Device management apparatus and program

Abstract

To provide a device management apparatus and program for providing information more effectively.SOLUTION: An integrated data storage unit stores integrated data including multiple nodes and edges which represent, for each set of two nodes out of the multiple nodes, associations of one node with respect to the other node. A data conversion unit converts, in acquiring trigger data including distribution information, a structure of the integrated data into a structure according to a device selection method, which is a method of selecting a device relating to the distribution information, to generate converted data. A device selection unit selects a provision device, which is a device related to provision of the distribution information, using the device selection method, based on the converted data.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a device management apparatus and a program. For example, the present invention relates to a device management apparatus that manages various devices and media available for each device, and defines a device and media that presents provided information.

Background Art

[0002] Devices for viewing various types of information distributed by media such as broadcasting are diversifying. For example, radio receivers and television receivers have been widely used conventionally, but recently, the spread of smartphones has been remarkable. In addition, the spread of various IoT (Internet of Things) devices capable of presenting various types of information, such as smartwatches and smart speakers, is expected. According to such a trend, it is predicted that the diversification of devices used by viewers will continue in the future.

[0003] In addition, the media used by viewers through devices are also diversifying. In addition to radio broadcasts and television broadcasts that have been conventionally implemented, various types of media provided through the Internet have become widespread. Such media include, for example, text data, image data, or web pages described using markup languages such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), and streaming services that sequentially distribute video data and audio data. It is expected that the diversification of media will continue in the future.

[0004] RDF (Resource Description Framework) is sometimes used as a method for representing diverse information. RDF was standardized by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium), and RDF version 1.1 was recommended in 2014. RDF is a method for describing the relationships between data using tuples that have three data elements. These three data elements are called triples and include subject, predicate, and object. The location of information may be represented using a URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) ​​for each piece of data. The relationships between multiple data described in RDF can be represented as a directed graph. By using RDF, it is expected that information obtained from diverse information sources and the transmission paths for providing that information to viewers can be centrally managed.

[0005] Data described using RDF (sometimes referred to as "RDF data" in this application) generally consists of data that indicates a large number of elemental information. In extracting necessary information from RDF data, RDF query languages ​​such as SPARQL (SPARQL Protocol and RDF Query Language) are used. SPARQL is standardized by the W3C. By using SPARQL, it is possible to extract a certain range of information using a method similar to database searching. However, the metadata notation used in RDF is not always directly applicable to data distribution, or even if it can be applied, it is not always reasonable. For example, in the electronic program guide (EPG) of digital broadcasting, SI (Service Information, program sequence information) defined in MPEG-2 Systems is used. Patent documents 1 and 2 describe a data distribution method that converts the format from RDF to SI in order to apply information represented in RDF to digital broadcasting. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2000-4272 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2000-224257 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] RDF data is useful for centralized management of media and device information available to viewers. However, simply extracting information using SPARQL and converting metadata from RDF data does not necessarily make it easy to provide the desired information to the appropriate media and devices. As a result, information may not be effectively communicated to viewers.

[0008] This invention has been made in view of the above points, and aims to provide a device management device and program that can provide information more effectively. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and [1] one aspect of the present invention is a device management device comprising: an integrated data storage unit that stores integrated data including a plurality of nodes and edges indicating the relationship between one node and the other node for each pair of two nodes among the plurality of nodes; a data conversion unit that, when acquiring trigger data including distribution information, converts the structure of the integrated data into a structure corresponding to a device selection method, which is a method for selecting a device related to providing the distribution information, and generates converted data; and a device selection unit that selects a providing device, which is a device related to providing the distribution information, using the device selection method based on the converted data. According to the configuration in [1], the device providing the information is determined based on the converted data, which has been transformed into a structure corresponding to the device selection method, using that device selection method. This allows for more efficient device selection and effective information provision than not transforming the integrated data structure or transforming it into an existing specific structure.

[0010] [2] One aspect of the present invention is the above-described device management device, wherein the device selection method is a method for determining the providing device based on the information transmittance relating to the path from the use of the distribution information service to its presentation, wherein the data conversion unit determines from the integrated data a device that can use the distribution information service as a first device, a device that can present the distribution information as a second device, and comprises a first device node indicating the first device, a second device node indicating the second device, a trigger node relating to the trigger data, a source device node indicating a source device that can transfer the distribution information, a destination device node indicating a destination device that can be the destination of the distribution information, and a person node indicating a person, and the trigger node and the first device The device selection unit generates conversion data including a first edge indicating a first information transmittance, which is the information transmittance related to the use of the service, as a relationship with the vice node; an inter-device edge indicating an inter-device information transmittance, which is the information transmittance from the source device to the destination device, as a relationship between the source device node and the destination device node; and a second edge indicating a second information transmittance, which is the information transmittance to a person, as a relationship between the second device node and the person node. Based on the conversion data, the device selection unit may determine at least one path for each path from the trigger node to the person node based on the information transmittance indicated on the edges included in that path, and identify the devices indicated on the nodes included in the determined paths as the providing devices. According to the configuration in [2], transformed data is obtained that allows for easy understanding of trigger data, individuals, and the transmission of information between multiple devices. By using the transformed data, the devices to be delivered can be efficiently determined based on the path from the use of the distribution service to presentation to individuals.

[0011] [3] One aspect of the present invention is the device management device described above, wherein the device selection method is a method for determining a device for providing the distribution information based on delays as information transmittance related to the path from the use of the service to the presentation of the distribution information, wherein the data conversion unit identifies the delay related to the use of the service for each first device as the first information transmittance from the integrated data, identifies the delay to a person for each second device as the second information transmittance, identifies the delay from the source device to the destination device as the inter-device information transmittance, and the device selection unit may select one or more paths based on a path delay amount which is the sum of delays shown at each individual edge included in each path. [3] The configuration allows for easy identification of delays for each device, enabling efficient determination of the provided devices based on the amount of path delay for each route.

[0012] [4] One aspect of the present invention is the device management device described above, wherein the integrated data includes a location node indicating a place, a movement delay node indicating a delay related to movement from one location to another, and an edge indicating the installation location of the device as a relationship between the node of the device and the location node, and when acquiring person detection information indicating the detection of a person, the integrated data generation unit generates the integrated data including an edge indicating the location where the person is located as a relationship between the person node and the location node, and the data conversion unit may use the integrated data to identify a movement delay for each of the second devices, which is a delay related to movement from the location where the person is located to the installation location of the second device, and set a second edge indicating the movement delay as a relationship between the person node and the second device node related to the second device. According to the configuration in [4], the providing device for providing the distribution information is determined by further considering the time from when the person is detected until they come into contact with the second device on which the distribution information is presented.

[0013] [5] One aspect of the present invention is the device management device described above, wherein the device selection method is a method for determining the providing device based on the information transmittance of the second device as information transmittance relating to the path from the use of the service to the presentation of the distribution information, wherein the trigger data includes service form information indicating the information transmittance of the service form of the distribution information, the data conversion unit determines the information transmittance of a service form that the second device can use to present the distribution information as the second information transmittance based on the service form information, the inter-device information transmittance with respect to the transfer destination device being the second device is determined as the second information transmittance, the first information transmittance is predetermined, and the device selection unit may determine the node distribution such that the distance between the nodes becomes shorter the higher the information transmittance shown on the edge set between two nodes, and select one or more paths including the second device based on the distance from the person node to the second device. According to the configuration in [5], the primary information transmission capability set for each device is the secondary information transmission capability for information delivered to a person. Therefore, the devices providing the information can be determined with an emphasis on information transmission capability to a person.

[0014] [6] One aspect of the present invention is the device management device described above, wherein the integrated data includes a location node indicating a place and an edge indicating the installation location of the device as a relationship between the node of the device and the location node, and when person detection information indicating a place where a person has been detected is acquired, the integrated data generation unit generates the integrated data including an edge indicating the relationship between the person node and the location node indicating the place, and the data conversion unit may identify the place where the person was detected as the installation location and a device capable of presenting the distribution information as the second device. According to the configuration in [6], a second device is selected that presents the information being distributed from the device, with the location where the person was detected as the installation location. Since devices that do not have the location where the person was detected as the installation location are excluded from the second device that presents the information being distributed, a second device with high information transmission capabilities can be efficiently selected.

[0015] [7] One aspect of the present invention is the device management device described above, wherein the integrated data storage unit may disable the undetected device node indicating the undetected device when any device is no longer detected, and enable the undetected device node when the undetected device is detected. According to the configuration in [7], detected active devices become candidates for providing distribution information, and devices that are not detected are excluded from being considered as providing devices. Therefore, providing devices can be efficiently selected from active devices, and unnecessary processing related to providing distribution information to undetected devices can be avoided.

[0016] [8] In one aspect of the present invention, the device management device described above is configured such that when the data conversion unit acquires person identification information indicating an identified person, it may use available device information indicating available devices which are devices that can be used by each person to identify a device that can present the distribution information among the available devices that the identified person can use as the second device. According to the configuration in [8], detected active devices become candidates for providing distribution information, and devices that are not detected are excluded from being considered as providing devices. Therefore, providing devices can be efficiently selected from active devices, and unnecessary commands for processing distribution information for devices that are not detected can be avoided.

