Information processing method and information processing system

Abstract

To provide a method and system for processing information allowing for improving the efficiency of utilizing a moving body on which a battery is mounted.SOLUTION: A method for processing information includes, using a computer: acquiring a program at least indicative of a plurality of points where a moving body 80 is scheduled to move and stay; determining a charge-candidate point allowed to charge a battery mounted on the moving body, out of a plurality of points indicated by the program; acquiring an appointment situation of a charging station associated with the charge-candidate point; determining an appointment content from the appointment situation of the charging station; and outputting the appointment content. Each of the points is a place to stop for business, and the program includes stay time scheduled at each of the points. The charge-candidate point is determined such that, if it is determined that the remaining capacity of the battery goes below a predetermined value due to consumption of power for traveling up to the first point out of the plurality of points, charging is performed at a second point scheduled to stay before the first point.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 13

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing method and an information processing system. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for efficiently using electric vehicles, which involves predicting the required charging time and submitting a reservation request for charging to a charging station to reduce waiting time for charging, as well as managing the charging station reservation scheduling. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-164771 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the conventional technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 may reduce the utilization efficiency of a mobile body equipped with a battery, such as an electric vehicle. For example, there is a risk that the utilization efficiency of the electric vehicle may decrease due to the interruption of the use of the electric vehicle due to the time required for charging the battery.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an information processing method and an information processing system that can improve the utilization efficiency of a mobile body equipped with a battery. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An information processing method according to the present disclosure is an information processing method performed by a computer, which acquires a plan indicating at least a plurality of points to which a mobile body is planned to travel and stay, determines candidate charging locations where a battery installed in the mobile body can be charged from the plurality of points indicated in the plan, acquires a reservation status of a charging station corresponding to the candidate charging locations, determines reservation details from the reservation status of the charging station, and outputs the reservation details, each of the plurality of points being a location where the vehicle stops for business purposes, the plan including a planned stay time at each of the plurality of points, and when it is determined that the remaining charge of the battery will fall below a predetermined amount due to the consumption of power in traveling to a first point among the plurality of points, the candidate charging location is determined to be a second point where the vehicle is planned to stay before the first point.

[0007] The information processing method of the present disclosure uses a computer to obtain a plan indicating at least a plurality of locations to which a mobile body is scheduled to travel and stay, determines candidate charging locations where a battery installed in the mobile body can be charged from the plurality of locations indicated by the plan, obtains a reservation status of a charging station corresponding to the candidate charging locations, determines reservation details from the reservation status of the charging station, and outputs the reservation details, each of the plurality of locations being a location where the vehicle stops for business purposes, the determination of the candidate charging locations includes a selection from the plurality of locations indicated by the plan, the plan includes a planned stay time at each of the plurality of locations, and the selection is made for a location where the planned stay time at each of the plurality of locations is longer than a predetermined time.

[0008] The information processing method of the present disclosure uses a computer to obtain a plan indicating at least a plurality of locations to which a mobile body is scheduled to travel and stay, determines candidate charging locations where a battery installed in the mobile body can be charged from the plurality of locations indicated in the plan, obtains a reservation status of a charging station associated with the candidate charging locations, and determines the reservation content from the reservation status of the charging station.

[0009] Furthermore, these general or specific aspects may be realized by a system, an apparatus, an integrated circuit, a computer program, or a recording medium such as a computer-readable CD-ROM, or may be realized by any combination of a system, an apparatus, an integrated circuit, a computer program, and a recording medium. Effect of the Invention

[0010] The information processing method and information processing system according to the present disclosure can improve the utilization efficiency of a mobile body equipped with a battery. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an information processing system according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the reservation application server in the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a data table showing an example of user information. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a data table showing an example of a plan. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a data table showing an example of a delivery plan as a specific example of a plan. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a data table showing an example of a sales plan as a specific example of a plan. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a data table showing an example of charging station information. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a data table showing an example of the reservation status. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a data table showing an example of reservation contents. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a data table showing an example of the authentication information. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a data table showing an example of the usage record information. [Figure 12]FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an operation in the information processing system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a flow chart showing an example of the operation of the reservation application server in the operation of FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining a charging reservation when a moving object performs a delivery task according to the delivery plan shown in FIG. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining an example of a process for determining a candidate charging location such that the remaining battery power falls between an upper limit and a lower limit. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an operation in the information processing system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an operation in the information processing system according to the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described below.

[0013] (Background to this disclosure) With the recent spread of electric vehicles, mobile objects equipped with batteries such as electric vehicles are being used in the transportation industry, such as delivery businesses and taxi businesses. On the other hand, the cruising range of such mobile objects is shorter than that of gasoline or diesel vehicles, so the batteries need to be charged frequently. However, it takes longer to charge the battery than it takes to refuel a gasoline or diesel vehicle. For this reason, in mobile objects that use the power stored in the battery as driving energy, it is necessary to devise a method for charging the battery in order to effectively utilize the cruising range.

[0014] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for reducing waiting time for charging by predicting the charging time required for the battery of an electric vehicle and making a reservation application for charging at a charging station. However, in conventional techniques such as Patent Document 1, the prediction of the charging time required for the battery does not take into account actual business content such as delivery plans. For this reason, there is a problem that business may be interrupted when charging the battery, reducing business efficiency.

[0015] In the transportation industry, if the batteries of mobile vehicles can be charged at places where they have to stop for business purposes, they can be charged in parallel with business without interruption, which leads to effective use of the vehicle's cruising range. Examples of places where vehicles have to stop for business purposes include delivery destinations, rest areas, and places where they have to wait for passengers.

[0016] In view of the above, the present inventors have conducted extensive research and have come up with an information processing method and an information processing system that can improve the utilization efficiency of a mobile body equipped with a battery.

[0017] An information processing method according to one aspect of the present disclosure uses a computer to obtain a plan indicating at least a plurality of locations to which a mobile body is scheduled to travel and stay, determines candidate charging locations from the plurality of locations indicated in the plan where a battery installed in the mobile body can be charged, obtains a reservation status of a charging station associated with the candidate charging locations, and determines reservation details based on the reservation status of the charging station.

[0018] According to this, since the reservation contents are determined based on the reservation status of the charging candidate sites determined based on the plan, the moving object can be moved based on the plan so that waiting time due to charging does not occur. Therefore, the plan can be executed efficiently. Therefore, the utilization efficiency of the moving object equipped with the battery can be improved.

[0019] In addition, since a charging reservation for charging the battery of the mobile body is automatically determined, the user can charge the battery of the mobile body without searching for a charging station. This reduces the need for the user to move the mobile body in search of a charging station, and reduces the power consumption of the mobile body.

