Vehicle dispatch support device, vehicle dispatch support method, and vehicle dispatch system

Abstract

To provide a vehicle allocation support device, a vehicle allocation support method, and a vehicle allocation system capable of setting a more appropriate destination even when it is difficult to specify the destination from the utterance content of a user as compared with the case where the configuration of the present invention is not provided.SOLUTION: A vehicle allocation support device includes a destination specifying unit 14 that specifies a destination to which a user wants to move from utterance content of the user, in which the destination specifying unit 14 repeats asking by voice until the destination of the user is specified on the basis of information on a facility when the destination uttered by the user is not included in management information including information on the facility that is a candidate of the destination.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle dispatch support device, a vehicle dispatch support method, and a vehicle dispatch system. In particular, the present invention relates to a vehicle dispatch support device, a vehicle dispatch support method, and a vehicle dispatch system that can be suitably used when identifying a destination to which a user wants to go based on the content of the user's utterance. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, in ride-sharing, taxi, and other services, it is necessary to know the user's location in order to dispatch a vehicle. In addition, with the recent development of autonomous driving technology, in order for the vehicle to travel to the user's desired destination by autonomous driving, it is necessary to know the destination at the time of dispatching the vehicle.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a wireless communication system using a taxi AVM system in which a management center communicates wirelessly with at least one mobile station via a wireless base station. The mobile station has at least a communication means for communicating voice or data with the management center, a location confirmation means for confirming the location of the mobile station, a display means for displaying the location of the mobile station confirmed by the location confirmation means, a conversion means for converting the location information acquired by the location confirmation means into a digital value, and a printing means for printing the location information converted by the conversion means and a predetermined format for a receipt. The management center acquires the digitalized location information held by the mobile station from the mobile station and stores it. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-319379 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] It is known that when users want to make a reservation for a vehicle, they often do so by telephone. In this case, the process has generally been handled by staff at a call center or the like. However, since hiring staff for call centers and the like leads to a decline in profitability, automated voice responses are required. However, the automated voice response system cannot properly recognize voice unless the user speaks using words registered in the database, and may not be able to identify the user's desired destination. Also, there are times when a destination that is not registered in the database is requested. In such cases, the user's desired destination cannot be set. The present invention aims to provide a vehicle dispatch support device, a vehicle dispatch support method, and a vehicle dispatch system that can set a more appropriate destination even when it is difficult to identify the destination from the user's speech content, compared to when the configuration of the present invention is not provided. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides a vehicle dispatch support device that includes a destination specification unit that specifies a destination to which a user wants to go based on the content of the user's utterance, and when the destination specified by the user is not included in management information that includes information on facilities that are candidate destinations, the destination specification unit asks the user for a response by voice until the user's destination is specified based on information about the facilities. In this case, it is possible to provide a vehicle dispatch support device that can set a more appropriate destination even when it is difficult to specify a destination from the content of the user's utterance, compared to a case that does not include the configuration of the present invention.

[0007] Here, for example, the destination identification unit calculates the probability that a facility included in the management information is a destination based on the user attributes, and checks whether a facility with a high probability is a destination. In this case, the destination can be identified more quickly. Furthermore, for example, the destination identification unit checks whether a facility that the user frequently visits, which is included in the user attributes, is the destination. In this case, the destination identification unit can suggest a facility that is estimated to have a high probability as the user's destination as the destination. Furthermore, for example, the destination identification unit checks whether a facility that can be inferred from at least one of the user's address, age, and gender, which are included in the user attributes, is the destination. In this case, the facility corresponding to the user attributes can be suggested as the destination. Furthermore, for example, the destination identification unit may ask the user about the purpose of the trip and confirm whether the destination is a destination based on the purpose set for the facility included in the management information. In this case, it is possible to suggest a facility that corresponds to the user's purpose as a destination. For example, the destination specification unit narrows down the facilities that are likely to be able to achieve the purpose based on the purpose set for the facility, and checks whether the facilities with high priority set for each facility are the destination. In this case, it is possible to suggest a place with a high probability as a destination to achieve the user's purpose. Furthermore, for example, the destination specifying unit may suggest nearby facilities that match the keywords spoken by the user and check whether they are the destination. In this case, the nearby facilities can be set as the destination. Furthermore, for example, the destination specifying unit may suggest travel to a nearby facility, in which case the user may be picked up and dropped off at the nearby facility. Furthermore, for example, the destination specifying unit may suggest a nearby facility as an alternative destination, in which case the user can be transported to the nearby facility in accordance with the user's request.

