Vehicle allocation management device and vehicle allocation management method

Abstract

To select a travel route suitable for a way of spending time in a vehicle of a user who requests vehicle allocation.SOLUTION: The present invention provides a vehicle allocation management device comprising: a travel environment characteristic information database which stores travel environment characteristic information regarding road travel; a front-end processing unit which acquires a vehicle allocation request including a user behavior orientation concerning a way of spending time in a vehicle from a user; and a vehicle allocation planning unit which plans allocation of a vehicle to be allocated to the user in response to the vehicle allocation request. The vehicle allocation planning unit determines a travel route and selects the vehicle on the basis of the vehicle allocation request acquired via the front-end processing unit, prepares the vehicle allocation plan of the vehicle according to the travel route, and performs a vehicle allocation instruction to the vehicle on the basis of the vehicle allocation plan. The vehicle allocation planning unit determines the travel route adaptable to the user behavior orientation shown by the vehicle allocation request on the basis of the travel environment characteristic information stored in the travel environment characteristic information database.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle allocation management device and a vehicle allocation management method. [Background technology]

[0002] Fleet management is known as a method for managing vehicle allocation to improve user convenience while increasing vehicle utilization rates. For example, in response to a user's request for vehicle allocation, several available vehicle driving routes are searched for, and a driving route that can efficiently reach the destination is selected from the search results.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 below discloses a technology for increasing convenience for users of mobile bodies by acquiring attribute information of the user and, based on the acquired attribute information, determining the installation location for installing a virtual boarding point, which is a virtual boarding point where the user can board a mobile body (vehicle). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-095942 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the technology disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 simply determines a boarding point for a user to board a moving vehicle based on the acquired user attribute information, and is unable to select a driving route that takes into account the user's behavioral orientation regarding how the user spends time inside the moving vehicle.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a vehicle dispatch management device and a vehicle dispatch management method that select a driving route that is adapted to the user's behavioral preferences regarding how the user will spend time in the dispatched vehicle, and that enables the user to be transported to their destination. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention, which aims to solve the above problems, comprises the following invention-specifying matters and technical features.

[0008] According to one aspect, the present invention provides a vehicle dispatch management device that manages vehicle dispatch based on a vehicle dispatch request. The vehicle dispatch management device includes a driving environment characteristic information database that stores driving environment characteristic information related to road driving, a front-end processing unit that performs front-end processing between a terminal device and the device to receive the vehicle dispatch request from a user, the vehicle dispatch request including the user's behavioral orientation regarding how the user spends time in the vehicle, and a vehicle dispatch planner that creates a vehicle dispatch plan for vehicles to be dispatched to the user in response to the vehicle dispatch request. The vehicle dispatch planner includes a vehicle dispatch request acquisition unit that acquires the vehicle dispatch request via the front-end processing unit, a driving route determination unit that determines a driving route based on the vehicle dispatch request, a vehicle selection unit that selects a vehicle to be dispatched to the user based on the vehicle dispatch request, a vehicle dispatch plan creation unit that creates a vehicle dispatch plan for the vehicles according to the driving route, and a vehicle dispatch instruction unit that issues vehicle dispatch instructions to the vehicles based on the vehicle dispatch plan. The driving route determination unit determines the driving route that is compatible with the user's behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request, based on the driving environment characteristic information stored in the driving environment characteristic information database.

[0009] The present invention also provides a vehicle allocation management method using a vehicle allocation management device that manages vehicle allocation in response to a vehicle allocation request, a computer program for executing the method, and a recording medium on which the method is non-temporarily recorded. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, a driving route is selected that is adapted to the user's behavioral preferences regarding how the user wants to spend time in the car, allowing the user to spend meaningful time in the car while traveling by vehicle.

[0011] Other technical features, objects, and operational effects or advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following embodiments described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The effects described in this specification are merely examples and are not intended to be limiting, and other effects may also be present. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle dispatch management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration model of a vehicle dispatch control device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of the driving environment characteristic information database in the vehicle dispatch control device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing details of the vehicle dispatch planning unit in the vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining scores of travel route candidates with respect to user behavioral preferences calculated in a vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a vehicle dispatch management process performed by the vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining an example of a driving route determination process performed by the vehicle dispatch control device according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiments described below are merely examples, and are not intended to exclude various modifications or applications of techniques not explicitly described below. The present invention can be implemented in various modifications (e.g., combinations of the embodiments) without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Furthermore, in the following description of the drawings, identical or similar parts are denoted by identical or similar reference numerals. The drawings are schematic and do not necessarily correspond to actual dimensions, ratios, etc. Parts in the drawings may have different dimensional relationships or ratios.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a vehicle dispatch management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch management system 1 includes a vehicle dispatch management device 10, a terminal device 20, and a vehicle V, which are communicatively connected to each other via a communication network N. The vehicle dispatch management system 1 may also be connected via the communication network N to a road traffic information management system 30, which provides various traffic information in real time. The vehicle dispatch management system 1 provides, for example, a vehicle dispatch service using multiple vehicles V for a certain area. The vehicle dispatch service may be on-demand or reservation-based. An "on-demand vehicle dispatch service" is a service type in which a specific vehicle V is allocated (dispatched) to a user in immediate response to a vehicle dispatch request from the user. In other words, in an on-demand vehicle dispatch service, there is no user-specified vehicle dispatch reservation date and time. Furthermore, "immediate response" is a concept that not only means dispatching a vehicle immediately in response to a user's vehicle dispatch request, but also includes a certain degree of time that the user would normally accept.

