Information processing device, information processing system, and information processing method

Abstract

To generate an appropriate charging plan by reflecting characteristics where a user using a parking space is fixed, with regard to charging a vehicle in a parking lot where a user using a parking space is fixed and the parking space is configured to allow the user to charge a vehicle parked in the parking space.SOLUTION: With regard to a parking lot where a user using a parking space is fixed and the parking space is configured to allow the user to charge a vehicle parked in the parking space, a server information processing unit 10 of an information processing server 2 comprises: a function of acquiring a parking space usage tendency, which is a tendency of a user to use a parking space; and a function of generating a charging plan for charging a vehicle in a parking lot by reflecting the parking space usage tendency.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing system, and an information processing method capable of executing processing related to parking lots. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there exists a type of parking lot (hereinafter referred to as "specific type") in which the user who uses the parking space is determined in advance. For example, a parking lot of an apartment building or a monthly parking lot corresponds to this type of parking lot. A parking lot of a type different from the specific type is a parking lot in which the user who uses the parking space is not determined, such as a parking lot of a facility where unspecified people visit or a parking lot for hourly rental. In recent years, electric vehicles have become widespread. An electric vehicle broadly includes a vehicle that needs to be charged. An electric vehicle needs to be charged, and charging equipment for charging an electric vehicle is not only provided at charging stations along the road, public facilities, and other facilities that can be used by unspecified people, but is also provided in the above-mentioned specific type of parking lot. By providing charging equipment in the specific type of parking lot, a user who uses the specific type of parking lot can charge the electric vehicle while parking it in the parking space used by the user, improving the convenience of the user. Hereinafter, a specific type parking lot configured to be able to charge a vehicle parked in the parking space is referred to as a "specific parking lot".

[0003] Regarding charging in the designated parking lot, Patent Document 1 discloses the following technology. That is, the identification information (e.g., the registration number of the license plate) of the user vehicle (electric vehicle) using the occupied spaces 23a-c (parking spaces) in the parking lot (designated parking lot) of the apartment complex is registered in advance. In addition, a camera 13 is provided at the entrance of the parking lot 23 to automatically photograph entering and exiting vehicles. Then, when the user vehicle enters the parking lot, the identification information of the user vehicle is read from the image captured by the camera 13, and the charging station of the occupied space 23a-c corresponding to the read identification information is set to a charging enabled state. On the other hand, when the user vehicle leaves the parking lot, the identification information of the user vehicle is read from the image captured by the camera 13, and the charging station of the occupied space 23a-c corresponding to the read identification information is set to a charging prohibited state. The above technology is disclosed. According to Patent Document 1, a mechanism for setting each charging station to a charging permitted or prohibited state can be realized at low cost. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-131431 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] A specific parking lot has a characteristic that the users who use the parking spaces are fixed. There is a need to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects this characteristic regarding charging in a specific parking lot.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and aims to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the characteristic that a fixed user will use the parking space and that is related to charging of a vehicle in a parking lot configured so that a vehicle parked in the parking space can be charged, by using a fixed user for the parking space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention acquires parking space usage trends, which are the tendency of a user to use a parking space, and generates a charging plan for charging a vehicle in a parking lot that reflects the parking space usage trends. Effect of the Invention

[0008] In a parking lot where the users who use the parking spaces are determined in advance, when focusing on a certain parking space, the users are fixed in characteristics. In addition, users generally have certain tendencies in using parking spaces. Therefore, for this type of parking lot, by generating a charging plan that reflects the tendency of users to use the parking spaces, it becomes possible to generate a more appropriate charging plan that reflects the actual usage of the parking lot (the actual usage of the parking lot by each user). In view of the above, according to the present invention configured as described above, for a parking lot where the users who use the parking spaces are determined, a charging plan is generated that reflects the tendency of users to use the parking spaces. Therefore, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the characteristic that the users who use the parking spaces are determined in advance. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a specific parking lot. [Diagram 3] 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of an information processing server, a user terminal, and a management device; [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of a parking lot management database. [Diagram 5] 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a charging device; FIG. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart showing an information processing method of a user terminal and an information processing server. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a day-of-the-week tendency input screen. [Figure 8] 5 is a flowchart showing an information processing method performed by a user terminal, a management device, and an information processing server. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart showing an information processing method of a user terminal and an information processing server. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a charging reservation request input screen. [Figure 11] 5 is a flowchart showing an information processing method of the information processing server and the management device. [Figure 12] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a charging plan. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a diagram used to explain a charging plan generation process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing system 1 according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the information processing system 1 includes an information processing server 2 (information processing device, computer), one or more user terminals 3 (terminals, computers), and one or more management devices 4 (information processing device, computer). The information processing server 2, the user terminals 3, and the management device 4 can all be connected to a network N including the Internet, a telephone network, and other communication networks.

[0011] The management device 4 is a device provided in correspondence with a specific parking lot 5. The specific parking lot 5 is a parking lot in which a user who uses a parking space 6 provided in the parking lot is determined in advance, and which is configured to be able to charge an electric vehicle 7 (vehicle) (FIG. 5) parked in the parking space 6. FIG. 2 is a simplified schematic diagram showing an example of the specific parking lot 5 together with related elements. As shown in FIG. 2, the specific parking lot 5 is provided with a plurality of parking spaces 6. The parking space 6 is a space in which one vehicle is parked. Each of the parking spaces 6 is provided with a charging device 8 that is a device capable of charging the electric vehicle 7. Each of the charging devices 8 (including related devices) provided in one specific parking lot 5 constitutes a vehicle charging facility 9. The electric vehicle 7 broadly includes vehicles that can be charged by the charging device 8. The electric vehicle 7 may be a BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) or a PHEV (Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) (naturally, it may be another type of EV), and may be four-wheeled, three-wheeled, or two-wheeled (naturally, it may have another wheel arrangement structure). The electric vehicle 7 may be used for any purpose, for example, as a passenger car, a commercial vehicle, or a public vehicle. A user uses a parking space 6 by having his / her electric vehicle 7 leave the parking space 6 corresponding to the user, or by having the electric vehicle 7 enter the parking space 6, and by parking the electric vehicle 7 in the parking space 6 as appropriate. Basically, each specific parking lot 5 has an administrator who manages the specific parking lot 5.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 2, one management device 4 is provided in one specific parking lot 5. Each of the charging devices 8 provided in the corresponding specific parking lot 5 is connected to the management device 4. The management device 4 has a function of performing various controls, including control related to charging, for each of the connected charging devices 8. As will be described later, the management device 4 controls charging by the charging devices 8 according to a charging plan generated by the server information processing unit 10. The management device 4 does not need to be provided within the premises of the specific parking lot 5. In the example of FIG. 2, all of the parking spaces 6 are provided with charging devices 8, but it is not necessary that all of the parking spaces 6 in the specific parking lot 5 are provided with charging devices 8, and a configuration in which no charging devices 8 are provided in some of the parking spaces 6 may be used. In addition, in FIG. 2, the specific parking lot 5 is a parking lot provided on a flat site, but the specific parking lot 5 may be a multi-story parking lot. In other words, the location and structure of the specific parking lot 5 are not limited.

[0013] The user terminal 3 is a terminal used by a person who uses the parking space 6 in the specific parking lot 5. Hereinafter, a person who uses the parking space 6 in the specific parking lot 5 is referred to as a "user". For example, assume that a resident J1 of a certain apartment house H1 uses a specific parking space S1 in a specific parking lot T1 for residents of the apartment house H1. In this case, the resident J1 corresponds to a "user". In addition, in this case, the parking space S1 is used exclusively by the resident J1. In the example of FIG. 2, a fixed user is determined for all the parking spaces 6 in the specific parking lot 5, but a configuration in which a user is not determined for some of the parking spaces 6 may be possible. The user terminal 3 is a terminal used by a user for convenience, and does not mean a terminal used exclusively by a user. The type of the user terminal 3 may be any type. For example, a tablet computer (including a so-called smartphone), a desktop computer, a notebook computer, or a wearable terminal can function as the user terminal 3.

[0014] The information processing server 2 is a server device connected to the network N. The information processing server 2 can communicate with the user terminal 3 via the network N. The information processing server 2 can also communicate with the management device 4 via the network N. The information processing server 2 has a function of providing a service related to a specific parking lot 5 (hereinafter referred to as the "service"). Each user and administrator is registered with the service, and can log in to the account of the service using their own login information (for example, a combination of a login ID and a password). In FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 described later, the information processing server 2 is represented by one block. However, this does not mean that the information processing server 2 is composed of a single server device. For example, the information processing server 2 may be composed of multiple server devices. In this case, the server device constituting the information processing server 2 may include a Web server or a Web application server. The information processing server 2 may also be a part of a predetermined system.

[0015] Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of the information processing server 2, the user terminal 3, and the management device 4. As shown in Fig. 3, the information processing server 2 includes, as its functional configuration, a server information processing unit 10 (information processing unit), a server communication unit 11, and a server storage unit 12. The user terminal 3 includes, as its functional configuration, a terminal information processing unit 13, a terminal communication unit 14, a terminal display unit 15, a terminal input unit 16, and a terminal storage unit 17. The management device 4 includes, as its functional configuration, a management device information processing unit 18 (information processing unit), a management device first communication unit 19, a management device second communication unit 20, and a management device storage unit 21.

[0016] The server information processing unit 10 of the information processing server 2 includes a processing device and a primary storage device. The processing device is a device having an information processing function and includes a CPU. The CPU includes a control device, an arithmetic unit, a register, and a cache memory. The primary storage device includes a DRAM and other volatile memories. The server information processing unit 10 executes processing by the processing device reading a program stored in the server storage unit 12 into the primary storage device and executing it. That is, the server information processing unit 10 executes processing by cooperation between hardware and software. The server communication unit 11 includes a communication device having a function of communicating with an external device. The communication device includes a communication control device and a network interface. The server communication unit 11 communicates with the external device by the communication device under the control of the server information processing unit 10. In the following, detailed description of communication using the network N by the information processing server 2 and other communications will be omitted, assuming that they are appropriately performed by the server communication unit 11. The server storage unit 12 includes a hard disk drive (which may be another magnetic storage device), a ROM, a flash memory, and other non-volatile memories. The server storage unit 12 stores data in the non-volatile memory. The information processing server 2 may include a display unit and an input unit.

[0017] 2, the server storage unit 12 of the information processing server 2 stores a user management database 23 and a parking lot management database 24. The user management database 23 is a database that manages information about each user (user's account). The parking lot management database 24 is a database that manages information about each specific parking lot 5. A record (hereinafter referred to as a "parking lot management record") is registered in the parking lot management database 24 for each specific parking lot 5.

[0018] Fig. 4(A) is a diagram showing the contents of one parking lot management record. As shown in Fig. 4(A), the parking lot management record includes at least a parking lot ID, compliance condition information (described later), optimization priority item information (described later), processing usage information (described later), and parking space management data (described later). The parking lot ID is identification information for identifying the corresponding specific parking lot 5. The parking space management data has records (hereinafter referred to as "parking space management records") registered for each parking space 6 provided in the corresponding specific parking lot 5.

[0019] (B) of Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the contents of a parking space management record. As shown in (B) of Fig. 4, the parking space management record includes a parking space ID, a user ID, user-specific priority item information (described later), parking space usage tendency information (described later), a user-related log (described later), vehicle usage tendency information (described later), charging-related request information (described later), and vehicle characteristic information (described later). The parking space ID is identification information for identifying the corresponding parking space 6. The user ID is identification information of a user who uses the corresponding parking space 6.

