Information processing apparatus

Abstract

To propose an appropriate charging spot for a vehicle.SOLUTION: The information processing device searches for one or a plurality of charging spots through which the vehicle passes, and when the vehicle cannot reach the destination with the current remaining amount of the battery, the information processing device performs, based on a scheduled route of the vehicle, the following operations: Determining a candidate charging spot that is a candidate for a charging spot at which the vehicle can stop by, calculating a second remaining amount by adding a first recovery amount, which is a battery remaining amount recovered at the candidate charging spot, to a first remaining amount, which is a battery remaining amount of the vehicle at the time of arrival at the candidate charging spot, and when the vehicle charged at the candidate charging spot cannot reach the destination with the second remaining amount, determining a further candidate charging spot at which the vehicle can stop by from within a range that can be reached with the second remaining amount; And outputting the one or more recommended transit points.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to searching for charging spots. [Background technology]

[0002] There are technologies for searching for charging spots for EVs and suggesting them to users. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a charging spot search system that stores the travel costs between two charging spots and searches for charging spots to pass through based on the cost incurred when traveling from a candidate charging spot to the next charging spot. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-085685 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-515892 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present disclosure aims to propose suitable charging spots for electric vehicles. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure is An information processing device that searches for one or more charge spots to be passed through by a vehicle, the information processing device having a control unit that executes the following operations: when the vehicle cannot reach a destination with a current remaining battery charge, determine candidate charge spots that are candidates for charge spots where the vehicle can stop, based on a planned route of the vehicle; calculate a second remaining charge by adding a first recovery amount, which is the remaining battery charge of the vehicle when the vehicle arrives at the candidate charge spot, to a first remaining charge, which is the remaining battery charge of the vehicle when the vehicle arrives at the candidate charge spot; when the vehicle charged at the candidate charge spot cannot reach the destination with the second remaining charge, determine further candidate charge spots where the vehicle can stop, within a reachable range with the second remaining charge; and output the determined one or more candidate charge spots as one or more recommended stopover points. It is an information processing device.

[0006] Another aspect is a program for causing a computer to execute the information processing method executed by the information processing device, or a computer-readable storage medium non-temporarily storing the program. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to suggest an appropriate charging spot depending on the remaining battery power of a vehicle that will be recovered at the charging spot. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an outline of processing executed by the in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating components of the in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] 4 is a flowchart of a process executed by a control unit of the in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displaying charging spots to be passed through according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a screen that displays a route in different colors depending on an estimated remaining battery charge of a vehicle according to a second embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating components of an in-vehicle device according to a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] (overview) In recent years, the number of electric vehicles equipped with batteries has increased, and there is a technology that suggests charging spots that EVs should visit while driving.

[0010] For example, a conventional information processing device for searching for charging spots is known. The information processing device stores in advance costs for multiple charging spots, including the distance between two charging spots, the time required to reach the charging spots, and the amount of power consumed to reach the charging spots, and maintains the costs between the charging spots as a table. When searching for charging spots to pass through, the information processing device comprehensively searches all of the stored charging spots in the cost table so as to optimize the costs.

[0011] As described above, in the conventional technology, the information processing device takes into account the amount of power consumed until the vehicle reaches a charging spot when searching for a charging spot, but assumes that the vehicle will always be fully charged at each charging spot, and does not consider how much of the vehicle's remaining battery power is actually restored at each charging spot. Specifically, in the conventional technology, in the calculations for searching for charging spots to pass through, the information processing device determines whether the vehicle can reach the next charging spot, assuming that the vehicle's remaining battery power is always fully charged each time the vehicle passes through each charging spot.

[0012] However, when a vehicle is actually traveling, it is not always possible to fully charge the battery at the charging spots it passes through.

[0013] In this way, even though the battery level does not always recover to full charge at each charging spot, if it is assumed that the battery level will always recover to full charge at each charging spot, the information processing device may not be able to select an appropriate charging spot.

[0014] Therefore, in order to select a more appropriate charging spot, it is preferable that the information processing device take into consideration the remaining battery power that will actually be restored at each charging spot.

