Information management system, method for controlling information management system, and storage medium

Abstract

To provide an information management system, a control method thereof, and a program that allow a business operator to more easily utilize information of a user.SOLUTION: In an information management system 100, an information management device manages user-related information related to a user who uses a first service operated by a first business operator and a second service operated by a second business operator, a first business operator device causes a user terminal to implement the first service that uses at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device, and a second business operator device causes the user terminal to implement the second service that uses at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device. A definition unit of an information management device defines an item of user related information used for a first service in a database of the information management device, a writing unit writes the user related information corresponding to the item defined by the definition unit in the database, and an acquisition unit causes a second business operator device to acquire the user related information written in the database by the writing unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information management system, a control method for an information management system, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a technology that enables efficient and accurate selection of companies to which personal information is to be provided or used in a personal information provision infrastructure in which many companies participate. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-135067 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, personal information of users is managed on a personal information providing platform, but there is a demand for a system that makes it easier for businesses to utilize personal information of users.

[0005] One example of a problem that the present invention aims to solve is to make it easier for businesses to utilize user information. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The invention described in claim 1 is An information management system using an information management device that manages user-related information about a user who uses a first service operated by a first operator and a second service operated by a second operator, a user terminal of the user, a first operator device that realizes the first service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, and a second operator device that realizes the second service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, a definition unit that defines items of the user-related information used in the first service in a database of the information management device; a writing unit that writes user-related information corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit into the database; and an acquisition unit that causes the second business operator device to acquire the user-related information written in the database by the writing unit.

[0007] The invention described in claim 12 is a computer that realizes an information management system that uses an information management device that manages user-related information about a user who uses a first service operated by a first operator and a second service operated by a second operator, a user terminal of the user, a first operator device that realizes the first service on the user terminal using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device, and a second operator device that realizes the second service on the user terminal using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device, defining items of the user-related information used in the first service in a database of the information management device; writing user-related information corresponding to said item into said database; The method of controlling an information management system causes the second business operator device to acquire the user-related information written in the database.

[0008] The invention described in claim 13 is a computer that realizes an information management system that uses an information management device that manages user-related information about a user who uses a first service operated by a first operator and a second service operated by a second operator, a user terminal of the user, a first operator device that realizes the first service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, and a second operator device that realizes the second service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device, defining items of the user-related information used in the first service in a database of the information management device; writing user-related information corresponding to said item into said database; and a program for causing the second business operator device to acquire the user-related information written in the database. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, businesses can more easily utilize user information. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a data structure of a database 11 according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a flow in which a definition unit defines items of user-related information used in a first service in a database 11. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the function of an acquisition information selection unit. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an information management device 10. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a flow for defining items of user-related information in the information management device 10 according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7]FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a flow when an acquisition information selection unit according to the first embodiment is put into operation. [Figure 8] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a flow when a writing unit according to the first embodiment writes user-related information into a database 11. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of the flow when the writing unit according to the first embodiment writes user-related information into the database 11. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a flow when an acquisition unit according to the first embodiment acquires user-related information from a database 11. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system according to a third embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating the function of a write request unit. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system according to a fourth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In all the drawings, like components are designated by like reference numerals, and their description will be omitted where appropriate.

[0012] In the following description, each component of each device represents a functional block, not a hardware configuration. Each component of each device is realized by any combination of hardware and software, centered around the CPU of any computer, memory, a program loaded into the memory, a storage medium such as a hard disk that stores the program, and a network connection interface. There are many variations in the realization method and device.

[0013] First Embodiment (Information Management System 100) FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system 100 according to a first embodiment. The information management system 100 is used together with an information management device 10, a user terminal 6 of a user, a first business operator device 1, and a second business operator device 2. The user uses a first service (described later) and a second service (described later). The information management system 100 is a system that manages user-related information (described later) about users and enables businesses to effectively use the user-related information.

[0014] (1st Service) The first service is a service operated by a first business operator. The first business operator is a person (corporation) that operates a business and provides a service. The first service is a service that uses at least a portion of the user-related information (described later) managed by the information management device 10. The first service may be, for example, a disaster prevention-related application or a medicine-related application. The first service may be a web application, a website (such as an e-commerce site), or a smartphone application.

[0015] (Second Service) The second service is a service operated by a second business operator. The second business operator is a person (corporation) that operates a business and provides a service. The second service is a service different from the first service. The second service is a service that uses at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device 10. An example of the second service is the same as the example of the first service. In the first embodiment, the second business operator is different from the first business operator, but the second business operator and the first business operator may be the same. In other words, the same business operator (first business operator, second business operator) may provide different services (first service, second service).

[0016] For example, the second service may be a mini-app with the first service as a super app. In this case, the first service may be a digital ID card application used to verify the user's identity, and the second service may be a disaster prevention application.

[0017] (User-related information) The information management device 10 manages user-related information about a user. The user-related information is information related to the user. The user-related information may include personal information about the user. The user-related information may include the user's four basic pieces of information (name, date of birth, address, and gender), or the user's phone number, email address, etc. The user-related information may also include information such as how many points the user has that can be used in a specific area, the user's occupation, family composition, what medications the user is taking, and what cosmetics the user uses.

[0018] (Information management device 10) The information management device 10 is a common data base (registry) that manages user-related information. The information management device 10 manages personal information of users, etc., and is a device for effectively sharing the personal information, etc. with a first business operator, a second business operator, other businesses, and an administrator of the information management system 100 (information management device 10). The information management device 10 may be a so-called cloud server.

[0019] The information management device 10 includes a database 11. The database 11 is a storage that stores predetermined information (e.g., user-related information). A large amount of user-related information is stored in the database 11, and this user-related information is shared with businesses (such as a first business, a second business, and other businesses), and the businesses effectively utilize this user-related information. The database 11 may be provided inside the information management device 10 or may be provided externally.

