Equipment management device, equipment management system, equipment management method and program

Abstract

This invention provides a device management device, a device management system, a device management method, and a program that can prevent the unlimited disclosure of information about individual users. [Solution] The cloud server 1 includes a temporary access rights information storage unit 136 that stores temporary access rights information showing the correspondence between access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of equipment-related information concerning equipment 4 that the repair company is temporarily permitted to access, and user identification information that identifies the repair company; an access permission acquisition unit 118 that acquires permission notification information that permits the repair company to access equipment-related information; and a temporary access rights management unit 119 that, when permission notification information is acquired, selects temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136.

Description

Technical Field

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[0001] The present disclosure relates to an equipment management device, an equipment management system, an equipment management method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] A system has been proposed that transmits data related to industrial machines detected by sensors to a server via a network and predicts maintenance actions to be performed on the industrial machines at the server (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, in recent years, home appliances having a communication function with a cloud server have been provided, and a system has been provided that can collect information indicating the state of home appliances in a cloud server and predict maintenance actions of the home appliances based on the collected information. However, since it may be possible to infer the behavior pattern of the user of the home appliance from the state of the home appliance, the access of the maintenance provider to the information indicating the state of the home appliance is restricted within the range permitted by the user of the home appliance, so that information related to the individual user that can be inferred from the state of the home appliance, such as the behavior pattern of the user, is not publicly disclosed without limitation. There is a demand for a mechanism.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an equipment management device, an equipment management system, an equipment management method, and a program that can prevent information related to an individual user from being publicly disclosed without limitation.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the equipment management device relating to this disclosure is A temporary access rights information storage unit stores temporary access rights information that shows the correspondence between access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of device-related information concerning a device used by a second user different from the first user, which the first user is temporarily permitted to access, and user identification information that identifies the first user. An access permission acquisition unit that acquires permission notification information that allows the first user to access the device-related information, When the aforementioned permission notification information is obtained, the temporary access rights management unit generates the temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit, A device-related information request acquisition unit acquires device-related information request information that requests the transmission of the device-related information to the terminal device owned by the first user, When the aforementioned equipment-related information request information is obtained, an access authority determination unit refers to the temporary access authority information and determines whether or not the first user has been granted access authority to the equipment-related information. The system includes a device-related information notification unit that, when it is determined that the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information, transmits the device-related information to the terminal device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to this disclosure, when the temporary access rights management unit receives permission notification information granting a second user of the equipment permission to access equipment-related information from the first user, it selects temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit. Furthermore, when the access rights determination unit receives the aforementioned equipment-related information request information transmitted from the terminal device owned by the first user, it refers to the temporary access rights information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit to determine whether the first user has been granted access to equipment-related information. If the equipment-related information notification unit determines that the first user has been granted access to equipment-related information, it transmits the equipment-related information to the terminal device. As a result, the first user cannot access the equipment-related information unless the second user grants permission for the second user to access that information, thus limiting the first user's access to equipment-related information to what the second user permits. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the unlimited disclosure of personal information about the second user that can be inferred from the equipment-related information. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] Schematic diagram of the equipment management support system according to the embodiment of this disclosure [Figure 2] Block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the equipment management support system according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] Block diagram showing the functional configuration of the equipment management support system according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of the information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] Sequence diagram showing the operation of the equipment management support system according to the embodiment. [Figure 6] Sequence diagram showing the operation of the equipment management support system according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] A flowchart showing an example of the flow of equipment management processing performed by the equipment management device according to the embodiment. [Figure 8]A flowchart showing an example of the flow of repair support processing performed by the repair support device according to the embodiment. [Figure 9] Block diagram showing some of the functional configurations of the equipment management support system related to the modified version. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, the device management device according to the embodiment of this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. The device management device according to this embodiment includes: a temporary access rights information storage unit that stores in association access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of device-related information concerning a device used by a second user different from the first user, to which the first user is temporarily permitted to access; and user identification information that identifies the first user; an access permission acquisition unit that acquires permission notification information that the second user grants the first user permission to access the device-related information; and a temporary access rights information generation unit that, upon acquisition of permission notification information, generates temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit. Furthermore, this device management device includes: a device-related information request acquisition unit that acquires device-related information request information requesting the transmission of device-related information to a terminal device owned by the first user; an access rights determination unit that, upon acquisition of device-related information request information, refers to the temporary access rights information and determines whether or not the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information; and a device-related information notification unit that, upon determination that the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information, transmits the device-related information to the terminal device.

[0010] As shown in Figure 1, the device management system according to this embodiment comprises a cloud server 1, a terminal device 3 owned by a user of device 4, and a terminal device 5 owned by a service provider that provides maintenance services for device 4. Device 4 is connected to a local network NW2 built in the building where the user lives. The local network NW2 is, for example, a wired LAN (Local Area Network) or a wireless LAN, and is connected to a wide area network NW1 via a router 82 and a data line termination device 81. The data line termination device 81 is a modem, gateway, etc. As a result, device 4 can communicate with the cloud server 1 via the local network NW2, router 82, data line termination device 81, and wide area network NW1. In addition, terminal devices 3 and 5 and the cloud server 1 can communicate with each other via the wide area network NW1.

[0011] Device 4 is, for example, a water heater or an air conditioner, and is connected to the local network NW2. Device 4 periodically generates device status information indicating its status and transmits it to the cloud server 1 via the local network NW2 and the wide area network NW1.

