Information management program, information management method, and information management apparatus

Abstract

To properly manage combination of inquiries and answers stored in a storage unit.SOLUTION: An Information management program according to the present invention is a program for causing a computer to execute the steps of: as a result of searching a storage unit in which information relating to combinations of inquiries and answers to the inquiries is stored, acquiring how many times each inquiry is displayed in a list as a retrieval result; acquiring, with respect to each of the inquiries, a ratio of the number of inquiries selected from the displayed list relative to the number of each of the inquiries displayed in the list as the retrieval result; and not displaying, in the list, the inquiry which has been displayed in the list as the retrieval result by the number equal to or greater than a first predetermined threshold value and whose ratio is equal to or smaller than a second predetermined threshold value or deleting combination (an open circle) of such inquiry and the answer from the storage unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] Chatbots are known as systems that automatically respond to inquiries (see, for example, Patent Document 1). To realize automatic responses using a chatbot, it is necessary to create a large number of FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions). In addition, new FAQs must be added each time a new product is released or an inquiry is received that has no answer.

[0003] FAQs may be created manually, but may also be created automatically from dialogue logs (see, for example, Patent Document 2). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-139746 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2020-071690 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, if FAQs are added as described above, search accuracy may decrease as the number of FAQs increases, and appropriate FAQs may not be provided to users.

[0006] In one aspect, the present invention aims to provide an information management program, an information management method, and an information management device that can appropriately manage combinations of questions and answers stored in a memory unit. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In one aspect, the information management program is a program that causes a computer to execute a process of searching a memory unit that stores information regarding combinations of questions and answers to those questions, obtaining the number of times each question was listed as a search result, obtaining for each question the proportion of the number of times that it was selected from the list display among the number of times that it was listed as a search result, and excluding a question whose number of times that it was listed is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose proportion is equal to or less than a second predetermined value from the list display or deleting the question and answer combination from the memory unit. Effect of the Invention

[0008] The combinations of questions and answers stored in the storage unit can be appropriately managed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an information providing system according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2(a) is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a server, and FIG. 2(b) is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a user terminal. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a server. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of an FAQ storage unit. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a table structure of a display / selection table. [Figure 6] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process of an FAQ presentation unit. [Figure 7] FIG. 7(a) and FIG. 7(b) are diagrams (part 1) showing the chat inquiry screen. [Figure 8] FIG. 8(a) and FIG. 8(b) are diagrams (part 2) showing the chat inquiry screen. [Figure 9] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a process of an FAQ management unit. [Figure 10]FIG. 13 is a diagram showing FAQs plotted on a graph. [Figure 11] 11(a) and 11(b) are diagrams for explaining the process of step S56 in FIG. [Figure 12] 13 is a flowchart showing a process of an FAQ management unit according to Modification 1. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the process of step S154 in FIG. 12. [Figure 14] FIG. 14(a) is a diagram showing an example of a processing log according to the third modification, and FIG. 14(b) is a flowchart showing the processing of the FAQ management unit according to the third modification. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, one embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

[0011] Fig. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an information providing system 100 according to an embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the information providing system 100 includes a server 10 as an information management device, and a user terminal 70. The server 10 and the user terminal 70 are connected to a network 80 such as the Internet.

[0012] The server 10 is a device that manages FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) related to services, products, and the like provided to users by companies and the like, searches for FAQs based on inquiries from users, and provides the searched FAQs to the users.

[0013] FIG. 2(a) shows an example of the hardware configuration of the server 10. As shown in FIG. 2(a), the server 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 90, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 92, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 94, a storage (HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive)) 96, a network interface 97, and a portable storage medium drive 99. These components of the server 10 are connected to a bus 98. In the server 10, the CPU 90 executes a program (including an information management program) stored in the ROM 92 or the storage 96, or a program read by the portable storage medium drive 99 from the portable storage medium 91, thereby realizing the functions of the components shown in FIG. 3. The functions of the components shown in FIG. 3 may be realized by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0014] Fig. 3 shows a functional block diagram of the server 10. In the server 10, a CPU 90 executes a program to realize functions as an FAQ creation / acquisition unit 20, an FAQ presentation unit 22, and an FAQ management unit 24. Fig. 3 also shows an FAQ storage unit 30 and a display / selection table 32 stored in a storage 96 or the like.

