JP7704576B2 - Information processing device, information processing method, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program.

Patent Document 1 discloses an information provision system that accumulates a customer's purchasing history and, when the customer attempts to purchase a product, outputs a warning to notify the customer of the duplicate purchase if the customer attempts to purchase a product that has already been purchased.
[Prior art documents]
[Patent Documents]
[Patent Document 1] JP 2005-228179 A

In a first aspect of the present invention, a management device is provided. The management device, for example, manages the purchasing behavior of a target person. The management device, for example, includes a target information acquisition unit that acquires, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service, (i) target person identification information for identifying the target person, and (ii) target product information indicating the target product, which is the product or service that the target person wishes to purchase. The management device, for example, includes a judgment condition determination unit that determines, for each target person, a first judgment condition related to at least one of the start and end dates of a judgment period for duplicate purchases of the target product. The management device, for example, (i) refers to a first storage unit that stores purchased product information indicating each of one or more purchased products that are products or services previously purchased by the subject, purchase time information indicating the time when each of the one or more purchased products was purchased, and subject identification information in association with each other, and extracts purchased product information regarding products or services purchased by the subject identified by the subject identification information acquired by the subject information acquisition unit during the judgment period indicated by the first judgment condition of the subject, and (ii) includes a necessity determination unit that determines whether to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the target product to the communication terminal of the subject, the subject's administrator, or the transferor of the target product, based on the extracted purchased product information and the target product information acquired by the target information acquisition unit.

In the above management device, the first storage unit may store purchased product information, purchase time information, purchase quantity information indicating the number or amount of each of the one or more purchased products, and target person identification information in association with each other. In the above management device, the judgment condition determination unit may refer to the first storage unit and determine the first judgment condition for each target person.

In the above management device, the target information acquisition unit may acquire (i) target person identification information, (ii) target product information, and (iii) target quantity information indicating the number or amount of the target products when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service. In the above management device, the judgment condition determination unit may refer to the first storage unit to determine (i) a first judgment condition and (ii) a second judgment condition regarding the number or amount of products or services that are permitted to be purchased within the judgment period for each target person. In the above management device, the necessity determination unit may (i) refer to the first storage unit to extract purchased product information and purchased quantity information regarding products or services purchased within the judgment period indicated by the first judgment condition by the target person identified by the target person identification information acquired by the target information acquisition unit, and (ii) determine whether to output a warning based on the extracted purchased product information and purchased quantity information and the second judgment condition.

In the above management device, the judgment condition determination unit may determine, for each subject, a third judgment condition related to a product or service to be compared in determining whether the target product has been purchased twice. In the above management device, the necessity determination unit may determine whether to output a warning based on the extracted purchased product information and the third judgment condition.

The above management device may include a mode determination unit that determines a mode of warning presentation. In the above management device, the mode determination unit may determine a mode of warning presentation based on at least one of the attributes of the subject, the past purchasing behavior of the subject, and the behavior of the subject in response to past warnings. In the above management device, the mode determination unit may determine a mode of warning presentation for each subject by referring to a second storage unit that stores subject identification information, information indicating the presentation mode of each of one or more warnings previously presented to the subject identified by the subject identification information, and information indicating the behavior of the subject in response to each of the one or more warnings, in association with each other. The above management device may include a warning transmission unit that transmits, to the communication terminal, information for causing the communication terminal to output a warning according to the presentation mode determined by the mode determination unit.

In a second aspect of the present invention, a management device is provided. The management device, for example, manages the purchasing behavior of a target person. The management device, for example, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service, includes a target information acquisition unit that acquires (i) target person identification information for identifying the target person, and (ii) target product information indicating a target product that is a product or service that the target person wishes to purchase, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service. The management device, for example, refers to a first storage unit that stores (i) purchased product information indicating each of one or more purchased products that are products or services purchased in the past by the target person, and purchase quantity information indicating the number or amount of each of the one or more purchased products, as well as the target person identification information in association with each other, and extracts purchased product information regarding a product or service purchased within a predetermined period by a target person identified by the target person identification information acquired by the target information acquisition unit, and (ii) includes a necessity determination unit that determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the target product to a communication terminal of the target person, the manager of the target person, or the transferor of the target product based on the extracted purchased product information and the target product information acquired by the target information acquisition unit. The management device, for example, includes a mode determination unit that determines a presentation mode of the warning. In the above management device, the mode determination unit determines the mode of warning presentation for each subject by referencing a second storage unit that stores, in association with the subject identification information, information indicating the presentation mode of each of one or more warnings previously presented to the subject identified by the subject identification information, and information indicating the subject's behavior in response to each of the one or more warnings.

The management device may include a warning transmission unit that transmits information to the communication terminal to cause the communication terminal to output a warning according to the presentation mode determined by the mode determination unit.

In a third aspect of the present invention, a management method is provided. The above management method is, for example, a management method for managing the purchasing behavior of a target person using a computer. For example, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service, the above management method has a target information acquisition step of acquiring (i) target person identification information for identifying the target person, and (ii) target product information indicating the target product which is the product or service that the target person wishes to purchase. The above management method has, for example, a judgment condition determination step of determining, for each target person, a first judgment condition relating to at least one of the start and end dates of a judgment period for duplicate purchases of the target product. The above management method includes, for example, (i) referring to a first storage device that stores in association with each other purchased product information indicating one or more purchased products that are products or services previously purchased by the subject, purchase time information indicating the time when each of the one or more purchased products was purchased, and subject identification information, extracts purchased product information regarding products or services purchased by the subject identified by the subject identification information acquired in the subject information acquisition stage during the judgment period indicated by the subject's first judgment condition, and (ii) a necessity determination stage that determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the target product to the communication terminal of the subject, the subject's administrator, or the transferor of the target product based on the extracted purchased product information and the target product information acquired in the target information acquisition stage.

In a fourth aspect of the present invention, a management method is provided. The management method is, for example, a management method for managing the purchasing behavior of a target person using a computer. The management method has, for example, a target information acquisition step of acquiring, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service, (i) target person identification information for identifying the target person, and (ii) target product information indicating the target product, which is the product or service that the target person wishes to purchase. The management method has, for example, a first storage device that stores (i) purchased product information indicating each of one or more purchased products, which are products or services purchased by the target person in the past, and purchase quantity information indicating the number or amount of each of the one or more purchased products, as well as the target person identification information in association with each other, and extracts purchased product information regarding products or services purchased by the target person identified by the target person identification information acquired in the target information acquisition step within a predetermined period, and (ii) a necessity determination step of determining whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchase of the target product to the communication terminal of the target person, the target person's administrator, or the transferor of the target product based on the extracted purchased product information and the target product information acquired in the target information acquisition step. The above management method includes, for example, a mode determination step of determining a mode of warning presentation. In the above management method, the mode determination step includes a step of determining a mode of warning presentation for each subject by referring to a second storage device that stores, in association with the subject identification information, information indicating the presentation mode of each of one or more warnings previously presented to the subject identified by the subject identification information, and information indicating the subject's behavior in response to each of the one or more warnings.

In a fifth aspect of the present invention, a program is provided. The program may be a program for causing a computer to function as the management device according to the first or second embodiment. The program may be a program for causing a computer to execute the management method according to the third or fourth embodiment. A computer-readable medium storing the program may be provided. The computer-readable medium may be a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may be a computer-readable recording medium.

Note that the above summary of the invention does not list all of the necessary features of the present invention. Also, subcombinations of these features may also be inventions.

1 shows an example of a system configuration of a behavior management system 100. 2 shows an example of the internal configuration of the behavior management server 150. 13 illustrates an example of information processing in a registration information acquisition unit 222. 13 illustrates an example of information processing in a purchase information acquisition unit 224. 5 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a data table 500. 6 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a data table 600. 7 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a data table 700. An example of the system configuration of a computer 3000 is shown in schematic form.

The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. Furthermore, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention. In the drawings, the same reference numbers are used for the same or similar parts, and duplicate explanations may be omitted.

[Overview of the behavior management system 100]
1 shows an example of a system configuration of a behavior management system 100. In this embodiment, the details of an example of the behavior management system 100 will be described using an example in which the behavior management system 100 provides a monitoring service for elderly people. According to the monitoring service, for example, purchasing behavior of products or services (sometimes simply referred to as products) is managed.

Specifically, according to this embodiment, the details of the behavior management system 100 are described using as an example a case in which a contractor 22 enters into a contract with a monitoring service provider (not shown) to provide a monitoring service to a target person 24, and the behavior management system 100 manages the purchasing behavior of the target person 24 at one or more stores 120.

The provider of the monitoring service is, for example, the manager or operator of the behavior management system 100. Note that in other embodiments, the provider of the monitoring service may be different from the manager or operator of the behavior management system 100. The target person 24 may be the same person as the contractor 22, or a different person from the contractor 22. Examples of the target person 24 include the contractor 22, a cohabitant of the contractor 22, or a family member or relative of the contractor 22.

