Information processing apparatus and information processing method

Abstract

The invention relates to an information processing apparatus and an information processing method. A control unit of the information processing apparatus retrieves a charging facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched to charge a user vehicle among one or more facilities present on a predetermined travel path of the user vehicle. Furthermore, a control unit of the information processing apparatus outputs display information for displaying charging facility information on whether or not charging of the user vehicle is possible among the searched charging facilities on a sketch in which information on one or more facilities is arranged and displayed in order from the current position of the user vehicle from near to far.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and an information processing method. Background Art

[0002] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2021-63766 discloses a navigation system. The navigation system obtains the remaining battery level and the charging characteristics of the battery. In addition, the navigation system obtains the location of the charging station and the attributes of the charging station. Further, the navigation system proposes a route to the driver that includes a charging station selected based on the remaining battery level, the charging characteristics of the battery, the location of the charging station, and the attributes of the charging station. Summary of the Invention

[0003] An object of the present disclosure is to display information on whether or not a vehicle can be charged at a charging facility in an easily viewable manner.

[0004] The information processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present disclosure includes a control unit configured to execute:

[0005] searching for a charging facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched to charge the user vehicle among one or more facilities existing on a predetermined travel route of the user vehicle; and

[0006] outputting display information for displaying, on a sketch that displays information on the one or more facilities in an order from the closest to the current position of the user vehicle to the farthest, charging facility information on whether or not the user vehicle can be charged at the retrieved charging facility.

[0007] The information processing method according to the second aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing method executed by a computer, including:

[0008] searching for a charging facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched to charge the user vehicle among one or more facilities existing on a predetermined travel route of the user vehicle; and

[0009] outputting display information for displaying, on a sketch that displays information on the one or more facilities in an order from the closest to the current position of the user vehicle to the farthest, charging facility information on whether or not the user vehicle can be charged at the retrieved charging facility.

[0010] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to display information on whether or not a vehicle can be charged at a charging facility in an easily viewable manner. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011] The features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals represent like elements, where,

[0012] Figure 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a navigation system.

[0013] Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen of an in-vehicle device.

[0014] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a server in the present embodiment.

[0015] Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of a table configuration of facility information held in a facility information database.

[0016] Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of a table configuration of dispatch information held in a dispatch information database.

[0017] Figure 6 is a flowchart of a process executed by a control unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] When a user charges a user vehicle, the user accesses a facility capable of charging the user vehicle (hereinafter, there is a case where it is called a "charging facility"). At this time, if a charging device is provided at the charging facility, charging of the user vehicle can be achieved at the charging facility. In addition, if a vehicle for charging the user vehicle is dispatched to the charging facility (hereinafter, there is a case where it is called a "charging vehicle"), charging of the user vehicle can be achieved at the charging facility.

[0019] In this case, by viewing the information about the charging facility displayed on the navigation system, the user can grasp the information about the charging facility (including the location of the charging facility and information on whether charging is possible at the charging facility).

[0020] Here, it is assumed that the position of the charging facility is displayed overlapping the map shown by the navigation system. Additionally, regarding the availability of charging at the charging facility, it is also assumed to be displayed overlapping the map together with the position of the charging facility. At this time, sometimes information other than information about the charging facility is also displayed on the map. Further, due to the change in the distance to the charging facility as the user's vehicle moves, there is a case where the positional relationship between the user's vehicle and the charging facility on the map changes. Additionally, there are cases where the display range of the map changes as the user's vehicle moves, and the display of the map rotates as the direction of the user's vehicle changes. Thus, if the information about the charging facility is displayed overlapping on the map, there is a case where the visibility of the information about the charging facility becomes low due to the change in the positional relationship with the charging facility and the display state of the map. The information processing device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure solves such a problem.

[0021] The control unit of the information processing device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure retrieves a charging facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched to charge the user's vehicle among one or more facilities existing on the predetermined travel path of the user's vehicle. Moreover, the control unit of the information processing device outputs display information for displaying, on the sketch, the charging facility information regarding the availability of charging the user's vehicle among the retrieved charging facilities. Here, the sketch is a diagram that displays information about one or more facilities in the order from the closest to the current position of the user's vehicle.

[0022] As described above, the information processing device outputs display information for displaying the charging facility information on the sketch. By viewing the sketch, the user can grasp information about one or more facilities existing on the predetermined travel path in the order from the closest to the current position of the user's vehicle. At this time, the user can also grasp the charging facility information on the sketch. Therefore, the user can grasp the availability of charging the user's vehicle in each of the accessible facilities in the order from the closest to the current position of the user's vehicle. Thus, compared with the case of displaying the availability of charging in the charging facility overlapping the map, the visibility of the charging facility information regarding the availability of charging in the charging facility can be improved. In this way, the information regarding the availability of charging the user's vehicle in the charging facility can be displayed in an easy-to-view manner.

