Information providing device, information providing method and computer program

Abstract

To provide information from which a user can obtain a sense of satisfaction or a sense of consent.SOLUTION: An acquisition unit acquires schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavioral information related to behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to desires that lead to purchasing behavior. A selection unit selects information related to the schedule of the user, the information matching content that leads to purchasing behavior of the user estimated from the behavioral information and the desire type information of the user, from a plurality of pieces of information given for provision to the user. A determination unit uses the schedule information of the user to determine a provision timing for providing the information to the user. An output unit outputs the selected information at the determined provision timing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information providing device, an information providing method, and a computer program that provide useful information to a user. [Background technology]

[0002] Background Art In some cases, such as on a search engine that searches for information or on an electronic commerce (EC) site that sells products, the needs of users browsing the site are inferred and recommended information tailored to those needs is provided.

[0003] In addition, Patent Document 1 (JP 2021-12547 A) discloses a technology for delivering advertising content according to a user's personality when delivering advertising content. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-12547 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Recommended information provided by search engines and EC sites is not provided unless the user browses the search engines or EC sites. Therefore, the recommended information is not necessarily provided to the user at an appropriate timing. In other words, it is possible that the user may not be satisfied with the information provided or may not feel convinced.

[0006] The present disclosure has been devised to solve the above-mentioned problems. That is, a main objective of the present disclosure is to propose an information providing device, an information providing method, and a computer program for providing information that gives a user a sense of satisfaction or satisfaction. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, an information providing device according to the present disclosure includes, as one aspect thereof, An acquisition unit that acquires schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; a selection unit that selects information related to the user's schedule and that matches the content that will lead to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; A determination unit that determines a timing for providing information to a user by using schedule information of the user; an output unit that outputs the selected information at a determined timing; Equipped with.

[0008] In addition, one aspect of the information providing method according to the present disclosure is to By computer, Acquire schedule information representing a schedule of the user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; selecting information related to the user's schedule and matching content that will lead to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; Using the user's schedule information, a timing for providing information to the user is determined; The selected information is output at the determined provision timing.

[0009] Furthermore, in one aspect, the computer program according to the present disclosure comprises: A process of acquiring schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; A process of selecting information related to the user's schedule and corresponding to the content leading to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; A process of determining a timing for providing information to a user by using schedule information of the user; A process of outputting the selected information at a determined timing. to be executed by the computer. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present disclosure, information suited to a user can be provided at an appropriate time for the user. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information providing system including an information providing device according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of an information providing device according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation related to information provision of the information providing device having the configuration shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating another configuration example of the information providing device according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating yet another configuration example of the information providing device according to the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating another configuration example of the information providing device according to the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating yet another configuration example of the information providing device according to the present disclosure. [Figure 8] 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation related to information provision of the information providing device having the configuration shown in FIG. 7. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] First Embodiment The information providing device 1 of the first embodiment is a computer device that constructs an information providing system as shown in FIG. 1. This information providing device 1 is connected to a database 4, which is a storage device. In the database 4, information provided (given) to be provided to users from a computer device (hereinafter also referred to as a business device) 5 of a business that sells products such as goods and services is registered. The information registered in the database 4 by the business device 5 (hereinafter also referred to as registered information) is associated with business identification information that identifies the business that provides the information, and data identification information that identifies the information. In addition, the registered information may be associated with keywords related to the contents of the information. Note that the number of business device 5 that one business provides information to the database 4 may be limited to one or may be multiple, and the number is appropriately set by a system designer or the like.

[0014] The information providing device 1 is also connected to a user's information device (hereinafter also referred to as a user device) 3 via an information communication network such as the Internet. The type of the user device 3 is not limited as long as it is an information device having a communication function and a notification control function, and specific examples include a personal computer, a tablet, and a smartphone. Note that the notification control function here includes a control function of a display device that notifies the user of information by displaying it, and a control function of an audio device that notifies the user of information by sound. The connection between the user device 3 and the information providing device 1 is executed by an application program (app) that gives the user device 3 a function to cooperate with the information providing device 1. Alternatively, the connection between the user device 3 and the information providing device 1 may be executed by a browser (software for browsing information on the Internet). Whether the connection between the user device 3 and the information providing device 1 is executed by an app or a browser is appropriately set by a system designer or the like, and is not limited here.

[0015] The information providing device 1 aims to provide the user (user device 3) with information suited to the user from among a plurality of pieces of registered information registered in the database 4 at a timing suitable for the user. In the first embodiment, the information suited to the user includes not only information required by the user (information suited to the user's needs) but also information related to products that the user is expected to want (in other words, information with contents that lead to purchasing behavior based on the user's desires). In other words, the information providing device 1 of the first embodiment can be said to be a device that connects businesses and users.

