Device, method, and program for generating advertisement image information, and advertisement printing system

Abstract

To provide an advertisement image information generation device, method, and program for generating advertisement image information that enhances advertising effectiveness, and to provide an advertisement printing system.SOLUTION: An advertisement image information generation device is provided, comprising: an advertising target information acquisition unit 14 for acquiring attribute information of an advertising target to be printed on a packaging material for packaging a product; a packaged product information acquisition unit 13 for acquiring attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material; and an advertisement image information generation unit 16 configured to generate a symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising target, generate a non-symbolic image for a portion other than the symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipient, and combine the symbolic and non-symbolic images to generate advertising image information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an advertising image information generating device, method, and program for generating advertising image information to be printed on packaging material, and an advertising printing system. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, the market for electronic commerce (EC) services such as Amazon (registered trademark) and Rakuten (registered trademark) has been expanding.

[0003] When products ordered on an e-commerce site are packed in packaging materials and shipped to the recipient, advertisements introducing other products in addition to the packed products or promoting the company's brand image are often included or printed on the packaging materials.

[0004] For example, in the past, advertising was done by printing an image of the advertised product on packaging material, or by printing a code on packaging material to access a website that contains information about the advertised product, and then directing the customer to the website.

[0005] For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a system that matches information about the recipient of a product ordered in an electronic commerce transaction with information about a recipient designated by an advertiser, and prints an advertising image designated by the advertiser on the packaging material of the product ordered by the recipient designated by the advertiser and delivers it.

[0006] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 proposes an image generation program for generating images to be used in advertisements. The image generation program in Patent Document 2 proposes setting a face image to be used in advertisements based on an advertising effectiveness index, and combining the face image with a body image to generate an image to be used in advertisements. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-61049 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-68552 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] However, as described in Patent Document 1, if an advertising image designated by an advertiser is printed, there is a possibility that the advertising image will not necessarily attract the recipient's interest. Also, in Patent Document 2, a facial image is set based on an advertising effectiveness index, but there is also a possibility that the facial image will not necessarily attract the recipient's interest.

[0009] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an advertising image information generating device, method, and program, as well as an advertising printing system, that generate advertising image information that can further enhance advertising effectiveness. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The advertising image information generating device of the present invention includes an advertising target information acquiring unit that acquires attribute information of an advertising target to be printed on packaging material in which a product is packed, a recipient information acquiring unit that acquires attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material, and an advertising image information generating unit that generates a symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising target, generates a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipient, and generates advertising image information by combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the advertising image information generating device of the present invention, a symbolic image of the advertising target is generated based on the attribute information of the advertising target, a non-symbolic image of the portion other than the symbolic image is generated based on the attribute information of the recipient, and advertising image information is generated by combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image, so that an advertising image that attracts the recipient's interest can be generated, thereby further increasing the advertising effectiveness. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an advertisement printing system using an embodiment of the advertisement image information generating device of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of an image representing an advertising target and advertising image information. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an example of a printing device. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram illustrating the processing flow of the advertisement printing system shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram illustrating the processing flow of the advertisement printing system shown in FIG. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] An advertisement printing system 1 using an embodiment of an advertisement image information generating device of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the advertisement printing system 1 of this embodiment.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the advertisement printing system 1 of this embodiment includes an advertisement management device 10, an orderer terminal device 20, an EC (Electric Commerce) management device 30, a logistics company management device 40, and an advertiser management device 50.

[0015] The advertising management device 10, the client terminal device 20, the EC management device 30, the logistics company management device 40 and the advertiser management device 50 are connected to a communication line such as the Internet line and are configured to enable the exchange of various information via the communication line.

[0016] In the advertising printing system 1 of this embodiment, when an orderer orders a specific product on an EC (Electronic Commerce) site, an advertisement for the specific advertised product is printed on the packaging material in which the product is packed.Then, the packaging material with the printed advertisement is sent to the recipient of the product, thereby achieving the advertising effect of the advertised product.The recipient may be the orderer himself or may be someone other than the orderer and designated by the orderer.

