UI setting method, UI setting system, UI setting program, and target device

Abstract

To easily provide a user interface that aligns with user preferences. [Solution] The target device can use any of several candidate user interfaces. Based on characteristic information (BB) corresponding to the user preferences of the target device, a user interface generation instruction prompt (CC) is created. By inputting the generation instruction prompt to the generation AI (4a), the recommended user interface (DD) generated by the generation AI is compared with several candidate user interfaces (EE), and based on the comparison result, the candidate user interface selected from among the several candidate user interfaces is reflected in the user interface of the target device.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a UI setting method, a UI setting system, a UI setting program, and a target device. [Background technology]

[0002] Various devices with user interfaces have a function to change the content of the user interface according to the user's preferences. For example, there is a function that allows the user to customize the screen design, color scheme, font size, etc., of the user interface through touch panel operation on a settings screen. A remote control device equipped with this type of function is disclosed in Patent Document 1. In the method of Patent Document 1, the layout of operation keys on the touch panel is customized in response to user operations. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2006-32407 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0004] However, customizing the user interface can often be time-consuming and cumbersome for users. Reducing the number of settings lessens the effort, but it also limits the degree of customization. Conversely, adding too many settings increases the complexity of the configuration, making it difficult to achieve the desired user interface. Furthermore, achieving a preferred configuration state may require a certain level of specialized knowledge.

[0005] The present invention aims to easily obtain a user interface that aligns with the user's preferences. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The UI setting method according to the present invention is a UI setting method for setting the content of a user interface used in a target device. In the target device, any of a plurality of candidate user interfaces can be used as the user interface. The target device, or the target device and other devices that can communicate bidirectionally with each other, create a user interface generation instruction prompt based on characteristic information corresponding to the user preferences of the target device, input the generation instruction prompt into a generation AI, compare the recommended user interface generated by the generation AI with the plurality of candidate user interfaces, and reflect the candidate user interface selected from the plurality of candidate user interfaces based on the comparison result into the user interface. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the UI configuration method described above, a generation instruction prompt tailored to the user's preferences is input to the generation AI, which then generates a recommended interface based on the user's preferences. Because the generation AI generates recommended interfaces with a high degree of flexibility, it is often difficult to use the recommended interface itself as the interface for the target device (it may not conform to the specifications of the target device, and the target device may not be able to support it). Therefore, by comparing multiple candidate interfaces available on the target device with the recommended interface, a candidate interface corresponding to the comparison result is selected from among the multiple candidate interfaces and reflected in the target device's interface. This makes it possible to easily obtain a user interface that aligns with the user's preferences in a manner that does not place a significant burden on the user and can be reliably implemented on the target device. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is an overall configuration diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is an internal configuration diagram of an in-vehicle device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This is an internal configuration diagram of a server device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This is an internal configuration diagram of a control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of the display content on the display screen according to an embodiment of the present invention (display state STMAIN). [Figure 6] This is a diagram illustrating the transition of display states on a display screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of the display content of the display screen according to an embodiment of the present invention (display state ST[1]). [Figure 8] This figure shows an example of the display content of the display screen according to an embodiment of the present invention (display state ST[2]). [Figure 9] This is a diagram illustrating the configuration of UI specification information according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] This is a diagram illustrating the configuration of UI setting information according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, Figure 11(a) shows UI setting information relating to one example, and Figure 11(b) shows UI setting information relating to another example. [Figure 12] This figure shows an example of the display content of the display screen in the setting display state according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] This figure shows an example of how the display screen changes when UI setting information is changed, according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] This diagram shows a configuration related to an embodiment of the present invention, which involves the realization of a UI setting function. [Figure 15] Figures 15(a) to 15(c) illustrate an embodiment of the present invention, showing the main menu images of three candidate UIs. [Figure 16] This is a structural diagram of candidate information (candidate interface information) according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] This figure illustrates an embodiment of the present invention, showing a recommended interface image based on a creation by a generating AI. [Figure 18]Figures 18(a) to 18(f) illustrate the distribution method of multiple processing units in configuration methods α1 to α6, relating to embodiments of the present invention. [Figure 19] This figure shows input / output information of multiple processing units, relating to Example EX_2A, which belongs to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20] This relates to Embodiment EX_2A, which is an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 20(a) shows how UI setting information is changed, and Figure 20(b) shows how the display screen changes in accordance with the change in UI setting information. [Figure 21] This figure shows input / output information of multiple processing units, relating to Example EX_2B, which belongs to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 22] This relates to Embodiment EX_2B, which is an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 22(a) shows how UI setting information is changed, and Figure 22(b) shows how the display screen changes in accordance with the change in UI setting information. [Figure 23] This is an explanatory diagram of a method for registering candidate information (candidate interface information) according to Example EX_3B, which belongs to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 24] This figure shows a specific example relating to the registration of candidate information (candidate interface information) in Example EX_3B, which belongs to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 25] This is an operation flowchart of a system related to the UI setting function, relating to Example EX_4A, which is an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 26] This is a detailed flowchart of the steps involved in the UI reflection process, relating to Example EX_4A, which belongs to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 27] This is an operation flowchart of an in-vehicle device related to the UI setting function, relating to Example EX_4B, which is an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 28] This is an operation flowchart of a server device related to the UI setting function, relating to Example EX_4B, which is an embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, examples of embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. In each of the referenced drawings, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions relating to the same parts will be omitted as a general rule. In this specification, for the sake of simplification of the description, symbols or reference numerals that refer to information, signals, physical quantities, functional parts, circuits, elements, or components may be indicated, and the names of the information, signals, physical quantities, functional parts, circuits, elements, or components corresponding to such symbols or reference numerals may be omitted or abbreviated. In addition, for any image of interest, image data refers to data (image signal) that represents the content of the image of interest.

[0010] Figure 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of the system SYS according to this embodiment. The system SYS is equipped with an in-vehicle device 10 and a server device 20, which are vehicle-side devices. Of the management device 30, database 40, microphone MC, and speaker SP shown in Figure 1, all or any part may be included as components of the system SYS, or they may not be included as components of the system SYS. Furthermore, when focusing on the UI setting function described later, the system SYS can be referred to as the UI setting system.

[0011] The on-board device 10 is installed in the vehicle VV. The vehicle VV can be any vehicle (such as an automobile) capable of traveling on a road surface. The on-board device 10 is installed in a suitable location inside the vehicle VV, such as in front of the driver's seat. The on-board device 10 may be a device designed to be mounted on the vehicle VV, or it may be an information terminal (mobile information terminal) such as a smartphone or tablet brought into the vehicle VV. The on-board device 10, the server device 20, and the management device 30 are each connected to a communication network NET, which includes a mobile communication line, an intranet, and the internet. The on-board device 10, the server device 20, and the management device 30 can communicate bidirectionally with each other via the communication network NET.

[0012] User UU is a user of the in-vehicle device 10 and is a passenger in the vehicle VV. In this embodiment, "occupant" refers to the occupants of the vehicle VV. User UU is included in the occupants of the vehicle VV. A microphone MC and a speaker SP are arranged in the passenger compartment of the vehicle VV. The microphone MC and speaker SP are connected to the in-vehicle device 10 by wire or wireless connection.

[0013] The microphone MC converts the sound inside the vehicle VV's cabin into an acoustic signal (electrical signal). The acoustic signal obtained by the conversion of the microphone MC is transmitted to the in-vehicle device 10. When the occupants of the vehicle VV speak, the sound of the occupants' speech is included in the sound inside the vehicle VV's cabin, and therefore the acoustic signal from the microphone MC includes the acoustic signal of the speech. The microphone MC is positioned in an appropriate location inside the vehicle VV's cabin so that the speech of the occupants (in this case, especially the user UU) can be properly captured. The microphone MC may also be installed in the in-vehicle device 10. The microphone MC may also be installed in an information terminal (smartphone) brought into the vehicle VV. The microphone MC may consist of multiple microphones.

[0014] Speaker SP outputs sound signals supplied from the in-vehicle device 10. Speaker SP is positioned in an appropriate location within the vehicle VV so that each occupant can hear the sound output by Speaker SP. Speaker SP may also be installed in the in-vehicle device 10. Speaker SP may also be installed in an information terminal (smartphone) brought into the vehicle VV. Speaker SP may consist of multiple speakers.

[0015] Figure 2 shows the internal configuration of the in-vehicle device 10. The in-vehicle device 10 comprises a controller 11, memory 12, communication circuit 13, recording medium 14, and display unit 15.

[0016] The controller 11 is equipped with a processing unit including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) as hardware resources. The controller 11 may implement any functions, operations, and processes to be realized by the controller 11 by executing a program recorded in memory 12 or any other recording medium. The controller 11 is sometimes referred to as the vehicle-side controller 11 in order to clearly distinguish it from other controllers described later.

[0017] Memory 12 is comprised of non-volatile memory such as ROM (Read-only memory) or flash memory, and volatile memory such as RAM (Random Access Memory). Memory 12 stores various data referenced by the controller 11, as well as various programs to be executed by the controller 11.

[0018] The communication circuit 13 is a communication module that transmits and receives arbitrary signals between the in-vehicle device 10 and a different other device. The communication circuit 13 may be a communication module located outside the in-vehicle device 10. A communication module located outside the in-vehicle device 10 may be a communication module shared by the in-vehicle device 10 and other electrical equipment installed in the vehicle VV. The communication circuit 13 may also be a communication module installed in an information terminal (smartphone) brought into the vehicle VV. The other devices for the communication circuit 13 include the server device 20 and the management device 30 shown in Figure 1. The communication circuit 13 can communicate with any device (including the server device 20 and the management device 30) connected to the communication network NET via the communication network NET. Although the controller 11 can transmit and receive arbitrary information with the other device using the communication circuit 13, the description of the communication circuit 13 may be omitted below.

[0019] The recording medium 14 is a non-volatile recording medium consisting of a magnetic disk or flash memory, and stores (records) arbitrary information non-volatilely. The controller 11 can record arbitrary information onto the recording medium 14 and can also read arbitrary information recorded on the recording medium 14. The recording medium 14 may be located outside the in-vehicle device 10 and inside the vehicle's VV. In this case, the controller 11 uses the communication circuit 13 to access the recording medium 14 via an in-vehicle network formed within the vehicle's VV.

[0020] The display unit 15 is a display device having a display screen 16 consisting of a liquid crystal display panel or the like, and displays any image (video) under the control of the controller 11. The display unit 15 may be a display device within an information terminal (smartphone) brought into the vehicle VV.

[0021] In this embodiment, the display screen 16 is configured as a touch panel. A user UU can input various operations to the in-vehicle device 10. Operations on the in-vehicle device 10 by the user UU include operations on the display screen 16, and operations on the display screen 16 are sometimes specifically referred to as touch panel operations. In other words, touch panel operations on the display screen 16 are a form of operation on the in-vehicle device 10, and are sometimes expressed as touch panel operations on the in-vehicle device 10. Touch panel operations include operations in which the user UU touches or presses a specific part (such as a button icon) on the display screen 16 with their finger, or operations in which they move their finger while it is in contact with the display screen 16. The in-vehicle device 10 is provided with an operation input unit that receives operations from the user UU, and the pointing device provided on the touch panel is a component of the operation input unit. The operation input unit may also include operating members other than the components of the touch panel (such as mechanical push-button switches). In this embodiment, when simply referred to as "display," it refers to the display on the display screen 16 unless otherwise specified.

[0022] Figure 3 shows the internal configuration of the server device 20. The server device 20 comprises a controller 21, memory 22, and a communication circuit 23. The server device 20 is composed of one or more computer devices connected to a communication network NET. The server device 20 may also be configured using cloud computing. The controller 21 is equipped with a processing unit including a CPU and GPU as hardware resources. The controller 21 may realize any functions, operations, and processes to be implemented by the controller 21 by executing a program recorded in the memory 22 or any other recording medium. Note that the controller 21 is sometimes referred to as the server-side controller 21 to clearly distinguish it from other controllers. The memory 22 is composed of non-volatile memory such as ROM or flash memory and volatile memory such as RAM. The memory 22 stores various data that the controller 21 refers to, as well as various programs to be executed by the controller 21. The communication circuit 23 is a communication module that sends and receives arbitrary signals between the server device 20 and a different counterpart device. The counterpart devices for the communication circuit 23 include the in-vehicle device 10 and the management device 30. In addition, the communication circuit 23 can communicate with any device connected to the communication network NET via the communication network NET. The controller 21 can send and receive arbitrary information with the other device using the communication circuit 23, but the description of the communication circuit 23 may be omitted below.

[0023] Figure 4 shows the internal configuration of the management device 30. The management device 30 comprises a controller 31, memory 32, and a communication circuit 33. The management device 30 is composed of one or more computer devices connected to a communication network NET. The management device 30 may also be configured using cloud computing. The controller 31 is equipped with a processing unit including a CPU and GPU as hardware resources. The controller 31 may realize any functions, operations, and processes to be implemented by the controller 31 by executing a program recorded in the memory 32 or any other recording medium. Note that the controller 31 is sometimes referred to as the management controller 31 to clearly distinguish it from other controllers. The memory 32 is composed of non-volatile memory such as ROM or flash memory and volatile memory such as RAM. The memory 32 stores various data that the controller 31 refers to, as well as various programs to be executed by the controller 31. The communication circuit 33 is a communication module that sends and receives arbitrary signals between the management device 30 and a different counterpart device. The counterpart devices for the communication circuit 33 include the in-vehicle device 10 and the server device 20. In addition, the communication circuit 33 can communicate with any device connected to the communication network NET via the communication network NET. The controller 31 can send and receive arbitrary information with the other device using the communication circuit 33, but the description of the communication circuit 33 may be omitted below.

[0024] The in-vehicle device 10 can implement multiple functions. For example, a navigation function that assists in driving the vehicle VV to its destination may be included in the above multiple functions. Also, for example, a drive record function that records images captured by a camera that photographs the exterior or interior of the vehicle VV onto the recording medium 14 may be included in the above multiple functions. Also, for example, an AV function that plays arbitrary video and audio signals may be included in the above multiple functions. The playback of video and audio signals may be the playback of video and audio signals recorded on a magnetic disk or optical disk, or the playback of video and audio signals from television broadcast waves. Also, a radio function that outputs sound based on radio broadcast waves from a speaker SP may be included in the above multiple functions. In addition, various other functions can be implemented by the in-vehicle device 10, but in this embodiment, we will focus in particular on the UI setting function implemented by the in-vehicle device 10, or implemented through the cooperation of the in-vehicle device 10 and the server device 20.

[0025] UI is an abbreviation for User Interface. The user interface is the user interface between the user UU and the in-vehicle device 10. In the in-vehicle device 10, the content of the user interface can be changed and set in various ways using the UI setting function. The user interface described in this embodiment is a graphical user interface using the display screen 16, and therefore it is the user interface on the display screen 16. Thus, the content of the user interface related to the changes or settings of the UI setting function refers to the display content (display design) of the user interface. The user UU can customize the display content on the display screen 16 in various ways using the UI setting function to suit their preferences. The operation command signals (operation content detected by the controller 11) output from the user interface to the controller 11 will correspond to the changed or set display content of the user interface.

