JP7758066B2 - Information Processing Systems - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing system .

In recent years, electronic conferencing systems such as paperless conferencing systems have become popular, in which materials used in meetings and seminars are digitized and displayed on participants' tablets, laptops, and other devices. These electronic conferencing systems allow the display pages and notes on the speaker's device to be synchronized with the participants' devices, making it possible to hold more effective meetings and seminars.

For example, information display systems that allow participants to ask questions or give opinions to a lecturer during a lecture and display those questions and opinions in real time at the venue are well known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Conventional information display systems have the problem that even if participants' questions or opinions are inappropriate, incomplete, or overlapping, they are displayed as is, disrupting the progress of the meeting or seminar.

The embodiment of the present invention has been developed in consideration of the above points, and aims to provide an information processing system that can accept from a management terminal the selection of information input to one or more screen sharing terminals to distribute to other screen sharing terminals.

In order to achieve the above object, claim 1 of the present application provides an information processing system in which an information processing device that manages screen sharing performed among a plurality of screen sharing terminals and a management terminal having management authority are connected via a network, the information processing device having storage means that stores question content input to one or more of the plurality of screen sharing terminals connected via the network, and distribution means that distributes the question content selected by the management terminal from the question content stored in the storage means to the plurality of screen sharing terminals, the management terminal having question selection receiving means that displays the question content input to the screen sharing terminal and stored in the storage means and receives from a user operating the management terminal a selection of question content to be displayed on the plurality of screen sharing terminals from the question content , question acquisition processing means that receives from the user operating the management terminal a request to acquire the question content stored in the storage means and acquires the question content from the storage means, and question content display means that displays the question content acquired from the storage means, The question acquisition processing means stores a question content, identification information of the user who input the question content, and information on the date and time when the question content was input in association with each other, and when the question acquisition processing means receives a request for acquisition of the question content from a user operating the management terminal via a screen that accepts either input of the user's identification information or specification of a chronological order, the question acquisition processing means acquires, from the storage means, the question content stored in the storage means that is stored in association with the identification information of the user input via the screen, and the question content display means displays the question content input by the user specified by inputting the user's identification information via the screen, and when the question acquisition processing means receives a request for acquisition of the question content from a user operating the management terminal via the screen, specifying chronological order as the display format, the question acquisition processing means acquires, from the storage means, the question content input to the screen sharing terminal and information on the date and time when the question content was input, and the question content display means displays the question content acquired from the storage means in chronological order based on the date and time information acquired from the storage means .

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a conference or seminar can proceed smoothly by receiving from the management terminal a selection of information entered into one or more screen sharing terminals to be distributed to other screen sharing terminals.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a conference system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a computer that constitutes the conference system according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of an example of a host terminal. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of an example of a participant terminal. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of an example of a conference server device. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of candidate question information. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of conference information. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of role information. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of user information. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of question information. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a login screen. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a conference creation screen. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a processing procedure from inputting a question to displaying the question. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a document viewing screen. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a question input screen. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a question transmission message. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a question transfer message. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a question selection screen. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a selection information transmission message. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a selection question transmission message. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a question display screen. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the structure of a question transmission message. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the configuration of question information. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the structure of a question transmission message. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the configuration of question information. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the structure of a question transmission message. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the configuration of question information. FIG. 10 is a functional block diagram of another example of the organizer terminal. FIG. 10 is a functional block diagram of another example of the conference server device. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a processing procedure for displaying a question history list. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a question history list acquisition screen. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a message requesting a list of questions. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a question history list transmission message. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of an example of a question history list screen. FIG. 10 is an image diagram of another example of the question history list screen.

While the present invention has been described in detail with reference to a conference system, it is also applicable to other systems that share display screens for materials, such as seminar systems, lecture systems, training systems, and education systems.
[First embodiment]
<System Configuration>
1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a conference system according to this embodiment. The conference system 1 in FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a configuration in which a conference server device 10 and a plurality of client terminals 12 are connected to a network N1 such as a LAN.

The conference server device 10 accepts conference registration requests, document registration requests, etc., and saves them as conference information. The conference server device 10 also hosts conferences and controls participation. The conference server device 10 can be implemented as software or services that run on one or more computers. The conference server device 10 can also be implemented in the form of a so-called cloud service. The conference server device 10 can be implemented, for example, as a device dedicated to the conference system 1, or as an information processing device such as a general workstation or PC.