[0016] The configuration of the information providing device 1 of the first embodiment will be described below. The information providing device 1 of the first embodiment is a computer device (server), and includes an arithmetic device 10 and a storage device 20, as shown in FIG. 2. The storage device 20 includes a storage medium for storing data and a computer program (hereinafter also referred to as a program for short) 22. There are multiple types of storage devices, such as a magnetic disk device and a semiconductor memory device, and there are multiple types of semiconductor memory devices, such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) and a ROM (Read Only Memory). The information providing device 1 includes multiple storage devices with different uses, but the types and numbers of the storage devices are not limited here, and the description thereof will be omitted. In addition, the multiple storage devices included in the information providing device 1 will be collectively referred to as the storage device 20 without distinction.

[0017] The arithmetic device 10 is configured with a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The arithmetic device 10 can have various functions based on a program 22 by reading and executing the program 22 stored in a storage device 20. Here, the arithmetic device 10 includes a determination unit 11, an acquisition unit 12, a selection unit 13, a decision unit 14, and an output unit 15 as functional units related to information provision.

[0018] The determination unit 11 determines the type of the user's personality (hereinafter also referred to as the desire type) related to the desire leading to purchasing behavior. That is, a plurality of desire types are set in advance, and the determination unit 11 determines the desire type into which the user is classified from the plurality of desire types. The information on the user's desire type determined by the determination unit 11 is used to select information to be provided to the user. The number of desire types and the definition of each desire type are not limited here, and are appropriately set by a system designer or the like. When the system designer or the like sets the number and definition of the desire types, for example, the user's satisfaction or satisfaction with the information provided to the user, the processing load of the device, etc. are taken into consideration. As described above, the definition of the desire type is not limited here, but a specific example of the desire type will be described below.

[0019] For example, the AA type, which is one of the desire types, is the type that looks ahead and makes preparations and desires a stable life, and the consumer consciousness behavior of this AA type person tends to be to thoroughly research on the Internet before making a purchase and to listen carefully to what the store clerk has to say. In addition, the main things that AA type people are interested in are food, travel, and health, and health and a stable life tend to rank high on the list of things they want.

[0020] Another type of desire, the BB type, is a type that acts based on their own preferences and will, and the consumer behavior of BB types is such that they tend to do thorough research on the Internet before making a purchase, and go to a store where the salesperson will explain things carefully to them when looking for something they want.The main things that BB types are interested in are music, food, and travel, and the top things they want tend to be money, health, and time.

[0021] The definition of the need type may be hierarchically organized into major categories, medium categories, and small categories. In this case, when the need types are roughly classified into major categories, a plurality of further types based on the medium categories and small categories are set for each need type. In other words, it can be said that it is possible to provide fluctuations in each of the need types of major categories.

[0022] In the first embodiment, the determination unit 11 transmits questionnaire questions for determining a desire type to the user device 3 in order to determine the desire type into which the user is classified. An example of the timing for transmitting the questionnaire questions for determining a desire type to the user device 3 is, for example, timing triggered by a user operating the user device 3 to output a type determination request to the information providing device 1. The type determination request is a command requesting that a desire type be determined, and is output from the user device 3 during a user registration process in which the user registers his / her own information in the information providing device 1. Note that the user information registered in the storage device 20 of the information providing device 1 by the user registration process includes, for example, an address, age, the user's nickname, contact information (for example, a telephone number, email address information, and SNS (Social Networking Service) account information), and the like.

[0023] The determination unit 11 also receives responses to the questionnaire (questionnaire responses) from the user device 3. Furthermore, the determination unit 11 uses the questionnaire responses from the user device 3 and a desire type determination rule that has been given in advance to determine the desire type into which the user is classified from among a plurality of desire types that have been set in advance. The desire type determination rule is a rule that has been set in advance to determine the desire type of the user using the questionnaire responses from the user. The desire type determination rule and the questionnaire questions for determining the desire type are appropriately set by a system designer or the like in consideration of the number and definitions of the desire types, and are not limited here, so that a description thereof will be omitted.

[0024] The acquisition unit 12 acquires the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information. That is, in the first embodiment, the desire type information is information that indicates the desire type of the user determined by the determination unit 11. The acquisition unit 12 acquires the user's desire type information from the determination unit 11. The acquisition unit 12 also stores the acquired desire type information in the storage device 20 in association with, for example, user identification information. The user identification information is information that identifies a user. The information providing device 1 may be connected to a user information database 6 as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 2. The user information database 6 is a storage device that stores information about a user (hereinafter also referred to as user information). When the information providing device 1 is connected to the user information database 6, the desire type information is stored as one piece of user information in the user information database 6 instead of the storage device 20, or in both the storage device 20 and the user information database 6. When the information providing device 1 is connected to the user information database 6 in this way, the user information is stored in the user information database 6, but in the following, in order to avoid complication of the description, the description of the user information database 6 is omitted.