[0020] In addition, the plan may be acquired by receiving it from a plan creation server in acquiring the plan, and the reservation status may be acquired by receiving it from a charging station management server in acquiring the reservation status, and the information processing method may further include transmitting the reservation details to the charging station management server.

[0021] The determination of the candidate charging sites may include selection from at least one of the plurality of sites indicated by the plan and sites in the vicinity of the plurality of sites.

[0022] Therefore, it is possible to select candidate charging sites not only from the multiple sites indicated in the plan, but also from sites in the vicinity of the multiple sites. In this way, it is possible to increase the number of sites to be selected as candidate charging sites, so it is possible to effectively select a charging station suitable for the mobile object. In addition, it is possible to easily charge the mobile object at the timing when it should be charged.

[0023] The plan may also include a planned dwell time at each of the plurality of locations, and the selection may be made based on the planned dwell time at each of the plurality of locations.

[0024] Therefore, a site where charging can be performed in a sufficient time can be selected as a candidate charging site.

[0025] In addition, in the selection, the candidate charging site may be selected such that the remaining charge of the battery changes between an upper limit and a lower limit of the charge capacity.

[0026] This allows the user to easily operate the battery in a manner that prevents the battery from deteriorating.

[0027] Furthermore, a first determination may be made to determine whether or not the charging station can be reserved based on the reservation status, and if it is determined in the first determination that the charging station cannot be reserved, the plan may be modified, and a second determination may be made to determine whether or not a changed charging station associated with a changed charging candidate site determined from the changed plan can be reserved, and if it is determined in the second determination that the changed charging station can be reserved, the changed plan may be transmitted to the plan creation server.

[0028] According to this, the plan is changed to give priority to charging the mobile object, so that it is possible to reduce the occurrence of the mobile object being stopped due to running out of battery power.

[0029] Furthermore, the change may involve rearranging the multiple locations in the plan, and the second determination may involve determining whether or not a rearranged charging station associated with a rearranged candidate charging site determined from the multiple locations rearranged in the change can be reserved, and if it is determined in the second determination that the rearranged charging station can be reserved, the plan that has been changed by rearranging, which at least indicates the rearranged multiple locations, may be transmitted to the plan creation server.

[0030] According to this, since the multiple points in the plan are rearranged to give priority to charging the mobile object, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of the mobile object being stopped due to running out of battery power.

[0031] The change may also include changing a stay time at at least one of the plurality of points in the plan.

[0032] According to this, the stay time at at least one of the multiple points in the plan is changed to give priority to charging the mobile body, thereby reducing the number of times the mobile body stops due to running out of battery power.

[0033] Furthermore, authentication information used to authenticate the reservation contents between the charging station and the mobile body may be generated, and the authentication information may be transmitted to the charging station management server and a terminal possessed by a user of the mobile body.

[0034] This makes it easy to allow charging of a mobile object at the charging station during the reserved time period, and also prevents the charging station from being used by an unspecified number of users.

[0035] Furthermore, the charging station management server may receive charging history information of the mobile body at the charging station, calculate a usage result of the charging station based on the charging history information, and transmit the usage result to a terminal held by a user of the mobile body.

[0036] This makes it possible to easily calculate the usage result and to notify the user of the mobile body of the usage result.

[0037] Furthermore, a profit to be given to a manager of the charging station may be determined based on the charging record information, and the profit may be transmitted to the charging station management server or a terminal owned by the manager.

[0038] According to this, the profit determined according to the charging record information is transmitted to the manager of the charging station, so that the utilization of the information processing system can be promoted.

[0039] Furthermore, these general or specific aspects may be realized by a system, an apparatus, an integrated circuit, a computer program, or a recording medium such as a computer-readable CD-ROM, or may be realized by any combination of a system, an apparatus, an integrated circuit, a computer program, and a recording medium.

[0040] Hereinafter, an information processing method and an information processing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

[0041] Note that the embodiments described below each show a specific example of the present disclosure. The numerical values, shapes, materials, components, the arrangement and connection of the components, steps, and the order of steps shown in the following embodiments are merely examples and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Furthermore, among the components in the following embodiments, components that are not described in an independent claim showing a top concept are described as optional components.

[0042] (Embodiment 1) Hereinafter, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0043] [1-1. Configuration] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an information processing system according to the first embodiment.

[0044] 1, the information processing system 10 includes a plan creation server 1, a reservation application server 2, a charging station management server 3, charging station terminals 4 to 6, and operation terminals 7 and 8. Of these components, the information processing system 10 includes the reservation application server 2.

[0045] The plan making server 1 creates business plans such as delivery plans and sales plans as plans. The plan making server 1 is, for example, an information processing device configured by a computer. The plan making server 1 may be configured by multiple devices.

[0046] The reservation application server 2 acquires a plan from the plan creation server 1, and makes a reservation application for charging at a charging station according to the acquired plan. Specifically, the reservation application server 2 uses the acquired plan to determine reservation details for charging, which are composed of a charging station and a charging time slot, and makes a reservation application for charging by transmitting the reservation details to the charging station management server 3. When determining the reservation details, the reservation application server 2 inquires of the charging station management server 3 about the reservation status for charging at the desired charging station, and determines the charging time slot to be reserved within the range of charging available time slots at the desired charging station. When a reservation is accepted at the desired charging station based on the reservation application for charging, the reservation application server 2 transmits the determined reservation details to the operation terminal 7 or the operation terminal 8.

[0047] The reservation application server 2 may transmit the determined reservation details to the operation terminal 7 or the operation terminal 8 via the plan making server 1. In other words, in this case, the reservation application server 2 transmits the determined reservation details to the plan making server 1, and the plan making server 1 transmits the reservation details received from the reservation application server 2 to the operation terminal 7 or the operation terminal 8.

[0048] After the person charges the mobile object 80 using the charging station in accordance with the reservation details of the charging reservation application, the reservation application server 2 receives charging record information including the charging time required to charge the mobile object 80 from the charging station management server 3. As a result, the reservation application server 2 calculates a usage fee using the charging time included in the charging record information, and charges the usage fee by transmitting the calculated usage fee to the plan creation server 1. Note that, when there is a user subject using the mobile object 80 other than the person who charged the mobile object 80, the reservation application server 2 may charge the usage fee by transmitting the usage fee to a terminal owned by the user subject, instead of transmitting the usage fee to the plan creation server 1.

[0049] The reservation application server 2 is, for example, an information processing device configured by a computer, but may be configured by a plurality of devices.

