Information Processing Apparatus, Information Processing Method, and Program

Abstract

The present invention automatically presents an available point card immediately from among a large number of electronic point cards stored in a mobile device.　This information processing device comprises a position detection unit (11) that detects the position of the information processing device, a point card selection unit (12) that selects a point card associated with the position of the information processing device detected by the position detection unit from among a plurality of point cards stored in the information processing device in advance, a control unit (15) that controls the position detection unit and the point card selection unit to repeat the processing periodically, a payment detection unit (16) that detects payment associated with the information processing device, and an output unit (17) that is triggered by payment detected by the payment detection unit to output a list of point cards selected by the point card selection unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program, and more particularly to a technique for enabling an electronic point card to be used on a mobile device.

Background Art

[0002] Many operators who run retail stores that provide goods and services offer a point card service for the purpose of attracting and retaining customers. The point card service is an accompanying service in which the operator of the store awards points to the point card provided to the customer according to the purchase amount of the customer's goods and services or the number of visits to the store. When the customer revisits the store, the customer can obtain discounts on the purchase amount and various privileges in exchange for the points stored in the point card. The advantages of the store are that it can attract more customers and grasp the preferences of the customers.

[0003] Since the point card is essentially provided by the operator of the store to the customer for differentiation from other stores, in many cases, different point cards are provided for each store or each store chain. For this reason, the number of point cards held by the customer continues to increase with consumption behavior, making it difficult for the customer to carry all the point cards. The customer will suffer the disadvantage of missing the opportunity to enjoy the privileges that would have been obtained if the point card had been carried.

[0004] In recent years, many point cards have been digitized and stored in mobile devices such as smartphones, and can be used via the wallet function or application of the mobile device. The digitized point card can save the trouble of carrying it.

[0005] On the one hand, storing a large number of point cards in a mobile device consumes the limited storage capacity of the mobile device and delays the time until the point cards are loaded and made available for use. Furthermore, overcrowding the digital wallet of the mobile device with a large number of point cards makes it difficult to quickly search for the point card to be used at a specific store on the mobile device, thereby impairing the convenience for customers.

[0006] Patent Document 1 discloses a method in which a user provides payment information to a partner device by using an image on the screen of the device. Specifically, the device disclosed in Patent Document 1 identifies the affiliated store where the device is located based on at least one of the GPS (Global Positioning System) value or the identification value of the AP (Access Point). The device of Patent Document 1 further uses at least one payment card information, card benefit information, and card payment history to determine the cards that can be used for payment in the environment of the identified affiliated store, and lists the card images of the determined payment cards on the device as a card recommendation list. When the user touches the card image of a predetermined payment card from the card selection list displayed on the device, the payment information corresponding to the touched card image is transmitted to the partner device.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0007]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0008] However, since the number of point cards held by a certain customer is usually much larger than the number of available payment cards, even if the card images of a large number of point cards are listed on a mobile device, it is not easy to quickly let the user search for the desired point card.

[0009] In addition, since positioning information such as GPS has an error of several meters to several tens of meters, it is difficult to identify a store from the positioning information. In particular, when moving within a large commercial facility having multiple floors such as a shopping mall, it has been practically impossible to automatically select a point card available at a specific store from the position of the acquired mobile device.

[0010] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program capable of quickly and automatically presenting an available point card from a large number of digitized point cards stored in a mobile device.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0011] In order to solve the above problems, one aspect of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention is an information processing apparatus, including a position detection unit that detects the position of the information processing apparatus, and a plurality of point cards stored in advance in the information processing apparatus, a point card selection unit that selects a point card associated with the position of the information processing apparatus detected by the position detection unit, a control unit that controls to periodically repeat the processing by the position detection unit and the point card selection unit, a payment detection unit that detects a payment associated with the information processing apparatus, and an output unit that outputs a list of the point cards selected by the point card selection unit triggered by the payment detected by the payment detection unit.

[0012] The position detection unit may detect the position of the information processing apparatus based on any one or more of a cell ID distributed from a base station of a mobile network, radio waves transmitted from GPS (Global Positioning System) satellites, and an identifier of the access point broadcast from a wireless network access point.

[0013] The position detection unit may detect an SSID (Service Set Identifier) broadcast from a Wi-Fi access point, and the point card selection unit may select a point card associated with the SSID of the switching destination when the SSID detected by the position detection unit is switched.

[0014] The position detection unit may detect the cell ID distributed from the base station, and the point card selection unit may select a point card associated with the cell ID of the switching destination when the cell ID detected by the position detection unit is switched.

[0015] The output unit may output a list of point cards associated with the payment detected by the payment detection unit among the point cards selected by the point card selection unit.

[0016] The information processing apparatus may further include a sorting unit that determines the priority of each of the point cards selected by the point card selection unit based on the point transaction history of the point cards, sorts the selected point cards in the order of the determined priorities, and supplies them to the output unit.

[0017] The information processing apparatus may further include a user interface that receives an input for assigning a priority to at least one of the plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus, and the sorting unit may sort the selected point cards in the order of the priority input via the user interface.

[0018] The payment detection unit receives a message indicating completion of payment transmitted from an external device connected to the information processing apparatus via a network, and the output unit may output a list of point cards selected by the point card selection unit triggered by the message received by the payment detection unit.

[0019] One aspect of the information processing method according to the present invention is an information processing method executed by an information processing apparatus, the method including: detecting a position of the information processing apparatus; selecting a point card associated with the detected position of the information processing apparatus from a plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus; periodically repeating the step of detecting the position of the information processing apparatus and the step of selecting the point card; detecting a payment associated with the information processing apparatus; and outputting a list of the selected point cards triggered by the detected payment.

[0020] One aspect of the information processing program according to the present invention is an information processing program for causing a computer to execute information processing, the program causing the computer to execute: a position detection process for detecting a position of the information processing apparatus; a point card selection process for selecting a point card associated with the position of the information processing apparatus detected by the position detection process from a plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus; a control process for controlling to periodically repeat the position detection process and the point card selection process; a payment detection process for detecting a payment associated with the information processing apparatus; and an output process for outputting a list of the point cards selected by the point card selection process triggered by the payment detected by the payment detection process.

