Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and program

The information processing device addresses the lack of real-time facility updates by providing arrival time calculations and stay recommendations, ensuring users have accurate and timely information for their travel plans.

JP2025000909AInactive Publication Date: 2025-01-07PIONEER IP
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2024172928
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-10-02
Publication Date
2025-01-07
Estimated Expiration
Not applicable · inactive patent

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing navigation systems fail to provide real-time facility condition updates, such as congestion levels and event schedules, which are crucial for users planning their visits.

Method used

An information processing device that acquires facility information, calculates arrival times, generates facility status information, and evaluates stay recommendations based on predicted conditions, providing users with meaningful insights about their destinations.

Benefits of technology

Enables users to make informed decisions about their travel plans by offering timely and relevant information about facility conditions, including congestion and events, enhancing user experience.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program capable of performing various information processes and displaying meaningful information regarding a facility status.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus comprises: a facility information acquisition unit for acquiring facility information related to one facility; an arrival time calculation unit for calculating an estimated arrival time of a moving object to the facility; and a facility status information generating unit for generating facility status information indicating the status of the one facility based on the estimated arrival time and the facility information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1
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Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program for processing information about a facility. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known an information processing technique for obtaining various pieces of information related to a specific object and selecting the information according to the purpose. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an information retrieval device including a search parallelization device that searches one or more databases simultaneously and in parallel based on a user's input. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 2940494 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In recent years, it has become common for vehicles, such as automobiles, to be equipped with navigation devices that guide the movement of the vehicle to a destination. In addition, navigation programs that guide pedestrians to a destination are known as applications for mobile terminals, such as smartphones. This allows a user (e.g., a driver of a vehicle or a user of a smartphone) to specify a specific facility as a destination and to grasp the route and time required to reach the facility.

[0005] Here, in a facility designated as a destination by a user, the situation, such as the degree of congestion, may change over time. Therefore, in order to spend a meaningful time at the facility, it is preferable for the user to be able to grasp the situation of the facility.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned points, and one of its objectives is to provide an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program capable of performing various information processing and displaying meaningful information regarding facility status. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The invention described in claim 1 is characterized by comprising a facility information acquisition unit that acquires facility information regarding a facility, an arrival time calculation unit that calculates an estimated arrival time of a mobile body to the facility, and a facility status information generation unit that generates facility status information indicating the status of the facility based on the estimated arrival time and the facility information. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram of an information processing device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2A] 2 is a block diagram of a facility information acquisition unit of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2B] 2 is a block diagram of a facility status information generating unit of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 3A] 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of information acquired by a facility information acquisition unit of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 3B] 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of information acquired by a facility information acquisition unit of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 3C] 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of information acquired and generated by the information processing device according to the first embodiment; FIG. [Figure 4A] 2 is a block diagram of a stay recommendation level evaluation unit of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4B] 1 is a diagram illustrating a table showing evaluation points of stay satisfaction levels given by the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4C] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of recommendation information generated by the information processing device according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an operation flow of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an information processing system according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the embodiments. EXAMPLES

[0010] 1 is a block diagram of an information processing device 10 according to a first embodiment. In this embodiment, the information processing device 10 is configured to be able to access an external database (external database) 20. For example, the information processing device 10 has a communication function for accessing an external information source including the database 20. The information processing device 10 acquires information from the database 20, and performs information processing on various pieces of information while referring to information stored inside the information processing device 10.

[0011] In this embodiment, the information processing device 10 functions as a navigation device that provides travel guidance for a moving body (not shown). For example, the moving body is a vehicle such as an automobile, a motorcycle, or a bicycle. In this case, the information processing device 10 is a car navigation system that is mounted on the vehicle and provides driving guidance to the destination of the vehicle. Also, for example, the moving body may be a pedestrian. In this case, the information processing device 10 is a smartphone that is carried by the pedestrian and has an application installed thereon that provides walking guidance to the pedestrian's destination.

[0012] The information processing device 10 has a facility information acquisition unit 11 that acquires at least one piece of information (facility information) related to a facility (target facility, one facility) that is the subject of information processing. In this embodiment, the facility information acquisition unit 11 acquires information related to a target facility, which is a facility corresponding to a destination to which a user (e.g., a vehicle passenger or a smartphone user) is moving. The facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire facility information related to each of a plurality of target facilities.

