Vehicle allocation managing device and vehicle allocation managing method

Abstract

To provide a vehicle allocation managing device and a vehicle allocation managing method to increase certainty of an estimated arrival time for a vehicle at a destination.SOLUTION: The present invention is a vehicle allocation managing device including: a travelling performance information database that stores travelling performance information of an allocated vehicle; and a vehicle allocation plan creation unit that creates a vehicle allocation plan of a specified vehicle based on a recommended travelling route. The vehicle allocation plan creation unit includes: a travelling route candidate extraction unit that extracts a travelling route candidate on the basis of a vehicle allocation request from a user; an effective expected required time calculation unit that determines a variation threshold value for the variation degree of the required time for each travelling route candidate on the basis of the travelling performance information, and calculates an effective expected required time on the basis of the variation threshold value; and a travelling route determination unit that determines the recommended travelling route from the travelling route candidates on the basis of at least the effective expected required time. The travelling route determination unit determines the travelling route candidate in which the effective expected required time is small as the recommended travelling route.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle allocation management device and a vehicle allocation management method, and more particularly to a vehicle allocation management device and a vehicle allocation management method that appropriately select a vehicle driving route. [Background technology]

[0002] Fleet management is known as a method for managing vehicle dispatch so as to increase the utilization rate of vehicles while improving user convenience. For example, in response to a user's request for dispatch, several driving routes of dispatchable vehicles are searched for, and a driving route that can efficiently reach the destination is determined from among them.

[0003] For example, the following Patent Document 1 discloses a method and system for dispatching a shared car that enables a request for dispatching a shared taxi in real time. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-020973 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the dispatch system disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 does not take into consideration the variation in the expected travel time to the user's destination when operating the vehicle, which makes it difficult to increase the accuracy of the expected arrival time of the vehicle at the destination.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle allocation management device and a vehicle allocation management method that increase the reliability of the predicted arrival time of a vehicle at a destination. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention according to one aspect is a vehicle dispatch management device that manages the dispatch of vehicles based on a dispatch request. The vehicle dispatch management device includes a driving record information database that stores driving record information of the dispatched vehicles, and a vehicle dispatch plan creation unit that creates a vehicle dispatch plan for the vehicles based on a recommended driving route in response to the vehicle dispatch request of a user. The vehicle dispatch plan creation unit includes a driving route candidate extraction unit that extracts a driving route candidate based on the vehicle dispatch request, a candidate vehicle extraction unit that extracts the vehicles based on the vehicle dispatch request, an effective expected required time calculation unit that determines a variation threshold value for a degree of variation in the required time for each of the driving route candidates calculated based on the driving record information and calculates an effective expected required time based on the variation threshold value, a driving route determination unit that determines the recommended driving route from among the driving route candidates based on at least the effective expected required time, and a vehicle dispatch instruction unit that issues a dispatch instruction to the vehicles based on the vehicle dispatch plan. The travel route determination unit then compares the effective estimated travel times of the travel route candidates and determines the travel route candidate having the shorter effective estimated travel time as the recommended travel route. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to increase the accuracy of the estimated travel time for a dispatched vehicle to reach its destination, thereby improving the efficiency of vehicle dispatching and also improving user convenience. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a vehicle dispatch management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration model of a vehicle dispatch control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of road link travel time information in the driving performance information database of the vehicle allocation management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4]FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of a variation threshold value in the vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a sequence chart for explaining an outline of a vehicle dispatch service in the vehicle dispatch management system according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining an example of a vehicle allocation management process by the vehicle allocation management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining an example of a vehicle allocation management process by the vehicle allocation management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining an example of selection of travel route candidates based on a variation threshold value in a vehicle dispatch management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiment described below is merely an example, and there is no intention to exclude various modifications and application of techniques not specified below. The present invention can be implemented by various modifications (for example, combining the respective embodiments) within the scope of the gist of the present invention. In addition, in the following description of the drawings, the same or similar parts are represented by the same or similar reference numerals. The drawings are schematic and do not necessarily correspond to actual dimensions, ratios, etc. The drawings may also include parts with different dimensional relationships and ratios.

[0011] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a vehicle dispatch management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch management system 1 includes a vehicle dispatch management device 10, a terminal device 20, and a vehicle V, which are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via a communication network N. In addition, the vehicle dispatch management system 1 can be connected via the communication network N to a road traffic information management system 30 that provides various types of traffic information in real time.

[0012] The vehicle dispatch management system 1 of the present disclosure provides a vehicle dispatch service using a plurality of vehicles V for a certain area, for example. The vehicle dispatch service may be either "on-demand" or "reservation-based." An "on-demand vehicle dispatch service" is a service that immediately responds to a vehicle dispatch request from a user and assigns (dispatches) a specific vehicle to the user. In other words, in an on-demand vehicle dispatch service, there is no vehicle dispatch reservation time designated by the user. In addition, "immediate response" is a concept that includes not only dispatching a vehicle immediately in response to a vehicle dispatch request from a user, but also a certain degree of time that is normally acceptable to the user. In addition, a "reservation-based vehicle dispatch service" is a service that dispatches a vehicle at a vehicle dispatch reservation time or time frame designated by the user.

[0013] The vehicle dispatch management device 10 is a computing device that comprehensively manages a vehicle dispatch service by a plurality of vehicles V in a target area. The vehicle dispatch management device 10 implements, for example, a vehicle dispatch management server program and executes the vehicle dispatch management server program under the control of a processor, thereby realizing the vehicle dispatch service of the present disclosure.