Advantages of the Invention

[0021] According to the present invention, it is possible to quickly and automatically present available point cards from a large number of digitized point cards stored in a mobile device. Those described above, the objects, aspects, and effects of the present invention, as well as those objects, aspects, and effects of the present invention not described above, can be understood by those skilled in the art from the following embodiments for implementing the invention with reference to the description of the accompanying drawings and the claims.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0022]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0023] Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Among the components disclosed below, those having the same function are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. Note that the embodiments disclosed below are examples of means for realizing the present invention, and should be appropriately modified or changed according to the configuration of the device to which the present invention is applied and various conditions, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. Also, not all combinations of the features described in this embodiment are essential for the solution means of the present invention.

[0024] Hereinafter, an example will be described in which a point card management device according to this embodiment is implemented in a mobile device carried by a user, such as a smartphone, digitizes a plurality of point cards issued to the user, stores them in a storage device, and, from the plurality of digitized point cards, pre-selects a point card that can be used in the environment where the mobile device is located according to the position of the mobile device, the user's preferences, and the payment status, etc., and outputs a list of the pre-selected point cards to a display device when the user executes payment for the purchase of a product or service as a trigger, thereby making the point card available to the user.

[0025] However, the present embodiment is not limited to this. The point card management device according to the present embodiment may periodically output a list of preselected point cards to the display device, or may output to the display device when a new point card is preselected. In addition, all or part of the functions and configurations of the point card management device according to the present embodiment may be implemented in another mobile device that can communicate with a mobile device carried by the user at a short distance. Alternatively, all or part of the functions and configurations of the point card management device according to the present embodiment may be implemented in any server device that can communicate with a mobile device carried by the user via a mobile network.

[0026] <Network Configuration of a System including the Point Card Management Device According to the Present Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the network configuration of a network system including the point card management device according to the present embodiment. The system shown in FIG. 1 includes a mobile device 1, a server device 2, a mobile network 3, a base station 4, and a Wi-Fi access point 5.

[0027] The mobile device 1 is a mobile terminal that can be carried by the user and implements all or part of the functions and configurations of the point card management device according to the present embodiment. Although FIG. 1 shows an example in which the mobile device 1 is a smartphone, the mobile device 1 may be configured by any computer such as a tablet terminal, a smartwatch, a multifunctional music player, a wearable terminal, etc.

[0028] The mobile device 1 can communicate with the server device 2 and the server devices of other operators such as banks via the base station 4 and the mobile network 3. The mobile device 1 can further communicate with the server device 2 and the server devices of other operators via the Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) (registered trademark) access point 5 and the network. The mobile device 1 can also communicate with the Point of Sales (POS) terminals installed in stores via various short-range communication networks.

[0029] The networks available for the mobile device 1 in this embodiment include wireless LAN (Local Area Network) such as Wi-Fi, wireless PAN (Personal Area Network) such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), UWB (Ultra Wide Band), and wireless MAN (Metropolitan Area Network) such as WiMAX (registered trademark). Furthermore, the networks available for the mobile device 1 in this embodiment include wireless WAN (Wide Area Network) such as LTE / 3G, 4G, 5G, etc. Note that the network only needs to connect each device so that they can communicate with each other, and as long as communication is possible, the communication standards, scale, and configuration are not limited to the above.

[0030] The mobile device 1 obtains information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 from at least one of the base station 4, the Wi-Fi access point 5, and the GPS (Global Positioning System) satellite 6 shown in FIG. 1.

[0031] Specifically, the mobile device 1 transmits and receives wireless signals to and from the base station 4, and receives, as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1, the cell ID (Cell ID: CID) that identifies each sector (cell) of the base station 4 and is distributed from the base station 4. When the mobile device 1 moves and transitions into the cell of the destination base station 4 beyond the boundary of the cell of the base station 4 during wireless communication, a handover is executed, and the mobile device 1 continues wireless communication with the destination base station 4. When this handover is executed, the cell ID received by the mobile device 1 switches from the cell ID of the source base station 4 to the cell ID of the destination base station 4.

[0032] The mobile device 1 also receives the radio LAN radio signal (beacon) broadcast from the Wi-Fi access point 5, and receives the SSID (Service Set Identifier) that identifies the Wi-Fi access point 5 carried by the beacon from the Wi-Fi access point 5 as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1. When the mobile device 1 moves and transitions into the beacon reception area of another Wi-Fi access point 5 beyond the boundary of the beacon reception area from the Wi-Fi access point 5, the mobile device 1 continues wireless LAN communication via the destination Wi-Fi access point 5. At this time, the SSID received by the mobile device 1 switches from the SSID of the source Wi-Fi access point 5 to the SSID of the destination Wi-Fi access point 5.

[0033] The mobile device 1 further receives the position information of the GPS satellite 6 transmitted by radio waves from the GPS satellite 6 and the time when the radio wave including the position information was transmitted, and determines the current position (latitude and longitude) of the mobile device 1 from the received position information of the GPS satellite 6 and the transmission time, and acquires the determined position of the mobile device 1 as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1. The mobile device 1 sequentially executes the positioning of the mobile device 1, and when the mobile device 1 moves, the measured position information of the mobile device 1 is also sequentially updated.

[0034] The server device 2 is connected to the mobile device 1 via the base station 4 and the mobile network 3, or via the Wi-Fi access point 5 and the network, and is a device that undertakes all or part of the configuration and functions of the point card management device according to this embodiment. In particular, the server device 2 may hold and maintain a table for mapping information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 to a store name or a point card name, the usage history of the point card (i.e., the point transaction history) for each user or each mobile device 1, and information on the preferences or priorities of the user regarding the use of the point card. The server device 2 may be commonly operated in a number of stores so as to collectively execute the pre-selection process and the point transaction process of a number of point cards that can be used in each of the number of stores, and may be constructed as a proxy server that executes on behalf of the Internet access of the mobile device 1.

[0035] The mobile network 3 relays the communication between the mobile device 1 and the back-end Internet via the base station 4. The mobile network 3 may be either a 4G network or a 5G network, or other generations of mobile communication systems. Alternatively, instead of the mobile network 3, the mobile device 1 can use the Wi-Fi access point 5 and any wireless or wired network to execute communication with the back-end Internet.