In this embodiment, the store 120 is provided with, for example, a terminal management server 130 and one or more store terminals 140. The terminal management server 130 includes, for example, a sales management unit 132. Each of the one or more store terminals 140 includes, for example, a reading unit 142, an output unit 144, and a control unit 146.

When a target person 24 visiting the store 120 wishes to purchase a product 30, for example, a sales clerk 26 using a store terminal 140 reads the identification information of the product 30, and the price and quantity of the product 30 are registered in the sales management unit 132. The sales clerk 26 then receives the payment from the target person 24 and executes a settlement process using the store terminal 140, thereby completing the payment for the product 30.

In this embodiment, the behavior management system 100 includes a behavior management server 150 and a recipe management server 160. Each part of the behavior management system 100 can send and receive information to and from each other via the communication network 10. In this embodiment, the behavior management system 100 can send and receive information to and from the communication terminal 102 and the terminal management server 130 via the communication network 10. Note that the terminal management server 130 and the store terminal 140 may form part of the behavior management system 100.

According to this embodiment, if the subject 24 attempts to purchase the same or similar product or service twice within a predetermined period (sometimes referred to as a judgment period), the behavior management server 150 outputs a warning about the duplicate purchase. For example, the behavior management server 150 transmits a command to the communication terminal 102 used by the subject 24, the communication terminal 102 used by the contractor 22, or the store terminal 140 to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output the warning.

The end of the predetermined period may be the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service. The time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service may be the time when the store terminal 140 reads the identification information of the product 30. The length of the predetermined period is determined, for example, based on the type of product or service. The length of the predetermined period is determined, for example, for each subject 24. The length of the predetermined period is determined, for example, for each subject 24, based on the type of product or service. The length of the predetermined period may be determined based on the purchase history or return history of the subject 24 for each product or service. The length of the predetermined period may be determined based on the purchase history or return history of the subject 24 for each product or service, and the subject 24's cohabitants, family members, or relatives.

For example, if the communication terminal 102 used by the contractor 22 outputs the above warning and the contractor 22 is in the vicinity of the subject 24, the contractor 22 can inform the subject 24 that it is not necessary to purchase the product 30. For example, if the communication terminal 102 used by the subject 24 or the store terminal 140 outputs the above warning, the subject 24 can remember that it is not necessary to purchase the product 30. For example, if the store terminal 140 outputs the above warning, the store clerk 26 can inform the subject 24 that it is not necessary to purchase the product 30.

[Example of Functions of the Behavior Management System 100]
If warnings regarding duplicate purchases are output frequently or if such warnings are output even when the target person 24 is making correct purchases, the user experience of the monitoring service for the contractor 22 or the target person 24 will be degraded. For example, according to the information provision system described in JP 2005-228179 A, a determination period for determining whether or not a warning is necessary can be set for each type of product. The information provision system determines that a warning is necessary when the same product is purchased within the determination period.

However, in the above information provision system, if the type of product is the same, whether or not there is a duplicate purchase within the same length of time is determined, whether or not the user is a single person or has many cohabitants. Also, whether or not there is a duplicate purchase within the same length of time is determined, whether or not there is a decline in the user's memory or cognitive function. Therefore, the above information provision system is relatively prone to a decline in the user experience, making it difficult to provide useful services over a long period of time.

In contrast, according to one example of this embodiment, the above-mentioned judgment period is set for each subject 24. For example, the judgment period for each of the one or more subjects 24 is determined based on the history of each of the one or more subjects 24 purchasing products or services in the past.

[Judgment period setting]
Specifically, first, every time the subject 24 purchases a product or service, for example, the behavior management server 150 stores in a first database (not shown) (i) information indicating each of one or more products or services (sometimes referred to as purchased products) purchased by the subject 24 in the past (sometimes referred to as purchased product information), information indicating the time when each of the one or more purchased products was purchased (sometimes referred to as purchase time information), and information indicating the number or amount (sometimes referred to as quantity) of each of the one or more purchased products (sometimes referred to as purchase quantity information), and (ii) identification information for identifying the subject 24 (sometimes referred to as subject ID). The first database may store information indicating at least one of the return history of products or services purchased by the subject 24 and the cancellation history of products or services that the subject 24 attempted to purchase, in association with the subject ID. The behavior management server 150 acquires the above information from, for example, the terminal management server 130 arranged in each of the one or more stores 120.

Next, the behavior management server 150 determines, for each target person 24, a condition (sometimes referred to as a first determination condition) regarding at least one of the start and end of the duplicate purchase determination period. The behavior management server 150 determines the first determination condition for each target person 24, for example, by referring to a first database. This completes the preparation work for determining duplicate purchases.

In one embodiment, the behavior management server 150 refers to the first database to determine the purchase amount or number of purchases (sometimes simply referred to as purchase frequency) per unit period for each product or service for each of the one or more subjects 24. Next, the behavior management server 150 determines a condition for the start of the judgment period for each of the one or more subjects 24 based on the purchase frequency for each product or service for each of the one or more subjects 24. In another embodiment, the behavior management server 150 may determine a condition for the start of the judgment period based on at least one of the number and attributes of people who live with the subject 24 or who support the subject 24's life (sometimes referred to as cohabitants). The procedure for determining the first judgment condition will be described in detail below.

[Processing to determine duplicate purchases]
Next, when the subject 24 wishes to purchase the product 30, for example, the behavior management server 150 obtains (i) identification information (sometimes referred to as a subject ID) for identifying the subject 24, and (ii) information indicating the product 30 that the subject 24 wishes to purchase (sometimes referred to as product information) from the terminal management server 130. When the behavior management server 150 obtains the above information, the behavior management server 150 starts a process of determining whether or not there has been a duplicate purchase.

The behavior management server 150 first determines the judgment period to be subject to the duplicate purchase judgment process based on the first judgment condition determined by the above preparation work. Next, the behavior management server 150 accesses the first database and extracts purchased product information related to products or services purchased by the subject 24 within the judgment period indicated by the first judgment condition. For example, the behavior management server 150 extracts information indicating at least one of the identification information of products or services purchased by the subject 24 within the last three days, the item name of the product or service, and the category of the product or service.

Next, the behavior management server 150 determines whether or not to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 of the contractor 22 or the target person 24 to output a warning regarding a duplicate purchase of the product 30, based on the purchased product information extracted by the behavior management server 150 and the product information of the product 30 acquired by the behavior management server 150. If the behavior management server 150 determines to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning regarding a duplicate purchase of the product 30, the behavior management server 150 transmits a command to the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning. As a result, information indicating the possibility that the product 30 has been purchased twice is presented to the target person 24.

According to one example of this embodiment, a determination period that is subject to the process of determining whether or not there is a duplicate purchase is set for each subject 24. For example, the length of the determination period is adjusted based on the history of the number or amount (sometimes referred to as the purchase quantity) of products or services that are the same as or similar to the product 30 that the subject 24 has purchased. Returned products or services may be excluded from the history. This reduces the frequency with which unnecessary warnings are output, improving the user experience. As a result, services that are useful to the subject 24 can be provided for a long period of time. In addition, the subject 24 can be watched over by the entire region.

[Other examples of functions of the behavior management system 100]
The manner in which a warning is presented to the subject 24 may have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the warning or the user experience. For example, some subjects 24 may feel as if they are being criticized for making a duplicate purchase when a third party directly points out that they have made a duplicate purchase. As a result, they may purchase the product without following the warning. Even such subjects 24 may follow the warning and stop purchasing the product if the duplicate purchase is pointed out in an indirect way.

Therefore, according to one example of this embodiment, the presentation mode of the warning is set for each subject 24. For example, the presentation mode for each of the one or more subjects 24 is determined based on the behavior history of each of the one or more subjects 24 when they received a warning in the past.

Specifically, first, each time a warning is presented to the subject 24, for example, the behavior management server 150 associates the subject ID of the subject 24, information indicating the presentation mode of each of the one or more warnings previously presented to the subject 24, and information indicating the behavior of the subject 24 in response to each of the one or more warnings, and stores them in a second database (not shown). Examples of information indicating the behavior of the subject 24 in response to the warning include information indicating that the purchase of a product or service has been discontinued, information indicating that the purchase of a product or service has been continued, etc.

The behavior management server 150 acquires the above information, for example, from a communication terminal 102 used by each of one or more contractors 22, a communication terminal 102 used by each of one or more target persons 24, or a terminal management server 130 provided in each of one or more stores 120. The above information may be input into the communication terminal 102 by the contractor 22, may be input into the communication terminal 102 by the target persons 24, or may be input into the store terminal 140 by the store clerk 26.

Next, for example, the behavior management server 150 refers to the second database and determines the mode of presenting the warning for each target person 24. This completes the preparation work for presenting a warning regarding duplicate purchases.

Next, when the subject 24 wishes to purchase the product 30, for example, the behavior management server 150 obtains from the terminal management server 130 (i) the subject ID of the subject 24 and (ii) the product information of the product 30 that the subject 24 wishes to purchase. When the behavior management server 150 obtains the above information, the behavior management server 150 starts a process to determine whether or not there is a duplicate purchase.