[0020] The terminal information processing unit 13 of the user terminal 3 includes a processing device having an information processing function and a primary storage device. The processing device reads out a program stored in the terminal storage unit 17 into the primary storage device and executes the program, whereby the terminal information processing unit 13 executes the process. That is, the terminal information processing unit 13 executes the process by cooperation between hardware and software. The terminal communication unit 14 includes a communication device and communicates with an external device through the communication device under the control of the terminal information processing unit 13. In the following, the communication by the user terminal 3 is appropriately performed by the terminal communication unit 14, and detailed description is omitted. The terminal display unit 15 includes a liquid crystal panel, an organic EL panel, and other display devices. The terminal display unit 15 displays an image on the display device under the control of the terminal information processing unit 13. The terminal input unit 16 includes a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, and other input devices. The terminal input unit 16 detects an input to the input device and outputs the detection result to the terminal information processing unit 13. The terminal storage unit 17 includes a non-volatile memory and stores data in the non-volatile memory.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 3, a dedicated application AP (hereinafter referred to as the "dedicated application AP") is installed in the user terminal 3. The dedicated application AP is dedicated software that implements a function to provide various screens related to the service, a function to transmit and receive various information to and from the information processing server 2, and a function to execute other processes related to the service. Regarding the process related to the service, the terminal information processing unit 13 basically executes the process by using the function of the dedicated application AP (including the OS of the terminal, a Web application that the dedicated application AP can use, and other programs that can cooperate with the dedicated application AP). Even if not specifically described, the terminal information processing unit 13 executes the following process as necessary. That is, the terminal information processing unit 13 communicates with the server information processing unit 10 of the information processing server 2 as necessary, and acquires necessary information from the server information processing unit 10. In addition, the terminal information processing unit 13 communicates with the server information processing unit 10 of the information processing server 2 as necessary, requests the server information processing unit 10 to execute the necessary process, and acquires the process result. The information processing server 2 stores all the information to be provided to the terminal information processing unit 13. In addition, the server information processing unit 10 has a function to execute a process in response to a request from the terminal information processing unit 13.

[0022] The management device information processing unit 18 of the management device 4 includes a processing device having an information processing function and a primary storage device. The management device information processing unit 18 executes processing by the processing device reading out a program stored in the management device storage unit 21 into the primary storage device and executing it. That is, the management device information processing unit 18 executes processing by cooperation between hardware and software. The management device first communication unit 19 includes a communication device and communicates with an external device through the communication device under the control of the management device information processing unit 18. In the following, detailed description of communication using the network N by the management device 4 is omitted, assuming that it is appropriately performed by the management device first communication unit 19. The management device second communication unit 20 includes a communication device and communicates with an external device through the communication device under the control of the management device information processing unit 18. The management device second communication unit 20 is connected to each of the charging devices 8 provided in the corresponding specific parking lot 5. The charging devices 8 may be connected to the management device second communication unit 20 by a dedicated line, or may be connected via a LAN or other network. In the following, detailed description of communication between the management device 4 and the charging device 8 will be omitted, assuming that the communication is appropriately performed by the management device second communication unit 20. The management device storage unit 21 includes a nonvolatile memory, and stores data in the nonvolatile memory.

[0023] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the charging device 8. FIG. 5 also shows the management device 4 connected to the charging device 8 and the electric vehicle 7 to be charged by the charging device 8. As shown in FIG. 5, the charging device 8 includes a charging device information processing unit 25, a charging device communication unit 26, a charging device storage unit 27, a reading unit 28, and a power supply unit 29 as functional configurations. The charging device information processing unit 25 includes a processing device having an information processing function and a primary storage device, and executes information processing by the processing device reading a program stored in the charging device storage unit 27 into the primary storage device and executing it. In other words, the charging device information processing unit 25 executes information processing by cooperation between hardware and software. The charging device communication unit 26 includes a communication device and communicates with the management device 4 through the communication device under the control of the charging device information processing unit 25. In the following, detailed description of communication by the charging device 8 will be omitted assuming that it is appropriately performed by the charging device communication unit 26. The charging device storage unit 27 includes a nonvolatile memory and stores data in the nonvolatile memory. The charging device 8 may include a display unit and an input unit.

[0024] The reading unit 28 includes an IC card reader 30. The reading unit 28 performs short-distance wireless communication with the IC card in accordance with a predetermined standard using the IC card reader 30, and reads various information including a card ID from the IC card. The card ID is identification information uniquely assigned to each IC card, and is stored as data in a non-volatile memory mounted on the IC card. The reading unit 28 outputs the read information to the charging device information processing unit 25.

[0025] The power supply unit 29 includes a charger 31, and supplies power to a vehicle battery 36 of the electric vehicle 7 under the control of the charging device information processing unit 25. Power is supplied to the charger 31, for example, in the following manner. For example, when the charging device 8 is installed in a specific parking lot 5 of an apartment building (e.g., an condominium), power is supplied from a power system 32 (FIG. 2) of a power company to a power receiving device of the apartment building. After appropriate voltage transformation is performed in this power receiving device, the power is supplied from the power receiving device to a distribution board, and the power is distributed in the distribution board and supplied to each charger 31. In addition to the method of supplying power from the power system 32 of a power company in this manner, a configuration in which power is supplied to the charger 31 from a power storage facility 33 (FIG. 2) or a configuration in which power is supplied to the charger 31 from a solar power generation device or other power generation facility 34 (FIG. 2) may be used. Also, a configuration in which power is supplied to the charger 31 from each of a plurality of different means (for example, each of the power system 32 of the power company, the power storage facility 33, and the power generation facility 34) may be used. Of course, power may be supplied to the charger 31 in a manner other than that illustrated. In any case, conversion between DC and AC, appropriate voltage transformation, and other electrical processing are appropriately performed.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 2, there may be a configuration in which power is supplied from a power supply source (e.g., power grid 32, power storage equipment 33, and power generation equipment 34) to an entity consuming power (hereinafter referred to as "associated power consumption entity 35") in addition to vehicle charging equipment 9. In other words, there may be a case in which vehicle charging equipment 9 and associated power consumption entity 35 share a power supply source. Associated power consumption entity 35 broadly includes objects (e.g., facilities, equipment, or loads) whose power consumption must be considered at the same time when considering power consumption by vehicle charging equipment 9. Associated power consumption entity 35 is, for example, various entities that consume power in an apartment building when specific parking lot 5 is a parking lot related to the apartment building.

[0027] A power supply cable 38 having a connector 37 attached to the tip is connected to the charger 31. When charging the electric vehicle 7, the connector 37 is connected to a port 39 of the electric vehicle 7, and charging power is supplied from the charger 31 to the vehicle battery 36 via a power control unit 40. Hereinafter, the connection between the connector 37 on the charger 31 side and the port 39 on the electric vehicle 7 side may be simply expressed as "the cable 38 is connected to the electric vehicle 7."

[0028] In FIG. 5, the type of the charger 31 is a so-called cable type as an example. However, the type of the charger 31 is not limited to the cable type, and may be, for example, a so-called outlet type. The charging method and standard of the charger 31 are not limited to any method and standard. The charging device 8 may be provided with a locking mechanism that locks the connection between the connector 37 on the charger 31 side and the port 39 on the electric vehicle 7 side. In this case, the locking and unlocking by the locking mechanism are performed under the control of a person having legitimate authority. A relay box that electrically relays the charging device 8 and the management device 4 may be provided between them.

[0029] The charging device information processing unit 25 has at least the following functions. That is, the charging device information processing unit 25 has a function of dynamically changing the charging output of the power supply unit 29 within a predetermined range. For example, the charging device information processing unit 25 can dynamically change the charging output within a range of 1 kW to 6 kW. The charging device information processing unit 25 also has a function of performing authentication using information read by the reading unit 28, and permitting charging by the power supply unit 29 only when the authentication is successful. The charging device information processing unit 25 also has a function of detecting the amount of charge by charging the electric vehicle 7. The charging device information processing unit 25 also has a function of detecting an event that requires updating the corresponding parking lot management record when it occurs, and transmitting information required for the update to the server information processing unit 10. The server information processing unit 10 receives the information and updates the parking lot management record. The charging device information processing unit 25 also has a function of transmitting a charging plan request notification (described later) to the server information processing unit 10. In this embodiment, the charging device 8 is configured to perform authentication using an IC card, but the authentication method is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment.

[0030] Next, an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 will be explained by dividing it into scenes. For convenience of explanation, it is assumed below that the type of the user terminal 3 is a smartphone. The smartphone has a tablet-type housing, and a display panel (display device) and a touch panel (input device) are provided in a wide area on the front side of the housing. In addition, in the following explanation, time is expressed in 24-hour notation. In the following explanation, the period from when the user drives the electric vehicle 7 out of the parking space 6 to when the user drives the electric vehicle 7 into the parking space 6 may be referred to as "one drive" for convenience.

[0031] <Scene where user registers trends by day of the week> First, the operation of the information processing system 1 in a scene in which a user registers a trend by day of the week will be described. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the user terminal 3 and the information processing server 2 in this scene. The flowchart FA shows an information processing method by the user terminal 3, and the flowchart FB shows an information processing method by the information processing server 2. In the following description of this scene, the user who uses the user terminal 3 will be referred to as a "noted user" for convenience. The parking space 6 used by the noted user will be referred to as a noted parking space 6-1, and the specific parking lot 5 in which the noted parking space 6-1 is provided will be referred to as a noted specific parking lot 5-1.

[0032] First, the noted user starts the dedicated application AP of the user terminal 3, inputs login information, and logs into the account of the service. The login may be automatically performed by a secure method. Next, the noted user performs a necessary operation to instruct the display of the day-of-week tendency input screen 41 (step SA1). In response to the instruction, the terminal information processing unit 13 cooperates with the server information processing unit 10 to display the day-of-week tendency input screen 41 on the terminal display unit 15 (step SA2). FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the day-of-week tendency input screen 41. As shown in FIG. 7, the day-of-week tendency input screen 41 has a day-of-week area 42 for inputting the departure tendency time and the arrival tendency time for each day of the week. The departure tendency time of a certain day of the week means a time when the user tends to leave the electric vehicle 7 at a certain time on that day of the week. For example, assume that the user tends to leave his / her electric vehicle 7 at 8:00 every Monday for commuting. In this case, 8:00 corresponds to the departure tendency time on Monday. Similarly, the tendency for entry to occur on a certain day of the week means a time at which the user tends to enter the electric vehicle 7 on that day of the week at a more or less fixed time.

[0033] Focusing on the Monday day-specific area 42M, the Monday day-specific area 42M is provided with a check box 43 that is checked when registering the departure trend time / entry trend time for Monday. If the user does not want to register each time for a certain day of the week, the user does not check the check box 43. The Monday day-specific area 42M is also provided with an input field for inputting the departure trend time and the entry trend time. A plus button 44 is provided to the right of the input field. When the plus button 44 is selected, a field for inputting a combination of the departure trend time and the entry trend time is further added, and the combination can be additionally input. When the user tends to leave and enter the electric vehicle 7 at a certain time on Monday, the user checks the check box 43 in the Monday day-specific area 42M and inputs the departure trend time and the entry trend time into the input field. Furthermore, when the user tends to leave and enter the electric vehicle 7 multiple times on Monday, the user selects the plus button 44 and additionally inputs a combination of the departure trend time and the entry trend time.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 6, the noted user inputs information in the day-by-day area 42 for each day of the week, and confirms the input by selecting the confirm button 45 (step SA3). In response to the selection, the terminal information processing unit 13 transmits the information input to the day-by-week tendency input screen 41 to the server information processing unit 10 (step SA4). The terminal information processing unit 13 also transmits information including at least the user ID of the noted user, the parking lot ID of the noted specific parking lot 5-1, and the parking space ID of the noted parking space 6-1. In this way, when the terminal information processing unit 13 transmits information, the server information processing unit 10 also transmits information necessary for executing the subsequent process, even if not specifically described below. This also applies when the server information processing unit 10 transmits information to an external device.

