Method

Abstract

To improve a technique for increasing the convenience of mobile rental services.SOLUTION: A terminal apparatus 10 displays, on the screen of the terminal apparatus 10, a plurality of stations where a mobile object is rented and returned. Next, the terminal apparatus 10 identifies a group to which each of the plurality of stations belongs. Then, the terminal apparatus 10 displays in a first manner, among the plurality of stations displayed on the screen, each station belonging to a first group to which a first station selected from the plurality of stations by the user belongs, and displays in a second manner each station belonging to a group other than the first group.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there are known techniques for improving the convenience of a service for renting a mobile object, such as a car sharing service. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which, when a user selects a station where the mobile object is to be rented and returned from among presented candidates, the user is restricted from selecting stations that belong to a group other than the group to which the selected station belongs. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2022-062636 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] There was room for improvement in technology to improve the convenience of mobile rental services.

[0005] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present disclosure is to improve technology relating to mobile object rental services. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method comprises: A method executed by a terminal device providing a mobile object rental service, comprising: displaying on a screen of the terminal device a plurality of stations at which the mobile object can be rented and returned; identifying a group to which each of the plurality of stations belongs; displaying, among the plurality of stations displayed on the screen, stations belonging to a first group to which a first station selected from the plurality of stations by a user belongs in a first manner, and displaying, in a second manner, stations belonging to groups other than the first group; Includes. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a technique for improving the convenience of a mobile object rental service is improved. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a terminal device. [Diagram 3] 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an information processing device; [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the terminal device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described.

[0010] (Overview of the embodiment) An overview of a system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 1. The system 1 includes a plurality of terminal devices 10 and an information processing device 20. Each of the terminal devices 10 and the information processing device 20 is communicably connected to a network 30 including, for example, the Internet and a mobile communication network.

[0011] The terminal device 10 is, for example, a computer such as a PC (Personal Computer), a smartphone, or a tablet terminal, but is not limited to these examples and may include various devices.

[0012] The information processing device 20 is, for example, a computer such as a server device. The information processing device 20 can communicate with a plurality of terminal devices 10 via a network 30. In this embodiment, the information processing device 20 may be, for example, a server of a business operator that provides a service of renting out a mobile object, such as a car sharing service.

[0013] This embodiment can be used in an application in which stations owned by multiple operators that provide a service of renting out mobile objects are displayed together on one screen of a terminal device. Hereinafter, the term "group" refers to a group of stations grouped by the operators that own the stations.

[0014] First, an overview of this embodiment will be described, and details will be described later. The terminal device 10 displays, on the screen of the terminal device 10, a plurality of stations where a mobile object is rented and returned. Next, the terminal device 10 identifies a group to which each of the plurality of stations belongs. Then, among the plurality of stations displayed on the screen, the terminal device 10 displays, in a first manner, each station belonging to a first group to which a first station selected from the plurality of stations by a user belongs, and displays, in a second manner, each station belonging to a group other than the first group.

[0015] In this way, according to this embodiment, when a user selects one station, the display mode can be changed depending on the group to which the station belongs. For example, when a user selects a station owned by the business operator A as a rental location when using a service to rent a mobile object, the user may not be able to select a station other than that owned by the business operator A as a return location. In this case, simply restricting the selection of stations may make it difficult for the user to understand the relationship between the station selected by the user and other stations. However, according to this embodiment, the relationship between the station selected by the user and other stations can be visually provided, so that the user can easily understand the relationship between each station. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the technology for improving the convenience of the service to rent a mobile object is improved in that the user can easily understand the relationship between the station selected by the user and other stations.

[0016] Next, each component of the system 1 will be described in detail.

[0017] (Terminal Device Configuration) As shown in FIG. 2, the terminal device 10 includes a communication unit 11, an output unit 12, an input unit 13, a storage unit 14, a control unit 15, and a positioning unit 16.

[0018] The communication unit 11 includes one or more communication interfaces connected to the network 30. The communication interfaces correspond to mobile communication standards such as, but are not limited to, 4G (4th Generation) or 5G (5th Generation). In this embodiment, the terminal device 10 communicates with the information processing device 20 via the communication unit 11 and the network 30.

[0019] The output unit 12 includes one or more output devices that output information. The output devices are, for example, but not limited to, a display that outputs information as a video or a speaker that outputs information as a sound. Alternatively, the output unit 12 may include an interface for connecting an external output device.

[0020] The input unit 13 includes one or more input devices that detect an input operation by a user. The input devices are, for example, but are not limited to, a physical key, a capacitive key, a mouse, a touch panel, a touch screen that is integral with the display of the output unit 12, or a microphone. Alternatively, the input unit 13 may include an interface for connecting an external input device.

