Information processing apparatus and method

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The information processing device provides timely guidance to equivalent facilities outside the residential area by estimating visit times based on user history, addressing the challenge of finding similar facilities in unfamiliar areas.

JP2025165726AActive Publication Date: 2025-11-05NTT DOCOMO INC

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Patent Information

Application Number: JP2024069990
Authority / Receiving Office: JP · JP
Patent Type: Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date: 2024-04-23
Publication Date: 2025-11-05
Estimated Expiration: 2044-04-23

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Users traveling to unfamiliar areas face challenges in finding facilities similar to those they frequently visit in their residential area.

Method used

An information processing device that estimates the time of facility visits based on user history and provides timely guidance to equivalent facilities outside the residential area using location information.

Benefits of technology

Facilities equivalent to those frequently visited in the residential area are introduced promptly in travel destinations, enhancing user experience.

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Abstract

To timely guide a facility equivalent to a facility frequently visited by a user in the user's place of residence, in an area other than the user's place of residence such as a travel destination.SOLUTION: An estimation unit 33 estimates periods of a user's visit to facilities on the basis of the history of the user's visit to the facilities. When the user is specified to be in an area other than the user's place of residence on the basis of position information related to the position of the user, a generation unit 34 generates guidance information for guiding a facility equivalent to a facility included in the history of the user's visit in the area other than the user's place of residence, if there is the equivalent facility. A presentation unit 35 presents the guidance information generated for the equivalent facility to the user before the estimated period of the user's visit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for guiding a user to facilities that the user may visit. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system for providing a user with information about facilities that the user has not visited. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5942829 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] For example, a user may be traveling or on a business trip to a place where the user is unfamiliar with the area and want to visit a facility that is similar to a facility that the user regularly visits (for example, a sports gym or a restaurant).

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide timely guidance to facilities equivalent to those frequently visited by a user in his or her residential area in an area outside the user's residential area, such as a travel destination of the user. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides an information processing device comprising: an estimation unit that estimates the time when a user will visit each facility based on the user's visit history to the facility; and a presentation unit that, when it is determined that the user is in a non-residential area, an area other than the residential area, based on location information regarding the user's location, presents the user with guidance information for guiding them to equivalent facilities in the non-residential area that are equivalent to facilities included in the visit history, before the estimated visit time for the facility. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to timely introduce facilities equivalent to facilities that a user frequently visits in the user's residential area in an area outside the user's residential area, such as a travel destination of the user. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of an information processing system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a server device 30 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a user terminal 10 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a server device 30 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 5] 3 is a diagram illustrating information stored in the server device 30 according to the present embodiment. FIG. [Figure 6] 3 is a diagram illustrating information stored in the server device 30 according to the present embodiment. FIG. [Figure 7] 3 is a diagram illustrating information stored in the server device 30 according to the present embodiment. FIG. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation performed by the server device 30 in the present embodiment. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation performed by the server device 30 in the present embodiment. [Figure 10] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen D displayed by the user terminal 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] [Embodiment] [composition] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an information processing system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The information processing system 1 is a system for predicting the time of a user's visit to various facilities based on the user's visit history, and for providing timely guidance on comparable facilities at the user's travel destination, etc. As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing system 1 includes a user terminal 10 used by the user, a server device 30 corresponding to the information processing device of the present invention, and a communication network 2 including a wireless communication network or a wired communication network that communicatively connects these devices. The user terminal 10 is a computer that the user can carry, such as a smartphone, a wearable device, or a tablet. The server device 30 may be composed of a single computer or multiple computers. Although FIG. 1 illustrates one user terminal and one server device, there may be multiple of each.

[0010] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of the server device 30. The server device 30 is physically configured as a computer including a processor 3001, a memory 3002, a storage 3003, a communication device 3004, an input device 3005, an output device 3006, and a bus connecting these devices. Each of these devices operates using power supplied from a battery (not shown). In the following description, the term "device" can be interpreted as a circuit, a device, a unit, or the like. The hardware configuration of the server device 30 may be configured to include one or more of the devices shown in FIG. 2, or may be configured without including some of the devices. Furthermore, the server device 30 may be configured by communicating with multiple devices each having a different housing.

