Vehicle operation support device, terminal device, demand transportation system, vehicle operation support method, and vehicle operation support program

Abstract

To obtain a vehicle operational support device capable of performing appropriate allocation of vehicles with user's demands.SOLUTION: A vehicle operational support device 2 for supporting a vehicle demand operation in which getting-on / off places are preset comprises a reservation information receiving part 15, a reservation processing part 19, and a reservation result transmitting part 20. The reservation information receiving part receives reservation information including area information as information about an area where a reservation terminal 3 is arranged, and destination information as information about a destination, which is the information produced when a user operates the reservation terminal 3 associated with areas including a plurality of the getting-on / off places to reserve the vehicle. The reservation processing part reserves the vehicle corresponding to a route selected by the user among routes corresponding to a candidate vehicle, by determining the vehicle traveling through an operational path to the destination corresponding to the destination information from any of the plurality of the getting-on / off places included in the area corresponding to the area information. The reservation result transmitting part transmits, to the reservation terminal 3, a reservation result indicating a result, that is reserved by the reservation processing part 19.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle operation support device, a terminal device, a demand transportation system, a vehicle operation support method, and a vehicle operation support program that support the operation of a vehicle that performs demand operation. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, demand-based transportation systems, which users make reservations in advance, have been attracting attention. Patent Document 1 proposes a demand-based transportation system in which a bus stop terminal installed at a bus stop is equipped with a detection unit that detects people, such as a button pressed by the user or a camera, and when a person is detected by the detection unit, a request is made to a control device that manages bus operation to dispatch a bus to the bus stop, and the control device dispatches a bus to the bus stop. The demand-based transportation system described in Patent Document 1 can respond to sudden demand by dispatching buses using the above method. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2014-203192 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the demand-based transportation system described in Patent Document 1, the boarding and alighting locations where a user boards a bus are limited to the bus stop where the user is detected. However, depending on the operation status of the demand-based transportation system and the destination, it may be more advantageous for the user in terms of travel time and cost to walk and board a bus from another boarding and alighting location, and for users who prioritize travel time and cost, the dispatch method using the technology described in Patent Document 1 may not be appropriate.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a vehicle operation support device capable of appropriate vehicle allocation in accordance with user requests. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the vehicle operation support device according to the present disclosure is a vehicle operation support device that supports demand operation of a vehicle whose boarding and alighting locations are predetermined, and includes a plurality of boarding and alighting locations. Predetermined and a reservation information receiving unit that receives reservation information, which is information generated when a user operates a reservation terminal associated with the area to reserve a vehicle, and includes area information that is information about the area in which the reservation terminal is installed and destination information that is information about the destination. The vehicle operations support device further includes a reservation processing unit that determines, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle that runs on a route from one of a plurality of boarding and alighting points included in the area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information, and reserves a vehicle corresponding to the route selected by the user from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles, and a reservation result sending unit that sends a reservation result indicating the result of the reservation made by the reservation processing unit to the reservation terminal. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an advantageous effect of appropriately dispatching vehicles in accordance with the user's requests. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a demand transportation system including a vehicle operation support device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a vehicle travel route and an area according to the embodiment; [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a vehicle reservation process in a demand transportation system according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of reservation information transmitted from a reservation terminal. [Diagram 5]FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in an embodiment when a destination is specified by area. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in an embodiment when a destination is specified by a point. [Figure 7] 1 is a flowchart showing an example of an authentication process according to an embodiment; [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a reservation processing unit according to an embodiment; [Figure 9] A flowchart showing an example of a reservation processing procedure in the reservation processing unit of the embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of terminal information according to an embodiment; [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of boarding and alighting place information according to an embodiment; [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of boarding and alighting place information according to an embodiment; [Figure 13] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of fare distance information according to the embodiment; [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of vehicle operation information according to an embodiment; [Figure 15] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of vehicle operation information according to an embodiment; [Figure 16] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of movement information according to an embodiment; [Figure 17] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a candidate information display screen in the appointment terminal according to the embodiment; [Figure 18] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of the candidate information display screen in the appointment terminal according to the embodiment; [Figure 19] A flowchart showing an example of a process of the vehicle operation support device after receiving a selection result in the embodiment. [Figure 20] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a reservation result stored in a storage unit according to an embodiment; [Figure 21] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a vehicle route according to an embodiment in which P2P-type operation is performed; [Figure 22] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a method for displaying a reservation identification number in an embodiment. [Diagram 23] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a computer system that realizes a vehicle operation support device according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, a vehicle operation support device, a terminal device, a demand transportation system, a vehicle operation support method, and a vehicle operation support program according to the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0010] Embodiment FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a demand transportation system including a vehicle operation support device according to an embodiment. The demand transportation system 1 includes a vehicle operation support device 2, a reservation terminal 3, and a vehicle 4. The vehicle operation support device 2 of this embodiment supports the demand operation of the vehicle 4 whose boarding and alighting places are predetermined. The vehicle 4 of this embodiment may be operated by a fixed-time, fixed-route type operation in which the operation route and operation time are determined in advance as an operation plan, such as a route bus, a community bus, or a taxi whose boarding and alighting places and dispatch time zones are determined, or may be operated by a P2P (Point to Point) type operation in which only the boarding and alighting places are determined in advance, and the operation route and operation time of the vehicle 4 are determined according to the reservation information of the user. In the following, a case where the vehicle 4 is operated by a fixed-time, fixed-route type operation will be described as an example.

[0011] The boarding and alighting locations for the vehicle 4 may be locations called bus stops where a bus stop sign is provided, or locations that are predetermined locations such as in front of a designated building where no bus stop sign is provided. The boarding and alighting locations may be locations where both boarding and alighting are possible, or locations where only boarding or alighting is possible.

[0012] The reservation terminal 3 is a terminal device provided for reserving a vehicle 4, and is a terminal device that can be operated by a user. The reservation terminal 3 is installed at the boarding and disembarking location or a location other than the boarding and disembarking location in the vicinity of the boarding and disembarking location. When the vehicle operations support device 2 receives reservation information, which is information related to the reservation of a vehicle 4, from the reservation terminal 3, it determines candidates for a route to be assigned to the reservation using the reservation information received from the reservation terminal 3 and the operation plan of the vehicle 4, and transmits information related to the determined candidates as candidate information to the reservation terminal 3. The reservation terminal 3 displays the candidate information, accepts input of the selection result of the route to be reserved from the user, and transmits the selection result to the vehicle operations support device 2. The vehicle operations support device 2 performs reservation processing based on the selection result.

[0013] In this embodiment, the reservation terminal 3 is associated with a specified area, and the vehicle operation support device 2 determines as candidate boarding and alighting points those boarding and alighting points within the area corresponding to the reservation terminal 3 operated by the user that are available for boarding, and determines as candidate routes the route for travel using the vehicle 4 from the candidate boarding and alighting points to the user's destination.

[0014] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the travel route and area of ​​the vehicle 4 in this embodiment. In the example shown in FIG. 2, travel routes 201, 202, and 203 are defined as the travel route of the vehicle 4. In addition, in the example shown in FIG. 2, areas A and D are illustrated as examples of the defined areas. In the example shown in FIG. 2, area A is an area where a user who intends to use the vehicle 4 exists, and area D is the destination of the user's travel. Other areas are defined besides areas A and D, but are not illustrated in FIG. 2. In the example shown in FIG. 2, both boarding and disembarking are possible at all boarding and disembarking locations.

[0015] There are five boarding and alighting locations A1 to A5 in area A, and there are three boarding and alighting locations D1 to D3 in area D. In this way, each area is provided with a plurality of boarding and alighting locations.

[0016] The boarding and alighting stations A3, A4, and D1 are boarding and alighting stations on the route of the travel route 201, the boarding and alighting stations A1, A2, and D2 are boarding and alighting stations on the route of the travel route 202, and the boarding and alighting stations A5 and D3 are boarding and alighting stations on the route of the travel route 203. As shown in FIG. 2, the travel route 201 and the travel route 202 are travel routes in the opposite directions on the same route. In this way, the multiple boarding and alighting stations in the same area may include boarding and alighting stations corresponding to the same point on a travel route that runs in the opposite direction on the road, such as the reverse direction or uphill and downhill on the same route. In other words, the multiple boarding and alighting stations included in the same area may include two boarding and alighting stations corresponding to the same point on two travel routes on which the vehicle 4 runs in the opposite directions on the same route. The multiple boarding and alighting stations in the same area may also include different boarding and alighting stations provided on roads in multiple directions that intersect at an intersection.

[0017] A terminal ID (IDentifier) ​​is assigned as terminal identification information to identify the reservation terminal 3. Six reservation terminals 3 with terminal IDs a1 to a6 are provided in the area A. The six reservation terminals 3 in the area A are associated with the area A. A figure similar to the figure with the reference symbol 3 indicates the reservation terminal 3. The identification ID of each reservation terminal 3 is shown below or to the side of the reservation terminal 3. The reservation terminals 3 with terminal IDs a1 to a4 are provided at the boarding and alighting locations A1 to A4, respectively, and the reservation terminals 3 with terminal IDs a5 and a6 are provided at locations other than the boarding and alighting locations. In the example shown in FIG. 2, a user 5 is located near the reservation terminal 3 with terminal ID a5, and the user 5 operates the reservation terminal 3 with terminal ID a5 to make a reservation for the vehicle 4. Although not shown in the figure, a plurality of reservation terminals 3 are also provided in the area D.

