Method for managing server devices, systems, and vehicle-mounted devices.

Abstract

To provide a technique capable of appropriately managing whether or not a movable body mounting device is mounted on any one movable body automatically traveling by remote control.SOLUTION: A movable body movable by unmanned driving has an unmanned driving mode having at least one of a first driving mode of moving by autonomous control, and a second driving mode of moving by remote control, wherein the movable body includes a movable body mounting device mounted on the movable body, and a movable body control device for controlling the operation of the movable body, and the movable body control device includes a device identification information acquisition part for acquiring device identification information that is identification information of the movable body mounting device, a movable body identification information acquisition part for acquiring movable body identification information that is identification information of the movable body, and a transmission part for transmitting the device identification information and the movable body identification information to a server device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a mobile body, a server device, a system, and a method for managing a mobile body-mounted device.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a vehicle that automatically travels within a manufacturing system for manufacturing a vehicle by remote control or the like is known (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] When a vehicle automatically travels by remote control or the like, it is desirable for the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle to appropriately manage which vehicle it is mounted on. Such a problem is common not only to vehicles but also to mobile bodies.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The present disclosure can be realized in the following forms.

[0006] (1) According to a first embodiment of the present disclosure, a mobile body is provided. The mobile body, which is movable by unmanned operation, has an unmanned operation mode having at least one of a first operation mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second operation mode in which it moves by remote control, and the mobile body comprises a mobile body mounting device mounted on the mobile body and a mobile body control device that controls the operation of the mobile body, and the mobile body control device comprises a device identification information acquisition unit that acquires device identification information which is identification information of the mobile body mounting device, a mobile body identification information acquisition unit that acquires mobile body identification information which is identification information of the mobile body, and a transmission unit that transmits the device identification information and the mobile body identification information to a server device. According to this embodiment, the mobile body can acquire device identification information and mobile body identification information and transmit the device identification information and mobile body identification information to a server device. This makes it possible to appropriately manage which mobile body capable of moving in unmanned operation mode is equipped with a mobile body mounting device using a server device. (2) The above configuration further includes a state quantity acquisition unit that acquires a state quantity indicating the state of the mobile body mounted device, and the transmission unit transmits the state quantity to the server device in addition to the device identification information and the mobile body identification information. In this configuration, the mobile body can further acquire a state quantity. As a result, the mobile body can transmit the state quantity to the server device in addition to the device identification information and the mobile body identification information. Therefore, the state of the mobile body mounted device can be managed using the server device. (3) In the above configuration, the state quantity acquisition unit may acquire at least one of the following state quantities in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity: a first state quantity which is the state quantity at the time before the mobile body moves in the unmanned operation mode, and a second state quantity which is the state quantity at the time when the mobile body is moving in the unmanned operation mode between manufacturing locations where each manufacturing process is performed in the manufacturing process of the mobile body. In this configuration, the mobile body can acquire at least one of the first state quantity and the second state quantity in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity. This makes it possible to clarify which timing the state quantity is at when managing the state of the mobile body mounting device using a server device. (4) In the above configuration, the state quantity acquisition unit may acquire the state quantity multiple times at different timings. In this configuration, the mobile body can generate time-series data representing the time-series change of the state quantity using the state quantity acquired multiple times at different timings. (5) The above configuration may further include an abnormality determination unit that uses the state quantities acquired by the state quantity acquisition unit to perform a determination process which is at least one of the following: (1a) an abnormality determination process that determines whether the state of the mobile body-mounted device is in a normal state or an abnormal state, and (1b) an adjustment determination process that determines whether or not to recommend maintenance of the mobile body-mounted device. According to this configuration, the mobile body can use the acquired state quantities to perform a determination process which is at least one of the abnormality determination process and the adjustment determination process. As a result, the mobile body can determine whether the state of the mobile body-mounted device is in a normal state or an abnormal state by performing the abnormality determination process. In addition, the mobile body can determine whether or not to recommend maintenance of the mobile body-mounted device by performing the adjustment determination process. (6) In the above configuration, the mobile body may further include an instruction unit that issues a route change instruction to change the destination when the mobile body moves in the unmanned operation mode from a predetermined target location to a maintenance location where at least one of the following is performed: an exchange process to replace the mobile body mounted on the mobile body with another mobile body mounted on the mobile body, and a repair process to repair the mobile body mounted on the mobile body. In this configuration, the mobile body can issue an instruction to change the destination when the mobile body moves in the unmanned operation mode to a maintenance location in at least one of the first and second cases. This allows the mobile body to move in the unmanned operation mode to a maintenance location where the mobile body mounted on the mobile body is repaired or replaced in the first or second case. (7) In the above configuration, multiple mobile units are moving between the manufacturing locations, and the abnormality determination unit may perform the determination process by relatively comparing the state quantities acquired for each of the multiple mobile units. In this configuration, the mobile units can perform the determination process by relatively comparing the state quantities acquired for each of the multiple mobile units moving between the manufacturing locations. (8) In the above configuration, the abnormality determination unit may perform the determination process by at least a relative comparison of the state quantity obtained from the target mobile body, which is one of the plurality of mobile bodies, and the state quantity obtained from the adjacent mobile body, which is a mobile body moving either in front of or behind the target mobile body. In this configuration, the mobile body can perform the determination process by at least a relative comparison of the state quantity obtained from the target mobile body and the state quantity obtained from the adjacent mobile body. (9) In the above configuration, the state quantity acquisition unit may acquire the state quantity multiple times at different timings for each of the multiple mobile units, and the abnormality determination unit may perform the determination process by relatively comparing the time-series data acquired for each of the multiple mobile units, which represents the time-series change of the state quantity. In this configuration, the mobile unit can perform the determination process using the time-series data acquired for each of the multiple mobile units. As a result, even if there is variation in the state quantities for each of the multiple mobile units at the same acquisition timing, the variation in the state quantities can be corrected to more reliably determine the state of the mobile unit mounted device and the need for maintenance. (10) According to a second embodiment of the present disclosure, a server device is provided. The server device includes a server control device equipped with a transmission information acquisition unit that acquires device identification information, which is identification information of a mobile body mounted on a mobile body that is movable by unmanned operation, and mobile body identification information, which is identification information of the mobile body; and a storage unit that stores a database linking the acquired device identification information and the mobile body identification information, wherein the mobile body has an unmanned operation mode having at least one of a first operation mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second operation mode in which it moves by remote control. According to this embodiment, the server device can acquire device identification information and mobile body identification information and store a database linking the device identification information and mobile body identification information. This makes it possible to appropriately manage which mobile body a mobile body mounted on a mobile body that is movable by unmanned operation mode is mounted on. (11) In the above configuration, the server control device further includes a state quantity acquisition unit that acquires a state quantity indicating the state of the mobile body mounted device, the transmission information acquisition unit acquires the state quantity in addition to the device identification information and the mobile body identification information, and the database may be a collection of data linking the device identification information, the mobile body identification information and the state quantity. In this configuration, the server device can further acquire the state quantity. This makes it possible to manage the state of a mobile body mounted on a mobile body that is capable of moving in an unmanned operation mode. (12) In the above configuration, the transmission information acquisition unit may acquire at least one of the following state quantities in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity: a first state quantity which is the state quantity at the timing before the mobile body moves in the unmanned operation mode, and a second state quantity which is the state quantity at the timing when the mobile body is moving in the unmanned operation mode between manufacturing locations where each manufacturing process is performed in the manufacturing process of the mobile body. In this configuration, the server device can acquire at least one of the first state quantity and the second state quantity in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity. This makes it possible to clarify which timing the state quantity is at when managing the state of the mobile body mounted device. (13) In the above configuration, the transmission information acquisition unit may acquire the state quantity multiple times at different timings. In this configuration, the server device can use the state quantity acquired multiple times at different timings to generate time-series data representing the time-series change of the state quantity. (14) The above configuration may further include an abnormality determination unit that uses the state quantities acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit to perform a determination process which is at least one of the following: (3a) an abnormality determination process that determines whether the state of the mobile device is in a normal state or an abnormal state, and (3b) an adjustment determination process that determines whether or not to recommend maintenance of the mobile device. In this configuration, the server device can use the acquired state quantities to perform a determination process which is at least one of the abnormality determination process and the adjustment determination process. As a result, the server device can determine whether the state of the mobile device is in a normal state or an abnormal state by performing the abnormality determination process. In addition, the server device can determine whether or not to recommend maintenance of the mobile device by performing the adjustment determination process. (15) In the above configuration, the server device may further include an instruction unit that issues a route change instruction to change the destination of the mobile body when it moves in the unmanned operation mode from a predetermined target location to a maintenance location where at least one of the following is performed: an exchange process to replace the mobile body mounted on the mobile body with another mobile body mounted on the mobile body, and a repair process to repair the mobile body mounted on the mobile body. In this configuration, the server device can issue an instruction to change the destination of the mobile body when it moves in the unmanned operation mode to a maintenance location in at least one of the first and second cases. This allows the mobile body to move in the unmanned operation mode to a maintenance location where the mobile body mounted on the mobile body is repaired or replaced, in the case of an abnormal condition in the first case or when maintenance of the mobile body mounted on the mobile body is recommended. (16) In the above configuration, multiple mobile units are moving between the manufacturing locations, and the abnormality determination unit may perform the determination process by relatively comparing the state quantities acquired for each of the multiple mobile units. In this configuration, the server device can perform the determination process by relatively comparing the state quantities acquired for each of the multiple mobile units moving between the manufacturing locations. (17) In the above configuration, the abnormality determination unit may perform the determination process by at least a relative comparison of the state quantity obtained from the target mobile body, which is one of the plurality of mobile bodies, and the state quantity obtained from the adjacent mobile body, which is a mobile body moving either in front of or behind the target mobile body. In this configuration, the server device can perform the determination process by at least a relative comparison of the state quantity obtained from the target mobile body and the state quantity obtained from the adjacent mobile body. (18) In the above configuration, the transmission information acquisition unit may acquire the state quantity multiple times at different timings for each of the multiple mobile units, and the abnormality determination unit may perform the determination process by relatively comparing the time-series data acquired for each of the multiple mobile units, which represents the time-series change of the state quantity. In this configuration, the server device can perform the determination process using the time-series data acquired for each of the multiple mobile units. As a result, even if there is variation in the state quantity for each of the multiple mobile units at the same acquisition timing, the status of the mobile unit mounted device and the need for maintenance can be determined more reliably by correcting for the variation in the state quantity. (19) According to a third embodiment of the present disclosure, a system is provided. The system comprises a mobile body that can be moved by unmanned operation and a server device, wherein the mobile body has an unmanned operation mode having at least one of a first operation mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second operation mode in which it moves by remote control, the mobile body comprises a mobile body mounting device mounted on the mobile body and a mobile body control device that controls the operation of the mobile body, the mobile body control device comprises a device identification information acquisition unit that acquires device identification information which is identification information of the mobile body mounting device, a mobile body identification information acquisition unit that acquires mobile body identification information which is identification information of the mobile body, and a transmission unit that transmits the device identification information and the mobile body identification information to the server device, the server device comprises a server control device comprising a transmission information acquisition unit that acquires the device identification information and the mobile body identification information, and a storage unit that stores a database linking the acquired device identification information and the mobile body identification information. According to this embodiment, the mobile body can acquire device identification information and mobile body identification information and transmit the device identification information and mobile body identification information to the server device. Furthermore, the server device can acquire device identification information and mobile object identification information, and store a database linking the device identification information and mobile object identification information. This allows the server device to appropriately manage which mobile objects capable of moving in unmanned operation mode are equipped with mobile object mounting devices. (20) A fourth embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method for managing a mobile device mounted on a mobile body. In a method for managing a mobile device mounted on a mobile body that is movable by unmanned operation, the mobile body has an unmanned operation mode having at least one of a first operation mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second operation mode in which it moves by remote control, and the method for managing the mobile device mounted on the mobile body comprises: an equipment identification information acquisition step of acquiring equipment identification information which is identification information of the mobile device mounted on the mobile body; a mobile body identification information acquisition step of acquiring mobile body identification information which is identification information of the mobile body; and a storage step of storing a database which links the acquired equipment identification information and the mobile body identification information. According to this embodiment, equipment identification information and mobile body identification information can be acquired and a database which links the equipment identification information and the mobile body identification information can be stored. This makes it possible to appropriately manage which mobile body that is movable by unmanned operation mode is mounted on the mobile device. This disclosure can be implemented in various forms other than the above-described mobile body, server device, system, and mobile body-mounted device management method. For example, it can be implemented in the form of a manufacturing method for the mobile body, server device, and system; a manufacturing method for a control device that executes the mobile body-mounted device management method; a computer program that implements the mobile body-mounted device management method; and a non-temporary recording medium on which the computer program is stored. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0007] [Figure 1] A diagram illustrating how the system manages vehicle-mounted devices. [Figure 2] A diagram illustrating a method for remotely controlling a vehicle using a server device. [Figure 3] A block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the first process control device. [Figure 4] A block diagram showing the general configuration of the second process control device. [Figure 5] A diagram illustrating the general configuration of the vehicle. [Figure 6] A block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the system in the first embodiment. [Figure 7] Block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the vehicle control device in the first embodiment. [Figure 8] Block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the server device in the first embodiment. [Figure 9] Flowchart showing the processing procedure of the running control of the vehicle in the first embodiment. [Figure 10] Flowchart showing the details of the database writing process in the first embodiment. [Figure 11] Flowchart showing the details of the database generation process in the first embodiment. [Figure 12] Schematic diagram showing an example of the database. [Figure 13] Flowchart showing the details of the database update process in the first embodiment. [Figure 14] Flowchart showing the details of the operation control process using the database. [Figure 15] Flowchart showing the details of the abnormality determination process in the first embodiment. [Figure 16] Conceptual diagram showing an example of the clustering method of the state quantity. [Figure 17] Flowchart showing the details of the abnormality determination process in the second embodiment. [Figure 18] Diagram showing an example of the clustering method of the time series data. [Figure 19] Flowchart showing the details of the abnormality determination process in the third embodiment. [Figure 20] Block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the system in the fourth embodiment. [Figure 21] Block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the vehicle control device in the fourth embodiment. [Figure 22] Block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the server device in the fourth embodiment. [Figure 23] Flowchart showing the processing procedure of the running control of the vehicle in the fourth embodiment.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0008] A. First Embodiment: A-1. System configuration and driving mode: Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the management method of vehicle-mounted devices 2 by System 1. System 1 comprises one or more vehicles 100 as mobile units and a server device 80. System 1 is a system that manages devices 2 mounted on vehicles 100 (hereinafter referred to as vehicle-mounted devices 2) through communication between the vehicles 100 and the server device 80. System 1 manages the status of the vehicle-mounted devices 2 and which vehicle 100 the vehicle-mounted devices 2 are mounted on. Vehicle-mounted devices 2 include, for example, an engine or traction motor as a driving force source for the vehicle 100, a battery as a power source for the vehicle 100, and dampers that suppress vibrations that occur in the vehicle 100 while it is running. In this embodiment, the vehicle-mounted device 2 that is the target of management by System 1 is the main battery 20 that supplies power to the traction motor. However, the type of vehicle-mounted device 2 is not limited to this.

[0009] In this disclosure, “mobile object” means an object that can move, such as a vehicle or an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (so-called flying car). Vehicle 100 may be a wheeled vehicle 100 or a tracked vehicle 100, such as a passenger car, truck, bus, motorcycle, car, tank, or construction vehicle. Vehicle 100 includes electric vehicles (BEV: Battery Electric Vehicle), gasoline vehicles, hybrid vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles. If the mobile object is not a vehicle 100, the terms “vehicle” and “car” in this disclosure may be replaced with “mobile object” as appropriate, and the term “driving” may be replaced with “moving” as appropriate.

