Information processing system

Abstract

To allow objective evaluation of users of a car sharing service.SOLUTION: An information processing system that performs information processing related to a car sharing service includes: an in-vehicle camera 11 installed in a vehicle provided for a car sharing service; and a server 20 that calculates an evaluation value related to handling of the vehicle by a user of the car sharing service based on a video of the inside the vehicle captured by the in-vehicle camera 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing system that processes information used in a car sharing service. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes an information processing system used for ride-sharing services. Ride-sharing services are services that guide drivers to passengers who have the same starting point and destination. The information processing system evaluates the satisfaction level of each user based on images of the users of the service who are sharing the ride. The system then reflects the evaluation results in matching ride-sharing users. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2020-86656 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Car sharing services are also sometimes required to evaluate their users. However, due to the lack of objective evaluation criteria, users have not been evaluated appropriately. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] An information processing system that solves the above problem includes a photographing device installed in a vehicle provided for a car sharing service, and a calculation unit that calculates an evaluation value regarding the user of the car sharing service's handling of the vehicle based on images of the interior of the vehicle captured by the photographing device. Effect of the Invention

[0006] The above information processing system has the effect of enabling objective evaluation of users of the car sharing service. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an embodiment of an information processing system. [Diagram 2] 4 is a flowchart of a process executed by a server in the information processing system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the information processing system will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. <About the configuration of the information processing system> First, the configuration of the information processing system of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The information processing system of this embodiment is configured as a system for processing information regarding user evaluations of a car sharing service. The information processing system of this embodiment includes a vehicle 10 provided for the car sharing service, and a server 20. Here, the description will be given on the premise that a company that manages and provides the vehicles 10 provides the vehicles 10 placed at stations set up in various locations to users. In this case, the company that provides the vehicles 10 is the lender of the vehicles 10, and the users are the borrowers of the vehicles 10.

[0009] Vehicle 10 is equipped with an in-vehicle camera 11, which is an imaging device that captures images inside the vehicle. Vehicle 10 also includes a control unit 12, a memory unit 13, and a communication unit 14. Control unit 12 is an electronic control unit that controls in-vehicle camera 11 and processes images captured by in-vehicle camera 11. Memory unit 13 is a storage medium that stores programs executed by control unit 12 and images captured by in-vehicle camera 11. Communication unit 14 includes a communication module that connects vehicle 10 to a network 30 outside the vehicle so as to be able to communicate with the network 30.

[0010] The server 20 includes a processing unit 21, a memory unit 22, and a communication unit 23. The processing unit 21 includes a processor that executes various processes related to the car sharing service. The memory unit 22 stores programs for the processes executed by the processing unit 21 and various data for the car sharing service. The communication unit 23 includes a communication module for connecting to the network 30. The memory unit 22 of the server 20 includes a database for storing information on the vehicle 10 and the user. The database stores an evaluation value related to the handling of the vehicle 10 by the user as information on the user, linked to the user's identifier.

[0011] Each vehicle 10 to be shared is communicatively connected to a server 20 via a network 30. The server 20 is further communicatively connected to a user's mobile terminal 40 via the network 30. An application program for using the car sharing service is installed on the user's mobile terminal 40. The user accesses the server 20 via this application program to search for, reserve, unlock, etc. the vehicle 10 to be rented.

[0012] <User evaluation> The information processing system of this embodiment evaluates the users of the car sharing service regarding their handling of the vehicle 10. Fig. 2 shows the flow of processing performed by the server 20 for this evaluation.

[0013] Such evaluation is performed on the condition that the user's permission is obtained. Specifically, when renting the vehicle 10, the application program inquires the user on the mobile terminal 40 whether or not the user consents to the interior of the vehicle being photographed for the purpose of the user's evaluation. Then, the server 20 executes the process of FIG. 2 on the condition that the user consents to the interior of the vehicle being photographed.

[0014] 2, in this process, server 20 first acquires, in step S100, video captured by in-vehicle camera 11 while vehicle 10 is in use, together with the user's identifier. The video may be acquired by sequentially transmitting the video captured by in-vehicle camera 11 while vehicle 10 is in use to server 20. Alternatively, the video captured by in-vehicle camera 11 may be temporarily stored in storage unit 13 of vehicle 10, and then the video may be acquired by collectively transmitting the video to server 20 after use of vehicle 10 has ended, for example.

[0015] Next, in step S110, the server 20 analyzes the user's behavior in the vehicle from the acquired video. Then, in step S120, the server 20 determines whether the user has performed a specific behavior set as an evaluation item based on the analysis result. Examples of specific behaviors include eating, drinking, and smoking in the vehicle, rough or careful operation of vehicle equipment such as doors, and cleaning the interior of the vehicle. In this embodiment, not eating, drinking, and smoking in the vehicle, and rough operation of vehicle equipment are undesirable behaviors that lower the user's evaluation of how the vehicle 10 is handled. In contrast, careful operation of vehicle equipment and cleaning the interior of the vehicle are desirable behaviors that increase the user's evaluation of how the vehicle 10 is handled.

[0016] Then, when a specific behavior is confirmed (S120: YES), the server 20 operates the evaluation value of the user according to the type of the behavior (S130). Specifically, the server 20 increases or decreases the evaluation value of the user by a value preset for each type of behavior. A default initial value is set for the evaluation value of the user at the time of registration for the car sharing service. In the case of this embodiment, the evaluation value is set so that the larger the value, the higher the evaluation value of the user regarding the handling of the vehicle 10. Then, when the confirmed specific behavior is a type set as an undesirable behavior, the server 20 operates the evaluation value of the user to the side of decreasing the evaluation value. In contrast, when the confirmed specific behavior is a type set as a desirable behavior, the server 20 operates the evaluation value of the user to the side of increasing the evaluation value. The increase or decrease in the evaluation value may be uniform regardless of the type of behavior, or may be different depending on the type of behavior. When a specific behavior is confirmed multiple times during the use of the vehicle 10, the server 20 operates the evaluation value for each behavior. In the information processing system of this embodiment, such a server 20 corresponds to a calculation unit that calculates the evaluation value of the user regarding the handling of the vehicle 10.