[0018] In this embodiment, when reserving the vehicle 4, the user can specify an area as the destination and can also specify a location, i.e., a boarding and alighting place. For example, when the area D is specified as the destination, the vehicle operation support device 2 can set the following as candidates for the route of the vehicle 4 reserved by the user: a route from the boarding and alighting place A1, via the operating route 202, to the boarding and alighting place D2; a route from the boarding and alighting place A2, via the operating route 202, to the boarding and alighting place D2; a route from the boarding and alighting place A3, via the operating route 201, to the boarding and alighting place D1; a route from the boarding and alighting place A4, via the operating route 201, to the boarding and alighting place D1; and a route from the boarding and alighting place A5, via the operating route 203, to the boarding and alighting place D3. In addition, the vehicle operation support device 2 can set as candidate routes for the vehicle 4 reserved by the user a route in which the user boards the vehicle at boarding / alighting location A1, travels via the operating route 202 to board / alight at boarding / alighting location D2, and walks to boarding / alighting location D1, a route in which the user boards the vehicle at boarding / alighting location A2, travels via the operating route 202 to board / alight at boarding / alighting location D2, and walks to boarding / alighting location D1, and a route in which the user boards the vehicle at boarding / alighting location A5, travels via the operating route 203 to board / alight at boarding / alighting location D3, and walks to boarding / alighting location D1.

[0019] In addition, when the destination is specified by a point, for example, when boarding / alighting point D1 in area D is specified as the destination, the vehicle operation support device 2 can set as candidate routes for the vehicle 4 reserved by the user a route from boarding / alighting point A3, via the operating route 201, and disembarking at boarding / alighting point D1, and a route from boarding / alighting point A4, via the operating route 201, and disembarking at boarding / alighting point D1.

[0020] The vehicle operation support device 2 may select a route that satisfies a predetermined condition from among these routes and transmit it to the reservation terminal 3 as a route candidate, or may transmit all of these routes as candidates. The predetermined conditions are, for example, related to the required time, the travel distance, the total fee, the arrival time, and the like. The details of the predetermined conditions will be described later. The user checks the route candidates displayed on the reservation terminal 3, selects the route to be reserved from among the candidates, and inputs the selection result to the reservation terminal 3. Note that, when there is only one candidate displayed on the reservation terminal 3, the user inputs information indicating that the candidate will be reserved as the selection result. In this way, the selection result indicates the route selected by the user as the route to be reserved from among the routes indicated in the candidate information. The user may also input information indicating that none of the vehicles 4 corresponding to the displayed candidates will be reserved as the selection result. In other words, the user may input information indicating the cancellation of the reservation as the selection result.

[0021] In this way, the vehicle operation support device 2 of the present embodiment determines multiple route candidates using multiple boarding and alighting locations in an area associated with the reservation terminal 3 operated by the user as boarding location candidates, and determines the vehicle 4 corresponding to the route selected by the user from among the candidates as the vehicle 4 to be assigned to the user. As a result, appropriate vehicle allocation is performed taking into consideration not only the boarding and alighting location corresponding to the user's current location but also multiple boarding and alighting locations, so that appropriate vehicle allocation can be performed according to the user's request. In addition, by installing the reservation terminal 3 at locations other than the boarding and alighting locations, the user has more freedom in choosing the location and time to make a reservation, and the user's convenience is improved compared to when the reservation terminal 3 is installed only at the boarding and alighting locations. In addition, since the user can make a reservation for the vehicle 4 without using a smartphone, personal computer, etc., the user can reserve the vehicle 4 with a simple operation even if the user does not have a smartphone, personal computer, etc., or is unfamiliar with operating a smartphone or personal computer.

[0022] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 1, an example of the configuration of each device in this embodiment will be described. As shown in Fig. 1, the reservation terminal 3 includes an authentication request unit 31, a reservation information transmission unit 32, a reservation candidate reception unit 33, a selection result transmission unit 34, a reservation result reception unit 35, a display unit 36, an ID acquisition unit 37, a terminal ID storage unit 38, and an input reception unit 39.

[0023] The ID acquisition unit 37 acquires a user ID, which is user identification information corresponding to a user reserving the vehicle 4, and outputs the acquired user ID to the authentication request unit 31. The user ID may be identification information that identifies a user, and may be identification information assigned to the user for reserving the vehicle 4, or may be identification information used in another service. The ID acquisition unit 37 may be, for example, a card reader that reads the user ID from an IC (Integrated Circuit) card, a magnetic card, or a two-dimensional code on which the user ID is stored, or may be, for example, a biometric information reader that reads the biometric information of the user, such as a fingerprint, vein, face, or iris. The ID acquisition unit 37 may also acquire the user ID by accepting an input of the user ID from the user.

[0024] The input accepting unit 39 accepts input from a user. For example, the input accepting unit 39 accepts input of reservation information from the user, and outputs the accepted reservation information to the reservation information transmitting unit 32. The input accepting unit 39 also accepts input of a selection result of a route to be reserved from the user, and outputs the accepted selection result to the selection result transmitting unit 34.

[0025] The authentication request unit 31 requests authentication of the user by transmitting the user ID to the vehicle operations support device 2, and upon receiving usage permission (usage permission information) from the vehicle operations support device 2, outputs the usage permission to the display unit 36. The terminal ID storage unit 38 stores the terminal ID of the reservation terminal 3.

[0026] The reservation candidate receiving unit 33 receives candidate information indicating candidates for routes to be reserved from the vehicle operations support device 2, and outputs the received candidate information to the display unit 36. The reservation information transmitting unit 32 adds the terminal ID read from the terminal ID storage unit 38 to the reservation information received from the input accepting unit 39, and transmits the reservation information with the terminal ID added to the vehicle operations support device 2. The selection result transmitting unit 34 transmits the selection result received from the input accepting unit 39 to the vehicle operations support device 2.

[0027] The reservation result receiving unit 35 receives the reservation result from the vehicle operation support device 2, and outputs the received reservation result to the display unit 36. When the display unit 36 ​​receives permission to use from the authentication request unit 31, it displays that permission to use is permitted as an authentication result, when it receives candidate information from the reservation candidate receiving unit 33, it displays the candidate information, and when it receives a reservation result from the reservation result receiving unit 35, it displays the reservation result. Note that the display unit 36 ​​and the input accepting unit 39 may be integrated and realized by a touch panel or the like.

[0028] The vehicle operation support device 2 includes an operation plan determination unit 11, a display unit 12, a memory unit 13, an authentication unit 14, a reservation information receiving unit 15, a reservation candidate transmitting unit 16, a selection result receiving unit 17, a reservation cancellation processing unit 18, a reservation processing unit 19, a reservation result transmitting unit 20 and an operation plan transmitting unit 21.

[0029] The operation plan determination unit 11 determines an operation plan including the operation time of the vehicle 4 for each operation route, and stores the determined operation plan in the storage unit 13. For example, the operation plan determination unit 11 determines the operation plan using the operation route and operation time input by the manager. The manager determines the operation route and operation time based on, for example, the presence or absence of facilities and houses, and the usage status over a long period of time in the past, but the method of determining the operation route and operation time input to the operation plan determination unit 11 is not limited to this, and any method may be used. In addition, which vehicle 4 is to be used for each flight for each operation route is also determined as an operation plan based on the input from the manager. In addition, the operation plan determination unit 11 may change which vehicle 4 is to be used for each flight for each operation route based on the reservation status and the operation plan of each vehicle 4. In addition, in the vehicle operation support device 2, a vehicle position receiving unit (not shown) acquires the current position from the vehicle 4, and the operation plan determination unit 11 may change the operation plan when a delay occurs from the operation time determined according to the current position of the vehicle 4. In addition, the vehicle operation support device 2 may be provided with an information acquisition unit that acquires congestion information, congestion forecast information, traffic regulation information, etc. (not shown), and the operation plan determination unit 11 may change the operation plan using the information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

[0030] The authentication unit 14 acquires a user ID, and transmits usage permission information permitting the use of a reservation to the reservation terminal 3 if the acquired user ID has been registered, and transmits usage permission information to the reservation terminal 3 after registering the acquired user ID if the acquired user ID has not been registered. In detail, when the authentication unit 14 receives a user ID from the reservation terminal 3, it performs an authentication process, and transmits usage permission to the reservation terminal 3 if the received user ID is stored in the user registration information of the storage unit 13, and transmits usage permission to the reservation terminal 3 if the received user ID is not stored in the user registration information of the storage unit 13, adding information corresponding to the user ID to the user registration information of the storage unit 13 and transmitting usage permission to the reservation terminal 3. The user registration information is information about each user and includes the user ID. Details of the user registration information will be described later.