[0017] [9] One aspect of the present invention is a program that causes a computer to function as the device management device described above. According to the configuration in [9], the device to provide the distribution information is determined based on the converted data, which has been converted to a structure corresponding to the device selection method, using the device selection method. This allows for more efficient device selection and effective information provision than not converting the structure of the integrated data, which includes various types of information, or converting it to a specific structure. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] According to the present invention, information can be provided more effectively.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0019] [Figure 1] It is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of a device management system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] It is a schematic block diagram showing a functional configuration example of a device management apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] It is a diagram showing an example of integrated data. [Figure 4] It is a diagram showing an example of conversion data. [Figure 5] It is a flowchart showing an example of a conversion process of integrated data according to a first embodiment. [Figure 6] It is a flowchart showing a specific example of analysis of the relationship between a medium and a management target device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 7] It is a flowchart showing a specific example of analysis of the relationship between a person and a management target device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 8] It is a flowchart showing a specific example of analysis between a plurality of management target devices according to a first embodiment. [Figure 9] It is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of a device management system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 10] It is a diagram showing another example of integrated data. [Figure 11] It is a diagram showing an example of service form information. [Figure 12] It is a flowchart showing an example of a conversion process of integrated data according to a second embodiment. [Figure 13] It is a flowchart showing a specific example of analysis of the relationship between a broadcasting station and a device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 14] It is a flowchart showing a specific example of analysis of the relationship between a person and a device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 15]This flowchart shows a specific example of analyzing the relationship between devices according to the second embodiment. [Figure 16] This diagram illustrates the distribution of each node based on the information transfer capabilities between nodes. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0020] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. <First Embodiment> Figure 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of the device management system 1 according to the first embodiment. The device management system 1 includes a device management device 10. The device management device 10 manages the functions and operating status of multiple devices installed within a predetermined area. The managed devices (sometimes referred to as "managed devices" in this application) have one of the following functions: a function to use an information distribution service (sometimes referred to as "information distribution service" in this application), a function to present received distribution information, or a function to connect with other devices in a way that enables the transmission of distribution information, or a combination thereof.

[0021] In the example shown in Figure 1, the managed devices are a television receiver, a smartphone, and a smart speaker. The television receiver makes broadcast wave services from broadcasting station BC available as information distribution services. The smartphone makes web services from web server WS available as information distribution services. The smartphone can transfer audio data constituting the distribution information to the smart speaker. The smart speaker can present the distribution information carried by the audio data transferred from the smartphone as audio (mirroring). The managed devices are not limited to this example and may be any form of device, such as a smartwatch or an IoT light bulb.

[0022] The device management device 10 is capable of connecting to transmission lines and managed devices related to information distribution services. Transmission lines include broadcast transmission lines and communication transmission lines. A broadcast transmission line is a transmission line that can unidirectionally transmit various types of information, including distribution information, wirelessly or via wired connections. A broadcast transmission line includes, for example, broadcast waves. A broadcast transmission line may be configured to include, in whole or in part, a dedicated or public communication network. Broadcast transmission lines are mainly used for broadcast wave services. A broadcast transmission line is sometimes called a broadcast network. A communication transmission line is a transmission line that can bidirectionally transmit various types of information, including distribution information, wirelessly or via wired connections. A communication transmission line corresponds to a communication network. A communication transmission line is configured to include wide area networks (WANs) such as the Internet and public communication networks. A communication transmission line may be configured to include a dedicated line or a local area network (LAN) as part of its configuration. The device management device 10 may be connected, for example, using a dedicated LAN in the area to be managed (sometimes referred to as the "management area" in this application).

[0023] The device management device 10 may be connected to one or more motion sensors installed within the management area, or it may have motion sensors integrated into it. The motion sensors are used to detect people located within the management area. Detected people may become viewers who view the presented distribution information. In this application, "viewing" includes perceiving the presented information through sight, hearing, or other senses (e.g., touch), and is not limited to simultaneous sight and hearing.

[0024] When the device management device 10 acquires trigger data containing distribution information, it converts the structure of the integrated data into a structure corresponding to a predetermined device selection method for the devices providing the distribution information, thereby generating converted data. Trigger data may be acquired while using the information distribution service. Based on the converted data, the device management device 10 determines the managed devices that will present the distribution information using that device selection method. The integrated data consists of various pieces of information, including device information indicating device attributes such as the type of individual device, available services, and installation location; media information indicating the characteristics of the information distribution service, such as the information transmittance and information presentation format related to the service; and trigger data. In this application, the information distribution service may be referred to as "media."

[0025] The integrated data consists of multiple nodes and, for each pair of nodes, edges indicating the relationship between one node and the other node. This configuration allows for the centralized management of diverse information. The integrated data illustrated in Figure 3 is RDF data constructed using RDF. In this application, we primarily use the case where the integrated data is RDF data as defined in RDF 1.1 as an example. Integrated data is sometimes also called structured data or linked data.

[0026] The device management device 10 may be configured as an electronic device having other functions as its primary function, separate from device management. For example, the device management device 10 may be configured as a television receiver, recording device, measuring instrument (e.g., electricity meter, gas meter, etc.), gateway device, router device, etc. The device management device 10 may have a function to utilize an information distribution service, or a function to present distribution information provided through an information distribution service. If it has such a function, the device management device 10 may include itself as a device under management. The installation location of each device is identified by a subdivided area (e.g., a room). In the example shown in Figure 1, the management area is a residence inhabited by one or more people, and the installation location of each device is identified as room N or room M as a subdivided area of ​​the management area. Residents can be viewers as recipients of distribution information. Typically, the types of services and service forms that can be provided by the devices are predetermined. Note that each management area does not necessarily correspond to a single building. The area under management may, for example, be one or more dwelling units that are part of an apartment building.

[0027] Next, an example of the functional configuration of the device management device 10 according to this embodiment will be described. Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the device management device 10 according to this embodiment. The device management device 10 comprises an integrated data generation unit 122, an integrated data storage unit 124, a data conversion unit 126, a device selection unit 128, and a device control unit 130. Each component of the device management device 10 may be composed of dedicated components or integrated circuits, but is not limited to this. The device management device 10 may also comprise a computer equipped with a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a storage medium such as ROM (Read Only Memory) or RAM (Random Access Memory). The processor may read a program previously stored in the storage medium, execute the read program, and cooperate with the storage medium or other hardware resources to perform some or all of the functions of the above components. "Executing a program" means executing the processing instructed by individual instructions written in the program. Various data such as parameters used in processing, input values ​​to be processed, and calculation values ​​that are intermediate or final processing results are temporarily or permanently stored in the storage medium. The device management device 10 also comprises an interface for inputting and outputting various types of data.

[0028] The integrated data generation unit 122 acquires various elemental information, such as device information for each device to be managed, media information indicating the services that each device can use, and distribution element information which are elements of distribution information. The acquired elemental information is then integrated to generate integrated data having a predetermined format. The integrated data includes a plurality of nodes and edges indicating the relationship between one node and the other node for each pair of nodes from the plurality of nodes. Each node is associated with individual elemental information. The integrated data generation unit 122 may, for example, identify the relationships between the acquired elemental information for each of two pre-divided items. The integrated data generation unit 122 may use a predetermined machine learning model to divide a series of elemental information into pairs of elemental information and identify the relationship between each pair of elemental information. The integrated data generation unit 122 generates integrated data that includes edges indicating the relationship between one node and the other node for each pair of nodes. The integrated data may include predetermined parameters used for various processes performed by the device management device 10 as elemental information. Some elemental information may be pre-set in the unit itself. For example, location information indicating each room within the management area, and the time (delay) required for movement from the source room to the target room may be pre-set. The integrated data generation unit 122 stores the generated integrated data in the integrated data storage unit 124.

[0029] The integrated data generation unit 122 detects trigger data from received data, including various distribution information provided to its device through the use of a distribution service. The integrated data generation unit 122 determines that data containing predetermined information, such as distribution information or metadata, that has a high need for information transmission, is trigger data. For example, the integrated data generation unit 122 refers to pre-configured urgency determination information and determines that data containing distribution information is trigger data if the distribution information contains predetermined words indicating an urgency higher than a predetermined urgency level. The urgency determination information may include a list containing predetermined words indicating events requiring urgency (e.g., warning, major earthquake, tsunami, storm, fire, flood, etc.). The integrated data generation unit 122 may also determine that data containing distribution information is trigger data if the urgency information associated with the distribution information indicates an urgency higher than a predetermined urgency level. Furthermore, the integrated data generation unit 122 may use a known machine learning model to determine trigger data from received data containing distribution information. The integrated data generation unit 122 includes, for example, an edge representing an event in the integrated data as a relationship between the trigger node representing the trigger data and an existing node representing that event.

[0030] The integrated data generation unit 122 may detect managed devices that are in operation and connected to its own device at predetermined detection intervals (e.g., several seconds to several minutes). A predetermined communication method (e.g., a method specified in IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.15, etc.) can be used to detect managed devices. The integrated data generation unit 122 may use the identification information of the detected managed device to identify the device information of the managed device from a pre-configured device information list for each device. When the integrated data generation unit 122 detects a managed device, it broadcasts a detection signal to the LAN connected to its own unit, for example, according to a predetermined communication method. The integrated data generation unit 122 can detect the managed device that is the source of the response signal by whether or not it receives a response signal to the detection signal from any of the managed devices within a predetermined detection time from the transmission of the detection signal. Managed devices that are stopped operating, even if installed in the management area, will not be detected. Therefore, the managed devices that are in operation may vary from time to time.

