Passenger organization system for a vehicle and method for digital passenger organization in the vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to a passenger organization system 1 for a vehicle 2 with a digital key 3, with a vehicle arrangement 4 for arrangement in the vehicle 2, wherein the vehicle arrangement 4 has a recognition device 5 for recognizing the digital key 3, with a profile module 6, wherein the profile module 6 has a plurality of stored passenger profiles of passengers and is designed to assign one of the passenger profiles to the recognized digital key 3 as the current passenger profile, with a calculation module 7, wherein the calculation module 7 has a stored vehicle profile and an interface 8 for accepting current operating data of the vehicle 2, wherein the calculation module 7 is designed to determine travel costs for the passenger's journey on the basis of the current passenger profile, the vehicle profile and the current operating data and with an output device 9 for outputting travel cost data with the travel costs.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a passenger organization system for a vehicle and a method for digital passenger organization.

[0002] Digital keys (also known as digital keys) are a technology in the automotive industry that allows vehicle owners to unlock and start their vehicles via a mobile app, eliminating the need to use physical keys. Other functions of digital keys in vehicles include door unlocking, engine start, anti-theft protection, remote trunk opening, and horn activation for remote vehicle tracking.

[0003] The document EP 3958201 A1 discloses a method in which a payment of a parking fee for a vehicle is authorized via a digital key.

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to enable new functions in a vehicle. This object is achieved by a passenger organization system having the features of claim 1, by a vehicle having the features of claim 9, and by a method having the features of claim 10.

[0005] Preferred advantageous embodiments of the invention emerge from the subclaims, the description of preferred embodiments and the attached figures.

[0006] The subject of the invention is a passenger organization system designed for a vehicle. The vehicle can be a car, but also a motorcycle, truck, bus, etc. Passengers are understood to be, in particular, the driver of the vehicle.

[0007] The ride-hailing system has one or more digital keys. The digital keys are also known as digital keys. The digital key is specifically an electronic vehicle key that allows the vehicle to be unlocked, locked, and in some cases even started using a smartphone or smartwatch. The digital key is preferably stored in an app (“wallet”) on the smartphone or smartwatch. The app communicates with the vehicle via Bluetooth, Near Field Communication (NFC), or other connections. In particular, the digital keys are designed according to the CCC specification. The Digital Key CCC standard, also known as CCC Digital Key, is a standardized system for storing, authenticating, and sharing digital car keys on mobile devices.It was developed by the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), a group of major automotive and technology companies working together to ensure the compatibility and security of functions related to car connectivity. The digital keys are stored in a wallet on a mobile phone, smartphone, or similar electronic device. The digital key is specifically designed to be portable.

[0008] The passenger organization system has a vehicle assembly for installation in the vehicle. The vehicle assembly includes a recognition device for recognizing and, optionally, additionally validating the digital key.

[0009] The ride-sharing organization system has a profile module, wherein the profile module contains a plurality of stored passenger profiles of passengers. For example, the profile module comprises a database, wherein the passenger profiles are stored in the database. The profile module is configured to assign the digital key or key ID or similar of one of the passenger profiles recognized by the recognition device as the current passenger profile.

[0010] The ride-sharing system includes a calculation module, which includes a stored vehicle profile. For example, the calculation module includes a database, or the database, with the vehicle profile stored in the database. The vehicle profile includes, in particular, information on the vehicle's fuel consumption, such as in liters or kWh per 100 km.

[0011] The calculation module features an interface for importing current operating data from the vehicle. In particular, the current operating data includes the vehicle's mileage. Alternatively or additionally, the operating data can also include the vehicle's current consumption or the total consumption of the vehicle during a trip.

[0012] The calculation module is designed to determine travel costs for the passenger's journeys based on the current passenger profile, the vehicle profile, and the current operating data. Simply put, the travel costs for the journey for the passenger in the current passenger profile are determined using the cost information from the vehicle profile and the consumption data from the current operating data.

[0013] The ride-sharing organization system has an output device for outputting travel cost data, wherein the travel cost data includes the travel costs.

[0014] The profile module and / or the calculation module can be located in the vehicle assembly and thus locally in the vehicle. In alternative embodiments, the profile module and / or the calculation module are located, for example, on a server in the cloud, thus forming a cloud-based ride-sharing system.

