Information processing apparatus

Abstract

The invention discloses an information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus includes a control unit. The control unit acquires user information indicating whether or not a first user permits provision of first data relating to travel received from a vehicle taken by the first user to a third party. Then, if the first user permits the provision of the first data to the third party, the control unit transmits the first data to the third party server. In addition, if the first user does not allow the provision of the first data to the third party, the control unit prohibits the transmission of the first data to the third party server.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device that collects data related to the travel of a vehicle. Background Art

[0002] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2014-241098 discloses a sensor data management system. In the sensor data management system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2014-241098, a server that manages sensor data performs anonymization processing according to the definition content of an anonymization policy setting file. In the anonymization processing, the server anonymizes specified data items in the sensor data individually according to specified conditions. In addition, a combination of arbitrary data items of sensor data including anonymized sensor data generated by the anonymization processing is sent to other servers. Summary of the invention

[0003] An object of the present disclosure is to limit, for each user, provision of data related to travel of a vehicle utilized by a plurality of users to a third party.

[0004] The information processing device according to the present disclosure includes a control unit that executes:

[0005] receiving first data related to driving from the vehicle;

[0006] determining a first user who is riding in the vehicle; and

[0007] acquiring user information indicating whether the first user permits the first data received from the vehicle in which the first user is riding to be provided to a third party,

[0008] When the first user permits the first data to be provided to the third party in the user information, the control unit transmits the first data to a third party server,

[0009] When the user information indicates that the first user does not permit provision of the first data to the third party, the control unit prohibits transmission of the first data to the third party server.

[0010] According to the present disclosure, provision of data related to travel of vehicles utilized by a plurality of users to a third party can be restricted 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 reference numerals represent like elements, and in which:

[0012] Figure 1This is a diagram showing the flow of data in the data providing system according to the embodiment.

[0013] Figure 2 FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a table structure of travel data transmitted from a vehicle to a management server.

[0014] Figure 3 This is a block diagram schematically showing the structure of the management server.

[0015] Figure 4A It is a diagram showing an example of the table structure of the schedule information database.

[0016] Figure 4B It is a diagram showing an example of a table structure of a user information database.

[0017] Figure 5 This is a flowchart showing the flow of information processing executed by the control unit of the management server in the embodiment.

[0018] Figure 6 This is a flowchart showing the flow of information processing executed by the control unit of the management server in a modification of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] In recent years, there has been a practice of collecting driving-related data (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "driving data") from many vehicles and using the collected driving data as big data. On the other hand, there is a case where one vehicle is used by multiple users, such as a vehicle used in a car-sharing service. In such a case, not all of the multiple users using the vehicle may allow the driving data of the vehicle during their ride to be provided as big data. That is, there is a case where some of the multiple users using one vehicle do not allow the driving data of the vehicle they are riding to be provided to a third party. Here, the third party is the party that uses the collected driving data as big data. Therefore, the present disclosure provides a technology that can limit the provision of data related to the driving of a vehicle used by multiple users to a third party for each user.

[0020] The information processing device involved in the present disclosure includes a control unit. The control unit receives first data from a vehicle. The first data is driving data. The first data can also be obtained by various sensors installed in the vehicle while the vehicle is driving. In addition, the vehicle is used by multiple users. And the control unit determines the first user who is riding in the vehicle. For example, the control unit can also determine the first user who is riding in the vehicle based on information related to the usage schedule of the vehicle by each user. In addition, the control unit can also determine the first user who is riding in the vehicle by receiving a user ID that identifies the first user who is riding in the vehicle from the vehicle.

[0021] In addition, the control unit obtains user information of the first user. Here, the user information includes information indicating whether the first user permits the first data received from the vehicle in which the first user is currently riding to be provided to a third party. In addition, the first user can also set whether to permit the first data of the vehicle in which the first user is currently riding to be provided to a third party at an arbitrary timing.