[0011] Each function in the server device 30 is realized by loading predetermined software (programs) onto hardware such as the processor 3001 and memory 3002, causing the processor 3001 to perform calculations, control communication via the communication device 3004, and control at least one of reading and writing data in the memory 3002 and storage 3003.

[0012] The processor 3001 controls the entire computer by running, for example, an operating system. The processor 3001 may be configured as a central processing unit (CPU) including an interface with peripheral devices, a control device, an arithmetic unit, a register, etc. Furthermore, for example, a baseband signal processing unit, a call processing unit, etc. may be realized by the processor 3001.

[0013] The processor 3001 reads programs (program codes), software modules, data, etc. from at least one of the storage 3003 and the communication device 3004 into the memory 3002, and executes various processes in accordance with these. The programs used are those that cause a computer to execute at least some of the operations described below. The functional blocks of the server device 30 may be implemented by a control program stored in the memory 3002 and running on the processor 3001. Various processes may be executed by one processor 3001, or may be executed simultaneously or sequentially by two or more processors 3001. The processor 3001 may be implemented by one or more chips. The programs may be transmitted to the server device 30 via a telecommunications line.

[0014] The memory 3002 is a computer-readable recording medium and may be configured by, for example, at least one of a ROM (Read Only Memory), an EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM), an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The memory 3002 may also be called a register, a cache, a main memory (primary storage device), etc. The memory 3002 can store an executable program (program code), a software module, etc. for implementing the method according to this embodiment.

[0015] Storage 3003 is a computer-readable recording medium, and may be constituted by at least one of, for example, an optical disk such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc ROM), a hard disk drive, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk (e.g., a compact disk, a digital versatile disk, a Blu-ray (registered trademark) disk), a smart card, a flash memory (e.g., a card, a stick, a key drive), a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a magnetic strip, etc. Storage 3003 may also be referred to as an auxiliary storage device.

[0016] The communication device 3004 is hardware (transmission / reception device) for communicating between computers via at least one of a wired network and a wireless network, and is also called, for example, a network device, a network controller, a network card, or a communication module. Each device, such as the processor 3001 and the memory 3002, is connected by a bus for communicating information. The bus may be configured using a single bus, or may be configured using different buses between each device.

[0017] The server device 30 may be configured to include hardware such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), or a field programmable gate array (FPGA), and some or all of the functional blocks may be realized by the hardware. For example, the processor 3001 may be implemented using at least one of these pieces of hardware.

[0018] 3 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of a user terminal 10. The user terminal 10 is a computer such as a smartphone, a mobile phone, a tablet, or a wearable terminal. The user terminal 10 is physically configured as a computer device including a processor 1001, a memory 1002, a storage 1003, a communication device 1004, an input device 1005, an output device 1006, a positioning device 1007, and a bus connecting these. The processor 1001, the memory 1002, and the storage 1003 are the same hardware as the processor 3001, the memory 3002, and the storage 3003 of the server device 30.

[0019] The communication device 1004 may be configured to include a high-frequency switch, a duplexer, a filter, a frequency synthesizer, etc., to realize at least one of Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) and Time Division Duplex (TDD). For example, a transmitting / receiving antenna, an amplifier unit, a transmitting / receiving unit, a transmission path interface, etc. may be realized by the communication device 1004. The transmitting / receiving unit may be implemented as a transmitting unit and a receiving unit that are physically or logically separated.

[0020] The input device 1005 is an input device (for example, a key, a microphone, a switch, a button, a sensor, etc.) that receives input from the outside. The output device 1006 is an output device (for example, a display, a speaker, an LED lamp, etc.) that outputs to the outside. Note that the input device 1005 and the output device 1006 may be integrated into one device (for example, a touch screen).

