Information processing device, program, product display system, and product display method

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus configured to easily retrieve a product belonging to a user through a product display screen, a program, a product display system, and a product display method.SOLUTION: A management server 10 includes a processing unit 30 which executes processing for acquiring belongings information indicating a product belonging to a user, specifying a product belonging to the user, corresponding to the belongings information, from among pieces of information on multiple products, and displaying, on a display unit, at least one of the information on the multiple products and the information on the specified product belonging to the user so that a relationship between the multiple products and the specified product belonging to the user may be recognized.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 19

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, a program, a product display system, and a product display method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a technique for displaying products in a tree structure is known. Patent Document 1 describes this type of technique. Patent Document 1 describes a technique for associating a product with a part that belongs to the immediately lower level among the parts that make up the product, and for searching a parts table that associates the parts that make up the product with the parts that belong to the immediately lower level among the parts that make up the part, to create a tree structure of the parts that make up the product for each level. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-77724 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] From the viewpoint of user service, it is conceivable to provide a service that displays a list of products with multiple product lineups. In such a case, a user cannot easily find a product that he or she owns when searching for the purchased product among the displayed product group. Conventional technology is intended only to display a list of products and parts, and there is room for improvement in terms of searching for a user's owned product from the displayed list.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide an information processing device, a program, a product display system, and a product display method that enable a user to more easily search for products owned by the user from a list display. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an information processing device of one embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it includes a processing unit that acquires possession information indicating products owned by a user, identifies the product owned by the user that corresponds to the possession information from among a plurality of products, and performs processing to display at least one of information regarding the plurality of products and information regarding the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an information processing device, a program, a product display system, and a product display method that enable a user to more easily search for products owned by the user from a list display. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a product display system to which a management server according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a management server according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 3 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration for executing owned product identification processing, among the functional configurations of the management server of FIG. 2; FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 5 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration for executing product display processing, among the functional configurations of the user terminal of FIG. 4. FIG. [Figure 6] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating tree generation rules in a product display system according to an embodiment of the present invention, using an example of a tree structure. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a tree display screen on a product display screen according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8]8 is a schematic diagram showing an enlarged view of a part of the tree display screen shown in FIG. 7. FIG. [Figure 9] 9 is a schematic diagram showing a most enlarged screen in which a part of the tree display screen shown in FIG. 8 is further enlarged. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram for explaining a product details screen on the most enlarged screen shown in FIG. 9. [Figure 11] 11 is a schematic diagram showing a data display on the product details screen of FIG. 10, showing the user's position in the age distribution of product purchasers. FIG. [Figure 12] 11 is a schematic diagram showing the display of the possession status of the product owner on the product details screen of FIG. 10. FIG. [Figure 13] 10 is a schematic diagram showing the screen when the screen shown in FIG. 9 is scrolled from the top to the bottom of the screen. FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a tree display screen in which a browsing history display is added to the screen shown in FIG. 7. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a viewing progress rate display screen grouped by model in FIG. 14; [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a diagram in which products are arranged in chronological order on a sorting display screen on the product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a diagram in which products are arranged in order of popularity on a sort display screen on the product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a view in which products are arranged in order of weight on a sorting display screen on the product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] 10 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of owned product identification processing executed by the management server of FIG. 2 having the functional configuration of FIG. 3; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] <Product Display System> An overview of the product display system S will be described. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the product display system S to which a management server 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention is applied. Note that the system referred to here includes not only an overall device configured from multiple devices or multiple means, but also a system configured from a single device.

[0011] 1, the product display system S according to this embodiment includes a plurality of user terminals 1, a network N, and a management server 10. The management server 10 is connected to the plurality of user terminals 1 via the network N so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0012] The network N is realized by, for example, the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), or a mobile phone network, or a network that combines these.

[0013] The product display system S is a system that provides product users with a product display screen for displaying multiple registered products. The product display system S is realized by a management server 10. The management server 10 is a general-purpose computer that can execute various functions by installing various programs. However, the management server 10 is not limited to this, and may also be a computer built into dedicated hardware. The management server 10 performs processing to generate and display a product display screen for a product based on product information about the product stored in a database. Details will be described later.

[0014] The user terminal 1 is a computer operated by a product user. There is no particular limit to the number of user terminals 1, and n (n is any natural number) user terminals 1 may be included in the product display system S. In the following description, the n user terminals 1 will not be distinguished from one another, and will be simply referred to as "user terminals 1" by omitting the letters at the end of the reference numerals.

[0015] The user terminal 1 is, for example, a portable computer such as a smartphone or tablet. However, the user terminal 1 is not limited to this and may be a desktop or laptop personal computer. Details will be described later.

[0016] <Administration Server> Next, a description will be given of an example of the management server 10. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the management server 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, the management server 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, an input unit 14, an output unit 15, a memory unit 16, a communication unit 17, a power supply unit 18, a bus 19, and an input / output interface 20.

[0018] The CPU 11 executes various processes according to a program recorded in the ROM 12 or a program loaded from the storage unit 16 into the RAM 13 .

[0019] The RAM 13 also stores data and the like necessary for the CPU 11 to execute various processes.

[0020] The CPU 11, ROM 12, and RAM 13 are connected to one another via a bus 19. An input / output interface 20 is also connected to this bus 19. An input unit 14, an output unit 15, a memory unit 16, a communication unit 17, and a power supply unit 18 are connected to the input / output interface 20.

[0021] The input unit 14 and output unit 15 are user interfaces electrically connected to the input / output interface 20 via wire or wirelessly. The input unit 14 is composed of, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, various buttons, a microphone, etc., and inputs various information in response to user instructions. The output unit 15 is composed of, for example, a display for displaying images and a speaker for amplifying audio, etc., and outputs images and audio.

[0022] The storage unit 16 is configured with a semiconductor memory such as a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory), and stores various data of the management server 10. The storage unit 16 is provided with a plurality of databases (not shown) for the product display system S. For example, the storage unit 16 is provided with a product database that stores information about a plurality of products to be registered in the product display system S.

[0023] The communication unit 17 controls communications between the CPU 11 and other devices (not shown) via a network including the Internet.

[0024] The power supply unit 18 is configured to be able to supply power to each unit of the management server 10 by being connected to an external power source.

[0025] Next, the functional configuration of the management server 10 will be described. Fig. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration for executing the owned product identification process, among the functional configurations of the management server 10 in Fig. 2. The owned product identification process is a process for identifying owned products based on possession information indicating owned products owned by the user on the product display screen provided by the product display system S. The owned product identification process will be described later.

[0026] A processing unit 30 that performs various controls of the management server 10 is realized by a CPU 11 that executes arithmetic processing.

[0027] The processing unit 30 of this embodiment has a communication control unit (communication control function) 31, an output control unit (output control function) 32, an input control unit (input control function) 33, a product information acquisition unit (product information acquisition function) 34, a possession information identification unit (possession information identification function) 35, a product display generation unit (product display generation function) 36, and a sales control unit (sales control function) 37.