[0026] Figure 5 shows the display state ST MAIN The content of display screen 16 is shown. Display status ST MAINNext, the main menu image is displayed on screen 16. The main menu image includes multiple button icons. In the example in Figure 5, the main menu image includes button icons 601-608. Display state ST MAIN In this system, when a user UU performs a touch panel operation in which one of the button icons is selected, the controller 11 performs processing associated with the selected button icon. A touch panel operation to select a button icon is, for example, touching or pressing that button icon with a finger. The processing associated with the button icon often includes processing to change the display content of the display screen 16. For example, if a touch panel operation is performed to instruct the position of button icon 601 to be changed from the first position to the second position, the display content of the display screen 16 will be changed in accordance with the touch panel operation, with the display position of button icon 601 changing from the first position to the second position. Subsequently, if a touch panel operation is performed to touch the second position on the display screen 16, the controller 11 will perform processing associated with button icon 601 (it will detect the selection operation of button icon 601).

[0027] Figure 6 is a diagram showing the transition of the display state of the display screen 16. Immediately after the in-vehicle device 10 is started, the controller 11 sets the display state of the display screen 16 to the initial display state ST. MAIN Set to ST display status. MAIN This represents the display state of the first level, which is the highest level. Display screen 16 is in display state ST. MAIN When the user UU inputs an operation OP[i] to the in-vehicle device 10, the controller 11 changes the display state of the display screen 16 to display state ST. MAIN Switch from display state ST[i]. i represents any natural number. Display state ST[i] is a second-level display state. In Figure 6, only display states ST[1] to ST[3] are shown as examples of second-level display states, but the total number of second-level display states is arbitrary.

[0028] For example, display screen 16 is in display state ST MAINWhen an operation OP[1] is input from the user UU to the in-vehicle device 10 when it is in [a certain state], the controller 11 changes the display state of the display screen 16 to the display state ST MAIN from the current state to the display state ST[1] in FIG. 7. Here, the operation OP[1] is an operation of selecting the button icon 601 on the display screen 16 in the display state ST MAIN . Also, for example, when an operation OP[2] is input from the user UU to the in-vehicle device 10 when the display screen 16 is in the display state ST MAIN , the controller 11 changes the display state of the display screen 16 to the display state ST MAIN from the current state to the display state ST[2] in FIG. 8. Here, the operation OP[2] is an operation of selecting the button icon 602 on the display screen 16 in the display state ST MAIN . Similarly, the operations OP[3] to OP[8] are operations of selecting the button icons 603 to 608 on the display screen 16 in the display state ST MAIN respectively.

[0029] When the display screen 16 is in the second-layer display state [i] and an operation OP[i,j] is input from the user UU to the in-vehicle device 10, the controller 11 changes the display state of the display screen 16 from the display state [i] to the display state ST[i,j]. j represents an arbitrary natural number. The display state ST[i,j] is a third-layer display state. In FIG. 6, as examples of the third-layer display states, only the display states ST[1,1] to ST[1,3], ST[2,1] to ST[2,3], and ST[3,1] to ST[3,3] are shown, but the total number of the third-layer display states is arbitrary. The operation OP[i,j] is a specific touch panel operation on the display screen 16 in the display state ST[i], and the operations OP[i,j A and OP[i,j B are different from each other (where j A and j B are different integers).

[0030] The second level is a lower level than the first level, and the third level is an even lower level than the second level. Although not shown in Figure 6, there are also display states of levels lower than the third level (for example, the fourth level). That is, when the display screen 16 is in the third level display state [i,j], if a specific operation is input to the in-vehicle device 10 from the user UU, the controller 11 can switch the display state of the display screen 16 from the display state [i,j] to the fourth level display state corresponding to the input operation. Although not shown in Figure 6, there are also operations to transition the display state of the display screen 16 from a lower level display state to a higher level display state.

[0031] Figure 9 is a diagram showing the configuration of UI specification information AA in the in-vehicle device 10. Figure 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of UI setting information SS in the in-vehicle device 10. Hereafter, in this specification, for the sake of simplicity, UI specification information AA and UI setting information SS will mainly be referred to as specification information AA and setting information SS, respectively. Specification information AA and setting information SS each contain functional items F[1] to F[m] (in other words, functional items F[1] to F[m] are defined in specification information AA and setting information SS, respectively). m represents any integer greater than or equal to 2, but often has an integer value of 10 or greater.

[0032] The configuration information SS is stored in a configuration memory area provided in the controller 11. The configuration memory area is a non-volatile memory area. Parameters are set for each of the functional items F[1] to F[m] in the configuration information SS. In Figure 10, the illustration of the parameters for each functional item is omitted. Depending on the parameter settings, the configuration information SS may be, for example, configuration information SS1 in Figure 11(a) or configuration information SS2 in Figure 11(b).

[0033] In the in-vehicle device 10, the content of the user interface, that is, the display content (display design) of the user interface, is specified (characterized) by each parameter of the functional items F[1] to F[m] in the setting information SS. In the specification information AA, multiple options for the parameters are defined for each functional item. In the setting information SS, it is specified for each functional item which of the multiple options the parameter of that functional item is.

[0034] Functional item F[1] represents the font size. Font size refers to the size of the characters displayed on the display screen 16. Specification information AA defines "small," "medium," and "large" as the first, second, and third options for functional item F[1], respectively. The controller 11 makes the font size different depending on whether the parameter of functional item F[1] in the setting information SS is "small," "medium," or "large." Specifically, the controller 11 sets the font size on the display screen 16 to small, medium, and large, respectively, when the parameter of functional item F[1] in the setting information SS is "small," "medium," or "large." Here, medium is larger than small, and large is even larger than medium. Hereafter, "small," "medium," and "large" in the parameters of functional item F[1] may be written as small size, medium size, and large size, respectively. Furthermore, the total number of options for functional item F[1] is arbitrary, as long as it is 2 or more.

[0035] Functional item F[2] represents the screen color scheme. The screen color scheme refers to the overall color tone of the display image on the display screen 16. In specification information AA, "Light," "Normal," and "Dark" are defined as the first, second, and third options for functional item F[2], respectively. The controller 11 makes the screen color scheme different depending on whether the parameter of functional item F[2] in the setting information SS is "Light," "Normal," or "Dark." Specifically, the controller 11 makes the screen color scheme brighter when the parameter of functional item F[2] in the setting information SS is "Light" than when the parameter of functional item F[2] in the setting information SS is "Normal." The controller 11 makes the screen color scheme darker when the parameter of functional item F[2] in the setting information SS is "Dark" than when the parameter of functional item F[2] in the setting information SS is "Normal." Furthermore, the total number of options for functional item F[2] is arbitrary, as long as it is 2 or more.

[0036] Functional item F[3] represents the background design. The background design is the design of the background area in the display image of the display screen 16. The background area refers to areas other than the display area to which a function is assigned, such as button icons. When a touch panel operation is performed on the display area to which a function is assigned, the controller 11 executes the process corresponding to that function (such as a transition process of the display state). In contrast, the controller 11 treats the touch panel operation on the background area as invalid. In specification information AA, "Normal", "Forest", "Sea", and "Starry Sky" are defined as the first, second, third, and fourth options for functional item F[3], respectively. The controller 11 makes the display content of the background area different depending on whether the parameter of functional item F[3] in setting information SS is "Normal", "Forest", "Sea", or "Starry Sky". Specifically, when the parameter of function item F[3] in the configuration information SS is "forest", "sea", or "starry sky", the controller 11 displays a background image with a forest motif, a background image with a sea motif, or a background image with a starry sky motif in the background area, respectively. When the parameter of function item F[3] in the configuration information SS is "normal", the controller 11 displays a default background image in the background area. The default background image is different from the background images with a forest motif, a background image with a sea motif, and a background image with a starry sky motif. The total number of choices for function item F[3] is arbitrary, as long as it is 2 or more.

[0037] Functional item F[4] represents the button design. The button design refers to the design of the button icons displayed on the display screen 16 (for example, button icons 601-608 in Figure 5). Specification information AA defines "Normal," "Cookie-style," and "Metal-style" as the first, second, and third options for functional item F[4], respectively. The controller 11 makes the button icon design (and therefore the displayed content) different depending on whether the parameter of functional item F[4] in the setting information SS is "Normal," "Cookie-style," or "Metal-style." Specifically, when the parameter of functional item F[4] in the setting information SS is "Cookie-style," the controller 11 sets the button icon design to a design based on a cookie (a type of confectionery cookie). When the parameter of functional item F[4] in the setting information SS is "Metal-style," the controller 11 sets the button icon design to a design based on metal. When the parameter of function item F[4] in the configuration information SS is "Normal", the controller 11 sets the default button design to the button icon design. The default button design is different from the cookie-themed design and the metal-themed design. The total number of choices for function item F[4] is arbitrary, as long as it is 2 or more.

[0038] The setting information SS1 in Figure 11(a) is an example of setting information SS. In setting information SS1, the parameters of function items F[1], F[2], F[3], and F[4] are "small", "dark", "normal", and "normal", respectively. The setting information SS2 in Figure 11(b) is another example of setting information SS. In setting information SS2, the parameters of function items F[1], F[2], F[3], and F[4] are "large", "light", "starry sky", and "cookie-like", respectively.

[0039] In the configuration information SS, the parameters of each functional item are actually represented by numerical values ​​associated with those parameters. That is, for example, the first, second, and third options for functional item F[1] are associated with the numerical values ​​"1", "2", and "3", respectively. Therefore, the parameter for functional item F[1] in configuration information SS1 is set to the numerical value "1", indicating that the font size is "small". The parameter for functional item F[1] in configuration information SS2 is set to the numerical value "3", indicating that the font size is "large". Similarly, for example, the first, second, third, and fourth options for functional item F[3] are associated with the numerical values ​​"1", "2", "3", and "4", respectively. Therefore, the parameter for functional item F[3] in configuration information SS1 is set to the numerical value "1", indicating that the background design is "normal". The parameter for functional item F[3] in configuration information SS2 is set to the numerical value "4", indicating that the background design is "starry sky". The same applies to other functional items.

[0040] While functional items F[1] to F[4] are of particular interest here, there are many other functional items besides F[1] to F[4]. For example, functional items other than F[1] to F[4] may include functional items corresponding to landmarks and functional items corresponding to characters. Functional items corresponding to landmarks determine how landmarks are displayed when a map image is displayed on the display screen 16. Functional items corresponding to characters determine what kind of character is displayed when a character is displayed on the display screen 16. The displayed character may be an image representing a virtual agent. In the controller 11, artificial intelligence that performs conversations with the occupants of the vehicle VV and autonomous operation of equipment inside the vehicle VV is formed as a pseudo-personality. This pseudo-personality is the virtual agent. Also, for example, functional items other than F[1] to F[4] may include functional items corresponding to the arrangement order of button icons. Functional items corresponding to the arrangement order of button icons determine the arrangement order of multiple button icons on the display screen 16 when multiple button icons are displayed on the display screen 16. Possible arrangement orders include default order, alphabetical order, and frequency of use. The default order refers to the predetermined initial arrangement order. Alphabetical order options include, for example, Japanese alphabetical order (using the Japanese syllabary), English alphabetical order (using the English alphabet), and numerical order. For functional items corresponding to the button icon arrangement order, multiple options are provided for that arrangement order.

[0041] Figure 12 shows an example of the display screen 16 in the setting display state. The setting display state is one type of display state of the display screen 16. The display state of the display screen 16 is display state ST. MAINFrom that point onward, in response to the sequential execution of multiple touch panel operations, including the selection of button icon 608, in a fixed procedure, the controller 11 transitions the display state of the display screen 16 to the setting display state. The state in which the display screen 16 is in the setting display state is referred to as the setting acceptance state. In the setting acceptance state, the controller 11 accepts manual setting operations from the user UU. The manual setting operation here is an operation that the user UU inputs to the in-vehicle device 10, and is a touch panel operation that specifies which option to set the parameters of the function items F[1]~F[m] in the setting information SS to.

[0042] In the settings display state, the display screen 16 shows the names of multiple function items, along with multiple selectable options for each function item. In Figure 12, only the names of function items F[1] to F[4] are shown, but upon receiving input such as a predetermined scroll operation, the controller 11 displays the names of other function items on the display screen 16. In the settings acceptance state, the controller 11 changes and sets the parameters of one or more function items from function items F[1] to F[m] in the settings information SS according to the manual setting operation from the user UU. For example, in the settings display state, the controller 11 can set the parameter of function item F[1] in the settings information SS to the first option (small), second option (medium), or third option (large) according to the manual setting operation. Similarly, for example, in the settings display state, the controller 11 can set the parameter of function item F[2] in the settings information SS to the first option (light), second option (normal), or third option (dark) according to the manual setting operation. The same applies to other function items.

[0043] Figure 13 shows an example of how the display content changes before and after changing the parameters of function items F[1] to F[4] in the setting information SS. The display screen 16 shown on the left in Figure 13 is the display screen 16 before changing the parameters of function items F[1] to F[4]. The display screen 16 shown on the right in Figure 13 is the display screen 16 after changing the parameters of function items F[1] to F[4]. The setting information SS related to the example in Figure 13 is setting information SS1 in Figure 11(a) before changing the parameters of function items F[1] to F[4], and setting information SS2 in Figure 11(b) after changing the parameters of function items F[1] to F[4]. In other words, in the example in Figure 13, the parameter of function item F[1] corresponding to the font size is changed from the first option (small) to the third option (large). In addition, along with the change in the parameter of function item F[1], the sensing area for touch panel operation to select the displayed characters is also changed. In other words, for example, when a button icon with text is displayed, if the parameter of function item F[1] is changed from the first option (small) to the third option (large), the size of the touch panel sensing area for that button icon expands from the size corresponding to the first option (small) to the size corresponding to the third option (large). In the example in Figure 13, the parameter of function item F[2] corresponding to the screen color scheme is changed from the third option (dark) to the first option (light). In the example in Figure 13, the parameter of function item F[3] corresponding to the background design is changed from the first option (normal) to the fourth option (starry sky). In the example in Figure 13, the parameter of function item F[4] corresponding to the button design is changed from the first option (normal) to the second option (cookie style).

[0044] As described above, the operation of setting, changing, or updating the user interface content based on manual setting operations received from the user UU in the setting acceptance state will be referred to for convenience as manual UI setting operation or simply manual setting operation. The in-vehicle device 10 can perform manual setting operations on its own (the controller 11 can also perform manual setting operations). Through manual setting operations, the user interface can be customized to the user UU's preferences.

[0045] However, given the usage patterns of the in-vehicle device 10, it is presumed that frequent changes to the user interface content are not required. Therefore, the display state ST MAIN In many cases, the in-vehicle device 10 is designed so that multiple touch panel operations are required to reach the settings display state. As a result, it tends to take a relatively long time to reach the settings display state, and in some cases, it can be difficult for the user to reach the settings display state. In addition, manual setting operations for each function item are often cumbersome for the user.

[0046] Considering this, the in-vehicle device 10 is configured to enable a UI setting function using a generation AI. Unlike manual setting operations, the operation of setting, changing, or updating the content of the user interface using a generation AI is, for convenience, referred to as the automatic UI setting operation or simply the automatic setting operation. Figure 14 shows the configuration involved in realizing the automatic UI setting operation. The system SYS in Figure 1 is provided with processing units (processors) 1 to 6. Processing unit 4 is provided with a generation AI 4a. In this specification, AI is an abbreviation for Artificial Intelligence. The generation AI 4a receives prompt input. The prompt for the generation AI 4a is text data indicating an instruction (command) to the generation AI 4a. However, the prompt for the generation AI 4a may include or be attached to data other than text data. The generation AI 4a generates and outputs a creative work according to the content of the input prompt. The creative work that the generation AI 4a can generate is a user interface (graphical user interface) for any electronic device. The AI4a generator can generate text data as information to identify the content of a user interface, which is a creative work, and can also generate data in various formats (image data, programs, etc.) according to prompts.