[0021] The positioning device 1007 is, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) unit, and measures the position of the user terminal 10. In this embodiment, the position of the user terminal 10 is used as the position of the user who uses the user terminal 10.

[0022] 4 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of server device 30. In server device 30, processor 3001 reads programs and the like from storage 3003 into memory 3002 and executes them, thereby realizing the functions of acquisition unit 31, memory unit 32, estimation unit 33, generation unit 34, and presentation unit 35.

[0023] The acquisition unit 31 acquires location information (including the date and time of positioning) indicating the location measured by the positioning device 1007 of the user terminal 10, together with identification information of the user terminal 10, via the communication network 2. In this embodiment, the identification information of the user terminal 10 is used as a user ID that identifies the user who uses the user terminal 10.

[0024] The storage unit 32 stores various types of information. For example, as illustrated in Fig. 5, the storage unit 32 stores the facility name, location information indicating the location of the facility, and facility attributes, which are attributes of the facility, in association with a facility ID for identifying each facility that the user is to visit. The facility attributes are the category or type to which the facility belongs, such as a sports gym, ice cream shop, interior design shop, etc., but may also include information specific to the facility, such as the price range of products or services at the facility, the customer demographic at the facility, word-of-mouth reviews or ratings of the facility, etc.

[0025] 6, the storage unit 32 stores area IDs for identifying areas divided by criteria such as prefectures, cities, wards, towns, and villages, or by a mesh of a predetermined shape, in association with area attributes, which are attributes of the areas. Area attributes are attributes that differ mainly due to population density, such as urban areas, business districts, and suburbs, but may also include other information specific to the area.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 7 , the storage unit 32 stores the location information acquired by the acquisition unit 31 as a location information history of each user in association with a user ID identifying each user. Furthermore, the storage unit 32 stores a residence area ID for identifying the residence area where each user resides, a visit history of facilities previously visited by each user, facility attributes of facilities frequently visited by each user, and the visit times of the facilities in association with the user ID. The residence area ID is the area ID of an area including the user's location information at, for example, 3:00 AM. The visit history of facilities includes facility IDs of facilities visited by the user and the dates and times of the visit. The facility attributes of facilities frequently visited by each user are facility attributes of facilities visited by the user a predetermined number of times or more per unit period, such as once or more per week. The visit times of facilities frequently visited by the user are estimated by the estimation unit 33 and are expressed as a certain time range in this embodiment.

[0027] The estimation unit 33 estimates the visit time of a user to a facility that the user frequently visits based on the user's visit history to that facility. For example, the estimation unit 33 replaces the visit dates and times included in the visit history with a normal distribution, and sets a period corresponding to the mean value ± standard deviation as the time range of the visit time for each facility. Note that the visit time of a user to a frequently visited facility is not limited to the above example, and may be, for example, the mean value, median, or mode of the visit dates and times included in the visit history.

[0028] Based on location information about the user's location (here, location information about the user terminal 10), the generation unit 34 determines whether the user is in a residential area or a non-residential area, which is an area other than the residential area. When the generation unit 34 determines that the user is in a non-residential area, the generation unit 34 searches for an area in the non-residential area based on the user's location and having a size according to the attributes of the non-residential area, and determines whether there is a facility equivalent to a facility frequently visited by the user (referred to as an equivalent facility). For example, the generation unit 34 searches for a circular area with a radius of Xm (X is an arbitrary number) centered on the user's location in the non-residential area and determines whether there is an equivalent facility.