[0021] The storage unit 14 includes one or more memories. The memories are, for example, but not limited to, semiconductor memories, magnetic memories, or optical memories. Each memory included in the storage unit 14 may function as, for example, a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory. The storage unit 14 stores any information used in the operation of the terminal device 10. For example, the storage unit 14 may store a system program, an application program, and embedded software. The information stored in the storage unit 14 may be updatable with information acquired from the network 30 via the communication unit 11, for example.

[0022] The control unit 15 includes one or more processors, one or more programmable circuits, one or more dedicated circuits, or a combination of these. The processor is, for example, but is not limited to, a general-purpose processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or a dedicated processor specialized for a specific process. The programmable circuit is, for example, but is not limited to, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array). The dedicated circuit is, for example, but is not limited to, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The control unit 15 controls the operation of the entire terminal device 10.

[0023] The positioning unit 16 includes one or more devices that acquire location information of the terminal device 10. Specifically, the positioning unit 16 includes, for example, a receiver compatible with GPS, but is not limited thereto, and may include a receiver compatible with any satellite positioning system.

[0024] (Configuration of information processing device) As shown in FIG. 3, the information processing device 20 includes a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a control unit .

[0025] The communication unit 21 includes one or more communication interfaces connected to the network 30. The communication interface corresponds to, for example, a mobile communication standard, a wired LAN (Local Area Network) standard, or a wireless LAN standard, but is not limited to these and may correspond to any communication standard. In this embodiment, the information processing device 20 communicates with a plurality of terminal devices 10 via the communication unit 21 and the network 30.

[0026] The storage unit 22 includes one or more memories. Each memory included in the storage unit 22 may function as, for example, a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory. The storage unit 22 stores any information used in the operation of the information processing device 20. For example, the storage unit 22 may store a system program, an application program, embedded software, a database, and the like. The information stored in the storage unit 22 may be updatable with information acquired from the network 30 via the communication unit 21, for example.

[0027] The control unit 23 includes one or more processors, one or more programmable circuits, one or more dedicated circuits, or a combination of these. The processor is, for example, but is not limited to, a general-purpose processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or a dedicated processor specialized for a specific process. The programmable circuit is, for example, but is not limited to, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array). The dedicated circuit is, for example, but is not limited to, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The control unit 23 controls the operation of the entire information processing device 20.

[0028] (Operation flow of terminal device) The operation of the terminal device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0029] S100: The control unit 15 of the terminal device 10 displays, on a screen that is one of the output units 12 of the terminal device 10, a plurality of stations where a mobile object can be rented and returned.

[0030] Specifically, the control unit 15 receives information on a plurality of stations where the rental and return of the mobile object is performed from the information processing device 20 via the communication unit 11 and the network 30. Then, the control unit 15 stores the information on the plurality of stations in the storage unit 14, and displays the plurality of stations on the screen of the terminal device 10 based on the information on the plurality of stations.

[0031] "Station information" includes, but is not limited to, any information indicating the location of the station, such as an address, latitude and longitude, and information about the group to which the station belongs, and may also include any information about the station, such as the size of the station, the fee for using the station, the number of vehicles owned by the station, the number of vehicles available at the station, the type of each of the vehicles owned by the station, customers, customer loyalty of each customer, etc.

[0032] A "group" refers to a group of stations organized by any criteria, such as the operator that owns the station, or an area divided by prefecture, city, town, or village. "Information on the group to which the station belongs" includes information that can identify which group each station belongs to, such as information on the operator that owns the station. The group criteria may be changeable.

[0033] Also, for example, the control unit 15 may limit the stations to be displayed on the screen of the terminal device 10, for example by using the positioning unit 16 to display stations located near the terminal device 10 on the screen.

[0034] Also, for example, the control unit 15 may display a form on the screen of the terminal device 10 in which the user can input conditions for the stations that the user wants to display, and may limit the multiple stations to be displayed on the screen of the terminal device 10 based on the conditions input by the user. For example, when the user inputs the type of car that the user wants to use as a condition on the screen of the terminal device 10, the control unit 15 may display on the screen only the stations, among the information of the multiple stations stored in the storage unit 14, whose station information includes the information on the type of car input by the user.

[0035] The conditions for stations to be displayed may be any conditions other than the above-mentioned vehicle type.

[0036] S101: The control unit 15 identifies the group to which each of the multiple stations belongs.

[0037] Specifically, the control unit 15 uses information on the group to which each station belongs, which is included in each piece of information on the multiple stations stored in the memory unit 14, to identify the group to which each of the multiple stations belongs.

[0038] S102: The control unit 15 displays, among the multiple stations displayed on the screen, stations that belong to a first group to which a first station selected by a user from the multiple stations belongs in a first manner, and displays stations that belong to groups other than the first group in a second manner.

