JP7730800B2 - Program and information processing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a payment technology for multiple users sharing a paid vehicle such as a taxi. In particular, the present invention relates to a technology for calculating each user's share of the usage fee when the riding distances of multiple users sharing a paid vehicle vary.

Traditionally, transportation using paid vehicles such as taxis and hire cars has been used as one means of transportation. These paid transportation methods are extremely convenient because they can provide services tailored to the needs of each individual user. However, the operating fees are higher than public transportation such as trains and buses.

When paid vehicles such as taxis and hire cars are shared by as many users as possible, i.e., when people share a ride, the cost per user can be kept low. In particular, when multiple users are traveling to the same destination, there is a high demand for sharing such paid vehicles.

In the above-mentioned paid vehicle sharing method, as shown in Patent Document 1, for example, technology has been developed to calculate the fares of multiple users based on the users' boarding locations and destinations communicated by the users to the taxi driver or taxi dispatch center. The users' boarding locations and destinations are communicated to the taxi driver or taxi dispatch center by the users orally or by inputting text.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-233656

However, with the technology described in Patent Document 1, when a user communicates their boarding location and destination by text input, the user is required to set the destination in advance and input it in text, which is time-consuming. Furthermore, when the boarding location and destination are communicated verbally to a taxi driver, the taxi driver must then communicate the boarding locations and destinations of multiple users to the taxi dispatch center. This not only increases the driver's burden, but also increases the risk of mistakes due to misremembering. Furthermore, even if the ride-sharing route is longer than necessary compared to a non-shared route, the fare is not split fairly because the fare share is simply determined based on each user's ride distance, which creates the problem of insufficient fairness.

The present invention was made in light of these issues, and aims to provide a calculation server that calculates shared ride sections without increasing the burden on users and drivers of toll vehicles, and calculates the share of the usage fee that users who use the shared ride have to pay based on the distance traveled, as well as a communication terminal that communicates with the calculation server.

A server device according to one embodiment of the present invention has an identification information acquisition unit that acquires operation identification information that identifies a vehicle operation and user identification information that identifies multiple users riding in the operation; a location information identification unit that identifies boarding position information and disembarking position information for each of the multiple users based on the distance between the user's communication terminal and the vehicle; a storage unit that associates and stores the operation identification information, user identification information, boarding position information, and disembarking position information; a proportion calculation unit that calculates the proportion of the amount that each of the multiple users must pay for the operation based on the boarding position information and disembarking position information of the multiple users; and a fare calculation unit that calculates the amount that each of the multiple users must pay based on the proportion and the operating fare for the operation.

In another aspect, the ratio calculation unit may calculate the ratio based on the distance traveled when each of multiple users independently travels a vehicle from the boarding location information to the disembarking location information.

In another aspect, the ratio calculation unit may calculate the ratio based on the actual travel distances traveled by each of multiple users using a vehicle, or the actual travel time required for the traveled distances.

In another aspect, the location information identification unit may identify boarding location information and disembarking location information through short-range wireless communication between the communication terminal and the vehicle.

In another aspect, the device may further include a notification unit that notifies the user terminal of the amount.

A communications terminal according to one embodiment of the present invention has an identification information receiving unit that receives operation identification information that identifies the operation of a vehicle operated in response to an operation request; a location information identifying unit that identifies the user's boarding location information and disembarking location information based on the distance between the communication terminal of the user riding in the vehicle and the vehicle; and a fare information receiving unit that receives the boarding location information, disembarking location information, and the amount to be paid by the user calculated based on the operating fare for the operation.

In another aspect, the location information identification unit may identify boarding location information and disembarking location information through short-range wireless communication between the user's communication terminal and the vehicle.

In another aspect, the system may further include a fare information receiving unit that receives fare information including the fare from the vehicle, and a fare information transmitting unit that transmits the fare information received by the fare information receiving unit to the calculation server.

The calculation server, communications terminal, and communications terminal program of the present invention can calculate shared ride sections without increasing the burden on users and drivers of toll vehicles, and can calculate the share of the usage fee that users of shared rides must pay based on the distance traveled, and can provide a calculation server and a communications terminal that communicates with the calculation server.

1 is a diagram showing an overview of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an overview of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a calculation server used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the hardware configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the hardware configuration of a vehicle used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a calculation server used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the operational flow of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of an interface displayed on a user terminal when a program for a ride-sharing support device is started in the operational flow of a ride-sharing fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of an interface displayed on a user terminal when a program for a ride-sharing support device is started in the operational flow of a ride-sharing fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a user registration interface in the operational flow of the shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a user registration interface in the operational flow of the shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of an interface for inputting a boarding location in the operational flow of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an interface for confirming consent to a user information request in the operational flow of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display after an operation request signal is sent in the operational flow of the shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display during pickup in the operational flow of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display when a vehicle arrives at the location of a user terminal in the operational flow of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of a calculation method of a calculation server used in a shared fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. A diagram showing an overview of the calculation method of a calculation server used in a shared fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. A figure showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

The calculation server, communication terminal, and communication terminal program of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the calculation server, communication terminal, and communication terminal program of the present invention can be implemented in many different forms, and should not be interpreted as being limited to the description of the embodiments shown below. In the drawings referred to in this embodiment, identical parts or parts with similar functions are designated by the same reference numerals, and repeated explanations will be omitted.

In the following explanation, it is the user who uses the toll vehicle, but since the user travels with the communication terminal (user terminal) that the user owns, there is no clear distinction between the two. For example, when a user uses a toll vehicle, they own the user terminal and use the toll vehicle, so it is sometimes expressed as "the user terminal uses the toll vehicle." This has the same meaning as "a user who owns a user terminal uses the toll vehicle." Similarly, when a user uses a vehicle arrangement service, it is sometimes expressed as the user terminal using the service.

Furthermore, in the embodiments of the present invention, a shared ride fare calculation system is used as an example of a vehicle, such as a taxi or hire car, where the fare varies depending on either or both the travel distance and the travel time, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can also be applied to other operating bodies such as ships, airplanes, and helicopters.

First Embodiment
A shared ride fare calculation system according to a first embodiment of the present invention and a shared ride fare calculation system including a program for calculating a shared ride fare will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 20. FIG.

[System Overview]
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an overview of a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , a shared ride fare calculation system 10 according to the first embodiment includes a calculation server 110, an arrangement server 120, and a social networking service (SNS) server 130 (hereinafter simply referred to as the "SNS server 130"). As shown in FIG. 1 , the calculation server 110 and the SNS server 130 communicate with multiple user terminals 200A and 200B, and the arrangement server 120 communicates with a vehicle 300. Here, the vehicle 300 is a vehicle that has received a travel request from the user terminal 200A. The vehicle 300 first boards the user terminal 200A, then boards the user terminal 200B, and travels to a destination with the user terminals 200A and 200B sharing the ride.

Here, when there is no particular distinction between user terminal 200A and user terminal 200B, they are simply referred to as user terminal 200. Furthermore, the multiple user terminals 200 may be communication terminals that are at least capable of connecting to the first network 101 shown in Figure 2, and each user terminal 200 may have different functions. User terminals 200 may be mobile phones, smartphones, tablet PCs, PDAs, personal computers, PHSs, etc.