The client terminals 12 include a host terminal (described below) operated by the host of the conference, and a participant terminal (described below) operated by the participants of the conference. The client terminal 12, which is the host terminal, is equipped with a conference management tool. The management tool has functions such as registering the conference and materials in the conference server device 10, registering the host and participants, and accepting the selection of questions from participants to be distributed to the participant terminals.

The client terminal 12, which is a participant terminal, is also equipped with a conference application (hereinafter simply referred to as the conference app). The conference app has functions for performing processes such as joining and leaving a conference, and downloading materials. The conference app also displays materials for the conference that the participant has attended. At least one of the participants is a presenter. The screens (display pages, notes, etc.) of the participant terminal operated by the presenter are synchronized with the participant terminal operated by participants other than the presenter.

The client terminal 12 may be a terminal device such as a PC, tablet terminal, smartphone, mobile phone, PDA, or wearable device, a virtual machine, a projector, or an electronic whiteboard, or may be a device dedicated to the conference system 1. Furthermore, the conference app running on the client terminal 12 may be a native application, or a web browser and a web application running on that web browser.

Before a conference is held, the organizer registers conference information in the conference server device 10 using the management tool of the client terminal 12, which is the organizer terminal. The conference information includes the materials to be used in the conference. The conference app of the client terminal 12, which is the participant terminal, performs the process of joining the conference. The conference app also performs the process of downloading the materials. As a result, the conference materials for the conference that the participant has attended are displayed in the conference app of the client terminal 12, which is the participant terminal.

Client terminals 12 operated by participants other than the presenter display the same materials as the client terminal 12 operated by the presenter while they are participating in the conference. The client terminals 12 operated by participants other than the presenter receive input operations (such as turning a page) in real time from the client terminal 12 operated by the presenter via the conference server device 10, and share the display screen. For example, when a page of the material is turned on the presenter's client terminal 12, the page of the material is also turned on the client terminals 12 of participants other than the presenter, and the same screen is shared.

Furthermore, when handwritten notes are written on the presenter's client terminal 12 using a touch pen or mouse to draw marks, lines, or add text, these notes are also reflected on the screens of the client terminals 12 of participants other than the presenter.

In the conference system 1, the conference server device 10 and the client terminals 12 can communicate data via a network N1. The network N1 may be a LAN, the Internet, a dedicated line, or may be wired or wireless.

The materials are electronic data in file formats such as PDF, PPT, WORD, EXCEL, JPEG, PNG, BMP, HTML, and XML, but other formats are also possible. The materials may also be electronic image or video data. In this embodiment, an example will be described in which the materials are electronic data containing multiple pages.

<Hardware configuration>
The conference server device 10 and the client terminal 12 are realized, for example, by the hardware configuration shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of an example of a computer that constitutes the conference system according to this embodiment.

The client terminal 12 shown in FIG. 2 includes an input device 501, a display device 502, an external I/F 503, a RAM 504, a ROM 505, a CPU 506, a communication I/F 507, and an HDD 508, all of which are interconnected via a bus B. The client terminal 12 may also include a camera, a microphone, a speaker, etc.

The input device 501 includes a keyboard, mouse, touch panel, etc., and is used by the user to input various operation signals. The display device 502 includes a display, etc., and displays the results of processing by the computer. The communication I/F 507 is an interface that connects the computer to various networks. This allows the computer to communicate data via the communication I/F 507.

The HDD 508 is an example of a non-volatile storage device that stores programs and data. The programs and data stored on the HDD 508 include the OS, which is the basic software that controls the entire computer, and application software (hereinafter simply referred to as applications) that provides various functions on the OS. Note that the computer may use a drive device that uses flash memory as a storage medium (e.g., a solid-state drive: SSD) instead of the HDD 508.

The external I/F 503 is an interface with external devices. Examples of external devices include recording medium 503a. This allows the computer to read and/or write data from and to the recording medium 503a via the external I/F 503. Examples of recording medium 503a include flexible disks, CDs, DVDs, SD memory cards, USB memory, and SIM cards.

ROM 505 is an example of a non-volatile semiconductor memory (storage device) that can retain programs and data even when the power is turned off. ROM 505 stores programs and data such as the BIOS, OS settings, and network settings that are executed when the computer starts up. RAM 504 is an example of a volatile semiconductor memory (storage device) that temporarily stores programs and data.

