Ride assistance device, ride assistance system, and ride assistance method

Abstract

To provide a boarding support device, a boarding support system and a boarding support method capable of determining appropriate departure propriety corresponding to the possibility that passengers scheduled to board still remain even in the case that there is no information of the number of passengers scheduled to board.SOLUTION: A boarding support system acquires situation information in a vehicle including a situation in a cabin of the vehicle; and determines whether or not at least one passenger in the vehicle is seated on a seat in the cabin in the vehicle on the basis of the situation information in the vehicle. Then, when the at least one passenger in the vehicle is seated on the seat, the boarding support system estimates a waiting time until departure permission notification for permitting the vehicle to depart is output, on the basis of a seated status of the passengers in the vehicle included in the situation information in the vehicle; determines whether or not the waiting time has elapsed; and when determining that the waiting time has elapsed, outputs the departure permission notification.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a riding assistance device, a riding assistance system, and a riding assistance method. [Background technology]

[0002] A technology is known that acquires the number of passengers expected to board an autonomous vehicle as the expected number of passengers, acquires the number of passengers seated in seats as the number of passengers, and determines whether to transition the autonomous vehicle from a stopped state to a moving state based on the expected number of passengers and the number of passengers seated (Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2020 / 085425 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in cases where a passenger does not declare the number of passengers in advance, such as when boarding a vehicle waiting at a taxi stand, the technology of Patent Document 1 has the problem of being unable to determine whether there is a possibility that passengers who plan to board still remain, and therefore unable to make an appropriate decision on whether or not to depart based on such a possibility.

[0005] The problem that the present invention aims to solve is to provide a boarding assistance device, a boarding assistance system, and a boarding assistance method that can appropriately determine whether or not to depart based on the possibility that passengers planning to board are still remaining, even when there is no information on the number of passengers planning to board. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention solves the above problem by acquiring in-vehicle situation information including the status inside the vehicle, determining whether passengers inside the vehicle are seated in seats inside the vehicle based on the in-vehicle situation information, estimating the waiting time until a departure permission notice that allows the vehicle to depart based on the seating status of passengers inside the vehicle included in the in-vehicle situation information, determining whether the waiting time has elapsed, and outputting the departure permission notice if it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, even if there is no information on the number of passengers planning to board, it is possible to appropriately determine whether or not to depart based on the possibility that passengers planning to board still remain. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of a ride assistance system according to the present invention. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2A is a diagram showing an example of a seating situation when all the seats in a vehicle are taken. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2B is a diagram showing an example of a seating situation when the door-side seats of the vehicle are full. [Figure 2C] FIG. 2C is a diagram showing an example of a seating situation in which passengers are seated in some of the door-side seats of a vehicle. [Figure 2D] FIG. 2D is a diagram showing an example of a seating situation in which a passenger is seated in a rear seat and the adjacent door seat is vacant. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a control flow of the riding assistance method executed by the riding assistance device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a ride assistance system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a ride assistance system 100 according to the present invention. The ride assistance system 100 is a system that assists passengers in boarding a vehicle 1. Based on the seating status of passengers in the vehicle 1, the ride assistance system 100 estimates a waiting time according to the possibility that passengers who are scheduled to board the vehicle 1 are still remaining, and outputs a departure permission notice that permits the vehicle 1 to depart after the waiting time has elapsed. In this embodiment, the ride assistance system 100 assists passengers in boarding when they board a manned or unmanned taxi, a vehicle used for a shuttle service, or a vehicle used for a rental car or ride-sharing service. For example, when a passenger boards a taxi at a taxi stand or a taxi that is cruising, the ride assistance system 100 assists the passenger in boarding.

[0011] As shown in Fig. 1, the ride assistance system 100 includes a vehicle 1, an in-vehicle situation detection device 2, an input device 3, an output device 4, a vehicle control device 5, and a ride assistance device 10. These devices are mounted on the vehicle 1, are connected via a CAN or other in-vehicle LAN, and can exchange information with each other. The ride assistance system 100 according to the present invention can be applied not only to cases where the vehicle 1 is driven by autonomous driving control, but also to cases where the vehicle 1 is driven manually by a driver.

[0012] Vehicle 1 is a vehicle used by passengers, and provides a means of transportation from a boarding location where the passenger boards to a destination designated by the passenger. Vehicle 1 is not particularly limited as long as it is a vehicle that passengers can ride in, and may be, for example, a passenger car such as a light car, a small car (compact car), or a standard car, or a manned or unmanned taxi. Vehicle 1 may also be an autonomous vehicle.