The calculation server 110 is a server that calculates the percentage and amount of the operating fare that each of the multiple user terminals 200 must pay for a ride on the vehicle 300. Here, the calculation server 110 acquires operation identification information that identifies the operation of the vehicle 300 and user identification information that identifies the multiple users riding in the operation, identifies the boarding location information and disembarking location information of each of the multiple users based on the distance between the vehicle 300 and the user terminals 200, which are the communication terminals of the multiple users, associates and stores the above operation identification information, user identification information, boarding location information, and disembarking location information, calculates the percentage that each of the multiple users must pay for the operation based on the boarding location information and disembarking location information of the multiple users, and calculates the amount that each of the multiple users must pay based on the percentage and the operating fare for the operation.

Here, operation identification information is, for example, identification information assigned to each of multiple vehicles 300 for each hire journey. Specific examples of operation identification information include an order sheet issued for each hire journey or an operation log for each hire journey. Furthermore, user identification information is, for example, information that identifies user terminal 200A and user terminal 200B. Specific examples of user identification information include device-specific information possessed by each user terminal 200, and user IDs (IDentifiers) in services specific to each of user terminals 200A and 200B managed by SNS server 130.

The dispatch server 120 is a server owned by the dispatch center that accepts operation requests and issues pick-up instructions to the vehicle 300, and manages the vehicle 300's location information and operation information. Here, operation information includes the above-mentioned operation identification information and operation fare. The operation information may also include user identification information. The dispatch server 120 may manage the above operation information in either analog or digital form. Analog management is a management method in which the driver of the vehicle 300 brings back to the dispatch center an order sheet created for each operation of the vehicle 300 and a receipt for the operation fare recorded on the fare meter, and a dispatch center worker stores the order sheet and receipt in the database of the dispatch server 120. On the other hand, digital management is a management method in which the vehicle 300's operation identification information corresponding to the order sheet and/or the operation fare corresponding to the receipt are transmitted from the vehicle 300 to the dispatch server 120 via wireless communication, and the information is sequentially stored in the database.

The SNS server 130 is a server that provides SNS services to user terminals 200 and manages personal information (device-specific information of the user terminal, name, telephone number, credit card information, email address, address, age, gender, user ID, etc.) of users who own multiple user terminals 200 and subscribe to the SNS service.

Here, one or both of the plurality of user terminals 200 and the vehicle 300 has a location specifying means. The location specifying means may be, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System).
In the shared ride fare calculation system 10, the location information of the multiple user terminals 200 is transmitted to the calculation server 110, and the location information of the vehicle 300 is transmitted to the dispatch server 120. The location information of the destination 400 is input by the multiple user terminals 200, and the location information of the destination 400 is transmitted to the calculation server 110 from the user terminal 200 that input the location information. In addition to the GPS, short-range wireless communication can be used as another example of the location identification means. The details of short-range wireless communication will be explained in detail later.

In this embodiment, a configuration in which the calculation server 110, the dispatch server 120, and the SNS server 130 are each separate servers has been illustrated, but this configuration is not limiting. For example, the calculation server 110 may have the functions of one or both of the dispatch server 120 and the SNS server 130. In other words, a single server may realize the functions of the calculation server 110, the functions of the dispatch server 120, and the functions of the SNS server 130.

Here, each user of the multiple user terminals 200 may be a user with whom a contactable exchange relationship, referred to as "follow" or "friend," has been established in the SNS service managed by the SNS server 130. In other words, the multiple user terminals 200 have formed a contactable exchange relationship registered by at least one user in a predetermined service to which the multiple user terminals 200 have registered. While a configuration in which multiple user terminals 200 have formed an exchange relationship has been exemplified here, this configuration is not limiting. In other words, the multiple user terminals 200 do not necessarily have to form an exchange relationship as described above. In that case, the SNS server 130 can be omitted from FIG. 1.

Furthermore, each user of the multiple user terminals 200 may be a user with whom a "friend" relationship has been established in an SNS service managed by the SNS server 130. In other words, the multiple user terminals 200 have formed a mutually recognized social relationship in a specific service in which the multiple user terminals 200 have registered. A mutually recognized social relationship does not simply mean that the users are aware of each other's existence; for example, it refers to a relationship established when one user approves a request sent by the other user to establish a friend relationship. While the example shown here illustrates a configuration in which the multiple user terminals 200 have formed a mutually recognized social relationship, this configuration is not limiting. In other words, in the shared ride fare calculation system 10, the multiple user terminals 200 do not need to form the above-mentioned social relationship. In that case, the SNS server 130 can be omitted from FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 2, the calculation server 110, dispatch server 120, SNS server 130, and multiple user terminals 200 are connected to one another via a first network 101. The dispatch server 120 and vehicles 300 are connected to one another via a second network 102. Here, the calculation server 110, dispatch server 120, and SNS server 130 each have databases (DB) 115, 125, and 135. A general IP network can be used as the first network 101. A taxi radio or local network can be used as the second network 102.

Here, the database 115 of the calculation server 110 stores operation identification information, user identification information, and boarding position information and disembarking position information for each of the multiple users. Furthermore, the operation identification information, user identification information, boarding position information and disembarking position information for each of the multiple users stored in the database 115 are associated with each other.

Furthermore, while Figure 2 illustrates a configuration in which the dispatch server 120 and vehicle 300 are connected via the second network 102, this configuration is not limiting, and for example, the vehicle 300 may be connected to the dispatch server 120 via the first network 101. Further, while Figure 2 illustrates a configuration in which the calculation server 110, dispatch server 120, and SNS server 130 are directly connected to the databases 115, 125, and 135, respectively, this configuration is not limiting, and for example, the databases 115, 125, and 135 may be connected to the first network 101. In other words, instead of databases 115, 125, and 135, cloud computing, which stores data via a network, can be used.

The database 115 connected to the calculation server 110 or the database 135 connected to the SNS server 130 stores personal information of the user who owns each user terminal 200 (device-specific information, name, telephone number, credit card information, email address, address, age, gender, user ID), evaluation information of the user who owns the user terminal 200 and the vehicle 300, road map information, traffic congestion information, etc. Here, each item included in the personal information of the user of the user terminal 200 is stored in association with each other.

The database 125 connected to the dispatch server 120 stores the vehicle model, vehicle number, driver information (name, mobile phone number, age, gender), the actual vehicle status (empty, out of service, pick-up, hire, etc.), and the location information of the vehicle 300.

Database 135 connected to SNS server 130 stores the user IDs of users who use the SNS service provided by SNS server 130, device-specific information for the user's user terminal, and a list of other users with whom the user has a social relationship (friend list). If SNS server 130 has a payment system within the SNS service, database 135 may also store information registered in the payment system, such as credit card information.

[Hardware configuration of the calculation server]
3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a calculation server 110 used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. According to FIG. 3, the calculation server 110 includes a control unit 111, a hard disk 112, and a communication unit 113.

The control unit 111 includes a central processing unit (CPU) and storage devices such as registers and memory. The control unit 111 executes programs stored in the memory using the CPU and performs arithmetic processing in response to command signals from the user terminal 200.

The hard disk 112 is a storage device capable of storing large amounts of data, and stores programs necessary for processing, etc., and temporarily saves information sent from the user terminal 200.

