Information processing device, information processing system, and information processing method

Abstract

To provide an information processing device, an information processing system, and an information processing method for enabling a social robot to appropriately handle user information.SOLUTION: An information processing device for processing user information about a user includes at least one of a first information area and a second information area for classifying the user information. The first information area is a general access permission determination block having a list including a sensitive topic, sensitivity scores assigned to topics including the sensitive topic, and an appropriate data processing level allowed for the information processing device of the user information. The second information area is a user-specific access permission block when information is exchanged between the information processing device and another user different from the user or an information processing device of the other user.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

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

[0002] In recent years, development of social robots that communicate with users and provide support has been progressing. Such social robots use user information about the users to identify them. The user information is, for example, a face image, a name, a sex, an age, information indicating a place of residence, and a conversation with the social robot. In general, a user sets the handling of personal information for the social robot that he or she uses. For this reason, as shown by reference numeral g900 in FIG. 11, each user (g902, g905) has a trustworthy robot (g901, g903) for each individual process user data. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example in which an individual has a robot device that processes his or her own data in the prior art. In this example, a first robot g901 is owned by a first user g902, and a second robot g903 is owned by a second user g904.

[0003] In recent years, social robots are being used in public places, companies, private homes, etc. In such cases, for example, when Mr. A interacts with a social robot owned by Mr. B, he feels uneasy about how his personal information is handled. For example, in the case of group interactions, as in reference numeral 910 in FIG. 11, a user may not trust a robot owned by another person that processes or disposes of his data. In the example of reference numeral g910, a first user g912, who is the owner of a first robot g911, is in front of a second robot g913 owned by a second owner g914. In response to this, it has been proposed to switch the privacy mode of a device based on keywords spoken by an individual or on voice recognition (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Pat. No. 1,113,8974 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, conventional technology has the problem that a social robot that one does not own cannot be trusted to the same extent as a social robot that one does own.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an information processing device, an information processing system, and an information processing method that enable a social robot to appropriately handle user information. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] (1) In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an information processing device according to one embodiment of the present invention is an information processing device that processes user information related to a user, and is provided with at least one of a first information area and a second information area that classify the user information, wherein the first information area is a general access permission judgment block that holds a list including confidential topics, a confidentiality score assigned to each topic including the confidential topic, and an appropriate data processing level permissible for the information processing device of the user information, and the second information area is a user-specific access permission block when information is exchanged between the information processing device and another user different from the user or the information processing device of the other user.

[0008] (2) In one embodiment, the information processing device according to (1) above may further include a third information area for classifying the user information, which is publicly accessible registration information of users and information processing devices.

[0009] (3) In one embodiment of the information processing device described in (2) above, the decision as to which of the first information area, the second information area, and the third information area to classify the information into may be based on the trust between the user and the other users who exchange information with the user.

[0010] (4) In an information processing device according to one embodiment of any one of (1) to (3) above, other user information relating to the other user may be acquired, and a procedure may be identified for applying the acquired other user information to the processing and understanding of the information processing device based on any one of the first information area and the second information area.

[0011] (5) In an information processing device according to one embodiment, any one of (1) to (4) above may be used to acquire other user information relating to the other user, and if the processing of the acquired other user information is not permitted on the information processing device of the user based on the second information area and transmission to the information processing device of the other user is permitted, the other user information may be encrypted and then transmitted to the information processing device of the other user; and if the other user information relating to the other user is acquired and the processing of the acquired other user information is not permitted on the information processing device of the user based on the second information area and transmission to the information processing device of the other user is not permitted, the other user information may be deleted and not transmitted to the information processing device of the other user.

[0012] (6) In one embodiment of an information processing device according to any one of (1) to (5) above, other user information relating to the other user is acquired, and if processing of the acquired other user information is permitted on the information processing device of the user based on the second information area, it may be determined based on the processing level whether to process all of the other user information or to process only part of the other user information.