[0020] The information management device 10 is configured to be able to communicate with a user terminal 6, a first carrier device 1, and a second carrier device 2 via a communication network 101. The communication network 101 includes, for example, communication over a 4G or 5G line. The information management device 10 is configured to include a communication unit (not shown) for configuring the communication network 101.

[0021] (User terminal 6) The user terminal 6 is a terminal that is owned, managed, carried, or used by a user. The user terminal 6 includes at least one of a smartphone, a tablet, and a PC (personal computer). In the first embodiment, it is assumed that the user terminal 6 has installed thereon at least a first application program that realizes a first service on the user terminal 6 and a second application program that realizes a second service on the user terminal 6. When the above programs are executed, the above applications (first application, second application) are launched on the user terminal 6, respectively. Note that in the first embodiment, the user terminal 6 may also have installed thereon at least one or more application programs that realize a third service, a fourth service, ..., an nth service on the user terminal 6.

[0022] (1st operator device 1) The first business operator device 1 is a device (server) that realizes the first service on the user terminal 6. The first business operator device may be a cloud server. In the first embodiment, the first business operator device 1 is a server that realizes a disaster prevention-related application as the first service on the user terminal 6. The first business operator device 1 may have pre-stored therein information about the user (such as name, address, gender, date of birth, telephone number, email address, and family composition) that will be used for the first service. For example, in the case of the disaster prevention-related application, the information that the user's four basic pieces of information, telephone number, email address, and family composition will be used for the application may be pre-stored in a storage unit (not shown) of the first business operator device 1.

[0023] (Second operator equipment 2) The second business operator device 2 is a device (server) that realizes the second service on the user terminal 6. The second business operator device may be a cloud server. In the first embodiment, the second business operator device 2 is a server that realizes a medicine-related application as the second service on the user terminal 6. The second business operator device 2 may have pre-stored therein information about the user to be used for the second service (such as name, address, gender, date of birth, telephone number, email address, family composition, and medicine information). For example, in the case of the medicine-related application, the information that the four basic pieces of user information and information about medicines prescribed to date will be used in the application may be pre-stored in a memory unit (not shown) of the second business operator device 2.

[0024] (First operator terminal 7) The information management system 100 may further include a first operator terminal 7 of a first operator. The first operator terminal 7 is a terminal owned, managed, carried, or used by the first operator. The first operator terminal 7 includes at least one of a smartphone, a tablet, and a PC (personal computer). The first operator (e.g., a manager or a person authorized by the manager) may be able to access the information management device 10 using the first operator terminal 7. For example, the first operator may be given a login ID and password for the first operator by the administrator of the information management device 10 (information management system 100), and may be able to access predetermined functions of the information management device 10 from the first operator terminal 7 via a web browser.

[0025] (Second operator terminal 8) The information management system 100 may further include a second operator terminal 8 of a second operator. The second operator terminal 8 is a terminal owned, managed, carried, or used by the second operator. The second operator terminal 8 includes at least one of a smartphone, a tablet, and a PC (personal computer). The second operator (e.g., a person in charge of the second service, or a person authorized by the person in charge) may be able to access the information management device 10 using the second operator terminal 8. For example, the administrator of the information management device 10 may provide a login ID and password for the second operator, allowing the second operator to access a predetermined function of the information management device 10 from the second operator terminal 8 via a web browser.

[0026] (Other business equipment) In the first embodiment, the information management system 100 may further include a plurality of business operator devices (third business operator device 3a to n-th business operator device na) operated by a plurality of business operators (third business operator, fourth business operator, ... n-th business operator). Each of the plurality of business operators operates a service (third service, fourth service, ... n-th service). For example, the third business operator operates a third service. The third business operator device realizes the third service on the user terminal 6.

[0027] (Definition part 12) The information management device 10 according to the first embodiment includes a definition unit 12, an authority setting unit 16, a writing unit 13, an acquired information selection unit 15, and an acquisition unit 14. The definition unit 12 defines items of user-related information used in the first service in a database 11 of the information management device 10.

[0028] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of the database 11 according to the first embodiment. User-related information is stored in the database 11 in a table format. The "item of user-related information used in the first service" refers to, for example, field b1 ("address information used in the first service") in the table shown in FIG. 2. The user's address information in the column (value) of field b1 (also referred to as "resource b1") is information used in the first service. The definition unit 12 defines the "item" of the "user-related information as address information" used in the first service in the database 11. In other words, the definition unit 12 creates a storage location for the user-related information (address information) in the database 11.

[0029] 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a flow in which the definition unit 12 defines items of user-related information used in the first service in the database 11. In the first embodiment, the definition unit 12 defines items of user-related information used in the first service in the database 11 through access from the first business operator terminal 7 to the information management device 10. More specifically, in the first embodiment, for example, the first business operator operates the first business operator terminal 7 to access the information management device 10. That is, the first business operator accesses a management screen (FIG. 3) related to the functions of the definition unit 12 of the information management device 10 from the first business operator terminal 7 using a web browser.

[0030] The flow by which the definition unit 12 defines, in the database 11, items of user-related information to be used in the first service will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 3. Clicking on the new creation icon 31 on the management screen in FIG. 3 displays a pop-up screen 39 for creating an item to be defined in the database 11. Clicking on the selection icon 32 for selecting an "item name" displays an item list 38, and the user selects an item to be defined in the database 11 from the item list 38. The user-related information to be used in the first service may include the user's name, address, telephone number, email address, etc., but in the example of FIG. 3, it is assumed that "address" is selected. Then, by setting the authority scope with the authority scope setting icon 33 (details will be described later) and pressing the create icon 34, the "address" item is defined in the database 11 as in field b1 shown in FIG. 2. Similarly, selecting "name" in the "item name," setting the authority scope, and pressing the create icon 34 defines the "name" item in the database 11 as in field b2 shown in FIG. 2.

