Agreement determination device, agreement determination method and program

Abstract

To provide an agreement determination device, an agreement determination method and a program that can suitably lighten the burden of a next negotiation.SOLUTION: An agreement determination device 1X principally has candidate plan acquisition means 30X, candidate plan notification means 31X and agreement determination means 33X. The candidate plan acquisition means 30X acquires a dividable agreement candidate plan that a first negotiation subject of negotiation provides. The candidate plan notification means 31X notifies a second negotiation subject that the first negotiation subject negotiates with of the agreement candidate plan. The agreement determination means 33X determines whether the second negotiation subject agrees with each of divisions of the agreement candidate plan.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical fields of an agreement determination device, an agreement determination method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Systems are known that automatically negotiate terms between an ordering party and an order receiving party. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an automatic negotiation system that stores negotiation candidates in advance in response to expected orders from the ordering party, and transmits the negotiation candidates to the ordering party in order of priority, starting with the negotiation candidates that have the greatest utility in relation to the negotiation terms received from the ordering party. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication WO2021 / 024414 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Generally, if there is even one aspect of the other party's offer that is unacceptable to either party, no agreement will be reached. And when no agreement is reached in negotiations, the next negotiation will essentially begin in the same position as before the negotiation.

[0005] In view of the above-mentioned problems, one of the objectives of the present disclosure is to provide an agreement determination device, an agreement determination method, and a program that can suitably reduce the burden of the next negotiation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the agreement determination device is a candidate proposal acquisition means for acquiring a divisible agreement candidate proposal provided by a first negotiating entity that is conducting negotiations; a candidate proposal notification means for notifying a second negotiating entity, which will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating entity, of the agreement candidate proposal; an agreement determination means for determining whether or not there is agreement on each part of the candidate agreement proposal by the second negotiating entity; The agreement determination device has the following.

[0007] One aspect of the agreement determination method includes: The computer Obtain a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity; notifying a second negotiating party that will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating party of the proposed agreement; determining whether or not the second negotiating party has agreed to each part of the proposed agreement; This is a consensus determination method.

[0008] One aspect of the program is Obtain a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity; notifying a second negotiating party that will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating party of the proposed agreement; The program causes a computer to execute a process for determining whether or not the second negotiating entity agrees on each part of the candidate agreement proposal. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] One example of the effect of the present disclosure is that it is possible to preferably reduce the burden of the next negotiation. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] The configuration of the negotiation system is shown. [Figure 2] 1 shows the hardware configuration of a platform providing device. [Figure 3] 1 shows the hardware configuration of a terminal device. [Figure 4] 1 is an example of a functional block in a negotiation platform. [Figure 5] 10 is an example of an offer editing screen before input by a negotiating subject. [Figure 6] 10 is an example of an offer editing screen after input by a negotiating subject. [Figure 7] 12 is an example of an edit offer screen after the collapse button has been selected. [Figure 8] 11 shows a negotiation result screen that is displayed when the negotiation interruption button is selected. [Figure 9] 10 is an example of a flowchart executed by the platform providing device. [Figure 10] The configuration of the negotiation system is shown. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the agreement determination device. [Figure 12] 10 is an example of a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the agreement determination device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of an agreement determination device, an agreement determination method, and a program will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] In the following description, "negotiation" refers to the adjustment of terms between the parties placing and receiving orders (i.e., the exchange of orders) until an agreement is reached. In this embodiment, it primarily refers to the act of the parties alternately offering each other potential agreement proposals (also called "offers") on the terms of the order until an agreement is reached. The negotiation in this case may be between parties with conflicting interests, or between parties without conflicting interests (so-called adjustments). Negotiations include not only negotiations regarding general orders for which purchase orders are issued, but also negotiations for adjusting the planned delivery quantity without issuing a purchase order. Examples of negotiated terms (so-called issues) include the product's price, delivery date, quantity, transportation method, resources used (airspace if the transportation method is a drone), functionality, and quality. A "negotiating entity" refers to an entity placing an order and receiving an order, and is, for example, an entity that has the ability to generate potential agreement proposals to provide to other negotiating entities and the ability to decide whether to accept an offer received from another negotiating entity. A negotiating entity may be an individual or an organization. Negotiating parties may negotiate using AI, robots, and other devices (including drones and self-driving cars) that reflect the will of these individuals or organizations.

[0013] First Embodiment (1) System Configuration FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a negotiation system 100. The negotiation system 100 mainly comprises a platform providing device 1 that provides an electronic negotiation platform for negotiating terms, and terminal devices 2A and 2B used by negotiating entities that conduct negotiations on the negotiation platform provided by the platform providing device 1. The platform providing device 1, terminal devices 2A, and terminal devices 2B communicate data via a network 3. As an example, FIG. 1 illustrates terminal device 2A used by negotiating entity A and terminal device 2B used by negotiating entity B; hereinafter, when there is no particular distinction between terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B, they will also be simply referred to as "terminal device 2."

[0014] The following explanation will be given using an example of one-on-one negotiation between negotiating parties A and B. Note that the one-on-one negotiations explained below may be combined to develop into competitive quotation negotiations, total quantity negotiations, and nested negotiations.

[0015] The platform providing device 1 provides a negotiation platform necessary for negotiating parties A and B to negotiate terms via terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B. For example, the negotiating party that places an order is a product manufacturer, and the negotiating party that receives an order is a supplier that supplies parts necessary for manufacturing the product. The platform providing device 1 generates display information necessary for displaying information necessary for negotiation, and controls the display of terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B by transmitting the generated display information to terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B. In this case, the platform providing device 1 receives input information related to offers from terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B, and generates the above-mentioned display information based on the received input information. The platform providing device 1 is an example of an "agreement determination device."

