Vehicle agent information output method and vehicle agent management device

Abstract

To provide a method for outputting agent information for a vehicle and a vehicle agent management device, which can reliably direct the driver's attention to driving as needed when the driver of the vehicle is communicating with an agent displayed on a display screen. [Solution] A user terminal 30 as a vehicle agent information output method and vehicle agent management device manages information about agent X, who is personified and displayed as an image on a display screen, and who communicates with the driver of the vehicle. When an output control unit 334 of the user terminal 30 determines that the driver needs to turn their attention outside the vehicle while communicating with agent X, it changes the background of the image of the agent on the display screen and outputs notification information to the driver urging them to at least one of resume driving, monitor the outside of the vehicle, or end communication.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for outputting agent information for a vehicle and a vehicle agent management device. [Background technology]

[0002] Systems have been developed that display anthropomorphic characters, or agents, on a display screen and act in a manner that communicates with the user. One example of such a system is a system that provides a vehicle agent that communicates with the driver of a vehicle. By using this system to communicate with the vehicle agent, the driver can prevent driving fatigue, loss of concentration, and drowsiness. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-56607 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When using the above-mentioned system, if the driver concentrates too much on communicating with the vehicle agent, the driver's concentration on driving may decrease. In response to this, the technology described in Patent Document 1 changes the image of the displayed agent from an anthropomorphized image to a non-anthropomorphized image when it is determined that the driver is communicating too much with the vehicle agent and therefore losing concentration on driving. By changing the image of the agent in this way, it is expected that the driver will find it difficult to communicate with the agent any further and will concentrate on driving.

[0005] However, even if the image of the agent is changed, some drivers may not find it difficult to communicate with the agent any further, and this is not a sufficient measure to allow the driver to concentrate on driving.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a method for outputting vehicle agent information and a vehicle agent management device that can reliably direct the driver's attention to driving as needed when the driver is communicating with an agent displayed on a display screen. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A method for outputting vehicle agent information according to one aspect of the present invention is a method for outputting vehicle agent information by a vehicle agent management device that manages information about an agent that is personified and displayed as an image on a display screen and that communicates with a vehicle driver. This vehicle agent information output method determines whether the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle while communicating with the agent. If it determines that the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle, the method changes the background of the image of the agent on the display screen and outputs notification information that prompts the driver to at least one of resume driving, monitor the outside of the vehicle, or end communication. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, when a vehicle driver is communicating with an agent displayed on a display screen, the driver's attention can be reliably directed to driving as needed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an agent system using a user terminal as a vehicle agent management device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the basic operations executed by a user terminal according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the process of an operation example (1) executed by a user terminal according to an embodiment. [Figure 4A] FIG. 4A is a diagram showing the indication states of each traffic light and the transition of screen information displayed on the output unit of the user terminal when the user terminal according to one embodiment is executing processing according to operation example (1). [Figure 4B] FIG. 4B is a diagram showing the indication states of each traffic light and the transition of screen information displayed on the output unit of the user terminal when the user terminal according to one embodiment is executing processing according to operation example (1). [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the process of the operation example (2) executed by the user terminal. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the process of the operation example (3) executed by the user terminal. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] An agent system using a vehicle agent management device and a method for outputting vehicle agent information according to one embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. The agent system according to this embodiment is a system configured using a user terminal used by the driver of the vehicle. Note that common parts in each drawing are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0011] <Configuration of an agent system according to an embodiment> 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an agent system 1 according to this embodiment. The agent system 1 is mounted on a vehicle and includes a user information collection device 10, an environmental information collection device 20, and a user terminal 30.

[0012] The user information collection device 10 collects information about the user's situation. The user information collection device 10 is, for example, an in-vehicle device that collects information about the user's driving behavior, a camera device that collects information about the user's behavior by photographing the user inside the vehicle, or a microphone device that collects information indicating the user's intentions by capturing the voice generated by the user inside the vehicle.