[0015] An information processing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes: An information processing device that searches for one or more charging spots for a vehicle to pass through has a control unit that performs the following operations: when the vehicle cannot reach its destination with its current battery remaining charge, determine candidate charging spots that are candidates for charging spots where the vehicle can stop based on the planned route of the vehicle; calculate a second remaining charge by adding a first recovery amount, which is the battery remaining charge to be recovered at the candidate charging spot, to a first remaining charge, which is the battery remaining charge of the vehicle when it arrives at the candidate charging spot; when the vehicle charged at the candidate charging spot cannot reach its destination with the second remaining charge, determine further candidate charging spots where the vehicle can stop within a range that can be reached with the second remaining charge; and output the determined one or more candidate charging spots as one or more recommended passing points.

[0016] The candidate charging spot is a charging spot that is a candidate for a charging spot that the vehicle can stop at on its way to the destination. There may be a plurality of candidate charging spots.

[0017] The first remaining amount is the estimated remaining battery amount of the vehicle at the time when the vehicle arrives at the candidate charging spot.

[0018] The first recovery amount is the remaining battery charge of the vehicle that is recovered when the vehicle is at the candidate charging spot.

[0019] The second remaining amount is the remaining battery amount of the vehicle obtained by adding the first recovery amount to the first remaining amount. In other words, the second remaining amount is the remaining battery amount of the vehicle immediately after charging at a candidate charging spot is completed.

[0020] A recommended route point is a charging spot that the information processing device according to the present disclosure suggests to the user from among all of one or more charging spots determined by the information processing device according to the present disclosure.

[0021] When the vehicle cannot reach its destination with the current remaining battery power, an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure determines a candidate charging spot and calculates a second remaining battery power by adding the remaining battery power upon arrival at the candidate charging spot to the remaining battery power to be restored at the candidate charging spot. The second remaining power is not necessarily the maximum storage capacity of the vehicle (the remaining power when fully charged).

[0022] Then, if the destination cannot be reached with the second remaining charge, the information processing device according to the present disclosure determines further candidate charging spots from among charging spots that can be reached with the second remaining charge. The information processing device according to the present disclosure repeats determining candidate charging spots until the destination can be reached with the second remaining charge, and outputs all determined charging spots.

[0023] With this configuration, the information processing device according to the present disclosure can suggest appropriate charging spots depending on the remaining battery power of the vehicle that will be restored at the charging spot. By suggesting such charging spots, the information processing device according to the present disclosure can more efficiently charge the EV vehicle while traveling toward the destination.

[0024] In addition, when outputting the one or more recommended route points, the control unit may output a route to the recommended route point as well as an estimated remaining battery charge of the vehicle at each point on the route.

[0025] For example, the control unit may display a line indicating a route to a destination of the vehicle using a color gradation according to an estimated remaining battery charge of the vehicle traveling on the route. This allows the information processing device according to an aspect of the present disclosure to present an estimated remaining battery charge of the vehicle in a manner that is more intuitively understandable to the user.

[0026] The control unit may calculate the first recovery amount based on information indicating a continuous available time of the candidate charging spot and an output of the candidate charging spot.

[0027] For example, there are cases where the continuous available time at a charging spot is limited, or where the output differs from one charging spot to another.

[0028] By taking these factors into consideration, an information processing device according to an aspect of the present disclosure can calculate the remaining battery power that can actually be recovered at a candidate charging spot.

[0029] The control unit may determine the candidate charging spots further based on at least one of a degree of deviation from the planned route, a positional relationship with a destination, and a required time for charging.

[0030] For example, an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure determines candidate charging spots so that the deviation from the planned route is small, the direction toward the destination is close to the direction toward the candidate charging spots, and the required charging time is short, thereby reducing the total required time for the vehicle to reach the destination.

[0031] Further, when the remaining battery charge of the vehicle becomes such that the vehicle cannot arrive at either the charging spot set as a route point or the destination, the control unit The user may be suggested to add further candidate charging spots to the candidate charging spots that the vehicle will pass through on the way to the destination.

[0032] For example, if the vehicle's battery power is decreasing faster than planned and charging as originally planned is predicted to result in a battery shortage, the information processing device will suggest adding a candidate charging spot. With this configuration, even if a situation arises in which the vehicle cannot reach its destination by charging as planned, it is possible to prevent the vehicle from running out of battery.

[0033] Specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the hardware configuration, module configuration, functional configuration, etc. described in each embodiment are not intended to limit the technical scope of the disclosure to those configurations.