[0017] <Actions and Effects of the Embodiments> The operation and effect of this embodiment will be described. In the information processing system of this embodiment, the server 20 calculates an evaluation value of the user of the car sharing service regarding the handling of the vehicle 10 based on the video of the inside of the vehicle captured by the in-vehicle camera 11 installed in the vehicle 10. The calculated evaluation value of each user is stored in a database constructed in the memory unit 22 of the server 20.

[0018] According to the information processing system of this embodiment, the following effects can be achieved. (1) The information processing system of this embodiment includes an in-vehicle camera 11 installed in a vehicle 10 provided for a car sharing service, and a server 20. The server 20 calculates an evaluation value regarding the user of the car sharing service's handling of the vehicle 10 based on the video of the interior of the vehicle captured by the in-vehicle camera 11. This enables an objective evaluation of the users of the car sharing service.

[0019] (2) The server 20 confirms whether or not the user has performed a specific behavior inside the vehicle by analyzing the video from the in-vehicle camera 11. The server 20 then calculates an evaluation value by increasing or decreasing a value according to the type of behavior confirmed. This allows the server 20 to calculate an evaluation value that reflects the user's behavior inside the vehicle.

[0020] <About the use of evaluation values> The user evaluation value calculated in this information processing system can be used for the following purposes, for example.

[0021] A company that provides the vehicle 10 may consider giving incentives, such as a discount on fares, to users who treat the vehicle 10 with care. In such a case, the evaluation value of the user calculated by the information processing system can be used as a criterion for providing the incentive.

[0022] When a user applies to rent the vehicle 10, the lender of the vehicle 10 may decide whether or not to rent the vehicle 10. In such a case, the evaluation value of the user who applied to rent the vehicle 10 is presented to the lender. In this way, the evaluation value of the user calculated by the information processing system can be used as a criterion for deciding whether or not to rent the vehicle.

[0023] Car sharing may be implemented as a service that matches lenders and borrowers of vehicles 10. In this case, both the lender and the borrower of the vehicle 10 become users of the car sharing service. In such a case, when the borrower of the vehicle 10 selects a vehicle 10 to rent, the lender's evaluation value is presented to the borrower. As a result, the user's evaluation value calculated by the information processing system can be used as an evaluation criterion for the condition of the vehicle 10, such as the cleanliness of the interior, when selecting the vehicle 10 to rent.

[0024] (Other embodiments) This embodiment can be modified as follows: This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that there is no technical contradiction.

[0025] <About the calculation unit> The control unit 12 of the vehicle 10 analyzes the user's behavior based on the video of the interior of the vehicle captured by the in-vehicle camera 11, and transmits the analysis results from the vehicle 10 to the server 20. The server 20 then calculates the user's evaluation value based on the received analysis results. In this case, the calculation unit is made up of both the control unit 12 of the vehicle 10 and the server 20. In this case, after the analysis by the control unit 12 is completed, the data of the in-vehicle video used in the analysis may be deleted.

[0026] The control unit 12 of the vehicle 10 alone may calculate the user's evaluation value based on the in-vehicle image, and transmit the calculation result to the server 20. In this case, the control unit 12 of the vehicle 10 corresponds to the calculation unit.

[0027] <Regarding the period of in-car photography etc.> In the above embodiment, the interior of the vehicle used to calculate the evaluation value is photographed throughout the entire time the vehicle 10 is in use, but the photographing period may be limited. For example, a car sharing service provider may recommend or require cleaning of the interior of the vehicle when returning the vehicle. In such a case, the interior of the vehicle used to calculate the evaluation value may be photographed only when the interior of the vehicle 10 is cleaned after use. In this case, the evaluation value can be calculated by, for example, determining whether or not the user actually cleaned the interior of the vehicle from the image of the interior of the vehicle when it was cleaned, and increasing or decreasing the evaluation value based on the result of this determination.

[0028] In the above embodiment, the video of the inside of the vehicle to be used for the calculation of the evaluation value was taken on the condition that the user's permission was obtained. For example, in the following cases, the video of the inside of the vehicle to be used for the calculation of the evaluation value may be taken without confirming the permission. That is, when the permission is not obtained, the rental of the vehicle 10 is not permitted, or when the permission of the user is obtained when registering for the service. [Explanation of symbols]

[0029] 10 Vehicles 11 In-car camera (photography device) 12 Control section 13 Storage section 14 Communications Department 20 Servers 21 Processing section 22 Memory section 23 Communications Department 30 Network 40 Mobile Devices

Claims

1. A photographing device installed in a vehicle provided for the car sharing service; A calculation unit that calculates an evaluation value regarding the handling of the vehicle by the user of the car sharing service based on the image of the interior of the vehicle captured by the imaging device; An information processing system comprising:

2. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the evaluation value is used for presenting an evaluation of the borrower of the vehicle when a lessor of the vehicle decides whether or not to rent the vehicle.

3. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the evaluation value is used to present an evaluation of the vehicle to a lessee of the vehicle when the lessee selects a vehicle to rent.

4. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the video used for calculating the evaluation value is shot on condition that permission of the user is obtained.

5. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the image is an image of the interior of the vehicle being cleaned after use.

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