[0008] Furthermore, the present invention provides a vehicle allocation support method in which, when the destination uttered by the user is not included in management information containing information on facilities that are candidate destinations, the method identifies the destination to which the user wants to go from the content of the user's utterance by asking the user to repeat the destination by voice until the user's destination is identified based on information on the facilities. In this case, it is possible to provide a vehicle allocation support method that can set a more appropriate destination even when it is difficult to identify the destination from the content of the user's utterance, compared to a case in which the configuration of the present invention is not provided.

[0009] Furthermore, the present invention provides a vehicle dispatch system that includes a user location identification unit that identifies the user's location, a destination identification unit that identifies the user's desired destination from the user's speech, and a vehicle dispatch unit that dispatches vehicles based on the user's location and the user's destination, and when the destination uttered by the user is not included in management information that includes information on facilities that are candidate destinations, the destination identification unit asks the user to repeat the destination by voice until the user's destination is identified based on information on the facilities. In this case, a vehicle dispatch system that can set a more appropriate destination can be provided, even when it is difficult to identify the destination from the user's speech, compared to a system that does not include the configuration of the present invention.

[0010] Here, for example, the user location identification unit determines the location of the dedicated terminal registered in advance in the management information as the user's location, which makes it easier to identify the user's location. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle dispatch support device, a vehicle dispatch support method, and a vehicle dispatch system that can set a more appropriate destination even when it is difficult to identify the destination from the user's speech content, compared to when the configuration of the present invention is not provided. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a vehicle dispatch system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the data structure of a management information DB. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a management server. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method in which a destination specifying unit determines a destination when the destination uttered by the user is not included in the management information DB. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the vehicle dispatch system. [Figure 6]FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the vehicle dispatch system when the destination is not registered in S507 of FIG. 5. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the vehicle allocation system when there are no vacant seats in S512 of FIG. 5. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. <Overall explanation of dispatch system 1> FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a vehicle dispatch system 1 according to this embodiment. The illustrated vehicle dispatch system 1 provides a ride-sharing service and includes a management server 10, a terminal device 20, and a vehicle 30.

[0014] The management server 10 is an example of a vehicle dispatch support device that supports vehicle dispatch arrangements, and manages the entire vehicle dispatch system 1. The vehicle dispatch system 1 accepts reservations for vehicle dispatch from users, and dispatches the vehicle 30 to the user's location in accordance with the reservation. The management server 10 is a computer device and includes a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that serves as a calculation means, a main memory that serves as a storage means, and storage. The processor executes various software such as an OS (operating system) and application programs (application software). The main memory is a storage area that stores various software and data used for executing the software. The storage is a storage area that stores input data for the various software and output data from the various software.

[0015] The terminal device 20 is a device with which a user makes a reservation for vehicle dispatch via voice communication with the management server 10. The terminal device 20 is, for example, a dedicated terminal for providing a vehicle dispatch service. The terminal device 20 is, for example, a fixed terminal or an interactive robot installed in the user's home or a facility that the user frequently visits. Examples of facilities include commercial facilities such as supermarkets, entertainment facilities, public facilities, and hospitals. However, the terminal device 20 is not limited to a dedicated terminal as long as it is capable of voice communication, and may also be a mobile phone, smartphone, tablet terminal, or the like owned by the user.

[0016] The vehicle 30 is an automobile or the like managed by the vehicle dispatch system 1. The location of the vehicle 30 is known by the management server 10 using information such as a GPS (Global Positioning System) installed in the vehicle 30, and when a user makes a reservation for a vehicle, a vehicle 30 suitable for dispatch is selected based on the user's location and the location of the vehicle 30. Then, in response to an instruction from the management server 10, the selected vehicle 30 picks up or drops off the user. That is, the vehicle 30 travels to the boarding location registered in the terminal device 20 used by the user to make the reservation, and after picking up the user, delivers the user to the desired destination (destination). The vehicle 30, for example, travels autonomously. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the vehicle may be a manned vehicle or the like.

