Vehicle remote control device, vehicle remote control method, and program

Abstract

To provide a user with appropriate information regarding remote operation of a vehicle.SOLUTION: A vehicle remote control device includes a position acquisition unit that acquires position information indicating the position of a vehicle, a remote control unit that, in response to a remote control request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causes the vehicle to execute an operation requested by the remote control request, and a transmission unit that transmits to the user terminal associated with the first vehicle information related to the operation of the second vehicle executed in response to the remote control request from a user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle when the position acquisition unit acquires the position information of a first vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle remote control device, a vehicle remote control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a system that issues remote instructions to an autonomously driven vehicle to control the vehicle. [Prior art document] [Patent documents] Patent Document 1: JP 2021-43524 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] However, providing users with appropriate information regarding remote vehicle operation is a challenge. The present application aims to solve this challenge by improving operability, thereby further improving traffic safety and contributing to the development of sustainable transportation systems. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle remote control device. The vehicle remote control device includes a position acquisition unit that acquires position information indicating a position of a vehicle. The vehicle remote control device includes a remote control unit that, in response to a remote control request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causes the vehicle to perform an operation requested by the remote control request. The vehicle remote control device includes a transmitter that, when the position acquisition unit acquires the position information of a first vehicle, transmits to the user terminal associated with the first vehicle information related to an operation of the second vehicle performed in response to the remote control request from the user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle.

[0005] In the vehicle remote control device, the location acquisition unit may acquire location information indicating a parked location of the vehicle, and the remote control unit may cause the vehicle to perform an operation requested by a remote control request received from the user terminal when the vehicle is parked.

[0006] In any of the above vehicle remote control devices, when the position acquisition unit acquires the position information of the first vehicle, the transmission unit may transmit to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle information related to multiple operations of the second vehicle that were performed in response to multiple remote control requests within a predetermined period before the first vehicle stopped and within a predetermined range including the stopped position of the first vehicle.

[0007] Any of the above vehicle remote control devices may include an action plan acquisition unit that acquires an action plan of the user of the first vehicle, and the predetermined range may be determined according to the action plan.

[0008] The vehicle remote control device may further include an environmental information acquisition unit that acquires environmental information indicating an environment at a location of the vehicle, and the transmission unit may transmit, to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle, information related to an operation of the second vehicle performed in response to the remote control request under an environment related to the environmental information at a time related to the action plan and at the location of the first vehicle, and within a predetermined range including a parked position of the first vehicle.

[0009] The vehicle remote control device may further include a function information acquisition unit configured to acquire function information indicating functions possessed by the vehicle, and the transmission unit may transmit, to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle, information related to an operation of the second vehicle, which has been performed in response to the remote control request within a predetermined range including a parked position of the first vehicle.

[0010]

[0013] Any of the above vehicle remote control devices may include a use area setting unit that sets a use area in which the first vehicle is primarily used, based on a use history including position information of the first vehicle for a predetermined period and a frequency with which the first vehicle was present at a position indicated by the position information. When the position acquisition unit acquires the position information of the first vehicle, the transmitter may transmit, to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle, information related to an operation of the second vehicle performed in response to a remote control request from a user terminal associated with a second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle, on condition that the position indicated by the position information of the first vehicle is outside the use area.

[0011] In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle remote control method. The vehicle remote control method includes a step of acquiring location information indicating a location of a vehicle. The vehicle remote control method includes a step of, in response to a remote control request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causing the vehicle to perform an operation requested by the remote control request. When the location information of a first vehicle is acquired, the vehicle remote control method includes a step of transmitting, to the user terminal associated with the first vehicle, information related to an operation of the second vehicle performed in response to the remote control request from a user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the location of the first vehicle.

[0012] In a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program that causes a computer to function as any one of the vehicle remote control devices described above.

[0013] The above summary of the invention does not list all of the features of the present invention, and subcombinations of these features may also constitute inventions. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 conceptually illustrates a usage pattern of a vehicle remote control system 5 in one embodiment. [Figure 2]1 is a diagram for explaining a situation in which the vehicle remote control device 100 makes a recommendation to the user 90 based on remote control information. [Figure 3] The vehicle remote control device 100 has the same functional configuration. [Figure 4] 10 shows an example of the data structure of vehicle-specific information stored in the storage device 290. [Figure 5] 10 shows an example of the data structure of vehicle usage history information stored in storage device 290. [Figure 6] 10 shows an example of a data structure of remote operation history information stored in the storage device 290. [Figure 7] 10 shows an example of the data structure of operation-related recommended information stored in the storage device 290. [Figure 8] An overview of the processes executed in the user terminal 92, the vehicle 10, and the vehicle remote control device 100 will be shown. [Figure 9] 2 shows an example of a flowchart relating to a vehicle remote control method executed by the vehicle remote control device 100. [Figure 10] An example of a computer 2000 is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention according to the claims. Furthermore, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0016] 1 conceptually illustrates a usage pattern of a vehicle remote control system 5 in one embodiment. The vehicle remote control system 5 includes a vehicle remote control device 100 and a plurality of vehicles including a vehicle 10a, a vehicle 10b, and a vehicle 10c.

[0017] In this embodiment, vehicle 10a, vehicle 10b, and vehicle 10c are examples of moving bodies. Vehicle 10a, vehicle 10b, and vehicle 10c are, for example, automobiles such as electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles. In this embodiment, a plurality of vehicles including vehicle 10a, vehicle 10b, and vehicle 10c may be collectively referred to as "vehicle 10."