[0035] As shown in the flow chart FB, the server information processing unit 10 receives the information and generates parking space usage tendency information in which the tendency by day of the week is recorded based on the information (step SB1). The tendency by day of the week refers to the tendency of the departure time (time of departure) and the tendency of the entrance time (time of entrance) for each day of the week. The parking space usage tendency information records information indicating the departure tendency time and the entrance tendency time for each day of the week (however, for the day of the week on which the departure tendency time / entry tendency time is registered by the user). According to the tendency by day of the week of a certain user, the tendency of the departure time and the entrance time of the user for a specific day of the week are known, and further the tendency of the period during which the electric vehicle 7 of the user is parked (or not parked) in the parking space 6 is known. The tendency by day of the week corresponds to the "parking space usage tendency" which is the tendency of the user to use the parking space. In addition, the "day of the week" is a category divided according to matters related to the calendar. Therefore, the trend by day of the week corresponds to "the trend by calendar-related division, which is the trend of the use of parking spaces 6 divided by items related to the calendar." Also, the trend by day of the week corresponds to "the trend of the use of parking spaces 6 by day of the week."

[0036] After generating the parking space usage trend information, the server information processing unit 10 registers the generated parking space usage trend information in the parking space management record corresponding to the parking space of interest 6-1 in the parking lot management database 24 (step SB2). More specifically, the server information processing unit 10 registers the generated parking space usage trend information in the "parking space management record corresponding to the parking space of interest 6-1" in the "parking space management data of the parking lot management record corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1" in the parking lot management database 24. This completes the registration of the day-of-week trend by the noted user. The noted user can change the content of the day-of-week trend recorded in the parking space usage trend information corresponding to the noted user at any time by using the user interface provided by the dedicated app AP, for example.

[0037] Next, the operation of the information processing system 1 in a scene where the user causes the electric vehicle 7 to enter and leave the parking space 6 will be described. Here, in this embodiment, it is assumed that the parking space 6 in the specific parking lot 5 is used by the user in the following manner. That is, when the electric vehicle 7 enters the parking space 6, the user connects the cable 38 to the electric vehicle 7 and performs authentication using the user's IC card. If the authentication is successful, charging of the vehicle battery 36 of the electric vehicle 7 is permitted. Furthermore, when the user leaves the parking space 6, the user disconnects the cable 38 and causes the electric vehicle 7 to leave the parking space 6. In this way, while the electric vehicle 7 is parked in the parking space 6, the cable 38 is basically connected to the electric vehicle 7, and the charging device 8 is in a state where charging of the vehicle battery 36 is possible.

[0038] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the charging device 8, the management device 4, and the information processing server 2 in a scene where a user causes an electric vehicle 7 to enter or leave a parking space 6. The flowchart FC shows an information processing method by the charging device 8, the flowchart FD shows an information processing method by the management device 4, and the flowchart FE shows an information processing method by the information processing server 2. In the following description of the scene, a user who causes an electric vehicle 7 to enter or leave a parking space 6 is referred to as a "noted user". The parking space 6 used by the noted user is referred to as a noted parking space 6-1, and the specific parking lot 5 in which the noted parking space 6-1 is provided is referred to as a noted specific parking lot 5-1. At the start of the flowchart, the noted user's electric vehicle 7 is not parked in the noted parking space 6-1. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the charging device 8 is provided in the noted parking space 6-1, and the management device 4 corresponds to the noted specific parking lot 5-1.

[0039] Now, assume that the noted user has parked the electric vehicle 7 in the noted parking space 6-1. In response to parking, the noted user connects the cable 38 to the electric vehicle 7 and holds his / her IC card over the IC card reader 30. Then, as shown in the flowchart FC, the charging device information processing unit 25 of the charging device 8 performs authentication based on the information input from the reading unit 28 (step SC1) and determines whether the authentication is successful or not (step SC2). If the authentication is not successful (step SC2: NO), the charging device information processing unit 25 executes the corresponding process (step SC3). For example, the charging device information processing unit 25 notifies the noted user of information that charging will not be performed because the authentication was not successful. If the authentication is successful (step SC2: YES), the charging device information processing unit 25 controls the power supply unit 29 to start controlling the charging of the electric vehicle 7 (step SC4). As will be described later, the charging device information processing unit 25 executes charging based on a charging plan. Thereafter, the charging device information processing unit 25 monitors whether the connection between the electric vehicle 7 and the cable 38 has been released (step SC5).

[0040] When the noted user leaves the depot, he or she disconnects the electric vehicle 7 from the cable 38. When detecting that the connection has been disconnected (step SC5: YES), the charging device information processing unit 25 detects the charge amount due to a series of charges from when charging control is started in step SC4 to when the connection between the cable 38 and the electric vehicle 7 is disconnected in step SC5 (step SC6). Hereinafter, the charge amount due to a series of charges from when charging control is started to when the connection of the cable 38 is disconnected is referred to as the "series charge amount." Next, the charging device information processing unit 25 transmits information indicating the series charge amount detected in step SC6 to the management device information processing unit 18 (step SC7).

[0041] As shown in the flowchart FD, the management device information processing unit 18 receives information indicating a series of charging amounts and transmits the received information to the server information processing unit 10 (step SD1). As shown in the flowchart FE, the server information processing unit 10 receives information indicating a series of charging amounts and updates the corresponding user-related log based on the received information (step SE1). To describe step SE1 in detail, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking management database 24 and identifies the user-related log of the parking space management record corresponding to the target parking space 6-1. Next, the server information processing unit 10 additionally records information indicating the current date and time and information indicating the series of charging amounts in the identified user-related log according to the format. In this way, information indicating the series of charging amounts is cumulatively recorded in the user-related log with information indicating the date and time of writing for the charging performed for the corresponding user.

[0042] Next, the server information processing unit 10 derives a series charge amount level based on the user-related log updated in step SE1 (step SE2). More specifically, in this embodiment, the series charge amount level is defined as an index showing the tendency of the series charge amount to be large. The series charge amount level has five types of levels, levels LV1 to LV5, as values. It shows that the series charge amount tends to increase from level LV1 to level LV5. In step SE2, the server information processing unit 10 derives an average value by performing a weighted average for each series charge amount recorded in the user-related log, weighted so that the closer to the current time the greater the influence. The average value derived here can be said to be a value that reflects the tendency of the magnitude of the series charge amount related to the user. Next, the server information processing unit 10 determines the series charge amount level according to the magnitude of the average value. The relationship between the average value derived by the above-mentioned method and levels LV1 to LV5 is defined in advance.

[0043] The series charging amount level corresponds to "the tendency of the amount of charge due to charging performed from when the electric vehicle 7 enters the depot until when it leaves the depot." Furthermore, the series charging amount level increases as the tendency of the amount of power consumption in one drive increases, and decreases as the tendency of the amount of power consumption in one drive decreases. In this sense, the series charging amount level indicates the tendency of the user to use the electric vehicle 7, that is, how much power tends to be consumed in one drive. In light of the above, the series charging amount level corresponds to "vehicle use tendency," which is the tendency of the user to use the electric vehicle 7.

[0044] After processing step SE2, the server information processing unit 10 updates the value of the vehicle usage tendency information in the parking space management record corresponding to the target parking space 6-1 so that it becomes the derived series charging amount large or small level (step SE3). Note that the method of deriving the series charging amount large or small level is not limited to the exemplified method. For example, the server information processing unit 10 may derive the series charging amount large or small level by performing statistical processing to improve the accuracy as an index of the series charging amount, such as removing outliers. In addition, when information on the battery capacity of the electric vehicle 7 and other factors that affect the series charging amount can be obtained, the server information processing unit 10 may obtain information on the factors and derive the series charging amount large or small level by reflecting the information on the factors.

[0045] <Scene when user registers charging request> Next, an operation example of the information processing system 1 in a scene where a user registers a charging reservation request (described later) will be described. Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the user terminal 3 and the information processing server 2 in this scene. Flowchart FF shows an information processing method by the user terminal 3, and flow chart FG shows an information processing method by the information processing server 2. In the following description of this scene, a user who uses the user terminal 3 will be referred to as a "noted user" for convenience. In addition, the parking space 6 used by the noted user will be referred to as a noted parking space 6-1, and the specific parking lot 5 in which the noted parking space 6-1 is provided will be referred to as a noted specific parking lot 5-1.

[0046] First, the noted user performs a necessary operation on the user terminal 3 to instruct the display of the charging securing request input screen 47 (step SF1). In response to the instruction, the terminal information processing unit 13 displays the charging securing request input screen 47 on the terminal display unit 15 (step SF2). FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the charging securing request input screen 47. Here, the "charging related request" means a request related to charging from the user. Among the charging related requests, the "charging securing request" in particular means the following. That is, the charging securing request means a request for the vehicle battery 36 to be fully charged at a time (date + time) specified by the user. In this embodiment, "fully charged" does not only mean a charging rate of 100%, but also means a state in which the battery is sufficiently charged in consideration of the battery capacity and other elements of the vehicle battery 36, or a target state. For example, when the noted user plans to leave the parking lot at a certain time and go on a long trip, the noted user registers a charging securing request including an instruction for the specific time (or a time earlier than this). As shown in FIG. 10, the charging reservation request input screen 47 has an input field for inputting a "time point" specified in the charging reservation request.

[0047] The noted user inputs information into the charging securing request input screen 47 according to the contents of the user's charging securing request, and selects the confirm button 48 to confirm the input (step SF3). In response to the selection, the terminal information processing unit 13 transmits the information input into the charging securing request input screen 47 to the server information processing unit 10 (step SF4). As shown in the flowchart FG, the server information processing unit 10 receives the information and updates the corresponding charging-related request information based on the information (step SG1). To explain step SG1 in detail, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking management database 24 and identifies the charging-related request information of the parking space management record corresponding to the noted parking space 6-1. Next, based on the received information, the server information processing unit 10 additionally records the charging securing request in accordance with the format to the identified charging-related request information. The charging securing request includes at least information indicating the date and time specified by the noted user. With the above, the registration of the charging securing request by the noted user is completed. When a process corresponding to one charging securing request is executed, the server information processing unit 10 executes a process of deleting the one charging securing request from the corresponding charging-related request information.

[0048] <Scene where information processing server 2 generates a charging plan> Next, an operation example of the information processing system 1 in a scene where the information processing server 2 generates a charging plan will be described. Here, in a certain specific parking lot 5, charging of each electric vehicle 7 is performed under the control of the management device 4 corresponding to the certain specific parking lot 5 according to the charging plan corresponding to the certain specific parking lot 5. The information processing server 2 has a function of generating a charging plan corresponding to each specific parking lot 5 for each specific parking lot 5. In light of the above, the operation of the information processing server 2 when generating a charging plan will be described below. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the information processing server 2 and the management device 4 in a scene where a charging plan is generated. A flowchart FH shows an information processing method by the information processing server 2, and a flowchart FI shows an information processing method by the management device 4.

