Patent Publication Number: US-2023158922-A1

Title: Information processing apparatus, method, and storage medium

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-190458 filed on Nov. 24, 2021, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     This disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus, a method, and a storage medium. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     In the related art, a technology for charging of a vehicle for car sharing has been known. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2019-153114 (JP 2019-153114 A) describes a technology to charge a vehicle for car sharing by a charging facility provided in a parking lot. 
     SUMMARY 
     There is room for improvement in the technology for charging of a vehicle for car sharing. 
     An object of this disclosure accomplished in view of such circumstances is to improve the technology for charging of a vehicle for car sharing. 
     An information processing apparatus according to one aspect of this disclosure is an information processing apparatus including a controlling portion, and a communication portion. The controlling portion acquires information on a charged state of a vehicle for car sharing from the vehicle via the communication portion. In a case where the vehicle is to be parked in a predetermined parking lot, the controlling portion determines, based on the acquired information on the charged state, whether, among parking spots in the predetermined parking lot, the vehicle is to be parked in a parking spot equipped with a vehicle charger or the vehicle is to be parked in a parking spot not equipped with the vehicle charger. 
     A method according to one aspect of this disclosure is a method to be executed by an information processing apparatus. The method includes: acquiring information on a charged state of a vehicle for car sharing from the vehicle; and in a case where the vehicle is to be parked in a predetermined parking lot, determining, based on the acquired information on the charged state, whether, among parking spots in the predetermined parking lot, the vehicle is to be parked in a parking spot equipped with a vehicle charger or the vehicle is to be parked in a parking spot not equipped with the vehicle charger. 
     A storage medium storing a program according to one aspect of this disclosure is a program causing a computer to execute the followings: acquiring information on a charged state of a vehicle for car sharing from the vehicle; and in a case where the vehicle is to be parked in a predetermined parking lot, determining, based on the acquired information on the charged state, whether, among parking spots in the predetermined parking lot, the vehicle is to be parked in a parking spot equipped with a vehicle charger or the vehicle is to be parked in a parking spot not equipped with the vehicle charger. 
     With one aspect of this disclosure, it is possible to improve the technology for charging of a vehicle for car sharing. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance of exemplary embodiments of the disclosure will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like signs denote like elements, and wherein: 
         FIG.  1    is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a system according to one embodiment of this disclosure; 
         FIG.  2    is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a vehicle according to one embodiment of this disclosure; 
         FIG.  3    is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an information processing apparatus according to one embodiment of this disclosure; and 
         FIG.  4    is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the information processing apparatus according to one embodiment of this disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     The following describes an embodiment of this disclosure. 
     With reference to  FIG.  1   , the following describes the outline of a system  1  according to the embodiment of this disclosure. 
     The system  1  includes a vehicle  10  and an information processing apparatus  20 . The vehicle  10  and the information processing apparatus  20  are connected to a network  30  communicably. 
     The vehicle  10  is, for example, an automobile, but the vehicle  10  is not limited to this and may be any vehicle. The automobile is, for example, a gasoline-fueled automobile, a battery electric vehicle, a hybrid electric vehicle, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, a fuel cell electric vehicle, or the like. However, the automobile is not limited to them. The vehicle  10  may be driven by a driver or may be driven in a self-driving manner at a given level. The level for the self-driving may be any level from level  1  to level  5  defined by Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), for example. The vehicle  10  may be a vehicle dedicated for Mobility as a Service (MaaS). Note that the vehicle  10  may include a light vehicle such as a power-assisted bicycle, and furthermore, the vehicle  10  may include a given movable body such as an electrically-driven kickboard that is powered by electricity. 
     The information processing apparatus  20  is a computer such as a server belonging to a cloud computing system or other computing systems. 
     The network  30  includes the Internet, at least one wide area network (WAN), at least one metropolitan area network (MAN), or a given combination thereof The network  30  may include at least one wireless network, at least one optical network, or a given combination thereof. The wireless network is, for example, an ad-hoc network, a cellular network, a wireless local area network (LAN), a satellite communications network, or a terrestrial microwave network. 
     With reference to  FIG.  1   , the outline of the present embodiment will be described. 