[0010] Vehicle 100 is configured to operate autonomously. "Autonomous operation" means operation without the operation of a passenger. Operation refers to operations related to at least one of the following: "going," "turning," or "stopping" of vehicle 100. Autonomous operation is achieved by automatic or manual remote control using a device located outside vehicle 100, or by autonomous control of vehicle 100. Vehicle 100 operating autonomously may have passengers on board who do not perform operation. Passengers who do not perform operation include, for example, people simply sitting in the seats of vehicle 100, or people performing tasks other than operation, such as assembly, inspection, or operating switches, while on board vehicle 100. Operation by a passenger is sometimes called "manned operation."

[0011] In this specification, "remote control" includes "fully remote control," in which all operations of the vehicle 100 are completely determined from outside the vehicle 100, and "partial remote control," in which some operations of the vehicle 100 are determined from outside the vehicle 100. Furthermore, "autonomous control" includes "fully autonomous control," in which the vehicle 100 autonomously controls its own operations without receiving any information from external devices, and "partial autonomous control," in which the vehicle 100 autonomously controls its own operations using information received from external devices. Hereafter, the unmanned driving mode in which the vehicle drives by autonomous control will also be referred to as the "first driving mode," and the unmanned driving mode in which the vehicle drives by remote control will also be referred to as the "second driving mode." In this embodiment, the vehicle 100 drives in the second driving mode for at least a portion of the factory FC under remote control by the server device 80.

[0012] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating the travel path of vehicle 100 and the remote control method of vehicle 100 by server device 80. In this embodiment, system 1 is used in factory FC where vehicle 100 is manufactured. The reference coordinate system of factory FC is the global coordinate system. That is, any position within factory FC is represented by X, Y, Z coordinates in the global coordinate system. In this embodiment, factory FC includes a first manufacturing location FC1 where a first process as a pre-process is performed, a second manufacturing location FC2 where a second process as a post-process of the first process is performed, tracks R1 and R2 connecting the first manufacturing location FC1 and the second manufacturing location FC2, and a plurality of external sensors. In this embodiment, the first process is the process of mounting the main battery 20, which is a vehicle-mounted device 2, onto vehicle 100. As shown in Figure 1, the first manufacturing location FC1 is equipped with a first process control device 71. The second process is a post-process of the first process, for example, an inspection process of vehicle 100. Having completed the first process and left the first manufacturing area FC1, the vehicle 100, now a work-in-progress for the second process, is loaded into the second manufacturing area FC2 once permission to start the second process, i.e., permission to load the vehicle into the second manufacturing area FC2, is granted. The second manufacturing area FC2 is equipped with a second process control device 72.

[0013] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the first process control device 71. The first process control device 71 is an information processing device that manages the manufacturing status of the first process. The first process control device 71 comprises a first process control device 712 as a central processing unit, a first process communication unit 714 for communicating with the server device 80, and a first process storage unit 716 having RAM, ROM, etc. These are connected to each other via an internal bus or the like. The first process control device 712 functions as a first process information acquisition unit 712a by deploying the program stored in the first process storage unit 716. The first process information acquisition unit 712a acquires the manufacturing status of the vehicle 100 in the first process from a camera (not shown) and sensors (not shown) installed at the first manufacturing location FC1. The first process information acquisition unit 712a then transmits the acquired manufacturing status of the first process to the server device 80 via the first process communication unit 714.

[0014] Figure 4 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the second process control device 72. The second process control device 72 is an information processing device that manages the manufacturing status of the second process. The second process control device 72 comprises a second process control device 722 as a central processing unit, a second process communication unit 724 for communicating with the server device 80, and a second process storage unit 726 having RAM, ROM, etc. These are connected to each other via an internal bus, etc. The second process control device 722 functions as a second process information acquisition unit 722a by deploying the program stored in the second process storage unit 726. The second process information acquisition unit 722a acquires the manufacturing status of the vehicle 100 in the second process from a camera (not shown) or sensor (not shown) installed at the second manufacturing location FC2. The second process information acquisition unit 722a then transmits the acquired manufacturing status of the second process to the server device 80 via the second process communication unit 724.

[0015] As shown in Figure 1, after the main battery 20 as the vehicle-mounted device 2 is installed in the first process carried out at the first manufacturing site FC1, the vehicle 100 travels along the first track R1 and the second track R2 in that order in the second operating mode to the second manufacturing site FC2 where the second process is carried out. The first track R1 and the second track R2 are transport passages (roads) connecting the first manufacturing site FC1 and the second manufacturing site FC2. Specifically, as shown in Figure 2, the first track R1 is a transport passage connecting the first manufacturing site FC1 to the branching point Br with the third track R3, which will be described later. In other words, the first starting point B1 of the first track R1 is located at the first manufacturing site FC1. The first ending point E1 of the first track R1 is located at the branching point Br with the third track R3. The second track R2 is a transport passage connecting the branching point Br with the third track R3 to the second manufacturing site FC2. In other words, the second starting point B2, which is the beginning of the second track R2, is located at the branching point Br with the third track R3. The second ending point E2, which is the end of the second track R2, is located at the second manufacturing location FC2. In this embodiment, the first track R1 and the second track R2 are connected in a straight line. The first manufacturing location FC1 is a manufacturing location that serves as the starting point when the vehicle 100 travels in the second driving mode. The second manufacturing location FC2 is a predetermined target location that serves as the destination when the vehicle 100 travels in the second driving mode.

[0016] Figure 1 illustrates a series of vehicles 100 traveling in the second operating mode from the first manufacturing location FC1 to the second manufacturing location FC2, designated as the first vehicle 101, the second vehicle 102, the third vehicle 103, and the fourth vehicle 104. In the following, when it is not necessary to distinguish between vehicles 101 to 104, they will simply be referred to as "vehicle 100". Furthermore, when distinguishing between the vehicle-mounted devices 2 installed on each vehicle 100, the vehicle-mounted device 2 installed on the first vehicle 101 will be referred to as the first vehicle-mounted device 201. The vehicle-mounted device 2 installed on the second vehicle 102 will be referred to as the second vehicle-mounted device 202. The vehicle-mounted device 2 installed on the third vehicle 103 will be referred to as the third vehicle-mounted device 203. The vehicle-mounted device 2 installed on the fourth vehicle 104 will be referred to as the fourth vehicle-mounted device 204. When it is not necessary to distinguish between vehicle-mounted devices 201 to 204, they will simply be referred to as "vehicle-mounted device 2".

[0017] At this time, the third vehicle 103 is the vehicle 100 whose main battery 20 is in an abnormal state and which is deemed to require maintenance. Therefore, after departing from the first manufacturing site FC1, the third vehicle 103 travels from the branching point Br located between the first track R1 and the second track R2, through the third track R3 and the fourth track R4 in that order, to the maintenance site FC3. In other words, in this embodiment, the factory FC further includes the maintenance site FC3 and the tracks R3 and R4 connecting the first manufacturing site FC1 and the maintenance site FC3. As shown in Figure 2, the third track R3 is a transport passage connecting the branching point Br with the first track R1 and the second track R2 to the fourth track R4. In other words, the third starting point B3, which is the starting point of the third track R3, is located at the branching point Br with the first track R1 and the second track R2. In this embodiment, the first track R1 and the third track R3 are connected via a right-angle curve. The fourth track R4 is a transport passage connecting the third end E3, which is the end of the third track R3, to the maintenance location FC3. In other words, the fourth starting end B4, which is the beginning of the fourth track R4, is in the same position as the third end E3. The fourth end E4, which is the end of the fourth track R4, is located at the maintenance location FC3. In this embodiment, the third track R3 and the fourth track R4 are connected via a right-angle curve. Furthermore, the maintenance location FC3 is a place where at least one of the following is performed: a replacement process in which a vehicle-mounted device 2 mounted on a vehicle 100 is replaced with another vehicle-mounted device 2, and a repair process in which a vehicle-mounted device 2 mounted on a vehicle 100 is repaired. Figure 1 illustrates the case where, at the maintenance location FC3, the third vehicle-mounted device 203 mounted on the third vehicle 103 is removed and a fifth vehicle-mounted device 205, which is another vehicle-mounted device 2, is newly installed.

[0018] Furthermore, the manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3 are not limited to being a single building or located at a single site or address; each manufacturing location FC1 to FC3 where each manufacturing process is carried out may be located in multiple buildings, multiple sites, multiple addresses, etc. In other words, when vehicle 100 travels between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3, vehicle 100 may travel between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3 that are located in multiple places. Accordingly, for example, in order to move between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3 that are located in multiple places, vehicle 100 may travel not only on private roads but also on public roads that exist between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3. In this specification, both a completed vehicle as a product and a vehicle in the process of being manufactured as a semi-finished product or work in progress are collectively referred to as "vehicle 100".

[0019] The external sensor is a sensor located outside the vehicle 100. In this embodiment, the external sensor is a sensor that detects the vehicle 100 from outside the vehicle 100. The external sensor is equipped with a communication device (not shown) and can communicate with other devices such as the server device 80 via wired or wireless communication.

[0020] As shown in Figure 2, in this embodiment, the external sensor is composed of a camera. Cameras 901-904 (hereinafter referred to as external cameras 901-904) as external sensors acquire captured images including the vehicle 100 and output the captured images as detection results. External cameras 901-904 are devices such as cameras that capture a predetermined imaging range RG1-RG4 in order to acquire the position of the vehicle 100 as it travels between manufacturing sites FC1-FC3. Specifically, external cameras 901-904 acquire images that provide an overhead view of the tracks R1-R4 and the vehicle 100 traveling on the tracks R1-R4. The images captured by external cameras 901-904 are used for remote control of the vehicle 100 by the server device 80. The number and installation positions of external cameras 901-904 installed in the factory FC are determined considering the field of view of the external cameras 901-904 in order to capture the entirety of the multiple tracks R1-R4. Specifically, each external camera 901 to 904 is installed at the connection points of each track R1 to R4, such as positions PC1 and PC2, so that the imaging ranges RG1 to RG4 (field of view) of the external cameras 901 to 904 overlap with each other. In this embodiment, the factory FC includes a first external camera 901, a second external camera 902, a third external camera 903, and a fourth external camera 904. The first external camera 901 is a camera whose imaging range RG1 is the range RG1 that includes the entire first track R1. The second external camera 902 is a camera whose imaging range RG2 is the range RG2 that includes the entire second track R2. The third external camera 903 is a camera whose imaging range RG3 is the range RG3 that includes the entire third track R3. The fourth external camera 904 is a camera whose imaging range RG4 is the range RG4 that includes the entire fourth track R4. In this way, autonomous driving of the vehicle 100 can be achieved by remote control without using internal sensors mounted on the vehicle 100, such as cameras, millimeter-wave radar, and LiDAR. In addition, to prevent collisions between vehicles 100 during remote control, at least some of the internal sensors mounted on the vehicle 100 may be used auxiliaryly to acquire the position of the vehicle 100 while it is in motion in the second driving mode. Furthermore, the external cameras 901 to 904 may acquire images not only from above the vehicle 100, but also from the front, rear, and sides of the vehicle 100.

[0021] As shown in Figure 2, when traveling from the first manufacturing site FC1 to the second manufacturing site FC2, the vehicle 100 that has left the first manufacturing site FC1 travels along the first track R1 to the branching point PC1 by remote control using images acquired by the first external camera 901. The branching point PC1 includes the end E1 of the first track R1. Then, the vehicle 100 that has reached the branching point PC1 travels along the second track R2 to the first end point PE1, which includes the end E2 of the second track R2, by remote control using images acquired by the second external camera 902 instead of the first external camera 901. In other words, in the first reference path, which is a reference path from the first manufacturing site FC1 to the second manufacturing site FC2, for example, at the branching point PC1, the target steering angle of the wheels is set to 0 degrees so that the vehicle 100 does not rotate in any direction.

[0022] When traveling from the first manufacturing site FC1 to the maintenance site FC3, the vehicle 100, having left the first manufacturing site FC1, travels along the first track R1 to the branching point PC1 using remote control based on images acquired by the first external camera 901. Upon reaching the branching point PC1, the vehicle 100 changes direction at the branching point PC1 to a direction along the third track R3. In other words, in the second reference path, which is a reference path from the first manufacturing site FC1 to the maintenance site FC3, for example, the target steering angle of the wheels is set so that the vehicle 100 rotates 90 degrees clockwise (turns right) at the branching point PC1. Then, the vehicle 100 travels along the third track R3 to the direction change point PC2, which includes the end point E3 of the third track R3, using remote control based on images acquired by the third external camera 903 instead of the first external camera 901. Upon reaching the direction change point PC2, the vehicle 100 changes direction at the direction change point PC2 to a direction along the fourth track R4. In other words, in the second reference path, for example, at the turning point PC2, the target steering angle of the wheels is set so that the vehicle 100 rotates 90 degrees counterclockwise (turns left). Then, the vehicle 100 travels along the fourth track R4 to the second end point PE2, which includes the end point E4 of the fourth track R4, by remote control using images acquired by the fourth external camera 904 instead of the third external camera 903.

[0023] The timing of vehicle 100's arrival at the first terminal position PE1 after leaving the first manufacturing location FC1 is adjusted to minimize the difference from the target manufacturing time (takt time) and to coincide with the timing at which it can be fed into the second manufacturing location FC2, from the viewpoint of improving manufacturing efficiency. The timing of arrival at the second manufacturing location FC2, that is, the timing at which vehicle 100 arrives at the first terminal position PE1, is adjusted by taking into account, for example, the processing time of each process, the timing of departure from the first manufacturing location FC1, and the vehicle's speed on tracks R1 and R2. The method of remote control of vehicle 100 by the server device 80 is not limited to this. Furthermore, the positional relationship of each manufacturing location FC1 to FC3 and the number and arrangement of tracks R1 to R4 are not limited to this.

[0024] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of vehicle 100. Vehicle 100 includes a vehicle control device 60 for controlling various parts of vehicle 100, an actuator group including one or more actuators driven under the control of the vehicle control device 60, and a communication device for communicating wirelessly with external devices such as a server device 80. The actuator group includes actuators for a drive system to accelerate vehicle 100, actuators for a steering system to change the direction of travel of vehicle 100, and actuators for a braking system to decelerate vehicle 100.

[0025] In this embodiment, the vehicle 100 is a hybrid vehicle that runs using the driving force of at least one of an engine 31 as an internal combustion engine and a drive motor 33 as an electric generator. In other words, the vehicle 100 has an EV driving mode in which it runs using the drive motor 33 as the driving force source with the engine 31 stopped, and an HV driving mode in which it runs using both the engine 31 and the drive motor 33 as driving force sources. Figure 5 illustrates a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) among hybrid vehicles, in which the main battery 20 that supplies power to the drive motor 33 can be charged with power from an external power source 29. However, the type of vehicle 100 is not limited to this. For example, the vehicle 100 may be a hybrid vehicle that does not have mechanisms 25, 26 for charging the main battery 20 with power from an external power source 29. Also, the vehicle 100 may be an electric vehicle that runs using only the drive motor 33 as the driving force source, or a gasoline vehicle or diesel vehicle that runs using only the engine 31 as the driving force source. Furthermore, the vehicle 100 may be, for example, a fuel cell vehicle equipped with a fuel cell as the main battery 20. Also, the vehicle 100 is not limited to private vehicles such as passenger cars, but may also be commercial vehicles such as trucks, buses, and construction vehicles.