[0015] The FAQ creating / acquiring unit 20 automatically creates FAQs from a dialogue log (e.g., a dialogue log between an operator and a customer) as in Patent Document 2 above, or acquires FAQs created (manually input) by an administrator of the server 10. Note that the FAQ creating / acquiring unit 20 may create FAQs by other methods, for example, by studying product manuals, etc. The FAQ creating / acquiring unit 20 stores the created or acquired FAQs in the FAQ storage unit 30.

[0016] Here, the FAQ storage unit 30 has a data structure as shown in Fig. 4. As shown in Fig. 4, the FAQ storage unit 30 stores information on "question," "answer," "category," and "status" linked to an "ID." An "ID" is identification information given to each FAQ, and a "question" and an "answer" are information that combines the specific content of a question with the specific content of an answer corresponding to the question. A "category" is the type of question and answer (information indicating what the question and answer are about), and "status" is information that indicates whether the question and answer are public or private.

[0017] The FAQ presentation unit 22 exchanges information in a conversational format with the user who uses the user terminal 70, and acquires the contents of the user's inquiry (see Figs. 7(a) and 7(b)). The FAQ presentation unit 22 also searches the FAQ storage unit 30 for a question corresponding to the acquired inquiry, and provides the user terminal 70 with a screen displaying a list of the searched questions (see Fig. 8(a)). Furthermore, the FAQ presentation unit 22 acquires information on a question selected by the user on the screen displaying the list of questions (a question for which the user wishes to view an answer), and provides the user terminal 70 with a screen displaying a combination of the selected question and answer (see Fig. 8(b)). In other words, the FAQ presentation unit 22 functions as an FAQ chatbot.

[0018] Furthermore, the FAQ presentation unit 22 manages, in a display / selection table 32, the number of times each question has been displayed on the list display screen (FIG. 8(a)) and the number of times each question has been selected by the user on the list display screen.

[0019] Fig. 5 shows an example of a specific table structure of the display / selection table 32. As shown in Fig. 5, the display / selection table 32 stores "display count," "selection count," and "selection rate" in association with an "ID." The "selection rate" refers to the ratio of the number of times an item was selected by a user out of the number of times it was displayed in a list, and is a value calculated from the following formula (1). Selection rate = (number of selections / number of impressions) x 100 … (1)

[0020] It is assumed that only FAQ information whose status is "public" in the FAQ storage unit 30 is stored in the display / selection table 32. In other words, FAQ information whose status is "private" is deleted.

[0021] The display / selection table 32 also stores the "average value" and "standard deviation" of the number of times displayed, and the "average value" and "standard deviation" of the selection rate. i If the number of FAQs (number of IDs) included in the display / selection table 32 is n, the average value of the display count and the standard deviation of the display count are calculated by the following formulas (2) and (3).

[0022]

number

[0023]

number

[0024] In addition, the i-th selection rate from the top of the display / selection table 32 is expressed as y i is the number of FAQs (number of IDs) included in the display / selection table 32, the average value of the selection rate and the standard deviation of the selection rate are calculated by the following equations (4) and (5).

[0025]

number

[0026]

number

[0027] The FAQ management unit 24 determines at a predetermined timing (for example, at every predetermined time) whether the status of each FAQ stored in the FAQ storage unit 30 should be "public" or "private," and updates the FAQ storage unit 30 based on the determination result. Specific processing by the FAQ management unit 24 will be described later.

[0028] Returning to Fig. 1, the user terminal 70 is a terminal that can be used by a user. When a user wants to refer to FAQs related to services, products, etc. provided by a company or the like, the user uses the user terminal 70 to access the website of the company or the like (screen in Fig. 7(a)) and inputs information (inquiry content) related to the FAQ that the user wants to refer to.

[0029] Fig. 2(b) shows an example of the hardware configuration of the user terminal 70. As shown in Fig. 2(b), the user terminal 70 includes a CPU 190, a ROM 192, a RAM 194, a storage 196, a network interface 197, a display unit 193, an input unit 195, etc. The display unit 193 is a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, etc., and the input unit 195 includes a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, etc. These components of the user terminal 70 are connected to a bus 198.

[0030] (Regarding Server 10 processing) The processing of the server 10 will be described in detail below with reference to the flowcharts of Figures 6 and 9, and to other drawings as appropriate. Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the processing of the FAQ presentation unit 22, and Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the processing of the FAQ management unit 24.

