Parking lot management device, parking lot management method, and parking lot control device using the same

Abstract

To provide a parking lot management device and parking lot management method capable of generating use schedule information of a charging facility of a parking lot, so as to enable a large amount of electric vehicles to efficiently use the charging facility arranged inside the parking lot as much as possible.SOLUTION: A parking lot management device includes a use schedule information updating section 423 for performing: identifying a leaving prediction time of a vehicle when the vehicle being a use object of a charging facility enters a parking lot; identifying the earliest use start possible time for starting the use of the charging facility at a present point of time; identifying the use start possible time as a facility use start time of the entering vehicle when a time elapsed from the identified use start possible time by a predetermined charging time is before the leaving prediction time of the entering vehicle; identifying a time elapsed from the identified facility use start time by the charging time as a facility use end time of the entering vehicle; and updating use schedule information based on the identified information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a parking lot management device, a parking lot management method, and a parking lot control device using the same. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART In recent years, electric vehicles powered by battery power have become widespread, and as a result, there is a need to develop charging facilities for charging the batteries of electric vehicles.

[0003] In view of this, by installing charging equipment in parking lots within apartment buildings or large facilities, it becomes possible to charge electric vehicles while they are parked in the parking lot. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2013 / 035481 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] As mentioned above, when installing charging equipment within a parking lot, there is a limit to the number of such facilities that can be installed, so multiple electric vehicles are charged in rotation in the order in which they enter the parking lot. However, this poses a problem in that electric vehicles that have been parked for a short time may not be able to charge before leaving the parking lot.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a parking lot management device, a parking lot management method, and a parking lot control device using the same that are capable of generating usage schedule information for charging equipment in a parking lot so that as many electric vehicles as possible can efficiently use the charging equipment installed in the parking lot. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The parking lot management device of the present invention, which achieves the above-mentioned object, is a parking lot management device that manages parking lots in which charging equipment is installed, and is characterized by comprising: a usage history information storage unit that stores usage history information of the parking lot for each vehicle; a usage schedule information storage unit that stores usage schedule information for the charging equipment, in which the equipment usage start time and equipment usage end time of the charging equipment are set for each reserved vehicle that has reserved use of the charging equipment; and a usage schedule information update unit that, when a vehicle to use the charging equipment enters the parking lot, identifies a predicted departure time for the entered vehicle based on the usage history information stored in the usage history information storage unit, identifies the earliest possible usage start time at which the charging equipment can be used based on the usage schedule information stored in the usage schedule information storage unit, and, if the time a predetermined charging time has elapsed from the identified possible usage start time is before the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle, identifies the possible usage start time as the equipment usage start time of the entered vehicle, and identifies the time the charging time has elapsed from the identified equipment usage start time as the equipment usage end time of the entered vehicle, and updates the usage schedule information based on the identified information.