[0026] The vehicle 100 includes wheels 30, an engine 31, a power split mechanism 32, a driving motor 33, a reduction gear 34, an axle 35, a friction brake 36 as a braking device, a main battery 20, a charger 25, a vehicle-side connector 26, and a power converter 40.

[0027] Engine 31 is an internal combustion engine that uses fuel gas such as gasoline as fuel. Engine 31 is the first driving force source of vehicle 100. The driving force generated from engine 31 is transmitted to the wheels 30 via the reduction gear 34.

[0028] The power split mechanism 32 is a planetary gear system including a sun gear, pinion gear, carrier, and ring gear. The power split mechanism 32 distributes the driving force generated from the engine 31 to the axle 35 and the traction motor 33.

[0029] The traction motor 33 comprises a first motor 331 and a second motor 332. The first motor 331 generates driving force using at least one of the power stored in the main battery 20 and the power generated by the second motor 332. The first motor 331 is the second driving force source of the vehicle 100. The driving force generated from the first motor 331 is transmitted to the wheels 30 via the reduction gear 34. When the vehicle 100 is braking, etc., the first motor 331 is driven by the wheels 30 via the reduction gear 34. As a result, the first motor 331 performs regenerative power generation. The second motor 332 generates power using the driving force of the engine 31, which has been split by the power split mechanism 32. The power generated by the second motor 332 using the driving force of the engine 31 is used to charge the main battery 20 or to drive the first motor 331.

[0030] The main battery 20 drives the first motor 331 and also supplies power to the auxiliary battery 50, which will be described later. The main battery 20 is a rechargeable battery that can be repeatedly charged and discharged. The main battery 20 is, for example, a lithium-ion battery or a nickel-metal hydride battery. The output voltage of the main battery 20 is, for example, 100 volts or more.

[0031] The charger 25 converts the alternating current supplied from an external power source 29, such as a commercial power supply, into a direct current and outputs it to the main battery 20. The charger 25 controls the amount of power charged to the main battery 20 according to a control signal from the vehicle control device 60.

[0032] The vehicle-side connector 26 is a connecting member for connecting the charger 25 to an external power source 29. The vehicle-side connector 26 is connected to the charger 25 and is configured to be connectable to a power source-side connector 28 that is connected to the external power source 29.

[0033] The power converter 40 comprises an inverter 41 and a first converter 42. The inverter 41 controls the current while converting between the DC current of the main battery 20 and the AC current of the traction motor 33. The inverter 41 is connected between the traction motor 33 and the first converter 42. The first converter 42 performs power conversion between the main battery 20 and the inverter 41. Specifically, the first converter 42 boosts the output voltage of the main battery 20 and supplies the boosted power to the first motor 331. Furthermore, the first converter 42 lowers the voltage of the power generated by the traction motor 33 and supplies the lowered power to the main battery 20. The first converter 42 is connected between the main battery 20 and the inverter 41.

[0034] The vehicle 100 further includes an auxiliary battery 50, one or more auxiliary devices 501, 502, a second converter 52, a damper 37, a steering device 39, a measuring unit 9, an engine ECU 607, a motor ECU 608, and an HV-ECU 609.

[0035] The auxiliary battery 50 supplies power to one or more auxiliary devices 501, 502 installed in the vehicle 100 via the auxiliary power line 500. These "auxiliary devices 501, 502" are, for example, interior lights or a car navigation system. The output voltage of the auxiliary battery 50 is lower than that of the main battery 20, for example, 12 volts. The auxiliary battery 50 is charged by receiving power from the main battery 20 via the second converter 52.

[0036] The second converter 52 is a step-down DC / DC converter that steps down the voltage of the output power of the main battery 20 and supplies the stepped-down power to the auxiliary battery 50. The second converter 52 is connected between the main battery 20 and the auxiliary battery 50.

[0037] The steering device 39 rotates the steering shaft by torque from a steering motor (not shown) in accordance with the driving control signal so that the steering angle of the steering wheel (not shown) matches the target steering angle of the wheel 30 included in the driving control signal transmitted from the vehicle control device 60. As a result, in the second driving mode, the steering device 39 performs automatic steering control that automatically steers the wheel 30 without the need for steering input from the driver.

[0038] The measurement unit 9 includes one or more sensors that measure various physical quantities necessary for controlling the operation of the vehicle 100. In this embodiment, the measurement unit 9 includes a current sensor 91, a voltage sensor 92, a battery temperature sensor 93, a wheel speed sensor 94, and a steering angle sensor 95. The current sensor 91 measures the actual output current value of the main battery 20. The voltage sensor 92 measures the actual output voltage value (potential difference) of the main battery 20. The battery temperature sensor 93 measures the temperature of the main battery 20. The wheel speed sensor 94 measures the rotational speed (hereinafter referred to as wheel speed) of each wheel 30. The steering angle sensor 95 measures the actual steering angle of each wheel 30. Each of the sensors 91 to 95 constituting the measurement unit 9 transmits the measured values ​​obtained by the measurement to the vehicle control device 60.

[0039] The engine ECU 607 controls the operating state of the engine 31. The motor ECU 608 controls the operation of the drive motor 33 and inverter 41, as well as the charging and discharging state of the main battery 20, etc., according to the state of the vehicle 100. The HV-ECU 609 controls the entire vehicle 100 by mutually managing and controlling the engine ECU 607, motor ECU 608, etc. Although Figure 5 shows each ECU 607 to 609 as a separate configuration, a vehicle control device 60 may be formed by integrating two or more ECUs 607 to 609. In the following description, each ECU 607 to 609 will not be distinguished, and will be described as a vehicle control device 60 that integrates each ECU 607 to 609.

[0040] Figure 6 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of System 1 in the first embodiment. As mentioned above, System 1 comprises one or more vehicles 100 and a server device 80. In Figure 6, the components of the vehicles 100 other than the vehicle control devices 60 are not shown. The first vehicle control device 601 is a vehicle control device 60 mounted on the first vehicle 101. The second vehicle control device 602 is a vehicle control device 60 mounted on the second vehicle 102. The third vehicle control device 603 is a vehicle control device 60 mounted on the third vehicle 103. The fourth vehicle control device 604 is a vehicle control device 60 mounted on the fourth vehicle 104. Hereafter, when it is not necessary to distinguish between each vehicle control device 601 to 604, they will simply be referred to as "vehicle control device 60".

[0041] Figure 7 is a block diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of the vehicle control device 60 in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, the first vehicle control device 601, the second vehicle control device 602, the third vehicle control device 603, and the fourth vehicle control device 604 have the same configuration. Therefore, Figure 7 illustrates the configuration of the first vehicle control device 601, representing the vehicle control devices 601 to 604 mounted on each of the multiple vehicles 101 to 104. The vehicle control device 60 includes an input / output interface 64, a vehicle CPU 62 as the central processing unit in the vehicle control device 60, and a vehicle storage unit 66 as the storage unit in the vehicle control device 60. The input / output interface 64, the vehicle CPU 62, and the vehicle storage unit 66 are connected via an internal bus so as to be able to communicate bidirectionally. The input / output interface 64 is connected to a group of actuators and a communication device mounted on the vehicle 100.

[0042] The vehicle CPU 62 functions as a device identification information acquisition unit 621, a vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622, a charge rate calculation unit 623, a degradation degree calculation unit 624, and a vehicle speed calculation unit 625 by deploying various programs stored in the vehicle memory unit 66. Furthermore, the vehicle CPU 62 functions as a state quantity acquisition unit 626, a transmission information creation unit 627, a transmission unit 628, and an operation control unit 630 by deploying various programs stored in the vehicle memory unit 66.

[0043] The device identification information acquisition unit 621 acquires device identification information Ei, which is the identification information of the vehicle-mounted device 2. The device identification information Ei is a device ID (identifier) ​​assigned to each vehicle-mounted device 2 so as not to overlap among vehicle-mounted devices 201 to 204 in order to identify multiple types or multiple vehicle-mounted devices 2. In this embodiment, the device identification information Ei is a battery ID (identifier) ​​assigned to each main battery 20 in order to identify the main battery 20 as a vehicle-mounted device 2. For example, when the vehicle-mounted device 2 is mounted on the vehicle 100, the device identification information acquisition unit 621 acquires the device identification information Ei recorded in the device identification unit (not shown) of the vehicle-mounted device 2 by optically reading it with a device reader (not shown) that is provided in advance on the vehicle 100. In this case, the device identification unit is, for example, a one-dimensional code such as a barcode on which the device identification information Ei is recorded, or a matrix-type two-dimensional code such as a stacked two-dimensional code or a QR code (registered trademark). The device reading unit is a code reader (camera) capable of optically reading the device identification unit. "When the vehicle-mounted device 2 is mounted on the vehicle 100" refers, for example, to the time when the device identification unit has reached a position where it can be optically read by the device reading unit. In other words, the device identification information acquisition unit 621 does not necessarily need to acquire the device identification information Ei after the timing when the vehicle-mounted device 2 is mounted on the vehicle 100, and may acquire the device identification information Ei at a time before the timing when the vehicle-mounted device 2 is mounted on the vehicle 100. Furthermore, if the vehicle-mounted device 2 has a communication function for communicating with external devices, the device identification information acquisition unit 621 may acquire the device identification information Ei by receiving an identification signal from the vehicle-mounted device 2 that includes the device identification information Ei. In addition, the device identification information acquisition unit 621 may acquire the device identification information Ei by receiving input of the device identification information Ei from the user via an input operation unit (not shown) such as a touch panel, mouse, or keyboard that accepts input from the user. However, the method for acquiring the device identification information Ei is not limited to this. The device identification information acquisition unit 621 stores the acquired device identification information Ei in the storage unit (in this embodiment, the vehicle storage unit 66).

[0044] The vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 acquires vehicle identification information Vi, which is the identification information of vehicle 100. Vehicle identification information Vi is a unique vehicle ID (identifier) ​​assigned to each vehicle 100 so as not to overlap among the vehicles 100 in order to identify multiple vehicles 100 as shown in Figure 1. Vehicle identification information Vi may include the vehicle type, grade, destination, and other shipping destination information of vehicle 100. The vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 acquires vehicle identification information Vi recorded on the vehicle identification unit (not shown) by optically reading the vehicle identification unit (not shown) attached to the vehicle 100 using a vehicle reader (not shown) that is pre-installed at the first manufacturing site FC1, etc. In this case, the vehicle identification unit is, for example, a one-dimensional code such as a barcode that records the vehicle identification information Vi, a stacked two-dimensional code, a matrix two-dimensional code such as a QR code (registered trademark). The vehicle reader is a code reader (camera) that can optically read the vehicle identification unit. Furthermore, the vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 may acquire vehicle identification information Vi by reading vehicle identification information Vi that has been pre-stored in the vehicle storage unit 66. In addition, the vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 may acquire vehicle identification information Vi by receiving input of vehicle identification information Vi from a user via an input operation unit (not shown). Note that the method of acquiring vehicle identification information Vi is not limited to these. The vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 stores the acquired vehicle identification information Vi in a storage unit (in this embodiment, the vehicle storage unit 66).

[0045] The charge rate calculation unit 623 calculates the charge rate (SOC: State of Charge) of the main battery 20. For example, the charge rate calculation unit 623 calculates the charge rate of the main battery 20 by dividing the integrated value of the output current measured by the current sensor 91 by the rated capacity (full charge capacity) of the main battery 20. Alternatively, the charge rate calculation unit 623 may calculate the charge rate of the main battery 20 by acquiring data such as the output voltage value of the main battery 20 measured by the voltage sensor 92 and comparing it with an SOC database (not shown). The SOC database includes, for example, an SOC-OCV curve representing the relationship between the charge rate of the main battery 20 and the open-circuit voltage value (OCV) of the main battery 20, and temperature characteristic data representing the relationship between the charge rate of the main battery 20 and the temperature of the main battery 20. The charge rate calculation unit 623 may also calculate the charge rate of the main battery 20 from the elapsed time since the last charge rate calculation, the driving time and distance of the vehicle 100, etc. Note that this is not the only method for calculating the charge level of the main battery 20.

[0046] The degradation level calculation unit 624 calculates the degradation level (SOH: State of Health) of the main battery 20. The degradation level calculation unit 624 obtains, for example, the temperature of the main battery 20 measured by the battery temperature sensor 93, the open-circuit voltage of the main battery 20, and the charge level of the main battery 20 calculated by the charge level calculation unit 623 (hereinafter referred to as the battery charge level). Then, the degradation level calculation unit 624 calculates the apparent charge level using, for example, the temperature of the main battery 20 and the open-circuit voltage of the main battery 20. Then, the degradation level calculation unit 624 calculates the degradation level of the main battery 20 using, for example, the battery charge level and the apparent charge level, according to the following formula (1). Degradation level = (100 - Battery charge level) ÷ (100 - Apparent charge level) Equation (1)

[0047] The vehicle speed calculation unit 625 calculates the vehicle speed of the vehicle 100 using the output value of the wheel speed sensor 94, that is, the wheel speed of the vehicle 100 measured by the wheel speed sensor 94. Specifically, the vehicle speed calculation unit 625 calculates the vehicle speed of the vehicle 100 based on the wheel speed per unit time after performing calculation processing such as averaging the wheel speed of each wheel. At least a part of the functions of the vehicle speed calculation unit 625 may be performed by the wheel speed sensor 94.

[0048] The state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires one or more state quantities Qs that indicate the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2, at least one of the first state quantity Qs1 and the second state quantity Qs2, in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity Qs. That is, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires one or more state quantities Qs that indicate the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2, at least one of the first state quantity Qs1 and the second state quantity Qs2, in association with the acquisition timing. The first state quantity Qs1 is the state quantity Qs before the vehicle 100 runs in the second operating mode. The second state quantity Qs2 is the state quantity Qs when the vehicle 100 is running in the second operating mode between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3, where each manufacturing process is executed during the manufacturing process of the vehicle 100. In other words, the first state quantity Qs1 and the second state quantity Qs2 are state quantities Qs that are acquired at different timings. In this embodiment, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires multiple types of state quantities Qs multiple times at different timings at predetermined time intervals. As a result, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires multiple types of first state quantities Qs1 measured or calculated on the first attempt, and second state quantities Qs2 measured or calculated at multiple different timings, with the second state quantity Qs2 for each measurement or calculation timing. The state quantity acquisition unit 626 stores the multiple types of state quantities Qs acquired at predetermined time intervals in the storage unit (vehicle storage unit 66 in this embodiment) for each acquisition timing.

[0049] The transmission information creation unit 627 creates transmission information to be transmitted to the server device 80 (hereinafter referred to as transmission information), which includes at least device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi. Specifically, when the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the first time, the transmission information creation unit 627 creates transmission information that includes the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and the initial value of the state quantity Qs. In this embodiment, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 has acquired the first state quantity Qs1. Therefore, the initial value of the state quantity Qs corresponds to the first state quantity Qs1. When the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the second time or later, after the first time, the transmission information creation unit 627 creates transmission information that includes identification candidate data and a new state quantity Qs for each acquisition timing. The "identification candidate data" referred to here is at least one of the following: device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs that is included in the transmission information created so far and consists of eigenvalues. Furthermore, the "new state quantity Qs" is a state quantity Qs newly acquired by the state quantity acquisition unit 626, which is not included in the transmission information created so far. In this embodiment, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the second state quantity Qs2. Therefore, the new state quantity Qs is the time-dependent value of the state quantity Qs, and corresponds to the second state quantity Qs2 newly acquired by the state quantity acquisition unit 626, which is not included in the transmission information created so far.