[0049] In the following description using FIG. 11, the information processing server 2 generates a charging plan for the specific parking lot 5-1 of interest. The specific parking lot 5-1 of interest corresponds to the specific parking lot 5 shown in FIG. 2. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the specific parking lot 5-1 of interest is provided with a first parking space SP1, a second parking space SP2, a third parking space SP3, a fourth parking space SP4, and a fifth parking space SP5. The user of the first parking space SP1 is the "first user U1", the user of the second parking space SP2 is the "second user U2", the user of the third parking space SP3 is the "third user U3", the user of the fourth parking space SP4 is the "fourth user U4", and the user of the fifth parking space SP5 is the "fifth user U5". In the following description, the first to fifth users U1 to U5 may be collectively referred to as "target users". In the following description, the processing of the information processing server 2 will be described with attention to the specific parking lot 5-1 of interest. However, the information processing server 2 executes the same process as that shown in the flowchart FH for each of the specific parking lots 5 to be managed. In the following description using FIG. 11, the charging device 8 and the management device 4 correspond to the specific parking lot 5-1 of interest unless otherwise specified.

[0050] First, the charging plan will be described. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the contents of the charging plan for the particular parking lot 5-1 in an explanatory manner. In this embodiment, the charging plan is a plan for a period of one hour (hereinafter referred to as the "plan target period") based on the start point of charging based on the plan. The start point is basically the current time (or a time close to the current time), and is at least the same as or earlier than the end point of the charging plan that has already been applied. The charging plan for a particular parking lot 5 defines the charging output every 10 minutes for each of the charging devices 8 that can charge the electric vehicle 7 at the start point. The charging plan illustrated in FIG. 12 shows a plan for 10:00 to 11:00 for the particular parking lot 5-1. In the example of FIG. 12, the electric vehicle 7 is parked in the first to fourth parking spaces SP1 to SP4 at the start point (10:00) (it is not parked in the fifth parking space SP5). The charging plan in Fig. 12 defines the charging output by the charging device 8 every 5 minutes for each of the first to fourth parking spaces SP1 to SP4. For example, in the charging plan in Fig. 12, for the charging device 8 corresponding to the first parking space SP1, the charging output is set to "3 kW" from "10:00-10:10", the charging output is set to "5 kW" from "10:10-10:20", and the charging output from "10:20" onwards is set to "0 kW".

[0051] As shown in the flow chart FH, the server information processing unit 10 monitors whether an event (hereinafter referred to as a "generation event") has occurred that serves as a trigger for starting the generation of a charging plan for the particular parking lot 51 of interest (step SH1). In this embodiment, the generation event includes at least the following. That is, in this embodiment, the server information processing unit 10 is set to generate a charging plan for each particular parking lot 5 when 30 minutes have elapsed since the most recent generation of a charging plan. Therefore, in this embodiment, the generation event corresponds to the event that 30 minutes have elapsed since the most recent generation of a charging plan for the particular parking lot 5-1 of interest.

[0052] In the present embodiment, the management device information processing unit 18 of the management device 4 has a function of transmitting a charging plan request notification to the server information processing unit 10 as necessary. More specifically, the charging plan request notification is a notification that requests the immediate generation of a charging plan and a response. An event (hereinafter referred to as a "request event") that serves as a trigger for transmitting the charging plan request notification is determined in advance for each management device 4. The request event is an event that, when the request event occurs, requires the generation of a new charging plan by taking into account the request event (or another event related to the event), or that it is better to generate the charging plan again. For example, the request event is a new start / end of charging of the electric vehicle 7 in the corresponding specific parking lot 5, a fact that the amount of power supplied to the charger 31 has increased / decreased beyond a certain range / there is a possibility that the power consumption of the power supply source to the charger 31 has exceeded a threshold, a fact that the power consumption related to the charging of the electric vehicle 7 belonging to the specific parking lot 5 has exceeded a threshold, a predetermined error / failure has occurred, or any electric vehicle 7 has become fully charged. However, the content of the request event is not limited to the exemplified content. In light of the above, in this embodiment, the event of receiving a charging plan request notification from the management device information processing unit 18 of the management device 4 corresponding to the noted specific parking lot 5-1 corresponds to a generated event.

[0053] In addition, the registration of a new charging reservation request (charging-related request) from a target user of the particular parking lot 5-1 corresponds to a generated event. Although several examples of the contents of the generated event have been given above, the generated event is not limited to the exemplified contents.

[0054] When it is determined in step SH1 that a generation event has occurred (step SH1: YES), the server information processing unit 10 executes information acquisition processing (step SH2) and further executes charging plan generation processing (step SH3). The information acquisition processing in step SH2 is processing for acquiring information necessary for the charging plan generation processing. The necessary information includes at least compliance condition information, optimization priority item information, user-specific priority item information, parking space usage tendency information, vehicle usage tendency information, charging-related request information, vehicle characteristic information, and processing utilization information. The charging plan generation processing in step SH3 is processing for generating a charging plan.

[0055] FIG. 13 is a diagram used to explain the processing contents of the charging plan generation processing. As shown in (A) of FIG. 13, in this embodiment, a charging plan generation model 50 configured by one or more programs / models is stored in the server storage unit 12. At least a part of the programs configuring the charging plan generation model 50 may be a machine-learned model. The charging plan generation model 50 has a function of inputting various information and generating a charging plan. (B) of FIG. 13 is a diagram that shows a simplified schematic diagram of the processing executed by the server information processing unit 10 by the function of the charging plan generation model 50. As shown in (B) of FIG. 13, the server information processing unit 10 executes a candidate generation processing PR1 based on various input information, and outputs a plurality of charging plan candidates (hereinafter referred to as "charging plan candidates"). Each of the charging plan candidates has a different charging plan content from each other. The candidate generation processing PR1 is executed according to an algorithm related to combinatorial optimization. In the candidate generation processing PR1, a charging plan candidate estimated to have an evaluation value that does not reach a certain level is not output. Next, the server information processing unit 10 executes an evaluation value derivation process PR2 based on the various input information, and derives an evaluation value for each of the charging plan candidates. The evaluation value is an index value indicating the appropriateness / appropriateness of the charging plan candidate by a value in the range of 0 to 10,000 pt (pt is a unit given for convenience). Next, the server information processing unit 10 executes a charging plan determination process PR3, identifies the charging plan candidate with the highest evaluation value, and generates and outputs charging plan data in which the identified charging plan candidate is recorded. In this embodiment, generating / outputting charging plan data corresponds to "generating a charging plan".

[0056] As shown in (A) of Fig. 13, in this embodiment, at least compliance condition information, optimization priority item information, user-specific priority item information, parking space usage tendency information, vehicle usage tendency information, charging-related request information, vehicle characteristic information, and process usage information are input to the charging plan generation model 50. When inputting information to the charging plan generation model 50, each piece of information is appropriately pre-processed. Hereinafter, these pieces of information are collectively referred to as "input information." Below, for each piece of input information, the contents of the input information and the processing executed by the server information processing unit 10 in steps SH2 and SH3 regarding the input information will be described.

[0057] Compliance conditions information The compliance condition information is information indicating one or more compliance conditions. A compliance condition is a condition that must be satisfied for a charging plan. Examples of the compliance condition are "the demand value (average power over 30 minutes) does not exceed a threshold when charging is performed according to the charging plan," "the contracted power does not exceed when charging is performed according to the charging plan," or "the power consumption does not exceed an allowable amount when charging is performed according to the charging plan." Note that, regarding the demand value, not only the power consumption (power amount) of the vehicle charging equipment 9 but also the power consumption (power amount) of the related power consumption entity 35 is taken into consideration. The fact that factors related to not only the vehicle charging equipment 9 but also the related power consumption entity 35 are taken into consideration as necessary is not limited to the demand value, but also applies to other index values. The compliance condition may include multiple conditions with different contents.

[0058] As shown in (A) of FIG. 4, the compliance condition information is registered in advance in the corresponding parking lot management record. The compliance condition can be set by an administrator, a user, an operator, or other person. The setting is performed, for example, by using a user interface provided by the present service. The server information processing unit 10 registers the compliance condition information in the corresponding parking lot management record according to the setting of the compliance condition, and updates the content of the information as necessary. In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking lot management record corresponding to the particular parking lot 5-1 of interest, and acquires the compliance condition information corresponding to the parking lot. Furthermore, in the charging plan generation process in step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process based on the compliance condition information. That is, in the candidate generation process PR1, the server information processing unit 10 outputs only the charging plan candidates that satisfy the compliance condition, and discards the charging plan candidates that do not satisfy the compliance condition. The information necessary to determine whether or not the compliance condition is satisfied is included in the process use information without deficiency. Even if not specifically described, the information necessary for the server information processing unit 10 to execute the charging plan generation process is included in the process use information.

[0059] For example, suppose that a certain compliance condition is "the demand value does not exceed a threshold value when charging is performed according to the charging plan." In this case, in the candidate generation process PR1, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process when outputting one charging plan candidate. That is, the server information processing unit 10 derives a "predicted value of the demand value" when charging is performed according to the charging plan based on the one charging plan candidate. In deriving the predicted value of the demand value, information indicating the power consumption amount (or the transition of power consumption) of the related power consumption entity 35 during the planned period and information on other factors that affect the demand value are necessary, and the necessary information is included in the process usage information without deficiency. Next, the server information processing unit 10 determines whether the predicted value of the demand value is below a threshold value previously set for the particular parking lot of interest 5-1, and if it is below, it determines that the one compliance condition is satisfied, and if it is not below, it determines that the one compliance condition is not satisfied. When the server information processing unit 10 determines that one compliance condition is satisfied, it outputs the one charging plan candidate, whereas when it determines that the compliance condition is not satisfied, it discards the one charging plan candidate.

[0060] As described above, the server information processing unit 10 generates a charging plan reflecting the compliance conditions. This prevents a charging plan that does not satisfy the conditions to be observed from being generated. Note that the method of reflecting the compliance conditions in generating a charging plan is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment. Furthermore, the contents of the compliance conditions are not limited to the contents exemplified in this embodiment.

[0061] - Optimization priority information The optimization priority item information is information indicating the optimization priority items selected in advance by the manager (or other person). The optimization priority items are items that should be prioritized in charging the electric vehicle 7 in the vehicle charging facility 9. In this embodiment, the optimization priority items are prepared as "cost items", "power consumption items", and "peak power consumption items". The cost items mean "cheapness" of the cost (mainly electricity charges) when charging according to the charging plan. When the cost items are selected as the optimization priority items, low costs are prioritized for the charging plan. The power consumption items mean "lowness" of the power consumption when charging according to the charging plan. When the power consumption items are selected as the optimization priority items, low power consumption is prioritized for the charging plan. The peak power consumption items mean "lowness" of the peak power consumption when charging according to the charging plan. When the peak power consumption items are selected as the optimization priority items, low peak power consumption is prioritized for the charging plan. Each of the optimization priority items corresponds to a fulfillment item. In this embodiment, the fulfillment items mean items that can be conceived of as to the degree of fulfillment.

[0062] As shown in (A) of FIG. 4, the optimization priority item information is registered in advance in the corresponding parking lot management record. The optimization priority items can be set by an administrator (or another person). The administrator sets the items using a user interface provided by the service, for example. The server information processing unit 10 registers the optimization priority item information in the corresponding parking lot management record in accordance with the optimization priority items set by the administrator, etc., and updates the content of the information as necessary. In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking lot management record corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1, and obtains the optimization priority item information corresponding to that parking lot.

