Information processing device, information processing method, and program

Abstract

It provides a mechanism for selling electricity to specific consumers. [Solution] The information processing device 3 has an acquisition unit 331 that acquires a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by generating electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain, a matching unit 332 that matches suppliers and consumer groups included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information, and a certificate issuance unit 333 that grants a certificate to the supplier and the consumer group that has been matched.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Electric power derived from renewable energy (hereinafter simply referred to as "electric power") has been traded. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for trading electric power. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-175556 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In conventional technology, matching is performed by taking into consideration the amount of electricity purchased by businesses that buy electricity (hereinafter referred to as "consumers") and the amount of electricity sold by businesses that sell electricity (hereinafter referred to as "suppliers"). However, there are cases where a supplier wishes to sell electricity to a specific consumer. For example, a supplier may wish to use electricity in the process leading up to the sale of the products it handles. Therefore, there is a need to provide a mechanism for selling electricity to specific consumers.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of these points, and aims to provide a system for selling electricity to specific consumers. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An information processing device according to a first aspect of the present invention has an acquisition unit that acquires a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by generating electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain, a matching unit that matches the supplier and the consumer included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information, and a certificate issuance unit that grants the certificate to the consumer matched with the supplier.

[0007] The supply chain information may include contract information indicating contractual relationships between multiple businesses, and the matching unit may refer to the contract information to match the suppliers and demanders who have contractual relationships.

[0008] The supply chain information may include product information that is information written on the product and includes business identification information for identifying each of multiple businesses involved in the process of selling the product, and the matching unit may match the suppliers and consumers that correspond to each of the multiple business identification information included in the product information.

[0009] The supply chain information may be information managed by a business that handles the product and may include information for identifying a list of business partners of the business, and the matching unit may match the suppliers and demanders included in the list of business partners.

[0010] The supply chain information may include information managed by an industry association of an industry related to the product, and information for identifying a list of related businesses that are related to businesses included in the industry association, and the matching unit may match the suppliers and demanders included in the list of related businesses.

[0011] The supply chain information may include a list of businesses included in the supply chain corresponding to the products handled by either the supplier or the demand business, which is information entered by either the supplier or the demand business, and the matching unit may match the suppliers and the demand businesses included in the list of businesses.

[0012] The supply chain information may include product identification information entered by either the supplier or the consumer business operator to identify the products handled by that business operator, and the matching unit may refer to information managed in a management device that manages the traceability of the product identified by the product identification information, and match the supplier and the consumer related to the traceability of the product.

[0013] The acquisition unit may acquire information indicating the sales amount of electricity, which is the amount of electricity that the supplier wishes to sell, and information indicating the purchase amount of electricity, which is the amount of electricity that the consumer wishes to purchase, and the matching unit may, when a supply chain including the supplier includes multiple consumer entities, match one of the multiple consumer entities corresponding to the purchase amount of electricity that does not exceed the sales amount of electricity.

[0014] The acquisition unit may acquire a request from the consumer to transfer the certificate after the certificate granting unit has granted the certificate to the consumer, the matching unit may match, based on the supply chain information, a first consumer who is a consumer that is included in the same supply chain and who wishes to transfer the certificate, and a second consumer who is another consumer different from the first consumer, and the certificate granting unit may transfer the certificate granted to the first consumer to the second consumer.

[0015] The information processing device may further include a generation unit that generates a user interface that represents the distribution of electricity between the matched supplier and consumer, and an output unit that outputs the user interface generated by the generation unit.

[0016] The acquisition unit may acquire target business operator information indicating whether the supplier limits the business operators to which the electricity will be sold to those included in a supply chain including the supplier, and the matching unit may match the supplier and the consumer included in different supply chains when the target business operator information corresponding to the supplier indicates that the supplier does not limit the business operators to which the electricity will be sold to those included in a supply chain including the supplier, if there is no consumer included in a supply chain including the supplier.

[0017] The acquisition unit may acquire a usage plan for the consumer to use the electricity, and the information processing device may further have a notification unit that, when the supplier and the consumer, each of which is included in a different supply chain, are matched, notifies the supplier of the usage plan corresponding to the consumer, and the certificate granting unit may grant the certificate to the consumer when the supplier, to whom the usage plan has been notified, agrees to be matched with the consumer corresponding to the usage plan, and the matching unit may match another consumer different from the consumer when the supplier, to whom the usage plan has been notified, does not agree to be matched with the consumer corresponding to the usage plan.