[0012] The terminal device 3 is, for example, a smartphone, and as shown in Figure 2, comprises a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 301, a main memory unit 302, an auxiliary memory unit 303, a display unit 304, an input unit 305, a communication unit 306, and a bus 309 connecting these to each other. The main memory unit 302 has volatile memory such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and is used as a workspace for the CPU 301. The auxiliary memory unit 303 is non-volatile memory such as semiconductor flash memory and stores programs for the CPU 301 to execute various processes. The display unit 304 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display. The input unit 305 is, for example, a transparent touchpad placed on top of the display unit 204. The communication unit 306 is connected to the wide area network NW1 and transmits information transferred from the CPU 301 to the terminal device 5 via the wide area network NW1, and also transfers information acquired from the cloud server 1 via the wide area network NW1 to the CPU 301.

[0013] The CPU 301 reads the program stored in the auxiliary storage unit 303 into the main storage unit 302 and executes it, thereby functioning as a device-related information request unit 311, a device-related information acquisition unit 312, a display control unit 313, a repair request unit 314, and an access permission request information acquisition unit 315, as shown in Figure 3. Furthermore, the auxiliary storage unit 303 shown in Figure 2 has a device-related information storage unit 331 that stores, as shown in Figure 3, device status information indicating the state of each device 4 used by the user, device status history information indicating the past history of the state of the device 4, and error information indicating the content of abnormalities that have occurred in the device 4 in the past, in association with device identification information that identifies the device 4.

[0014] When the device-related information request unit 311 performs a device-related information request operation for requesting the cloud server 1 to transmit device-related information about the device 4 used by the user to the input unit 305, in response thereto, it generates device-related information request information and transmits it to the cloud server 1. The device-related information request information includes the user identification information of the user of the device 4, the target device identification information of the target device 4, and attribute information indicating the attribute of the device-related information for which access is requested.

[0015] When the device-related information acquisition unit 312 acquires the device-related information notification information described later transmitted from the cloud server 1, it extracts a combination of the device status information, the device status history information, the error information included in the acquired device-related information notification information, and the device identification information corresponding to these, and stores the extracted information in association with each other in the device-related information storage unit 331. Also, when the device-related information acquisition unit 312 acquires the access error notification information described later transmitted from the cloud server 1, it notifies the display control unit 313 of the access error notification information. When the access permission request information acquisition unit 315 acquires the access permission request information described later transmitted from the cloud server 1, it extracts the user identification information of the maintenance contractor, the repair content information, and the attribute information described later included in the acquired access permission request information and notifies the display control unit 313.

[0016] The display control unit 313 forms a device status notification image for notifying the user of the status of each device 4 based on the combination of the device status information, device status history information, and error information stored in the device-related information storage unit 331, and the device identification information, and causes the display unit 304 to display it. Further, when the display control unit 313 is notified of the user identification information, repair content information, and attribute information of the maintenance provider from the access permission request information acquisition unit 315, based on these notified information, it forms a repair content confirmation image including a message for requesting the user to permit the maintenance provider to temporarily access the information related to the device 4 for the repair of the device 4, and causes the display unit 304 to display it. Furthermore, when the display control unit 313 is notified of access error notification information from the device-related information acquisition unit 312, it forms an access disabled notification image for notifying that access to the device-related information of the device 4 is disabled in response to this, and causes the display unit 304 to display it.

[0017] When the repair request unit 314 performs a repair request operation for the user to request the repair of the device 4 on the input unit 305, it generates repair request information including the user identification information in response to this, and transmits it to the cloud server 1. When the permission notification unit 316 performs an access permission operation for the user to permit the maintenance provider to temporarily access the information related to the device 4 for the repair of the device 4 on the input unit 305, it generates permission notification information in response to this, and transmits it to the cloud server 1. Here, the access permission operation includes an operation for designating an access permission period for permitting the maintenance provider to access the device-related information of the device 4 used by the user. Further, the permission notification information includes the user identification information of the user of the device 4 and the access permission period information indicating the aforementioned access permission period.

[0018] Terminal device 5 is, for example, a personal computer, and as shown in Figure 2, comprises a CPU 501, a main memory unit 502, an auxiliary memory unit 503, a display unit 504, an input unit 505, a communication unit 506, and a bus 509 connecting these to each other. The main memory unit 502 has volatile memory and is used as the working area of ​​the CPU 501. The auxiliary memory unit 503 consists of non-volatile memory such as ROM (Read Only Memory), SSD (Solid State Drive), or HDD (Hard Disk Drive), and stores programs for the CPU 501 to execute various processes. The display unit 504 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display. The input unit 505 is, for example, a key input device such as a keyboard. The communication unit 506 is connected to a wide area network NW1 and transmits information transferred from the CPU 501 to the cloud server 1 via the wide area network NW1, and transfers information acquired from the cloud server 1 and terminal device 3 via the wide area network NW1 to the CPU 501.

[0019] The CPU 501 functions as a device-related information request unit 511, a device-related information acquisition unit 512, and a display control unit 513, as shown in Figure 3, by reading the program stored in the auxiliary storage unit 503 into the main storage unit 502 and executing it. Furthermore, the auxiliary storage unit 503 shown in Figure 2 has a device-related information storage unit 531, as shown in Figure 3, which stores device status information, device status history information, and error information for each of the devices 4 that the maintenance company has been allowed to access by the user, in association with device identification information.

[0020] When a maintenance contractor performs an equipment-related information request operation to the input unit 505, requesting the cloud server 1 to transmit equipment-related information that has been permitted to be accessed by the user of equipment 4, the equipment-related information request unit 511 generates equipment-related information request information in response and sends it to the cloud server 1. This equipment-related information request information includes the user identification information of the maintenance contractor, the target equipment identification information of the target equipment 4, and attribute information indicating the attributes of the equipment-related information for which access is requested.

