Virtual space business support system, program, and virtual space business support method

Abstract

To provide a technique for facilitating communication between members in a virtual space.SOLUTION: A virtual space business support system which supports operations in a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information with each other includes: an object setting unit which associates the members with member-related objects which are objects related to the members; a point offering unit which offers points to the members on the basis of actual results related to communication with other members; and a virtual space control unit which arranges the member-related objects set by the object setting unit in the virtual space. The object setting unit is configured to associate the members with the member-related objects upgraded in accordance with increase of the points.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a virtual space task support system, a program, and a virtual space task support method. [Background technology]

[0002] Technology is developing that allows avatars that represent users to be placed in virtual space and communicate with each other. The avatars act within the virtual space as the incarnation of the user. It is expected that virtual spaces will be used in business, such as having employees come to work in the virtual space and managing them.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a virtual space management system in which members of various organizations such as companies and local governments can gather in a virtual space and check each other's situations through avatars. Paragraph

[0023] states, "For example, a basic information display section GP11 showing basic information about the avatar is associated with and displayed on the avatar GP1." Paragraph

[0053] also states, "The avatar GP1 may have a common design for all users, or may be selectable for each part such as hairstyle or accessories. The avatar GP1 does not need to be designed to resemble a human being, and may be an animal or plant. There may be multiple types of avatars, such as a normal avatar GP1, a ghost avatar GP12, and a busy avatar GP1N. The busy avatar GP1N is an avatar for informing others that the user is busy and will not accept video calls from other users." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2022-181260 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Generally, increased communication among employees is expected to lead to more efficient work. When an office is constructed in a virtual space to support work, the office members have fewer opportunities to meet face-to-face, which may result in a lack of interaction between members. The technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not promote communication in a virtual space.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to provide a technique for promoting communication among members in a virtual space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present application includes a number of means for solving the above problems, examples of which are as follows.

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, one embodiment of the present invention provides a virtual space business support system that supports business within a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information among themselves, and includes an object setting unit that associates member-related objects, which are objects related to the member, with the member, a point assignment unit that assigns points to the member based on the member's track record in communication with other members, and a virtual space control unit that places the member-related objects set by the object setting unit in the virtual space, and is characterized in that the object setting unit associates the upgraded member-related objects with the member as the points increase.

[0009] The member-related object may include an avatar representing the member, and the object setting unit may accept the member's selection of the avatar from one or more avatar candidates, and the more points a member has, the greater the number of avatar candidates that can be selected.

[0010] The member-related object may include items owned by the member, and the object setting unit may accept the member's selection of the item from one or more item candidates, and the more points the member possesses, the greater the number of selectable item candidates.

[0011] The point assigning unit may determine the points to be assigned according to a time required for communication with the other members in the virtual space.

[0012] The virtual space business support system may be characterized in that it includes a member information acquisition unit that acquires affiliation information of the member, and the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned so that more points are assigned for communication with the other members of different affiliations than for communication with the other members of the same affiliation.

[0013] The object setting unit may associate an avatar that is preset for the point, or an item that is preset for the point, with the member.

[0014] The virtual space business support system may be characterized in that it includes a history management unit that manages the communication history of the members, and the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned so that more points are assigned for communication with other members who have a lower amount of communication in the history than for communication with other members who have a higher amount of communication in the history.

[0015] The virtual space business support system may be characterized in that it includes a member information acquisition unit that acquires industry information of the member, and the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned so that more points are assigned for communication with the other members in different industries than for communication with the other members in the same industry.

[0016] The virtual space control unit may set areas within the virtual space classified by area type, and the point assigning unit may determine the points to be assigned to the member using criteria according to the area type of the area in which the member-related object, an avatar, is placed.

[0017] The point allocating unit may be configured to determine the points to be allocated to the member depending on a time period during which the avatar is placed in an area of ​​a predetermined area type.

[0018] The virtual space business support system may include a member information acquisition unit that acquires industry information of the member, and the point assignment unit may be characterized in that, when the avatar is placed in an area of ​​the area type indicating a seminar room, it identifies the industry information handled in the area and determines the points to be assigned so that more points are assigned to the member in a different industry than to the member in the same industry as the industry of the area.

[0019] The virtual space work support system may include a work management unit that manages the work assigned to the members and acquires information regarding the progress of the work, and the point assignment unit may determine the points to be assigned depending on the degree of progress of the work.