[0031] When the reservation information receiving unit 15 receives reservation information from the reservation terminal 3, it stores the received reservation information in the storage unit 13. The reservation processing unit 19 determines, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle that runs on a route from one of a plurality of boarding and alighting places included in the area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information in the reservation information, and reserves a vehicle corresponding to the route selected by the user among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles. In detail, the reservation processing unit 19 determines a candidate for the route to be reserved based on the terminal information, reservation information, operation plan, movement information, and boarding and alighting place information stored in the storage unit 13, and stores candidate information indicating the candidate route in the storage unit 13. Details of the candidate information will be described later. In addition, when the reservation processing unit 19 receives a selection result from the selection result receiving unit 17, it confirms the reservation corresponding to the route indicated by the received selection result, and reflects the contents of the confirmed reservation in the operation plan and reservation result in the storage unit 13.

[0032] The reservation candidate sending unit 16 sends candidate information indicating candidates for routes to be reserved to the reservation terminal 3. In detail, the reservation candidate sending unit 16 sends the candidate information stored in the memory unit 13 to the reservation terminal 3. The selection result receiving unit 17 receives a selection result indicating the route selected by the user from the reservation terminal 3, and outputs the selection result to the reservation processing unit 19 if the received selection result is information indicating the route to be reserved, and outputs the selection result to the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 if the received selection result is information indicating not to make a reservation.

[0033] The reservation result transmission unit 20 transmits newly added reservation results among the reservation results stored in the storage unit 13 to the corresponding reservation terminal 3 and the vehicle 4. When the operation plan stored in the storage unit 13 is updated, the operation plan transmission unit 21 transmits the operation plan to the vehicle 4.

[0034] The storage unit 13 stores user registration information, operation plans, reservation information, movement information, boarding and alighting location information, terminal information, candidate information, and reservation results. The display unit 12 displays information stored in the storage unit 13. For example, the display unit 12 may display an operation plan, or may display an operation plan and a reservation result. Furthermore, as described above, when the vehicle operation support device 2 receives location information indicating the current location from the vehicle 4, the display unit 12 may display the current location of the vehicle 4.

[0035] The vehicle 4 includes a vehicle-installed terminal 41, an ID acquisition device 42, and a display device 43. The vehicle-installed terminal 41 includes an operation plan receiving unit 44, a reservation result receiving unit 45, and a reservation matching unit 46. The operation plan receiving unit 44 receives an operation plan from the vehicle operation support device 2 and transmits the received operation plan to the display device 43. The reservation result receiving unit 45 receives a reservation result from the vehicle operation support device 2 and outputs the received reservation result to the reservation matching unit 46. The reservation matching unit 46 holds the reservation result received from the reservation result receiving unit 45, determines whether the user ID received from the ID acquisition device 42 is included in the reservation result, and notifies the user that the reservation has not been made if the user ID received from the ID acquisition device 42 is included in the reservation result. The reservation matching unit 46 notifies the user that the reservation has not been made, for example, by an output device (not shown). The output device may be a device that generates sound or a display device.

[0036] 1, the vehicle 4 is not an autonomous vehicle but is a vehicle driven by a driver. The vehicle-installed terminal 41 may transmit position information indicating the position of the vehicle 4 to the vehicle operation support device 2. For example, the vehicle 4 is equipped with a position detection device such as a GPS receiver that performs GPS (Global Positioning System) positioning (not shown), and the vehicle-installed terminal 41 acquires the position information of the vehicle 4 from the position detection device.

[0037] The display device 43 displays the operation plan received from the operation plan receiving unit 44. This allows the driver of the vehicle 4 to understand the operation plan. Note that, when the operation plan for the vehicle 4 on which the vehicle installation terminal 41 is mounted is updated and changed from the operation plan previously received from the vehicle operation support device 2, the vehicle installation terminal 41 may transmit the operation plan to the display device 43 together with information indicating that the operation plan has been changed.

[0038] The ID acquisition device 42 is a device that acquires a user ID by, for example, reading the user ID stored in an IC card from the IC card, and outputs the acquired user ID to the reservation matching unit 46. The ID acquisition device 42 may acquire the user ID by input from the user, similar to the ID acquisition unit 37. The ID acquisition device 42 may acquire the user ID by reading a two-dimensional code such as a QR (registered trademark) code. For example, when the reservation terminal 3 displays the reservation result, a reservation ticket on which the user ID is printed as a two-dimensional code such as a QR (registered trademark) code may be issued. Alternatively, the reservation terminal 3 may display a two-dimensional code indicating a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) corresponding to the user ID, and the user may read the two-dimensional code with a mobile terminal such as a smartphone and access the URL, whereby the two-dimensional code indicating the user ID is displayed.

[0039] In addition, in FIG. 1, an example is shown in which vehicle 4 is equipped with an ID acquisition device 42, a reservation result receiving unit 45 and a reservation matching unit 46. However, if the user's reservation is not confirmed when boarding vehicle 4, that is, if a reservation is required to use vehicle 4 but confirmation of whether or not a reservation has been made when boarding is not made, then ID acquisition device 42, reservation result receiving unit 45 and reservation matching unit 46 do not have to be provided.

[0040] In addition, if vehicle 4 is an autonomous vehicle or has a driving assistance function, vehicle 4 is equipped with a vehicle control unit (not shown), and the operation plan receiving unit 44 outputs the operation plan to the vehicle control unit, and the vehicle control unit controls each device for driving (not shown) that is installed in vehicle 4.

[0041] In addition, in Fig. 1, the display device 43 and the vehicle-mounted terminal 41 are provided separately, but the display device 43 and the vehicle-mounted terminal 41 may be integrated. In addition, in Fig. 1, one vehicle 4 is illustrated, but generally, a plurality of vehicles 4 are used for operation. The number of vehicles 4 may be any number.

[0042] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. Fig. 3 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a reservation process for a vehicle 4 in the demand transportation system 1 of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 3, the reservation terminal 3 acquires a user ID (step S1). In detail, the ID acquisition unit 37 of the reservation terminal 3 acquires the user ID and outputs the acquired user ID to the authentication request unit 31.

[0043] The reservation terminal 3 transmits the acquired user ID to the vehicle operations support device 2. In detail, the authentication request unit 31 transmits the user ID to the vehicle operations support device 2 (step S2). Upon acquiring the user ID, the vehicle operations support device 2 performs an authentication process (step S3), and transmits usage permission information indicating that usage is permitted to the reservation terminal 3 (step S4). Details of the authentication process will be described later.

[0044] Next, the reservation terminal 3 acquires reservation information (step S5). More specifically, the input receiving unit 39 acquires the reservation information by accepting input of the reservation information from the user, and outputs the acquired reservation information to the reservation information transmitting unit 32. Next, the reservation terminal 3 transmits the reservation information to the vehicle operation support device 2 (step S6). More specifically, the reservation information transmitting unit 32 reads out the terminal ID stored in the terminal ID storage unit 38, and adds the read terminal ID to the reservation information received from the input receiving unit 39 and transmits the information.

[0045] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of reservation information transmitted from the reservation terminal 3. As shown in FIG. 4, the reservation information includes destination information (described as destination in FIG. 4) which is information about the destination, and a terminal ID which is an example of area information. The area information is information about the area where the reservation terminal 3 is installed. The reservation information may further include at least one of the number of passengers, the desired boarding time, the desired arrival time, a user ID, and a specified condition. The information received by the input receiving unit 39 only needs to include at least the destination, and the other information may be automatically set by the reservation terminal 3. For example, the user ID may be output from the authentication request unit 31 or the ID acquisition unit 37 to the reservation information transmitting unit 32, and the reservation information transmitting unit 32 may add the user ID to the reservation information. In addition, the number of passengers and the desired boarding time may be set as default values ​​to the current time and one person, respectively, and displayed by the display unit 36, and the displayed default values ​​may be changed by the user, so that the changed input may be accepted.

[0046] The destination may be specified by area as described above, or may be specified by location (boarding and disembarking place). FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in this embodiment when the destination is specified by area. When accepting the destination in the reservation information, the display unit 36 ​​displays, for example, the screen shown in FIG. 5. In FIG. 5, the destination is shown as a disembarking place, and an example of a screen for the user to specify the disembarking place as the destination by area is shown. The buttons of Area A to Area E on the right side shown in FIG. 5 are buttons for selecting an area, and the user presses the button corresponding to the area to be selected as the disembarking place.

[0047] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an input screen in this embodiment when a destination is specified by a point. When accepting a destination in reservation information, the display unit 36 ​​displays, for example, the screen shown in Fig. 6. In Fig. 6, the destination is shown as a disembarking place, and an example of a screen for a user to specify a disembarking place as a destination by a point is shown. The buttons on the right side shown in Fig. 6 with numbers and places written on them are buttons for selecting boarding and disembarking places, and the user presses the button corresponding to the boarding and disembarking place to be selected as the disembarking place.

[0048] A user may select whether to specify the area designation illustrated in FIG. 5 or the location designation illustrated in FIG. 6. For example, a screen for selecting a designation method may be displayed before the screens of FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are displayed, or a button for transitioning to a location designation screen shown in FIG. 6 may be displayed on the screen shown in FIG. 5, and a button for transitioning to an area designation screen shown in FIG. 6 may be displayed, thereby making it possible to switch between screens. Alternatively, the reservation terminal 3 may be capable of accepting only one of the area designation illustrated in FIG. 5 and the location designation illustrated in FIG. 6. Although FIGS. 5 and 6 show an example in which the input acceptance unit 39 is a touch panel integrated with the display unit 36, the input acceptance unit 39 may be provided separately from the display unit 36.

