JP5821283B2 - Information providing apparatus and information providing method - Google Patents

Description

  This case relates to an information providing apparatus and an information providing method.

  In companies that develop transportation facilities (for example, electric railways), various studies have been made on measures for increasing railway users and passengers at each station.

  Patent Documents 1 to 3 disclose a method for prompting purchase at a specific station or store. For example, Patent Document 1 provides a mechanism that eliminates a user's psychological resistance to a stopover by providing information on a stopover area in the scheduled use section starting from the user's use of transportation. It is disclosed. Further, Patent Document 2 discloses a method of providing information to a user who matches a condition when receiving campaign information in which the action history is set from the user's action history such as transportation use or store purchase. Has been. Patent Document 3 discloses a technology for discounting a fare or the like to a user who purchased at a store using a transportation facility when the use station before and after the purchase meets a predetermined condition.

  On the other hand, in Patent Document 4, it is assumed that a product used by a purchaser at a store at a station that is frequently used from outside the daily route (a product with a large use barrier) has a high value, and an advertisement for the product is displayed. A method of preferential delivery is disclosed.

JP 2003-296413 A JP 2010-277360 A JP 2006-134018 A JP 2004-38887 A

  When a company that operates a transportation system provides advertising information to transportation users, the user who is the target of provision and the information to be provided are selected based on the needs and viewpoints unique to the transportation company. There is a need to. For example, it is important for a transportation company to increase the number of passengers at a station in order to increase profits. Therefore, a transportation company intentionally develops a campaign to increase passengers at specific stations.

  The techniques described in Patent Documents 1, 3, and 4 provide information related to a place (for example, a use section or a use station) that a predetermined user does not normally use. However, with these technologies, it is not possible to select a user who is suitable for increasing the number of passengers at a specific station. In addition, the technique described in Patent Document 2 is intended to mediate campaign information registered by each of a plurality of stores (operators developing a campaign) to a user. Therefore, although the user who should provide information is selected, there is no idea of how to select a suitable user for increasing the number of passengers at a specific station, which is a problem specific to the transportation company.

  Therefore, the present case has been made in view of the above problems, and provides an information providing apparatus and an information providing method capable of providing information for efficiently increasing the number of users at a specific use point of transportation. The purpose is to do.

The information providing apparatus described in the present specification is associated with a user who uses a transportation facility, a use point where the user uses the transportation facility, a use date and time when the transportation facility is used, and an article for the user. Alternatively, the provision type of the article or service is defined in association with the provider who provided the service, the history information storage means for recording the provision date and time when the article or service was provided to the user, and the article or service provider. Recorded in the history information storage means, the condition input means for accepting the designated provider point specifying the specific use point of the transportation facility, the specified use point specifying the provider provision type, and the specified provision type specifying the provider provision type. Based on the information for each user, there is an article for the user after the user uses one of the points of use until the next or the same point of use. Identifies the provider who provided the service, identifies the user who received the goods or service, and the point of use used immediately before the user received the provision from the provider, and the provider information The user candidate extraction means for specifying the provision type corresponding to the provider specified based on the storage means, the specified provision type received by the condition input means, and the provision type specified by the user candidate extraction means are the same In addition, the designated use point and the designation for the user identified by the user candidate extraction unit are different from the designated use point received by the condition input unit and the use point identified by the user candidate extraction unit. Determining means for determining to notify the information of the provider corresponding to the provision type .

The information providing method described in this specification includes a condition input step for accepting a designated use point that designates a specific use point of a transportation facility, and a designated provision type that designates a provider's provision type, and a use that uses a transportation facility. In correspondence with the user, the user uses the transportation facility, the date and time when the transportation facility is used, the provider who provided the user with the article or service, and the user the article or service. Based on the information for each user recorded in the history information storage means that recorded the provided provision date and time, from the use of one of the use points to the next use of the same or another use point The provider who provided the goods or services to the user in the meantime is specified, and the user who received the goods or services is used immediately before receiving the provision from the provider. A user candidate extraction step for specifying a use point and a provision type corresponding to the provider specified based on the provider information storage means, a designated provision type received in the condition input step, and the user The provision type specified in the candidate extraction step is the same, and the specified use point received in the condition input step and the use point specified in the user candidate extraction step are different from each other specified in the user candidate extraction step An information providing method in which a computer executes a determination step of determining to notify a user of information on a provider corresponding to the designated use point and the designated provision type .

  The information providing apparatus and the information providing method described in the present specification have an effect that it is possible to provide information for efficiently increasing the number of users at a specific use point of transportation.

It is a figure showing roughly the composition of the information service system concerning one embodiment. 2A is a hardware configuration diagram of the information providing server, and FIG. 2B is a hardware configuration diagram of the operator terminal. FIG. 3A is a hardware configuration diagram of the user terminal, and FIG. 3B is a hardware configuration diagram of the information collection server. It is a functional block diagram of an information provision server. It is a figure which shows client TBL. It is a figure which shows card utilization log | history TBL. It is a figure which shows path | route TBL. It is a figure which shows total TBL classified by station according to user. It is a figure which shows the living area TBL classified by user. It is a figure which shows shop TBL. It is a figure which shows store evaluation TBL. It is a figure which shows category TBL classified by user according to station. FIG. 13A shows the target user TBL, and FIG. 13B shows the user TBL. It is a functional block diagram of an information collection server. It is a flowchart which shows a series of processes of an information provision server. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of a login authentication process. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of total TBL preparation process classified by station according to user. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of the life zone TBL preparation process classified by user. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of a shop evaluation TBL preparation process. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of the category TBL creation process classified by station according to user. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of a recommendation process. It is a flowchart which shows the specific process of a recommendation determination process. It is a figure which shows the reading screen of card utilization log | history data. It is a figure which shows the screen of recommendation object extraction conditions. It is a figure which shows the screen of recommendation. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect of one Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the modification of a recommendation determination process.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the information providing system will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 schematically shows a configuration of an information providing system 100 according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the information providing system 100 includes an information providing server 10 as an information providing device, an operator terminal 20, a user terminal 30, an information collecting server 40, and a card reader 50. Each of these devices is connected to a network 70 such as the Internet.