[0020] In addition, in order to solve the above problem, a program according to another aspect of the present invention is a program that causes a processing unit of a computer to execute a virtual space work support method that supports work in a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information among themselves, and that executes an object setting procedure that associates a member-related object, which is an object related to the member, with the member, a point assignment procedure that assigns points to the member based on his or her track record in communication with other members, and a virtual space control procedure that places the member-related object set in the object setting procedure in the virtual space, and that in the object setting procedure, the upgraded member-related object is associated with the member as the points increase.

[0021] In addition, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, another aspect of the present invention provides a method for supporting work in a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information among themselves, the method comprising: an object setting step for associating a member-related object, which is an object related to the member, with the member; a point assignment step for assigning points to the member based on his or her track record in communication with other members; and a virtual space control step for placing the member-related object set in the object setting step in the virtual space, the object setting step being characterized in that the member-related object upgraded as the points increase is associated with the member. Effect of the Invention

[0022] According to the present invention, a technique for promoting communication among members in a virtual space can be provided.

[0023] Problems, configurations, and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an overview of a virtual space business support service according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional block of a virtual space task support system. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of member information. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of history information. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of area information. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a virtual space management device. [Figure 7] 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a point giving process performed by the virtual space management device. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of an object selection screen. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an outline of a virtual space work support service of this embodiment. The virtual space work support service is realized by a virtual space work support system of this embodiment. The virtual space work support system creates a virtual space 300 that functions as a so-called virtual office. The virtual space 300 is used by a plurality of members to participate and exchange information among the members.

[0026] Avatars 301 representing each of the members are placed in virtual space 300. Avatars 301A, 301B, 301C, and 301D are placed in virtual space 300 shown in Fig. 1. Each avatar 301 can own items 302 (302A, 302B, 302C, and 302D), as shown in Fig. 1. Also, each avatar 301 may be displayed with a member board 303 (303A, 303B, 303C, and 303D) indicating the member's name and affiliation, as shown in Fig. 1. Each avatar 301 is operated by a member.

[0027] When using a virtual office for business management, there is a concern that communication may be lacking because members have fewer opportunities to meet face-to-face. The virtual space business support system of this embodiment provides rewards to members who communicate with other members in the virtual space 300, thereby encouraging communication between members.

[0028] More specifically, in the virtual space business support service in this embodiment, points are given to members based on the performance of communication between members. The given points are used to upgrade member-related objects displayed in the virtual space 300. The member-related objects are objects related to the members, such as avatar 301 and items 302. The changed avatar 301 can be seen by other members. Note that FIG. 1 includes avatar 301B, which is the avatar 301 associated with the member in the initial state, and avatar 301A, which is the upgraded avatar 301.

[0029] Note that the communication may be any interaction between multiple members, and includes various forms of communication. For example, the communication in this embodiment includes conversations by text input in the virtual space 300 using a chat function, voice calls, work progress reports using a report form, participation in online conferences and online seminars, etc. Note that the communication in this embodiment includes not only communication realized by software that constructs the virtual space 300 or communication using other software provided in cooperation with the virtual space 300, but also communication between members face-to-face.

[0030] As an example, when avatar 301 is located near another avatar 301 or when another avatar 301 is designated, a predetermined input operation is performed to enable communication with the other avatar 301 via the chat function. Fig. 1 shows a situation in which avatar 301A and avatar 301B are communicating with each other via the chat function using speech bubbles 304 (304A and 304B).

[0031] As another example, when the avatar 301 enters an area such as a conference room, an online conference system for realizing the conference is started in the member terminal device, and the member is treated as having participated in the communication by the conference.

[0032] 1 includes three areas (a general office 311 in the development department, a lounge 312, and a seminar room 313). For example, in this embodiment, when a member logs in to the virtual space business support service, avatars 301 are displayed in an area corresponding to the affiliation of each member. For example, avatars 301A and 301B belonging to the "Development Department" are placed in the general office 311 in the development department when the member logs in. When an avatar 301 communicates with another avatar 301, points are awarded to the member according to the achievement. When the avatar 301 moves to another area, points are awarded to the avatar 301 according to the criteria according to the type of area, which will be described in detail later.

[0033] 2 is a diagram showing an example of functional blocks of the virtual space work support system 1. In the virtual space work support system 1, a virtual space management device 10 and a plurality of member terminal devices 20 are communicably connected via a network N. The virtual space management device 10 is an information processing device managed by a business operator or the like that provides the virtual space work support system 1, and is, for example, a server computer or a PC (Personal Computer).