[0028] The communication control unit 31 executes processing for communicating with external devices via the communication unit 17. For example, the communication control unit 31 executes processing for transmitting and receiving various types of information to and from the user terminal 1 connected to the management server 10 via the communication unit 17.

[0029] The output control unit 32 executes processing for displaying an image on the screen of the output unit 15 of the management server 10. For example, the output control unit 32 executes processing for displaying a management screen for managing the product display system S on the screen of the output unit 15.

[0030] The input control unit 33 executes a process of accepting a user's operation of the input unit 14. For example, the input control unit 33 executes a process of accepting an operation for managing the product display system S input by the user to the input unit 14 based on information displayed on the screen of the output unit 15.

[0031] The product information acquisition unit 34 executes a process of acquiring product information for the product display screen. The product information includes, for example, product image information, the product brand name, sub-brand name, model number information as an identifier, and the like.

[0032] The possession information identification unit 35 executes a process for identifying products owned by the user from the product model numbers included in the possession information. For example, upon receiving a command for the owned product identification process, the possession information identification unit 35 acquires the possession information and multiple product information included in the user information in the database of the storage unit 16, and identifies a product among the multiple products that corresponds to the model number included in the possession information. The command for the owned product identification process is output when the product display generation unit 36, which will be described later, executes a process for generating information for a product display screen.

[0033] The product display generation unit 36 executes a process of generating information for a product display screen. For example, when the communication control unit 31 accepts receipt of a command to generate a product display screen, the product display generation unit 36 acquires product information stored in the database of the storage unit 16, information related to tree generation rules, and possession information identified by the possession information identification unit 35, generates a product display screen based on the information, and executes a process of causing the communication control unit 31 to transmit the generated product display screen to the user terminal 1 via the communication unit 17. In other words, the product display control unit 64 executes a process of displaying at least one of information related to a plurality of products and the identified user's possessed products on the display unit.

[0034] The product display screen according to this embodiment includes a sorted display screen in which product placement is determined based on information selected from information about multiple products, and a tree display screen as a system diagram generated based on the multiple product information. Product information includes, but is not limited to, product specifications, product price, and the number of favorites added by users. Specifications include mechanical specifications such as the color and shape of the watch, the design and shape of the strap, and functional specifications such as the watch's water resistance and automatic time correction. The sorted display screen and tree display screen will be described in detail below.

[0035] When a product to be purchased is selected from the list of products displayed, the sales control unit 37 executes a process to transition to a sales process for purchasing the product. On the product display screen according to this embodiment, a product purchase button 104, as shown in FIG. 10 , is displayed when the displayed product is available for sale. For example, when the purchase button 104 displayed on the product display screen is pressed, the sales control unit 37 instructs the product display generation unit 36 to transition from the product display screen to an e-commerce site for product sales. For products that are no longer available for sale, such as those that have already been discontinued, a button for commenting on requests for reprints, etc., may be provided instead of the purchase button 104, allowing requests to be accepted. However, the purchasing process is not limited to this. For example, an e-commerce site for purchases may be displayed within the product display screen.

[0036] <User device> Next, we will explain an example of the user terminal 1. Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the user terminal 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] The user terminal 1 of this embodiment is a computer including a CPU 41, a ROM 42, a RAM 43, an input unit 44, an output unit 45, a storage unit 46, a communication unit 47, an imaging unit 48 as an imaging unit, a short-range communication unit 49, a battery 50, a bus 51, and an input / output interface 52. Note that components that are common or similar to components already described may be given the same names and detailed descriptions thereof may be omitted.

[0038] The input / output interface 52 is connected to the input unit 44, the output unit 45, the storage unit 46, the communication unit 47, the imaging unit 48, the short-range communication unit 49, and the battery 50.

[0039] Although not shown, the imaging unit 48 includes an optical lens unit and an image sensor. The optical lens unit is composed of lenses that focus light to capture an image of a subject, such as a focus lens or zoom lens. The focus lens is a lens that forms an image of the subject on the light-receiving surface of the image sensor. The zoom lens is a lens that can freely change the focal length within a certain range. The optical lens unit is also provided with peripheral circuits that adjust setting parameters such as focus, exposure, and white balance as necessary.

[0040] The image sensor is composed of a photoelectric conversion element, an AFE (Analog Front End), etc. The photoelectric conversion element is composed of, for example, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) type photoelectric conversion element. An object image is incident on the photoelectric conversion element from an optical lens unit. The photoelectric conversion element then photoelectrically converts (captures) the object image, accumulates the image signal for a certain period of time, and sequentially supplies the accumulated image signal to the AFE as an analog signal.

[0041] The AFE performs various signal processing such as A / D (Analog / Digital) conversion processing on this analog image signal. A digital signal is generated by the various signal processing and is output as an output signal of the imaging unit 48. Such an output signal of the imaging unit 48 will be referred to as "image information" hereinafter. The image information is supplied as appropriate to the CPU 11, an image control unit (not shown), etc.

[0042] The short-range communication unit 49 is a second communication unit that performs short-range wireless communication. The short-range communication unit 49 performs communication using a communication method based on a communication standard such as BLE (Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy), Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity), or NFC (Near Field Communication). The short-range communication unit 49 can communicate by being brought into proximity with an IC tag that has a predetermined IC chip built in. For example, by storing product information in advance in the IC chip, the short-range communication unit 49 can read the product information by being brought into proximity with the IC tag.

[0043] The battery 50 supplies power to the user terminal 1. For example, the battery 50 is configured by a lithium ion battery. If the user terminal 1 is a desktop personal computer, the user terminal 1 has a power supply unit that can supply power to the user terminal 1 by being connected to an external power source instead of the battery 50.

[0044] Next, the functional configuration of the user terminal 1 will be described. Fig. 5 is a functional block diagram showing a portion of the functional configuration of the user terminal 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. A processing unit 60 that performs various controls on the user terminal 1 is realized by a CPU 41 that executes arithmetic processing. The processing unit 60 of this embodiment has a communication control unit 61, an output control unit 62, an input control unit 63, and a product display control unit 64.

[0045] The communication control unit 61 executes a process for communicating with an external device via the communication unit 47. For example, the communication control unit 61 executes a process for transmitting and receiving various types of information to and from the management server 10 via the communication unit 47.

[0046] The output control unit 62 executes processing for displaying an image on the screen of the output unit 45 of the user terminal 1. For example, the output control unit 62 executes processing for displaying a product display screen, which the communication control unit 61 has accepted as reception via the communication unit 47, on the screen of the output unit 45.

[0047] The input control unit 63 executes a process of accepting a user's operation of the input unit 44. For example, the input control unit 63 executes a process of accepting an input operation of possession information, which is information about the user's possessed products that the user inputs to the input unit 44 based on the information displayed on the screen of the output unit 45.

