IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,307,390
Granted Patent B2
US 12,307,390 · App. 18/188,777 · Granted May 20, 2025

Vehicle management server, communication terminal, and vehicle management program

Inventors: Shun Ota (Susono, JP); Taro Hasegawa (Toyota, JP); Tomoya Takeda (Toyota, JP); Yuka Nishiyama (Toyota, JP); Hiroya Chiba (Fuji, JP); Tatsuya Sugano (Sunto-gun, JP); Taizo Masuda (Yokohama, JP)
Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
G06Q10/02G06Q30/0645G06Q50/40
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,307,390
App. No.
18/188,777
Granted
May 20, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

The vehicle management server manages a vehicle rented as a robot taxi from an owner to a user. The vehicle management server transmits the vehicle position information to a communication terminal of the owner when the vehicle is in operation as a robot taxi. The vehicle position information is a distance from the current position of the owner to the vehicle, or an area where the vehicle is currently located.

Claims (16)

1. A vehicle management system, comprising:

a vehicle management server that manages a vehicle rented from an owner to a user as a robot taxi; and

a communication terminal operated by the owner of the vehicle rented to the user as the robot taxi,

wherein the vehicle management server includes processing circuitry configured to:

determine that the vehicle is in operation as the robot taxi in response to the vehicle being separated from a departure point of the vehicle by a first predetermined distance as the vehicle travels toward the user, wherein the first predetermined distance is a travel distance of 500 meters;

in response to determining that the vehicle is in operation as the robot taxi, transmit vehicle position information to a communication terminal of the owner, the vehicle position information being a distance from a current position of the owner to the vehicle or an area where the vehicle is currently positioned;

in response to determining that the vehicle is in operation as the robot taxi, prohibit access of the communication terminal to a camera mounted on the vehicle by disabling a user interface for the camera on the communication terminal; and

in response to determining that the vehicle is no longer in operation as the robot taxi, permit the access of the communication terminal to the camera by enabling the user interface for the camera;

wherein the communication terminal includes processing circuitry configured to:

when the vehicle is in operation as the robot taxi:

display the vehicle position information on the vehicle on a screen in a first display format including a notification that displaying accurate vehicle position information on the vehicle is not possible while the vehicle is in operation as the robot taxi; and

prohibit access of the communication terminal to the camera mounted on the vehicle by disabling the user interface for the camera on the communication terminal;

when the vehicle is not in operation as the robot taxi:

display the vehicle position information on the screen in a second display format different from the first display format, wherein the second display format includes a map showing a position of the vehicle; and

permit the access of the communication terminal to the camera by enabling the user interface for the camera.

2. The vehicle management system according to claim 1 , wherein the vehicle management server prohibits accurate vehicle position information from being transmitted to the communication terminal until the vehicle is no longer in operation as the robot taxi and is separated from a point at which the user gets off the vehicle by a second predetermined distance.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 23, 2023
From: OTA, SHUN; HASEGAWA, TARO; TAKEDA, TOMOYA; NISHIYAMA, YUKA; CHIBA, HIROYA; SUGANO, TATSUYA; MASUDA, TAIZO
To: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
Reel/Frame 063077/0520 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP 2022-090242 · Jun 2, 2022 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20230394379A1 · Dec 7, 2023
References Cited (10)
US 11460310B1 · Kelly · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 11466997B1 · Williams · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 20160163138A1 · Turner · 2016 [cited by examiner]
US 20180357737A1 · Davis · 2018 [cited by examiner]
US 20210107509A1 · Hirose · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210201215A1 · Tanabe · 2021 [cited by examiner]
JP 2005172777A · 2005 [cited by applicant]
JP 2014079010 · 2014 [cited by applicant]
JP 2020166386 · 2020 [cited by applicant]
Doll et al., “Private autonomous vehicles: The other side of the robo-taxi story,” mckinsey.com, Dec. 1, 2020, Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/automotive-and-assembly/our-insights/private-autonomous-v… [cited by examiner]