[0031] (Processing of FAQ presentation section 22) The process of the FAQ presentation unit 22 will be described below with reference to FIG.

[0032] 6 starts, first, in step S10, the FAQ presentation unit 22 waits until a user accesses the chat inquiry screen (FIG. 7(a)). When a user accesses the screen, the FAQ presentation unit 22 proceeds to step S12.

[0033] When the process proceeds to step S12, the FAQ presentation unit 22 transmits a chat inquiry screen (FIG. 7(a)) to the user terminal 70 and displays it on the display unit 193 of the user terminal 70. The screen in FIG. 7(a) is a screen for allowing the user to input the contents of the inquiry in an interactive format. For example, FIG. 7(a) shows a message saying "Please select the contents of your inquiry from the categories below" and buttons of multiple categories ("Arrangement method", "Service contents", "Others"). The user selects the button of the category corresponding to the contents of his / her inquiry. For example, when the user selects the "Arrangement method" button, the FAQ presentation unit 22 updates the chat inquiry screen as shown in FIG. 7(b). The screen in FIG. 7(b) shows a message saying "Please select the contents of your inquiry from the categories below" and buttons "User registration", "Cancellation", and "Contract extension" are added as options for the contents of the inquiry. When the user presses any of the "User registration", "Cancellation", and "Contract extension" buttons on the screen in FIG. 7(b), the process proceeds to step S14.

[0034] When the process proceeds to step S14, the FAQ presentation unit 22 searches the FAQ storage unit 30 based on the content of the button selected by the user (content of the inquiry). For example, if the button pressed by the user is the "Cancel" button, questions related to cancellation will be hit by the search, and the FAQ presentation unit 22 will display all or part of the hit questions on the chat inquiry screen as a list as search results, as shown in Fig. 8(a). Note that even if the search result of the FAQ presentation unit 22 hits many questions, only a preset number of questions (for example, four or five) can be displayed on the screen.

[0035] Next, in step S16, the FAQ presentation unit 22 increments the number of times each question is displayed in the display / selection table 32 by 1, and updates the average and standard deviation of the number of times it is displayed. In the case of FIG. 8(a), the FAQ presentation unit 22 increments the number of times each question is displayed on the screen by 1. The FAQ presentation unit 22 also increments the number of times it is displayed (x i ) Based on this, the average and standard deviation of the number of impressions are calculated and updated using the above formulas (2) and (3).

[0036] Next, in step S18, the FAQ presentation unit 22 obtains the question selected by the user from among the questions displayed in the inquiry screen and the answer to that question from the FAQ storage unit 30, and displays them on the screen. For example, if the user selects "I would like to cancel xxx" on the inquiry screen of Fig. 8(a), the FAQ presentation unit 22 obtains the answer with ID=1111 from the FAQ storage unit 30 of Fig. 4, and displays the screen as shown in Fig. 8(b).

[0037] Next, in step S20, the FAQ presentation unit 22 increments the number of selections of the selected question in the display / selection table 32 by 1, updates the selection rate of the question, and updates the average and standard deviation of the selection rates. That is, in the above example, the FAQ presentation unit 22 increments the number of selections of ID=1111 in the display / selection table 32 by 1. The FAQ presentation unit 22 also calculates and updates the selection rate of ID=1111 from the above formula (1). Furthermore, the FAQ presentation unit 22 calculates and updates all the selection rate values ​​(y i ) to calculate and update the average and standard deviation of the selectivity from the above equations (4) and (5).

[0038] Thereafter, the process returns to step S10. After returning to step S10, the processes of steps S12 to S20 are executed every time the determination in step S10 is affirmative (every time there is access from a user).

[0039] (Processing by FAQ management unit 24) Next, the processing of the FAQ management unit 24 will be described with reference to Fig. 9. The processing of Fig. 9 is executed each time a predetermined timing arrives (each time a predetermined time has elapsed). However, without being limited to this, the processing of Fig. 9 may also be executed when an input to start maintenance is made by an administrator, or when the number of FAQs with the status "open" in the FAQ storage unit 30 reaches a predetermined number or more.

[0040] 9 is started, first, in step S50, the FAQ management unit 24 acquires the current average value and standard deviation of the number of times of display and the average value and standard deviation of the selection rate from the display / selection table 32. For example, it is assumed that the average value of the number of times of display=80, the standard deviation of the number of times of display=10, the average value of the selection rate=20, and the standard deviation of the selection rate=5 are acquired from the display / selection table 32 as shown in FIG.