[0013] The environmental information collection device 20 is a device that collects environmental information around the vehicle equipped with the agent system 1, and is configured, for example, with a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), a RADAR (Radio Detection And Ranging), or a camera device. The environmental information collection device 20 collects information on other vehicles and people around the vehicle as environmental information around the vehicle.

[0014] The user terminal 30 is configured, for example, as a smart device, and has an output unit 31, a storage unit 32, and a CPU 33. The output unit 31 is configured as a display device, and displays display information on a display screen (not shown) in accordance with instructions from the CPU 33, as will be described later.

[0015] The storage unit 32 has a user information storage unit 321 and an environmental information storage unit 322. The user information storage unit 321 stores information about the driver's situation acquired by the CPU 33, as will be described later. The environmental information storage unit 322 stores environmental information about the surroundings of the vehicle acquired by the CPU 33, as will be described later.

[0016] The CPU 33 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) provided in a general-purpose microcomputer, and configures one or more information processing units described below by installing and executing a predetermined agent management program.

[0017] The CPU 33 functions as a vehicle agent management device, and includes a user information acquisition unit 331 , an environment information acquisition unit 332 , a determination unit 333 , and an output control unit 334 .

[0018] The user information acquisition unit 331 acquires information about the user's situation collected by the user information collection device 10, and stores it in the user information storage unit 321. The environmental information acquisition unit 332 acquires environmental information about the surroundings of the vehicle collected by the environmental information collection device 20, and stores it in the environmental information storage unit 322.

[0019] The determination unit 333 determines, based on the information stored in the environmental information storage unit 322, whether or not the driver needs to direct his or her attention outside the vehicle.

[0020] The output control unit 334 uses a pre-installed communication tool application to output an image of a personified vehicle agent X (hereinafter simply referred to as "agent X") communicating with the driver onto the display screen of the output unit 31. When the determination unit 333 determines that the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle while the driver is communicating with agent X, the output control unit 334 changes the background of the image of agent X on the display screen and outputs information to the driver urging him to resume driving, monitor the outside of the vehicle, or end the communication.

[0021] <Operation of the agent system according to the first embodiment> While the agent system 1 is operating, the user information collection device 10 collects information about the user's situation at predetermined time intervals and sequentially transmits it to the user terminal 30. The user terminal 30 sequentially stores the information about the user's situation acquired from the user information collection device 10 in the user information storage unit 321.

[0022] Furthermore, while the agent system 1 is operating, the environmental information collection device 20 collects environmental information about the environment around the vehicle at predetermined time intervals and sequentially transmits the collected information to the user terminal 30. The user terminal 30 sequentially stores the environmental information about the environment around the vehicle acquired from the environmental information collection device 20 in the environmental information storage unit 322.

[0023] The basic operations that the user terminal 30 executes when this information is stored in order will now be described.

[0024] [Basic operation] 2 is a flowchart showing the basic operation executed by the user terminal 30. The following describes the processing executed by the user terminal 30 when the driver is driving a vehicle with a communication tool application running on the user terminal 30. While this application is running, the output control unit 334 outputs an image of agent X on the display screen of the output unit 31. Normally, an arbitrary image is displayed in the background of the image of agent X on the display screen.

[0025] The output control unit 334 of the user terminal 30 determines whether the driver is communicating with agent X based on the information being output to the output unit 31 and the information stored in the user information storage unit 321 (S1). Communication here refers to, for example, conversation with agent X, non-verbal exchanges such as facial expressions or gestures, or playing a game together.

[0026] When the output control unit 334 determines that the driver is communicating with agent X ("YES" in S1), it checks whether the judgment unit 333 has determined that the driver needs to turn his / her attention outside the vehicle (S2).

[0027] When the determination unit 333 determines that the driver needs to direct his / her attention outside the vehicle (YES in S2), the output control unit 334 changes the background of the image of Agent X on the display screen (S3).