[0063] In the charging plan generation process of step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process based on the optimization priority item information. That is, in the evaluation value derivation process PR2, when deriving an evaluation value of a certain charging plan candidate, the server information processing unit 10 derives an evaluation value for the certain charging plan candidate in a method such that the evaluation value becomes higher as the degree to which the certain charging plan candidate satisfies the optimization priority items becomes higher. The process usage information includes all information required for this process. For example, it is assumed that a cost item is selected as the optimization priority item. In this case, when deriving an evaluation value of the certain charging plan candidate, the server information processing unit 10 derives a cost when charging is performed according to the certain charging plan candidate, and derives an evaluation value of the certain charging plan candidate in a method such that the evaluation value becomes higher as the cost becomes lower (i.e., the degree to which the cost items are satisfied becomes higher).

[0064] As described above, the server information processing unit 10 generates a charging plan reflecting the optimization priority items. This enables the generation of an appropriate charging plan reflecting the items to be prioritized in charging the electric vehicle 7 in the vehicle charging facility 9. The method of reflecting the optimization priority items in the generation of the charging plan is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment. The contents of the optimization priority items are also not limited to the contents exemplified in this embodiment. For example, in this embodiment, one item is selected from multiple items as the optimization priority item, but a configuration in which priorities are set for multiple items may also be used. In this configuration, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value in a manner such that the evaluation value is higher as the degree to which an optimization priority item with a higher priority is satisfied is higher. For example, the optimization priority items may include an item indicating which of the power consumption in the vehicle charging facility 9 and the power consumption in the associated power consumer 35 is to be prioritized, or an item indicating the "smallness" of the environmental load (e.g., carbon dioxide emissions) when charging is performed according to the charging plan.

[0065] - User-specific priority item information The user-specific priority item information is information indicating user-specific priority items set in advance by a user for each user (target user in this example) who uses the corresponding specific parking lot 5. The user-specific priority items for a certain user are items that should be prioritized for the user in charging the electric vehicle 7 in the vehicle charging facility 9. The user-specific priority items are satisfaction degree items that can be thought of as the degree of satisfaction. In this embodiment, a "user cost item" and a "charging time item" are prepared as user-specific priority items. The user cost item for a certain user means the "cheapness" of the cost (mainly electricity charges) incurred by the user when charging is performed according to a charging plan. When a user cost item is set as an optimization priority item by a certain user, the low cost borne by the user when charging is performed according to the charging plan is prioritized for the certain user. In addition, the charging time item for a certain user means the "shortness" of the time until the vehicle battery 36 of the electric vehicle 7 of the certain user is fully charged when charging is performed according to the charging plan. When a certain user sets the charging time item as a user-specific priority item, the priority for that user is to reach full charge as quickly as possible.

[0066] As shown in (B) of FIG. 4, the user-specific priority item information of each user is registered in the parking space management record corresponding to each user (the parking space 6 used by each user). The user-specific priority items can be set by the user (or by another person). For example, the user sets the items using a user interface provided by the service. The server information processing unit 10 registers the user-specific priority item information in the corresponding parking space management record in accordance with the user's setting of the user-specific priority items, and updates the content of the information as necessary. In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking space management data of the parking space management record corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1, and acquires the user-specific priority item information of each target user.

[0067] In the charging plan generation process of step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process based on the user-specific priority item information of each of the target users. That is, when deriving an evaluation value of a certain charging plan candidate in the evaluation value derivation process PR2, the server information processing unit 10 derives an evaluation value for the certain charging plan candidate in a method in which the evaluation value becomes higher as the degree to which the certain charging plan candidate satisfies the user-specific priority items of each of the target users increases. The process usage information includes all information required for this process. For example, it is assumed that the user cost item is selected as the user-specific priority item of the first to third users U1 to U3, and the charging time item is selected as the user-specific priority item of the fourth and fifth users U4 and U5. In this case, when deriving the evaluation value of one candidate charging plan, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value in a manner such that, when charging is performed according to the candidate charging plan, the evaluation value becomes higher as the degree to which the user cost items related to the first to third users U1 to U3 are satisfied increases, and the evaluation value becomes higher as the degree to which the charging time items related to the fourth and fifth users U4 and U5 are satisfied increases.

[0068] As described above, the server information processing unit 10 generates a charging plan reflecting the user-specific priority items. This makes it possible to generate an appropriate charging plan reflecting the items to be prioritized for each user who uses the specific parking lot 5. The method of reflecting the user-specific priority items in the generation of the charging plan is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment. Furthermore, the contents of the user-specific priority items are not limited to the contents exemplified in this embodiment. For example, in this embodiment, one item is selected from multiple items as the user-specific priority item, but a configuration in which priorities are generated for multiple items may also be used. In this configuration, the server information processing unit 10 derives an evaluation value by a method in which the evaluation value is higher when focusing on a certain user, as the degree to which a user-specific priority item with a higher priority is satisfied is higher. Furthermore, for example, the user-specific priority items may include an item indicating the "smallness" of the environmental load (e.g., carbon dioxide emission) when charging is performed according to the charging plan.

[0069] Parking space usage trend information The parking space usage tendency information is information that indicates the parking space usage tendency of a user. In this embodiment, the parking space usage tendency is specifically a tendency by day of the week. As shown in FIG. 4B, the parking space usage tendency information of each user is registered in the parking space management record corresponding to each user (the parking space 6 used by each user). In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking space management data of the parking space management record corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1, and acquires the parking space usage tendency information of each target user. This process corresponds to "processing in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires parking space usage tendency", "processing in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires trends by calendar-related category as parking space usage tendency", and "processing in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires the usage tendency of the parking space 6 by day of the week as trends by calendar-related category".

[0070] In the charging plan generation process of step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process based on the parking space usage tendency information. That is, when deriving an evaluation value of a certain charging plan candidate in the evaluation value derivation process PR2, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value of the certain charging plan candidate by reflecting the parking space usage tendency of each target user. Hereinafter, an example of the process of the server information processing unit 10 regarding the charging plan candidate K1 will be described assuming that the charging plan candidate K1 is a charging plan related to "Monday 10:00-11:00". For example, it is assumed that the day-by-day tendency of the parking space usage tendency information related to the first user U1 indicates "10:30" as the exit tendency time on Monday. In this case, for example, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value of the charging plan candidate K1 by a method in which the evaluation value becomes higher as the satisfaction level item of the vehicle battery 36 being sufficiently charged by 10:30 for the first user U1 is satisfied. This is because if the electric vehicle 7 of the first user U1 can be sufficiently charged by 10:30, the satisfaction of the first user U1 can be improved when the first user U1 actually leaves the electric vehicle 7 around 10:30. High satisfaction of the first user U1 means that the charging plan is highly appropriate / suitable in that respect.

[0071] Also, for example, assume that at the time of "Monday 10:00", no electric vehicle 7 is parked in the fifth parking space SP5. Assume that the parking space usage tendency information related to the fifth user U5 of the fifth parking space SP5 indicates "10:30" as the entrance tendency time on Monday and "11:30" as the exit tendency time. In this case, for example, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value of the charging plan candidate K1 in such a way that the evaluation value becomes higher as the satisfaction item "if the electric vehicle 7 of the fifth user U5 enters the parking space at 10:30 and leaves the parking space at 11:30, a state in which the electric vehicle 7 of the fifth user U5 is sufficiently charged during this period is ensured" is satisfied. For example, this state is such that a certain amount of charging is completed for the electric vehicles 7 of the first to fourth users U1 to U4 who are parked by 10:30, and even if the electric vehicle 7 of the fifth user U5 enters the parking lot at 10:30 and charging of this electric vehicle 7 with a relatively large charging output is initiated, sufficient charging output for this electric vehicle 7 is ensured while satisfying the compliance conditions.

[0072] Processing using the parking space usage trend information requires information indicating which parking space 6 is being used for parking, the charge amount up to the present for each parked electric vehicle 7, and other information regarding the charging status of the electric vehicle 7 in the specific parking lot 5. The processing usage information includes all the information necessary for the processing. Furthermore, there is information that improves the processing accuracy and efficiency of the processing. For example, individual circumstances / characteristics of the parked electric vehicle 7 (e.g., battery capacity, charging efficiency, remaining capacity / SOC at the present time or at the start of charging, and fuel economy). Of the information that improves the processing accuracy and processing efficiency of the processing, information that can be collected is included in the processing usage information.

[0073] As described above, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the user's tendency by day of the week, and generates a charging plan reflecting the tendency by day of the week. Here, there are many cases where a user who uses the specific parking lot 5 has a specific tendency to use the parking space 6 by day of the week. As an example, a certain user may leave the parking lot at roughly the same time on Monday to Friday for commuting or other purposes. According to the above configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the user's tendency to use the parking space 6 by day of the week. Note that the method of reflecting the tendency by day of the week in generating a charging plan is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment. In addition, in this embodiment, the tendency to use the parking space is a tendency by day of the week, but the content of the tendency to use the parking space is not limited to the content exemplified in this embodiment. A modified example of the tendency to use the parking space will be described in detail later.

[0074] - Vehicle usage trend information The vehicle usage tendency information is information that indicates the vehicle usage tendency of a user. In this embodiment, the vehicle usage tendency is specifically a continuous charging amount level. The continuous charging amount level indicates the tendency of continuous charging amount. As shown in (B) of FIG. 4, the vehicle usage tendency information of each user is registered in the parking space management record corresponding to each user (parking space 6 used by each user). In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking space management data of the parking space management record corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1, and acquires the vehicle usage tendency information of each target user. This process corresponds to "processing in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires vehicle usage tendency" and further corresponds to "processing in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires, as the vehicle usage tendency, the tendency of the amount of charging performed by charging performed from the time the vehicle enters the parking lot to the time the vehicle leaves the parking lot".

[0075] In the charging plan generation process of step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process based on the vehicle usage tendency information. That is, when deriving an evaluation value of a certain charging plan candidate in the evaluation value derivation process PR2, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value of the certain charging plan candidate by reflecting the vehicle usage tendency of each target user. Hereinafter, an example of the process of the server information processing unit 10 for the charging plan candidate K2 will be described assuming that the charging plan candidate K2 is a charging plan related to "Monday 10:00-11:00". For example, assume that the parking space usage tendency information related to the first user U1 indicates "10:30" as the exit tendency time on Monday, and the continuous charging amount large / small level of the vehicle usage tendency information related to the first user U1 indicates level LV5 (the level with the highest tendency for the continuous charging amount to be large). In this case, for example, the server information processing unit 10 derives the evaluation value of the candidate charging plan for the first user U1 in a manner such that the evaluation value becomes higher as the satisfaction item of the charge amount of the vehicle battery 36 exceeding the “charge amount conforming to level LV5” by 10:30 is satisfied.

[0076] Furthermore, the server information processing unit 10 can execute the following processes, for example. For example, the server information processing unit 10 sets priorities for charging for the first to fifth users U1 to U5 by using at least the vehicle usage tendency information of the first to fifth users U1 to U5. The priority for charging means the degree to which charging is prioritized when the situation is the same. Basically, the priority for charging is set to be higher as the level of the amount of charging is higher. A higher level of the amount of charging means that the amount of power consumed in one drive is large, and charging should be prioritized under the same conditions. Then, the server information processing unit 10 derives an evaluation value for the candidate charging plan, reflecting the degree of satisfaction of the satisfaction level item that conforms to the priority.

[0077] The processing usage information includes all the information necessary for the processing using the vehicle usage trend information. The processing usage information also includes collectable information that improves the processing accuracy and processing efficiency of the processing. The server information processing unit 10 may be configured to communicate with an external device during processing to obtain part of the information necessary for the processing using the vehicle usage trend information.