[0018] An information processing method according to a second aspect of the present invention is executed by a computer and includes the steps of acquiring a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by generating electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain; matching the supplier and the consumer included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information; and granting the certificate to the consumer matched with the supplier.

[0019] A program according to a third aspect of the present invention causes a computer to function as an acquisition unit that acquires a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by generating electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain; a matching unit that matches the supplier and the consumer included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information; and a certificate granting unit that grants the certificate to the consumer matched with the supplier. [Effects of the Invention]

[0020] The present invention has an effect of providing a mechanism for selling electricity to a specific consumer. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an information processing system. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of an information processing system. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a functional configuration of an information processing device. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing executed by the information processing device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] [Outline of Information Processing System S] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an information processing system S. The information processing system S is a system used to provide an information processing service. The information processing service is a service that provides a certificate that certifies the environmental value of electricity derived from renewable energy. The information processing system S has one or more supplier terminals 1, one or more consumer terminals 2, and an information processing device 3.

[0023] The supplier terminal 1 is a terminal used by the supplier, such as a smartphone, tablet terminal, or personal computer. The supplier is a user of the information processing service and a seller of electricity. The supplier is also a business operator that handles products, such as manufacturing, transporting, or selling products, such as a manufacturer or supplier. The supplier is also a party that has the right to issue certificates. For example, the supplier owns a power generation device (such as a solar power generation system) that generates electricity using renewable energy, and sells the electricity obtained by the power generation device through the information processing service. The amount of electricity sold may be all the amount of electricity generated by the power generation device, or the remaining amount of electricity generated by the power generation device that the supplier uses.

[0024] The consumer terminal 2 is a terminal used by a consumer, such as a smartphone, tablet terminal, or personal computer. A consumer is a user of an information processing service and a buyer of a certificate. A consumer is also a business that handles products, such as a manufacturer or supplier. A consumer, for example, purchases a certificate via the information processing service.

[0025] The information processing device 3 is a device used to manage information processing services, and is, for example, a server. The process executed by the information processing system S will be described below with reference to FIG.

[0026] Fig. 2 is a diagram for explaining an overview of the information processing system S. First, when a supplier accesses a web page of the information processing service using the supplier terminal 1 and performs the procedure for applying for the sale of electricity, the information processing device 3 acquires a sales request from the supplier terminal 1 ((1) in Fig. 2). The sales request is a request from the supplier to sell electricity.

[0027] Next, when the consumer accesses the web page of the information processing service using the consumer terminal 2 and performs the procedure to apply for the purchase of the certificate, the information processing device 3 acquires a purchase request from the consumer terminal 2 ((2) in FIG. 2). The sales request is a request from the consumer to purchase the certificate.

[0028] The information processing device 3 matches suppliers and consumers in the same supply chain ((3) in FIG. 2). Then, the information processing device 3 issues a certificate to the consumer who has been matched with the supplier ((4) in FIG. 2).

[0029] In this way, the information processing system S can provide a mechanism for selling electricity to specific consumers. This allows the information processing system S to distribute electricity derived from renewable energy within the supply chain. As a result, the information processing system S can circulate money associated with the buying and selling of electricity derived from renewable energy within the supply chain. The functional configuration of the information processing device 3 will be described below.

[0030] [Functional configuration of information processing device 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating the functional configuration of an information processing device 3. The information processing device 3 includes a communication unit 31, a storage unit 32, and a control unit 33. In FIG. 3, arrows indicate main data flows, and there may be data flows not shown in FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, each functional block indicates a configuration in functional units, rather than a configuration in hardware (device) units. Therefore, the functional blocks shown in FIG. 3 may be implemented in a single device, or may be implemented separately in multiple devices. Data may be exchanged between functional blocks via any means, such as a data bus, a network, or a portable storage medium.

[0031] The communication unit 31 is a communication interface for connecting to a network, and includes a communication controller for receiving data from an external device.

[0032] The memory unit 32 is a large-capacity storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores the BIOS (Basic Input Output System) of the computer that realizes the information processing device 3, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that serves as the working area of ​​the information processing device 3, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) that stores the OS (Operating System), application programs, and various information referenced when the application programs are executed.