[0023] Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described based on the drawings. Regarding the hardware configuration, module configuration, functional configuration, etc. described in each embodiment, unless otherwise specified, the technical scope disclosed is not intended to be limited only to these.

[0024] <Embodiment>

[0025] (Overview of the System)

[0026] Based on Figure 1 andFigure 2 , the navigation system 1 in this embodiment will be described. Figure 1 FIG. is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the navigation system 1. The navigation system 1 is configured to include an in-vehicle device 100 and a server 200. In the navigation system 1, the in-vehicle device 100 and the server 200 are connected to each other via a network N1. The network N1 can be, for example, a world-wide public communication network such as the Internet, that is, a WAN (Wide Area Network), or a telephone communication network such as a mobile phone.

[0027] (In-vehicle device)

[0028] The in-vehicle device 100 is a car navigation system mounted on the vehicle 10. Here, the vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle. The user of the vehicle 10 inputs a destination to the in-vehicle device 100. The in-vehicle device 100 transmits the current position of the vehicle 10 and destination information indicating the destination to the server 200 via the network N1. Further, the in-vehicle device 100 receives a predetermined travel route from the current position (departure place) of the vehicle 10 to the destination from the server 200 via the network N1. The in-vehicle device 100 displays the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10 overlapping with a map on a display.

[0029] In this embodiment, a case where the vehicle 10 is traveling on a highway will be described. Figure 2 FIG. is an example of a display screen of the in-vehicle device 100. As Figure 2 shown, the in-vehicle device 100 displays a map of the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10 on the left side of the screen.

[0030] Here, as Figure 2 shown, on the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10, there are facilities A, B, and C in order from the closest to the current position of the vehicle 10. Each facility (facilities A, B, and C) is a rest facility such as a service area or a parking area existing on the highway. The positions of the respective facilities are displayed on the map (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as the "display map") displayed by the in-vehicle device 100. The user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the positions of the respective facilities by viewing the map showing the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10 displayed on the display map.

[0031] In addition, at the lower left of the displayed map, there is a display indicating the scale of the displayed map. In addition, a direction symbol is displayed at the upper left of the displayed map. In addition, an icon indicating the current position is displayed below the displayed map. In the present embodiment, the icon indicating the current position always faces upward. That is, when the orientation of the vehicle 10 changes, the displayed map rotates so that the icon indicating the current position faces upward. By displaying the map in this way, the user of the vehicle 10 can grasp which of the left or right turns the next bend is. In addition, when it is necessary to change the display range of the displayed map or the like as the vehicle 10 moves, the in-vehicle device 100 can also change the display magnification of the displayed map.

[0032] Here, sometimes when the vehicle 10 is moving to the destination, it is necessary to charge the vehicle 10. In this case, the user of the vehicle 10 wants to move to a facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched thereto (hereinafter, there are cases where it is called a "charging facility"). Here, the charging device is a device (charger) for charging a vehicle. In addition, the charging vehicle is a vehicle that charges a vehicle and is a vehicle temporarily dispatched to the facility according to the number of users of the facility or the like. At this time, the user of the vehicle 10 wants to grasp the position of the charging facility by viewing the display screen of the in-vehicle device 100. Therefore, the position information of the charging facility is useful to the user of the vehicle 10.

[0033] In addition, it takes time to charge an electric vehicle. Therefore, there are cases where even if the user of the vehicle 10 wants to charge the vehicle 10, charging cannot be immediately performed because other vehicles are using the charging service. Therefore, information on whether charging is possible in the charging facility is also useful to the user of the vehicle 10.

[0034] In view of this, the in-vehicle device 100 displays the position of the charging facility and information on whether charging is possible in the charging facility on the display screen. At this time, it is assumed that the in-vehicle device 100 overlays and displays the position of the charging facility on the displayed map. In addition, it is assumed that the in-vehicle device 100 also overlays and displays information on whether charging is possible in the charging facility together with the position of the charging facility on the displayed map.

[0035] Here, it is assumed that Facility B and Facility C are charging facilities. And in Figure 2 the example shown, for example, it is assumed that the fact that a charging device is provided and information on whether charging is possible in Facility B are displayed below the display of "Facility B" in the displayed map. In addition, in Figure 2 the example shown, for example, it is assumed that the fact that a charging device is installed, a charging vehicle is dispatched, and information on whether charging is possible in Facility C are displayed below the display of "Facility C" in the displayed map.