[0015] The vehicle dispatch management device 10 is a computing device that comprehensively manages a vehicle dispatch service using multiple vehicles V in a target area of ​​the vehicle dispatch service (hereinafter referred to as the "service target area"). The service target area may be divided into several areas (sub-areas). The vehicle dispatch management device 10, for example, implements a vehicle dispatch management server program and executes the vehicle dispatch management server program under the control of a processor, thereby realizing the vehicle dispatch service. The vehicle dispatch management server program of the present disclosure includes a subprogram or module for selecting a driving route adapted to a user's behavioral orientation regarding how the user spends time in the vehicle and driving to a destination.

[0016] The vehicle dispatch management device 10 includes various databases 12 that accumulate and manage data necessary to realize such a vehicle dispatch service. The databases 12 may include, for example, a user information database 12a, a road map information database 12b, a vehicle information database 12c, a vehicle dispatch plan database 12d, and a driving environment characteristic information database 12e (see FIG. 2). The databases 12 may be configured as part of the vehicle dispatch management device 10, or all or part of the databases 12 may be configured separately from the vehicle dispatch management device 10.

[0017] In summary, in response to a vehicle allocation request from a user who wishes to be allocated a vehicle V to travel to a destination, the vehicle allocation management device 10 selects and determines a travel route that is suited to the user's behavioral orientation regarding how the user will spend time in the vehicle, extracts and selects a vehicle V to be allocated to the user, creates a vehicle allocation plan for the vehicle V according to the selected travel route, and proposes the created vehicle allocation plan to the user. The vehicle allocation management device 10 confirms the proposed vehicle allocation plan with the user's consent, and issues a vehicle allocation instruction to the vehicle V according to the confirmed vehicle allocation plan.

[0018] The vehicle dispatch plan includes a driving route that defines a location where the vehicle V is waiting (a starting waiting location), passing through several points (boarding and disembarking points) along the way where the user gets on and off, to a final waiting location (which is not necessarily the same as the initial waiting location). If the vehicle V is waiting, the vehicle dispatch plan is newly created based on the received vehicle dispatch request, and if the vehicle V is in operation, the vehicle dispatch plan can be updated based on the vehicle dispatch request.

[0019] The vehicle V is a vehicle registered in the vehicle information database 12c that is provided for use by users in the vehicle dispatch service. The vehicle V is an autonomous vehicle (unmanned vehicle) driven by an automatic driving system, and the so-called level of automatic driving does not matter. Furthermore, the vehicle type of the vehicle V (for example, a sedan, a minivan, an SUV, etc.) does not matter.

[0020] The vehicle V is equipped with a control device CTL and a user interface UI that control the vehicle V itself or its onboard equipment in accordance with dispatch instructions from the vehicle dispatch management device 10. Although not shown, the control device CTL is configured to include a processor, memory, etc., and realizes various functions by executing control programs. Furthermore, under the control of the control device CTL, the vehicle V acquires driving management information necessary for autonomous driving from various cameras and sensors and transmits this to the vehicle dispatch management device 10. The vehicle dispatch management device 10 monitors and controls the driving of the vehicle V in accordance with the driving management information transmitted from the vehicle V. The driving management information includes, for example, video and audio information about the surroundings of the vehicle V obtained from cameras / microphones, spatial recognition information (point cloud information) obtained from spatial recognition sensors such as LiDAR and RADAR, geographical position information of the vehicle V obtained from a GPS system, and status information obtained from status monitoring sensors that monitor the status of the vehicle V, each device, and each part.

[0021] The terminal device 20 is, for example, a computing device through which a user wishing to ride makes a vehicle dispatch request by operating a user interface. The terminal device 20 may be, for example, a smartphone, a pad computer, a laptop personal computer, a desktop computer, or the like, but is not limited to these. The terminal device 20 implements, for example, a vehicle dispatch management client program (a so-called vehicle dispatch app). The terminal device 20 executes the vehicle dispatch app under the control of a processor, thereby enabling a user to use the vehicle dispatch service of the vehicle dispatch management device 10. For example, a user may make a vehicle dispatch request from a vehicle dispatch request screen (not shown) on the user interface of the terminal device 20 and, in response, accept a vehicle dispatch plan created by the vehicle dispatch management device 10, thereby reserving a ride on a vehicle V. In the present disclosure, when making a vehicle dispatch request, the user inputs not only the boarding and disembarking locations but also a user behavioral orientation regarding how to spend time in the vehicle. For example, the user behavioral orientation may include reading (reviewing documents), sleeping (resting), appreciating the scenery or view from the vehicle window, holding a meeting, etc. For example, when reading or sleeping, quietness and ride comfort in the car are important, while when viewing a scenic view, scenic spots and other scenic features are important. Furthermore, when holding a meeting (not limited to meetings between passengers), in addition to quietness and ride comfort (degree of shaking), comfort and stability of the wireless communication environment are also important. A user may input multiple user behavioral preferences, such as dedicating half the journey to the destination to holding a meeting and the other half to admiring the scenery.