[0031] The integrated data generation unit 122 can identify the managed device or the device information of the managed device using the identification information contained in the response signal. The device information includes any or a combination of the following: the device's identification information, type, available services, available functions (types) or their characteristics (e.g., delay time), other devices to be managed, location or its changing state (installation, location, movement, destination). When the integrated data generation unit 122 generates integrated data, it includes a device node indicating the detected managed device, a device-related node indicating element information associated with the managed device, and an edge indicating the relationship between the device node and the device-related node. The device information, which is composed of multiple elements of information, may be layered such that there are two or more layers between the multiple elements of information. The media information includes the type of individual service, the transmission path (e.g., channel), and its characteristics (e.g., delay time).

[0032] When the integrated data generation unit 122 acquires person detection information indicating the detection of a person from a human presence sensor connected to its device, it can identify the human presence sensor that is the source of the person detection information and determine that the location of the identified human presence sensor is the location of the person. The integrated data generation unit 122 can, for example, identify the location of the human presence sensor that is the source of the person detection information by referring to sensor installation information that indicates the installation location for each pre-configured human presence sensor. The integrated data generation unit 122 may include in the integrated data the edge that occupies the location of the person as a relationship between the person node indicating the detected person and the location node indicating the pre-configured location. This allows the location of the person to be managed centrally with various types of information such as device information and service information. The human presence sensor may be any type of sensor, such as an infrared sensor or an ultrasonic sensor.

[0033] Furthermore, for various types of information acquired in a format that can be described using RDF, the integrated data generation unit 122 may maintain that format and adopt it as part or all of the integrated data. For example, linked data such as JSON-LD and Turtle, which are constructed using a predetermined method or program, may have a format that can be described using RDF. In this application, data described using RDF may be referred to as RDF data. The integrated data generation unit 122 may acquire information described in a format for which a format conversion method to RDF data exists. In such cases, the integrated data generation unit 122 performs a format conversion to RDF data on that information using that method. The integrated data generation unit 122 may adopt information having an RDF format as part or all of the integrated data.

[0034] RDF is a framework for describing metadata of resources, which constitute elemental information. In RDF, relationship information between elemental information can be represented using pairs of nodes and directed edges that indicate the relationship between one node and the other (see Figure 3). In RDF, one node, one edge, and the other node correspond to the subject, predicate, and object, respectively, and a pair of three elements such as subject, predicate, and object is called a triple. Subject, predicate, and object are names that indicate the relationship between elemental information and do not represent parts of speech or syntactic elements in natural language grammar. The subject is elemental information that indicates the object being described or its resource. The predicate indicates the relationship between the subject and the object, such as the object being a characteristic or attribute of the subject. The object indicates the thing (value) given by the characteristic or attribute indicated by the predicate, or other things or resources related to the subject. In RDF, resources may be indicated using identifiers that show their location, such as URIs. A predicate relating to one triple can become the subject relating to one or more other triples. This chain of relationships between elemental information is represented by a directed graph containing corresponding nodes and directed edges. Therefore, RDF allows for the centralized management of diverse information with high flexibility.

[0035] The integrated data storage unit 124 stores the integrated data generated by the integrated data generation unit 122. In the integrated data, multiple nodes or edges with common URIs can be merged without substantial loss of information. Also, a single node or edge can be divided into multiple nodes or edges with common URIs. If some element information in the integrated data is updated, the integrated data storage unit 124 may reflect the difference between the pre- and post-update parts, while maintaining the other parts that remain unchanged.

[0036] The forms of updating integrated data include node addition, node modification, and node deletion. Node addition involves the addition of a new node. Node addition may also involve the addition of edges indicating the relationship with existing nodes. Node modification involves the modification of some existing nodes. Node modification may also involve the modification of edges indicating the relationship with other existing nodes. Node deletion involves the deletion of some existing nodes. Node deletion may also involve the deletion of edges indicating the relationship with other existing nodes. Elements of information that can be updated include, for example, devices in operation, whether or not a person has been detected, and the location where a person was detected.

[0037] Furthermore, when the integrated data storage unit 124 stops detecting any managed devices, it may disable the undetected device node that indicates the undetected device. In this case, the integrated data storage unit 124 may store validity information indicating that the undetected device node is disabled. The integrated data storage unit 124 can determine undetected devices based on the detected device information input from the integrated data generation unit 122. The detected device information is information indicating the managed devices that have been detected. The integrated data storage unit 124 may determine that a managed device that was previously determined to be undetected has been detected again based on newly input detected device information. The integrated data storage unit 124 may enable the undetected device node that indicates the detected undetected device. In this case, the integrated data storage unit 124 may change the validity information indicating that the undetected device node is disabled to validity information indicating that it is enabled. Since there is no movement of nodes depending on whether or not a device is detected, changes in the configuration of the integrated data can be suppressed. Each part of the device management device 10, for example, the data conversion unit 126 and the device selection unit 128, in the processing described later, should select the device nodes associated with validity information indicating that an individual managed device is valid, and ignore the device nodes associated with validity information indicating that an individual device is invalid.

[0038] The integrated data storage unit 124 does not necessarily need to integrate and store various types of data into a single integrated data. The integrated data storage unit 124 may store integrated data formed for each predetermined category. The integrated data storage unit 124 may store the integrated data for each category in association with that category. The categories may be, for example, the time when the information was acquired (e.g., year, month, day) or the region (e.g., local area, prefecture, city, town, or village). The integrated data storage unit 124 is configured to include a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). The integrated data storage unit 124 may be connected to the device management device 10 wirelessly or via a wired connection to other devices, store some data on the storage medium of those other devices, and make it readable from that storage medium. This allows integrated data to be stored in a distributed manner between other devices.

[0039] The data conversion unit 126 converts the structure of the integrated data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124 into a structure corresponding to the device selection method executed by the device selection unit 128. When the data conversion unit 126 detects trigger data from the integrated data, it performs a conversion of the integrated data. The data conversion unit 126 can use the same method as the integrated data generation unit 122 when detecting trigger data. When the data conversion unit 126 selects a device related to the provision of distribution information (sometimes referred to as a "providing device" in this application) based on the information transmittance related to the path from the use of the distribution information service to its presentation as a predetermined device selection method, it converts the integrated data as follows.

[0040] The data conversion unit 126 identifies one or more managed devices that can use the distribution information service as first devices from the integrated data, and identifies the information transmittance related to the use of the service as first information transmittance for each identified first device. The data conversion unit 126 identifies one or more managed devices that can present the distribution information as second devices, and identifies the information transmittance to a person as second information transmittance for each second device. The data conversion unit 126 identifies other managed devices to which information can be transferred as destination devices for each managed device, identifies the device from which the information is transferred as the source device, and identifies the information transmittance from the source device to the destination device as inter-device information transmittance.

[0041] The data conversion unit 126 includes a first device node indicating a first device, a second device node indicating a second device, a trigger node related to trigger data, a source device node indicating a source device, a destination device node indicating a destination device, and a person node indicating a person in the converted data. The data conversion unit 126 also includes a first edge indicating first information transferability as a relationship between the trigger node and the first device node, an inter-device edge indicating inter-device information transferability as a relationship between the source device node and the destination device node, and a second edge indicating second information transferability as a relationship between the second device node and the person node in the converted data.

[0042] For example, delay can be used as an indicator of information transmittance. Generally, the less delay there is in processing and transmission, the faster the information is transmitted to the viewer, thus increasing information transmittance. When the distributed information contains information that is of high urgency, rapid information transmission is desired. The data conversion unit 126 outputs the generated converted data to the device selection unit 128. The source device node may include a first device that can utilize the distribution information service. The destination device node may include a second device that can present the distribution information. The first device may also be identified as the second device. In that case, the data conversion unit 126 does not need to set up an inter-device edge with the first device as the source device node and the second device as the destination device node.

[0043] The device selection unit 128 selects a managed device to be used for transmitting distribution information using a predetermined device selection method based on the converted data input from the data conversion unit 126. For example, based on the converted data, the device selection unit 128 identifies a path that includes edges connecting nodes from the trigger node to the person node. Each identified path contains at least two edges. The shortest path is one in which the first device is the same as the second device, and contains only two edges. For each identified path, the device selection unit 128 determines an index of the information transmittance of the entire path based on the information transmittance indicated by the edges included in that path. As an index of information transmittance, the device selection unit 128 can define the sum obtained by summing the delays indicated by each edge as the path delay amount.

[0044] The device selection unit 128 selects at least one path from the identified paths to be used for information transmission based on defined indicators. The device selection unit 128 then identifies, for example, the path with the lowest path delay among the identified paths. When identifying the path with the lowest path delay, the device selection unit 128 can use, for example, Dijkstra's algorithm. The device selection unit 128 may also identify a path among the identified paths whose path delay is less than or equal to a predetermined delay threshold. In this case, the number of identified paths may be two or more.