[0036] At this time, in the displayed map, information about Facility A, which is not a charging facility, is displayed. In addition, the scale and azimuth symbol of the map are displayed. That is, in the displayed map, information about Facility A that has nothing to do with the charging facilities (Facility B and Facility C) and information such as map symbols are displayed. In addition, as the vehicle 10 moves, the distance to the charging facilities becomes shorter, causing the positional relationship between the current position of the vehicle 10 and the positions of the charging facilities on the displayed map to change. In addition, as described above, if the direction of the vehicle 10 changes as the vehicle 10 moves, the displayed map rotates. In addition, the display range of the map changes as the vehicle 10 moves. That is, if the positions of the charging facilities and information about the availability of charging in the charging facilities are displayed overlapping the displayed map, unnecessary information that has nothing to do with this information is displayed, and the display positions of this information on the display screen change as the vehicle moves. Therefore, sometimes it is necessary to look at the displayed map for visual confirmation of the positions of the charging facilities and information about the availability of charging in the charging facilities.

[0037] At this time, since the user of the vehicle 10 is driving, it is difficult to look at the displayed map. In addition, in the present embodiment, the vehicle 10 is traveling on a highway. Therefore, the distance that the vehicle 10 moves during the period when the user of the vehicle 10 views the screen is greater than when the vehicle 10 travels on ordinary roads. As a result, the distance that the vehicle 10 moves during the time when the user of the vehicle 10 is not focused on driving is greater than when the vehicle 10 travels on ordinary roads. Therefore, it is not preferable to display the positions of the charging facilities and information about the availability of charging in the charging facilities overlapping the displayed map.

[0038] On the other hand, as Figure 2 shown, the in-vehicle device 100 displays a simplified diagram of the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10 on the right side of the display screen. The simplified diagram of the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10 (hereinafter, there are cases where it is referred to as a "displayed simplified diagram") displayed by the in-vehicle device 100 is a simplified diagram that displays information about one or more facilities in order from the closest to the current position of the vehicle 10. In Figure 2 the example shown, information about three facilities is divided into blocks respectively. Hereinafter, there are cases where information about the facilities displayed on the displayed simplified diagram (hereinafter, there are cases where it is referred to as "displayed facilities") is referred to as "displayed facility information". Moreover, the displayed facility information about each facility is displayed from the bottom up in order from the closest to the current position of the vehicle 10.

[0039] In Figure 2 the example shown, the displayed facility information about the facility closest to the current position of the vehicle 10, that is, "Facility A", is displayed at the bottommost position in the displayed simplified diagram. In addition, in Figure 2In the example shown, the display facility information regarding the facility that is the second closest to the current position of the vehicle 10, namely "Facility B", is displayed at the second lowest position in the display sketch. Additionally, in Figure 2 the example shown, the display facility information regarding the facility that is the third closest to the current position of the vehicle 10, namely "Facility C", is displayed at the uppermost position in the display sketch.

[0040] The display facility information of the in-vehicle device 100 shown on the sketch includes information indicating the facility name, the estimated arrival time to the facility, and the distance to the facility. In Figure 2 the example shown, the information indicating the facility name, the estimated arrival time to the facility, and the distance to the facility for each facility is displayed in the upper part of the display facility information for each facility.

[0041] Additionally, as the display facility information, information indicating the services that can be utilized at the facility is also displayed. In Figure 2 the example shown, as the display facility information regarding Facility A, an icon (pictogram) indicating that a toilet can be utilized is displayed. Additionally, in Figure 2 the example shown, as the display facility information regarding Facility B, icons indicating that there are a toilet, an information center, and a charging device are displayed. Additionally, in Figure 2 the example shown, as the display facility information regarding Facility C, icons indicating that there are a toilet, a restaurant, a charging device, and a charging vehicle are shown.

[0042] Additionally, when there is a charging device installed at the facility, information regarding whether charging can be performed through the charging device is displayed in the display facility information in the display sketch. Information regarding whether charging can be performed through the charging device is displayed by an icon ("empty" icon or "full" icon) indicating whether the charging device in the charging facility is available. Additionally, as information regarding whether charging can be performed through the charging device, the number of vehicles that the charging device in the charging facility can charge (the number of chargeable stations) can be displayed. Thereby, the user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the availability status of the charging device.

[0043] Additionally, the number of vehicles that the charging device in the charging facility can charge at most (the capacity) is displayed together with the number of chargeable stations. The number of vehicles that the charging device in the charging facility can charge at most (hereinafter, there are cases where it is referred to as the "maximum charging number") varies according to the number of charging devices installed at the facility. In the present embodiment, one charging device can charge one vehicle. Additionally, it is also possible to charge multiple vehicles with one charging device. In Figure 2In the example shown, the number of rechargeable vehicles and the maximum number of chargings are represented as a fraction (the numerator is the number of rechargeable vehicles and the denominator is the maximum number of chargings) for display. Thus, the user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the setting scale of the charging devices in the charging facility.

