Customer management system for retail electricity suppliers

Abstract

A customer management system for electricity retailers that can improve the business efficiency of electricity retailers is provided. [Solution] A customer management system for retail electricity suppliers performs registration processing, switching processing, energy amount acquisition processing, and fee calculation processing, and determines whether the processing results for each of the registration processing, switching processing, energy amount acquisition processing, and fee calculation processing satisfy predetermined judgment conditions.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a customer management system for electricity retailers that retail electricity. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, with the liberalization of the electricity market, it has become possible to purchase electricity from businesses registered with electricity retailers known as new power companies. Conventionally, a technology has been proposed for electricity retailers that retail electricity to provide their customers with information on the amount of electricity used (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The technology described in Patent Document 1 is a technology in which a consumer information service providing device calculates electricity consumer usage fees based on the electricity usage data for each electricity consumer acquired from the power company system and a consumer fee structure, and provides the electricity usage data and usage fees to the electricity consumer device via the Internet. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2007-287021 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When a retail electricity supplier accepts an application procedure for electricity supply from a new customer, it carries out a switching procedure to switch the customer's current contract with a retail electricity supplier or general electricity supplier to its own retail electricity supplier. The retail electricity supplier then calculates the electricity fee based on the rate plan applied for by the customer and the amount of electricity used by the customer, and bills the customer for the fee.

[0005] Conventionally, in the operations of such retail electricity suppliers, a series of business processes such as managing customer information, switching procedures, tallying up electricity usage, and calculating electricity bills required manual input and calculation using conventionally known spreadsheet software, etc., which resulted in issues of time-consuming and labor-intensive operations and low operational efficiency.

[0006] The technology described in Patent Document 1 provides electricity consumers (customers) with data on the amount of electricity used and charges for usage. However, this technology only targets fee calculation, which is one of the series of operations performed by retail electricity suppliers, and further improvements in operational efficiency are desired.

[0007] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides a customer management system for electricity retailers that can improve the business efficiency of electricity retailers. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The customer management system for retail electricity suppliers according to the present invention acquires customer information, supply point identification numbers, and rate plan information from multiple customer terminals. and stores in a storage unit customer data including the customer information and having information for identifying the customer, billing destination data including the customer information and having information for identifying the billing destination of the customer's electricity bill, and application plan data including the rate plan information and the supply point identification number and having information regarding the rate system of the customer's electricity bill. A registration unit that performs registration processing transmits the customer information and the abolition agency information including the supply point identification number to a switching support system owned by the Organization for Cross-regional Coordination of Transmission Operators, and causes the switching support system to perform procedures related to switching of retail electricity suppliers. and storing in the storage unit location information data including the customer information and the supply point identification number and having information regarding a switching procedure of the electricity retailer, and facility information data including the supply point identification number and having information regarding an electrical facility corresponding to the supply point identification number. a switching unit that performs switching processing, an energy amount acquisition unit that performs energy amount acquisition processing that acquires meter reading data regarding the energy usage for each supply point identification number from a wheeling system owned by an electricity transmission and distribution company, and a fee calculation unit that performs fee calculation processing that calculates the energy fee for each customer based on the meter reading data and the fee plan information; In the registration process, the presence or absence or data format of each item constituting the customer data, the billing destination data, and the applied plan data is used as a judgment condition; in the switching process, the judgment condition is whether or not the procedural process for switching the retail electricity supplier has been completed normally; in the energy amount acquisition process, the judgment condition is whether or not the meter reading data acquired from the wheeling system is normal; and in the fee calculation process, the judgment condition is whether or not the calculation of the electricity fee is normal; In each of the registration process, the switching process, the power amount acquisition process, and the fee calculation process, , the above Determine whether the criteria are met and outputting a result of a determination as to whether or not the determination condition is satisfied in at least the switching process and the fee calculation process to a terminal of the retail electricity business operator, and if the determination result does not satisfy the determination condition, acquiring an operation for satisfying the determination condition from the terminal of the retail electricity business operator. An operations monitoring department; a model generation unit that generates a trained model trained using training data including the customer data, the billing destination data, the application plan data, the location information data, the facility information data, and information on the operation operation; and an inference processing unit that uses the trained model to infer data items, among the customer data, the billing destination data, the application plan data, the location information data, and the facility information data, for which the operation monitoring unit's judgment result does not satisfy the judgment condition; It is equipped with the following. Effect of the Invention

[0009] The customer management system for electricity retailers according to the present invention performs registration processing, switching processing, power amount acquisition processing, and fee calculation processing, and judges whether the processing results satisfy preset judgment conditions, thereby improving the operational efficiency of electricity retailers. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a customer management system 1 for electricity retailers according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] 1 is a control block diagram of a customer management system 1 according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 3] 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of automatic processing of the customer management system 1 according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of a registration process. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a data structure of a data storage unit 20. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a data structure of a data storage unit 20. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of a switching process. [Figure 8] 4 is a diagram showing a data structure of a log recording unit 50. FIG. [Figure 9] 4 is a diagram showing a data structure of a log recording unit 50. FIG. [Figure 10] 4 is a diagram showing a data structure of a log recording unit 50. FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a data structure of a data storage unit 20. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing an operation of a power amount acquisition process. [Figure 13] 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of a fee calculation process. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration diagram of a customer management system 1 for electricity retailers according to a second embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 11 is a control block diagram of a customer management system 1 according to a second embodiment. [Figure 16] 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of automatic processing of a customer management system 1 according to a second embodiment. [Figure 17] 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of a billing process. [Figure 18] 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of a storage process. [Figure 19] FIG. 11 is a control block diagram of a customer management system 1 according to a third embodiment. [Figure 20] FIG. 1 is a control block diagram relating to the generation of a trained model 70. [Figure 21] FIG. 4 is a control block diagram relating to an automatic correction process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, a customer management system 1 for electricity retailers according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, the same or corresponding parts are given the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted or simplified as appropriate. In addition, the shape, size, arrangement, etc. of the configuration shown in each drawing may be changed as appropriate within the scope of the present invention.

[0012] Embodiment 1 (System Configuration) FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a customer management system 1 for electricity retailers according to the first embodiment. The customer management system 1 for electricity retailers in this embodiment is a system used by electricity retailers who retail electricity to customers who are electricity consumers who receive electricity supply, such as general households or businesses. Electricity retailers include new power companies that are businesses that newly operate electricity retail businesses after the liberalization of the electricity market. Hereinafter, the customer management system 1 for electricity retailers will be simply referred to as the "customer management system 1."

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, a customer management system 1 is communicably connected to a plurality of customer terminals 2, an electricity retailer terminal 3, a switching support system 4, and a wheeling system 5 via a network N such as the Internet.

