Facility information management device and facility information management method

Abstract

To provide a facility information management device and a facility information management method that allow users to select facilities with reliable ratings by comparing facility ratings on two or more rating websites. [Solution] The facility information management device comprises a facility information storage unit that stores facility information including type information and location information of multiple facilities; an evaluation information input unit that inputs evaluation information of facilities from two or more websites; a search information input unit that accepts input of the user's current location information and instruction information for searching for facilities; a control unit that selects a predetermined number of facilities in order of proximity from the current location information; and an output unit that outputs a predetermined number of facilities. The control unit calculates the difference between the first evaluation information from the first website and the second evaluation information from the second website as difference information for each facility, and if the difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, it processes the facility not to be selected as a recommended facility, repeating this process until the number of selected facilities reaches a predetermined number.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a facility information management device and a facility information management method for evaluating the reliability of rankings for facilities on a website.

Background Art

[0002] A mechanism in which a plurality of users evaluate facilities such as restaurants, also called evaluation websites, and rank them with a five - level score or star rating, has become widespread. So far, these evaluation websites have been improved to enhance the accuracy of evaluations. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technology as an evaluation information management system that provides users with information in which the characteristics of each poster are more strongly reflected by ranking word - of - mouth information for restaurants posted by posters according to the restaurants corresponding to the poster's favorite area and / or favorite genre.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, there are also operators who manipulate rankings by arbitrarily posting false word - of - mouth information on evaluation websites. There are cases where users visit a store after looking at the evaluations but find that it does not meet the evaluations, and there is a need for users to want to refer to reliable evaluations.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a facility information management device and a facility information management method that can select a facility with a reliable evaluation for users by comparing the evaluations of facilities on two or more evaluation websites.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] (1) A facility information management device according to one aspect of the present invention (for example, the facility information management device 10 described later) includes: a facility information storage unit (for example, the facility information storage unit 122 described later) that stores multiple facilities as facility information including type information relating to type and location information which is the business location; an evaluation information input unit (for example, the evaluation information input unit 110 described later) that inputs evaluation information which is a numerical ranking of facilities from two or more websites (for example, the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) described later); and a search information input unit (for example, the search information input unit 111 described later) that accepts input of the user's current location information and instruction information which is an instruction to search for the facility. The system includes a control unit (for example, control unit 112 described later) that selects a predetermined number of facilities in order of proximity from the current location information, and an output unit (for example, output unit 113 described later) that outputs the predetermined number of facilities. The control unit (for example, control unit 112 described later) inputs the evaluation information from a first website (for example, evaluation site 20(1) described later) and the second evaluation information from a second website (for example, evaluation site 20(2) described later) for each facility, calculates the difference as difference information, and repeats the process of not selecting the facility as a recommended facility if the difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value until the number of selected facilities reaches the predetermined number.

[0007] According to (1) above, users will be able to view information on facilities that have been given reliable ratings.

[0008] (2) In the facility information management device described in (1) above (for example, the facility information management device 10 described later), the numerical ranking is calculated by matching the upper limit of the numerical evaluation and then calculating the difference information.

[0009] According to (2) above, users will be able to view information on facilities that have been given reliable ratings.

[0010] (3) In the facility information management device described in (2) above (for example, the facility information management device 10 described later), the predetermined value is 20% of the upper limit of the numerical evaluation.

[0011] According to (3) above, users will be able to view information on facilities that have been given reliable ratings.

[0012] (4) A facility information management method according to one aspect of the present invention is a facility information management method executed by a computer, comprising: a facility information storage step of storing a plurality of facilities as facility information including type information relating to type and location information which is the business location; an evaluation information input step of inputting evaluation information which is a numerical ranking of facilities from two or more websites (for example, evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) described later); a search information input step of receiving input of the user's current location information and instruction information which is an instruction to search for the facilities; a control step of selecting a predetermined number of the facilities in order of proximity from the current location information; and an output step of outputting the predetermined number of the facilities, wherein the control step inputs the evaluation information from a first website (for example, evaluation site 20(1) described later) and the second evaluation information from a second website (for example, evaluation site 20(2) described later) for each facility, calculates the difference as difference information, and repeats the process of not selecting the facility as a recommended facility if the difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value until the number of selected facilities reaches the predetermined number.

