Traffic management system

Abstract

To provide an operation management system which can automatically change travel routes in an operation of a vehicle.SOLUTION: An operation management system 100 comprises: a data storage unit 52 having map data GD including a normal travel route and a bypass travel route of an object vehicle VE; a determination unit JD which determines necessity of change of travel routes of the object vehicle VE on the basis of the map data GD when external information including information on an occurrence site of an incident is accepted; and a route change unit RC which changes the travel route to a selectable travel route on the basis of route information of the data storage unit 52 according to determination content at the determination unit JD.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an operation management system that manages the travel route and the like when a vehicle is operated. [Background technology]

[0002] As a technique for shortening the work time required to change operation plans for various transportation facilities, for example, a technique that accepts a user's drag-and-drop operation of a regular figure onto a plan figure (see Patent Document 1) is known.

[0003] However, the technology described in Patent Document 1 above does not make it possible to automatically change operation plans, for example, in cases where an incident occurs on a route bus or the like, making it impossible to operate on some sections of the route. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-178265 Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a traffic management system that can automatically change the travel route when a vehicle is traveling.

[0006] The operation management system for achieving the above-mentioned object includes a data storage unit having map data including the normal driving route and detour driving route of the target vehicle, a determination unit that, upon receiving external information including information on the location of the incident, determines whether the target vehicle's driving route needs to be changed based on the map data, and a route change unit that changes the driving route to a selectable route based on the route information in the data storage unit, depending on the determination made by the determination unit.

[0007] In the above-mentioned traffic management system, when an incident occurs from outside that affects the driving route, for example, when a section of the target vehicle's driving route becomes inoperable, the determination unit first determines whether or not a driving route change is necessary based on map data. If the determination unit determines that a change is necessary, the route change unit changes the driving route to an available route based on the route information in the data storage unit, depending on the determination made by the determination unit. This enables accurate route selection (change), and furthermore, by making a determination and selection based on various data, automatic driving route changes are possible.

[0008] In a specific aspect of the present invention, the data storage unit includes, as map data, route usage data indicating a route to be used by the target vehicle, and the determination unit determines whether or not a route change is necessary based on a result of comparing the route usage data with location data of traffic-regulated sections included in traffic regulation information received as external information. In this case, the route can be selected based on the external information.

[0009] In another aspect of the present invention, the route change unit selects a travel route that includes a drivable route from among routes connecting bus stops before and after a location affected by an incident, based on map data. In this case, a new route that connects the bus stops before and after the incident while avoiding the effects of the incident can be selected.

[0010] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the route change unit selects a route that has the shortest travel time from among a plurality of alternative travel route candidates prepared in advance in the data storage unit, thereby minimizing operation delays associated with the change in the travel route.

[0011] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the data storage unit stores location information of intersections, traffic light information, route length information, and bus stop location information that exist on the normal driving route and the detour driving route, and the route change unit predicts the travel time based on the information stored in the data storage unit. In this case, an optimal route can be selected based on various information.

[0012] In yet another aspect of the present invention, when a bus stop is impassable due to an incident, the route change unit selects a travel route that includes a route connecting the preceding and succeeding bus stops excluding the impassable stop. In this case, even if a bus stop is impassable, operation is not suspended and operation continues in a portion of the route.

[0013] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the route change unit divides the travel route of the target vehicle into two sections in accordance with the impassable area caused by the impact of the incident, and dispatches a new target vehicle. In this case, even if the route is divided, for example, operation is not suspended and operation continues in each of the two divided sections.

[0014] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the target vehicle is a public transportation system operated by automated driving. In this case, for example, in the operation of a public transportation system, in response to the occurrence of an incident that affects the route, such as the suspension of operation of a certain section, the route can be automatically changed (and the schedule accordingly changed) in response to the occurrence of an incident that affects the route, such as the suspension of operation of a certain section. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an operation management system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a traffic management system. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing an outline of a configuration related to determining a change in a travel route in the traffic management system. [Figure 4] 10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams showing an example of a change in route and the accompanying change in timetable. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams showing an example of how one travel route is selected from a plurality of travel routes when changing the travel route. [Figure 6] 10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams showing an example of a change in route when an impassable section exists and an accompanying change in timetable. [Figure 7]10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams showing an example of a case where a travel route is divided as a result of a change in a travel route and an accompanying change in a train schedule. [Figure 8] 10A and 10B are conceptual diagrams showing an example of restoration of a divided travel route. [Figure 9] 10A to 10C are conceptual diagrams showing an example of vehicle allocation in accordance with division of a travel route. [Figure 10] 10A and 10B are flowcharts illustrating an example of an operation accompanying reception of external information. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a series of processes including selection of a detour route as a change of a travel route. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart for explaining an example of a series of processes for diagram generation (diagram change). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] An example of a traffic control system according to an embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. 1 and other figures. As shown in the conceptual diagram of FIG. 1, the traffic control system 100 according to this embodiment is a transportation system that manages the traffic of autonomously driven vehicles VE, and includes an external information receiving unit 10, a control unit 50, and a vehicle communication unit 70. The traffic control system 100 acquires traffic regulation information such as self-information and congestion information from the outside as external information via the external information receiving unit 10, and uses the traffic regulation information as needed to manage the traffic of the target vehicle VE in its traffic area TA using the control unit 50. To this end, the traffic control system 100 transmits various types of information from the control unit 50 to the target vehicle VE via the vehicle communication unit 70.

