Server device, travel route management system and program

Abstract

To provide a server device, a traveling route management system, and a program that correctly grasp a route on which a vehicle has traveled even when jamming of a GNSS signal, impersonation, and an operation to disguise position information on an information terminal are performed.SOLUTION: In a traveling route management system, a server device 11 comprises: a communication unit functioning as a receiving unit that receives, from an information terminal, the combination of information on the position of a vehicle and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined traveling area in a vehicle traveling on a toll road; a storage unit that stores the specific information for every traveling area; and a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination is one corresponding to a normal traveling route.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a server device, a route management system, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, ETC systems, which collect tolls through wireless communication with on-board devices installed in vehicles, have become widespread on toll roads such as expressways. In addition, various services have been proposed for toll roads to promote use or ease congestion. For example, services that offer discounts on tolls depending on the route a vehicle takes or the date and time of day have been proposed.

[0003] On the other hand, road networks such as expressways are connected nationwide, and the areas are expanding with the addition of new routes, making the routes more complex. This makes it difficult to manage information such as the routes traveled by each vehicle and to process tolls that correspond to various toll systems.

[0004] One method proposed to solve this problem would be to use a mobile information terminal such as a smartphone that is capable of positioning using the widely used GNSS to determine the vehicle's position, and then send this information via a mobile phone line or the Internet network to a server device to determine the driving route. This method makes it possible to build a system that tracks vehicle routes at a lower cost than setting up ITS spots or gates to track routes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 047254 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6395010 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, with methods using mobile information terminals, it is possible to jam or spoof GNSS signals or to fake the location information of the information terminal, and if route information notified that differs from the actual route traveled, it is not possible to correctly determine the route traveled. As a result, there was a problem that it was not possible to provide fares based on the route actually traveled.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a server device, a driving route management system, and a program that can correctly grasp the route traveled even in the event of radio jamming of GNSS signals, spoofing, or operations to disguise the location information of an information terminal. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The server device of the embodiment includes a receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle position information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area by a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried in the vehicle to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the mobile information terminal is used in the vehicle, a storage unit that stores the specific information for each driving area, and a determining unit that determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular driving route by referring to the storage unit. The specific information is an acoustic output output from an acoustic output device arranged in the vicinity of the specified traveling area. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a route management system according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the server device. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the configuration of the storage unit. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the portable information terminal. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a process flowchart of the portable information terminal. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the process of the server device when receiving the start registration information set. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the process performed by the server device when receiving the route information set. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a portable information terminal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the configuration of the storage unit according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram conceptually showing a change in acceleration (information) when a vehicle V1 travels at a specific point on a toll road. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a route management system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a process flowchart of the portable information terminal of the third embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a process flow chart of the server device when receiving user information from the entrance toll gate system. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a process flowchart of the server device when user information is received from the exit toll gate system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Next, a preferred embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. [1] First embodiment FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a route management system according to a first embodiment. The driving route management system 10 is constructed as a system for grasping and managing the driving routes of vehicles traveling on toll roads such as expressways.

[0011] The driving route management system 10 includes a server device 11 that controls the entire driving route management system 10, a mobile information terminal 13 mounted on (carried by) a vehicle V1 traveling on an expressway 12 serving as a toll road, artificial satellites 14A-14C that constitute a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) that transmits location identification information, and specific information transmission devices 16A, 16B that output route identification information to corresponding information transmission areas 15A, 15B.

[0012] In this case, sound output is used as the route identification information, and the specific information transmitting device 16A and the specific information transmitting device 16B are configured to output different sound outputs so that it is possible to determine whether the vehicle V1 has traveled along the route 12A or 12B of the expressway 12. Therefore, the information transmission areas 15A, 15B are set as regions (ranges) that can be acquired by the mobile information terminal 13 mounted on the vehicle V1 when the specific information transmitting devices 16A, 16B perform sound output.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the server device. The server device 11 includes a control unit 21 that controls the entire server device 11, a memory unit 22 that stores various information, databases, etc., and a communication unit 23 that communicates with external devices such as a mobile information terminal 13 and specific information sending devices 16A and 16B via a communication network.

