Information processing device, chat control method, and chat control program

Abstract

To provide an information processing device, a method for controlling a voice chat, and a voice chat control program which can reduce preventable mistakes due to sleepiness.SOLUTION: The information processing device includes a determination unit and a changing unit. The determination unit determines whether a user is feeling sleepiness on the basis of a chatbot which asks a question to the user by a voice chat and receives an answer and information on a dialogue with the user. The changing unit changes the characteristics of voice of the chatbot if the user has been determined to be feeling sleepiness.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, a voice chat control method, and a voice chat control program. [Background technology]

[0002] In support work at a support center or the like, replies are sent to customers by email or the like. When replying to emails or the like, staff members work in pairs to check the emails to prevent problems with the content, erroneous delivery, erroneous attachment of documents, and other mistakes. In such checking processes, there is a possibility that check errors will occur due to reduced concentration or fatigue during late-night work under a two-shift system or overnight work. In addition, electronic devices have been proposed that can prevent operational errors when drowsiness is detected. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-6957 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When replying to e-mails, etc., one of the pair of people checking the reply could be replaced by a chatbot to check the reply via voice chat. However, if the person in charge is sleepy, for example, the chatbot will treat the reply as the check being completed if there is a reply, even if the person in charge responds appropriately to the question. This can lead to the person in charge checking the reply while still sleepy, resulting in careless mistakes.

[0005] One aspect of the present invention is to provide an information processing device, a voice chat control method, and a voice chat control program that can suppress careless mistakes caused by drowsiness. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In one aspect, the information processing device includes a determination unit and a change unit. When a user sends an email to a customer, Between users Dechi By Chat Follow the scenario in the checklist questions a chatbot that asks questions and receives answers based on information about the interaction with the user; For each of the above questions The change unit determines whether the user is sleepy. When the change unit determines that the user is sleepy, Interfering with the user's checking process do. Effect of the Invention

[0007] It can help prevent careless mistakes caused by drowsiness. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the check item storage unit. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the response time table storage unit. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a voice chat control process according to the embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a computer that executes a voice chat control program. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, the information processing device, the voice chat control method, and the voice chat control program disclosed in the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the disclosed technology is not limited to the following embodiments. In addition, the following embodiments may be appropriately combined within a range that does not cause a contradiction. EXAMPLES

[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of an information processing device according to an embodiment. In the information processing device 100, a chatbot that performs voice chat with a user who is, for example, a person in charge of a support center, is operating, and the chatbot asks questions to the user through voice chat and receives answers. The information processing device 100 determines whether the user is sleepy or not based on information regarding a dialogue between the chatbot and the user. When the information processing device 100 determines that the user is sleepy, it changes the characteristics of the voice of the chatbot. This enables the information processing device 100 to suppress careless mistakes caused by sleepiness.

[0011] 1, the information processing device 100 includes a communication unit 110, a display unit 111, an operation unit 112, an input / output unit 113, a storage unit 120, and a control unit 130. Note that the information processing device 100 may include various functional units of known computers other than the functional units shown in FIG. 1, such as various input devices and audio output devices.

[0012] The communication unit 110 is realized by, for example, a network interface card (NIC) or the like. The communication unit 110 is connected to other information processing devices by wired or wireless connection via a network (not shown) and is a communication interface that controls communication of information with the other information processing devices. The communication unit 110 receives, for example, check item data from the other information processing devices. The communication unit 110 outputs the received check item data to the control unit 130.

[0013] The display unit 111 is a display device for displaying various types of information. The display unit 111 is realized by, for example, a liquid crystal display as a display device. The display unit 111 displays various screens such as a display screen input from the control unit 130.

[0014] The operation unit 112 is an input device that accepts various operations from a user of the information processing device 100. The operation unit 112 is realized, for example, by a keyboard, a mouse, or the like as an input device. The operation unit 112 outputs an operation input by the user to the control unit 130 as operation information. Note that the operation unit 112 may be realized by a touch panel or the like as an input device, and the display device of the display unit 111 and the input device of the operation unit 112 may be integrated.

[0015] The input / output unit 113 has a microphone terminal and a headphone terminal, and is connected to a headset worn by the user of the information processing device 100. The input / output unit 113 converts a voice signal input from the user's headset into voice data and outputs the voice data to the control unit 130. The input / output unit 113 also converts voice data input from the control unit 130 into a voice signal and outputs the voice signal to the user's headset.