[0017] In the illustrated example, a target vehicle VE, which is the subject of operation management by the traffic management system 100, travels in a traffic area TA on a loop-shaped travel route that circulates through four ports PO1 to PO4 in this order, as a normal travel route RO. A typical example of the target vehicle VE is a circular bus BU, which is a public transportation facility. In other words, the target vehicle VE (circulatory bus BU) uses four ports PO1 to PO4 as bus stops and departs and arrives at these locations in sequence, and the travel route between them is the normal travel route RO under normal circumstances. Here, the traffic management system 100 manages the bus schedule of the circular bus BU, and in this case, it particularly handles the travel route of the circular bus BU and any changes thereto.

[0018] In particular, here, the target vehicle VE as the circular bus BU is operated by automatic driving. That is, the target vehicle VE is an automatic driving vehicle capable of autonomous driving, and it is assumed that the target vehicle VE may be a manned (driver-attached) vehicle that performs autonomous driving, as well as an unmanned vehicle that performs autonomous driving. When autonomous driving, the target vehicle VE operates in response to commands from the traffic management system 100 via communication with the traffic management system 100.

[0019] In particular, in this embodiment, when the external information receiving unit 10 receives external information that includes, for example, information on the location where an incident has occurred, it changes the driving route as necessary, i.e., switches from the normal driving route RO to another route, and accordingly changes the operating schedule of the circular bus BU (public transportation).

[0020] In the figure, in order to simplify the explanation, the driving route for circulating the four ports PO1 to PO4 is the subject of driving management in the driving management system 100, but the driving management system 100 of this embodiment is not limited to this and can be applied to driving routes of various types.

[0021] An example of the configuration of the traffic management system 100 will be described below with reference to the block diagram shown in FIG.

[0022] As shown in the figure and as described above, the traffic management system 100 includes an external information receiving unit 10, a control unit 50, and a vehicle communication unit 70. Furthermore, the control unit 50 includes a traffic information management unit 51, a data storage unit 52, a schedule change determination unit 53, and a schedule management unit 54.

[0023] The external information receiving unit 10 is an interface unit that receives various information transmitted from the outside. In the illustrated example, the external information receiving unit 10 receives traffic regulation information TR from an external information providing organization RI. Examples of the information providing organization RI include an external information center and a road traffic information center. The external information receiving unit 10 receives accident information, congestion information, landslide information, road collapse information, and the like as traffic regulation information TR from these various organizations. In other words, the operation control system 100 acquires these various types of information as traffic regulation information TR via the external information receiving unit 10.

[0024] The control unit 50 is configured with, for example, a CPU, a storage device, or various electronic circuits, and functions as a main part that is responsible for various operational controls such as vehicle operation management.

[0025] Of the control unit 50, the operation information management unit 51 is configured with, for example, a CPU or various electronic circuits, etc., and manages operation information. The operation information management unit 51, for example, acquires schedule data and driving route data stored in the data storage unit 52, and transmits various commands via the vehicle communication unit 70 to cause the target vehicle VE to drive based on these. In addition, by acquiring information such as the occurrence of an incident as traffic regulation information TR via the external information receiving unit 10, the operation information management unit 51 determines whether operation based on the current schedule can be maintained.

[0026] The data storage unit 52 of the control unit 50 is composed of a storage device or the like, and stores schedule data, travel route data, and the like, as described above. Here, the travel route data includes various data, as illustrated in the figure as travel route data RD. Examples include geographical data such as information on the length of a route, such as latitude and longitude information indicating each point on the route, and information on intersections, such as the intersection's location, the presence or absence of traffic lights, and, if present, information on the traffic lights (intersection information). The traffic light information includes, in addition to information for identifying the traffic lights, information on the light color of the traffic lights (the duration of red or green light and the timing of switching). Furthermore, information on the distance between each port PO1 to PO4, i.e., the distance between bus stops (bus stop distance information), and information on the travel time for each road section that constitutes the travel route (travel time information). As described above, the travel route data RD includes various information within the jurisdiction (traffic area TA in FIG. 1). In this embodiment, when a change in the driving route becomes necessary due to an incident or the like, in order to accommodate this, a new driving route (detour driving route) is prepared in advance or prepared as needed based on the driving route data RD stored in the data storage unit 52. Here, for the sake of simplicity of explanation, it is assumed that a detour driving route is prepared in advance and stored in the data storage unit 52 in a callable state.

[0027] The timetable data includes timetable data (normal timetable) when the train is traveling on the normal travel route RO on schedule, as well as new timetable data (new timetable) generated by the timetable management unit 54, which will be described later.

