Information processing program and information processing device

Abstract

To provide an information processing program and an information processing device capable of improving efficiency of processing related to an inquiry.SOLUTION: An information processing program causes a computer to execute the steps of: receiving, from a user, an inquiry about at least one category among a plurality of categories associated with an ID of the user; specifying an answering entity in response to the inquiry based on content of the inquiry and information associated with the plurality of categories; and responding in accordance with providing means of an answer in response to the inquiry.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing program and an information processing device for improving the efficiency of processing related to inquiries. [Background technology]

[0002] In customer service operations such as contact centers and call centers, operators typically receive inquiries from customers, confirm the details of the inquiries, and then respond. In recent years, services that automate part of the customer service operations are becoming more common.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes that a call center server accepts a call from a user, selects a person to answer the call based on the call subject and the user's personal information, and relays a conversation between the person to answer the call and the user.

[0004] Patent document 2 describes that voice recognition text data obtained by voice recognition of the contents of a voice conversation between a user and an operator, the contents of past inquiries based on the user's past inquiry history information, etc., and answers are displayed on an operator terminal, and the operator responds.

[0005] Patent Document 3 describes a method of inferring the customer's business from spoken text and displaying FAQs (answers to questions) as search results corresponding to the business. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-6986 [Patent Document 2] Patent Publication No. 2021-136607 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2022-66489 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, after an attendant is selected, customer support work must be carried out via voice communication between the attendant and the user, so the efficiency of processing customer inquiries is not sufficient.

[0008] In the invention disclosed in Patent Document 2, the operator can accurately understand the content of the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry displayed on the operator device and past response history, but the operator must respond to the inquiry, and the efficiency of processing inquiries from customers is not sufficient.

[0009] In the invention disclosed in Patent Document 3, the customer's needs are estimated and FAQs corresponding to the estimated needs are searched for, so the operator must respond to the inquiry based on the FAQs. As a result, the efficiency of processing customer inquiries is not sufficient.

[0010] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an information processing program and an information processing device for making query-related processing more efficient. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] In one embodiment, the information processing program causes a computer to receive an inquiry from a user regarding at least one of a plurality of categories linked to the user's ID, identify an entity that will respond to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and information associated with the plurality of categories, and respond according to the means of providing an answer to the inquiry. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the embodiment, it is possible to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a bird's-eye view showing an example of the overall configuration of a response support system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the response support device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a member chart managed by the response support device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of the overall operation of the response support system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the model management unit in the response support device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry receiving unit in the response support device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry handling unit in the response support device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram for explaining an example of the overall operation of the response support system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a bird's-eye view showing an example of the overall configuration of a response support system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a response support device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a member chart managed by the response support device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining an example of the overall operation of the response support system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the model management unit in the response support device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry receiving unit in the response support device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry handling unit in the response support device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of the overall operation of the response support system according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals whenever possible, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0015] (First embodiment) (1) Overall configuration of call support system 1 FIG. 1 is a bird's-eye view showing an example of the overall configuration of a customer service support system 1 according to a first embodiment. The customer service support system 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a customer service support device 2, service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, a user terminal 4, an operator telephone 5, and an operator terminal 6. The customer service support device 2, service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6 are communicatively connected to one another via a network 7. For example, the network 7 is the Internet. The network may include a wireless network or a wired network. The operator telephone 5 and the operator terminal 6 are communicatively connected, for example, by a telephone line or the like. Note that the customer service support system 1 may also refer to a system including at least two of the customer service support device 2, the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, the operator telephone 5, and the operator terminal 6.

[0016] The response support system 1 may include a plurality of user terminals 4, a plurality of operator telephones 5, and a plurality of operator terminals 6. The configuration of the plurality of user terminals may be the same as that of the user terminal 4. The configuration of the plurality of operator telephones may be the same as that of the operator telephone 5. The configuration of the plurality of operator terminals 6 may be the same as that of the operator terminal 6. Although the response support system 1 is illustrated as including three service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the number of service provider devices is not limited to this. The configuration of the plurality of service provider devices may be the same as that of the service provider device 3-1. The configuration of the service provider devices will be described as the configuration of the service provider device 3-1. The number of service provider devices may vary depending on the number of businesses providing services.

[0017] Services include the sale of tangible goods such as products and the provision of services. The business may be of any type. For example, a business may operate a store, website, etc. that provides at least one service. The term business not only refers to the business itself, but also to a group of businesses. A group of businesses is a group that operates stores recognized as a keiretsu (affiliated group). For example, a group of businesses is a group that operates stores using the same name. A group of businesses may also include franchisees in which the business is involved as a franchisor.

[0018] The customer service support system 1 is a system for responding to inquiries regarding multiple services. Inquiries include questions, notifications, requests, complaints, etc. from customers regarding each service. A customer may be a member of multiple services. A customer may register as a member for multiple services and be managed using member identification information (member ID). Multiple services may be managed in an integrated manner by a provider of a common service that associates the multiple services. A customer may be a member of a common service. A customer may register as a member for a common service and be managed using member identification information (common ID). A common ID is an ID used commonly for multiple services. A common ID is information that can uniquely identify a customer across multiple services. A common ID may be set by a provider of the common service, etc. A customer can log in using a common ID to use multiple services linked to the common ID. A customer with a common ID is also called a common ID member or common ID user. In the following description, a customer is referred to as a member or user. Responses include various operations and actions regarding inquiries, such as responding to inquiries and processing inquiries.

[0019] A common ID user can log in to the common service using a common service application, etc. The common service application is, for example, an application that allows the user to use multiple services linked to the common service.

[0020] The customer service support system 1 is not limited to a common service that integrates multiple services, and can be applied to various fields. For example, the customer service support system 1 may be applied to a service that integrates multiple customer service desks.

[0021] The multiple services may be provided by different businesses or may be provided by the same business. Note that the service provider is not limited to a business, but may also be a department, division, customer service, etc. within the business.

[0022] The response support device 2 is a device that collects and processes data. The device includes a computer. The response support device 2 is communicatively connected to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6 via a network 7. The response support device 2 receives various data from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6, and outputs various data to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6. The response support device 2 is an example of an information processing device. An example configuration of the response support device 2 will be described later.

[0023] The service provider device 3-1 is a device that collects and processes data. The device includes a computer. The service provider device 3-1 is communicatively connected to the response support device 2, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6 via the network 7. The service provider device 3-1 receives various data from the response support device 2, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6, and outputs various data to the response support device 2, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6. The service provider device 3-1 is a device used by a business operator that provides a service. The service provider device 3-1 includes a management device 31A and a storage device 32A. The storage device 32A stores service-related information, etc. The service-related information includes information about the service provider and information about the service, etc. The management device 31A of the service provider device 3-1 provides the service-related information to the response support device 2 in response to a request from the response support device 2.

[0024] The information about the service provider includes information set by the service provider. The information about the service provider includes service provider information and registration information. The service provider information includes service provider identification information, service provider name, contact information, etc. The service provider identification information is information that can uniquely identify the service provider. The service provider identification information is, for example, a service provider ID. The service provider name indicates the name of the service provider. The contact information includes the service provider's address, telephone number, fax number, email address, etc.

[0025] The registration information is information set by the service provider. The registration information includes, for example, settings related to inquiries from members. The settings related to inquiries include reception means capable of accepting inquiries from members, response means capable of responding to inquiries from members, and methods of responding to inquiries. The reception means indicates, for example, a communication means or contact means such as telephone, fax, email, or chat. The reception means can be selected by the service provider. The reception means may include multiple means. If the reception means includes multiple means, the reception means may include information indicating the priority of the multiple means. The reception means is an example of a means for receiving inquiries. The response means indicates, for example, a communication means or contact means such as telephone, fax, email, or chat. The response means can be selected by the service provider. The response means may include multiple means. If the response means includes multiple means, the response means may include information indicating the priority of the multiple means. The response means is an example of a means for providing an answer. The response means may be the same as the reception means or may be a different means from the reception means.

[0026] Inquiry response methods include automatic response, automatic processing, dispatch, etc. Automatic response, for example, refers to automatically sending a response to an inquiry to a member. Automatic response includes processing to generate a response to the inquiry. Responses are information indicating response examples, response sentences, etc. Automatic processing refers to requesting processing in response to the inquiry. Automatic processing includes processing to identify processing in response to the inquiry and processing to request processing in response to the inquiry from a service provider device. Processing in response to the inquiry refers to processing necessary to respond to the inquiry. For example, if the inquiry is a request for point transfer, processing in response to the inquiry includes a series of processing necessary for point transfer processing. Dispatch includes transferring the call to an answerer, requesting the answerer to handle the response, etc. An answerer corresponds to a service provider that provides a service corresponding to the inquiry. Dispatch includes processing to generate a response to the inquiry. Dispatch includes processing to provide an answer example to the answerer. Inquiry response methods can be selected by the service provider. Inquiry response methods may include multiple response methods. If the inquiry response methods include multiple response methods, they may include information indicating the priority of the multiple response methods. The response support device 2 responds to an inquiry in accordance with the inquiry response method set by the respondent. The inquiry response method is also simply called the response method. In the following description, "response" may be read as "handling."

[0027] Information related to a service includes service identification information, service name, service overview, question and answer examples (FAQ: frequently asked questions), etc. Service identification information is information that can uniquely identify a service. Service identification information is, for example, a service ID. Service name indicates the name of the service. Service overview includes information that indicates the content of the service. Service content may include event information, campaign information, benefit information, etc. Question and answer examples indicate questions related to the service and example answers to those questions. In the following description, question and answer examples are also referred to as FAQs.

[0028] The management device 31A receives information about the response from the response support device 2. The information about the response includes information about the processing of the inquiry by the response support device 2. The information about the processing of the inquiry indicates, for example, the response result. The response result includes information such as the inquiry content, the response content, and the processing result. The inquiry content includes, for example, the inquiry type, inquiry source information, and the inquiry subject. The inquiry type is information for classifying inquiries, for example, inquiries about fees, inquiries about service content, inquiries about member information, etc. The inquiry source information is, for example, member information about the customer who made the inquiry. The member information includes member identification information, member name, contact information, etc. The customer who made the inquiry is also called the inquiry source user or the inquiry user. The member identification information is information that can uniquely identify the customer. The member identification information is, for example, a common ID. The member name indicates the customer's name, user name, etc. The contact information indicates a telephone number, email address, etc. The contact information may also be information indicating the means by which the inquiry was made. For example, if the customer made the inquiry by telephone, the contact information may include the telephone number. The customer is an example of a user of the user terminal 4. The inquiring user is an example of a user of the user terminal 4. In the following description, "receive" may be read as "acquire."

[0029] The response content includes information about the response to the inquiry. The response content includes the response means, response items, response method, etc. The processing result includes information indicating the member's response to the response, etc. The response includes information indicating the member's satisfaction with the response, reaction to the response, etc.

[0030] The user terminal 4 is a device capable of communicating with other devices. The user terminal 4 is a PC (Personal Computer), a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like. The user terminal 4 is an example of an information processing terminal. The user terminal 4 is used by a member who uses various services provided by a service provider. When a user of the user terminal 4 has an inquiry regarding a service provided by a service provider, the user makes the inquiry to a contact center or call center from the user terminal 4. The user can make the inquiry by email, chat, telephone, fax, or the like. The user terminal 4 may be a device equipped with a telephone function.

[0031] The operator telephone 5 is, for example, a device equipped with a telephone function. The operator telephone 5 is a smartphone or a tablet terminal. The operator telephone 5 is used by an operator at a contact center or a call center. When an operator answers an inquiry by telephone, the operator may make a call using the operator telephone 5. The operator telephone 5 may also be a device integrated with the operator terminal 6.

[0032] The operator terminal 6 is a device capable of communicating with other devices. The operator terminal 6 is a PC, a tablet terminal, or the like. The operator terminal 6 is used by an operator at a contact center or a call center. The operator terminal 6 may be a device associated with each of the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The operator terminal 6 may communicate with the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 and obtain instructions from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3.

[0033] (2) Hardware configuration (2-1) Response support device 2 The response support device 2 includes a processor 21, a memory 22, a storage 23, a communication interface (I / F) 24, an input / output interface (I / F) 25, and a bus 26 connecting these. The processor 21 controls the overall operation of the response support device 2. The processor 21 may be a general-purpose processor such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor unit (MPU), or a graphics processing unit (GPU), but is not limited to a general-purpose processor and may also be a dedicated processor such as an application specific integrated circuit (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or a field-programmable gate array (FPGA). The memory 22 is a main storage device and includes a random access memory (RAM), etc. The storage 23 is an auxiliary storage device and includes a non-volatile storage device such as an EEPROM (registered trademark) (Electric Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), a hard disc drive (HDD), or a solid state drive (SSD). The communication interface 24 is a wired or wireless communication interface, and is a module for communicating with devices such as the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6 via the network 7. The network 7 is, for example, the Internet, and can include access networks such as a LAN (local area network), a WAN (wide area network), a mobile communication network, a wired telephone network, FTTH (fiber to the home), and a CATV (community antenna television system) network. The input / output interface 25 takes in input data from an external device and outputs output data to an external device.

[0034] (3) Functional configuration (3-1) Response support device 2 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the response support device 2 according to this embodiment. The functional configuration of the response support device 2 according to this embodiment includes a response processing unit 200, a storage unit 210, and a communication control unit 220. The communication control unit 220 controls communication with the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the user terminal 4, and the operator terminal 6 via the network 7 in accordance with instructions from the response processing unit 200.

[0035] (3-1-1) Storage section 210 The memory unit 210 includes a response service information memory unit 211, a response history information memory unit 212, a member medical record memory unit 213, and a trained model memory unit 214. The memory unit 210 can be realized by the storage 23. Here, an example will be described in which the customer service assistance device 2 includes the response service information memory unit 211, the response history information memory unit 212, the member medical record memory unit 213, and the trained model memory unit 214, but each memory unit may be included in a device different from the customer service assistance device 2.

[0036] The corresponding service information storage unit 211 is a storage unit for centrally storing and holding corresponding service information based on service-related information acquired from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The corresponding service information includes corresponding service information based on service-related information for each service provider. The corresponding service information may include information about the service provider for each service provider and information about the service. The corresponding service information may be information including some or all of the service-related information stored in the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The corresponding service information is information linking the service provider with information about the service provider and information about the service. The corresponding service information may include link information, etc., that allows information about the service to be referenced. The corresponding service information may be updated based on updates to the service-related information for each service provider. The corresponding service information is an example of first information associated with multiple services.

[0037] The answer history information storage unit 212 is a storage unit for centrally storing and holding answer history information. The answer history information indicates history information related to answers to inquiries. The answer history information may be history information related to processing of inquiries by the response support device 2. The answer history information includes, for example, information on the inquiry content, the answer content, and the processing result. The inquiry content includes, for example, the inquiry type, inquiry source information, the inquiry item, etc. The answer content includes the answer means, the answer item, the answer method, etc. The processing result includes information indicating the member's response to the answer, etc. The answer history information may correspond to information linked to the inquiry history included in the member chart described below. The answer history information may be information of the user's attribute information excluding information that can identify an individual. The answer history information is an example of answer history information related to multiple services. The answer history information includes answer history information for multiple users.

[0038] The member medical record storage unit 213 is a storage unit for centrally storing and holding member medical records. The member medical records include a member medical record for each member. The member medical record includes user information for each member.

[0039] The member chart will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of a member chart managed by the response support device 2 according to the first embodiment.

[0040] The member chart includes information such as member identification information, attribute information, usage history, and activity history. Member identification information is a common ID. Attribute information includes personal information, permission information, contractual information, royalty information, etc. Personal information may include information such as name, age, gender, occupation, and family composition. Permission information is information indicating whether or not the member has given permission for the service. Contractual information includes point balance, etc. Points may include points awarded to members for each service and common points awarded to members for multiple services. Points may be acquired, deducted, or lost depending on the member's actions, activities, etc. related to the service. Royalty information includes information such as member rank. Member rank may be set based on the member's service usage status, etc.

[0041] The usage history includes the usage history for each service, the participation history of campaigns, events, etc., the usage history of points, the distribution history of notifications, etc., the inquiry history, etc. The usage history for each service includes information indicating which service was used and when. The participation history of campaigns, events, etc. includes information indicating whether or not a campaign, event, etc. was participated in, and the date and time of participation. The usage history of points includes information indicating the date and time of point usage, the number of points used, etc. The distribution history of notifications, etc. includes information regarding the distribution of direct messages (DMs), advertisements, announcements, etc. Notifications include distribution by mail, e-mail, chat, SNS (Social Networking Service), etc. The inquiry history includes information regarding whether or not an inquiry was made, the means of inquiry, etc. The inquiry history includes information regarding the user's past inquiry history.

[0042] The activity history includes detailed information about the usage history. For example, there may be multiple activity histories for each usage history. The activity history may have a 1:n (n is an integer greater than or equal to 1) relationship with the usage history. The activity history may also be detailed information with the usage history as the heading. The activity history includes activity history for each service, activity history for campaigns, events, etc., point usage details, notification distribution details, inquiry details, etc. The activity history for each service indicates the activity content for each service. For example, in the case of an accommodation reservation service, the activity content includes information such as which accommodation was booked and when. The activity history for campaigns, events, etc. includes winning information related to the campaign or event. The point usage details include detailed information about the awarding and use of points. The notification distribution details include information such as the content of the notification and reactions to the notification. The inquiry details include information such as the inquiry content, response content, and processing results. A member chart is an example of information about a user's history regarding multiple services.

[0043] The trained model storage unit 214 is a storage unit for centrally storing and holding trained models. A trained model is a trained model generated by machine learning or the like based on corresponding service information. For example, a trained model can be generated based on information on question and answer examples in at least multiple services. A trained model is a question and answer model (QA model) that combines inquiries and example answers to the inquiries. A trained model can be updated based on answer history information of multiple users regarding multiple services. A trained model is also called a QA model. A trained model is an example of second information associated with multiple services.

[0044] (3-1-2) Response Processing Unit 200 The response processing unit 200 functions as a model management unit 201 , an inquiry reception unit 202 , and an inquiry response unit 203 by the processor 21 executing a program stored in the memory 22 .

