Apparatus, method and program

Abstract

If you have already received a quote from one contractor, you will need to make the same request again if you want to receive quotes from other contractors, which is time-consuming. [Solution] A device is provided that includes a request unit that sends a request for creating a second estimate for a product for sale to a second terminal in response to image data of a first estimate indicating the product ID of the product for sale being obtained from a first terminal, and a quote sending unit that sends the second estimate to the first terminal in response to the second estimate being obtained.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus, a method and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, various techniques have been proposed for requesting estimates to be made collectively from a plurality of businesses (for example, see Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1: JP 2004-310485 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] However, when a quote has been obtained from one contractor, if a quote is to be obtained from another contractor, the same request must be made repeatedly, which is time-consuming. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In order to solve the above problem, a first aspect of the present invention provides an apparatus. The apparatus may include a requesting unit that transmits a request for creating a second quote for a product to be sold to a second terminal in response to image data of a first quote indicating a product ID of the product to be sold being acquired from a first terminal. The apparatus may include a quote transmitting unit that transmits the second quote to the first terminal in response to the acquisition of the second quote.

[0005] The request unit may include a request creation unit that creates a request for quotation including the image data.

[0006] The device may further include a quote obtaining unit that obtains a second quote indicating a sales price of a product having a product ID indicated in the image data of the quote request via a website where a sales price can be input for each of a plurality of products.

[0007] The request unit may include a product ID recognition unit that character-recognizes a product ID of the product to be sold within the image data. The request unit may include a request creation unit that creates a quote creation request including the product ID that has been character-recognized by the product ID recognition unit.

[0008] The device may further include a quote acquisition unit that acquires, from the second terminal, a second quote indicating a sales price of the product with the product ID included in the quote creation request.

[0009] The apparatus may further comprise an orderer for ordering the product for sale from the second terminal in response to an acceptance for the second quote being obtained from the first terminal.

[0010] The apparatus may further include an address recognition unit that character-recognizes an address within the image data. The ordering unit may include a first delivery destination setting unit that sets the address as a delivery destination of the product to be sold.

[0011] The ordering unit may have a second delivery destination setting unit that, in response to a request to set a delivery destination for the product for sale being obtained from the first terminal, sets an address corresponding to the address of the user of the first terminal or the address of the creator of the first quote as the delivery destination for the product for sale from among a plurality of addresses registered in advance.

[0012] The request unit may include a selection unit that selects, as the second terminal, at least one terminal that corresponds to the address of the delivery destination from among a plurality of terminals registered in advance.

[0013] When multiple terminals are selected as second terminals and multiple second estimates are obtained, the estimate sending unit may send the second estimate with the lowest price among the multiple second estimates to the first terminal.

[0014] The request unit may send a request for creating a quote for the multiple products for sale to the second terminal in response to image data of the first quote indicating each product ID of the multiple products for sale being acquired from the first terminal.

[0015] The quote sending unit may send the second quote to the first terminal in response to obtaining a second quote for at least some of the multiple products for sale.

[0016] The device may further include an ordering unit that, in response to obtaining consent for the second quote from the first terminal, orders the products to be sold to the second terminal. The ordering unit may, in response to obtaining consent for at least some of the two or more products to be sold whose selling prices are indicated in the second quote, order the at least some of the products to the second terminal.

[0017] The device may further include a communication management unit that causes a transaction ID that differs for each first quote to be included in communication between the first terminal and the second terminal and the device.

[0018] In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-implemented method. The method may include a requesting step of transmitting a quote request for a second quote for a product for sale to a second terminal in response to image data of a first quote indicating a product ID of the product for sale from a first terminal. The method may include a quote transmitting step of transmitting the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being obtained.

[0019] In a third aspect of the present invention, a program is provided. The program may cause a computer to function as a requesting unit that transmits a request for creating a second quote for a product to be sold to a second terminal in response to image data of a first quote indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal. The program may cause the computer to function as a quote transmitting unit that transmits the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being obtained.

[0020] The above summary of the invention does not list all of the necessary features of the present invention. Also, subcombinations of these features may also be inventions. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 shows a system 1 according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 2] The operation of System 1 is shown. [Diagram 3] 1 shows a system 1A according to a modified example. [Figure 4] 22 illustrates an example computer 2200 in which aspects of the present invention may be embodied, in whole or in part. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0022] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention according to the claims. Furthermore, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0023] [1. System 1] 1 shows a system 1 according to the present embodiment. The system 1 supports the purchase of a product. The product may be a part such as a bumper or a headlight of an automobile, and may be a new part or a used part.

[0024] The system 1 includes a plurality of requester terminals 11, a plurality of parts dealer terminals 12, and a device 2. The device 2 and each of the components can be connected to each other and communicate with each other via the same or different communication networks.

[0025] The communication network may be configured to include various networks such as the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), a local area network, or a combination thereof. The communication network may include at least one of wired and wireless connection points. The communication network between the device 2 and each parts dealer terminal 12 may be realized by a dedicated line separated from a public line such as the Internet.

[0026] [1.1. Client terminal 11] Each requester terminal 11 is an example of a first terminal, and is a terminal operated by a user (also referred to as a requester) who requests a product quotation. In the present embodiment, as an example, the requester terminal 11 is a mobile device such as a smartphone or a tablet PC, but may also be a stationary PC.

[0027] The client terminal 11 may be capable of acquiring image data of the first estimate. In addition, the client terminal 11 may be capable of transmitting the image data of the first estimate to the apparatus 2.

[0028] The first quote may indicate the product ID and the selling price of each of the one or more products to be sold. The first quote may further indicate an address. In this embodiment, as an example, the address indicated in the first quote is the address of the creator of the first quote, but it may also be the address of the requester of the quote, that is, the user of the requester terminal 11. For example, the first quote may be created by a repair shop that has been requested to perform maintenance or repairs on an automobile owned by the user of the requester terminal 11. In this case, the address of the creator of the quote may be the location of the repair shop.