[0022] Moreover, the control unit determines whether to send the first data received from the vehicle in which the first user is riding to the third-party server based on the user information of the first user. That is, when the first user allows the first data to be provided to a third party in the user information, the control unit sends the first data to the third-party server. On the other hand, when the first user does not allow the first data to be provided to a third party in the user information, the control unit prohibits the first data from being sent to the third-party server. Here, the third-party server is a server device associated with a third party that uses the driving data as big data. In addition, the control unit may also send the first data received from the vehicle to the third-party server not in its original state but in a state after some processing has been performed.

[0023] According to the present disclosure, when the first user does not allow the first data of the vehicle that the first user is riding in to be provided to a third party, the first data is not sent to the third-party server. In other words, only when the first user allows the first data of the vehicle that the first user is riding in to be provided to a third party, the control unit can send the first data to the third-party server.

[0024] Specific embodiments of the present disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the dimensions, materials, shapes, and relative arrangements of the components described in the present embodiments.

[0025] Implementation

[0026] System Overview

[0027] Figure 1 1 is a diagram showing the flow of data in the data providing system according to the present embodiment. The data providing system 1 is a system for collecting driving data from a vehicle 10 and providing the collected driving data to a third party. The vehicle 10 is a vehicle for a car sharing service. That is, the vehicle 10 is used by a plurality of users who receive the provision of the car sharing service. A plurality of users who can use the vehicle 10 may be registered in advance. In addition, the vehicle 10 does not necessarily have to be a vehicle for a car sharing service, but may be a vehicle that can be used individually by a plurality of users.

[0028] The data providing system 1 includes a vehicle 10, a management server 100, and a third-party server 200. The management server 100 is a server device that collects driving data from the vehicle 10. The third-party server 200 is a server device associated with a third party that uses the driving data of the vehicle 10 as big data. In addition, in the present embodiment, the management server 100 is equivalent to the "information processing device" involved in the present disclosure. In addition, the data providing system 1 may include a plurality of vehicles 10, and the management server 100 may collect driving data from each of the plurality of vehicles 10.

[0029] The vehicle 10, the management server 100, and the third-party server 200 are connected to each other via a network. Here, as the network, for example, a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet as a public communication network, or a telephone communication network such as a mobile phone can also be used. In addition, the network can also include a telephone communication network such as a mobile phone, a wireless communication network such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

[0030] The vehicle 10 is equipped with various sensors for acquiring driving data. The vehicle 10 transmits the driving data acquired during driving to the management server 100 at a predetermined timing. For example, the vehicle 10 may periodically transmit the driving data to the management server 100 at predetermined intervals during driving.

[0031] Figure 2 1 is a diagram showing an example of a table structure of travel data sent from the vehicle 10 to the management server 100. Figure 2 As shown, the driving data has a vehicle ID field, a date and time field, a position field, a speed field, and an acceleration field. In the vehicle ID field, input the identification information for determining the vehicle 10 as the transmission source of the driving data, that is, the vehicle ID. In the date and time field, input the information about the date and time when the driving data is obtained in the vehicle 10. In the position field, input the position information of the vehicle 10. In the speed field, input the speed information of the vehicle 10. In the acceleration field, input the acceleration information of the vehicle 10. In addition, the driving data may also include information related to the ON and OFF of the start button (or ignition switch) of the vehicle 10. In addition, the driving data may also include image information captured by a camera mounted on the vehicle 10. In addition, the driving data may not necessarily be data obtained by a sensor mounted on the vehicle 10. In the present embodiment, the driving data is equivalent to the "first data" involved in the present disclosure.

[0032] In addition, the management server 100 sends the driving data of the vehicle 10 to the third-party server 200 in response to the request of the third party. As a result, the third party can receive the provision of driving data for use as big data. However, there are cases where at least some of the multiple users who use the vehicle 10 do not allow the driving data of the vehicle 10 they are riding to be provided to a third party. That is, there are cases where the user who is riding in the vehicle 10 is a user who allows the driving data of the vehicle 10 he is riding to be provided to a third party. On the other hand, there are cases where the user who is riding in the vehicle 10 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "user") is not allowed to provide the driving data of the vehicle 10 he is riding to a third party (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "not allowed user").