The CPU 506 is a computing device that reads programs and data from storage devices such as the ROM 505 and HDD 508 onto the RAM 504 and executes the processes, thereby controlling the overall computer and achieving its functions. The CPU 506 may be implemented with one processor or multiple processors. The client terminal 12 can implement various processes, such as those described below, by executing programs using the above hardware configuration, for example.

The conference server device 10 shown in FIG. 2 includes an input device 601, a display device 602, an external I/F 603, a RAM 604, a ROM 605, a CPU 606, a communication I/F 607, and an HDD 608, all of which are interconnected via a bus B. The hardware configuration of the conference server device 10 is similar to that of the client terminal 12, but the input device 601 and the display device 602 may be connected and used when needed. The conference server device 10 can perform various processes, as described below, by executing programs using the above hardware configuration, for example.

<Software configuration>
The conference server device 10 of the conference system 1 in this embodiment, the organizer terminal 12A which is a client terminal 12 operated by the conference organizer, and the participant terminal 12B which is a client terminal 12 operated by the conference participants are realized by the following functional blocks.

《Organizer's terminal》
Fig. 3 is a functional block diagram of an example of the host terminal. Note that the functional block in Fig. 3 shows functions provided by the host terminal 12A that are necessary for explaining this embodiment, and other functions may also be present.

By executing a program, the organizer terminal 12A in Figure 3 realizes a login processing unit 21, a question list display processing unit 22, a question selection processing unit 23, a message transmission/reception processing unit 24, and a question candidate information storage unit 25.

The login processing unit 21 performs processing for logging in from the organizer terminal 12A to the conference server device 10. The question list display processing unit 22 performs processing for displaying a list of questions received from the conference server device 10.

The question selection processing unit 23 accepts the host's selection of a question from the displayed list of questions. The question selection processing unit 23 performs processing to transmit the question selected by the host from the list of questions to the conference server device 10. The message transmission/reception processing unit 24 communicates with the conference server device 10. The question candidate information storage unit 25 stores the question candidate information described below.

Participant terminal
Fig. 4 is a functional block diagram of an example of a participant terminal. Note that the functional block in Fig. 4 shows only the functions provided by the participant terminal 12B that are necessary for explaining this embodiment, and other functions may also be present.

By executing a program, the participant terminal 12B in Figure 4 realizes a login processing unit 31, a question creation processing unit 32, a question display processing unit 33, a conference control unit 34, and a message transmission/reception processing unit 35.

The login processing unit 31 performs processing for logging in from the participant terminal 12B to the conference server device 10. The question creation processing unit 32 accepts questions input by participants and performs processing for transmitting those questions to the conference server device 10. The question display processing unit 33 performs processing for displaying questions transmitted from the conference server device 10.

The conference control unit 34 controls processes such as joining and leaving a conference, downloading materials, displaying materials for attended conferences, and synchronizing them with the screen of the presenter's terminal. The message transmission/reception processing unit 35 communicates with the conference server device 10.

<<Conference Server Device>>
Fig. 5 is a functional block diagram of an example of a conference server device. Note that the functional block in Fig. 5 shows functions provided by the conference server device 10 that are necessary for explaining this embodiment, and other functions may also be present. The conference server device 10 in Fig. 5 executes a program to implement a communication control unit 41, an information management unit 42, a message transmission/reception processing unit 43, a conference information storage unit 44, a role information storage unit 45, a user information storage unit 46, and a question information storage unit 47.

The communication control unit 41 performs communication control for holding and controlling participation in a conference, communication control for distributing input operations at presenter terminals to participant terminals 12B participating in the conference in real time, and communication control such as forwarding questions received from participants to the organizer terminal 12A and distributing selected questions received from the organizer terminal 12A to participant terminals 12B. The information management unit 42 manages conference information, role information, user information, question information, etc. The message transmission/reception processing unit 43 communicates with the organizer terminal 12A and participant terminals 12B.

The conference information storage unit 44 stores conference information, which will be described later. The role information storage unit 45 stores role information, which will be described later. The user information storage unit 46 stores user information, which will be described later. The question information storage unit 47 stores question information, which will be described later.

The conference server device 10 may be implemented as a single information processing device, or as multiple information processing devices. Furthermore, the conference server device 10 and the organizer terminal 12A may be integrated into a single information processing device.