[0013] In this embodiment, the information processing device 10 has an input operation receiving unit (not shown) that receives an input operation for specifying (selecting) the target facility from the user. For example, the input operation receiving unit is a touch panel display, a button, a microphone, etc.

[0014] The information processing device 10 has a route search unit 12 that searches for a travel route of the mobile object to a target facility. In this embodiment, the information processing device 10 has a position information acquisition unit (not shown) that acquires information (current location information) indicating the current location of the mobile object. For example, the position information acquisition unit has a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver and calculates latitude and longitude indicating the location of the mobile object. The route search unit 12 searches for a travel route from the current location of the mobile object obtained from the position information acquisition unit to the target facility according to predetermined conditions.

[0015] The information processing device 10 has an arrival time calculation unit 13 that calculates an estimated arrival time of the mobile object to the target facility. In this embodiment, the arrival time calculation unit 13 calculates the required time to reach the target facility when the mobile object moves at a predetermined speed according to the travel route searched by the route search unit 12. Then, the arrival time calculation unit 13 calculates the time when the mobile object is expected to arrive at the target facility based on the current time and the required time.

[0016] For example, the arrival time calculation unit 13 calculates the time required to reach the target facility when traveling along the travel route after acquiring information about the travel route from the route search unit 12. Then, the arrival time calculation unit 13 determines the departure time (for example, the time when the route information is acquired from the route search unit 12 or the time designated by the user) and calculates the estimated arrival time based on the time required to reach the target facility.

[0017] The information processing device 10 has a facility status information generating unit 14 that sets a predetermined time as a target time based on the estimated arrival time calculated by the arrival time calculating unit 13, and generates facility status information indicating the status of the target facility after the target time based on facility information acquired by the facility information acquiring unit 11. The facility status information generating unit 14 generates information indicating, for example, the time when a mobile object arrives at the target facility and the status of the target facility predicted until a predetermined time has elapsed thereafter.

[0018] The target time set by the facility status information generating unit 14 can be determined based on the estimated arrival time and the travel time within the facility after arrival (for example, the time required from arriving at the parking lot to the entrance), etc. For example, the target time may be the estimated arrival time, or may be a time a predetermined time after the estimated arrival time.

[0019] The information processing device 10 has a stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 that evaluates a stay recommendation level, which is the degree to which it is recommended to stay at the target facility, on the condition that the user stays at the target facility from the target time, based on the facility status information generated by the facility status information generation unit 14. For example, the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 evaluates the expected satisfaction level when the user arrives at the target facility at the expected arrival time and stays at the target facility for a predetermined period of time from the target time. The stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 also determines the stay recommendation level at the target facility based on the expected satisfaction level.

[0020] The information processing device 10 has a presentation unit 16 that presents the facility status information generated by the facility status information generation unit 14. The presentation unit 16 presents the facility status information to the user by displaying it or outputting a voice. For example, the presentation unit 16 generates display data for displaying the facility status information on a display. Note that the presentation unit 16 may present the stay recommendation level of the target facility evaluated by the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 in addition to the facility status information.

[0021] The information processing device 10 has a navigation function unit 17 that provides guidance for moving a mobile object to a target facility. For example, the navigation function unit 17 performs processing for guiding the movement of the mobile object along a route to the target facility searched for by the route search unit 12.

[0022] Moreover, the information processing device 10 has facility information on a plurality of facilities including the target facility as a database (internal database) 18 within the information processing device 10. The facility information acquisition unit 11 acquires the facility information on the target facility from the database 18 as facility data (internal facility data) DT1. Moreover, in this embodiment, the facility information acquisition unit 11 acquires facility data (external facility data) DT2 from a database 20.

[0023] 2A is a block diagram of the facility information acquisition unit 11. The facility information acquisition unit 11 has a data search unit 11A that searches within a database to acquire facility information (facility data DT1 and DT2) of a target facility. The data search unit 11A has an internal data search unit 11A1 that searches for data within database 18, and an external data search unit 11A2 that searches for data within database 20. The external data search unit 11A2 accesses database 20 via the Internet, for example, and searches for data within database 20.

[0024] The facility information acquisition unit 11 also has a data merging unit 11B that merges data (e.g., facility data DT1) searched by the internal data search unit 11A1 and data (e.g., facility data DT2) searched by the external data search unit 11A2. In this embodiment, the data merging unit 11B generates merged data by merging the data searched by the internal data search unit 11A1 and the data searched by the external data search unit 11A2 while removing one of the overlapping parts (e.g., old data).