[0025] The schedule information acquired by the acquisition unit 12 is information that represents the schedule of the user. The schedule of the user is a predetermined event or action involving the user, and although the types are not limited here, specific examples include travel, events, birthdays of the user or family and friends, business trips, exams, deadlines for submissions, reservation deadlines, etc. The items listed as schedules are also sometimes called events.

[0026] For example, when schedule information inputted to the user device 3 by the user is outputted from the user device 3 to the information providing device 1, the acquiring unit 12 acquires the schedule information of the user.

[0027] Also, for example, it is assumed that the user device 3 has a schedule management function using an application program for schedule management (also referred to as a schedule application), and the acquisition unit 12 can cooperate with the schedule application. In this case, the acquisition unit 12 acquires schedule information input by the user to the user device 3 using the schedule application from the user device 3. Alternatively, when the schedule application stores the user's schedule information in an external storage device other than the user device 3, the acquisition unit 12 acquires the user's schedule information from the external storage device. In this case, when the acquisition unit 12 acquires the user's schedule information using the schedule application, for example, the acquisition unit 12 checks the update status of the user's schedule information by the schedule application at a preset time interval, and acquires the unacquired schedule information when it is determined that there is unacquired schedule information. Note that the user may be able to set whether or not to permit cooperation with the schedule application as described above, and when the user sets that cooperation with the schedule application is permitted, the acquisition unit 12 may acquire the user's schedule information by the schedule application.

[0028] Furthermore, it is assumed that the user device 3 has an email communication function using an application program for email communication (also referred to as an email application) and the acquisition unit 12 can cooperate with the email application. In this case, when an email received by the user device 3 contains information about the user's schedule, the email application or the acquisition unit 12 extracts the schedule information from the received email and transmits the schedule information from the user device 3 to the information providing device 1. The acquisition unit 12 acquires the schedule information transmitted from the user device 3 in this manner as the user's schedule information. Note that the user may be able to set whether or not to permit cooperation with the email application as described above, and when the user sets that cooperation with the email application is permitted, the acquisition unit 12 may acquire the schedule information extracted from the email.

[0029] The user's schedule information acquired by the acquisition unit 12 is stored in the storage device 20 as one piece of user information in association with, for example, user identification information.

[0030] The user's behavior information acquired by the acquisition unit 12 is information related to the user's behavior. Here, the content of the user's behavior information is not limited as long as it is information related to the user's behavior, but the following information is given as an example of the behavior information. For example, one type of behavior information is information representing the content of the user's actual behavior (hereinafter also referred to as execution information). This execution information is acquired by the acquisition unit 12 as follows. For example, when information representing that a schedule included in the information has actually been executed is input by the user to the user device 3, the acquisition unit 12 acquires the information of the executed schedule as execution information (behavior information). Also, when information representing the content of the actual behavior is input by the user to the user device 3, the acquisition unit 12 acquires the information input by the user as execution information (behavior information). Note that, in order to allow the user to input information representing that a schedule has actually been executed or information representing the content of the actual behavior as described above to the user device 3, for example, the acquisition unit 12 displays an input screen for inputting such information to the user device 3. The display mode of this screen is not limited here, so its description is omitted.

[0031] The execution information may also include purchase history information (such as purchase date, name of purchased product, purchase amount, and name of store where purchased product) that indicates the behavior of the user who purchased products such as goods and services. For example, when the user inputs purchase history information to the user device 3, the acquisition unit 12 acquires the input purchase history information as execution information (behavior information). In order to have the user input the purchase history information to the user device 3, for example, the acquisition unit 12 displays an input screen for inputting the purchase history information to the user device 3. The display mode of this screen is not limited here, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0032] Furthermore, in the case where information on the purchase history of the user is provided by the business operator, the acquisition unit 12 may acquire the information on the purchase history of the user from the business operator as the execution information (behavior information).

[0033] Furthermore, another example of behavioral information acquired by the acquisition unit 12 is information representing a user's health condition (hereinafter also referred to as health information). For example, when a user inputs information representing his / her own health condition to the user device 3, the acquisition unit 12 acquires the input information as the user's health information. The display mode of a screen for inputting a health condition, which is displayed on the screen of a display device in the user device 3 for the acquisition unit 12 to acquire the user's health information in this way, is not limited here, and a description thereof will be omitted.

[0034] Also, the acquisition unit 12 transmits a questionnaire for a health check to the user device 3 at, for example, a preset health check timing. Then, when a response to the questionnaire is returned from the user device 3, the acquisition unit 12 may receive the response to the questionnaire and estimate the user's health condition from the response to the questionnaire, thereby acquiring the user's health condition as health information. An example of the health check timing is a timing at a preset time interval. Another example of the health check timing is a timing triggered by a determination that there is a schedule requiring a health check, using a schedule (event) acquired from the schedule information and a preset check necessity determination criterion. Furthermore, the health check timing may be both the timing at the time interval as described above and the timing determined from the schedule information. The health check timing is appropriately set by a system designer or the like.