[0018] The vehicle remote control device 100 is capable of communicating with the vehicle 10 and the user terminal 92. For example, the vehicle remote control device 100 is capable of communicating with the vehicle 10 and the user terminal 92 via a mobile communication network.

[0019] The vehicle 10 periodically transmits, directly or indirectly, vehicle information acquired by the vehicle 10 while the vehicle 10 is traveling to the vehicle remote control device 100. The vehicle information includes, for example, the current location information and vehicle speed information of the vehicle 10. The vehicle 10 transmits vehicle environment information acquired by the vehicle 10 while the vehicle 10 is traveling and stopped to the vehicle remote control device 100. The vehicle environment information includes the temperature and humidity inside the vehicle 10 and the outside air temperature outside the vehicle 10. The vehicle remote control device 100 may transmit request information to the vehicle 10 requesting the transmission of vehicle environment information, and the vehicle 10 may transmit vehicle environment information to the vehicle remote control device 100 when it receives request information from the vehicle remote control device 100. The vehicle remote control device 100 stores the vehicle information and vehicle environment information received from the vehicle 10.

[0020] Based on weather information collected from an external weather information server, the vehicle remote control device 100 can acquire past and future weather information for the area where the vehicle 10 is located. The weather information includes temperature, humidity, wind direction, wind speed, etc.

[0021] The user terminal 92a is a user terminal carried by the user 90a of the vehicle 10a. The user terminal 92b is a user terminal carried by the user 90b of the vehicle 10b. The user terminal 92c is a user terminal carried by the user 90c of the vehicle 10c. In this embodiment, the users 90a, 90b, and 90c may be collectively referred to as "users 90." In this embodiment, the user terminals 92a, 92b, and 92c may be collectively referred to as "user terminals 92." The user terminal 92 is, for example, a smartphone. The user terminal 92 may be a portable terminal other than a smartphone. The user terminal 92 may be a computing device with communication capabilities. The user terminal 92 may be a terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a laptop computer, or a wearable computer.

[0022] A user 90 can remotely control the vehicle 10 through a user terminal 92 and the vehicle remote control device 100. For example, when the user 90 wants to raise the interior temperature of the vehicle 10 before getting into the vehicle 10 in winter, the user 90 operates the user terminal 92 to operate the air conditioner of the vehicle 10 in advance. In response to the user operation, the user terminal 92 transmits a remote operation request requesting a heating operation of the air conditioner to the vehicle remote control device 100. Upon receiving the remote operation request, the vehicle remote control device 100 transmits an operation instruction to the vehicle 10 associated with the user terminal 92 that transmitted the remote operation request, instructing the air conditioner to perform a heating operation, thereby causing the air conditioner of the vehicle 10 to perform a heating operation. The vehicle remote control device 100 stores remote operation information indicating the remote operation requested by the user terminal 92 together with the location of the vehicle 10. As a result, the vehicle remote control device 100 can store the remote operation information indicating the remote operation requested by the user 90 in association with the location of the vehicle 10.

[0023] 2 is a diagram for explaining a situation in which the vehicle remote control device 100 makes a recommendation to the user 90 based on remote control information. Here, a case in which the vehicle remote control device 100 makes a recommendation to the user 90a will be explained. When the vehicle 10a stops, the vehicle 10a transmits the location information at the time of stopping to the vehicle remote control device 100.

[0024] The vehicle remote control device 100 refers to the remote operation information and weather information to extract a plurality of remote operations previously performed on one or more vehicles 10 in an environment that matches the vehicle environment and weather information of the parked vehicle 10a and within a predetermined range including the parked location of the vehicle 10a. The vehicle remote control device 100 transmits recommendation information to the user terminal 92a based on the extracted plurality of remote operations. For example, if the number of vehicles 10 that have remotely requested the heating operation of the air conditioner in the vehicle 10a in an environment that matches the interior and exterior environment of the vehicle 10a and within a predetermined range including the parked location of the vehicle 10a exceeds a predetermined number, the vehicle remote control device 100 transmits recommendation information to the user terminal 92a recommending the heating operation of the air conditioner in the vehicle 10a. When the user 90a performs an operation to instruct the user terminal 92a to perform a heating operation of the air conditioner in accordance with the recommendation information received by the user terminal 92a, the user terminal 92a transmits a remote operation execution instruction to the vehicle remote control device 100 to instruct the air conditioner to perform a heating operation. When the vehicle remote control device 100 receives the remote operation execution instruction from the user terminal 92a, it transmits an operation instruction to the vehicle 10a to instruct the air conditioner to perform a heating operation, thereby causing the air conditioner of the vehicle 10a to perform a heating operation.

[0025] The vehicle remote control system 5 allows the user 90a to execute a heating operation of the air conditioner of the vehicle 10a, for example, when the user 90a is in a location and / or environment where it is desirable to heat the interior of the vehicle 10. This allows the user 90a to feel comfortable when riding in the vehicle 10a. For example, when the user 90a is in a location for the first time, the user 90a may not know whether it is desirable to remotely operate the air conditioner or the like of the vehicle 10a. However, the vehicle remote control system 5 can recommend to the user 90a that the air conditioner or the like be remotely operated if the air conditioner or the like has been remotely operated frequently in the past in that location.

[0026] 3 shows the functional configuration of the vehicle remote control device 100. The vehicle remote control device 100 includes a processing device 200, a communication device 280, and a storage device 290. The vehicle remote control device 100 may be realized by one or more computers.