[0017] In this embodiment, when reserving a ride, the user uses the terminal device 20 to communicate with the management server 10 through voice interaction. That is, the management server 10 converses with the user through the terminal device 20 and identifies the user's location and destination. The voice interaction between the management server 10 and the user can be performed using known technologies such as voice recognition, intent understanding, and voice synthesis. At this time, the management server 10 identifies the user's location and destination using a management information DB (database) 40. If the terminal device 20 is a fixed voice terminal, the user's location is pre-registered in the management information DB 40. If the terminal device 20 is a mobile terminal, the location determined by a GPS or other device provided in the mobile terminal is sent to the management server 10 and registered in the management information DB 40. The management information DB 40 also contains information on local facilities that offer ride-sharing services. The content of the user's utterance is then matched with the facility information contained in the management information DB 40 to identify the destination, and a reservation for the vehicle 30 is set.

[0018] In this case, if the user speaks using words registered in the management information DB 40, the management server 10 can easily identify the user's destination (destination) through voice recognition. However, as described above, the user does not necessarily speak the words registered in the management information DB 40. That is, since the user often does not know the official name or address of the destination (destination), the user may speak words different from those registered in the management information DB 40. Furthermore, some users may speak using pronouns such as "there" or "here." Furthermore, as described above, there are cases where a destination not registered in the management information DB 40 is requested. In these cases, it becomes difficult to set an appropriate destination desired by the user. In this embodiment, the management information DB 40 and management server 10 are configured as follows to solve this problem.

[0019] <Explanation of management information DB40> FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the data structure of the management information DB 40. As shown in FIG. The management information DB 40 is an example of management information that includes information on facilities that are candidate destinations. The illustrated management information DB 40 consists of three tables: a facility information management table 41 that records facility information, a user information management table 42 that records user information, and a device information management table 43 that records information on terminal devices 20.

[0020] The facility information management table 41 is a table that compiles information on facilities that are candidate destinations. The facility information management table 41 includes information such as the official name, abbreviation, classification, address, telephone number, nearby facilities, and purpose. The official name and abbreviation are the official name and abbreviation of the facility. The classification is the result of classifying the facility according to a predetermined classification method. The address and telephone number are the location and telephone number of the facility. The nearby facilities are information about other facilities located nearby. The nearby facilities can be predetermined as other facilities within a predetermined distance, for example. The purpose is information about the purpose for which the user will use the facility. The purpose can be predetermined based on the classification of the facility, the facilities within the facility, etc.

[0021] The user information management table 42 is a table that compiles information about users who use the vehicle dispatch system 1. The user information management table 42 can also be said to be a table that compiles user attributes. The user information management table 42 includes information such as a user ID, a device ID, a date of birth, an address, a gender, and frequently visited places. Of these, the device ID corresponds to the ID of the terminal device 20, which may be a fixed terminal installed in the user's home or facility, or a mobile terminal. In addition, frequently visited places can be extracted from the history of destinations set by the user when using the vehicle dispatch system 1 in the past.

[0022] The device information management table 43 is a table that compiles information about the terminal device 20. The device information management table 43 includes information such as a device ID, installation location address, latitude, and longitude. Of these, the device ID and installation location address are the same as the device ID and address in the user information management table 42. The latitude and longitude are the latitude and longitude of the installation location address. If the terminal device 20 is not a fixed voice terminal but a mobile phone or the like, the installation location address is left blank, for example, and the latitude and longitude are sequentially set based on GPS information sent from the mobile phone or the like.

[0023] 2 includes facilities that are candidate destinations for the user, the purpose for which the user will use the facility, and information on nearby facilities. The information in the management information DB 40 is updated as appropriate. The facility information management table 41 is updated, for example, when map information is updated or the purpose for each facility changes. The user information management table 42 is updated, for example, when the user finishes using the facility. The device information management table 43 is updated, for example, when a terminal device 20 is registered / changed.