The communication unit 113 controls the sending and receiving of data between the dispatch server 120, the SNS server 130, and the user terminal 200 via the first network 101.

Here, the storage device of the control unit 111 reads and stores the programs necessary for calculation processing from the hard disk 112 as needed.

[Hardware configuration of user terminal]
Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing the hardware configuration of a communication terminal used in a ride-sharing fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 4, a user terminal 200, which is a communication terminal used in the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10, includes a memory 205, a control unit 210, a short-range wireless communication unit 215, and a communication module 220. A display 230, operation buttons 240, a speaker 250, and a microphone 260 are provided on one side of the user terminal 200. The display 230 may have a touch sensor, and the operation buttons 240 may not be provided. If the user terminal 200 does not have a calling function, the speaker 250 and the microphone 260 may not be provided.

Memory 205 stores data such as programs that cause the user terminal 200 to execute specific functions, information specific to the user terminal 200, and personal information of the user held by the user terminal 200.

The control unit 210 has an arithmetic unit such as a CPU and storage devices such as registers. The control unit 210 executes programs stored in the memory 205 using the CPU, and realizes various functions of the user terminal 200 in response to command signals input by the user.

The short-range wireless communication unit 215 is a functional unit that performs short-range wireless communication using high-frequency radio waves in the megahertz to gigahertz range, and is capable of communication within a range of several meters to several tens of meters. Short-range wireless communication is communication that receives radio waves emitted from a radio wave source and transmits various information such as the unique information of the communication device and the distance between the radio wave source and the communication device. Examples of short-range wireless communication include RFID (Radio Frequency Identifier) and BLE (BlueTooth (registered trademark) Low Energy). Here, the short-range wireless communication unit 215 has an antenna that receives the radio waves emitted from the radio wave source and a logic circuit that analyzes the received radio waves in the above-mentioned short-range wireless communication. The short-range wireless communication unit 215 may also have a logic circuit that modulates the radio waves emitted from the radio wave source in order to transmit the unique information of the user terminal 200.

The communication module 220 includes an antenna for wirelessly transmitting and receiving signals, a high-frequency circuit, a demodulation circuit, etc. The communication module 220 is controlled by the control unit 210 to connect to the network and access the calculation server 110.

The display 230 can be a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, or the like. The touch sensor can be a resistive film type, a capacitive type, an optical type, or the like. The user operates the user terminal 200 according to the display instructions to realize various functions.

[Vehicle hardware configuration]
Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing the hardware configuration of a vehicle used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. According to Figure 5, a vehicle 300 is provided with a short-range wireless communication unit 320 inside a vehicle body 310. The short-range wireless communication unit 320 includes a radio wave source that emits radio waves used for short-range wireless communication. The short-range wireless communication unit 320 may also include a receiving unit that receives radio waves modulated by the short-range wireless communication unit 215 of the user terminal 200, and an analyzing unit that analyzes the unique information of the user terminal 200 from the modulated radio waves.

[Functional configuration of the calculation server]
Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a calculation server used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 6 provides a more detailed explanation of each functional block of the calculation server 110 shown in Fig. 2. According to Fig. 6, the calculation server 110 includes an identification information acquisition unit 170, a location information determination unit 172, a storage unit 174, a ratio calculation unit 176, a fare calculation unit 178, and a notification unit 180.

The identification information acquisition unit 170 acquires operation identification information and operation fare from the dispatch server 120. Here, as described above, the operation identification information is information that identifies the operation of the vehicle 300, and may be information transmitted from the vehicle 300 via wireless communication, or information based on an order sheet stored by an operator. Alternatively, it may be a mixture of these. In addition, the identification information acquisition unit 170 acquires user identification information from the user terminal 200. The user identification information is information that identifies multiple users who will be riding in the operation of the vehicle 300. In the case of Figure 6, the identification information acquisition unit 170 acquires a user ID from the user terminal 200 as the user identification information. Here, the identification information acquisition unit 170 may communicate with the SNS server 130 to acquire a user ID for an SNS service managed by the SNS server 130 as the user identification information.

The location information identification unit 172 identifies boarding location information and disembarking location information for each of the multiple user terminals 200 based on the distance between the multiple user terminals 200 and the vehicle 300. The boarding location information and disembarking location information may be identified by short-range wireless communication between the user terminal 200 and the vehicle 300, or may be identified based on information obtained by GPS.

The memory unit 174 stores operation identification information, user identification information, boarding location information, and disembarking location information in association with each other. The above information is read from the database 115 connected to the calculation server 110 and temporarily stored on the hard disk 112 of the calculation server 110. However, the above information does not necessarily have to be stored on the hard disk 112. In other words, the above information is stored in association with each other in the database 115 connected to the calculation server 110, and the calculation server 110 may perform subsequent calculations by referencing the above information stored in the database 115.

The percentage calculation unit 176 calculates the percentage that each of the multiple users who own multiple user terminals 200 should pay for the operation of the vehicle 300, based on the boarding location information and disembarking location information of each of the multiple user terminals 200. The specific calculation method used by the percentage calculation unit 176 will be described later.

The fee calculation unit 178 calculates the amount to be paid by each of the multiple user terminals 200 based on the ratio calculated by the ratio calculation unit 176 and the operating fee for operating the vehicle 300.

The notification unit 180 notifies the multiple user terminals 200 that have used the shared ride of the amount of payment calculated by the fare calculation unit 178. In addition to the calculated amount of payment, the notification unit 180 can also notify information such as the date and time of the ride, user information (such as name, telephone number, address, etc.) of the user using the shared ride, each user's boarding and disembarking locations, the route, and payment status. When the notification unit 180 notifies the user of map information such as the route, the notification can be made by displaying it on the user terminal 200 using a web view that displays each location information. These calculation results and the data notified to the user terminal 200 are stored in the database 115. If the above information is notified to the user terminal 200 by another server or system, the calculation server 110 does not need to have the notification unit 180.

Although not shown, the calculation server 110 may also have an arrangement management unit in addition to the above-mentioned identification information acquisition unit 170, location information determination unit 172, memory unit 174, ratio calculation unit 176, fee calculation unit 178, and notification unit 180.

In the shared ride fare calculation system 10, when the user terminal 200 sends an operation request, the dispatch management unit submits the operation request to the dispatch server 120. Here, the dispatch management unit may have a delay function so that it submits the operation request to the dispatch server 120 a predetermined period of time after the user terminal 200 sends the operation request. In addition, the dispatch management unit can accept a cancellation of the operation request from the user terminal 200 during the delay period. On the other hand, if the dispatch order is not canceled during the delay period, the dispatch management unit submits an operation request to the dispatch server 120.

The dispatch management unit may also notify the user terminal 200 of the location information of the user terminal 200 while the vehicle 300 is picking up the user, the location information of the vehicle 300, the location information of the destination, and traffic congestion information. The dispatch management unit may also provide the user terminal 200 with a means to make an inquiry to the vehicle 300 (by phone call or message) while the vehicle 300 is picking up the user. The dispatch management unit may also provide the user terminal 200 that has used the vehicle 300 with a means to evaluate the vehicle 300 used. Conversely, the dispatch management unit may also provide the vehicle 300 used by the user terminal with a means to evaluate the user terminal 200 used. These evaluation results are stored in the database 115. Here, based on the evaluation results, the priority of the vehicle 300 used by the user terminal 200 or the priority of the user terminal 200 that provides the services of the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10 may be changed.