[0013] Vehicle 1 has multiple seats inside. For example, vehicle 1 has door-side seats and rear-side seats arranged along the width of vehicle 1, with the direction of travel of vehicle 1 facing the front. The door-side seats are located closer to the entrance where passengers board. The rear-side seats are located farther from the entrance. Furthermore, the seats of vehicle 1 are arranged in multiple rows along the direction of travel of vehicle 1. For example, vehicle 1 has two rows of seats, including a front row and a rear row. Each row of seats includes door-side seats and rear-side seats. In other words, vehicle 1 has door-side seats on the front side, door-side seats on the rear side, rear-side seats on the front side, and rear-side seats on the rear side. Furthermore, vehicle 1 has boarding entrances corresponding to each row of seats on either the left or right side. The boarding entrances are installed on the side of vehicle 1 facing the sidewalk. For example, in countries with laws stipulating left-hand traffic, when vehicle 1 pulls up to the sidewalk to allow passengers to board and disembark, the left side is the sidewalk, so the boarding entrance is installed on the left side of vehicle 1. On the other hand, in countries with laws stipulating right-hand traffic, the boarding entrance is installed on the right side of vehicle 1.

[0014] In this embodiment, the vehicle 1 is provided with two seat rows, but is not limited to this and may be provided with one seat row or three or more seat rows. Also, in the vehicle 1, two seats are arranged in each row, including a door-side seat and a rear seat, but is not limited to this and may be provided with three or more seats in each row.

[0015] When vehicle 1 receives a departure permission notification output from the ride assistance device 10, it notifies the driver and / or passengers of vehicle 1 of departure permission information. The departure permission information is image information and / or audio information indicating that departure of vehicle 1 is permitted. For example, vehicle 1 causes output device 4 to display the departure permission information as image information. Vehicle 1 may also output the departure permission information as audio information from output device 4. When vehicle 1 acquires departure permission cancellation information from ride assistance device 10, it notifies the driver of vehicle 1 of departure cancellation information indicating that departure of vehicle 1 will be canceled. For example, vehicle 1 causes output device 4 to display the departure cancellation information as image information. Vehicle 1 may also output the departure cancellation information as audio information from output device 4.

[0016] Furthermore, when vehicle 1 receives a departure permission notification output from ride assistance device 10, it may control the doors of vehicle 1 to be in a closed state. At this time, vehicle 1 acquires surrounding information about the surroundings of vehicle 1, determines based on the surrounding information whether or not the vehicle 1 is in a situation where it can close its doors, and controls the doors to be in a closed state if it determines that the vehicle 1 is in a situation where it can close its doors. Furthermore, when vehicle 1 acquires departure permission cancellation information from ride assistance device 10, it stops the control to close the doors of vehicle 1.

[0017] Furthermore, when the vehicle 1 travels under autonomous travel control, the vehicle 1 may automatically start traveling when it receives a departure permission notification output from the riding assistance device 10. Furthermore, the vehicle 1 stops starting traveling when it acquires departure permission cancellation information from the riding assistance device 10.

[0018] The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 acquires vehicle interior situation information including the situation inside the vehicle 1 using various sensors, and detects the number of passengers, the number of people seated, and the number of people wearing seat belts based on the vehicle interior situation information. The number of passengers is the number of passengers in the vehicle. The number of people seated is the number of passengers seated in seats inside the vehicle. The number of people wearing seat belts is the number of passengers sitting in seats inside the vehicle. The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 acquires the vehicle interior situation information at regular intervals or at predetermined timings, and outputs the acquired vehicle interior situation information to the riding assistance device 10. The predetermined timings are, for example, the timings when an information request signal is received from the riding assistance device 10. The predetermined timings may also be the timings when the number of passengers, the number of people seated, or the number of people wearing seat belts changes.

[0019] For example, the in-vehicle situation detection device 2 detects the number of passengers using an in-vehicle camera. The in-vehicle situation detection device 2 captures an image of the in-vehicle situation using the in-vehicle camera, performs image recognition processing on the captured image, and detects the number of passengers in the vehicle as the number of passengers.

[0020] The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 also detects the number of occupants using seating sensors. The seating sensors are installed for each seat in the vehicle, and output an ON or OFF signal depending on whether a load equal to or greater than a predetermined value is detected on the seat. The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 detects the number of seats for which ON signals are output from the seating sensors as the number of occupants. The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 may also perform image recognition processing on an image of the vehicle interior situation captured by an in-vehicle camera, extract passengers seated in seats, and detect the number of extracted passengers as the number of occupants.