[0008] In addition, a parking lot management method of the present invention is characterized in that a parking lot management device that manages a parking lot in which charging equipment is installed stores usage history information of the parking lot for each vehicle and usage schedule information of the charging equipment, in which the equipment usage start time and equipment usage end time of the charging equipment are set for each reserved vehicle that has reserved use of the charging equipment, and when a vehicle to use the charging equipment enters the parking lot, the device identifies a predicted departure time of the entered vehicle based on the stored usage history information, identifies the earliest possible usage start time at which use of the charging equipment can begin based on the stored usage schedule information, and if the time that a predetermined charging time has elapsed from the identified possible usage start time is before the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle, identifies the possible usage start time as the equipment usage start time of the entered vehicle, identifies the time that the charging time has elapsed from the identified equipment usage start time as the equipment usage end time of the entered vehicle, and updates the usage schedule information based on the identified information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a parking lot management device, a parking lot management method, and a parking lot control device using the same that are capable of generating usage schedule information for charging equipment in a parking lot so that as many electric vehicles as possible can efficiently use the charging equipment installed in the parking lot. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a parking lot management system using a parking lot management device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a configuration diagram of a mechanical parking lot managed by a parking lot management system according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 3] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of a usage schedule information update process executed by the parking lot management device during operation of the parking lot management system according to one embodiment. [Figure 4] (a) is an example of information stored in a setting information memory unit of a parking lot management device according to one embodiment, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the time from the entry time to the predicted exit time for each vehicle a to f that has entered a mechanical parking lot managed by the parking lot management device, and the usage time of the charging equipment, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the equipment usage time for each vehicle a to f for each charging equipment installed in the mechanical parking lot. [Figure 5] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the time from the entry time to the predicted exit time of each vehicle a to g that has entered a mechanical parking lot managed by a parking lot management device according to one embodiment, and the usage time of the charging equipment, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the equipment usage time of each vehicle a to g for each charging equipment installed in the mechanical parking lot. [Figure 6] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the time from the entry time to the predicted exit time of each vehicle a to h that has entered a mechanical parking lot managed by a parking lot management device according to one embodiment, and the usage time of the charging equipment, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the equipment usage time of each vehicle a to h for each charging equipment installed in the mechanical parking lot. [Figure 7] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the time from the entry time to the predicted exit time of each vehicle a to i that enters a mechanical parking lot managed by a parking lot management device in one embodiment, and the usage time of the charging equipment, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the equipment usage time of each vehicle a to i for each charging equipment installed in the mechanical parking lot. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] <Configuration of a parking lot management system using a parking lot management device according to an embodiment> The configuration of a parking lot management system using a parking lot management device according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figure 1. The parking lot management system 1 according to this embodiment comprises a mechanical parking lot 10, a user terminal 20, an operation panel 30, and a parking lot management device 40.

[0012] 2, mechanical parking lot 10 includes a plurality of parking shelves (twelve shelves P1 to P12 in this embodiment) installed in building B, power supply equipment 11 to 13 installed near some of the plurality of shelves (three shelves P1 to P3 in this embodiment), a plurality of pallets 14-1 to 14-12 for loading vehicles, which are installed corresponding to each of shelves P1 to P12, and chargers 15-1 to 15-12 installed on each of pallets 14-1 to 14-12. Chargers 15-1 to 15-12 each have power plugs 15a-1 to 15a-12 that are attached to power supply equipment 11 to 13 when charging is performed. Shelves P1 to P3, near which power supply equipment 11 to 13 are installed, are charging shelves capable of performing charging processing, and each charger 15-1 to 15-12 forms charging equipment X1 to X3 by attaching the corresponding power plug 15a-1 to 15a-12 to one of the power supply equipment 11 to 13.

[0013] Figure 1 shows a state in which vehicle a loaded on pallet 14-1 is being charged by charging equipment X1 on shelf P1, vehicle c loaded on pallet 14-2 is being charged by charging equipment X2 on shelf P2, vehicle b loaded on pallet 14-3 is being charged by charging equipment X3 on shelf P3, and vehicle d loaded on pallet 14-5 is waiting to be charged on shelf P5.

[0014] Hereinafter, when it is not specified which of the pallets 14-1 to 14-12 it is, it will be referred to as pallet 14. Similarly, when it is not specified which of the chargers 15-1 to 15-12 it is, it will be referred to as charger 15, when it is not specified which of the power plugs 15a-1 to 15a-12 it is, it will be referred to as power plug 15a, and when it is not specified which of the charging facilities X1 to X3 it is, it will be referred to as charging facility X.

[0015] The mechanical parking lot 10 also has a driving device 16, a parking lot control device 17, and a charging equipment management device 18. The driving device 16 moves the pallets 14-1 to 14-12 between an entrance / exit (not shown) of the building B and each of the parking spaces P1 to P12. The parking lot control device 17 controls the driving device 16. The charging equipment management device 18 controls the power supply state to each of the power feeding equipment 11 to 13, and also acquires charging status information of electric vehicles (hereinafter referred to as "vehicles") being charged by the charging equipment X1 to X3 and sends the information to the parking lot management device 40.

[0016] Returning to Figure 1, the user terminal 20 is composed of a mobile terminal or the like carried by a user who uses the mechanical parking lot 10, and has information input and display functions. The operation panel 30 is composed of a door phone or the like at the entrance / exit of the mechanical parking lot 10 or in each dwelling of the apartment building where the mechanical parking lot 10 is installed, and has information input and display functions.

[0017] The parking lot management device 40 includes a storage unit 41 and a CPU 42. The storage unit 41 includes a setting information storage unit 411, a usage history information storage unit 412, and a usage schedule information storage unit 413.