[0034] The virtual space management device 10 includes a processing unit 110, a storage unit 120, an input unit 130, an output unit 140, and a communication unit 150. The processing unit 110 performs overall control of the entire virtual space management device 10. The storage unit 120 stores information required for processing by the processing unit 110. The input unit 130 accepts information input to the virtual space management device 10 from an input device connected via an input IF 14 described later. The output unit 140 outputs information stored in the virtual space management device 10 from an output device connected via an output IF 15 described later. The communication unit 150 controls transmission and reception of information to and from another information processing device connected to be able to communicate via a network N.

[0035] The processing unit 110 includes a virtual space control unit 111, an object setting unit 112, a point granting unit 113, a member information acquisition unit 114, a history management unit 115, and a business management unit 116. The virtual space control unit 111 controls a virtual space 300 into which each member terminal device 20 can virtually enter. The virtual space control unit 111 places an avatar 301 set by an object setting unit 112 (described later) in the virtual space 300. In addition, the virtual space control unit 111 sets areas classified by area type in the virtual space 300 in response to an input operation to the virtual space management device 10 or the member terminal device 20.

[0036] The object setting unit 112 associates a member-related object, which is an object related to the member, with the member. For example, the object setting unit 112 determines avatars 301 representing each of a plurality of members, associates them with the members, and registers them in the member information 121 described below. For example, the object setting unit 112 determines the avatar 301 that is set as an initial setting for the business type of the member.

[0037] The object setting unit 112 registers the member-related object, which is upgraded with the increase in points, in the member information 121 in association with the member. The object setting unit 112 gives a rare member-related object as a reward to a member who has acquired a high number of points. For example, the object setting unit 112 determines an avatar 301, which is one of the member-related objects, by referring to avatar candidate information 123 described later in which avatar candidates are set in advance for points. In addition, the object setting unit 112 determines an item 302 owned by the avatar 301. The item 302 may be an accessory of the avatar 301 or may be a facility or the like arranged in the virtual space 300. The item 302 is determined by referring to the avatar candidate information 123 in which item candidates are set in advance for points. Note that giving the item 302 to the avatar 301 is not a mandatory configuration, and an avatar 301 that does not possess the item 302 may exist.

[0038] In addition, the object setting unit 112 may set the avatar 301 selected by the member from one or more avatar candidates as the member's avatar 301. In this case, the more points the member possesses, the greater the number of selectable avatar candidates. The object setting unit 112 may also accept a selection of an item 302 possessed by the avatar 301 from one or more item candidates. In this case, the more points the member possesses, the greater the number of selectable item candidates.

[0039] The point giving unit 113 gives points to the member based on the achievement of communication with other members. The point giving unit 113 determines the points to be given using a criterion according to the area type of the area in which the avatar 301 is placed. For example, when the avatar 310 is placed in a predetermined area, the point giving unit 113 determines the points to be given according to the time required for communication with other members in the virtual space 300. In addition, the point giving unit 113 varies the points to be given according to the affiliation and business type of the member participating in the communication. The point giving unit 113 varies the points to be given according to the history of communication with the member participating in the communication. In addition, the point giving unit 113 determines the points to be given according to the degree of progress of the work.

[0040] The point allocating unit 113 may allocate points based on the performance of face-to-face communication between a member and another member. For example, the point allocating unit may receive input operations such as information identifying the members who participated in the communication and the time required for the face-to-face communication, and allocate points to the communication.

[0041] The member information acquisition unit 114 acquires affiliation information of the member to whom points are to be granted from member information 121 described below. The member information acquisition unit 114 also acquires business type information of the member to whom points are to be granted from member information 121. The history management unit 115 manages the communication history of the member. The task management unit 116 manages tasks assigned to the member, and acquires task progress information regarding the progress of the tasks.

[0042] The storage unit 120 stores member information 121, task information 122, avatar candidate information 123, history information 124, area information 125, and point reference information 126. The member information 121 is information about a member whose avatar 301 is placed in the virtual space 300. The task information 122 is information about a task given to the member. The avatar candidate information 123 is information in which points are associated with avatar candidates and item candidates. The avatar candidate information 123 may be information in which the avatar 301 and the item 302 are uniquely determined according to the points owned by the member, or may be information in which a range of selectable points is associated with one or more avatar candidates and item candidates. The history information 124 is information about the history of communication performed by the member.

[0043] The area information 125 is information about an area set in the virtual space 300. The point reference information 126 is information that serves as a reference for points to be awarded. The point awarding unit 113 determines points based on the point reference information 126.

[0044] The member terminal device 20 is an information processing device such as a PC or a smartphone, and is operated by a member. The member terminal device 20 includes a processing unit 210, a storage unit 220, an input unit 230, an output unit 240, and a communication unit 250. The processing unit 210 controls the entire member terminal device 20. The storage unit 220 stores information required for processing by the processing unit 210. The input unit 230 accepts information input to the member terminal device 20 from an input device connected via an input IF. The output unit 240 outputs information stored in the member terminal device 20 from an output device connected via an output IF. The communication unit 250 controls the transmission and reception of information between the member terminal device 20 and another information processing device connected to be able to communicate with the member terminal device 20 via the network N.