[0044] In addition, when a charging vehicle is dispatched to a facility, information on whether charging can be performed by the charging vehicle is displayed for each display facility information in the display sketch. Information on whether charging can be performed by the charging vehicle is displayed by indicating an icon ("empty" icon or "full" icon) indicating whether there is an available charging vehicle in the charging facility. In addition, as information on whether charging can be performed by the charging vehicle, the number of vehicles that can be charged by the charging vehicle in the charging facility (the number of rechargeable vehicles) can be displayed. In addition, the maximum number of vehicles that can be charged by the charging vehicle in the charging facility (the maximum number of chargings) is displayed together with the number of rechargeable vehicles. The number of rechargeable vehicles of the charging vehicle in the charging facility changes according to the number of charging vehicles dispatched to the facility. In the present embodiment, one charging vehicle can charge one vehicle. In addition, one charging vehicle can also charge multiple vehicles.

[0045] By displaying the display facility information for each facility on the display sketch in this way, the user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the order of the facilities that can be accessed by moving on the predetermined driving route. That is, it can be grasped that when the user of the vehicle 10 wants to access the facility C, it is only necessary to access the facilities existing on the predetermined driving route after passing through the facilities A and B. In addition, by displaying the information on the charging device and the charging vehicle on the display sketch, the user of the vehicle 10 can immediately grasp which facility is the charging facility. In addition, at this time, the user of the vehicle 10 can also immediately grasp whether charging is possible in the charging facility. In addition, by displaying the number of rechargeable vehicles, the user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the number of available charging devices and charging vehicles.

[0046] In addition, there is a case where all the charging devices or charging vehicles are used by other vehicles. In this case, it can be assumed that the number of other vehicles with a shorter remaining charging time is larger in the case where the number of charging devices or charging vehicles is large than in the case where the number of charging devices or charging vehicles is small. Therefore, it can be assumed that the larger the number of charging devices or charging vehicles, the shorter the time until an available state is generated. In view of this, by displaying the maximum number of chargings, the user of the vehicle 10 can make plans such as preferentially accessing a charging facility with a larger maximum number of chargings compared to a charging facility with a smaller maximum number of chargings.

[0047] In addition, in the display sketch, icons are used to easily display information on whether charging can be performed through a charging facility. In addition, until the vehicle 10 reaches the facility closest to the current position, the display positions of the display facility information in the display sketch do not change. Therefore, compared with displaying the position of the charging facility and information on whether charging is possible at the charging facility on the display map, the display positions of the information on each facility are less likely to change. Therefore, overlooking the position of the charging facility and information on whether charging is possible at the charging facility can be suppressed.

[0048] (Server)

[0049] The server 200 is a server device that manages the driving of the vehicle. The server 200 receives destination information from the in-vehicle device 100 via the network N1. The server 200 generates a predetermined driving route for the vehicle 10 based on the destination information and sends route information including the predetermined driving route to the in-vehicle device 100. Thereby, the in-vehicle device 100 can display the predetermined driving route on the display map.

[0050] In addition, the server 200 retrieves display facilities. In addition, the server 200 retrieves display facilities provided with charging devices. In addition, the server 200 retrieves display facilities to which charging vehicles are dispatched. That is, the server 200 determines charging facilities from the retrieved display facilities. Moreover, the server 200 generates display information for the in-vehicle device 100 to display the display sketch based on the retrieval result and sends it to the in-vehicle device 100 via the network N1. Thereby, the in-vehicle device 100 can display the display sketch. The details of the method for the server 200 to generate display information will be described later.

[0051] The server 200 is configured to include a computer having a processor 210, a main storage unit 220, an auxiliary storage unit 230, and a communication interface (communication I / F) 240. The processor 210 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor). The main storage unit 220 is, for example, a RAM (Random Access Memory). The auxiliary storage unit 230 is, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory). Additionally, the auxiliary storage unit 230 is, for example, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a disk recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disc, or a Blu-ray disc. Further, the auxiliary storage unit 230 may be a removable storage medium. Here, as the removable storage medium, for example, a USB memory or an SD card can be exemplified. The communication I / F 240 is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) interface board or a wireless communication circuit for wireless communication.

