Patent Application
20220049963
This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-136002, filed on Aug. 11, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to a server apparatus, an information system, a vehicle, a medium, and a method of operating an information system.
An information system for collecting and providing various information in accordance with travel of a user is known. For example, technology for collecting information acquired by a vehicle used by the user and using the information for monitoring the road environment has been proposed, as in patent literature (PTL) 1. Furthermore, technology for providing a user of a ride share service with positional information on a vehicle collected from the vehicle has been proposed (PTL 2).
PTL 1: JP 2019-79303 A
PTL 2: WO2019136066
There is room for improving convenience for a user who travels.
A server apparatus according to the present disclosure includes:
a communication interface; and
a controller configured to transmit/receive information to/from another apparatus using the communication interface, wherein
the controller is configured to receive information on a route from a terminal apparatus, and transmit, to the terminal apparatus, an instruction that prohibits the terminal apparatus from outputting the information on the route when the route has a tendency to be confidential, and an instruction that permits the terminal apparatus to output the information on the route when the route does not have the tendency to be confidential.
A medium according to the present disclosure is a non-transitory medium, readable by a terminal apparatus configured to transmit/receive information to/from another apparatus, storing a program that, when executed by a controller of the terminal apparatus, causes the terminal apparatus to:
transmit information on a route to a server apparatus;
receive, from the server apparatus, an instruction that prohibits output of the information on the route when the route has a tendency to be confidential and an instruction that permits output of the information on the route when the route does not have the tendency to be confidential; and
refrain from outputting the information on the route when the instruction that prohibits output is received and output the information on the route when the instruction that permits output is received.
A method of operating a system according to the present disclosure is a method of operating an information system including a terminal apparatus and a server apparatus configured to transmit/receive information to/from each other, the method including:
transmitting, by the terminal apparatus to the server apparatus, information on a route;
transmitting, by the server apparatus to the terminal apparatus, an instruction that prohibits output of the information on the route when the route has a tendency to be confidential and an instruction that permits output of the information on the route when the route does not have the tendency to be confidential; and
refraining, by the terminal apparatus, from outputting the information on the route when the instruction that prohibits output is received and outputting the information on the route when the instruction that permits output is received.
According to the present disclosure, convenience can be improved for a user who travels.
In the accompanying drawings:
Embodiments are described below.
The terminal apparatus 11 transmits the route to the server apparatus 12 when the user travels. The route includes a route that was searched for (searched route) or a route actually travelled (travel route). The server apparatus 12 transmits, to the terminal apparatus 11, an instruction (prohibition instruction) to prohibit output of information on the route (simply referred to as the route when no distinction is made between a searched route and a travel route) when the route has a tendency to be confidential (confidentiality tendency) and an instruction (permission instruction) to permit output of the information on the route when the route does not have the confidentiality tendency. When the route includes a point where confidentiality is requested with a certain frequency, the route has a confidentiality tendency. The terminal apparatus 11 does not output the information on the route when receiving the prohibition instruction and outputs the information on the route when receiving the permission instruction. Even when different users share the vehicle dispatch service or navigation function using the terminal apparatus 11, a user who wants the route to be confidential can prevent the route history from being seen by other users, thereby improving the convenience for the user who wants the route to be confidential.
The controller 21 includes one or more processors, one or more dedicated circuits, or a combination thereof, The processor is a general purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU), or a dedicated processor specialized for a particular process. The dedicated circuit is, for example, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The controller 21 executes information processing related to operations of the terminal apparatus 11 while controlling each component of the terminal apparatus 11,
The memory 22 includes, for example, one or more semiconductor memories, one or more magnetic memories, one or more optical memories, or a combination of at least two of these types. The semiconductor memory is, for example, random access memory (RAM) or read only memory (ROM). The RAM is, for example, static RAM (SRAM) or dynamic RAM (DRAM). The ROM is, for example, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM). The memory 22 functions as a main memory, auxiliary memory, or cache memory, for example. The memory 22 stores information used for operations of the terminal apparatus 11 and information resulting from operations of the terminal apparatus 11.
