Vehicle management system and vehicle management method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10748418-B2
Application number	US-201816170973-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 25, 2018
Priority date	Jun 11, 2013
Publication date	Aug 18, 2020
Grant date	Aug 18, 2020

Abstract

A vehicle management system for managing vehicles used by users has a usage managing unit that accepts a user's request for using the vehicle and to set a return space among parking spaces as a planned return space when the user's request is accepted, the return space being a space to which the vehicle is to be returned by the user after the vehicle is used by the user, a return determining unit that determines whether or not the vehicle is returned to the planned return space set by the usage managing unit when the vehicle is actually used and returned by the user, a return permitting unit that permits a return of the vehicle in a case where the return determining unit determines that the vehicle is returned to the planned return space, and a notification unit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A vehicle management system for managing a plurality of vehicles used by a plurality of users, comprising:
a storage device; and
a controller coupled to the storage device, comprising:
a parking space managing unit that controls storage of parking management information for the plurality of vehicles in a database in the storage device, wherein the parking management information comprises occupied parking space information and planned return space information; and

a usage managing unit that receives, from a user terminal, request from one of the plurality of users to use one of the plurality of vehicles, sets a planned return space which is selected from the parking management information, and sends information on the planned return space to the user terminal,
wherein the usage managing unit, while the one of the plurality of users is using the one of the plurality of vehicles, prevents the planned return space from being set as a planned return space for any other vehicle, and
wherein when resetting of the planned return space is requested, the usage managing unit proposes a new return space that is different from the planned return space, is not set as a planned return space for any other vehicle, and is not occupied according to the occupied parking space information; and
sends information on the new return space to the user terminal.

2. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the parking space managing unit reads the parking management information from the database in the storage device, and
wherein the usage managing unit extracts at least one proposed return space that is a currently available parking space from the parking management information and sends information of the at least one proposed return spaces to the user terminal.

3. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 , wherein controller further comprises:
a determination unit that determines that the one of the plurality of vehicles has been returned to the planned return space based on position information of the vehicle retrieved from the vehicle, and
a notification unit that notifies the user of completion of the return of the one of the plurality of vehicles through the user terminal.

4. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 , wherein the controller further comprises:
a positional information acquiring unit that acquires information of a current position of the one of the plurality of vehicles from a Global Positioning System when the one of the plurality of vehicles is actually used and returned by the user; and
a return determining unit that compares the current position obtained by the positional information acquiring unit with the planned return space set by the usage managing unit and determines whether or not the one of the plurality of vehicles has been returned to the planned return space set by the usage managing unit.

5. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 , wherein the request from one of the plurality of users is a request for immediate use of the one of the plurality of vehicles.

6. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 , wherein parking spaces used for setting planned return spaces are disposed at a small gap within a small district.

7. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 , wherein a gap between the parking spaces for setting planned return spaces corresponds to a gap at which a user can easily come and go on foot.

8. A vehicle management method for managing a plurality of vehicles used by a plurality of users, comprising:
controlling storage of parking management information for the plurality of vehicles in a database, wherein the parking management information comprises occupied parking space information and planned return space information;
receiving from a user terminal, a request from one of the plurality of users to use one of the plurality of vehicles,
setting a planned return space which is selected from the parking management information stored in the database through the user terminal;
preventing, while the one of the plurality of users is using the one of the plurality of vehicles, the planned return space from being set as a planned return space for any other vehicle;
proposing, upon receipt of a request to reset the planned return space, a new return space, that is different from the planned return space, is not set as a planned return space for any other vehicle, and is not occupied according to the occupied parking space information; and
sending information on the new return space to the user terminal.

9. A program stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium that causes a computer to perform a vehicle management method for managing a plurality of vehicles used by a plurality of users, comprising:
controlling storage of parking management information for the plurality of vehicles in a database, wherein the parking management information comprises occupied parking space information and planned return space information;
receiving from a user terminal, a request from one of the plurality of users to use one of the plurality of vehicles;
setting a planned return space which is selected from the parking management information stored in the database through the user terminal;
preventing, while the one of the plurality of users is using the one of the plurality of vehicles, the planned return space from being set as a planned return space for any other vehicle;
proposing, upon receipt of a request to reset the planned return space, a new return space, that is different from the planned return space, is not set as a planned return space for any other vehicle, and is not occupied according to the occupied parking space information; and
sending information on the new return space to the user terminal.

Assignees

• Nissan Motor

Inventors

• Chinomi Satoshi
• Hara Kayoko

Classifications

• G06Q50/10 Primary

  Services · CPC title

• H04W4/40

  for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P] · CPC title

• H04W4/02

  Services making use of location information · CPC title

• G06Q10/08

  Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management · CPC title

• G08G1/144

  on portable or mobile units, e.g. personal digital assistant [PDA] · CPC title