Management system

Abstract

The invention relates to a management system. The present disclosure provides a technique that makes it possible to easily find a malfunctioning vehicle even when an AVP vehicle malfunctions and the location of the vehicle is difficult to determine. The management system is provided with: a management server capable of wireless communication with vehicles in a parking lot; and a reporter which is provided in the vehicle or in the vicinity of the vehicle, receives the instruction from the management server, and emits sound, light, or both. The management server executes control for operating the reporter corresponding to the vehicle when the situation that confirmation of the state of the vehicle is required is sensed via wireless communication with the vehicle.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technology for managing a parking lot that provides an automatic parking service to vehicles. Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a system for sensing a person in an AVP (Automated Valet Parking) vehicle. In this prior art, a vehicle sensor is used to determine whether a person is in the AVP vehicle. It is confirmed that no one is left in the AVP vehicle to avoid obstructing automatic parking.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-505488

[0006] Furthermore, in the AVP system, when the controlled vehicle needs to be moved by sending a person due to a malfunction, the staff at the parking lot needs to identify the malfunctioning vehicle. At this time, it is considered that it is difficult for the staff to identify the vehicle. In particular, in a parking lot where the same type of vehicle is parked side by side, it is difficult to make a judgment based on the vehicle number and the parking frame. Therefore, searching for the malfunctioning vehicle may take a lot of time. The above-mentioned Patent Document 1 is a system that monitors AVP vehicles and senses people inside the vehicle, and is not a solution to this problem. Summary of the invention

[0007] One object of the present disclosure is to provide a technology that can easily find a faulty AVP vehicle even when the vehicle breaks down and the location of the vehicle is difficult to determine.

[0008] The first aspect of the present disclosure is related to a management system for managing a parking lot that provides an automatic parking service to a vehicle. The management system includes: a management server that can wirelessly communicate with vehicles in the parking lot; and a reporter that is provided in the vehicle or near the vehicle and emits sound or light or both in response to an instruction from the management server. The management server is configured to execute control to operate the reporter corresponding to the vehicle when it senses that a situation requiring confirmation of the vehicle's status has occurred via wireless communication with the vehicle.

[0009] The second aspect of the present disclosure has the following features in addition to the first aspect: The vehicle is configured to operate the reporting device when the communication state with the management server is poor.

[0010] The third aspect of the present disclosure has the following features in addition to the first aspect: The reporting device is an infrastructure device arranged in the parking lot.

[0011] The fourth aspect of the present disclosure has the following features in addition to the first aspect: The management server is configured to change the operation mode of the reporter according to the content of the event that has occurred.

[0012] A fifth aspect of the present disclosure has the following features in addition to the first aspect: The management server is configured to transmit position information of the vehicle whose occurrence of the event is sensed to a mobile terminal held by a parking lot staff.

[0013] Effects of the Invention

[0014] According to the present disclosure, when an event occurs that requires confirmation of the state of a vehicle, a control is performed in a reporting device corresponding to the vehicle to emit sound or light or both. Thus, the presence of a vehicle in which the event occurs can be notified to the surroundings. Therefore, the location of the vehicle in which the event occurs can be quickly determined, thereby shortening the time required to find the vehicle. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 This is a diagram for explaining the outline of the management system according to the embodiment.

[0016] Figure 2 This is a diagram for explaining the outline of the management system according to the embodiment.

[0017] Figure 3 It is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the management system according to the embodiment.

[0018] Figure 4 This is a sequence diagram showing a processing example of the management system according to the embodiment.

[0019] Figure 5 This is a sequence diagram showing a processing example of the management system according to the embodiment.

[0020] Figure 6 This is a flowchart showing a processing example of the management system according to the embodiment.

[0021] Description of Reference Numerals

[0022] 1: management system, 2: parking lot, 3: vehicle, 4: reporter, 4a: first reporter, 4b: second reporter, 10: management server, 11: processor, 12: storage device, 13: communication device, RQ: request, RES: response, CON1: first work control, CON2: second work control. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The management system according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same reference numerals are attached to the common elements in each figure, and the repeated description is omitted.