[0017] The advertising printing system 1 of this embodiment generates a symbolic image of the advertising target (for example, an image of a car if the advertised product is a car) based on the attribute information of the advertising target, generates a non-symbolic image other than the symbolic image (for example, a background image of the car) based on the attribute information of the recipient, combines the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image to generate advertising image information, and prints an advertisement on packaging material using this generated advertising image information. Note that the attribute information of the advertising target, the attribute information of the recipient, and the method of generating the advertising image information will be described in detail later.

[0018] Each device constituting the advertisement printing system 1 of this embodiment will be described in more detail below.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, the advertisement management device 10 includes a control unit 11 and a storage unit 12.

[0020] The control unit 11 controls the entire advertisement management device 10. In particular, the control unit 11 of this embodiment has a packaged product information acquisition unit 13, an advertising target information acquisition unit 14, an advertising target determination unit 15, an advertising image information generation unit 16, and an advertising image information output unit 17.

[0021] The packaged product information acquisition unit 13 receives product order information from an orderer and acquires attribute information of the packaged product from the order information. In this embodiment, the packaged product information acquisition unit 13 corresponds to the recipient information acquisition unit of the present invention.

[0022] The order information includes delivery item identification information for identifying the ordered delivery item and attribute information of the packaged item ordered by the orderer. The attribute information of the packaged item includes identification information such as the type of packaged item, product name, manufacturer, and product number, as well as attribute information of the recipient of the packaged item. The attribute information of the recipient of the packaged item includes the recipient's address (delivery destination), recipient's gender, recipient's age, etc.

[0023] The packaged product information acquisition unit 13 also acquires information on the recipient's hobbies, preferences, and wealth level as attribute information of the recipient. The information on hobbies, preferences, and wealth level may be acquired, for example, from the recipient's personal information managed by the EC management device 30. The information on hobbies, preferences, and wealth level may be acquired, for example, from the recipient's past purchase history, favorite registrations, and web page browsing history, as well as information inferred from these pieces of information. The information on the recipient's wealth level may be acquired, for example, from the amount of money the recipient has spent within a certain period of time and information inferred from that amount.

[0024] The advertising target information acquisition unit 14 acquires attribute information of the advertising target output from the advertiser management device 50, which will be described later. The attribute information of the advertising target includes an image representing the advertising target specified by the advertiser, information on the product type and manufacturer of the advertising target, etc. The image representing the advertising target is, for example, an image of the appearance of the advertised product, and may further include the logo of the advertiser's company.

[0025] The advertising target information acquisition unit 14 also acquires information about the range of packed products to be packed in the packaging material on which the advertising image information is printed. The information about the range of packed products may include, for example, home appliances, food, furniture, toys, or daily necessities. The information about the range of packed products is specified by the advertiser.

[0026] The advertising target information acquisition unit 14 also acquires information on the attribute range of recipients who will receive the packaged product. The information on the attribute range of recipients includes information on the residential range of recipients, the gender range of recipients, and the age range of recipients. For example, the residential range acquired may be Eastern Japan, Western Japan, Kanto, Kyushu, Ibaraki, Fukuoka, etc. The gender range of recipients may be a range of both males and females, or a range of only males or only females. The age range of recipients may be, for example, 20s, 30s to 40s, 50s or older, etc. The information on the attribute range of recipients is specified by the advertiser.

[0027] Each piece of information acquired by the advertising target information acquisition unit 14 is linked to each advertising target and stored in the storage unit 12.

[0028] The advertising target determination unit 15 determines the advertising target to be printed on the packaging material. In this embodiment, the advertising target determination unit 15 determines the advertising target by matching the type of the packaged product included in the attribute information of the packaged product with the range of packaged products specified by the advertiser, and the attribute information of the recipient of the packaged product with the range of recipient attributes specified by the advertiser.

[0029] Furthermore, the advertisement target determination unit 15 may determine an advertisement target that matches the information on the recipient's hobbies and preferences and the information on the degree of affluence described above.

