Rental vehicle management system and program

Abstract

To provide a novel technique for managing a plurality of vehicles that can be lent out to users.SOLUTION: A system which manages a plurality of renting vehicles includes a management server 50. The management server 50 includes: a reservation unit which selects reservation start time and reservation termination time for a reserved vehicle being a vehicle among the plurality of vehicles desired for use by a user by operating a communication device 90 of the user; and a presence or absence determination unit (S181 to S188) which allows determination of whether the user is continuously present in the vehicle by repeatedly determining whether the communication device 90 has received a signal from a short range wireless communication unit 30 installed in the reservation vehicle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 16

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a technology for managing a plurality of vehicles that can be lent to users.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, services that lend and return rental items to users have been spreading. The rental items cover both movable properties and even immovable properties. Specifically, an example of a rental item as an immovable property is a rental space such as a rental seat or a parking lot, and an example of a rental item as a movable property is a means of transportation such as a rental bicycle or a rental car.

[0003] More specifically, examples of rental items as immovable properties include, for example, accommodation facilities where users can stay short-term (e.g., rooms in hotels, private houses temporarily rented to others, living rooms in shared houses, etc.) or rooms in staying facilities where users can stay long-term (e.g., individual houses, shared houses, etc.), coin lockers, parking lots (e.g., parking lots having one or more car compartments), individual parking spaces (e.g., each of the plurality of car compartments in a parking lot), etc.

[0004] Examples of rental items as movable properties include, for example, vehicles that travel on land, water, or in the air (e.g., rental cars, rental bicycles, etc.), rental furniture, rental clothing, rental electrical products (including the voice guide device described later), rental accessories that are detachably attached to electrical products (e.g., batteries or chargers), rental recording media on which audiovisual contents are recorded (e.g., CDs) that can be reproduced by users, etc.

[0005] Patent Document 1 discloses a rental space operation support system that can reduce the workload of rental space managers and streamline labor in rental businesses (e.g., seat rental businesses, room rental businesses) that rent out rooms such as karaoke rooms and meeting rooms (e.g., rental rooms) or spaces such as tennis courts and sports fields to users. Patent Document 2 also discloses similar technology.

[0006] Patent Document 3 discloses a technology that facilitates cost reduction of equipment necessary to be installed in rental spaces in a business that leases rental spaces as real estate, such as rental rooms (e.g., rental co-working rooms), rental seats, and rental parking spaces (hourly parking, monthly parking, etc.), to users. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2002-007913 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2003-281310 [Patent Document 3] Patent No. 5957624 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0008] According to the technology disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, in order for a user to use a desired rental space, the user can reserve the desired rental space in advance of use. The user can make the reservation wirelessly online using their mobile device from a location away from the desired rental space.

[0009] Specifically, according to the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, a user reserves a rental space by sending information from their mobile information terminal (mobile device) to a system host (server). Each rental space is equipped with an electronic key (a key device that electronically unlocks and locks the door).

[0010] Once the reservation is confirmed, the system host sends a password (a type of encryption) to the user's mobile device in relation to the rental space selected by the user. The user enters this password into the room terminal installed individually in the selected rental space and unlocks the corresponding electronic key.

[0011] If the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 is adopted, the party managing the rental space will be burdened with installing a special device called an electronic key for each rental space, and the user will be burdened with obtaining a password and using that password to unlock the electronic key.

[0012] Furthermore, if the technology disclosed in Patent Document 2 is adopted, users can reserve a private room by sending a message from their mobile device to the theater system management unit (server) 11. Multiple private rooms that can be leased to multiple users are centrally managed by the theater system management unit.

[0013] Once the reservation is confirmed, the theater system management unit transmits barcode information (a type of encryption) to the user's mobile device. The user presents the barcode information received by their mobile device from the theater system management unit at the reception desk of the reserved room. At the reception desk, the barcode information is processed, and the reservation is verified by exchanging information with the theater system management unit.

[0014] When the technology disclosed in Patent Document 2 is adopted, the party managing the rental space is burdened with the task of verifying the authenticity of the reservation by having an employee, for example, scan barcode information at the reception desk and then exchanging that information with the theater system management department. The user is also burdened with the task of obtaining barcode information and using that barcode information to be permitted to enter the private room.

[0015] In contrast, according to the technology disclosed in Patent Document 3, the burden of installing a transmitter in each rental space is imposed on the party managing the rental space.

[0016] Here, a "transmitter" is a communication device that performs short-range communication with the user's mobile device. By coordinating with the user's mobile device, it is used to accurately identify which rental space the user is currently staying in, that is, to authenticate the user's location. This type of transmitter has become widely available in recent years, and as a result, it is becoming more affordable and easier to obtain.

[0017] Therefore, purchasing transmitters and installing them individually for each rental space in order to adopt the technology disclosed in Patent Document 3 is at least less economically burdensome than installing electronic keys individually for each rental space in order to adopt the technology described in Patent Document 1. Furthermore, if location authentication is performed using transmitters installed individually for each rental space, users are freed from the burden of obtaining a password and using that password to unlock the electronic key.

[0018] Therefore, by adopting the technology disclosed in Patent Document 3, those managing rental spaces can easily reduce the costs and effort required to operate and manage them (e.g., by automating operations), and users can be freed from the hassle of having to obtain and use passwords or barcode information on-site each time.

[0019] However, based on previous research, the inventor has noticed that when adopting the technology disclosed in Patent Document 3, there are new matters to be considered regarding the communication between the transmitter and the mobile terminal.

[0020] That is, in an environment where a plurality of rental spaces are installed adjacent to each other within the same facility, for example, in an environment where a plurality of rental seats (an example of a rental space) are installed close to each other as in a library, a plurality of transmitters will also be arranged in close proximity to each other spatially.

[0021] In such a usage environment where a plurality of transmitters are arranged at high density, even though the user is staying in the rental space they have selected, their mobile terminal may get closer to another transmitter (a non-regular transmitter for the user) installed in the adjacent rental space than to the transmitter (the regular transmitter for the user) installed in the selected rental space.

[0022] In that case, the user's mobile terminal may receive a signal from the non-regular transmitter with a stronger intensity than from the regular transmitter. Based on the received signal, if the user estimates the rental space where they are currently staying, an incorrect estimation may be made that the adjacent rental space is the user's current rental space.

[0023] That is, when adopting the technology disclosed in this Patent Document 3, there is a possibility that the user may not be able to correctly grasp which rental space they are actually staying in at present.

[0024] Based on the above findings, the present invention has been made with the object of providing a novel technology for managing a plurality of vehicles that can be lent to users.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0025] To solve this problem, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for managing a plurality of vehicles that can be lent to users, A short-range wireless communication unit is installed in each vehicle and has a transmitting unit that transmits a signal representing a code unique to each vehicle using a short-range communication method. a management server that remotely manages the plurality of vehicles and including wherein the management server a reservation unit that enables a user who wishes to use any of the vehicles to operate the user's communication device to select, as reserved vehicles, those among the plurality of vehicles that the user wishes to use, together with a scheduled start time and a scheduled end time Existence determination unit enables determination of whether the user is continuously present in the reserved vehicle by repeatedly determining whether the communication device has received the signal from the short-range wireless communication unit installed in the reserved vehicle. and a lending vehicle management system is provided.

[0026] Furthermore, according to a second aspect of the present invention, a program executed by the computer of a communication device of a user who wishes to use one of the plurality of vehicles managed by the rental vehicle management system, The aforementioned communication device has multiple functions, A reservation function that allows the user to select the vehicle they wish to use from among the multiple vehicles by operating the communication device, along with the scheduled start time and scheduled end time. A presence / absence determination function that determines whether a user is continuously present in the reserved vehicle by repeatedly determining whether the communication device has received the signal from the short-range wireless communication unit installed in the reserved vehicle, A transmission function that sends the determination result to the management server. Includes, A program is provided that is executed by the computer to realize the aforementioned multiple functions.

[0027] The following aspects are obtained by the present invention. Each aspect is divided into paragraphs, each paragraph is numbered, and is described in a form that quotes the numbers of other paragraphs as necessary. This is for the purpose of facilitating the understanding of some of the technical features that the present invention can adopt and combinations thereof, and it should not be construed that the technical features that the present invention can adopt and combinations thereof are limited to the following aspects. That is, it should be construed that it is not prohibited to appropriately extract and adopt the technical features described in this specification but not described in the following aspects as the technical features of the present invention.

[0028] Furthermore, the fact that each section is written in a format that references the numbering of other sections does not necessarily mean that it prevents the technical features described in each section from being separated and made independent from those described in other sections. Rather, it should be interpreted that it is possible to make the technical features described in each section independent as appropriate according to their nature.

[0029] (1) A method for centrally managing multiple rental items, which are real estate or movable property that can be leased to a user, This method is Each rental item includes a transmitter that emits a signal representing a unique transmitter code, A user's mobile device that selects one of the rental items and wishes to use the selected rental item, and which is capable of receiving signals via short-range communication between one or more transmitters. It is executed using This method is Prior to receiving from one or more transmitters, the mobile terminal includes an input support step that assists the user in selecting one of the rental items as a rental item, A management server capable of communicating with the aforementioned mobile terminal determines, according to the correspondence between the multiple rental targets and the multiple transmitter codes, the transmitter code corresponding to the selected rental target as the regular transmitter code. The mobile terminal and / or the management server perform a determination step in which they determine whether or not a user is present in the selected rental items, depending on whether or not the mobile terminal has received a signal representing the regular transmitter code. Rental management methods including

[0030] Here, "multiple rental items" typically refers to multiple real estate (e.g., multiple rental seats in a seating area, multiple parking spaces in a parking lot) or movable property (e.g., multiple rental bicycles in the same bicycle rental facility) that are located close enough to each other that they cannot be spatially identified (decomposed) with practical accuracy using the GPS function of the user's mobile device. However, theoretically, they may also refer to multiple real estate (e.g., multiple seating areas, multiple parking lots) or movable property (e.g., multiple rental bicycles in the same bicycle rental facility) that are spaced far enough apart to be spatially identified (decomposed) with practical accuracy using the GPS function of the user's mobile device.

[0031] (2) The mobile terminal repeatedly attempts to receive signals from one or more transmitters. The aforementioned determination step is, The process of recognizing the start of use of the selected rental item by the user based on the timing at which a first transition occurs in which the mobile terminal transitions from a state in which it does not receive a signal representing the regular transmitter code to a state in which it receives a signal, or the timing at which a predetermined first event occurs that is triggered by the first transition, The process involves the mobile terminal and / or the management server recognizing the end of use of the selected rental item by the user based on the timing of a second transition occurring in which the mobile terminal transitions from a state in which it receives a signal representing the regular transmitter code to a state in which it does not receive a signal, or the timing of a predetermined second event occurring as a result of the second transition. A rental management method as described in item (1), which includes at least one of the following:

[0032] (3) The mobile terminal repeatedly attempts to receive signals from one or more transmitters. The aforementioned determination step is, The process of the mobile terminal and / or the management server responding to a combination of the occurrence of either or both of a pair of first transitions, in which the mobile terminal transitions from a state in which it does not receive a signal representing the regular transmitter code to a state in which it receives a signal, and second transitions, in which the mobile terminal transitions from a state in which it receives a signal representing the regular transmitter code to a state in which it does not receive a signal, and a user's expression of intent to initiate use, and recognizing the user's commencement of use, The mobile terminal and / or the management server respond to a combination of the occurrence of either or both of a pair of first and second transitions and the user's expression of intent to terminate use, and recognize the user's termination of use. The rental management method described in item (2), including (2).

[0033] (4) The input support process is as follows: A process to assist the user in reserving the selected rental item at a location distant from the selected rental item, A step to assist the user in inputting the selected rental item at the same location as or near the selected rental item, immediately before the user uses the selected rental item. A rental item management method described in any of items (1) to (3), which includes at least one of the above.

[0034] (5) The rental item management method according to any one of paragraphs (1) to (4), wherein each transmitter operates in conjunction with the signal processing characteristics of the mobile terminal so that, as long as there is a user with the corresponding rental item, the signals transmitted from each transmitter are received by the mobile terminal without the user having to hold the mobile terminal in their hand or hold it over or in contact with the transmitter.

[0035] (6) The rental item management method according to any one of paragraphs (1) to (4), wherein each transmitter operates in conjunction with the signal processing characteristics of the mobile terminal so that when a user present in the corresponding rental item holds the mobile terminal in their hand and holds or touches the mobile terminal to the transmitter, the signal transmitted from each transmitter is received by the mobile terminal.

[0036] (7) The rental item management method according to any one of items (1) to (6), further comprising the step of the mobile terminal prompting the user to retry receiving the transmitter with the mobile terminal if the actual transmitter code represented by the signal received by the mobile terminal from each transmitter does not match the regular transmitter code.

[0037] (8) The rental item management method according to any one of items (1) to (7), further comprising the step that when the mobile terminal and / or the management server determines that the user has arrived at the selected rental item at the first time, the user enters a request to start using the mobile terminal within the first time limit from that time, and the user allows the user to start using the selected rental item.

[0038] (9) The rental property management method according to any one of items (1) to (8), further comprising the step that when the mobile terminal and / or the management server determines that the user has left the selected rental property at the second time, the user enters a request to end use on the mobile terminal within the second time limit from that time, and the user allows the user to end use of the selected space.

[0039] (10) A program that is executed by the computer of a mobile device in order to implement any of the mobile devices described in paragraphs (1) through (9).

[0040] (11) A program that is executed by the computer of the management server in order to implement the management server described in any of paragraphs (1) through (9).