[0078] As described above, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the tendency of the magnitude of the continuous charging amount (the charging amount by charging performed from entering to leaving the parking lot) and generates a charging plan reflecting the tendency. As described above, the tendency can be rephrased as the tendency of the magnitude of the amount of power consumption in one drive. According to the above configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan reflecting the magnitude of the continuous charging amount of the user, in other words, the amount of power consumption in one drive. Note that the method of reflecting the vehicle usage tendency in the generation of the charging plan is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment. In addition, in this embodiment, the vehicle usage tendency is the level of the amount of charging, but the content of the vehicle usage tendency is not limited to the content exemplified in this embodiment. Modified examples of the vehicle usage tendency will be described in detail later.

[0079] Charging-related requirements information The charging-related request information is information indicating a charging-related request registered by a user. As described above, in this embodiment, the charging-related request is specifically a charging assurance request. The charging assurance request is a request for a full charge at a time specified by the user. As shown in FIG. 4B, the charging-related request information of each user is registered in a parking space management record corresponding to each user (parking space 6 used by each user). In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 refers to the parking space management data of the parking space management record corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1, and acquires the charging-related request information of each target user. This process corresponds to "a process in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires a charging-related request that is a request regarding charging of the electric vehicle 7 of the user" and further corresponds to "a process in which the server information processing unit 10 acquires a request to make the state of the vehicle battery 36 of the electric vehicle 7 a predetermined state by a specified time as a charging-related request."

[0080] In the charging plan generation process of step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 executes the following process based on the charging-related request information. That is, in the evaluation value derivation process PR2, when deriving an evaluation value of a certain charging plan candidate, the server information processing unit 10 derives an evaluation value for the charging plan candidate in such a manner that the evaluation value becomes higher as the degree to which the charging plan candidate satisfies each charging securing request of the target user increases. The processing utilization information includes all the information required for this process. For example, the server information processing unit 10 assumes that the charging securing request of the first user U1 is a request for full charging by 10:30 on September 1, 2023. In this case, when deriving an evaluation value of the charging plan candidate, the server information processing unit 10 derives an evaluation value of the charging plan candidate in such a manner that the evaluation value becomes higher as the degree to which the first user U1 satisfies a satisfaction degree item that the electric vehicle 7 of the first user U1 is fully charged by 10:30 on September 1, 2023 when charging is performed according to the charging plan candidate increases.

[0081] As described above, when there is a request to fully charge the vehicle battery 36 of the electric vehicle 7 by a specified time, the server information processing unit 10 generates a charging plan that reflects this request. This makes it possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the request. Note that the method of reflecting the charging-related request in generating the charging plan is not limited to the method exemplified in this embodiment. Furthermore, the content of the charging-related request is not limited to the content exemplified in this embodiment. Modified examples of the content of the charging-related request will be described later.

[0082] ●Vehicle characteristics information The vehicle characteristic information is information indicating vehicle characteristics, which are characteristics of the vehicle. In this embodiment, the vehicle characteristics include at least characteristics related to charging and characteristics related to the battery. The characteristics related to charging are, for example, characteristics indicating the relationship between the charging output and the charging amount per unit time (including the change amount of SoC) (hereinafter referred to as "power receiving characteristics"). For example, the "relationship between the charging output and the charging amount per unit time" is "when the charging output is ○, the charging amount per unit time is ○". Here, the relationship between the charging output and the charging amount per unit time differs for each electric vehicle 7 due to the influence of the vehicle model, individual differences, aging deterioration of the battery, and other factors. Note that the power receiving characteristics may be characteristics that further take into account the ambient temperature, humidity, and other external environments. In this case, the power receiving characteristics are, for example, characteristics indicating the relationship between the charging output, the temperature around the electric vehicle 7, and the charging amount per unit time, and the relationship is, for example, "when the temperature is ○ and the charging output is ○, the charging amount per unit time is ○". Furthermore, the characteristics related to the battery are, for example, the capacity of the vehicle battery 31. The capacity of the vehicle battery 31 varies from one electric vehicle 7 to another due to the influence of vehicle type, individual differences, deterioration of the battery over time, and other factors. However, it goes without saying that the vehicle characteristics are not limited to the exemplified characteristics. For example, the vehicle characteristics may include the vehicle type or size of the electric vehicle 7.

[0083] As shown in FIG. 4B, the vehicle characteristic information of each user is registered in a parking space management record corresponding to each user (parking space 6 used by each user). The server information processing unit 10 grasps the vehicle characteristic information and appropriately registers the vehicle characteristic information in the parking space management record or updates the content of the information. The server information processing unit 10 may grasp the vehicle characteristic information in any manner. In the following description, the server information processing unit 10 grasps the vehicle characteristic information, but a configuration in which another entity grasps the information and notifies the server information processing unit 10 may be adopted. For example, the server information processing unit 10 grasps the power receiving characteristics of one electric vehicle 7 in the following manner. That is, the charging history of the one electric vehicle 7 is recorded. The server information processing unit 10 (or another information processing unit) calculates and derives the power receiving characteristics based on the history. A configuration in which a user or another entity inputs the power receiving characteristics (or information used to derive the power receiving characteristics) may be adopted. Furthermore, for example, the server information processing unit 10 grasps the capacity of the vehicle battery 31 based on an input from the user, based on the model of the electric vehicle 7, and based on the charging history of the electric vehicle 7.

[0084] Processing and use information The process usage information is information excluding the above-mentioned compliance condition information, optimization priority item information, user-specific priority item information, parking space usage tendency information, vehicle usage tendency information, charging-related request information, and vehicle characteristic information, and includes information used by the server information processing unit 10 in the charging plan generation process. For example, the process usage information may include energy status information, fee-related information, charging status information, and environment-related information.

[0085] The energy status information is information indicating the past, present, and future energy status of the vehicle charging equipment 9 (and related equipment / facilities / events) of the specific parking lot of interest 5-1. The energy status information may include, for example, information indicating the following items: "Power consumption of the vehicle charging equipment 9 and related power consumption entities 35 in a certain period in the past, or a change in power consumption in the certain period", "current power consumption of the vehicle charging equipment 9 and related power consumption entities 35", "forecasted power consumption of the vehicle charging equipment 9 and related power consumption entities 35 in a certain period from the present time, or a change in forecasted power consumption in the certain period", "storage amount of the power storage equipment 33 at a certain point in the past, or a change in the storage amount in the certain period", "current storage amount of the power storage equipment 33", "forecasted storage amount of the power storage equipment 33 at a certain point in the past from the present time, or a change in the forecasted storage amount in the certain period", "power generation amount of the power generation equipment 34 in a certain period in the past, or a change in the power generation amount in the certain period", "current power consumption of the power generation equipment 34", "forecasted power generation amount of the power generation equipment 34 in a certain period from the present time, or a change in the power generation amount in the certain period". However, the illustrated energy status information is merely an example.

[0086] The fee-related information is information about the price of electricity. When the price of electricity varies depending on the time period / period, the fee-related information includes information indicating the price for each time period / period. In addition, when there are special circumstances regarding the price of electricity, the fee-related information includes information indicating the circumstances. The charging status information is information indicating the past, present, and future status of charging of the electric vehicle 7 in the specific parking lot 5. The charging status information may include, for example, information indicating the following items: "Parking space ID of the parking space 6 in which the electric vehicle 7 is currently parked", "Number of parked electric vehicles 7", "Charging time / charge amount up to the present time of the parked electric vehicle 7", "Remaining charge of the vehicle battery 36 of each parked electric vehicle 7", "Remaining charge amount of the vehicle battery 36 of each parked electric vehicle 7". The environment-related information may include information indicating the following items: "Calendar-related items", "Current time", "Current season / temperature / weather / humidity", and "Today's sunrise / sunset times". "Calendar-related items" may include, for example, "Today's date", "Today's day of the week", and "Today's weekday / holiday classification". The process usage information may include information for each parking space 6 in the corresponding specific parking lot 5 or for each user.

[0087] In the parking lot management database 24, processing usage information is registered in each parking lot management record. The server information processing unit 10 updates the contents of the processing usage information as appropriate. The server information processing unit 10 can communicate with the management device information processing unit 18, servers other than the information processing server 2, and other external devices to obtain information necessary for updating. The server information processing unit 10 can also update the contents of the processing usage information based on explicit instructions from an operator or other human being. Note that, although the contents of the processing usage information have been illustrated, the illustrated contents are merely examples.

[0088] In step SH2, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the process usage information of the parking lot management record corresponding to the specific parking lot 5-1 of interest. In step SH3, the server information processing unit 10 appropriately uses the information included in the process usage information to execute various processes related to the charging plan generation process.

[0089] 11, the server information processing unit 10 acquires each piece of input information in step SH2, and further inputs the input information to the charging plan generation model 50 in step SH3, executes a candidate generation process PR1, an evaluation value derivation process PR2, and a charging plan determination process PR3, and generates charging plan data (generates a charging plan). After generating the charging plan data, the server information processing unit 10 transmits the generated charging plan data to the management device information processing unit 18 of the management device 4 corresponding to the specific parking lot of interest 5-1 (step SH4). The management device information processing unit 18 of the management device 4 receives the charging management data, and starts controlling charging based on the charging plan recorded in the charging plan data (step SI1).

[0090] As described above, the information processing server 2 (information processing device) according to the present embodiment includes a server information processing unit 10 (information processing unit) having a function of acquiring a parking space usage tendency, which is a tendency of a user to use the parking space 6, and a function of generating a charging plan for charging an electric vehicle 7 in a specific parking lot 5 by reflecting the parking space usage tendency. This configuration provides the following effects. That is, in a specific parking lot 5 in which a user who uses the parking space 6 is determined in advance, when focusing on a certain parking space 6, the user is fixed. In addition, a user generally has a certain tendency regarding the use of the parking space 6. For this reason, by generating a charging plan for the specific parking lot 5 by reflecting the tendency of the user to use the parking space 6, it becomes possible to generate a more appropriate charging plan that reflects the actual usage of the specific parking lot 5 (the actual usage of the specific parking lot 5 by each user). In light of the above, according to the above configuration, a charging plan is generated for the specific parking lot 5 by reflecting the tendency of the user to use the parking space. For this reason, an appropriate charging plan can be generated by reflecting the characteristic that the user who uses the parking space 6 is determined in advance.

[0091] The server information processing unit 10 according to the present embodiment also includes a function for acquiring vehicle usage trends, which are the usage trends of the electric vehicle 7 by the user, in addition to the parking space usage trends, and a function for generating a charging plan by reflecting the parking space usage trends and the vehicle usage trends. According to this configuration, it is possible to generate a charging plan by reflecting not only the usage trends of the parking space 6 but also the usage trends of the electric vehicle 7, so that a more appropriate charging plan can be generated. According to the present embodiment, the server information processing unit 10 also includes a function for acquiring charging-related requests, which are requests regarding charging of the electric vehicle 7 by the user, in addition to the parking space usage trends, and a function for generating a charging plan by reflecting the parking space usage trends and the charging-related requests. According to this configuration, it is possible to generate a charging plan by reflecting not only the usage trends of the parking space 6 but also the user's requests regarding charging, so that a more appropriate charging plan can be generated. According to the present embodiment, the server information processing unit 10 also includes a function for acquiring vehicle characteristics, which are the characteristics of the electric vehicle 7 by the user, in addition to the parking space usage trends, and a function for generating a charging plan by reflecting the parking space usage trends and the vehicle characteristics. According to this configuration, it is possible to generate a charging plan that reflects not only the usage tendency of the parking space 6 but also the characteristics of the user's electric vehicle 7, so that a more appropriate charging plan can be generated.