[0045] The model management unit 201 manages or updates available service information. Using the available service information, the model management unit 201 generates a trained model (QA model) for responding to inquiries that has been constructed by machine learning or the like. The model management unit 201 generates the trained model based on information about question and answering cases in at least a plurality of services. The trained model is information generated based on information about question and answering cases in at least a plurality of services.

[0046] The QA model is a model that receives information about an inquiry as input and outputs a response to the inquiry. The information about the inquiry includes the time of the inquiry (inquiry date and time) and the content of the inquiry. The response may include a means for responding, a response item, and a response method. The QA model may output information about processing in response to the inquiry. The model management unit 201 learns the response to the inquiry through machine learning. The model management unit 201 estimates the response to the inquiry based on the correspondence between the content of the inquiry and the response to the inquiry. The machine learning may be a neural network, etc., but is not limited to this. Because the response changes depending on the time of the inquiry and its content, there may be a certain correlation between the time of the inquiry, its content, and the response. Therefore, the combination of the time of the inquiry, its content, and the response may also be managed chronologically. The model management unit 201 updates the QA model based on updates to the available service information. The model management unit 201 updates the QA model using response history information. The model management unit 201 may request response history information from the inquiry response unit 203. In this case, the model management unit 201 may acquire answer history information from the inquiry response unit 203. The model management unit 201 may update the QA model using the answer history information. The QA model is updated based on answer history information related to multiple services. The model management unit 201 may provide the QA model to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The model management unit 201 may update the QA model based on the member chart. In the following description, "provide" may be read as "send" or "output".

[0047] The inquiry receiving unit 202 receives an inquiry from the user terminal 4. The inquiry is an inquiry regarding at least one service among the multiple services provided by the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The inquiry regarding at least one service includes an inquiry regarding one of the multiple services. For example, the inquiry regarding at least one service may be an inquiry regarding service A among service A, service B, and service C. The inquiry regarding at least one service includes an inquiry regarding two or more services among the multiple services. For example, the inquiry regarding at least one service may be an inquiry regarding service A and service B among service A, service B, and service C. The inquiry regarding two or more services includes an inquiry that requires a response from two or more service providers. For example, the inquiry regarding two or more services may be an inquiry that is handled by independent processes, respectively, by the provider of service A and the provider of service B. The inquiry regarding two or more services may be an inquiry that is handled by a combination of processes by the provider of service A and the provider of service B. The multiple services are multiple services linked to a common ID. The user of the user terminal 4 is a user who has a common ID. The inquiry includes the inquiry content. The inquiry may include the common ID. The inquiry may include information regarding the means of providing the answer desired by the user of the user terminal 4. In the following description, "accept" may be read as "obtain" or "receive."

[0048] The inquiry receiving unit 202 identifies a service provider that provides a service corresponding to the inquiry based on the inquiry content and the corresponding service information. The service provider that provides a service corresponding to the inquiry is an example of a responder to the inquiry.

[0049] The inquiry reception unit 202 identifies the user of the user terminal 4, for example, based on the common ID. The inquiry reception unit 202 acquires the user's attribute information based on the member's medical record. The inquiry reception unit 202 acquires the user's activity history related to the inquiry based on the member's medical record. The inquiry reception unit 202 acquires a QA model. The inquiry reception unit 202 determines the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry based on the available service information, the QA model, answer history information, and the user's activity history.

[0050] The inquiry receiving unit 202 may create inquiry detail information based on the inquiry content. The inquiry detail information is information indicating the content of the inquiry written in a certain format based on the inquiry content. The inquiry detail information may include information such as a common ID, activity history related to the inquiry, inquiry type, inquiry content, and respondent. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may request information necessary for creating the inquiry detail information from the user terminal 4.

[0051] The inquiry response unit 203 responds according to the means for providing an answer to the inquiry. The inquiry response unit 203 determines the means for providing an answer and the answer content based on the provisional answer content determined by the inquiry receiving unit 202. The inquiry response unit 203 determines the means for providing an answer and the answer content to the inquiry based on the QA model, answer history information, and member chart. The inquiry response unit 203 may generate an answer to the inquiry according to the means for providing an answer and the answer content. The inquiry response unit 203 may request the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 to perform processing according to the answer providing means and the answer content. The inquiry response unit 203 may further determine the answer content to the inquiry based on attribute information of the user of the user terminal 4. The answer providing means may be the same means as the means for the inquiry or may be a different means. Responding includes determining the answer content to the inquiry. Responding includes processing to generate an answer to the inquiry. Responding includes requesting processing according to the inquiry. The answer content may include multiple independent processes by multiple answerers if the inquiry is about two or more services. The answer content may include a combination of multiple processes by multiple answerers if the inquiry is about two or more services. The combination of multiple processes by multiple answerers includes processes that span multiple answerers.

[0052] When the inquiry content relates to multiple services, the inquiry response unit 203 responds across the multiple services. The multiple services include two or more services provided by the same service provider and two or more services provided by two or more different service providers. For example, the inquiry response unit 203 determines the content of a response related to the multiple services. The inquiry response unit 203 may generate multiple response items to the inquiry depending on the means for providing the response and the content of the response. The inquiry response unit 203 may request multiple processes in response to the inquiry from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 of the corresponding multiple services among the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 depending on the means for providing the response and the content of the response. When the inquiry content relates to multiple service providers, the inquiry response unit 203 responds across the multiple service providers. For example, the inquiry response unit 203 determines the content of a response related to the multiple service providers. The inquiry response unit 203 may generate response items to the inquiry related to the multiple service providers depending on the means for providing the response and the content of the response. The inquiry handling unit 203 may request the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 of the corresponding plurality of services to perform processing in response to the inquiry, depending on the means of providing the answer and the content of the answer.

[0053] The response support device 2 receives inquiries regarding multiple services from users of the user terminal 4, identifies multiple respondents to the inquiries based on the content of the inquiries regarding the multiple services and the corresponding service information associated with the multiple services, and responds to the inquiries regarding the multiple services according to the means for providing answers.

[0054] According to this example, even when an inquiry spanning multiple companies is received, rather than a one-to-one question-and-answer system, the response support system 1 can unify the user's inquiry contact point and provide a seamless response by dispatching or requesting processing to respondents for multiple services or multiple service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. This eliminates the need for the user to make inquiries to the necessary contact points and handle them one by one, thereby streamlining the process of inquiries.

[0055] (4) Operation of the response support system 1 (4-1) Overall operation of the response support system 1 Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of the overall operation of the response support system 1 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of the cooperative operation of the response support device 2, service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, user terminal 4, operator telephone 5, and operator terminal 6 that constitute the response support system 1.

[0056] The model management unit 201 acquires service-related information from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The service-related information provided from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 may include part or all of the service-related information stored in the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The model management unit 201 stores corresponding service information in the corresponding service information storage unit 211 based on the service-related information. The model management unit 201 updates the corresponding service information. The model management unit 201 may provide an update notification to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 every time it updates the corresponding service information.

[0057] The model management unit 201 generates a QA model by machine learning or the like using the corresponding service information. The model management unit 201 stores the QA model in the learned model storage unit 214. The model management unit 201 may update the QA model by referring to the answer history information stored in the answer history information storage unit 212. The answer history information includes past answer history information. The past answer history information includes information about answers to inquiries that were handled before the inquiry currently being handled. The model management unit 201 may request current answer history information from the inquiry handling unit 203. The current answer history information includes information about answers to the inquiry currently being handled. The model management unit 201 may update the QA model based on the current answer history information acquired from the inquiry handling unit 203. The model management unit 201 may update the QA model at a predetermined timing. The predetermined timing may be based on a fixed time interval such as every day or every week. The model management unit 201 may provide the QA model to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3.

[0058] The inquiry receiving unit 202 receives an inquiry from the user terminal 4. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may perform authentication processing based on the common ID. The authentication processing may include user authentication of the user terminal 4. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may obtain the common ID together with the inquiry or separately.

[0059] The inquiry reception unit 202 refers to the available service information, the QA model, the response history information, and the member's medical record, and determines the content of a provisional response to the inquiry. For example, the inquiry reception unit 202 refers to the available service information and identifies a service that responds to the inquiry, or a service provider of the service that responds to the inquiry. The service that responds to the inquiry indicates a service related to the inquiry content. The service that responds to the inquiry is also referred to as a target service. The service provider of the service that responds to the inquiry indicates a service provider that provides the target service. The service provider of the service that responds to the inquiry may indicate an institution, entity, person, etc. that should respond to the inquiry. The service provider of the service that responds to the inquiry is also referred to as a target service provider, an inquiry responder, or a respondent.

[0060] The inquiry receiving unit 202 determines a means for providing an answer based on the target service or the corresponding service information linked to the answerer.

[0061] The inquiry receiving unit 202 determines the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry based on the QA model. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer based on other information.

[0062] The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer based on the answer history information. The answer history information may include, for example, past answer history information that is not reflected in the QA model. The answer history information may include most recent answer history information that is not reflected in the QA model. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry based on the answer history information by referring to answer history information related to the inquiry content.

[0063] The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of the provisional response based on the member medical record. The inquiry receiving unit 202 identifies the inquiring user based on the common ID. The inquiry receiving unit 202 acquires the member medical record linked to the identified inquiring user. The inquiry receiving unit 202, for example, acquires past inquiry history and inquiry content from the usage history and activity history. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of the provisional response based on information regarding the inquiring user's past inquiries, such as the inquiry history and inquiry content. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine, for example, whether the inquiring user has made an inquiry in the past, whether the inquiry content is the same as a past inquiry, etc. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of the provisional response based on the response content to the past inquiry. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may identify the inquiry content based on the usage history for each service and the activity history for each service. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may narrow down the inquiry content based on, for example, the services used by the inquiring user. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer based on whether the inquiring user is satisfied with the content of answers to past inquiries. The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the means of providing an answer based on the inquiry history and the content of the inquiry.

[0064] The inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer based on the attribute information of the inquiring user. For example, the inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer by referring to answer history information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user. For example, if the inquiring user is "male, in his 30s," the inquiry receiving unit 202 may determine the content of a provisional answer by referring to information linked to "male, in his 30s" in the answer history information.

[0065] The inquiry reception unit 202 saves the usage history in the member medical record storage unit 213 based on the inquiry content, etc. The inquiry reception unit 202 saves the inquiry history related to the current inquiry as usage history. The inquiry reception unit 202 saves the inquiry history in the member medical record storage unit 213. The inquiry history may include information such as the date and time of the inquiry, the means of inquiry, the inquiry content, and the means of providing the response. The member medical record storage unit 213 updates the member medical record.

[0066] The inquiry response unit 203 acquires the provisional response content from the inquiry reception unit 202. The inquiry response unit 203 determines the response content to the inquiry based on the provisional response content. The inquiry response unit 203 may determine the means for providing the response to the inquiry and the response content. The inquiry response unit 203 determines the response content to the inquiry based on at least one of the QA model, the response history information, and the member's medical record, or a combination of these.

[0067] The inquiry response unit 203 acquires a QA model. The inquiry response unit 203 acquires answer history information. The inquiry response unit 203 acquires a member chart. The inquiry response unit 203 determines the content of the answer to the inquiry based on the QA model.

[0068] The inquiry handling unit 203 may determine the content of the response based on the response history information. Based on the response history information, the inquiry handling unit 203 refers to the response history information related to the inquiry content and determines the content of the response to the inquiry content.

[0069] The inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the response based on the member's medical record. The inquiry response unit 203 acquires past inquiry history and inquiry content from the usage history and activity history. The inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the response based on the inquiry history, inquiry content, etc. The inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the response based on the processing result. For example, the inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the response based on whether or not the user is satisfied with the content of the response to a past inquiry. The inquiry response unit 203 may determine the means of providing the response based on the inquiry history and inquiry content.

[0070] The inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the answer based on the attribute information of the user. For example, the inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the answer by referring to the answer history information based on the attribute information of the user. For example, if the user is "male, in his 30s," the inquiry response unit 203 may determine the content of the answer by referring to information linked to "male, in his 30s" in the answer history information.

[0071] The inquiry response unit 203 responds to the inquiry based on the content of the response and in accordance with the means for providing the response to the inquiry. The inquiry response unit 203 performs, for example, a process of generating a response item to the inquiry. The process of generating a response item includes an automatic response and dispatch. The inquiry response unit 203 generates, for example, information indicating the response item. The information indicating the response item includes, for example, a text message indicating an example response.

[0072] The process of generating an answer item will be described below in the case where the process is an automatic response. The inquiry response unit 203 generates a text message indicating the answer item. If the answer is provided by telephone, the inquiry response unit 203 may convert the text message into voice data. The inquiry response unit 203 may instruct the inquiry reception unit 202 to call the telephone number of the inquiring user and play back voice based on the voice data. If the answer is provided by email, the inquiry response unit 203 may instruct the inquiry reception unit 202 to generate an email including a text message and launch a mailer or the like to send the email to the inquiring user's email address. If the answer is provided by chat, the inquiry response unit 203 may instruct the inquiry reception unit 202 to launch a chat application and send a chat message including the text message to the inquiring user's account. If the answer is provided by fax, the inquiry response unit 203 may instruct the inquiry reception unit 202 to send a fax including the text message to the inquiring user's fax number. The automatic response may be processed by the inquiry response unit 203 or via the inquiry reception unit 202 .

[0073] A case where the process of generating the answer content is dispatch will be described. The inquiry response unit 203 identifies an answerer to be dispatched. The inquiry response unit 203 transmits information including a text message indicating the answer to the operator terminal 6 of the dispatch destination. The inquiry response unit 203 may transmit the inquiry content, etc. to the operator terminal 6 of the dispatch destination. The operator terminal 6 may display the text message on a display device. An operator may respond to the inquiry based on the text message. For example, the operator may respond by calling the user's telephone number. The answerer may be at least one service provider. For example, if the inquiry is regarding two or more services, the answerer may be each of the two or more service providers. If the inquiry is regarding two or more services, the answerer may be one of the two or more service providers.

[0074] The inquiry response unit 203, for example, requests the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 to perform processing in response to the inquiry. The inquiry response unit 203 may transmit an instruction indicating the processing to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 perform the processing based on the instruction indicating the processing.

[0075] The inquiry response unit 203 provides the response content to the inquiry and the processing result to the inquiry reception unit 202. The inquiry reception unit 202 may provide the response content and the processing result to the user terminal 4. The inquiry response unit 203 saves the response content to the inquiry and the processing result in the answer history information storage unit 212. The answer history information storage unit 212 updates the answer history information. The response content and the processing result correspond to the current answer history information. The inquiry response unit 203 saves the response content to the inquiry and the processing result in the member medical record storage unit 213. The member medical record storage unit 213 updates the member medical record. The response content and the processing result correspond to the current activity history. The current activity history is information linked to the usage history that indicates the inquiry history related to the current inquiry.

[0076] According to this example, the customer service support system 1 can accept inquiries regarding any of the multiple services. Therefore, a member can make an inquiry to the customer service support device 2 regarding any of the multiple services. The customer service support system 1 can process inquiries regarding multiple services in an integrated manner. The customer service support system 1 can accept inquiries via any of the multiple inquiry means. Therefore, a member can make an inquiry to the customer service support device 2 using any of the multiple inquiry means. The customer service support system 1 can process inquiries via multiple inquiry means in an integrated manner. The customer service support system 1 can provide an answer via any of the multiple response means. Therefore, a member can receive an answer via any of the multiple response means. The customer service support system 1 can process the provision of answers via multiple response means in an integrated manner. This allows the customer service support system 1 to improve the efficiency of inquiry processing.

[0077] Furthermore, the customer service support system 1 can determine the content of the response based on a trained model that uses response service information related to multiple services and response history information for multiple members. This allows the customer service support system 1 to easily determine the optimal response content for each inquiry. This allows the customer service support system 1 to improve the efficiency of processing inquiries.

[0078] Furthermore, the customer service support system 1 can determine the optimal response content for each inquiring user based on the member chart. This allows the customer service support system 1 to improve the efficiency of processing inquiries. The customer service support system 1 can support user-friendly customer service operations.

[0079] (4-2) Operation of the model management unit 201 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the model management unit 201 in the response support device 2 according to the first embodiment. The model management unit 201 includes, as functional components, a service information management unit 2011 and a model generation unit 2012.

[0080] The service information management unit 2011 acquires service-related information from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. For example, the service provider device 3-1 is assumed to be a device used by a service provider that provides service A. The service provider device 3-2 is assumed to be a device used by a service provider that provides service B. The service provider device 3-3 is assumed to be a device used by a service provider that provides service C. Note that service A, service B, and service C may each be a single service or may include multiple services. Service A is assumed to be, for example, a service that sells tangible goods such as merchandise to members at a physical store such as a supermarket or convenience store. Service A may include a service that sells merchandise on an electronic commerce (EC) site or the like. Service B is assumed to be, for example, a service that provides travel-related services such as accommodation reservations to members on an EC site or the like. Service C is assumed to be a service that awards points to members in accordance with the use of services at affiliated stores or on an EC site.

[0081] Service A, Service B, and Service C may assign a common ID to members. Service A, Service B, and Service C may manage member information of members based on the common ID. Note that Service A, Service B, and Service C may each assign an individual member ID to members in addition to the common ID. Service A, Service B, and Service C may each manage member information of customers or members based on the member ID.

[0082] The service information management unit 2011 stores corresponding service information in the corresponding service information storage unit 211 based on the service-related information. For example, the service information management unit 2011 stores corresponding service information for each of service A, service B, and service C in the corresponding service information storage unit 211. The service information management unit 2011 may update the corresponding service information every time service-related information is acquired from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The service information management unit 2011 may update the corresponding service information based on acquisition of an update request from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The service information management unit 2011 may output an update notification indicating that the corresponding service information has been updated to the model generation unit 2012.

[0083] The model generation unit 2012 generates a QA model by machine learning or the like using the available service information stored in the available service information storage unit 211. The model generation unit 2012 may acquire available service information from the available service information storage unit 211 based on acquisition of an update notification from the service information management unit 2011. According to this example, the model generation unit 2012 can generate a QA model for extracting an inquiry response according to the registration information set by each of the service providers of service A, service B, and service C. Therefore, the response support device 2 can accept an inquiry by a means desired by the service provider of the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, for example, and respond by the desired means.