[0029] In this embodiment, an equivalent facility is a facility with the same facility attributes as the facility frequently visited by the user, as illustrated in FIG. 7. The size of the area outside the residential area according to its attributes is, for example, largest in the suburbs, smallest in the business district, and intermediate in the urban area, as illustrated in FIG. 6. That is, the lower the population density, the larger the area in which equivalent facilities are searched, and the higher the population density, the smaller the area in which equivalent facilities are searched. For example, if the area outside the residential area is a suburb, the generation unit 34 searches for a circular area with a radius of Xm (X is an arbitrary number) centered on the user's location. If the area outside the residential area is an urban area, the generation unit 34 searches for a circular area with a radius of Ym (Y is an arbitrary number smaller than X) centered on the user's location. If the area outside the residential area is an business district, the generation unit 34 searches for a circular area with a radius of ZXm (Z is an arbitrary number smaller than Y) centered on the user's location. If an equivalent facility is found as a result of the search, the generation unit 34 generates guidance information to guide the user to the equivalent facility.

[0030] The presentation unit 35 presents the guidance information generated by the generation unit 34 for the equivalent facility to the user terminal 10 before the visit time estimated for the facility by the estimation unit 33. Here, before the visit time means before the start of the time range if the visit time is expressed as a time range, or before the average, median, or mode of the visit dates and times included in the visit history if the visit time is expressed as that value.

[0031] [Operation] Next, the operation of the information processing system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 8 and 9. In the following description, for example, when the server device 30 is described as the subject of processing, this specifically means that the processor 3001 performs calculations by loading predetermined software (programs) onto hardware such as the processor 3001 and memory 3002, and controls communication via the communication device 3004 and reading and / or writing of data from and to the memory 3002 and storage 3003, thereby executing the processing. The same applies to the user terminal 10.

[0032] The acquisition unit 31 repeatedly acquires the location information of the user terminal 10 (user location information) via the communication network 2. The acquired location information is stored in the storage unit 32 as a location information history, as illustrated in FIG.

[0033] In FIG. 8, the estimation unit 33 compares the user's location information acquired by the acquisition unit 31 with the location information of each facility illustrated in FIG. 5 (step S11).

[0034] Then, when the user's location information is included in a predetermined range centered on the location information of each facility for a predetermined period of time or more, the estimation unit 33 determines that the user has visited that facility, identifies the facility ID of the facility (step S12), and stores it in the storage unit 32 as the visit history exemplified in Fig. 7 (step S13). This visit history includes the date and time of measurement of the location information of the user terminal 10 (user's location information) as the visit date and time.

[0035] The estimation unit 33 then identifies facilities that each user has visited a predetermined number of times or more per unit period as facilities that the user frequently visits, and stores the facility attributes of the facilities in the storage unit 32 as shown in Fig. 7. Furthermore, the estimation unit 33 replaces the visit dates and times included in the user's visit history for facilities that the user frequently visits with a normal distribution, and estimates the visit dates and times of each facility by the user using a period corresponding to the mean value ± standard deviation as the time range of the visit dates for each facility. The estimated visit dates for each facility are stored in the storage unit 32 as shown in Fig. 7.

[0036] The above-described process is repeatedly executed while the user is in the residential area, thereby identifying and accumulating the facility attributes and visit times of facilities frequently visited by each user in the residential area.

[0037] Next, the operation when the user moves to an area outside the user's residence will be described. Even while the user is in an area outside the user's residence, the acquisition unit 31 repeatedly acquires the location information of the user terminal 10 (user's location information) via the communication network 2. The acquired location information is stored in the storage unit 32 as a location information history, as shown in FIG.

[0038] 9, the generation unit 34 compares the location information of each user acquired by the acquisition unit 31 with the location information of the user's residential area exemplified in FIGS. 5 and 7 (step S21). If the location information of each user acquired by the acquisition unit 31 is not included in the user's residential area, the generation unit 34 determines that the user is in an area other than the residential area (step S22; YES).

[0039] The generation unit 34 then sets an area based on the user's location and having a size according to the attribute of the area outside the residential area as the search range (step S23). The size according to the attribute of the area outside the residential area is a size that is predetermined for each area attribute, such as suburban, business district, or urban area, as described above.

[0040] Then, the generation unit 34 searches for facilities that exist within the search range in FIG. 5, and determines whether there is an equivalent facility that has the same facility attributes as the facility frequently visited by the user (step S24).

