JP6042707B2 - Taxi meter - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a taximeter.

  A general taximeter is used by being mounted on a taxi vehicle, and presents information indicating the current fare amount to passengers and crew (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP-A-2005-316909

  In the taximeter disclosed in Patent Literature 1, the tariff display state is switched to the reverse display step by step, thereby informing the passenger of the timing of the fare increase (fare increase).

  Some taximeters display a bar indicating the remaining amount of travel distance on the display unit in accordance with the remaining travel distance until a fare increase occurs. Also by this, the passenger and the crew can grasp the timing when the fare increase occurs.

  Further, when a long-distance discount or late night / early morning surcharge has occurred, a general taximeter displays text such as “long distance”, “20% surcharge” on the display unit. Thereby, the passenger can grasp | ascertain that the said discount or premium has generate | occur | produced.

  In recent years, taximeters with improved convenience have been demanded.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the situation mentioned above, The objective is to provide the taximeter which improved the convenience.

In order to achieve the above-described object, a taximeter according to the present invention is characterized by the following (1) to (4).
(1) an image display type display unit for outputting a fare image indicating a current fare calculated based on at least one of calculation criteria including a current travel time and a current travel distance;
A recording unit that stores at least one of a set time that is a set value related to the travel time, a set distance that is a set value related to the travel distance, and a set fare that is a set value related to the fare; and
With
The condition that the difference between the set time and the travel time is less than or equal to a first threshold , the condition that the difference between the set distance and the travel distance is less than or equal to a second threshold, and the set fare and the current When at least one of the condition groups including a condition that the difference from the fare is equal to or less than the third threshold is satisfied , the fare image is displayed with highlighting in a different display mode for each satisfied condition. Output to the display unit,
about.
(2) the calculation reference is further seen including the current time,
The set value group further includes a set time that is a set value related to the current time,
The condition group further includes a condition that a difference between the set time and the current time is a fourth threshold value or less.
about.
(3) A taximeter configured as described in (1) or (2) above,
The display form, the possible fare images the current that is numerically displayed in the fare is increased as compared with the display size when without the highlighting, the color of the current fare accompanied the highlighted colors and differently modified by that in the absence of, at least a part of the fare image is flashing, and is changed to be different from the contrast when the contrast of the fare image without the highlighting At least one of
about.
(4) A taximeter having any one of the above configurations (1) to (3),
It further includes an operation unit that accepts an operation input,
The operation unit accepts the following the procedures input, at least one of the set value group stored in the recording unit is rewritten,
about.

With conventional taximeters, passengers have not been able to know when fare-related events such as discounts or surcharges occur.
On the other hand, according to the taximeter having the above configuration (1), when an event related to a fare is approaching, a fare image is highlighted in a different display mode for each event. Thus, the taxi meter with improved convenience can be provided, so that the passengers can be aware that the occurrence of this is approaching.
For example, by setting in advance the travel time (travel distance) at which the discount charge starts to be applied as the set time (set distance), the passenger can be aware of the fact that the discount charge has not occurred before the destination. However, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of disadvantages such as getting off a long time ago. In addition, for example, by setting a predetermined fare according to a passenger's request as a set fare in advance, when the current fare approaches the set fare, the passenger and the crew can be alerted.
According to the taximeter having the configuration (2), the fare image can be highlighted even when the difference between the set time and the current time is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold. For this reason, for example, by setting the start time of the premium time zone where the application of the premium charge is started as the set time, the passenger can be aware that the current time is approaching the premium time zone. As a result, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a disadvantage that an extra charge is applied without passengers noticing when entering an extra time zone during boarding.
According to the taximeter having the configuration (3), the fare image can be highlighted. In addition, when two or more display modes are used, highlighting in various patterns is possible, so that it is easy to alert the crew and passengers.
According to the taximeter having the configuration of the above (4), since various setting values included in the set value group can be rewritten by operation input of the operation unit, the set value can be changed at any time, and the usability is improved. .

  According to the present invention, a taximeter with improved convenience can be provided.

  The present invention has been briefly described above. Further, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading through a mode for carrying out the invention described below (hereinafter referred to as “embodiment”) with reference to the accompanying drawings. .

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of a taximeter 1 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a front perspective view showing the appearance of the taximeter 1. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the registration contents of the setting value table 15 a registered in the setting data storage unit 15. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the taximeter 1. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the transition of the meter screen 12a when highlighting is performed when a long distance discount is approaching. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating another transition of the meter screen 12a when highlighting is performed when a long distance discount is approached. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the transition of the meter screen 12a when highlighting is performed when approaching the premium time zone in the second embodiment.