[0036] The base station 4 includes an antenna, a Remote Radio Head (RRH), a Radio Interface Unit (RIU) which is a line termination device, etc., and transmits and receives wireless signals to and from the mobile device 1 via the antenna of the base station 4. The base station 4 is an edge node that constitutes the Radio Access Network (RAN) of the mobile network 3. It receives an attachment request from the mobile device 1 and connects the mobile device 1 to the core network via the fronthaul network and the backhaul network, and relays data transfer and voice calls between the mobile device 1 and the Internet. The base station 4 broadcasts the cell ID within the cell of the base station 4. The cell ID may be assigned differently for each sector (cell) or each frequency band of the base station 4.

[0037] The Wi-Fi access point 5 is a master device that transmits and receives radio waves of Wi-Fi, which is a wireless LAN, and connects the mobile device 1 to Wi-Fi. The Wi-Fi access point 5 may be implemented in, for example, a router, and broadcasts the SSID, which is a unique character string for identifying the access point, within the area. The SSID may be an Extended SSID (ESSID) or a Basic SSID (BSSID). Also, one Wi-Fi access point 5 may have a plurality of SSIDs.

[0038] The GPS satellite 6 is an artificial satellite used for GPS, and orbits the earth while transmitting orbital information and time information representing the position of the GPS satellite. Note that the numbers of the mobile device 1, the server device 2, the base station 4, and the Wi-Fi access point 5 are not limited to the numbers shown in FIG. 1, and each may be plural.

[0039] <Functional Configuration of Point Management Device> FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the point card management device 1 according to Embodiment 1. Among the functional modules of the point card management device 1 shown in FIG. 2, for the functions realized by software, a program for providing the functions of each functional module is stored in a memory such as a ROM, read out to a RAM, and realized by the CPU executing it. For the functions realized by hardware, for example, by using a predetermined compiler, a dedicated circuit can be automatically generated on an FPGA from a program for realizing the functions of each functional module. FPGA is an abbreviation for Field Programmable Gate Array. Also, a Gate Array circuit may be formed in the same manner as the FPGA and realized as hardware. Also, it may be realized by an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Note that the configuration of the functional blocks shown in FIG. 3 is an example, and a plurality of functional blocks may constitute one functional block, or any one functional block may be divided into blocks that perform a plurality of functions.

[0040] Referring to FIG. 2, the point card management device 1, which may be a mobile device, includes a position detection unit 11, a point card pre-selection unit 12, a point card storage unit 13, a sorting unit 14, a control unit 15, a payment management unit 16, and a point card activation unit 17.

[0041] The position detection unit 11 detects information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 and supplies the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 detected to the point card pre-selection unit 12 and the control unit 15. Specifically, the position detection unit 11 receives the cell ID broadcast from the base station 4 or the SSID broadcast from the Wi-Fi access point 5, and detects any one or more of these received cell IDs or SSIDs as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1. Alternatively, the position detection unit 11 may receive the position information of the GPS satellite 6 transmitted from the GPS satellite 6 and the time when the radio wave including the position information is transmitted, and measure the position of the mobile device 1 from the received position information of the GPS satellite 6 and the transmission time, and detect the measured position of the mobile device 1 (latitude and longitude) as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1.

[0042] The point card pre-selection unit 12 maps the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 supplied from the position detection unit 11 to the point card, pre-selects the point card mapped from the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1, and generates a list of point cards. Specifically, the point card pre-selection unit 12 acquires the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1, maps the acquired position of the mobile device 1 to the point card associated with the position, and pre-selects the point card by searching the information of the mapped point card from the point card storage unit 13.

[0043] Alternatively, the point card pre-selection unit 12 may acquire the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 and map the acquired position of the mobile device 1 to the store name (or store identifier) associated with the position. In this case, the point card pre-selection unit 12 may further map the mapped store name to the point card corresponding to the store name and search the information of the mapped point card from the point card storage unit 13. In the present embodiment, the point card pre-selection unit 12 executes a process of mapping the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 to the point card in multiple stages. The details of this mapping process will be described later with reference to FIGS. 5 to 9.

[0044] The point card storage unit 13 stores the information of the point cards in a non-volatile memory device locally provided in the point card management device 1 in a database format, and in response to a search request for a point card from the point card pre-selection unit 12, supplies the information of the searched point card to the point card pre-selection unit 12.

[0045] The point card storage unit 13 may be provided in a remote server device 2 or the like that can be accessed by the point card management device 1 via a network, or mirror the database of the information of the point cards stored in the remote server device 2, and hold the mirrored information of the point cards in a non-volatile memory device provided locally in the point card management device 1. The information of the point cards may include the name of the point card, the ID and password of the user who owns the point card, the name of the store that issued the point card, the image of the point card, the priority of the point card, the number of points, the expiration date of the points, the usage conditions of the points, etc.

[0046] The sorting unit 14 sorts the list of the point cards pre-selected by the point card pre-selection unit 12. Specifically, the sorting unit 14 sorts the list of the point cards according to the information indicating the user's preference regarding the use of the point cards, for example, the priority of each point card, and supplies the sorted list of the point cards to the point card pre-selection unit 12 and the control unit 15.

[0047] The information indicating the user's preference regarding the use of the point cards may be generated from the usage history of the point cards stored in the point card management device 1, or the user may input a desired value via the user interface provided by the point card management device 1. For example, the priority of each point card may be automatically calculated according to the number of times the point card has been used, which can be obtained from the usage history of the point card, or the user may input or change it via the user interface.

[0048] The control unit 15 comprehensively controls the operations of the position detection unit 11, the point card pre-selection unit 12, the point card storage unit 13, the sorting unit 14, the payment management unit 16, and the point card activation unit 17, which are the components of the point card management device 1, and executes various processes such as the pre-selection process of the point card, the display output process of the point card, and the point transaction process.

[0049] The payment management unit 16 detects a payment associated with the mobile device 1 when a user carrying the mobile device 1 purchases goods or services at a store. Specifically, the payment management unit 16 may receive a trigger for payment completion from the POS terminal by performing short-range wireless communication with the POS terminal device provided at the store, for example, by NFC (Near Field Communication). Alternatively, the payment management unit 16 may communicate with a server device of a financial institution such as a bank via a network and receive a message of a trigger for payment completion by a credit card, a debit card, or the like from the server device of the financial institution. Alternatively, the payment management unit 16 may also receive a message of a trigger for payment completion via an application installed on the mobile device 1 for executing payment. When the payment management unit 16 receives a trigger for payment completion, it causes the point card activation unit 17 to output a list of point cards and sets the listed point cards to an available state.