[0031] (Authority setting unit 16) The authority setting unit 16 shown in FIG. 1 sets authority regarding reading and writing of the user-related information (values) written to the database 11 by the writing unit 13 (described later) for each of the second service and each of the services (third service, fourth service, ... nth service) operated by each of the multiple operators. The "authority regarding reading and writing of the user-related information (values) written to the database 11 by the writing unit 13" refers to authority regarding whether other services are permitted to read (read) the user-related information (values) and whether other services are permitted to edit (write) the user-related information. Note that the authority setting unit 16 may set authority regarding reading and writing of the user-related information (values) written to the database 11 by the writing unit 13 for the second operator and multiple operators (not for each service).

[0032] In the first embodiment, through access from the first operator terminal 7 to the information management device 10, the authority setting unit 16 may set the authority for reading and writing the user-related information written to the database 11 by the writing unit 13 for each of the second service and each of the services operated by the multiple operators. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the management screen of FIG. 3 can be accessed through the first operator terminal 7, the authority range setting icon 33 can be pressed, and from a drop-down list, the operator to whom the read / write authority is to be granted can be set. In the example of FIG. 3, read authority is granted to all operators. In this way, in the first embodiment, the first operator can freely set read / write authority from the first operator terminal 7 via a web browser.

[0033] In this way, the first business operator can set which services, among the services operated by the multiple business operators, can read and write the user-related information written in the database 11. In other words, the first business operator can set which business operator devices can access the user-related information (values) that the first business operator has written in the database 11.

[0034] (Writing section 13) Returning to FIG. 1, the writing unit 13 writes user-related information corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit 12 into the database 11. "User-related information corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit 12" refers to user-related information (values) to be stored in the columns of the items defined by the definition unit 12, such as user-related information a2 in which "User No." is "0005" as shown in FIG. 2. Note that the writing unit 13 has not yet written user-related information (values) into field b3 shown in FIG. 2 (the definition unit 12 has defined an item called "address information used in the first service," but the user-related information (values) has not yet been stored in field b3 of that item).

[0035] In the first embodiment, the writing unit 13 cooperates with the first business operator device 1 to write user-related information (values) corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit 12 into the database 11. Specifically, for example, the first business operator device 1 is provided with a first business operator device-side writing unit 23 (not shown), and the first business operator device-side writing unit 23 may send a command to the writing unit 13 to write the user-related information into the database 11, causing the writing unit 13 to write the user-related information into the database 11. That is, the writing unit 13 of the information management device 10 may be provided with an API (Application Programming Interface), and may be configured to allow an external device such as the first business operator device 1 to cooperate with the API. Details of the flow in which the writing unit 13 writes the user-related information into the database 11 will be described later.

[0036] (Acquisition information selection unit 15) 1, the acquisition information selection unit 15 selects which of the items defined by the definition unit 12 corresponds to the user-related information (value) that is to be acquired by the acquisition unit 14 (described later) through access from the second business terminal 8 to the information management device 10. The user-related information is user-related information used in the second service, and may include name, address, telephone number, email address, etc.

[0037] 4 is a diagram for explaining the function of the acquired information selection unit 15. In the first embodiment, the second business operator operates the second business operator terminal 8 to access the information management device 10. In the first embodiment, the second business operator terminal 8 may be able to access a management screen (FIG. 4) related to the function of the acquired information selection unit 15 of the information management device 10 using a web browser.

[0038] The flow by which the acquired information selection unit 15 selects which of the items defined by the definition unit 12 corresponds to the user-related information to be acquired by the acquisition unit 14 (described later) will be described in more detail with reference to Fig. 4. It is assumed that the second business operator (second service) is granted the authority to read all of the items shown in Fig. 2 (address information used in the first service, name information used in the first service, name information used in the third service, etc.) (the first business operator, the third business operator, and the fourth business operator (the first service, the third service, and the fourth service) grant the second business operator (the second service) the authority to read the items defined in the database 11 by the first business operator, the third business operator, and the fourth business operator, respectively, and the user-related information (values) corresponding to the items).

[0039] When the add icon 41 on the management screen in FIG. 4 is clicked, a pop-up screen 49 is displayed for selecting which user-related information (value) the acquisition unit 14 should acquire. Then, when the item selection icon 42 for selecting a "request item" is clicked, an item list 45 is displayed. In the item list 45, items already defined in the database 11 are listed for each service. Then, the second business operator selects from the item list 45 an item corresponding to the user-related information that the acquisition unit 14 should acquire.

[0040] The user-related information used in the second service may include the user's name, address, telephone number, email address, etc., and in the example of FIG. 4, it is assumed that "address used in the first service" is selected. Then, when the create icon 44 is pressed, "address used in the first service" is set as an item corresponding to the user-related information to be acquired by the acquisition unit 14 (described later). In this way, the second business operator can set which item of user-related information (value) the second business operator wants the second business operator device 2 to acquire.

[0041] The permission display icon 43 indicates the "permissions granted by the first business (first service) to the second business (second service)." In the example of Figure 4, the "READ" box is checked, which indicates that the first business has granted the second business the permission to read the "address (value) used in the first service." Furthermore, if the "WRITE" box is checked, it indicates that the permission to write (edit) has been granted.

