JP5573722B2 - Application distribution system and application distribution server - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an application distribution system and an application distribution server that distribute application software (hereinafter, abbreviated as “application”) to information communication terminals, and more specifically to an auxiliary device that can be registered in an information communication terminal. The present invention relates to a system and a server for efficiently distributing an application used as a server.

  With the spread of the Internet, a method of downloading and installing various applications that operate on information communication terminals such as computers and portable terminals from a server has become common.

  Some medical / health-related apps collect and process data from various sensors (or measuring devices) such as weight scales, blood pressure monitors, and pedometers, and users can use the sensors they use. You need to select and install the right app. When this type of sensor is used in a mobile communication device, the sensor can be used by connecting to the mobile communication device through a short-range wireless system such as BlueTooth (registered trademark) or infrared communication and performing a predetermined registration operation. .

  Patent Document 1 discloses a system in which a blood pressure measuring device is connected to a mobile phone by infrared communication, a measurement result is transferred to a server via the mobile phone, and an application program necessary for the mobile phone is transferred from a program server. Have been described.

JP 2004-147705 A

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, since the measuring instrument and the application program are associated from this place, the user simply accesses the designated server, and downloads and installs the designated application program. . Alternatively, it is possible that only a download operation is required.

  In recent years, not limited to sensor vendors, applications corresponding to a plurality of products from different manufacturers have appeared, and sites providing such various applications have been prepared on the network. As a result, it is difficult for the user to find an application corresponding to an auxiliary device such as a sensor to be used. Furthermore, it is difficult to determine which is more suitable when there are a plurality of corresponding applications.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an application distribution system and an application distribution server that can solve such problems and can easily select an application suitable for an auxiliary device to be used.

An application distribution system according to the present invention is an application distribution system including a communication terminal that can register an auxiliary device and a server that distributes an application that uses the auxiliary device to the communication terminal. A hardware information acquisition unit that acquires hardware information of an auxiliary device, an application request transmission unit that transmits an application request including the hardware information to a server, and a list reception unit that receives an application list from the server The hardware information includes at least one of the product name of the auxiliary device and the device specifying keyword included in the registration process of the auxiliary device, and the server follows the hardware information included in the application request, Generate an app list showing the apps that use the auxiliary device, Correspondence between application list transmission means to be transmitted to the communication terminal, application / device correspondence table for associating the application with the product as the auxiliary device, device / function correspondence table for associating the product as the auxiliary device with the function, and the application and function An application / function correspondence table and a keyword / function correspondence table for associating the device-specific keyword with the function, and the application list sending means refers to the application / device correspondence table and indicates the product name The device / function correspondence table and the application / function correspondence table when the device corresponding to the device and the app corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name are not registered in the app / device correspondence table. To search for an application corresponding to the function of the auxiliary device indicated by the product name, and the keyword / function correspondence table. Fine the reference to application-function correspondence tables, characterized by comprising means for retrieving the application corresponding to the function corresponding to the device specific keyword of the hardware information.

An application distribution server according to the present invention is an application distribution server that distributes an application that uses an auxiliary device to a communication terminal that can register the auxiliary device, and includes hardware information of the auxiliary device from the communication terminal. Means for receiving an application request including hardware information including the product name of the auxiliary device and at least one of the device identification keywords included in the registration process of the auxiliary device, and an application using the auxiliary device according to the hardware information An app list transmission means for generating an app list indicating the app and transmitting it to the communication terminal, an app / device correspondence table for associating the app with the product as the auxiliary device, and a device / function associating with the product and function as the auxiliary device Correspondence table, application / function correspondence table that correlates apps and functions, and A device-specific keyword and a function-corresponding table for associating functions with each other, and the app list transmission means searches for an app corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name with reference to the app-device correspondence table. Means and the application corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name are not registered in the application / device correspondence table, the product name is referred to by referring to the device / function correspondence table and the application / function correspondence table. The function corresponding to the device specific keyword of the hardware information is searched by referring to the means for searching for the application corresponding to the function of the auxiliary device indicated by, the keyword / function correspondence table and the application / function correspondence table. And a means for searching for an application .