[0016] The terminal devices 2 (2A, 2B) are communication devices that can be used by the negotiating entities, and display information and accept input from the negotiating entities using them based on data communication with the platform providing device 1. In this embodiment, as an example, the negotiating entity A basically performs automatic negotiation using a negotiation AI (the negotiation AI will be described later), and the negotiating entity B performs negotiation based on human input via the terminal device 2B without using the negotiation AI (hereinafter also referred to as "manual negotiation"). Note that when it is determined that an agreement cannot be reached through automatic negotiation using the negotiation AI, or in other cases where it is determined that manual negotiation is necessary, the negotiating entity A can switch to manual negotiation based on input via the terminal device 2A.

[0017] The configuration of the negotiation system 100 shown in Figure 1 is an example, and various modifications may be made to the configuration. For example, the platform providing device 1 may be composed of multiple devices. In this case, the multiple devices that make up the platform providing device 1 exchange information necessary to execute pre-assigned processing between these multiple devices.

[0018] (2) Hardware Configuration 2 shows the hardware configuration of the platform providing device 1. The platform providing device 1 includes, as hardware, a processor 11, a memory 12, and an interface 13. The processor 11, the memory 12, and the interface 13 are connected via a data bus 19.

[0019] The processor 11 executes a predetermined process by executing a program stored in the memory 12. The processor 11 is a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or a TPU (Tensor Processing Unit). The processor 11 may be composed of multiple processors. The processor 11 is an example of a computer.

[0020] The memory 12 is composed of various types of volatile and non-volatile memories such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read Only Memory). The memory 12 also stores programs for the platform providing device 1 to execute various processes. The memory 12 is also used as a working memory.

[0021] Moreover, the memory 12 functionally includes a negotiation information storage unit 121 and a model information storage unit 122 .

[0022] The negotiation information storage unit 121 stores negotiation information, which is information related to negotiations between negotiating parties A and B. The negotiation information includes information related to an offer currently agreed upon between negotiating parties A and B.

[0023] In this embodiment, the offer can be divided. For example, an order number is assigned to each product to be ordered or received according to the type of product, and the offer indicates proposed conditions for multiple order numbers.

[0024] The model information storage unit 122 stores model information (including parameters) for configuring a negotiation AI, which is an artificial intelligence model that negotiates with one negotiation entity on behalf of another negotiation entity. The negotiation AI is used by negotiation entity A, which is a human or organization, to negotiate with another negotiation entity (here, negotiation entity B).

[0025] The negotiation AI has an acceptance strategy function that determines whether an offer provided by another negotiating entity is acceptable (including partial agreement) (so-called acceptance determination), and an offer generation function that generates an offer. Offer generation also includes generating an alternative offer (also called a "counteroffer") when it is determined that an offer provided by another negotiating entity is unacceptable. Offer generation may use any method, such as beam search, grid search, search using stochastic optimization based on a genetic algorithm, search using Bayesian optimization, or a combination of these. The negotiation AI may also calculate utility using a utility function that calculates the desirability of accepting or placing an order, and, based on the utility, determine whether to accept an offer from the other negotiating entity and determine the offer to notify the other negotiating entity. For example, the negotiation AI may use an acceptance strategy that accepts offers whose utility is above a predetermined threshold and does not accept offers whose utility is below the threshold. The negotiation AI may also determine the offers to notify the other negotiating entity in descending order of utility. A method for determining an offer based on a utility function is disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1.

[0026] The interface 13 is an interface for electrically connecting the platform providing device 1 to other devices. These interfaces may be wireless interfaces such as network adapters for wirelessly transmitting and receiving data to and from other devices, or may be hardware interfaces for connecting to other devices via cables or the like.

[0027] The hardware configuration of the platform providing device 1 is not limited to the configuration shown in Fig. 2. For example, the platform providing device 1 may include at least one of an input device, a display device, and a sound output device. Furthermore, at least a portion of the information stored in the memory 12 may be stored in one or more storage devices other than the platform providing device 1. In this case, the storage device may be a hard disk connected to the platform providing device 1, a storage medium such as a flash memory, or a server device that performs data communication with the platform providing device 1.

[0028] 3 shows the hardware configuration of the terminal device 2, i.e., the hardware configuration common to the terminal device 2A and the terminal device 2B. The terminal device 2 includes, as hardware, a processor 21, a memory 22, and an interface 23. The processor 21, the memory 22, and the interface 23 are connected via a data bus 29.

[0029] The processor 21 performs predetermined processing by executing a program stored in the memory 22. The processor 21 is a processor such as a CPU, a GPU, or a TPU. The processor 21 may be composed of multiple processors. The processor 21 is an example of a computer.

[0030] The memory 22 is composed of various types of volatile and non-volatile memories such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read Only Memory). The memory 22 also stores programs for the platform providing device 1 to execute various processes. The memory 22 is also used as a working memory.

[0031] The interface 23 is an interface for electrically connecting the terminal device 2 to other devices. These interfaces may be wireless interfaces such as network adapters for wirelessly transmitting and receiving data to and from other devices, or may be hardware interfaces for connecting to other devices via cables or the like.

[0032] Furthermore, the interface 23 performs interface operations for the input unit 25 and the output unit 26. The input unit 25 is a user interface that accepts external input, and corresponds to, for example, a touch panel, a button, a keyboard, or an audio input device. The interface 23 supplies the input signal generated by the input unit 25 to other components within the terminal device 2 or to a device external to the platform providing device 1. The output unit 26 displays predetermined information or outputs audio based on the output signal supplied via the interface 23. Examples of the output unit 26 include a display, a projector, an audio output device, etc.

[0033] The hardware configuration of the terminal device 2 is not limited to the configuration shown in Fig. 3. For example, at least one of the input unit 25 and the output unit 26 may be configured separately from the terminal device 2.

[0034] (3) Negotiation platform processing Next, we will explain the processing related to the negotiation platform realized by the platform providing device 1. In summary, the platform providing device 1 provides a negotiation platform that allows agreement on a portion of an offer (i.e., partial agreement) when it is possible to agree on only a portion of the offer. This effectively reduces the burden of negotiation in the next negotiation, even if the negotiation is interrupted due to reasons such as switching from automatic negotiation using a negotiation AI to manual negotiation. Hereinafter, each portion of an offer when it is divided into units that allow partial agreement will also be referred to as a "partial offer."