[Functional configuration of communication terminal requesting operation]
Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 7 provides a more detailed explanation of the functional blocks of the user terminal 200A of User A, who requests a ride, among the user terminals 200 shown in Fig. 2. According to Fig. 7, the user terminal 200A that requests a ride includes a ride request signal transmitter 270, an identification information receiver 272, a location information identifier 274, and a fare information receiver 276.

The operation request signal transmitting unit 270 transmits an operation request signal to the dispatch server 120 requesting operation of the vehicle 300. The identification information receiving unit 272 receives from the dispatch server 120 operation identification information that identifies the operation of the vehicle 300 that will operate in response to the operation request transmitted by the operation request signal transmitting unit 270. Here, as described above, the operation identification information may be an operation log for each hire trip transmitted by wireless communication from the vehicle 300 to the dispatch server 120, or may be information on an order sheet stored by an employee in the dispatch server 120 or database 125. Alternatively, it may be a mixture of these.

The location information identification unit 274 identifies the boarding location information and disembarking location information of the user terminal 200 based on the distance between the user terminal 200 boarding the vehicle 300 operating in response to the above-mentioned operation request and the vehicle 300. As will be described in detail below, the boarding location information and disembarking location information may be information generated in response to a signal obtained from a short-range wireless communication unit that generates a signal when the distance between the user terminal 200 and the vehicle 300 falls below a predetermined distance, or may be information obtained based on the distance between the location information of the user terminal 200 and the location information of the vehicle 300 obtained by GPS or the like.

The fare information receiving unit 276 receives the boarding location information and disembarking location information identified by the location information identifying unit 274, as well as the amount to be paid by the user, calculated based on the operating fare for operating the vehicle 300.

[Functional configuration of the passenger communication terminal]
Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 8 provides a more detailed explanation of the functional blocks of user terminal 200B, one of the user terminals 200 shown in Fig. 2, which is a passenger in vehicle 300 operating in response to a travel request from user terminal 200A. According to Fig. 8, the passenger user terminal 200B is similar in functional block to user terminal 200A of user A who makes the travel request, but differs from user terminal 200A in that user terminal 200B does not have a travel request signal transmission unit 270.

Because user terminal 200B does not need to make an operation request, it does not need to have an operation request signal transmission unit 270 as described above. However, this does not mean that user terminal 200B does not need to have an operation request signal transmission unit 270. Of course, user terminal 200B may also have an operation request signal transmission unit 270.

[Operation flow of the shared ride fare calculation system]
9 is a diagram showing the operation flow of the shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 9, the operation of each block of the shared ride fare calculation system 10 shown in FIG. 2 is explained in detail using a flowchart.

First, the user terminal 200A launches a program that operates the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10 (step S501). Here, an example of an interface displayed on the user terminal when the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10 program is launched in step S501 is shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. The interface 610 shown in FIG. 10 is a settings screen for the SNS service provided by the SNS server 130. As shown in FIG. 10, the interface 610 has a vehicle icon 611, and selecting the vehicle icon 611 launches the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10 program. Here, the interface 610 has multiple tabs at the bottom of the screen, such as a friend list tab 612, a talk tab 613, a timeline tab 614, and an other tab 615. A tab for launching the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10 program may be placed in one of these multiple tabs.

When the vehicle icon 611 on the interface 610 is selected, the interface 620 shown in Figure 11 is displayed. The interface 620 is the top screen of the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10. By selecting the request button 621 on the interface 620, the calculation server 110 can be accessed from the user terminal 200.

When using the shared ride fare calculation system 10 for the first time, the user registration interface 630 and credit card information registration interface 631 shown in Figures 12 and 13 may be displayed. Interface 630 displays fields for entering at least the name and telephone number of the user terminal 200. Interface 631 also displays fields for entering at least the credit card number, expiration date, and PIN.

Next, the user terminal 200A executes an operation request to the vehicle 300 (step S502). Here, Figure 14 shows an example of the interface displayed on the user terminal when an operation request is made in step S502. The interface 640 shown in Figure 14 is a map displayed using the web view function. The user uses the user terminal 200 to select a boarding location 600 on the map. A boarding location pin 641 is displayed as a landmark at the selected boarding location 600. In addition, a boarding location address 642 is displayed above the boarding location pin 641. To set the selected boarding location 600, the location information of the boarding location 600 is set as the boarding location of the user terminal 200A by selecting the set button 643.

In Figure 14, the boarding location pin 641 displays the estimated travel time (15 minutes) from the current location of the user terminal 200 to the boarding location 600. Also displayed on the map are multiple vehicles 644 managed by the dispatch server 120. Here, the function of displaying the boarding location address 642, the travel time to the boarding location 600, or the vehicle 644 can be omitted, and may be provided as an optional function.

Furthermore, in step S502, when the setting button 643 of the interface 640 shown in FIG. 14 is selected, an interface 650 is provided that confirms consent to transmitting the boarding location 600 and information about user terminal A to the calculation server 110, as shown in an example in FIG. 15. The interface 650 shown in FIG. 15 is a map displayed using the web view function. In the map shown in FIG. 15, a location information pin 652 is displayed at the boarding location 600 of user terminal 200A. When the consent button 657 is selected by user terminal 200A, the boarding location 600 is transmitted from user terminal 200A to the calculation server 110.

The interface 650 shown in FIG. 15 also includes a user information confirmation field 653 that displays user information (such as name and phone number) from the user terminal 200, a user registered credit card information field 654 that displays credit card information registered in the shared ride fare calculation system 10, a coupon code field 655 that displays information about coupons held by the user, a dispatch center information field 656 that displays information notified to the user terminal from the dispatch center, such as the pick-up fee, and a pick-up information field 658 that displays the estimated pick-up time, etc. Here, the interface 650 only needs to have at least the function of confirming consent; other functions can be omitted or may be provided as optional functions.

As described above, when user terminal 200A initiates an action to request operation using the shared ride fare calculation system 10, an operation request signal 552 is sent from user terminal 200A to calculation server 110. Here, the operations of steps S501 and S502 may be performed by user terminal 200B.

When the operation request signal 552 transmitted from the user terminal 200A is received by the calculation server 110, the calculation server 110 transmits an operation request application signal 554 to the dispatch server 120 (step S531). Here, the operation request application signal 554 transmitted from the calculation server 110 to the dispatch server 120 in step S531 may be transmitted to the dispatch server 120 after a predetermined period (delay period) has elapsed since the operation request was confirmed in step S502. Furthermore, during the delay period, the calculation server 110 may provide the user terminal 200A with an interface 660 that accepts cancellation of the operation request, as shown in FIG. 16, for example.

When the dispatch server 120 receives the operation request application signal 554, a pick-up instruction signal 556 is transmitted to a vehicle 300 managed by the dispatch center (step S541). In step S541, the dispatch server 120 acquires information including the location information of the vehicle 300 managed by the dispatch center and the actual status of the vehicle 300 (empty, out of service, pick-up, chartered, etc.) via the dispatch center's second network 102. Based on this information, the dispatch server 120 then specifies the vehicle 300 and transmits the pick-up instruction signal 556. If the vehicle 300 that received the pick-up instruction signal 556 is actually available for pickup, an acceptance signal 558 is sent back to the dispatch server 120 (step S521).