[0029] [1.2. Parts dealer terminal 12] Each parts dealer terminal 12 is a terminal operated by a trader who handles the product (in this embodiment, a parts dealer is used as an example). The parts dealer terminal 12 may be a mobile device such as a smartphone or a tablet PC, or may be a desktop PC. Each parts dealer terminal 12 may be registered in advance as a parts dealer terminal, and may be selected by the device 2 according to the delivery address of the product. The selected parts dealer terminal 12 (also referred to as parts dealer terminal 12A) is an example of a second terminal, and creates a second estimate. The second estimate may indicate the selling price of at least one product.

[0030] Here, a parts dealer may be a wholesaler that supplies parts, maintenance equipment, tires, etc. required for automobile inspection and maintenance, accident repair, inspection and maintenance, etc. to repair shops, sheet metal factories, gas stations, car shops, etc. There are a large number of automobile parts, and even the same part has a different part number depending on the make and model of the car to be installed, so parts dealers have a wide range of knowledge about automobile parts.

[0031] [1.3.Device 2] The device 2 is a computer such as a server computer operated by an intermediary who mediates the buying and selling of products. The device 2 has a first estimate acquisition unit 21, a communication management unit 22, an address recognition unit 23, a estimate request unit 24, a second estimate acquisition unit 25, an estimate transmission unit 26, and an order unit 27.

[0032] [1.3.1. First estimate acquisition unit 21] The first estimate acquisition unit 21 acquires image data of the first estimate from the client terminal 11. The first estimate acquisition unit 21 may supply the acquired image data to the address recognition unit 23. The first estimate acquisition unit 21 may supply a transaction ID (described later) supplied from the communication management unit 22 to the address recognition unit 23 in association with the image data.

[0033] [1.3.2. Communications Management Unit 22] The communication management unit 22 includes a transaction ID that differs for each first estimate in the communication between the requester terminal 11 and the parts dealer terminal 12 and the device 2. For example, the communication management unit 22 may supply a new transaction ID to the first estimate acquisition unit 21 and associate it with the first estimate every time the first estimate acquisition unit 21 acquires image data for the first estimate. This adds a transaction ID to the communication between the multiple configurations in the device 2, and further to each communication between the requester terminal 11 and the parts dealer terminal 12 and the device 2. Even if multiple products are to be sold in the first estimate, the communication management unit 22 may supply a single transaction ID to the first estimate acquisition unit 21 and associate it with the first estimate.

[0034] As an example in this embodiment, the communications management unit 22 supplies a transaction ID to the first quote acquisition unit 21 in response to acquiring the image data of the first quote from the client terminal 11, but the image data of the first quote does not have to be supplied to the communications management unit 22. In this case, the first quote acquisition unit 21 may supply a trigger signal to the communications management unit 22 in response to acquiring the image data of the first quote, and the communications management unit 22 may supply a transaction ID to the first quote acquisition unit 21 in response to this trigger signal. The communications management unit 22 receives the terminal ID of the client terminal 11 that sent the first quote, 11 (wherein the subscript "11" indicates the code of the client terminal) may be stored in device 2 in association with the transaction ID.

[0035] [1.3.3.Address recognition unit 23] The address recognition unit 23 performs character recognition of the address in the image data of the first estimate. The address recognition unit 23 may extract patterns that match formats such as prefecture names, ward / city / town / village names, place names, and street address notations from the character-recognized text to identify the address. The address recognition unit 23 may store the recognized address in the device 2 in association with a transaction ID, and may supply it to the estimate request unit 24 together with the transaction ID and image data.

[0036] [1.3.4. Quotation Request Section 24] The quotation request unit 24 is an example of a request unit, and transmits a request for creating a quotation for a second quotation for the product to be sold to the parts dealer terminal 12A in response to the image data of the first quotation being transmitted to the device 2. The quotation request unit 24 has a selection unit 241, a product ID recognition unit 242, and a quotation request creation unit 243.

[0037] [1.3.4(1).Selection section 241] The selection unit 241 selects at least one parts dealer terminal 12 corresponding to the delivery address of the product from among a plurality of pre-registered parts dealer terminals 12 as the parts dealer terminal 12A for creating the second estimate. Note that in this embodiment, as an example, the selection unit 241 selects the parts dealer terminal 12A with the address character-recognized by the address recognition unit 23 as the delivery address.

[0038] The selection unit 241 selects the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 12A. 12 (where the subscript "12" indicates the code of the parts dealer terminal) may be supplied to the estimate request creation unit 243. When multiple parts dealer terminals 12A are selected, the selection unit 241 may supply the terminal IDs of the multiple parts dealer terminals 12A. 12 may be provided to the quotation request creation unit 243.

[0039] [1.3.4(2).Product ID recognition unit 242] The product ID recognition unit 242 performs character recognition on the product ID of the product to be sold within the image data of the first quote. The product ID recognition unit 242 may supply the character-recognized product ID to the quote request creation unit 243.

[0040] [1.3.4(3). Estimate request creation section 243] The quotation request preparation unit 243 is an example of a request preparation unit, and prepares a quotation request including the product ID that has been character recognized by the product ID recognition unit 242. The quotation request may be a request for the preparation of a second quotation that presents the sales price of the product corresponding to the product ID.

[0041] The quotation request creation unit 243 may transmit the created quotation request to the parts dealer terminal 12A selected by the selection unit 241. When multiple parts dealer terminals 12 are selected as the parts dealer terminals 12A, the quotation request creation unit 243 may transmit the quotation request to each of the multiple parts dealer terminals 12A.

[0042] The quotation request preparation unit 243 may add the transaction ID to the quotation request transmitted to the parts dealer terminal 12A. By adding the transaction ID to the quotation request in this manner, this transaction ID is attached to each second quotation transmitted to the device 2 from one or more parts dealer terminals 12A.