[0052] In the server 200, an operating system (OS), various programs, and various information tables, etc. are stored in the auxiliary storage unit 230. Additionally, in the server 200, the programs stored in the auxiliary storage unit 230 are loaded into the main storage unit 220 by the processor 210 and executed, enabling various functions as described later. However, some or all of the functions in the server 200 may also be implemented by a hardware circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA. Further, the server 200 does not necessarily need to be implemented by a single physical structure and may be composed of multiple computers that cooperate with each other. Additionally, similar to the server 200, the in-vehicle device 100 is also configured to include a computer.

[0053] (Functional configuration)

[0054] Next, based on Figures 3 to 5 , the functional configurations of the in-vehicle device 100 and the server 200 that constitute the navigation system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. Figure 3 is a block diagram briefly showing an example of the functional configuration of the server 200 in the present embodiment.

[0055] (Server)

[0056] The server 200 is configured to include a control unit 201, a communication unit 202, a facility information database 203 (facility information DB 203), and a dispatch information database 204 (dispatch information DB 204). The control unit 201 has a function of performing arithmetic processing for controlling the server 200. The control unit 201 can be implemented by a processor 210 in the server 200. The communication unit 202 has a function of connecting the server 200 to the network N1. The communication unit 202 can be implemented by a communication I / F 240 in the server 200.

[0057] The facility information DB 203 has a function of holding facility information. The facility information is information about facilities existing on a highway. The facility information DB 203 can be implemented by an auxiliary storage unit 230 in the server 200. Figure 4 It is a diagram showing an example of the table structure of the facility information held in the facility information DB 203.

[0058] As Figure 4 shown, the facility information has a facility ID field, a location field, a device ID field, a type field (Genrefield), and a rechargeable time field. In the facility ID field, an identifier (facility ID) for identifying a facility is stored. In the location field, information indicating the location of the facility corresponding to the facility ID is stored. In the device ID field, an identifier for identifying a device installed in the facility corresponding to the facility ID is stored.

[0059] In the type field, information indicating the type to which the device corresponding to the device ID belongs is stored. In Figure 4 the example shown, information indicating "toilet", "restaurant", "information center", and "charging device" is stored in the type field. Among them, as Figure 4 shown, in the case where multiple charging devices are installed, information indicating "charging device" is stored in multiple type fields. In the rechargeable time field, information indicating the time when another vehicle can be charged again by the charging device when a vehicle is being charged by the charging device (i.e., the time when the charging of the current vehicle ends) is stored. In the case where the charging device is not charging a vehicle and can currently be charged, the information "-" is stored in the rechargeable time field.

[0060] By acquiring the facility information held in the facility information DB 203, the control unit 201 can grasp the facilities existing on the highway. In addition, by acquiring the facility information, the control unit 201 can grasp the devices installed in each facility. In addition, by acquiring the facility information, the control unit 201 can grasp the rechargeable time of the charging facilities.

[0061] The dispatch information DB204 has a function of holding dispatch information. The dispatch information is information about the charging vehicle dispatched to the facilities existing on the highway. The dispatch information DB204 can be implemented by the auxiliary storage unit 230 in the server 200. Figure 5 It is a diagram showing an example of the table structure of the dispatch information held in the dispatch information DB204. As Figure 5 shown, it has a charging vehicle ID field, a facility ID field, a provision period field, and a rechargeable time field.

[0062] In the charging vehicle ID field, an identifier (charging vehicle ID) for identifying the charging vehicle is stored. In the facility ID field, the facility ID of the facility of the charging vehicle to which the corresponding charging vehicle ID is dispatched is stored. In the provision period field, information indicating the period (provision period) of the provision of charging the vehicle by the charging vehicle with the corresponding charging vehicle ID in the facility with the corresponding facility ID is stored. For example, the provision period is determined according to the period (time period) of the dispatched charging vehicle. In the rechargeable time field, information indicating the time when other vehicles can be charged again by the charging vehicle when the charging vehicle is charging the vehicle (that is, the time when the charging of the current vehicle ends) is stored. When the charging vehicle is not charging the vehicle and can currently be charged, the information "―――" is stored in the rechargeable time field.

[0063] The control unit 201 can grasp the facilities of the dispatched charging vehicle by obtaining the dispatch information held in the dispatch information DB204. In addition, the control unit 201 can grasp the provision period and the rechargeable time of the charging vehicle by obtaining the dispatch information.

[0064] The control unit 201 retrieves the facilities (display facilities) existing on the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10. Specifically, the control unit 201 refers to the positions of the respective facilities in the facility information held in the facility information DB203 and the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10, and determines the facilities on the predetermined travel route of the vehicle 10 as the display facilities.