[0050] The charging station management server 3 manages the reservation status of multiple charging stations. The charging station management server 3 accepts reservations for charging by exchanging information with the reservation application server 2. The charging station management server 3 is, for example, an information processing device configured by a computer. The charging station management server 3 may be configured by multiple devices.

[0051] The charging station terminals 4 to 6 are charging stations that charge mobile objects equipped with batteries. The charging station terminal 4 is installed in an apartment building. The charging station terminal 5 is installed in a detached house. The charging station terminal 6 is installed in another building. The charging station terminals 4 to 6 are classified according to the location where they are installed, such as an apartment building, a detached house, or other.

[0052] The operation terminal 7 is a terminal operated by a person engaged in work. The operation terminal 8 is a terminal mounted on a mobile body 80 such as an electric vehicle driven by a person engaged in work. The operation terminal 7 is, for example, a mobile terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a laptop PC (Personal Computer), or an information processing device configured by a computer including a desktop PC. The operation terminal 8 is, for example, an information processing device configured by a computer such as a car navigation system. The operation terminal 8 may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like. A plan created for the corresponding mobile body 80 in the plan creation server 1 is transmitted to the operation terminals 7 and 8. The operation terminals 7 and 8 display a screen showing the contents of the plan based on the received plan. This allows the user to proceed with the plan by moving the mobile body 80 according to the plan included in the contents of the displayed screen.

[0053] The schedule creation server 1 and the reservation application server 2 are connected to each other via a network so as to be able to communicate with each other. The schedule creation server 1 and the reservation application server 2 are connected to each of the operation terminals 7 and 8 so as to be able to communicate with each other via a network. The reservation application server 2 and the charging station management server 3 are connected to each other via a network so as to be able to communicate with each other. The charging station management server 3 and each of the charging station terminals 4 to 6 are connected to each other via a network so as to be able to communicate with each other. In the information processing system 10, the network for transmitting and receiving information may be, for example, a general-purpose network such as the Internet, or a dedicated network such as a leased line.

[0054] In the following, the moving body 80 will be described using an electric vehicle as an example, but it is not limited to an electric vehicle and may be an electric motorcycle, an aircraft that flies using batteries, or a ship that is propelled by batteries.

[0055] Next, the functional configuration of the reservation application server 2 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0056] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an outline of the functional configuration of the reservation application server 2. As shown in FIG.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 2, the reservation application server 2 includes a control unit 21, a storage unit 22, an input receiving unit 23, a display unit 24, and a communication unit 25.

[0058] The control unit 21 includes a plan acquisition unit 211, a charging candidate site determination unit 212, a reservation status acquisition unit 213, a reservation content determination unit 214, a reservation application unit 215, an authentication information generation unit 216, a charging record management unit 217, a usage fee settlement unit 218, and a benefit granting unit 219. The control unit 21 executes processing in each component for each of the multiple moving bodies 80. Hereinafter, the function of each processing unit will be described as processing for one moving body 80 out of the multiple moving bodies 80.

[0059] The plan acquisition unit 211 acquires a plan 222 indicating at least points where the moving object 80 is scheduled to move and stay. The plan includes, for example, a planned stay time at each of a plurality of points. The plan acquisition unit 211 acquires the plan 222 by receiving it from the plan creation server 1 using, for example, the communication unit 25. The plan 222 acquired by the plan acquisition unit 211 is stored in the storage unit 22.

[0060] The plan acquisition unit 211 may acquire the plan 222 from the plan creation server 1 by transmitting a plan request to the plan creation server 1 at a first predetermined timing. The first predetermined timing may be, for example, a timing when the plan creation server 1 completes creation of the plan 222 corresponding to the mobile object 80 to be processed, a timing a predetermined time before the start time of the operation according to the plan 222 in a predetermined time unit such as one day, or a fixed timing in the predetermined time unit. The first predetermined timing may be one timing or multiple timings in the predetermined time unit. The plan 222 may be transmitted from the plan creation server 1 to the reservation application server 2 at the first predetermined timing, and in this case, the plan acquisition unit 211 may not transmit a plan request to the plan creation server 1. Details of the plan 222 will be described later with reference to FIG. 4 to FIG. 6.

[0061] The charging candidate location determination unit 212 determines a charging candidate location where a battery mounted on the mobile object 80 can be charged from a plurality of points indicated by the plan acquired by the plan acquisition unit 211. The charging candidate location determination unit 212 determines a charging candidate location by selecting a charging candidate location from at least one of a plurality of points indicated by the plan 222 and points around the plurality of points. The points around the plurality of points are points included in a predetermined range based on each of the plurality of points, for example, points included in a circle with a radius r1 centered on each of the plurality of points. Specifically, the charging candidate location determination unit 212 may determine a charging candidate location based on charging station information 223 including specifications of charging stations installed at at least one of the plurality of points and points around the plurality of points. The specifications of the charging station are, for example, the number of charging ports of the charging station, charging standards, etc. The charging candidate location determination unit 212 is not limited to selecting a charging candidate location from at least one of a plurality of points indicated by the plan and points around the plurality of points, but may select a point on a moving route that passes through the plurality of points as a charging candidate location. In this way, when a point on the travel route is selected as a candidate charging site, the selected candidate charging site may be set as a rest area.

[0062] The charging station information 223 may be acquired from the charging station management server 3 via the communication unit 25, or may be stored in advance in the storage unit 22. When the charging station information 223 is acquired from the charging station management server 3, it is stored in the storage unit 22. Details of the charging station information 223 will be described later with reference to FIG. 8.

[0063] Furthermore, the charging candidate location determination unit 212 may select a charging candidate location based on a planned stay time at each of the multiple locations indicated by the plan 222. The charging candidate location determination unit 212 may determine, for example, a location among the multiple locations where the stay time is longer than a threshold value T1 as a charging candidate location.

[0064] The reservation status acquisition unit 213 acquires the reservation status 224 of the charging station associated with the charging candidate site determined by the charging candidate site determination unit 212. The reservation status acquisition unit 213 acquires the reservation status 224 of the charging station associated with the charging candidate site by receiving it from the charging station management server 3 using the communication unit 25, for example. The reservation status 224 includes, for example, a reservation time slot in which each mobile body reserves charging at the charging station corresponding to the reservation status 224 among a time slot from the present onward. In addition, the reservation status 224 may include, for example, a chargeable time slot that is a time slot from the present onward excluding the reservation time slot. The reservation status acquisition unit 213 may acquire the reservation status 224 from the charging station management server 3 by transmitting a request for the reservation status 224 to the charging station management server 3 after the charging candidate site is determined by the charging candidate site determination unit 212. Details of the reservation status 224 will be described later with reference to FIG. 9.