[0034] (First embodiment) [Outline of processing performed by the on-board device] An overview of an in-vehicle device according to an embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of processing executed by an in-vehicle device 100 according to a first embodiment. An information processing device according to an aspect of the present disclosure is realized as the in-vehicle device 100. In this embodiment, the in-vehicle device 100 searches for charging spots that a vehicle (an electric vehicle such as a BEV) should pass through on its way to a destination, and presents the charging spots to a user.

[0035] First, the on-board device 100 acquires the destination of the vehicle and the route to the destination. Then, if the destination cannot be reached with the current remaining battery charge, the on-board device 100 determines one candidate charging spot for the vehicle to pass through based on the route etc.

[0036] The on-board device 100 calculates the remaining battery power of the vehicle after charging based on the remaining battery power that the vehicle will recover from at one of the determined charging spots.The on-board device 100 then determines whether the remaining battery power of the vehicle after charging is sufficient to reach the destination.If the on-board device 100 determines that the remaining battery power of the vehicle after charging is not sufficient to reach the destination, it determines a candidate charging spot to pass through next based on the remaining battery power of the vehicle after charging.

[0037] The on-board device 100 determines whether the vehicle can reach the destination with the remaining battery power after charging. If the vehicle cannot reach the destination with the remaining battery power after charging, the on-board device 100 repeats determining the next candidate charging spot based on the remaining battery power of the vehicle after charging until the vehicle can reach the destination with the remaining battery power after charging.

[0038] When the remaining battery charge of the vehicle after charging is sufficient to reach the destination, the in-vehicle device 100 displays the charging spots determined up to that point as recommended stopover points on the display unit. For example, as shown in Fig. 1, the in-vehicle device 100 displays three charging spots 1 to 3 together with the route to the destination.

[0039] As described above, when the vehicle cannot reach the destination with the current remaining battery charge, the on-board device 100 first determines the first candidate charging spot to pass through. Then, the on-board device 100 determines whether the remaining battery charge after charging at the charging spot will allow the vehicle to reach the destination, and if the remaining battery charge after charging will not allow the vehicle to reach the destination, the on-board device 100 determines the next candidate charging spot to pass through based on the remaining battery charge after charging. The on-board device 100 repeats the process of determining candidate charging spots to pass through based on the remaining battery charge after charging, as described above, until the remaining battery charge after charging allows the vehicle to reach the destination. Note that the candidate charging spots may be selected from within a reachable range according to a predetermined criterion. Then, the on-board device 100 outputs information about the determined charging spot. As a result, the on-board device 100 can select an appropriate charging method according to the remaining battery power of the vehicle that is recovered at the charging spot. Electric spots can be suggested to the user.

[0040] [Configuration of on-board equipment] Next, a description will be given of the hardware configuration and software configuration of the in-vehicle device 100. Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating the components of the in-vehicle device 100 according to the first embodiment.

[0041] The in-vehicle device 100 can be configured as a computer having a processor (CPU, GPU, etc.), a main memory device (RAM, ROM, etc.), and an auxiliary memory device (EPROM, hard disk drive, removable media, etc.). The auxiliary memory device stores an operating system (OS), various programs, various tables, etc., and by executing the programs stored therein, various functions (software modules) that match predetermined purposes, as described below, can be realized. However, some or all of the functions may be realized as hardware modules using hardware circuits such as ASICs, FPGAs, etc.

[0042] The in-vehicle device 100 includes a control unit 110, a storage unit 120, a communication unit 130, and a display unit 140.

[0043] The control unit 110 is a computing unit that executes predetermined programs to realize various functions of the in-vehicle device 100. The control unit 110 can be realized by a hardware processor such as a CPU. The control unit 110 may also be configured to include RAM, ROM (Read Only Memory), cache memory, etc.

[0044] In this embodiment, the control unit 110 of the in-vehicle device 100 is configured to have three software modules: an acquisition unit 111, a determination unit 112, and a display control unit 113. Each software module may be realized by the control unit 110 (e.g., a CPU) executing a program stored in the storage unit 120. Note that the information processing executed by the software modules is synonymous with the information processing executed by the control unit 110 (e.g., a CPU).