[0042] (Acquisition part 14) The acquisition unit 14 shown in FIG. 1 causes the second business operator device 2 to acquire the user-related information (values) written in the database 11 by the writing unit 13. In the first embodiment, the acquisition unit 14 cooperates with the second business operator device 2 to cause the second business operator device 2 to acquire the user-related information written in the database 11 by the writing unit 13. Specifically, for example, the second business operator device 2 may be provided with a second business operator device-side writing unit 24 (not shown), and the second business operator device-side writing unit 24 may send an instruction to the acquisition unit 14 to acquire the user-related information from the database 11, thereby causing the acquisition unit 14 to acquire the user-related information. That is, the acquisition unit 14 may be provided with an API (Application Programming Interface), and may be configured to allow an external device such as the second business operator device 2 to cooperate with the API.

[0043] The second operator (second service) selects in advance the items corresponding to the user-related information that it desires using the acquisition information selection unit 15, and the acquisition unit 14 causes the second operator device 2 to acquire the user-related information (values) corresponding to the items selected by the acquisition information selection unit 15.

[0044] As shown in FIG. 2, the user-related information managed by the information management device 10 is linked to any one of identification information identifying the administrator of the information management device 10 (the administrator of the information management system 100), the first service, the second service, and the services operated by each of the multiple businesses (the third service and the fourth service in the case of FIG. 2). For example, the user-related information a2 (information related to the user's name) managed by the information management device 10 is linked to first service identification information identifying the first service. In another example, the user-related information a10 (information related to the user's name) managed by the information management device 10 is linked to administrator identification information identifying the administrator of the information management device 10. Note that the user-related information managed by the information management device 10 may be linked to any one of identification information identifying the first business operator, the second business operator, and each of the multiple businesses (e.g., first business operator identification information, second business operator identification information, etc.).

[0045] The user-related information stored in database 11 includes similar information (for example, an address defined by a first business operator (first service) and an address defined by a second business operator (second service)). Since it is up to each business operator (service) to decide what information to define in database 11, for example, the address defined by the first business operator (first service) may be down to the city, town, or village, and the address defined by the second business operator (second service) may be down to the prefecture.

[0046] The acquisition unit 14 can then acquire user-related information linked to the above-mentioned identification information (first service identification information, administrator identification information, etc.). This allows the business operator to select which identification information to acquire the user personal information linked to. For example, when it is desired to acquire name information, it may be more accurate to acquire the information from the administrator of the information management device 10 than to acquire the information from the business operator. By being able to arbitrarily select the information to be acquired, the business operator can effectively utilize the information management system 100.

[0047] (Hardware configuration example) 5 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the information management device 10. The information management device 10 includes a bus 1010, a processor 1020, a memory 1030, a storage device 1040, an input / output interface 1050, and a network interface 1060.

[0048] The bus 1010 is a data transmission path for transmitting and receiving data among the processor 1020, memory 1030, storage device 1040, input / output interface 1050, and network interface 1060. However, the method of connecting the processor 1020 and the like to each other is not limited to bus connection.

[0049] The processor 1020 is implemented by a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or the like.

[0050] The memory 1030 is a main storage device realized by a RAM (Random Access Memory) or the like.

[0051] The storage device 1040 is an auxiliary storage device realized by removable media such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or a memory card, or a read-only memory (ROM), and has a recording medium. The recording medium of the storage device 1040 stores program modules that realize each function of the information management device 10 (for example, the definition unit 12, the writing unit 13, and the acquisition unit 14). The processor 1020 loads each of these program modules into the memory 1030 and executes them, thereby realizing each function corresponding to the program module. The storage device 1040 may also function as the database 11.

[0052] The input / output interface 1050 is an interface for connecting the information management device 10 to various input / output devices.

[0053] The network interface 1060 is an interface for connecting the information management device 10 to a network. This network is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network). The network interface 1060 may be connected to the network wirelessly or by wire. The information management device 10 may communicate with the user terminal 6, the first business operator device 1, the second business operator device 2, and multiple business operator devices (3a to 3na) via the network interface 1060.

[0054] (Operation example 1 of the first embodiment) FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a flow for defining items of user-related information in the information management device 10 according to the first embodiment.

[0055] In step S100, as described in FIG. 3, the first operator operates the first operator terminal 7 to access the information management device 10, and presses the selection icon 32 on the management screen of FIG. 3 to select an item to be defined in the database 11 (e.g., address).

[0056] In step S110, the authority range setting icon 33 is pressed, and the authority setting unit 16 sets the authority range.

[0057] In step S120, when the create icon 34 is pressed, the definition unit 12 defines the items of user-related information used in the first service. In addition, the authority setting unit 16 sets read / write authority for the user-related information (value) corresponding to the item selected in step S100.

[0058] (Operation example 2 of the first embodiment) FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a flow when the acquired information selection unit 15 according to the first embodiment is put into operation.

[0059] In step S200, as described in FIG. 4, the second operator operates the second operator terminal 8 to access the information management device 10, and presses the item selection icon 42 on the management screen of FIG. 4 to display the item list 45.

[0060] In step S210, the second business operator selects, from the item list 45, the user-related information to be acquired by the acquisition unit 14 via the second business operator terminal 8. In the first embodiment, it is assumed that the second business operator selects "address to be used in the first service" as the user-related information to be acquired by the acquisition unit 14.

[0061] In step S220, when the create icon 44 is pressed, the acquisition information selection unit 15 selects "address to be used in the first service" as the user-related information to be acquired by the acquisition unit 14. In this way, the acquisition information selection unit 15 selects which item of the user-related information defined by the definition unit 12 corresponds to and which item the acquisition unit 14 should acquire.

[0062] (Operation example 3 of the first embodiment) FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a flow when the writing unit 13 according to the first embodiment writes user-related information into the database 11. In FIG. 8, a case will be described in which the user launches a disaster prevention-related application as a first service. The disaster prevention-related application is an application used to notify the user of evacuation instructions and check in to an evacuation shelter, and user address information is assumed to be essential. Note that in the database 11 shown in FIG. 2, the address item (field b1) used in the first service is assumed to have already been defined by the definition unit 12. Also, the user in the description in FIG. 8 is assumed to be the user whose "User No." shown in FIG. 2 is "0005" (i.e., the user's address information (value) has not yet been written).

