Information processing method and information processing system

Abstract

An information processing system 1 uses a server 100 to present position information of a vehicle 2 to a communication terminal 3. The server 100 receives measured position information, which is measurement values of the position information of the vehicle 2, acquires a scheduled travel route of the vehicle 2, calculates estimated position information of the vehicle 2 on the basis of the measured position information and the scheduled travel route, and transmits the estimated position information to the communication terminal 3.

Description

Information processing method and information processing system

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing method and an information processing system.

[0002] In the driving route estimation system described in Patent Document 1, a server acquires vehicle position information from a vehicle device and estimates a driving route that the vehicle has traveled in the past.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-206757

[0004] However, in the driving route estimation system described in Patent Document 1, when attempting to obtain accurate position information of a vehicle while it is traveling, there is a possibility that the amount of communication between the server and the vehicle device will become excessive.

[0005] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an information processing method and an information processing system that can prevent excessive communication traffic caused by presenting vehicle position information to a communication terminal.

[0006] The present invention solves the above problem by having a server calculate estimated position information of the vehicle based on measured position information of the vehicle and the planned driving route, and transmit the estimated position information to a communication terminal.

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the amount of communication traffic required to present vehicle position information to a communication terminal from becoming excessive.

[0008] Fig. 1 is a block diagram including an information processing system according to a first embodiment and a second embodiment. Fig. 2 is a flowchart showing the procedure of an information processing method according to the first embodiment. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing a method for controlling the reception frequency of measurement position information in the information processing method shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure of an information processing method according to a second embodiment. Fig. 5 is a block diagram including an information processing device according to a third embodiment. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the procedure of an information processing method according to the third embodiment.

[0009] First Embodiment A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. As shown in FIG. 1, an information processing system 1 includes a server 100 that presents location information of a vehicle 2 to a communication terminal 3. The information processing system 1, the vehicle 2, and the communication terminal 3 can exchange information with each other via a telecommunications network such as the Internet 300. The communication terminal 3 is typically a terminal such as a smartphone carried by a user who wishes to obtain location information of the vehicle 2. That is, when a user requests the server 100 of the information processing system 1 to transmit location information of the vehicle 2 via the communication terminal 3, the information processing system 1 transmits the location information of the vehicle 2 to the communication terminal 3 based on information received from the vehicle 2. For example, while waiting for the vehicle 2 at a predetermined meeting place, the user requests the information processing system 1 to transmit location information of the vehicle 2 in order to check where the vehicle 2 is traveling. Alternatively, the user may be a staff member of a taxi company who requests the information processing system 1 to transmit location information of the vehicle 2 in order to check where the company's vehicle 2 is traveling.

[0010] The server 100 of the information processing system 1 has a communication unit 101, a vehicle position information acquisition unit 102, a driving route acquisition unit 103, a vehicle position estimation unit 104, and a driving situation determination unit 105. The vehicle 2 has a self-position acquisition unit 201, a driving route setting unit 202, and a communication unit 203. The self-position acquisition unit 201 acquires the current position (measured position information) of the vehicle 2 from a GPS unit, a gyro sensor, a vehicle speed sensor, etc. The driving route setting unit 202 sets a planned driving route based on the destination of the vehicle 2. The communication terminal 3 has a communication unit 301, an input unit 302, and a display unit 303.

[0011] The configuration of the information processing system 1 will be described in detail. The communication unit 101 receives measured position information of the vehicle 2 at a predetermined frequency. That is, the vehicle 2 transmits the measured position information to the server 100 at a predetermined frequency. The frequency at which the communication unit 101 receives the measured position information, i.e., the frequency at which the vehicle 2 transmits the measured position information to the server 100, is typically, for example, once every 5 to 10 minutes, but is not limited to this. The communication unit 101 also receives vehicle information including the vehicle speed of the vehicle 2, the planned driving route of the vehicle 2, the driving conditions, etc. The communication unit 101 also receives request information from the communication terminal 3 and terminal position information of the communication terminal 3. The communication unit 101 also transmits information including the position information of the vehicle 2 to the communication terminal 3. The communication unit 101 may also transmit information including a control command to the vehicle 2.

[0012] The vehicle position information acquisition unit 102 acquires measured position information, which is a measurement value of the position information of the vehicle 2. As described above, the communication unit 101 receives the measured position information of the vehicle 2 at a predetermined frequency, and therefore the measured position information acquired by the vehicle position information acquisition unit 102 is updated at a predetermined frequency.