[0030] Furthermore, the advertising target determination unit 15 may identify, based on the recipient's past purchase history or web page browsing history, products that the recipient purchases regularly and that are close to being repurchased, optional products for the packaged product, or consumables used in the packaged product, and determine them as advertising targets with priority.

[0031] The advertising target determination unit 15 may also acquire information on the printing range of the packaging material in which the packaged product is packaged. The advertising target determination unit 15 may then compare the size of the image representing the advertising target with the printing range of the packaging material and determine an advertising target in which the image representing the advertising target fits within the printing range.

[0032] The advertising image information generation unit 16 generates advertising image information to be printed on packaging materials for the advertising target determined by the advertising target determination unit 15. Specifically, the advertising image information generation unit 16 generates a symbolic image of the advertising target based on attribute information of the advertising target, generates a non-symbolic image of the portion other than the symbolic image based on attribute information of the recipient, and generates advertising image information by combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image.

[0033] More specifically, the advertising image information generation unit 16 of this embodiment generates advertising image information by inputting the attribute information of the advertising target determined by the advertising target determination unit 15 (acquired by the advertising target information acquisition unit 14) and the attribute information of the recipient acquired by the packaged product information acquisition unit 13 into a trained model that has been previously machine-learned.

[0034] The trained model is generated by prior machine learning of the relationship between attribute information of the advertising targets, attribute information of the recipients, and advertising image information that combines a symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising targets and a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipients, for any plurality of advertising targets and recipients of packaging materials on which the advertising targets are printed, and advertising effectiveness information of the advertising image information for the recipients. Note that the symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising targets and the non-symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipients that are used in the machine learning may be created in advance, or images generated by the trained model may be fed back and used in the machine learning.

[0035] The advertising effectiveness information of the advertising image information for the recipient may be the recipient's access rate to the advertising image information or the results of a survey of the recipient. The access rate to the advertising image information may be obtained, for example, by including access information to a site where the advertised product is posted (for example, a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) or a QR code (registered trademark) including a URL) in the advertising image information. In addition, the time from when the packaging material arrives at the recipient until the site is accessed may be obtained as advertising effectiveness information.

[0036] Furthermore, with regard to the survey results, for example, the advertising image information may include access information to the site where the survey is answered (for example, a URL or a QR code (registered trademark) containing a URL), and the survey responses on that site (for example, whether the image was interesting or familiar to the recipient) may be quantified and obtained.

[0037] Then, when advertising image information is output from the trained model, it is sufficient to output advertising image information with high advertising effectiveness.

[0038] The trained model may be generated in the advertising image information generation unit 16 and stored in the storage unit 12, or may be one that is set in advance in a server device or the like separate from the advertising management device 10. When the trained model is generated in the advertising image information generation unit 16, the advertising image information generation unit 16 may directly acquire the advertising effectiveness information, or the advertising image information generation unit 16 may acquire the results of aggregation in an evaluation device separate from the advertising management device 10.

[0039] An example of advertising image information generated by the advertising image information generation unit 16 will be described below. Here, the case where the advertised product is a car will be described. For example, if the image representing the advertised product (car) included in the attribute information of the advertising target is an image as shown in Fig. 2A, advertising image information as shown in Fig. 2B or advertising image information as shown in Fig. 2C will be generated.

[0040] The advertising image information shown in Figure 2B is advertising image information generated when it is estimated from information about the recipient's hobbies and preferences that the recipient is an outdoor enthusiast. In this case, the advertising image information generation unit 16 generates a prompt representing nature, such as forests or mountains, from the information about hobbies and preferences included in the recipient's attribute information and inputs the generated prompt into the trained model. As a result, a landscape representing nature, such as forests or mountains, is generated as a non-symbolic image that forms the background of the advertising image information. This is combined with the symbolic image of a car shown in Figure 2A to generate advertising image information that shows a car driving up a mountain slope.

