Virtual Bus Stop Placement Based on Rider Attributes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional technologies for managing bus operations do not adequately enhance user convenience, as they focus on operational efficiency rather than user-specific needs, leading to potential delays and increased physical burdens for users with special requirements.
Innovation Solution
An information processing apparatus that acquires user attribute information to strategically place virtual bus stops based on user-specific needs, balancing moving distances and physical burdens, while avoiding placement near existing stops to maintain operational efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional timetable creation methods are used based on demand and vehicle capacity, then operational accuracy and reduced delays are improved, but user convenience is not enhanced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by placing virtual riding points at specific locations based on individual user attributes (age, health condition, mobility aids) rather than using uniform stopping points for all users. This allows the system to optimize convenience for users with special needs while maintaining overall operational reliability through selective customization.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-calculating and placing virtual riding points before users actually request service. The placement decisions are made in advance based on user attribute information, so when users request rides, the convenient stopping points are already determined and ready, enhancing convenience without compromising operational planning.
2Ease of operation
If virtual riding points are placed to reduce user moving distance, then user convenience is improved, but operational efficiency may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of riding point location from fixed physical stops to flexible virtual points whose positions are adjusted based on user attributes. This parameter change allows the system to optimize moving distance for users with mobility challenges while maintaining operational efficiency by only deviating from standard routes when necessary and justified by user needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies partial action by implementing virtual riding point placement only for users who demonstrate need based on their attributes, rather than applying it universally. This selective approach ensures user convenience for those who benefit most while minimizing impact on overall operational efficiency for the broader user base.
3Device complexity
If uniform riding points are used for all users, then operational simplicity is maintained, but users with special needs experience increased physical burden
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by providing customized virtual riding point placements for users with specific attributes (elderly, health conditions, mobility aids) while maintaining uniform points for other users. This targeted customization reduces physical burden on vulnerable users without significantly complicating the overall system structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual riding point acts as an intermediary between the fixed bus route and the user's destination. For users with mobility challenges, this intermediary provides a more accessible meeting point that reduces physical burden, while the bus operation itself remains relatively simple by following the predetermined route with minor adjustments.
Data Source
AI summary
An information processing apparatus according to the present application includes an acquiring unit and a deciding unit. The acquiring unit acquires attribute information on a user. The deciding unit decides, based on the attribute information acquired by the acquiring unit, a placement position in which a virtual riding point that corresponds to a riding point that is used for the user to ride in a moving vehicle and that is virtually set is placed.