VEHICLE SEAT ASSIGNMENT, SYSTEM AND PROCEDURE

Abstract

A system (100) comprising a computer (105) programmed to: identifying a user destination based on location information received from a user (115); Assigning a first seat (140) in a vehicle (101) to the user based on the user destination; and Moving at least one of the first seat (140) and a second seat (140) in the vehicle (101) upon user entry until a distance between the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) is greater than a first distance threshold, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to compare the user target to a second user target of a second user and to assign the first seat (140) adjacent to a seat (140) of the second user if the user target and the second user target are within a distance threshold.

Description

GENERAL STATE OF THE ARTVehicles may transport users to destinations. For example, an autonomous service vehicle may transport a plurality of users to one or more destinations. At each destination, users may enter and leave the vehicle. There may be no room in the vehicle for entering and exiting the users upon arriving at a destination. Present systems lack techniques for actively adjusting the positions of seats in the vehicle to accommodate entering and exiting users, and positioning the users in the vehicle based on their respective targets to assist in adjusting the seats.DE 10 2014 206 507 A1, JP 2006-117 083 A, U.S. Pat. No. 7 023 108 B2, US 2007 / 0 290 554 A1 and JP 2013-69 085 A disclose methods and systems which comprise: identifying a user destination on the basis of location information received from a user, assigning a first seat in a vehicle to the user on the basis of the user destination; and moving the first seat (140) and a second seat (140) in the vehicle (101) upon user entry until a distance between the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) is greater than a distance threshold value.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSFIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example system for moving seats in a vehicle. FIG. 2 is a top view of an example vehicle having a plurality of seats. FIG. 3 is a top view of the example vehicle of FIG. 2 with the seats moved to allow boarding and disembarking. FIG. 4 illustrates an example process for assigning and moving seats in the vehicle.DETAILED DESCRIPTIONA system includes a computer programmed to identify a user target based on location information received from a user, assign a first seat in a vehicle to the user based on the user target, and move at least one of the first seat and a second seat in the vehicle upon entering the user until the distance between the first seat and the second seat is greater than a first distance threshold.The computer may be further programmed to move a third seat upon entry of the user.The computer may be further programmed to assign a plurality of respective seats to each of a plurality of users.The computer is further programmed to move the second seat in the vehicle along a rail.The computer may be programmed to compare the user target to a second target of a second user and assign the first seat to be adjacent to a seat of the second user when the target and the second target are within a distance threshold.The computer may be further programmed to move the first and second seats to respective original positions upon closing a vehicle door.The computer may be further programmed to move at least one of the first seat and the second seat away from respective original positions upon detecting that a user device of the user enters the vehicle, and move at least one of the first seat and the second seat to the respective original positions upon detecting that the user device is within a second distance threshold from the first seat.The first seat may include an occupancy sensor, and the computer may be further programmed to move at least one of the first seat and the second seat upon sensing the user with the occupancy sensor.The computer may be further programmed to stop the vehicle at a plurality of predetermined stops and assign the first seat based on one of the predetermined stops.The computer may be further programmed to determine a clearance and move the second seat until the distance between the first seat and the second seat is at least the clearance.A method includes identifying a user target based on location information received from a user, assigning a first seat in the vehicle to the user based on the user target, and moving at least one of the first seat and a second seat in the vehicle upon entering the user until a distance between the first seat and the second seat is greater than a first distance threshold.The method may further include moving a third seat upon entering the user.The method may further include assigning a plurality of respective seats to each of a plurality of users.The method may further include moving the second seat in the vehicle along a rail.The method further includes comparing the user target to a second target of a second user and assigning the first seat adjacent to a seat of the second user when the target and the second target are within a distance threshold.The method may further include moving the first and second seats to respective original positions upon closing the vehicle door.The method may further include moving at least one of the first seat and the second seat away from respective original positions upon detecting that a user device of the user enters the vehicle, and moving at least one of the first seat and the second seat to the respective original positions upon