Information processing apparatus and method

Abstract

The present application relates to an information processing apparatus and method that determines a search target with high accuracy. In a case where an instruction of a search of a facility from a user is detected, the information processing apparatus determines whether position information of the user indicates that the user visits a first region with a frequency higher than a prescribed threshold. In a case where the position information of the user indicates the first region, the information processing apparatus detects a new facility by a search within a prescribed range based on the position information, and outputs information related to the detected new facility to a prescribed apparatus. The information processing apparatus registers a region in which the user visits with a frequency of the prescribed threshold or more as the first region based on movement history record information that indicates a history record of movement of the user.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and a method. BACKGROUND

[0002] There is disclosed a navigation apparatus provided with a camera that monitors a scenery ahead, a camera that monitors a driver's line of sight, and a building detailed information database, and if the driver asks "What is that?" or the like, detailed information related to a building that the driver is observing is displayed on a display (for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-330450 SUMMARY

[0004] One of the objects of the disclosure is to provide an information processing apparatus and an information processing method that can accurately determine a search target.

[0005] One of the aspects of the present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus in which,

[0006] The control section executes the following processing:

[0007] detects a new facility by a search within a predetermined range based on the position information in a case where the position information of the user indicates that a first region in which a visit frequency of the user is higher than a predetermined threshold value; and

[0008] outputs information related to the detected new facility to a predetermined device.

[0009] One of the other aspects of the present disclosure relates to a method,

[0010] The computer executes the following processing:

[0011] detects a new facility by a search within a predetermined range based on the position information in a case where the position information of the user indicates that a first region in which a visit frequency of the user is higher than a predetermined threshold value; and

[0012] outputs information related to the detected new facility to a predetermined device.

[0013] One of the other aspects of the present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus in which,

[0014] The control section executes the following processing:

[0015] acquires position information;

[0016] In a case where the above position information indicates that the first region in which the visit frequency is higher than a prescribed threshold, information related to a new facility obtained as a result of a search within a prescribed range based on the above position information is received from the server; and

[0017] The information related to the above new facility is output.

[0018] According to one of the modes of the present disclosure, the object of the search can be determined with high precision. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 is a diagram showing one example of a system configuration of a facility search system according to the first embodiment and a process executed in the facility search system.

[0020] Figure 2 is one example of a hardware configuration of the server and the vehicle.

[0021] Figure 3 is a diagram showing one example of a functional configuration of the server and the vehicle.

[0022] Figure 4 is a diagram showing one example of an exclusion region.

[0023] Figure 5 is one example of a flowchart of an exclusion region initial setting process executed by the server.

[0024] Figure 6 is one example of a flowchart of an exclusion region management process executed by the server.

[0025] Figure 7 is one example of a flowchart of a facility search process executed by the server.

[0026] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] 1... server; 2... vehicle; 11, 21... reception section; 12... sound processing section; 13, 23... control section; 14, 22... transmission section; 15... travel history record information DB; 16... search history record information DB; 17... map information DB; 18... facility information DB; 19... exclusion region information DB; 100... facility search system; 101, 211... CPU; 102, 212... memory; 103, 213... auxiliary storage device; 104... network interface; 210... in-vehicle device; 214... wireless communication section; 215... GPS receiver. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] For example, in traveling of a vehicle, the passenger of the vehicle makes an inquiry such as "What is that?" with high probability that the object is an object that the passenger has never seen before. For example, in the vicinity of the driver's own home and in an area that the driver frequently visits, a facility that the driver has never seen before is a facility that has recently appeared with high probability. In view of this, in one aspect of the present disclosure, the accuracy of the search for a facility is improved by searching for a facility that has recently appeared in an area in which the vehicle frequently travels.

[0029] Specifically, one aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing apparatus including a control section. The control section performs processing of detecting a new facility by a search within a prescribed range based on position information in a case where position information of a user indicates that a first region in which a visit frequency is higher than a prescribed threshold value, and outputting information related to the detected new facility to a prescribed device.

[0030] The information processing apparatus is, for example, a server, a vehicle-mounted device, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a wearable terminal, a PC (Personal Computer), or the like. The control section is, for example, a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The prescribed range based on the position information of the user may, or may not, include the position of the user. The prescribed range based on the position information of the user is, for example, a range within a prescribed distance from the position of the user, a range within a prescribed distance from a place that is a prescribed distance away from the position of the user, or the like. The facility is, for example, a building, a store, a hospital, a school, an art museum, a museum, a park, a shrine, a temple, an amusement park, a public facility, or the like. The new facility is a facility that has been newly constructed, opened, or started in a prescribed period of time. The prescribed device that becomes a target of output of information related to the new facility obtained as a result of the search is, for example, a display, a speaker, another device, or the like.

[0031] The first region is a region in which the visit frequency of the user is higher than a prescribed threshold value, that is, a region that the user frequently visits. According to one aspect of the present disclosure, in a case where the user is located in the first region, information related to a new facility is output. Thus, in a case where the user is located in the first region, the probability of hitting an object of the search of the user is increased. That is, the accuracy of the search is improved.

[0032] In one aspect of the present disclosure, in a case where the position information of the user indicates that the first region, the control section can detect a new facility and a facility other than the new facility by a search within a prescribed range based on the position information, and output information related to the detected facility to a prescribed device. Thus, in a case where the user is located in a region other than the first region, it is possible to search for all facilities within the prescribed range.