[0014] The vehicle dispatch management device 10 includes various databases 12 that accumulate and manage data necessary to realize such a vehicle dispatch service. The databases 12 may include, for example, a user information database 12a, a road map information database 12b, a vehicle information database 12c, a vehicle dispatch plan database 12d, and a driving performance information database 12e (see FIG. 2). The databases 12 may be configured as a part of the vehicle dispatch management device 10, or all or a part of the databases 12 may be configured separately from the vehicle dispatch management device 10.

[0015] In general, the vehicle allocation management device 10 receives a vehicle allocation request from a user who wishes to allocate a vehicle V for travel or a user who wishes to deliver luggage, and creates a vehicle allocation plan for candidate vehicles V (candidate vehicles v) extracted from a plurality of vehicles V based on the vehicle allocation request. The vehicle allocation management device 10 determines a vehicle allocation plan for an optimal vehicle V from the created vehicle allocation plans, and issues a vehicle allocation instruction to the vehicle V according to the determined vehicle allocation plan. The vehicle allocation plan is determined, for example, in response to the user's consent.

[0016] The vehicle dispatch plan includes a driving route that defines a route from a location where the vehicle V is waiting (a starting waiting location) via several points (boarding and disembarking points (starting point and destination)) along the way where the user gets on and off to a final waiting location (not necessarily the same as the initial waiting location), and an average value of the expected travel time to each point (hereinafter referred to as the "average expected travel time"). If the vehicle V is waiting, the vehicle dispatch plan is newly created based on a new vehicle dispatch request, and if the vehicle V is in operation, it can be updated based on a new vehicle dispatch request. In the present disclosure, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 selects a driving route that is highly likely to cause the vehicle V to arrive at the destination at the expected arrival time, and creates a vehicle dispatch plan based on this.

[0017] The vehicle V is a vehicle registered in a vehicle information database for use by a user. The vehicle V may be of any type (e.g., sedan, minivan, SUV, etc.). The vehicle V may be an electric vehicle (EV) powered by an on-board battery. The vehicle V may also be an autonomous vehicle (unmanned vehicle) capable of completely autonomous driving, and the level of automation may be any. The vehicle V is equipped with a control device CTL that controls the vehicle V itself or its on-board equipment (e.g., a navigation device) according to instructions from the vehicle dispatch management device 10 (see FIG. 2). The control device CTL of the vehicle V acquires current position information of the vehicle V via, for example, a GPS system and transmits the information to the vehicle dispatch management device 10. The control device CTL also receives dispatch instructions from the vehicle dispatch management device 10 and controls the operation of various devices or equipment of the vehicle V.

[0018] The terminal device 20 is, for example, a computing device for a user who wishes to ride to make a vehicle dispatch request by operating a user interface. The terminal device 20 is, for example, a smartphone, a pad computer, a notebook personal computer, a desktop computer, etc., but is not limited to these. The terminal device 20 implements, for example, a vehicle dispatch management client program (so-called a vehicle dispatch application). The terminal device 20 executes the vehicle dispatch application under the control of the processor, thereby enabling the user to use the vehicle dispatch service of the vehicle dispatch management device 10. For example, the user can make a vehicle dispatch request from a vehicle dispatch request screen (not shown) on the user interface of the terminal device 20, and accept the vehicle dispatch plan created by the vehicle dispatch management device 10 in response to the request, thereby making a reservation for a ride or a luggage delivery reservation for the vehicle V.

[0019] The road traffic information management system 30 is an information and communication system that provides road traffic information in real time. For example, the road traffic information management system 30 collects road traffic data from vehicle sensors and cameras installed on roads, and also collects driving data from a control device CTL mounted on the vehicle V, and manages road traffic information that is integrated, processed, and edited from the data. The edited road traffic information may include, for example, information on road closures and detour routes, and the time required between points via a specific route. The road traffic information management system 30 appropriately provides the road traffic information to the vehicle dispatch management device 10 and the vehicle V.

[0020] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration model of a vehicle dispatch management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 is configured as a functional configuration model including functional components such as a front-end processing unit 110, a vehicle dispatch plan creation unit 120, and a vehicle communication unit 130. In addition, as described above, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 includes various databases 12. Such a functional configuration model is realized by the vehicle dispatch management device 10 executing a vehicle dispatch management server program under the control of a processor and cooperating with various hardware resources. The functional configuration model shown here is an example, and all or part of the functions of a certain functional component may be realized by other functional components. In addition, in the figure, for convenience of explanation, a user's terminal device 20 and a control device CTL mounted on the vehicle V are also shown.

[0021] The user information database 12a stores and manages information about users who use the vehicle dispatch service (hereinafter referred to as "user information"). The user information includes, for example, a user ID and password, personal attributes, and information about the usage status of the vehicle dispatch service.

[0022] The road map information database 12b stores information on road maps in the target area of ​​the vehicle dispatch service (hereinafter referred to as "road map information"). The road map information may include information necessary for route search, such as road network information, road attribute information, feature information, and environmental information. The road network information includes links (road links) and nodes (branching points). The road attribute information includes, for example, traffic regulations such as speed limits, one-way streets, no right or left turns, no parking or stopping, and road closures, road types such as community roads and main roads (including road widths and traffic lanes), and information on control of traffic lights at intersections. The feature information includes, for example, the situation between buildings and roads (for example, sidewalk widths, the presence or absence of pedestrian / vehicle dividers such as guardrails and shrubbery, the degree of visibility, etc.). The environmental information includes, for example, the situation of parked and stopped vehicles and pedestrians at each point by time period, the frequency of right and left turns at intersections, the frequency of parking and stopping, and the frequency of traffic accidents.