[0018] The setting information storage unit 411 stores setting information input by the user from the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30, including whether or not vehicle charging processing is required for each vehicle that uses the mechanical parking lot 10 and its charging facility X. The usage history information storage unit 412 stores usage history information of the mechanical parking lot 10 for each vehicle. The usage schedule information storage unit 413 stores usage schedule information of the charging facility X, in which the facility usage start time and facility usage end time of the charging facility X are set for a reserved vehicle that has been booked to use the charging facility X.

[0019] The CPU 42 includes a setting information acquisition unit 421 , a usage status information processing unit 422 , a usage schedule information update unit 423 , and an information notification unit 424 .

[0020] The setting information acquisition unit 421 acquires setting information, including whether or not the charging process for the vehicle in question is required, from the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30, and stores the information in the setting information storage unit 411. The usage status information processing unit 422 acquires usage status information for each vehicle in the mechanical parking lot 10, and stores the information in the usage history information storage unit 412.

[0021] When a vehicle that is to use charging facility X enters mechanical parking lot 10, usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies a predicted departure time of the entered vehicle based on the usage history information stored in usage history information storage unit 412. Furthermore, usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the earliest possible usage start time at which use of charging facility X can be started at this time based on the usage schedule information stored in usage schedule information storage unit 413, and determines whether the time when a preset charging time has elapsed from the identified possible usage start time is before the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle. If the time when a preset charging time has elapsed from the identified possible usage start time is before the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle, usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the possible usage start time as the facility usage start time of the entered vehicle, identifies the time when the charging time has elapsed from the identified facility usage start time as the facility usage end time of the entered vehicle, and updates the usage schedule information based on the identified information.

[0022] Furthermore, when a vehicle that is a target of using charging facility X enters mechanical parking lot 10, if the time that the charging time has elapsed from the identified available use start time passes the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle, usage schedule information update unit 423 stores the available use start time as the tentative facility use start time of the entered vehicle, and also stores the time that the charging time has elapsed from this tentative facility use start time as the tentative facility use end time.The usage schedule information update unit 423 then selects, from the reserved vehicles, a vehicle whose charging time will have elapsed by the corresponding predicted departure time even if use starts from the available use start time, and updates the usage schedule information by swapping the facility use start time and facility use end time of the selected reserved vehicle with the tentative facility use start time and tentative facility use end time of the entered vehicle.

[0023] <Operation of parking lot management system using parking lot management device according to one embodiment> Next, the operation of the parking lot management system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3 to Fig. 7. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of the usage schedule information update process executed by the parking lot management device 40 while the parking lot management system 1 is in operation.

[0024] In this embodiment, each user of the parking lot management device 40 inputs setting information, including whether or not the corresponding vehicle requires charging, in advance from the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30. Each user may input information about the desired charging time as setting information. Here, each user may input different setting information for each week, month, weekday / holiday, or day of the week. For example, each user may input setting information to charge only on specific days of the week. Each user may also input in advance the planned entry and exit times for days when the usage time of the mechanical parking lot 10 is different from normal times. In the parking lot management device 40, the setting information acquisition unit 421 acquires the information transmitted from the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 and stores it in the setting information storage unit 411.

[0025] In this embodiment, the setting information storage unit 411 stores information on the preset charging time of "4 hours" when each vehicle uses the charging facility once. This charging time information may be set to a different value for each vehicle, each day of the week, etc., according to instructions from the user, etc.

[0026] Furthermore, while the parking lot management system 1 is in operation, the usage status information processing unit 422 of the parking lot management device 40 acquires usage status information for each vehicle in the mechanical parking lot 10 at predetermined time intervals and stores it in the usage history information storage unit 412.

[0027] At the start of the usage schedule information update process according to this embodiment, information about reserved vehicles is not set in the usage schedule information stored in the usage schedule information storage unit 413 of the parking lot management device 40.

[0028] First, when vehicle a enters the mechanical parking lot 10 at time "18:00" ("YES" in S1), the usage schedule information update unit 423 detects this and determines whether vehicle a is a vehicle eligible to use the charging facility based on the information on whether charging processing is required stored in the setting information storage unit 411 (S2).