"information"
Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of question candidate information. The question candidate information in Fig. 6 is stored in the question candidate information storage unit 25. The question candidate information in Fig. 6 has a question ID and a question content as items. The question ID is an example of identification information that uniquely identifies a question. The question content is the content of a question from a participant. In this way, the question candidate information stores the content of a question from a participant in association with the question ID.

Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of conference information. The conference information in Figure 7 is stored in the conference information storage unit 44. The conference information in Figure 7 has the following items: conference ID, conference name, organizer ID, and materials. The conference ID is an example of identification information that uniquely identifies a conference. The conference name is the name of the conference. The organizer ID is an example of identification information that uniquely identifies the organizer. The materials represent the materials used in the conference. In this way, the conference information is stored for each conference, with the conference name, organizer ID, and materials associated with each other.

Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of role information. The role information in Figure 8 is stored in the role information storage unit 45. The role information in Figure 8 has the following items: conference ID, user ID, and role. The user ID is an example of identification information that uniquely identifies a user. The role represents a role in a conference. Figure 8 shows an example in which the roles in a conference are organizer, participant, and presenter. In this way, the role information is stored in association with the user's role in the conference. Note that in the roles in Figure 8, the role of the organizer is indicated by "organizer," the role of the participant is indicated by "participant," and the role of the presenter is indicated by "presenter."

Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of user information. The user information in Figure 9 is stored in the user information storage unit 46. The user information in Figure 9 includes items such as a user ID and a password. The password is an example of secret information. In this way, the user information is stored in association with the user ID and password of a user registered in the conference server device 10.

Figure 10 is a diagram showing an example of question information. The question information in Figure 10 is stored in the question information storage unit 47. The question information in Figure 10 has the following items: conference ID, question ID, question content, and selection. In this way, the question information stores the question content from the participants in association with the conference. The item "selection" is information indicating whether the question was selected by the organizer and distributed to the participants.

<Processing>
<Login process>
FIG. 11 is an image diagram of an example of a login screen. The login screen of FIG. 11 is an example of a screen used by the organizer terminal 12A and the participant terminal 12B to log in to the conference server device 10. The organizer or participant can start the login process to the conference server device 10 by entering a user ID and password on the login screen of FIG. 11 and pressing the login button. The conference server device 10 determines the login successful if the received user ID and password combination is included in the user information of FIG. 9. After the login is successful, the conference server device 10 initiates a connection with the organizer terminal 12A or participant terminal 12B that successfully logged in. The conference server device 10 can determine the role of the user who successfully logged in by referring to the role information of FIG. 8. This login process is executed by the login processing unit 21 of the organizer terminal 12A of FIG. 3 and the login processing unit 31 of the participant terminal 12B of FIG. 4, respectively.

<<Meeting Creation Process>>
FIG. 12 is an image diagram of an example of a conference creation screen. The conference creation screen of FIG. 12 is displayed on the organizer terminal 12A operated by the organizer. The organizer can register conference information in the conference server device 10 by entering the conference name, organizer ID, and materials (conference materials) on the conference creation screen of FIG. 12 and pressing the register button. The conference information is registered in advance as a preliminary step to holding the conference. The conference server device 10 assigns a conference ID unique to each conference to the information entered on the conference creation screen of FIG. 12 and records the information as conference information in the conference information storage unit 44. Because the conference creation screen of FIG. 12 is displayed on the organizer terminal 12A operated by the organizer, the field for entering the organizer may be omitted.

《Question Processing》
Fig. 13 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a processing procedure from inputting a question to displaying the question. After the conference starts, materials shared in the conference are displayed on the participant terminal 12B participating in the conference, for example, as shown in Fig. 14. Fig. 14 is an image diagram of an example of a material viewing screen. The material viewing screen 1300 in Fig. 14 has a question button 1301. By pressing the question button 1301, a conference participant can display, for example, a question input screen 1400 shown in Fig. 15 on the participant terminal 12B.

Figure 15 is an image diagram of an example of a question input screen. Question input screen 1400 in Figure 15 has a question input field 1401 and a send button 1402. A conference participant inputs a question into question input field 1401 on question input screen 1400 displayed on participant terminal 12B and presses send button 1402 to instruct the question to be sent. Participant terminal 12B then creates, for example, the question send message shown in Figure 16 and sends it to conference server device 10.