[0045] The acquisition unit 111 acquires information about the departure point or current location of the vehicle and the destination. The acquisition unit 111 may acquire, for example, latitude and longitude information about the departure point or current location of the vehicle or the destination. The acquisition unit 111 may acquire information about the departure point and destination of the vehicle by input from the user to the in-vehicle device 100, or may acquire information from another navigation device that provides route guidance for the vehicle. Furthermore, the acquisition unit 111 acquires information about the current location of the vehicle from a GPS (Global Positioning System) provided in the vehicle.

[0046] When the vehicle cannot reach the destination with the remaining battery charge of the vehicle, the determination unit 112 determines candidate charging spots that are candidates for charging spots where the vehicle can stop, based on the planned route of the vehicle. Specifically, the determination unit 112 acquires the remaining battery charge of the vehicle from an ECU that manages the vehicle's battery. Then, the determination unit 112 calculates the planned route of the vehicle based on the departure point or current location of the vehicle and the destination acquired by the acquisition unit 111. The determination unit 112 determines whether the vehicle can reach the destination with the remaining battery charge based on the travel distance of the calculated planned route and the remaining battery charge acquired from the ECU.

[0047] Furthermore, when a vehicle that has been charged at one of the determined candidate charging spots cannot reach the destination with the second remaining amount, which is the remaining battery amount after charging, the determination unit 112 determines a further candidate charging spot at which the vehicle can stop within a range that can be reached with the second remaining amount. Specifically, when the vehicle cannot reach the destination with the remaining battery amount, the determination unit 112 determines a further candidate charging spot at which the vehicle can stop within a range that can be reached with the second remaining amount. The determination unit 112 estimates a first remaining amount, which is the estimated remaining battery capacity of the vehicle at the time, and calculates a second remaining amount by adding the first remaining amount to the first remaining amount. Here, the first recovery amount is the remaining battery capacity that the vehicle will recover at the candidate charging spot. The determination unit 112 determines whether the destination can be reached based on the calculated second remaining amount, and if the destination cannot be reached with the second remaining amount, determines the next candidate charging spot. The determination unit 112 makes the above determination by calculating the amount of power required for the vehicle to reach the next candidate charging spot based on the distance to the next candidate charging spot and comparing it with the second remaining amount.

[0048] Furthermore, the determination unit 112 may determine the candidate charging spots based on any one of the degree of deviation from the planned route, the positional relationship between the target charging spot and the destination, or the required charging time. The deviation from the planned route indicates how far the target charging spot is from the planned route. The charging time is the time it takes for a vehicle to fully charge its battery to a predetermined level at the target charging spot. For example, the greater the charger's output, the shorter the time it may take to fully charge the battery.

[0049] Furthermore, the determination unit 112 calculates a second remaining amount by adding a first recovery amount, which is the remaining battery amount recovered at the candidate charging spot, to a first remaining amount, which is the remaining battery amount of the vehicle when it arrives at the determined candidate charging spot. The determination unit 112 calculates the first recovery amount, for example, by multiplying the chargeable time at the candidate charging spot by the output power of the candidate charging spot.

[0050] The display control unit 113 outputs the one or more candidate charging spots determined by the determination unit 112 as one or more recommended stopover points. For example, the display control unit 113 causes the display unit 140 to display the one or more candidate charging spots as one or more recommended stopover points.

[0051] Furthermore, when outputting one or more recommended route points, the display control unit 113 may output the estimated remaining battery charge of the vehicle at each point on the route along with the route if the vehicle heads to the recommended route point. The estimated value may be output numerically or graphically.

[0052] The storage unit 120 is a means for storing information, and is configured with storage media such as RAM, a magnetic disk, a flash memory, etc. The storage unit 120 stores programs executed by the control unit 110, data used by the programs, etc.

[0053] The communication unit 130 is a communication interface for connecting the in-vehicle device 100 to an external network. The communication unit 130 is configured to be able to communicate with external devices via, for example, a wireless LAN or a cellular communication network such as 3G, 4G, or 5G.

[0054] Display unit 140 is a display for displaying recommended route points, planned routes, etc. Specifically, display unit 140 is composed of a touch panel and its control means, and a liquid crystal display and its control means. For example, display unit 140 may be a display of a car navigation system installed in a vehicle.

[0055] 2 is an example, and all or part of the illustrated functions may be performed using a dedicated circuit. Also, programs may be stored or executed using a combination of a main memory and an auxiliary memory other than those illustrated.