[0021] The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 also uses a seat belt sensor to detect the number of people wearing seat belts. The seat belt sensor is installed for each seat in the vehicle and outputs an ON or OFF signal depending on whether the seat belt is fastened or not. The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 detects the number of seats for which the seat belt sensor outputs an ON signal as the number of people wearing seat belts. The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 may also perform image recognition processing on an image of the vehicle interior situation captured by an in-vehicle camera to extract passengers wearing seat belts and detect the number of passengers wearing seat belts as the number of people wearing seat belts.

[0022] The vehicle interior situation detection device 2 also acquires information about the seating situation, including the positions of seats where passengers are seated. The seating situation includes the positions of seats where passengers are seated and the positions of vacant seats among the seats arranged inside the vehicle 1. The seating situation information also includes information indicating whether the seat where the passenger is seated is a rear seat or a door seat.

[0023] The input device 3 is a device that accepts input from passengers, and is, for example, a switch button. In addition, the input device 3 includes a joystick, a microphone that allows passengers to input voice information, etc. The input device 3 may be an in-vehicle device, or a device mounted on a portable mobile terminal such as a mobile phone or a tablet terminal. For example, the input device 3 accepts input of destination information by passengers. The input device 3 also includes a departure cancellation button. The departure cancellation button accepts input of cancellation instruction information by passengers. For example, when departure permission information has been notified, a passenger presses the departure cancellation button if they want to stop the departure. When there is input from a passenger, the input device 3 outputs the input information to the ride assistance device 10.

[0024] The output device 4 is a device for outputting information and providing the information to the driver and / or passengers. The output device 4 may be an in-vehicle device or a device mounted on a portable terminal such as a mobile phone or a tablet terminal. For example, the output device 4 is a device for displaying information, and examples thereof include a liquid crystal display and a projector. The output device 4 may also be a device for outputting audio information. For example, the output device 4 is a speaker. The output device 4 outputs departure permission information based on a departure permission notification, and outputs departure cancellation information based on departure permission cancellation information.

[0025] The vehicle control device 5 controls the traveling of the vehicle 1. The vehicle control device 5 controls the driving devices and steering devices, such as an electric motor and / or an internal combustion engine, and an automatic transmission, which are driving sources for traveling. The vehicle control device 5 controls the vehicle 1 to travel by controlling the vehicle speed and the lateral position (left-right position of the vehicle) of the vehicle 1 relative to the lane based on command values ​​from the ride assistance device 10. For example, the vehicle control device 5 causes the vehicle 1 to travel along a route to a destination specified by a passenger. Note that in this embodiment, the traveling control of the vehicle 1 is not limited to autonomous driving, and may also be manual driving by the driver. In that case, when the driver performs braking, accelerator, or steering operations along the traveling route to the destination, the vehicle control device 5 controls the driving devices and steering devices in accordance with the operations.

[0026] The ride assistance device 10 provides ride assistance to passengers through the processor 11. The processor 11 is a computer including a ROM storing a program, a CPU which is an operating circuit for functioning as the ride assistance device 10 by executing the program stored in the ROM, and a RAM which functions as an accessible storage device. The processor 11 according to this embodiment executes each function through cooperation between software for realizing the above functions and the above-mentioned hardware.

[0027] The processor 11 includes, as functional blocks, an in-vehicle information acquisition unit 12, a seating determination unit 13, a waiting time estimation unit 14, an elapsed time determination unit 15, a departure permission notification unit 16, and a release information acquisition unit 17. In this embodiment, the functions of the processor 11 are divided into six blocks and the functions of each functional block are explained, but the functions of the processor 11 do not necessarily have to be divided into six blocks, and may be divided into blocks other than six, as long as each function can be realized.

[0028] The interior information acquisition unit 12 acquires interior situation information including the interior situation of the vehicle 1 from the interior situation detection device 2. The interior situation information includes the number of passengers, the number of people seated, and the number of people wearing seat belts. The interior situation information also includes seating status information including the positions of the seats in which passengers are seated. Furthermore, when the interior information acquisition unit 12 acquires release instruction information from the release information acquisition unit 17, it again acquires interior situation information including the number of passengers, the number of people seated, and the number of people wearing seat belts at that time. For example, the interior information acquisition unit 12 transmits an information request signal to the interior situation detection device 2 to request interior situation information, and receives the interior situation information from the interior situation detection device 2.

[0029] The seating determination unit 13 determines whether passengers in the vehicle are seated in seats based on the vehicle interior situation information of the vehicle 1. For example, the seating determination unit 13 first determines whether the number of passengers detected by the vehicle interior situation detection device 2 is greater than 0, i.e., whether there are passengers in the vehicle. If the seating determination unit 13 determines that the number of passengers is greater than 0, it determines whether the number of passengers is equal to the number of seated passengers. If the number of passengers is equal to the number of seated passengers, the seating determination unit 13 determines that passengers in the vehicle are seated in seats. If the number of passengers is not equal to the number of seated passengers, the seating determination unit 13 determines that passengers in the vehicle are not seated in seats.