[0029] Here, the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that vehicle a is a vehicle that is eligible to use the charging facility ("YES" in S2), and specifies the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle a, "7:30 the next day," using a learning function that uses AI (artificial intelligence), based on usage history information of vehicle a for a predetermined period or more (e.g., two weeks) that is stored in the usage history information storage unit 412 (S3). By using usage history information of vehicle a for a predetermined period or more, the usage schedule information update unit 423 can specify the predicted departure time with high accuracy. The usage schedule information update unit 423 stores information on the predicted departure time specified by the learning function in the setting information storage unit 411.

[0030] Here, the usage schedule information update unit 423 may identify the current day of the week or the predicted departure time corresponding to the weekday / holiday classification based on the usage history information of vehicle a stored in the setting information storage unit 411.

[0031] Furthermore, when information on the scheduled departure time input by the user for the current entry of vehicle a is stored in the setting information storage unit 411, the usage schedule information update unit 423 may use the information as the predicted departure time. In this embodiment, the scheduled departure time of vehicle a input by the user, "7:00 the next day," is stored, and the usage schedule information update unit 423 uses the information as the predicted departure time in the process of determining whether charging facility X is available for use.

[0032] Next, the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the earliest available time at which use can begin at any one of the charging facilities X, based on the usage schedule information stored in the usage schedule information storage unit 413. Here, the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the current time of "18:00" as the available time because charging facilities X1 to X3 are currently vacant.

[0033] The usage schedule information update unit 423 then determines that vehicle a will be able to use charging facility X1 for four hours until the predicted departure time ("YES" in S4) because the time "22:00", which is the predetermined charging time of "4 hours" that has elapsed since the identified available usage start time "18:00", is before the predicted departure time for vehicle a, "7:00 the next day".

[0034] When the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that vehicle a is able to use charging facility X1, it identifies the available usage start time "18:00" as the facility usage start time for vehicle a, and identifies the time "22:00", which is the charging time "4 hours" after the identified facility usage start time "18:00", as the facility usage end time for vehicle a.

[0035] Then, the usage schedule information update unit 423 uses the identified information to update the usage schedule information in the usage schedule information storage unit 413. After updating the usage schedule information, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the corresponding user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle a has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S5).

[0036] Furthermore, for vehicle b that entered the parking lot at time "18:30", the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the predicted departure time "6:30" using the usage history information, and based on this, identifies the facility usage start time "18:30" and the facility usage end time "22:30" for charging facility X2, and updates the usage schedule information based on the relevant information. Then, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the relevant user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle b has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S1 to S5).

[0037] Furthermore, for vehicle c that entered the parking lot at time "18:40", the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the predicted departure time "6:30 the next day" using the usage history information, and based on this, identifies the facility usage start time of charging facility X3 "18:40" and the facility usage end time of facility usage "22:40", and updates the usage schedule information based on the relevant information. Then, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the relevant user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle c has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S1 to S5).

[0038] Furthermore, for vehicle d that entered the parking lot at time "18:50", the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the predicted departure time "9:00 the next day" stored by the user's operation, and based on this, identifies the facility usage start time of charging facility X1 "22:00" and the facility usage end time of facility usage "2:00 the next day", and updates the usage schedule information based on the relevant information. Then, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the relevant user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle d has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S1 to S5).

[0039] Furthermore, since the usage history information for vehicle e, which entered the facility at 19:00, does not cover a predetermined period, the usage schedule information update unit 423 does not use the usage history information and instead specifies "5:00 the next day," a preset time of 10 hours after the entry time of 19:00, as a tentative predicted departure time. Based on the specified tentative predicted departure time of 5:00 the next day, the usage schedule information update unit 423 then specifies the facility usage start time of charging facility X2, "22:30," and the facility usage end time, "2:30 the next day," and updates the usage schedule information based on the corresponding information. The usage schedule information update unit 423 may set the specified facility usage end time, "2:30 the next day," as the predicted departure time for vehicle e. The information notification unit 424 then notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the corresponding user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle e has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S1 to S5).