[0016] The storage unit 120 is realized by, for example, a semiconductor memory element such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a flash memory, or a storage device such as a hard disk or an optical disk. The storage unit 120 has a check item storage unit 121 and an answer time table storage unit 122. The storage unit 120 also stores information used for processing by the control unit 130.

[0017] The check item storage unit 121 stores, for example, check items in a checklist when sending an email. Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a check item storage unit. As shown in Fig. 2, the check item storage unit 121 has items such as "Question No.", "Check Item", and "Answer". Furthermore, the "Answer" further has items such as "Yes" and "No".

[0018] "Question No." is an identifier for identifying a question in the checklist, that is, a check item. "Check item" is information indicating the content of a question in the checklist. "Yes" in the "Answer" column is information indicating the next question No. when the user's answer to the check item is Yes. "No" in the "Answer" column is information indicating the next question No. when the user's answer to the check item is No. For example, if the user answers "Yes" to the chatbot's question of the check item "Does the domain and customer name match?" in question No. "2", the process moves to question No. "3". On the other hand, if the user answers "No" to the question, the process moves to question No. "2-1". In other words, "Yes" and "No" in the "Answer" column are information indicating the next question to the user according to the answer. The "Answer" column may also have an item for when the question is not applicable.

[0019] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 1, the answer time table storage unit 122 stores the average answer time for each question in association with a threshold. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the answer time table storage unit. As shown in Fig. 3, the answer time table storage unit 122 has items such as "Question No.", "Average answer time", and "Threshold".

[0020] "Question No." is an identifier for identifying a question in the checklist, that is, a check item. "Average answer time" is information that indicates the average past answer time for each question in seconds. "Threshold" is a threshold for detecting cases where a user takes a long time to answer a question from a chatbot, and is information that indicates an offset value for the average answer time in seconds. For example, for question No. "1," the first time, which is a detection standard for cases where a user takes a long time to answer, is set to average answer time + threshold = 5 seconds + 1 second = 6 seconds. Note that the "threshold" may be stored as the first time. The first time may be corrected using a correction value α that indicates individual differences between users.

[0021] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 1, the control unit 130 is realized by, for example, a central processing unit (CPU) or a micro processing unit (MPU) executing a program stored in an internal storage device using a RAM as a working area. The control unit 130 may also be realized by, for example, an integrated circuit such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a field programmable gate array (FPGA).

[0022] The control unit 130 has a chatbot 131, a calculation unit 132, a determination unit 133, a change unit 134, and a generation unit 135, and realizes or executes the functions and actions of information processing described below. Note that the internal configuration of the control unit 130 is not limited to the configuration shown in Fig. 1, and may be other configurations as long as they perform the information processing described below.

[0023] The chatbot 131 performs voice chat with the user, and checks a checklist in the form of the user answering questions posed by the chatbot. The chatbot 131 refers to the check item storage unit 121, asks questions in order starting from question No. "1" according to a question scenario, and moves on to the next question depending on the user's answer. The chatbot 131 outputs voice data of the voice chat to the calculation unit 132 and the generation unit 135. Furthermore, when an instruction to change the characteristics of the voice is input from the change unit 134, the chatbot 131 changes the characteristics of the voice according to the instruction.

[0024] The calculation unit 132 detects the question end time of the chatbot 131 and the answer end time of the user based on the voice data input from the chatbot 131. The calculation unit 132 calculates the answer time by calculating the difference between the question end time of the chatbot 131 and the answer end time of the user. The calculation unit 132 outputs the calculated answer time to the determination unit 133. In addition, the calculation unit 132 stores the calculated answer time in the storage unit 120 as a history.

[0025] The determination unit 133 acquires the current time by, for example, referring to a real time clock (RTC) or a high precision event timer (HPET) of the information processing device 100. The determination unit 133 determines whether the acquired current time is in a preset late-night time period. The late-night time period can be, for example, from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next day. If the determination unit 133 determines that the time period is in the late-night time period, it determines that the user is sleepy. If the determination unit 133 determines that the user is sleepy, it outputs a first change instruction to the change unit 134 and proceeds to determining the answer time. On the other hand, if the determination unit 133 determines that the time period is not in the late-night time period (however, since sleepiness may occur after lunch even during the day, the time period during which sleepiness occurs can be set, changed, or added by the user), it determines that the user is not sleepy. If the determination unit 133 determines that the user is not sleepy, it does not output a first change instruction to the change unit 134 and proceeds to determining the answer time.

