Control method, autonomous vehicle, and control program

Abstract

To provide a vehicle control right setting method, a vehicle control right setting device, a vehicle control right setting program, and a vehicle control method, which allow a user of an automatic driving vehicle to control the automatic driving vehicle at an allocated destination.SOLUTION: A vehicle control right setting method includes: acquiring vehicle allocation request information, including at least location information indicating a location of a destination where an automatic driving vehicle is to be allocated, and user identification information for identifying a user who uses the automatic driving vehicle or a user terminal carried by the user from an external device (steps S102 and S104); determining a delivery vehicle indicating the automatic driving vehicle to be allocated to the user based on the vehicle allocation request information (step S105); and setting a vehicle control right to allow the user to control the delivery vehicle based on the vehicle allocation request information and the user identification information (step S106).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle control right setting method for setting the control right of an autonomous vehicle, a vehicle control right setting device and a vehicle control right setting program, and a vehicle control method for controlling an autonomous vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] As a prior art, an autonomous road vehicle equipped with at least one compartment has been disclosed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In Patent Document 1, a load to be delivered to at least one compartment is loaded, and the autonomous road vehicle travels to the destination. When the autonomous road vehicle arrives at the destination, the recipient of the load inputs a PIN (Personal Identification Number) code into the access system. Thereby, the lock of the compartment is released, and the recipient can receive the load.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the prior art, when the autonomous road vehicle arrives at the destination, whether the recipient of the load can receive the load from the autonomous road vehicle has not been considered, and further improvement has been required.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle control right setting method, a vehicle control right setting device, a vehicle control right setting program, and a vehicle control method in which a user of an autonomous vehicle can control the autonomous vehicle at the delivery destination.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] A method for setting vehicle control rights according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a method for setting vehicle control rights in a vehicle control rights setting device, comprising: obtaining dispatch request information which includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where an automated driving vehicle will be dispatched, and user identification information for identifying a user who will use the automated driving vehicle or a user terminal held by the user, from an external device; determining a dispatched vehicle which indicates the automated driving vehicle to be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request information; and setting vehicle control rights which authorize the user to control the dispatched vehicle based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to this disclosure, the user of the autonomous vehicle can control the autonomous vehicle at the destination. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This figure conceptually shows the overall configuration of the vehicle control system in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] This figure shows an example of user information stored in the user information storage unit in this embodiment 1. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of vehicle information stored in the vehicle information storage unit in this embodiment 1. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of control rights information stored in the control rights information storage unit in this embodiment 1. [Figure 6] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the user terminal in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of a delivery vehicle in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. [Figure 8]This is a flowchart illustrating the management device, user terminal, and vehicle control processing of the delivery vehicle in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure. [Figure 9] This figure shows an example of control instruction support information displayed on the user terminal in this embodiment 1. [Figure 10] This is a flowchart illustrating the vehicle control process of a delivery vehicle in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] This figure shows an example of a display screen that accepts control instruction information input from a user in the user terminal of this embodiment 1. [Figure 12] This figure shows another example of a display screen that accepts control instruction information input from the user in the user terminal of this embodiment 1. [Figure 13] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the scope of exercisable source control rights and destination control rights in this embodiment 1. [Figure 14] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the block-based addressing system in this embodiment 1. [Figure 15] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the scope within which delivery source control rights and delivery destination control rights can be exercised, as determined using a block-based address system, in this embodiment 1. [Figure 16] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the road-based address system in this embodiment 1. [Figure 17] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the scope within which the right to control the origin of delivery and the scope within which the right to control the destination of delivery can be exercised, as determined using the road-based address system in this embodiment 1. [Figure 18] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the process for controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in this first embodiment. [Figure 19] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in a first modified example of this embodiment 1. [Figure 20] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in a second modified example of this embodiment 1. [Figure 21] It is a schematic diagram for explaining a process of controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in the third modification example of the first embodiment. [Figure 22] It is a diagram showing another example of control right information stored in the control right information storage unit in the first embodiment. [Figure 23] It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a management device in the second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 24] It is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process when changing the setting of the control right at the delivery source and the delivery destination in the second embodiment. [Figure 25] It is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process when changing the setting of the control right at the delivery destination in the second embodiment. [Figure 26] It is a diagram showing an example of control right change notification information in the second embodiment. [Figure 27] It is a diagram showing an example of control instruction support information including control right change notification information in the second embodiment. [Figure 28] It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a delivery vehicle in the second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 29] It is a flowchart for explaining the control right setting change process in the second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 30] It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a management device in the third embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 31] It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a management device in the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 32] It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a management device in the fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 33] It is a diagram showing an example of table data stored in the destination position information storage unit in the fifth embodiment. [Figure 34] It is a flowchart for explaining the destination position information storage process of the management device in the fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 35]This is a flowchart illustrating the vehicle control process of the control device in Embodiment 5 of the present disclosure. [Figure 36] This diagram conceptually shows the overall configuration of the vehicle control system in Embodiment 6 of the present disclosure. [Figure 37] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device in Embodiment 6 of the present disclosure. [Figure 38] This figure shows an example of a selection screen displayed on the user terminal in this embodiment 6. [Figure 39] This figure shows a first example of a vehicle monitoring screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 40] This figure shows a first example of a remote control screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 41] This figure shows a second example of a remote control screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 42] This figure shows a second example of a vehicle monitoring screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 43] This figure shows a third example of a remote control screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 44] This figure shows a third example of a vehicle monitoring screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 45] This figure shows a fourth example of a remote control screen displayed in a remote control device. [Figure 46] This figure shows an example of a vehicle monitoring screen displayed on a remote monitoring device. [Figure 47] This figure shows an example of an inquiry screen displayed on a remote control device. [Figure 48] This figure shows an example of an information input screen displayed on a remote control device. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] (Knowledge that forms the basis of this disclosure) Conventional technologies do not consider, and do not disclose, whether the recipient of a package will be able to receive it from the autonomous vehicle upon its arrival at its destination. Therefore, with conventional technologies, there is a risk that even if the autonomous vehicle arrives at its destination, the recipient may not be able to receive the package from it.

[0010] For example, if an autonomous road vehicle stops at its destination and the compartment door faces a wall surrounding a building, a guardrail or curb on the road, these could obstruct the recipient of the luggage, potentially preventing them from retrieving it from the compartment.

[0011] Another example is that when an autonomous road vehicle stops at its destination, if the compartment door faces a ditch such as an irrigation channel or a slope such as an embankment, these could become an obstacle, potentially preventing the recipient of the luggage from retrieving it from the compartment.

[0012] To solve the above problems, a vehicle control right setting method according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle control right setting method in a vehicle control right setting device, which acquires dispatch request information including at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination to which an automated driving vehicle will be dispatched, and user identification information for identifying a user who will use the automated driving vehicle or a user terminal held by the user, from an external device, determines a dispatched vehicle indicating the automated driving vehicle to be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request information, and sets vehicle control rights for the user that permit control of the dispatched vehicle based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information.

[0013] In this configuration, dispatch request information, which includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched, and user identification information for identifying the user who will use the autonomous vehicle or the user terminal held by the user, are obtained from an external device. Based on the dispatch request information, the dispatched vehicle, which indicates the autonomous vehicle to be dispatched to the user, is determined. Based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information, vehicle control rights, which authorize the user to control the dispatched vehicle, are set for the user.

[0014] Therefore, a dispatched vehicle is determined that indicates the autonomous vehicle to be dispatched to the user, and vehicle control rights are granted to the user, allowing the user of the autonomous vehicle to control the vehicle at the destination.

[0015] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the setting of vehicle control rights may involve setting vehicle control rights for the user that permit control of the dispatched vehicle located at the dispatch destination.

[0016] In this configuration, when setting vehicle control rights, vehicle control rights are granted to the user, allowing them to control the dispatched vehicle located at the dispatch destination.

[0017] Therefore, since the user is granted vehicle control rights that allow them to control the dispatched vehicle located at the dispatch destination, the user of the autonomous vehicle can control the autonomous vehicle at the dispatch destination.

[0018] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, a control permission range may be generated based on the location of the dispatch destination, allowing the user to control the dispatched vehicle at the dispatch destination, and the setting of vehicle control rights may be to set the user to control the dispatched vehicle located within the control permission range.

[0019] According to this configuration, a control permission range is generated based on the location of the dispatch destination, which allows the user to control the dispatched vehicle at that location. In setting vehicle control rights, vehicle control rights are granted to the user, which allow them to control the dispatched vehicle located within the control permission range.

[0020] Therefore, since the user is granted the right to control dispatched vehicles located within the control permission range that allows the user to control the dispatched vehicle at the dispatch destination, the user can control the dispatched vehicle located within the control permission range at the dispatch destination.

[0021] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, a range of permitted movement control may be generated based on the location of the dispatch destination, where the dispatched vehicle can be controlled by the user. In addition, the setting of vehicle control rights may involve setting the user with the vehicle control rights that permit the user to control the movement of the dispatched vehicle within the permitted movement control range.

[0022] In this configuration, based on the location of the dispatch destination, a movement control permission range is generated within the dispatch destination where the dispatched vehicle can be controlled by the user. In setting vehicle control rights, vehicle control rights are set for the user, granting them permission to control the movement of the dispatched vehicle within the movement control permission range.

[0023] Therefore, since the user is granted vehicle control rights for the dispatched vehicle within the permitted movement range at the dispatch destination, the user can move the dispatched vehicle within the permitted movement range at the dispatch destination.

[0024] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the setting of vehicle control rights may be modified based on predetermined conditions.

[0025] With this configuration, the setting of vehicle control rights is changed based on predetermined conditions, so the setting of vehicle control rights can be changed, and control rights can be set only when it is necessary for the user to control the dispatched vehicle.

[0026] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, delivery status information regarding the status of the dispatched vehicle delivering the delivery target may be obtained from the dispatched vehicle, and the setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed based on the delivery status information.

[0027] In this configuration, delivery status information regarding the status of the dispatched vehicle's delivery of the target item is obtained from the dispatched vehicle. When changing the setting of vehicle control rights, the setting of vehicle control rights is changed based on the delivery status information.

[0028] Therefore, the vehicle control rights can be changed based on delivery status information regarding the situation in which the dispatched vehicle is delivering the target item, and control rights can be set for the user only when it is necessary to control the dispatched vehicle in various delivery situations.

[0029] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the vehicle control rights include the right to control the vehicle in which the user is riding at the dispatch destination, and the setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed by releasing the right to control the vehicle in which the user is riding when the delivery status information indicates that the user has completed boarding at the dispatch destination.

[0030] In this configuration, vehicle control rights include passenger vehicle control rights, which allow the user to control the dispatched vehicle they are riding in at the dispatch destination. When changing the setting of vehicle control rights, if the delivery status information indicates that the user has completed boarding at the dispatch destination, the setting of passenger vehicle control rights is canceled.

[0031] Therefore, once the user has boarded the vehicle at the destination, the right to control the vehicle that the user is riding in is released. This prevents the user from controlling the vehicle at the destination after they have boarded.

[0032] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the vehicle control rights include a disembarking vehicle control right that permits the user to control the dispatched vehicle from which the user disembarks at the destination, and the setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed by canceling the disembarking vehicle control right when the delivery status information indicates that the user has completed disembarking at the destination.

[0033] In this configuration, vehicle control rights include drop-off vehicle control rights, which allow the user to control the dispatched vehicle from which they alight at their destination. When changing the settings of vehicle control rights, if the delivery status information indicates that the user has completed alighting at their destination, the drop-off vehicle control rights are canceled.

[0034] Therefore, once the user has disembarked at their destination, the right to control the disembarking vehicle, which allows the user to control the vehicle from which they disembarked at their destination, is released. This prevents the user from controlling the vehicle at their destination after they have disembarked.

[0035] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the vehicle control rights include a passenger vehicle control right that permits the user to control the dispatched vehicle in which the user is riding at the dispatch destination, and a disembarkation vehicle control right that permits the user to control the dispatched vehicle in which the user disembarks at the destination. The setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed by canceling the passenger vehicle control right and the disembarkation vehicle control right when the delivery status information indicates that the user has completed disembarking at the destination.

[0036] In this configuration, vehicle control rights include passenger vehicle control rights, which allow the user to control the vehicle they board at the pick-up location, and alighting vehicle control rights, which allow the user to control the vehicle they alight at their destination. When changing the settings of vehicle control rights, if the delivery status information indicates that the user has completed alighting at the destination, the passenger vehicle control rights and alighting vehicle control rights are released.

[0037] Therefore, once the user has disembarked at their destination, the right to control the vehicle the user is riding in at the pick-up location and the right to control the vehicle the user is disembarking from at the destination are released. This prevents the user from controlling the vehicle at both the pick-up location and the destination after they have disembarked.

[0038] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the vehicle control rights include the delivery source vehicle control rights that permit the user to control the dispatched vehicle on which the delivery items are loaded at the dispatch destination, and the setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed by releasing the delivery source vehicle control rights when the delivery status information indicates that the loading of the delivery items at the dispatch destination is complete.

[0039] In this configuration, the vehicle control right includes the delivery source vehicle control right, which allows the user to control the dispatched vehicle on which the goods to be delivered are loaded at the dispatch destination. When the setting of the vehicle control right is changed, if the delivery status information indicates that the goods to be delivered have been loaded at the dispatch destination, the setting of the delivery source vehicle control right is canceled.

[0040] Therefore, once the loading of the goods to be delivered is completed at the destination, the setting of the delivery vehicle control right, which allows the user to control the dispatched vehicle carrying the goods at the destination, is released. This prevents the user from controlling the dispatched vehicle at the destination after the loading of the goods to be delivered is completed.

[0041] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the vehicle control rights include a delivery destination vehicle control right that permits the user to control the dispatched vehicle from which the goods to be delivered are unloaded at the destination, and the setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed by releasing the delivery destination vehicle control right when the delivery status indicates that the unloading of the goods to be delivered at the destination has been completed.

[0042] In this configuration, vehicle control rights include destination vehicle control rights, which allow the user to control the dispatched vehicle where the delivered goods are unloaded at the destination. When the setting of vehicle control rights is changed, the destination vehicle control rights are released when the delivery status indicates that the unloading of the delivered goods at the destination is complete.

[0043] Therefore, once the unloading of the goods at the destination is complete, the setting of the destination vehicle control right, which allows the user to control the dispatched vehicle that unloads the goods at the destination, is released. This prevents the user from controlling the dispatched vehicle at the destination after the unloading of the goods at the destination is complete.

[0044] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, the vehicle control rights include a source vehicle control right that permits the user to control the dispatched vehicle on which the goods to be delivered are loaded at the dispatch destination, and a destination vehicle control right that permits the user to control the dispatched vehicle on which the goods to be delivered are unloaded at the destination. The setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed by releasing the source vehicle control right and the destination vehicle control right when the delivery status indicates that the unloading of the goods to be delivered at the destination has been completed.

[0045] In this configuration, vehicle control rights include a source vehicle control right that allows the user of the dispatched vehicle on which the goods to be delivered are loaded at the dispatch destination to control it, and a destination vehicle control right that allows the user of the dispatched vehicle on which the goods to be delivered are unloaded at the destination to control it. When the setting of vehicle control rights is changed, if the delivery status indicates that the goods to be delivered have been unloaded at the destination, the setting of the source vehicle control right and the destination vehicle control right is canceled.

[0046] Therefore, once the unloading of the goods at the destination is complete, the right to control the dispatched vehicle at the dispatch location, which allows the user to control the vehicle carrying the goods, and the right to control the dispatched vehicle at the destination, which allows the user to control the vehicle from which the goods are unloaded, are both released. This prevents the user from controlling the dispatched vehicle at both the dispatch location and the destination after the unloading of the goods at the destination is complete.

[0047] Furthermore, in the above-described method for setting vehicle control rights, an expiration date information indicating the period during which the vehicle control rights are valid may be set for the vehicle control rights, and the setting of the vehicle control rights may be changed based on the expiration date information.

[0048] In this configuration, expiration information indicating the validity period of the vehicle control right is set for the vehicle control right. When changing the settings of the vehicle control right, the settings of the vehicle control right are changed based on the expiration information.

[0049] Therefore, when the expiration date passes, the vehicle control rights are changed, allowing the user to control the vehicle within the expiration period. Furthermore, users can easily recognize when the control rights settings are being changed. Additionally, the settings for vehicle control rights with the same expiration date can be changed all at once.

[0050] A vehicle control right setting device according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes: an acquisition unit that acquires from an external device at least location information indicating the location of a dispatch destination where an automated driving vehicle is dispatched, and user identification information for identifying a user who will use the automated driving vehicle or a user terminal held by the user; a determination unit that determines a dispatched vehicle indicating the automated driving vehicle to be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request information; and a setting unit that sets vehicle control rights for the user, granting them the right to control the dispatched vehicle, based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information.

[0051] In this configuration, dispatch request information, which includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched, and user identification information for identifying the user who will use the autonomous vehicle or the user terminal held by the user, are obtained from an external device. Based on the dispatch request information, the dispatched vehicle, which indicates the autonomous vehicle to be dispatched to the user, is determined. Based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information, vehicle control rights, which authorize the user to control the dispatched vehicle, are set for the user.

[0052] Therefore, a dispatched vehicle is determined that indicates the autonomous vehicle to be dispatched to the user, and vehicle control rights are granted to the user, allowing the user of the autonomous vehicle to control the vehicle at the destination.

[0053] A vehicle control rights setting program according to another aspect of the present disclosure causes a computer to obtain from an external device a dispatch request information which includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched, and user identification information for identifying the user who will use the autonomous vehicle or a user terminal owned by the user; determine the dispatched vehicle which will be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request information; and set vehicle control rights for the user which will be authorized to control the dispatched vehicle based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information.

[0054] In this configuration, dispatch request information, which includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched, and user identification information for identifying the user who will use the autonomous vehicle or the user terminal held by the user, are obtained from an external device. Based on the dispatch request information, the dispatched vehicle, which indicates the autonomous vehicle to be dispatched to the user, is determined. Based on the dispatch request information and the user identification information, vehicle control rights, which authorize the user to control the dispatched vehicle, are set for the user.

[0055] Therefore, a dispatched vehicle is determined that indicates the autonomous vehicle to be dispatched to the user, and vehicle control rights are granted to the user, allowing the user of the autonomous vehicle to control the vehicle at the destination.

[0056] A vehicle control method according to another aspect of the present disclosure is a vehicle control method in a vehicle control device, comprising: acquiring control rights information from an external source, which associates control permission position information indicating a control permission position where control by a user of an automated driving vehicle is permitted, and control entity identification information for identifying a control entity that controls the automated driving vehicle at the control permission position; acquiring vehicle position information indicating the current position of the automated driving vehicle; acquiring control instruction information from an external source, which includes the control entity identification information and is for controlling the automated driving vehicle; determining whether the current position indicated by the vehicle position information is the control permission position indicated by the control permission position information; if it is determined that the current position indicated by the vehicle position information is the control permission position indicated by the control permission position information, determining whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information associated with the control permission position information; and if it is determined that the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information associated with the control permission position information, controlling the automated driving vehicle according to the control instruction information.

[0057] In this configuration, control rights information is obtained from an external source, which associates control permission location information indicating control permission locations where control by the user of the autonomous vehicle is permitted with control entity identification information for identifying the control entity that controls the autonomous vehicle at the control permission location. Vehicle location information indicating the current location of the autonomous vehicle is obtained. Control instruction information for controlling the autonomous vehicle, including control entity identification information, is obtained from an external source. It is determined whether the current location indicated by the vehicle location information is a control permission location indicated by the control permission location information. If it is determined that the current location indicated by the vehicle location information is a control permission location indicated by the control permission location information, it is determined whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information associated with the control permission location information. If it is determined that the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information associated with the control permission location information, the autonomous vehicle is controlled according to the control instruction information.

[0058] Therefore, if the current position of the autonomous vehicle is determined to be a control permission position where control by the user of the autonomous vehicle is permitted, and if the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information for controlling the autonomous vehicle is determined to match the control entity identification information associated with the control permission position, the autonomous vehicle will be controlled according to the control instruction information, so that the user of the autonomous vehicle can control the autonomous vehicle at the destination.

[0059] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments are merely examples of the embodiments of this disclosure and do not limit the technical scope of this disclosure.

[0060] (Embodiment 1) This embodiment 1 describes a vehicle control right setting method which determines a delivery vehicle to be dispatched to a user based on dispatch request information which includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched, sets control rights for the user to control the delivery vehicle located at the dispatch destination based on the dispatch request information and user identification information which identifies the user who will use the autonomous vehicle or the user terminal held by the user, and transmits control instruction support information to the user terminal to assist in inputting control instruction information to the delivery vehicle.

[0061] Figure 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of the vehicle control system in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure.

[0062] The vehicle control system shown in Figure 1 comprises a management device 1, a user terminal 2, and a delivery vehicle 3.

[0063] The management device 1 receives dispatch request information, including the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination, delivery source user identification information for identifying the user who will use the delivery vehicle at the delivery source location or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, and delivery destination user identification information for identifying the user who will use the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination location or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, via the network 4. The network 4 is, for example, the internet.

[0064] Here, the origin of delivery refers to the loading position where the delivery item is loaded onto the vehicle when the delivery vehicle 3 is delivering the item, and the boarding position where the person being delivered boards when the delivery vehicle 3 is delivering a person, such as a taxi. The destination of delivery refers to the position where the delivery item is unloaded from the vehicle when the delivery vehicle 3 is delivering the item, and the disembarking position where the person being delivered alights when the delivery vehicle 3 is delivering a person.

[0065] Furthermore, the user of delivery vehicle 3 at the delivery source location refers to the person who loads the delivery item onto delivery vehicle 3 when delivery vehicle 3 is delivering the item, and the person who rides in delivery vehicle 3 when delivery vehicle 3 is transporting people like a taxi. Similarly, the user of delivery vehicle 3 at the delivery destination location refers to the person who unloads the delivery item from delivery vehicle 3, i.e., the recipient of the delivery item, when delivery vehicle 3 is delivering the item, and the person who gets off delivery vehicle 3 when delivery vehicle 3 is transporting people like a taxi. In addition, the delivery source refers to the dispatch location from which the autonomous vehicle is dispatched, and the delivery destination refers to the destination.

[0066] Next, the management device 1 determines delivery vehicle 3 from the vehicle information of one or more vehicles that it has pre-managed, based on the location information of the delivery destination and the location information of the delivery source included in the dispatch request information. Then, based on the location information of the delivery source and the delivery source user identification information, the management device 1 grants control rights to the user of the delivery source, allowing them to control delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source. Furthermore, based on the location information of the delivery destination and the delivery destination user identification information, the management device 1 grants control rights to the user of the delivery destination, allowing them to control delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination.