[0027] The communication device 280 is responsible for communication with the vehicle 10. The communication device 280 includes a receiving unit 282 and a transmitting unit 284.

[0028] The storage device 290 stores information used in the vehicle remote control device 100. The storage device 290 may be realized using a non-volatile storage medium.

[0029] The processing device 200 includes a position acquisition unit 210 , a remote control unit 220 , a recommended information determination unit 230 , an action plan acquisition unit 240 , a function information acquisition unit 250 , a use area setting unit 260 , and an environment information acquisition unit 270 .

[0030] The location acquisition unit 210 acquires location information indicating the location of the vehicle 10. In response to a remote operation request from a user terminal 92 associated with the vehicle 10, the remote operation unit 220 causes the vehicle 10 to perform an operation requested by the remote operation request. When the location acquisition unit 210 acquires location information of a first vehicle 10, the transmission unit 284 transmits, to the user terminal 92 associated with the first vehicle 10, information related to an operation of the second vehicle 10 performed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal 92 associated with the second vehicle 10 within a predetermined range including the location of the first vehicle 10. Specifically, when the location acquisition unit 210 acquires location information of the first vehicle 10, the recommendation information determination unit 230 determines, as recommendation information, information related to an operation of the second vehicle 10 performed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal 92 associated with the second vehicle 10 within a predetermined range including the location of the first vehicle 10, and the transmission unit 284 transmits the recommendation information determined by the recommendation information determination unit 230 to the user terminal 92.

[0031] This makes it possible to provide the user 90 with information related to remote operations performed near the location of the vehicle 10. Therefore, for example, if the user 90 is driving the vehicle 10 to a cold region for the first time, it is possible to provide recommended information such as turning on the heater before getting into the vehicle 10. This allows the user 90 to have a comfortable time when getting into the vehicle 10.

[0032] The position acquisition unit 210 acquires position information indicating the parked position of the vehicle 10. When the vehicle 10 is parked, the remote control unit 220 causes the vehicle 10 to execute an operation requested by a remote control request received from the user terminal 92. By employing a configuration in which the position acquisition unit 210 acquires the parked position of the vehicle 10, it is possible to reduce communication capacity compared to a configuration in which the position information is continuously received even while the vehicle 10 is traveling.

[0033] When the location acquisition unit 210 acquires the location information of the first vehicle 10, the transmission unit 284 transmits, to the user terminal 92 associated with the first vehicle 10, information related to multiple operations of the second vehicle 10 that were performed in response to multiple remote operation requests within a predetermined period before the first vehicle 10 stopped and within a predetermined range including the stopped location of the first vehicle 10. This allows recommended information to be determined based on multiple vehicles 10 and multiple remote operation data, making it possible to provide more effective recommended information.

[0034] The behavior plan acquisition unit 240 acquires a behavior plan of the user 90 of the first vehicle 10. The "predetermined range" may be determined according to the behavior plan. As a result, when the user 90's behavior is scheduled, the vehicle remote control device 100 can provide the user 90 with recommended information based on remote operations previously performed by other vehicles 10 within a range including the destination of the vehicle 10. The behavior plan acquisition unit 240 may acquire destination information from a navigation device provided in the vehicle 10. The behavior plan acquisition unit 240 may acquire schedule information registered by the user 90 in a schedule management server or a user terminal 92. The behavior plan acquisition unit 240 may acquire the user 90's behavior plan based on the user 90's past usage history of the vehicle 10. For example, when it is determined that the vehicle 10 is used regularly based on the usage history of the vehicle 10, the behavior plan acquisition unit 240 may determine that the vehicle 10 is used regularly for commuting, pick-up, or the like, and may determine a time when the user 90 will use the vehicle 10 in the future based on the regular usage times of the vehicle 10.

[0035] The environmental information acquisition unit 270 acquires environmental information indicating the environment at the location of the vehicle 10. The environmental information acquisition unit 270 may acquire weather information collected from an external weather information server as the environmental information. The environmental information acquisition unit 270 may acquire environmental information inside or outside the vehicle detected in the vehicle 10 as vehicle environmental information. The transmission unit 284 may transmit, to the user terminal 92 associated with the first vehicle 10, information related to the operation of the second vehicle 10 performed in response to the remote operation request under an environment related to the environmental information at the time related to the action plan and at the location of the first vehicle 10, and within a predetermined range including the parked position of the first vehicle 10. The environmental information includes temperature, humidity, weather, wind speed, wind direction, etc. This makes it possible to provide recommended information according to the environment of the vehicle 10 used by the user 90.

[0036] The function information acquisition unit 250 acquires function information indicating functions possessed by the vehicle 10. The transmission unit 284 may transmit, to the user terminal 92 associated with the first vehicle 10, information related to an operation of a second vehicle 10 having a function related to the function possessed by the first vehicle 10, which operation was performed in response to a remote operation request within a predetermined range including the parked position of the first vehicle 10. This makes it possible to provide recommendation information suited to the functions possessed by the vehicle 10 of the user 90. The function information includes, for example, information indicating whether the vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, or an engine vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine. If the vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle or a plug-in hybrid vehicle, the function information may include remaining charge information of a battery equipped in the vehicle 10. If the remaining charge information of the battery equipped in the vehicle 10 is below a predetermined value, the recommendation information determination unit 230 may determine recommendation information such that an operation that would cause the amount of power used to exceed the predetermined value is not recommended.