[0033] In one aspect of the present disclosure, the information processing apparatus can further include a storage unit that holds search history information indicating a history of searches for facilities by the user. In this case, the control unit can exclude, from the plurality of new facilities obtained as a result of the search, a facility for which a history of searches is indicated according to the search history information. The likelihood that the user already knows the facility for which a history of searches exists is high, and the likelihood that the user does not want information related to the facility is high. Therefore, by excluding, from the plurality of new facilities obtained as a result of the search, a facility for which a history of searches exists, it is possible to suppress presentation of information related to a facility that the user does not want. In addition, it is possible to further increase the likelihood that the object of the search by the user is hit.

[0034] In one aspect of the present disclosure, the control unit can determine whether the position information of the user indicates that the user is within the first region, in a case where an instruction to search for a facility from the user is detected. Thus, since it is possible to limit execution of the search for a facility to a case where an instruction from the user is detected, it is possible to reduce the processing load on the information processing apparatus.

[0035] The control unit can acquire sound data of speech of the user, and detect an instruction to search for a facility from the user by analyzing the sound data. Thus, the user can instruct a search for a facility by voice. In addition, in a case where the information processing apparatus is a server, the control unit can receive sound data of speech of the user and position information from a user terminal of the user.

[0036] In one aspect of the present disclosure, the control unit can further execute processes of acquiring movement history information indicating a history of movement of the user, and registering, as the first region, a region for which a frequency of visits indicated by the movement history information of the user is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value. The movement history information of the user includes, for example, at least position information and time information. Thus, it is possible to register the first region based on the movement history of the user.

[0037] The control unit can monitor the movement history information of the user, add a region for which a change in frequency of visits within a recent predetermined period is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value to the first region, and delete a region for which a change in frequency of visits within a recent predetermined period is lower than the predetermined threshold value from the first region. Thus, it is possible to update the first region based on the movement history information of the user, and it is possible to make the first region flexibly correspond to changes in the behavior of the user.

[0038] The control section can register a region including the user's own home and an urban area around the user's own home as the first region. The region including the user's own home and the urban area around the user's own home is a region that the user apparently frequently visits. Therefore, by pre-registering the region that the user apparently frequently visits as the first region, the search for facilities can be performed with high precision, for example, even in a case where the user's movement history record information cannot be sufficiently obtained.

[0039] One of the other aspects of the present disclosure can also be determined as a method for causing a computer to execute the processing of the above-described information processing apparatus. The method is a method in which, in a case where the position information of the user indicates that the user's visit frequency is higher than a prescribed threshold value in a first region, the computer detects a new facility by search within a prescribed range based on the position information, and outputs information related to the detected new facility to a prescribed device. In addition, one of the other aspects of the present disclosure can also be determined as a program for causing a computer to execute the processing of the above-described information processing apparatus. One of the other aspects of the present disclosure can also be determined as a recording medium that is readable by a computer and is non-transitory.

[0040] One of the other aspects of the present disclosure is an information processing apparatus including a control section that acquires position information, and in a case where the position information indicates that a visit frequency is higher than a prescribed threshold value in a first region, the control section receives, from a server, information related to a new facility obtained as a result of search within a prescribed range based on the position information, and outputs the information related to the new facility. The information processing apparatus is, for example, a terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, and a car navigation device. According to one of the aspects of the present disclosure, in a case where the information processing apparatus is located in the first region, the information processing apparatus can obtain, from the server, a search result in which the possibility that the object of the search hits the user is high.

[0041] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described based on the drawings. The structure of the following embodiment is an example, and the present disclosure is not limited to the structure of the embodiment.

[0042] <First Embodiment>

[0043] Figure 1 is a diagram that shows one example of the system configuration of the facility search system 100 related to the first embodiment and processing performed in the facility search system 100. The facility search system 100 is a system that searches for a facility as an object and prompts information of the facility as an object in accordance with a user's instruction sound for searching for a facility. The facility as an object is, for example, a building, a store, a hospital, a school, an art museum, a museum, a park, a shrine, a temple, an amusement park, a public facility, or the like. However, the facility as an object is not limited to these.

[0044] The facility search system 100 includes a server 1 and a vehicle 2. The facility search system 100 includes a plurality of vehicles 2, but for convenience, only one vehicle 2 is shown in Figure 1

[0045] The vehicle 2 is equipped with, for example, an in-vehicle device 210 and a microphone 220. The server 1 and the in-vehicle device 210 are connected to a network N1 and can communicate via the network N1. The network N1 is, for example, a public network such as the Internet.

[0046] For example, in a case where a user who is riding in the vehicle 2 observes the surroundings and wants to know a prescribed facility, an inquiry such as "What is that?" is made. The utterance sound is picked up by the microphone 220, and the in-vehicle device 210 acquires sound data of the utterance sound. The in-vehicle device 210 transmits the sound data of the utterance sound and position information to the server 1 via the N1.