[0014] In the above configuration, the control unit 21 functions as a determination unit, and the communication unit 23 functions as a receiving unit.

[0015] Here, an example of the configuration of the storage unit 22 will be described. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the configuration of the storage unit. The memory unit 22 is equipped with a driving history database (DB) 31 in which is stored the location information of the vehicle V1 associated with the user ID received from the mobile information terminal 13, the time (or order) at which the location information was acquired, the route identification information acquired by the mobile information terminal 13 mounted on the vehicle V1 and notified to the server device 11, and the result of a judgment on the validity of the location information obtained based on the notified route identification information, a route identification information database (DB) 32 in which is stored the route identification information assigned to each specific information transmitting device 16A, 16B (in this embodiment, the sound source of the acoustic output), and a road configuration database (DB) 33 in which is stored the location information of toll roads and the installation locations of multiple specific information transmitting devices 16A, 16B.

[0016] Next, the configuration of the portable information terminal 13 will be described. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the portable information terminal. The mobile information terminal 13 includes a control unit 41 that controls the entire mobile information terminal 13, a location information acquisition unit 42 that acquires location information of the vehicle V1 based on positioning radio waves from the artificial satellites 14A to 14C, a specific information acquisition unit 43 that acquires route specific information transmitted from the specific information transmission devices 16A and 16B, a communication unit 44 that communicates with external devices such as the server device 11, a display unit 45 that displays various information, and an input operation unit 46 for inputting various operations.

[0017] Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 5 is a process flowchart of the portable information terminal. First, the user of the mobile information terminal 13 launches a driving route management system utilization application that has been installed in advance on the mobile information terminal 13, and operates the input operation unit 46 to input a user ID for identifying the user, which is registration information (initial registration information set) for starting to use the driving route management system 10, and information on the vehicle that will actually use the mobile information terminal 13 (step S11).

[0018] As a result, the control unit 41 of the mobile information terminal 13 transmits the start registration information set to the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S12).

[0019] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the process of the server device when receiving the start registration information set. When the control unit 21 of the server device 11 receives the initial registration information set via the communication unit 23 (step S21), it determines the legitimacy of the user based on the initial registration information set (step S22), and if the user is legitimate, it generates a new route record (step S23).

[0020] Next, the control unit 21 certifies that the user is a legitimate user, and transmits an authentication result indicating that processing should be started to the mobile information terminal 13 via the communication unit 23 (step S24).

[0021] When the control unit 41 of the mobile information terminal 13 receives the authentication result from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S13), it determines whether or not the user has performed an operation to input an instruction to start the driving route management process via the input operation unit 46 (step S14). More specifically, the user inputs the intention to start using the service by operating an operation button or by voice at the time of starting use, for example, before entering a toll road.

[0022] In the determination at step S14, when the user has not yet performed an operation to input a start instruction via the input operation unit 46 (step S14; No), the control unit 41 goes into a standby state.

[0023] In the judgment of step S14, if the user has performed an operation to input a start command via the input operation unit 46 (step S14; Yes), the control unit 41 receives positioning radio waves from the artificial satellites 14A to 14C via the position information acquisition unit 42 and acquires position information (step S15).

[0024] In parallel with obtaining the position information, the control unit 41 performs a process of obtaining the route identification information transmitted by the identification information transmitting device 16A or the identification information transmitting device 16B via the identification information obtaining unit 43 (step S16).

[0025] In this case, the route identification information transmitted by the specific information transmission device 16A can be acquired only when the vehicle V1 is traveling on the route 12A of the expressway 12 and is located within the information transmission area 15A. Similarly, the route identification information transmitted by the specific information transmission device 16B can be acquired only when the vehicle V1 is traveling on the route 12B of the expressway 12 and is located within the information transmission area 15B.

[0026] Next, the control unit 41 transmits, together with the user ID, the acquired location information and the route identification information acquired at the time the location information was acquired as an information set (step S17). In this case, when the vehicle V1 is traveling in a location where route identification information cannot be obtained, i.e., a location other than the information transmission areas 15A and 15B, the route identification information contained in the information set does not contain any effective content.

[0027] Here, the operation of the server device 11 that has received the routing information set will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the process performed by the server device when receiving the route information set. When receiving a route information set via the communication unit 23 (step S31), the control unit 21 of the server device 11 extracts a route record from the received route information set (step S32).