[0030] The seating determination unit 13 may also determine whether seated passengers are wearing seat belts. The seating determination unit 13 compares the number of seated passengers with the number of seat belt fasteners. The seating determination unit 13 compares the number of seated passengers with the number of seat belt fasteners, and if the number of seated passengers and the number of seat belt fasteners are equal, determines that the seated passengers are wearing seat belts. If the number of seated passengers and the number of seat belt fasteners are not equal, the seating determination unit 13 determines that the seated passengers are not wearing seat belts.

[0031] The seating determination unit 13 outputs a voice guidance when it determines that the number of passengers and the number of people seated are not equal. For example, the seating determination unit 13 causes the output device 4 to output a voice guidance urging passengers in the vehicle to be seated. Furthermore, the seating determination unit 13 outputs a voice guidance when it determines that the number of people seated and the number of people fastening seat belts are not equal. For example, the seating determination unit 13 causes the output device 4 to output a voice guidance urging passengers to fasten their seat belts.

[0032] When the seating determination unit 13 determines that passengers in the vehicle are seated, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates a waiting time until a departure permission notice is output based on the seating status of the passengers in the vehicle included in the vehicle interior situation information. The waiting time is a time according to the possibility that passengers who plan to board are still outside the vehicle 1. That is, in this embodiment, when passengers who plan to board are still remaining and there is a possibility that they will board the vehicle 1 later, a waiting time is set to allow the passengers who will board later to board. For example, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates a longer waiting time based on the seating status including the positions of the passengers in the vehicle, the higher the possibility that passengers who plan to board are still remaining.

[0033] It is thought that when another passenger boarding a vehicle is boarding later, passengers will sit in the seats at the back, leaving the adjacent door seat free. This is because the passenger who boards first will think that they will need to move to a seat at the back when another passenger boards later. Therefore, if a passenger is sitting in a seat at the back and the seat next to him at the door is empty, there is a high possibility that another passenger planning to board will board later, that is, there is a high possibility that another passenger planning to board is still remaining. In such a case, the waiting time estimation unit 14 will estimate a longer waiting time.

[0034] On the other hand, when a passenger boards a vehicle, if the passenger sits in a seat on the door side and does not crowd into seats at the back, it is unlikely that another passenger planning to board will board later. In such a case, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time to be shorter. That is, when a passenger is seated in a seat inside the vehicle, if there is an empty seat on the door side of the seat where the passenger is sitting, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time to be longer than if there is no empty seat on the door side of the seat where the passenger is sitting. A specific method for estimating the waiting time will be described below.

[0035] 2A to 2D are diagrams showing an example of seating conditions inside vehicle 1. FIG. 2A is a diagram showing an example of seating conditions when all seats inside vehicle 1 are taken. As shown in FIG. 2A, vehicle 1 is a four-seater vehicle, and is equipped with a front door-side seat S1, a rear door-side seat S2, a front rear seat S3, and a rear rear seat S4, with the direction of travel D of vehicle 1 being the front and the direction opposite to the direction of travel D of vehicle 1 being the rear. Vehicle 1 also has a boarding entrance E1 corresponding to the front row of seats and a boarding entrance E2 corresponding to the rear row of seats. The seat and boarding entrance configurations of vehicle 1 shown in FIG. 2A are the same in the vehicles shown in FIGS. 2B to 2D.

[0036] The waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time as zero when all the seats in the vehicle are full, as shown in Fig. 2A. That is, in this embodiment, when all the seats in the vehicle are full, the processor 11 causes the vehicle 1 to depart without a waiting time. This is because when all the seats in the vehicle are full, there is no possibility that another passenger will board later.

[0037] FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating an example of a seating situation when the door-side seats of a vehicle are full. In FIG. 2B, passengers are seated in each of the door-side seats (S1 and S2). At this time, as shown in the left diagram of FIG. 2B, the rear seats (S3 and S4) are vacant, or as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 2B, a passenger is seated in either the front rear seat S3 or the rear rear seat S4. When the door-side seats (S1 and S2) of vehicle 1 are full, it is unlikely that another passenger planning to board will board later. In this embodiment, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time as time T1 when all door-side seats of vehicle 1 are full and the rear seats are vacant or some of the rear seats are occupied. Time T1 is shorter than times T2 and T3, which will be described later.