  The information providing server 10 is located in the vicinity of the specific station with respect to the specific user extracted from the users who use the transportation system in order to increase the number of passengers at the specific station (use point of the transportation system). It is a server that provides store information. The information providing server 10 has a hardware configuration as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2A, the information providing server 10 includes a CPU 190, a ROM 192, a RAM 194, a storage unit (here, HDD (Hard Disk Drive)) 196, a network interface 197, a portable storage medium drive 199, and the like. Each component of the information providing server 10 is connected to the bus 198. In the information providing server 10, the CPU 190 executes the program stored in the ROM 192 or the HDD 196 or the program read from the portable storage medium 191 by the portable storage medium drive 199, thereby realizing the functions of the respective units in FIG. Is done. Details of FIG. 4 will be described later.

  The operator terminal 20 is a terminal such as a PC (Personal Computer), and is a terminal for inputting various setting contents to the information providing server 10. The operator terminal 20 is used by a person (hereinafter referred to as an “operator”) who receives a request from a company that develops a transportation facility (for example, an electric railway business). The operator terminal 20 has a hardware configuration as shown in FIG. That is, as shown in FIG. 2B, the operator terminal 20 includes a CPU 290, ROM 292, RAM 294, a storage unit (HDD in this case) 296, a network interface 297, a display unit 293, an input unit 295, and the like. Each unit is connected to a bus 298.

  The user terminal 30 is a terminal such as a PC, a mobile phone, or a smartphone, and is a terminal capable of sending and receiving electronic mail. The user terminal 30 has a hardware configuration as shown in FIG. 3A, the user terminal 30 includes a CPU 390, a ROM 392, a RAM 394, a storage unit (HDD in this case) 396, a network interface 397, a display unit 393, an input unit 395, and the like. Each unit is connected to a bus 398.

  The information collection server 40 is a server that collects information acquired by the card reader 50 and provides the collected information to the information providing server 10. The information collection server 40 has a hardware configuration as shown in FIG. That is, as shown in FIG. 3B, the information collection server 40 includes a CPU 490, a ROM 492, a RAM 494, a storage unit (HDD in this case) 496, a network interface 497, a portable storage medium drive 499, and the like. Each unit is connected to a bus 498. In the information collection server 40, the CPU 490 executes the program stored in the ROM 492 or the HDD 496 or the program read from the portable storage medium 491 by the portable storage medium drive 499, thereby realizing the functions of the respective units in FIG. Is done. Details of FIG. 14 will be described later.

  The card reader 50 is a reading terminal capable of communicating with the IC card 60 provided at a ticket gate of a station or a cash register of a store. The IC card 60 is a card possessed by each user, and can be used for transportation at a store or purchased at a store for the amount charged (paid) to the card reader 50 by holding or holding the card. is there. The card reader 50 acquires the usage history of the IC card 60 and transmits it to the information collection server 40.

  Next, the function of the information providing server 10 will be described in detail based on FIG. FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the information providing server 10. As shown in FIG. 4, in the information providing server 10, the CPU 190 executes a program, whereby the login authentication unit 102, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104, the evaluation unit 106, the identification unit 108, and user extraction as a user candidate extraction unit. The function as the part 110, the condition input part 111 as a condition input means, and the provision part 112 as a determination means is implement | achieved. Further, the information providing server 10 includes a client table (hereinafter referred to as “TBL”) 120 stored in the HDD 196 or the like, a card use history TBL 122 as a history information storage unit, a route TBL 124, a total TBL 126 for each user by station, a user It has another living area TBL128, a store TBL130 as a provider information storage means, a store evaluation TBL132, a user-specific station category TBL134, a target user TBL136, and a user TBL138.

  When there is a login operation from the operator terminal 20, the login authentication unit 102 authenticates whether or not to permit login using an employee ID or password.

  The boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 refers to the card use history TBL122 and extracts the basic living sphere of each user and the purchasing station. Moreover, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 extracts passing stations based on the route TBL124 and the basic life sphere of each user. Then, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 stores the extracted information in the user-specific life zone TBL 128 for each user (for each card ID). Here, “basic living area” means a station where each user frequently gets on and off the transportation, and “purchasing station” means a station where each user gets off the transportation before purchasing at the store. Means. The “passing station” means a station through which each user passes when moving between basic life zones.

  The evaluation unit 106 refers to the card use history TBL122 and the purchase station of the user-specific life sphere TBL128, identifies a store purchased after any user gets off at the purchase station, and evaluates the store. . Further, the evaluation unit 106 generates a store evaluation TBL 132 from the evaluation result and the store TBL 130.

  Based on the evaluation result (store evaluation TBL132) of the evaluation unit 106, the specifying unit 108 is a store that should be notified (recommended) to the user, that is, a store that is worth notifying the information (hereinafter, “target” A store).