[0045] The device selection unit 128 can select a first device, a source device, a destination device, and a second device, indicated by a node included in the identified route, as providing devices to be used for transmitting distribution information. The device selection unit 128 outputs device selection information indicating the selected providing devices to the device control unit 130.

[0046] The device control unit 130 receives device selection information from the device selection unit 128. The device control unit 130 operates the functions corresponding to each device for the providing devices indicated in the device selection information. More specifically, the device control unit 130 transmits control information to the providing device identified as the first device, indicating the acquisition of distribution information through the use of the distribution service. The device control unit 130 transmits control information to the providing device identified as the source device, indicating the transfer of distribution information to the destination device. The device control unit 130 transmits control information to the providing device identified as the destination device, indicating the receipt of distribution information transferred from the source device. The device control unit 130 transmits control information to the providing device identified as the second device, indicating the presentation of distribution information.

[0047] Furthermore, for the shortest path where the first device and the second device are the same device, the device selection unit 128 does not select the source device and the destination device. However, the information for the first device and the second device respectively indicates the use of the distribution service and the presentation of distribution information. Therefore, the device control unit 130 can instruct the providing devices identified as the first device and the second device to use the distribution service and to present distribution information.

[0048] In a path containing three or more edges, the first device can also be the source device. The information for the first device and the source device respectively indicates the use of the distribution service and the transfer of the distribution information to the destination device. Therefore, the device control unit 130 can instruct the providing device identified as the first device to use the distribution service and to transfer the distribution information to the destination device. Furthermore, in a path involving three or more edges, the second device can also be the destination device. The information for the second device and the source device respectively indicates the presentation of distribution information and the reception of distribution information from the source device. Therefore, the device control unit 130 can instruct the providing device, identified as the second device, to receive distribution information from the source device.

[0049] (Conversion of integrated data) Next, an example of the integrated data conversion process according to this embodiment will be described. The case where the RDF data shown in Figure 3 is to be converted as the integrated data will be described in detail. A trigger node indicating trigger data X has been added to this RDF data. Trigger data X has a date and time associated with "2021 / 01 / 01 0:00:00" and is provided as an available service (media) by "Service G" and a video data distribution service by a "video application". The video data distribution service is provided from a web server whose location is indicated by a predetermined URL "http: / / ~~~~~".

[0050] Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the integrated data conversion process according to this embodiment. The process illustrated in Figure 5 corresponds to a method of determining the device to be used to transmit distribution information in such a way that the delay is minimized as a result of the information transmission performance for each device operating as a device selection method (delay minimization). Trigger data includes emergency information as distribution information. In such cases, it becomes necessary to quickly transmit the distribution information to persons located in the management area. When extracting or identifying data (values) that meet specific conditions from RDF data, the data conversion unit 126 can issue commands to the integrated data storage unit 124 using a query language such as SPARQL.

[0051] (Step S110) The integrated data generation unit 122 detects trigger data containing a predetermined type of information that is highly necessary for information transmission from among the received distribution information as "trigger data T", and includes a node indicating the detected "trigger data T" in the RDF data and stores it in the integrated data storage unit 124. The data conversion unit 126 detects the trigger data T from the RDF data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124. The data conversion unit 126 also generates and stores empty conversion data O as an initial value. (Step S120) The data conversion unit 126 analyzes the relationship between the media related to the "trigger data T" and the managed device. Here, a first device that can use the service (media) that provides the distribution information contained in the "trigger data T" and a first information transmission capability related to the use of the service are identified.

[0052] (Step S150) The data conversion unit 126 analyzes the relationship between the person presenting the distribution information and the managed device. Here, the second device capable of presenting the distribution information and the second information transmission capability to the person are identified. (Step S180) The data conversion unit 126 analyzes the relationships between multiple managed devices. Here, the source device that can be the source of the distribution information, the destination device that can be the destination, and the inter-device information transfer capability from the source device to the destination device are identified. (Step S200) The data conversion unit 126 outputs the converted data O, which is configured based on the analyzed first device, second device, source device, destination device, first information transmittance, second information transmittance, and inter-device information transmittance, to the device selection unit 128. After that, the process shown in Figure 5 is completed.

[0053] Next, a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between the media and the managed device (step S120) will be explained using Figure 6. Figure 6 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between the media and the managed device according to this embodiment. (Step S122) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a list of managed devices managed by a predetermined "management device M" from the RDF data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124 as device list A. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 can identify a device indicated by a node where the "type" indicates "management device" as "management device M", and identify a device indicated by a node associated with an edge indicating "management" as a managed device.

[0054] (Step S124) The data conversion unit 126 identifies devices from device list A that can use the same type of media (service) as "trigger data T". The identified devices correspond to the first device. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies services shown in nodes that are directly or indirectly associated with an edge indicating "media" as a relationship to the trigger node indicating "trigger data T". The data conversion unit 126 identifies managed devices shown in nodes that are associated with an edge indicating "available" as a relationship to the node indicating that service. The data conversion unit 126 adds a node indicating the identified device to the converted data O.

[0055] (Step S126) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a list from the RDF data, which represents media (services) of the same type as "trigger data T", as media list B. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 extracts numerical values ​​(indexes) set on edges that show a direct or indirect relationship between the node representing the service identified in step S124 and the trigger node representing "trigger data T" from the RDF data. The data conversion unit 126 of the distribution information generates media list B containing the extracted numerical values ​​and saves the generated media list B.

[0056] (Step S128) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether media list B is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed media (services). If media list B is determined to be empty (Step S128 YES), the process shown in Figure 6 is terminated. The devices shown in the generated device list D correspond to the first device. If media list B is determined to be not empty (Step S128 NO), the process proceeds to step S130.

[0057] (Step S130) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the service indicated by the number written at the beginning of the media list as "Media C". (Step S132) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a device list D from the RDF data that includes managed devices that are "available" for "Media C" and "managed" by "Management Device M". The data conversion unit 126 saves the generated device list D. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies managed devices from the RDF data that are directly or indirectly related to a node representing a numerical value indicating "Media C" and that have an edge set indicating "managed" as their relationship with "Management Device M". The identified managed devices are shown in device list D. (Step S134) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether the device list D is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If the device list D is determined to be empty (Step S134 YES), the numerical value indicating "Media C" written at the beginning of the media list B is deleted, and the process returns to step S128. If the device list D is determined to be not empty (Step S134 NO), the process proceeds to step S136.

[0058] (Step S136) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in the device list D as "device E". (Step S138) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the delay of the media C provided by the device E from the RDF data as delay F. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies the numerical value shown as delay F in the nodes that are directly or indirectly associated with the edge indicating delay as a correlation representing media C. The identified delay F corresponds to the first information transmittance. (Step S140) The data conversion unit 126 adds a node indicating "device E" and an edge indicating "delay F" as a relationship from the node of "trigger data T" to the node of "device E" to the converted data O. The data conversion unit 126 deletes "device E" which is written at the beginning of the device list D and returns to the process of step S134.

[0059] Next, a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between a person and a managed device (step S150) will be explained using Figure 7. Figure 7 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between a person and a managed device according to this embodiment. (Step S152) The data conversion unit 126 identifies a node representing "Person P," which is a person detected from the RDF data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124, and adds the node representing "Person P" to the converted data O. (Step S154) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a list of managed devices managed by "management device M" from the RDF data as device list A. The process in step S154 is the same as the process in step S122. The data conversion unit 126 may save a copy of device list A generated in step S122 and use the saved copy as device list A instead of generating device list A again. (Step S156) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the location where "person P" is "located" as "location B" from the RDF data. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies the location as "location B" as the location indicated by the node for which an edge indicating "location" is set as a relationship with the node representing "person P".

[0060] (Step S158) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether device list A is empty or not. This determination determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If it is determined that it is empty (Step S158 YES), the process shown in Figure 7 is terminated. If it is determined that it is not empty (Step S158 NO), the process proceeds to step S160. (Step S160) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in device list A as "device D". (Step S162) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the location where "device D" is "installed" as "location E" from the RDF data. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies the location indicated by the node associated with the node representing "device D" via an edge indicating "installation" as "location E".

[0061] (Step S164) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether "location B" is the same as "location E". If it is determined that they are the same (Step S164 YES), the process proceeds to step S166. If it is determined that they are not the same (Step S164 NO), the process proceeds to step S168. (Step S166) The data conversion unit 126 adds an edge to the converted data O that indicates zero "delay" as a relationship between nodes, pointing from the node indicating "device D" to the node indicating "person P". "Device D" corresponds to the second device. A "delay" of zero corresponds to the ability of the second device, "device D", to present the information to "person P" without delay as its second information transmittance. The edge indicating zero "delay" may be an edge that indicates a delay amount of zero as an attribute, or it may consist of an edge that indicates "delay" as an attribute and a node that indicates zero as a numerical value associated with that edge. After that, the data conversion unit 126 deletes "device D" which is written at the beginning of device list A and returns to the process of step S158.