[0065] When the reservation status 224 is acquired by the reservation status acquisition unit 213, the reservation content determination unit 214 determines the reservation content 225 from the reservation status 224. Specifically, the reservation content determination unit 214 determines a charging time slot to be reserved within a range of a charging time slot of the charging station at the determined charging candidate site. For example, the reservation content determination unit 214 calculates a charging time slot by excluding a reserved time slot from the present time slot onward, and determines a time slot during which the user is scheduled to stay at the charging candidate site in the plan 222 among the calculated charging time slots as a charging time slot to be reserved. In this way, the reservation content determination unit 214 determines the reservation content 225 including a charging station at which charging is scheduled to take place and a charging time slot during which the charging station is scheduled to be reserved. The reservation content determination unit 214 may determine the reservation content 225 further including information on a charging standard indicating whether charging is normal charging or rapid charging. Note that, when the reservation status 224 includes a charging time slot, the reservation content determination unit 214 may omit the calculation of the charging time slot. The reservation details 225 will be described later in detail with reference to FIG.

[0066] The reservation application unit 215 applies for a reservation by transmitting the reservation content 225 determined by the reservation content determination unit 214 to the charging station management server 3 using the communication unit 25. Note that the reservation content 225 does not have to be transmitted by the reservation application unit 215 to the charging station management server 3, and the reservation content 225 may be transmitted to the charging station management server via another device.

[0067] When the reservation application result received by the communication unit 25 indicates that the reservation has been accepted at the charging station, the authentication information generation unit 216 generates authentication information 226 used for authentication of the reservation details 225 between the charging station and the mobile body 80. In this case, the authentication information generation unit 216 may transmit the reservation details of the reservation accepted at the charging station to the operation terminals 7 and 8. The operation terminals 7 and 8 can thereby display the reservation details, and the user can charge the mobile body 80 at the charging station specified in the reservation details.

[0068] Furthermore, authentication information generation unit 216 transmits the generated authentication information 226 to the charging station management server 3 and operation terminals 7 and 8 owned by the user of the mobile object 80 via communication unit 25. The authentication information 226 transmitted to the charging station management server 3 is transmitted by the charging station management server 3 to a charging station terminal of the charging station to which the reservation for charging is applied. Note that instead of transmitting authentication information 226 to the charging station management server 3, authentication information generation unit 216 may transmit authentication information 226 to a charging station terminal of the charging station to which the reservation is applied.

[0069] As a result, authentication information 226 for permitting charging according to the reservation is transmitted to the operation terminal 7 or operation terminal 8 owned by the user of the mobile object 80 and the charging station where the user has applied for charging, so that charging of the mobile object 80 at the charging station during the reserved time period can be easily permitted. This also makes it possible to prevent the charging station from being used by an unspecified number of users. Details of the authentication information 226 will be described later with reference to FIG. 11.

[0070] The charging history management unit 217 receives usage history information 227 of the charging station of the mobile object 80 from the charging station management server 3 via the communication unit 25. The charging history management unit 217 manages the received usage history information 227 by, for example, storing and accumulating it for each mobile object. The charging history management unit 217 may delete usage history information 227 indicating a charging history for which the settlement of the usage fee has already been completed or for which a predetermined period of time has passed. In other words, the charging history management unit 217 manages the usage history information 227 stored for each mobile object by deleting old information or adding newly acquired information.

[0071] Furthermore, the charging history management unit 217 may acquire the usage history information 227 from the charging station management server 3 by transmitting a request for the usage history information 227 to the charging station management server 3 at a second predetermined timing. The predetermined second timing may be a fixed timing within a predetermined time unit such as one day. The predetermined second timing may be one timing or a plurality of timings within the predetermined time unit. The usage history information 227 may be transmitted from the charging station management server 3 to the reservation application server 2 at the second predetermined timing. In this case, the charging history management unit 217 may not transmit a request for the usage history information 227 to the charging station management server 3. Details of the usage history information 227 will be described later with reference to FIG. 12.

[0072] The usage fee settlement unit 218 calculates the usage result of the charging station based on the usage history information 227 received by the charging history management unit 217. The usage fee settlement unit 218 may calculate the usage result according to the time required for charging included in the usage history information 227, or may calculate the usage result according to the amount of power consumption required for charging included in the usage history information 227. The usage fee settlement unit 218 may calculate the usage result according to a unit fee determined for each of a plurality of time periods classified in advance, and the time required for charging or the amount of power consumption required for charging. In addition, the usage fee settlement unit 218 may calculate the usage result according to whether quick charging or normal charging was performed. The usage fee settlement unit 218 may calculate the usage fee as the usage result, or may calculate usage points in lieu of the usage fee. In addition, after calculating the usage result, the usage fee settlement unit 218 transmits the calculated usage result to the operation terminal 7 or operation terminal 8 owned by the user of the mobile object 80 to be processed, thereby requesting the user to settle the usage result. This makes it possible to easily calculate the usage result and to notify the user of the mobile body of the usage result.

[0073] The reward granting unit 219 determines reward content as a profit to be granted to the manager of the charging station based on the usage history information 227 received by the charging history management unit 217. The reward granting unit 219 transmits the determined reward content to the charging station management server 3 or a terminal owned by the manager of the charging station. The reward content may be, for example, a discount on a delivery fee by a delivery company when the user of the mobile object 80 is a delivery company. Also, the reward content may be, for example, a discount on a fee for an item or service when the user is a sales business operator of an item or service. This can promote the use of the information processing system 10 by the manager of the charging station.

[0074] It is noted that the control unit 21 does not necessarily have to include the authentication information generating unit 216, the charging result managing unit 217, the usage fee settling unit 218, and the privilege granting unit 219.

[0075] The control unit 21 is realized, for example, by a processor that executes a predetermined program and a memory that stores the predetermined program. The control unit 21 is not limited to being realized by a processor and a memory, but may also be realized by a dedicated circuit. In other words, each component of the control unit 21 may be realized by a processor executing a software program stored in a memory, or may be realized by dedicated hardware.

[0076] Note that functions equivalent to those of the control unit 21 may be provided in an administrator terminal, which is a terminal operated by a separate administrator, in case of an abnormality. In this case, the administrator can directly operate the control unit 21 by operating the administrator terminal. Note that a secure method is adopted for the communication method between the administrator terminal and the control unit 21, which minimizes the possibility of influence from a third party.

[0077] The storage unit 22 stores user information 221, a plan 222, charging station information 223, a reservation status 224, a reservation content 225, authentication information 226, and usage record information 227. The storage unit 22 is realized by a storage device such as a hard disk drive or a flash memory. The storage unit 22 stores information received from an external device, information received by the input receiving unit 23, information generated by each process of the control unit 21, and the like.