[0045] The processing unit 210 uses software preinstalled in the member terminal device 20 to participate in the virtual space 300 managed by the virtual space management device 10. The processing unit 210 may also participate in the virtual space 300 by a browser program.

[0046] The processing unit 210 includes an object setting reception unit 211 and a communication execution unit 212. The object setting reception unit 211 receives a selection of an avatar 301 by a member from among selectable avatar candidates displayed. The object setting reception unit 211 also receives a selection of an item 302 by a member from among selectable item candidates displayed. Note that when the object setting unit 112 of the virtual space management device 10 determines the avatar and item 302 that are uniquely determined using points as the avatar 301 and item 302 of the member, the processing unit 210 does not need to include the object setting reception unit 211.

[0047] The communication execution unit 212 executes communication with other avatars 301 in response to input operations by the members.

[0048] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of member information 121. Member information 121 includes, for example, a member ID, an affiliation ID, an industry ID, owned points, an avatar, and an item. The member ID is identification information for identifying a member. The affiliation ID is identification information for identifying the department to which the member belongs. The industry ID is identification information for identifying the industry of the member. Owned points is a value indicating the points owned by the member. The avatar is information for identifying the design of the avatar 301 that represents the member. The item 302 is information for identifying the design of the item 302 of the avatar 301 that represents the member.

[0049] 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of history information 124. History information 124 includes, for example, a member ID, a communication ID, a required time, a communication target, an area type, and an assigned point. The member ID is identification information for identifying a member. The communication ID is identification information for identifying a communication performed by a member. The required time indicates the time required for the communication identified by the communication ID.

[0050] The communication target is identification information that identifies one or more other members with whom communication is to be made. The area type is information that identifies the area type of the virtual space 300 in which communication is to be made. Area types will be described later. The awarded points indicate points awarded to a member for carrying out communication.

[0051] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of area information 125. Area information 125 includes a location ID, an area type, a time of use, a host, a participant, and a target business type. The location ID is identification information that specifies the position in the virtual space 300 where the area is installed. The area type is information that indicates the area type that classifies the area. For example, the area type is classified according to the purpose of use of the area, such as "general office," "conversation room," "conference room," and "seminar room." In this embodiment, points are awarded based on different criteria depending on the area type of the area where communication was performed.

[0052] The use time indicates the start time and end time of use of the area. The use time may be the planned time of use. The organizer is information that identifies the organizer of the communication to be carried out in the area. The participants are information that identifies the participants of the communication to be carried out in the area. The target business type is information that identifies the business type that is the target of the communication to be carried out in the area.

[0053] For example, an area whose area type is a "general office" or a "conversation room" can be used by an unspecified number of members. Therefore, information indicating the time of use, the organizer, the participants, and the target industry is not stored in a record of area information 125 whose area type is a "general office" or a "conversation room." On the other hand, information indicating the time of use, the organizer, the participants, and the target industry is stored in a record of area information 125 whose area type is a "conference room" or a "seminar room," for example, in response to an input operation by the organizer of the communication.

[0054] 6 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of the virtual space management device 10. The virtual space management device 10 includes a calculation device 11, a memory 12, an external storage device 13, an input IF (Interface) 14, an output IF 15, and a communication IF 16, and each component is connected by a bus.

[0055] The arithmetic unit 11 is a arithmetic unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and in the virtual space management device 10 which executes processing according to a program recorded in the memory 12 or the external storage device 13, the processing is performed by the arithmetic unit 11 which operates according to a program read onto the memory 12 or the external storage device 13. The processing unit 110 realizes each function by the arithmetic unit 11 executing the program.

[0056] The memory 12 is a storage device such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a flash memory, and functions as a storage area from which programs and data are temporarily read. The external storage device 13 is, for example, a writable and readable storage medium and a storage media drive, such as a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a CD-R (Compact Disc-Recordable), or a DVD-RAM (Digital Versatile Disk-Random Access Memory). The function of the storage unit 120 is realized by the memory 12 or the external storage device 13. The function of the storage unit 120 may be realized by a storage device connected via the communication IF 16.

[0057] The input IF 14 is an interface for receiving input operations from an operator, and is connected to input devices such as a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, etc. The output IF 15 is an interface for outputting information to an output device such as an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display built into the virtual space management device 10.