[0047] Furthermore, each of the processing units 1 to 6 is capable of reading information stored in the database 40. In this case, processing units 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 read the information stored in the database 40 through the management device 30. That is, for example, when processing unit 1 reads the information to be read stored in the database 40, it requests the management device 30 to read the information to be read. The management controller 31 responds to this request by reading the information to be read from the database 40 and outputting the information to processing unit 1. As a result, processing unit 1 obtains the information to be read. The same applies to processing units 2 to 6. However, some of the processing units 1 to 6 may not be able to read the information stored in the database 40.

[0048] Furthermore, each of the processing units 1 to 6 may be capable of writing arbitrary information to the database 40. In this case, processing units 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 write the arbitrary information to the database 40 through the management device 30. That is, for example, when processing unit 1 writes information to be written to the database 40, it requests the management device 30 to write the information to be written. The management controller 31 responds to the request and writes the information to be written to the database 40. The same applies to processing units 2 to 6. However, some of the processing units 1 to 6 may be incapable of writing information to the database 40.

[0049] Processing unit 1 functions as a candidate information registration unit and registers candidate information EE according to specification information AA. Processing unit 1 is provided with a storage area 1a for storing candidate information EE. However, storage area 1a may be located outside of processing unit 1. Processing unit 1 can pre-create candidate information EE and store and register it in storage area 1a. Storage area 1a is a non-volatile storage area. Storage area 1a may be located in the memory 12 or recording medium 14 of the in-vehicle device 10, or it may be located in the database 40. Processing unit 1 outputs candidate information EE to processing unit 5 at the necessary timing.

[0050] Candidate user interfaces for the in-vehicle device 10 are referred to as candidate UIs (candidate interfaces). Multiple candidate UIs exist, and the controller 11 adopts and uses one of the multiple candidate UIs as the UI for the in-vehicle device 10. The total number of candidate UIs is represented by the symbol "n". That is, multiple candidate UIs are the 1st to the nth candidate UIs. n is any integer greater than or equal to 2, but is generally between 10 and 100 or more. The above-mentioned functional items F[1] to F[m] are also defined for each candidate UI. The content of the i-th candidate UI is specified (characterized) by each parameter of the functional items F[1] to F[m] in the i-th candidate UI.

[0051] For example, in specification information AA, three options are set for the function item F[1] corresponding to font size (see Figure 9). Therefore, even if we focus only on font size, there are three types of candidate UI. Similarly, in specification information AA, four options are set for the function item F[3] corresponding to background design (see Figure 9). Therefore, even if we focus only on background design, there are four types of candidate UI. The same applies to function items F[2] and F[4] and other function items. If we assume that the only function items in specification information AA are function items F[1] to F[4], then the value of n is equal to the product of the number of options for each of the function items F[1], F[2], F[3], and F[4], "3 × 3 × 4 × 3 = 108".

[0052] Image 611 in Figure 15(a) is the main menu image for a candidate UI with a small font size (e.g., the first candidate UI). Image 612 in Figure 15(b) is the main menu image for a candidate UI with a medium font size (e.g., the second candidate UI). Image 613 in Figure 15(c) is the main menu image for a candidate UI with a large font size (e.g., the third candidate UI). The screen color scheme and background design are also defined for each of these options.

[0053] Candidate Information EE is candidate interface information that shows the content of each candidate UI. Figure 16 shows the structure of Candidate Information EE. Candidate Information EE has pattern data for each functional item and for each choice.

[0054] Candidate information EE has pattern data PD[1,1] to PD[1,3] as the first to third pattern data for functional item F[1]. Pattern data PD[1,i] corresponds to the i-th option of functional item F[1] in specification information AA (see Figure 9). Pattern data PD[1,1] is image data of a predetermined character with a small character size. Pattern data PD[1,2] is image data of a predetermined character with a medium character size. Pattern data PD[1,3] is image data of a predetermined character with a large character size. Alternatively, pattern data PD[1,1] may be numerical information indicating the size of the small character. Similarly, pattern data PD[1,2] and PD[1,3] may be numerical information indicating the size of the medium and large characters, respectively.

[0055] Candidate information EE has pattern data PD[2,1] to PD[2,3] as the first to third pattern data for functional item F[2]. Pattern data PD[2,i] corresponds to the i-th option of functional item F[2] in specification information AA (see Figure 9). The pattern data PD[2,1] is image data of a first monochrome image with the screen color scheme of Light. The hue, saturation, and brightness of the first monochrome image are the average values ​​of the hue, saturation, and brightness of the display image of the display screen 16 when the first option (Light) is set for the parameter of the functional item F[2] in the setting information SS. The pattern data PD[2,2] is image data of a second monochrome image with the normal screen color scheme. The hue, saturation, and brightness of the second monochrome image are the average values ​​of the hue, saturation, and brightness of the display image of the display screen 16 when the second option (normal) is set for the parameter of the functional item F[2] in the setting information SS. The pattern data PD[2,3] is image data of a third monochrome image with a dark screen color scheme. The hue, saturation, and brightness of the third monochrome image are the average values ​​of the hue, saturation, and brightness of the display image of the display screen 16 when the third option (dark) is set for the parameter of the functional item F[2] in the setting information SS. Alternatively, pattern data PD[2,1] may be numerical information indicating the hue, saturation, and brightness of the first monochrome image. Similarly, pattern data PD[2,2] may be numerical information indicating the hue, saturation, and brightness of the second monochrome image, and pattern data PD[2,3] may be numerical information indicating the hue, saturation, and brightness of the third monochrome image.

[0056] Candidate information EE has pattern data PD[3,1] to PD[3,4] as the first to fourth pattern data for functional item F[3]. Pattern data PD[3,i] corresponds to the i-th option of functional item F[3] in specification information AA (see Figure 9). The pattern data PD[3,1] is the image data of the default background image. As already mentioned, the default background image is the image displayed in the background area of ​​the display screen 16 when the first option (normal) is set to the parameter of the function item F[3] in the setting information SS. Pattern data PD[3,2] is image data of a forest-themed background image. As already mentioned, the forest-themed background image is the image displayed in the background area of ​​the display screen 16 when the second option (forest) is set for the parameter of functional item F[3] in the setting information SS. The forest-themed background image may hereafter be referred to as the forest background image. Pattern data PD[3,3] is image data of a background image with a sea motif. As already mentioned, the background image with a sea motif is the image displayed in the background area of ​​the display screen 16 when the third option (sea) is set for the parameter of functional item F[3] in the setting information SS. The background image with a sea motif may hereafter be referred to as the sea background image. Pattern data PD[3,4] is image data of a background image with a starry sky motif. As already mentioned, the background image with a starry sky motif is the image displayed in the background area of ​​the display screen 16 when the fourth option (starry sky) is set for the parameter of functional item F[3] in the setting information SS. The background image with a starry sky motif may hereafter be referred to as the starry sky background image.

[0057] Candidate information EE has pattern data PD[4,1] to PD[4,4] as the first to third pattern data for functional item F[4]. Pattern data PD[4,i] corresponds to the i-th option of functional item F[4] in specification information AA (see Figure 9). The pattern data PD[4,1] is image data of the normal button icon. The normal button icon is a representative image of the button icon displayed on the display screen 16 when the first option (normal) is set for the parameter of the function item F[4] in the setting information SS. Pattern data PD[4,2] is image data of the cookie button icon. The cookie button icon is a representative image of the button icon displayed on the display screen 16 when the second option (cookie style) is set for the parameter of function item F[4] in the setting information SS. Pattern data PD[4,3] is image data of a metal button icon. The metal button icon is a representative image of the button icon displayed on the display screen 16 when the third option (metal finish) is set for the parameter of function item F[4] in the setting information SS.

[0058] It should be noted that, while it is assumed here that at least one of the pattern data in the candidate information EE consists of image data, a configuration in which the candidate information EE does not include image data (a configuration in which the candidate information EE contains only numerical or character information) may also be adopted.

[0059] Processing Unit 2 functions as a characteristic information acquisition unit. Processing Unit 2 acquires characteristic information BB indicating the user UU's preferences, etc., and outputs the acquired characteristic information BB to Processing Unit 3. The characteristic information BB from Processing Unit 2 is input to Processing Unit 3.

[0060] Processing unit 3 functions as a prompt generation unit. Processing unit 3 creates a UI generation instruction prompt CC based on characteristic information BB and outputs the created generation instruction prompt CC to processing unit 4. The generation instruction prompt CC from processing unit 3 is input to processing unit 4.

[0061] The generation instruction prompt CC is a prompt that instructs (commands) the generation of a UI. However, the generation result of generation AI4a itself is not necessarily the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. For this reason, more precisely, it can be said that the generation instruction prompt CC is a prompt that instructs (commands) the generation of a recommended UI. The recommended UI is an interface (user interface) that is recommended to be used as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. Since the generation instruction prompt CC is created according to the characteristic information BB, it is expected that generation AI4a will generate a UI (recommended UI) that matches the user UU's preferences.

[0062] The processing unit 4 functions as a UI generation unit. The processing unit 4 inputs a generation instruction prompt CC from the processing unit 3 to the generation AI 4a. The generation AI 4a generates a creative work DD (AI output information) according to the generation instruction prompt CC input to it. In the system SYS, the creative work DD generated by the generation AI 4a is a recommended UI and includes data indicating the content of the recommended UI (data that identifies the content of the recommended UI). The recommended UI is a UI recommended by the generation AI 4a (a UI that is recommended to be adopted in the in-vehicle device 10, derived according to the characteristic information BB).

[0063] Generation AI4a is an AI (a post-machine learning AI) trained to generate a creative work DD according to the information indicated in the generation instruction prompt CC. Various generation AIs capable of generating a UI according to the input prompt have been proposed, and existing generation AIs can be used as generation AI4a, or a generation AI designed and trained for the system SYS can be used as generation AI4a. Processing unit 4 outputs the creative work DD generated by generation AI4a to processing unit 5. The creative work DD from processing unit 4 is input to processing unit 5.

[0064] The processing unit 5 functions as a matching processing unit (in other words, a similarity evaluation unit). The processing unit 5 recognizes the content of the recommended UI based on the creative work DD input from the processing unit 4. The recommended UI consists of one or more constituent images. Each constituent image in the recommended UI is an image that is displayed on the display screen 16 when the recommended UI is used as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 (for example, display state ST). MAIN ,ST[i] and ST[i,j] are the overall images displayed on the display screen 16. For the sake of clarity, we will focus on one of the one or more constituent images and refer to the one constituent image we focus on as the recommended interface image. The recommended interface image corresponds to the main menu image of the recommended UI (see Figure 5) and includes one or more characters and one or more button icons. The processing unit 3 may include information instructing the generation of the main menu image of the in-vehicle device 10 in the generation instruction prompt CC in addition to the characteristic information BB. Image 620 in Figure 17 is an example of a recommended interface image included in the creative work DD.

[0065] On the other hand, processing unit 5 recognizes the content of each candidate UI based on the candidate information EE input from processing unit 1. Processing unit 5 performs a matching process that compares the recommended UI with each candidate UI and outputs matching result information FF, which indicates the result of the matching process, to processing unit 6. In the matching process, processing unit 5 derives the similarity between the recommended UI and the candidate UIs for each candidate UI, and identifies the candidate UI corresponding to the highest similarity among all candidate UIs as the suitable UI. The matching result information FF is information that indicates the content of the suitable UI.

[0066] The similarity between the recommended UI and the i-th candidate UI is specifically called the i-th Similarity SIM. That is, the i-th Similarity SIM is the similarity between the recommended UI and the i-th candidate UI. The i-th Similarity SIM has a larger value the higher the similarity between the recommended UI and the i-th candidate UI. If the k-th Similarity SIM has the highest similarity among the first to n-th Similarity SIMs, then the k-th candidate UI is identified as the suitable UI (where k is a natural number less than or equal to n).

[0067] If the font size in the i-th candidate UI is "small", the processing unit 5 reflects the similarity between the font size in the recommended interface image and the font size corresponding to pattern data PD[1,1] in the i-th similarity SIM. If the font size in the i-th candidate UI is "medium", the processing unit 5 reflects the similarity between the font size in the recommended interface image and the font size corresponding to pattern data PD[1,2] in the i-th similarity SIM. If the font size in the i-th candidate UI is "large", the processing unit 5 reflects the similarity between the font size in the recommended interface image and the font size corresponding to pattern data PD[1,3] in the i-th similarity SIM. The same applies to screen color schemes and background designs. The processing unit 5 can perform matching processing according to a pre-designed similarity evaluation algorithm. There are various evaluation methods for evaluating similarity to images, and the processing unit 5 can adopt any evaluation method.

[0068] The processing unit 6 displays a UI on the display screen 16 that has content according to each parameter in the setting information SS. The processing unit 6 functions as a result reflection unit and performs UI reflection processing to reflect the results of the matching process in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. Matching result information FF is input to the processing unit 6 from the processing unit 5. Matching result information FF indicates the parameters of each functional item (F[1]~F[m]) of the compatible UI. In the UI reflection processing, the processing unit 6 sets and updates each parameter in the setting information SS according to the matching result information FF, thereby setting the content of the compatible UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 (i.e., updating the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 with the content of the compatible UI). As a result, after the UI reflection processing, the controller 11 will use the compatible UI as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. Note that each parameter in the setting information SS refers, in detail, to the parameters of each functional item (F[1]~F[m]) in the setting information SS.

[0069] The processing unit 6 can also perform manual setting operations. The processing unit 6 involved in manual setting operations sets and updates each parameter in the setting information SS according to the manual setting operation from the user UU, thereby setting and updating the contents of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 according to the manual setting operation.

[0070] Processing units 1 to 6 may all be provided in the in-vehicle device 10. In this case, processing units 1 to 6 are built into the controller 11 of the in-vehicle device 10. Alternatively, some of the processing units 1 to 6 may be provided in the in-vehicle device 10, and the remaining processing units may be provided in the server device 20. In this case, some of the processing units are built into the controller 11 of the in-vehicle device 10, and the remaining processing units are built into the controller 21 of the server device 20. When one processing unit is provided in the in-vehicle device 10 and another processing unit is provided in the server device 20, the output (transmission) of information from the former processing unit to the latter processing unit is performed via the communication circuit 13, and the information is input (received) to the latter processing unit via the communication circuit 23. The same applies to the output and input of data or signals. When one processing unit is provided in the server device 20 and another processing unit is provided in the in-vehicle device 10, the output (transmission) of information from the former processing unit to the latter processing unit is performed via the communication circuit 23, and the information is input (received) to the latter processing unit via the communication circuit 13. The same applies to the output and input of data or signals.

[0071] Each of the processing units 1 to 6 may be an independent arithmetic processing unit. An arithmetic processing unit is, for example, an MCU (Micro Controller Unit) or a SOC (System on a Chip). If any two or more of the processing units 1 to 6 are built into the controller 11, these two or more processing units may be two or more arithmetic processing units within the controller 11, or a single arithmetic processing unit within the controller 11 may function as these two or more processing units. If any two or more of the processing units 1 to 6 are built into the controller 21, these two or more processing units may be two or more arithmetic processing units within the controller 21, or a single arithmetic processing unit within the controller 21 may function as these two or more processing units.