[0037] The use area setting unit 260 sets a use area in which the first vehicle 10 is primarily used, based on the location information of the first vehicle 10 over a predetermined period and a use history including the frequency with which the first vehicle 10 was present at the position indicated by the location information. For example, the use area setting unit 260 sets a predetermined range (e.g., within a 10-km radius from a position) including a position that the first vehicle 10 has passed through a predetermined number of times or more over a predetermined period (e.g., three years) as the use area in which the first vehicle 10 is primarily used. When the position acquisition unit 210 acquires the location information of the first vehicle 10, the transmission unit 284 may transmit, to the user terminal 92 associated with the first vehicle 10, information related to operations of the second vehicle 10 performed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal 92 associated with the second vehicle 10 within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle 10, on the condition that the position indicated by the location information of the first vehicle 10 is outside the use area. This allows recommended information to be provided in an area where the user 90 has traveled in the vehicle 10 for the first time, and allows recommended information to be suppressed in areas where the user 90 frequently uses the vehicle 10.

[0038] 4 shows an example of the data structure of the vehicle-specific information stored in the storage device 290. The vehicle-specific information associates a vehicle ID, function information, and user information.

[0039] The vehicle ID is identification information for the vehicle 10. The function information includes information indicating the functions of the vehicle 10. The function information includes driving source information indicating the type of driving source of the vehicle 10. The driving source information may include, for example, information indicating whether the vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, a fuel cell vehicle, or an engine vehicle. The function information may include status information for the energy source. The status information for the energy source may include information indicating the remaining battery charge. The function information may include size information. The size information may include, for example, information indicating the volume of the interior space of the vehicle 10, information indicating the external size of the vehicle 10, etc. The function information may also include information related to the selection and execution of remote operation, such as whether or not the vehicle has a remote parking function.

[0040] The user information may include identification information of the user terminal 92, identification information of the user 90, and activity schedule information of the user 90. The activity schedule information of the user 90 may include information acquired from a navigation device provided in the vehicle 10 or a schedule management server that manages the schedule of the user 90. The activity schedule information of the user 90 may include periodic activity information of the user 90 estimated from the usage history of the vehicle 10.

[0041] 5 shows an example of the data structure of vehicle usage history information stored in storage device 290. The usage history information associates a vehicle ID with date and time information, location information, and status information.

[0042] The vehicle ID is identification information of the vehicle 10. The date and time information indicates the date and time when the vehicle 10 acquired the information.

[0043] The location information indicates the current location of the vehicle 10. For example, the location information indicates the latitude and longitude of the current location of the vehicle 10. The latitude and longitude of the current location of the vehicle 10 can be detected in the vehicle 10 by a GNSS receiver included in the vehicle 10 receiving signals from GNSS satellites.

[0044] The status information indicates the status of the vehicle 10. The status of the vehicle 10 includes, for example, information indicating whether the vehicle is running, stopped, or whether the ignition (IG) is off. The vehicle remote control device 100 acquires information indicating the vehicle status from the vehicle 10. The location information corresponding to IG off can be used as location information indicating the location where the vehicle 10 is stopped.

[0045] The behavior plan acquisition unit 240 may estimate the regular behavior of the user 90 based on the usage history information, and generate a behavior plan based on the estimated regular behavior. The regular behavior of the user 90 may include, for example, information indicating the regular start time of use of the vehicle 10. The regular start time of use of the vehicle 10 may be, for example, the time when the vehicle 10 departs on a weekday.

[0046] 6 shows an example of the data structure of the remote operation history information stored in the storage device 290. The remote operation history information associates a vehicle ID, location information, operation information, vehicle environment information, execution date and time information, and a recommendation level.

[0047] The vehicle ID is identification information of the vehicle 10. The location information indicates the location of the vehicle 10 when the remote control is executed. For example, the location information indicates the latitude and longitude of the location of the vehicle 10 when the remote control is executed.

[0048] The operation information is information indicating the type of remote operation. For example, the operation information may be "heating ON" to operate the heater, "defroster ON" to operate the defroster, "defogger ON" to operate the defogger, or "remote parking" to perform parking assistance for the vehicle 10 from outside the vehicle 10 via the user terminal 92 or the like.

[0049] The vehicle environment information indicates the in-vehicle temperature, in-vehicle humidity, outside-vehicle temperature, outside-vehicle humidity, etc. acquired in the vehicle 10. The execution date and time information indicates the date and time when a remote operation was performed on the vehicle 10. The recommendation level indicates the recommendation level of the operation indicated by the corresponding operation information.

[0050] 7 shows an example of the data structure of operation-related recommendation information stored in the storage device 290. The operation-related recommendation information associates operation information with related recommendation information. The operation information is information indicating the type of remote operation described in relation to FIG.

[0051] The related recommendation information is information that the vehicle remote control device 100 can recommend in relation to remote operation. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, "heating ON" is associated with "defroster ON" and "indoor activity recommended." If many vehicles 10 have requested the "heating ON" remote operation in the past, it is predicted that the area is an area where the temperature is low. Therefore, for a user 90 of a vehicle 10 parked in such an area, in addition to recommending the operation of turning on the heating of the vehicle 10, it is possible to recommend operating the defroster of the vehicle 10 or recommend indoor activity.

[0052] Similarly, in the operation-related recommendation information, "remote parking" is associated with "recommend using another parking lot." Locations where many vehicles 10 have requested the "remote parking" remote operation in the past are predicted to have small parking spaces. Therefore, for a user 90 of a vehicle 10 parked in such a location, in addition to recommending remote parking, it is possible to recommend using another parking lot. In this way, the related recommendation information can include recommendation information regarding user behavior in addition to recommendation information for remote operation of the vehicle 10.