[0013] The driving route acquisition unit 103 acquires a planned driving route for the vehicle 2. The planned driving route is a route automatically set by the driving route setting unit 202 of the vehicle 2 or a route set by an occupant of the vehicle 2. If a planned driving route is not set, the driving route acquisition unit 103 may acquire the planned driving route by calculating the planned driving route based on the destination. Note that "the planned driving route is set" means that the planned driving route is registered in the car navigation system of the vehicle 2. Furthermore, if the vehicle 2 is an autonomous vehicle, "the planned driving route is set" may also mean that the planned driving route is set in a database of a driving control device (not shown) so that the driving control device can drive the vehicle 2 along the planned driving route. Furthermore, the communication unit 101 of the server 100 may transmit information including the planned driving route calculated by the driving route acquisition unit 103 to the vehicle 2, and the driving route setting unit 202 of the vehicle 2 may set the planned driving route based on the information received from the server 100. Furthermore, the information indicating the planned driving route may include time information.

[0014] The vehicle position estimation unit 104 calculates estimated position information of the vehicle 2 based on the measured position information and the planned driving route of the vehicle 2. The vehicle position estimation unit 104 updates the estimated position information, for example, once every few seconds to once every minute. In other words, the vehicle position estimation unit 104 updates the estimated position information more frequently than the server 100 receives the measured position information. Specifically, the vehicle position estimation unit 104 calculates a transmission time for transmitting the estimated position information to the communication terminal 3 based on the request information received from the communication terminal 3, and calculates the estimated position information corresponding to the transmission time based on the measured position information, the planned driving route, and the vehicle speed of the vehicle 2. The server 100 calculates the vehicle speed of the vehicle 2 based on changes in the measured position information of the vehicle 2, but is not limited to this, and may also acquire the detection results of a vehicle speed sensor provided in the vehicle 2.

[0015] The estimated position information calculated by the vehicle position estimation unit 104 is transmitted to the communication terminal 3 via the communication unit 101. In addition to the estimated position information of the vehicle 2, the server 100 may also transmit information regarding the estimation accuracy of the estimated position information to the communication terminal 3. "Information regarding the estimation accuracy of the estimated position information" is, for example, information such as "The position information is estimated based on measured position information from ____ minutes ago" or "The measured position information will be updated in ____ minutes." Furthermore, after transmitting the estimated position information of the vehicle 2 to the communication terminal 3, if the server 100 determines that the estimated position information is significantly different from measured position information acquired subsequently (there is a difference of at least a predetermined distance), the server 100 may retransmit correct position information to the communication terminal 3.

[0016] Furthermore, the driving situation determination unit 105 determines whether the accuracy of the estimated position information to be transmitted to the communication terminal 3 needs to be increased from the current accuracy based on the driving situation of the vehicle 2. Specifically, when a planned driving route is not set, when the vehicle 2 is driving on a route deviating from the planned driving route, or when the average speed of the vehicle 2 drops significantly below a predetermined value, the driving situation determination unit 105 determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information has dropped below a predetermined standard, i.e., that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy. An example of a case where the average speed of the vehicle 2 drops significantly below a predetermined value is when the vehicle 2 is stuck in traffic. The driving situation determination unit 105 may detect that the vehicle 2 is stuck in traffic, i.e., that the average speed of the vehicle 2 has dropped significantly below a predetermined value, based on traffic information received from an external information source. The average speed of the vehicle 2 is an average speed calculated every time interval (e.g., every 5 minutes) that is long enough to prevent the vehicle 2 from being mistaken for a traffic jam.

[0017] Furthermore, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a predetermined specific range on the planned traveling route, the traveling situation determination unit 105 determines that the required accuracy of the estimated position information is high, i.e., that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be higher than the current accuracy. The specific range is, for example, a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction on a highway. The specific range may also be, for example, a range within a predetermined reference distance from a destination. The destination may be, for example, a meeting place with the user carrying the communication terminal 3. In this case, the traveling situation determination unit 105 acquires an estimated arrival time for the vehicle 2 to arrive at the destination. When the vehicle 2 is predicted to arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, the reference distance may be set to be larger than when the vehicle 2 is predicted to arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time. In other words, when the vehicle 2 is predicted to arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, the specific range is wider than when the vehicle 2 is predicted to arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time. The estimated arrival time is a preset time, for example, the user's desired boarding time or an estimated arrival time notified to the user in advance.