[0063] In step S300, the user starts a disaster prevention related application (first service), and the user registers (inputs) his / her address information in the disaster prevention related application (first service). At this time, for example, in cooperation with an external site (e.g., My Number Portal (registered trademark)), information such as the user's address may be obtained through the external site and registered in the disaster prevention related application, or the user may manually enter the address information.

[0064] In step S310, a pop-up is displayed on the user terminal 6, suggesting whether it is OK to write the address information of the user registered in step S300 into the database 11.

[0065] In step S320, the user operates the user terminal 6 to consent to writing the address information registered in step S300 to the database 11 (for example, in step S310, a pop-up message appears asking "May I write your address information to the database?", and the user consents by clicking the "Yes" icon in response to the pop-up).

[0066] In step S330, the first business device 1 acquires the address information registered in step S300 from the user terminal 6. At this time, the first business device 1 may or may not store the address information in a storage unit (not shown). Then, the first business device 1 transmits the user's address information to the information management device 10.

[0067] In step S340, the information management device 10 acquires the address information and the first consent information (generated in step S320) indicating that the user has consented to writing the address information in the database 11.

[0068] In step S350, the writing unit 13 writes the user-related information into the database 11 using the first consent information indicating that the user has consented to writing the address information as user-related information into the database 11. For example, if the address of the user (whose "User No." is "0005") is "mm town, ll city, kk prefecture," the writing unit 13 writes the information "mm town, ll city, kk prefecture" into the field b3 portion of the database 11 as the user-related information a1.

[0069] The address information as the user-related information may or may not be stored in a storage unit (not shown) of the user terminal 6.

[0070] Furthermore, the timing (step S310 in the example of FIG. 8) at which permission is obtained from the user as to whether or not it is OK to write the address information into the database 11 can be arbitrarily set by the first business operator of the first service.

[0071] (Operation example 4 of the first embodiment) Fig. 9 is a diagram showing another example of the flow when the writing unit 13 according to the first embodiment writes user-related information into the database 11. In Fig. 9 as well, a case will be described in which the user launches a disaster prevention-related application as a first service. Note that, unlike the example in Fig. 8, it is assumed that the address item used in the first service has not yet been defined in the database 11, and that the user has already registered his or her address information in the disaster prevention-related application (first service).

[0072] In step S400, it is assumed that the definition unit 12 of the information management device 10 defines address information (user-related information) used in the disaster prevention-related application (first service) in the database 11 (it is assumed that field b1 shown in FIG. 2 is defined).

[0073] Returning to FIG. 9, in step S410, the first business apparatus 1 receives information that the definition unit 12 has defined the address information items.

[0074] In step S420, the user terminal 6 determines whether the first service (disaster prevention related application) is running. If the user terminal 6 determines that the first service (disaster prevention related application) is not running (NO in step S420), the determination in step S420 is repeated.

[0075] If the user terminal 6 determines that the first service (disaster prevention related application) is running (YES in step S420), the process proceeds to step S430, and a pop-up is displayed on the user terminal 6 suggesting whether the user should write the address information already entered into the database 11 (similar to step S310 in Figure 8).

[0076] In step S440, the user operates the user terminal 6 to consent to writing the address information into the database 11 (for example, by clicking the "Yes" icon in response to the pop-up in step S430).

[0077] In step S450, the first business device 1 transmits the address information to the information management device 10. At this time, the first business device 1 may transmit the address information already stored in a storage unit (not shown), or may obtain the address information stored in the user terminal 6 from the user terminal 6 and transmit the address information to the information management device 10.

[0078] In step S460, the writing unit 13 writes the user-related information (address information) into the database 11 using the first consent information indicating that the user has consented to writing the user-related information (value) into the database 11 (step S440).

[0079] In addition, in step S440, if the user does not agree to writing the address information to the database 11 (for example, by clicking the ``No'' icon in response to the pop-up in step S430), the first business operator device 1 may terminate the processing without sending the user-related information to the information management device 10.

[0080] (Operation example 5 of the first embodiment) Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a flow when the acquisition unit 14 according to the first embodiment acquires user-related information from the database 11. In Fig. 10, a case will be described in which the user launches a medicine-related application as the second service. The medicine-related application is an application used to manage information on prescribed medicines, and information on the user's name is assumed to be essential.

[0081] It is assumed that the user described in FIG. 10 is a user whose "User No." shown in FIG. 2 is "0002." It is assumed that, as shown in FIG. 2, the definition unit 12 has already defined an item (field b2) for the name to be used in the first service in the database 11. It is also assumed that the acquisition information selection unit 15 has previously selected to have the acquisition unit 14 acquire the "name information to be used in the first service." It is also assumed that the user (whose "User No." is "0002") has previously agreed to have the second service (second business operator device 2) acquire the "name information to be used in the first service" written in the database 11 (for example, the user has indicated consent to the transfer of user-related information to other services such as the second service on the "settings screen" of the first service).

[0082] Returning to FIG. 10, in step S500, the user attempts to start the medicine-related application (second service).

[0083] In step S510, the second business operator device 2 identifies (for example, from a memory unit (not shown) of the second business operator device 2) user-related information required to use the second service (information essential for launching a medicine-related application). In the first embodiment, input of the user's name information is required to use the second service (medicine-related application), and the second business operator device 2 identifies the user's "name information" as the user-related information required to use the second service.

