Information providing server, information providing method, and program recording medium

Abstract

To achieve both the accuracy of detecting a mobile object around a vehicle and efficient information notification.SOLUTION: An information providing server includes: determination means for, based on primary information acquired from a plurality of sensors that sense a predetermined range of a road, determining whether or not to provide secondary information that is created with the primary information acquired from the sensors to a first mobile object traveling on the road; information creation means for creating the secondary information using the primary information acquired from the plurality of sensors when it is determined to provide the secondary information to the first mobile object; and transmitting means for transmitting the secondary information to the first mobile object.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information providing server, an information providing method, and a program recording medium. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a notification system that can detect blind spot moving objects present in a blind spot as seen from a vehicle turning right and provide information to the driver. The notification system described in this document repeatedly captures images of multiple oncoming moving objects traveling at a road intersection using a camera. The notification system then determines, based on the images, whether or not there are any blind spot moving objects that cannot be seen from the right turn waiting position within the intersection, and notifies the driver of the vehicle turning right within the intersection of the determined blind spot moving objects.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a right-turn driving assistance device that, when a host vehicle is waiting to turn right, sets assistance information about an oncoming vehicle traveling on the opposite road according to the driving conditions of the oncoming vehicle, thereby reducing the sense of annoyance felt by the driver. According to the document, the right-turn driving assistance device sets a blind spot rank based on the degree to which the following vehicle is difficult to see due to the blind spot of the oncoming preceding vehicle, taking into account the relationship between the vehicle sizes of the preceding and following vehicles based on information about the oncoming vehicle. The right-turn driving assistance device then sets the maximum value of each blind spot rank as an oncoming straight-moving vehicle rank flag. Furthermore, the right-turn driving assistance device sets an evaluation rank based on the degree of danger when the host vehicle makes a right turn based on the oncoming straight-moving vehicle rank flag and a right-turn oncoming vehicle rank flag set according to the size of the oncoming vehicle waiting to turn right. The right-turn driving assistance device then provides right-turn driving assistance information according to the evaluation rank.

[0004] Patent Documents 3 and 4 disclose an in-vehicle device that provides driving assistance when turning right at an intersection or the like using only sensors mounted on the vehicle itself, without using information from roadside devices or other vehicles. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-041058 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-090582 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-205615 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-349456 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The following analysis has been provided by the inventor. To realize or support safe movement of a mobile body, it is necessary to accurately detect mobile bodies (hereinafter referred to as peripheral mobile bodies) that exist around the mobile body but are difficult for the mobile body to detect, and to notify the mobile body of information about the detected mobile bodies. Furthermore, when notifying the mobile body of information, it is necessary to notify the information efficiently in order to reduce the communication load on the wireless communication network and improve the efficiency of use of wireless resources. However, the method described above as the background art has a problem in that it is difficult to maintain the detection accuracy of peripheral mobile bodies while efficiently notifying the information.

[0007] The method of Patent Document 1 uses a configuration in which cameras and processing computers are arranged one-to-one, and information from each camera is notified to the vehicle independently. As a result, there is a possibility that information notified to the vehicle may be duplicated between cameras. In addition, since information is notified independently from each camera to the same vehicle, protocol overhead increases.

[0008] The method of Patent Document 2 uses both external information received from infrastructure facilities outside the vehicle and on-board sensor information when generating right-turn driving assistance information. However, because the information is analyzed inside the vehicle, there is a problem in that a large number of wireless resources are required to transmit the external information to the vehicle.

[0009] In the methods of Patent Documents 3 and 4, surrounding moving objects are detected only from sensors mounted on the vehicle, so there is a possibility that surrounding moving objects may not be detected.

[0010] An object of the present invention is to provide an information providing server, an information providing method, and a program recording medium that can contribute to achieving both maintaining the detection accuracy of the above-mentioned surrounding moving bodies and improving the efficiency of notifying the moving bodies of information. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] According to a first aspect, there is provided an information providing server comprising: a determination means for determining, based on primary information respectively acquired from a plurality of sensors sensing a predetermined range of a road, whether or not to provide secondary information created using the primary information acquired from the plurality of sensors to a first moving body traveling on the road; an information creation means for creating the secondary information using the primary information acquired from the plurality of sensors when it is determined that the secondary information should be provided to the first moving body; and a transmission means for transmitting the secondary information to the first moving body.

[0012] According to a second aspect, there is provided an information providing method in which a computer capable of acquiring primary information from a plurality of sensors sensing a predetermined range of a road determines, based on the primary information acquired from each of the plurality of sensors, whether or not to provide secondary information created using the primary information acquired from the plurality of sensors to a first moving body traveling on the road, and if it determines that the secondary information should be provided to the first moving body, creates the secondary information using the primary information acquired from the plurality of sensors and transmits the secondary information to the first moving body. This method is linked to a specific machine, namely the computer capable of acquiring information from the plurality of sensors described above.

[0013] According to a third aspect, there is provided a computer program (hereinafter referred to as "program") for realizing the functions of the information providing server described above. This program is input to a computer device via an input device or a communication interface from the outside, stored in a storage device, and drives a processor according to predetermined steps or processes. This program can also display the processing results, including intermediate states as needed, at each stage on a display device, or can communicate with the outside via the communication interface. For example, a computer device for this purpose typically includes a processor, a storage device, an input device, a communication interface, and, as needed, a display device, all of which are connectable to one another via a bus. This program can also be recorded on a computer-readable (non-transitive) storage medium. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize or support safe movement of a moving body. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a shooting range of a camera according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a shooting range of a camera according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the information providing server according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the information providing server according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8]FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of secondary information provided to a vehicle from the information providing server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another example of secondary information provided to a vehicle from the information providing server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another example of secondary information provided to a vehicle from the information providing server according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of secondary information that can be provided by the information providing server of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of secondary information that can be provided by the information providing server of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an information providing server according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an information providing server according to a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an information providing server according to a fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server according to the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of secondary information provided to a vehicle from an information providing server according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an information providing server according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20] 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server according to the fifth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 21] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an information providing server according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 22] 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of an information providing server according to the sixth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 23] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a seventh embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 24]FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of a computer that constitutes an information providing server of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] First, an overview of one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the reference numerals in this overview are used for convenience to identify each element as an example to facilitate understanding, and are not intended to limit the present invention to the illustrated embodiment. Furthermore, connecting lines between blocks in the drawings and the like referred to in the following description include both bidirectional and unidirectional lines. Unidirectional arrows are used to schematically indicate the flow of main signals (data) and do not exclude bidirectionality. A program is executed via a computer device, which includes, for example, a processor, a storage device, an input device, a communication interface, and, if necessary, a display device. This computer device is configured to communicate with internal or external devices (including computers) via the communication interface, whether wired or wireless. Ports or interfaces are present at the input / output connection points of each block in the drawings, but are not shown. In the following description, "A and / or B" means either A or B, or both A and B.