[0050] In response to the trigger for payment completion given from the payment management unit 16, the point card activation unit 17 displays and outputs a list of point cards on a display device or the like of the point card management device 1. The user can execute a point transaction of the selected point card, for example, point granting according to the purchase amount, discount of goods or services exchanged with points, provision of various novelties exchanged with points, etc., by selecting and operating a desired point card from the displayed and output point cards.

[0051] In this embodiment, when the point card activation unit 17 generates a list of point cards, the point card pre-selection unit 12 does not output the generated list of point cards. Instead, when the payment for the purchase of goods or services is completed, the point card activation unit 17 outputs the list of point cards held at the time of payment completion, using the completion of payment as a trigger.

[0052] For example, when walking through multiple stores in a large commercial facility such as a shopping mall, it is not always the case that goods or services are purchased at all the visited stores. Therefore, point transactions do not always occur for the purchase of goods or services at all the visited stores. Thus, it is not necessary to output the list of point cards every time the point card pre-selection unit 12 generates a list of point cards. According to this embodiment, since it is possible to list only the point cards that are available at the store where the goods or services have actually been purchased and the payment for the purchase has been completed, in the scenario where the user uses a point card, it is possible to present the point cards that are available at the store, limited to a number that can be clearly viewed on the display device.

[0053] <Schematic processing procedure of point card selection process> FIG. 3 is a sequence chart showing an example of a schematic processing procedure of a point card selection process executed among a point card management device (mobile device), a POS terminal device, and a financial institution system such as a bank.

[0054] In S1, the mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, executes the pre-selection process of the point card according to this embodiment. Specifically, the mobile device 1 detects the position of the mobile device 1 based on signals from any one or more of the base station 4, the Wi-Fi access point 5, and the GPS satellite 6, maps the information indicating the detected position of the mobile device 1 to the point card associated with the position, searches for the mapped card from the point card storage unit 13, and generates a list of the searched point cards. In this S1, the generated list of point cards is held in the temporary storage device of the mobile device 1 and waits for a trigger for display output.

[0055] The mobile device 1 updates the list of pre-selected point cards by repeatedly executing this point card pre-selection process periodically, for example, at intervals of 5 minutes. Alternatively, the mobile device 1 may execute the pre-selection process of the point card triggered by the mobile device 1 moving and the received position information changing to different cell IDs of different base stations 4 or different SSIDs of different Wi-Fi access points 6. The details of this point card pre-selection process S1 executed by the mobile device 1 will be described later with reference to FIG. 4.

[0056] In S2, when the user purchases a product or service in a store, the payment for the purchased product or service is executed to the POS terminal device 7 of the store. The mobile device 1 can execute the payment by means of an electronic money application operating on the mobile device 1, an electronic credit card or debit card, etc. Alternatively, the user may pay the price in cash. In any case, the mobile device 1 can execute the payment or detect the payment by performing short-range communication with the POS terminal device 7, for example, by short-range wireless communication or infrared communication. That is, the payment of the price may be executed in association with the mobile device 1.

[0057] In S3, the store's POS terminal device 7 communicates with the server device 8 of a financial institution such as a bank or a credit card company via a network, and notifies the execution of payment at the POS terminal device 7. The server device 8 of the financial institution notified of the execution of payment authenticates electronic money, credit cards, etc. used for payment, and executes payment settlement.

[0058] The server device 8 of the financial institution that has executed the payment settlement transmits a trigger to the mobile device 1 to cause the list of pre-selected point cards generated in S1 to be displayed and output. The server device 8 of the financial institution may transmit the trigger via the store's POS terminal device 7, or alternatively, may transmit the trigger directly to the mobile device 1. The mobile device 1 receives the trigger issued by the server device 8 of the financial institution by the payment management unit 16.

[0059] In S4, the mobile device 1 that has received the trigger from the server device 8 of the financial institution displays and outputs the list of point cards generated and updated in S1 on the display device, making the point cards available to the user. The mobile device 1 executes the display output process of the list of point cards by the point card activation unit 17. The point card activation unit 17 may further narrow down and display and output the point card related to the payment executed in S2 and S3 from the list of point cards pre-selected in S1, for example, a point card having a privilege such as more points being awarded by using a predetermined credit card or electronic money for payment.

[0060] In S5, the user selects a desired point card from the list of point cards displayed and output in S4, and designates a desired point transaction, for example, point addition to the point card, point use, etc. The mobile device 1 executes a predetermined point transaction for the point card selected by the user.

[0061] <Detailed processing procedure of point card pre-selection process> Figure 4 is a sequence chart showing an example of the detailed processing procedure of the point card pre-selection process of S1 in FIG. 3. Referring to FIG. 4, the process shown in S3 is executed by each component of the mobile device 1 which is a point card management device. In S11, the position detection unit 11 of the mobile device 1 detects information indicating the position of the mobile device 1, and supplies the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 detected to the point card pre-selection unit 12 and the control unit 15.

[0062] Specifically, the position detection unit 11 receives the cell ID broadcast from the base station 4, receives the SSID broadcast from the Wi-Fi access point 5, and detects either of the received cell ID or SSID as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1. Alternatively, the position detection unit 11 may measure the position of the mobile device 1 from the position information and the transmission time of the GPS satellite 6 received from the GPS satellite 6, and detect the measured position (latitude and longitude) of the mobile device 1 as information indicating the position of the mobile device 1.

[0063] The position information obtained from the GPS satellite 6 has a reduced reliability when the mobile device 1 is located indoors. In particular, when the mobile device 1 is located within a large commercial facility such as a shopping mall, since different store groups are tenants for each floor, the selection of the point card depends on the floor, but it is difficult to obtain information for identifying the floor from the position information obtained from the GPS satellite 6. Furthermore, when using the position information from the GPS satellite 6, the position information from the GPS satellite 6 is frequently updated as the mobile device 1 moves. For this reason, there is a risk of excessive consumption of the memory resources and processor resources of the mobile device 1 in order to track the position information from the GPS satellite 6 and re-execute the point card pre-selection process each time the position information is updated.

