Vehicle information collection device and vehicle information collection system

Abstract

To provide a vehicle information collection device and a vehicle information collection system for collecting information on the use state of an on-vehicle device without applying an excessive load to the flash memory.SOLUTION: A vehicle information collection device 100 is provided with: an information acquisition unit 33 for acquiring identification information and use information related to the usage status of an on-vehicle device 10 from an on-vehicle device 10 incorporating a flash memory 12 and linked to the identification information of a vehicle 1; an information storage unit 32 for storing the identification information; an initial determination unit 34 for determining whether or not the identification information has been acquired for the first time based on the identification information; a time information generation unit 35 for generating initial time information that is information of the initial acquisition time when the identification information has been acquired for the first time when it is determined that the identification information has been acquired for the first time; and a write determination unit 13 for determining whether or not writing of the use information into the flash memory 12 is permitted based on the length of a collection period for collecting the use information predetermined according to the type of the vehicle 1 or the on-vehicle device 10 and the initial time information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle information collection device and a vehicle information collection system that incorporates a flash memory and collects information on the usage status of on-board devices linked to vehicle identification information. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a device that collects information from equipment having flash memory (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The device described in Patent Document 1 receives and stores actual lifespan information via a communication line from multiple computer terminal devices that use flash memory as their main storage device, and predicts the number of days until the flash memory of each terminal device will fail due to end-of-life failure. In each terminal device, when a block reaches the end of its lifespan, an alternate block is assigned, and each terminal device detects and stores the number of remaining alternate blocks, and outputs information from the time when an alternate block is newly assigned to the time when the next new alternate block is assigned as actual lifespan information. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-230660 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the device described in Patent Document 1, when a new alternative block is allocated, information on the number of remaining alternative blocks is unconditionally stored in each terminal device, which may place an excessive load on the flash memory included in each terminal device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A vehicle information collection device according to one aspect of the present invention includes an information acquisition unit that acquires identification information and usage information relating to the usage status of on-board equipment from on-board equipment that has a built-in flash memory and is linked to the vehicle's identification information; an information storage unit that stores the identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit; an initial determination unit that determines whether the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit based on the identification information stored in the information storage unit; a time information generation unit that, when the initial determination unit determines that the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit, generates initial time information that is information about the time when the identification information was first acquired by the information acquisition unit; and a write determination unit that determines whether to allow writing of the usage information to the flash memory based on the length of a collection period for collecting usage information, which is predetermined according to the model of the vehicle or on-board equipment, and the initial time information generated by the time information generation unit.

[0006] A vehicle information collection system according to one aspect of the present invention includes an on-board device having a built-in flash memory and linked with vehicle identification information, and a server configured to communicate with the on-board device via the Internet. The server includes an information acquisition unit that acquires the identification information and usage information relating to the usage status of the on-board device from the on-board device, an information storage unit that stores the identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit, an initial determination unit that determines whether the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit based on the identification information stored in the information storage unit, a time information generation unit that generates initial time information indicating the time when the identification information was first acquired by the information acquisition unit when the initial determination unit determines that the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit, and an information output unit that outputs the initial time information generated by the time information generation unit to the on-board device. The on-board device includes a write determination unit that determines whether to permit writing of the usage information to the flash memory based on the length of a collection period for collecting usage information, which is predetermined depending on the model of the vehicle or the on-board device, and the initial time information output by the information output unit of the server. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to collect information relating to the usage status of in-vehicle devices without placing an excessive load on the flash memory. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle information collection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 2 is a flowchart showing an example of processing performed on the in-vehicle device side of FIG. 1; [Figure 3] 2 is a flowchart showing an example of a time information generation process performed on the server side of FIG. 1; [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a writing determination process performed on the in-vehicle device side of FIG. 1; [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart showing another example of the writing determination process performed on the in-vehicle device side of FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. In recent years, so-called connected cars, which are vehicles that communicate with surrounding vehicles, infrastructure facilities, cloud servers, etc. via the Internet, have become widespread. In addition, IVI (In-Vehicle Infotainment) systems that are installed in connected cars and provide various information and entertainment contents in response to user operations have become widespread. Such IVI systems are provided via in-vehicle devices having wireless communication capabilities. A user interface is displayed on the display of the in-vehicle device by a pre-installed application program, and content is provided in response to the user operation when the user operates the user interface via an operation unit such as a touch panel.