[0049] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 3, when the vehicle operations support device 2 receives the reservation information, it performs reservation processing (step S7) and transmits candidate information to the reservation terminal 3 (step S8). The details of the reservation processing will be described later.

[0050] Next, the reservation terminal 3 acquires the selection result (step S9). In detail, the reservation candidate receiving unit 33 receives the candidate information and outputs it to the display unit 36, the display unit 36 ​​displays the candidate information, and the input accepting unit 39 accepts input of the selection result from the user, thereby acquiring the selection result.

[0051] Next, the reservation terminal 3 transmits the selection result to the vehicle operations support device 2 (step S10). Upon receiving the selection result, the vehicle operations support device 2 confirms the reservation and transmits the reservation result to the reservation terminal 3 and the vehicle 4 (step S11). Through the above operations, the reservation of the vehicle 4 by the user is completed. When boarding the reserved vehicle 4, the user has the IC card read by the ID acquisition device 42, or has the two-dimensional code indicating the user ID read by the ID acquisition device 42. Alternatively, the user ID may be input into the ID acquisition device 42. As described above, the reservation does not need to be confirmed at the time of boarding, in which case the user only needs to board the reserved vehicle 4.

[0052] Next, the authentication process in the vehicle operation support device 2 will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the authentication process procedure of the present embodiment. The authentication unit 14 receives the user ID transmitted from the reservation terminal 3 in the above-mentioned step S2 (step S21). Next, the authentication unit 14 collates the user ID with the user registration information (step S22). In detail, the authentication unit 14 collates the user ID with the user registration information by checking whether the received user ID is included in the user registration information stored in the storage unit 13. The user registration information includes the user ID. The user registration information may further include attribute information on the user corresponding to the user ID for each user ID. The attribute information may be input from the user to the reservation terminal 3 in the authentication process, or may be acquired when registering the IC card for use. For example, when registering the user ID for the first time, the attribute information may be transmitted together with the user ID from a user terminal such as a smartphone, tablet terminal, personal computer, or wearable terminal (not shown), and the authentication unit 14 may receive the attribute information and store it in the user registration information.

[0053] If the user ID has already been registered (Yes in step S23), that is, if the user ID is included in the user registration information, the authentication unit 14 transmits usage permission information permitting usage to the reservation terminal 3 (Step S24), and ends the process. If the user ID has not yet been registered (No in step S23), the authentication unit 14 newly registers the user ID in the user registration information stored in the storage unit 13 (Step S25), and the process proceeds to Step S24.

[0054] Next, the reservation process of this embodiment will be described. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the reservation processing unit 19 of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 8, the reservation processing unit 19 includes an area specification unit 191, a boarding and alighting place acquisition unit 192, a vehicle extraction unit 193, a route information calculation unit 194, a route determination unit 195, and a vehicle reservation unit 196.

[0055] 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a reservation processing procedure in the reservation processing unit 19 of this embodiment. The area identification unit 191 of the reservation processing unit 19 identifies the area in which the operated reservation terminal 3 is installed based on the terminal ID and terminal information (step S31). The area identification unit 191 identifies the area corresponding to the terminal ID included in the reservation information, using the reservation information received from the reservation terminal 3 by the reservation information receiving unit 15 and stored in the storage unit 13, and the terminal information previously stored in the storage unit 13.

[0056] Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of terminal information in this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 10, the terminal information is information indicating the correspondence between an area and a reservation terminal 3 in that area, that is, information indicating the correspondence between the terminal ID of the reservation terminal 3 and the area. In Fig. 10, the reservation terminal 3 with the terminal ID a1 is described as reservation terminal a1, and similarly, for each reservation terminal 3, the terminal ID is described after the characters of the reservation terminal. For example, if the terminal ID included in the reservation information is a1, the area identification unit 191 refers to the terminal information stored in the storage unit 13 and identifies that the reservation terminal 3 with the terminal ID a1 corresponds to area A.

[0057] Note that, here, an example in which the area and the reservation terminal 3 are associated with each other using terminal information will be described, but the association between the area and the reservation terminal 3 is not limited to this example. The area corresponding to the reservation terminal 3 may be determined when the reservation terminal 3 is installed, and the area identification information may be stored in the reservation terminal 3. The reservation terminal 3 may add the area identification information to the reservation information as area information instead of the terminal ID. In this case, in step S31, the area corresponding to the reservation terminal 3 is specified using the area identification information included in the reservation information. Note that, if the area corresponding to the reservation terminal 3 is determined when the reservation terminal 3 is installed, if the association between the area and the reservation terminal 3 is changed due to a change in the area definition, relocation of the reservation terminal 3, etc., the area identification information stored in the reservation terminal 3 is changed.

[0058] Also, while FIG. 10 shows an example in which each reservation terminal 3 is associated with one area, at least one of the reservation terminals 3 may be associated with a plurality of areas.

[0059] Returning to the description of Fig. 9. After step S31, the boarding and alighting place acquisition unit 192 acquires boarding and alighting places Xi (i is 1 or more) included in the specified area based on the specified area and boarding and alighting place information, and sets them as boarding place candidates (step S32). In detail, the boarding and alighting place acquisition unit 192 acquires boarding and alighting places Xi where boarding is possible among the boarding and alighting places included in the specified area, using the area specified in step S31 and the boarding and alighting place information stored in advance in the storage unit 13, and sets the acquired boarding and alighting place Xi as a boarding place candidate.

[0060] Fig. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the boarding and alighting place information according to the present embodiment. Fig. 11 shows an example of the boarding and alighting place information in the case where boarding and alighting are possible at all boarding and alighting places. In this case, as shown in Fig. 11, the boarding and alighting place information includes boarding and alighting places in each area.

[0061] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing another example of the boarding and alighting place information of the present embodiment. Fig. 12 shows an example of the boarding and alighting place information in a case where at least some of the boarding and alighting places include boarding and alighting places where only boarding or alighting is possible. In this case, as shown in Fig. 12, the boarding and alighting place information includes boarding and alighting places in each area, and includes information indicating whether boarding and alighting are possible for each boarding and alighting place.

[0062] Returning to the description of Fig. 9. After step S32, the getting on and off place acquisition unit 192 judges whether the destination is specified by an area (step S33). In detail, when the destination in the reservation information stored in the storage unit 13 is information indicating an area, the getting on and off place acquisition unit 192 judges that the destination is specified by an area.

[0063] When the destination is specified by an area (step S33 Yes), the boarding and alighting place acquisition unit 192 acquires boarding and alighting places Yj (j is 1 or more) included in the destination area based on the destination area and the boarding and alighting place information, and sets them as candidate disembarking places (step S34). In detail, the boarding and alighting place acquisition unit 192 refers to the boarding and alighting place information stored in advance in the storage unit 13, acquires boarding and alighting places where disembarking is possible among boarding and alighting places within the area that is the destination in the reservation information as boarding and alighting places Yj, and sets them as candidate disembarking places.

[0064] Next, the vehicle extraction unit 193 extracts vehicles Vn (n is 1 or more) that pass through any one of the boarding and alighting locations Xi included in the boarding and alighting location candidates and then pass through any one of the boarding and alighting locations Yj included in the alighting location or alighting location candidates based on the boarding location candidate, the alighting location or alighting location candidate, and sets them as candidate vehicles (step S35). In detail, the boarding and alighting location acquisition unit 192 outputs the boarding and alighting location candidates to the vehicle extraction unit 193, and the vehicle extraction unit 193 refers to the operation plan stored in the storage unit 13 and extracts vehicles Vn that pass through any one of the boarding and alighting locations Xi included in the boarding location candidate and then pass through any one of the alighting locations Yj included in the alighting location or alighting location candidate.

[0065] The operation plan includes fare-distance information indicating the fare and the travel distance, and vehicle operation information including the arrival time and departure time of each boarding / alighting location for each vehicle. Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the fare-distance information of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 13, the fare-distance information includes the fare (fare) and the travel distance for each combination of the boarding / alighting location and the alighting location. The fare-distance information is determined for each route and stored in the memory unit 13.

[0066] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of vehicle operation information according to the present embodiment. FIG. 14 shows an example of vehicle operation information when a seat is not specified at the time of reservation. In the example shown in FIG. 14, vehicle operation information of a vehicle 4 having a vehicle identification number of 01, which is identification information of the vehicle 4, is shown, but similarly, for other vehicles 4, vehicle operation information shown in FIG. 14 is generated for each vehicle 4 and stored in the storage unit 13. The arrival time and departure time at each boarding / alighting location, i.e., the operation time, may be input by, for example, an administrator as described above, and may be changed according to the current location of the vehicle 4, traffic congestion information, and the like. In the example shown in FIG. 14, the vehicle operation information includes the reservation status in addition to the arrival time and departure time at each boarding / alighting location. The reservation status includes a reservation identification number, which is identification information of a confirmed reservation, and the number of people reserved with the reservation identification number. When a reservation is confirmed, which will be described later, the reservation status in the vehicle operation information is updated. The vehicle extraction unit 193 can determine whether or not a new reservation is possible for the section from the boarding / alighting location to the boarding / alighting location to the boarding / alighting location by comparing the capacity of the vehicle 4 with the reservation status. Note that Figure 14 shows an example in which all vehicles 4 have the same capacity, but if there is a mixture of vehicles 4 with different capacities, the vehicle operation information may include information indicating the capacity of the vehicles 4, or capacity information indicating the capacity of each vehicle may be stored in the memory unit 13, and the vehicle extraction unit 193 may refer to the capacity information to determine the capacity of each vehicle 4.