[0014] The customer management system 1 has a function of executing various business processes at the electricity retailer, and is constructed on a cloud server equipped with a processor such as a CPU and a memory. Details will be described later. Note that the construction of the customer management system 1 is not limited to a cloud server, and it may be constructed as an on-premise system on a server device installed at the electricity retailer.

[0015] The customer terminal 2 is an information processing terminal such as a personal computer, smartphone, or tablet terminal owned by each of multiple customers, which displays information acquired from the customer management system 1 and transmits information input by the customer to the customer management system 1. The information input by the customer includes customer information such as the customer's name and information such as the rate plan to which the customer applies. Details will be described later.

[0016] The retail electricity supplier terminal 3 is an information processing terminal such as a personal computer owned by the retail electricity supplier, which displays information obtained from the customer management system 1 and transmits operational instructions performed by the retail electricity supplier's operator (employee) to the customer management system 1.

[0017] The switching support system 4 is a system owned by the Organization for Cross-regional Coordination of Transmission Operators. The switching support system 4 is a system that enables electricity consumers to switch between retail electricity suppliers from which they receive electricity. The switching support system 4 mediates various procedures between a new retail electricity supplier with which an electricity consumer will enter into a new retail contract, a current retail electricity supplier with which an electricity consumer currently has a retail contract, and a general electricity transmission and distribution supplier. For example, the switching support system 4 mediates the termination of a retail contract between an electricity consumer and a current retail electricity supplier (hereinafter simply referred to as "termination mediation") between the new retail electricity supplier and the current retail electricity supplier.

[0018] The wheeling system 5 is a system owned by an electricity transmission and distribution business operator. The wheeling system 5 communicates with a measuring device, such as a smart meter, installed at each electricity consumer via a network, and sequentially collects the electricity usage of each electricity consumer every unit time (for example, every 30 minutes). The wheeling system 5 associates the collected electricity usage per unit time with a supply point identification number that identifies the electricity usage location of each electricity consumer, and stores the data in a database as meter reading data. The wheeling system 5 generates the meter reading data in a general-purpose data format, such as XML, and uploads the data to a server accessible by the retail electricity business operator. The electricity transmission and distribution business operator is a business operator that manages a power transmission and distribution network, such as a power transmission line and a power distribution line, and transmits and distributes electricity from a power plant to an electricity consumer, and includes a general electricity transmission and distribution business operator, a power transmission business operator, and a specified electricity transmission and distribution business operator. The wheeling system 5 owned by the electricity transmission and distribution business operator is also called a wheeling business system or a wheeling-related data providing system.

[0019] FIG. 2 is a control block diagram of the customer management system 1 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the customer management system 1 includes a business processing unit 10, a data storage unit 20, a communication unit 30, an operation monitoring unit 40, and a log recording unit 50.

[0020] The business processing unit 10 is a functional unit that is configured with a processor such as a CPU or a GPU, a processing circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA, or both, and is realized by executing an application program. The business processing unit 10 includes a registration unit 101, a switching unit 102, a power amount acquisition unit 103, and a fee calculation unit 104.

[0021] The registration unit 101 performs registration processing to acquire customer information, supply point identification number, and rate plan information from multiple customer terminals 2. The switching unit 102 performs switching processing to transmit abolition agency information including customer information and supply point identification number to the switching support system 4 and cause the switching support system 4 to perform procedure processing related to switching of retail electricity suppliers. The power amount acquisition unit 103 performs power amount acquisition processing to acquire meter reading data from the wheeling system 5. The fee calculation unit 104 performs fee calculation processing to calculate the electricity fee for each customer based on the meter reading data and rate plan information.

[0022] The data storage unit 20 is configured with a non-volatile memory such as a ROM, a flash memory, a HDD, or an SSD. The data storage unit 20 stores customer data 201, billing destination data 202, application plan data 203, location information data 204, and facility information data 205. Details of each data will be described later.

[0023] The communication unit 30 is a network interface that transmits and receives data to and from the customer terminal 2, the electricity retailer terminal 3, the switching support system 4, and the wheeling system 5 via the network N. The communication means of the communication unit 30 may be either wired or wireless.

[0024] The operation monitoring unit 40 is a functional unit that is configured with a processor such as a CPU or GPU, a processing circuit such as an ASIC or FPGA, or both, and is realized by executing an application program. The operation monitoring unit 40 judges whether or not the processing results of the registration process, switching process, power amount acquisition process, and fee calculation process executed by the business processing unit 10 satisfy preset judgment conditions, and transmits the judgment results to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30.

[0025] The log recording unit 50 is configured with a non-volatile memory such as a ROM, a flash memory, a HDD, or an SSD. The log recording unit 50 records an operation monitoring log 501, a batch processing log 502, and an operation control log 503. Details will be described later.

[0026] (operation) The operation of the customer management system 1 according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of automatic processing of the customer management system 1 according to the first embodiment. 3, the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 sequentially executes each process of a registration process (S1), a switching process (S2), a power amount acquisition process (S3), and a fee calculation process (S4). The operation of each process will be described below.

[0027] [Registration process] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the registration process. When a customer is applying for a new contract to receive a new electricity supply, or when the customer is continuing to make changes to the contents of an existing contract, the customer operates the customer terminal 2 to display an application form from the retail electricity provider's website or the like, and enters information into the application form (S101).

[0028] The information entered in the application form includes customer information, a supply point identification number, and rate plan information. The customer information includes information for identifying the customer. For example, the customer information is information such as a name or corporate name, an address, a telephone number, an email address, a payment method, and a bank account number or a credit card number.

[0029] The supply point identification number is a 22-digit number that is assigned uniformly throughout the country to identify the place where electricity is used (the supply point). Note that instead of entering the supply point identification number, an image of the meter reading slip on which the supply point identification number is written may be attached.

[0030] The rate plan information is information for selecting a rate calculation system (rate plan) to be contracted with a retail electricity supplier. The rate plan is set in advance by the retail electricity supplier as a selection of multiple rate plans according to a combination of, for example, a basic rate, a metered rate, a region, and a contracted ampere number.

[0031] When the customer completes inputting information into the application form, the customer terminal 2 transmits the application information to the customer management system 1 (S102). The registration unit 101 of the customer management system 1 acquires the application information from the customer via the communication unit 30 (S103).

[0032] The registration unit 101 executes registration processing, generates customer data 201, billing destination data 202, and application plan data 203 based on application information from the customer, and stores them in the data storage unit 20 (S104). Note that the registration processing by the registration unit 101 may be performed sequentially every time application information is acquired from a customer, or may be performed by periodically processing application information from multiple customers in a lump.