[0062] (Step S168) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the delay in the RDF data where "location" is "movement" from "location B" and the "destination" is "location E" as "delay F". The delay in the "movement" from "location B" and the "destination" is "location E" can be considered as an example of a quantitative measure of information transmittance from device D, specifically the travel time from location B where a person is located to the location where device D is installed, or the transmittance of information from device D to a person located at "location B". The RDF data is configured to include location nodes that indicate individual locations, travel delay nodes that indicate the delay related to movement from one location to another, and edges that indicate the installation (location) of the managed device as a relationship between the node of the managed device and the location node. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 can identify the numerical value shown in the node associated with each of the following: an edge indicating "movement" as a relationship with the location node indicating one of the locations, "location B", and an edge indicating "destination" as a relationship with the location node indicating the other location, "location E", as "delay F". (Step S170) The data conversion unit 126 adds an edge to the converted data O that indicates "Delay F" as a relationship, from the node indicating "Device D" to the node indicating "Person P". Then, the data conversion unit 126 deletes "Device D" which is written at the beginning of the device list A and returns to the process of step S158.

[0063] Next, a specific example of analysis between multiple managed devices (step S180) will be explained using Figure 8. Figure 8 is a flowchart showing a specific example of analysis between multiple managed devices according to this embodiment. (Step S182) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a list of managed devices that are "managed" by "management device M" from the RDF data as device list A. (Step S184) The data conversion unit 126 duplicates device list A and generates device list B. Note that the processing in step S182 is the same as the processing in step S122 or step S154. The data conversion unit 126 may save a copy of device list A generated in step S122 or step S154 without generating device list A and devices again, and use the saved copy as device list B.

[0064] (Step S186) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether device list B is empty or not. This determination determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If it is determined that it is empty (Step S186 YES), the process shown in Figure 8 is terminated. If it is determined that it is not empty (Step S186 NO), the process proceeds to step S188. (Step S188) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in device list B as "device C".

[0065] (Step S190) The data conversion unit 126 identifies "mirroring" as an "operation D" that is "available" for "device C" from the RDF data, and identifies the device that is the "source" of "operation D" and is "managed" by "management device M", and the delay of "operation D". Here, "operation" means a function or process provided by the device. "Mirroring" is a function that transfers information to another device and has the other device present the transferred information, or a function that receives information transferred from another device and presents the received information. "Source" means another device that is the source of the transfer. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies a node that shows "mirroring" as an "operation D", which is a function associated with the node that shows "device D" by an edge that shows "available" and an edge that shows "type". The data conversion unit 126 identifies a device shown in the node that is associated with the node that shows "mirroring" by an edge that shows "type" as an association and an edge that shows "source" as an association, among the managed devices identified by the above method. The identified device corresponds to the source device for transferring the distribution information, and "Device C" corresponds to the destination device. The data conversion unit 126 identifies the delay shown in the node associated with the node indicating "mirroring," the edge indicating "type" as a relationship, and the edge indicating "delay" as a relationship, as the delay of "operation D." The identified delay corresponds to the information transfer rate between devices. (Step S192) The data conversion unit 126 generates a device-delay list E containing the identified device and delay pairs, and saves the generated device-delay list E.

[0066] (Step S194) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether the device-delay list E is empty or not. This determination determines whether there are any unprocessed device-delay pairs. If it is determined to be empty (Step S194 YES), "Device C" described in device list B is deleted and the process returns to step S186. If it is determined not to be empty (Step S194 NO), the process proceeds to step S196. (Step S196) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device and delay pair described at the beginning of the device-delay list E as the pair "device F" and "delay G".

[0067] (Step S198) The data conversion unit 126 adds nodes indicating "device C" and "device F" to the converted data O, respectively. However, if the converted data O already contains one or both of these nodes, it does not add one or both of them again. The data conversion unit 126 adds an edge indicating "delay G" as the relationship between the nodes, from the node indicating "device F" to the node indicating "device C," to the converted data O. Then, the data conversion unit 126 deletes the pair of "device F" and "delay G" described in the device-delay list E and returns to the process of step S194.

[0068] By performing the processing shown in Figures 5-8 on the RDF data exemplified in Figure 3 as integrated data, transformed data showing a directed graph exemplified in Figure 4 is obtained. This directed graph is convenient for selecting devices that make up the transmission path based on delay as the information transmittance of the transmission path of the distribution information, from the acquisition of trigger data containing distribution information to its presentation to the person. Here, the delays from trigger data X to devices B and C, which correspond to the first device, are set to 3 and 30 seconds, respectively. The delays from devices B, C, and D, which correspond to the second device, to the detected person P are set to 15, 0, and 0 seconds, respectively. And the delays between devices are set to 1, 1, and 1 seconds between devices B and C, between devices C and B, and between devices C and D, respectively.

[0069] The device selection unit 128 calculates the path delay amount as an indicator of information transmittance for each path from trigger data X to person P, and selects the path with the smallest path delay amount. In the example shown in Figure 4, the path from trigger data X through devices B and C to person P is selected. In this path, the delay from trigger data X to device B is 3 seconds, the delay from device B to device C is 1 second, and the delay from device C to person P is 0 seconds, resulting in a total path delay of 4 seconds. Therefore, the device selection unit 128 can select devices B and C as target devices for information distribution related to trigger data X. The device selection unit 128 can then use the device control unit 130 to instruct device B to use the service related to receiving trigger data X, to transfer data to device C, and to receive data from device B and present information (mirroring). Therefore, according to the conversion data illustrated in Figure 4, it is possible to easily understand the managed devices involved in the acquisition, transmission, and presentation of trigger data X, as well as the transmission paths of the distribution information involved in the acquisition, transmission, and presentation, and to efficiently define indicators of information transmission efficiency for each path.

[0070] In the example above, the device selection method was described as selecting the single path with the smallest path delay amount for each path from the trigger data to the person, but it is not limited to this. The device selection unit 128 may select a predetermined number of paths prioritizing paths with small path delay amounts, or it may select paths whose path delay amount is less than or equal to a predetermined value. Furthermore, the device selection unit 128 may use a method of selecting one or more paths so that the capacity of each path from the trigger data to the person is as large as possible. In that case, the device selection unit 128 can apply a known maximum flow problem (for example, the Ford-Fulkerson method). The data conversion unit 126 only needs to generate conversion data that indicates capacity instead of delay as an indicator of information transmittance.

[0071] <Second Embodiment> Next, a second embodiment will be described. The following description will mainly focus on the differences from the above embodiment, and unless otherwise specified, the description of the above embodiment will be referenced. The same reference numerals will be used for components or processes that are the same as in the above embodiment. The functional configuration of the device management device 10 according to this embodiment may be the same as the configuration shown in Figure 2. In the first embodiment, an example was given in which the distribution information is presented from one second device among the providing devices corresponding to the single path with the smallest path delay among multiple paths from the trigger data to the person. Depending on the content and presentation format of the distribution information, presenting it using multiple devices simultaneously may improve information transmission and allow viewers to easily recognize the presented distribution information. In the following description, when trigger data containing distribution information is received, an example will be given in which a device selection method is used to determine the device to be used for transmitting the distribution information based on the appeal of the distribution information to the person by the second device as an information transmission method related to the path from the use of the service to the presentation of the distribution information. Appeal refers to how easily the information is conveyed. Appeal tends to depend on the combination of the content of the distribution information and the presentation format (sometimes called the "service format" in this application).

[0072] Figure 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of the device management system 2 according to the second embodiment. The device management system 2 is composed of a device management device 10. The residence that constitutes the management area has room 01 and room 02. In room 01, devices 01-A, 01-B, and 01-C are installed as managed devices, respectively. In room 02, device 02-A is located and device 02-B is installed as a managed device. In Figure 9, the device management device 10 is not shown. The device management device 10 and devices 01-A, 01-B, 01-C, 02-A, and 02-B can be connected to each other so as to be able to send and receive various kinds of information. It is assumed that the information distribution service uses a broadcast wave service provided by a designated broadcaster and does not use any other services.

[0073] Device 01-A is a television receiver. Device 01-A can receive broadcast information using broadcast wave services and can also display the images (light) and sound (audio) that make up the broadcast information. In the RDF data exemplified in Figure 10, Device 01-A is represented as "#tv". Device 01-B is an air conditioner (a so-called IoT air conditioner). When the distributed information includes temperature control information, Device 01-B can adjust the temperature of the room 01 in which it is installed according to that temperature control information. Information provided to viewers through temperature changes may include, for example, information intended to raise awareness or provide warnings. In the RDF data shown in Figure 10, Device 01-B is labeled as "#airconditioner".

[0074] Devices 01-C and 02-B are lighting devices (so-called IoT light bulbs). When the distributed information includes illuminance control information, devices 01-C and 02-B can adjust the illuminance of the light they emit according to that illuminance control information. Information provided to viewers through changes in illuminance may include, for example, information intended to draw attention or warn. In the RDF data shown in Figure 10, devices 01-C and 02-B are labeled as "#iot-light01" and "#iot-light02", respectively. Device 02-A is a multi-functional mobile phone. Device 02-A can receive distributed information using internet services and can also display images (light) and sound (audio) that constitute the distributed information. In the RDF data shown in Figure 10, Device 02-A is represented as "#smartphone".