[0067] Next, the management device 1 transmits control instruction support information to the user terminal 2 via the network 4 to assist the user in inputting control instruction information for the delivery vehicle 3. The management device 1 also transmits control rights information regarding the set control rights to the delivery vehicle 3 via the network 4.

[0068] User terminal 2 is a terminal owned by the user, such as a mobile phone, smartphone, tablet, or personal computer. User terminal 2 transmits dispatch request information and user identification information to management device 1, for example, using wireless communication. The dispatch request information includes location information of the delivery source and location information of the delivery destination. Note that the dispatch request information may include only the location information of the delivery source. The user identification information includes delivery source user identification information to identify the user using the delivery vehicle at the delivery source location or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, and delivery destination user identification information to identify the user using the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination location or the user terminal 2 owned by that user. The user identification information may include only the delivery source user identification information.

[0069] User identification information may include, for example, a user ID assigned by the service provider during user registration when using the service, biometric information, or a MAC (Media Access Control) address used to identify user terminal 2. Biometric information may include, for example, fingerprints, iris scans, or facial features.

[0070] One possible method for a user to instruct the management device 1 to dispatch a vehicle is to install an application program for making vehicle dispatch requests, provided by the management device 1, on the user terminal 2 and then use that application program to make the request. Another method is for the user to access a dedicated web page for making vehicle dispatch requests provided by the management device 1 and then make the request through that web page. Any configuration is acceptable as long as the user uses the user terminal 2 to instruct the management device 1 to dispatch a vehicle.

[0071] Delivery vehicle 3 is a vehicle determined based on dispatch request information from the vehicle information of one or more vehicles managed by management device 1, and is a fully autonomous vehicle equipped with an automatic driving function that does not require a driver. Each vehicle in the group of vehicles managed by management device 1 periodically transmits its location information and vehicle status information, such as whether or not it is in the middle of a delivery, to management device 1. Management device 1 manages this information and, when it receives dispatch request information from user terminal 2, determines delivery vehicle 3 based on this information. Delivery vehicle 3 is an example of a dispatched vehicle.

[0072] Furthermore, the delivery vehicle 3 acquires and stores control rights information from the management device 1 regarding the control rights to control its own vehicle when it is located at the delivery source and delivery destination. When the delivery vehicle 3 receives control instruction information from an external source to control its own vehicle, it determines whether it is possible to control its own vehicle based on the stored control rights information. If the delivery vehicle 3 determines that it is possible to control its own vehicle, it controls its own vehicle according to the control instruction information.

[0073] The configurations of the management device 1, user terminal 2, and delivery vehicle 3 are described in detail below.

[0074] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management device in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. The management device 1 comprises a communication unit 11, a control unit 12, and a storage unit 13.

[0075] The communication unit 11 transmits and receives various information with external devices such as the user terminal 2 and the delivery vehicle 3. The communication unit 11 transmits and receives various information with external devices via a network 4, such as a WAN (Wide Area Network) or LAN (Local Area Network).

[0076] The control unit 12 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and includes a vehicle dispatch request information acquisition unit 121, a user identification information acquisition unit 122, a delivery vehicle determination unit 123, a control rights setting unit 124, a control instruction support information generation unit 125, and an information transmission unit 126.

[0077] The dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 acquires dispatch request information from the user terminal 2 via the communication unit 11, including user information indicating the user, location information of the delivery source, and location information of the delivery destination. The dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 acquires dispatch request information that includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination to which the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched. In Embodiment 1, the delivery source is the dispatch destination, and the delivery destination is the destination.

[0078] The user identification information acquisition unit 122 acquires, via the communication unit 11, from the user terminal 2, source user identification information to identify the user using the delivery vehicle located at the delivery source or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, and destination user identification information to identify the user using the delivery vehicle located at the delivery destination or the user terminal 2 owned by that user. The user identification information acquisition unit 122 acquires user identification information from the user terminal 2 to identify the user using the autonomous vehicle or the user terminal owned by that user.

[0079] In this embodiment 1, a configuration is described in which dispatch request information, source user identification information, and destination user identification information are acquired separately. However, a configuration in which these information is acquired together is also possible. For example, the dispatch request information may include source user identification information and destination user identification information, and the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 may acquire the dispatch request information, source user identification information, and destination user identification information together.

[0080] Now, let's explain delivery. There are two main types of delivery. The first is the delivery of goods, and the second is the delivery of people, such as taxis.

[0081] When a delivery vehicle transports goods, the user who loads the goods at the origin is different from the user who receives the goods at the destination. Therefore, the user information shown in the origin user identification information and the destination user identification information will be different.

[0082] On the other hand, when a delivery vehicle delivers people, the user who boards at the delivery source and the user who alights at the delivery destination are the same. Therefore, the user information indicated by the delivery source user identification information and the delivery destination user identification information will be the same. For this reason, when a delivery vehicle delivers people, the user identification information acquisition unit 122 may acquire user identification information to identify the user using the delivery vehicle or the user terminal 2 owned by the user, without distinguishing between the delivery destination and the delivery source, and set the acquired user identification information as the delivery source user identification information and the delivery destination user identification information.

[0083] The user identification information acquisition unit 122 may acquire user identification information each time a dispatch request is acquired, but it may also reuse user identification information acquired after the initial dispatch request is acquired each time a dispatch request is acquired. In particular, if the delivery vehicle is a taxi that delivers people, it is likely that the person who requested the dispatch will be the one getting in and out. Therefore, requiring the user to send the originating user identification information and the destination user identification information each time the user sends a dispatch request would be a burden on the user.

[0084] Therefore, if the delivery vehicle is a taxi, it is preferable for the user identification information acquisition unit 122 to reuse the user identification information acquired after the initial dispatch request information is acquired each time dispatch request information is acquired. Alternatively, the user identification information may be registered when the user first registers to use the taxi, and the user identification information acquisition unit 122 may automatically use the registered user identification information as the source user identification information and the destination user information. With this configuration, the user can avoid the trouble of sending source user identification information and destination user information each time they send dispatch request information.

[0085] On the other hand, when a delivery vehicle delivers goods, either the user at the delivery source or the user at the delivery destination is different from the person who requested the delivery. Therefore, each time the person who requested the delivery sends dispatch request information, they need to send user identification information that is at least different from the user identification information of the person who requested the delivery. However, in order to minimize the burden on the user as much as possible, it is preferable that the user terminal 2 pre-registers user identification information that is frequently used as the user identification information for the delivery source user identification information or the user identification information for the delivery destination user identification information, and then allows the user to easily specify the user identification information the next time they specify the user identification information for the delivery source user identification information or the user identification information for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0086] The delivery vehicle determination unit 123 determines the delivery vehicle (dispatched vehicle) that will be dispatched to the user based on the dispatch request information. The delivery vehicle determination unit 123 determines the delivery vehicle for the dispatch request information using a predetermined delivery vehicle determination algorithm from the vehicle information, which is information on one or more vehicles managed by the management device 1. Here, the vehicle information managed by the management device 1 includes vehicle identification information for identifying the vehicle, vehicle location information indicating the location of the vehicle, and vehicle status information indicating the status of the vehicle, such as whether or not the vehicle is in the process of making a delivery. The vehicle location information and vehicle status information are obtained from each vehicle. The vehicle information is stored in the vehicle information storage unit 133. The delivery vehicle determination algorithm is pre-stored in the delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135.

[0087] Furthermore, the delivery vehicle determination algorithm can be any algorithm as long as it can determine the delivery vehicle for the dispatch request information. For example, the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 determines the vehicle that is not currently making a delivery and is closest to the location of the delivery source from the location information of the dispatch source included in the dispatch request information, and selects it as delivery vehicle 3 from the vehicle information managed by the management device 1. In this example, a delivery vehicle determination algorithm that determines the vehicle closest to the location of the delivery source as delivery vehicle 3 has been described, but as another delivery vehicle determination algorithm, the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 may calculate the required fee for dispatching each vehicle to the delivery source and determine the vehicle with the lowest required fee as delivery vehicle 3. Another example of a delivery vehicle determination algorithm is that the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 may determine the vehicle that can reach the delivery destination in the shortest time as delivery vehicle 3.

[0088] As another example of a delivery vehicle determination algorithm, the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 may generate a route from the vehicle's location to the delivery source for each vehicle, calculate the time required from the vehicle's location to the delivery source based on the route, and determine the vehicle with the shortest time required as delivery vehicle 3. Alternatively, the delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135 may store multiple delivery vehicle determination algorithms in advance, and the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 may select one delivery vehicle determination algorithm from among the multiple algorithms, for example, based on the administrator's preference.

[0089] The control right setting unit 124 sets control rights (vehicle control rights) for the user, granting them the right to control the delivery vehicle, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information. The control right setting unit 124 sets control rights (vehicle control rights) for the user, granting them the right to control the delivery vehicle located at the dispatch destination, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information. The control right setting unit 124 sets control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the dispatch source with respect to the dispatch source user identification information, and sets control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination with respect to the delivery destination user identification information, based on the dispatch request information, the dispatch source user identification information, and the delivery destination user identification information.

[0090] The control instruction support information generation unit 125 generates control instruction support information to assist in the input of control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3. The control instruction support information generation unit 125 generates control instruction support information to assist users who have been granted control rights in the input of control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3. The control instruction support information is, for example, a control instruction screen for issuing control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3. Alternatively, the control instruction support information may be a screen showing an address for a dedicated web page for issuing control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3. In this case, the user can issue control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3 via the control instruction screen or web page using the user terminal 2.

[0091] Furthermore, if the delivery vehicle 3 is equipped with an input device (not shown) for the user to input control instruction information, the control instruction support information may be information such as a password required for the user to input the control instruction information via the input device installed in the delivery vehicle 3. In this case, the user inputs the password and other information, which are the control instruction support information, into the input device installed in the delivery vehicle 3. If authentication to the input device installed in the delivery vehicle 3 is successful, the user can issue control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3 via the input device. This configuration prevents anyone other than the user from controlling the delivery vehicle 3.

[0092] The information transmission unit 126 transmits control instruction support information generated by the control instruction support information generation unit 125 to users to whom control rights have been granted. The management device 1 obtains user information from users, including user contact information indicating the user's contact information for each user, and stores it in the user information storage unit 132. Based on the user information, the information transmission unit 126 transmits control instruction support information to users to whom control rights have been granted. User information may be obtained from users in advance, or dispatch request information containing user information may be obtained from users, and user information may be obtained from the dispatch request information.

[0093] When a delivery vehicle delivers goods, the user at the delivery source and the user at the delivery destination are different, and one of the users at the delivery source or the user at the delivery destination is different from the person who requested the delivery. Therefore, the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 acquires dispatch request information that includes user information of a person different from the person who requested the delivery.

[0094] Furthermore, the information transmission unit 126 transmits control rights information relating to the set control rights to the delivery vehicle 3. In addition, the information transmission unit 126 transmits dispatch instruction information based on the dispatch request information to the delivery vehicle 3. The dispatch instruction information includes at least the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination. The dispatch instruction information may also include route information, which includes the route from the vehicle's current location to the delivery source and the route from the delivery source to the delivery destination. In this case, the management device 1 generates the route information, but the delivery vehicle 3 may generate the route information.

[0095] The storage unit 13 is, for example, a semiconductor memory and includes a dispatch request information storage unit 131, a user information storage unit 132, a vehicle information storage unit 133, a control rights information storage unit 134, a delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135, a control rights setting program storage unit 136, and a control instruction support information generation program storage unit 137.

[0096] The dispatch request information storage unit 131 stores dispatch request information, which includes at least user information, location information of the delivery source, and location information of the delivery destination, obtained from the user terminal 2 by the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121.

[0097] The user information storage unit 132 stores user information obtained from the user terminal 2, including user identification information for identifying the user or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, and user contact information indicating the user's contact information. Note that the user identification information and the user contact information may be the same.

[0098] Figure 3 shows an example of user information stored in the user information storage unit in this embodiment 1.

[0099] User information includes, for example, user identification information for identifying the user and user contact information for sending and receiving information with user terminal 2. In Figure 3, an email address is stored as user contact information. Note that user contact information is not limited to an email address; for example, it may be an IP (Internet Protocol) address or a MAC (Media Access Control) address. User contact information may be any information as long as it is information used to send information to the user. Furthermore, user contact information is extracted from the user information storage unit 132 based on the source user identification information and the destination user identification information.

[0100] The vehicle information storage unit 133 stores vehicle information for each of the one or more vehicles to be dispatched.

[0101] Figure 4 shows an example of vehicle information stored in the vehicle information storage unit in this embodiment 1. For example, the vehicle information includes vehicle identification information for identifying the vehicle, vehicle location information indicating the vehicle's position, and vehicle status information indicating whether the vehicle is empty or in transit. In the example shown in Figure 4, the vehicle status information includes both an empty state and a transit state.

[0102] Since the location information of each vehicle changes moment by moment, it is preferable to acquire it from each vehicle periodically. On the other hand, vehicle status information is information that changes with predetermined events, such as when a delivery vehicle receives a dispatch instruction from the management device 1 and when a delivery vehicle completes a delivery. Therefore, it is preferable to acquire vehicle status information from each vehicle with predetermined events. Note that even if the vehicle status information is acquired from each vehicle periodically, similar to the vehicle location information, the same effects as described above can be obtained.

[0103] The control rights information storage unit 134 stores control rights information that, based on the dispatch request information, the origin user identification information, and the destination user identification information, was set by the control rights setting unit 124, indicating the control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the origin and the control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the destination.

[0104] Figure 5 shows an example of control rights information stored in the control rights information storage unit in this embodiment 1. The control rights information shown in Figure 5 includes a dispatch request identification number for identifying the dispatch request information, information indicating either the delivery source or the delivery destination, a controllable location, user identification information, and vehicle identification information of the delivery vehicle. The controllable location indicates the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination. The controllable location is expressed, for example, by longitude and latitude.

[0105] In Figure 5, for example, at a controllable location of the delivery source (11 degrees x 12 minutes x 13 seconds north latitude, 14 degrees x 15 minutes x 16 seconds east longitude), a user whose user identification information is "A" is granted control rights to control a delivery vehicle whose vehicle identification information is "a". Similarly, at a controllable location of the delivery destination (11 degrees y 12 minutes y 13 seconds north latitude, 14 degrees y 15 minutes y 16 seconds east longitude), a user whose user identification information is "B" is granted control rights to control a delivery vehicle whose vehicle identification information is "a".

[0106] The delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135 stores a delivery vehicle determination program for determining a delivery vehicle, which is executed by the delivery vehicle determination unit 123.

[0107] The control rights setting program storage unit 136 stores a control rights setting program, which is executed by the control rights setting unit 124, for setting control rights to control a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source and control rights to control a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination.

[0108] The control instruction support information generation program storage unit 137 stores a control instruction support information generation program, which is executed by the control instruction support information generation unit 125, for generating control instruction support information to assist users who have been granted control rights in inputting control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3.

[0109] Next, the configuration of the user terminal 2 in this embodiment 1 will be described in detail.

[0110] Figure 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a user terminal in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure. The user terminal 2 comprises a communication unit 21, a display unit 22, an input unit 23, a control unit 24, and a storage unit 25.

[0111] The communication unit 21 transmits dispatch request information to the management device 1, receives control instruction support information from the management device 1, and transmits control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3 via the control instruction support information. The communication unit 21 transmits and receives information with external devices such as the management device 1 or the delivery vehicle 3. The communication unit 21 transmits and receives information with external devices via a network 4 such as a WAN or LAN.

[0112] The display unit 22 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, and displays an input screen for entering dispatch request information, or displays control instruction support information received from the management device 1.

[0113] The input unit 23 is, for example, a keyboard or mouse, and accepts input operations from the user. The user inputs information to the user terminal 2 via the input unit 23. The display unit 22 and the input unit 23 may be configured as an integrated unit, like the touch panel of a smartphone. In this case, the user inputs information by touching the touch panel of the display unit 22. The user inputs, for example, the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination, which are included in the dispatch request information, via the input unit 23. One method of inputting the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination is for the user to touch the location of the delivery source and the location of the delivery destination with their finger on the map information displayed on the touch panel. Another input method is for the user to input the address of the delivery source and the address of the delivery destination using a keyboard into the input fields for the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination displayed on the display unit 22. Furthermore, for example, the user may input the name of the facility of the delivery source and the name of the facility of the delivery destination using a keyboard into the input fields for the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination displayed on the display unit 22.

[0114] The control unit 24 is, for example, a CPU, and performs various control-related processing for the user terminal 2.

[0115] The storage unit 25 is, for example, a semiconductor memory, and stores various information such as information obtained from the management device 1 and information entered by the user. The storage unit 25 also stores the address information of the management device 1 in order to transmit dispatch request information to the management device 1. The address information is obtained, for example, from a dedicated application for transmitting dispatch request information provided by the management device 1. Alternatively, if a dedicated web page for transmitting dispatch request information is provided, the address information may be obtained from that web page. The method for obtaining the address information of the management device 1 may be any method.

[0116] Next, the configuration of the delivery vehicle 3 in this embodiment 1 will be described in detail.

[0117] Figure 7 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a delivery vehicle in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. The delivery vehicle 3 comprises a communication unit 31, a control unit 32, a storage unit 33, a sensor unit 34, and a drive unit 35.

[0118] The communication unit 31, for example, uses wireless communication to receive control rights information from the management device 1, receive control instruction information from an external source to control itself, transmit vehicle location information indicating its own position to the management device 1, and transmit vehicle status information indicating its own status to the management device 1. The communication unit 31 sends and receives information with external devices such as the management device 1 or the user terminal 2. The communication unit 31 sends and receives various information with external devices via a network 4 such as a WAN or LAN.

[0119] The control unit 32 is, for example, a CPU and includes a movement control unit 321, a vehicle position information acquisition unit 322, a dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323, a control rights information acquisition unit 324, a control instruction information acquisition unit 325, a controllable position determination unit 326, and a controllable subject determination unit 327.

[0120] The movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 based on the basic automatic driving program stored in the basic automatic driving program storage unit 332. Specifically, the movement control unit 321 determines the direction of movement of the delivery vehicle 3 from the route stored in the route information storage unit 333 and the vehicle position information acquired by the sensor unit 34, and controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 in the determined direction of movement based on the basic automatic driving program.

[0121] Furthermore, when the movement control unit 321 receives control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 transmitted from an external source, the controllable position determination unit 326 and the controllable subject determination unit 327 determine, based on the acquired control instruction information, that the delivery vehicle 3 should be controlled, and if so, the movement control unit 321 controls the delivery vehicle 3.

[0122] Specifically, first, the movement control unit 321 determines whether or not it can control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. This determination is made because, for example, if there is an obstacle at the destination to which the vehicle is to move according to the control instruction information, it will not be able to move to that destination. Before actually moving, the movement control unit 321 confirms whether or not it is possible to move the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. For example, the movement control unit 321 identifies the destination based on the control instruction information and determines whether or not it is possible to move by determining the presence or absence of obstacles based on the information sensed by the sensor unit 34 at the identified destination. Next, the movement control unit 321 actually controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 based on this determination result. Specifically, if the movement control unit 321 determines that the delivery vehicle 3 is able to move, it controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. On the other hand, if the movement control unit 321 determines that the delivery vehicle 3 is not able to move, it does not follow the control instruction information and does not move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0123] The vehicle location information acquisition unit 322 acquires location information indicating the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 via the sensor unit 34. The management device 1 manages the location information of each vehicle in the group of vehicles to be dispatched. Each vehicle acquires its own location information and periodically transmits it to the management device 1. Therefore, the vehicle location information acquisition unit 322 acquires the location information of the delivery vehicle 3 via the sensor unit 34 and transmits the location information to the management device 1 via the communication unit 31.

[0124] Furthermore, when control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 is received from an external source, the vehicle position information acquisition unit 322 acquires the position information of the delivery vehicle 3 via the sensor unit 34 in order to determine whether the position of the delivery vehicle 3 corresponds to the position of the control right set in the control right information.

[0125] The dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323 acquires dispatch instruction information that indicates a dispatch instruction for dispatch request information transmitted from the management device 1. The dispatch instruction information includes at least the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination. Based on the acquired dispatch instruction information, the delivery vehicle 3 starts moving toward the delivery source. After the delivery items are loaded at the delivery source, or after the user boards the delivery vehicle 3, the delivery vehicle 3 moves toward the delivery destination. The dispatch instruction information may also include route information from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 to the delivery source or route information from the delivery source to the delivery destination. In this case, the management device 1 creates the route information from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 to the delivery source or route information from the delivery source to the delivery destination. Alternatively, the delivery vehicle 3 may create the route information from its current location to the delivery source or route information from the delivery source to the delivery destination based on the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination included in the dispatch instruction information. In this case, the management device 1 does not have the function to create route information, and the delivery vehicle 3 has the function to create route information.

[0126] The control rights information acquisition unit 324 acquires control rights information set by the management device 1. The control rights information acquisition unit 324 acquires control rights information from an external source, which associates control permission location information indicating a control permission location where control by the user of the autonomous vehicle is permitted, with control entity identification information for identifying the control entity that controls the autonomous vehicle at the control permission location. The control entity refers to the user or a user terminal held by the user.

[0127] In this embodiment 1, control rights information is transmitted from the management device 1 to the delivery vehicle 3. However, the delivery vehicle 3 may obtain control rights information from the management device 1 by requesting it from the management device 1. For example, when control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 is received from an external source, the control rights information acquisition unit 324 may request control rights information from the management device 1 and obtain the control rights information from the management device 1.

[0128] The control instruction information acquisition unit 325 includes control entity identification information and acquires control instruction information from an external source for controlling the delivery vehicle 3. An example of control instruction information is position information indicating the location to which the delivery vehicle 3 should be moved. In this case, the delivery vehicle 3 moves toward the position indicated by the control instruction information. The control instruction information may include not only the position of the delivery vehicle 3 but also information indicating the orientation of the delivery vehicle 3. In this case, the delivery vehicle 3 moves toward the position indicated by the control instruction information, such that the orientation of the delivery vehicle 3 is facing the direction indicated by the control instruction information.

[0129] Another example is that the control instruction information may include information indicating the direction in which the delivery vehicle 3 should move and the distance by which the delivery vehicle 3 should move. For example, if the information indicating the direction in which the delivery vehicle 3 should move is forward, and the information indicating the distance by which the delivery vehicle 3 should move is 50 cm, then the delivery vehicle 3 will move 50 cm forward.

[0130] The controllable position determination unit 326 determines whether the current position, indicated by the position information acquired by the vehicle position information acquisition unit 322, is a controllable position indicated by the controllable position information. When control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 transmitted from an external source is acquired, the controllable position determination unit 326 determines, based on the control rights information, whether the current position of the delivery vehicle 3 is the location of the delivery source or the location of the delivery destination indicated in the control rights information. If the determination results in the location of the delivery vehicle 3 being determined to be the location of the delivery source or the location of the delivery destination, the process is transferred to the controllable subject determination unit 327. On the other hand, if the determination results in the location of the delivery vehicle 3 being determined to be neither the location of the delivery source nor the location of the delivery destination, the control instruction information is not followed and the process is terminated.