[0035] Here, we will provide additional explanation on the advantages of being able to reach partial agreement.

[0036] Negotiations such as adjusting delivery dates for parts procurement, which occur daily at manufacturers, cannot be left unresolved to avoid risks such as stockouts, so if automated negotiations break down, a human must take over the negotiations. On the other hand, if there is even one aspect of the other party's offer that is unacceptable to either party, the negotiations will not reach an agreement. When an agreement is not reached through automated negotiations, a human often takes over and negotiates after that, but since it cannot be said that the automated negotiations have made any progress, in this case the human essentially starts the negotiations from the same state as before the negotiations.

[0037] Taking the above into consideration, the platform providing device 1 of this embodiment provides a negotiation platform that enables partial agreement. This allows a human to take over negotiations and start negotiations from a state where negotiations have progressed, thereby reducing the burden of negotiations. For example, when automatically negotiating a delivery date for a certain product, even if the automatic negotiation ends with an unagreed delivery date for a future order, the automatic negotiation can still achieve partial agreement on the delivery date for the most recent order. This allows the person who takes over the automatic negotiation to negotiate only on the part (future order) that was not agreed upon in the automatic negotiation, thereby effectively reducing the burden of negotiations. In other words, compared to conventional negotiation platforms that only allow for a binary choice of whether to agree to an offer or not, the negotiation platform of this embodiment allows for partial agreement on an offer, thereby reducing the burden when a human takes over later or when a negotiation AI continues negotiations.

[0038] (3-1) Functional Blocks FIG. 4 shows an example of functional blocks in a negotiation platform realized by the processor 11 of the platform providing device 1. The negotiation platform has, as functions on the side of negotiating party A, an offer generation / update unit 30A, an offer transmission unit 31A, an offer acceptance determination unit 33A, and a negotiation result display unit 34A. The negotiation platform also has, as functions on the side of negotiating party B, an offer generation / update unit 30B, an offer transmission unit 31B, an offer acceptance determination unit 33B, and a negotiation result display unit 34B. Note that in FIG. 4, blocks where data is exchanged are connected by solid lines, but the combination of blocks where data is exchanged is not limited to this. The same applies to other functional block diagrams described later.

[0039] First, the function of negotiating entity A will be explained.

[0040] The offer generation and update unit 30A generates and updates offers using the negotiation AI. "Updating an offer" refers to generating a counteroffer when the offer provided by negotiating party B cannot be accepted. In this case, for example, the processor 11 configures the negotiation AI by referring to the model information stored in the model information storage unit 122, and executes processing related to the offer generation and update unit 30A. The negotiation AI generates an offer based on the negotiation information stored in the negotiation information storage unit 121. Furthermore, when the offer receiving unit 32A described later receives an offer most recently received and a determination result indicating that the offer cannot be accepted from the offer acceptance determination unit 33A described later, the negotiation AI updates the received offer. At this time, the negotiation AI does not change the content of the partial offer that was agreed upon from the most recently received offer, but generates a counteroffer by changing the content of the partial offer that was not agreed upon. The offer generation and update unit 30A supplies the generated or updated offer to the offer sending unit 31A.

[0041] The offer sending unit 31A supplies information indicating the offer generated or updated by the offer generating / updating unit 30A to the offer receiving unit 32B. In this case, for example, the processor 11 functions as the offer sending unit 31A, generates display information for displaying the offer generated or updated by the offer generating / updating unit 30A on the terminal device 2B, and transmits the generated display information to the terminal device 2B via the interface 13. When transmitting information indicating an updated offer (i.e., a counteroffer), the offer sending unit 31A may transmit information indicating both the agreed-upon partial offer and the unagreed partial offer, or may transmit only information indicating the unagreed partial offer. The agreed-upon partial offer is an example of an "agreed-upon portion of the agreement candidate plan," and the unagreed partial offer is an example of a "non-agreed portion" of the agreement candidate plan.

[0042] The offer receiving unit 32A receives information indicating an offer supplied from the offer sending unit 31B, which will be described later. In this case, for example, the processor 11 functions as the offer receiving unit 32A and receives information indicating an offer supplied from the offer sending unit 31B, which will be described later. When the offer receiving unit 32A receives information indicating a counter offer, it may receive information indicating both an agreed-upon partial offer and an unagreed-upon partial offer, or it may receive only information indicating an unagreed-upon partial offer.

[0043] The offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines whether to accept (i.e., agree to) the offer received by the offer receiving unit 32A. In this case, for example, the processor 11 configures a negotiation AI by referring to the model information stored in the model information storage unit 122, and executes processing related to the offer acceptance determination unit 33A. The negotiation AI determines whether to agree to each of the partial offers that have not been agreed to, based on information indicating the offers received by the offer receiving unit 32A.

[0044] Then, when there is an agreed partial offer, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A adds partial agreement information indicating that the agreed partial offer has been agreed to to the negotiation information stored in the negotiation information storage unit 121. The partial agreement information is, for example, flag information indicating that the partial offer has been agreed to. Note that, instead of generating and storing the partial agreement information, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A may store information indirectly indicating that the partial offer has been agreed to in the negotiation information storage unit 121. For example, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A may store, for each partial offer, a history of the conditions proposed by each of the negotiating parties A and B in the negotiation information storage unit 121. Even in this case, by referring to the above-mentioned history, it is possible to determine that partial agreement has been reached for partial offers that match the conditions proposed by each of the negotiating parties A and B.

[0045] Then, when the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines that an agreement has been reached on all of the offers received by the offer receiving unit 32A (i.e., all partial offers), it supplies information indicating the agreed-upon offers (i.e., information indicating the offers received by the offer receiving unit 32A) to the negotiation result display unit 34A. Note that the offer acceptance determination unit 33A may also supply information indicating the agreed-upon offers to the negotiation result display unit 34B in the same way.