[0072] Referring to Figures 18(a) to (f), configuration methods α1 to α6 are illustrated to show which device each of the processing units 1 to 6 is installed in. Any of configuration methods α1 to α6 can be adopted in the SYS system, and configuration methods other than those α1 to α6 can also be adopted.

[0073] In configuration method α1, as shown in Figure 18(a), processing units 2 and 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10 (and therefore the controller 11), while processing units 1 and 3-5 are provided in the server device 20 (and therefore the controller 21). In configuration method α2, as shown in Figure 18(b), processing units 2, 3 and 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10 (and therefore the controller 11), while processing units 1, 4 and 5 are provided in the server device 20 (and therefore the controller 21). In configuration method α3, as shown in Figure 18(c), processing units 2, 3, 5 and 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10 (and therefore the controller 11), while processing units 1 and 4 are provided in the server device 20 (and therefore the controller 21). In configuration method α4, as shown in Figure 18(d), processing units 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10 (and therefore the controller 11), while processing unit 4 is provided in the server device 20 (and therefore the controller 21). In configuration method α5, as shown in Figure 18(e), processing units 2 to 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10 (and therefore the controller 11), while processing unit 1 is provided in the server device 20 (and therefore the controller 21). In configuration method α6, as shown in Figure 18(f), all processing units 1 to 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10 (and therefore the controller 11). When configuration method α6 is adopted, the automatic UI setting operation is realized by the in-vehicle device 10 alone, without using the server device 20.

[0074] If the processing unit 3 is located on an external device to the in-vehicle device 10, the device on which the processing unit 3 is located may be a computer device owned or managed by a service provider different from the manufacturer or distributor of the in-vehicle device 10. If the generating AI 4a is located on an external device to the in-vehicle device 10, the device on which the generating AI 4a is located may be a computer device owned or managed by an AI operator different from the manufacturer or distributor of the in-vehicle device 10. The service provider and the AI ​​operator may be the same company or different companies. As described above, the storage area 1a may be located in the database 40, in which case the database 40 having the storage area 1a may be a database owned or managed by a service provider.

[0075] The following describes several specific operational examples, application techniques, and modification techniques within multiple embodiments. Unless otherwise specified and without contradiction, the matters described above apply to each of the following embodiments. In the event of any inconsistency between the above and the embodiments described above, the description in the respective embodiment may take precedence. Furthermore, unless there is a contradiction, the matters described in any of the embodiments shown below can be applied to any other embodiment (i.e., any two or more embodiments from the multiple embodiments can be combined).

[0076] <<Example EX_1A>> Example EX_1A will be described. Example EX_1A provides a specific example of the matching process performed by the processing unit 5. In the matching process in Example EX_1A, a suitable UI is selected by evaluating the similarity between the recommended UI and each candidate UI for each functional item. To make the explanation more concrete, in Example EX_1A, we focus only on functional items F[1] to F[4] out of functional items F[1] to F[m] and assume that "m=4".

[0077] Also, among the candidate UIs, the i-th function item F[1] A The option was adopted, and the i-th item was assigned to functional item F[2]. B The option was adopted, and the i-th item was assigned to functional item F[3]. C The option is adopted and the i-th item in functional item F[4] D The candidate UI selected from the options is the candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D It is written as ]. A ~i D This value is determined by the number of options in specification information AA (Figure 9). Specifically, i A i represents a natural number less than or equal to the total number of options for functional item F[1] in specification information AA (i.e., 3). B i represents a natural number less than or equal to the total number of choices (i.e., 3) for functional item F[2] in specification information AA. C i represents a natural number less than or equal to the total number of choices (i.e., 4) for functional item F[3] in specification information AA. Drepresents a natural number less than or equal to the total number of options (i.e., 3) for functional item F[4] in specification information AA.

[0078] Candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D ] represents one of the 1st to nth candidate UIs. For example, candidate UI[1,1,1,1], candidate UI[2,1,1,1], candidate UI[3,1,1,1], candidate[1,2,1,1], candidate UI[2,2,1,1], and candidate UI[3,2,1,1] are the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th candidate UIs, respectively. Candidate UI[1,1,1,1] to candidate UI[3,3,4,3] form the 1st to nth candidate UIs (a total of 108 candidate UIs).

[0079] Furthermore, in the matching process, candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D The similarity derived for ] is similarity SIM[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D This is written as ]. Candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D If ] is the i-th candidate UI, then the similarity SIM[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D ] is the i-th similarity SIM. Therefore, for example, if candidate UI[1,1,1,1] is the first candidate UI, then similarity SIM[1,1,1,1] is the first similarity SIM, and if candidate UI[2,1,1,1] is the second candidate UI, then similarity SIM[2,1,1,1] is the second similarity SIM. Note that candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D ] and similarity SIM[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D The notation ] may also be used in other embodiments described later.

[0080] When processing unit 5 performs the matching process, it immediately initializes all similarity SIMs (i.e., similarity SIM[1,1,1,1] to SIM[3,3,4,3]) by assigning them to zero. After that, it updates each similarity SIM as follows.

[0081] Processing unit 5 derives the size of the characters included in the recommended interface image as the original character size based on the creative work DD. Processing unit 5, which is involved in the matching process, identifies the size that is closest to the original character size from among the small, medium, and large sizes based on the pattern data PD[1,1] to PD[1,3] as the appropriate character size. If the recommended interface image contains multiple characters of multiple sizes, processing unit 5 derives the average value of the sizes of those multiple characters as the original character size.

[0082] The matching process includes the following first addition process based on the suitable character size. The processing unit 5 related to the first addition process, if the suitable character size is small, then "1≦i B ≤3”, “1≦i C ≤4” and “1 ≤ i D All similarity SIMs satisfying ≤3'' [1,i B ,i C ,i D Add "1" to ]. Processing unit 5 related to the first addition process, if the suitable character size is medium, then "1≦i B ≤3”, “1≦i C ≤4” and “1 ≤ i D All similarity SIMs satisfying ≤3'' [2,i B ,i C ,i D Add "1" to ]. Processing unit 5 related to the first addition process, if the suitable character size is large, then "1≦i B ≤3”, “1≦i C ≤4” and “1 ≤ i D All similarity SIMs satisfying ≤3'' [3,i B ,i C ,i D Add "1" to ].

[0083] Based on the creative work DD, the processing unit 5 derives the screen color scheme of the recommended interface image as the creative screen color scheme. The creative screen color scheme indicates the hue, saturation, and brightness of the recommended interface image. In the creative screen color scheme, the hue of the recommended interface image may have the average value of the hues in the whole recommended interface image. In the creative screen color scheme, the saturation of the recommended interface image may have the average value of the saturations in the whole recommended interface image. In the creative screen color scheme, the brightness of the recommended interface image may have the average value of the brightnesses in the whole recommended interface image. The processing unit 5 related to the matching process specifies, as the matching screen color scheme, the screen color scheme that is closest to the creative screen color scheme among the screen color schemes of light, normal, and dark based on the pattern data PD[2,1] to PD[2,3]. The processing unit 5 can evaluate the proximity between the former and each of the latter by deriving the Euclidean distance between the creative screen color scheme and each of the screen color schemes of light, normal, and dark in the color space with hue, saturation, and brightness as three axes.

[0084] The matching process includes the following second addition process based on the matching screen color scheme. If the matching screen color scheme is the screen color scheme of light, the processing unit 5 related to the second addition process adds "1" to all similarities SIM[i A ≦3", "1≦i C ≦4", and "1≦i D ≦3" that satisfy A ,1,i C ,i D . If the matching screen color scheme is the screen color scheme of normal, the processing unit 5 related to the second addition process adds "1" to all similarities SIM[i A ≦3", "1≦i C ≦4", and "1≦i D ≦3" that satisfy A ,2,i C ,i D . If the matching screen color scheme is the screen color scheme of dark, the processing unit 5 related to the second addition process adds "1" to all similarities SIM[i A ≦3", "1≦i C ≦4", and "1≦i DFor all similarities SIM[i] satisfying ≦ 3”, add “1”. A , 3, i C , i D .

[0085] Based on the creative work DD, the processing unit 5 extracts the background image in the recommended interface image. The background image in the recommended interface image is the image within the background area in the recommended interface image. The processing unit 5 related to the matching process compares the default background image, forest background image, sea background image, and starry sky background image based on the pattern data PD[3,1] to PD[3,4] with the background image in the recommended interface image. Based on the comparison result, the processing unit 5 related to the matching process selects any one of the default background image, forest background image, sea background image, and starry sky background image as the matching background image. The matching background image is the background image that is most similar to the background image in the recommended interface image among the default background image, forest background image, sea background image, and starry sky background image. The processing unit 5 can evaluate the similarity between a plurality of background images to be compared through processes such as extracting feature amounts from the image data of each background image.

[0086] The matching process includes the following third addition process based on the matching background image. If the matching background image is the default background image, the processing unit 5 related to the third addition process adds “1” to all similarities SIM[i] satisfying “1 ≦ i A ≦ 3”, “1 ≦ i B ≦ 3” and “1 ≦ i D ≦ 3”. A , i B , 1, i D . If the matching background image is the forest background image, the processing unit 5 related to the third addition process adds “1”- A ≦ 3”, “1 ≦ i B ≦ 3” and “1 ≦ i D ≦ 3”. A , i B , 2, i D . If the matching background image is the sea background image, the processing unit 5 related to the third addition process adds “1” to all similarities SIM[i] satisfying “1 ≦ i[[ID=​​≤3" and “1 ≤ i D All similarity SIMs that satisfy ≤3” [i A ,i B ,3,i D Add "1" to ]. Processing unit 5 related to the third addition process determines if the suitable background image is a starry sky background image, then "1≦i A ≤3”, “1≦i B ≤3" and “1 ≤ i D All similarity SIMs that satisfy ≤3” [i A ,i B ,4,i D Add "1" to ].

[0087] The processing unit 5 extracts button icons from the recommended interface image based on the creative work DD. The processing unit 5, which is involved in the matching process, compares the normal button icons, cookie button icons, and metal button icons based on the pattern data PD[4,1]~PD[4,3] with the button icons in the recommended interface image. Based on the comparison results, the processing unit 5, which is involved in the matching process, selects one of the normal button icons, cookie button icons, and metal button icons as the suitable button icon. The suitable button icon is the button icon that is most similar to the button icon in the recommended interface image among the normal button icons, cookie button icons, and metal button icons. The processing unit 5 can evaluate the similarity between multiple button icons to be compared through processes such as extracting features from the image data of each button icon.

[0088] The matching process includes the following fourth addition process based on the matching button icon. The processing unit 5 related to the fourth addition process performs the following if the matching button icon is a normal button icon: “1≦i A ≤3”, “1≦i B ≤3" and “1 ≤ i C All similarity SIMs that satisfy ≤4” [i A ,i B ,i C Add "1" to [1]. The processing unit 5 related to the fourth addition process determines if the matching button icon is a cookie button icon, then "1≦iA ≤3”, “1≦i B ≤3" and “1 ≤ i C All similarity SIMs that satisfy ≤4” [i A ,i B ,i C Add "1" to [2]. The processing unit 5 for the fourth addition process determines if the matching button icon is a metal button icon, then "1≦i A ≤3”, “1≦i B ≤3" and “1 ≤ i C All similarity SIMs that satisfy ≤4” [i A ,i B ,i C Add "1" to [3].

[0089] The processing unit 5 involved in the matching process identifies the maximum similarity among all similarity SIMs (i.e., similarity SIM[1,1,1,1] to SIM[3,3,4,3]) after the first to fourth addition processes, and identifies the candidate UI corresponding to the maximum similarity as the suitable UI. By performing the first to fourth addition processes, only one similarity among all similarity SIMs has the maximum value of "4". Therefore, among similarity SIMs [1,1,1,1] to SIM[3,3,4,3], the similarity with the value of "4" is the maximum similarity.

[0090] For example, consider the first case where the suitable font size, suitable screen color scheme, suitable background image, and suitable button icon are small size, dark screen color scheme, forest background image, and metal button icon, respectively (see Figure 16 as appropriate). In the first case, the highest similarity is similarity SIM[1,3,2,3], and therefore the suitable UI is candidate UI[1,3,2,3]. Alternatively, consider the second case where the suitable font size, suitable screen color scheme, suitable background image, and suitable button icon are large size, light screen color scheme, starry sky background image, and cookie button icon, respectively (see Figure 16 as appropriate). In the second case, the highest similarity is similarity SIM[3,1,4,2], and therefore the suitable UI is candidate UI[3,1,4,2].

[0091] If the suitable UI is candidate UI[1,3,2,3], the matching result information FF indicates that the parameters of the functional items F[1] to F[4] of the suitable UI are, respectively, the first choice (small size), the third choice (dark), the second choice (forest), and the third choice (metallic). Therefore, if the suitable UI is candidate UI[1,3,2,3], the processing unit 6 sets the parameters of the functional items F[1] to F[4] of the setting information SS to the first choice (small size), the third choice (dark), the second choice (forest), and the third choice (metallic) in the UI reflection process. As a result, the content of candidate UI[1,3,2,3] that matches the user UU's preferences is set as the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0092] If the suitable UI is candidate UI[3,1,4,2], the matching result information FF indicates that the parameters of the functional items F[1] to F[4] of the suitable UI are the third option (large size), the first option (light), the fourth option (starry sky), and the second option (cookie-like), respectively. Therefore, if the suitable UI is candidate UI[3,1,4,2], the processing unit 6 sets the parameters of the functional items F[1] to F[4] of the setting information SS to the third option (large size), the first option (light), the fourth option (starry sky), and the second option (cookie-like), respectively, during the UI reflection process. As a result, the content of candidate UI[3,1,4,2] that matches the user UU's preferences is set as the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0093] The same applies when the suitable UI is different from candidate UI[1,3,2,3] and candidate UI[3,1,4,2]. In general terms, it is as follows: If the suitable UI is different from candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C ,i D If ], the matching result information FF will be that the parameters of the functional items F[1] to F[4] of the compatible UI are, in each case, i A Option i B Option i C Option i D This indicates that it is an option. Therefore, the suitable UI is the candidate UI [i A ,i B ,iC ,i D If this is the case, the processing unit 6, in the UI reflection process, sets the parameters of the function items F[1] to F[4] of the setting information SS to the i A Option i B Option i C Option i D Set the options.

[0094] <<Example EX_1B>> Example EX_1B will be described. Example EX_1B provides another specific example of the matching process performed by the processing unit 5. To make the explanation more concrete, as with Example EX_1A, in Example EX_1B we will focus only on functional items F[1] to F[4] out of functional items F[1] to F[m] and assume that "m=4".

[0095] The processing unit 5 can form main menu images for the first to nth candidate UIs based on the candidate information EE. That is, the processing unit 5 can form the main menu image for the first candidate UI and the main menu image for the second candidate UI based on the candidate information EE, and can also form main menu images for the other candidate UIs. The main menu image for the ith candidate UI is referred to as the main menu image for the ith candidate. The three images 611 to 613 shown in Figures 15(a) to (c) are the main menu images for three of the first to nth candidate UIs.

