ROUTE SEARCH SYSTEM, ROUTE SEARCH TERMINAL AND ROUTE SEARCH METHOD

• US 20090164114A1
• Filed: 12/22/2008
• Published: 06/25/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/25/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nagoya University, NEC Solution Innovators, Ltd (NEC Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nagoya University, NEC Corporation, NEC Soft Limited (NEC Corporation)
• Inventors: Satou, Akinori, Yamamoto, Toshiyuki, Yao, Enjian, Sugisaki, Yasuhiro, MORIKAWA, Takayuki, Miwa, Tomio
• Granted Patent: US 8,160,810 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/200
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3469 Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3492 employing speed data or traffic data, e.g. real-time or historical traffic control systems for road vehicles involving transmission of navigation instructions to the vehicle G08G1/0968

Abstract

The route search system of the present invention receives the provision request of the information about route search from a route search terminal. The information included in the provision request from a route search terminal is acquired, calculation processing of the environmental load value of the relevant vehicle and the environmental load value of other vehicle by which it is generated with movement of a relevant vehicle from the acquired information is carried out using an environmental load calculation unit.

Claims

1. A route search system comprising:

a route search terminal installed on an automobile or motorcycle for transmitting a provision request requesting for provision of information relating to route search for the automobile or motorcycle and receiving the information relating to route search provided in response to the provision request;

an information provision subsystem for acquiring information contained in the provision request from the route search terminal; and

an environmental load calculation unit for calculating, based on the information acquired by the information provision subsystem, an environmental load generated by move of the automobile or motorcycle having the route search terminal installed thereon, and an environmental load generated by other automobile and/or motorcycle.

2. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, comprising a subsystem for generating information relating to the environmental load based on the result of calculation by the environmental load calculation unit.

3. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, comprising:

a search subsystem for generating information relating to the environmental load based on the result of calculation by the environmental load calculation unit, and searching for a route based on the information relating to the environmental load; and

a information provision subsystem for transmitting information on the route found by the search of the search subsystem to the route search terminal, as route information.

4. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the environmental load is defined by an amount of discharge greenhouse gas.

5. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the environmental load is defined by an amount of traffic congestion.

6. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the route search terminal is a navigation terminal installed on the automobile or motorcycle.

7. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the provision request received from the route search terminal contains information on a type of the vehicle and/or information on greenhouse gas discharge by the vehicle.

8. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the environmental load is carbon dioxide gas (CO₂) discharge by the automobile or motorcycle.

9. The route search system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the calculation of the environmental load generated by move of an automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal is performed by using information accumulated for each link at different times of day, and adding up an environmental load amount generated by move of the automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal with an environmental load amount generated by variation in velocity of vehicles moving on the same link as the automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal, caused by the move of the automobile or motorcycle on the link.

10. A route search terminal comprising a control unit for receiving, from the route search system according to claim 1, information on environmental load used for route search or route information, and using the received information for calculation processing to find navigation route.

11. A route search method wherein a route search system for transmitting information for use in generation of route information to a route search terminal in response to an information provision request from the route search terminal performs the steps of:

calculating an environmental load generated by move of an automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal, while also calculating an environmental load imposed to the ambient environment and/or other automobile or motorcycle by move of the designated automobile or motorcycle; and

generating, in response to the information provision request from the route search terminal and based on the results of the calculation, information containing information relating to the calculated environmental load as information to be used by the route search terminal to generate route information.

12. The route search method as claimed in claim 11, comprising the steps of:

searching for a route based on the information relating to the environmental load, in response to the information provision request from the route search terminal; and

transmitting route information found by the search to the route search terminal.

13. The route search method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the environmental load is defined by an amount of discharge greenhouse gas.

14. The route search method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide gas.

15. The route search method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the environmental load is defined by an amount of traffic congestion.

16. The route search method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the route search terminal is a navigation terminal installed on the automobile or motorcycle.

17. The route search method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the calculation of the environmental load generated by move of the automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal is conducted by using information accumulated for each link at different times of day, and adding up an environmental load amount generated by move of the automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal with an environmental load amount generated by variation in velocity of vehicles moving on the same link as the automobile or motorcycle designated by the route search terminal, caused by the move of the automobile or motorcycle on the link