[0028] Here, when the output control unit 334 confirms that it has been determined that the driver needs to turn his or her attention outside the vehicle, it acquires information from the driver's line of sight, etc., indicating the degree to which the driver's attention is directed outside the vehicle and information indicating the degree to which the driver's attention is directed toward communicating with agent X, and may change the background of the agent's image when the degree to which the driver's attention is directed outside the vehicle is below a predetermined value, the degree to which the driver's attention is directed toward communicating with agent X is above a predetermined value, and the rate of increase in the degree to which the driver's attention is directed outside the vehicle is below a predetermined value.

[0029] The output control unit 334 also outputs information to direct the driver's attention to driving, such as information to prompt the driver to resume driving, monitor the outside of the vehicle, or end communication, as text information or audio information (S4).

[0030] Next, specific examples of operations (1) to (3) that the user terminal 30 executes based on this basic operation will be described.

[0031] [Example (1)] As an operation example (1), we will explain the operations performed by the user terminal 30 based on changes in the signal indications of the traffic light for the vehicle's roadway within the intersection (hereinafter referred to as the "first roadway traffic light"), the traffic light for the pedestrian crossing that intersects with the vehicle's roadway (hereinafter referred to as the "pedestrian crossing traffic light"), and the traffic light for the roadway that intersects with the vehicle's roadway (hereinafter referred to as the "second roadway traffic light").

[0032] Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing of operation example (1) executed by the user terminal 30. Fig. 4A and Fig. 4B are diagrams showing the indication states of each traffic light and the transition of screen information displayed on the output unit 31 of the user terminal 30 when the user terminal 30 executes processing according to operation example (1).

[0033] State 1 in Fig. 4A shows a state in which an agent X playing a game of rock-paper-scissors is displayed on the display screen of the output unit 31 of the user terminal 30 when the vehicle is stopped with the first road traffic light "red," the pedestrian traffic light "green," and the second road traffic light "green." The output control unit 334 determines that the driver is communicating with agent X based on the display of agent X playing rock-paper-scissors and the fact that it recognizes, based on information stored in the user information storage unit 321, that the driver is looking at the display terminal and performing the rock-paper-scissors action ("YES" in S11).

[0034] Here, when the "green" signal of the pedestrian traffic light flashes, the determination unit 333 determines that the driver is approaching a situation where he or she needs to direct his or her attention outside the vehicle ("YES" in S12) based on the information stored in the environmental information storage unit 322. Here, the situation where "the driver is approaching a situation where he or she needs to direct his or her attention outside the vehicle" refers to any of the following situations: the pedestrian traffic light is flashing, the pedestrian traffic light is "red" and the second roadway traffic light is "green," or the pedestrian traffic light is "red" and the second pedestrian traffic light is "yellow."

[0035] When the determination unit 333 determines that the driver is approaching a situation where he or she needs to direct his or her attention outside the vehicle, the state transitions to State 2, and the output control unit 334 changes the background of the image of Agent X on the display screen to an image of the road as seen from the moving vehicle (S13). Then, the state transitions to State 3, and the output control unit 334 outputs information to the display screen to prompt the driver to end communication with Agent X (S14). The "information prompting the driver to end communication" to be output here is, for example, spoken information from Agent X, "I'm sorry. The traffic light is about to change," to apologize to the driver and prompt the driver to end communication.

[0036] The output control unit 334 determines whether the driver has ended communication with agent X based on the information stored in the user information storage unit 321 (S15). If it detects that the driver has not ended communication with agent X ("NO" in S15), the output control unit 334 transitions to state 4 and re-outputs information urging the driver to end communication (S16). The "information urging the driver to end communication" to be output here is, for example, voice information from agent X saying, "Stop playing games and concentrate on driving." The output control unit 334 outputs this voice information as if it were being uttered by agent X facing the driver. After re-outputting this voice information, the output control unit 334 returns to step S15.

[0037] In step S15, when the output control unit 334 determines that the driver has ended communication with agent X ("YES" in S15), it transitions to state 5 and displays an image of agent X facing forward, which is the direction of travel of the vehicle, on the roadway in the background of the display screen (S17). By displaying an image of agent X facing forward in this way, it is possible to show through the behavior of agent X that the driver should face forward.