detecting the user device within a second distance threshold from the first seat.The first seat may include an occupancy sensor, and the method may further include, upon detecting the user with the occupancy sensor, moving at least one of the first seat and the second seat.The method may further include stopping the vehicle at a plurality of predetermined stops and assigning the first seat based on one of the predetermined stops.The method may further include determining a clearance and moving the second seat until the distance between the first seat and the second seat is at least the clearance.Also disclosed is a computing device programmed to perform any of the above method steps. Further disclosed is a vehicle including the computing device. Also disclosed is a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that can be executed by a computer processor to perform any of the foregoing method steps.FIG. 1 illustrates an example system 100 for moving a seat in a vehicle 101 to provide space for a user to enter and exit. A computer 105 in the vehicle 101 is programmed to receive collected data 115 from one or more sensors 110. For example, data 115 of the vehicle 101 may include a location of the vehicle 101, a location of a destination, etc. Location data may be in a known form, e.g., geo-coordinates such as longitude and latitude obtained via a navigation system, as known, using the global positioning system (GPS). Further examples of data 115 may include measurements of systems and components of the vehicle 101, e.g., a speed of the vehicle 101, a trajectory of the vehicle 101, etc.The computer 105 is generally programmed to communicate on a network 125 of the vehicle 101 that includes, for example, a known communication bus. Via the network 125, the bus, and / or other wired or wireless mechanisms (e.g., a wired or wireless local area network in the vehicle 101), the computer 105 may transmit messages to various devices in a vehicle 101 and / or receive messages from various devices, e.g., controllers, actuators, sensors, etc., including the sensors 110. Alternatively or additionally, in cases where the computer 105 actually comprises multiple devices, the vehicle network 125 may be used for communication between devices represented as the computer 105 in this disclosure. Further, the computer 105 may be programmed to communicate with the network 125, which, as described below, may include various wired and / or wireless networking technologies, e.g., cellular, Bluetooth ®, Bluetooth ® Low Energy (BLE), wired and / or wireless packet networks, etc.The data store 106 may be of any known type, e.g., hard disk drives, solid state drives, servers, or any volatile or non-volatile media. The data store 106 may store the collected data 115 sent from the sensors 110.The sensors 110 may include a variety of devices. For example, as is known, various controllers in a vehicle 101 may operate as sensors 110 to provide data 115 over the network 125 or bus of the vehicle 101, e.g., data 115 regarding vehicle speed, acceleration, position, subsystem and / or component status, etc. In addition, other sensors 110 could include cameras, motion detectors, etc., i.e., sensors 110 for providing data 115 for evaluating a location of a target, predicting a path of a target, evaluating a location of a roadway lane, etc. The sensors 110 could also include short range radar, long range radar, LIDAR, and / or ultrasonic transducers.The collected data 115 may include a variety of data collected in a vehicle 101. Examples of the collected data 115 are provided above, and moreover, the data 115 is generally collected using one or more sensors 110, and may additionally include data calculated therefrom in the computer 105 and / or on the server 130. Generally, the collected data 115 may include any data that may be collected by and / or calculated from sensors 110.The vehicle 101 may include a plurality of vehicle components 120. As used herein, each vehicle component 120 includes one or more hardware components adapted to perform a mechanical function or operation, such as moving the vehicle, braking or stopping the vehicle, steering the vehicle, etc. Non-limiting examples of components 120 include a propulsion component (e.g., including an engine and / or an electric motor, etc.), a transmission component, a steering component (e.g., which may include one or more of a steering wheel, a steering rack, etc.), a braking component, a parking assist component, an adaptive cruise control component, an adaptive steering component, a movable seat, and the like.When the computer 105 operates the vehicle 101, the vehicle 101 is an "autonomous" vehicle 101. For purposes of this disclosure, the term "autonomous vehicle" is used to refer to a vehicle 101 operating in a fully autonomous mode. A fully autonomous mode is defined as a mode in which each of the propulsion (typically via a powertrain including an electric motor and / or an internal combustion engine), braking, and steering of the vehicle 101 is controlled by the computer 105. A semi-autonomous mode is a mode in which at least one of propulsion (typically via a powertrain including an electric motor and / or an internal combustion engine), braking, and steering of the vehicle 101 is controlled at least in part by the computer 105, and not by a human operator.The system 100 may also include a network 125 connected to a server 130 and a data store 135. The computer 105 may also be programmed to communicate with one or more remote locations, such as the server 130, over the network 125, such remote location possibly including a data