For example, the behavior management server 150 accesses a first database that stores (i) purchased product information for each of one or more products or services previously purchased by the subject 24 and purchase quantity information for each of the one or more purchased products in association with (ii) the subject ID of the subject 24, and extracts purchased product information for products or services purchased by the subject 24 within a predetermined period of time. Next, based on the purchased product information extracted by the behavior management server 150 and the product information of the product 30 acquired by the behavior management server 150, the behavior management server 150 determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 or store terminal 140 of the contractor 22 or the subject 24.

When the behavior management server 150 decides to have the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 output a warning about duplicate purchases, the behavior management server 150 decides the presentation format of the warning. For example, the behavior management server 150 decides to issue the warning according to the format determined in the preparation work described above.

According to one example of this embodiment, the mode of presenting the warning is set for each subject 24. For example, the mode of presenting the warning is determined based on the subject 24's history of actions in response to the warning. This improves the effectiveness of the warning and the user experience. As a result, a service that is useful to the subject 24 can be provided for a long period of time. In addition, the subject 24 can be watched over by the entire region.

[Overview of each part related to the behavior management system 100]
In the present embodiment, the communication network 10 may be a transmission path for wired communication, a transmission path for wireless communication, or a combination of a transmission path for wireless communication and a transmission path for wired communication. The communication network 10 includes, for example, at least one of a wireless packet communication network, the Internet, a P2P network, a dedicated line, a VPN, a power line communication line, a vehicle-to-vehicle communication line, and a road-to-vehicle communication line.

The communication network 10 may include (i) a mobile communication network such as a mobile phone network, or (ii) a wireless communication network such as a wireless MAN (e.g., WiMAX (registered trademark)), a wireless LAN (e.g., WiFi (registered trademark)), Bluetooth (registered trademark), Zigbee (registered trademark), or NFC (Near Field Communication). As described above, wireless LAN, Bluetooth (registered trademark), Zigbee (registered trademark), and NFC may be examples of short-range wireless communication methods.

In this embodiment, the communication terminal 102 transmits and receives information to and from each part of the behavior management system 100 via the communication network 10. The communication terminal 102 may transmit and receive information to and from the store terminal 140 by a short-range wireless communication method using electromagnetic waves or sound waves. The communication terminal 102 may transmit and receive information to and from the store terminal 140 by using an encoded code such as a barcode or a QR code (registered trademark). Examples of the communication terminal 102 include a personal computer and a mobile terminal. Examples of the mobile terminal include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PDA, a tablet, a notebook computer or laptop computer, and a wearable computer.

In this embodiment, the terminal management server 130 manages one or more store terminals 140 arranged in the store 120. The terminal management server 130 may send and receive information between each part of the behavior management system 100 via the communication network 10.

In this embodiment, the sales management unit 132 manages various operations related to the sale of products or services at the store 120. Examples of the operations include order management, order management, arrival management, delivery management, inventory management, sales management, billing management, deposit management, and payment management.

The sales management unit 132 may manage, for each of one or more products or services sold at the store 120, identification information of the product or service and information indicating the price of the product or service in association with each other. The sales management unit 132 may manage, for each of one or more products or services sold at the store 120, identification information of the product or service, information indicating the price of the product or service, and information indicating the volume of the product or the volume of a product provided by the service in association with each other.

The sales management unit 132 may manage information related to the store clerks 26 of the store 120. The sales management unit 132 may manage, for each of one or more store clerks 26, the identification information of the store clerk in association with information indicating the attributes of the store clerk. Examples of the attributes of the store clerk 26 include gender, age or generation, and main working hours.

The sales management unit 132 may transmit the identification information of the product 30 read by the reading unit 142 to the behavior management server 150. The sales management unit 132 may transmit information regarding the settlement or payment of the product 30 read by the reading unit 142 to the behavior management server 150. The sales management unit 132 may transmit information indicating that the purchase of the product 30 read by the reading unit 142 has been canceled to the behavior management server 150.

The sales management unit 132 may receive information regarding a warning to be output to the store terminal 140 from the behavior management server 150. The sales management unit 132 may transmit information regarding the above warning to the store terminal 140.

In this embodiment, the store terminal 140 cooperates with the sales management unit 132 to perform various operations related to the sale of products or services at the store 120. The store terminal 140 may be operated by the target person 24 or by the store clerk 26.

In this embodiment, the reading unit 142 reads the identification information of each of the one or more products 30 that the target person 24 wishes to purchase. The reading unit 142 outputs the identification information of each of the one or more products 30 to the sales management unit 132. Examples of the identification information of the product 30 include the product name and product code. Examples of the reading unit 142 include a barcode scanner, a QR code (registered trademark) scanner, and an RFID reader.

In this embodiment, the output unit 144 outputs various information to at least one of the target person 24 and the store clerk 26. Examples of the output unit 144 include at least one of a display device such as a display or a projector, an audio output device such as a speaker, and a printing device such as a printer.

For example, the output unit 144 outputs information indicating that the subject 24 may have duplicated purchases of the product 30. The output unit 144 may output the information indicating that the subject 24 may have duplicated purchases of the product 30 in a manner indicated by a command received from the behavior management server 150. When the output unit 144 has multiple display measures, the output unit 144 may output the information indicating that the subject 24 may have duplicated purchases of the product 30 such that at least one of the content and presentation manner of the information output to the subject 24 is different from at least one of the content and presentation manner of the information output to the store clerk 26.

In this embodiment, the control unit 146 controls the store terminal 140. The control unit 146 may control the operation of the store terminal 140. The control unit 146 may control communication between the store terminal 140 and the sales management unit 132.

In this embodiment, the behavior management server 150 manages the purchasing behavior of the target person 24 of the monitoring service provided by the behavior management system 100. As described above, when the target person 24 attempts to purchase the same or similar product or service twice within a predetermined period of time, the behavior management server 150 causes the communication terminal 102 or store terminal 140 of the contractor 22 or the target person 24 to output a warning about the duplicate purchase.

The behavior management server 150 may transmit information indicating the warning output history to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22. If the product 30 is a food product, the behavior management server 150 may transmit information indicating the warning output history and information indicating a recipe for a dish using the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22. The behavior management server 150 may access the recipe management server 160 to obtain information indicating a recipe for a dish using the product 30.

In this embodiment, the recipe management server 160 manages, for each of one or more foods, information indicating a recipe for a dish using the food. For example, in response to a request from the behavior management server 150, the recipe management server 160 extracts information indicating a recipe for a dish using the food indicated by the request. The recipe management server 160 may transmit the information indicating the extracted recipe to the behavior management server 150.

[Specific configuration of each part of the behavior management system 100]
Each part of the behavior management system 100 may be realized by hardware, software, or hardware and software. Each part of the behavior management system 100 may be realized, at least in part, by a single server or by multiple servers. Each part of the behavior management system 100 may be realized, at least in part, on a virtual machine or a cloud system. Each part of the behavior management system 100 may be realized, at least in part, by a personal computer or a mobile terminal. Examples of mobile terminals include mobile phones, smartphones, PDAs, tablets, notebook computers or laptop computers, and wearable computers. Each part of the behavior management system 100 may store information using a distributed ledger technology such as a blockchain or a distributed network.

When at least some of the components constituting the behavior management system 100 are realized by software, the components realized by the software may be realized by starting software or a program that defines the operation of the components in an information processing device of a general configuration. The information processing device of the general configuration described above may include (i) a data processing device having a processor such as a CPU or GPU, a ROM, a RAM, a communication interface, etc., (ii) input devices such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a touch panel, a camera, a voice input device, a gesture input device, various sensors, a GPS receiver, etc., (iii) output devices such as a display device, a voice output device, a vibration device, etc., and (iv) storage devices such as memory, HDD, SSD, etc. (including external storage devices).

In the information processing device of the above general configuration, the above data processing device or storage device may store the above software or program. The above software or program, when executed by a processor, causes the above information processing device to execute the operation defined by the software or program. The above software or program may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium. The above software or program may be a program for causing a computer to function as the behavior management system 100 or a part thereof. The above software or program may be a program for causing a computer to execute an information processing method in the behavior management system 100 or a part thereof.

The contractor 22 may be an example of a manager of the subject 24. The store clerk 26 may be an example of a transferor of the subject product. The product 30 may be an example of a product or service. The product 30 may be an example of a subject product. The behavior management system 100 may be an example of a management device. The behavior management server 150 may be an example of a management device. The command to cause the communication terminal 102 to output a warning may be an example of information for causing the communication terminal to output a warning according to the presentation mode determined by the mode determination unit. The first database may be an example of a first storage unit or a first storage device. The subject ID may be an example of subject identification information. The product information of the product 30 may be an example of target product information.

[An example of another embodiment]
In this embodiment, an example of the behavior management system 100 has been described using an example in which the behavior management system 100 manages the purchasing behavior of elderly people. However, the behavior management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. For example, the type of behavior managed by the behavior management system 100 is not limited to purchasing behavior. Furthermore, the subjects managed by the behavior management system 100 are not limited to elderly people.