[0038] FIG. 2C is a diagram illustrating an example of a seating situation in which some door-side seats are occupied. In FIG. 2C, a passenger is seated in the front door-side seat S1, and the rear door-side seat S2 is vacant. In this case, the rear front seat S3 may be vacant, as shown in the left diagram of FIG. 2C, or a passenger may be seated in the rear front seat S3, as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 2C. In this seating situation, it is unlikely that another passenger will board the front seat later, but because the rear seats are vacant, there is a possibility that another passenger will board the rear seat. In this embodiment, when a passenger is seated in the front door-side seat and the rear seats are vacant, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time to be time T2. Time T2 is longer than time T1. The waiting time estimation unit 14 also estimates the waiting time to be time T2 when a passenger is seated in the rear door-side seat and the front seats are vacant.

[0039] FIG. 2D is a diagram showing an example of a seating situation in which a passenger is seated in a rear seat and the adjacent door seat is empty. In FIG. 2D, a passenger is seated in the rear seat S4, and the adjacent door seat S2, which is also rear, is empty. In this case, the front seats may be full, as shown on the left side of FIG. 2D, or a passenger may be seated in the front door seat S1, as shown on the right side of FIG. 2D. In this seating situation, it is unlikely that another passenger planning to board will board the front seat later, but it is likely that another passenger planning to board the rear door seat will board. Alternatively, the front seat may be empty.

[0040] In this embodiment, when a passenger is seated in the rear seat at the back and the rear door seat is vacant, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time to be time T3. Time T3 is longer than time T2. The waiting time estimation unit 14 also estimates the waiting time to be time T3 when a passenger is seated in the front seat at the back and the front door seat is vacant.

[0041] The relationship between the seating situation and the waiting time estimated from the seating situation, as shown in the example above, is as shown in Table 1 below. [Table 1] For example, the waiting time when the door seats are not full is time T2 or time T3, which is longer than the waiting time (T1) when the door seats are full. Also, when the door seats are empty and the back seats are full or some of the back seats are occupied, the waiting time is time T3, which is longer than the waiting time (T2) when some of the door seats are occupied and the back seats are empty.

[0042] Furthermore, in a seating situation where passengers are seated in some of the door-side seats and some of the rear seats, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time as time T2 or T3 depending on the relationship between the positions of the door-side seats where passengers are seated and the positions of the rear seats where passengers are seated. The waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time as T2 when the rear seats where passengers are seated and the door-side seats are in the same row. For example, as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 2C, when the rear seats and door-side seats where passengers are seated are both seats in the front seat row (S3 and S1), the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time as time T2.

[0043] On the other hand, if the rear seat where the passenger is seated and the door-side seat are not in the same row, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time to be time T3. For example, as shown in the right diagram of Fig. 2D, if the rear seat where the passenger is seated is a seat (S4) in the rear seat row and the door-side seat where the passenger is seated is a seat (S1) in the front seat row, the rear seat where the passenger is seated and the door-side seat are not in the same row, so the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time to be time T3.

[0044] Furthermore, the waiting time estimation unit 14 estimates the waiting time when the seating determination unit 13 determines that the passengers in the vehicle are seated in their seats, but this is not limiting, and the waiting time may be estimated when it is determined that the seated passengers are fastening their seat belts. Furthermore, the waiting time estimation unit 14 may estimate the waiting time when other conditions are met that determine that the passengers in the vehicle are ready for the departure of the vehicle 1.

[0045] Furthermore, if the number of passengers changes before the elapsed time determination unit 15 determines that the waiting time has elapsed, the waiting time estimation unit 14 initializes the waiting time and newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating situation after the change in the number of passengers. For example, if a new passenger gets on the vehicle 1 while the elapsed time determination unit 15 is determining whether the waiting time has elapsed, the waiting time estimation unit 14 initializes the waiting time and newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating situation after the new passenger is seated. Furthermore, the waiting time estimation unit 14 may be configured to initialize the waiting time when the number of passengers changes, not limited to the number of passengers, and to newly estimate the waiting time based on the seating situation after the change, when the number of passengers seated or the number of people wearing seat belts changes.

[0046] In addition, when the cancellation instruction information is acquired by the cancellation information acquisition unit 17 before the waiting time has elapsed, the waiting time estimation unit 14 initializes the waiting time and newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating situation at that time.