[0041] Next, in step S52, the FAQ management unit 24 determines a first predetermined value and a second predetermined value. The first predetermined value and the second predetermined value are reference values ​​(threshold values) for determining which of the FAQs stored in the FAQ storage unit 30 should be made private. In this embodiment, as an example, the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value are determined from the following expressions (6) and (7). First predetermined value = average number of impressions + standard deviation of number of impressions ... (6) Second predetermined value = average selection rate - standard deviation of selection rate ... (7)

[0042] For example, if the average number of times displayed is 80, the standard deviation of the number of times displayed is 10, the average number of selection rates is 20, and the standard deviation of the selection rates is 5, then the first predetermined value is 90 and the second predetermined value is 15.

[0043] Next, in step S54, the FAQ management unit 24 obtains the number of times each FAQ is displayed and the selection rate of each FAQ stored in the display / selection table 32, and plots them on a graph with the number of times each FAQ is displayed on the horizontal axis and the selection rate on the vertical axis. Fig. 10 shows the state in which each FAQ is plotted on the graph.

[0044] In step S56, the FAQ management unit 24 identifies FAQs whose display count is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose selection rate is equal to or less than a second predetermined value, and sets the status of the identified FAQ to "private" in the FAQ storage unit 30. Specifically, the FAQ management unit 24 makes private FAQs that are located on line L1 or to the right of line L1 and on line L2 or below line L2 in FIG. 11(a) (i.e., FAQs that are located in the fourth quadrant when lines L1 and L2 are the coordinate axes). FIG. 11(b) shows FAQs to be made private with open circles. This makes it possible to make private FAQs that are not often selected by users despite being displayed many times.

[0045] In addition, the FAQs in the first quadrant of FIG. 11(b) are FAQs that have a high number of times displayed and a high selection rate, and can be said to be useful FAQs (FAQs with high needs) for users. In addition, the FAQs in the second quadrant are FAQs that have a high selection rate despite a low number of times displayed. These FAQs in the second quadrant are FAQs that are likely to be moved to the first quadrant by deleting the FAQs in the fourth quadrant. In addition, the FAQs in the third quadrant are FAQs that have a low number of times displayed and a low selection rate. These FAQs in the third quadrant are FAQs that may have an increased selection rate if the number of times displayed is increased. If the selection rate increases as a result of the increase in the number of times displayed, the FAQ is useful and will continue to be published as is. On the other hand, if the selection rate does not increase even if the number of times displayed increases, the FAQ will be moved to the fourth quadrant, and will be made private by the processing of FIG. 9 from the next time onwards.

[0046] This completes the entire process in Fig. 9. Note that even after the process in Fig. 9 is completed, the process in Fig. 9 is repeated every time a predetermined timing arrives. In this embodiment, FAQs that are displayed frequently but are not selected often can be made private periodically, so that a decrease in search accuracy caused by an increase in the number of public FAQs can be suppressed.

[0047] In this embodiment, the FAQ management unit 24 functions as an acquisition unit that acquires the number of times each question was displayed in a list as a search result (display count) and also acquires the ratio of the number of times it was selected from the list (selection rate). The FAQ management unit 24 also functions as a management unit that does not include questions whose display count is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose selection rate is equal to or less than a second predetermined value in the list (makes the questions private). The FAQ management unit 24 also functions as a first determination unit that determines the first predetermined value and a second determination unit that determines the second predetermined value.

[0048] As described above in detail, according to this embodiment, the FAQ management unit 24 acquires, for each question, the number of times that the question is displayed as a list of search results (display count) and the ratio of the number of times that the question is selected from the list (selection rate). In addition, the FAQ management unit 24 sets the status of a question and answer combination (FAQ shown by a white circle in FIG. 11(b)) whose display count is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose selection rate is equal to or less than a second predetermined value to "hidden" in the FAQ storage unit 30. In this way, it is possible to prevent an increase in the number of FAQs whose status is "open" in the FAQ storage unit 30, and therefore to prevent a decrease in the search accuracy by the FAQ presentation unit 22. Therefore, it is possible to display a list of appropriate questions corresponding to the content of a user's inquiry on the chat inquiry screen (FIG. 8(a)). That is, it is possible to increase the ratio (resolution rate) of the content of a user's inquiry that can be solved by the FAQ. Here, in this embodiment, as a result of the FAQ presentation unit 22 searching the FAQ storage unit 30 based on the content of the inquiry, there are cases in which only a part of the hit FAQs can be displayed in a list. Therefore, if FAQs are made private simply because they have been displayed a few times, there is a possibility that FAQs that are useful to users will end up being made private. Therefore, in this embodiment, FAQs that have a high display count but a low selection rate are made private, so that FAQs that are of low usefulness (importance) to users can be made private.