[0022] The road traffic information management system 30 is an information and communication system that provides road traffic information in real time. For example, the road traffic information management system 30 collects road traffic data from various monitoring equipment installed on roads and from a control device CTL installed in the vehicle V, and manages road traffic information by processing and editing the data in an integrated manner. The monitoring equipment includes, but is not limited to, live cameras and vehicle sensors. The edited road traffic information may include, for example, information on road closures and detour routes, and the travel time between points via a specific route. The road traffic information management system 30 appropriately provides road traffic information to the vehicle dispatch management device 10 and the vehicle V. In addition to weather information, traffic information, and road regulation information, the road traffic information management system 30 may provide the vehicle dispatch management device 10 with video information from live cameras, audio information from sound-collecting microphones, and sensor information from vehicle sensors obtained from the monitoring equipment as driving management information. This enables the vehicle dispatch management device 10 to appropriately monitor and guide the vehicle V according to the driving management information.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration model of a vehicle dispatch management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 may be configured as a functional configuration model including functional components such as a front-end processing unit 110, a vehicle dispatch planning unit 120, and a vehicle communication unit 130. Furthermore, as described above, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 includes various databases 12. This functional model is realized when the vehicle dispatch management device 10 executes a vehicle dispatch management server program under the control of a processor, thereby cooperating with various hardware resources. The functional configuration model shown here is an example, and all or part of the functions of a certain functional component may be realized by other functional components. For ease of explanation, the figure also illustrates a user terminal device 20 and a control device CTL in the vehicle V.

[0024] The user information database 12a stores information about users who use the ride-hailing service (hereinafter referred to as "user information"). The user information includes, for example, a user ID and password, personal attributes (gender, age, address, etc.), and information about service usage status. The user information is registered in the user information database 12a under the control of the ride-hailing management device 10, for example, when the user inputs predetermined information when the ride-hailing app is first launched. The user information may also include user behavioral orientations related to how the user spends time in the car. This allows the user to omit inputting user behavioral orientations when requesting a ride.

[0025] The road map information database 12b stores road map information for the target area of ​​the vehicle dispatch service. The road map information includes map data on addresses, place names, road networks (road links and nodes), various facilities (e.g., police stations, etc.), etc. The road map information also includes information necessary for searching for a driving route, such as road information and feature information. The road information includes road attribute information such as road type (e.g., community road, main road, etc.), road width, pedestrian / vehicle divider, median, and lane.

[0026] The vehicle information database 12c stores information (vehicle information) about the vehicle V available for use by the user. As shown in Fig. 3, the vehicle information includes, for example, a vehicle ID, vehicle attributes (vehicle registration number, vehicle model, maximum number of occupants / maximum load capacity, level of autonomous driving, etc.), vehicle characteristics (quietness, suspension, window size, seating arrangement, etc.), other specifications (total length, total width, vehicle height, weight, etc.), a current vehicle dispatch plan, a current location, and a current status (service status, remaining battery capacity (travel distance), number of occupants, etc.). The vehicle information, such as location information, acquired from the vehicle V via the communication control unit 140 can be updated as needed.

[0027] The vehicle allocation plan database 12d stores a vehicle allocation plan for each vehicle V created by the vehicle allocation plan unit 120 based on a vehicle allocation request. As described above, the vehicle allocation plan includes a driving route from a waiting location serving as a starting point to a waiting location serving as a terminal point via several boarding and disembarking points (departure and arrival points), an estimated arrival time at each intermediate point, etc. Furthermore, the vehicle allocation plan for a cooperating vehicle includes a driving route from a waiting location serving as a starting point to a specified stopping point, etc.

[0028] The driving environment characteristic information database 12e stores information on environmental characteristics obtained by the vehicle V traveling on roads along the driving route (hereinafter referred to as "driving environment characteristic information"). The driving environment characteristic information includes, for example, items related to non-vibration (the less vibration, the better) and quietness due to the pavement condition of the road, ride comfort (e.g., three-dimensional acceleration due to roll, pitch, and yaw) due to starting and stopping, cornering, and ups and downs, communication environment due to the radio wave conditions of wireless base stations, and scenery visible from the vehicle window. Each item of the driving environment characteristic information is associated with a road link and / or node of the road network, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, and is assigned an evaluation value indicated on a scale of 0 to 100. For example, a road link corresponding to a road with good pavement condition and few sharp curves is assigned a relatively high evaluation value for the non-vibration and ride comfort items, and a road link corresponding to a road with good scenery is assigned a relatively high evaluation value for the scenery item. The driving environment characteristic information is generated, for example, based on information collected during the travel of the vehicle V assigned to the user. The driving environment characteristics information is stored in the driving environment characteristics information database 12e.

