Support device and support program

Abstract

To provide a support apparatus and a support program configured to improve convenience of a resident.SOLUTION: In a support apparatus 50, a living space information acquisition unit 61 acquires living space information on a past or current living space. An ideal space information acquisition unit 62 acquires ideal space information on a living space which is ideal for a resident. A detection information acquisition unit 63 acquires detection information detected by a sensor 5 disposed in the living space. A diagnosis unit 66 diagnoses the current state of the living space by referring to the living space information, the ideal space information, and the detection information, to find a problem in the current state of the living space. A suggestion unit 67 suggests an improvement for the living space on the basis of the living space information, the ideal space information, the detection information, and the problem in the current state of the living space.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technology for assisting residents in a living space.

Background Art

[0002] A house is an important foundation for people to live. Various technologies have been provided to improve the convenience and comfort of living in a house (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a technology for generating and presenting candidates for a method of reforming, repairing, or manufacturing an object based on information about the object installed in a living space and the history of detection information detected in the past by a sensor installed in the living space.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] The inventors of the present invention recognized the problem of providing a technology for assisting residents in order to further improve the convenience of residents, and came up with the technology of the present disclosure.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in view of such problems, and an object thereof is to provide a technology for improving the convenience of residents.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] To solve the above problems, a support device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a living space information acquisition unit that acquires living space information regarding a past or current living space, an ideal space information acquisition unit that acquires ideal space information regarding a living space that is an ideal state for a resident, and a proposal unit that proposes an improvement plan for the living space based on the living space information and the ideal space information.

[0008] In addition, any combination of the above components, and those obtained by converting the expression of the present invention among a method, an apparatus, a system, a recording medium, a computer program, etc., are also effective as aspects of the present invention.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] The support device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure grasps the current or past living space and the living space that is ideal for the occupant, and based on these, proposes improvement plans for the living space to the occupant. At a certain point in time, even if the living space that the occupant desires has been constructed, during subsequent living, the living space may change over time, or the occupant's condition, preferences, living environment, etc. may change, resulting in a deviation between the actual living space and the ideal living space. Also, at a certain point in time, due to reasons such as time or economic reasons, even if the ideal living space cannot be constructed, there may be a subsequent time or economic margin for improving the living space. The support device according to the embodiment grasps changes in the living space and the occupant based on information detected by various sensors installed in the living space, information obtained from the occupant, etc., and updates the current state and ideal state of the living space. The support device proposes improvement plans for bringing the living space closer to the ideal state to the occupant based on the current state and ideal state of the living space at an appropriate timing. Thereby, it is possible to appropriately support the construction of a living space that is an ideal state for the occupant, and thus improve the convenience of the occupant. Also, it is possible to estimate the ideal state of the living space that the occupant himself / herself has not noticed from various information, etc., and propose improvement plans for bringing the living space closer to the estimated ideal state, so that the convenience of the occupant can be improved.

[0011] The improvement plans for the living space may be, for example, proposals for addition, change, movement, repair, maintenance, setting change, renovation, DIY, etc. of facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior decoration, exterior decoration, etc. installed in the living space, or proposals for changing the floor plan of the living space or moving to another living space, or proposals regarding living in general. The technology of the present embodiment is applicable not only to houses but also to any living space including buildings or sites where people live, stay, or lodge, such as accommodation facilities, sites such as parking lots and gardens annexed to houses and accommodation facilities, and facilities where infants, the elderly, etc. stay. In the present embodiment, mainly, an example of supporting the renovation of a house will be described.

[0012] FIG. 1 schematically shows an overview of the support technology according to the present disclosure. First, the support device 50 of the present embodiment acquires living space information regarding a past or current living space from a resident terminal 3 used by a resident, a sensor 5 installed in the living space, etc., and grasps the initial state of the living space. The support device 50 may store information regarding the floor plan of the living space, facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed in the living space, or may generate a digital twin of the living space based on this information. The support device 50 acquires ideal space information regarding an ideal living space for the resident from the resident terminal 3 and grasps the ideal state of the living space. The support device 50 may store information regarding the floor plan of the ideal living space, facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. that the resident hopes to install in the living space, or may generate a digital twin of the ideal living space based on this information.