[0043] [1.3.5. Second estimate acquisition unit 25] The second estimate acquisition unit 25 is an example of an estimate acquisition unit, and acquires a second estimate for a product that was the subject of sale in the first estimate from each parts dealer terminal 12A. The second estimate may be created by the parts dealer terminal 12A in response to a request for estimate creation. The second estimate may be assigned the same transaction ID as the estimate creation request by the parts dealer terminal 12A. The second estimate acquisition unit 25 may supply the acquired second estimate together with the transaction ID to the estimate transmission unit 26.

[0044] When obtaining a second estimate, the second estimate obtaining unit 25 obtains the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 12A that created the second estimate. 12 You can get the device ID. 12 may be supplied to the estimate transmission unit 26 together with the second estimate. When a plurality of second estimates are acquired from a plurality of parts dealer terminals 12A, the second estimate acquisition unit 25 transmits each of the plurality of second estimates along with the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 12A that transmitted the second estimate. 12 may be provided to the quote sending unit 26 together with the

[0045] [1.3.6. Quotation sending section 26] In response to the acquisition of the second quotation, the quotation sending unit 26 sends the second quotation to the client terminal 11. The quotation sending unit 26 sends the terminal ID stored in the device 2 in association with the transaction ID added to the second quotation. 11 Detect the device ID 11 The estimate sending unit 26 may send the second estimate to the requester terminal 11 corresponding to the part dealer terminal 12A. The estimate sending unit 26 may send the second estimate to the requester terminal 11 together with the corresponding transaction ID. The estimate sending unit 26 may also send the second estimate to the requester terminal 11 together with the terminal ID of the part dealer terminal 12A that created the second estimate. 12 may be stored in device 2 in association with the transaction ID.

[0046] When a plurality of second quotations are obtained from a plurality of parts dealer terminals 12A, the quotation sending unit 26 may send the second quotation with the lowest price among the plurality of second quotations to the requester terminal 11. Note that, as an example in this embodiment, the second quotation with the lowest price may be the second quotation with the lowest total price. The quotation sending unit 26 may send the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 12A that created the second quotation with the lowest price to the requester terminal 11. 12 may be stored in device 2 in association with the transaction ID.

[0047] [1.3.7. Ordering Department 27] The order unit 27 acquires an acceptance of the second quotation from the client terminal 11. The acceptance may include a transaction ID.

[0048] Furthermore, the ordering unit 27 places an order for the product to be sold with the parts dealer terminal 12A in response to obtaining acceptance of the second estimate. The ordering unit 27 may place an order with the parts dealer terminal 12A that created the second estimate. In a case where a plurality of second estimates are obtained from a plurality of parts dealer terminals 12A and the second estimate with the lowest price is transmitted to the requester terminal 11, the ordering unit 27 may place an order with the parts dealer terminal 12A corresponding to the second estimate with the lowest price in response to obtaining acceptance of the second estimate with the lowest price. As an example in this embodiment, the ordering unit 27 places an order with the parts dealer terminal 12A that created the lowest second estimate among the plurality of parts dealer terminals 12A that created a plurality of second estimates, that is, with the terminal ID stored in the device 2 in association with the transaction ID. 12 The order may be placed through the parts dealer terminal 12A.

[0049] The ordering unit 27 may have a destination setting unit 271 that sets a destination of the product to be sold. The destination setting unit 271 is an example of a first destination setting unit, and may set an address that has been character-recognized in the image data of the first quote by the address recognition unit 23 as the destination of the product to be sold. As an example in this embodiment, the ordering unit 27 may include in the order message an address included in the quote creation request as the destination.

[0050] In addition, the destination setting unit 271 is an example of a second destination setting unit, and may set one of a plurality of pre-registered addresses as the destination of the product for sale in response to a request to set the destination of the product for sale being acquired from the requester terminal 11.

[0051] According to the above-described device 2, when image data of a first estimate indicating the product ID of a product to be sold is acquired from the requester terminal 11, a request for making an estimate for that product is sent to the parts dealer terminal 12A, and when a second estimate is acquired, the second estimate is sent to the requester terminal 11. Therefore, the user of the requester terminal 11 can obtain a second estimate for the same product by sending the image data of the first estimate to the device 2. Therefore, the second estimate can be easily obtained without the trouble of going to another dealer to request the creation of the second estimate or checking the product ID.

[0052] In addition, since a quotation request is created that includes the product ID that has been character recognized within the image data of the first quotation, processing at parts dealer terminal 12A can be simplified compared to when parts dealer terminal 12A character recognizes the product ID or when the parts dealer determines the product ID from the image data and manually enters it.

[0053] In addition, since a second quotation for a product corresponding to the product ID included in the quotation creation request is obtained from the parts dealer terminal 12A, a second quotation for the product to be sold can be reliably obtained from the parts dealer terminal 12A and transmitted to the requester terminal 11.

[0054] Furthermore, an order is placed at parts dealer terminal 12A in response to the acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from requester terminal 11, so that the product can be purchased easily.

[0055] In addition, the address in the image data of the first estimate is character-recognized and set as the delivery destination, eliminating the need to input the delivery destination address.

[0056] Furthermore, at least one of the preregistered parts dealer terminals 12 that corresponds to the destination address is selected as the parts dealer terminal 12A that creates the second estimate. Therefore, even if the selling price differs depending on the destination address, it is possible to obtain an estimate at an appropriate selling price that corresponds to the destination address. Also, since it is possible to prevent a parts dealer terminal A located far away from being selected, it is possible to reduce the shipping cost of the product.

[0057] Furthermore, of the multiple second quotations acquired from the multiple parts dealer terminals 12A, the second quotation with the lowest price is transmitted to the requester terminal 11. Therefore, the user of the requester terminal 11 can easily purchase the product at the lowest price.