[0047] The elapsed time determination unit 15 determines whether the waiting time estimated by the waiting time estimation unit 14 has elapsed. For example, the elapsed time determination unit 15 determines whether the waiting time has elapsed since the seating determination unit 13 determined that a passenger in the vehicle is seated in a seat. The elapsed time determination unit 15 determines whether the waiting time has elapsed at regular intervals. If the elapsed time determination unit 15 determines that the waiting time has not elapsed, it again determines whether the waiting time has elapsed at regular intervals. In other words, the elapsed time determination unit 15 repeatedly determines whether the waiting time has elapsed at regular intervals until the waiting time has elapsed.

[0048] In this embodiment, if there is a possibility that passengers who have planned to board the vehicle are still remaining, the vehicle is not determined to be in a state where it can depart even if the passengers are seated or have fastened their seat belts, but is determined to be in a state where it can depart when the estimated waiting time has elapsed. This makes it possible to make an appropriate determination as to whether or not the vehicle can depart in accordance with the possibility that passengers who have planned to board the vehicle are still remaining.

[0049] Furthermore, when a new waiting time is estimated by the waiting time estimation unit 14 before it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed, the elapsed time determination unit 15 resets the determination of the elapsed time based on the already estimated waiting time, and determines whether or not the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed from the time of resetting.

[0050] When the seating determination unit 13 determines that a passenger is seated in a seat, the departure permission notification unit 16 outputs a departure permission notification after the waiting time has elapsed. For example, when the elapsed time determination unit 15 determines that the waiting time has elapsed, the departure permission notification unit 16 outputs the departure permission notification to the vehicle 1 and / or the output device 4.

[0051] Furthermore, if all the seats in the vehicle are full, the departure permission notification unit 16 outputs a departure permission notification without waiting time to the vehicle 1 and / or the output device 4. For example, the departure permission notification unit 16 compares the number of people seated or wearing seat belts with the passenger capacity of the vehicle 1, and outputs a departure permission notification without waiting time if the number of people seated or wearing seat belts is equal to the passenger capacity of the vehicle 1.

[0052] The departure permission notification unit 16 cancels the departure permission notification when, after outputting the departure permission notification, cancellation instruction information is acquired by the cancellation information acquisition unit 17. For example, the departure permission notification unit 16 outputs the departure permission cancellation information to the vehicle 1 and / or the output device 4.

[0053] The cancellation information acquisition unit 17 acquires, from the input device 3, cancellation instruction information that instructs cancellation of the departure permission notification.

[0054] Next, an example of the control procedure of the riding assistance method executed by the riding assistance device 10 will be described. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing a control flow related to the riding assistance method executed by the riding assistance device 10. In this embodiment, when a passenger arrives at a boarding location where the passenger is to board the vehicle 1, the riding assistance device 10 starts the control flow from step S1.

[0055] In step S1, processor 11 acquires the number of passengers from in-vehicle situation detection device 2. In step S2, processor 11 acquires the number of seated passengers from in-vehicle situation detection device 2. In step S3, processor 11 acquires the number of seatbelt fastened from in-vehicle situation detection device 2.

[0056] In step S4, processor 11 determines whether the conditions that the number of passengers is greater than 0 and the number of seated passengers is equal to the number of seat belts fastened are met. If it is determined that the conditions are met, processor 11 proceeds to step S5. If it is determined that the conditions are not met, processor 11 proceeds to step S6. The conditions determined in step S4 may be that the number of passengers is greater than 0 and the number of passengers is equal to the number of seated passengers. In step S6, processor 11 causes the output device 4 to output audio guidance urging passengers to fasten their seat belts. For example, processor 11 causes the output device 4 to output audio guidance urging passengers to fasten their seat belts.

[0057] In step S5, processor 11 estimates the waiting time based on the seating status. In step S7, processor 11 determines whether the waiting time has elapsed. If it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed, processor 11 proceeds to step S9. If it is determined that the waiting time has not elapsed, processor 11 proceeds to step S8. In step S8, processor 11 determines whether release instruction information has been acquired. If it is determined that release instruction information has been acquired, processor 11 returns to step S1 and repeats the flow from there. If it is determined that release instruction information has not been acquired, processor 11 returns to step S7 and repeats the flow from there.

[0058] In step S9, processor 11 outputs a departure permission notification. In step S10, processor 11 determines whether or not cancellation instruction information has been acquired. If it is determined that cancellation instruction information has been acquired, processor 11 proceeds to step S12. In step S12, processor 11 cancels the departure permission notification. After the control of step S12 ends, processor 11 returns to step S1 and repeats the flow thereafter. If it is determined that cancellation instruction information has not been acquired, processor 11 proceeds to step S11. In step S11, vehicle 1 departs.