[0038] Then, the judgment unit 333 judges that the situation does not require the driver to turn his / her attention outside the vehicle until the traffic light for the second road turns red ("NO" in S18), and the output control unit 334 displays an image in which Agent X is waiting facing forward (S19).

[0039] Here, when the traffic light for the second roadway turns red, the judgment unit 333 judges, based on the information stored in the environmental information storage unit 322, that the situation has become one in which the driver needs to turn his or her attention outside the vehicle ("YES" in S18).

[0040] When the determination unit 333 determines that the situation has arisen in which the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle, it transitions to state 5 and outputs information urging the driver to monitor the outside of the vehicle (S20). The "information urging the driver to monitor the outside of the vehicle" to be output here is, for example, the spoken information of agent X, "Come on, we're about to depart."

[0041] The output control unit 334 determines whether the driver is paying attention to the outside of the vehicle based on the information stored in the user information storage unit 321 (S21). If it determines that the driver is not paying attention to the outside of the vehicle ("NO" in S21), it switches to an image of Agent X facing the driver and re-outputs information urging the driver to monitor the outside of the vehicle (S22). After re-outputting this information, the output control unit 334 returns to step S21.

[0042] In step S21, the output control unit 334 determines that the driver has turned his attention outside the vehicle ("YES" in S21), and when the traffic light for the first roadway turns "green," the system transitions to state 6, outputs information urging the driver to resume driving, and ends the process. The "information urging the driver to resume driving" to be output here is, for example, the spoken information of agent X, "The light has turned green. Let's go." When starting the vehicle, it is not desirable for the driver to pay any more attention to agent X, so the output control unit 334 displays an image of agent X facing forward so as not to attract the driver's attention. This concludes the explanation of operation example (1).

[0043] [Example (2)] As an operation example (2), an operation performed by the user terminal 30 based on a change in the vehicle's driving environment when the driver is driving the vehicle in a situation where it is acceptable for the driver to look at the display screen of the user terminal 30 to some extent will be described. Here, "a situation where it is acceptable for the driver to look at the display screen of the user terminal 30 to some extent" refers to a situation where the vehicle is driving on a highway or a road with low congestion, which is a driving environment where there are few objects that require attention, such as intersections or corners, and the driver does not need to increase his or her concentration on driving. Furthermore, "a change in the vehicle's driving environment" refers to, for example, a change in the type of road (highway, general road, etc.) on which the vehicle is traveling, or a change in the congestion status of the road.

[0044] 5 is a flowchart showing the processing of an operation example (2) executed by the user terminal 30. When the driver is driving the vehicle in a situation where it is acceptable for the driver to look at the display screen of the user terminal 30 to some extent (S31), the output control unit 334 determines whether the driver is communicating with agent X (S32).

[0045] When the output control unit 334 determines that the driver is communicating with agent X ("YES" in S32), it further checks whether the determination unit 333 has determined that "the driver is approaching a situation where he or she needs to increase his or her concentration on driving" (S33). Here, when the driving environment is about to change from a highway to an urban area on a general road, or when the degree of congestion is increasing, the determination unit 333 determines that "the driver is approaching a situation where he or she needs to increase his or her concentration" ("YES" in S33).

[0046] When the judgment unit 333 judges that "the driver is approaching a situation where he or she needs to increase his or her concentration on driving," the output control unit 334 gradually changes the background of the image of agent X displayed on the display screen of the output unit 31 to an image of the road as seen from a moving vehicle (S34), and outputs information to the display screen urging the driver to end communication with agent X (S35).

[0047] When gradually switching the background of the image of agent X displayed on the display screen of the output unit 31, the output control unit 334 may do so by fading out the background image before the change and fading in the background image after the change.

[0048] Furthermore, the "information prompting the end of communication" output in step S35 is the same as that explained in step S14 of operation example (1). Furthermore, the processing of steps S36 to S38 is the same as that explained in steps S15 to S17 of operation example (1), and therefore detailed explanations will be omitted.