[0028] Next, the control unit 21 functions as a route validity determination unit 21A and determines whether the route history of the vehicle V1 corresponding to the route information set included in the route record is a valid route corresponding to the route history obtained when the vehicle V1 is travelling validly (step S33).

[0029] More specifically, the determination is made based on whether or not the route corresponding to the route record satisfies the route continuity. In other words, when the vehicle V1 is traveling legitimately, there will be no discontinuous parts in the route, and if there are discontinuous parts, there is a suspicion of illegal driving.

[0030] If it is determined in step S33 that the continuity of the route is not satisfied and a discontinuous portion has occurred (step S33; No), the control unit 21 of the server device 11 records in the route record that there is a suspicion of illegal driving and terminates the processing.

[0031] In the determination at step S33, if the route continuity is satisfied (step S33; Yes), the route itself is determined to be a valid route, and regular route identification information corresponding to the route is extracted from the route identification information database 32 (step S34).

[0032] Next, the control unit 21 of the server device checks whether the route specification information included in the received information set is normal. It is determined whether or not this is the case (step S35). In this case, when the traveling position of the vehicle V1 is outside the information transmission areas 15A and 15B, the route identification information is always determined to be valid.

[0033] In addition, when the traveling position of the vehicle V1 is included in the information transmission area 15A or the information transmission area 15B, the control unit 21 of the server device 11 compares the time (or order) at which the position information received from the mobile information terminal 13 was acquired, the position information and corresponding route identification information (e.g., a recording of the acoustic output) with the position information of the route identification information output devices 16A, 16B registered in the road configuration database 33 of the memory unit 22 and the reference route identification information (e.g., the sound source of the acoustic output) stored in the route identification information database 32, and determines whether the route identification information is genuine.

[0034] For example, if the route identification information is an acoustic output, the route identification information contained in the received information set is determined to be genuine route identification information that has not been subjected to GNSS signal jamming, spoofing, or manipulation of disguising the location information of an information terminal, by using a method of comparing the intensity of each frequency from an FFT transformation or a method of converting voice to text and comparing the same.

[0035] If it is determined in step S35 that the route identification information contained in the received information set is not legitimate (step S35; No), the route is an illegal route that has been subjected to GNSS signal jamming, spoofing, or manipulation to disguise the location information of the information terminal, etc., so a suspicion of falsified location information is recorded in the route record and the processing is terminated (step S38). If it is determined in step S35 that the route specification information included in the received information set is valid, the route record is updated as usual and the process ends (step S36).

[0036] Meanwhile, the control unit 41 of the mobile information terminal 13 determines whether or not the user has performed an operation to input an instruction to stop the process of route management via the input operation unit 46 (step S18).

[0037] In the judgment of step S18, if the user has not yet performed an operation to input a stop instruction via the input operation unit 46 (step S18; No), the control unit 41 transitions the processing to steps S15 and S16 again and repeats the same processing as described above. As a result, a route information set is transmitted from the portable information terminal 13 to the server device 11 at a predetermined period.

[0038] In the determination in step S18, when the user has performed an operation to input a stop instruction via the input operation unit 46 (step S18; Yes), the control unit 41 ends the process.

[0039] As described above, according to the first embodiment, the control unit 21 of the server device 11 can determine the validity of the location information of the vehicle V1 transmitted from the mobile information terminal 13 based on the route information set and route identification information transmitted from the mobile information terminal 13, and can perform billing processing (such as fare discounts) according to the actual driving route of the vehicle.

[0040] [2] Second embodiment Next, a second embodiment will be described. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that in addition to route identification information, the validity of the route is determined by detecting vertical acceleration caused by unevenness of the road detected by the vehicle. Roads have steps that are intentionally (for example, stepped pavement) or unintentionally created, and if the server device 11 knows in advance the location of the step and the tendency of the change in the vehicle's vertical acceleration caused by the step, it can determine the validity of the driving route in the same way as the route identification information. The specific details will be explained below.