[0028] The schedule change determination unit 53 of the control unit 50 is composed of a CPU or various electronic circuits, and determines whether a schedule change is necessary based on traffic regulation information TR acquired from an external source and the current operating conditions (such as the current schedule) stored in the data storage unit 52. In particular, in this embodiment, the schedule change determination unit 53 functions as a determination unit that determines whether a route change is necessary based on information such as the occurrence of an incident contained in the traffic regulation information TR. If it is determined that a route change is necessary, the schedule change determination unit 53 functions as a route change unit that changes the route from the data storage unit 52 to a detour route (an available route) that corresponds to the conditions. Furthermore, the schedule change determination unit 53 functions as a creation command unit that commands the creation of a new schedule based on the detour route selected for the change. Even if a route change is not necessary, the schedule change determination unit 53 commands the creation of a new schedule when a schedule change is necessary due to delays caused by congestion information contained in the traffic regulation information TR.

[0029] Of the control unit 50, the timetable management unit 54 is composed of a CPU or various electronic circuits, and upon receiving a timetable creation command from the timetable change determination unit 53, the timetable generation unit 54a creates a new timetable in accordance with the creation command. The new timetable (new timetable information) created by the timetable management unit 54 is stored in the data storage unit 52. That is, the current timetable data is rewritten when the new timetable information is registered (acquired) in the data storage unit 52. In this case, the operation information management unit 51 handles the data regarding the new timetable as the current timetable data to be adopted. The new timetable (new timetable information) created by the timetable management unit 54 may be registered (acquired) in the data storage unit 52 after the timetable change determination unit 53 determines whether it is appropriate.

[0030] The vehicle communication unit 70 is an interface unit for communicating with the target vehicle VE, and transmits information about timetable information and driving routes under the management of the traffic management system 100 to the target vehicle VE in accordance with instructions from the control unit 50. In particular, in this embodiment, when a driving route change is required as described above, new timetable information associated with the change of driving route is transmitted together with the change of driving route.

[0031] On the other hand, the target vehicle VE is an autonomously driven vehicle capable of autonomous driving, and is equipped with an autonomous driving control unit CUv, a communication unit TTv for acquiring information from outside, and a data storage unit DDv for storing various data. In this case, in particular, in order to enable the target vehicle (autonomously driven vehicle) VE to travel as a circular bus BU, the target vehicle (autonomously driven vehicle) VE receives timetable information and travel route information from the traffic management system 100 via the communication unit TTv, and stores this information, i.e., timetable data and travel route data, in the data storage unit DDv. That is, the autonomous driving control unit CUv receives new information via the communication unit TTv and refers to the timetable data and travel route data stored in the data storage unit DDv to perform various operational controls for the autonomous driving of the target vehicle (autonomously driven vehicle) VE. That is, it detects the surrounding conditions using various sensors and operates various components (not shown), such as the accelerator and brake. In this way, autonomous driving along the route of the target vehicle VE is realized.

[0032] Hereinafter, the determination of a change in the travel route by the control unit 50 in the traffic management system 100 of the above embodiment will be described in more detail with reference to the conceptual diagram shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 3 shows an example of how to deal with a case where information indicating an indent occurrence location is received as external information TR.

[0033] First, as a premise, it is assumed here that the timetable change determination unit 53 of the control unit 50 is composed of a determination unit JD that determines whether or not the driving route of the target vehicle VE (see Figure 1, etc.) needs to be changed, and a route change unit RC that changes the driving route depending on the determination made by the determination unit JD.

[0034] Furthermore, the data storage unit 52 of the control unit 50 has map data GD including data DD1 on the normal driving route of the target vehicle VE (see FIG. 1, etc.) and data DD2 on the detour driving route. Each of the data DD1 and DD2 is configured from the above-mentioned driving route data RD stored in the data storage unit 52. For example, the detour driving route data DD2 is stored in advance, with one or more detour driving routes prepared in advance according to the location of an indent by appropriately combining the elements of the driving route data RD. The route change unit RC changes the detour driving route to a selectable driving route depending on the situation from among the detour driving routes stored in the detour driving route data DD2. Note that, among these, the route currently used by the target vehicle VE (see FIG. 1, etc.) is referred to as used route data. In other words, the data storage unit 52 always includes used route data indicating the driving route used by the target vehicle VE as the map data GD.

[0035] In the above configuration, first, when the determination unit JD of the schedule change determination unit 53 receives external information including information on the location of the incident, it references the used route data (for example, data DD1 on the normal driving route), which is information on the current driving route, from the map data GD, and determines based on this whether or not the driving route of the target vehicle VE (see FIG. 1, etc.) needs to be changed. More specifically, the determination unit JD compares the location data of the traffic control section (location of the incident) included in the traffic control information received as external information with the used route data, and determines from the comparison result whether or not the used route data is affected by the traffic control section, thereby determining whether or not the driving route needs to be changed.

[0036] If the determination unit JD determines that a route change is required, the route change unit RC changes the route to a selectable route based on the route information (detour route data DD2) in the data storage unit 52. For example, the route change unit RC selects a route that includes a drivable route from among routes connecting bus stops (ports) before and after the location affected by the incident, based on the map data GD (detour route data DD2). The route change unit RC outputs a request (command) to the diagram management unit 54 to create (generate) a schedule for the selected route, and the diagram management unit 54 generates the schedule in response to this request.