[0053] Fig. 8 shows an overview of the processing executed in the user terminal 92, the vehicle 10, and the vehicle remote control device 100. For the purpose of easy understanding, Fig. 8 shows the operations executed by the user terminal 92b and the vehicle 10b, the user terminal 92a and the vehicle 10a, and the vehicle remote control device 100.

[0054] In S810, in response to a user operation by the user 90b, the user terminal 92b transmits a remote operation request indicating the operation requested by the user 90b to the vehicle remote operation device 100. When the receiving unit 282 of the vehicle remote operation device 100 receives the remote operation request transmitted from the user terminal 92b, it transmits an operation instruction to the vehicle 10b to instruct the vehicle 10b to execute the operation requested in the remote operation request (S812).

[0055] In S814, the vehicle 10b executes the instructed operation in accordance with the operation instruction received from the vehicle remote control device 100. When the operation is executed in the vehicle 10b, the storage device 290 of the vehicle remote control device 100 stores operation information indicating the operation instructed to the vehicle 10b in the remote operation history information together with the vehicle ID of the vehicle 10b, the position information of the vehicle 10b, the vehicle environment information of the vehicle 10b, and the date and time information (S816).

[0056] Thereafter, when the vehicle 10a stops and an operation to turn off the ignition (IG) power supply is performed, the vehicle 10a transmits stop information indicating that the vehicle 10a has stopped to the vehicle remote control device 100 (S830). The stop information includes information indicating the current location of the vehicle 10a. When the receiving unit 282 receives the stop information, the location acquisition unit 210 extracts the location information of the vehicle 10 from the stop information, and the storage device 290 stores the extracted location information as vehicle usage history information together with the vehicle ID of the vehicle 10a, current date and time information, and status information indicating that the IG is off.

[0057] In S834, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines the recommended information when it determines that a recommendation should be made to the user 90a based on the remote operation history. For example, based on the action plan of the user 90a acquired by the action plan acquisition unit 240, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines that the recommended information should be recommended to the user 90a based on the remote operation history when the timing is a predetermined time before the planned time of the user 90a's action, and when the current vehicle environment and the interior and exterior environmental information of the vehicle 10a, including weather information for the area including the location of the vehicle 10a, satisfy predetermined conditions. The predetermined conditions may include, for example, a condition related to the interior temperature of the vehicle and / or the outside temperature outside the vehicle. The predetermined conditions related to the interior temperature or the outside temperature may include the interior temperature and / or the outside temperature being equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold. The predetermined conditions related to the interior temperature or the outside temperature may include the interior temperature and / or the outside temperature being equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold. The predetermined conditions may include, for example, conditions related to the temperature inside the vehicle and / or the temperature of the outside air outside the vehicle, as well as conditions related to the humidity inside the vehicle and / or the humidity of the outside air outside the vehicle.

[0058] When determining the recommended information, the recommended information determination unit 230 refers to the remote operation history information and extracts operation information of operations previously performed in response to a remote operation request in the vehicle 10 having function information matching the function information of the vehicle 10a, under environmental information matching the environmental information inside and outside the vehicle 10a and within a predetermined geographical range including the location of the vehicle 10a received in S830. Furthermore, the recommended information determination unit 230 refers to the operation-related recommended information and selects related recommended information associated with the extracted operation information. The recommended information determination unit 230 determines, as recommended information to be recommended to the user 90a, one or more pieces of recommended information indicating the operation indicated by the extracted operation information and / or related recommended information selected from the operation-related recommended information. In this case, the recommended information determination unit 230 may prioritize recommended information based on operation information associated with a higher recommendation level in the remote operation history information as recommended information to be recommended to the user 90a.

[0059] In S836, the transmission unit 284 transmits the recommended information determined in S834 by the recommended information determination unit 230 to the user terminal 92a. When the user 90a instructs the user terminal 92a to perform an operation of the vehicle 10a, the user terminal 92a transmits a remote operation execution instruction to the vehicle remote control device 100 to perform the operation (S840).

[0060] In the vehicle remote control device 100, when the receiving unit 282 receives a remote operation execution instruction transmitted from the user terminal 92a, it transmits an operation instruction to the vehicle 10a instructing it to execute the operation instructed in the remote operation execution instruction (S842).

[0061] In S844, the vehicle 10a executes the instructed operation in accordance with the operation instruction received from the vehicle remote control device 100. In S848, when the receiving unit 282 receives response information indicating that the operation instructed to the vehicle 10a has been executed in the vehicle 10a, the storage device 290 of the vehicle remote control device 100 sets the recommendation level of the remote operation history information (S848). Specifically, the recommendation level associated with the operation information corresponding to the operation instructed to the vehicle 10a and executed in the vehicle 10a, among the operation information extracted from the remote operation history information when determining the recommendation information in S834, is set to be high.

[0062] 9 shows an example of a flowchart of a vehicle remote control method executed by the vehicle remote operation device 100. The processing in FIG. 9 may be executed when the vehicle 10 is stopped or at a predetermined timing determined from the action plan of the user 90 of the vehicle 10.

[0063] In S902, the location acquisition unit 210 acquires the location where the vehicle 10 is parked. In S904, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines whether the location where the vehicle 10 is parked is outside the normal movement range of the vehicle 10. For example, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines whether the location is outside the use area set by the use area setting unit 260. Based on the vehicle use history information, the use area setting unit 260 sets a predetermined geographical range that includes locations that the vehicle 10 has passed through a predetermined number of times or more in a predetermined period as the use area where the vehicle 10 is mainly used.