store 135. The network 125 represents one or more mechanisms by which a vehicle computer 105 can communicate with a remote server 130. Accordingly, the network 125 may be one or more of various wired or wireless communication mechanisms, including any desired combination of wired (e.g., cable and fiber) and / or wireless (e.g., cellular, wireless, satellite, microwave, and radio frequency) communication mechanisms and any desired network topology (or topologies when multiple communication mechanisms are utilized). Example communication networks include wireless communication networks (e.g., using Bluetooth ®, Bluetooth ® Low Energy (BLE), IEEE 802.11, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) such as dedicated short range communications (DSRC), etc.), local area networks (LAN) and / or wide area networks (WAN) including the Internet providing data communication services.The vehicle 101 includes a plurality of movable seats 140. The seats 140 may support users in the vehicle 101. The computer 105 can actuate the seats 140 to move from a first position to a second position to enable the users to ingress and egress. When the users finish getting on and off the vehicle 101, the computer may operate the seats 140 from the second position to the first position before moving to the next destination.The system 100 may include a user device 150. As used herein, a "user device" is a portable computing device that includes memory, a processor, a display, and one or more input mechanisms such as a touch screen, buttons, etc., as well as hardware and software for wireless communication as described herein. Accordingly, the user device 150 may be any of a variety of computing devices including a processor and memory, e.g., a smartphone, a tablet, a personal digital assistant, etc., where the user device 150 may use the network 125 to communicate with the vehicle computer 105. For example, as described above, the user device 150 and the computer 105 may be communicatively coupled via wireless technologies.FIG. 2 illustrates an example vehicle 101. The vehicle 101 may be an autonomous service vehicle 101 for transporting users to their respective destinations. The vehicle 101 includes a plurality of seats 140 shown as seats 140 a, 140 b, 140 c, 140 d, 140 e, 140 fin FIGS. 2-3. The example vehicle 101 of FIGS. 2-3 includes 6 seats 140 a- 140 f, and the vehicle 101 may alternatively include a different number of seats 140.The vehicle 101 may include a vehicle floor 155. The vehicle floor 155 may support users in the cabin of the vehicle 101. The vehicle floor 155 may represent a class A surface, e.g., a fabric layer such as carpet, a polymeric layer, etc. The seats 140 may be movable relative to the vehicle floor 155.The vehicle 101 may include a rail 160. The seats 140 may move along the track 160 in a conventional manner. The rail 160 may be installed in the vehicle floor 155. Upon receiving the destination for the user, the computer 105 can move the seats 140 along the track 160 to accelerate the user's getting in and off. The seats 140 may each include a movement mechanism (not shown), e.g., a motor, connected to a wheel disposed in the rail 160 that the computer 105 can actuate to move the seats 140 along the rail 160.The seats 140 may be disposed on banks 165. A bench 165 may include multiple seats 140, with the seats 140 being moved together along the track 160. By including more than one seat 140 on each bench 165, the computer 105 can move more seats 140 with fewer parts to operate. Each bank 165 may extend across the cabin of the vehicle 101. The computer 105 can assign seats 140 on a single bank 165 to a single target such that when the vehicle 101 arrives at the target, only the single bank 165 requires clearance for the users on the seats 140 on the bank 165 and the other banks 165 can be moved to increase the clearance for the single bank 165. The example of FIGS. 2-3 includes three banks 165 a, 165 b, 165 c. Each of the banks 165 a, 165 b, 165 cincludes two seats 140 in the example of FIGS. 2-3, i.e., the seats 140 a, 140 bare located on the bank 165 a, the seats 140 c, 140 dare located on the bank 165 b, and the seats 140 e, 140 fare located on the bank 165 c. The example of FIGS. 2-3 shows each bank 165 having two seats 140, and the bank 165 may be designed to accommodate a different number of seats 140. Alternatively, each seat 140 a- 140 fmay be separately movable along the rail 160.The computer 105 can determine a destination for a user based on location data 115 provided by the user. The user may input location data 115, i.e., a desired destination, to a user device 150. The user device 150 may communicate with the computer 105 and / or the server 130 via the network 125 to provide the location, e.g., in the form of geo-coordinates. The computer 105 can compare the user identified location to roads near the location and identify a parking location on the roads that is closest to the user's location, i.e., the user's destination. Alternatively or additionally, the computer 105 may compare stops on a predetermined route (i.e., predetermined locations where the vehicle 101 is to stop to invite and unload users) followed by the vehicle 101 and identify the stop closest to the user's location as the user destination. The computer 105 may be programmed to, upon arrival at the stop, actuate one or more components 120, e.g., a brake, to stop the vehicle 101 at the stop.The computer 105 may assign seats 140 to users in the vehicle 101 based on respective destinations of the users. The user device 150 may send location information to the computer 105 