[0033] 5 and 6 are diagrams showing the data structure of the data storage unit 20. FIG. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, customer data 201, billing destination data 202, and subscription plan data 203 are configured as structured data in which the attributes of each data are defined.

[0034] The customer data 201 is registered by adding a customer ID unique to each customer to information (basic information) that identifies the customer, such as the customer name, address, and telephone number.

[0035] The billing destination data 202 is registered by adding a billing destination ID unique to each billing destination to information specifying the billing destination for electricity charges, such as customer ID, name, payment method, and account number.

[0036] The application plan data 203 is registered by assigning a unique installation location ID to each supply point identification number to information specifying a fee system such as a supply point identification number, customer ID, plan ID, contracted amperes (kVA), basic fee, and metered fee. Here, the plan ID is an ID for identifying a plurality of fee plans set in advance by the retail electricity business operator in, for example, a master table. As shown in Fig. 6, items determined according to the plan contents such as the basic fee, metered fee, and fuel cost ID of the application plan data 203 are registered by referring to the application plan master table using the plan ID as a key.

[0037] Referring again to FIG. The operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 judges whether or not the processing result of the registration process satisfies a preset judgment condition (S105).

[0038] Judgment conditions are set for each item constituting the customer data 201, billing data 202, and application plan data 203. For example, in the customer data 201, if a required input item such as the customer name or corporate name is blank, it is judged to be abnormal. In the billing data 202, if the format of the number of digits in the account number or credit number is not within a predetermined range, it is judged to be abnormal. In the application plan data 203, if the plan ID is an ID that does not exist in the master table, it is judged to be abnormal.

[0039] The judgment conditions may also be set according to the correlation between the items constituting the customer data 201, the billing data 202, and the application plan data 203. For example, if the customer ID in the corporation / individual field of the customer data 201 is a corporation, and the plan ID in the application plan data 203 is an ID for an application plan for individuals, it is judged to be abnormal. Also, for example, if the payment method in the billing data 202 is direct debit, it is judged to be abnormal if the transfer account number and account name are required input items and are left blank, and if the payment method is credit, it is judged to be abnormal if the transfer account number and account name are not left blank.

[0040] Next, if the processing result determination in step S105 is normal (S106: YES), the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 proceeds to step S111.

[0041] On the other hand, if the processing result determination in step S105 is not normal (S106: NO), input data correction request information for requesting the customer to correct the abnormal data items is transmitted to the customer terminal 2 (S107).

[0042] The customer terminal 2 displays the information of the input data correction request on a display or the like. This informs the customer that the input data in the application form needs to be corrected. The customer then operates the customer terminal 2 to correct the input data in the application form (S108). When the customer has completed correcting the input data in the application form, the customer terminal 2 resends the application information to the customer management system 1 (S109).

[0043] When the registration unit 101 of the business processing unit 10 acquires the application information in step S109, it updates the customer data 201, the billing destination data 202, and the application plan data 203 based on the application information (S110).

[0044] In the above step S106, if the processing result is normal (S106: YES), and after step S110, the registration unit 101 of the business processing unit 10 completes the registration process (S111) and proceeds to the next step.

[0045] In this way, the information entered by the customer into the application form is registered in the data storage unit 20 by the registration process of the business processing unit 10. This reduces the effort required for the operator of the electricity retailer to enter information. Furthermore, if the information entered by the customer into the application form does not satisfy the judgment conditions, information requesting correction of the input data is displayed on the customer terminal 2. This allows the customer to understand that the input data in the application form needs to be corrected, and allows the customer to make corrections such as updating or deleting the abnormal data.

[0046] [Switching process] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the switching process. In the above-mentioned registration process, when an application procedure for a new contract for receiving a new supply of electricity is performed and new customer information is added to the customer data 201, the switching unit 102 of the business processing unit 10 performs a switching process for switching the retail electricity supplier from which the customer receives the supply of electricity. Note that the switching process by the switching unit 102 may be performed sequentially every time new customer information is added to the customer data 201, or may be performed by periodically batch processing multiple pieces of new customer information.

[0047] The switching unit 102 of the business processing unit 10 refers to the customer data 201 and the applied plan data 203, and transmits the customer information of the new customer and the discontinued agency information including the supply point identification number to the switching support system 4 (S201).

[0048] The switching support system 4 performs procedures for switching electricity retailers based on the abolition agency information (S202). Specifically, the switching support system 4 notifies the electricity retailer with which the customer currently has a contract (hereinafter, the "current electricity retailer") that the contract with the customer will be abolished. The current electricity retailer determines whether or not to permit the abolition of the current contract, and notifies the switching support system 4 of the determination result. The switching support system 4 notifies the electricity retailer with which the customer will make a new contract (hereinafter, the "new electricity retailer") of the notified determination result.

[0049] If the notified judgment result indicates that the current electricity retailer permits the abolition of the retail contract, the switching support system 4 applies to the electricity transmission and distribution company (general electricity transmission and distribution company) to start switching. Also, if the current electricity retailer permits the abolition of the retail contract, it applies to the switching support system 4 for the abolition of switching.

[0050] When an application to start switching or to stop switching is received, the electricity transmission and distribution business operator performs matching. Specifically, if an application to stop switching is received within a predetermined period of time from the start date of switching specified in the application to start switching, the electricity transmission and distribution business operator determines that matching has been established. In addition, if an application to start switching is received within a predetermined period of time from the stop date of switching specified in the application to stop switching, the electricity transmission and distribution business operator determines that matching has been established. When matching is established, switching is performed. In other words, the retail contract between the customer and the current retail electricity business operator is terminated, and a retail contract between the customer and the new retail electricity business operator is established.

[0051] The switching support system 4 transmits information on the switching procedure result, which is the result of switching (matching), to the customer management system 1 (S203). The information on the switching procedure result includes facility information associated with the supply point identification number. This facility information includes address data, contract details, etc., corresponding to the supply point identification number.

[0052] The operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 judges whether the processing result of the switching process satisfies a preset judgment condition (S204). The judgment condition is whether the switching procedure result notified from the switching support system 4, such as a notice from the current retail electricity supplier that the contract cannot be terminated, a mismatch between the switching start date and the termination date, or a mismatch of the supply point identification number, is normally completed.

[0053] Next, the operation monitoring unit 40 records an operation monitoring log 501 and a batch processing log 502 in the log recording unit 50 (S205). The operation monitoring log 501 is a log that records the judgment results by the operation monitoring unit 40. The batch processing log 502 is a log that records the execution results for each program executed by the business processing unit 10.

[0054] 8 and 9 are diagrams showing the data structure of the log recording unit 50. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, an operation monitoring log 501 and a batch processing log 502 are composed of structured data in which the attributes of each data are defined.