[0058] In addition, since a different transaction ID is included for each first estimate in the communication between the requester terminal 11 and the device 2, the communication between the requester terminal 11 and the device 2 and the communication between the parts dealer terminal 12 and the device 2 can be managed using a common transaction ID.

[0059] [2. Operation] 2 shows the operation of the system 1. The system 1 supports the purchase of a product by performing the processes of steps S11 to S45. In this operation, as an example, communication between the device 2 and the requester terminal 11 and between the device 2 and the parts dealer terminal 12 may be performed using communication application software such as LINE@ (registered trademark).

[0060] In step S11, the requester terminal 11 acquires image data of a first quote indicating the product ID of the product to be sold in response to an operation by the requester. The first quote may be handwritten or printed on paper. In this case, the requester terminal 11 may acquire the image data by photographing the first quote with a built-in camera, or may acquire the image data by communicating with a separate camera that has photographed the first quote.

[0061] In step S13, the client terminal 11 transmits image data of the first estimate to the device 2 in response to an operation of the client. The client terminal 11 may further transmit the client's name, etc. to the device 2 in response to an operation of the client.

[0062] In step S15, the first estimate acquisition unit 21 of the device 2 acquires the image data for the first estimate transmitted from the client terminal 11.

[0063] In step S17, the communication management unit 22 sets a transaction ID for the transaction of the product to be sold according to the acquired first estimate. Thereafter, the transaction ID is added to each exchange between the multiple components in the device 2, and in turn, between the requester terminal 11 and the parts dealer terminal 12 and the device 2. Note that if the exchange between the requester terminal 11 and the parts dealer terminal 12 and the device 2 is carried out using LINE@ (registered trademark), the transaction ID may be included in the name of the chat room.

[0064] In step S19, the address recognition unit 23 and the product ID recognition unit 242 obtain the address of the creator of the first quote and the product ID of the product to be sold by character recognition. If multiple products are to be sold in the first quote, that is, if image data of the first quote indicating the product IDs of each of the multiple products is obtained in step S15, the product ID recognition unit 242 may perform character recognition on each of these product IDs.

[0065] In step S21, the selection unit 241 selects at least one parts dealer terminal 12 corresponding to the destination address (in this embodiment, as an example, an address character-recognized by the address recognition unit 23) from among multiple pre-registered parts dealer terminals 12 as the parts dealer terminal 12A for creating the second estimate. The parts dealer terminal 12 corresponding to the destination address may be the parts dealer terminal 12 of the parts dealer that has jurisdiction over the destination (as an example, a parts dealer that includes the destination within its delivery range).

[0066] In step S23, the quotation request creation unit 243 creates a quotation request for the product to be sold in the first quotation. The quotation request creation unit 243 may create a quotation request including a product ID that has been character recognized by the product ID recognition unit 242. If multiple product IDs have been character recognized by the process of step S19, the quotation request creation unit 243 may create a quotation request for these multiple products. The quotation request may include the address of the creator of the first quotation that has been character recognized by the address recognition unit 23.

[0067] In step S25, quotation request preparation unit 243 transmits the created quotation request to one or more parts dealer terminals 12A selected by selection unit 241.

[0068] In step S31, each parts dealer terminal 12A creates a second estimate in response to an operation of the parts dealer, and in step S33, each parts dealer terminal 12A transmits the created second estimate to device 2.

[0069] In step S35, second estimate acquisition unit 25 of device 2 acquires a second estimate for the product that was the subject of sale in the first estimate from parts dealer terminal 12A. The second estimate may indicate the sales price of the product with the product ID included in the estimate request. If the estimate request includes multiple product IDs, the second estimate may indicate the sales price of each product with these multiple product IDs, or may indicate the sales prices of at least some of the products.

[0070] In step S37, the estimate sending unit 26 sends the second estimate to the requester terminal 11. When multiple second estimates have been obtained from multiple parts dealer terminals 12A, the estimate sending unit 26 may send the second estimate with the lowest price among the multiple second estimates to the requester terminal 11. The estimate sending unit 26 may request the requester terminal 11 to confirm the delivery destination by sending the address stored in the device 2 in association with the transaction ID, that is, the address obtained by character recognition from the image data of the first estimate, together with the second estimate to the requester terminal 11.

[0071] In step S39, the requester terminal 11 obtains the second quotation from the apparatus 2, and in step S41, the requester terminal 11 transmits acceptance of the second quotation to the apparatus 2 in response to the requester's operation. When the second quotation indicates the sales price of each product of two or more product IDs, the acceptance of the second quotation may be acceptance of the sales price of each of these two or more products, that is, acceptance of the entire second quotation, or acceptance of at least some of these two or more products.

[0072] Here, if a destination confirmation request has been acquired from device 2 in the process of step S37, then in the process of step S41, the requester terminal 11 may transmit the destination confirmation result to device 2 in response to the requester's operation. For example, if there is no change in the destination address, the requester terminal 11 may transmit a message to that effect to device 2. If the destination address needs to be changed, the requester terminal 11 may transmit the correct destination address to device 2, or may transmit a destination setting request to device 2. The requester as a user of the requester terminal 11 may perform an operation to request setting of the destination if the creator of the first quote does not receive products from other traders.

[0073] In step S43, in response to the acceptance of the second quotation from the requester terminal 11, the order unit 27 of the device 2 receives the terminal ID stored in the device 2 in association with the transaction ID. 12 Detect the device ID 12 The requester places an order for the products to be sold to parts dealer terminal 12A of the requester. As a result, a sales contract for the products based on the contents of the second quotation may be established between the requester and the broker and between the broker and the parts dealer. When the sales prices of two or more products are indicated in the second quotation and consent for at least some of the two or more products is obtained from the requester terminal 11, the ordering unit 27 may place an order for at least some of the products to the parts dealer terminal 12A.