[0047] The server 1 performs the processes of S11 to S43 if the sound data and the position information are received from the in-vehicle device 210. In S11, the server 1 determines a position shown by the received position information as an utterance position. In S12, the server 1 determines whether or not the utterance position is within an exclusion area. The exclusion area is an area in which the frequency of visits of a user who has established an association with the vehicle 2 is equal to or higher than a prescribed threshold, that is, an area in which the vehicle 2 frequently travels. The user who has established an association with the vehicle 2 is a user who is registered in the facility search system 100 in association with the vehicle 2 in advance. More specifically, the user who has established an association with the vehicle 2 is the owner of the vehicle 2, the driver of the vehicle 2, and the like. Furthermore, the user who is riding in the vehicle 2 also includes the user of the vehicle 2 and the user who is riding in the vehicle 2. Hereinafter, in a case where only the user of the vehicle 2 is referred to, the user who is riding in the vehicle 2 is meant.

[0048] In S13, the server 1 searches for a facility within a prescribed range based on the utterance position. In S14, the server 1 searches for a new facility among the facilities within the prescribed range based on the utterance position. The new facility refers to a facility that has been newly constructed, opened, or started in a recent prescribed period. Furthermore, the new facility also includes a facility that is under construction and scheduled to be opened. The period in which the facility is regarded as a new facility can be arbitrarily set within a range of, for example, 1 month to 1 year in the recent past.

[0049] In S21, the server 1 performs a sound recognition process on the received sound data and acquires the utterance content. In S22, the server 1 performs a syntactic analysis on the utterance content obtained by the process of S21. In S23, the server 1 determines whether or not the result of the syntactic analysis of the transmission unit 22 is an instruction to search for a facility indicating the utterance content.

[0050] ​In S31, the server 1 performs selection of a candidate of a facility that becomes an object of the search in a case where the result of the determination in S23 is an instruction of the search of the facility by the utterance content. At this time, in a case where the result of the determination in S12 is that the utterance position is within the exclusion area, the server 1 selects a new facility in the vicinity obtained based on the result of the search in S14 as a candidate of the search object. On the other hand, in a case where the result of the determination in S12 is that the utterance position is outside the exclusion area, the server 1 selects a facility in the vicinity obtained based on the result of the search in S13 as a candidate of the search object. In S32, the server 1 determines a facility to be prompted to the user of the vehicle 2 from among the facilities selected as the candidates of the search object in S31.

[0051] In S41, the server 1 acquires information related to the facility to be prompted to the user, creates a response to the instruction of the search of the facility. In S42, the server 1 synthesizes a sound corresponding to the response to the instruction of the search of the facility, transmits the sound data to the in-vehicle device 210. In S43, the server 1 creates a screen corresponding to the response to the instruction of the search of the facility, transmits the image data to the in-vehicle device 210. Further, either one of S42 or S43 can be implemented alone.

[0052] In the first embodiment, the area frequently visited by the user of the vehicle 2 is set as the exclusion area, and in a case where the utterance position is within the exclusion area, a new facility is selected as a candidate of the search object. In a case where the area is frequently visited by the user, the possibility that the user is already aware of the facility within or in the vicinity of the area is high. Therefore, in a case where the utterance of the instruction of the search of the facility is made within the area frequently visited by the user, the possibility that the facility that becomes the object of the search is a facility unknown to the user of the vehicle 2 is high. The possibility that the facility unknown to the user within the area frequently visited by the user is a newly appeared facility is high. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, in a case where the instruction of the search of the facility is made in the area frequently visited by the user, by selecting a new facility in the vicinity, it is possible to increase the hit rate of the facility that is the object of the search by the user.

[0053] Figure 2 is one example of the hardware structure of the server 1 and the vehicle 2. However, in Figure 2 , only the hardware constituent elements involved in the processing of the facility search system 100 are shown with respect to the vehicle 2. The server 1 is, for example, a computer that functions as a server. The server 1 has a CPU 101, a memory 102, an auxiliary storage device 103, and a network interface 104 as a hardware structure. The memory 102 and the auxiliary storage device 103 are each one example of a computer-readable recording medium.

[0054] The auxiliary storage device 103 stores various programs, data used by the CPU 101 at the time of execution of each program. The auxiliary storage device 103 is, for example, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), a flash memory, or the like. The programs held by the auxiliary storage device 103 are, for example, an OS (Operation System), a voice recognition program, a control program of the facility search system 100, and the like. The control program of the facility search system 100 is a program for determining a search target facility of a user of the vehicle 2 and providing information related to the determined facility.

[0055] The memory 102 is a storage device that provides the CPU 101 with a storage area in which the programs stored in the auxiliary storage device 103 are loaded, a work area, or is used as a buffer. The memory 102 includes, for example, a semiconductor memory such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory).

[0056] The CPU 101 executes various processes by loading and executing the OS and other various programs held by the auxiliary storage device 103 to the memory 102. The CPU 101 is not limited to one, and a plurality of CPUs 101 can be provided. The CPU 101 is an example of a "control section".

[0057] The network interface 104 is an interface that connects with the network N1. The network interface 104 is, for example, an interface of a wired network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) and a dedicated line. Alternatively, the network interface 104 can be a wireless communication circuit that is an interface with a wireless network.

[0058] Next, the vehicle 2 has, as a hardware configuration, an in-vehicle device 210, a microphone 220, and a touch panel display 230. The in-vehicle device 210, the microphone 220, and the touch panel display 230 are connected with, for example, a CAN (Controller Area Network) network 250.