[0075] (Conversion of integrated data) Next, an example of the integrated data conversion process according to this embodiment will be described. The case where the RDF data shown in Figure 10 is the target of conversion as the integrated data will be described. The RDF data shown in Figure 10 shows the relationship between devices 01-A, 01-B, 01-C, 02-A, 02-B and the broadcasting station. However, the RDF data shown in Figure 10 uses a different vocabulary than that shown in Figure 1 to represent the relationships between nodes and the element information for each node. Not limited to this embodiment, RDF may use a predetermined vocabulary defined by the standardization community schema.org, or it may use a vocabulary that is independently defined. Also, "Broadcasting Station X" and "Person Y" are exemplified as "#AAA" and "#Person01", respectively. However, the illustration of trigger data is omitted.

[0076] In this embodiment, the trigger data provided by the broadcasting station includes service type information (ServiceTypeParam) associated with the distribution information. The service type information includes information indicating the appeal of each service type as a means of information transmission. The service type mainly refers to the form in which information is presented and is sometimes written as "ServiceType". In the service type information exemplified in Figure 11, light, sound, and temperature are shown as service types, and the numerical values ​​indicating the information transmittance of each are set to "1," "1," and "0." An information transmittance of "1" or "0" indicates that the associated distribution information is transmittable or non-transmittable, respectively. As will be described later, service type information is used to identify the information transmittance of distribution information between devices and between devices and people.

[0077] Figure 12 is a flowchart showing an example of the integrated data conversion process according to this embodiment. (Step S310) As described above, the integrated data generation unit 122 detects trigger data T from the received data and includes a node indicating the detected trigger data T in the RDF data and stores it in the integrated data storage unit 124. The data conversion unit 126 detects trigger data T from the RDF data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124. The data conversion unit 126 generates and stores empty conversion data O.

[0078] (Step S320) The data conversion unit 126 uses the RDF data to analyze the relationship between the broadcasting station, which is the source of the trigger data containing distribution information, and the device that can use the broadcast wave service, which is the distribution service for the distribution information. The device that can use the broadcast wave service is identified as the first device. (Step S350) The data conversion unit 126 further analyzes the relationship between the person and the device using the service type information. A device capable of presenting the distribution information to the person is identified as the second device, and the information transmittance of the service type related to the presentation of the distribution information is identified as the second information transmittance from the service type information.

[0079] (Step S380) The data conversion unit 126 analyzes the relationships between devices that are in contact with a person but are not connected to a broadcasting station. "In contact with a person" means that the device can present some kind of information, that is, it has the ability to transmit information to a person. Here, a device that could be a second device but is not a first device is identified. The identified second device has the possibility of receiving distribution information via an intermediate device among the managed devices that is neither a first device nor a second device.

[0080] (Step S400) The data conversion unit 126 outputs converted data O to the device selection unit 128, which includes a first device node indicating a first device, a second device node indicating a second device, a trigger node indicating the source of the trigger data, an intermediate device node indicating an intermediate device, a person node indicating a person, a first edge indicating a predetermined first information transmittance as a relationship between the trigger node and the first device, a second edge indicating a second information transmittance as a relationship between the second device node and the person node, and an intermediate edge indicating a second information transmittance related to the second device as a relationship between the second device node and the intermediate device node.

[0081] Next, a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between the broadcasting station and the device (step S320) will be explained using Figure 13. Figure 13 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between the broadcasting station and the device according to this embodiment. (Step S322) The data conversion unit 126 adds nodes representing "broadcasting station X" and "person Y" to the converted data O. (Step S324) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a list of devices that make "Broadcaster X" available from the RDF data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124 as device list A. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies the node of "Broadcaster X" for which an edge indicating "type" has been set as an association with the node indicating "broadcaster". The data conversion unit 126 identifies the devices shown in the nodes associated with the node of "Broadcaster X" by an edge indicating an association as an "available" service. The data conversion unit 126 can generate a list of the identified devices as device list A. The identified devices correspond to the first devices described above.

[0082] (Step S326) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether device list A is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If device list A is determined to be empty (Step S326 YES), the process in Figure 13 is terminated. If device list A is determined to be not empty (Step S326 NO), the process proceeds to step S328.

[0083] (Step S328) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in device list A as "device B". (Step S330) The data conversion unit 126 adds a node representing "Device B" to the converted data O, and adds an edge to the converted data O indicating a predetermined information transmittance as a relationship between nodes, from the node of "Broadcasting Station X" to the node of "Device B". In Figure 13, the predetermined information transmittance to be set is exemplified by "1" as a value indicating that the distribution information transmitted by using the distribution service is available. After that, device B described in device list A is deleted, and the process returns to step S326.

[0084] Next, a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between a person and a device (step S350) will be explained using Figure 14. Figure 14 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the analysis of the relationship between a person and a device according to this embodiment. (Step S352) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a list of devices installed or located at the same location as "Location C," which is the location where "Person Y" is located, from the RDF data stored in the integrated data storage unit 124, as device list A. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies "Location C" as the location indicated by the node associated with the node indicating "Person Y" by an edge indicating "Location." The data conversion unit 126 can identify devices indicated by the node with an edge indicating "Location" set as the relationship to the node indicating "Location C" as devices installed or located at "Location C." The data conversion unit 126 generates a list describing the identified devices as device list A. The identified devices correspond to the second devices described above.

[0085] (Step S354) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether device list A is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If device list A is determined to be empty (Step S354 YES), the process in Figure 14 is terminated. If device list A is determined to be not empty (Step S354 NO), the process proceeds to step S356.

[0086] (Step S356) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in device list A as "device B". The data conversion unit 126 determines whether the converted data O contains a node indicating "device B". If it determines that it does not contain a node, the data conversion unit 126 adds a node indicating "device B" to the converted data O. If it determines that it does contain a node, the data conversion unit 126 does not add a node indicating "device B".

[0087] (Step S358) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the service types that "Device B" can present from the RDF data and extracts a service type list C showing the identified service types. More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies the service types shown on nodes where an edge indicating "service type (service_type)" is set as a relationship with the node showing "Device B". The data conversion unit 126 generates a service type list C showing the identified service types.

[0088] (Step S360) The data conversion unit 126 sets the information transmittance value n for each service type to 0 (no information transmittance) as the initial value. (Step S362) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether the service type list C is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed service types. If the service type list C is determined to be empty (Step S362 YES), the process proceeds to step S368. If the service type list C is determined to be not empty (Step S362 NO), the process proceeds to step S364.

[0089] (Step S364) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the service type described at the beginning of the service type list C as "service type D". (Step S366) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether the identified "service type D" is described in the service type information. If it is described, the data conversion unit 126 identifies a value indicating information transmittance described in association with "service type D" described in the service type information. The data conversion unit 126 sets the identified value as the individual information transmittance value n corresponding to "service type D". If it is not described, the data conversion unit 126 does not change the individual information transmittance value n. A service type that is not described corresponds to an unavailable service type. After that, the data conversion unit 126 deletes "service type D" described in the service type list C and returns to the process in step S362.

[0090] (Step S368) The data conversion unit 126 aggregates the individual information transmittance for each identified service type and determines the information transmittance from "device B" to "person Y". When determining the aggregated information transmittance between service types, the data conversion unit 126 calculates to show higher information transmittance by adding available service types. For example, the data conversion unit 126 may adopt the highest individual information transmittance among the individual information transmittances, or it may adopt a simple sum or weighted sum of the individual information transmittances. The identified information transmittance corresponds to the second information transmittance. The data conversion unit 126 adds an edge indicating the determined information transmittance from the node representing "person Y" to the node representing "device B" to the converted data O. After that, the data conversion unit 126 deletes "device B" described in device list A and returns to the process in step S354.

[0091] Next, a specific example of the analysis of the relationships between devices (step S380) will be explained using Figure 15. Figure 15 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the analysis of the relationships between devices according to this embodiment. (Step S382) The data conversion unit 126 identifies a second device which is a device for which an edge indicating a relationship with a node representing "person Y" has been set in the converted data O, and generates a device list A showing the identified device. (Step S384) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether device list A is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If device list A is determined to be empty (Step S384 YES), the process in Figure 15 is terminated. If device list A is determined to be not empty (Step S384 NO), the process proceeds to step S386.

[0092] (Step S386) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in device list A as "device B". (Step S388) The data conversion unit 126 refers to the RDF data and determines whether or not "Device B" has a path connected to "Broadcasting Station X". More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 determines whether or not such a path exists based on whether or not an edge indicating "available_service" or "connection" is included as a relationship between the node indicating "Device B" and the node indicating "Broadcasting Station X". If it is determined that it does have a path (Step S388 YES), the data conversion unit 126 deletes the description of "Device B" from device list A and returns to the process in step S384. If it is determined that it does not have a path (Step S388 NO), it proceeds to the process in step S390.

[0093] (Step S390) The data conversion unit 126 extracts a device list C from the RDF data that indicates devices that can connect to "device B". More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 identifies devices that are indicated by an edge indicating "connect" as a relationship with the node indicating "device B". The data conversion unit 126 generates a device list indicating the identified devices as device list C. (Step S392) The data conversion unit 126 determines whether device list C is empty or not. This process determines whether there are any unprocessed devices. If device list C is determined to be empty (Step S392 YES), the data conversion unit 126 deletes the description of "device B" from device list A and returns to the process in step S384. If device list C is determined to be not empty (Step S392 NO), the process proceeds to step S394.