[0015] One of the concepts behind the invention is that, by utilizing the technical capabilities of the ride-sharing system, travel costs for a number of passengers can be recorded and reported. This allows passengers to settle the travel costs for individual trips with each other or with a car owner. This creates a ride-sharing system that enables private car sharing without the use of one of the major car sharing platforms. Rather, all car sharing functions are technically mapped within the ride-sharing system and thus within the vehicle, or at least linked to the vehicle via data technology. This avoids the need to manually calculate travel costs for passengers.

[0016] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the vehicle assembly comprises a screen device as the output device. The screen device is configured to display the travel cost data. For example, a display already present in the vehicle can be used as the screen device.

[0017] It should be emphasized that the recognition device and the other components of the passenger organization system are not exclusively assigned to the passenger organization system, but are already present in a large number of vehicles, whereby the resources already available for the passenger organization system are also used.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the ride-sharing system comprises a client, wherein the client forms the output device. The client can be connected to the ride-sharing system, for example, via the Internet. In this way, the client can be configured as a mobile phone or smartphone, with the travel cost data being displayed via an app on the respective electronic device. Alternatively or additionally, the client can also be configured as a desktop computer, with the travel cost data being displayed in the same way via an app.

[0019] It is preferably provided that the calculation module is configured to collect and evaluate the travel costs or travel cost data from a plurality of passengers as accounting data, wherein the output device is configured to output the accounting data as travel cost data. For example, it is possible to present the travel costs and the journeys made by the various passengers in the vehicle to the passenger in a table. In this way, the accounting data can be presented as part of the travel cost data.

[0020] In a preferred development of the invention, the passenger organization system has an input device for entering vehicle costs (e.g., purchase price or leasing costs) and / or vehicle maintenance costs (repair costs, tax costs, insurance costs, maintenance costs, tire change costs, etc.) and / or incidental travel costs (parking fees, toll costs) to supplement the vehicle profile and / or the passenger profile. These costs are added to the vehicle profile, for example, to calculate a kilometer price for the travel costs. These costs are also assigned to the respective passenger profile so that the costs can be taken into account in the accounting data, particularly via the calculation module.

[0021] It is particularly preferred that the calculation module is configured to calculate compensation payments between passengers in a group of passengers. Thus, each passenger enters their costs into the ride-sharing organization system, and the calculation module calculates compensation payments between the passengers. The compensation payments are preferably output as part of the trip cost data.

[0022] Another object of the invention relates to a vehicle with a passenger organization system as described above.

[0023] Another subject of the invention relates to a method for organizing passengers for a vehicle having the features of claim 10. The method is carried out in particular on the passenger organization system and / or on the vehicle, as previously described.

[0024] In the method, a digital key is recognized by the vehicle, and a stored passenger profile, particularly one selected from a plurality of vehicle profiles, is assigned to the recognized digital key. The travel costs for the passenger's trip are determined based on the passenger profile, a vehicle profile, and current vehicle operating data, with travel cost data subsequently output.

[0025] A further optional subject matter of the invention relates to a computer program that implements the above-described method when the computer program is implemented on a digital data processing device and / or on the ride-sharing organization system as described above. A further optional subject matter relates to a digital storage medium, wherein the computer program is stored on the digital storage medium.

[0026] This reveals a technical solution for a simple, fair, and transparent allocation of costs between people who share a car, especially privately. A fair allocation of car costs is quite complex, as it depends on many parameters: - Purchase costs of the car / leasing - who consumed what amount of fuel / electricity - who refueled the car and at what price - estimated depreciation per km (which again depends on the model and age of the car) - who paid for repairs - optional: Highway and parking: subscription fees / or one-time fees that are only shared if more than one user is in the car.

[0027] This usually leads to either: - approximate and unfair calculations that can lead to conflicts between users - or to laborious attempts to repeatedly recalculate and allocate the costs.

[0028] This proposal aims to enable simple, fair, transparent and automated cost splitting in MyBMWApp by leveraging the following benefits - the advantage of using digital keys: you can track who is driving at any time. - the advantage that all data is available directly on the vehicle (number of kilometers driven, fuel / electricity consumed, sometimes price of fuel / electricity at the refueling point, vehicle model, etc.).