via the network 125. Once location information for all users is received, the computer 105 may determine respective destinations for all users and may assign respective seats 140 to each of a plurality of users according to the respective destinations of the users. For example, if two users travel to the same destination (or the destinations are within a distance threshold), the computer 105 may assign seats 140 on the same bank 165 to both users, e.g., the computer 105 may assign the seats 140 c, 140 don the bank 165 bto users traveling to the same destination or to destinations within a distance threshold from each other.As used herein, the directions "forward" and "rearward" refer to the position of a bank 165 relative to the vehicle 101. A bank 165 is located "in front of" a second bank 165 when the bank 165 is located closer to a front end of the vehicle 101 than the second bank 165. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, bank 165a is "before" with respect to banks 165b, 165c, and bank 165b is "before" with respect to bank 165c. A bank 165 is located "behind" a second bank 165 when the bank 165 is located closer to a rear of the vehicle than the second bank 165. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, bank 165 cis "behind" with respect to banks 165 a, 165 band bank 165 bis "behind" with respect to bank 165 a. Further, a "foremost" bank 165 is the bank 165 closest to the front end of the vehicle 101, a "rearmost" bank 165 is the bank 165 closest to the rear of the vehicle 101. Further, a "next front" bank 165 with respect to a current bank 165 is a bank 165 located immediately before the current bank 165, and a "next rear" bank 165 with respect to the current bank 165 is a bank 165 located immediately after the current bank 165.The vehicle 101 includes at least one door 170. The door 170 may move from a closed position (as shown in FIG. 2 ) to an open position at the destination (as shown in FIG. 3 ), thereby allowing users to enter and exit the cabin of the vehicle 101. As described below, the computer 105 can move the banks 165 a, 165 b, 165 cwhen it is detected that the door 170 is in the closed position. Upon closing the door 170, the computer 105 may return the banks 165 to their respective original positions before opening the door 170 at the destination.Additionally, the computer 105 can actuate the banks 165 to move relative to the door 170 and the assigned seat 140 based on a position of the user device 150. Once the seat 140 is assigned to the user, the computer 105 may move the bank 165 with the assigned seat 140 from an original position prior to arriving at the destination based on data 115 collected by the sensors 110 upon detecting that the user device 150 of the user enters the vehicle 101 to facilitate boarding of the user. The computer 105 can move the bench 165 with the designated seat 140 to the original position once the user device 150 is detected within a second distance threshold from the designated seat 140.FIG. 3 illustrates how the computer 105 moves the banks 165 to provide space for users. The computer 105 can identify one of the seats 140 for a user who is about to enter the vehicle 101 or about to leave the vehicle 101. For example, the computer 105 can identify that the user on the seat 140 cis going out of the vehicle 101 at the upcoming destination and that a new user is traveling to the same destination as the user on the seat 140 d. Thus, the computer 105 can move the bank 165 bat the destination to allow the current user on the seat 140 cto exit the vehicle 101 and assign the seat 140 cto the new user entering the vehicle 101. In the example of FIG. 3, the user devices 150 a, 150 b, 150 c, 150 d, 150 edisplay the users in the vehicle 101.The computer 105 may move the banks 165 when the vehicle 101 does not have passengers, e.g., at the beginning of a service time. The computer may determine the number of banks 165 represented by the variable B, a length L of the rail 160, and a width W of each bank 165. The computer 105 may determine a length of an open space E in the cabin of the vehicle 101:The computer 105 may determine the space S between the banks 165 when there are no occupants in the vehicle 101:The computer 105 can move each bank 165 to a starting position before any users enter the vehicle 101 as shown in FIG. 2. The computer 105 can move the last bank 165 (the bank 165 cof the example of FIGS. 2-3 ) from the rear of the vehicle 101 to a predetermined position. The computer 105 can then move each subsequent bank 165 a distance of S+W away from the position of the previous bank 165. Thus, all banks 165 may be spaced a distance S apart before users enter vehicle 101.The computer 105 can set each bank 165 for users currently entering or leaving the vehicle 101, as shown in FIG. 3. The computer 105 may identify a bank 165 that includes a user's seat 140 currently entering or leaving the vehicle 101, e.g., with a camera 110 installed in the cabin of the vehicle 101. The computer 105 may maintain a predetermined minimum distance MIN In the data store 106 and / or the server 130. The computer 105 may be programmed to move any two banks 165 no closer than the minimum distance MIN to each other.The computer 105 can identify a number B bleiben of banks 165 for which no users enter or leave the destination. For each bank 165 for which no users enter or leave, the computer 105 can reduce the distance before these banks 165 to MIN, as no users require additional space for entry or exit. For each bank 165 for which at least one user enters or leaves the vehicle 101, the computer 105 may move the