JP7585708B2 - Information provision system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information provision system that provides information to a user traveling to a destination.

Conventionally, when a user wishes to travel to a destination, various terminals have been provided that allow the user to easily reach the desired destination by providing guidance on the location of the destination and guidance on the route to the destination. In addition to navigation devices installed in vehicles, in recent years, mobile phones, smartphones, tablet terminals, personal computers, etc. that have the same functions as the above-mentioned navigation devices have become available as such terminals.

Furthermore, in recent years, in addition to providing guidance on the location of the destination and the route to the destination, the above-mentioned terminals have also been providing various information that is considered to be useful to users who are considering traveling to the destination or who have already started traveling. For example, JP 2019-101452 A discloses a technology in which conditions for delivering advertising information are set in advance for user attributes (e.g., age, vehicle type, etc.) and user behavior (when getting on, when setting the destination, when getting off, etc.), and the corresponding advertising information is provided when the user traveling to the destination satisfies the delivery conditions.

JP 2019-101452 A (pages 5-7)

Here, the information to be provided to a user moving to a destination, i.e., the content of information that is useful to the user, varies depending on the type of destination the user is heading for and the progress of the movement to the destination. For example, the progress of the movement to the destination can be when the destination is set, immediately after starting the movement, immediately before arriving at the destination, and at the time of arrival at the destination, but even if information about a detour is provided immediately before arriving at the destination, it will be unnecessary information for the user. Therefore, in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, the current situation of each user is identified and advertising information corresponding to the user's situation is extracted and distributed, but this method of distributing information requires managing the advertising information to be distributed for each user and performing the distribution process of the advertising information for each user, which is extremely inefficient.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems in the past, and aims to provide an information provision system that makes it possible to efficiently provide information useful to users by grouping multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point and who have a common progress status in moving toward their destination, thereby enabling management of information to be distributed on a group basis and information distribution processing.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a first information provision system according to the present invention includes: a location acquisition means for acquiring an information provision location to be subject to information provision; a destination acquisition means for acquiring, for a plurality of users, a destination to which each user will travel; a search means for, when it is determined that a target user, which is one of the plurality of users, will pass through the vicinity of the information provision location that is a candidate for the user to stop at on the way to the destination, searching for other users among the plurality of users other than the target user who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision location as the information provision location around which the target user passes on the way to the destination and who have a common progress status with the target user regarding the travel to the destination; a group formation means for forming a group including the target user and the other searched users; and an information provision means for providing, on a group basis, information regarding the information provision location around which the plurality of users included in the group pass, wherein the information provision means sets an information provision section as a section for which information regarding the information provision point is provided for the travel route to the destination, based on the position of the information provision point to be subject to information provision, and when any or all of the plurality of users included in the group reach the information provision section, provides information regarding the information provision point to the plurality of users included in the group on a group basis .
The "destination" may be a destination in the real world or a destination in a virtual space constructed by VR (virtual reality). Similarly, the "information provision point" may be a point in the real world or a point in a virtual space constructed by VR (virtual reality).
In addition, "providing information on a multiple user basis" refers to the information providing device distributing information to multiple users in a single process (i.e., specifying multiple users as destinations and transmitting information), or distributing information to multiple users simultaneously or approximately simultaneously.

Further, a second information provision system according to the present invention includes: a location acquisition means for acquiring an information provision location to be subject to information provision; a destination acquisition means for acquiring, for a plurality of users, a destination to which each user will travel; a search means for, when it is determined that a target user, which is one of the plurality of users, will pass through the vicinity of the information provision location that is a candidate for the user to stop at on the way to the destination, searching for other users among the plurality of users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision location as the information provision location around which the target user passes on the way to the destination and have a common destination with the target user; a group formation means for forming a group including the target user and the other searched users; and an information provision means for providing, on a group basis, information about the information provision location around which the plurality of users included in the group pass , wherein the information provision means sets an information provision section as a section for which information about the information provision point is provided for the travel route to the destination, based on the position of the information provision point to be subject to information provision, and when any or all of the plurality of users included in the group reach the information provision section, provides information about the information provision point to the plurality of users included in the group on a group basis .
Incidentally, "having a common destination" does not necessarily mean that the destinations are in the same geographical location; for example, it may be that the destinations are in the same genre, or it may be that the destinations are chain stores such as franchises of the same group, a group of stores operated by the same owner or parent company, related group companies, a parent company (head office) and its subsidiaries (branches, sales offices), temples of the same sect, etc.

According to the first information provision system of the present invention having the above configuration, by grouping a plurality of users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point that is a candidate for a user to stop by , and who have a common progress status in moving to a destination, that is, a plurality of users for whom the content of information to be provided and the timing of the information to be provided can be common, it becomes possible to manage the information to be distributed on a group basis and to process the distribution of the information. As a result, it becomes possible to efficiently provide information that is useful to users.

Furthermore, according to the second information provision system of the present invention, by grouping a plurality of users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point that is a candidate for a user to stop by , that is, a plurality of users who have a common destination, i.e., a plurality of users for whom the contents of information to be provided and the timing of the information to be provided can be made common, it becomes possible to manage the information to be distributed on a group basis and to process the distribution of the information. As a result, it becomes possible to efficiently provide information that is useful to the users.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of advertisement information stored in a distribution information DB. 11 is a diagram showing an example of user route information stored in a user route DB. FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control system of the communication terminal according to the present embodiment. 10 is a flowchart of a user grouping processing program according to the embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a destination input screen displayed on a display of the communication terminal. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a user information registration screen displayed on a display of the communication terminal. 13 is a diagram showing a time series of the transition of a user's subsequent behavior after the user has determined the destination to which the user will move. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a method of dividing steps during a moving period. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a correspondence relationship between destinations and categories of information providing points. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of grouping a plurality of users. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of grouping a plurality of users. 4 is a flowchart of an information provision processing program according to the present embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an output mode of advertisement information. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a transition of a user's behavior during a moving period and advertising information set as an output target. FIG.

The following describes in detail an embodiment of an information provision system according to the present invention with reference to the drawings. First, the general configuration of the information provision system 1 according to this embodiment is described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a general configuration diagram showing the information provision system 1 according to this embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1, the information provision system 1 according to this embodiment basically includes an information provision server (information provision device) 3 owned by an information provision center 2, information provision points 4 to which information such as advertisements is provided, and communication terminals 6 each owned by a plurality of users 5. The information provision server 3 and the communication terminals 6 are configured to be able to transmit and receive electronic data to each other via a communication network 7. Examples of the communication terminals 6 include mobile phones, smartphones, tablet terminals, personal computers, and navigation devices that are in-vehicle devices. In the following description, it is assumed that the user 5 travels by vehicle, but the user 5 may travel by a means of transportation other than a vehicle or on foot. The plurality of users 5 may travel by different means of transportation or may travel by the same means of transportation (e.g., bus, train).