[0039] Specifically, the control unit 15 specifies one station selected by the user from among the multiple stations as the first station. Next, for example, assuming that the business operator that owns the first station selected by the user is A, the control unit 15 may display stations owned by A (belonging to the first group) in green, which gives people a sense of security, and display stations owned by parties other than A (belonging to groups other than the first group) in gray, which gives people a modest impression.

[0040] The "aspect" may be, for example, as described above, a color such as red, blue, yellow, etc., a shape such as a circle, a double circle, etc., or a number or symbol, but various aspects may be used, including but not limited to these.

[0041] Furthermore, the control unit 15 may display the first station in the first manner, or may display it in a manner different from the first manner and the second manner.

[0042] Furthermore, the control unit 15 may allow the user to select whether to select the first station as the lending location or the return location after selecting the first station. A method for allowing the user to select whether to select the first station as the lending location or the return location may be, for example, a message box displayed on the screen of the terminal device 10, but is not limited to this and any method may be adopted. Alternatively, the screen for selecting the station as the lending location and the screen for selecting the station as the return location may be different screens.

[0043] Furthermore, the control unit 15 may allow the user to reselect the selected station on the screen.

[0044] As described above, the terminal device 10 displays, on the screen of the terminal device 10, a plurality of stations where a mobile object can be rented and returned. Next, the terminal device 10 identifies a group to which each of the plurality of stations belongs. Then, among the plurality of stations displayed on the screen, the terminal device 10 displays, in a first manner, the stations that belong to a first group to which a first station selected from the plurality of stations by a user belongs, and displays, in a second manner, the stations that belong to groups other than the first group.

[0045] According to this configuration, when a user selects one station, the display mode can be changed depending on the group to which the station belongs. For example, when a user selects a station owned by the business operator A as a rental location when using a service to rent a mobile object, the user may not be able to select a station other than that owned by the business operator A as a return location. In this case, simply restricting the selection of stations may make it difficult for the user to understand the relationship between the station selected by the user and other stations. However, according to this embodiment, the relationship between the station selected by the user and other stations can be visually provided, so that the user can easily understand the relationship between each station. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the technology for improving the convenience of the service to rent a mobile object is improved in that the user can easily understand the relationship between the station selected by the user and other stations.

[0046] Although the present disclosure has been described based on the drawings and examples, it should be noted that those skilled in the art may make various modifications and alterations based on the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be noted that these modifications and alterations are included in the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the functions included in each component or step can be rearranged so as not to be logically inconsistent, and multiple components or steps can be combined or divided into one.

[0047] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration and operation of the terminal device 10 may be distributed among a plurality of computers that can communicate with each other. Also, for example, an embodiment in which some or all of the components of the terminal device 10 are provided in the information processing device 20 may be provided. For example, the information processing device 20 may include some or all of the components of the terminal device 10.

[0048] Also, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the group is a group of stations grouped by the business operators who own the stations, but it is also possible to group the stations by other factors. For example, the group may be a group of stations organized by any condition, such as the area to which the station belongs (e.g., prefecture, city, town, or village), the type of service for renting out the mobile object (e.g., rental car, car sharing), etc.

[0049] Also, for example, in the above-described embodiment, after the user selects the first station as the lending location, the user may further select the second station as the return location. Here, when the second station further selected from among the multiple stations by the user in a state in which the first station has been specified belongs to a second group, the control unit 15 may re-display the second station and the stations belonging to the second group to which the second station belongs in a third manner.

[0050] Specifically, when the first station has been identified, the control unit 15 identifies one of the stations further selected by the user as the second station. Next, for example, if the first station is owned by business operator A and the second station is owned by business operator B, the control unit 15 may redisplay the second station and stations owned by B (belonging to the second group) in black.

[0051] For example, the rental location and the return location may be the same, so in this embodiment, the first station and the second station may be the same.

[0052] The control unit 15 may perform different subsequent processes depending on whether the second station belongs to the first group or not. For example, the control unit 15 may display the next screen when the second station belongs to the first group, and display a message when the second station belongs to a group other than the first group.

[0053] Also, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the control unit 15 may display stations belonging to the third group among stations belonging to groups other than the first group in the fourth manner. For example, when the first station is owned by the operator A, the control unit 15 may display the stations owned by A (belonging to the first group) in green, the stations owned by the operator C (belonging to the third group) in yellow, and the other stations (belonging to neither the first group nor the third group) in gray.

[0054] Also, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the control unit 15 may display, in the first manner, stations that satisfy a first predetermined condition among the stations that belong to a group other than the first group. For example, the control unit 15 may display, in the first manner, stations that have paid an additional fee among the stations that belong to a group other than the first group.

[0055] The first predetermined condition may be any condition other than the payment of the additional fee described above. For example, the first predetermined condition may be any condition such as a high level of customer loyalty of the user to the station (if customer loyalty is expressed as a numerical value, it is a specified value (e.g., 5) or more), or the station is owned by an associated business D of the business A that owns the first station. The first predetermined condition may be changeable.