[0041] The program relating to this section and other sections can be interpreted, for example, as meaning a combination of instructions executed by a computer to perform its function, or it can be interpreted as including not only such combination of instructions but also files and data processed in accordance with each instruction, but is not limited to these interpretations.

[0042] Furthermore, this program may achieve its intended purpose by being executed on a computer alone, or by being executed on a computer together with other programs, but is not limited to these two methods. In the latter case, the program relating to this section may be primarily data-based, but is not limited to that.

[0043] (12) A recording medium on which the program described in item (10) or (11) is recorded in a computer-readable format.

[0044] This recording medium can employ various formats, including, but is not limited to, magnetic recording media such as flexible disks, optical recording media such as CDs and CD-ROMs, magneto-optical recording media such as MOs, and unremovable storage such as ROMs.

[0045] (13) A rental item management method according to any one of items (1) to (9), characterized in that for the entire duration of each rental item's usage period, from the user's start time to the user's end time, the user's mobile terminal is positioned within a distance from the transmitter of the rental item that enables short-range communication with the transmitter.

[0046] (14) The rental management method described in paragraph (13) includes, for multiple rental items, multiple rental seats installed in a seat rental facility (including libraries, schools, training rooms, and lecture halls), or multiple rooms in an apartment building.

[0047] (15) A rental item management method according to any one of items (1) to (9), wherein, at least at the start and end stages of each rental period from the start time to the end time of use by the user for each rental item, the user's mobile terminal is positioned within a distance from the transmitter of the rental item that enables short-range communication with the transmitter.

[0048] (16) The rental management method described in paragraph (15) includes multiple parking spaces, multiple rental locker rooms, multiple rental warehouses, or multiple safe deposit boxes within a parking lot (including a bicycle parking area).

[0049] (17) The method is implemented to manage multiple rental items installed in multiple geographically distinct facilities (for example, multiple rental items that are so close to each other that they cannot be spatially separated by the GPS function of a mobile device), The rental target management method according to any one of items (1) to (9), wherein the input support step involves the mobile terminal measuring the current location of the mobile terminal, and displaying a number of candidate facilities located near the measured current location from among the plurality of facilities on the screen, together with map data, and in a state in which the user can select any of the facilities, thereby assisting the user in selecting any of the facilities.

[0050] (18) The method is implemented to manage multiple rental items installed in multiple facilities that are geographically different from each other, The rental target management method according to any one of items (1) to (9), wherein the input support step involves the mobile terminal displaying at least a portion of the multiple facilities on the screen in a list format, in a state where the user can select any of the facilities, thereby assisting the user in selecting any of the facilities.

[0051] (19) The input support step includes a step of assisting the user in inputting information to identify the selected rental item and information to specify the scheduled usage time of the selected rental item into the mobile terminal in order to reserve the selected rental item at a location away from the selected rental item, This method further, The management server, based on the information, creates a reservation status table to display the time periods in which reservations have been made for each rental item in chronological order, updates the reservation status table each time a new reservation is made and each time the use of any rental item ends, to reflect those facts, and transmits the latest reservation status table to the mobile terminal. The rental item management method according to any one of items (1) to (9), wherein the input support step further involves the mobile terminal displaying the transmitted reservation status table on its screen, and assisting the user in inputting the information into the mobile terminal in order to reserve the selected rental item while referring to the reservation status table.

[0052] (20) The plurality of transmitters and the mobile terminal are operated so that the mobile terminal continuously receives signals from the transmitters installed in the selected rental item while the user is in the selected rental item, The rental item management method according to any one of paragraphs (1) to (9), further comprising the step of repeatedly determining whether the user is actually staying at the selected rental item based on whether the mobile terminal is receiving a signal from a transmitter installed at the selected rental item.

[0053] (21) A system for centrally managing multiple rental items, which are real estate or movable property that can be leased to a user, Each rental item includes a transmitter that emits a signal representing a unique transmitter code, A user's mobile device that selects one of the rental items and wishes to use the selected rental item, and which is capable of receiving signals via short-range communication between one or more transmitters. Includes, The aforementioned mobile terminal includes an input support unit that assists the user in selecting one of the rental items to be rented prior to receiving from one or more transmitters. The aforementioned mobile terminal and / or a management server capable of communicating with that mobile terminal, A determination unit determines the transmitter code corresponding to the selected rental item as the regular transmitter code, according to the correspondence between the multiple rental items and the multiple transmitter codes. A determination unit determines whether the user is among the selected rental items, depending on whether the mobile terminal has received a signal representing the official transmitter code. Rental management system including

[0054] (22) The rental item management system according to paragraph (21), wherein for substantially the entire duration of each rental period from the user's start time to the end time of use for each rental item, the user's mobile terminal is positioned within a distance from the transmitter of the rental item that enables short-range communication with the transmitter.

[0055] (23) Each rental item is a rental item management system as described in paragraph (22), which includes an audio guide device (for example, a device that wirelessly receives signals from an external source and converts them into audio data in real time, or reads audio data from internal memory in response to an external trigger signal to provide an audio explanation of the exhibit) that is lent to visitors or tourists at museums, art galleries and tourist attractions and carried by the visitors or tourists during their visit.

[0056] (24) The rental item management system according to paragraph (21), wherein, at least at the start and end stages of each rental period from the start time to the end time of use by the user for each rental item, the user's mobile terminal is positioned within a distance from the transmitter of the rental item that enables short-range communication with the transmitter.

[0057] (25) Each rental item is a rental car or rental bicycle, and is subject to the rental item management method described in item (24).

[0058] (26) A method for centrally managing multiple rental items, which are real estate or movable property that can be leased to a user, This method is Each rental item includes a transmitter that emits a signal representing a unique transmitter code, A user's mobile device that selects one of the rental items and wishes to use the selected rental item, and which is capable of receiving signals via short-range communication between one or more transmitters. It is executed using This method is The process of the mobile terminal repeatedly attempting to receive signals from one or more transmitters, The process involves the mobile device assisting the user in selecting one of the multiple rental items as a rental item on the mobile device. Includes, This method further, The process includes recognizing the start of use of the selected rental item by the user based on the timing at which a first transition occurs in which the mobile terminal and / or a management server capable of communicating with the mobile terminal transitions from an unregulated reception state in which the mobile terminal does not receive a signal from any transmitter, or the signals received from one or more transmitters do not represent the regular transmitter code unique to the transmitter that should be installed on the selected rental item, to a regular reception state in which the mobile terminal receives a signal from one or more transmitters, or the timing at which a predetermined first event occurs triggered by the first transition, The process involves the mobile terminal and / or the management server recognizing the user's termination of use of the selected rental item based on the timing of a second transition occurring, which is a transition from the normal reception state to the abnormal reception state, or the timing of a predetermined second event occurring as a result of the second transition. A rental item management method that includes at least one of the following.

[0059] (27) A method for centrally managing multiple rental items, which are real estate or movable property that can be leased to a user, This method is Each rental item includes a transmitter that emits a signal representing a unique transmitter code, A user's mobile device that selects one of the rental items and wishes to use the selected rental item, and which is capable of receiving signals via short-range communication between one or more transmitters. It is executed using This method is The process of the mobile terminal repeatedly attempting to receive signals from one or more transmitters, The mobile terminal includes a step of assisting the user in selecting one of the multiple rental items as a rental item on the mobile terminal, The mobile terminal and / or a management server capable of communicating with the mobile terminal monitors the temporal changes in the user's approach to and distance from the selected rental item based on the temporal changes in the received signals that represent in chronological order whether or not the mobile terminal has received a signal from one or more transmitters. Rental management methods including

[0060] (28) Each of the aforementioned rental items is subject to the rental item management method described in item (26) or (27), including parking lots.

[0061] (29) Each of the aforementioned rental items includes a parking space installed in a parking lot, as described in item (26) or (27), the rental item management method.

[0062] (30) A method for controlling the reception range of a transmitter received by a user's mobile terminal, Multiple transmitters, each installed on movable or immovable property, that continuously transmit a unique identification signal, A user's mobile device capable of receiving one or more transmitters using a short-range communication method. It is executed using a system that includes, This method is A wide-area reception step in which the mobile terminal receives signals from one or more transmitters in a wide-area reception mode in which it receives in a first effective reception area, and determines whether the mobile terminal is located within the first effective reception area for each transmitter, thereby determining whether the mobile terminal has detected each transmitter in the wide-area reception mode. The mobile terminal includes a simultaneous reception determination step that determines whether it has simultaneously detected multiple transmitters in the wide-area reception mode, When at least one condition is met, including the condition that the mobile terminal has determined to have simultaneously detected multiple transmitters in the wide-area reception mode, the mobile terminal performs a narrow-area reception mode in which it receives signals from one or more transmitters in a second effective reception area that is smaller than the first effective reception area, and determines whether the mobile terminal is located within the second effective reception area for each transmitter, thereby determining whether the mobile terminal has detected each transmitter in the narrow-area reception mode. A method that includes this.

[0063] (31) The method of paragraph (30), wherein the real estate includes a plurality of rental spaces (for example, a plurality of rental seats, a plurality of parking lots, a plurality of parking spaces within a single parking lot, a plurality of stations, each of which has a plurality of rental bicycles stored in a state where they can be rented to users), each of which is equipped with the transmitter.

[0064] (32) The method of paragraph (30), wherein the movable property includes a plurality of rental bicycles or rental cars, each of which is equipped with the transmitter.

[0065] (33) The wide-area reception process is as follows: The steps include: the mobile terminal attempting to receive signals from one or more transmitters in the wide-area reception mode; The steps include: when the mobile terminal and / or a server capable of communicating with the mobile terminal receive signals from one or more transmitters in wide-area receiving mode, the mobile terminal measures the distance between each transmitter and the mobile terminal as a first distance based on the received signals; The process involves the mobile terminal and / or the server determining that if the first distance measured for each transmitter is shorter than the first effective receiving radius, each transmitter has been detected by the mobile terminal, while determining that if the first distance is longer than the first effective receiving radius, each transmitter has not been detected by the mobile terminal. Includes, The aforementioned narrow-band receiving process is: The steps include: the mobile terminal attempting to receive signals from one or more transmitters in the narrow-range reception mode; When the mobile terminal and / or the server receives signals from one or more transmitters in the narrow-range receiving mode, the steps include measuring the distance between each transmitter and the mobile terminal as a second distance based on the received signals, The process involves the mobile terminal and / or the server determining that if the second distance measured for each transmitter is shorter than the second effective receiving radius, each transmitter has been detected by the mobile terminal, while determining that if the second distance is longer than the second effective receiving radius, each transmitter has not been detected by the mobile terminal. A method that includes this.

[0066] The technologies described in items (30) to (33) above relate to improvements in the receiving mode of a user's mobile terminal when detecting a transmitter using the mobile terminal. According to this technology, the receiving mode, i.e., the effective receiving radius (a value set in the mobile terminal), is variable and can be switched between a wide-area receiving mode and a narrow-area receiving mode. According to this technology, if the possibility of interference (false detection of a transmitter by the mobile terminal) occurring between multiple transmitters is low, the wide-area receiving mode is selected, and if the possibility of interference is high, it is automatically switched to the narrow-area receiving mode. Therefore, according to this technology, even when multiple transmitters are close to each other, it becomes easy for the mobile terminal to correctly detect only the appropriate transmitter.

[0067] Furthermore, the technologies described in items (30) to (33) above (technologies that automatically switch the reception mode from wide-area reception mode to narrow-area reception mode when a mobile terminal detects multiple transmitters simultaneously in wide-area reception mode) can be combined with the technologies described in items (1) to (29) above (filtering technologies that, when a mobile terminal detects multiple transmitters simultaneously, exclude signals from transmitters other than the legitimate one, provided that the identity of the only transmitter that the mobile terminal should be receiving signals from is known prior to receiving signals from multiple transmitters) and an example of this will be described in detail later with reference to Figure 25. [Effects of the Invention]

[0068] According to one aspect of the present invention, a space is selected by the user prior to the user's mobile terminal receiving the transmitter.

[0069] Furthermore, according to one aspect of the present invention, based on the identity of the space, which is which space the selected space chosen by the user (for example, the reserved rental item), multiple transmitters installed in multiple spaces are classified into regular transmitters (target transmitters) that should be installed in one selected space and other irregular transmitters (non-target transmitters).

[0070] As a result, according to one aspect of the present invention, even if the user's mobile terminal receives a signal from an unauthorized transmitter in the selected space, that signal is not referenced, and only signals from legitimate transmitters are referenced, thereby estimating the user's current location, i.e., whether the user is truly located in the same location as or near the selected space.

[0071] The underlying idea behind this estimation is that if the user's location is known, the mobile device only needs to pay attention to the signals that should be emitted by transmitters installed at that known location.

[0072] Therefore, according to one aspect of the present invention, even in environments where the effective reception areas of a legitimate transmitter and other transmitters overlap at least partially, for reasons such as the legitimate transmitter having to be spatially close to other transmitters, or the need to expand the effective reception area of ​​a legitimate transmitter (see, for example, Figures 5 and 20) to improve the convenience of users receiving legitimate transmitters using their mobile terminals (for example, so that users do not have to go out of their way to approach the legitimate transmitter from their usual location), only signals from legitimate transmitters are enabled on the mobile terminal by a software filtering function (noise reduction function) rather than a hardware filtering function (noise reduction function). As a result, according to one aspect of the present invention, it becomes easy to accurately estimate the user's current location without being affected by other transmitters.