[0064] If it is determined in S904 that the parked location of the vehicle 10 is not outside the normal movement range of the vehicle 10, the vehicle remote control device 100 ends the processing of this flowchart. If it is determined in S904 that the parked location of the vehicle 10 is outside the normal movement range of the vehicle 10, in S906, the recommendation information determination unit 230 determines a predetermined location range that includes the parked location of the vehicle 10. Subsequently, in S908, the recommendation information determination unit 230 refers to the remote operation history information and extracts operation information of operations performed on other vehicles 10 within the geographical range determined in S906. At this time, as described with reference to FIG. 8 etc., the recommendation information determination unit 230 may extract operation information of operations performed on other vehicles 10 under environmental information that matches environmental information inside and outside the vehicle 10. Furthermore, the recommendation information determination unit 230 may extract operation information of operations previously performed on other vehicles 10 having function information that matches the function information of the vehicle 10.

[0065] In S912, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines, based on the remote operation history, whether to make a recommendation to the user 90. For example, when environmental information inside and outside the vehicle 10 satisfies a predetermined condition at a predetermined timing determined from the action plan of the user 90 of the vehicle 10, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines, based on the remote operation history, to make a recommendation to the user 90.

[0066] If it is determined in S912 that a recommendation to the user 90 will not be made based on the remote operation history, the vehicle remote control device 100 ends the processing of this flowchart. If it is determined in S912 that a recommendation to the user 90 will be made based on the remote operation history, the recommended information determination unit 230 determines recommended information in S914. Specifically, as described in relation to FIG. 8 , the recommended information determination unit 230 refers to the remote operation history information, takes into consideration environmental information inside and outside the vehicle 10 and / or functional information of the vehicle 10, extracts operation information of operations that have been previously performed in response to remote operation requests within a predetermined geographical range including the parked position of the vehicle 10, and determines recommended information based on the extracted operation information.

[0067] In S916, the transmission unit 284 transmits the recommended information determined by the recommended information determination unit 230 in S914 to the user terminal 92. In S918, the recommended information determination unit 230 sets the recommendation level in the remote operation history information according to the execution result in the vehicle 10. For example, when the recommended information determination unit 230 receives a remote operation request from the user terminal 92 requesting the execution of the recommended operation and receives a signal from the vehicle 10 indicating that the operation has been executed after transmitting the operation instruction to the vehicle 10, the recommended information determination unit 230 increases the recommendation level associated with the operation information corresponding to the operation instructed to the vehicle 10 and executed in the vehicle 10. Conversely, when the recommended information determination unit 230 does not receive a remote operation request from the user terminal 92 requesting the execution of the recommended operation, the recommended information determination unit 230 decreases the recommendation level associated with the operation information corresponding to the recommended operation.

[0068] In the above-described embodiment, the communication device 280 communicates with the vehicle remote control device 100 via wireless communication such as a mobile communication network. However, if the vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle, when the vehicle 10 is connected to a charging device, the vehicle 10 may transmit information to the vehicle remote control device 100 through the charging device. This reduces the amount of communication performed by the vehicle 10 through the mobile communication network. When the vehicle remote control device 100 receives information from the vehicle 10 through the charging device, the vehicle remote control device 100 may apply pre-registered position information of the charging device as the position information of the vehicle 10. This prevents position detection errors based on signals from GNSS satellites from affecting the accuracy of the position information of the vehicle 10.

[0069] The vehicle 10 in the above-described embodiment is an example of a moving body, but any transport equipment other than a vehicle can be used as the moving body.

[0070] 10 shows an example of a computer 2000 in which multiple embodiments of the present invention may be embodied in whole or in part. A program installed on the computer 2000 may cause the computer 2000 to function as each part of the vehicle remote control system 5 according to an embodiment, or an apparatus such as the vehicle remote control device 100, or each part of the apparatus, to perform operations associated with the system, each part of the system, or the apparatus, and / or to perform a process or steps of the process according to an embodiment. Such a program may be executed by the CPU 2012 to cause the computer 2000 to perform specific operations associated with some or all of the processing procedures and blocks of the block diagrams described herein.

[0071] The computer 2000 according to this embodiment includes a CPU 2012 and a RAM 2014, which are interconnected by a host controller 2010. The computer 2000 also includes a ROM 2026, a flash memory 2024, a communication interface 2022, and an input / output chip 2040. The ROM 2026, the flash memory 2024, the communication interface 2022, and the input / output chip 2040 are connected to the host controller 2010 via the input / output controller 2020.

[0072] The CPU 2012 operates according to programs stored in the ROM 2026 and RAM 2014, thereby controlling each unit.

[0073] The communication interface 2022 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The flash memory 2024 stores programs and data used by the CPU 2012 in the computer 2000. The ROM 2026 stores a boot program and the like executed by the computer 2000 upon activation, and / or programs dependent on the hardware of the computer 2000. The input / output chip 2040 may also connect various input / output units such as a keyboard, mouse, and monitor to the input / output controller 2020 via input / output ports such as a serial port, a parallel port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, a monitor port, a USB port, an HDMI (registered trademark) port, etc.