[0050] The transmission unit 628 transmits various information, such as the transmission information created by the transmission information creation unit 627, to the server device 80. In other words, when the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the first time, the transmission unit 628 transmits at least the device identification information Ei and the vehicle identification information Vi to the server device 80. In this embodiment, when the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the first time, the transmission unit 628 transmits the device identification information Ei and the vehicle identification information Vi, as well as a first state quantity Qs1 corresponding to the initial value of the state quantity Qs, to the server device 80. Furthermore, when the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the second time or later, after the first time, the transmission unit 628 transmits the identification candidate data and a second state quantity Qs2 corresponding to the new state quantity Qs. The transmission unit 628 may also transmit other information, such as the driving speed of the vehicle 100 calculated by the vehicle speed calculation unit 625, to the server device 80. Furthermore, the transmitting unit 628 may transmit information acquired by receiving from process control devices 71, 72 or external devices to the server device 80.

[0051] The motion control unit 630 drives the vehicle 100 by controlling the actuator group. The motion control unit 630 can drive the vehicle 100 by controlling the actuator group using the driving control signal received from the server device 80. The driving control signal is a control signal for driving the vehicle 100. In this embodiment, the driving control signal includes the acceleration and steering angle of the vehicle 100 as parameters. In other embodiments, the driving control signal may include the speed of the vehicle 100 as a parameter instead of, or in addition to, the acceleration of the vehicle 100. At least some of the functions of the vehicle CPU 62 may be implemented as a function of the server device 80. Also, at least some of the functions of the vehicle CPU 62 may be implemented by hardware circuits.

[0052] The vehicle storage unit 66 stores various information, including various programs that control the operation of the vehicle 100, device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs of the vehicle-mounted device 2. The vehicle storage unit 66 includes, for example, RAM, ROM, a hard disk drive (HDD), etc.

[0053] Figure 8 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the server device 80 in the first embodiment. The server device 80 comprises a server communication unit 84 as the communication unit of the server device 80, a server control unit 82 as the central processing unit of the server device 80, and a server storage unit 86 as the storage unit of the server device 80. The server communication unit 84, the server control unit 82, and the server storage unit 86 are connected via an internal bus so as to be able to communicate bidirectionally.

[0054] The server communication unit 84 connects the server device 80 to other components of System 1, such as the vehicle control device 60, in a way that enables communication. The server communication unit 84 is, for example, a wireless communication device. However, the communication method by the server communication unit 84 is not limited to this.

[0055] The server control device 82 functions as a manufacturing status acquisition unit 820, a position acquisition unit 821, a transmission information acquisition unit 822, and a database writing unit 823 by deploying various programs stored in the server storage unit 86. Furthermore, the server control device 82 functions as an abnormality detection unit 824, an instruction unit 825, and a remote control unit 826 by deploying various programs stored in the server storage unit 86.

[0056] The manufacturing status acquisition unit 820 acquires the manufacturing status of each manufacturing process in the factory FC. The "manufacturing status" here includes, for example, the start and completion timing of processing, the number of work-in-progress items in each manufacturing process, the planned number of units to be manufactured per day, the target manufacturing time to produce one vehicle 100, and the delay status relative to the target manufacturing time. The "delay status relative to the target manufacturing time" here includes various information that allows for the determination of whether or not processing in the manufacturing process is behind schedule. The "delay status relative to the target manufacturing time" includes, for example, whether or not a delay has occurred relative to the target manufacturing time, whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the manufacturing process, whether or not an emergency stop measure has been taken in the manufacturing process, and the measured value of the delay time relative to the target manufacturing time. The "delay status relative to the target manufacturing time" may also include the predicted delay time relative to the target manufacturing time. The manufacturing status acquisition unit 820 acquires the manufacturing status of the first manufacturing process from the first process control device 71 shown in Figure 1, and also acquires the manufacturing status of the second manufacturing process from the second process control device 72. The manufacturing status acquisition unit 820 may acquire the manufacturing status of each manufacturing process not only from the first process control device 71 and the second process control device 72, but also from a manufacturing management system (not shown) that comprehensively manages each manufacturing process of the factory FC.

[0057] The position acquisition unit 821 shown in Figure 8 acquires vehicle position information. Vehicle position information is the position information that forms the basis for generating driving control signals. In this embodiment, the vehicle position information includes the position and orientation of the vehicle 100 in the global coordinate system of the factory FC. Specifically, the position acquisition unit 821 acquires vehicle position information using captured images acquired from external sensors, which are external cameras 901 to 904.

[0058] In detail, the position acquisition unit 821, for example, detects the outline of the vehicle 100 from the captured image, calculates the coordinates of the positioning point of the vehicle 100 in the coordinate system of the captured image, i.e., the local coordinate system, and acquires the position of the vehicle 100 by converting the calculated coordinates to coordinates in the global coordinate system. The outline of the vehicle 100 included in the captured image can be detected, for example, by inputting the captured image into a detection model DM that utilizes artificial intelligence. The detection model DM is prepared, for example, within or outside of system 1 and stored in advance in the server storage unit 86. Examples of detection model DM include a trained machine learning model that has been trained to realize either semantic segmentation or instance segmentation. As this machine learning model, for example, a convolutional neural network (hereinafter referred to as CNN) trained by supervised learning using a training dataset can be used. The training dataset has, for example, multiple training images including the vehicle 100 and labels indicating whether each region in the training image is a region indicating the vehicle 100 or a region indicating something other than the vehicle 100. During CNN training, it is preferable that the CNN parameters be updated using backpropagation to reduce the error between the output result of the detection model DM and the label. Furthermore, the position acquisition unit 821 can acquire the orientation of the vehicle 100 by, for example, using the optical flow method, estimating the orientation of the vehicle 100 based on the direction of the vehicle's movement vector calculated from the positional changes of the vehicle 100's feature points between frames of the captured image.

[0059] The transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires at least the device identification information Ei and the vehicle identification information Vi. In this embodiment, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires the device identification information Ei, the vehicle identification information Vi, and the state quantity Qs by receiving transmission information transmitted from the vehicle control device 60. At this time, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires multiple types of state quantities Qs multiple times at different timings. Specifically, when the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the first time, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 receives transmission information from the vehicle control device 60 that includes the device identification information Ei, the vehicle identification information Vi, and the first state quantity Qs1 which corresponds to the initial value of the state quantity Qs. As a result, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires the device identification information Ei, the vehicle identification information Vi, and the first state quantity Qs as the initial value of the state quantity Qs. If the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the state quantity Qs for the second time or later, after the initial acquisition, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 receives transmission information from the vehicle control device 60 that includes the identification candidate data and the second state quantity Qs2 corresponding to the new state quantity Qs. As a result, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires the identification candidate data and the second state quantity Qs2 corresponding to the new state quantity Qs. Note that the method of acquiring the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs is not limited to this. The transmission information acquisition unit 822 may, for example, acquire the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs from sources other than the vehicle control device 60. In this case, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 may, for example, acquire at least one of the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs by accepting input from a user via the input operation unit. Note that the transmission information acquisition unit 822 may also acquire other information transmitted from external devices such as the vehicle control device 60.

[0060] When the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires transmission information for the first time, the database writing unit 823 generates a database Db and stores it in the storage unit (in this embodiment, the server storage unit 86). The database Db is a collection of data that links device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs. When the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires transmission information for the second time or later, after the first time, the database writing unit 823 reads the database Db stored in the storage unit (in this embodiment, the server storage unit 86). The database writing unit 823 then updates the database Db by additionally writing a new state quantity Qs to the database Db. At this time, the database writing unit 823 detects candidate identification data (hereinafter referred to as "identical identification data") that is the same as the candidate identification data linked to the new state quantity Qs among the candidate identification data contained in the read database Db. The database writing unit 823 then associates the new state quantity Qs with the same identification data, thereby recording the state quantity Qs for each vehicle-mounted device 2 of each vehicle 100 in chronological order on the database Db. In other words, the database writing unit 823 databases the transmission information acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit 822.

[0061] The abnormality determination unit 824 uses the state quantity Qs acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit 822 and the abnormality determination information Aj pre-stored in the storage unit (in this embodiment, the server storage unit 86) to execute a determination process which is at least one of an abnormality determination process and an adjustment determination process. The abnormality determination process is a process that uses the state quantity Qs acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit 822 to determine whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal or abnormal. The adjustment determination process is a process that uses the state quantity Qs acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit 822 to determine whether or not to recommend maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2. The abnormality determination information Aj is information that includes a program for executing the abnormality determination process and the adjustment determination process, as well as thresholds used as judgment criteria in the abnormality determination process and the adjustment determination process.

[0062] In at least one of the first and second cases, the instruction unit 825 issues a route change instruction to change the destination when the vehicle 100 is traveling in the second driving mode from the second manufacturing location FC2, which is a predetermined target location as shown in Figure 1, to a maintenance location FC3, which is different from the target location.

[0063] The remote control unit 826 shown in Figure 8 generates a driving control signal and transmits it to the vehicle 100. Specifically, the remote control unit 826 first determines the target location that the vehicle 100 should head to next. In this embodiment, the target location is represented by X, Y, Z coordinates in the global coordinate system. The server storage unit 86 has a reference route Ri, which is the route that the vehicle 100 should travel, stored in advance. The route is represented by a node indicating the starting point, nodes indicating waypoints, a node indicating the destination, and links connecting each node. The remote control unit 826 uses the vehicle position information and the reference route Ri to determine the target location that the vehicle 100 should head to next. The remote control unit 826 determines the target location on the reference route Ri beyond the vehicle 100's current location.

[0064] Next, the remote control unit 826 generates a driving control signal to drive the vehicle 100 toward the determined target position. The remote control unit 826 calculates the vehicle's speed from the change in the vehicle's position and compares the calculated speed with the target speed. Overall, the remote control unit 826 determines the acceleration so that the vehicle 100 accelerates if the speed is lower than the target speed, and determines the acceleration so that the vehicle 100 decelerates if the speed is higher than the target speed. Furthermore, if the vehicle 100 is located at position PC1 on the reference path Ri, the remote control unit 826 determines the steering angle and acceleration so that the vehicle 100 does not deviate from the reference path Ri, and if the vehicle 100 is not located at position PC1 on the reference path Ri, in other words, if the vehicle 100 has deviated from the reference path Ri, the remote control unit 826 determines the steering angle and acceleration so that the vehicle 100 returns to the reference path Ri.

[0065] The remote control unit 826 then transmits the generated driving control signal to the vehicle 100. The server control device 82 repeats, at predetermined intervals, the acquisition of the vehicle 100's position, the determination of the target position, the generation of the driving control signal, and the transmission of the driving control signal. At least some of the functions of the server control device 82 may be implemented as a function of the vehicle CPU 62. Also, at least some of the functions of the server device 80 may be implemented by hardware circuits.

[0066] The server storage unit 86 stores various information, including various programs that control the operation of the server device 80, a detection model DM, a reference path Ri, a database Db, and abnormality judgment information Aj. The server storage unit 86 includes, for example, RAM, ROM, a hard disk drive (HDD), etc. In this embodiment, the reference path Ri includes a first reference path Ri1 and a second reference path Ri2. As described above, the first reference path Ri1 is a reference path Ri for driving the vehicle 100 from the first manufacturing location FC1 to the second manufacturing location FC2. The second reference path Ri2 is a reference path Ri for driving the vehicle 100 from the first manufacturing location FC1 to the maintenance location FC3.

[0067] A-2. Vehicle driving control method: Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure for controlling the vehicle 100's movement in the first embodiment. The flow shown in Figure 9 is repeatedly executed at predetermined intervals, for example, from the time the vehicle 100 starts moving in the second driving mode.

[0068] In step S101, the position acquisition unit 821 of the server device 80 acquires vehicle position information of vehicle 100 using captured images as detection results output from external sensors, which are external cameras 901 to 904. In step S102, the remote control unit 826 uses the vehicle position information and the reference path RR to determine the next target position to which vehicle 100 should go. In step S103, the remote control unit 826 generates a driving control signal to drive vehicle 100 toward the determined target position. In step S104, the remote control unit 826 transmits the generated driving control signal to vehicle 100.

[0069] In step S105, the vehicle control device 60 mounted on the vehicle 100 receives a driving control signal transmitted from the server device 80. In step S106, the operation control unit 630 of the vehicle control device 60 controls the actuator group using the received driving control signal, thereby driving the vehicle 100 at the acceleration and steering angle expressed in the driving control signal. The vehicle control device 60 repeats the reception of the driving control signal and the control of the actuator group at a predetermined cycle. According to system 1 in this embodiment, the vehicle 100 can be driven by remote control, and the vehicle 100 can be moved without using transport equipment such as cranes or conveyors.

[0070] A-3. Management methods for vehicle-mounted equipment: Figure 10 is a flowchart detailing the database writing process (step S3) in the first embodiment. The database writing process (step S3) is the process of creating a database Db and then updating the database Db. In the database writing process (step S3), the database creation process (step S31) and the database update process (step S35) are executed in that order.

[0071] Figure 11 is a flowchart detailing the database generation process (step S31) in the first embodiment. Figure 12 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a database Db. In Figure 12, only one type of state variable Qs is shown among several types of state variables Qs, and the other types of state variables Qs are omitted from the illustration.

[0072] As shown in Figure 11, when the main battery 20 as the vehicle-mounted device 2 is mounted on the vehicle 100 (step S311: Yes), the device identification information acquisition unit 621 of the vehicle control device 60 acquires the battery ID as the device identification information Ei (step S312). The vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 acquires the vehicle identification information Vi (step S313). The charge rate calculation unit 623 calculates the initial value of the charge rate of the main battery 20 (step S314). The degradation degree calculation unit 624 calculates the initial value of the degradation degree of the main battery 20 (step S315). Each of the steps from step S312 to step S315 may be executed in any order. After each of the steps up to step S315 has been executed, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the first state quantity Qs1, which corresponds to the initial value of the state quantity Qs (step S316). In this embodiment, the state quantity Qs is a state quantity Qs that indicates the state of the main battery 20, and is the output current value, output voltage value, temperature, charge level, and degradation level of the main battery 20. In other words, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires the measured values ​​of the current sensor 91, voltage sensor 92, and battery temperature sensor 93, the charge level calculated by the charge level calculation unit 623, and the degradation level calculated by the degradation level calculation unit 624 as a first state quantity Qs1, which corresponds to the initial value of the state quantity Qs. After step S316, the transmission information creation unit 627 creates transmission information (step S317). In this embodiment, in step S317, the transmission information creation unit 627 creates transmission information that links the device identification information Ei, the vehicle identification information Vi, and the output current value, output voltage value, temperature, charge level, and degradation level of the main battery 20 as the first state quantity Qs1. After step S317, the transmission unit 628 transmits the transmission information created by the transmission information creation unit 627 in step S317 to the server device 80 (step S318).

[0073] When the transmission information acquisition unit 822 of the server control device 82 receives and acquires transmission information (step S319: Yes), the database writing unit 823 uses the acquired transmission information to generate a database Db as shown by the dotted line in Figure 12 (step S320).