[0073] The effect of easily expanding the effective reception area of ​​each transmitter is embodied, for example, when applying the present invention to a technology for selecting a parking space within a parking lot or a similar technology, in the entry and / or exit sequences, it becomes easier for the user to receive signals from the official transmitter and communicate with the management server for entry and exit processing while remaining inside the vehicle parked in the selected parking space within the parking lot, that is, without getting out of the vehicle and approaching the transmitter. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0074] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing an example of how multiple transmitters installed in multiple rental seats, a user's mobile terminal when staying in any of the rental seats, a user's mobile terminal when staying at their home (an exemplary location far from any of the rental seats), and a management server in a remote management center communicate with each other in an unmanned seat rental system according to an exemplary first embodiment of the present invention.

[0075] [Figure 2]Figure 2 conceptually represents short-range one-way communication between each transmitter installed in each rental space shown in Figure 1 and the user's mobile terminal, and long-range two-way communication between the mobile terminal and the management server shown in Figure 1.

[0076] [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram that conceptually represents the transmitter shown in Figure 2.

[0077] [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a flowchart conceptually representing an example of a program executed by the computer of the transmitter shown in Figure 3.

[0078] [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows some of the rental seats shown in Figure 2, enlarged along with the transmitters installed at each seat, and is a plan view conceptually representing the effective reception area assigned to each transmitter.

[0079] [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a functional block diagram conceptually representing the mobile device shown in Figure 2.

[0080] [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a diagram that conceptually represents the facility data files stored in the facility data memory in Figure 6 in tabular format.

[0081] [Figure 8] Figure 8 is a diagram that conceptually represents the rental data files stored in the rental data memory in Figure 6 in tabular format.

[0082] [Figure 9] Figure 9 is a functional block diagram conceptually representing the management server shown in Figure 2.

[0083] [Figure 10]Figure 10(a) shows a list of multiple modules of the seat rental service program executed by the computer of the mobile terminal shown in Figure 6, and Figure 10(b) shows a list of multiple modules of the seat rental service program executed by the computer of the management server shown in Figure 9.

[0084] [Figure 11] Figure 11(a) is a diagram illustrating the reservation status table used in the reservation sequence, which is one of the reservation methods performed in the unmanned seat rental system, and Figure 11(b) is a diagram illustrating the user-specific reservation content file used in the reservation sequence.

[0085] [Figure 12] Figure 12 shows several time charts illustrating the overall sequence (the entire main sequence) of the unmanned seat rental method.

[0086] [Figure 13] Figure 13 shows the reservation sequence flow achieved by the execution of the reservation module shown in Figure 10(a) by a mobile terminal and the execution of the reservation module shown in Figure 10(b) by a management server.

[0087] [Figure 14] Figures 14(a), (b), and (c) are reservation sequence diagrams that illustrate the reservation sequence flow shown in Figure 13 in chronological order.

[0088] [Figure 15] Figure 15 shows the startup sequence flow achieved by the execution of the startup processing module shown in Figure 10(a) by a mobile terminal and the execution of the startup processing module shown in Figure 10(b) by a management server.

[0089] [Figure 16]Figure 16 shows the stay determination sequence flow achieved by the execution of the stay determination module shown in Figure 10(a) by a mobile terminal and the execution of the stay determination module shown in Figure 10(b) by a management server.

[0090] [Figure 17] Figure 17 shows the end-of-use sequence flow achieved by the execution of the end-of-use processing module shown in Figure 10(a) by a mobile terminal and the execution of the end-of-use processing module shown in Figure 10(b) by a management server.

[0091] [Figure 18] Figure 18 shows the reservation change sequence flow achieved by the execution of the reservation change module shown in Figure 10(a) by a mobile terminal and the execution of the reservation change module shown in Figure 10(b) by a management server.

[0092] [Figure 19] Figure 19 is a perspective view showing an example of how a parking management system according to an exemplary second embodiment of the present invention communicates with a plurality of transmitters installed in each of the plurality of parking spaces within a parking lot, a user's mobile terminal when staying in one of the parking spaces and a user's mobile terminal when staying in a location away from any of the parking spaces, and a management server in a remote management center.

[0093] [Figure 20] Figure 20 is a plan view that shows a magnified view of a portion of the multiple parking spaces installed in one of the multiple parking lots shown in Figure 19, and conceptually represents the transmitters installed in each parking space, along with the effective receiving area assigned to each transmitter.

[0094] [Figure 21] Figure 21 is a series of time charts illustrating the overall sequence of the parking management system shown in Figure 19.

[0095] [Figure 22]Figure 22 is a time chart illustrating the reservation sequence performed in the parking management system.

[0096] [Figure 23] Figure 23 is a time chart illustrating the entry sequence performed in the parking management system described above.

[0097] [Figure 24] Figure 24 is a time chart illustrating the exit sequence performed by the parking management system described above.

[0098] [Figure 25] Figure 25 is a flowchart showing a program for the unmanned seating rental system that detects when a user has mistakenly sat in a seat that they have not reserved, and in that case, instructs the user to sit in the correct seat. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0099] Hereinafter, several exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0100] <First Embodiment>

[0101] Figure 1 shows an unmanned seat rental system 10 according to an exemplary first embodiment of the present invention (an example of a "rental system management system" and an example of a "rental item management system," hereinafter simply referred to as the "system"). This system 10 is, in general terms, an example of a rental item management system that authenticates the location of rental items using individual transmitters, conditional on the rental item being reserved by the user.

[0102] This system 10 is a system for centrally managing multiple seat rental facilities 20 (Figure 1 shows only a representative seat rental facility A among these seat rental facilities 20). Each seat rental facility 20 has multiple rental seats 22, and each rental seat 22 is a rental space, which is an individual space temporarily rented to one user.

[0103] Within a single seat rental facility 20, multiple rental seats 22 are generally arranged close together. These rental seats 22 are an example of multiple rental items that are so close to each other that they cannot be spatially identified (disassembled) by, for example, the GPS function of a mobile terminal 90 (described later).

[0104] In contrast, the multiple seating facilities 20 are an example of multiple facilities that are spatially dispersed enough to be distinguished (decomposed) from one another by the GPS function (described later) of the mobile terminal 90.

[0105] Here, to explain the classification of the rental spaces 22, each rental space 22 belongs to the first type of rental space, which is characterized in that the user's mobile terminal 90 is positioned within a range that allows short-range communication with the transmitter 30 of the rental space for the entire duration of each rental period, from the start time to the end time of use by the user for that rental space. Other rental spaces belonging to the same first type include multiple rooms within the accommodation facility.

[0106] There is also a second type of rental space, which is characterized in that, at least at the start and end of each rental period from the start time to the end time of use by the user for each rental space, the user's mobile terminal 90 is positioned within a distance that allows short-range communication with the transmitter 30 of the rental space. Examples of rental spaces belonging to this second type include multiple parking spaces in a parking lot (including a bicycle parking area), multiple rental locker rooms, multiple rental warehouses, and multiple safe deposit boxes.

[0107] This system 10 is configured to perform an unmanned seat rental method according to this embodiment and a user terminal interference prevention method according to this embodiment. The unmanned seat rental method is an example of a rental space management method that centrally manages multiple rental spaces that can be rented to users, and the rental space management method is an example of a rental object management method that centrally manages multiple rental objects that are real estate that can be rented to users. Another example of the rental object management method is a rental object management method that centrally manages multiple rental objects that are movable property that can be rented to users (for example, rental cars or rental bicycles).

[0108] Each seat rental facility 20 is unmanned. Furthermore, in order to reduce and simplify equipment, each seat rental facility 20 is not equipped with a device to open and close as needed to prevent unauthorized entry and exit to each seat 22 (e.g., an electronic key), a device to read encryption provided by the user (e.g., a password or barcode information), a payment machine for the user to pay the rental fee, or a ticket machine to issue tickets to the user.

[0109] The term "code" throughout this specification means "a sequence of numbers and / or symbols," and specifically refers to a numerical representation (e.g., a binary representation) that digitizes and expresses the state of an analog signal, and is a numerical representation unique to each individual analog signal. In the context of identification, the term "code" is also referred to as, for example, an ID, or identifier.

[0110] Incidentally, there are two methods for managing the seating facilities 20: an autonomous management method in which each seating facility 20 is managed independently (individually or self-contained) using only the equipment installed in that facility, and a centralized management method in which multiple seating facilities 20 communicate remotely with a management server 50 (see Figure 1) to centrally manage those seating facilities 20. The system 10 according to this embodiment adopts the aforementioned centralized management method as its seating facility management method.

[0111] Specifically, as shown in Figure 1, this system 10 includes a transmitter 30 installed at each rental seat 22 within each rental seat facility 20, a management server 50 installed at a management center 40 that centrally manages multiple rental seat facilities 20 and multiple rental seats 22, and a user's mobile terminal 90.

[0112] <Transmitter>

[0113] In this embodiment, multiple rental seats 22 are installed in the same seat rental facility 20, and one transmitter 30 is used for each rental seat 22.

[0114] Each transmitter 30 is configured to emit an identification signal representing its own unique transmitter ID (an example of the "transmitter code" mentioned above). Since one transmitter ID is also unique to one seat 22, it is associated one-to-one with one seat ID (an example of a "seat rental code"), as described later.

[0115] As shown in Figure 2, in this system 10, the user uses their mobile terminal 90 to receive the aforementioned identification signal from the transmitter 30 installed in the rental seat 22 where the user is currently staying, either in contact with the transmitter 30 or in a non-contact state (either holding the mobile terminal 90 over the transmitter 30 or being slightly away from the transmitter 30, as illustrated in multiple locations in Figure 5), using a short-range one-way wireless communication method, and also performs long-range two-way wireless communication with the management server 50 of the management center 40.

[0116] The user's mobile terminal 90 is a device carried by the user and having wireless communication capabilities, such as a mobile phone, smartphone, laptop computer, tablet computer, or PDA.

[0117] Here, we will describe the hardware configuration (see Figure 3) and software configuration (see Figure 4) of a single transmitter 30 that represents the multiple transmitters 30 shown in Figure 1.

[0118] First, conceptually, the transmitter 30 is a contactless or contact-type communication device installed at least once in each corresponding seat 22, which transmits an identification signal capable of identifying a seat rental facility ID unique to the corresponding seat 22. The transmitter 30 only needs to have a transmitting function, but may be configured to also have a receiving function as needed.

[0119] Next, to explain the operating method, the transmitter 30 actively transmits a unique identification signal without requiring an external trigger signal, and continuously as long as there is sufficient power supply.

[0120] The transmitter 30 is a device that transmits beacon signals as identification signals, and is also known by names such as beacon device or radio beacon. In one example, the transmitter 30 generates an identification signal representing the corresponding seat rental facility ID by modulating the original signal, and transmits the generated identification signal as an IR signal, Bluetooth® signal, NFC (Near Field Communication) signal, etc.

[0121] Next, referring to Figure 3, a functional block diagram, the hardware configuration will be explained. The transmitter 30 is mainly composed of a computer 104 having a processor 100 and a memory 102 that stores multiple applications executed by the processor 100.

[0122] This transmitter 30 also has a replaceable disposable battery 106 as a power source. Instead of battery 106, a rechargeable battery can be used, commercial power can be used as an external power source, or a generator that generates electricity using an external magnetic field (for example, a transponder) can be used.

[0123] The transmitter 30 further includes a transmitting unit 108 that generates and transmits an identification signal. The transmitting unit 108 is powered by a battery 106 and controlled by a controller 110. The controller 110 is controlled by a computer 100.

[0124] Next, referring to Figure 4, the software configuration of the transmitter 30 will be explained. The processor 100 of the transmitter 30 iteratively executes the program conceptually represented by the flowchart in Figure 4.

[0125] Each time this program is executed, first, in step S1, the transmitter ID is read from memory 102. This transmitter ID corresponds one-to-one with the seat ID assigned to one of the seat 22 where the transmitter 30 is installed.

[0126] Next, in step S2, a signal for modulating the original signal (e.g., carrier signal) so that the read transmitter ID is reflected is output to the controller 110. The controller 110 controls the transmitter 108, and as a result, the transmitter 108 generates the identification signal to be transmitted. Then, in step S3, the generated identification signal is transmitted from the transmitter 108. The process then returns to step S1.

[0127] To explain one function of the user's mobile terminal 90 in relation to the transmitter 30, when the mobile terminal 90 is receiving an identification signal from the transmitter 30, it activates a program that is pre-installed on the mobile terminal 90's computer 134 (see Figure 6). This program demodulates the received identification signal in real time and thereby decodes the transmitter ID in real time.

[0128] Furthermore, while the mobile terminal 90 is receiving an identification signal from the transmitter 30, it also measures the distance between the position of the transmitter 30 when it transmitted the identification signal and the position of the mobile terminal 90 when it received the identification signal, based on the received identification signal.

[0129] In other words, the mobile terminal 90 acquires both the transmitter ID corresponding to the transmitter 30 and the distance to the transmitter 30 at that time, based on the identification signal received from the transmitter 30.

[0130] When a user of the mobile terminal 90 approaches the transmitter 30 while holding the mobile terminal 90, or when the mobile terminal 90 is brought into complete or near contact with the transmitting unit 108 of the transmitter 30, the mobile terminal 90 can receive an identification signal from the transmitter 30 in a non-contact or contact manner.

[0131] In contrast, when a user of the mobile terminal 90 enters a specific reception area while holding their mobile terminal 90, the mobile terminal 90 can receive an identification signal from the transmitter 30 in a contactless manner.

[0132] As conceptually shown in the plan view in Figure 5, each transmitter 30 is assigned two types of receiving areas: a receivable area (not shown) and an effective receiving area. Both areas are generally defined by circles with each transmitter 30 as the source, with the receivable area having a maximum receiving radius, while the effective receiving area has an effective receiving radius.