[0024] <Detailed explanation of management server 10> Next, the management server 10 will be described in detail. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the management server 10. As shown in FIG. The management server 10 includes a transmission / reception unit 11 , a voice dialogue unit 12 , a user position identification unit 13 , a destination identification unit 14 , a vehicle dispatch unit 15 , and a storage unit 16 .

[0025] The transmitter / receiver 11 transmits and receives voice and data to and from the terminal device 20 and the vehicle 30 . The voice dialogue unit 12 recognizes the user's voice and understands the user's intent. The voice dialogue unit 12 converts the voice spoken by the user using the terminal device 20 into text data through voice recognition. The voice dialogue unit 12 also converts information to be sent from the management server 10 to the user into voice and transmits it to the terminal device 20 via the transmission / reception unit 11. Then, if the voice dialogue unit 12 understands the user's intent and the user utters an utterance that does not identify a destination, the voice dialogue unit 12 prompts the user to make an utterance to identify the destination. The user position identification unit 13 identifies the user's position. The user position identification unit 13 determines the location of the dedicated terminal pre-registered in the management information DB 40 as the user's position. Specifically, the user position identification unit 13 determines the installation location address and the latitude and longitude of the installation location address in the device information management table 43 shown in FIG. 2 as the user's position.

[0026] The destination identification unit 14 identifies the destination to which the user wants to go from the content of the user's utterance. The destination identification unit 14 refers to the management information DB 40, and if a facility can be identified as the user's destination from the content of the user's utterance, the destination identification unit 14 can set this facility as the destination. That is, if the user utters an utterance such as "I want to go to XX" and "XX" corresponds to the official name or abbreviation in the management information DB 40, this facility is the destination. Also, if an address, telephone number, etc. can be identified from the content of the user's utterance and these correspond to the address and telephone number in the management information DB 40, this facility is the destination. On the other hand, if the destination uttered by the user is not included in the management information DB 40, the destination identification unit 14 asks the user for information about the facility until the user's destination is identified. A specific method for this will be described later.

[0027] The vehicle dispatch unit 15 dispatches a vehicle 30 based on the user's location identified by the user location identification unit 13 and the user's destination identified by the destination identification unit 14. The storage unit 16 stores information about the vehicle 30, the management information DB 40, the user's past usage history, and the like.

[0028] <Explanation of how to identify the destination> Hereinafter, a method will be described in which the destination specifying unit 14 determines a destination when the destination uttered by the user is not included in the management information DB 40.

[0029] (1) Method of estimating destination from user attributes The destination identification unit 14 estimates a destination from among facilities included in the management information based on user attributes. In this case, the user attributes correspond to information in the user information management table 42. The destination identification unit 14 extracts multiple facilities as destination candidates based on the user's speech content and user attributes, calculates the likelihood that each facility will be a destination, and checks whether the facility with the highest likelihood is the destination. In practice, the extracted facilities are presented to the user in descending order of likelihood, and the user is asked whether the facility is the destination. The likelihood can be calculated based on the past usage history (history) of the vehicle dispatch system 1 by multiple users with similar user attributes. For example, if a woman in her 80s living in BBB Town, AAA City is likely to visit Supermarket X, the destination identification unit 14 checks whether Supermarket X, which has the highest likelihood, is the destination. In this case, the destination identification unit 14 checks whether a facility estimated from at least one of the user's address, age, and gender, included in the user information management table 42, which are user attributes, is the destination. The destination identification unit 14 may also check whether a facility with a high probability of being a destination is a facility frequently visited by the user, which is included in the user information management table 42, which is a user attribute. A place frequently visited by a user is a place that is likely to be selected as a destination by the user again, and the destination identification unit 14 checks whether a place frequently visited by the user is a destination.

