JP7816072B2 - Information processing device - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to an information processing device.

Commercial fuel cell vehicles are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The vehicles are filled with hydrogen at hydrogen stations.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-073238

While opportunities to refuel with hydrogen are increasing, the number of people qualified to do the refueling work is limited. In the background art described above, when accepting reservations for hydrogen stations, it is not taken into consideration whether the vehicle driver is able to refuel with hydrogen themselves.

The purpose of this disclosure, made in light of these circumstances, is to efficiently allocate personnel qualified to perform hydrogen filling operations.

An information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:
An information processing device that accepts reservations for hydrogen stations, the information processing device including a control unit,
The control unit receives a request from the driver of the FCEV as to whether or not hydrogen filling is permitted.

One embodiment of the present disclosure allows for efficient deployment of personnel qualified to perform hydrogen filling operations.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an information processing system.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an information processing system S according to this embodiment. The information processing system S includes an information processing device 1 and a user terminal 2 that can communicate with each other via a network NW. The network NW includes, for example, a fixed communication network, a mobile communication network, or the Internet.

For ease of explanation, FIG. 1 illustrates one information processing device 1 and one user terminal 2. However, the number of information processing devices 1 and one user terminal 2 is not limited to this. For example, the processing performed by the information processing device 1 of this embodiment may be performed by multiple information processing devices 1 that are distributed. Multiple user terminals 2 may be operated by the same user.

The information processing device 1 is installed in a facility such as a data center. The information processing device 1 is a computer such as a server that belongs to a cloud computing system or other computing system.

The internal configuration of the information processing device 1 is explained in detail.

The information processing device 1 includes a control unit 11, a communication unit 12, and a memory unit 13. The components of the information processing device 1 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other, for example, via a dedicated line.

The control unit 11 includes, for example, one or more general-purpose processors, including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit). The control unit 11 may also include one or more dedicated processors specialized for specific processing. Instead of including a processor, the control unit 11 may also include one or more dedicated circuits. The dedicated circuits may be, for example, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The control unit 11 may also include an ECU (Electronic Control Unit). The control unit 11 sends and receives arbitrary information via the communication unit 12.

The communication unit 12 includes a communication module compatible with one or more wired or wireless LAN (Local Area Network) standards for connecting to the network NW. The communication unit 12 may include a module compatible with one or more mobile communication standards, including LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G (4th Generation), or 5G (5th Generation). The communication unit 12 may include a communication module compatible with one or more short-range communication standards or specifications, including Bluetooth (registered trademark), AirDrop (registered trademark), IrDA, ZigBee (registered trademark), Felica (registered trademark), or RFID. The communication unit 12 sends and receives any information via the network NW.

The memory unit 13 may include, but is not limited to, semiconductor memory, magnetic memory, optical memory, or a combination of at least two of these. The semiconductor memory may be, for example, RAM or ROM. The RAM may be, for example, SRAM or DRAM. The ROM may be, for example, EEPROM. The memory unit 13 may function as, for example, a main memory device, an auxiliary memory device, or a cache memory. The memory unit 13 may store information resulting from analysis or processing by the control unit 11. The memory unit 13 may store various information related to the operation or control of the information processing device 1. The memory unit 13 may store system programs, application programs, embedded software, etc. The memory unit 13 may be provided external to the information processing device 1 and accessed by the information processing device 1.

The user terminal 2 is a terminal operated by a user. The user terminal 2 may be, for example, a mobile device such as a mobile phone, smartphone, wearable device, or tablet. Alternatively, the user terminal 2 may be a general-purpose device such as a PC, or a dedicated device. "PC" is an abbreviation for personal computer.

The internal configuration of the user terminal 2 is explained in detail.

The user terminal 2 includes a control unit 21, a communication unit 22, a memory unit 23, a display unit 24, and an input unit 25. The components of the user terminal 2 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other, for example, via a dedicated line.

The hardware configuration of the control unit 21, communication unit 22, and memory unit 23 of the user terminal 2 may be the same as the hardware configuration of the control unit 11, communication unit 12, and memory unit 13 of the information processing device 1. Explanation here is omitted.