[0037] An example of the above-mentioned change in driving route and the accompanying change in timetable will be explained below with reference to the conceptual diagram shown in Figure 4. Figure 4(A) shows the state in which the target vehicle VE is driving along the normal driving route RO in accordance with the normal timetable. On the other hand, Figure 4(B) shows the state in which the target vehicle VE has switched to driving along the new driving route, the detour driving route NR, due to a change in driving route from the state shown in Figure 4(A).

[0038] The upper part US of FIG. 4(A) shows the subject vehicle VE traveling along the normal travel route RO, i.e., the normal travel route RO is adopted as a new route to be used. Meanwhile, the lower part BS of the figure shows the timetable TO in the above-mentioned manner. Specifically, the timetable TO has time on the horizontal axis and ports PO1 to PO4 on the vertical axis. As shown in the upper part US, the future behavior (travel schedule) of the subject vehicle VE, which is stopped at port PO1, is shown as route CO in the timetable TO in the lower BS. That is, by tracing route CO along the time, it can be seen that the subject vehicle VE, which is stopped at port PO1, is scheduled to circulate through ports PO2, PO3, PO4, port PO1, and so on in that order.

[0039] In contrast, Fig. 4(B) shows in the upper US that, while the vehicle was operating in the state shown in Fig. 4(A), external information was received indicating that two intersections indicated by no-entry marks CL had become traffic-restricted sections (road closures), and that the detour route NR was adopted as the new route to use. Specifically, incidents that resulted in road closures (no-entry marks CL) occurred on the route from port PO2 to PO3 and on the route from port PO3 to PO4, and the target vehicle VE traveled on the detour route NR, which bypassed these incidents.

[0040] In this case, a new timetable TN1 is generated (created) as shown in the lower part BS of the figure. In this case, the route CN1 of the timetable TN1 will take longer than the route CO before the change, which is shown by the dashed line, but the order of the ports PO1 to PO4 through which the target vehicle VE circulates remains the same as before the change.

[0041] Also, as shown in Figures 5(A) and 5(B), there may be cases where multiple detour travel routes NRα and NRβ are listed as selectable (candidates for selection). That is, in the example of Figure 5(A) and the example of Figure 5(B), the locations of the road closures indicated by the two no-entry marks CL are the same, but the detour travel route NRα selected in Figure 5(A) and the detour travel route NRβ selected in Figure 5(B) are different.

[0042] In such a case, when changing a route, the manner (method) of selecting one route from multiple routes, i.e., the method of determining priority, can be considered, for example, by prioritizing the route with the shorter physical distance, or, if the travel time required for each route is known, by prioritizing the route with the shorter travel time. Another possible method is to select a route based on the number of traffic lights SG on the route. In the illustrated example, the detour route NRα shown in FIG. 5(A) has two traffic lights SG on the route, while the detour route NRα shown in FIG. 5(B) has only one traffic light SG on the route. In this case, for example, the detour route NRα shown in FIG. 5(B), which has fewer traffic lights SG, can be selected. Another possible method is to determine the route based on the total red light duration (red time) of the traffic lights SG (signal lamps). Alternatively, a route can be selected that has the longest total green light duration (green time) of the traffic lights on the side where the target vehicle VE is passing, when the signal cycle lengths of the traffic lights SG at each intersection are assigned. Furthermore, the travel time may be changed depending on the time period in which the routes are mixed.

[0043] 6(A) and 6(B) are conceptual diagrams illustrating an example in which an impassable section exists when a route change and the associated schedule change occur. FIG. 6(A) shows a state in which the subject vehicle VE is traveling along the normal route RO. Meanwhile, FIG. 6(B) shows a state in which the subject vehicle VE switches from the state in FIG. 6(A) to traveling along a new route, the detour route NRα, due to a route change. As shown in FIG. 6(B), two road closures indicated by no-entry marks CL occur immediately before and after port PO4, on the route between which port PO4 is sandwiched. In other words, the area between the two road closures is an impassable area, and port PO4 falls within that area. FIG. 6(B) also illustrates a case in which external information (information about an incident) of this nature is received while the vehicle is traveling in the state shown in FIG. 6(A). In this case, port PO4 is an impassable section. Hereinafter, such locations will also be referred to as impassable stops IMS. As an example of how to deal with the presence of impassable locations such as impassable stops IMS, as shown in the upper US section of Figure 6(B), a detour route NR is created as a route that skips port PO4 (impassable stop IMS), which is a stop that is impassable due to an incident, and includes a route connecting ports PO3 and PO1, which are the stops before and after port PO4. In other words, the detour route NR connects ports PO1 to PO3 in a loop, excluding port PO4. This detour route NR is adopted as the new route to be used. In this case, as shown in the lower BS section of the figure, in the newly generated (created) route diagram TN2, route CN2 (shown by a solid line) arrives at port PO1 in a slightly shorter time than the original route CO (shown by a dashed line) because it skips port PO4.