[0049] In this embodiment, the first predetermined value is determined based on the average value and standard deviation of the number of times of display, so that an appropriate value based on statistical information can be set as the first predetermined value. In this embodiment, the second predetermined value is determined based on the average value and standard deviation of the selection rate, so that an appropriate value based on statistical information can be set as the first predetermined value.

[0050] The first predetermined value may be determined based on at least one of the average value and standard deviation of the number of times of display. The second predetermined value may be determined based on at least one of the average value and standard deviation of the selection rate. The first predetermined value and the second predetermined value may be determined by other methods. For example, the administrator may manually determine the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value, or the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value may be determined as in the following modification example 1.

[0051] (Variation 1) Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing the processing of the FAQ management unit 24 according to the first modification. In the example of Fig. 12, in step S150, the FAQ management unit 24 acquires a preset total number of FAQs. For example, it is assumed that the administrator has previously determined the total number (limit number) of FAQs with the status "open" among the FAQs managed in the FAQ storage unit 30. It is assumed that the FAQ management unit 24 acquires m (for example, m=1000) as the total number of FAQs.

[0052] Next, in step S152, the FAQ management unit 24 acquires the display count and selection rate of each FAQ (published FAQ) stored in the display / selection table 32, and plots each FAQ on a graph. As a result, the FAQs are plotted on the graph as shown in Fig. 10. Note that it is assumed here that t FAQs (e.g., t=1200) are plotted on the graph.

[0053] Next, in step S154, the FAQ management unit 24 determines the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value based on the total number of acquired FAQs. Specifically, the FAQ management unit 24 determines the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value so that (tm) FAQs are located in the fourth quadrant of the graph. When t=1200 and m=1000, (tm) is 200. For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the FAQ management unit 24 determines the first predetermined value=a (times) and the second predetermined value=b (%) so that the number of FAQs located on the line L1' or to the right of the line L1' and on the line L2' or below the line L2' is (tm). That is, the FAQ management unit 24 determines a and b so that the number of FAQs (FAQs indicated by white circles) located in the fourth quadrant when the lines L1' and L2' are the coordinate axes in FIG. 13 is (tm).

[0054] In addition, when the FAQ management unit 24 determines the first and second predetermined values, either one of the values ​​may be a fixed value. For example, the second predetermined value may be adjusted so that the number of FAQs located in the fourth quadrant becomes (tm) while the first predetermined value is fixed to a predetermined number (such as 60 times). In addition, the first predetermined value may be adjusted so that the number of FAQs located in the fourth quadrant becomes (tm) while the second predetermined value is fixed to a predetermined number (such as 15%). In addition, the range in which the intersection of the straight lines L1' and L2' can be located may be restricted. In this case, for example, the range in which the intersection of the straight lines L1' and L2' can be located may be defined by a straight line (line segment) or a curved line, or may be defined by an area having an area. In addition, as a result of determining a and b so that the number of FAQs located in the fourth quadrant becomes (tm) when the straight lines L1' and L2' are the coordinate axes, there may be a plurality of combinations of a and b. In such a case, the combination with the largest a (or the combination with the smallest a) may be adopted, or the combination with the largest b (or the combination with the smallest b) may be adopted, or a and b may be determined according to other rules.

[0055] Next, in step S156, the FAQ management unit 24 identifies FAQs whose display count is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose selection rate is equal to or less than a second predetermined value (FAQs located in the fourth quadrant of the graph), and sets the status in the FAQ storage unit 30 to private.

[0056] This completes the process in Fig. 12. In this modification, the number of FAQs whose status is open to the public can be set to a predetermined total number of FAQs (limit number). This makes it possible to maintain high search accuracy by the FAQ presentation unit 22.

[0057] In addition, in this modified example 1, the FAQ management unit 24 realizes the function of a third determination unit that determines the first and second specified values ​​based on the number (tm) of FAQs that are not to be displayed in a list (made private).