[0065] In addition, the control unit 201 retrieves the charging facilities. Specifically, the control unit 201 refers to the facility information held in the facility information DB203, and determines the facility with the facility ID in which the information "charging equipment" is stored in the corresponding type field among the display facilities as the charging facility. In addition, the control unit 201 refers to the dispatch information held in the dispatch information DB204, and determines the display facility to which the charging vehicle is dispatched as the charging facility.

[0066] In addition, the control unit 201 calculates the estimated time when the vehicle 10 will arrive at the charging facility (hereinafter, there are cases where it is referred to as the "estimated arrival time") with reference to the departure time of the vehicle 10 and the planned driving route of the vehicle 10. Here, the departure time of the vehicle 10 is determined, for example, by the transmission time of the path information.

[0067] In addition, when the charging facility is a facility equipped with charging equipment, the control unit 201 determines the number of available charging stations and the maximum charging capacity of the charging equipment in the charging facility with reference to the facility information held in the facility information DB 203. Specifically, the control unit 201 obtains the quantity stored in the available charging time field corresponding to the type field of "charging equipment" in the facility information as "―". In addition, the control unit 201 obtains the number of charging equipment whose available charging time arrives before the estimated arrival time of the vehicle 10. Moreover, the control unit 201 determines the sum of these quantities as the number of available charging stations. In addition, the control unit 201 refers to the facility information and obtains the quantity of the type field of the charging equipment regarding the charging facility stored as the maximum charging capacity of the charging equipment in the charging facility.

[0068] In addition, when the charging facility is a facility to which a charging vehicle is dispatched, the control unit 201 determines the number of available charging stations and the maximum charging capacity of the charging vehicle in the charging facility with reference to the dispatch information held in the dispatch information DB 204. Specifically, the control unit 201 determines the sum of the quantity stored as "―――" in the available charging time field in the dispatch information and the number of charging vehicles whose available charging time arrives before the estimated arrival time of the vehicle 10 as the number of available charging stations. In addition, the control unit 201 refers to the dispatch information and obtains the number of charging vehicles dispatched to the charging facility as the maximum charging capacity of the charging vehicle in the charging facility.

[0069] Moreover, the control unit 201 generates charging facility information based on the obtained number of available charging stations and the maximum charging capacity. Here, when the charging facility is a facility equipped with charging equipment, the charging facility information includes information on whether charging can be performed through the charging equipment. In addition, when the charging facility is a facility to which a charging vehicle is dispatched, the charging facility information includes information on whether charging can be performed through the charging vehicle. In addition, when the charging facility is a facility equipped with charging equipment and to which a charging vehicle is dispatched, it includes information on whether charging can be performed through the charging equipment and the charging vehicle. Specifically, the charging facility information is information indicating whether charging can be performed through the charging equipment and / or the charging vehicle, the number of available charging stations of the charging equipment and / or the charging vehicle, and the maximum charging capacity of the charging equipment and / or the charging vehicle.

[0070] At this time, when the number of rechargeable charging devices or charging vehicles is one or more, the control unit 201 determines that the charging device or charging vehicle can be charged. In addition, when the number of rechargeable charging devices or charging vehicles is zero, the control unit 201 determines that the charging device or charging vehicle cannot be charged.

[0071] Here, there is a case where the time when the vehicle 10 arrives at the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle is outside the supply period of the charging vehicle. In this way, even if the vehicle 10 accesses the charging facility, it cannot receive charging from the charging vehicle. In view of this, when the estimated arrival time at the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle is included in the supply period, the control unit 201 generates charging facility information with this charging facility as the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle. In addition, when the estimated arrival time at the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle is not included in the supply period, the control unit 201 does not generate charging facility information with the charging facility as the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle. That is, when the estimated arrival time at the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle is not included in the supply period, the control unit 201 excludes this charging facility from the generation target of the charging facility information for the charging facility of the dispatched charging vehicle.

[0072] In addition, there is a case where multiple charging vehicles are dispatched to the charging facility. In this case, the control unit 201 obtains the supply periods of the multiple charging vehicles dispatched to the charging facility, and determines the charging vehicles to be excluded from the generation target of the charging facility information based on the supply time of each charging vehicle and the estimated arrival time of the vehicle 10.

[0073] Moreover, the control unit 201 outputs display information to the in-vehicle device 100 based on the charging facility information. When a charging device is provided at the charging facility, the display information includes information for causing the in-vehicle device 100 to display an icon indicating that a charging device is provided. At this time, when there is a rechargeable charging device, the display information includes information for causing the in-vehicle device 100 to display an icon of "empty". In addition, when there is no rechargeable charging device, the display information includes information for causing the in-vehicle device 100 to display an icon of "full". In addition, the display information includes information for displaying the number of rechargeable units and the maximum charging number of the charging devices in the charging facility.