  Based on the card usage history TBL122, the user extraction unit 110 collects the categories (provided types) of products purchased by each user at each station, and generates a user-specific station-specific category TBL134. Further, the user extraction unit 10 selects a user who satisfies a predetermined standard from a plurality of users based on the generated user-specific station category TBL 134 as an information provision target user (hereinafter referred to as “target user”). Extract. The predetermined standard will be described later.

  The condition input unit 111 receives an input of conditions (category, station) related to a recommendation target input at the operator terminal 20.

  The providing unit 112 provides the target store information to the user extracted by the user extracting unit 110 based on the user TBL138. In addition, the provision part 112 shall provide the object user (user terminal 30) with the information of an object store with an email.

  Next, details of each table of the information providing server 10 will be described.

  The client TBL 120 is a table that stores information on operators who are permitted to use the operator terminal 20. As shown in FIG. 5, the client TBL 120 stores an “employee ID” that is an identifier of the operator, a “password” determined by the operator, and an “name” of the operator in association with each other.

  The card usage history TBL 122 is a table that stores the usage history of the IC card 60 that is aggregated for each user. The card usage history TBL 122 is associated with the user who uses the transportation facility, and the usage point (boarding station) where the user uses the transportation facility. It is a table which memorize | stores a utilization date and time, a provider (store) which provided goods and services to a user, provision date and time, and the like. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the card usage history TBL 122 includes “card ID”, “terminal ID”, “terminal type”, “date”, and “time” of the IC card 60 held by each user. , “Entry line ward”, “Incoming station order”, “Outgoing line ward” “Exit station order”, “Processing”, “Amount”, “Balance”, and “Remarks” are stored in association with each other. Among these, the “terminal ID” and “terminal type” fields record the ID of the card reader 50 that communicated with the IC card 60 and the type of the card reader. Types of card readers include ticket gate terminals, merchandise sales terminals, ticket gates, contact ticket gates, and the like. In addition, in the “entrance ward” and “arrival station order” fields, the name of the electric railway company and the station name of the ticket gate when the ticket gate is used to enter the ticket gate using the IC card 60 are recorded. When the ticket gate is issued using the IC card 60 with the ticket gate machine, the name of the electric railway company and the station name of the ticket gate are recorded in the “departure zone” and “departure station order” columns. When the IC card 60 is used at a store or the like, the store name is recorded in the “Department Line” field, and the branch name of the store is recorded in the “Departure Station Order” (in this case, “Incoming Line” Nothing is recorded in the columns of “City” and “Order of station”. In addition, when the IC card 60 is used on a bus, the bus company name is recorded in the “Department Line” column, and the bus system is recorded in the “Departure Station Order” (also in this case “Ingress District”). , Nothing is recorded in the column of “Order of station”.) In the “Process” column, whether the IC card 60 has been used for payment or whether the IC card 60 has been charged (charged) is recorded. Also, the amount paid or deposited is recorded in “Amount”, the amount deposited (charged) in the IC card 60 is recorded in “Balance”, and “Bus etc.” “Product sales” etc. are recorded.

  The route TBL124 is a table prepared in advance and is a table in which adjacent stations of each station of transportation are defined. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, “route name”, “electric railway company”, “station name”, and “adjacent station” are stored in association with each other in the route TBL 124.

  The station-by-user tabulation TBL 126 is a table generated for each user, and is a table in which the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 tabulates which station each user uses and how much. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, the total TBL 126 by station by user shows “number of use” and “number of use on weekdays” for “city” indicating a railway company and “station” indicating a station name. “Weekday”, “Holiday” indicating the number of times the holiday is used, “Number of station arrivals”, “Morning”, “Noon”, “Evening”, “Night”, “Departing station count”, “Departing station count” “Morning”, “Noon”, “Evening”, “Night”, and “Number of product sales” are recorded in association with each other.

  The user-specific life zone TBL 128 is a table that stores a basic life zone, a purchasing station, and a passing station for each user. This user-specific life zone TBL 128 is generated by the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104. As shown in FIG. 9, the “card ID”, “basic living area”, “purchasing station”, and “passing station” of the IC card 60 owned by the user are stored in the user-specific life area TBL 128 in association with each other. Is done.

  The store TBL 130 is a table for managing a store by defining a product or service provision type (category) in association with a product or service provider (store). Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the store TBL 130 includes “store ID”, “store name” that are store identifiers, “store category” that indicates a store type, and “electric railway” related to a station near the store. “Company name” and “Nearest station name” are stored in association with each other. The “nearest station name” is set when, for example, a store evaluation TBL 132 described later is created. In other words, when the evaluation unit 106 determines that the stop station immediately before the product sales history of the user purchase is the purchase station of the user, the evaluation unit 106 temporarily stores the station and determines the use history of all users. Set a station with many stations as the nearest station. However, it is not limited to such a setting method, but the “nearest station name” is set by the operator / administrator of this system, searched on the Internet, etc., or in the store introduction information provided by a third party. You may set the nearest station included.

  The store evaluation TBL 132 is a table that stores points based on the evaluation of the evaluation unit 106 for each store. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, the store evaluation TBL 132 is a table in which a point column is added to the store TBL 130 of FIG.

  The user-specific station-specific category TBL134 is a table that summarizes the categories of stores purchased by each user at each station. The user-specific station-specific category TBL 134 is generated by the user extraction unit 110. As illustrated in FIG. 12, the user-specific station-specific category TBL 134 stores “card ID”, “station”, and “store category” of the IC card 60 owned by each user in association with each other. The number of purchases is recorded in the “store category” column.