[0133] However, specifically, the receivable area means the area from which the identification signal from each transmitter 30 can reach when the power supply to each transmitter 30 is functioning normally, that is, the area from which the mobile terminal 90 can receive the identification signal as long as it is within that area.

[0134] In contrast, the effective reception area has an effective reception radius smaller than the maximum reception radius of the receivable area. The maximum reception radius cannot be set arbitrarily, whereas the effective reception radius can be set arbitrarily, for example, depending on the settings of the signal processing characteristics of the mobile terminal 90.

[0135] The effective reception radius is, for example, within a range of 50 cm to 3 m, or within a range of 1 m to 2 m, as is evident from the standard dimensions and geometry of the reception area 22, which will be detailed later with reference to Figure 5. The maximum reception radius is, for example, within a range of 50 m to 70 m.

[0136] In other words, the maximum reception radius refers to the reception limit determined by the hardware, while the effective reception radius refers to the reception limit determined by the software.

[0137] As described above, the mobile terminal 90 measures the distance to the transmitter 30 when it transmits the identification signal it received. This distance measurement may or may not exceed the effective reception radius. When the distance measurement does not exceed the effective reception radius, it means that the mobile terminal 90 is within the effective reception area (see Figure 5), whereas when the distance measurement exceeds the effective reception radius, it means that the mobile terminal 90 is within the receivable area but not within the effective reception area.

[0138] After receiving an identification signal from the transmitter 30, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether the measured distance is less than or equal to the set value of the effective reception radius. If it determines that it is less than or equal to the set value, the mobile terminal 90 determines that it has "effectively received the identification signal from the transmitter 30" (hereinafter also simply referred to as "received the identification signal"). Here, "effectively received" means that the mobile terminal 90 has detected, identified, or identified one of the transmitters 30.

[0139] In response, if the mobile terminal 90 determines that the distance measurement is greater than the set value, it determines that the mobile terminal 90 is currently located outside the effective reception area, and therefore the mobile terminal 90 "has not effectively received the identification signal from the transmitter 30 (hereinafter also simply referred to as "has not received the identification signal").

[0140] In other words, in this embodiment, if the mobile terminal 90 is located outside the effective reception area, even though the mobile terminal 90 is actually receiving the identification signal, it will appear in the software to be as if the mobile terminal 90 has not received the identification signal.

[0141] Figure 5 shows a front view of a rental seat 22 (rental seat P) provided to one user (user X). The rental seat 22 has a desk 24 with a tabletop 23 and a chair 26 in which the user can sit. In one example, a transmitter 30 is installed on the tabletop 23.

[0142] In another example, the transmitter 30 is installed near the distal edge 28 of the top plate 23, which is further away from the user's seating position, out of the proximal edge 27 and distal edge 28 that face each other in the front-to-back direction.

[0143] In yet another example, the transmitter 30 is installed on the distal edge 28 of the top plate 23, at a position slightly to the left (or right) of its center in the width direction. As a result, even if the user places items such as documents on the top plate 23, the transmitter 30 will not be obstructed by those items, thus preventing signal interruption as much as possible.

[0144] Figure 5 shows a plan view of an example of the effective reception area assigned to the transmitter 30. In this example, the transmission characteristics of the transmitter 30 and the signal processing characteristics of the mobile terminal 90 are set so that, when user X is seated in chair 26 and the mobile terminal 90 is being carried by user X or placed at any position on the tabletop 27 of desk 23, the mobile terminal 90 is located within the effective reception area of ​​a large effective reception radius centered on the transmitter 30.

[0145] In this example, user X has the advantage of not being forced to hold their mobile device 90 up to their own transmitter 30 or place it near their own transmitter 30. On the other hand, the mobile device 90 will be located not only within the effective reception area of ​​their own transmitter 30 but also within the effective reception area of ​​the neighboring transmitter 30.

[0146] However, according to this embodiment, based on the reservation information of the reserved seat 22 (identification information of the reserved seat 22 selected by the user prior to the initial reception by the mobile terminal 90 from any of the transmitters 30), the multiple transmitters 30 are classified into regular transmitters 30 (target transmitters) that should be installed in the reserved seat 22 and other irregular transmitters 30 (non-target transmitters). Even if the user's mobile terminal 90 receives a signal from an irregular transmitter 30 at the selected seat 22, that signal is invalidated and not referenced, and only signals from regular transmitters 30 are enabled and referenced, thereby estimating the user's current location, that is, whether the user is truly located at the same location as or near the selected seat 22.

[0147] Figure 5 also shows an effective reception area with a small effective reception radius. If this effective reception area is adopted, there is no overlap between the effective reception area of ​​the regular transmitter 30 and the effective reception area of ​​the adjacent transmitter 30. However, in this embodiment, the user is forced to bring the mobile terminal 90 close to the transmitter 30 or touch it each time in order for the mobile terminal 90 to detect the transmitter 30.

[0148] <Mobile devices>

[0149] Next, referring to Figure 6, a functional block diagram, the hardware configuration of the user's mobile terminal 90 will be explained. The mobile terminal 90 is mainly composed of a computer 134 having a processor 130 and a memory 132 that stores multiple applications executed by the processor 130.

[0150] The mobile terminal 90 further includes a display unit (e.g., a liquid crystal display) 136 that displays information on a screen (having a window with a finite area that is variable or immutable) indicated by the numeral "135" in Figure 14, a receiving unit 138 that receives signals from the transmitter 30 and the management server 50, and a transmitting unit 140 that generates signals and transmits them to the management server 50.

[0151] The mobile terminal 90 further includes an input unit 150 for inputting data and commands from the user. The input unit 150 includes, for example, an operation unit that can be operated by the user to input desired information (e.g., commands, data, etc.) into the mobile terminal 90. This operation unit may include, but is not limited to, a touchscreen that displays user-operable icons (e.g., virtual buttons), a physical operation unit that can be operated by the user (e.g., a keyboard, keypad, buttons, etc.), or a microphone that senses sound.

[0152] This mobile terminal 90 also has a GPS (Satellite Positioning System) receiver 152. As is well known, the GPS receiver 152 receives multiple GPS signals from multiple GPS satellites and, based on these GPS signals, measures the position of the GPS receiver 152 on Earth (latitude, longitude, and altitude) by triangulation. In other words, this mobile terminal 90 has a satellite-based positioning function.

[0153] As shown in Figure 7, memory 132 has multiple data memories, including map data memory 161, seat rental facility data memory 163, seat rental data memory 165, and reservation status table memory 167.

[0154] The map data memory 161 temporarily stores map data downloaded by the user's mobile terminal 90 from the management server 50 or another map database (not shown) according to the user's current location. Based on this map data, a map (an example of a "partial map") is displayed on the screen 135 (see Figure 14) of the display unit 136. The map displayed on the screen 135 changes moment by moment as the user moves.

[0155] As conceptually shown in Figure 7, the seat rental facility data memory 163 can store the correspondence between multiple seat rental facility IDs and multiple seat rental facility location data, which are downloaded from the management server 50. Each of the multiple seat rental facility IDs corresponds to one of the multiple seat rental facilities 20 centrally managed by the system 10. Each of the multiple seat rental facility location data represents the longitude and latitude (latitude X, longitude Y) of the corresponding seat rental facility 20 on the ground.

[0156] The seat rental facility data memory 163 temporarily stores, at each moment, multiple seat rental facility location data corresponding to multiple seat rental facilities 20 geographically located on the map displayed on the screen 135, along with the corresponding multiple seat rental facility IDs.

[0157] On the mobile terminal 90, a map based on the map data is displayed on the screen 135, and at each moment, the locations of a small number of candidate seating facilities 20 located near the current location of the mobile terminal 90 are overlaid on the map, based on the location data of multiple seating facilities stored in the seating facility data memory 163 at that time (see Figure 14).

[0158] Here, "a small number of candidate seating facilities 20" refers to the seating facilities 20 that are displayed on the screen 135 from among the downloaded seating facilities 20, due to their proximity to the current location of the mobile device 90. Seating facilities 20 that are not displayed on the screen 135 due to their distance from the current location of the mobile device 90 are excluded.

[0159] As conceptually shown in Figure 8, the seat rental data memory 165 in Figure 6 can store the correspondence between multiple seat rental facility IDs, multiple seat rental IDs, and multiple authorized transmitter IDs, which are downloaded from the management server 50. When one of the multiple seat rentals 22 is selected by the user, one corresponding seat rental ID is determined, and consequently, one corresponding authorized transmitter ID is determined.

[0160] The reservation status table in memory 167 is downloaded from the management server 50 as needed and stored there.

[0161] As shown in Figure 10(a), the memory 132 of the mobile terminal 90 stores a seat rental service program for the mobile terminal 90, and this seat rental service program has the following multiple modules.

[0162] 1) Reservation module This is a module that helps users reserve one of the reserved seats 22 before arriving at the seating facility 20, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 13. Here, "reserve" is equivalent to the user entering location information for the desired seating facility 20 and the desired seat 22, as well as time information such as the planned start time and planned end time.

[0163] 2) Reservation change module This module, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 18, assists a user in modifying their reservation to delay the scheduled end time included in the reservation details, at the location of the reserved seat 22, after they have started using the reserved seat 22 but before they have finished using it (while they are staying at the reserved seat 22).

[0164] 3) Pre-use warning module This module, although not shown in the diagram, sends a message to the current user's mobile terminal 90 individually after the reservation is made but before the scheduled start time included in the reservation, informing the user that "another user is scheduled to use the same rental space 22 after the current user has finished using it, so it is not possible to change the reservation to delay the scheduled end time, and therefore, please leave the rental space 22 by the scheduled end time."

[0165] 4) Startup processing module This module assists users in starting to use the reserved seat 22 according to their reservation, and also assists users in modifying their reservation to effectively advance the scheduled start time included in the reservation details prior to the start of use of the reserved seat 22, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 15.

[0166] 5) Stay detection module This is a module that, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 16, iteratively determines, moment by moment, whether the user is actually staying in or not (is not present) at the reserved seat 22 while the seat 22 is in use.

[0167] 6) End-of-use processing module This is a module that assists users in ending their use of the rental space 22 and electronically paying the rental fee, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 17.

[0168] <Management Server>

[0169] Next, with reference to Figure 9, a functional block diagram, the hardware configuration of the management server 50 will be described. The management server 50 is mainly composed of a computer 164 having a processor 160 and a memory 162 that stores multiple applications executed by the processor 160.

[0170] The management server 50 further includes a display unit (e.g., a liquid crystal display) 166 for displaying information, a receiving unit 168 for receiving signals from the mobile terminal 90, a transmitting unit 170 for generating signals and transmitting them to the mobile terminal 90, and a clock 172 for measuring the current time. The management server 50 does not directly receive signals from the transmitter 30, but effectively does so via the mobile terminal 90.

[0171] As shown in Figure 10(b), the memory 162 of the management server 50 stores a seat rental service program for the management server 50, and this seat rental service program has the following multiple modules.

[0172] 1) Reservation module This module has the same functionality as the reservation module of the mobile terminal 90, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 13.

[0173] 2) Reservation change module This module has the same functionality as the reservation change module of the mobile terminal 90, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 18.

[0174] 3) Pre-use warning module This module, although not shown in the diagram, has the same function as the pre-use warning module of the mobile terminal 90.

[0175] 4) Startup processing module This module has the same functionality as the startup processing module for the mobile terminal 90, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 15.

[0176] 5) Stay detection module This module has the same functionality as the dwell time detection module of the mobile terminal 90, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 16.

[0177] 6) End-of-use processing module This module has the same functionality as the end-of-use processing module for the mobile terminal 90, as will be detailed later with reference to Figure 17.

[0178] <Overview of reservation sequence>

[0179] Figure 11(a) shows an example of a reservation status table for managing the reservation status of multiple rental seats 22 by multiple users through the execution of the reservation module by the mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50.

[0180] This reservation status table is created and updated on the management server 50, and the latest version is shared with the mobile terminal 90. This reservation status table displays whether a reservation exists and the scheduled usage time (including date and time) for each seat rental facility 20 and each seat rental 22. The user visually checks this reservation status table on the screen 135 of their mobile terminal 90, refers to it to find a seat rental facility 20 with available seats, finds an available time slot among the multiple seats 22 in that seat rental facility 20, and specifies the desired date and time slot.

[0181] In Figure 11(a), within the time axis (from 0:00 to 23:59) for each of the 22 rental seats in the reservation status table, the time periods where a horizontal bar hatched with diagonal lines exists at the most recent update time of the reservation status table indicate time periods that already have reservations, i.e., time periods with prior bookings. Conversely, time periods where the bar does not exist indicate time periods that do not yet have reservations, i.e., time periods with no prior bookings.

[0182] The user enters the identification information of the selected seating facility 20, the identification information of the selected seating area 22, the start date and time of use, and the end date and time of use into their mobile terminal 90, as illustrated in Figure 14(c), and thereby reserves the corresponding seating area 22.

[0183] Figure 11(b) shows an example of a user-specific reservation file for managing the reservation details of multiple users through the execution of the reservation module by the mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50.

[0184] This user-specific reservation file is created and updated on the management server 50. This user-specific reservation file contains, for each user, personal authentication information (user ID, password, etc.), location information to identify the location of the selected seat rental facility 20 (a unique ID for the selected facility 20), location information to identify the location of the selected seat rental 22 (a unique ID for the selected seat rental 22), time information to define the planned usage period for the selected seat rental 22 (planned start time, planned end time, planned usage duration, etc.), and the type of penalty imposed on the user if the user violates the rules that the user is required to comply with in order to receive this seat rental service.