[0013] (7) In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an information processing system according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a first information processing device of a first user and a second information processing device of a second user, the second information processing device includes at least one of a first information area and a second information area for classifying user information, and classifies the user information into either the first information area or the second information area based on the trust between the second user and the first user who exchanges information with the second user, the first information area being a general access permission judgment block that holds a list including confidential topics, confidentiality scores assigned to each topic including the confidential topic, and an appropriate data processing level permitted for the information processing device of the user information, the second information area being a user-specific access permission block when information is exchanged between the first user or the first information processing device and the second information processing device, and when information exchange between the first information processing device and the second information processing device is permitted, the information processing system exchanges information between the first information processing device and the second information processing device.

[0014] (8) In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an information processing method according to one embodiment of the present invention is an information processing method of an information processing device that processes user information related to a user, the information processing method including at least one of a first information area and a second information area that classify the user information, the first information area being a general access permission judgment block that holds a list including confidential topics, a confidentiality score assigned to each topic including the confidential topic, and an appropriate data processing level permitted for the information processing device of the user information, and the second information area being a user-specific access permission block when exchanging information between the information processing device and another user different from the user or the information processing device of the other user, and the information processing method acquiring other user information related to the other user, and identifying a procedure for applying the acquired other user information to the processing and understanding of the information processing device based on any one of the first information area and the second information area. Effect of the Invention

[0015] According to the above (1) to (8), the social robot can handle user information appropriately. In addition, according to (1) to (8), the robot can recognize the acceptable level of appropriate processing that the robot itself can perform and what it should (or should not) do with personal user data. Furthermore, according to (1) to (8), the appropriate level of processing that is permitted to be carried out can be tailored to the user's personal preferences regarding how their data is treated and processed by other devices. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an outline of processing for handling personal information in an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining how personal information regarding an unknown robot is handled. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 shows an example of a user's public privacy policy. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a privacy policy acquisition procedure according to the embodiment. [Figure 6] A figure showing an example of a user ID and a privacy policy stored in a storage unit. [Figure 7] 1 is a diagram showing an overview of an example of a data processing method and an example of a data processing procedure according to an embodiment. [Figure 8] 4 is a flowchart of a first process in the embodiment. [Figure 9] 11 is a flowchart of a second process in the embodiment. [Figure 10] 11 is a flowchart of a third process in the embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of the prior art in which an individual has a robotic device that processes their data. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings used in the following description, the scale of each component is appropriately changed so that each component is of a recognizable size. In addition, in all the drawings for explaining the embodiments, the same reference numerals are used for the parts having the same functions, and the repeated explanation is omitted. In addition, "based on XX" in this application means "based on at least XX," and includes cases where it is based on other elements in addition to XX. Furthermore, "based on XX" is not limited to cases where XX is used directly, but also includes cases where it is based on XX that has been calculated or processed. "XX" is any element (for example, any information).

[0018] <Summary> First, an overview of how personal information is handled and processed in this embodiment will be explained. In the following explanation, a "social robot" will be referred to as a "robot." Fig. 1 is a diagram for explaining an outline of the processing of personal information in this embodiment. In the example of Fig. 1, a first robot g11 is owned by a first user g12, and a second robot g13 is owned by a second user g14. The first user g12 is in front of the second robot g13. In such a case, the first user g12 may want to use the second robot g13 as a pass-through or limited processing device that simply passes data through, as in symbols g15-g16, and handle the data as if it were processed by a robot he or she trusts. By processing in this manner, the first user g12 can partially and appropriately trust the second robot g13 of the second user g14, since the first user g12 can process his / her own data and send it back to his / her first robot g11.

[0019] Fig. 2 is a diagram for explaining the handling of personal information for unknown robots. In Fig. 2, the first robot g101 is owned by the first user g111, the second robot g102 is owned by the second user g112, the third robot g103 is owned by the third user g113, and the fourth robot g104 is owned by the fourth user g114. The fifth robot g105 is a robot that is placed in a public place or a store, for example, but is an unknown robot to the first user g111 to the fourth user g114.

[0020] In such a situation, since users cannot trust unknown robots, they do not want to allow the fifth robot g105 to process or possess their personal information, as in symbol g121. For this reason, the users do not want to allow the fifth robot g105 to exchange data with their first robot g101 to fourth robot g104). For this reason, it is thought that users would like the data to be securely sent to their robot, the fifth robot g105, as in g150 of FIG.