banks 165 to allow clearance X that supports entry and exit of the users. The computer 105 can identify the free space X based on the total free space E and the number B bleiben of banks 165 for which at least one user enters or leaves the vehicle 101:The computer 105 can solve the equation (3) for the free space X. After determining the free space X, the computer 105 can move the banks 165 to facilitate ingress and egress of users. The computer 105 can identify each bank 165 for which no user enters or leaves the vehicle 101 and move each bank 165 toward the next front bank 165 until the distance between the bank 165 and the next front bank 165 is MIN. Thereafter, the computer 105 may move each remaining bank 165 backward until the distance between each remaining bank 165 and the next front bank 165 is X. If moving one of the remaining banks 165 backward would reduce the distance between the next rear bank 165 to below MIN, the computer 105 may move the next rear bank 165 such that the distance between the bank 165 and the next rear bank 165 is at least MIN.The computer 105 can send a notification to the user devices 150 of users on the seats 140 exiting the vehicle 101 at the destination to indicate the order in which these users should exit the vehicle 101. In moving the banks 165 to enable doughing out of the vehicle 101, the computer 105 may send a notification to exit the vehicle 101 to users in the foremost bank 165 exiting the vehicle 101. The computer 105 may then send a notification to exit the vehicle 101 to the user devices 150 of users in the next rear bank 165, continuing to send the notification to users in the next rear bank 165 until all users scheduled to exit the vehicle 101 at the destination have left the vehicle 101. The computer 105 may determine that the users have left the vehicle 101 based on user occupancy sensors 110, e.g., a camera, a weight sensor, a picker, etc.When all users have entered and left the vehicle 101 at the destination, the computer 105 may determine an operating clearance Y. Prior to moving the vehicle 101 to the next destination, the computer 105 may move the banks 165 such that banks 165 with at least one occupant may be spaced apart from the next front bank 165 by the operating clearance Y and banks without a user may be spaced apart from the next front bank 165 by the minimum distance MIN. The computer 105 can identify a number B frei of banks 165 that do not have users. The computer 105 can determine the operating clearance Y according to the following equation:The computer 105 can solve the equation (4) for the operating clearance Y. The computer 105 can move each bank 165 toward the next front bank 165 without a user until the distance between the bank 165 and the next front bank 165 is MIN. The computer 105 can move each remaining bank 165 backward until the distance between each remaining bank 165 and the next front bank 165 is Y. If moving one of the remaining banks 165 backward would reduce the distance between the next rear bank 165 to below MIN, the computer 105 may move the next rear bank 165 such that the distance between the bank 165 and the next rear bank 165 is at least MIN. The computer 105 can then move the vehicle 101 to the next destination.FIG. 4 illustrates an example process 400 for moving seats 140 for users in a vehicle 101. The process 400 begins at block 405 where the server 105 receives user information from a user device 150 via a network 125. The user may enter a location into the user device 150, and the user device 150 may communicate with the computer 105 via the network 125.Next, at a block 410, the computer 105 identifies a user destination based on the user information provided by the user device 150. The computer 105 can compare the location identified by the user to one or more roads within a distance threshold of the location and identify a parking location on the roads that is closest to the user's location, i.e., the destination of the user. The computer 105 can identify roads based on geo-coordinates, e.g., based on known path determination techniques. Alternatively or additionally, the computer 105 may compare stops on a predetermined route (i.e., predetermined stops) followed by the vehicle 101 and identify the stop closest to the user's last location as the user destination.Next, in a block 415, the computer 105 assigns a seat 140 to the user. The computer 105 may compare the user destinations of the users of the vehicle 101 with the new user destination and may assign the seat 140 based on the proximity of the user destinations, i.e., the distance between the user destinations. For example, the new user target may be within a distance threshold of a user target of one of the other users in the vehicle 101, in this example a "first user.". The computer 105 can assign the seat 140 located on the same bank 165 as the first user to the new user. Because the first user and the new user will exit the vehicle at the same user destination or at the user destination within a distance threshold, the computer 105 can move the banks 165 to only provide space for the bank 165 with the new user and the first user. As shown in FIG. 3, the computer 105 may assign the seat 140 cto the new user having the same destination as the first user on the seat 140 d. By allocating the seat 140 on the same bank 165 as the first user to the new user, the computer 105 can reduce the number of banks 165 to be moved at the destination, reducing the time for the users to enter and exit, and increasing the space in front of the bank 165 to accommodate the users entering and exiting the vehicle 