[0059] As described above, in this embodiment, vehicle interior situation information including the status of the vehicle interior is acquired, and based on the vehicle interior situation information, it is determined whether passengers in the vehicle are seated in their seats. If it is determined that passengers in the vehicle are seated in their seats, the system estimates the waiting time until a departure permission notice permitting the vehicle to depart is output based on the seating status of the passengers in the vehicle included in the vehicle interior situation information, determines whether the waiting time has elapsed, and if it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed, outputs the departure permission notice. This makes it possible to appropriately determine whether to allow the vehicle to depart based on the possibility that passengers planning to board still remain, even if there is no information on the number of passengers planning to board.

[0060] In this embodiment, the longer the estimated waiting time, the more likely it is that passengers who plan to board the vehicle are still remaining, based on the seating status including the positions of the seats occupied by the passengers in the vehicle. As a result, if there is a high possibility that passengers who plan to board the vehicle are still remaining, the time until the vehicle departs can be extended, thereby increasing the possibility that passengers who plan to board the vehicle can board the vehicle before the vehicle departs.

[0061] In this embodiment, the vehicle has door-side seats and rear-side seats arranged along the width of the vehicle with the direction of travel of the vehicle facing forward, the door-side seats are located closer to the boarding entrance where passengers board, and the rear-side seats are located farther from the entrance, and when the door-side seats are not full, the waiting time is estimated to be longer than when the door-side seats are full. As a result, when the seating situation of passengers in the vehicle indicates that there is a high possibility that passengers scheduled to board are still remaining, the time until the vehicle departs can be set to be longer.

[0062] In this embodiment, the vehicle has door-side seats and rear-side seats arranged along the width of the vehicle with the direction of travel of the vehicle facing forward, the door-side seats are located closer to the entrance where passengers board, and the rear-side seats are located closer to the entrance, and when the door-side seats are vacant and the rear-side seats are full or some of the rear-side seats are occupied, the waiting time is estimated to be longer than when some of the door-side seats are occupied and some of the rear-side seats are vacant. This makes it possible to set a longer time until the vehicle departs when the seating situation in the vehicle indicates a high possibility that passengers scheduled to board are still remaining.

[0063] In this embodiment, if all the seats in the vehicle are full, a departure permission notice is output without waiting time, which allows the vehicle to depart early if there is little chance that passengers who plan to board the vehicle will remain.

[0064] In this embodiment, the system acquires in-car situation information including the number of passengers on board, and if the number of passengers changes before the waiting time has elapsed, the system newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating situation after the change in the number of passengers, and determines whether the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed. This allows the system to appropriately determine whether to depart the train depending on the possibility that passengers who are scheduled to board the train will still be remaining after the change in the number of passengers.

[0065] In this embodiment, if cancellation instruction information instructing a departure permission notification is acquired, and the cancellation instruction information is acquired before the waiting time has elapsed, a new waiting time is estimated based on the seating situation, and it is determined whether the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed. This makes it possible to delay the timing of the vehicle's departure in response to instructions from passengers.

[0066] In this embodiment, when cancellation instruction information is acquired to cancel the departure permission notification, and the cancellation instruction information is acquired after the departure permission notification has been output, the departure permission notification is canceled, a new waiting time is estimated based on the seating situation, and it is determined whether the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed. This makes it possible to delay the timing of the vehicle departure in response to instructions from passengers.

[0067] In addition, in this embodiment, when the vehicle receives the departure permission notification, the vehicle notifies the driver of the departure permission, controls the vehicle doors to be in a closed state, or starts traveling. In this way, the vehicle can depart after the departure permission is given.

[0068] In this embodiment, when the vehicle receives a departure permission notification, the vehicle acquires surrounding information about the vehicle, determines whether the vehicle is in a situation where it can close its doors based on the surrounding information, and if it determines that the vehicle is in a situation where it can close its doors, controls the doors to close. This allows the vehicle doors to close when the surroundings of the vehicle are in a situation where it is suitable to close the doors.

[0069] It should be noted that the above-described embodiments have been described to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. Therefore, each element disclosed in the above-described embodiments is intended to include all design modifications and equivalents that fall within the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0070] 100...Ride assistance system 1...Vehicle 10...Riding assistance device 11...Processor 12...In-car information acquisition unit 13...Seating detection unit 14...Waiting time estimation unit 15...Elapsed time determination unit 16...Departure permission notification section 17...Cancellation information acquisition unit 2...In-vehicle situation detection device 3...Input device 4...Output device 5...Vehicle control device

Claims

1. an interior information acquisition unit that acquires interior situation information including the interior situation of the vehicle; a seating determination unit that determines whether a passenger in the vehicle is seated in a seat in the vehicle based on the vehicle interior situation information; a waiting time estimation unit that, when it is determined that passengers in the vehicle are seated in seats in the vehicle, estimates a waiting time until a departure permission notice that permits departure of the vehicle is output based on the seating status of the passengers in the vehicle included in the vehicle interior situation information; an elapsed time determination unit that determines whether the waiting time has elapsed; a departure permission notification unit that outputs the departure permission notification when it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed.