[0048] The product display control unit 64 executes various processes for the product display screen. The various processes for the product display screen include, for example, product display processing and possession information input processing. When the input control unit 63 receives a user's input to the input unit 44 to start the product display processing, the product display control unit 64 starts the product display processing and instructs the communication control unit 61 to execute processing to send a command to generate a product display screen to the management server 10 via the communication unit 47. Furthermore, when the communication control unit 61 receives information for generating a product display screen from the management server 10 via the communication unit 47, the product display control unit 64 executes processing to instruct the output control unit 62 to output the product display screen on the screen of the output unit 45.

[0049] In addition, when the input control unit 63 accepts an input operation of the user's possession information into the input unit 44, the product display control unit 64 starts the possession information input process and instructs the communication control unit 61 to execute a process of transmitting the possession information and a possession information input command to the database to the management server 10 via the communication unit 47.

[0050] In the product display system S according to this embodiment, the user terminal 1 includes a product display control unit 64, and displays the product display screen through processing by the product display control unit 64. However, the user terminal 1 does not need to include the product display control unit 64. In this case, the user terminal 1 can display the product display screen on the screen of the output unit 45 by accessing a product display screen website provided on the management server 10 via the communication unit 47.

[0051] The user terminal 1 according to this embodiment acquires possession information through a user's input operation on the input unit 44 of the user terminal 1, but this is not limiting. For example, the user terminal 1 may acquire possession information as an identifier by having the imaging unit 48 read a barcode, such as a QR code (registered trademark), containing the possession information. Alternatively, the user terminal 1 may acquire possession information by reading the possession information from an IC tag containing the possession information through short-range communication using the short-range communication unit 49 of the user terminal 1 as an external device. Alternatively, the user terminal 1 may acquire possession information by directly capturing an image of a product using the imaging unit 48 and analyzing the captured image. In this case, the processing unit 30 of the user terminal 1 may perform processing to acquire possession information using a learning model (AI: Artificial Intelligence) learned by machine learning or the like. Alternatively, the user terminal 1 may acquire image information of the user's owned products and identify the owned products by performing image recognition on the image information to acquire possession information.

[0052] Next, the product display screen provided by the product display system S according to this embodiment will be described. In the product display system S according to this embodiment, the product display screen can be switched between a tree display screen and a sorted display screen. The tree display screen is a screen that displays products arranged in a tree structure in accordance with tree generation rules, and is one aspect of the product display screen. The sorted display screen is a screen that displays products arranged in an arrangement determined based on information specified from information related to product information, and is one aspect of the product display screen. Note that the aspects of the product display screen are not limited to these, and may be a part of them, or may include other screen display aspects.

[0053] First, the tree display screen will be described with reference to Figs. 6 to 13. Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating tree generation rules in a product display system S according to one embodiment of the present invention, using an example of a tree structure. Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a tree display screen in a product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating a tree display screen in the case where a portion of the tree display screen shown in Fig. 7 is enlarged. Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a fully enlarged screen in which a portion of the tree display screen shown in Fig. 8 is further enlarged.

[0054] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram for explaining a product details screen on the most enlarged screen shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing a screen displaying the user's position according to the user's age on the age distribution of product purchasers displayed on the product details screen of FIG. 10. FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a screen from the product details screen of FIG. 10 displaying the ownership status of owners of the same model. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing a screen displaying the most enlarged screen when the most enlarged screen shown in FIG. 9 is scrolled from the top to the bottom of the screen. Note that the screens described below using FIGS. 7 to 13 are examples of product display screens, and the screen configuration is not limited to these.

[0055] First, the tree structure will be explained using Figure 6. In the product display system S according to this embodiment, a wristwatch as an example of a product is stored in the storage unit 16 so that the data structure is a tree structure, and a tree display screen can be generated as a system diagram in the tree structure. Note that in this embodiment, a wristwatch is used as an example of a product, but the product is not limited to a wristwatch and can be other products such as a calculator, a musical instrument, or an electronic dictionary.

[0056] In the database of the storage unit 16 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment, multiple main brands of wristwatches are stored in a tree structure. In the example shown in Fig. 6, the tree structure has a main brand 400 at the top, branching downward to sub-brands 401 and series 402, and so on. For example, if the main brand is "A-WATCH," the sub-brands of "A-WATCH" are "MODEL:A," "MODEL:B," and "MODEL:C," and the series of "MODEL:B" are "BA," "BB," and "BC," the tree structure with the main brand 400 at the top will branch downward to sub-brands 401 and series 402, and so on, as shown in Fig. 6.

[0057] Furthermore, products in a series are arranged with the initial model at the top and the successor models following. For example, in the example shown in Fig. 6, successor models 404, 405, and 406 are arranged in this order after initial model 403. Furthermore, if there are derivative models for products in series 402, the derivative models are arranged diagonally adjacent to the products in series 402. For example, in the example shown in Fig. 6, derivative models 407 and 408 are arranged diagonally from successor model 404.

[0058] When displaying the tree display screen, the management server 10 according to this embodiment extracts information such as brand, sub-brand, and series from the product information stored in the storage unit 16 in a tree structure and identifies the product's location in the tree structure based on the extracted information. In this embodiment, the product information is acquired, for example, from the model number. In other words, each piece of product information includes multiple pieces of information related to product specifications. In the example of the model number 410 of the successor model 406 shown in FIG. 6 , the product information includes the sub-brand model number 411 as a first identifier, the series model number 412 as a second identifier, and the successor model model number 413 as a third identifier. In this embodiment, the model number as an identifier includes the sub-brand model number 411 as a first identifier, the series model number 412 as a second identifier, and the successor model model number 413 as a third identifier. The hierarchy in the tree structure is not limited to this and can be freely configured according to the purpose.

[0059] Therefore, the tree generation rules according to this embodiment are to check information such as model numbers included in product information for each of multiple products in the tree structure, starting from the top, to identify the corresponding branch destination and determine the placement on the tree display screen. For example, in this embodiment, the order is brand, sub-brand, series, successor model, and derivative model, and the information is checked in that order to identify the branch destination and determine the placement. Furthermore, even when a new product is added to the product database in the storage unit 16 in accordance with the tree generation rules, the product display generation unit 36 according to this embodiment can execute the process of identifying the position in the tree structure, generating, and outputting a tree display screen.

[0060] In this case, the tree generation rule is, for example, a rule that, if the sub-brand model number of the product for which placement is to be specified is new, a new sub-brand is branched off from the main brand based on the sub-brand model number. That is, each piece of product information includes a sub-brand model number 411 that indicates a sub-brand associated with a specific brand, and the product display generation unit 36 performs processing to generate information related to a display in which multiple products are divided by sub-brand from the product information including the sub-brand model number 411 corresponding to the specific brand. Furthermore, the product display generation unit 36 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment generates a product display screen based on the information related to the generated display.

[0061] Furthermore, if the series model number of the product for which placement is specified is new, the product display generation unit 36 branches off a new series from the sub-brand based on the series model number. That is, each piece of product information includes a series model number 412 indicating a series associated with a specific sub-brand, and the product display generation unit 36 generates information related to a display in which multiple products are divided by series from the product information including the series model number 412 corresponding to the specific sub-brand.