[0067] Fig. 15 is a diagram showing another example of vehicle operation information according to the present embodiment. Fig. 15 shows an example of vehicle operation information in the case where a seat is designated at the time of reservation. In the case where a seat is designated, the reservation status in the vehicle operation information includes a seat usage status indicating the usage status (reservation status) of each seat.

[0068] The vehicle extraction unit 193 refers to the vehicle operation information in the operation plan, and extracts, as a vehicle Vn, a vehicle 4 that is not full among the vehicles 4 that pass through any of the boarding and alighting locations Xi included in the boarding location candidates and then pass through the disembarking location or the boarding and alighting location Yj included in the disembarking location candidate. At this time, if the desired boarding time and the desired arrival time are not specified in the reservation information, the vehicle extraction unit 193 extracts a vehicle 4 that departs from the boarding and alighting location Xi earliest for the same operation route, if the boarding time is specified in the reservation information, the vehicle extraction unit 193 extracts a vehicle 4 that departs from the boarding and alighting location Xi earliest after the desired boarding time for the same operation route, and if the desired arrival time is specified in the reservation information, the vehicle extraction unit 193 extracts a vehicle 4 that can arrive by the desired arrival time and departs from the boarding and alighting location Xi latest. In addition, if the number of passengers is specified in the reservation information, the vehicle extraction unit 193 extracts a vehicle 4 that can accommodate the number of passengers, and if the number of passengers is not specified in the reservation information, the vehicle extraction unit 193 extracts a vehicle 4 that can accommodate one person.

[0069] Return to the description of FIG. 9. After step S35, the route information calculation unit 194 calculates route information (at least one of the total required time, total fare, total travel distance, and arrival time) for travel from the position of the operated reservation terminal 3 to the drop-off location or drop-off location candidate using the vehicle Vn included in the candidate vehicles based on the operation plan, the candidate vehicles, and the travel information (step S36). The route information is information on at least one of the required time, travel distance, fare, and arrival time on the route. Of the total required time, the travel time, which is the required time for travel from the boarding / alighting location that is the boarding location to the drop-off location or drop-off location candidate, may be a predetermined time calculated based on the operation plan and the candidate vehicles, may be a predicted time based on the operation plan and traffic congestion information of the operation route of the candidate vehicles, or may be a predicted time based on the operation plan and traffic congestion forecast information of the operation route of the candidate vehicles. The traffic congestion information is information indicating the traffic congestion situation of the current operation route, and the traffic congestion forecast information is information indicating the forecast of the traffic congestion situation of the future operation route. Although the congestion prediction information has already been described as being acquired by the information acquisition unit, it may be stored in the storage unit 13 in advance.

[0070] In detail, the vehicle extraction unit 193 outputs the candidate vehicles to the route information calculation unit 194, and the route information calculation unit 194 calculates route information using the candidate vehicles received from the vehicle extraction unit 193 and the operation plan and movement information stored in the storage unit 13. The route information calculation unit 194 may acquire a terminal ID corresponding to the operated reservation terminal 3 by referring to the reservation information, or may acquire the terminal ID by being notified from the area identification unit 191 via the boarding and alighting place acquisition unit 192 and the vehicle extraction unit 193.

[0071] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of travel information in this embodiment. In this embodiment, a user makes a reservation for a vehicle 4 from a reservation terminal 3 in an area, with one of a plurality of boarding and alighting locations in the area as the boarding location. Therefore, the route that the user walks on foot after making a reservation will differ depending on the combination of the reservation terminal 3 and the boarding and alighting location that is the boarding location. As shown in FIG. 16, the travel information includes the distance from the reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and alighting location and the required walking time for each combination of the reservation terminal 3 and the boarding and alighting location in each area. Also, as shown in FIG. 16, the travel information may include information for displaying the route from the reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and alighting location in the form of a map on the display screen of the reservation terminal 3. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 16, the travel information may include barrier information, which is information on barriers and difficulty of travel in walking, such as the presence or absence of stairs or steps, road width, and the presence or absence of braille blocks, from the reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and alighting location.

[0072] The route information calculation unit 194 can calculate the total fare and the total travel distance using the fare distance information of the route corresponding to the vehicle Vn included in the candidate vehicles. The route information calculation unit 194 can also calculate the arrival time corresponding to the vehicle Vn using the vehicle operation information. The route information calculation unit 194 can also calculate the total required time corresponding to the vehicle Vn (including the walking time to the boarding and alighting place to board) using the movement information and the vehicle operation information. In this way, the required time (total required time) and the travel distance (total travel distance) included in the route information include information on the walking movement from the reservation terminal 3 operated by the user to the boarding and alighting place to board. Note that the route information calculation unit 194 changes the vehicle 4 that the user cannot board when taking into account the walking movement from the reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and alighting place to board, that is, the vehicle 4 that cannot reach the boarding and alighting place to board by the departure time, among the vehicles Vn included in the candidate vehicles, to the next vehicle 4 that departs on the same operating route. Alternatively, in step S35, the vehicle extraction unit 193 may extract vehicles by also referring to the travel information when extracting candidate vehicles, taking into consideration travel on foot from the reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and alighting location. In other words, vehicles 4 that can be boarded when travelling on foot from the reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and alighting location may be extracted as candidate vehicles.

[0073] Return to the description of FIG. 9. After step S36, the vehicle operation support device 2 transmits candidate information including the boarding location, departure time, and disembarking location corresponding to the candidate vehicle, and route information to the reservation terminal 3 (step S37). In detail, the route information calculation unit 194 notifies the route determination unit 195 of the boarding location, departure time, and disembarking location corresponding to the candidate vehicle, and the route determination unit 195 stores the boarding location, departure time, and disembarking location corresponding to the candidate vehicle, and the route information in the storage unit 13 as candidate information. The boarding location, departure time, and disembarking location corresponding to the candidate vehicle are an example of information indicating the route corresponding to the candidate vehicle. The route determination unit 195 may determine a route that satisfies the specified condition from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicle based on the specified condition and route information, as a candidate route, and store the boarding location, departure time, and disembarking location corresponding to the determined candidate route, and the route information in the storage unit 13 as candidate information. The determined conditions include, but are not limited to, the shortest total travel time, the shortest total travel distance, the lowest total fare, and the earliest arrival time. The route determination unit 195 may determine, as a route candidate, a route that matches the conditions specified by the user when the user specifies the contents of the conditions specified as the specified conditions in the reservation information. The reservation candidate transmission unit 16 transmits the candidate information stored in the storage unit 13 to the reservation terminal 3. The boarding location, departure time, and disembarking location corresponding to each vehicle 4 of the candidate vehicles are information indicating candidates for the route to be reserved.

[0074] If the result of step S33 is No, the getting on and off place acquisition unit 192 sets the getting on and off place specified as the destination as the getting off place (step S38). After step S38, the processes in and after step S35 are performed.

[0075] Through the above process, one or more routes are determined as candidates for the route to be reserved, and candidate information indicating the route candidates is transmitted to the reservation terminal 3. This allows the user to select the route to be reserved from among the route candidates. Furthermore, since the candidate information includes the above-mentioned route information, the user can select a route that meets the user's request, taking into consideration the fare, required time, arrival time, and the like. Furthermore, by including in the user registration information as attributes of the user, such as whether or not the user uses a wheelchair, whether or not the user has a disability, whether or not the user is accompanied by a child, whether or not the user has mobility restrictions, and the like, the route determination unit 195 may determine a route suitable for the user as a route candidate using the attribute information and the mobility information. For example, in the case of a user using a wheelchair, the route determination unit 195 determines a route without steps or stairs as a route candidate.

[0076] In addition, when area identification information is added to the reservation information instead of the terminal ID, the vehicle operation support device 2 cannot identify the operated reservation terminal 3, and therefore the route determined as a candidate does not include travel from the operated reservation terminal 3 to the boarding and disembarking location.

[0077] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen of candidate information in the reservation terminal 3 of this embodiment. FIG. 17 shows a case where there is one candidate route, that is, a candidate vehicle 4 to be reserved, and information about the candidate route determined by the vehicle operation support device 2 is displayed, and a screen prompting the user to select whether or not to reserve the route is displayed on the right side. On the left side of FIG. 17, a walking route in the candidate route determined by the vehicle operation support device 2 and the location of the boarding and alighting place (boarding point) for boarding are shown on a map. The screen shown in FIG. 17 is a map with the area around the boarding point enlarged, but as shown in the lower part of FIG. 17, by pressing a button for switching to a screen displaying a map displaying the entire route and a button for switching to a map with the area around the boarding point enlarged, the screen can be switched to the corresponding display screen. Note that FIG. 17 is an example, and the specific display method of the route and the screen prompting the user to select whether or not to reserve are not limited to the example shown in FIG. 17. Furthermore, the character strings displayed as each button may have the same meaning and are not limited to the example shown in FIG. 17.