[0030] (2) A method for estimating a destination based on the purpose of a user's trip The destination identification unit 14 elicits the purpose of the user's trip and checks whether it is a destination based on the purpose set for the facility contained in the management information DB 40. In this case, the destination identification unit 14 references the purpose in the facility information management table 41, narrows down the list of facilities that are likely to be able to achieve the purpose elicited from the user, and checks whether the facility with a high priority set for each facility is a destination. The priority can be determined based on whether the purpose of the trip elicited from the user and the purpose in the facility information management table 41 are conceptually similar. Specifically, the higher the cosine similarity between the two, the higher the priority. Other methods that can be used include determining synonyms using words with a high co-occurrence probability in text data, Word2Vec, a natural language processing technique, and generative AI (artificial intelligence).

[0031] (3) How to propose nearby facilities The destination identification unit 14 suggests nearby facilities that match the keywords uttered by the user and checks whether they are the destination. In other words, even if the name of a facility included in the user's utterance is not included in the full name or abbreviation in the facility information management table 41, the destination identification unit 14 suggests a facility that is nearby the facility that matches the keywords and is listed in the facility information management table 41. This can be determined by referring to the nearby facility column in the facility information management table 41. In this case, the destination identification unit 14 can also suggest travel to a nearby facility. The destination identification unit 14 can also suggest the nearby facility as an alternative destination.

[0032] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method in which the destination specifying unit 14 determines a destination when the destination uttered by the user is not included in the management information DB 40. In FIG. First, the destination identification unit 14 estimates a destination from user attributes (S401). At this time, the destination identification unit 14 extracts multiple destination candidates from the management information DB 40, calculates the probability that each candidate will become a destination, and then selects facilities with the highest probability in order and asks the user whether they are the destination. Next, the destination identification unit 14 confirms with the user whether or not the estimated destination is correct (S402). As a result, if the answer is incorrect (No in S401), the destination identification unit 14 determines whether or not the answer has been asked a predetermined number of times (S403). If the user has not asked the question the predetermined number of times (No in S403), the process returns to S401. The predetermined number of times is set to a predetermined number. On the other hand, if the user has asked the question again the predetermined number of times (Yes in S403), the process proceeds to S404.

[0033] In S404, the destination identification unit 14 asks the user about the purpose of the trip and estimates the destination from the user's purpose of the trip (S404). The destination identification unit 14 extracts multiple destination candidates from the management information DB 40, calculates the likelihood that each candidate will be the destination, calculates the priority of the facility, and the destination identification unit 14 selects the facility with the highest priority in order and confirms with the user whether it is the destination. Next, the destination identification unit 14 confirms with the user whether or not the estimated destination is correct (S405). As a result, if it is not correct (No in S405), the destination identification unit 14 determines whether or not the user has repeated the question a predetermined number of times (S406). If the user has not yet asked the question the predetermined number of times (No in S406), the process returns to S404. On the other hand, if the user has asked the question again the predetermined number of times (Yes in S406), the process proceeds to S407.

[0034] In S407, the destination specifying unit 14 selects nearby facilities (S407). Next, the destination specifying unit 14 confirms with the user whether or not it is OK to set the nearby facility as the destination (S408). As a result, if it is not good to set the nearby facility as the destination (No in S408), the destination identification unit 14 determines whether or not the user has repeated the question a predetermined number of times (S409). If the user has not yet asked the question the predetermined number of times (No in S409), the process returns to S407. On the other hand, if the user has asked the question a predetermined number of times (Yes in S409), the series of processes ends. In S407 to S409, the destination identification unit 14 calculates the priority of nearby facilities, selects facilities in descending order of priority, and asks the user whether it is OK to set the facilities as destinations.

[0035] If the answer is Yes in S402, S404, or S407, the destination specifying unit 14 sets the specified destination or a nearby facility as the destination. In S403, S406, and S409, the destination identification unit 14 determines whether to proceed to the next step depending on whether the user has repeated the request a predetermined number of times, but the present invention is not limited to this and the process may proceed to the next step when the estimated destination or the selected nearby facility is no longer available. Alternatively, nearby facilities estimated from the user attributes with an accuracy of 60% or more may be presented, and the process may proceed to the next step when these facilities are no longer available.