  The target user TBL 136 is a table that stores the user's card ID extracted by the user extraction unit 110 (see FIG. 13A). The user TBL 138 is a table that manages information on users who have the IC card 60. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 13B, the user TBL 138 includes a “card ID” of a card held by each user, a “name”, “address”, “gender”, “age” of each user. "And" e-mail "are stored in association with each other.

  Next, functions of the information collection server 40 in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 shows a functional block diagram of the information collection server 40.

  As illustrated in FIG. 14, in the information collection server 40, functions as the information collection unit 402 and the information provision unit 404 are realized by the CPU 490 executing a program.

  The information collecting unit 402 collects the usage history data of the IC card 60 from the card reader 50 and generates the card usage history TBL 122 (FIG. 6). The information providing unit 404 transmits the card usage history TBL 122 generated by the information collecting unit 402 to the information providing server 10. The information providing unit 404 may transmit the card use history TBL 122 to the information providing server 10 at a predetermined interval (for example, every day or every week). Further, the information providing unit 404 may transmit the card use history TBL 122 to the information providing server 10 based on a transmission request input from the operator via the operator terminal 20.

  Next, processing (information provision processing by the information provision server 10) by the information provision system 100 of the present embodiment will be described along the flowcharts of FIGS. 15 to 21 and with reference to other drawings as appropriate.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a series of processing of the information providing server 10. In the processing of FIG. 15, login authentication processing (step S10), file import (step S11), user-specific total TBL creation processing by station (step S12), user-specific life zone TBL creation processing (step S13), store evaluation TBL creation The process (step S14), the user-specific station-specific category TBL creation process (step S15), and the recommendation process (step S16) are sequentially executed. Hereinafter, each process of FIG. 15 will be described in detail.

(Login authentication process (step S10))
In the login authentication process in step S10, a process according to the flowchart of FIG. 16 is executed. In the process of FIG. 16, first, in step S <b> 20, the login authentication unit 102 waits until an employee ID and password are input from the operator terminal 20. The login authentication unit 102 proceeds to step S22 when the employee ID and password are input by the operator.

  In step S <b> 22, the login authentication unit 102 acquires the employee ID and password input from the operator terminal 20. In the next step S24, the login authentication unit 102 determines whether or not the client TBL 120 has a record (corresponding record) in which the acquired employee ID matches the password. If the determination here is affirmative, the routine proceeds to step S11 in FIG. On the other hand, if the determination in step S24 is negative (if login fails), the process proceeds to step S26, and the login authentication unit 102 displays an error on the display unit 293 of the operator terminal 20. Then, all the processes in FIG. 15 are finished.

(File import (step S11))
When the login authentication is successful in step S10, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 performs file import in step S11. Specifically, the boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 issues a file transmission request to the information providing unit 404 of the information collecting server 40 and takes in the file (card use history TBL 122) transmitted from the information providing unit 404. In this case, the boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 displays the card usage history data reading screen shown in FIG. 23 on the display unit 293 of the operator terminal 20 and issues a transmission request for the file selected by the operator on the screen. Note that this step is omitted when the boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 automatically acquires data transmitted from the information providing unit 404 at predetermined time intervals. In addition, an operator or the like may set which period of data is to be used in the captured file (card use history TBL122). Alternatively, an operator or the like may determine a usage period (the most recent predetermined period (such as one year)) in advance.

(Total TBL creation processing by station by user (step S12))
In the next step S12, processing according to the flowchart of FIG. 17 is executed. In addition, at the stage where the process of step S12 is started, it is assumed that all values of the total TBL 126 for each station by station (FIG. 8) are cleared. In the process of FIG. 17, first, in step S30, the boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 reads one record of the card use history TBL 122 (FIG. 6).

  Next, in step S32, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 determines whether or not the read record is a product sales history from the “remarks” column of the record. If the determination here is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S40. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S34.

  In step S34, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 determines whether or not it is a ticket gate history. Here, when “ticket gate” is recorded in the “terminal type” column of the read record, the determination in step S34 is affirmed, and the process proceeds to step S36.

  If transfering it to step S36, the boarding / exiting station extraction part 104 will record the content of a record to total TBL126 (FIG. 8) according to a station according to a user (the numerical value of a corresponding column will be counted up). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S38.

  If the determination in step S34 is negative, that is, if it is not in the ticket gate history, the process proceeds to step S38 without passing through step S36.

  If the record is a history of product sales (the determination in step S32 is affirmed), and the process proceeds to step S40, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 counts the number of product sales at the previous station in the user-specific station total TBL 126. Count up the value of. That is, if sales are recorded in the “Remarks” column of the read record, and the station that got off just before that is, for example, “Motosumiyoshi Station”, the TBL126 (FIG. 8) for each user-specific station Count up the value in the “Product Sales” column at Motosumiyoshi Station. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S38.

  In step S38, the boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 determines whether or not all records are completed. When the determination here is negative (when there is a record that has not been read), the process returns to step S30, and the processes after step S30 are repeated.

  If the determination in step S38 is affirmative, the entire process in FIG. 17 is terminated, and the process proceeds to step S13 in FIG. At the stage of shifting to step S13, the total TBL 126 for each station as shown in FIG. 8 is generated (created) for the number of all users.

(User life sphere TBL creation processing (step S13))
In the process of step S13, the process according to the flowchart of FIG. 18 is executed. Note that at the time when the process of step S13 is started, it is assumed that all the fields of the user-specific life sphere TBL128 (FIG. 9) have been cleared.

  In the process of FIG. 18, first, in step S50, the boarding / exiting station extracting unit 104 reads one record of the total TBL 126 (FIG. 8) by station by user.