[0058] The communication IF 16 is an interface for connecting the virtual space management device 10 to the network N, and is connected to a communication device such as a LAN (Local Area Network) card. The virtual space management device 10 may have a storage medium drive device (not shown) for inputting and outputting information from portable media such as a CD (Compact Disk) or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk).

[0059] The processing of each component of virtual space management device 10 may be executed by one piece of hardware or by multiple pieces of hardware. Also, the processing of each component of virtual space management device 10 may be realized by one program or by multiple programs.

[0060] The hardware configuration of the member terminal device 20 is similar to that of the virtual space management device 10, so a description thereof will be omitted.

[0061] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a point allocation process by the virtual space management device 10. Before starting this process, when the processing unit 210 of the member terminal device 20 accepts a login input operation by a member, it transmits login information to the virtual space management device 10. The virtual space control unit 111 of the virtual space management device 10 places an avatar 301 representing the member in a predetermined area of ​​the virtual space 300.

[0062] First, the task management unit 116 judges whether or not a task progress report has been received from the member terminal device 20 (step S11). When a member makes a task progress report, the communication execution unit 212 of the member terminal device 20 accepts an input operation of information regarding the task progress into a report form. The communication execution unit 212 transmits the input information to the virtual space management device 10. In this step, the task management unit 116 judges whether or not task progress information has been received from the member terminal device 20. The task management unit 116 may receive information indicating the task itself from the member terminal device 20, and compare it with the task information 122 to judge the progress and determine that a task progress report has been received.

[0063] When the business management unit 116 determines that the business progress report has not been received (step S11: NO), the point allocation unit 113 determines whether the avatar 301 has moved to a predetermined area (step S12). Specifically, when the communication execution unit 212 of the member terminal device 20 receives an input operation to move the avatar 301, it transmits the input information to the virtual space management device 10. When the communication execution unit 212 receives an input operation to enter the avatar 301 into an area of ​​a predetermined area type, the point allocation unit 113 determines that the avatar 301 has moved to the predetermined area. For example, when the point allocation unit 113 receives information indicating that an input operation into an area of ​​an area type of "conversation room", "conference room", or "seminar room" has been received, it determines that the avatar 301 has moved to the predetermined area. In this example, when the point allocation unit 113 determines that the avatar 301 has not moved to the predetermined area, the avatar 301 is placed in a "general office".

[0064] If the point giving unit 113 determines that the avatar 301 has not moved to a predetermined area (if "NO" in step S12), it determines whether or not it has detected the execution of communication (step S13). Specifically, the point giving unit 113 determines that it has detected the execution of communication when the avatar 301 starts and ends communication with another avatar 301. If the point giving unit 113 determines that it has not detected the execution of communication (if "NO" in step S13), the processing unit 110 ends the processing of this flowchart.

[0065] When the point assigning unit 113 determines that the execution of communication has been detected (if "YES" in step S13), it identifies the participants of the communication (step S14). Specifically, the point assigning unit 113 inquires of the virtual space control unit 111 about the status of the virtual space, thereby identifying the participants of the communication.

[0066] Next, the point allocating unit 113 determines points to be granted according to the time required, the number of participants, the affiliation, the type of business, and the communication history (step S15). Specifically, the point allocating unit 113 identifies the time required for the communication whose execution was detected in step S13. The point allocating unit 113 identifies the number of participants. The member information acquiring unit 114 refers to the member information 121 and identifies the affiliation and type of business of each participant. The history managing unit 115 refers to the history information 124 and identifies, for each participant, the amount of past communication with the member to whom points are to be granted. The amount of communication is, for example, the number of communications carried out in the past or the total time required. The past communication does not include the communication whose execution was detected in step S13.

[0067] In the point reference information 126, for each area type of the area in which the avatar 301 is located, points to be added are associated with a combination of a condition type, which is a type of condition used to determine points, and a reference value. In this step, the point allocating unit 113 uses the point reference information 126 set for the area type, which is a "general office". The point allocating unit 113 refers to the condition type of "required time" and adds points associated with the reference value corresponding to the identified required time as points to be allocated. The point allocating unit 113 determines points such that the longer the required time, the more points to be allocated.

[0068] Similarly, the point allocating unit 113 refers to the condition types of “number of participants,” “affiliation,” “industry,” and “communication history,” and adds points associated with the reference values ​​corresponding to the identified number of participants, affiliation, industry, and communication history as points to be awarded.