101.Next, in a block 420, the computer 105 adjusts the banks 165 according to the assigned seat 140. Upon arriving at the user destination and opening the vehicle door 170, the computer 105 can adjust the banks 165 in front of the bank 165 with the seat 140 assigned to provide clearance for the user's entry. Alternatively or additionally, the computer 105 may move the assigned bank 165 and the banks 165 behind the assigned bank 165 to provide clearance for the user while providing leg clearance to the other banks of users. As shown in FIG. 3, the computer 105 can move the banks 165 a, 165 b, 165 csuch that the bank 165 bhas a free space X for users on the seats 140 c, 140 d.Next, in a block 425, the computer 105 sets the banks 165 when a user sits on the seat 140. The seat 140 may include a user occupancy sensor that senses the user seated on the seat 140. For example, the user occupancy sensor may be a weight sensor that senses the user when the weight sensor senses weight above a weight threshold. In another example, the user occupancy sensor may be a camera that captures the user upon capturing an image of the user on the seat 140. When the user sits on the seat 140, the computer 105 can set the banks 165 until the allocated bank 165 has less than the operating clearance Y between the allocated bank 165 and the next bank 165. Alternatively or additionally, once the user no longer needs additional space for boarding, the computer 105 may return the banks 165 to their original positions, e.g., as shown in FIG. 2.Next, in a block 430, the computer 105 determines whether the vehicle 101 has arrived at the user destination determined in block 410. The computer 105 can use geo-location data 115 to determine that the vehicle 101 is at the destination determined from the user location information.Next, in a block 435, the computer 105 adjusts the seats 140 to enable egress of destination users. As described above, the computer 105 can move the banks 165 to allow the clearance X for the users to exit the vehicle 101. As shown in FIG. 3, the computer 105 can move the banks 165 a- 165 cto allow users on the seats 140 c, 140 dto exit the vehicle 101.Next, in a block 440, the computer 105 may adjust the seats 140 upon detecting that the users have left the vehicle 101. As described above, the computer 105 can identify a location of the user device 150 relative to the vehicle door 170 to determine whether the user has left the vehicle 101. Once it is detected that the users have left the vehicle 101, the computer 105 may set the banks 165 to enable the operating clearance Y for the remaining users. After block 440, the method 400 ends.As used herein, the adjective modifying adverb "substantially" means that a shape, structure, dimension, value, calculation, etc. may deviate from a precise described geometry, distance, dimension, value, calculation, etc. by imperfections in materials, machining, fabrication, data collection measurements, calculations, machining time, communication time, etc.Computers 105 generally each include instructions executable by one or more computers, such as those identified above, and for executing blocks or steps of processes described above. Computer-executable instructions may be compiled or interpreted from computer programs created using a variety of programming languages and / or technologies, including, without limitation, and either alone or in combination, Java™ C, C++, Visual Basic, Java Script, Perl, HTML, etc. In general, a processor (e.g., a microprocessor) receives instructions, e.g., from a memory, a computer-readable medium, etc., and executes these instructions, thereby performing one or more processes, including one or more of the processes described herein. Such instructions and other data may be stored and transmitted using a variety of computer readable media. A file in the computer 105 is generally a collection of data stored on a computer readable medium such as a storage medium, random access memory, etc.A computer readable medium includes any medium that participates in providing data (e.g., instructions) that may be read by a computer. Such a medium may take many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, etc. Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical or magnetic disks and other persistent storage. Volatile media includes dynamic random access memory (DRAM), which typically constitutes main memory. Common forms of computer-readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, DVD, any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, any other physical medium with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EEPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other medium from which a computer can read.With respect to the media, processes, systems, methods, etc. described herein, it should be appreciated that although the steps of such processes, etc. have been described as occurring according to a particular sequence, such processes could be implemented such that the described steps are performed in an order other than the order described herein. It will be further understood that certain steps could be performed simultaneously, other steps added, or certain steps described herein could be omitted. For example, in process 400, one or more of the steps may be omitted, or the steps could be performed in a different order than shown in FIG. 4. In other words, the descriptions of systems and / or processes herein are provided for purposes of illustrating certain embodiments and should not be construed as limiting the disclosed subject matter.Accordingly, it is to be understood that