[0041] First, the configuration of a portable information terminal 13A in the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a portable information terminal according to the second embodiment. The mobile information terminal 13A includes a control unit 41 that controls the entire mobile information terminal 13, a position information acquisition unit 42 that acquires position information of the vehicle V1 based on positioning radio waves from the artificial satellites 14A to 14C, a specific information acquisition unit 43 that acquires route specific information transmitted from the specific information transmission devices 16A and 16B, a communication unit 44 that communicates with external devices such as the server device 11, a display unit 45 that displays various information, an input operation unit 46 for inputting various operations, and an acceleration information acquisition unit 47 that acquires acceleration information such as changes in the vertical acceleration of the vehicle caused by unevenness in the road (e.g., stepped pavement).

[0042] On expressways, stepped pavements are provided at curves, junctions, and other locations where drivers need to slow down or be warned by sound and vibration to reduce their driving speed and to warn them, as well as on downhill sections such as mountain passes. Furthermore, in bridges and the like, steps may occur at the joints. Therefore, by previously determining these locations and the corresponding changes in acceleration in the vertical direction in the server device 11, the vehicle's traveling position can be determined in the same manner as the route identification information.

[0043] Here, a configuration example of the storage unit 22 of the server device 11 of the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of an example of the configuration of the storage unit according to the second embodiment. The memory unit 22 is equipped with a driving history database (DB) 31 in which is stored the location information of the vehicle V1 associated with the user ID received from the mobile information terminal 13A, the time (or order) at which the location information was acquired, the route identification information acquired by the mobile information terminal 13 mounted on the vehicle V1 and notified to the server device 11, and the result of a judgment on the validity of the location information obtained based on the notified route identification information, a route identification information database (DB) 32 in which is stored the route identification information assigned to each specific information transmission device 16A, 16B (in this embodiment, the sound source of the acoustic output), an acceleration information database (DB) 61 in which is stored the acceleration information received from the mobile information terminal 13, an acceleration reference information database 62 in which is stored for reference the acceleration changes at specific points on the toll road, and a road configuration database (DB) 63 in which is stored the location information of the toll road, the installation positions of the multiple specific information transmission devices 16A, 16B, and the positions of specific points corresponding to the acceleration reference information of the toll road.

[0044] FIG. 10 is a diagram conceptually showing a change in acceleration (information) when a vehicle V1 travels at a specific point on a toll road. As shown in FIG. 10, when the vehicle V1 travels through a specific location, the acceleration changes according to a predetermined pattern corresponding to the travel speed.

[0045] Therefore, in the second embodiment, the acceleration change is pre-stored in the acceleration reference information database 62. Then, the server device 11 stores the position information and acceleration information transmitted from the mobile information terminal 13A in the acceleration information database 61, and at a processing timing (for example, at a processing timing for performing a batch process on the acceleration information), reads out the acceleration reference information at a specific location from the acceleration reference information database 62 and compares it to determine the validity of the route.

[0046] In this case, the comparison items of the acceleration information are the height of the acceleration peak, the interval between the peaks, the peak frequency of the Fourier transform result, the correlation value between the received acceleration waveform and the acceleration waveform corresponding to the acceleration reference information, etc. Note that it is also possible to make a judgment using a plurality of comparison items among these.

[0047] In addition, since the interval between the above-mentioned peaks changes depending on the traveling speed of the vehicle V1, the traveling speed of the vehicle V1 may be estimated based on the history of the position information, and the comparison may be performed based on the estimated traveling speed.

[0048] As a result, according to the second embodiment, in addition to the route identification information in the first embodiment, the validity of the driving route can be determined more accurately based on acceleration information, which increases the number of judgment items compared to the first embodiment.

[0049] [3] Third embodiment FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a route management system according to the third embodiment. In FIG. 11, the same parts as those in the first embodiment in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals. The driving route management system 10 includes a server device 11 that controls the entire driving route management system 10, a portable information terminal 13 mounted (carried) on a vehicle V1 traveling on an expressway 12 serving as a toll road, artificial satellites 14A-14C that constitute a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) that transmits information for identifying location, an entrance toll gate system 51 that provides the server device 11 with entry information IB1 indicating that the vehicle has entered the expressway, an exit toll gate system 52 that provides the server device 11 with exit information IB2 indicating that the vehicle has exited the expressway, and information providing devices 53A, 53B that provide information in the corresponding information transmission areas 15A, 15B to on-board equipment DV mounted on the vehicle V1 traveling in the corresponding information transmission areas 15A, 15B.

