Assistance device, assistance procedure and assistance program

Abstract

An assistance device (1) according to the present disclosure comprises a specification module (3), a selection module (5), and a suggestion unit (7). The specification module (3) specifies expected increases in a brain healthcare quotient (BHQ) of a driver of a vehicle (100) for a plurality of suggestion items. The selection module (5) selects a suggestion item from the plurality of suggestion items that corresponds to the specified expected increase. The suggestion unit (7) suggests the one or more suggestion items to the driver.

Description

Field of InterestThe embodiments described herein generally relate to an assistance device, an assistance method, and an assistance program.BackgroundAn assist device mounted on a vehicle may assist the driving of the vehicle by a driver by proposing predetermined information to the driver of the vehicle. The technologies related thereto are described, for example, in Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-101714 and Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-124975.For example, when a proposal for improving the Gehirngesundheitsquotienten (Brain Healthcare Quotient, BHQ) can be given to the driver, it is expected that the health state of the brain can be maintained / improved by the driving.The present disclosure provides an assist device, an assist method, and an assist program that can maintain / improve a health state of the brain by the driving.SummaryAn assistance device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a specification module configured to specify expected increase amounts of a Gehirngesundheitsquotienten (BHQ) of a driver of a vehicle for a plurality of suggestion items; a selection module configured to select one or more suggestion items from the plurality of suggestion items according to the specified expected increase amounts; and a suggestion unit configured to suggest the one or more suggestion items to the driver.Brief Description of the DrawingsFIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a vehicle to which an assist device according to an embodiment is mounted; FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the assist device according to the embodiment; FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the assist device according to the embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a data structure of object information in the embodiment; FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are diagrams illustrating data structures of feature information in the embodiment; FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a data structure of proposal element information in the embodiment; FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device according to the embodiment; FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device according to a first modification of the embodiment; FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device according to a second modification of the embodiment; FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device according to a third modification of the embodiment; FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device according to a fourth modification of the embodiment; and FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device according to the fourth modification of the embodiment.DETAILED DESCRIPTIONThe following describes an embodiment of an assist device according to the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings.EmbodimentThe assist device according to the embodiment is mounted on a vehicle and can assist the guiding of the vehicle by a driver by proposing predetermined information to the driver of the vehicle.The assist device is provided for maintaining / improving the health state of the brain by the driving.For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, an assist device 1 may be mounted on a vehicle 100. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the vehicle 100 on which the assist device 1 is mounted.The assist device 1 is mounted on the vehicle 100 and can assist driving by a driver (not illustrated) who is present in a cabin 101. The cabin 101 is a space surrounded by a vehicle body 103 having a substantially box shape. In the cabin 101, a display 104 is arranged at a location visually recognizable to the driver. In the cabin 101, speakers 105 and 106 are disposed near the driver.The assistance device 1 can be constructed as hardware as illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 illustrates a hardware configuration of the assist device 1.The assistance device 1 includes a CPU 12, an input unit 13, a communication unit 14, a display unit 15, an audio output unit 16, a volatile storage unit 17, a nonvolatile storage unit 18, and a bus 20.The CPU 12 integrally controls parts of the assist device 1.The input unit 13 performs the operation of the user interface for the driver. The input unit 13 may receive instructions of the driver via a button, a touch panel, or the like. Upon receiving an instruction from the driver, the input unit 13 passes the instruction to the CPU 12.The communication unit 14 may receive predetermined information from the outside via a wireless communication line and / or a wired communication line.The display unit 15 includes the display 104. The display unit 15 may display predetermined information on the display 104 under the control of the CPU 12.The audio output unit 16 includes the speakers 105 and 106. The audio output unit 16 may output predetermined information through the speakers 105 and 106 under the control of the CPU 12.The volatile storage unit 17 temporarily stores information. The volatile memory unit 17 may also be used as a work area for the CPU 12.The nonvolatile storage unit 18 stores information in a nonvolatile manner. The nonvolatile storage unit 18 may store a computer program 19 for performing an assist method by the assist device 1.The display unit 15 may display information on driving assistance on the display 104. The audio output unit 16 may output the driving assistance information by audio via the speakers 105 