[0058] (Variation 2) In the above embodiment and modification 1, the FAQ management unit 24 sets the status of the FAQ located in the fourth quadrant to "private" in step S56 in Fig. 9 and step S156 in Fig. 12. However, this is not limited to the above, and the FAQ management unit 24 may delete the FAQ located in the fourth quadrant from the FAQ storage unit 30 (and the display / selection table 32).

[0059] (Variation 3) In the above embodiment, the FAQ presentation unit 22 records the number of times of display and the selection rate in the display / selection table 32 (FIG. 5) and calculates the average value and standard deviation of the number of times of display and the selection rate. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the FAQ presentation unit 22 may record a processing log as shown in FIG. 14(a) instead of the display / selection table 32 (FIG. 5). In the processing log of FIG. 14(a), the IDs of the questions displayed in a list by the FAQ presentation unit 22 and the IDs of the questions selected by the user from the displayed list are recorded in association with each other. For example, the top row of FIG. 14(a) records information that three questions with IDs=1677, 1668, and 1713 are displayed in a list on the screen of FIG. 8(a) and that the user selected the question with ID=1668.

[0060] In this case, the FAQ management unit 24 executes the process shown in Fig. 14(b) . Specifically, steps S50A and S50B are executed instead of step S50 in Fig. 9 .

[0061] 9 starts, first, in step S50A, the FAQ management unit 24 identifies the number of times each ID has been displayed and the number of times it has been selected from the processing log (FIG. 14(a)), calculates the selection rate from the above formula (1), and stores these in the display / selection table 32. Next, in step S50B, the FAQ management unit 24 calculates the average value and standard deviation of the number of times each ID has been displayed and the number of times it has been selected from the above formulas (2) to (5), and stores these in the display / selection table 32.

[0062] Thereafter, the FAQ management unit 24 executes the processes from step S52 onwards in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Even in this manner, it is possible to appropriately manage FAQs in the same manner as in the above embodiment.

[0063] In the above embodiment and modified example, when identifying FAQs located in the fourth quadrant when the straight lines L1, L2 (or L1', L2') are the coordinate axes, the FAQs on the straight lines are also treated as being located in the fourth quadrant, but this is not limited thereto. FAQs on the straight lines may be treated as not being located in the fourth quadrant.

[0064] In the above embodiment and modified example, FAQs located in the fourth quadrant when the straight lines L1, L2 (or L1', L2') are taken as the coordinate axes are unconditionally set as targets for non-disclosure or deletion, but this is not limited to the above. For example, FAQs that the administrator judges to be useful to users may be excluded from targets for non-disclosure or deletion.

[0065] The above processing functions can be realized by a computer. In that case, a program is provided that describes the processing contents of the functions that the processing device should have. The above processing functions are realized on the computer by executing the program on the computer. The program that describes the processing contents can be recorded on a computer-readable storage medium (excluding carrier waves).

[0066] When a program is distributed, it is sold in the form of a portable storage medium on which the program is recorded, such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), etc. The program can also be stored in a storage device of a server computer and transferred from the server computer to other computers via a network.

[0067] A computer that executes a program stores, for example, a program recorded on a portable storage medium or a program transferred from a server computer in its own storage device. The computer then reads the program from its own storage device and executes processing in accordance with the program. The computer can also read the program directly from a portable storage medium and execute processing in accordance with that program. The computer can also execute processing in accordance with the received program each time a program is transferred from the server computer.