[0017] 1, the present invention can be realized by an information providing server 20 including a determination unit 21, an information creation unit 22, and a transmission unit 23. The information providing server 20 is connected by wire or wirelessly to a plurality of sensors 10 that sense a predetermined range of a road, and is capable of acquiring data (primary information) from these sensors 10.

[0018] More specifically, the judgment unit 21 functions as a judgment means for determining whether or not to provide secondary information created using the primary information obtained from the multiple sensors to a first moving body traveling on the road, based on the primary information obtained from each of the sensors 10.

[0019] When the information creation unit 22 determines that the secondary information should be provided to a first moving body traveling on the road, it functions as an information creation means that creates the secondary information using primary information obtained from the multiple sensors.

[0020] The transmitting unit 23 functions as a transmitting means for transmitting the secondary information to the first moving object.

[0021] The information providing server 20 configured as described above determines, based on the primary information acquired from each of the multiple sensors 10, whether or not to provide secondary information created using the primary information acquired from the multiple sensors to a first moving object traveling on the road.

[0022] If it is determined as a result of the determination that the secondary information should be provided to a first moving body traveling on the road, the information providing server 20 creates the secondary information using the primary information acquired from the multiple sensors. Then, the information providing server 20 transmits the secondary information to the first moving body. This enables the first moving body to obtain secondary information based on the primary information acquired from each of the multiple sensors 10. Because this secondary information is created using the primary information acquired from the multiple sensors 10, it can cover the area around the first moving body from a wider perspective. Furthermore, because the information providing server 20 aggregates the primary information into secondary information, efficient information notification is also achieved.

[0023] Various types of secondary information are conceivable. For example, information about a moving object that is difficult for the first moving object to detect may be provided as secondary information. For example, the presence and movement of a moving object located in a blind spot may be communicated to a first moving object attempting to turn right or left at an intersection or a first moving object attempting to traverse a sharp curve based on information obtained from multiple sensors 10. Of course, examples of secondary information are not limited to the above. For example, secondary information may be information that improves the accuracy of primary information. By using multiple sensors 10 of the same type, but located in different positions, more accurate sensing results can be obtained than the sensing function of the first moving object. Furthermore, multiple types of sensors 10 can be combined to provide more accurate secondary information. Furthermore, the first moving object may be a vehicle, a person, or a bicycle. For example, secondary information based on primary information obtained from multiple sensors 10 may be provided to a person or a bicycle attempting to traverse an intersection with poor visibility.

[0024] [First embodiment] Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 shows an information providing server 200 connected to cameras 100A to 100D as a plurality of sensors.

[0025] Cameras 100A to 100D are installed next to traffic lights 400A to 400D at intersections and are capable of transmitting camera images (still images or video) to information providing server 200. For example, camera 100A is installed in a position where it can capture from the front traffic coming from the oncoming lane (the lane going from the bottom to the top in FIG. 2) of the longitudinal roads that intersect at the intersection shown on the left side of FIG. 2.

[0026] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic representation of the image capturing range of camera 100A. In the example of Fig. 3, camera 100A is oriented in the same direction as the light of traffic signal 400A, and is capable of capturing the range shown by the dashed line in Fig. 3. Note that in Fig. 3, the image capturing range of camera 100A is approximately triangular, but the range in the far direction (the base of the dashed line triangle in Fig. 3) depends on the performance of camera 100A and the image capturing environment.

[0027] 4, cameras 100B to 100D have the same capture range as camera 100A. By arranging cameras 100A to 100D in this way, it becomes possible to capture images of traffic entering and exiting the intersection from various angles and monitor the intersection in a planar manner.

[0028] 2 to 4 are merely examples, and the number and positions of the cameras can be changed according to the content to be provided as secondary information. Furthermore, sensors other than cameras may be used. For example, instead of the camera 100A, a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), a RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging), an infrared sensor, a millimeter-wave sensor, or the like may be used, or a combination of multiple types of sensors may be used.

[0029] The information providing server 200 includes a determining unit 201 , an information creating unit 202 , and a transmitting unit 203 .

[0030] Based on the camera images acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D, the determination unit 201 determines whether to provide information informing a moving object entering an intersection from a specific direction (e.g., downward in FIG. 2) of the presence of a moving object located in a blind spot as secondary information. The presence or absence of a moving object entering an intersection from the specific direction can be detected from the camera image from the camera 100A. Of course, a method of detecting a moving object entering an intersection from a specific direction by installing an optical beacon or an ultrasonic sensor in a target lane can also be adopted. Here, the moving object to which the information providing server 200 can provide a service can be various objects such as vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles. However, in the following description of this embodiment, an example will be given in which the moving object to which the service is provided is a vehicle.

[0031] Methods for extracting moving objects from camera images acquired by each of the cameras 100A to 100D include, for example, comparing previous and subsequent image frames or extracting moving objects as moving objects based on the difference with a pre-prepared background image. Methods for extracting moving objects from camera images are not limited to these methods. For example, a method can be adopted in which high-precision 3D map information (static object information) for the area (around the intersection) is used to extract moving objects by removing static objects from the objects extracted from the camera images. Furthermore, various publicly known object detection techniques, such as those using deep learning technology, can be used to extract objects from camera images and determine the type of object (moving object). In the following description, the information providing server 200 of this embodiment will be described as identifying the type of moving object in addition to object detection.

[0032] Furthermore, the determination unit 201 can determine whether or not to provide the secondary information based on the presence or absence of a moving object that is difficult to detect from a moving object entering the intersection from the specific direction, the type of the moving object, and the movement attributes (direction and speed of movement) of the moving object. These methods of determining whether or not to provide the secondary information will be described in detail later with specific examples.

[0033] When it is determined that the secondary information should be provided to the moving body (first moving body), the information creation unit 202 creates secondary information that notifies the moving body (first moving body) of the presence of a moving body located in a blind spot, using the camera images acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D. More specifically, the information creation unit 202 creates the secondary information by removing overlapping information between the camera images acquired by the cameras 100A to 100D.