  Specific embodiments of the taximeter according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of a taximeter 1 according to the first embodiment. The taximeter 1 includes a calculation unit 11, a display unit 12, an operation unit 13, a sales data storage unit 14, a setting data storage unit 15, an external interface (I / F) 16, and a memory card I / O unit 17. .

The taximeter 1 is an image display type taximeter having a function of presenting the amount of the current fare to passengers and crew by displaying a fare image indicating the current fare on the meter screen 12a of the display unit 12, Used on taxi vehicles.
The taxi meter 1 calculates the current fare based on the calculation criteria using the current travel time, the current travel distance, and the current time as the fare calculation criteria. For example, the taxi meter 1 adds a fare by a predetermined amount every time the travel time elapses for a predetermined time after the start of rent. Further, for example, the taximeter 1 adds a fare by a predetermined amount every time it travels a predetermined distance after the start of renting. Further, for example, when the current time belongs to an additional time zone (for example, 23: 00 to 5:00 on the next day), the taximeter 1 calculates the fare by increasing a predetermined rate. Further, for example, when the travel distance from the start of rent exceeds a predetermined distance (for example, 30 km), the taximeter 1 calculates the fares by discounting the fare by a predetermined ratio as a long distance discount. Further, for example, when the travel time from the start of renting exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 1 hour), the taximeter 1 calculates the fare by discounting the fare by a predetermined rate as a time discount.
In this embodiment, both the travel time and the travel distance are used as the fare calculation reference, but only one of the travel time and the travel distance may be used as the calculation reference.

  The calculation unit 11 includes a known CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11a, ROM (Read Only Memory) 11b, RAM (Random Access Memory) 11c, a timer 11d for measuring time, and the like, and controls the entire taximeter. The output of the fare image on the display unit 12 is controlled. The ROM 11b stores an operation program described later that is executed by the CPU 11a. The RAM 11c has an area for recording on / off states of various flags (time flag, distance flag, amount flag, premium flag, etc.) that are set when highlighting settings described later are satisfied.

  The display unit 12 includes a liquid crystal display, and displays a current fare by displaying a fare image on the meter screen 12a. A specific example of the fare image will be described later. The operation unit 13 has various tariff switches such as a highlight button 13a, a rent button 13b, and an input button 13c that can be operated by a crew member, and accepts various inputs. By pressing the highlight button 13a, the taximeter 1 is set to the highlight mode.

  The business data storage unit 14 has a RAM, and records data such as travel time, travel distance, and fare for each rent as business data. The setting data storage unit (recording unit) 15 has a ROM and records various data such as a setting value table 15a described later. The registered contents of the set value table 15a are rewritten according to the operation input received by the input button 13c, the handy terminal 22, or the like.

  The external I / F 16 includes an odometer 21 that measures the mileage of the taxi vehicle, a handy terminal (operation unit) 22 that can accept various inputs, a printer (not shown), and an ETC on-vehicle device (not shown). ) Etc. are connected. A memory card (not shown) that can be inserted and removed is attached to the memory card I / O unit 17.

  FIG. 2 is a front perspective view showing the appearance of the taximeter 1. A meter screen 12a of the display unit 12 is provided on the front face of the taxi meter 1, and an operation unit 13 having a highlight button 13a, a rent button 13b, an input button 13c, and the like is disposed around the meter screen 12a. .

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the registration contents of the setting value table 15 a registered in the setting data storage unit 15. In the set value table 15a, 30 km, which is a distance (set distance) set for the travel distance to which the long distance discount is applied, is registered as an example of the set value. In addition, 1 hour which is a time (set time) set for the travel time to which the time discount is applied, and 2000 yen which is a fare (set fare) set according to the passenger's request are registered. Note that it is not always necessary to register all of the set distance, the set time, and the set fare as the set values, and it is sufficient that at least one is registered.

  Further, as described above, the registered content of the setting value table 15a can be rewritten by the operation input received by the input button 13c or the handy terminal 22 included in the operation unit 13, and therefore the setting value can be changed at any time.

  The operation of the taximeter 1 having the above configuration will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the taximeter 1. This operation program is stored in the ROM 11b in the calculation unit 11, and is executed by the CPU 11a.

  After the operation is started, first, the calculation unit 11 waits for the rent button 13b to be pressed (step S1). When the rent button 13b is pressed, the calculation unit 11 updates the travel time information obtained from the timer 11d and the travel distance information obtained from the odometer 21 (step S2). Note that the values of the travel time and travel distance held by the calculation unit 11 are reset to 0 when the rent button 13b is newly pressed.