  According to the present invention, a list of corresponding applications is transmitted with reference to the hardware information of the auxiliary device transmitted from the communication terminal, so that an application suitable for the auxiliary device to be used can be presented to the user of the communication terminal. .

It is a schematic block diagram of one Example of this invention. It is an operation | movement flowchart of the communication terminal (client) of a present Example. It is an operation | movement flowchart of the server of a present Example. It is an example of composition of an application and apparatus correspondence table. It is an example of composition of a device and a function correspondence table. It is a structural example of an application and function correspondence table. It is a structural example of a KW / function correspondence table. It is an example of composition of an application statistics table.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment includes a server client system in which a communication terminal 10 (10a to 10c) is connected to an application distribution server (hereinafter abbreviated as a server) 50 via a network 40. FIG. 2 shows an operation flowchart of the communication terminal 10 as a client, and FIG. 3 shows an operation flowchart of the server 50. The communication terminal 10 (10a to 10c) is typically a mobile communication terminal such as a so-called smartphone, notebook computer, or tablet terminal, but may be a stationary communication terminal such as a desktop computer.

  The communication terminal 10 includes a CPU 12 that controls the whole, a memory 14 that primarily stores programs and data for the CPU 12, an application recording medium such as an SSD (Solid State Disk) 16 that stores applications downloaded from the server 50, and characters An operating device 18 for inputting, zooming and scrolling is provided. The communication device 20 communicates with the server 50 via the network 40. The display device 22 displays various information for operating the communication terminal 10 and operating an application operating on the communication terminal 10. The wireless communication device 24 communicates with the auxiliary device 30 (30a to 30c) by short-range wireless communication such as BlueTooth (registered trademark), infrared communication, or wireless LAN. The auxiliary device 30 is a device that is registered in the communication terminal 10 by a specific registration procedure and can be used in cooperation with an app that operates on the communication terminal 10. For example, in the case of a medical / health app, a blood pressure monitor, Various sensors such as a pedometer or a pulse meter. The product name of the auxiliary device 30 includes a sphygmomanometer, a pedometer, a pulse meter, a weight scale, and the like. The manufacturer name may be added to these, and the product may be a trademark.

  The CPU 12 communicates with and controls the memory 14, the SSD 16, the operation device 18, the communication device 20, the display device 22, and the wireless communication device 24 via the bus 28.

  On the other hand, the server 50 includes a CPU 52 that controls the whole, a memory 54 for the CPU 52, a hard disk 56 that stores various applications used in the communication terminals 10 (10 a to 10 c), and a communication terminal via the network 40. 10 (10a to 10c).

  The hard disk 56 searches for the auxiliary device 30 (30a to 30c) registered in the communication terminal 10 (10a to 10c), and downloads application software that recommends an application suitable for the auxiliary device 30 (30a to 30c). 56a (hereinafter referred to as “downloader”) and various medical / health-related applications 56b that are finally installed in the communication terminal 10 are stored.

  The server 50 also includes various tables 60, 62, 64, and 68 for assisting the user of the communication terminal (10a to 10c) to download a desired application. As shown in FIG. 4, the application / device correspondence table 60 is a table in which one or a plurality of corresponding products are recorded with their product names (and VIDs) for each application. As shown in FIG. 5, the device / function correspondence table 62 is a table in which the functions held for each product specified by the VID and the product name are recorded. As shown in FIG. 6, the application / function correspondence table 64 is a table in which functions that are available or required as auxiliary devices for each application are recorded. As shown in FIG. 7, the KW / function correspondence table 66 is a table that identifies a function corresponding to each keyword (device identification KW) that identifies the auxiliary device 30 that appears in the registration process of the auxiliary device 30. As shown in FIG. 8, the application statistics table 68 is a table that stores the application name, the number of downloads, the score (average value), and the cumulative score for each application, and determines the order on the application list to be presented to the user. Referenced when.