[0131] If the controllable entity determination unit 327 determines that the current position indicated by the vehicle position information is a control permission position indicated by the control permission position information, it determines whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information associated with the control permission position information.

[0132] If the controllable entity determination unit 327 determines that the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 is the location of the delivery source or the delivery destination indicated in the control rights information, it determines whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the user identification information included in the control rights information. If the determination determines that the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the user identification information included in the control rights information, the controllable entity determination unit 327 requests the movement control unit 321 to perform control processing in accordance with the control instruction information. If the movement control unit 321 determines that the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information associated with the control permission location information, it controls the delivery vehicle 3 in accordance with the control instruction information.

[0133] On the other hand, if the determination results in a finding that the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information does not match the user identification information included in the control rights information, the control instruction information will not be followed and processing will be terminated.

[0134] The memory unit 33 is, for example, a semiconductor memory and includes a map information memory unit 331, an autonomous driving basic program memory unit 332, a route information memory unit 333, a vehicle location information memory unit 334, a vehicle dispatch instruction information memory unit 335, a control rights information memory unit 336, a controllable location determination program memory unit 337, and a controllable subject determination program memory unit 338.

[0135] The map information storage unit 331 stores map information such as road maps. Map information includes, for example, road data related to road links, intersection data related to intersections, facility data related to facilities, and display data indicating displays installed or formed on roads to provide or guide the vehicle with various driving information (e.g., legal speed limit information). Map information is acquired from, for example, an external server and stored in advance. Since road conditions change as new roads or facilities are formed or modified, it is desirable for the delivery vehicle 3 to periodically access the external server to acquire map information and update the map information. Map information is used when the delivery vehicle 3 delivers the target items using autonomous driving.

[0136] The automated driving basic program storage unit 332 stores a basic program for controlling the automated driving of the delivery vehicle 3. The movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 by controlling the drive unit 35 based on sensing information measured by the sensor unit 34 of the delivery vehicle 3 and vehicle position information, in accordance with the automated driving basic program.

[0137] The route information storage unit 333 stores route information from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 to the delivery source or route information from the delivery source to the delivery destination. Route information can be generated using an existing route generation program or the like. The delivery vehicle 3 can acquire route information by receiving the route information generated by the management device 1 from the management device 1. Alternatively, the delivery vehicle 3 may generate route information based on dispatch instruction information that includes the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination obtained from the management device 1.

[0138] The vehicle location information storage unit 334 stores location information indicating the current location of the delivery vehicle 3, which is acquired by the vehicle location information acquisition unit 322. The movement control unit 321 can determine the direction of movement of the delivery vehicle 3 based on the location information of the delivery vehicle 3 stored in the vehicle location information storage unit 334 and the route information stored in the route information storage unit 333.

[0139] The dispatch instruction information storage unit 335 stores dispatch instruction information indicating dispatch instructions for dispatch requests acquired by the dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323. The dispatch instruction information includes at least the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination.

[0140] The control rights information storage unit 336 stores control rights information obtained by the control rights information acquisition unit 324, which includes control rights for controlling a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source, set for the delivery source user identification information, and control rights for controlling a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination, set for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0141] The controllable position determination program storage unit 337 stores a controllable position determination program that, when control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 transmitted from an external source is acquired, determines, based on the control rights information, whether the current position of the delivery vehicle 3 is the location of the delivery source or the location of the delivery destination indicated in the control rights information. The controllable position determination program is executed by the controllable position determination unit 326.

[0142] The control entity determination program storage unit 338 stores a control entity determination program for determining whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the user identification information included in the control rights information. The control entity determination program is executed by the control entity determination unit 327.

[0143] The sensor unit 34 senses the location information of the delivery vehicle 3, information about the surrounding environment of the delivery vehicle 3, and information about the status of the delivery vehicle 3. The information sensed by the sensor unit 34 is used when autonomously controlling the movement of the delivery vehicle 3. Of the sensed information, the location information of the delivery vehicle 3 is transmitted to the management device 1. A specific example of the sensors in the sensor unit 34 is described below.

[0144] First, one example of a sensor that senses the location information of delivery vehicle 3 is a GPS (Global Positioning System). The location information of delivery vehicle 3 is represented, for example, by latitude and longitude.

[0145] Furthermore, sensors that sense information about the surrounding environment of the delivery vehicle 3 include, for example, LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) or millimeter-wave radar. LIDAR emits an infrared laser and measures the time it takes for the infrared laser to reflect off an object and return, thereby detecting the distance to objects around the delivery vehicle 3 or the relative speed of the delivery vehicle 3. This allows the delivery vehicle 3 to read the three-dimensional structure of the surrounding environment. Millimeter-wave radar performs similar measurements to LIDAR, but instead of infrared light, it uses radio waves to measure the time it takes for the radio waves to reflect off an object and return. LIDAR, which uses infrared light, can be used at night, but its functionality is reduced in bad weather. Millimeter-wave radar, which uses radio waves, has lower resolution than LIDAR, but it can detect objects regardless of the weather. Therefore, rather than using LIDAR and millimeter-wave radar individually, combining them can compensate for each other's disadvantages.

[0146] Sensors that sense the status of the delivery vehicle 3 include, for example, an odometer or an inertial sensor. The odometer measures the number of tire rotations to determine the distance traveled by the delivery vehicle 3. The inertial sensor is a sensor that detects inertial momentum, consisting of a 3-axis angular velocity sensor and a 3-directional acceleration sensor, and detects the behavior of the delivery vehicle 3.

[0147] The sensors described above are just examples; the delivery vehicle 3 may use sensing information from other sensors to perform autonomous driving. Any sensor may be used by the delivery vehicle 3 for autonomous driving.

[0148] If the delivery vehicle 3 is an engine-powered vehicle, the drive unit 35 is, for example, an engine and a transmission. If the delivery vehicle 3 is an electric vehicle in the narrow sense (battery vehicle), the drive unit 35 is, for example, a drive motor and a transmission. Both the engine and the drive motor are started and stopped via an ignition switch.

[0149] Next, a vehicle control method is described in detail using the flowchart in Figure 8. This method involves determining a delivery vehicle based on the dispatch request information and user identification information transmitted by the user, setting control rights to control the movement of the delivery vehicle at the origin and destination, transmitting control instruction support information to the user to assist in inputting control instruction information to the delivery vehicle, and transmitting control rights information to the delivery vehicle.

[0150] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating the management device, user terminal, and vehicle control process of the delivery vehicle in Embodiment 1 of this disclosure.

[0151] First, the communication unit 21 of the user terminal 2 transmits dispatch request information to the management device 1, which includes user identification information for identifying the user or the user terminal 2 owned by the user, location information of the delivery source, and location information of the delivery destination (step S101). The location information of the delivery source and location information of the delivery destination may include, for example, GPS information such as latitude and longitude, an address, or the name of a facility.

[0152] Next, the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 of the management device 1 receives the dispatch request information transmitted from the user terminal 2 and stores the received dispatch request information in the dispatch request information storage unit 131 (step S102).

[0153] Next, the communication unit 21 of the user terminal 2 transmits to the management device 1 delivery source user identification information for identifying the user using the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, and delivery destination user identification information for identifying the user using the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination or the user terminal 2 owned by that user (step S103). The user terminal 2 may also transmit dispatch request information including the delivery source user identification information and the delivery destination user identification information to the management device 1. Alternatively, the user terminal 2 may transmit the delivery source user identification information and the delivery destination user identification information before transmitting the dispatch request information.

[0154] Furthermore, the user terminal that transmits the dispatch request information may be different from the user terminal of the user who uses the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source. For example, if the user terminal that transmits the dispatch request information is a personal computer, and the user terminal of the user who uses the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source is a smartphone, then the user terminal that transmits the dispatch request information and the user terminal of the user who uses the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source are different. In this case, user terminal 2 that transmits the dispatch request information may accept the selection of a user terminal owned by the user who uses the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source, which is different from user terminal 2, and may accept the input of delivery source user identification information that is different from the user identification information of user terminal 2. Also, after the user terminal owned by the user who uses the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source has been selected, user terminal 2 may accept a change in the user terminal owned by the user who uses the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source from the user.

[0155] Similarly, user terminal 2, which transmits dispatch request information, may accept the selection of a user terminal owned by a user who will be using a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination, which is different from user terminal 2, and may accept the input of delivery destination user identification information that is different from the user identification information of user terminal 2. Furthermore, after a user terminal owned by a user who will be using a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination has been selected, user terminal 2 may accept a change in the user terminal owned by the user who will be using a delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination from the user.

[0156] Next, the user identification information acquisition unit 122 of the management device 1 receives the originating user identification information and destination user identification information transmitted from the user terminal 2 (step S104). Note that when the delivery vehicle 3 delivers people, if the user who boards at the origin and the user who alights at the destination are the same, and the person requesting the delivery is a user of the delivery vehicle 3, the user identification information included in the dispatch request information can be considered as the originating user identification information and destination user identification information. Therefore, if the person requesting the delivery is a user of the delivery vehicle 3, steps S103 and S104, which transmit and receive the originating user identification information and destination user identification information, can be omitted.

[0157] Next, the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 of the management device 1 determines which delivery vehicle to dispatch to the delivery source using a predetermined delivery vehicle determination algorithm based on the vehicle information of one or more vehicles managed by the management device 1 (step S105). For example, the delivery vehicle determination unit 123 uses a delivery vehicle determination algorithm that determines the vehicle closest to the delivery source from the vehicles managed by the management device 1, based on the location information of the delivery source included in the dispatch request information. Note that the delivery vehicle determination algorithm may be any delivery vehicle determination algorithm as long as it can determine the delivery vehicle for the dispatch request information.

[0158] Next, the control rights setting unit 124 of the management device 1 sets control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source based on the dispatch request information, the delivery source user identification information, and the delivery destination user identification information, and sets control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination based on the delivery destination user identification information (step S106).

[0159] For example, the service may be used by a child and their guardian, an elderly person and their caregiver, or by a group of multiple users at the delivery source or destination. Therefore, in this embodiment 1, the control right setting unit 124 may set control rights (vehicle control rights) for multiple users, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle located at the delivery destination, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information.

[0160] More specifically, the input unit 23 of the user terminal 2 accepts input of multiple source user identification information to identify multiple users or multiple user terminals 2 owned by multiple users who use the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source, and multiple destination user identification information to identify multiple users or multiple user terminals 2 owned by multiple users who use the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination. The communication unit 21 transmits the multiple source user identification information and the multiple destination user identification information to the management device 1. The user identification information acquisition unit 122 of the management device 1 receives the multiple source user identification information and the multiple destination user identification information transmitted from the user terminal 2. The control right setting unit 124 sets control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source for the multiple source user identification information, and sets control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination for the multiple destination user identification information. At this time, the control rights setting unit 124 stores control rights information in the control rights information storage unit 134, which associates the dispatch request identification number, information indicating either the delivery source or delivery destination, the controllable location, multiple user identification information, and vehicle identification information.

[0161] Furthermore, if the user at the delivery destination has difficulty receiving the package, a proxy recipient may receive the package at a convenience store or other location. Therefore, in this embodiment 1, the control right setting unit 124 may set control rights (vehicle control rights) to a proxy recipient different from the user, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle located at the delivery destination, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information. More specifically, the input unit 23 of the user terminal 2 accepts input of delivery destination user identification information to identify a proxy recipient different from the user using the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination, or multiple user terminals 2 owned by the proxy recipient. The control right setting unit 124 may also automatically change the control rights to the proxy recipient.

[0162] Furthermore, if a user's circumstances suddenly change, they may use user terminal 2 to change the delivery location of their package to a convenience store. In this case, user terminal 2 sends a delivery location change request to management device 1 to change the delivery location to the convenience store of the user's choice. The control rights setting unit 124 of management device 1 changes the dispatch destination to the convenience store of the user's choice and sets the control rights to the convenience store's terminal or a convenience store employee. The storage unit 13 of management device 1 stores in advance delivery location information that associates the delivery location (e.g., the name of the convenience store), the location information of the delivery location (e.g., the address of the convenience store), and the identification information of the delivery location (e.g., the terminal of a convenience store employee). Note that management device 1 may also refer to or obtain the delivery location information from an external server. When management device 1 receives a delivery location change request from user terminal 2, it refers to the delivery location information and changes the dispatch destination and control rights settings.

[0163] Next, the control instruction support information generation unit 125 of the management device 1 generates control instruction support information to assist the input of control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3 for the delivery source user identification information or delivery destination user identification information for which control rights have been set (step S107). The control instruction support information is, for example, a control instruction screen for instructing control to the delivery vehicle 3. Alternatively, the control instruction support information may be a screen showing an address for a dedicated web page for instructing control to the delivery vehicle 3. In this case, the user can issue control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3 using the user terminal 2 via the control instruction screen or the dedicated web page for control instructions.

[0164] Figure 9 shows an example of control instruction support information displayed on the user terminal 2 in this embodiment 1. The control instruction support information shown in Figure 9 represents an example of a screen showing an address for a web page dedicated to control instructions. The user touches the address displayed on the screen. As a result, the web page dedicated to control instructions is displayed on the display unit 22 of the user terminal 2.

[0165] Furthermore, if the delivery vehicle 3 is equipped with an input device (not shown) for the user to input control instruction information, the control instruction support information may be information such as a password required for the user to input the control instruction information via the input device installed in the delivery vehicle 3. In this case, the user inputs the password and other information, which are the control instruction support information, into the input device installed in the delivery vehicle 3. This allows the user to issue control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3. This configuration prevents anyone other than the user from controlling the delivery vehicle 3.

[0166] Next, the information transmission unit 126 of the management device 1 transmits control instruction support information to the user terminal 2 of the delivery source or delivery destination that has been granted control rights, via the communication unit 11 (step S108). The management device 1 obtains user information from each user, including user contact information indicating the user's contact information, and stores it in the user information storage unit 132. Based on the user information, the information transmission unit 126 transmits control instruction support information to the user to whom control rights have been granted. User information may be obtained from the user in advance, or dispatch request information including user information may be obtained from the user, and user information may be obtained from the dispatch request information. When a delivery vehicle 3 delivers goods, the user of the delivery source and the user of the delivery destination are different, and either the user of the delivery source or the user of the delivery destination will be different from the person who requested the delivery. Therefore, the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 will acquire dispatch request information that includes user information of a person different from the person who requested the delivery.

[0167] Next, the communication unit 21 of the user terminal 2 receives control instruction support information transmitted from the management device 1 (step S109). Based on the control instruction support information transmitted to the user terminal 2, the user can issue control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3.

[0168] Next, the information transmission unit 126 of the management device 1 transmits dispatch instruction information based on the dispatch request information to the delivery vehicle 3 (step S110). The dispatch instruction information includes at least the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination. The dispatch instruction information may also include route information from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 to the delivery source and route information from the delivery source to the delivery destination. In this case, the management device 1 generates the route information. Alternatively, the delivery vehicle 3 may generate route information from its current location to the delivery source and route information from the delivery source to the delivery destination based on the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the dispatch instruction information.

[0169] The dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323 of the delivery vehicle 3 receives dispatch instruction information based on the dispatch request information transmitted from the management device 1 (step S111). The movement control unit 321 of the delivery vehicle 3 controls the movement of the vehicle based on the dispatch instruction information.

[0170] Next, the information transmission unit 126 of the management device 1 transmits control rights information regarding the control rights set by the control rights setting unit 124 to the delivery vehicle 3 (step S112).

[0171] Next, the control rights information acquisition unit 324 of the delivery vehicle 3 receives control rights information related to the control rights set by the control rights setting unit 124, which has been transmitted from the management device 1 (step S113). When the movement control unit 321 of the delivery vehicle 3 receives control instruction information for the delivery vehicle 3 from an external source, it controls the delivery vehicle 3 based on the control rights information.

[0172] Next, the process when a delivery vehicle 3, which has acquired control rights information from the management device 1, receives control instruction information from an external source to control the delivery vehicle 3 will be explained in detail using the flowchart in Figure 10.

[0173] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating the vehicle control process of a delivery vehicle in Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure.

[0174] First, the control instruction information acquisition unit 325 of the delivery vehicle 3 receives control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 (step S21). The control instruction information includes, for example, location information indicating the position where the user will move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0175] Figure 11 shows an example of a display screen in the user terminal 2 of this embodiment 1 that accepts input of control instruction information from a user. The display screen shown in Figure 11 displays a map image 201 of the vicinity of the delivery source or delivery destination, and a vehicle image 202 representing the delivery vehicle 3 at the location of the delivery source or delivery destination on the map image 201. On the display screen, the user specifies the location to which they want the delivery vehicle 3 to move. For example, the user moves the vehicle image 202 on the map image 201 to the desired location. The communication unit 21 of the user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3, which includes location information indicating the location of the delivery vehicle 3 specified by the user. In this case, the delivery vehicle 3 moves toward the location indicated by the control instruction information. Note that the control instruction information may include information indicating the orientation of the vehicle, not just its position. In this case, the delivery vehicle 3 moves toward the location specified by the control instruction information, and also moves so that its orientation faces the direction specified by the control instruction information.

[0176] Furthermore, the user terminal 2 may display areas on the map image 201 that are identifiable as areas where vehicle parking or stopping is prohibited. Areas where vehicle parking or stopping is prohibited can be obtained from map information. In addition, the user terminal 2 may determine whether the location of the vehicle image 202 after movement, as entered by the user, is within an area where parking or stopping is prohibited. If it is determined that the location of the vehicle image 202 after movement is within an area where parking or stopping is prohibited, the user terminal 2 may display a warning image or output a warning sound.

[0177] Another method for inputting control instruction information is to input the direction in which the delivery vehicle 3 should move and the distance it should move.

[0178] Figure 12 shows another example of a display screen in the user terminal 2 of this embodiment 1 that accepts input of control instruction information from the user. The display screen shown in Figure 12 displays a first input field 211 for inputting the direction in which to move the delivery vehicle 3, and a second input field 212 for inputting the distance to move the delivery vehicle 3. The first input field 211 accepts the selection of whether to move the vehicle forward or backward. The second input field 212 accepts the input of the distance to move the vehicle. The communication unit 21 of the user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information including the direction and distance specified by the user to the delivery vehicle 3. In the display screen of Figure 12, for example, if the information indicating the direction in which to move the delivery vehicle 3 is forward and the information indicating the distance to move the delivery vehicle 3 is 50 cm, the delivery vehicle 3 will move 50 cm forward.

[0179] Returning to Figure 10, the vehicle location information acquisition unit 322 then acquires location information indicating the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 from the sensor unit 34 (step S22).

[0180] Next, the controllable position determination unit 326 determines, based on the control rights information, whether the current position of the delivery vehicle 3, acquired by the vehicle position information acquisition unit 322, is the location of the delivery source or the location of the delivery destination indicated in the control rights information (step S23).

[0181] If it is determined that the current location of delivery vehicle 3 is neither the location of the delivery source nor the location of the delivery destination (NO in step S23), the control instruction information is not followed and the process is terminated.

[0182] On the other hand, if it is determined that the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 is the location of the delivery source or the location of the delivery destination (YES in step S23), the controllable entity determination unit 327 determines whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the user identification information included in the control rights information (step S24).

[0183] If it is determined that the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information does not match the user identification information included in the control rights information (NO in step S24), the control instruction information is not followed and the process is terminated.

[0184] On the other hand, if it is determined that the control subject identification information included in the control instruction information matches the user identification information included in the control rights information (YES in step S24), the movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the acquired control instruction information (step S25).

[0185] Specifically, the movement control unit 321 first determines whether or not it can move the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. For example, if there is an obstacle at the destination where the vehicle is to be moved according to the control instruction information, it cannot move to that location. Therefore, before actually moving, the movement control unit 321 determines whether or not it can move the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. This determination process is performed, for example, by identifying the destination location based on the control instruction information, and then determining whether or not an obstacle exists at the identified location based on the information sensed by the sensor unit 34.

[0186] Next, the movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 based on this determination result. Specifically, if the movement control unit 321 determines that it is possible to move the delivery vehicle 3 to the destination, it controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. On the other hand, if the movement control unit 321 determines that it is not possible to move the delivery vehicle 3 to the destination, it does not follow the control instruction information and does not move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0187] Furthermore, if there is an obstacle between the current position of the delivery vehicle 3 and the destination indicated by the control instruction information, or if the path from the current position of the delivery vehicle 3 to the destination indicated by the control instruction information is curved, it may be impossible to determine whether or not the delivery vehicle 3 can be moved to the destination. Therefore, as an alternative method of controlling the movement of the delivery vehicle 3, first, the movement control unit 321 starts the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. Then, during the movement, the movement control unit 321 repeatedly determines whether or not it is impossible to stop the delivery vehicle 3 at the destination. If it is determined that it is not impossible to stop, the movement control unit 321 continues moving towards the destination. On the other hand, if it is determined that it is impossible to stop, the movement control unit 321 stops the delivery vehicle 3 at that location.

[0188] If it is determined that stopping is impossible, the movement control unit 321 may notify the user terminal 2 that it is not possible to stop the delivery vehicle 3 at the instructed destination. In this case, the user terminal 2 may accept input from the user for an alternative destination. The user terminal 2 may also present nearby possible stopping locations and accept the user's selection of a possible stopping location. Furthermore, if it is determined that stopping is impossible, the movement control unit 321 may search for the nearest possible stopping location along the movement route to the current location and stop the delivery vehicle 3 at that location.

[0189] Furthermore, in this embodiment 1, the control instruction information may further include location information indicating the current location of the user terminal 2. The control unit 32 of the delivery vehicle 3 may further include a user location determination unit that determines whether the current location of the user terminal 2 is near the current location of the delivery vehicle 3. If it is determined that the current location of the user terminal 2 is near the current location of the delivery vehicle 3, the movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the acquired control instruction information. On the other hand, if it is determined that the current location of the user terminal 2 is not near the current location of the delivery vehicle 3, the control instruction information is not followed and the process is terminated. The user location determination unit determines that the current location of the user terminal 2 is near the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 if the current location of the user terminal 2 is within a predetermined distance range from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3. The user location determination unit also determines that the current location of the user terminal 2 is not near the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 if the current location of the user terminal 2 is not within a predetermined distance range from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3.

[0190] This allows the delivery vehicle 3 to move while the user is in its vicinity, enabling the user to move the delivery vehicle 3 more safely while checking its surroundings.