[0046] Furthermore, when the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines that agreement cannot be reached on the entire offer received by the offer receiving unit 32A and that switching to manual negotiation is necessary, it supplies information indicating both the currently agreed partial offer and the partial offer that has not been agreed to to the negotiation result display unit 34A. Note that the offer acceptance determination unit 33A may also supply the above-mentioned information to the negotiation result display unit 34B. For example, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines that switching to manual negotiation is necessary when there is no change between the offer received last time by the offer receiving unit 32A and the offer received two offers ago by the offer receiving unit 32A (i.e., when negotiation is not progressing). In another example, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines that switching to manual negotiation is necessary when there is a request from negotiating party B to discontinue negotiation.

[0047] On the other hand, if the offer reception unit 32A determines that the offer cannot be agreed upon as a whole and that there is no need to switch to manual negotiation, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A supplies the determination result for each partial offer to the offer generation / update unit 30A. The determination result indicating that the offer cannot be accepted may include information indicating both the agreed partial offer and the partial offer that has not been agreed to, or may include information indicating the partial offer that has not been agreed to. Note that the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines that there is no need to switch to manual negotiation if there is a change between the offer received last time by the offer reception unit 32A and the offer received two offers ago by the offer reception unit 32A. In another example, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines that there is no need to switch to manual negotiation if there is no request to discontinue negotiation from negotiating party B.

[0048] The negotiation result display unit 34A displays the negotiation result based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33A on the terminal device 2A. In this case, for example, the processor 11 functions as the negotiation result display unit 34A, generates display information based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33A, and supplies the generated display information to the terminal device 2A. For example, when the entire offer is agreed upon, the negotiation result display unit 34A displays information related to the agreed-upon offer on the terminal device 2A based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33A. On the other hand, when the entire offer is not agreed upon, the negotiation result display unit 34A displays information related to both the currently agreed-upon partial offer and the unagreed partial offer on the terminal device 2A. Note that when the offer acceptance determination unit 33B determines to interrupt the negotiation, the negotiation result display unit 34A may display the negotiation result based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33B or the like on the terminal device 2A.

[0049] Next, the function of the negotiating party B will be explained.

[0050] The offer receiving unit 32B receives information indicating an offer supplied from the offer sending unit 31A. In this case, for example, the terminal device 2B functions as the offer receiving unit 32B under the control of the processor 11, and receives information indicating an offer supplied from the offer sending unit 31A via the interface 23. When the offer receiving unit 32B receives information indicating a counteroffer, it may receive information indicating both an agreed-upon partial offer and an unagreed-upon partial offer, or it may receive only information indicating an unagreed-upon partial offer.

[0051] The offer acceptance determination unit 33B determines whether to accept (i.e., agree to) the offer received by the offer receiving unit 32B based on information input by the negotiating party B. In this case, the processor 11 functions as the offer acceptance determination unit 33B by controlling the terminal device 2B. For example, under the control of the processor 11, the terminal device 2B displays the offer of the negotiating party A based on the information received by the offer receiving unit 32B, and accepts user input specifying whether there is agreement to the entire offer, whether there is agreement to each partial offer, and whether the negotiation needs to be suspended. The terminal device 2B then transmits the accepted input information to the platform providing device 1, and the processor 11 determines whether to accept (i.e., agree to) the offer based on the input information received from the terminal device 2B. At this time, the terminal device 2B may display both the agreed-upon partial offer and the unagreed partial offer, or may display only the unagreed partial offer. In the latter case, as described below, the terminal device 2B may accept a selection of whether to collapse the agreed-upon partial offer to hide it or to unfold it to display it.

[0052] Then, when there is an agreed partial offer, the offer acceptance determination unit 33B adds partial agreement information indicating that the agreed partial offer has been agreed to, to the negotiation information stored in the negotiation information storage unit 121. Note that, instead of generating and storing the partial agreement information, the offer acceptance determination unit 33B may store information indirectly indicating that the partial offer has been agreed to, in the negotiation information storage unit 121. Note that the process of storing information in the negotiation information storage unit 121 is executed based on input information received by the processor 11 from the terminal device 2B.

[0053] If the offer acceptance determination unit 33B determines that there is agreement on the entire offer, it supplies information indicating the agreed-upon offer (i.e., information indicating the offer received by the offer receiving unit 32B) to the negotiation result display unit 34B.

[0054] Furthermore, if the offer acceptance determination unit 33B determines that there is no agreement on the entire offer and that an input specifying the suspension of negotiation has been made, it determines that the negotiation should be suspended, and supplies information indicating both the partial offers that have been agreed upon at this time and the partial offers that have not been agreed upon to the negotiation result display unit 34B. Note that the offer acceptance determination unit 33B may also supply the information supplied to the negotiation result display unit 34B to the negotiation result display unit 34A in the same manner.

[0055] Furthermore, if there is no agreement on the entire offer and no input specifying the suspension of negotiation, the offer acceptance determination unit 33B supplies the determination result for each partial offer to the offer generation / update unit 30B. The determination result for each partial offer may include information indicating both agreed-upon partial offers and unagreed partial offers, or may include only information indicating unagreed partial offers.

[0056] The offer generating and updating unit 30B generates and updates offers. In this case, the processor 11 functions as the offer generating and updating unit 30B by controlling the terminal device 2B. For example, when the offer generating and updating unit 30B receives a determination result for each partial offer from the offer acceptance determination unit 33B, it generates a counteroffer based on information input by the negotiating entity B. In this case, the terminal device 2B accepts input of an alternative to the partial offer that has not been agreed upon and transmits the accepted input information to the platform providing device 1. Then, the processor 11 generates a counteroffer by changing the content of the partial offer that has not been agreed upon based on the input information, while leaving the content of the agreed-upon partial offer unchanged from the offer received immediately before. The offer generating and updating unit 30B may also generate a new offer based on accepted input information at any time.

[0057] The offer sending unit 31B supplies information indicating the offer generated or updated by the offer generating / updating unit 30B to the offer receiving unit 32A. In this case, for example, the processor 11 functions as the offer sending unit 31B. When sending information indicating a counteroffer, the offer sending unit 31B may send information indicating both an agreed-upon partial offer and an unagreed partial offer, or may send only information indicating an unagreed partial offer.