and 106 instead of the display of the driving assistance information by the display unit 15 or in addition to the display of the driving assistance information by the display unit 15.The driving assistance information may include, for example:Vehicle speed information, navigation information, pedestrian information, preceding vehicle information, lane departure warning, and vehicle state information. The navigation information includes right turn instructions, left turn instructions, forward drive instructions, stop instructions, vehicle shut-down instructions, parking instructions, right lane change instructions, left lane change instructions, and the like.Accordingly, the assist device 1 can perform driving assistance for the driver seated in a driver seat 102.It is examined whether the driving assistance for the driver can be performed from the viewpoint of another aspect. The values have begun to change to the effect that the desire for material goods and money has converted to a desire for mental well-being. The change in value is said to be a change from materials to things, a change from a level of well-being to a level of chance and, in some cases, a change from life expectancy to healthy life expectancy. In such a situation, improvement of a Gehirngesundheitsquotienten (BHQ) is desired. It is expected that a health state of the brain can be obtained / improved by the driving if a proposal for improving the BHQ can be given to the driver of the vehicle 100.The BHQ is based on an image of the brain from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and similar methods mainly used in a medical field. The BHQ is an index of the health of the brain obtained by analyzing an image in a health region of the brain. The BHQ is a concept aimed at creating information about the brain that can be easily utilized by each person, and aimed at achieving a society in which each individual can enjoy mental well-being.The BHQ comprises the Grey-Matter Brain Healthcare quotient (GM-BHQ, Gehirngesundheitsquotienten of the grey matter) and the Fractional Anisotropy Brain Healthcare quotient (FA-BHQ, Gehirngesundheitsquotienten fractional anisotropy). The GM-BHQ is an average value of a group of data on the mass of the gray substance contained in a brain, and is a single scalar quantity. The FA-BHQ is an average value of a group of data on anisotropy of nerve fibers contained in a brain, and is a single scalar quantity.In the present specification, the BHQ may be the GM-BHQ or the FA-BHQ. The BHQ may also be an average value of the GM-BHQ and the FA-BHQ, a larger value of the GM-BHQ and the FA-BHQ, or a smaller value of the GM-BHQ and the FA-BHQ.The assist device 1 acquires a plurality of candidate items, specifies an expected increase amount of the BHQ corresponding to the candidate items, and selects one or more candidate items according to the expected increase amount to be suggested to the driver. Thereby, the assist device 1 can assist the driver's driving of the vehicle in view of the mental well-being.In order to make such a proposal, the assist device 1 may be functionally constructed as illustrated in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the assist device 1.The assistance device 1 includes a detection module 2, a specification module 3, a correction module 4, a selection module 5, a determination module 6, a suggestion unit 7, and a storage unit 8. The suggestion unit 7 can be realized by the display unit 15 and / or the audio output unit 16. In the assist device 1, parts other than the suggestion unit 7 and the storage unit 8 may be implemented as hardware (e.g., a circuit) or software, or a part of them may be implemented as hardware and the rest as software. In a case where parts other than the suggestion unit 7 and the storage unit 8 are implemented as software, the CPU 12 (see FIG. 2 ) may execute the computer program 19 and functionally form, on the volatile storage unit 17, the parts other than the suggestion unit 7 and the storage unit 8 illustrated in FIG. 3 as a whole in compilation or sequentially according to the progress of processing.The detection module 2 detects a plurality of proposal items. Each of the proposal elements may include an object, a feature, or a combination of object and feature. The object refers to content to be suggested to the driver. The object includes at least one of a destination, a path, a driving assistance function, a driving style, and a cabin space controller. The path may include a change of a store on the road, uniqueness of a road, difficulty of a road (e.g., a right / left tight road, a narrow road, a multi-pedestrian road, and bicycles), and the like. The driving assistance function may include the display 104 displaying unusual driving assistance information, slow driving without braking, and the like. The driving manner may be to use the manual cruise control like a game, turn only left, pass as many stores as possible, and the like. The cabin space controller may include activation of an automatic air conditioner, activation of internal air circulation, random reproduction of music, and the like. The feature relates to an additional item of content to be suggested to the driver. The feature includes at least one of novelty, friends and elan.For example, information as a source of the candidate elements may be stored in the storage unit 8, and equivalently, the acquisition module 2 may acquire the candidate elements by acquiring the information as a source of the candidate elements.The storage unit 8 may store object information 9 as information on the source of the proposal items. The object information 9 may be stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 18 (see FIG. 2 ). The object information 9 may be stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 18 at the time of delivery of the assist device 1. Alternatively, after delivery of the assist device 1, the object information 9 may be acquired dynamically from a cloud server via a communication line from the communication unit 14 and stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 18. Such dynamic detection may be performed each time, once in multiple periods, or once in a certain period.As illustrated in FIG. 4, the object information 9 may be information in which the object and the expected increase amount for each of the candidates for a plurality of objects are associated with each other. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a data structure of the object information 9.The object information 9 includes an object column 91 and an expected increase amount column 92. In the object column 91, the content of the object or information for identifying the object is registered. In the object column 91, a destination A, a destination B,..., a path A, a path B,..., a driving assistance function A, a driving assistance function B,..., a driving style A, a driving style B,..., cabin space control A, cabin space control B,... can be entered. "destination A, destination B,..." represent concrete candidates for the object "destination". "path A, path B,..." represent concrete candidates for the object "path". "driving assistance function A, driving assistance function B,..." represent concrete candidates for the object "driving assistance function". "driving style A, Driving style B,... " represent concrete candidates for the object "driving style". "Cabin Space Controller A, Cabin Space Controller B,... " represent concrete candidates for the object "Cabin Space Controller". In the "expected increase amount" column 92, the expected increase amount is entered. In the expected increase amount column 92, ΔQ 1 a, ΔQ1b,..., ΔQ 2 a, ΔQ2b,..., ΔQ 3 a, ΔQ3b,..., ΔQ 4 a, ΔQ4b,..., ΔQ 5 a, ΔQ5b,.. may be input. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate for each object may be experimentally determined in advance and entered in the expected increase amount column 92. With reference to the object information 9, for each object, the expected increase amount for the candidate may be specified.In the case of FIG. 4, the expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "destination A" for the object "destination" is specified as AQ 1 a. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "destination B" for the object "destination" is specified as AQ1b... The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "path A" for the object "path" is specified as AQ2a. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "path B" for the object "path" is specified as AQ2b... The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate of the "driving assistance function A" for the object "driving assistance function" is specified as AQ 3 a. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate of the "driving assistance function B" for the object "driving assistance function" is specified as AQ 3 b... The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "driving style A" for the object "driving style" is specified as AQ 4 a. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "driving style B" for the object "driving style" is specified as AQ 4 b. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "Cabin Space Control A" for the object "Cabin Space Control" is specified as AQ 5 a. The expected increase amount corresponding to the candidate "Cabin Space Control B" for the object "Cabin Space Control" is specified as AQ 5 b...For example, the acquisition module 2 illustrated in FIG. 3 accesses the storage unit 8 and reads out the object information 9 from the storage unit 8. Thereby, the acquisition module 2 acquires a plurality of proposal items corresponding to a plurality of objects included in the object information 9. The detection module 2 supplies the suggestion items to the specification module 3. The detection module 2 may supply the object information 9 to the specification module 3 as information about the suggestion items.The specification module 3 receives the suggestion items from the acquisition module 2. the specification module 3 specifies, for each of the suggestion items, the expected increase amount of the driver's BHQ. The specification module 3 may specify the expected increase amount of the driver's BHQ for each of the candidate elements according to the expected increase amounts included in the object information 9.Alternatively, the object information 9 may be information with the expected increase amount column 92 omitted, and the specification module 3 may specify the expected increase amount of the driver's BHQ for each of the candidate items by calculating the expected increase amount for each of the objects included in the object information 9.The acquisition module 2 illustrated in FIG. 3 accesses the storage unit 8, for example, and reads out the object information 9 from the storage unit 8 to supply it to the specification module 3. The specification module 3 calculates the expected increase amount for each of a plurality of features for each of the candidates for the respective objects included in the object information 9, and generates feature information 10 as a calculation result. The feature information 10 corresponding to each of the candidates for the respective objects may be stored in the volatile storage unit 17 (see FIG. 2 ) or in the nonvolatile storage unit 18 (see FIG. 2 ). The feature information 10 corresponding to each of the candidates for the respective objects may be stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 18 at the time of delivery of the assist device 1. Alternatively, the feature information 10 corresponding to each of the candidates for the respective objects may be acquired from the communication unit 14 dynamically from a cloud server via a communication line after the assistance device 1 is delivered, and may be stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 18. Such dynamic detection may be performed each time, once in multiple periods, or once in a certain period.The feature information 10 corresponding to the candidate "destination A" for the object may be information in which the feature is associated with the expected increase amount for each of the features, as illustrated in FIG. 5A. FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are diagrams illustrating the data structures of the feature information 10.The feature information 