[0191] The user location determination unit of the delivery vehicle 3 may also determine whether or not short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 have been detected. If it is determined that short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 have been detected, the movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the acquired control instruction information. On the other hand, if it is determined that short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 have not been detected, the control instruction information is not followed and the process is terminated. If the distance between the delivery vehicle 3 and the user terminal 2 is short, the delivery vehicle 3 can detect the short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2. Therefore, by determining whether or not short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 have been detected, it is easy to determine whether or not a user is in the vicinity of the delivery vehicle 3.

[0192] Furthermore, the user location determination unit of the delivery vehicle 3 may determine whether the strength of the short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 is greater than a predetermined threshold. If it is determined that the strength of the short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 is greater than a predetermined threshold, the movement control unit 321 controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the acquired control instruction information. On the other hand, if it is determined that the strength of the short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold, the control instruction information is not followed and the process is terminated. If the distance between the delivery vehicle 3 and the user terminal 2 is short, the strength of the short-range wireless communication radio waves detected by the delivery vehicle 3 will be greater. Therefore, by determining whether the strength of the short-range wireless communication radio waves output from the user terminal 2 is greater than a predetermined threshold, it is possible to easily determine whether a user is in the vicinity of the delivery vehicle 3.

[0193] In this embodiment 1, the controllable position determination unit 326 processes step S23, followed by the controllable main body determination unit 327 processes step S24. However, the controllable position determination unit 326 may perform the processing after the controllable main body determination unit 327 processes, and the same effects as described above can be obtained.

[0194] Furthermore, the control unit 32 of the delivery vehicle 3 may include a controllable state determination unit (not shown) in addition to the controllable position determination unit 326 and the controllable subject determination unit 327. The controllable state determination unit determines whether the delivery vehicle 3 is moving or stationary. If the controllable state determination unit determines that the delivery vehicle 3 is stationary, the movement control unit 321 may control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information. If the controllable state determination unit determines that the delivery vehicle 3 is moving, the movement control unit 321 may prohibit the movement of the delivery vehicle 3.

[0195] When delivery vehicle 3 has not yet arrived at its destination, that is, when delivery vehicle 3 is still in motion, moving delivery vehicle 3 according to control instruction information requires a decision process to choose whether to move to the destination or move according to the control instruction information. However, with this configuration, this decision process becomes unnecessary, thus reducing the amount of processing required. Furthermore, when a user moves delivery vehicle 3 via an input device installed in delivery vehicle 3, it is dangerous for the user to input control instruction information via the input device of delivery vehicle 3 while delivery vehicle 3 is moving. Therefore, by not accepting input of control instruction information while delivery vehicle 3 is moving, users can safely input control instruction information.

[0196] With the above configuration, control rights for the delivery vehicle 3 located at the origin and destination can be set for the user. Therefore, even if the delivery vehicle 3 is parked in an inconvenient location for the user, the user can move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0197] Furthermore, in this configuration, the delivery vehicle 3 can only be controlled when it is located at the delivery source or destination. Therefore, when the delivery vehicle 3 is located anywhere other than the delivery source or destination, that is, when control of the delivery vehicle 3 is unnecessary, it is possible to prevent the user from moving the delivery vehicle 3.

[0198] In this embodiment 1, control rights for controlling delivery vehicles 3 located at the delivery source are set for the delivery source user identification information, and control rights for controlling delivery vehicles 3 located at the delivery destination are set for the delivery destination user identification information. However, based on the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination, the delivery source control rights exerciseable range and the delivery destination control rights exerciseable range, which represent the areas in which control instructions can be given to the delivery vehicles 3, may be determined according to predetermined rules, and control rights for controlling delivery vehicles 3 located within the delivery source control rights exerciseable range may be set for the delivery source user identification information, and control rights for controlling delivery vehicles 3 located within the delivery destination control rights exerciseable range may be set for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0199] In this embodiment 1, if a user inputs control instruction information to move the delivery vehicle 3 and moves the delivery vehicle 3, and then the user again issues a control instruction to the delivery vehicle 3, even if the user inputs control instruction information for the delivery vehicle 3 again, the location of the delivery vehicle 3 will be different from the location of the delivery source and the location of the delivery destination, and the delivery vehicle 3 will not be controlled according to the control instruction information. However, in this configuration, if a user inputs control instruction information to move the delivery vehicle 3 and moves the delivery vehicle 3, and then the user again issues a control instruction to the delivery vehicle 3, the user can issue a control instruction to the delivery vehicle 3 if the location of the delivery vehicle 3 is within the range where control rights for the delivery source can be exercised or the range where control rights for the delivery destination can be exercised. When moving the location of the delivery vehicle 3 in small increments, that is, when moving the delivery vehicle 3 in units of, for example, tens of centimeters, it is difficult to move the delivery vehicle 3 to the desired location with a single control instruction, so the delivery vehicle 3 is moved multiple times. In such a situation, with this configuration, the user can issue control instructions multiple times, albeit within a limited range.

[0200] In this configuration, it is desirable to include information indicating the determined range of control rights for the origin and destination of delivery in the control instruction support information and transmit it to the user. With this configuration, the user can issue control instructions for delivery vehicle 3 while confirming the range of control rights for the origin and destination of delivery. When displaying the control instruction support information, which includes information indicating the range of control rights for the origin and destination of delivery, on the user terminal 2, it is preferable to display the location of delivery vehicle 3 superimposed on it. This allows the user to understand the location of delivery vehicle 3, the range of control rights for the origin, and the range of control rights for delivery, even if they issue control instructions multiple times. In this case, it is desirable for the user terminal 2 to periodically update the location of delivery vehicle 3 after it has moved according to the control instructions. With this configuration, the user can understand the current location of delivery vehicle 3 and thus understand where delivery vehicle 3 is located within the range of control rights for the origin and destination of delivery.

[0201] The control right setting unit 124 generates a control right exercise range (control permission range) that allows users to control the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination, based on the location of the delivery destination. The control right setting unit 124 also generates a delivery source control right exercise range that allows users to control the delivery vehicle at the delivery source, based on the location of the delivery source. Furthermore, the control right setting unit 124 generates a delivery destination control right exercise range that allows users to control the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination, based on the location of the delivery destination. The location of the delivery source and the delivery destination can be represented, for example, by latitude and longitude (GPS information), address, or facility name.

[0202] The control rights setting unit 124 then grants the user control rights (vehicle control rights) that permit them to control delivery vehicles located within the range where control rights can be exercised. The control rights setting unit 124 also grants the user control rights that permit them to control delivery vehicles located within the range where control rights can be exercised at the delivery source. Furthermore, the control rights setting unit 124 grants the user control rights that permit them to control delivery vehicles located within the range where control rights can be exercised at the delivery destination.

[0203] One possible method for determining the scope of control rights that can be exercised at the origin and destination based on the location information of the origin and destination is to define a predetermined range from the locations indicated by the origin and destination locations as the scope of control rights that can be exercised at the origin and destination.

[0204] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating the range of control rights that can be exercised at the delivery source and at the delivery destination in this embodiment 1. As a specific example, the control rights setting unit 124 determines the range of control rights that can be exercised at the delivery source as the area extending 3m forward and 3m backward along the roadway from the location of the delivery source, with the width of the delivery vehicle 3 as the range of control rights that can be exercised at the delivery source. The area shown by the shaded lines in Figure 13 is the range of control rights that can be exercised at the delivery source as 301. The range of control rights that can be exercised at the delivery destination is determined in the same way as the range of control rights that can be exercised at the delivery source. The location of the delivery source and the location of the delivery destination are represented, for example, by latitude and longitude (GPS information).

[0205] Another method for determining the scope of control rights for the origin and destination is to use a system of address designation, where the location information of the origin or destination is indicated by an address, and the area indicated by the address is determined as the scope of control rights for the origin and destination.

[0206] There are two main types of address systems: the block system and the road system. The following explains each system and the area indicated by the address of the delivery source or delivery destination.

[0207] First, let's explain the block system, which is mainly used in Japan. In the block system, a block is, in principle, a section (block) surrounded by roads, and one town name consists of one or more blocks. In the block system, a code called a block code is assigned. This block code is assigned by measuring the distance clockwise along the outer perimeter of the block, starting from a corner close to the center of the city or town, and dividing it into sections of 10m to 15m each, and assigning base numbers 1, 2, 3... in order. For example, in the address "...X-chome Y-ban Z-go", the "Y" part is the block number, and the "Z" part is the base number.

[0208] In this block-based system, addresses are represented by the base number of the location adjacent to the entrance or main entrance of the building to which the address applies.

[0209] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram illustrating the block-based addressing system in this embodiment 1. In the block shown in Figure 14, base numbers are assigned sequentially from 1, 2, 3, ..., 12 in a clockwise direction along the outer perimeter starting from the starting point. In Figure 14, the address of building 41 is represented by the base number at the location adjacent to the entrance of building 41. For example, the part of the address of building 41 corresponding to the number (Z above) is "3". Therefore, when the address of building 41 is designated as the delivery source, the area within which the delivery source control right can be exercised is the entire area corresponding to the base number "3" indicated by the address. When using the block-based addressing system, the area within which the delivery source control right can be exercised and the delivery destination control right can be exercised may be determined as, for example, a range of 1.5m from the edge of the road within the area indicated by the address.

[0210] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating the areas where delivery source control rights can be exercised and delivery destination control rights can be exercised, as determined using a block-based address system in this embodiment 1. The control rights setting unit 124 uses a block-based address system to determine the delivery source control rights exerciseable area 302 as the area within 1.5m from the edge of the road, within the area indicated by the address of building 41, which is the delivery source. The area indicated by the shaded lines in Figure 15 is the delivery source control rights exerciseable area 302. The delivery destination control rights exerciseable area is determined in the same way as the delivery source control rights exerciseable area.

[0211] Next, we will explain the road system, which is mainly used overseas. The road system consists of the name of a road and a house number assigned to a building adjacent to that road or a building that has a road leading to that road. Therefore, a house number in the road system is represented by the name of the road the building faces and the house number assigned to the building.

[0212] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating the road-based address system in this embodiment 1. In Figure 16, buildings are assigned address numbers along a road named "ABC Street". In Figure 16, odd-numbered address numbers are assigned to buildings on one side of the road, and even-numbered address numbers are assigned to buildings on the other side. The method of assigning address numbers varies by country or region, but the mechanism for indicating addresses using the road name and the address number assigned to the building is the same. In Figure 16, the address number for building 41 is "1", and the area of ​​building 41 is a portion of the road that building 41 is adjacent to. Therefore, if the address of building 41 is specified as the delivery source, the location specified as the delivery source will be a portion of the road that building 41 is adjacent to, as indicated by the address system.

[0213] When using a road-based address system, the area indicated by the address may be defined as, for example, a 1.5m radius from the edge of the road, which is the area where the right to control the origin and destination of delivery can be exercised.

[0214] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram illustrating the range of delivery source control rights and delivery destination control rights that can be exercised in this embodiment 1, which is determined using a road-based address system. The control rights setting unit 124 uses a road-based address system to determine the range of delivery source control rights 303 as the area within 1.5m from the edge of the road, within the area indicated by the address of building 41, which is the delivery source. The area indicated by the shaded lines in Figure 17 is the range of delivery source control rights 303.

[0215] Thus, since an address indicated by a residential address system indicates an area rather than a point, if the location information of the delivery source is indicated by an address, the control right setting unit 124 may determine the range within which the delivery source control right can be exercised based on the residential address system. In this configuration, because the residential address system is used, the range within which the delivery source control right can be exercised or the range within which the delivery destination control right can be exercised can be determined with a simple configuration. In the example described above, the range within which the delivery source control right can be exercised or the delivery destination control right can be exercised is determined to be 1.5m from the edge of the road, but any method is acceptable as long as it uses the residential address system to determine the range within which the delivery source control right can be exercised or the delivery destination control right can be exercised.

[0216] Another method for determining the scope of control rights for the origin and destination is to identify the address of the facility from the name of the facility, and then determine the area indicated by the identified address as the scope of control rights for the origin and destination. The size of the scope of control rights for the origin and destination determined based on the name of the facility may be changed by the facility owner or manager. For example, if there are areas within a facility where parking is permitted and areas where parking is prohibited, the facility owner or manager may set the scope of control rights for the origin and destination to the area within the facility where parking is permitted.

[0217] Furthermore, if a user wishes to control delivery vehicle 3 beyond the scope of control rights exercised at the delivery source or delivery destination, the dispatch service provider's operator may control delivery vehicle 3 at the user's request. In this case, the control instruction support information may include control request information to request the dispatch service provider's operator to control delivery vehicle 3. In this configuration, the dispatch service provider's operator who receives the request remotely controls delivery vehicle 3.

[0218] In this case, if the user is not given control of the delivery vehicle 3 but is allowed to control it, one possible configuration is that the user always controls the delivery vehicle 3 through the dispatch service provider's operator. However, in this embodiment 1, it is assumed that the user, who is in the same location as the delivery vehicle 3, will move the delivery vehicle 3 within a small range of a few centimeters to tens of centimeters. Therefore, it is preferable for the user, who is at the delivery source or destination, to directly control the delivery vehicle 3 rather than controlling it through the dispatch service provider's operator who is in a remote location.

[0219] In this embodiment 1, control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source are set for the delivery source user identification information, and control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination are set for the delivery destination user identification information. However, based on the location information of the delivery source and the location information of the delivery destination, the controllable range at the delivery source and the controllable range at the delivery destination, which represent the areas in which the delivery vehicle 3 can move according to the control instruction information, may be determined according to predetermined rules, and control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source within the controllable range at the delivery source may be set for the delivery source user identification information, and control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination within the controllable range at the delivery destination may be set for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0220] The control rights setting unit 124 generates a controllable range (movement control permitted range) at the delivery destination where the delivery vehicle can be controlled by the user, based on the location of the delivery destination. The control rights setting unit 124 also generates a delivery source controllable range at the delivery source where the delivery vehicle can move, based on the location of the delivery source. Furthermore, the control rights setting unit 124 generates a delivery destination controllable range at the delivery destination where the delivery vehicle can move, based on the location of the delivery destination. The locations of the delivery source and delivery destination can be represented, for example, by latitude and longitude (GPS information), address, or facility name.

[0221] The control rights setting unit 124 then grants the user control rights (vehicle control rights) that permit the movement of the delivery vehicle within the controllable range. The control rights setting unit 124 also grants the user control rights that permit the movement of the delivery vehicle within the controllable range of the delivery source. Furthermore, the control rights setting unit 124 grants the user control rights that permit the movement of the delivery vehicle within the controllable range of the delivery destination.

[0222] In this embodiment 1, since there are no restrictions on the area in which the delivery vehicle 3 can move based on the control instruction information, the user can give control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3 to move to any location. Therefore, the user can give control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3, which has arrived at the delivery source, to move to an intermediate location different from the delivery destination. For example, if the user moves the delivery vehicle 3 from the delivery source to an intermediate location and loads goods at the intermediate location, goods can be loaded at both the delivery source and the intermediate location, and the goods loaded at both locations can be delivered to the destination. This goes beyond the original purpose of moving the delivery vehicle 3 to a location where it is easy for the user to load or unload goods, or to a location where it is easy for the user to board or alight.

[0223] However, with this configuration, the area in which the delivery vehicle 3 can move can be restricted by the control instruction information, thus preventing the user from controlling the delivery vehicle 3 for purposes other than its original purpose, such as setting an intermediate stop between the delivery source and the delivery destination, loading goods at that intermediate stop, and delivering them to the delivery destination. Similarly, when the delivery vehicle 3 is transporting people, it is possible to prevent the user from controlling the delivery vehicle for purposes other than its original purpose, such as setting an intermediate stop between the delivery source and the delivery destination, and loading someone other than the user at that intermediate stop and delivering them to the delivery destination.

[0224] Furthermore, if a user wishes to control delivery vehicle 3 beyond the controllable range of the delivery source or delivery destination, the dispatch service provider's operator may control delivery vehicle 3 at the user's request. In this case, the control instruction support information may include control request information to request the dispatch service provider's operator to control delivery vehicle 3. In this configuration, the dispatch service provider's operator who receives the request remotely controls delivery vehicle 3.

[0225] In this configuration, it is desirable to include information indicating the determined controllable range of the delivery source and the controllable range of the delivery destination in the control instruction support information and transmit it to the user. With this configuration, the user can issue control instructions for the delivery vehicle 3 while confirming the controllable range of the delivery source and the controllable range of the delivery destination.

[0226] As a method for determining the controllable range of the origin and the controllable range of the destination based on the location information of the origin and the location information of the destination, the method exemplified in the method for determining the controllable range of the origin and the controllable range of the destination can be used.

[0227] In other words, the control rights setting unit 124 may determine the controllable area for the delivery source and the controllable area for the delivery destination as a predetermined range from the locations indicated by GPS information (latitude and longitude) of the delivery source and the delivery destination. Alternatively, the control rights setting unit 124 may determine the controllable area for the delivery source and the controllable area for the delivery destination as an area indicated by the addresses of the delivery source and the delivery destination. Furthermore, the control rights setting unit 124 may identify the address of a facility from the name of the delivery source and the delivery destination facility, and determine the controllable area for the delivery source and the controllable area for the delivery destination as an area indicated by the identified address. Note that the size of the controllable area for the delivery source and the controllable area for the delivery destination determined based on the name of the facility may be changed by the facility owner or manager. For example, if there are places within a facility where parking is permitted and places where parking is prohibited, the facility owner or manager may set the controllable area for the delivery source and the controllable area for the delivery destination to the range of places within the facility where parking is permitted.

[0228] Furthermore, both the scope within which the sender control rights can be exercised and the scope within which the sender control rights can be exercised may be set for the sender user identification information. Similarly, both the scope within which the destination control rights can be exercised and the scope within which the destination control rights can be exercised may be set for the destination user identification information. In this case, the scope within which the sender control rights can be exercised and the scope within which the sender control rights can be exercised may be the same. With this configuration, the amount of processing can be reduced because it is not necessary to determine the area separately for each, and the amount of information to be stored can also be reduced because the same area information is used.

[0229] Furthermore, when user terminal 2 issues control instructions to delivery vehicle 3, two configurations are possible: one in which user terminal 2 directly transmits control instruction information to delivery vehicle 3, and another in which user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to delivery vehicle 3 via management device 1. Additionally, two configurations are possible for the control feasibility determination process, which determines whether or not to control the movement of delivery vehicle 3 based on the control instruction information: one in which delivery vehicle 3 performs the control feasibility determination process, and another in which management device 1 performs the control feasibility determination process.

[0230] When the user terminal 2 directly transmits control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3, as described in Embodiment 1, the delivery vehicle 3 determines whether or not to control its movement according to the control instruction information from the user terminal 2. On the other hand, when the user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3 via the management device 1, the management device 1 or the delivery vehicle 3 may determine whether or not to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information from the user terminal 2. Alternatively, the management device 1 may perform part of the determination process of whether or not to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information from the user terminal 2, and the delivery vehicle 3 may perform the remaining part.

[0231] Figure 18 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process for controlling the movement of the delivery vehicle in this embodiment 1.

[0232] As shown in Figure 18, in this embodiment 1, the management device 1 transmits control rights information to the delivery vehicle 3. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control rights information transmitted by the management device 1. The control rights information includes control permission location information indicating a control permission location where control by the user of the delivery vehicle 3 is permitted, and control entity identification information for identifying the control entity that controls the delivery vehicle 3 at the control permission location. The user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3. The control instruction information includes location information indicating a location to move the delivery vehicle 3, and control entity identification information for identifying the user terminal 2. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the user terminal 2.

[0233] Then, the delivery vehicle 3 performs a control feasibility determination process to determine whether or not to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3. The control feasibility determination process includes a process by the controllable position determination unit 326 to determine whether the current position is a control-permitted position indicated by the control permission position information, and a process by the controllable entity determination unit 327 to determine whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information included in the control rights information. If, as a result of the control feasibility determination process, it is determined that the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 should be controlled, the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 is controlled based on the position information included in the control instruction information.

[0234] Figure 19 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in a first modified example of this embodiment 1.

[0235] As shown in Figure 19, in the first modified example of this embodiment 1, the management device 1 transmits control rights information to the delivery vehicle 3. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control rights information transmitted by the management device 1. The control rights information includes control permission position information indicating a control permission position where control by the user of the delivery vehicle 3 is permitted, and control entity identification information for identifying the control entity that controls the delivery vehicle 3 at the control permission position. The user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to the management device 1. The control instruction information includes position information indicating a position where the delivery vehicle 3 should be moved, and control entity identification information for identifying the user terminal 2. The management device 1 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the user terminal 2. The management device 1 transmits the control instruction information received from the user terminal 2 to the delivery vehicle 3. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the management device 1.

[0236] Then, the delivery vehicle 3 performs a control feasibility determination process to determine whether or not to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3. The control feasibility determination process includes a process by the controllable position determination unit 326 to determine whether the current position is a control-permitted position indicated by the control permission position information, and a process by the controllable entity determination unit 327 to determine whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information included in the control rights information. If, as a result of the control feasibility determination process, it is determined that the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 should be controlled, the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 is controlled based on the position information included in the control instruction information.

[0237] Figure 20 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in a second modified example of this embodiment 1.

[0238] As shown in Figure 20, in the second modified example of this embodiment 1, the management device 1 stores control rights information but does not transmit the control rights information to the delivery vehicle 3. The control rights information includes control permission location information indicating a control permission location where control by the user of the delivery vehicle 3 is permitted, and control entity identification information for identifying the control entity that controls the delivery vehicle 3 at the control permission location. The user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to the management device 1. The control instruction information includes location information indicating the location where the delivery vehicle 3 should be moved, and control entity identification information for identifying the user terminal 2. The management device 1 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the user terminal 2.

[0239] The management device 1 then performs a control feasibility determination process to determine whether or not to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3. This control feasibility determination process includes determining whether the current location is a control-permitted location indicated by the control permission location information, and determining whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information included in the control rights information. To perform this process, the management device 1 needs the current location information of the delivery vehicle 3, so it obtains the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 from the delivery vehicle 3. When the management device 1 receives the control instruction information from the user terminal 2, it requests the delivery vehicle 3 to transmit the location information. Alternatively, if the management device 1 has already obtained the location information of the delivery vehicle 3 immediately before receiving the control instruction information, it may use the previously obtained location information without requesting the delivery vehicle 3 to transmit new location information.

[0240] In this case, the control unit 12 of the management device 1 further includes a controllable location determination unit that determines whether the current location is a controllable location indicated by the control permission location information, and a controllable entity determination unit that determines whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information included in the control rights information. If the management device 1 determines, as a result of the control feasibility determination process, that it is appropriate to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3, it transmits the control instruction information received from the user terminal 2 to the delivery vehicle 3. At this time, the control instruction information includes only location information and does not include the control entity identification information. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the management device 1. The delivery vehicle 3 then controls its movement based on the location information included in the received control instruction information. The control instruction information may also include the control entity identification information. In that case, the control entity identification information may be ignored by the delivery vehicle 3.