Here, the information providing server 3 is a server device that manages the transmission and reception of information in the information providing system 1. Specifically, when a user 5 moves to a destination, the information providing server 3 acquires the destination to which the user 5 moves and the route to the destination by communicating with the communication terminal 6. Furthermore, among the multiple users 5, among the users passing through the vicinity of the same information providing point 4, multiple users who have a common destination and a common progress status in moving to the destination, that is, multiple users who can share the information to be provided, are grouped. Note that "having a common destination" does not necessarily mean that the geographical location of the destination is the same, and may be, for example, the same genre as the destination, or may be a chain store such as a franchise of the same group, a group of stores operated by the same owner or parent company, a related group company, a parent company (head office) and its subsidiaries (branches, sales offices), a temple of the same sect, etc. The users 5 to be grouped do not need to be familiar users who move by the same means of transportation, but may be unfamiliar users who move by different means of transportation.

The information providing server 3 also stores information about information providing points 4 throughout the country in the distribution information DB 8. In this embodiment, advertising information advertising the information providing points 4 is stored in the distribution information DB 8 as information to be provided to the user 5, but information about the information providing points 4 may be information other than advertising information. The information providing server 3 then provides (distributes) the advertising information stored in the distribution information DB 8 to the communication terminals 6 owned by the grouped multiple users 5 via the communication network 7. The information providing server 3 provides (distributes) the advertising information on a group basis. In addition to the information provided by the information providing server 3, it may also be possible to send and receive text, audio, and video between the communication terminals 6 grouped in the same group. An information providing server 3 may exist for each information providing point, or one server may distribute advertising information about multiple information providing points.

In addition, the information providing point 4 is a point to which advertising information is provided in the information providing system 1 of this embodiment. It may be a specific facility or a point where a facility such as a tourist spot is not specified. However, in this embodiment, the information providing point 4 is a facility that provides products or services to customers for a fee, although there is no limitation on the genre or size. When the information providing point 4 generates new advertising information for its own facility or updates the advertising information, it distributes the necessary information to the information providing server 3 and updates the distribution information DB 8 provided by the information providing server 3.

On the other hand, the communication terminal 6 is an information terminal possessed by the user 5 and equipped with a function for registering and managing a schedule by the user 5 inputting the schedule, a navigation function, etc., and examples of this include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, a navigation device, etc. In particular, if the communication terminal 6 is a terminal capable of executing applications such as a smartphone, an application program is installed that allows the user to receive advertising information on the journey to the destination by inputting the destination as one of the applications. Note that the function for receiving the advertising information may be part of a navigation function that provides travel guidance to the destination, or may be executed by an application program different from the navigation function.

The communication network 7 includes numerous base stations located throughout the country and communication companies that manage and control each base station, and is configured by connecting the base stations and communication companies to each other by wire (optical fiber, ISDN, etc.) or wirelessly. Here, the base stations have transceivers (transmitters and receivers) and antennas that communicate with the communication terminals 6. The base stations perform wireless communication between the communication companies, and are also at the end of the communication network 7, and have the role of relaying communication between the communication terminals 6 within the range (cell) of the base station's radio waves and the information providing server 3.

Next, the configuration of the information providing server 3 in the information providing system 1 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the information providing server 3 includes a server control unit 11, a distribution information DB 8 as an information recording means connected to the server control unit 11, a user route DB 13, a map information DB 14, and a server-side communication device 15.

The server control unit 11 is a control unit (MCU, MPU, etc.) that controls the entire information providing server 3, and includes an internal storage device such as a CPU 21 as a calculation device and a control device, a RAM 22 used as a working memory when the CPU 21 performs various calculation processes, a ROM 23 in which a user grouping processing program (FIG. 6) and an information provision processing program (FIG. 14) are recorded in addition to control programs, and a flash memory 24 for storing programs read from the ROM 23. The server control unit 11 has various means as processing algorithms together with a control unit of a communication terminal 6 described later. For example, the point acquisition means acquires an information provision point to be the subject of information provision. The destination acquisition means acquires the destination to which each user moves for multiple users. The user identification means identifies multiple users among the multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point in the movement from the multiple users to the destination and who have a common progress status for the movement to the destination. Furthermore, the multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point in the movement from the multiple users to the destination and who have a common destination are also identified. The information providing means provides information about information provision points around which the multiple users identified by the user identifying means pass.

As described above, the distribution information DB 8 is a storage means that stores advertising information related to information provision points 4, which are points throughout the country that are the subject of information provision. The advertising information includes not only data such as audio, images, videos, etc. that are output as advertisements on the communication terminal 6 (contents such as information on products handled, information on events, and information on support and after-sales service for purchased products), but also information for identifying the information provision point 4 (advertiser) (such as the location coordinates of the advertised facility on a map, genre, ID, etc.). Furthermore, information identifying the product or service that is the subject of the advertisement is added to the advertising information for each piece of advertising information. However, information identifying the product or service is not added to advertising information other than advertisements related to products (such as sale information, facility introductions, etc.).

For example, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of advertising information stored in the distribution information DB 8. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the advertising information provided by facility A (genre: commercial facility), which is one of the information provision points 4, is advertising information "2233", where "2233" indicates that the advertising information is for "product A". Furthermore, the advertising information provided by facility B (genre: restaurant) is advertising information "2234", where "2234" indicates that the advertising information is for "product B". Furthermore, the advertising information provided by facility C (genre: park) is advertising information "2235", where "2235" indicates that the advertising information is for "product C". Note that there are various forms for outputting advertisements in the communication terminal 6, but the following embodiment will be described taking as an example a case where audio is output from the communication terminal 6 as an advertisement.

As a means of distributing advertising information, it is possible to distribute audio data and video data recorded and generated in advance and stored in the distribution information DB 8 to the communication terminal 6 at a specified output timing as described above, but it is also possible to distribute what a person is saying in real time. In other words, a concierge can be set up to provide information to multiple grouped users, and audio and video of the concierge explaining facilities and products can be distributed.