[0035] Furthermore, when the user wears a wearable device having a function for measuring a health condition such as pulse rate and body temperature, the acquisition unit 12 may cooperate with the wearable device to acquire information on the measurement results by the wearable device as health information (behavioral information). The user may be able to set whether or not to permit the information providing device 1 to acquire information from such a wearable device, and when the user sets that the cooperation is permitted, the acquisition unit 12 may acquire information from the wearable device. Furthermore, the user may manage (store) his / her own sleep situation, blood pressure changes, body cycles, and the like, using an application program for managing health condition (health condition management app) provided in the user device 3. In such a case, the acquisition unit 12 may cooperate with the health condition management app of the user device 3 to acquire information related to the user's health condition managed by the health condition management app as health information (behavioral information).

[0036] Furthermore, another example of the behavioral information acquired by the acquisition unit 12 is user attribute information. The user attribute information includes, for example, personal information such as the user's address, hobbies, and family structure. Such user attribute information is transmitted from the user device 3 to the information providing device 1 by, for example, a user registration process. The user registration process is a process executed as a procedure for the user to receive a service of information provision by the information providing device 1. In this user registration process, personal information corresponding to preset registration items is input by the user to the user device 3, and the input information is output to the information providing device 1 as the user's attribute information. The acquisition unit 12 acquires the attribute information output from the user device 3 as behavioral information. Furthermore, in a case where the business device 5 of the business in which the user has registered his / her information and the information providing device 1 are connected via an information and communication network, for example, the business may have obtained consent from the user to provide information to the information providing device 1. In such a case, the acquisition unit 12 may acquire information registered by the user with the business from the business device 5 as the user's attribute information (behavioral information). The information of a user registered with a business includes information that the business uses to provide services, and may include information that other businesses do not hold. For this reason, being able to obtain user attribute information from the business device 5 also increases the types and amount of information that the information providing device 1 obtains as user attribute information (behavioral information). This enables the information providing device 1 to provide information that is better suited to the user, thereby improving the quality of the information providing service.

[0037] The acquisition unit 12 acquires the above-mentioned behavioral information, associates the acquired behavioral information with the user identification information, and stores the information in the storage device 20 as one piece of user information.

[0038] The selection unit 13 selects the following information to be provided to the user from among a plurality of pieces of registered information stored in the database 4, which is a storage device. That is, the information selected by the selection unit 13 is information for each user, and is estimated to be useful (providing awareness) to the user by using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information, and is estimated to lead to purchasing behavior based on the user's latent desire. In other words, the information selected by the selection unit 13 is information that matches the content that leads to the user's purchasing behavior estimated by using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information. As a specific example, it is assumed that it is detected from the schedule information that a child's elementary school entrance ceremony will be held in two months, that it is detected from the attribute information of the behavior information that it is the first child's elementary school entrance ceremony, and that it is detected from the desire type information that the user is interested in clothes, shoes, and bags and has a tendency to want something a little better than others (in other words, to be noticed by others). In such a case, for example, since it is the first child's elementary school entrance ceremony, the selection unit 13 estimates that the user will be interested in what will be held at school on the day of the entrance ceremony, and that the content will be useful to the user. The selection unit 13 also estimates that the user will be very interested in information related to items needed on the day of the entrance ceremony, particularly clothes, shoes, and bags, and further including information introducing slightly fashionable clothes, shoes, and bags, which will lead to purchasing behavior of clothes, shoes, and bags. Then, the selection unit 13 selects information matching the content estimated to be appropriate to provide to the user from the registered information in the database 4 based on such an estimation.

[0039] There are several methods for estimating the content of information that will lead to a user's purchasing behavior using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information, such as a method for estimating the content of information using predetermined rules, a method using AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology, etc. Here, the estimation method is not limited, and a method appropriately selected by the system designer, etc. is used.

[0040] In the first embodiment, the selection unit 13 performs a process of estimating the content of information that leads to purchasing behavior as described above for each schedule included in the schedule information of the user, and a process of selecting information that matches the estimated content from the registered information of the database 4 for each user. Alternatively, from the viewpoint of reducing the load on the information providing device 1, for example, the selection unit 13 extracts a schedule that is determined as a target for information provision from among the schedules included in the schedule information of the user. Then, the selection unit 13 may perform a process of estimating the content of information that leads to purchasing behavior as described above for the extracted schedule, and a process of selecting information that matches the estimated content from the registered information of the database 4. In this way, the selection unit 13 uses the schedule information of the user to execute a process related to the selection of information as described above. For this reason, for example, the selection unit 13 periodically checks the schedule information of the user, and starts a process related to the selection of information as described above when it detects that there is a schedule of the user that has not been checked.