[0084] The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model by machine learning or the like using the updated compatible service information. The model generation unit 2012 stores the generated QA model in the trained model storage unit 214. The model generation unit 2012 stores the updated QA model in the trained model storage unit 214. For example, if the provider of service A changes the desired response means from telephone to chat, the model generation unit 2012 can update the QA model based on information about the changed response means.

[0085] The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model by referring to the answer history information stored in the answer history information storage unit 212. The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model stored in the trained model storage unit 214 every time the QA model is updated. The model generation unit 2012 may acquire answer history information at predetermined intervals and update the QA model. According to this example, the model generation unit 2012 can periodically correct the statistical QA model.

[0086] The model generation unit 2012 may request the current answer history information from the inquiry response unit 203. The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model based on the current answer history information acquired from the inquiry response unit 203. The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model based on part or all of the current answer history information. The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model stored in the trained model storage unit 214 every time the QA model is updated. For example, a case will be described where the current inquiry is regarding service A. The model generation unit 2012 can generate a QA model that reflects information such as the content of the answer to the inquiry regarding service A and the processing result, based on the current answer history information.

[0087] The model generation unit 2012 may update the QA model at a predetermined timing. The predetermined timing may be based on a fixed time interval such as once a day or once a week. The model generation unit 2012 may also update the QA model in real time.

[0088] The model generation unit 2012 may provide an update notification to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 every time the QA model is updated.

[0089] The model management unit 201 may provide the QA model to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 may refer to the QA model. According to this example, the users of the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 can refer to the QA model and check whether the answer to the inquiry is the answer desired by the user. Therefore, the response support device 2 can support responses to inquiries according to the requests of the users of the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. If the answer to the inquiry is not the answer desired by the user, the users of the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 can update service-related information, etc., and reflect it in the QA model.

[0090] (4-3) Operation of the inquiry reception unit 202 6 is a diagram for explaining an example of the operation of the inquiry reception unit 202 in the response support device 2 according to the first embodiment. The inquiry reception unit 202 includes, as functional components, a reception unit 2021 and a response guide generation unit 2022.

[0091] The reception unit 2021 receives an inquiry from the user terminal 4. The reception unit 2021 retrieves the member chart of the user of the user terminal 4 from the member chart storage unit 213 based on the common ID. The reception unit 2021 may perform user authentication of the user terminal 4 based on the common ID. The user of the user terminal 4 is an example of an inquiring user. In this example, the inquiring user is assumed to be a user who has a common ID. The inquiring user is assumed to have made an inquiry about a campaign for service A. The inquiring user is assumed to have made an inquiry by telephone. The inquiring user is assumed to prefer email as a means of providing a response.

[0092] The reception unit 2021 refers to the member chart based on the common ID and identifies the inquiring user. The reception unit 2021 may acquire information regarding the usage status of service A by referring to the usage history and activity history of the inquiring user. The information regarding the usage status of service A includes, for example, an activity history of service A, campaigns for service A, events, and the like. The reception unit 2021 may, for example, identify a campaign to which the inquiring user has applied. The reception unit 2021 may acquire information regarding past inquiries by referring to the usage history and activity history of the inquiring user. The information regarding past inquiries includes, for example, an inquiry history and the content of the inquiry. The reception unit 2021 acquires information such as whether the inquiring user has made an inquiry regarding service A in the past and the content of the inquiry. The reception unit 2021 may acquire information regarding means of providing answers to past inquiries. The reception unit 2021 may acquire information regarding satisfaction with answers to past inquiries. The reception unit 2021 may determine the content of the inquiry, means of providing an answer, etc. based on the acquired information.

[0093] For example, let us consider the case where inquiring user X inquires about how to apply for campaign AA2 of service A. Assume that inquiring user X has a history of inquiring about how to apply for campaign AA1 of service A in the past. Assume that inquiring user X has received answers to his past inquiries via email and is highly satisfied with the answers. In this case, the reception unit 2021 may determine that the content of the inquiry from inquiring user X is "how to apply for campaign AA2" and that the means of providing a response to this inquiry is "email."

[0094] The reception unit 2021 acquires corresponding service information from the corresponding service information storage unit 211. The reception unit 2021 identifies a service that corresponds to the current inquiry based on the content of the inquiry. The service that corresponds to the current inquiry is an example of a responder. In this example, the reception unit 2021 identifies service A as the responder. The reception unit 2021 may, for example, refer to corresponding service information linked to service A. The reception unit 2021 may further narrow down the respondents by referring to the corresponding service information linked to service A. For example, the reception unit 2021 may identify the department in charge of campaign AA2 as the responder.

[0095] The reception unit 2021 may output a message or the like requesting the user to provide additional information to the user terminal 4. In the following description, the message may include a text message, a voice message, or the like. For example, when the reception unit 2021 cannot identify a respondent from the inquiry, the reception unit 2021 may output a message or the like requesting the user to provide additional information to acquire information from the inquiring user that can identify the respondent. When the reception unit 2021 cannot identify a means for providing an answer to the current inquiry, the reception unit 2021 may output a message or the like requesting the user to provide additional information to acquire information from the inquiring user that can identify a means for providing an answer. The reception unit 2021 may output a message or the like confirming or repeating the inquiry content to the user terminal 4. The message confirming or repeating the inquiry content may include, for example, options for the inquiry content. The message confirming or repeating the inquiry content may include, for example, "Which of the following is your inquiry regarding?", "Is your inquiry regarding XXX?", etc.

[0096] The receiving unit 2021 creates detailed inquiry information based on the inquiry and the above-mentioned processing results. The detailed inquiry information may include, for example, information about the inquiring user, the inquiry content, the means of making the inquiry, and the means of providing a response to the inquiry.

[0097] The reception unit 2021 may store a usage history in the member chart storage unit 213 based on the inquiry detail information. The usage history may include, for example, the inquiry date and time, the means of inquiry, the inquiry content, the means of providing an answer, etc. In this example, the reception unit 2021 stores, as the usage history of inquiring user X, "inquiry means: telephone," "inquiry content: how to apply for campaign AA2," "answer providing means: email," etc. in the member chart storage unit 213.

[0098] The response guide generating unit 2022 generates a response guide based on the inquiry detail information created by the receiving unit 2021. The response guide is information indicating a response flow for an inquiry, etc. The response guide corresponds to the contents of a provisional reply.

[0099] The response method generation unit 2022 acquires available service information from the available service information storage unit 211. The response method generation unit 2022 may refer to the available service information and determine whether the answerer is able to accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means. The response method generation unit 2022 may switch the inquiry channel based on the determination result. The inquiry channel is, for example, an example of an inquiry means. The inquiry channel is also referred to as an inquiry interface. The channel is also referred to as a communication channel. If the answerer is able to accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means, the response method generation unit 2022 may accept the inquiry without switching the inquiry channel. If the answerer is not able to accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means, the response method generation unit 2022 may switch the inquiry channel. For example, the response method generation unit 2022 may determine whether service A is able to accept inquiries by telephone. If service A is able to accept inquiries by telephone, the response method generation unit 2022 may accept the inquiry by telephone. If service A can only accept inquiries via email, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may convert the telephone inquiry into an inquiry via email (character string). In this case, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may, for example, acquire voice data from the telephone inquiry and convert the voice data into text. The response procedure generation unit 2022 may output the text-converted inquiry to the service provider device 3-1 of service A.

[0100] When the means of inquiry is different from the means of inquiry that the respondent can accept, the response guide generation unit 2022 may convert the means of inquiry into a means of inquiry that the respondent can accept. For example, when the means of inquiry is telephone and the means of inquiry that the respondent can accept is email, the response guide generation unit 2022 converts the inquiry accepted by telephone into a format that can be accepted by email. For example, the response guide generation unit 2022 may perform speech recognition on the inquiry accepted by telephone and convert it into text. The response guide generation unit 2022 provides the inquiry converted into email format to the respondent. The response guide generation unit 2022 may output text information of the converted inquiry to the respondent via email. The response guide generation unit 2022 converts the means of inquiry depending on the respondent.

[0101] The response support device 2 receives an inquiry for at least one service among the plurality of services, identifies an answerer to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and available service information associated with the plurality of services, and determines an inquiry means acceptable to the answerer. The response support device 2 converts the inquiry means according to the answerer. For example, if the inquiry means is different from the inquiry means acceptable to the answerer, the response support device 2 converts the inquiry means to an inquiry means acceptable to the answerer.

[0102] According to this example, the customer service support system 1 can change the inquiry means used when accepting an inquiry depending on the respondent. This allows the customer service support system 1 to provide flexibility to the customer service desk for inquiries. In this way, the customer service support system 1 can improve the efficiency of processing inquiries.

[0103] If the respondent is unable to accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may output a message or the like indicating that the inquiry by the current inquiry means cannot be accepted to the user terminal 4. If the respondent is unable to accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may output a message or the like urging the respondent to make an inquiry by another means to the user terminal 4.

[0104] The response guideline generation unit 2022 may refer to the available service information and determine whether the answerer is capable of providing an answer to the current inquiry using an answer providing means. The response guideline generation unit 2022 may switch the answer channel based on the determination result. An answer channel is, for example, an example of an answer providing means. An answer channel is also referred to as an answer interface. If the answerer is capable of providing an answer to the current inquiry using an answer providing means, the response guideline generation unit 2022 may provide the answer through the same channel as the inquiry channel. If the answerer is not capable of providing an answer to the current inquiry using an answer providing means, the response guideline generation unit 2022 may switch the answer channel. For example, the response guideline generation unit 2022 may determine whether service A is capable of providing an answer to an inquiry via telephone. If service A is capable of providing an answer to an inquiry via telephone, the response guideline generation unit 2022 may provide the answer via telephone. If service A can only provide replies by email, the reply method generating unit 2022 may convert the reply channel into a reply channel by email (character string).

[0105] If the means by which the answer is provided by the answerer differs from the means by which the user desires to provide the answer, the response guide generation unit 2022 may convert the means by which the answer is provided into the means by which the user desires to provide the answer. For example, if the means by which the answerer provides the answer is chat and the means by which the user desires to provide the answer is email, the response guide generation unit 2022 converts the content of the answer received from the answerer via chat into a format that can be sent by email. The response guide generation unit 2022 provides the answer converted into email format to the user. The response guide generation unit 2022 converts the means by which the answer is provided in accordance with the user. The response guide generation unit 2022 may acquire the means by which the user desires to provide the answer based on, for example, the member chart, the inquiry content, the inquiry detail information, etc.

[0106] The response support device 2 receives an inquiry for at least one service among the plurality of services, identifies an answerer for the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and the corresponding service information associated with the plurality of services, and determines a means of providing an answer that can be provided by the answerer. The response support device 2 converts the means of providing an answer according to the means of providing an answer desired by the user. For example, if the means of providing an answer by the answerer is different from the means of providing an answer desired by the user, the response support device 2 converts the means of providing an answer to the means of providing an answer desired by the user.

[0107] According to this example, the customer service support system 1 can convert the means of providing a response to an inquiry according to the means of providing the response desired by the user. This allows the customer service support system 1 to provide flexibility to the customer service desk for inquiries. The customer service support system 1 can use a means different from the means of inquiry as the means of providing the response. In this way, the customer service support system 1 can improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0108] If the answerer is unable to provide an answer to the current inquiry using the answer providing means, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may output a message or the like indicating that the answer cannot be provided using the answer providing means to the user terminal 4. If the answerer is unable to provide an answer to the current inquiry using the answer providing means, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may output a message or the like suggesting that the answer be provided by another means to the user terminal 4.

[0109] The response method generation unit 2022 refers to the available service information and identifies the response method designated by the answerer. The response method generation unit 2022 determines which method to use for the response, such as automatic response, automatic processing, or dispatch.

[0110] The response guideline generation unit 2022 acquires a QA model from the trained model storage unit 214. The response guideline generation unit 2022 determines a provisional response to the current inquiry based on the QA model. The response guideline generation unit 2022 may determine a provisional response to the current inquiry. For example, the response guideline generation unit 2022 may determine the provisional response to the current inquiry, "How to apply for campaign AA2," as follows: response means "email," response item "apply via the Internet," and response method "automatic response."

[0111] The response guide generation unit 2022 acquires the response history information from the response history information storage unit 212. The response guide generation unit 2022 refers to the response history information and determines the content of a provisional response to the current inquiry. The response guide generation unit 2022 may change the content of the provisional response determined based on the QA model based on the response history information. For example, in response to the current inquiry content "How to apply for campaign AA2," the response guide generation unit 2022 may determine the response means "email," the response item "apply via the Internet or telephone," and the response method "automatic response" as the content of the provisional response. The response guide generation unit 2022 may change the content of the provisional response based on attribute information included in the response history information. For example, the response guide generation unit 2022 may update the content of the provisional response based on attribute information consistent with the attribute information of inquiring user X. For example, if the attribute information of user X indicates "male, in his 30s," the response guide generation unit 2022 may refer to past response history information linked to "male, in his 30s" from the response history information to determine the provisional response content.

[0112] The response procedure generation unit 2022 may assemble an appropriate flow (procedure) when the response content spans multiple service providers or requires a combination of multiple processes. The response procedure includes the generation or assembly of a listed content, flow (procedure). For example, the response procedure includes the assembly of details of the procedure required to respond to the inquiry content.

[0113] If the response to an inquiry includes multiple processes, the response procedure generation unit 2022 may define the multiple processes and determine executable procedures (e.g., processing procedures, processing content, settings of the service provider that will perform the processing, etc.).

[0114] The response guideline generation unit 2022 responds to the inquiry based on at least one of the available service information, the QA model, and the answer history information. When the response to the inquiry includes multiple processes, the response guideline generation unit 2022 determines the multiple processes. The response guideline generation unit 2022 may determine the procedures of the multiple processes, the contents of the multiple processes, and the respondents corresponding to the multiple processes.

[0115] According to this example, when various interactions are required to return an answer to an inquiry to the user terminal 4 and it is difficult to answer in one go, the customer service support system 1 can define the content of the processing required to obtain the answer (e.g., dispatch, automatic processing, etc.) and determine executable arrangements (e.g., processing procedures, processing content, settings of the service provider that will perform the processing, etc.). This allows the user of the user terminal 4 to request all the necessary procedures in one go with a single question. This allows the customer service support system 1 to make processing related to inquiries more efficient. Furthermore, the customer service support system 1 can increase user satisfaction with responses to inquiries.

[0116] The response procedure generating unit 2022 outputs the detailed inquiry information and information indicating the provisional response content to the inquiry handling unit 203 .

[0117] The response method generation unit 2022 acquires the response result from the inquiry response unit 203. The response result includes information such as the inquiry content, the response content, and the processing result. The response method generation unit 2022 outputs the response result to the reception unit 2021. The reception unit 2021 may output the response result to the user terminal 4.

[0118] According to this example, the response support device 2 can determine the inquiry detail information and the provisional response content based on a trained model that uses available service information for multiple services and response history information for multiple members. Therefore, the response support device 2 can support providing the optimal response for each inquiry for each service. Furthermore, the response support device 2 can support providing the optimal response for each inquiry for each member. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0119] (4-4) Operation of the inquiry response unit 203 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry response unit 203 in the response support device 2 according to the first embodiment. The inquiry response unit 203 includes, as functional components, a response management unit 2031 and a history management unit 2032.

[0120] The response management unit 2031 acquires detailed inquiry information and information indicating the content of a provisional response from the inquiry reception unit 202. The response management unit 2031 responds to the inquiry based on the content of the provisional response. The response management unit 2031 responds in accordance with the means for providing a response to the inquiry.

[0121] The response management unit 2031 acquires the QA model from the trained model storage unit 214. The response management unit 2031 determines the content of the response to the current inquiry based on the QA model.

[0122] The response management unit 2031 acquires answer history information from the answer history information storage unit 212. The response management unit 2031 determines the content of the answer to the current inquiry based on the answer history information. The response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the answer based on the QA model and the answer history information. According to this example, the response management unit 2031 can determine the content of the answer by referring to past history information, etc. that is not included in the QA model, which may be updated periodically. The response management unit 2031 can determine the content of the answer by referring to the most recent history information, etc. that is not included in the QA model.

[0123] The response management unit 2031 acquires the member medical record from the member medical record storage unit 213. The response management unit 2031 determines the content of the response to the current inquiry based on the inquiring user's member medical record. The response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the response by referring to the inquiring user's past activity history information. The response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the response based on the QA model, the response history information, and the member medical record. According to this example, the response management unit 2031 can determine the optimal content of the response for the inquiring user based on information about the inquiring user. For example, if the inquiring user has made a similar inquiry in the past, the response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the response based on information such as past response contents and processing results.

[0124] For example, the response management unit 2031 will be described as to a case where the inquiring user made an inquiry about a campaign for service A two days ago, just like the current inquiry. The response management unit 2031 may determine whether the current inquiry is a continuation of the previous inquiry based on information such as the content of the previous response and the processing result. If the current inquiry is a continuation of the previous inquiry, the response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the response as a continuation of the response to the previous inquiry. For example, if the inquiring user is not satisfied with the response to the previous inquiry, the response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the response to be different from the previous response.

[0125] The response management unit 2031 may determine the content of the response based on the user's attribute information. For example, the response management unit 2031 may refer to response history information and determine the content of the response based on the user's attribute information included in the member's chart. For example, a case will be described where the inquiring user is a "male in his 30s." The response management unit 2031 may refer to information linked to "male in his 30s" in the response history information and determine that the response content that is highly satisfactory as a response to a "male in his 30s" is the response content to the current inquiry.

[0126] The response management unit 2031 responds to the inquiry according to the means for providing the response based on the determined response content. In one example, the response management unit 2031 performs a process of generating the response content to the inquiry. The process of generating the response content includes an automatic response, dispatch, etc.

[0127] When the response management unit 2031 performs an automatic response, it outputs a response result including information indicating the content of the response to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The response management unit 2031 may output a completion notice indicating completion of the response to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The response management unit 2031 outputs the response result to the history management unit 2032. The response management unit 2031 may output the completion notice to the history management unit 2032.