[0021] When the device-related information acquisition unit 512 acquires the device-related information notification information described later that is transmitted from the cloud server 1, it extracts combinations of device status information, device status history information, and error information contained in the acquired device-related information notification information, and the corresponding device identification information, and stores these extracted pieces of information in the device-related information storage unit 531, associating them with each other. Also, when the device-related information acquisition unit 512 acquires the access error notification information described later that is transmitted from the cloud server 1, it notifies the display control unit 513 of the access error notification information.

[0022] The display control unit 513 forms an equipment status notification image to notify the maintenance company of the status of each of the 4 devices based on the equipment status information, equipment status history information, and error information stored in the equipment-related information storage unit 531, as well as equipment identification information, and displays it on the display unit 504. In addition, when the display control unit 513 receives access error notification information from the equipment-related information acquisition unit 512, it forms an access denied notification image to notify that access to the equipment-related information of the 4 device is not possible and displays it on the display unit 504.

[0023] Returning to Figure 2, the cloud server 1 comprises a CPU 101, a main memory unit 102, an auxiliary memory unit 103, a communication unit 106, and a bus 109 that connects them to each other. The CPU 101 is, for example, a multi-core processor. The main memory unit 102 has volatile memory and is used as a workspace for the CPU 101. The auxiliary memory unit 103 consists of large-capacity non-volatile memory and stores programs for realizing various functions of the cloud server 1. The communication unit 106 is connected to the wide-area network NW1.

[0024] The CPU 101 reads the program stored in the auxiliary storage unit 103 into the main storage unit 102 and executes it, thereby realizing a virtual main equipment management device V1 that manages the state of equipment 4, and an equipment repair support device V2 that assists maintenance personnel in repairing equipment 4, as shown in Figure 3. The auxiliary storage unit 103 shown in Figure 2 includes an equipment state storage unit 131, an equipment state history storage unit 132, an access authority information storage unit 133, a repair-related information storage unit 134, an access authority master storage unit 135, and a temporary access authority information storage unit 136, as shown in Figure 3. The main equipment management device V1 includes an equipment state acquisition unit 111, an equipment state history information generation unit 112, an equipment-related information request acquisition unit 113, an access authority determination unit 114, an equipment-related information notification unit 115, a diagnostic unit 120, and an access error notification unit 121. Furthermore, the main equipment management device V1 includes an equipment state storage unit 131, an equipment state history storage unit 132, and an access rights information storage unit 133. The equipment state storage unit 131 stores equipment state information indicating the state of each of the equipment 4, associating it with the equipment identification information of the equipment 4 and the user identification information of the user using the equipment 4.

[0025] The device status history storage unit 132 stores device status history information, which includes parameters that indicate the status of device 4 as indicated by the device status information, and which are to be retained as information indicating the history of the parameters of device 4. The access permission information storage unit 133 stores access permission information attribute information, which indicates the attributes of device-related information about device 4 that can be accessed by the user of device 4, target device identification information that identifies the target device 4, and user identification information that identifies the user, in association with each other.

[0026] When the device status acquisition unit 111 acquires device status notification information periodically transmitted from device 4, it extracts the device status information and device identification information contained in the acquired device status notification information. The device status acquisition unit 111 then stores this extracted information in the device status storage unit 131, associating it with the user identification information of the user of device 4 identified by the device identification information, which has been pre-associated with the device identification information. If the device status notification information includes the user identification information of the user of device 4, the device status acquisition unit 111 may extract the device status information, device identification information, and user identification information contained in the device status notification information and store them in the device status storage unit 131, associating them with each other.

[0027] The device status history information generation unit 112 selects parameters that indicate the history of the state of device 4 from among the parameters that indicate the state of device 4 as shown in the device status information. Then, the device status history information generation unit 112 generates new device status history information using the selected parameters and the device status history information already stored in the device status history storage unit 132, and updates the device status history information stored in the device status history storage unit 132 with the generated device status history information.

[0028] When the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 acquires the aforementioned device-related information request information transmitted from terminal device 3 or terminal device 5, it extracts the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information contained in the acquired device-related information request information, and notifies the access authority determination unit 114 of this extracted information.

[0029] The access authority determination unit 114 determines whether a combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 exists in the information stored in the access authority information storage unit 133 or the temporary access authority information storage unit 136. If the access authority determination unit 114 determines that a combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 exists, it notifies the device-related information notification unit 115 of the said combination. On the other hand, if the access authority determination unit 114 determines that a combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 does not exist, it notifies the access error notification unit 121 of the access denied notification information.

[0030] When the device-related information notification unit 115 receives a combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information from the access authority determination unit 114, it selects at least one of the following based on the combination: device status information stored in the device status storage unit 131, device status history information stored in the device status history storage unit 132, and diagnostic result information indicating the result of the diagnosis of the device 4 by the diagnosis unit 120. If the device-related information notification unit 115 selects the diagnostic result information, it obtains the diagnostic result information from the diagnosis unit 120 by notifying the diagnosis unit 120 of the diagnosis request information. The device-related information notification unit 115 then generates device-related information notification information including at least one of the device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information, as well as device identification information, and transmits it to the terminal device 3 or terminal device 5 that sent the device-related information request information. When the access error notification unit 121 receives access denied notification information from the access authority determination unit 114, it generates access error notification information in response and sends it to terminal device 3 or terminal device 5, the source of the equipment-related information request information.