[0056] [Processing of on-board devices] Next, a specific content of the process performed by the in-vehicle device 100 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. Fig. 3 is a flow chart of the process performed by the control unit 110 of the in-vehicle device 100 according to the first embodiment. 3, a process in which the on-board device 100 determines and outputs candidate charging spots will be described.

[0057] The in-vehicle device 100 starts step S10 when the ignition switch of the vehicle is turned on or when the main switch of the vehicle is turned on. Alternatively, the in-vehicle device 100 may start step S10 when receiving some input from the user of the vehicle via an in-vehicle terminal or the like.

[0058] First, in step S10, the in-vehicle device 100 acquires information about the departure point or current location and the destination.

[0059] In step S11, the determination unit 112 determines whether the vehicle can reach the destination with the current remaining battery charge. If the determination unit 112 determines that the vehicle can reach the destination with the current remaining battery charge, the determination in this step is affirmative.

[0060] If the determination in this step is affirmative, the process ends.

[0061] If the determination in this step is negative, the process proceeds to step S12.

[0062] When the process proceeds to step S12, the determination unit 112 determines candidate charge spots that are charge spots to be passed through, based on the planned route to the destination of the vehicle. The determination unit 112 determines appropriate charge spots as candidate charge spots from among charge spots within a range that can be reached with the current remaining battery power, based on the planned route. For example, the determination unit 112 may determine, as candidate charge spots, charge spots that are not further away from the planned route than a predetermined distance from among charge spots within a range that can be reached with the current remaining battery power. For example, the determination unit 112 may determine candidate charge spots based on at least one of the degree of deviation from the planned route, the positional relationship with the destination, and the required charging time.

[0063] Next, in step S13, the determination unit 112 calculates the remaining battery capacity after recovery (second remaining capacity) by adding the remaining battery capacity recovered at the candidate charging spot (first recovery amount) to the remaining battery capacity upon arrival at the candidate charging spot (first remaining capacity). Note that the determination unit 112 may calculate the first recovery amount based on information indicating the continuous available time of the candidate charging spot and the output of the candidate charging spot.

[0064] Next, in step S14, the determination unit 112 determines whether the vehicle can reach the destination with the remaining battery charge after recovery (second remaining charge). If the determination unit 112 determines that the vehicle can reach the destination with the remaining battery charge after recovery (second remaining charge), this step is determined as positive.

[0065] If the determination in this step is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S16.

[0066] If the determination in this step is negative, the process proceeds to step S15.

[0067] When the process proceeds to step S15, the determination unit 112 determines further candidate charging spots to be passed through from among charging spots within a range that can be reached with the remaining battery charge after recovery (second remaining charge). At this time, the determination unit 112 may determine the candidate charging spots further based on at least one of the degree of deviation from the planned route, the positional relationship with the destination, and the required charging time.

[0068] When the process proceeds to step S16, the display control unit 113 All the candidate charging spots are output as one or more recommended stopover points. The display control unit 113 causes the display unit 140 to display one or more candidate charging spots determined by the determination unit 112 as one or more recommended stopover points.

[0069] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a screen showing charging spots to be passed through, displayed by the in-vehicle device according to the first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 4, the display control unit 113 outputs candidate charging spots to a field 20. In addition, the display control unit 113 outputs to a field 30 the charging time required for the vehicle to charge up to a predetermined remaining battery level (e.g., 1 hour 30 minutes), the charging fee (e.g., 1,350 yen), the availability of the candidate charging spots (e.g., Vacancy), and the like. The display control unit 113 also outputs to the field 30 the distance to the candidate charging spot (e.g., 32 km), the remaining battery level of the vehicle when it arrives at the candidate charging spot (e.g., 80%), the continuous available time (e.g., up to 30 minutes), and the like.

[0070] The display control unit 113 calculates the charging time and charging fee from information indicating the output power of the candidate charging spot or information indicating the fee of the candidate charging spot, which is obtained from an external device, and the remaining battery charge of the vehicle at that time. The display control unit 113 also periodically obtains the availability and continuous available time of the candidate charging spot from an external device. The display control unit 113 also calculates the distance to the target candidate charging spot based on the current position of the vehicle and the position information of the candidate charging spot obtained from an external device. The display control unit 113 then calculates the remaining battery charge of the vehicle when it arrives at the candidate charging spot based on the remaining battery charge of the vehicle at that time and the calculated distance to the candidate charging spot.