[0010] In such an IVI system, by collecting and analyzing usage information (usage information) related to the usage status of in-vehicle devices, including user operation information, it is possible to review the specifications of the user interface and improve application programs. However, collecting usage information about in-vehicle devices requires writing a large amount of data, including relatively large amounts of image information, to the flash memory built into the in-vehicle device, which can place an excessive load on the flash memory and shorten its product lifespan. Specifically, the tunnel oxide insulating film of the flash memory gradually deteriorates as data is repeatedly written and erased, typically reaching the end of its life after approximately 1,000 to 10,000 writes and erases. Therefore, in this embodiment, a vehicle information collection device is configured as follows to collect usage information about in-vehicle devices without placing an excessive load on the flash memory.

[0011] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle information collection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and shows an example of the configuration of a vehicle information collection system 100 which is the vehicle information collection device. As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle information collection system 100 includes an on-vehicle device 10 mounted on a vehicle 1, and a server 30 configured to be able to communicate with the on-vehicle device 10 via the Internet 20.

[0012] The in-vehicle device 10 includes a computer having a CPU 11 as a central processing unit, memories such as ROM and RAM as a main storage device, a flash memory 12 as an auxiliary storage device, an I / O interface, and other peripheral circuits. Identification information of the vehicle 1 (for example, a vehicle identification number (VIN (Vehicle Identification Number))) is linked to the in-vehicle device 10, and the identification information of the vehicle 1 is stored in a non-rewritable manner in the ROM of the in-vehicle device 10. The in-vehicle device 10 has, as a functional configuration, a write determination unit 13 that determines whether or not to permit writing of usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 to the flash memory 12. That is, the CPU 11 of the in-vehicle device 10 functions as the write determination unit 13.

[0013] The server 30 is a management server that collects and manages usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 and includes a computer having a CPU 31, memories such as ROM and RAM, an I / O interface, and other peripheral circuits. The server 30 may be configured using a virtual server function on the cloud, or may be distributed across multiple terminals. The server 30 has, as its functional components, an information storage unit 32, an information acquisition unit 33, an initial determination unit 34, a time information generation unit 35, an information output unit 36, and a state determination unit 37. That is, the memory of the server 30 functions as the information storage unit 32, and the CPU 31 of the server 30 functions as the information acquisition unit 33, the initial determination unit 34, the time information generation unit 35, the information output unit 36, and the state determination unit 37.

[0014] When the in-vehicle device 10 is started up, it accesses the server 30 via the Internet 20. At this time, the in-vehicle device 10 transmits identification information of the vehicle 1 to the server 30. The information acquisition unit 33 of the server 30 acquires the identification information of the vehicle 1 transmitted from the in-vehicle device 10 and stores it in the information storage unit 32. More specifically, when the information acquisition unit 33 acquires the VIN, which is the identification information of the vehicle 1, it generates a hash value corresponding to the acquired VIN using a predetermined hash function and stores the generated hash value in the information storage unit 32 as the identification information of the vehicle 1.

[0015] The first-time determination unit 34 of the server 30 determines whether the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit 33, based on the identification information stored in the information storage unit 32. More specifically, the first-time determination unit 34 determines whether the hash value newly generated by the information acquisition unit 33 matches a hash value already stored in the information storage unit 32. If the newly generated hash value does not match the hash value stored in the information storage unit 32, it is determined that the identification information has been acquired for the first time. If the newly generated hash value matches the hash value stored in the information storage unit 32, it is determined that the identification information has not been acquired for the first time, i.e., it is the second or subsequent time.

[0016] When the initial determination unit 34 determines that the identification information has been acquired for the first time, the time information generation unit 35 generates initial time information, which is information (timestamp) of the initial acquisition time tf when the identification information was acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit 33. The initial time information generated by the time information generation unit 35 is linked to the identification information of the vehicle 1 (hash value of the VIN) and stored in the information storage unit 32. The initial time information stored in the information storage unit 32 is protected so that it cannot be rewritten.

[0017] The information output unit 36 ​​transmits the initial time information generated by the time information generation unit 35 to the in-vehicle device 10. More specifically, when the identification information of the vehicle 1 is acquired for the first time, the information output unit 36 ​​immediately transmits the newly generated initial time information to the in-vehicle device 10, and when the identification information is acquired for the second or subsequent time, the information output unit 36 ​​reads out the initial time information stored in the information storage unit 32 and transmits it to the in-vehicle device 10.