[0026] The determination unit 133 refers to the answer time table storage unit 122 for each question, and calculates a first time, which is a detection standard when the answer time is long, based on the average answer time and a threshold value. When the answer time is input from the calculation unit 132, the determination unit 133 determines whether the input answer time, i.e., the current answer time, is longer than the first time. If the determination unit 133 determines that the current answer time is equal to or shorter than the first time, the determination unit 133 refers to past answer times (not shown) stored in the storage unit 120 and calculates the average answer time for each question. The determination unit 133 updates the average answer time for the corresponding question number in the answer time table storage unit 122 with the calculated average, and outputs a non-change instruction to the change unit 134 to not change the voice characteristics. On the other hand, if the determination unit 133 determines that the current answer time is longer than the first time, it outputs a second change instruction to the change unit 134 to change the voice characteristics.

[0027] When the first change instruction is input from the determination unit 133, the change unit 134 instructs the chatbot 131 to change the pitch of the voice to be higher than that in a normal time period, i.e., a time period different from a late-night time period. For example, the change unit 134 instructs the chatbot 131 to raise the pitch by a whole tone during the late-night time period compared to the normal time period.

[0028] When the second change instruction is input from the determination unit 133, the change unit 134 instructs the chatbot 131 to change the characteristics of the voice. For example, the change unit 134 instructs the chatbot 131 to change one or more characteristics of the pitch, speed, and volume as the characteristics of the voice. For example, the change unit 134 instructs the chatbot 131 to change from a male voice to a female voice, to speed up the playback speed of the voice, or to increase the volume.

[0029] Also, the change unit 134 changes the voice characteristics from the next question, for example, as the timing for changing the voice characteristics for the chatbot 131. Note that the change unit 134 may change the voice characteristics in the middle of a question. Furthermore, the change unit 134 may insert other voices or music between multiple questions, that is, between questions. Examples of other voices or music include words urging the user to wake up, or playing one phrase of fast-paced music.

[0030] When the change unit 134 receives a no-change instruction from the determination unit 133, the change unit 134 does not instruct the chatbot 131 to change the voice characteristics. When the change unit 134 receives a second change instruction or a no-change instruction from the determination unit 133 and performs an action in response to these instructions, the change unit 134 determines whether or not checking of all questions has been completed. When the change unit 134 determines that checking of all questions has not been completed, it instructs the determination unit 133 to continue to determine the late-night time period and the answer time. When the change unit 134 determines that checking of all questions has been completed, it ends the voice chat control process.

[0031] When voice data is input from the chatbot 131, the generation unit 135 transcribes the voice data and generates a checked check sheet that reflects the check contents. The generation unit 135 stores the generated checked check sheet in the storage unit 120. Note that the generation unit 135 may acquire the contents of the check items by referring to the check item storage unit 121. Furthermore, the generation unit 135 may print the checked check sheet using a printing device (not shown).

[0032] Next, an operation of the information processing apparatus according to the embodiment will be described with reference to a flowchart of an example of a voice chat control process according to the embodiment.

[0033] When the chatbot 131 starts a check with a user through voice chat, the determination unit 133 refers to the RTC or HPET and acquires the current time (step S1).

[0034] The determination unit 133 determines whether the acquired current time is in the late night time zone (step S2). When the determination unit 133 determines that the current time is in the late night time zone (step S2: Yes), the determination unit 133 determines that the user is sleepy and outputs a first change instruction to the change unit 134. When the first change instruction is input from the determination unit 133, the change unit 134 instructs the chatbot 131 to change the pitch of the voice to a higher pitch than in the normal time zone (step S3), and proceeds to step S4. At this time, the chatbot 131 changes the voice characteristics according to the instruction to change the voice characteristics input from the change unit 134. On the other hand, when the determination unit 133 determines that the current time is not in the late night time zone (step S2: No), the determination unit 133 proceeds to step S4 without outputting the first change instruction.

[0035] The chatbot 131 refers to the check item storage unit 121, asks a question through voice chat, and receives an answer to the question from the user. The chatbot 131 outputs voice data of the voice chat to the calculation unit 132. The calculation unit 132 detects the question end time of the chatbot 131 and the answer end time of the user based on the voice data input from the chatbot 131 (step S4).

[0036] The calculation unit 132 calculates the answer time based on the question end time of the chatbot 131 and the answer end time of the user (step S5). The calculation unit 132 outputs the calculated answer time to the determination unit 133.