[0096] As described above, the recommended interface image corresponds to the main menu image of the recommended UI (see Figure 5). The processing unit 5 involved in the matching process compares the recommended interface image based on the creative work DD with each of the first to nth candidate main menu images. Based on the comparison results, the processing unit 5 involved in the matching process selects one of the first to nth candidate main menu images as the suitable main menu image. The suitable main menu image is the image among the first to nth candidate main menu images that is most similar to the recommended interface image. The processing unit 5 can evaluate the similarity between multiple main menu images to be compared by processing such as extracting features from the image data of each main menu image. In addition, the method of evaluating similarity is arbitrary. The similarity between the i-th candidate main menu image and the recommended interface image may be evaluated based on the SSD (Sum of Squared Difference) or SAD (Sum of Absolute Difference).

[0097] The processing unit 5, which is responsible for the matching process, derives the similarity between the i-th candidate main menu image and the recommended interface image as the i-th similarity SIM. If the k-th similarity SIM has the highest similarity among the first to n-th similarity SIMs, then the k-th candidate UI is identified as the suitable UI (where k is a natural number less than or equal to n). The suitable UI is one of the candidate UIs from [1,1,1,1] to [3,3,4,3].

[0098] For example, the content of the matching result information FF and the UI determination process when the suitable UI is candidate UI[1,3,2,3] is as described in Example EX_1A. Similarly, for example, the content of the matching result information FF and the UI determination process when the suitable UI is candidate UI[3,1,4,2] is as described in Example EX_1A. The same applies when the suitable UI is different from candidate UI[1,3,2,3] and candidate UI[3,1,4,2]. In general terms, it is as follows: If the suitable UI is candidate UI[i A ,i B ,i C,i D If ], the matching result information FF will be that the parameters of the functional items F[1] to F[4] of the compatible UI are, in each case, i A Option i B Option i C Option i D This indicates that it is an option. Therefore, the suitable UI is the candidate UI [i A ,i B ,i C ,i D If this is the case, the processing unit 6, in the UI reflection process, sets the parameters of the function items F[1] to F[4] of the setting information SS to the i A Option i B Option i C Option i D Set the options.

[0099] <<Example EX_2A>> Example EX_2A will be described. Example EX_2A describes an example of the flow in which the UI is set up and updated through an automatic UI setting operation. Figure 19 shows the input and output information of processing units 1 to 6 related to Example EX_2A.

[0100] Processing unit 2 outputs text data 720 representing characteristic information BB to processing unit 3. Text data 720 is the text data of the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors" which indicates the user UU's preferences. For example, when the user UU speaks a sentence that indicates the user UU's preferences, the acoustic signal of the spoken sentence is transmitted from the microphone MC to the in-vehicle device 1, and the acoustic signal is input to processing unit 2. Processing unit 2 generates characteristic information BB by converting the input acoustic signal into text data using well-known speech recognition technology. In the example in Figure 19, when the user UU speaks the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors", the text data of that sentence is generated as text data 720 in processing unit 2.

[0101] The processing unit 3 generates text data 730 based on text data 720 corresponding to characteristic information BB. Text data 730 is the generation instruction prompt CC related to Example EX_2A. Text data 730 is composite text data obtained by combining text data 731, 732, and 733 in that order. However, text data other than text data 731 to 733 may be included in text data 730.

[0102] Text data 731 is the text data of the sentence "User opinions regarding the user interface of in-vehicle devices are as follows." Text data 731 may be a predetermined standard text data. Text data 732 is the same as text data 720. However, text data 732 may differ slightly from text data 720. Processing unit 3 may generate text data 732 by slightly modifying text data 720 into an expression format suitable as a prompt to generated AI 4a. For example, text data 732 may be the text data of the sentence "Users prefer large fonts. Users prefer bright color schemes." based on text data 720.

[0103] Text data 733 is text data that instructs the generation of a user interface. Since the in-vehicle device 10 already has a hardware user interface (display screen 16), the generation of a user interface does not refer to creating the user interface (display screen 16) as a physical object, but rather to generating the content of the user interface (display content, display design). Text data 733 can also be said to instruct the generation of data that shows the content of the recommended UI. In the example in Figure 19, text data 733 is the text data of the sentence "Please generate a recommended user interface." Text data 733 may be predetermined standard text data. As mentioned above, when performing matching processing using the recommended interface image, which is the main menu image of the recommended UI, the following supplementary text data may be added to text data 733 to ensure that the matching processing is executed reliably. The supplementary text is a sentence that instructs the generation AI 4a to generate the main menu image, and is, for example, the text data of the sentence "Please generate the main menu image for the recommended user interface."

[0104] The processing unit 4 receives text data 730 corresponding to the generation instruction prompt CC and inputs the text data 730 to the generation AI 4a. The generation AI 4a generates the creative work DD according to the generation instruction prompt CC provided by the text data 730. The generation AI 4a is an AI (AI after machine learning) that has been trained to generate a creative work DD in accordance with the information indicated in the generation instruction prompt CC. The generation AI 4a identifies the content of the recommended UI from the text data 732 corresponding to the characteristic information BB and generates the recommended UI as the creative work DD. The configuration image of the recommended UI includes a recommended interface image corresponding to the main menu image of the recommended UI.

[0105] The operation of processing units 5 and 6 after the generation of the creative work DD is as described above, and examples of the operation of processing units 5 and 6 may be those shown in Example EX_1A or EX_1B. However, in Example EX_2A, attention is paid only to functional items F[1] and F[2]. Based on characteristic information BB (text data 720, 732), it is expected that the font size in the recommended UI configuration image will be relatively large, and the screen color scheme of the recommended UI configuration image will be relatively bright. As a result, a candidate UI in which the third option (large size) is adopted for functional item F[1] and the first option (light) is adopted for functional item F[2] is determined to be the suitable UI. Matching result information FF indicating the content of the suitable UI is output from processing unit 5 to processing unit 6.

[0106] The processing unit 6 performs a UI reflection process to reflect the adapted UI in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. In the UI reflection process, the processing unit 6 sets and updates each parameter in the setting information SS according to the matching result information FF, thereby setting the content of the adapted UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 (i.e., updating the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 with the content of the adapted UI). As a result, after the UI reflection process, the controller 11 uses the adapted UI as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0107] When setting the content of the compliant UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10, the processing unit 6 involved in the UI reflection process updates the setting information SS (UI setting information) as shown in Figure 20(a). The setting information SS shown on the left in Figure 20(a) is the setting information SS before the content of the compliant UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. In this setting information SS before setting, the parameter of function item F[1] is "small" and the parameter of function item F[2] is "dark". The setting information SS shown on the right in Figure 20(a) is the setting information SS after the content of the compliant UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. In this setting information SS after setting, the parameter of function item F[1] is "large" and the parameter of function item F[2] is "light". In other words, in the example shown in Figure 20(a), the processing unit 6, in the UI reflection process, changes the parameter of function item F[1] in the setting information SS from "small" to "large" based on the matching result information FF, and changes the parameter of function item F[2] in the setting information SS from "dark" to "light". Here, we have focused only on function items F[1] and F[2], but the parameters of other function items can also be set and changed in a similar manner based on the matching result information FF.

[0108] When the setting information SS is changed based on the matching result information FF as shown in Figure 20(a), the display state of the display screen 16 changes. In Figure 20(b), the display screen 16 shown on the left is the display screen 16 before the content of the compatible UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. In Figure 20(b), the display screen 16 shown on the right is the display screen 16 after the content of the compatible UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. As a result of this setting, Figure 20(b) shows how the font size changes from "small" to "large" and the screen color scheme changes from "dark" to "light" on the display screen 16.

[0109] In this automatic UI configuration process, a generation instruction prompt CC is created based on characteristic information BB corresponding to the user UU's preferences, and this generation instruction prompt CC is input to the generation AI4a. Based on the generation instruction prompt CC, the generation AI4a generates a recommended UI as a creative work DD. The processing unit 5 compares the recommended UI with several registered candidate UIs and selects one of the candidate UIs as the suitable UI. The processing unit 6 then reflects the suitable UI in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. Therefore, the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 is expected to be tailored to the user UU's preferences. In other words, this automatic configuration process allows the user UU to easily use a UI that suits their preferences. This means that the user UU can use a UI that suits their preferences without having to expend effort to reach the configuration display state (Figure 12) or perform manual configuration operations for each function item. Furthermore, instead of directly applying the generation results of the AI4a to the UI of the in-vehicle device 10, a suitable UI is selected from among several candidate UIs that can be adopted by the in-vehicle device 10. This ensures that the suitable UI is reflected in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 without any problems.

[0110] The processing unit 3 creates a generation instruction prompt CC by combining multiple text data, including the text data of characteristic information BB and text data instructing the generation of a UI (generation of UI content). This makes it possible to automatically generate a UI that matches the user UU's preferences. In the example in Figure 19, multiple text data (731-733), including text data 732 and 733, are combined to generate text data 730 as the generation instruction prompt CC. What is generated by generation AI4a is not the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 itself, but a recommended UI. Therefore, strictly speaking, UI generation refers to the generation of a recommended UI (generation of the content of the recommended UI).

[0111] Processing unit 5 derives a similarity SIM between the recommended UI and each of the multiple candidate UIs. Processing unit 6, which is responsible for the UI reflection process, updates the UI content of the in-vehicle device 10 with the content of the candidate UI corresponding to the highest similarity SIM. Therefore, after the UI reflection process, the controller 11 uses the suitable UI as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. This makes it possible to reflect the user's preferences, etc., in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. The candidate UI corresponding to the highest similarity SIM is the suitable UI. In the UI reflection process, processing unit 6 sets the parameter of function item F[i] in the suitable UI to the parameter of function item F[i] in the setting information SS. As described above, the actual UI content in the in-vehicle device 10 is determined by the parameters in the setting information SS.

[0112] <<Example EX_2B>> Example EX_2B will be described. Example EX_2B describes another example of the flow in which the UI is set up and updated by an automatic UI setting operation. According to the automatic setting operation of this embodiment, the user UU can reflect their preferences in the UI with a very high degree of freedom. Figure 21 shows the input and output information of processing units 1 to 6 related to Example EX_2B.

[0113] Processing unit 2 outputs text data 720a representing characteristic information BB to processing unit 3. Text data 720a is the text data of the sentence "• Set the screen to be easy to see and sparkly, something that children will like." which represents the user UU's preferences. For example, when the user UU speaks a sentence that represents the user UU's preferences, the acoustic signal of the spoken sentence is transmitted from the microphone MC to the in-vehicle device 1, and through this transmission, the acoustic signal is input to processing unit 2. Processing unit 2 generates characteristic information BB by converting the input acoustic signal into text data using well-known speech recognition technology. In the example in Figure 21, when the user UU speaks the sentence "Set the screen to be easy to see and sparkly, something that children will like," the text data of that sentence is generated as text data 720a by processing unit 2.

[0114] The processing unit 3 generates text data 730a based on text data 720a corresponding to characteristic information BB. Text data 730a is the generation instruction prompt CC related to Example EX_2B. Text data 730a is composite text data obtained by combining text data 731, 732a, and 733 in that order. However, text data other than text data 731, 732a, and 733 may be included in text data 730a.

[0115] Text data 731 in text data 730a is the same as text data 731 in text data 730 in Figure 19. Text data 732a is the same as text data 720a. However, text data 732a may differ slightly from text data 720a. Processing unit 3 may generate text data 732a by slightly modifying text data 720a into an expression format suitable as a prompt to generation AI 4a. Text data 733 in text data 730a is the same as text data 733 in text data 730 in Figure 19. As described above, when performing matching processing using the recommended interface image, which is the main menu image of the recommended UI, the following supplementary text data may be added to text data 733 to ensure that the matching processing is reliably executed. The supplementary text is a sentence instructing generation AI 4a to generate the main menu image, for example, the text data of the sentence "Please generate the main menu image for the recommended user interface."

[0116] The processing unit 4 receives text data 730a corresponding to the generation instruction prompt CC and inputs the text data 730a to the generation AI 4a. The generation AI 4a generates the creative work DD according to the generation instruction prompt CC provided by the text data 730a. The generation AI 4a is an AI (a post-machine learning AI) that has been trained to generate a creative work DD in accordance with the information indicated in the generation instruction prompt CC. The generation AI 4a identifies the content of the recommended UI from the text data 732a corresponding to the characteristic information BB and generates the recommended UI as the creative work DD. The configuration images of the recommended UI include a recommended interface image corresponding to the main menu image of the recommended UI.

[0117] The operation of processing units 5 and 6 after the generation of the creative work DD is as described above, and examples of the operation of processing units 5 and 6 may be those shown in Example EX_1A or EX_1B. However, in Example EX_2B, attention is paid only to functional items F[1] to F[4]. Based on characteristic information BB (text data 720a, 732a), it is expected that the font size in the recommended UI configuration image will be relatively large, and the screen color scheme of the recommended UI configuration image will be relatively bright. Also, based on characteristic information BB (text data 720a, 732a), it is expected that the background design in the recommended UI configuration image will be dazzling, and the button icons in the recommended UI will be child-friendly. As a result, candidate UIs in which the third option (large size), first option (light), fourth option (starry sky), and second option (cookie style) are adopted for functional items F[1], F[2], F[3], and F[4], respectively, are determined to be suitable UIs. In other words, the suitable UI is assumed to be candidate UI[3,1,4,2]. Matching result information FF, which indicates the content of the suitable UI, is output from processing unit 5 to processing unit 6.

[0118] The processing unit 6 performs a UI reflection process to reflect the adapted UI in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. In the UI reflection process, the processing unit 6 sets and updates each parameter in the setting information SS according to the matching result information FF, thereby setting the content of the adapted UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 (i.e., updating the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 with the content of the adapted UI). As a result, after the UI reflection process, the controller 11 uses the adapted UI as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0119] When setting the content of the adapted UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10, the processing unit 6 involved in the UI reflection process updates the setting information SS (UI setting information) as shown in Figure 22(a). The setting information SS shown on the left in Figure 22(a) is the setting information SS before the content of the adapted UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10, and is equivalent to the setting information SS1 in Figure 11(a). In the setting information SS before the setting, the parameters of the function items F[1], F[2], F[3], and F[4] are set to "small", "dark", "normal", and "normal", respectively. In Figure 22(a), the setting information SS shown on the right is the setting information SS after the content of the compatible UI has been set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10, and is equivalent to the setting information SS2 in Figure 11(b). In the setting information SS after this setting, the parameters of the function items F[1], F[2], F[3], and F[4] are "Large", "Light", "Starry Sky", and "Cookie Style", respectively. In other words, in the UI reflection process, the processing unit 6 in the example of Figure 22(a) changes the parameter of the function item F[1] in the setting information SS from "Small" to "Large" and the parameter of the function item F[2] in the setting information SS from "Dark" to "Light", based on the matching result information FF. The processing unit 6 in the example of Figure 22(a) changes the parameter of the function item F[3] in the setting information SS from "Normal" to "Starry Sky" and the parameter of the function item F[4] in the setting information SS from "Normal" to "Cookie Style", based on the matching result information FF. Here, we have focused only on functional items F[1] to F[4], but similarly, the parameters of other functional items can also be set and modified based on the matching result information FF.

[0120] When the setting information SS is changed based on the matching result information FF as shown in Figure 22(a), the display state of the display screen 16 changes. In Figure 22(b), the display screen 16 shown on the left is the display screen 16 before the content of the compatible UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. In Figure 22(b), the display screen 16 shown on the right is the display screen 16 after the content of the compatible UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. As a result of this setting, Figure 22(b) shows how the font size changes from "small" to "large", the screen color scheme changes from "dark" to "light", the background design changes from "normal" to "starry sky", and the button design changes from "normal" to "cookie style" on the display screen 16.