[0055] In the operation monitoring log 501, data such as the log ID, log category, content of the judgment result, and the occurrence date are recorded. The log category is determined, for example, according to the item judged as abnormal by the operation monitoring unit 40 and the judgment condition. For example, if data of the item necessary for processing exists but the range of the data does not meet the condition, it is classified as an error, and if data of the item necessary for processing does not exist, it is classified as a warning.

[0056] The batch processing log 502 records data such as the execution start time of a program executed by the business processing unit 10, the log level, the name of the executed program, the execution result, and the error content. The log level is classified according to the execution result of the program. For example, "INFO" is information that is left to make it easier to understand the behavior later, such as the program status, variable contents, and the number of data to be processed. Also, for example, "ERROR" is information when processing on a program is interrupted or stopped.

[0057] Referring again to FIG. The business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 transmits information on the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30 (S206).

[0058] The electricity retailer terminal 3 displays the information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like as operation monitoring results (S207). This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to know whether the switching processing operation was performed normally or not.

[0059] Next, if the operation monitoring results are not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer inputs operation instructions to resolve this from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S208). For example, if a certain data item is determined to be in error in the operation monitoring log 501, the operator manually inputs an operation to update the data to normal data. The electricity retailer terminal 3 transmits the operation information input by the operator to the customer management system 1 (S209).

[0060] After the above step S206, if the processing result judgment of step S204 is normal (S210: YES), the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 proceeds to step S215.

[0061] On the other hand, if the processing result determination in step S204 is not normal, the processing unit 10 waits for an operation command to be sent from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S210: NO).

[0062] When the switching unit 102 of the business processing unit 10 acquires the operation in step S209, it transmits the abolition agency information again based on the information of the operation (S211). That is, the abolition agency information transmitted in step S201 has some defect that prevents switching from being performed normally, and after updating this to correct information by the operation of the operator of the retail electricity supplier, it causes the switching support system 4 to perform the switching procedure again.

[0063] The switching unit 102 of the business processing unit 10 records the operation information acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3 as an operation log 503 in the log recording unit 50 (S212).

[0064] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the data structure of the log recording unit 50. As shown in FIG. As shown in Fig. 10, the operational operation log 503 is composed of structured data in which the attributes of each data are defined. In the operational operation log 503, data such as an operation table, an operation type, an operation date, and data before the operation is performed are recorded. In the operation table, the name of the data table that was the target of the operational operation among various data stored in the data storage unit 20 is recorded. In the operation type, whether the operational operation is a data update or a data (record) deletion is recorded. In the data before the operation is performed, the content of the data before the operational operation is performed is represented. For example, each data item is represented in a format such as a comma-separated format.

[0065] Referring again to FIG. The switching support system 4 performs the procedure for switching the electricity retailer based on the abolition agency information transmitted in step S211 in the same manner as described above (S213). The switching support system 4 transmits information on the switching procedure result, which is the result of switching (matching), to the customer management system 1 (S214).

[0066] In the above step S210, if the processing result is normal (S210: YES), and after step S214, the switching unit 102 generates location information data 204 and facility information data 205 based on the information of the switching procedure result, and stores them in the data storage unit 20 (S215).

[0067] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the data structure of the data storage unit 20. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, the location information data 204 and the facility information data 205 are configured as structured data in which the attributes of each data are defined.

[0068] The location information data 204 is registered with information that matches the customer, such as a supply point identification number, customer ID, name, and address, with the location (installation location) from which the customer receives electricity supply, as well as information such as the contract conclusion date for the switching procedure, the start date of electricity supply, and the progress status of the switching procedure in the switching support system 4, with an installation location ID unique to each installation location.

[0069] The equipment information data 205 registers equipment information corresponding to the supply point identification number, such as contract details such as the contract type and contract current, details related to the electrical equipment such as the supply method of the power to be supplied and the power factor, and details related to the meter reading date on which the meter reading data is obtained.

[0070] Referring again to FIG. After step S215, the switching unit 102 of the business processing unit 10 completes the switching process (S216) and proceeds to the next step.

[0071] In this way, when an application procedure for a new contract to receive a new supply of electricity is performed in the above-mentioned registration process, the switching process is executed by the switching unit 102. Then, the switching unit 102 causes the switching support system 4 to perform the switching procedure based on information such as the customer information and the supply point identification number registered in the data storage unit 20. This reduces the effort required for the operator of the electricity retailer to input information. Furthermore, if the switching procedure by the switching support system 4 is not completed normally, the operation monitoring result is displayed on the electricity retailer terminal 3. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to understand the operation monitoring result and perform operation operations such as updating or deleting abnormal data.

[0072] In addition, in this switching process, it may be determined whether the customer data 201, billing data 202, and application plan data 203 generated in the above-mentioned registration process are normal or not, and information on the operation monitoring log 501 and batch processing log 502 including this determination result may be transmitted to the electricity retailer terminal 3.

[0073] Specifically, the operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 determines whether the customer data 201, the billing destination data 202, and the applied plan data 203 satisfy preset determination conditions. Next, the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 transmits information on the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30.

[0074] The electricity retailer terminal 3 displays the information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like as operation monitoring results. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to know whether the customer data 201, billing destination data 202, and applied plan data 203 are normal or not.

[0075] Next, if the operation monitoring results are not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer inputs an operation to resolve this from the electricity retailer terminal 3. For example, if a certain data item is determined to be in error in the operation monitoring log 501, an operation is manually input to update the data to normal data. The electricity retailer terminal 3 transmits information on the operation input by the operator to the customer management system 1. Upon acquiring the operation, the registration unit 101 of the business processing unit 10 updates the customer data 201, the billing destination data 202, and the application plan data 203 based on the operation.

[0076] In this way, when the customer data 201, billing destination data 202, and applied plan data 203 do not satisfy the judgment conditions, the operation monitoring results are displayed on the electricity retailer terminal 3. Therefore, the operator of the electricity retailer can grasp the operation monitoring results and perform operation operations such as updating or deleting abnormal data.

[0077] [Electricity amount acquisition process] FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the operation of the power amount acquisition process. The power amount acquiring unit 103 of the business processing unit 10 performs a power amount acquiring process of acquiring meter reading data on the amount of power used for each supply point identification number from the wheeling system 5 at a predetermined timing.

[0078] The power amount acquiring unit 103 transmits a meter reading data request for requesting the wheeling system 5 to download meter reading data (S301). The meter reading data request includes, for example, an electricity retailer code for identifying the electricity retailer. If a communication error occurs, the power amount acquiring unit 103 automatically retries.