[0078] The user information 221 is information relating to a user who has been registered in advance.

[0079] Fig. 3 is a data table showing an example of user information 221. As shown in Fig. 3, user information 221 includes a user ID that is an ID for uniquely identifying a user, a user name, a user address, a user terminal type, and a user email address. The user terminal type is information for identifying, for example, whether the terminal owned by the user is a mobile terminal such as operation terminal 7, or an in-vehicle terminal such as operation terminal 8.

[0080] The plan 222 is a business plan created by the plan creation server 1 .

[0081] FIG. 4 is a data table showing an example of the plan 222. As shown in FIG. 4, the plan 222 includes a user ID, an arrival time, a departure time, a business content, a business location name, and a business location address. In the plan 222, a plurality of locations are indicated in the business location name and the business location address. In the plan 222, a planned stay time at each of the plurality of locations is indicated in the arrival time and the departure time. The stay time is a time period from the arrival time to the departure time. The plan 222 may further include a stay time item. The plan 222 is a plan regarding a business related to the operation of the mobile object 80. The plan 222 is, for example, a business plan such as a delivery plan or a sales plan. The reservation application server 2 generates reservation details for the charging station by analyzing the plan 222 so that charging can be performed without interrupting business.

[0082] Fig. 5 is a data table showing an example of a delivery plan as a specific example of the plan 222. In the case of a delivery plan, the business contents include, for example, delivery, collection, loading, unloading, rest, inspection, waiting, etc. The business contents in Fig. 5 are delivery as an example.

[0083] 6 is a data table showing an example of a sales plan as a specific example of the plan 222. In the case of a sales plan, the business contents include, for example, sales, business negotiations, contracts, breaks, and standby.

[0084] The charging station information 223 is information about a charging station for which the reservation application server 2 makes a reservation status inquiry or a reservation application.

[0085] FIG. 7 is a data table showing an example of the charging station information 223. As shown in FIG. 7, the charging station information 223 includes a charging station ID, which is an ID for uniquely identifying a charging station, an installation location name, an installation location address, the number of charging ports, and a charging standard. The charging standard is information on the characteristics of the charging station that are required when using the charging station, such as whether or not the charging station is compatible with quick charging, the type of plug, and the like. Note that the charging station information may include a business start time and a business end time if there is a business time period during which the charging station is available (i.e., there is a time period during which the charging station is not available). This allows the time period from the business start time to the business end time to be identified as the business time period during which the charging station is available, and also allows the time period from the business end time to the next business start time to be identified as the time period during which the charging station is not available. The charging station information may further include a usage fee, taking into consideration a case in which the usage fee differs for each charging station. By using the charging station information 223, the control unit 21 can search for a charging station associated with a location where a business is performed or a location in the vicinity of the location. In addition, the control unit 21 can further narrow down the searched charging stations and select candidate charging locations based on the time period during which the mobile body 80 will be at the location where the service is performed, the charging standard supported by the mobile body 80, and the like.

[0086] The reservation status 224 is information related to the reservation status of the charging station.

[0087] FIG. 8 is a data table showing an example of the reservation status 224. As shown in FIG. 8, the reservation status 224 includes a charging station ID, a port number, a charging start time, and a charging end time. The port number is a charging port ID for identifying each of the multiple charging ports when the charging station has multiple charging ports. By using the reservation status 224, the control unit 21 can grasp the operation status of the charging station and can determine the reservation content of charging that does not cause a charging wait. In addition, the control unit 21 can extract a characteristic operation pattern associated with the charging station by analyzing the accumulated reservation status 224, and can realize the determination of the reservation content of charging that takes into account the operation pattern of the charging station in advance.

[0088] The reservation details 225 are information related to the reservation details applied for at the charging station.

[0089] Fig. 9 is a data table showing an example of the reservation details 225. As shown in Fig. 9, the reservation details 225 include a reservation ID that uniquely identifies the reservation details, a charging station ID, a port number, a charging start time, and a charging end time. The reservation details 225 may also include reservation establishment status that indicates whether or not a reservation has been established as a result of a reservation application. When a certain pattern exists for a business, such as weekly, the control unit 21 may identify a business having a regular pattern by using the past reservation details 225 without analyzing the contents of the business plan, and may determine the reservation details for charging according to the identified business.

[0090] The authentication information 226 is information that enables the user to charge the mobile object 80 at the charging station according to the established reservation.

[0091] Fig. 10 is a data table showing an example of the authentication information 226. As shown in Fig. 10, the authentication information 226 includes an authentication ID that uniquely identifies the authentication, a reservation ID, a user ID, a charging station ID, and an authentication key. Note that each item included in the authentication information 226 may differ depending on the authentication form.

[0092] The usage record information 227 is information on the usage record by the user of the mobile object 80 of the charging station, which is used for settling the usage fee or determining and granting the benefit.

[0093] Fig. 11 is a data table showing an example of the usage history information 227. As shown in Fig. 11, the usage history information 227 includes a usage history ID, a reservation ID, a user ID, a charging station ID, a port number, a charging start time, and a charging end time. Note that the usage history information 227 does not need to include a reservation ID in order to record information on a usage that is not made through a reservation as a usage history.

[0094] The input receiving unit 23 has a function of receiving commands for directly driving the control unit 21 from the operator of the reservation application server 2, a function of receiving commands for managing the information stored in the memory unit 22 from the operator, etc. The management of the information stored in the memory unit 22 includes deleting and adding various pieces of information stored in the memory unit 22, organizing the storage locations of various pieces of information, organizing the names of various pieces of information, etc. The input receiving unit 23 may also have a function of receiving commands for performing maintenance management of the reservation application server 2.

[0095] The display unit 24 displays operation methods for executing the functions of each processing unit of the control unit 21 of the reservation application server 2, or stored information in the storage unit 22. The display unit 24 may also display operational information of the reservation application server 2. The display unit 24 may also display, as necessary, input information accepted by the input acceptance unit 23, or the execution result of processing executed by the control unit 21 based on information received from an external device. The display unit 24 is realized by a display such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display.

[0096] The communication unit 25 communicates with each device inside the reservation application server 2, or with external devices such as the schedule creation server 1, the charging station management server 3, and each of the terminals 4 to 8. The communication unit 25 is realized by a communication IF (Interface) for connecting to a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) or a wired LAN.

[0097] [1-2. Operation] Next, the operation of the information processing system 10 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0098] Fig. 12 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the operation of the information processing system 10 according to the embodiment 1. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the reservation application server 2 in the operation of Fig. 12. Fig. 14 is a diagram for explaining a charging reservation when a moving object 80 performs a delivery task according to the delivery plan shown in Fig. 5.