[0074] The programs are provided via a computer-readable storage medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, or a memory card, or via a network. The RAM 2014, the ROM 2026, or the flash memory 2024 are examples of computer-readable storage media. The programs are installed in the flash memory 2024, the RAM 2014, or the ROM 2026 and executed by the CPU 2012. Information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 2000, and causes cooperation between the programs and the various types of hardware resources described above. An apparatus or a method may be configured by implementing operations or processing of information in accordance with the use of the computer 2000.

[0075] For example, when communication is performed between the computer 2000 and an external device, the CPU 2012 may execute a communication program loaded into the RAM 2014 and instruct the communication interface 2022 to perform communication processing based on the processing described in the communication program. Under the control of the CPU 2012, the communication interface 2022 reads transmission data stored in a transmission buffer processing area provided in a recording medium such as the RAM 2014 or flash memory 2024, transmits the read transmission data to a network, and writes received data received from the network to a reception buffer processing area or the like provided on the recording medium.

[0076] The CPU 2012 may also cause all or a necessary portion of a file or database stored on a recording medium such as the flash memory 2024 to be read into the RAM 2014, and perform various types of processing on the data on the RAM 2014. The CPU 2012 then writes the processed data back to the recording medium.

[0077] Various types of information, such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases, may be stored on the recording medium and subjected to information processing. The CPU 2012 may perform various types of processing on data read from the RAM 2014, including various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, information search / replacement, etc., as described herein and specified by the instruction sequences of the programs, and write the results back to the RAM 2014. The CPU 2012 may also search for information in a file, database, etc. on the recording medium. For example, if multiple entries each having an attribute value of a first attribute associated with an attribute value of a second attribute are stored on the recording medium, the CPU 2012 may search for an entry that matches a condition specified by the attribute value of the first attribute from among the multiple entries, read the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, and thereby obtain the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute that satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0078] The above-described programs or software modules may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium on or near the computer 2000. A recording medium such as a hard disk or RAM provided in a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet can be used as the computer-readable storage medium. The programs stored in the computer-readable storage medium may be provided to the computer 2000 via a network.

[0079] A program installed in the computer 2000 and causing the computer 2000 to function as the vehicle remote control device 100 may act on the CPU 2012 or the like to cause the computer 2000 to function as each unit of the vehicle remote control device 100. When the information processing described in these programs is read into the computer 2000, the computer 2000 functions as each unit of the vehicle remote control device 100, which is a specific means formed by the software and the various hardware resources described above working together. These specific means then perform calculations or processing of information according to the intended use of the computer 2000 in this embodiment, thereby constructing a specific vehicle remote control device 100 according to the intended use.

[0080] Various embodiments have been described with reference to block diagrams. In the block diagrams, each block may represent (1) a stage of a process where an operation is performed or (2) a portion of an apparatus responsible for performing the operation. Particular stages and portions may be implemented by dedicated circuitry, programmable circuitry provided with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium, and / or a processor provided with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium. Dedicated circuitry may include digital and / or analog hardware circuitry, and may include integrated circuits (ICs) and / or discrete circuits. Programmable circuitry may include reconfigurable hardware circuitry including logical AND, logical OR, logical XOR, logical NAND, logical NOR, and other logic operations, flip-flops, registers, memory elements such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic arrays (PLAs), and the like.

[0081] A computer-readable storage medium may include any tangible device capable of storing instructions that are executed by an appropriate device, such that the computer-readable storage medium with instructions stored thereon constitutes at least a portion of an article of manufacture containing instructions that can be executed to provide means for performing the operations specified in a process or block diagram. Examples of computer-readable storage media may include electronic storage media, magnetic storage media, optical storage media, electromagnetic storage media, semiconductor storage media, etc. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media may include floppy disks, diskettes, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), static random access memory (SRAM), compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disc (DVD), Blu-ray (RTM) disc, memory stick, integrated circuit card, etc.

[0082] The computer readable instructions may include either assembler instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or source or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Smalltalk®, JAVA®, C++, etc., and conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages.

[0083] The computer-readable instructions may be provided to a processor or programmable circuitry of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, either locally or over a wide-area network (WAN) such as a local area network (LAN), the Internet, etc., and executed to provide means for performing the operations specified in the process steps or block diagrams described. Examples of processors include computer processors, processing units, microprocessors, digital signal processors, controllers, microcontrollers, etc.

[0084] Although the present invention has been described above using embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above embodiments. It is clear from the claims that such modifications and improvements can also be included within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0085] It should be noted that the execution order of each process, such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages, in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specifications, and drawings is not specifically stated as "before," "prior to," etc., and that the processes can be performed in any order unless the output of a previous process is used in a subsequent process. Even if the operational flow in the claims, specifications, and drawings is described using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, this does not mean that the processes must be performed in this order. [Explanation of symbols]

[0086] 5. Vehicle remote control system 10 vehicles 90 users 92 User terminals 100 Vehicle remote control device 200 Processing Equipment 210 Position acquisition part 220 Remote Control Unit 230 Recommendation Information Determination Unit 240 Action Plan Acquisition Department 250 Functional information acquisition unit 260 Usage area setting section 270 Environmental Information Acquisition Department 280 Communication Equipment 282 Receiving unit 284 Transmitter 290 Storage device 2000 Computer 2010 Host Controller 2012 CPU 2014 RAM 2020 Input / Output Controller 2022 Communication Interface 2024 flash memory 2026 ROM 2040 Input / Output Chip

Claims

1. a location acquisition unit that acquires location information indicating a location of a vehicle; a remote operation unit that, in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causes the vehicle to execute an operation requested by the remote operation request; a storage unit configured to store remote operation history information that associates location information indicating a location of the vehicle when the operation requested by the remote operation request was executed, operation information indicating a type of the executed operation, and a recommendation level indicating a recommendation level of the executed operation; a determination unit that, when the position acquisition unit acquires position information of a first vehicle, refers to the remote operation history information and determines (i) recommendation information indicating an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle, and / or (ii) recommendation information of a user action associated with an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle; a transmission unit that transmits the recommendation information determined by the determination unit to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle; Equipped with The determination unit determines, as the recommendation information, information indicating an operation of a type indicated by operation information associated with a higher recommendation level in the remote operation history information and / or information indicating a user behavior associated with an operation of a type indicated by operation information associated with a higher recommendation level in the remote operation history information, with a higher priority. Vehicle remote control device.