[0074] In the process of step S43, the destination setting unit 271 of the ordering unit 27 may include the destination of the product in the order contents. For example, if a message indicating that the destination address has not been changed is sent from the requester terminal 11 in the process of step 41, the destination setting unit 271 may set the address stored in the device 2 in association with the transaction ID as the destination and include it in the order contents. If a correct destination address is sent from the requester terminal 11 in the process of step S41, the destination setting unit 271 may set the address as the destination and include it in the order contents. If a destination setting request is sent from the requester terminal 11 in step S41, the destination setting unit 271 may set an address corresponding to the address of the user of the requester terminal 11 or the address of the creator of the first estimate, among multiple addresses registered in advance, as the destination of the product to be sold and include it in the order contents. The multiple addresses registered in advance may be the addresses of parts dealers affiliated with the intermediary. The address set according to the delivery destination setting preference may be the address of a parts dealer that has jurisdiction over the address of the user of the requester terminal 11, or it may be the address of a parts dealer that has jurisdiction over the address of the creator of the first estimate.

[0075] In step S45, the parts dealer terminal 12A delivers the product to be sold to the delivery address.

[0076] According to the above operation, in response to acquisition of image data of the first estimate indicating the product IDs of the multiple products for sale, a request for creating an estimate for the multiple products for sale is sent to parts dealer terminal 12A. Therefore, when there are multiple products for sale, it is possible to eliminate the trouble of checking multiple product IDs, and it is possible to acquire a second estimate more easily.

[0077] Further, second quotations for at least some of the products among the multiple products for sale in the first estimate are acquired from the parts dealer terminal 12A and transmitted to the requester terminal 11. Therefore, even if the parts dealer only owns some of the multiple products for sale in the first estimate, it is possible to acquire second quotations and transmit them to the requester terminal 11.

[0078] Furthermore, in response to an acceptance of at least some of the two or more products for sale whose sales prices are indicated in the second estimate being obtained from the requester terminal 11, at least some of the products are ordered at the parts dealer terminal 12A. Therefore, it is possible to accept and purchase only some of the products whose sales prices are indicated in the second estimate.

[0079] In addition, when a delivery destination setting request is obtained from the requester terminal 11, the delivery destination is set to an address among multiple pre-registered addresses that corresponds to the address of the user of the requester terminal 11 or the address of the creator of the first quote, so that an appropriate delivery destination can be set when the user's address or the address of the creator of the first quote cannot be used as the delivery destination.

[0080] [3. Modifications] Fig. 3 shows a system 1A according to a modified example. In the modified example, the same components as those shown in Fig. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0081] The device 2A of the system 1A includes a quote request unit 24A, a web server function unit 28, and a second quote acquisition unit 25A.

[0082] The quotation request unit 24A has a quotation request preparation unit 243A. The quotation request preparation unit 243A prepares a quotation request including image data of the first quotation.

[0083] The web server function unit 28 provides a website where the selling price of each of a plurality of products can be input. The web server function unit 28 may provide the contents of the input on the website to the second estimate acquisition unit 25A.

[0084] Here, the website may allow the user (broker) of device 2A to input the selling price of each product that he / she can broker. The website may also allow the user to input the selling price of new or used genuine parts of each product, and non-OEM parts manufactured by third parties. The website may be accessed by parts dealer terminal 12A that has received a quote request, and the transaction ID added to the quote request may be used as an access code to access the website.

[0085] The second quote acquisition unit 25A acquires the second quote via a website provided by the web server function unit 28. For example, the second quote acquisition unit 25A may acquire the sales price of a product having a product ID indicated in the image data of the quote creation request via the website.

[0086] In the above operation of system 1A, character recognition of the product ID may not be performed in the process of step S19. In the process of step S23, quotation request preparation unit 243A may prepare a quotation request including image data. The quotation request may further include the address of a website provided by web server function unit 28. When the quotation request is sent to multiple parts dealer terminals 12A, separate addresses may be sent to each parts dealer terminal 12A, or the address of a common login page that individually authenticates each parts dealer terminal 12A may be sent.

[0087] In addition, in the process of step S31, each parts dealer terminal 12A may input the sales price of the product with the product ID indicated in the image data of the quotation request on the website in response to an operation of the parts dealer. As a result, a second quotation is created on the website.

[0088] Then, in the process of step S35, the second estimate acquisition unit 25A acquires the created second estimate from the web server function unit 28. When acquiring the second estimate, the second estimate acquisition unit 25A acquires the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 12A that created the second estimate. 12You can get the device ID. 12 may be supplied to the estimate transmission unit 26 together with the second estimate. When a plurality of second estimates are acquired from a plurality of parts dealer terminals 12A, the second estimate acquisition unit 25 transmits each of the plurality of second estimates to the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 12A that created the second estimate. 12 may be provided to the quote sending unit 26 together with the

[0089] According to the above-described device 2A, a request for making a second estimate is created that includes image data of the first estimate, so that the process can be simplified compared to a case where the product ID is character-recognized from image data.

[0090] The second quotation is obtained via a website where the selling price of each of the multiple products can be input. Therefore, the second quotation can be obtained by having the parts dealer identify the product ID and input the selling price. In addition, by listing new products, used products, and non-OEM products on the website, the user of the parts dealer terminal 12A can obtain a quotation according to the type of product owned.

[0091] [4. Other Modifications] In the above embodiment and modified example, the device 2, 2A has been described as having the communication management unit 22, the address recognition unit 23, and the ordering unit 27, but may not have at least one of these. For example, if the device 2, 2A does not have the address recognition unit 23, the delivery destination setting unit 271 may set the address transmitted from the requester terminal 11 in response to the requester's operation as the delivery destination of the product. As an example, the requester terminal 11 may transmit the address to the device 2, 2A in the processing of step S13 or step S41.