[0079] When the wheeling system 5 receives the meter reading data request, it performs authentication based on the electricity retailer code, and downloads the meter reading data corresponding to the supply point identification number of the customer with whom the electricity retailer has a contract to the customer management system 1 (S302). The meter reading data is data that associates the amount of electricity usage per unit time collected by the wheeling system 5 with the supply point identification number of each customer, and is generated in a general-purpose data format such as XML.

[0080] The operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 judges whether the processing result of the power amount acquisition satisfies a preset judgment condition (S303). The judgment condition is, for example, whether the downloaded meter reading data is normal, such as whether it conforms to a predetermined data format, whether there are any missing parts in the meter reading data, whether the meter reading data of all customers currently under contract with the retail electricity supplier is included, etc.

[0081] Next, the operation monitoring unit 40 records the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 in the log recording unit 50 (S304). The data structures of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 are as described above.

[0082] The business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 transmits information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30 (S305).

[0083] The electricity retailer terminal 3 displays the information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like as operation monitoring results (S306). This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to know whether the operation of the power amount acquisition process was executed normally or not.

[0084] Next, if the operation monitoring result is not normal, the operator of the retail electricity business requests the electricity transmission and distribution business to correct the meter reading data in order to resolve the abnormality (S307). The operator of the retail electricity business requests the electricity transmission and distribution business to correct the meter reading data by contacting the wheeling system contact point of the electricity transmission and distribution business, for example, by email or telephone.

[0085] When e-mail is used, when a predetermined operational input is performed by an operator, the electricity retailer terminal 3 uses an automatic e-mail sending function to send information requesting correction of the meter reading data to the contact point of the wheeling system 5 (S308). For example, the content of this e-mail may be generated by combining information indicating anomalies in the meter reading data from information on the operation monitoring results acquired from the customer management system 1 with a fixed phrase.

[0086] In this way, if there is any defect in the meter reading data acquired in step S302, the operator of the retail electricity supplier will become aware of this and request the electricity transmission and distribution supplier to correct the defective meter reading data.

[0087] When the electricity transmission and distribution company receives a request from the electricity retailer to correct the meter reading data, it corrects the meter reading data in accordance with the request. The wheeling system 5 uploads the corrected meter reading data to a server accessible by the electricity retailer. Then, when the wheeling system 5 receives another meter reading data request from the customer management system 1, it downloads the meter reading data to the customer management system 1 in accordance with the meter reading data request (S309). If a communication error occurs, the energy acquisition unit 103 automatically retries.

[0088] After the above step S305, if the processing result determination of step S303 is normal (S310: YES), the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 proceeds to step S311.

[0089] On the other hand, if the processing result judgment in step S303 is not normal, the business processing unit 10 waits for the completion of downloading the corrected meter reading data (S310: NO).

[0090] In the above step S310, if the processing result is normal (S310: YES) and after step S309, the power amount acquiring unit 103 of the business processing unit 10 completes the power amount acquiring process (S311) and proceeds to the next step.

[0091] In this way, in the energy amount acquisition process, the energy amount acquisition unit 103 acquires meter reading data on the energy usage for each supply point identification number from the wheeling system 5. This reduces the effort required for the operator of the electricity retailer to manually download meter reading data. Furthermore, if the meter reading data acquired from the wheeling system 5 is abnormal, the operation monitoring result is displayed on the electricity retailer terminal 3. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to understand the operation monitoring result, request the electricity transmission and distribution company to correct the abnormal meter reading data, and acquire the corrected meter reading data from the wheeling system 5.

[0092] [Fee calculation process] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of the fee calculation process. The fee calculation unit 104 of the business processing unit 10 performs fee calculation processing to calculate the electricity fee for each customer based on the meter reading data and rate plan information at a predetermined timing, such as once a month.

[0093] The fee calculation unit 104 refers to the meter reading data acquired in the above-mentioned power amount acquisition process, and extracts the power usage corresponding to the supply point identification number of each customer. The fee calculation unit 104 also refers to the applied plan data 203, and extracts the rate plan information (basic rate, metered rate, etc.) corresponding to each customer. Then, the fee calculation unit 104 calculates the electricity fee for each customer based on the power usage and the rate plan information (S401).

[0094] For example, when calculating a monthly usage charge, the fee calculation unit 104 calculates the usage charge by tallying up the amount of power usage for the month and multiplying the monthly amount of power usage by the unit price of the usage charge. For example, if the fee plan has different unit prices depending on the time of day (nighttime rates, etc.), the electricity usage in the meter reading data is divided according to the time of day, the amount of power usage for each time period is tallied, and then multiplied by the unit price for that time period. In addition, the fee calculation unit 104 performs calculations such as applying various discounts and adding additional charges according to the fee plan.

[0095] Next, the fee calculation unit 104 generates sales slip data based on the calculation result of step S401 (S402). The sales slip data is composed of customer information and information on the breakdown of electricity charges for each customer. For example, the sales slip data is composed of customer information such as the customer's name and address, information on the period covered by the fee calculation (e.g., one month), and information on the breakdown of charges such as the basic fee, metered fee, and various additional fees.

[0096] The operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 judges whether the processing result of the fee calculation satisfies a preset judgment condition (S403). The judgment condition is, for example, whether the calculation of the electricity fee is normal, such as whether the fee for each fee item according to the fee plan has been calculated.

[0097] Next, the operation monitoring unit 40 records the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 in the log recording unit 50 (S404). The data structures of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 are as described above.

[0098] The fee calculation unit 104 of the customer management system 1 transmits information on the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30 (S405).

[0099] The electricity retailer terminal 3 displays the information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like as operation monitoring results (S406). This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to know whether the fee calculation process was performed normally or not.

[0100] Next, if the operation monitoring results are not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer inputs operation instructions to resolve this from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S407). For example, if the operation monitoring log 501 determines that an error has occurred in which the unit price of the metered charge has not been set and the metered charge cannot be calculated, the operator manually inputs an operation to add unit price information of the metered charge to the application plan data 203. The electricity retailer terminal 3 transmits the operation information input by the operator to the customer management system 1 (S408).

[0101] After step S405, if the processing result determination of step S403 is normal (S409: YES), the fee calculation unit 104 of the customer management system 1 proceeds to step S413.

[0102] On the other hand, if the processing result determination in step S403 is not normal, the fee calculation unit 104 waits for an operation command to be sent from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S409: NO).

[0103] When the fee calculation unit 104 of the business processing unit 10 acquires the operation in step S408, it performs fee calculation again based on the information on the operation (S410). In addition, the fee calculation unit 104 updates the sales slip data based on the result of the recalculation (S411).

[0104] The fee calculation unit 104 of the business processing unit 10 records the operation information acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3 in the log recording unit 50 as an operation log 503 (S412). The data structure of the operation log 503 is as described above.

