Road traffic information communicating system and method

A road traffic information communication system comprising:

• a plurality of road traffic information communicators that are located at intervals and that transmit road traffic information;
• and
• a plurality of mobile communication terminal apparatuses mounted on a plurality of vehicles respectively,
• wherein each of the plurality of mobile communication terminal apparatuses comprises:
• an acquirer that acquires road traffic information from the road traffic information communicators, the road traffic information being obtained by the road traffic information communicators from a traffic information source other than the mobile communication terminal apparatus;
• a storage that stores first time-specific road traffic information comprising the acquired road traffic information to which a time that the road traffic information was acquired is added;
• a direction measurer that measures a traveling direction of a first vehicle having the mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon and generates traveling direction information;
• a receiver that receives traveling direction information indicating a traveling direction of a second vehicle having another mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon;
• an information selector that selects part of the stored first time-specific road traffic information, as second time-specific road traffic information, based on both the traveling direction of the first vehicle having the mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon and the traveling direction of the second vehicle, to acquire road traffic information relevant to the second vehicle;
• and
• a transmitter that transmits the selected second time-specific road traffic information, from the first vehicle having the mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon, to the other mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted on the second vehicle.

A method of communicating road traffic information between apparatuses in a road traffic communication system comprising a plurality of road traffic information communicators that are located at intervals and transmit road traffic information and a plurality of mobile communication terminal apparatuses that are mounted on a plurality of vehicles respectively, the method comprising, at each of the plurality of mobile communication terminal apparatuses:

• acquiring road traffic information from the road traffic information communicators, the road traffic information being obtained by the road traffic information communicators from a traffic information source other than the mobile communication terminal apparatus;
• storing first time-specific road traffic information comprising the acquired road traffic information to which a time that the road traffic information was acquired is added;
• measuring a traveling direction of a first vehicle having the mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon and generating traveling direction information;
• receiving traveling direction information indicating a traveling direction of a second vehicle having another mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon;
• selecting part of the stored first time-specific road traffic information, as second time-specific road traffic information, based on both the traveling direction of the first vehicle and the traveling direction of the second vehicle, to acquire road traffic information relevant to the second vehicle;
• and
• transmitting the selected second time-specific road traffic information from the first vehicle having the mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon to the other mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted on the second vehicle.

A non-transitory computer readable medium that is stored in a mobile communication terminal apparatus to be mounted on a first vehicle, the computer readable medium storing an executable road traffic information communication program that causes a computer to execute:

• acquiring road traffic information from road traffic information communicators, the road traffic information being obtained by the road traffic information communicators from a traffic information source other than the mobile communication terminal apparatus;
• storing first time-specific road traffic information comprising the acquired road traffic information to which a time that the road traffic information was acquired is added;
• measuring a traveling direction of a first vehicle having the mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon and generating traveling direction information;
• receiving traveling direction information indicating a traveling direction of a second vehicle having another mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted thereon;
• selecting part of the stored first time-specific road traffic information, as second time-specific road traffic information, based on both the traveling direction of the first vehicle and the traveling direction of the second vehicle, to acquire road traffic information relevant to the second vehicle;
• and
• transmitting the selected second time-specific road traffic information, from the first vehicle having the terminal apparatus mounted thereon, to the other mobile communication terminal apparatus mounted on the second vehicle.