[0092] Furthermore, the devices 2 and 2A have been described as having separate address recognition unit 23 and product ID recognition unit 242, but may have a single character recognition unit capable of character-recognizing both the address and the product ID.

[0093] Also, although it has been described that the address recognition unit 23 performs character recognition on the address used as the product delivery destination within the image data of the first estimate, the address may be transmitted from the requester terminal 11 to the device 2, 2A by a user operation of the requester terminal 11. As an example, the delivery destination address may be transmitted from the requester terminal 11 to the device 2, 2A in the processing of step S13 or step S41. Also, the delivery destination address may not be transmitted from the requester terminal 11 to the device 2, 2A, but a delivery destination setting request may be transmitted. In this case, the delivery destination setting request may be transmitted to the device 2 in response to the requester's operation in the processing of step S13, etc., and the delivery destination setting unit 271 may set the delivery destination in the processing of step S19.

[0094] Also, while the selection unit 241 has been described as selecting the parts dealer terminal 12A as the destination address based on the address character-recognized by the address recognition unit 23, if the destination address is transmitted from the requester terminal 11 to the device 2, 2A in response to the requester's operation by the processing in step S13 or the like, the selection unit 241 may select the parts dealer terminal 12A as the destination address. Also, if a request to set a destination is transmitted to the device 2 in the processing in step S13 or the like and the destination setting unit 271 sets the destination in the processing in step S19, the selection unit 241 may select the parts dealer terminal 12A in accordance with the set address.

[0095] In addition, the quotation sending unit 26 has been described as sending the second quotation with the lowest price among the plurality of second quotation to the requester terminal 11, but the plurality of second quotation may be sent individually to the requester terminal 11. In this case, the second quotation obtaining unit 25 may transmit to each of the second quotation the terminal ID of the parts dealer terminal 11 that sent the second quotation. 11 In addition, when an acceptance of any of the second quotations is obtained from the client terminal 11, the ordering unit 27 may store the terminal ID corresponding to the second quotations in the device 2, 2A in association with the terminal ID. 11The order may be placed to the parts dealer terminal 11 of the second estimate. This allows the requester to select an arbitrary second estimate or parts dealer and place an order when, for example, the products are different among the multiple second quotations or the parts dealers that have prepared the second quotations have different reputations. Furthermore, when consent for at least some of the products indicated in any of the second quotations is obtained from the requester terminal 11, the ordering unit 27 may receive the terminal ID corresponding to the second estimate. 11 The client may place an order for the approved product to the parts dealer terminal 11. This allows the client to select and place an order for any product from the multiple products shown in the multiple second quotations.

[0096] Also, although the quotation sending unit 26 has been described as sending the entire second quotation to the requester terminal 11, it may send only a portion of the second quotation that relates to a product whose selling price is lower than that of the first quotation to the requester terminal 11. Furthermore, when sending each of a plurality of second quotation to the requester terminal 11, the quotation sending unit 26 may send only a portion of each second quotation that relates to a product whose selling price is lower than that of the other quotation to the requester terminal 11.

[0097] Various embodiments of the present invention may also be described with reference to flow charts and block diagrams, where the blocks may represent (1) stages of a process in which operations are performed or (2) sections of an apparatus responsible for performing the operations. Particular stages and sections may be implemented by dedicated circuitry, programmable circuitry provided with computer readable instructions stored on a computer readable medium, and / or a processor provided with computer readable instructions stored on a computer readable medium. Dedicated circuitry may include digital and / or analog hardware circuitry and may include integrated circuits (ICs) and / or discrete circuits. Programmable circuitry may include reconfigurable hardware circuitry including logical AND, logical OR, logical XOR, logical NAND, logical NOR, and other logical operations, memory elements such as flip-flops, registers, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic arrays (PLAs), and the like.

[0098] A computer-readable medium may include any tangible device capable of storing instructions that are executed by a suitable device, such that the computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon comprises an article of manufacture that includes instructions that can be executed to create means for performing the operations specified in the flowcharts or block diagrams. Examples of computer-readable media may include electronic storage media, magnetic storage media, optical storage media, electromagnetic storage media, semiconductor storage media, and the like. More specific examples of computer-readable media may include floppy disks, diskettes, hard disks, random access memories (RAMs), read-only memories (ROMs), erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROMs or flash memories), electrically erasable programmable read-only memories (EEPROMs), static random access memories (SRAMs), compact disk read-only memories (CD-ROMs), digital versatile disks (DVDs), Blu-ray (RTM) disks, memory sticks, integrated circuit cards, and the like.

[0099] The computer readable instructions may include either assembler instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state setting data, or either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Smalltalk, JAVA, C++, etc., and conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages.

[0100] Computer readable instructions may be provided to a processor or programmable circuitry of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, either locally or over a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), such as the Internet, etc., to execute the computer readable instructions to create means for performing the operations specified in the flowcharts or block diagrams. Examples of processors include computer processors, processing units, microprocessors, digital signal processors, controllers, microcontrollers, etc.

[0101] 4 illustrates an example of a computer 2200 in which aspects of the present invention may be embodied in whole or in part. Programs installed on the computer 2200 may cause the computer 2200 to function as or perform operations associated with an apparatus or one or more sections of the apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and / or to perform a process or steps of the process according to an embodiment of the present invention. Such programs may be executed by the CPU 2212 to cause the computer 2200 to perform specific operations associated with some or all of the blocks of the flowcharts and block diagrams described herein.

[0102] The computer 2200 according to this embodiment includes a CPU 2212, a RAM 2214, a graphic controller 2216, and a display device 2218, which are connected to each other by a host controller 2210. The computer 2200 also includes input / output units such as a communication interface 2222, a hard disk drive 2224, a DVD-ROM drive 2226, and an IC card drive, which are connected to the host controller 2210 via an input / output controller 2220. The computer also includes legacy input / output units such as a ROM 2230 and a keyboard 2242, which are connected to the input / output controller 2220 via an input / output chip 2240.