In another embodiment, the behavior management system 100 may manage various behaviors of the child of the contractor 22. The behavior management system 100 may manage various behaviors of members of the corporation or organization to which the contractor 22 belongs. For example, various behaviors of the child of the contractor 22 include behavior of purchasing the same or similar products or services in duplicate, behavior of purchasing products or services of a type specified by the contractor 22, and behavior of purchasing products or services determined based on the age or generation of the child of the contractor 22. An example of behavior of members of the corporation or organization to which the contractor 22 belongs is behavior of purchasing the same item in duplicate. This prevents, for example, when there is a shortage of ballpoint pens at company X, office workers A and B of company X from purchasing ballpoint pens at the same time.

In this embodiment, an example of the behavior management system 100 has been described using as an example a case where the subject 24 purchases the product 30 by paying a price. However, the behavior management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the behavior management system 100 may manage the purchase of a service by the subject 24. The behavior management system 100 may also manage the free transfer of the product or service from the provider of the product or service to the subject 24.

In this embodiment, an example of the behavior management system 100 has been described using as an example a case where a store clerk 26 uses a store terminal 140 to read the identification information of the product 30 and executes the payment process for the product 30. However, the behavior management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the subject 24 may use the store terminal 140 to read the identification information of the product 30 and execute the payment process for the product 30. In still other embodiments, the store 120 may be an unmanned store in which recognition of purchased products and payment are automatically executed.

In this embodiment, an example of the behavior management system 100 has been described using an example in which the behavior management server 150 manages the purchasing behavior of the subject 24. However, the behavior management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the sales management unit 132 may have some or all of the functions of the behavior management server 150.

Figure 2 shows an example of the internal configuration of the behavior management server 150. In this embodiment, the behavior management server 150 includes a setting unit 210, a registration information acquisition unit 222, a purchase information acquisition unit 224, a warning necessity determination unit 232, a warning mode determination unit 234, a notification unit 236, and a storage unit 240. In this embodiment, the storage unit 240 includes a purchase history storage unit 242, a warning setting storage unit 244, and a warning history storage unit 246.

In this embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines various settings related to the information processing of the behavior management server 150. The setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on the contents of the contract for the provision of a monitoring service concluded by the contractor 22. The setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on the contents of the application for the contract for the provision of a monitoring service by the contractor 22. The setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on information input by the contractor 22 or the target person 24 to the communication terminal 102.

The setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on the purchase history of the subject 24. For example, the setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on the purchase quantity of products or services in a period of a predetermined length. The setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on the behavioral history of the subject 24 in response to the presented warning. The setting unit 210 may store information regarding various settings in the warning setting storage unit 244.

[Judgment process settings]
[First judgment condition]
In one embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines a condition (which may be referred to as a first determination condition) related to at least one of the start and end of a determination period for duplicate purchases for each target person 24. The setting unit 210 determines the first determination condition for each target person 24, for example, by referring to the purchase history storage unit 242.

[Conditions for the start of the evaluation period]
For example, first, the setting unit 210 determines a purchase interval per unit volume or unit number for each product or service based on the purchased product information, purchase time information, and purchase quantity information stored in the purchase history storage unit 242 for each of one or more subjects 24. Next, the setting unit 210 determines a first determination condition for each subject 24 based on the above purchase interval. Specifically, the setting unit 210 determines that the start of the duplicate purchase determination period is the time that the purchase interval goes back by a predetermined statistical value from the time the determination process was executed.

The setting unit 210 may transmit information indicating the first judgment condition determined as described above to the communication terminal 102 of the subscriber 22, and check whether the first judgment condition has been corrected. When the setting unit 210 receives information regarding the correction of the first judgment condition from the communication terminal 102 of the subscriber 22, the setting unit 210 may determine the first judgment condition by correcting the first judgment condition in accordance with the information.

In another embodiment, the setting unit 210 may determine the purchase interval per unit volume or unit number for each type of product or service (sometimes referred to as an item), or may determine the purchase interval per unit volume or unit number for each category to which the product or service belongs. In yet another embodiment, the setting unit 210 may determine the purchase quantity per unit period for each product or service based on the purchased product information, purchase time information, and purchase quantity information stored in the purchase history storage unit 242. The setting unit 210 may determine the purchase quantity per unit period for each type of product or service, or may determine the purchase quantity per unit period for each category to which the product or service belongs. The setting unit 210 may determine the first judgment condition based on these purchase intervals or purchase quantities.

In yet another embodiment, the behavior management server 150 determines the conditions for the start of the judgment period based on at least one of the number and attributes of people who live with the subject 24 or who support the subject 24's life (sometimes referred to as cohabitants). For example, until the purchase history, return history, cancellation history, etc. of the subject 24 are accumulated in the first database, the behavior management server 150 determines the conditions for the start of the judgment period based on at least one of the number and attributes of cohabitants. After the purchase history, return history, cancellation history, etc. of the subject 24 are accumulated in the first database, the behavior management server 150 may determine the conditions for the start of the judgment period based on at least one of the purchase history, return history, and cancellation history of the subject 24 and at least one of the number and attributes of cohabitants.

Examples of the attributes of a housemate include age, generation, sex, weight, and type of affiliation. Examples of the type of affiliation include elementary school, middle school, high school, university, and company. The number and attributes of the subject 24's housemates are determined, for example, by the contents of the contract for the provision of a monitoring service concluded by the contractor 22, or the contents of the application for a contract for the provision of a monitoring service by the contractor 22. Information indicating the number and attributes of the subject 24's housemates is registered, for example, in a database located in the behavior management server 150.

For example, the behavior management server 150 determines the purchase frequency for each product or service based on the number and/or attributes of the people living with the subject 24. The behavior management server 150, for example, refers to a database that defines the standard purchase frequency for each product or service for each typical attribute, and determines the purchase frequency for each product or service for each of the one or more subjects 24. Typical attributes include infants, elementary school students, junior high school students, high school students, university students, adult males, adult females, and elderly people. Next, the behavior management server 150 determines conditions for the start of the judgment period for each of the one or more subjects 24, based on the purchase frequency for each product or service for each of the one or more subjects 24.

[Conditions for the end of the evaluation period]
For example, the setting unit 210 determines the condition regarding the end of the determination period so that the end of the determination period is the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service or the time when the determination process is executed. As described above, the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service may be the time when the store terminal 140 reads the identification information of the product 30.

For example, the setting unit 210 may determine a condition regarding the end of the judgment period so that the end of the judgment period is a point before the target person 24 attempts to purchase a product or service. This sets whether or not to output a warning for the most recent behavior of the target person 24.

In one embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines the length of the period between the end of the judgment period and the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service based on the level of memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24. This can prevent unnecessary warnings from being output.

For example, as the dementia or memory disorder of the subject 24 progresses, the levels of the memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24 decrease. When the levels of the memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24 are relatively high, the subject 24 can, for example, recall his/her purchasing behavior within the past week and keep track of product inventory. On the other hand, when the levels of the memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24 decrease, purchasing behavior such as, for example, repurchasing the same product as yesterday or purchasing a particular product multiple times becomes prominent.

Therefore, the setting unit 210 may determine the condition regarding the end of the judgment period such that the higher the level of the memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24, the longer the length of the period between the end of the judgment period and the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service. If the level of the memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24 does not meet a predetermined first standard, the setting unit 210 may determine the condition regarding the end of the judgment period such that the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service is the end of the judgment period.

As a result, if the subject 24 has sufficient memory and cognitive functions, a warning for the most recent action is suppressed. For example, if the level of the memory and cognitive functions of the subject 24 exceeds a predetermined second standard, a warning for the most recent action is not output. On the other hand, as the deterioration of the memory and cognitive functions of the subject 24 progresses, a warning is output even for the most recent action. As a result, the user experience of the subject 24 is improved.

In another embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines the length of the period between the end of the judgment period and the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase a product or service based on at least one of the subject's return history and cancellation history. This can prevent unnecessary warnings from being output.

For example, if the frequency with which products purchased by the subject 24 are returned (sometimes referred to as return frequency) is greater than a predetermined value, it is presumed that the memory and cognitive functions of the subject 24 are declining. Similarly, if the frequency with which the registration process or payment process for a product that the subject 24 is attempting to purchase is cancelled (sometimes referred to as cancellation frequency) is greater than a predetermined value, it is presumed that the memory and cognitive functions of the subject 24 are declining. The length of the unit period for deriving the return frequency or cancellation frequency is not particularly limited. The above unit period may be the most recent week, the most recent month, the most recent two months, the most recent three months, or the most recent six months. The return frequency or cancellation frequency may be updated periodically.