2. The position acquisition unit acquires position information indicating a stopping position of the vehicle, The remote operation unit causes the vehicle to execute an operation requested by a remote operation request received from the user terminal when the vehicle is stopped. The vehicle remote control device according to claim 1.

3. An action plan acquisition unit for acquiring an action plan of a user of the first vehicle. Further equipped with The predetermined range is determined according to the action plan. The vehicle remote control device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. An environmental information acquisition unit that acquires environmental information indicating the environment at the position of the vehicle. Further equipped with When the position acquisition unit acquires position information of the first vehicle, the determination unit refers to the remote operation history information and determines recommendation information indicating an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to the remote operation request under an environment related to the environmental information at a time related to the action plan and at the position of the first vehicle, and within a predetermined range including a stopping position of the first vehicle. The vehicle remote control device according to claim 3.

5. When the position acquisition unit acquires the position information of the first vehicle, the determination unit refers to the remote operation history information and determines recommended information indicating operations of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle, After the transmission unit transmits the recommendation information, the storage unit receives a remote operation request requesting execution of an operation indicated by the recommendation information from the user terminal associated with the first vehicle, and when the storage unit receives a signal indicating that the operation indicated by the recommendation information has been executed in the first vehicle, sets a recommendation level associated with the operation indicated by the recommendation information in the remote operation history information to be high. The vehicle remote control device according to claim 1 or 2.

6. A location acquisition unit that acquires location information indicating a stopping position of a vehicle; a remote operation unit that causes the vehicle to execute an operation requested by a remote operation request received from a user terminal associated with the vehicle when the vehicle is stopped; a transmission unit that, when the location acquisition unit acquires location information of a first vehicle, transmits, to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle, (i) information indicating an operation recommended to be performed in the first vehicle based on a plurality of operations of the second vehicle executed in response to the plurality of remote operation requests within a predetermined period before the first vehicle is stopped and within a predetermined range including the stopped position of the first vehicle, and / or (ii) recommended information of a user action associated with a plurality of operations of the second vehicle executed in response to the plurality of remote operation requests within a predetermined period before the first vehicle is stopped and within a predetermined range including the stopped position of the first vehicle. A vehicle remote control device comprising:

7. A location acquisition unit that acquires location information indicating a location of a vehicle; a function information acquisition unit that acquires function information indicating functions possessed by the vehicle; a remote operation unit that, in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causes the vehicle to execute an operation requested by the remote operation request; a transmission unit that, when the location acquisition unit acquires the location information of the first vehicle, transmits to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle: (i) information indicating an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with a second vehicle having a function related to the function of the first vehicle within a predetermined range including the stopping location of the first vehicle; and / or (ii) user action recommendation information associated with the operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the stopping location of the first vehicle. A vehicle remote control device comprising:

8. A location acquisition unit that acquires location information indicating a location of a vehicle; a remote operation unit that, in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causes the vehicle to execute an operation requested by the remote operation request; a transmitter that, when the location acquisition unit acquires location information of a first vehicle, transmits to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle: (i) operation information indicating an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the location of the first vehicle, and / or (ii) user action recommendation information associated with the operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the location of the first vehicle; a use area setting unit that sets a use area in which the first vehicle is primarily used, based on location information of the first vehicle during a predetermined period and a use history including a frequency at which the first vehicle was present at a location indicated by the location information; Equipped with When the position acquisition unit acquires the position information of the first vehicle, the transmission unit transmits the operation information and / or the recommendation information to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle on condition that the position indicated by the position information of the first vehicle is outside the usage area. Vehicle remote control device.

9. obtaining location information indicative of a location of a vehicle; in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the vehicle, causing the vehicle to execute an operation requested by the remote operation request; storing remote operation history information that associates location information indicating a location of the vehicle when the operation requested by the remote operation request was executed, operation information indicating a type of the executed operation, and a recommendation level indicating a recommendation level of the executed operation; a step of determining, when acquiring position information of a first vehicle, (i) recommendation information indicating an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from a user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle, and / or (ii) recommendation information of a user action associated with an operation of the second vehicle executed in response to a remote operation request from the user terminal associated with the second vehicle within a predetermined range including the position of the first vehicle, by referring to the remote operation history information; transmitting the determined recommendation information to a user terminal associated with the first vehicle; Equipped with The step of determining, as the recommendation information, information indicating an operation of a type indicated by operation information associated with a higher recommendation level in the remote operation history information and / or information indicating a user behavior associated with an operation of a type indicated by operation information associated with a higher recommendation level in the remote operation history information, with higher priority. A method for remotely controlling a vehicle.

10. A program for causing a computer to function as the vehicle remote control device according to any one of claims 1, 6, 7 and 8.

Images