[0056] Also, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the control unit 15 may display, in a third manner, stations that do not belong to either the first group or the third group and that satisfy a second predetermined condition. The second predetermined condition may be any condition, similar to the first predetermined condition. Note that the first predetermined condition and the second predetermined condition may be the same or different. Also, the second predetermined condition may be changeable.

[0057] Also, for example, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the control unit 15 may display each of the multiple stations in such a way that the recommendation level of each of the multiple stations can be distinguished. Specifically, the control unit 15 sets the recommendation level of each of the multiple stations. Then, for example, when colors are used in the first aspect and the second aspect, the control unit 15 displays the stations whose recommendation level is higher than a specified value in a dark color, and displays the stations whose recommendation level is equal to or lower than the specified value in a light color. Note that, as in the aspect, the method of distinguishably displaying each station may be by a shape such as a circle or a double circle, or by numbers or symbols, instead of colors, as in the aspect, but is not limited to these, and various aspects different from those used in the first aspect and the second aspect may be used.

[0058] In addition, for example, when using colors for the first and second aspects, the control unit 15 may display the station in a darker color the higher the recommendation level, and may display the station in a lighter color the lower the recommendation level.

[0059] The recommendation level set for each station may be, for example, the larger the station, the lower the fee for using the station, the more mobile objects the station owns, the more mobile objects the station can use, the more types of mobile objects the station owns, or the more times the station has been used, but is not limited to these and may be set for each of the one or more locations based on various conditions. The recommendation level set for each station may also be based on a combination of the above conditions.

[0060] The conditions used to set the recommendation level may be changeable, and may be changeable by the user.

[0061] Also, for example, in the above-described embodiment, when a user selects one of a plurality of stations, the control unit 15 may identify the station among the plurality of stations whose recommendation level will be changed, and re-display each of the stations whose recommendation level has been changed in a manner that makes it possible to distinguish the recommendation level of each of the stations whose recommendation level has been changed based on the changed recommendation level.

[0062] Specifically, for example, the recommendation level is set based on the fee for using a station, and if the user selects a first station as the rental location, the fee may differ depending on the second station as the return location. In this case, when the first station is identified, the control unit 15 resets the recommendation level for each of the multiple stations based on whether the station can be selected as the return location, whether an additional fee will be charged, and the additional fee that will be charged. Then, the control unit 15 displays each of the stations whose recommendation level has been reset in a manner that allows the recommendation level of each station to be distinguished based on the recommendation level after resetting.

[0063] The conditions of the recommendation level reset for each station after the first station is identified may be the same or different. For example, if the recommendation level is set based on the fee for using the station and the user selects the first station as the return location, the recommendation level reset by the control unit 15 for each station after the first station is identified may be set based on the size of each station.

[0064] The condition of the recommendation level set for each station after the user selects one from a plurality of stations may be changeable or may be changeable by the user.

[0065] Also, for example, an embodiment is possible in which a general-purpose computer functions as the terminal device 10 according to the above-described embodiment. Specifically, a program describing the processing contents for realizing each function of the terminal device 10 according to the above-described embodiment is stored in the memory of the general-purpose computer, and the program is read and executed by a processor. Therefore, the present disclosure can also be realized as a program executable by a processor, or a non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores the program. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 1 System 10 Terminal Equipment 11 Communications Department 12 Output section 13 Input section 14 Storage section 15 Control section 16 Positioning unit 20 Information processing device 21 Communications Department 22 Memory section 23 Control Unit 30 Network

Claims

1. A method executed by a terminal device providing a mobile object rental service, comprising: displaying on a screen of the terminal device a plurality of stations at which the mobile object can be rented and returned; identifying a group to which each of the plurality of stations belongs; displaying, among the plurality of stations displayed on the screen, stations belonging to a first group to which a first station selected from the plurality of stations by a user belongs in a first manner, and displaying, in a second manner, stations belonging to groups other than the first group; A method comprising:

2. 2. The method of claim 1 , when a second station further selected by the user from among the plurality of stations in a state in which the first station has been specified belongs to a second group, re-displaying the second station and stations belonging to the second group to which the second station belongs in a third manner; The method further comprises:

3. 2. The method of claim 1 , displaying, in the first manner, stations that satisfy a predetermined condition among the other stations; The method further comprises:

4. 2. The method of claim 1 , Displaying each of the plurality of stations in a manner that distinguishes the recommendation level of each of the plurality of stations; The method further comprises:

5. 5. The method of claim 4, When the first station is selected by the user, identifying a station among the plurality of stations for which the recommendation level is to be reset; re-displaying each of the stations whose recommendation levels have been reset based on the reset recommendation levels so that the recommendation levels of the stations whose recommendation levels have been reset can be distinguished; Further comprising:

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