[0074] In addition, when a charging vehicle is dispatched to the charging facility, the display information includes information for causing the in-vehicle device 100 to display an icon indicating that a charging vehicle is dispatched. At this time, the display information includes information for causing the in-vehicle device 100 to display an icon of "empty" or "full" according to whether charging is possible. In addition, the display information includes information for displaying the number of rechargeable units and the maximum charging number of the charging vehicles in the charging facility.

[0075] In addition, when the estimated arrival time of the dispatched charging vehicle at the charging facility is not included in the provided period, as described above, the charging facility information is not generated for the dispatched charging vehicle. Therefore, in the case of a charging facility where the estimated arrival time of vehicle 10 is not included in the provided period of the charging vehicle, the display information does not include the information for displaying the icon of the dispatched charging vehicle.

[0076] (Flowchart)

[0077] Next, based on Figure 6 , the processing executed by the control unit 201 in the server 200 in the navigation system 1 will be described. Figure 6 It is a flowchart of the processing executed by the control unit 201. Figure 6 The processing represented starts the execution of Figure 6 the processing shown when the control unit 201 generates the predetermined travel route of vehicle 10.

[0078] In Figure 6 the processing shown, first in S101, the display facility is determined by referring to the predetermined travel route of vehicle 10 and the facility information held in the facility information DB203. Next, in S102, it is determined whether the display facility includes a charging facility. When a negative determination is made in S102, there is no charging facility on the predetermined travel route of vehicle 10. Therefore, in S108, display information that does not include information about the charging facility is generated and output (sent) to the in-vehicle device 100. At this time, the control unit 201 refers to the facility information and outputs display information including information for displaying icons of services that can be used in the display facility other than the charging service performed by the charging equipment and the charging vehicle.

[0079] When an affirmative determination is made in S102, in S103, it is determined whether a charging vehicle has been dispatched to the charging facility. Specifically, the control unit 201 refers to the dispatch information held in the dispatch information DB204 to determine whether the facility ID of the charging facility is stored in the facility ID field. When an affirmative determination is made in S103, a charging vehicle has been dispatched to the charging facility. In view of this, in S104, the provided period of the charging vehicle at the charging facility is obtained by referring to the dispatch information.

[0080] Next, in S105, the estimated arrival time of vehicle 10 at the charging facility is obtained. Next, in S106, the number of available charging stations of the charging equipment and / or the charging vehicle and the maximum number of chargings are obtained. Next, in S107, the charging facility information is generated based on the number of available charging stations and the maximum number of chargings obtained in S106.

[0081] Next, in S108, display information is generated based on the charging facility information and output (sent) to the in-vehicle device 100. At this time, the control unit 201 outputs display information that also includes information for displaying icons of services other than the charging services available at the display facility. Then, the process shown in Figure 6 ends. Among them, when there are multiple charging facilities, the control unit 201 generates charging facility information for each charging facility and outputs display information about them to the in-vehicle device 100. Figure 6 The process shown above. When there are multiple charging facilities, the control unit 201 generates charging facility information for each charging facility and outputs display information about them to the in-vehicle device 100.

[0082] As described above, through the navigation system 1, display information for displaying charging facility information (display facility information) on the display sketch is output. The user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the charging facility information in the order from the nearest to the farthest from the current position of the vehicle by viewing the display sketch displayed on the in-vehicle device 100. Therefore, the user of the vehicle 10 can grasp the availability of charging for each accessible facility in the order from the nearest to the farthest from the current position of the vehicle 10. Thus, compared with the case where the availability of charging in the charging facilities is displayed overlapping the display map, the visibility of the information about the availability of charging in the charging facilities can be improved. In this way, the information about the availability of charging to the vehicle in the charging facilities can be displayed in an easy-to-view manner.

[0083] (Modification Example 1)

[0084] In the above-described embodiment, the display information is output when the vehicle 10 is traveling on the highway. However, the vehicle 10 does not necessarily have to be traveling on the highway. In this modification example, the vehicle 10 is traveling on an ordinary road.

[0085] In this modification example, the server 200 acquires the facility information stored in the facility information DB 203. In this modification example, the facility information is information about multiple facilities within a specified area. In this modification example, the facility information includes information indicating the location of charging stations within the specified area and the rechargeable time of the charging equipment at the charging stations. Here, a charging station is a facility equipped with charging equipment. In addition, the facility information may also include information about facilities of types other than charging stations, such as food and beverage facilities, public facilities, commercial facilities, or accommodation facilities.