[0040] Furthermore, for vehicle f that entered the parking lot at time "22:40", the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the predicted departure time "6:30 the next day" using the usage history information, and based on this, identifies the facility usage start time of charging facility X3 "22:30" and the facility usage end time of facility usage "2:40 the next day", and updates the usage schedule information based on the relevant information. Then, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the relevant user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle f has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S1 to S5).

[0041] FIG. 4(a) is a table showing information stored in the setting information storage unit 411 about the entry times, charging times, scheduled departure times entered by users, and predicted departure times determined using usage history information for vehicles a, b, c, d, e, and f at this point in time. FIG. 4(b) shows the time from the entry time to the predicted departure time for each of vehicles a, b, c, d, e, and f with solid bands, and the facility usage time (the time from the facility usage start time to the facility usage end time) for each charging facility X with dotted bands. FIG. 4(c) is usage schedule information showing the facility usage time for each vehicle for charging facility X1, charging facility X2, charging facility X3 with bands.

[0042] Next, when vehicle g enters the parking lot at time "19:10," the usage schedule information update unit 423 uses the usage history information to identify the predicted departure time of vehicle g as "5:30 the next day." Here, according to the current usage schedule information as shown in FIG. 5(a), the earliest time at which charging facility X can currently be used is after "2:00 the next day" for charging facility X1.

[0043] The usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that vehicle g will not be able to use charging facility X1 for four hours by the predicted departure time ("NO" in S4) because the time "6:00 the next day", which is the predetermined charging time of "4 hours" after the identified available start time of usage "2:00 the next day", is later than vehicle g's predicted departure time "5:30 the next day".

[0044] In this case, the usage schedule information update unit 423 stores the available usage start time "2:00 the next day" as the tentative facility usage start time for vehicle g, and stores the time "6:00 the next day," which is the time when "four hours" of charging time have elapsed since this tentative facility usage start time "2:00 the next day," as the tentative facility usage end time (S6).The usage schedule information update unit 423 then determines whether there is any vehicle that has reserved but not yet started charging, and that will have a charging time of "four hours" elapse by the corresponding predicted departure time even if it starts using the tentative available usage start time "2:00 the next day" for vehicle g, which is currently the earliest vehicle that can use the charging facility (S7).In this case, the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that vehicle d is a relevant vehicle, and selects the facility usage start time "22:00" and the facility usage end time "2:00 the next day" for vehicle d ("YES" in S7).

[0045] Next, the usage schedule information update unit 423 swaps the facility usage time of the selected vehicle d (facility usage start time "22:00" to facility usage end time "2:00 the next day") with the provisional facility usage time of the entered vehicle (facility usage start time "2:00 the next day" to provisional facility usage end time "6:00 the next day") (S8), and updates the usage schedule information stored in the usage schedule information storage unit 413.

[0046] 5(b) shows usage schedule information in which the updated facility usage time of each vehicle is indicated by a band for each of charging facilities X1, X2, and X3. After updating the usage schedule information, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the corresponding user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle g has been confirmed, together with information about the confirmed facility usage time (S5).

[0047] Next, the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the predicted departure time of "7:30" for vehicle h that entered the parking lot at time "19:30" using the usage history information, and based on this, identifies the facility usage start time of "2:30 the next day" and the facility usage end time of "6:30 the next day" for charging facility X2, and updates the usage schedule information based on the relevant information. Then, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the relevant user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle h has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S1 to S5).

[0048] In Fig. 6(a), the solid bands indicate the time from the entry time to the departure time of each of vehicles a, b, c, d, e, f, g, and h, and the dotted bands indicate the facility usage time of each of charging facilities X. Fig. 6(b) is usage schedule information for each of charging facilities X1, X2, and X3, where the bands indicate the facility usage time of each vehicle.

[0049] Next, when vehicle i enters the parking lot at time "21:00," the usage schedule information update unit 423 identifies the predetermined departure time for vehicle i as "6:00 the next day" based on the information input by the user. Here, as shown in FIG. 7(a), according to the current usage schedule information, the earliest time at which the charging facility can currently be used is after "2:30 the next day" for charging facility X3.

[0050] The usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that vehicle i will not be able to use charging facility X3 for four hours by the predicted departure time ("NO" in S4) because the time "6:30 the next day", which is the predetermined charging time of "4 hours" after the identified available start time of usage "2:30 the next day", is later than vehicle i's predicted departure time "6:00 the next day".