[0029] The front-end processing unit 110 performs various processes with the user's terminal device 20. As an example, the front-end processing unit 110 refers to the user information database 12a and performs login authentication processing in accordance with a login request from a vehicle dispatching app on the user's terminal device 20. The front-end processing unit 110 also accepts a vehicle dispatch request from the vehicle dispatching app on the user's terminal device 20, passes it to the vehicle dispatch planning unit 120, and interacts with the terminal device 20 to receive the user's approval or disapproval of the vehicle dispatch plan created by the vehicle dispatch planning unit 120 in response to the request.

[0030] The vehicle allocation planning unit 120 selects and determines a driving route based on the vehicle allocation request delivered from the front-end processing unit 110, extracts candidate vehicles V from among the vehicles V that can operate in the target area, and creates and / or updates a vehicle allocation plan for the vehicle allocation plan. The vehicle allocation planning unit 120 proposes the created or updated vehicle allocation plan to the user via the front-end processing unit 110. When the proposed vehicle allocation plan is approved by the user, the vehicle allocation planning unit 120 finalizes the approved vehicle allocation plan, stores the finalized vehicle allocation plan in the vehicle allocation plan database 12d, and issues a dispatch instruction to the vehicle V of the vehicle allocation plan. The vehicle allocation planning unit 120 also collects and acquires driving environment characteristic information transmitted from the vehicle V and stores it in the driving environment characteristic information database 12e.

[0031] The vehicle communication unit 130 exchanges various types of information with the vehicle V via the communication network N. For example, the vehicle communication unit 130 acquires vehicle information including the location information of the vehicle V and passes it on to the vehicle allocation planning unit 120, and also transmits driving instructions to the vehicle V in accordance with the allocation plan by the vehicle allocation planning unit 120. The vehicle communication unit 130 also acquires driving environment characteristic information from the vehicle V and passes it on to the vehicle allocation planning unit 120.

[0032] 4 is a block diagram showing details of a vehicle dispatch planning unit in a vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch planning unit 120 includes, for example, a vehicle dispatch request acquisition unit 121, a vehicle information acquisition unit 122, a driving route determination unit 123, a vehicle selection unit 124, a vehicle dispatch plan creation unit 125, a vehicle dispatch instruction unit 126, and a driving environment characteristic information acquisition unit 127.

[0033] The vehicle allocation request acquisition unit 121 acquires or accepts a vehicle allocation request from a user via the front-end processing unit 110. The time when the vehicle allocation request acquisition unit 1201 acquires a vehicle allocation request is the start time for counting various limit times for creating a vehicle allocation plan (for example, a boarding limit time and a disembarking limit time, which are the limit times for getting a user on or off).

[0034] The vehicle information acquisition unit 122 acquires vehicle information from each vehicle V via the vehicle communication unit 130 at a predetermined timing. The vehicle information may include vehicle position information and remaining energy amount of the vehicle V. For example, the vehicle information acquisition unit 122 may acquire vehicle information transmitted from each vehicle V periodically, or may request a specific vehicle V to transmit vehicle information periodically or irregularly, and acquire vehicle information transmitted from the specific vehicle V in response to the request. The vehicle information acquisition unit 122 stores the acquired vehicle information of each vehicle V in the vehicle information database 12c. The vehicle position information may be used when extracting a vehicle V to be dispatched to a user in terms of its positional relationship with the user's boarding location (departure location).

[0035] The travel route determination unit 123 determines an optimal travel route for the user based on the vehicle dispatch request. As described below, the travel route determination unit 123 of the present disclosure determines a travel route that is adapted to the user's behavioral orientation specified by the user. If there is no travel route that is adapted to the user's behavioral orientation, the travel route determination unit 123 determines, for example, a travel route that minimizes travel costs. The minimum travel cost refers to, for example, the shortest travel distance or the shortest travel time from the boarding location to the disembarking location.

[0036] That is, the travel route determination unit 123 identifies a travel route candidate that is adapted to the user's behavioral preferences based on the travel environment characteristic information stored in the travel environment characteristic information database 12e from among several travel route candidates extracted based on the vehicle dispatch request, and determines this as the travel route. From this perspective, here, an example is shown in which the travel route determination unit 123 is configured to include a travel route candidate extraction unit 1231 and a score determination unit 1232. This makes it possible to determine a travel route that is adapted to the user's behavioral preferences related to how the user spends time in the car.

[0037] For example, the candidate driving route extraction unit 1231 performs a route search using a route search engine (not shown) referring to the road map information database 12b based on the boarding location and disembarking location (destination) indicated in the dispatch request, and extracts candidate driving routes from the boarding location to the disembarking location.

[0038] The score determination unit 1232 refers to the driving environment characteristic information database 12e, and calculates a score for each driving route candidate with respect to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request based on the driving environment characteristic information associated with the extracted driving route candidate, and determines whether the calculated score exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

[0039] Specifically, the score determination unit 1232 first selects a predetermined score calculation formula corresponding to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request, and calculates a score by applying the driving environment information for the driving route candidate to the selected predetermined score calculation formula. The score calculation formula is expressed as follows, for example, using each item of the driving environment characteristic information, namely, non-vibration, quietness, ride comfort (degree of shaking), communication environment, and scenery. Score = Non-vibration x a + Quietness x b + Ride comfort x c + Communication environment x d + Landscape x e Here, a to e are weighting parameters set for each user behavioral orientation. For example, in a score calculation formula corresponding to holding a conference, the weighting parameter d relating to the communication environment is set to have a higher weight, and in a score calculation formula corresponding to scenery, the weighting parameter e relating to scenery is set to have a higher weight. This makes it possible to calculate the score for a travel route candidate taking into account the user behavioral orientation.