[0024] 1. Summary

[0025] Figure 1 This is a diagram for explaining the outline of a management system 1 of an embodiment. The management system 1 manages a parking lot 2 that provides an automatic parking service to a vehicle 3. The automatic parking service is used, for example, as a rental service for renting a vehicle 3. The vehicle 3 has an automatic valet parking function. A vehicle having an automatic valet parking function is called an AVP vehicle. The AVP vehicle can be either an autonomously driven vehicle or a manually driven vehicle.

[0026] The management system 1 includes a reporter 4 and a management server 10. The reporter 4 is, for example, a device that emits sound or light or both in response to an instruction from the management server 10. Details of the reporter 4 will be described later.

[0027] The management server 10 includes a processor 11, a storage device 12, and a communication device 13. The processor 11 executes various processes for managing the parking lot 2. Specifically, the processor 11 manages the entry and exit of the vehicle 3 parked in the parking lot 2. In addition, the processor 11 performs maintenance management for keeping the vehicle 3 in a normal state.

[0028] The storage device 12 stores a management program (not shown). The management program is a computer program executed by the processor 11. The functions of the management system 1 are realized by the processor 11 executing the management program.

[0029] The communication device 13 is a device capable of wireless communication with the vehicle 3 .

[0030] The management server 10 performs the following processing in the maintenance management of the vehicle 3. Specifically, the management server 10 sends a request to the target vehicle 3 or all vehicles 3 present in the parking lot 2 in order for the vehicle 3 to respond with the identification information ID of the vehicle 3 and the vehicle status information indicating whether the status of the vehicle 3 is normal. The identification information ID is, for example, a vehicle number, a management number assigned by a company providing an automatic parking service, or the like.

[0031] Furthermore, the management server 10 senses whether a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 has occurred based on the identification information ID received from the vehicle 3 and the vehicle status information corresponding to the identification information ID. For example, when the vehicle status information is "normal", the management server 10 determines that a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 has not occurred. On the other hand, when the vehicle status information is "abnormal", the management server 10 senses that a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 has occurred. A specific processing example will be described later.

[0032] Then, the management server 10 executes control to activate the reporting device 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3 that has sensed the occurrence of the event. A specific example of the control to activate the reporting device 4 will be described later.

[0033] exist Figure 1 In the example shown, the management server 10 determines that a situation requiring confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3 has occurred in the vehicle 3 with the identification information ID "10" among the 20 vehicles 3 parked in the parking lot 2. Then, the management server 10 executes control to operate the reporting device 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3 with the identification information ID "10". In this way, the staff of the parking lot 2 can be informed of the vehicle 3 in which the situation has occurred.

[0034] Figure 2 : is a diagram for explaining the outline of the reporting device 4. The reporting device 4 includes a first reporting device 4a originally arranged on the vehicle 3 and a second reporting device 4b provided near the vehicle 3. Examples of the first reporting device 4a include a light (headlight, etc.), a lamp (turn indicator, hazard light, etc.), a horn, a speaker (navigation voice, etc.), an approaching sound installed in a hybrid vehicle, etc., an anti-theft buzzer, etc. Examples of the second reporting device 4b include a lighted or flashing mark provided near or around the parking frame, a light that can illuminate the parking frame from above, a speaker provided near the parking frame, and other infrastructure equipment.

[0035] exist Figure 2 In the example shown, the headlight of the vehicle 3 as the first reporting device 4a is turned on, and the mark near the parking frame and the mark around the parking frame as the second reporting device 4b are respectively turned on. In addition to this example, the speaker mounted on the vehicle 3 may be used to announce the specific status of the vehicle 3 by navigation voice. For example, the identification information ID of the vehicle 3 and the number of the parking frame are announced by voice, so that the staff of the parking lot 2 can more easily find the vehicle 3 in which the situation has occurred.

[0036] According to the management system 1 of the embodiment, when a situation that requires confirmation of the state of a vehicle 3 in the parking lot 2 is detected, control is performed to operate the reporting device 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3. When the control to operate the reporting device 4 is performed, the first reporting device 4a or the second reporting device 4b is caused to emit sound or light or both. A specific example of the control to operate the reporting device 4 is described below.

[0037] 2. Specific Examples

[0038] 2-1. Example of reporter operation control

[0039] Figure 3 This is a diagram for explaining a specific example of control for operating the reporter 4 in the management system 1 of the embodiment. As described above, when a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 is detected, control for operating the reporter 4 is performed. The situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 refers to abnormal state of the vehicle 3, poor communication state between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3, etc. The abnormal state of the vehicle 3 refers to, for example, vehicle failure, failure of the on-board sensor, insufficient charging, insufficient fuel, etc.