[0025] 2B is a block diagram of the facility status information generating unit 14. The facility status information generating unit 14 has a target time setting unit 14A that sets a target time (target time) for generating facility status information. The facility status information generating unit 14 also has a facility status predicting unit 14B that predicts the status of the target facility after the target time set by the target time setting unit 14A.

[0026] In this embodiment, the target time setting unit 14A sets a predetermined time as the target time based on the estimated arrival time to the target facility calculated by the arrival time calculation unit 13 (FIG. 1). The facility status prediction unit 14B refers to the facility information acquired by the facility information acquisition unit 11 (in this embodiment, merged data generated by the data merging unit 11B) and predicts the status of the target facility at the target time set by the target time setting unit 14A and a predetermined time thereafter. The facility status prediction unit 14B generates information indicating the predicted facility status as facility status information.

[0027] Fig. 3A is a diagram showing an example of facility information (facility data DT1) searched for from the database 18 by the internal data search unit 11A1 of the facility information acquisition unit 11. Fig. 3B is a diagram showing an example of facility information (facility data DT2) searched for from the database 20 by the external data search unit 11A2 of the facility information acquisition unit 11. Fig. 3C is a diagram showing an example of facility information acquired by the facility information acquisition unit 11 and facility status information generated by the facility status information generation unit 14.

[0028] 3A and 3B, for example, the facility information acquisition unit 11 acquires, as facility information, information on the facility name NA, which is the name of the target facility, the category CA, which is the classification of the target facility, and the position PO, which is the position information of the target facility, from both databases 18 and 20. Therefore, in this embodiment, one of the information on the facility name NA, the category CA, and the position PO (for example, old information) is removed by the data merging unit 11B, as shown in FIG 3C.

[0029] 3A, consider a case where the internal data search unit 11A1 searches for information about business hours OP of a target facility only from the database 18. In this case, the data merge unit 11B performs a merge process to acquire the information about business hours OP as facility information, as shown in FIG.

[0030] 3B, consider a case where the external data search unit 11A2 searches for information on the sale time SA and the congestion level CO of the target facility only from the database 20. In this case, the data merge unit 11B performs a merge process to acquire the information on the sale time SA and the congestion level CO as facility information, as shown in FIG. 3C.

[0031] For example, the data merge unit 11B first compares the facility data DT1 with the facility data DT2 based on the facility name NA, the category CA, and the position PO. Then, when the facility data DT1 and DT2 contain information related to the same facility, the data merge unit 11B merges the facility data DT1 and DT2.

[0032] 3C, the target time setting unit 14A of the facility status information generating unit 14 sets the time of the facility status predicted by the facility status predicting unit 14B as the target time TI. For example, the target time setting unit 14A sets a predetermined time after the expected arrival time as the target time TI.

[0033] Then, the facility status prediction unit 14B predicts the status of the target facility after the target time TI, based on the facility information acquired by the facility information acquisition unit 11. Furthermore, the facility status prediction unit 14B generates facility status information SI indicating the predicted facility status.

[0034] For example, the facility information acquiring unit 11 acquires facility information indicating business hours OP, sale hours SA, and congestion degree CO for two shopping malls named AAA and BBB, which are the target facilities, and facility name NA, for the shopping malls AAA and BBB.

[0035] The facility status information generating unit 14 then sets a target time TI based on the expected arrival time, and generates the possible stay time and the predicted congestion degree in shopping malls AAA and BBB after the target time TI as facility status information SI. The facility status information generating unit 14 also generates, as facility status information SI, information indicating whether the time after the target time TI in shopping malls AAA and BBB overlaps with a sale time.

[0036] Note that the facility information acquired by the facility information acquisition unit 11 is not limited to the information shown in Fig. 3C. For example, the facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire information on the climate (e.g., weather and temperature) in the vicinity of the target facility as the facility information.

[0037] For example, the facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire real-time congestion information and past statistical information on the congestion degree by hour for the congestion degree of the target facility. For example, the facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire information on the real-time congestion degree and the time when the congestion degree becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined level for the congestion degree of the target facility.