[0050] In the above configuration, the in-vehicle device DV has, for example, a function of ETC (Electronic Toll Control system) 2.0 in order to communicate with information communication devices such as the information providing devices 53A and 53B.

[0051] In this case, the information provided by the information providing devices 53A and 53B includes image and audio traffic information and the like. Therefore, in this third embodiment, the information provided by the information providing devices 53A and 53B is reproduced as audio by the in-vehicle device DV, and the reproduced audio is acquired by the mobile information terminal 13 and notified to the server device 11 as the provided information.

[0052] Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described. FIG. 12 is a process flowchart of the portable information terminal of the third embodiment. First, the user of the mobile information terminal 13 launches a driving route management system utilization application that has been installed in advance on the mobile information terminal 13, and operates the input operation unit 46 to input a user ID for identifying the user, which is registration information (initial registration information set) for starting to use the driving route management system 10, and information on the vehicle that will actually use the mobile information terminal 13 (step S41).

[0053] As a result, the control unit 41 of the mobile information terminal 13 transmits the start registration information set to the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S42). When the control unit 21 of the server device 11 receives the initial registration information set via the communication unit 23, it determines the legitimacy of the user based on the initial registration information set, and if the user is legitimate, generates a new route record.

[0054] Next, the control unit 21 of the server device 11 certifies that the user is a legitimate user, and transmits to the mobile information terminal 13 via the communication unit 23 an authentication result indicating that processing can be started.

[0055] As a result, when the control unit 41 of the mobile information terminal 13 receives the authentication result from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S43), it determines whether or not a start request has been received from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S44). In the determination at step S44, when the start request has not yet been received from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S44; No), the process goes into a standby state.

[0056] FIG. 13 is a process flow chart of the server device when receiving user information from the entrance toll gate system. When a vehicle V1 equipped with an on-board device DV passes through the entrance toll gate, the entrance toll gate system 51 communicates with the on-board device DV to obtain user information and transmits entry information IB1 to the server device 11.

[0057] When the control unit 21 of the server device 11 receives the entrance information IB1 including the user information from the entrance toll gate system 51 (step S51), it extracts a route record corresponding to the user information from the travel history database 31 (step S52).

[0058] Next, the control unit 21 registers the received entrance information in the extracted route record (step S53). Furthermore, the control unit 21 transmits a start request to the mobile information terminal 13 via the communication unit 23 (step S54).

[0059] In the determination of step S44, when a start request is received from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S44; Yes), the control unit 41 receives positioning radio waves from the artificial satellites 14A to 14C via the position information acquisition unit 42 and acquires position information (step S45).

[0060] In parallel with acquiring this location information, the control unit 41 performs a process of acquiring the audio reproduced by the in-vehicle device DV of the information (corresponding to route specific information) provided by the information providing device 53A or the information providing device 53B via the specific information acquisition unit 43 (step S46).

[0061] In this case, the information provided by information providing device 53A and information providing device 53B is made different from each other at the same time, and server device 11 knows which information is being provided by which information providing device.

[0062] Furthermore, the on-board device DV of the vehicle V1 can obtain information provided by the information providing device 53A only when the vehicle V1 is traveling on the route 12A of the expressway 12 and located within the information transmission area 15A. Similarly, the information provided by the information providing device 53B can be obtained only when the vehicle V1 is traveling on the route 12B of the expressway 12 and located within the information transmission area 15B.

[0063] Next, the control unit 41 of the mobile information terminal 13 transmits, together with the user ID, the acquired location information and the provision information acquired from the vehicle-mounted device DV at the time the location information was acquired, as an information set (step S47).

[0064] In this case, when the vehicle V1 is traveling in a location where route identification information cannot be obtained, i.e., a location outside the information transmission areas 15A and 15B, the provided information contained in the information set does not contain any effective content.

[0065] Here, the operation of the server device 11 that receives the route information set is the same as that shown in Figure 7, and determines the validity of the route, records that there is a suspicion of fraudulent driving, or records that there is a suspicion of falsified location information, and updates the route record as usual.