10 includes a feature column 10- 1 and a column 10- 2 having an expected increase amount. In the feature column 10-1, the content of the feature or the information for identifying the feature is registered. In the feature column 10- 1, novelty, friends, and elan can be entered. In the column 10- 2 "expected increase amount", the expected increase amount is set. In the expected increase amount column 10- 2, AQ 1 a 0, AQ 1 a 1, and AQ 1 a 2 may be entered. With reference to the feature information 10, the expected increase amount for the candidate for each feature may be specified.In the case of FIG. 5A, the expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "novelty" for the candidate "destination A" for the object is specified as AQ 1 a 0. The expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "Friends" for the candidate "Destination A" for the object is specified as AQ1a1. The expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "Elan" for the candidate "destination A" for the object is specified as AQ1a2.Similarly, the feature information 10 corresponding to the candidate "destination B" for the object may be information in which the feature is associated with the expected increase amount for each of the features, as illustrated in FIG. 5B. In the case of FIG. 5B, the expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "novelty" for the candidate "destination B" for the object is specified as AQ 1 b 0. The expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "Friends" for the candidate "Destination B" for the object is specified as AQ1b1. The expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "Elan" for the candidate "destination B" for the object is specified as AQ1b2.Similarly, the feature information 10 corresponding to the candidate "cabin space control B" for the object may be information in which the feature is associated with the expected increase amount for each of the features, as illustrated in FIG. 5C. In the case of FIG. 5C, the expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "novelty" for the candidate "cabin space control B" for the object is specified as AQ 5 b 0. The expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "Friends" for the candidate "Cabin Space Control B" for the object is specified as AQ5b1. The expected increase amount corresponding to the feature "Elan" for the candidate "Cabin Space Control B" for the object is specified as AQ5b2.For example, the specification module 3 can equivalently specify the expected increase amount of the driver's BHQ for each of the candidate items by generating candidate item information 11 according to the feature information 10 corresponding to the candidates for the respective objects. The proposal item information 11 may be stored in the volatile storage unit 17 (see FIG. 2 ).As illustrated in FIG. 6, the proposer information 11 may be information in which the object, the feature, and the expected increase amount are associated with each other for each of a plurality of combinations of the object and the feature. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a data structure of the feature information 10. The combinations of the object and the feature correspond to the proposal elements.The proposal item information 11 includes an object column 11- 1, a feature column 11- 2, and a column 11- 3 having an expected increase amount. In the object column 11-1, the content of the object or information for identifying the object is registered. In the object column 11- 1, a destination A, a destination B,..., a path A, a path B,..., a driving assistance function A, a driving assistance function B,..., a driving style A, a driving style B,..., cabin space control A, cabin space control B,... can be registered. In the feature column 11-2, the content of the feature or information for identifying the feature is registered. In the feature column 11- 2, novelty, friends and elan can be entered. In the column 11- 3 "expected increase amount", the expected increase amount is set. In the column 11-3, ΔQ1a, ΔQ1b,..., ΔQ2a, ΔQ2b,..., ΔQ3a, ΔQ3b,..., ΔQ4a, ΔQ4b,..., ΔQ5a, ΔQ5b,.. can be entered. Expected increase amounts corresponding to a plurality of features may be multiplied and entered in the expected increase amount column 11- 3.That is, the specification module 3 may generate the candidate element information 11 by the following calculation: ... using the feature information 10 corresponding to the candidates for the respective objects. A calculation method may be adding the expected increase amounts corresponding to the features instead of multiplying the expected increase amounts corresponding to the features.With reference to the proposal element information 11, the expected increase amount corresponding to a candidate for each combination of the object and the feature (i.e., a candidate for each proposal element) can be specified.In a case of FIG. 6, the expected increase amount AQ 1 ais specified for a suggestion element in which the candidate "destination A" for the object "destination" and the features "novelty, friends, and elan" are combined.Similarly, the expected increase amount AQ 1 bis specified for a proposal item in which the candidate "destination B" for the object "destination" and the features "novelty, friends, and elan" are combined.Similarly, the expected increase amount AQ 5 bis specified for a suggestion element in which the candidate "cabin space control B" for the object "cabin space control" and the features "novelty, friends, and elan" are combined.Alternatively, the specification module 3 may consider a combination of a plurality of objects as a proposer and specify the expected increase amount corresponding thereto. The specification module 3 may synthesize the expected increase amounts of a plurality of objects to specify the expected increase amount corresponding to a combination of the objects. For example, the specification module 3 may synthesize an expected increase amount ΔQ 6 corresponding to a combination of the candidate "destination A" for the object "destination" and the candidate "path B" for the object "path" by using ΔQ 6=ΔQ 1 a×ΔQ 2 b. A synthesis