[0041] Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the number of pieces of information that the selection unit 13 selects from the database 4 for one schedule is not limited. That is, the selection unit 13 may select a plurality of pieces of information from the database 4 for one schedule, or may select one piece of information from the database 4. The number of pieces of information selected by the selection unit 13 from the database 4 varies depending on, for example, the content of the information leading to the estimated purchasing behavior of the user and the content of the registered information stored in the database 4. Note that an information search method is used in the process in which the selection unit 13 selects information matching the content leading to the estimated purchasing behavior of the user from the registered information in the database 4. The type of search method used here is not limited, and a description thereof will be omitted.

[0042] Furthermore, the selection unit 13 stores in the storage device 20 data identification information associated with the selected information and user schedule identification information identifying the schedule of the user related to the selected information in association with the user identification information.

[0043] The determination unit 14 determines the timing of providing the information selected by the selection unit 13 (hereinafter, also referred to as information for user provision) to the user. In the first embodiment, the content of the information for user provision to be provided and information on the date and time corresponding to the user's schedule related to the information for user provision (i.e., schedule information) are used to determine the timing of providing. In addition, an example of a method of determining the timing of providing is a method using AI technology. For example, a model for timing determination generated by AI technology is used. The teacher data used to generate this model is, for example, relationship data between the type of schedule, the content of the information to be provided (information for user provision), and information indicating the timing of providing the information for user provision (for example, information that the timing of providing is one week before the scheduled date). Note that, when a business providing the information for user provision has a request regarding the timing of information provision, such as requesting that the information be provided only on business days, the information used to determine the timing of providing may further include information indicating the request. That is, for example, information indicating the request regarding the timing of information provision (business request information) is associated with the business identification information and stored in the storage device 20. The determination unit 14 determines the timing of providing the information to be provided to the user not only using information about the user, such as the user's schedule information, but also using business request information about the business providing the information to be provided to the user, if such information is stored in the storage device 20.

[0044] In the first embodiment, as described above, there is a case where a plurality of pieces of information (user-provided information) are selected by the selection unit 13 for one schedule. In this case, the timing of providing each piece of user-provided information is determined by the determination unit 14. That is, the determination unit 14 has a function of making a plan to provide a plurality of pieces of user-provided information related to one schedule of the user to the user (scheduling information provision). Note that, when a plurality of pieces of user-provided information are selected by the selection unit 13 for one schedule of the user, the timing of providing the plurality of pieces of user-provided information is not necessarily different from each other, and some pieces of information may be provided at the same timing. In addition, when a plurality of pieces of user-provided information are selected for one schedule of the user, the timing of providing the pieces of user-provided information may be determined taking into consideration the relevance of the contents of the pieces of user-provided information related to the same schedule.

[0045] The determination unit 14 stores, for example, date information (hereinafter also referred to as providing timing information) indicating the determined providing timing in the storage device 20. The providing timing information stored in the storage device 20 is associated with the data identification information of the corresponding information to be provided to the user, the user identification information, and the user scheduled identification information.

[0046] The output unit 15 outputs the information (information to be provided to a user) selected by the selection unit 13 at the provision timing determined by the determination unit 14. The method of the information output process executed by the output unit 15 is not limited, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted here, but for example, the following process is executed by the output unit 15. That is, in one process executed by the output unit 15, for example, the presence or absence of information to be provided to a user, which is the provision timing, is determined using provision timing information associated with data identification information (information identifying information to be provided to a user) stored in the storage device 20. This determination is executed periodically, for example, once a day.

[0047] In another process executed by the output unit 15, for example, the information to be provided to the user that has reached the time of provision is read from the database 4 using the data identification information of the information. In another process executed by the output unit 15, for example, the information on the user's contact points is acquired from the user information stored in the storage device 20 using the user identification information associated with the data identification information of the information to be provided to the user that has reached the time of provision. In yet another process executed by the output unit 15, the information to be provided to the user that has been read from the database 4 is output using the acquired information on the user's contact points.

[0048] The information to be provided to the user output by such processing of the output unit 15 is transmitted to the user device 3 of the corresponding user via the information communication network. The user device 3 that receives the information to be provided to the user notifies the user of the information to be provided to the user, for example, by display on a display device or by voice, in accordance with a predetermined control procedure.

[0049] The information providing device 1 of the first embodiment is configured as described above. Next, an example of an operation related to information provision in the information providing device 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process related to information provision in the information providing device 1. Fig. 3 also shows an information providing method used by a computer constituting the information providing device 1.

[0050] For example, the acquisition unit 12 of the information providing device 1 acquires the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information at a predetermined timing and by a predetermined acquisition method (step 101 in FIG. 1). After that, the selection unit 13 uses the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information to estimate the content of information related to the user's schedule and leading to the user's purchasing behavior (step 102). After that, the selection unit 13 selects information matching the content of the estimated information from the registered information in the database 4 (step 103).