For example, in the sequence diagram of Figure 13, in step S11, one participant presses the question button 1301 on the document viewing screen 1300 of Figure 14. The question creation processing unit 32 of the participant terminal 12B displays the question input screen 1400 of Figure 15. The one participant enters a question in the question input field 1401 on the question input screen 1400 and presses the send button 1402. In step S12, the message transmission/reception processing unit 35 of the participant terminal 12B creates the question transmission message of Figure 16 and transmits this question transmission message to the message transmission/reception processing unit 43 of the conference server device 10. The question transmission message of Figure 16 is an example of transmitting the question string "Is XXX a success or a failure?" entered by the participant.

Figure 16 is a diagram showing the structure of an example of a question transmission message. A question transmission message is an example of a communication message and is composed of a header section and a body section. For example, the header section defines the type of message. The body section defines the content of the message. A question transmission message is used to transmit a question entered into participant terminal 12B from participant terminal 12B to conference server device 10. The body section defines the question string entered by the participant.

In step S13, the communication control unit 41 of the conference server device 10 that receives the question transmission message assigns a unique question ID to the question and a unique conference ID to the conference, and stores them in the question information storage unit 47. Then, in step S14, the communication control unit 41 of the conference server device 10 accesses the conference information in FIG. 7 or the role information in FIG. 8 to identify the organizer terminal 12A of the target conference. Then, in step S15, the message transmission/reception processing unit 43 of the conference server device 10 creates the question forwarding message in FIG. 17 and transmits it to the message transmission/reception processing unit 24 of the organizer terminal 12A.

Figure 17 is a diagram showing the structure of an example of a question forwarding message. A question forwarding message is also an example of a communication message and is composed of a header section and a body section. The question forwarding message in Figure 17 is used to forward a question transmission message received from participant terminal 12B to organizer terminal 12A. The body section defines a QID string, which is the question ID, and a Q string, which is the question content. Note that the question forwarding message in Figure 17 is an example of forwarding the question string "Is XXX a success or failure?" entered by the participant and the QID string "1234", which is the question ID.

Proceeding to step S16, the question list display processing unit 22 of the organizer terminal 12A stores the question received via the question forwarding message in the question candidate information storage unit 25, and then adds and displays the question on, for example, the question selection screen 1700 of FIG. 18. Note that the additional display of a question on the question selection screen 1700 may be performed each time a question forwarding message is received, or may be performed by an update operation by the organizer.

Figure 18 is an image diagram of an example of a question selection screen. The question selection screen 1700 in Figure 18 displays a list 1701 of questions transferred from the conference server device 10 to the organizer terminal 12A, which can be selected using radio buttons. Note that the same processing as steps S11 to S16 is also performed when another participant inputs and displays a question in steps S17 to S22.

Proceeding to step S23, the organizer operates the organizer terminal 12A to select a question to be distributed to all participants in the meeting from the list of questions 1701 on the question selection screen 1700 of FIG. 18, and presses the send button 1702. Note that the question selection screen 1700 of FIG. 18 may be provided with a function to assist the organizer in selecting questions. For example, the question selection screen 1700 of FIG. 18 may display questions containing registered priority keywords or NG keywords in a different color, for example, to visually distinguish them. The processing of step S23 is executed by the question selection processing unit 23 of the organizer terminal 12A.

Proceeding to step S24, the message transmission/reception processing unit 24 of the organizer terminal 12A creates a selected information transmission message, for example, as shown in Figure 19, and transmits it to the message transmission/reception processing unit 43 of the conference server device 10. Figure 19 is a diagram showing the structure of an example of a selected information transmission message. The selected information transmission message is also an example of a communication message and is composed of a header section and a body section. The selected information transmission message of Figure 19 is used to transmit a question selected by the organizer from the list of questions 1701 on the question selection screen 1700 to the conference server device 10. The body section defines a QID, which is the question ID selected by the organizer. Note that the selected information transmission message of Figure 19 is an example of transmitting the QID strings "1234", "2345", and "3456", which are the QIDs of the questions selected by the organizer.