[0036] FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the vehicle allocation system 1. As shown in FIG. First, the user starts using the system via the terminal device 20 (S501). For example, the user speaks a predetermined activation word to the terminal device 20. In response to this, the terminal device 20 starts processing the vehicle allocation reservation (S502). The terminal device 20 confirms the destination with the user (S503). This is done by, for example, the terminal device 20 asking the user a question by voice, such as "Where are you going?" or "Please tell me your destination."

[0037] In response to the question from the terminal device 20, the user speaks the destination (S504). The terminal device 20 sends a voice message including the destination to the management server 10 to confirm the destination registration (S505). Based on this voice, the management server 10 checks whether the destination has been registered by referring to the management information DB 40 (S506). If the destination is registered (Yes in S507), the terminal device 20 confirms with the user the number of passengers (S508). If the destination is not registered (No in S507), the process will be described with reference to FIG. 6.

[0038] The user speaks the number of passengers (S509). The terminal device 20 checks the number of passengers and sends the number to the management server 10 (S510). The management server 10 searches for cars with the same destination and checks the number of available seats (S511). If there is an available seat (Yes in S512), the terminal device 20 notifies the user of the completion of the vehicle reservation and the vehicle dispatch time (S513). At this time, if the destination was determined by a method other than the purpose of travel, the terminal device 20 confirms the purpose of the user traveling to that location. If the confirmed purpose is not in the facility information management table 41, the purpose is added to the facility information management table 41. If there are no vacant seats (No in S512), the procedure will be explained with reference to FIG.

[0039] Upon receiving the notification, the user moves to the location that has been registered in advance (S514). On the other hand, if there is a vacant seat (Yes in S512), the management server 10 instructs the vehicle 30 to dispatch the vehicle (S515). Then, the vehicle 30 that has received the instruction travels to the boarding location of the user that has been registered in advance and moves (S516). Then, the vehicle 30 allows the user to board (S517).

[0040] FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the vehicle allocation system 1 when the destination is not registered in S507 of FIG. S601 to S607 in FIG. 6 are the same as S501 to S507 in FIG. 5, so the explanation will be omitted. If the destination is not registered in S607 (No in S607), the terminal device 20 notifies the user that the destination is not registered (S608). Then, the user speaks another destination (S609). The processes of S604 to S609 are repeated until the destination is identified. In other words, this corresponds to the process of asking the user to repeat the destination uttered by the user by voice until the destination of the user is identified based on information about the facility when the destination uttered by the user is not included in the management information DB 40.

[0041] FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram illustrating the operation of the vehicle allocation system 1 when there are no vacant seats in S512 of FIG. S701 to S712 in FIG. 7 are the same as S501 to S512 in FIG. 5, so the explanation will be omitted. If there are no available seats in S712 (No in S712), the search is repeated for vehicles 30 with a different time or a nearby destination (S713). In this case, the management server 10 recommends ride sharing, so it searches preferentially for vehicles 30 that can be used for ride sharing, but if no vehicles 30 are found, it also arranges vehicles 30 that cannot be used for ride sharing.

[0042] According to the management server 10 described above, it is possible to set a more appropriate destination, compared to a case where the above configuration is not provided, even when it is difficult to identify the destination from the content of the user's utterance.

[0043] The vehicle dispatch system 1 described above provides a ride-sharing service, but is not limited to this and can also be applied to services such as dispatching taxis. Furthermore, all or part of the functions of the management server 10 described above may be provided in the terminal device 20. For example, the functions of the voice dialogue unit 12 and the destination identification unit 14 may be provided in the terminal device 20. In this case, the terminal device 20 recognizes the user's voice, and refers to the management information DB 40 stored in the management server 10, and asks the user to respond by voice until the destination is identified. In addition to this, the terminal device 20 may also be provided with the function of the user position identification unit 13 that identifies the user's position, and the management information DB 40. The terminal device 20 described above may be provided as one function of a ride-hailing app for receiving a ride-hailing service. That is, the terminal device 20 is a smartphone or the like, and has a ride-hailing app installed. In the ride-hailing app, a destination is usually set using a map or the like displayed on the smartphone or the like. However, elderly people who are unable to use such functions often use a telephone to reserve a ride in the manner described above.