[0018] The initial time information transmitted from the information output unit 36 ​​of the server 30 to the in-vehicle device 10 is stored in the flash memory 12 of the in-vehicle device 10. The initial time information stored in the flash memory 12, which is a non-volatile memory, is maintained even if the power to the vehicle 1 or the in-vehicle device 10 is cut off, but is erased when the in-vehicle device 10 is initialized or reset. For example, when changing the user of the vehicle 1, the in-vehicle device 10 is initialized or reset, and the personal information including the initial time information stored in the flash memory 12 is erased.

[0019] The write determination unit 13 of the in-vehicle device 10 determines whether to permit writing of usage information to the flash memory 12 based on the initial time information stored in the flash memory 12 and the length of a predetermined collection period T1 for collecting usage information. The collection period T1 is a period for collecting usage information necessary to improve the application of the in-vehicle device 10, and is predetermined to be, for example, approximately three years depending on the model of the vehicle 1 or the in-vehicle device 10, taking into account the time required to address initial defects and the support period. In other words, the collection period T1 is predetermined to be the minimum necessary period so that the product life of the flash memory 12 is not significantly shortened compared to the product life of the vehicle 1 due to writing and erasing of usage information in addition to normal use of the flash memory 12. Information on the length of the collection period T1 is stored in the ROM of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0020] The write determination unit 13 permits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 from the initial acquisition time tf until the collection period T1 has elapsed, and prohibits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 after the collection period T1 has elapsed from the initial acquisition time tf. More specifically, if the current time tc has not reached the collection end time (tf+T1) obtained by adding the collection period T1 to the initial acquisition time tf, the write determination unit 13 permits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12. On the other hand, if the current time tc has reached the collection end time (tf+T1), the write determination unit 13 prohibits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12.

[0021] The write determination unit 13 may permit writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 from the reference time t0 until the collection period T1 has elapsed, and may prohibit writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 after the collection period T1 has elapsed from the reference time t0. The reference time t0 is a predetermined time point determined in advance according to the model of the vehicle 1 or the in-vehicle device 10, and is determined in advance according to, for example, the market launch date (release date) of a specific model. Information about the reference time t0 is stored in the ROM of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0022] In this case, the write determination unit 13 calculates the length of the individual collection period T2 (T2=T1-(tf-t0)) during which usage information is collected by subtracting the length of the period from the reference time t0 to the initial acquisition time tf (tf-t0) from the length of the collection period T1. The write determination unit 13 permits writing of usage information to the flash memory 12 from the initial acquisition time tf until the individual collection period T2 has elapsed, and prohibits writing of usage information to the flash memory 12 after the individual collection period T2 has elapsed from the initial acquisition time tf. More specifically, if the current time tc has not reached the collection end time (tf+T2), which is the initial acquisition time tf plus the individual collection period T2, the write determination unit 13 permits writing of usage information to the flash memory 12. On the other hand, if the current time tc has reached the collection end time (tf+T2), the write determination unit 13 prohibits writing of usage information to the flash memory 12.

[0023] When writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 is permitted, for example, each time a user operation is performed on the in-vehicle device 10, the usage information is written and stored in the flash memory 12. In this case, the usage information includes information on the user interface screen displayed on the display of the in-vehicle device 10 at the time the user operation was performed, information on the coordinate position on the screen where the user operation was performed, etc. The usage information stored in the flash memory 12, together with the identification information of the vehicle 1, is transmitted to the server 30 at predetermined intervals (for example, once every 24 hours or each time the in-vehicle device 10 is started) and erased from the flash memory 12.

[0024] The information acquisition unit 33 of the server 30 acquires the identification information of the vehicle 1 and the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 transmitted from the in-vehicle device 10, and stores them in the information storage unit 32. More specifically, the information acquisition unit 33 associates the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 with the identification information of the vehicle 1 (the hash value of the VIN) and stores them in the information storage unit 32. In this way, the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 is collected and managed on the server 30 side.