[0059] The in-vehicle device 210 is, for example, a multimedia ECU of a car navigation system. However, it is not limited thereto, and a DCM (Data Communication Module) can be used instead of the ECU 1. The in-vehicle device 210 has, for example, a CPU 211, a memory 212, an auxiliary storage device 213, a wireless communication section 214, a GPS receiver 215, and a CAN interface 216. The CPU 211, the memory 212, and the auxiliary storage device 213 are the same as the CPU 101, the memory 102, and the auxiliary storage device 103. However, the auxiliary storage device 213 retains an OS, a client program of the facility search system 100, and other application programs.

[0060] The wireless communication section 214 is, for example, a wireless communication circuit that complies with a mobile communication scheme such as 5G (5th Generation), 6G, 4G, and LTE (Long Term Evolution), a wireless communication scheme such as WiMAX, and WiFi. The wireless communication section 214 is connected to an access network through wireless communication, to the network N1 through the access network, and can realize communication with an external device such as the server 1.

[0061] The GPS receiver 215 receives a signal from a GPS satellite, and locates position information indicating a current position based on the received signal. The position information acquired by the GPS receiver 215 is, for example, latitude and longitude. The GPS receiver 215 acquires the position information at a prescribed period and outputs it to the CPU 211.

[0062] The CAN interface 216 is an interface with the CAN network 250. The CAN interface 216 outputs data input from the CPU 211 to the CAN network 250. Further, Figure 2 The hardware structures of the server 1 and the vehicle 2 shown in the drawings are one example, and the hardware structures of the server 1 and the vehicle 2 are not limited to Figure 2 the example shown in the drawings.

[0063] Figure 3 is a diagram showing one example of a functional structure of the server 1 and the vehicle 2. The vehicle 2 has a reception section 21, a transmission section 22, and a control section 23 as a functional structure. The processing of these functional elements is processing that is realized by the CPU 211 of the in-vehicle device 210 executing one or a plurality of prescribed programs retained in the auxiliary storage device 213.

[0064] The reception section 21 receives data from the network N1 through the wireless communication section 214. The reception section 21 outputs the received data to the control section 23. In the first embodiment, the reception section 21 receives information related to a facility that is a result of search from the network N1.

[0065] The transmission section 22 transmits data input from the control section 23 to the network Nl via the wireless communication section 214. Among the data transmitted to the network Nl by the transmission section 22, there are the travel history record information, the search history record information, and the sound data and the position information sent to the server 1.

[0066] The control section 23 transmits the travel history record information to the server 1 via the transmission section 22, for example, at a prescribed cycle. The cycle of transmitting the travel history record information can be arbitrarily set in the range of 0.1 to 10 seconds, for example. The travel history record information includes position information acquired by the GPS receiver 215 and a time stamp of the time when the position information is acquired, for example. However, the information included in the travel history record information is one example, and in addition to this, information such as speed and direction of travel can be included.

[0067] In addition, in a case where a search of a facility based on a user operation is performed by the touch panel display 230, the control section 23 generates the search history record information and transmits it to the server 1 via the transmission section 22. The search of a facility based on a user operation is a search in which an explicit search instruction is input by a user, using a search engine of a map application and a browser, for example. In such a search, a facility of a search target is specified on a map by a keyword or a sound. The search history record information includes time information indicating the time when the search is performed and identification information of the facility of the search target, for example. The identification information of the facility of the search target can be arbitrary information such as identification information used for identifying a facility within the facility search system 100 and the name of the facility, for example. The identification information of the facility of the search target can be acquired from a map application or a browser in which the search is performed, for example.

[0068] In addition, the control section 23 receives sound data of a speaking sound of a user who is riding in the vehicle 2, which is picked up by the microphone 220, via the CAN interface 216. In a case where the sound data is received, the control section 23 transmits the position information and the received sound data to the server 1 via the transmission section 22. In a case where the content of the speaking of the user who is riding indicates an instruction of a search of a facility, the control section 23 receives information related to the facility from the server 1 via the reception section 21. The control section 23 outputs the information related to the facility received from the server 1 to the microphone 220 or / and the touch panel display 230. Hereinafter, for convenience, transmission or reception from the on-vehicle device 210 will be referred to as transmission or reception from the vehicle 2.

[0069] Next, the server 1 has, as functional configurations, a reception section 11, a voice processing section 12, a control section 13, a transmission section 14, a travel history record information DB 15, a search history record information DB 16, a map information DB 17, a facility information DB 18, and an out-of-area information DB 19. The processing of these functional configuration elements is processing that is realized by the CPU 101 of the server 1 executing one or a plurality of prescribed programs held in the auxiliary storage device 103.

[0070] The reception section 11 receives data from the network N1 through the network interface 104. The reception section 11 outputs data received from the network N1 to the control section 13. In the first embodiment, the data received by the reception section 11 from the network N1 is travel history record information, search history record information, and voice data and position information from the vehicle 2.

[0071] The transmission section 14 transmits data input from the control section 13 to the network N1 through the network interface 104. Among the data transmitted by the transmission section 14 to the network N1, there is information sent to the vehicle 2 that is related to a facility as a result of a search.

[0072] The processing of the voice processing section 12 is processing that is realized by the CPU 101 executing a voice recognition program held in the auxiliary storage device 103. If input of voice data is accepted from the control section 13, the voice processing section 12 performs voice recognition processing on the input voice data. In the voice recognition processing, the voice data is converted to text data, and the text data is subjected to syntactic analysis, and the content of speech is acquired. The voice processing section 12 outputs data indicating the content of speech to the control section 13.