[0069] For example, the point allocating unit 113 determines the number of points to be allocated to a larger number of participants in the communication. In addition, the point allocating unit 113 determines the points to be allocated to a larger number of members when the member to whom the points are allocated communicates with another member who works in a different environment from the member. For example, the points to be allocated are determined so that the points to be allocated are increased for communication with a member who belongs to a different affiliation or type of business than the points to be allocated for communication with a member who belongs to the same affiliation or type of business as the member to whom the points are allocated.

[0070] Further, the point allocating unit 113 determines points to be allocated so that more points are allocated for communication with other members with less communication volume in the past than for communication with other members with a greater amount of communication volume in the history information 124.

[0071] As a result, more points will be awarded for communication with people who are less related to work or with whom you have had few opportunities to communicate in the past.

[0072] Next, the point granting unit 113 updates the history information 124 (step S16). Specifically, the point granting unit 113 generates a record of the history information 124 including the points determined in step S15. Thereafter, the processing unit 110 ends the processing of this flowchart.

[0073] If the point giving unit 113 determines in step S12 that the avatar 301 has moved to a predetermined area (YES in step S12), it determines whether the avatar 301 has moved to the chat room 312 (step S17).

[0074] When it is determined that the avatar 301 has moved to the chat room 312 ("YES" in step S17), the point allocating unit 113 determines points to be allocated according to the placement time (step S18). In this embodiment, an area whose area type is "chat room" is intended for interaction, and members who are willing to actively communicate enter the area. Therefore, the point allocating unit 113 provides a reward for the state in which the avatar 301 is placed in the "chat room", regardless of whether or not the avatar 301 is communicating with other members. That is, the point allocating unit 113 refers to the point reference information 126, and adds points related to a reference value corresponding to the time the avatar 301 was placed in the chat room 312 as points to be allocated. Note that the point allocating unit 113 determines points to be allocated so that a longer placement time will be more points than a shorter placement time.

[0075] Next, the process executed in step S19 is similar to the process executed in step S16, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted. After that, the processing unit 110 ends the process of this flowchart.

[0076] When the point allocating unit 113 determines that the avatar 301 has not moved to the chat room 312 (step S17: NO), it determines the points to be allocated according to the area type (step S20). As described above, in the point reference information 126, for each area type of the area where the avatar 301 is located, the points to be added are associated with the combination of the condition type, which is the type of condition used to determine the points, and the reference value. For example, when the area type is "seminar room", the condition type is set in the point reference information 126 so that more points are allocated when the area's target business type and the member's business type are different than when the area's target business type and the member's business type are the same. Therefore, when the area where the avatar 301 has moved is a "seminar room", the point allocating unit 113 refers to the area information 125 to identify the target business type of the area, determines whether it is the same as the member's business type, and determines the points to be allocated.

[0077] For example, when the area type is a "conference room", the point reference information 126 is set to grant points according to the number of participants in the conference. The point granting unit 113 determines the points to be granted by referring to the point information using the number of participants in the conference.

[0078] Next, the process executed in step S21 is similar to the process executed in step S16, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted. After that, the processing unit 110 ends the process of this flowchart.

[0079] In step S11, when the task management unit 116 determines that a task progress report has been received (step S11: YES), the point assignment unit 113 determines points to be assigned according to the task content (step S22). Specifically, the point assignment unit 113 refers to the point reference information 126 and determines points to be assigned by comparing the received task progress report with a reference value of the condition type corresponding to the task progress report received in step S11. The point assignment unit 113 may accept an input operation of points by, for example, an administrator who manages members. The point assignment unit 113 may also determine points to be assigned according to the task content rather than the task progress.

[0080] Next, the process executed in step S23 is similar to the process executed in step S16, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted. After that, the processing unit 110 ends the process of this flowchart.

[0081] As described above, according to this embodiment, points are awarded to members based on their communication records, so that members are motivated to communicate proactively. In addition, more points are awarded for communication with other members who work in different environments, which helps prevent homogenization of values.

[0082] In addition, since more points are awarded for communication with other members who have not communicated much up until now, it is possible to encourage communication with more members. Also, by providing an area in which avatars 310 who are eager to communicate are placed and awarding points according to the time spent in that area, it is possible to improve the members' enthusiasm for communication.

[0083] 8 is a diagram showing an example of an object selection screen 400. The object selection screen 400 is displayed when an input operation for starting setting of the avatar 301 by a member is received in the member terminal device 20. Note that, if the avatar 301 and the item 302 are uniquely determined according to the points owned by the member, the member terminal device 20 does not need to display this screen.

[0084] The object selection screen 400 has a set avatar display area 401, an avatar selection area 402, and an item selection area 403. The set avatar display area 401 is an area where the avatar 301 set in response to an input operation in the avatar selection area 402 and the item selection area 403 is displayed. The set avatar display area 401 may also display points owned by the member.

