Vehicle detector

Abstract

To preferentially search for vehicles similar to a vehicle that a user has used before.SOLUTION: A vehicle search device 26 includes: a reception unit 34 for receiving a request to use a vehicle 18 from a user; and a search unit 36 for searching for a vehicle to use, including re-arrangement of search results, on the basis of use request information (first information) regarding a request to use the vehicle 18 received by the reception unit 34 and use record information (second information) regarding the vehicle 18 that a user has previously used.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle search device.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a technique in which when a rental car reservation application is made from a terminal to a reservation computer, a rental car that meets the customer's wishes is searched for. If there is no rental car, a lease vehicle that can be diverted to a rental car is searched for, and the result is notified to the terminal.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the technique described in Patent Document 1, when there is no rental car that meets the user's wishes, the user may have to use a vehicle that the user is not used to using.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above facts, and an object thereof is to obtain a vehicle search device capable of preferentially searching for a vehicle similar to a vehicle used by a user in the past.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] A vehicle search device according to a first aspect includes a reception unit that receives a vehicle use request from a user, a search unit that performs a search for a vehicle to be used, including sorting of search results, based on first information regarding the use request received by the reception unit and second information regarding a vehicle used by the user in the past.

[0007] In the first aspect, in addition to the first information regarding the user's desire to use a vehicle from the user, in order to perform a search for a vehicle to be used including sorting the search results in consideration of the second information regarding the vehicle the user has used in the past, it becomes possible to preferentially search for vehicles similar to the vehicle the user has used in the past.

Effect of the Invention

[0008] The present disclosure has an effect that it becomes possible to preferentially search for vehicles similar to the vehicle the user has used in the past.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a vehicle search system 10 according to the present embodiment. The vehicle search system 10 is a system that provides a service for searching for available vehicles and presenting them to the user when the user reserves the use of a vehicle (for example, a rental car, car sharing). The vehicle search system 10 includes a terminal device 12, a vehicle 18, and a vehicle search device 26, and the terminal device 12, the vehicle 18, and the vehicle search device 26 are communicable via a network 40.

[0011] The terminal device 12 is a terminal operated by the user when the user reserves the use of a vehicle, and includes a display unit 14 capable of displaying arbitrary information and an input unit 16 for inputting information. The terminal device 12 is configured by, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a PC (personal computer), or the like.

[0012] Vehicle 18 is a plurality of vehicles prepared for use by users. Each individual vehicle 18 is equipped with a steering angle sensor 20 for detecting the steering angle of the vehicle 18 and a vehicle speed sensor 22 for detecting the vehicle speed of the vehicle 18. Further, at least the driver's seat of the vehicle 18 is constituted by an electric seat 24 whose position in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and reclining angle of the driver's seat can be changed by the driving force of an actuator.

[0013] The vehicle search device 26 is composed of a computer such as a server. In the storage unit 28, a vehicle management DB (DataBase) 30 in which information about each individual vehicle 18 is registered and a usage record DB 32 in which information about the usage record when the user used the vehicle 18 in the past are stored. As shown in an example in FIG. 2(A), the vehicle management DB 30 registers information such as "vehicle ID", "vehicle name", "vehicle size", "attribute information (for example, general vehicle / EV (Electric Vehicle) / HV (Hybrid Vehicle), etc.)", "location", and "reservable period" for each individual vehicle 18.

[0014] Also, as shown in an example in FIG. 2(B), the usage record DB 32 registers information such as "user ID", "usage period", "vehicle information", "evaluation information", and "seat position information" for each individual usage record. Note that the "evaluation information" is information representing the evaluation result of the vehicle 18 after the user used the vehicle 18 in the past, and the "seat position information" is information representing the position of the driver's seat in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and the reclining angle when the user used the vehicle 18 in the past. Also, the usage record DB 32 registers information such as "vehicle name", "attribute information", and "driving information" as the "vehicle information". The "driving information" includes the maximum value of the change amount of the steering angle and the maximum value of the change amount of the vehicle speed when the user used (drove) the vehicle 18 in the past.

[0015] In addition, the vehicle search device 26 functions as a reception unit 34, a search unit 36, and a usage record DB update unit 38 when a CPU incorporated in a computer executes a predetermined program. The reception unit 34 receives a usage request for the vehicle 18 from a user. The search unit 36 performs a search for a vehicle to be used, including sorting of search results, based on first information (usage request information in this embodiment) regarding the usage request for the vehicle 18 received by the reception unit 34 and second information (each of "vehicle name information", "vehicle attribute information", "driving information", and "evaluation information" among the usage record information in this embodiment) regarding the vehicle 18 used by the user in the past.