The communication control unit 41 of the conference server device 10 that receives the selection information transmission message reads the question ID defined in the selection information transmission message and obtains the question content corresponding to that question ID from the question information in Figure 10. Furthermore, the communication control unit 41 of the conference server device 10 that receives the selection information transmission message reads the question ID defined in the selection information transmission message and assigns "selected" information to the question information corresponding to that question ID, indicating that the question has been selected by the organizer and distributed to the participants. Proceeding to step S25, the message transmission/reception processing unit 43 of the conference server device 10 creates a selection question transmission message, for example, as shown in Figure 20, from the obtained question content and transmits it to the message transmission/reception processing unit 35 of the participant terminal 12B.

Figure 20 is a diagram showing the structure of an example of a selected question transmission message. The selected question transmission message is also an example of a communication message and is composed of a header section and a body section. The selected question transmission message in Figure 20 is used by the conference server device 10 to distribute a question selected by the organizer to each participant terminal 12B participating in the conference. The body section defines a Q string, which is the content of the question.

The question display processing unit 33 of the participant terminal 12B that received the selected question transmission message reads the question content defined in the selected question transmission message and uses that question content to display the question display screen 2000 shown in Figure 21. Figure 21 is an image diagram of an example of a question display screen. The question content selected by the organizer is displayed on the question display screen 2000 in Figure 21. Note that in steps S27 to S30, the other participant terminals 12B also perform processing similar to steps S25 to S26, and the question content selected by the organizer is displayed.

Note that the sequence diagram in Figure 13 shows an example in which the conference server device 10 transfers a question transfer message to the organizer terminal 12A each time it receives a question transmission message, but this example is not limited to this. For example, the organizer may issue a question transfer request to the conference server device 10 from the organizer terminal 12A at any time. In this case, the conference server device 10 stores questions until a question transfer request is made from the organizer terminal 12A, and then transfers all of the stored questions to the organizer terminal 12A at the time the question transfer request is received.

According to the conference system 1 of this embodiment, questions from participants can be displayed on the host terminal 12A, allowing the host to select questions to distribute to the participants. Therefore, the conference system 1 of this embodiment can prevent questions from being displayed as they are if they are inappropriate, incomplete, or overlapping with questions from participants.
Second Embodiment
The question transmission message of Fig. 16 may have a structure as shown in Fig. 22, for example. Fig. 22 is a diagram showing the structure of another example of a question transmission message. The body of the question transmission message of Fig. 22 defines the user ID of the participant who input the question and the question string input by that participant. The question transmission message of Fig. 22 is an example of transmitting UID "C0003", which is the user ID of the participant who input the question, and the question string "Is XXX a success or failure?" input by that participant.

In the case of the question transmission message of Figure 22, the question information of Figure 10 will have a structure such as that shown in Figure 23. Figure 23 is a diagram showing the structure of another example of question information. The question information of Figure 23 has a user ID added to the structure of the question information of Figure 10. In this way, the question information of Figure 23 stores the content of the question from the participant in association with the conference and the participant.

The question sending message in Figure 16 may have a structure such as that shown in Figure 24. Figure 24 is a diagram showing the structure of another example of a question sending message. The body of the question sending message in Figure 24 defines the date and time information when the question was sent and the question string entered by the participant. The question sending message in Figure 24 is an example that sends the date and time information when the question was sent, "201608051030", and the question string entered by the participant, "Was XXX a success or failure?".

In the case of the question transmission message of Figure 24, the question information of Figure 10 will have a structure such as that shown in Figure 25. Figure 25 is a diagram showing another example of the structure of question information. The question information of Figure 25 adds the question transmission date and time to the structure of the question information of Figure 10. In this way, the question information of Figure 25 stores the content of the question from the participant in association with the conference and the question transmission date and time.

The question transmission message of Figure 16 may have a structure as shown in Figure 26, for example. Figure 26 is a diagram showing the structure of another example of a question transmission message. The body of the question transmission message of Figure 26 defines the user ID of the participant who entered the question, the date and time information when the question was sent, and the question string entered by that participant.

In the case of the question transmission message of FIG. 26, the question information of FIG. 10 has a structure, for example, as shown in FIG. 27. FIG. 27 is a diagram showing the structure of another example of question information. The question information of FIG. 27 adds a user ID and question transmission date and time to the structure of the question information of FIG. 10. In this way, the question information of FIG. 27 stores the question content from the participant in association with the conference, the participant, and the question transmission date and time. Note that the question transmission message of FIG. 26 is an example of transmitting the UID "C0003" which is the user ID of the participant who entered the question, the date and time information "201608051030" when the question was sent, and the question string entered by the participant, "Was XXX a success or failure?"
[Third embodiment]
The conference system 1 according to this embodiment may store questions entered by participants during a conference in the question information storage unit 47 and provide the organizer with a function for reviewing the questions at a later date. Fig. 28 is a functional block diagram of another example of the organizer terminal. Note that the functional block in Fig. 28 shows functions provided by the organizer terminal 12A that are necessary for explaining this embodiment, and other functions may also be present.

