Evaluation indication system, evaluation indication method and computer-readable storage medium

• US 8,862,374 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2012
• Issued: 10/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Maura, Masao
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Calvin
• Assistant Examiner(s): QUILLEN, ALLEN ERNEST
• Application Number:
  US13/654,069
• Publication Number:
  US 20130158849A1
• Time in Patent Office: 727 Days
• Field of Search: 701/123
• US Class Current: 701/123
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3697 Output of additional, non-guidance related information, e.g. low fuel level G01C21/3679 takes precedence

Abstract

Evaluation indication systems, methods, and programs display a current location of a host vehicle together with a map around the current location on a display unit. The systems, methods, and programs acquire a current evaluation that is an evaluation of a fuel efficiency level in a unit section of current travel of the host vehicle and a previous evaluation that is an evaluation of the fuel efficiency level in the unit section of previous travel previous to the current travel. The systems, methods, and programs acquire an achievement difficulty level of a target value of the fuel efficiency level, set on the basis of results of the fuel efficiency levels when a plurality of vehicles have travelled the unit section, and indicate the achievement difficulty level together with the current evaluation and the previous evaluation on the map.

Claims

1. An evaluation indication system comprising:

a guide control unit that displays a current location of a host vehicle together with a map around the current location on a display unit;

a current evaluation acquisition unit that acquires a current evaluation that is an evaluation of a fuel efficiency level in a unit section of current travel of the host vehicle;

a previous evaluation acquisition unit that acquires a previous evaluation that is an evaluation of the fuel efficiency level in the unit section of previous travel previous to the current travel; and

an achievement difficulty level acquisition unit that acquires an achievement difficulty level of a target value of the fuel efficiency level, set on the basis of results of the fuel efficiency levels in the case where a plurality of vehicles have travelled the unit section, wherein

the guide control unit indicates the achievement difficulty level together with the current evaluation and the previous evaluation on the map;

the current evaluation is associated with a current evaluation icon;

the previous evaluation is associated with a previous evaluation icon; and

both the current evaluation icon and the previous evaluation icon are displayed on the map.

2. The evaluation indication system according to claim 1, wherein the achievement difficulty level acquisition unit acquires the achievement difficulty level that is set so as to increase as the number of vehicles of which the fuel efficiency level has not reached the target value among the plurality of vehicles increases.

3. The evaluation indication system according to claim 1, wherein the achievement difficulty level acquisition unit acquires the achievement difficulty level that is set so as to increase as a driving skill of a driver of each vehicle of which the fuel efficiency level has not reached the target value among the plurality of vehicles increases.

4. The evaluation indication system according to claim 1, wherein the guide control unit indicates the current evaluation icon and the previous evaluation icon in a mode corresponding to an evaluation and corresponding to the achievement difficulty level.

5. The evaluation indication system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a recommended unit section acquisition unit that acquires a recommended unit section on the basis of the achievement difficulty level and the previous evaluation, wherein

the guide control unit provides guidance on the recommended unit section.

6. The evaluation indication system according to claim 5, wherein the recommended unit section acquisition unit determines, on the basis of a driving skill of the driver of the host vehicle indicated by the previous evaluation, a unit section in which the driver of the host vehicle is to achieve the target value and acquires the determined unit section as the recommended unit section.

7. The evaluation indication system according to claim 5, wherein the guide control unit highlights the recommended unit section on the map.

8. The evaluation indication system according to claim 5, wherein:

the guide control unit determines, on the basis of the corresponding previous evaluations, a rate of the unit sections in which the fuel efficiency level of the driver of the host vehicle has not reached the target value among the unit sections having the same achievement difficulty level; and

the guide control unit sets, as the recommended unit sections, the unit sections having the lowest difficulty level among the achievement difficulty levels of which the determined rates are higher than or equal to a predetermined value.

9. An evaluation indication method comprising:

displaying on a display a current location of a host vehicle and a map around the current location on a display unit;

acquiring a current evaluation that is an evaluation of a fuel efficiency level in a unit section of current travel of the host vehicle;

acquiring a previous evaluation that is an evaluation of the fuel efficiency level in the unit section of previous travel previous to the current travel;

acquiring an achievement difficulty level of a target value of the fuel efficiency level, set on the basis of results of the fuel efficiency levels in the case where a plurality of vehicles have travelled the unit section;

indicating the achievement difficulty level together with the current evaluation and the previous evaluation on the map on the display,

associating the current evaluation with a current evaluation icon;

associating the previous evaluation with a previous evaluation icon; and

displaying both the current evaluation icon and the previous evaluation icon on the map.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores computer-executable instructions with a CPU for executing the instructions for performing an evaluation indication function comprising:

displaying a current location of a host vehicle and a map around the current location on a display unit;

acquiring a current evaluation that is an evaluation of a fuel efficiency level in a unit section of current travel of the host vehicle;

acquiring a previous evaluation that is an evaluation of the fuel efficiency level in the unit section of previous travel previous to the current travel;

acquiring an achievement difficulty level of a target value of the fuel efficiency level, set on the basis of results of the fuel efficiency levels in the case where a plurality of vehicles have travelled the unit section;

indicating the achievement difficulty level together with the current evaluation and the previous evaluation on the map,

associating the current evaluation with a current evaluation icon;

associating the previous evaluation with a previous evaluation icon; and

displaying both the current evaluation icon and the previous evaluation icon on the map.

11. An evaluation indication system for a path of travel from a departure place to a destination, the path of travel being divided into unit sections, the system comprising:

a guide control unit that displays a current location of a host vehicle together with a map around the current location on a display unit;

a current evaluation acquisition unit that acquires a current evaluation of a current fuel efficiency level in a unit section of current travel, the unit section of current travel having recently been traveled by the host vehicle from the departure point to the current location;

a previous evaluation acquisition unit that acquires a previous evaluation of a previous fuel efficiency level in a unit section of future travel, the previous fuel efficiency level being based on data acquired by the host vehicle traveling the same path of travel from the departure place to the destination in a previous trip; and

an achievement difficulty level acquisition unit that acquires an achievement difficulty level of a target value of the previous fuel efficiency level, the achievement difficulty level being set on the basis of fuel efficiency levels determined by a plurality of vehicles that previously traveled the unit section having previous stored data, wherein

the guide control unit indicates the achievement difficulty level together with the current evaluation and the previous evaluation on the map,

the current evaluation is associated with a current evaluation icon;

the previous evaluation is associated with a previous evaluation icon; and

both the current evaluation icon and the previous evaluation icon are displayed on the map.