[0092] <Changes in parking space usage trends> Next, a modified example of the parking space usage tendency will be described. In the above-mentioned embodiment, the parking space usage tendency is a trend by day of the week. The trend by day of the week is a trend by the time of departure and a trend by the time of entry for each day of the week. In this regard, the trend by day of the week may be either a trend by the time of departure or a trend by the time of entry. When the trend by day of the week is a trend by the time of departure, it is effective as a trend by day of the week for a user who has a tendency that the time of departure on a certain day of the week is determined to a certain extent, but the time of entry is various. In addition, regarding the trend by day of the week, the trend by the time of departure may be a trend by the time of departure (for example, 08:00 to 10:00, or morning / afternoon). The same applies to the trend by the time of entry.

[0093] The trend by day of the week may also be the trend of the length of parking time (or the length of time not parked) by day of the week. In this case, for example, the trend by day of the week may be that parking time on Mondays tends to be about 3 hours, and that parking time in the morning on Mondays tends to be about 2 hours. When the trend by day of the week is the length of parking time, it is effective as a trend by day of the week for users who tend to have longer parking times, even though there is no trend in the time of leaving and entering the parking lot on a certain day of the week.

[0094] The trend by day of the week may also be a trend of the number of departures or arrivals by day of the week. In this case, for example, the trend by day of the week may be that the number of departures and arrivals on Mondays tends to be three, and that the number of departures and arrivals on Monday mornings tends to be one. In the case of a trend by day of the week of the number of departures or arrivals, it is effective as a trend by day of the week of a user who has a trend in the number of departures or arrivals, even though there is no trend in the time of departure and arrival on a certain day of the week.

[0095] As described above, regarding the trends by day of the week, the content of the usage trend of the parking space 6 by day of the week is not limited to the content exemplified in the above embodiment. The content of the usage trend is not limited to the trend of the departure time and the trend of the entrance time, and can be various content including the exemplified content, and this also applies to types of parking space usage trends other than the trends by day of the week.

[0096] In the above embodiment, the user inputs the weekday tendency by using a predetermined screen / user interface. In this regard, the server information processing unit 10 may automatically derive the weekday tendency of the user. As an example, the server information processing unit 10 may derive the weekday tendency for a certain user based on the photographing result of a camera photographing the corresponding specific parking lot 5 or parking space 6, the authentication history by the reading unit 28, the history of charging performed in the corresponding parking space 6, or the detection results of various sensors that detect how the parking space 6 is used (any combination of these is also acceptable). In this configuration, the various histories may be written as needed to the user-related log of the corresponding parking management record or other logs. In the case of the above configuration, for example, the server information processing unit 10 derives the weekday tendency of each user as needed and updates the parking space usage tendency information of each user. The tendency to use the parking space 6 may be input by the user, or may be automatically derived by the server information processing unit 10, and this also applies to types of parking space usage tendencies other than the weekday tendency. The same is true for vehicle usage trends.

[0097] The weekday-specific trend is a tendency of parking space usage by category (day of the week) divided by matters related to the calendar, and corresponds to a "calendar-related category trend." However, the calendar-related category trend is not limited to a weekday-specific trend. The calendar-related category trend may be a "trend of parking space usage by category of weekdays and holidays" (hereinafter referred to as a "weekday / holiday category trend"). In this case, Saturday and Sunday may be defined as holidays, or Saturday, Sunday, and holidays may be defined as holidays. In addition, the configuration may be such that a user or other person can set what days are holidays. The weekday / holiday category trend is, for example, that on weekdays, there is a tendency to leave the parking lot at ○ o'clock and enter the parking lot at ○ o'clock, and on holidays, there is a tendency to leave the parking lot at ○ o'clock and enter the parking lot at ○ o'clock. In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the weekday / holiday category trend as the calendar-related category trend, and generates a charging plan that reflects at least the trend. The method of reflection may be the same as the method of reflecting the weekday-specific trend in the above embodiment, but is not limited thereto. Here, there are many cases where users who use the specific parking lot 5 have different usage tendencies for weekdays and holidays with regard to the use of the parking space 6. In light of this, the above configuration makes it possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the user's usage tendencies for the parking space 6 for each category.

[0098] The calendar-related section-specific trend may be "a tendency of using the parking space 6 on each day of the month" (hereinafter referred to as "a tendency by day"). For example, the tendency by day is that on the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, and 30th of each month, there is a tendency of leaving the parking space 6 at x o'clock and entering the parking space at x o'clock. In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the tendency by day as the calendar-related section-specific trend, and generates a charging plan by reflecting at least the tendency. The method of reflection may be the same as the method of reflecting the tendency by day of the week in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. Here, there are many cases where a user who uses the specific parking lot 5 has a tendency of using the parking space 6 on each day of the month. In light of this, according to the above configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the user's tendency of using the parking space 6 on each day of the month.

[0099] The calendar-related section-specific trend may be "a tendency of parking spaces 6 divided into sections other than the end of the month and the end of the month" (hereinafter referred to as "end-of-month related trend"). The end-of-month related trend is, for example, that there is a tendency to leave the parking lot at x o'clock and enter the parking lot at x o'clock at the end of the month. In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the end-of-month related trend as the calendar-related section-specific trend, and generates a charging plan by reflecting at least the trend. The reflection method can be the same as the method of reflecting the trend by day of the week in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. Here, there are many cases where users who use the specific parking lot 5 have a tendency to use the parking space 6 divided into sections other than the end of the month and the end of the month. In light of this, according to the above configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the user's tendency to use the parking space 6 divided into sections.

[0100] The parking space usage trend may also be a trend other than a calendar-related category trend, for example, the parking space usage trend may be a specific event occurrence trend, an external environment category trend, or a other vehicle-related trend.

[0101] The tendency at the time of occurrence of a specific event means "the tendency of using the parking space 6 after the occurrence of an event in which the parking space 6 is used by a user in a specific manner." For example, the tendency at the time of occurrence of a specific event is the tendency of using the parking space 6 for a certain period after the occurrence of an event in which the user "exits," "enters," "exits and enters," or "enters and leaves" the parking space 6. As an example, the tendency at the time of occurrence of a specific event is that, in a certain day, if the user exits and enters the electric vehicle 7 in the morning (i.e., if an event of exiting and entering occurs in relation to the use of the parking space 6), the user tends to exit the electric vehicle 7 again between XX and XX in the afternoon of that day. Also, for example, the tendency at the time of occurrence of a specific event is that, in a certain day, if the user exits and enters the electric vehicle 7 (i.e., if an event of exiting and entering occurs in relation to the use of the parking space 6), there is a tendency that exiting and entering the vehicle do not occur the next day. In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the tendency at the time of occurrence of a specific event as the parking space usage tendency, and generates a charging plan by reflecting at least the tendency. The reflection method can be the same as the method of reflecting the tendency by day of the week in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. Here, when a user who uses the specific parking lot 5 uses the parking space 6 in a certain manner, there are many cases where the user has a tendency to use the parking space 6 in a specific manner for a certain period of time thereafter. In light of this, the above configuration makes it possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects such cases.

[0102] The external environment classification tendency means "a tendency of using the parking space 6 by a classification related to the external environment". The external environment classification tendency is, for example, a tendency of the parking space 6 by a classification related to the weather, season, temperature, or humidity. As an example, sunny and rainy are defined as classifications related to the weather. The external environment classification tendency is a tendency of the exit time and the entrance time when the weather is sunny, and a tendency of the exit time and the entrance time when the weather is rainy. In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the external environment classification tendency as the parking space use tendency, and generates a charging plan by reflecting at least the tendency. The reflection method can be the same as the method of reflecting the trend by day of the week in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. Here, a user who uses the specific parking lot 5 often has a tendency of using the parking space 6 by each classification related to the external environment. In light of this, according to the above configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects such circumstances.

[0103] The other vehicle related tendency related to one parking space 6 of one user means "the tendency of the one user to use the one parking space 6 when an event occurs in which another user uses another parking space in a specific manner." For example, the other vehicle related tendency is "the tendency of the one user to enter or exit the parking space 6 when an event occurs in which the other user enters the other parking space 6, or the tendency of the one user to enter or exit the parking space 6 when an event occurs in which the other user exits the parking space 6." For example, assuming that there are users Ua and Ub as users who use the same specific parking space 5, the other vehicle related tendency related to user Ua is that when user Ub enters the parking space (i.e., when an event occurs in which user Ub enters the parking space), user Ua tends to enter (or exit) the parking space at the same time or after a predetermined time. Also, for example, the other vehicle related tendency is that when user Ub exits the parking space (i.e., when an event occurs in which user Ub exits the parking space), user Ua tends to enter (or exit) the parking space at the same time or after a predetermined time. In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires other vehicle related tendencies as the parking space utilization tendencies, and generates a charging plan by reflecting at least the other vehicle related tendencies. The method of reflection can be the same as the method of reflecting the day-by-day tendencies in the above embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

[0104] Here, with regard to the use of a parking space 6 by a user in a specific parking lot 5, when another parking space 6 by another user is used in a specific manner, there are many cases where the user tends to use the parking space 6 in a specific manner. For example, when the user and the other user are family members and the user drives the electric vehicle 7 of the user, the other user tends not to drive the electric vehicle 7 of the user. In addition, when the user drives the electric vehicle 7 of the user and the other user, the user tends to drive the electric vehicle 7 of the user at the same time (or a predetermined time later), and when the other user drives the electric vehicle 7 of the user, the user tends to drive the electric vehicle 7 of the user at the same time (or a predetermined time later). In view of the above, the above configuration makes it possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects such circumstances.

[0105] Although the modified examples of the parking space usage tendency have been described above, the parking space usage tendency is not limited to the exemplified one. For example, the parking space usage tendency may be a usage tendency by time of day or by period. Also, the server information processing unit 10 may be configured to acquire a plurality of different types of parking space usage tendencies and generate a charging plan by reflecting each tendency. As an example, the server information processing unit 10 may be configured to acquire a trend by day of the week, a trend by weekday / holiday division, and a trend related to other vehicles, and generate a charging plan by reflecting all of these tendencies.

[0106] <Modifications of vehicle usage tendency information> Next, a modified example of the vehicle usage tendency will be described. In the above embodiment, the vehicle usage tendency was the tendency of the magnitude of the continuous charging amount (specifically, the level of the continuous charging amount). On the other hand, the vehicle usage tendency is not limited to the tendency of the magnitude of the continuous charging amount. For example, the vehicle usage tendency may be "the tendency of the magnitude of the power consumption from when the user leaves the electric vehicle 7 until when the user enters the vehicle 7" (hereinafter referred to as "power consumption tendency"). In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the power consumption tendency as the vehicle usage tendency, and generates a charging plan by reflecting the tendency. The method of reflection can be the same as the method of reflecting the level of the continuous charging amount in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. According to this configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the power consumption tendency.

[0107] Furthermore, for example, the vehicle usage tendency may be "the tendency of the length of time from when the user leaves the electric vehicle 7 until when the user returns it to the parking lot" (hereinafter referred to as "drive time tendency"). In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the drive time tendency as the vehicle usage tendency, and generates a charging plan by reflecting the tendency. The method of reflection may be the same as the method of reflecting the continuous charging amount level in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. With this configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the drive time tendency.

[0108] Although the modified examples of the vehicle use tendency have been described above, the vehicle use tendency is not limited to the exemplified ones. In addition, the server information processing unit 10 may acquire a plurality of different types of vehicle use tendency and generate a charging plan by reflecting each tendency.