On the other hand, the user journey DB 13 is a storage means for storing "information on the journey to the destination" for each user 5 who possesses a communication terminal 6 communicably connected to the information providing server 3. Specifically, the coordinates of the starting point from which the user 5 starts to move to the destination, the date and time when the user 5 starts to move to the destination, and information on the destination to which the user 5 wishes to move (or the destination to which the user is currently moving) are stored, and in particular the location coordinates, name, genre, etc. of the destination are stored. In addition, when a travel route to the destination is set in the communication terminal 6, the set travel route is also linked to the user as an indication of the user's future actions and stored in the user journey DB 13. For example, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of user journey information stored in the user journey DB 13.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, for example, user 5 with "ID: 10001" has set "XX Mall (Category: Shopping Mall)" as the destination, and is planning to start moving from (x1, y1) at 12:30 on October 21, 2020, or has started moving. Similarly, information about the route to the destination of other users is also stored. The destination to which user 5 wishes to move (or the destination to which he is currently moving) can be registered by entering the necessary information on the destination input screen 51 (see FIG. 7) displayed on the display of the communication terminal 6 as described below, and the registered content is appropriately transmitted from the communication terminal 6 to the information providing server 3, and is further linked to the user and stored in the user route DB 13. The starting point of the movement, the start date and time of the movement, the movement plan, and the movement route are also obtained from the communication terminal 6 in the same way.

The user route information stored in the user route DB 13 is used to identify users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 when grouping users, and to identify users who have a common destination and a common progress status toward the destination.

The map information DB14 is a storage means for storing map information. The map information is composed of various information necessary for route search, route guidance and map display, including the road network. For example, it is composed of link data related to roads (links), node data related to node points, intersection data related to each intersection, point data related to points such as facilities, map display data for displaying the map, search data for searching for routes, search data for searching for points, etc.

When the server control unit 11 receives a route search request from the communication terminal 6, it can also perform a route search from the departure point to the destination using the map information stored in the map information DB 14. Specifically, when a destination is set in the communication terminal 6, information necessary for route search, such as the departure point and destination, is transmitted from the communication terminal 6 to the information providing server 3 together with the route search request. The information providing server 3 that receives the route search request performs a route search using the map information held by the information providing server 3 and identifies a recommended route from the departure point to the destination. Then, it transmits the identified recommended route to the communication terminal 6 that made the request. The communication terminal 6 sets the received recommended route as a guide route and provides travel guidance according to the guide route. As a result, even if the map information held by the communication terminal 6 at the time of route search is an old version of map information or the communication terminal 6 does not have map information itself, it is possible to set an appropriate guide route based on the latest version of map information held by the information providing server 3.

However, if the communication terminal 6 has map information, the above route search process can be performed by the communication terminal 6 instead of the information providing server 3. Also, the above route search process can be performed by another server that has map information, instead of the information providing server 3. In that case, the map information DB 14 is not necessarily required in the information providing server 3.

On the other hand, the server-side communication device 15 is a communication device for communicating with the communication terminal 6, which is the target of sending and receiving information, via the communication network 7. In addition, communication with networks other than the communication terminal 6, such as the Internet, is also possible.

Next, the schematic configuration of the communication terminal 6 owned by the user 5 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a block diagram that shows a schematic control system of the communication terminal 6 according to this embodiment. In the following, the case where the communication terminal 6 is a smartphone will be described as an example.

As shown in FIG. 5, the communication terminal 6 is configured by connecting a CPU 31, a memory 32 storing user information (such as a user ID) about the user 5 who owns the communication terminal 6, web browsing history, user movement history, etc., a transmission/reception circuit unit (RF) 33 that transmits and receives signals to and from base stations in the communication network 7, a baseband processing unit 34 that converts RF (Radio Frequency) signals received by the transmission/reception circuit unit 33 into baseband signals and converts baseband signals into RF signals, an input/output unit 37 that is an interface with a microphone 35 and a speaker 36, etc., a display 38 composed of a liquid crystal display panel, etc., an input operation unit 39 composed of a touch panel, hard buttons, etc., a GPS 40, and a camera 41 to a data bus BUS.

The CPU 31 built into the communication terminal 6 is a control means of the communication terminal 6 that executes various operations according to the operation programs stored in the memory 32, and constitutes the communication terminal control unit 42 together with the memory 32. In addition, the various processing contents of the communication terminal control unit 42 are displayed on the display 38 as necessary.

The memory 32 is also a storage medium that stores user information (such as a user ID) about the user 5 who owns the communication terminal 6, the user's web browsing history, the user's movement history, which is a history of location information detected based on the GPS 40 and other sensors, schedule information, etc. It also stores various application programs, including a user grouping processing program (Figure 6) and an information provision processing program (Figure 14), which will be described later. The memory 32 may also be configured from a hard disk, a memory card, etc.

In addition to outputting voice for phone calls, the speaker 36 also outputs voice guidance that guides the user along a guide route (a route the user plans to travel) based on instructions from the communication terminal control unit 42 when the navigation function is being executed. In this embodiment, the speaker 36 is also used to output advertising information obtained from the information providing server 3, as described below.

The display 38 is disposed on one side of the housing and may be a liquid crystal display, an organic electroluminescence display, or the like. It displays a top screen for executing various applications installed in the communication terminal 6, screens related to the executed applications (Internet screen, email screen, navigation screen, etc.), and various information such as images and videos.

The input operation unit 39 is composed of a touch panel provided on the front of the display 38, hard buttons arranged on the housing, etc. The communication terminal control unit 42 controls the execution of various corresponding operations based on electrical signals output by pressing the touch panel or hard buttons, etc. In this embodiment, it is also operated when registering the user's schedule or inputting a destination. The input operation unit 39 can also be composed of various keys such as number/character input keys, cursor keys for moving a cursor to select displayed content, and a decision key for confirming a selection.

The GPS 40 can detect the current location and current date and time of the communication terminal 6 (i.e., the user 5) by receiving radio waves generated by artificial satellites. The configuration may also include other devices (e.g., a gyro sensor) other than the GPS 40 for detecting the current location and orientation of the communication terminal 6.

The camera 41 is a small imaging device that is configured, for example, by a camera using a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD, and is built into the rear side of the communication terminal 6. Then, with a dedicated application program running, the user can capture images of the surroundings by operating the input operation unit 39. The images captured by the camera 41 are stored in the memory 32.

Next, the user grouping processing program executed by the information providing server 3 and the communication terminal 6 in the information providing system 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the user grouping processing program according to this embodiment. Here, the user grouping processing program is executed after a predetermined application program for receiving advertisement information on the journey to a destination is started in the communication terminal 6, and is a program that identifies multiple users among multiple users who have a common destination or a common progress status of the journey to the destination, and groups the identified multiple users. The programs shown in the flowcharts in FIG. 6 and FIG. 14 below are stored in RAM or ROM provided in the information providing server 3 or the communication terminal 6, and are executed by the CPU 21 or CPU 31.

First, the user grouping processing program executed by the CPU 31 of the communication terminal 6 will be described with reference to FIG. 6. In step (hereinafter abbreviated as S) 1, the CPU 31 starts a predetermined application program (hereinafter referred to as an information provision app) for receiving advertisement information on the way to the destination. The information provision app can be started by the user 5 performing a predetermined operation on the communication terminal 6, or by reading a two-dimensional code printed on a poster or pamphlet of a facility that is a candidate for the destination with the communication terminal 6. The information provision app can be started before or after the user starts moving to the destination. It is assumed that the information provision app has been downloaded in advance from the information provision server 3 or the like and installed on the communication terminal 6.