[0051] In this case, the usage schedule information update unit 423 stores the available usage start time "2:30 the next day" as the tentative facility usage start time for vehicle i, and also stores the time "6:30 the next day," which is the time when "four hours" of charging time have elapsed since this tentative facility usage start time "2:30 the next day," as the tentative facility usage end time (S6).The usage schedule information update unit 423 then determines whether there is any vehicle that has reserved but not yet started charging, and that will have "four hours" of charging time elapse by the corresponding predicted departure time even if it starts using the charging facility from the tentative available usage start time "2:30 the next day" of vehicle i, which is currently the earliest time that the charging facility can be used (S7).In this case, the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that vehicle d is a relevant vehicle, and selects the facility usage start time "2:00 the next day" and the facility usage end time "6:00 the next day" for vehicle d ("YES" in S7).

[0052] Next, the usage schedule information update unit 423 swaps the facility usage time of the selected vehicle d (facility usage start time "2:00 the next day" to facility usage end time "6:00 the next day") with the provisional facility usage time of the entered vehicle (provisional facility usage start time "2:30 the next day" to provisional facility usage end time "6:30 the next day") (S8), and updates the usage schedule information stored in the usage schedule information storage unit 413.

[0053] 7(b) shows usage schedule information indicating the updated facility usage times for each vehicle for each of charging facilities X1, X2, and X3. After updating the usage schedule information, the information notification unit 424 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the corresponding user of information indicating that the charging reservation for vehicle i has been confirmed, together with information about the confirmed facility usage times (S5).

[0054] In step S7 described above, when the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that, among the vehicles that have made reservations but have not yet started charging, there is no vehicle whose charging time will have elapsed by the time of departure even if it starts using the charging facility from the earliest time that the charging facility becomes available at the moment ("NO" in S7), it determines whether the entered vehicle can use any of the charging facilities X for a predetermined time or more (e.g., 30 minutes or more) and a charging time less than "4 hours" (S9). Then, when it determines that the entered vehicle can use any of the charging facilities X for a predetermined time or more and a charging time less than "4 hours" ("YES" in S9), the usage schedule information update unit 423 outputs information to the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 inquiring whether or not to approve use during this available time.

[0055] When the user checks the information output to the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 and responds by performing an operation to approve use during the available time, information indicating the approval operation is sent to the parking lot management device 40. In the parking lot management device 40, when the usage schedule information update unit 423 acquires the information indicating the approval operation ("YES" in S10), it updates the usage schedule information by setting the facility usage time of the entered vehicle as the applicable available time. After updating the usage schedule information, the usage schedule information update unit 423 notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 of the applicable user of information indicating that the charging reservation for the applicable vehicle has been confirmed, together with information on the confirmed facility usage time (S5).

[0056] Furthermore, in step S10 described above, if the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that the entered vehicle cannot use the charging facility even if it has been charging for more than the predetermined time but less than the set charging time ("NO" in S10), it notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 that the vehicle cannot be reserved (S11). Similarly, in step S10, if the usage schedule information update unit 423 cannot obtain the user's approval information ("NO" in S10), it notifies the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 that the vehicle cannot be reserved (S11). The usage schedule information update unit 423 may retain the reservation request that it has determined cannot be reserved as information about a vehicle on a waiting list for cancellation.

[0057] The parking lot control device 17 of the mechanical parking lot 10 controls the drive device 16 to move the pallet 14 carrying the corresponding vehicle based on the usage schedule information and user operation information acquired as described above.

[0058] Specifically, when a user performs a pallet call operation to bring a vehicle into charging facility X, parking lot control device 17 controls drive device 16 to move the corresponding pallet 14 to the entrance and open the door. Once the entrance and exit doors are open, the user moves the vehicle onto pallet 14 and connects the vehicle to the charger 15 on the pallet 14 with a charging cable. After that, when the user performs an operation to close the entrance and exit doors, the parking lot control device 17 controls the entrance and exit doors to close, and the corresponding pallet 14 moves to the corresponding shelf, allowing the vehicle to enter the parking lot.