[0241] Furthermore, if the control feasibility determination process determines that the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 should not be controlled, the management device 1 may be configured not to send control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3, or it may be configured to notify the delivery vehicle 3 that it received control instruction information but that it was not a valid control instruction. The former configuration reduces the amount of communication and avoids requiring the delivery vehicle 3 to perform unnecessary processing.

[0242] Figure 21 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of controlling the movement of a delivery vehicle in a third modified example of this embodiment 1.

[0243] As shown in Figure 21, in the third modified example of this embodiment 1, the management device 1 stores control rights information but does not transmit the control rights information to the delivery vehicle 3. The control rights information includes control permission position information indicating a control permission position where control by the user of the delivery vehicle 3 is permitted, and control entity identification information for identifying the control entity that controls the delivery vehicle 3 at the control permission position. The user terminal 2 transmits control instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3. The control instruction information includes position information indicating the position where the delivery vehicle 3 should be moved, and control entity identification information for identifying the user terminal 2. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the user terminal 2. The delivery vehicle 3 transmits the control instruction information received from the user terminal 2 to the management device 1. The management device 1 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the delivery vehicle 3. At this transmission timing, the delivery vehicle 3 transmits its location information. Furthermore, although not limited to this configuration, if the management device 1 constantly acquires the location information of the delivery vehicle 3, the delivery vehicle 3 does not need to transmit its location information at this timing.

[0244] The management device 1 then performs a control feasibility determination process to determine whether or not to control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3. The control feasibility determination process includes a process to determine whether the current position is a control-permitted position indicated by the control-permitted position information, and a process to determine whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information included in the control rights information. In this case, the control unit 12 of the management device 1 further includes a controllable position determination unit that determines whether the current position is a control-permitted position indicated by the control-permitted position information, and a controllable entity determination unit that determines whether the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information matches the control entity identification information included in the control rights information. If the management device 1 determines, as a result of the control feasibility determination process, that it will control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3, it transmits the control instruction information received from the delivery vehicle 3 to the delivery vehicle 3. At this time, the control instruction information includes only position information and does not include the control entity identification information. The delivery vehicle 3 receives the control instruction information transmitted by the management device 1. The delivery vehicle 3 then controls its movement based on the position information included in the received control instruction information. The management device 1 may also transmit the result of the control feasibility determination process to the delivery vehicle 3. The delivery vehicle 3 may decide whether or not to control the vehicle according to the control instruction information based on the result of the control feasibility determination process.

[0245] When user terminal 2 controls delivery vehicle 3 via management device 1, poor communication conditions may prevent communication from user terminal 2 to management device 1. Therefore, it is desirable that management device 1 pre-transmits control rights information to delivery vehicle 3, and user terminal 2 directly transmits control instruction information to delivery vehicle 3, allowing delivery vehicle 3 to determine whether or not it is controllable.

[0246] In this embodiment 1, the delivery vehicle 3 determines whether the user is a legitimate control entity based on the control entity identification information included in the control instruction information and the user identification information included in the control rights information. However, the user may be authenticated as a legitimate control entity before acquiring the control instruction information. For example, the delivery vehicle 3 may perform an authentication process using the user identification information of a user who accessed it from an external source, and after determining that the user is legitimate, it may receive the control instruction information transmitted by that user and control the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 according to the control instruction information.

[0247] Here, user identification information may be, for example, a combination of user ID and password, or biometric information. Biometric information may be, for example, a fingerprint, iris, or face. Before accepting input of control instruction information, user terminal 2 accepts input of user identification information from the user and transmits the accepted user identification information to delivery vehicle 3. Delivery vehicle 3 receives the user identification information transmitted by user terminal 2 and authenticates the received user identification information. The user identification information used for authentication is pre-registered in delivery vehicle 3. If delivery vehicle 3 approves the received user identification information, it maintains the login state with user terminal 2. Subsequently, when user terminal 2 accepts input of control instruction information, if the login state with delivery vehicle 3 is maintained, it does not need to accept input of user identification information. Authentication of user identification information transmitted by user terminal 2 may be performed by management device 1.

[0248] Furthermore, when delivery vehicle 3 delivers goods, at the delivery source and destination, and when delivery vehicle 3 delivers people, at the delivery source, the user controls delivery vehicle 3 from outside the vehicle, allowing them to issue control instructions while checking the surroundings of delivery vehicle 3. On the other hand, when delivery vehicle 3 delivers people, at the delivery destination, the user is inside the vehicle, and therefore controls delivery vehicle 3 from inside the vehicle. In this case, the user cannot issue control instructions while checking the surroundings of delivery vehicle 3. Therefore, when delivery vehicle 3 delivers people, upon arrival at the delivery destination, delivery vehicle 3 may transmit vehicle surrounding information to the user terminal 2. Vehicle surrounding information includes, for example, image or video information including the area where the user disembarks. With this configuration, the user can check the surroundings of delivery vehicle 3 while inside the vehicle and issue control instructions to delivery vehicle 3. Note that delivery vehicle 3 may transmit vehicle surrounding information directly to the user terminal 2, or it may transmit it to the user terminal 2 via another device such as the management device 1.

[0249] Furthermore, in this embodiment 1, the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 is controlled at the delivery source or destination, but the disclosure is not limited thereto, and the opening and closing of the doors of the delivery vehicle 3 may be controlled, the lights of the delivery vehicle 3 may be controlled, or other operations of the delivery vehicle 3 may be controlled at the delivery source or destination.

[0250] Furthermore, in this embodiment 1, the control instruction support information generation unit 125 of the management device 1 generates control instruction support information, the information transmission unit 126 transmits the control instruction support information, and the communication unit 21 of the user terminal 2 receives the control instruction support information from the management device 1, but this disclosure is not particularly limited thereto. For example, if the user terminal 2 has an application program installed for making dispatch requests, the storage unit 25 of the user terminal 2 may store the control instruction support information in advance. The display unit 22 may display the control instruction support information stored in the storage unit 25, and the input unit 23 may accept input of control instruction information from the user. In this case, the management device 1 does not need to have a control instruction support information generation unit 125, and the information transmission unit 126 does not need to have a function to transmit control instruction support information. Also, the display unit 22 may display different modes for when control instructions can be given to the delivery vehicle 3 and when control instructions cannot be given to the delivery vehicle 3.

[0251] Specifically, the display unit 22 displays control instruction support information in a display mode that allows control instructions when the position of the delivery vehicle 3 reaches a position that permits dispatch control by the user terminal 2, and displays control instruction support information in a display mode that makes control instructions impossible when the position of the delivery vehicle 3 moves away from a position that permits dispatch control by the user terminal 2. In this configuration, the management device 1 monitors the position of the delivery vehicle 3. Then, when the position of the delivery vehicle 3 reaches a position that permits dispatch control by the user terminal 2, the management device 1 instructs the application on the user terminal 2 to switch the display mode.

[0252] Furthermore, when the delivery vehicle 3 is positioned to allow dispatch control by the user terminal 2, and the delivery vehicle 3 has stopped, that is, when the delivery vehicle 3 has arrived at the delivery destination or origin, the display unit 22 may display control instruction support information in a display mode that indicates that control instructions are possible. Alternatively, the display unit 22 may be configured to notify the user that the system has become controllable, rather than switching display modes.

[0253] Furthermore, if the delivery vehicle 3 is equipped with an input device (not shown) for the user to input control instruction information, the storage unit 33 of the delivery vehicle 3 may store control instruction support information in advance. The display unit (not shown) of the delivery vehicle 3 may display the control instruction support information stored in the storage unit 33, and the input device may accept control instruction information input by the user.

[0254] Furthermore, in this embodiment 1, the control rights information includes location information of the delivery source and location information of the delivery destination, but this disclosure is not limited thereto, and the control rights information may include the estimated arrival time of the delivery vehicle at the delivery source and the estimated arrival time of the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination instead of the location information of the delivery source and location information of the delivery destination.

[0255] Figure 22 shows another example of control rights information stored in the control rights information storage unit in this embodiment 1. The control rights information shown in Figure 22 includes a dispatch request identification number for identifying the dispatch request information, information indicating either the delivery source or the delivery destination, the estimated arrival time, user identification information, and vehicle identification information of the delivery vehicle. The estimated arrival time indicates the estimated arrival time at the delivery source of the delivery vehicle and the estimated arrival time at the delivery source of the delivery vehicle.

[0256] User terminal 2 accepts user input of the estimated arrival time of the delivery vehicle at the delivery source and the estimated arrival time of the delivery vehicle at the delivery source. User terminal 2 transmits dispatch request information, including user information, the estimated arrival time of the delivery vehicle at the delivery source and the estimated arrival time of the delivery vehicle at the delivery source, to management device 1.

[0257] The user terminal 2 may also transmit dispatch request information, including user information, location information of the delivery source, and location information of the delivery destination, to the management device 1. The management device 1 may calculate the estimated arrival time from the current location of the dispatched vehicle to the delivery source based on the current location of the dispatched vehicle and the location information of the delivery source. Alternatively, the management device 1 may calculate the estimated arrival time from the current location of the dispatched vehicle to the delivery destination based on the current location of the dispatched vehicle and the location information of the delivery destination.

[0258] In FIG. 22, for example, at the scheduled arrival time of the delivery source, which is 15:30, control authority for controlling the delivery vehicle with vehicle identification information "a" is set for the user with user identification information "A". Also, for example, at the scheduled arrival time of the delivery destination, which is 16:00, control authority for controlling the delivery vehicle with vehicle identification information "a" is set for the user with user identification information "B".

[0259] The delivery vehicle 3 includes a controllable time determination unit instead of the controllable position determination unit 326. The controllable time determination unit determines whether the current time is the scheduled arrival time included in the control authority information. When control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 transmitted from the outside is acquired, the controllable time determination unit determines, based on the control authority information, whether the current time is the scheduled arrival time of the delivery source or the scheduled arrival time of the delivery destination indicated in the control authority information. If the result of the determination is that the current time is determined to be the scheduled arrival time of the delivery source or the scheduled arrival time of the delivery destination indicated in the control authority information, the process proceeds to the controllable subject determination unit 327. On the other hand, if the result of the determination is that the current time is not the scheduled arrival time of the delivery source and the scheduled arrival time of the delivery destination indicated in the control authority information, the control instruction information is not followed and the process ends. ​​​​​​Note that, instead of a configuration that grants control authority based on the scheduled arrival time, a configuration may be adopted in which the user terminal 2 is granted control authority for a predetermined period from the arrival time at the actual arrival timing. If control authority is granted according to the scheduled arrival time, the delivery vehicle 3 may not actually arrive at its scheduled arrival time. Therefore, considering that the arrival may be before or after the scheduled time, there is a possibility that the user cannot control the delivery vehicle 3. However, this configuration can prevent that.

[0262] Also, when granting control authority to the user according to time, it is preferable that the display unit 22 of the user terminal 2 displays the period during which control is permitted. With this configuration, the user can grasp how long they can control the delivery vehicle 3.

[0263] (Embodiment 2) In the second embodiment, a method in which the management device changes the setting of the control authority for controlling the delivery vehicle set based on the vehicle allocation request information according to the delivery status of the delivery vehicle will be described.

[0264] FIG. 23 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management device in the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The management device 1A includes a communication unit 11, a control unit 12A, and a storage unit 13A. In FIG. 23, the same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.

[0265] The management device 1A shown in FIG. 23 is different from the management device 1 shown in FIG. 2 in terms of the control unit 12A and the storage unit 13A.

[0266] The control unit 12A includes a vehicle allocation request information acquisition unit 121, a user identification information acquisition unit 122, a delivery vehicle determination unit 123, a control authority setting unit 124, a control instruction support information generation unit 125, an information transmission unit 126, a delivery status information acquisition unit 127A, a control authority change unit 128A, and a control authority change notification information generation unit 129A. The control unit 12A shown in FIG. 23 is different from the control unit 12 of the management device 1 shown in FIG. 2 in terms of the delivery status information acquisition unit 127A, the control authority change unit 128A, and the control authority change notification information generation unit 129A.

[0267] The delivery status information acquisition unit 127A acquires delivery status information from the delivery vehicle 3A regarding the status of the delivery vehicle 3A delivering the delivery target in response to the dispatch request information. Delivery status information is information that indicates the delivery status of the delivery vehicle 3A, such as the delivery vehicle 3A not yet arriving at the delivery source, the delivery vehicle 3A having completed loading of the delivery target at the delivery source, the delivery vehicle 3A in the process of delivering the delivery target from the delivery source to the delivery destination, or the delivery vehicle 3A having completed unloading the delivery target at the delivery destination. This delivery status information is generated by the delivery status information generation unit 328A of the delivery vehicle 3A, which will be described later, based on the vehicle location information of the delivery vehicle 3A acquired from the sensor unit 34, or the loading detection information acquired by the delivery status information generation unit 328A, which will be described later, based on the loading detection unit 36A.

[0268] The delivery status information may be vehicle location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34 of the delivery vehicle 3A, or load detection information obtained from the load detection unit 36A. In this case, the delivery status information specifically refers to information that can be used to determine the delivery status, such as information indicating that the vehicle has stopped at the delivery destination or delivery source, information indicating that the delivery items have been loaded at the delivery destination, information indicating that a user has boarded the vehicle, information indicating that the delivery items have been unloaded at the delivery source, and information indicating that a user has disembarked from the vehicle. However, in this configuration, the management device 1A must have a separate function to determine the delivery status using the acquired delivery status information.

[0269] The control rights change unit 128A changes the setting of vehicle control rights based on predetermined conditions. Based on the delivery status information acquired by the delivery status information acquisition unit 127A, the control rights change unit 128A determines whether predetermined conditions are met and changes the setting of control rights based on the result of that determination. Specifically, if the delivery status information indicates that the loading of the delivery items has been completed at the delivery source (dispatch destination), the control rights change unit 128A removes the setting of control rights (delivery source vehicle control rights) for the delivery source user identification information that allows control by the user of the delivery vehicle 3A on which the delivery items are loaded at the delivery source. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the user corresponding to the delivery source user identification information from controlling the delivery vehicle 3A located at the delivery source after the loading of the delivery items has been completed at the delivery source. Furthermore, even if the delivery vehicle 3A is located at the same location as the delivery source at a different time, it is possible to prevent the user corresponding to the delivery source user identification information from illegally controlling the delivery vehicle 3A.

[0270] The example shown here describes the case where delivery vehicle 3A delivers goods, but the same effect can be obtained even when delivery vehicle 3A delivers people. That is, when the delivery-related information indicates that the user has completed boarding at the delivery source (dispatch destination), the control right change unit 128A removes the setting of the control right (boarding vehicle control right) for the delivery source user identification information, which allows the user to control the delivery vehicle 3A in which the user is boarding at the delivery source.

[0271] In this example, when the delivery status information indicates that the loading of the delivery items at the delivery source is complete, the control right change unit 128A cancels the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information, but this disclosure is not limited to this. After it has been determined that the delivery status information indicates that the loading of the delivery items at the delivery source is complete, the control right change unit 128A may cancel the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information at any time. For example, after a predetermined period has elapsed since it was determined that the delivery status information indicates that the loading of the delivery items at the delivery source is complete, the control right change unit 128A may cancel the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information.

[0272] As another example, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the loading of the items to be delivered at the delivery source has been completed, and after the delivery vehicle 3A has traveled a predetermined distance, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control right to the delivery source user identification information. As yet another example, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the loading of the items to be delivered at the delivery source has been completed, and a predetermined time has arrived, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control right to the delivery source user identification information. For example, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control right to the delivery source user identification information on the day following the day on which the items to be delivered were loaded.

[0273] However, if a long period of time elapses after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the loading of the delivery items at the delivery source is complete, the user corresponding to the delivery source user identification information may be able to control the delivery vehicle 3A located at the delivery source after the loading of the delivery items at the delivery source is complete. Therefore, it is preferable that the control rights change unit 128A releases the setting of control rights for the delivery source user identification information as soon as possible after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the loading of the delivery items at the delivery source is complete.

[0274] As another example, if the delivery-related information indicates that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed, the control rights change unit 128A cancels the setting of the control rights (delivery destination vehicle control rights) for the delivery destination user identification information, which allows the user of the delivery vehicle 3A from which the delivered goods are unloaded at the delivery destination to control the vehicle. This configuration prevents the user corresponding to the delivery source user identification information from controlling the delivery vehicle 3A located at the delivery destination after the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed. Furthermore, even if the delivery vehicle 3A is located at the same location as the delivery destination at a different time, it prevents the user corresponding to the delivery destination user identification information from illegally controlling the delivery vehicle 3A.

[0275] The example shown here describes the case where delivery vehicle 3A delivers goods, but the same effect can be obtained even when delivery vehicle 3A delivers people. That is, when the delivery-related information indicates that the user has completed disembarking at the delivery destination, the control rights change unit 128A removes the setting of the control rights (disembarking vehicle control rights) that allow the user to control delivery vehicle 3A from which the user has disembarked at the delivery destination, for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0276] In this example, the control right change unit 128A cancels the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information when the delivery status information indicates that the delivery item has been unloaded at the delivery destination, but this disclosure is not limited to this. The control right change unit 128A may cancel the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information at any time after it has been determined that the delivery status information indicates that the delivery item has been unloaded at the delivery destination. For example, the control right change unit 128A may cancel the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information after a predetermined period has elapsed since it was determined that the delivery status information indicates that the delivery item has been unloaded at the delivery destination.

[0277] As another example, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed, and the delivery vehicle 3A has traveled a predetermined distance, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control right to the delivery destination user identification information. As yet another example, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed, and a predetermined time has arrived, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control right to the delivery destination user identification information. For example, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control right to the delivery destination user identification information on the day following the day in which the delivered goods were unloaded.

[0278] Furthermore, in the example described above, the control right modification unit 128A cancels the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information at the time the delivery items are loaded at the delivery source and at the time the delivery items are unloaded at the delivery destination, respectively, but this disclosure is not limited to this. As another example, the control right modification unit 128A may cancel the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information all at once at the time the unloading of the delivery items at the delivery destination is completed.

[0279] Specifically, when the delivery-related information indicates that the unloading of the goods to be delivered has been completed at the delivery destination, the control rights change unit 128A removes the setting of the control rights (delivery source vehicle control rights) that allow the user of the delivery vehicle 3A on which the goods to be delivered is loaded at the delivery source (dispatch destination) to control the delivery source user identification information, and removes the setting of the control rights (delivery destination vehicle control rights) that allow the user of the delivery vehicle 3A on which the goods to be delivered is unloaded at the delivery destination (destination) to control the delivery destination user identification information. In this configuration, the control rights setting change process is performed all at once, so the amount of processing can be reduced.

[0280] The example shown here describes the case where delivery vehicle 3A delivers goods, but the same effect can be obtained even when delivery vehicle 3A delivers people. That is, when the delivery-related information indicates that the user has completed disembarking at the delivery destination, the control rights change unit 128A removes the setting of the control rights (boarding vehicle control rights) that allow the user to control the delivery vehicle 3A in which the user is riding at the delivery source (dispatch destination), and the setting of the control rights (disembarking vehicle control rights) that allow the user to control the delivery vehicle 3A in which the user is disembarking at the delivery destination (destination), for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0281] In this example, when the delivery status information indicates that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed, the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of the control right to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of the control right to the delivery destination user identification information. However, this disclosure is not limited to this. After it has been determined that the delivery status information indicates that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of the control right to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of the control right to the delivery destination user identification information at any time. For example, after a predetermined period has elapsed since it was determined that the delivery status information indicates that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination has been completed, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of the control right to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of the control right to the delivery destination user identification information.

[0282] As another example, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination is complete, and the delivery vehicle 3A has traveled a predetermined distance, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information. As yet another example, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate that the unloading of the delivered goods at the delivery destination is complete, and a predetermined time has passed, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information. For example, on the day following the day on which the delivered goods were unloaded, the control right change unit 128A may release the setting of control rights to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control rights to the delivery destination user identification information.

[0283] However, if a long time elapses after the delivery status information is determined to indicate the completion of unloading the object to be delivered at the delivery destination, after the completion of unloading the object to be delivered at the delivery destination, the user corresponding to the delivery source user identification information or the user corresponding to the delivery destination user identification information can control the delivery vehicle 3A existing at the delivery source or the delivery destination. Therefore, after the delivery status information is determined to indicate the completion of unloading the object to be delivered at the delivery destination, it is preferable that the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of the control right for the delivery source user identification information and the setting of the control right for the delivery destination user identification information as soon as possible.

[0284] Note that regarding the rules on how to change the setting of the control right under what delivery status, it is preferable that, for example, an administrator or the like sets them in advance. Here, the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process will be described using FIGS. 24 and 25.

[0285] FIG. 24 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process when changing the setting of the control right at the delivery source and the delivery destination in the second embodiment.

[0286] In FIG. 24, when the loading of the object to be delivered is completed at the delivery source, the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of the control right for the delivery source user identification information. Also, when the user's boarding is completed at the delivery source, the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of the control right for the delivery source user identification information. Further, when the unloading of the object to be delivered is completed at the delivery destination, the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of the control right for the delivery destination user identification information. Furthermore, when the user's alighting is completed at the delivery destination, the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of the control right for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0287] FIG. 25 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process when changing the setting of the control right at the delivery destination in the second embodiment.

[0288] In Figure 25, when the unloading of the goods to be delivered is completed at the delivery destination, the control rights change unit 128A releases the setting of control rights for the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control rights for the delivery destination user identification information. In this case, even if loading or boarding is completed at the delivery source, the setting of control rights for the delivery source user identification information is not released.

[0289] The control rights change notification information generation unit 129A generates control rights change notification information to notify the user to whom control rights have been set that the control rights have been changed.

[0290] Figure 26 shows an example of control right change notification information in this second embodiment. In Figure 26, based on the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process shown in Figure 25, the unloading of the delivered goods is completed at the delivery destination, and the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of control right to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control right to the delivery destination user identification information. Note that, as in the example in Figure 26, if it is clear in advance that the control right setting will be changed, the control instruction support information generation unit 125 may generate and transmit control instruction support information including the control right change notification information.

[0291] Figure 27 shows an example of control instruction support information including control right change notification information in this second embodiment. Based on the relationship between the delivery status and the control right setting change process shown in Figure 25, Figure 27 shows an example of control right change notification information for notifying that the setting of control right to the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control right to the delivery destination user identification information will be released when the unloading of the delivered goods is completed at the delivery destination. When the user terminal 2 completes dispatching to the delivery source, it displays the control instruction support information shown in Figure 27. At this time, the control instruction support information includes control right change notification information.