When the information provision app is launched on the communication terminal 6, a destination input screen 51 as shown in FIG. 7 is displayed on the display 38. The destination input screen 51 displays a search space 52 for inputting keywords for searching for a destination, and a list 53 of candidate locations that are candidates for the user's destination. The list 53 of candidate locations displayed on the destination input screen 51 may be, for example, locations near the user's current location that are likely to be selected as a destination, or may be extracted from locations that the user has previously set as destinations. Furthermore, when the information provision app is launched by reading a two-dimensional code printed on a poster or pamphlet with the communication terminal 6, it is desirable to display the locations printed on the poster or pamphlet.

When the user selects a location as the destination on the destination input screen 51, a destination confirmation screen 54 is subsequently displayed on the display 38. As shown in FIG. 7, the destination confirmation screen 54 displays detailed information about the currently selected location (the time required to travel, address, business hours, etc.) as well as a map image of the surrounding area. After checking the contents displayed on the destination confirmation screen 54, the user presses the confirmation button 55 to complete the destination input and determine the destination to which the user is traveling.

After that, a user information registration screen 56 is displayed on the display 38. As shown in FIG. 8, the user information registration screen 56 allows the user to register user information about the user who will be traveling to the current destination, such as the party name (a nickname that identifies the user when sharing information between users belonging to the same group) and the number of people accompanying the user. After the user enters the necessary information on the user information registration screen 56, the user presses the registration button 57 to complete the registration of the user information. However, the registration of this information is not required.

Then, in S2, the CPU 31 inputs the destination and registers the user information based on the user operation received in the communication terminal 6 as described above. The input of the destination and the registration of the user information do not necessarily have to be performed at the same time. The input of the destination and the registration of the user information do not have to be performed at the same time as the start of the movement to the destination, and may be performed before the movement to the destination starts or after the movement to the destination starts. For example, the input of the destination and the registration of the user information can be performed in advance several days or several hours before the movement to the destination starts, or the input of the destination and the registration of the user information can be performed when the movement to the destination starts and the user gets close to the destination to a certain extent. The destination and user information input in S2 are temporarily stored in the memory 32.

Then, in S3, the CPU 31 transmits destination information specifying the "destination to which the user moves" and "user information" input in S2 to the information providing server 3. Here, the destination information includes a terminal ID specifying the communication terminal 6 from which the destination information was transmitted, information specifying the "destination to which the user moves" and "user information" input in S2 (e.g., destination coordinates, ID, facility name, party name, etc.), and the point and date and time at which the user starts (or starts) moving to the destination. The point and date and time at which the user starts (or starts) moving to the destination may be input by the user, or may be determined by the communication terminal 6 based on the registered schedule or the user's movement history. In addition, when the user inputs the destination or registers the user information in S2 before starting to move to the destination, the user may operate a departure button (not shown) displayed on the display 38 at the timing at which the user starts moving to the destination. As a result, the position of the communication terminal 6 at the time the departure button is pressed is specified as the "point at which the user starts moving to the destination," and the date and time at which the departure button is pressed is specified as the "date and time at which the user starts moving to the destination." The identified "point at which the user starts moving to the destination" and "date and time at which the user starts moving to the destination" may then be transmitted to the information providing server 3.

Then, the information providing server 3 groups multiple users who can share the same information to be provided based on the destination information transmitted from the communication terminal 6 as described below (S12 to S17). Furthermore, in the information providing processing program (FIG. 14) described below, information on the information providing points 4 around which the users pass is provided to each of the multiple grouped users, i.e., in groups. Details will be described later.

In addition, grouped users are also notified of the grouping via the communication terminal 6. However, users can refuse to join the group. Users can also leave the group while traveling to the destination.

Next, the user grouping processing program executed by the CPU 21 of the information providing server 3 will be described. Note that each process from S11 to S17 below is started when the corresponding information is received from the communication terminal 6. Therefore, the order in which each step is performed is not necessarily the order of the smallest step number.

First, in S11, the CPU 21 receives destination information transmitted from the communication terminal 6. The destination information includes a terminal ID that identifies the communication terminal 6 that transmitted the destination information, information that identifies the "destination to which the user is traveling" and "user information" that were input in S2 (e.g., destination coordinates, ID, facility name, party name, etc.), and the point and date and time from which the user will start (or has started) traveling to the destination.

Next, in S12, the CPU 31 identifies the genre of the destination to which the user is traveling based on the information received in S11, and stores the destination, the starting point of the travel, and the start date and time of the travel in the user journey DB 13 (Figure 4) as the user's "information on the journey to the destination." In addition, if specific travel plans of other users accompanying the user can be obtained, these travel plans are also obtained from the communication terminal 6 and stored in the user journey DB 13. Furthermore, if a travel route to the destination is set in the communication terminal 6, the travel route is also obtained from the communication terminal 6 and stored in the user journey DB 13.

Then, in S13, the CPU 21 divides the journey until the user completes the journey to the destination (including a certain period before starting the journey to the destination and after arriving at the destination) into multiple steps (sections) in chronological order. The details of the process of S13 are explained below with a specific example.

For example, Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the transition of the user's subsequent actions in chronological order after the user has decided on the destination to travel to. As shown in Fig. 9, the subsequent actions of the user after deciding on the destination to travel to can be roughly divided into the following (1) to (3).
(1) A "preparation period (preparation process)" which is a period from when the user 5 has decided on a destination to travel to until the user actually starts traveling, for the user 5 to travel to the destination.
(2) A travel period (travel journey) during which the user 5 actually travels to the destination, which is the period from when the user 5 starts traveling to the destination to when the user 5 completes traveling to the destination.
(3) The arrival period, which is a certain period of time that has elapsed since the user 5 arrived at the destination.

Therefore, when dividing the journey until the user completes the movement to the destination into multiple steps in S13, the steps are first divided into three major periods: a preparation period, a movement period, and an arrival period. Furthermore, the movement period is divided into smaller steps depending on the progress of the movement. Specifically, the division of the steps of the movement period differs for each user, and the number of steps divided changes depending on the distance to the user's destination or the time required to reach the destination. The distance to the user's destination and the time required to reach the destination are calculated from the user's movement start position, the destination position, and the route to the destination. Furthermore, if a route to the destination is set in the communication terminal 6, that route is used. If a route to the destination is not set in the communication terminal 6, map information provided by the information providing server 3 is used to search for a recommended route to the destination, and this is used as the route along which the user will move.