[0058] The negotiation result display unit 34B displays the negotiation result based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33B on the terminal device 2B. In this case, for example, the processor 11 functions as the negotiation result display unit 34B, generates display information based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33B, and supplies the generated display information to the terminal device 2B. For example, when the entire offer is agreed upon, the negotiation result display unit 34B displays information about the agreed-upon offer on the terminal device 2B based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33B. On the other hand, when the entire offer is not agreed upon, the negotiation result display unit 34B displays information about both the currently agreed-upon partial offer and the unagreed partial offer on the terminal device 2B. Note that when the offer acceptance determination unit 33A determines to interrupt the negotiation, the negotiation result display unit 34B may display the negotiation result based on the information received from the offer acceptance determination unit 33A or the like on the terminal device 2B.

[0059] The components of the offer generation / update unit 30A, the offer transmission unit 31A, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A, the negotiation result display unit 34A, the offer generation / update unit 30B, the offer transmission unit 31B, the offer acceptance determination unit 33B, and the negotiation result display unit 34B described in FIG. 4 can be realized, for example, by the processor 11 executing a program. Alternatively, the necessary programs may be recorded in any nonvolatile storage medium and installed as needed to realize each component. At least some of these components may not necessarily be realized by software programs, but may also be realized by any combination of hardware, firmware, and software. At least some of these components may also be realized using a user-programmable integrated circuit, such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or a microcontroller. In this case, the integrated circuit may be used to realize a program consisting of the above components. At least some of the components may also be configured by an ASSP (Application Specific Standard Produce), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or a quantum processor (quantum computer control chip). In this way, each component may be realized by various hardware. The same applies to other embodiments described later. Furthermore, each component may be realized by the cooperation of multiple computers, for example, using cloud computing technology.

[0060] (3-2) Display example Next, specific examples of information regarding offers that the terminal device 2B displays will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0061] FIG. 5 is an example of an offer editing screen before input by negotiating party B. Here, after negotiating party B (herein referred to as "Company B") inputs that it cannot accept the offer generated or updated by negotiating party A (herein referred to as "Company A"), an offer editing screen for generating a counteroffer is displayed. The platform providing device 1 generates display information based on the offer generated or updated by negotiating party A and transmits the display information to the terminal device 2B, thereby causing the terminal device 2B to display the offer display screen shown in FIG. 5 based on the display information. Note that the processing related to the offer editing screen shown in FIG. 5 corresponds to the processing executed by the offer generation / update unit 30B and the offer acceptance determination unit 33B.

[0062] The platform providing device 1 has, on the offer editing screen shown in Figure 5, an offer management table 40 having a record for each order number, an offer decision button 41 labeled "Offer with this content," and a negotiation interruption button 42 labeled "Interrupt negotiation."

[0063] The offer management table 40 has records of orders for each order number, and has the following fields: "Order Number," "Before Change," "Company A's Proposal," "Our Company's (Company B's) Proposal," and "Partial Edit / Agreement." The "Order Number" field indicates the order number corresponding to each record. In addition to the order number, identification information (including the product name, etc.) of the product corresponding to the order number may also be displayed. The "Before Change" field indicates the conditions before the offer was proposed by negotiating party A for the corresponding order number. The "Company A's Proposal" field indicates the offer of negotiating party A for each corresponding order number. Here, as an example, the field for the "Company A's Proposal" field displays the delivery date (year-month-day) and quantity of the product for each order number as the conditions proposed by negotiating party A. In addition to delivery date and quantity, any other conditions such as price and transportation method may also be displayed.

[0064] The item "Our company's (Company B's) proposal" shows the counteroffers for each order number to the offers listed in the item "Company A's proposal." Figure 5 shows the initial state before any input by negotiating party B, and no input has been made in the item "Our company's (Company B's) proposal."

[0065] The item "Edit / Agree by Part" has an edit button for editing (inputting) the counteroffer and a partial agreement button for indicating an intention to agree, provided for each order number. In this way, each record for each order number corresponds to a partial offer, and partial agreement is possible for each record. The edit button and partial agreement button are graphical user interfaces (GUIs) and are not limited to the illustrated form and may be realized in any form.

[0066] It should be noted that the offer management table 40 may also include records of new orders. In this case, the item "Before change" in the records of new orders will be blank.

[0067] The offer decision button 41 is a button for deciding to notify the other negotiating entity (negotiating entity A in this case) of the proposal content displayed in the item "Our company's (Company B's) proposal" in the offer management table 40 as a counter offer. The negotiation interruption button 42 is a button for deciding to interrupt negotiation.

[0068] Figure 6 is an example of the offer editing screen after input by negotiating party B. Figure 6 shows the offer editing screen after input regarding partial agreement and counteroffer for each order number has been made by selecting the partial agreement button and the edit button displayed in the item "Edit / Agreement by Part."

[0069] In the example of Figure 6, for each record with order numbers "P000126" and "P000129," the Partial Agreement button in the corresponding "Edit / Agree by Part" field was selected on the offer editing screen, changing the display of the Partial Agreement button from "Partial Agreement" to "Agreed." Furthermore, for these records, the same offer content as that displayed in the "Company A's Proposal" field is displayed in the "Our Company's (Company B's) Proposal" field. For example, in the record with order number "P000126," the delivery date displayed in the "Company A's Proposal" and "Our Company's (Company B's) Proposal" fields is May 4, 2024, and the quantity is 300 units.

[0070] When the partial agreement button displaying "Agreed" is selected, the platform providing device 1 may return the selection state of the partial agreement button to its initial state displaying "Partial Agreement" (i.e., a non-selected state) and cancel the partial agreement. That is, even for a record for which partial agreement has been reached, the platform providing device 1 may accept the cancellation of the partial agreement and change the state to one in which partial agreement has not been reached. In this case, the platform providing device 1 deletes information related to the canceled partial agreement (e.g., partial agreement information) from the negotiation information stored in the negotiation information storage unit 121. Furthermore, the platform providing device 1 accepts input of a counteroffer for the record for which partial agreement has been canceled.