[0021] For this reason, the robot of this embodiment identifies individuals present during the interaction and obtains a privacy profile associated with the identified individual. The privacy profile includes, for example, information regarding the user's preferences regarding how the user's interaction data is used, processed, and referenced, and how the robot should inform its behavioral responses. The privacy profile also includes information regarding whether or not the sharing, retention, and learning of results are permitted. The privacy profile is, for example, a selection made by the user regarding whether or not the robot may use the data handled by the robot. The privacy profile may be obtained by the robot, for example, all at once, or by conversation with the user, or may be set by the user by operating a touch panel or the like.

[0022] Based on this privacy profile, the robot performs the appropriate level of processing that is permitted to be performed, in accordance with the user's personal preferences regarding how the user's data is handled and processed by other robots. The robot does not perform any processing that is not permitted. In this embodiment, the prerequisite is that the user trusts his or her robot to perform processing, and the robot performs processing after determining whether the processing is appropriate for other robots. The levels and each processing will be described later.

[0023] <Personal Privacy Profile> First, the handling of privacy profiles and policies in this embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a User Public Privacy Policy.

[0024] The box g200 (third information area) contains, for example, public accessible user information g201 and a device address g202. The information in this area is personal information that may be appropriate to share with other robots. This includes, for example, information about the user (general user information), such as the user's name and user ID (identification information) within the robot system. It also includes, for example, device addresses that other robots can potentially use to send data.

[0025] The box g210 (first information area) includes, for example, a general policy g211, sensitive topics g212, and other robot permissions g213. The confidential topic g212 includes M (M is an integer equal to or greater than 2) topics 1 (g214-1) to M (g214-M). Each topic includes an estimated sensitivity score (Sensitivity Est. Score).

[0026] Note that Permissions for other robots (g213) is a generalized permission block that can be considered as the default policy for how other robots may use this person's data. This block contains a set of permission policies that determine the level of data processing that other robots may perform on this user.

[0027] Other robot permissions (g213) include, for example: a) Can I process my data (g215)? Can other robots (second robots) process this user data (yes or no)? b) Store process (Can Store) (g126): Whether or not another robot (second robot) can store this user information in the memory of the second robot (yes or no). c) Can Lean from my data (anon) (g217); Whether other devices (second robots) can learn from this user information (unrestricted, anonymous, or not) d) Can Share with others (g218): Whether other robots (second robots) can share this user information with the first robot of the user (yes or no). e) Can Send results to my device (g219): whether other robots (second robots) can send this user information back to the first robot of the user (send both results and raw data, send only results after processing, send only raw data before processing, or send nothing). The above-mentioned policies, processes, and judgments are merely examples and are not limited to these.

[0028] The purpose of Sensitive Topics (g212) is to inform the user of the sensitivity of a particular topic when it is discussed by another robot (the second robot). This policy could be, for example, whether it is an appropriate topic to discuss medical information such as allergies.

[0029] Additionally, the score on each topic provides granularity in determining permission to discuss the topic.

[0030] The box marked with the symbol g250 (second information area) contains a User Specific Policy g215, Contacts g252, M contacts 1 (g253-1) to M (g253-M), a Trust Score g254, Sensitive Topics g255, and Other Device Permissions g256. The reliability score g254 is a group reliability score, and the handling level of the user information is changed based on this group reliability score. The handling level of the user information is, for example, whether or not other robots are allowed to share the user information, whether or not other robots are allowed to store the user information, and whether or not other robots are allowed to learn the user information. The handling levels are not limited to these. The confidential topic g255 includes M (M is an integer equal to or greater than 2) topics 1 (g257-1) to M (g257-M). Each topic includes an estimated sensitivity score (Sensitivity Est. Score). An example of the configuration and processing of the permission g256 for other robots will be described later.

[0031] Thus, the present embodiment may include personalized user-specific policies for customizing preferences when interacting with other particular individuals and their devices.

[0032] Also, there are permission blocks designated based on the contacts specified by the user, such as g250. Below these permission blocks, there may be permission blocks when the user interacts with a robot belonging to one of the contacts specified by the user. In addition to the permission block and the sensitive topic block, users can provide some additional information about their contact, such as a trust score and other metadata, as shown in g250. Note that the structure, processing, and decision-making of other robots' permissions (g256) are similar to other robots' permissions (g213).