The host terminal 12A in Figure 28 executes a program to implement a login processing unit 21, a message sending/receiving processing unit 24, a question history list acquisition processing unit 26, and a question history list display processing unit 27.

The login processing unit 21 performs processing for logging in to the conference server device 10 from the organizer terminal 12A. The message transmission/reception processing unit 24 communicates with the conference server device 10. The question history list acquisition processing unit 26 performs processing for acquiring a list of the history of questions accepted at any conference from the conference server device 10 in a specified display format. The question history list display processing unit 27 performs processing for displaying the list of question history received from the conference server device 10.

Figure 29 is a functional block diagram of another example of a conference server device. The conference server device 10 in Figure 29 has a configuration in which a question list output data generation processing unit 48 has been added to the configuration of the conference server device 10 in Figure 5. The question list output data generation processing unit 48 performs processing to generate a list of questions for any conference requested from the organizer terminal 12A in Figure 28 in a specified display format.

Figure 30 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the processing procedure for displaying a question history list. For example, the question history list acquisition screen 3100 shown in Figure 31 is displayed on the host terminal 12A. Figure 31 is an image diagram of an example of the question history list acquisition screen. The question history list acquisition screen 3100 has a conference ID input field, a display method selection field, and an acquisition button.

At any time (for example, after the end of the conference), the host specifies the conference ID and display method on the question history list acquisition screen 3100 and presses the Acquire button. In Figure 31, the display method can be selected from a display method that displays questions in chronological order, and a display method that displays questions asked by the user with the specified user ID. When the Acquire button on the question history list acquisition screen 3100 is pressed, the question history list acquisition processing unit 26 of the host terminal 12A proceeds to step S51, creates the question list acquisition request message of Figure 32, and sends it to the conference server device 10.

Figure 32 is a diagram showing the structure of an example of a question list request message. The question list request message in Figure 32 is an example of a communication message and is composed of a header section and a body section. The body section defines a conference ID and a character string representing the display method. Figure 32 (A) shows an example of a question list request message when "chronological order" is selected as the display method. Figure 32 (B) shows an example of a question list request message when a participant with a user ID UID of "C0003" is selected as the display method using "user specification."

Upon receiving the question list request message of Figure 32, the question list output data generation processing unit 48 of the conference server device 10 proceeds to step S52, searches for and acquires question information corresponding to the received question list request message from the question information storage unit 47, and generates a question list as output data based on the acquired question information. The conference server device 10 also generates a question history list transmission message such as that shown in Figure 33 from the generated output data and transmits it to the organizer terminal 12A.

Figure 33 is a diagram showing the structure of an example of a question history list transmission message. The question history list transmission message in Figure 33 is an example of a communication message, and is composed of a header section and a body section. The list of question history is defined in the body section.

Figure 33 (A) shows an example of a question history list transmission message when "chronological order" is selected as the display method. Figure 33 (B) shows an example of a question history list transmission message when a participant with a user ID UID of "C0003" is selected as the display method using "user specification." The body of Figure 33 (B) defines the questions posed by the user selected using "user specification," namely, "Was XXX a success or failure?" and "What will happen to △△△ in the future?"

The question history list display processing unit 27 of the host terminal 12A that receives the question history list transmission message displays the question history list screen shown in, for example, Figure 34 or Figure 35. Figure 34 is an image diagram of an example of the question history list screen. Figure 35 is an image diagram of another example of the question history list screen. Figure 34 is an example of the question history list screen when "chronological order" is selected as the display method. Also, Figure 35 is an example of the question history list screen when "user specified" is selected as the display method.

The question history list screen in Figure 34 may also display information that distinguishes between questions that were selected by the organizer and distributed to participants and questions that were not selected by the organizer and distributed to participants. In Figure 34, questions that were distributed to participants are indicated by "Selected," and questions that were not distributed to participants are indicated by "Unselected."