[0121] <<Example EX_3A>> Example EX_3A will be described. Example EX_3A describes the method for registering or acquiring candidate information EE in the processing unit 1. Candidate information EE is determined during the design phase of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0122] The processing unit 1 acquires candidate information EE by reading it from the memory area 1a. This allows for easy acquisition of candidate information EE (reducing the load on the processing unit 1). As described above, the processing unit 1 may be provided in the in-vehicle device 10 or the server device 20.

[0123] The storage area 1a may be provided in the in-vehicle device 10, for example, in the recording medium 14 or in the non-volatile memory within the memory 12. In particular, when the configuration method α4 in Figure 18(d) or the configuration method α6 in Figure 18(f) is adopted, it is preferable to provide the storage area 1a in the in-vehicle device 10 (however, it is also possible to provide the storage area 1a in the database 40).

[0124] The storage area 1a may be located in the database 40. In this case, the processing unit 1 obtains candidate information EE by reading the information in the storage area 1a in the database 40 through the management device 30. The database 40 stores candidate information (candidate interface information) for each of the multiple types of in-vehicle devices. One of the multiple types of in-vehicle devices is the in-vehicle device 10, which is the focus of this embodiment. Here, the first type of in-vehicle device is the in-vehicle device 10, and the other types of in-vehicle devices are in-vehicle devices other than the in-vehicle device 10. The candidate information for the in-vehicle device 10 is the candidate information EE. The candidate information for the other types of in-vehicle devices has a similar structure to the candidate information EE. However, the multiple pieces of candidate information for multiple types of in-vehicle devices may be different from each other. For example, in the first type of in-vehicle device (in-vehicle device 10), the font size can be set to one of three types, so the candidate information EE corresponding to the first type of in-vehicle device has three pattern data for the functional item F[1]. In contrast, for example, in the second type of in-vehicle device, the font size can be set to one of two types, and therefore, the candidate information corresponding to the second type of in-vehicle device has two pattern data with respect to the functional item F[1].

[0125] Each of the multiple types of in-vehicle devices is assigned a unique model identification ID (model number, etc.), and each of the multiple types of in-vehicle devices stores its own model identification ID in its built-in ROM. Each candidate information stored in database 40 is assigned a corresponding model identification ID. That is, in database 40, candidate information for the first type of in-vehicle device is assigned the model identification ID of the first type of in-vehicle device, candidate information for the second type of in-vehicle device is assigned the model identification ID of the second type of in-vehicle device, and so on. The same applies to other types of in-vehicle devices.

[0126] The processing unit 1 sends a request signal to the management device 30 requesting that candidate information EE of the in-vehicle device 10 be read as target information, and at this time, the model identification ID of the in-vehicle device 10 is added to the request signal. Upon receiving the request signal, the management controller 31 extracts and reads the candidate information (candidate information EE) of the in-vehicle device 10 from among the multiple candidate information stored in the database 40 based on the model identification ID in the request signal. The management controller 31 then outputs the read candidate information (candidate information EE) to the processing unit 1. As a result, the processing unit 1 obtains the candidate information (candidate information EE) as requested.

[0127] <<Example EX_3B>> Example EX_3B will be described. Other methods for registering or obtaining candidate information EE by the processing unit 1 will be described. Note that Example EX_3A or EX_3B can be combined with any of the above or below examples.

[0128] The manufacturer or distributor of the in-vehicle device 10 creates an instruction manual for the in-vehicle device 10, and the data for the instruction manual is made publicly available on the communication network NET in a file format that can be read by a computer. As shown in Figure 23, the data for the instruction manual for the in-vehicle device 10 (hereinafter referred to as instruction manual data 661) is stored in a non-volatile storage area 660. The storage area 660 may be located in the in-vehicle device 10, but in the following, it is assumed that the storage area 660 is located in the database 40.

[0129] The processing unit 1 reads the instruction manual data 661 from the storage area 660 in the database 40 via the management device 30. The database 40 stores instruction manual data for each of several types of in-vehicle devices. For example, the first type of in-vehicle device is the in-vehicle device 10, and the other types of in-vehicle devices are in-vehicle devices other than the in-vehicle device 10.

[0130] Each of the various types of in-vehicle devices is assigned a unique model identification ID (model number, etc.), and each of these devices stores its own model identification ID in its built-in ROM. The data for each instruction manual stored in database 40 is assigned a corresponding model identification ID. That is, in database 40, the instruction manual data for the first type of in-vehicle device is assigned the model identification ID of the first type of in-vehicle device, and the instruction manual data for the second type of in-vehicle device is assigned the model identification ID of the second type of in-vehicle device. The same applies to other types of in-vehicle devices.

[0131] The processing unit 1 sends a request signal to the management device 30 requesting that the data from the instruction manual for the in-vehicle device 10 be read as target information, and at this time, the model identification ID of the in-vehicle device 10 is added to the request signal. Upon receiving the request signal, the management controller 31 extracts and reads the data from the instruction manual for the in-vehicle device 10 (i.e., instruction manual data 661) from among the multiple instruction manual data stored in the database 40 based on the model identification ID in the request signal. The management controller 31 then outputs the read instruction manual data 661 to the processing unit 1. As a result, the processing unit 1 obtains the instruction manual data 661 as requested.

[0132] The instruction manual for a certain in-vehicle device includes information that identifies the UI specification information and candidate information for that in-vehicle device. Therefore, the instruction manual for the in-vehicle device 10 includes information that identifies the UI specification information AA and candidate information EE. For example, instruction manual data 661 indicates that, regarding the UI settings for the in-vehicle device 10, the font size can be set to "small," "medium," or "large," and the screen color scheme can be set to "light," "normal," or "dark."

[0133] On the other hand, the processing unit 1 in Example EX_3B is provided with a prompt creation unit 1b, a generated AI 1c, and a registration unit 1d in addition to the storage area 1a, as shown in Figure 23.

[0134] The instruction manual data 661 is input to the prompt creation unit 1b. The prompt creation unit 1b creates a prompt 662 corresponding to the instruction manual data 661 and outputs the created prompt 662 to the generation AI 1c. The prompt 662 is input to the generation AI 1c. The prompt 662 contains text data indicating an instruction (command) to the generation AI 1c. The generation AI 1c generates and outputs a creative work 663 according to the content of the input prompt 662.

[0135] Prompt 662 instructs Generator AIIb to extract and output information that points to the specification information AA of the in-vehicle device 10 from the instruction manual data 661. Therefore, Generator AI1c extracts information that points to the specification information AA of the in-vehicle device 10 from the instruction manual data 661 in accordance with Prompt 662. Generator AI1c converts the extracted information into data in the manner specified by Prompt 662, and generates and outputs a creative work 663 containing the data obtained by this conversion.

[0136] The creative work 663 is input to the registration unit 1d. The creative work 663 contains the contents of the specification information AA. The registration unit 1d creates candidate information EE from the creative work 663 according to the specification information AA, and registers the created candidate information EE by storing it in the memory area 1a.

[0137] Figure 24 shows an example of prompt 662 and creative work 663. In the example in Figure 24, prompt 662 is a composite text data obtained by combining text data 662a and 662b in that order.

[0138] In the example in Figure 24, text data 662a is text data representing the sentence "Please tell me about the customization functions related to the user interface from the following instruction manuals for in-vehicle devices." Text data 662b is text data representing the instruction manual data 661 itself. If the instruction manual data 661 is in image file format, the prompt creation unit 1b may obtain text data 662b by converting the image file format instruction manual data 661 into text data using well-known character recognition. If the generating AI 1c is an AI capable of recognizing characters in an image, the image file format instruction manual data 661 may be attached to the prompt 662 instead of text data 662b.

[0139] In the example in Figure 24, creation 663 is composite text data obtained by combining text data 663a and 663b in that order. In the example in Figure 24, text data 663a is text data showing the sentence "The user interface customization functions in the in-vehicle device are as follows." In the example in Figure 24, text data 663b is text data showing specification information AA of the in-vehicle device 10, extracted and summarized from text data 662b. In the example in Figure 24, text data 663b includes text data showing the sentence "You can set the font size to small, medium, or large," indicating that the parameter of function item F[1] can be selected and set from three options. In the example in Figure 24, text data 663b includes text data showing the sentence "You can set the screen color scheme to light, normal, or dark," indicating that the parameter of function item F[2] can be selected and set from three options. Although not shown in Figure 24, text data 663b also includes text data of sentences related to functional items F[3] to F[m].

[0140] The specification information AA in Figure 9 is identified by the creative work 663. The registration unit 1d creates candidate information EE from the specification information AA identified by the creative work 663 and stores the created candidate information EE in the storage area 1a.

[0141] As described above, the processing unit 1 in Example EX_3B generates candidate information EE from the instruction manual data (instruction manual data 661) of the in-vehicle device 10. This allows the processing unit 1 to create candidate information EE from the existing instruction manual without having to prepare the candidate information EE in advance manually. As mentioned above, the processing unit 1 may be provided in the in-vehicle device 10 or the server device 20.

[0142] Furthermore, the candidate information EE may include pattern data consisting of image data. That is, in the example in Figure 16, the pattern data PD[4,2] in the candidate information EE is image data of a cookie button icon. If the instruction manual data 661 includes image data of a cookie button icon, it is advisable to operate the prompt creation unit 1b and the generation AI 1c so that the creative work 663 includes image data of a cookie button icon. This allows the registration unit 1d to generate candidate information EE containing image data of a cookie button icon from the creative work 663. The same applies to image data related to other pattern data. There are also cases where the instruction manual data 661 does not include image data of a cookie button icon. In this case, the registration unit 1d may obtain image data of a cookie button icon by searching for an image of an icon reminiscent of the text "cookie button icon" in the creative work 663 from a group of images published on the communication network NET. The registration unit 1d can then set the obtained image data of a cookie button icon in the pattern data PD[4,2] in the candidate information EE. The same applies to image data related to other pattern data. As already mentioned, there are cases where a configuration is adopted in which the candidate information EE does not include image data, in which case the above-mentioned measures related to image data are unnecessary.

[0143] <<Example EX_4A>> Example EX_4A will be described. Figure 25 shows an operation flowchart related to the UI setting function of the system SYS. As described above, the UI setting function is realized by the in-vehicle device 10 or by the cooperation of the in-vehicle device 10 and the server device 20. The server device 20 is always running. The operation flowchart of Figure 25 will be described assuming that at least processing units 2 and 6 of processing units 1 to 6 are provided in the in-vehicle device 10. When the ignition switch of the vehicle VV is operated and driving power is supplied to the in-vehicle device 10 from a power source (not shown) provided in the vehicle VV, the in-vehicle device 10 starts up.

[0144] When the in-vehicle device 10 is started, in step S11, the controller 11 checks whether the UI setting mode is automatic setting mode. The UI setting mode can be manual setting mode or automatic setting mode. The controller 11 is provided with a flag storage area (not shown), which is a non-volatile memory, and the mode flag F is stored in the flag storage area. MODE Mode flag F is stored. MODE It has a value of "0" or "1". Mode flag F immediately after manufacturing (immediately after shipment) of the in-vehicle device 10. MODE It may have a value of "0" or it may have a value of "1".

[0145] In response to a predetermined mode setting operation input to the in-vehicle device 10 from the user UU, the controller 11 sets the mode flag F MODE Set the value to "0" or "1". Mode flag F MODE A state where the value is "0" corresponds to the UI setting mode being set to manual setting mode, and the mode flag F MODE A state in which the mode flag F has a value of "1" corresponds to a state in which the UI setting mode is set to automatic setting mode. Therefore, in step S11, the mode flag F MODE If the value is "1", the controller 11 determines that the UI setting mode is automatic setting mode (Yes in step S11) and proceeds to step S12.

[0146] In step S11, the mode flag F MODEIf the value is "0", the controller 11 determines that the UI setting mode is manual setting mode (No. in step S11) and proceeds to step S21. In step S21, the controller 11 determines whether a manual setting operation has been input from the user UU. If a manual setting operation has been input to the in-vehicle device 10 (Yes in step S21), proceeds to step S22; if no manual setting operation has been input to the in-vehicle device 10 (No. in step S21), proceeds to step S23. In step S22, the controller 11 performs a manual setting operation of the UI based on the manual setting operation. After step S22, proceeds to step S23.

[0147] After the in-vehicle device 10 is started, the controller 11 accepts the input for the mode setting operation described above, and when a mode setting operation is input, the mode flag F is set according to the mode setting operation. MODE Set the value to "0" or "1". However, to avoid complicating the illustration, the step of accepting input for the mode setting operation and the mode flag F according to the mode setting operation are omitted. MODE The diagram illustrating the step of setting the value is omitted in Figure 25. Input for the mode setting operation is accepted only when, for example, the display state of the display screen 16 is in a specific display state. The mode setting operation may also be a voice operation by the user UU. Voice operation refers to an operation in which the user UU inputs the operation they intend to perform to the in-vehicle device 10 by speaking. In step S23, the controller 11 sets the mode flag F MODE The value of is confirmed to be "1", i.e., mode flag F MODE It is confirmed that the value has switched from "0" to "1". Mode Flag F MODE If the value of changes from "0" to "1" (Yes in step S23), proceed to step S12 and the mode flag F MODE If the value remains "0" (No. in step S23), return to step S21.

[0148] In step S12, the controller 11 flags the mode flag F MODE The value of is checked to be "0", i.e., mode flag FMODE It is confirmed that the value has switched from "1" to "0". Mode Flag F MODE If the value of changes from "1" to "0" (Yes in step S12), proceed to step S21 and the mode flag F MODE If the value remains "1" (No. in step S12), proceed to step S13.

[0149] In step S13, the controller 11 checks whether the collection trigger condition is met. If the collection trigger condition is met, i.e., if it is confirmed that the collection trigger condition is met (Yes in step S13), the process proceeds to step S14. If the collection trigger condition is not met, i.e., if it is not confirmed that the collection trigger condition is met (No in step S13), the process returns to step S12.

[0150] The collection trigger condition is a condition for distinguishing whether or not to perform the automatic setting operation by the processing units 1 to 6, and may be a predetermined condition. For example, when a user UU utters a predetermined trigger keyword, and the acoustic signal of the trigger keyword is input to the controller 11 through the microphone MC, the first trigger condition is met. This first trigger condition may be the collection trigger condition. The trigger keyword may be a so-called wake-up keyword indicating that the user UU's utterance is directed to the in-vehicle device 10. Alternatively, for example, when a user UU inputs a predetermined collection trigger operation (a predetermined touch panel operation, etc.) to the in-vehicle device 10, and the controller 11 confirms that the input of the collection trigger operation to the in-vehicle device 10 has been confirmed, the second trigger condition is met. This second trigger condition may be the collection trigger condition. Alternatively, for example, "F MODE During the period in which "=1" is maintained, a third trigger condition is met at regular intervals. This third trigger condition may be a collection trigger condition. In addition, collection trigger conditions can be arbitrarily defined.

[0151] In step S14, the processing unit 2 acquires characteristic information BB. The characteristic information BB acquired here is characteristic information BB for the characteristic acquisition period. The characteristic acquisition period is a period set based on the time when the acquisition trigger condition is met, and may have a fixed time length or a variable time length. Typically, the characteristic acquisition period may be a period that starts from the time when the acquisition trigger condition is met. The characteristic acquisition period is set by the processing unit 2.