[0084] In step S520, the second business operator device 2 requests the information management device 10 (acquisition unit 14) to have the second business operator device 2 acquire the name information ("IP Akira" in user-related information a3 in Figure 2) as user-related information that has already been written in the database 11.

[0085] In step S530, the information management device 10 requests the second business operator device 2 to send second consent information indicating that the user has agreed to the second business operator device 2 acquiring the user-related information written to the database 11 ("IP Akira" in user-related information a3).

[0086] 10, as described above, the user has previously agreed to allow the second service (second business operator device 2) to acquire the “name information to be used in the first service” written in the database 11, and therefore the second consent information is stored in the second business operator device 2. Therefore, in step S540, the second business operator device 2 transmits the second consent information to the information management device 10.

[0087] In step S550, the information management device 10 (acquisition unit 14) acquires the user-related information written in the database 11 ("IP Akira" in the user-related information a3) from the database 11, and transmits the acquired user-related information ("IP Akira" in the user-related information a3) to the second business device 2. In this way, the acquisition unit 14 acquires the user-related information ("IP Akira" in the user-related information a3) written in the database 11 by the writing unit 13 from the database 11, using the second consent information indicating that the user has agreed to the second business device 2 acquiring the user-related information ("IP Akira" in the user-related information a3), and transmits the user-related information to the second business device 2.

[0088] In step S560, the second business apparatus 2 acquires the user-related information ("IP Akira" in the user-related information a3) from the information management apparatus 10.

[0089] In step S570, the user terminal 6 starts the second service using the user-related information acquired in step S560 ("IP Akira" in the user-related information a3).

[0090] If the second business apparatus 2 has not acquired the second consent information, the second business apparatus 2 may end the process without transmitting the second consent information to the information management apparatus 10 in step S540.

[0091] 10 has been described as an example of when the second service is about to be started, as another example, when an attempt is made to register name information in the second service (medicine-related application), a pop-up screen such as "Do you want to use the 'Name' information you use in the first service in the second service as well?" may be displayed, and the second business operator device 2 may request the information management device 10 to acquire user-related information when an icon saying "Yes" is clicked. The timing at which the second business operator device 2 requests the information management device 10 to acquire user-related information can be set arbitrarily by the second business operator that operates the second service.

[0092] In the example of FIG. 10, the acquiring unit 14 may acquire user-related information written by the writing unit 13, or may acquire user-related information written by the administrator of the information management device 10.

[0093] (Action and effect) As described above, according to the first embodiment, the information management system 100 includes the definition unit 12, the writing unit 13, and the acquisition unit 14. In the information management system 100 according to the first embodiment, items of user-related information to be written to the database 11 are defined (set) in advance by the business operator. Then, for example, when a user uses a first service, if the user registers user-related information (such as address information) corresponding to the above items predefined by the business operator in the first service, the user-related information registered by the user is written to the database 11. Then, the user-related information written to the database 11 can be acquired by a second business operator or a plurality of other businesses, and used in services operated by the respective businesses.

[0094] In conventional systems in which users' personal information and the like are shared in a common base (registry) and the personal information is used by each business, the decision of what personal information to share is made mainly by the user or the system administrator. However, according to the information management system 100 of the first embodiment, the business itself can arbitrarily select what user-related information to share (write) in the common base (database 11), and can also select what user-related information to acquire from the common base (database 11). In other words, the business can decide how to utilize the common data base. This makes it easier for the business to utilize user information.

[0095] Furthermore, the information management system 100 according to the first embodiment may further include a plurality of business device operated by a plurality of businesses, and the information management system 100 may include an authority setting unit 16. This allows for setting for each service whether or not to permit reading and writing of user-related information (values) written in the database 11. This allows businesses to effectively manage user-related information.

[0096] Second Embodiment FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system 100 according to a second embodiment. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the information management device 10 does not include a writing unit 13 and an acquiring unit 14, and the first business operator device 1 includes a writing unit 13 (first writing unit 13a), and the second business operator device 2 includes an acquiring unit 14 (second acquiring unit 14b). Alternatively, the first business operator device 1 may include an acquiring unit 14 (first acquiring unit 14a), and the second business operator device 2 may include a writing unit 13 (second writing unit 13b). The functions of the first writing unit 13a and the second writing unit 13b are similar, and the functions of the first writing unit 13a and the second writing unit 13b are similar. In the following, when we refer to the "writing unit 13," we are referring to the first writing unit 13a and the second writing unit 13b, and when we refer to the "acquisition unit 14," we are referring to the first acquisition unit 14a and the second acquisition unit 14b.

[0097] The writing unit 13 according to the second embodiment is a function provided by an administrator of the information management device 10. The writing unit 13 may be provided to the first business operator device 1 as a so-called SDK (Software Development Kit). That is, the administrator of the information management device 10 (information management system 100) may provide the first business operator and the second business operator with an SDK having the function of the writing unit 13.

[0098] The acquisition unit 14 according to the second embodiment is a function provided by an administrator of the information management device 10. The acquisition unit 14 may be provided to the second business operator device 2 as a so-called SDK (Software Development Kit). That is, the administrator of the information management device 10 (information management system 100) may provide the first business operator and the second business operator with an SDK having the function of the acquisition unit 14.

[0099] A writing unit 13 according to the second embodiment writes user-related information corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit 12 from the first business operator device 1 to the database 11. Furthermore, an acquiring unit 14 according to the second embodiment causes the second business operator device 2 (or the first business operator device 1) to acquire the user-related information written to the database 11 by the writing unit 13.

[0100] In the second embodiment, the information management device 10 may have a function of cooperating with the writing unit 13 when writing user-related information to the database 11 (for example, the information management device may have a writing unit on its side). The writing unit 13 may also be provided with information indicating that the information management device 10 and the writing unit 13 are in information cooperation with each other, such as identifier information related to the information management device 10.