[0071] For each record where the partial agreement button is not selected, the counteroffer entered after selecting the edit button in the corresponding field of the "Edit / Agreement by Part" item is displayed in the "Our Company's (Company B's) Proposal" item. For example, in the record for order number "000124," the offer from negotiating party A displayed in the "Company A's Proposal" item is 800 units on June 24, 2024, while the counteroffer from negotiating party B displayed in the "Our Company's (Company B's) Proposal" item is 400 units on June 24, 2024 and 400 units on July 24, 2024.

[0072] 6, since there are agreed-upon records, a fold button 43 labeled "Collapse Agreed-Upon Record" is provided. The fold button 43 is a button for specifying whether to switch the collapsed display of agreed-upon records, and when the platform providing device 1 detects that the fold button 43 has been selected, it changes the display of the offer management table 40 so that the agreed-upon records are collapsed and their details are not displayed.

[0073] FIG. 7 shows an example of the offer editing screen after the fold button 43 is selected. As shown in FIG. 7, when the fold button 43 is selected, the platform providing device 1 controls the display of the offer management table 40 so that the records for order numbers "P000126" and "P000129," which have been agreed upon, are collapsed, thereby making only the records for order numbers that have not been agreed upon visible. Furthermore, the fold button 43 is labeled "Unfold" when the collapsed display is specified, and when the platform providing device 1 detects that the fold button 43 labeled "Unfold" has been selected, it unfolds the collapsed display. That is, in this case, the platform providing device 1 again displays the details of the records for order numbers "P000126" and "P000129," which have been agreed upon.

[0074] In this way, the platform providing device 1 folds the records that have been agreed upon and hides their details, and displays only the details of the records that have not been agreed upon (i.e., are the subject of negotiation), thereby allowing the user, negotiating party B, to easily recognize the records that are the subject of negotiation.

[0075] The fold button 43 is an example of a graphical user interface for switching the fold display as described above, and the platform providing device 1 may accept the switching of the fold display using any GUI. For example, the platform providing device 1 may switch the fold display when it detects that a predetermined mark provided on an agreed-upon record has been selected. Note that any button such as the partial agreement button and the offer management table 40 are not limited to the manner shown in the figure, and may be displayed in any manner.

[0076] FIG. 8 shows a negotiation result screen displayed when the negotiation interruption button 42 is selected. In the example shown in FIG. 8, negotiation parties A and B alternately submit offers, resulting in agreement on order numbers "P000124," "P000126," "P000128," and "P000129," but not on order numbers "P000125" and "P000127." Therefore, in this case, the platform providing device 1 issues an announcement to negotiation party B informing them that a person in charge will contact them separately regarding the orders that have not been agreed upon. Here, the platform providing device 1 displays the following text on the offer editing screen: "Agreement has been reached on the orders marked 'Agreed,' but agreement has not been reached on order numbers P000125 and P000127. A person in charge of coordination will contact you by email or telephone, so please wait for a while." In this way, by displaying a negotiation result screen on the terminal device 2B when negotiation is interrupted, the platform providing device 1 allows negotiation party B to clearly recognize the negotiation results. The platform providing device 1 may also cause the terminal device 2A to similarly display the negotiation result screen shown in FIG.

[0077] (3-3) Processing flow 9 is an example of a flowchart executed by the platform providing device 1 based on input information supplied from the terminal device 2 A and the terminal device 2 B. Note that a detailed description of the processing related to the negotiation AI is omitted here.

[0078] First, the platform providing device 1 notifies the other negotiating entities of an offer specified by one negotiating entity (step S11). In this case, if the other negotiating entity conducts manual negotiation, the platform providing device 1 controls the display of information indicating the offer specified by the one negotiating entity on the terminal device 2 used by the other negotiating entity. On the other hand, if the other negotiating entity conducts automatic negotiation using a negotiation AI, the platform providing device 1 inputs information indicating the offer to the negotiation AI so that the negotiation AI can determine whether to accept the offer.

[0079] Next, the platform providing device 1 determines whether or not there is agreement on the entire offer (step S12). For example, when the other negotiating entity is conducting manual negotiation, the platform providing device 1 determines that there is agreement on the entire offer when it receives input information from the terminal device 2 indicating that the other negotiating entity agrees to the offer specified by the one negotiating entity. On the other hand, when the other negotiating entity is conducting automatic negotiation using a negotiation AI, the platform providing device 1 determines that there is agreement on the entire offer when it receives a notification from the negotiation AI that there is agreement on the entire offer.

[0080] If it is determined that there is agreement on the entire offer (step S12; Yes), the platform providing device 1 stores the agreed-upon offer as an agreed-upon offer (step S16). In this case, for example, the platform providing device 1 stores information indicating the agreed-upon offer between the negotiating parties in association with information on the date and time when the agreement was made in the negotiation information storage unit 121. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is no agreement on the entire offer (step S12; No), the platform providing device 1 accepts a counteroffer from another negotiating party that has allowed partial agreement on a partial offer basis (step S13).

[0081] Then, the platform providing device 1 determines whether a request to suspend negotiation has been made by any of the negotiating parties (step S14). For example, if the negotiation AI determines that the negotiation should be suspended, or if the platform providing device 1 receives input information instructing suspension of negotiation from the terminal device 2, the platform providing device 1 determines that a request to suspend negotiation has been made. If the platform providing device 1 determines that a request to suspend negotiation has been made (step S14; Yes), it stores the partial offer that has resulted in partial agreement as an agreed partial offer. For example, the platform providing device 1 stores partial agreement information indicating the agreed partial offer in the negotiation information storage unit 121 in association with information on the date and time when the agreement was made, etc. Note that instead of or in addition to storing the partial agreement information, the platform providing device 1 may store a history of offers proposed by each of the negotiating parties in the negotiation information storage unit 121.