[0016] The usage record DB update unit 38 acquires "driving information" and "seat position information" from the vehicle 18 at the timing when the user finishes using the vehicle 18, and acquires "evaluation information" from the terminal device 12, and registers the acquired respective information in the usage record DB 32. In this embodiment, the maximum value of the change amount of the steering angle and the maximum value of the change amount of the vehicle speed included in the "driving information" are calculated on the vehicle 18 side from the detection results of the steering angle sensor 20 and the vehicle speed sensor 22. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the usage record DB update unit 38 may calculate the maximum value of the change amount of the steering angle and the maximum value of the change amount of the vehicle speed from the detection results of the steering angle sensor 20 and the vehicle speed sensor 22, and register them in the usage record DB 32 as the "driving information".

[0017] Next, as an operation of this embodiment, the vehicle search presentation process executed by the vehicle search device 26 will be described with reference to FIG. 3. The vehicle search presentation process is activated when a request for distributing a usage request input screen is received from the terminal device 12. First, in step 50, the reception unit 34 distributes the information of the usage request input screen to the terminal device 12 that is the source of the distribution request. As a result, the usage request input screen is displayed on the display unit 14 of the terminal device 12 that is the source of the distribution request. The usage request input screen includes input fields for information such as the pickup location of the vehicle 18, the usage period of the vehicle 18, and the size of the vehicle 18 (usage request information), and an input field for the user ID.

[0018] In step 52, the reception unit 34 determines whether the input of information such as the usage request information by the user has been completed. If the determination in step 52 is negative, step 52 is repeated until the determination becomes affirmative. During this period, the user operates the input unit 16 to input information such as the usage request information into the usage request input screen, and then performs an operation to instruct the transmission of the input information. When the above operation is performed, information such as the usage request information transmitted from the terminal device 12 is received by the vehicle search device 26, and the determination in step 52 becomes affirmative and the process proceeds to step 54.

[0019] In step 54, the reception unit 34 performs a reception process of storing the usage request information etc. received from the terminal device 12 in a memory or the like. Also, the search unit 36 searches the vehicle management DB 30 to determine whether information on the vehicle 18 that matches the usage request of the user represented by the usage request information is registered based on the usage request information received by the reception unit 34. In the next step 56, the search unit 36 determines whether information on the vehicle 18 that matches the usage request of the user has been extracted in the search in step 54.

[0020] If the determination in step 56 is negative, the process proceeds to step 58. In step 58, the search unit 36 notifies the terminal device 12 that the search has resulted in an error (no vehicle 18 that matches the usage request of the user exists), and returns to step 50. In this case, an operation is performed by the user to change the usage request conditions (for example, adding multiple types of sizes as the size of the vehicle 18).

[0021] On the other hand, if information on the vehicle 18 that matches the usage request of the user is extracted in the search in step 54, the determination in step 56 is affirmative and the process proceeds to step 60. In step 60, the search unit 36 searches the usage record DB 32 using the user ID input via the usage request input screen to determine whether the user ID is registered in the usage record DB 32, that is, whether the user has used a vehicle in the past.

[0022] If the user has never used a vehicle in the past, the determination in step 60 is negative and the process proceeds to step 68. In step 68, the search unit 36 distributes the list of information on the vehicle 18 extracted in the search of step 54 to the terminal device 12 as a search result screen and proceeds to step 70. As a result, the search result screen is displayed on the display unit 14 of the terminal device 12.

[0023] On the other hand, if the user has used a vehicle in the past, the determination in step 60 is affirmative and the process proceeds to step 62. In step 62, the search unit 36 acquires all of the "vehicle name information", "vehicle attribute information", "driving information", "evaluation information", and "seat position information" registered in the usage record DB 32 in association with the user ID as information regarding the user's past vehicle usage record.

[0024] In the next step 64, the search unit 36 sorts the list of information on the vehicle 18 that matches the user's usage request extracted in the search of step 54 based on the "vehicle name information", "vehicle attribute information", "driving information", and "evaluation information". This sorting can be realized, for example, by assigning priorities to each of the "vehicle name information", "vehicle attribute information", "driving information", and "evaluation information" and performing the sorting in order from the information with the highest priority.

[0025] Note that the sorting based on the "vehicle name information" is performed such that the vehicle 18 with a vehicle name that the user has used in the past is ranked higher in the list than the vehicle 18 with a vehicle name that the user has never used in the past. Also, the sorting based on the "vehicle attribute information" is performed such that the vehicle 18 with an attribute that the user has used in the past is ranked higher in the list than the vehicle 18 with an attribute that the user has never used in the past. For example, if the user has used an HV vehicle 18 in the past, the information on the HV vehicle 18 is sorted to be higher in the list than the information on the non-HV vehicle 18. In the sorting based on the "vehicle name information" and the "vehicle attribute information", the information on the vehicle 18 that the user is accustomed to using is positioned higher in the list.

[0026] In addition, the sorting based on "driving information" is performed such that, among the vehicles 18 that the user has used in the past, the information of the vehicle 18 with a smaller maximum value of the change amount of the steering angle and a smaller maximum value of the change amount of the vehicle speed is ranked higher in the list. In the sorting based on "driving information", the information of the vehicle 18 that is easy for the user to steer and the vehicle 18 in which sudden braking and sudden acceleration are less likely to occur will be located at the top of the list. Also, the sorting based on "evaluation information" is performed such that the information of the vehicle 18 that the user has used in the past and has a higher evaluation is ranked higher in the list.