  For ease of understanding, the tables are illustrated and described as separate tables 60 to 68. However, it is obvious that a smaller number of tables or databases may be obtained by appropriately combining these tables in actual operation. is there. Furthermore, elements other than those described above may be included. For example, the number of users who input a score may be added to the application statistics table 68 so that the score (average) can be changed with respect to the addition of the score.

  The CPU 52 is connected to the memory 54, the hard disk 56, the communication device 58, the application / device correspondence table 60, the device / function correspondence table 62, the application / function correspondence table 64, the KW / function correspondence table 66, and the application statistics table via the bus 70. 68 and control them.

  Here, the operation of the communication terminal 10a and the server 50 will be described by taking as an example a case where the user of the communication terminal 10a downloads a medical / health-based application that can effectively use the auxiliary device 30a from the server 50 to the communication terminal 10a.

  The communication terminal 10a first downloads the downloader 56a from the server 50 and stores it in the SSD 16 according to a user instruction, and starts the downloader 56a from the SSD 16. FIG. 2 shows the operation of the downloader 56a on the communication terminal 10a.

  When the downloader (CPU 12) is activated on the communication terminal 10a, the downloader (CPU 12) first collects hardware information of the auxiliary device 30a registered in the communication terminal 10a. The downloader (CPU 12) acquires hardware information from the auxiliary device 30a when the auxiliary device 30a is actually accessible, and acquires hardware information from the registration process log when the auxiliary device 30a is not accessible. The hardware information that can be acquired from the auxiliary device 30a itself includes the VID (vendor ID) and product name of the auxiliary device 30a. In some cases, only the product name can be obtained without obtaining the VID (vendor ID). Further, from the registration process log, a keyword (KW) useful for specifying the function of the auxiliary device 30a, that is, a device specifying keyword is obtained.

  If the product name (and VID) cannot be acquired, the downloader may allow the user to input the product name.

  When the downloader (CPU 12) can acquire the hardware information (S2), the downloader (CPU 12) sends the application request including the acquired hardware information together with the designation of the application field (for example, the medical / health field here) to the communication device 20. To the server 50 (S3). When none of the VID, the product name, and the device specifying keyword is obtained (S2), the downloader (CPU 12) sends an application request that does not specify an auxiliary device (hardware) that operates in cooperation via the communication device 20 to the server 50. (S4).

  After steps S3 and S4, the downloader (CPU 12) waits to receive an application list from the server 50 (S5). When the application list is received from the server 50 (S5), the downloader (CPU 12) displays the received application list on the display device 22 and allows the user to select an application to be downloaded (S6). According to the application selection operation by the user operation device 18 (S6), the downloader (CPU 12) requests the server 50 to download the application selected by the user and downloads it from the server 50 (S7). When the user cancels the application selection (S6), the downloader (CPU 12) ends.

Downloader (CPU 12), after suitable equivalents of the trial period, receiving a rating input by the user for the downloaded application (S8), and transmits to the server 50 (S9). The score input (S8) and the transmission of the score to the server 50 (S9) may be executed on the downloaded application, or another application for inputting and transmitting the score is prepared. You can use it.

  The operation on the server 50 side will be described with reference to FIG. The server 50 is waiting for access from the communication terminal 10a. When receiving the application request, the CPU 52 operates according to the flowchart shown in FIG. That is, the CPU 52 determines whether or not the received application request includes a product name (S21). When the product name is included (S21), the CPU 52 compares the product name (and VID) included in the application request with the application / device correspondence table 60, and searches for an application corresponding to the product with this product name (S22). ). As shown in FIG. 4, the application / device correspondence table 60 is a table showing correspondence to a specific product for each application, and records one or more product names (and VIDs) corresponding to each application. .

  When one or more apps corresponding to the product name are found in the app / device correspondence table 60 (S23), the CPU 52 refers to the app statistics table 68, and finds the found apps in the order of their scores and the number of downloads. Then, an application list sorted according to a certain standard such as the order of registration date is generated and transmitted to the requesting communication terminal 10a (S24).