[0033] Therefore, in this embodiment, the first user who is riding in the vehicle 10 is identified. Furthermore, the management server 100 transmits the driving data of the vehicle 10 when the first user who is riding in the vehicle is a permitted user to the third-party server 200. On the other hand, the management server 100 prohibits the transmission of the driving data of the vehicle 10 when the first user who is riding in the vehicle is a non-permitted user to the third-party server 200.

[0034] Management Server Structure

[0035] Next, the configuration of the management server 100 will be described. Figure 3 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the structure of the management server 100. The management server 100 includes a control unit 110, a storage unit 120, and a communication module 130. The control unit 110 has a function of performing arithmetic processing for controlling the management server 100. The control unit 110 includes a processor such as a central processing unit (CPU), a main storage device such as a random access memory (RAM), and an auxiliary storage device such as a read-only memory (ROM). In addition, the CPU is an example of a processor resource. In addition, the RAM and the ROM are examples of memory resources. The control unit 110 can perform arbitrary information processing according to various programs and various data. However, part or all of the functions of the control unit 110 can also be implemented by hardware circuits such as ASIC and FPGA.

[0036] The storage unit 120 is composed of any storage device such as RAM, ROM, hard disk drive, flash memory, etc. The storage unit 120 may also include a removable medium (removable recording medium). Here, the removable medium is, for example, a USB memory, an SD card, or a disk recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, or a Blu-ray disk. In the storage unit 120, the program executed by the control unit 110 and various data used in the execution of the program are stored.

[0037] A database for storing the travel data 121 received from the vehicle 10 is constructed in the storage unit 120. When the data providing system 1 includes a plurality of vehicles 10, the travel data 121 is stored for each vehicle 10 in the database.

[0038] In addition, a database (schedule information database) storing schedule information 122 and a database (user information database) storing user information 123 are constructed in the storage unit 120. The schedule information 122 is information related to the schedule of each user using the vehicle 10. The user information is information indicating whether each user permits the provision of the driving data 121 received from the vehicle 10 in which the user is currently riding to a third party.

[0039] Figure 4A It is a diagram showing an example of the table structure of the schedule information database. Figure 4B FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a table structure of a user information database. Figure 4A As shown, the schedule information database has a vehicle ID field, a user ID field, and a use date and time field. In the vehicle ID field, a vehicle ID, which is identification information for specifying the vehicle 10, is input. In the user ID field, a user ID, which is identification information for specifying each user who uses the vehicle 10, is input. In the use date and time field, the use date and time of the vehicle 10 used by each user is input. In the schedule information database, when the user reserves the use of the vehicle 10, the scheduled use date and time and the user ID registered by the user may be input. In addition, when the user ends the use of the vehicle 10, the use date and time and the user ID registered by the user may be input.

[0040] In addition, if Figure 4B As shown in FIG. 1 , the user information database has a user ID field and a provision field. In the user ID field, the user ID, which is identification information for identifying each user using the vehicle 10, is input. In the provision field, information indicating whether each user permits the travel data 121 received from the vehicle 10 in which the user is riding to be provided to a third party is input. Information pre-registered by the user is input into the user information database. In addition, each user can also register user information via a user terminal associated with the user.

[0041] The communication module 130 is a communication interface for connecting the management server 100 to a network. The communication module 130 is, for example, a local area network (LAN) interface board or a wireless communication circuit for wireless communication. In addition, the management server 100 does not necessarily need to be implemented by a single physical structure, but can also be composed of multiple computers that cooperate with each other.

[0042] Information processing flow

[0043] Next, according to Figure 5 , describing the flow of information processing performed in the management server 100. Figure 5 1 is a flowchart showing the flow of information processing performed by the control unit 110. In addition, this flow is executed in a state where the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 is stored in the database constructed in the storage unit 120. For example, the control unit 110 may execute this flow when receiving a data provision request from the third-party server 200. In addition, the control unit 110 may execute this flow every time a predetermined period has passed.