[0082] If it is determined that there has been no request to suspend negotiation from either of the negotiating parties (step S14; No), the platform providing device 1 returns the process to step S11. In this case, in step S11, the negotiating party that specified a counteroffer in the immediately preceding step S13 is treated as "one negotiating party" and the other negotiating party is treated as "another negotiating party."

[0083] (4) Variations Next, modifications that can be applied to the above-described embodiment will be described. The following modifications may be applied in any combination.

[0084] (Variation 1) Instead of conducting negotiations manually, negotiation entity B may conduct automated negotiations using negotiation AI.

[0085] In this case, the offer generation / update unit 30B and the offer acceptance determination unit 33B shown in Fig. 4 perform an offer acceptance determination and offer generation / update using a negotiation AI, instead of performing an offer acceptance determination and offer generation / update based on input information received from terminal device 2B. In this case, the processing performed by the offer generation / update unit 30B and the offer acceptance determination unit 33B is the same as the processing performed by the offer generation / update unit 30A and the offer acceptance determination unit 33A, respectively, described using Fig. 4.

[0086] Even in this case, by making it possible to reach an agreement on a partial offer basis, even if negotiations are interrupted, it is possible to suitably reduce the burden of negotiations at the next negotiation session.

[0087] Similarly, instead of conducting automatic negotiation using a negotiation AI, the negotiating entity A may conduct negotiation manually. In this case, the offer generation / update unit 30A and the offer acceptance determination unit 33A shown in Fig. 4 determine whether to accept an offer and generate / update an offer based on input information received from the terminal device 2A, instead of performing an offer acceptance determination and offer generation / update using a negotiation AI. In this case, the platform providing device 1 may display an offer editing screen such as those shown in Figs. 5 to 7 on the terminal device 2A and receive input related to the acceptance, generation, and update of an offer.

[0088] (Variation 2) The negotiation AI may be executed by the terminal device 2A instead of by the platform providing device 1.

[0089] In this case, the terminal device 2A stores the model information stored in the model information storage unit 122 in the memory 22, and the processor 21 of the terminal device 2A executes the negotiation AI by referencing the model information. As in the above-described embodiment, the negotiation AI determines whether or not each partial offer of an offer can be agreed upon based on information indicating the offer received from the platform providing device 1, and generates counteroffers for partial offers that cannot be agreed upon. In this modified example, automatic negotiation by the negotiating entity A can also be preferably realized.

[0090] (Variation 3) The functions of the platform providing device 1 may be incorporated into the terminal device 2.

[0091] 10 shows the configuration of negotiation system 100A. Negotiation system 100A has terminal device 2A that can be used by negotiation entity A and terminal device 2B that can be used by negotiation entity B. Terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B communicate data via network 3. At least one of terminal device 2A and terminal device 2B realizes a negotiation platform by executing the processing executed by platform providing device 1 shown in FIG.

[0092] As shown in Figure 10, even in a state in which data communication is performed between terminal devices 2 used in negotiations, the terminal devices 2 can exchange information necessary for negotiations and preferably execute processing related to the notification and acceptance of offers (including partial agreements).

[0093] Second Embodiment Fig. 11 is a functional block diagram of the agreement determination device 1X. The agreement determination device 1X mainly includes a candidate proposal acquisition means 30X, a candidate proposal notification means 31X, and an agreement determination means 33X. The agreement determination device 1X may be composed of multiple devices. The agreement determination device 1X can be, for example, the platform providing device 1 in Fig. 1, or the terminal device 2A and / or the terminal device 2B in Fig. 10.

[0094] The candidate proposal acquisition means 30X acquires a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity conducting the negotiation. The candidate proposal acquisition means 30X can be, for example, the offer generation / update unit 30A or the offer generation / update unit 30B in the first embodiment.

[0095] The candidate proposal notification means 31X notifies the second negotiating entity, which is the negotiation partner of the first negotiating entity, of the agreement candidate proposal. The candidate proposal notification means 31X can be, for example, the offer sending unit 31A or the offer sending unit 31B.

[0096] The agreement determination means 33X determines whether or not there is agreement on each part of the agreement candidate proposal by the second negotiation entity. The agreement determination means 33X can be, for example, the offer acceptance determination unit 33A or the offer acceptance determination unit 33B.

[0097] 12 is an example of a flowchart executed by the agreement determination device 1X. The candidate proposal acquisition means 30X acquires a divisible agreement candidate proposal provided by a first negotiating entity conducting negotiations (step S21). The candidate proposal notification means 31X notifies the second negotiating entity, which is the negotiating partner of the first negotiating entity, of the agreement candidate proposal (step S22). The agreement determination means 33X determines whether or not there is agreement on each part of the agreement candidate proposal by the second negotiating entity (step S23).

[0098] The agreement determination device 1X according to the second embodiment determines whether or not there is agreement on each part of the agreement candidate proposal, thereby enabling partial agreement on the agreement candidate proposal and suitably reducing the burden of the next negotiation.

[0099] In addition, part or all of the above-described embodiments (including variations, the same applies below) may also be described as, but are not limited to, the following supplementary notes. Furthermore, part or all of the configurations described in supplementary notes 2 to 8, which are dependent on supplementary note 1, may also be dependent on supplementary notes 9 and 10 in the same dependent relationship as supplementary notes 2 to 8. Furthermore, not limited to the devices, methods, and storage media described in the supplementary notes, but also to methods, various hardware, software, various recording means (including storage media) for recording software, or systems, all of the configurations described as supplementary notes may be dependent on the above-described embodiments.