[0018] If the traveling condition determination unit 105 determines that "the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy," the communication unit 101 of the server 100 transmits a control command to the vehicle 2 to increase the frequency at which the communication unit 203 of the vehicle 2 transmits the measured position information. That is, when the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy, the server 100 increases the reception frequency of the measured position information compared to when the accuracy of the estimated position information does not need to be increased from the current accuracy. Specifically, when the accuracy of the estimated position information does not need to be increased from the current accuracy, the server 100 receives the measured position information at a first frequency (e.g., once every 5 to 10 minutes), and when the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy, the server 100 receives the measured position information at a second frequency (e.g., once every 2 to 3 minutes) that is higher than the first frequency.

[0019] If a planned driving route is not set, if the vehicle 2 is driving on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, or if the average speed of the vehicle 2 drops significantly below a predetermined value, the driving route acquisition unit 103 calculates a new planned driving route in accordance with the current driving conditions of the vehicle 2. Then, the vehicle position estimation unit 104 calculates estimated position information of the vehicle 2 based on the new planned driving route and the measured position information.

[0020] Next, the steps of the information processing method executed by the server 100 of the information processing system 1 will be described using the flowchart in Figure 2. First, in step S1, the server 100 receives measured position information of the vehicle 2 at a first frequency (once every 5 to 10 minutes). Then, in step S2, the server 100 acquires a planned driving route of the vehicle 2. Note that the processing of step S1 and the processing of step S2 may be executed simultaneously, or the processing of step S1 may be executed after the processing of step S2.

[0021] Next, in step S3, the server 100 calculates estimated position information of the vehicle 2 at a frequency higher than the first frequency (once every few seconds to once every minute) based on the measured position information of the vehicle 2 and the planned driving route.

[0022] Next, in step S4, the server 100 determines whether or not it has received a request to transmit the position information of the vehicle 2 from the communication terminal 3. If it has not received a request to transmit the position information from the communication terminal 3, the server 100 repeats the processes of steps S1 to S3.

[0023] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S4 that "a request to transmit the position information of the vehicle 2 has been received from the communication terminal 3", the server 100 transmits estimated position information to the communication terminal 3 in step S5.

[0024] In addition, the server 100 may first perform the judgment process of step S4, and then perform the processes of steps S1 to S3 and S5 if it determines that ``a request to send the location information of the vehicle 2 has been received from the communication terminal 3.''

[0025] Next, a method by which the server 100 of the information processing system 1 controls the reception frequency of measured position information will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in step S11, the server 100 determines whether the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased above its current accuracy. The server 100 determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased above its current accuracy when a planned driving route for the vehicle 2 has not been set, the vehicle 2 is driving on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, the average speed of the vehicle 2 has dropped significantly below a predetermined value, or the vehicle 2 is driving within a predetermined specific range on the planned driving route (a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction on a highway, or a range within a predetermined reference distance from the destination).

[0026] If it is determined in step S11 that the accuracy of the estimated location information does not need to be increased above the current accuracy, the server 100 does not change the reception frequency of the measured location information. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S11 that the accuracy of the estimated location information needs to be increased above the current accuracy, the server 100 increases the reception frequency of the measured location information in step S12.

[0027] As described above, the information processing system 1 according to the first embodiment receives measured position information, which is a measurement value of the position information of the vehicle 2, acquires a planned driving route of the vehicle 2, calculates estimated position information of the vehicle based on the measured position information and the planned driving route, and transmits the estimated position information to the communication terminal 3. As a result, the information processing system 1 transmits the estimated position information, rather than the measured position information of the vehicle 2, to the communication terminal 3. Therefore, even when a transmission request for the position information of the vehicle 2 is received from the communication terminal 3, there is no need to acquire the measured position information frequently (every few seconds to one minute), and it is possible to prevent the amount of communication between the server 100 and the vehicle 2 from becoming excessive.

[0028] Furthermore, the information processing system 1 acquires the vehicle speed of the vehicle 2, calculates the transmission time for transmitting the estimated position information to the communication terminal 3, and calculates the estimated position information corresponding to the transmission time based on the measured position information, planned driving route, and vehicle speed of the vehicle 2. This allows the information processing system 1 to calculate the estimated position information in accordance with the timing at which the position information is output to the communication terminal 3.