[0033] The control unit 33 is a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or NPU (Neural network Processing Unit) of the information processing device 3, and functions as an acquisition unit 331, a matching unit 332, a certificate granting unit 333, a notification unit 334, a generation unit 335, and an output unit 336 by executing programs stored in the memory unit 32.

[0034] The acquisition unit 331 acquires a predetermined request from a user of the information processing service. The acquisition unit 331 acquires a sales request for requesting the sale of electricity from a supplier who is a business that sells the electricity obtained by power generation by a power generation device that generates electricity using renewable energy. Specifically, the acquisition unit 331 acquires the sales request from the supplier terminal 1.

[0035] For example, when a supplier uses the supplier terminal 1 to access a web page of an information processing service and moves to a page for applying to sell electricity, the supplier terminal 1 displays a sales application page. The sales application page is provided with input fields for inputting various information including business operator identification information for identifying a business operator (for example, the business operator's ID or business operator name) corresponding to the supplier. Then, when the supplier inputs information into the input fields on the sales application page displayed on the supplier terminal 1, the acquisition unit 331 acquires a sales request including the information input by the supplier on the sales application page.

[0036] The acquisition unit 331 also acquires a purchase request from a consumer who is a business operator buying electricity to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of electricity. Specifically, the acquisition unit 331 acquires the purchase request from the consumer terminal 2.

[0037] For example, when a consumer accesses a web page of an information processing service using the consumer terminal 2 and moves to a page for applying to purchase a certificate, the consumer terminal 2 displays a purchase application page. The purchase application page has input fields for inputting various information, including business identification information corresponding to the consumer. Then, when the consumer inputs information into the input fields on the purchase application page displayed on the consumer terminal 2, the acquisition unit 331 acquires a purchase request including the information input by the consumer on the purchase application page.

[0038] The acquisition unit 331 also acquires supply chain information. The supply chain information is information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain, and includes, for example, a list of businesses included in the supply chain, or product identification information for identifying products corresponding to the supply chain (for example, product IDs or product names). The acquisition unit 331 acquires the supply chain information from, for example, a supplier. In this case, the acquisition unit 331 acquires a sales request including the supply chain information from the supplier.

[0039] The acquisition unit 331 may acquire supply chain information from a consumer. In this case, the acquisition unit 331 acquires a sales request including the supply chain information from the consumer. The acquisition unit 331 may also acquire the supply chain information from a management device (not shown) that is managed by a business operator other than the supplier and the consumer that handles the product.

[0040] The matching unit 332 matches suppliers and demanders included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information acquired by the acquisition unit 331. For example, the supply chain information includes a plurality of pieces of business operator identification information corresponding to a plurality of business operators included in the supply chain. In this case, when a supplier and a demander are included among a plurality of business operators identified by each of the plurality of pieces of business operator identification information included in the supply chain information, the matching unit 332 matches the supplier and the demander.

[0041] For example, supply chain information includes contract information that indicates the contractual relationships between multiple businesses. The contract information is, for example, a contract document for outsourcing the handling of products between multiple businesses (e.g., a purchase order in which a manufacturer requests a supplier to manufacture parts to be used in the product).

[0042] In this case, the matching unit 332 refers to the contract information and matches suppliers and demanders who have a contractual relationship. Specifically, when a supplier and a demander are included among a plurality of businesses who have a contractual relationship indicated by the contract information, the matching unit 332 matches the supplier and the demander.

[0043] The supply chain information may include information for identifying the contract information (for example, a contract ID for identifying a contract between multiple businesses) rather than the contract information itself. In this case, the matching unit 332 first acquires the contract information managed in association with the contract ID included in the supply chain information from a management device (not shown) that manages the contract information. The matching unit 332 then refers to the acquired contract information and matches suppliers and demanders who have contractual relationships. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match suppliers and demanders who have direct business relationships.

[0044] The supply chain information may include product information, which is information printed on a product. The product information is, for example, information displayed on a label attached to the product, and includes business identification information corresponding to each of multiple businesses involved in the sale of the product, such as the seller, manufacturer, and processor of the product.

[0045] In this case, the matching unit 332 matches suppliers and consumers corresponding to each of the multiple business identification information included in the product information. Specifically, the matching unit 332 matches a supplier and a consumer when the supplier and the consumer are included among the multiple business operators identified by each of the multiple business identification information included in the product information. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match suppliers and consumers who have been involved in the product until the product is sold.