[0099] First, the operation of the information processing system 10 before charging will be described.

[0100] The plan creation server 1 creates a plan 222 and transmits the created plan to the reservation application server 2 (S1). The plan 222 indicates the scheduled travel of the mobile object 80, as shown in Fig. 5. As a result, the user of the mobile object 80 drives the mobile object 80 in accordance with the contents of the plan 222. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 14, the user drives the mobile object 80 and leaves the departure point at 10:00, which is departure time t1, and travels a distance D1 to the detached house A. It takes 20 minutes to travel the distance D1.

[0101] The user then arrives at House A at arrival time t2. The user stops at House A for three minutes to perform a delivery task of delivering package P1 to House A. Three minutes later, at departure time t3, the user drives the mobile unit 80 to leave House A and travel a distance D2 to Apartment B. It takes 27 minutes to travel the distance D2.

[0102] The user then arrives at apartment B at arrival time t4. The user stops at apartment B for 13 minutes to perform a delivery task of delivering packages P2 to P4 to apartment B. 13 minutes later, at departure time t5, the user drives the mobile unit 80 to leave apartment B and travel distance D3 to house C. It takes 47 minutes to travel distance D3.

[0103] Then, the user arrives at House C at arrival time t6. The user stops at House C for three minutes to perform a delivery task of delivering package P5 to House C. Three minutes later, at departure time t7, the user drives the mobile unit 80 to leave House C and travel to the next delivery destination.

[0104] Next, an example of the operation of the reservation application server 2 in the information processing system 10 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0105] When the reservation application server 2 receives the plan 222 (S1a), it determines candidate charging locations from at least one of a plurality of points indicated by business place names or business place addresses from the plan 222 and the vicinity of the plurality of points (S2). For example, the reservation application server 2 extracts detached house A, condominium B, and detached house C as a plurality of points in the plan 222, and determines condominium B, where the stay time at each point is longer than a threshold value T1 (e.g., 10 minutes), as the candidate charging location. A detailed description of the process of determining candidate charging locations has been described as a function of the candidate charging location determination unit 212, and will not be given here.

[0106] When the reservation application server 2 determines the charging station candidate site, it requests the reservation status 224 from the charging station management server 3 that controls the charging station installed at the determined charging station candidate site (S3). Thereafter, the reservation application server 2 receives the reservation status 224 from the charging station management server 3 (S4). As a result, the reservation application server 2 obtains the reservation status 224 for the charging station installed at the charging station candidate site from the charging station management server 3. A detailed description of the process of obtaining the reservation status 224 has been given as the function of the reservation status obtaining unit 213 and will therefore be omitted. The reservation status transmitted from the charging station management server 3 includes information regarding the available time slot of the charging station so that the reservation application server 2 can determine the reservation details.

[0107] When the reservation application server 2 acquires the reservation status 224, it determines the reservation contents 225 from the reservation status 224 (S5). A detailed description of the process of determining the reservation contents 225 has been given as the function of the reservation contents determination unit 214, and will not be given here.

[0108] When the reservation content 225 is determined, the reservation application server 2 applies for a reservation by transmitting the determined reservation content 225 to the charging station management server 3 (S6). After that, the reservation application server 2 receives a result of the reservation application from the charging station management server 3 (S7).

[0109] When the received reservation application result indicates that the reservation has been accepted at the charging station, the reservation application server 2 generates authentication information 226 used to authenticate the reservation content 225 between the charging station and the mobile body 80, and transmits the generated authentication information 226 to the plan creation server and the charging station management server 3 (S8). A detailed description of the process of generating the authentication information and the process of transmitting the authentication information will be omitted since they have been described as the functions of the authentication information generation unit 216.

[0110] Next, the operation of the information processing system 10 after charging will be described.

[0111] The reservation application server 2 receives the usage history information 227 of the charging station of the mobile object 80 from the charging station management server 3 (S9). Details of the process of receiving the usage history information have been described as the function of the charging history management unit 217, and will therefore be omitted.

[0112] The reservation application server 2 (i) calculates a usage result and (ii) determines the privilege content based on the received usage record information 227 (S10). Then, the reservation application server 2 transmits the determined privilege content to the charging station management server 3 (S11), and transmits the calculated usage result to the plan creation server 1 (S12). A detailed description of the process of calculating and transmitting the usage result is omitted because it has been described as the function of the usage fee settlement unit 218. Also, a detailed description of the process of determining and transmitting the privilege content is omitted because it has been described as the function of the privilege granting unit 219.

[0113] [1-3. Effects, etc.] According to the information processing method of the present embodiment, a computer is used to obtain a plan indicating at least a plurality of points where a mobile body 80 is scheduled to move and stay, a candidate charging site where a battery mounted on the mobile body can be charged from the plurality of points indicated in the plan is determined, a reservation status of a charging station associated with the candidate charging site is obtained, and reservation details are determined from the reservation status of the charging station. In other words, in the information processing method, since the reservation details are determined from the reservation status of the candidate charging site determined based on the plan, it is possible to move the mobile body based on the plan so that no waiting time occurs due to charging. Therefore, the plan can be executed efficiently. This can improve the utilization efficiency of the mobile body equipped with a battery.

[0114] Furthermore, in the information processing method according to the present embodiment, the determination of the candidate charging locations includes selection from at least one of the multiple locations indicated in the plan and locations surrounding the multiple locations. Therefore, it is possible to select candidate charging locations not only from the multiple locations indicated in the plan but also from locations surrounding the multiple locations. In this way, it is possible to increase the number of locations to be used as candidate charging locations, and therefore it is possible to effectively select a charging station suitable for the mobile body. Furthermore, it is possible to easily charge the mobile body at the timing when it should be charged.

[0115] In the information processing method according to the present embodiment, the plan includes a planned stay time at each of the plurality of locations. Then, the selection is performed based on the planned stay time at each of the plurality of locations. Therefore, a location where charging can be performed in a sufficient time can be selected as a candidate charging location.

[0116] (Embodiment 2) A second embodiment will now be described.

[0117] In the information processing system 10 according to the second embodiment, the schedule creation server 1 may further transmit the state of the battery provided in the mobile object 80 to the reservation application server 2. As a result, the charging location candidate determination unit 212 of the control unit 21 in the reservation application server 2 may select a charging location candidate from at least one of the multiple locations indicated by the schedule 222 and the locations surrounding the multiple locations such that the remaining amount of the battery indicated by the received battery state varies between an upper limit Th1 and a lower limit Th2 of the charging capacity. The upper limit Th1 is a value that accelerates deterioration of the battery when the battery is charged to the upper limit Th1 or more, and the ratio of the remaining amount to the capacity of the battery in a fully charged state is, for example, a value of 80 to 90%. The lower limit Th2 is a value that accelerates deterioration of the battery when the battery is consumed to the lower limit Th2 or less, and the ratio of the remaining amount to the capacity of the battery in a fully charged state is, for example, a value of 10 to 20%.