When the dispatch server 120 receives the acceptance signal 558 returned from the vehicle 300, the dispatch server 120 sends an acceptance notification 560 to the calculation server 110 (step S542). When the calculation server 110 receives the acceptance notification 560, the calculation server 110 sends an dispatch status notification 562 to the user terminal 200A (step S522). The dispatch status notification 562 includes information about the vehicle being picked up (vehicle type, vehicle number, driver information, actual vehicle status, etc.) and the current location of the vehicle 300. The dispatch status notification 562 may also include the estimated time of arrival at the location of the user terminal 200A aboard the vehicle 300, the estimated time of arrival at the location of the destination 400, traffic congestion information, etc.

The calculation server 110 may provide the user terminal 200A, which has received the dispatch status notification 562 sent in step S522, with an interface 670, for example, as shown in FIG. 17, that accepts inquiries about the vehicle 300 currently being picked up. If the user wishes to make an inquiry about the vehicle 300 currently being picked up, the user can use the interface 670 shown in FIG. 17 to communicate with the driver of the vehicle 300. Then, when the vehicle 300 currently being picked up arrives at the location of the user terminal 200A, the calculation server 110 may provide an interface 680, as shown in FIG. 18, that notifies the user that the vehicle 300 has arrived.

In this case, the interface 680 in FIG. 18 may include an inquiry button 681 that connects the user terminal 200A to the mobile phone of the driver of the vehicle 300 so that a call can be made if the user who is planning to board the vehicle cannot find the vehicle 300 (taxi). Pressing the inquiry button 681 can automatically cause a call to be made from the user terminal 200A to the mobile phone of the driver of the vehicle 300. Alternatively, pressing the inquiry button 681 can automatically cause a call to be made from the mobile phone of the driver of the vehicle 300 to the user terminal 200A. The interface 680 may also include an estimated time of arrival 682 at the destination 400, a confirmation number 683 indicating that the user terminal 200 is the terminal that requested the operation, and a driver evaluation 684.

As described above, the user terminal 200A boards the vehicle 300 (step S503). In step S503, when the user terminal 200A boards the vehicle 300, first boarding position information 564 indicating the boarding position of the user terminal 200A relative to the vehicle 300 is generated and transmitted to the calculation server 110 (step S504). Here, the first boarding position information 564 may be generated by the user terminal 200A based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200A and the vehicle 300, or may be generated by the calculation server 110 based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200A and the vehicle 300. When the first boarding position information 564 generated in step S504 is received by the calculation server 110, the calculation server 110 acquires the first boarding position information 564 (step S532). Here, the first boarding position information 564 includes user identification information that identifies the user terminal 200A and the user terminal 200B. Here, the user ID held by the user terminal 200A is included in the first boarding position information 564 as user identification information.

The vehicle 300 with the user terminal 200A in it moves to the boarding position of the user terminal 200B and lets the user terminal 200B in (step S511). In step S511, when the user terminal 200B gets in the vehicle 300, second boarding position information 566 indicating the boarding position of the user terminal 200B in the vehicle 300 is generated and transmitted to the calculation server 110 (step S512). Here, the second boarding position information 566 may be generated by the user terminal 200B based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300, or the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200B and the user terminal 200A in the vehicle 300. Alternatively, the second boarding position information 566 may be generated by the calculation server 110 based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300, or the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200B and the user terminal 200A in the vehicle 300. The calculation server 110 receives the second riding position information 566 generated in step S512, and thereby acquires the second riding position information 566 (step S533). Here, the second riding position information 566 includes user identification information that identifies the user terminal 200A and the user terminal 200B. Here, the second riding position information 566 includes the user ID of the user terminal 200B as the user identification information.

When user terminals 200A and 200B and vehicle 300 arrive at the destination (step S505), user terminals 200A and 200B disembark from vehicle 300 (steps S506 and S513). When user terminal 200A disembarks from vehicle 300 in step S506, first disembarkation position information 568 indicating the disembarkation position of user terminal 200A from vehicle 300 is generated and transmitted to calculation server 110 (step S507). Also, when user terminal 200B disembarks from vehicle 300 in step S513, second disembarkation position information 570 indicating the disembarkation position of user terminal 200B from vehicle 300 is generated and transmitted to calculation server 110 (step S514).

Here, the first drop-off location information 568 may be generated by the user terminal 200A based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200A and the vehicle 300, or may be generated by the calculation server 110 based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200A and the vehicle 300. Furthermore, the second drop-off location information 570 may be generated by the user terminal 200B based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300, or may be generated by the calculation server 110 based on the relative positional relationship between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300.

The first drop-off location information 568 and the second drop-off location information 570 transmitted from the user terminals 200A and 200B are received (acquired) by the calculation server 110 (step S534). Here, the first drop-off location information 568 and the second drop-off location information 570 include user identification information that identifies the user terminal 200A and the user terminal 200B. Here, as user identification information, the user ID held by the user terminal 200A is included in the first drop-off location information 568, and the user ID held by the user terminal 200B is included in the second drop-off location information 570.

Furthermore, when the vehicle 300 arrives at the destination in step S505, the vehicle 300 generates operation information 572 including operation identification information and operation fare, and reports this to the dispatch server 120 (step S523).

When the operation information 572 reported from the vehicle 300 is received by the dispatch server 120, the dispatch server 120 notifies the calculation server 110 of the operation information 574, which includes the operation identification information and the operation fare (step S543).

When the calculation server 110 receives the operation information 574 notified from the dispatch server 120, the calculation server 110 acquires the operation identification information and operation fare included in the operation information 574 (step S535). Next, based on the operation identification information and operation fare acquired in step S535, the burden rate and amount of the operation fare to be borne by each of user terminal A and user terminal B are calculated (step S536). Then, the calculation result 576 in step S536 (one or both of the calculated burden rate and amount) is notified to user terminals 200A and 200B (step S537).

When the calculation result 576 notified from the calculation server 110 is received by the user terminals 200A and 200B, confirmation of the calculation result 576 is confirmed at each of the user terminals 200A and 200B (steps S508 and S515). If a selection to confirm the calculation result is made at steps S508 and S515 ("Yes" at steps S508 and S515), confirmation information 578 is sent from the user terminals 200A and 200B to the calculation server 110. On the other hand, if a selection to reject the calculation result is made ("No" at steps S508 and S515), the operation flow ends, and the program is terminated, or the user is taken to the top screen.

When the calculation server 110 receives the confirmation information 578 sent from the user terminals 200A and 200B, the calculation server 110 issues a bill 580 to the user terminals 200A and 200B (step S538). The user terminals 200A and 200B then make payment for the bill in step S538 (steps S509 and S516).

Here, if a choice is made to reject the calculation results in steps S508 and S515, the calculation server 110 may charge the full amount of the operation fee to the user terminal 200A that requested the operation.

In this way, it is possible to calculate the shared ride section without increasing the burden on user terminals 200A, 200B and vehicle 300, and to calculate the share of the usage fee based on the travel distance of user terminals 200A, 200B using the shared ride.