[0078] 17, the user selects this route by pressing a button marked "confirm reservation," and the reservation terminal 3 transmits a selection result indicating that the candidate route has been selected to the vehicle operations support device 2. Also, in the example shown in Fig. 17, the user selects not to make a reservation for this route by pressing a button marked "cancel," and the reservation terminal 3 transmits a selection result indicating that the candidate route will not be reserved to the vehicle operations support device 2.

[0079] Fig. 18 is a diagram showing another example of the candidate information display screen in the reservation terminal 3 of this embodiment. Fig. 18 shows a case where there are two route candidates, i.e., two candidates for the vehicle 4 to be reserved, and route information such as the required time and fare for the two routes is shown. For example, when a user selects one of these route candidates, the screen shown in Fig. 17 is displayed.

[0080] FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of the process of the vehicle operations support device 2 after receiving the selection result in this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 19, the vehicle operations support device 2 judges whether or not a selection result indicating making a reservation has been received (step S41). In detail, the selection result receiving unit 17 judges whether or not the received selection result is a selection result indicating making a reservation. The selection result indicating making a reservation is transmitted from the reservation terminal 3, for example, when one route candidate is displayed on the reservation terminal 3 and the reservation confirmation button is pressed on the screen shown in FIG. 17, or when multiple route candidates are displayed on the reservation terminal 3 and the user selects one of them and then presses the reservation confirmation button. In the latter case, the selection result includes information indicating the selected route.

[0081] When a selection result indicating that a reservation is to be made is received (Yes in step S41), the vehicle operations support device 2 updates the operation plan and the reservation result in accordance with the selection result to confirm the reservation, deletes the candidate information (step S42), and ends the process. In detail, in step S42, the selection result receiving unit 17 outputs the received selection result to the reservation processing unit 19, and the vehicle reservation unit 196 of the reservation processing unit 19 updates the operation plan and the reservation result stored in the memory unit 13 in accordance with the selection result to confirm the reservation, and deletes the candidate information stored in the memory unit 13.

[0082] FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of the reservation result stored in the storage unit 13 of this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 20, the reservation result includes a reservation identification number, a departure time, a vehicle identification number, a boarding location, a disembarking location, the number of people, and a user ID. When the reservation processing unit 19 confirms the reservation in step S42, the reservation processing unit 19 assigns a reservation identification number to the reservation to be confirmed, and updates the reservation result by adding a new row to the reservation result stored in the storage unit 13 using the assigned reservation identification number and the reservation content. In addition, the reservation processing unit 19 updates the operation plan stored in the storage unit 13 using the assigned reservation identification number and the reservation content. In detail, the reservation processing unit 19 updates the reservation status in the vehicle operation information of the vehicle 4 having the vehicle identification number corresponding to the reservation content based on the reservation identification number, departure time, boarding location, disembarking location, and the number of people in the reservation content. In addition, when a seat is designated, a seat number indicating the seat is also added to the reservation result, and the reservation processing unit 19 also determines the seat to be reserved, stores the seat number corresponding to the determined seat in the reservation result, and updates the seat usage status in the vehicle operation information.

[0083] If a selection result indicating making a reservation has not been received (step S41 No), the vehicle operation support device 2 judges whether or not a selection result indicating not making a reservation has been received (step S43). In detail, the selection result receiving unit 17 judges whether or not the received selection result is a selection result indicating not making a reservation. The selection result indicating not making a reservation is transmitted from the reservation terminal 3 when the cancel button is pressed on the screen shown in FIG. 17, for example.

[0084] When a selection result indicating that a reservation is not to be made is received (Yes in step S43), the vehicle operations support device 2 deletes the candidate information (step S45) and ends the process. In detail, the selection result receiving unit 17 outputs the received selection result to the reservation cancellation processing unit 18, thereby notifying the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 of the cancellation of the reservation. When the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 is notified of the reservation cancellation by the selection result receiving unit 17, the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 performs a process of deleting the candidate information stored in the storage unit 13 as a cancellation process.

[0085] If a selection result indicating no reservation is to be made is not received (step S43 No), the vehicle operations support device 2 judges whether a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted (step S44). In detail, the selection result receiving unit 17 judges whether a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted. When transmitting the candidate information, the reservation candidate transmitting unit 16 notifies the selection result receiving unit 17 that the candidate information is to be transmitted, and upon receiving the notification, the selection result receiving unit 17 starts measuring the time that has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted.

[0086] When a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted (step S44 Yes), the vehicle operations support device 2 executes step S45. In detail, when the selection result receiving unit 17 determines that a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted, if the selection result is not received even after a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted, the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 is notified of the cancellation of the reservation. When the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 receives the notification, it deletes the candidate information stored in the storage unit 13. When a certain time has not elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted (step S44 No), the vehicle operations support device 2 repeats the process from step S41. Note that, when the vehicle operations support device 2 determines a route that satisfies a set condition as a candidate route and transmits the candidate information to the reservation terminal 3, when it determines that a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted, it may execute step S42 instead of step S45 to confirm the reservation.

[0087] When generating the candidate information, the reservation processing unit 19 adds information related to the reservation corresponding to each route corresponding to the candidate information to the reservation result as a provisional reservation result, and in the above-mentioned step S45, the reservation cancellation processing unit 18 may further delete the provisional reservation result from the reservation result stored in the storage unit 13. In this case, in step S42, the vehicle reservation unit 196 may delete the provisional reservation result for the unselected route from the reservation result stored in the storage unit 13, and leave the provisional reservation result for the unselected route to confirm it as the reservation result.

[0088] When the reservation is confirmed by the above process, the reservation result transmission unit 20 transmits the reservation result to the reservation terminal 3 and the vehicle 4. In addition, the operation plan transmission unit 21 transmits the operation plan to the vehicle 4. In detail, the operation plan transmission unit 21 transmits the vehicle operation information in the operation plan to the corresponding vehicle 4. At this time, only the updated information may be transmitted, or the entire vehicle operation information may be transmitted. In addition, in the above example, the vehicle operation support device 2 transmits both the reservation result and the operation plan to the vehicle 4, but this is not limited to this, and the reservation result may not be transmitted by including the user ID in the reservation status of the vehicle operation information in the operation plan. In this case, the reservation matching unit 46 of the vehicle 4 refers to the vehicle operation information and performs a matching process of the user ID of the user who will board.

[0089] In the above example, a case where fixed-time, fixed-route operation is performed has been described, but the vehicle operation support device 2 of this embodiment can also be applied to a case where P2P operation is performed. Fig. 21 is a diagram showing a schematic example of an operation route of the vehicle 4 of this embodiment when P2P operation is performed. When P2P operation is performed, in this embodiment, the boarding and alighting locations and the reservation terminal 3 for each area are determined in advance as in the above example.

[0090] When P2P type operation is performed, the operation route and operation time of the vehicle 4 are not determined in advance, and the reservation processing unit 19 determines, as a boarding place candidate, a boarding place where boarding is possible among boarding places within the area where the operated reservation terminal 3 is located. The alighting place may be specified by area unit or by point, as in the above example. The reservation processing unit 19 determines the vehicle 4 and operation route to be allocated for each alighting place of the alighting place candidate when the alighting place or the alighting place is specified by area unit after departing from each boarding place candidate. The method of allocating the vehicle 4 after the boarding place and the alighting place are determined is the same as the method of allocating the vehicle and the method of determining the operation route in a general demand transportation system operated by P2P type, so details are omitted. For example, the vehicle 4 to be allocated is determined according to the vacancy information of the vehicle 4, the current position of the vehicle 4, and the like. The operation route may be determined in advance for each combination of the boarding place and the alighting place, or may be determined in advance for each combination of the boarding place and the alighting place and changed according to congestion information, etc. In addition, for vehicles 4 for which reservations have been confirmed, vehicle operation information for each vehicle 4 is determined according to the reservation contents, and the reservation processing unit 19 uses this vehicle operation information to assign vehicles 4 on the premise of carpooling, as in the case of fixed-time, fixed-route type, if it is possible to carpool with a vehicle 4 that is already scheduled to operate.

[0091] In the example shown in FIG. 21, a user 5 is in area A, and operates a reservation terminal 3 with a terminal ID of a5 to make a reservation for travel to area D as a destination. The reservation processing unit 19 extracts a vehicle 4 that can be dispatched at the earliest time after the desired boarding time (or current time) or a vehicle 4 that can arrive at the latest time before the desired arrival time as a candidate vehicle, sets each of the boarding and alighting locations A1 to A5 in area A as a candidate boarding location, sets each of the boarding and alighting locations D1 to D3 in area D as a candidate disembarking location, and calculates route information for each combination of each boarding and alighting location of the candidate boarding location and each disembarking location of the candidate disembarking location, as in the above example. The departure time is determined in consideration of the travel time from the current position of the vehicle 4 to be assigned to each boarding and alighting location of the candidate boarding location. At this time, it is assumed that dispatch of a vehicle 4 from boarding and alighting location A2 to boarding and alighting location E3 in area E has already been reserved for another user, and boarding and alighting location D2 is included on the operation route 205 corresponding to this reservation. In this case, if the number of passengers corresponding to the new reservation can be accommodated in the vehicle 4 assigned to the operation of the operation route 205, the reservation processing unit 19 also sets the vehicle 4 traveling on the operation route 205 as a candidate vehicle, and calculates route information for the section from the boarding / alighting location A2 to the boarding / alighting location D2 on the operation route 205. Then, the reservation candidate sending unit 16 sends candidate information including information indicating route candidates and route information to the reservation terminal 3. As in the above example, the user refers to the candidate information and selects the route to be reserved.