  Subsequently, the calculation unit 11 determines whether or not the current mode is set to the highlight mode by pressing the highlight button 13a (step S3). When the highlight mode is not set (when the normal mode is set), the calculation unit 11 outputs a normal fare image and causes the display unit 12 to perform normal meter display (step S13). Thereafter, the calculation unit 11 executes the process of step S1 again.

  On the other hand, when the highlight mode is set in step S3, the calculation unit 11 determines that the first difference that is the difference between the current travel time and the set time registered in the set value table 15a is the first threshold (predetermined). It is determined whether or not (step S4). The first threshold value is set to a value indicating that the set time to which the time discount is applied is almost reached, and for example, a time such as 3 minutes or 5 minutes is set as the time required to reach the first threshold value. When the first difference is not equal to or less than the first threshold, the calculation unit 11 proceeds to the process of step S6 as it is. On the other hand, when the first difference is equal to or smaller than the first threshold, the calculation unit 11 sets the time flag in the RAM 11c to on (step S5).

  Subsequently, the calculation unit 11 determines whether or not a second difference that is a difference between the current travel distance and the set distance registered in the set value table 15a is equal to or less than a second threshold (step S6). The second threshold value is set to a value indicating that the arrival at the set distance to which the long distance discount is applied is set. For example, a distance of 500 m, 1 km, or the like is set as the distance required to reach the second threshold. If the second difference is not less than or equal to the second threshold, the calculation unit 11 proceeds directly to the process of step S8. On the other hand, when the second difference is equal to or smaller than the second threshold, the calculation unit 11 sets the distance flag in the RAM 11c to ON (step S7).

  Subsequently, the calculation unit 11 determines whether or not a third difference that is a difference between the current fare and the set fare registered in the set value table 15a is equal to or less than a third threshold (step S8). As the third threshold, a value indicating that the set fare is almost reached is set. For example, an amount of 100 yen, 300 yen, or the like is set as the amount of money required to reach the set fare. If the third difference is not less than or equal to the third threshold, the calculation unit 11 proceeds directly to the process of step S10. On the other hand, when the third difference is equal to or smaller than the third threshold, the calculation unit 11 sets the amount flag in the RAM 11c to on (step S9).

  The calculation unit 11 determines whether or not the number of flags that are on and satisfy the set value among the time flag, the distance flag, and the money amount flag is equal to or greater than a predetermined number (step S10). Here, the predetermined number is set to one of value 1, value 2, and value 3. For example, in the case of the value 1, if any of the time flag, the distance flag, and the money amount flag is on, the highlight display will be applied later. Further, in the case of value 3, if all the flags are on, the highlighting is applied. Here, although the determination is made based on the number of flags that are turned on, a specific flag (for example, only the distance flag or both the distance flag and the time flag) is designated in advance, and the flag is You may make it discriminate | determine by whether it is set to ON.

  When the number of flags turned on in step S10 does not satisfy the predetermined number, the calculation unit 11 executes the process of step S2 again.

  On the other hand, when the number of turned-on flags satisfies the predetermined number, the calculation unit 11 causes the display unit 12 to execute fare highlight display (highlighted meter display) (step S11).

  Thereafter, the calculation unit 11 determines whether or not the state has entered a state other than the rental state, such as when the user arrives at the destination and the settlement button is pressed (step S12). If the rental state remains, the calculation unit 11 executes the process of step S11 again.

  On the other hand, when a state other than the hiring state is entered, in step S13, the calculation unit 11 cancels the highlight display and causes the display unit 12 to perform normal meter display. In this way, by highlighting only in the rental state, it is possible to enhance the effect of highlighting that calls attention without constantly highlighting. Thereafter, the calculation unit 11 returns to the process of step S1. At this time, the calculation unit 11 resets the time flag, the distance flag, and the money amount flag to OFF.

Next, transition of display on the meter screen 12a of the display unit 12 will be described as an example when the arrival at the set distance to which the long distance discount is applied is approached.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the transition of the meter screen 12a when highlighting is performed when a long distance discount is approaching. During rental, in the normal meter display, as shown in FIG. 5A, the meter screen 12a is displayed with a margin at the top of the screen area of the display unit 12. Here, the text “rental”, “fare”, and “1000 yen” are displayed in the normal size.

  When highlighting starts near the long distance discount, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the numerically displayed fare “3000 yen” is slightly larger than in FIG. 5 (a). Displayed in size. Note that the text of “rent” and “fare” remains the normal size.