[0085] The avatar selection area 402 is an area that selectably displays one or more avatar candidates that can be selected by a member. The object setting unit 112 of the virtual space management device 10 determines avatar candidates that can be selected by a member by referring to the avatar candidate information 123 using the owned points included in the member information 121, and notifies the member terminal device 20 to display them in the avatar selection area 402. The more points a member has, the more avatars 301 that can be selected. The avatar candidates displayed in the avatar selection area 402 may be arranged according to grade. For example, the avatar candidates are arranged in the avatar selection area 402 so that the grade increases as they are displayed in the right direction. The more points a member has, the higher the grade of the avatar candidates that can be selected.

[0086] The item selection area 403 is an area that selectably displays one or more candidate items that can be selected by the member. The object setting unit 112 of the virtual space management device 10 determines candidate items that can be selected by the member by referring to the avatar candidate information 123 using the owned points included in the member information 121, and notifies the member terminal device 20 to display them in the item selection area 403. The more points owned, the greater the number of selectable items. In addition, the item 302 may be an accessory of the avatar 301 as shown in FIG. 8, or may be equipment such as an office chair or workspace arranged in the virtual space 300.

[0087] Additionally, the item candidates displayed in avatar selection area 402 may be arranged according to grade, similar to the avatar candidates displayed in avatar selection area 402. For example, the item candidates are arranged in item selection area 403 such that the grade increases as they are displayed to the right. A member who has more points can select item candidates of higher grade.

[0088] When the object setting receiving unit 211 of the member terminal device 20 receives a selection of the avatar 301 from the avatar candidates displayed in the avatar selection area 402, it notifies the virtual space management device 10. Similarly, when the object setting receiving unit 211 receives a selection of the item 302 from the item candidates displayed in the item selection area 403, it notifies the virtual space management device 10. The object setting unit 112 of the virtual space management device 10 records the selected avatar 301 and item 302 in the member information 121.

[0089] In addition, if the avatar 301 or item 302 is not changed for a certain period of time despite the existence of avatar candidates or item candidates that the member can select, the object setting unit 112 of the virtual space management device 10 may notify the member to encourage him or her to change the avatar 301 or item 302.

[0090] In addition, a writing implement is described as a "development work essential item" in the item selection area 403 of the object selection screen 400 shown in Fig. 8, and the avatar 301 described in the set avatar display area 401 is holding the writing implement. In this way, essential items 302 may exist depending on the member's affiliation. Also, avatar candidates may be set so that some of the avatars 301 (e.g., clothing) are common depending on the member's affiliation. This allows other members who view the avatar 301 placed in the virtual space 300 to recognize the affiliation of the member represented by the avatar 301.

[0091] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to upgrade the avatar 301 and the item 302 displayed in the virtual space 300 according to the owned points. Therefore, by referring to the member-related objects in the virtual space 300, it is possible to determine whether the members are proactive in communication. This motivates the members to communicate, and thus communication between the members becomes more active.

[0092] In this embodiment, an example has been described in which the virtual space work support system 1 provides the virtual space 300 used for communication among members of a company. However, participants in the virtual space 300 provided by the virtual space work system are not limited to members of the same company. For example, the virtual space 300 of this embodiment can be provided to any participants, such as employees and residents of local governments, voluntary organizations such as neighborhood associations, and members of group companies.

[0093] Although each embodiment according to the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modified examples are included. For example, the above-mentioned embodiment has been described in detail to make the present invention easier to understand, and the present invention is not limited to having all the configurations described here. In addition, it is possible to replace a part of the configuration of one embodiment with the configuration of another example. It is also possible to add the configuration of another example to the configuration of one embodiment. In addition, it is also possible to add, delete, or replace other configurations with respect to a part of the configuration of each embodiment. In addition, each of the above-mentioned configurations, functions, processing units, processing means, etc. may be realized in hardware by designing them as integrated circuits, for example, in part or in whole. In addition, the control lines and information lines in the figure show those that are considered necessary for explanation, and do not necessarily show all of them. It may be considered that almost all of the configurations are connected to each other.