[0029] It is assumed that all drivers have and use a digital key while driving. More specifically, this concept incorporates several ideas: 1. Providing an interface in the form of the output device or clients through which all users of a privately shared vehicle can view the various trips of other users (not necessarily limited to the purpose of cost sharing). Tracking the number of kilometers driven per year could also be used for other purposes. 2. Provision of an automatic cost calculation service that calculates the cost of each journey based on - some pre-calculated / pre-set values ​​(e.g. depreciation costs and pre-set fuel consumption, which are different for cars; pre-set fuel costs per liter) - manually adjusted / added values ​​by the user (e.g. age of the vehicle, vehicle leasing, repair costs, exact fuel costs per liter may not be available on the vehicle and must be adjusted by the customer). 3. Providing an automatic balance calculation service that calculates and displays the current account balance or the settlement payments between different users.

[0030] Further features, advantages, and effects of the invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments of the invention. These show: Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a passenger organization system for a vehicle; Fig. 2 a schematic representation of a user interface of a display device of the passenger organization system.

[0031] Corresponding or identical parts are provided with the same reference numerals in the figures.

[0032] The Fig. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of a passenger organization system 1 for a vehicle 2. The vehicle 2 is designed, for example, as a passenger car.

[0033] The passenger organization system 1 has a digital key 3, wherein the digital key 3 is designed to be portable and can be carried by a passenger. Different passengers use different digital keys 3.

[0034] The passenger organization system 1 comprises a vehicle assembly 4, which is arranged in the vehicle 2. A recognition device 5 for recognizing the digital key 3 is arranged in the vehicle assembly 4. The recognition device 5 communicates with the digital key 3 in order to recognize it and, if necessary, validate it.

[0035] The passenger organization system 1 has a profile module 6, wherein several passenger profiles of different passengers are stored on the profile module 6. The profile module 6 is configured to assign one of the passenger profiles to the recognized digital key 3 as a current passenger profile. This identifies the passenger in the passenger organization system 1.

[0036] The ride-sharing system 1 has a calculation module 7, wherein the calculation module 7 has a stored vehicle profile. Cost information about the vehicle 1 is stored in the vehicle profile and can be updated. Furthermore, the calculation module 7 has an interface 8 for receiving current operating data from the vehicle 2. The current operating data includes, in particular, a mileage reading or information about the kilometers traveled during a completed trip, as is already provided by many vehicles.

[0037] Calculation module 7 is designed to determine travel costs for a trip of the current passenger based on the current passenger profile, the vehicle profile, and the current operating data. In a very simple embodiment, the current operating data is the kilometers driven, the cost per kilometer driven from the vehicle profile, and the identity of the passenger who made the trip from the current passenger profile. Based on this data, the travel costs for the current trip can be calculated and assigned to the passenger.

[0038] Furthermore, the ride-sharing system 1 has an output device 9 for outputting travel cost data with the determined travel costs. The travel cost data thus includes the travel costs, but may also include additional data. The ride-sharing system 1 has, for example, a screen device 10 as the output device 9. The screen device 10 is integrated into the vehicle 2 so that the travel cost data can be displayed directly to the passenger. Inputs can optionally be made via the screen device as a touchscreen or via another human-machine interface.

[0039] Optionally, the ride-sharing organization system 1 can have a client 11, wherein the client 11 is designed, for example, as a computer, a mobile phone, smartphone or another handheld device with an app, wherein the client 11 is designed to output the travel cost data, in particular to display it and, if necessary, to make inputs.

[0040] From an architectural perspective, at least the recognition device 5 and, optionally, the display device 10 must be located in the vehicle 2. The profile module 6 is preferably also located in the vehicle 2. Alternatively, it can be located in the cloud to identify the passenger. The calculation module 7 can optionally be integrated in the vehicle 2, or alternatively, it can also be located in the cloud. In principle, the calculation module 7 can also be provided by a third-party provider. The various possible assignments to the vehicle 2 are described in the Fig.1 visualized by the dashed lines.

[0041] The calculation module 7 is configured to collect the travel costs of a plurality of passengers as accounting data. The accounting data is output as part of the travel cost data. In this way, the passenger can display the travel costs for their own trip as well as the travel costs of other drivers' trips on the output device 9.

[0042] The input of information, in particular cost information, into the calculation module can be carried out via the output device 9, which is also designed as an input device 19, via the client 11 as an input device 19 or via an input interface 20.