[0128] When dispatching, the response management unit 2031 may acquire the response result from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The response management unit 2031 may output the response result to the inquiry reception unit 202. The inquiry reception unit 202 may output the response result to the user terminal 4.

[0129] For example, the following describes a case where the inquiry from inquiring user X is about "how to apply for campaign AA2 of service A." If service A allows automatic responses, the response management unit 2031 processes an automatic response to the user terminal 4 of inquiring user X. For example, the response management unit 2031 determines that the response to the inquiry is "apply via the Internet or telephone." The response management unit 2031 may create a message indicating the response. The following describes a case where inquiring user X desires to receive an answer via email and service A allows automatic responses via email. The response management unit 2031 outputs an instruction to the inquiry reception unit 202 to send a message indicating the content of the response via email. The inquiry reception unit 202 starts a mailer or the like and sends the email to the inquiring user's email address. The following describes a case where inquiring user X desires to receive an answer via telephone and service A allows automatic responses via telephone. The response management unit 2031 outputs an instruction to the inquiry reception unit 202 to output a message indicating the content of the response via telephone. The inquiry receiving unit 202 outputs a voice message to the telephone number of the inquiring user X. The response management unit 2031 outputs the response result to the device 3-1 for the service provider.

[0130] For example, a case will be described in which the inquiry from inquiring user X is "the result of winning the gift in campaign AA2 of service A." For example, the response management unit 2031 outputs an instruction to the service provider device 3-1 of service A to request the result of inquiring user X's winning. The service provider device 3-1 may output the result of inquiring user X's winning to the response management unit 2031. In this case, the response management unit 2031 may provide the result of inquiring user X by a means of providing an answer desired by inquiring user X. The response management unit 2031 may request the service provider device 3-1 of service A to perform a process of providing the result of inquiring user X's winning. The response management unit 2031 may send information including a text message indicating the answer to the operator terminal 6 corresponding to the service provider device 3-1. The operator of the operator terminal 6 may respond based on the text message indicating the answer. The operator terminal 6 may output the response result to the service provider device 3-1. The response management unit 2031 may acquire the response result from the service provider device 3-1.

[0131] In another example, the response management unit 2031 requests a process in response to the inquiry. The response management unit 2031 requests the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 to perform a process in response to the inquiry, for example.

[0132] When the response management unit 2031 requests processing in response to an inquiry, it may obtain a response result including information indicating the processing result from the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The response management unit 2031 may output the response result to the inquiry reception unit 202. The inquiry reception unit 202 may output the response result to the user terminal 4. The response management unit 2031 outputs the response result to the history management unit 2032. The response management unit 2031 may output a completion notification to the history management unit 2032.

[0133] For example, a case will be described where the inquiry made by inquiring user X is "I would like to transfer points for service A to points for service C." For example, the response management unit 2031 determines the procedure (point transfer process) required to transfer points for service A to points for service C. The response management unit 2031 may output instructions for performing the point transfer process to the service provider device 3-1 and the service provider device 3-3. The response management unit 2031 may output instructions for performing the point transfer process to another device that performs the point transfer process. The response management unit 2031 may obtain the response result from the service provider device 3-1.

[0134] The history management unit 2032 updates the history information based on the response result. For example, the history management unit 2032 stores the activity history related to the current inquiry in the member medical record storage unit 213 based on the response result. The history management unit 2032 stores the activity history related to the current inquiry in association with the usage history related to the current inquiry. The activity history may include, for example, the respondent, the response content, the response result, etc. In this example, the history management unit 2032 stores "Respondent: Service A," "Response content: Automatic response," "Response result: Send email," etc. in the member medical record storage unit 213 as the activity history related to the "Inquiry content: How to apply for campaign AA2" of inquiring user X.

[0135] The history management unit 2032 stores the response history for the current inquiry in the response history information storage unit 212, for example, based on the response result. The response history may include the inquiry date and time, the means of inquiry, the inquiry content, the means of providing the response, the respondent, the response content, the response result, etc. The history management unit 2032 may update the response history information each time it obtains the response result.

[0136] For example, based on the response result, the history management unit 2032 outputs the response history for the current inquiry to the model management unit 201. Based on a response history request from the model management unit 201, the history management unit 2032 may output the response history for the current inquiry to the model management unit 201. The model management unit 201 may update the QA model based on the response history for the current inquiry.

[0137] According to this example, the response support device 2 can determine the content of the response based on a trained model that uses available service information regarding multiple services and response history information for multiple members. The response support device 2 can further determine the most optimal content of the response based on the provisional content of the response. Therefore, the response support device 2 can support providing the most optimal response for each service to each inquiry. Furthermore, the response support device 2 can support providing the most optimal response for each member to each inquiry. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries. When the response content spans multiple service providers and requires a combination of multiple processes, the response support device 2 can assemble an appropriate flow (procedure). This allows the response support device 2 to efficiently process response content that is a combination of multiple processes by multiple service providers.

[0138] (4-5) Processing procedure of response support system 1 An example of the processing procedure performed by the response support system 1 will be described. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram for explaining an example of the overall operation of the response support system 1. As shown in FIG.

[0139] In the following description mainly focusing on the response support device 2, the response support device 2 may be read as the response processing unit 200. In the following description mainly focusing on the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3, the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 may be read as management devices for the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. In the following description mainly focusing on the user terminal 4, the user terminal 4 may be read as a management device for the user terminal 4.

[0140] The processing procedures described below are merely examples, and each process may be modified as much as possible. Furthermore, steps may be omitted, replaced, or added as appropriate depending on the embodiment.

[0141] In the following process, it is assumed that the user of the user terminal 4 has launched the common service application and logged in. The following process will be described using an example in which the user of the user terminal 4 has made an inquiry about service A using an inquiry form on the common service application.

[0142] The user terminal 4 outputs an inquiry to the response support device 2 (step S1). The inquiry includes input information entered into an inquiry form. The input information may include the inquiry content, a means for providing an answer, etc. The user terminal 4 may output the common ID of the user of the user terminal 4 to the response support device 2.

[0143] The response support device 2 receives an inquiry (step S11). In step S11, for example, the response support device 2 identifies the user of the user terminal 4 based on the common ID. The response support device 2 may also identify the user of the user terminal 4 based on login information. The response support device 2 acquires information related to the content of the inquiry and the means for providing an answer.

[0144] The response support device 2 determines the content of the response (step S12). In step S12, for example, the response support device 2 determines the content of the response to the inquiry by referring to at least one of the available service information, the QA model, the response history information, and the member chart, or a combination thereof. For example, the response support device 2 identifies a service provider (respondent) of the service corresponding to the inquiry. In this example, the response support device 2 identifies service A or the service provider device 3-1 as the respondent. The respondent may cover multiple services. The response support device 2 determines whether the respondent can accept an inquiry via an inquiry means. The response support device 2 determines whether service A can accept an inquiry via an inquiry form of a common service application. The response support device 2 determines whether a means of providing an answer corresponding to the inquiry desired by the user is applicable. For example, the response support device 2 determines whether service A can provide an answer via email. For example, if the means of providing an answer desired by the user is not applicable, the response support device 2 may output a message or the like to the user terminal 4. The response support device 2 determines the most appropriate response content for a user based on the user's membership chart, etc. According to this example, the response content that spans multiple services or multiple service providers can be determined based on a common ID that can be used in common for multiple services. Therefore, the response support device 2 can determine the appropriate response content when a response or process that spans multiple services or multiple service providers is required in response to an inquiry.

[0145] The response support device 2 may make an inquiry to the user terminal 4 in the process of determining the content of the response to the inquiry. The response support device 2 may, for example, request information necessary to create the inquiry detail information from the user terminal 4. The information necessary to create the inquiry detail information includes, for example, information necessary to clarify the content of the inquiry and information necessary to automate the processing. The information necessary to clarify the content of the inquiry is, for example, information that can identify a service that responds to the inquiry. The information necessary to automate the processing is, for example, information on the means of providing the response.

[0146] The response support device 2 can make an inquiry to the user terminal 4 based on member identification information related to the user of the user terminal 4. For example, the response support device 2 acquires information such as attribute information, usage history, and activity history based on the common ID or individual member ID of the user of the user terminal 4. The response support device 2 requests additional information from the user terminal 4 based on the information such as attribute information, usage history, and activity history. The additional information includes information necessary to clarify the content of the inquiry and information necessary to automate processing. The response support device 2 determines the content of the response to the inquiry based on the additional information acquired from the user terminal 4.

[0147] According to this example, the customer service support system 1 not only simply returns a response to the inquiry to the user terminal 4, but also requests additional information from the user terminal 4, thereby clarifying the content of the inquiry. Furthermore, the customer service support system 1 can generate response guidelines and perform processing according to the response guidelines by acquiring information necessary for responding to the inquiry or automating processing in response to the inquiry (for example, how the user would like the response, or asking a question via chat but wanting the response over the phone, etc.). By acquiring information based on member identification information, the customer service support system 1 can refer to past history and response content, enabling more flexible responses to inquiries. This allows the customer service support system 1 to streamline processing related to inquiries.

[0148] The user terminal 4 adjusts the means of providing an answer based on a message or the like from the response support device 2 (step S2). In step S2, for example, the user terminal 4 may change the desired means of providing an answer. The user terminal 4 may notify the response support device 2 of the changed means of providing an answer. The response support device 2 can communicate with the user terminal 4 and determine the means of providing an answer.

[0149] The response support device 2 refers to the available service information and determines whether dispatch is possible (step S13). In step S13, for example, the response support device 2 refers to the response method specified by the service corresponding to the inquiry and determines whether dispatch is possible. If dispatch is possible, the process transitions from step S13 to step S14. If dispatch is not possible, the process transitions from step S13 to step S3. The response support device 2 may determine whether dispatch is necessary based on the inquiry content, available service information, etc. If dispatch is necessary, the process transitions from step S13 to step S14. Dispatch is a process including multiple procedures. Therefore, when dispatching, the response support device 2 assembles and executes a process including multiple procedures. If dispatch is not necessary, the process transitions from step S13 to step S3.

[0150] If dispatching is not performed, the response support device 2 performs an automatic response based on the response method. The user terminal 4 receives the response (step S3). In step S3, for example, the user terminal 4 receives the response according to the desired means of providing the response. The user terminal 4 may receive the response via email, for example. Note that, depending on the response method, multiple responses may be provided by multiple service providers. For example, the response method may include an automatic response to an inquiry about service A, dispatching an inquiry about service B to the service provider of service B, and automatic processing for an inquiry about service C. The response method includes assembling the flow of these processes.

[0151] The response support device 2 refers to the available service information and determines whether the respondent can accept the inquiry made by the inquiry means (step S14). If the respondent can accept the inquiry, the process proceeds from step S14 to step S21. If the respondent cannot accept the inquiry, the process proceeds from step S14 to step S15.

[0152] The response support device 2 converts the inquiry means (step S15). In step S15, for example, the response support device 2 switches the inquiry channel. The response support device 2 accepts the inquiry via the switched inquiry channel.

[0153] The service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 generate responses (step S21). In step S21, for example, the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 generate responses to be provided to the users of the user terminals 4 based on the response content received from the response support device 2. The response support device 2 generates, for example, response items to the inquiry. The response support device 2 outputs a text message indicating the response items to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3. The response support device 2 may output a notice to the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 requesting the answerer to handle the inquiry. The notice may include, for example, a message requesting the answerer to generate an answer and provide the answer to the user of the user terminal 4. The service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 may display a text message indicating an example answer on a display device. The users of the service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 or the operators of the operator terminal 6 may create an answer to be provided to the users of the user terminals 4 based on the example answer.

[0154] If a direct response by the operator is possible (step 22), the operator provides the response directly to the user of the user terminal 4. The operator may provide the response to the user terminal 4 via email, for example. The user terminal 4 receives the response in step S3. The service provider devices 3-1 to 3-3 may output information about the response provided to the user terminal 4 to the response support device 2. The response support device 2 may record or update response history information based on the information about the response in step S18.

[0155] If the operator cannot directly answer the question, the process proceeds from step S22 to step S16.

[0156] The response support device 2 determines whether or not it is necessary to convert the means for providing a response to the inquiry (step S16). In step S16, for example, the response support device 2 determines whether or not to switch the response channel based on the content of the response. If it is necessary to convert the means for providing a response, the process transitions from step S16 to step S17. If it is not necessary to convert the means for providing a response, the process transitions from step S16 to step S3. Here, in step S18, the response support device 2 may record or update response history information based on the content of the response.

[0157] The response support device 2 converts the means for providing an answer (step S17). In step S17, for example, the response support device 2 switches the answer channel. The response support device 2 provides the answer to the user terminal 4 according to the answer channel. A case will be described where the means for providing an answer is a telephone. For example, the response support device 2 switches the answer channel to a telephone. The response support device 2 converts a text message indicating the answer into voice data. The response support device 2 makes a call to the telephone number of the user of the user terminal 4. Making the call includes accessing the user terminal 4 via the telephone. The user terminal 4 receives the answer in step S3. In step S18, the response support device 2 may record or update answer history information based on the answer.

[0158] According to this example, the response support device 2 can respond to inquiries from an inquiry form on an application. The response support device 2 can accept inquiries according to an inquiry means that can be accepted by a service provider of a service corresponding to the inquiry. Therefore, the response support device 2 can support the service provider in providing an optimal answer. The response support device 2 can provide an answer using an answer providing means desired by the user of the user terminal 4. Therefore, even when the user of the user terminal 4 makes an inquiry from an inquiry form, the user can receive an answer from various answer providing means. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of inquiry processing. The response support device 2 can support user-friendly customer response operations. For example, a user can make an inquiry from an inquiry form using a PC at home and receive an answer via chat, email, or telephone using a smartphone or the like while on the go.

[0159] (5) Effects The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can use an information processing program to accept an inquiry from a user having a common ID regarding at least one of multiple services linked to the common ID, identify a respondent to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and first information associated with the multiple services, and respond to the inquiry according to a means for providing an answer to the inquiry. For example, the response support device 2 can use the information processing program to accept an inquiry regarding any of the multiple services from a user having a common ID. Furthermore, the response support device 2 can use the information processing program to identify a respondent from among the multiple services and provide an answer using any of the multiple answering means. Therefore, the response support device 2 can process inquiries regarding multiple services in an integrated manner, thereby improving the efficiency of inquiry processing.

[0160] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on second information associated with multiple services, response history information related to the multiple services, and information related to the user's history related to the multiple services, using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can determine the content of a response in an integrated manner based on various information. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0161] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on information about a user's history regarding multiple services, including information about the user's past inquiry history, using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can determine the most appropriate response content for a user based on the user's past inquiry history, which allows the computer to do so. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0162] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can determine the content of an answer to an inquiry based on second information, which is information generated based on information about question and answer cases for at least a plurality of services, using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can determine the content of an answer that is optimal for the service provider based on the question and answer cases for each service. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0163] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on second information, which is information updated based on response history information related to multiple services, using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can determine the content of a response that is optimal for the service provider based on the response history for each service. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0164] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can perform processing to generate replies to inquiries using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can respond based on the generated replies. Furthermore, the response support device 2 can provide the generated replies to an operator. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0165] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can request processing in response to an inquiry using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can request processing in response to an inquiry from another device and have the other device handle the inquiry. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0166] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on the user's attribute information using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can determine the optimal content of a response according to the user's attribute based on the user's attribute information. This allows the response support device 2 to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0167] The response support device 2 of the first embodiment can provide an answer by the same means as the inquiry means or a different means using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2 can provide an answer by any of a plurality of answer providing means. This allows the response support device 2 to provide an answer by the most suitable means for the user or service provider, thereby improving the convenience of the inquiry response work.

[0168] (Second embodiment) The second embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. The second embodiment, like the first embodiment, is a customer service support system that performs customer service processing for inquiries using a customer service support device. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the customer service support system 1A is a system that supports customer service responses to inquiries from specific users. The customer service support system 1A implements a customer service response service in a closed network. The closed network is, for example, a network within an organization. The customer service support system 1A handles various types of information, including information that is shared within the closed network and is not disclosed to the outside. The information that is not disclosed to the outside includes, for example, confidential information, rules, and the like within the organization. The organization is, for example, a company, a corporation, or an office. The organization is not limited to the above and may be a community including multiple users. The information that is not disclosed to the outside includes knowledge information managed within the organization. The knowledge information indicates, for example, information created or managed by at least one department within the organization. The department indicates a division divided according to business, function, etc. A department may be a unit for dividing up multiple different businesses, operations, information, processes, etc., such as a department, team, project, campaign, etc. A department may be a unit for classifying knowledge information. A department may be a unit classified by the management entity that manages the knowledge information. Knowledge information for multiple departments may be managed by different management entities. A department may be interpreted as, for example, a field, area, or category. A department may indicate, for example, a field or field in which inquiries can be accepted. A department may indicate a field or field in which answers to inquiries can be provided. A department may indicate a field or field in which an appropriate answering entity can be determined for an inquiry. A department may indicate a field or field in which information that serves as an answer to an inquiry can be provided.

[0169] In the second embodiment, for example, an inquiry regarding knowledge information shared within an organization such as a company is handled. The knowledge information is assumed to be information classified by business department. The organization includes multiple business departments. The multiple business departments are an example of multiple categories. A business department is also simply referred to as a department. Knowledge information is also referred to as information of multiple departments. The user is assumed to be an employee belonging to the organization. For example, knowledge information managed by multiple departments incurs high costs for information collection and management. Furthermore, improving search accuracy is necessary to obtain appropriate information from the knowledge information. Therefore, there is a need to improve the efficiency of processing inquiries regarding knowledge information. A user can refer to the knowledge information of multiple departments and make an inquiry using the response support system when, for example, they want to investigate past performance of a sales promotion campaign, consider a new project, or investigate a past campaign that generated a large number of inquiries. Note that the user is not limited to an employee, but may be any user who can access knowledge information. The terms "customer" or "member" in the first embodiment may be replaced with "employee," "staff," "member," or "user" in the second embodiment.