[0029] Furthermore, the estimated location information is updated more frequently than the measured location information is received more frequently. As a result, even when the information processing system 1 receives a request to transmit the location information of the vehicle 2 from the communication terminal 3, the information processing system 1 can provide the user with estimated location information with a predetermined accuracy or higher without acquiring the measured location information frequently (every few seconds to one minute).

[0030] Furthermore, the information processing system 1 determines whether the accuracy of the estimated location information needs to be increased above the current accuracy, and if the accuracy of the estimated location information needs to be increased above the current accuracy, the information processing system 1 increases the reception frequency of the measured location information compared to when the accuracy of the estimated location information does not need to be increased above the current accuracy. This allows the information processing system 1 to change the reception frequency of the measured location information depending on whether or not there is a need to increase the accuracy of the estimated location information. Therefore, if the accuracy of the estimated location information falls below a predetermined reference accuracy or if the required accuracy of the estimated location information increases, the information processing system 1 can increase the accuracy of the estimated location information above the current accuracy by changing the reception frequency of the measured location information.

[0031] The information processing system 1 determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased above the current accuracy when the planned driving route of the vehicle 2 has not been set, when the vehicle 2 is driving on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, or when the average speed of the vehicle 2 has dropped significantly below a predetermined value. As a result, in a scene where it is difficult to estimate accurate position information based on the measured position information and the planned driving route, the information processing system 1 can determine that the accuracy of the estimated position information has decreased below a predetermined reference accuracy, and increase the frequency of receiving the measured position information.

[0032] Furthermore, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a predetermined specific range on the planned traveling route, the information processing system 1 determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy. As a result, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within the predetermined specific range, the information processing system 1 determines that the required accuracy of the estimated position information has increased, and can increase the frequency of receiving measured position information.

[0033] Furthermore, the specific range is a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway. As a result, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway, the information processing system 1 determines that the requested accuracy of estimated position information has increased, and can increase the frequency of receiving measured position information. In other words, whether the vehicle 2 passes through an interchange or junction of a highway and how long it takes the vehicle 2 to pass through the interchange or junction have a significant impact on the arrival time of the vehicle 2 at its destination, etc., so the information processing system 1 determines that the requested accuracy of estimated position information has increased when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway.

[0034] Furthermore, the specific range is a range within a predetermined reference distance from the destination. As a result, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from the destination, i.e., when the vehicle 2 is approaching the destination, the information processing system 1 determines that the accuracy of the requested estimated position information has increased, and can increase the frequency of receiving measured position information. For example, a user waiting for the arrival of the vehicle 2 at the destination requires more detailed and accurate position information of the vehicle 2 as the vehicle 2 approaches the destination. Therefore, the information processing system 1 determines that the accuracy of the requested estimated position information has increased when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from the destination.

[0035] Furthermore, the information processing system 1 acquires the estimated arrival time for the vehicle 2 to arrive at the destination, and when it predicts that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, it sets the reference distance of the specific range to a larger value than when it predicts that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time. As a result, the information processing system 1 can increase the frequency of receiving measured position information and improve the accuracy of estimated position information even when the arrival of the vehicle 2 at the destination is delayed and the vehicle 2 is traveling farther from the destination than planned.

[0036] Second Embodiment Next, an information processing method according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Note that an information processing system 1 that executes the information processing method according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as that shown in Fig. 1. Furthermore, in the following description, the same reference numerals as those shown in Figs. 1 to 3 indicate the same or similar parts, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0037] The procedure of the information processing method executed by the server 100 of the information processing system 1 according to this embodiment will be described using the flowchart in Fig. 4. As shown in Fig. 4, the server 100 of the information processing system 1 first determines in step S21 whether the communication terminal 3 is located inside the vehicle 2. Specifically, the vehicle 2 determines whether short-range wireless communication with the communication terminal 3 is possible. If the vehicle 2 and the communication terminal 3 are capable of short-range wireless communication with each other, the communication unit 203 of the vehicle 2 transmits the result to the server 100, and the server 100 determines that the communication terminal 3 is located inside the vehicle 2.

[0038] If it is determined in step S21 that the communication terminal 3 is not inside the vehicle 2, the server 100 calculates estimated position information of the vehicle 2 in step S22 based on the measured position information and planned driving route of the vehicle 2, similar to steps S1 to S3 of Figure 2.