[0185] <Overview of the entire sequence>

[0186] Figure 12 illustrates the main sequence using multiple time charts, using an example where a user reserves a rental space 22 (rental space P) with a scheduled start time of 15:00 and a scheduled end time of 18:00.

[0187] In the same figure (and the same in Figure 21), the time chart labeled "reception" shows, for the sake of explanation, whether the mobile terminal 90 is receiving the legitimate transmitter ID at each moment using pulse signals that are low level when the mobile terminal 90 is not receiving the legitimate transmitter ID and high level when it is receiving it.

[0188] 1) Start using

[0189] Assuming that a user takes a seat in the reserved seat 22 at 15:30 on a given day, the user's mobile terminal 90 will inevitably enter the effective reception area of ​​the regular transmitter 30. At this time, the mobile terminal 90 will begin receiving signals from the transmitter 30 either while carrying the mobile terminal 90 or by holding the mobile terminal 90 over the transmitter 30. It is assumed that the activation module is activated before the user arrives at the reserved seat facility 20.

[0190] As a result, assuming that at 15:30, an event occurred in which the mobile terminal 90 transitioned from a state in which it did not receive a legitimate transmitter ID (including both a state in which the mobile terminal 90 received a non-legitimate ID, where it received a signal from one of the transmitters 30 but the signal represented an actual transmitter ID different from the legitimate transmitter ID, and a state in which the mobile terminal 90 did not receive a signal from any of the transmitters 30) to a state in which it received a signal (this is an example of the "first transition" mentioned above, and in Figure 12, it is the rising edge of one received pulse signal corresponding to the duration of one use of the reserved seat 22 by the user), the mobile terminal 90 (or the management server 50) determines that the user has actually sat down in the reserved seat 22, that is, has started using the reserved seat 22.

[0191] This is because the event in which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state in which it does not receive the legitimate caller ID to a state in which it does receive it (i.e., the initial determination that the actual caller ID matches the legitimate caller ID) is an exclusive event in this embodiment that does not occur unless the user is seated in a legitimate reserved seat 22.

[0192] Next, the user enters a request to start using the service (an example of the "first event" mentioned above) into the mobile terminal 90 within a first time limit, for example, 5 minutes from the time the aforementioned event occurred.

[0193] In response to the request to start using the space, the management server 50 permits the user to start using the space 22. This time is the actual start time of use, but as a general rule, billing to the user begins from the scheduled start time of 15:00. Specifically, the counting of the total usage time (rental time, loan time) that is referenced to calculate the final rental fee for the user begins from the scheduled start time.

[0194] 2) In use

[0195] Users typically do not leave their reserved seat 22 for extended periods after starting to use it (although they may leave briefly). Therefore, while using the reserved seat 22, the mobile terminal 90 continues to receive signals from the transmitter 30 (in Figure 12, the high-level continuation portion of the single received pulse signal), and as a result, the mobile terminal 90 (or the management server 50) continues to determine that the user is staying in the reserved seat 22.

[0196] 3) End of use

[0197] Assuming the user leaves the rental seat 22 at 17:30 on the same day, the user's mobile device 90 leaves the effective reception area of ​​the official transmitter 30. At this time, while the user is still carrying the mobile device 90, the user's mobile device 90 stops receiving signals from the official transmitter 30.

[0198] As a result, assuming that an event occurs in which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state of receiving the legitimate transmitter ID to a state of not receiving it (an example of the "second transition" mentioned above, and in Figure 12, the falling edge of the single received pulse signal), the mobile terminal 90 (or the management server 50) determines that the user has actually left the reserved seat 22, that is, has finished using the reserved seat 22.

[0199] This is because, in this embodiment, the event in which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state in which it receives the legitimate caller ID to a state in which it does not receive it is an exclusive event that does not occur unless the user leaves the legitimate reserved seat 22.

[0200] Next, the user enters a request to terminate use (an example of the "second event" mentioned above) into the mobile terminal 90 within a second time limit, for example, 5 minutes from the time the aforementioned event occurred.

[0201] In response to the usage termination request, the management server 50 permits the user to terminate their use of the rental space 22. This time is the actual usage termination time, but as a rule, billing to the user continues until the scheduled termination time of 18:00. Specifically, at the scheduled termination time, the count of the total usage time (rental time, loan time) referenced to calculate the final rental fee for the user ends.

[0202] Once the rental fee calculation is complete, the user electronically settles the rental fee via the mobile terminal 90.

[0203] <Reservation Sequence>

[0204] Figure 13 shows a time-series sequence flow of an example of communication between a mobile terminal 90 and a remotely located management server 50, in which a user connects the mobile terminal 90 to a management server 90 from a location away from the seat rental facility 20 they wish to reserve (for example, their home, as shown in Figure 1), and reserves one of the seats 22 within that seat rental facility 20.

[0205] When the user starts the seat rental service program (which has already been downloaded from the management server 50 and installed on the 132 of the mobile terminal 90) on the mobile terminal 90, several buttons (selectable by the user) such as "Reserve," "Start Use," "Request to Start Use," "Request to End Use," and "Change Reservation" are displayed on the screen of the mobile terminal 90.

[0206] In this case, when the user selects the "Reserve" button, the reservation module of the seat rental service program for the mobile terminal 90 is executed by the processor 130 of the mobile terminal 90, and the reservation module of the seat rental service program for the management server 50 is executed by the processor 160 of the management server 50.

[0207] When the reservation module for the mobile terminal 90 is executed by the processor 130 of the mobile terminal 90, first, in step 101, the mobile terminal 90 is operated so that the user's current location (longitude and latitude) is measured based on the GPS signal received by the GPS receiver 152 from an external source.

[0208] Next, in step S102, the measured current location of the user is designated as the reference position (location of the display reference point (latitude and longitude)) that the processor 130 refers to in order to display the map on the screen 135 of the display unit 136. Furthermore, the portion of the overall map that is large enough to be displayed at once within the window on the screen 135 and where the reference position is located is determined as the map display range (i.e., the area of ​​the overall map that is displayed within the window at each moment).

[0209] As illustrated in Figure 14(a), as the user moves on the ground over time, the reference position 202 (shown as a black triangle in the figure) also moves along with the user. As a result, the display range of the map also moves along the overall map over time as the user moves, and consequently, the map image displayed in the window also changes over time.

[0210] Next, in step S103, a login request (an example of a "service start signal") to log in to the management server 50 is sent to the management server 50 along with a user ID and password to identify the user.

[0211] In response, when the reservation module for the management server 50 is executed by the processor 160 of the management server 50, the management server 50 receives the login request along with the user ID and password in step S201, and then in step S202, retrieves facility data relating to the multiple seat rental facilities 20 (see Figure 7 for the multiple components of the facility data), seat rental data relating to the multiple seats 22 belonging to those seat rental facilities 20 (see Figure 8 for the multiple components of the seat rental data), and the reservation status table (see Figure 11(a)) in the memory 162 (or another memory) of the management server 50.

[0212] Subsequently, in step S203, the retrieved facility data, rental data, and reservation status table are transmitted to the mobile terminal 90.

[0213] In response, the mobile terminal 90 receives the facility data, seat rental data, and reservation status table in step S104. The received facility data is stored in the seat rental facility data memory 163 shown in Figure 7, and as a result, the table shown in Figure 7 is constructed. The received seat rental data is stored in the seat rental data memory 165 shown in Figure 8, and as a result, the table shown in Figure 8 is constructed. The received reservation status table (see Figure 11(a)) is stored in the reservation status table memory 167.

[0214] Next, in step S105, based on the saved facility data, a small number of candidate facilities 20 located near the current location are overlaid on the map displayed on screen 135 from among the multiple seat rental facilities 20.

[0215] In step 105, not all of the multiple seat rental facilities 20 (all seat rental facilities 20 stored in the memory 162 of the management server 50) represented by the received facility data are displayed on the screen 135. Only a smaller number of seat rental facilities 20 than the aforementioned multiple seat rental facilities 20 are displayed on the screen 135, determined by the user's current location and the size of the screen 135. In other words, the multiple seat rental facilities 20 received from the management server 50 are further narrowed down to a smaller number of candidate facilities 20 based on the user's current location and the size of the screen 135.

[0216] In one example, as shown in Figure 14(a), the user's current location is overlaid on the map displayed on screen 135 using a black triangle 202, and multiple candidate facilities 20 are overlaid using multiple facility icons 204. In this example, the three facility icons 204 are composed of shapes in which the letters "A", "B", and "C" are surrounded by a rectangular frame.

[0217] Next, in step S106, the user selects one of the seat rental facilities 20 as the selected facility 20 by touching the display location of one of the candidate facilities 20 on the screen 135 with their finger.

[0218] Specifically, when a user touches the display location of any candidate facility 20 on screen 135 with their finger, the touch location is detected by the touchscreen of the display unit 136, and that touch location is converted into map coordinate information (location information), which is, for example, latitude and longitude on a map (defined by the global coordinate system, which is an absolute coordinate system) or corresponding XY coordinate information (defined by the device coordinate system, which is a relative coordinate system). Based on that map coordinate information, one of the candidate facilities 20 is identified.

[0219] Subsequently, in step S107, the reservation status table is displayed on screen 135, as illustrated in Figure 14(b). Then, in step S108, the user enters the identification information of the seat rental facility 20 they wish to reserve (e.g., name), the identification information of the seat rental facility 20 they wish to reserve (e.g., number), the start date and time of use, and the end date and time of use, as illustrated in Figure 14(c).

[0220] Subsequently, in step S109, the mobile terminal 90 transmits the entered reservation details to the management server 50.

[0221] In response, the management server 50 receives the reservation details in step S204. Subsequently, in step S205, the management server 50 registers the received reservation details in the user-specific reservation file (see Figure 11(b)) associated with the current user, and further updates the reservation status table stored in memory 162 to reflect the received reservation details.

[0222] Subsequently, in step S206, the management server 50 sends a message to the mobile terminal 90 indicating that the reservation has been completed.

[0223] In response, the mobile terminal 90 displays the received message on the screen 135 or outputs it as audio. This display informs the user that their reservation has been confirmed.

[0224] <Initiation Sequence>

[0225] Figure 15 shows a time-series sequence flow of an example of communication that takes place between a transmitter 30 located at the reserved seat 22 (hereinafter also simply referred to as "seat 22") within the reserved seat rental facility 20, the user's mobile terminal 90, and the management server 50, immediately after the user arrives at and sits down at the reserved seat 22, in order to be permitted to start using that seat 22.

[0226] The transmitter 30 spontaneously and continuously transmits its own unique identification signal. When the user sits down in the reserved seat 22, the mobile terminal 90 is within the effective reception area of ​​the transmitter 30 (see Figure 5), and the mobile terminal 90 effectively receives the identification signal from the transmitter 30.

[0227] In this case, when the user selects the "Start Using" button on the screen of the mobile terminal 90, the mobile terminal 90 executes the start-up processing module for the mobile terminal 90. Upon execution, in step 151, the mobile terminal 90 first sends a login request to the management server 50, along with a user ID and password to identify the user, to the management server 50.

[0228] In response, when the management server 50 executes the startup processing module for the management server 50, the management server 50 receives the login request along with the user ID and password in step S251, and then in step S252, searches the memory 162 for the user-specific reservation file among the multiple user-specific reservation file files that are associated with the current user. Furthermore, in the searched user-specific reservation file, information regarding the reserved seating facility 20 (selected facility) among the multiple seating facilities 20, and information regarding the reserved seating area 22 (selected seating area) among the multiple seating areas 22 of the seating facility 20 are retrieved as user reservation-related information.

[0229] Subsequently, in step S253, the retrieved user reservation-related information is transmitted to the mobile terminal 90.

[0230] In response, the mobile terminal 90 receives the user reservation information in step S152. Subsequently, in step S153, the user reservation information searches for the transmitter code that has been pre-assigned to the legitimate transmitter 30 that should be installed in the reserved seat 22, and the legitimate transmitter code for the user is obtained.

[0231] Next, in step S154, the mobile terminal 90 attempts to receive a signal from one of the transmitters 30.

[0232] On the other hand, as mentioned above, if the mobile terminal 90 is currently located outside the reception area, the mobile terminal 90 cannot receive any identification signal from the transmitter 30. Conversely, if the mobile terminal 90 is currently located within the reception area, the mobile terminal 90 can receive an identification signal from the transmitter 30.

[0233] Furthermore, even if the mobile terminal 90 receives an identification signal from any of the transmitters 30, it is possible that the mobile terminal 90 is currently located outside the effective reception area for any of the transmitters 30, or it may be located within the effective reception area.

[0234] Therefore, following step S154, in step S154a, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether or not it has successfully received an identification signal from one of the transmitters 30.

[0235] Specifically, the mobile terminal 90 first determines whether it is located within the receivable area by determining whether it has received any identification signal. If it is determined to be located within the receivable area, the mobile terminal 90 then determines whether it has successfully received an identification signal from any of the transmitters 30.

[0236] Specifically, the mobile terminal 90 measures the distance between itself and the transmitter 30 based on the identification signal it receives. Furthermore, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether the measured distance is smaller than the set value, that is, whether the mobile terminal 90 is currently located within the effective reception area.

[0237] If the distance measurement value is less than the set value, the determination in step S154a becomes YES, and then the process proceeds to step S155. Otherwise, the determination in step S154a becomes NO, and then the process returns to step S154, and the reception trial by the mobile terminal 90 is repeated.

[0238] In step S155, the mobile terminal 90 demodulates the received identification signal. Subsequently, in step S156, the mobile terminal 90 decodes the transmitter ID represented by the demodulated identification signal as the actual transmitter ID.