[0064] Therefore, in this embodiment, preferably, the mobile device 1 may detect the cell ID broadcast from the base station 4 or the SSID broadcast from the Wi-Fi access point 5 as more accurate information indicating the position of the mobile device 1. More preferably, when the mobile device 1 can detect both the cell ID and the SSID, the mobile device 1 may preferentially use the SSID to detect information indicating the position of the mobile device 1. In recent years, the number of stores installing dedicated Wi-Fi access points 5 has been increasing, and the SSID for identifying the Wi-Fi access point 5 can be more accurately mapped to the store name or the name of the point card provided by the store.

[0065] The mobile device 1 may further detect information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 by measuring the altitude of the mobile device 1 from the ground or by analyzing environmental information including the sound of music or the like (for example, BGM in a store) and the temperature around the mobile device 1. In S12, the point card pre-selection unit 12 of the mobile device 1 maps the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 supplied from the position detection unit 11 in S11 to a point card associated with the position.

[0066] Specifically, the point card pre-selection unit 12 refers to a table for mapping the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 to a point card, and maps the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 to the point card associated with the position by performing a multi-stage mapping process. The details of this multi-stage mapping process will be described later with reference to FIG. 5.

[0067] In S13, the point card pre-selection unit 12 of the mobile device 1 searches for the information of the point card mapped from the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 from the information of the point cards stored in the database stored in the point card storage unit 13. In S14, the point card storage unit 13 of the mobile device 1 searches for information on the point cards stored in a database, using the point card supplied from the point card pre-selection unit 12 in S13 as a key. In S15, the point card storage unit 13 of the mobile device 1 supplies the information on the point card mapped in S12 to the point card pre-selection unit 12 and the sorting unit 14 as the search result of S14.

[0068] In S16, the sorting unit 14 of the mobile device 1 sorts the information on the point cards in the search result supplied from the point card storage unit 13 in S15. Specifically, the sorting unit 14 sorts the list of point cards according to the information indicating the user's preference regarding the use of point cards, for example, the priority order of each point card. In this case, the sorting unit 14 may sort the point cards in descending order of priority so that the point card with a higher priority is placed at the top of the list. In S17, the sorting unit 14 of the mobile device 1 supplies the sorted list of point cards to the point card pre-selection unit 12 and the control unit 15.

[0069] Alternatively, if the number of point cards pre-selected in S12 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, for example, equal to or less than the number that can be displayed in a list on the mobile device 1, the sorting unit 14 may skip the sorting process in S16. The list of point cards supplied from the point card storage unit 13 in S15 may be directly passed on in S17.

[0070] In S18, the control unit 15 holds the list of point cards supplied from the sorting unit 14 in S17 and waits for a trigger transmitted from the POS terminal device 7 or the server device 8 of the financial institution via the payment management unit 16.

[0071] The control unit 15 periodically repeats each of the processes from S11 to S18, for example, at 5-minute intervals or 10-minute intervals. The control unit 15 may also record the time when the cell ID or SSID detected by the mobile device 1 changes, and variably adjust the repetition period of each of the processes from S11 to S18 based on, for example, the time interval until a certain cell ID or SSID changes to another cell ID or SSID. Furthermore, when the cell ID or SSID detected by the mobile device 1 switches to another cell ID or SSID, the control unit 15 may re-execute the processes from S11 to S18 to generate an updated list of point cards.

[0072] In S41 following S18, the point card activation unit 17 of the mobile device 1 receives, via the payment management unit 16, a trigger issued upon completion of payment from an external POS terminal device 7 or a server device 8 of a financial institution. In S42, the point card activation unit 17 of the mobile device 1 requests the control unit 15 for the list of point cards held in S18. In S43, in response to the request for the list of point cards from the point card activation unit 17 in S42, the control unit 15 of the mobile device 1 supplies the list of point cards held in S18, together with the information of each point card, to the point card activation unit 17.

[0073] When the list of point cards is acquired in S43, in S4, the point card activation unit 17 of the mobile device 1 displays and outputs the list of point cards on the display device of the mobile device 1. Thereby, the user can select and operate the point cards listed on the display device of the mobile device 1 and execute point transactions using the selected point cards.

[0074] As described above, the point card activation unit 17 may enable the use of the point cards by displaying and outputting a list of the point cards on the display device, using the completion of payment as a trigger. The point card activation unit 17 may continue to display the list of point cards while the mobile device 1 is located in a predetermined location, for example, within a predetermined SSID reception range. Alternatively, the point card activation unit 17 may display and output the list of point cards in response to an operational event of the mobile device 1 directed to payment, such as the mobile device 1 being unlocked, the mobile device 1 being placed or held with the display screen facing up, or the camera mounted on the mobile device 1 detecting a laser beam for barcode scanning directed to the display screen of the mobile device 1.

[0075] The point card activation unit 17 may further display and output a list of point cards upon receiving any trigger that enables the use of point cards from another device via a wireless interface such as near field communication (NFC), Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth (registered trademark). Alternatively, the point card activation unit 17 may detect an operational event of the mobile device 1 directed to payment by detecting an audio signal in the mobile device 1 or a change in brightness or color of the display screen, and obtain a trigger to display and output a list of point cards.

[0076] <Two-step matching for point cards> FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a detailed processing procedure of the mapping process from the location information to the point card in S12 of FIG. In this embodiment, the point card pre-selection unit 12 of the mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, performs mapping from the information indicating the position of the mobile device 1 to a point card in multiple stages, specifically, by the first mapping (S121) and the second mapping (S123) in FIG. 5. Hereinafter, an example in which the point card pre-selection unit 12 uses the SSID of the Wi-Fi access point 5 will be described.

[0077] In S121, the point card pre-selection unit 12 performs string matching between the SSID detected by the position detection unit 11 and the point card name. Specifically, the point card pre-selection unit 12 compares the string of the SSID detected in S11 with the string of the point card name stored in the point card storage unit 13. For example, when the SSID "StarBucks" (registered trademark) is detected, it can be mapped to the point card name "StarBucks" that matches the string of the detected SSID. Similarly, when the SSID "Tokyu" is detected, it can be mapped to the point card name "Tokyu" that matches the string of the detected SSID.

[0078] The point card pre-selection unit 12 may use the SSID as a search string, for example, refer to a list including a plurality of entries describing the strings of respective point card names, and search for an entry that completely matches or at least partially matches the string of the detected SSID.