[0073] In a case where input of travel history record information of the vehicle 2 is accepted from the reception section 11, the control section 13 stores this travel history record information in the travel history record information DB 15. In a case where input of search history record information of the vehicle 2 is accepted from the reception section 11, the control section 13 stores this search history record information in the search history record information DB 16.

[0074] In a case where the input of the speech content of the sound data of the user of the vehicle 2 is accepted from the sound processing section 12, the control section 13 determines whether the speech content of the sound data indicates the instruction of the search for the facility. For example, the control section 13 previously holds a plurality of speech contents indicating the instruction of the search for the facility in a prescribed storage area of the auxiliary storage device 103. The speech contents indicating the instruction of the search for the facility which are registered in advance include, for example, the contents of the inquiry such as "What is that?", "What is that?", "Is there that?", "What is this?", "What is this?", and the like. The control section 13 compares the speech content of the sound data of the user with the speech contents registered in advance. When there is the content coincident or similar to the speech content of the sound data of the user among the speech contents registered in advance, the control section 13 determines that the speech content of the sound data of the user indicates the instruction of the search for the facility.

[0075] In a case where the speech content of the sound data indicates the instruction of the search for the facility, the control section 13 refers to the map information DB 17 to search for the facility with a prescribed range based on the position information received from the vehicle 2 together with the sound data as a search range. The search range of the facility is, for example, a range within a prescribed distance from the position of the vehicle 2, a range within a prescribed distance from a point which advances a prescribed distance in a prescribed direction from the position of the vehicle 2, or the like. The shape of the search range is not limited to a circle, and can be any one of a sector, an ellipse, or a rectangle. In addition, the search range of the facility can not include the position of the vehicle 2.

[0076] Further, in a case where the system which detects the direction of the line of sight of the occupant is mounted on the vehicle 2, the in-vehicle device 210 can transmit the information of the direction of the line of sight of the occupant to the server 1 together with the sound data and the position information. In this case, the control section 13 can take a prescribed range in the direction of the line of sight of the occupant as the search range of the facility.

[0077] The control section 13 determines whether the position information of the vehicle 2 indicates inside the exclusion area. The exclusion area refers to an area in which the frequency of travel of the vehicle 2 is higher than a threshold value. The area included in the exclusion area is registered in the exclusion area information DB 19 described later. In a case where the position information of the vehicle 2 indicates inside the exclusion area, the control section 13 selects a new facility from the facilities in the search range as a candidate of the search object. In a case where the position information of the vehicle 2 indicates outside the exclusion area, the control section 13 selects a candidate of the search object from the facilities in the search range. At this time, the control section 13 refers to the search history recording information DB 16 to exclude the facility in which the search history of the user of the vehicle 2 exists from the candidate of the search object. In a case where a plurality of facilities are detected from the search range, a prescribed number of facilities can be selected from the top based on, for example, the data of the number of searches from the outside and the like.

[0078] The control section 13 acquires information related to the facility selected as the search target from the facility information DB 18. The control section 13 generates screen data or / and sound data as the search result based on the information related to the acquired facility, and transmits the same to the vehicle 2 through the transmission section 14.

[0079] In addition, the control section 13 performs processing of registration and update of the exclusion area. The detailed processing of the registration and update of the exclusion area will be described later.

[0080] The travel history record information DB 15, the search history record information DB 16, the map information DB 17, the facility information DB 18, and the exclusion area information DB 19 are created in the storage area of the auxiliary storage device 103, respectively. The travel history record information DB 15 holds travel history record information of the vehicle 2. The search history record information DB 16 holds search history record information of the vehicle 2. The travel history record information DB 15 and the search history record information DB 16 are updated by the control section 13 respectively each time the travel history record information and the search history record information are received from the vehicle 2.

[0081] The map information DB 17 holds map information. The map information includes, for example, a map on which the positions of each facility are plotted and identification information of each facility. In the map information, regional division is performed in advance, and each zone is given a label indicating the use. The label given to the zone is, for example, a commercial area, an urban area, a farmland, a residential area, and the like. In addition, the kind of the label given to each zone is not limited to these.

[0082] The facility information DB 18 holds information related to the facility for each facility on the map. The information related to the facility includes identification information of the facility, the name of the facility, the kind of the facility, the opening date or the scheduled opening date of the facility, the explanatory content of the facility, and an image of the appearance and / or the interior of the facility, and the like. The map information DB 17 and the facility information DB 18 can be created by a prescribed business, for example. For example, in a case where update information is issued by the business, the control section 13 can acquire the update information from the business to update the map information DB 17 and the facility information DB 18. In addition, the map information DB 17 and the facility information DB 18 can be replaced with an external database instead of being equipped by the server 1.

[0083] The excepted area information DB 19 stores information related to the excepted area. In the facility search system 100, the range of the service provision is divided into areas. The area can be a geographical range set independently in the facility search system 100, or a region in which a region division is performed on map information. Further, the shape and size of each of the areas handled in the facility search system 100 can be different. However, in the facility search system 100, the areas are set so as not to overlap with each other.