[0046] The supply chain information may include business partner identification information, which is information managed by a business that handles a product and is used to identify a list of business partners (e.g., suppliers) of the business (e.g., manufacturer). The business partner list is, for example, a list of business partner identification information corresponding to business partners of the business that handles the product. The business partner identification information is, for example, a uniform resource identifier (URI) indicating the storage location where the business partner list is stored, such as the URI of the business's homepage where the business partner list is posted. Note that the business partner identification information may be the business partner list itself.

[0047] In this case, the matching unit 332 refers to the supplier list stored in the storage location indicated by the supplier identification information, and matches the suppliers and consumers included in the supplier list. Specifically, the matching unit 332 matches a supplier and a consumer when the supplier and the consumer are included among multiple business operators indicated by multiple business operator identification information included in the supplier list. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match multiple business operators of a certain business operator.

[0048] The supply chain information may include related business entity identification information, which is information managed by an industry association of an industry related to the product and is used to identify a list of related business entities related to businesses included in the industry association. An industry association is, for example, an organization whose members are businesses that handle the product, such as the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Japan Automobile Association, or the Japan Electrical Manufacturers' Association. The related business entity list is, for example, a list of business entity identification information corresponding to the related business entities. The related business entity identification information is, for example, a URI indicating the storage location where the related business entity list is stored. Note that the related business entity identification information may be the related business entity list itself.

[0049] In this case, the matching unit 332 first refers to the list of related businesses stored in the storage location indicated by the related business identification information, and matches the suppliers and consumers included in the list of related businesses. Specifically, the matching unit 332 matches a supplier and a consumer when the supplier and the consumer are included among the multiple businesses indicated by each of the multiple business identification information included in the list of related businesses. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match multiple related businesses related to businesses included in the industry association.

[0050] The supply chain information may include a list of businesses included in the supply chain that corresponds to the products handled by either a supplier or a consumer, and is information entered by either a supplier or a consumer. The list of businesses is, for example, a list of business identification information corresponding to the businesses included in the supply chain.

[0051] In this case, the matching unit 332 matches suppliers and demanders included in the business operator list. Specifically, when a supplier and a demander are included among a plurality of business operators indicated by a plurality of pieces of business operator identification information included in the business operator list, the matching unit 332 matches the supplier and the demander. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match either one of the suppliers or the demander with the other of the suppliers and the demander included in the supply chain corresponding to the product handled by the one of the business operators.

[0052] The supply chain information may include product specification information, which is information entered by either a supplier or a consumer, for specifying the products handled by the relevant consumer. The product specification information is, for example, product identification information corresponding to the products handled by either a supplier or a consumer.

[0053] In this case, the matching unit 332 matches suppliers and consumers related to the traceability of the product identified by the product identification information. Specifically, the matching unit 332 refers to information managed in a management device (not shown) that manages the traceability of the product identified by the product information, and matches suppliers and consumers related to the traceability of the product.

[0054] For example, the management device manages business identification information corresponding to businesses that have manufactured, processed, distributed, sold, etc. the product. Also, for example, the storage unit 32 stores, for each product, product identification information corresponding to the product and information (e.g., URI) for accessing the management device that manages the traceability of the product, in association with each other.

[0055] In this case, the matching unit 332 first accesses the management device using the URI of the management device stored in the storage unit 32 in association with the product identification information indicated by the product specification information. Then, if a supplier and a consumer are included among multiple businesses indicated by multiple pieces of business identification information managed as information related to traceability in the accessed management device, the matching unit 332 matches the supplier and the consumer. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match multiple businesses involved in the process of selling a product.

[0056] The matching unit 332 may further match suppliers and demanders based on the relationship between the amount of electricity sold, which is the amount of electricity the supplier wishes to sell, and the amount of electricity purchased, which is the amount of electricity the demander wishes to purchase. Specifically, the acquisition unit 331 first acquires a sales request including information indicating the amount of electricity sold by the supplier and a purchase request including information indicating the amount of electricity purchased by the demander. Then, when a supply chain including the supplier includes multiple demanders, the matching unit 332 matches the supplier with one of the multiple demanders based on the relationship between the amount of electricity sold and the amount of electricity purchased.