method may be adding the expected increase amounts corresponding to the objects instead of multiplying the expected increase amounts corresponding to the objects.The specification module 3 shown in FIG. 3 supplies the expected increase amounts of the proposal items to the selection module 5.The selection module 5 obtains the expected increase amounts of the candidate items from the specification module 3. The selection module 5 may select, from the suggestion items, one or more suggestion items whose expected increase amount is equal to or greater than a threshold value. The selection module 5 may select, from the suggestion elements, one or more suggestion elements whose expected increase amount is included in the top N (N is an integer equal to or greater than 1) of the expected increase amounts. The selection module 5 supplies the one or more proposal elements to the proposal unit 7.The proposer 7 proposes one or more proposers to the driver. The proposer 7 may broadcast the one or more proposers visually. The proposer 7 may display the one or more proposers to be proposed to the driver on the display 104 (see FIG. 1 ). The proposer 7 may acoustically transmit the one or more proposers. The proposer 7 may notify the driver of the one or more proposers by outputting them via the speaker 105 (see FIG. 1 ) by audio.Next, the following describes the operation of the assist device 1 with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device 1.The assist device 1 starts the flow illustrated in FIG. 7 when a predetermined trigger condition is satisfied. The predetermined trigger condition may be input of an instruction to start the flow illustrated in FIG. 7 to the input unit 13. The predetermined triggering condition may be the start of the travel of the vehicle 100 by turning on the ignition of the vehicle 100. The predetermined triggering condition may also be turning on a power source of the vehicle 100. The predetermined triggering condition may be detection of the driver entering the vehicle 100 such that a door sensor of the vehicle 100 detects a transition from a closed state to an open state. The predetermined triggering condition may be the determination that the driver is seated in the driver seat 102 such that a pressure sensor of the driver seat 102 determines a pressure equal to or greater than a threshold.After the start of the flow illustrated in FIG. 7, the assist device 1 acquires a plurality of candidate items (S 1) and specifies the expected increase amounts of the BHQ corresponding to the respective candidate items (S 2). The assist device 1 selects one or more suggestion items corresponding to the specified increase amounts (S 3) from the suggestion items. For example, the assistance device 1 may select, from the suggestion items, one or more suggestion items whose expected increase amount is equal to or greater than the threshold value, or may select, from the suggestion items, one or more suggestion items whose expected increase amount is included in the top N of the expected increase amounts. The assist device 1 suggests the suggestion element selected in S 3 to the driver (S 4). The assistance device 1 may give one or more suggestion items to the driver by displaying them on the display 104 (see FIG. 1 ), or may give one or more suggestion items to the driver by outputting them via audio via the speaker 105 (see FIG. 1 ).As described above, in the embodiment, the assist device 1 acquires a plurality of suggestion items, specifies the expected increase amounts of the BHQ corresponding to the suggestion items, and selects one or more suggestion items corresponding to the expected increase amounts to be suggested to the driver. Thereby, the assist device 1 can assist the driver's driving of the vehicle in view of the mental well-being.The display unit 15 shown in FIG. 2 may include a head-up display instead of or in addition to the display 104. The head-up display is disposed in a space located at the lower side of a windshield. The space may be a dashboard. The space may have an opening at an upper side. The head-up display may irradiate the windshield with light through the opening from the lower side of the windshield.Therefore, when the head-up display projects a display object onto the windshield, the display object reflected from the windshield as a display medium can be visually recognized by the driver. The head-up display projects the display object as a virtual image onto a virtual screen disposed in front of the vehicle 100. The driver visually recognizes the display object through the windshield.The head-up display may cause the driver to visually recognize the display object displaying the driving assistance information. The driving assistance information includes, for example, vehicle speed information, navigation information, pedestrian information, preceding vehicle information, lane departure warning, and vehicle state information. The navigation information includes right turn instructions, left turn instructions, forward drive instructions, stop instructions, vehicle-off instructions, parking instructions, right lane change instructions, left lane change instructions, and the like.Alternatively, the assist device 1 may correct the expected increase amount in consideration of a current BHQ of the driver.The assistance device 1 illustrated in FIG. 3 may also include the correction module 4. The sensing module 2 senses the current BHQ of the driver. The correction module 4 obtains the expected increase amounts of the candidate elements from the specification module 3 and the current BHQ of the driver from the acquisition module 2. The correction module 4 supplies the corrected expected increase amounts to the selection module 5. Thereby, the selection module 5 can select one or more candidate elements from the candidate elements according to the expected increase amounts corrected in consideration of the current BHQ.The assist device 1 can operate as illustrated in FIG. 8. FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device 1 according to a first modification of the embodiment.The assist device 1 performs the processing in S 11 to S 12 