[0152] If the above first trigger condition is met as a collection trigger condition, the characteristic collection period may be a certain length of time following the utterance timing of the trigger keyword. If the above first trigger condition is met as a collection trigger condition, the characteristic collection period may be set to the period from immediately after the utterance timing of the trigger keyword until the user UU's utterance is interrupted. The processing unit 2 can recognize the content of the user UU's utterance and determine whether or not the user UU is uttering based on the acoustic signal from the microphone MC. For example, if there is no user UU utterance for a certain period of time after the utterance of the trigger keyword, the processing unit 2 will determine that the user UU's utterance has been interrupted.

[0153] If the above second trigger condition is met as the collection trigger condition, the characteristic collection period may be a certain length of time following the collection trigger operation. If the above second trigger condition is met as the collection trigger condition, the characteristic collection period may be set to the period from immediately after inputting the collection trigger operation until the user UU's utterance is interrupted. In the case where the collection trigger operation is an operation in which a specific button on the display screen 16 is pressed and held down, the characteristic collection period may be the period during which the specific button is pressed. The specific button may be a mechanical push-button switch provided on the in-vehicle device 10.

[0154] Here, based on the user UU's utterances during the characteristic collection period, the processing unit 2 collects the user UU's preference information, and characteristic information BB, which includes the user UU's preference information, is obtained. In the example in Figure 19, the user UU utters the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors" during the characteristic collection period, and the text data 720 of that sentence is collected as the user UU's preference information (the same applies to the example in Figure 21). However, the user UU's preference information may also be transmitted to the in-vehicle device 1 by means other than speech. That is, for example, the user UU may input the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors" into the in-vehicle device 10 via touch panel operation, and the preference information corresponding to the input sentence may be input to the in-vehicle device 1 (processing unit 2).

[0155] The characteristic information BB acquired in step S14 is output from processing unit 2 to processing unit 3. In step S15, following step S14, processing unit 3 creates a generation instruction prompt CC based on the characteristic information BB and outputs it to processing unit 4. After step S15, the process proceeds to step S16. Upon receiving the generation instruction prompt CC, processing unit 4 inputs the generation instruction prompt CC to generation AI4a.

[0156] In step S16, the generating AI4a generates the creative work DD according to the generation instruction prompt CC. The processing unit 4 outputs the generated creative work DD to the processing unit 5. The creative work DD generated by the generating AI4a includes data indicating the content of the recommended UI (data that identifies the content of the recommended UI). The recommended UI is the UI recommended by the generating AI4a (a UI that is recommended to be adopted in the in-vehicle device 10, derived according to the characteristic information BB). After step S16, the process proceeds to step S17. Before proceeding to step S17 or at the stage of step S17, candidate information EE is supplied from the processing unit 1 to the processing unit 5.

[0157] In step S17, the processing unit 5 performs the matching process described above, comparing the recommended UI with each candidate UI based on the creative work DD and candidate information EE, and generates matching result information FF showing the result of the matching process and outputs it to the processing unit 6. In the matching process, the processing unit 5 derives the similarity between the recommended UI and the candidate UIs for each candidate UI, and identifies the candidate UI corresponding to the highest similarity among all candidate UIs as the suitable UI. The content of the suitable UI is shown in the matching result information FF. After step S17, the process proceeds to step S18.

[0158] In step S18, the processing unit 6 reflects the matching result information FF in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. After step S18, the process returns to step S12. The UI reflection process described above can be performed in step S18. In the UI reflection process, the parameters of the functional item F[i] of the matching UI are set to the parameters of the functional item F[i] of the setting information SS.

[0159] However, the UI reflection process based on the matching result information FF may be performed with the approval of the user UU. Figure 26 shows an example of a detailed flowchart of the operations that can be performed in step S18. If the operations in Figure 26 are adopted, step S18 consists of the processes from steps S18a to S18e, and when proceeding from step S17 to step S18, the process of step S18a is executed first. In step S18a, the processing unit 6 displays a sample image based on the matching result information FF on the display screen 16. The sample image is a sample image that will be displayed on the display screen 16 assuming that the suitable UI is set to the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. When the suitable UI is the i-th candidate UI, the sample image is a predetermined image associated with the i-th candidate UI (for example, the main menu image in the i-th candidate UI). In step S18b following step S18a, the processing unit 6 receives input of an approval or rejection operation from the user UU by inquiring whether the user UU likes the display of the sample image. Inquiries to the user UU are made by displaying the inquiry text on the display screen 16 or by outputting the inquiry text from the speaker SP. If the user UU likes the display of the sample image, they input an approval operation to the in-vehicle device 10; otherwise, they input a rejection operation to the in-vehicle device 10. When an approval or rejection operation is input, the process proceeds from step S18b to step S18c.

[0160] If the entered operation is an approval operation (Yes in step S18c), proceed from step S18c to step S18d. If the entered operation is a rejection operation (No in step S18c), proceed from step S18c to step S18e. Alternatively, if the entered operation is a rejection operation (No in step S18c), the process may simply return to step S12 from step S18c.

[0161] In step S18d, the processing unit 6 performs UI reflection processing according to the matching result information FF, that is, it sets and updates each parameter in the setting information SS according to the matching result information FF. As a result, the content of the compliant UI is set to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 (i.e., the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 is updated with the content of the compliant UI). After step S18d, the process returns to step S12.

[0162] In step S18e, the processing unit 6 performs UI modification processing. After step S18e, the process returns to step S12. In the UI modification processing, the processing unit 6 receives modification request information from the user UU indicating how the user wishes to modify the UI content based on a sample image. The modification request information may be input to the in-vehicle device 10 by voice operation based on the user UU's utterance, or by touch panel operation. Upon receiving the modification request information, the processing unit 6 sets and updates each parameter in the setting information SS based on the matching result information FF and the modification request information. For example, consider a case where the font size of the suitable UI according to the matching result information FF is "large", and the user UU inputs modification request information to the in-vehicle device 10 requesting a reduction in font size. In this case, the processing unit 6 modifies the content of the suitable UI according to the modification request information and sets the content of the modified suitable UI as the UI content of the in-vehicle device 10. Then, in step S18e, the parameter of the function item F[1] in the setting information SS is set to, for example, "medium".

[0163] <<Example EX_4B>> Example EX_4B will be described. In Example EX_4B, it is assumed that the configuration method α1 shown in Figure 18(a) is adopted in the system SYS, and the operation flow related to the UI setting function will be described. In Example EX_4B, it is understood that processing units 2 and 6 are built into the vehicle-side controller 11, and processing units 1 and 3-5 are built into the server-side controller 21. However, as mentioned above, processing units 2 and 6 may be independent arithmetic processing units, and processing units 1 and 3-5 may be independent arithmetic processing units. Processing units 1 and 3-5 may be distributed across two or more computer devices.

[0164] Figure 27 is an operation flowchart of the controller 11 (vehicle-side controller) involved in the UI setting function. After the in-vehicle device 10 is started, the process begins with step S11. The controller 11 performs the processes in steps S11 to S14 and S21 to S23. The details of the processes in steps S11 to S14 and S21 to S23, as well as the flow up to step S14, are as described in Example EX_4A. However, in Example EX_4B, after step S14, the process proceeds to step S14_1.

[0165] In step S14_1, the controller 11 outputs (transmits) a generation request signal to the server device 20, which includes characteristic information BB and a model identification ID. The model identification ID in the generation request signal is the model identification ID assigned to the in-vehicle device 10. After step S14_1, the process proceeds to step S14_2.

[0166] In step S14_2, the controller 11 waits for a response signal containing matching result information FF to be received from the server device 20. When the in-vehicle device 10 receives a response signal containing matching result information FF (Yes in step S14_2), the process proceeds to step S18. Although not specifically shown in the diagram, if a response signal is not received after a predetermined timeout period has elapsed since the transmission of the generation request signal, the controller 11 may perform predetermined error processing (such as retransmitting the generation request signal). In step S18, the processing unit 5 reflects the matching result information FF in the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. Details of the processing in step S18 are as shown in Example EX_4A. After step S18, the process returns to step S12.

[0167] Figure 28 is an operation flowchart of the controller 21 (server-side controller) involved in the UI setting function. As mentioned above, the server device 20 is always running. In step S31, the server device 20 receives a generation request signal from the in-vehicle device 10, which includes characteristic information BB and model identification ID (in other words, it is received by the controller 21). This reception triggers the sequential execution of steps S32 to S36. After step S31, the process proceeds to step S32.

[0168] In step S32, the processing unit 1 reads and acquires candidate information EE, which is candidate interface information corresponding to the in-vehicle device 10, from the storage area 1a based on the model identification ID in the generation request signal. The candidate information EE acquired by the processing unit 1 is output to the processing unit 5. After step S32, the process proceeds to step S33. Note that the execution timing of the process in step S32 is arbitrary, as long as it is after the reception of the generation request signal and before the execution of the process in step S35.

[0169] In step S33, processing unit 3 creates a generation instruction prompt CC based on characteristic information BB and outputs it to processing unit 4. After step S33, the process proceeds to step S34. Upon receiving the generation instruction prompt CC, processing unit 4 inputs the generation instruction prompt CC to generation AI 4a. In step S34, generation AI 4a generates a creative work DD (recommended UI) according to the generation instruction prompt CC. The generated creative work DD is output from processing unit 4 to processing unit 5. After step S34, the process proceeds to step S35.

[0170] In step S35, the processing unit 5 performs the matching process described above, comparing the recommended UI with each candidate UI based on the creative work DD and candidate information EE, and generates matching result information FF that shows the result of the matching process. The matching result information FF shows the content of the suitable UI. After step S35, the process proceeds to step S36.

[0171] In step S36, the controller 21 outputs (transmits) a response signal to the in-vehicle device 10 that includes the matching result information FF generated in step S35. With this output, the series of operations of the controller 21 that began in step S31 is completed.

[0172] <<Example EX_4C>> Example EX_4C will be described. In automatic setting mode, the controller 11 (processing unit 6) can display an image on the display screen 16 using a UI based on matching result information FF (for example, the display image on the right side of Figure 20(b)). On the other hand, in manual setting mode, the controller 11 can display an image on the display screen 16 using a UI that does not rely on matching result information FF. The image using a UI based on matching result information FF is an image using a suitable UI selected based on the creative work DD. The image using a UI that does not rely on matching result information FF is an image that does not rely on the creative work DD and may be an image using a UI customized through manual setting operations.

[0173] Controller 11 has mode flag F MODEBased on this, the system switches between a state in which an image based on the matching result information FF is displayed on the display screen 16 using the UI, and a state in which an image based on the UI that does not depend on the matching result information FF is displayed on the display screen 16. This makes it possible to accommodate cases where customization by automatic settings is desired and cases where customization by manual settings is desired, according to the user UU's wishes.

[0174] As described above, setting information SS can be stored in a setting memory area (not shown) provided in the controller 11. In the controller 11, setting information SS for manual setting mode (hereinafter referred to as manual setting information SS) and setting information SS for automatic setting mode (hereinafter referred to as automatic setting information SS) may be stored separately in the setting memory area. In this case, in manual setting mode, the controller 11 (processing unit 6) sets, changes, or updates each parameter of the manual setting information SS based on the manual setting operation received from the user UU in the setting acceptance state. The latest manual setting information SS set in manual setting mode is stored in the setting memory area. In automatic setting mode, the controller 11 (processing unit 6) sets, changes, or updates the automatic setting information SS based on the matching result information FF corresponding to the creative work DD. Then, in manual setting mode, the controller 11 (processing unit 6) reads the manual setting information SS from the setting memory area and displays the UI content according to each parameter of the read manual setting information SS on the display screen 16. In automatic setting mode, the controller 11 (processing unit 6) reads automatic setting information SS from the setting memory area and displays the UI on the display screen 16 according to each parameter of the read automatic setting information SS. Therefore, when the UI setting mode is switched from manual setting mode to automatic setting mode, the UI according to the latest automatic setting information SS set in the previous automatic setting mode is displayed on the display screen 16. Conversely, when the UI setting mode is switched from automatic setting mode to manual setting mode, the UI according to the latest manual setting information SS set in the previous manual setting mode is displayed on the display screen 16.

[0175] <<Example EX_5>> Example EX_5 will be explained. In Example EX_5, the characteristic information BB will be explained.

[0176] The characteristic information BB includes user preference information. This makes it possible to create a UI that is tailored to the user preferences.

[0177] The user UU themselves may input their preference information to the in-vehicle device 10. This makes it easier for the in-vehicle device 10 to create a UI that matches the user UU's preferences.

[0178] The operation performed by the user UU to input preference information may be a voice operation. For example, in Figure 19, the user UU's utterance of the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors" is a voice operation for inputting the user UU's preference information into the in-vehicle device 10. The operation performed by the user UU to input preference information may also be a touch panel operation on the display screen 16. For example, the user UU may input the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors" into the in-vehicle device 10 as text via touch panel operation. Alternatively, the user UU may input the sentence "Use large fonts and bright colors" into an information terminal TM (not shown), and this sentence may be input into the in-vehicle device 10 via the information terminal TM as the user UU's preference information. Here, the information terminal TM is a portable information terminal (smartphone, etc.) owned by and associated with the user UU, and is brought into the vehicle VV by the user UU.

[0179] The processing unit 2 may extract user UU preference information from information that reflects the user's preferences (hereinafter referred to as source information). This makes it possible for the in-vehicle device 10 to create a UI that matches the user's preferences without requiring the input of preference information specifically for UI settings.

[0180] User attribute information already registered in the in-vehicle device 10 may be included in the source information. User attribute information refers to the attribute information of a user UU. When a user UU uses the in-vehicle device 10 for the first time, the user UU inputs user attribute information into the in-vehicle device 10 by touch panel operation or via an information terminal TM. The controller 11 saves the input user attribute information as profile data PD1 (not shown) in the recording medium 14. The controller 11 may also generate profile data PD1 by obtaining information from the user UU in the form of a questionnaire. Profile data PD1 includes the user UU's name, age, gender, nationality, address, language used, and dialect used, as well as information related to the user UU's preferences (favorite color, hobbies, favorite food, favorite season, etc.). When profile data PD1 is used as source information, the information related to the user UU's preferences included in profile data PD1 is extracted as the user UU's preference information.

[0181] User attribute information registered in the information terminal TM may be included in the source information. The user attribute information registered in the information terminal TM is profile data PD2. Like profile data PD1, profile data PD2 includes the user UU's name, age, gender, nationality, address, language used, and dialect used, as well as information related to the user UU's preferences (favorite color, hobbies, favorite food, favorite season, etc.). When profile data PD2 is used as source information, the information related to the user UU's preferences contained in profile data PD2 is extracted as the user UU's preference information. It is assumed that the processing unit 2 is given the authority to read profile data PD2 from the information terminal TM, and the processing unit 2 reads profile data PD2 through communication between the device where the processing unit 2 is installed and the information terminal TM.

[0182] The user's (UU) operation history of the in-vehicle device 10 (hereinafter simply referred to as "operation history") may be included in the source information. The operation history is a record of operations that the user (UU) entered into the in-vehicle device 10 before the characteristic collection period (see Figure 25). The controller 11 can record the operation history in memory 12 or recording medium 14. The user's preferences are often reflected in the operation history, and therefore, user preference information can be extracted from the operation history.