[0013] According to (4) above, the same effect as in (1) above can be achieved. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, by comparing facility ratings on two or more evaluation websites, users can select facilities that have received reliable ratings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0015] [Figure 1]This is a schematic diagram illustrating a facility information management system, which is an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the basic configuration of a facility information management device, which is an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart showing the operation of the facility information management device in an embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0016] A preferred embodiment of the facility information management device of the present invention will be described below with reference to the figures. Figure 1 shows the basic configuration of the facility information management system 1. As shown in Figure 1, the facility information management system 1 comprises a facility information management device 10, evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2), mobile terminals 30(1) and 30(2), a vehicle 40, and an IVI (In-Vehicle Infotainment) device 50. In this embodiment, the case where there are two evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) is described as an example, but the present invention is also applicable when there are three or more evaluation sites. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the mobile terminals 30(1) and 30(2) may be mobile terminals belonging to different users (for example, smartphones, tablet devices, PCs, or other information processing devices), or they may be mobile terminals belonging to the same user. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the case of an IVI device 50 mounted on a vehicle 40 will be described as an example. However, the present invention is also applicable to a user's smartphone or tablet terminal, an in-vehicle car navigation system or PND (Portable Navigation Device), etc. The evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) are, for example, a web server or the like, and are evaluation websites operated by different site operators. The evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) receive evaluation information, which is a numerical ranking such as a five - level evaluation of facilities such as restaurants, from the users of the mobile terminals 30(1) and 30(2). The evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) distribute the received evaluation information of the facilities to the mobile terminals 30(1) and 30(2), the IVI device 50, and the like. When the facility information management device 10 receives an input of the current position information of the user (vehicle 40) and the instruction information for the user to search for a facility via the IVI device 50, it calculates the difference by inputting the evaluation information at the evaluation site 20(1) and the evaluation site 20(2) in order from the facilities at a distance close to the current position information as difference information. When the difference information is less than a predetermined value, the facility information management device 10 selects the facility as a recommended facility on the assumption that the evaluation information of the facility at the evaluation site 20(1) and the evaluation site 20(2) can be trusted. On the other hand, when the difference information is greater than or equal to the predetermined value, the facility information management device 10 does not select the facility as a recommended facility on the assumption that the evaluation information of the facility at the evaluation site 20(1) or the evaluation site 20(2) cannot be trusted. The facility information management device 10 repeats this process until the number of selected recommended facilities reaches a predetermined number, and outputs the facility information of the predetermined number of facilities to the IVI device 50. When the IVI device 50 receives a facility search instruction from the user, for example, it outputs the current position information of the vehicle 40 (user) and the instruction information to the facility information management device 10. The IVI device 50 receives the facility information of a predetermined number of facilities from the facility information management device 10, and displays the received facility information of the predetermined number of facilities on the display unit of the IVI device 50. By doing so, the user can view the facilities with reliable evaluations. As described above, the outline of the configuration of the facility information management system 1 in this embodiment has been explained. Next, the facility information management device 10 will be described.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, the facility information management device 10 includes a CPU 11, a storage unit 12, and a communication unit 13.

[0018] The CPU 11 is a microprocessor that controls each part constituting the facility information management device 10. Details of the CPU 11 will be described later.

[0019] The storage unit 12 is composed of a semiconductor memory, an SSD (Solid State Drive), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), etc., and stores control programs called firmware and operating systems, and programs for causing the CPU 11 to function as an evaluation information input function, a search information input function, a control function, an output function, etc. Further, the storage unit 12 stores, among other things, connection information necessary for connection to each of the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) which are acquisition destinations of evaluation information of a plurality of facilities via a communication network (not shown), evaluation information of each of the plurality of facilities acquired from the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2), and information such as facility information including type information regarding the type of business of each of the plurality of facilities evaluated at the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) and position information which is the business location. Therefore, the storage unit 12 includes, outside of the program, a connection information storage unit 120 that stores connection information necessary for connection to the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) which are acquisition destinations of evaluation information, an evaluation information storage unit 121 that stores evaluation information of each of the plurality of facilities acquired from each of the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2), and a facility information storage unit 122 that stores facility information including type information regarding the type of business of each of the plurality of facilities and position information which is the business location.