[0292] The storage unit 13A includes a dispatch request information storage unit 131, a user information storage unit 132, a vehicle information storage unit 133, a control rights information storage unit 134, a delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135, a control rights setting program storage unit 136, a control instruction support information generation program storage unit 137, a control rights setting change program storage unit 138A, and a control rights change notification information generation program storage unit 139A. The storage unit 13A differs from the storage unit 13 of the management device 1 shown in Figure 2 in that the control rights setting change program storage unit 138A and the control rights change notification information generation program storage unit 139A are different.

[0293] The control rights setting change program storage unit 138A determines whether predetermined conditions are met based on the delivery status information acquired by the delivery status information acquisition unit 127A, and stores a control rights setting change program for changing the control rights based on the determination result. The control rights setting change program is executed by the control rights change unit 128A.

[0294] The control rights change notification information generation program storage unit 139A stores a control rights change notification information generation program for generating control rights change notification information to notify a user who has been granted control rights that the control rights have been changed. The control rights change notification information generation program is executed by the control rights change notification information generation unit 129A.

[0295] Next, we will describe the delivery vehicle 3A in this second embodiment.

[0296] Figure 28 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a delivery vehicle in Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure. The delivery vehicle 3A includes a communication unit 31, a control unit 32A, a storage unit 33A, a sensor unit 34, a drive unit 35, and a load detection unit 36A. In Figure 28, the same reference numerals are used for components similar to those in Figure 7, and detailed explanations are omitted.

[0297] The delivery vehicle 3A shown in Figure 28 differs from the delivery vehicle 3 shown in Figure 7 in that it has a control unit 32A, a memory unit 33A, and a load detection unit 36A.

[0298] The control unit 32A includes a movement control unit 321, a vehicle position information acquisition unit 322, a dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323, a control rights information acquisition unit 324, a control instruction information acquisition unit 325, a controllable position determination unit 326, a controllable subject determination unit 327, a delivery status information generation unit 328A, and a delivery status information transmission unit 329A. The control unit 32A differs from the control unit 32 of the delivery vehicle 3 shown in Figure 7 in that the delivery status information generation unit 328A and the delivery status information transmission unit 329A are different.

[0299] The delivery status information generation unit 328A generates delivery status information based on the vehicle location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34, or the load detection information obtained from the load detection unit 36A.

[0300] For example, the delivery status information generation unit 328A detects that the delivery vehicle 3A stopped at the delivery source and then resumed movement from the delivery source, based on the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34. Based on this detection result, the delivery status information generation unit 328A determines that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery items at the delivery source and generates delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery items at the delivery source. However, in this example, it is unclear whether the delivery items were actually loaded at the delivery source. Therefore, it is desirable for the delivery status information generation unit 328A to combine the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34 and the loading detection information obtained from the loading detection unit 36A to determine whether the delivery items were actually loaded at the delivery source and generate delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery items at the delivery source.

[0301] Furthermore, for example, the delivery status information generation unit 328A detects that the delivery object has been loaded onto the delivery vehicle 3A based on the loading detection information obtained from the loading detection unit 36A, which indicates that the delivery object has been loaded. Based on this detection result, the delivery status information generation unit 328A determines that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery object at the delivery source and generates delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery object at the delivery source. However, in this example, it is unclear whether the delivery object was actually loaded at the delivery source. Therefore, it is desirable for the delivery status information generation unit 328A to combine the vehicle position information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34 and the loading detection information obtained from the loading detection unit 36A to determine that the delivery object was loaded at the delivery source and generate delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery object at the delivery source.

[0302] Similar to the example described above, the delivery status information generation unit 328A detects that the delivery item has been unloaded at the delivery destination and generates delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A has completed unloading the delivery item at the delivery destination.

[0303] As another example, if the delivery status information generation unit 328A determines, based on the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A, that the delivery vehicle 3A is moving toward the delivery source, it generates delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A is moving toward the delivery source. Similarly, if the delivery status information generation unit 328A determines, based on the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A, that the delivery vehicle 3A has stopped at the delivery source and is now moving toward the delivery destination, it generates delivery status information indicating that the delivery vehicle 3A is moving toward the delivery destination.

[0304] In this embodiment 2, four delivery statuses were described: the delivery vehicle 3A has completed loading the delivery items at the delivery source, the delivery vehicle 3A has completed unloading the delivery items at the delivery destination, the delivery vehicle 3A is moving back to the delivery source, and the delivery vehicle 3A is moving to the delivery destination. However, the delivery status information generation unit 328A may detect the delivery status in more detail and generate delivery status information. In addition, the delivery status information generation unit 328A may generate delivery status information using vehicle status information indicating the vehicle status of the delivery vehicle 3A, in addition to the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34.

[0305] The delivery status information generation unit 328A generates delivery status information regarding the status of delivery of the delivery vehicle 3A based on the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34 or the load detection information obtained from the load detection unit 36A. However, the delivery status information generation unit 328A may also generate the delivery status information using the location information of the delivery vehicle 3A obtained from the sensor unit 34 or the load detection information obtained from the load detection unit itself. In this configuration, the management device 1A needs to have a separate function to determine the delivery status using the acquired delivery status information.

[0306] The timing at which the delivery status information generation unit 328A generates delivery status information may be arbitrary. For example, the delivery status information generation unit 328A generates delivery status information periodically. However, since the delivery status changes when the delivery vehicle 3A is located near the delivery source and delivery destination, it is preferable that the delivery status information generation unit 328A generates delivery status information periodically only when it detects that the delivery vehicle 3A is in the vicinity of the delivery source and delivery destination. This configuration reduces the processing required when the delivery status is not considered to be changing.

[0307] The delivery status information transmission unit 329A transmits the delivery status information generated by the delivery status information generation unit 328A to the management device 1A via the communication unit 31. The delivery status information transmission unit 329A may transmit the delivery status information to the management device 1A periodically, or it may transmit the delivery status information only when the delivery status changes.

[0308] The memory unit 33A includes a map information memory unit 331, an automated driving basic program memory unit 332, a route information memory unit 333, a vehicle location information memory unit 334, a dispatch instruction information memory unit 335, a control rights information memory unit 336, a controllable location determination program memory unit 337, a controllable subject determination program memory unit 338, and a delivery status information generation program memory unit 339A. The memory unit 33A differs from the memory unit 33 of the delivery vehicle 3 shown in Figure 7 in that the delivery status information generation program memory unit 339A is different.

[0309] The delivery status information generation program storage unit 339A stores a delivery status information generation program for generating delivery status information indicating the delivery status of the delivery vehicle 3A. The delivery status information generation program is executed by the delivery status information generation unit 328A.

[0310] The loading detection unit 36A detects when an object to be delivered is loaded onto the delivery vehicle 3A or when an object to be delivered is unloaded from the delivery vehicle 3A. The loading detection unit 36A also detects when a user boards the delivery vehicle 3A or when a user alights from the delivery vehicle 3A. Specifically, the loading detection unit 36A is a pressure sensor positioned at the location where the object to be delivered is loaded or where the user is seated on the delivery vehicle 3A. Alternatively, the loading detection unit 36A may be an illuminance sensor positioned at the location where the object to be delivered is loaded or where the user is seated on the delivery vehicle 3A. Alternatively, the loading detection unit 36A may be a camera that photographs the location where the object to be delivered is loaded or where the user is seated on the delivery vehicle 3A. Alternatively, the loading detection unit 36A may be a sensor that detects the opening and closing of the doors of the delivery vehicle 3A.

[0311] The pressure sensor detects whether a delivery item is loaded or a user is in the vehicle by measuring the pressure caused by the weight of the delivery item or the user. The illuminance sensor detects whether a delivery item is loaded or a user is in the vehicle by measuring the change in illuminance at the location where the delivery item is loaded or the user is in the vehicle. The camera detects whether a delivery item is loaded or a user is in the vehicle by analyzing the difference in images taken at the location where the delivery item is loaded or the user is in the vehicle.

[0312] Furthermore, the doors will open and close when goods are loaded, unloaded, or when a passenger boards or alights. Therefore, the door opening / closing sensor of the delivery vehicle 3A detects whether goods are loaded or whether a passenger is inside by detecting the opening and closing of the doors. However, if the loading detection unit 36A is a door opening / closing sensor, the detection accuracy for whether goods are loaded into the delivery vehicle 3A, whether goods have been unloaded from the delivery vehicle 3A, whether a passenger has boarded or alighted from the delivery vehicle 3A will be lower compared to the other sensors mentioned above, although the determination can be made with a simple configuration.

[0313] Furthermore, when the delivery vehicle 3A is delivering people, a person detection sensor such as an infrared sensor may be used to detect when a user boards or alights. Note that the loading detection unit 36A may use other sensors as long as they can detect that an object to be delivered has been loaded onto the delivery vehicle 3A, that an object to be delivered has been unloaded from the delivery vehicle 3A, or that a user has boarded or alighted from the delivery vehicle 3A.

[0314] Next, the process by which the management device 1A, configured as described above, changes the control rights of the delivery vehicle 3A based on the delivery status information obtained from the delivery vehicle 3A will be explained using the flowchart in Figure 29.

[0315] Figure 29 is a flowchart illustrating the process for changing the control rights in Embodiment 2 of this disclosure.

[0316] First, the delivery status information acquisition unit 127A of the management device 1A acquires the delivery status information transmitted from the delivery vehicle 3A (step S31).

[0317] Next, the control rights change unit 128A determines whether the delivery status meets predetermined conditions based on the acquired delivery status information (step S32). For example, when the control rights change unit 128A performs a control rights setting change process using the information shown in Figure 25, it determines whether the unloading of the delivered goods or the disembarking of the user has been completed at the delivery destination. If it is determined that the delivery status does not meet the predetermined conditions, that is, if it is determined that the unloading of the delivered goods or the disembarking of the user has not been completed at the delivery destination (NO in step S32), the process is terminated without changing the control rights setting.

[0318] On the other hand, if it is determined that the delivery status meets the predetermined conditions, that is, if it is determined that the unloading of the delivered goods has been completed at the delivery destination or that the user has disembarked (YES in step S32), the control right change unit 128A changes the control right setting (step S33). For example, when performing the control right setting change process using the information shown in Figure 25, if it is determined that the unloading of the delivered goods has been completed at the delivery destination or that the user has disembarked, the control right change unit 128A releases the setting of control right for the delivery source user identification information and the setting of control right for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0319] Next, the control rights change notification information generation unit 129A generates control rights change notification information to notify the user corresponding to the delivery source user identification information or delivery destination user identification information whose control rights have been changed (step S34). For example, as shown in Figure 26, the user terminal 2 displays control rights change notification information to notify that the delivery of the package to the delivery destination has been completed and that control of the delivery vehicle 3A located at the delivery destination has been lost. If the conditions under which the control rights will be changed are known in advance, the control instruction support information generation unit 125 may generate control instruction support information that includes the control rights change notification information. For example, as shown in Figure 27, the user terminal 2 displays control instruction support information that includes control rights change notification information to notify that control of the delivery vehicle 3A will be lost after the delivery of the package to the delivery destination has been completed.

[0320] Next, the information transmission unit 126 transmits the control right change notification information generated by the control right change notification information generation unit 129A to the user terminal 2 of the user corresponding to the source user identification information or destination user identification information for which the control right setting has been changed (step S35).

[0321] Next, the information transmission unit 126 transmits control rights information regarding the changed control rights to the delivery vehicle 3A (step S36).

[0322] Through the above process, the management device 1A can change the control rights setting for controlling the delivery vehicle 3A according to the dispatch request information, depending on the delivery status of the delivery vehicle 3A. This prevents a user who has been granted control rights from controlling the delivery vehicle 3A even after the delivery based on the dispatch request information has been completed. For example, if the first user previously had control rights to the delivery vehicle, and the second user made a dispatch request with the same location as the first user as the delivery source or destination, and the delivery vehicle arrived at the delivery source, the first user could issue a control instruction to the arrived delivery vehicle. If the first user was a malicious user, they could move the arrived delivery vehicle to a different location. However, with the configuration of this embodiment 2, the control rights setting can be changed, preventing other users other than the second user from controlling the delivery vehicle. In particular, in the case of apartment buildings and other multi-unit dwellings, there are likely to be users who specify the same delivery source or destination, so it is considered highly likely that such a problem will be encountered.

[0323] In this embodiment 2, we have described a case where the delivery process proceeds smoothly based on the dispatch request information. However, the delivery process does not always proceed smoothly. For example, when a delivery vehicle delivers goods, if the user at the delivery destination is absent, the delivery vehicle cannot complete the delivery process. If the user at the delivery destination is absent, the delivery vehicle may change the delivery time and attempt to deliver again. To address such situations, the control right change unit 128A may temporarily disable the setting of control rights for the delivery destination user identification information if the user at the delivery destination is absent. Then, when the delivery item is to be resent to the delivery destination, the control right change unit 128A may re-enable the setting of control rights for the delivery destination user identification information.

[0324] As a method for enabling or disabling the setting of control rights, the control rights modification unit 128A adds information indicating whether the control rights granted to the source user identification information or destination user identification information are enabled or disabled, and modifies that information. Alternatively, in another configuration, the control rights modification unit 128A may delete the control rights when disabling them, and re-register the control rights when re-enabling them. In this configuration, the control rights modification unit 128A needs to store information for re-enabling the control rights in the storage unit 13A. For example, the control rights modification unit 128A can store information regarding the re-delivery in the storage unit 13A and re-register the control rights based on the destination information contained in that information.

[0325] Furthermore, if the recipient is absent and delivery is to be made again at a different time, and the period until redelivery is short, the control rights change unit 128A does not need to change the control rights setting. This is because the possibility of the control rights being misused during the short period until redelivery is considered low. This configuration reduces the processing required to change the control rights setting. For example, if the recipient is absent and delivery is to be made again on the same day, the control rights change unit 128A does not change the control rights setting. On the other hand, if the redelivery is scheduled for the following day or later, the control rights change unit 128A may change the control rights setting. It is preferable that a threshold for determining whether the period until redelivery is short or not is set in advance by an administrator or the like.

[0326] Furthermore, if the recipient is absent and delivery is to be made again at a different time, even if the period until redelivery is short, if the same delivery vehicle 3 delivers to the same delivery address multiple times, it is preferable for the control rights change unit 128A to change the control rights setting. This is because a user with control rights could illegally control delivery vehicle 3. Therefore, this configuration prevents a user with control rights from illegally controlling delivery vehicle 3. Also, if the recipient is absent and delivery is to be made again at a different time, even if the period until redelivery is long, if the same delivery vehicle 3 does not deliver to the same delivery address, the control rights change unit 128A does not need to change the control rights setting. In other words, in the example shown here, regardless of the period until redelivery, the control rights change unit 128A may change the control rights setting based on the frequency with which delivery vehicle 3 delivers to the delivery address.

[0327] In the case of delivery by a courier service, there may be multiple delivery destinations, and packages may be delivered to these destinations sequentially. Therefore, the control rights setting unit 124 may enable control rights only for the delivery destination that the delivery vehicle 3A is heading to. In this case, since control rights are enabled only for users who require them, it is possible to prevent unauthorized users from controlling the delivery vehicle 3A. Alternatively, even if there are multiple delivery destinations, the control rights setting unit 124 may enable control rights for users at all delivery destinations. This is because users at delivery destinations can only control the delivery vehicle 3 at the delivery destination for which control rights have been set, and cannot control the delivery vehicle 3 at other delivery destinations, thus preventing unauthorized control of the delivery vehicle 3A by users at different delivery destinations. In this case, since control rights are enabled collectively, the process of setting control rights can be performed with less processing effort.

[0328] Furthermore, if the user terminal 2 requests a change in the location information of the delivery source or the location information of the delivery destination, or a change in the delivery source user identification information or the delivery destination user identification information, it is preferable for the control right change unit 128A to change the control right setting in response to the change request. This configuration allows for flexible changes to the control right setting in response to user requests. Similarly, if the user terminal 2 requests to cancel a dispatch request, it is also preferable to release the control right setting. In addition, if the control right setting is changed, the control instruction support information generation unit 125 may generate control instruction support information based on the changed control right and transmit it to the user corresponding to the changed control right. The communication unit 11 may also transmit control right information regarding the changed control right to the delivery vehicle 3. With this configuration, the user can issue control instructions to the delivery vehicle 3A based on the changed control right, and the delivery vehicle 3A can decide whether or not to control the delivery vehicle 3A in accordance with the control instructions of the delivery vehicle 3A based on the changed control right.

[0329] Furthermore, the users who can change the control rights settings may be limited. This configuration prevents, for example, users unrelated to control rights from illegally changing the control rights settings. The users who can change the control rights settings may be predetermined by the administrator of the management device 1A, or they may be set by the user making the dispatch request. For example, the management device 1A may pre-set the user making the dispatch request, the user at the delivery source, and the user at the delivery destination as users who can change the control rights settings.

[0330] In this embodiment 2, the control rights settings are changed according to the delivery status of the delivery vehicle 3A, but the control rights settings may also be changed based on information other than the delivery status. For example, an expiration date may be set for the control rights, and the control rights may only be valid within that expiration date. The control rights setting unit 124 sets expiration date information for the control rights, indicating the period during which the control rights are valid. Then, the control rights modification unit 128A changes the control rights settings based on the expiration date information. For example, the control rights setting unit 124 may set expiration date information that makes the control rights valid only on the day when the delivery vehicle 3A actually delivers the items to be delivered. The control rights modification unit 128A may cancel the control rights setting on the day following the delivery date.

[0331] In this configuration, the control rights can be changed with a simpler process compared to obtaining delivery status information for delivery vehicle 3A and changing the control rights settings based on the delivery status. Furthermore, it becomes easier for users to understand when the control rights settings will be removed. Additionally, control rights with the same expiration date can be changed all at once.

[0332] However, if the period during which control rights are valid is too long, the possibility of the delivery vehicle 3 being illegally controlled by the user with control rights increases; therefore, it is preferable that the expiration period be as short as possible. When an expiration period is set for control rights, the control instruction support information generation unit 125 may also set an expiration period for control instruction support information such as the screen for issuing control instructions, link information to a dedicated web page for issuing control instructions, or password information. If the expiration period is exceeded, the management device 1A prevents the user from issuing control instructions by not displaying the screen for issuing control instructions, deleting the link information to the dedicated web page for issuing control instructions, or making it impossible to authenticate even if password information is entered. This configuration prevents users from issuing control instructions beyond the expiration period.

[0333] (Embodiment 3) Embodiments 1 and 2 describe examples such as on-demand goods delivery services or on-demand taxi services, where the goods to be delivered are loaded at the delivery source or the passenger is picked up, and then the goods to be delivered are unloaded or the passenger is dropped off at the delivery destination. However, this disclosure is not limited to these services. When a delivery vehicle delivers goods, there are also services that deliver goods directly from a distribution center to the delivery destination, and this disclosure can also be applied to such services. Embodiment 3 describes an example in which a delivery vehicle delivers goods directly from a distribution center to the delivery destination.

[0334] In Embodiment 3, since delivery vehicles will deliver the goods from the distribution center, information about the delivery source is unnecessary, and only information about the delivery destination is required. Therefore, in Embodiment 3, information about the delivery source is unnecessary in the dispatch request information, and the dispatch request information includes only information about the delivery destination. Consequently, information about the delivery source user who will use the delivery vehicle at the delivery source is also unnecessary, and only information about the delivery destination user who will use the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination is required, so the management device acquires only the delivery destination user information.

[0335] Figure 30 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management device in Embodiment 3 of the present disclosure. The management device 1B includes a communication unit 11, a control unit 12B, and a storage unit 13B. In Figure 30, the same reference numerals are used for components that are the same as those in Figure 2, and detailed explanations are omitted.

[0336] The management device 1B shown in Figure 30 differs from the management device 1 shown in Figure 2 in that the control unit 12B and the storage unit 13B are different.

[0337] The control unit 12B includes a vehicle dispatch request information acquisition unit 121B, a user identification information acquisition unit 122B, a delivery vehicle determination unit 123, a control authority setting unit 124B, a control instruction support information generation unit 125, and an information transmission unit 126B.

[0338] The dispatch request information acquisition unit 121B acquires dispatch request information from the user terminal 2 via the communication unit 11, including user information indicating the user and location information of the delivery destination. The dispatch request information acquisition unit 121B acquires dispatch request information that includes at least location information indicating the location of the dispatch destination where the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched. In Embodiment 3, the delivery destination is the dispatch destination.

[0339] The user identification information acquisition unit 122B acquires delivery destination user identification information from the user terminal 2 via the communication unit 11 to identify the user using the delivery vehicle located at the delivery destination or the user terminal 2 owned by that user.

[0340] In this embodiment 3, a configuration is described in which dispatch request information and delivery destination user identification information are acquired separately, but a configuration in which these information is acquired together is also possible. For example, the dispatch request information may include delivery destination user identification information, and the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121B may acquire the dispatch request information and delivery destination user identification information together.

[0341] The control right setting unit 124B sets control rights (vehicle control rights) for the user, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle located at the delivery destination, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information. The control right setting unit 124B sets control rights for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination for the delivery destination user identification information, based on the dispatch request information and delivery destination user identification information.

[0342] The information transmission unit 126B transmits control rights information relating to the set control rights to the delivery vehicle 3. The information transmission unit 126B transmits control instruction support information to the user terminal 2 of the delivery destination to which control rights have been granted, via the communication unit 11. Furthermore, the information transmission unit 126B transmits dispatch instruction information based on the dispatch request information to the delivery vehicle 3. The dispatch instruction information includes at least location information of the delivery destination. The dispatch instruction information may also include route information, which includes the route from the vehicle's current location to the delivery destination. In this case, the management device 1B generates the route information, but the delivery vehicle 3 may generate the route information.

[0343] The storage unit 13B includes a dispatch request information storage unit 131, a user information storage unit 132, a vehicle information storage unit 133, a control rights information storage unit 134B, a delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135, a control rights setting program storage unit 136, and a control instruction support information generation program storage unit 137.

[0344] The control rights information storage unit 134B stores control rights information that indicates the control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination, which have been set by the control rights setting unit 124B based on the dispatch request information and the delivery destination user identification information. The control rights information includes a dispatch request identification number for identifying the dispatch request information, information indicating the delivery destination, a controllable location, user identification information, and vehicle identification information of the delivery vehicle. The controllable location indicates the location information of the delivery destination. The controllable location is expressed, for example, by longitude and latitude.

[0345] The configuration of the user terminal and delivery vehicle in Embodiment 3 is basically the same as in Embodiment 1. However, in Embodiment 3, the dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323 of the delivery vehicle 3 acquires dispatch instruction information, which includes at least the location information of the delivery destination, transmitted from the management device 1B. Furthermore, when control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 transmitted from an external source is acquired, the controllable location determination unit 326 determines, based on the control rights information, whether the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 is the location of the delivery destination indicated in the control rights information. If the determination results in the location of the delivery vehicle 3 being the location of the delivery destination, processing is transferred to the controllable entity determination unit 327. On the other hand, if the determination results in the location of the delivery vehicle 3 being not the location of the delivery destination, processing is terminated without following the control instruction information.