  Further, after the application of the long distance discount is started, the meter screen 12a is expanded to the entire screen area of the display unit 12 as shown in FIG. 5C, and the text “4000 yen” has a larger size. Is displayed. In addition, the “long distance” text indicating that the long distance discount has been applied is displayed in the normal size along with the “rental” and “fare” texts. In this case as well, the text of “rent” and “fare” remains the normal size.

  In addition, in FIG. 5, the case where the highlighting is performed when the mileage approaches the long distance discount and after the long distance discount is illustrated, but when the fare approaches the time discount and the set fare requested by the passenger The highlighting can be performed similarly when approaching. Further, FIG. 5 shows the case where the size of the text representing the fare is enlarged, but this highlighting is an example, and various display modes (patterns) can be adopted.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating another transition of the meter screen 12a when highlighting is performed when a long distance discount is approached. As shown in FIG. 6 (a), when highlighting is started near a long distance discount on the normal meter screen 12a, the entire meter screen 12a blinks and is displayed as shown in FIG. 6 (b). Is done. At this time, the size of the texts of “wage”, “fare”, and “3000 yen” does not change and remains the normal size. However, the normal sizes of the texts “1000 yen” and “3000 yen” are slightly larger. Note that the flashing area may be the entire meter screen or only a part of the area such as “fare” or “3000 yen”.
The entire meter screen 12a (fare image) may not be blinking, but a part thereof may be blinking.

  After the long distance discount is performed, the meter screen 12a is displayed as shown in FIG. That is, the meter screen 12a is expanded to the entire screen area of the display unit 12, and the text “Long Distance” is displayed in a normal size along with the text “Rent”, “Fare”, and “4000 Yen”. The contrast of the meter screen 12a is displayed in reverse video. As a change in the contrast of the meter screen, the contrast may be simply changed instead of inverting the contrast.

  Further, when performing highlighting, the color of the meter screen may be changed. For example, when highlighting starts nearing a long-distance discount, the text color of the numerical value for displaying the fare is changed to blue, and after the long-distance discount is performed, the text color is changed to red. May be.

  According to the taxi meter in the first embodiment described above, passengers and crew can easily know that a long-distance discount has been applied and that a long-distance discount has been applied due to changes in the meter screen. Can do. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of disadvantages such as the passenger getting off before the destination without noticing that the discount fee is not generated.

  Also, as another event, even when the driving time is approaching the time when the discount is applied and highlighted, the passenger gets off before the destination without noticing that the discount fee has not occurred. It is possible to suppress the occurrence of disadvantages such as.

  In addition, when highlighting is performed when the fare approaches a preset fare (for example, 2000 yen) set in advance according to the passenger's request, the highlighting is performed when the fare approaches the set fare. And alert the crew.

  In addition, the above-described highlighting of various patterns can also be applied to the operation of these events. In addition, for example, when the pattern is switched for each event, the attention of the crew and passengers can be more alerted.

(Second Embodiment)
In the first embodiment, a case is shown in which highlighting is performed when approaching the set travel distance, travel time, and fare, but in the second embodiment, the current time is further in an extra time zone. Highlighting is also performed when approaching. Since the basic configuration of the taximeter of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, the same components as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and described. Omitted.

  In the second embodiment, in the set value table 15a, in addition to the set distance, set time, and set fare, an additional time zone (set time) that is a set value related to the current time is registered. Examples of the extra time zone include 23:00 to 5:00 on the next day. As in the case of the first embodiment, it is not always necessary to register all of the set distance, the set time, the set fare, and the set time as the set value, and if at least one is registered. Good.

  The operation procedure of the taximeter 1 is almost the same as the procedure shown in FIG. That is, when highlighting is set in step S3, the calculation unit 11 acquires the current time from the built-in timer 11d, and is the difference between the current time and the set time that is the start time of the premium time zone. It is determined whether or not the fourth difference is equal to or less than a fourth threshold value. The fourth threshold is set to a value indicating that the arrival to the premium time zone is near, and for example, a time such as 3 minutes or 5 minutes is set as the time required for arrival. If the fourth difference is not less than or equal to the fourth threshold value, the calculation unit 11 performs the next step process as it is. On the other hand, if the fourth difference is less than or equal to the fourth threshold value, the calculation unit 11 turns on the premium flag. And the process proceeds to step S4 and subsequent steps.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the transition of the meter screen 12a when highlighting is performed when approaching the premium time zone in the second embodiment. In FIG. 7A, the text “3000 yen” representing the fare at the start of the highlighting is displayed slightly larger as in FIG. 5, and the text “4000 yen” representing the fare is increased after the surcharge is applied. Indicates the display case. FIG. 7B shows the case where the meter screen 12a is blinked at the start of highlighting and the contrast of the meter screen 12a is inverted after the surcharge is applied, as in FIG. Further, as in the first embodiment, when performing highlighting, the color of the meter screen may be changed.