[0033] The structure of the privacy profile in this embodiment allows flexibility and extensibility, with entries being added, modified, and removed over time, depending on individual preferences and ongoing interaction with the robot.

[0034] <Default Privacy Profile and Dummy Privacy Profile> Next, we will explain the default privacy profile and the dummy privacy profile. Initially, when a user sets up the robot, a "default privacy profile" is created that contains, for example, the user's name, user ID, and device ID in the user information block. In the general permissions block, each individual policy is set to "NO" (not allowed) until the robot learns the user's preferences for each policy. Similarly, sensitive topic blocks are left empty until the robot learns about the user's specific topics and how to evaluate the sensitivity of such topics, and the robot leaves certain allowed blocks empty until the user designates a trusted contact.

[0035] The concept of a default privacy profile is further abstracted, and there is also the concept of a "dummy privacy profile" that can be used to represent a stranger to the robot's system. In this embodiment, we also use the concept of this "dummy privacy profile." The purpose of this "Dummy Privacy Profile" is to represent how the robot should handle and process user data of an individual who is unknown to the robot and the robot system. The content of the "Dummy Privacy Profile" is the same as the Default Privacy Profile, with the exception that there is no device ID associated with this individual (the username field is also left blank). Thus, the only content of the "Dummy Privacy Profile" is a uniquely generated user ID, and a general permission block with all individual policies set to "NO". Thus, in this embodiment, unregistered users do not have the same detailed privacy profile as registered users.

[0036] <Example of information processing system configuration> Next, a description will be given of an example of the configuration of the information processing system 1. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the information processing system according to this embodiment. The information processing system 1 includes, for example, a first robot 2 (information processing device) and a second robot 3 (information processing device).

[0037] The first robot 2, for example, includes an imaging unit 201, an image processing unit 202, a sound collection unit 203, an audio processing unit 204, a motion processing unit 205, a policy processing unit 206, a memory unit 207, a sensor 208, an actuator 209, a communication unit 210, a first information area 211, a second information area 212, and a third information area 213.

[0038] The second robot 3 includes, for example, an imaging unit 301, an image processing unit 302, a sound collection unit 303, an audio processing unit 304, a motion processing unit 305, a policy processing unit 306, a memory unit 307, a sensor 308, an actuator 309, a communication unit 310, a first information area 311, a second information area 312, and a third information area 313.

[0039] The first robot 2 and the second robot 3 are connected via a wireless or wired network NW. Although Fig. 4 shows an example with two robots, the number of robots may be two or more. Each robot also includes a power circuit and battery (not shown), and gears connected to actuators 209 and 309. The first robot 2 and the second robot 3 may have the same configuration or different configurations. In the following explanation, each part will be explained using the second robot 3 as a representative.

[0040] The image capturing unit 301 is an image capturing device such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image capturing device or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image capturing device attached to, for example, the head of the second robot 3. The image capturing unit 301 may be installed in an environment where the robot or the user is present.

[0041] The image processing unit 302 extracts, for example, an image of a human face contained in the image captured by the image capturing unit 301 using a known method, and performs face recognition on the extracted face image using a known method.

[0042] The sound collection unit 303 is a microphone and collects a voice signal from a user. Note that the sound collection unit 303 may be a microphone array composed of a plurality of microphones.

[0043] The voice processing unit 304 performs voice recognition processing (for example, feature extraction processing, noise suppression processing, speech section estimation processing, sound source direction estimation processing, sound source estimation processing, etc.) on the voice signal collected by the sound collection unit 303 using a well-known method.

[0044] The motion processing unit 305 controls the motion of the robot in accordance with the program stored in the storage unit 307 and, for example, voice instructions from the user.

[0045] The policy processing unit 306 performs processing related to the policy using the image-processed information and the voice recognition-processed information. The processing performed by the policy processing unit 306 will be described later.