[0094] (Step S394) The data conversion unit 126 identifies the device listed first in the device list C as "device D". (Step S396) The data conversion unit 126 refers to the RDF data and determines whether or not there is a path connecting "device D" to "broadcasting station X". More specifically, the data conversion unit 126 determines whether or not there is such a path based on whether or not there is an edge indicating "available service" or "connection" as a relationship between the node indicating "device D" and the node indicating "broadcasting station X". If it is determined that there is a path (Step S396 YES), the process proceeds to step S398. If it is determined that there is no path (Step S396 NO), the data conversion unit 126 deletes the description of "device D" from the device list C and returns to the process of step S392.

[0095] (Step S398) The data conversion unit 126 is initialized by setting the initial value of the information transferability value n from "device D" to "device B" to a predetermined value (for example, 1). (Step S400) The data conversion unit 126 sets the information transmittance value, which is shown as the relationship between nodes indicated by the edge from the node indicating "device B" to the node indicating "person Y" in the converted data O, as the information transmittance value n from "device D" to "device B". (Step S402) The data conversion unit 126 adds an edge representing the value n as a relationship between nodes to the converted data O, from the node representing "device D" to the node representing "device B". Here, it is assumed that information transferability from the source device to the destination device is not lost during data transfer between devices. After that, the data conversion unit 126 deletes the description of "device D" from the device list C and returns to the process in step S392.

[0096] The transformed data O generated by the above process includes trigger nodes related to trigger data, device nodes representing individual devices, and person nodes representing people, and represents a directed graph including edges that show the relationships between nodes. According to the transformed data O, it is possible to easily understand the information transferability between nodes for each path from "broadcasting station X," which is the source of the trigger data containing distribution information, to "person Y" using one or more managed devices.

[0097] The device selection unit 128 sets the distance to a pair of nodes such that the higher the information transmittance set between the pair, the shorter the distance between them. Based on the set distance, the device selection unit 128 determines the position of each node on a two-dimensional plane. The device selection unit 128 can determine the position of each node using, for example, the Fructerman-Reingold algorithm (sometimes referred to as the "FR method" in the following description). The FR method is a dynamical model that quantitatively defines the relationship between nodes. As a dynamical model, it is assumed that a repulsive force whose magnitude is inversely proportional to the distance between nodes and an attractive force whose magnitude is proportional to the distance between nodes on which edges are set act. For the attractive force, the proportionality constant is set so that it increases as the information transmittance increases. The position of each edge is the position (Lagrangian point) where the repulsive and attractive forces acting between it and other edges balance each other. Therefore, the higher the information transmittance between nodes, the shorter the distance between nodes.

[0098] Figure 16 illustrates the distribution of each node as defined using the FR method. Circles represent individual nodes, and line segments connecting two circles represent edges. However, it is assumed that the information transmittance value, repulsive constant, and attractive constant between the broadcasting station (#AAA) and each first device are all 1. Furthermore, it is assumed that the information transmittance value from each second device to a person (#person1) is the sum of the information transmittance values ​​for each available service type, i.e., the number of available service types. It is also assumed that the information transmittance value from an intermediate device to a second device is equal to the information transmittance value from that second device to a person. The distance from the person node to each device node increases in the following order: television receiver (#tv), IoT light bulb (#iot-light1), smartphone (#smartphone), and air conditioner (#airconditioner), which are located in the same room as the person, with the distance to the television receiver being the shortest. In Figure 16, the area where the distance from the person node is 1 or less is represented by a circle. Each distance is normalized such that the distance from the person node to the broadcasting station node (which indicates the broadcasting station) is 1. Note that when the device selection unit 128 determines the position of individual nodes, it may use other methods, such as geometric methods, as long as the distance between nodes can be determined based on the information transferability between them, rather than being limited to the FR method.

[0099] The device selection unit 128 prioritizes selecting paths from the trigger data related to the trigger data to the person node representing a person, prioritizing paths that include a second device that is closer to the person node. The device selection unit 128 can select a television receiver and an IoT light bulb as second devices used to present the distributed information, provided that their distance from the person node is shorter than a predetermined distance threshold. Furthermore, for IoT light bulbs that cannot use broadcast wave services, the device selection unit 128 can select a smartphone as another device on the path from the broadcasting station to the person.

[0100] The device control unit 130 instructs the television receiver to acquire and present distribution information using broadcast wave services. The device control unit 130 instructs the smartphone to acquire distribution information using broadcast wave services and transfer it to the next device in the path, the smartphone. The device control unit 130 instructs the IoT light bulb to receive and present the distribution information. The distribution information is presented to the person from both the television receiver and the IoT light bulb. Therefore, the distribution information is effectively presented to the person.

[0101] In the above example, the device selection method executed by the device selection unit 128 primarily prioritizes paths that include nodes related to second devices that are closer to the person node, and defines multiple paths that include a second device located in the same room as the detected person. However, it is not limited to this. The device selection unit 128 may, for example, define only one path, or paths that include a second device located in a different room from the room in which the person was detected may be considered as candidates. Furthermore, service type information does not necessarily have to be included in the trigger data. Service type information may be pre-associated and included in the RDF data for each type of distribution information. In that case, the data conversion unit 126 can identify the service type information associated with the type of distribution information in the RDF data.

[0102] In each of the above embodiments, the integrated data generation unit 122 may acquire person identification information indicating the detected person and store the person identification information in the integrated data storage unit 124 in association with the detected person node. The integrated data generation unit 122 may acquire personal identification information from various sensor information using known personal identification technologies (e.g., facial image recognition, fingerprint authentication, iris authentication, etc.), or person identification information may be input from an external device. The data conversion unit 126 may be pre-configured with available device information indicating the manageable devices available to each person. The data conversion unit 126 may refer to the available device information and identify the available devices that can be used by the person indicated by the person identification information associated with the person node. The data conversion unit 126 may designate a device capable of presenting distribution information as a second device from among the identified available devices. This ensures that the device for presenting distribution information is determined considering the devices available to the detected person. For example, a device other than a television receiver may be selected for children or infants whose use of television receivers is restricted, and a device other than a smartphone may be selected for elderly people who are not proficient in using smartphones.

[0103] Furthermore, the integrated data storage unit 124 may store RDF data that includes parameters used for various processes performed by each part of the device management device 10 as elemental information, or it may store RDF data configured separately from those parameters. For example, the RDF data may include one of the above-mentioned sensor installation information, effectiveness information, and available device information, or any combination thereof.

[0104] As described above, the device management device 10 according to this embodiment includes an integrated data storage unit 124 that stores integrated data including a plurality of nodes and edges indicating the relationship between one node and the other node for each pair of nodes among the plurality of nodes. When the device management device 10 acquires trigger data including distribution information, it includes a data conversion unit 126 that converts the structure of the integrated data into a structure corresponding to a device selection method, which is a method for selecting a device related to providing the distribution information, and generates converted data. Based on the converted data, the device management device 10 includes a device selection unit 128 that selects a providing device, which is a device related to providing the distribution information, using the above-described device selection method. According to this configuration, the providing device for delivering the information is determined based on the converted data, which has been transformed into a structure according to the device selection method, using that device selection method. This allows for more efficient device selection and more effective information delivery than not transforming the structure of the integrated data, which includes various types of information, or transforming it into a specific structure.

[0105] Furthermore, the device selection method may be a method of determining the providing device based on the information transmittance related to the path from the use of the distribution information service to its presentation. The data conversion unit 126 may generate conversion data that includes, from the integrated data, a first device node indicating the first device, a second device node indicating the second device, a trigger node related to trigger data, a source device node indicating a source device that can transfer the distribution information, a destination device node indicating a destination device that can be the destination of the distribution information, and a person node indicating a person, as well as a first edge indicating first information transmittance, which is the information transmittance related to the use of the service as a relationship between the trigger node and the first device node, an inter-device edge indicating inter-device information transmittance, which is the information transmittance from the source device to the destination device as a relationship between the source device node and the destination device node, and a second edge indicating second information transmittance, which is the information transmittance to a person as a relationship between the second device node and the person node. The device selection unit 128 may, based on the conversion data, determine at least one path for each path from the trigger node to the person node, based on the information transmittance indicated at the edges included in that path, and identify the devices indicated at the nodes included in the determined path as providing devices. This configuration provides converted data that easily allows for the understanding of information transfer between trigger data, individuals, and multiple devices. Using this converted data, the devices used to deliver the information can be efficiently determined based on the path from the use of the distribution service to its presentation to individuals.

[0106] Alternatively, the device selection method may be a method of determining the device related to the provision of the distribution information based on the delay as information transmittance related to the path from the use of the service to the presentation of the distribution information. The data conversion unit may identify the delay related to the use of the service for each first device as the first information transmittance from the integrated data, the delay to the person for each second device as the second information transmittance, and the delay from the source device to the destination device as the inter-device information transmittance. The device selection unit 128 selects one or more paths based on the path delay amount, which is the sum of the delays shown for each edge included in each path. This configuration allows for easy identification of delays for each device, enabling efficient determination of the provided device based on the path delay amount for each route.