[0038] The facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire not only the business hours and congestion level of the target facility, but also information about other facilities around the target facility, such as other facilities located around the target facility and classified into the same category as the target facility, and information about the business hours and congestion level of the other facilities. The facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire not only the sale hours of the target facility, but also information about events held at the target facility (such as event hours) as facility information.

[0039] Furthermore, the target time TI set by the target time setting unit 14A of the facility status information generating unit 14 may be based on the estimated arrival time. Furthermore, the facility status information SI generated by the facility status information generating unit 14 may be information for a predetermined time after the target time TI. For example, the facility status information generating unit 14 may generate information for several hours from the target time TI as the facility status information SI, or may generate information up to the closing time of the target facility as the facility status information SI. Furthermore, the facility status information generating unit 14 may obtain information on the stay time at the target facility from the user, and generate facility status information SI up to the time based on this.

[0040] Also, the facility status information generating unit 14 has been described as generating facility status information SI after the target time TI, i.e., after a predetermined time, by the facility status predicting unit 14B. However, for example, when a mobile object is located at a location within a predetermined distance from the target facility, the facility status predicting unit 14B may generate the current facility status as facility status information SI based on the facility information acquired by the facility information acquiring unit 11. In other words, when a mobile object is already located in the vicinity of the target facility (destination), the facility status information generating unit 14 may generate the current facility status as facility status information SI regardless of the target time TI.

[0041] 4A is a block diagram of the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15. In this embodiment, the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 has a stay satisfaction evaluation unit 15A that evaluates the expected satisfaction level when staying at a target facility after the target time TI set by the facility status information generation unit 14. In this embodiment, the stay satisfaction evaluation unit 15A has a satisfaction evaluation table that assigns an evaluation point of stay satisfaction to each item of the facility status information SI generated by the facility status information generation unit 14, and evaluates the stay satisfaction of the facility status information SI based on the table.

[0042] The stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 also has a stay recommendation level determination unit 15B that determines the recommendation level for recommending a stay at a target facility based on the evaluation score of the stay satisfaction level given by the stay satisfaction level evaluation unit 15A. The stay recommendation level determination unit 15B classifies the stay recommendation level into a plurality of levels based on the evaluated stay satisfaction level.

[0043] The stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 also has a recommendation information generation unit 15C that generates recommendation information, which is information indicating whether or not a stay at the target facility is recommended, based on the stay recommendation level determined by the stay recommendation level determination unit 15B. For example, when the stay recommendation level is determined to be equal to or higher than a predetermined level, the recommendation information generation unit 15C generates information that encourages the user to recommend a stay at the target facility as recommendation information. On the other hand, when the stay recommendation level is determined to be another level, the recommendation information generation unit 15C generates information that encourages the user to recommend a facility other than the target facility or to recommend a different time period (time range) as recommendation information.

[0044] Fig. 4B is a diagram showing an example of a satisfaction evaluation table held by the stay satisfaction evaluation unit 15A. The stay satisfaction evaluation unit 15A assigns an individual evaluation score SC for evaluating the stay satisfaction for each item of the facility status information SI. For example, as shown in Fig. 4B, when the possible stay time is 0 hours, that is, when the target facility is out of business hours at the time of arrival, an individual evaluation score SC of 0 points is assigned to the facility status information SI indicating this possible stay time. Similarly, the stay satisfaction evaluation unit 15A assigns an individual evaluation score SC to each item of the facility status information SI, such as the possible stay time, congestion level, and sale time.

[0045] 4C is a diagram showing an example of a recommendation level determination table by the stay recommendation level determination unit 15B and recommendation information generated by the recommendation information generation unit 15C based on the recommendation level determination table. For example, the stay recommendation level determination unit 15B classifies the stay recommendation level RE into three levels based on the average evaluation score AV, which is the average value of the individual evaluation scores SC assigned by the stay satisfaction evaluation unit 15A.

[0046] For example, if the average evaluation score AV exceeds 1.5 points, the stay recommendation level determination unit 15B determines that the target facility has a high level of stay recommendation level RE. Also, if the average evaluation score AV is within the range of 1 point to 1.5 points, the stay recommendation level determination unit 15B determines that the target facility has a medium level of stay recommendation level RE, and if the average evaluation score AV is less than 1 point, the stay recommendation level RE is low. In this way, the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 generates recommendation level information indicating the stay recommendation level RE, which is the recommendation level for staying at the target facility after the target time TI.

[0047] In addition, the recommendation information generating unit 15C generates recommendation information SU indicating whether or not to recommend staying at the target facility after the target time TI based on the stay recommendation level RE. For example, when it is determined that the stay recommendation level RE is at a high level, the recommendation information generating unit 15C generates recommendation information SU recommending staying at the target facility after the target time TI.

[0048] In addition, in this embodiment, when the stay recommendation level RE is determined to be at a medium level, the recommendation information generating unit 15C generates surrounding facility information related to other time periods of the target facility or other facilities around the target facility as recommendation information SU. In addition, in this embodiment, when the stay recommendation level RE is determined to be at a low level, the recommendation information generating unit 15C generates surrounding facility information and then generates information recommending other facilities or time periods as recommendation information SU.

[0049] 5 is a diagram showing an operation flow (information processing flow) of the information processing device 10. The information processing device 10 starts its operation when the user specifies a destination. First, the facility information acquisition unit 11 sets the destination as a target facility and acquires at least one piece of facility information related to the target facility (step S11). Next, the arrival time calculation unit 13 calculates an estimated arrival time of the mobile object to the target facility (step S12).

[0050] Next, the facility status information generating unit 14 sets a predetermined time as a target time TI based on the expected arrival time, and generates facility status information SI indicating the status of the target facility after the target time TI (step S13). In addition, the stay recommendation level evaluating unit 15 evaluates a stay recommendation level RE, which is a recommendation level for staying at the target facility after the target time TI (step S14).

[0051] Next, the presentation unit 16 presents the facility status information SI (and the stay recommendation level RE) to the user (step S15). Next, the navigation function unit 17 provides guidance for travel to the target facility based on the user's designation (step S16).

[0052] In this manner, in this embodiment, the information processing device 10 generates information indicating the status of the target facility at the time when the mobile object arrives at the target facility by the facility status information generating unit 14. Therefore, the user can easily predict the status of the facility when the user arrives at the facility that is the destination.

[0053] Furthermore, the facility information acquisition unit 11 acquires, as the facility information, information indicating the congestion degree CO of the target facility. Therefore, for example, the facility status information generation unit 14 can generate information that is useful to the user, such as the facility congestion degree and the parking lot congestion degree at the time of arrival at the target facility.

[0054] The facility information acquisition unit 11 also acquires information on the event times at the target facility, such as the sale times SA at the target facility, as facility information. The facility status information generation unit 14 also generates, as facility status information SI, information indicating whether the time after the target time TI overlaps with the event times at the target facility. Therefore, it is possible to provide the user with useful information for when they stay at the target facility.

[0055] The information processing device 10 also has a stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 that generates recommendation level information indicating a recommendation level RE for staying at a target facility after a target time TI. Therefore, for example, the user can easily determine whether to move toward the target facility or when to visit the target facility.

[0056] In addition, the facility information acquisition unit 11 acquires information on other facilities in the vicinity of the target facility as facility information. In addition, when the recommendation level RE for the target facility is equal to or lower than a predetermined level, the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 generates surrounding facility information including information on the other facilities. This makes it possible to provide the user with useful information including information on the vicinity of the target facility.

[0057] In the present embodiment, the information processing device 10 is implemented in a navigation device. However, the information processing device 10 may function as a device other than a navigation device. For example, the information processing device 10 may be implemented in another device that generates facility status information in cooperation with a navigation device.

[0058] 6 is a block diagram of an information processing device 10A according to a modified example of the embodiment 1. In this embodiment, the information processing device 10A is implemented in a server connected to a navigation device 40. The information processing device 10A and the navigation device 40 constitute an information processing system 30.

[0059] In other words, the information processing system 30 is made up of the information processing device 10A and the navigation device 40. In this modification, the information processing device 10A has an internal database 18, similar to the information processing device 10, and also has a communication function for accessing an external database 20.

[0060] In this modification, the information processing device 10A has a facility information acquisition unit 11, an arrival time calculation unit 13, a facility status information generation unit 14, and a stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 similar to those of the information processing device 10. Also, in this modification, the navigation device 40 has a facility information acquisition unit 11, a route search unit 12, a presentation unit 16, and a navigation function unit 17 similar to those of the information processing device 10.

[0061] The navigation device 40 may be mounted on a moving object, and the information processing device 10A may be installed outside the moving object. For example, the information processing device 10A may communicate with the navigation device 40.