[0027] When the sorting of the list of information of the vehicle 18 is completed in step 64, in the next step 66, the search unit 36 distributes the sorted list of information of the vehicle 18 to the terminal device 12 as a search result screen. As a result, the search result screen is displayed on the display unit 14 of the terminal device 12.

[0028] In step 70, the vehicle search device 26 determines whether or not the vehicle 18 for which a reservation is to be made has been selected by the user from among the search result screens displayed on the display unit 14. If the determination in step 70 is negative, step 70 is repeated until the determination is affirmative. When the vehicle 18 for which a reservation is to be made is selected by the user, the determination in step 70 is affirmative and the process proceeds to step 72.

[0029] In step 72, the vehicle search device 26 updates the reservable period stored in the vehicle management DB 30 so that the "usage period" in the current reservation is outside the reservable period for the vehicle 18 (the vehicle to be used 18) selected by the user. Also, in step 74, the vehicle search device 26 transmits the "seat position information" and the "usage period" to the vehicle to be used 18, and ends the vehicle search presentation process.

[0030] In the vehicle 18 that has received the "seat position information" and the "usage period", when the start date and time of usage set in the "usage period" arrives, the longitudinal position of the electric seat 24 in the vehicle and the reclining angle are changed to the longitudinal position of the driver's seat and the reclining angle specified in the "seat position information". As a result, prior to the use of the vehicle 18, there is no need for the user to adjust the position of the driver's seat, improving the convenience for the user.

[0031] As described above, in the present embodiment, the reception unit 34 of the vehicle search device 26 receives a usage request for the vehicle 18 from the user, and the search unit 36 searches for a vehicle for use including rearrangement of search results based on the first information (usage request information) regarding the usage request for the vehicle 18 received by the reception unit 34 and the second information (usage history information) regarding the vehicle 18 used by the user in the past. This makes it possible to preferentially search for a vehicle 18 similar to the vehicle 18 used by the user in the past.

[0032] Note that in the above embodiment, after searching for information on the vehicle 18 based on the usage request information (first information), the information on the vehicle 18 is rearranged based on the usage history information (second information) and presented as a search result. The first aspect has been described, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, by performing a search based on the usage request information and the usage history information, it is also possible to obtain a search result similar to the search result after rearrangement in the above first aspect, and the present disclosure also includes such a second aspect within the scope of rights.

[0033] Regarding the above embodiment, the following additional remarks are further disclosed.

[0034] (Supplementary Note 1) A reception unit that receives a usage request for a vehicle from a user, A search unit that performs a search for a vehicle for use including rearrangement of search results based on the first information regarding the usage request received by the reception unit and the second information regarding the vehicle used by the user in the past, A vehicle search device including the above. In the aspect described in Supplementary Note 1, in order to perform a search for vehicles in use including sorting of search results in consideration of second information regarding vehicles used by the user in the past, it becomes possible to preferentially search for vehicles similar to the vehicles used by the user in the past.

[0035] (Supplementary Note 2) The vehicle search device described in Supplementary Note 1, wherein the second information includes driving information when the user drove the vehicle used in the past. In the aspect described in Supplementary Note 2, it becomes possible to preferentially search for vehicles with which the user is accustomed to driving.

[0036] (Supplementary Note 3) The vehicle search device described in Supplementary Note 2, wherein the driving information includes information regarding the time change of the steering angle and information regarding the time change of the vehicle speed. In the aspect described in Supplementary Note 3, from the information regarding the time change of the steering angle and the information regarding the time change of the vehicle speed, it becomes possible to preferentially search for vehicles that are easy for the user to steer and vehicles in which sudden braking / sudden acceleration are less likely to occur.

[0037] (Supplementary Note 4) The vehicle search device described in Supplementary Note 1, wherein the second information includes evaluation information regarding the evaluation of the vehicle performed by the user after using the vehicle in the past. In the aspect described in Supplementary Note 4, it becomes possible to preferentially search for vehicles with high evaluations from the user.

[0038] (Supplementary Note 5) The vehicle search device described in Supplementary Note 1, further including a transmission unit that acquires seat position information regarding the position of the driver's seat when the user drove a vehicle in the past and transmits the seat position information to the vehicle in use. In the aspect described in Supplementary Note 5, it becomes possible to pre-adjust the position of the driver's seat of the vehicle in use to the same position as in the past, improving the convenience for the user.

Explanation of Signs

[0039] 10 Vehicle search system 12 Terminal device 18 Vehicle 26 Vehicle search device 34 Reception unit 36 Search unit

Claims

【Claim 1】 A reception unit that receives a vehicle usage request from a user, A search unit that searches for a vehicle to be used based on first information regarding the usage request received by the reception unit and second information regarding vehicles used by the user in the past. A vehicle search device including the above.

Images