The number of steps to be divided during the travel period increases as the distance to the user's destination or the time required to reach the destination increases. Therefore, if the distance to the user's destination or the time required to reach the destination is particularly short, the travel period may be divided into one step without being divided.

Furthermore, the criteria for dividing steps are not the same for the entire travel period, but change depending on the positional relationship to the travel start point or the destination. For example, FIG. 10 shows an example of dividing a travel period into three steps. As shown in FIG. 10, when the user first starts traveling to the destination, the steps are divided based on the travel distance or elapsed time since the user started traveling to the destination. For example, the division is made when 30 minutes have elapsed since the user started traveling to the destination, and the section up to that point is the first step. On the other hand, when the user approaches the destination, the steps are divided based on the distance to the destination or the time required to reach the destination. For example, the division is made when there are 30 minutes remaining to reach the user's destination, and the section up to that point is the second step, and the section thereafter is the third step.

In the examples shown in Figures 9 and 10, only the travel period is further divided into multiple steps, but it is also possible to further divide the preparation period and arrival period into multiple steps. Furthermore, if the user launches the information provision app simultaneously with the start of travel to the destination or after the start of travel, there is no preparation period, so only the travel period and arrival period are included in the journey until the user completes the journey to the destination. Furthermore, if the provision of information to the user ends when the user arrives at the destination, the arrival period may be excluded from the journey until the user completes the journey to the destination.

Next, in S14, the CPU 21 acquires the step in which the user is currently located, i.e., the progress status of the movement to the destination. Specifically, the information providing server 3 acquires the user's current location information from the communication terminal 6 at a predetermined interval, and acquires the step in which the user is currently located based on the history of the user's current location, the "path until the user completes the movement to the destination" divided into multiple steps in S13, and the map information.

Specifically, if the user has registered a destination but has not yet started traveling to the destination, it is determined that the user is in a step of the preparation period. On the other hand, if the user has already arrived at the destination, it is determined that the user is in a step of the arrival period. Furthermore, if the user is traveling to the destination, it further calculates the travel distance or elapsed time since the user started traveling to the destination, or the distance to the destination or the time required to reach the destination, and determines which step of the travel period (steps 1 to 3 in FIG. 10) the user is in.

The above steps S12 to S14 are performed sequentially for all communication terminals 6 that have launched the information provision app and transmitted destination information in S3. As a result, the destination and progress status of the journey to the destination are acquired for all users who launch the information provision app and travel to their destination. The destination and progress status of the journey to the destination for each identified user are stored in the user route DB13. Furthermore, the above step S14 is performed at regular intervals, and the user's progress status of the journey to the destination is updated to the latest state.

Then, in S15, the CPU 21 acquires, from among the information provision points 4 located throughout the country to which advertising information is to be provided, the information provision point 4 to which information is to be provided, particularly to the user possessing the communication terminal 6 that is the source of the destination information received in S11.

Here, the information provision point 4 for which information is to be provided to the user who owns the communication terminal 6 that is the transmission source of the destination information received in S11 is an information provision point 4 of a genre that corresponds to the destination of the user. Figure 11 shows an example of the correspondence between the genres of destinations and information provision points 4.

For example, as shown in FIG. 11, if the genre of the user's destination is "tourist spot," information provision point 4 for "tourist spot" is targeted for information provision in the vicinity of the destination (for example, within 5 km of the destination). This is because it is useful to the user as information on spots to visit after arriving at the destination. On the other hand, for areas other than the vicinity of the destination, information provision point 4 for "cafe" is targeted for information provision. This is because it is useful to the user as information on spots to stop by as a rest spot while traveling to the destination.

Also, as shown in FIG. 11, for example, if the genre of the user's destination is "restaurant," information provision point 4 for "parks" is targeted for information provision in the vicinity of the destination (for example, within 5 km of the destination). This is because this is useful to the user as information on spots where takeout items from the destination restaurant can be eaten. On the other hand, for information outside the vicinity of the destination, information provision point 4 for "movie theaters" is targeted for information provision. This is because this is useful to the user as information on spots to stop by after eating and drinking at the destination.

Also, as shown in FIG. 11, for example, if the genre of the user's destination is "stadium," information provision point 4 for "restaurants" is targeted for the vicinity of the destination (for example, within 5 km of the destination). This is because this is useful to the user as information about spots where one can eat and drink after watching a sporting event at the destination. On the other hand, for areas other than the vicinity of the destination, information provision point 4 for "restaurants" is also targeted for the information. This is because this is useful to the user as information about spots where one can obtain takeout food to eat and drink while watching a sporting event at the destination.

Also, as shown in FIG. 11, for example, if the genre of the user's destination is "swimming beach," information provision point 4 for "bathing facilities" is targeted for information provision in the vicinity of the destination (for example, within 5 km of the destination). This is because this is useful to the user as information on spots where one can bathe after swimming at the destination. On the other hand, for areas other than the vicinity of the destination, information provision point 4 for "drugstore" is targeted for information provision. This is because this is useful to the user as information on spots where one can purchase goods to use for swimming at the destination.

In the example shown in FIG. 11, only one genre is set for each of the area around the destination and the area outside the destination, but multiple genres may be set. Also, the results of whether or not the user actually stopped at the information provision point 4 after the information is provided may be accumulated, and the genres set may be updated as appropriate based on the results.

Next, in S16, the CPU 21 refers to the user route DB 13 and determines whether there are other users who have passed through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 and who have the same destination and progress status toward the destination, for the user who owns the communication terminal 6 that transmitted the destination information received in S11. Note that the subject of the determination of passing through in S16 is the information provision point 4 acquired in S15, i.e., the information provision point 4 about which information is to be provided to the user.

In addition, in this embodiment, "having a common destination" means that the destinations may be in different geographical locations and are in the same genre, but the destinations may also be the same when they are the same point in the same geographical location. Furthermore, "having a common progress status toward the destination" means that the steps identified in S14 above are the same. For example, when the steps of the travel period are divided as shown in FIG. 10, multiple users who fall into the first step (within 30 minutes of the start of travel) are users who have a common progress status toward the destination. Note that, when comparing users who have different numbers of step divisions in the travel period, it is desirable to consider that users who are located in similar divisions have "a common progress status toward the destination."

On the other hand, "passing through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4" refers to a case where either the following condition (A) or (B) is satisfied.
(A) At least a portion of the travel route to the destination of different users is within the surrounding area (for example, within 3 km) of the same information provision point 4.
(B) This refers to a case where the destinations of different users are in the surrounding area (for example, within 3 km) of the same information provision point 4.
Regarding the route to the destination, if a route to the destination is set in the communication terminal 6, that route is used, and if a route to the destination is not set in the communication terminal 6, a recommended route to the destination is searched for using map information provided by the information providing server 3, and is used as the route along which the user travels. Also, the size of the surrounding area is basically fixed, but may be changed depending on the genre of the information providing point 4.