[0074] Figure 13 is a flowchart detailing the database update process (step S35) in the first embodiment. When the transmission unit 628 transmits transmission information to the server device 80 at a transmission timing, and a predetermined time has elapsed since the previous transmission timing (step S351), each step from step S352 onward is executed. The charge rate calculation unit 623 calculates the current value (time-dependent value) of the charge rate of the main battery 20 (step S352). The degradation degree calculation unit 624 calculates the current value (time-dependent value) of the degradation degree of the main battery 20 (step S353). Steps S352 and S353 may be executed in any order. After each step up to step S353 is executed, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires a second state quantity Qs2, which corresponds to the time-dependent value of the state quantity Qs (step S354). After step S354, the transmission information creation unit 627 creates new transmission information that is different from the transmission information transmitted at the previous transmission timing (step S355). In this embodiment, in step S355, the transmission information creation unit 627 creates transmission information that links the vehicle identification information Vi with the output current value, output voltage value, temperature, charge level, and degradation level of the main battery 20 as the second state quantity Qs2. After step S355, the transmission unit 628 transmits the transmission information created by the transmission information creation unit 627 in step S355 to the server device 80 (step S356).

[0075] If the transmission information acquisition unit 822 of the server control device 82 receives and acquires transmission information (step S357: Yes), step S358 is executed. As shown in Figure 12, the database writing unit 823 updates the database Db by writing a new state quantity Qs to the database Db using the acquired transmission information (step S358). When step S358 is completed, the process returns to step S351, and each step from step S351 to step S358 is repeated.

[0076] Figure 14 is a flowchart detailing the vehicle 100 operation control process (step S4) using the database Db. The operation control process (step S4) is a process of controlling the operation of the vehicle 100, which is running in the second operating mode, according to the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0077] In the operation control process, first, the abnormality determination unit 824 executes the abnormality determination processing step (step S5) when a predetermined determination timing is reached (step S401: Yes). The abnormality determination processing step (step S5) is a process that executes an abnormality determination process to determine whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is in a normal state or an abnormal state, using the state quantity Qs acquired by the state quantity acquisition unit 626. The determination timing is, for example, the timing when a predetermined manufacturing process is started, or the timing when a predetermined time has elapsed since the previous determination timing. Alternatively, the determination timing may be, for example, the timing when the number of state quantity Qs for each vehicle-mounted device 2 of each vehicle 100, which are each type of state quantity Qs included in the database Db and have been acquired multiple times at different timings, exceeds a predetermined threshold number. However, the determination timing is not limited to these. The abnormality determination unit 824 may continuously execute the abnormality determination processing step (step S5) at all times. Furthermore, the abnormality detection unit 824 may determine the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 using one type of state variable Qs, or it may make a comprehensive determination using multiple types of state variables Qs.

[0078] Figure 15 is a flowchart detailing the abnormality detection process in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 1, multiple vehicles 100 are traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 and FC3. Therefore, the abnormality detection unit 824 performs abnormality detection by relatively comparing the state quantity Qs acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100 using the database Db. More specifically, the abnormality detection unit 824 performs abnormality detection by at least relatively comparing the state quantity Qs acquired from the target vehicle, which is one of the multiple vehicles 100, with the state quantity Qs acquired from an adjacent vehicle 100 that is traveling either before or after the target vehicle. When multiple vehicle-mounted devices 2 are managed for one vehicle 100, the abnormality detection unit 824 performs each of the steps from step S511 to step S516 for each vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0079] In the abnormality detection processing step (step S5), the abnormality detection unit 824 first retrieves the database Db stored in the storage unit (in this embodiment, the server storage unit 86) (step S500).

[0080] After step S500, the anomaly detection unit 824 calculates the similarity between identical state quantities Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100 (step S511) and clusters the state quantities Qs (step S512). The anomaly detection unit 824 clusters identical state quantities Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100, for example, using a trained first machine learning model that clusters multiple numerical data based on similarity. The first machine learning model can use various clustering algorithms. Examples of clustering algorithms used in the first machine learning model include the k-means algorithm and the k-medoids algorithm.

[0081] Figure 16 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a clustering method for state variables Qs acquired for each of 100 vehicles. In Figure 16, one type of state variable Qs acquired for each of the four vehicles 101-104 shown in Figure 1 is illustrated for each acquisition timing. The horizontal axis of Figure 16 represents the elapsed time from the acquisition timing when the initial value of the state variable Qs was acquired. The vertical axis of Figure 16 represents the value of the state variable Qs.

[0082] The anomaly detection unit 824 calculates the similarity between identical state quantities Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100 (step S511). The similarity corresponds to, for example, the distance between the state quantities Qs that are to be clustered. In this case, the anomaly detection unit 824 calculates the similarity by, for example, calculating the Mahalanobis distance between identical state quantities Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100, across all state quantities Qs included in the database Db. Then, the anomaly detection unit 824 clusters the identical state quantities Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100 using the calculated similarity (step S512). Specifically, the anomaly detection unit 824 classifies state quantities Qs whose similarity at the same acquisition timing is less than a predetermined first similarity threshold into normal clusters Cs. Furthermore, the anomaly detection unit 824 classifies, for example, state quantities Qs whose similarity at the same acquisition timing is equal to or greater than the first similarity threshold as outliers Vo that are not included in the normal cluster Cs. In this embodiment, state quantities Qs acquired from the third vehicle-mounted device 203 mounted on the third vehicle 103, and acquired at a timing when the elapsed time from the initial value acquisition timing is t+3 minutes, are classified as outliers Vo. State quantities Qs other than those classified as outliers Vo are classified in the normal cluster Cs. Note that the clustering method and algorithm for state quantities Qs are not limited to this.

[0083] As shown in Figure 15, after step S512, the abnormality determination unit 824 compares the state quantities Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100, relative to each type of state quantity Qs (step S513). The abnormality determination unit 824 then refers to the database Db to identify the vehicle identification information Vi and device identification information Ei of vehicle 103, which is the source of the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo. Based on this, the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device 203 installed on vehicle 103, which is the source of the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo, is in an abnormal state (step S514: Yes, step S515). On the other hand, the abnormality determination unit 824 refers to the database Db to identify the vehicle identification information Vi and device identification information Ei of vehicles 101, 102, and 104 other than vehicle 103, which was determined to be in an abnormal state. As a result, the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted devices 201, 202, and 204 mounted on vehicles 101, 102, and 104, which are the source of the state quantity Qs classified only in the normal cluster Cs, is in a normal state (step S514: No, step S516). In this embodiment, the state of the third vehicle-mounted device 203 mounted on the third vehicle 103 is determined to be abnormal. In addition, the state of the first vehicle-mounted device 201 mounted on the first vehicle 101, the second vehicle-mounted device 202 mounted on the second vehicle 102, and the fourth vehicle-mounted device 204 mounted on the fourth vehicle 104 are all determined to be in a normal state.

[0084] As shown in Figure 14, the abnormality determination unit 824 executes the adjustment determination process (steps S402 to S404) after the abnormality determination process (step S5). The adjustment determination process (steps S402 to S404) is a process that executes an adjustment determination process to determine whether or not to recommend maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2. If the abnormality determination process (step S5) determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is abnormal (step S402: Yes), the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 mounted on the vehicle 100 is recommended (step S403). On the other hand, if the abnormality determination process (step S5) determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal (step S402: No), the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 mounted on the vehicle 100 is not recommended (step S404). In this embodiment, in the adjustment determination process, it is determined that maintenance is recommended for the third vehicle-mounted device 203. Furthermore, the first vehicle-mounted device 201, the second vehicle-mounted device 202, and the fourth vehicle-mounted device 204 are all deemed to require little maintenance, meaning that maintenance is not recommended for them.

[0085] Step S405 is executed when it is determined that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended. Specifically, the instruction unit 825 issues a route change instruction to change the destination when the vehicle 100 is traveling in the second driving mode from the second manufacturing location FC2 to the maintenance location FC3 (step S405). In other words, when it is determined that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended, the instruction unit 825 instructs the remote control unit 826 to change the reference route Ri used when generating the driving control signal from the first reference route Ri1 to the second reference route Ri2.

[0086] When a route change instruction is received, the remote control unit 826 determines whether the vehicle 100 can travel from its current location to the maintenance location FC3 in the second operating mode (step S406). In other words, when a route change instruction is received, the remote control unit 826 determines whether it is possible to continue traveling in the second operating mode. Specifically, the remote control unit 826 determines whether it is possible to continue traveling in the second operating mode, for example, by checking whether the state quantities Qs included in the database Db that have been classified as outliers Vo by cluster analysis are within a predetermined allowable range.

[0087] For example, if the type of state variable Qs classified as an outlier Vo is the temperature of the main battery 20, the remote control unit 826 makes the following determination. In this case, if the temperature of the main battery 20 is within the acceptable range, it is when the temperature of the main battery 20 is below a predetermined threshold (hereinafter referred to as the upper temperature threshold). If the temperature of the main battery 20 is outside the acceptable range, it is when the temperature of the main battery 20 is above the upper temperature threshold. The upper temperature threshold is, for example, the upper temperature at which the performance of the main battery 20 does not deteriorate or the main battery 20 does not fail. In this embodiment, the remote control unit 826 determines that it is possible to continue driving in the second operating mode if the state variable Qs classified as an outlier Vo is below the upper temperature threshold (step S406: Yes). On the other hand, the remote control unit 826 determines that it is not possible to continue driving in the second operating mode if the state variable Qs classified as an outlier Vo is above the upper temperature threshold (step S406: No).

[0088] Furthermore, for example, if driving in the second driving mode is performed only in EV driving mode, and the type of state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo is the charge level of the main battery 20, the remote control unit 826 makes the following determination. In this case, if the charge level of the main battery 20 is within the acceptable range, it is when the temperature of the main battery 20 is above a predetermined threshold (hereinafter referred to as the lower charge threshold). If the charge level of the main battery 20 is outside the acceptable range, it is when the charge level of the main battery 20 is below the lower charge threshold. The lower charge threshold is determined, for example, based on the distance to the maintenance location FC3 or the amount of power required per unit distance from the vehicle 100 during continuous driving. If the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo is above the lower charge threshold, even if driving in the second driving mode is continued to the maintenance location FC3, it is unlikely that the amount of power that can be supplied from the main battery 20 will fall below the amount of power required from the vehicle 100. In other words, in this case, the charge level of the main battery 20 is unlikely to drop too low, causing the power supply from the main battery 20 to the drive motor 33 to stop and the vehicle 100 to stop in an unintended location. Therefore, the remote control unit 826 determines that it is possible to continue driving in the second operating mode if the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo is above the lower limit charge threshold (Step S406: Yes). On the other hand, if the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo is below the lower limit charge threshold, the amount of power that can be supplied from the main battery 20 may fall below the amount of power requested by the vehicle 100 while driving towards the maintenance location FC3. In other words, in this case, the charge level of the main battery 20 may drop too low, causing the power supply from the main battery 20 to the drive motor 33 to stop and the vehicle 100 to stop in an unintended location. Therefore, the remote control unit 826 determines that it is not possible to continue driving in the second operating mode if the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo is below the lower limit charge threshold (Step S406: No). However, this is not the only method for determining whether or not it is possible to continue driving in the second operating mode.

[0089] If it is determined that vehicle 100 can travel from its current location to maintenance location FC3 in the second driving mode (step S406: Yes), the remote control unit 826 generates a first change control signal (step S407a). The first change control signal is a driving control signal to drive vehicle 100 from its current location to maintenance location FC3 in the second driving mode. The first change control signal is generated using vehicle position information and the second reference path Ri2. On the other hand, if it is determined that vehicle 100 cannot travel from its current location to maintenance location FC3 in the second driving mode (step S406: No), the remote control unit 826 generates a second change control signal (step S407b). The second change control signal is a driving control signal to stop the vehicle 100 from driving and wait at a predetermined waiting location. The waiting location is, for example, located near the current location of vehicle 100 at the time step S407b is executed, and is located within a side road that branches off from the roads R1 to R4. In this way, the vehicle 100 that is subject to the route change instruction can be stopped without interfering with the movement of the vehicle 100 that is currently traveling in the second operating mode. However, the waiting location is not limited to this. The waiting location may be, for example, the current location of the vehicle 100 at the time step S407b is executed.

[0090] If it is determined that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is not recommended, the remote control unit 826 generates a reference control signal (step S408). The reference control signal is a driving control signal for driving the vehicle 100 from its current location to the second manufacturing location FC2 in the second driving mode. The reference control signal is generated using the vehicle position information and the first reference path Ri1.

[0091] After steps S407a, S407b, and S408, the remote control unit 826 transmits the generated driving control signal to the vehicle control device 60 (step S409).

[0092] When the vehicle 100 receives any of the first change control signal, the second change control signal, or the reference control signal (step S410: Yes), the operation control unit 630 of the vehicle control device 60 performs the following processing. In this case, the operation control unit 630 controls the actuator group using the received driving control signal to drive the vehicle 100 at the acceleration and steering angle expressed in the driving control signal (step S411). As a result, if it is determined that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended and it is determined that unmanned driving can be continued from the current location to the maintenance location FC3, the destination of the vehicle 100 can be changed to the maintenance location FC3 and driving can be continued. If it is determined that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended and it is determined that unmanned driving cannot be continued from the current location to the maintenance location FC3, the destination of the vehicle 100 can be changed to a waiting location and the vehicle 100 can be stopped at the waiting location. In this case, if the waiting location is the current location of the vehicle 100, the operation control unit 630 quickly stops the drive of the vehicle 100 and has it wait there. Furthermore, the operation control unit 630 may stop the vehicle 100 in place without moving it to a waiting area. If it is determined that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is not recommended, the vehicle 100 can be driven towards the second manufacturing site FC2 without changing the destination of the vehicle 100.

[0093] According to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figure 1, the vehicle 100 can travel between manufacturing locations FC1 and FC3 in a second operating mode, which allows the vehicle to be driven without a human being riding in the vehicle and operating the steering wheel, accelerator, or other control elements, via remote control from the server device 80. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 11, the vehicle 100 can create transmission information including device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi, and transmit this information to the server device 80. In addition, the server device 80 can acquire the transmission information and store a database Db that links the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi included in the acquired transmission information. This makes it possible to appropriately manage which vehicle 100 capable of driving in the second operating mode is equipped with the vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0094] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figure 13, the vehicle 100 can acquire a state quantity Qs indicating the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2. The vehicle 100 can then create transmission information including the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi, as well as the state quantity Qs, and transmit this information to the server device 80. The server device 80 can acquire the transmission information and store a database Db that links the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs included in the acquired transmission information. This makes it possible to manage the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 installed in the vehicle 100, which is capable of driving in the second operating mode.

[0095] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed is the main battery 20. In this case, it is possible to appropriately manage which vehicle 100 the main battery 20 mounted on is installed in, and to manage the state of the main battery 20.

[0096] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, the vehicle 100 can acquire at least one of the first state quantity Qs1 and the second state quantity Qs2, which is Qs. This makes it possible to clearly identify which timing the state quantity Qs is at when managing the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 using the server device 80.

[0097] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, when the vehicle 100 is traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 and FC3 in the second operating mode, the vehicle 100 can acquire the state quantity Qs. This allows the vehicle 100 to verify the operation of the vehicle-mounted device 2 while traveling in the second operating mode. In other words, the vehicle 100 can inspect the quality of the vehicle-mounted device 2 while traveling in the second operating mode.

[0098] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figures 14 and 15, the server device 80 can execute a decision process, which is at least one of an abnormality determination process and an adjustment determination process, using the state quantity Qs acquired from the vehicle 100. As a result, the server device 80 can determine whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal or abnormal by executing the abnormality determination process. In addition, the server device 80 can determine whether or not to recommend maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 by executing the adjustment determination process.