[0062] Furthermore, the product display generation unit 36 determines the placement of the product in each series based on the successor model number included in the product information in accordance with the tree generation rules. That is, the product display generation unit 36 places the products on the axis of the series on the product display screen, starting with the initial model. That is, each piece of product information includes a successor model number 413 indicating that the product is a successor model of a product associated with a specific series. The product display generation unit 36 generates information related to a display showing the state in which the successor model is connected after the product associated with the specific series from the product information including the successor model number 413 corresponding to the product associated with the specific series. Furthermore, if the product information for which placement is specified includes information indicating a derivative model, the product display generation unit 36 identifies the product of the original model and branches a new derivative model from the product of the original model. Note that the tree generation rules are not limited to this.

[0063] Specifically, when the management server 10 acquires product information, the product display generation unit 36 recognizes the main brand name, sub-brand name, initial letter of the model number, numerical value of the model number, and suffix of the model number. For example, in the example of Fig. 6, the main brand is recognized as A-WATCH, the sub-brand name is MODEL:B, the initial letter of the model number is BA, the numerical value of the model number is 100, and the suffix of the model number is JF1YT.

[0064] The product display generation unit 36 performs processing to identify and arrange the position of the product information in the tree structure as described above based on the recognized information of the main brand name, sub-brand name, initial letter of the model number, numerical value of the model number, and suffix of the model number in accordance with the tree generation rules. In this way, the product display system S according to this embodiment classifies product information such as the model number assigned to one model into four categories: sub-brand, initial letter of the model number, numerical value of the model number, and suffix of the model number, and automatically generates a tree display screen from a tree structure in which product information is arranged in an appropriate position for each category.

[0065] That is, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment executes a process of generating a tree display screen for a plurality of products based on product information. Here, the process of generating a tree display screen performed by the processing unit 30 may be a process of generating a tree display screen, or a process of generating information such as product information and metadata required for generating a tree display screen by the processing unit 60 of the user terminal 1 and transmitting the information to the user terminal 1.

[0066] The generated tree display screen is transmitted to the user terminal 1 via the communication unit 17. In this manner, the product display generation unit 36 performs processing to generate a product display screen based on the product information acquired in accordance with the tree generation rules.

[0067] Next, the tree display screen of the product display screen in the product display system S according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 7. When the user terminal 1 acquires the product display screen from the management server 10, a process is performed to output a tree display screen on the screen of the output unit 45 as shown in FIG. 7. In the example of FIG. 7, a tree display screen of one of multiple series is displayed. The four watches lined up from the bottom center of the figure belong to the same series. Furthermore, the watches branching out to the left and right from the fourth watch from the bottom of the series are derivative models of the fourth watch from the bottom. Therefore, in the product display system S according to this embodiment, by switching the product display screen to a tree display screen, the user can easily understand the relationships between the products.

[0068] Furthermore, in the product display system S according to this embodiment, since there are a large number of products and it is difficult to display all of the products at once on the most reduced tree display screen, not all of the products are displayed, but only representative models. In the product display system S according to this embodiment, the management server 10 can enlarge or reduce the product display screen in response to a command from the user terminal 1. The product display screen shown in the example of FIG. 7 is the most reduced tree display screen.

[0069] A representative model is, for example, a representative model that a manufacturer of a product has positioned as a base model. In other words, a derived model that changes some specifications of the base model, such as the color or material, is not a representative model, and therefore is not displayed on the overall display screen, etc. Furthermore, the product display system S according to this embodiment can identify owned products, which are products owned by the user, from among multiple pieces of product information as described above, and can display the identified owned products as representative models.

[0070] Next, when the product display screen shown in Fig. 7 is enlarged, it becomes the tree display screen shown in Fig. 8. Specifically, Fig. 8 is an enlarged view of the wristwatch and its surroundings shown in product image 201 in Fig. 7. By enlarging the tree display screen, Fig. 8 displays a group 301 of derivative models of the four wristwatches that were not displayed in the tree display screen of Fig. 7.

[0071] Next, when the product display screen shown in FIG. 8 is further enlarged, a tree display screen shown in FIG. 9 appears. FIG. 9 shows the tree display screen at its most enlarged state. In this tree display screen, a single axis 200 is displayed on which a product image 201 is displayed. In addition, white arrows 100 are displayed above and below the axis 200, and the tree display screen can be slid upward or downward by performing an input operation such as clicking or tapping on the arrows 100, or by dragging or swiping the tree display screen upward or downward.

[0072] The tree display screen displays a product image 201, a display 202 of the model number etc. above the product image 201, and a product information button 101 and a story button 102 below the product image 201. Pressing the story button 102 causes the screen to move to a screen that displays information about the product's development story. Information about the product's development story includes, for example, the developer's preferences, development anecdotes, and development secrets. Pressing the product information button 101 displays a product details screen that displays more detailed product information as shown in FIG. 10.

[0073] On the product details screen, a left-facing arrow button 103 is displayed in the upper left of the screen. In the product display system S, pressing this arrow button 103 transitions to the tree display screen shown in FIG. 9. Also, a color change button 110 is located in the upper right of the screen, which is a button for switching the color variations of the displayed product image. On the product details screen in the example of FIG. 10, there are three color change buttons 110 corresponding to the three color variations, and pressing a color change button 110 switches the product image to the color corresponding to the color change button 110. A double circle on one of the color change buttons 110 indicates that the color corresponding to that color change button 110 has been selected.

[0074] Furthermore, on the product details screen, two data display buttons 108 and 109 are displayed on the right side of the center of the screen. In the product display system S, when the upper data display button 109 is pressed, the screen transitions to a data display screen as shown in Fig. 11. Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of the data display screen showing the user's position in the age distribution of purchasers of the product shown in Fig. 10. The data is generated based on user information previously stored in the database of the storage unit 16.

[0075] In the product display system S, when the data display button 108 below is pressed, the screen transitions to a data display screen as shown in Fig. 12. Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of a data display screen from the product details screen shown in the figure that shows the ownership status of other products owned by the purchaser of the same product. This data display screen displays other products owned by the purchaser of the product displayed in Fig. 10, and can suggest other products to the user.

[0076] 10, a purchase button 104 is displayed on the left side of the center of the screen. In the product display system S, when the purchase button 104 is pressed as described above, the sales control unit 37 executes a process to transition to sales processing for purchasing the product, and transitions from the product details screen to the EC site screen.

[0077] Directly below the product image 201, a tag group 107 containing multiple tags indicating the characteristics of the displayed model is displayed. For example, in FIG. 10, tags such as "NEW" indicating the latest model, "MODEL: A" which is the main model name, "ANALOG" indicating an analog model, and "BLACK" indicating the product color are displayed. When one of the tags in the tag group 107 is pressed on the product details screen in FIG. 10, the management server 10 of the product display system S according to this embodiment can search for products using the conditions associated with that tag. Furthermore, the management server 10 performs processing to display the searched product information on the product display screen. In this case, the product display screen may be a tree display screen, a sorted display screen, or another display screen format.