[0239] When the demodulated identification signal is a code represented by a multi-digit binary number, for example, the code is converted into a transmitter ID using a conversion table prepared in advance (e.g., downloaded in advance from the management server 50). However, in terms of usage, the difference between being a "code" or an "ID" is not important as long as its purpose is identification.

[0240] Subsequently, in step S157, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether the actual transmitter ID decoded in this way matches the one regular transmitter ID obtained by executing step S153. That is, ID verification is performed.

[0241] Here, the "actual transmitter ID" means the transmitter ID corresponding to the transmitter (selected actual transmitter) 30 actually installed in the one of the plurality of seats 22 that has been actually selected and occupied by the user. On the other hand, the "regular transmitter ID" means the transmitter ID corresponding to the transmitter (selected virtual transmitter) 30 that should be installed in the one of the plurality of seats 22 that has been virtually selected by the user operating the mobile terminal 90.

[0242] Subsequently, in step S158, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether the actual transmitter ID and the legitimate transmitter ID match, that is, whether the ID matching was successful. In other words, it determines whether the first transition, in which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state where it does not receive a signal representing the legitimate transmitter ID to a state where it receives a signal, occurred for the first time since the user activated the start-up processing module.

[0243] If the ID matching is unsuccessful, the determination in step S158 will be NO, and then in step S159, the mobile terminal 90 prompts the user to try again to detect the transmitter 30 using the mobile terminal 90, for example by displaying an appropriate message on the screen 135 or by outputting an audio message. After that, the process returns to step S154.

[0244] In contrast, if the ID verification is successful, the determination in step S158 becomes YES, and then in step S160, the mobile terminal 90 determines that the user has started using the rental seat 22 at the current time.

[0245] In one example, after the user starts the usage start processing module, they arrive at the seat rental facility 20, but as long as they have not yet arrived at the reserved seat 22, the determination in step S154a will be NO. When the user eventually arrives at the seat 22 and takes a seat, the determination in step S154a will change from NO to YES.

[0246] At this time, if the mobile terminal 90 receives a signal representing the legitimate transmitter ID, the ID verification is successful, and the determination in step S158 becomes YES. Subsequently, in step S160, it is determined that the first transition has occurred at the current time.

[0247] Here, the timing at which the determination in step S158 becomes YES coincides with the timing at which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state where it does not receive the legitimate caller ID to a state where it does receive it (corresponding to the temporal position of the "rising edge" in the example in Figure 12).

[0248] Subsequently, in step S161, it is determined whether a request to start use has been entered by the user into the mobile terminal 90 (for example, the button for requesting to start use, as mentioned above, has been selected by the user). If a request to start use has been entered, the determination in step S161 becomes YES, and in step S162, it is determined whether the user arrived earlier than the scheduled start time. In other words, it is determined whether the user actually arrived at the rental seat 22 earlier than the scheduled start time and began using it.

[0249] In this case, assuming that the user's actual start time is not earlier than the scheduled start time, the determination in step S162 will be NO, and then in step S163, the normal billing condition (billing starts from the scheduled start time) will be selected as the billing condition for this case. On the other hand, in this case, assuming that the user's actual start time is earlier than the scheduled start time, the determination in step S162 will be YES, and then in step S164, the special billing condition (billing starts from the actual start time) will be selected as the billing condition for this case.

[0250] In either case, in step S165, the determination result that the user is actually using the reserved seat 22, along with the current billing conditions, are associated with the user and sent to the management server 50.

[0251] The above describes the case where a user successfully issues a request to start using the device immediately after the mobile terminal 90 has successfully received a legitimate transmitter 30. However, if no such request is issued, the determination in step S161 will be NO, and then in step S166, it is determined whether the elapsed time since the execution of step S160 is within the first time limit (for example, 5 minutes). If it is within the first time limit, the determination in step S166 will be YES, and in step S167, the user is prompted to enter a request to start using the device, for example, by displaying an appropriate message on the screen 135 or by an audio output. The process then returns to step S161.

[0252] In contrast, if the elapsed time since the execution of step S160 exceeds the first time limit, the determination in step S166 will be NO, and then in step S168, it will be determined that the user has committed the first violation.

[0253] Next, in step S165, a message is sent to the management server 50 indicating that the user has committed the first violation. After the completion of step S165, the system automatically proceeds to the aforementioned stay determination sequence without waiting for instructions from the user.

[0254] In response, the management server 50 receives the information transmitted by the mobile terminal 90 as a result of the execution of step S165 in step S254.

[0255] Subsequently, in step S255, the violation received from the mobile terminal 90 is associated with the user and recorded in memory 162. Next, in step S256, the current time is measured using the clock 172. Then, in step S257, the current time is recognized as the actual start time of use. Next, in step S258, the user is authorized to start using the rental seat 22.

[0256] Subsequently, in step S259, the billing start time is determined for each user. In principle, billing begins from the scheduled start time, and the rental amount is calculated based on the length of time elapsed from the scheduled start time (usage time, rental time).

[0257] However, as an exception, if the actual start time of use is earlier than the scheduled start time of use, but the start of use request is successfully issued within the first time limit, the time the start of use request is issued will be determined as the billing start time.

[0258] In addition, if the actual start time of use is earlier than the scheduled start time of use and the start request is not normally issued within the first time limit, the current reservation will be forcibly cancelled, or a penalty such as a violation fee will be imposed on the user.

[0259] Subsequently, in step S260, for the user, the charging start time determined individually and the notice common to all users, which states that the mobile terminal 90 always receives the transmitter 30 during the use of seat 22, are reflected so that the content of the warning regarding the charging and usage conditions is determined.

[0260] Subsequently, in step S261, the warning regarding the charging and usage conditions is transmitted to the mobile terminal 90 and notified to the user. Thereafter, the process automatically proceeds to the above-mentioned stay determination sequence.

[0261] <Stay determination sequence>

[0262] In FIG. 16, after the user starts using the reserved seat 22, in order to repeatedly determine whether the user is actually staying (sitting) or not staying (non-existent) at the seat 22 at all times, an example of the communication performed between the transmitter 30 located at the seat 22, the user's mobile terminal 90, and the management server 50 is represented in a sequence flow in chronological order.

[0263] The transmitter 30 spontaneously and continuously transmits its own unique identification signal. As long as the user is seated at the reserved seat 22, since the mobile terminal 90 will be within the effective reception area of the transmitter 30 without the user having to hold the mobile terminal 90 in front of the transmitter 30 (see FIG. 5), the mobile terminal 90 effectively receives the identification signal from the transmitter 30.

[0264] Subsequently, in step S181, in the same manner as in step S154, it is determined whether the mobile terminal 90 has effectively received an identification signal from any of the transmitters 30.

[0265] If the mobile terminal 90 determines that it has successfully received an identification signal from any of the transmitters 30, then in step S182, the received identification signal is demodulated, and subsequently, in step S183, the transmitter ID represented by the demodulated identification signal is decoded as the actual transmitter ID.

[0266] Next, in step S184, it is determined whether the actual transmitter ID decoded in this way matches the one legitimate transmitter ID obtained by executing step S153. In other words, an ID matching is performed.

[0267] In contrast, if the actual transmitter ID and the legitimate transmitter ID match, that is, if the ID matching is successful, the determination in step S185 becomes YES, and then in step S186, it is determined that the user is actually currently staying (existing) in a legitimate rental seat 22.

[0268] In contrast, if the actual transmitter ID and the legitimate transmitter ID do not match, that is, if the ID matching is unsuccessful, the determination in step S185 will be NO, and then in step S187, it will be determined that the user is not actually present (not staying) at the legitimate reserved seat 22 at the moment. If this non-existence determination is made immediately after the determination in step S186 that the user is present, it will be detected that the user has just left the reserved seat 22.

[0269] In either case, in step S188, the result of the determination that the user is actually staying in the reserved seat 22 or not, is sent to the management server 50 in association with the user. Then, the process returns to step S181.

[0270] The group of steps S181-S188 is executed repeatedly during the execution of the seat rental service program.

[0271] In response, in step S271, the management server 50 receives from the mobile terminal 90 the result of a determination that the user is actually staying in the reserved seat 22 or that the user is not staying there. The management server 50 associates the received determination result with the user and stores it in memory 162 as stay determination result information.

[0272] <End of Use Sequence>

[0273] Figure 17 shows a time-series sequence flow of an example of communication between the user's mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50 in which the user requests permission to terminate the use of the reserved seat 22.

[0274] When the mobile terminal 90 determines that a user may have left the reserved seat 22, the mobile terminal 90 automatically (or manually) activates the end-of-use processing module for the mobile terminal 90. Upon activation, in step 301, the mobile terminal 90 first determines whether the determination result regarding whether the user is actually currently staying in the reserved seat 22 has changed from "staying" to "not present".

[0275] Here, the timing at which the determination in step S301 becomes YES coincides with the timing at which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state in which it receives a legitimate caller ID (i.e., a state in which the user is staying in the reserved seat 22) to a state in which it does not receive it (i.e., a state in which the user is not present in the reserved seat 22) (this coincides with the temporal position of the "falling edge" in the example in Figure 12). Therefore, strictly speaking, the determination in step S301 is whether or not the user has just left the reserved seat 22.

[0276] In this case, assuming that the determination in step S301 is YES, it is determined in step S302 that the user has just left the reserved seat 22, that is, the user has finished using the reserved seat 22.

[0277] Next, in step S302, it is determined whether a user has issued a request to terminate use (for example, the user has selected the button for requesting termination use). If a request has been issued, the determination in step S302 becomes YES, and then in step S303, a message is sent to the management server 50 indicating that a user has issued a request to terminate use.

[0278] If the user does not issue a request to end use, it is determined that the user is still in use of seat 22, and the determination in step S302 becomes NO. Then, in step S304, it is determined whether the elapsed time since the YES determination in step S301 is within the second time limit (for example, 5 minutes). If it is within the second time limit, the determination in step S304 becomes YES, and in step S305, the user is prompted to enter a request to end use, for example, by displaying an appropriate message on screen 135 or by announcing it audibly. The process then returns to step S302.

[0279] In contrast, if the elapsed time since the YES determination in step S301 exceeds the second time limit, the determination in step S304 will be NO, and then in step S306, it will be determined that the user has committed the second violation.

[0280] Next, in step S307, a message is sent to the management server 50 indicating that the user has committed a second violation.

[0281] In response to this, when the termination processing module for the management server 50 is executed by the management server 50, the management server 50 receives, in step S401, the information transmitted by the mobile terminal 90 in the execution of step S303 and the information transmitted by the mobile terminal 90 in the execution of step S307.

[0282] Subsequently, in step S402, the current time is measured using the clock 172. Then, in step S403, the current time is recognized as the actual end time of use. After that, in step S404, the user authorizes the end of use of the rental seat 22.

[0283] Subsequently, in step S405, for each user, the time from the billing start time to the billing end time, which is determined individually for each user as described above, is calculated as the total rental time. Here, the "billing end time" normally coincides with the scheduled end time, but if the second violation described above has been notified from the mobile terminal 90, the billing end time is determined to coincide with the actual usage end time, and the rental amount for the extended rental time from the scheduled usage end time to the actual usage end time is calculated using a higher rate than the normal rate.

[0284] Next, in step S406, the rental amount is calculated based on the calculated total rental time and the fee rate (increase rate), according to a fee table (not shown) and the type of violation that occurred. The fee rate may be changed to an increased rate as a result of executing the reservation change module described later.

[0285] Subsequently, in step S407, the reservation status table is updated so that the reservation for the rental seat 22 is removed from the reservation status table. Then, in step S408, the calculated rental amount and other information are transmitted to the mobile terminal 90.

[0286] In response, the mobile terminal 90 receives information such as the rental amount from the management server 50 in step S308, and then displays the rental amount on the screen in step S309. Subsequently, in step S310, the user makes an electronic payment.

[0287] Next, in step S311, the mobile terminal 90 sends a logout request to the management server 50 requesting to log out.

[0288] In response, the management server 50 receives the logout request in step S409. Subsequently, in step S410, an acknowledgment signal (ACK) is sent to the mobile terminal 90 indicating that the receipt of the logout request has been successfully completed.

[0289] In response, the mobile terminal 90 receives an acknowledgment signal ACK from the management server 50 in step S312.

[0290] Incidentally, a scenario is also conceivable in which a user leaves the rental space 22 for some reason during the rental period and then returns to the same rental space 22. In this scenario as well, the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state where it receives the legitimate caller ID to a state where it does not receive it (a second transition occurs), so the determination in step S301 in Figure 17 becomes YES.

[0291] If the mobile terminal 900 needs to distinguish this scenario from the scenario in which the user has left the reserved seat 22, this embodiment can be improved as follows, for example.

[0292] In other words, when the mobile terminal 90 detects the second transition after the user has started using the reserved seat 22, it does not immediately proceed to step S302 and request the user to input a request to end use, but rather, prior to that, in step S301a (not shown), it displays a confirmation message on the screen of the mobile terminal 90 or outputs it audibly to the user to confirm whether they plan to return to the reserved seat 22 or leave it afterward.

[0293] Subsequently, in step S301b (not shown), when the user responds to the confirmation message and inputs to the mobile terminal 90 that they "plan to return", in step S301c (not shown), the mobile terminal 90 iteratively determines whether or not it has received the legitimate caller ID in preparation for the first transition that occurs thereafter, that is, the transition from a state in which the mobile terminal 90 does not receive the legitimate caller ID to a state in which it receives the legitimate caller ID.