[0043] The profiles may contain the following information: Vehicle profile Passenger profile Make and version of the vehicle 2 Identity of the passenger Fixed costs of the vehicle 2 per kilometer Passenger journeys Vehicle consumption per kilometer Passenger's travel costs Total acquisition costs of the vehicle 2 Proportionate acquisition costs of the vehicle 2 Total leasing costs of the vehicle2 Proportionate leasing costs of the vehicle2 Total maintenance costs of the vehicle 2 Proportionate maintenance / repair costs of the vehicle 2 Total repair costs of the vehicle 2 Additional travel costs incurred by the passenger Vehicle costs Fuel costs incurred by the passenger Compensation payments spent Number of passengers Proportionate additional vehicle costs

[0044] From this information, the travel costs can be calculated for each trip, taking into account all costs of vehicle 2. With multiple passengers, differences in travel costs and the costs incurred will arise. In this context, the travel costs and other costs can be transferred into accounting data, and compensation payments between passengers or with an internal clearing account can be calculated based on the accounting costs.

[0045] The Fig.2 shows an example of a user interface 12 of the output device 9, designed as a client 11 in the form of a smartphone with an app that also has an input function. Shown is a list 13 of journeys of the vehicle 2 with a date indication, with the journeys being selectively assigned to the passengers. List 13 forms the accounting data. Each journey is assigned information from the current operating data of the journey, namely the journey time, the journey length, and the energy consumption. The journey costs are entered as the last entry. Thus, each row of list 13 shows the journey cost data with the journey costs.

[0046] Optionally, further information is available via an info icon 14, such as the route on a map. Costs of the trip, such as fuel costs or additional travel costs, can be entered in additional lines 15 and are then included in the passenger profiles and the vehicle profile. A setup icon 16 can be used to enter master data, such as the type and initial value or list price of vehicle 2 into the vehicle profile in order to calculate the trip costs. A cost icon 17 can be used to enter general costs such as the purchase price, leasing rate, maintenance costs or fuel costs, which are then included in the vehicle profile and / or the passenger profile. A money icon 18 can be used to switch to a display in which the mutual compensation payments of the passengers are shown, which the calculation module 7 has created. List of reference symbols 1 Rideshare organization system 2 vehicles 3 digital keys 4 Vehicle arrangement 5 Detection device 6 Profile module 7 Calculation module 8 Interface 9 Output device 10 Screen setup 11 Client 12 User interface 13 List 14 Infoicon 15 additional lines 16 furnishing icon 17 Cost icon 18 Moneyicon 19 Input device 20 Input interface QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] EP 3958201 A1

[0003]

Claims

[1] Passenger organization system (1) for a vehicle (2) with a digital key (3), with a vehicle arrangement (4) for arrangement in the vehicle (2), wherein the vehicle arrangement (4) has a recognition device (5) for recognising the digital key (3), with a profile module (6), wherein the profile module (6) has a plurality of stored passenger profiles of passengers and is designed to assign one of the passenger profiles to the recognized digital key (3) as the current passenger profile, with a calculation module (7), wherein the calculation module (7) has a stored vehicle profile and an interface (8) for transferring current operating data of the vehicle (2), wherein the calculation module (7) is designed to determine travel costs for the passenger's journey on the basis of the current passenger profile, the vehicle profile and the current operating data and with an output device (9) for outputting travel cost data with the travel costs. [2] Passenger organization system (1) according to claim 1, characterized by that the vehicle arrangement has a screen device (10) as an output device (9), wherein the screen device (10) is designed to display the travel cost data. [3] Passenger organization system (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by that the ride-sharing organization system (1) has a client (11), wherein the client (11) forms the output device (9). [4] Passenger organization system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the calculation module (7) is designed to update the travel cost data with the current operating data. [5] Passenger organization system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the calculation module (7) is designed to collect the travel costs of a plurality of passengers as accounting data, and wherein the output device (9) is designed to output the accounting data. [6] Passenger organization system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that it has an input device (19) for entering vehicle and / or additional travel costs to supplement the vehicle profile and / or the passenger profile. [7] Passenger organization system according to claim 6, characterized by that the output device (9) is designed to output the travel cost data taking into account the vehicle and / or additional travel costs. [8] Passenger organization system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the calculation module (7) is designed to calculate compensation payments between a group of passengers. [9] Vehicle (2) with the passenger organization system (1) according to one of the preceding claims. [10] Method for organizing passengers for a vehicle (2), in particular carried out on the passenger organization system (1) of claims 1 to 8 and / or on the vehicle according to claim 9, wherein a digital key (3) is recognized by the vehicle (2), wherein a stored passenger profile of a passenger is assigned to the recognized digital key (3), wherein travel costs for the journeys of the passenger are determined on the basis of the passenger profile, a vehicle profile and current operating data of the vehicle (2), wherein travel cost data are output with the travel costs.

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