[0068] The above-described embodiment is a preferred example of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment and can be modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0069] In addition, the following supplementary notes are disclosed in relation to the above-described embodiment and modified examples. (Supplementary Note 1) A storage unit that stores information about combinations of questions and answers to the questions is searched to obtain the number of times each question is displayed as a search result; obtaining, for each of the questions, a ratio of the number of times the question was selected from the list display to the number of times the question was displayed as a list of the search results; a question whose number of times of displaying the list is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose ratio is equal to or less than a second predetermined value is not included in the list display, or the combination of the question and answer is deleted from the storage unit; An information management program that causes a computer to execute a process. (Supplementary Note 2) The information management program according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the first predetermined value is determined based on at least one of the average value and the standard deviation of the number of times each of the questions is listed. (Supplementary Note 3) The information management program according to Supplementary Note 1 or 2, characterized in that the second predetermined value is determined based on at least one of an average value and a standard deviation of the ratios of the respective questions. (Appendix 4) The information management program described in Appendix 1, characterized in that the first specified value and the second specified value are determined based on the number of questions that are not to be displayed in a list or the number of question and answer combinations that are to be deleted from the memory unit. (Supplementary Note 5) The information management program according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, wherein a limit is set to the number of questions that can be displayed in a list. (Appendix 6) A memory unit that stores information about combinations of questions and answers to the questions is searched to obtain the number of times each question is displayed as a search result; obtaining, for each of the questions, a ratio of the number of times the question was selected from the list display to the number of times the question was displayed as a list of the search results; a question whose number of times of displaying the list is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose ratio is equal to or less than a second predetermined value is not included in the list display, or the combination of the question and answer is deleted from the storage unit; An information management method, characterized in that the processing is executed by a computer. (Supplementary Note 7) An acquisition unit that acquires the number of times each question has been displayed as a list as a search result by searching a storage unit that stores information about combinations of questions and answers to the questions, and acquires, for each of the questions, the proportion of times the question has been selected from the list display among the number of times the question has been displayed as a search result; a management unit that excludes a question whose number of times of displaying the list is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose ratio is equal to or less than a second predetermined value from being displayed in the list or deletes the combination of the question and answer from the storage unit; An information management device comprising: (Supplementary Note 8) The information management device according to Supplementary Note 7, further comprising a first determination unit configured to determine the first predetermined value based on at least one of an average value and a standard deviation of the number of times each of the questions is displayed in a list. (Supplementary Note 9) The information management device according to Supplementary Note 7 or 8, further comprising a second determination unit configured to determine the second predetermined value based on at least one of an average value and a standard deviation of the ratios of the respective questions. (Supplementary Note 10) The information management device according to Supplementary Note 7, further comprising a third determination unit that determines the first predetermined value and the second predetermined value based on the number of questions that are not to be displayed in a list or the number of question and answer combinations that are to be deleted from the memory unit. (Supplementary Note 11) The information management device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 7 to 10, wherein a limit is set to the number of questions that can be displayed in a list. [Explanation of symbols]

[0070] 10 Server (information management device) 20 FAQ Creation / Acquisition Department 22 FAQ presentation section 24 FAQ Management Department (Acquisition Department, Management Department, 1st Decision Department, 2nd Decision Department, 3rd Decision Department) 70 User terminals 100 Information provision system

Claims

1. A storage unit that stores information about combinations of questions and answers to the questions is searched to obtain the number of times each question is displayed as a search result; obtaining, for each of the questions, a ratio of the number of times the question was selected from the list display to the number of times the question was displayed as a list of the search results; a question whose number of times of displaying the list is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose ratio is equal to or less than a second predetermined value is not included in the list display, or the combination of the question and answer is deleted from the storage unit; An information management program that causes a computer to execute a process.

2. 2. The information management program according to claim 1, wherein the first predetermined value is determined based on at least one of an average value and a standard deviation of the number of times each of the questions is displayed in a list.

3. 2. The information management program according to claim 1, wherein the second predetermined value is determined based on at least one of an average value and a standard deviation of the ratios of the respective questions.

4. 2. The information management program according to claim 1, wherein the first and second predetermined values ​​are determined based on the number of questions that are not to be displayed in a list or the number of question and answer combinations that are to be deleted from the storage unit.

5. 5. The information management program according to claim 1, further comprising a limit on the number of questions that can be displayed in a list.

6. A storage unit that stores information about combinations of questions and answers to the questions is searched to obtain the number of times each question is displayed as a search result; obtaining, for each of the questions, a ratio of the number of times the question was selected from the list display to the number of times the question was displayed as a list of the search results; a question whose number of times of displaying the list is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose ratio is equal to or less than a second predetermined value is not included in the list display, or the combination of the question and answer is deleted from the storage unit; An information management method, characterized in that the processing is executed by a computer.

7. an acquisition unit that acquires the number of times each question has been displayed as a list as a search result by searching a storage unit that stores information about combinations of questions and answers to the questions, and acquires, for each of the questions, the proportion of times the question has been selected from the list display among the number of times the question has been displayed as a search result; a management unit that excludes a question whose number of times of displaying the list is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value and whose ratio is equal to or less than a second predetermined value from being displayed in the list or deletes the combination of the question and answer from the storage unit; An information management device comprising:

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