[0031] When the diagnostic unit 120 receives diagnostic request information from the equipment-related information notification unit 115, it uses the equipment status information stored in the equipment status storage unit 131 and the equipment status history information stored in the equipment status history storage unit 132 to diagnose whether or not an abnormality has occurred in equipment 4, and generates diagnostic result information indicating the diagnostic result. For example, if the parameters indicated by the equipment status information deviate from a preset normal range, the diagnostic unit 120 determines that an abnormality has occurred in equipment 4. Alternatively, the diagnostic unit 120 may determine that an abnormality has occurred in equipment 4 if, for example, the parameter changes within the most recent preset period indicated by the equipment status history information show abnormal behavior. Here, whether or not the parameter changes within the most recent preset period show abnormal behavior may be determined, for example, using a trained model that has been trained using equipment status history information that showed normal parameter changes in the past. The diagnostic unit 120 notifies the equipment-related information notification unit 115 of the generated diagnostic result information.

[0032] The equipment repair support device V2 includes a repair request acquisition unit 116, an access permission request unit 117, an access permission acquisition unit 118, and a temporary access permission management unit 119. The main equipment management device V1 also includes an equipment state storage unit 131, an equipment state history storage unit 132, and an access permission information storage unit 133. The equipment state storage unit 131 stores equipment state information indicating the state of each piece of equipment 4, associating it with the equipment identification information of the equipment 4 and the user identification information of the user using the equipment 4. The equipment repair support device V2 also includes a repair-related information storage unit 134, an access permission master storage unit 135, and a temporary access permission information storage unit 136. The repair-related information storage unit 134 stores user identification information of the maintenance company that performs maintenance on the equipment 4, repair content information indicating the content of the repairs performed by the maintenance company, and attribute information indicating the attributes of the equipment-related information that the maintenance company accesses in order to perform the repairs.

[0033] The access rights master storage unit 135 stores information regarding access rights to be temporarily granted to a maintenance company when a user of the equipment 4 is permitted to access equipment-related information necessary for repairing equipment 4. Specifically, the access rights master storage unit 135 stores user identification information of the user of equipment 4, equipment identification information of the equipment 4, and access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of the information that the maintenance company is temporarily permitted to access, in association with the user identification information of the maintenance company.

[0034] The temporary access rights information storage unit 136 stores, for example as shown in Figure 4, access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of equipment-related information concerning equipment 4 that the maintenance contractor can access, target equipment identification information identifying the target equipment 4, user identification information identifying the maintenance contractor, and access permission period information indicating the period during which access is permitted, in association with each other. In the example shown in Figure 4, it is indicated that the maintenance contractor identified by user identification information IDU[0] is permitted to access the equipment status information and equipment status history information of "equipment 1" and "equipment 2" identified by equipment identification information IDE[0] and IDE[1] for reading purposes during the period "yyyy / mm / dd~yyyy / mm / ee".

[0035] Returning to Figure 3, when the repair request acquisition unit 116 acquires the aforementioned repair request information transmitted from the terminal device 3, it notifies the access permission request unit 117 of the acquired repair request information. When the access permission request unit 117 receives the repair request information from the repair request acquisition unit 116, it selects information to notify the user of the device 4 from the user identification information, repair details information, and attribute information of the maintenance company stored in the repair-related information storage unit 134. Then, the access permission request unit 117 generates access permission request information including the selected information and sends it to the terminal device 3 that sent the repair request information.

[0036] After the aforementioned access permission request information is sent to the terminal device 3 that sent the repair request information, the access permission acquisition unit 118 acquires permission notification information sent from the terminal device 3 that allows the maintenance company to access equipment-related information regarding the equipment 4. The unit then extracts user identification information contained in the acquired permission notification information. The access permission acquisition unit 118 then notifies the temporary access rights management unit 119 of the extracted user identification information.

[0037] When the Access Permission Acquisition Unit 118 acquires permission notification information and the Access Permission Acquisition Unit 118 notifies the user identification information, the Temporary Access Permission Management Unit 119 selects the device identification information, access permission information attribute information, access permission period information, and user identification information of the maintenance company, which are associated with the notified user identification information and are stored in the Access Permission Master Storage Unit 135. The Temporary Access Permission Management Unit 119 then stores the selected combination of device identification information, access permission information attribute information, access permission period information, and user identification information of the maintenance company as temporary access permission information in the Temporary Access Permission Information Storage Unit 136, associating them with each other. Furthermore, based on the access permission period information stored in the Temporary Access Permission Information Storage Unit 136, when the end of the access permission period arrives, the Temporary Access Permission Management Unit 119 deletes the temporary access permission information, including the access permission period information, from the Temporary Access Permission Information Storage Unit 136.

[0038] Next, the operation of the device management system according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 5 and 6. The main device management device V1 periodically acquires device status notification information from device 4, and each time device status notification information is acquired, it extracts the device status information and device identification information contained in the device status notification information, associates these extracted pieces of information with each other, and stores them in the device status storage unit 131. First, suppose a user of device 4 performs a repair request operation to the input unit 305 of terminal device 3 to request repair of device 4. In this case, terminal device 3 generates the aforementioned repair request information (step S1), and the generated repair request information is transmitted from terminal device 3 to device repair support device V2 (step S2). On the other hand, when device repair support device V2 acquires the repair request information, it selects information to notify the user of device 4 from the user identification information of the maintenance company, repair content information, and device-related information stored in the repair-related information storage unit 134, and generates access permission request information including the selected information (step S3). Next, the generated access permission request information is transmitted from the equipment repair support device V2 to the terminal device 3, which is the source of the repair request information (step S4). Meanwhile, when the terminal device 3 obtains the access permission request information, it forms the aforementioned repair content confirmation image based on the user identification information, repair content information, and attribute information of the maintenance company included in the obtained access permission request information and displays it on the display unit 304 (step S5).