[0183] Information about the user interface of the information terminal TM (hereinafter referred to as terminal UI information) may be included in the source information. Terminal UI information identifies the content of the user interface set for the information terminal TM. The user interface of the information terminal TM here refers to the user interface on the display screen provided on the information terminal TM (an interface provided by the display screen). If the font size on the display screen of the information terminal TM can be set to "small," "medium," or "large," the terminal UI information determines which of "small," "medium," or "large" the font size on the display screen of the information terminal TM should be. The font size on the display screen of the information terminal TM is determined according to the terminal UI information. The same applies to the screen color scheme of the display screen of the information terminal TM. The terminal UI information reflects the user UU's preferences regarding the UI. It is assumed that the processing unit 2 is given the authority to read terminal UI information from the information terminal TM, and the processing unit 2 reads the terminal UI information through communication between the device on which the processing unit 2 is installed and the information terminal TM.

[0184] If the generating AI4a is an image-enabled AI, the terminal UI information may include image data of the display images on the information terminal TM's display screen. This is because the display images on the information terminal TM's display screen reflect the user's preferences regarding the UI. An image-enabled AI can generate creative works in response to input information (prompts) that include image data.

[0185] The characteristic information BB primarily includes user UU preference information, but may also include other information. For example, the user UU's age, gender, nationality, address, language used, and dialect used in profile data PD1 or PD2 may be included in the characteristic information BB. The generated AI4a may, for example, take age into consideration when estimating an appropriate font size.

[0186] Furthermore, the processing unit 2 may include information about the operating environment of the in-vehicle device 10 in the characteristic information BB. This makes it easier for the generation AI 4a to generate an appropriate UI that also takes the operating environment information into account, and therefore enables automatic setting of the UI that also takes the operating environment information into account. When the operating environment information of the in-vehicle device 10 is included in the characteristic information BB, the processing unit 2 includes text data indicating the operating environment information of the in-vehicle device 10 in the characteristic information BB. The operating environment information of the in-vehicle device 10 represents the operating environment of the in-vehicle device 10 during the characteristic collection period (see Figure 25).

[0187] The operating environment information for the in-vehicle device 10 may include, for example, illuminance information during the characteristic acquisition period. This makes it easier to create a UI that corresponds to the illuminance as a recommended UI. The vehicle VV is equipped with an illuminance sensor (not shown) that detects the illuminance outside the vehicle VV and generates and outputs illuminance information representing the detected illuminance. The processing unit 2 can obtain illuminance information from the illuminance sensor. The operating environment information for the in-vehicle device 10 may also include, for example, rainfall information during the characteristic acquisition period. This makes it easier to create a UI that corresponds to the presence or absence of rainfall as a recommended UI. The vehicle VV is equipped with a rainfall sensor that detects whether it is raining outside the vehicle VV and generates and outputs rainfall information representing the detection result. The processing unit 2 can obtain rainfall information from the rainfall sensor.

[0188] The usage environment information for the in-vehicle device 10 may include, for example, seasonal information during the characteristics collection period. This makes it easier to create a recommended UI that is appropriate for the season. Seasonal information during the characteristics collection period refers to the season to which the characteristics collection period belongs in the region where the in-vehicle device 10 is located. In this embodiment, Japan is assumed to be the region where the in-vehicle device 10 is located, but other countries may also be used.

[0189] The usage environment information of the in-vehicle device 10 may include, for example, vehicle location information during the characteristic acquisition period. The vehicle location information indicates the location of the vehicle VV (latitude and longitude of the location of the vehicle VV). The processing unit 2 may acquire the vehicle location information from a location detection sensor (not shown) provided on the vehicle VV and which detects the location of the vehicle VV. Including vehicle location information in the usage environment information makes it easier to create a UI that corresponds to the location of the vehicle VV as a recommended UI.

[0190] Furthermore, the processing unit 2 may include proficiency information indicating the user UU's familiarity with operating the in-vehicle device 10 in the characteristics information BB (or include text data of the proficiency information in the characteristics information BB). This is because the appropriate UI may change depending on the degree of familiarity. Based on the cumulative number of times the user UU has input operations to the in-vehicle device 10, or the cumulative usage period of the user UU with the in-vehicle device 10, the processing unit 2 can generate proficiency information.

[0191] Furthermore, the processing unit 2 may include emotion information indicating the user UU's emotions during the characteristic collection period in the characteristic information BB (or include text data of the emotion information in the characteristic information BB). The processing unit 2 can estimate the user UU's emotions from the estimation information and include the estimated emotions in the emotion information. The estimation information may be the user UU's biometric data. The user UU's biometric data may be, for example, the user UU's heart rate and electroencephalogram (EEG) data. Known techniques can be used to estimate emotions from heart rate and EEG data. However, the biometric data may be other than heart rate and EEG, as long as it enables the estimation of the user UU's emotions. The estimation information may also include captured image data of the user UU's face, or it may include acoustic signals of the user UU's speech picked up by the microphone MC. For example, one possible application is to estimate the emotions of a user UU during a period when they are performing a certain touch panel operation on the in-vehicle device 10, and if the estimated emotion is negative, to improve the UI so that the cause of the negative emotion is eliminated.

[0192] <<Example EX_6>> Example EX_6 will be explained. In the matching process, the similarity between the first to nth candidate UIs and the recommended UI is derived, thereby deriving the overall similarity SIMs for the first to nth candidates. As mentioned above, the similarity between the recommended UI and the i-th candidate UI is specifically referred to as the i-th similarity SIM.

[0193] Of the 1st to nth similarity SIMs, the kth A Similarity SIM and the kth B There is a case CS_6 in which the similarity SIM and the k are both at their maximum similarity. In case CS_6, the k A Similarity SIM Rank k B The similarity SIMs of the two are the same, and the one with the maximum value among the 1st to nth similarity SIMs. Here, k A and k B This represents two distinct natural numbers less than or equal to n.

[0194] In case CS_6, the k A Similarity SIM Rank k B The similarity SIM may differ by a small amount. That is, the kth A Similarity SIM Rank k B Among the similarity SIMs, one of them is the largest among the 1st to nth similarity SIMs and the other is the second largest, and the kth A Similarity SIM and the kth B Cases where the difference between the similarity SIM and the given data is below a certain threshold value may also fall under Case CS_6. The threshold value is a predetermined small value.

[0195] The processing unit 5 related to case CS_6 is the k A The kth corresponding to the similarity SIM A The candidate UI is designated as the first provisionally compliant UI, and the k B The kth corresponding to the similarity SIM BThe candidate UI is recognized as the second provisional compliant UI. In case CS_6, the processing unit 5 generates matching result information FF including the content of the first provisional compliant UI and the content of the second provisional compliant UI, and outputs it to the processing unit 6. The matching result information FF related to case CS_6 includes information indicating that two UIs applicable to the in-vehicle device 10 are selected.

[0196] In case CS_6, the processing unit 6 performs sample display processing to display the first sample image and the second sample image based on the matching result information FF on the display screen 16. The first sample image is a sample of an image that would be displayed on the display screen 16 when it is assumed that the first provisional compliant UI is set as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. The first sample image is a predetermined image associated with the k A th candidate UI (for example, the main menu image in the k A th candidate UI). The second sample image is a sample of an image that would be displayed on the display screen 16 when it is assumed that the second provisional compliant UI is set as the UI of the in-vehicle device 10. The second sample image is a predetermined image associated with the k B th candidate UI (for example, the main menu image in the k B th candidate UI). The processing unit 6 may display the first sample image and the second sample image in parallel on the display screen 16 at the same time. Alternatively, the processing unit 6 may display the first sample image and the second sample image alternately on the display screen 16.

[0197] In case CS_6, after the sample display processing or while performing the sample display processing, the processing unit 6 asks the user UU which of the first sample image and the second sample image they like, and obtains an answer to the query from the user UU. The query to the user UU is realized by displaying a query text on the display screen 16 or outputting a query text from the speaker SP. The answer to the query is input to the in-vehicle device 10 by a touch panel operation on the display screen 16 or a voice operation through the microphone MC.

[0198] If, in response to an inquiry, the user UU indicates that they prefer the first sample image, the processing unit 6 certifies the first provisionally compliant UI as a compliant UI and thereafter treats the first provisionally compliant UI as a compliant UI. If, in response to an inquiry, the user UU indicates that they prefer the second sample image, the processing unit 6 certifies the second provisionally compliant UI as a compliant UI and thereafter treats the second provisionally compliant UI as a compliant UI. After certification of a compliant UI, the operation of the processing unit 6 based on the compliant UI is as described above. Therefore, if the first provisionally compliant UI is certified as a compliant UI, the processing unit 6 can set the content of the first provisionally compliant UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 through UI reflection processing (i.e., it can update the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 with the content of the first provisionally compliant UI). If the second provisional conforming UI is certified as a conforming UI, the processing unit 6 can set the content of the second provisional conforming UI to the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 through UI reflection processing (i.e., it can update the content of the UI of the in-vehicle device 10 with the content of the second provisional conforming UI).

[0199] Furthermore, if three of the first to nth similarity SIMs have the maximum value, three provisional matching UIs are set, and one of the three provisional matching UIs is selected as the matching UI by the user UU. The same applies if four or more of the first to nth similarity SIMs have the maximum value.

[0200] <<Example EX_7>> Example EX_7 will be explained. Example EX_7 will describe modified techniques, applied techniques, or supplementary information related to the SYS system.

[0201] The UI setting function according to this embodiment allows the UI content of the target device to be set by automatic or manual setting operation. The in-vehicle device 10 is an example of a target device, and the server device 20 is an example of an external device provided outside the in-vehicle device 10 and the vehicle VV. The target device is not limited to a device located in the vehicle VV. In the present invention, the target device may be any device having a UI with a display screen. The system SYS and the present invention embodied in the system SYS can be applied to any application other than in-vehicle applications. Furthermore, the external device can be configured with one or more computer devices.

[0202] A program that causes a computer device to execute any method described in each embodiment of the present invention, and a non-volatile recording medium on which such program is recorded, are included within the scope of the embodiments of the present invention. The program that causes a computer (computer device) to execute any method described in the embodiments of the present invention may be a subprogram incorporated into any main program or called by any main program. Each of the in-vehicle device 10 and the server device 20 is equipped with a computer capable of executing any program. The arithmetic processing unit or arithmetic processing unit provided in each of the in-vehicle device 10 and the server device 20 may be considered to be a computer. Any processing in the embodiments of the present invention may be realized by hardware such as semiconductor integrated circuits, software corresponding to the above program, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0203] A method for implementing the UI setting function (or a method related to the UI setting function) can be referred to as a UI setting method. In the system SYS, the UI setting method is executed by the in-vehicle device 10 or by the cooperation of the in-vehicle device 10 and other devices (server device 20). A program that causes a computer to execute the UI setting method can be referred to as a UI setting program. When the UI setting function is implemented in the in-vehicle device 10 (especially when any of the configuration methods α3 to α6 in Figure 18 are adopted), the UI setting function is implemented by the execution of the UI setting program by the controller 11 of the in-vehicle device 10. In this case, the controller 11 corresponds to a computer, or the arithmetic processing unit provided in the controller 11 corresponds to a computer.

[0204] The embodiments of the present invention can be modified in various ways as appropriate within the scope of the technical idea set forth in the claims. The embodiments described above are merely examples of embodiments of the present invention, and the meaning of the terms of the present invention or each constituent element is not limited to those described above. The specific numerical values ​​shown in the above description are merely examples and can, of course, be changed to various numerical values. [Explanation of symbols]

[0205] SYS System VV Vehicle UU User MC Microphone SP Speaker NET communication network 10 Onboard equipment 11. Controller (Vehicle-side controller) 12 memory 13 Communication Circuits 14 Recording media 15 Display 16 Display screen 20 Server Devices 21. Controller (Server-side controller) 22 memory 23 Communication Circuit 30 Management device 31 Management Controller 32 memory 33 Communication Circuit 1-6 Processing Unit 1a storage area 4a Generation AI AA Specification Information (UI Specification Information) BB characteristic information CC generation instruction prompt DD creation EE Candidate Information (Candidate Interface Information) FF Matching Results Information SS Settings Information (UI Settings Information)

Claims

1. A UI setting method for setting the content of the user interface used in the target device using a controller provided in the target device, In the aforementioned target device, any of the multiple candidate user interfaces can be used as the user interface. By the aforementioned target device, or through the cooperation of the aforementioned target device and other devices capable of bidirectional communication with each other, Based on characteristic information corresponding to the user preferences of the target device, a user interface generation instruction prompt is created, and by inputting the generation instruction prompt into the generation AI, the recommended user interface generated by the generation AI is compared with the multiple candidate user interfaces, and based on the comparison result, the candidate user interface selected from the multiple candidate user interfaces is reflected in the user interface. , UI setting method.

2. The generation instruction prompt is created by combining multiple text data, including the text data of the characteristic information and the text data instructing the generation of the user interface. The UI setting method according to claim 1.

3. The recommended user interface is generated by the generation AI based on the generation instruction prompt, as it is recommended to be used as the user interface. The UI setting method according to claim 1.

4. The target device or the other device derives the similarity between the recommended user interface and each candidate user interface. In the aforementioned target device, the candidate user interface corresponding to the highest similarity is used as the user interface. or the UI setting method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The characteristic information includes the user's preference information, The user's preference information is either input by the user to the target device, or extracted from information that reflects the user's preferences. or the UI setting method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. The characteristic information further includes information on the operating environment of the target device. The UI setting method according to claim 5.

7. The user interface is an interface on a display screen provided on the target device. or the UI setting method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

8. The aforementioned device is an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle. or the UI setting method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

9. A UI setting system comprising a target device and an external device capable of bidirectional communication with each other, wherein the content of the user interface used in the target device is set, and the external device consists of one or more computer devices. In the aforementioned target device, any of the multiple candidate user interfaces can be used as the user interface. In the target device or the external device, a user interface generation instruction prompt is created based on characteristic information corresponding to the user preferences of the target device. In the external device, the generation instruction prompt is input to the generation AI, causing the generation AI to generate a recommended user interface. In the target device or the external device, the recommended user interface is compared with the plurality of candidate user interfaces. Based on the comparison results, the candidate user interface selected from the multiple candidate user interfaces is reflected in the user interface of the target device. UI configuration system.

10. The aforementioned device is an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle. The UI setting system according to claim 9.

11. A target device equipped with a controller for setting the contents of the user interface, In the aforementioned target device, any of the multiple candidate user interfaces can be used as the user interface. The controller creates a user interface generation instruction prompt based on characteristic information corresponding to the user preferences of the target device, inputs the generation instruction prompt to a generation AI provided within itself or on an external device, compares the recommended user interface generated by the generation AI with the plurality of candidate user interfaces, and reflects the candidate user interface selected from the plurality of candidate user interfaces based on the comparison result into the user interface. , target device.

12. It is an in-vehicle device installed in a vehicle. The target device according to claim 11.

13. A UI setting method for setting the content of the user interface used in the target device using a controller provided in the target device, In the aforementioned target device, any of the multiple candidate user interfaces can be used as the user interface. The controller creates a user interface generation instruction prompt based on characteristic information corresponding to the user preferences of the target device, inputs the generation instruction prompt to a generation AI provided within itself or on an external device, compares the recommended user interface generated by the generation AI with the plurality of candidate user interfaces, and reflects the candidate user interface selected from the plurality of candidate user interfaces based on the comparison result into the user interface. , UI setting method.

14. A UI setting program that causes the controller to execute the UI setting method described in claim 13.

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