[0078] In other words, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment may generate information related to a display in which multiple products are divided by sub-brand from product information including a sub-brand model number 411 corresponding to a specific brand on the sorted display screen, or may generate information related to a display in which multiple products are divided by series from product information including a series model number 412 corresponding to a sub-brand, or may generate information related to a display showing a state in which a successor model is connected after a product associated with a series from product information including a successor model model number 413 corresponding to a product associated with a series.

[0079] An INFO button 105 for displaying product specifications is displayed at the bottom left of the product details screen in Fig. 10. In the product display system S, pressing the INFO button 105 causes a process to transition to a screen displaying detailed product specifications. In addition, a MY button 106 for displaying pre-registered owned products is displayed at the bottom right of the screen. In the product display system S, pressing the MY button 106 causes a process to transition to a product details screen for the user's owned products.

[0080] Here, the tree display screen shown in Fig. 9 will be described again. As described above, this screen can be slid by a user's operation. The tree display screen shown in Fig. 13 is a diagram of the tree display screen shown in Fig. 9 when slid upward. In the tree display screen shown in Fig. 13, the product image 201 shown in Fig. 9 is displayed at the bottom, and a display 202 of the model number etc. is displayed immediately above the product image 201.

[0081] Furthermore, product images 203 of other models are displayed at the top of the tree display screen. Furthermore, display 204 of the model number, etc. is displayed below product image 203. Below display 204, a message 205 reading "Equipped with a new type of sensor" is displayed with a white arrow 100 between them. Message 205 is placed between product images 201 and 203, and the content of message 205 is intended to attract the user's interest, such as the features of the product at the end of axis 200. That is, the processing unit 30 of management server 10 according to this embodiment sets the text information to be displayed between products on the tree display screen.

[0082] Also displayed is an axis line 207 that extends from the right center of axis line 200 upward to the upper right. Below axis line 207, a message 206 that reads "Analog" is displayed. The content of message 206 is intended to attract the user's interest, such as the features of the product set at the end of axis line 207. That is, the management server 10 of the product display system S according to this embodiment can set text information to be displayed between products on the tree display screen. Furthermore, the text information is intended to attract the user's interest while allowing the user to easily grasp the relationships between the products.

[0083] Furthermore, the product display system S according to this embodiment can acquire browsing history information, and changes the display of the axis lines depending on whether or not there is a browsing history, as shown in FIG. 14. For example, the example in FIG. 14 shows a tree display screen in which the axis lines are solid lines when there is a browsing history, and dashed lines when there is no browsing history, for the product display screen in FIG. 7. However, the manner in which the axis lines are displayed is not limited to this. This allows the user to quickly determine which products they have not yet viewed, saving them the trouble of searching.

[0084] Furthermore, the product display system S according to this embodiment can display a viewing progress rate display screen as shown in FIG. 15. The viewing progress rate is a numerical value indicating the proportion of products that have been viewed, calculated based on viewing history information. The viewing progress rate display screen displays the viewing progress rate for a selection element selected by the user from among elements in a tree structure such as a main brand, sub-brand, or series. In the example of FIG. 15, "all" has been selected as the selection element. "all" means all products included in a specified brand.

[0085] Furthermore, the viewing progress rate display screen according to this embodiment displays not only the viewing progress rate of the selected element but also the individual viewing progress rates of the subordinate elements immediately below the selected element in the tree structure. In the example of Fig. 15, the subordinate elements displayed are multiple sub-brands immediately below a specific brand, namely "AAAAA," "BBBBB," "CCCCC," "DDDDD," and "EEEEE." Furthermore, on the viewing progress rate display screen according to this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 15, a display 302 displaying the viewing progress rate of the selected element is displayed at the top of the screen, and a display 303 displaying the individual viewing progress rates of the subordinate elements is displayed below the display 302.

[0086] Display 302 displays, from the left side of the screen, a product image 304, a display 305 of the name of the selection element, a bar 113, and a viewing progress rate 112. Product image 304 displays an image of a product that represents the selection element. Display 305 displays the name of the selection element. Bar 113 is set to change color depending on the number of views and the viewing progress rate 112. Viewing progress rate 112 displays the number of products included in the selection element and the number of products included in the selection element that have been viewed. The example in FIG. 15 shows that 83 products out of 3255 types of products have been viewed.

[0087] In display 303 in Fig. 15, the display of the viewing progress rate for each sub-brand of a lower element has the same configuration as the display of the viewing progress rate for the selected element in display 302. In the following explanation, the display of the sub-brand "AAAAA" will be explained as a representative display of the viewing progress rate for a sub-brand as a lower element. The display of the viewing progress rate for the sub-brand "AAAAA" displays, from the left, a product image 306, a display 307 of the lower element name, a bar 113, a "Next" button 111, and a viewing progress rate 112.

[0088] Product image 306 displays an image of a product that represents the sub-brand "AAAAA." Display 307 displays the name of the sub-brand "AAAAA." Bar 113 and viewing progress rate 112 have the same configuration as display 302, so their explanation will be omitted. Furthermore, by pressing the "Next" button 111, the viewing progress rate screen transitions to a viewing progress rate screen when "AAAAA" is selected as the selection element.

[0089] For example, in Fig. 15, when the "Next" button 111 for the display of the viewing progress rate for brand "AAAAA" is pressed, the viewing progress rate screen is shifted to a viewing display screen for when brand "AAAAA" is selected. The viewing progress rate display screen with this configuration allows a comparison between the entire selected element and the elements in the hierarchy immediately below that element, allowing the user to obtain more detailed information about the viewing progress rate.

[0090] As described above, the product display screen according to this embodiment can be switched to a viewing progress rate display screen, allowing the user to easily grasp the viewing status of the product display screen. Note that the screens described using Figures 14 and 15 are examples of screens related to viewing history, and the screen configuration is not limited to this.

[0091] Next, the sorted display screen will be described with reference to Figs. 16 to 18. Fig. 16 is a schematic diagram showing a diagram in which products are arranged in chronological order on a sorted display screen on a product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 17 is a schematic diagram showing a diagram in which products are arranged in order of popularity on a sorted display screen on a product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 18 is a schematic diagram showing a diagram in which products are arranged in order of weight on a sorted display screen on a product display screen according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0092] The sort display screen is a product display screen in which the arrangement of multiple products is determined based on information specified from among the information related to the product information. For example, in Fig. 16, the product display system S displays a product display screen in which the arrangement of products is determined based on the time-series information included in the product information.