  Next, in step S52, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 determines whether or not the “usage count” is larger than a reference value. Here, the “reference value” means a value (threshold value) for determining whether or not a station is frequently used. For example, an average value of the number of times of use of all stations or a predetermined value for the average value is used. It is assumed that a value obtained by accumulating numbers can be set. If the determination in step S52 is affirmative, the process proceeds to step S60. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S54. If the determination in step S52 is affirmative, that is, if the station of the read record is a frequently used station, in step S60, the “basic life area” of the user-specific life area TBL128 (FIG. 9). The station of the record that has been read is recorded in the field "", and the process proceeds to step S58.

  On the other hand, if the determination in step S52 is negative, in step S54, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 determines whether the number of sales is greater than zero. If the determination here is affirmative, that is, if the station of the read record is a purchasing station, the process proceeds to step S56. In step S56, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 records the station of the record read in the “purchasing station” field of the life sphere by user TBL128, and the process proceeds to step S58. If the determination in step S54 is negative, the process proceeds to step S58 without passing through step S56.

  In step S58, the boarding / exiting station extraction unit 104 determines whether or not all records have been completed. If the determination is negative, the process returns to step S50, and the processes after step S50 are repeated. Then, when the determination in step S58 is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S62.

  If transfering it to step S62, the boarding / exiting station extraction part 104 will record the station between the basic life areas of each record of the user-specific life area TBL128 with reference to the route TBL124 in the user-specific life area TBL128 as a passing station.

  As described above, at the stage where all the processes in FIG. 18 are completed, the generation (creation) of the user-specific life sphere TBL 128 in FIG. 9 is completed. For example, since the user with the card ID = 1000111 in FIG. 8 frequently uses Motosumiyoshi Station, Shibuya Station, and Hamamatsucho Station, these stations become “basic living areas”. In addition, Jiyugaoka Station and Oimachi Station, where the number of product sales is not 0 at stations other than the basic living area, are “purchasing stations”, and a station between the basic living area stations is a “passing station”.

(Store evaluation TBL creation process (step S14))
When the process proceeds to step S14 in FIG. 15, processing according to the flowchart in FIG. 19 is executed. In the process of FIG. 19, in step S70, the evaluation unit 106 copies the store TBL 130 to the store evaluation TBL 132 (at this stage, the point column of the store evaluation TBL 132 in FIG. 11 is blank).

  Next, in step S72, the evaluation unit 106 reads one record of the card usage history TBL122 (FIG. 6).

  In step S74, the evaluation unit 106 determines whether the read record is a product sales history. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S80. If the determination is positive, the process proceeds to step S76.

  When the process proceeds to step S76 (when it is a history of product sales), the evaluation unit 106 determines whether or not the last stop station is the purchase station of the user. In this determination, the evaluation unit 106 refers to the user-specific life sphere TBL128. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S80. If the determination is positive, the process proceeds to step S78.

  When the process proceeds to step S78 (when the getting-off station just before the purchase is not in the basic living area), the evaluation unit 106 adds points to the corresponding store of the store evaluation TBL132. In other words, the evaluation unit 106 adds (evaluates) points to the store where the user has bothered to get off the store. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S80.

  If transfering it to step S80, the evaluation part 106 will judge whether the reading of all the records of card | curd utilization log | history TBL122 was complete | finished. If the determination is negative, the process returns to step S72, and the processes after step S72 are repeated. Then, when the determination in step S80 is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S82. It should be noted that the store evaluation TBL 132 of FIG. 11 has been generated (created) at the stage of shifting to step S82.

  In step S <b> 82, the specifying unit 108 specifies a store having a point number equal to or greater than a predetermined value in the store evaluation TBL 132 as a target store recommended for providing information. When the above process ends, the process proceeds to step S15 in FIG.

(User-specific station-specific category TBL creation process (step S15))
In step S15 in FIG. 15, processing according to the flowchart in FIG. 20 is executed. It should be noted that at the time when the process of step S15 is started, all the columns of the user-specific station category TBL134 (FIG. 12) are cleared.

  In the process of FIG. 20, first, in step S90, the user extraction unit 110 reads one record of the card usage history TBL122.

  Next, in step S92, the user extraction unit 110 determines whether or not the product sales history. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S96. If the determination is positive, the process proceeds to step S94.

  When the process proceeds to step S94, the user extraction unit 110 counts up the value in the corresponding column of the user-specific station category TBL134 based on the user, station, store name, and store TBL130 of the read record. Here, the store category of the store TBL 130 of FIG. 10 may be different from the category of the user-specific station category TBL of FIG. 12, for example, “luxury pastry” of FIG. 10 is a character string of the category of FIG. Includes “confectionery”. Therefore, the user extraction unit 110 treats the category “luxury Western confectionery” in FIG. 10 as being included in the category “confectionery” in FIG. The same applies to other categories. Note that the category of FIG. 10 and the category of FIG. 12 may be the same. When the process of step S94 ends, the process proceeds to step S96.

  In step S96, the user extraction unit 110 determines whether all records have been read. If the determination here is negative, the process returns to step S90 and the same processing as described above is repeated. On the other hand, if the determination in step S96 is affirmative, the entire process in FIG. 20 is terminated, and the process proceeds to step S16 in FIG. In addition, in the stage which transfers to step S16 of FIG. 15, it will be in the state by which the category TBL134 according to user of FIG. 12 was produced | generated (created).