[0039] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S21 that "the communication terminal 3 is inside the vehicle 2," the server 100 determines in step S23 whether the latest update time of the terminal location information acquired from the communication terminal 3 is later than the latest update time of the measured location information of the vehicle 2.

[0040] If it is determined in step S23 that "the latest update time of the terminal location information is before the latest update time of the measured location information of vehicle 2," then in step S22, server 100 calculates estimated location information of vehicle 2 based on the measured location information and planned driving route of vehicle 2, similar to steps S1 to S3 of Figure 2.

[0041] If it is determined in step S23 that "the latest update time of the terminal location information is later than the latest update time of the measured location information of vehicle 2," then in step S24, server 100 calculates estimated location information based on the terminal location information and the planned driving route.

[0042] 4, the determination process of step S23 may be omitted, as indicated by the dashed line. That is, when the communication terminal 3 is inside the vehicle 2, the server 100 may calculate estimated position information based on the terminal position information and the planned driving route in step S24.

[0043] As described above, the information processing system 1 according to the second embodiment calculates estimated location information based on the terminal location information when the communication terminal 3 is inside the vehicle 2 and when the latest update time of the terminal location information acquired from the communication terminal 3 is later than the latest update time of the measured location information of the vehicle 2. As a result, when the communication terminal 3 is inside the vehicle 2, the information processing system 1 compares the latest update time of the terminal location information with the latest update time of the measured location information of the vehicle 2 and uses the location information with the more recent update time, thereby enabling the information processing system 1 to calculate estimated location information with high accuracy.

[0044] Furthermore, when the communication terminal 3 is inside the vehicle 2, the information processing system 1 may calculate the estimated location information based on the terminal location information acquired from the communication terminal 3. In this way, based on the fact that the terminal location information of the communication terminal 3 such as a smartphone is generally updated more frequently than the measured location information of the vehicle 2, the information processing system 1 can accurately calculate the estimated location information based on the terminal location information when the communication terminal 3 is inside the vehicle 2.

[0045] Third Embodiment Next, an information processing method according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 5 and 6. In the following description, the same reference numerals as those in Figures 1 to 4 indicate the same or similar parts, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0046] 5, the vehicle 2 has an information processing device 20. The information processing device 20 has a processor 200. The processor 200 has a self-position acquisition unit 201, a driving route setting unit 202, a communication unit 203, and a driving situation determination unit 204. That is, the configuration of the information processing device 20 according to this embodiment differs from the configuration of the vehicle 2 shown in FIG. 1 in that it has the driving situation determination unit 204.

[0047] Furthermore, the information processing device 20 of the vehicle 2 is capable of communicating with the server 400 via the Internet 4. The server 400 has a communication unit 101, a vehicle position information acquisition unit 102, a driving route acquisition unit 103, and a vehicle position estimation unit 104. That is, the configuration of the server 400 in this embodiment differs from the configuration of the server 100 shown in FIG. 1 in that it does not have a driving situation determination unit 105. The information processing device 20 of the vehicle 2 transmits measured position information and a planned driving route of the vehicle 2 to the server 400, and the server 400 transmits estimated position information of the vehicle 2 calculated based on the measured position information and the planned driving route of the vehicle 2 to the communication terminal 3.

[0048] The following describes the processing executed by the driving situation determination unit 204 of the information processing device 20 of the vehicle 2. The driving situation determination unit 204 determines whether or not the accuracy of the position information (measured position information) to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be higher than the current accuracy, based on the driving situation of the vehicle 2. Specifically, if a planned driving route has not been set, if the vehicle 2 is traveling on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, or if the average speed of the vehicle 2 has dropped significantly below a predetermined value, the driving situation determination unit 204 determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information calculated by the server 400 will fall below a predetermined standard, i.e., that the accuracy of the position information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be higher than the current accuracy.

[0049] Furthermore, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a predetermined specific range on the planned traveling route, the traveling situation determination unit 204 determines that the required accuracy of the estimated position information is high, i.e., that the accuracy of the position information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be higher than the current accuracy. The specific range is, for example, a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction on a highway. The specific range may also be, for example, a range within a predetermined reference distance from a destination. The destination may be, for example, a meeting place with the user carrying the communication terminal 3. In this case, the traveling situation determination unit 105 acquires the estimated arrival time for the vehicle 2 to arrive at the destination, and when it is predicted that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, it may set the reference distance to be larger than when it is predicted that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time. In other words, when it is predicted that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, the specific range is wider than when it is predicted that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time.