If it is determined that there is another user who has passed through the vicinity of the same information point 4 and has the same destination and progress toward the destination as the user who owns the communication terminal 6 that transmitted the destination information received in S11 (S16: YES), the process proceeds to S17.

In S17, the CPU 21 groups the user who owns the communication terminal 6 that is the source of the destination information received in S11 with other users who passed through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4, have the same destination, and have the same progress status of the movement to the destination. For example, the example shown in FIG. 12 shows a case where four users A to D are moving to a common destination, and there is an information provision point 4 to which information is provided other than the vicinity of the destination. Since users A and B passed through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4, have the same destination, and have the same progress status of the movement to the destination immediately after departure, they are grouped into the same group. On the other hand, user C passed through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 as users A and B, and have the same destination, but is not grouped into the same group because the progress status of the movement to the destination is different. Furthermore, user D has the same destination as users A and B, and has the same progress status of the movement to the destination immediately after departure, but does not pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4, so is not grouped into the same group.

On the other hand, the example shown in FIG. 13 shows a case where four users A to D are traveling to a common destination, and an information provision point 4 that is the subject of information provision is located near the destination. Users A, B, and D are grouped into the same group because they pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4, have the same destination, and have the same progress status of the journey to the destination immediately after departure. On the other hand, user C passes through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 as users A, B, and D, and also have the same destination, but is not grouped into the same group because the progress status of the journey to the destination is different.

Then, in the information provision processing program (FIG. 14) described below, information is provided on the basis of the above-mentioned grouped multiple users, i.e., on a group basis, regarding the information provision points 4 around which the users pass. Details will be described later.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S16 that there are no other users who have passed through the vicinity of the same information point 4 and have the same destination and progress toward the destination as the user who owns the communication terminal 6 that transmitted the destination information received in S11 (S16: NO), the user grouping processing program is terminated without grouping the users in question.

Next, the information provision processing program executed by the information provision server 3 and the communication terminal 6 in the information provision system 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. 14. FIG. 14 is a flowchart of the information provision processing program according to this embodiment. Here, the information provision processing program is executed after a specific application program for receiving advertisement information on the journey to the destination is started in the communication terminal 6, and is a program that provides advertisement information to the user traveling to the destination.

First, the information provision processing program executed by the CPU 31 of the communication terminal 6 will be described with reference to FIG. 14. In S21, the CPU 31 receives advertising information distributed from the information providing server 3. Here, the advertising information received in S21 is advertising information related to the information providing point 4 around which the user passes, and in particular advertising information determined by the information providing server 3 to have satisfied the output timing. In addition, the determination of whether the output timing has been satisfied is based on output pattern information (to be described later) generated by the information providing server 3 and current location information of the communication terminal 6 periodically distributed from the communication terminal 6 to the information providing server 3. Note that the determination of whether the output timing has been satisfied may be performed by the communication terminal 6 instead of the information providing server 3. In that case, the communication terminal 6 is configured to acquire the output pattern information generated by the information providing server 3 in advance.

Next, in S22, the CPU 31 outputs the advertising information distributed from the information providing server 3 using the speaker 36. For example, the example shown in FIG. 15 shows an example of advertising information output when the navigation function is providing travel guidance to the user. As shown in FIG. 15, when a travel guidance screen 66 is displayed on the display 38, the audio of the advertising information is output from the speaker 36 at the timing of provision. Note that, although the advertising information can be displayed on the display 38 as video or still images other than audio, it is desirable to output the advertising information in a manner that does not interfere with the travel guidance as much as possible during travel guidance. Note that, while the advertising information is not being output, for example, music or the like may be output from the speaker 36.

As for the output mode of the advertising information, as described above, it is possible to output audio data or video data that has been recorded and generated in advance and stored in the information providing server 3, but it is also possible to output what a person is saying in real time. That is, a concierge in charge of providing information to multiple grouped users (or to a single user for users who are not grouped) may be set, and audio or video of the concierge explaining facilities and products may be output. Furthermore, it may be possible for users belonging to the same group to send and receive various types of information, such as video information, text information, and audio information. For example, it may be possible to send and receive text information such as e-mail or chat between users.

In particular, if the user desires travel guidance to the destination, information (e.g., a series of links included in the center route) specifying a recommended route from the departure point to the destination (hereinafter referred to as the center route) searched for using map information held by the information providing server 3 is received from the information providing server 3. Then, during travel to the destination, the navigation function is executed to display a travel guidance screen 66 as shown in FIG. 15, and travel guidance is provided along the guide route set based on the center route. However, if the user does not desire travel guidance to the destination, the travel guidance screen 66 is not generally displayed. Even in this case, the audio of the advertising information is output when the output timing of the advertising information is met.

Then, in S23, the CPU 31 determines whether the user has finished moving to the destination, i.e., whether the user has arrived at the destination. Specifically, it is determined that the destination has been reached when the current position of the communication terminal 6 is within a predetermined distance (e.g., within 50 m) from the destination.

Then, if it is determined that the user has finished traveling to the destination, i.e., that the user has arrived at the destination (S23: YES), the information provision processing program is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined that the user is continuing traveling to the destination, i.e., that the user has not arrived at the destination (S23: NO), the process returns to S21 and advertising information continues to be provided. It is also desirable to continue providing information for a while after arrival at the destination (for example, within 10 minutes after arrival).

Next, the information provision processing program executed by the CPU 21 of the information provision server 3 will be described. Note that each process from S31 to S36 below is started when the corresponding information is received from the communication terminal 6. Therefore, the order in which each step is performed is not necessarily the order of the lowest step number.

Here, the CPU 21 executes the following processing from S31 onwards for multiple users grouped in the above-mentioned user grouping processing program (Figure 6), i.e., for each group. However, if there is a user who has not been grouped despite having the information provision app running (i.e., a user who has passed through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4, has the same destination, and has the same progress status toward the destination), the processing is executed for that user on a user basis.

First, in S31, the CPU 21 identifies an information provision point 4 around which a user belonging to the group to be processed (or the user to be processed, the same applies below) passes. Note that multiple users belonging to the same group pass around the same information provision point 4 as described above (S16, Figures 12 and 13). The information provision point 4 identified in S31 becomes the information provision point 4 that is the target of information provision for users belonging to the group to be processed. Note that there may be multiple information provision points 4 identified in S31.

Next, in S32, the CPU 21 selects advertising information to be provided to users belonging to the group being processed, and generates "output pattern information" that sets the timing of output for each piece of selected advertising information. Here, the "output pattern information" is information that sets the content of the advertising information to be output and the timing of outputting the advertising information during the travel period (travel journey) from when the user starts traveling to the destination until the user completes traveling to the destination.