[0071] Furthermore, the display control unit 113 outputs the route from the departure point (or current location) of the vehicle to the destination and the location information of the candidate charging spots to the field 40. At this time, the display control unit 113 may accept a selection of which of the output candidate charging spots the user will actually stop at. When the user inputs a selection of which of the output candidate charging spots the user will actually stop at, the determination unit 112 may incorporate the selected candidate charging spot into the planned route, and the display control unit 113 may output the result.

[0072] Furthermore, when the user has selected not to stop at any of the candidate charging spots, the determination unit 112 may further search for alternative candidate charging spots and present them via the display control unit 113.

[0073] As described above, the on-board device 100 in this embodiment determines one or more candidate charging spots to be passed through on the route to the vehicle's destination, and outputs the determined candidate charging spots as recommended stopover points to the display unit 140. The on-board device 100 also determines the next candidate charging spot based on the restored remaining battery power. This allows the on-board device 100 to suggest an appropriate charging spot to the user depending on the remaining battery power of the vehicle that will be restored at the charging spot. Furthermore, the on-board device 100 can determine the candidate charging spots to be stopped at without searching all possible charging spots in the search for the stopover charging spots, thereby reducing the amount of calculation.

[0074] (Second embodiment) In the first embodiment, the display control unit 113 outputs the route from the departure point (or current location) of the vehicle to the destination using a single color and line. However, when viewing the route output by the display control unit 113, if the user can intuitively grasp the predicted remaining battery charge of the vehicle when traveling along the route, the user can more appropriately understand the timing when the vehicle needs to be charged. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the display control unit 113 draws and outputs the route using a color that represents the predicted remaining battery charge, according to the predicted remaining battery charge of the vehicle when traveling along the route.

[0075] [Route display based on remaining battery power] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an in-vehicle device according to the second embodiment, in which a route is displayed in different colors depending on an estimated value of the remaining battery charge of the vehicle. As shown in column 40A of Fig. 5, the display control unit 113 outputs a line 41 indicating the route from the departure point of the vehicle to the destination with a color gradation that matches the transition of the estimated remaining battery charge of the vehicle. For example, if a darker line color indicates a higher remaining battery charge and a lighter line color indicates a lower remaining battery charge, the remaining battery charge of the vehicle decreases as the vehicle travels from the departure point to the destination, so the line indicating the route is output in a lighter color. At this time, for example, the display reflects that a predetermined amount of remaining battery charge has been restored at each charging spot, so the line indicating the route becomes darker to a certain extent at each charging spot.

[0076] As described above, in the second embodiment, the display control unit 113 outputs a line indicating the route in a color that corresponds to the transition of the predicted value of the remaining battery charge of the vehicle.

[0077] According to this embodiment, the in-vehicle device 100 can visualize how the remaining battery charge of the vehicle will change when the vehicle stops at each candidate charging spot, and provide the visualized information to the user. Note that the in-vehicle device 100 may use expressions other than color and density as long as it can display the predicted value of the remaining battery charge of the vehicle. For example, the in-vehicle device 100 may display the predicted value of the remaining battery charge of the vehicle in text or the like.

[0078] (Third embodiment) In the first embodiment, the on-board device 100 determines the candidate charging spots and presents them to the user only once. However, if the actual remaining battery charge of the vehicle falls below the remaining battery charge of the vehicle at each point assumed when the candidate charging spots were determined while the vehicle is traveling along the route, there is a risk that the vehicle will not be able to reach the charging spot that it plans to use as planned.

[0079] For example, if the vehicle cannot secure the remaining battery power required to reach the destination or the next candidate charging spot, the vehicle cannot reach the destination or the next candidate charging spot as expected. In this case, it becomes necessary to suggest an additional stop at another charging spot on the way to the destination or the next candidate charging spot. Therefore, in the third embodiment, if the vehicle cannot secure the remaining battery power required to reach the destination or the next candidate charging spot, the in-vehicle device 100 suggests to the user that a new charging spot be added.