[0020] The connection information storage unit 120 is a storage unit that stores information necessary for connection to the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) via a communication network (not shown) (for example, connection destination URL, authentication information, timing information for acquiring evaluation information from the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2), etc.). Thereby, the evaluation information input unit 110 described later refers to the connection information storage unit 120, connects to each of the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) at a predetermined timing (for example, a preset time or a preset time interval, etc.), and acquires evaluation information of each facility from the evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2).

[0021] The evaluation information storage unit 121 is a storage unit that stores evaluation information for each of the multiple facilities acquired from each evaluation site 20(1) and 20(2) by the evaluation information input unit 110 (described later), for each evaluation site 20(1) and 20(2), and for each facility.

[0022] The facility information storage unit 122 is a storage unit that stores facility information, including type information related to the type of business for each of the multiple facilities and location information, which is the business location. Here, the type information may be, for example, the type of business such as supermarkets, large retail stores such as consumer electronics stores, convenience stores, accommodation facilities, restaurants, etc. If the facility is a restaurant, the type information may also include information related to genres such as "sushi," "soba," "udon," "ramen," "Chinese food," "hamburgers," "pizza," "Italian food," and "hamburg steak." Furthermore, the facility type information may be a combination of multiple genres depending on the products, dishes, and services that the facility provides.

[0023] The communication unit 13 has a DSP, etc., and complies with standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G (4th Generation), 5G (5th Generation), and Wi-Fi (registered trademark) to realize wireless and wired communication between it and evaluation sites 20(1), 20(1), and wireless communication between it and mobile terminals 30(1), 30(2), vehicles 40 and / or IVI equipment 50 via a communication network (not shown). The communication network (not shown) is realized by networks such as the Internet and mobile phone networks, or networks that combine these. A LAN (Local Area Network) may also be included as part of the network.

[0024] Next, the details of the CPU 11 will be explained. The CPU 11 is a microprocessor that, along with the CPU, includes RAM, ROM, and I / O. The CPU 11 executes each program read from the ROM or storage unit 12, and during execution, it reads information from the RAM, ROM, and storage unit 12, writes information to the RAM and storage unit 12, and exchanges signals with the communication unit 13. In this way, the processing in this embodiment is realized through the cooperation of hardware and software (programs).

[0025] The CPU 11 comprises, as functional blocks, an evaluation information input unit 110, a search information input unit 111, a control unit 112, and an output unit 113.

[0026] The evaluation information input unit 110 connects to each evaluation site 20(1), 20(2), which distributes evaluation information for each facility (e.g., a 5-point rating or the number of stars) via a communication network (not shown), at a predetermined timing based on the connection URL, authentication information, etc. The evaluation information input unit 110 inputs evaluation information, which is a numerical ranking, for each of the multiple facilities from each of the evaluation sites 20(1), 20(2). Here, the predetermined timing can be, for example, a pre-set time or a pre-set time interval stored in the connection information storage unit 120. Note that the evaluation information input unit 110 is not limited to automatically connecting to each evaluation site 20(1), 20(2) and acquiring evaluation information. In addition to the automatic acquisition form, the evaluation information input unit 110 may also connect to each evaluation site 20(1), 20(2) and acquire evaluation information for each of the multiple facilities in response to input operations by the administrator of the facility information management device 10 via an input device (not shown) such as a keyboard or touch panel included in the facility information management device 10. The evaluation information input unit 110 adds, for example, the site name of evaluation site 20(1) or evaluation site 20(2), distribution time information (date and time), etc., to the evaluation information acquired from each evaluation site 20(1), 20(2), and facility, and stores it in the evaluation information storage unit 121.

[0027] The search information input unit 111 receives, for example, the user's current location information and instruction information, which is an instruction to search for a facility, via the IVI device 50 (or vehicle 40). Specifically, for example, when a user inputs a facility search instruction via the IVI device 50, the IVI device 50 acquires the user's current location information, which is the position of the vehicle 40 determined by the vehicle's onboard ECU (Electronic Control Unit) or the like, along with the instruction information of the input search instruction. The search information input unit 111 outputs the acquired user's current location information and instruction information to the facility information management device 10 via the IVI device 50 (or vehicle 40). Furthermore, if the facility is a restaurant, the instruction information may include information about the genre, such as "sushi," "soba," "udon," "ramen," "Chinese food," "hamburgers," "pizza," "Italian food," and "hamburg steak." In addition, the information about the facility's genre may be a combination of multiple genres depending on the products, dishes, and services that the facility offers.