     A controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  acquires information on the charged state of the vehicle  10  for car sharing from the vehicle  10  via a communication portion  22 . In a case where the vehicle  10  is to be parked in a predetermined parking lot P, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines, based on the acquired information about the charged state, whether, among parking spots P 1  to P 3  in the parking lot P, the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 1  equipped with a vehicle charger C or the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. 
     As such, in the present embodiment, even in the parking lot P in which the number of vehicle chargers C is limited, the vehicle  10  for car sharing that requires charging can be charged appropriately. This accordingly makes it possible to improve the technology for charging of the vehicle  10  for car sharing. 
     With reference to  FIG.  2   , the following describes the configuration of the vehicle  10  according to the present embodiment. 
     The vehicle  10  includes a controlling portion  11 , a communication portion  12 , a storage portion  13 , a positioning portion  14 , an input portion  15 , and an output portion  16 . 
     The controlling portion  11  includes at least one processor, at least one programmable circuit, at least one dedicated circuit, or a configuration thereof The processor is, for example, a general purpose processor such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a graphics processing unit (GPU), or a dedicated processor that is specialized in a specific process. However, the processor is not limited to them. The programmable circuit is a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), for example, but the programmable circuit is not limited to this. The dedicated processor is an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), for example, but the dedicated processor is not limited to this. The controlling portion  11  executes a process related to the operation of the vehicle  10  while the controlling portion  11  controls each part of the vehicle  10 . 
     The communication portion  12  includes at least one communications interface. The communications interface corresponds to a mobile communications standard such as  4 th-Generation ( 4 G) or  5 th-Generation ( 5 G), for example, but the communications interface is not limited to them and may correspond to a given communications standard. The communication portion  12  receives data to be used for the operation of the vehicle  10  and transmits data obtained by the operation of the vehicle  10 . 
     The storage portion  13  includes at least one semiconductor memory, at least one magnetic storage, at least one optical memory, or a combination of any of them. The semiconductor memory is, for example, a random access memory (RAM) or a read only memory (ROM). The RAM is, for example, a static random access memory (SRAM) or a dynamic random access memory (DRAM). The ROM is, for example, an electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM). The storage portion  13  functions as a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory, for example. Data to be used for the operation of the vehicle  10  and data obtained by the operation of the vehicle  10  are stored in the storage portion  13 . The data to be used for the operation of the vehicle  10  includes a system program, an application program, a database, map information, and so on. 
     The positioning portion  14  includes one or more global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receivers. The GNSS includes, for example, a global positioning system (GPS), a quasi-zenith satellite system (QZSS), a BeiDou navigation satellite system (BDS), a global navigation satellite system (GLONASS), or Galileo. The positioning portion  14  acquires position information on the vehicle  10 . 
     The input portion  15  includes at least one input interface. The input interface is, for example, a physical key, an electrostatic capacitive key, a pointing device, a touchscreen provided integrally with a display, a microphone, or the like. The input portion  15  detects an input by a user and transmits information on the input to the controlling portion  11 . Instead of being provided in the vehicle  10 , the input portion  15  may be connected to the vehicle  10  as an external output device. As a connection interface, an interface corresponding to a standard such as a universal serial bus (USB), HDMI (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark) can be used, for example. 
     The output portion  16  includes at least one output interface. The output interface is, for example, a display, a speaker, or the like. The display is, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) or an organic electroluminescence (EL) display. The output portion  16  outputs information acquired via the communication portion  12  to a user such as a driver of the vehicle  10  by voice, screen display, or the like. Instead of being provided in the vehicle  10 , the output portion  16  may be connected to the vehicle  10  as an external output device. As a connection interface, an interface corresponding to a standard such as a USB, HDMI (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark) can be used, for example. 
     With reference to  FIG.  3   , the configuration of the information processing apparatus  20  according to the present embodiment will be described. 
     The information processing apparatus  20  includes the controlling portion  21 , the communication portion  22 , and a storage portion  23 . 
     The controlling portion  21  includes at least one processor, at least one programmable circuit, at least one dedicated circuit, or a combination of any of them. The processor is a general purpose processor such as a CPU or a GPU, or a dedicated processor specialized in a specific process. The programmable circuit is an FPGA, for example. The dedicated communication circuit is an ASIC, for example. The controlling portion  21  executes a process related to the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  while the controlling portion  21  controls each part of the information processing apparatus  20 . 