[0041] If it is determined that an equivalent facility is present within the search range (step S24; YES), the presentation unit 35 sets the date and time for presenting guidance information for guiding the equivalent facility to the user (step S25). Specifically, the presentation unit 35 sets a certain point in time before the visit time estimated by the estimation unit 33 for the facility as the presentation date and time for the guidance information. The certain point in time within the predetermined period here may be a point in time a predetermined period before the visit time, such as one hour or 30 minutes, or may be a point in time a different period before each facility to be guided.

[0042] When the presentation date and time set by the presentation unit 35 arrives (step S26; YES), the presentation unit 35 transmits the guidance information generated by the generation unit 34 to the user terminal 10, thereby presenting the guidance information to the user (step S27). As a result, screen D as shown in FIG. 10 is displayed on the user terminal 10. This screen includes, in addition to the facility name of the facility to which the user is directed, a soft button ("Details" in the same figure) that transitions to a page showing details of the facility, a soft button ("Map" in the same figure) that transitions to a page showing the location of the facility on a map, and a soft button ("Benefits" in the same figure) that transitions to a page showing benefits given to users who visit the facility. By referring to such guidance information, the user can learn about facilities in areas outside their residential area, such as travel destinations, that are equivalent to facilities they frequently visit in their residential area, before they frequently visit those facilities.

[0043] According to the present embodiment described above, it is possible to provide timely guidance to facilities equivalent to those frequently visited by a user in his or her residential area in areas outside the user's residential area, such as a travel destination.

[0044] [Variations] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. The above-described embodiment may be modified as follows. Furthermore, two or more of the following modifications may be combined and implemented.

[0045] [Variation 1] In the above embodiment, the size of the search range for equivalent facilities in areas outside the residential area was determined based on the area attributes. However, the size may also be determined based on the user's frequency of visits to the facility. For example, if the user's visit frequency to a facility he or she frequently visits is equal to or greater than a threshold, the user is deemed to have a strong desire to visit the facility, and the size of the search range may be relatively large. If the user's visit frequency to a facility he or she frequently visits is less than the threshold, the user is deemed not to have a strong desire to visit the facility, and the size of the search range may be relatively small. In other words, the generation unit 34 may set an area outside the residential area based on the user's location and whose size corresponds to the user's frequency of visits to the facility as the search range for equivalent facilities, and generate guidance information for the equivalent facilities. This allows the size of the search range to be changed based on the user's desire to visit the facility.

[0046] [Variation 2] In the above embodiment, the presentation unit 35 sets a certain time before the visit time estimated by the estimation unit 33 as the presentation date and time of the guidance information. Here, the certain time before the predetermined period refers to a predetermined period before the visit time, such as one hour or 30 minutes, or a period that varies depending on the facility. Alternatively, the presentation unit 35 may set a different time for the estimated visit time depending on the distance between the residential area and the non-residential area. For example, if the distance between the residential area and the non-residential area is equal to or greater than a threshold, the user is likely to be far from home. Therefore, the presentation date and time may be set to a time considerably before the visit time estimated by the estimation unit 33 (e.g., six hours before). On the other hand, if the distance between the residential area and the non-residential area is less than the threshold, the user is likely to be not far from home. Therefore, the presentation date and time may be set to a time slightly before the visit time estimated by the estimation unit 33 (e.g., one hour before). This allows the guidance information to be presented at different times depending on the distance between the user's residential area and the non-residential area.

[0047] [Variation 3] If a user's health is poor, the user may have little motivation to visit a facility that is comparable to a facility that the user regularly visits. Therefore, the server device 30 may include a health information acquisition unit that acquires health information related to the user's health, and the presentation unit 35 may not present guidance information if the health information matches a condition indicating poor health. The health information may be input by the user to the user terminal 10, or may be estimated from the measurement results of a measurement device installed in the user terminal 10 that measures the user's heart rate and body temperature. The health information acquisition unit acquires the health information from the user terminal 10 via the communication network 2. This makes it possible to not present guidance to a facility that the user regularly visits if the user's health is poor.