[0051] Then, the determination unit 14 determines the timing for providing the selected information using the user's schedule information (step 104).

[0052] Output unit 15 outputs, for example, the information selected by selection unit 13 to user device 3 of the user at the provision timing determined by determination unit 14 (step 105).

[0053] As described above, the information providing device 1 of the first embodiment is configured to determine the timing of providing information to the user using the user's schedule information, and provide (output) the information to the user at the determined timing. Furthermore, the information provided to the user by the information providing device 1 includes content that is estimated by the information providing device 1 to be suitable for the user using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information. This allows the information providing device 1 to provide information that gives the user a sense of satisfaction or satisfaction at a timing appropriate for the user.

[0054] Furthermore, the content that is estimated by the information providing device 1 to suit the user using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information is information related to the user's schedule, and is also content that leads to purchasing behavior that takes into account the user's personality related to desires that lead to purchasing behavior. Therefore, the information providing device 1 can provide the user with information that matches such content, which is expected to increase the user's purchasing motivation and effectively connect the user and businesses.

[0055] <Second embodiment> A second embodiment according to the present disclosure will be described below. In the description of the second embodiment, components having the same names as those components having the same reference numerals used in the description of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and a duplicate description of the common parts will be omitted.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 4, the information providing device 1 of the second embodiment further includes an evaluation acquisition unit 16 and a feedback unit 17 as functional units of the arithmetic device 10, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment.

[0057] After the output unit 15 outputs information (information to be provided to a user) to the user device 3 of the user, the evaluation acquisition unit 16 acquires evaluation information representing an evaluation of the information to be provided to a user from the user device 3 of the user who has referred to the output information to be provided to a user. The content of the information acquired as the evaluation information is not limited here and may be appropriately set by a system designer or the like. For example, the evaluation information includes information on the level of merit indicating the degree of goodness or badness of the information to be provided to a user, and comments such as impressions, opinions, and criticisms. The comments may include comments on products (goods or services) purchased by the user from the business entity that has transmitted the information to be provided to a user, taking into account the content of the information to be provided to a user. Note that there are various methods for acquiring evaluation information from a user using the user device 3, and since the method is not limited here, the description thereof will be omitted.

[0058] The feedback unit 17 transmits the evaluation information acquired by the evaluation acquisition unit 16 to the business operator (business operator device 5) which is the information source that transmitted information related to the evaluation information. Alternatively, the feedback unit 17 analyzes the evaluation information and transmits the analysis result to the business operator which is the information source that transmitted the information provided to the user. Whether the feedback unit 17 has a feedback function of transmitting the evaluation information as it is to the business operator or a feedback function of transmitting the result of analyzing the evaluation information to the business operator is set by, for example, a system designer. Alternatively, the feedback unit 17 may be capable of executing both such feedback functions, and may execute one feedback function selected by the business operator for each business operator. Note that, as a method for analyzing the evaluation information, an appropriate method is used in consideration of the contents of the evaluation information, the contents of the information to be evaluated (information to be provided to the user), the business contents of the business operator to which the feedback unit 17 transmits information, and the requests of the business operator. In addition, the feedback function including the analysis of the evaluation information may further include a consulting function for improving the evaluation from the user. Furthermore, the operator device 5 of the operator to which the feedback unit 17 sends information and the information providing device 1 are connected, for example, via an information and communication network, and the connection between the information providing device 1 and the operator device 5 is performed by an app or a browser, similar to the connection between the information providing device 1 and the user device 3.

[0059] The configuration of the information providing device 1 of the second embodiment other than the above-mentioned configuration is similar to the configuration of the information providing device 1 of the first embodiment.

[0060] As described above, the information providing device 1 of the second embodiment has a similar configuration to the information providing device 1 of the first embodiment, and therefore can achieve the same effects as the information providing device 1 of the first embodiment. Furthermore, the information providing device 1 of the second embodiment has the evaluation acquisition unit 16 and the feedback unit 17, and therefore can provide information on evaluations from users to businesses. In other words, such information on evaluations from users is useful information for businesses, for example, for improving products, and therefore the information providing device 1 of the second embodiment can provide information that is also useful to businesses.

[0061] <Other embodiments> The present disclosure is not limited to the first embodiment or the second embodiment, and may adopt various embodiments. For example, the information providing device 1 may include a generating unit 18 as shown in FIG. 5 as a functional unit of the computing device 10, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment or the second embodiment. The generating unit 18 uses information selected from the database 4 by the selecting unit 13 as material, processes the material information using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information, and generates information that better matches the user's desire. For example, the generating unit 18 includes link information leading to the provision of further information, or includes text data expressing the proposed content by characters, in the information selected by the selecting unit 13. The generating unit 18 may also integrate multiple pieces of information selected by the selecting unit 13, or generate summary information (summary site) that can be easily connected to multiple pieces of information. Furthermore, the generating unit 18 may add information related to the content of the information selected by the selecting unit 13 and acquired from open data.