[0059] Furthermore, when the time arrives to start the charging process for a parked vehicle, parking lot control device 17 controls drive device 16 to move the corresponding pallet 14 to a shelf where the power supply equipment is located. When pallet 14 is stored on the shelf where the power supply equipment is located, power plug 15a of charger 15 is connected to the power supply equipment, and charging becomes possible. Then, in response to an instruction from charging equipment management device 18, power supply from power supply equipment 11 to charger 15 begins, and charging of the vehicle begins.

[0060] Furthermore, when the charging process for the vehicle is completed, the parking lot control device 17 controls the drive device 16 to move the vehicle to another shelf or to remove the vehicle from the parking lot.

[0061] When a vehicle to be charged is moved to a shelf with power supply equipment, or when the vehicle is moved from the shelf with power supply equipment after the charging process is completed, if a vehicle other than the vehicle to be charged needs to enter or leave the mechanical parking lot 10 or a preparation process for entering or leaving the mechanical parking lot 10 occurs, the processing may be given priority over the charging process. Also, a predetermined time (e.g., 10 minutes) before the facility use start time, the pallet 14 carrying the vehicle may be moved near the shelf to be charged, and preparation for the charging process may be performed. However, if the time required for the vehicle to be moved to the shelf (e.g., 5 minutes) from the facility use start time of the vehicle is reached due to the priority given to the operation of another vehicle, the preparation process is canceled.

[0062] The charging equipment management device 18 of the mechanical parking lot 10 controls the power supply state to each of the power feeding equipment 11-13, and also acquires charging status information of vehicles being charged by the charging equipment X1-X3 and transmits it to the parking lot management device 40.

[0063] In the parking lot management device 40, the usage status information processing unit 422 acquires the charging status information of each vehicle transmitted from the mechanical parking lot 10. When the usage status information processing unit 422 acquires a request for an inquiry about the charging status of any vehicle from the user terminal 20 or the operation panel 30 by a user operation, it provides the charging status information of the corresponding vehicle.

[0064] According to the above embodiment, usage schedule information for the charging equipment in the parking lot is generated so that as many electric vehicles as possible can efficiently use the charging equipment installed in the parking lot, and each vehicle can be caused to perform charging processing based on this information.

[0065] In the above-described embodiment, if a vehicle using charging facility X stops charging earlier than planned and leaves the facility before completing the charging process, or if the vehicle is not charged for the predetermined charging time, the usage status information processing unit 422 of the parking lot management device 40 may store information about the vehicle in the usage history information storage unit 412.

[0066] By storing information about vehicles that were not charged for the set charging time, when the usage schedule information update unit 423 determines that a vehicle that was not able to charge for the set time the last time it used the charging facility has entered the mechanical parking lot 10, it can generate usage schedule information so that the vehicle can use charging facility X on a priority basis.

[0067] In the above-described embodiment, each user may input information indicating the degree of necessity for charging for each day of the week on which the user desires to charge, and this information may be stored in the setting information storage unit 411. By storing this information, the usage schedule information update unit 423 can generate usage schedule information such that vehicles with a high degree of necessity can use charging facility X preferentially.

[0068] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the embodiments can be modified or varied based on the above disclosure. All components of the above embodiments and all features described in the claims may be individually extracted and combined, unless they contradict each other. [Explanation of symbols]

[0069] 1. Parking lot management system 10 Mechanical Parking Lot 11~13 Power supply equipment 14, 14-1 to 14-12 Palettes 15, 15-1~15-12 Charger 15a, 15a-1 to 15a-12 power plug 16 Drive unit 17 Parking lot control device 18 Charging equipment management device 20 User terminal 30 Control panel 40 Parking lot management device 41 Storage section 42 CPU 411 Setting information storage unit 412 Usage history information storage unit 413 Usage schedule information storage unit 421 Setting information acquisition unit 422 Usage Information Processing Unit 423 Usage Schedule Information Update Unit 424 Information Notification Department

Claims

1. A parking lot management device that manages a parking lot in which charging equipment is installed, a usage history information storage unit that stores usage history information of the parking lot for each vehicle; a usage schedule information storage unit that stores usage schedule information of the charging facility in which a facility usage start time and a facility usage end time of the charging facility are set for each reserved vehicle that has been reserved to use the charging facility; and a usage schedule information update unit that, when a vehicle that is to use the charging facility enters the parking lot, identifies a predicted departure time for the entered vehicle based on the usage history information stored in the usage history information storage unit, identifies the earliest possible usage start time at which the charging facility can be used based on the usage schedule information stored in the usage schedule information storage unit, and, if the time that a predetermined charging time has elapsed from the identified possible usage start time is before the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle, identifies the possible usage start time as the facility usage start time of the entered vehicle, and identifies the time that the charging time has elapsed from the identified facility usage start time as the facility usage end time of the entered vehicle, and updates the usage schedule information based on the identified information.