[0079] The point card pre-selection unit 12 may use the SSID as a search string to search for a list of point card names, and when a point card name that completely matches the SSID is not found, search for a point card name that at least partially matches the SSID from the list of point card names. For example, when the SSID "Tokyu_free_Wifi" is detected, it can be mapped to the point card name "Tokyu point card" that partially matches the detected SSID string. Similarly, when the SSID "Rakuten Mobile" is detected, it can be mapped to the point card name "Rakupoints" that partially matches the detected SSID string. When multiple SSIDs are detected in S11, the point card pre-selection unit 12 may search for a plurality of point cards that respectively match the multiple SSIDs in S121.

[0080] In S122, the point card pre-selection unit 12 determines whether there is a point card that completely or partially matches the SSID string in S121. If there is a point card that matches the SSID string (S122: Y), the point card pre-selection unit 12 may skip S123 and proceed to S13. On the other hand, if no point card that completely or partially matches the SSID string is found in the list of point card names in S121, which is the first mapping (S122: N), it proceeds to S123 and the second mapping is executed.

[0081] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a mapping table between the store name and the point card name referred to in the second mapping by the point card pre-selection unit 12. Referring to FIG. 6, assuming that the SSID "Seven Eleven" is detected, it matches the entry of the store name "Seven Eleven" in the table of FIG. 6. Therefore, the point card pre-selection unit 12 can map the SSID "Seven Eleven" to the point card name "Nanaco" corresponding to the store name "Seven Eleven". The point card pre-selection unit 12 may search the table of FIG. 6 for a store name that partially matches the detected SSID. By referring to the mapping table between the store name and the point card name shown in FIG. 6, from the detected SSID, it is possible to appropriately map to a point card having a name that does not match the character string of the SSID via the store name.

[0082] Generally, the SSID of the Wi-Fi access point 5 provided by a store often includes the store name at least partially. However, in order to map SSIDs shared by multiple stores, the point card pre-selection unit 12 may be provided with another table for mapping the SSID to the store name. In this case, one SSID may be mapped to multiple store names.

[0083] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the mapping table between the SSID and the point card name referred to in the second mapping by the point card pre-selection unit 12. Referring to FIG. 7, assuming that the SSID "SevenEleven_Free_Wifi" is detected, it matches the entry of the SSID "SevenEleven_Free_Wifi" in FIG. 7. Therefore, the point card pre-selection unit 12 can map the SSID "SevenEleven_Free_Wifi" to the corresponding point card name "Nanaco". By referring to the mapping table between the SSID and the point card name shown in FIG. 7, from the detected SSID, it is possible to appropriately map to a point card having a name that does not match the character string of the SSID.

[0084] <Implementation method of the mapping table> As a first implementation method of the mapping table, the mapping table of the SSID and the point card name shown in FIG. 7 may be provisioned to the mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, from the server device 2 via a network such as the Internet. In this case, the mobile device 1 may periodically download the mapping table of the SSID and the point card name shown in FIG. 7 from the server device 2. Alternatively, as part of the OS or application update routine of the mobile device 1 that implements the point card management device 1, the mobile device 1 may download the updated mapping table.

[0085] In the server device 2, the initial mapping of the SSID and the point card name is registered in the mapping table, and then the server device 2 updates the mapping table as new SSIDs or point cards are added or removed. The point card management device 1 refers to the mapping table of the SSID and the point card name that has been downloaded in advance to the non-volatile storage device of the mobile device 1 from the server device 2, and pre-selects a point card based on the SSID. In this case, a series of processes from the detection of the SSID in the mobile device 1 to the pre-selection of the point card (S11 to S18 in FIG. 4) are completed inside the mobile device 1. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent information such as how many times a certain point card has been used and who has used which point card from being tracked or leaked outside in a certain mobile device 1.

[0086] As a second implementation method of the mapping table, the mapping table of the SSID and the point card name shown in FIG. 7 may be stored in the server device 2. The mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, issues a query to the server device 2 using the detected SSID as a key. The server device 2 refers to the mapping table, selects the point card name corresponding to the SSID included in the query, and may transmit the selected point card name to the mobile device 1 that issued the query. The mobile device 1 may hold a temporary copy of all or part of the mapping table stored in the server device 2 in the cache.

[0087] To construct the mapping table of FIG. 7 on the server device 2, a server device 2, which is a single proxy server shared by a plurality of stores, may be provided, and each store may upload an SSID that identifies each Wi-Fi provided by the store to this single proxy server. The mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, may transmit the detected SSID to the proxy server and pre-select the point card using the point card name transmitted as a response from the proxy server.

[0088] Specifically, the proxy server shared by a plurality of stores may operate as a Domain Name Server (DNS) server. This DNS server may provide a predetermined top-level domain name (for example, "pointcards.jp") to a plurality of stores and the mobile device 1. The mobile device 1 may describe the SSID using a TXT record that describes text information associated with a domain for sources outside the domain and request a mapping to the point card from the DNS server.

[0089] For example, assume that mobile device 1 sends a query containing the SSID "SevenElven_Free_Wifi" to a DNS server, and the DNS server sends "nanaco" and "rakupoints" as point cards mapped to the SSID included in the query to mobile device 1 as a response. In this case, mobile device 1 may send a TXT record "TXT SevenEleven_Free_Wifi.pointcards.jp" to the DNS server, and the DNS server that received the query may send "SevenEleven_Free_Wifi.pointcards.jp. TXT IN “cards=nanaco,rakupoints”" to mobile device 1 as a response.

[0090] By issuing a query to server device 2 using DNS as described above, it is possible to easily obtain the pre-selection result of the point card from server device 2 without the need for a specific application or protocol between mobile device 1 and server device 2. Also, since server device 2, which is a proxy server, updates the mapping table shown in FIG. 7 to the latest state all at once, the load on mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, for maintaining the mapping table is reduced.

[0091] As a third implementation method of the mapping table, the mapping table may be generated by automatically inputting data into the mapping table in mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, without going through server device 2. Specifically, mobile device 1 tracks, along with the SSID of the detected Wi-Fi access point 5, how many times each point card has been selected by the user, that is, how many times it has been used, and records it in a frequency table. As this frequency table is updated, it becomes a table indicating which SSID is suitable for which point card.