[0044] In this process, first, in S101, data that may be the object of data transmission to the third-party server 200 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "object data") is determined from the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 stored in the database of the storage unit 120. For example, the object data may be determined based on the date and time when the driving data 121 is obtained in the vehicle 10. In addition, a prescribed condition for determining the object data may be included in the data provision request sent from the third-party server 200 to the management server 100. In this case, the object data may be determined based on the prescribed condition included in the data provision request.

[0045] Next, in S102, a first user who was riding in the vehicle 10 when the target data identified in S101 was acquired in the vehicle 10 is identified. Specifically, a user who used the vehicle 10 at the acquisition date and time of the data in the vehicle 10 included in the target data is identified as the first user. At this time, the control unit 110 identifies the first user by referring to the schedule information 122 stored in the schedule information database.

[0046] Next, in S103, the user information 123 of the first user identified in S102 is obtained from the user information database. Specifically, the user information corresponding to the user ID of the first user is extracted from the user information database. Next, in S104, it is determined whether the first user allows the user or does not allow the user. Specifically, the control unit 110 determines whether the first user allows the driving data 121 received from the vehicle 10 in which the first user is riding to be provided to a third party by referring to the provision permission field of the user information 123 obtained in S103.

[0047] If the determination in S104 is positive, that is, if the first user is a permitted user, the process of S105 is executed next. In S105, the object data is sent to the third-party server 200. At this time, the control unit 110 may send the object data to the third-party server 200 after performing a processing corresponding to the request of the third party on the driving data 121 stored in the database of the storage unit 120.

[0048] On the other hand, if the determination in S104 is negative, that is, if the first user is not a permitted user, the process of S106 is executed next. In S106, the transmission of the target data to the third party server 200 is prohibited.

[0049] According to the above-described process, the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 when the first user who is riding the vehicle is not a user who is not allowed is not transmitted to the third-party server 200. In other words, only the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 when the first user who is riding the vehicle is a user who is allowed is transmitted to the third-party server 200. Therefore, it is possible to limit the provision of data related to the driving of the vehicle 10 used by multiple users to a third party for each user.

[0050] In addition, the vehicle 10 may also be equipped with an onboard terminal 11 that can be operated by a user who is riding in the vehicle 10. In this case, the onboard terminal is a computer having a processor such as a CPU, a storage device such as a RAM, a ROM, a hard disk drive, a flash memory, and a communication module. In addition, the onboard terminal is connected to the management server 100 via a network.

[0051] In this case, the user riding in the vehicle 10 may input user information to the vehicle-mounted terminal. That is, the user riding in the vehicle 10 may input information indicating whether the user permits the driving data 121 received from the vehicle 10 in which the user is riding to be provided to a third party to the vehicle-mounted terminal. Then, the user information may be sent from the vehicle-mounted terminal to the management server 100. When receiving the user information from the vehicle-mounted terminal, the management server 100 saves the received user information in the user information database.

[0052] Modifications

[0053] A modification of the present embodiment will be described below. In this modification, it is assumed that the provider of the car sharing service to the user is the owner of the vehicle 10. In this case, the owner of the vehicle 10 does not necessarily have to be a person, but may be a legal person or the like.

[0054] Here, the owner of the vehicle 10 may sometimes enter into an agreement with a third party to provide the third party with the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 when the user uses the vehicle 10. When such an agreement exists, generally, the driving data 121 acquired in the vehicle 10 and transmitted to the management server 100 is transmitted from the management server 100 to the third-party server 200, regardless of which user is riding in the vehicle 10. However, even in such a case, the owner of the vehicle 10 may set the user to be able to select whether to allow the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 that the user is riding to be provided to a third party. And, if the owner of the vehicle 10 makes such a setting, the management server 100 can perform the same information processing as the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0055] Therefore, in this modification, an owner information database storing owner information is constructed in the storage unit 120 of the management server 100. Here, the owner information is information indicating whether the owner of the vehicle 10 is set so that the user can select whether to allow the travel data 121 of the vehicle 10 in which the user is riding to be provided to a third party. Then, in the management server 100, the control unit 110 refers to the owner information stored in the owner information database.