  When the corresponding application is not found in the application / device correspondence table 60 (S23), the CPU 52 checks the product name (and VID) against the device / function correspondence table 62 and searches for the function of the product (S25). As shown in FIG. 5, the device / function correspondence table 62 is a table in which one or more functions (or uses) of each product are classified for each product. For example, the pedometer is a function for counting the number of steps. In addition, it has a function to measure distance by setting the stride, and has a function to measure calorie consumption by setting calorie consumption for one step. Of course, for example, there is a device having a composite function that simply combines a plurality of functions, such as a blood pressure / pulse meter. In the device / function correspondence table 62, these functions are recorded separately for each product. The blood pressure / pulse meter is classified into both a blood pressure meter and a pulse meter as a product, and functions correspond to both blood pressure measurement and pulse measurement.

  When the function of the product having the product name included in the application request is found in the device / function correspondence table 62 (S26), the CPU 52 refers to the application / function correspondence table 64 and registers the application registered in the hard disk 56. The application corresponding to any of the functions found in step S25 is searched (S30). When one or more apps can be searched (S31), the CPU 52 refers to the app statistics table 68 and sorts the searched apps according to a certain standard such as the order of their scores, the number of downloads, the order of registration date, etc. An application list is generated and transmitted to the requesting communication terminal 10a (S32).

  When the product with the product name included in the application request is not registered in the device / function correspondence table 62, or when the product name is registered but the function is not registered (S26), the CPU 52 responds to the application request. It is checked whether or not a device specifying keyword is included (S27). When the device specifying keyword is included (S27), the CPU 52 compares the device specifying keyword with the keyword / function correspondence table 66 and searches for the function corresponding to the device specifying keyword (S28). The keyword / function correspondence table 66 is a table showing the functions indicated by the device specifying keywords as shown in FIG. The device identification keyword is, for example, English indicating a product name (for example, ABCedometer indicating a product name of a pedometer, DEFScale indicating a product name of a scale), or English indicating a function of a product (for example, functionally) Pedometers, scales, tonometers, weights, etc.), and functions corresponding to these include weight measurement, blood pressure measurement, pulse measurement, and the like.

  When one or a plurality of functions corresponding to the device specific keyword is found in the keyword / function correspondence table 66 (S29), the CPU 52 refers to the application / function correspondence table 64 and selects from among the applications registered in the hard disk 56. Then, an application corresponding to any of the functions found in step S28 is searched (S30). When one or more apps can be searched (S31), the CPU 52 refers to the app statistics table 68 and sorts the searched apps according to a certain standard such as the order of their scores, the number of downloads, the order of the most recent registration date, etc. A list is generated and transmitted to the requesting communication terminal 10a (S32).

  If an application corresponding to the function found in step S28 cannot be searched (S31), the CPU 52 refers to the application statistics table 68 and generates an application list extracted according to the score for all applications in the specified field. Then, it is transmitted to the requesting communication terminal 10a (S33).

  Even when the device specific keyword is not included in the application request (S27), the CPU 52 refers to the application statistics table 68 and generates an application list extracted according to the rating for all applications in the designated field. Then, the request is transmitted to the requesting communication terminal 10a (S33).

  Also, when the device specific keyword received together with the application request is not registered in the keyword / function correspondence table 66, or when one function for the device specific keyword is not registered in the keyword / function correspondence table 66 ( In S29, the CPU 52 refers to the application statistics table 68, generates an application list extracted according to the score for all applications in the designated field, and transmits the application list to the requesting communication terminal 10a (S33).

  The server 50 increments the number of downloads in the application statistics table 68 for the downloaded application. Further, when the score is transmitted from the communication terminal 10 (10a to 10c) using the application, the score (average) and the score total of the corresponding application in the application statistics table 68 are updated.