[0034] The transmitting unit 203 transmits secondary information to the mobile body (first mobile body) informing the mobile body of the presence of a mobile body located in the blind spot. The transmitting unit 203 can transmit the secondary information to the specific mobile body by transmitting information in response to an inquiry from a communication device mounted on the mobile body (on-demand method). The transmitting unit 203 can transmit the secondary information to the mobile body via a wireless communication network. The wireless communication network can be various mobile communication networks such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 5G, local 5G, and Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

[0035] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server 200 of the first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 5, first, the information providing server 200 acquires camera images from the cameras 100A to 100D as primary information (step S001).

[0036] Next, the information providing server 200 analyzes the camera images acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D, and analyzes whether or not to provide secondary information to a moving object entering an intersection from a specific direction (step S002).

[0037] 6 shows an example of the results of the information providing server 200 analyzing the camera images acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D and extracting moving objects. In the following description, it is assumed that CAR1 in FIG. 6 is a moving object (first moving object) entering an intersection from a specific direction. The information providing server 200 is aware of the presence of a vehicle CAR2 attempting to turn right from the oncoming lane of the lane in which CAR1 is traveling, a two-wheeled vehicle BIKE1 positioned behind CAR2, and a pedestrian P1 waiting at a traffic light in front of a building in the lower left of FIG. 6.

[0038] If it is determined as a result of the analysis that secondary information should be provided to the moving body (first moving body) entering the intersection (Yes in step S003), the information providing server 200 creates secondary information to be provided to the moving body (step S004). More specifically, the information providing server 200 uses camera images acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D to create information informing the moving body of the presence of a moving body located in its blind spot. Note that if it is determined as a result of the analysis in step S002 that secondary information should not be provided to the moving body entering the intersection (No in step S003), the information providing server 200 omits the subsequent processing.

[0039] Here, an example of a method by which the information providing server 200 determines whether or not it is necessary to provide secondary information will be described. (Method 1) For example, if a result of analyzing the camera image (primary information) shows that there is a moving object in the blind spot of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) to which secondary information is to be provided, the information providing server 200 determines that provision is necessary, and if there is no moving object in the blind spot, determines that provision is unnecessary. For example, in the case of Figure 6, since a motorcycle BIKE1 and a pedestrian P1 are present in the blind spot of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1), the information providing server 200 determines that provision is necessary.

[0040] (Method 2) For example, if an analysis of camera footage (primary information) reveals that a moving object is present in the blind spot of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) for which secondary information is to be provided, and that moving object is of a specific type (e.g., motorcycle, bicycle, person, etc.), the information providing server 200 determines that secondary information needs to be provided. Otherwise, the information providing server 200 determines that secondary information does not need to be provided.

[0041] (Method 3) For example, if, as a result of analyzing the camera video (primary information), it is determined that a moving object is present in the blind spot of a first moving object (vehicle CAR1) to which secondary information is to be provided, and that the moving object is approaching the first moving object (vehicle CAR1), or if the moving object is stopped, the information providing server 200 determines that provision is necessary. On the other hand, if a moving object present in the blind spot of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) is moving away from the first moving object (vehicle CAR1), the information providing server 200 may determine that provision is unnecessary. In addition, in this method 3, the speed of each moving object may also be taken into consideration when determining whether or not to provide secondary information. For example, if the moving speed of a moving object is equal to or less than a predetermined value, the information providing server 200 may determine that the moving object is stopped, regardless of its moving direction. In this way, a method of determining whether or not to provide secondary information using the movement attributes of the moving object may also be employed.

[0042] Furthermore, whether or not a moving object is present in a blind spot in the above-mentioned methods 1 to 3 can be determined by the following method. First, based on the position information of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) and information on surrounding moving objects (objects) (and surrounding map information), the information providing server 200 determines whether each moving object is in a blind spot depending on whether other moving objects or structures are present on the line connecting the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) and each moving object. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the information providing server 200 draws two imaginary lines (dashed lines) connecting the sensor position of vehicle CAR1 to the edge of the moving object on a map showing the general state of the intersection. Then, if other moving objects or structures are present on both or either of the imaginary lines (dashed lines), the information providing server 200 can adopt a method of determining that the moving object is in the blind spot of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1). For example, in the case of the two-wheeled vehicle BIKE1 in FIG. 7, another moving body (vehicle CAR2) is present on the two imaginary lines (dashed lines), so the information providing server 200 determines that BIKE1 is in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). Similarly, in the case of the pedestrian P1 in FIG. 7, a structure (the "building" in the lower left of FIG. 7) is present on the imaginary lines (dashed lines), so the information providing server 200 determines that the pedestrian P1 is in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). On the other hand, in the case of the vehicle CAR2 in FIG. 7, no other moving body or structure is present on the imaginary lines (dashed lines), so the information providing server 200 determines that the vehicle CAR2 is not in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). Note that the method of determining whether or not a moving body is present in a blind spot is not limited to the above example, and various methods can be adopted. For example, instead of drawing two virtual lines (dashed lines) as shown in FIG. 7, a simpler method may be employed in which a virtual line (dashed line) is drawn from the center position of a moving body to the center position of another moving body, and if there is another moving body or structure between them, the other moving body is determined to be in the blind spot. Also, in the above description, the "blind spot" is described as the blind spot of the camera mounted on the first moving body (vehicle CAR1), but examples of blind spots are not limited to this. For example, a blind spot from the "driver's viewpoint" may also be considered. Also, the "blind spot" is not limited to a blind spot from "visible light," but may be a blind spot from a LiDAR, RADAR, or the like, depending on the type of sensor mounted on the first moving body (vehicle CAR1).In the above methods 1 to 3, a configuration may be adopted in which the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) transmits to the information providing server 200 an inquiry message including the location information of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1).

[0043] Finally, the information providing server 200 transmits the created secondary information to the first moving body (step S005). For example, the information providing server 200 can transmit the secondary information to the vehicle CAR1 by identifying the communication address of the sender from the inquiry message from the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) and transmitting the secondary information to the communication address.