[0062] In addition, in the first and second embodiments, the information providing device 1 is equipped with the judgment unit 11. However, instead of this, for example, in the case where the user's desire type is judged by a judgment device 7 equipped with the judgment unit 11 as shown in FIG. 6 and the information providing device 1 can acquire the judgment result, the judgment unit 11 may be omitted from the information providing device 1.

[0063] Furthermore, the information providing device 1 may further include a function of accumulating the user's schedule information and behavior information, and the determination unit 11 may further include a function of reviewing the user's desire type using the accumulated information at a preset review timing. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, an example is shown in which the feedback unit 17 transmits evaluation information and information on the analysis result of the evaluation information to the business device 5. For example, in addition to this, the feedback unit 17 may include a function of outputting the evaluation information and information on the analysis result of the evaluation information to a printer when a print command is received from the device operator in order to print the evaluation information and information on the analysis result of the evaluation information on a paper medium.

[0064] Furthermore, the information providing device in the present disclosure may also have a configuration as shown in FIG. 7. That is, the information providing device 50 is a computer device, and includes an acquisition unit 51, a selection unit 52, a determination unit 53, and an output unit 54 as functional units realized by executing a computer program. The acquisition unit 51 acquires schedule information representing the user's schedule, behavioral information related to the user's behavior, and desire type information representing the type of the user's personality related to the desire leading to purchasing behavior. The selection unit 52 selects information related to the user's schedule and suitable for the content leading to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavioral information and desire type information from among multiple pieces of information given for provision to the user. The determination unit 53 uses the user's schedule information to determine the timing of providing information to the user. The output unit 54 outputs the selected information at the determined timing. The acquiring unit 12, the selecting unit 13, the deciding unit 14, and the output unit 15 described in the first and second embodiments are specific examples of the acquiring unit 51, the selecting unit 52, the deciding unit 53, and the output unit 54, respectively.

[0065] Next, an example of a process related to information provision in the information providing device 50 will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a process related to information provision in the information providing device 50. Fig. 8 also shows an information providing method used by a computer constituting the information providing device 50.

[0066] For example, the acquisition unit 51 acquires information (step 201). The acquired information includes schedule information, behavioral information, and desire type information. The selection unit 52 selects information related to the user's schedule and suitable for the content leading to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavioral information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided for provision to the user (step 202). After that, the determination unit 53 uses the user's schedule information to determine the timing for providing information to the user (step 203). The output unit 54 outputs the selected information at the determined timing (step 204).

[0067] The information providing device 50 is configured as described above. With such a configuration, the information providing device 50 can provide information that gives the user a sense of satisfaction or understanding.