[0294] In step S301c, if it is determined that the mobile terminal 90 has received the legitimate caller ID, this means that a new first transition has occurred, and the process then returns to step S301. As a result, the transition to step S302 is temporarily suspended.

[0295] In response to this, if in step S301b the user responds to the confirmation message and enters into the mobile terminal 90 that they "plan to leave," the process proceeds to step S302.

[0296] <Reservation Change Sequence>

[0297] Figure 18 shows a time-series sequence flow of an example of communication that takes place between the user's mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50 when the user changes the details of their reservation while using the reserved seat 22.

[0298] In this case, when the user selects the "Change Reservation" button on the screen of the mobile terminal 90, the reservation change module for the mobile terminal 90 is executed by the mobile terminal 90. Upon execution, first, in step 401, the mobile terminal 90 receives the aforementioned stay determination result information from the management server 50, and then, based on that stay determination result information, it is determined whether or not the user is actually currently staying in the reserved seat 22.

[0299] In this case, if it is determined that the user is currently staying at the facility, the determination in step S401 becomes YES, and then in step S402, it is determined whether or not the user has entered an extension request into the mobile terminal 90. In this case, if it is determined that the user has entered the extension request (for example, the user has selected the extension request button as described above), then in step S403, the mobile terminal 90 receives the latest reservation status table from the management server 50 and updates the reservation status table stored in the memory 132 of the mobile terminal 90 so that the updated reservation status table is reflected.

[0300] Next, in step S404, the mobile terminal 90 displays the updated reservation status table on its screen. Then, in step S405, the user inputs information to the mobile terminal 90 to delay the end time of their scheduled appointment so as not to overlap with another appointment. Furthermore, the mobile terminal 90 sends the details of the reservation change to the management server 50, and the management server 50 updates the reservation status table to reflect the changes.

[0301] Subsequently, in step S406, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether the reservation change was made before the scheduled end time, that is, whether it was made within the time frame of the original reservation. In this case, assuming that the reservation change was made before the scheduled end time, the billing rate is set to the normal rate in step S407. Conversely, in this case, assuming that the reservation change was made after the scheduled end time, the billing rate is set to the surcharge rate in step S408.

[0302] In either case, the mobile terminal 90 then transmits the billing rate set as described above to the management server 50 in step S409.

[0303] As is clear from the above explanation, in this embodiment, the user's commencement of use is recognized in response to a combination of the appearance of the first transition, which is one of a pair of first and second transitions (the rising edge and falling edge of a single received pulse signal in Figure 12), and the user's expression of intent to initiate use.

[0304] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the user's termination of use is recognized in response to a combination of the appearance of the second transition, which is one of a pair of first and second transitions, and the user's expression of intent to terminate use.

[0305] Here, "a pair of first and second transitions" refers to a combination of two events that occur at the start and end timings of a single action performed by the user on the transmitter 30.

[0306] Incidentally, in this embodiment, a scenario is also conceivable in which user X, who should be seated in seat P, inadvertently sits in another seat Q. In this scenario, user X's mobile terminal 90 may nevertheless receive the legitimate transmitter ID of the transmitter 30 installed in seat P. As a result, the mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50 will mistakenly recognize that user X is seated in seat P.

[0307] If it is necessary to avoid such misrecognition, this embodiment can be improved to the following example.

[0308] First, to give a brief overview, this improved example combines the first technology employed in this embodiment, namely, a filtering technology that, when the mobile terminal 90 simultaneously detects multiple transmitters 30, excludes signals from transmitters 30 other than the legitimate transmitter 30, provided that the transmitter ID of the only transmitter 90 that the mobile terminal 90 should originally receive signals from is known prior to receiving signals from the multiple transmitters 30 (i.e., the corresponding reserved seat 22 is reserved), with the second technology, namely, a technology that automatically switches the reception mode from wide-area reception mode to narrow-area reception mode when the mobile terminal 90 simultaneously detects multiple transmitters 30 in wide-area reception mode.

[0309] Next, to explain in more detail, in this example, the mobile terminal 90 is designed to be switchable between a normal effective reception area (shown as a large-diameter circle with a dashed line in Figure 5; an example of the "first effective reception area" mentioned above) and a reduced effective reception area (shown as a small-diameter circle with a dashed line in Figure 5; an example of the "second effective reception area" mentioned above) which has an effective reception radius smaller than that of the normal effective reception area.

[0310] In other words, in this example, the effective reception radius is a variable value, and when it takes a large value, a wide-area reception mode or defocus reception mode is realized, while when it takes a small value, a narrow-area reception mode or focus reception mode is realized.

[0311] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 25, in step S700, the mobile terminal 90 attempts to effectively receive signals from one or more transmitters 30 under the normal effective reception area setting value (effective reception radius in wide-area reception mode).

[0312] Next, in step S701, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether it has successfully received the actual transmitter ID-P (the legitimate transmitter ID of the transmitter 30 of the rental space P) which matches the legitimate transmitter ID in wide-area reception mode (whether the mobile terminal 90 is within the normal effective reception area centered on transmitter ID-P). If it determines that it has not received the signal, the process returns to step S700.

[0313] If the mobile terminal 90 determines that it has received the actual transmitter ID-P in wide-area reception mode, in step S702, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether it has also effectively received another actual transmitter ID-Q (the regular transmitter ID of transmitter 30 of rental seat Q) in wide-area reception mode (whether the mobile terminal 90 is also within the effective reception area of ​​the other transmitter ID-Q). If it determines that it has not effectively received the other actual transmitter ID-Q, it proceeds to step S710, which will be described later.

[0314] If it is determined that another actual transmitter ID-Q is also being effectively received in wide-area reception mode, in step S703, the mobile terminal 90 measures the distance DQ to the transmitter 30 that is transmitting actual transmitter ID-Q and the distance DP to the transmitter 30 that is transmitting actual transmitter ID-P.

[0315] Furthermore, in step S704, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether the distance DQ is shorter than the distance DP. If it determines that it is shorter, it determines that user X may be seated in the wrong seat Q. If it determines that the distance DQ is not shorter than the distance DP, it proceeds to step S710.

[0316] If it is determined that distance DQ is shorter than distance DP, in step S705, the mobile terminal 90 switches the effective reception area from the normal effective reception area to the reduced effective reception area (effective reception radius of the narrow-area reception mode). Furthermore, in step S706, the mobile terminal 90 displays a message on its screen or outputs a voice message to user X requesting that the mobile terminal 90 be brought into contact with or held over the transmitter 30 of the seat Q where the user is sitting.

[0317] Subsequently, in step S707, the mobile terminal 90 attempts to effectively receive one or more transmitters 30, this time in narrow-range reception mode.

[0318] Next, in step S708, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether it has successfully received the actual transmitter ID-P (the regular transmitter ID of the transmitter 30 of the rental space P) which matches the regular transmitter ID, in narrow-area reception mode (whether the mobile terminal 90 is located within the reduced effective reception area centered on the transmitter ID-P).

[0319] In the scenario described above, the mobile terminal 90 receives the actual transmitter ID-Q of the transmitter 30 of the rental seat Q. Since this does not match the original legitimate transmitter ID-P, the determination in step S708 is NO.

[0320] In this case, in step S709, the mobile terminal 90 displays a message on the screen or outputs an audio message to user X to confirm whether the seat 22 in which they are currently seated is correct. As a result, the user moves from seat Q to seat P.

[0321] Then, returning to step S707, the mobile terminal 90 receives the signal from the rental seat P transmitter 30 in narrow-range reception mode. In this case, the determination in step S708 is YES. Subsequently, in step S710, the mobile terminal 90 determines that the user is seated in the correct rental seat P.

[0322] The group of steps S700-710 shown in Figure 25 can replace the group of steps S154-S157 in Figure 15, and / or the group of steps S181-S184 in Figure 16.

[0323] The technology shown in Figure 25 can be applied to the second embodiment described later. To support this, Figure 20 shows the effective reception area of ​​each transmitter 30, which includes a large-diameter normal effective reception area (wide-area reception mode) and a small-diameter reduced effective reception area (narrow-area reception mode).

[0324] As is clear from the above description, according to this embodiment, the mobile terminal 90 and / or management server 50 monitor the temporal changes in the user's seating and leaving (approaching and moving away, arriving and leaving) in the selected seat 22 (not the user's static posture, but dynamic posture, changes in movement, changes in posture, etc.) based on the temporal changes in the received signals (see, for example, Figures 12 and 21) that represent in chronological order whether or not the mobile terminal 90 has received signals from one or more transmitters 30.

[0325] Therefore, according to this embodiment, it becomes easy to accurately detect the timing when a user actually sits down in the reserved seat 22 and the timing when a user actually leaves the reserved seat 22.

[0326] Furthermore, this embodiment can be implemented with various modifications. For example, it can be improved so that the management server 50 performs at least some of the same data processing as the mobile terminal 90, or conversely, so that the mobile terminal 90 performs at least some of the same data processing as the management server 50. This also applies to the following second embodiment.

[0327] As is clear from the above description, according to this embodiment, one of the rental items is selected by the user prior to the user's mobile terminal receiving the transmitter.

[0328] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, based on the identity of the rental target, which is which rental target the selected rental target (for example, the reserved rental target) is, multiple transmitters installed on multiple rental targets are classified into regular transmitters (target transmitters) that should be installed on one selected rental target and other irregular transmitters (non-target transmitters).

[0329] As a result, according to this embodiment, even if the user's mobile terminal receives a signal from an unauthorized transmitter at the selected rental target, that signal is not referenced, and only signals from legitimate transmitters are referenced, thereby estimating the user's current location, that is, whether the user is truly located at the same location as or near the selected rental target.

[0330] The underlying idea behind this estimation is that if the user's location is known, the mobile device only needs to pay attention to the signals that should be emitted by transmitters installed at that known location.

[0331] Therefore, according to this embodiment, even in environments where the effective reception areas of a legitimate transmitter and other transmitters overlap at least partially, for reasons such as the need to spatially position the legitimate transmitter close to other transmitters, or the need to expand the effective reception area of ​​the legitimate transmitter (see, for example, Figures 5 and 20) to improve the convenience of users receiving legitimate transmitters using their mobile terminals (for example, so that users do not have to go out of their way to approach the legitimate transmitter from their usual location), only signals from the legitimate transmitter are enabled on the mobile terminal by a software filtering function (noise reduction function) rather than a hardware filtering function (noise reduction function). As a result, according to this embodiment, it becomes easy to accurately estimate the user's current location without being affected by other transmitters.

[0332] The effect of easily expanding the effective reception area of ​​each transmitter is embodied, for example, when applying the present invention to a technology for selecting a parking space within a parking lot or a similar technology, in the entry and / or exit sequences, it becomes easier for the user to receive signals from the official transmitter and communicate with the management server for entry and exit processing while remaining inside the vehicle parked in the selected parking space within the parking lot, that is, without getting out of the vehicle and approaching the transmitter.

[0333] <Second Embodiment>

[0334] Next, an unmanned parking management system 300 (hereinafter simply referred to as "System 300") according to an exemplary second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 19-24. However, parts common to the unmanned seat rental system according to the first embodiment will be referenced using the same reference numerals and names, thereby omitting redundant explanations and describing only the different parts in detail.

[0335] This system 300 is a system for centrally managing multiple parking lots 20 (Figure 19 shows only three representative parking lots A, B, and C from among these parking lots 20). Each parking lot 20 has multiple parking spaces 22, and each parking space 22 is a rental space, which is an individual space temporarily rented to one user for one vehicle (car, bicycle, motorcycle, etc.).

[0336] To explain in comparison with the first embodiment, the multiple parking lots 20 correspond to the multiple seat rental facilities 20 in the first embodiment, and the multiple parking spaces 22 correspond to the multiple rental seats 22 in one seat rental facility 20.

[0337] In this embodiment as well, the multiple parking spaces 22 within a single parking lot 20 are generally arranged close together. These parking spaces 22 are an example of multiple rental items that are so close to each other that they cannot be spatially identified (disassembled) by, for example, the GPS function (described above) of the mobile terminal 90.

[0338] In contrast, the multiple parking lots 20 are an example of multiple facilities that are spatially separated from each other to the extent that they can be identified (decomposed) by the GPS function (described later) of the mobile terminal 90.

[0339] In general terms, this system 300 is an example of a rental item management system that uses individual transmitters to authenticate the location of rental items, based on the condition that the user reserves the rental items.

[0340] This system 300 is configured to perform a parking lot management method according to this embodiment. This parking lot management method is an example of a rental space management method that centrally manages multiple parking lots available for rent to users, and this rental space management method is an example of a rental object management method that centrally manages multiple rental objects, which are real estate available for rent to users. Another example of this rental object management method is a rental object management method that centrally manages multiple rental objects (e.g., rental cars and rental bicycles), which are movable property available for rent to users.

[0341] Each parking lot 20 is unmanned. Furthermore, in order to reduce and simplify equipment, each parking lot 20 is not equipped with any devices to prevent unauthorized entry into and exit of each parking space 22 (for example, gate devices that selectively block the passage of vehicles, or lifting / flap-type vehicle exit prevention devices that protrude from the surface of each parking lot 20 and selectively prevent vehicle wheels from going over them), nor is it equipped with any devices to read encryption provided by users (for example, passwords or barcode information), nor is it equipped with payment machines for users to pay rental fees, nor is it equipped with ticket machines for issuing tickets to users.

[0342] As illustrated in Figure 19, in each parking lot 20, one transmitter 30 is installed for each parking space 22.

[0343] Specifically, to describe the installation location, each transmitter 30 is positioned within the area of ​​the corresponding vehicle compartment 22 in a plan view, and, although not shown in the diagram, is positioned at the same height as, higher than, or lower than, the surface of the corresponding vehicle compartment 22 (e.g., the ground, pavement, etc.) in a side view.