[Calculation method for the percentage calculation part]
The calculation method of the percentage calculation unit 176 of the calculation server 110 shown in Fig. 6 will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 19. An example will be described in which the percentage calculation unit 176 in the shared fare calculation system 10 according to the first embodiment calculates the share of the user terminals 200A and 200B from the boarding percentages of the user terminals 200A and 200B on a route to the destination 400, in which the user terminal 200A, which is relatively far from the destination 400, boards first and then the user terminal 200B boards together.

In steps S532 to S534 of the operational flow of the shared fare calculation system 10 shown in FIG. 9, the ratio calculation unit 176 acquires first boarding position information, second boarding position information, first drop-off position information, and second drop-off position information. Then, based on the acquired position information, it calculates the distance Da between the boarding position of user terminal 200A and the boarding position of user terminal 200B, and the distance Db between the boarding position of user terminal 200B and the destination 400. Here, the first travel distance of the first journey in which user terminal 200A boards vehicle 300 is Da + Db, and the second travel distance of the second journey in which user terminal 200B boards together with user terminal A is Db.

In the example of FIG. 19, the percentage calculation unit 176 calculates the percentage of the second travel distance (Db) relative to the first travel distance (Da + Db) as the riding percentage. Here, a method of calculating the riding percentage based on the travel distances in the first and second legs has been exemplified, but this method is not limiting. For example, the riding percentage may be calculated based on the second travel time required for travel in the second leg relative to the first travel time required for travel in the first leg. In other words, the percentage calculation unit 176 calculates the share of the burden that each of the multiple users should bear for the operation of the vehicle 300 based on the actual travel distances traveled by each of the multiple users using the vehicle 300, or the actual travel time required for that travel distance.

Here, distances Da and Db are distances on a road map. For example, distance Da is the distance of the route on a road map from the boarding position of user terminal 200A to the boarding position of user terminal 200B. Note that the distance on a road map is not the straight-line distance between two points, but the distance traveled based on the road map. However, distances Da and Db are not limited to distances on a road map, and may also be the straight-line distance connecting the respective location information.

Furthermore, while FIG. 19 illustrates a case in which the percentage calculation unit 176 calculates the share percentage for a route in which user terminals 200A and 200B board the vehicle 300 at different locations and disembark from the vehicle 300 at the same destination 400, this is not a limitation. For example, the percentage calculation unit 176 may calculate the share percentage for a route in which user terminals 200A and 200B board the vehicle 300 at the same location and disembark from the vehicle 300 at different destinations. Alternatively, the percentage calculation unit 176 may calculate the share percentage for a route in which user terminals 200A and 200B board the vehicle 300 at different locations and disembark from the vehicle 300 at different destinations. For example, the share percentage may be calculated for a route in which user terminal 200B is riding in the vehicle 300 in which user terminal 200A has boarded, and user terminal 200A disembarks from the vehicle 300 first.

[Method for acquiring user boarding location information and alighting location information]
Here, a method for acquiring user boarding position information and disembarking position information by the position information identification unit 172 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 20 . FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a method for determining whether a user has boarded or disembarked in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 20 , the vehicle 300 has a short-range wireless communication unit 320 that generates a signal when the distance between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than a first distance D1. When the vehicle 300 has the short-range wireless communication unit 320, the short-range wireless communication unit 320 may be provided in a point-of-sale (POS) terminal provided in the vehicle 300 or in a communication terminal carried by the driver.

When the distance between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than the first distance D1, the short-range wireless communication unit 320 transmits an information signal specific to the short-range wireless communication unit 320 to the user terminal 200B. In other words, when the distance between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than the first distance D1, the user terminal 200B receives the information signal specific to the short-range wireless communication unit 320 from the short-range wireless communication unit 320. When the user terminal 200B receives the information signal specific to the short-range wireless communication unit 320, the user terminal 200B transmits to the calculation server 110 a notification that the specific information signal has been received. Then, the location information identification unit 172 of the calculation server 110 determines, based on the specific information signal, that the user terminal 200B has boarded or disembarked from the vehicle 300.

As described above, the location information identification unit 172 acquires the location information when user terminal 200B boards vehicle 300, thereby acquiring second boarding location information indicating the boarding location of user terminal 200B into vehicle 300. In the example of Figure 20, user terminal 200B boards the vehicle 300 in which user terminal 200A boarded, so the second boarding location information corresponds to the start location of the ride-sharing between user terminals 200A and 200B.

As described above, the ride-sharing fare calculation system 10 according to embodiment 1 of the present invention can provide a calculation server that calculates ride-sharing sections without increasing the burden on users and vehicle drivers, and calculates the share of the fare that users who use the ride-sharing service must pay based on the distance traveled, as well as a communication terminal that communicates with the calculation server.

First Modification of First Embodiment
A modified example of one embodiment of the present invention will be described using Figure 21. Figure 21 is a diagram showing an example of a method for determining whether a user has boarded or disembarked in a shared ride fare calculation system according to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention. The shared ride fare calculation system 11 according to Modification 1 of Embodiment 1 differs from the shared ride fare calculation system 10 in that the user terminal 200B has a short-range wireless communication unit 215 that generates a signal when the distance between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than a first distance D1.

When the distance between user terminal 200B and vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than first distance D1, short-range wireless communication unit 215 transmits an information signal specific to short-range wireless communication unit 215 to vehicle 300. In other words, when the distance between user terminal 200B and vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than first distance D1, vehicle 300 receives the information signal specific to short-range wireless communication unit 215 from short-range wireless communication unit 215. When vehicle 300 receives the information signal specific to short-range wireless communication unit 215, it transmits to dispatch server 120 a notification that the specific information signal has been received. Then, when the specific information signal is transmitted from dispatch server 120 to calculation server 110, location information identification unit 172 of calculation server 110 acquires second boarding location information indicating the boarding location of user terminal 200B relative to vehicle 300 in which user terminal 200A is boarding, based on the specific information signal. As in FIG. 20, in the example of FIG. 21, user terminal 200B rides in the vehicle 300 in which user terminal 200A rides, and therefore the second riding position information corresponds to the start position of the ride-sharing between user terminals 200A and 200B.

<Modification 2 of Embodiment 1>
A modified example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described using Figures 22 to 24. Figure 22 is a diagram showing an example of a method for determining whether a user has boarded or disembarked in a shared fare calculation system according to a modified example of an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 22, the location information identification unit 172 of the shared fare calculation system 12 according to Modification 2 of Embodiment 1 determines that the user terminal 200B has boarded the vehicle 300 when the distance between the location information of the user terminal 200B and the location information of the vehicle 300 is equal to or less than the second distance D2. Then, based on the location information of the user terminal 200B or the vehicle 300 when it is determined that the user terminal 200B has boarded the vehicle 300, second boarding location information indicating the location where the user terminal 200B boarded the vehicle 300 is obtained.

On the other hand, the location information identification unit 172 determines that the user terminal 200B has dismounted from the vehicle 300 when the distance between the location information of the user terminal 200B and the location information of the vehicle 300 becomes greater than the second distance D2. Then, based on the location information of the user terminal 200B or the vehicle 300 when it is determined that the user terminal 200B has dismounted from the vehicle 300, it acquires second dismounting location information indicating the location where the user terminal 200B dismounted from the vehicle 300.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 22 at boarding determination time 710, it is determined that user terminal 200B has boarded vehicle 300 when vehicle 300 enters within a radius of second distance D2 from user terminal 200B. Also, as shown in FIG. 22 at disembarking determination time 720, it is determined that user terminal 200B has disembarked from vehicle 300 when vehicle 300 moves out of the radius of second distance D2 from user terminal 200B.