     The communication portion  22  includes at least one communications interface. The communications interface corresponds to a mobile communications standard, a wired LAN standard, or a wireless LAN standard, for example. However, the communications interface is not limited to them and may correspond to a given communications standard. The communication portion  22  receives data to be used for the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  and transmits data obtained by the operation of the information processing apparatus  20 . 
     The storage portion  23  includes at least one semiconductor memory, at least one magnetic storage, at least one optical memory, or a combination of any of them. The semiconductor memory is a RAM or a ROM, for example. The RAM is an SRAM or a 
     DRAM, for example. The ROM is an EEPROM, for example. The storage portion  23  functions as a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory, for example. Data to be used for the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  and data obtained by the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  are stored in the storage portion  23 . In the present embodiment, the data to be used for the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  includes a system program, an application program, a database, map information, and so on. 
     With reference to  FIG.  4   , the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  according to the present embodiment will be described. This operation corresponds to a method according to one embodiment of this disclosure. 
     In the present embodiment, in the storage portion  23  of the information processing apparatus  20 , information indicative of the vehicle  10  and information indicative of a predetermined parking lot P are stored in advance. The information indicative of the vehicle  10  includes, for example, information described on a number plate, or the like. The information indicative of the predetermined parking lot P includes, for example, position information or the like on a return station for the vehicle  10  that corresponds to the predetermined parking lot P, the return station being registered in advance by a user. Further, the present embodiment describes a case where the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the return station corresponding to the predetermined parking lot P. However, this disclosure is not limited to them. 
     Step S 100 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  acquires information on the charged state of the vehicle  10  for car sharing from the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22 . 
     More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  acquires position information on the vehicle  10  that is acquired by the positioning portion  14  of the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22  at predetermined time intervals. When the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines, based on the acquired position information on the vehicle  10 , that the vehicle  10  is placed within a predetermined distance from the parking lot P, the controlling portion executes the following process. That is, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  acquires, via the communication portion  22 , the state-of-charge (SOC) residual amount of a battery in which electric power for traveling of the vehicle  10  is stored, the SOC residual amount corresponding to information on the charged state of the vehicle  10 . Note that the predetermined time interval and the predetermined distance can be set to given values by a company or the like that provides a car sharing service and stored in the storage portion  23  of the information processing apparatus  20  in advance. 
     Step S 101 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines, based on the information on the charged state that is acquired in step S 100 , whether, among the parking spots P 1  to P 3  in the parking lot P, the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C or the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. Note that the number of parking spots is not limited to this. 
     More specifically, in a case where the SOC residual amount acquired in step  5100  is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C among the parking spots P 1  to P 3  in the parking lot P. In the meantime, in a case where the SOC residual amount acquired in step S 100  exceeds the predetermined threshold, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C among the parking spots P 1  to P 3  in the parking lot P. Here, the predetermined threshold can be set to a given value by the company or the like that provides a car sharing service and can be stored in advance in the storage portion  23  of the information processing apparatus  20 . Note that, even in a case where the SOC residual amount acquired in step S 100  is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold, when the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C is occupied, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may determine that the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. 
     Here, in a case where there are a plurality of vehicles  10  to be parked in the return station corresponding to the predetermined parking lot P, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may execute step S 101  in the following manner. That is, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  calculates respective cruising distances of the vehicles  10  by use of pieces of information on respective charged states of the vehicles  10  that are acquired in step S 100 . The controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  calculates respective priority levels of the vehicles  10  for parking in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C, based on the calculated cruising distances. The controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  then determines which one of the vehicles  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C, based on the comparison between the calculated priority levels. More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  calculates respective cruising distances of the vehicles  10  by use of respective SOC residual amounts of the vehicles  10  and determines that the vehicle  10  with the shortest cruising distance is preferentially to be parked in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C, for example. 
     The following steps describe details of a process to be executed in a case where the SOC residual amount of the vehicle  10  is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold, and the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C is vacant. 
     Step S 102 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  notifies, via the communication portion  22 , a user of the vehicle  10  of a parking request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . 