[0103] The CPU 2212 operates according to a program stored in the ROM 2230 and the RAM 2214, thereby controlling each unit. The graphic controller 2216 retrieves image data generated by the CPU 2212 into a frame buffer or the like provided in the RAM 2214 or into the graphic controller 2216 itself, and causes the image data to be displayed on the display device 2218.

[0104] The communication interface 2222 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The hard disk drive 2224 stores programs and data used by the CPU 2212 in the computer 2200. The DVD-ROM drive 2226 reads programs or data from the DVD-ROM 2201 and provides the programs or data to the hard disk drive 2224 via the RAM 2214. The IC card drive reads programs and data from an IC card and / or writes programs and data to an IC card.

[0105] The ROM 2230 stores therein a boot program or the like executed by the computer 2200 upon activation, and / or a program that depends on the hardware of the computer 2200. The input / output chip 2240 may also connect various input / output units to the input / output controller 2220 via a parallel port, a serial port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, and the like.

[0106] The programs are provided by a computer-readable medium such as a DVD-ROM 2201 or an IC card. The programs are read from the computer-readable medium, installed in the hard disk drive 2224, the RAM 2214, or the ROM 2230, which are also examples of computer-readable media, and executed by the CPU 2212. Information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 2200, and brings about cooperation between the programs and the various types of hardware resources described above. An apparatus or method may be constructed by realizing information manipulation or processing according to the use of the computer 2200.

[0107] For example, when communication is performed between the computer 2200 and an external device, the CPU 2212 may execute a communication program loaded in the RAM 2214 and instruct the communication interface 2222 to perform communication processing based on the processing described in the communication program. Under the control of the CPU 2212, the communication interface 2222 reads transmission data stored in a transmission buffer processing area provided in the RAM 2214, the hard disk drive 2224, the DVD-ROM 2201, or a recording medium such as an IC card, and transmits the read transmission data to the network, or writes reception data received from the network to a reception buffer processing area or the like provided on the recording medium.

[0108] Furthermore, the CPU 2212 may cause all or a necessary portion of a file or database stored in an external recording medium such as the hard disk drive 2224, the DVD-ROM drive 2226 (DVD-ROM 2201), an IC card, etc. to be read into the RAM 2214, and perform various types of processing on the data on the RAM 2214. The CPU 2212 then writes back the processed data to the external recording medium.

[0109] Various types of information, such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases, may be stored in the recording medium and undergo information processing. The CPU 2212 may perform various types of processing on the data read from the RAM 2214, including various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, information search / replacement, etc., as described throughout this disclosure and specified by the instruction sequence of the program, and write back the results to the RAM 2214. The CPU 2212 may also search for information in a file, database, etc. in the recording medium. For example, when a plurality of entries each having an attribute value of a first attribute associated with an attribute value of a second attribute are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 2212 may search for an entry that matches a condition, in which an attribute value of the first attribute is specified, from among the plurality of entries, read the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, and thereby obtain the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute that satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0110] The above-described programs or software modules may be stored in a computer-readable medium on the computer 2200 or in the vicinity of the computer 2200. Also, a recording medium such as a hard disk or a RAM provided in a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet can be used as a computer-readable medium, thereby providing the programs to the computer 2200 via the network.

[0111] Although the present invention has been described above using the embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It is clear to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that such modifications and improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0112] It should be noted that the order of execution of each process, such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages, in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specifications, and drawings is not specifically stated as "before," "prior to," etc., and may be realized in any order unless the output of a previous process is used in a later process. Even if the operational flow in the claims, specifications, and drawings is explained using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, it does not mean that it is essential to perform the process in this order. [Explanation of symbols]

[0113] 1 system, 1A system, 2 equipment, 2A device, 11. Client terminal, 12 Parts dealer terminal, 21 First quotation acquisition section, 22 Communications Management Department, 23 Address Recognition Department, 24 Quote Request Department, 24A Quote Request Department, 25 Second quotation acquisition section, 25A 2nd quotation acquisition section, 26 Estimate Transmission Department, 27 Ordering Department, 28 Web server function unit, 241 Selection section, 242 Product ID recognition section, 243 Request for quotation preparation department; 243A Request for quotation preparation department; 271 Delivery destination setting section, 2200 Computer, 2201 DVD-ROM, 2210 host controller, 2212 CPU, 2214 RAM, 2216 Graphics Controller, 2218 Display devices, 2220 Input / Output Controller, 2222 communication interface, 2224 hard disk drive, 2226 DVD-ROM drive, 2230 ROM, 2240 input / output chip, 2242 Keyboard

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising: a request unit that transmits a request for creating a second estimate for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first estimate indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote sending unit configured to send the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being acquired; Equipped with The request unit has a request creation unit that creates the quotation request including the image data, The device comprises: a web server function unit that prepares a plurality of websites on which a sales price can be input for each of a plurality of products, the plurality of websites having different addresses for the plurality of second terminals; The device further includes an estimate acquisition unit that acquires, via the multiple websites, the second estimate, which indicates a sales price of a product having a product ID indicated in the image data of the estimate creation request, from each of the multiple second terminals that have received the estimate creation request.

2. a request unit that transmits a request for creating a second estimate for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first estimate indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote sending unit configured to send the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being acquired; an ordering unit that, in response to an acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from the first terminal, orders the product to be sold from the second terminal; an address recognition unit that performs character recognition of an address within the image data; Equipped with The estimate sending unit further sends a confirmation request to the first terminal as to whether or not the address recognized by character recognition is to be a delivery destination; The ordering unit is a device having a first delivery destination setting unit that sets the address as the delivery destination of the product for sale in response to a message sent from the first terminal indicating that the address has not changed.