[0066] On the other hand, after transmitting the information set, the mobile information terminal 13 judges whether or not a stop request has been received from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S48).

[0067] In the judgment of step S48, if the stop request has not yet been received from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S48; No), the control unit 41 transitions the processing to steps S45 and S46 again and repeats the same processing as described above. As a result, an information set is transmitted from the portable information terminal 13 to the server device 11 at a predetermined period.

[0068] FIG. 14 is a process flowchart of the server device when user information is received from the exit toll gate system. When a vehicle V1 equipped with an on-board device DV passes through the exit toll gate, the exit toll gate system 52 communicates with the on-board device DV to obtain user information and transmits exit information IB2 to the server device 11.

[0069] When the control unit 21 of the server device 11 receives the exit information IB2 including the user information from the exit toll gate system 52 (step S61), it extracts a route record corresponding to the user information from the travel history database 31 (step S62). Next, the control unit 21 registers the received exit information in the extracted route record (step S63).

[0070] Furthermore, the control unit 21 transmits a stop request to the portable information terminal 13 via the communication unit 23 (step S64).

[0071] In the determination at step S48, when a stop request has been received from the server device 11 via the communication unit 44 (step S48; Yes), the process ends.

[0072] As described above, according to the third embodiment, when the vehicle V1 passes through the entrance toll gate of the toll road, the server device 11 automatically starts updating the route record and determining the validity of the route, and when the vehicle passes through the exit toll gate of the toll road, the updating of the route record and the determination of the validity of the route are terminated. Therefore, the capacity of the route record does not increase unnecessarily, and communication costs are suppressed by reducing communication between the mobile information terminal and the server device, while the necessary route records can be collected and reliable and appropriate billing processing can be performed. In addition, various information can be used as the provided information obtained from the in-vehicle device DV, which makes it possible to further prevent data tampering and impersonation.

[0073] [4] Modifications of the embodiment [4.1] First variant In the above description, the route identification information is an audible sound, but it is also possible to use an inaudible sound such as an ultrasonic sound as long as the portable information terminals 13 and 13A are capable of processing the information. [4.2] Second variant In the above explanation, the specific information sending device 16A, the specific information sending device 16B, the information providing device 53A or the information providing device 53B which send or provide route specific information are configured to be provided only one per route, but it is also possible to configure them to be provided in multiples on the same route. Furthermore, it is possible to provide a specific information transmitting device and an information providing device on the same route. Furthermore, the routing information sent or provided may be updated such that some or all of it is updated periodically. [4.3] Third variant Although the above description did not go into detail about the in-vehicle device DV, a car navigation system, a navigation system for a smartphone, or the like may be used. Alternatively, the vehicle-mounted DV can be configured as a device that receives radio broadcasts such as AM and FM waves and outputs radio audio. More specifically, so-called highway radios are installed on toll roads, and since FM waves have a short transmission distance, different broadcasts are made for each area, making it more preferable to use it to obtain vehicle position information.

[0074] [4.4] Fourth variant In the above explanation, the portable information terminal 13, 13A is configured to acquire acoustic information via the in-vehicle device DV, but if the portable information terminal 13, 13A itself has the function of directly receiving radio waves such as radio broadcasts and playing audio, it is also possible to configure it so that it directly records these and uses them as route identification information.

[0075] Additionally, the signal strength of the broadcast frequencies may be recorded and used as routing information. It is also possible to connect the portable information terminals 13, 13A directly to the vehicle-mounted device DV by wire and use the input voice as route identification information.

[0076] The server device of this embodiment is equipped with a control device such as a CPU, a storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM, an external storage device such as a HDD and a CD drive device, a display device such as a display device, and input devices such as a keyboard and a mouse, and has a hardware configuration that utilizes a normal computer.

[0077] The program executed by the server device of this embodiment is provided in the form of an installable or executable file recorded on a computer-readable disk-shaped recording medium such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), a USB memory, a semiconductor storage device such as an SSD (Solid State Disk), etc.

[0078] Furthermore, the program executed by the server device of this embodiment may be configured to be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. The program of the server device of this embodiment may be provided by being pre-installed in a ROM or the like.