[0057] The matching unit 332, for example, matches a consumer among a plurality of consumers whose purchased amount of electricity does not exceed the amount of electricity sold. The matching unit 332 may match a supplier with a plurality of consumers in a supply chain including the supplier, so long as the total amount of purchased electricity does not exceed the amount of electricity sold. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match a supplier that meets the demands of the consumer. Note that the matching unit 332 may also match a consumer among a plurality of consumers whose purchased amount of electricity exceeds the amount of electricity sold. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match a consumer that meets the demands of the supplier.

[0058] Although the above describes an example in which the matching unit 332 matches suppliers and demanders that are part of the same supply chain, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if there are no suppliers and demanders that are part of the same supply chain, the matching unit 332 may match suppliers and demanders even if they are not part of the same supply chain. In this case, the matching unit 332 matches suppliers and demanders even if they are not part of the same supply chain, on the condition that the supplier allows matching with a demander that is not part of the supply chain that includes the supplier.

[0059] Specifically, the acquisition unit 331 first acquires from a supplier a sales request that further includes target business entity information indicating whether the supplier will limit the businesses to which it sells electricity to businesses included in the supply chain that includes the supplier. Then, when there is no consumer included in the supply chain that includes the supplier, and the target business entity information corresponding to the supplier indicates that the supplier will not limit the businesses to which it sells electricity to businesses included in the supply chain that includes the supplier, the matching unit 332 matches suppliers and consumers included in different supply chains. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match consumers according to the supplier's request.

[0060] The matching unit 332 executes a process of matching suppliers and demanders, for example, at a predetermined timing (for example, a predetermined time each day, a predetermined day and time each week, or a predetermined date and time each month, etc.) The matching unit 332 may execute a process of matching suppliers and demanders when the acquisition unit 331 acquires a sales request or a purchase request.

[0061] The certificate granting unit 333 grants a certificate to a consumer who has been matched with a supplier. For example, when a supplier and a consumer are matched, the certificate granting unit 333 first issues a certificate corresponding to the electricity of the supplier. Note that when an external server or another business operator other than the administrator who manages the information processing device 3 issues a certificate, the certificate granting unit 333 may obtain a certificate corresponding to the supplier who has been matched with the consumer from the external server or the other business operator.

[0062] Then, the certificate granting unit 333 grants the certificate by transmitting the issued certificate to the consumer terminal 2 corresponding to the consumer matched with the supplier. When a supplier and a consumer included in different supply chains are matched, and the supplier agrees to be matched with the consumer, the certificate granting unit 333 may grant the certificate to the consumer.

[0063] Specifically, first, the acquisition unit 331 acquires a purchase request that further includes a usage plan for the consumer to use electricity. When a supplier and a consumer that are respectively included in different supply chains are matched, the notification unit 334 notifies the supplier of the usage plan corresponding to the consumer. The acquisition unit 331 acquires information indicating whether or not the supplier agrees to being matched with the consumer from the supplier that notified the consumer of the usage plan corresponding to the consumer.

[0064] Then, if the supplier who has been notified of the usage plan agrees to be matched with the consumer who corresponds to the usage plan, the certificate granting unit 333 grants a certificate to the consumer. On the other hand, if the supplier who has been notified of the usage plan does not agree to be matched with the consumer who corresponds to the usage plan, the matching unit 332 matches the consumer with another consumer who is different from the supplier. In this way, the information processing device 3 can match the supplier with the consumer who has agreed to be matched.

[0065] The certificate issuing unit 333 of the information processing device 3 may manage certificates. Specifically, the certificate issuing unit 333 further functions as a certificate management unit, and manages certificates by recording in a predetermined storage area a certificate ID for identifying a certificate, business identification information corresponding to the supplier who sold the electricity corresponding to the certificate, business identification information corresponding to the consumer who issued the certificate, the amount of electricity sold, and the amount of electricity consumed in association with each other. The predetermined storage area may be the storage unit 32 or an external device (for example, online storage, a blockchain system, etc.).

[0066] For example, the certificate issuing unit 333 acquires the amount of electricity consumed by a consumer to whom a certificate has been issued at a predetermined interval (for example, hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) corresponding to the certificate. Then, when the certificate issuing unit 333 acquires the amount of electricity consumption from the consumer, it updates the amount of electricity consumption stored in association with the certificate ID corresponding to the certificate issued to the consumer. In this way, the information processing device 3 can make it possible to know how much of the amount of electricity corresponding to the certificate issued to the consumer the consumer has consumed.