[0048] [Variation 4] When a user travels to an area outside their residential area, there is a purpose for that travel. Therefore, the server device 30 may be provided with an identification unit that identifies the purpose of travel when the user travels to an area outside their residential area, and the presentation unit 35 may not present guidance information if the identified purpose of travel matches a condition that indicates a low probability of visiting a comparable facility. The purpose of travel when traveling to an area outside their residential area may be acquired by the identification unit of the server device 30, for example, from schedule information input by the user to the user terminal 10. For example, if the user's purpose of travel is expected to be relatively strong, such as a driver's license training camp or a business trip, the type of such purpose of travel may be stored in advance, and such type of purpose of travel may be considered to match a condition that indicates a low probability of visiting a comparable facility, and guidance information may not be presented. In this way, if the user is unlikely to visit a comparable facility, guidance may not be provided to even facilities that the user frequently visits.

[0049] [Variation 5] When the user inputs that he or she will be traveling to an area outside his or her residential area in the future, the generation unit 34 generates accommodation information for providing information about accommodations located in areas outside the user's residential area that are convenient for visiting equivalent facilities, and the presentation unit 35 presents the generated accommodation information to the user. The user's future travel to an area outside the user's residential area may be input as schedule information to the user terminal 10, and the server device 30 may acquire this information. The storage unit 32 stores a database containing location information about accommodations, and the generation unit 34 searches the database for accommodations within a predetermined distance from the location of the equivalent facility and generates accommodation information for providing information about the accommodations. The presentation unit 35 presents the generated accommodation information to the user. This allows the user to be guided to accommodations that are convenient for visiting the equivalent facility.

[0050] [Variation 6] The generation unit 34 may repeatedly generate guidance information including a benefit to be given to the user when the user visits a comparable facility while the user is outside the user's residential area. If second guidance information is generated containing a benefit that is more advantageous to the user than the first guidance information already presented, the presentation unit 35 may present the second guidance information to the user. For example, if the benefit contained in the first guidance information generated at a certain point in time is a 10% discount on the facility fee, and the benefit contained in the second guidance information generated at a later point in time is a 20% discount on the facility fee, the second guidance information may be presented to the user. On the other hand, if the benefit contained in the second guidance information generated at a later point in time is a 10% discount on the facility fee, the benefit is less advantageous to the user than the first guidance information, and the second guidance information may not be presented to the user. This allows the user to obtain a more advantageous benefit.

[0051] [Other variations] The block diagrams used to explain the above embodiments show functional blocks. These functional blocks (components) are realized by any combination of at least one of hardware and software. Furthermore, the method for realizing each functional block is not particularly limited. That is, each functional block may be realized using a single device that is physically or logically coupled, or may be realized using two or more physically or logically separated devices that are directly or indirectly connected (for example, using wires, wirelessly, etc.) and these multiple devices. The functional block may also be realized by combining the single device or multiple devices with software.

[0052] Functions include, but are not limited to, judgment, determination, assessment, calculation, computation, processing, derivation, investigation, search, confirmation, reception, transmission, output, access, resolution, selection, election, establishment, comparison, assumption, expectation, consideration, broadcasting, notifying, communicating, forwarding, configuring, reconfiguring, allocating, mapping, and assignment. For example, a functional block (component) that performs transmission is called a transmitting unit or transmitter. As mentioned above, there are no particular limitations on how these functions are implemented.

[0053] For example, the server device 30 in one embodiment of the present disclosure may function as a computer that performs the processing of the present disclosure.