Next, we will explain functions for further improving the accuracy of boarding and alighting determination. Figure 23 is a diagram showing an example of a method for determining whether a user has boarded or alighted in a shared ride fare calculation system related to a modified embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 23, the location information identification unit 172 may determine that user terminal 200B is aboard vehicle 300 when the distance between the location information of user terminal 200B and the location information of vehicle 300 is less than or equal to second distance D2, and further when the location information of user terminal 200B and the location information of vehicle 300 are moving in the same direction. On the other hand, as shown in Figure 24, the location information identification unit 172 may determine that user terminal 200A has alighted from vehicle 300 when the location information of vehicle 300 is moving in a different direction from the location information of user terminal 200B.

<Modification 3 of Embodiment 1>
A modified example of one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 25 to 27. Figure 25 is a diagram showing an outline of a calculation method of a calculation server used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention.

[Calculation method for the percentage calculation part]
25 , the percentage calculation unit 176 calculates the burden percentage based on a first estimated distance Ea from the first boarding position 410 of the user terminal 200A (first user) who boarded first to the destination 400, and a second estimated distance Eb from the second boarding position 420 of the user terminal 200B (second user) who boarded with the user terminal 200A after the user terminal 200A to the destination 400. In other words, the first estimated distance Ea is the distance assumed when the user terminal 200A travels from the first boarding position 410 to the destination 400 without carpooling, and the second estimated distance Eb corresponds to the distance assumed when the user terminal 200B travels from the second boarding position 420 to the destination 400 without carpooling. In other words, the percentage calculation unit 176 calculates the burden percentage for each of the multiple user terminals 200A and 200B based on the distance traveled when each of the multiple user terminals 200A and 200B travels independently from the boarding position to the disembarking position using the vehicle 300. Here, the first estimated distance Ea and the second estimated distance Eb are distances on a road map, but are not limited to distances on a road map and may be straight-line distances connecting the respective pieces of position information.

[Method for acquiring user boarding location information and alighting location information]
Next, a method for acquiring first boarding position information at the first boarding position 410 and second boarding position information at the second boarding position 420 will be described with reference to Figures 26 and 27. Here, a case will be described in which the vehicle 300 has a short-range wireless communication unit 320. Figures 26 and 27 are diagrams showing an example of a method for determining whether a user is getting on or off in a shared ride fare calculation system according to a modified example of one embodiment of the present invention.

First, as shown in FIG. 26, when the distance between the user terminal 200A and the vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than a predetermined distance, the user terminal 200A receives an information signal unique to the short-range wireless communication unit 320 from the short-range wireless communication unit 320. When the user terminal 200A receives the unique information signal, the user terminal 200A transmits to the calculation server 110 that the unique information signal has been received. Then, based on the unique information signal, the calculation server 110 determines that the user terminal 200A has boarded the vehicle 300. Then, the position information identification unit 172 acquires first boarding position information indicating the boarding position of the user terminal 200A on the vehicle 300.

Next, as shown in FIG. 27, when the distance between the user terminal 200B and the vehicle 300 becomes equal to or less than a predetermined distance, the user terminal 200B receives an information signal unique to the short-range wireless communication unit 320 from the short-range wireless communication unit 320. When the user terminal 200B receives the unique information signal, the user terminal 200B transmits to the calculation server 110 that the unique information signal has been received. Then, based on the unique information signal, the calculation server 110 determines that the user terminal 200B has boarded the vehicle 300. Then, the position information identification unit 172 acquires second boarding position information indicating the boarding position of the user terminal 200B on the vehicle 300.

Then, when the user terminals 200A, 200B and the vehicle 300 arrive at the destination 400, the user terminals 200A, 200B disembark from the vehicle 300, and the user terminals 200A, 200B are no longer able to receive information signals specific to the short-range wireless communication unit 320 from the short-range wireless communication unit 320, it is determined that the user terminals 200A, 200B have disembarked from the vehicle 300. The location information identification unit 172 then acquires first disembarkation position information and second disembarkation position information indicating the disembarkation positions of the user terminals 200A, 200B from the vehicle 300.

When using a shared ride along a route such as that shown in Figures 25 to 27, there is no difference in the travel distance for user terminal 200B whether or not the user shares the ride, but there is a difference in the travel distance for user terminal 200A whether or not the user shares the ride. In other words, user terminal 200A's travel distance will be longer than necessary in order to accommodate user terminal 200B. Even in such a case, the shared ride fare calculation system 13 relating to variant 3 of embodiment 1 can calculate a fair share of the fare.

As described above, the ride-sharing fare calculation system 13 according to the third variant of the first embodiment of the present invention, like the first embodiment, can provide a calculation server that calculates the ride-sharing section without increasing the burden on the user and the vehicle driver, and calculates the share of the fare that the user will pay based on the distance traveled by the user using the ride-sharing service, and a communication terminal that communicates with the calculation server. Furthermore, even if the travel distance is longer than necessary when traveling to a destination using a ride-sharing service compared to traveling to the destination without using a ride-sharing service, a fair share of the fare can be calculated.

Second Embodiment
A shared ride fare calculation system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to Figures 28 and 29. The overview of the shared ride fare calculation system, the hardware configuration of the calculation server, the hardware configuration of the user terminal, and the hardware configuration of the vehicle are the same as those of the shared ride fare calculation system 10 according to the first embodiment, and therefore will not be described here. In the second embodiment, the user terminal 200 receives the fare from the vehicle 300 by communicating with the fare meter of the vehicle 300. Compared to the first embodiment and its variants, the second embodiment differs in the function of the communication terminal. Therefore, the functional configuration of the communication terminal of the second embodiment will be described here, and the description of the other components will be omitted. The user terminal 200 may communicate directly with the fare meter of the vehicle 300, or the user terminal 200 may communicate with the fare meter of the vehicle 300 via one or both of the dispatch server 120 and the calculation server 110.

[Functional configuration of communication terminal requesting operation]
A communication terminal for requesting operation used in the shared fare calculation system 20 according to embodiment 2 will now be described. The functional configuration of the user terminal 200A used in the shared fare calculation system 20 is similar to that of the user terminal 200A used in the shared fare calculation system 10 according to embodiment 1 shown in FIG. 7 , but differs from the user terminal 200A used in the shared fare calculation system 10 in that it includes a fare information receiving unit 278 that receives fare information, including the fare, from the fare meter of the vehicle 300, and a fare information transmitting unit 280 that transmits the fare information received by the fare information receiving unit 278 to the calculation server 110. Here, the fare information receiving unit 278 does not need to communicate directly with the vehicle 300 or the fare meter of the vehicle 300; for example, the fare information receiving unit 278 may communicate with the vehicle 300 or the fare meter of the vehicle 300 via one or both of the dispatch server 120 and the calculation server 110.