[0170] The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. In the second embodiment, the differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described.

[0171] (1) Overall configuration of response support system 1A FIG. 9 is a bird's-eye view showing an example of the overall configuration of a customer service support system 1A according to a second embodiment. The customer service support system 1A shown in FIG. 9 includes a customer service support device 2A and a user terminal 4A. The customer service support device 2A and the user terminal 4A are communicatively connected to each other via a network 7A. For example, the network 7A is a local area network (LAN). The network 7A may include a wireless network or a wired network. The customer service support device 2A and the user terminal 4A may be communicatively connected to each other via the Internet or the like. The customer service support system 1A may also refer to a system including at least two of the customer service support device 2A and the user terminal 4A. While FIG. 1 shows an example in which the customer service support system 1A includes two user terminals 4A, the number of user terminals is not limited to this. The configuration of multiple user terminals may be similar to that of the user terminal 4A.

[0172] The response support system 1A is a system for responding to inquiries regarding multiple departments. Inquiries include questions, notifications, requests, complaints, etc. from users regarding each department. A user is a user who can use knowledge information of multiple departments. A user can be managed by user identification information (user ID). Knowledge information of multiple departments can be managed in an integrated manner by an administrator or the like within an organization. A user can log in using a user ID and use knowledge information of multiple departments. Multiple departments are an example of multiple categories linked to a user ID. A user may include a user with access restrictions who can use only a portion of the knowledge information of multiple departments. A user's access to information regarding multiple departments can be restricted based on attribute information, etc. A user can make inquiries regarding multiple departments using a user ID. A user ID is an example of a user's ID.

[0173] Similar to the response support device 2, the response support device 2A is a device that collects and processes data. The response support device 2A is communicatively connected to the user terminal 4A via the network 7A. The response support device 2A receives various data from the user terminal 4A and outputs various data to the user terminal 4A. The response support device 2A may be communicatively connected to other devices (not shown). The response support device 2A is an example of an information processing device. An example configuration of the response support device 2A will be described later.

[0174] The user terminal 4A is a device capable of communicating with other devices. The user terminal 4A is a PC, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like. The user terminal 4A is an example of an information processing terminal. When a user of the user terminal 4A has an inquiry about a category, the user makes an inquiry from the user terminal 4A to the response support device 2A. The user can make an inquiry via chat, email, or the like. For example, the user can log in to an application provided by the response support device 2A or an inquiry response service via a website, etc., and make an inquiry.

[0175] (2) Hardware configuration (2-1) Response support device 2A The response support device 2A has the same hardware configuration as the response support device 2.

[0176] (3) Functional configuration (3-1) Response support device 2A 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the response support device 2A according to this embodiment. The response support device 2A according to this embodiment includes, as its functional configuration, a response processing unit 200A, a storage unit 210A, and a communication control unit 220A. The communication control unit 220A controls communication with the user terminal 4A via the network 7A in accordance with instructions from the response processing unit 200A.

[0177] (3-1-1) Storage section 210A The storage unit 210A includes a knowledge information storage unit 215, a response history information storage unit 216, a user information storage unit 217, and a trained model storage unit 218. The storage unit 210A can be realized by the storage 23. Here, an example will be described in which the response support device 2A includes the knowledge information storage unit 215, the response history information storage unit 216, the user information storage unit 217, and the trained model storage unit 218, but each storage unit may be included in a device different from the response support device 2A.

[0178] The knowledge information storage unit 215 is a storage unit for centrally storing and maintaining knowledge information related to multiple departments. The knowledge information indicates knowledge information created or managed by each department. The knowledge information includes business-related information. The business-related information includes materials created or managed by each department. The materials include document data, image data, audio data, etc. The materials may include, for example, notices, minutes, regulations, rules, workflows, etc. For example, business-related information for the human resources department may include information about applications, information about work rules, and information about employees. Business-related information for the sales department may include information about projects, information about services, and information about customers. Business-related information includes information about personnel. The personnel may indicate, for example, the creator of the materials, the administrator, or the person in charge. The personnel information may include information that can identify the personnel and information indicating the personnel's contact information. The knowledge information may include, for example, information based on audio data from video conferences, information based on data recording communication such as threads on communication tools within the organization, etc. The knowledge information is an example of information associated with multiple categories, and is also referred to as first information associated with multiple categories.

[0179] The knowledge information includes, for example, settings related to inquiries. The settings related to inquiries include a reception means capable of receiving inquiries from users, a response means capable of responding to inquiries by users, and a method of responding to inquiries. The reception means indicates, for example, a communication means or a contact means such as email or chat. The reception means may include multiple means. If the reception means includes multiple means, the reception means may include information indicating the priority of the multiple means. The reception means is an example of a means for inquiries. The response means indicates, for example, a communication means or a contact means such as email or chat. The response means may include multiple means. If the response means includes multiple means, the response means may include information indicating the priority of the multiple means. The response means is an example of a means for providing an answer. The response means may be the same means as the reception means, or may be a different means from the reception means.

[0180] Methods of responding to inquiries include automatic response, automatic processing, dispatch, etc. Automatic response, for example, refers to automatically sending a response to an inquiry to a user. Automatic response includes processing to generate a response to an inquiry. Responses are information indicating example responses, response text, etc. Automatic processing refers to requesting processing in response to an inquiry. Automatic processing includes identifying processing in response to an inquiry and performing processing in response to an inquiry. Performing processing in response to an inquiry includes performing appropriate processing in accordance with the identified processing flow. Processing in response to an inquiry refers to processing required to respond to an inquiry. For example, if the inquiry is about how to apply for travel expenses, processing in response to an inquiry includes a series of processes required to apply for travel expenses.

[0181] Dispatch includes transferring a call to an answering entity, requesting the answering entity to handle the inquiry, etc. In this example, the answering entity indicates an institution, entity, person in charge, etc. that should answer the inquiry. Dispatch may include a process of generating an answer to the inquiry. Dispatch may include a process of providing an answer example to the answering entity. The inquiry answering method may include multiple answering methods. If the inquiry answering method includes multiple answering methods, the inquiry answering method may include information indicating the priority of the multiple answering methods. The response support device 2A may respond to an inquiry according to the inquiry answering method set by the administrator of each department, etc. The inquiry answering method is also simply referred to as the answering method. In the following description, "answer" may be read as "handling."

[0182] The knowledge information may include question and answer examples (FAQs) related to the work of each department. The question and answer examples may include information indicating the processing flow for inquiries. The knowledge information may include information related to access restrictions. The information related to access restrictions is, for example, access restriction setting information. The access restriction setting information may be information set based on user attributes. The access restrictions may include information for identifying users who can access the knowledge information. The access restrictions may be information indicating whether access is permitted or not depending on user attributes. The knowledge information may be updated as appropriate. The knowledge information may be updated periodically, for example. The knowledge information may include update information. The update information includes, for example, information about the person who updated, information about the update date and time, etc. The knowledge information is an example of first information associated with multiple categories.

[0183] The answer history information storage unit 216 is a storage unit for centrally storing and holding answer history information. The answer history information indicates history information related to answers to inquiries. The answer history information may be history information related to processing of inquiries by the response support device 2A. The answer history information includes, for example, information such as inquiry content, answer content, and processing result. The inquiry content includes, for example, inquiry type, inquiry source information, inquiry subject, etc. The answer content includes answer means, answer subject, answer method, etc. The processing result includes information indicating the user's response to the answer, etc. The response includes information indicating the satisfaction level with the answer, reaction to the answer, etc. The answer history information may correspond to information linked to the inquiry history included in the user information described later. The answer history information may be user attribute information excluding information that can identify an individual. The answer history information is an example of answer history information related to multiple categories. The answer history information includes answer history information for multiple users. The answer history information is an example of information associated with multiple categories.

[0184] The user information storage unit 217 is a storage unit for storing and holding user information in a unified manner. The user information includes user information for each user. The user information is an example of information related to a user.

[0185] The user information will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of user information managed by the response support device 2A according to the second embodiment.

[0186] User information includes information such as user identification information, attribute information, usage history, and activity history. User identification information is a user ID. Attribute information is information unique to each user, and may include information such as name, age, gender, department, team, conference body, project, employment type, years of service, and work experience. Attribute information may also include information indicating work content, etc.

[0187] The usage history includes an inquiry history. The inquiry history includes information such as whether an inquiry was made, the inquiry date and time, and the inquiry method. The inquiry history includes information about the user's past inquiry history.

[0188] The activity history includes detailed information for the usage history. For example, there may be multiple activity histories for the usage history. The activity history may have a 1:n (n is an integer greater than or equal to 1) relationship with the usage history. The activity history includes detailed inquiry information. The detailed inquiry information includes information such as the inquiry content, response content, and processing results. The user information is an example of information related to a user's past inquiry history for multiple departments.

[0189] The trained model storage unit 218 is a storage unit for centrally storing and holding trained models. A trained model is a trained model generated by machine learning or the like based on knowledge information. For example, a trained model may be generated based on information about question and answer examples in at least multiple departments. A trained model may be generated based on answer history information of multiple users. A trained model is a question and answer model (QA model) that combines inquiries and example answers to the inquiries. A trained model may be updated based on answer history information of multiple users related to multiple departments. A trained model is also referred to as a QA model. A trained model is an example of information associated with multiple categories. A trained model is also referred to as second information associated with multiple categories.

[0190] (3-1-2) Response Processing Unit 200A The response processing unit 200A functions as a model management unit 201A, an inquiry reception unit 202A, and an inquiry response unit 203A when the processor 21 executes a program stored in the memory 22.

[0191] The model management unit 201A manages or updates knowledge information. The model management unit 201A uses the knowledge information to generate a trained model (QA model) for responding to inquiries that has been constructed by machine learning or the like. The model management unit 201A generates the trained model based on information on question and answering cases in at least a plurality of services. The trained model is information generated based on information on question and answering cases in at least a plurality of services. The model management unit 201A may generate the trained model based on answer history information of a plurality of users regarding a plurality of services.

[0192] The QA model is a model that receives information about an inquiry as input and outputs a response to the inquiry. The information about the inquiry includes the time of the inquiry (inquiry date and time) and the content of the inquiry. The response may include a means for response, a response item, and a response method. The QA model may output information about processing in response to the inquiry. The model management unit 201A learns the response to the inquiry through machine learning. The model management unit 201A estimates the response to the inquiry based on the correspondence between the content of the inquiry and the response to the inquiry. The machine learning may be, but is not limited to, a neural network. Because the response changes depending on the time of the inquiry and its content, there may be a certain correlation between the time of the inquiry, its content, and the response. Therefore, the combination of the time of the inquiry, its content, and the response may also be managed chronologically. The model management unit 201A updates the QA model based on updates to knowledge information. The model management unit 201A updates the QA model using response history information. The model management unit 201A may request response history information from the inquiry response unit 203A. In this case, the model management unit 201A may acquire answer history information from the inquiry response unit 203A. The model management unit 201A may update the QA model using the answer history information. Note that the model management unit 201A may update the QA model based on user information.

[0193] The inquiry receiving unit 202A receives an inquiry regarding a department from the user terminal 4A. The inquiry is directed to at least one of the multiple departments. The inquiry directed to at least one department includes an inquiry regarding information managed by one of the multiple departments. The inquiry directed to at least one department may be an inquiry regarding information managed by multiple departments. The inquiry includes the inquiry content. The inquiry may include a user ID. The inquiry may include information regarding the means of providing the answer desired by the user of the user terminal 4A. The user of the user terminal 4A is also referred to as the inquiry user.

[0194] The inquiry receiving unit 202A identifies a respondent that will provide information corresponding to the inquiry based on the inquiry content and knowledge information. The respondent will respond to the inquiry. The respondent may indicate an organization, entity, person, etc. that should respond to the inquiry. The respondent may indicate a department related to the inquiry. The respondent may indicate a person in charge of a business related to the inquiry, a department, or a division. The respondent may be a creator, administrator, or person in charge of knowledge information related to the inquiry. The respondent may also perform response processing. The respondent may be any entity that has the function of receiving an inquiry and outputting an answer. The function may be realized by, for example, a chatbot, AI (Artificial Intelligence), a procedure, a program, or the like.

[0195] The inquiry reception unit 202A identifies the user of the user terminal 4A, for example, based on a user ID. The inquiry reception unit 202A acquires user attribute information based on the user information. The inquiry reception unit 202A acquires an activity history related to the user's inquiry based on the user information. The inquiry reception unit 202A acquires a QA model. The inquiry reception unit 202A determines the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry based on the knowledge information, the QA model, the answer history information, and the user's activity history.

[0196] The inquiry receiving unit 202A may create inquiry detail information based on the inquiry content. The inquiry detail information is information indicating the content of the inquiry written in a certain format based on the inquiry content. The inquiry detail information may include information such as a user ID, an activity history related to the inquiry, an inquiry type, an inquiry content, and a respondent.

[0197] The inquiry reception unit 202A may request information necessary for creating the inquiry detail information from the user terminal 4A. The information necessary for creating the inquiry detail information includes information for specifying the inquiry content. For example, the inquiry reception unit 202A may output question information for specifying the inquiry content to the user terminal 4A of the inquiring user using a chatbot or the like. The question information for specifying the inquiry content is information indicating a question message. The inquiring user can input an answer to the question using an input device or the like. The answer to the question is information for specifying the inquiry content. The inquiry reception unit 202A acquires information for specifying the inquiry content from the user terminal 4A via the network 7A. The inquiry reception unit 202A specifies the inquiry content based on the information for specifying the inquiry content. The response support device 2A can specify the inquiry content in detail and concretely through interactions with the inquiring user. The response support device 2A can collect information for specifying the inquiry content as information for improving the accuracy of determining a response to the inquiry through interactions with the inquiring user. The information for specifying the inquiry content may be information necessary for searching for an answer to the inquiry. The information for specifying the inquiry content may be keywords, etc., necessary for searching for an answer to the inquiry. Questions for specifying the inquiry content are also called follow-up questions. Follow-up questions include open-ended questions and multiple-choice questions. Multiple-choice questions include questions for confirming the inquiry content. Information for specifying the inquiry content is also called additional information.

[0198] For example, if the inquiry is "I would like to predict the number of participants in a new campaign," the inquiry receiving unit 202A may output a question regarding the content of the new campaign to the user terminal 4A of the inquiring user. A question for specifying the content of the inquiry may be, for example, "What kind of campaign is it?" The question for specifying the content of the inquiry may be a conversational message. The question for specifying the content of the inquiry may be information for acquiring keywords. The inquiry receiving unit 202A acquires information regarding the type, period, outline, etc. of the new campaign through, for example, an additional question.

[0199] The inquiry response unit 203A responds to the inquiry according to the means for providing an answer. The inquiry response unit 203A determines the means for providing an answer and the answer content based on the provisional answer content determined by the inquiry receiving unit 202A. The inquiry response unit 203A determines the means for providing an answer and the answer content to the inquiry based on the QA model, answer history information, and user information. The inquiry response unit 203A may generate an answer to the inquiry according to the means for providing an answer and the answer content. The inquiry response unit 203A may further determine the answer content to the inquiry based on attribute information of the user of the user terminal 4A. The inquiry response unit 203A may determine information accessible to the user based on, for example, the user attribute information. The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the answer content to the inquiry based on information accessible to the user.

[0200] The means for providing an answer may be the same as the means for making an inquiry, or may be a different means. Responding includes determining the content of the answer to the inquiry. Responding includes processing to generate an answer to the inquiry. Responding includes executing processing in response to the inquiry. Responding may include requesting processing in response to the inquiry. The content of the answer may include multiple independent processes by multiple answering entities. The content of the answer may include a combination of multiple processes by multiple answering entities. A combination of multiple processes by multiple answering entities includes processing spanning multiple answering entities. The means for providing an answer may be a combination of multiple means for providing an answer.

[0201] The inquiry response unit 203A may generate multiple answers to the inquiry depending on the means for providing the answer and the content of the answer.The inquiry response unit 203A may execute multiple processes for the inquiry depending on the means for providing the answer and the content of the answer.The inquiry response unit 203A may request multiple processes for the inquiry depending on the means for providing the answer and the content of the answer.

[0202] The response support device 2A receives inquiries regarding multiple departments from a user of the user terminal 4A, identifies multiple respondent entities to the inquiries based on the content of the inquiries regarding the multiple departments and knowledge information associated with the multiple departments, and responds according to the means for providing answers to the inquiries regarding the multiple departments.

[0203] According to this example, even when an inquiry spanning multiple departments is received rather than a one-to-one question-and-answer system, the customer service support system 1A can unify the user's inquiry contact point and provide a seamless response by executing multiple processes or dispatching or requesting processing from multiple answering entities. This allows the customer service support system 1A to improve the efficiency of processing related to user inquiries. Furthermore, by specifying the user's inquiry, the customer service support system 1A can easily determine the response processing. Therefore, the customer service support system 1A can improve the efficiency of processing related to user inquiries. The customer service support system 1A can perform more appropriate response processing for user inquiries.

[0204] (4) Operation of the response support system 1A (4-1) Overall operation of the response support system 1A Fig. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall operation of the response support system 1A according to the second embodiment. Fig. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of the cooperative operation of the response support device 2A and the user terminal 4A that constitute the response support system 1A.

[0205] The model management unit 201A acquires knowledge information stored in the storage unit 210A. The knowledge information may be information provided by multiple departments. For example, the knowledge information is information provided in advance by managers of the knowledge information of the multiple departments. The model management unit 201A may update the knowledge information every time the knowledge information of the multiple departments is updated. The model management unit 201A may update the knowledge information periodically.

[0206] The model management unit 201A generates a QA model by machine learning or the like using knowledge information. The model management unit 201A stores the QA model in the learned model storage unit 218. The model management unit 201A may generate a QA model by referring to the answer history information stored in the answer history information storage unit 216. The model management unit 201A may update the QA model by referring to the answer history information. The answer history information includes past answer history information. The past answer history information includes information about answers to inquiries that were answered before the inquiry currently being handled. The model management unit 201A may request current answer history information from the inquiry response unit 203A. The current answer history information includes information about answers to the inquiry currently being handled. The model management unit 201A may update the QA model based on the current answer history information acquired from the inquiry response unit 203A. The model management unit 201A may update the QA model at a predetermined timing. The predetermined timing may be based on a fixed time interval, such as every day or every week.