[0039] Next, when a user of device 4 performs the aforementioned access permission operation to the input unit 305 of terminal device 3, terminal device 3 generates permission notification information including the user's own user identification information (step S6), and the generated permission notification information is transmitted from terminal device 3 to device repair support device V2 (step S7). Meanwhile, when device repair support device V2 obtains the permission notification information, it extracts the user identification information and access permission period information contained in the obtained permission notification information. Then, device repair support device V2 selects device identification information, access permission information attribute information, and user identification information of the maintenance company, which are associated with the extracted user identification information and stored in the access permission master storage unit 135. Then, the temporary access permission management unit 119 stores the combination of the selected device identification information, access permission information attribute information, and user identification information of the maintenance company, and the extracted access permission period information, as temporary access permission information in the temporary access permission information storage unit 136, associating them with each other (step S8).

[0040] Subsequently, when the maintenance operator performs the aforementioned equipment-related information request operation to the input unit 505 of the terminal device 5, the terminal device 5 generates the aforementioned equipment-related information request information in response (step S9), and the generated equipment-related information request information is transmitted from the terminal device 5 to the main equipment management device V1 (step S10). Meanwhile, when the main equipment management device V1 obtains the equipment-related information request information, it extracts the combination of user identification information, target equipment identification information, and attribute information contained in the obtained equipment-related information request information. Here, it is assumed that the main equipment management device V1 determines that the extracted combination of user identification information, target equipment identification information, and attribute information exists in the information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136 of the equipment repair support device V2 and that access rights exist (step S11). Furthermore, it is assumed that the attribute information at this time represents all of the equipment status information, equipment status history information, and diagnostic result information. In this case, the main device management device V1 selects the device status information stored in the device status storage unit 131 and the device status history information stored in the device status history storage unit 132 (step S12). Next, the main device management device V1 uses the device status information stored in the device status storage unit 131 and the device status history information stored in the device status history storage unit 132 to diagnose whether or not an abnormality has occurred in device 4 (step S13), and generates diagnostic result information indicating the diagnosis result (step S14). Subsequently, as shown in Figure 6, the main device management device V1 generates device-related information notification information including the selected device status information and device status history information, the generated diagnostic result information, and device identification information (step S15), and the generated device-related information notification information is transmitted from the main device management device V1 to the terminal device 5 that sent the device-related information request information (step S16).

[0041] Meanwhile, when terminal device 5 acquires device-related information notification information, it extracts combinations of device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information contained in the acquired device-related information notification information, and the corresponding device identification information, and stores these extracted pieces of information in the device-related information storage unit 531 in association with each other (step S17). Subsequently, terminal device 5 forms the aforementioned device status notification image based on the device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information and the device identification information stored in the device-related information storage unit 531 and displays it on the display unit 504 (step S18).

[0042] Next, when the equipment repair support device V2 determines that the end of the access permission period has arrived based on the access permission period information stored in the temporary access permission information storage unit 136 (step S19), it deletes the temporary access permission information, including the access permission period information, from the temporary access permission information storage unit 136 (step S20).

[0043] Furthermore, when a user of device 4 performs the aforementioned device-related information request operation to the input unit 305 of terminal device 3, terminal device 5 generates the aforementioned device-related information request information in response (step S21), and the generated device-related information request information is transmitted from terminal device 3 to main device management device V1 (step S22). Meanwhile, when main device management device V1 acquires the device-related information request information, it extracts the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information contained in the acquired device-related information request information. At this point, main device management device V1 determines that the extracted combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information exists in the information stored in the access authority information storage unit 133 and that access authority is granted (step S23). Subsequently, the series of processes from steps S12 to S15 described above are executed. Then, the device-related information notification information generated by main device management device V1 is transmitted from main device management device V1 to terminal device 3, the source of the device-related information request information (step S24). At this time, when terminal device 3 acquires device-related information notification information, it extracts combinations of device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information contained in the acquired device-related information notification information, and the corresponding device identification information, and stores these extracted pieces of information in the device-related information storage unit 331, associating them with each other. Then, terminal device 3 appropriately forms the aforementioned device status notification image based on the device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information stored in the device-related information storage unit 531, and the device identification information, and displays it on the display unit 304.

[0044] Next, the device management process executed by the main device management device V1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 7. This device management process is started, for example, when a program for executing the device management process is started on the cloud server 1. First, the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 determines whether or not it has acquired the aforementioned device-related information request information transmitted from terminal device 3 or terminal device 5 (step S101). Here, the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 repeatedly executes the process in step S101 unless it has acquired the device-related information request information (step S101: No). On the other hand, if the device-related information request acquisition unit 113 has acquired the device-related information request information (step S101: Yes), it extracts the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information contained in the acquired device-related information request information and notifies the access authority determination unit 114 of this extracted information.

[0045] Then, the access authority determination unit 114 determines whether the user identified by the notified user identification information has access rights to the device status information, based on the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113, among the information stored in the access authority information storage unit 133 or the temporary access authority information storage unit 136 (step S102). Specifically, it determines whether the attribute information indicates an attribute of the device status information. If the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is no access rights to the device status information (step S102: No), the process in step S104 described later is executed. On the other hand, if the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is access rights to the device status information (step S102: Yes), the device-related information notification unit 115 selects the device status information stored in the device status storage unit 131 (step S103).

[0046] Next, the access authority determination unit 114 determines whether the user identified by the notified user identification information has access rights to the device status information, based on the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113, among the information stored in the access authority information storage unit 133 or the temporary access authority information storage unit 136 (step S102). Specifically, it determines whether the attribute information indicates an attribute of the device status information. If the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is no access rights to the device status information (step S102: No), the process in step S104 described later is executed. On the other hand, if the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is access rights to the device status information (step S102: Yes), the device-related information notification unit 115 selects the device status information stored in the device status storage unit 131 (step S103).