[0040] Here, as a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3, consider a situation where the communication state between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is poor. In this case, even if there is a vehicle 3 in which this situation occurs, the management server 10 cannot grasp it and cannot execute control to operate the reporting device 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0041] Therefore, in the management system 1 of the embodiment, when the communication state between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is good, the management server 10 performs control to operate the reporting device 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3 where the event occurred. On the other hand, when the communication state between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is poor, the vehicle 3 where the event occurred performs control to operate the reporting device 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0042] It should be noted that the example in which the management server 10 operates the reporting device 4 when the communication status between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is good is referred to as the first example, and the example in which the vehicle 3 operates the reporting device 4 of the vehicle when the communication status between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is poor is referred to as the second example. The details of each of the first example and the second example are described below.

[0043] 2-1-1. The first example

[0044] Figure 3 (A) shows a specific example of the first example of operating the reporter 4 through the management server 10. Figure 3As shown in (A), various parameters are used to determine whether a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 has occurred. The various parameters are parameters received from the vehicle 3 after the management server 10 sends a request to the vehicle 3 in order for the vehicle 3 to respond with the identification information ID and the vehicle status information. The various parameters include the presence or absence of a response from the vehicle 3 and the vehicle status information.

[0045] As examples of the combination of the presence or absence of a response from the vehicle 3 and the vehicle status information, three cases (Case 1, Case 2, and Case 3) are given. Specifically, Figure 3 Case 1 shown in (A) shows an example of a case where there is a response from the vehicle 3 and the vehicle status information received from the vehicle 3 is normal. In this case, the situation that requires confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3 has not occurred, and there is no need to inform the surrounding of the status of the vehicle 3, so the management server 10 does not control the reporter 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3 to operate.

[0046] Figure 3 Case 2 shown in (A) shows an example of a case where there is a response from the vehicle 3 and the vehicle status information received from the vehicle 3 is abnormal. In this case, it is necessary to inform the surroundings that an event requiring confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3 has occurred, so the management server 10 controls the reporter 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3 to operate. Specifically, the management server 10 performs control to operate at least one of the first reporter 4a and the second reporter 4b corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0047] Figure 3 Case 3 shown in (A) shows an example of a case where there is no response from the vehicle 3. It is assumed that even when the communication status between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is good, if some problem occurs on the vehicle 3 side, no response is returned to the management server 10. In this case, it is necessary to inform the surroundings that a situation has occurred that requires confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3. Therefore, the management server 10 controls the second reporter 4b corresponding to the vehicle 3 to operate.

[0048] 2-1-2. Second example

[0049] Figure 3 (B) shows a specific example in which the vehicle 3 activates the reporting device 4 of the vehicle. Figure 3As shown in (B), various parameters including the presence or absence of the request from the management server 10 and the vehicle status information are used to determine whether a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 has occurred. In addition, four cases (Case 4, Case 5, Case 6, and Case 7) are given as examples of the combination of the presence or absence of the request from the management server 10 and the vehicle status information. It should be noted that Case 4 and Case 5 are respectively equivalent to Case 1 and Case 2 described above, and therefore, Case 6 and Case 7 are described here.

[0050] Specifically, Figure 3 Case 6 shown in (B) shows an example of a case where the request is not received from the management server 10 even after a predetermined time has passed, and the vehicle status information is normal. In this case, the communication status between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is poor, but the vehicle status information is normal, so the situation that requires confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3 has not occurred. In this case, it is not necessary to notify the surrounding of the status of the vehicle 3, so the vehicle 3 does not execute control to activate the first reporting device 4a of the own vehicle.

[0051] Figure 3 Case 7 shown in (B) shows an example of a case where the request from the management server 10 has not been received after a predetermined time has passed, and the vehicle status information is abnormal. In this case, in addition to the poor communication status between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3, the vehicle status information is also abnormal, so a situation has occurred that requires confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3. Therefore, it is necessary to notify the surroundings that a situation has occurred that requires confirmation of the status of the vehicle, and the vehicle 3 executes control to activate the first reporting device 4a of the vehicle.