[0068] A part or all of the above-described embodiments can be described as, but is not limited to, the following supplementary notes. (Appendix 1) An acquisition unit that acquires schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; a selection unit that selects information related to the user's schedule and that matches the content that will lead to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; A determination unit that determines a timing for providing information to a user by using schedule information of the user; an output unit that outputs the selected information at a determined timing; An information providing device comprising: (Appendix 2) 2. The information providing device according to claim 1, further comprising a determination unit for determining a type of personality of the user related to desires leading to purchasing behavior. (Appendix 3) The selection unit selects a plurality of different pieces of information regarding one schedule, The determination unit determines a timing for providing each of the selected pieces of information, thereby making a plan for providing a plurality of pieces of information related to one schedule. 2. An information providing device as described in appended claim 1. (Appendix 4) an evaluation acquisition unit that acquires evaluation information representing an evaluation from a user who has referred to the output information; a feedback unit that transmits the acquired evaluation information to an information source that has transmitted information related to the evaluation information; 2. The information providing device according to claim 1, further comprising: (Appendix 5) an evaluation acquisition unit that acquires evaluation information representing an evaluation from a user who has referred to the output information; a feedback unit that analyzes the evaluation information and transmits the analysis result to an information source that has transmitted information related to the evaluation information; 2. The information providing device according to claim 1, further comprising: (Appendix 6) A generating unit processes the information selected by the selecting unit using schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information of the user to generate information to be provided to the user, The output unit outputs the information generated by the generation unit instead of outputting the information selected by the selection unit. 2. An information providing device as described in appended claim 1. (Appendix 7) By computer, Acquire schedule information representing a schedule of the user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; selecting information related to the user's schedule and matching content that will lead to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; Using the user's schedule information, a timing for providing information to the user is determined; The selected information is output at a determined timing. Information provision method. (Appendix 8) The desire type information is obtained by determining the type of the user's personality related to the desire that leads to purchasing behavior. The method of providing information is described in Appendix 7. (Appendix 9) The computer also Select multiple different pieces of information about one event, By determining the timing for providing each of the selected pieces of information, a plan for providing multiple pieces of information about one event is made. The method of providing information is described in Appendix 7. (Appendix 10) The computer also Obtaining evaluation information representing evaluations from users who have referred to the output information; The acquired evaluation information is transmitted to the information source that transmitted the information related to the evaluation information. The method of providing information is described in Appendix 7. (Appendix 11) The computer also Obtaining evaluation information representing evaluations from users who have referred to the output information; Analyze the evaluation information and transmit the analysis results to the information source that transmitted the information related to the evaluation information The method of providing information is described in Appendix 7. (Appendix 12) The computer also generating information to be provided to the user by processing the selected information using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information; Instead of outputting selected information, output generated information The method of providing information is described in Appendix 7. (Appendix 13) A process of acquiring schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; A process of selecting information related to the user's schedule and corresponding to the content leading to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; A process of determining a timing for providing information to a user by using schedule information of the user; A process of outputting the selected information at a determined timing. A computer program for causing a computer to execute the above. (Appendix 14) The desire type information is obtained by determining the type of the user's personality related to the desire that leads to purchasing behavior. 14. The computer program of claim 13. (Appendix 15) A process of selecting a plurality of different pieces of information relating to one schedule; A process of making a plan to provide multiple pieces of information related to one schedule by determining the timing of providing each of the selected multiple pieces of information. Further includes a computer program for causing a computer to execute the 14. The computer program of claim 13. (Appendix 16) A process of acquiring evaluation information representing evaluations from users who have referred to the output information; A process of transmitting the acquired evaluation information to an information source that has transmitted information related to the evaluation information; Further includes a computer program for causing a computer to execute the 14. The computer program of claim 13. (Appendix 17) A process of acquiring evaluation information representing evaluations from users who have referred to the output information; A process of analyzing the evaluation information and transmitting the analysis result to an information source that has transmitted information related to the evaluation information; Further includes a computer program for causing a computer to execute the 14. The computer program of claim 13. (Appendix 18) A process of generating information to be provided to the user by processing the selected information using the user's schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information; outputting the generated information instead of outputting the selected information; Further includes a computer program for causing a computer to execute the 14. The computer program of claim 13.

[0069] Although the present disclosure has been described above with reference to the embodiments, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. Various modifications that can be understood by a person skilled in the art can be made to the configuration and details of the present disclosure within the scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, each embodiment can be appropriately combined with other embodiments. [Explanation of symbols]

[0070] 1,50 Information provision equipment 11 Judgment section 12,51 Acquisition Department 13,52 Selection Department 14,53 Decision section 15,54 Output section 16 Evaluation Department 17 Feedback section 18 Generation part

Claims

1. An acquisition unit that acquires schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; a selection unit that selects information related to the user's schedule and that matches the content that will lead to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; A determination unit that determines a timing for providing information to a user by using schedule information of the user; an output unit that outputs the selected information at a determined timing; An information providing device comprising:

2. The information providing device according to claim 1 , further comprising a determination unit for determining a type of a user's personality related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior.

3. The selection unit selects a plurality of different pieces of information regarding one schedule, The determination unit determines a timing for providing each of the selected pieces of information, thereby making a plan for providing a plurality of pieces of information related to one schedule.

2. The information providing device according to claim 1.

4. an evaluation acquisition unit that acquires evaluation information representing an evaluation from a user who has referred to the output information; a feedback unit that transmits the acquired evaluation information to an information source that has transmitted information related to the evaluation information; The information providing device according to claim 1 , further comprising:

5. an evaluation acquisition unit that acquires evaluation information representing an evaluation from a user who has referred to the output information; a feedback unit that analyzes the evaluation information and transmits the analysis result to an information source that has transmitted information related to the evaluation information; The information providing device according to claim 1 , further comprising:

6. A generating unit processes the information selected by the selecting unit using schedule information, behavior information, and desire type information of the user to generate information to be provided to the user, The output unit outputs the information generated by the generation unit instead of outputting the information selected by the selection unit.

2. The information providing device according to claim 1.

7. By computer, Acquire schedule information representing a schedule of the user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; selecting information related to the user's schedule and matching content that will lead to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; Using the user's schedule information, a timing for providing information to the user is determined; The selected information is output at a determined timing. Information provision method.

8. A process of acquiring schedule information representing a schedule of a user, behavior information relating to the behavior of the user, and desire type information representing a type of personality of the user related to a desire leading to a purchasing behavior; A process of selecting information related to the user's schedule and corresponding to the content leading to the user's purchasing behavior estimated from the user's behavior information and desire type information from among a plurality of pieces of information provided to be provided to the user; A process of determining a timing for providing information to a user by using schedule information of the user; A process of outputting the selected information at a determined timing. A computer program for causing a computer to execute the above.

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