(Recommendation process (step S16))
In step S16 of FIG. 15, processing according to the flowchart of FIG. 21 is executed. In the process of FIG. 21, in step S100, the condition input unit 111 waits until a category and a station are selected. Specifically, the condition input unit 111 displays a recommendation target extraction condition setting screen illustrated in FIG. 24 on the display unit 293 of the operator terminal 20. Then, the condition input unit 111 waits until the operator presses the “extract” button after selecting the target category and the target station on the screen of FIG. Then, when the determination in step S100 is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S102. Here, as shown in FIG. 24, it is assumed that “confectionery” is selected as the target category and “Gakugei University Station” is selected as the target station (designated use point) by the operator.

  If transfering it to step S102, the user extraction part 110 will perform a recommendation determination process. In this recommendation determination process, the process according to the flowchart of FIG. 22 is executed.

  In the process of FIG. 22, first, in step S110, the user extraction unit 110 acquires the selected category and station. Next, in step S112, the user extraction unit 110 reads a record of one user of the user-specific station category TBL134.

  Next, in step S114, the user extraction unit 110 refers to the user-specific station category TBL134, and the read user purchases more than a predetermined frequency (first frequency) at the store of the selected category (confectionery). Judge whether or not. Here, the predetermined frequency is the number of purchases that can be preset by an operator or the like. If the determination here is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S116. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S124.

  When the process proceeds to step S116, the user extraction unit 110 purchases at the store of the category (confectionery) selected by the user read in step S112 only at a station different from the selected station (Gakugei University Station). Judge whether or not. If the determination here is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S118. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S124. In step S116, the user extraction unit 110 purchases at a frequency less than a predetermined frequency (second frequency (second frequency <first frequency)) at a store in a station different from the selected station (Gakugei University Station). It is good also as judging whether it is doing.

  When the determination in step S116 is affirmed and the process proceeds to step S118, the user extraction unit 110 reads the user-specific life zone TBL128. In step S120, the user extraction unit 110 determines whether or not the station (Gakugei University Station) selected by the operator is the passing station of the user read in step S112. If the determination here is affirmed, the process proceeds to step S122. If the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step S124.

  In step S122, the user extraction unit 110 writes the card ID included in the record read in step S112 to the target user TBL 136. In this case, many purchases are made at the store of the selected category (confectionery), but purchases are not made at the store of the selected station (Gakugei University Station), and the selected station (Gakugei University Station). Will be written in the target user TBL136. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S124.

  After proceeding to step S124 through the above processing, the user extracting unit 110 determines whether or not all records have been read. If the determination here is negative, the process returns to step S112, and the same processing as described above is repeated. On the other hand, if the determination in step S124 is affirmative, the entire process in FIG. 22 is terminated, and the process proceeds to step S104 in FIG. In addition, in the stage which transfers to step S104 of FIG. 21, the target user TBL136 of FIG. 13A has been generated (created).

  Returning to FIG. 21, in step S <b> 104, the providing unit 112 specifies the destination (email address) of the target user based on the target user TBL 136 and the user TBL 138. In addition, the providing unit 112 executes the recommendation using the destination of the target user, and information on the target store that matches the selected category and station. Specifically, the providing unit 112 is information on stores in which the point of the store evaluation TBL 132 is a predetermined point or more in the category “confectionery” of Gakugei University Station (here, “AOK Suites Gakugei University Station Store” in FIG. 11). Specified). Then, the providing unit 112 transmits a mail as shown in the screen of FIG. 25 to the specified mail address. In addition, when there is no store more than a predetermined point in the confectionery store of Gakugei University Station, the whole process of FIG. 21 shall be complete | finished, without providing information. The providing unit 112 may provide information on the target store that matches the selected category and station to a user stored in the target user TBL 136 by means other than e-mail, such as mail.

  As described above, when all the processes in FIG. 21 are completed, all the processes in FIG. 15 are also ended. Here, in this embodiment, as a user who provides information on a target store (confectionery store) at Gakugei University Station, for example, as shown in FIG. 26, the basic life sphere is Motosumiyoshi, Shibuya, Hamamatsucho, A user whose purchase station is Meguro or Nakameguro and who frequently purchases confectionery but does not purchase confectionery at Gakugei University Station is extracted. Such a user is considered to be a user who has a high possibility of getting off at Gakugei University Station and purchasing confectionery by providing high-value information about the confectionery store at Gakugei University Station. Therefore, by providing such a user with information on a confectionery store at Gakugei University Station, it is possible to efficiently increase the number of passengers at Gakugei University Station.

  As can be seen from the above description, in this embodiment, the evaluation unit 106, the specifying unit 108, and the providing unit 112 are selected based on the information (usage history) for each user recorded in the card usage history TBL 122. Stores that have purchased after getting off at the station (designated use point) (stores near the selected station) are identified, and stores that match the category selected from the stores are identified (S14, S104) It can be said. Moreover, in this embodiment, the user extraction part 110 has purchased after having got off at any station based on the information for every user recorded on card use log | history TBL122 (store near any station) ) Is identified (S15), and it can be said that the user and the station that have made purchases at the selected category of the identified stores are identified (S102). Furthermore, in this embodiment, the providing unit 112 provides information on the store specified for the user specified by the user extracting unit 110 based on the difference between the selected station and the station specified by the user extracting unit 110. It can be said that it is determined whether or not to notify.