[0041] The advertising image information shown in Figure 2C is advertising image information generated when it is estimated from information about the recipient's hobbies and preferences that the recipient is a surfing enthusiast. In this case, the advertising image information generation unit 16 generates prompts representing nature, such as surfing, the ocean, or the beach, from the information about the hobbies and preferences included in the recipient's attribute information, and inputs these into the trained model. As a result, a landscape representing nature, such as the ocean or the beach, is generated as a non-symbolic image that forms the background of the advertising image information, and this is combined with the symbolic image of a car shown in Figure 2A to generate advertising image information that shows a car parked on the beach.

[0042] In this embodiment, an image representing the advertising target (for example, the image of a car shown in FIG. 2A) is included in the attribute information of the advertising target, but an image representing the advertising target may also be generated from information on the product type of the advertising target.

[0043] Furthermore, for example, the color of an image representing an advertising target (for example, the image of a car shown in FIG. 2A) may be set based on information about the recipient's interests and preferences.

[0044] Additionally, prompts such as "near-future cyber style" or "retro style" can be generated based on the recipient's preferences and input into the trained model to generate non-symbolic images such as backgrounds.

[0045] As a trained model, so-called image generation AI (Artificial Intelligence) can be used, such as trained planning learning devices that use CNN (Convolutional Neural Network), VAE (Variational Encoder), GAN (Generative Adversarial Network), and diffusion model technologies, as well as software and services that use neural networks.

[0046] The advertising image information output unit 17 outputs the advertising image information generated by the advertising image information generation unit 16 to the logistics company management device 40 .

[0047] The storage unit 12 stores, for each advertising target, attribute information of the advertising target acquired by the advertising target information acquisition unit 14 as described above, the range of attributes of the packaged product specified by the advertiser, and the range of attributes of the recipient specified by the advertiser, in association with each other. The storage unit 12 also stores the trained model described above.

[0048] The advertisement management device 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), semiconductor memories such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory), storage such as a hard disk, and a communication I / F (Interface).

[0049] An advertising management program including an embodiment of the advertising image information generation program of the present invention is installed in the storage of the advertising management device 10. When the advertising management program is started by the CPU, the functions of the control unit 11 and the memory unit 12 of the advertising management device 10 are realized.

[0050] In addition, in this embodiment, the functions of the control unit 11 and the memory unit 12 are performed by executing the advertising management program by the CPU, but some or all of the functions performed by the advertising management program may be configured from hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or other electrical circuits.

[0051] Next, the orderer terminal device 20 will be described.

[0052] The orderer terminal device 20 is used by the orderer to order packaged goods, and may be, for example, a desktop computer or a notebook computer, but is not limited to these and may also be a mobile terminal such as a tablet terminal or a smartphone.

[0053] The orderer terminal device 20 includes a control unit 21 and a display unit 22. The control unit 21 controls the entire orderer terminal device 20. In particular, the control unit 21 accesses the EC management device 30 that manages the EC site and displays a product ordering screen. The control unit 21 displays, on the ordering screen, information on the ordered product (packaged product), attribute information of the packaged product, including attribute information of the orderer (age, gender, address, etc.) and attribute information of the recipient, so that the information can be set and input, and outputs various pieces of information set and input on the ordering screen as necessary.

[0054] The display unit 22 includes a display device such as a liquid crystal display. The above-mentioned order screen is displayed on the display unit 22. If the orderer terminal device 20 is a tablet terminal or a smartphone, the order screen is displayed on a touch panel of the tablet terminal or smartphone.

[0055] The orderer terminal device 20 may also be configured to receive whether or not an advertisement is to be printed on the packaging material. Then, depending on whether or not an advertisement is to be printed, which is set and input in the orderer terminal device 20, it may be possible to determine whether or not an advertisement is to be printed on the packaging material.

[0056] If the purchaser selects to print an advertisement, a part of the advertising fee may be returned to the purchaser. Specifically, the purchaser who selects to print an advertisement may be given points that can be used to pay for products on the EC site (EC management device 30).

[0057] The display of the order screen on the orderer terminal device 20 and the acceptance of various information settings and inputs may be achieved not only by an EC site, but also by executing the functions of an application pre-installed on the hard disk of the orderer terminal device 20, or by using an application provided via a web browser.