[0099] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figure 15, the server device 80 can perform a decision process by relatively comparing the state quantity Qs acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100 traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3. In this way, for example, even if the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal, it is possible to determine the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 and the need for maintenance in cases where it is difficult to classify it by a uniform threshold (reference value) due to various properties such as the state quantity Qs changing with elapsed time.

[0100] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figures 1 and 16, the server device 80 can perform a decision process by at least a relative comparison of the state quantity Qs obtained from the target vehicle and the state quantity Qs obtained from the adjacent vehicle. In this way, for example, when there is a high probability that the state quantity Qs of the target vehicle and the state quantity Qs of the adjacent vehicle show similar trends, the status of the vehicle-mounted device 2 and the need for maintenance can be determined more accurately. Note that "when there is a high probability that the state quantity Qs of the target vehicle and the state quantity Qs of the adjacent vehicle show similar trends" refers, for example, to cases where the vehicle type, grade, destination, etc., of the target vehicle and the adjacent vehicle are the same.

[0101] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figure 16, the server device 80 can perform a decision process by clustering the same type of state quantity Qs acquired at the same acquisition timing for each of the multiple vehicles 100, and extracting outliers that are not included in the cluster. This makes it possible to clarify the basis for the decision process. Therefore, for example, if the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is determined to be abnormal, the cause of the abnormality in the vehicle-mounted device 2 can be easily identified by extracting the state quantity Qs classified as an outlier Vo, thereby preventing a decrease in manufacturing efficiency and a decline in quality.

[0102] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, when the vehicle 100 is traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 and FC3 in the second operating mode, the server device 80 can perform abnormality detection processing and adjustment detection processing. This makes it possible to check the status of the vehicle-mounted device 2 and the need for maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 while traveling in the second operating mode.

[0103] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figures 1 and 14, the server device 80 can issue an instruction to change the destination of the vehicle 100 when it is traveling in the second driving mode to the maintenance location FC3 in at least one of the first and second cases. The first case is when the abnormality determination process determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is abnormal. The second case is when the adjustment determination process determines that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended. As a result, when the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is abnormal or when maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended, the vehicle 100 can be driven in the second driving mode until it reaches the maintenance location FC3 where the vehicle-mounted device 2 is repaired or replaced.

[0104] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, when the vehicle 100 is traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 and FC3 in the second operating mode, the server device 80 can issue a route change instruction to the vehicle 100. Therefore, if an abnormality is detected in the vehicle-mounted device 2 or if maintenance becomes necessary, the vehicle 100 can change its destination according to the situation while traveling in automatic mode.

[0105] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment described above, as shown in Figures 1 and 6, System 1 can appropriately manage which of the vehicles 101 to 104 each vehicle-mounted device 201 to 204 is mounted on when multiple vehicles 101 to 104 are operating in the second operating mode. In addition, when multiple vehicles 101 to 104 are operating in the second operating mode, System 1 can manage the status of multiple vehicle-mounted devices 2 by linking them to each of the vehicles 101 to 104.

[0106] B. Second Embodiment: Figure 17 is a flowchart detailing the abnormality determination process in the second embodiment. In this embodiment, some of the processing content of the abnormality determination process differs from that of the first embodiment shown in Figures 15 and 16. Specifically, the abnormality determination unit 824 performs abnormality determination processing by using the database Db to perform relative comparison of time-series data acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100, which represents the time-series change of the state quantity Qs. Other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment. Steps and configurations that are the same as in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and their descriptions are omitted. When multiple vehicle-mounted devices 2 are managed for one vehicle 100, the abnormality determination unit 824 performs each of the steps from step S521 to step S527 for each vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0107] As shown in Figure 17, after step S500, the anomaly detection unit 824 generates time-series data for each type of state variable Qs (step S521). Specifically, the anomaly detection unit 824 arranges the same type of state variable Qs acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100 in chronological order. In this way, the anomaly detection unit 824 generates time-series data that represents the time-series changes of the same type of state variable Qs acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100.

[0108] After step S521, the anomaly detection unit 824 calculates the similarity between the time series data of each vehicle 100 (step S522) and clusters the time series data according to the type of state variable Qs (step S523). The anomaly detection unit 824 clusters the time series data G1 to G4 of each vehicle 100 according to the type of state variable Qs, for example, using a trained second machine learning model that clusters multiple time series data based on similarity. The second machine learning model can use various clustering algorithms. An example of a clustering algorithm used in the second machine learning model is Dynamic Time Warping (DTW).

[0109] Figure 18 shows an example of a clustering method for time series data G1 to G4. Figure 18 illustrates time series data G1 to G4 generated from one type of state variable Qs acquired for each of the four vehicles 100 shown in Figure 1. The horizontal axis of Figure 18 represents the elapsed time from the acquisition timing when the initial value of the state variable Qs was acquired. The vertical axis of Figure 18 represents the value of the state variable Qs. The first time series data G1 represents the time series change of the state variable Qs acquired from the first vehicle-mounted device 201 installed in the first vehicle 101. The second time series data G2 represents the time series change acquired from the second vehicle-mounted device 202 installed in the second vehicle 102. The third time series data G3 represents the time series change of the state variable Qs acquired from the third vehicle-mounted device 203 installed in the third vehicle 103. The fourth time series data G4 represents the time series change of the state variable Qs obtained from the fourth vehicle-mounted device 204 installed on the fourth vehicle 104.

[0110] The anomaly detection unit 824 calculates the similarity between time series data G1 to G4 of the same type for each vehicle 100, for example. Specifically, the anomaly detection unit 824 calculates the similarity by first calculating the distance to each point on the time series data G1 to G4 that are to be clustered using a brute-force method, and then extracting the path that results in the shortest distance between two sets of time series data G1 to G4 (step S522). Then, the anomaly detection unit 824 clusters the time series data G1 to G4 generated from the same type of state quantity Qs for each vehicle 100 using the calculated similarity (step S523). Specifically, the anomaly detection unit 824 classifies time series data G1, G2, and G4 whose similarity is equal to or greater than a predetermined second similarity threshold into the normal cluster Cs. Furthermore, the anomaly detection unit 824 classifies time series data G3 whose similarity is less than the second similarity threshold into the anomaly cluster Ci, which is not included in the normal cluster Cs. In this embodiment, the first time series data G1, the second time series data G2, and the fourth time series data G4 are classified into the normal cluster Cs. The third time series data G3 is classified into the abnormal cluster Ci. Note that the clustering method and algorithm for time series data G1 to G4 are not limited to this.

[0111] As shown in Figure 17, after step S523, the abnormality determination unit 824 compares the time series data G1 to G4 relative to each type of state quantity Qs (step S524). The abnormality determination unit 824 then refers to the database Db to identify the vehicle identification information Vi and device identification information Ei of vehicle 103, which contains the time series data G3 classified as abnormal cluster Ci. Based on this, the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device 203 installed on vehicle 103, which is the source of the time series data G3 classified as abnormal cluster Ci, is abnormal (step S525: Yes, step S526). On the other hand, the abnormality determination unit 824 refers to the database Db to identify the identification information Vi and device identification information Ei of both vehicles 101, 102, and 104, which are the sources of the time series data G1, G2, and G4 classified as normal cluster Cs. The abnormality detection unit 824 determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted devices 201, 202, and 204 mounted on vehicles 101, 102, and 104, which are the sources of the time-series data G1, G2, and G4 classified as normal cluster Cs, is normal (step S525: No, step S527). In this embodiment, the state of the third vehicle-mounted device 203 mounted on the third vehicle 103 is determined to be abnormal. In addition, the state of the first vehicle-mounted device 201 mounted on the first vehicle 101, the second vehicle-mounted device 202 mounted on the second vehicle 102, and the fourth vehicle-mounted device 204 mounted on the fourth vehicle 104 is all determined to be normal.

[0112] According to the second embodiment described above, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 can acquire the state quantity Qs multiple times at different timings. As a result, the anomaly determination unit 824 can generate time series data G1 to G4 using the state quantity Qs acquired multiple times at different timings.

[0113] Furthermore, according to the second embodiment described above, the server device 80 can perform abnormality determination processing using time-series data G1 to G4 acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100 traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3. In this configuration, for example, even if there is variation in the first state variable Qs1 for each of the multiple vehicles 100, the system can more reliably determine whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal or abnormal by correcting for the variation in the first state variable Qs1. Also, in this configuration, for example, even if the reference value related to the initial value of the state variable Qs differs between the target vehicle and an adjacent vehicle, the system can still determine whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal or abnormal by correcting for the variation in the first state variable Qs1.

[0114] C. Third Embodiment: Figure 19 is a flowchart detailing the abnormality determination process in the third embodiment. In this embodiment, some of the processing content of the abnormality determination process differs from the first embodiment shown in Figures 15 and 16, and the second embodiment shown in Figures 17 and 18. Specifically, the abnormality determination unit 824 executes abnormality determination processing using an abnormality threshold (reference value) set in advance as abnormality determination information Aj and a database Db. The abnormality threshold is set, for example, for each type of state quantity Qs. The abnormality threshold may also be set for each vehicle type, grade, and destination of the vehicle 100. Other configurations are the same as in the above embodiments. The same reference numerals are used for each step and the same configuration as in the above embodiments, and their descriptions are omitted. When multiple vehicle-mounted devices 2 are managed for one vehicle 100, the abnormality determination unit 824 executes each of the steps from step S531 to step S533 for each vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0115] After step S500, the abnormality determination unit 824 compares the state quantity Qs with the abnormality threshold (step S531). If the state quantity Qs is greater than or equal to the abnormality threshold (step S531: Yes), the abnormality determination unit 824 refers to the database Db to identify the vehicle identification information Vi and device identification information Ei of vehicle 103, which is the source of the state quantity Qs that is greater than or equal to the abnormality threshold. Based on this, the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device 203 installed on vehicle 103, which is the source of the state quantity Qs that is greater than or equal to the abnormality threshold, is in an abnormal state (step S532). On the other hand, if the state quantity Qs is less than the abnormality threshold (step S531: No), the abnormality determination unit 824 refers to the database Db to identify the vehicle identification information Vi and device identification information Ei of vehicles 101, 102, and 104, which are the sources of the state quantity Qs that is less than the abnormality threshold. As a result, the abnormality determination unit 824 determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted devices 201, 202, and 204 installed on vehicles 101, 102, and 104, which are the source of the state quantity Qs that is below the abnormality threshold, is in a normal state (step S533).

[0116] According to the third embodiment described above, the server device 80 can perform abnormality determination processing by comparing the state quantity Qs acquired for each of the multiple vehicles 100 traveling between manufacturing locations FC1 to FC3 with a predetermined abnormality threshold. In this way, the processing content of the abnormality determination processing can be simplified. As a result, it is possible to easily determine whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is normal or abnormal.

[0117] Furthermore, when the vehicle 100 is operating in the first operating mode, the expression "second operating mode" in each of the above embodiments can be appropriately replaced with "first operating mode," and the expression "remote control" can be appropriately replaced with "autonomous control." In addition, the expression "second operating mode" in each of the above embodiments can be appropriately replaced with "unmanned operation mode," and the expression "remote control" can be appropriately replaced with "control by unmanned operation."

[0118] D. Fourth Embodiment: Figure 20 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of system 1v in the fourth embodiment. System 1v comprises one or more vehicles 100v equipped with a vehicle control device 60v, and a server device 80v. In Figure 20, the components of vehicle 100v other than the vehicle control device 60v are not shown. In this embodiment, vehicle 100v is capable of driving by autonomous control of vehicle 100v. That is, vehicle 100v travels in a first operating mode over at least a portion of the factory FC. The other components of system 1v are the same as in the first embodiment unless otherwise specified. Components identical to those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and their descriptions are omitted.

[0119] Figure 21 is a block diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of the vehicle control device 60v in the fourth embodiment. In this embodiment, the first vehicle control device 601v, the second vehicle control device 602v, the third vehicle control device 603v, and the fourth vehicle control device 604v have the same configuration. Therefore, Figure 21 illustrates the configuration of the first vehicle control device 601v, representing the vehicle control devices 601v to 604v installed in each of the multiple vehicles 101v to 104v. The vehicle control device 60v includes an input / output interface 64, a vehicle CPU 62v as the central processing unit in the vehicle control device 60v, and a vehicle storage unit 66v as the storage unit in the vehicle control device 60v.

[0120] The vehicle memory unit 66v stores various information, including device identification information Ei that controls the operation of the vehicle 100v, vehicle identification information Vi, state quantity Qs of the vehicle-mounted device 2, various programs, detection model DM, reference path Ri, database Db, and abnormality judgment information Aj.

[0121] The vehicle CPU 62v functions as a device identification information acquisition unit 621, a vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622, a charge rate calculation unit 623, a degradation degree calculation unit 624, and a vehicle speed calculation unit 625 by deploying various programs stored in the vehicle memory unit 66v. Furthermore, the vehicle CPU 62v functions as a state quantity acquisition unit 626, a transmission information creation unit 627, a position acquisition unit 631, an abnormality determination unit 632, an instruction unit 633, a signal generation unit 634, and an operation control unit 630v.

[0122] The position acquisition unit 631 acquires vehicle position information using captured images as detection results output from external sensors, which are external cameras 901 to 904. The abnormality determination unit 632 performs a determination process. The instruction unit 633 issues a route change instruction. The signal generation unit 634 uses the vehicle position information and one of the reference paths Ri, either the first reference path Ri1 or the second reference path Ri2, which is selected depending on whether or not a route change instruction has been issued, to determine the next target position that vehicle 100v should head to. The signal generation unit 634 then generates a driving control signal to drive vehicle 100v toward the determined target position. The operation control unit 630v controls the group of actuators using the generated driving control signal to drive vehicle 100v according to the parameters expressed in the driving control signal. The vehicle control device 60v repeats the acquisition of vehicle position information, determination of the target position, generation of the driving control signal, and control of the actuators at predetermined intervals.

[0123] Figure 22 is a block diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of the server device 80v in the fourth embodiment. The server device 80v comprises a server communication unit 84 as the communication unit of the server device 80v, a server control device 82v as the central processing unit of the server device 80v, and a server storage unit 86v as the storage unit of the server device 80v.

[0124] The server storage unit 86v stores various information, including various programs that control the operation of the server device 80v, and the database Db.

[0125] The server control device 82v functions as a manufacturing status acquisition unit 820, a position acquisition unit 821, a transmission information acquisition unit 822, a database writing unit 823, and an update unit 827 by deploying various programs stored in the server storage unit 86v. The update unit 827 updates the database Db stored in the vehicle storage unit 66v whenever the database Db stored in the server storage unit 86v is updated, so that the database Db stored in the vehicle storage unit 66v is in the latest state.

[0126] Figure 23 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure for controlling the vehicle 100V's operation in the fourth embodiment. The flow shown in Figure 23 is repeatedly executed at predetermined intervals, for example, from the time when the vehicle 100V starts running in the first operating mode.

[0127] In step S201, the position acquisition unit 631 of the vehicle control device 60v acquires vehicle position information using detection results output from external sensors, which are external cameras 901 to 904. In step S202, the signal generation unit 634 determines the target position that the vehicle 100v should head to next. In step S203, the signal generation unit 634 generates a driving control signal to drive the vehicle 100v toward the determined target position. In step S204, the operation control unit 630v controls the actuator group using the generated driving control signal, thereby driving the vehicle 100v according to the parameters expressed in the driving control signal.

[0128] According to the fourth embodiment described above, the system 1v can operate the vehicle 100v through autonomous control of the vehicle 100v, without requiring remote control of the vehicle 100v by the server device 80v.