[0094] Moreover, the functional configurations of the virtual space management device 10 and the member terminal device 20 are classified according to the main processing contents for ease of understanding. The classification method and names of the components do not limit the present invention. As described above, the configurations of the virtual space management device 10 and the member terminal device 20 can be further classified into more components according to the processing contents. Also, classification can be performed so that one component executes more processes. [Explanation of symbols]

[0095] 1: Virtual space work support system, 10: Virtual space management device, 11: Calculation device, 12: Memory, 13: External storage device, 14: Input IF, 15: Output IF, 16: Communication IF, 20: Member terminal device, 110-210: Processing unit, 111: Virtual space control unit, 112: Object setting unit, 113: Point assignment unit, 114: Member information acquisition unit, 115: History management unit, 116: Work management unit, 120-220: Memory unit, 121: Member information, 122: Work information, 123: Avatar candidate information, 124: History information, 125: Area information, 126: Point reference information, 130-230: Input unit, 1 40·240: output section, 150·250: communication section, 211: object setting reception section, 212: communication execution section, 300: virtual space, 301·301A·301B·301C·301D: avatar, 302A·302B / 302C·302D: item, 303·303A·303B·303C·303D: member board, 304·304A·304B: speech bubble, 311: general office, 312: lounge, 313: seminar room, 400: object selection screen, 401: setting avatar display area, 402: avatar selection area, 403: item selection area, N: network

Claims

1. A virtual space work support system that supports work in a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information among the members, an object setting unit that associates a member-related object, which is an object related to the member, with the member; a point giving unit that gives points to the member based on the achievement of communication with other members; a virtual space control unit that places the member-related object set by the object setting unit in the virtual space, The virtual space business support system is characterized in that the object setting unit associates the upgraded member-related object with the member in accordance with an increase in the points.

2. 2. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, the member-related object includes an avatar representing the member; the object setting unit accepts a selection of the avatar by the member from one or more avatar candidates; A virtual space work support system, characterized in that the more points a user has, the greater the number of selectable avatar candidates.

3. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, the member-related objects include items owned by the member; the object setting unit accepts a selection of the item by the member from one or a plurality of item candidates; A virtual space business support system, characterized in that the more points a user possesses, the greater the number of selectable item candidates.

4. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, A virtual space work support system, characterized in that the point allocating unit determines the points to be allocated according to the time required for communication with the other members in the virtual space.

5. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, A member information acquisition unit that acquires affiliation information of the member, A business support system within a virtual space, characterized in that the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned so that more points are assigned for communication with other members of different affiliations than for communication with other members of the same affiliation.

6. 2. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, The virtual space work support system, wherein the object setting unit associates an avatar that is preset for the point, or an item that is preset for the point, with the member.

7. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, A history management unit for managing the communication history of the members, A business support system within a virtual space, characterized in that the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned so that more points are assigned for communication with other members who have a lower amount of communication in the history than for communication with other members who have a higher amount of communication in the history.

8. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, a member information acquisition unit for acquiring business type information of the member; A business support system within a virtual space, characterized in that the point allocating unit determines the points to be awarded so that more points are awarded for communication with other members in different industries than for communication with other members in the same industry.

9. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, The virtual space control unit sets areas classified by area type in the virtual space, A business support system in a virtual space, characterized in that the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned to the member using criteria based on the area type of the area in which the member-related object, an avatar, is placed.

10. The virtual space task support system according to claim 9, A virtual space business support system, characterized in that when the avatar is placed in an area of ​​a specified area type, the point assignment unit determines the points to be assigned to the member depending on the placement time.

11. The virtual space task support system according to claim 9, a member information acquisition unit for acquiring business type information of the member; The point allocating unit, when the avatar is placed in an area of ​​the area type indicating a seminar room, identifies the target industry handled in the area, and determines the points to be allocated so that more points are allocated to members in a different industry than to members in the same industry as the target industry.A business support system within a virtual space.

12. 3. The virtual space task support system according to claim 1, a task management unit that manages tasks assigned to the members and acquires information regarding the progress of the tasks; The in-virtual space task support system is characterized in that the point allocating unit determines the points to be allocated according to a degree of progress of the task.

13. A program for causing a processing unit of a computer to execute a method for supporting work in a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information among the members, an object setting step of associating a member-related object, which is an object related to the member, with the member; a point-granting step of granting points to the member based on the performance of the member in relation to communication with other members; a virtual space control procedure for placing the member-related object set in the object setting procedure in the virtual space; The program, wherein in the object setting step, the upgraded member-related object is associated with the member in accordance with an increase in the points.

14. A method for supporting a task in a virtual space in which a plurality of members participate and exchange information among the members, the method comprising the steps of: an object setting step of associating a member-related object, which is an object related to the member, with the member; a point-granting step of granting points to the member based on the performance of the member in relation to communication with other members; a virtual space control procedure for arranging the member-related object set in the object setting procedure in the virtual space, The method for supporting work in a virtual space, wherein in the object setting step, the member-related object upgraded in accordance with an increase in the points is associated with the member.

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