[0049] After the output control unit 334 displays an image of agent X facing forward in step S38, the judgment unit 333 judges that the situation does not require the driver to increase his or her level of concentration outside the vehicle until the driving environment changes from a highway to an urban area on a general road or the degree of congestion exceeds a threshold ("NO" in S39), and the output control unit 334 displays an image of agent X waiting in a state facing forward (S40).

[0050] Here, if the driving environment changes from a highway to an urban area on a general road or if the degree of congestion exceeds a threshold, the judgment unit 333 judges, based on the information stored in the environmental information storage unit 322, that the situation has become one in which the driver needs to increase his or her level of concentration outside the vehicle ("YES" in S39).

[0051] When the determination unit 333 determines that the situation has come where the driver needs to increase his / her concentration outside the vehicle, the output control unit 334 causes information to be output that urges the driver to concentrate on driving (S41).

[0052] The output control unit 334 determines whether the driver has begun to concentrate on driving based on the information stored in the user information storage unit 321 (S42). If it determines that the driver has not begun to concentrate on driving ("NO" in S21), it switches to an image of Agent X facing the driver and re-outputs information encouraging the driver to concentrate on driving (S43). After re-outputting this information, the output control unit 334 returns to step S38.

[0053] In step S42, when the output control unit 334 determines that the driver has started to concentrate on driving ("YES" in S42), the process ends. This concludes the explanation of the operation example (2).

[0054] [Example (3)] As an operation example (3), an operation performed by the user terminal 30 based on a change in the autonomous driving level when the vehicle is equipped with an autonomous driving function and is traveling at an autonomous driving level that does not require the driver to monitor the area outside the vehicle will be described. Information about the autonomous driving level of the traveling vehicle is acquired by the user information acquisition unit 331 of the user terminal 30 from an in-vehicle device serving as the user information collection device 10 and stored in the user information storage unit 321. Based on the information about the autonomous driving level stored in the user information storage unit 321, the output control unit 334 determines whether the vehicle is traveling at an autonomous driving level that does not require the driver to monitor the area outside the vehicle.

[0055] 6 is a flowchart showing the processing of an operation example (3) executed by the user terminal 30. When the vehicle is traveling at an autonomous driving level that does not require external monitoring (S51), the output control unit 334 determines whether the driver is communicating with agent X (S52).

[0056] When the output control unit 334 determines that the driver is communicating with agent X ("YES" in S52), it further checks whether the determination unit 333 has determined that "the vehicle is approaching a situation where vehicle exterior monitoring is required" (S53). Here, when the driving environment is about to change from a highway to an urban area on a general road, or when the degree of congestion is increasing, the determination unit 333 determines that "the vehicle is approaching a situation where vehicle exterior monitoring is required" ("YES" in S53).

[0057] When the judgment unit 333 judges that "the vehicle is approaching a situation where external monitoring is necessary," the output control unit 334 changes the background of the image of agent X displayed on the display screen of the output unit 31 to an image of the road as seen from the vehicle while it is moving (S54), and outputs information to the display screen urging the driver to end communication with agent X (S55).

[0058] The output control unit 334 may change the background of the image of agent X displayed on the display screen of the output unit 31 to an image of the surrounding vehicles seen from one of a number of viewpoints including a bird's-eye view.

[0059] Furthermore, the "information prompting the end of communication" output in step S35 is the same as that explained in step S14 of operation example (1). Furthermore, the processes of steps S56 and S57 are the same as those explained in steps S15 and S16 of operation example (1), and therefore detailed explanations will be omitted.

[0060] In step S56, when the output control unit 334 determines that the driver has ended communication with agent X ("YES" in S56), an image of agent X facing the direction that should be monitored from now on is displayed on the display screen (S58). The direction that should be monitored from now on is the direction of the object of attention that is closest to the vehicle, such as another vehicle. By displaying an image of agent X facing the direction that should be monitored in this way, the direction that the driver should monitor can be indicated by the behavior of agent X.