[0046] The storage unit 307 stores programs, thresholds, formulas, etc. used for various controls of the robot. The storage unit 307 stores a user's sensitive topics list. The user's sensitive topics list is associated with information indicating whether or not processing by the second robot 3 is permitted for each topic or keyword. The storage unit 307 also stores a user's specific profile for each user. The user's specific profile is associated with, for example, whether or not processing of processing data by the second robot 3 is permitted. The storage unit 307 stores the above-mentioned personal information of the user according to the control of the policy processing unit 306. The storage unit 307 stores user information of people recognized by the policy processing unit 306 based on a policy. Whether or not to permit is indicated or selected by the user through speech, for example. If the second robot 3 is equipped with, for example, an image presentation unit, the second robot 3 may display a setting screen on the image display unit and set whether to permit or not depending on the results detected by a touch panel sensor provided on the image display unit. The storage unit 307 includes the following three information areas (a first information area 311, a second information area 312, and a third information area 313).

[0047] The first information area 311 corresponds to the area inside the box g210 in Fig. 3. The first information area 311 is an area that holds a list including a confidentiality score assigned to each of the confidential topics and privacy topics, and an appropriate data processing level permitted for the information processing device of the user information. The first information area 311 is a general access permission judgment block.

[0048] The second information area 312 corresponds to the area inside the square g250 in Fig. 3. The second information area 312 is a user-specific access permission block that further narrows down the permission block when exchanging information with a first user who is a different user from the second user or with the first robot 2 of the first user.

[0049] The third information area 313 corresponds to the area within the square g200 in Fig. 3. The third information area 313 is an area that holds registration information of users and robots that is generally accessible (or available).

[0050] The first information area 311, the second information area 312, and the third information area 313 classify user information, and determine whether or not to permit processing based on the classification results.

[0051] The first information area 311, the second information area 312, and the third information area 313 are provided, for example, in the policy processing unit 306 and the storage unit 307. The storage unit 307 stores, for example, each policy, a device address, etc. The policy processing unit 306 performs a determination process, etc. Similarly, the first information area 211, the second information area 212, and the third information area 213 are provided, for example, in the policy processing unit 206 and the storage unit 207. Similarly, the storage unit 207 stores, for example, each policy, a device address, etc. The policy processing unit 206 performs a determination process, etc.

[0052] The sensor 308 is a sensor, an encoder, etc., attached to each part of the robot.

[0053] The actuator 209 drives each part of the robot according to the control of the operation processing unit 205.

[0054] The communication unit 310 transmits and receives information to and from other robots, for example.

[0055] <Examples of information stored in the memory unit> Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a user ID and a privacy policy stored in a storage unit. As shown in Fig. 5, the storage units 207 and 307 store privacy policy information in association with user identification information (user ID). The privacy policy information includes, for example, information on whether sharing is permitted or not permitted, whether retention is permitted or not permitted, whether learning is permitted or not permitted, etc. Note that the user ID may be associated with, for example, image information (face image, image feature amount, etc.) and voice information (voice feature amount, etc.). The policy processing units 206 and 306 refer to such information stored in the storage units 207 and 307 and perform the process for policy acquisition as follows.

[0056] <Policy processing> Next, the process performed by the policy processing unit will be described. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a privacy policy acquisition procedure according to this embodiment. The following process is performed, for example, when the second robot 3 starts an interaction with a user.

[0057] (Step S1) The policy processing unit 306 identifies people present in a location, for example, based on images captured by the image capturing unit 301 and sounds captured by the sound capturing unit 303. When there are multiple people, the policy processing unit 306 recognizes each person.

[0058] (Step S2) Policy processing unit 306 specifies that the person is a recognized person if the person has already been recognized and stored in storage unit 307. Note that the person's identification information may be stored in a server or the like via network NW.

[0059] (Step S3) The policy processing unit 306 allows collection and storage of a privacy profile, which is user information of the recognized individual, and associates the collected personal information with identification information and stores it in the storage unit 307. User information includes, for example, name, date of birth, sex, age, place of residence, hobbies, and speech content. After completing step S3, the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to the process of step S6.

[0060] (Step S4) If the person has not already been recognized and stored in the storage unit 307, or if the individual cannot be identified, the policy processing unit 306 determines that the person is unknown to the robot.