[0346] With the above configuration, control rights for the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination can be set for the user. Therefore, even if the delivery vehicle 3 is parked in an inconvenient location for the user, the user can move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0347] Furthermore, in this configuration, the delivery vehicle 3 can only be controlled when it is located at the delivery destination. Therefore, when the delivery vehicle 3 is located anywhere other than the delivery destination, that is, when control of the delivery vehicle 3 is unnecessary, it is possible to prevent the user from moving the delivery vehicle 3.

[0348] Furthermore, in this embodiment 3, the control right setting unit 124B may determine a delivery destination control right exerciseable range, which represents an area where control instructions can be given to the delivery vehicle 3, based on the location information of the delivery destination and according to predetermined rules, and set control rights for the delivery destination user identification information to control the delivery vehicle 3 located within the delivery destination control right exerciseable range. When the dispatch destination is a delivery destination, the control right setting unit 124B generates a delivery destination control right exerciseable range based on the location of the delivery destination, which allows the user to control the delivery vehicle at the delivery destination. Then, when the dispatch destination is a delivery destination, the control right setting unit 124B sets control rights for the user that allow control of the delivery vehicle located within the delivery destination control right exerciseable range.

[0349] Furthermore, in this embodiment 3, the control right setting unit 124B may determine a delivery destination controllable range, which represents the area in which the delivery vehicle 3 can move according to control instruction information, based on the location information of the delivery destination, according to predetermined rules, and set control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery destination within the delivery destination controllable range for the delivery destination user identification information. When the dispatch destination is a delivery destination, the control right setting unit 124B generates a delivery destination controllable range in which the delivery vehicle can move at the delivery destination, based on the location of the delivery destination. Then, when the dispatch destination is a delivery destination, the control right setting unit 124B sets control rights for the user that permit the movement control of the delivery vehicle within the delivery destination controllable range.

[0350] In this third embodiment, the management device 1B may also change the control rights settings for controlling delivery vehicles based on dispatch request information, according to the delivery status of the delivery vehicles. The method for changing the control rights settings is the same as in the second embodiment.

[0351] (Embodiment 4) Embodiments 1 and 2 describe examples such as on-demand goods delivery services or on-demand taxi services, where the goods to be delivered are loaded at the delivery source or the passenger is picked up, and then the goods to be delivered are unloaded or the passenger is dropped off at the delivery destination. However, this disclosure is not limited to these services. When a delivery vehicle delivers goods, in addition to the services described above, there is also a collection service in which the vehicle moves from a distribution center to a delivery source and only receives the goods at the delivery source. This disclosure can also be applied to such a collection service. Embodiment 4 describes an example in which a delivery vehicle moves from a distribution center to a delivery source and collects the goods to be delivered at the delivery source.

[0352] In the collection service of Embodiment 4, since the delivery vehicle moves from the distribution center to the delivery source to pick up the goods, information about the delivery destination is unnecessary, and only information about the delivery source is required. Therefore, in Embodiment 4, information about the delivery destination is unnecessary in the dispatch request information, and the dispatch request information includes only information about the delivery source. Consequently, information about the delivery destination user who will use the delivery vehicle 3 at the delivery destination is also unnecessary, and only information about the delivery source user who will use the delivery vehicle 3 at the delivery source is required, so the management device acquires only the delivery source user information.

[0353] Figure 31 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management device in Embodiment 4 of the present disclosure. The management device 1C comprises a communication unit 11, a control unit 12C, and a storage unit 13C. In Figure 31, the same reference numerals are used for components that are the same as those in Figure 2, and detailed explanations are omitted.

[0354] The management device 1C shown in Figure 31 differs from the management device 1 shown in Figure 2 in that its control unit 12C and storage unit 13C are different.

[0355] The control unit 12C includes a vehicle dispatch request information acquisition unit 121C, a user identification information acquisition unit 122C, a delivery vehicle determination unit 123, a control rights setting unit 124C, a control instruction support information generation unit 125, and an information transmission unit 126C.

[0356] The dispatch request information acquisition unit 121C acquires dispatch request information from the user terminal 2 via the communication unit 11, including user information indicating the user and location information of the delivery source. The dispatch request information acquisition unit 121C acquires dispatch request information that includes at least location information indicating the location of the destination to which the autonomous vehicle will be dispatched. In Embodiment 4, the delivery source is the dispatch destination.

[0357] The user identification information acquisition unit 122C acquires delivery source user identification information from the user terminal 2 via the communication unit 11 to identify the user using the delivery vehicle located at the delivery source or the user terminal 2 owned by that user.

[0358] In this embodiment 4, a configuration is described in which dispatch request information and delivery source user identification information are acquired separately, but a configuration in which these information is acquired together is also possible. For example, the dispatch request information may include delivery source user identification information, and the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121C may acquire the dispatch request information and delivery source user identification information together.

[0359] The control right setting unit 124C sets control rights (vehicle control rights) for the user, granting them the right to control the delivery vehicle located at the delivery destination, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information. The control right setting unit 124C sets control rights for the delivery source user identification information to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source, based on the dispatch request information and delivery source user identification information.

[0360] The information transmission unit 126C transmits control rights information relating to the set control rights to the delivery vehicle 3. The information transmission unit 126C transmits control instruction support information to the user terminal 2 of the delivery source to which control rights have been granted, via the communication unit 11. Furthermore, the information transmission unit 126C transmits dispatch instruction information based on the dispatch request information to the delivery vehicle 3. The dispatch instruction information includes at least the location information of the delivery source. The dispatch instruction information may also include route information, which includes the route from the vehicle's current location to the delivery source. In this case, the management device 1C generates the route information, but the delivery vehicle 3 may generate the route information.

[0361] The storage unit 13C includes a dispatch request information storage unit 131, a user information storage unit 132, a vehicle information storage unit 133, a control rights information storage unit 134C, a delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135, a control rights setting program storage unit 136, and a control instruction support information generation program storage unit 137.

[0362] The control rights information storage unit 134C stores control rights information that indicates the control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source, which have been set by the control rights setting unit 124C based on the dispatch request information and the delivery source user identification information. The control rights information includes a dispatch request identification number for identifying the dispatch request information, information indicating the delivery source, a controllable location, user identification information, and vehicle identification information of the delivery vehicle. The controllable location indicates the location information of the delivery source. The controllable location is expressed, for example, by longitude and latitude.

[0363] The configuration of the user terminal and delivery vehicle in Embodiment 4 is basically the same as in Embodiment 1. However, in Embodiment 4, the dispatch instruction information acquisition unit 323 of the delivery vehicle 3 acquires dispatch instruction information, which includes at least the location information of the delivery source, transmitted from the management device 1C. Furthermore, when control instruction information for controlling the delivery vehicle 3 transmitted from an external source is acquired, the controllable location determination unit 326 determines, based on the control rights information, whether the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 is the location of the delivery source indicated in the control rights information. If the determination results in the location of the delivery vehicle 3 being the location of the delivery source, processing is transferred to the controllable entity determination unit 327. On the other hand, if the determination results in the location of the delivery vehicle 3 being not the location of the delivery source, processing is terminated without following the control instruction information.

[0364] With the above configuration, control rights for the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source can be set for the user. Therefore, even if the delivery vehicle 3 is parked in an inconvenient location for the user, the user can move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0365] Furthermore, in this configuration, delivery vehicle 3 can only be controlled when it is located at the delivery source. Therefore, when delivery vehicle 3 is located anywhere other than the delivery source, that is, when control of delivery vehicle 3 is unnecessary, it is possible to prevent the user from moving delivery vehicle 3.

[0366] Furthermore, in this fourth embodiment, the control right setting unit 124C may determine a delivery source control right exerciseable range, which represents an area where control instructions can be given to the delivery vehicle 3, based on the location information of the delivery source and according to predetermined rules, and set control rights for the delivery source user identification information to control the delivery vehicle 3 located within the delivery source control right exerciseable range. When the dispatch destination is the delivery source, the control right setting unit 124C generates a delivery source control right exerciseable range based on the location of the delivery source, which allows the user to control the delivery vehicle at the delivery source. Then, when the dispatch destination is the delivery source, the control right setting unit 124C sets control rights for the user that allow control of the delivery vehicle located within the delivery source control right exerciseable range.

[0367] Furthermore, in this fourth embodiment, the control right setting unit 124C may determine a delivery source controllable range, which represents the area in which the delivery vehicle 3 can move according to control instruction information, based on the location information of the delivery source and according to predetermined rules, and set control rights to control the delivery vehicle 3 located at the delivery source within the delivery source controllable range for the delivery source user identification information. When the dispatch destination is the delivery source, the control right setting unit 124C generates a delivery source controllable range in which the delivery vehicle can move at the delivery source, based on the location of the delivery source. Then, when the dispatch destination is the delivery source, the control right setting unit 124C sets control rights for the user that permit the movement control of the delivery vehicle within the delivery source controllable range.

[0368] In this fourth embodiment, the management device 1C may also change the control rights settings for controlling delivery vehicles based on dispatch request information, according to the delivery status of the delivery vehicles. The method for changing the control rights settings is the same as in the second embodiment.

[0369] (Embodiment 5) In Embodiment 5, a table is stored that associates the location information of the delivery vehicle's dispatch destination specified by the user with the location information of the destination to which the delivery vehicle moves after the user moves it upon arrival at the dispatch destination. When the same dispatch destination location is specified again, the destination location information associated with the specified dispatch destination location is extracted from the table data, and the extracted destination location information is determined as the stopping position of the delivery vehicle at the dispatch destination.

[0370] Figure 32 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management device in Embodiment 5 of the present disclosure. The management device 1D includes a communication unit 11, a control unit 12D, and a storage unit 13D. In Figure 32, the same reference numerals are used for components that are the same as those in Figure 2, and detailed explanations are omitted.

[0371] The management device 1D shown in Figure 32 differs from the management device 1 shown in Figure 2 in that its control unit 12D and storage unit 13D are different.

[0372] The control unit 12D includes a vehicle dispatch request information acquisition unit 121, a user identification information acquisition unit 122, a delivery vehicle determination unit 123, a control rights setting unit 124, a control instruction support information generation unit 125, an information transmission unit 126, a destination location information acquisition unit 127D, and a stopping position determination unit 128D.

[0373] The storage unit 13D includes a dispatch request information storage unit 131, a user information storage unit 132, a vehicle information storage unit 133, a control rights information storage unit 134, a delivery vehicle determination program storage unit 135, a control rights setting program storage unit 136, a control instruction support information generation program storage unit 137, a destination location information storage unit 138D, and a stopping location determination program storage unit 139D.

[0374] The destination location information acquisition unit 127D acquires destination location information, which indicates the destination location, from the delivery vehicle 3 that has moved according to the control instruction information, via the communication unit 11. When the delivery vehicle 3 moves according to the control instruction information from the user terminal 2, it acquires destination location information indicating the destination location and transmits the acquired destination location information to the management device 1D.

[0375] Furthermore, the destination location information acquisition unit 127D associates the location information of the dispatch destination included in the dispatch request information received from the user terminal 2 with the acquired destination location information and stores it in the destination location information storage unit 138D. Note that the location information of the dispatch destination includes the location information of the delivery destination and the location information of the delivery source. Similarly, the destination location information includes the destination location information of the delivery destination and the destination location information of the delivery source.

[0376] The destination location information storage unit 138D stores table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination with the destination location information.

[0377] Figure 33 shows an example of table data stored in the destination location information storage unit in this embodiment 5. As shown in Figure 33, the location information of the dispatch destination and the destination location information are represented by GPS information (latitude and longitude).

[0378] In this embodiment 5, the location information of the dispatch destination is GPS information (latitude and longitude), but this disclosure is not limited thereto and may also be an address or the name of a facility. Similarly, in this embodiment 5, the destination location information is GPS information (latitude and longitude), but this disclosure is not limited thereto and may also be the direction of movement and the distance of movement relative to the location information of the dispatch destination. For example, if the delivery vehicle 3 moves 1 meter north from the location of the dispatch destination, the destination location information includes the direction of movement, "north," and the distance of movement, "1 meter."

[0379] The stopping position determination unit 128D extracts destination location information from table data that is associated with the location information of the dispatch destination included in the dispatch request information, and determines the stopping position of the delivery vehicle 3 at the dispatch destination using the extracted destination location information.

[0380] Next, the process by which the management device 1 stores the destination location information received from the delivery vehicle 3 will be explained in detail using the flowchart in Figure 34.

[0381] Figure 34 is a flowchart illustrating the destination location information storage process of the management device in Embodiment 5 of this disclosure.

[0382] First, the destination location information acquisition unit 127D of the management device 1 acquires destination location information indicating the destination location from the delivery vehicle 3 that has moved according to the control instruction information (step S41).

[0383] Next, the destination location information acquisition unit 127D associates the destination location information included in the dispatch request information received from the user terminal 2 with the acquired destination location information and stores it in the destination location information storage unit 138D (step S42).

[0384] Next, the vehicle control processing of the management device 1 in this embodiment 5 will be explained in detail using the flowchart in Figure 35.

[0385] Figure 35 is a flowchart illustrating the vehicle control process of the control device in Embodiment 5 of this disclosure.

[0386] First, the dispatch request information acquisition unit 121 of the management device 1 receives the dispatch request information transmitted from the user terminal 2 and stores the received dispatch request information in the dispatch request information storage unit 131 (step S51). The dispatch request information includes user identification information for identifying the user or the user terminal 2 owned by that user, and location information of the delivery destination.

[0387] Next, the user identification information acquisition unit 122 of the management device 1 receives destination user identification information from the user terminal 2 to identify the user who will use the delivery vehicle 3 located at the destination or the user terminal 2 owned by the user (step S52). The destination user identification information includes delivery source user identification information to identify the user who will use the delivery vehicle 3 located at the origin or the user terminal 2 owned by the user, and delivery destination user identification information to identify the user who will use the delivery vehicle 3 located at the destination or the user terminal 2 owned by the user.

[0388] Next, the stopping position determination unit 128D extracts the destination location information from the dispatch request information (step S53).

[0389] Next, the stopping position determination unit 128D determines whether or not the destination location information associated with the extracted destination location information is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D (step S54). If it is determined that the destination location information associated with the extracted destination location information is not stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D (NO in step S54), the stopping position determination unit 128D determines the extracted destination location information as the stopping position of the delivery vehicle 3 (step S55).

[0390] On the other hand, if it is determined that the destination location information associated with the extracted dispatch destination location information is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D (YES in step S54), the stopping position determination unit 128D obtains the destination location information associated with the extracted dispatch destination location information from the destination location information storage unit 138D (step S56).

[0391] Next, the stopping position determination unit 128D determines the stopping position of the delivery vehicle 3 based on the acquired destination position information (step S57).

[0392] Note that the processing in steps S58 to S61 is the same as the processing in steps S105 to S108 shown in Figure 8, so the explanation will be omitted.

[0393] Next, the information transmission unit 126 of the management device 1 transmits dispatch instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3 based on the stopping position determined by the stopping position determination unit 128D (step S62). The dispatch instruction information includes at least the stopping position of the delivery vehicle 3 to which the vehicle is dispatched.

[0394] Note that the process in step S63 is the same as the process in step S112 shown in Figure 8, so its explanation will be omitted.

[0395] In this way, the location information of the dispatch destination included in the dispatch request information received from the user terminal 2 and the destination location information indicating the location of the delivery vehicle that moved according to the control instruction information are associated and stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D. Therefore, if the same location information of the dispatch destination is requested again, the destination location can be determined as the stopping position of the delivery vehicle, and the processing of moving the delivery vehicle can be reduced.

[0396] In this embodiment 5, after acquiring destination location information, the destination location information and the dispatch location information are associated and stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D. However, this disclosure is not limited to this, and the user terminal 2 may be asked whether it is acceptable to associate the dispatch location information and the destination location information and store them in the destination location information storage unit 138D. Since the user may have temporarily changed the location of the dispatch destination, the user is asked whether it is acceptable to change the dispatch destination again in the future.

[0397] In this case, when the management device 1 acquires destination location information, it sends an inquiry to the user terminal 2 asking whether it is acceptable to associate the location information of the dispatch destination with the destination location information and store it in the destination location information storage unit 138D. The user terminal 2 receives the inquiry from the management device 1 and receives a response from the user indicating whether it is acceptable to associate the location information of the dispatch destination with the destination location information and store it in the destination location information storage unit 138D. The user terminal 2 sends the response result indicating whether it is acceptable to associate the location information of the dispatch destination with the destination location information and store it in the destination location information storage unit 138D to the management device 1. If the destination location information acquisition unit 127D of the management device 1 receives a positive response result to the inquiry, it stores the location information of the dispatch destination with the destination location information in the destination location information storage unit 138D. On the other hand, if the destination location information acquisition unit 127D receives a negative response to an inquiry, it does not associate the destination location information with the dispatch location information and store it in the destination location information storage unit 138D, but instead discards the acquired destination location information.

[0398] Furthermore, in this embodiment 5, the number of times the dispatch destination location is moved to a predetermined destination is counted, and if the counted number exceeds a threshold, the dispatch destination location information and the destination location information may be associated and stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D.

[0399] In this case, when the destination location information acquisition unit 127D of the management device 1 acquires destination location information, it stores the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the number of times the dispatch destination has been moved to a predetermined destination in the storage unit 13D, associating them. Then, when the destination location information acquisition unit 127D acquires destination location information again, it increments the number of times it is associated with the destination location information. The destination location information acquisition unit 127D determines whether the number of times it is associated with the destination location information is equal to or greater than a threshold. If the destination location information acquisition unit 127D determines that the number is equal to or greater than the threshold, it stores the location information of the dispatch destination and the destination location information in the destination location information storage unit 138D, associating them.

[0400] Furthermore, in this embodiment 5, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination with the destination location information for each user identification information. This makes it possible to change the location of the dispatch destination according to the preferences of a particular user, thereby improving the convenience of that particular user.

[0401] Furthermore, in this embodiment 5, the table data associating the location information of the pickup destination with the location information of the destination may not be associated only with the identification information of one user who performed the movement control, but may also be associated with the identification information of other users. That is, the table data associating the location information of the pickup destination with the location information of the destination may be shared by multiple users. For example, other users who specify the same pickup destination as one user may also move the delivery vehicle to the pickup destination in the same way as the first user. In particular, multiple users living in the same apartment building may each specify the same pickup destination and the same destination. Therefore, the stopping position determination unit 128D refers to the table data associating the location information of the pickup destination requested by one user with the location information of the destination moved by one user, and if the location information of the pickup destination requested by another user is the same as the location information of the pickup destination requested by one user, the stopping position determination unit determines the destination location information moved by one user as the stopping position.

[0402] This means that the movement of a delivery vehicle at a destination requested by one user is reflected for other users, thus reducing the amount of work other users have to do to move their delivery vehicles.

[0403] Furthermore, in this embodiment 5, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the user's attribute information. Attribute information is, for example, information indicating whether the user is a customer or an employee of the facility at the dispatch destination. In stores and hospitals, the entrances for customers and employees may be different. Therefore, by associating the destination location information with the user's attribute information, the location of the dispatch destination can be adjusted to the destination location according to the user's attributes, thereby improving user convenience. In this case, the attribute information is included in the dispatch request information. When the user terminal 2 receives input of the location information of the dispatch destination, it also receives input of the attribute information. Note that the attribute information may be stored in advance in the user information storage unit 132. When the destination location information acquisition unit 127D acquires destination location information, it may store the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the attribute information stored in the user information storage unit 132 in association with each other in the storage unit 13D.

[0404] Furthermore, the destination location information acquisition unit 127D may store the destination location information and the destination location information in the destination location information storage unit 138D in association with each other when multiple different users move to the same location relative to the same pickup location.

[0405] Furthermore, in this embodiment 5, if the location information of the dispatch destination is represented by GPS information, the destination location information will not be acquired from the destination location information storage unit 138D unless the location information of the dispatch destination included in the dispatch request information and the location information of the dispatch destination stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D perfectly match. Therefore, if the location information of the dispatch destination included in the dispatch request information and the location information of the dispatch destination stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D are slightly different, the location information of the dispatch destination included in the dispatch request information will not be subject to movement.

[0406] Therefore, the stopping position determination unit 128D may determine whether the destination location information within a predetermined range is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D based on the destination location information extracted from the dispatch request information. If it is determined that the destination location information within a predetermined range is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D based on the destination location information extracted from the dispatch request information, the stopping position determination unit 128D obtains the destination location information associated with the destination location information from the destination location information storage unit 138D. On the other hand, if it is determined that the destination location information within a predetermined range is not stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D based on the destination location information extracted from the dispatch request information, the stopping position determination unit 128D determines the destination location information extracted from the dispatch request information as the stopping position for the delivery vehicle 3.

[0407] The stopping position determination unit 128D may also determine whether the destination location information stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D is within a predetermined distance from the destination location information extracted from the dispatch request information.

[0408] Furthermore, in this embodiment 5, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the orientation of the cargo unloading opening of the delivery vehicle. Whether or not to change the location of the dispatch destination may depend on whether the cargo unloading opening is on the left side, right side, or rear side of the delivery vehicle. For example, if the cargo unloading opening is on the left side of the delivery vehicle, the location of the dispatch destination will not be changed, but if the cargo unloading opening is on the rear side of the delivery vehicle, the location of the dispatch destination may be changed.

[0409] Therefore, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the orientation of the cargo unloading opening of the delivery vehicle. In this case, the management device 1 receives information indicating the orientation of the cargo unloading opening from the delivery vehicle 3 along with the destination location information. The management device 1 may store information indicating the orientation of the cargo unloading opening in the storage unit 13D in advance, or it may receive information indicating the orientation of the cargo unloading opening from another device that manages information related to the delivery vehicle.

[0410] The parking position determination unit 128D then determines the delivery vehicle 3 and identifies the orientation of the cargo unloading opening of the determined delivery vehicle 3. After that, it determines whether the destination location information associated with the location information of the delivery destination extracted from the dispatch request information is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D. If it is determined that the destination location information associated with the extracted location information of the delivery destination is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D, the parking position determination unit 128D determines whether the orientation of the identified cargo unloading opening is the same as the orientation of the cargo unloading opening associated with the destination location information. If it is determined that the orientation of the identified cargo unloading opening is the same as the orientation of the cargo unloading opening associated with the destination location information, the parking position determination unit 128D retrieves the destination location information associated with the extracted location information of the delivery destination from the destination location information storage unit 138D. On the other hand, if the orientation of the retrieval opening of the identified package is determined to be different from the orientation of the retrieval opening of the package associated with the destination location information, the stopping position determination unit 128D determines the extracted destination location information to be the stopping position of the delivery vehicle 3.