[0044] 7(A) and 7(B) are conceptual diagrams showing an example of dividing a travel route as a change in travel route and the accompanying schedule change. Furthermore, FIG. 8(A) and FIG. 8(B) are conceptual diagrams showing an example of restoring a divided travel route. Note that FIG. 7(B) and FIG. 8(A) are the same diagram.

[0045] First, Figure 7(A) shows an example of a case where there are two circulating buses BU, a target vehicle VE1 circulating on the outer loop and a target vehicle VE2 circulating on the inner loop. That is, as shown in the upper part US of the figure, the target vehicle VE1 circulating on the outer loop, like the examples shown in the other figures, starts from a stop at port PO1, and circulates along the normal travel route RO1 in the order of port PO1, port PO2, port PO3, port PO4, port PO1, etc. Note that in the timetable TO of the lower part BS, the behavior of the target vehicle VE1 is shown by line CO1.

[0046] On the other hand, the target vehicle VE2 circulating on the inner loop starts, for example, from a stopped state at port PO3, and circulates in the opposite order to the target vehicle VE1 along the normal travel route RO2, in the order of port PO3, port PO2, port PO1, port PO4, port PO3, etc. In the timetable TO of the lower BS, the behavior of the target vehicle VE2 is shown by line CO2.

[0047] In the above-described embodiment, for example, in the example shown in FIG. 7(B), multiple road closures indicated by no-entry marks CL occur in a horizontal row, dividing the route into the port PO1 / PO2 side and the port PO3 / PO4 side. In other words, the entire area across the horizontal row due to these road closures becomes an impassable area. FIG. 7(B) also illustrates a case in which such external information (incident occurrence) is received while traveling in the state shown in FIG. 7(A). In other words, FIG. 7(B) illustrates a case in which an incident occurs with target vehicle VE1 present at port PO1 and target vehicle VE2 present at port PO3, dividing the route. As an example of how to deal with this situation, the travel route is divided as shown in the upper portion US of FIG. 7(B). That is, the area is divided into two, the port PO1 / PO2 side and the port PO3 / PO4 side, using the horizontal crossing area that is the impassable area as a boundary, and the travel route is also divided into two accordingly. More specifically, first, in the area around ports PO1 and PO2, a route going back and forth between them is designated as new route NN1, and the target vehicle VE1 present at port PO1 is made to travel along the section of route NN1. On the other hand, in the area around ports PO3 and PO4, a route going back and forth between them is designated as new route NN2, and the target vehicle VE2 present at port PO3 is made to travel along the section of route NN2. As a result, two separate routes are newly formed. In this case, as shown in the lower part BS of Figure 7(B), two timetables TD1 and TD2 are generated in accordance with the division. That is, in timetable TD1 in the figure, route CD1 shows the behavior of the target vehicle VE1, and in timetable TD2, route CD2 shows the behavior of the target vehicle VE2.

[0048] On the other hand, Figures 8(A) and 8(B) show an example of how to respond when the road closure state described above, i.e., the state shown in Figure 8(A), is lifted (completely lifted) as shown in Figure 8(B). When the state shown in Figure 8(B) is reached, one of the target vehicles VE1, VE2 resumes traveling on the outer loop, and the other resumes traveling on the inner loop. In this case, as shown in the lower part BS of Figure 8(B), a diagram is generated in which one of routes CD1, CD2 in the diagrams TD1, TD2 becomes route CO1, which corresponds to the outer loop, and the other becomes route CO2, which corresponds to the inner loop. In other words, a process is performed to restore the original state of the diagram TO.

[0049] 9(A) to 9(C) show a case where, similar to the example in FIG. 7, multiple road closures indicated by no-entry marks CL occur in a row, and target vehicle VE1 is present on the port PO1 and port PO2 side, while no vehicles are present on the port PO3 and port PO4 side. In such a case, the control unit 50 as the route change unit RC may perform the following response process: the target vehicle VE1 travels along route NN1, while for route NN2, it dispatches a waiting vehicle VEs as a new target vehicle VE2 to the port PO3 and port PO4 side, and causes the vehicle to travel back and forth between port PO3 and port PO4, i.e., travels along route NN2.

[0050] The above-mentioned modes are merely examples, and various other modes of route change can be adopted.

[0051] An example of various operations in the traffic management system 100 will be described below with reference to a flowchart such as FIG.

[0052] 10(A) shows an example of the overall operation accompanying the reception of external information. First, the control unit 50 of the operation control system 100 checks whether the external information received via the external information receiving unit 10 includes a notification about traffic regulation information TR (step S101), and continues this operation until the confirmation in step S101 is made (step S101: Yes).

[0053] When the control unit 50 confirms the notification of the traffic regulation information TR (step S101: Yes), the control unit 50 causes the schedule change determination unit 53, etc. to determine a detour route (step S102). That is, the schedule change determination unit 53, etc., makes various determinations based on the various information described above, such as whether a schedule change is necessary or whether a travel route change is necessary, and further, selects a route. Next, the control unit 50 causes the schedule management unit 54, etc., to automatically generate a schedule in response to the determination result in step S102 (step S103). That is, the schedule management unit 54, etc., creates the new schedule described above and registers the created schedule.