[0107] Furthermore, the integrated data may include location nodes indicating a place, movement delay nodes indicating the delay associated with movement from one location to another, and edges indicating the installation location of a device as a relationship between a device node and a location node. The device management device 10 may include an integrated data generation unit 122 that generates integrated data including edges indicating the location where a person is located as a relationship between a person node and a location node when acquiring person detection information indicating the detection of a person. The data conversion unit 126 may use the integrated data to identify the movement delay for each second device, which is the delay associated with movement from the location where a person is located to the installation location of the second device, and set a second edge indicating the movement delay as a relationship between a person node and a second device node related to the second device. According to this configuration, the providing device for providing the information will be determined by further considering the time it takes from the location where a person is detected until they come into contact with the second device where the information is presented.

[0108] The device selection method may be a method of determining the providing device based on the information transmittance of the second device as an information transmittance related to the path from the use of the service to the presentation of the distributed information. The trigger data may include service type information indicating the information transmittance of the service type of the distributed information. The data conversion unit 126 may determine the information transmittance of the service type that the second device can use to present the distributed information as the second information transmittance based on the service type information, and may also determine the inter-device information transmittance with the transfer destination device being the second device as the second information transmittance, and may pre-determine the first information transmittance. The device selection unit 128 may determine the node distribution such that the distance between two nodes becomes shorter the higher the information transmittance shown on the edge set between the two nodes, and may select one or more paths including the second device based on the distance from the person node to the second device. In this configuration, the primary information transmission capability for each device is the secondary information transmission capability for information delivered to individuals. Therefore, the devices providing the information can be determined with an emphasis on information transmission capability to individuals.

[0109] Furthermore, the integrated data may include a location node indicating a place and an edge indicating the installation location of the device as a relationship between the device node and the location node. The device management device 10 may include an integrated data generation unit 122 that generates the integrated data including an edge indicating the relationship between the person node and the location node indicating the place when it acquires person detection information indicating the location where a person was detected. The data conversion unit 126 may identify the location where a person was detected as the installation location and identify a device capable of presenting distribution information as the second device. In this configuration, a second device is selected that presents the information being distributed from the device, with the location where a person was detected as the installation location. Since devices that do not use the location where a person was detected as the installation location are excluded from the selection of second devices that present the information being distributed, a second device with high information transmission capabilities can be efficiently selected.

[0110] The integrated data storage unit 124 may, when any device is no longer detected, disable the undetected device node indicating the undetected device and the undetected device related nodes, which are other nodes associated with the undetected device node, and may re-enable the undetected device node and the undetected device related nodes when an undetected device is detected. With this configuration, detected active devices become candidates for providing distribution information, while undetected devices are excluded as potential providing devices. Therefore, providing devices can be efficiently selected from active devices, and unnecessary processing related to providing distribution information to undetected devices can be avoided.

[0111] When the data conversion unit 126 acquires person identification information indicating an identified person, it may use available device information indicating available devices which are devices that can be used by each person to identify a device that can present the distribution information as a second device among the available devices that the identified person can use. In this configuration, the providing device for delivering information is configured so that a second device for presenting the delivered information is selected from the devices available to each individual. By having the delivered information presented from the device that the individual normally uses, the effectiveness of information transmission can be improved compared to other devices.

[0112] Although embodiments of this invention have been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to those described above, and various design changes can be made without departing from the spirit of this invention.

[0113] Furthermore, some or all of the above-mentioned device management device 10, such as the integrated data generation unit 122, integrated data storage unit 124, data conversion unit 126, device selection unit 128, and device control unit 130, may be implemented by a computer. In that case, the program for implementing this control function may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on this recording medium may be loaded into a computer system and executed. Here, "computer system" refers to the computer system built into the device management device 10, and includes hardware such as the OS and peripheral devices. Furthermore, "computer-readable recording medium" refers to portable media such as flexible disks, magneto-optical disks, ROMs, CD-ROMs, and storage devices such as hard disks built into a computer system. In addition, "computer-readable recording medium" may also include those that dynamically hold programs for a short period of time, such as communication lines when transmitting programs via networks such as the Internet or communication lines such as telephone lines, and those that hold programs for a certain period of time, such as volatile memory inside a computer system that acts as a server or client in such a case. Furthermore, the above program may be intended to implement some of the functions described above, and may also be intended to implement the above functions in combination with programs already recorded in the computer system. Furthermore, part or all of the device management device 10 in the above-described embodiment may be implemented as an integrated circuit such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration). Each functional block of the device management device 10 may be individually implemented as a processor, or part or all of them may be integrated into a processor. In addition, the method of implementing the integrated circuit is not limited to LSIs; it may also be implemented using dedicated circuits or general-purpose processors. Furthermore, if an integrated circuit technology that can replace LSIs emerges due to advances in semiconductor technology, an integrated circuit using that technology may be used. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0114] 1, 2... Device management system, 10... Device management device, 122... Integrated data generation unit, 124... Integrated data storage unit, 126... Data conversion unit, 128... Device selection unit, 130... Device control unit

Claims

1. an integrated data storage unit that stores integrated data including a plurality of nodes and, for each pair of two nodes among the plurality of nodes, an edge that indicates a relationship between one node and the other node; a data conversion unit that, when acquiring trigger data including distribution information, converts a structure of the integrated data into a structure corresponding to a device selection method that selects a device related to provision of the distribution information, thereby generating converted data; a device selection unit that selects a providing device related to providing the distribution information by using the device selection method based on the conversion data; A device management apparatus comprising:

2. The device selection method is a method for determining the providing device based on information transmissibility related to a path from service use to presentation of the distribution information, The data conversion unit converts the integrated data into A device that can use the distribution information service is defined as a first device; A device capable of presenting the distribution information is defined as a second device; a first device node indicating the first device, a second device node indicating the second device, a trigger node relating to the trigger data, a source device node indicating a source device to which the distribution information can be transferred, a destination device node indicating a destination device to which the distribution information can be transferred, and a person node indicating a person; generating conversion data including a first edge indicating a first information communicability, which is information communicability relating to use of the service, as a relationship between the trigger node and the first device node; an inter-device edge indicating an inter-device information communicability, which is information communicability from the source device to the destination device, as a relationship between the source device node and the destination device node; and a second edge indicating a second information communicability, which is information communicability to a person, as a relationship between the second device node and the person node; the device selection unit determines, for each path from the trigger node to the person node based on the conversion data, at least one path based on information transferability indicated by edges included in the path; Identifying a device indicated by a node included in the determined route as the providing device. The device management apparatus according to claim 1 .

3. The device selection method is a method for determining a device related to provision of the distribution information based on a delay as information transmission characteristic related to a path from use of a service of the distribution information to presentation, The data conversion unit converts the integrated data into Identifying a delay associated with using the service for each first device as the first information communicability; identifying a delay to the person for each second device as the second information communicability; Identifying a delay from the source device to the destination device as the inter-device information transferability; The device selection unit selects one or more paths based on a path delay amount, which is the sum of delays indicated by the individual edges included in each path. The device management apparatus according to claim 2 .

4. The integrated data includes a location node indicating a location, a travel delay node indicating a delay involved in travel from one location to another location, and an edge indicating an installation location of the device as a relationship between the device node and the location node; an integrated data generation unit that, when acquiring person detection information indicating the detection of a person, generates the integrated data including an edge indicating a location where the person is located as a relationship between the person node and the location node; The data conversion unit Using the integrated data, identify a travel delay for each of the second devices, the travel delay being a delay associated with traveling from a location where the person is located to a location where the second device is installed; A second edge indicating the travel delay is set as a relationship between the person node and a second device node related to the second device. The device management apparatus according to claim 3 .

5. The device selection method is a method for determining the providing device based on information transferability of the second device as information transferability related to a path from service use to presentation of the distribution information, the trigger data includes service type information indicating information transmission characteristics of a service type of the distribution information, The data conversion unit determining, based on the service form information, information communicability of a service form that the second device can use to present the distribution information as second information communicability; defining the inter-device information communicability in which the transfer destination device is the second device as the second information communicability; The first information communicability is determined in advance, the device selection unit determines the node distribution such that the higher the information transferability indicated by an edge set between two nodes, the shorter the distance between the nodes; selecting one or more routes that include the second device based on a distance from the person node to the second device; The device management apparatus according to claim 2 .

6. The integrated data includes a location node indicating a location, and an edge indicating an installation location of the device as a relationship between the device node and the location node; an integrated data generation unit that, when acquiring person detection information indicating a place where a person is detected, generates the integrated data including an edge indicating a relationship between the person node and a place node indicating the place; The data conversion unit The location where the person was detected is set as an installation location, and a device capable of presenting the distribution information is identified as the second device. The device management apparatus according to claim 5 .

7. The integrated data storage unit When any device becomes undetected, disable the undetected device node that represents the undetected device, When the undetected device is detected, enable the undetected device node. The device management apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 6.

8. The data conversion unit When obtaining personal identification information indicating an identified person, Using available device information indicating available devices that are devices that can be used for each person, a device that can present the distribution information is identified as the second device from among the available devices that can be used by the identified person. The device management apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 7.

9. On the computer, A program for causing the device management apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8 to function as the device management apparatus.

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