[0044] Here, an example of the secondary information created in step S004 and provided to the vehicle in step S005 will be described. FIG. 8 shows an example of secondary information provided by the information providing server 200 to the vehicle CAR1, which is the first moving body in FIG. 6. In the example of FIG. 8, the positional relationship between a motorcycle BIKE1 in the blind spot of the vehicle CAR1 and a pedestrian P1 is displayed on a screen on which the vehicle CAR1 is located, thereby providing information to attract attention. This positional relationship may also be provided by being superimposed on a map. Note that the form of providing the secondary information is not limited to the form exemplified in FIG. 8. For example, the presence of the motorcycle BIKE1 and the pedestrian P1 in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) may be communicated by voice. The secondary information may also be provided in a form that can be interpreted by the on-board terminal (including a driving assistance device) of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). For example, instead of appealing to the human visual sense by placing speech bubbles with comments as shown in Figure 8 and the human auditory sense by using audio, it is also possible to provide the information in a form that can be interpreted by the in-vehicle terminal of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1).

[0045] The information indicating the positional relationship shown in FIG. 8 can be created in the following manner. First, the information providing server 200 identifies the same moving object captured in the camera images of the cameras 100A to 100D and removes any overlapping objects. For example, if moving objects of the same type and / or size are detected by multiple cameras at the same time and in the same location, the information providing server 200 identifies them as the same moving object. Then, the information providing server 200 creates secondary information indicating the positional relationship between the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) and the identified object. Furthermore, since vehicle CAR2 in FIG. 8 is an object that can be detected from the first moving object (vehicle CAR1), it can also be excluded from the information to be included in the secondary information. In this way, overlapping and unnecessary objects captured in the camera images of the cameras 100A to 100D are removed. Furthermore, when providing secondary information in a format that can be interpreted by the in-vehicle terminal of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1), the secondary information can be created by similarly identifying the same moving object and removing overlapping objects, or by removing moving objects that have been captured by the first moving object (vehicle CAR1).

[0046] As another method for generating secondary information, information on multiple moving objects located in blind spots from the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) may be aggregated into the same message or IP packet and transmitted to the first moving object (vehicle CAR1). When each camera independently transmits IP packetized information to the first moving object (vehicle), an IP header is assigned to each IP packet, increasing the proportion of IP headers in the overall transmitted data. On the other hand, by aggregating the information into a single IP packet in the information providing server 200 and transmitting the information, the proportion of IP headers in the overall transmitted data can be reduced. Furthermore, by aggregating and transmitting information in the information providing server 200, it is expected that the signaling load on the mobile communication network, such as the establishment of wireless links and the allocation of wireless resources, can be reduced compared to when each camera independently transmits information to the first moving object (vehicle).

[0047] The secondary information created as described above can be used in various ways in the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). For example, it can be transmitted to an in-vehicle terminal or smartphone of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) and displayed on these devices to present it to the driver. It can also be displayed as an augmented reality (AR) image on the windshield of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). Figures 9 and 10 show examples of secondary information displayed on these terminals or windshields. For example, in the example of Figure 9, a message is displayed informing the driver that a motorcycle BIKE1 and a pedestrian P1 are present behind the vehicle CAR2 and the building, which are visible as real images. In the example of Figure 10, objects representing the motorcycle BIKE1 and the pedestrian P1 are displayed in AR behind the vehicle CAR2 and the building, which are visible as real images. By using secondary information in this way, the driver of the first moving body (vehicle) can be accurately informed that a motorcycle or a pedestrian is present in his or her blind spot. 10 (BIKE1 and P1) may be icons or front images estimated from side images (primary information) of the bike and pedestrian obtained from camera 100B. Furthermore, the speed and distance from CAR1 estimated from the camera image may be displayed on these objects.

[0048] Furthermore, secondary information can be used in forms other than those that appeal to the driver's vision. For example, secondary information can be input to an in-vehicle terminal of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) and used as information for autonomous driving or driving assistance information. For example, secondary information can be provided as information to complement a dynamic map for autonomous driving.

[0049] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to efficiently transmit accurate secondary information to a first moving body (vehicle) entering an intersection from a specific direction. This is because the primary information acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D is used to determine whether or not secondary information needs to be created, and the secondary information is created while eliminating any duplication.

[0050] In the first embodiment described above, an example was given in which secondary information is provided to a first moving body (vehicle) entering an intersection from a specific direction. However, the application of the present invention is not limited to this example. For example, as shown in FIG. 11 , an image obj2 (a pedestrian in the case of FIG. 11 ) of a moving body (second moving body) located within a blind spot of a sensor or the like of a vehicle obj0 may be present due to the presence of a parked vehicle obj1. In such a case, the present invention can also be applied to an application in which the presence of the moving body (second moving body) located within a blind spot of a sensor or the like is notified to the first moving body (vehicle obj0). Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 12 , a pedestrian obj2 may be present, which is difficult to detect from the sensor of a vehicle obj0 due to the presence of a parked vehicle obj1. In such a case, the present invention can also be applied to an application in which the presence of the pedestrian obj2 is notified to the vehicle obj0. Furthermore, the first moving body may be a pedestrian or a bicycle, in addition to a vehicle. In this way, the present invention can be applied to a wide range of applications for informing a first moving object of the presence of a second moving object that is difficult for the first moving object to detect, in the vicinity of the first moving object.

[0051] [Second embodiment] Next, a second embodiment in which a method for transmitting information to a specific mobile object is modified will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the second embodiment, the mobile object to which the information providing server 200a provides its services can be various objects, such as pedestrians and bicycles in addition to vehicles. However, the following description will be given with an example in which the mobile object to which the service is provided is a vehicle. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the configuration of the information providing server of the second embodiment of the present invention. The configuration differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2 in that an address acquisition unit 204 is added to the information providing server 200a and the functions of the determination unit 201a and the transmission unit 203a are modified. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the following description will focus on the differences.

[0052] The determination unit 201a provides the address acquisition unit 204 with the camera images (primary information) obtained from the cameras 100A to 100D.

[0053] Address acquisition unit 204 performs individual identification by reading license plate information from images of moving objects (vehicles) captured in camera images (primary information) obtained from cameras 100A to 100D. Address acquisition unit 204 then transmits the license plate information to mobile object management server 300 located on the cloud, and requests the IP (Internet Protocol) address of the in-vehicle terminal of the moving object (vehicle) having the corresponding license plate information.

[0054] The mobile object management server 300 is a server that manages mobile object information that links license plate information with the IP address of the on-board terminal of each mobile object (vehicle). When the mobile object management server 300 receives a request for an IP address corresponding to the license plate information from the information providing server 200a, it responds with the IP address to the information providing server 200a.