  As described above in detail, according to the present embodiment, the evaluation unit 106, the specifying unit 108, and the providing unit 112 select based on the information (usage history) for each user recorded in the card usage history TBL 122. For each user recorded in the card use history TBL122, the store that has been purchased after getting off at the station is identified as a store that matches the category that the condition input unit 111 has accepted. Based on the information, the store where the purchase was made after getting off at any station is specified, and the user and the station who purchased at the store of the selected category among the specified stores are specified. In addition, when the selected station is different from the station specified by the user extracting unit 110, the providing unit 112 notifies the user of store information that matches the selected station and category ( Recommend). Thereby, in this embodiment, although the goods of the same category as the store which notifies information are purchased, if the store which notifies information itself has not purchased, ie, the information of the store concerned will be provided. It becomes possible to provide the store information to a user (appropriate user) who is likely to visit the store. This provides information for increasing the number of users at the selected station more efficiently than when providing information on stores that match the selected category and station to users extracted indiscriminately. It becomes possible.

  In the above embodiment, for example, when a company operating the Tokyu Toyoko Line uses this system, the category “confectionery” is selected among users who use the Toyoko Line (the basic living area). Information on the “confectionery” store along the Toyoko Line may be provided to a user who purchases “confectionery” at a store outside the Toyoko Line while purchasing frequently. In this case, for example, on the recommendation target extraction condition screen of FIG. 24, the target route may be input together with the target station. Further, although only the target station is displayed on the condition screen, the route name (or electric railway company) corresponding to the target station to which the user extraction unit 110 is input may be specified based on the route TBL124. In place of the recommendation determination process S102 of FIG. 22, the recommendation determination process (S102 ') of FIG. 27 is executed. In the process of FIG. 27, the determination in step S115 is performed between steps S114 and S116. In this step S115, a category (confectionery) selected on a different route from the route (Toyoko Line) of the selected station (for example, a station in Toyoko Line (Gakugei University Station) is selected) is purchased. It is determined whether or not the condition (third condition) is satisfied. When judgment here is affirmed, it transfers to step S116. On the other hand, if the determination in step S115 is negative, the process proceeds to step S124. By executing the process as shown in FIG. 27, “confectionery” has been purchased on another route, but users who have no purchase history at Gakugei University Station drop off on the route operated by the company and purchase them. It becomes possible. This makes it possible to efficiently increase the number of passengers on the route.

  Furthermore, the user extraction unit 110 may make a recommendation target a user who has a purchase history purchased at a station other than the specified fixed section regardless of the difference in route. In this case, on the recommendation target extraction condition screen of FIG. 24, it is only necessary to be able to input target stations that are both ends of the specific section.

  In addition, although the said embodiment demonstrated the case where the passing station of the user-specific living area TBL128 of FIG. 9 was a station between basic living areas, it is not restricted to this. For example, the passing station may include a station between the basic living areas and a station in the vicinity (for example, both neighbors). By doing in this way, it becomes possible to provide a user with the information of the store which exists in the station near a passing station. In this case, it is also possible to provide the user with information on stores (stores that need to be ridden) that exist in stations that are not included in the basic living area.

  In the above embodiment, the user extraction unit 110 extracts users who frequently purchase at a store in the same category as the target store that matches the selected category and station (step S114). It is not limited. For example, it is good also as extracting the user who purchases the goods of the category similar to a target store (the selected category and the target store which matches a station) frequently.

  In the above embodiment, the case has been described in which the operator selects a category and a station, and provides information about a target store that matches these to an appropriate user. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the operator can select contents other than the category and station (stores in the station, distance from the station, etc.), and information on target stores that match these can be extracted as in the above embodiment. It may be provided to the user. The operator may not select at least one of the category and the station. When an operator does not select anything, it is good also as providing each of the information of object store to the appropriate user extracted similarly to the said embodiment.

  Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated the case where a category and a station were selectable on the recommendation object extraction condition screen of FIG. 24 (refer FIG. 24), it is not restricted to this, You may select only a station. In this case, when the information providing target store is specified based on the store evaluation TBL 132 (FIG. 11), the user who acquires the category of the store from the store TBL 130 and purchases the store at the category matching the category. Among them, it is possible to provide information to a user who has not made a purchase at the information provision target store.

  In addition, in the said embodiment, the case where a transportation is a railway is demonstrated and others are not restricted to this. When the card reader 50 can acquire the boarding / exiting history of other transportation such as a bus (such as a bus stop where the boarding / alighting), other transportation such as a bus may be adopted as the transportation.

  In addition, although the said embodiment demonstrated the case where the card reader 50 communicates with the IC card 60, it is not restricted to this, It is good also as communicating with the customer terminal 30. In this case, the customer terminal 30 needs to be provided with an IC chip having the same function as the IC card 60.

  The above processing functions can be realized by a computer. In that case, a program describing the processing contents of the functions that the processing apparatus should have is provided. By executing the program on a computer, the above processing functions are realized on the computer. The program describing the processing contents can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium.

  When the program is distributed, for example, it is sold in the form of a portable recording medium such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) or a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) on which the program is recorded. It is also possible to store the program in a storage device of a server computer and transfer the program from the server computer to another computer via a network.

  The computer that executes the program stores, for example, the program recorded on the portable recording medium or the program transferred from the server computer in its own storage device. Then, the computer reads the program from its own storage device and executes processing according to the program. The computer can also read the program directly from the portable recording medium and execute processing according to the program. Further, each time the program is transferred from the server computer, the computer can sequentially execute processing according to the received program.