[0028] The control unit 112 selects a predetermined number of facilities in order of proximity based on the current location information. Specifically, the control unit 112, for example, based on the facility type information and location information stored in the facility information storage unit 122, retrieves evaluation information for evaluation sites 20(1) (first evaluation information for the first website) and evaluation information for evaluation sites 20(2) (second evaluation information for the second website) of facilities of the genre specified by the instruction information from the evaluation information storage unit 121, in order of proximity to the user's current location. The control unit 112 inputs the retrieved evaluation information for evaluation sites 20(1) and evaluation information for evaluation sites 20(2), respectively, and calculates the difference as difference information. Furthermore, if the upper limit of the numerical evaluation differs between the evaluation information of evaluation site 20(1) and the evaluation information of evaluation site 20(2) (i.e., if evaluation site 20(1) uses a 5-level numerical evaluation and evaluation site 20(2) uses a 10-level numerical evaluation, etc.), it is preferable for the control unit 112 to adjust the upper limit of the numerical evaluation to match one of the numerical evaluation levels, such as 5 levels or 10 levels, before calculating the difference information. The control unit 112 then determines whether the calculated difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value. If the difference information is greater than or equal to the predetermined value, the control unit 112 determines that the evaluation information for the facility on evaluation site 20(1) or evaluation site 20(2) is unreliable because the difference between the evaluation information on evaluation site 20(1) and evaluation site 20(2) is large (i.e., arbitrary and incorrect reviews are posted, and the rankings are manipulated, etc.). The control unit 112 does not select the facility as a recommended facility. On the other hand, if the difference information is less than the predetermined value, the control unit 112 determines that the evaluation information for the facility on evaluation site 20(1) or evaluation site 20(2) is reliable and selects the facility as a recommended facility. The control unit 112 repeats this process until the number of recommended facilities reaches a predetermined number (for example, "20"). Here, it is preferable that the predetermined value be set to 20% of the upper limit of the numerical evaluation. That is, if the numerical evaluation is on a 5-point scale, the predetermined value is set to "1 (= 5 × 0.2)".

[0029] The output unit 113 outputs facility information for a predetermined number of facilities selected by the control unit 112 to the IVI device 50. The configuration of each functional unit of the facility information management device 10, which is illustrated as an example of this embodiment, has been described above.

[0030] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in Figure 3. Figure 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the facility information management device 10. Note that the process shown in Figure 3 is executed each time the current location information and instruction information are received from the IVI device 50.

[0031] In step S10, the evaluation information input unit 110 acquires evaluation information for each facility from each evaluation site 20(1), 20(2) and stores it in the evaluation information storage unit 121.

[0032] In step S11, the search information input unit 111 receives input from the IVI device 50, which includes the user's current location information and instruction information for searching for facilities.

[0033] In step S12, the control unit 112 retrieves evaluation information for evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2) of the facility genre specified by the instruction information from the evaluation information storage unit 121, in order of proximity to the user's current location information. It then inputs the evaluation information for evaluation site 20(1) and evaluation site 20(2) respectively and calculates the difference as difference information.

[0034] In step S13, the control unit 112 determines whether the difference information calculated in step S12 is greater than or equal to a predetermined value. If the difference information is greater than or equal to the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step S14. On the other hand, if the difference information is less than the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step S15.

[0035] In step S14, the control unit 112 does not select the facility determined in step S13 as a recommended facility.

[0036] In step S15, the control unit 112 selects the facility determined in step S13 as the recommended facility.

[0037] In step S16, the control unit 112 determines whether the number of recommended facilities is a predetermined number. If the number of recommended facilities is a predetermined number, the process proceeds to step S17. On the other hand, if the number of recommended facilities is less than a predetermined number, the process returns to step S12.

[0038] In step S17, the output unit 113 outputs a predetermined number of facility information to the IVI device 50.