     More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  generates information indicative of the parking request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . The controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  transmits the generated information indicative of the parking request to the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22 . When the controlling portion  11  of the vehicle  10  receives the information indicative of the parking request from the information processing apparatus  20  via the communication portion  12 , the controlling portion  11  outputs the information indicative of the parking request to the user of the vehicle  10  by screen display, voice, or the like via the output portion  16 . For example, the information indicative of the parking request may include a message that promotes parking in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , e.g., “Please park the vehicle in the parking spot P 1 .” Instead of this, in step S 102 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may transmit, to a given user terminal such as a smartphone via the communication portion  22 , the information indicative of the parking request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C that is determined in step S 101 . In this case, the information indicative of the parking request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101  may be displayed on a display screen of an application program related to a car sharing service, the application program being operated on the user terminal, for example. 
     Step S 103 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  notifies, via the communication portion  22 , the user of the vehicle  10  of a charging request to charge the vehicle  10  by the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . 
     More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  generates information indicative of the charging request to charge the vehicle  10  by the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . The controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  transmits the generated information indicative of the charging request to the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22 . When the controlling portion  11  of the vehicle  10  receives the information indicative of the charging request from the information processing apparatus  20  via the communication portion  12 , the controlling portion  11  outputs the information indicative of the charging request to the user of the vehicle  10  by screen display, voice, or the like via the output portion  16 . For example, the information indicative of the charging request may include a message that promotes charging by the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , e.g., “Please charge the vehicle by the vehicle charger C in the parking spot P 1 .” Instead of this, in step S 103 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may transmit, to a given user terminal such as a smartphone via the communication portion  22 , the information indicative of the charging request to charge the vehicle  10  by the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . In this case, the information indicative of the charging request to charge the vehicle  10  by the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101  may be displayed on the display screen of the application program related to the car sharing service, the application program being operated on the user terminal, for example. 
     Note that the parking request in step S 102  and the charging request in step S 103  may be performed as a single notification. 
     Step S 104 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines whether or not the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101  and the vehicle  10  is connected to the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . In a case where the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101  and the vehicle  10  is connected to the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , the process proceeds to step S 105 . In the meantime, in a case where the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is not parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101  and the vehicle  10  is not connected to the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , the process proceeds to step S 106 . 
     More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines, based on image data on the parking lot P including the vehicle  10 , the parking spots P 1  to P 3 , and the vehicle charger C, the image data being acquired from a given camera provided in the parking lot P via the communication portion  22 , whether or not the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101  and the vehicle  10  is connected to the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 . Instead of this, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may determine whether or not the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , based on a radio wave of Bluetooth (registered trademark) or the like that can be transmitted or received by a given sensor provided in the vehicle  10  and given sensors provided in the parking spots P 1  to P 3 . In this case, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may determine whether or not the vehicle  10  is connected to the vehicle charger C provided in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , based on a signal indicative of connection to the vehicle charger C that has been detected by the vehicle  10  or a signal indicative of connection to the vehicle  10  that has been detected by the vehicle charger C, the connection signals being receivable via the communication portion  22 . 
     Step S 105 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the use of the car sharing is allowed to be ended. 
     More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the use of the car sharing is allowed to be ended, and the controlling portion  21  generates an end permission notification. Then, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  transmits the generated end permission notification to the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22 . When the controlling portion  11  of the vehicle  10  receives the end permission notification from the information processing apparatus  20  via the communication portion  12 , the controlling portion  11  outputs the end permission notification to the user of the vehicle  10  by screen display, voice, or the like via the output portion  16 . For example, the end permission notification may include a message, e.g., “The car sharing service is ended. Thank you for using our service.” Instead of this, in step S 105 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may transmit, via the communication portion  22 , the end permission notification to a given user terminal such as a smartphone. In this case, the end permission notification may be displayed on the display screen of the application program related to the car sharing service, the application program being operated on the user terminal, for example. 
     Step S 106 : the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the use of the car sharing is not allowed be ended. 
     More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the use of the car sharing is not allowed to be ended, and the controlling portion  21  generates an end non-permission notification. Then, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  transmits the generated end non-permission notification to the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22 . When the controlling portion  11  of the vehicle  10  receives the end non-permission notification from the information processing apparatus  20  via the communication portion  12 , the controlling portion  11  outputs the end non-permission notification to the user of the vehicle  10  by screen display, voice, or the like via the output portion  16 . For example, the end non-permission notification may include a message to promote charging in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , e.g., “The car sharing service cannot be ended. Please park and charge the vehicle in the specified parking spot P 1 .” Instead of this, in step S 106 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may transmit, via the communication portion  22 , the end non-permission notification to a given user terminal such as a smartphone. In this case, the end non-permission notification may be displayed on the display screen of the application program related to the car sharing service, the application program being operated on the user terminal, for example. 