[0207] The inquiry reception unit 202A receives an inquiry from the user terminal 4A. The inquiry reception unit 202A may perform authentication processing based on a user ID. The authentication processing may include user authentication of the user terminal 4A. The authentication processing may determine whether or not access to knowledge information in multiple departments is permitted. The authentication processing may determine access restrictions for each user to the knowledge information in multiple departments. The inquiry reception unit 202A may determine whether or not access to knowledge information is restricted based on user attribute information. The inquiry reception unit 202A may acquire the user ID together with the inquiry or separately.

[0208] The inquiry receiving unit 202A refers to the knowledge information, the QA model, the answer history information, and the user information to determine the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry. For example, the inquiry receiving unit 202A refers to the knowledge information to identify the answering entity corresponding to the inquiry.

[0209] The inquiry receiving unit 202A determines the means for providing the answer based on the knowledge information linked to the answering entity.

[0210] The inquiry receiving unit 202A determines the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry based on the QA model. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on other information.

[0211] The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on the answer history information. The answer history information may include, for example, past answer history information that is not reflected in the QA model. The answer history information may include most recent answer history information that is not reflected in the QA model. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer to the inquiry based on the answer history information by referring to answer history information related to the inquiry content.

[0212] The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on user information. The inquiry receiving unit 202A identifies the inquiring user based on a user ID. The inquiry receiving unit 202A acquires user information associated with the identified inquiring user. The inquiry receiving unit 202A acquires, for example, a past inquiry history and inquiry content from the usage history and activity history. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on information related to the inquiring user's past inquiries, such as the inquiry history and inquiry content. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine, for example, whether the inquiring user has made an inquiry in the past, whether the inquiry content is the same as a past inquiry, etc. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on the response content to a past inquiry. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on whether the inquiring user is satisfied with the response content to a past inquiry. The inquiry receiving unit 202A may determine a means of providing an answer based on the inquiry history and the inquiry content.

[0213] The inquiry reception unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based on attribute information of the inquiring user. The inquiry reception unit 202A may narrow down the inquiry content based on, for example, the department to which the inquiring user belongs or the business of the inquiring user. The inquiry reception unit 202A may determine access restrictions to knowledge information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user. The inquiry reception unit 202A may determine the content of a provisional answer based only on knowledge information to which the inquiring user has access rights. For example, the inquiry reception unit 202A may determine whether the inquiring user has access rights to knowledge information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user. For example, the inquiry reception unit 202A may determine accessible knowledge information based on the department to which the inquiring user belongs or the employment status of the inquiring user. According to this example, the response support device 2 can restrict access to knowledge information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user, thereby increasing the security level of the knowledge information in the inquiry response process.

[0214] The inquiry receiving unit 202A may refer to the response history information and determine the content of a provisional response based on the attribute information of the inquiring user. For example, if the inquiring user is a "sales department member," the inquiry receiving unit 202A may refer to information linked to "sales department member" in the response history information and determine the content of a provisional response.

[0215] The inquiry reception unit 202A may determine the relevance of the inquiry to the business of the inquiring user based on attribute information. The inquiry reception unit 202A may determine whether the inquiry is necessary for business purposes based on information about the inquiring user's past inquiries, attribute information, etc. For example, the inquiry reception unit 202A may restrict access to knowledge information when the inquiring user inquires about a matter that is not highly relevant to the inquiring user's business. According to this example, the response support device 2 can increase the security level of knowledge information in the response processing.

[0216] The inquiry reception unit 202A stores the usage history in the user information storage unit 217 based on the inquiry content, etc. The inquiry reception unit 202A stores the inquiry history related to the current inquiry as the usage history. The inquiry reception unit 202A stores the inquiry history in the user information storage unit 217. The inquiry history may include information such as the date and time of the inquiry, the means of the inquiry, the inquiry content, and the means of providing the answer. The user information storage unit 217 updates the user information.

[0217] The inquiry response unit 203A acquires a provisional answer from the inquiry receiving unit 202A. The inquiry response unit 203A determines the answer to the inquiry based on the provisional answer. The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the means for providing an answer to the inquiry and the answer content. The inquiry response unit 203A determines the answer to the inquiry based on at least one of a QA model, answer history information, and user information, or a combination of these.

[0218] The inquiry response unit 203A acquires a QA model. The inquiry response unit 203A acquires answer history information. The inquiry response unit 203A acquires user information. The inquiry response unit 203A determines the content of the answer to the inquiry based on the QA model.

[0219] The inquiry handling unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on the response history information. The inquiry handling unit 203A refers to the response history information related to the inquiry content based on the response history information and determines the content of the response to the inquiry content.

[0220] The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on user information. The inquiry response unit 203A acquires past inquiry history and inquiry content from the usage history and activity history. The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on the inquiry history, inquiry content, etc. The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on the processing result. For example, the inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on whether or not the user is satisfied with the content of the response to a past inquiry. The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the means of providing the response based on the inquiry history and inquiry content.

[0221] The inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on the user's attribute information. For example, the inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response by referring to response history information based on the user's attribute information. For example, if the user is a "sales department member," the inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response by referring to information linked to "sales department" in the response history information. For example, the inquiry response unit 203A may determine the content of the response based on the satisfaction level of other users linked to "sales department" with the content of responses to similar past inquiries. For example, the inquiry response unit 203A may change the content of the response depending on the satisfaction level with the content of the response. For example, if the satisfaction level of a response indicating dispatch is low, the inquiry response unit 203A may change the content of the current response from dispatch to automatic processing.

[0222] The inquiry response unit 203A responds to the inquiry according to the means for providing the answer based on the content of the answer. The inquiry response unit 203A performs, for example, a process of generating an answer to the inquiry. The process of generating an answer includes an automatic response and dispatch. The inquiry response unit 203A generates, for example, information indicating the answer. The information indicating the answer includes, for example, a text message indicating an example answer.

[0223] A case where the process of generating an answer is an automatic response will be described. The inquiry response unit 203A generates a text message indicating the answer. If the means for providing the answer is chat, the inquiry response unit 203A may instruct the inquiry reception unit 202A to launch a chat application and send a chat message including the text message to the inquiring user's account. If the means for providing the answer is email, the inquiry response unit 203A may instruct the inquiry reception unit 202A to generate an email including the text message and launch a mailer or the like to send the email to the inquiring user's email address. For example, the inquiry response unit 203A may attach information related to the answer to the email and send it to the inquiring user's email address. The automatic response may be processed by the inquiry response unit 203A or via the inquiry reception unit 202A. Note that the means for providing the answer is not limited to the above. The inquiry response unit 203A performs automation depending on the means for providing the answer.

[0224] A case where the process of generating a reply item is a dispatch will be described. The inquiry response unit 203A identifies a replying entity to be dispatched. The inquiry response unit 203A may send information including a text message indicating the reply item to the user terminal 4A of the dispatch destination. The inquiry response unit 203A may send the content of the inquiry, etc. to the user terminal 4A of the dispatch destination. The user who receives the dispatch request responds to the inquiry based on the text message.

[0225] The inquiry response unit 203A may, for example, request the other user terminal 4A to perform processing in response to the inquiry, or may send an instruction indicating the processing to the other user terminal 4A.

[0226] The inquiry response unit 203A provides the response result for the inquiry to the inquiry reception unit 202A. The response result includes information such as the inquiry content, the response content, and the processing result. The inquiry reception unit 202A may provide the response result to the user terminal 4A. The inquiry response unit 203A saves the response content for the inquiry and the processing result in the response history information storage unit 216. The response history information storage unit 216 updates the response history information. The response content and the processing result correspond to the current answer history information. The inquiry response unit 203A saves the response content for the inquiry and the processing result in the user information storage unit 217. The user information storage unit 217 updates the user information. The response content and the processing result correspond to the current activity history. The current activity history is information linked to the usage history that indicates the inquiry history related to the current inquiry.

[0227] According to this example, the customer service support system 1A can accept inquiries related to any of the multiple departments. Therefore, a user can consistently make inquiries to the customer service support device 2A regardless of whether the inquiry is related to any of the multiple departments. The customer service support system 1A can process inquiries related to multiple departments in an integrated manner. The customer service support system 1A can accept inquiries using any of the multiple inquiry means. Therefore, a user can make an inquiry to the customer service support device 2A using any of the multiple inquiry means. The customer service support system 1A can process inquiries via multiple inquiry means in an integrated manner. The customer service support system 1A can provide an answer via any of the multiple answer means. Therefore, a user can receive an answer via any of the multiple answer means. The customer service support system 1A can process the provision of answers via multiple answer means in an integrated manner. This allows the customer service support system 1A to improve the efficiency of inquiry processing.

[0228] Furthermore, the customer service support system 1A can determine the content of the response based on a trained model that uses knowledge information about multiple departments and response history information about multiple users. This allows the customer service support system 1A to easily determine the optimal response content for each inquiry. This allows the customer service support system 1A to improve the efficiency of processing inquiries.

[0229] Furthermore, the customer service support system 1A can determine the optimal response content for each inquiring user based on the user information. This allows the customer service support system 1A to improve the efficiency of inquiry processing. The customer service support system 1A can support user-friendly inquiry response operations.

[0230] (4-2) Operation of the Model Management Unit 201A 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the model management unit 201A in the response support device 2A according to the second embodiment. The model management unit 201A includes, as functional components, a knowledge information management unit 2013 and a model generation unit 2014.

[0231] The knowledge information management unit 2013 acquires knowledge information from the storage unit 210A. The knowledge information is, for example, information created or managed by each of multiple departments. In this example, the departments are assumed to be divisions belonging to a company. The multiple departments are assumed to be a human resources department, a sales department, an information systems department, etc. The knowledge information is managed for each department, but may also be managed, for example, by project that includes information created by multiple departments.

[0232] The knowledge information management unit 2013 stores the knowledge information in the knowledge information storage unit 215. For example, the knowledge information management unit 2013 stores the knowledge information for each of a plurality of departments in the knowledge information storage unit 215. The knowledge information management unit 2013 may update the knowledge information every time it acquires knowledge information from managers of the plurality of departments. The knowledge information management unit 2013 may update the knowledge information based on acquisition of an update request from a user terminal of the managers of the plurality of departments. The knowledge information management unit 2013 may output an update notification indicating that the knowledge information has been updated to the model generation unit 2014.

[0233] The model generation unit 2014 generates a QA model by machine learning or the like using the knowledge information stored in the knowledge information storage unit 215. The model generation unit 2014 may acquire knowledge information from the knowledge information storage unit 215 based on acquisition of an update notification from the knowledge information management unit 2013. According to this example, the model generation unit 2014 can generate a QA model for extracting an inquiry response according to information set by each of a plurality of departments. Therefore, the response support device 2A can, for example, accept an inquiry by a means desired by each department and provide a response by the desired means.

[0234] The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model by machine learning or the like using the updated knowledge information. The model generation unit 2014 stores the generated QA model in the trained model storage unit 218. The model generation unit 2014 stores the updated QA model in the trained model storage unit 218. For example, when the desired response means is changed by the knowledge information manager in the human resources department, the model generation unit 2014 can update the QA model based on the information of the changed response means.

[0235] The model generation unit 2014 may generate a QA model by machine learning or the like using the answer history information stored in the answer history information storage unit 216. The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model by referring to the answer history information. The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model stored in the trained model storage unit 218 every time the QA model is updated. The model generation unit 2014 may acquire answer history information at predetermined intervals and update the QA model. According to this example, the model generation unit 2014 can periodically correct the statistical QA model.

[0236] The model generation unit 2014 may request the current response history information from the inquiry response unit 203A. The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model based on the current response history information acquired from the inquiry response unit 203A. The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model based on part or all of the current response history information. The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model stored in the trained model storage unit 218 every time the QA model is updated. For example, a case will be described where the current inquiry is regarding a personnel-related application. The model generation unit 2014 can generate a QA model that reflects information such as the response content and processing result for the inquiry regarding the personnel-related application, based on the current response history information.

[0237] The model generation unit 2014 may update the QA model at a predetermined timing. The predetermined timing may be based on a fixed time interval such as once a day or once a week. The model generation unit 2014 may also update the QA model in real time.

[0238] (4-3) Operation of the inquiry reception unit 202A 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry reception unit 202A in the response support device 2A according to the second embodiment. The inquiry reception unit 202A includes a reception unit 2023 and a response guide generation unit 2024 as functional components.

[0239] The reception unit 2023 receives an inquiry from the user terminal 4A. The reception unit 2023 acquires user information of the user of the user terminal 4A from the user information storage unit 217 based on the user ID. The reception unit 2023 may perform user authentication of the user terminal 4A based on the user ID. The user of the user terminal 4A is an example of an inquiring user. In this example, the inquiring user is assumed to be a user with a user ID. The inquiring user is assumed to have made an inquiry about a new campaign. The inquiring user is assumed to have made an inquiry via chat. The inquiring user is assumed to prefer chat as a means of providing an answer.

[0240] The reception unit 2023 refers to user information based on the user ID and identifies the inquiring user. The reception unit 2023 may identify which of multiple departments the inquiry relates to from the inquiry content. The reception unit 2023 may refer to the usage history and activity history of the inquiring user and acquire past inquiry history related to the department related to the current inquiry. The reception unit 2023 may acquire information on the means of providing answers to the inquiring user's past inquiries. The reception unit 2023 may acquire information on satisfaction with answers to past inquiries. The reception unit 2023 may determine the content of the inquiry, the means of providing an answer, etc. based on the acquired information.

[0241] For example, let us consider the case where inquiring user XA inquires about the expected number of participants in a new campaign. The inquiry about the new campaign is assumed to be an inquiry about the sales department. Inquiring user XA has a history of making inquiries about the sales department in the past. Inquiring user XA has received answers to his past inquiries via chat, and is highly satisfied with the answers. In this case, the reception unit 2023 determines that the content of the inquiry from inquiring user XA is "the expected number of participants in a new campaign" and that the means of providing a response to this inquiry is "chat."

[0242] The receiving unit 2023 acquires knowledge information from the knowledge information storage unit 215. The receiving unit 2023 identifies the department that will handle the current inquiry based on the content of the inquiry. The department that will handle the current inquiry is an example of a respondent. In this example, the receiving unit 2023 identifies the sales department as the respondent. The respondent may be an administrator that manages the knowledge information of the sales department. The respondent may be a program that processes the workflow within the sales department. The receiving unit 2023 may, for example, refer to knowledge information linked to the sales department. The receiving unit 2023 may further narrow down the respondents by referring to the knowledge information linked to the sales department. For example, the receiving unit 2023 may identify the department in charge of campaign planning as the respondent.

[0243] The reception unit 2023 may output a message or the like requesting the user to provide additional information to the user terminal 4A. In the following description, the message may include a text message, a voice message, or the like. For example, when the response entity cannot be identified from the inquiry, the reception unit 2023 may output a message or the like requesting the user to provide additional information to acquire information from the inquiring user that can identify the response entity. When the reception unit 2023 cannot identify a means for providing an answer to the current inquiry, the reception unit 2023 may output a message or the like requesting the user to provide additional information to acquire information from the inquiring user that can identify a means for providing an answer. The reception unit 2023 may output a question to specify the content of the inquiry to the user terminal 4A. For example, the reception unit 2023 may output a message or the like indicating a question for acquiring detailed information about a new campaign to the user terminal 4A. The reception unit 2023 may output a message such as, for example, "What kind of campaign is this?" to the user terminal 4A. The reception unit 2023 acquires the answer to the question from the user terminal 4A. For example, the reception unit 2023 acquires from the user terminal 4A a response such as "For every purchase of XXX yen or more, 50 people will be selected by lottery to receive points." The reception unit 2023 narrows down the inquiry content based on the response acquired from the user terminal 4A. Note that the reception unit 2023 may output different questions to the user terminal 4A multiple times until it obtains the information necessary to respond to the inquiry.

[0244] The receiving unit 2023 creates detailed inquiry information based on the inquiry and the above-mentioned processing results. The detailed inquiry information may include, for example, information about the inquiring user, the inquiry content, the means of making the inquiry, and the means of providing a response to the inquiry.

[0245] The reception unit 2023 may store a usage history in the user information storage unit 217 based on the inquiry detail information. The usage history may include, for example, the inquiry date and time, the means of inquiry, the inquiry content, the means of providing an answer, etc. In this example, the reception unit 2023 stores in the user information storage unit 217, as the usage history of inquiring user XA, "inquiry means: chat," "inquiry content: expected number of participants in new campaign, 50 people will be drawn by lottery to receive points for every purchase of XXX yen or more," "answer providing means: chat," etc.

[0246] The response guide generating unit 2024 generates a response guide based on the inquiry detail information created by the receiving unit 2023. The response guide is information indicating a response flow for an inquiry, etc. The response guide corresponds to the contents of a provisional reply.

[0247] The response method generation unit 2024 acquires knowledge information from the knowledge information storage unit 215. The response method generation unit 2024 may refer to the knowledge information and determine whether the responding entity is capable of accepting an inquiry via the current inquiry means. The response method generation unit 2024 may switch the inquiry channel based on the determination result. The inquiry channel is, for example, an example of an inquiry means. The inquiry channel is also referred to as an inquiry interface. The channel is also referred to as a communication channel. If the responding entity is capable of accepting an inquiry via the current inquiry means, the response method generation unit 2024 may accept the inquiry without switching the inquiry channel. If the responding entity is not capable of accepting an inquiry via the current inquiry means, the response method generation unit 2024 may switch the inquiry channel. Note that the response method generation unit 2024 may determine whether the inquiry via the current inquiry means is capable of being accepted according to the inquiry content. For example, the response guide generation unit 2024 may determine whether an inquiry regarding a new campaign can be accepted via chat. If an inquiry regarding a new campaign can be accepted via chat, the response guide generation unit 2024 may accept the inquiry via chat. If the means of inquiry is different from the means of inquiry that the responding entity can accept, the response guide generation unit 2024 may convert the means of inquiry into a means of inquiry that the responding entity can accept. For example, if an inquiry regarding a new campaign can only be accepted via email, the response guide generation unit 2024 may convert an inquiry via chat into an inquiry via email. In this case, the response guide generation unit 2024 may, for example, acquire text data from the inquiry via chat, create an email including the text data, and output it to the responding entity. Note that the accepting entity that accepts the inquiry and the responding entity may be the same entity or different entities.