[0058] The EC management device 30 is a server device that manages the above-mentioned EC site. The EC management device 30 receives order information output from the orderer terminal device 20 and outputs the order information to the advertisement management device 10 and the logistics provider management device 40.

[0059] The distributor management device 40 is used by the distributor, and may be, for example, a desktop computer or a notebook computer, but is not limited to these, and may also be a mobile terminal such as a tablet terminal or a smartphone.

[0060] The distributor management device 40 receives the order information output from the EC management device 30, and manages the process of the ordered products from preparation to packaging, sealing and shipping based on the order information.

[0061] Furthermore, the distributor management device 40 is connected to a printing device 41. The printing device 41 prints the above-mentioned advertising image information on packaging materials such as cardboard boxes for packaging products.

[0062] The advertising image information to be printed is output from the advertising image information output unit 17 of the above-described advertising management device 10 and input to the printing device 41. The printing device 41 performs printing processing on the packaging material based on the input advertising image information. There are no particular limitations on the printing method, but for example, an inkjet method or a thermal printing method can be used.

[0063] Furthermore, the printing device 41 may perform printing processing on packaging material before packaging, or may perform printing processing on packaging after packaging a product. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the printing device 41 that performs printing processing on packaging. As shown in Fig. 3, the printing device 41 includes a head unit 46 and a transport unit 2.

[0064] The transport unit 2 transports the package P in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 3. The package P has a print surface Ps that stands upright in a direction perpendicular to the transport surface as shown in Fig. 3, for example.

[0065] The transport unit 2 includes a support table 3 and a transport belt unit 4. The support table 3 is a table that supports the transport belt unit 4.

[0066] The conveyor belt unit 4 includes a plurality of rollers and a conveyor belt extending in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the package P. The rollers are arranged parallel to and spaced apart in the conveying direction of the package P. A circular conveyor belt is stretched between the parallelly arranged rollers, and the rollers rotate to move the conveyor belt, thereby conveying the package P.

[0067] The head unit 46 performs printing by ejecting ink onto the printing surface Ps of the package P transported by the transport unit 2.

[0068] 3, the head unit 46 has four line heads 46a, 46b, 46c, and 46d. The four line heads 46a to 46d are each a plurality of inkjet heads arranged in the vertical direction, and are arranged parallel to the conveying direction of the package P.

[0069] The four line heads 46a to 46d eject ink of C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow), and K (black), respectively.

[0070] As the transport unit 2 transports the package P, ink is sequentially ejected in the horizontal direction from each of the line heads 46a to 46d, thereby performing the printing process.

[0071] Packaging materials are often printed with information necessary for delivery (such as the identification number or barcode of the packaged product) and information about the orderer (sender). Therefore, when printing such information using the printing device 41, a position that avoids such information may be set as an advertising frame, and advertising image information may be printed within the advertising frame.

[0072] In addition to the advertising image information, the advertiser's company name, the access destination of the advertiser's website (such as a search field with keywords related to the advertiser entered or a QR code (registered trademark)), and a statement that it is an advertisement may be printed. Also, a caution mark or a logistics code required for logistics may be printed.

[0073] Furthermore, information other than the advertising image information may be printed by flexographic printing or the like before the packaged product is packaged.

[0074] Furthermore, when printing on multiple sides of a packaging material, a printing system can be used in which, after printing one side, the packaging material is turned around and printed on a different side using the same printing line (head unit 46) according to the circulation path. Alternatively, printing can be performed using a system in which multiple printing devices are provided and multiple sides are printed at once.

[0075] The advertiser management device 50 is used by advertising agencies and the like that manage advertising requests, and is, for example, a desktop computer or a notebook computer, but is not limited to these and may also be a mobile terminal such as a tablet terminal or a smartphone.

[0076] The advertiser management device 50 receives and manages advertising requests from multiple advertisers. In response to the advertising requests of each advertiser, the advertiser management device 50 outputs the attribute information of the advertised product described above, advertising image information representing the advertised product, and information on the range of attributes of the packaged product specified by the advertiser to the advertising management device 10. The advertising request includes the advertisement publication period, quantity, etc.