The communication interface 23 includes one or more interfaces for communication. Examples of the interface for communication include an interface conforming to a mobile communication standard, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), 4th Generation (4G), or 5th Generation (5G), or a LAN interface. The communication interface 23 receives information used for operations of the terminal apparatus 11 and transmits information resulting from operations of the terminal apparatus 11. The terminal apparatus 11 is connected to the network 14 by the communication interface 23 through a nearby router apparatus or a mobile communication base station and communicates information with other apparatuses via the network 14.
The positioner 24 includes one or more Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers. GNSS includes, for example, Global Positioning System (GPS), Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), and/or Galileo. The positioner 24 acquires positional information for the terminal apparatus 11.
The input interface 25 includes one or more interfaces for input. The interface for input is, for example, a physical key, a capacitive key, a pointing device, a touch screen integrally provided with a display, or a microphone that accepts audio input. The interface for input may further include a camera or IC card reader for input of a captured image or image code. The input interface 25 accepts an operation for inputting information used for operations of the terminal apparatus 11 and transmits the inputted information to the controller 21.
The output interface 26 includes one or more interfaces for output. The output interface is, for example, an external or built-in display for outputting information as images and/or video, a speaker for outputting information as audio, or a connection interface with an external output device. The display is, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) or an organic electro luminescence (EL) display. The output interface 26 outputs information resulting from operations of the terminal apparatus 11.
The functions of the terminal apparatus 11 are achieved by a processor included in the controller 21 executing a program. The program may be recorded on a computer readable recording medium. The computer readable recording medium is, for example, a magnetic recording device, an optical disc, a magneto-optical recording medium, or a semiconductor memory. For example, the program is distributed after being recorded on a portable recording medium such as a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) or a Compact Disc (CD)-ROM. The program may be distributed by being stored in the storage of a server apparatus and transferred from the server apparatus to another computer. Some or all of the operations of the terminal apparatus 11 may be performed by a dedicated circuit included in the controller 21.
The controller 31 includes one or more processors, one or more dedicated circuits, or a combination thereof. The processor may, for example, be a general purpose processor, such as a CPU, or a dedicated processor, such as a graphics processing unit (GPU), dedicated to a particular process. The dedicated circuit is, for example, an FPGA or an ASIC. The controller 31 executes information processing related to operations of the server apparatus 12 while controlling each component of the server apparatus 12.
The memory 32 includes, for example, one or more semiconductor memories, one or more magnetic memories, one or more optical memories, or a combination of at least two of these types, to function as main memory, auxiliary memory, or cache memory. The semiconductor memory is, for example, RAM or ROM. The RAM is, for example, SRAM or DRAM. The ROM is, for example, EEPROM. The memory 32 stores information used for operations of the server apparatus 12 and information resulting from operations of the server apparatus 12.
In the server apparatus 12, the controller 31 and the memory 32 may be connected via, a bus or may be directly connected to each other without passing through a bus. Alternatively, the controller 31 may encompass the memory 32 and be configured integrally with the memory 32.
The communication interface 33 includes one or more interfaces for communication. The interface for communication is, for example, a LAN interface. The communication interface 33 receives information used for operations of the server apparatus 12 and transmits information resulting from operations of the server apparatus 12. The server apparatus 12 is connected to the network 14 by the communication interface 33 and communicates information with other devices via the network 14.
The input interface 35 includes one or more interfaces for input. The interface for input is, for example, a physical key, a capacitive key, a pointing device, a touch screen integrally provided with a display, or a microphone that accepts audio input. The interface for input may further include a camera or IC card reader for input of a captured image or image code. The input interface 35 accepts an operation for inputting information used for operations of the server apparatus 12 and transmits the inputted information to the controller 31.
The output interface 36 includes one or more interfaces for output. The interface for output is, for example, a display or a speaker. The display is, for example, an LCD or an organic EL display. The output interface 36 outputs information resulting from operations of the server apparatus 12.