[0061] (Step S5) The policy processing unit 306 creates the above-mentioned dummy privacy profile. After step S5 ends, the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to the process of step S6.

[0062] (Step S6) The policy processing unit 306 loads the privacy profile of step S3 or step S5.

[0063] (Step S7) The policy processing unit 306 waits for data to be processed.

[0064] This process allows the robot to understand the appropriate level of processing it can handle and what it should (or shouldn't) do with personal user data.

[0065] <Data processing method, data processing procedure> Next, an example of a data processing method and an example of a data processing procedure will be described. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an overview of an example of a data processing method and an example of a data processing procedure in this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, the workflow for each user and interaction data describes the "appropriate processing" to be performed by the second robot 3 and the information to be sent to the user's own first robot 2. There are up to five possible checks that can be performed on the user information. These correspond to the device permissions in the user's privacy profile. Each process will be explained using FIG. 8 to FIG. 10. In the following explanation, the robot that makes the judgments and processes is the second robot 3, and the robot that exchanges information (Host's Device) is the first robot 2.

[0066] (First process) 8 is a flowchart of a first process in this embodiment. The first process is performed when the data processing check fails.

[0067] (Step S11) The policy processing unit 306 acquires processing data. The processing data is, for example, information based on a captured image of the user or the contents of a speech from a picked-up voice.

[0068] (Step S12) The policy processing unit 306 checks whether or not the second robot 3 can process the processing data (is permitted to process). If the second robot 3 can process the processing data (step S12; YES), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S21 (FIG. 9). If the second robot 3 cannot process the processing data (step S12; NO), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S13.

[0069] (Step S13) The policy processing unit 306 checks whether the processing data should be sent to the user's own first robot 2 for processing. If the processing data should be sent to the user's own first robot 2 for processing (Step S13; YES), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing in step S14. If the processing data should not be sent to the user's own first robot 2 for processing (Step S13; NO), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing in step S16.

[0070] (Step S14) Policy processing unit 306 encrypts the data to be processed. After the processing, policy processing unit 306 proceeds to the process of step S15.

[0071] (Step S15) The policy processing unit 306 transmits the encrypted processing data to the first robot 2 of the user using, for example, the device ID of the user. After the processing, the policy processing unit 306 ends the processing.

[0072] (Step S16) Policy processing unit 306 deletes the processed data without storing it. After the processing, policy processing unit 306 ends the processing.

[0073] (Second Processing) 9 is a flowchart of the second process in this embodiment. The second process is performed when the data processing check is successful.

[0074] (Step S12) If the second robot 3 can process the processing data (Step S12; YES), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to the processing of Step S21.

[0075] (Step S21) The policy processing unit 306 determines the processing level. The processing level is, for example, partial (PARTIAL) or full (FULL). If the processing level is partial (PARTIAL), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of steps S22 and S23. If the processing level is full (FULL), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S25.

[0076] (Step S22) The policy processing unit 306 checks the metadata of the data to be processed by comparing the topic or keyword with the user's confidential topic list stored in the memory unit 307. Next, the policy processing unit 306 determines whether or not to permit processing of the data based on the check result. If the policy processing unit 306 permits processing of the data (step S22; permitted (ALLOWED)), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S24. If the policy processing unit 306 does not permit processing of the data (step S22; not permitted (NO)), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S24.

[0077] (Step S23) The policy processing unit 306 compares the processing of the user on the first robot 2 with the identified user and refers to the unique profile of this user stored in the memory unit 307. Furthermore, the policy processing unit 306 determines whether this processing is data processing that depends on the trust relationship between the owner of the second robot 3 and the user. The policy processing unit 306 determines whether to permit the data processing based on the result of the determination. If the data processing is permitted (step S23; permitted (ALLOWED)), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S24. If the data processing is not permitted (step S24; not permitted (NO)), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S24.

[0078] (Step S24) The policy processing unit 306 checks concurrency based on the trust between the topic and other individuals. The policy processing unit 306 determines concurrency when both steps S22 and S23 do not result in failure. If the check results in a pass (step S24; pass), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing in step S25. If the check results in a fail (step S24; fail), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing in step S13 (FIG. 8).