and the processing in S 13 in parallel.In the processing in S 11 to S 12, the assist device 1 acquires a plurality of candidate items (S 11), and specifies the expected increase amounts of the BHQ corresponding to the respective candidate items (S 12).In the processing in S 13, the assist device 1 acquires the current BHQ of the driver. The assist device 1 may acquire the current BHQ of the driver by measuring the BHQ of the driver. The assist device 1 can approximately measure the BHQ of the driver by capturing an image of the face of the driver and analyzing the image of the face. Alternatively, the assist device 1 may output a predetermined question catalog to the driver. The assist device 1 may display predetermined question information on the display 104, receive response information from the driver through the input unit 13, and estimate the BHQ of the driver according to the received response information to determine the current BHQ of the driver. Alternatively, the assist device 1 may acquire a measurement result of the driver's BHQ from the outside. The assistance device 1 can acquire the current BHQ of the driver by making a request to a medical facility via a communication line via the communication unit 14 and obtaining information on the BHQ of the driver measured in the past in the medical facility by MRT and the like via the communication line.When both the processing in S 11 to S 12 and the processing in S 13 are completed, the assist device 1 corrects the expected increase amounts specified in S 12 according to the BHQ of the driver acquired in S 13 (S 14). For example, the expected increase amounts included in the object information 9 illustrated in FIG. 4 and the expected increase amounts included in the feature information 10 illustrated in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are experimentally acquired in advance for a standard BHQ. The assist device 1 may correct the expected increase amounts specified in S 12 according to a deviation of the current BHQ of the driver from the standard BHQ. The assist device 1 may correct the expected increase amounts specified in S 12 by adding the difference to the expected increase amount.Thereafter, the processing at S 3 and S 4 in FIG. 7 is performed in a similar manner to the embodiment.With such an operation, the assist device 1 can assist the driver's driving of the vehicle in view of the mental well-being.Alternatively, the assist device 1 may use a decrease amount of the driver's BHQ as a trigger for suggestion.The assistance device 1 illustrated in FIG. 3 may further include the determination module 6. The sensing module 2 senses the current BHQ of the driver. The determination module 6 includes a previous BHQ of the driver. The determination module 6 receives the current BHQ of the driver from the sensing module 2 and determines the amount of decrease of the current BHQ from the previous BHQ. The determination module 6 determines whether the amount of decrease exceeds a threshold value and supplies a determination result to the proposing unit 7. thereby, the proposing unit 7 can selectively make a proposal in a case where a proposal should be made according to the determination result.The assist device 1 can operate as illustrated in FIG. 9. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device 1 according to a second modification of the embodiment.The assist device 1 performs the processing at S 11 to S 12 and the processing at S 13 in parallel, similarly to the first modification of the embodiment.When both the processing in S 11 to S 12 and the processing in S 13 are completed, the assist device 1 subtracts the driver's BHQ acquired in S 13 from the driver's BHQ acquired in advance in S 13, obtains the decrease amount of the BHQ, and determines whether the decrease amount of the BHQ exceeds the threshold (S 21). When the decrease amount of the BHQ exceeds the threshold (Yes at S 21), the assist device 1 determines that a suggestion should be made and performs the processing at S 3 and S 4 in FIG. 7 similarly to the embodiment. When the amount of decrease of the BHQ does not exceed the threshold (No at S 21), the assist device 1 determines that no suggestion is required, skips S 3 and S 4, and ends the processing.With such an operation, the assist device 1 can assist the driver's driving of the vehicle in view of the mental well-being.Alternatively, the assist device 1 may correct the expected increase amount in consideration of a characteristic of the driver.The assistance device 1 illustrated in FIG. 3 may further include the correction module 4. The acquisition module 2 acquires property information. The characteristic information may include an interest of the driver and / or a taste of the driver. The correction module 4 acquires the expected increase amounts of the candidate elements from the specification module 3 and acquires the attribute information from the acquisition module 2. the correction module 4 corrects the expected increase amounts of the candidate elements according to the attribute information. The correction module 4 supplies the corrected expected increase amounts to the selection module 5.The assist device 1 can operate as illustrated in FIG. 10. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the assist device 1 according to a third modification of the embodiment.The assist device 1 performs the processing in S 11 to S 12 and the processing in S 31 in parallel.In the processing in S 11 to S 12, the same processing as in the first modification of the embodiment is performed.In the processing in S 31, the assist device 1 acquires the characteristic information. The characteristic information may include an interest of the driver and / or a taste of the driver.When both the processing at S 11 to S 12 and the processing at S 31 are completed, the assist device 1 corrects the expected increase amounts specified at S 12 according to the characteristic information acquired at S 31 (S 32). For example, the expected increase amounts included in the object information 9 illustrated in FIG. 4 and the expected increase amounts included in the feature information 10 illustrated