[0062] In this modification, for example, a user operates the navigation device 40 to specify a target facility to the navigation device 40. The information processing device 10A receives information about the specified target facility, and further acquires facility information from the databases 18 and 20. The navigation device 40 also searches for a travel route to the target facility using the route search unit 12, and transmits information about the travel route to the information processing device 10A.

[0063] Furthermore, the information processing device 10A calculates an estimated arrival time of the moving object to the target facility by the arrival time calculation unit 13. Then, the facility status information generation unit 14 generates facility status information SI, and the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 evaluates the stay recommendation level RE. In other words, in this modification, the information processing device 10A executes, for example, steps S11 to S14 shown in FIG. 5.

[0064] Then, the information processing device 10A transmits the facility status information SI generated by the facility status information generation unit 14, and the stay recommendation level RE and recommendation information SU evaluated or generated by the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15 to the navigation device 40. The navigation device 40 presents the above-mentioned information to the user of the mobile object by the presentation unit 16. Furthermore, the navigation device 40 provides travel guidance to the target facility by the navigation function unit 17 in response to the user's selection.

[0065] In this way, the information processing device 10A may obtain a travel route for calculating an estimated arrival time from an external device (navigation device 40). The information processing device 10A may not have the presentation unit 16 and may instruct an external device to present the facility status information SI generated by the facility status information generation unit 14. The information processing device 10A may be provided outside the moving body.

[0066] In addition, in the present embodiment and its modified example, the case has been described where the information processing device 10 and 10A have the stay recommendation level evaluation unit 15. However, it is sufficient that the information processing device 10 or 10A is provided with the facility status information generation unit 14. This makes it possible to provide the user with the status of the target facility at the time when the user can arrive.

[0067] In addition, in the present embodiment and its modified example, the case has been described where the information processing device 10 and 10A have the database 18 inside. However, the information processing device 10 or 10A does not have to have the database 18. For example, the facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire facility information only from an external database (for example, only the database 20). The facility information acquisition unit 11 may acquire at least one piece of information related to the target facility from any searchable information source.

[0068] In the present embodiment and its modified example, the facility status information generating unit 14 sets a predetermined time as the target time TI based on the estimated arrival time to the target facility, and generates facility status information SI at the target facility after the target time TI. However, the facility status information generating unit 14 may generate the facility status information SI of the target facility based on the estimated arrival time calculated by the arrival time calculating unit 13 and the facility information acquired by the facility information acquiring unit 11. This makes it possible to provide information useful to the user.

[0069] As described above, the information processing device 10 or 10A includes the facility information acquisition unit 11 that acquires facility information related to a facility, the arrival time calculation unit 13 that calculates the estimated arrival time of a mobile object to the facility, and the facility status information generation unit 14 that generates facility status information SI indicating the status of the facility based on the estimated arrival time and the facility information. Therefore, it is possible to provide the information processing device 10 and 10A that can perform various information processing and display meaningful information related to the facility status.

[0070] The present invention can also be implemented as an information processing method, for example, by going through the steps shown in Fig. 5. For example, the information processing method according to the present invention includes step S11 of acquiring facility information on a facility, step S12 of calculating an estimated arrival time of a mobile object to the facility, and step S13 of generating facility status information SI indicating the status of the facility based on the estimated arrival time and the facility information. This makes it possible to provide an information processing method capable of performing various information processes and indicating meaningful information on the facility status.

[0071] The present invention can also be embodied as a program that causes a computer to function as the information processing device 10 or 10A. For example, the program according to the present invention causes a computer to function as a facility information acquisition unit 11 that acquires facility information related to a facility, an arrival time calculation unit 13 that calculates an estimated arrival time of a mobile object to the facility, and a facility status information generation unit 14 that generates facility status information SI that indicates the status of the facility based on the estimated arrival time and the facility information. Therefore, it is possible to provide a program that can perform various information processes and display meaningful information related to the facility status. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] 10, 10A Information processing device 11 Facility Information Acquisition Department 13 Arrival time calculation section 14 Facility status information generation unit 15. Stay Recommendation Evaluation Section

Claims

[Claim 1] A facility information acquisition unit that acquires facility information related to one facility; an arrival time calculation unit that calculates an estimated arrival time of a moving object to the one facility; a facility status information generating unit that generates facility status information indicating a status of the one facility based on the estimated arrival time and the facility information.

Citation Information

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