[0050] In the present embodiment, the server 400 may determine, based on the traveling conditions of the vehicle 2, whether or not the accuracy of the position information (measured position information) that the information processing device 20 of the vehicle 2 transmits to the server 400 needs to be made higher than the current accuracy, and the information processing device 20 of the vehicle 2 may receive the determination result. That is, the traveling condition determination unit 204 of the information processing device 20 may determine, based on the determination result of the server 400, whether or not the accuracy of the position information (measured position information) that is transmitted to the server 400 needs to be made higher than the current accuracy.

[0051] When the traveling condition determination unit 204 determines that "the accuracy of the location information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be higher than the current accuracy," the information processing device 20 increases the frequency at which the measured location information is transmitted to the server 400. That is, when the accuracy of the location information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be higher than the current accuracy, the information processing device 20 increases the transmission frequency of the measured location information compared to when the accuracy of the location information does not need to be higher than the current accuracy. Specifically, when the accuracy of the location information to be transmitted does not need to be higher than the current accuracy, the information processing device 20 transmits the measured location information at a first frequency (e.g., once every 5 to 10 minutes), and when the accuracy of the location information needs to be higher than the current accuracy, the information processing device 20 transmits the measured location information at a second frequency (e.g., once every 2 to 3 minutes) that is higher than the first frequency.

[0052] Next, a method for the processor 200 of the information processing device 20 to control the transmission frequency of the measured position information will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 6 . First, in step S31, the processor 200 determines whether the accuracy of the position information (measured position information) to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be increased from the current accuracy. The processor 200 determines that the accuracy of the measured position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy when the planned driving route of the vehicle 2 has not been set, the vehicle 2 is driving on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, the average speed of the vehicle 2 has dropped significantly below a predetermined value, or the vehicle 2 is driving within a predetermined specific range on the planned driving route (a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction on a highway, or a range within a predetermined reference distance from the destination).

[0053] If it is determined in step S31 that "the accuracy of the measured location information does not need to be made higher than the current accuracy", the processor 200 does not change the transmission frequency of the measured location information. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S31 that "the accuracy of the measured location information needs to be made higher than the current accuracy", the processor 200 increases the transmission frequency of the measured location information in step S32.

[0054] As described above, the information processing device 20 according to the third embodiment determines whether the accuracy of the location information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be increased from the current accuracy. When the accuracy of the location information does not need to be increased from the current accuracy, the information processing device 20 transmits the measured location information of the vehicle 2 to the server 400 at a first frequency. When the accuracy of the location information needs to be increased from the current accuracy, the information processing device 20 transmits the measured location information to the server 400 at a second frequency that is higher than the first frequency. This allows the information processing device 20 to change the transmission frequency of the location information (measured location information) depending on whether or not it is necessary to increase the accuracy of the location information to be transmitted to the server 400. Therefore, for example, when the accuracy of the estimated location information calculated by the server 400 based on the location information (measured location information) of the vehicle 2 falls below a predetermined reference accuracy, or when the requested accuracy of the estimated location information increases, the information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the location information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be increased from the current accuracy, and increases the transmission frequency of the location information.

[0055] The information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the position information needs to be higher than the current accuracy when the planned driving route of the vehicle 2 has not been set, when the vehicle 2 is driving on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, or when the average speed of the vehicle 2 has dropped significantly below a predetermined value. As a result, in a scene where it is difficult for the server 400 to estimate accurate position information based on the measured position information and the planned driving route, the information processing device 20 can determine that the accuracy of the position information to be transmitted to the server 400 needs to be higher than the current accuracy, and can increase the frequency of transmission of the position information.

[0056] Furthermore, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a predetermined range on the planned traveling route, the information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the position information needs to be increased from the current accuracy. As a result, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within the predetermined range, the information processing device 20 determines that the required accuracy of the position information to be transmitted to the server 400 has increased, and can increase the frequency of transmission of the measured position information.

[0057] Furthermore, the specific range is a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway. As a result, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway, the information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the requested position information has increased, and can increase the frequency of transmitting the measured position information. In other words, whether the vehicle 2 passes through an interchange or junction of a highway and how long it takes the vehicle 2 to pass through the interchange or junction have a significant impact on the arrival time of the vehicle 2 at its destination, etc., so the information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the requested position information has increased when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway.