The "output pattern information" generated in S32 above will be described below with a specific example. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 16, a case will be described in which the user passes information provision point A while traveling to the destination, and the destination is in the vicinity of information provision point B, i.e., information provision points A and B are the targets of information provision.

For example, in the example shown in FIG. 16, the CPU 21 divides the travel period into three sections A to C in order from the start of travel. Section A is the section immediately after the start of travel, section B is the section approaching information provision point A near the midpoint, and section C is the section approaching the destination, i.e., information provision point B. Sections A to C may be divided based on distance or time. First, in the first section A, it is presumed that the user is not particularly interested in the destination and is looking for a place to make a detour. Therefore, for section A, "advertising information related to information provision point A," which is a candidate for a detour, is set as the output target. In the next section B, "advertising information related to information provision point A," which is nearby, continues to be set as the output target, while it is presumed that the user's interest in the destination will gradually increase, so "advertising information related to information provision point B," which is a candidate to be visited after arriving at the destination, is also set as the output target. In the final section C, the "advertising information about information point A" that has already been passed is excluded from the output target, but since it is estimated that the user will become even more interested in the destination, the "advertising information about information point B" that is a candidate for visiting after arriving at the destination is set as the output target.

Next, in S33, the CPU 21 determines whether the timing for outputting advertisement information to a user has been met based on the current location of the user belonging to the group to be processed, which is periodically obtained from the communication terminal 6 of the user, and the "output pattern information" generated in S32. For example, in the example of "output pattern information" shown in FIG. 16, the timing when any or all of the users belonging to the group to be processed start moving is set as the output timing for advertisement information set as the output target for section A. The timing when any or all of the users belonging to the group to be processed reach section B is set as the output timing for advertisement information set as the output target for section B. The timing when any or all of the users belonging to the group to be processed reach section C is set as the output timing for advertisement information set as the output target for section C.

If it is determined that the timing for outputting the advertising information to the user has been met (S33: YES), the process proceeds to S34. On the other hand, if it is determined that the timing for outputting the advertising information to the user has not been met (S33: NO), the process proceeds to S36.

In S34, the CPU 21 extracts from the distribution information DB 8 the advertising information for which it has determined that the communication terminal 6 of the user belonging to the group being processed has satisfied the output timing based on the "output pattern information" generated in S32. If there is a plurality of pieces of applicable advertising information, it may be possible to extract a plurality of pieces of advertising information, or it may be possible to extract the advertising information that is most effective for the user, for example, by taking into account user information (age, gender, past purchase history, etc.).

Next, in S35, the CPU 21 transmits the advertising information extracted in S34 to the communication terminals 6 of the users belonging to the group being processed. The advertising information is transmitted in units of multiple users belonging to the group being processed, i.e., in units of groups. More specifically, the information providing server 3 transmits information to the communication terminals 6 of multiple users belonging to the group being processed in a single process (i.e., transmission is performed by specifying multiple users as destinations). As a result, the advertising information is transmitted simultaneously or approximately simultaneously to multiple users belonging to the group being processed.

When the communication terminal 6 receives the advertising information, the advertising information is output on the communication terminal 6 as described above (Figure 15).

Then, in S36, the CPU 21 determines whether or not the user belonging to the group being processed has finished moving to the destination, i.e., whether or not the user has arrived at the destination. Specifically, the CPU 21 compares the user's current location, which is periodically acquired from the communication terminal 6, with the coordinates of the destination, and determines that the destination has been reached if the current location of the communication terminal 6 that is the source of the user information belonging to the group being processed is within a predetermined distance (e.g., within 50 m) from the destination.

Then, if it is determined that a user belonging to the group being processed has finished moving to the destination, i.e., that the user has arrived at the destination (S36: YES), the information provision processing program is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined that a user belonging to the group being processed is continuing moving to the destination, i.e., that the user has not arrived at the destination (S36: NO), the process returns to S33 and advertising information continues to be provided. Note that if only some of the multiple users belonging to the group have arrived at the destination, the process from S33 onwards may be continued for only the communication terminals 6 of the users who have not arrived at the destination. It is also desirable to continue providing information through S33 to S35 for a while after arrival at the destination (for example, within 10 minutes after arrival).

As described above in detail, the information providing system 1, the information providing server 3, and the computer program executed by the information providing server 3 according to this embodiment acquire information providing points to which information is to be provided (S15), acquire destinations to which each user moves for a plurality of users (S11, S12), identify a plurality of users who pass through the vicinity of the same information providing point on their way to the destination and have a common progress status for the user's way to the destination (S17), and provide information on the information providing points that the plurality of users pass through for each of the identified plurality of users (S34, S35). Therefore, by grouping a plurality of users who can share the content of information to be provided and the timing of the information to be provided, it becomes possible to manage information to be distributed on a group basis and to distribute the information. As a result, it becomes possible to efficiently provide information that is useful to users.
In addition, among the multiple users, multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point on their way to the destination and who have a common destination are identified (S17), and information on the information provision point that the multiple users pass through is provided to each of the multiple identified users (S34, S35).By grouping multiple users who can share the content and timing of the information to be provided, it becomes possible to manage the information to be distributed on a group basis and to distribute the information. As a result, it becomes possible to efficiently provide information that is useful to users.
In addition, when passing through the vicinity of the same information provision point while traveling to the destination, this includes at least one of the cases where the destinations of multiple users are within the surrounding area of the same information provision point and where at least a portion of the travel routes of multiple users is within the surrounding area of the same information provision point, so it is possible to provide the user with information regarding information provision points that are candidates for the user to stop at while traveling to the destination, and information regarding information provision points that are candidates for the user to visit after arriving at the destination.
In addition, since an information provision point of a genre corresponding to the genre of the destination to which the user is traveling is acquired (S15), it is possible to appropriately provide the information required by the user, taking into account the genre of the destination to which the user is traveling.
In addition, multiple genres of information provision points are associated with a destination genre, and information provision points of different genres are obtained depending on the distance to the destination (S15). Therefore, by taking into consideration not only the genre of the destination to which the user is traveling, but also the genres of information provision points that the user is likely to stop at on the way to the destination and the genres of information provision points that the user is likely to visit after arriving at the destination, it is possible to appropriately provide the information that the user requires.

Incidentally, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various improvements and modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention.
For example, the present invention can be applied to the movement of a user at a corporate exhibition. In that case, the "destination" or "information provision point" may be the corporate exhibition booth, or a specific exhibit within the exhibition booth. Furthermore, the output advertising information may be advertising information for the entire exhibition, advertising information for the exhibiting companies, advertising information for the exhibition booth, or advertising information for the exhibits exhibited at the exhibition booth.