[0055] The transmitting unit 203a uses the obtained IP address to transmit information to the moving body (vehicle) notifying it of the presence of another moving body located in the blind spot.

[0056] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 14 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server 200a of the second embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the operation of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that steps S105 and S106 are added after step S004.

[0057] After creating the secondary information to be provided to the first moving body (vehicle) (step S004), the information providing server 200a identifies the first moving body (vehicle) by reading the license plate information from the image of the first moving body (vehicle) captured in the image (primary information) obtained from the cameras 100A to 100D (step S105).

[0058] The information providing server 200a acquires the IP address of the in-vehicle terminal or the like of the identified first mobile object (vehicle) from the mobile object management server 300 arranged on the cloud (step S106).

[0059] Finally, the information providing server 200a uses the acquired IP address to transmit the secondary information created in step S004 to the first moving object (vehicle) (step S005).

[0060] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to identify a communication address without receiving an inquiry message and notify information to the first moving body. Furthermore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to transmit information to the first moving body even if the in-vehicle terminal of the first moving body does not have a function for requesting secondary information. In other words, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, this embodiment has the advantage of simplifying the functions on the in-vehicle terminal side.

[0061] In the second embodiment described above, license plate information is read from camera images obtained from cameras 100A-100D to identify the address of the vehicle-mounted terminal, etc. However, the method for identifying the address of the vehicle-mounted terminal, etc. of the first moving object is not limited to this. For example, if a server that associates people's facial images with addresses exists on the cloud, a method can be adopted in which the driver is identified from the facial image captured in the camera images obtained from cameras 100A-100D and the terminal address of the first moving object is identified by further querying the server. This method has the advantage of being able to provide secondary information to ordinary pedestrians and cyclists in addition to vehicle occupants.

[0062] Specifically, a server that associates a person's facial image with the address of the information terminal carried by that person is placed on the cloud. The information providing server 200a then queries the server for the address of the information terminal carried by the person corresponding to the facial image. In this way, the present invention can be applied not only when the destination of information is a vehicle, but also when the destination is a pedestrian or a cyclist.

[0063] [Third embodiment] Next, a third embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, in which a camera mounted on a moving object is used as one of the sensors in each of the above-mentioned embodiments. In the third embodiment, the moving object to which the information providing server 200b provides services and the moving object from which the camera image is acquired can be various objects such as vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles. However, the following description will be given using an example in which these moving objects are vehicles. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the configuration of the information providing server of the third embodiment of the present invention. The configuration differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2 in that the determination unit 201b of the information providing server 200b can acquire camera images from a camera 100E mounted on a nearby moving object via a network. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the following description will focus on the differences.

[0064] The determination unit 201b of the information providing server 200b acquires, via a network, camera images from a camera 100E mounted on one or more mobile objects passing near an intersection. The determination unit 201b can identify the acquisition location of the image from metadata such as EXIF ​​information attached to the camera image. Alternatively, the network may have a function for transmitting camera images to the information providing server 200b based on the location information of the mobile object, so that camera images from mobile objects heading toward the intersection are automatically transmitted to the information providing server 200b.

[0065] As described above, the information providing server 200b of this embodiment can acquire, as primary information, images from the camera 100E mounted on one or more moving bodies passing near an intersection. This makes it possible to acquire, for example, an image from a vehicle CAR3 traveling further behind a moving body (second moving body) BIKE1 that is located in a blind spot of a first moving body (vehicle CAR1), as shown in Fig. 15.

[0066] In this way, according to this embodiment, in which the cameras of the surrounding mobile bodies are used as sensors, it is possible to improve the accuracy of determining whether or not secondary information needs to be created, and to enrich the information to be included in the secondary information. In particular, in the case of fixed cameras installed on roads such as cameras 100A to 100D, the image quality may be reduced due to backlighting caused by the position of the sun, but by using camera 100E, it is possible to prevent a reduction in the accuracy of determination, etc.

[0067] [Fourth embodiment] Next, a fourth embodiment in which an information providing server provides secondary information taking into account the movement state of a moving object will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the fourth embodiment, various types of moving objects are possible, such as vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles. However, the following description will be given using an example in which the moving object is a vehicle. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the configuration of an information providing server according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The configuration differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2 in that a movement state acquisition unit 205 is added to the information providing server 200c, and the information creation unit 202c is configured to create secondary information using information acquired by the movement state acquisition unit 205. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the following description will focus on the differences.

[0068] The movement status acquisition unit 205 of the information providing server 200c acquires the movement status of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) captured by the cameras 100A to 100D. Here, the "movement status" refers to the state of the movement of the moving object, including, for example, the traveling direction and speed. The following describes an example of acquiring the traveling direction as the movement status. The movement status of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) can be acquired by estimating the traveling direction from the movement of the image of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) captured in the camera images obtained from the cameras 100A to 100D and information on the turn signals. The method of acquiring the traveling direction of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) is not limited to this, and various methods can be used. For example, if a designated traveling direction (e.g., a right-turn lane) is set for the lanes at the intersection, the traveling direction can be estimated using information about the lane in which the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) captured in the camera images is located. Furthermore, if the information providing server 200c can obtain travel route plan information (route information of a car navigation system) for the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) from an in-vehicle terminal of the moving body, which is a vehicle, the information providing server 200c may estimate the traveling direction using the travel route plan information. Furthermore, if the information providing server 200c can obtain the steering angle of the moving body, which is a vehicle, the information providing server 200c may estimate the traveling direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) using the steering angle. Furthermore, if the light pattern of the traffic lights at the intersection is set to specify the traveling direction (for example, a combination of a red light and a right arrow), the traveling direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) can be estimated using the light status of the traffic lights captured in the camera image and traffic light control information.

[0069] The information creation unit 202c creates secondary information using the camera images from the cameras 100A to 100D as well as the traveling direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) obtained as described above. Specifically, the information creation unit 202c assigns a high priority to objects (second moving bodies) in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) that are in the traveling direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1), and creates secondary information taking that priority into consideration.

[0070] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 17 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server 200c of the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the operation of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that steps S204 and S205 are added after step S003.

[0071] When the information providing server 200c determines that the secondary information is to be provided to the moving object (first moving object) (Yes in step S003), the information providing server 200c acquires the moving state (traveling direction information) of the moving object (step S204).