the present disclosure, including the foregoing description and the appended figures and appended claims, is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The scope of the invention should be determined, not with reference to the foregoing description, but should instead be determined with reference to the claims appended hereto and / or incorporated in a non-provisional patent application based thereon, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future developments will occur with respect to the arts discussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into such future embodiments. Overall, it is to be understood that the disclosed subject matter may be modified and varied.The substantively modifying article "a / e" should be understood to designate one or more unless otherwise indicated or the context requires otherwise. The term "based on" includes partially or fully based on.

Claims

A system (100) comprising a computer (105) programmed to: identify a user target based on location information (115) received from a user; assign a first seat (140) in a vehicle (101) to the user based on the user target; and moving at least one of the first seat (140) and a second seat (140) in the vehicle (101) upon user entry until a distance between the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) is greater than a first distance threshold, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to compare the user target to a second user target of a second user and assign the first seat (140) adjacent to a second user seat (140) when the user target and the second user target are within a distance threshold.The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to move a third seat (140) in the vehicle (101) upon user entry.The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to assign a plurality of respective seats (140) to a plurality of users.The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to move the second seat (140) along a rail (160) in the vehicle (101).The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to move the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) to respective original positions upon closing a vehicle door (170).The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to move at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) away from respective original positions upon detecting that a user device (150) of a user enters the vehicle (101) and move at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) to the respective original positions upon detecting the user device (150) within a second distance threshold from the first seat (140).The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the first seat (140) includes an occupancy sensor (110), and the computer (105) is further programmed to, once the user is detected with the occupancy sensor (110), move at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140).The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to stop the vehicle (101) at a plurality of predetermined stops and assign the first seat (140) based on one of the predetermined stops.The system (100) of claim 1, wherein the computer (105) is further programmed to determine a clearance and move the second seat (140) until the distance between the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) corresponds to at least the clearance.A method comprising: identifying a user target based on location information (115) received from a user; assigning a first seat (140) in a vehicle (101) to the user based on the user target; and moving the first seat (140) and a second seat (140) in the vehicle (101) upon user entry until a distance between the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) is greater than a first distance threshold; and comparing the user target to a second target of a second user and assigning the first seat (140) adjacent to a seat (140) of the second user when the user target and the second user target are within a distance threshold.The method of claim 10, further comprising moving a third seat (140) in the vehicle (101) upon user entry.The method of claim 10, further comprising assigning a plurality of respective seats (140) to a plurality of users.The method of claim 10, further comprising moving the second seat (140) along a rail (160) in the vehicle (101).The method of claim 10, further comprising moving at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) to respective original positions upon closing a vehicle door (170).The method of claim 10, further comprising moving at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) away from respective original positions upon detecting that a user device (150) of a user enters the vehicle (101), and moving at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) to the respective original position upon detecting the user device (150) within a second distance threshold from the first seat (140).The method of claim 10, wherein the first seat (140) includes an occupancy sensor (110), and the method further includes moving at least one of the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) once the user is detected with the occupancy sensor (110).The method of claim 10, further comprising stopping the vehicle (101) at a plurality of predetermined stops, and allocating the first seat (140) based on one of the predetermined stops.The method of claim 10, further comprising determining a clearance and moving the second seat (140) until a distance between the first seat (140) and the second seat (140) corresponds to at least the clearance.

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