[0344] Next, to explain the installation method, each transmitter 30 can be, for example, mounted inside or outside the wheel stop installed in the corresponding vehicle compartment 22, mounted on a vertically extending structure such as a pole or column installed in the corresponding vehicle compartment 22 in a position floating above the surface, or embedded below the surface of the corresponding vehicle compartment 22.

[0345] In this embodiment, as illustrated in Figure 20, the user first selects one of several parking spaces 20, and then selects one of several parking spaces 22 within that selected parking space 20, and drives their vehicle 400 (or 402) into the selected parking space 22. In this example, vehicle 400 is parked facing forward in one parking space 22, while another vehicle 402 is parked facing backward in the adjacent parking space 22.

[0346] While the user is inside their vehicle 400 or 402, their mobile device 90 may receive a signal from a transmitter 30 (a legitimate transmitter) installed in the selected vehicle compartment 22. Furthermore, it may also receive a signal from a transmitter 30 (an unauthorized transmitter) installed in the adjacent vehicle compartment 22.

[0347] As illustrated in Figure 20, the effective reception area of ​​each transmitter 30 is set to cover the user's mobile terminal 90 inside a vehicle parked in the corresponding parking space 22. As a result, the user can receive signals from the transmitter 30 without having to get out of their vehicle and approach the transmitter 30, which is particularly convenient for the user in bad weather.

[0348] However, this would inevitably mean that the same effective reception area could unnecessarily cover the mobile terminal 90 of a user located in a vehicle parked in the adjacent parking space 22. Therefore, in this embodiment as well, the system determines whether or not a user is staying in the selected parking space 22 by determining whether or not the mobile terminal 90 has received a legitimate transmitter ID (more precisely, an identification signal representing the legitimate transmitter ID).

[0349] Incidentally, in the first embodiment, during a single period of time that a user uses the rental room 22, as shown in Figure 12, the mobile terminal 90 receives one received pulse signal, and the timing of the rising edge of that signal is recognized as the start time of use, while the timing of the falling edge of that signal is recognized as the end time of use. This is due to the fact that the user stays in substantially the same rental room 22 from the time they sit down in the rental room 22 until they leave, and during that time the mobile terminal 90 continues to receive the regular transmitter ID in a communication environment.

[0350] In contrast, in this embodiment, the user stays in the selected parking space 22 when entering and exiting the parking space, but the user is not typically present in the selected parking space 22 for the entire duration that the vehicle is parked there. Therefore, different signal processing is required compared to the first embodiment.

[0351] Therefore, in this embodiment, as conceptually shown in the time chart in Figure 21, at the time of receiving the device, a first transition occurs in which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state in which it does not receive the legitimate transmitter ID (more precisely, the identification signal representing the legitimate transmitter ID) to a state in which it receives it (the rising edge of the receiving pulse signal, which is one received pulse signal at the time of receiving the device). Soon after, a second transition occurs in which the mobile terminal 90 transitions from a state in which it receives the legitimate transmitter ID to a state in which it does not receive it (the falling edge of the receiving pulse signal).

[0352] In this case, the user is asked to indicate their intention to send an inbound request (an example of the "first event" mentioned above) to the mobile terminal 90 in order to confirm the inbound shipment. When an inbound request is actually sent by the user, the timing of the first transition (or the timing of the second transition) is recognized as the time of inbound shipment.

[0353] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as conceptually shown in the time chart in Figure 21, at the dispatch stage, a first transition (the rising edge of the dispatch pulse signal, which is one received pulse signal at the time of dispatch) occurs, and soon after, a second transition (the falling edge of the dispatch pulse signal) occurs.

[0354] In this case, the user is asked to indicate their intention to send a dispatch request (an example of the "second event" mentioned above) to the mobile terminal 90 in order to confirm the dispatch. When the user actually sends a dispatch request, the timing of the second transition (or the timing of the first transition) is recognized as the dispatch time.

[0355] Figure 22 conceptually represents in a flowchart an example of a reservation sequence executed by a mobile terminal 90 and a management server 50 for a user to reserve a parking space 22 in any of the parking lots 20, as part of a parking management program for managing multiple parking lots 20.

[0356] First, when the parking management program is started by the user's mobile terminal 90, in step S500, the user selects the reservation mode. Next, in step S601, the management server 50 reads from memory 162 and sends to the mobile terminal 90 the following: parking data representing the map location of each of the multiple parking lots 20 (corresponding to the seat rental facility data shown in Figure 7), seat data representing the correspondence between the IDs of the multiple parking lots 20, the IDs of the multiple parking spaces 22, and the IDs of the multiple authorized transmitters (corresponding to the seat rental data shown in Figure 8), and a reservation status table (corresponding to the reservation status table shown in Figure 11(a)).

[0357] Next, in step S501, the mobile terminal 90 receives the data and tables from the management server 50 and stores them in the memory 132. Then, in step S502, based on the parking data and the GPS positioning results of the mobile terminal 90, the mobile terminal 90 narrows down the plurality of parking lots 20 to a small number of candidate parking lots 20 located near the user's current location and displays these few candidate parking lots 20 on the screen.

[0358] Furthermore, in step S502, the user performs an operation on the mobile terminal 90 to select one of the multiple candidate parking lots 20 displayed on the screen as the selected parking lot 20. In response, the mobile terminal 90 displays the reservation status table on the screen, thereby allowing the user to find out the time periods when each of the multiple parking spaces 22 in the selected parking lot 20 is available.

[0359] Subsequently, in step S503, the user selects one of the parking spaces 22 using the mobile terminal 90, and then in step S504, the user enters the scheduled usage time for the selected parking space 22 into the mobile terminal 90.

[0360] Subsequently, in step S505, the mobile terminal 90 transmits the reservation details specified by the user (parking lot 20, parking space 22, and time of use) to the management server 50 along with personal authentication information to identify the user.

[0361] In response, the management server 50 receives the reservation details associated with the user in step S602 and updates the user-specific reservation details file so that the reservation details are reflected.

[0362] Figure 23 conceptually illustrates, in a flowchart, an example of a parking entry sequence performed by the mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50 in order for a user to enter a selected parking space 22 within the parking management program.

[0363] First, when the parking management program is activated by the user's mobile terminal 90, in step S520, the user selects an entry mode. Next, in step S521, the mobile terminal 90 obtains a regular transmitter ID corresponding to the selected parking space 22 based on the parking space data.

[0364] Next, in step S522, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether it has successfully received an identification signal from any of the transmitters 30 (whether the first transition has occurred). If it has successfully received the signal, in step S523, it determines whether the actual transmitter ID represented by the received identification signal matches the regular transmitter ID.

[0365] If the actual transmitter ID and the legitimate transmitter ID match, it is determined that the user is actually currently in the selected parking space 22. Subsequently, in step S524, the mobile terminal 90 waits for the mobile terminal 90 to finish receiving the legitimate transmitter ID, that is, for the falling edge of the parking entry pulse signal (the second transition) to appear. Once it appears, in step S525, the mobile terminal 90 waits for the user to input a parking entry request. Once input is received, in step S526, the mobile terminal 90 sends the parking entry request associated with the user to the management server 50.

[0366] In response, the management server 50 receives the parking request in step S621 and, as a result, allows the user to park in the selected parking space 22. Subsequently, in step S622, it saves the current time as the parking time in memory 162.

[0367] Figure 24 conceptually shows a flowchart of an example of a parking space exit sequence performed by the mobile terminal 90 and the management server 50 in order for a user to exit a selected parking space 22, as part of the parking management program.

[0368] First, when the parking management program is activated by the user's mobile terminal 90, in step S540, the user selects an exit mode. Next, in step S541, the mobile terminal 90 obtains a regular transmitter ID corresponding to the selected parking space 22 based on the parking space data.

[0369] Next, in step S542, the mobile terminal 90 determines whether it has successfully received an identification signal from any of the transmitters 30 (whether the first transition has occurred). If it has successfully received the signal, in step S543, it determines whether the actual transmitter ID represented by the received identification signal matches the regular transmitter ID.

[0370] If the actual transmitter ID and the legitimate transmitter ID match, it is determined that the user is actually currently in the selected parking space 22. Subsequently, in step S544, the mobile terminal 90 waits for the mobile terminal 90 to finish receiving the legitimate transmitter ID, that is, for the falling edge of the departure pulse signal (the second transition) to appear. Once it appears, in step S545, the mobile terminal 90 waits for the user to input a departure request. Once input is received, in step S546, the mobile terminal 90 sends the departure request associated with the user to the management server 50.

[0371] In response, the management server 50 receives the exit request in step S641 and, as a result, allows the user to exit the selected parking space 22. Next, in step S642, the current time is set as the exit time. Then, in step S643, the parking time is calculated as the elapsed time from the entry time to the exit time. Next, in step S644, the parking fee is calculated based on the length of the calculated parking time. The calculated parking fee is transmitted to the mobile terminal 90.

[0372] In response, in step S547, the mobile terminal 90 displays the amount of the received parking fee on its screen, and then the user makes an electronic payment for that parking fee.

[0373] As is clear from the above explanation, in this embodiment, the user's action of receiving goods into storage is recognized in response to the combination of the appearance of both the paired first and second transitions (the rising edge and falling edge of a single receiving pulse signal in Figure 21) and the user's expression of intent to receive goods into storage. Similarly, the user's action of retrieving goods is recognized in response to the combination of the appearance of both the paired first and second transitions (the rising edge and falling edge of a single receiving pulse signal in Figure 21) and the user's expression of intent to retrieve goods from storage.

[0374] In contrast, the present invention may be implemented in a manner in which the user's action of receiving goods into storage is recognized in response to a combination of the appearance of one of a pair of first and second transitions (the rising edge and falling edge of a single incoming pulse signal in Figure 21) and the user's expression of intent to request receiving goods into storage, and in a manner in which the user's action of receiving goods into storage is recognized in response to a combination of the appearance of one of a pair of first and second transitions (the rising edge and falling edge of a single outgoing pulse signal in Figure 21) and the user's expression of intent to request outgoing goods into storage.

[0375] Incidentally, according to this embodiment, at the user's departure stage, the system determines that the departure is complete only after the mobile terminal 90 stops receiving the official transmitter ID. On the other hand, it is possible to contractually compel the user to perform both the entry and exit operations inside the vehicle parked in the selected parking space 22, or to design the mobile terminal 90 so that it disables reception of the transmitter 30 in software unless the user receives it inside the vehicle.

[0376] In this way, the user, the mobile terminal 90, and the vehicle will share the same spatial location. Therefore, the mobile terminal 90 detecting the user's entry into the selected parking space 22 is equivalent to the mobile terminal 90 detecting the vehicle entering the selected parking space 22. Similarly, the mobile terminal 90 detecting the user's exit from the selected parking space 22 is equivalent to the mobile terminal 90 detecting the vehicle leaving the selected parking space 22.

[0377] It should be added that while the above-described embodiments are some specific examples of applying the present invention to rental services that rent out seating facilities and parking lots as real estate, the present invention can also be applied to rental services that rent out other real estate, such as warehouses or rooms, or to rental services that rent out movable property, such as vehicles (automobiles, bicycles, motorcycles, etc.). Furthermore, the present invention can also be applied to uses other than rental services.

[0378] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, these are merely examples, and the present invention can be implemented in various other forms with modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, starting with the embodiments described in the [Summary of the Invention] section above.

Claims

1. A system for managing multiple vehicles available for loan to users, A short-range wireless communication unit is installed in each vehicle and has a transmitting unit that transmits a signal representing a code unique to each vehicle using a short-range communication method. A management server that remotely manages the aforementioned multiple vehicles and Includes, The management server is A reservation unit that allows a user who wishes to use any of the vehicles to select the vehicle they wish to use from among the multiple vehicles as a reserved vehicle, along with a scheduled start time and scheduled end time, by operating their communication device. A presence / absence determination unit that enables the determination of whether a user is continuously present in the reserved vehicle by repeatedly determining whether the communication device has received the signal from the short-range wireless communication unit installed in the reserved vehicle. A rental vehicle management system that includes [specific features / features].

2. The aforementioned management server further, A unit that, after the user has finished using the reserved vehicle, calculates the amount of the rental fee and transmits the calculated amount to the communication device. After the use of the reserved vehicle has ended, the communication device assists in settling the rental fee by electronic payment using the amount received from the management server. A rental vehicle management system according to claim 1, including the following:

3. The rental vehicle management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the communication device includes a mobile phone, smartphone, laptop computer, tablet computer, or PDA.

4. The rental vehicle management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of vehicles includes a plurality of rental cars, rental motorcycles, or rental bicycles.

5. A program for causing a computer to function as a reservation unit and an existence / non-existence determination unit as described in claim 1.

6. A program executed on the computer of a communication device of a user who wishes to use any of the plurality of vehicles managed by the rental vehicle management system described in claim 1 or 2, The aforementioned communication device has multiple functions, A reservation function that allows the user to select the vehicle they wish to use from among the multiple vehicles by operating the communication device, along with the scheduled start time and scheduled end time. A presence / absence determination function that determines whether a user is continuously present in the reserved vehicle by repeatedly determining whether the communication device has received the signal from the short-range wireless communication unit installed in the reserved vehicle, A transmission function that sends the determination result to the management server. Includes, A program executed by the computer to realize the aforementioned multiple functions.

7. A recording medium in which the program described in claim 5 is recorded in a computer-readable manner.

8. A recording medium in which the program described in claim 6 is recorded in a computer-readable format.

Images