[0411] Furthermore, even if the orientation of the cargo loading opening is the same, the location may differ depending on the vehicle type. For example, even if the cargo loading opening is on the left side of the delivery vehicle, depending on the vehicle type, the loading opening may be located on the front, center, or rear side of the delivery vehicle. Therefore, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the vehicle type of the delivery vehicle. In this case, the management device 1 receives information indicating the vehicle type of the delivery vehicle from the delivery vehicle 3 along with the destination location information. The management device 1 may have already stored information indicating the vehicle type of the delivery vehicle in the storage unit 13D, or it may receive information indicating the vehicle type of the delivery vehicle from another device that manages information related to delivery vehicles.

[0412] The parking position determination unit 128D then determines the delivery vehicle 3 and identifies the vehicle type of the determined delivery vehicle 3. After that, it determines whether the destination location information associated with the location information of the delivery destination extracted from the dispatch request information is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D. If it is determined that the destination location information associated with the extracted location information of the delivery destination is stored in the destination location information storage unit 138D, the parking position determination unit 128D determines whether the identified vehicle type is the same as the vehicle type associated with the destination location information. If it is determined that the identified vehicle type is the same as the vehicle type associated with the destination location information, the parking position determination unit 128D retrieves the destination location information associated with the extracted location information of the delivery destination from the destination location information storage unit 138D. On the other hand, if it is determined that the identified vehicle type is different from the vehicle type associated with the destination location information, the parking position determination unit 128D determines the location information of the delivery destination as the parking position for the delivery vehicle 3.

[0413] Furthermore, if it is possible to obtain information regarding the location of the cargo unloading opening for each vehicle type, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information corrected according to the vehicle type, and the vehicle type of the delivery vehicle. In this case, the storage unit 13D further stores table data that associates the vehicle type of the delivery vehicle with the location of the cargo unloading opening. For example, if the cargo unloading opening of the first vehicle type is located 1 meter from the front of the vehicle, and the cargo unloading opening of the second vehicle type is located 1.5 meters from the front of the vehicle, and the location of the dispatch destination of the first vehicle type delivery vehicle is changed, the destination location information acquisition unit 127D first stores the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the first vehicle type in the destination location information storage unit 138D. Next, the destination location information acquisition unit 127D calculates the destination location information for the second vehicle by adding 0.5 meters to the destination location information of the first vehicle, and stores the destination location information, the calculated destination location information, and the second vehicle in association in the destination location information storage unit 138D.

[0414] In this way, table data is stored that associates multiple vehicle types with the location of their respective cargo loading ports. When the destination location information for one of the multiple vehicle types is obtained, the destination location information for the other vehicle types can be calculated from the relationship between the location of the cargo loading port of that vehicle type and the locations of the cargo loading ports of the other vehicle types.

[0415] Furthermore, the user may move the delivery vehicle 3 multiple times before starting to load or unload cargo. Therefore, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination with destination location information indicating the location of the destination where the cargo was finally loaded or destination location information indicating the location of the destination where the cargo was finally unloaded. Since the locations of destinations where the user did not load cargo or unload cargo are unnecessary, the process of storing unnecessary information can be omitted.

[0416] Furthermore, the destination location information storage unit 138D may store table data that associates the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the weather information of the delivery destination. For example, the stopping position of a delivery vehicle when the weather is sunny may differ from the stopping position of a delivery vehicle when the weather is rainy. Therefore, when the destination location information acquisition unit 127D acquires the destination location information, it also acquires the weather information of the delivery destination. The destination location information acquisition unit 127D then stores the location information of the dispatch destination, the destination location information, and the acquired weather information of the delivery destination in the storage unit 13D, associating them with each other. The management device 1 can acquire the weather information of the delivery destination from an external server.

[0417] Weather information may be obtained from delivery vehicle 3 if the delivery vehicle 3 is equipped with a rain sensor. Alternatively, weather information may be obtained from user terminal 2 by prompting the user to input weather information when querying the parking location of user terminal 2.

[0418] Furthermore, on days with high or low temperatures, it is likely that many users will wait indoors for the delivery vehicle 3 to arrive. In such cases, it is desirable for the vehicle to park near the building's entrance. Therefore, the parking location may differ between days with high or low temperatures and other days. For this reason, a configuration that associates temperature information with the parking location may also be appropriate.

[0419] (Embodiment 6) In embodiments 1 to 5, the user is given control of the delivery vehicle 3, and the user controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 using the user terminal 2. However, in embodiment 6, either the user is given control of the delivery vehicle 3, or a remote operator is remotely controlled to operate the delivery vehicle 3. The user or the operator controls the movement of the delivery vehicle 3 using the user terminal 2 or a remote control device.

[0420] Figure 36 is a diagram conceptually showing the overall configuration of the vehicle control system in Embodiment 6 of this disclosure.

[0421] The vehicle control system shown in Figure 36 comprises a management device 1E, a user terminal 2, a delivery vehicle 3, and a remote control device 5.

[0422] The remote control device 5 receives vehicle status information related to the vehicle itself, such as vehicle speed, current position, and steering angle, or surrounding environment information captured from the delivery vehicle 3, and transmits driving instruction information to the delivery vehicle 3, indicating the driving instructions for the delivery vehicle 3 entered by the driver 6. The remote control device 5 is connected to the management device 1E and the delivery vehicle 3 via the network 4 so as to be able to communicate with them.

[0423] The remote control device 5 is installed at a distance from the delivery vehicle 3, and the operator 6 cannot see the delivery vehicle 3. When the remote control device 5 is granted control of the delivery vehicle 3, the remote control device 5 accepts commands from the operator 6 and remotely controls the delivery vehicle 3.

[0424] For example, if the user at the destination does not have a user terminal, if it is unknown whether the user at the destination has a user terminal, or if it is predicted that the user at the destination is not proficient in operating a user terminal, it is preferable to have the operator 6 remotely control the delivery vehicle 3 without granting the user control rights to the delivery vehicle 3.

[0425] Figure 37 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the management device in Embodiment 6 of this disclosure. The management device 1E includes a communication unit 11, a control unit 12E, and a storage unit 13. In Figure 37, the same reference numerals are used for components that are the same as those in Figure 2, and detailed explanations are omitted.

[0426] The control device 1E shown in Figure 37 differs from the control device 1 shown in Figure 2 in that its control unit 12E is different.

[0427] The control unit 12E includes a vehicle dispatch request information acquisition unit 121, a user identification information acquisition unit 122, a delivery vehicle determination unit 123, a control authority setting unit 124E, a control instruction support information generation unit 125, and an information transmission unit 126.

[0428] The control authority setting unit 124E determines whether or not to allow the operator 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3 based on the attribute information of the user at the destination. Attribute information includes, for example, information indicating the age of the user at the destination. Attribute information is included in the dispatch request information. The user terminal 2 accepts input of attribute information when it accepts input of location information of the destination. Note that attribute information may be stored in advance in the user information storage unit 132.

[0429] The control authority setting unit 124E determines whether the age of the user at the destination is below a first age, and whether the age of the user at the destination is above a second age, which is higher than the first age. The first age is, for example, 12 years old, and the second age is, for example, 70 years old. In other words, the control authority setting unit 124E determines whether the user at the destination is a child, and whether the user at the destination is an elderly person. If the control authority setting unit 124E determines that the age of the user at the destination is below the first age, or whether the age of the user at the destination is above the second age, it decides to allow the driver 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3.

[0430] On the other hand, if the control right setting unit 124E determines that the age of the user at the destination is higher than the first age and lower than the second age, it sets control rights for the user at the destination, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle 3, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information.

[0431] In this embodiment 6, the attribute information is information indicating the age of the user at the destination, but this disclosure is not limited to this, and the attribute information may also be information indicating whether or not the user at the destination is disabled. If the control right setting unit 124E determines that the user at the destination is disabled, it decides to allow the operator 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3. If the control right setting unit 124E determines that the user at the destination is not disabled, it sets control rights for the user at the destination, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle 3, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information.

[0432] If it is determined that the operator 6 should remotely control the delivery vehicle 3, the information transmission unit 126 transmits control request information to the remote control device 5 to request the operator 6 to control the delivery vehicle 3. The remote control device 5 receives the control request information transmitted by the management device 1E and accepts the remote control of the delivery vehicle 3 by the operator 6.

[0433] Thus, if it is predicted that the user at the destination will be unfamiliar with controlling the delivery vehicle 3 using the user terminal 2, the driver 6 will be allowed to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3, allowing the delivery vehicle 3 to be moved immediately upon arrival at the destination.

[0434] In this embodiment 6, the control rights setting unit 124E determines whether or not to allow the operator 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3 based on the attribute information of the user at the dispatch destination. However, this disclosure is not limited to this, and the control rights setting unit 124E may also determine whether or not to allow the operator 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3 based on the history of past movement control at the dispatch destination. That is, if movement control has been performed at a dispatch destination in the past, there is a high probability that movement control will be performed again this time. Therefore, if movement control has been performed at the dispatch destination in the past, the operator 6 is allowed to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3. The storage unit 13 stores history information that associates the location information of the dispatch destination with the location information of the destination. The history information may be the same as the table data stored by the destination location information storage unit in embodiment 5. The history information may be the history information of the user at the dispatch destination, or it may be the history information of other users. Furthermore, the history information may consist only of the location information of dispatch destinations where movement control has been performed in the past.

[0435] In this case, the control rights setting unit 124E determines whether or not movement control has been performed at the dispatch destination in the past. If the control rights setting unit 124E determines that movement control has been performed at the dispatch destination in the past, it decides to allow the operator 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3. On the other hand, if the control rights setting unit 124E determines that movement control has not been performed at the dispatch destination in the past, it sets control rights for the user at the dispatch destination, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle 3, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information.

[0436] If it is determined that the operator 6 should remotely control the delivery vehicle 3, the information transmission unit 126 transmits control request information to the remote control device 5 to request the operator 6 to control the delivery vehicle 3. At this time, the control request information may include destination location information corresponding to the location information of the dispatch destination. Alternatively, the user may inform the operator 6 of the destination location.

[0437] Furthermore, the control right setting unit 124E may calculate the percentage of past movement control at the dispatch destination and determine whether the calculated percentage is equal to or greater than a predetermined value. For example, if one of the five users at the dispatch destination has performed movement control, the percentage calculated by the control right setting unit 124E will be 20%. If the control right setting unit 124E determines that the calculated percentage is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, it decides to allow the operator 6 to remotely control the delivery vehicle 3. On the other hand, if the control right setting unit 124E determines that the calculated percentage is lower than a predetermined value, it sets control rights for the user at the dispatch destination, granting them permission to control the delivery vehicle 3, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information.

[0438] In this way, if vehicle movement control has been performed at the destination in the past, the driver 6 remotely controls the delivery vehicle 3, allowing the delivery vehicle 3 to be moved immediately upon arrival at the destination, thereby improving service to the user.

[0439] Furthermore, if a user requests a vehicle dispatch via a landline phone call, the driver 6 may remotely operate the delivery vehicle 3 at the dispatch location. When a user requests a vehicle dispatch via a landline phone call, it is unknown whether the user has a user terminal. Therefore, it is necessary to confirm with the user whether they have a user terminal during the call. However, when a user requests a vehicle dispatch via a landline phone call, this confirmation process can be eliminated by having the driver 6 remotely operate the delivery vehicle 3 at the dispatch location.

[0440] Furthermore, not limited to landlines, if a user requests a vehicle dispatch via telephone, the delivery operator 6 may remotely control the delivery vehicle 3 at the dispatch location. When a user requests a vehicle dispatch via telephone, the user may be unfamiliar with operating the user terminal. It would be a significant burden to have such a user control the delivery vehicle 3 using the user terminal. Therefore, when a user requests a vehicle dispatch via telephone, the burden on the user can be reduced by having the delivery operator 6 remotely control the delivery vehicle 3 at the dispatch location.

[0441] When a user requests a vehicle dispatch by phone, the user first informs the communication operator (not shown) of the location of the vehicle dispatch destination by phone. The communication operator inputs the location information of the vehicle dispatch destination into the operator terminal (not shown). The operator terminal receives the input of the location information of the vehicle dispatch destination from the communication operator and transmits the dispatch request information, including the location information of the vehicle dispatch destination, to the management device 1E. Whether or not a user has requested a vehicle dispatch by phone can be determined by whether or not the dispatch request information has been transmitted from the operator terminal. In other words, the control authority setting unit 124E determines whether or not the received dispatch request information was transmitted from the operator terminal. If the control authority setting unit 124E determines that the received dispatch request information was transmitted from the operator terminal, it decides to allow the operating operator 6 to remotely operate the delivery vehicle 3. On the other hand, if the control authority setting unit 124E determines that the received dispatch request information was not transmitted from the operator terminal, that is, if it determines that the received dispatch request information was transmitted from the user terminal 2, it sets control authority for the user to whom the vehicle is dispatched, based on the dispatch request information and user identification information. The pilot operator 6 and the communication operator may be the same person or different people, and the remote control device 5 and the operator terminal may be the same device or different devices.

[0442] Thus, when a user requests a vehicle dispatch using the application on user terminal 2, that is, when dispatch request information is transmitted from user terminal 2, control rights are granted to the user at the destination of the dispatch, allowing them to control the delivery vehicle 3.

[0443] Furthermore, in this embodiment 6, the system automatically selects whether to grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6. However, the remote operator 6 may also choose whether to grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6.

[0444] When the management device 1E receives dispatch request information and destination user identification information from the user terminal 2, it sends selection request information to the operator terminal (not shown) to allow the communication operator (not shown) to choose whether to grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6. When the operator terminal receives the selection request information, it displays a selection screen to accept the choice of either granting control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or having the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6. The operator terminal then accepts the communication operator's choice of either granting control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or having the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6. The operator terminal transmits the communication operator's selection result to the management device 1E. The management device 1E then selects whether to grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6, depending on the received selection result. Furthermore, the pilot operator 6 and the communications operator may be the same person or different people, and the remote control device 5 and the operator terminal may be the same device or different devices.

[0445] Furthermore, if the dispatch request information includes attribute information, the remote control device 5 may display on the selection screen at least one of the age of the user at the dispatch destination and whether or not the user at the dispatch destination is disabled. Also, if the management device 1E stores the history of past movement control at the dispatch destination, the remote control device 5 may display on the selection screen the percentage of past movement control at the dispatch destination. For example, if one of the five users at the dispatch destination has performed movement control, the remote control device 5 will display on the selection screen that the percentage of past movement control at the dispatch destination is 20%. This allows the operator 6 to choose whether to grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have the operator 6, who is located remotely, remotely control the delivery vehicle 3, by referring to the age of the user at the dispatch destination, whether or not the user at the dispatch destination is disabled, or the percentage of past movement control at the dispatch destination.

[0446] Furthermore, the user may choose to either grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user, or have a remote operator 6 control the delivery vehicle 3 remotely.

[0447] When the management device 1E receives dispatch request information and destination user identification information from the user terminal 2, it sends selection request information to the user terminal 2 to allow the user to choose whether to grant control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6. Upon receiving the selection request information, the user terminal 2 displays a selection screen to accept the user's choice between granting control of the delivery vehicle 3 to the user or having the delivery vehicle 3 remotely operated by the remote operator 6.

[0448] Figure 38 shows an example of a selection screen displayed on the user terminal in this embodiment 6.

[0449] When user terminal 2 receives selection request information, it accepts the user's choice to either grant control of delivery vehicle 3 to the user or have a remote operator 6 remotely control delivery vehicle 3. On the selection screen, the user chooses either to grant control of delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have a remote operator 6 remotely control delivery vehicle 3. User terminal 2 transmits the user's selection result to management device 1E. Management device 1E selects whether to grant control of delivery vehicle 3 to the user or to have a remote operator 6 remotely control delivery vehicle 3, depending on the received selection result.

[0450] Alternatively, when the delivery vehicle 3 arrives at the delivery destination, it may always be remotely controlled by a remote operator 6. In this case, the delivery vehicle 3 acquires vehicle position information indicating its current location and determines whether the first driving mode switching condition is met, that is, whether the delivery vehicle 3's current location is the delivery destination. Once autonomous driving mode begins, the delivery vehicle 3 determines whether the first driving mode switching condition stored in the memory unit 33 is met. In this explanation, the first driving mode switching condition is the condition that the driving mode is switched from autonomous driving mode to remote control mode when the delivery vehicle 3's current location is the delivery destination. If it is determined that the first driving mode switching condition is not met, that is, if it is determined that the delivery vehicle 3's current location is not the delivery destination, the delivery vehicle 3 acquires its vehicle position information. On the other hand, if it is determined that the first driving mode switching condition is met, that is, if it is determined that the delivery vehicle 3's current location is the delivery destination, the delivery vehicle 3 switches its driving mode from autonomous driving mode to remote control mode. Next, the delivery vehicle 3 controls its movement in remote control mode according to the driving instruction information received from the remote control device 5.

[0451] The first driving mode switching condition may also include a condition that the distance required from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 to the destination location is shorter than a predetermined threshold, or a condition that the time required from the current location of the delivery vehicle 3 to the destination location is shorter than a predetermined threshold.

[0452] After the driving mode is switched from autonomous driving mode to remote control mode, the delivery vehicle 3 periodically acquires vehicle status information related to the vehicle itself, such as the vehicle speed and steering angle, vehicle position information indicating the current location of the delivery vehicle 3, and surrounding environment information captured by photographing the environment around the delivery vehicle 3. The delivery vehicle 3 transmits the vehicle status information, vehicle position information, and surrounding environment information to the remote control device 5.

[0453] During the period in remote control mode, the operator 6 constantly monitors vehicle status information, vehicle location information, and surrounding environment information, but does not constantly issue remote control commands. The operator 6 issues remote control commands only when deemed necessary, so remote control commands are not constantly being transmitted from the remote control device 5 to the delivery vehicle 3.

[0454] Next, the delivery vehicle 3 acquires task status information. Task status information is, for example, information indicating whether or not the loading of the delivery items onto the delivery vehicle 3 has been completed. Next, the delivery vehicle 3 determines whether or not the status of a predetermined task satisfies the second driving mode switching condition, that is, whether or not the loading of the delivery items onto the delivery vehicle 3 has been completed. During the period when the delivery vehicle 3 is controlled in remote control mode, the delivery vehicle 3 determines whether or not the status of the task indicated by the task status information satisfies the second driving mode switching condition stored in the memory unit 33. In this explanation, the second driving mode switching condition is the condition that the driving mode is switched from remote control mode to autonomous driving mode when the loading of the delivery items onto the delivery vehicle 3 is completed.

[0455] Furthermore, the second driving mode switching condition may be the condition that the unloading of the goods to be delivered from delivery vehicle 3 has been completed. Also, the second driving mode switching condition may be the condition that the passenger has boarded delivery vehicle 3. In addition, the second driving mode switching condition may be the condition that the passenger has disembarked from delivery vehicle 3.

[0456] If it is determined that the state of a predetermined task does not meet the second driving mode switching condition, that is, if it is determined that the loading of the delivery items onto the delivery vehicle 3 is not yet complete, the delivery vehicle 3 controls its movement in remote control mode according to the driving instruction information from the remote control device 5. On the other hand, if it is determined that the state of a predetermined task meets the second driving mode switching condition, that is, if it is determined that the loading of the delivery items onto the delivery vehicle 3 is complete, the delivery vehicle 3 switches its driving mode from remote control mode to autonomous driving mode. When the driving mode is switched from remote control mode to autonomous driving mode, the delivery vehicle 3 determines the next stopping position and starts moving toward the next stopping position in autonomous driving mode.

[0457] Thus, when the delivery vehicle 3 arrives at the destination, the driver 6 can check whether the parking position of the delivery vehicle 3 is inconvenient for a third party, and if the parking position of the delivery vehicle 3 is inconvenient for a third party, the driver 6 can immediately move the delivery vehicle 3.

[0458] Furthermore, as described above, if the delivery vehicle 3 is always remotely controlled by the operator 6 upon arrival at the delivery desti...

Claims

1. A control method for an autonomous vehicle in a control device, The control device, The current position of the autonomous vehicle and the target stopping position where the autonomous vehicle will stop are obtained. Based on the current position and the target stopping position, it is determined whether to move the autonomous vehicle in autonomous driving mode or remote control mode after arriving at the target stopping position. When it is decided to move the autonomous vehicle from the target stopping position using the remote control mode, the vehicle will perform a movement operation within a predetermined range relative to the target stopping position in response to instructions issued by a remote operator. Control method.

2. If the distance between the current position and the target stopping position is shorter than a predetermined value, the remote control mode is determined in order to move the autonomous vehicle. The control method according to claim 1.

3. The remote control mode is determined when the time required to move the autonomous vehicle from the current position to the target stopping position is shorter than a predetermined value. The control method according to claim 1.

4. Furthermore, at least one of the following—information about the surrounding environment outside the autonomous vehicle obtained from sensing data, and vehicle state information including the speed of the autonomous vehicle and the steering angle of the autonomous vehicle—is transmitted to the operator's terminal. The control method according to claim 1.

5. If the current position is within a predetermined distance from the target stopping position, the decision is performed. If the loading of the goods to be delivered onto the autonomous vehicle is not complete, if the unloading of the goods to be delivered from the autonomous vehicle is not complete, if the passenger has not boarded the autonomous vehicle, or if the passenger has not disembarked from the autonomous vehicle, the remote control mode is determined in order to move the autonomous vehicle. The control method according to claim 1.

6. When the user has finished retrieving the luggage from the autonomous vehicle, the remote control mode switches to the autonomous driving mode. The control method according to claim 5.

7. A control method for an autonomous vehicle in a control device, The control device, When the autonomous vehicle arrives at the target stopping position, the system acquires the target stopping position and the current position of the user's terminal. Based on the positional relationship between the target stopping position and the current position of the terminal, it is determined whether to move the autonomous vehicle in autonomous driving mode or remote control mode after arriving at the target stopping position. When it is decided to move the autonomous vehicle from the target stopping position using the remote control mode, the vehicle will perform a movement operation within a predetermined range relative to the target stopping position in response to instructions issued by a remote operator. Control method.

8. When the distance between the target stopping position and the current position of the terminal is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, the remote control mode is determined in order to move the autonomous vehicle. If the distance between the target stopping position and the current position of the terminal is shorter than a predetermined value, the autonomous driving mode is determined in order to move the autonomous vehicle. The control method according to claim 7.

9. Processor and A memory containing a program for causing the processor to execute the control method described in claim 1, An autonomous vehicle equipped with the following features.

10. A control program for causing a processor to execute the control method described in claim 1.

11. Processor and A memory containing a program for causing the processor to execute the control method described in claim 7, An autonomous vehicle equipped with the following features.

12. A control program for causing a processor to execute the control method described in claim 7.

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