JR East Technical Review No.9

SSpecialpecial editionedition paperpaper Special edition paper STUDY ON NEW VALUE CREATION FOR A UBIQUITOUS SOCIETY Takeshi Nakagawa*, Mariko Utsunomiya*, Go Yanagisawa*, Fuminori Tsunoda* We carried out research to realize new information services that satisfy the diverse demands of customers from their origin to destination. We constructed an experimental ubiquitous information space, studied ubiquitous networking, and conducted R&D on new services using Suica ID and on a Suica business model which will create railway demand. Our goal in this is to achieve a vision for the station of the future: the‘Smart Station.’ • Keywords: Ubiquitous computing, Suica, Mobile Suica, Wireless LAN, IPv6, Human interface, Bluetooth 1 Introduction Problem: The current system does not show each customer's "face" ·Identify each customer Construction of ·Understand customers' location and situation Traditional information systems have been mass-oriented, providing Smart Station ·Understand customers' hobbies and preferences the same information to as many users as possible without particular Satisfy diversifying needs-creation of "ubiquitous environment" at station attention to individuals. But in this day and age, individual passen- Ubiquitous environment Only here gers with varied demands require elaborate services depending on Providing services in accordance Marketing and providing services Navigation in accordance with time and space in accordance with personal with personal situation their individual situations. Only now preferences and situation Hence, in this study, we aimed to provide high value-added services that meet passengers diversified needs, and carried out R&D to achieve the ideal form for future stations and railways. That was done Commuting Daytime Commuting Only you by establishing the Smart Station Vision based on the concept of ubiquitous computing (Fig. 1). Fig.1: Overview of Smart Station Vision Providing train operation information Smart Navigation in station 2 The Smart Station Vision to mobile phones The Smart Station Vision consists of the three pillars of "providing appropriate information", "creating added value" and "achieving Public network Departure place Providing information services by Suica ID comfortable traveling space", each of which has a keyword that expresses its direction. For instance, "navigation according to the Building a seamless Wireless LAN network Inside station individual's situation" means a system that aims to enable navigation High precision location detection system in accordance with the user's situation and destination. We aim to Public network achieve a system that chooses the most suitable and shortest route Base station and guides the user through the station by entering the destination Providing context-awareness information service Server on a ubiquitous terminal. The goal of our study is to create services Destination for the next generation that enable us to provide information meet- Fig.2: Smart Station Empirical Test ing the context of individual railway users (situation, location, request etc.) from departure to destination (Fig. 2). Construction of Ubiquitous 3 Information Space To achieve the Smart Station Vision, we have constructed a ubiquitous information space in the Research and Development Center of JR East (hereinafter referred as "the Center"). It is utilized as an information space that simulates stations and offices, and was built under the following three concepts. * Frontier Service Development Laboratory, Research and Development Center of JR East Group JR EAST Technical Review-No.9 17 Special edition paper 1) The space as an empirical test room and a showroom plays. 2) Integration of information and space through design 3) Achievement of a "Mixed Service Environment" by integrating a 3.3 Integration of Information Services variety of information services A ubiquitous society requires actual provision of elaborate services to users. To provide services to individual users in these circumstances 3.1 The Space as Empirical Test Room and a Showroom according to time and place, we have to integrate current separate Since we had no empirical testing environment for the study of pro- information services into one system. So, we built a network system viding information in our Laboratory, we tried to build the space to to enable the use of Web services and databases smoothly by intro- serve as both a functional environment and as a showroom. That ducing an optical network as well as by enhancing other existing would enable us to both conduct tests and to show visitors our wired and wireless networks. research anytime (Fig. 3). 3.4 Research on Ubiquitous Networks We built a next-generation network environment with the above- mentioned ubiquitous information space as the core. Specifically, we built a wireless LAN environment in Nisshin station (on the Kawagoe line), the station nearest to the Center. That is connected to the Internet by IPv6/v4 dual stack. We also installed a 5 GHz wireless LAN on the roof of the Center (Fig. 4). Rooftop 5 GHz Future issues wireless LAN · Research on seamless networks · R&D on high-precision location detection system Nisshin Station · IP phone using wireless LAN Frontier Service Development Laboratory Lab building 1F: Operation facilities testing room Fig.3: The Ubiquitous Information Space Base station Trilateration based on TDOA 3.2 Integration of Information and Space Through Design measurement (with approx. 1 - 3 m error) Router Other research We recognize that design of space is an extremely important factor to nstitutes building a ubiquitous information environment. Hence, we took Fig.4: Building a Ubiquitous Network both functionality and visual impression into account this time. This space has a structure that includes glass panels, speakers, LCD projec- Positioning Technology in a Station 4 Environment tors, control equipment, and touch panel displays attached to fur- nishing that creates a room outline with design elements. It is built Identifying the location of a person to provide personalized services is simply and functionally, with aluminum posts and steel connecters. an extremely important technology in a ubiquitous society. Here we We also avoided the poor appearance often caused by cables for will explain our efforts particularly for positioning technology for sta- information equipment by hiding them in the posts. tions. Under the concept of integration of IT and guidance displays, we made efforts to build an information space that presents an image of 4.1 Efforts for Positioning Technology for Stations a station. As for guidance displays, we reduced them in size to While GPS (Global Positioning System) is currently the star of posi- approx. 1/3 of the originals, which were too large for this space, and tioning technologies, popular for uses in car navigation as well as selected slightly darker colors to prevent them from being obscured mobile phones, GPS cannot be used in stations, which have much by bright commercial signs. As a symbol of the station-like atmos- indoor or semi-indoor space. Thus, we are carrying out technical phere, we set up automatic ticket gates and stairs to platforms. That tests of other positioning technologies (Fig. 5). completed the space built to resemble the area inside and outside of ticket gates and an approach to platforms. The guidance displays have infrared communications tags in them for positioning and providing information. We will plan to use those to conduct further studies on integration of IT and guidance dis- 18 JR EAST Technical Review-No.9 Special edition paper Using 2D bar codes Using Bluetooth and e-mail addresses with mobile phones. Using that ID information enables identification of individual customers for providing per- Bluetooth signal area sonalized services. QR code Bluetooth Click! built-in tag On this technological base, we studied and developed an information service to provide information about operation and stations to each Using RFID and IR tags Using wireless LAN Wireless LAN base station user using the individualÅfs Suica card and/or mobile phone to Base achieve "personal" customer satisfaction. station 5.1 "Cochira" Navigation Using Suica Server Server We developed a navigation system with Suica, aiming to achieve a Fig.5: Various Positioning Technologies service for smooth guidance to the user's destination (Fig. 7). This system has three features. 4.2 Positioning and Guidance Displays · Guidance to destination only by touching with a Suica card Since guidance displays are often put up at turning points of people's · Easy-to-understand interface movement through the station, it is highly probable that a person · Provision of personalized information needs to search for a location when at a guidance display. Thus, positioning technology using IT and guidance displays would work well together (Fig. 6). · Exit guidance Guidance in the user's language · Local area guidance Intuitive interface High-speed response system Sophisticated design Station navigation by Suica ID Creation of added value using Suica Highly reliable system · Stairway/exit guidance · Transfer guidance Fig.7: Outline of Cochira · Timetable By selecting a destination on the touch panel and registering a Suica Fig.6: Integration of Guidance displays and IT card with a touch on the reader, the system links the Suica's ID to the destination's ID and records that so this information can then be So, we designed a content delivery service that has links to guidance shared among terminals

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