[0093] In the sort display screen shown in FIG. 16 , an x button 116 for closing the screen is displayed in the upper left of the screen. Also, a search icon 114 is displayed in the upper right of the screen. By entering a search term in an input box 115 and pressing the search icon 114, only products matching the search term are displayed. Below the x button 116, input box 115, and search icon 114, there is a display 117 showing a portion of a condition column displaying multiple conditions, including "chronological order," "popularity," "weight," "number of registrations," "thickness," and "price." Condition columns that are not displayed can be displayed by sliding the display. Additionally, the condition column for the specified information is highlighted. For example, in the example of FIG. 16 , the "chronological order" condition column is highlighted by displaying a bold border around the column as the specified information.

[0094] In addition, below the display 117, a tag group 107 including multiple tags indicating product features is displayed, and can be slid left and right. Examples of tags include "sub-brand name," "series name," "color variations," "functions," and "display type." Furthermore, below the tag group 107, a year display 118 and a user age display 119 are displayed. Below the display 118, a product image corresponding to the year indicated by the display 118 is displayed. The display 119 also indicates the user's age in the year indicated by the display 118. The age displayed in the display 119 is automatically calculated from the year indicated by the display 118 and the user's age information pre-registered in the database of the storage unit 16 of the management server 10. In the display 119, the user can compare the product's history with their own history.

[0095] In addition, a MY button 106 is displayed at the bottom right of the product display screen. In the product display system S, pressing the MY button 106 executes a process of scrolling the sort display screen to a screen displaying the owned products.

[0096] Furthermore, on the product display screen according to this embodiment, when the above-mentioned condition field is selected, the product arrangement is changed based on the content entered in the condition field. For example, as shown in FIG. 17, when the "Popularity" condition field is selected as the specified information, a favorite count display 120 is displayed instead of the year display 118 in FIG. 16, and products are sorted and displayed according to the number of favorites. In the product display system S according to this embodiment, the product information includes the number of favorite registrations tallied for each product. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 18, when the "Weight" condition field is selected as the specified information, a weight display 121 is displayed instead of the year display 118 in FIG. 16, and products are sorted and displayed according to the product weight. Note that the explanation using FIGS. 16 to 18 is an example of a sort display screen, and the screen configuration is not limited to this.

[0097] Furthermore, in the product display system S according to this embodiment, possession information including information such as the model numbers of owned products can be stored in advance in a database in the storage unit 16 of the management server 10. Furthermore, the management server 10 according to this embodiment can change and emphasize the display of a product identified on the product display screen based on the possession information stored in the database. In other words, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 performs processing to display on the screen of the output unit 45 of the user terminal 1 in a manner that enables the relationship between multiple products and the identified user's owned products to be recognized.

[0098] For example, in the product display screen of the tree display screen in FIG. 7, if the image of the product identified based on the possession information is product image 300, product image 300 is highlighted and surrounded by a thick frame E. In this case, the tree display screen in FIG. 7 is one form of a product display screen that allows the user to recognize the relationship between multiple products and the products owned by the user. The highlighting method may also be a method of changing the display of product image 300 itself. For example, the highlighting method may be a method of changing the size or color of product image 300, or a method of creating a moving animation.

[0099] In the product display system S according to this embodiment, products that fall under owned products are highlighted by surrounding the edges of the product image with a bold frame E, as shown in FIG. 16. This improves the visibility of owned products, allowing the user to more easily find owned products. In addition, the representative model displayed when a reduced display is performed on the tree display screen can be changed to display a product associated with the owned information instead of a base model set by the product manufacturer. Furthermore, the processing unit 30 sets the appearance image of a product that corresponds to an owned product among the multiple products arranged on the tree display screen to an appearance image that matches the specifications of the owned information.

[0100] In the present embodiment, the product display screen changes only the display of product images corresponding to the owned products to enable the user to recognize the relationship between the multiple products and the user's owned products. However, this is not limited to this. For example, the product display screen may change only the display of product images of multiple products other than the owned products to enable the user to distinguish between the multiple products and the user's owned products and recognize the relationship between them, or may change the display of both the owned products and the existing products to enable the user to distinguish between the multiple products and the user's owned products and recognize the relationship between them. Furthermore, the form of the product display screen that enables the user to recognize the relationship between the multiple products and the user's owned products is not limited to a tree display screen, and may also be, for example, a sort display screen.

[0101] That is, in the product display system S of this embodiment, the processing unit 30 acquires possession information indicating the products owned by the user, identifies the product owned by the user corresponding to the possession information from among multiple products, and performs processing to display at least one of the information regarding the multiple products and the information regarding the identified product owned by the user on the screen of the output unit 45 of the user terminal 1 as a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the multiple products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized.

[0102] Here, the display unit is the screen of the output unit 45 of the user terminal 1 in this embodiment, but is not limited to this and may be the screen of the output unit 15 of the management server 10. Furthermore, the process for displaying on the display unit may be a process for generating a screen of the mode to be displayed on the screen of the output unit 45 of the user terminal 1, or a process for generating possession information, product information, etc. for generating a screen of the mode in the user terminal 1.

[0103] Next, the owned product identification process will be described using a flowchart. The owned product identification process refers to a series of steps for identifying products that the user owns from among multiple products stored in the database of the storage unit 16 of the management server 10.

[0104] When the owned product identification process is executed, as shown in Fig. 3, a product information acquisition unit 34, a possession information identification unit 35, and a product display generation unit 36 function in the CPU 11. In addition, a database is set in one area of the storage unit 16 as described above. The database stores information about a plurality of products.

[0105] Fig. 19 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of owned product identification processing executed by the management server 10 of Fig. 2 having the functional configuration of Fig. 3. The owned product identification processing starts when the communication control unit 31 receives ownership information of owned products from the user terminal 1 via the communication unit 17.

[0106] First, the processing unit 30 acquires possession information of owned products from the user terminal 1 via the communication unit 17 (step S10). Next, the processing unit 30 references a plurality of products stored in the database of the storage unit 16 to determine whether or not there is a product that corresponds to the owned product (step S11). If there is no product that corresponds to the owned product (step S11: NO), the processing unit 30 sends an error notification to the user terminal 1 via the communication unit 17 (step S13) and ends the processing. If there is a product that corresponds to the owned product, the processing unit 30 identifies the product as the owned product (step S11: YES), performs processing to send information for generating a product display screen including product information of the owned product to the user terminal 1 via the communication unit 17 (step S12), and ends the processing.

[0107] The management server 10 configured as described above is equipped with a processing unit 30 that acquires possession information indicating owned products owned by a user, identifies the owned product of the user corresponding to the possession information from among multiple products, and performs processing to display at least one of the information regarding the multiple products and the information regarding the owned product of the identified user on the display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the multiple products and the owned product of the identified user to be recognized.

[0108] As a result, the management server 10 according to this embodiment can automatically display the product display screen by acquiring the products owned by the user. Therefore, by viewing the generated product display screen, the user can recognize and distinguish the relationship between multiple products and the products owned by the user, and can more easily search for the products owned by the user from the product display screen.

[0109] In addition, in the management server 10 according to this embodiment, each piece of product information includes multiple pieces of information about the product, and the processing unit 30 determines the placement of the multiple products to be displayed based on information specified from the information about the multiple products.