2. The ride assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the waiting time estimation unit estimates the waiting time to be longer based on the seating status including the positions of the seats occupied by the passengers in the vehicle, the more likely it is that passengers who are scheduled to board the vehicle are still remaining.

3. The vehicle has a door-side seat and a rear-side seat arranged along a vehicle width direction of the vehicle with the traveling direction of the vehicle as the front, The door-side seat is located on the side closer to the boarding gate where the passenger boards, The rear seat is located on the side farther from the boarding entrance, The ride assistance device according to claim 2 , wherein the waiting time estimation unit estimates the waiting time to be longer when the door-side seats are not full than when the door-side seats are full.

4. The vehicle has a door-side seat and a rear-side seat arranged along a vehicle width direction of the vehicle with the traveling direction of the vehicle as the front, The door-side seat is located on the side closer to the boarding gate where the passenger boards, The rear seat is located on the side farther from the boarding entrance, The boarding assistance device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the waiting time estimation unit estimates the waiting time to be longer when the door-side seats are vacant and the rear seats are full or some of the rear seats are occupied by passengers than when some of the door-side seats are occupied by passengers and all of the rear seats are vacant.

5. 5. The ride assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the departure permission notification unit outputs the departure permission notification without the waiting time when all seats in the vehicle are full.

6. the in-vehicle information acquisition unit acquires the in-vehicle situation information including a number of passengers, which is the number of passengers in the vehicle; the waiting time estimation unit, when the number of passengers changes before the waiting time has elapsed, newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating situation after the number of passengers has changed; The ride assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the elapsed time determination unit determines whether the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed.

7. Further, a cancellation information acquisition unit is provided that acquires cancellation instruction information that instructs cancellation of the departure permission notification, when the release instruction information is acquired by the release information acquisition unit before the waiting time has elapsed, the waiting time estimation unit newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating status; The ride assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the elapsed time determination unit determines whether the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed.

8. Further, a cancellation information acquisition unit is provided that acquires cancellation instruction information that instructs cancellation of the departure permission notification, the departure permission notification unit cancels the departure permission notification when the cancellation instruction information is acquired by the cancellation information acquisition unit after outputting the departure permission notification; the waiting time estimation unit newly estimates the waiting time based on the seating status, The ride assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the elapsed time determination unit determines whether the newly estimated waiting time has elapsed.

9. When the vehicle receives the departure permission notification, the vehicle notifies the driver of the vehicle of departure permission, controls the vehicle doors to be closed, or starts traveling. A ride assistance device according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. When the vehicle receives the departure permission notification, the vehicle acquires surrounding information about the surroundings of the vehicle; determining whether the vehicle is in a state where the door can be closed based on the surrounding information; The ride assistance device according to claim 9, wherein when it is determined that the vehicle is in a state in which the door can be closed, the ride assistance device controls the door to be closed.

11. A ride assistance system including a vehicle, a detection device that detects an interior condition of the vehicle, and a ride assistance device that assists a passenger in riding in the vehicle, The ride assistance device is an interior information acquisition unit that acquires interior situation information including an interior situation of the vehicle from the detection device; a seating determination unit that determines whether a passenger in the vehicle is seated in a seat in the vehicle based on the vehicle interior situation information; a waiting time estimation unit that, when it is determined that passengers in the vehicle are seated in seats in the vehicle, estimates a waiting time until a departure permission notice that permits departure of the vehicle is output based on the seating status of the passengers in the vehicle included in the vehicle interior situation information; an elapsed time determination unit that determines whether the waiting time has elapsed; a departure permission notification unit that outputs the departure permission notification when it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed.

12. 1. A method of ride assistance executed by a processor, comprising: The processor: Acquire vehicle interior situation information including the interior situation of the vehicle; determining whether a passenger in the vehicle is seated in a seat in the vehicle based on the vehicle interior situation information; when it is determined that the passengers in the vehicle are seated in the seats in the vehicle, estimating a waiting time until a departure permission notice permitting departure of the vehicle is output based on the seating status of the passengers in the vehicle included in the vehicle interior situation information; determining whether the waiting time has elapsed; The boarding assistance method outputs the departure permission notice when it is determined that the waiting time has elapsed.

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