The functions of the server apparatus 12 are achieved by a processor included in the controller 31 executing a control program. The control program is a program that causes the computer to execute the processing of the steps included in the operations of the server apparatus 12 for the computer to achieve the functions corresponding to the processing of the steps. That is, the control program is a program for causing the computer to function as the server apparatus 12. Some or all of the functions of the server apparatus 12 may be implemented by a dedicated circuit included in the controller 31.
Next, operations of the information system 10 are described with reference to
In step S400, the terminal apparatus 11 accepts input of identification information and of the presence or absence of a confidentiality request from the user. The identification information is a user name that identifies the user, a password, or the like. The confidentiality request is a request seeking confidentiality of the route that the user searches for using the terminal apparatus 11 or the route that the user travels while carrying the terminal apparatus 11. The controller 21 of the terminal apparatus 11 displays words, or outputs audio, inquiring about the presence or absence of a confidentiality request using the output interface 26. The user inputs whether to request confidentiality or not. The controller 21 accepts inputs from the user via the input interface 25. The input of the identification information may be made once when use of the vehicle dispatch application or the navigation function begins and may be omitted when the confidentiality request is inputted. In this case, the identification information is stored in the memory 22.
In step S402, the terminal apparatus 11 transmits the identification information of the user and the information on the presence or absence of the confidentiality request to the server apparatus 12. The controller 21 of the terminal apparatus 11 transmits the information on the presence or absence of the confidentiality request and the identification information to the server apparatus 12 using the communication interface 23. The controller 31 of the server apparatus 12 receives the identification information of the user and the information on the presence or absence of the confidentiality request using the communication interface 33.
In step S404, the terminal apparatus 11 performs a route search in response to an operation by the user. Step S404 is performed when, for example, the user uses the terminal apparatus 11 as a vehicle-mounted apparatus and uses the navigational function. Alternatively, step S404 may be performed when the user operates the terminal apparatus 11 to use a vehicle dispatch service. The controller 21 of the terminal apparatus 11 uses the output interface 26, for example, to display map information stored in the memory 22 or map information received from the server apparatus 12 in accordance with the current position of the terminal apparatus 11, and prompts the user to input a departure point and a destination. The user enters the departure point and the destination, for example by tapping a desired point on the map or entering an address, and instructs that a search be performed. The controller 21 then accepts the input from the user via the input interface 25 and performs the search. The controller 21 then outputs the search result, i.e., the searched route, using the output interface 26.
In step S406, the terminal apparatus 11 transmits information on the searched route to the server apparatus 12. The information on the searched route includes information on the departure point, the destination, and points to be traversed. The controller 21 of the terminal apparatus 11 transmits the information on the searched route to the server apparatus 12 using the communication interface 23. The controller 31 of the server apparatus 12 receives the information on the searched route using the communication interface 33. In step S404, the terminal apparatus 11 may transmit a search request to the server apparatus 12 together with information necessary for the search, receive information on the searched route that was searched for by the server apparatus 12, and output the received information to the user. In this case, the information on the searched route is stored in the server apparatus 12, and step S406 may be omitted. Alternatively, steps S404 and S406 may be omitted if no route search is required, such as when the user is familiar with the route to the destination.
Step S408 is performed when the user users a vehicle dispatch service or starts traveling by driving his/her own vehicle. In step S408, the terminal apparatus 11 transmits positional information on the terminal apparatus 11 to the server apparatus 12. For example, when the controller 21 of the terminal apparatus 11 detects the start of travel from a change in the current position of the terminal apparatus 11, the positional information on the current position is transmitted to the server apparatus 12 using the communication interface 23 in any appropriate cycle (for example, a cycle of several milliseconds to several seconds). The controller 31 of the server apparatus 12 receives the positional information using the communication interface 33. Transmission and reception of the positional information continues until, for example, the current position of the terminal apparatus 11 stops changing and completion of travel is detected by the controller 21. The travel route is formed by the transition of the positional information. In this way, information on the travel route is transmitted from the terminal apparatus 11 to the server apparatus 12. The information on the travel route includes information on the departure point, points to be traversed, and the destination.