[0061] In step S58, the output control unit 334 displays an image of agent X facing the direction to be monitored, and then, until the autonomous driving level is changed to a level where the driver needs to monitor the outside of the vehicle ("NO" in S59), the output control unit 334 displays an image of agent X tracking an object of interest in the direction to be monitored (S60).

[0062] Here, when the autonomous driving level is changed to a level where the driver needs to monitor the outside of the vehicle ("YES" in S59), the output control unit 334 outputs information prompting the driver to monitor the outside of the vehicle (S61).

[0063] The output control unit 334 determines whether the driver has started monitoring the outside of the vehicle based on the information stored in the user information storage unit 321 (S62). If it determines that the driver has not started monitoring the outside of the vehicle (NO in S62), the output control unit 334 switches to an image in which Agent X faces the driver, and re-outputs information urging the driver to monitor the outside of the vehicle (S63). After re-outputting this information, the output control unit 334 returns to step S58.

[0064] In step S62, when the output control unit 334 determines that the driver has started monitoring the outside of the vehicle ("YES" in S62), the process ends. This concludes the explanation of the operation example (3).

[0065] [Effects of the embodiment] According to the above-described embodiment, the method for outputting vehicle agent information is a method for outputting vehicle agent information by a vehicle agent management device that manages information about an agent that is personified and displayed as an image on a display screen and that communicates with a vehicle driver, and determines whether the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle while communicating with the agent. If it is determined that the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle, the background of the image of the agent on the display screen is changed and notification information is output to the driver urging the driver to at least one of resume driving, monitor the outside of the vehicle, or end communication.

[0066] This allows the driver of the vehicle to reliably direct his or her attention to driving when necessary while communicating with the agent displayed on the display screen.

[0067] Furthermore, whether the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle may be determined based on information about traffic lights at intersections, the vehicle's driving environment, the degree of road congestion, or the level of automated driving, thereby enabling accurate determination of whether the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle.

[0068] Furthermore, when it is determined that the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle while communicating with an agent, information indicating the degree to which the driver's attention is directed outside the vehicle and information indicating the degree to which the driver is directed toward communicating with the agent may be acquired, and the background of the image of the agent may be changed when the degree to which the driver is directed toward the outside of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined value, the degree to which the driver is directed toward communicating with the agent is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, and the rate of increase in the degree to which the driver is directed toward the outside of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined value. This makes it possible to more accurately determine whether the driver needs to pay attention to the outside of the vehicle, and to change the displayed image in accordance with the determination result.

[0069] Furthermore, when changing the background of the image of the agent, an image of a traffic light or an image of surrounding vehicles from one of multiple viewpoints, including a bird's-eye view, may be displayed along with the image of the vehicle in motion, thereby making it possible to present to the driver the object that the driver needs to pay attention to.

[0070] Furthermore, when changing the background of the agent image, the change may be made gradually by fading out the background image before the change and fading in the background image after the change. This allows the driver to recognize that he or she is approaching a situation where he or she needs to increase his or her concentration.

[0071] Furthermore, if it is detected that the driver has not finished communicating with the agent after the notification information has been output, the notification information may be output again, thereby ensuring that the driver is aware of the notification information.

[0072] After outputting the notification information, an image of the agent facing ahead of the vehicle or an image of the agent tracking a predetermined attention object may be displayed on the display screen, thereby allowing the driver to easily recognize the direction in which to direct their attention.

[0073] Furthermore, when the driver of the vehicle is communicating with the agent, if it is determined that there is an increasing need for the driver to pay attention outside the vehicle, an image of the agent facing forward of the vehicle or an image of the agent tracking a predetermined attention object may be displayed on the display screen, and if it is determined that the driver needs to pay attention outside the vehicle, notification information may be output. In this way, by gradually notifying the driver of the need to pay attention outside the vehicle, it is possible to make the driver more aware of the content of the notification information.

[0074] Furthermore, if it is detected that the driver has not resumed driving, monitored the outside of the vehicle, or ended communication after the notification information has been output as described above, the notification information may be output again as audio while displaying an image of the agent facing the driver or an image of the agent tracking a predetermined attention object. This makes it possible to more reliably ensure that the driver is aware of the content of the notification information.