[0100] [Appendix 1] a candidate proposal acquisition means for acquiring a divisible agreement candidate proposal provided by a first negotiating entity that is conducting negotiations; a candidate proposal notification means for notifying a second negotiating entity, which will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating entity, of the agreement candidate proposal; an agreement determination means for determining whether or not there is agreement on each part of the candidate agreement proposal by the second negotiating entity; A consensus determination device having the above. [Appendix 2] The agreement determination device described in Appendix 1, wherein the candidate proposal notification means accepts input specifying agreement on each part of the candidate agreement proposal when the second negotiation party displays the candidate agreement proposal on a terminal device used for the negotiation. [Appendix 3] The agreement determination device described in Appendix 1, wherein the candidate proposal notification means accepts cancellation of the agreement on the part of the agreement candidate proposal that has been agreed upon when the second negotiating party displays the agreement candidate proposal on the terminal device used for the negotiation. [Appendix 4] The agreement determination device described in Appendix 1, wherein the candidate proposal notification means hides details of the part of the agreement candidate proposal on which agreement was reached when the second negotiating party displays the agreement candidate proposal on the terminal device used for the negotiation. [Appendix 5] The agreement determination device described in Appendix 3, wherein the candidate proposal notification means accepts a specification of whether or not to hide details of the part of the agreement candidate proposal on which agreement has been reached when the second negotiating party displays the agreement candidate proposal on the terminal device used for the negotiation. [Appendix 6] An agreement determination device as described in Appendix 1, further comprising an alternative acquisition means for acquiring an alternative to the agreement candidate proposal regarding the non-agreed portion of the agreement candidate proposal other than the portion on which the agreement was reached. [Appendix 7] An agreement determination device as described in Appendix 6, further comprising an alternative proposal notification means for notifying the first negotiation subject of the alternative proposal regarding the non-agreement part. [Appendix 8] An agreement determination device as described in Appendix 1, further comprising a negotiation result display means for, when the negotiation is interrupted, displaying the agreed-upon part and the non-agreed part other than the agreed-upon part on at least one of a terminal device used by the first negotiation subject for the negotiation and a terminal device used by the second negotiation subject for the negotiation. [Appendix 9] The computer Obtain a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity; notifying a second negotiating party that will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating party of the proposed agreement; determining whether or not the second negotiating party has agreed to each part of the proposed agreement; Agreement determination method. [Appendix 10] Obtain a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity; notifying a second negotiating party that will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating party of the proposed agreement; A program that causes a computer to execute a process of determining whether or not the second negotiating entity has agreed to each part of the candidate agreement proposal. [Appendix 11] A storage medium storing the program described in Appendix 10.

[0101] In each of the above-described embodiments, the program can be stored using various types of non-transitory computer-readable media and supplied to a computer processor or the like. Non-transitory computer-readable media include various types of tangible storage media. Examples of non-transitory computer-readable media include magnetic storage media (e.g., flexible disks, magnetic tapes, hard disk drives), magneto-optical storage media (e.g., magneto-optical disks), CD-ROMs (Read Only Memory), CD-Rs, CD-R / Ws, and semiconductor memories (e.g., mask ROMs, PROMs (Programmable ROMs), EPROMs (Erasable PROMs), flash ROMs, and RAMs (Random Access Memory)). The program may also be supplied to a computer by various types of transitory computer-readable media. Examples of transitory computer-readable media include electrical signals, optical signals, and electromagnetic waves. The transitory computer-readable medium can supply the program to a computer via a wired communication path such as an electric wire or optical fiber, or via a wireless communication path.

[0102] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Various modifications within the scope of the present invention that would be understood by those skilled in the art can be made to the configuration and details of the present invention. In other words, the present invention naturally includes various modifications and alterations that would be possible for those skilled in the art based on the entire disclosure, including the claims, and the technical ideas. Furthermore, the disclosures of the above-cited patent and non-patent documents are incorporated herein by reference. [Explanation of symbols]

[0103] 1. Platform provider 1X Consensus Judgment Device 2(2A, 2B) Terminal equipment 3 Network 4 Storage device 100, 100A Negotiation System

Claims

1. a candidate proposal acquisition means for acquiring a divisible agreement candidate proposal provided by a first negotiating entity that is conducting negotiations; a candidate proposal notification means for notifying a second negotiating entity, which will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating entity, of the agreement candidate proposal; an agreement determination means for determining whether or not there is agreement on each part of the candidate agreement proposal by the second negotiating entity; A consensus determination device having the above.

2. The agreement determination device according to claim 1, wherein the candidate proposal notification means accepts input specifying agreement on each part of the candidate agreement proposal when the second negotiating party displays the candidate agreement proposal on a terminal device used in the negotiation.

3. The agreement determination device described in claim 1, wherein the candidate proposal notification means accepts cancellation of the agreement for any part of the agreement candidate proposal that has been agreed upon when the second negotiating party displays the agreement candidate proposal on a terminal device used for the negotiation.

4. The agreement determination device described in claim 1, wherein the candidate proposal notification means hides details of the part of the agreement candidate proposal on which agreement was reached when the second negotiating party displays the agreement candidate proposal on a terminal device used in the negotiation.

5. The agreement determination device described in claim 3, wherein the candidate proposal notification means accepts a specification of whether or not to hide details of the part of the agreement candidate proposal on which agreement has been reached when the second negotiating party displays the agreement candidate proposal on a terminal device used in the negotiation.

6. The agreement determination device according to claim 1 , further comprising an alternative proposal acquisition means for acquiring an alternative to the agreement candidate proposal regarding a non-agreed portion of the agreement candidate proposal other than the portion on which the agreement was reached.

7. 7. The agreement determination device according to claim 6, further comprising an alternative proposal notification means for notifying the first negotiating party of the alternative proposal regarding the non-agreement portion.

8. The agreement determination device described in claim 1 further has a negotiation result display means for, when the negotiation is interrupted, displaying the agreed-upon part and the non-agreed part other than the agreed-upon part on at least one of the terminal device used by the first negotiating party for the negotiation and the terminal device used by the second negotiating party for the negotiation.

9. The computer Obtain a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity; notifying a second negotiating party that will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating party of the proposed agreement; determining whether or not the second negotiating party has agreed to each part of the proposed agreement; Agreement determination method.

10. Obtain a divisible candidate agreement proposal provided by the first negotiating entity; notifying a second negotiating party that will be the negotiating partner of the first negotiating party of the proposed agreement; A program that causes a computer to execute a process of determining whether or not the second negotiating entity has agreed to each part of the candidate agreement proposal.

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