[0084] On the other hand, the excepted area can be set independently of the areas handled in the facility search system 100, and the range of the excepted area can overlap with that of the areas handled in the facility search system 100. Further, the ranges of the excepted areas can overlap with each other. The information related to the excepted area held in the excepted area information DB 19 includes, for example, identification information of the excepted area and information indicating the range of the excepted area.

[0085] The travel history record information DB 15, the search history record information DB 16, and the excepted area information DB 19 are created, for example, for each user registered in the facility search system 100. However, the present application is not limited thereto, and the travel history record information DB 15, the search history record information DB 16, and the excepted area information DB 19 can be created, for example, for each vehicle 2 registered in the facility search system 100.

[0086] Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the excepted area. In the first embodiment, a prescribed range including the user's own house associated with the vehicle 2 and the downtown area or the business district around the user's own house are registered as the excepted area by the initial setting. The prescribed range including the user's own house is, for example, a range within a prescribed distance from the user's own house. However, the present application is not limited thereto, and the size and shape of the prescribed range including the user's own house are not limited to the prescribed case. The information of the downtown area or the business district can be obtained, for example, from the map information DB 17. The downtown area or the business district registered as the excepted area is, for example, a prescribed number of downtown areas or business districts in order from the closest to the user's own house. Further, the present application is not limited thereto, and a prescribed range including the user-specified locations such as the office, the parents' house, and the store associated with the vehicle 2 can be registered as the excepted area by the initial setting.

[0087] In addition, the control section 13 monitors the travel history record information of the vehicle 2, and in a case where the number of times of travel of the vehicle 2 in a recent prescribed period in a region where the vehicle 2 has traveled is equal to or more than a prescribed number of times, registers a prescribed range including the travel position of the vehicle 2 as an exclusion region. Thereby, the periphery of a route frequently used by the user of the vehicle 2 is registered as an exclusion region. The recent prescribed period is arbitrarily set, for example, in a range from 1 month to 1 year from now. The prescribed range including the travel position of the vehicle 2 registered as an exclusion region can be, for example, a range of a prescribed distance from the travel position of the vehicle 2, or a region including the travel position of the vehicle 2.

[0088] The travel history record information of the vehicle 2 is one example of "user's movement history record information". In addition, the number of times of travel of the vehicle 2 in a recent prescribed period in a region is one example of "frequency of visit of the user to the region". The exclusion region is one example of "a first region in which the frequency of visit of the user is higher than a prescribed threshold value".

[0089] <Flow of processing>

[0090] Figure 5 is one example of a flowchart of exclusion region initial setting processing performed by the server 1. For example, in a case where the user is registered by a real name to the facility search system 100, when the user who has established an association with the vehicle 2 has changed, added, or deleted an address registered as an exclusion region, the processing shown in Figure 5 is started. The real name registration, and the change, addition, and deletion of the address registered as an exclusion region are performed by the in-vehicle device 210 or a user terminal such as a smartphone. Figure 5 The execution subject of the processing shown in Figure 5 The same applies to the flowcharts below.

[0091] In OP101, the control section 13 sets a prescribed range including a specified address such as one's own house as an exclusion region, and registers information related to the prescribed range in the exclusion region information DB 19 as information related to the exclusion region. In OP102, the control section 13 sets a downtown area or a commercial area in the periphery of a specified address such as one's own house as an exclusion region with reference to the map information DB 17, and registers information related to the downtown area or the commercial area in the exclusion region information DB 19 as information related to the exclusion region. Then, Figure 5 the processing shown in

[0092] Figure 6 is one example of a flowchart of exclusion region management processing performed by the server 1. The processing is repeatedly performed at prescribed periods. Figure 6the processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. The processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. Figure 6 the processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. The processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended.

[0093] In OP202, the control section 13 determines whether the travel area of the vehicle 2 has changed, based on the position information included in the travel history record information received in OP201 and the position information included in the previous travel history record information. The travel area refers to the area in which the vehicle 2 is currently traveling, i.e., the area in which the vehicle 2 is currently located. In the case where the travel area of the vehicle 2 has changed (OP202: YES), the processing proceeds to OP203. In the case where the travel area of the vehicle 2 has not changed (OP202: NO), Figure 6 the processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. The processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended.

[0094] In OP203, the control section 13 acquires the number of travels in the most recent prescribed period of the travel area of the vehicle 2, with reference to the travel history record information DB 15. In OP204, the control section 13 determines whether the number of travels in the most recent prescribed period of the travel area of the vehicle 2 is equal to or greater than a threshold value. In the case where the number of travels in the most recent prescribed period of the travel area of the vehicle 2 is equal to or greater than the threshold value (OP204: YES), the processing proceeds to OP205.

[0095] In OP205, the control section 13 refers to the exclusion area information DB 19, and determines, for example, whether the position information included in the travel history record information received in OP201, i.e., the travel position of the vehicle 2, is contained in the exclusion area. In the case where the travel position of the vehicle 2 is contained in the exclusion area (OP205: YES), the processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. Figure 6 the processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. The processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. Figure 6 the processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended. The processing shown in FIG. 8 is ended.

[0096] In the case where the number of travels in the most recent prescribed period of the travel area of the vehicle 2 is less than the threshold value (OP204: NO), the processing proceeds to OP207. In OP207, the control section 13 refers to the exclusion area information DB 19, and determines, for example, whether the travel position of the vehicle 2 is contained in the exclusion area. In the case where the travel position of the vehicle 2 is not contained in the exclusion area (OP207: NO), Figure 6The illustrated processing ends.