[0037] When the answer time is input from the calculation unit 132, the determination unit 133 determines whether the input current answer time is longer than the first time or not (step S6). When the determination unit 133 determines that the current answer time is equal to or shorter than the first time (step S6: No), it calculates the average answer time for each question and updates the average answer time corresponding to the answer time table storage unit 122. In addition, the determination unit 133 outputs a no-change instruction to the change unit 134 not to change the voice characteristics. When the no-change instruction is input from the determination unit 133, the change unit 134 proceeds to step S8 without instructing the chatbot 131 to change the voice characteristics.

[0038] On the other hand, if the determination unit 133 determines that the current response time is longer than the first time (step S6: Yes), it outputs a second change instruction to the change unit 134 to change the voice characteristics. When the change unit 134 receives the second change instruction from the determination unit 133, it instructs the chatbot 131 to change the voice characteristics (step S7) and proceeds to step S8. At this time, the chatbot 131 changes the voice characteristics according to the instruction to change the voice characteristics input from the change unit 134.

[0039] The change unit 134 determines whether or not checking of all questions has been completed (step S8). When the change unit 134 determines that checking of all questions has not been completed (step S8: No), the process returns to step S1. When the change unit 134 determines that checking of all questions has been completed (step S8: Yes), the change unit 134 ends the checking process. This allows the information processing device 100 to suppress careless mistakes caused by drowsiness.

[0040] In this way, the information processing device 100 judges whether the user is sleepy or not based on the chatbot 131, which asks questions and receives answers through voice chat with the user, and information on the dialogue with the user. Furthermore, when the information processing device 100 judges that the user is sleepy, it changes the voice characteristics of the chatbot 131. As a result, it is possible to suppress careless mistakes due to sleepiness. In other words, it is possible to urge the user to wake up when answering a question in a sleepy state.

[0041] In addition, the information processing device 100 refers to the answer time table storage unit 122, which stores an average answer time calculated based on the question end time of the chatbot 131 and the user's answer end time, and a threshold value in association with each question, and if the calculated answer time is longer than a first time based on the average value and the threshold value, it determines that the user is drowsy.As a result, if the user's reaction time to a question is long, it can be determined that the user is drowsy.

[0042] The characteristics of the sound may be one or more of pitch, speed, and volume, so as to prompt the user to wake up.

[0043] Furthermore, when the information processing device 100 determines that the user is sleepy, it changes the characteristics of the voice from the next question or during the middle of the question, so that the user can be prompted to wake up.

[0044] Furthermore, when the information processing device 100 determines that the user is sleepy, it inserts other voice or music between the multiple questions, thereby urging the user to wake up.

[0045] Furthermore, the information processing device 100 acquires the current time as information related to the dialogue, and if the current time is in a preset late-night time zone or a drowsiness-inducing time zone, determines that the user is drowsy. Furthermore, if the information processing device 100 determines that the user is drowsy, it changes the pitch of the voice of the chatbot 131 to be higher than that in a time zone other than the late-night time zone.

[0046] In the above embodiment, the check process is performed using voice chat, but is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied to a check process in which a question is displayed on a display screen and input such as "Y" or "N" from a keyboard or selection using a mouse or touch panel is accepted. In this case, it is possible to check that the user's five senses are working by interrupting the check process by displaying a cancel button on the display screen when the answer time is longer than the first time, and restarting the check process by accepting an operation on the cancel button.

[0047] In the above embodiment, the information processing device 100 performs the operation of the chatbot and the voice chat control process, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the operation of the chatbot and the voice chat control process may be performed in a server, and the user may make a call to the server to perform a voice chat. Furthermore, the chatbot may be operated in another server.

[0048] Moreover, each component of each unit shown in the figure does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. In other words, the specific form of distribution and integration of each unit is not limited to that shown in the figure, and all or part of them can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit depending on various loads, usage conditions, etc. For example, the determination unit 133 and the change unit 134 of the information processing device 100 may be integrated. Moreover, each process shown in the figure is not limited to the above order, and may be performed simultaneously or in a reverse order within a range that does not cause contradiction in the process contents.

[0049] Furthermore, the various processing functions performed by each device may be executed in whole or in part on a CPU (or a microcomputer such as an MPU or MCU (Micro Controller Unit)). Needless to say, the various processing functions may be executed in whole or in part on a program analyzed and executed by a CPU (or a microcomputer such as an MPU or MCU), or on hardware using wired logic.