[0013] The resident terminal 3 includes an input device and a display device for receiving living space information, ideal space information, etc. from the resident, a communication device for transmitting the received information to the support device 50, a processing device for controlling those processes, etc. The resident terminal 3 may be any type of terminal device such as a PC, a tablet PC, a smartphone, etc. The resident terminal 3 may include a device that functions as a sensor 5, such as an imaging device or a position detection device. The resident terminal 3 may include a configuration for detecting or acquiring biometric information of the resident, such as the resident's body temperature, pulse, blood pressure, blood oxygen concentration, sleep state, etc., and information regarding the resident's life. The resident terminal 3 may acquire detection information from a wearable sensor worn by the resident and transmit it to the support device 50.

[0014] The support device 50 continuously acquires detection information detected by sensors 5 installed in the living space, the resident terminal 3, etc. Further, the support device 50 continuously acquires information such as the state, preferences, and living environment of the resident from the resident terminal 3. Based on these pieces of information, the support device 50 updates information representing the current state of the living space and the digital twin. Also, based on these pieces of information, the support device 50 updates information representing the ideal state of the living space and the digital twin. The support device 50 may present the living space information and the ideal space information to the resident terminal 3 at any time.

[0015] At an appropriate timing, the support device 50 discovers problems in the current state of the living space based on the living space information, the ideal space information, the detection information, the information acquired from the resident terminal 3, etc., and proposes to the resident terminal 3 an improvement plan that can improve the discovered problems and bring the living space closer to the ideal state. The support device 50 may acquire an improvement plan from a supporter terminal 4 of supporters such as experts familiar with housing, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior and exterior finishes, renovation, etc., such as designers of the living space, developers, salespersons, designers of manufacturers of houses, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc., and experts related to life and living such as sleep advisors, life advisors, lifestyle coordinators, registered dietitians, data scientists. Also, the support device 50 may propose an improvement plan using an algorithm that inputs the living space information, the ideal space information, the detection information, etc. and outputs an improvement plan.

[0016] When the resident who has received the improvement plan improves the living space, the support device 50 acquires information about the living space after the improvement from the resident terminal 3 and the sensors 5 and updates the living space information. Also, the support device 50 acquires information about the living space desired by the resident from the resident terminal 3 and updates the ideal space information. With this state as the initial state, the above cycle is repeated.

[0017] As a result, even if the living space deteriorates over time, or the state, preferences, living environment, etc. of the residents change, it is possible to continuously propose improvement plans for the living space that meet the residents' ideals. More specifically, in accordance with changes in the physical abilities, diseases, family, composition of cohabitants, ages of family members, lifestyle, work, time usage, values, lifestyle guidelines, possessions such as home appliances and furniture, and technologies such as smartphones, smart speakers, and wearable sensors introduced into the living space, appropriate improvement plans can be proposed in a timely manner.

[0018] Figure 2 shows an example of a house. In house 2, as examples of sensors 5, an image sensor 30, a load sensor 31, an open / close sensor 32, a 3D sensor 33, etc. are installed. These sensors 5 are installed on equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed within house 2, and detect the state of the residents living in house 2, and the position and state of equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed within house 2. The information detected by these sensors 5 is transmitted to the support device 50 via the communication network 40.

[0019] Figure 3 is a sequence diagram showing the procedure of the support device according to the embodiment. The resident terminal 3 transmits living space information regarding the past or current living space to the support device 50 (S10). The support device 50 records the living space information and generates a digital twin of the living space as necessary (S12). The resident terminal 3 transmits ideal space information regarding the living space that the resident desires to the support device 50 (S14). The support device 50 records the ideal space information and generates a digital twin of the ideal living space as necessary (S16).

[0020] The sensors 5 installed in the living space transmit the detected information to the support device 50 (S20). The resident terminal 3 transmits resident information such as the state, preferences, and living environment of the resident to the support device 50 (S22). The support device 50 updates the information and digital twin representing the current state of the living space based on this information (S24). Also, the support device 50 updates the information and digital twin representing the ideal state of the living space based on this information (S26).

[0021] The support device 50 generates (S30) an improvement plan that can bring the living space closer to an ideal state based on the living space information, ideal space information, detection information, information obtained from the resident terminal 3, etc., at an appropriate timing, and proposes the generated improvement plan to the resident terminal 3 (S32).

[0022] FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the support device according to the embodiment. The support device 50 includes a communication device 51, a display device 52, an input device 53, a control device 60, and a storage device 70. The support device 50 may be a server device, may be a device such as a personal computer, or may be a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone terminal, a smartphone, or a tablet terminal.