     The above description deals with the process to be executed in a case where the SOC residual amount of the vehicle  10  is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold, and the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C is vacant. Note that a process to be executed when the SOC residual amount of the vehicle  10  exceeds a predetermined threshold in step S 101  can be executed as follows. That is, similarly to step S 102 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  notifies the user of the vehicle  10  of a parking request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. Then, when the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the use of the car sharing is allowed to be ended, and the controlling portion  21  notifies the user of the vehicle  10  that the use of the car sharing is allowed to be ended, similarly to step S 105 . In the meantime, when the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is not parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the use of the car sharing is not allowed to be ended, similarly to step S 106 , and the controlling portion  21  notifies the user of the vehicle  10  of a message to promote parking in the parking spot P 2  or P 3 , e.g., “The car sharing service cannot be ended. Please park the vehicle in the specified parking spot P 2  (or P 3 ).” 
     As has been described earlier, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  according to the present embodiment acquires information on the charged state of the vehicle  10  for the car sharing from the vehicle  10  via the communication portion  22 . In a case where the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the predetermined parking lot P, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines, based on the acquired information on the charged state, whether, among the parking spots P 1  to P 3  in the parking lot P, the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 1  equipped with the vehicle charger C or the vehicle  10  is to be parked in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. 
     With such a configuration, even in the parking lot P in which the number of vehicle chargers C is limited, the vehicle  10  for car sharing that requires charging can be charged appropriately. This accordingly makes it possible to improve the technology for charging of the vehicle  10  for car sharing. 
     This disclosure is described based on the drawings and the embodiment, but it should be noted that a person skilled in the art can easily make various modifications and alterations based on this disclosure. Accordingly, it should be noted that these modifications and alterations are included in the scope of this disclosure. For example, the constituents, functions or the like included the steps, or the like can be rearranged within a range where the rearrangement is not logically inconsistent with the above embodiment, and a plurality of constituents, steps, or the like may be combined into one or may be divided. 
     As one modification, the configuration and the operation of the information processing apparatus  20  may be dispersed in a plurality of computers communicable with each other. Further, for example, some of or all of the constituents of the information processing apparatus  20  may be provided in the vehicle  10 . For example, a car navigation device provided in the vehicle  10  may include some or all of the constituents of the information processing apparatus  20 . 
     Further, as one modification, instead of steps S 104  to S 106 , in a case where the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines that the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may determine that the use of the car sharing is allowed to be ended. More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  determines whether or not the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , based on image data of the parking lot P including the vehicle  10  and the parking spots P 1  to P 3 , the image data being acquired from a given camera provided in the parking lot P via the communication portion  22 . Instead of this, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may determine whether the vehicle  10  is parked in the parking spot P 1  determined in step S 101 , based on a radio wave of Bluetooth (registered trademark) or the like that can be transmitted or received by a given sensor provided in the vehicle  10  and given sensors provided in the parking spots P 1  to P 3 . The descriptions about steps S 105 , S 106  in the above embodiment can be applied to the subsequent process. 
     Further, as one modification, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  may notify, via the communication portion  22 , a parking request to the user of the vehicle  10  from which information on its charged state is not obtainable among the vehicles  10  for car sharing, the parking request being a request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. More specifically, the controlling portion  21  of the information processing apparatus  20  notifies, via the communication portion  22 , the parking request to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C to the user of the vehicle  10  such as a gasoline-fueled automobile from which its SOC residual amount is not obtainable from among the vehicles  10  for car sharing, similarly to step S 102 . Hereby, the user of the vehicle  10  such as a gasoline-fueled automobile that does not require charging can be promoted to park the vehicle  10  in the parking spot P 2  or P 3  not equipped with the vehicle charger C. 
     Further, as one modification, a general-purpose computer may be functionalized as the information processing apparatus  20  according to the embodiment. More specifically, a program in which the process content to implement each function of the information processing apparatus  20  according to the embodiment is described is stored in a memory of the general-purpose computer and read and executed by a processor. Accordingly, this disclosure is also achievable as a program executable by a processor or a non-transitory computer readable storage medium in which the program is stored.