  According to the taximeter in the second embodiment, it is possible to easily know from the change in the meter screen that the premium time zone has been approached, and that an extra charge has been applied. As a result, when entering an extra time zone during boarding, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a disadvantage such that an extra charge is made enemy without the passengers noticing.

  Below, the taximeter 1 which concerns on embodiment is summarized.

  The taximeter 1 according to the embodiment includes an image display type display unit 12 that outputs a fare image indicating a current fare calculated based on a calculation criterion that is at least one of the current travel time and the current travel distance; A setting data storage unit (recording unit) 15 that stores at least one setting value of a setting time that is a setting value related to travel time, a setting distance that is a setting value related to travel distance, and a setting fare that is a setting value related to fare; I have. When the difference between the set time and the travel time is less than or equal to a first threshold, when the difference between the set distance and the travel distance is less than or equal to a second threshold, and when the set fare and the current In at least one of the cases where the difference from the fare is equal to or less than the third threshold, the fare image is highlighted and output to the display unit 12.

  In the taximeter 1 according to the embodiment, the current time is included in the fare calculation standard. In particular, in the taximeter 1 according to the second embodiment, the setting data storage unit 15 sets at least one of the set time, which is a set value related to the set time, the set distance, the set fare, and the current time. Stores a value. When the difference between the set time and the travel time is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, when the difference between the set distance and the travel distance is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, the set fare and the current fare The fare image is highlighted and displayed in at least one of a case where the difference between the current time and the set time is less than a predetermined threshold Is output to the unit 12.

  In the taximeter 1 according to the embodiment, the fare image includes at least a fare image in which the current fare numerically displayed in the fare image is enlarged and the color of the current fare displayed numerically is changed. It is highlighted by at least one of a part blinking and a change in the contrast of the fare image.

  The taximeter 1 according to the embodiment further includes an operation unit 13 that accepts various inputs and a handy terminal 22. Then, the setting value stored in the setting data storage unit 15 is rewritten according to the operation input received by the operation unit 13 and the handy terminal 22.

  The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. The above-described embodiments can be accompanied by various modifications and improvements within the technical scope of the present invention.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, highlighting is performed only when a long distance discount is approached or a premium time zone is approached in a rental state, but highlighting may be performed in other states. That is, highlighting may be performed even in a payment state, a total state, a premium state, a charter state, or the like.

1 Taximeter 11 Calculation unit 11a CPU
11b ROM
11c RAM
11d timer 12 display unit 12a meter screen 13 operation unit 13a highlight button 13b rental button 13c input button 14 business data storage unit 15 setting data storage unit (recording unit)
15a Setting value table 16 External interface (I / F)
17 Memory card I / O part 21 Odometer 22 Handy terminal

Claims (4)

An image display type display unit that outputs a fare image indicating a current fare calculated based on at least one of the calculation criteria including the current travel time and the current travel distance;
A recording unit that stores at least one of a set time that is a set value related to the travel time, a set distance that is a set value related to the travel distance, and a set fare that is a set value related to the fare; and
With
The condition that the difference between the set time and the travel time is less than or equal to a first threshold , the condition that the difference between the set distance and the travel distance is less than or equal to a second threshold, and the set fare and the current When at least one of the condition groups including a condition that the difference from the fare is equal to or less than the third threshold is satisfied , the fare image is displayed with highlighting in a different display mode for each satisfied condition. Output to the display unit ,
Taxi meter. The calculation criteria, a further look at including the current time,
The set value group further includes a set time that is a set value related to the current time,
The condition group further includes a condition that a difference between the set time and the current time is a fourth threshold value or less .
The taximeter according to claim 1. The display form, the possible fare images the current that is numerically displayed in the fare is increased as compared with the display size when without the highlighting, the color of the current fare accompanied the highlighted colors and differently modified by that in the absence of, at least a part of the fare image is flashing, and is changed to be different from the contrast when the contrast of the fare image without the highlighting At least one of
The taximeter according to claim 1 or claim 2. It further includes an operation unit that accepts an operation input,
The operation unit accepts the following the procedures input, at least one of the set value group stored in the recording unit is rewritten,
The taximeter according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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