[0054] The traffic management system 100 notifies the target vehicle VE of information on the travel route selected in steps S102 and S103 and information on the created and registered timetable via the vehicle communication unit 70 (step S104), and ends the series of operations. The process of determining a detour route in step S102 and the process of automatically generating a timetable in step S103 will be described in detail later with reference to the flowcharts of Figures 11 and 12.

[0055] 10(B), among the overall processing within the operation control system 100 described with reference to Fig. 10(A), the handling of information from outside is as follows: first, it is confirmed whether traffic regulation information TR has been detected from an information provider RI such as an external center, that is, whether traffic regulation information TR has been received by the external information receiving unit 10 (step S201), and when traffic regulation information TR is detected, that is, when reception is confirmed (step S201: Yes), a detour route determination is requested to the schedule change determining unit 53 based on this (step S202). Note that the handling of such information from outside can be handled by, for example, the operation information management unit 51 of the control unit 50.

[0056] Hereinafter, with reference to the flowchart shown in Figure 11, an example will be described in detail, mainly regarding the process of determining a detour route, which is the process in step S102 in Figure 10(A). In other words, it is assumed here that the notification of traffic regulation information TR from the outside, shown in step S101 in Figure 10(A), has already been confirmed. As described above, Figure 11 shows an example of a series of processes, including the selection of a detour route as a change in driving route, among the operations of the traffic management system 100.

[0057] First, as a premise, a plurality of detour routes are prepared in advance in the control unit 50 (step S301). For example, information on detour routes corresponding to impassable locations or impassable areas that may occur is stored in the data storage unit 52, and various data can be retrieved as needed.

[0058] The schedule change determination unit 53 of the control unit 50 refers to the map data GD in the data storage unit 52, calculates traffic restriction areas from external traffic restriction information TR (step S302), and retrieves current route and stop location information from the data storage unit 52 (step S303). That is, it reads detailed information about the route usage data, which is data about the currently adopted travel route.

[0059] Next, the schedule change determination unit 53 compares the various information collected in steps S302 and S303 to determine whether the current routes and stops are affected by the traffic regulations notified by the traffic regulation information TR (step S304).

[0060] If it is determined in step S304 that there is no impact (step S304: No), vehicle travel instructions are issued so that the current situation is maintained as is (step SSc), and the series of processes ends. In this case, a new timetable is not generated.

[0061] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S304 that there is an impact (step S304: Yes), the schedule change determination unit 53 extracts various information such as the required travel time of the affected route and route information (whether the area before or after the stop will be impassable, etc.) (step S305), and determines whether it is necessary to detour the target vehicle VE (step S306).

[0062] If it is determined in step S306 that no detour is necessary (step S306: No), the diagram generation unit 54a of the diagram management unit 54 generates (recalculates) a diagram that corresponds to the impact of traffic regulations while maintaining the currently used routes (step SSt). A typical example of such a case is when a diagram needs to be reorganized in response to delays caused by traffic congestion. After that, vehicle driving instructions are issued for the diagram generated in step SSt (step SSc), and the process ends.

[0063] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S306 that a detour is necessary (step S306: Yes), the schedule change determination unit 53 extracts selectable detour routes (step S307). That is, from the multiple detour routes prepared in step S301, one or more routes that correspond to the location of the incident are extracted as candidates to become new routes (alternative travel route candidates).

[0064] Next, the schedule change determination unit 53 checks whether there is any detour route extracted in step S307 that allows the bus to continue traveling without excluding (skipping) any stops (step S308), and if such a route is among the candidates (step S308: Yes), it further checks whether there are multiple candidates (two or more) (step S309).

[0065] If it is determined in step S309 that multiple candidates exist (step S309: Yes), the schedule change determination unit 53 compares the original route (for example, the currently used route) with the multiple candidates to determine whether any of the candidates includes a route within a predetermined time difference (a delay within an acceptable range) (step S310). That is, the schedule change determination unit 53 as the route change unit RC calculates the required time (predicts the travel time) for each candidate route based on various information such as travel time information (information about the travel time for each road section constituting the travel route) stored as the travel route data RD, and compares this with the time required for the original route.

[0066] In step S310, if there is a route within the predetermined time difference (step S310: Yes), the one with the shortest time difference among the (single or multiple) candidates that satisfy the conditions is selected as a new detour route, that is, adopted as a new route to be used (step S311). From another perspective, the schedule change determination unit 53, as the route change unit RC, selects the route with the shortest travel time from among multiple alternative travel route candidates prepared in advance in the data storage unit 52.

[0067] On the other hand, if there is no route within the predetermined time difference in step S310 (step S310: No), the schedule change determination unit 53 acquires intersection information (stored as driving route data RD) on the multiple candidate detour routes (step S312), compares the number of intersections with traffic lights among the multiple detour routes, and selects the one with the smallest number (see Figure 5) as the new detour route, i.e., adopts it as the new route to be used (step S313).