[0092] Figures 8A to 8C are diagrams showing an example of a procedure for automatically inputting data into a matching table of the SSID and the point card name in FIG. 7 in the mobile device 1 which is a point card management device. FIG. 8A shows an initial state of a frequency table. The control unit 15 of the mobile device 1 generates a frequency table 81 in an initial state having as columns the SSID, the point card name, and a counter indicating the number of point card transactions. FIG. 8B shows the frequency table after the point card has been used once. When a point card transaction using the point card "nanaco" with the SSID "SevenEleven" is executed, the control unit 15 of the mobile device 1 records "1" in the counter of the frequency table 82.

[0093] FIG. 8C shows the frequency table after the point card has been used x times. The control unit 15 of the mobile device 1 updates the frequency table 83 each time a point card transaction using each point card is executed. The frequency table 83 shown in FIG. 8C has seven entries, and the value of the counter is updated for the combination of the SSID and the point card.

[0094] Referring to FIG. 8C, as the number of point card transactions at the SSID "SevenEleven", the counter is updated 15 times for the point card "nanaco", 10 times for the point card "Rakuponts", 1 time for the point card "Ponta", and 5 times for the point card "Starbucks", respectively. For example, in a large shopping mall or the like, if the stores Seven-Eleven and Lawson are close to each other, the Wi-Fi areas of the SSIDs "SevenEleven" and "Lawson" provided by the respective stores may overlap, resulting in a discrepancy between the location where the point card transaction was executed and the detected SSID.

[0095] The frequency table of this embodiment allows multiple entries with different point card names for one SSID, and enables each entry to have a counter for the number of point card transactions. When there are multiple entries for one SSID with reference to the frequency table 83, the control unit 15 of the mobile device 1 may preselect the point card of the entry with the largest counter value as the point card with the highest probability of being available for use in the SSID. This enables more accurate mapping from the SSID to the point card.

[0096] Using the frequency table generated as shown in FIGS. 8A to 8C, when the mobile device 1 detects an SSID, it searches the frequency table. If there is no entry in the frequency table yet, it waits until a point card is used, that is, until a point card transaction is executed. When a point card transaction is executed, it generates an entry for the detected SSID and the used point card, and records 1 in the counter of the entry.

[0097] On the other hand, when the mobile device 1 detects an SSID and there is already an entry registered in the frequency table, the mobile device 1 sorts the entries of the detected SSID in descending order of the counter value, extracts a predetermined number, for example, three entries in descending order of the counter value, and may preselect the point cards of the extracted entries. When the preselected point card is displayed and output to the display device of the mobile device 1 triggered by the completion of payment, and a point card transaction is executed using any of the displayed and output point cards, the control unit 15 of the mobile device 1 adds 1 to the counter of the used point card. As described above, in this embodiment, in the frequency table, entries of SSIDs with small counter values are excluded from preselection. For example, referring to FIG. 8C, when the SSID "SevenEleven" is detected, the value of the counter indicating the number of times the point card transaction of the point card "Ponta" is executed is 1, and this counter value is smaller than both the counter value of 15 of the point card "nanaco" and the counter value of 10 of the point card "Rakuponts". In this case, even when the SSID "SevenEleven" is detected, the point card "Ponta" with the smallest counter value is regarded as the point card wrongly associated with the SSID "SevenEleven" and is not preselected. Thereby, it is effectively prevented that a wrong point card is preselected. Note that the above first and second mapping table implementation methods are similarly applicable to the mapping table of the store name and the point card shown in FIG. 6.

[0098] As described above, according to this embodiment, the point card management device digitizes a plurality of point cards issued to a user and stores them in a storage device, and from the plurality of digitized point cards, according to the position of the mobile device, the user's preference, the payment status, etc., preselects the point cards that can be used in the environment where the mobile device is located, and outputs a list of the preselected point cards to a display device triggered by the fact that the user has executed a payment for the purchase of a product or service. Thereby, it is possible to quickly and automatically present available point cards from a large number of digitized point cards stored in the mobile device.

[0099] <Modification Example> Hereinafter, a modification example of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. In this modification example, the Wi-Fi access point 5 describes information for identifying a point card in the SSID broadcast as a beacon. In this modified example, the mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, can receive an SSID, analyze the received SSID, decode the information for identifying the point card described in the SSID, and obtain the point card name to be mapped to the SSID. According to this modified example, for example, the SSID itself broadcast by the Wi-Fi access point 5 provided by a store as a beacon can carry the information for identifying the point card available in the store.

[0100] Specifically, for example, numbers are assigned to all point cards in ascending order. Corresponding bits in the SSID are assigned to each point card. When a certain store wants to set a certain point card to be available, the store only needs to set appropriate bits in the SSID to describe the information for identifying the available point card. For example, such an SSID can be described in bit representation as "00000000 01000000 00000100 00000001 ···". The SSID is, for example, 32 octets.

[0101] The Wi-Fi access point 5 can broadcast one or more SSIDs. When broadcasting a plurality of SSIDs, at least one SSID may describe the information for identifying the available point card. When the mobile device 1, which is a point card management device, detects an SSID broadcast as a beacon from the Wi-Fi access point 5, it can decode the detected SSID, determine which bits of the SSID are set, and preselect the point card to be mapped.

[0102] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a mapping table between the information for identifying the point card described in the SSID referred to by the mobile device 1 and the point card name. Referring to FIG. 9, the mapping table 91 stores the correspondence between the number (identifier) represented by a bit string for identifying the point card described in the SSID and the point card name. The mobile device 1 searches for the point card identification number in the SSID decoded from the SSID among the point card identifiers (CardID1, CardID2, CardID3...) in the SSID in the mapping table 91, and obtains the point card name corresponding to the matching identifier.

[0103] Since the SSID is typically 32 octets, i.e., 32×8 = 256 bits, the maximum number of point cards that can be described by the bit string pattern of one SSID is 256. When there are a large number of point cards available in one store, in order to be able to describe more point cards with one SSID broadcast from the Wi-Fi access point 5 of the store, the 32 octets of the SSID may be divided into multiple segments for use.

[0104] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the description of the identifier of the point card in the SSID broadcast from the WiFi access point. The mobile device 1 may hold the segment division shown in FIG. 10 as a table 101. Referring to FIG. 10, the first 4 octets of the SSID indicate that the SSID is used to broadcast the available point cards. For example, the first 2 octets may have the value "pc" indicating the notification of the point card, and the next 2 octets may be used as a counter with values from 00 to FF. For each of the remaining 28 octets of the SSID, 224 types of point cards can be identified with a 224-bit bit representation.