2. 2. The parking lot management device according to claim 1, wherein when a vehicle to use the charging equipment enters the parking lot, if the time that the charging time has elapsed from the time that usage can start as the time when usage can start as the tentative facility usage start time for the entered vehicle and the time that the charging time has elapsed from the tentative facility usage start time as the tentative facility usage end time, selects from the reserved vehicles a vehicle whose charging time will have elapsed by the corresponding predicted departure time even if usage starts from the time that usage can start, and swaps the facility usage start time and facility usage end time of the selected reserved vehicle with the tentative facility usage start time and tentative facility usage end time of the entered vehicle to update the usage schedule information.

3. 3. The parking lot management device according to claim 1, wherein the usage schedule information update unit generates the usage schedule information using information on charging times set for each vehicle.

4. A parking lot management device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the usage schedule information update unit determines the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle based on usage history information of the entered vehicle for a predetermined period or more stored in the usage history information storage unit.

5. A parking lot management device as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the usage schedule information update unit identifies a predicted departure time corresponding to the current day of the entered vehicle based on the usage history information stored in the usage history information storage unit, and updates the usage schedule information based on the identified predicted departure time information.

6. the usage history information storage unit further stores information about vehicles for which charging processing was not performed for a set charging time when the charging facility was last used; The parking lot management device of any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that when the usage schedule information update unit determines, based on the information stored in the usage history information storage unit, that a vehicle that was unable to charge for a set period of time the last time the charging equipment was used has entered the parking lot, it generates the usage schedule information so that the vehicle can use the charging equipment on a priority basis.

7. a setting information storage unit that stores setting information including at least one of whether or not a charging process is necessary, the degree of necessity, and a charging time for each vehicle, which is set in advance for each day type; A parking lot management device as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the usage schedule information update unit updates the usage schedule information based on the setting information stored in the setting information storage unit.

8. A parking lot management device as described in any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the usage schedule information update unit determines the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle using a learning function using artificial intelligence.

9. The parking lot management device of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein when a vehicle to use the charging equipment enters the parking lot, if the time that is the charging time from the time when use can begin exceeds the predicted departure time of the entered vehicle, the usage schedule information update unit outputs information inquiring whether to approve use of the charging equipment for a time that is less than the charging time when the charging equipment can be used, and when information indicating that use is approved is obtained in response to this, the usage schedule information update unit updates the usage schedule information to target use for a time that is less than the charging time.

10. A parking lot management device that manages parking lots where charging equipment is installed storing usage history information of the parking lot for each vehicle and usage schedule information of the charging facility, in which a facility usage start time and a facility usage end time of the charging facility are set for each reserved vehicle that has reserved use of the charging facility; a parking lot management method for managing a parking lot, characterized in that, when a vehicle to use the charging facility enters the parking lot, a predicted departure time for the entered vehicle is determined based on stored usage history information, a time when the vehicle can start using the charging facility at the earliest possible time based on stored usage schedule information, and if the time a predetermined charging time has elapsed since the determined departure time for the entered vehicle is before the predicted departure time for the entered vehicle, the time when the charging time has elapsed since the determined facility usage start time is the time when the vehicle will stop using the facility, and the usage schedule information is updated based on the determined information.

11. A parking lot control device communicably connected to the parking lot management device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the parking lot is a mechanical parking lot having a plurality of parking shelves; A parking lot control device characterized by comprising a control unit that prioritizes the process of moving other vehicles in and out of the parking lot over the process of moving the vehicle to be charged for charging, and that, a predetermined time before the facility usage start time stored in the usage schedule information storage unit, moves a pallet carrying a vehicle corresponding to this facility usage start time to a shelf closer to the charging facility.

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