Therefore, the setting unit 210 may determine the condition regarding the end of the judgment period such that the lower the frequency of returns or cancellations of products or services related to the purchasing behavior of the subject 24, the longer the length of the period between the end of the judgment period and the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase the product or service. When the frequency of returns or cancellations of products or services related to the purchasing behavior of the subject 24 is greater than a predetermined value, the setting unit 210 may determine the condition regarding the end of the judgment period such that the time when the subject 24 attempts to purchase the product or service becomes the end of the judgment period.

As a result, when the frequency of returns or cancellations of products or services related to the purchasing behavior of the subject 24 is relatively low, a warning for the most recent behavior is suppressed. For example, when the frequency of returns or cancellations of products or services related to the purchasing behavior of the subject 24 is lower than a predetermined value, a warning for the most recent behavior is not output. On the other hand, when the frequency of returns or cancellations of products or services related to the purchasing behavior of the subject 24 increases, a warning is also output for the most recent behavior. As a result, the user experience of the subject 24 is improved.

[Second judgment condition]
In another embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines a condition (sometimes referred to as a second determination condition) regarding the number or amount of products or services that are permitted to be purchased within the determination period for each subject 24. For example, the setting unit 210 may determine the second determination condition based on (i) the length of the determination period and (ii) the above-described statistical value of the purchase interval per unit capacity or unit number, or the statistical value of the purchase quantity per unit period. The setting unit 210 may determine the second determination condition taking into consideration the return history and cancellation history.

The setting unit 210 may transmit information indicating the second judgment condition determined as described above to the communication terminal 102 of the subscriber 22, and check whether the second judgment condition has been corrected. When the setting unit 210 receives information regarding the correction of the second judgment condition from the communication terminal 102 of the subscriber 22, the setting unit 210 may determine the second judgment condition by correcting the second judgment condition in accordance with the information.

The setting unit 210 may determine the first judgment condition and the second judgment condition for each subject 24. The setting unit 210 may determine the second judgment condition for each product or service, may determine the second judgment condition for each type of product or service, or may determine the second judgment condition for each category to which the product or service belongs.

[Third judgment condition]
In still another embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines, for each subject 24, a condition (sometimes referred to as a third determination condition) related to a product or service to be compared in determining whether or not there is a duplicate purchase. For example, the setting unit 210 determines that the same product or service is to be compared. The setting unit 210 may determine that (i) the same product or service and (ii) other products or services of the same product or service type are to be compared. The setting unit 210 may determine that (i) the same product or service and (ii) other products or services of the same product or service category are to be compared.

The setting unit 210 may determine the third judgment condition based on the level of memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24. The level of memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24 is determined, for example, by the contents of the contract for the provision of a monitoring service concluded by the contractor 22, or the contents of the application for the contract for the provision of a monitoring service by the contractor 22.

The setting unit 210 may transmit information indicating the third judgment condition determined as described above to the communication terminal 102 of the subscriber 22, and check whether or not the third judgment condition has been corrected. When the setting unit 210 receives information regarding the correction of the third judgment condition from the communication terminal 102 of the subscriber 22, the setting unit 210 may determine the third judgment condition by correcting the third judgment condition in accordance with the information.

[Presentation Settings]
In still another embodiment, the setting unit 210 determines the warning presentation mode for each target person 24. Examples of the warning presentation mode include the frequency at which the warning is presented, the method of the warning, and the like.

The method of warning may be any method that calls the attention of the target person 24 to the product or service, and the details are not particularly limited. Examples of the warning method include (i) using the name or relationship of a roommate, family member, or relative, (ii) indirectly informing the target person of the duplicate purchase, (iii) directly informing the target person of the duplicate purchase, (iv) adjusting the attributes of the contractor 22 or store clerk 26 (sometimes referred to as the warner) who issues the warning, (v) changing the content or tone of the warning depending on the attributes of the contractor 22 or store clerk 26 who issues the warning, and (vi) presenting an alternative.

As a method of using the names or relationships of housemates, family members, or relatives, for example, if the subject 24 has purchased milk twice, a method of attracting the subject 24's attention by talking about the housemate, family members, or relatives, such as "your son said you have milk at home," or "A-san also bought milk," and making the subject 24 realize that there is no need to buy milk. Note that the content of the conversation may or may not be true.

As a method of indirectly informing the subject 24 of duplicate purchases, for example, if the subject 24 has duplicated purchases of milk, examples of methods include alerting the subject 24 by talking about the subject 24's preferences or products or services, such as "I see you like milk," "Is there anyone in your family who likes milk?", "It's been getting hot recently, so it's the season when milk tastes good," and "Milk has a short expiration date, so please be careful."

An example of a method for directly informing the subject 24 of the duplicate purchase is to alert the subject 24 by informing them of the name of the product or service and the time of purchase, such as "You bought milk yesterday as well," or "What did you do with the milk you bought yesterday?" The warning may also include the name of the product or service, the time of purchase, and the amount purchased.

As a method for adjusting the attributes of the contractor 22 or store clerk 26 who issues the warning, a method for determining the warner based on at least one of the warner's age, sex, and personality is exemplified. At least one of the warner's age, sex, and personality is determined based on, for example, the results of an analysis of the warning effect on the target person 24. The warner may be determined from among people of a different sex than the target person 24. The warner may be determined from among people of a different age than the target person 24. The warner may be determined from among people of the same age as the target person 24's children or grandchildren. The warner may be determined from among people of the same age as the target person 24.

Examples of a method for changing the content or tone of the warning depending on the attributes of the warning giver include a method for changing the content of the warning depending on the gender of the warning giver, and a method for changing the tone of the warning depending on the gender of the warning giver. The content or tone of the warning may be changed based on a combination of the age and gender of the warning giver and the age and gender of the target person 24. Examples of attributes of the warning giver include age or generation, gender, personality, height, weight, body shape, hairstyle, whether or not the person wears glasses, etc.

Examples of methods for presenting alternatives include encouraging the target person 24 to change the purchase date, or encouraging the target person 24 to change the item purchased. For example, the warning person can encourage the target person 24 to change the purchase date by saying, "Milk is on sale this coming Saturday, so why don't you buy it on Saturday?"

The setting unit 210 may refer to the warning history storage unit 246 and determine the warning presentation mode for each target person 24. For example, the setting unit 210 determines the warning presentation mode based on at least one of the attributes of the target person 24, the past purchasing behavior of the target person 24, and the behavior of the target person 24 in response to past warnings.

Specifically, for example, the warning history storage unit 246 is referenced to calculate the probability that the effect of the warning will exceed a predetermined level. The setting unit 210 decides to issue a warning in a presentation mode in which the probability that the effect of the warning will exceed the predetermined level is greater than a predetermined value.

The setting unit 210 may further determine the details of the presentation mode of the warning. For example, when the warning is output by using the name or relationship of a roommate, family member, or relative, the setting unit 210 determines the person to be used for the warning from among the roommates, family members, and relatives of the subject 24. The setting unit 210 also determines whether to use the relationship or the name. The setting unit 210 may determine the above settings based on at least one of (i) the past return history of the subject 24, (ii) the past cancellation history of the subject 24, (iii) the contents of the contract for the provision of the monitoring service, (iv) the contents of the application for the contract for the provision of the monitoring service, and (v) the level of the memory function and cognitive function of the subject 24.

This allows a more effective warning to be output depending on the personality, memory function, and cognitive function level of the subject 24. For example, even if a warning such as "Your son also bought milk" does not stop the duplicate purchase, a warning such as "A also bought milk" can stop the duplicate purchase.

Specifically, the setting unit 210, for example, refers to the warning history storage unit 246 to analyze the relationship between the presentation mode of the warning and the effect of the warning. For example, if the target person 24 cancels the duplicate purchase as a result of the warning being output, the setting unit 210 determines that the warning was effective.

In one embodiment, the setting unit 210 refers to the warning history storage unit 246 and extracts cases in which a warning was output and the product purchase procedure was canceled during the product purchase procedure. The setting unit 210 may extract cases that meet the above conditions from cases related to the subject 24, or may extract cases that meet the above conditions from cases related to users having attributes similar to those of the subject 24. The setting unit 210 analyzes the presentation mode of the warning in one or more extracted cases and determines the presentation mode of the warning appropriate for the subject 24.

In another embodiment, the setting unit 210 refers to the warning history storage unit 246 and extracts at least one of (i) cases in which a product was purchased despite a warning being output, and (ii) cases in which a product was purchased despite a warning being output and then returned. The setting unit 210 may extract cases that meet the above conditions from cases related to the subject 24, or may extract cases that meet the above conditions from cases related to users having attributes similar to those of the subject 24. The setting unit 210 analyzes the presentation mode of the warning in one or more extracted cases, and determines the presentation mode of the warning appropriate for the subject 24.

In this embodiment, the registration information acquisition unit 222 acquires information (sometimes referred to as registration information) about the product or service read by the store terminal 140. The registration information acquisition unit 222 may acquire one or more pieces of registration information from the terminal management server 130 disposed in each of the one or more stores 120.

