicated by the claims, and all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims are intended to be included.

Claims

1. An information collection system for collecting vehicle status information of each of a plurality of vehicles, wherein: The identification information for specifying the target vehicle among the plurality of vehicles and the vehicle status information are transmitted by the first communication device, Public location information and identification information of the vehicle stored in the customer information database are transmitted by the second communication device, wherein the public location information is set as the location information of the target vehicle based on alternative location information indicating the location of the target vehicle as an alternative and public information indicating the disclosure range of the alternative location information. The information collection system comprises: an acquisition unit, which acquires the identification information, the vehicle status information, and the public location information; as well as The computing device associates the vehicle status information with the public location information based on the identification information.

2. The information collection system according to claim 1, wherein: The alternative location information is at least one of an address of a user of the target vehicle or an address of a store where the user purchased the target vehicle.

3. The information collection system according to claim 2, wherein: The user's address and the store's address are expressed using a postal code.

4. The information collection system according to claim 3, wherein: The public location information includes information indicating the number of digits of the public postal code.

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