[0097] In a case where the travel position of the vehicle 2 is included in the exclusion area (OP207: YES), the processing proceeds to OP208. In OP208, the control section 13 deletes, for example, information related to the exclusion area including the travel position of the vehicle 2 from the exclusion area information DB 19. Thereby, the prescribed range including the travel position of the vehicle 2 is deleted from the exclusion area. Then, Figure 6 The illustrated processing ends. Further, in a case where a plurality of information related to the exclusion area including the travel position of the vehicle 2 is held in the exclusion area information DB 19, the control section 13 can delete all of the information related to the exclusion area, for example.

[0098] Figure 7 is one example of a flowchart of the facility search processing executed by the server 1. The facility search processing is repeatedly executed at a prescribed period Figure 7 The illustrated processing.

[0099] In OP301, the control section 13 determines whether or not the sound data and the position information are received from the vehicle 2. In a case where the sound data and the position information are received from the vehicle 2 (OP301: YES), the processing proceeds to OP302. In a case where the sound data and the position information are not received from the vehicle 2 (OP301: NO), Figure 7 The illustrated processing ends.

[0100] In OP302, the control section 13 instructs the sound processing section 12 to perform the voice recognition processing of the received sound data, and acquires the speech content of the sound data from the vehicle 2. In OP303, the control section 13 determines whether or not the speech content of the sound data indicates the instruction of the search of the facility. In a case where the speech content of the sound data indicates the instruction of the search of the facility (OP303: YES), the processing proceeds to OP304. In a case where the speech content of the sound data does not indicate the instruction of the search of the facility (OP303: NO), Figure 7 The illustrated processing ends.

[0101] In OP304, the control section 13 refers to the map information DB 17 to search for the facility within a prescribed range from the position indicated by the position information of the vehicle 2. In OP305, the control section 13 refers to the exclusion area information DB 19 to determine whether or not the position information of the vehicle 2 indicates inside any exclusion area. In a case where the position information of the vehicle 2 indicates inside any exclusion area (OP305: YES), the processing proceeds to OP306. In a case where the position information of the vehicle 2 does not indicate inside any exclusion area (OP305: NO), the processing proceeds to OP307.

[0102] In OP306, control unit 13 refers to facility information DB 18 to extract new facilities from the multiple facilities detected as a result of the search in OP304. New facilities may be, for example, facilities whose opening date is within the upcoming specified period. In OP307, control unit 13 refers to search history information DB 16 to exclude facilities with existing search history from the multiple facilities retrieved as search results.

[0103] In OP308, the control unit 13 selects candidate facilities for the search object from one or more facilities detected as a result of the search and remaining in the processing of OP306 and OP307. For the candidate facilities, for example, a predetermined number of facilities can be selected based on the search ranking, or a predetermined number of facilities can be selected according to their position from the nearest to the farthest location indicated by the location information of vehicle 2, or from the farthest to the nearest location. If no facilities remain as search results in the processing of OP306 and OP307, it is considered that there is no match, and the control unit 13 can send a response indicating no match to vehicle 2.

[0104] In OP309, the control unit 13 obtains information related to one or more candidate facilities from the facility information DB 18, generates screen data and / or audio data corresponding to the information related to the one or more candidate facilities, and sends it to the vehicle 2. Then, Figure 7 The processing shown has ended.

[0105] also, Figures 5-7 The processing of server 1 shown is just one example and is not limited to... Figures 5-7 The processing is shown. For example, in Figure 7 In the facility search process shown, before the facility search process in OP304, the determination of whether vehicle 2 in OP305 is within the exclusion zone can be performed. At this time, if vehicle 2 is within the exclusion zone, control unit 13 searches for new facilities in the vicinity; if vehicle 2 is outside the exclusion zone, control unit 13 searches for nearby facilities. Additionally, it is possible to... Figure 7 After OP309 sends information related to the candidate facility to vehicle 2, it receives feedback from vehicle 2 on whether the candidate facility is the object of the search, and generates search history information based on the result and registers it in search history information DB 16.

[0106] <Effects of the first implementation method>

[0107] In the first embodiment, when the indication of the search of the facility by the user of the vehicle 2 is detected, the case where the vehicle 2 is located in the exclusion area, the information related to the new facility in the periphery of the vehicle 2 is prompted to the vehicle 2. The exclusion area is an area in which the vehicle 2 frequently travels. By limiting the candidate of the search object of the user of the vehicle 2 to the new facility in the exclusion area, the facility which is the search object of the user of the vehicle 2 can be hit with high accuracy. In addition, since the possibility that the information related to the facility other than the search object of the user of the vehicle 2 is prompted can be reduced, the user's annoyance caused by the prompting of the undesirable information can be reduced.

[0108] In the first embodiment, the exclusion area is updated at any time based on the travel history record information of the vehicle 2. Therefore, even if the action tendency of the user of the vehicle 2 changes or the area in which the vehicle 2 frequently travels changes, the exclusion area can be changed according to the change.

[0109] <Other modifications>

[0110] The above-described embodiment is only one example, and the present disclosure can be appropriately modified and implemented without departing from the scope of the gist thereof.