[0248] The response support device 2A receives an inquiry related to at least one of the multiple departments, identifies an entity that responds to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and knowledge information associated with the multiple departments, and determines an inquiry means acceptable to the answering entity. The response support device 2A converts the inquiry means according to the answering entity. For example, if the inquiry means is different from the inquiry means acceptable to the answering entity, the response support device 2A converts the inquiry means to an inquiry means acceptable to the answering entity.

[0249] According to this example, the customer service support system 1A can change the inquiry means used when accepting an inquiry depending on the respondent. This allows the customer service support system 1A to provide flexibility to the customer service desk for inquiries. In this way, the customer service support system 1A can improve the efficiency of processing inquiries.

[0250] If the responding entity cannot accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means, the response procedure generation unit 2024 may output a message or the like indicating that the inquiry cannot be accepted by the current inquiry means to the user terminal 4A. If the responding entity cannot accept an inquiry by the current inquiry means, the response procedure generation unit 2024 may output a message or the like urging the user terminal 4A to make an inquiry by another means.

[0251] The response method generation unit 2024 may refer to knowledge information and determine whether the answering entity can provide an answer to the current inquiry using an answer providing means. The response method generation unit 2024 may switch the answer channel based on the determination result. The answer channel is, for example, an example of an answer providing means. The answer channel is also referred to as an answer interface. If the answering entity can provide an answer to the current inquiry using an answer providing means, the response method generation unit 2024 may provide the answer through the same channel as the inquiry channel. If the answering entity cannot provide an answer to the current inquiry using an answer providing means, the response method generation unit 2024 may switch the answer channel. For example, the response method generation unit 2024 may determine whether an answer to an inquiry about a new campaign can be provided via chat. If an answer to an inquiry about a new campaign can be provided via chat, the response method generation unit 2024 may provide an answer via chat. When only an email response can be provided to an inquiry about a new campaign, the response instruction generation unit 2024 may convert the response channel to an email response channel (character string). For example, when the response to the inquiry is to provide materials, the response instruction generation unit 2024 may change the response channel to email in order to provide the response by email with the materials attached. For example, when the inquiry is about childcare leave, the response instruction generation unit 2024 may change the response channel to email in order to provide the response by email with materials such as work regulations regarding childcare leave attached.

[0252] If the means by which the answer is provided by the answering entity is different from the means by which the user desires to provide the answer, the response guide generation unit 2024 may convert the means by which the answer is provided into the means by which the user desires to provide the answer. For example, if the means by which the answering entity provides the answer is chat and the means by which the user desires to provide the answer is email, the response guide generation unit 2024 converts the content of the answer received from the answering entity via chat into a format that can be sent by email. The response guide generation unit 2024 provides the answer converted into email format to the user. The response guide generation unit 2024 converts the means by which the answer is provided in accordance with the user. The response guide generation unit 2024 may acquire the means by which the user desires to provide the answer based on, for example, user information, inquiry content, inquiry detail information, etc.

[0253] The response support device 2A receives an inquiry for at least one of the multiple departments, identifies an entity that will answer the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and knowledge information associated with the multiple departments, and determines a means of providing an answer that can be provided by the entity. The response support device 2A converts the means of providing an answer according to the means of providing an answer desired by the user. For example, if the means of providing an answer by the entity that will answer is different from the means of providing an answer desired by the user, the response support device 2A converts the means of providing an answer to the means of providing an answer desired by the user.

[0254] According to this example, the customer service support system 1A can change the means of providing an answer to an inquiry depending on the means of providing an answer desired by the user. This allows the customer service support system 1A to provide flexibility to the customer service desk for inquiries. The customer service support system 1A can use a means different from the inquiry means as the means of providing an answer. In this way, the customer service support system 1A can improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0255] If the answering entity is unable to provide an answer to the current inquiry using the answer providing means, the response method generation unit 2024 may output a message or the like indicating that the answer cannot be provided using the answer providing means to the user terminal 4A.If the answering entity is unable to provide an answer to the current inquiry using the answer providing means, the response method generation unit 2024 may output a message or the like suggesting that the answer be provided by another means to the user terminal 4A.

[0256] The response method generation unit 2024 refers to the knowledge information and identifies the response method designated by the respondent. The response method generation unit 2024 may determine the response method based on the content of the response. The response method generation unit 2024 determines which method to use for the response, such as automatic response, automatic processing, or dispatch.

[0257] The response guideline generation unit 2024 acquires a QA model from the trained model storage unit 218. The response guideline generation unit 2024 determines a provisional response to the current inquiry based on the QA model. The response guideline generation unit 2024 may determine a provisional response to the current inquiry. For example, in response to the current inquiry content "The expected number of participants in a new campaign: 50 people will be given points by lottery for every purchase of XXX yen or more," the response guideline generation unit 2024 may determine the following provisional response means as "chat," the response item as "Based on the number of participants in similar past campaigns, the number is expected to be 5,000," and the response method as "automatic response."

[0258] The response guide generation unit 2024 acquires the response history information from the response history information storage unit 216. The response guide generation unit 2024 refers to the response history information and determines the content of a provisional response to the current inquiry. The response guide generation unit 2024 may change the content of the provisional response determined based on the QA model, based on the response history information.

[0259] The response procedure generation unit 2024 may change the provisional response content by referring to accessible knowledge information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user XA. For example, if the inquiring user XA has access restrictions to the sales department's knowledge information, the provisional response content may be changed so that the response content is based only on accessible information.

[0260] The response procedure generation unit 2024 may assemble an appropriate flow (procedure) when the response content spans multiple departments or requires a combination of multiple processes. The response procedure includes the generation or assembly of a listed content, flow (procedure). For example, the response procedure includes the assembly of details of the procedures required to respond to the inquiry content.

[0261] If the response to an inquiry includes multiple processes, the response procedure generation unit 2024 may define the multiple processes and determine executable procedures (e.g., the processing procedure, or the content of the processing, the department that will perform the processing, the system settings that will perform the processing, etc.).

[0262] The response method generation unit 2024 responds to the inquiry based on at least one of knowledge information, a QA model, and answer history information. When the response to the inquiry includes multiple processes, the response method generation unit 2024 determines the multiple processes. The response method generation unit 2024 may determine the procedures of the multiple processes, the contents of the multiple processes, and answering entities corresponding to the multiple processes.

[0263] According to this example, when various interactions are required to return an answer to an inquiry to the user terminal 4A and it is difficult to answer in one go, the customer service support system 1A can define the content of the processing required to obtain the answer (e.g., dispatch, automatic processing, etc.) and determine executable arrangements (e.g., processing procedures, processing content, department that will perform the processing, system settings that will perform the processing, etc.). This allows the user of the user terminal 4A to request all the necessary procedures in one go with a single question. This allows the customer service support system 1A to make processing related to inquiries more efficient. Furthermore, the customer service support system 1A can increase user satisfaction with responses to inquiries.

[0264] The response procedure generating unit 2024 outputs the detailed inquiry information and information indicating the provisional response content to the inquiry handling unit 203A.

[0265] The response method generation unit 2024 acquires the response result from the inquiry response unit 203A. The response result includes information such as the inquiry content, the response content, and the processing result. The response method generation unit 2024 outputs the response result to the reception unit 2023. The reception unit 2023 may output the response result to the user terminal 4A.

[0266] According to this example, the response support device 2A can determine the inquiry detail information and the provisional answer content based on a trained model that uses knowledge information about multiple departments and answer history information about multiple users. Therefore, the response support device 2A can support providing the optimal answer to each inquiry. Furthermore, the response support device 2A can support providing the optimal answer for each user to each inquiry. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0267] (4-4) Operation of the inquiry response unit 203A 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the inquiry response unit 203A in the response support device 2A according to the second embodiment. The inquiry response unit 203A includes a response management unit 2033 and a history management unit 2034 as functional components.

[0268] The response management unit 2033 acquires detailed inquiry information and information indicating the content of a provisional response from the inquiry reception unit 202A. The response management unit 2033 responds to the inquiry based on the content of the provisional response. The response management unit 2033 responds in accordance with the means of providing the response to the inquiry.

[0269] The response management unit 2033 acquires the QA model from the trained model storage unit 218. The response management unit 2033 determines the content of the response to the current inquiry based on the QA model.

[0270] The response management unit 2033 acquires answer history information from the answer history information storage unit 216. The response management unit 2033 determines the content of the answer to the current inquiry based on the answer history information. The response management unit 2033 may determine the content of the answer based on the QA model and the answer history information. According to this example, the response management unit 2033 can determine the content of the answer by referring to past history information, etc. that is not included in the QA model, which may be updated periodically. The response management unit 2033 can determine the content of the answer by referring to most recent history information, etc. that is not included in the QA model.

[0271] The response management unit 2033 acquires user information from the user information storage unit 217. The response management unit 2033 determines the content of the response to the current inquiry based on the user information of the inquiring user. The response management unit 2033 may determine the content of the response by referring to past activity history information of the inquiring user. The response management unit 2033 may determine the content of the response based on the QA model, answer history information, and user information. According to this example, the response management unit 2033 can determine the optimal content of the response for the inquiring user based on information about the inquiring user. For example, if the inquiring user has made a similar inquiry in the past, the response management unit 2033 may determine the content of the response based on information such as past answers and processing results.

[0272] For example, the response management unit 2033 will be described as to a case where the inquiring user has previously made an inquiry about a new campaign, similar to the current inquiry. Based on information such as the previous response content and processing result, the response management unit 2033 may determine that the response content for the current inquiry is the same as the previous response if the satisfaction level with the previous response is high. If the satisfaction level with the previous response is low, the response management unit 2033 may determine that the response content for the current inquiry is different from the previous response. According to this example, the response management unit 2033 can provide a more appropriate response to the user by updating the response content according to the satisfaction level.

[0273] The response management unit 2033 may determine the content of the response based on the attribute information of the user. For example, the response management unit 2033 may determine access restrictions for knowledge information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user included in the user information. The response management unit 2033 may determine the content of the response by referring to only the information accessible to the inquiring user. According to this example, the response management unit 2033 can determine the content of the response by using information within the organization in accordance with the access restrictions. Therefore, the response management unit 2033 can respond to inquiries while taking into account information security within the organization. The response management unit 2033 can improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries while taking into account information security.

[0274] The response management unit 2033 responds to the inquiry according to the means for providing the response based on the determined response content. In one example, the response management unit 2033 performs a process for generating the response content to the inquiry. The process for generating the response content includes an automatic response, dispatch, etc.

[0275] When the response management unit 2033 completes the response processing, it outputs the response result to the inquiry reception unit 202A. The inquiry reception unit 202A may output the response result to the user terminal 4A. When an automatic response is made, the response management unit 2033 outputs the response result including information indicating the content of the response to the inquiry reception unit 202A. The response management unit 2033 may output a completion notice indicating the completion of the response to the inquiry reception unit 202A. The response management unit 2033 outputs the response result to the history management unit 2034. The response management unit 2033 may output a completion notice to the history management unit 2034.

[0276] A case where the response method is an automatic response will be described. For example, a case where the inquiry from inquiring user XA is "I would like to predict the number of participants in a new campaign" will be described. The response support device 2 is assumed to have received an inquiry via chat from user terminal 4A. The response management unit 2033 determines to perform an automatic response to the current inquiry based on the inquiry detail information and the provisional response content acquired from the inquiry reception unit 202A. For example, the response management unit 2033 determines that the response to the inquiry is "Based on the number of participants in past similar campaigns, the number is expected to be 5,000." The response management unit 2033 may create a message indicating the response content. A case where the inquiring user XA desires to provide an answer via chat and the answering entity is capable of providing an automatic response via chat will be described. The response management unit 2033 outputs an instruction to the inquiry reception unit 202A to send a message indicating the answer content via chat. The inquiry reception unit 202A sends a message indicating the answer content to inquiring user XA via chat. When the response management unit 2033 determines that materials from similar past campaigns should be sent by email as a response to the inquiry, the response management unit 2033 outputs an instruction to the inquiry reception unit 202A to send a message indicating the response by email. The inquiry reception unit 202A starts a mailer or the like and sends an email with the materials attached to the email address of the inquiring user. The response management unit 2033 outputs the result of the automatic response to the inquiry reception unit 202A as a response result.

[0277] A case where the response method is automatic processing will be described. For example, a case where the inquiry from inquiring user XB is "I would like to apply for travel expenses" will be described. The response support device 2 receives an inquiry via chat from the user terminal 4A. The response management unit 2033 determines to perform automatic processing for the current inquiry based on the inquiry detail information and the provisional response content acquired from the inquiry reception unit 202A. For example, the response management unit 2033 determines to perform a travel expenses application workflow as a response to the inquiry. The response management unit 2033 may create a message indicating that a travel expenses application workflow will be performed and send the created message to inquiring user XB via chat. If information necessary for executing the workflow is missing, the response management unit 2033 may request the necessary information from user XB via the inquiry reception unit 202A. Note that the response management unit 2033 may also send link information or the like that enables access to a page for executing the travel expenses application workflow to inquiring user XB via chat. The response management unit 2033 outputs the result of the automatic processing to the inquiry reception unit 202A as a response result.

[0278] A case where the response method is dispatch will be described. For example, a case where the inquiry user XC's inquiry is "I would like to consult with a human resources person" will be described. It is assumed that the response support device 2 receives an inquiry via chat from the user terminal 4A. The response management unit 2033 determines to dispatch the current inquiry based on the inquiry detail information and the provisional response content acquired from the inquiry reception unit 202A. For example, the response management unit 2033 may determine to dispatch when an automatic response or automatic processing is not possible as a response to the inquiry. The response management unit 2033 may determine to dispatch when it is determined that it is appropriate to request an answering entity to answer the inquiry. The response management unit 2033 determines that the answering entity is a human resources person and requests the human resources person to answer. For example, the response management unit 2033 may create a message requesting a human resources person to handle the inquiry. The response management unit 2033 may send the created message to the user terminal 4A of the human resources person. The response management unit 2033 may request an external system or the like to respond to the inquiry.

[0279] The history management unit 2034 updates the history information based on the response result. For example, based on the response result, the history management unit 2034 stores the activity history related to the current inquiry in the user information storage unit 217. The history management unit 2034 stores the activity history related to the current inquiry in association with the usage history related to the current inquiry. The activity history may include, for example, the respondent, the content of the response, the response result, etc.

[0280] The history management unit 2034 stores the response history for the current inquiry in the response history information storage unit 216, for example, based on the response result. The response history may include the inquiry date and time, the means of inquiry, the inquiry content, the means of providing the response, the respondent, the response content, the response result, etc. The history management unit 2034 may update the response history information every time it obtains the response result.

[0281] The history management unit 2034 outputs the response history for the current inquiry to the model management unit 201A based on, for example, the response result. The history management unit 2034 may output the response history for the current inquiry to the model management unit 201A based on a response history request from the model management unit 201A. The model management unit 201A may update the QA model based on the response history for the current inquiry.

[0282] According to this example, the response support device 2A can determine the content of an answer based on a trained model that uses knowledge information about multiple departments and answer history information about multiple users. The response support device 2A can further determine the most optimal content of an answer based on the provisional content of an answer. Therefore, the response support device 2A can support providing the most optimal answer for each inquiry. Furthermore, the response support device 2A can support providing the most optimal answer for each user for each inquiry. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries. When the content of an answer spans multiple departments and requires a combination of multiple processes, the response support device 2A can assemble an appropriate flow (procedure). This allows the response support device 2A to efficiently process answer content consisting of a combination of multiple processes.

[0283] (4-5) Processing procedure of response support system 1A An example of the processing procedure performed by the response support system 1A will be described. FIG. 16 is a sequence diagram for explaining an example of the overall operation of the response support system 1A.

[0284] In the following description focusing on the response support device 2A, the response support device 2A may be read as the response processing unit 200A. In the following description focusing on the user terminal 4A, the user terminal 4A may be read as the management device for the user terminal 4A.

[0285] The processing procedures described below are merely examples, and each process may be modified as much as possible. Furthermore, steps may be omitted, replaced, or added as appropriate depending on the embodiment.

[0286] In the following process, it is assumed that the user of the user terminal 4A has launched an internal inquiry response application and logged in. The following process will be described using an example in which the user of the user terminal 4A uses the chat function on the inquiry response application to make an inquiry about the sales department.

[0287] The user terminal 4A outputs an inquiry to the response support device 2A (step S101). The inquiry includes input information entered using a chat function. The input information may include the inquiry content, a means for providing an answer, etc. The means for providing an answer may be set to chat in advance. The user terminal 4A may output the user ID of the user of the user terminal 4A to the response support device 2A.

[0288] The response support device 2A receives an inquiry (step S111). In step S111, for example, the response support device 2A identifies the user of the user terminal 4A based on the user ID. The response support device 2A may also identify the user of the user terminal 4A based on login information. The response support device 2A acquires information related to the content of the inquiry and the means for providing an answer.

[0289] The response support device 2A determines the content of the response (step S112). In step S112, for example, the response support device 2A determines the content of the response to the inquiry by referring to at least one of knowledge information, a QA model, response history information, and user information, or a combination thereof.

[0290] For example, the response support device 2A identifies a responding entity to an inquiry. In this example, the response support device 2A identifies the sales department as the responding entity. The responding entity may span multiple departments. The response support device 2A determines whether the responding entity can accept an inquiry via an inquiry means. The response support device 2A determines whether an inquiry via chat can be accepted as an inquiry for the sales department. The response support device 2A may determine whether an inquiry via chat can be accepted based on the content of the inquiry. The response support device 2A determines whether a means of providing an answer corresponding to an inquiry desired by the user is applicable. For example, the response support device 2A determines whether a response via chat can be provided for an inquiry for the sales department. For example, the response support device 2A may output a message or the like to the user terminal 4A if the means of providing an answer desired by the user is not applicable.