The conference system 1 according to this embodiment allows the organizer to review questions entered by participants during the conference at a later date. This allows the organizer to analyze what types of questions were most common and use this information to improve the progress and content of the next conference. In particular, in the case of seminars hosted by companies, analyzing who asked what questions can lead to marketing and effective customer contact activities (such as proposals).

The present invention is not limited to the specifically disclosed embodiments above, and various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the claims. For example, in the conference system 1 according to this embodiment, participants input questions, but any information that participants can input, such as opinions or evaluations, may be used.

Furthermore, although the conference system 1 according to this embodiment has been described as an example in which the organizer selects questions to be distributed to all participants in the conference, the organizer may also select questions that are not to be distributed to all participants in the conference. Furthermore, although the conference system 1 according to this embodiment has been described as an example in which the organizer selects questions to be distributed to all participants in the conference, the questions do not necessarily have to be distributed to all participants, and may instead be distributed to the presenter, for example. The participant terminal 12B is an example of a screen sharing terminal as defined in the claims. The conference server device 10 is an example of an information processing device. The organizer terminal 12A is an example of a management terminal.

Note that the conference system 1 having a conference server device 10 and one or more client terminals 12 is just one example, and it goes without saying that there are various system configuration examples depending on the application and purpose.

The functions of the embodiments described above can be realized by one or more processing circuits. In this specification, the term "processing circuit" includes processors programmed to perform functions by software, such as processors implemented by electronic circuits, as well as devices such as ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), DSPs (Digital Signal Processors), FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), and conventional circuit modules designed to perform the functions described above.

Furthermore, the concept of "conference" in this embodiment described above includes not only the commonly used meaning of "conference," but also two-way or one-way communication between users, such as seminars, classes, and brainstorming.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Conference system 10 Conference server device 12 Client terminal 12A Organizer terminal 12B Participant terminal 21, 31 Login processing unit 22 Question list display processing unit 23 Question selection processing unit 24, 35, 43 Message transmission/reception processing unit 25 Question candidate information storage unit 26 Question history list acquisition processing unit 27 Question history list display processing unit 32 Question creation processing unit 33 Question display processing unit 34 Conference control unit 41 Communication control unit 42 Information management unit 44 Conference information storage unit 45 Role information storage unit 46 User information storage unit 47 Question information storage unit 48 Question list output data generation processing unit 501, 601 Input device 502, 602 Display device 503, 603 External I/F
503a, 603a Recording medium 504, 604 RAM (Random Access Memory)
505, 605 ROM (Read Only Memory)
506, 606 CPU (Central Processing Unit)
507, 607 Communication I/F
508, 608 HDD (Hard Disk Drive)
1400 Question input screen 1700 Question selection screen 2000 Question display screen B Bus N1 Network

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-115718

Claims (1)

An information processing system in which an information processing device that manages screen sharing performed among a plurality of screen sharing terminals and a management terminal having management authority are connected via a network,
The information processing device includes:
a storage means for storing questions input to one or more of the screen sharing terminals connected via the network ;
a distribution means for distributing the question content selected by the management terminal from the question content stored in the storage means to the plurality of screen sharing terminals;
and
The management terminal
a question selection receiving means for displaying the question content input to the screen sharing terminal and stored in the storage means , and receiving, from a user operating the management terminal, a selection of the question content to be displayed on the plurality of screen sharing terminals from the question content;
a question acquisition processing means for receiving a request from a user operating the management terminal to acquire the question content stored in the storage means and acquiring the question content from the storage means;
a question content display means for displaying the question content acquired from the storage means;
and
the storage means stores the question input to one or more of the screen sharing terminals, identification information of the user who input the question, and date and time information when the question was input, in association with each other;
the question acquisition processing means, when receiving a request for acquiring the question content from a user operating the management terminal, the request specifying the user who input the question content via a screen that accepts either input of the user's identification information or designation of a time series, acquires from the storage means the question content that is stored in association with the user's identification information input via the screen, from the question content stored in the storage means;
the question content display means displays the question content input by the user designated by inputting the user's identification information via the screen;
the question acquisition processing means, when receiving a request to acquire the question content, specifying chronological order as a display format, from a user operating the management terminal via the screen, acquires the question content input to the screen sharing terminal and date and time information when the question content was input from the storage means;
The question content display means displays the question content acquired from the storage means in chronological order based on the date and time information acquired from the storage means.
An information processing system characterized by: