Information processing device and information notification system

Abstract

In an information notification system (Sy), an information processing device (10) on a transmitting side that transmits an email includes a control unit (19) that calculates a preparation time including a time of movement from a position of an information processing device (10) on a receiving side that receives the email to a meeting room, and if the preparation time is longer than a reminding time, the information processing device (10) transmits the email to the meeting room, and if the reminding time is longer than the reminding time, the information processing device (10) transmits the email to the meeting room. On the basis of the position of each conference room and the position of the information processing device (10) on the receiving side, another conference room closer to the position of the information processing device (10) on the receiving side than the conference room is selected, and an e-mail indicating a change to the selected another conference room is transmitted to the information processing device (10) on the receiving side.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device and an information notification system, and more particularly to a technology for notifying an event location and a start date and time of the event through notification information. Background Art

[0002] Generally, there is known an information notification system including a plurality of information processing devices that transmit and receive emails for notifying a conference room, a start date and time of a meeting, and the like via a server on a network.

[0003] For example, in the resource reservation system described in Patent Document 1, reservation information related to the reservation of a resource such as a conference room is obtained, a sending method or a sending destination of a notification related to the reservation of the resource is determined based on the obtained reservation information, and a notification related to the reservation of the resource is sent to a terminal device by the determined sending method, or a notification related to the reservation of the resource is sent to a determined sending destination. Thus, the notification related to the reservation of the resource is not limited to being sent to the reservation person or the like.

[0004] Prior art literature

[0005] Patent Literature

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-52699 Summary of the invention

[0007] By the way, when notifying the meeting room and the start date and time of the meeting by email, sometimes a date and time before the start date and time of the meeting is specified in advance, and a reminder notification of sending and receiving an email is performed from the information processing device on the sending side to the information processing device on the receiving side at the specified date and time. As a result, the user of the information processing device on the receiving side can see the received email on the date and time before the start date and time of the meeting and go to the meeting room without being late for the meeting.

[0008] However, when the user moves away from the conference room on the day of the meeting, the time required for the user to move to the conference room becomes longer, and the user is at risk of being late for the meeting. In this case, if the reminder notification can be used to change the conference room to another conference room close to the user, the convenience of the reminder notification is improved.

[0009] In the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, a method or a destination for sending a notification regarding the reservation of a resource is determined based on the reservation information, but no notification of a change in a conference room is made.

[0010] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to change the scheduled conference room to another conference room closer to the user and notify the user of the other conference room when the user moves away from the conference room.

[0011] Solutions for solving problems

[0012] An information processing device involved in one aspect of the present invention is an information processing device on the sending side, which is used to send notification information to other information processing devices on the receiving side through a server on the network, and the notification information is used to notify the event at the event implementation location for each of a plurality of event implementation locations. The information processing device includes: a communication unit for communicating with the information processing device on the receiving side via the server; an input unit for inputting a reminder time, which reminder time represents the time from the start date and time of the event to the reminder sending date and time set to an earlier date and time than the reminder sending date and time; and a control unit for calculating the accuracy at the reminder sending date and time or at a predetermined time earlier than the reminder sending date and time. Preparation time, the preparation time includes either a moving time from the position of the information processing device on the receiving side to the event implementation location, or a time obtained by adding a fixed time to the moving time, and when the preparation time is less than the reminder time, when the reminder sending date and time is reached, the communication unit sends a notification message to the information processing device on the receiving side; when the preparation time is longer than the reminder time, based on the position of each event implementation location and the position of the information processing device on the receiving side, another event implementation location with a preparation time less than the reminder time is selected, and the communication unit sends a notification message toward the information processing device on the receiving side, the notification message indicating a change to another event implementation location.

[0013] Another aspect of the present invention relates to an information notification system including a plurality of information processing devices, which are used to communicate notification information through a server on a network, and the notification information is used to notify each of a plurality of event implementation locations of an event at a location where the event is implemented. The information notification system includes the information processing device involved in one aspect of the present invention as an information processing device on the sending side of at least sending the notification information among the plurality of information processing devices.

[0014] Effects of the Invention

[0015] According to the present invention, when a user moves away from a conference room, the scheduled conference room can be changed to another conference room closer to the user, and the user can be notified of the other conference room. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 This is a block diagram showing the structure of an information notification system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 2 It is a block diagram showing the main structure of the information processing device.

[0018] Figure 3 This is a diagram showing an example of a meeting schedule table.

[0019] Figure 4 is a flowchart showing a control procedure of a notification setting process.

[0020] Figure 5 This is a diagram showing an example of a pop-up window for login.

[0021] Figure 6 2 is a diagram showing an example of a setting window for an alert notification.

[0022] Figure 7 This is a diagram conceptually showing conference management data.

[0023] Figure 8 FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a pop-up window for selecting whether to extend the reminder time.

[0024] Fig. 9 FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another example of a pop-up window for selecting whether to extend the reminder time.

[0025] Fig. 10A is a flowchart showing a control procedure of a conference room setting process.

[0026] Fig. 10B It shows that Fig. 10A Flowchart of the subsequent control process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Hereinafter, an information processing device and an information notification system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 This is a block diagram showing the structure of the information notification system Sy involved in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] The information notification system Sy includes a plurality of information processing devices 10. In the information notification system Sy, the plurality of information processing devices 10 are connected to a network (such as an intranet) N, and notification information is communicated between the information processing devices 10 via a server 30 (such as a mail server. Hereinafter, the server 30 will be described as a mail server) on the network N. Each information processing device 10 accesses the server 30 via the network N. In addition, the notification information is information including a message as a notification object, such as an e-mail. Hereinafter, the notification information will be described as an e-mail. The number of information processing devices 10 is not particularly limited.

[0029] Figure 21 is a block diagram showing a main structure of an information processing device 10. The information processing device 10 is, for example, a personal computer, a portable smartphone, or a mobile device. The information processing device 10 includes a display unit 11, an operation unit 12, a touch panel 13, a communication unit 14, a storage unit 17, and a control unit 18.

[0030] The display unit 11 is composed of a liquid crystal display (LCD: Liquid Crystal Display) or an organic EL (OLED: Organic Light-Emitting Diode) display or the like.

[0031] A touch panel 13 is provided to overlap the screen of the display unit 11. The touch panel 13 detects contact (touch) of the touch panel 13 by a finger of a user and the like and the touch position, and outputs a detection signal indicating the coordinates of the touch position to the control unit 19 of the control unit 18 as a signal indicating an instruction. Thus, instructions based on a GUI (Graphical User Interface) or the like displayed on the screen of the display unit 11 can be input through the touch panel 13. The touch panel 13 functions as a part of the operation unit 12.

[0032] The operation unit 12 is a keyboard, pointing device, physical key, etc. operated by the user. The operation unit 12 receives input of instructions corresponding to operations on the keyboard, etc. performed by the user, and outputs the received instructions to the control unit 19. The operation unit 12 is an example of an input unit in the claims.

[0033] The communication unit 14 is a communication interface including a communication module such as a LAN (Local Area Network) chip, etc. The communication unit 14 is connected to the server 30 via the network N, and performs data communication with the server 30 .

[0034] The storage unit 17 is a large-capacity storage device such as an SSD (Solid State Drive) or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) and stores various application programs and various data.

[0035] The control unit 18 is composed of a processor, a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), etc. The processor is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit). The control unit 18 functions as a control unit 19 by executing the information notification program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 17 using the processor.

[0036] The control unit 18 is connected to the display unit 11, the operation unit 12, the touch panel 13, the communication unit 14, the storage unit 17, etc. The control unit 19 manages the overall control of the information processing device 10. The control unit 19 controls the above-mentioned components and transmits and receives signals or data to and from the components.

[0037] The control unit 19 functions as a processing unit that executes various processes. The control unit 19 also has a function of controlling the display unit 11 and the communication unit 14 .

[0038] In the information notification system Sy of such a structure, for example, any one of the plurality of information processing devices 10 is a PC installed in a conference room (an example of an event implementation location) or a PC managed by a user as an administrator, and is operated by an administrator of the conference (an example of an event) (hereinafter referred to as the information processing device 10 of the conference room). In addition, each of the other information processing devices 10 is a PC installed at the seat of each participant of the conference, or a portable terminal or mobile device carried by each participant, and is operated by each participant (hereinafter referred to as the information processing device 10 of the participant).

[0039] Each administrator and each participant are a plurality of users who use the information notification system Sy and the respective information processing devices 10. In addition, a participant may also serve as an administrator.

[0040] When an information notification program for creating and sending and receiving an e-mail is started in any of the information processing devices 10, an e-mail is created and sent, or an e-mail is received, according to an operation performed by an administrator or a participant. The e-mail is received by the server 30 on the network N, and is sent from the server 30 to each information processing device 10.

[0041] The server 30 is connected to a network N (for example, an intranet), and any of the information processing devices 10 can access the server 30 .

[0042] For example, in the information processing device 10 of the conference room, when a predetermined icon displayed on the display unit 11 is designated by an operation of the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 performed by an administrator, an instruction is received by the operation unit 12, and the instruction is used to start an information notification program for creating and sending and receiving emails. The control unit 19 executes the information notification program stored in the storage unit 17, and displays a window for creating and sending and receiving emails (hereinafter referred to as a mail window) on the screen of the display unit 11 in accordance with the information notification program. The information notification program is an application for creating and sending and receiving emails (for example, a program using Microsoft Office 365 Outlook of Microsoft Corporation. However, it is not intended to limit the information notification program to a program using Microsoft Office 365 Outlook).

[0043] When the operation unit 12 receives input of various information required for creating an email based on the operation of a button included in the email window displayed on the screen of the display unit 11 using the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 by the administrator, the control unit 19 creates an email for notifying the conference room and the start date and time of the meeting according to the information. In addition, the control unit 19 sets the email address of each participant as the destination of the email and causes the communication unit 14 to send the email. The email is received by the server 30 via the network N and is sent to the information processing device 10 of each participant via the server 30. Each of the participants executes an information notification program for creating and sending and receiving emails in his or her information processing device 10 (the information processing device 10 on the receiving side). When the email is received from the server 30 via the communication unit 14, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 (the receiving side) displays the email window on the screen of the display unit 11, and displays the contents of the conference room and the start date and time of the meeting indicated in the email on the email window. The user can confirm the contents indicated in the email by visually confirming the email window.

[0044] In addition, the user (the administrator of the meeting and each participant) operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 in his / her information processing device 10 to input a display instruction for displaying the meeting schedule stored in the storage unit 17. When the display instruction is input to the operation unit 12, the control unit 19 displays the schedule stored in the storage unit 17 on the screen of the display unit 11 in accordance with the display instruction. In addition, the control unit 19 rewrites and updates the meeting schedule according to the instruction input to the operation unit 12 by the operation performed by the user. In addition, as described later, the meeting schedule is shared between the information processing devices 10 of each user.

[0045] In this way, the user (the manager of each conference room and each participant) uses the function of the mail window to display the conference schedule on the screen of the display unit 11 , update the conference schedule, and share the conference schedule among the information processing devices 10 .

[0046] Figure 3 An example of a meeting schedule displayed on the screen of the display unit 11 is shown. Figure 3 In the reservation table 41 of the meeting shown, the names of the conference rooms (conference room names I, II, III, ...), the usage status of the conference rooms (information such as reservation, in use, or free), reservation details (information on whether the conference room has been reserved, reservation time, reservation person, and participants of the meeting held in the conference room), the number of people that the conference room can accommodate, the location of the conference room, and the location where the conference room is set (building name (1), (2), (3) ...) are recorded for each of the multiple conference rooms. In the reservation table 41, the usage status of the conference room is the conference room being in use, waiting for entry, or free. The reservation details are recorded when the conference room has been reserved, which are the start time, end time, reservation person name, and participants of the meeting. The number of people that the conference room can accommodate is the number of people pre-set in the conference room. In the information processing device 10, the conference room name and the location information of the conference room are input by the user's operation of the operating unit 12, and are stored in the reservation table 41 through the control unit 19.

[0047] In the information notification system Sy of the present embodiment, when the information processing device 10 notifies the conference room and the start date and time of the meeting via email, the reminder notification is sent, for example, from the information processing device 10 in the conference room to the information processing device 10 of the participant at a predetermined reminder sending date and time before the start date and time of the meeting (for example, 10 minutes before the start date and time of the meeting), thereby notifying the participants of the start of the meeting in advance.

[0048] In addition, when a participant moves away from the conference room near the reminder sending date and time on the day of the meeting, the time required for the participant to move to the conference room becomes longer, and the participant is at risk of being late for the meeting. Therefore, when a participant moves away from the conference room near the reminder sending date and time on the day of the meeting, the information processing device 10 of the conference room reselects another conference room closer to the participant, and sends a reminder notification of an email indicating another conference room from the information processing device 10 of the conference room to the information processing device 10 of the participant before the start date and time of the meeting, notifying the participant of the change to the other conference room.

[0049] Next, refer to Figure 4The flowchart shown in the figure and the like will be used to explain the control procedure of the notification setting process for setting a reminder notification to be performed before the start date and time of the meeting.

[0050] In the information processing device 10 of the conference room, when a predetermined icon displayed on the display unit 11 is designated by an operation of the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 by an administrator, the instruction is received by the operation unit 12, and the instruction is used to start the information notification program for creating and sending and receiving emails. The control unit 19 causes the control unit 19 to start the information notification program according to the instruction. Figure 5 The pop-up window PU1 for login as shown is displayed on the display unit 11 (step S101). In the pop-up window PU1 for login, a text box B11 for filling in the administrator's login password and an execution key K11 are displayed.

[0051] The administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 to input the administrator's login password. The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room displays the input login password in the text box B11 of the pop-up window PU1. When the administrator further operates the execution key K11, the control unit 19 determines whether the login password displayed in the text box B11 is consistent with the administrator's login password pre-stored in the storage unit 17 (step S102). When it is determined that they are consistent ("Yes" in step S102), the control unit 19 allows login (step S103) and executes the information notification program stored in the storage unit 17. The control unit 19 displays the mail window on the display unit 11 in accordance with the information notification program (step S104).

[0052] In addition, when it is determined that the login password displayed in the text box B11 is inconsistent with the login password of the administrator pre-stored in the storage unit 17 ("No" in step S102), the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 in the conference room does not execute the information notification program instructed via the operation unit 12, nor does it display the email window on the display unit 11.

[0053] After step S104, the administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 to instruct the reminder notification of the e-mail using the function of the mail window. The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room, according to the instruction of the reminder notification, Figure 6 The setting window G1 of the reminder notification is displayed on the screen of the display unit 11 (step S105).

[0054] exist Figure 6In the setting window G1 of the reminder notification shown, there are displayed a text box B21 for displaying the meeting name, a text box B22 for displaying the meeting room name, a text box B23 for displaying the start date and time of the meeting, a text box B24 for displaying the end date and time, a text box B25 for displaying the reminder time T from the reminder sending date and time to the start date and time of the meeting, a text box B26 for displaying the name of each participant, a check box C21 for receiving an indication of whether the meeting is important, a check box C22 for receiving an indication of whether to link the locations of each participant, a cancel key K21, and a create key K22.

[0055] The administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operating unit 12, and in the reminder notification setting window G1, after specifying the corresponding text boxes B21 to B25, enters the meeting name, conference room name, meeting start date and time, end date and time, and reminder time T from the reminder sending date and time to the meeting start date and time (step S106). The reminder time T is the time from the meeting start date and time to the reminder sending date and time that is set to an earlier date and time. Furthermore, the administrator operates the operating unit 12 to input instructions for considering the locations of the participants and instructions indicating that the meeting is of high importance as needed (step S106). The input contents are received by the operating unit 12 and output from the operating unit 12 to the control unit 19. Figure 6 In the example shown below, the meeting name "Department Meeting" is displayed in text box B21, the meeting room name "Meeting Room II" is displayed in text box B22, the start date and time "22 / 4 / 1 10:00" is displayed in text box B23, the end date and time "22 / 4 / 1 12:00" is displayed in text box B24, and the reminder time T "10 minutes" is displayed in text box B25. Figure 6 , an example is shown in which both an instruction to consider the location of the participants and an instruction indicating that the meeting importance is high are input, and the control unit 19 displays a check mark in each of the check boxes C21 and C22.

[0056] Furthermore, the administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 to input a display instruction for displaying a list of the names of a plurality of users into the operation unit 12 through the setting window G1 of the reminder notification. Figure 7The conference management data CD shown is stored in the storage unit 17. The control unit 19 of each information processing device 10 performs the information sharing function by operating in accordance with the information notification program. The conference schedule table and conference management data CD described later are shared through the network N and the server 30 between each information processing device 10 including the information processing device 10 of the conference room through the information sharing function. Specifically, the conference schedule table and conference management data CD stored in other information processing devices 10 are received via their own communication unit 14, and are updated and stored in the storage unit 17 at any time. That is, the conference schedule table and conference management data CD are synchronized with each other between each information processing device 10 through the information sharing function, and after synchronization, the same conference schedule table and conference management data CD are stored in each information processing device 10. In addition, regarding the conference schedule table and conference management data CD, the control unit 19 writes or rewrites the information using the information input by operating the operation unit 12 of each information processing device 10. When a program to which Microsoft Office 365 Outlook of Microsoft Corporation is applied, for example, is used as the information notification program, the information sharing function is a file sharing function.

[0057] The conference management data CD stores, for example, the names of a plurality of users (including an administrator and each participant), the email address of each user (an example of the destination information indicating the destination of the notification information), and the location of each user's information processing device 10. The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 in the conference room reads the names of all users (including the administrator and each participant) from the conference management data CD, and displays a list of the names of each user on the screen of the display unit 11, for example, through another window different from the setting window G1.

[0058] When other windows are displayed, the administrator performs an operation for selecting the name of each participant to participate in the meeting from the list of names of each user through the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12. According to this operation, the control unit 19 receives the selection instruction of each selected participant through the operation unit 12. When receiving the selection instruction, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room hides other windows and displays the name of each participant indicated by the selection instruction in the text box B26 in the setting window G1 of the reminder notification (step S107).

[0059] In addition, the email address of each user in the conference management data CD is pre-set in the information processing device 10 of each user and stored in the storage unit 17 of the information processing device 10 of each user. By synchronizing between the above-mentioned information processing devices 10, the same conference management data CD is stored in the storage unit 17 of the information processing device 10 of each user.

[0060] In addition, the position of each user's information processing device 10 in the conference management data CD is detected by the information processing device 10 of each user and stored in the conference management data CD. For example, in the case where the information processing device 10 is a portable terminal device or a mobile device, the position of the information processing device 10 is detected by the GPS (Global Positioning System) function provided in the information processing device 10. In the case where the information processing device 10 is a desktop PC (Personal Computer), the position of the information processing device 10 is detected based on the reception level of the beacon signal transmitted from the WiFi (registered trademark) host device and received by the communication unit 14 of the information processing device 10. The control unit 19 rewrites the corresponding position information in the data CD1 with the detected position of the information processing device 10. In addition, in the information processing device 10, the position information input by the operation of the operation unit 12 by the user can also be set as the position of the information processing device 10.

[0061] Next, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 in the conference room determines whether an instruction indicating that the meeting is of high importance has been received (step S108). If the control unit 19 determines that an instruction indicating that the meeting is of high importance has been received ("Yes" in step S108), the control unit 19 causes the following Figure 8 A pop-up window PU2 as shown is displayed on the display unit 11 (step S109), and the pop-up window PU2 is used to select whether to extend the reminder time T (the time from the reminder sending date to the start date of the meeting) of each participant's information processing device 10. In the pop-up window PU2, a message M1 indicating that the reminder time T is changed, an NG key K31, and an OK key K32 are displayed.

[0062] When the administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operating unit 12 and operates the OK key K32 of the pop-up window PU2, the extension instruction of the reminder time T is received by the operating unit 12 ("Yes" in step S110). For example, the control unit 19 pre-sets the standard reminder time T to a predetermined time, here 10 minutes. The control unit 19 sets a pre-set extension time td (for example, 5 minutes) to be added to the reminder time T in accordance with the extension instruction. That is, the control unit 19 extends the reminder time T for the information processing device 10 of each participant from "10 minutes" to "15 minutes" (step S111). After extending the reminder time T, the control unit 19 sets the pop-up window PU2 to be hidden. Thereafter, the control unit 19 transfers to the processing of step S117. In this way, when the importance of the meeting is high, the reminder time T of the information processing device 10 of each participant is extended from "10 minutes" to "15 minutes".

[0063] On the other hand, when the administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operating unit 12 and operates the NG key K31 of the pop-up window PU2, the instruction for not extending the reminder time T is received by the operating unit 12 ("No" in step S110). In this case, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room does not perform the processing of step S111, and maintains the reminder time T as it is. The control unit 19 sets the pop-up window PU2 to be hidden. Thereafter, the control unit 19 transfers to the processing of step S112.

[0064] In addition, when it is determined that the instruction indicating that the importance of the meeting is high is not received (No in step S108), since the importance of the meeting is not high, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 in the conference room also maintains the reminder time T of the information processing device 10 of each participant as it is. Thereafter, the control unit 19 transfers to the processing of step S112.

[0065] Next, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 in the conference room refers to the conference schedule 41 to obtain the location of the conference room, and refers to the conference management data CD to obtain the location of the information processing device 10 of each participant (i.e., each selected participant) displayed in the text box B26.

[0066] Figure 3 The meeting schedule table 41 as shown in the reservation display screen D1 is stored in the storage unit 17. The control unit 19 of each information processing device 10 performs the information sharing function by operating in accordance with the information notification program. The meeting schedule table is shared between each information processing device 10 including the information processing device 10 of the conference room through the network N and the server 30 through the information sharing function. Specifically, the meeting schedule stored in other information processing devices 10 is received via its own communication unit 14, and is updated and stored in the storage unit 17 at any time. That is, between each information processing device 10, the meeting schedule is synchronized with each other through the information sharing function, and after the synchronization, the same meeting schedule is stored in each information processing device 10. In addition, regarding the meeting schedule, the control unit 19 uses the information input by the operation of the operation unit 12 of each information processing device 10 to write or rewrite the information.

[0067] After acquiring the location of the conference room and the location of each participant's information processing device 10 as described above, the control unit 19 calculates the respective distances from the location of each participant's information processing device 10 to the location of the conference room, and based on these distances, uses a predetermined standard walking speed to calculate the respective travel time ta required for each participant to move to the conference room, and then adds a preset fixed time tb to each travel time ta to calculate the preparation time tc of each participant's information processing device 10 (step S112). In addition, the control unit 19 may calculate the travel time ta itself as the preparation time tc without adding the fixed time tb.

[0068] The preparation time tc of the information processing device 10 of each participant is calculated for each participant as the time required from when the information processing device 10 of the participant receives the reminder notification until the participant prepares for the meeting and moves to the meeting room.

[0069] The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room compares the preparation time tc with the reminder time T according to the preparation time tc of the information processing device 10 of each participant, and determines whether the preparation time tc is longer than the reminder time T (step S113). If the preparation time tc is longer than the reminder time T, even if the user starts to head towards the conference room from the time of the reminder notification, he or she will not arrive in time, that is, the reminder time T is insufficient. Therefore, if the preparation time tc is longer than the reminder time T ("Yes" in step S113), the control unit 19 makes the preparation time tc longer than the reminder time T. Fig. 9 The pop-up window PU3 shown is displayed on the display unit 11 (step S114), and the pop-up window PU3 is used to select whether to extend the reminder time T of each participant's information processing device 10. The pop-up window PU3 displays a message M2 indicating that the reminder time T should be changed, an NG key K41, and an OK key K42.

[0070] When the administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operating unit 12 and operates the OK key K42 of the pop-up window PU3, the notification time change instruction is received by the operating unit 12 (step S115). The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room extends the reminder time T for the information processing device 10 of the participant determined to have a preparation time tc longer than the reminder time T in accordance with the notification time change instruction, so that the preparation time tc is less than the reminder time T (step S116). For example, the control unit 19 extends the reminder time T to change the reminder sending date and time to the date and time when the preparation time tc is the reminder time T. When the reminder time T is extended, the control unit 19 sets the pop-up window PU3 to be hidden. Thereafter, the control unit 19 transfers to the processing of step S117. In addition, in step S116, the control unit 19 can extend the reminder time T of the information processing devices 10 of all participants by adding the above-mentioned extension amount of the reminder time T to the reminder time T of the information processing devices 10 of all participants.

[0071] Therefore, in the case where a participant is far away from the meeting room or cannot arrive in time even if heading towards the meeting room, the reminder time T is extended to be longer than the preparation time tc required from the time the participant's information processing device 10 receives the reminder notification to the time the participant prepares for the meeting and moves to the meeting room.

[0072] On the other hand, in step S113, if the preparation time tc is less than the reminder time T (step S113: No), since the preparation time tc is sufficiently long, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room maintains the reminder time T as it is. Thereafter, the control unit 19 shifts the processing to step S117.

[0073] Thus, for each information processing device 10 of each participant, when the reminder time T is insufficient, the reminder time T is extended to the preparation time tc, and when the reminder time T is not insufficient, the reminder time T is maintained without being extended.

[0074] When the settings of various items in the reminder notification setting window G1 are completed, the administrator operates the pointing device or keyboard of the operation unit 12 and operates the create key K22. According to this operation, the control unit 19 receives an update instruction through the operation unit 12 (step S117).

[0075] When receiving the update instruction, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room updates the setting contents of each item in the setting window G1 of the reminder notification and the respective reminder time T set by the information processing device 10 of each participant as described above, and stores them in the storage unit 17 (step S118). Thereafter, the control unit 19 ends the notification setting process.

[0076] In addition, when the administrator operates the cancel key K21 in the reminder notification setting window G1, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room cancels the settings of various items in the reminder notification setting window G1 and ends the process. Figure 4 The notification settings process is shown.

[0077] Next, refer to Fig. 10A , Fig. 10B The flowchart shown illustrates the control process of conference room setting processing, which is used to provide participants with another more suitable conference room when the participants are away from the conference room where the meeting is scheduled to be held (hereinafter referred to as this conference room) on the day of the meeting, and to notify the participants of the other conference room through a reminder notification.

[0078] The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room calculates a reminder sending date and time, which is a reminder time T of the information processing device 10 of each participant, for each conference room recorded in the conference schedule 41 and reserved, and the reminder sending date and time is traced back from the start date and time of the meeting by the reminder time T. The control unit 19 determines whether a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes before the reminder date and time) has arrived before the earliest reminder sending date and time among the reminder sending dates and times of each participant, for example, according to the timing of a timer built into the control unit 18 (step S201).

[0079] When the control unit 19 determines that the time predetermined before the reminder sending date and time has arrived ("Yes" in step S201), it refers to the reservation table 41 stored in the storage unit 17 at that time point to obtain the location of the conference room (hereinafter referred to as the present conference room), and refers to the conference management data CD to obtain the location of each participant's information processing device 10. The control unit 19 calculates the respective distances from the location of each participant's information processing device 10 at that time point to the location of the present conference room, calculates the respective moving time ta required for each participant to move to the present conference room based on these distances, and calculates the preparation time tc of each participant's information processing device 10 based on the moving time ta (step S206).

[0080] The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room compares the reminder time T of each participant's information processing device 10 read from the schedule table 41 stored in the storage unit 17 at that time with the preparation time tc of each participant's information processing device 10 calculated in step S206, and determines whether each preparation time tc is longer than the respective reminder time T (step S207). When each preparation time tc is less than the respective reminder time T ("No" in step S207), the control unit 19 does not change the conference room because each preparation time tc is sufficiently long and each participant can attend the meeting of this conference room without being late. In this case, the control unit 19 creates an email of a reminder notification with the email address of the participant for which the reminder sending date and time is set as the sending destination according to the information processing device 10 of each participant when the current time is the reminder sending date and time, and sends the email to the communication unit 14 (step S208).

[0081] When the reminder notification email is received by the communication unit 14, the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of each participant notifies the reception of the email through the alarm function, and displays the email on the screen of the display unit 11. Each participant can check the reminder notification email received by his / her information processing device 10 by tracing back the reminder sending date by the reminder time T from the start date of the meeting, and attend the meeting without being late.

[0082] On the other hand, when the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 in the conference room determines that at least one of the preparation times tc of the information processing device 10 of each participant is longer than the reminder time T ("Yes" in step S207), it transfers to the processing after step S209 for changing the conference room.

[0083] For example, when at least one of the participants moves to a location far from the current conference room, the distance from the location of the information processing device 10 of the distant participant to the current conference room becomes longer, and the preparation time tc of the information processing device 10 of the participant becomes longer than the reminder time T, even if the reminder notification email is sent at a reminder sending date and time that is traced back from the start date and time of the meeting by the reminder time T, the participant may be late for the meeting in the current conference room. Therefore, the control unit 19 transfers to the processing after step S209, which is used to change the meeting venue from the current conference room to a conference room located at a location where the distant participant can catch up with the meeting start time.

[0084] The control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room compares the preparation time tc of each participant for each conference room calculated based on the positions of the information processing devices 10 of all participants including the distant participants and the positions of each conference room read from the reservation table 41 with the reminder time T, and determines whether there is a new conference room in which the preparation time tc of all participants is less than the reminder time T and the number of people that can be accommodated is greater than the number of participants (step S209).

[0085] When it is determined that there is a new conference room in which the preparation time tc of all participants is less than the reminder time T and the number of people that can be accommodated is greater than the number of participants ("Yes" in step S209), the control unit 19 changes the current conference room to the new conference room, and updates the reservation table 41 to reflect the changes (step S210).

[0086] On the other hand, when it is determined that there is no new conference room in which the preparation time tc of all participants is less than the reminder time T and the number of people that can be accommodated is greater than the number of participants ("No" in step S209), the control unit 19 compares the preparation time tc of the distant participant for each conference room calculated based on the position of the distant participant's information processing device 10 and the position of each conference room read from the reservation table 41 with the reminder time T, and determines whether there is a conference room that satisfies the condition that the preparation time tc of the distant participant is less than the reminder time T (step S211).

[0087] When there is no conference room that meets the above conditions in step S211 ("No" in step S211), the control unit 19 does not change the conference room, and transfers to the processing of step S208, maintains the original settings of the conference room recorded in the reservation table 41, creates an email of a reminder notification with the email address of the participant as the destination, and sends the email to the communication unit 14 (step S208). Alternatively, in step S208, the control unit 19 can also create an email indicating that not all participants can arrive in time at the start time of the meeting as an email of a reminder notification with the email address of the participant as the destination, and cause the communication unit 14 to send the email.

[0088] In step S211, when there is a conference room satisfying the above conditions ("Yes" in step S211), the control unit 19 determines whether the conference room satisfying the above conditions is vacant and the number of people that can be accommodated in the conference room is greater than the number of participants who have left (step S213).

[0089] When it is determined that the conference room that meets the above conditions is free and the number of people that can be accommodated in the conference room is greater than the number of participants who have left ("Yes" in step S213), the control unit 19 sets the conference room that meets the above conditions as a new conference room for each participant who has left (step S214). In this way, when there are multiple participants who have left, the control unit 19 can also specifically determine the conference room that meets the above conditions for each participant, and specifically set up a new conference room for each participant who has left. In addition, the control unit 19 keeps the conference room for participants other than the participants who have left as the current conference room.

[0090] After step S214, that is, when a new conference room is set up for each participant who is away, the control unit 19 sets up an online conference for the information processing devices 10 of all participants including the participants who are away, and creates information for participating in the online conference (URL (Uniform Resource Locator) where the online conference is held, etc.) (step S215). Thereafter, the control unit 19 returns to the processing of step S208. In step S208, the control unit 19 creates an email of a reminder notification, which includes information for participating in the online conference, and sends the email to each of the information processing devices 10 of all participants, to the communication unit 14. When creating the email, the control unit 19 creates the email for the conference room for each participant who is away as a new conference room, and creates the email while keeping the conference room for participants other than the participants who are away as the current conference room.

[0091] In addition, when it is determined that the conference room that meets the above conditions is free and the number of people that can be accommodated in the conference room is not greater than the number of participants who have moved away ("No" in step S213), the control unit 19 returns to the process of step S209. In this case, the control unit 19 repeats these processes until it is determined that there is a new conference room in which the preparation time tc of all participants is less than the reminder time T and the number of people that can be accommodated is greater than the number of participants due to the subsequent position movement of each participant ("Yes" in step S209), or it is determined that the conference room that meets the above conditions is free and the number of people that can be accommodated is greater than the number of participants who have moved away ("Yes" in step S213), or it is determined that there is no conference room that meets the above conditions in step S211 ("No" in step S211).

[0092] Next, a first modification example of the conference room setting process will be described.

[0093] exist Fig. 10BIn the control process shown, when the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room determines that at least one of the preparation times tc of the information processing device 10 of each participant is longer than the reminder time T ("Yes" in step S207), and determines that there is a new conference room in which the preparation time tc of all participants is less than the reminder time T and the number of people that can be accommodated is greater than the number of participants ("Yes" in step S209), a new conference room is set for the participant who has left (step S210), and the conference room for participants other than the participant who has left is set to maintain the original conference room. However, at this time, the control unit 19 may also change the conference room for participants other than the participant who has left.

[0094] For example, in Figure 3 In the case of the conference room II in the reservation table 41 shown, if there are 2 participants who have gone away, the number of participants other than the participants who have gone away is 2. In this case, if the conference room for participants other than the participants who have gone away is set to maintain the original conference room (which can accommodate 4 people), a conference room that can accommodate too many people is occupied by a smaller number of people. Therefore, as a first variant, in such a case, the control unit 19 determines, based on the reservation table 41, whether there is a conference room for each participant other than the participants who have gone away that meets the following conditions, that is, a conference room in which the preparation time tc of each participant is less than the reminder time T and the number of people that can be accommodated is less than the original number of people that can be accommodated in the conference room and is greater than the number of each participant. When there is a conference room that meets such conditions, the conference room is set as the new conference room for each participant.

[0095] Thus, even when the number of participants using the original conference room decreases, it is possible to avoid a situation where the original conference room that can accommodate too many people is occupied by a small number of people.

[0096] Next, another second modification of the conference room setting process will be described.

[0097] In the first variant, in the case of setting up a new conference room for a distant participant and participants other than the distant participant, the control unit 19 can also select a conference room located within a predetermined close distance from the location of the original conference room (for example, a location is set to indicate a conference room located in the same building as the original conference room) as a new conference room candidate based on the reservation table 41, and from among the selected conference room candidates, select a conference room that meets the conditions for serving as a new conference room for the distant participant, and select a conference room that meets the conditions for serving as a new conference room for participants other than the distant participant, and set them as new conference rooms respectively.

[0098] Next, another third modification example of the conference room setting process will be described.

[0099] exist Fig. 10B In the control process shown, when the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room determines that at least one of the preparation times tc of the information processing device 10 of each participant is longer than the reminder time T ("Yes" in step S207), it creates a plurality of participant groups that bring together participants with close positions based on the positions of each participant at that time point, and based on the reservation table 41, for each participant group, the conference room that is closest to all participants belonging to the group and satisfies the following conditions is set as a new conference room, that is, a conference room whose preparation time tc is less than the reminder time T and can accommodate a number of people that is greater than the number A of all participants belonging to the group and is closest to the number A.

[0100] Next, a fourth modification of the conference room setting process will be described.

[0101] exist Fig. 10B In the control process shown, when the control unit 19 of the information processing device 10 of the conference room determines that at least one of the preparation times tc of the information processing devices 10 of each participant is longer than the reminder time T ("Yes" in step S207), the display unit 11 may display a message requesting approval to change the conference room, and set a new conference room for the participant who has left on the condition that an instruction indicating approval to change the conference room is input to the operation unit 12. In this case, when the instruction indicating approval to change the conference room is not input to the operation unit 12, the control unit 19 does not perform the process of setting a new conference room for the participant who has left, but keeps the original conference room set for all participants.

[0102] The present invention is not limited to the structure of the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications are possible. Figures 1 to 10B The structure and process of the above-described embodiment are merely one embodiment of the present invention, and the present invention is not intended to be limited to the structure and process.

Claims

1. An information processing device, which is a sending side information processing device, used to send notification information to other receiving side information processing devices through a server on a network, wherein the notification information is used to notify each of a plurality of event implementation locations of an event at the event implementation location, wherein the information processing device is characterized in that it includes: a communication unit, configured to communicate with the information processing device on the receiving side via the server; An input unit for inputting a reminder time, wherein the reminder time represents a time from a start date and time of the event to a reminder sending date and time set to an earlier date and time; as well as a control unit configured to calculate a preparation time at the reminder sending date and time or at a predetermined time earlier than the reminder sending date and time, the preparation time including any one of a moving time from the location of the information processing device on the receiving side to the event implementation location or a time obtained by adding a fixed time to the moving time, and to cause the communication unit to send the notification information to the information processing device on the receiving side when the reminder sending date and time is reached if the preparation time is less than the reminder time, The control unit is also used to select another event implementation location whose preparation time is less than the reminder time based on the location of each event implementation location and the location of the information processing device on the receiving side when the preparation time is longer than the reminder time, and to enable the communication unit to send notification information to the information processing device on the receiving side, wherein the notification information indicates a change to the other event implementation location.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that The control unit is also used to, when there are multiple information processing devices on the receiving side, calculate the preparation time for each of the information processing devices on the receiving side, and when the preparation time related to any one of the multiple information processing devices on the receiving side is longer than the reminder time, select another event implementation location for all the multiple information processing devices on the receiving side whose preparation time is less than the reminder time, and enable the communication unit to send notification information to the information processing device on the receiving side, wherein the notification information indicates a change to the another event implementation location.

3. The information processing device according to claim 2, characterized in that: Also includes a display unit, The control unit is also used to: When the preparation time for any one of the plurality of information processing devices on the receiving side is longer than the reminder time, the display unit is caused to display a message requesting approval for changing the location of the another event, When the approval is input to the input unit, selection is performed for another event implementation location whose preparation time is less than or equal to the reminder time for a plurality of the information processing devices on the receiving side.

4. The information processing device according to claim 2, characterized in that The control unit is further configured to select the other event implementation location that can accommodate all users of the information processing device on the receiving side based on the number of people that can be accommodated at the event implementation location.

5. The information processing device according to claim 4, characterized in that The control unit is also used to, in the case where there is no another event implementation location that can accommodate all users of the information processing device on the receiving side, specifically select the another event implementation location according to the information processing device on the receiving side, and enable the communication unit to send notification information to each of the information processing devices on the receiving side, wherein the notification information indicates a change to the another event implementation location.

6. The information processing device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The control unit is also used to set up an online meeting for multiple information processing devices on the receiving side when the location for implementing the other event is specifically selected according to the information processing device on the receiving side, and to enable the communication unit to send the notification information to each of the information processing devices on the receiving side, wherein the notification information includes information for participating in the online meeting.

7. The information processing device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The control unit is also used to, when the location for implementing the other event is specifically selected according to the information processing device on the receiving side, further, when the same location for implementing the other event can be selected for some of the multiple information processing devices on the receiving side based on the number of people that can be accommodated at the location for implementing the other event, select the same location for implementing the other event for some of the multiple information processing devices on the receiving side.

8. The information processing device according to claim 5, characterized in that The control unit is further configured to select, when the other event implementation location is specifically selected by the information processing device on the receiving side, the other event implementation location from among the event implementation locations located within a predetermined close distance range from the original event implementation location.

9. An information notification system, comprising a plurality of information processing devices, the plurality of information processing devices being used to communicate notification information through a server on a network, the notification information being used to notify each of a plurality of event implementation locations of an event at the event implementation location, the information notification system being characterized in that: The information processing device according to claim 1 is included as an information processing device on a transmission side that transmits at least the notification information among the plurality of information processing devices.

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