[0118] When determining that the remaining charge of the battery falls below the lower limit Th2 at the next arriving first point due to the consumption of power for traveling to the first point, the charging candidate location determination unit 212 may determine the charging candidate location to perform charging at a second point where the vehicle is scheduled to stay before the first point. The second point may be any point where the vehicle is scheduled to stay before the first point in the order of stay in the plan, and may not necessarily be a point where the vehicle is scheduled to stay one point before the first point. In other words, the second point may be a point where the vehicle is scheduled to stay two or more points before the first point in the order of stay in the plan.

[0119] Furthermore, when the charging candidate location determination unit 212 determines that the remaining amount of the battery will exceed the upper limit Th1 by performing charging at the next first location until departure, the charging candidate location determination unit 212 may determine the charging candidate location such that charging is not performed at the first location but is performed at a third location planned to be visited after the first location. The third location may be any location planned to be visited after the first location in the order of visits in the plan, and does not necessarily have to be a location planned to be visited one location after the first location. In other words, the third location may be a location planned to be visited two or more locations after the first location in the order of visits in the plan.

[0120] Fig. 15 is a diagram for explaining an example of a process for determining a candidate charging site so that the remaining battery charge falls between an upper limit Th1 and a lower limit Th2. In Fig. 15, times t1 to t6 correspond to times t1 to t6 in Fig. 14. That is, Fig. 15 is a diagram for explaining a process for determining a candidate charging site when a moving object 80 performs a delivery task according to the delivery plan shown in Fig. 5.

[0121] As shown in FIG. 15, during the travel time from time t1 to t2, the travel time from time t3 to t4, and the travel time from time t5 to t6, the moving object 80 is in a driving state and consumes the battery. On the other hand, during the stay time from time t2 to t3 and the stay time from time t4 to t5, the moving object 80 is in the detached house A and the apartment B, where charging stations are installed, respectively, and thus charging is possible. Furthermore, if charging is not performed in the detached house A and the apartment B, as shown by the dashed line, it is predicted that the remaining battery level will fall below the lower limit Th2 during the travel time from time t5 to t6. For this reason, the charging candidate site determination unit 212 determines either the detached house A or the apartment B as the charging candidate site. However, since the stay time from time t4 to t5 exceeds the threshold T1 and the stay time from time t2 to t3 is equal to or less than the threshold T1, the apartment B is selected as the charging candidate site. When normal charging is performed in the apartment B, as shown by the solid line, the remaining battery level is greater than the lower limit Th2 even after the travel during the travel time from time t5 to t6 is completed, so normal charging at the apartment B is determined as the reservation content. On the other hand, for example, if the mobile object 80 and the charging station at the apartment B support rapid charging, when rapid charging is selected, the remaining battery level changes as shown by the dashed line in FIG. 15, so that the remaining battery level exceeds Th1 at time t5. Therefore, normal charging is adopted for charging at the apartment B, not rapid charging. In this way, the reservation application server 2 may determine the reservation content in consideration of the transition of the remaining battery level at the upper and lower limits due to switching between normal charging and rapid charging. Note that the charging type may be switched between normal charging and rapid charging, and the presence or absence of charging, such as starting charging and stopping charging, may be switched during the same stay time period. Furthermore, switching between the charging type and switching between the presence or absence of charging may be combined.

[0122] Furthermore, the state of the battery is not limited to the remaining charge of the battery, but may be the deterioration state of the battery, the temperature of the battery predicted at the time of arrival at each point associated with the plan, and the like.

[0123] Fig. 16 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the operation of the information processing system 10 according to the embodiment 2. In Fig. 16, the same processes as those in Fig. 12 according to the embodiment 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those denoted by the reference numerals.

[0124] First, the plan making server 1 transmits the plan 222 (S1), and transmits the battery status of the mobile object 80 (S21).

[0125] When the reservation application server 2 receives the battery status, it selects a potential charging location from at least one of the multiple locations indicated in the plan 222 and locations surrounding the multiple locations so that the remaining battery capacity indicated by the received battery status fluctuates between an upper limit Th1 and a lower limit Th2 of the charging capacity (S22).

[0126] Then, the reservation application server 2 performs steps S3 to S5.

[0127] If the reservation application server 2 is unable to calculate the charging time slot after step S5, it transmits calculation impossible information indicating that the charging time slot cannot be calculated to the plan making server 1 (S23). At this time, the reservation application server 2 may transmit battery state information that is the cause of the inability to set the charging time slot.

[0128] The processes in steps S6 to S12 performed after step S23 are similar to those in the first embodiment, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0129] According to the information processing method of the present embodiment, the selection selects a candidate charging site such that the remaining charge of the battery changes between the upper and lower limits of the charging capacity. This allows the user to easily operate the battery so that the battery does not deteriorate.

[0130] (Embodiment 3) A third embodiment will now be described.

[0131] In the information processing system 10 according to the third embodiment, when the reservation application server 2 determines that the charging station cannot be reserved based on the reservation status acquired from the charging station management server 3, the reservation application server 2 may change the plan.

[0132] The reservation application server 2 performs a first determination to determine whether or not the charging station can be reserved based on the reservation status acquired from the charging station management server 3. Then, when it is determined in the first determination that the charging station cannot be reserved, the reservation application server 2 changes the plan and performs a second determination to determine whether or not the changed charging station associated with the changed charging candidate site determined from the changed plan can be reserved. Next, when it is determined in the second determination that the changed charging station can be reserved, the reservation application server 2 transmits the changed plan to the plan creation server 1. In other words, the reservation application server 2 changes the plan by prioritizing charging of the mobile object, and therefore it is possible to reduce the occurrence of the mobile object stopping due to lack of remaining battery power.

[0133] For example, the reservation application server 2 may rearrange multiple points in the plan as a change in the plan. Rearrangement of multiple points includes changing the order of visiting multiple points in the plan for one mobile object. In this way, by rearranging the order of visiting, the reservation application server 2 can visit, for example, a charging station at a determined candidate charging site during a time period during which reservations can be made, and charging can be performed during the time period visited.

[0134] In addition, rearrangement of multiple locations includes swapping multiple locations in multiple plans for multiple moving objects between multiple plans. In this way, the reservation application server 2 can consolidate operations that were distributed among multiple moving objects by swapping multiple locations between multiple plans, and can move moving objects efficiently.