[0040] In this case, the score determination unit 1232 may calculate the score of the travel route candidate by, for example, multiplying each item of the travel environment characteristic information associated with each road link in the travel route candidate by a weight parameter according to the score calculation formula described above, and then aggregating the calculated road link scores and calculating the average value thereof. In this way, the travel environment characteristic information is applied to each road link, so that the score for the travel route candidate can be calculated more appropriately.

[0041] After calculating the score for the travel route candidate as described above, the score determination unit 1232 determines whether the score exceeds a predetermined threshold value, and identifies the travel route candidate whose score exceeds the predetermined threshold value.

[0042] 5 is a diagram illustrating the scores of a candidate travel route for a user's behavioral preference calculated in a vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the diagram illustrates the road link scores, the average value thereof, and a predetermined threshold value calculated for a candidate travel route using a score calculation formula corresponding to a certain user's behavioral preference (e.g., holding a meeting). After calculating the score of the candidate travel route, the score determination unit 1232 determines whether the score exceeds the predetermined threshold value.

[0043] The score determination unit 1232 may also divide the candidate travel route into predetermined sections and calculate section scores based on the road link scores of each road link in the predetermined sections. For example, if a vehicle dispatch request includes two user behavioral preferences, the score determination unit 1232 divides the extracted candidate travel route into two predetermined sections and calculates section scores for each divided section using a score calculation formula corresponding to each user behavioral preference. This makes it possible to extract candidate travel routes consisting of sections that can accommodate each user behavioral preference, even if the user specifies different user behavioral preferences. Note that the predetermined sections do not need to be midpoints, and as long as they are consecutive sections that make up the candidate travel route, the lengths of each section may be different. In this case, there are various combinations of sections, and the score determination unit 1232 may calculate section scores for each of these various sections in the candidate travel route.

[0044] After calculating the section score for each section based on the multiple user behavioral preferences, the score determination unit 1232 determines whether the section score for each section exceeds a predetermined threshold, and identifies candidate driving routes consisting of sections whose section scores exceed the predetermined threshold. For example, if two user behavioral preferences, "holding a conference" and "enjoying scenery," are specified in a vehicle dispatch request, the score determination unit 1232 calculates section scores for each of two sections (referred to as the first section and the second section here) based on a score calculation formula for holding a conference and a score calculation formula for enjoying scenery, respectively, and identifies candidate driving routes consisting of the first section whose value exceeds the predetermined threshold for holding a conference and the second section whose value exceeds the predetermined threshold for enjoying scenery (or vice versa). This makes it possible to extract candidate driving routes consisting of sections that can accommodate each user behavioral preference, even if the user specifies different user behavioral preferences.

[0045] The travel route determination unit 123 determines, as the travel route, a travel route candidate whose score is determined to exceed a predetermined threshold value. This eliminates travel route candidates that are not suited to the user's behavioral preferences, and allows for the extraction of only travel route candidates that are suited to the user's behavioral preferences. Furthermore, when there are multiple travel route candidates whose calculated scores are determined to exceed a predetermined threshold value, the travel route determination unit 123 may, for example, determine, as the travel route, the travel route candidate with the highest score. On the other hand, when there is no travel route candidate whose calculated score is determined to exceed the predetermined threshold value, the travel route determination unit 123 determines, as the travel route, the travel route candidate with the lowest travel cost. The travel cost may be calculated based on, for example, the travel distance or travel time from the boarding location to the disembarking location. This makes it possible to avoid a situation in which no travel route (vehicle allocation plan) can be proposed to the user when there are no travel route candidates that are suited to the user's behavioral preferences.

[0046] In addition, when the driving route determination unit 123 cannot acquire driving environment characteristic information associated with a driving route candidate, it may determine a driving route from the extracted driving route candidates according to a predetermined travel cost. For example, when driving environment characteristic information is not associated with some or all of the road links in the driving route candidate, the score determination unit 1232 outputs a score of any value (e.g., 0) equal to or less than a predetermined threshold. Alternatively, the score determination unit 1232 may calculate a relatively low score by using insufficient driving environment characteristic information items and determine whether the score is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold. This makes it possible to avoid a situation in which no driving route (vehicle allocation plan) can be proposed to the user even when driving environment characteristic information cannot be acquired.

[0047] Furthermore, if the driving route determination unit 123 cannot calculate the score for the driving route candidate within a predetermined time from the time of receiving the vehicle dispatch request, the driving route determination unit 123 may determine a driving route from the extracted driving route candidate according to a predetermined travel cost. For example, if the score determination unit 1232 takes a long time to calculate the score and times out, the driving route determination unit 123 may determine a driving route according to the predetermined travel cost. This makes it possible to avoid, for example, in the case of an on-demand vehicle dispatch service, a situation in which a user's vehicle dispatch request cannot be responded to in real time and an opportunity to provide the vehicle dispatch service is missed.