Regarding the display order of the application list, the number of downloads and the score (average) may be indexed and sorted in descending order. For example, according to the result of adding the number of downloads and the usage score (average) by a predetermined weighting factor, the corresponding applications are sorted in descending order of the result value. Thereby, the user of the communication terminal can preferentially select and install a popular application.

  Although the operation of the embodiment has been described in the case of distributing a medical / health-based application, the present invention is not limited to the distribution of such an application, and other operations that operate in cooperation with an auxiliary device registered in a communication terminal. Applicable for app distribution.

  Although the invention has been described with reference to specific illustrative embodiments, various modifications and alterations may be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the claims. This is obvious to an engineer in the field to which the present invention belongs, and such changes and modifications are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

10 (10a to 10c): Communication terminal 12: CPU
14: Memory 16: SSD (Solid State Disk)
18: Operation device 20: Communication device 22: Display device 24: Wireless communication device 28: Bus 30 (30a-30c): Auxiliary device 40: Network 50: Server 52: CPU
54: Memory 56: Hard disk 58: Communication device 56a: Downloader 56b: Application 60: Application / device correspondence table 62: Device / function correspondence table 64: Application / function correspondence table 66: KW / function correspondence table 68: Application statistics table 70 :bus

Claims (2)

An application distribution system comprising a communication terminal that can register an auxiliary device and a server that distributes an application that uses the auxiliary device to the communication terminal,
The communication terminal (10a)
Hardware information acquisition means (56a, S1) for acquiring hardware information of the auxiliary device;
An application request transmitting means (S3) for transmitting an application request including the hardware information to the server;
List receiving means for receiving an application list from the server (S5)
And
The hardware information includes at least one of the product name of the auxiliary device and the device identification keyword included in the registration process of the auxiliary device,
The server (50)
In accordance with the hardware information included in the application request, an application list transmission unit (S21 to S32, 58) that generates an application list indicating an application that uses the auxiliary device and transmits the application list to the communication terminal;
Application / device correspondence table (60) for associating apps with products that are auxiliary devices;
Device / function correspondence table (62) for associating products and functions as auxiliary devices,
Application / function correspondence table (64) for associating applications with functions;
Keyword / function correspondence table (66) for associating device-specific keywords with functions
And
The app list transmission means
Means for searching for an application corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name with reference to the application / device correspondence table (S22);
When the app corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name is not registered in the app / device correspondence table, the auxiliary indicated by the product name with reference to the device / function correspondence table and the app / function correspondence table Means (S25, S26, S30, S31, S32) for searching for an application corresponding to the function of the device;
Means for searching for an application corresponding to the function corresponding to the device specific keyword of the hardware information with reference to the keyword / function correspondence table and the application / function correspondence table (S28 to S32)
Application delivery system that characterized in that it comprises a door. An application distribution server that distributes an application that uses an auxiliary device to a communication terminal that can register the auxiliary device,
An application request including hardware information of the auxiliary device from the communication terminal (10a) including hardware information including at least one of the product name of the auxiliary device and a device specifying keyword included in the registration process of the auxiliary device. Means for receiving;
In accordance with the hardware information, an application list transmission unit (S21 to S32, 58) that generates an application list indicating an application that uses the auxiliary device and transmits the application list to the communication terminal;
Application / device correspondence table (60) for associating apps with products that are auxiliary devices;
Device / function correspondence table (62) for associating products and functions as auxiliary devices,
Application / function correspondence table (64) for associating applications with functions;
Keyword / function correspondence table (66) for associating device-specific keywords with functions
And
The app list transmission means
Means for searching for an application corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name with reference to the application / device correspondence table (S22);
When the app corresponding to the auxiliary device indicated by the product name is not registered in the app / device correspondence table, the auxiliary indicated by the product name with reference to the device / function correspondence table and the app / function correspondence table Means (S25, S26, S30, S31, S32) for searching for an application corresponding to the function of the device;
Means for searching for an application corresponding to the function corresponding to the device specific keyword of the hardware information with reference to the keyword / function correspondence table and the application / function correspondence table (S28 to S32)
Application distribution server that is characterized by comprising the door.

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