[0077] Next, the processing flow of the advertisement printing system 1 described above will be described with reference to the sequence diagrams shown in FIGS.

[0078] First, in response to an advertising request from an advertiser, attribute information of the advertised product, etc. is output from the advertiser management device 50 to the advertising management device 10, acquired by the advertising target information acquisition unit 14 of the advertising management device 10, and pre-stored in the memory unit 12 (S10).

[0079] Next, the orderer sets and inputs the order information using the orderer terminal device 20 (S12). The order information transmitted from the orderer terminal device 20 is accepted by the EC management device 30 (S14), and then output to the advertisement management device 10 and the logistics provider management device 40.

[0080] Then, the order information output from the EC management device 30 is received by the packaged product information acquisition unit 13 of the advertisement management device 10 and the logistics company management device 40 (S16).

[0081] Next, the advertising target determination unit 15 of the advertising management device 10 compares and matches the attribute information of the packaged product included in the order information with the information on the range of attributes of the packaged product specified by the multiple advertisers and the information on the range of attributes of the recipient stored in the memory unit 12 (S18).

[0082] Then, the advertising target determination unit 15 identifies the advertised products that fall within the range of attributes of the packed products and the range of attributes of the recipient specified by the advertiser based on the attribute information of the packed products included in the order information (type of packed product, residential area and gender of the recipient), and determines them as advertising targets (S20).

[0083] Then, in the advertising image information generation unit 16, the attribute information of the recipient included in the order information and the attribute information of the advertising target determined in S20 are input into the trained model, and advertising image information is generated in the trained model and output (S22).

[0084] Then, the advertising image information output unit 17 outputs the advertising image information generated by the advertising image information generation unit 16 to the logistics company management device 40 (S24).

[0085] The distributor management device 40 outputs the input advertisement image information to the printing device 41 (S26), and the printing device 41 performs printing processing on the packaging material based on the input advertisement image information (S28).

[0086] Then, the product according to the order information is packed and sealed in the packaging material on which the advertising image information is printed (S30), and then shipped to the delivery destination according to the order information (S32).

[0087] After the packaging material is delivered to the recipient (orderer), the recipient reads a QR code (registered trademark) or the like included in the advertising image information printed on the packaging material and accesses a site where the advertised product is posted or a site where a questionnaire regarding the advertising image information is answered, thereby evaluating the advertising image information (S34). Then, advertising effectiveness information based on the evaluation results is input to the advertising management device 10, and the advertising image information corresponding to the advertising effectiveness information, the attribute information of the advertising target and the attribute information of the recipient used when generating the advertising image information, are identified, and are fed back to the trained model for use in machine learning (S36).

[0088] According to the advertising printing system 1 of the above embodiment, a symbolic image of the advertising target is generated based on the attribute information of the advertising target, a non-symbolic image of the portion other than the symbolic image is generated based on the attribute information of the recipient, and advertising image information is generated by combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image, so that an advertising image that attracts the recipient's interest can be generated, thereby further increasing the advertising effectiveness.

[0089] Furthermore, in the advertisement printing system 1 of the above embodiment, the advertisement image information is generated by inputting the attribute information of the advertising target and the attribute information of the recipient into the trained model, so there is no need to create advertisement image information that reflects the attribute information of the recipient in advance, which reduces the burden on the creator who creates the advertisement image information. Also, the immediacy of the advertisement image information can be improved.

[0090] Furthermore, in the advertising printing system 1 of the above embodiment, attribute information of the advertising target is acquired based on attribute information of the packaged goods. Therefore, for example, attribute information of the packaged goods can be matched with the range of packaged goods attributes specified by the advertiser to acquire attribute information of the advertising target, and advertising image information can be printed on the packaging material of the packaged goods desired by the advertiser.