[0048] The vehicle selection unit 124 extracts and selects a specific vehicle suited to the travel route from among multiple vehicles V. For example, the vehicle selection unit 124 first refers to the vehicle information database 12c, etc., and extracts vehicles V near the boarding location indicated in the dispatch request and based on the location information indicated by the vehicle information. Next, the vehicle selection unit 124 selects a vehicle V suited to the travel route from among the extracted vehicles V, taking into consideration constraints such as various maximum allowable time limits. The vehicle selection unit 124 may also select a vehicle V taking into consideration vehicle characteristics suited to user behavior preferences. For example, a vehicle V with a high vehicle height and large windows may be selected for a user who desires a scenic view. Alternatively, a quiet vehicle V may be selected for a user who desires to read.

[0049] The vehicle allocation plan creation unit 125 creates a vehicle allocation plan for the selected vehicle V based on the travel route. As described above, the vehicle allocation plan includes a travel route that defines a route from the location where the vehicle V is waiting (the waiting location that is the starting point), via several points (boarding and disembarking points) along the way where the user gets on and off, to the waiting location that is the end point (which is not necessarily the same as the initial waiting location). If the vehicle V is waiting, the vehicle allocation plan creation unit 125 creates a new vehicle allocation plan based on the vehicle allocation request, and if the vehicle V is in operation, it updates the vehicle allocation plan for the vehicle V stored in the vehicle allocation plan database 12d. The created vehicle allocation plan is transmitted to the user's terminal device 20, proposed to the user, and confirmed according to the user's acceptance of the vehicle allocation plan.

[0050] The vehicle dispatch instruction unit 126 issues a dispatch instruction or a movement instruction to the corresponding vehicle V in accordance with the confirmed vehicle dispatch plan. The control device CTL of the vehicle V that has received the dispatch instruction or the movement instruction determines, for example, a detailed actual driving route in accordance with the driving route in the vehicle dispatch plan, and performs control so that the vehicle V drives autonomously along the actual driving route. As an example, under normal circumstances, the vehicle dispatch instruction unit 126 issues a dispatch instruction to the vehicle V in accordance with the user's dispatch request so that the vehicle V picks up the user at the boarding location and travels to the destination, i.e., the disembarking location.

[0051] The driving environment characteristic information acquisition unit 127 acquires driving environment characteristic information transmitted in real time from vehicles V traveling on roads according to a vehicle dispatch plan via the vehicle communication unit 130, and stores this information in the driving environment characteristic information database 12e while associating it with road links. Alternatively, the driving environment characteristic information acquisition unit 127 may acquire all of the driving environment characteristic information transmitted from vehicles V that have completed a vehicle dispatch service, and store this information in the driving environment characteristic information database 12e. The driving environment characteristic information acquisition unit 127 may update the driving environment characteristic information using a moving average using past information on the driving environment characteristic information. This makes it possible to acquire the latest driving environment characteristic information from vehicles V that are actually traveling.

[0052] 6 and 7 are flowcharts for explaining an example of a vehicle dispatch management process by a vehicle dispatch management device according to one embodiment of the present invention. This process is realized by the vehicle dispatch management device executing a vehicle dispatch management server program under the control of a processor, in cooperation with various hardware resources.

[0053] That is, as shown in Fig. 6, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 waits until a new vehicle dispatch request is received from a user (S601). Meanwhile, for example, a user wishing to ride operates a vehicle dispatch app on the user interface of the terminal device 20 to input a vehicle dispatch request. In this example, the vehicle dispatch request includes a user behavior orientation input by the user. When a vehicle dispatch request is received from the user (Yes in S601), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 refers to the road map information database 12b based on the vehicle dispatch request, and determines the boarding and disembarking locations (departure and arrival locations) (S602).

[0054] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 extracts one or more candidate driving routes based on the determined starting and ending points by referring to the road map information database 12b (S603). That is, each candidate driving route has the same starting and ending points, but different road links along the way. As described above, the road links of the candidate driving routes are associated with driving environment characteristic information.

[0055] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 selects a vehicle V according to the departure and arrival points and candidate driving routes (S604). In this case, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 may extract several vehicles V as candidate vehicles and select the most suitable one from the extracted candidate vehicles as the vehicle V. For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 selects a vehicle V that is waiting or moving closest to the boarding point. In addition, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 may select a vehicle V taking into consideration the cruising distance of the vehicle V in relation to the disembarking point and the schedule until the next dispatch.

[0056] The vehicle dispatch management device 10 then determines, from the extracted travel route candidates, a travel route candidate that is suited to the user's behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request as the travel route (S605). The travel route determination process will be described in detail later.

[0057] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 creates or updates a vehicle dispatch plan for the selected vehicle V based on the determined driving route (S606). For example, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 calculates the scheduled boarding time at the boarding location and the arrival time at the disembarking location taking into account traffic conditions and the like according to the current location of the vehicle V, and creates or updates the vehicle dispatch plan based on these.