[Functional configuration of the passenger communication terminal]
Fig. 29 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a communication terminal used in a shared ride fare calculation system according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 29 provides a more detailed explanation of the functional blocks of user terminal 200B, one of the user terminals 200 shown in Fig. 2, which is a passenger in vehicle 300 operating in response to a travel request from user terminal 200A. According to Fig. 29, the passenger user terminal 200B is similar in functional block to user terminal 200A of user A who makes the travel request, but differs from user terminal 200A in that user terminal 200B does not have a travel request signal transmission unit 270.

Because user terminal 200B does not need to make an operation request, it does not need to have an operation request signal transmission unit 270 as described above. However, this does not mean that user terminal 200B does not need to have an operation request signal transmission unit 270. Of course, user terminal 200B may also have an operation request signal transmission unit 270.

As described above, the ride-sharing fare calculation system 20 according to the second embodiment of the present invention, like the first embodiment, can provide a calculation server that calculates the ride-sharing section without increasing the burden on the user and the vehicle driver, and calculates the share of the fare that the user must pay based on the distance traveled by the ride-sharing user, and a communication terminal that communicates with the calculation server. Furthermore, by enabling communication between the fare meter of the vehicle 300 and the user terminal 200, data can be exchanged more efficiently.

The calculation server and communication terminal described in the above embodiments can be realized by a program or application that operates the computer included in the calculation server and communication terminal. The program or application can be downloaded and installed on the calculation server and communication terminal via Internet communication. The program or application can also be installed on the calculation server and communication terminal via a computer-readable recording medium.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications can be made as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the invention.

10, 11, 12, 20: Shared ride fare calculation system, 101: First network, 102: Second network, 110: Calculation server, 111: Control unit, 112: Hard disk, 113: Communication unit, 115, 125, 135: Database, 120: Dispatch server, 130: SNS server, 170: Identification information acquisition unit, 172: Location information determination unit, 174: Storage unit, 176: Ratio calculation unit, 178: Fare calculation unit, 180: Notification unit, 200: User terminal, 205: Memory, 210: Control unit, 215, 320: Short-range wireless communication unit, 220: Communication module, 230: Display, 240: Operation button, 250: Speaker, 260: Microphone, 270: Operation request signal transmission unit, 272: Identification information receiving unit, 274: Location information specifying unit, 276: Fare information receiving unit, 278: Operation fare information receiving unit, 280: Operation fare information transmitting unit, 300: Vehicle, 310: Vehicle body, 400: Destination, 410: First boarding position, 420: Second boarding position, 552: Operation request signal, 554: Operation request application signal, 556: Pick-up instruction signal, 558: Acceptance signal, 560: Acceptance notification, 562: Arrangement status notification, 564: First boarding position information, 566: Second boarding position information, 568: First drop-off position information, 570: Second drop-off position information, 572, 574: Operation information, 576: Calculation result, 578: Confirmation information, 580: Billing, 600: Boarding position, 610, 620, 630, 640, 650, 660, 670, 680: Interface, 611: Vehicle icon, 612: Friends list tab, 613: Chat tab, 614: Timeline tab, 615: Other tabs, 621: Request button, 641: Destination pin, 642: Destination address, 643: Settings button, 651: Primary location information, 652: Primary location information pin, 653: User information confirmation field, 654: User registered credit card information field, 655: Coupon code field, 656: Dispatch center information field, 657: Agree button, 658: Pickup information field, 681: Inquiry button, 682: Estimated arrival time, 683: Confirmation number, 684: Driver rating, 710: When deciding whether to board, 720: When deciding whether to disembark

Claims (8)

A program executed by a first terminal of a first user riding in a vehicle and a second terminal of a second user riding in the vehicle,
transmitting the vehicle dispatch instruction and user information of the first user to an information processing server that communicates with a communication unit provided in the vehicle, based on the vehicle dispatch instruction being received by the first terminal of the first terminal and the second terminal;
Acquiring first boarding position information where the first user boards the vehicle and first disembarking position information where the first user disembarks from the vehicle by the first terminal, and transmitting the information to the information processing server;
Acquiring second boarding position information where the second user associated with the first user boards the vehicle and second disembarking position information where the second user disembarks from the vehicle by the second terminal, and transmitting the information to the information processing server;
acquiring, by the first terminal, a first fare to be paid by the first user out of the fare for the vehicle, the first fare being calculated by the information processing server based at least on the first boarding position information, the first disembarking position information, the second boarding position information, and the second disembarking position information;
and acquiring, by the second terminal, a second fare to be paid by the second user out of the fare for the vehicle, the second fare being calculated by the information processing server based at least on the first boarding position information, the first disembarking position information, the second boarding position information, and the second disembarking position information;
The dispatch instruction is received by the first terminal via an interface of a service that enables communication between the first user and the second user;
A program for displaying identification information to be communicated to a driver of the vehicle on the first terminal that has received the dispatch instruction, out of the first terminal and the second terminal. 2. The program according to claim 1,
the first riding position information is transmitted from the first terminal based on wireless communication between an electronic device of the vehicle and the first terminal;
The second riding position information is transmitted from the second terminal based on wireless communication between the electronic device of the vehicle and the second terminal. 3. The program according to claim 1 or 2,
The first fare and the second fare are based on a distance based on the first boarding position information and the first disembarking position information, and a distance based on the second boarding position information and the second disembarking position information. 2. The program according to claim 1,
After the dispatch instruction is received by the first terminal, an object for contacting the driver of the vehicle from the first terminal is displayed on the first terminal. 2. The program according to claim 1,
When the vehicle arrives at the location of the first user, an object based on the user information for communication between the first terminal and a communication unit provided in the vehicle is displayed on the first terminal. 2. The program according to claim 1,
When the vehicle arrives at the first user's location, a confirmation number is displayed on the first terminal. 7. A program according to claim 1,
The first terminal of the first user and the second terminal of the second user are terminals that do not form an approved exchange relationship with each other outside of the service. An information processing method executed by a first terminal of a first user riding in a vehicle and a second terminal of a second user riding in the vehicle, comprising:
transmitting the vehicle dispatch instruction and user information of the first user to an information processing server that communicates with a communication unit provided in the vehicle, based on the vehicle dispatch instruction being received by the first terminal of the first terminal and the second terminal;
Acquiring first boarding position information where the first user boards the vehicle and first disembarking position information where the first user disembarks from the vehicle by the first terminal, and transmitting the information to the information processing server;
Acquiring second boarding position information where the second user associated with the first user boards the vehicle and second disembarking position information where the second user disembarks from the vehicle by the second terminal, and transmitting the information to the information processing server;
acquiring, by the first terminal, a first fare to be paid by the first user out of the fare for the vehicle, the first fare being calculated by the information processing server based at least on the first boarding position information, the first disembarking position information, the second boarding position information, and the second disembarking position information;
and acquiring, by the second terminal, a second fare to be paid by the second user out of the fare for the vehicle, the second fare being calculated by the information processing server based at least on the first boarding position information, the first disembarking position information, the second boarding position information, and the second disembarking position information;
The dispatch instruction is received by the first terminal via an interface of a service that enables communication between the first user and the second user;
An information processing method in which identification information to be communicated to a driver of the vehicle is displayed on the first terminal that has received the dispatch instruction, out of the first terminal and the second terminal.