[0039] As described above, when the facility information management device 10 receives the user's current location information and the instruction information for searching for facilities from the IVI device 50, it inputs the evaluation information of evaluation site 20(1) and evaluation site 20(2) in order of the facilities closest to the current location information, and calculates the difference as difference information. If the calculated difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, the facility information management device 10 determines that the evaluation information for the facility at evaluation site 20(1) or evaluation site 20(2) is unreliable and does not select the facility as a recommended facility. On the other hand, if the difference information is less than a predetermined value, the facility information management device 10 determines that the evaluation information for the facility at evaluation site 20(1) and evaluation site 20(2) is reliable and selects the facility as a recommended facility. The facility information management device 10 outputs the facility information of the selected predetermined number of facilities to the IVI device 50. This allows the facility information management device 10 to select a facility with a reliable rating by comparing facility ratings on two or more evaluation websites.

[0040] While the embodiments described above are preferred embodiments of the present invention, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made to implement the invention without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0041] <Example 1> In the embodiment described above, the facility information management device 10 is implemented using a single server, but it may also be implemented as a distributed processing system in which each function of the facility information management device 10 is distributed among multiple servers as appropriate. Alternatively, the various functions of the facility information management device 10 may be implemented using virtual server functionality or similar features on the cloud.

[0042] <Modification 2> Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the facility information management device 10 determined whether the evaluation information for the facility at evaluation site 20(1) or evaluation site 20(2) was reliable based on a comparison between the two evaluation sites 20(1) and 20(2), but it is not limited to this. For example, the facility information management device 10 may determine whether the evaluation information for a facility at an evaluation site is reliable by comparing it with three or more evaluation sites. For example, the facility information management device 10 may input evaluation information for each combination of three or more evaluation sites, calculate the difference as difference information, determine whether the difference information for each combination is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, and if there is a combination in which the difference information is greater than or equal to the predetermined value, it may not select that facility as a recommended facility. Alternatively, the facility information management device 10 may input evaluation information for each of the three or more combinations of evaluation sites, calculate the difference as difference information, calculate the average value of the difference information for all combinations, determine whether the calculated average value of the difference information is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, and if the average value of the difference information is equal to or greater than the predetermined value, it may not select that facility as a recommended facility.

[0043] Furthermore, this embodiment allows users to access information on facilities with reliable ratings, thereby contributing to Goal 9 of the United Nations-led Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), "Build resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization and foster innovation." [Explanation of Symbols]

[0044] 1. Facility Information Management System 10. Facility Information Management Device 11 CPU 110 Evaluation Information Input Section 111 Search Information Input Section 112 Control Unit 113 Output section 12 Storage section 120 Connection Information Storage Unit 121 Evaluation Information Storage Unit 122 Facility Information Storage Unit 13 Communications Department 20(1), 20(2) Review Sites 30(1), 30(2) Mobile devices 40 vehicles 50 IVI equipment

Claims

1. A facility information storage unit stores multiple facilities as facility information including type information and location information which is the business location, An evaluation information input section for inputting evaluation information, which is a numerical ranking of a facility, from two or more websites, A search information input unit that accepts input of the user's current location information and instruction information which is an instruction to search for the aforementioned facility, A control unit that selects a predetermined number of facilities in order of proximity based on the current location information, The system includes an output unit that outputs a predetermined number of the aforementioned facilities, The facility information management device is characterized in that the control unit inputs the evaluation information from the first website and the second website for each facility, calculates the difference as difference information, and if the difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, it does not select the facility as a recommended facility, and repeats this process until the number of selected facilities reaches the predetermined number.

2. The facility information management device according to claim 1, characterized in that the quantified ranking is calculated by matching the upper limit of the numerical evaluation and then calculating the difference information.

3. The facility information management device according to claim 2, characterized in that the predetermined value is 20% of the upper limit of the numerical evaluation.

4. A method for managing facility information performed by a computer, A facility information storage step that stores multiple facilities as facility information including type information and location information which is the business location, The evaluation information input step involves entering evaluation information, which is a numerical ranking of the facility, from two or more websites. A search information input step that accepts input of the user's current location information and instruction information which is an instruction to search for the aforementioned facility, A control step of selecting a predetermined number of facilities in order of proximity based on the current location information, The system includes an output step that outputs a predetermined number of the facilities, The control step is characterized by inputting the evaluation information from the first website and the second website for each facility, calculating the difference as difference information, and repeating the process of not selecting the facility as a recommended facility if the difference information is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, until the number of selected facilities reaches the predetermined number.

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