[0129] E. Other embodiments: E-1. Other Embodiments 1: In other embodiments, the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed may be the engine 31 shown in Figure 5, in addition to the main battery 20. When the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed is the engine 31, the measurement unit 9 may further include, for example, an engine noise sensor, an engine vibration sensor, a coolant temperature sensor, and an oil temperature sensor, in addition to the various sensors 91 to 95 shown in Figure 5. The engine noise sensor measures abnormal noises generated from the engine 31. The engine vibration sensor measures abnormal vibrations occurring in the engine 31. The coolant temperature sensor measures the coolant temperature of the engine 31. The oil temperature sensor measures the temperature of the engine oil. Furthermore, the vehicle CPU 62, 62v or server control device 82, 82v may include a knocking amount calculation unit that calculates the amount of knocking indicating the occurrence of knocking in the engine 31 using the measured values ​​obtained by the above sensors, etc. In this case, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires, for example, the degree of abnormal noise and vibration generated from the engine 31, the amount of knocking, the temperature of the engine 31's coolant, and the temperature of the engine oil as state quantities Qs indicating the state of the engine 31. The device identification information acquisition unit 621 acquires the engine ID (identifier) ​​assigned to each engine 31 to identify it as device identification information Ei. With this configuration, it is possible to appropriately manage which vehicle 100, 100v each of the multiple types of vehicle-mounted devices 2 installed in the vehicles 100, 100v capable of driving in unmanned mode is installed in. Furthermore, with this configuration, it is possible to manage the state of the engines 31 installed in the vehicles 100, 100v capable of driving in unmanned mode.

[0130] E-2. Other Embodiments 2: In other embodiments, the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed may be the first motor 331 as the driving motor 33 shown in Figure 5. When the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed is the first motor 331, the measurement unit 9 includes, for example, a motor noise sensor and a motor temperature sensor. The motor noise sensor measures abnormal noises generated from the first motor 331. The motor temperature sensor measures the temperature of the first motor 331. In this case, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires, for example, the abnormal noise generated from the first motor 331 and the temperature of the first motor 331 as state quantities Qs indicating the state of the first motor 331. The device identification information acquisition unit 621 acquires the first motor ID (identifier) ​​assigned to each first motor 331 in order to identify the first motor 331 as device identification information Ei. With this configuration, it is possible to appropriately manage which of the vehicles 100, 100v capable of driving in unmanned operation mode is equipped with the first motor 331. Furthermore, in this configuration, the state of the first motor 331 mounted on the vehicle 100,100v, which is capable of running in unmanned operation mode, can be managed. The vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed may also be the second motor 332, which serves as the driving motor 33.

[0131] E-3. Other Embodiments 3: In other embodiments, the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed may be the damper 37 shown in Figure 5. When the vehicle-mounted device 2 to be managed is the damper 37, the measurement unit 9 includes, for example, a vehicle vibration sensor that measures vibrations transmitted from the wheels 30 and axle 35 to the chassis (not shown). The chassis (not shown) constitutes the frame of the vehicle 100,100v and is a component for attaching and fixing the engine 31 and traction motor 33, which are the driving force sources of the vehicle 100,100v, the suspension (not shown) including the damper 37, the seat (not shown), etc. In this case, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquires, for example, the degree of vibration transmitted from the wheels 30 and axle 35 to the chassis as a state quantity Qs. The device identification information acquisition unit 621 acquires the damper ID (identifier) ​​assigned to each damper 37 as device identification information Ei in order to identify the damper 37. In this configuration, it is possible to properly manage which of the vehicles 100 and 100v capable of operating in unmanned mode are equipped with dampers 37. Furthermore, in this configuration, it is possible to manage the condition of the dampers 37 installed in the vehicles 100 and 100v capable of operating in unmanned mode.

[0132] E-4. Other Embodiments 4: In the above embodiment, the device identification information acquisition unit 621, which acquires device identification information Ei, was implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v. Also in the above embodiment, the vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622, which acquires vehicle identification information Vi, was implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v. In contrast, in other embodiments, at least one of the device identification information acquisition unit 621 and the vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 may be implemented as a function of the server control devices 82 and 82v. When the device identification information acquisition unit 621 is implemented as a function of the server control devices 82 and 82v, the device identification information acquisition unit 621 may acquire the device identification information Ei by, for example, receiving input of device identification information Ei from a user via an input operation unit (not shown). The device identification information acquisition unit 621 may acquire the device identification information Ei by, for example, receiving an identification signal containing the device identification information Ei transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device 2. Furthermore, if the vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 is implemented as a function of the server control devices 82, 82v, the vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 may acquire vehicle identification information Vi by, for example, receiving input of vehicle identification information Vi from the user via an input operation unit (not shown). The vehicle identification information acquisition unit 622 may also acquire vehicle identification information Vi by, for example, receiving an identification signal containing vehicle identification information Vi transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device 2. Even in this configuration, it is possible to acquire device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi and generate a database Db that links the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi. This makes it possible to appropriately manage which of the vehicles 100, 100v capable of driving in unmanned mode is equipped with the vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0133] E-5. Other Embodiments 5: In the above embodiment, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquired multiple types of state quantities Qs multiple times at different timings. Specifically, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquired both a first state quantity Qs1, which is the state quantity Qs before the vehicles 100 and 100v travel in unmanned operation mode, and a second state quantity Qs2, which is the state quantity Qs while the vehicles 100 and 100v are traveling between manufacturing sites FC1 and FC3 in unmanned operation mode. Furthermore, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 acquired the second state quantity Qs2 multiple times at different timings. In contrast, in other embodiments, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 may acquire only one of the first state quantity Qs1 or the second state quantity Qs2. Also, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 may acquire only one type of state quantity Qs. Furthermore, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 may acquire the second state quantity Qs2 only once. Even in this configuration, the status of the vehicle-mounted device 2 installed on the vehicle 100,100v, which is capable of operating in unmanned mode, can be managed. Furthermore, even in this configuration, decision processing can be performed using various methods depending on the number and type of acquired state quantities Qs.

[0134] E-6. Other Embodiments 6: In the embodiments described above from the first to the third embodiment, the instruction unit 825 that issues route change instructions was implemented as a function of the server control device 82. In contrast, in other embodiments, the instruction unit 825 may be implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v. In this case, for example, if the instruction unit 825 is implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v and the abnormality determination unit 824 is implemented as a function of the server control device 82, the determination result from the determination process is transmitted from the server device 80 to the vehicle control devices 60 and 60v. The instruction unit 825 then issues route change instructions based on the received determination result. Even in this configuration, the destination when the vehicles 100 and 100v are driving in unmanned operation mode can be changed according to the determination result from the determination process.

[0135] E-7. Other Embodiments 7: In each of the embodiments from the first to the third embodiment described above, the abnormality determination unit 824, which performs a determination process that is at least one of the abnormality determination process and the adjustment determination process, was implemented as a function of the server control device 82. In contrast, in other embodiments, the abnormality determination unit 824 may be implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v. In this case, for example, if the abnormality determination unit 824 is implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v and the instruction unit 825 is implemented as a function of the server device 80, the determination result from the determination process is transmitted from the vehicle control devices 60 and 60v to the server device 80. The instruction unit 825 then issues a route change instruction based on the received determination result. Even in this configuration, the destination when the vehicles 100 and 100v are driving in unmanned driving mode can be changed according to the determination result from the determination process.

[0136] E-8. Other Embodiments 8: In the above embodiment, the state quantity acquisition unit 626, which acquires the state quantity Qs, was implemented as a function of the vehicle CPUs 62 and 62v. In contrast, in other embodiments, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 may be implemented as a function of the server control devices 82 and 82v. When the state quantity acquisition unit 626 is implemented as a function of the server control devices 82 and 82v, the state quantity acquisition unit 626 may acquire the state quantity Qs by, for example, acquiring measurement values ​​from various sensors 91 to 95 shown in Figure 5 through communication with the vehicles 100 and 100v. Even in this configuration, the state quantity Qs can be acquired and stored in the database Db.

[0137] E-9. Other Embodiments 9: In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 14, the abnormality detection unit 824 performed both abnormality detection processing and adjustment detection processing. In contrast, in other embodiments, the abnormality detection unit 824 may perform only abnormality detection processing without performing adjustment detection processing. If the abnormality detection unit 824 performs only abnormality detection processing, the instruction unit 825, for example, issues a route change instruction to vehicles 100, 100v equipped with a vehicle-mounted device 2 that was determined to be in an abnormal state in the abnormality detection processing. In other embodiments, the abnormality detection unit 824 may perform adjustment detection processing without performing abnormality detection processing. If the abnormality detection unit 824 performs only adjustment detection processing, the instruction unit 825, for example, issues a route change instruction to vehicles 100, 100v equipped with a vehicle-mounted device 2 of the same lot as the vehicle-mounted device 2 that was determined to be in an abnormal state. Furthermore, if the abnormality detection unit 824 only performs the adjustment detection process, the instruction unit 825 may, for example, issue a route change instruction to vehicles 100,100v that are included in the same manufacturing unit as the vehicle 100,100v equipped with the vehicle-mounted device 2 that has been determined to be in an abnormal state. In this case, "vehicles 100,100v included in the same manufacturing unit" refers to vehicles 100,100v that are manufactured on the same manufacturing line, manufacturing location FC1~FC3, or manufacturing equipment as the vehicle 100,100v equipped with the vehicle-mounted device 2 that has been determined to be in an abnormal state. Alternatively, "vehicles 100,100v included in the same manufacturing unit" may also refer to vehicles 100,100v that are manufactured within a predetermined time period from the time when the vehicle 100,100v equipped with the vehicle-mounted device 2 that has been determined to be in an abnormal state was manufactured. In this way, even if only one of the abnormality detection process or the adjustment detection process is performed, the destination of the vehicles 100,100v that are running in unmanned operation mode can be changed according to the situation.

[0138] E-10. Other Embodiments 10: In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 1, if the vehicle-mounted device 2 is determined to be in an abnormal state or if maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended, the destination when driving in unmanned mode is changed to maintenance location FC3. However, the changed destination is not limited to this. If the vehicle-mounted device 2 installed on vehicle 100,100v is determined to be in an abnormal state or if maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device 2 is recommended at the first manufacturing location FC1, the destination when driving in unmanned mode may be changed to, for example, the first manufacturing location FC1. In this configuration, the vehicle-mounted device 2 can be replaced or repaired at the first manufacturing location FC1 where it is installed.

[0139] E-11. Other Embodiments 11: In the above embodiment, the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs were linked by the transmission information creation unit 627 at the time of creating the transmission information. However, the disclosure is not limited to this. The device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs do not have to be linked at the time the transmission information acquisition unit 822 acquires the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs. In this case, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 may, for example, link the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs acquired within a predetermined time. Alternatively, the transmission information acquisition unit 822 may, for example, link the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs depending on the source of the transmission of the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs. Even in such a configuration, a database Db linking the device identification information Ei, vehicle identification information Vi, and state quantity Qs can be generated.

[0140] E-12. Other Embodiments 12: In the above embodiment, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, vehicle position information for vehicles 100 and 100v operating in unmanned driving mode was acquired by a plurality of external cameras 901 to 904 installed between manufacturing sites FC1 and FC3. However, this disclosure is not limited to this. Vehicle position information for vehicles 100 and 100v operating in unmanned driving mode may also be acquired, for example, by using one or more vehicle-mounted devices 2 installed in vehicles 100 and 100v. In this case, the vehicle-mounted devices 2 may be, for example, a car navigation system (not shown), an in-vehicle camera (not shown), or a position information receiving unit (not shown). The position information receiving unit may be, for example, a GNSS receiver capable of receiving radio waves transmitted from GNSS satellites. With this configuration, vehicle position information for vehicle 100v operating in unmanned driving mode can be acquired without installing external cameras 901 to 904 at manufacturing sites FC1 to FC3. This expands the range of locations where vehicles can operate in unmanned driving mode.

[0141] E-13. Other Embodiments 13: In other embodiments, the vehicle control devices 60, 60v may obtain at least one of the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi by analyzing the captured image obtained by imaging an imaging range RG1 to RG4 that includes the vehicles 100, 100v and the vehicle-mounted device 2. In other embodiments, the vehicle control devices 60, 60v may transmit the captured image to the server devices 80, 80v as transmission information in order for the server devices 80, 80v to obtain at least one of the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi. In this case, the server devices 80, 80v will extract at least one of the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi by analyzing the captured image. In this configuration, at least one of the device identification information Ei and vehicle identification information Vi can be obtained using the captured image obtained by imaging an imaging range RG1 to RG4 that includes the vehicles 100, 100v and the vehicle-mounted device 2.

[0142] E-14. Other Embodiments 14: In each of the above embodiments, the external sensors are cameras 901 to 904. However, the external sensors do not have to be cameras 901 to 904; for example, they may be LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging). In this case, the detection results output by the external sensors may be 3D point cloud data representing vehicles 100 and 100v. In this case, the server devices 80 and 80v and vehicles 100 and 100v may acquire vehicle position information by template matching using the 3D point cloud data as detection results and pre-prepared reference point cloud data.

[0143] E-15. Other Embodiments 15: In each of the embodiments from the first to the third described above, the server device 80 performs the processing from acquiring vehicle position information to generating a driving control signal. In contrast, the vehicle 100 may perform at least a part of the processing from acquiring vehicle position information to generating a driving control signal. For example, the following forms (1) to (3) may also be used.

[0144] (1) The server device 80 may acquire vehicle position information, determine the next target location that vehicle 100 should head to, and generate a route from the vehicle 100's current location, as shown in the acquired vehicle position information, to the target location. The server device 80 may generate a route to the target location between the current location and the destination, or it may generate a route to the destination. The server device 80 may transmit the generated route to vehicle 100. Vehicle 100 may generate a driving control signal so that vehicle 100 travels along the route received from the server device 80, and may use the generated driving control signal to control the group of actuators.

[0145] (2) The server device 80 may acquire vehicle position information and transmit the acquired vehicle position information to the vehicle 100. The vehicle 100 may determine the next target location to which the vehicle 100 should go, generate a route from the vehicle 100's current location shown in the received vehicle position information to the target location, generate a driving control signal so that the vehicle 100 travels along the generated route, and control the actuator group using the generated driving control signal.

[0146] (3) In the embodiments of (1) and (2) above, the vehicle 100 is equipped with internal sensors, and the detection results output from the internal sensors may be used in at least one of the generation of a route and the generation of a driving control signal. The internal sensors are sensors mounted on the vehicle 100. The internal sensors may include, for example, sensors that detect the motion state of the vehicle 100, sensors that detect the operating state of each part of the vehicle 100, and sensors that detect the environment around the vehicle 100. Specifically, the internal sensors may include, for example, cameras, LiDAR, millimeter-wave radar, ultrasonic sensors, GPS sensors, acceleration sensors, gyro sensors, etc. For example, in the embodiment of (1) above, the server device 80 may acquire the detection results of the internal sensors and reflect the detection results of the internal sensors in the route when generating a route. In the embodiment of (1) above, the vehicle 100 may acquire the detection results of the internal sensors and reflect the detection results of the internal sensors in the driving control signal when generating a driving control signal. In the embodiment of (2) above, the vehicle 100 may acquire the detection results of the internal sensors and reflect the detection results of the internal sensors in the route when generating a route. In the embodiment described in (2) above, the vehicle 100 may acquire the detection results of the internal sensors and reflect the detection results of the internal sensors in the driving control signal when generating the driving control signal.