[0092] 21, if there is no vehicle 4 immediately available for dispatch, and instead of carpooling, a new vehicle 4 is operated along route 204 from boarding / alighting location A1 to boarding / alighting location D3, boarding a vehicle 4 already scheduled to run from boarding / alighting location A2 to boarding / alighting location E3 has an earlier departure time, and boarding / alighting location A1 is closer to the operated reservation terminal 3 than boarding / alighting location A2. In such a case, the user can refer to the displayed route information and select a route to reserve depending on whether to prioritize boarding at an earlier time even if it means a longer walking distance, or to prioritize a shorter walking distance.

[0093] In the above example, the reservation is confirmed when the user boards the vehicle using the user ID, but the reservation may be identified using the reservation identification number without using the user ID. In this case, the above-mentioned authentication process does not need to be performed. In this case, the vehicle operation support device 2 includes the reservation identification number in the reservation result transmitted to the reservation terminal 3 and the vehicle 4, and the reservation terminal 3 also displays the reservation identification number when displaying the reservation result. The reservation identification number may be displayed as text or as a two-dimensional code. When displayed as a two-dimensional code, the user photographs the screen of the reservation terminal 3 using a user terminal such as a smartphone or tablet. The reservation terminal 3 may also display a two-dimensional code indicating a URL for displaying the two-dimensional code of the reservation identification number. In this case, the user can access the URL by reading the two-dimensional code using the user terminal and display the two-dimensional code on the terminal.

[0094] Fig. 22 is a diagram showing an example of a method for displaying a reservation identification number in this embodiment. In the example shown in Fig. 22, the reservation identification number (shown as "reservation number" in Fig. 22) is displayed in text on the screen showing the reservation results, and a two-dimensional code showing a URL for acquiring the two-dimensional code of the reservation identification number is also displayed.

[0095] Furthermore, the reservation terminal 3 may print a reservation ticket showing the reservation identification number as a two-dimensional code. When the reservation identification number is printed or displayed on the user terminal, the ID acquisition device 42 of the vehicle 4 is a device that reads two-dimensional codes, and when boarding, the user has the ID acquisition device 42 read the reservation ticket. Then, the reservation matching unit 46 of the vehicle 4 matches the reservation identification number read by the ID acquisition device 42 with the reservation identification number in the reservation result.

[0096] Furthermore, the reservation terminal 3 may print only the reservation identification number as the reservation ticket. In the case where only the reservation identification number is printed, the driver of the vehicle 4 is allowed to visually confirm the printed content, thereby visually checking the printed reservation identification number against the reservation information, including at least the reservation identification number, displayed on the display device 43 of the vehicle 4.

[0097] Next, the hardware configuration of the vehicle operations support device 2 of this embodiment will be described. In the vehicle operations support device 2 of this embodiment, a vehicle operations support program, which is a computer program in which processing in the vehicle operations support device 2 is described, is executed on a computer system, so that the computer system functions as the vehicle operations support device 2. FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a computer system that realizes the vehicle operations support device 2 of this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 23, this computer system includes a control unit 101, an input unit 102, a storage unit 103, a display unit 104, a communication unit 105, and an output unit 106, which are connected via a system bus 107.

[0098] In FIG. 23, the control unit 101 is, for example, a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and executes a vehicle operation support program in which the processing in the vehicle operation support device 2 of the present embodiment is described. The input unit 102 is, for example, composed of a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, and is used by a user of the computer system to input various information. The storage unit 103 includes various memories such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a storage device such as a hard disk, and stores the program to be executed by the control unit 101, necessary data obtained in the process of processing, and the like. The storage unit 103 is also used as a temporary storage area for the program. The display unit 104 is composed of a display, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display Panel), and the like, and displays various screens to the user of the computer system. The communication unit 105 is a receiver and a transmitter that perform communication processing. The output unit 106 is a printer, a speaker, and the like. Note that FIG. 23 is an example, and the configuration of the computer system is not limited to the example of FIG. 23.

[0099] Here, an example of the operation of the computer system until the vehicle operation support program of this embodiment is in an executable state will be described. In the computer system having the above-mentioned configuration, for example, the vehicle operation support program is installed in the storage unit 103 from a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM set in a CD (Compact Disc)-ROM drive or DVD (Digital Versatile Disc)-ROM drive (not shown). Then, when the vehicle operation support program is executed, the vehicle operation support program read from the storage unit 103 is stored in the main storage area of ​​the storage unit 103. In this state, the control unit 101 executes processing as the vehicle operation support device 2 of this embodiment according to the program stored in the storage unit 103.

[0100] In the above explanation, a program describing the processing in the vehicle operation support device 2 is provided using a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM as a recording medium. However, this is not limited to this, and depending on the configuration of the computer system and the capacity of the program to be provided, for example, a program provided via a transmission medium such as the Internet via the communication unit 105 may be used.

[0101] The operation plan determination unit 11, the authentication unit 14, the reservation information receiving unit 15, the reservation candidate transmission unit 16, the selection result receiving unit 17, the reservation cancellation processing unit 18, the reservation processing unit 19, the reservation result transmission unit 20, and the operation plan transmission unit 21 shown in FIG. 1 are realized by executing the vehicle operation support program stored in the storage unit 103 shown in FIG. 23 by the control unit 101 shown in FIG. 23. The operation plan determination unit 11, the authentication unit 14, the reservation information receiving unit 15, the reservation candidate transmission unit 16, the selection result receiving unit 17, the reservation cancellation processing unit 18, the reservation processing unit 19, the reservation result transmission unit 20, and the operation plan transmission unit 21 are also realized by using the storage unit 103 shown in FIG. 23. The authentication unit 14, the reservation information receiving unit 15, the reservation candidate transmission unit 16, the selection result receiving unit 17, the reservation result transmission unit 20, and the operation plan transmission unit 21 are also realized by using the communication unit 105 shown in FIG. 23. The storage unit 13 shown in FIG. 1 is a part of the storage unit 103 shown in FIG. 23. The display unit 12 shown in Fig. 1 is realized by the display unit 104 shown in Fig. 23. The vehicle operation support device 2 may be realized by a plurality of computer systems. For example, the vehicle operation support device 2 may be realized by a cloud computer system.

[0102] For example, the vehicle operation assistance program of the present embodiment causes a computer system, which is a vehicle operation assistance device 2 that supports demand operation of a vehicle 4 for which boarding and alighting locations are predetermined, to execute a step of receiving reservation information, which is information generated when a user operates a reservation terminal 3 associated with an area including a plurality of boarding and alighting locations to reserve a vehicle 4, and which includes area information that is information about the area in which the reservation terminal 3 is installed and destination information that is information about the destination. The vehicle operation assistance program further causes the computer system to execute a step of determining, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle 4 that travels on a travel route from any one of a plurality of boarding and alighting locations included in the area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information, reserving a vehicle corresponding to the route selected by the user from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles, and a step of transmitting a reservation result indicating the reservation result to the reservation terminal 3.

[0103] Similarly to the vehicle operation support device 2, the reservation terminal 3 is also realized by a computer system exemplified in FIG. 23. The authentication request unit 31, the reservation information transmission unit 32, the reservation candidate reception unit 33, the selection result transmission unit 34, and the reservation result reception unit 35 shown in FIG. 1 are realized by the control unit 101 shown in FIG. 23 executing a program stored in the storage unit 103 shown in FIG. 23. The authentication request unit 31, the reservation information transmission unit 32, the reservation candidate reception unit 33, the selection result transmission unit 34, and the reservation result reception unit 35 are also realized by the storage unit 103 shown in FIG. 23. The authentication request unit 31, the reservation information transmission unit 32, the reservation candidate reception unit 33, the selection result transmission unit 34, and the reservation result reception unit 35 are also realized by the communication unit 105 shown in FIG. 23. The terminal ID storage unit 38 shown in FIG. 1 is a part of the storage unit 103 shown in FIG. 23. The display unit 36 ​​shown in FIG. 1 is realized by the display unit 104 shown in FIG. 23. The input receiving unit 39 shown in Fig. 1 is realized by the input unit 102 shown in Fig. 23. The display unit 104 and the input unit 102 may be integrated and realized by a touch panel or the like. The ID obtaining unit 37 is realized by a card reader that reads an IC card, or the input unit 102.

[0104] 23, the vehicle-installed terminal 41 is also realized by the computer system exemplified in Fig. 23, similar to the vehicle operation support device 2. Note that the computer system realizing the vehicle-installed terminal 41 does not need to include the display unit 104 and the output unit 106.