In addition, in this embodiment, it is assumed that advertising information is provided to a user when the user actually moves from a departure point to a destination using a means of transportation such as a car, but the user's movement may be a virtual movement in a virtual space rather than a movement in the real world. That is, advertising information may be provided to a user who operates an avatar when the avatar of the user who moves in a virtual space using VR (Virtual Reality) moves from a departure point in the virtual space to a destination. In that case, the communication terminal 6 corresponds to a dedicated VR headset, smartphone, or PC that can configure a VR system. Note that the operation of the avatar in the virtual space is performed with a remote control or a game pad when using a VR headset. In the case of a PC, it is performed with a mouse or a keyboard. In the case of a smartphone, it is performed with a touch panel. And, when the present invention is applied to such VR, the departure point and destination in the virtual space of the user's avatar are obtained from the communication terminal 6 in the above S11. Also, in the above S15, an information provision point in the virtual space where advertising is performed (for example, a shop in a virtual mall, an exhibition booth or exhibit at a virtual exhibition) is identified. Additionally, the user's progress toward their destination will be reflected in the user's avatar's progress toward their destination in the virtual space.

As a specific example, if the VR virtual space is a corporate exhibition, the destination or information provision point may be the corporate exhibition booth in the virtual space, or a specific exhibit within the exhibition booth. Also, if the destination is a corporate exhibition booth, the advertising information provided to the user operating the avatar may be advertising information for the entire exhibition, advertising information for the exhibiting company, advertising information for the exhibition booth, or advertising information for the exhibits displayed at the exhibition booth.

As another specific example, if the VR virtual space is a virtual mall, the advertising information provided to the user operating the avatar may be advertising information for the entire virtual mall, advertising information for shops opening in the virtual mall, or advertising information for products handled by shops opening in the virtual mall.

In addition, in this embodiment, among the multiple users 5, multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 are grouped together, and who have a common destination and a common progress status in moving to the destination. However, the condition of having a common destination may be removed, and multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 and who have a common progress status in moving to the destination may be grouped together. Alternatively, the condition of having a common progress status in moving to the destination may be removed, and multiple users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point 4 and who have a common destination may be grouped together.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 16, the moving period is divided into three sections, sections A to C, and advertising information to be output is set for each section, but the number of sections may be two or less or four or more. Also, it is not necessary to set advertising information to be output for all sections, and advertising information to be output for only some sections may be set.

In addition, in this embodiment, what is output to the user is advertising information issued by the information providing point 4, which is the advertiser, for the purpose of widely publicizing products, performances, etc. and attracting people's attention, but information other than advertising information may also be output as long as it can support the user's actions. For example, information that guides the location of a facility, rather than for advertising purposes, may also be output.

In this embodiment, the user's destination for the current trip is set based on the user's input operation of the destination, but the user's destination may be inferred and set based on the user's past behavior history, etc. For example, if the user has frequently visited the same facility on the same day of the week at the same time in the past, it can be inferred that the destination for the current trip will also be the same facility. Also, if the user starts traveling from a facility other than the home, such as a shopping mall, in the evening or later, it is also possible to infer that the home is the destination.

In addition, in this embodiment, it is assumed that the user is in a vehicle, but the user may be in a means of transportation other than a vehicle, or may be traveling on foot.

In addition, in this embodiment, it is assumed that multiple users belonging to a group travel to a common destination using different means of transportation, but it may also be assumed that multiple users belonging to a group travel to a common destination using the same means of transportation. For example, participants who participate in the same tour trip organized by a travel agency may belong to the same group.

In addition, in this embodiment, an example in which the communication terminal 6 is applied to a smartphone has been described, but the invention can also be applied to other types of communication terminals as long as they have a function for outputting information distributed from the information providing server 3. For example, the invention can be applied to mobile phones, tablet terminals, personal computers, navigation devices, etc. Furthermore, when applied to devices other than navigation devices, the invention can also be implemented in situations other than when the user is traveling by car, for example, when the user is traveling on foot.

In addition, in this embodiment, the processes related to the selection and extraction of advertising information in S31 to S35 are performed by the information providing server 3, but they may also be performed by the communication terminal 6.

1... Information provision system, 3... Information provision server, 4... Information provision location, 5... User, 6... Communication terminal, 8... Distribution information DB, 11... Server control unit, 21... CPU, 22... RAM, 23... ROM

Claims (5)

A location acquisition means for acquiring an information provision location that is a target of information provision;
A destination acquisition means for acquiring a destination to which each of a plurality of users travels;
a search means for searching for another user among the plurality of users who, when it is determined that a target user, which is any one of the plurality of users, passes through the vicinity of the information provision point that is a candidate for the user to stop at while traveling to the destination, is a user other than the target user and passes through the vicinity of the information provision point that is the same as the information provision point that the target user passes through while traveling to the destination, and has a common progress status with the target user regarding the travel to the destination;
A group forming means for forming a group including the target user and other users found;
an information providing means for providing information about the information provision point around which a plurality of users included in the group pass, on a group-by-group basis ;
The information providing means includes:
Based on the position of the information provision point that is the target of information provision, an information provision section is set as a section for providing information about the information provision point on the travel route to the destination,
An information provision system that provides information regarding the information provision location to multiple users included in the group on a group-by-group basis when any or all of the users included in the group reach the information provision section . A location acquisition means for acquiring an information provision location that is a target of information provision;
A destination acquisition means for acquiring a destination to which each of a plurality of users travels;
a search means for searching for other users among the plurality of users who, when it is determined that a target user, which is any one of the plurality of users, passes through the vicinity of the information provision point that is a candidate for the user to stop at while traveling to a destination, pass through the vicinity of the information provision point that is the same as the information provision point that the target user passes through while traveling to a destination, and who have a common destination with the target user;
A group forming means for forming a group including the target user and other users found;
an information providing means for providing information about the information provision point around which a plurality of users included in the group pass, on a group-by-group basis ;
The information providing means includes:
Based on the position of the information provision point that is the target of information provision, an information provision section is set as a section for providing information about the information provision point on the travel route to the destination,
An information provision system that provides information regarding the information provision location to multiple users included in the group on a group-by-group basis when any or all of the multiple users included in the group reach the information provision section . a travel route acquisition means for acquiring a future travel route of each of the plurality of users;
The information provision system according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the search means searches for other users who pass through the vicinity of the same information provision point as the information provision point passed by the target user on their way to their destination, the other users having a destination within the area surrounding the information provision point, or other users whose future travel route is partly included in the area surrounding the information provision point. The information provision system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the location acquisition means acquires the information provision locations in a genre corresponding to the genre of the destination to which the user is traveling. A plurality of categories of the information providing points are associated with a category of the destination,
5. The information providing system according to claim 4, wherein the location acquisition means acquires the information providing locations in different categories depending on the distance to the destination.