For example, when a subject 24 wishes to purchase a product 30, the registration information acquisition unit 222 acquires (i) the subject ID of the subject 24 and (ii) product information of the product 30 from the terminal management server 130 of the store 120 visited by the subject 24. The registration information acquisition unit 222 may acquire (i) the subject ID of the subject 24, (ii) product information of the product 30, and (iii) information indicating the number or quantity of the products 30 from the terminal management server 130 of the store 120 visited by the subject 24.

The product information of the product 30 may include identification information of the product 30. The product information of the product 30 may include (i) identification information of the product 30, and (ii) at least one of information indicating the price of the product 30, information indicating the expiry date or best before date of the product 30, and information indicating the volume of the product 30.

In this embodiment, the purchase information acquisition unit 224 acquires information (sometimes referred to as purchase information) relating to products or services actually purchased by the subject 24. The purchase information acquisition unit 224 may acquire one or more pieces of purchase information from the terminal management server 130 disposed in each of the one or more stores 120. When a payment process is executed in the store terminal 140, the purchase information acquisition unit 224 may acquire information relating to one or more products or services that have been paid for in the payment process.

In this embodiment, the warning necessity determination unit 232 determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchase of the product 30 when the target person 24 wishes to purchase the product 30. The warning necessity determination unit 232 may determine whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchase of the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 of the contractor 22 or the target person 24.

In one embodiment, the warning necessity determination unit 232 first refers to the purchase history storage unit 242 and extracts information about products or services purchased by the subject 24 within the determination period indicated by the first determination condition. Next, the warning necessity determination unit 232 determines whether or not to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning about duplicate purchase of the product 30 based on the extracted information about the product or service and the information about the product 30 acquired by the registration information acquisition unit 222. The warning necessity determination unit 232 may determine whether or not to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning about duplicate purchase of the product 30 based on the extracted information about the product or service, the information about the product 30 acquired by the registration information acquisition unit 222, and the third determination condition.

In another embodiment, the warning necessity determination unit 232 first refers to the purchase history storage unit 242 and extracts information regarding the products or services purchased by the subject 24 during the judgment period indicated by the first judgment condition, and information regarding the quantity of the products or services. Next, the warning necessity determination unit 232 determines whether or not to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning regarding duplicate purchase of the product 30, based on the extracted information and the second judgment condition. The warning necessity determination unit 232 may also determine whether or not to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning regarding duplicate purchase of the product 30, based on the extracted information, the second judgment condition, and the third judgment condition.

In this embodiment, the warning mode determination unit 234 determines the mode of presenting the warning. The warning mode determination unit 234 may determine the mode of presenting the warning based on the settings determined by the setting unit 210. In this way, the warning mode determination unit 234 can determine the mode of presenting the warning based on at least one of, for example, the attributes of the subject 24, the past purchasing behavior of the subject 24, and the behavior of the subject 24 in response to past warnings.

In this embodiment, the notification unit 236 transmits a command to the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 of the contractor 22 or the target person 24 to cause the communication terminal 102 or the store terminal 140 to output a warning in accordance with the presentation mode determined by the warning mode determination unit 234. When the notification unit 236 transmits the command, the notification unit 236 may transmit information indicating that the warning has been output to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22.

When the notification unit 236 transmits the above command, the notification unit 236 may transmit to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22 information indicating that the above warning has been output and information to be used in the event that the product 30 is purchased twice. Examples of information to be used in the event that the product 30 is purchased twice include (i) information about the product 30 that is useful to the contractor 22, and (ii) information about returning the product 30.

In one embodiment, if the product 30 is a food product, the notification unit 236 may transmit information indicating that the above warning has been output and information indicating a recipe for a dish using the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22. In particular, if the product 30 is a fresh food product, the notification unit 236 may transmit information indicating that the above warning has been output and information indicating a recipe for a dish using the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22. The notification unit 236 may access the recipe management server 160 to obtain information indicating a recipe for a dish using the product 30.

In another embodiment, the notification unit 236 may transmit information indicating that the above warning has been output and information regarding the return or cooling off of the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22. The notification unit 236 may transmit information indicating that the above warning has been output, the registration information of the product 30, and information regarding the return or cooling off of the product 30 to the communication terminal 102 of the contractor 22. The notification unit 236 may determine whether or not a return or cooling off is possible based on the name or type of the product 30. If it is determined that a return or cooling off is possible, the notification unit 236 transmits the above information. If it is determined that a return or cooling off is not possible, the notification unit 236 does not transmit the above information.

Examples of information related to the return or cooling off of the product 30 include (i) information on whether or not a return or cooling off is possible, (ii) the URL of a website related to the return or cooling off procedure or link information to said website, (iii) information related to the telephone number, email address, or SNS account of the office that accepts returns or cooling off, and (iv) a button or icon with an embedded code for executing a program that starts the return or cooling off procedure. Examples of registration information for the product 30 include the name and address of the store 120 where the product 30 was purchased, identification information of the store terminal 140 that registered the product 30, the purchase date and time of the product 30, the name of the product 30, and the quantity of the product 30 purchased.

In this embodiment, the storage unit 240 stores various types of information. In one embodiment, the storage unit 240 stores various types of information used in the information processing of the behavior management server 150. In another embodiment, the storage unit 240 stores various types of information generated in the information processing of the behavior management server 150.

In this embodiment, the purchase history storage unit 242 stores the identification information of each of the one or more subjects 24 in association with various information regarding products or services that each of the one or more subjects 24 has actually purchased in the past. The purchase history storage unit 242 may also store the identification information of each of the one or more subjects 24 in association with various information regarding products or services that each of the one or more subjects 24 has actually purchased in the past.

For example, the purchase history storage unit 242 stores (a) identification information of each of one or more subjects 24, and (b) (i) information indicating each of one or more products or services previously purchased by each of one or more subjects 24, (ii) information indicating the time when each of the one or more purchased products was purchased, and (iii) at least one of information indicating the number or amount of each of the one or more purchased products, in association with each other. Details of the information stored in the purchase history storage unit 242 will be described later.

In this embodiment, the warning setting storage unit 244 stores information regarding various settings determined by the setting unit 210. Details of the information stored in the warning setting storage unit 244 will be described later.

In this embodiment, the warning history storage unit 246 stores, in association with each other, the identification information of each of the one or more subjects 24 and various information related to warnings presented to each of the one or more subjects 24. For example, the warning history storage unit 246 stores, in association with each other, the identification information of each of the one or more subjects 24, information indicating the presentation mode of each of the one or more warnings previously presented to each of the one or more subjects 24, and information indicating the behavior of the subject 24 in response to each of the one or more warnings. Details of the information stored in the warning history storage unit 246 will be described later.

The setting unit 210 may be an example of a judgment condition determination unit or a mode determination unit. The registration information acquisition unit 222 may be an example of a target information acquisition unit. The warning necessity determination unit 232 may be an example of a judgment condition determination unit or a necessity determination unit. The warning mode determination unit 234 may be an example of a mode determination unit. The notification unit 236 may be an example of a warning transmission unit or a report transmission unit. The purchase history storage unit 242 may be an example of a first storage unit or a first storage device. The warning history storage unit 246 may be an example of a second storage unit or a second storage device.

Figure 3 shows an example of information processing in the registration information acquisition unit 222. In this embodiment, an example of information processing in the registration information acquisition unit 222 is described using an example in which the registration information acquisition unit 222 acquires registration information 322 from store A and acquires registration information 324 from store B.

As shown in FIG. 3, registration information 322 includes a store ID for identifying store 120, a registration ID for identifying registration information, a subject ID for identifying subject 24, a clerk ID for identifying clerk 26, information indicating the registration date and time, a product ID for identifying the product or service that subject 24 wishes to purchase, and information indicating the quantity of each product or service. On the other hand, registration information 324 differs from registration information 322 in that registration information 324 includes information indicating the attributes of clerk 26 instead of the clerk ID.

In this embodiment, when the registration information acquisition unit 222 receives the registration information 322, the registration information acquisition unit 222 stores the registration information 322 in the purchase history storage unit 242. The registration information acquisition unit 222 also accesses the clerk database 342 of the terminal management server 130 to acquire information indicating the attributes of the clerk 26 identified by the clerk ID included in the registration information 322. The registration information acquisition unit 222 stores the target ID, registration ID, and clerk ID included in the registration information 322, and information indicating the attributes of the clerk 26, in the warning history storage unit 246. The registration information acquisition unit 222 may access the product database 344 of the terminal management server 130 to acquire various information related to the product 30 identified by the product ID included in the registration information 322. The registration information acquisition unit 222 may store the target ID, registration ID, and product ID included in the registration information 322, and information related to the product 30, in the purchase history storage unit 242.

In this embodiment, when the registration information acquisition unit 222 receives the registration information 324, the registration information acquisition unit 222 stores the registration information 324 in the purchase history storage unit 242. The registration information acquisition unit 222 also stores the target ID, registration ID, and information indicating the attributes of the store clerk 26 included in the registration information 324 in the warning history storage unit 246. The registration information acquisition unit 222 may store the target ID, registration ID, and product ID included in the registration information 324, and information regarding the product 30 in the purchase history storage unit 242.