[0023] The communication device 51 controls communication with other devices via a communication network 40 or the like. The communication device 51 may communicate by any wired or wireless communication method. The display device 52 displays a screen generated by the control device 60. The display device 52 may be a liquid crystal display device, an organic EL display device, or the like. The input device 53 transmits an instruction input by a user or administrator of the support device 50 to the control device 60. The input device 53 may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch pad, or the like. The display device 52 and the input device 53 may be implemented as a touch panel.

[0024] The storage device 70 stores programs, data, etc. used by the control device 60. The storage device 70 may be a semiconductor memory, a hard disk, or the like. The storage device 70 includes a resident information holding unit 71, a living space information holding unit 72, an ideal space information holding unit 73, a detection information holding unit 74, a renovation information holding unit 75, and an improvement plan generation algorithm 76.

[0025] The occupant information storage unit 71 stores information about the occupants of the living space. The occupant information storage unit 71 stores, for example, attribute information such as the number of occupants, family composition, gender, age, blood type, occupation, and lifestyle patterns, biological information such as height, weight, health status, and motor ability, and preference information such as hobbies, favorite foods and drinks, design preferences, and the types of animals being kept. The occupant information storage unit 71 may store information indicating the values and ways of thinking of the occupants, etc., as information to be considered when considering the ideal state and improvement plans of the living space. For example, information indicating values related to the living space such as wanting to save waste in housework / wanting to do housework actively, wanting children to be independent / wanting to be with children, wanting to live minimally / wanting to live conveniently surrounded by things, wanting to invite people / wanting the house to be only for the family, wanting to continue living there forever / wanting to make it sellable or rentable, etc., and information indicating the priority order of important things, for example, the priority order of family, house, time, etc., may be stored in the occupant information storage unit 71.

[0026] The living space information storage unit 72 stores living space information. The living space information storage unit 72 stores information such as the floor plan, area, construction method, module, drawing, captured image, types, manufacturers, locations, shapes, sizes, colors, materials, appearances, characteristics, functions, prices, installation dates, captured images, etc. of the facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed in the living space.

[0027] The ideal space information storage unit 73 stores ideal space information. The ideal space information storage unit 73 stores information such as the floor plan, area, drawing, image, types, locations, shapes, sizes, colors, materials, appearances, characteristics, functions, price ranges, tastes, images, etc. of the facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. that the occupants hope to install in the living space.

[0028] The detection information storage unit 74 stores the information detected by the sensor 5. The detection information storage unit 74 stores environmental information such as temperature and humidity, vibration, solar radiation, wind force, wind direction, and solar altitude, information related to air such as pollen, dust, particulate matter, PM2.5, bacteria, viruses, yellow sand, and radiation dose, behavior information of residents such as the stay time, movement time, movement route, number of residents staying, sleep time, bedtime, bathing time, excretion time, number of excretions, meal time, work attendance time, homecoming time, and schedule, opening and closing information of housing facilities such as windows, doors, and gates, usage time, usage history, etc. for each resident of housing facilities and equipment, physical information of residents such as height, weight, blood pressure, pulse, excretion volume, sweating volume, physical ability, diseases, and ADL (activities of daily living), and equipment information such as electricity consumption, gas consumption, water consumption, and energy consumption.

[0029] The renovation information storage unit 75 stores information related to the renovation of the house 2. The renovation information storage unit 75 stores information such as the types, manufacturers, locations, shapes, sizes, colors, materials, appearances, characteristics, functions, prices, and images of facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, and interior finishes that can be installed in the house 2, as well as information such as the construction contractors, costs, delivery dates, fee systems, and reputations of the renovation.

[0030] The improvement plan generation algorithm 76 is an algorithm for generating improvement plans for the house 2. The improvement plan generation algorithm 76 may be a neural network that inputs living space information, ideal space information, detection information, resident information, etc. into the input layer and outputs improvement plans corresponding to the input information from the output layer. The improvement plan generation algorithm 76 may also be a rule-based algorithm that associates conditions related to these information with the improvement plans recommended when those conditions are met. The improvement plan generation algorithm 76 may be an algorithm for scoring multiple improvement plans based on this information. The improvement plan generation algorithm 76 may be provided for each attribute such as the age, gender, and occupation of the residents, or may be provided for each resident.

[0031] The control device 60 includes a living space information acquisition unit 61, an ideal space information acquisition unit 62, a detection information acquisition unit 63, a living space information update unit 64, an ideal space information update unit 65, a diagnosis unit 66, a proposal unit 67, a renovation management unit 68, and a learning unit 69. These components are realized hardware-wise by a CPU, a memory, and other LSIs of an arbitrary computer, and software-wise by a program loaded in the memory, etc. Here, however, functional blocks realized by their cooperation are depicted. Therefore, it is understood by those skilled in the art that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms such as only by hardware or a combination of hardware and software.