[0050] The various processes described in the above embodiments can be realized by executing a program prepared in advance on a computer. Hereinafter, an example of a computer that executes a program having the same functions as those of the above embodiments will be described. Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of a computer that executes a voice chat control program.

[0051] 5, the computer 200 includes a CPU 201 that executes various arithmetic processes, an input device 202 that accepts data input, and a monitor 203. The computer 200 also includes a medium reading device 204 that reads programs and the like from a storage medium, an interface device 205 for connecting to various devices, and a communication device 206 for connecting to other information processing devices and the like by wire or wirelessly. The computer 200 also includes a RAM 207 that temporarily stores various information, and a hard disk device 208. The devices 201 to 208 are connected to a bus 209.

[0052] The hard disk drive 208 stores a voice chat control program having the same functions as the chatbot 131, the calculation unit 132, the determination unit 133, the change unit 134, and the generation unit 135 shown in FIG. 1. The hard disk drive 208 also stores a check item storage unit 121 and a response time table storage unit 122. The input device 202, for example, accepts input of various information such as operation information from the user of the computer 200. The monitor 203, for example, displays various screens such as a display screen to the user of the computer 200. The interface device 205 is connected to, for example, a headset, a printing device, etc. The communication device 206 has the same functions as the communication unit 110 shown in FIG. 1, is connected to a network (not shown), and exchanges various information with other information processing devices.

[0053] The CPU 201 performs various processes by reading out each program stored in the hard disk device 208, expanding it in the RAM 207, and executing it. These programs can also cause the computer 200 to function as the chatbot 131, the calculation unit 132, the determination unit 133, the change unit 134, and the generation unit 135 shown in FIG.

[0054] The voice chat control program does not necessarily have to be stored in the hard disk drive 208. For example, the computer 200 may read and execute a program stored in a storage medium readable by the computer 200. Examples of storage media readable by the computer 200 include portable storage media such as CD-ROMs, DVDs (Digital Versatile Discs), and USB (Universal Serial Bus) memories, semiconductor memories such as flash memories, and hard disk drives. The voice chat control program may also be stored in a device connected to a public line, the Internet, a LAN, or the like, and the computer 200 may read and execute the voice chat control program from the device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0055] 100 Information processing device 110 Communications Department 111 Display section 112 Operation section 113 Input / output section 120 Storage section 121 Check item memory section 122 Response time table storage unit 130 Control section 131 Chatbots 132 Calculation section 133 Judgment section 134 Changes 135 Generation part

Claims

1. a chatbot that, when a user sends an email to a customer, displays questions on a display screen according to a scenario of a checklist of questions through chat with the user and receives answers from the user inputted via one or more of a keyboard, a mouse and a touch panel; and a determination unit that determines whether the user is feeling drowsy for each question based on information about the dialogue with the user. a change unit that, when it is determined that the user is drowsy, blocks a check process by the user by displaying a cancel button on the display screen; 13. An information processing device comprising:

2. The determination unit refers to a storage unit that stores an average answer time calculated based on a question end time of the chatbot and a response end time of the user, and a threshold value in association with each question, and determines that the user is drowsy when the calculated response time is longer than a first time based on the average value and the threshold value.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

3. When it is determined that the user is drowsy, the change unit executes the interference from the next question or in the middle of the question.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is a computer.

4. The change unit, when it is determined that the user is drowsy, inserts another voice or music between the plurality of questions.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is a computer.

5. The determination unit acquires a current time as information related to the dialogue, and determines that the user is drowsy if the current time is within a preset late-night time period or a preset drowsiness time period.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

6. When a user sends an email to a customer, a chatbot displays questions on a display screen according to a scenario of questions in a checklist through chat with the user, and receives answers from the user inputted through one or more of a keyboard, a mouse, and a touch panel, and determines whether the user is feeling drowsy for each question based on information about the dialogue between the chatbot and the user; When it is determined that the user is drowsy, a check process by the user is hindered by displaying a cancel button on the display screen. A chat control method, the processing of which is executed by a computer.

7. When a user sends an email to a customer, a chatbot displays questions on a display screen according to a scenario of questions in a checklist through chat with the user, and receives answers from the user inputted through one or more of a keyboard, a mouse, and a touch panel, and determines whether the user is feeling drowsy for each question based on information about the dialogue between the chatbot and the user; When it is determined that the user is drowsy, a check process by the user is hindered by displaying a cancel button on the display screen. A chat control program that causes a computer to execute a process.

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