[0067] The certificate granting unit 333 may manage a history of certificate transfers as part of certificate management. Specifically, first, the acquiring unit 331 acquires a transfer request from a consumer requesting the transfer of the certificate after the certificate granting unit 333 grants the certificate to the consumer. The matching unit 332 matches, based on the supply chain information, a first consumer who is a consumer that is included in the same supply chain and who wishes to transfer the certificate, with a second consumer who is another consumer different from the first consumer.

[0068] The matching unit 332 matches a first demander and a second demander, for example, when a first demander and a second demander are included among a plurality of business operators indicated by a plurality of business operator identification information included in the supply chain information. The matching unit 332 may match a first demander and a second demander when a supplier, a first demander, and a second demander are included among a plurality of business operators indicated by a plurality of business operator identification information included in the supply chain information.

[0069] Then, the certificate granting unit 333 transfers the certificate granted to the first consumer to the second consumer. The certificate granting unit 333 grants the certificate, for example, by transmitting the certificate granted to the first consumer to the consumer terminal 2 corresponding to the second consumer. Note that the certificate granting unit 333 may grant the certificate to the consumer when the supplier agrees to transfer the certificate from the first consumer to the second consumer. In this way, the information processing device 3 can secondary circulate the certificate within the supply chain.

[0070] When the information processing device 3 issues a certificate to a consumer, it may visualize the flow of electricity between the matched supplier and consumer. Specifically, the generation unit 335 first generates a user interface that represents the flow of electricity between the matched supplier and consumer. The user interface is, for example, a web page that visually represents the relationship between the supplier and the consumer and the consumer's purchase of a certificate corresponding to electricity sold by the supplier. The user interface may also be a web page that displays information indicating the ratio of the amount of electricity corresponding to the certificate (the amount of electricity sold) to the total amount of electricity used by businesses in the product's supply chain (for example, 10% of the amount of electricity used until the product is sold is electricity derived from renewable energy).

[0071] Then, the output unit 336 outputs the user interface generated by the generation unit 335. For example, a code image for accessing a web page generated by the generation unit 335 is attached to the product, and when a purchaser of the product accesses the web page by reading the code image using a terminal such as a smartphone, the output unit 336 displays the web page on the display of the terminal. In this way, the information processing device 3 allows the purchaser to understand the carbon neutral efforts in the product supply chain.

[0072] [Processing of information processing device 3] Next, the flow of processing executed by the information processing device 3 will be described. Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing executed by the information processing device 3. This flowchart starts when the acquisition unit 331 acquires a sales request that includes, as supply chain information, a list of businesses entered by a supplier and that are included in the supply chain corresponding to the products handled by the supplier (S1). The acquisition unit 331 acquires a purchase request from a consumer (S2).

[0073] The matching unit 332 determines whether the consumer from whom the acquisition unit 331 has acquired a purchase request is a business operator included in the business operator list acquired from the supplier by the acquisition unit 331, thereby determining whether the supplier and the consumer are included in the same supply chain (S3). If the matching unit 332 determines that the consumer is not a business operator included in the business operator list (NO in S3), it determines that the supplier and the consumer are not included in the same supply chain, and returns the process to S2.

[0074] On the other hand, if the matching unit 332 determines that the consumer is a business operator included in the list of businesses (YES in S3), it determines that the supplier and the consumer are not included in the same supply chain, and matches the supplier and the consumer (S4).Then, the certificate granting unit 333 grants a certificate to the consumer matched with the supplier (S5).

[0075] [Effects of this embodiment] As described above, the information processing device 3 matches suppliers and consumers in the same supply chain and issues a certificate to the consumer who has been matched with the supplier. In this way, the information processing device 3 can provide a mechanism for selling electricity to a specific consumer. This allows the information processing device 3 to distribute electricity derived from renewable energy within the supply chain. As a result, the information processing device 3 can circulate money associated with the buying and selling of electricity derived from renewable energy within the supply chain.

[0076] Furthermore, this invention will make it possible to contribute to Goal 9 of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is "Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and promote innovation and resilience."

[0077] The present invention has been described above using embodiments, but the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention. For example, all or part of the device can be configured by functionally or physically distributing or integrating any unit. Furthermore, new embodiments resulting from any combination of multiple embodiments are also included in the embodiments of the present invention. The effects of the new embodiments resulting from the combination also have the effects of the original embodiments. [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 1 Supplier terminal 2 Consumer terminal 3. Information processing equipment 31 Communications Department 32 Storage section 33 Control Unit 331 Acquisition Department 332 Matching Department 333 Certificate Granting Department 334 Notification Department 335 Generation part 336 Output Section S Information Processing System

Claims

1. an acquisition unit that acquires a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by a power generation device that generates electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain; a matching unit that matches the suppliers and the consumers included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information; a certificate granting unit that grants the certificate to the consumer who has been matched with the supplier; An information processing device having the above.