[0072] Next, the information providing server 200c determines the importance to be assigned to each object using the object location and the moving state (direction of travel) of the moving object (step S205). Then, the information providing server 200c creates secondary information taking the determined importance into consideration (step S204). For example, assume that the moving state (direction of travel) of a first moving object (vehicle CAR1) is obtained as turning right. In this case, as shown in FIG. 18, the information providing server 200c assigns a higher importance to the two-wheeled vehicle BIKE1 that is in the moving direction of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) among the objects (BIKE1, P1) in the blind spot of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1). Then, the information providing server 200c creates secondary information that strongly calls attention to the two-wheeled vehicle BIKE1. At this time, the pedestrian P1, who is assigned a low importance, can be omitted from the secondary information.

[0073] The information providing server 200c of this embodiment, which operates as described above, can narrow down the information to be transmitted to the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) more than in the first to third embodiments. This makes it possible to more efficiently notify the driver and in-vehicle device of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) of the presence of a moving body in a blind spot.

[0074] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, secondary information is created using the importance assigned to the object, but the use of the importance is not limited to this. For example, the appearance of each object may be differentiated when the secondary information is displayed as an image on the in-vehicle terminal. Furthermore, the transmission mode of the secondary information may be differentiated depending on the level of importance assigned to each object. For example, secondary information informing the presence of an object with a high level of importance may be transmitted in a push-type manner (see the second embodiment) without waiting for a request from the first moving body (vehicle CAR1), while other information may be transmitted in response to a request from the first moving body (vehicle CAR1).

[0075] In the fourth embodiment described above, an example was given in which the direction of travel was used as the moving state, but the speed of the first moving object may also be used as the moving state. The speed of the first moving object may be obtained from a speed sensor or by analyzing video. Furthermore, if the first moving object is a vehicle and the position of its shift lever is available, the speed may be estimated from the position information of the shift lever. In this way, by using speed information as the moving state, for example, if the speed is below a predetermined threshold (such as when stopped or moving very slowly), a low importance level can be set.

[0076] In addition, in the above description of the fourth embodiment, an example has been given in which the moving state of the first moving body is acquired and taken into consideration, but instead of or in addition to this, the moving states (traveling direction, speed, etc.) of other moving bodies (surrounding moving bodies) may be acquired to create secondary information. For example, if there are two moving bodies in the blind spot of the first moving body and each has a different traveling direction or speed, different importance may be set depending on these. [Fifth embodiment] Next, a fifth embodiment in which an information providing server determines whether or not to provide secondary information by taking into account the movement state of a moving object will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the fifth embodiment, various types of moving objects are possible, such as vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles. However, the following description will be given using an example in which the moving object is a vehicle. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing the configuration of an information providing server according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. The configuration differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2 in that a movement state acquisition unit 205 is added to a determination unit 201d of an information providing server 200d, and the determination unit 201d is configured to determine whether or not to create secondary information using information acquired by the movement state acquisition unit 205. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the following description will focus on the differences.

[0077] The movement status acquisition unit 205 of the information providing server 200d acquires the movement status (travel direction) of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) captured by the cameras 100A to 100D. The method for acquiring the movement status (travel direction) of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) is the same as in the fourth embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. In the following description, an example will be given in which the travel direction is acquired as the movement status.

[0078] The determination unit 201d determines whether or not it is necessary to provide secondary information using the moving state (traveling direction) of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) obtained as described above in addition to the camera images from the cameras 100A to 100D. Specifically, the determination unit 201d determines whether or not it is necessary to provide secondary information based on whether or not an object in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) is in the traveling direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1).

[0079] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 20 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server 200d of the fifth embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the operation of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that in step S301, in addition to the primary information, a movement state is acquired, and in step S302, in addition to the primary information, a movement state is analyzed.

[0080] For example, when the travel direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) is obtained as turning right, the information providing server 200d determines that the provision of secondary information is necessary because, among the objects (BIKE1, P1) in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1), the motorcycle BIKE1 is in the travel direction of the vehicle CAR1, as shown in Fig. 18. Conversely, when none of the objects in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) are in the travel direction of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1), the information providing server 200d determines that the provision of secondary information is unnecessary.

[0081] The information providing server 200d of this embodiment, which operates as described above, can narrow down the information to be transmitted to the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) more than in the first to fourth embodiments. This makes it possible to more efficiently notify the driver and in-vehicle device of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) of the presence of a moving body in a blind spot.

[0082] In the above-described fifth embodiment, an example has been described in which the traveling direction is used as the moving state, but the speed of the first moving object may also be used as the moving state. The speed of the first moving object may be acquired from a speed sensor or by analyzing video. Furthermore, if the first moving object is a vehicle and the position of its shift lever is available, the speed may be estimated from the position information of the shift lever. For example, if the speed is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold (such as when stopped or moving slowly), it may be determined that the information does not need to be provided.

[0083] In addition, in the above description of the fifth embodiment, an example has been given in which the moving state of the first moving body is acquired and taken into consideration, but instead of or in addition to this, the moving states (traveling direction, speed, etc.) of other moving bodies (surrounding moving bodies) may be acquired to determine whether or not to provide secondary information. For example, if a moving body is present in the blind spot of the first moving body, its traveling direction and speed may be acquired, and whether or not to provide the secondary information may be determined accordingly.

[0084] [Sixth embodiment] Next, a sixth embodiment in which an information providing server determines whether or not to provide secondary information by taking into account the future movement of a moving object will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the sixth embodiment, various types of moving objects are possible, such as vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles. However, the following description will be given using an example in which the moving object is a vehicle. FIG. 21 is a diagram showing the configuration of an information providing server according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. The configuration differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2 in that a motion prediction unit 206 is added to a determination unit 201e of an information providing server 200e, and the determination unit 201e is configured to determine whether or not to create secondary information by using information acquired by the motion prediction unit 206. Since the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the following description will focus on the differences.