[0105] For example, when a certain store attempts to set up the use of a point card with the identification number 2589, the Wi-Fi access point 5 of the store may broadcast an SSID whose first 4 octets start with "pc11" and the subsequent 28 octets are a bit string with the 125th bit set. According to the description example of the SSID in FIG. 10, the number of point cards that can be identified by one SSID can be extended up to 256×224 = 57,344.

[0106] By using the description example of the SSID in FIG. 10, the point card management device 1 can filter out the SSIDs that carry information for identifying point cards among the broadcast SSIDs, and execute the point card pre-selection process using only the filtered SSIDs. Since it is only necessary to analyze the SSIDs required for the point card pre-selection process, the SSID analysis processing load is reduced, and the list of point cards can be displayed and output to the user with low latency, improving the user experience.

[0107] <Hardware Configuration of Point Card Management Device> FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a non-limiting example of the hardware configuration of the point card management device 1 according to the present embodiment. The point card management device 1 according to the present embodiment can be implemented on a single or multiple, any computer, or any other processing platform as long as it is a mobile device that can be carried by a user.

[0108] As shown in FIG. 11, the point card management device 1 may include a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, an HDD 114, an input unit 115, a display unit 116, a communication I / F 117, and a system bus 118. The point card management device 1 may also include an external memory. The CPU (Central Processing Unit) 111 comprehensively controls the operations in the point card management device 1, and controls each component (112 - 117) via the system bus 118 which is a data transmission path.

[0109] The ROM (Read Only Memory) 112 is a non - volatile memory that stores control programs and the like necessary for the CPU 111 to execute processing. Note that the program may be stored in a non - volatile memory such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 114, an SSD (Solid State Drive), or an external memory such as a removable storage medium (not shown). The RAM (Random Access Memory) 113 is a volatile memory and functions as the main memory, work area, etc. of the CPU 111. That is, when executing processing, the CPU 111 loads necessary programs and the like from the ROM 112 into the RAM 113 and realizes various functional operations by executing the programs and the like.

[0110] The HDD 114 stores various data and various information necessary when the CPU 111 performs processing using programs, for example. Also, the HDD 114 stores various data and various information obtained when the CPU 111 performs processing using programs and the like, for example. The input unit 115 is composed of a keyboard, a mouse, a capacitive or pressure - sensitive touch panel, etc. The display unit 116 is composed of a monitor such as a liquid crystal display (LCD). The display unit 116 may provide a GUI (Graphical User Interface) for instructing and inputting various parameters used in point card selection processing and the like, and communication parameters used in communication with other devices to the point card management device 1. The communication I / F 118 is an interface that controls communication between the point card management device 1 and an external device.

[0111] At least some of the functions of each element of the point card management device 1 shown in FIG. 1 can be realized by the CPU 111 executing a program. However, at least some of the functions of each element of the point card management device 1 shown in FIG. 1 may operate as dedicated hardware. In this case, the dedicated hardware operates based on the control of the CPU 111.

[0112] Note that although a specific embodiment has been described above, the embodiment is merely an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. The devices and methods described in this specification can be embodied in forms other than those described above. Also, without departing from the scope of the present invention, omissions, substitutions, and changes can be appropriately made to the above-described embodiment. Forms with such omissions, substitutions, and changes are included in the scope of what is described in the claims and their equivalents, and belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0113] 1... Point card management device (mobile device), 2... Server device, 3... Mobile network, 4... Base station, 5... Wi-Fi access point, 6... GPS satellite, 7... POS terminal, 8... Financial institution server device, 11... Position detection unit, 12... Point card pre-selection unit, 13... Point card storage unit, 14... Sorting unit, 15... Control unit, 16... Payment management unit, 17... Point card activation unit, 111... CPU, 112... ROM, 113... RAM, 114... HDD, 115... Input unit, 116... Display unit, 117... Communication I / F, 118... System bus

Claims

1. An information processing program executed by an information processing apparatus, the information processing program comprising: a point card selection process of selecting a point card associated with the position of the information processing apparatus from a plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus; a control process for controlling to periodically repeat the process by the point card selection process; a payment detection process of detecting payment of the price of the product or service by the user accompanying the purchase of the product or service by the user carrying the information processing apparatus, and receiving a message indicating completion of settlement transmitted from an external apparatus connected to the information processing apparatus via a network after the payment; an output process of outputting a list of point cards currently selected by the point card selection process triggered by the message received by the payment detection process; An information processing program for causing the above-described processes to be executed.

2. The output process includes outputting a list of point cards associated with the payment detected by the payment detection process among the point cards selected by the point card selection process. The information processing program according to claim 1, characterized in that.

3. The information processing program further causes the information processing apparatus to perform a sorting process of determining the priority order of each of the point cards selected by the point card selection process based on the point transaction history of the point cards, and sorting the selected point cards in the order of the determined priority order; The output process includes outputting the sorted point cards. The information processing program according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that.

4. The information processing apparatus includes a user interface that receives an input for assigning a priority order to at least one of the plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus. The sorting process includes sorting the selected point cards in the order of the priority order input via the user interface. The information processing program according to claim 3, characterized in that.

5. An information processing method executed by an information processing apparatus, selecting a point card associated with the position of the information processing apparatus from a plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus; periodically repeating the step of selecting the point card; detecting payment of the price of the product or service by the user carrying the information processing apparatus for the purchase of the product or service, and receiving a message indicating completion of settlement transmitted from an external device connected to the information processing apparatus via a network after the payment; outputting a list of currently selected point cards triggered by the received message; An information processing method characterized by including the above.

6. An information processing apparatus, comprising: a point card selection unit that selects a point card associated with the position of the information processing apparatus from a plurality of point cards pre-stored in the information processing apparatus; a control unit that controls the point card selection unit to periodically repeat the selection of the point card; a payment detection unit that detects payment of the price of the product or service by the user carrying the information processing apparatus for the purchase of the product or service, and receives a message indicating completion of settlement transmitted from an external device connected to the information processing apparatus via a network after the payment; an output unit that outputs a list of currently selected point cards triggered by the message received by the payment detection unit; An information processing apparatus characterized by comprising the above.

Images