[0047] Next, the access authority determination unit 114 determines whether the user identified by the notified user identification information has access rights to the device status history information, based on the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113, among the information stored in the access authority information storage unit 133 or the temporary access authority information storage unit 136 (step S104). Specifically, it determines whether the attribute information indicates an attribute of the device status history information. If the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is no access rights to the device status history information (step S104: No), the process in step S106 described later is executed. On the other hand, if the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is access rights to the device status information (step S104: Yes), the device-related information notification unit 115 selects the device status history information stored in the device status history storage unit 132 (step S105).

[0048] Subsequently, the access authority determination unit 114 determines whether the user identified by the notified user identification information has access rights to the diagnostic result information, based on the combination of user identification information, target device identification information, and attribute information notified by the device-related information request acquisition unit 113, among the information stored in the access authority information storage unit 133 or the temporary access authority information storage unit 136 (step S106). Specifically, it determines whether the attribute information indicates an attribute of the device status history information. If the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is no access rights to the diagnostic result information (step S106: No), the process in step S109 described later is executed. On the other hand, if the access authority determination unit 114 determines that there is access rights to the diagnostic result information (step S106: Yes), it notifies the diagnostic request information to the diagnostic unit 120. Then, when the diagnostic unit 120 receives diagnostic request information from the equipment-related information notification unit 115, it uses the equipment status information stored in the equipment status storage unit 131 and the equipment status history information stored in the equipment status history storage unit 132 to diagnose whether or not an abnormality has occurred in equipment 4 (step S107), and generates diagnostic result information (step S108). The diagnostic unit 120 then notifies the equipment-related information notification unit 115 of the generated diagnostic result information.

[0049] Here, if the access authority determination unit 114 determines that it has access authority to at least one of the device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information (step S109: Yes), the device-related information notification unit 115 generates device-related information notification information including at least one of the device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information for which it has been determined that it has access authority, and device identification information, and sends it to terminal device 3 or terminal device 5, the source of the device-related information request information (step S110). Subsequently, the process of step S101 is executed again.

[0050] On the other hand, if the access permission determination unit 114 determines that there is no access permission for all of the device status information, device status history information, and diagnostic result information (step S109: No), it notifies the access error notification unit 121 of the inability to access information. The access error notification unit 121 then generates access error notification information and sends it to terminal device 3 or terminal device 5, the source of the device-related information request information (step S111). After that, the process in step S101 is executed again.

[0051] Next, the equipment repair support process executed by the equipment repair support device V2 according to this embodiment will be explained with reference to Figure 8. This equipment repair support process is started, for example, when a program for executing the equipment repair support process is started on the cloud server 1. First, the repair request acquisition unit 116 determines whether or not it has acquired the aforementioned repair request information transmitted from the terminal device 3 (step S201). If the repair request acquisition unit 116 determines that it has not acquired the repair request information (step S201: No), the process in step S203, which will be described later, is executed. On the other hand, if the repair request acquisition unit 116 determines that it has acquired the repair request information (step S201: Yes), it notifies the access permission request unit 117 of the acquired repair request information. Then, when the access permission request unit 117 receives repair request information from the repair request acquisition unit 116, it selects information to be notified to the user of the device 4 from the user identification information, repair details information, and attribute information of the maintenance company stored in the repair-related information storage unit 134, generates access permission request information including the selected information, and sends it to the terminal device 3 that sent the repair request information (step S202).

[0052] Next, the access permission acquisition unit 118 determines whether or not it has acquired the aforementioned permission notification information transmitted from the terminal device 3 (step S203). If the access permission acquisition unit 118 determines that it has not acquired the permission notification information (step S203: No), the process in step S205 described later is executed. On the other hand, if the access permission acquisition unit 118 determines that it has acquired the permission notification information (step S203: Yes), it extracts the user identification information and permission period information contained in the acquired permission notification information and notifies the temporary access rights management unit 119. When the temporary access rights management unit 119 receives notification of the user identification information, it selects the device identification information, permission information attribute information, and user identification information of the maintenance company that are associated with the notified user identification information and are stored in the access rights master storage unit 135. Then, the temporary access rights management unit 119 stores the selected device identification information, access permission information attribute information, and user identification information of the maintenance company, along with the notified access permission period information, as temporary access rights information in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136, associating them with each other (step S204).

[0053] Next, the temporary access rights management unit 119 determines, based on the access permission period information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136, whether the access permission period has ended for any of the temporary access rights information (step S205). If the temporary access rights management unit 119 determines that the access permission period is still ongoing for all of the temporary access rights information (step S205: No), the process in step S201 is executed again. On the other hand, if the temporary access rights management unit 119 determines that the access permission period has ended for any of the temporary access rights information (step S205: Yes), it deletes the temporary access rights information, including the access permission period information, from the temporary access rights information storage unit 136 (step S206). After that, the process in step S201 is executed again.

[0054] As described above, in this embodiment, when the temporary access rights management unit 119 of the equipment repair support device V2 receives permission notification information that grants the maintenance company access to equipment-related information, it selects temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit 126. Also, when the access rights determination unit 114 of the main equipment management device V1 receives equipment-related information request information transmitted from the terminal device 5 owned by the maintenance company, it refers to the temporary access rights information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136 and determines whether the maintenance company has been granted access rights to equipment-related information. Then, when the equipment-related information notification unit 115 of the main equipment management device V1 determines that the maintenance company has been granted access rights to equipment-related information, it sends equipment-related information notification information, including equipment status information and equipment status history information, to the terminal device 5. As a result, the maintenance company cannot access the equipment-related information of equipment 4 unless permission to access the equipment-related information of equipment 4 is granted by the user of equipment 4, thus limiting the maintenance company's access to equipment-related information to the scope permitted by the user of equipment 4. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the unlimited disclosure of personal information about the user of device 4 that can be inferred from device-related information.