[0105] In the above step S409, if the processing result is normal (S409: YES), and after step S412, the fee calculation unit 104 transmits the sales slip data as billing information to the customer terminal 2 (S413). The customer terminal 2 displays the billing information from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like (S414). This allows the customer to understand the electricity fee to be billed to him or her.

[0106] After step S413, the fee calculation section 104 of the business processing section 10 completes the fee calculation process (S415).

[0107] In this way, in the fee calculation process, the fee calculation unit 104 calculates the electricity fee for each customer based on the meter reading data and the fee plan information. This reduces the effort required of the electricity retailer's operator to manually calculate fees. Furthermore, if the result of the fee calculation by the fee calculation unit 104 is abnormal, the operation monitoring result is displayed on the electricity retailer's terminal 3. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to grasp the operation monitoring result, identify the cause of the abnormal fee calculation, and correct the data such as the applied plan data 203 by operating the system, thereby allowing the fee calculation to be performed again.

[0108] As described above, in the present embodiment 1, the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 sequentially executes each process of registration process, switching process, power amount acquisition process, and fee calculation process. Therefore, a series of business processes in the electricity retailer can be executed by the customer management system 1, and the business efficiency of the electricity retailer can be improved.

[0109] Furthermore, in each of the switching process, the power amount acquisition process, and the fee calculation process, the operation monitoring unit 40 outputs the operation monitoring results to the electricity retailer terminal 3. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to grasp the operation monitoring results in each process. Furthermore, if the determination result of the operation monitoring result is not normal, the operator can perform operation operations to correct this.

[0110] Embodiment 2 The configuration and operation of the customer management system 1 according to the second embodiment will be described below, focusing on the differences from the first embodiment. Note that the same components as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals and the description will be omitted.

[0111] (System Configuration) FIG. 14 is a schematic configuration diagram of a customer management system 1 for electricity retailers according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 14, the customer management system 1 is communicatively connected to a payment system 6 via a network N such as the Internet. The payment system 6 is, for example, a system owned by a payment service provider such as a financial institution such as a bank, a credit card company, or an electronic money company. The payment system 6 may be, for example, a bank system of a bank if the payment service provider is a bank, or may be a credit card system of a credit card company if the payment service provider is a credit card company. The bank system, for example, manages account information of a bank account and performs transfer processing and reference processing for this bank account. The payment system 6 may also be a system of a payment agency that acts as an intermediary between a payment institution such as a financial institution and a retail electricity provider.

[0112] FIG. 15 is a control block diagram of the customer management system 1 according to the second embodiment. As shown in Fig. 15, the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 includes a billing unit 105 and a collection unit 106. The billing unit 105 transmits information on the electricity fee for each customer calculated by the fee calculation unit 104 to the payment system 6, and performs a billing process to have the payment system 6 carry out a payment procedure for the electricity fee. The collection unit 106 acquires a result of the payment procedure from the payment system 6, and performs a collection process to output information on whether the electricity fee for each customer has been paid to the electricity retailer terminal 3.

[0113] (operation) The operation of the customer management system 1 according to the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the operation of automatic processing of the customer management system 1 according to the second embodiment. As shown in Fig. 16, the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 sequentially executes each process of registration process (S1), switching process (S2), power amount acquisition process (S3), fee calculation process (S4), billing process (S5), and collection process (S6). Steps S1 to S4 are the same as those in the above-mentioned embodiment 1. Below, the operations of the billing process (S5) and collection process (S6) will be described respectively.

[0114] [Billing Processing] FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing the operation of the billing process. The billing unit 105 of the customer management system 1 references the sales slip data generated by the fee calculation unit 104, and the customer data 201 and billing destination data 202 stored in the data storage unit 20, and generates payment request data including information necessary for the payment procedure, such as information on the amount to be paid, customer information, billing destination information such as the payment method and account number, and ID information identifying the electricity retailer. The billing unit 105 then transmits the payment request data to the payment system 6 (S501).

[0115] When the payment system 6 receives the payment request data, it determines whether the information constituting the payment request data is complete or incomplete, and notifies the result to the customer management system 1 as data acceptance information (S502).

[0116] The operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 judges whether the processing result of the payment request data transmission satisfies a preset judgment condition (S503). The judgment condition is, for example, whether the data reception information notified from the payment system 6 is normal or not.

[0117] Next, the operation monitoring unit 40 records the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 in the log recording unit 50 (S504). The data structures of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 are as described above.

[0118] The billing unit 105 of the customer management system 1 transmits information on the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30 (S505).

[0119] The electricity retailer terminal 3 displays the information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like as operation monitoring results (S506). This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to know whether the operation of the payment request data transmission process was executed normally or not.

[0120] Next, if the operation monitoring results are not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer inputs operation instructions to resolve this from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S507). For example, if the operation monitoring log 501 determines that there is an error in the account number in the payment request data, the operator manually inputs an operation to correct the account number. The electricity retailer terminal 3 transmits the information on the operation input by the operator to the customer management system 1 (S508).

[0121] After the above step S505, if the processing result judgment in step S503 is normal (S509: YES), the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 proceeds to step S513.

[0122] On the other hand, if the processing result determination in step S503 is not normal, the processing unit 10 waits for an operation command to be sent from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S509: NO).

[0123] When the billing unit 105 of the business processing unit 10 acquires the operation in step S508, it resends the payment request data based on the information on the operation (S510). That is, if the payment request data sent in step S501 has some defect and the operation of the payment request data sending process is not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer will understand this, correct the defective payment request data, and send the payment request data again.

[0124] The billing unit 105 of the business processing unit 10 records the operation information acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3 as an operation log 503 in the log recording unit 50 (S511). The data structure of the operation log 503 is as described above.

[0125] When the payment system 6 accepts the payment request data from the customer management system 1, it executes a payment procedure such as account transfer or credit card payment based on the payment request data (S512). The payment system 6 sends a notification to the customer management system 1 that the payment procedure has been accepted (S513).

[0126] When the billing section 105 of the business processing section 10 receives a notice from the settlement system 6 that the settlement procedure has been accepted, it completes the billing process (S514) and proceeds to the next step.

[0127] In this way, in the billing process, the billing unit 105 transmits payment request data including electricity fee information for each customer to the payment system 6, and causes the payment system 6 to carry out the electricity fee payment procedure. This reduces the effort required of the electricity retailer's operator to manually carry out the payment procedure. Furthermore, if the payment request data transmitted to the payment system 6 is not normal, the operation monitoring result is displayed on the electricity retailer's terminal 3. This allows the electricity retailer's operator to grasp the operation monitoring result, perform operation operations to correct the abnormal payment request data, and resend the payment request data to the payment system 6.