Figure 4 shows an example of information processing in the purchase information acquisition unit 224. In this embodiment, an example of information processing in the purchase information acquisition unit 224 is described using an example in which the purchase information acquisition unit 224 acquires purchase information 422 corresponding to registration information 322 from store A and purchase information 424 corresponding to registration information 324 from store B.

As shown in FIG. 4, purchase information 422 includes a store ID, a registration ID, information indicating the purchase date and time, a product ID, and information indicating the quantity of the product or service actually purchased by subject 24. In this embodiment, if subject 24 cancels the purchase, purchase information 422 is assigned a cancellation flag indicating that the registration information indicated by the registration ID has been cancelled. On the other hand, purchase information 424 differs from purchase information 422 in that, instead of a cancellation flag, a corresponding ID is assigned to identify the type of action taken by subject 24 in response to the warning.

In this embodiment, when the purchase information acquisition unit 224 receives the purchase information 422 or the purchase information 424, the purchase information acquisition unit 224 updates the information stored in the purchase history storage unit 242 as necessary. In addition, the purchase information acquisition unit 224 updates the information stored in the warning history storage unit 246 based on the cancellation flag assigned to the purchase information 422 or the corresponding ID assigned to the purchase information 424.

In this embodiment, the warning history storage unit 246 also stores information about the warnings output by the notification unit 236. This allows the behavior management server 150 to associate the presentation mode of the warning with the effect of the warning.

Figure 5 shows an example of a data table 500. In this embodiment, each record in the data table 500 may be an example of a purchase history stored in the purchase history storage unit 242.

In this embodiment, the data table 500 stores, in association with each other, a subject ID 522 of the subject 24 who purchased a product or service, time information 524 indicating when the subject 24 purchased the product or service, a store ID 526 of the store 120 where the subject 24 purchased the product or service, a registration ID 528 when the product or service purchased by the subject 24 was registered in the store terminal 140, product information 532 indicating the product or service purchased by the subject 24, and quantity information 534 indicating the quantity of the product or service purchased by the subject 24. If the subject 24 cancels the purchase of the registered product or service, the record of the product or service may be deleted from the data table 500.

In this embodiment, the product information 532 includes identification information (sometimes referred to as a product ID) of the product or service purchased by the subject 24, information indicating the type of product or service purchased by the subject 24, and information indicating the category to which the product or service purchased by the subject 24 belongs. In addition, in this embodiment, the quantity information 534 includes information indicating the capacity of the product or service purchased by the subject 24, and information indicating the number of products or services purchased by the subject 24.

Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a data table 600. In this embodiment, each record in the data table 600 may be an example of a setting stored in the warning setting storage unit 244.

In this embodiment, the data table 600 stores, in association with each other, the subject ID 620 of the subject 24, information 630 indicating the judgment conditions for each subject 24, and information 640 indicating the warning mode for each subject 24. In this embodiment, the information 630 indicating the judgment conditions includes information 632 indicating the warning target, information 634 indicating the judgment period, and information 636 indicating the permitted quantity. In this embodiment, the information 640 indicating the warning mode includes information 642 relating to the warning frequency and information 644 relating to the warning method.

For example, a user identified by the subject ID "U_001" has relatively advanced dementia or memory impairment. Therefore, for this user, all fresh foods are subject to duplicate purchase determination, regardless of the specific type of product. Furthermore, if the user attempts to purchase more than five fresh foods between two days before the user makes a purchase and the time the user makes the purchase, a warning is output. At this time, it is recommended to use the names of cohabiting relatives as the warning method.

Similarly, for a user identified by the target ID "U_002", "milk" will be subject to duplicate purchase judgment regardless of the specific brand. Furthermore, for a user identified by the target ID "U_003", the specific brand of milk "mlk_MJ_001" will be subject to duplicate purchase judgment.

For example, a user identified by a subject ID of "U_004" has relatively little dementia or memory impairment. For the above user, "milk" and "batteries" are subject to duplicate purchase determination regardless of the specific brand. For example, for milk, if the user attempts to purchase more than three bottles of milk between 10 days before the user makes a purchase and three days before the user makes a purchase, a warning is output. In this case, for example, if the user purchased milk yesterday and attempts to purchase milk again today, no warning is output.

Figure 7 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a data table 700. In this embodiment, each record in the data table 700 may be an example of a warning history stored in the warning history storage unit 246.

In this embodiment, the data table 700 stores, in association with each other, the subject ID 720 of the subject 24 who purchased a product or service, the registration ID 722 when the product or service purchased by the subject 24 was registered in the store terminal 140, the clerk ID 724 of the clerk 26 who served the subject 24, information 726 indicating the attributes of the clerk 26 who served the subject 24, information 730 indicating whether or not a warning was issued, information 732 indicating the warning method, and information 734 indicating whether or not the warning was effective.

Figure 8 shows an example of a computer 3000 in which aspects of the present invention may be embodied in whole or in part. At least a portion of the behavior management system 100 may be realized by the computer 3000. For example, at least a portion of the terminal management server 130 is realized by the computer 3000. For example, at least a portion of the store terminal 140 is realized by the computer 3000. For example, at least a portion of the behavior management server 150 is realized by the computer 3000. For example, at least a portion of the recipe management server 160 is realized by the computer 3000.

A program installed on the computer 3000 may cause the computer 3000 to function as or perform operations associated with an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention or one or more "parts" of the apparatus, and/or to perform a process or steps of the process according to an embodiment of the present invention. Such a program may be executed by the CPU 3012 to cause the computer 3000 to perform certain operations associated with some or all of the blocks of the flowcharts and block diagrams described herein.

The computer 3000 according to this embodiment includes a CPU 3012, a RAM 3014, a GPU 3016, and a display device 3018, which are interconnected by a host controller 3010. The computer 3000 also includes input/output units such as a communication interface 3022, a hard disk drive 3024, a DVD-ROM drive 3026, and an IC card drive, which are connected to the host controller 3010 via an input/output controller 3020. The computer also includes legacy input/output units such as a ROM 3030 and a keyboard 3042, which are connected to the input/output controller 3020 via an input/output chip 3040.

The CPU 3012 operates according to the programs stored in the ROM 3030 and the RAM 3014, thereby controlling each unit. The GPU 3016 acquires image data generated by the CPU 3012 into a frame buffer or the like provided in the RAM 3014 or into itself, and causes the image data to be displayed on the display device 3018.

The communication interface 3022 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The hard disk drive 3024 stores programs and data used by the CPU 3012 in the computer 3000. The DVD-ROM drive 3026 reads programs or data from the DVD-ROM 3001 and provides the programs or data to the hard disk drive 3024 via the RAM 3014. The IC card drive reads programs and data from an IC card and/or writes programs and data to an IC card.

The ROM 3030 stores therein a boot program or the like that is executed by the computer 3000 upon activation, and/or a program that depends on the hardware of the computer 3000. The input/output chip 3040 may also connect various input/output units to the input/output controller 3020 via a parallel port, a serial port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, etc.

The programs are provided by a computer-readable storage medium such as a DVD-ROM 3001 or an IC card. The programs are read from the computer-readable storage medium, installed in the hard disk drive 3024, RAM 3014, or ROM 3030, which are also examples of computer-readable storage media, and executed by the CPU 3012. The information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 3000, and brings about cooperation between the programs and the various types of hardware resources described above. An apparatus or method may be constructed by realizing the operation or processing of information in accordance with the use of the computer 3000.

For example, when communication is performed between computer 3000 and an external device, CPU 3012 may execute a communication program loaded into RAM 3014 and instruct communication interface 3022 to perform communication processing based on the processing described in the communication program. Under the control of CPU 3012, communication interface 3022 reads transmission data stored in a transmission buffer area provided in RAM 3014, hard disk drive 3024, DVD-ROM 3001, or a recording medium such as an IC card, and transmits the read transmission data to the network, or writes received data received from the network to a reception buffer area or the like provided on the recording medium.

The CPU 3012 may also cause all or a necessary portion of a file or database stored on an external recording medium such as the hard disk drive 3024, the DVD-ROM drive 3026 (DVD-ROM 3001), an IC card, etc. to be read into the RAM 3014, and perform various types of processing on the data on the RAM 3014. The CPU 3012 may then write back the processed data to the external recording medium.

Various types of information, such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases, may be stored on the recording medium and may undergo information processing. The CPU 3012 may perform various types of processing on the data read from the RAM 3014, including various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, information search/replacement, etc., as described throughout this disclosure and specified by the instruction sequence of the program, and writes back the results to the RAM 3014. The CPU 3012 may also search for information in a file, database, etc. in the recording medium. For example, when multiple entries each having an attribute value of a first attribute associated with an attribute value of a second attribute are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 3012 may search for an entry whose attribute value of the first attribute matches a specified condition from among the multiple entries, read the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, and thereby obtain the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute that satisfies a predetermined condition.