[0058] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 proposes the contents of the created / updated vehicle dispatch plan to the user (S607). That is, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 transmits the contents of the created / updated vehicle dispatch plan to the terminal device 20, and in response, the terminal device 20 displays the contents on the user interface and prompts the user to accept or reject the proposed vehicle dispatch plan.

[0059] The vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines whether or not consent has been received from the user for the proposed vehicle dispatch plan (S608). If consent has been received from the user for the proposed vehicle dispatch plan (Yes in S608), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 confirms the current vehicle dispatch plan (S609). The vehicle dispatch management device 10 stores the confirmed vehicle dispatch plan in the vehicle dispatch plan database 12d. Subsequently, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 transmits a notification of confirmation of the vehicle dispatch reservation to the terminal device 20, and transmits a dispatch instruction based on the vehicle dispatch plan to the vehicle V (S610).

[0060] On the other hand, if the vehicle dispatch management device 10 receives a non-acceptance (rejection) from the user in response to the proposed vehicle dispatch plan (No in S608), it cancels the current vehicle dispatch plan based on the user's vehicle dispatch request (S611). In this case, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 returns the temporarily held vehicle dispatch plan that was used to recreate the vehicle dispatch plan to the original held vehicle dispatch plan. If the user desires a different vehicle dispatch service, the user will make a new vehicle dispatch request.

[0061] Next, the calculation process of the travel route determination process by the vehicle dispatch management device 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 7. That is, Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing the details of the travel route determination process (S605) shown in Fig. 6.

[0062] As shown in the figure, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 selects one of the extracted travel route candidates (S701). Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 refers to the travel environment characteristic information database 12e to acquire travel environment characteristic information associated with the selected travel route candidate (S702), and then selects a score calculation formula corresponding to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request (S703).

[0063] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 calculates a road link score for each road link by applying the evaluation values ​​of the items of driving environment information associated with each road link in the candidate driving route to the selected predetermined score calculation formula (S704). Subsequently, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 calculates the score of the candidate driving route by aggregating the calculated road link scores and calculating the average value (S705).

[0064] Next, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines whether scores have been calculated for all of the extracted driving route candidates (S706), and if there are still driving route candidates for which scores have not been calculated (No in S706), returns to step S701 and repeats the above processing until scores have been calculated for all driving route candidates.

[0065] On the other hand, when the vehicle dispatch management device 10 determines that scores have been calculated for all of the extracted travel route candidates (Yes in S706), the vehicle dispatch management device 10 identifies a travel route candidate whose calculated score exceeds a predetermined threshold value and determines this as the travel route for the vehicle dispatch request (S707).If there are multiple travel route candidates whose calculated scores exceed the predetermined threshold value, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 may determine the travel route candidate with the maximum score as the travel route.

[0066] In this way, the vehicle dispatch management device 10 calculates a score for each candidate driving route based on the driving environment information using a score calculation formula corresponding to the user's behavioral orientation, and determines the candidate driving route that is adapted to the user's behavioral orientation based on the calculated score as the driving route for the vehicle dispatch request.

[0067] As described above, according to this embodiment, when a user requests a vehicle dispatch, the user specifies a user behavioral orientation regarding how the user wants to spend time in the vehicle, and a travel route that is suited to the specified user behavioral orientation is selected, allowing the user to spend meaningful time in the vehicle while traveling by vehicle.

[0068] In particular, according to this embodiment, a road link score for each road link in a travel route candidate is calculated using a score calculation formula corresponding to the user's behavioral orientation, and a score is calculated based on these road link scores, so that the score for the travel route candidate can be calculated more appropriately.Furthermore, according to this embodiment, even if a user specifies different user behavioral orientations, the travel route candidate is divided into several sections and a section score is calculated for each divided section, so that a travel route candidate consisting of sections whose section scores exceed a predetermined threshold can be determined as the travel route.

[0069] The above-described embodiments are merely examples for explaining the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention to these embodiments. The present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0070] For example, in the methods disclosed herein, steps, operations, or functions may be performed in parallel or in a different order unless the results are inconsistent. The steps, operations, and functions described are provided merely as examples, and some of the steps, operations, and functions may be omitted or combined into one, or other steps, operations, or functions may be added, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0071] Furthermore, although various embodiments are disclosed in this specification, specific features (technical matters) in one embodiment can be added to or substituted for specific features in other embodiments, with appropriate modifications, and such forms are also included in the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] 1...Vehicle dispatch management system 10...Vehicle dispatch management device 110...Front-end processing unit 120... Vehicle Allocation Planning Department 121... Vehicle dispatch request acquisition unit 122...Vehicle information acquisition unit 123...Route determination unit 1231...Route candidate extraction unit 1232…Score Judging Section 124...Vehicle selection section 125... Vehicle Allocation Planning Department 126...Dispatch Instruction Department 127...Driving environment characteristic information acquisition unit 130...Vehicle communication unit 12...Database 12a...User information database 12b...Road map information database 12c...Vehicle information database 12d... Vehicle dispatch plan database 12e...Driving environment characteristics information database 20...Terminal device 30...Road traffic information management system N: Communication network V...Vehicle CTL: Control unit