[0079] (Step S25) The policy processing unit 306 causes the second robot 3 to proceed to each process (steps S13, S31 (FIG. 10), S32 (FIG. 10), S33 (FIG. 10)) so as to process the process data.

[0080] (Third Processing) 10 is a flowchart of the third process in this embodiment. The third process is a process performed on the second robot 3.

[0081] (Step S25) The policy processing unit 306 proceeds to each process (steps S16, S31, S32, S33) to process the process data in the second robot 3. The policy processing unit 306 performs the process of step S13 to determine whether the result can be sent to the first robot 2, which is the host device.

[0082] (Step S31) The policy processing unit 306 checks whether the processing result can be shared with the first robot 2 in order to notify the operation of the second robot 3. If the processing result can be shared (Step S31; YES), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S34. If the processing result cannot be shared (Step S31; NO), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of step S16.

[0083] (Step S32) The policy processing unit 306 checks whether or not the processing result can be saved in the memory unit 307 of the second robot 3. If the processing result can be saved in the memory unit 307 of the second robot 3 (Step S32; YES), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing in step S35. If the processing result cannot be saved in the memory unit 307 of the second robot 3 (Step S32; NO), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing in step S16.

[0084] (Step S33) The policy processing unit 306 checks whether the second robot 3 can learn anonymously from the data and results. If the second robot 3 can learn anonymously from the data and results (Step S33; YES), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of Step S36. If the second robot 3 cannot learn anonymously from the data and results (Step S33; NO), the policy processing unit 306 proceeds to processing of Step S16. The policy processing unit 306 performs all of the processing of Steps S31 to S33.

[0085] (Step S16) If the check results in steps S31, S32, and S33 are NO, policy processing unit 306 deletes the results and data. After processing, policy processing unit 306 ends the process.

[0086] (Step S34) The policy processing unit 306 transmits the data and the result to the behavior processing unit 205 (Host's Device Behavior) of the first robot 2. After the processing, the policy processing unit 306 ends the processing.

[0087] (Step S35) The policy processing unit 306 transmits the data and the result to the first robot 2 so that they are stored in the storage unit 207 (Host's Device Storage) of the first robot 2.

[0088] (Step S36) The policy processing unit 306 transmits the data and the result to the operation processing unit 205 (Host's Device Logic) of the first robot 2. After processing, the policy processing unit 306 ends the processing.

[0089] 7 to 10 are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these. For example, some of the processes may be performed simultaneously.

[0090] In this embodiment, the robot acquires the user's privacy profile and specifies the procedure to be applied to the processing and understanding of the time device. If the robot can identify the user present, it means that the robot can acquire the privacy profile based on the user's user identification information, for example. If the robot fails to identify the user, the robot creates a dummy privacy profile for the user. After that, all the profiles are loaded into the robot and understood. This makes the robot ready for data processing. Appropriate processing would be based on the trust of this individual's data about other individuals in the space and the owner of this social robot, as determined from this user's privacy profile. Appropriate processing of such robot would be determined by the permissions from the privacy profile regarding sharing, retaining, and learning from results.

[0091] This allows the robot to identify individuals present during the interaction and retrieve the privacy profile associated with the identified individuals, allowing the robot to provide the appropriate level of processing that is permitted to be performed in accordance with the user's personal preferences regarding how their data is treated and processed by other devices.

[0092] In the above example, the user's robot is the first robot 2 and the second robot 3 performs processing related to the policy, but the user's robot may also be the second robot 3 and the first robot 2 may perform processing related to the policy.

[0093] In the above example, a robot is described as an example of an information processing device, but the information processing device is not limited to this. For example, the information processing device may be a mobile terminal, a tablet terminal, a smartphone, a stuffed animal, a mascot, a doll, an ornament, or the like that can be used for communication.

[0094] In the above example, each robot performs the processing, but the processing may be performed on the cloud.