[0085] The movement prediction unit 206 of the information providing server 200e predicts the movement of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) based on the state of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) captured by the cameras 100A to 100D. A method for predicting the movement of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) after a predetermined time can be used, such as predicting the movement of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) after a predetermined time from the image of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) captured in the camera images obtained from the cameras 100A to 100D. The method for predicting the movement of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) is not limited to this, and various other methods can be used. For example, if the information providing server 200e can obtain instrument information of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) (such as steering angle, speedometer, and GPS information)) from the in-vehicle terminal of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1), the information providing server 200e may use this information to estimate the movement of the first moving object after a predetermined time. Furthermore, if the information providing server 200e can obtain the lighting status of traffic signals at the intersection and traffic signal control information, the information can be used to predict the movement of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1). For example, if the traffic light in the direction of travel of a first moving object (vehicle CAR1) is red, it can be predicted that the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) will not move for a while. Also, if information is obtained that the traffic light in the direction of travel of the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) will soon turn green, it can be predicted that the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) will start moving after a predetermined time. Also, if the first moving object is a vehicle and its travel route plan information (route information from a car navigation system) is available, the travel route plan information can be used to predict its movement. Also, if the lanes at an intersection have designated travel directions (e.g., a right-turn lane), it is possible to use lane information on the lane in which the first moving object (vehicle CAR1) is located as captured in a camera image to predict its movement.

[0086] The determination unit 201e determines whether or not it is necessary to provide secondary information by using the camera images from the cameras 100A to 100D as well as the future movement of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) obtained as described above. Specifically, the determination unit 201e determines whether or not it is necessary to provide secondary information based on whether or not there is an object in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) and whether or not the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) has been stopped for a while.

[0087] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 22 is a flowchart showing the operation of the information providing server 200e of the sixth embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the operation of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 5 is that step S501 of predicting the movement of the moving object is added after step S002.

[0088] For example, if a prediction result indicates that the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) will be stopped for a while, the information providing server 200e determines that it is not necessary to provide secondary information, regardless of whether there is an object in the blind spot of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1). Also, if a prediction result indicates that the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) is moving or will start moving soon, the information providing server 200e determines that it is necessary to provide secondary information.

[0089] The information providing server 200e of this embodiment, which operates as described above, can narrow down the information to be transmitted to the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) more than in the first to fifth embodiments. This makes it possible to more efficiently notify the driver and in-vehicle device of the first moving body (vehicle CAR1) of the presence of a moving body in a blind spot.

[0090] In addition, in the above-described sixth embodiment, an example has been given in which the moving state of the first moving body is acquired and taken into consideration, but instead of or in addition to this, the future movements of other moving bodies (surrounding moving bodies) may be predicted to create secondary information. For example, if there are two moving bodies in the blind spot of the first moving body and each of them has a different future movement, different importance may be set according to the predicted movements.

[0091] [Seventh embodiment] Next, a seventh embodiment in which the information providing server functions as a MEC (Mobile Edge Computing / Multi-access Edge Computing) server will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 23 is a diagram showing the configuration of the seventh embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment shown in Fig. 2 and subsequent figures is that the information providing server 200g is arranged at the edge of the network on the side of the cameras 100A to 100D, which transmits the primary information acquired from the cameras 100A to 100D to a predetermined control server 500.

[0092] Referring to FIG. 23, a configuration is shown in which cameras 100A to 100D are connected to a control server 500 via a base station 600, a mobile backhaul 700, a gateway (GW) 800, and the Internet 900.

[0093] In addition to functioning as a normal base station, the base station 600 transmits camera images captured by the cameras 100A to 100D to the control server 500 and the information providing server 200g. The control server 500 performs information processing required for control operations using the camera images captured by the cameras 100A to 100D.

[0094] The information providing server 200g performs the same operation as in the first embodiment using the camera images of the cameras 100A to 100D received from the base station 600, creates secondary information, and transmits the secondary information to the mobile object (first mobile object) via the base station 600 as necessary. Therefore, the information providing server 200g functions as a kind of mobile edge computing server (MEC server). The mobile backhaul 700, gateway (GW) 800, and Internet 900 are well known configurations to those skilled in the art, and therefore, description thereof will be omitted.

[0095] According to the configuration of this embodiment, it is possible to provide secondary information to a moving body (first moving body) by adding it to an existing traffic control system. Also, as described above, the information providing server 200g is arranged at the edge of the network that transmits primary information to a predetermined control server 500 on the side of the cameras 100A to 100D, which has the advantage of reducing processing delays compared to when the control server 500 provides equivalent secondary information.

[0096] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and further modifications, substitutions, and adjustments can be made without departing from the basic technical concept of the present invention. For example, the network configuration, element configuration, and data representation format shown in each drawing are examples to aid in understanding the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the configurations shown in these drawings. For example, in the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which two cameras were arranged so that their shooting directions intersect at right angles, but the number and arrangement of cameras are not limited to this.

[0097] Furthermore, the first to seventh embodiments described above can be configured by combining the features of two or more arbitrarily selected embodiments to form another embodiment. For example, by combining the second embodiment with the third embodiment, it is possible to obtain an information providing server that has a function of identifying the information destination of the first moving object and uses images from the camera of a nearby moving object as one of its sensors.

[0098] Furthermore, the procedures shown in the first to seventh embodiments can be realized by a program that causes a computer (9000 in FIG. 24) functioning as the information providing servers 200 to 200g to realize the functions of the information providing servers 200 to 200g. Such a computer is exemplified by a configuration including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 9010, a communication interface 9020, a memory 9030, and an auxiliary storage device 9040 in FIG. 24. That is, the CPU 9010 in FIG. 24 executes a data processing program and a data transmission program, and performs an update process for each calculation parameter stored in the auxiliary storage device 9040, etc.

[0099] In other words, each part (processing means, function) of the information providing servers 200 to 200g shown in each of the above-mentioned embodiments can be realized by a computer program that causes a processor installed in these devices to execute each of the above-mentioned processes using its hardware.