[0052] 2-2. Example of how the reporter works

[0053] The management system 1 can change the operation mode of the reporter 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3 according to the state of various parameters used in determining whether a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3 has occurred. For example, when the degree of failure of the vehicle 3 is high, the state of the vehicle 3 needs to be confirmed as soon as possible. In this case, the management system 1 uses the reporter 4 that emits sound so that the staff of the parking lot 2 will immediately notice it. On the other hand, when the degree of failure of the vehicle 3 is low and the priority of determining the state of the vehicle 3 is low, the management system 1 can use the reporter 4 that emits light to control the operation of the reporter 4.

[0054] It should be noted that the management system 1 may operate the alarm device 4 that emits sound in combination with the alarm device 4 that emits light, depending on the content of the fault. Furthermore, the management system 1 may preset a cycle pattern of emitting sound and light, depending on the content of the fault.

[0055] 3. Processing example (sequence)

[0056] 3-1. The first example

[0057] Figure 4 1 is a sequence diagram showing a first example of processing in the management system 1 according to the embodiment. Specifically, Figure 4 (A) shows a sequence diagram of the case 1 described above, Figure 4 (B) shows a sequence diagram of the case 2 described above. Figure 4 (C) shows a sequence diagram of the case 3 described above. The following describes each of them in detail.

[0058] First, about Figure 4 The management server 10 sends a request RQ to the vehicle 3 in order for the vehicle 3 to reply with the identification information ID and the vehicle status information. Then, if the vehicle status information included in the response RES received by the management server 10 from the vehicle 3 is normal, the management server 10 does not execute the control to operate the reporter 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0059] Next, about Figure 4 The management server 10 sends a request RQ to the vehicle 3. Then, when the vehicle status information included in the response RES received by the management server 10 from the vehicle 3 is abnormal, the management server 10 executes control to operate the reporter 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3. Specifically, the management server 10 executes at least one of the first operation control CON1 of the first reporter 4a corresponding to the vehicle 3 and the second operation control CON2 of the second reporter 4b corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0060] Next, about Figure 4 The management server 10 sends a request RQ to the vehicle 3. Then, when a predetermined time has passed since the sending of the request RQ and no response RES is received from the vehicle 3, the management server 10 executes the second operation control CON2 of the second reporter 4b corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0061] It should be noted that, as described above, case 4 in the second example of control for operating the reporter 4 is equivalent to case 1 in the first example, so the sequence of case 4 becomes the same as Figure 4 In addition, the second example of the control for operating the reporter 4 is equivalent to the first example of the case 2, so the sequence of the case 5 becomes the same as Figure 4 In the sequence diagram of the second example described later, the description of Case 4 and Case 5 is omitted, and the details of Case 6 and Case 7 are described.

[0062] 3-2. Second example

[0063] Figure 5 1 is a sequence diagram showing a processing example of the second example in the management system 1 according to the embodiment. Specifically, Figure 5 (A) shows a sequence diagram of the case 6 described above, Figure 5 (B) shows a sequence diagram of the case 7 described above. The following describes each of these in detail.

[0064] First, about Figure 5 The management server 10 sends a request RQ to the vehicle 3. Then, when the vehicle status information included in the response RES received by the management server 10 from the vehicle 3 is normal, the management server 10 does not execute control to operate the reporter 4 corresponding to the vehicle 3.

[0065] Afterwards, if Figure 5 As shown in (A), assuming that the communication status between the management server 10 and the vehicle 3 is poor, the vehicle 3 cannot receive the request RQ from the management server 10 even if the prescribed time has passed since the vehicle 3 sent the response RES to the management server 10. However, if the vehicle status information is normal, it is not necessary to inform the surrounding of the status of the vehicle 3. Therefore, even if the time period during which the request RQ from the management server 10 is not received exceeds the prescribed time, if the vehicle status information is normal, the vehicle 3 does not perform control to operate the first reporter 4a of the own vehicle.

[0066] Next, about Figure 5 The details of (B) are explained below. Figure 5 (A) Similarly, even if the predetermined time has passed since the vehicle 3 sent the response RES to the management server 10, the vehicle 3 has not received the request RQ from the management server 10. In this case, when the vehicle status information is abnormal, a situation occurs that requires confirmation of the status of the vehicle 3. Therefore, when the time period during which the request RQ from the management server 10 is not received exceeds the predetermined time and the vehicle status information is abnormal, the vehicle 3 executes control to operate the first reporter 4a of the own vehicle.