2. the supply chain information includes contract information indicating contractual relationships between a plurality of business entities; the matching unit refers to the contract information and matches the supplier and the demander who have a contractual relationship; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The supply chain information includes product information that is described on a product and includes business entity identification information for identifying each of a plurality of business entities involved in the process of selling the product, the matching unit matches the suppliers and the consumers corresponding to each of the plurality of pieces of business identification information included in the product information; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

4. The supply chain information is information managed by a business operator that handles the product and includes information for identifying a list of business partners of the business operator, The matching unit matches the suppliers and the demanders included in the business partner list. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

5. The supply chain information is information managed by an industry association of an industry related to the product, and includes information for identifying a list of related businesses that are related to businesses included in the industry association, The matching unit matches the suppliers and the consumers included in the list of related businesses. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

6. The supply chain information is information input by a business operator of either the supplier or the consumer, and includes a list of business operators included in the supply chain corresponding to the products handled by the business operator, The matching unit matches the suppliers and the consumers included in the business operator list. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

7. The supply chain information includes product identification information input by either the supplier or the consumer business operator, for identifying the products handled by the business operator, The matching unit refers to information managed in a management device that manages the traceability of the product identified by the product identification information, and matches the supplier and the consumer related to the traceability of the product. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

8. the acquisition unit acquires information indicating a sales amount of power, which is the amount of power of the power that the supplier wishes to sell, and information indicating a purchase amount of power, which is the amount of power of the power that the consumer wishes to purchase; When a plurality of demanders are included in a supply chain including the supplier, the matching unit matches the demander corresponding to the purchased amount of electricity that does not exceed the sold amount of electricity among the plurality of demanders. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

9. the acquiring unit acquires a request from the consumer to transfer the certificate after the certificate granting unit grants the certificate to the consumer; the matching unit matches, based on the supply chain information, a first demander who is a plurality of demanders included in the same supply chain and who wishes to transfer the certificate, with a second demander who is another demander different from the first demander; The certificate granting unit transfers the certificate granted to the first consumer to the second consumer. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

10. The information processing device includes: a generation unit that generates a user interface that represents the distribution of electricity between the matched supplier and the matched consumer; an output unit that outputs the user interface generated by the generation unit; further comprising The information processing device according to claim 1 .

11. the acquisition unit acquires target business entity information indicating whether the supplier limits the business entities to which the supplier sells the electricity to businesses included in a supply chain that includes the supplier; the matching unit matches the supplier and the consumer included in different supply chains when the consumer is not included in a supply chain including the supplier and the target business entity information corresponding to the supplier indicates that the supplier does not limit the businesses to which the supplier sells the electricity to businesses included in the supply chain including the supplier; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

12. The acquisition unit acquires a usage plan for the consumer to use the power, the information processing device further includes a notification unit that, when the supplier and the demander, each of which is included in a different supply chain, are matched, notifies the supplier of the usage plan corresponding to the demander; the certificate granting unit grants the certificate to the consumer when the supplier who has been notified of the usage plan agrees to matching with the consumer corresponding to the usage plan; the matching unit, when the supplier to which the usage plan has been notified does not agree to matching with the consumer corresponding to the usage plan, matches with another consumer different from the consumer; The information processing device according to claim 11.

13. The computer executes A step of acquiring a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by power generation using a power generation device that generates electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain; matching the suppliers and the consumers in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information; granting the certificate to the consumer matched with the supplier; An information processing method comprising:

14. Computer, an acquisition unit that acquires a request from a supplier, who is a business that sells electricity obtained by a power generation device that generates electricity using renewable energy, to sell the electricity, a request from a consumer, who is a business that buys the electricity, to purchase a certificate that certifies the environmental value of the electricity, and supply chain information for identifying multiple businesses included in the supply chain; a matching unit that matches the suppliers and the consumers included in the same supply chain based on the supply chain information; and a certificate granting unit that grants the certificate to the consumer who has been matched with the supplier; A program to function as a

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