[0023] The vehicle information database 12c stores information (vehicle information) about the vehicle V that is provided for use by the user. The vehicle information includes, for example, information about the vehicle ID, vehicle attributes (vehicle registration number, vehicle model, maximum number of passengers / maximum load capacity, manned or unmanned driving type, etc.), vehicle performance, other specifications, a current vehicle dispatch plan, a current location, and a current status (service status, remaining battery capacity (travel distance), number of passengers, etc.). The current location and / or status of the vehicle V can be updated at any time based on the location information transmitted from the vehicle V.

[0024] The vehicle allocation plan database 12d stores a vehicle allocation plan for the vehicle V created by the vehicle allocation management device 10 based on a user's vehicle allocation request. The vehicle allocation plan includes a driving route from a waiting location serving as a starting point to a waiting location serving as an end point via several points, an average expected time required to reach each destination, and the like.

[0025] The driving performance information database 12e stores information (hereinafter referred to as "driving performance information") related to the past driving history of each vehicle V. The driving performance information includes various types of specification information for each vehicle V, such as the operating date and time (start and end times of operation, etc.), the driving route, the arrival and departure times at each point (e.g., destination), the driving distance, and the fuel efficiency (electricity cost). The driving route is composed of, for example, the links and nodes traveled by the vehicle V. In the present disclosure, the driving performance information database 12e stores road link required time information indicating the required time for each link, which is created based on the driving performance information. The road link required time information is created, for example, by the driving performance information management unit 129 described later.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of road link travel time information in a driving performance information database of a vehicle dispatch management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3(a), the road link travel time information includes the average travel time and the degree of variation (e.g., variance and standard deviation) for each date type and time period for each link indicated by an identifier (ID). The road link travel time information is used to calculate the degree of variation or deviation of the travel time to a destination for each candidate travel route from a departure point to a destination based on a user's vehicle dispatch request (hereinafter referred to as a "travel route candidate"). FIG. 3(b) shows the average expected travel time and the degree of variation for each travel route for a departure point and a destination calculated based on FIG. 3(a).

[0027] Returning to Fig. 2, the front-end processing unit 110 performs various processes between the user and the terminal device 20. As an example, the front-end processing unit 110 refers to the user information database 12a and performs login authentication processing in accordance with a login request from a vehicle dispatch application on the user's terminal device 20. The front-end processing unit 110 also receives a vehicle dispatch request from the vehicle dispatch application on the user's terminal device 20, passes it to the vehicle dispatch plan creation unit 120, and interacts with the terminal device 20 to receive the user's approval or disapproval of the vehicle dispatch plan created by the vehicle dispatch plan creation unit 120 in response to the request.

[0028] The vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120 extracts candidate vehicles (candidate vehicles v) from among the vehicles V in the target area based on the given vehicle allocation request, and provisionally creates a vehicle allocation plan for the candidate vehicles. The vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120 proposes the provisional vehicle allocation plan to the user, and confirms it upon receiving the user's approval. The vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120 then stores the confirmed vehicle allocation plan in the vehicle allocation plan database 12d, and issues a vehicle allocation instruction to the corresponding vehicle V via the vehicle communication unit 130. When the vehicle V that has been allocated based on the vehicle allocation request completes the vehicle allocation service, it transmits driving performance information to the vehicle allocation management device 10, and the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120 stores this in the driving performance information database 12e.

[0029] In the present disclosure, when creating a vehicle dispatch plan, the vehicle dispatch plan creation unit 120 extracts driving route candidates based on a vehicle dispatch request, calculates an effective estimated travel time (hereinafter referred to as the "effective estimated travel time") for each of the driving route candidates, which is calculated based on the degree of variation in the actual travel time values ​​indicated in the travel performance information, and narrows down the driving route candidates according to the effective estimated travel time.

[0030] The vehicle communication unit 130 exchanges various information with the vehicle V via the communication network N. For example, the vehicle communication unit 130 acquires vehicle information including the position information of the vehicle V and passes it to the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120, and also transmits driving instructions to the vehicle V according to the vehicle allocation plan created by the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120. In addition, the vehicle communication unit 130 acquires driving performance information from the vehicle V that has completed the vehicle allocation service and passes it to the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120.

[0031] Next, a description will be given of details of the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120. In the present disclosure, the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120 includes, for example, a vehicle allocation request acquisition unit 121, a demand calculation unit 122, a candidate vehicle extraction unit 123, a travel route candidate extraction unit 124, a travel route determination unit 125, an effective expected required time calculation unit 126, a vehicle allocation plan proposal unit 127, a vehicle allocation instruction unit 128, and a travel performance information management unit 129.

[0032] The dispatch request acquisition unit 121 acquires or accepts a dispatch request from a user via the front-end processing unit 110. The time when the dispatch request acquisition unit 121 acquires the dispatch request becomes the time when timing of various limit times (e.g., boarding limit time, disembarking limit time, etc.) starts. The dispatch request acquisition unit 121 passes the acquired dispatch request to each of the demand calculation unit 122, the candidate vehicle extraction unit 123, and the travel route candidate extraction unit 124.

[0033] The demand calculation unit 122, for example, refers to various databases 12, calculates the current demand amount and / or the predicted future demand amount of the vehicle V by the user based on the driving record information, etc., and outputs it as demand information. For example, the current demand amount may be the number of vehicles V waiting to which no vehicle dispatch plan is assigned at the time of receiving the dispatch request (the number of waiting vehicles) based on the dispatch plan database 12d. Furthermore, the future demand amount may be the number of vehicles V whose demand is expected at a specific future time or time period, such as 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, and 1 hour after a reference time (for example, the current time), based on the driving record information database 12e. As will be described later, for example, when the current and / or future demand amount is high, the variation threshold value is determined to be a value far from the average expected required time. As a result, when it is expected that there will be many vehicle dispatch requests from users, a more reliable effective expected required time is calculated based on the variation threshold value so that the scheduled vehicle dispatch is not delayed. Moreover, the variation threshold value may be dynamically determined according to the future time or the time period of such demand prediction. Moreover, the demand calculation unit 122 may predict the future demand amount by considering, for example, time / seasonal factors and environmental factors such as event holding in addition to the driving record information. The demand calculation unit 122 may include a demand prediction model in which machine learning is performed according to a predetermined machine learning algorithm, with, for example, operation record information or the like as explanatory variables and the predicted demand amount as an objective variable. In this way, the demand calculation unit 122 can create a vehicle plan including an optimal driving route by using the current and / or future demand amount, thereby enabling efficient operation of the vehicle V.

[0034] The candidate vehicle extraction unit 123 extracts one or more vehicles V as candidate vehicles v based on the dispatch request. For example, based on the boarding and alighting points (starting point and destination) indicated in the dispatch request, the candidate vehicle extraction unit 123 extracts dispatchable vehicles V that run in the vicinity as candidate vehicles v. In addition, vehicles V that cannot be dispatched to the user within various time limits (e.g., boarding limit time, disembarking limit time, etc.) from the reception time of the dispatch request are excluded.

[0035] The travel route candidate extraction unit 124 extracts at least one or more travel route candidates based on the dispatch request. Typically, the travel route candidates are associated with their average expected travel time. Alternatively, the travel route candidates may be associated with their expected travel time taking into consideration variations. For example, the travel route candidate extraction unit 124 extracts travel route candidates and calculates the average expected travel time by having the route search engine perform a route search while referring to the road map information database 12b based on the boarding point and the disembarking point indicated in the dispatch request, and outputs them.

[0036] The effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 calculates the degree of variation in the required time of a travel route including a plurality of links from a departure point to a destination for each of the extracted travel route candidates based on the road link required time information in the travel performance information database 12e, and calculates the effective expected travel time based on the calculated degree of variation. The effective expected travel time is based on the sum of the required times of the links constituting the travel route corresponding to the date and time period corresponding to the dispatch request. As described above, the effective expected travel time is a required time calculated based on a variation threshold value for the degree of variation of the actual value of the required time indicated by the travel performance information. As will be described later, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 determines a variation threshold value that specifies an allowable range for the variation degree according to a predetermined standard. The effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 calculates the effective expected travel time by applying the determined variation threshold value to the average expected travel time of the travel route candidates calculated by the route search engine.

[0037] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of a variance threshold in a vehicle dispatch management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. That is, the diagram shows a probability distribution of a predicted travel time based on travel performance information for a certain travel route. In the present disclosure, for example, a variance threshold closer to the average value of the predicted travel time is set as a first variance threshold, and a variance threshold farther from the average value than the first variance threshold is set as a second variance threshold. That is, the second variance threshold is a value having a larger distribution range of the variance than the first variance threshold (a value indicating that the value falls within the distribution range with a high probability). |±σ| and |±2σ| in the standard normal distribution are examples of the first variance threshold and the second variance threshold, respectively.

[0038] Returning to FIG. 2, when the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 determines that there is a margin for the next dispatch of the candidate vehicle v (for example, travel to the next boarding location) based on the dispatch plan of the candidate vehicle v, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 may set the first variation threshold value closer to the average value (average expected travel time) as the variation threshold value. In other words, if the candidate vehicle v has a margin for the next dispatch, the degree of freedom in dispatching is high, so the variation threshold value can be determined according to other criteria. For example, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 calculates a time margin using the average expected travel time for travel from the user's drop-off location to the boarding location of the other user with respect to the boarding time at the next boarding location based on the dispatch request of the other user, and determines whether the calculated margin exceeds a predetermined margin allowance value.

[0039] In this case, additionally or alternatively, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 may further determine whether the current and / or future demand of the vehicle V is high based on a predetermined demand threshold, and set the second variation threshold to the variation threshold when it is determined that the current and / or future demand is high. This increases the reliability of the effective expected travel time based on the variation threshold.

[0040] Furthermore, when the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 determines that there is no leeway for the next dispatch (for example, travel to a boarding point) of the candidate vehicle v based on the dispatch plan of the candidate vehicle v, or when it determines that there is leeway but future demand is low, it may set the second variation threshold value farther from the average value than the first variation threshold value as the variation threshold value. This increases the reliability of the effective expected travel time based on the variation threshold value.

[0041] For example, referring to FIG. 3(b), the extracted first travel route candidate has an average expected time from the departure point to the destination based on the travel record information of 30 minutes, but the degree of variation (standard deviation) is 20 minutes, and the extracted second travel route candidate has an average expected time of 40 minutes, but the degree of variation is 5 minutes. In other words, the first travel route candidate has a shorter average expected time than the second travel route candidate, but the variation is larger. When the effective expected time calculation unit 126 determines the variation threshold value to, for example, σ according to a predetermined condition, it calculates that the effective expected time of the first travel route candidate is about 50 minutes, which represents about 68% of the total, and the effective expected time of the second travel route candidate is about 45 minutes, which represents about 68% of the total. On the other hand, when the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 determines the variation threshold to, for example, 2σ in accordance with a predetermined standard, it calculates that the effective expected travel time for the first candidate driving route is approximately 50 minutes, which represents approximately 95% of the total, and calculates that the effective expected travel time for the second candidate driving route is approximately 45 minutes, which represents approximately 95% of the total.

[0042] In addition, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 may dynamically set the variation threshold value according to a specific future time (e.g., 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, and 1 hour from the current time) or the time period for which demand is predicted by the demand calculation unit 122. For example, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 sets the variation threshold value farther from the average expected travel time (e.g., the second variation threshold value) as the future time for demand prediction is closer (e.g., 10 minutes later). As a result, when the demand forecast for the immediate future is high in the dispatch plan for the vehicle V, a travel route that ensures the next dispatch as much as possible is determined by widening the range of the variation degree of the expected travel time. On the other hand, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 sets the variation threshold value closer to the average expected travel time (e.g., the first variation threshold value) as the future time for demand prediction is farther (e.g., 30 minutes later). As a result, when demand is expected to be low in the near future, a route that is close to the predicted travel time is determined by narrowing the range of variation in the predicted travel time while minimizing the impact on the next vehicle dispatch.

[0043] Furthermore, the effective expected travel time calculation unit 126 may set the variation threshold closer to the average expected travel time when it determines that the expected travel time to the destination is affected by road traffic information provided by the road traffic information management system 30, time / seasonal factors, and / or environmental factors such as events. In this way, even when it is predicted that the traffic flow is affected by unexpected factors, a travel route close to the expected travel time is determined by narrowing the range of the variation degree of the expected travel time.

[0044] The travel route determination unit 125 determines a recommended travel route (hereinafter referred to as a "recommended travel route") from among the travel route candidates based on the calculated average expected travel time and effective expected travel time. For example, the travel route determination unit 125 narrows down the travel route candidates by comparing the travel route candidates with each other and excluding travel route candidates having both a larger average expected travel time and an effective expected travel time than the others (i.e., narrowing down to travel routes having a smaller average expected travel time or an effective expected travel time). This makes it possible to more efficiently select the travel route candidates. Next, the travel route determination unit 125 selects the travel route candidate having the smaller effective expected travel time from among the narrowed down travel route candidates as the recommended travel route. In this case, the travel route determination unit 125 may select the travel route candidate having the smallest effective expected travel time as the recommended travel route, or may determine the travel route candidate having the smallest effective expected travel time as the recommended travel route according to other conditions such as the cruising range of the vehicle V and the vehicle allocation plan. Once the recommended travel route is determined, the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 120 creates a vehicle allocation plan for the candidate vehicle v based on the recommended travel route.

[0045] The vehicle allocation plan proposal unit 127 proposes a vehicle allocation plan created based on the determined recommended travel route to the user, and upon receiving the user's consent to the vehicle allocation plan, finalizes the vehicle allocation plan. That is, the vehicle allocation plan proposal unit 127 transmits the vehicle allocation plan of the candidate vehicle v to the user's terminal device 20 via the front-end processing unit 110, and causes the terminal device 20 to display the vehicle allocation plan on the user interface. The user accepts or rejects the vehicle allocation plan, and in response, the terminal device 20 transmits a notification of the acceptance or rejection. Upon receiving the user's consent notification via the front-end processing unit 110, the vehicle allocation plan proposal unit 127 finalizes the vehicle allocation plan.

[0046] The dispatch instruction unit 128 issues dispatch instructions to the corresponding vehicles V according to the confirmed dispatch plan. The control device CTL of the vehicle V that receives the driving instructions displays a driving route according to the dispatch plan, for example, on a user interface, by a navigation function. Alternatively, in the case of an unmanned vehicle, the control device CTL determines a detailed actual driving route according to the driving route in the dispatch plan, and performs control so that the vehicle autonomously drives along the actual driving route.

[0047] When the driving performance information management unit 129 acquires, via the vehicle communication unit 130, the driving performance information transmitted from the vehicle V that has completed the vehicle dispatch service according to the dispatch plan, the driving performance information management unit 129 stores the information in the driving performance information database 12e. Furthermore, the driving performance information management unit 129 creates road link required time information including the degree of variation as shown in Fig. 3 based on the acquired driving performance information. For example, the driving performance information management unit 129 calculates the degree of variation in the required time for each road link based on the road link required time information including the required time corresponding to the date type and time zone of each road link based on the acquired driving performance information.

[0048] FIG. 5 is a sequence chart for explaining an outline of a vehicle dispatch service in the vehicle dispatch management system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0049] First, the vehicle V transmits its own position information acquired from the GPS system to the vehicle allocation management device 10 at a predetermined timing (S501). The vehicle V acquires and transmits the position information periodically or in response to a transmission request from the vehicle allocation management device 10. As a result, the vehicle allocation management device 10 acquires the position information transmitted from the vehicle V (S502).

[0050] On the other hand, a user who wishes to use a vehicle dispatch service executes a vehicle dispatch application implemented in the terminal device 20 and inputs necessary information for a vehicle dispatch request to a vehicle dispatch request screen displayed on a user interface, and the terminal device 20 then transmits a vehicle dispatch request to the vehicle dispatch management device 10 (S503). For example, a user who wishes to board a vehicle inputs the boarding and disembarking locations and the number of passengers. The boarding and disembarking locations may be selected, for example, from a geographical map displayed by the vehicle dispatch application. The boarding location (loading location) may also be the current location obtained, for example, by a GPS function installed in the user's smartphone.

[0051] When the vehicle allocation management device 10 receives a vehicle allocation request from the terminal device 20 (S504), it determines a recommended travel route based on the received vehicle allocation request, taking into consideration the degree of variation in required time, and creates a vehicle allocation plan for the vehicle V (candidate vehicle v) (S505). The vehicle allocation management device 10 transmits the contents of the created vehicle allocation plan to the terminal device 20 in order to propose it to the user.

[0052] When the terminal device 20 receives the contents of the vehicle allocation plan, it displays it on the user interface as a vehicle allocation plan proposal screen, and prompts the user to accept or reject (accept or reject) the proposed vehicle allocation plan (S506). When the user inputs acceptance or rejection on the vehicle allocation plan proposal screen, the terminal device 20 receives the acceptance or rejection notice from the terminal device 20 (S507), and the vehicle allocation management device 10 receives the acceptance or rejection notice sent from the terminal device 20 (S508). For example, if the acceptance or rejection notice indicates acceptance of the vehicle allocation plan, the vehicle allocation management device 10 finalizes the vehicle allocation plan of the vehicle V according to the vehicle allocation plan, and transmits a confirmation notice of the vehicle allocation reservation to the terminal device 20, and transmits a vehicle allocation instruction according to the vehicle allocation plan to the vehicle V (S509).

[0053] When the terminal device 20 receives the notification of confirmation of the vehicle dispatch reservation, it displays it on the user interface to inform the user that the vehicle dispatch reservation has been confirmed (S510). On the other hand, when the vehicle V receives the dispatch instruction, it displays, for example, on a navigation screen, a driving route according to the dispatch plan indicated by the dispatch instruction in order to navigate the driver (S511). Although not shown, the vehicle V, which has completed the dispatch service according to the dispatch plan, transmits driving performance information to the vehicle dispatch management device 10. The vehicle dispatch management device 10 stores the driving performance information received from the vehicle V in the driving performance information database 12e, and updates the road link travel time information.

[0054] 6 and 7 are flow charts for explaining an example of a vehicle dispatch management process by a vehicle dispatch management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Such a process is realized by the vehicle dispatch management device executing a vehicle dispatch management server program under the control of a processor, in cooperation with various hardware resources.

[0055] 6, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 waits until a new vehicle dispatch request is received from a user (S601). Meanwhile, for example, a user who wishes to ride inputs a vehicle dispatch request by operating a vehicle dispatch application on the user interface of the terminal device 20. When there is a vehicle dispatch request from the user (Yes in S601), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 refers to the road map information database 12b based on the vehicle dispatch request, and determines a departure point and a destination (start and end points) (S602).

[0056] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 extracts one or more travel route candidates by referring to the road map information database 12b based on the determined starting and ending points (S603). That is, each travel route candidate has the same starting and ending points, but the roads (links) on the way are different. Each travel route candidate is associated with an average expected travel time.

[0057] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 extracts one or more candidate vehicles v according to the departure and arrival points and the candidate driving routes (S604). For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 extracts a vehicle V waiting or moving near the departure point as a candidate vehicle v.

[0058] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 refers to the driving performance information database 12e to calculate the effective expected travel time for the extracted driving route candidate (S605). When calculating the effective expected travel time, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines a variation threshold value according to a predetermined condition. The calculation process of the effective expected travel time will be described in detail later.

[0059] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines the optimal one of the travel route candidates as a recommended travel route based on the average expected travel time and the effective expected travel time of the travel route candidates (S606). For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 acquires a graph of a probability density function based on travel performance information as shown in FIG. 8(a) for the travel route candidates R1 to R3. Here, for the travel route candidates R1 to R3, the average values ​​(average expected travel times) are T1_ave to T3_ave, respectively, and the effective expected travel times when the variation threshold value is 2σ are T1_2σ to T3_2σ, respectively. That is, in the graph of the probability density function shown in FIG. 8(a), the narrower the distribution width of the variation, the smaller the degree of variation of the average expected travel time.

[0060] The vehicle allocation management device 10 first excludes from these travel route candidates R1 to R3 those that have both the average predicted travel time and the effective predicted travel time that are greater than the other travel route candidates. That is, in this example, the travel route candidate R3 is excluded. Next, from the remaining travel route candidates R1 and R2, the vehicle allocation management device 10 determines the travel route candidate R2 that has a smaller effective predicted travel time based on the variation threshold 2σ (i.e., T1_2σ>T2_2σ) as the recommended travel route. That is, the vehicle allocation management device 10 selects the travel route candidate R2 that has a slower average predicted travel time but a smaller degree of variation as the recommended travel route, rather than the travel route candidate R1 that has a faster average predicted travel time but a larger degree of variation.

[0061] On the other hand, in the example shown in FIG. 8(b), none of the travel route candidates R1 to R3 has a longer average expected travel time or a longer effective expected travel time than the other travel route candidates. That is, the travel route candidate R2 has the longest average expected travel time T2_ave, but the effective expected travel time T2_2σ based on the variation threshold 2σ is longer than the effective expected travel time T3_2σ of the travel route candidate R3. In this case, the vehicle allocation management device 10, for example, determines the travel route candidate R1 with the shortest effective expected travel time as the recommended travel route. Alternatively, the vehicle allocation management device 10 may determine an optimal travel route as the recommended travel route from among several travel route candidates with the shortest effective expected travel time, taking into consideration other conditions (for example, whether an event is held, whether lane restrictions due to road construction are present, and / or the amount of people, etc.).

[0062] Returning to Fig. 6, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 then creates or updates a vehicle dispatch plan based on the determined travel route (S607). That is, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines a vehicle V to be assigned to the determined recommended travel route from among the candidate vehicles v. For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 excludes candidate vehicles v for which the boarding waiting time of a user who has made a new vehicle dispatch request exceeds the vehicle dispatch delay limit time.

[0063] Next, the vehicle allocation management device 10 proposes the contents of the created / updated vehicle allocation plan to the user (S608). That is, the vehicle allocation management device 10 transmits the contents of the created / updated vehicle allocation plan to the terminal device 20, and in response to this, the terminal device 20 displays the contents on the user interface and prompts the user to accept or reject the proposed vehicle allocation plan.

[0064] The vehicle allocation management device 10 determines whether or not the proposed vehicle allocation plan has been accepted from the user (S609). If the proposed vehicle allocation plan has been accepted from the user (Yes in S609), the vehicle allocation management device 10 confirms the current vehicle allocation plan (S610). The vehicle allocation management device 10 stores the confirmed vehicle allocation plan in the vehicle allocation plan database 12d. Next, the vehicle allocation management device 10 transmits a notification of confirmation of the vehicle allocation reservation to the terminal device 20, and transmits a vehicle allocation instruction based on the vehicle allocation plan to the vehicle V (S611).

[0065] On the other hand, when the vehicle dispatch management device 10 receives a non-acceptance (rejection) from the user for the proposed vehicle dispatch plan (No in S609), it cancels the current vehicle dispatch plan based on the vehicle dispatch request of the user (S612). In this case, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 returns the temporarily reserved vehicle dispatch plan used for re-creating the vehicle dispatch plan to the original reserved vehicle dispatch plan. If the user desires a different vehicle dispatch service, the user will make a new vehicle dispatch request.

[0066] Next, the calculation process of the effective expected travel time in the vehicle dispatch management device 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 7. That is, Fig. 7 is a flow chart showing the details of the calculation process (S605) of the effective expected travel time shown in Fig. 6.

[0067] As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 judges whether there is a margin for the next dispatch of the candidate vehicle v (for example, travel to the next boarding or disembarking location) based on the dispatch plan of the candidate vehicle v (S701). For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 calculates a margin of time by applying an average expected time required for travel from the disembarking location of a user to the boarding location of another user to a boarding time at the next boarding location based on the dispatch request of the other user, and judges whether the calculated margin of time exceeds a predetermined margin allowance value.

[0068] When the vehicle dispatch management device 10 judges that there is a surplus for the next dispatch of the candidate vehicle v (Yes in S701), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 then judges whether or not the future demand prospect is high based on the demand information with a predetermined demand threshold as a reference (S702). For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 refers to the driving performance information database 12e, etc., calculates the future demand amount indicated by the expected amount of dispatch requests from users for the number of vehicles V that can be dispatched in a certain time period in the future, and judges whether or not the calculated future demand amount exceeds a predetermined demand threshold. Note that in this example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 makes the judgment based on the future demand prospect, but is not limited to this, and may make the judgment based on the current demand.

[0069] When the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines that the future demand is not high (No in S702), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 sets the variation threshold to the first variation threshold (S703). As described above, the first variation threshold is a value closer to the average expected travel time (average value) than the second variation threshold. Therefore, by selecting the first variation threshold closer to the average expected travel time as the variation threshold, it is expected that a travel route with a smaller degree of variation in the travel time will be selected. In other words, when there is room in the dispatch plan for the vehicle V and / or when the future demand is low, a travel route is determined such that the actual travel time of the vehicle V matches the average expected travel time as closely as possible.

[0070] On the other hand, when the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines that the future demand is likely to be high (Yes in S702), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 sets the variation threshold to the second variation threshold (S704). As described above, the second variation threshold is a value farther from the average value than the first variation threshold. Therefore, by selecting the second variation threshold farther from the average expected required time as the variation threshold, it is expected that a travel route with a large degree of variation in the required time will be selected. In other words, when there is room in the dispatch plan for vehicle V but the future demand is likely to be high, a travel route that ensures the dispatch of the next vehicle as much as possible will be determined by widening the range of the degree of variation in the expected required time.

[0071] Furthermore, when the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines that there is no slack in the next dispatch of the candidate vehicle v (No in S701), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 sets the variation threshold to the second variation threshold (S704). Therefore, by selecting the second variation threshold farther from the average value as the variation threshold, it is expected that a travel route with a large degree of variation in the required time will be selected. In other words, when there is no slack in the dispatch plan of the vehicle V, the range of the degree of variation in the expected required time is widened and a travel route that guarantees the dispatch of the next vehicle as much as possible is determined.

[0072] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 calculates an effective expected travel time by applying the set variation threshold value to the average expected travel time for the candidate travel routes calculated by the route search engine (S705).

[0073] As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to increase the reliability of the estimated travel time of the dispatched vehicle to the destination, thereby improving the efficiency of vehicle dispatching and improving user convenience. In particular, according to the present embodiment, since the variability of the average estimated travel time is taken into consideration, it is possible to select a travel route with a slow average estimated travel time but a small variability as a recommended travel route from among travel route candidates, thereby increasing the reliability of the estimated travel time.

[0074] The above-described embodiments are merely examples for explaining the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention to these embodiments. The present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0075] For example, the present invention according to another aspect may be a vehicle dispatch management method for managing vehicle dispatch based on a dispatch request. The method includes: accepting the vehicle dispatch request of a user; extracting travel route candidates based on the vehicle dispatch request; calculating an average expected time required for the travel route candidates; calculating a degree of variation in the required time for each of the travel route candidates based on travel performance information of the vehicle stored in a travel performance information database; determining a variation threshold value for the degree of variation in the required time; calculating an effective expected time based on the variation threshold value; determining a recommended travel route from among the travel route candidates based on the average expected time and the effective expected time; creating a vehicle dispatch plan for a specific vehicle based on the recommended travel route; and issuing a dispatch instruction to the specific vehicle based on the vehicle dispatch plan. The determining the recommended travel route includes determining the travel route candidate having at least a small effective expected time as the recommended travel route.