[0044] <Explanation of vehicle dispatch assistance method> The processing performed by the management server 10 is realized by the cooperation of software and hardware resources. That is, a processor such as a CPU provided in the management server 10 loads into main memory and executes programs that realize each function of the management server 10, thereby realizing each function. Therefore, the processing performed by the management server 10 described above can be considered as a vehicle dispatching support method in which, when the destination uttered by the user is not included in management information containing information on facilities that are candidate destinations, the destination to which the user wants to go is identified from the content of the user's utterance by asking the user to repeat the destination by voice until the user's destination is identified based on information on the facilities, by having the processor execute a program recorded in memory. This makes it possible to provide a vehicle dispatching support method that can set a more appropriate destination even when it is difficult to identify the destination from the content of the user's utterance, compared to a case without this configuration.

[0045] The program for realizing this embodiment can be provided not only by communication means but also by being stored on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM.

[0046] Although the present embodiment has been described above, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiment. It is clear from the claims that various modifications and improvements to the above embodiment are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 1...vehicle dispatch system, 10...management server, 11...transmission / reception unit, 12...voice dialogue unit, 13...user position identification unit, 14...destination identification unit, 15...vehicle dispatch unit, 16...storage unit, 20...terminal device, 30...vehicle, 40...management information DB, 41...facility information management table, 42...user information management table, 43...device information management table

Claims

1. a destination specifying unit that specifies a destination to which the user wants to go based on the content of the user's utterance; The destination identification unit is a vehicle dispatch support device that, if the destination spoken by the user is not included in management information containing information about facilities that are candidate destinations, asks the user to repeat the destination by voice until the user's destination is identified based on information about the facility.

2. The vehicle dispatch support device according to claim 1, wherein the destination identification unit calculates the probability that a facility included in the management information will be a destination based on user attributes, and checks whether the facility with the highest probability is a destination.

3. The vehicle dispatch assistance device according to claim 2 , wherein the destination specifying unit checks whether a facility frequently visited by the user, which is included in the user attributes, is the destination.

4. The vehicle dispatch assistance device according to claim 2 , wherein the destination specification unit confirms whether a facility inferred from at least one of the user's address, age, and sex included in the user attributes is the destination.

5. The vehicle dispatch support device according to claim 1 , wherein the destination identification unit asks the user about the purpose of the trip and confirms whether the purpose is the destination based on the purpose set for the facility included in the management information.

6. The vehicle dispatch support device according to claim 5, wherein the destination specification unit narrows down the facilities that are likely to achieve the purpose based on the purpose set for the facility, and checks whether the facility with the highest priority set for each facility is the destination.

7. The vehicle dispatch assistance device according to claim 1 , wherein the destination specification unit suggests facilities in the vicinity of a facility that matches a keyword spoken by the user, and confirms whether the facility is the destination.

8. The vehicle allocation assistance device according to claim 7 , wherein the destination specification unit suggests travel to the nearby facility.

9. The vehicle dispatch assistance device according to claim 8 , wherein the destination specifying unit suggests the nearby facility as an alternative destination.

10. The processor executes the program stored in the memory. When the destination uttered by the user is not included in management information containing information on facilities that are candidate destinations, the destination to which the user wants to go is identified from the content of the user's utterance by asking the user to repeat the destination by voice until the destination of the user is identified based on the information on the facilities. Vehicle dispatch assistance methods.

11. a user position identification unit that identifies the position of the user; a destination identification unit that identifies a destination to which the user wants to go based on the content of the user's utterance; a vehicle dispatching unit that dispatches a vehicle based on the user's location and the user's destination; Equipped with The destination identification unit is a vehicle dispatch system that, if the destination spoken by the user is not included in management information containing information about facilities that are candidate destinations, asks the user to repeat the destination by voice until the user's destination is identified based on information about the facilities.

12. The vehicle dispatch system according to claim 11 , wherein the user location specification unit determines the location of a dedicated terminal registered in advance in the management information as the user's location.

Images