[0056] Figure 6 1 is a flowchart showing a part of the flow of information processing performed by the control unit 110 in this modification. In addition, in this flow, the processing performed in each step S101 to S106 is the same as that in Figure 5 The same processing is performed in the steps with the same reference numbers in the flowchart shown. Therefore, the description of these steps is omitted, and the processing in S201 and S202 is described.

[0057] In this flow, the process of S201 is executed after S101. In S201, the owner information of the owner of the vehicle 10 is obtained from the owner information database. Next, in S202, the owner information obtained in S201 is referred to. It is determined whether the owner of the vehicle 10 is set so that the user can select whether to allow the driving data 121 of the vehicle 10 in which the user is riding to be provided to a third party.

[0058] If the determination in S202 is positive, that is, if the user can select whether to allow the travel data 121 of the vehicle 10 in which the user is riding to be provided to a third party, the process of S102 is executed next. On the other hand, if the determination in S104 is negative, the process of S105 is executed next.

[0059] According to the above-mentioned process, when the owner of the vehicle 10 is set to be able to select whether the user who is riding in the vehicle 10 allows the driving data 121 to be provided to a third party, the same information processing as the above-mentioned embodiment is performed. That is, based on the user information, it is determined whether to send the driving data 121 to the third-party server 200, or to prohibit the driving data 121 from being sent to the third-party server 200.

[0060] Other Implementations

[0061] The above-mentioned embodiment is only an example, and the present disclosure can be implemented with appropriate changes within the scope of the gist thereof. In addition, the processes and units described in the present disclosure can be implemented in combination as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

[0062] In addition, a process described as being performed by one device may be shared and executed by multiple devices. Alternatively, a process described as being performed by different devices may be executed by one device. In a computer system, it is possible to flexibly change what hardware structure (server structure) is used to implement each function.

[0063] The present disclosure can also be implemented by providing a computer program installed with the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer, and one or more processors of the computer reading out and executing the program. Such a computer program can be provided to the computer via a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium that can be connected to the system bus of the computer, or provided to the computer via a network. Non-temporary computer-readable storage media include, for example, any type of disk (floppy disk (registered trademark), hard disk drive (HDD)), optical disk (CD-ROM, DVD disk, Blu-ray disk, etc.), read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), EPROM, EEPROM, magnetic card, flash memory, or any type of medium suitable for storing electronic commands such as an optical card.

Claims

1. An information processing device, comprising a control unit, the control unit executing: receiving first data related to driving from the vehicle; determining a first user who is riding in the vehicle; and acquiring user information indicating whether the first user permits the first data received from the vehicle in which the first user is riding to be provided to a third party, When the first user permits the first data to be provided to the third party in the user information, the control unit transmits the first data to a third party server, When the user information indicates that the first user does not permit provision of the first data to the third party, the control unit prohibits transmission of the first data to the third party server.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein: The control unit further executes: obtaining owner information indicating whether the owner of the vehicle is set as a user who is riding in the vehicle can select whether to allow the first data to be provided to the third party; When the owner information allows the owner of the vehicle to choose whether the user riding in the vehicle allows the first data to be provided to the third party, the control unit decides whether to send the first data to the third-party server or prohibits sending the first data to the third-party server based on the user information.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The device further includes a storage device that stores the user information on each of a plurality of users including the first user.

4. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The first user who is riding in the vehicle inputs the user information into an onboard terminal of the vehicle, The control unit receives the user information from the in-vehicle terminal.

5. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The vehicle is a vehicle for a car sharing service.

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