[0068] If it is determined in step S309 that there are not multiple candidates (step S309: No), that is, if there is only one candidate, that candidate is selected as a new detour route, that is, adopted as a new route to be used (step S314).

[0069] As described above, a diagram corresponding to the new route selected through step S312, step S313, or step S314 is generated in the diagram generation unit 54a of the diagram management unit 54 (step SSt), and vehicle travel instructions based on the selected new route or the generated diagram are issued (step SSc), completing the series of processes. Note that a detailed example of the diagram generation in step SSt will be described later with reference to FIG. 12.

[0070] On the other hand, in step S308, if it is determined that there is no detour route extracted in step S307 that allows the bus to continue traveling without excluding (skipping) each stop (step S308: No), the schedule change determination unit 53 checks whether there is a detour route that allows the bus to travel to all other stops (e.g., ports PO1 to PO3) excluding the impassable stop (e.g., see port PO4 as the impassable stop IMS in Figure 6) (step S315).

[0071] If there is a detour route among the candidates that satisfies the condition of step S315 (step S315: Yes), the schedule change determination unit 53 selects the detour route as a new detour route, that is, adopts the detour route as a new route to be used (step S316). Note that if there are multiple detour route candidates that satisfy the condition of step S315, as in the other examples above, it is possible to determine one detour route by predetermining a priority adoption criterion based on time or the number of new errors.

[0072] On the other hand, if there is no detour route that satisfies the conditions in step S315 among the candidates (step S315: No), the schedule change determination unit 53 performs a process of dividing (severing) the original route (step S317). Even when there are multiple division patterns, it is possible to determine one division pattern by predetermining a priority adoption criterion for the route, as in the other cases described above.

[0073] In order to start new operations on each route divided in step S317, the schedule change determination unit 53 extracts vehicle position information (step S318) and then checks whether a vehicle is present on each divided route (step S319).

[0074] Regarding the division (segmentation) of the route as described above, specifically, as shown in an example with reference to Figures 7 to 9, one normal driving route RO, which is the original route, is divided (split) into two new routes NN1 and NN2, and the timetable change determination unit 53 checks whether or not a target vehicle VE, etc. is present on each of the routes NN1 and NN2.

[0075] If it is determined in step S319 that a vehicle is present (step S319: Yes), the schedule change determination unit 53 selects each divided route as a new detour route, i.e., registers it as a new route to be used (step S320).

[0076] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S319 that there is no vehicle (step S319: No), as shown in an example with reference to Figure 9, for routes where there is no vehicle, the necessary vehicle dispatch procedures are carried out (step S321) and then the route is registered as a route to be used (step S320).

[0077] As described above, a schedule corresponding to the new route selected through step S316 or step S320 is generated in the schedule generation unit 54a of the schedule management unit 54 (step SSt), and then vehicle driving instructions based on the selected new route or the generated schedule are issued (step SSc), completing the series of processes.

[0078] An example of the details of what corresponds to the automatic generation of a schedule, which is mainly the processing in step S103 in Figure 10(A), will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in Figure 12. That is, it is assumed here that the processing in step S102 in Figure 10(A) or the determination regarding the schedule change exemplified in Figure 11 has been made. As described above, Figure 12 shows an example of a series of processes for schedule generation (schedule change).

[0079] The diagram management unit 54 of the control unit 50 continues to check whether or not there is a diagram generation request from the diagram change determination unit 53 that is responsible for operation management (step S401).

[0080] In step S401, when the request for timetable generation is confirmed (step S401: Yes), the timetable management unit 54 checks the current timetable by referring to the data stored in the data storage unit 52 (step S402), and compares the contents of the timetable generation request with the contents of the current timetable to confirm whether a detour route has been selected in the timetable generation request from the timetable change determination unit 53 (step S403).

[0081] If it is determined in step S403 that a detour route has been selected (step S403: Yes), the timetable management unit 54 analyzes the data on the detour route (step S404) and checks whether there is a request for timetable division (step S405). That is, it checks whether the process of step S317 in FIG. 11 has been performed.

[0082] In step S405, if there is no request to split the schedule (step S405: No), the schedule management unit 54 obtains the travel distance and travel time between stops from the results of analyzing the data for one selected detour route in the schedule generation unit 54a (step S406), and calculates a new required time between the stops (step S407).

[0083] Furthermore, the diagram generating unit 54a recalculates the departure and arrival times based on the calculation results in step S407, and generates a new diagram (step S408).

[0084] On the other hand, if there is a request to split the schedule in step S405 (step S405: Yes), the schedule management unit 54 splits the route in accordance with the request (step S409), and the schedule generation unit 54a creates a schedule for each split route (step S410).

[0085] In addition, if it is determined in step S403 that a detour route has not been selected (step S403: No), that is, if it is determined that a detour is not necessary, but there is a request to generate a schedule due to the impact of traffic restrictions, the schedule generation unit 54a creates a schedule that corresponds to the impact of traffic restrictions while maintaining the currently used route, as described above (step S408).

[0086] In this manner, when a new schedule is created (timetable generation) in the schedule generation unit 54a (step S408 or step S410), the created new schedule is transmitted to the target vehicle VE, etc. via the vehicle communication unit 70 (step S411).