[0091] Furthermore, in the advertising printing system 1 of the above embodiment, attribute information of the advertising target is acquired based on attribute information of the recipient. Therefore, for example, attribute information of the packaged product can be matched with the range of recipient attributes specified by the advertiser to acquire attribute information of the advertising target, and advertising image information can be printed on packaging material for the recipient desired by the advertiser.

[0092] In addition, in the advertising printing system 1 of the above embodiment, non-symbolic images are generated based on the recipient's attribute information, but in addition to the recipient's attribute information, a prompt can be generated based on the time and place at which the packaging material will arrive at the recipient, and this can be input into the trained model and reflected in the advertising image information.

[0093] For example, the trained model may be configured to input prompts that indicate the weather at the time and location of arrival, or, if a disaster (such as a typhoon or heavy snow) is predicted at the time and location of arrival, prompts to promote disaster prevention actions such as food stockpiling in preparation for that disaster, or prompts to promote water conservation if local problems such as water shortages are predicted at the time and location of arrival.

[0094] Furthermore, if a time-limited social problem occurs at the time and place of arrival, a prompt corresponding to the social problem may be input into the trained model and reflected in the advertising image information.Furthermore, a prompt representing an event (such as a festival or a celebrity autograph session at a bookstore) held at the time and place of arrival may be input into the trained model.

[0095] As described above, if the advertising image information is generated based on the time and place at which the packaging material will arrive at the recipient, it is possible to generate advertising image information that is more likely to attract the recipient's interest and has a high advertising effect.

[0096] In addition to the advertising image information, other images and text may be printed on the packaging material. For example, adding a character from an e-commerce site can further attract the recipient's attention.

[0097] In addition, in the advertising printing system 1 of the above embodiment, advertising image information is generated by inputting attribute information of the advertising target and attribute information of the recipient into the trained model, but advertising image information may also be generated without using the trained model.

[0098] For example, the advertising image information generation unit 16 acquires an image representing the advertising target included in the attribute information of the advertising target, thereby generating a symbolic image of the advertising target as shown in Fig. 2A. The advertising image information generation unit 16 also generates a background image by selecting a non-symbolic image according to the recipient's attribute information by using a table in which the recipient's attribute information and non-symbolic images are previously associated. The advertising image information generation unit 16 may then generate advertising image information by applying the background image to the background of the image representing the advertising target as shown in Fig. 2A.

[0099] Furthermore, when a recipient reads the code information included in the advertising image information printed on the packaging material, the recipient may access any website. The server that receives the access request outputs the URL of the advertised page of the advertising image information to the recipient's terminal device, obtains the recipient's identification information from the code information, and accesses the e-commerce site server to obtain information such as the recipient's user benefits. The server may then make the information such as the user benefits available on the advertised page. This allows for discount services, special image gifts, and the like to be offered on the advertised page.

[0100] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the components can be modified and embodied in practice without departing from the spirit of the invention. Furthermore, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining the multiple components disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, all of the components shown in the embodiments can be appropriately combined. Naturally, various modifications and applications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0101] The present invention further discloses the following supplementary notes.

[0102] (Appendix 1) The advertising image information generating device of the present invention includes an advertising target information acquiring unit that acquires attribute information of an advertising target to be printed on packaging material in which a product is packed, a recipient information acquiring unit that acquires attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material, and an advertising image information generating unit that generates a symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising target, generates a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipient, and generates advertising image information by combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image.

[0103] (Appendix 2) In the advertising image information generation device described in Supplementary Note 1, the advertising image information generation unit can generate advertising image information corresponding to the advertising target by inputting the attribute information of the advertising target acquired by the advertising target information acquisition unit and the attribute information of the recipient acquired by the recipient information acquisition unit into a trained model that has previously been machine-learned to determine the relationship between advertising image information that combines attribute information of the advertising target, attribute information of the recipient, and a symbolic image of the advertising target generated based on the attribute information of the advertising target and a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image generated based on the attribute information of the recipient, and the evaluation result of the advertising image information for the recipient.