[0025] On the in-vehicle device 10 side, writing of usage information to the flash memory 12 is prohibited in an initial state. Therefore, if initial time information is not stored in the flash memory 12, the write determination unit 13 of the in-vehicle device 10 prohibits writing of usage information to the flash memory 12. For example, writing of usage information to the flash memory 12 is prohibited during a period before the in-vehicle device 10 accesses the server 30 for the first time, or during a period before the in-vehicle device 10 accesses the server 30 after being initialized or reset. When writing of usage information to the flash memory 12 is prohibited on the in-vehicle device 10 side, the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 is not transmitted to the server 30, and the server 30 cannot collect and manage the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10.

[0026] When the in-vehicle device 10 accesses the server 30 for the first time after being initialized or reset, the in-vehicle device 10 transmits information indicating that the in-vehicle device 10 has been initialized or reset to the server 30, along with the identification information of the vehicle 1. This allows the server 30 to manage the usage information collected before the initialization or reset of the in-vehicle device 10 and the usage information collected after the initialization or reset as usage information by different users. In this case, the accuracy of the analysis of the collected usage information can be improved.

[0027] When the initial determination unit 34 determines that the identification information has been acquired for the first time, the state determination unit 37 of the server 30 determines whether the information acquisition unit 33 has acquired usage information, in other words, whether the amount of usage information acquired by the information acquisition unit 33 is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount. In other words, when the identification information of the vehicle 1 is acquired for the first time on the server 30 side, the initial time information of the vehicle 1 has not yet been generated, and therefore writing and collection of usage information on the in-vehicle device 10 side is prohibited. If the information acquisition unit 33 nevertheless acquires usage information of the in-vehicle device 10, there is a possibility that the identification information of the vehicle 1 has been tampered with. When the state determination unit 37 determines that the amount of usage information acquired by the information acquisition unit 33 is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount, the information output unit 36 ​​outputs warning information indicating that the identification information of the vehicle 1 may have been tampered with.

[0028] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of processing executed by the CPU 11 of the in-vehicle device 10 in accordance with a program pre-stored in the memory of the in-vehicle device 10. The processing shown in this flowchart is initiated, for example, when the vehicle 1 and the in-vehicle device 10 are started. As shown in FIG. 2, first, in step S1, it is determined whether initial time information is stored in the flash memory 12. If the result in step S1 is negative, the process proceeds to step S2, and if the result in step S1 is positive, the process proceeds to step S3. In step S2, the identification information of the vehicle 1 is transmitted to the server 30 to request the initial time information. If the in-vehicle device 10 and the server 30 are connected via the Internet 20, the initial time information is transmitted from the server 30 to the in-vehicle device 10 in response to the request, and the initial time information is stored in the flash memory 12 of the in-vehicle device 10. If the in-vehicle device 10 and the server 30 are not connected, the initial time information remains stored in the flash memory 12 of the in-vehicle device 10. In step S3, a write determination process (FIGS. 4 and 5) is performed.

[0029] 3 is a flowchart showing an example of a time information generation process executed by the CPU 31 on the server 30 side in accordance with a program pre-stored in the memory of the server 30. The process shown in this flowchart is executed each time identification information of the vehicle 1 is transmitted from the in-vehicle device 10 to the server 30. As shown in FIG. 3, first, in step S10, a hash value corresponding to the acquired identification information is generated, and it is determined whether the generated hash value matches a hash value stored in the information storage unit 32. If the result in step S10 is negative, it is determined that new identification information has been acquired, and the process proceeds to step S11. If the result in step S10 is positive, it is determined that existing identification information has been acquired, and the process proceeds to step S13.

[0030] In step S11, it is determined whether usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 has been acquired together with the identification information of the vehicle 1, in other words, whether the usage information acquired together with the new identification information is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount. If the result in step S11 is negative, the process proceeds to step S12, and if the result in step S11 is positive, the process proceeds to step S14. In step S12, initial time information for the initial acquisition time tf when the new identification information was acquired is generated and stored in the information storage unit 32. In step S13, the initial time information stored in the information storage unit 32 is read and transmitted to the in-vehicle device 10. In step S14, warning information is output indicating that the identification information of the vehicle 1 may have been tampered with.