3. The device according to claim 2 , wherein the request unit includes a selection unit that selects, as the second terminal, at least one terminal that corresponds to the address of the delivery destination from among a plurality of terminals registered in advance.

4. The device according to claim 3 , wherein when a plurality of terminals are selected as the second terminal and a plurality of the second estimates are obtained, the estimate sending unit sends a second estimate with a lowest price among the plurality of second estimates to the first terminal.

5. An apparatus comprising: a request unit that transmits a request for creating a second estimate for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first estimate indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote sending unit configured to send the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being acquired; an ordering unit that, in response to an acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from the first terminal, orders the product to be sold from the second terminal that created the second quotation; a communication management unit that causes a transaction ID that is different for each of the first quotations to be included in communication between the first terminal and the device, and between the second terminal and the device; Equipped with the order unit, in response to the acceptance of a part of the two or more products to be sold, the selling prices of which are indicated in the second quotation, being obtained from the first terminal, orders the part of the products to the second terminal; the request unit transmits the quotation creation request for the plurality of products to be sold to the second terminal in response to the image data of the first quotation indicating each product ID of the plurality of products to be sold being acquired from the first terminal; The quotation sending unit sends the second quotation to the first terminal in response to the second quotation being obtained for at least some of the multiple products for sale.

6. The request unit, a product ID recognition unit that performs character recognition of a product ID of the product to be sold within the image data; a request creation unit that creates the quotation request including the product ID that has been character-recognized by the product ID recognition unit; 6. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

7. The apparatus according to claim 6 , further comprising a quote acquisition unit configured to acquire, from the second terminal, the second quote indicating a sales price of a product identified by a product ID included in the quote creation request.

8. 1. A computer implemented method comprising: a requesting step of sending a request for creating a quote for a second quote for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first quote indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote transmission step of transmitting the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being obtained; Equipped with The request step includes a request creation step of creating the quotation request including the image data, The method comprises: a web server function step of preparing a plurality of websites on which a sales price can be input for each of a plurality of products, the plurality of websites having different addresses for the plurality of second terminals; The method further includes a quote acquisition step of acquiring, via the multiple websites, the second quote indicating a sales price of a product having a product ID indicated in the image data of the quote request from each of the multiple second terminals that have received the quote request.

9. 1. A computer implemented method comprising: a requesting step of sending a request for creating a quote for a second quote for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first quote indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote transmission step of transmitting the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being obtained; an ordering step of ordering the product to be sold from the second terminal in response to an acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from the first terminal; an address recognition step of character-recognizing an address within the image data; Equipped with In the estimate transmission step, a confirmation request is further transmitted to the first terminal as to whether the address recognized by character recognition is to be a delivery destination; The method, wherein the ordering step includes a first delivery address setting step of setting the address as the delivery address of the product to be sold in response to a message sent from the first terminal indicating that the address has not been changed.

10. 1. A computer implemented method comprising: a requesting step of sending a request for creating a quote for a second quote for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first quote indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote transmission step of transmitting the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being obtained; an ordering step of ordering the product to be sold from the second terminal that created the second quotation in response to an acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from the first terminal; a communication management step of including a transaction ID, which is different for each of the first quotes, in the communication between the first terminal and the second terminal and the computer; Equipped with In the ordering step, in response to the first terminal receiving consent for a part of the two or more products to be sold, the selling prices of which are indicated in the second quotation, an order is placed for the part of the products to the second terminal; In the request step, in response to the image data of the first quotation indicating each product ID of the plurality of products to be sold being acquired from the first terminal, the request for creating the quotation for the plurality of products to be sold is transmitted to the second terminal; In the quotation sending step, in response to obtaining the second quotation for at least some of the products among the plurality of products for sale, the second quotation is sent to the first terminal.

11. Computer, a request unit that transmits a request for creating a second estimate for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first estimate indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote sending unit configured to send the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being acquired; Function as a The request unit has a request creation unit that creates the quotation request including the image data, The computer, a web server function unit that prepares a plurality of websites on which a sales price can be input for each of a plurality of products, the plurality of websites having different addresses for the plurality of second terminals; and a program that further functions as an estimate acquisition unit that acquires the second estimate, indicating the sales price of a product having a product ID indicated in the image data of the estimate creation request, from each of the plurality of second terminals that have received the estimate creation request via the plurality of websites.

12. Computer, a request unit that transmits a request for creating a second estimate for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first estimate indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote sending unit configured to send the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being acquired; an ordering unit that, in response to an acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from the first terminal, orders the product to be sold from the second terminal; an address recognition unit that performs character recognition of an address within the image data; Function as a The estimate sending unit further sends a confirmation request to the first terminal as to whether or not the address recognized by character recognition is to be a delivery destination; The ordering unit is a program having a first delivery destination setting unit that sets the address as the delivery destination of the product for sale in response to a message sent from the first terminal indicating that the address has not changed.

13. Computer, a request unit that transmits a request for creating a second estimate for the product to be sold to a second terminal in response to acquisition of image data of a first estimate indicating a product ID of the product to be sold from a first terminal; a quote sending unit configured to send the second quote to the first terminal in response to the second quote being acquired; an ordering unit that, in response to an acceptance of the second quotation being obtained from the first terminal, orders the product to be sold from the second terminal that created the second quotation; a communication management unit that includes a transaction ID that is different for each of the first quotations in communication between the first terminal and the computer, and between the second terminal and the computer; Function as a the order unit, in response to the acceptance of a part of the two or more products to be sold, the selling prices of which are indicated in the second quotation, being obtained from the first terminal, orders the part of the products to the second terminal; the request unit transmits the quotation creation request for the plurality of products to be sold to the second terminal in response to the image data of the first quotation indicating each product ID of the plurality of products to be sold being acquired from the first terminal; The quotation sending unit is a program that sends the second quotation to the first terminal in response to the second quotation being obtained for at least some of the multiple products for sale.

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