[0058] Furthermore, the specific range is a range within a predetermined reference distance from the destination. As a result, when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from the destination, i.e., when the vehicle 2 is approaching the destination, the information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the requested position information has increased, and can increase the frequency of transmitting the position information. That is, for example, a user waiting for the arrival of the vehicle 2 at the destination requires more detailed and accurate position information of the vehicle 2 as the vehicle 2 approaches the destination, so the information processing device 20 determines that the accuracy of the requested position information has increased when the vehicle 2 is traveling within a range within the predetermined reference distance from the destination.

[0059] Furthermore, the information processing device 20 acquires the estimated arrival time for the vehicle 2 to arrive at the destination, and when it predicts that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, it sets the reference distance of the specific range to a larger value than when it predicts that the vehicle 2 will arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time. As a result, the information processing device 20 can increase the frequency of transmitting the location information and improve the accuracy of the location information transmitted to the server 400 even when the arrival of the vehicle 2 at the destination is delayed and the vehicle 2 is traveling farther from the destination than planned.

[0060] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Information processing system 2 Vehicle 3 Communication terminal 100, 400 Server 20 Information processing device 200 Processor

Claims

1. An information processing method for presenting vehicle position information to a communications terminal using a server, wherein the server receives measured position information which is a measurement value of the vehicle's position information, acquires a planned driving route for the vehicle, calculates estimated position information for the vehicle based on the measured position information and the planned driving route, and transmits the estimated position information to the communications terminal.

2. The information processing method of claim 1, wherein the server acquires the vehicle speed, calculates a transmission time for transmitting the estimated position information to the communication terminal, and calculates the estimated position information corresponding to the transmission time based on the measured position information, the planned driving route, and the vehicle speed.

3. The information processing method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the estimated location information is updated more frequently than the measured location information is received.

4. An information processing method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the server determines whether or not the accuracy of the estimated location information needs to be made higher than the current accuracy, and if the accuracy of the estimated location information needs to be made higher than the current accuracy, receives the measured location information more frequently than in a case where the accuracy of the estimated location information does not need to be made higher than the current accuracy.

5. The information processing method of claim 4, wherein the server determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be increased above the current accuracy when the planned driving route is not set, when the vehicle is driving on a route that deviates from the planned driving route, or when the average speed of the vehicle has decreased significantly below a predetermined value.

6. The information processing method according to claim 4, wherein the server determines that the accuracy of the estimated position information needs to be made higher than the current accuracy when the vehicle is traveling within a predetermined specific range on the planned traveling route.

7. The information processing method according to claim 6, wherein the specific range is a range within a predetermined reference distance from an interchange or junction of a highway.

8. The information processing method according to claim 6, wherein the specific range is a range within a predetermined reference distance from the destination.

9. The information processing method of claim 8, wherein the server obtains an estimated arrival time for the vehicle to arrive at the destination, and when predicting that the vehicle will arrive at the destination later than the estimated arrival time, sets the reference distance to be greater than when predicting that the vehicle will arrive at the destination before the estimated arrival time.

10. An information processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the server determines whether the communication terminal is inside the vehicle, and if the communication terminal is inside the vehicle, determines whether the latest update time of the terminal location information acquired from the communication terminal is later than the latest update time of the measured location information of the vehicle, and if the latest update time of the terminal location information is later than the latest update time of the measured location information, calculates the estimated location information based on the terminal location information.

11. An information processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the server determines whether the communication terminal is inside the vehicle, and if the communication terminal is inside the vehicle, calculates the estimated location information based on terminal location information acquired from the communication terminal.

12. An information processing method using a processor to send vehicle position information to a server, wherein the processor determines whether or not the accuracy of the position information to be sent to the server needs to be higher than the current accuracy, and if the accuracy of the position information does not need to be higher than the current accuracy, sends measured position information, which is a measurement value of the vehicle's position information, to the server at a first frequency, and if the accuracy of the position information needs to be higher than the current accuracy, sends the measured position information to the server at a second frequency higher than the first frequency.

13. An information processing system having a server that transmits vehicle position information to a communication terminal, wherein the server receives measured position information which is a measurement value of the vehicle's position information, acquires a planned driving route for the vehicle, calculates estimated position information for the vehicle based on the measured position information and the planned driving route, and transmits the estimated position information to the communication terminal.

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