[0128] [Storage Processing] FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the operation of the storage process. When the payment procedure is completed, the payment system 6 notifies the result to the customer management system 1 (S601). The notification of the result of the payment procedure by the payment system 6 includes, for example, customer information, information on whether the electricity bill of the customer has been deposited into the account of the retail electricity supplier, and information on the date of deposit.

[0129] When the receiving unit 106 of the customer management system 1 receives notification of the result of the payment procedure from the payment system 6, it imports the result of the payment procedure (S602). Based on the imported result of the payment procedure, the receiving unit 106 settles the payment by flagging the sales slip data for each customer for which the electricity bill has already been paid, indicating that the payment has been made (S603). The receiving unit 106 then transmits information on whether the electricity bill for each customer has been paid to the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S604). This allows the electricity retailer to know whether the electricity bill for each customer has been paid.

[0130] The collection unit 106 of the customer management system 1 performs dunning processing for sales slips for which the electricity bill has not been paid (S605). For example, the collection unit 106 performs dunning processing when the electricity bill is not paid within a predetermined period from the payment due date set for each sales slip. The collection unit 106 generates dunning request data that includes information necessary for the dunning procedure, such as amount information, customer information, billing information such as payment method and account number, and ID information that identifies the relevant electricity retailer, corresponding to the sales slip for which dunning is requested, and transmits the data to the settlement system 6 (S606).

[0131] When the settlement system 6 receives the dunning request data, it determines whether there are any deficiencies or defects in the information constituting the dunning request data, and notifies the result to the customer management system 1 as data acceptance information (S607).

[0132] The operation monitoring unit 40 of the customer management system 1 judges whether the processing result of the dunning request data transmission satisfies a preset judgment condition (S608). The judgment condition is, for example, whether the data reception information notified from the payment system 6 is normal or not.

[0133] Next, the operation monitoring unit 40 records the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 in the log recording unit 50 (S609). The data structures of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 are as described above.

[0134] The storage unit 106 of the customer management system 1 transmits information on the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 to the electricity retailer terminal 3 via the communication unit 30 (S610).

[0135] The electricity retailer terminal 3 displays the information of the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 from the customer management system 1 on a display or the like as operation monitoring results (S611). This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to know whether the operation of the dunning request data transmission process was executed normally or not.

[0136] Next, if the operation monitoring results are not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer inputs operation instructions to resolve this from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S612). For example, if the operation monitoring log 501 determines that there is an error in the account number in the dunning request data, the operator manually inputs an operation to correct the account number. The electricity retailer terminal 3 transmits the information on the operation input by the operator to the customer management system 1 (S613).

[0137] After the above step S610, if the processing result judgment in step S608 is normal (S614: YES), the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 proceeds to step S618.

[0138] On the other hand, if the processing result determination in step S608 is not normal, the processing unit 10 waits for an operation command to be sent from the electricity retailer terminal 3 (S614: NO).

[0139] When the storage unit 106 of the business processing unit 10 acquires the operation in step S613, it retransmits the dunning request data based on the information on the operation (S615). That is, if there is some defect in the dunning request data transmitted in step S606 and the operation of the dunning request data transmission process is not normal, the operator of the electricity retailer grasps this, corrects the defective dunning request data, and transmits the dunning request data again.

[0140] The storage unit 106 of the business processing unit 10 records the operation information acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3 in the log recording unit 50 as an operation log 503 (S616). The data structure of the operation log 503 is as described above.

[0141] When the settlement system 6 receives the dunning request data from the customer management system 1, it executes the dunning procedures such as sending a notice to the customer to pay the electricity bill and adding a late fee based on the dunning request data (S617). The settlement system 6 sends a notice to the customer management system 1 that the dunning procedures have been received (S618).

[0142] When the receiving unit 106 of the business processing unit 10 receives a notification from the settlement system 6 that the dunning procedure has been accepted, the receiving unit 106 completes the receiving process (S619).

[0143] In this way, in the collection process, the collection unit 106 obtains the results of the payment procedure from the payment system 6, and performs payment clearing for sales slips for which the electricity charges for each customer have been paid. Furthermore, if the electricity charges are not paid, the collection unit 106 transmits dunning request data to the payment system 6, causing the payment system 6 to perform the electricity charge dunning procedure. This reduces the effort required for the operator of the electricity retailer to manually clear the payment and perform the dunning procedure.

[0144] Furthermore, if the dunning request data sent to the settlement system 6 is not normal, the operation monitoring result is displayed on the electricity retailer terminal 3. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to grasp the operation monitoring result, perform operation operations to correct the abnormal dunning request data, and resend the dunning request data to the settlement system 6.

[0145] As described above, in the present embodiment 2, the business processing unit 10 of the customer management system 1 sequentially executes each process of registration process, switching process, power amount acquisition process, fee calculation process, billing process, and collection process. Therefore, a series of business processes in the electricity retailer can be executed by the customer management system 1, and the business efficiency of the electricity retailer can be improved.

[0146] Furthermore, in each of the switching process, the power amount acquisition process, the fee calculation process, the billing process, and the collection process, the operation monitoring unit 40 outputs the operation monitoring results to the electricity retailer terminal 3. This allows the operator of the electricity retailer to grasp the operation monitoring results in each process. Furthermore, if the judgment result of the operation monitoring result is not normal, an operation operation can be performed to correct this.

[0147] Embodiment 3 The customer management system 1 according to the third embodiment corrects data by automatic correction processing when the determination result by operational monitoring is not normal. The configuration and operation of the customer management system 1 according to the third embodiment will be described below, focusing on the differences from the first and second embodiments. Note that the same components as those in the first and second embodiments are given the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

[0148] FIG. 19 is a control block diagram of the customer management system 1 according to the third embodiment. 19, the customer management system 1 according to the third embodiment includes an automatic correction processing unit 60 and a trained model 70. The automatic correction processing unit 60 is a functional unit that is configured with a processor such as a CPU or a GPU, a processing circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA, or both, and is realized by executing an application program. The automatic correction processing unit 60 includes a model generation unit 601, an inference processing unit 602, and a data approximation value determination processing unit 603.

[0149] FIG. 20 is a control block diagram relating to the generation of the trained model 70. As shown in Figure 20, the model generation unit 601 generates a trained model 70 trained using training data L including customer data 201, billing data 202, application plan data 203, location information data 204, equipment information data 205, and operation log 503.

[0150] The model generation unit 601 performs supervised learning, for example, by using an arbitrary data item as a response variable among the data items constituting the training data L and using the other data items as explanatory variables. In the supervised learning, the model generation unit 601 performs learning by sequentially changing the data items that are used as response variables among the data items constituting the training data L, thereby generating a plurality of trained models 70 and enabling inference of each data item.