[0080] [Configuration of on-board equipment] 6 is a diagram illustrating components of an in-vehicle device 100A according to the third embodiment. Description of components common to the in-vehicle device 100 according to the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0081] The in-vehicle device 100A includes a control unit 110A, a storage unit 120, a communication unit 130, and a display unit 140. The control unit 110A includes an acquisition unit 111, a determination unit 112, a display control unit 113, and a suggestion unit 114.

[0082] When the remaining battery charge of the vehicle reaches a level that makes it impossible to reach the candidate charging spot or the destination, the suggestion unit 114 suggests to the user that the vehicle add the charging spot as an additional stopover to the charging spots that the vehicle will stop over on the way to the destination.

[0083] [Processing performed by the control unit] In the third embodiment, the in-vehicle device 100A performs the following operations. The determination unit 112 of the in-vehicle device 100A determines one or more candidate charge spots, and the display control unit 113 of the in-vehicle device 100A outputs one or more candidate charge spots as recommended stopover points. Then, when the remaining battery charge of the vehicle reaches a level where it is impossible to reach the destination or the next charge spot, the suggestion unit 114 suggests to the user that the charge spot that is the additional stopover point be added to the candidate charge spots to be passed through on the way to the destination. Specifically, the suggestion unit 114 may output to the display unit information about a charge spot selected according to a predetermined criterion from among charge spots within a range that can be reached with the remaining battery charge of the vehicle, and suggest to the user that the charge spot be added to the stopover point.

[0084] When a selection is made to stop at the proposed charging spot, the control unit 110 may execute the processes of steps S13 to S15 again and subsequently re-determine the charging spot to stop at.

[0085] In the third embodiment, after the on-board device 100A determines the candidate charging spots, if the vehicle is unable to secure the remaining battery power required to reach the next candidate charging spot or the destination, the on-board device 100A suggests to the user that an additional charging spot be added to the route points.

[0086] According to this embodiment, even if the actual remaining battery charge of the vehicle falls below the expected level, the vehicle can reach the destination without running out of power.

[0087] (Other variations) The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the present disclosure may be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the processes and means described in the present disclosure may be freely combined and implemented as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

[0088] The present disclosure can also be realized by providing a computer program implementing the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer, and having one or more processors in the computer read and execute the program. Such a computer program may be provided to the computer via a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium connectable to the computer's system bus or via a network. Non-transitory computer-readable storage media include, for example, any type of disk, such as a magnetic disk (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), etc.), an optical disk (e.g., a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, a Blu-ray disk), a read-only memory (ROM), a random-access memory (RAM), an EPROM, an EEPROM, a magnetic card, a flash memory, an optical card, or any type of medium suitable for storing electronic instructions. [Explanation of symbols]

[0089] 100, 100A... In-vehicle equipment 110, 110A... Control unit 120...Storage section 130 Communications Department 140...Display section 111...Acquisition part 112...Decision section 113 Display control unit 114...Proposal Department

Claims

1. An information processing device that searches for one or more charging spots that a vehicle passes through, determining, based on a planned route of the vehicle, candidate charging spots that are candidates for charging spots at which the vehicle can stop, when the vehicle cannot reach the destination with the current remaining battery charge; calculating a second remaining amount by adding a first recovery amount, which is a remaining battery amount of the battery recovered at the candidate charging spot, to a first remaining amount, which is a remaining battery amount of the vehicle when the vehicle arrives at the candidate charging spot; When the vehicle charged at the candidate charging spot cannot reach the destination with the second remaining charge, determining a further candidate charging spot at which the vehicle can stop within a range reachable with the second remaining charge; outputting the determined one or more candidate charging spots as one or more recommended route points; a control unit that executes the following: Information processing device.

2. When outputting the one or more recommended route destinations, the control unit outputs a route to the recommended route destination and an estimated remaining battery charge of the vehicle at each point on the route. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The control unit calculating the first recovery amount based on information indicating a continuous available time of the candidate charging spot and an output of the candidate charging spot; 3. The information processing device according to claim 1.

4. The control unit determining the candidate charging spots further based on at least one of a deviation degree from the planned route, a positional relationship with the destination, and a required charging time; 3. The information processing device according to claim 1.

5. The control unit When the remaining battery charge of the vehicle reaches a level that makes it impossible to reach either the charging spot set as a route or the destination, the system suggests to the user that an additional candidate charging spot be added to the candidate charging spots that the vehicle will pass through on the way to the destination.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1.

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