[0067] 4. Processing example (flow chart)

[0068] 4-1. The first example

[0069] Figure 6 (A) is a flowchart showing a processing example of a first example of the management system 1 according to the embodiment. Specifically, Figure 6(A) shows a processing example of the management server 10 in the management system 1.

[0070] In step S100, the management server 10 transmits a request RQ to the vehicle 3 in the parking lot 2. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S110.

[0071] In step S110, the management server 10 determines whether a response RES is received from the vehicle 3. If it is determined that a response RES is received from the vehicle 3 (step S110: Yes), the process proceeds to step S120. Otherwise (step S110: No), the process proceeds to step S140.

[0072] In step S120, the management server 10 determines whether the vehicle status information included in the response RES is abnormal. If the vehicle status information is determined to be abnormal (step S120: Yes), the process proceeds to step S130. Otherwise (step S120: No), the process ends.

[0073] In step S130 , the management server 10 executes control to operate at least one of the first reporter 4 a and the second reporter 4 b corresponding to the vehicle 3 .

[0074] In step S140 , the management server 10 executes control to activate the second reporter 4 b corresponding to the vehicle 3 that has not responded to RES.

[0075] 4-2. Second example

[0076] Figure 6 (B) is a flowchart showing a processing example of the second example of the management system 1 according to the embodiment. Specifically, Figure 6 (B) shows a processing example of the vehicle 3 in the management system 1.

[0077] In step S200, the vehicle 3 determines whether the time period during which the request RQ from the management server 10 is not received exceeds a predetermined time. If it is determined that the time period exceeds the predetermined time (step S200: Yes), the process proceeds to step S210. Otherwise (step S200: No), the process proceeds to step S230.

[0078] In step S210, the vehicle 3 determines whether the vehicle status information is abnormal. If it is determined that the vehicle status information is abnormal (step S210: Yes), the process proceeds to step S220. In other cases (step S210: No), the process ends.

[0079] In step S220, the vehicle 3 executes control to activate the first reporting device 4a of the vehicle.

[0080] In step S230, the vehicle 3 transmits a response RES to the request RQ to the management server 10. Thereafter, the process proceeds to the above-mentioned step S110.

[0081] 5. Effect

[0082] According to the management system 1 of the embodiment, when an event occurs that requires confirmation of the state of the vehicle 3, control is performed to operate at least one of the first reporter 4a and the second reporter 4b corresponding to the vehicle 3. As a result, the existence of the vehicle 3 in which the event occurs can be notified to the surroundings. Therefore, the location of the vehicle can be quickly determined, and the time to find the vehicle 3 in which the event occurs can be shortened. Furthermore, when the vehicle 3 in which the event occurs is in a dangerous fault state, damage to the surroundings can be minimized by quickly notifying the surroundings of the danger.

[0083] 6. Other Implementation Methods

[0084] Alternatively, the management system 1 controls at least one of the first reporting device 4a and the second reporting device 4b corresponding to the vehicle 3 to operate, and transmits the position information of the vehicle 3 in which the event occurred to the portable terminal held by the staff of the parking lot 2. Thus, the staff of the parking lot 2 can more accurately grasp the position of the vehicle 3 in which the event occurred. Therefore, the time to find the vehicle 3 in which the event occurred can be further shortened.

Claims

1. A management system for managing a parking lot that provides automatic parking services to vehicles, the management system comprising: a management server capable of wirelessly communicating with the vehicle in the parking lot; and a reporting device, which is disposed on the vehicle or near the vehicle, and emits sound or light or both in response to an instruction from the management server, The management server is configured to: When the occurrence of a situation requiring confirmation of the state of the vehicle is detected via wireless communication with the vehicle, control is performed to activate the reporting device corresponding to the vehicle.

2. The management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The vehicle is configured to operate the reporter when a communication state with the management server is poor.

3. The management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The reporter is an infrastructure device arranged in the parking lot.

4. The management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The management server is configured to change the working mode of the reporter according to the content of the event that has occurred.

5. The management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The management server is configured to transmit position information of the vehicle in which the occurrence of the event is sensed to a portable terminal held by a staff member of the parking lot.

Images