The above-described program or software module may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium on the computer 3000 or in the vicinity of the computer 3000. In addition, a recording medium such as a hard disk or RAM provided in a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet can be used as a computer-readable storage medium, thereby providing the above-described program to the computer 3000 via the network.

Although the present invention has been described above using an embodiment, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiment. It is clear to those skilled in the art that various modifications or improvements can be made to the above embodiment. Furthermore, the details described for a specific embodiment can be applied to other embodiments to the extent that they are not technically inconsistent. It is clear from the claims that such modifications or improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The order of execution of each process, such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages, in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specifications, and drawings is not specifically stated as "before" or "prior to," and it should be noted that the processes may be performed in any order, unless the output of a previous process is used in a later process. Even if the operational flow in the claims, specifications, and drawings is explained using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, it does not mean that it is necessary to perform the processes in this order.

10 Communication network, 22 Contractor, 24 Target, 26 Store clerk, 30 Product, 100 Behavior management system, 102 Communication terminal, 120 Store, 130 Terminal management server, 132 Sales management unit, 140 Store terminal, 142 Reading unit, 144 Output unit, 146 Control unit, 150 Behavior management server, 160 Recipe management server, 210 Setting unit, 222 Registration information acquisition unit, 224 Purchase information acquisition unit, 232 Warning necessity determination unit, 234 Warning mode determination unit, 236 Notification unit, 240 Storage unit, 242 Purchase history storage unit, 244 Warning setting storage unit, 246 Warning history storage unit, 322 Registration information, 324 Registration information, 342 Store clerk database, 344 Product database, 422 Purchase information, 424 Purchase information, 500 Data table, 522 Target ID, 524 Time information, 526 Store ID, 528 Registration ID, 532 Product information, 534 Quantity information, 600 Data table, 620 Target ID, 630 Information, 632 Information, 634 Information, 636 Information, 640 Information, 642 Information, 644 Information, 700 Data table, 720 Target ID, 722 Registration ID, 724 Store clerk ID, 726 Information, 730 Information, 732 Information, 734 Information, 3000 Computer, 3001 DVD-ROM, 3010 Host controller, 3012 CPU, 3014 RAM, 3016 GPU, 3018 Display device, 3020 Input/output controller, 3022 Communication interface, 3024 Hard disk drive, 3026 DVD-ROM drive, 3030 ROM, 3040 I/O chip, 3042 keyboard

Claims (12)

A management device for managing purchasing behavior of a target person,
a target information acquisition unit that acquires, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service, (i) target person identification information for identifying the target person, and (ii) target product information indicating a target product that is the product or service that the target person wishes to purchase;
a determination condition determination unit that determines, for each of the target users, a first determination condition related to at least one of a start date and an end date of a determination period for duplicate purchases of the target product;
(i) referring to a first storage unit that stores, in association with each other, purchased product information indicating each of one or more purchased products that are products or services previously purchased by the subject, purchase time information indicating the time when each of the one or more purchased products was purchased, and the subject identification information, extracts the purchased product information regarding products or services purchased by the subject identified by the subject identification information acquired by the subject information acquisition unit within the judgment period indicated by the first judgment condition of the subject; (ii) a necessity determination unit that determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchase of the target product to the communication terminal of the transferor of the target product based on the extracted purchased product information and the target product information acquired by the target information acquisition unit;
a mode determining unit that determines, for each target person, a mode of presentation of the warning to be transmitted by the transferor of the target product based on information indicating whether the target person discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to a warning previously transmitted to the target person by the transferor of the product or service;
A management device comprising: the first storage unit stores the purchased product information, the purchase time information, and purchase quantity information indicating a number or amount of each of the one or more purchased products, as well as the target person identification information, in association with each other;
The judgment condition determination unit determines the first judgment condition for each of the subjects by referring to the first storage unit.
The management device according to claim 1 . The judgment condition determination unit determines, for each of the target persons, a third judgment condition indicating whether (i) the same product or service is to be compared with another product or service of the same type in determining whether the target product is purchased multiple times;
the necessity determination unit determines whether to output the warning based on the extracted purchased product information and the third determination condition.
The management device according to claim 1 or 2 . The mode determination unit determines , for each target person, a presentation mode of the warning to be conveyed to the target person by the transferor of the target product , based on at least one of the target person's attributes and the target person's past purchasing behavior.
The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . The mode determination unit refers to a second storage unit that stores, in association with each other, the target identification information, information indicating the presentation mode of each of one or more warnings previously communicated by the transferor of the product or service to the target identified by the target identification information, information for identifying the transferor of the product or service who communicated each of the one or more warnings to the target identified by the target identification information, and information indicating whether the target discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to each of the one or more warnings, and determines, for each target, the presentation mode of the warning that the transferor of the target product will communicate to the target .
The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The mode determination unit determines the content of the warning to be communicated to the target by the transferor of the target product for each target person according to the attributes of the transferor of the target product, based on information indicating whether the target person discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to a warning previously communicated to the target person by the transferor of the product or service.
The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. A management device for managing purchasing behavior of a target person,
a target information acquisition unit that acquires, when the target person wishes to purchase a product or service, (i) target person identification information for identifying the target person, and (ii) target product information indicating a target product that is the product or service that the target person wishes to purchase;
(i) referring to a first storage unit that stores purchased product information indicating each of one or more purchased products, which are products or services previously purchased by the target person, and purchased quantity information indicating the number or amount of each of the one or more purchased products, as well as the target person identification information in association with each other, extracts the purchased product information and purchased quantity information regarding products or services purchased within a predetermined period by the target person identified by the target person identification information acquired by the target information acquisition unit; (ii) a necessity determination unit that determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the target product to a communication terminal of a transferor of the target product, based on the extracted purchased product information and purchased quantity information , as well as the target product information acquired by the target information acquisition unit;
and a mode determination unit that determines, for each target person, a presentation mode of a warning to be communicated to the target person by the transferor of the target product, based on information indicating whether the target person discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to a warning previously communicated to the target person by the transferor of the product or service . The mode determination unit refers to a second storage unit that stores, in association with each other, the target identification information, information indicating the presentation mode of each of one or more warnings previously communicated by the transferor of the product or service to the target identified by the target identification information, information for identifying the transferor of the product or service who communicated each of the one or more warnings to the target identified by the target identification information, and information indicating whether the target discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to each of the one or more warnings, and determines, for each target, the presentation mode of the warning that the transferor of the target product will communicate to the target.
The management device according to claim 7. a warning transmission unit configured to transmit to the communication terminal information for causing the communication terminal to output the warning in accordance with the presentation mode determined by the mode determination unit,
The management device according to any one of claims 1 to 8. A program for causing a computer to function as a management device according to any one of claims 1 to 9. A method for managing purchasing behavior of a target person using a computer, comprising:
When the subject wishes to purchase a product or service, a target information acquisition step of acquiring (i) subject identification information for identifying the subject, and (ii) target product information indicating the product or service that the subject wishes to purchase;
a determination step of determining, for each of the target users, a first determination condition relating to at least one of a start date and an end date of a determination period for duplicate purchases of the target product;
(i) referring to a first storage device that stores, in association with each other, purchased product information indicating one or more purchased products that are products or services previously purchased by the subject, purchase time information indicating the time when each of the one or more purchased products was purchased, and the subject identification information, extracting the purchased product information regarding products or services purchased by the subject identified by the subject identification information acquired in the subject information acquisition step during the judgment period indicated by the first judgment condition of the subject; and (ii) a necessity determination step that determines whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the target product to the communication terminal of the transferor of the target product based on the extracted purchased product information and the target product information acquired in the target information acquisition step;
A mode determining step of determining, for each of the subjects, a mode of presentation of the warning to be transmitted by the transferor of the target product based on information indicating whether the subject discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to the warning previously transmitted by the transferor of the product or service to the subject;
A management method comprising: A method for managing purchasing behavior of a target person using a computer, comprising:
When the subject wishes to purchase a product or service, a target information acquisition step of acquiring (i) subject identification information for identifying the subject, and (ii) target product information indicating the product or service that the subject wishes to purchase;
(i) referring to a first storage device that stores, in association with each other, purchased product information indicating one or more purchased products that are products or services previously purchased by the subject, and purchased quantity information indicating the number or quantity of each of the one or more purchased products, as well as the subject identification information, extracting the purchased product information and purchased quantity information regarding products or services purchased within a predetermined period by the subject identified by the subject identification information acquired in the subject information acquisition step; (ii) a necessity determination step of determining whether or not to output a warning regarding duplicate purchases of the target product to the communication terminal of the transferor of the target product, based on the extracted purchased product information and purchased quantity information , as well as the target product information acquired in the target information acquisition step;
A mode determining step of determining, for each of the subjects, a mode of presentation of the warning to be transmitted by the transferor of the target product based on information indicating whether the subject discontinued or continued purchasing the product or service in response to the warning previously transmitted by the transferor of the product or service to the subject ;
A management method comprising :