[0101] Furthermore, in the second embodiment, when the second business operator device 2 (or the first business operator device 1) acquires the user-related information written in the database 11, the information management device 10 may have a function of coordinating with the acquisition unit 14 (for example, an information management device-side acquisition unit may be provided). Furthermore, the acquisition unit 14 may be provided with information indicating that the information management device 10 and the acquisition unit 14 are information-cooperating with each other, such as identifier information related to the information management device 10.

[0102] <Third embodiment> 12 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system 100 according to the third embodiment. The third embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the information management device 10 (information management system 100) further includes a write request unit 17.

[0103] (Writing Request Section 17) The write request unit 17 transmits to the user terminal 6 write request information that prompts the writing unit 13 to write the user-related information corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit 12 into the database 11 .

[0104] Fig. 13 is a flow diagram for explaining the function of the write request unit 17. In Fig. 13, steps S500 to S540 are the same as those in Fig. 10 (first embodiment). In Fig. 13, it is assumed that the user is the user whose "User No." shown in Fig. 2 is "0004".

[0105] In step S541, the information management device 10 determines whether user-related information (for example, address information used in the first service) is written in the database 11.

[0106] If the information management device 10 determines that the user-related information (e.g., address information used in the first service) has been written in the database 11 (YES in step S541), the process proceeds to step S550 in Fig. 10. The processing from step S550 onwards is as described in Fig. 10.

[0107] If the information management device 10 determines that the user-related information (e.g., address information used in the first service) is not written in the database 11 (NO in step S541), the process proceeds to step S551. In the example of Fig. 13, the address information used in the first service of the user whose "user number" is "0004" is not written in the database 11 (see Fig. 2), so the process proceeds to step S551.

[0108] In step S551, the write request unit 17 of the information management device 10 transmits to the second business device 2 write request information prompting the second business device 2 to write address information as user-related information into the database 11.

[0109] In step S561, the write request unit 17 of the information management device 10 acquires the write request information and transmits the write request information to the user terminal 6.

[0110] In step S571, the user terminal 6 displays on the screen information urging the user to write address information as user-related information to the database 11. At this time, for example, the screen of the application for the second service may be transitioned to the screen of the application for the first service (assuming that address information has already been registered in the first service), and a pop-up such as "Would you like to provide the address information required to use the second service to the database?" may be displayed on the screen of the application for the first service as writing request information. As another example, if the user has not given permission to provide user-related information (address information used in the first service) to the second service, a pop-up such as "Would you like permission to provide user-related information to the second service?" may be displayed as writing request information.

[0111] The timing at which the pop-up message for writing is displayed is arbitrary and may be set by the business operator.

[0112] The write request unit 17 according to the third embodiment is a function provided by an administrator of the information management device 10. The write request unit 17 may be provided to the first business device 1 as a so-called SDK (Software Development Kit).

[0113] By providing the write request unit 17, it is possible to encourage users to provide user-related information (values) to the database 11. This increases the amount of user-related information in the database 11, allowing businesses to more effectively utilize the user-related information.

[0114] <Fourth embodiment> 14 is a schematic block diagram showing an information management system 100 according to the fourth embodiment. The fourth embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the information management device 10 (information management system 100) further includes an item definition request unit 18.

[0115] (Item definition request part 18) The item definition request unit 18 transmits item definition request information requesting that any item of user-related information be defined in the database 11. In the fourth embodiment, the second business operator operates the second business operator terminal 8 to access the information management device 10. In the fourth embodiment, the second business operator terminal 8 may be able to access a management screen related to the function of the item definition request unit 18 of the information management device 10.

[0116] For example, in the example of Fig. 2, the first operator has not defined the telephone number used in the first service in the database 11. In the fourth embodiment, the second operator may operate the second operator terminal 8 to access the information management device 10 and perform a predetermined operation on the management screen to send item definition request information to the first operator terminal 7 to define the telephone number in the database 11. In other words, by performing a predetermined operation on the management screen, a message stating "The second operator has requested that the telephone number be defined in the database" may be displayed on the first operator terminal 7.

[0117] As another example, if a first business operator (a business operator operating a disaster prevention-related app) wants to know information about medications a user is taking and the medication information is not defined in database 11, the first business operator may access information management device 10 via first business operator terminal 7 and send (notify) item definition request information to second business operator terminal 8 that defines in database 11 information about what medications the user is taking.

[0118] The item definition request unit 18 according to the fourth embodiment may be a function provided by an administrator of the information management device 10. The item definition request unit 18 may be provided to the information management device 10 as a so-called SDK (Software Development Kit). In this case, the item definition request unit 18 may be included in the first business operator device 1 (or the second business operator device 2).

[0119] Although the embodiments have been described above with reference to the drawings, these are merely examples of the present invention, and various other configurations can also be adopted.

[0120] In the second embodiment, in addition to the first operator device and the second operator device, the third operator device, the fourth operator device, ... the nth operator device may also be equipped with a writing unit (third writing unit....nth writing unit) and an acquisition unit (third acquisition unit....nth acquisition unit).

[0121] Although it has been described that the authority setting unit 16 can set read / write authority for the user-related information (values) used for the first service, the authority setting unit 16 may also be able to set read / write authority for each service (second service, third service, .... n-th service).Furthermore, the authority setting unit 16 may also be able to set authority for reading / writing the user-related information (values) written to the database 11 by the writing unit 13 for each of the first business operator, the second business operator, and multiple business operators.

[0122] The first to n-th business device may have the same configuration. That is, the first business device may be able to acquire the user-related information (values) written by the second to n-th business device, or the second to n-th business device may write the user-related information to the database 11.