[0110] This allows the management server 10 to automatically sort multiple products by specifying the information, and allows multiple products to be viewed more efficiently.

[0111] Furthermore, in the management server 10 according to this embodiment, each piece of product information includes a plurality of pieces of information about the product, and the processing unit 30 executes processing to generate a tree display screen for a plurality of products based on the product information.

[0112] This allows the management server 10 to automatically create a tree display screen by acquiring product information, and allows the tree display screen to be created more efficiently.

[0113] Furthermore, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment sets text information to be displayed between products on the tree display screen.

[0114] As a result, the management server 10 sets text information such as the relationship and meaning between the products on the tree display screen, making it easier to understand the product information on the tree display screen.

[0115] Furthermore, in the management server 10 according to this embodiment, each piece of product information includes a sub-brand model number 411 indicating a sub-brand associated with a specific brand, and the processing unit 30 performs processing to generate information related to a display of multiple products divided by sub-brand from the product information including the sub-brand model number 411 corresponding to the specific brand.

[0116] As a result, the management server 10 according to this embodiment can recognize sub-brands from model numbers and automatically generate product display screens that separate multiple products for each sub-brand, making it easier to create product display screens.

[0117] Furthermore, in the management server 10 according to this embodiment, each piece of product information includes a series model number 412 indicating a series associated with a specific sub-brand, and the processing unit 30 performs processing to generate information related to a display of multiple products divided by series from the product information including the series model number 412 corresponding to the specific sub-brand.

[0118] As a result, the management server 10 according to this embodiment can recognize the product series from the model number and automatically generate a product display screen that separates multiple products by series, making it easier to create a product display screen.

[0119] Furthermore, in the management server 10 according to this embodiment, each piece of product information includes a successor model number 413 indicating that the product is a successor model to a product associated with a specified series, and the processing unit 30 performs processing to generate information related to a display showing the state in which the successor model is connected after the product associated with the specified series from the product information including the successor model number 413 corresponding to the product associated with the specified series.

[0120] As a result, the management server 10 according to this embodiment can automatically generate a product display screen in which products are arranged in the order of development of the series based on the model number, making it easier to create a product display screen.

[0121] Furthermore, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment sets the appearance image of the product corresponding to the owned product among the plurality of products to an appearance image that matches the specifications of the possession information.

[0122] This allows the user to more easily find the products they own on the product display screen.

[0123] Furthermore, when a product to be purchased is designated from among the multiple products displayed in a list, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment proceeds to sales processing for purchasing the product.

[0124] This allows the user to purchase a product while viewing the product display screen, further improving convenience.

[0125] In addition, the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 in this embodiment acquires possession information based on information manually input by the user, acquires possession information by reading an identifier with the imaging unit 48, acquires possession information by receiving information from an external device such as an IC tag via short-range wireless communication, or acquires possession information by analyzing an image of the owned product captured by the imaging unit 48.

[0126] This allows the user to easily generate possession information by, for example, inputting information into the input unit 44 of the user terminal 1. The user can also more easily obtain possession information by having the imaging unit 48 read a QR code (registered trademark) or the like. The user can also more easily obtain possession information by having the short-range communication unit 49 of the user terminal 1 perform short-range communication with an IC tag or the like. The user can also more easily cause the processing unit 30 to obtain possession information by transmitting an image of the owned product captured by the imaging unit 48 of the user terminal 1 to the management server 10, whereby the processing unit 30 analyzes the image and obtains the possession information.

[0127] [Variations] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and any modifications and improvements that can achieve the object of the present invention are included in the present invention.

[0128] In the product display system S according to this embodiment, when the management server 10 receives a command for generating a product display screen from the user terminal 1, it performs a process for generating a product display screen and transmits the product display screen to the user terminal 1. However, this is not limited to this. For example, when the management server 10 receives a command for generating a product display screen from the user terminal 1, it may transmit information necessary for generating the product display screen, such as product information, to the user terminal 1, and the user terminal 1 may perform a process for generating the product display screen.

[0129] Furthermore, although the product display screen generated by the processing unit 30 of the management server 10 according to this embodiment displays all products stored in the product database of the storage unit 16, this is not limiting, and the content of the product display screen to be displayed may be changed according to set conditions. For example, when outputting a product display screen to a user who has a predetermined number or more of registered possession information, the processing unit 30 may add additional information to the output product display screen. When outputting a product display screen to a user who has less than a predetermined number of registered possession information, the processing unit 30 may display only a portion of the products stored in the product database. Furthermore, the processing unit 30 may perform processing to generate a product display screen, such as a tree view screen, limited to products with specified information.

[0130] Furthermore, in the product display system S according to this embodiment, the possession information is input by the user directly through an input operation on the keyboard or the like of the input unit 44 of the user terminal 1, but this is not limiting. For example, the possession information may be acquired from the captured image information by capturing an image of a two-dimensional barcode or three-dimensional barcode displayed on a product using the imaging unit 48 of the user terminal 1. Alternatively, the possession information may be acquired by capturing an image of the product using the imaging unit 48 and using a learning model trained by machine learning or the like from the captured image information of the product. Alternatively, the possession information may be acquired from an IC tag or the like attached to the product via NFC communication using the near-field communication unit 49 of the user terminal 1.

[0131] The above-described series of processes can be executed by hardware or software. In other words, the functional configurations of Figures 3 and 5 are merely examples and are not particularly limited. In other words, it is sufficient for the management server 10 to be provided with a function that can execute the above-described series of processes as a whole, and the type of functional block used to realize this function is not particularly limited to the examples of Figures 3 and 5.

[0132] Furthermore, one functional block may be configured as a hardware unit, a software unit, or a combination thereof. The functional configuration in this embodiment is realized by a processor that executes arithmetic processing, and processors that can be used in this embodiment include those configured as various processing units such as single processors, multiprocessors, and multicore processors, as well as those that combine these various processing units with processing circuits such as ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits) and FPGAs (Field-Programmable Gate Arrays).

[0133] When a series of processes is executed by software, the programs that make up the software are installed into a computer or the like from a network or a recording medium. The computer may be a computer built into dedicated hardware. Alternatively, the computer may be a computer that can execute various functions by installing various programs, such as a general-purpose personal computer.

[0134] The recording medium containing such a program may be a removable medium distributed separately from the device main body to provide the program to the user, or may be a recording medium provided to the user in a state where it is pre-installed in the device main body. Removable media may be, for example, a magnetic disk (including a floppy disk), an optical disk, or a magneto-optical disk. Optical disks may be, for example, CD-ROMs (Compact Disk-Read Only Memory), DVDs (Digital Versatile Disks), Blu-ray (registered trademark) Discs, etc. Magneto-optical disks may be, for example, MDs (Mini-Disks), etc. Furthermore, a recording medium provided to the user in a state where it is pre-installed in the device main body may be, for example, the ROM 12 in FIG. 2 on which the program is recorded, or a hard disk included in the storage unit 16 in FIG. 2.