[0054] Each aspect / embodiment described in the present disclosure may be applied to at least one of systems using LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4G (4th generation mobile communication system), 5G (5th generation mobile communication system), FRA (Future Radio Access), NR (New Radio), W-CDMA (registered trademark), GSM (registered trademark), CDMA2000, UMB (Ultra Mobile Broadband), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark), IEEE 802.20, UWB (Ultra-Wideband), Bluetooth (registered trademark), or other appropriate systems, and next-generation systems extended based on these. Furthermore, a combination of multiple systems (e.g., a combination of at least one of LTE and LTE-A with 5G, etc.) may also be applied.

[0055] The present invention may be an information processing method including the steps of: estimating a visit time of each facility by a user based on the user's facility visit history; and, when it is determined that the user is in a non-residential area, an area other than the user's residential area, based on location information related to the user's location, if there is an equivalent facility in the non-residential area that is equivalent to a facility included in the visit history, presenting guidance information for guiding the equivalent facility to the user before the estimated visit time for the facility. The processing procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc. of each aspect / embodiment described in this disclosure may be reordered unless inconsistent. For example, the methods described in this disclosure present various step elements using an exemplary order and are not limited to the specific order presented.

[0056] Input and output information may be stored in a specific location (for example, memory) or may be managed using a management table. Input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or added to. Output information may be deleted. Input information may be sent to another device.

[0057] The determination may be made based on a value represented by one bit (0 or 1), a Boolean value (true or false), or a numerical comparison (e.g., comparison with a predetermined value).

[0058] Although the present disclosure has been described in detail above, it is clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The present disclosure can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Therefore, the description of the present disclosure is intended to be illustrative and does not have any limiting meaning on the present disclosure.

[0059] Software, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise, shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc. Additionally, software, instructions, information, etc. may be transmitted or received over a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using wired technologies (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)), and / or wireless technologies (such as infrared, microwave), then such wired and / or wireless technologies are included within the definition of a transmission medium.

[0060] The information, signals, etc. described in this disclosure may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof. In addition, terms explained in this disclosure and terms necessary for understanding this disclosure may be replaced with terms having the same or similar meanings.

[0061] Furthermore, the information, parameters, etc. described in this disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, may be expressed using relative values from a predetermined value, or may be expressed using other corresponding information.

[0062] As used in this disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based only on," unless expressly stated otherwise. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based only on" and "based at least on."

[0063] As used in this disclosure, any reference to an element using a designation such as "first," "second," etc. does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used in this disclosure as a convenient method of distinguishing between two or more elements. Thus, a reference to a first and a second element does not imply that only two elements may be employed or that the first element must in some way precede the second element.

[0064] The "unit" in the configuration of each of the above devices may be replaced with "means," "circuit," "device," etc.

[0065] When used in this disclosure, the terms "include," "including," and variations thereof are intended to be inclusive, similar to the term "comprising." Furthermore, when used in this disclosure, the term "or" is not intended to be an exclusive or.

[0066] In this disclosure, where articles are added by translation, such as a, an, and the in English, the disclosure may include that the nouns following these articles are in the plural form.

[0067] In the present disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "coupled" may also be interpreted in the same way as "different." [Explanation of symbols]

[0068] 1: Information processing system, 2: Communication network, 10: User terminal, 1001: Processor, 1002: Memory, 1003: Storage, 1004: Communication device, 1005: Input device, 1006: Output device, 1007: Positioning device, 30: Server device, 31: Acquisition unit, 32: Memory unit, 33: Estimation unit, 34: Generation unit, 35: Presentation unit, 3001: Processor, 3002: Memory, 3003: Storage, 3004: Communication device.

Claims

1. an estimation unit that estimates a visit time of each facility by the user based on the user's visit history to the facility; a presentation unit that, when it is determined that the user is in a non-residential area that is an area other than the residential area based on location information related to the user's location, presents guidance information for guiding the user to an equivalent facility that is an equivalent facility to a facility included in the visit history in the non-residential area to the user before an estimated visit time for the facility; An information processing device comprising:

2. The guidance information is guidance information for providing guidance to the equivalent facility when the equivalent facility is located in an area outside the residential area based on the user's position and having a size according to the attributes of the area outside the residential area.