  The above-described embodiment is an example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In addition, the following additional notes are disclosed regarding the above description.
(Supplementary note 1) Corresponding to the user who uses the transportation facility, the use point and the use date and time by which the user used the transportation facility, the provider who provided the user with the goods or services, and the provision date and time Recorded history information storage means;
A provider information storage means that defines a provision type of the article or service in association with the provider of the article or service;
Condition input means for receiving a designated use point that designates a specific use point of the transportation facility;
Based on the information for each user recorded in the history information storage means, a provider having a provision date and time later than the use date and time of the designated usage point is specified, and specified based on the provider information storage means A provider candidate extracting means for specifying a provision type corresponding to the provider,
Based on the information for each user recorded in the history information storage means, a provider having a provision date and time later than the usage date and time of any usage point is specified, and the user and the usage point corresponding to the usage date and time And user candidate extraction means for specifying the provision type corresponding to the provider specified based on the provider information storage means,
The difference between the provision types specified by the provider candidate extraction means and the user candidate extraction means, and the difference between the specified use point received by the condition input means and the use point specified by the user candidate extraction means And determining means for determining whether or not to notify the information of the provider specified by the provider candidate extracting means to the user specified by the user candidate extracting means, To provide information.
(Additional remark 2) The said provider candidate extraction means specifies the said provider based on the said use date of the utilization point in the specific area containing the said designated utilization point,
The information providing apparatus according to appendix 1, wherein the user candidate extracting unit specifies the user based on the use date and time of a use point outside the specific section.
(Supplementary note 3) The information providing apparatus according to supplementary note 2, wherein the specific section is a route section of a transportation system operated by the same company.
(Supplementary Note 4) A condition input process for receiving a designated use point that designates a specific use point of transportation,
Corresponding to a user who uses the transportation facility, history information in which the user uses the transportation facility, the use date and time, and the provider who provided goods or services to the user and the provision date and time are recorded. Based on the information for each user recorded in the storage means, a provider having a provision date and time later than the use date and time of the designated use point is specified, and the article or service is associated with the article. Alternatively, a provider candidate extraction step for identifying a provision type corresponding to the provider identified based on a provider information storage means that defines a service provision type,
Based on the information for each user recorded in the history information storage means, a provider having a provision date and time later than the usage date and time of any usage point is specified, and the user and the usage point corresponding to the usage date and time And a user candidate extraction step for identifying a provision type corresponding to the provider identified based on the provider information storage means,
The difference between the provision types specified in the provider candidate extraction step and the user candidate extraction step, and the difference between the specified usage point received in the condition input step and the usage point specified in the user candidate extraction step The computer executes a determination step for determining whether or not to notify the provider specified in the provider candidate extraction step to the user specified in the user candidate extraction step An information providing method characterized by the above.
(Supplementary Note 5) In the provider candidate extraction step, the provider is specified based on the use date and time of a use point in a specific section including the designated use point,
The information providing method according to claim 4, wherein, in the user candidate extracting step, the user is specified based on the use date and time of the use point outside the specific section.
(Supplementary note 6) The information providing method according to supplementary note 5, wherein the specific section is a route section of a transportation system operated by the same company.

122 Card usage history TBL (history information storage means)
106 Evaluation section (part of provider candidate extraction means)
108 Specific part (part of provider candidate extraction means)
110 User extraction unit (user candidate extraction means)
111 Condition input section (condition input means)
112 Providing section (part of provider candidate extracting means, determining means)
130 store TBL (provider information storage means)

Claims (3)

Corresponding to the user who uses the transportation facility, the use point where the user uses the transportation facility, the use date and time when using the transportation facility, the provider who provided goods or services to the user, and the use History information storage means for recording the provision date and time when goods or services were provided to a person,
A provider information storage means that defines a provision type of the article or service in association with the provider of the article or service;
A condition input means for receiving a designated use point that designates a specific use point of the transportation facility, and a designated provision type that designates a provider's provision type;
Based on the information for each user recorded in the history information storage means, the user can use the same or another usage point until the user uses the same or another usage point. Identifying the provider who provided the goods or services to the user, identifying the user who received the goods or service, and the point of use used immediately before the user received the provision from the provider, User candidate extraction means for specifying the provision type corresponding to the provider specified based on the provider information storage means;
The specified provision type received by the condition input means is the same as the provision type specified by the user candidate extraction means, and the specified use point received by the condition input means and the user candidate extraction means specified by the user input extraction means A determination unit that determines to notify the user specified by the user candidate extraction unit with a different usage point to notify the information of the provider corresponding to the specified usage point and the specified provision type;
An information providing apparatus comprising: The condition input means accepts a designated use point that designates a use point in a route section of transportation operated by the same company,
The user candidate extraction means is provided between the use of a use point outside the route section of the transportation facility operated by the same company including the designated use point and the next use of the same or another use point. Identify users who have received goods or services from the
The information providing apparatus according to claim 1. A condition input step for accepting a designated use point designating a specific use point of transportation and a designated offer type designating a provider offer type;
Corresponding to the user who uses the transportation facility, the use point where the user uses the transportation facility, the use date and time when using the transportation facility, the provider who provided goods or services to the user, and the use Based on the information for each user recorded in the history information storage means that recorded the provision date and time when goods or services were provided to the user, the same or other usage after the user uses one of the usage points The provider who provided goods or services to the user until the point is used is identified, and the user who received the goods or service and the user receive the provision from the provider In addition to specifying the point of use that was used immediately before, it was specified based on the provider information storage means that defined the provision type of the article or service in association with the provider of the article or service. A user candidate extracting step of identifying the offer type corresponding to the provider,
The specified provision type received in the condition input step is the same as the provision type specified in the user candidate extraction step, and the specified use point received in the condition input step and the user candidate extraction step A determination step of determining to notify the information of the provider corresponding to the designated use point and the designated provision type to the user specified in the user candidate extraction step having different use points;
An information providing method characterized in that a computer executes.

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