[0075] Although several embodiments have been described, the embodiments can be modified or varied based on the above disclosure. All components of the above embodiments and all features described in the claims may be individually extracted and combined, unless they are mutually inconsistent.

[0076] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the descriptions and drawings that form part of this disclosure should not be understood to limit the present invention. Various alternative embodiments, examples, and operating techniques will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 1 Agent System 10. User information collection device 20 Environmental information collection device 30 User terminals 31 Output section 32 Storage section 321 User information storage unit 322 Environmental information storage unit 331 User Information Acquisition Unit 332 Environmental Information Acquisition Department 333 Judgment section 334 Output control section

Claims

1. 1. A method for outputting vehicle agent information by a vehicle agent management device that manages information about an agent that is personified and displayed as an image on a display screen and that communicates with a vehicle driver, comprising: determining whether the driver needs to direct his or her attention outside the vehicle while the driver is communicating with the agent; A method for outputting agent information for a vehicle, which, when it is determined that the driver needs to turn his / her attention outside the vehicle, changes the background of the image of the agent on the display screen and outputs notification information to the driver urging at least one of restarting driving, monitoring the outside of the vehicle, or ending communication.

2. 2. The vehicle agent information output method according to claim 1, wherein whether or not the driver needs to pay attention to an area outside the vehicle is determined based on information about traffic lights at an intersection, the driving environment of the vehicle, the degree of road congestion, or an automated driving level.

3. When it is determined that the driver needs to pay attention to an area outside the vehicle while the driver is communicating with the agent, the system acquires information indicating the degree to which the driver's attention is directed to an area outside the vehicle and information indicating the degree to which the driver's attention is directed to communication with the agent; 2. The method for outputting agent information for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the background of the image of the agent is changed when the degree of facing the outside of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined value, the degree of facing communication with the agent is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, and the rate of increase in the degree of facing the outside of the vehicle is equal to or less than a predetermined value.

4. 2. The vehicle agent information output method according to claim 1, wherein when the background of the image of the agent is changed, an image of a traffic light or an image of the surrounding vehicles seen from one of a plurality of viewpoints including a bird's-eye view is displayed together with the image of the vehicle traveling.

5. 2. The vehicle agent information output method according to claim 1, wherein when changing the background of the image of the agent, the background image before the change is faded out while the background image after the change is faded in, thereby gradually switching the background image.

6. 2. The vehicle agent information output method according to claim 1, wherein, after outputting the notification information, if it is detected that the driver has not finished communicating with the agent, the notification information is output again.

7. 2. The method for outputting agent information for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein, after outputting the notification information, an image of the agent facing ahead of the vehicle or an image of the agent tracking a predetermined attention object is displayed on the display screen.

8. 2. The vehicle agent information output method according to claim 1, wherein, when it is determined that there is an increasing need for the driver to pay attention to an area outside the vehicle while the driver is communicating with the agent, an image of the agent facing forward of the vehicle or an image of the agent tracking a predetermined object of attention is displayed on the display screen, and when it is determined that there is a need for the driver to pay attention to an area outside the vehicle, the notification information is output.

9. 9. The method for outputting agent information for a vehicle according to claim 8, wherein, when it is detected that the driver has not resumed driving, monitored the outside of the vehicle, or terminated communication after the notification information has been output, the method outputs the notification information again by voice while displaying an image of the agent facing the driver or an image of the agent tracking a predetermined object of attention.

10. an output control unit that displays an image of a personified agent on a display screen, the personified agent communicating with the driver of the vehicle; a determination unit that determines whether or not the driver of the vehicle needs to pay attention to an area outside the vehicle; The output control unit When the judgment unit judges that the driver needs to turn his / her attention outside the vehicle while the driver is communicating with the agent, the device changes the background of the image of the agent on the display screen and outputs information to the driver urging him / her to resume driving, monitor the outside of the vehicle, or end communication.

Images