[0095] In addition, a program for realizing all or part of the functions of the first robot 2 or the second robot 3 in the present invention may be recorded in a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded in the recording medium may be read into a computer system and executed to perform all or part of the processing performed by the first robot 2 or the second robot 3. Note that the term "computer system" here includes hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. The term "computer system" also includes a WWW system equipped with a homepage providing environment (or display environment). The term "computer-readable recording medium" refers to portable media such as flexible disks, optical magnetic disks, ROMs, and CD-ROMs, and storage devices such as hard disks built into a computer system. The term "computer-readable recording medium" also includes those that hold a program for a certain period of time, such as volatile memory (RAM) inside a computer system that becomes a server or client when a program is transmitted via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line.

[0096] The above program may also be transmitted from a computer system in which the program is stored in a storage device or the like to another computer system via a transmission medium, or by transmission waves in the transmission medium. Here, the "transmission medium" that transmits the program refers to a medium that has the function of transmitting information, such as a network (communication network) such as the Internet or a communication line (communication line) such as a telephone line. The above program may also be for realizing part of the above-mentioned functions. Furthermore, it may be a so-called difference file (difference program) that can realize the above-mentioned functions in combination with a program already recorded in the computer system.

[0097] The above describes the form for carrying out the present invention using an embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0098] 1...information processing system, 2...first robot (information processing device), 3...second robot (information processing device), 201,301...image capture unit, 202,302...image processing unit, 203,303...sound collection unit, 204,304...audio processing unit, 205,305...motion processing unit, 206,306...policy processing unit, 207,307...storage unit, 208,308...sensor, 209,309...actuator, 210,310...communication unit, 211,311...first information area, 212,312...second information area, 213,313...third information area, g200...third information area, g210...second information area, g250...second information area

Claims

1. An information processing device that processes user information relating to a user, At least one of a first information area and a second information area for classifying the user information, The first information area is a general access permission determination block having a list including confidential topics, a confidentiality score assigned to each topic including the confidential topic, and an appropriate data processing level permitted for an information processing device of the user information; The second information area is an access permission block specific to the user when exchanging information between the information processing device and another user different from the user or an information processing device of the other user. Information processing device.

2. Further comprising a third information area for classifying the user information, which is publicly accessible registration information of users and information processing devices. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The classification of the information into the first information area, the second information area, or the third information area is based on the reliability between the user and the other user who exchanges information with the user. The information processing device according to claim 2 .

4. acquiring other user information related to the other user, and specifying a procedure for applying the acquired other user information to processing and understanding of the information processing device based on any one of the first information area and the second information area; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

5. acquire other user information relating to the other user, and if the processing of the acquired other user information is not permitted on the information processing device of the user based on the second information area and if transmission to the information processing device of the other user is permitted, encrypt the other user information and then transmit it to the information processing device of the other user; acquire other user information relating to the other user, and if processing of the acquired other user information is not permitted on the information processing device of the other user based on the second information area and if transmission of the other user information to the information processing device of the other user is not permitted, delete the other user information and do not transmit the other user information to the information processing device of the other user. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

6. acquire other user information relating to the other user, and if processing of the acquired other user information is permitted on the information processing device of the user based on the second information area, determine whether to process all of the other user information or to process only a part of the other user information based on a processing level. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

7. a first information processing device of a first user; a second information processing device of a second user, The second information processing device is At least one of a first information area and a second information area for classifying user information; classifying the information into either the first information area or the second information area based on a reliability between the second user and the first user who exchanges information with the second user; The first information area is a general access permission determination block having a list including confidential topics, a confidentiality score assigned to each topic including the confidential topic, and an appropriate data processing level permitted for an information processing device of the user information; the second information area is an access permission block specific to a user when information is exchanged between the first user or the first information processing device and the second information processing device, When the exchange of information between the first information processing device and the second information processing device is permitted, the exchange of information between the first information processing device and the second information processing device is performed. Information processing system.

8. An information processing method of an information processing device that processes user information related to a user, comprising: At least one of a first information area and a second information area for classifying the user information; The first information area is a general access permission determination block having a list including confidential topics, a confidentiality score assigned to each topic including the confidential topic, and an appropriate data processing level permitted for an information processing device of the user information; the second information area is an access permission block specific to the user when exchanging information between the information processing device and another user different from the user or an information processing device of the other user, acquiring other user information related to the other user, and specifying a procedure for applying the acquired other user information to processing and understanding of the information processing device based on any one of the first information area and the second information area; Information processing methods.

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