[0086] The server 200 refers to the facility information to determine a charging station existing on the predetermined driving route of the vehicle 10 as a display facility. In addition, at this time, the server 200 also determines a facility of a type other than the charging station as a display facility. At this time, the server 200 may limit the number of facilities of a type other than the charging station determined as the display facility to a specified number. In addition, the server 200 determines the charging station among the display facilities as a charging facility. The server 200 refers to the dispatch information and determines the facility of the dispatched charging vehicle among the display facilities as a charging facility. The facility of the dispatched charging vehicle may be a charging station or a facility of a type other than the charging station. In this way, the server 200 determines the charging facility. Moreover, the server 200 generates charging facility information about the charging facility and outputs display information to the in-vehicle device 100. In this way, it is also possible to easily view and display information on whether charging of the vehicle is possible among the charging facilities on the general road.

[0087] (Modification Example 2)

[0088] In the present embodiment, the server 200 generates display information and outputs it to the in-vehicle device 100. On the other hand, in this modification example, the in-vehicle device 100 generates the display information. Specifically, the in-vehicle device 100 accesses the server 200 via the network N1, and refers to the facility information held in the facility information DB 203 and the dispatch information held in the dispatch information DB 204 to determine the charging facility. In addition, at this time, the in-vehicle device 100 obtains the rechargeable time in the facility information and the dispatch information, and the provision period in the dispatch information from the server 200. In addition, the in-vehicle device 100 obtains the estimated arrival time at the charging facility from the path information.

[0089] Then, the in-vehicle device 100 generates charging facility information based on the rechargeable time in the facility information and the dispatch information, the provision period in the dispatch information, and the estimated arrival time at the charging facility, and outputs display information (display of a display diagram) to the user. In this way, it is also possible to easily view and display information on whether charging of the vehicle is possible among the charging facilities.

[0090] <Other Embodiments>

[0091] The above-described embodiments are merely examples, and the present disclosure can be appropriately modified and implemented without departing from its gist. In addition, as long as there is no technical contradiction, the processes and means described in the present disclosure can be freely combined and implemented.

[0092] In addition, the processes described as being performed by one device may also be performed by multiple devices in a shared manner. Alternatively, the processes described as being performed by different devices may also be performed by one device. In a computer system, the hardware configuration (server configuration) that implements each function can be flexibly changed.

[0093] The present disclosure can also be implemented by supplying a computer program having the functions described in the above embodiments installed in the computer, and reading and executing the program by one or more processors included in the computer. Such a computer program can be provided to the computer via a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that can be connected to the system bus of the computer, or can be provided to the computer via a network. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium includes, for example, any type of disk such as a magnetic disk (e.g., a floppy disk (registered trademark) or a hard disk drive (HDD)), an optical disk (e.g., a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, or a Blu-ray disk), any type of medium suitable for storing electronic commands such as a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), an EPROM, an EEPROM, a magnetic card, a flash memory, or an optical card.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, wherein the information processing apparatus includes a control unit configured to perform the following processing: retrieve a charging facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched to charge the user vehicle from among one or more facilities existing on a predetermined travel route of the user vehicle; and output display information for displaying, on a sketch that displays information about the one or more facilities in an order from nearest to the current position of the user vehicle to farthest therefrom, charging facility information regarding the availability of charging the user vehicle among the retrieved charging facilities.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to perform the following processing: when the charging facility is a facility to which the charging vehicle is dispatched, obtain a provided period during which the charging vehicle performs charging; and obtain an estimated arrival time of the user vehicle at the charging facility to which the charging vehicle is dispatched, wherein when the estimated arrival time is included in the provided period, the charging facility is included in the charging facility information as a facility to which the charging vehicle is dispatched, and when the estimated arrival time is not included in the provided period, the charging facility is not included in the charging facility information as a facility to which the charging vehicle is dispatched.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein outputting the display information includes: when there is no charging device or charging vehicle capable of charging the user vehicle among the charging facilities, outputting the display information that causes an icon indicating that there is no charging device or charging vehicle capable of charging to be displayed on the sketch.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein outputting the display information includes: outputting the display information that causes the number of vehicles that can be charged by the charging device or the charging vehicle, and the maximum number of vehicles that can be charged by the charging device or the charging vehicle to be displayed on the sketch.

5. An information processing method, which is an information processing method executed by a computer, wherein the information processing method includes: retrieving a charging facility having a charging device and / or a charging vehicle dispatched to charge the user vehicle from among one or more facilities existing on a predetermined travel route of the user vehicle; and outputting display information for displaying, on a sketch that displays information about the one or more facilities in an order from nearest to the current position of the user vehicle to farthest therefrom, charging facility information regarding the availability of charging the user vehicle among the retrieved charging facilities.

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