[0055] Incidentally, if a malfunction occurs in the operation of device 4, which is remotely managed by cloud server 1, the user of the device may request repair or maintenance from a maintenance company that repairs or maintains device 4. In this case, when the maintenance company repairs or maintains device 4, it can use the device status information stored in the device status storage unit 131 of cloud server 1 and the device status history information accumulated in the device status history storage unit 132 to estimate the cause of the malfunction of device 4 or identify the deteriorated part, thereby enabling the rapid recovery of device 4. However, the device status information and device status history information have an aspect of being personal information of the user of device 4 that can be used to infer their lifestyle patterns, and it is undesirable for the maintenance company to have unlimited access to this information.

[0056] In contrast, in the device management system according to this embodiment, the user of device 4 is only permitted to access device status information and device status history information for the specified device 4 and for the specified access permission period. This eliminates the user's concern of providing more information than necessary to the maintenance company, allowing them to confidently request repair and maintenance of device 4 from the maintenance company. On the other hand, the maintenance company can quickly obtain the information necessary for repair and maintenance, enabling them to restore device 4 to operation sooner.

[0057] Furthermore, the temporary access rights management unit 119 in this embodiment, based on the access permission period information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136, deletes the temporary access rights information, including the access permission period information, from the temporary access rights information storage unit 136 when it determines that the access permission period has ended. This allows maintenance personnel to restrict access to equipment-related information of equipment 4 on a temporary basis.

[0058] Furthermore, the access rights master storage unit 135 in this embodiment stores access rights master information that shows the correspondence between user identification information that identifies a pre-configured maintenance company and access permission information attribute information that is pre-configured for the said maintenance company. When the temporary access rights management unit 119 obtains permission notification information transmitted from the terminal device 3 by the access permission acquisition unit 118, it selects temporary access rights information from the access rights master information stored in the access rights master storage unit 135. As a result, the access rights master storage unit 135 stores access permission information attribute information that has been pre-specified by the user of the device 4, thereby allowing the maintenance company to access only the device-related information with attributes specified by the user.

[0059] While embodiments of this disclosure have been described above, this disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above. For example, a user of device 4 may erase the temporary access rights information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136 by performing an access rights erasure operation on the input unit 305 of terminal device 3 to erase the temporary access rights information granted to the maintenance company. In this case, when a user performs the aforementioned access rights erasure operation on the input unit 305 of terminal device 3, terminal device 3 should receive the access rights erasure operation, generate access rights erasure request information including the user's user identification information, and send it to the cloud server 1. As shown in Figure 9, the equipment repair support device V22 of the cloud server 1 may include an access rights erasure request acquisition unit 2121 that, upon acquiring the access rights erasure request information, notifies the temporary access rights management unit 2119 of the user identification information included in the acquired access rights erasure request information. In this case, the temporary access rights management unit 2119 should identify the user identification information and equipment identification information of the maintenance company corresponding to the notified user identification information stored in the access rights master storage unit 135, and then delete the temporary access rights information, including the combination of the identified user identification information and target equipment identification information, stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136.

[0060] Alternatively, the temporary access rights information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136 may be erased when the maintenance company performs an access rights erasure operation on the input unit 505 of the terminal device 5 to erase the temporary access rights information granted to it. In this case, when the maintenance company performs the aforementioned access rights erasure operation on the input unit 505 of the terminal device 5, the terminal device 5 should receive the access rights erasure operation, generate access rights erasure request information including the user identification information of the maintenance company, and send it to the cloud server 1. Then, when the access rights erasure request acquisition unit 2121 of the equipment repair support device V22 of the cloud server 1 acquires the access rights erasure request information, it notifies the temporary access rights management unit 2119 of the user identification information of the maintenance company included in the acquired access rights erasure request information. In this case, the temporary access rights management unit 2119 should identify the equipment identification information corresponding to the notified maintenance provider's user identification information stored in the access rights master storage unit 135, and delete the temporary access rights information stored in the temporary access rights information storage unit 136, which includes the combination of the notified user identification information and the identified target equipment identification information.

[0061] With this configuration, temporary access rights granted to a maintenance provider can be revoked at any time desired by the user or the maintenance provider.

[0062] In this embodiment, an example was described in which a virtual main equipment management device V1 and an equipment repair support device V2 are implemented on the cloud server 1. However, the embodiment is not limited to this, and the functions of the main equipment management device V1 and the functions of the equipment repair support device V2 may be implemented on different physical servers.

[0063] Furthermore, the various functions of the cloud server 1 and terminal devices 3 and 5 related to this disclosure may be realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. In this case, the software or firmware may be written as a program, and the program may be stored on a computer-readable recording medium such as a flexible disk, CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), and MO (Magneto-Optical Disc) and distributed, and a computer capable of realizing the aforementioned functions may be configured by loading and installing the program on a computer. In cases where each function is realized by a division of labor between the OS (Operating System) and applications, or by cooperation between the OS and applications, only the parts other than the OS may be stored on the recording medium.