In step S410, the server apparatus 12 processes the confidentiality request for the route. The controller 31 of the server apparatus 12 performs processing corresponding to the presence or absence of the confidentiality request received in step S402. When there is a confidentiality request, the controller 31 stores, in the memory 32, the information on the confidentiality request for the searched route that was searched for in step S404 or the travel route specified by the transition of the positional information received in step S408. If the searched route and the travel route differ, the information of the confidentiality request for both routes is stored in the memory 32. For example, for each point included in the route, the controller 31 stores a score indicating the confidentiality request in the memory 32. Points are shop or facility locations, intersections or curves, locations of landmarks, and the like that are discretely mapped on a map in advance. For example, the controller 31 adds a unit score to a point included in the searched route or the travel route for each instance of search or travel. In this way, the requests for confidentiality from one or more terminal apparatuses 11 are accumulated for each point. The frequency at which confidentiality of each point is requested by one or more users is thus accumulated as big data. On the other hand, when there is no confidentiality request, the controller 31 advances to step S412 without storing the information on the confidentiality request in the memory 32.
In step S412, the server apparatus 12 generates a permission or prohibition instruction relating to output of information on the route. The detailed procedure of step S412 is illustrated in
Returning to
In step S416, the terminal apparatus 11 makes a display setting or non-display setting of the information on the route. When the permission instruction is received, the controller 21 of the terminal apparatus 11 makes a setting such that the history of the searched route that was searched for in step S404 or the actually travelled route generated from the transition of the positional information transmitted to the server apparatus 12 in step S408 is displayed in accordance with operation by the user. Conversely, when the prohibition instruction is received, the controller 21 makes a setting such that the history of the searched route or the travel route is not displayed even if the user performs an operation. The controller 21 may be configured to make a setting only when user consent is received by the input interface 25 after the user is notified, by the output interface 26, that a setting for display or non-display is being made.
According to the procedures described in
In step S410 of
Furthermore, when the controller 31 manages information on an activity schedule of the user in association with the identification information of the user, the controller 31 may aggregate the confidentiality requests taking into account the activity schedule of the user, i.e., the date and time, and determine the confidentiality tendency. The controller 31 scores each point in association with the activity schedule of the user when a confidentiality request is received, for example. The score at a certain point is aggregated separately for when there is a specific scheduled activity and when there is no scheduled activity. When there is a scheduled activity at the time the information on the route is received, the controller 31 refers to the score at the time of the scheduled activity to determine the confidentiality tendency of the route. For example, suppose a confidentiality request is obtained from many users for a point visited on a date and time when a personal event is scheduled. In this case, when the date and time of receipt of the information on the route matches or is close to the date and time at which a personal event of the user is scheduled, the score associated with the existence of a scheduled activity at each point is aggregated to determine the confidentiality tendency of the route. For example, suppose that many users wish to keep a visit to a jewelry shop or the like immediately before their wedding anniversary confidential from their spouse in order to keep an anniversary gift secret from their spouse until their anniversary. In this case, when the date and time of receipt of information on the route is immediately before the user's anniversary (including a range of an appropriately selected number of days), the controller 31 can determine that the route has a confidentiality tendency when the route includes a jewelry shop. The user's plans can thus be supported in detail.
In the above-described embodiment, a processing/control program that specifies operations of the terminal apparatus 11 may be stored in the server apparatus 12 and be downloaded onto the terminal apparatus 11 via the network 14. The processing/control program may also be stored on a non-transitory recording/storage medium readable by each apparatus, and each apparatus may read the program from the medium.
The present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above. For example, a plurality of blocks described in the block diagrams may be integrated, or a block may be divided. Instead of executing a plurality of steps described in the flowcharts in chronological order in accordance with the description, the plurality of steps may be executed in parallel or in a different order according to the processing capability of the apparatus that executes each step, or as required. Other modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-136002 | Aug 2020 | JP | national |