[0079] The program executed on the server device of this embodiment has a modular structure including the above-mentioned units (communication unit, memory unit, control unit, judgment unit), and in terms of actual hardware, the CPU (processor) reads the program from the above-mentioned storage medium and executes it, thereby loading the above-mentioned units onto the main memory device, and the communication unit, memory unit, control unit, and judgment unit are generated on the main memory device.

[0080] Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 10. Route management system 11 Server equipment 12. Expressway Routes 12A and 12B 13, 13A Portable information terminal 14A satellite 15A, 15B Information transmission area 16A, 16B Specific information sending device 21 Control section 21A Route validity determination unit 22 Memory section 23 Communications Department 31 Driving history database 32 Route Specific Information Database 33, 63 Road configuration database 41 Control section 42 Location information acquisition unit 43 Specific information acquisition department 44 Communications Department 45 Display section 46 Input operation section 47 Acceleration information acquisition section 61 Acceleration Information Database 62 Acceleration Reference Information Database 51 Entrance toll gate system 52 Exit Toll Gate System 53A, 53B Information providing device DV in-vehicle equipment IB1 Admission Information IB2 Participation Information V1 Vehicle

Claims

1. a receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle location information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area by a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried by the vehicle, to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the mobile information terminal is used in the vehicle; A storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the travel areas; a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular travel route, The specific information is a sound output output from a sound output device disposed in the vicinity of the predetermined traveling area. Server device.

2. A receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle location information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area of ​​a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried in the vehicle to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the vehicle uses the mobile information terminal; A storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the travel areas; a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular travel route, The specific information is a sound generated when the vehicle travels over a step on the toll road. Server device.

3. A receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle location information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area of ​​a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried in the vehicle to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the vehicle uses the mobile information terminal; A storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the travel areas; a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular travel route, the specific information being an audio output reproduced by an in-vehicle device of the vehicle based on specific information transmitted from a specific information providing device to the vehicle while the vehicle is traveling in the predetermined traveling area; Server device.

4. The acoustic output is a guidance voice of a car navigation device mounted in the vehicle or a voice of a radio broadcast specializing in road traffic information. The server device according to claim 3.

5. A receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle location information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area of ​​a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried in the vehicle, to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the vehicle uses the mobile information terminal; A storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the travel areas; a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular travel route, the specific information is a radio wave intensity of a radio wave of a predetermined frequency transmitted from a specific information providing device to the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling in the predetermined traveling area; Server device.

6. A receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle location information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area of ​​a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried in the vehicle to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the vehicle uses the mobile information terminal; A storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the travel areas; a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular travel route, The specific information is a change in vertical acceleration that occurs when the vehicle travels over a step on the toll road. Server device.

7. A portable information terminal into which information of a vehicle using the portable information terminal is input in advance, the portable information terminal is carried by the vehicle, and acquires and transmits location information of the vehicle and specific information in a predetermined driving area on a toll road; a providing device that provides the specific information in the predetermined traveling area; a server device including: a storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the driving areas; a receiving unit that receives a combination of the position information and the specific information; and a determining unit that determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular driving route by referring to the storage unit; A driving route management system equipped with

8. The providing device is configured as an information providing device that provides information to a sound output device or an in-vehicle device mounted in the vehicle. The route management system according to claim 7.

9. the server device instructs the mobile information terminal to transmit the specific information during a period defined by an entry timing when the vehicle passes through an entrance toll gate of the toll road and an exit timing when the vehicle passes through an exit toll gate of the toll road. The route management system according to claim 7 or 8.

10. A program for controlling a server device by a computer, The computer, a receiving unit that receives a combination of vehicle location information and specific information that can be acquired in a predetermined driving area by a vehicle traveling on a toll road from a mobile information terminal carried by the vehicle, to which information of the vehicle is input in advance assuming that the mobile information terminal is used in the vehicle; A storage unit that stores the specific information for each of the travel areas; a determination unit that refers to the storage unit and determines whether the received combination corresponds to a regular travel route; and make it work. The specific information is a sound output output from a sound output device disposed in the vicinity of the predetermined traveling area. program.

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