Claims

1. A vehicle allocation management device that manages vehicle allocation based on a vehicle allocation request, a driving environment characteristic information database storing driving environment characteristic information relating to road driving; a front-end processing unit that performs front-end processing between the terminal device and the vehicle dispatch request receiving unit to acquire the vehicle dispatch request from the user, the front-end processing unit including the user's behavioral orientation regarding how the user spends time in the vehicle; a vehicle allocation planning unit that, in response to the vehicle allocation request, makes a vehicle allocation plan for vehicles to be allocated to the user; The vehicle dispatch planning unit a vehicle dispatch request acquisition unit that acquires the vehicle dispatch request via the front-end processing unit; a travel route determination unit that determines a travel route based on the vehicle dispatch request; a vehicle selection unit that selects a vehicle to be allocated to the user based on the vehicle allocation request; a vehicle allocation plan creation unit that creates the vehicle allocation plan according to the travel route; a vehicle allocation instruction unit that issues vehicle allocation instructions to the vehicles based on the vehicle allocation plan, the travel route determination unit determines the travel route adapted to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request based on the travel environment characteristic information stored in the travel environment characteristic information database. Vehicle dispatch management device.

2. The travel route determination unit extracts at least one travel route candidate based on the boarding location and the disembarking location indicated in the vehicle dispatch request, determining the travel route from the extracted travel route candidates based on the travel environment characteristic information; The vehicle dispatch control device according to claim 1 .

3. the travel route determination unit calculates a score for each of the travel route candidates with respect to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request, based on the travel environment characteristic information associated with the travel route candidates; determining the travel route candidate having the calculated score exceeding a predetermined threshold as the travel route; Claim 2 The vehicle dispatch management device described above.

4. The travel route determination unit selecting a predetermined score calculation formula corresponding to the user's behavioral orientation; calculating the score by applying the driving environment characteristic information to the selected predetermined score calculation formula; The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 3.

5. The travel route determination unit applying the driving environment characteristic information associated with each road link in the driving route candidate to the predetermined score calculation formula to calculate a road link score for each road link; calculating the score of the travel route candidate by aggregating the calculated road link scores; The vehicle dispatch control device according to claim 4.

6. the travel route determination unit, when the vehicle dispatch request includes a plurality of the user behavior inclinations, determines the travel route candidate that is adapted to the plurality of user behavior inclinations as the travel route; The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 5.

7. the travel route determination unit calculates section scores for predetermined sections consisting of at least one or more of the road links in each of the travel route candidates based on the road link scores calculated based on the predetermined score calculation formulas corresponding to each of the plurality of user behavior orientations, and determines, as the travel route, the travel route candidate for which all of the calculated section scores exceed the predetermined threshold value. The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 6.

8. the travel route determination unit determines the travel route in accordance with a predetermined travel cost when there is no travel route candidate having the calculated score exceeding the predetermined threshold value. The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 3.

9. the travel route determination unit determines the travel route in accordance with a predetermined travel cost when the travel environment characteristic information associated with the travel route candidate cannot be acquired. The vehicle dispatch control device according to claim 2.

10. the travel route determination unit determines the travel route in accordance with a predetermined travel cost when the score cannot be calculated within a predetermined time from the time when the vehicle dispatch request is received. The vehicle allocation management device according to claim 3.

11. the vehicle allocation planning unit further includes a driving environment characteristic information acquisition unit that acquires the driving environment characteristic information during road driving from the vehicle; the traveling environment characteristic information acquisition unit stores the acquired traveling environment characteristic information in the traveling environment characteristic information database; The vehicle dispatch control device according to claim 1 .

12. A vehicle allocation management method for managing vehicle allocation based on a vehicle allocation request, comprising: storing driving environment characteristic information relating to road driving in a driving environment characteristic information database; Acquiring a vehicle dispatch request including a user behavioral orientation related to how the user spends time in the vehicle; In response to the vehicle dispatch request, performing a vehicle dispatch plan for a vehicle to be dispatched to the user; The vehicle dispatch plan is determining a travel route based on the vehicle dispatch request; selecting a vehicle to be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request; creating the vehicle allocation plan according to the determined travel route; issuing a dispatch instruction to the vehicles based on the dispatch plan; determining the driving route includes determining the driving route adapted to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request, based on the driving environment characteristic information stored in the driving environment characteristic information database. Vehicle allocation management method.

13. A computer program causing a computing device to execute a vehicle dispatch management method for managing vehicle dispatch based on a vehicle dispatch request, the computer program comprising: The vehicle allocation management method includes: storing driving environment characteristic information relating to road driving in a driving environment characteristic information database; Acquiring a vehicle dispatch request including a user behavioral orientation related to how the user spends time in the vehicle; In response to the vehicle dispatch request, performing a vehicle dispatch plan for a vehicle to be dispatched to the user; The vehicle dispatch plan is determining a travel route based on the vehicle dispatch request; selecting a vehicle to be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request; creating the vehicle allocation plan according to the determined travel route; issuing a dispatch instruction to the vehicles based on the dispatch plan; determining the driving route includes determining the driving route adapted to the user behavioral orientation indicated by the vehicle dispatch request, based on the driving environment characteristic information stored in the driving environment characteristic information database. Computer program.

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