Vehicle Sharing Facility Management for Capacity Optimization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional private hire vehicle allocation systems do not efficiently utilize vehicle capacity when bookings have fewer passengers than available seats, leading to underutilization and increased resource needs during peak times, resulting in higher road congestion and carbon emissions.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented process that identifies and authorizes potential vehicle-sharing opportunities among customers with similar pick-up and drop-off locations, calculating a suggested route to optimize vehicle usage and reduce the number of vehicles needed, thereby reducing congestion and emissions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a vehicle is allocated exclusively to an individual booking, then the booking requirements are satisfied, but the vehicle capacity is not efficiently utilized when the number of passengers is less than the vehicle seats
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines multiple separate bookings into a single shared vehicle allocation by identifying passengers with compatible routes (similar pick-up and drop-off locations). The system merges these bookings in a way that satisfies all individual booking requirements while efficiently utilizing vehicle capacity through shared rides.
Solution Approach 2:
The vehicle allocation system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it fulfills individual booking requirements, optimizes vehicle capacity utilization, and enables cost savings for passengers. The system dynamically determines whether to allocate vehicles exclusively or share them based on route compatibility and capacity efficiency.
2Reliability
If more vehicles are allocated to meet peak demand, then booking fulfillment is ensured, but road congestion and carbon emissions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system reduces the total number of vehicles needed by merging multiple bookings into shared vehicle allocations. By combining passengers with compatible routes, the system decreases fleet utilization requirements, thereby reducing road congestion and carbon emissions while still meeting all booking demands.
3Productivity
If vehicle sharing is arranged on an ad hoc basis, then some capacity utilization improvement is achieved, but the arrangement becomes haphazard and unstructured
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses automated feedback mechanisms to identify compatible bookings for sharing based on route analysis, passenger preferences, and vehicle capacity constraints. This structured feedback-driven approach replaces haphazard ad hoc arrangements with a systematic method that maintains high capacity utilization while simplifying booking management.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically identifies and facilitates vehicle sharing opportunities without requiring manual intervention. The automated system analyzes bookings, determines compatibility, and arranges sharing, thereby maintaining productivity benefits while reducing operational complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for managing a networked vehicle resource sharing facility, the method and system detect inputs corresponding to vehicle booking requests, where each of the vehicle booking requests identifies location data and calculates identity of multiple locations corresponding to other vehicle booking requests. Drop-off locations may be distinct from drop-off location specified in each of the other vehicle booking requests. The system accesses a data structure storing user authorisations for using assets for sharing and other qualifying criteria. Customers are automatically selected customers to share a vehicle and a route is calculated based on global optimization criteria.