[0031] 4 and 5 are flowcharts showing an example of a write determination process executed by the CPU 11 of the in-vehicle device 10 in accordance with a program pre-stored in the memory of the in-vehicle device 10. In the example of FIG. 4, in step S20, it is determined whether initial time information is stored in the flash memory 12. If the result in step S20 is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S21. On the other hand, if the result in step S20 is negative, it is determined that the device is in the initial state, and the process proceeds to step S23. In step S21, it is determined whether the current time tc has not yet reached the collection end time (tf+T1), which is the initial acquisition time tf plus the collection period T1. If the result in step S21 is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S22, where writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 is permitted. On the other hand, if the result in step S21 is negative, the process proceeds to step S23, where writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 is prohibited.

[0032] 5, instead of step S21 in FIG. 4, step S30 determines whether the current time tc has reached the collection end time (tf+T2) obtained by adding the individual collection period T2 to the initial acquisition time tf. If the result in step S30 is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S22, where writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 is permitted. On the other hand, if the result in step S30 is negative, the process proceeds to step S23, where writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 is prohibited.

[0033] In this way, by limiting the period during which the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 is written to the flash memory 12 to the minimum necessary period (steps S21 to S23, S30), the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 can be collected without placing an excessive load on the flash memory 12. Furthermore, by generating the initial time information of the initial acquisition time tf, which is a prerequisite for permitting the writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12, on the server 30 side and protecting it so that it cannot be rewritten (steps S1 to S3, S10 to S13, S20), the collection period can be reliably managed. In particular, even if the in-vehicle device 10 is initialized or reset after the writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 is permitted, the collection period can be reliably managed. Furthermore, since the initial time information generated on the server 30 side is also stored on the in-vehicle device 10 side, the collection period can be managed on the in-vehicle device 10 side even when the in-vehicle device 10 is not connected to the server 30 (steps S20 to S23, S30).

[0034] According to this embodiment, the following effects can be achieved. (1) A vehicle information collecting system 100, which is a vehicle information collecting device, includes an in-vehicle device 10 that includes a built-in flash memory 12 and is linked to identification information of a vehicle 1, and a server 30 that is configured to be able to communicate with the in-vehicle device 10 via the Internet 20 (FIG. 1). The server 30 includes an information acquiring unit 33 that acquires the identification information of the vehicle 1 and usage information related to the usage status of the in-vehicle device 10 from the in-vehicle device 10, an information storage unit 32 that stores the identification information acquired by the information acquiring unit 33, an initial determination unit 34 that determines whether the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquiring unit 33 based on the identification information stored in the information storage unit 32, a time information generating unit 35 that generates initial time information that is information on the initial acquisition time tf when the identification information was acquired for the first time by the information acquiring unit 33, and an information output unit 36 ​​that outputs the initial time information generated by the time information generating unit 35 to the in-vehicle device 10 (FIGS. 1 and 3). The in-vehicle device 10 has a write determination unit 13 that determines whether to permit writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 based on the length of a collection period T1 for collecting usage information, which is predetermined according to the model of the vehicle 1 or the in-vehicle device 10, and the initial time information output by the information output unit 36 ​​of the server 30 (FIGS. 1, 4, and 5). In this way, by limiting the period for writing the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 to the flash memory 12, it is possible to collect the usage information of the in-vehicle device 10 without placing an excessive load on the flash memory 12.

[0035] (2) The write determination unit 13 permits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 from the initial acquisition time tf until the collection period T1 has elapsed, and prohibits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 after the collection period T1 has elapsed from the initial acquisition time tf (FIG. 4). In this case, the collection period can be managed for each vehicle 1 and each in-vehicle device 10.

[0036] (3) The write determination unit 13 calculates the length of the individual collection period T2 for collecting usage information by subtracting the length of the period (tf-t0) from a reference time t0 predetermined according to the model of the vehicle 1 or the in-vehicle device 10 to the first acquisition time tf from the length of the collection period T1. The write determination unit 13 permits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 from the first acquisition time tf until the individual collection period T2 has elapsed, and prohibits writing of the usage information to the flash memory 12 after the individual collection period T2 has elapsed from the first acquisition time tf (FIG. 5). In this case, the collection period can be managed for each model of the vehicle 1 or the in-vehicle device 10.