[0100] Finally, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be summarized. [First form] (See the information server from the first perspective above) [Second form] The determination means of the information providing server described above can be configured to determine whether or not to provide the secondary information based on at least one of whether a second moving body that is difficult to detect from the first moving body is present in the vicinity of the first moving body, the type of the second moving body, or the movement attributes of the second moving body, and to determine to provide the secondary information if it is determined that a second moving body that is difficult to detect from the first moving body is present in the vicinity of the first moving body. [Third Form] The determination means of the information providing server identifies an object present within the sensing range of the plurality of sensors from the primary information acquired from the plurality of sensors, extracts the second moving object present in the blind spot of the first moving object from the identified object and the position of the first moving object, and determines whether or not to provide the secondary information based on the extracted information about the second moving object; The information creating means may be configured to create, as the secondary information, information including information relating to the second moving body. [Fourth Form] The information providing server described above can be configured to determine identity between the multiple sensors for objects contained in primary information obtained from the multiple sensors, and to create the secondary information based on the results of the identity determination. [Fifth Form] The information providing server mentioned above is Furthermore, the configuration can include an address acquisition means that performs individual identification of the first mobile body using the primary information and acquires a communication address assigned to the first mobile body based on the results of the individual identification, and the transmission means transmits the secondary information to the communication address. [Sixth Form] The above-mentioned information providing server may be configured such that the determination means determines whether or not to provide the secondary information based on the location information contained in the message received from the first mobile body, and the transmission means transmits the secondary information to the communication address of the sender of the message. [7th form] The sensors connected to the information providing server may include at least one of a sensor installed on the road or a sensor provided on a mobile object traveling on the road. [8th form] The information providing server is further capable of acquiring a moving state of a moving object traveling on the road, The determination means may use the movement state to determine whether or not to provide the secondary information to the first moving object. [9th Form] The information providing server is further capable of acquiring a moving state of a moving object traveling on the road, The information creating means may use the movement state to determine the importance of each of the second moving bodies, and create the secondary information in consideration of the importance. [10th Form] In the above-mentioned information providing server, the above-mentioned movement state can be configured to use at least one of the lighting state of nearby traffic lights, travel route plan information of mobile bodies traveling on the road, travel lane information of mobile bodies traveling on the road, and speed information of mobile bodies traveling on the road. [11th Form] The determination means of the information providing server described above can be configured to predict the movement of a moving object traveling on the road, and use the result of the predicted movement to determine whether or not to provide the secondary information to the moving object traveling on the road. [12th Form] The determination means of the information providing server described above can be configured to predict the movement of moving objects traveling on the road, use the results of the predicted movement to determine the importance of each of the second moving objects, and create the secondary information taking into account the importance. [13th Form] The determination means of the information providing server described above can be configured to predict the movement of a mobile object traveling on the road based on at least one of the lighting status of nearby traffic signals, travel route plan information of the mobile object traveling on the road, travel lane information of the mobile object traveling on the road, and speed information of the mobile object traveling on the road. [14th Form] The information providing server mentioned above is The primary information acquired from each of the plurality of sensors may be transmitted to a predetermined control server by a server disposed at an edge of the network on the sensor side. [15th Form] (See the second point of view above for information provision methods) [16th Form] (See the program for the third perspective above) The fifteenth and sixteenth embodiments can be expanded into the second to fourteenth embodiments, just like the first embodiment.

[0101] The disclosures of the above-cited patent documents are incorporated herein by reference and may be used as the basis or part of the present invention, as necessary. Modifications and adjustments of the embodiments and examples are possible within the scope of the entire disclosure of the present invention (including the claims), and further based on its basic technical concept. Furthermore, various combinations and selections (including partial deletions) of the various disclosed elements (including each element of each claim, each element of each embodiment or example, each element of each drawing, etc.) are possible within the scope of the disclosure of the present invention. In other words, the present invention naturally embraces various modifications and alterations that would be possible by a person skilled in the art in accordance with the entire disclosure and technical concept, including the claims. In particular, with regard to the numerical ranges set forth herein, any numerical value or subrange within that range should be construed as specifically set forth, even if not otherwise specified. Furthermore, the disclosures of the above-cited documents, when used in part or in whole in combination with the disclosures herein as part of the disclosure of the present invention, in accordance with the spirit of the present invention, are also deemed to be included in the disclosures of this application. [Explanation of symbols]

[0102] 10 sensors 20, 200, 200a-200g Information server 21, 201, 201a~201e Judgment section 22, 202, 202c Information Creation Department 23, 203, 203a Transmitter 100-1, 100-2, 100A~100E cameras 204 Address Acquisition Unit 205 Moving status acquisition unit 206 Motion Estimation Unit 300 Mobile Management Server 400A~400D Traffic signal 500 Control Server 600 base stations 700 Mobile Backhaul 800 Gateway (GW) 900 Internet CAR1~CAR2 Vehicles BIKE1 Motorcycle P1 Pedestrian obj0~obj2 Objects / Statues 9000 computers 9010 CPU 9020 Communication Interface 9030 Memory 9040 Auxiliary storage device

Claims

1. a method for estimating a position of an object located in a blind spot based on primary information acquired from at least one sensor that senses a predetermined range of a road, the sensor including a camera mounted on a mobile object traveling on the road, and the primary information including an image acquired from the camera; An information providing server that uses the primary information to create secondary information that is information indicating the presence of an object located in the blind spot, and the secondary information is an image that displays the object located in the blind spot behind an object that is visible as a real image.

2. The secondary information is an image that displays an object located in the blind spot behind an object that is visible as a real image in an AR manner. The information providing server according to claim 1 .

3. using the primary information to determine the type of object present in a predetermined area of ​​the road; creating the secondary information using the primary information and the type; 3. The information providing server according to claim 1 or 2.

4. determining a level of importance to be assigned to an object present within a predetermined area of ​​the road using the primary information; creating the secondary information using the primary information and the importance; 4. The information providing server according to claim 1.

5. creating secondary information that preferentially displays an object that has a higher priority than other objects that exist within a predetermined range of the road; 5. The information providing server according to claim 1.

6. The object located in the blind spot is a person.

6. The information providing server according to claim 1.

7. The predetermined range of the road is an intersection of the road.

7. The information providing server according to claim 1.

8. A computer capable of acquiring information from at least one sensor that senses a predetermined range of a road, estimating a position of an object located in a blind spot based on primary information acquired from the at least one sensor, the sensor including a camera mounted on a mobile object traveling on the road, and the primary information including an image acquired from the camera; An information provision method, which uses the primary information to create secondary information that is information indicating the presence of an object located in the blind spot, and the secondary information is an image that displays the object located in the blind spot behind an object that is visible as a real image.

9. A computer capable of acquiring information from at least one sensor that senses a predetermined range of a road, executing a process of estimating the position of an object located in a blind spot based on primary information acquired from the at least one sensor, the sensor including a camera mounted on a mobile object traveling on the road, and the primary information including an image acquired from the camera; The computer, A program that uses the primary information to execute a process to create secondary information that is information indicating the presence of an object located in the blind spot, and the secondary information is an image that displays the object located in the blind spot behind an object that is visible as a real image.

10. A vehicle that is driven based on the secondary information created by the information providing server according to claim 1.

Images