[0032] The living space information acquisition unit 61 acquires living space information from the resident terminal 3 and stores it in the living space information holding unit 72. The living space information acquisition unit 61 acquires resident information from the resident terminal 3 and stores it in the resident information holding unit 71.

[0033] The ideal space information acquisition unit 62 acquires ideal space information from the resident terminal 3 and stores it in the ideal space information holding unit 73. The ideal space information acquisition unit 62 may propose to the resident an ideal living space based on the living space information and the resident information. The ideal space information acquisition unit 62 may construct an ideal living space for the resident in the dialogue between the supporter such as a designer and the resident.

[0034] The detection information acquisition unit 63 acquires the detection information detected by the sensor 5 installed in the living space and stores it in the detection information holding unit 74.

[0035] The living space information update unit 64 updates the living space information stored in the living space information storage unit 72 based on the information acquired from the sensors 5, the resident terminals 3, etc. For example, the living space information update unit 64 may detect that facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed in the living space have been changed from the captured image of the living space, and update the living space information storage unit 72. Further, when the living space is renovated, the living space information update unit 64 may acquire the living space information after the renovation and update the living space information storage unit 72.

[0036] The ideal space information update unit 65 updates the ideal space information stored in the ideal space information storage unit 73 based on the information acquired from the sensors 5, the resident terminals 3, etc. For example, the ideal space information update unit 65 may analyze the preferences and living patterns of the residents from the captured images of newly installed facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. in the living space, and update the ideal space information storage unit 73.

[0037] The diagnosis unit 66 refers to the living space information, the ideal space information, the detection information, the resident information, etc., diagnoses the current state of the living space, and discovers the problems in the current state of the living space. The diagnosis unit 66 may diagnose the movement routes of the residents based on the floor plan of the living space, the installation positions of facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, etc., the movement time, the movement distance, the staying time, etc. of the residents. The diagnosis unit 66 may diagnose the necessity, safety, satisfaction, risk level, etc. of the facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed in the living space based on their characteristics, functions, designs, colors, sizes, etc. The diagnosis unit 66 may diagnose the characteristics, functions, performance, necessity, timing, cost, etc. of maintenance and replacement of the facilities, equipment, devices, furniture, building materials, interior finishes, etc. installed in the living space based on the electricity consumption, gas consumption, water consumption, energy consumption. The diagnosis unit 66 may provide the living space information, the ideal space information, the detection information, the resident information, etc. to the supporter terminal 4, and acquire the diagnosis results by the supporter from the supporter terminal 4.

[0038] The proposal department 67 proposes improvement plans for improving the living space to the residents based on the living space information, ideal space information, detection information, resident information, diagnosis results by the diagnosis department 66, etc. The proposal department 67 may provide the living space information, ideal space information, detection information, resident information, diagnosis results by the diagnosis department 66, etc. to the supporter terminal 4, and obtain the improvement plan from the supporter terminal 4. The proposal department 67 may present the improvement plan obtained from the supporter terminal 4 to the resident terminal 3 and provide a place for interaction between the resident terminal 3 and the supporter terminal 4. Thereby, the resident can receive a warm proposal from an expert and can implement a reform with a sense of satisfaction through interaction with the expert, so that the convenience of the resident can be improved. In addition, since the supporter can grasp in advance the current state and ideal state of the living space, etc., the business opportunities can be increased and the reform can be promoted smoothly, so that the convenience of the supporter can also be improved.

[0039] The proposal department 67 may generate an improvement plan using the improvement plan generation algorithm 76. In this case, the proposal department 67 inputs the living space information, ideal space information, detection information, resident information, diagnosis results by the diagnosis department 66, etc. into the improvement plan generation algorithm 76 and outputs the improvement plan.

[0040] The renovation management department 68 manages the estimate, order placement, construction, maintenance, etc. when the resident renovates the house 2. The renovation management department 68 obtains the content of the renovation determined by the resident among the improvement plans proposed by the proposal department 67 and manages the estimate, order placement, construction, maintenance, etc. Thereby, the processes required for the renovation can be carried out in one stop, so that the renovation can be promoted smoothly without going back.