[0151] FIG. 21 is a control block diagram relating to the automatic correction process. As a result of executing each of the above-mentioned registration processing, switching processing, power amount acquisition processing, and fee calculation processing, the automatic correction processing unit 60 determines, as a target data item for automatic correction, the data item for which the judgment result of the operation monitoring unit 40 does not satisfy the judgment condition based on the operation monitoring log 501 and the batch processing log 502 recorded in the log recording unit 50. As shown in Fig. 21, the inference processing unit 602 obtains the target data item for automatic correction based on the execution result of each process, and infers the target data item for automatic correction using the trained model 70.

[0152] The data approximation value determination unit 603 determines the similarity between the result of inference by the inference processing unit 602 and the learning data L. Here, the similarity is determined using any method, such as the k-means method using clustering or the shortest distance method.

[0153] If the similarity exceeds a preset similarity, the data approximation determination processing unit 603 automatically corrects the data in the data storage unit 20 using the inference result obtained by the inference processing unit 602 .

[0154] On the other hand, if the similarity is equal to or lower than a preset similarity, the data approximation determination processing unit 603 outputs an instruction to correct the data item to the electricity retailer terminal 3. Upon receiving the instruction to correct the data item, the electricity retailer terminal 3 has an operator of the electricity retailer manually input the corrected data for the data item and transmits it to the customer management system 1. The data approximation determination processing unit 603 updates the data in the data storage unit 20 using the corrected data acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3.

[0155] Furthermore, the model generation unit 601 adds the corrected data acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3 to the training data L, and performs re-training of the trained model 70.

[0156] As described above, in the third embodiment, the inference processing unit 602 acquires target data items for automatic correction based on the results of each process execution, and infers the target data items for automatic correction using the trained model 70. Therefore, when the determination result of the operation monitoring result is abnormal, the operation input by the operator of the electricity retailer can be omitted, and the business efficiency of the electricity retailer can be improved.

[0157] Furthermore, the data approximation determination processing unit 603 determines the similarity between the result of inference by the inference processing unit 602 and the learning data L, and outputs a correction instruction for data items whose similarity is equal to or lower than a preset similarity to the electricity retailer terminal 3. Therefore, when the inference accuracy of the inference processing unit 602 is low, data can be updated based on operation input by the operator of the electricity retailer.

[0158] Furthermore, the model generation unit 601 adds the corrected data acquired from the electricity retailer terminal 3 to the learning data L, and re-learns the learned model 70. Therefore, for data items for which the inference accuracy of the inference processing unit 602 is low, the learned model 70 can be re-learned using the operation input by the electricity retailer's operator as training data, and the inference accuracy of the inference processing unit 602 can be improved. [Explanation of symbols]

[0159] 1 customer management system, 2 customer terminal, 3 retail electricity supplier terminal, 4 switching support system, 5 wheeling system, 6 payment system, 10 business processing unit, 20 data storage unit, 30 communication unit, 40 operation monitoring unit, 50 log recording unit, 60 automatic correction processing unit, 70 trained model, 101 registration unit, 102 switching unit, 103 energy amount acquisition unit, 104 fee calculation unit, 105 billing unit, 106 collection unit, 201 customer data, 202 billing destination data, 203 application plan data, 204 location information data, 205 facility information data, 501 operation monitoring log, 502 batch processing log, 503 operation operation log, 601 model generation unit, 602 inference processing unit, 603 data approximation value judgment processing unit, L training data, N network.

Claims

1. a registration unit that performs a registration process of acquiring customer information, a supply point identification number, and rate plan information from a plurality of customer terminals, and storing in a storage unit customer data including the customer information and having information for identifying a customer, billing destination data including the customer information and having information for identifying a billing destination for the customer's electricity bill, and applied plan data including the rate plan information and the supply point identification number and having information relating to the rate system for the customer's electricity bill; a switching unit that performs a switching process of transmitting abolition agency information including the customer information and the supply point identification number to a switching support system owned by an organization for cross-regional coordination of transmission operators, causing the switching support system to carry out procedures related to the switching of the electricity retailer, and storing in the storage unit location information data including the customer information and the supply point identification number and having information related to the switching procedures of the electricity retailer, and equipment information data including the supply point identification number and having information related to the electrical equipment corresponding to the supply point identification number; an electric energy acquisition unit that performs an electric energy acquisition process to acquire meter reading data regarding the electric energy usage for each supply point identification number from a wheeling system owned by an electric power transmission and distribution company; a fee calculation unit that performs fee calculation processing to calculate an electricity fee for each customer based on the meter reading data and the fee plan information; an operation monitoring unit which, in the registration process, uses the presence or absence or data format of each item constituting the customer data, the billing destination data, and the applied plan data as a judgment condition, in the switching process, uses whether or not a procedural process for switching the electricity retailer has been completed normally as a judgment condition, in the energy amount acquisition process, uses whether or not the meter reading data acquired from the wheeling system is normal as a judgment condition, and in the fee calculation process, uses whether or not the calculation of the electricity fee is normal as a judgment condition, and judges whether or not the judgment conditions are met in each of the registration process, the switching process, the energy amount acquisition process, and the fee calculation process, and outputs a judgment result of whether or not the judgment condition is met in at least the switching process and the fee calculation process to a electricity retailer terminal, and acquires an operation for satisfying the judgment condition from the electricity retailer terminal if the judgment result does not satisfy the judgment condition; a model generation unit that generates a trained model trained using training data including the customer data, the billing destination data, the application plan data, the location information data, the facility information data, and information on the operation; an inference processing unit that uses the trained model to infer data items, among the customer data, the billing destination data, the application plan data, the location information data, and the facility information data, for which the judgment result of the operation monitoring unit does not satisfy the judgment condition; and A customer management system for retail electricity suppliers.

2. a billing unit that transmits information on the electricity fee for each customer calculated by the fee calculation unit to a payment system owned by a payment service provider and causes the payment system to carry out a payment procedure for the electricity fee; a storage unit that acquires a result of the payment procedure from the payment system and outputs information on whether the electricity bill for each customer has been paid to a retail electricity business operator terminal; The customer management system for retail electricity suppliers according to claim 1 , comprising:

3. a data approximation determination processing unit that determines a similarity between a result of the inference by the inference processing unit and the learning data, and outputs a correction instruction for a data item whose similarity is equal to or lower than a preset similarity to a retail electricity business operator terminal; The model generation unit adds the corrected data acquired from the electricity retailer terminal to the training data, and retrains the trained model. The customer management system for retail electricity suppliers according to claim 1 or 2.

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