[0147] E-16. Other Embodiments 16: In the fourth embodiment described above, the vehicle 100v is equipped with an internal sensor, and the detection result output from the internal sensor may be used in at least one of the generation of the route and the generation of the driving control signal. For example, the vehicle 100v may acquire the detection result from the internal sensor and reflect the detection result from the internal sensor in the route when generating the route. The vehicle 100v may acquire the detection result from the internal sensor and reflect the detection result from the internal sensor in the driving control signal when generating the driving control signal.

[0148] E-17. Other Embodiments 17: In the fourth embodiment described above, the vehicle 100v acquires vehicle position information using the detection results of an external sensor. In contrast, the vehicle 100v may be equipped with an internal sensor, which may acquire vehicle position information using the detection results of the internal sensor, determine the next target location to which the vehicle 100v should go, generate a route from the vehicle 100v's current location to the target location as shown in the acquired vehicle position information, generate a driving control signal for traveling along the generated route, and control the actuator group using the generated driving control signal. In this case, the vehicle 100v can travel without using the detection results of the external sensor at all. The vehicle 100v may also acquire the target arrival time and congestion information from outside the vehicle 100v and reflect the target arrival time and congestion information in at least one of the route and the driving control signal. Furthermore, all the functional configurations of system 1v may be provided in the vehicle 100v. That is, the processing realized by system 1v in this disclosure may be realized by the vehicle 100v alone. If the processing implemented by system 1v is implemented by vehicle 100v alone, vehicle 100v may obtain the state variable Qs from another vehicle 100v.

[0149] E-18. Other Embodiments 18: In each of the embodiments from the first to the third described above, the server device 80 automatically generates a driving control signal to be transmitted to the vehicle 100. In contrast, the server device 80 may generate a driving control signal to be transmitted to the vehicle 100 in accordance with the operation of an external operator located outside the vehicle 100. For example, an external operator may operate a control device that includes a display for displaying captured images output from an external sensor, a steering wheel for remotely controlling the vehicle 100, an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, and a communication device for communicating with the server device 80 via wired or wireless communication, and the server device 80 may generate a driving control signal in accordance with the operation applied to the control device.

[0150] E-19. Other Embodiments 19: In each of the above embodiments, the vehicles 100 and 100v only need to be configured to be able to move by unmanned operation, and may take the form of a platform having the configuration described below. Specifically, in order for the vehicles 100 and 100v to perform the three functions of "driving," "turning," and "stopping" by unmanned operation, they only need to be equipped with at least a vehicle control device 60 and 60v and a group of actuators. When the vehicles 100 and 100v acquire information from the outside for unmanned operation, the vehicles 100 and 100v may further be equipped with a communication device. That is, the vehicles 100 and 100v that can move by unmanned operation do not need to have at least some of the interior parts such as the driver's seat and dashboard installed, at least some of the exterior parts such as the bumper and fender installed, and do not need to have a body shell installed. In this case, the remaining parts such as the body shell may be attached to the vehicle 100, 100v before it is shipped from the factory FC, or the remaining parts such as the body shell may be attached to the vehicle 100, 100v after it has been shipped from the factory FC, while the remaining parts such as the body shell are not attached to the vehicle 100, 100v. Each part may be attached to the vehicle 100, 100v from any direction, such as the top, bottom, front, rear, right, or left, and each part may be attached from the same direction or from different directions. The positioning of the platform can also be determined in the same way as the vehicle 100, 100v in the first embodiment.

[0151] E-20. Other Embodiments 20: Vehicles 100 and 100v may be manufactured by combining multiple modules. A module refers to a unit composed of multiple parts grouped according to the part or function of the vehicle 100 and 100v. For example, the platform of vehicle 100 and 100v may be manufactured by combining a front module that constitutes the front part of the platform, a central module that constitutes the central part of the platform, and a rear module that constitutes the rear part of the platform. The number of modules that make up the platform is not limited to three, but may be two or fewer, or four or more. In addition to, or instead of, the parts that make up the platform, parts that make up parts of vehicle 100 and 100v that are different from the platform may be modularized. Furthermore, various modules may include any exterior parts such as bumpers and grilles, or any interior parts such as seats and consoles. Moreover, not limited to vehicles 100 and 100v, any type of mobile body may be manufactured by combining multiple modules. Such modules may be manufactured, for example, by joining multiple parts by welding or fasteners, or by integrally molding at least a part of the parts that make up the module as a single part by casting. A molding technique for integrally molding a single component, especially a relatively large component, is also called gigacast or megacast. For example, the front module, central module, and rear module mentioned above may be manufactured using gigacast.

[0152] E-21. Other Embodiments 21: The use of unmanned operation of the 100,100v vehicle to transport the 100,100v vehicle is also called "autonomous transport." The configuration for realizing autonomous transport is also called a "vehicle remote control autonomous driving transport system." Furthermore, a production method that uses autonomous transport to produce the 100,100v vehicle is also called "autonomous production." In autonomous production, for example, in a factory cluster (FC) that manufactures the 100,100v vehicle, at least a portion of the transport of the 100,100v vehicle is realized by autonomous transport.

[0153] This disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be implemented in various configurations without departing from its spirit. For example, the technical features of the embodiments corresponding to the technical features in each form described in the summary of the invention can be replaced or combined as appropriate in order to solve some or all of the above-described problems, or to achieve some or all of the above-described effects. Furthermore, if a technical feature is not described as essential in this specification, it can be deleted as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0154] 1.1V...System, 2...Vehicle-mounted equipment, 9...Measurement unit, 20...Main battery, 25...Charger, 26...Vehicle-side connector, 28...Power supply-side connector, 29...External power supply, 30...Wheels, 31...Engine, 32...Power split mechanism, 33...Traction motor, 34...Reduction gear, 35...Axle, 36...Friction brake, 37...Damper, 39...Steering system, 40...Power converter, 41...Inverter, 42...First converter, 50...Auxiliary battery, 52...Second converter, 6 0, 60V...Vehicle control device, 62, 62V...Vehicle CPU, 64...Input / Output interface, 66, 66V...Vehicle memory unit, 71...First process control device, 72...Second process control device, 80, 80V...Server device, 82, 82V...Server control device, 84...Server communication unit, 86, 86V...Server memory unit, 91...Current sensor, 92...Voltage sensor, 93...Battery temperature sensor, 94...Wheel speed sensor, 95...Steering angle sensor, 100, 100V...Vehicle, 101, 101V ...Vehicle 1, 102, 102v...Vehicle 2, 103, 103v...Vehicle 3, 104, 104v...Vehicle 4, 201...Vehicle 1 mounted equipment, 202...Vehicle 2 mounted equipment, 203...Vehicle 3 mounted equipment, 204...Vehicle 4 mounted equipment, 205...Vehicle 5 mounted equipment, 331...Motor 1, 332...Motor 2, 500...Auxiliary power line, 501, 502...Auxiliary equipment, 601, 601v...Vehicle 1 control device, 602, 602v...Vehicle 2 control device, 603, 603v... Third vehicle control device, 604, 604v... Fourth vehicle control device, 607... Engine ECU, 608... Motor ECU, 609... HV-ECU, 621... Device identification information acquisition unit, 622... Vehicle identification information acquisition unit, 623... Charge rate calculation unit, 624... Degradation degree calculation unit, 625... Vehicle speed calculation unit, 626... State quantity acquisition unit, 627... Transmission information creation unit, 628... Transmission unit, 630, 630v... Operation control unit, 631, 821... Position acquisition unit, 632, 824... Anomaly determination unit, 633,825...Instruction unit, 634...Signal generation unit, 712...First process control unit, 712a...First process information acquisition unit, 714...First process communication unit, 716...First process storage unit, 722...Second process control unit, 722a...Second process information acquisition unit, 724...Second process communication unit, 726...Second process storage unit, 820...Manufacturing status acquisition unit, 822...Transmission information acquisition unit, 823...Database writing unit, 826...Remote control unit, 827...Update unit, 901...First external camera, 902...Second external camera, 903...Third external camera, 904...Fourth external camera, Aj...Anomaly judgment information, B1...First start, B2...Second start, B3...Third start, B4...Fourth start, Br...Branch point, Ci...Anomaly cluster, Cs...Normal cluster, Db...Database S, DM...Detection model, E1...First terminal, E2...Second terminal, E3...Third terminal, E4...Fourth terminal, Ei...Device identification information, FC...Factory, FC1...First manufacturing location, FC2...Second manufacturing location, FC3...Maintenance location, G1...First time series data, G2...Second time series data, G3...Third time series data, G4...Fourth time series data, PC1...Branch position, PC2...Direction change position, PE1...First terminal position, PE2...Second terminal position, Qs...State quantity, Qs1...First state quantity, Qs2...Second state quantity, R1...First track, R2...Second track, R3...Third track, R4...Fourth track, RG1~RG4...Imaging range, Ri...Reference path, Ri1...First reference path, Ri2...Second reference path, Vi...Vehicle identification information, Vo...Outlier

Claims

1. Server device, A server control device equipped with a transmission information acquisition unit that acquires device identification information, which is identification information of a vehicle-mounted device installed in a vehicle that is capable of moving by unmanned operation, and vehicle identification information, which is identification information of the vehicle. It includes a storage unit that stores a database linking the acquired device identification information and the vehicle identification information, The vehicle has an unmanned driving mode which includes at least one of a first driving mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second driving mode in which it moves by remote control. The vehicle-mounted device is a power source or power source for the vehicle. The server control device further includes a state quantity acquisition unit that acquires a state quantity indicating the state of the vehicle-mounted device, The transmission information acquisition unit acquires the device identification information and the vehicle identification information, as well as the state quantity. The aforementioned database is a collection of data that links the device identification information, the vehicle identification information, and the state quantities. The transmission information acquisition unit acquires at least one of the following state quantities, in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity: a first state quantity which is the state quantity at the time before the vehicle moves in the unmanned driving mode, and a second state quantity which is the state quantity at the time when the vehicle is moving in the unmanned driving mode between manufacturing locations where each manufacturing process is performed in the vehicle manufacturing process. The server device further includes an abnormality determination unit that performs a determination process which is at least one of the following processes using the state quantity acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit: an abnormality determination process that determines whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device is normal or abnormal; and an adjustment determination process that determines whether or not maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device is recommended. A server device comprising: a first case in which the abnormality determination process determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device is in an abnormal state, and a second case in which the adjustment determination process determines that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device is recommended, wherein the instruction unit gives a route change instruction to change the destination when the vehicle moves in the unmanned driving mode from a predetermined target location to a maintenance location where at least one of the following is performed: an exchange process to replace the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle with another vehicle-mounted device, and a repair process to repair the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle.

2. A server device according to claim 1, The aforementioned transmission information acquisition unit is a server device that acquires the state quantity multiple times at different timings.

3. A server device according to claim 1 or claim 2, Multiple vehicles are moved between the aforementioned manufacturing locations. The abnormality determination unit is a server device that performs the determination process by relatively comparing the state quantities acquired for each of the multiple vehicles.

4. A server device according to claim 3, The abnormality determination unit is a server device that performs the determination process by at least a relative comparison between the state quantity obtained from the target vehicle, which is one of the plurality of vehicles, and the state quantity obtained from an adjacent vehicle, which is a vehicle moving either in front of or behind the target vehicle.

5. A server device according to claim 2, The transmission information acquisition unit acquires the state quantity multiple times at different timings for each of the multiple vehicles. The abnormality determination unit is a server device that performs the determination process by relatively comparing time-series data representing the time-series changes of the state quantity, which are time-series data acquired for each of the multiple vehicles.

6. A system comprising a vehicle capable of moving by unmanned operation and a server device, The vehicle has an unmanned driving mode which includes at least one of a first driving mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second driving mode in which it moves by remote control. The aforementioned vehicle is The vehicle-mounted device installed on the aforementioned vehicle, The vehicle includes a vehicle control device that controls the operation of the vehicle, The vehicle-mounted device is a power source or power source for the vehicle. The aforementioned vehicle control device is A device identification information acquisition unit that acquires device identification information, which is the identification information of the vehicle-mounted device, A vehicle identification information acquisition unit acquires vehicle identification information, which is the identification information of the aforementioned vehicle. A state quantity acquisition unit that acquires a state quantity indicating the state of the vehicle-mounted device, The system comprises a transmission unit that transmits the device identification information, the vehicle identification information, and the state quantities to the server device, The state quantity acquisition unit acquires at least one of the following state quantities, in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity: a first state quantity which is the state quantity at the time before the vehicle moves in the unmanned driving mode, and a second state quantity which is the state quantity at the time when the vehicle is moving in the unmanned driving mode between manufacturing locations where each manufacturing process is performed in the vehicle manufacturing process. The server device is A server control device comprising a transmission information acquisition unit that acquires the device identification information, the vehicle identification information, and the state quantity, A storage unit that stores a database linking the acquired device identification information, the identification information, and the state quantities, An abnormality determination unit executes a determination process which is at least one of the following processes: an abnormality determination process that determines whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device is in a normal state or an abnormal state using the state quantity acquired by the transmission information acquisition unit; and an adjustment determination process that determines whether or not maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device is recommended. A system comprising: a first case in which the abnormality determination process determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device is in an abnormal state, and a second case in which the adjustment determination process determines that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device is recommended, wherein the system provides a route change instruction to change the destination of the vehicle when it moves in the unmanned driving mode from a predetermined target location to a maintenance location where at least one of the following is performed: an exchange process to replace the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle with another vehicle-mounted device, and a repair process to repair the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle.

7. A method for managing vehicle-mounted devices installed in vehicles that are capable of moving by unmanned operation, The vehicle has an unmanned driving mode which includes at least one of a first driving mode in which it moves by autonomous control and a second driving mode in which it moves by remote control. The vehicle-mounted device is a power source or power source for the vehicle. The management method for the vehicle-mounted device is, A device identification information acquisition step, which acquires device identification information, which is the identification information of the vehicle-mounted device, A vehicle identification information acquisition step, which acquires vehicle identification information, which is the identification information of the aforementioned vehicle, A state quantity acquisition step, which acquires a state quantity indicating the state of the vehicle-mounted device, A storage step involves storing a database that links the acquired device identification information, the vehicle identification information, and the state quantities. The system includes a state quantity acquisition step for acquiring a state quantity indicating the state of the vehicle-mounted device, The state quantity acquisition step includes acquiring at least one of the following state quantities in association with the timing corresponding to the state quantity: a first state quantity which is the state quantity at the time before the vehicle moves in the unmanned driving mode, and a second state quantity which is the state quantity at the time when the vehicle is moving in the unmanned driving mode between manufacturing locations where each manufacturing process is performed in the manufacturing process of the vehicle. The above method further, An abnormality determination step that performs a determination process which is at least one of the following processes using the state quantity obtained in the state quantity acquisition step: an abnormality determination process that determines whether the state of the vehicle-mounted device is in a normal state or an abnormal state, and an adjustment determination process that determines whether or not maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device is recommended. A method for managing a vehicle-mounted device, comprising: a first case in which the abnormality determination process determines that the state of the vehicle-mounted device is in an abnormal state, and a second case in which the adjustment determination process determines that maintenance of the vehicle-mounted device is recommended, wherein the instruction step is given to change the destination of the vehicle when it moves in the unmanned driving mode from a predetermined target location to a maintenance location where at least one of the following is performed: an exchange process to replace the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle with another vehicle-mounted device, and a repair process to repair the vehicle-mounted device mounted on the vehicle.

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