The display unit 24 is, for example, a display. The display is, for example, an LCD or organic EL display. "LCD" is an abbreviation for liquid crystal display. "EL" is an abbreviation for electroluminescence. The display unit 24 may be connected to the user terminal 2 as an external output device, instead of being provided in the user terminal 2. Any connection method can be used, for example, USB, HDMI (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark). "USB" is an abbreviation for Universal Serial Bus. "HDMI (registered trademark)" is an abbreviation for High-Definition Multimedia Interface.

The input unit 25 may be, for example, a physical key, a capacitance key, a pointing device, a touch screen integrated with a display, or a microphone. The input unit 25 accepts operations to input information used in the operation of the user terminal 2. Instead of being provided in the user terminal 2, the input unit 25 may be connected to the user terminal 2 as an external input device. Any connection method may be used, for example, USB, HDMI (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark).

The processing executed by the information processing system S of this embodiment will be described in detail below. Here, the control unit 11 of the information processing device 1 accepts a reservation for a hydrogen station from a user terminal 2. The user of the user terminal 2 is the driver of a vehicle. The vehicle is an FCEV. "FCEV" is an abbreviation for fuel cell electric vehicle.

When accepting a reservation, the control unit 11 asks the user terminal 2 whether a filling technician is required as an optional function. In other words, the control unit 11 accepts whether the driver is willing to fill the hydrogen tank.

When the control unit 11 receives a response from the user terminal 2 indicating that a filling technician is not required, it will not assign a filling technician to the hydrogen station.

When the control unit 11 receives a response from the user terminal 2 indicating that a filling technician is needed, it assigns a filling technician to the hydrogen station. Each time the control unit 11 receives a response indicating that a filling technician is needed, it may solicit volunteers to perform the filling work from any other users. In other words, a matching service is executed.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the control unit 11 of the information processing device 1, which accepts reservations for hydrogen stations, accepts whether or not the FCEV driver is willing to fill the hydrogen tank. With this configuration, if the FCEV driver is qualified to perform hydrogen filling work, the information processing device 1 can have the driver perform the filling work at the hydrogen station themselves. This allows the information processing device 1 to efficiently allocate personnel qualified to perform hydrogen filling work.

While this disclosure will be described based on various drawings and examples, please note that those skilled in the art may make various modifications and alterations based on this disclosure. Other changes are possible without departing from the spirit of this disclosure. For example, the functions included in each means or step may be rearranged so as not to cause logical inconsistencies, and multiple means or steps may be combined into one or divided.

For example, in the above embodiment, a program that executes all or part of the functions or processing of the information processing device 1 can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. Computer-readable recording media include non-transitory computer-readable media, such as a magnetic recording device, optical disc, magneto-optical recording medium, or semiconductor memory. The program can be distributed, for example, by selling, transferring, or lending a portable recording medium, such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) or CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), on which the program is recorded. The program can also be distributed by storing the program in the storage of any server and transmitting the program from any server to another computer. The program may also be provided as a program product. The present disclosure can also be realized as a program executable by a processor.

A computer temporarily stores a program recorded on a portable recording medium or transferred from a server in its main storage device. The computer then reads the program stored in its main storage device using its processor, which then executes processing in accordance with the read program. The computer may also read the program directly from the portable recording medium and execute processing in accordance with the program. The computer may also execute processing in accordance with the received program each time a program is transferred from the server to the computer. Processing may also be executed using a so-called ASP-type service that achieves functionality by issuing execution instructions and obtaining results without transferring the program from the server to the computer. "ASP" is an abbreviation for application service provider. Programs include information used for processing by a computer that is equivalent to a program. For example, data that is not a direct instruction to a computer but has properties that specify computer processing falls under the category of "equivalent to a program."

S Information Processing System

Claims (1)

An information processing device that accepts reservations for hydrogen stations from a user terminal, the information processing device including a control unit,
The control unit
Accept the request from the FCEV driver to fill up with hydrogen,
When a response that a filling worker is needed is received from the user terminal, the information processing device decides to assign a filling worker to the hydrogen station , and each time a response that a filling worker is needed is received, the information processing device executes a matching service to solicit people willing to perform filling work from any other user.