[0105] The configurations shown in the above embodiments are merely examples, and may be combined with other known technologies, or the embodiments may be combined with each other. Also, parts of the configurations may be omitted or modified without departing from the spirit of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0106] 1 Demand transportation system, 2 Vehicle operation support device, 3 Reservation terminal, 4 Vehicle, 11 Operation plan determination unit, 12, 36 Display unit, 13 Memory unit, 14 Authentication unit, 15 Reservation information receiving unit, 16 Reservation candidate transmission unit, 17 Selection result receiving unit, 18 Reservation cancellation processing unit, 19 Reservation processing unit, 20 Reservation result transmission unit, 21 Operation plan transmission unit, 31 Authentication request unit, 32 Reservation information transmission unit, 33 Reservation candidate receiving unit, 34 Selection result transmission unit, 35, 45 Reservation result receiving unit, 37 ID acquisition unit, 38 Terminal ID storage unit, 39 Input reception unit, 41 Vehicle installation terminal, 42 ID acquisition device, 43 Display device, 44 Operation plan receiving unit, 46 Reservation matching unit, 191 Area identification unit, 192 Boarding and alighting place acquisition unit, 193 Vehicle extraction unit, 194 Route information calculation unit, 195 Routing Division, 196 Vehicle Reservation Division.

Claims

1. A vehicle operation support device that supports demand-responsive operation of a vehicle whose boarding and alighting locations are predetermined, a reservation information receiving unit that receives reservation information generated when a user operates a reservation terminal associated with a predetermined area including a plurality of boarding and disembarking locations to make a reservation for a vehicle, the reservation information including area information that is information regarding the area in which the reservation terminal is installed and destination information that is information regarding a destination; a reservation processing unit that determines, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle that travels along a route from one of a plurality of boarding and alighting locations included in an area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information, and reserves a vehicle corresponding to a route selected by a user from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles; a reservation result transmission unit that transmits a reservation result indicating a result of the reservation made by the reservation processing unit to the reservation terminal; A vehicle operation support device comprising:

2. 2. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle operation route and operation time are determined in advance as an operation plan.

3. The vehicle operation support device described in claim 2, characterized in that the multiple boarding and alighting locations included in the same area are at least one of two boarding and alighting locations corresponding to the same point on two operating routes along which the vehicle travels in opposite directions on the same line, and different boarding and alighting locations located on roads in multiple directions that intersect at an intersection.

4. 2. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle operation route and operation time are determined in accordance with reservation information of a user.

5. The area information is terminal identification information for identifying the reservation terminal, A vehicle operation support device as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the reservation processing unit uses terminal information indicating the correspondence between the terminal identification information and the area to identify the area corresponding to the terminal identification information as the area corresponding to the area information.

6. a reservation candidate transmitting unit that transmits candidate information including information indicating a route corresponding to the candidate vehicle to the reservation terminal; Equipped with the reservation processing unit obtains, for each route corresponding to the candidate vehicle, information regarding at least one of a required time, a travel distance, a fare, and an arrival time for the route as route information, and includes the route information in the candidate information; The required time and the travel distance also include information about walking from the reservation terminal to the boarding and alighting location, 6. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 5, wherein the reservation candidate transmitting unit transmits the candidate information including the route information to the reservation terminal.

7. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 6, wherein the route information includes barrier information that is information regarding barriers to travel when walking from the reservation terminal to the boarding and alighting location.

8. a reservation candidate transmitting unit that transmits candidate information including information indicating a route corresponding to the candidate vehicle to the reservation terminal; Equipped with the reservation processing unit obtains, for each route corresponding to the candidate vehicle, information regarding at least one of a required time, a travel distance, a fare, and an arrival time for the route as route information, and includes the route information in the candidate information; 5. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 1, wherein the reservation candidate transmitting unit transmits the candidate information including the route information to the reservation terminal.

9. The reservation processing unit determines, as a candidate route, a route that satisfies a condition defined using the route information among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles; A vehicle operation support device as described in any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the reservation candidate sending unit sends the candidate information to the reservation terminal, the candidate information including information indicating the candidate route determined by the reservation processing unit as information indicating a route corresponding to the candidate vehicle.

10. a selection result receiving unit that receives, from the reservation terminal, a selection result indicating a route selected by a user as a route to be reserved from among the routes indicated in the candidate information; 10. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 6, wherein the reservation processing unit reserves the vehicle corresponding to the route indicated by the selection result.

11. a reservation cancellation processing unit for canceling a reservation corresponding to the reservation information; Equipped with when the selection result receiving unit receives information indicating that a reservation will not be made as the selection result from the reservation terminal, the selection result receiving unit notifies the reservation cancellation processing unit of the cancellation of the reservation; 11. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 10, wherein the reservation cancellation processing unit performs the cancellation process when the reservation cancellation is notified from the selection result receiving unit.

12. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 11, characterized in that the selection result receiving unit notifies the reservation cancellation processing unit of the cancellation of the reservation if the selection result is not received even after a certain time has elapsed since the candidate information was transmitted.

13. an authentication unit that acquires user identification information from the reservation terminal, and transmits usage permission information permitting the use of a reservation to the reservation terminal if the acquired user identification information has been registered, and registers the acquired user identification information if the acquired user identification information has not been registered, and then transmits the usage permission information to the reservation terminal; 13. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 1, further comprising:

14. 13. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 1, wherein the reservation result transmission unit transmits the reservation result including a reservation identification number for identifying the reservation to the reservation terminal.

15. The vehicle operation assistance device as described in Claim 7, characterized in that the barrier information includes information regarding road width.

16. A vehicle operation assistance device as described in claim 7 or 15, characterized in that the barrier information includes information regarding the presence or absence of braille blocks.

17. A storage unit that stores attribute information indicating attributes of the user acquired at the time of registration of the user; The reservation processing unit determines a walking route using the attribute information and the barrier information, 8. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 7, wherein the reservation candidate sending unit sends the candidate information corresponding to the walking route determined by the reservation processing unit to the reservation terminal.

18. The attribute information includes information indicating whether or not a wheelchair is used, The barrier information includes information indicating the presence or absence of steps and stairs, 18. The vehicle operation support device according to claim 17, wherein the reservation processing unit determines, for the reservation information corresponding to the user who uses a wheelchair, a route that does not have steps or stairs as the walking route.

19. A vehicle operation support device that supports demand-responsive operation of a vehicle whose boarding and alighting locations are predetermined; A reservation terminal associated with a predetermined area including a plurality of boarding and alighting locations; Equipped with the reservation terminal generates reservation information in response to an operation by a user, the reservation information being information regarding the reservation of the vehicle, the reservation information including area information that is information regarding the area in which the reservation terminal is installed and destination information that is information regarding a destination, and transmits the reservation information to the vehicle operations support device; The vehicle operation assistance device includes: a reservation information receiving unit that receives the reservation information from the reservation terminal; a reservation processing unit that determines, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle that travels along a route from one of a plurality of boarding and alighting locations included in an area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information, and reserves a vehicle corresponding to a route selected by a user from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles; a reservation result transmission unit that transmits a reservation result indicating a result of the reservation made by the reservation processing unit to the reservation terminal; A demand transportation system comprising:

20. 20. The demand transportation system of claim 19, comprising the vehicle.

21. A terminal device that generates reservation information, which is information regarding a reservation of a vehicle, based on an input from a user and transmits the reservation information to a vehicle operation support device that supports demand operation of a vehicle having a predetermined boarding and alighting location, the terminal device comprising: a reservation information transmitting unit that transmits the reservation information including area information, which is information related to a predetermined area in which the terminal device is installed, and destination information, which is information related to a destination; a reservation candidate receiving unit that receives candidate information indicating candidates for a route of the vehicle determined by the vehicle operation support device using the area information; A display unit that displays the candidate information; a selection result receiving unit that transmits a selection result indicating a route selected by a user from among the routes indicated by the candidate information to the vehicle operation assistance device; a reservation result receiving unit that receives a reservation result from the vehicle operation support device; A terminal device comprising:

22. A vehicle operation support method in a vehicle operation support device that supports demand-responsive operation of a vehicle whose boarding and alighting locations are predetermined, comprising: receiving reservation information generated by a user reserving a vehicle by operating a reservation terminal associated with a predetermined area including a plurality of boarding and disembarking locations, the reservation information including area information that is information about the area in which the reservation terminal is installed and destination information that is information about a destination; determining, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle that travels along a route from one of a plurality of boarding and alighting locations included in an area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information, and reserving a vehicle corresponding to a route selected by a user from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles; transmitting a reservation result indicating the reservation result to the reservation terminal; A vehicle operation support method comprising:

23. A vehicle operation support device that supports demand-responsive operation of a vehicle whose boarding and alighting locations are predetermined, receiving reservation information generated by a user reserving a vehicle by operating a reservation terminal associated with a predetermined area including a plurality of boarding and disembarking locations, the reservation information including area information that is information about the area in which the reservation terminal is installed and destination information that is information about a destination; determining, as a candidate vehicle, a vehicle that travels along a route from one of a plurality of boarding and alighting locations included in an area corresponding to the area information to a destination corresponding to the destination information, and reserving a vehicle corresponding to a route selected by a user from among the routes corresponding to the candidate vehicles; transmitting a reservation result indicating the reservation result to the reservation terminal; A vehicle operation assistance program that causes a vehicle to execute the above steps.

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