in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are experimentally acquired in advance for the standard BHQ. The assist device 1 may calculate deviation amount information indicating a deviation amount of the BHQ statistically determined in advance according to an interest and / or a taste. The deviation amount information may be stored in the nonvolatile storage unit 18 in advance. The assist device 1 may obtain the deviation amount of the BHQ corresponding to an interest of the driver and / or a taste of the driver according to the deviation amount information and the characteristic information, and correct the expected increase amounts specified in S 12 according to the obtained deviation amount. The assist device 1 may correct the expected increase amounts specified in S 12 by adding the deviation amount to the expected increase amount.Thereafter, the processing at S 3 and S 4 in FIG. 7 is performed in a similar manner to the embodiment.With such an operation, the assist device 1 can assist the driver's driving of the vehicle in view of the mental well-being.Alternatively, as illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12, the assist device 1 may be configured to perform the control with a low BHQ flag. FIGS. 11 and 12 are flowcharts each illustrating the operation of the assist device 1 according to a fourth modification of the embodiment.When the ignition of the vehicle 100 is turned on (S 41), the assist device 1 sets the low BHQ flag to a non-active level (S 42), measures the BHQ of the driver (S 43), and detects the current BHQ of the driver. The assist device 1 subtracts the BHQ in the past from the current BHQ, and when the result of the subtraction is not less than a threshold (No at S 44), the processing is ended.When the subtraction result is less than the threshold (Yes at S 44), the assist device 1 sets the low BHQ flag to an active level (S 45). When the automatic destination suggestion setting at low BHQ is not turned on (No at S 46), the assist device 1 ends the processing.On the other hand, upon receiving a request for interruption for destination setting, the assist device 1 stands by until the low BHQ flag goes to the active level (No at S 51). When the low BHQ automatic destination suggestion setting is turned on (Yes at S 46) or the low BHQ flag goes to the active level (Yes at S 51), the assist device 1 outputs the following inquiry information to the driver via the display unit 15 and / or the audio output unit 16 (S 52): "DECREASE OF BHQ is detected. Want to propose a destination to improve BHQ?".When confirmation is received by the user within a predetermined time (Yes at S 53), the assist device 1 determines that assist for improving the BHQ is required, and calculates an expected BHQ improvement value in the periphery (S 54). The confirmation by the user can be effected by pressing a key, by an acoustic input or by a gesture. The expected BHQ improvement value is a value of the expected increase amount of the BHQ whose maximum value is 100. The assist device 1 selects, as target location candidates, a target location at which the expected BHQ improvement value exceeds a threshold value (S 55), and displays the target location candidate on the display 104 and the like (S 56).In a case where the user confirmation is not received within the predetermined time or in a case where a negative user confirmation is received within the predetermined time (No at S 53), the assist device 1 determines that assist for improving the BHQ is not required, finishes the processing of itself, and delivers the processing to the other devices in the vehicle 100. The other devices include a driving assistance device and a cabin space control device. For example, the driving assistance device displays information to prompt the driver to select a destination setting method on the display 104 and the like.When "input" is selected as the destination setting method ("input" at S 57), the driving assistance device receives input of a destination via the input unit 13 to perform inquiry (S 58), and displays a retrieved destination as destination candidates on the display 104 and the like (S 56).When "telephone number" is selected as the destination setting method ("telephone number" at S57), the host apparatus receives an input of a telephone number via the input unit 13 to make a query (S59), and displays a retrieved destination as destination candidates on the display 104 and the like (S56).When "history" is selected as the destination setting method ("history" at S 57), the driving assistance device performs retrieval of a history of destinations in the past (S 60), and displays, on the display 104 and the like, a retrieved destination as destination candidates (S 56).With such an operation, the assist device 1 can maintain / improve the health state of the brain by driving.With the assist device, the assist method, and the assist program according to the present disclosure, the health state of the brain can be obtained / improved by the driving.While certain embodiments are described, these embodiments are presented by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventions. Indeed, the novel methods and systems described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the methods and systems described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the inventions. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the inventions.References included in the specificationThis list of documents cited by the applicant has been produced in an automated manner and is only included for the better information of the reader. The list is not part of the German patent application or utility model application. The DPMA does not take any adhesion for any faults or omissions.Patent Literature citedJP 2009-101714

[0002] JP 2019-124975

[0002]

Claims