[0123] The information management system 100 may further include an administrator terminal of an administrator of the information management device 10. Through access to the information management device 10 from the administrator terminal, the definition unit 12 may define, in the database 11, items of user-related information to be used for at least one of the first service and the second service.

[0124] When user-related information written to database 11 by the writing units provided in each of multiple business operators' devices is to be acquired by a second business operator's device 2 (or a first business operator's device 1) (for example, when address information is written to database 11 from a first business operator's device and telephone number is written to database 11 from a third business operator's device, and these (address information, telephone number) are to be acquired by the second business operator's device 2), consent may be required each time each piece of user-related information is acquired by the second business operator's device 2 (multiple consents may be required).

[0125] Regarding the permission settings for reading and writing "items" of user-related information, it is possible to set which business (service) can read the item (i.e., which business can know the existence of the "item"). However, only the business that defined the item can edit or delete (write) the "item" of user-related information.

[0126] Note that the flowcharts according to this embodiment (FIGS. 6 to 10 and 13) are merely one embodiment. Within the scope of the present invention, processes other than those described in FIG. 6 to 10 and 13 may be included, some of the processes described in FIG. 6 to 10 and 13 may be omitted, or the order of the processes may be changed. For example, the process of setting the authority scope described in step S110 of FIG. 6 may be omitted.

[0127] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and should not be considered limiting. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims rather than the above description, and it is intended to include meanings equivalent to the claims and all modifications within the scope of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0128] 1:First operator equipment 2:Second operator equipment 3a: Third company equipment 6: User terminal 7: First operator terminal 8: Secondary operator terminal 10: Information management device 11: Database 12:Definition part 13: Writing section 13a: First writing unit 13b: Second writing unit 14: Acquisition part 14a: 1st acquisition part 14b:Second acquisition part 15: Acquisition information selection section 16: Permission setting section 17: Writing request section 18: Item definition request section 23: First operator device side writing section 24: Second operator device side writing section 31: New creation icon 32: Selection icon 33: Permission range setting icon 34: Create icon 38: Item list 39: Pop-up screen 41: Add icon 42: Item selection icon 43: Permission display icon 44: Create icon 45: Item list 49: Pop-up screen 100: Information Management System 101: Communication Networks 1010: Bus 1020: Processor 1030: Memory 1040: Storage device 1050: Input / output interface 1060: Network interface

Claims

1. An information management system using an information management device that manages user-related information about a user who uses a first service operated by a first business operator and a second service operated by a second business operator, a user terminal of the user, a first business operator device that realizes the first service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, and a second business operator device that realizes the second service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, a definition unit that defines items of the user-related information used in the first service in a database of the information management device; a writing unit that writes user-related information corresponding to the items defined by the definition unit into the database; an acquisition unit that causes the second business operator device to acquire the user-related information written to the database by the writing unit.

2. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, the information management system further includes a first carrier terminal of the first carrier, An information management system in which the definition unit defines the items of the user-related information used for the first service in the database through access from the first business operator terminal to the information management device.

3. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, the information management system further includes a second carrier terminal of the second carrier; An information management system further comprising an acquisition information selection unit that selects which of the items defined by the definition unit corresponds to the user-related information that the acquisition unit will acquire through access from the second operator terminal to the information management device.

4. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, the information management system further includes a plurality of business device(s) operated by a plurality of business operators, The information management system further includes an authority setting unit that sets authority for reading and writing the user-related information written to the database by the writing unit for each of the second service and each of the services operated by each of the plurality of operators.

5. 5. The information management system according to claim 4, the information management system further includes a first carrier terminal of the first carrier, An information management system in which, through access from the first operator terminal to the information management device, the authority setting unit sets authority for reading and writing the user-related information written to the database by the writing unit for each of the second service and each of the services operated by the multiple operators.

6. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, An information management system, wherein the writing unit writes the user-related information into the database using first consent information indicating that the user has agreed to writing the user-related information into the database.

7. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, The acquisition unit acquires the user-related information from the database using second consent information indicating that the user has agreed to the second business operator device acquiring the user-related information written to the database by the writing unit.

8. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, The information management system further includes a write request unit that sends write request information to the user terminal prompting the writing unit to write user-related information corresponding to the item defined by the definition unit into the database.

9. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, the information management system further includes a plurality of business device(s) operated by a plurality of business operators, the user-related information managed by the information management device is associated with any one of identification information identifying an administrator of the information management device, the first service, the second service, and a service operated by each of the plurality of businesses; The information management system is configured such that the acquisition unit is capable of acquiring the user-related information associated with the identification information.

10. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, The information management system further comprises an item definition request unit that transmits item definition request information that requests that the item of any of the user-related information be defined in the database.

11. 2. The information management system according to claim 1, the first business operator device includes at least one of the writing unit and the acquiring unit; An information management system, wherein at least one of the writing unit and the acquiring unit is a function provided by an administrator of the information management device.

12. a computer that realizes an information management system that uses an information management device that manages user-related information about a user who uses a first service operated by a first business operator and a second service operated by a second business operator, a user terminal of the user, a first business operator device that realizes the first service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, and a second business operator device that realizes the second service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal; defining items of the user-related information used in the first service in a database of the information management device; writing user-related information corresponding to said item into said database; A control method for an information management system that causes the second business operator device to acquire the user-related information written in the database.

13. a computer that realizes an information management system that uses an information management device that manages user-related information about a user who uses a first service operated by a first business operator and a second service operated by a second business operator, a user terminal of the user, a first business operator device that realizes the first service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device on the user terminal, and a second business operator device that realizes the second service using at least a part of the user-related information managed by the information management device, defining items of the user-related information used in the first service in a database of the information management device; writing user-related information corresponding to said item into said database; a program for realizing a step of causing the second business operator device to acquire the user-related information written in the database.

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