[0076] In addition, in the methods disclosed herein, steps, operations, or functions may be performed in parallel or in a different order, unless the results are inconsistent. The steps, operations, and functions described are provided merely as examples, and some of the steps, operations, and functions may be omitted or combined into one, or other steps, operations, or functions may be added, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0077] In addition, although various embodiments are disclosed in this specification, specific features (technical matters) in one embodiment can be added to or replaced with specific features in other embodiments, with appropriate modifications, and such forms are also included in the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 1. Vehicle dispatch management system 10...Vehicle allocation management device 110...Front-end processing unit 120… Vehicle Allocation Planning Department 121…Dispatch request acquisition unit 122…Demand Calculation Department 123…Candidate vehicle extraction unit 124...Route candidate extraction unit 125…Route determination unit 126...Effective expected time calculation section 127… Vehicle Allocation Planning Proposal Department 128…Dispatch Instructions Department 129…Driving Performance Information Management Department 130…Vehicle communication unit 12. Database 12a…User information database 12b…Road map information database 12c…Vehicle information database 12d…Vehicle allocation plan database 12e…Driving performance information database 20...Terminal device N: Communication network V…Vehicle CTL: Control device

Claims

1. A vehicle dispatch management device that manages vehicle dispatch based on a vehicle dispatch request, a travel record information database for storing travel record information of the dispatched vehicle; a vehicle dispatch plan creation unit that creates a vehicle dispatch plan for the vehicle based on a recommended travel route in response to the vehicle dispatch request from a user; The vehicle dispatch plan creation unit, a travel route candidate extraction unit that extracts travel route candidates based on the vehicle dispatch request; a candidate vehicle extraction unit that extracts the vehicle based on the vehicle dispatch request; an effective expected travel time calculation unit that determines a variation threshold value for a degree of variation in the required time for each of the travel route candidates calculated based on the travel record information, and calculates an effective expected travel time based on the variation threshold value; a travel route determination unit that determines the recommended travel route from among the travel route candidates based on at least the effective expected travel time; a vehicle dispatch instruction unit that issues a dispatch instruction to the vehicles based on the vehicle dispatch plan, the travel route determination unit compares the effective estimated travel times of the travel route candidates and determines the travel route candidate having the shorter effective estimated travel time as the recommended travel route. Vehicle dispatch management device.

2. The travel route candidate extraction unit calculates an average expected travel time of the extracted travel route candidates, The travel route determination unit determines the recommended travel route based on the average estimated travel time and the effective estimated travel time. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 1.

3. the travel route determination unit narrows down the travel route candidates by excluding a travel route candidate having both the average estimated travel time and the effective estimated travel time longer than the other travel route candidates from the extracted travel route candidates. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 2.

4. the travel route determination unit determines, from the narrowed-down travel route candidates, the travel route candidate having the effective estimated travel time smaller than the other travel routes, as the specific travel route. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 3.

5. the vehicle allocation plan creation unit calculates a degree of variation in the required time based on road link required time information, the road link required time information including a required time corresponding to a date type and a time period of each road link, the road link being created based on the driving record information; The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 1.

6. the effective expected travel time calculation unit determines whether the candidate vehicle has a margin for the next dispatch based on the dispatch plan of the candidate vehicle, and when determining that the candidate vehicle has a margin for the next dispatch, sets a first variation threshold value that is closer to the average expected travel time as the variation threshold value; The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 1.

7. the effective expected travel time calculation unit determines whether a future demand for the vehicle is high based on a predetermined demand threshold value, and sets the first variation threshold value to the variation threshold value when it determines that the future demand is not high. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 6.

8. the effective expected travel time calculation unit determines whether a future demand for the vehicle is high based on a predetermined demand threshold, and when it determines that the future demand is high, sets a second variation threshold that is farther from the average expected travel time than the first variation threshold as the variation threshold. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 6.

9. When it is determined that there is not enough time for the next dispatch, the effective expected travel time calculation unit determines a second variation threshold value that is farther from the average expected travel time than the first variation threshold value as the variation threshold value. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 6.

10. the effective expected travel time calculation unit determines whether the current and / or future demand of the vehicle is high based on a predetermined demand threshold value, and when it determines that the current and / or future demand is high, sets a value far from the average expected travel time to the variation threshold value so that the required time falls within a distribution range of the variation degree with a high probability. The vehicle dispatch management device according to claim 1.

11. the effective predicted travel time calculation unit dynamically sets the variation threshold value in accordance with a future time at which a future demand for the vehicle is predicted; The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 1.

12. the effective expected travel time calculation unit sets the variation threshold value close to the average expected travel time when the average expected travel time is affected by road traffic information, time / seasonal factors, and / or environmental factors; The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 1.

13. A vehicle allocation management method for managing vehicle allocation based on a vehicle allocation request, comprising: accepting the vehicle dispatch request from a user; Extracting travel route candidates based on the vehicle dispatch request; Calculating an average expected travel time for the candidate travel route; Calculating a degree of variation in required time for each of the travel route candidates based on travel record information of the vehicle stored in a travel record information database; determining a variability threshold for the degree of variability in the required time; Calculating an effective expected time based on the variance threshold value; determining a recommended travel route from among the travel route candidates based on the average estimated travel time and the effective estimated travel time; generating a dispatch plan for a particular vehicle based on the recommended travel route; and issuing a dispatch instruction to the specific vehicle based on the dispatch plan; determining the recommended travel route includes determining, as the recommended travel route, the travel route candidate having at least a short effective estimated travel time. Vehicle allocation management method

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