An assistance device (1) comprising: a specification module (3) configured to specify expected increase amounts of a Gehirngesundheitsquotienten (BHQ) of a driver of a vehicle (100) for a plurality of candidate items; a selection module (5) configured to select one or more candidate items from the plurality of candidate items according to the specified expected increase amounts; and a candidate unit (7) configured to give one or more candidate items to the driver.The assistance device (1) according to claim 1, wherein each of the suggestion items includes an object related to content to be suggested to the driver.The assistance device (1) according to claim 1, wherein each of the suggestion items includes a feature related to an additional item of the content to be suggested to the driver.The assistance device (1) according to claim 2, wherein the object includes at least one of a destination, a path, a driving assistance function, a driving style, and a cabin space controller.The assistance device (1) according to claim 3, wherein the feature comprises at least one of novelty, friends and elan.The assistance device (1) according to claim 1, further comprising: a detection module (2) configured to detect a current BHQ of the driver; and a correction module (4) configured to correct the specified expected increase amounts according to the current BHQ.The assistance device (1) according to claim 1, further comprising: a detection module (2) configured to detect a current BHQ of the driver, wherein the suggestion unit (7) suggests the one or more suggestion elements to the driver when a decrease amount of the current BHQ compared to a previous BHQ exceeds a threshold value.The assistance device (1) according to claim 1, further comprising: a detection module (2) configured to detect characteristic information related to a characteristic of the driver; and a correction module (4) configured to correct the specified expected increase amounts according to the detected characteristic information.The assistance device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the proposing unit (7) proposes the one or more proposers to the driver together with a BHQ expected according to the specified expected increase amounts.A driving assistance method, comprising: specifying expected increase amounts of a Gehirngesundheitsquotienten (BHQ) of a driver of a vehicle (100) for a plurality of candidate elements (S2); selecting one or more candidate elements from the plurality of candidate elements according to the specified expected increase amounts (S3); and proposing the one or more candidate elements to the driver (S4).The assistance method according to claim 10, wherein each of the suggestion elements includes an object related to content to be suggested to the driver.The assistance method according to claim 10, wherein each of the suggestion items includes a feature related to an additional item of the content to be suggested to the driver.The assistance method according to claim 11, wherein the object includes at least one of a destination, a path, a driving assistance function, a driving style, and a cabin space controller.The assistance method according to claim 12, wherein the feature comprises at least one of novelty, friends and elan.The assistance method according to claim 10, further comprising: acquiring a current BHQ of the driver (S13); and correcting the specified expected increase amounts according to the current BHQ (S14).The assistance method according to claim 10, further comprising: detecting a current BHQ of the driver (S13); and proposing the one or more pieces of proposal to the driver when a decrease amount of the current BHQ compared to a previous BHQ exceeds a threshold (S4).The assistance method according to claim 10, further comprising: acquiring property information related to a property of the driver (S31); and correcting the specified expected increase amounts according to the acquired property information (S32).The assistance method according to claim 10, wherein the proposing is to propose to the driver the one or more candidate elements together with a BHQ expected according to the specified expected increase amounts (S4).An assistance program configured to cause an assistance device (1) to perform: specifying expected increase amounts of a Gehirngesundheitsquotienten (BHQ) of a driver of a vehicle (100) for a plurality of candidate items (S2); selecting one or more candidate items from the plurality of candidate items according to the specified expected increase amounts (S3); and proposing the one or more candidate items to the driver (S4).The assistance program according to claim 19, wherein each of the suggestion items includes an object related to the content to be suggested to the driver.The assistance program according to claim 19, wherein each of the suggestion items includes a feature related to an additional item of the content to be suggested to the driver.The assistance program according to claim 20, wherein the object includes at least one of a destination, a path, a driving assistance function, a driving style, and a cabin space controller.The assistance program according to claim 21, wherein the feature comprises at least one of novelty, friends and elan.The assistance program according to claim 19, wherein the computer program product is configured to further cause the assistance device to perform: acquiring a current BHQ of the driver (S13); and correcting the specified expected increase amounts according to the current BHQ (S14).The assistance program according to claim 19, wherein the computer program product is configured to further cause the assistance device to perform: detecting a current BHQ of the driver (S13); and proposing one or more pieces of proposal to the driver when a decrease amount of the current BHQ compared to a previous BHQ exceeds a threshold (S4).The assistance program according to claim 19, wherein the computer program product is configured to further cause the assistance device to perform: acquiring property information related to a property of the driver (S31); and correcting the specified expected increase amounts according to the acquired property information (S32).The assistance program according to claim 19, wherein the proposing is to propose the one or more candidate elements to the driver together with a value of the BHQ corresponding to the specified expected increase amounts (S4).

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