[0109] <Modification of charging-related requirements> Next, a modified example of the charging-related request will be described. In the above embodiment, the charging-related request was a request to ensure charging. This charging-related request is a request to make the state of the vehicle battery 36 of the electric vehicle 7 reach a predetermined state by a specified time point, and in particular, the predetermined state is a full charge. However, the predetermined state is not limited to a full charge. As an example, it may be a target charge amount specified by the user.

[0110] Furthermore, the charging-related request is not limited to a charging assurance request. For example, the charging-related request may be a "request to charge with the largest possible charging output from the present time or a specified future time" (hereinafter referred to as a "maximum output request"). In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the maximum output request as the charging-related request and generates a charging plan that reflects the request. The method of reflection can be the same as the method of reflecting the charging assurance request in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. This configuration makes it possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the maximum output request.

[0111] Furthermore, for example, the charging-related request may be "a request to stop charging from the present time, from a specified future time, or for a specified period of time" (hereinafter referred to as "charging stop request"). In this case, the server information processing unit 10 acquires the charging stop request as the charging-related request, and generates a charging plan that reflects the request. The method of reflection can be the same as the method of reflecting the charging assurance request in the above embodiment, but is not limited to this. With this configuration, it is possible to generate an appropriate charging plan that reflects the charging stop request.

[0112] Although the modified examples of the charging-related request have been described above, the charging-related request is not limited to the exemplified ones. Also, the server information processing unit 10 may be configured to acquire a plurality of different types of charging-related requests and generate a charging plan reflecting each request.

[0113] Although one embodiment of the present invention (including modifications, the same applies below) has been described above, the above embodiment is merely one example of a specific embodiment of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited thereby. In other words, the present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from the gist or main characteristics thereof.

[0114] For example, the contents of the charging plan are not limited to those exemplified in the above embodiment. The charging plan may be a plan (information) that enables control of charging of each charging device 8 in a specific parking lot 5 according to the plan. For example, the planned period does not have to be one hour, and the interval at which the charging output is switched does not have to be every five minutes. Also, it does not have to be "a plan (information) in which the charging output at fixed intervals in a fixed period is defined for each charging device 8." For example, the planned period may be configured to change dynamically, and the interval at which the charging output is switched may be configured to change dynamically.

[0115] Further, for example, the processes that have been described as being executed solely by the server information processing unit 10 may be configured so that the server information processing unit 10 cooperates with an external device (for example, the management device 4) to execute various processes.

[0116] Also, for example, in the above embodiment, the server information processing unit 10 of the information processing server 2 generates a charging plan for each of the multiple specific parking lots 5. In this regard, the management device information processing unit 18 of the management device 4 may be configured to generate a charging plan for the corresponding specific parking lot 5. In this case, the management device information processing unit 18 performs the same processing as the server information processing unit 10 to obtain various information and generate a charging plan. In this case, the management device 4 corresponds to the "information processing device", and the management device information processing unit 18 corresponds to the "information processing unit". In this case, the management device information processing unit 18 may be configured to execute various processes in cooperation with an external device (e.g., the server information processing unit 10).

[0117] In the above embodiment, one management device 4 is configured to control one vehicle charging facility 9. In this regard, one management device 4 may be configured to control multiple vehicle charging facilities 9. Alternatively, one management device 4 may be configured to control multiple other different management devices 4.

[0118] The method of generating the charging plan by the server information processing unit 10 is not limited to the method exemplified in the above embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, the charging plan candidate is created and the evaluation value is derived once each in the charging plan generation process. This is a simplified process for the sake of clarity. For example, the charging plan candidate may be created and the evaluation value may be derived a considerable number of times (tens to millions of times depending on the case) in stages while appropriately changing the viewpoint when creating the charging plan candidate. All of the techniques available for generating combinatorial optimization, mathematical optimization, and other plans can be applied to the process of generating the charging plan. Also, for example, the server information processing unit 10 may be configured to input input information (naturally, other information may be input together) and generate the charging plan using a "machine-learned model" that outputs charging plan data.

[0119] In the above embodiment, a part or all of the processes executed by the dedicated application AP or other dedicated program functions may be executed by a browser. In the above embodiment, the information processing server 2 includes a storage unit (server storage unit 12). In this regard, a storage unit may be provided in another device that can communicate with the information processing server 2, and the information processing server 2 may access the other device as appropriate.

[0120] The functional blocks shown in the above embodiment can be realized by any hardware or by cooperation between any hardware and any software. In other words, these functional blocks are not limited to specific hardware. The processing units in the flowcharts of the above embodiment are divided according to the main processing contents in order to make the processing easier to understand. The method of dividing the processing units and their names do not limit the present invention. The processing of each device can be divided into more processing units according to the processing contents. Also, one processing unit can be divided to include more processing. Also, as long as similar processing can be performed, the processing order of the above flowchart is not limited to the example shown in the figure.

[0121] Also, for example, the embodiment may include the provision of a program executed by a computer of the information processing server 2, the user terminal 3, or the management device 4. Also, the embodiment may include the provision of a recording medium on which the program is recorded so as to be readable by a computer. The recording medium may be a magnetic or optical recording medium or a semiconductor memory device. Specific examples of the recording medium include portable or fixed recording media such as flexible disks, HDDs (Hard Disk Drives), CD-ROMs (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), DVDs (Digital Versatile Discs), Blu-ray (registered trademark) Discs, magneto-optical disks, flash memories, and card-type recording media.

[0122] Also, for example, as described above, the information processing server 2 does not have to be a single device. When the information processing server 2 is composed of multiple server devices, the server information processing units of the multiple server devices cooperate to function as an "information processing unit."

[0123] In the above embodiment, each user inputs various pieces of information to be notified to the information processing server 2 to the user terminal 3 owned by the user. In this regard, the charging device 8 may be provided with a display device (display unit) and an input device (input unit), allowing the user to input information to a screen / user interface displayed on the display device of the charging device 8. Similarly, the management device 4 may be provided with a display device (display unit) and an input device (input unit), allowing the user to input information to a screen / user interface displayed on the display device of the management device 4. In this case, the user is appropriately identified by authentication using login information or other means. [Explanation of symbols]

[0124] 1. Information Processing Systems 2. Information processing server (information processing device) 4 Management device (information processing device) 5. Specific parking lot 7 Electric vehicles (vehicles) 10 Server information processing unit (information processing unit) 18 Management device information processing section (information processing section)

Claims

1. An information processing device capable of executing a process related to a parking lot in which a user who uses a parking space is determined and a vehicle parked in the parking space can be charged, A function of acquiring a parking space usage tendency, which is a tendency of the user to use the parking space; and an information processing unit having a function of generating a charging plan for charging the vehicle in the parking lot by reflecting the parking space usage tendency.

23. An information processing apparatus comprising:

2. The information processing unit includes: As the parking space usage tendency of the user, a calendar-related category tendency, which is a usage tendency of the parking space by category divided by matters related to a calendar, is acquired.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

3. The information processing unit includes: As the calendar-related category trend, a trend of use of the parking space by day of the week is obtained.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

4. The information processing unit includes: As the calendar-related divisional trend, a usage trend of the parking space by division between weekdays and holidays is acquired.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

5. The information processing unit includes: As the calendar-related category trend, a usage trend of the parking space by day of each month is obtained.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

6. The information processing unit includes: As the calendar-related divisional trend, the parking space trend by division other than the end of the month and the end of the month is obtained.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

7. The information processing unit includes: As the parking space usage tendency of the user, a specific event occurrence tendency is acquired, which is a usage tendency of the parking space after an event occurs in which the parking space is used by the user in a specific manner.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

8. The information processing unit includes: As the tendency at the time of occurrence of the specific event, when an event occurs in which the user leaves, enters, leaves and enters, or enters and leaves the vehicle in the parking space, the tendency of use of the parking space for a certain period after the event is acquired.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7,

9. The information processing unit includes: As the parking space usage tendency of the user, a tendency by external environment category, which is a tendency by which the parking space is used by a category related to the external environment, is acquired.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

10. The information processing unit includes: As the external environment classification trend, a trend of the parking space by classification regarding weather, season, temperature, or humidity is acquired.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9,

11. The information processing unit includes: As the parking space usage tendency of the user, an other vehicle related tendency, which is a tendency of the user to use the parking space in a specific manner when an event occurs in which another user uses another parking space in a specific manner, is acquired.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

12. The information processing unit includes: As the other vehicle related tendency, a tendency of the user to enter or exit the parking space when an event occurs in which the vehicle is entered into the other parking space, or a tendency of the user to enter or exit the parking space when an event occurs in which the vehicle is exited from the other parking space is acquired.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 11 .

13. The information processing unit includes: A function of acquiring a vehicle usage tendency, which is a tendency of the user to use the vehicle, in addition to the parking space usage tendency; and generating the charging plan by reflecting the parking space usage tendency and the vehicle usage tendency.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

14. The information processing unit includes: As the vehicle usage tendency of the user, a tendency of a charging amount due to charging performed from when the vehicle enters the parking lot until when the vehicle leaves the parking lot is acquired.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13,

15. The information processing unit includes: As the vehicle usage tendency of the user, a tendency of the amount of power consumption from when the user leaves the vehicle to when the user enters the vehicle is acquired.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13,

16. The information processing unit includes: Acquire a tendency of the length of time from when the user leaves the vehicle to when the user returns the vehicle to the vehicle storage as the vehicle usage tendency of the user.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13,

17. The information processing unit includes: The tendency of the remaining battery charge of the vehicle at the time of parking is acquired as the tendency of the vehicle usage of the user.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13,

18. The information processing unit includes: A function of acquiring a charging-related request, which is a request for charging the vehicle of the user, in addition to the parking space utilization tendency; and generating the charging plan by reflecting the parking space usage tendency and the charging-related request.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

19. The information processing unit includes: As the charging-related request, a request to have the vehicle battery of the vehicle reach a predetermined state by a specified time is obtained.

20. The information processing apparatus according to claim 18,

20. The information processing unit includes: As the charging-related request, a request to charge with as large a charging output as possible from the present time or a specified future time is obtained.

20. The information processing apparatus according to claim 18,

21. The information processing unit includes: As the charging-related request, a request to stop charging from the present time, from a specified future time, or for a specified period of time is obtained.

20. The information processing apparatus according to claim 18,

22. The information processing unit includes: A function of acquiring vehicle characteristics that are characteristics of the vehicle of the user in addition to the parking space utilization tendency; and generating the charging plan by reflecting the parking space usage tendency and the vehicle characteristics.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

23. The information processing unit includes: At least one of a characteristic related to charging and a characteristic related to a capacity of a battery is acquired as the vehicle characteristic.

23. The information processing apparatus according to claim 22.

24. An information processing system capable of executing a process related to a parking lot in which a user who uses a parking space is determined and a vehicle parked in the parking space can be charged, A function of acquiring a parking space usage tendency, which is a tendency of the user to use the parking space; A function of generating a charging plan for charging the vehicle in the parking lot by reflecting the parking space usage tendency. An information processing system comprising:

25. An information processing method by an information processing device capable of executing a process related to a parking lot in which a user who uses a parking space is determined and a vehicle parked in the parking space can be charged, comprising: An information processing unit of the information processing device acquires a parking space usage tendency, which is a tendency of the user to use the parking space; and generating a charging plan for charging the vehicle in the parking lot by the information processing unit of the information processing device, the charging plan reflecting the parking space usage tendency.

23. An information processing method comprising:

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