[0135] In this case, in the second determination, the reservation application server 2 determines whether or not a rearranged charging station associated with a rearranged charging candidate site determined from the multiple locations rearranged in the change can be reserved. Then, when it is determined in the second determination that the rearranged charging station can be reserved, the reservation application server 2 transmits a rearranged plan indicating at least the rearranged multiple locations to the plan creation server 1. In other words, the reservation application server 2 rearranges the multiple locations in the plan by prioritizing charging of the mobile object, thereby reducing the occurrence of the mobile object stopping due to the remaining battery power being depleted.

[0136] Also, for example, the reservation application server 2 may change the stay time at at least one of the multiple points in the plan as a change to the plan. For example, when the reservation application server 2 determines in the first determination that the charging station cannot be reserved, the reservation application server 2 can lengthen the stay time at the point corresponding to the charging station, thereby enabling the mobile body 80 to charge in the time slot following the time slot for which the charging station is already reserved. In this case, the reservation application server 2 may lengthen the stay time at a point where the mobile body 80 is scheduled to stay before the point corresponding to the charging station. This makes it possible to prevent the mobile body 80 from becoming unable to move due to the remaining battery power of the mobile body 80 running out.

[0137] Fig. 17 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the operation of the information processing system 10 according to the embodiment 3. In Fig. 17, the same processes as those in Fig. 12 according to the embodiment 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those denoted by the reference numerals.

[0138] First, steps S1 to S4 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore the description will be omitted.

[0139] After step S4, when the reservation application server 2 determines that the charging station cannot be reserved based on the reservation status, the reservation application server 2 changes the plan and determines the reservation contents according to the changed plan (S31). A detailed description of the process of changing the plan has been described above and will be omitted here.

[0140] The reservation application server 2 transmits the changed plan to the plan making server 1 (S32).

[0141] The processes in steps S6 to S12 performed after step S32 are similar to those in the first embodiment, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0142] In each of the above embodiments, each component may be configured with dedicated hardware, or may be realized by executing a software program suitable for each component. Each component may be realized by a program execution unit such as a CPU or a processor reading and executing a software program recorded on a recording medium such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory. Here, the software for realizing the information processing method, information processing system, etc. of each of the above embodiments is a program such as the following.

[0143] In other words, this program causes a computer to execute an information processing method that uses the computer to obtain a plan indicating at least a plurality of locations to which a mobile body is scheduled to travel and stay, determines candidate charging locations where a battery installed in the mobile body can be charged from the plurality of locations indicated in the plan, obtains the reservation status of charging stations associated with the candidate charging locations, and determines the reservation contents from the reservation status of the charging stations.

[0144] Although the information processing method and the information processing system according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure have been described based on the embodiments, the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments. As long as it does not deviate from the spirit of the present disclosure, various modifications conceived by a person skilled in the art to the present embodiments and forms constructed by combining components in different embodiments may also be included within the scope of the present disclosure. [Industrial Applicability]

[0145] The present disclosure is useful as an information processing method and an information processing system that can improve the utilization efficiency of a mobile body equipped with a battery. [Explanation of symbols]

[0146] 1 Planning Server 2. Reservation application server 3. Charging station management server 4~6 Charging terminal 7, 8 Operation terminal 21 Control section 22 Memory section 23 Input reception section 24 Display 25 Communications Department 80 Mobile 211 Planning Acquisition Department 212 Charging candidate site determination section 213 Reservation Status Acquisition Department 214 Reservation Contents Decision Department 215 Reservation Application Section 216 Authentication Information Generation Unit 217 Charging Record Management Department 218 Usage Fee Settlement Department 219 Benefits Granting Department 221 User information 222 Plan 223 Charging station information 224 Reservation Status 225 Reservation details 226 Authentication Information 227 Usage record information

Claims

1. An information processing method performed by a computer, comprising: obtaining a plan indicating at least a number of points along which the mobile object will travel and remain; determining a candidate charging site where a battery mounted on the mobile object can be charged from the plurality of points indicated in the plan; Acquire a reservation status of a charging station associated with the charging candidate site; determining reservation details based on the reservation status of the charging station; Output the reservation details, Each of the plurality of locations is a location where the vehicle stops for business purposes; the plan includes a planned dwell time at each of the plurality of locations; When it is determined that the remaining charge of the battery falls below a predetermined amount due to consumption of power in traveling to a first point among the plurality of points, the candidate charging site is determined to be a second point where the vehicle is scheduled to stay before the first point. Information processing methods.

2. The determination of the charging candidate site includes a selection from the plurality of sites indicated by the plan; The selection is performed for a location where the planned stay time at each of the plurality of locations is longer than a predetermined time. The information processing method according to claim 1 .

3. In the selection, a candidate charging site is selected such that a remaining charge of the battery changes between an upper limit and a lower limit of a charging capacity. The information processing method according to claim 2 .

4. moreover, performing a first determination of whether or not the charging station can be reserved based on the reservation status; When it is determined in the first determination that the charging station cannot be reserved, the plan is changed; performing a second determination of whether or not a changed charging station associated with the changed charging candidate site determined from the changed plan is available for reservation; outputting the changed plan when it is determined in the second determination that the changed charging station can be reserved; The information processing method according to claim 1 .

5. moreover, In the change, the plurality of points in the plan are rearranged; In the second determination, it is determined whether or not a rearranged charging station associated with a rearranged charging candidate site determined from the plurality of sites rearranged in the change can be reserved; When it is determined in the second determination that the charging stations after the rearrangement can be reserved, the plan changed by rearrangement indicating at least the rearranged plurality of locations is output. The information processing method according to claim 4.

6. The change includes changing a stay time at at least one of the plurality of points in the plan. The information processing method according to claim 4.

7. a plan acquisition unit that acquires a plan indicating at least a plurality of points where a moving object is scheduled to move and stay; a charging site determination unit that determines a charging site where a battery mounted on the moving object can be charged from the plurality of points indicated in the plan; a reservation status acquisition unit that acquires a reservation status of a charging station associated with the charging candidate site; a reservation content determination unit that determines reservation content based on a reservation status of the charging station; a communication unit that outputs the reservation details, Each of the plurality of locations is a location where the vehicle stops for business purposes; the plan includes a planned dwell time at each of the plurality of locations; When it is determined that a remaining charge of the battery falls below a predetermined amount due to consumption of power in traveling to a first point among the plurality of points, the candidate charging site is determined to be a second point where the vehicle is scheduled to stay before the first point. Information processing system.

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