[0087] As described above, the traffic management system 100 according to this embodiment includes a data storage unit 52 having map data GD including the normal driving route and detour driving route of the target vehicle VE, a determination unit JD (timetable change determination unit 53) that determines whether or not the target vehicle VE needs to change its driving route based on the map data GD upon receiving external information including information about the location of an incident, and a route change unit RC (timetable change determination unit 53) that changes the driving route to a selectable route based on the route information in the data storage unit 52 in accordance with the determination by the determination unit JD. In the traffic management system 100, when an incident that affects the driving route of the target vehicle VE occurs from the outside, for example, when a section of the driving route of the target vehicle VE is not navigable, the determination unit JD of the timetable change determination unit 53 first determines whether or not a route change is necessary based on the map data GD. Furthermore, if the determination unit JD determines that a route change is necessary, the route change unit RC of the timetable change determination unit 53 changes the driving route to a selectable route based on the route information in the data storage unit 52 in accordance with the determination by the determination unit JD. As a result of the above, accurate route selection (change) becomes possible, and furthermore, by making judgments and selections based on various data, it becomes possible to automatically change the driving route.

[0088] 〔others〕 The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be embodied in various forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0089] First, in the above, the external information provider RI can be various entities other than the above-mentioned road traffic information center, such as various devices installed on the roadside, and the traffic regulation information TR can also be of various types. For example, it is not limited to text data, but may be information such as voice or image data that is analyzed by artificial intelligence or the like and used as information for making decisions.

[0090] Furthermore, various scenarios are envisioned for selecting a detour route. For example, in the above example, when there are multiple candidates, the selection criteria are time, distance, or the number of traffic lights, but it is not limited to these. It is also conceivable that other criteria, such as the weather, the condition of surrounding roads, or the schedule of various events in the vicinity, can be used as criteria for selection or as part of them.

[0091] In addition, in the above, for example, it is assumed that detour driving routes and the like are created in advance and stored in the data storage unit 52, but this is not limited to this. For example, it is also possible to create new driving route data each time by combining each element of the driving route data RD depending on the content of the incident that has occurred.

[0092] In addition, in the above, the vehicle VE that is the subject of operation management has been described as a circular bus BU, but this is not limited to this, and operation management can be performed for various vehicles such as truck transport and taxis. [Explanation of symbols]

[0093] 10...External information receiving unit, 50...Control unit, 51...Operation information management unit, 52...Data storage unit, 53...Schedule change determination unit, 54...Schedule management unit, 54a...Schedule generation unit, 70...Vehicle communication unit, 100...Operation management system, BS...Lower unit, BU...Circulating bus, CD1, CD2, CN1, CN2, CO, CO1, CO2...Line, CL...No entry sign, CUv...Automatic driving control unit, DD1...Data, DD1, DD2...Data, DDv...Data storage unit, GD...Map data, IMS ...impassable stop, JD...judgment unit, NN1,NN2...route, NR,NRα,NRβ...detour driving route, PO1~PO4...port, RC...route change unit, RD...driving route data, RI...information provider, RO,RO1,RO2...normal driving route, SG...traffic signal, TA...traffic area, TD1,TD2,TN1,TN2,TO...diagram, TR...traffic regulation information, TR...external information, TTv...communication unit, US...upper part, VE,VE1,VE2...target vehicle (autonomous driving vehicle), VEs...vehicle

Claims

1. A data storage unit having map data including a normal driving route and a detour driving route of a target vehicle that travels based on a bus schedule; a determination unit that, upon receiving external information including information on a location where an incident related to traffic regulation has occurred, determines whether or not it is necessary to change the driving route of the target vehicle based on the map data; a route change unit that changes the schedule to a selectable travel route based on the route information in the data storage unit in accordance with the determination content of the determination unit; An operation management system equipped with:

2. the data storage unit includes, as the map data, route usage data indicating a travel route used by the target vehicle; 2. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not a change in the travel route is necessary based on a result of comparing position data of a traffic-regulated section included in the traffic regulation information received as the external information with the route data to be used.

3. 3. The traffic management system according to claim 1, wherein the route change unit selects a travel route including a drivable route from among routes connecting stops before and after the location affected by the incident, based on the map data.

4. The traffic management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the route change unit selects a route with the shortest travel time from among a plurality of alternative travel route candidates prepared in advance in the data storage unit.

5. the data storage unit stores location information of intersections present on the normal travel route and the detour travel route, information on traffic lights, information on the length of a travel route, and location information of bus stops; The traffic management system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the route change unit predicts a travel time related to a bus schedule based on the information stored in the data storage unit.

6. The operation management system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein, when there is a stop that is impassable due to the incident, the route change unit selects a driving route that includes a route connecting the stops before and after the stop, excluding the impassable stop.

7. The traffic management system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the route change unit divides the travel route of the target vehicle into two in accordance with an impassable area caused by the impact of the incident, and dispatches a new target vehicle.

8. The traffic management system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the target vehicle is a public transportation system that operates by automatic driving.

Images