[0037] (4) The server 30 further includes a state determination unit 37 that, when the initial determination unit 34 determines that the identification information has been acquired by the information acquisition unit 33 for the first time, determines whether the amount of usage information acquired by the information acquisition unit 33 is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount (FIGS. 1 and 3). When the state determination unit 37 determines that the amount of usage information acquired by the information acquisition unit 33 is equal to or greater than the predetermined amount, the information output unit 36 ​​outputs warning information indicating that the identification information may have been tampered with (FIG. 3). In other words, when new identification information is transmitted from the vehicle 1 to the server 30 along with usage information that should not yet be permitted to be collected, there is a possibility that the identification information of the vehicle 1 has been tampered with, and therefore, by outputting appropriate warning information, necessary measures can be taken.

[0038] In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the server 30 manages the initial time information, and the in-vehicle device 10 calculates the collection end times (tf+T1), (tf+T2) and performs the write determination process, but the write determination unit may be provided on the server 30 side, and the calculation of the collection end time and the write determination process may be performed on the server 30 side.

[0039] The above description is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment and modifications as long as the features of the present invention are not impaired. One or more of the above-described embodiment and modifications can be arbitrarily combined, and modifications can also be combined with each other. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1 vehicle, 10 in-vehicle device, 11 CPU, 12 flash memory, 13 write determination unit, 20 Internet, 30 server, 31 CPU, 32 information storage unit, 33 information acquisition unit, 34 initial determination unit, 35 time information generation unit, 36 information output unit, 37 status determination unit, 100 vehicle information collection system

Claims

1. an information acquisition unit that acquires, from an in-vehicle device that includes a built-in flash memory and is linked to the identification information of the vehicle, the identification information and usage information relating to the usage status of the in-vehicle device; an information storage unit that stores the identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit; an initial determination unit that determines whether the identification information is acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit based on the identification information stored in the information storage unit; a time information generating unit that generates initial time information, which is information on the initial acquisition time when the identification information is acquired by the information acquiring unit for the first time, when the initial determination unit determines that the identification information is acquired by the information acquiring unit for the first time; a write determination unit that determines whether to allow the usage information to be written to the flash memory based on the length of a collection period for collecting the usage information, which is predetermined according to the model of the vehicle or the vehicle-mounted equipment, and the initial time information generated by the time information generation unit.

2. 2. The vehicle information collection device according to claim 1, The vehicle information collection device is characterized in that the write determination unit allows the usage information to be written to the flash memory from the initial acquisition time until the collection period has elapsed, and prohibits the usage information from being written to the flash memory after the collection period has elapsed from the initial acquisition time.

3. 2. The vehicle information collection device according to claim 1, the write determination unit calculates the length of an individual collection period for collecting the usage information by subtracting the length of a period from a reference time predetermined according to the model of the vehicle or the on-board equipment to the initial acquisition time from the length of the collection period, and permits writing of the usage information to the flash memory from the initial acquisition time until the individual collection period has elapsed, and prohibits writing of the usage information to the flash memory after the individual collection period has elapsed from the initial acquisition time.

4. The vehicle information collection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, a state determination unit that, when it is determined by the initial determination unit that the identification information has been acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit, determines whether the usage information acquired by the information acquisition unit together with the identification information is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount; The vehicle information collection device further comprises an information output unit that outputs warning information indicating that the identification information may have been tampered with when the status determination unit determines that the usage information acquired by the information acquisition unit is equal to or greater than the predetermined amount.

5. an in-vehicle device having a built-in flash memory and linked to vehicle identification information; a server configured to be able to communicate with the in-vehicle device via the Internet, The server an information acquisition unit that acquires the identification information and usage information relating to a usage status of the in-vehicle device from the in-vehicle device; an information storage unit that stores the identification information acquired by the information acquisition unit; an initial determination unit that determines whether the identification information is acquired for the first time by the information acquisition unit based on the identification information stored in the information storage unit; a time information generating unit that generates initial time information, which is information on the initial acquisition time when the identification information is acquired by the information acquiring unit for the first time, when the initial determination unit determines that the identification information is acquired by the information acquiring unit for the first time; an information output unit that outputs the initial time information generated by the time information generation unit to the in-vehicle device, The in-vehicle device includes: A vehicle information collection system characterized by having a write determination unit that determines whether to allow the usage information to be written to the flash memory based on the length of a collection period for collecting the usage information, which is predetermined according to the model of the vehicle or the on-board equipment, and the initial time information output by the information output unit of the server.

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