[0104] (Appendix 3) In the advertising image information generating device according to Supplementary Note 1 or Supplementary Note 2, the advertising target information acquiring unit can acquire attribute information of the advertising target based on attribute information of the product packed in the packaging material.

[0105] (Appendix 4) In the advertising image information generating device according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 3, the advertising target information acquiring unit can acquire attribute information of the advertising target based on attribute information of the recipient.

[0106] (Appendix 5) In the advertising image information generating device according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 4, the advertising image information generating unit can generate the advertising image information based on the time and place at which the packaging material will arrive at the recipient.

[0107] (Appendix 6) The advertising printing system of the present invention includes the advertising image information generating device according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 5, and a printing device that prints the advertising image information generated by the advertising image information generating device on a packaging material.

[0108] (Appendix 7) The advertising image information generating method of the present invention acquires attribute information of an advertising target to be printed on a packaging material in which a product is packed, acquires attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material, generates a symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising target, generates a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipient, and generates advertising image information by combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image.

[0109] (Appendix 8) The advertising image information generation program of the present invention causes a computer to execute the steps of acquiring attribute information of an advertising target to be printed on a packaging material in which a product is packed, acquiring attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material, generating a symbolic image of the advertising target based on the attribute information of the advertising target, generating a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on the attribute information of the recipient, and combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image to generate advertising image information. [Explanation of symbols]

[0110] 1. Advertising printing system 2 Transport unit 3 Support stand 4 Conveyor belt section 10 Advertising management device 11 Control section 12 Storage section 13. Packaging Product Information Acquisition Department 14 Advertising target information acquisition unit 15 Advertising Targeting Department 16 Advertising image information generation unit 17 Advertising image information output section 20 Orderer terminal device 21 Control section 22 Display section 30 EC management device 40 Logistics company management device 41 Printing device 46 Head Unit 46a~46d Line Head 50 Advertiser Management Device P packaging Ps printing side

Claims

1. an advertising target information acquisition unit that acquires attribute information of advertising targets to be printed on packaging materials in which products are packaged; a recipient information acquisition unit that acquires attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material; an advertising image information generation unit that generates a symbolic image of the advertising target based on attribute information of the advertising target, generates a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on attribute information of the recipient, and combines the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image to generate advertising image information.

2. 2. The advertising image information generation device according to claim 1, wherein the advertising image information generation unit generates advertising image information corresponding to the advertising target by inputting the attribute information of the advertising target acquired by the advertising target information acquisition unit and the attribute information of the recipient acquired by the recipient information acquisition unit into a trained model that has previously been machine-learned to learn the relationship between advertising image information that combines attribute information of the advertising target, attribute information of the recipient, and a symbolic image of the advertising target generated based on the attribute information of the advertising target and a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image generated based on the attribute information of the recipient, and an evaluation result of the advertising image information for the recipient.

3. 2. The advertising image information generating device according to claim 1, wherein the advertising target information acquiring unit acquires attribute information of the advertising target based on attribute information of a product packed in the packaging material.

4. 2. The advertising image information generating device according to claim 1, wherein the advertising target information acquiring unit acquires attribute information of the advertising target based on attribute information of the recipient.

5. 2. The advertising image information generating device according to claim 1, wherein said advertising image information generating section generates said advertising image information based on the time and place at which said packaging material will arrive at said recipient.

6. An advertising image information generating device according to any one of claims 1 to 5; and a printing device that prints the advertising image information generated by the advertising image information generating device on packaging material.

7. Acquire attribute information of the advertising target to be printed on the packaging material in which the product is packed, Acquire attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material; An advertising image information generating method for generating a symbolic image of an advertising target based on attribute information of the advertising target, generating a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on attribute information of the recipient, and combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image to generate advertising image information.

8. A step of acquiring attribute information of an advertisement target to be printed on a packaging material in which the product is packaged; acquiring attribute information of a recipient of the packaging material; generating a symbolic image of the advertising target based on attribute information of the advertising target, generating a non-symbolic image of a portion other than the symbolic image based on attribute information of the recipient, and combining the symbolic image and the non-symbolic image to generate advertising image information.

Images