[0135] In this specification, the steps describing the program to be recorded on the recording medium include not only processes that are performed in chronological order, but also processes that are not necessarily performed in chronological order but are performed in parallel or individually.

[0136] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are merely illustrative and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. The present invention can take on various other embodiments, and various modifications such as omissions and substitutions can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention described in this specification, etc., and are also included in the invention described in the claims and their equivalents.

[0137] The inventions described in the claims of the present application as originally filed are set forth below. [Appendix 1] Acquire possession information indicating the products possessed by the user; Identifying a product owned by the user corresponding to the ownership information from among a plurality of products; performing processing for displaying, on a display unit, at least one of information about the plurality of products and information about the identified product owned by the user in a manner that enables a user to recognize a relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user; An information processing device comprising a processing unit. [Appendix 2] Each of the pieces of information about the products includes a plurality of pieces of information about product specifications; The processing unit The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement of the plurality of products to be displayed is determined based on a specification specified from among the plurality of specifications. [Appendix 3] Each of the pieces of information about the products includes a plurality of pieces of information about product specifications; The processing unit 3. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the information processing device executes a process of generating a system diagram of the plurality of products based on information about the products. [Appendix 4] The processing unit The information processing device according to claim 3, wherein text information to be displayed between products in the system diagram is set. [Appendix 5] each of the pieces of information relating to the products includes a first identifier indicating a sub-brand associated with a given brand; The information processing device described in any one of Appendices 1 to 4, characterized in that the processing unit performs processing to generate information related to a display in which the multiple products are divided into sub-brands from information about products including the first identifier corresponding to the specified brand. [Appendix 6] each of the information relating to the product includes a second identifier indicating a series associated with the sub-brand; The information processing device described in Appendix 5 is characterized in that the processing unit performs processing to generate information related to a display in which the multiple products are divided by the series from information about the product including the second identifier corresponding to the sub-brand. [Appendix 7] each of the information relating to the product includes a third identifier indicating that the product is a successor model to a product associated with the series; The information processing device described in Appendix 6 is characterized in that the processing unit performs processing to generate information related to a display showing a state in which the successor model is connected after a product associated with the series from information about the product including the third identifier corresponding to the product associated with the series. [Appendix 8] The processing unit An information processing device according to any one of appendices 1 to 7, characterized in that an appearance image of a product corresponding to the owned product among the plurality of products is set to an appearance image that matches the specifications of the possession information. [Appendix 9] The processing unit 9. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein when a product to be purchased is designated from the plurality of products displayed in a list, the information processing device proceeds to a sales process for purchasing the product. [Appendix 10] The processing unit The possession information is acquired based on information manually input by a user, by reading an identifier with a photographing unit, by receiving information from an external device via wireless communication, or by analyzing an image of the possessed product photographed by a photographing unit. 10. The information processing device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 9. [Appendix 11] an electronic device having a first communication unit capable of transmitting possession information indicating a product possessed by a user to an external device; a second communication unit that communicates with the first communication unit and acquires the possession information; and a second communication unit that identifies a product possessed by the user that corresponds to the possession information from among a plurality of products; An information processing system characterized by comprising: an information processing device having a processing unit that processes at least one of information regarding the plurality of products and information regarding the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized. [Appendix 12] In the information processing device, Acquire possession information indicating the products possessed by the user; Identifying a product owned by the user corresponding to the ownership information from among a plurality of products; A program that executes a processing function to perform processing to display at least one of information about the plurality of products and information about the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized. [Appendix 13] A product display method executed by an information processing device, comprising: Acquire possession information indicating the products possessed by the user; Identifying a product owned by the user corresponding to the ownership information from among a plurality of products; A product display method including a processing step of performing processing to display at least one of information about the plurality of products and information about the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized. [Explanation of symbols]

[0138] 10 Management Server 30 Processing section

Claims

1. Acquire possession information indicating the products possessed by the user; Identifying a product owned by the user corresponding to the ownership information from among a plurality of products; performing processing for displaying, on a display unit, at least one of information about the plurality of products and information about the identified product owned by the user in a manner that enables a user to recognize a relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user; An information processing device comprising a processing unit.

2. Each of the pieces of information about the products includes a plurality of pieces of information about product specifications; The processing unit 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement of the plurality of products to be displayed is determined based on a specification specified from among the plurality of specifications.

3. Each of the pieces of information about the products includes a plurality of pieces of information about product specifications; The processing unit 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus generates a system diagram of the plurality of products based on information about the products.

4. The processing unit 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein text information to be displayed between products on the system diagram is set.

5. each of the information about the product includes a first identifier indicating a sub-brand associated with a given brand; An information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the processing unit performs processing to generate information related to a display in which the multiple products are divided into sub-brands from information about products including the first identifier corresponding to the specified brand.

6. each of the information relating to the product includes a second identifier indicating a series associated with the sub-brand; The information processing device according to claim 5, characterized in that the processing unit performs processing to generate information related to a display in which the multiple products are divided by the series from information about the product including the second identifier corresponding to the sub-brand.

7. each of the pieces of information relating to the product includes a third identifier indicating that the product is a successor model to a product associated with the series; The information processing device according to claim 6, characterized in that the processing unit performs processing to generate information related to a display showing a state in which the successor model is connected after a product associated with the series from information about the product including the third identifier corresponding to the product associated with the series.

8. The processing unit 8. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein an appearance image of a product corresponding to the owned product among the plurality of products is set to an appearance image that matches the specifications of the possession information.

9. The processing unit 9. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein when a product to be purchased is designated from the plurality of products displayed in a list, the device proceeds to a sales process for purchasing the product.

10. The processing unit The possession information is acquired based on information manually input by a user, by reading an identifier with a photographing unit, by receiving information from an external device via wireless communication, or by analyzing an image of the possessed product photographed by a photographing unit.

10. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein:

11. an electronic device having a first communication unit capable of transmitting possession information indicating a product possessed by a user to an external device; a second communication unit that communicates with the first communication unit and acquires the possession information; and a second communication unit that identifies a product possessed by the user that corresponds to the possession information from among a plurality of products; An information processing system characterized by comprising: an information processing device having a processing unit that processes at least one of information regarding the plurality of products and information regarding the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized.

12. In the information processing device, Acquire possession information indicating the products possessed by the user; Identifying a product owned by the user corresponding to the ownership information from among a plurality of products; A program that executes a processing function to perform processing to display at least one of information about the plurality of products and information about the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized.

13. A product display method executed by an information processing device, comprising: Acquire possession information indicating the products possessed by the user; Identifying a product owned by the user corresponding to the ownership information from among a plurality of products; A product display method including a processing step of performing processing to display at least one of information about the plurality of products and information about the identified product owned by the user on a display unit in a manner that allows the relationship between the plurality of products and the identified product owned by the user to be recognized.

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