[0064] Furthermore, it is possible to superimpose each program onto the carrier wave and distribute it over a network. For example, the program could be posted on a bulletin board system (BBS) on the network and distributed over the network. These programs could then be launched and executed under the control of the OS, just like other application programs, to perform the aforementioned processing. [Industrial applicability]

[0065] This disclosure is suitable as a system for managing access to equipment-related information concerning equipment. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0066] 1 Cloud Server, 3,5 Terminal Devices, 4 Equipment, 81 Data Line Termination Equipment, 82 Router, 101,301,501 CPU, 102,302,502 Main Memory Unit, 103,303,503 Auxiliary Memory Unit, 106,306,506 Communication Unit, 109,309,509 Bus, 111 Equipment Status Acquisition Unit, 112 Equipment Status History Information Generation Unit, 113 Equipment-Related Information Request Acquisition Unit, 114 Access Authority Determination Unit, 115 Equipment-Related Information Notification Unit, 116 Repair Request Acquisition Unit, 117 Access Permission Request Unit, 118 Access Permission Acquisition Unit, 119,2119 Temporary Access Authority Management Unit, 120 Diagnostic Unit, 121 Access Error Notification Unit, 131 Equipment Status Storage Unit, 132 Equipment Status History Storage Unit, 133 Access Authority Information Storage Unit, 134 Repair-related information storage unit, 135 Access rights master storage unit, 136 Temporary access rights information storage unit, 304, 504 Display unit, 305, 505 Input unit, 311, 511 Equipment-related information request unit, 312, 512 Equipment-related information acquisition unit, 313, 513 Display control unit, 314 Repair request unit, 315 Access permission request information acquisition unit, 316 Permission notification unit, 331, 531 Equipment-related information storage unit, 2121 Access rights deletion request acquisition unit, NW1 Wide area network, NW2 Local network, V1 Main equipment management device, V2, V22 Equipment repair support device

Claims

1. A temporary access rights information storage unit stores temporary access rights information that shows the correspondence between access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of device-related information concerning a device used by a second user different from the first user, which the first user is temporarily permitted to access, and user identification information that identifies the first user. An access permission acquisition unit that acquires permission notification information that allows the first user to access the equipment-related information, When the aforementioned permission notification information is obtained, the temporary access rights management unit generates the temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit, A device-related information request acquisition unit acquires device-related information request information that requests the transmission of the device-related information to the terminal device owned by the first user, When the aforementioned equipment-related information request information is obtained, an access authority determination unit refers to the temporary access authority information and determines whether or not the first user has been granted access authority to the equipment-related information. The system includes a device-related information notification unit that, when it is determined that the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information, transmits the device-related information to the terminal device, Equipment management device.

2. The temporary access permission information further includes permission period information indicating the period during which the temporary access is permitted, The temporary access rights management unit deletes the temporary access rights information, including the access rights period information, from the temporary access rights information storage unit when the end of the access rights period arrives, based on the access rights period information. The equipment management device according to claim 1.

3. The system further includes an access rights master storage unit that stores access rights master information indicating the correspondence between user identification information that identifies the first user, which has been set in advance, and access permission information attribute information that has been set in advance for the first user, When the temporary access rights management unit obtains the permission notification information, it selects the access permission information attribute information corresponding to the user identification information included in the obtained permission notification information from the access rights master information, generates the temporary access rights information including the user identification information and the selected access permission information attribute information, and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit. The equipment management device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The terminal device owned by the first user, A temporary access rights information storage unit stores temporary access rights information that shows the correspondence between access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of device-related information concerning a device used by a second user different from the first user, which the first user is temporarily permitted to access, and user identification information that identifies the first user. An access permission acquisition unit that acquires permission notification information that allows the first user to access the equipment-related information, When the aforementioned permission notification information is obtained, the temporary access rights management unit selects the temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit, A device-related information request acquisition unit that acquires device-related information request information that requests the transmission of the device-related information transmitted from the terminal device to the terminal device, When the aforementioned equipment-related information request information is obtained, an access authority determination unit refers to the temporary access authority information and determines whether or not the first user has been granted access authority to the equipment-related information. The system includes a device-related information notification unit that, when it is determined that the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information, transmits the device-related information to the terminal device, Equipment management system.

5. The equipment management device obtains permission notification information that allows a first user to access equipment-related information concerning equipment used by a second user who is different from the first user. When the device management device obtains the permission notification information, it selects temporary access rights information showing the correspondence between access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of the device-related information that the first user is temporarily permitted to access, and user identification information that identifies the first user, and stores this information in the temporary access rights information storage unit. The equipment management device obtains equipment-related information request information that requests the transmission of equipment-related information from a terminal device owned by the first user to the terminal device, When the device management device obtains the device-related information request information, it takes the step of referring to the temporary access rights information to determine whether the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information. The device management device determines that the first user has been granted access rights to the device-related information, and includes the step of transmitting the device-related information to the terminal device. Equipment management method.

6. Computers, A temporary access rights information storage unit stores temporary access rights information that shows the correspondence between access permission information attribute information indicating the attributes of device-related information concerning a device used by a second user different from the first user, which the first user is temporarily permitted to access, and user identification information that identifies the first user. Access permission acquisition unit that acquires permission notification information that allows the first user to access the equipment-related information, When the permission notification information is obtained, the temporary access rights management unit selects the temporary access rights information and stores it in the temporary access rights information storage unit. A device-related information request acquisition unit acquires device-related information request information that requests the transmission of the device-related information to the terminal device owned by the first user. When the aforementioned equipment-related information request information is obtained, the access authority determination unit refers to the temporary access authority information and determines whether or not the first user has been granted access authority to the equipment-related information. When it is determined that the first user has been granted access rights to the equipment-related information, the equipment-related information notification unit transmits the equipment-related information to the terminal device. A program designed to function as such.

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