[0041] The learning unit 69 learns the improvement plan generation algorithm 76 through machine learning. The learning unit 69 may adjust the weights of the intermediate layer of the neural network, the coefficients of the mathematical formula, etc., so that improvement plans that match the preferences of the residents estimated from the history of resident information, detection information, etc. are more likely to be selected as candidates, thereby learning the improvement plan generation algorithm 76. The learning unit 69 acquires information such as whether the resident has actually executed the improvement plan proposed to the resident, the execution result of the improvement plan if the resident has executed it, or the evaluation by the resident, and may re-learn the improvement plan generation algorithm 76 using the acquired information as teacher data. Further, the learning unit 69 may re-learn the improvement plan generation algorithm 76 using, as teacher data, the result of analyzing the history of the detection information acquired by the detection information acquisition unit 63 after the living space has been reformed with the improvement plan proposed to the resident. For example, when the improvement plan is actually executed, when the execution result or evaluation of the improvement plan is positive, or when good detection information is acquired after the candidate is actually executed, the learning unit 69 may adjust the weights of the intermediate layer so that the information input to the input layer when the improvement plan was selected is input to the input layer of the neural network, making the improvement plan more likely to be selected. Also, when the improvement plan is not executed, when the execution result or evaluation of the improvement plan is negative, or when poor detection information is acquired after the improvement plan is actually executed, the learning unit 69 may adjust the weights of the intermediate layer so that the information input to the input layer when the improvement plan was selected is input to the input layer of the neural network, making the improvement plan less likely to be selected. Thereby, since the result of the improvement plan generation algorithm 76 actually executed by the resident can be fed back to the improvement plan generation algorithm 76, more accurate improvement plans can be presented to support the residents.

[0042] In this embodiment, an example of providing the support device 50 for comprehensively managing the support for a plurality of residents has been described, but the support device 50 may be provided for each resident.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0043] 2 Residence, 3 Occupant Terminal, 4 Supporter Terminal, 5 Sensor, 30 Image Sensor, 31 Load Sensor, 32 Opening / Closing Sensor, 33 3D Sensor, 40 Communication Network, 50 Support Device, 61 Living Space Information Acquisition Unit, 62 Ideal Space Information Acquisition Unit, 63 Detection Information Acquisition Unit, 64 Living Space Information Update Unit, 65 Ideal Space Information Update Unit, 66 Diagnosis Unit, 67 Proposal Unit, 68 Reform Management Unit, 69 Learning Unit, 71 Occupant Information Storage Unit, 72 Living Space Information Storage Unit, 73 Ideal Space Information Storage Unit, 74 Detection Information Storage Unit, 75 Reform Information Storage Unit, 76 Improvement Plan Generation Algorithm.

Claims

1. A computer, A living space information acquisition unit that acquires living space information relating to a past or present living space; A detection information acquisition unit that acquires detection information detected by a sensor installed in the living space; an ideal space information acquiring unit that acquires ideal space information regarding a living space that is an ideal state for a resident; an ideal space information update unit that updates the ideal space information based on changes in the resident's state, preference, or living environment; a suggestion unit that proposes an improvement plan for the living space to bring the living space closer to an ideal state for a resident based on the living space information, the ideal space information, and the detection information; A support program to enable it to function as a

2. The computer is further caused to function as a living space information update unit that updates the living space information based on the detection information or information acquired from the resident. The support program according to claim 1 .

3. The living space information update unit acquires living space information on the improved living space when the living space is improved, and updates the living space information. The support program according to claim 2.

4. The ideal space information update unit acquires ideal space information regarding the living space that is in an ideal state for the resident when the living space is improved, and updates the ideal space information. The support program according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The ideal space information update unit analyzes information about the resident from the captured image of the living space and updates the ideal space information. The support program according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The suggestion unit acquires improvement proposals for the living space from a third party and proposes the acquired improvement proposals. The support program according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. The suggestion unit inputs at least one of the living space information, the detection information, and the ideal space information, and proposes the improvement plan using an algorithm that outputs the improvement plan. The support program according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. The computer is further caused to function as a learning unit that learns the algorithm based on at least one of the living space information, the detection information, the ideal space information, the proposal history of the improvement plan, and the realization history of the improvement plan. The support program according to claim 7.

9. A living space information acquisition unit that acquires living space information relating to a past or present living space; A detection information acquisition unit that acquires detection information detected by a sensor installed in the living space; an ideal space information acquiring unit that acquires ideal space information regarding a living space that is an ideal state for a resident; an ideal space information update unit that updates the ideal space information based on changes in the resident's state, preference, or living environment; a suggestion unit that proposes an improvement plan for the living space to bring the living space closer to an ideal state for a resident based on the living space information, the ideal space information, and the detection information; A support device comprising:

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