[0291] For example, the response support device 2A determines the content of the response based on information accessible to the user, such as the user information of the user. According to this example, the response content that spans multiple departments can be determined based on the user ID. Therefore, the response support device 2A can determine the appropriate content of the response when a response or processing that spans multiple departments is required in response to an inquiry.

[0292] The response support device 2A may make an inquiry to the user terminal 4A in the process of determining the content of the response to the inquiry. The response support device 2A may, for example, request information necessary to create the inquiry detail information from the user terminal 4A. The information necessary to create the inquiry detail information includes, for example, information necessary to specify or clarify the inquiry content, and information necessary to automate the processing. The information necessary to specify or clarify the inquiry content is, for example, information that can identify the department that will handle the inquiry. The information necessary to automate the processing is, for example, information on the means of providing the response.

[0293] According to this example, the customer service support system 1A not only simply returns a response to the inquiry to the user terminal 4A, but also requests additional information from the user terminal 4A, thereby making the inquiry more specific or clear. Furthermore, the customer service support system 1A can generate response guidelines and perform processing according to the response guidelines by acquiring information necessary for automating a response to an inquiry or processing in response to the inquiry (e.g., how the user would like the response, or asking a question via chat but wanting the response via email, etc.). By acquiring information based on user identification information, the customer service support system 1A can refer to past history and response details, enabling more flexible responses to inquiries. This allows the customer service support system 1A to streamline processing related to inquiries.

[0294] The user terminal 4A adjusts the means for providing an answer based on a message or the like from the response support device 2A (step S102). In step S102, for example, the user terminal 4A may change the desired means for providing an answer. The user terminal 4A may notify the response support device 2A of the changed means for providing an answer. The response support device 2A can communicate with the user terminal 4A and determine the means for providing an answer.

[0295] The response support device 2A refers to the knowledge information and determines whether dispatch is possible (step S113). In step S113, for example, the response support device 2A refers to the knowledge information of the department that handles the inquiry and determines whether dispatch is possible. For example, the response support device 2A may determine that dispatch is possible when it is possible to acquire information on a person in charge of the knowledge information that handles the inquiry. If dispatch is possible, the process transitions from step S113 to step S114. If dispatch is not possible, the process transitions from step S113 to step S103. The response support device 2A may determine whether dispatch is necessary based on the inquiry content, knowledge information, etc. If dispatch is necessary, the process transitions from step S113 to step S114. Dispatch is a process that includes multiple procedures. Therefore, when dispatching, the response support device 2A assembles and executes a process that includes multiple procedures. If dispatching is not required, the process transitions from step S113 to step S103.

[0296] If dispatch is not performed, the response support device 2A performs an automatic response or automatic processing based on the response method. The user terminal 4A receives the response (step S103). In step S103, for example, the user terminal 4A receives the response according to the desired means of providing the response. The user terminal 4A may receive the response via email, for example. Note that depending on the response method, multiple processes may be included. The response method includes assembling the flow of those processes.

[0297] The response support device 2A refers to the knowledge information and determines whether the respondent can accept the inquiry made by the inquiry means (step S114). If the respondent can accept the inquiry, the process proceeds from step S114 to step S121. If the respondent cannot accept the inquiry, the process proceeds from step S114 to step S115.

[0298] The response support device 2A converts the inquiry means (step S115). In step S115, for example, the response support device 2A switches the inquiry channel. The response support device 2A accepts the inquiry via the switched inquiry channel.

[0299] The user terminal 4A of the answering entity generates a response (step S121). In step S121, for example, the user terminal 4A of the answering entity generates a response to be provided to the user terminal 4A of the inquiring user based on the content of the response received from the response support device 2A. The response support device 2A may, for example, generate a response to the inquiry. The response support device 2A outputs a text message indicating the response to the user terminal 4A of the answering entity. The response support device 2A may output a notification to the user terminal 4A of the answering entity requesting the answering entity to handle the response. The notification may include, for example, a message requesting that an answer be generated and provided to the user terminal 4A of the inquiring user. The user terminal 4A of the answering entity may display a text message indicating a sample answer on a display device. The user terminal 4A of the answering entity may create a response to be provided to the user of the user terminal 4A based on the sample answer.

[0300] If the answering entity can provide a direct answer (step 122), the answering entity provides the answer directly to the user terminal 4A of the inquiring user. The answering entity may provide the answer to the user terminal 4A via email, for example. The user terminal 4A receives the answer in step S103. The user terminal 4A of the answering entity may output information about the answer provided to the user terminal 4A of the inquiring user to the response support device 2A. In step S118, the response support device 2A may record or update the response history information based on the information about the answer.

[0301] If the answering subject is not able to directly answer, the process proceeds from step S122 to step S116.

[0302] The response support device 2A determines whether or not it is necessary to convert the means for providing a response to the inquiry (step S116). In step S116, for example, the response support device 2A determines whether or not to switch the response channel based on the content of the response. If it is necessary to convert the means for providing a response, the process transitions from step S116 to step S117. If it is not necessary to convert the means for providing a response, the process transitions from step S116 to step S103. Here, in step S118, the response support device 2A may record or update response history information based on the content of the response.

[0303] The response support device 2A converts the means for providing an answer (step S117). In step S117, for example, the response support device 2A switches the answer channel. The response support device 2A provides the answer to the user terminal 4A according to the answer channel. A case will be described where the means for providing an answer is email. For example, the response support device 2A switches the answer channel to email. The response support device 2A creates an email including a text message indicating the answer. The response support device 2A sends the email to the email address of the inquiring user. The user terminal 4A receives the answer in step S3. In step S118, the response support device 2A may record or update answer history information based on the answer.

[0304] According to this example, the response support device 2A can respond to inquiries via chat. The response support device 2A can accept an inquiry according to an inquiry means that can be accepted by the department that handles the inquiry. The response support device 2A can accept an inquiry according to an inquiry means that can be accepted depending on the content of the inquiry. Therefore, the response support device 2A can support providing an optimal answer depending on the content of the inquiry. The response support device 2A can provide an answer using an answer providing means desired by the user of the user terminal 4A. Therefore, even when the user of the user terminal 4A makes an inquiry via chat, the user can receive an answer using various answer providing means. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing inquiries. The response support device 2A can support user-friendly customer service operations. For example, a user can make an inquiry via chat and receive an answer via email.

[0305] (Variation) The knowledge information may include regulations and contracts. In this example, when a contract or regulations is changed, the customer service support device 2A performs a process of checking the changes and impacts compared to past history. According to this example, the customer service support device 2A can receive an inquiry regarding the execution of a preliminary action review of a contract or the like, and output feedback on errors or omissions in the contract or the like as a response. This reduces the burden of checking the contents of the contract or the like and laws and regulations.

[0306] The knowledge information may include video data, audio data, etc. from a video conference or the like. In this example, the response support device 2A can store the contents of discussions at a conference as knowledge information as they are. The response support device 2A may also organize or manage text information, which is a text version of video data, audio data, etc. from a video conference or the like, by category. According to this example, the response support device 2A can output decisions made at a conference as answers. A user can search for decisions, etc. in question format via the response support device 2A without referring to the minutes.

[0307] The knowledge information may include data such as threads of communication tools within the organization. The response support device 2A may organize or manage information based on data recording communications on communication tools within the organization by category. According to this example, the response support device 2A can determine a response to an inquiry based on information on communication tools within the organization. The response support device 2A can develop a solution based on the inquiry content and response history.

[0308] The knowledge information may include a business flow and a procedure manual. According to this example, the response support device 2A can receive inquiries about business flow confirmations and contact information for inquiries related to multiple departments and determine the answer to the inquiries. The user can obtain confirmations of business flows and contact information for inquiries related to the business of other departments.

[0309] The knowledge information may be subject to version management and always updated to the latest information. According to this example, the work of registering knowledge information by the user is minimized, and the user can always access the latest information.

[0310] (5) Effects The response support device 2A of the second embodiment uses an information processing program to accept an inquiry from a user regarding at least one of multiple categories linked to the user's ID, identify an entity that will respond to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and information associated with the multiple categories, and respond according to a means for providing an answer to the inquiry. For example, the response support device 2 can use the information processing program to accept an inquiry regarding any of multiple departments from a user having a user ID. Furthermore, the response support device 2 can use the information processing program to identify an entity that will respond from among the multiple departments and provide an answer using any of multiple answering means. Therefore, the response support device 2 can process inquiries regarding multiple departments in an integrated manner, thereby improving the efficiency of inquiry processing.

[0311] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on information associated with multiple categories and information about the user using an information processing program. For example, the response support device 2A can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on information associated with multiple departments and information about the user. Therefore, the response support device 2A can determine the content of a response in an integrated manner according to the inquiring user based on knowledge information of multiple departments. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0312] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on information about the user's past inquiry history using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2A can cause a computer to determine the most appropriate response content for a user based on the user's past inquiry history. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0313] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on the user's attribute information using an information processing program. For example, the response support device 2A can determine access restrictions to knowledge information based on the attribute information of the inquiring user and determine the content of the response based on the access restrictions. Therefore, the response support device 2A can determine the most appropriate response content for the user based on the user's attribute information. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0314] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on response history information related to multiple categories using an information processing program. For example, the response support device 2A can determine the optimal response content for each department based on the response history for each department. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0315] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can determine the content of a response to an inquiry based on information associated with multiple categories, which is updated based on response history information related to multiple categories by an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2A can determine the optimal content of a response based on the response history updated for each department. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0316] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can perform processing to generate replies to inquiries using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2A can respond based on the generated replies. Furthermore, the response support device 2A can provide the generated replies to the user who will be the responding party. This allows the response support device 2A to improve the efficiency of processing related to inquiries.

[0317] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can request processing in response to an inquiry using an information processing program. For example, the response support device 2A can perform appropriate processing according to a processing flow specified for the inquiry. Therefore, the response support device 2A can improve the efficiency of processing related to the inquiry.

[0318] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can use the information processing program to request information necessary for creating further inquiry detail information from the user. Therefore, the response support device 2A can acquire information necessary for determining the content of the response by asking the user additional questions. This allows the response support device 2A to clarify and specify the content of the inquiry, thereby enabling more appropriate inquiry response processing. In this way, the response support device 2A can improve the efficiency of inquiry processing.

[0319] The response support device 2A of the second embodiment can provide a response by the same means as the inquiry means or by a means different from the inquiry means, using an information processing program. Therefore, the response support device 2A can provide a response by any of a plurality of answer providing means. This allows the response support device 2A to provide a response by the most suitable means for the user or service provider, thereby improving the convenience of the inquiry response work.

[0320] The "service" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "category" described in the second embodiment. The "common ID" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "user ID" described in the second embodiment. The "compatible service information" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "information associated with multiple services" described in the second embodiment. The "answer history information" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "information associated with multiple services" described in the second embodiment. The "membership chart" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "information related to the user" described in the second embodiment. The "information related to the user's history" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "information related to past inquiry history" described in the second embodiment. The "trained model" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "information related to multiple services" described in the second embodiment. The "answerer" described in the first embodiment is an example of the "answering entity" described in the second embodiment. Therefore, the above effects described in the second embodiment can be similarly obtained in the first embodiment.

[0321] (Other embodiments) In the first embodiment described above, an example has been described in which an inquiry is received from a user having a common ID for multiple services linked to the common ID, but this is not limited to this. For example, the user may have a member ID set for each service. The member ID may include information that can uniquely identify the user as a member of each service. Whether in the case of a common ID or an individual member ID, the information processing program may be an information processing program that causes a computer to determine the content of a response to the inquiry based on second information associated with the multiple services, response history information regarding the multiple services, and information regarding the user's history regarding the multiple services.

[0322] The response assistance device may be realized by a single device such as the response assistance device 2 or the response assistance device 2A, or may be realized by a plurality of devices with distributed functions.

[0323] The above-described embodiments may be applied not only to an apparatus but also to a method executed by the apparatus. The above-described embodiments may be applied to a program that can cause a computer of the apparatus to execute each function. The above-described embodiments may be applied to a recording medium that stores a program. The above-described embodiments may be applied not only to a system but also to a method executed by multiple elements included in the system.

[0324] The program may be transferred in a state where it is stored in a device, or in a state where it is not stored in a device. In the latter case, the program may be transferred via a network, or in a state where it is recorded on a recording medium. The recording medium is a non-transitory tangible medium. The recording medium is a computer-readable medium. The form of the recording medium is not important as long as it is a medium that can store the program and is computer-readable, such as a CD-ROM or a memory card.

[0325] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the above description is merely an example of the present invention in every respect. It goes without saying that various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. In other words, when implementing the present invention, specific configurations according to the embodiments may be appropriately adopted.

[0326] In short, this invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and in the implementation stage, the components can be modified and embodied without departing from the spirit of the invention. Furthermore, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining multiple components disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, some components may be omitted from all the components shown in the embodiments. Furthermore, components from different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

[0327] (Addendum) The above embodiment may be expressed as follows: (1) receiving an inquiry from a user having a user ID regarding at least one service among a plurality of services linked to the user ID; Identifying a respondent to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and first information associated with the plurality of services; Responding to the inquiry in accordance with a means for providing a response; An information processing program that causes a computer to execute the above. (2) The information processing program described in (1), wherein the responding step includes determining the content of the response to the inquiry based on second information associated with multiple services, response history information regarding the multiple services, and information regarding the user's history regarding the multiple services. (3) The information about the user's history includes information about the user's past inquiry history. (2) An information processing program according to the above. (4) The information processing program according to (2), wherein the second information associated with the plurality of services is information generated based on information about question and answering cases in at least the plurality of services. (5) The information processing program according to (4), wherein the second information associated with the plurality of services is information that is updated based on response history information regarding the plurality of services. (6) The information processing program according to (1), wherein the responding includes a process of generating a response to the inquiry. (7) The responding includes requesting processing in response to the inquiry. (1) An information processing program according to the present invention. (8) The information processing program according to (2), wherein the responding further includes determining the content of a response to the inquiry based on attribute information of the user. (9) The information processing program according to (1), wherein the means for providing the answer is the same as or different from the means for making the inquiry. (10) Memory, An information processing device including a processor connected to the memory, The memory stores the program according to any one of (1) to (9). Information processing device.

[0328] The above embodiment may be further expressed as follows: (1)' receiving an inquiry from a user regarding at least one category among a plurality of categories associated with the user's ID; Identifying a respondent to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and information associated with the plurality of categories; Responding to the inquiry in accordance with a means for providing a response; An information processing program that causes a computer to execute the above. (2)' The information processing program according to (1)', wherein the responding includes determining the content of the response to the inquiry based on information associated with the plurality of categories and information about the user. (3)' The information about the user includes information about the user's past inquiry history, (2)' The information processing program. (4)' The information about the user includes attribute information about the user, (2)' The information processing program. (5)' The information processing program according to (1)', wherein the information associated with the plurality of categories includes answer history information regarding the plurality of categories. (6)' The information processing program according to (5)', wherein the information associated with the plurality of categories is updated based on answer history information regarding the plurality of categories. (7)' The information processing program according to (1)', wherein the responding includes a process of generating a response to the inquiry. (8)' The responding includes requesting processing in response to the inquiry; (1)' The information processing program. (9)' The responding step further includes requesting information from the user necessary to create detailed inquiry information. (1)' The information processing program. (10)' The information processing program according to (1)', wherein the means for providing the answer is the same as or different from the means for making the inquiry. (11)' Memory and An information processing device including a processor connected to the memory, The memory stores the program according to any one of (1)' to (10)'. Information processing device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0329] 1... Response support system, 1A... Response support system, 2... Response support device, 2A... Response support device, 3-1 to 3-3... Service provider device, 4... User terminal, 4A... User terminal, 5... Operator telephone, 6... Operator terminal, 7... Network, 7A... Network, 21... Processor, 22... Memory, 22... Step, 23... Storage, 24... Communication interface, 25... Input / output interface, 26... Bus, 31A... Management device, 32A... Storage device, 122... Step, 200... Response processing unit, 200A... Response processing unit, 201... Model management unit, 201A... Model management unit, 202... Reception unit, 202A... Reception unit, 203... Response unit, 203A... Response unit, 2 10...memory unit, 210A...memory unit, 211...response service information memory unit, 212...answer history information memory unit, 213...member medical record memory unit, 214...learned model memory unit, 215...knowledge information memory unit, 216...answer history information memory unit, 217...user information memory unit, 218...learned model memory unit, 220...communication control unit, 220A...communication control unit, 2011...service information management unit, 2012...model generation unit, 2013...knowledge information management unit, 2014...model generation unit, 2021...reception unit, 2022...response procedure generation unit, 2023...reception unit, 2024...response procedure generation unit, 2031...response management unit, 2032...history management unit, 2033...response management unit, 2034...history management unit.

Claims

1. receiving an inquiry from a user regarding at least one category among a plurality of categories linked to the user's ID; Identifying a respondent to the inquiry based on the content of the inquiry and information associated with the plurality of categories; Responding to the inquiry in accordance with a means for providing a response; An information processing program that causes a computer to execute the above.

2. The information processing program according to claim 1 , wherein the responding includes determining a response to the inquiry based on information associated with the plurality of categories and information about the user.

3. The information about the user includes information about the user's past inquiry history. The information processing program according to claim 2 .

4. The information about the user includes attribute information of the user. The information processing program according to claim 2 .

5. The information processing program according to claim 1 , wherein the information associated with the plurality of categories includes answer history information regarding the plurality of categories.

6. The information processing program according to claim 5 , wherein the information associated with the plurality of categories is updated based on answer history information regarding the plurality of categories.

7. The responding includes a process of generating a response to the inquiry. The information processing program according to claim 1 .

8. The responding includes requesting processing in response to the inquiry. The information processing program according to claim 1 .

9. The responding step further includes requesting information from the user necessary to create detailed inquiry information. The information processing program according to claim 1 .

10. 2. The information processing program according to claim 1, wherein the means for providing the answer is the same as or different from the means for making the inquiry.

11. Memory and An information processing device including a processor connected to the memory, The memory stores the program according to any one of claims 1 to 10. Information processing device.

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