[0111] In the first embodiment, the case where the user uses the in-vehicle device mounted on the vehicle is described, but in the facility search system 100 of the first embodiment, another device can be used instead of the in-vehicle device. For example, in the facility search system 100, a user terminal such as a smartphone can be used instead of the in-vehicle device. At this time, the user terminal transmits the movement history record information including the position information and the time information of the time at which the position information is acquired to the server 1 at a predetermined period. In addition, the user terminal transmits the voice data of the user and the position information to the server 1, and the server 1 searches for the facility within the predetermined range based on the position information of the user terminal based on the voice data and the position information as in the first embodiment. In the facility search system 100, the user terminal which can be used instead of the in-vehicle device includes, in addition to the smartphone, a tablet terminal, a PC, a wearable terminal, and the like.

[0112] In addition, in the first embodiment, the server 1 performs the process of Figures 5-7 , but is not limited thereto. The functional structure of the server 1 can be moved to the in-vehicle device and the terminal device such as the user terminal, and the process of Figures 5-7 is performed by the terminal device. In addition, the voice recognition process can be performed on the terminal device side.

[0113] The processes and mechanisms described in the present disclosure can be freely combined and implemented as long as there is no technical contradiction.

[0114] In addition, the processing described as being performed by one device can be executed by a plurality of devices in a shared manner. Alternatively, the processing described as being performed by different devices can be performed by one device. In a computer system, the hardware structure (server structure) that realizes each function can be changed flexibly.

[0115] The present disclosure can also be realized by supplying a computer program in which the functions described in the above-described embodiments are installed to a computer, and reading out the program by one or more processors possessed by the computer and executing it. Such a computer program can be supplied to the computer through a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium capable of connecting with a system bus of the computer, or can be supplied to the computer via a network. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium includes, for example, any type of disk (a floppy disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), etc.), an optical disk (a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, a Blu-ray disk, etc.), and the like, a memory card, a ROM, a RAM, an EPROM, an EEPROM, a magnetic card, a flash memory, an optical card, and the like, and any type of medium suitable for storing electronic commands.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, wherein a control section that executes processing of: in a case where position information of a user indicates that a first region in which a frequency of visit of the user is higher than a prescribed threshold value, detecting, by search within a prescribed range based on the position information, a new facility that has been newly built, opened for business, or opened for a store within a prescribed period of time that is recent, and outputting, to a prescribed apparatus, information related to the detected new facility, further comprising a storage section that holds search history record information that indicates a history of search for a facility by the user, the control section excluding, from a plurality of new facilities obtained as a result of the search, a facility for which a history of search is indicated in accordance with the search history record information. 2.The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in a case where the position information indicates outside the first region, the control section detects, by search within a prescribed range based on the position information, a facility including the new facility and a facility other than the new facility, the control section outputs, to the prescribed apparatus, information related to the detected facility. 3.The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in a case where an instruction of search for a facility from the user is detected, the control section determines whether the position information indicates within the first region. 4.The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control section acquires voice data of speech of the user, the control section detects the instruction of search for a facility from the user by analyzing the voice data. 5.The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control section receives the voice data of the speech of the user and the position information from a user terminal of the user. 6.The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the control section further executes processing of: acquiring movement history record information that indicates a history of movement of the user; and registering, as the first region, a region in which a frequency of visit indicated by the movement history record information of the user is equal to or higher than a prescribed threshold value. 7.The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control section monitors the movement history record information of the user, the control section adds a region in which a frequency of visit within a prescribed period of time that is recent has changed to be equal to or higher than the prescribed threshold value to the first region, the control section deletes a region in which a frequency of visit within the prescribed period of time that is recent has changed to be less than the prescribed threshold value from the first region. 8.The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control section registers, as the first region, a region including a user's own home and a city region around the user's own home. 9.A method, wherein processing is executed by a computer of: in a case where position information of a user indicates that a first region in which a frequency of visit of the user is higher than a prescribed threshold value, detecting, by search within a prescribed range based on the position information, a new facility that has been newly built, opened for business, or opened for a store within a prescribed period of time that is recent, and outputting information related to the detected new facility to a prescribed device, the computer holds search history information indicating a history of searches of facilities by the user in a storage section, the computer excludes, from a plurality of new facilities obtained as a result of the search, a facility indicated by the search history information as a facility for which there is a history of searches.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the computer detects, in a case where the position information indicates outside the first area, a facility including the new facility and a facility other than the new facility by a search within a prescribed range based on the position information, the computer outputs information related to the detected facility to the prescribed device.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein in a case where an instruction of a search of a facility from the user is detected, the computer determines whether the position information indicates within the first area.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the computer acquires voice data of speech of the user, the computer detects the instruction of the search of the facility from the user by analyzing the voice data.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the computer receives the voice data of the speech of the user and the position information from a user terminal of the user.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, wherein the computer further performs the following processing: acquires movement history information indicating a history of movements of the user; and registers, as the first area, an area for which a frequency of visits indicated by the movement history information of the user is equal to or greater than a prescribed threshold value.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the computer monitors the movement history information of the user, the computer adds an area for which a frequency of visits within a recent prescribed period changes to be equal to or greater than the prescribed threshold value to the first area, the computer deletes an area for which a frequency of visits within the recent prescribed period changes to be less than the prescribed threshold value from the first area.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein the computer registers, as the first area, an area including a user's own home and an urban area around the user's own home.

Images